Search results for: Pressure Decay Method

Authors: Kotaro Miura, Makoto Sakamoto, Yuji Tanabe

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We focus on internal stress and displacement of an elastic axisymmetric contact problem for indentation of a layer-substrate body. An elastic layer is assumed to be perfectly bonded to an elastic semi-infinite substrate. The elastic layer is smoothly indented with a flat-ended cylindrical indenter. The analytical and exact solutions were obtained by solving an infinite system of simultaneous equations using the method to express a normal contact stress at the upper surface of the elastic layer as an appropriate series. This paper presented the numerical results of internal stress and displacement distributions for hard-coating system with constant values of Poisson’s ratio and the thickness of elastic layer.

Keywords: indentation, contact problem, stress distribution, coating materials, layer-substrate body

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Authors: Sandro Bartolini, Alessandro Mecocci, Alessio Medaglini

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The growing popularity of systems based on unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) is highlighting their vulnerability, particularly in relation to the positioning system used. Typically, UAV architectures use the civilian GPS, which is exposed to a number of different attacks, such as jamming or spoofing. This is why it is important to develop alternative methodologies to accurately estimate the actual UAV position without relying on GPS measurements only. In this paper, we propose a position estimate method for UAVs based on monocular visual odometry. We have developed a flight control system capable of keeping track of the entire trajectory travelled, with a reduced dependency on the availability of GPS signals. Moreover, the simplicity of the developed solution makes it applicable to a wide range of commercial drones. The final goal is to allow for safer flights in all conditions, even under cyber-attacks trying to deceive the drone.

Keywords: visual odometry, autonomous uav, position measurement, autonomous outdoor flight

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Authors: Narayana Bhat, Majda Khalil, Hamad Al-Mansour, Anitha Manuvel, Vimla Yeddu

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The aim of this study was to assess the antimicrobial and antioxidant potential and phytochemical composition of Peganum harmala L. For this purpose, powdered shoot, root, and seed samples were extracted in an accelerated solvent extractor (ASE) with methanol, ethanol, acetone, and dichloromethane. The residues were reconstituted in the above solvents and 10% dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO). The antimicrobial activity of these extracts was tested against two bacterial (Escherichia coli E49 and Staphylococcus aureus CCUG 43507) and two fungi Candida albicans ATCC 24433, Candida glabrata ATCC 15545) strains using the well-diffusion method. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and growth pattern of these test strains were determined using microbroth dilution method, and the phospholipase assay was performed to detect tissue damage in the host cells. Results revealed that ethanolic, methanolic, and dichloromethane extracts of seeds exhibited significant antimicrobial activities against all tested strains, whereas the acetone extract of seeds was effective against E. coli only. Similarly, ethanolic and methanolic extracts of roots were effective against two bacterial strains only. One sixth of percent (0.6%) yield of methanol extract of seeds was found to be the MIC for Escherichia coli E49, Staphylococcus aureus CCUG 43507, and Candida glabrata ATCC 15545. Overall, seed extracts had greater antimicrobial activities compared to roots and shoot extracts. The original plant extract and MIC dilutions prevented phospholipase secretion in Staphylococcus aureus CCUG 43507 and Candida albicans ATCC 24433. The 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging assay revealed radical scavenging activities ranging from 71.80 ± 4.36% to 87.75 ± 1.70%. The main compound present in the root extract was 1-methyl-7-methoxy-beta-carboline (RT: 44.171), followed by norlapachol (3.62%), benzopyrazine (2.20%), palmitic acid (2.12%) and vasicinone (1.96%). In contrast, phenol,4-ethenyl-2-methoxy was in abundance in the methonolic extract of the shoot, whereas 1-methyl-7-methoxy-beta-carboline (79.59%), linoleic acid (9.05%), delta-tocopherol (5.02%), 9,12-octadecadienoic acid, methyl ester (2.65%), benzene, 1,1-1,2 ethanediyl bis 3,4dimethyl (1.15%), anthraquinone (0.58%), hexadecanoic acid, methyl ester (0.54%), palmitic acid (0.35%) and methyl stearate (0.18%) were present in the methanol extract of seeds. Major findings of this study, along with their relevance to developing effective, safe drugs, will be discussed in this presentation.

Keywords: medicinal plants, secondary metabolites, phytochemical screening, bioprospecting, radical scavenging

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Authors: Uzu-Kuei Hsu, Chang-Hsien Tai, Kai-Wun Jin

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When sinters are filled into the cooler from the sintering machine, and the non-uniform distribution of the sinters leads to uneven cooling. This causes the temperature difference of the sinters leaving the cooler to be so large that it results in the conveyors being deformed by the heat. The present work applies CFD method to investigate the thermo flowfield phenomena in a sinter cooler by the Porous Media Model. Using the obtained experimental data to simulate porosity (Ε), permeability (κ), inertial coefficient (F), specific heat (Cp) and effective thermal conductivity (keff) of the sinter packed beds. The physical model is a similar geometry whose Darcy numbers (Da) are similar to the sinter cooler. Using the Cooling Index (CI) and Uniformity Index (UI) to analyze the thermo flowfield in the sinter packed bed obtains the cooling performance of the sinter cooler.

Keywords: porous media, sinter, cooling index (CI), uniformity index (UI), CFD

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Authors: Wheyming Song, Hung-Hsiang Lin, Scott Lian

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In this research, we investigate the optimal dispatching rule for machines and manpower allocation in the solar ingot-wafer systems. The performance of the method is measured by the sales profit for each dollar paid to the operators in a one week at steady-state. The decision variables are identification-number of machines and operators when each job is required to be served in each process. We propose a rule which is a function of operator’s ability, corresponding salary, and standing location while in the factory. The rule is named ‘Multi-nominal distribution dispatch rule’. The proposed rule performs better than many traditional rules including generic algorithm and particle swarm optimization. Simulation results show that the proposed Multi-nominal distribution dispatch rule improvement on the sales profit dramatically.

Keywords: dispatching, solar ingot, simulation, flexsim

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Authors: Shunpu Zhang

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We propose a new multiple test called the minPOP test for testing multiple hypotheses simultaneously. Under the assumption that the test statistics are independent, we show that the minPOP test has higher global power than the existing multiple testing methods. We further propose a stepwise multiple-testing procedure based on the minPOP test and two of its modified versions (the Double Truncated and Left Truncated minPOP tests). We show that these multiple tests have strong control of the family-wise error rate (FWER). A method for finding the p-values of the proposed tests after adjusting for multiplicity is also developed. Simulation results show that the Double Truncated and Left Truncated minPOP tests, in general, have a higher number of rejections than the existing multiple testing procedures.

Keywords: multiple test, single-step procedure, stepwise procedure, p-value for multiple testing

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Authors: Shah Rucksana Akhter Urme

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Agriculture is the main source of food for human consumption and feeding the world huge population, the pressure of food supply is increasing day by day. Undoubtedly, quality strain, improved plantation, farming technology, synthetic fertilizer, readily available irrigation, insecticides and harvesting technology are the main factors those to meet up the huge demand of food consumption all over the world. However, depended on this limited resources and excess amount of consuming lands, water, fertilizers leads to the end of the resources and severe climate effects has been left for our future generation. Agriculture is the most responsible to global warming, emitting more greenhouse gases than all other vehicles largely from nitrous oxide released by from fertilized fields, and carbon dioxide from the cutting of rain forests to grow crops . Farming is the thirstiest user of our precious water supplies and a major polluter, as runoff from fertilizers disrupts fragile lakes, rivers, and coastal ecosystems across the globe which accelerates the loss of biodiversity, crucial habitat and a major driver of wildlife extinction. It is needless to say that we have to more concern on how we can save the nutrients of the soil, storage of the water and avoid excessive depends on synthetic fertilizer and insecticides. In this case, eco- friendly cultivation could be a potential alternative solution to minimize effects of agriculture in our environment. The objective of this review paper is about organic cultivation following in particular biotechnological process focused on bio-fertilizer and bio-pesticides. Intense practice of chemical pesticides, insecticides has severe effect on both in human life and biodiversity. This cultivation process introduces farmer an alternative way which is nonhazardous, cost effective and ecofriendly. Organic fertilizer such as tea residue, ashes might be the best alternative to synthetic fertilizer those play important role in increasing soil nutrient and fertility. Ashes contain different essential and non-essential mineral contents that are required for plant growth. Organic pesticide such as neem spray is beneficial for crop as it is toxic for pest and insects. Recycled and composted crop wastes and animal manures, crop rotation, green manures and legumes etc. are suitable for soil fertility which is free from hazardous chemicals practice. Finally water hyacinth and algae are potential source of nutrients even alternative to soil for cultivation along with storage of water for continuous supply. Inorganic practice of agriculture, consuming fruits and vegetables becomes a threat for both human life and eco-system and synthetic fertilizer and pesticides are responsible for it. Farmers that practice eco-friendly farming have to implement steps to protect the environment, particularly by severely limiting the use of pesticides and avoiding the use of synthetic chemical fertilizers, which are necessary for organic systems to experience reduced environmental harm and health risk.

Keywords: organic farming, biopesticides, organic nutrients, water storage, global warming

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Authors: M. Palizvan, M. T. Abadi, M. H. Sadr

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Due to variations in damage mechanisms in the microscale, the behavior of fiber-reinforced composites is nonlinear and difficult to model. To make use of computational advantages, homogenization method is applied to the micro-scale model in order to minimize the cost at the expense of detail of local microscale phenomena. In this paper, the effective stiffness is calculated using the homogenization of nonlinear behavior of a composite representative volume element (RVE) containing fiber-matrix debonding. The damage modes for the RVE are considered by using cohesive elements and contacts for the cohesive behavior of the interface between fiber and matrix. To predict more realistic responses of composite materials, different random distributions of fibers are proposed besides square and hexagonal arrays. It was shown that in some cases, there is quite different damage behavior in different fiber distributions. A comprehensive comparison has been made between different graphs.

Keywords: homogenization, cohesive zone model, fiber-matrix debonding, RVE

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Authors: Peng Li, Er-xiang Song

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Numerical analysis of longitudinal tunnel seismic response due to spatial variation of earthquake ground motion is an important issue that cannot be ignored in the design and safety evaluation of tunnel structures. In this paper, numerical methods for analysis of tunnel longitudinal response under asynchronous seismic wave is extensively studied, including the improvement of the 1D time-domain finite element method, three dimensional numerical simulation technique for the site asynchronous earthquake response as well as the 3-D soil-tunnel structure interaction analysis. The study outcome will be beneficial to aid further research on the nonlinear meticulous numerical analysis and seismic response mechanism of tunnel structures under asynchronous earthquake motion.

Keywords: asynchronous input, longitudinal seismic response, tunnel structure, numerical simulation, traveling wave effect

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Authors: Lukasz Szymanski, Zbigniew Kolacinski, Grzegorz Raniszewski, Slawomir Wiak, Lukasz Pietrzak, Dariusz Koza, Karolina Przybylowska-Sygut, Ireneusz Majsterek, Zbigniew Kaminski, Justyna Fraczyk, Malgorzata Walczak, Beata Kolasinska, Adam Bednarek, Joanna Konka

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The aim of this work is to investigate the influence of electromagnetic field from the range of radio frequencies on the desired nanoparticles for cancer therapy. In the article, the development and demonstration of the method and the model device for hyperthermic selective destruction of cancer cells are presented. This method was based on the synthesis and functionalization of carbon nanotubes serving as ferromagnetic material nanocontainers. The methodology of the production carbon - ferromagnetic nanocontainers (FNCs) includes: The synthesis of carbon nanotubes, chemical, and physical characterization, increasing the content of a ferromagnetic material and biochemical functionalization involving the attachment of the key addresses. The ferromagnetic nanocontainers were synthesised in CVD and microwave plasma system. Biochemical functionalization of ferromagnetic nanocontainers is necessary in order to increase the binding selectively with receptors presented on the surface of tumour cells. Multi-step modification procedure was finally used to attach folic acid on the surface of ferromagnetic nanocontainers. Pristine ferromagnetic carbon nanotubes are not suitable for application in medicine and biotechnology. Appropriate functionalization of ferromagnetic carbon nanotubes allows to receiving materials useful in medicine. Finally, a product contains folic acids on the surface of FNCs. The folic acid is a ligand of folate receptors – α which is overexpressed on the surface of epithelial tumours cells. It is expected that folic acids will be recognized and selectively bound by receptors presented on the surface of tumour cells. In our research, FNCs were covalently functionalized in a multi-step procedure. Ferromagnetic carbon nanotubes were oxidated using different oxidative agents. For this purpose, strong acids such as HNO3, or mixture HNO3 and H2SO4 were used. Reactive carbonyl and carboxyl groups were formed on the open sides and at the defects on the sidewalls of FNCs. These groups allow further modification of FNCs as a reaction of amidation, reaction of introduction appropriate linkers which separate solid surface of FNCs and ligand (folic acid). In our studies, amino acid and peptide have been applied as ligands. The last step of chemical modification was reaction-condensation with folic acid. In all reaction as coupling reagents were used derivatives of 1,3,5-triazine. The first trials in the device for hyperthermal RF generator have been done. The frequency of RF generator was in the ranges from 10 to 14Mhz and from 265 to 621kHz. Obtained functionalized nanoparticles enabled to reach the temperature of denaturation tumor cells in given frequencies.

Keywords: cancer colon cells, carbon nanotubes, hyperthermia, ligands

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Authors: Maria Visitacion N. Gumabay, Byron Joseph A. Hallar, Annjeannette Alain D. Galang

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This study was intended to provide a more efficient and convenient way for mobile users to enhance their knowledge about ASEAN countries. The researchers evaluated the utility of the developed crossword puzzle application and assessed the general usability of its user interface for its intended purpose and audience of users. The descriptive qualitative research method for the research design and the Mobile-D methodology was employed for the development of the software application output. With a generally favorable reception from its users, the researchers concluded that the iSEA Mobile Based Learning Application can be considered ready for general deployment and use. It was also concluded that additional studies can also be done to make a more complete assessment of the knowledge gained by its users before and after using the application.

Keywords: mobile learning, eLearning, crossword, ASEAN, iSEA

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Authors: Hasan S. Mahmoud, Salwa M. Beheiry, Vian Ahmed

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In light of the repercussions of the 2008 global economic crisis, the response of the United Arab Emirates economy and growth, and the vast construction activities that are undergoing, there is a need to investigate the relationship between construction activities and the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). This study aims to investigate the causality relationship between the construction industry in the United Arab Emirates and the GDP of the country in the last decade. For that, this study will investigate the relationship between the growth of the GDP and the growth of construction activities and their value addition to the economy. To ascertain this relationship, Granger Causality method is used to identify the causality between the time-dependent series.

Keywords: construction value addition, Granger causality, growth of gross domestic product, United Arab Emirates

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Authors: Aziz Ibrahim Abdulla, Omar Mohanad Mahdi

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The objective of this paper is to explore the effect of incorporating Nano-Silica with Silica-fume in ferrocement mortar to enhancing mechanical properties of it. One type of Nano silica with average diameter size 23nm and silica fume have been used with two percentage (1%, 2% Nano silica and 5%, 10% silica fume per weight of cement) and w/c with / without superplasticizer was been calculated by flow test method. Also three sand: cement ratios have been used (1.5, 2.0 and 2.5) with max. Aggregate size 0.6mm in this study for reference and other mixtures. Results reveal adding Nano silica with silica fume to ferrocement mortar enhances its physical and mechanical properties such as compressive strength and flexural strength. The SEM pictures and density with absorption ratio demonstrate that Nano silica with silica fume contributes to enhancement of mortar through yielding denser, more compact and uniform mixtures.

Keywords: nano silica, ferrocement mortar, compresion strength, flexural strength

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Authors: Elif Esiyok

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Brand placement practices have become a popular advertising strategy, which is widely used in movies. Whether these brands are remembered by the audience after the film, or if they affect the purchasing preferences of the consumers has become one of the most important topics in the field of advertising. From this point, in this study, the "Devil Wears Prada" movie which includes high amount of brand placements is chosen. The movie watched to the undergraduate students in Turkey to measure the impact of brand placements on the attitudes of the consumers relating with a specific brand. In total 100 students were the subjects of this study. The participants were selected through using a simple random sampling method. The findings revealed that there is a significant difference between male and females in terms of brand recall. Female students were remembered the fashion brands more than the males, whereas males generally recalled the automotive brands and restaurant names.

Keywords: brand placement, brand recall, advertising, media

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Authors: Fatima Ezzahra Siragi, Omar Benaini

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For many years, Generation Y has been at the center of controversies. This topic made the buzz in the Media as well as in scientific literature. Previous research led to contradictory results; some scholars considered this population a wealth for companies, while the others believe it constitutes a young danger in need of proper control. Existing literature has almost studied Generation Y in developed countries; very rare studies were conducted in developing countries. To our knowledge, no published articles have treated Generation Y in Morocco. The purpose of this research is to examine the distinctive characteristics of Generation Y in Morocco as well as their behavior at work. Using quantitative method, the study was conducted on a sample of 250 Moroccan employees that have a high educational level and who belong to Generation Y. Our results have shown high resemblance between Moroccan and Occidental Yers (France, USA, Canada …)

Keywords: Behavior in Organizations, Generation Y, Key Characteristics, Moroccan Yers, Motivation

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Authors: Danielle Sandler dos Passos, Helder Coelho, Flávia Mori Sarti

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Complexity science seeks the understanding of systems adopting diverse theories from various areas. Network analysis has been gaining space and credibility, namely with the biological, social and economic systems. Significant part of the literature focuses only monolayer representations of connections among agents considering one level of their relationships, and excludes other levels of interactions, leading to simplistic results in network analysis. Therefore, this work aims to demonstrate the advantages of the use of multilayer networks for the representation and analysis of networks. For this, we analyzed an interbank network, composed of 42 banks, comparing the centrality measures of the agents (degree and PageRank) resulting from each method (monolayer x multilayer). This proved to be the most reliable and efficient the multilayer analysis for the study of the current networks and highlighted JP Morgan and Deutsche Bank as the most important banks of the analyzed network.

Keywords: complexity, interbank networks, multilayer networks, network analysis

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Authors: Murat Sarı, Emin Gundogar, Mumtaz Ipek

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Nowadays, in a furniture sector, competition of market share (portion) and production variety and changeability enforce the firm to reengineer operations on manufacturing line to increase the productivity. In this study, spring mattress manufacturing line of the furniture manufacturing firm is analyzed analytically. It’s intended to search and find the bottlenecks of production to balance the semi-finished material flow. There are four base points required to investigate in bottleneck elimination process. These are bottlenecks of Method, Material, Machine and Man (work force) resources, respectively. Mentioned bottlenecks are investigated and varied scenarios are created for recruitment of manufacturing system. Probable near optimal alternatives are determined by system models built in Arena simulation software.

Keywords: bottleneck search, buffer stock, furniture sector, simulation

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Authors: Win-Jin Chang, Haw-Long Lee, Yu-Ching Yang

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In this study, we use the atomic-scale finite element method to investigate the mechanical behavior of the armchair- and zigzag-structured nanoporous graphene sheets with the clamped-free-free-free boundary condition under tension and shear loadings. The effect of porosity on Young’s modulus and shear modulus of nanoporous graphene sheets is obvious. For the armchair- and zigzag-structured nanoporous graphene sheets, Young’s modulus and shear modulus decreases with increasing porosity. Young’s modulus and shear modulus of zigzag graphene are larger than that of armchair one for the same porosity. The results are useful for application in the design of nanoporous graphene sheets.

Keywords: graphene, nanoporous, Young's modulus, shear modulus

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Authors: Nebi Gedik

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One of the significant and continual public health problems in the world is breast cancer. Early detection is very important to fight the disease, and mammography has been one of the most common and reliable methods to detect the disease in the early stages. However, it is a difficult task, and computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) systems are needed to assist radiologists in providing both accurate and uniform evaluation for mass in mammograms. In this study, a multiresolution statistical method to classify mammograms as normal and abnormal in digitized mammograms is used to construct a CAD system. The mammogram images are represented by wave atom transform, and this representation is made by certain groups of coefficients, independently. The CAD system is designed by calculating some statistical features using each group of coefficients. The classification is performed by using support vector machine (SVM).

Keywords: wave atom transform, statistical features, multi-resolution representation, mammogram

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Authors: Shreya Thusoo, Karan Modi, Rajesh Kumar, Hitesh Madahar

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Over the years, it has been extensively established that the practice of assuming a structure being fixed at base, leads to gross errors in evaluation of its overall response due to dynamic loadings and overestimations in design. The extent of these errors depends on a number of variables; soil type being one of the major factor. This paper studies the effect of Soil Structure Interaction (SSI) on multi-storey buildings with varying under-laying soil types after proper validation of the effect of SSI. Analysis for soft, stiff and very stiff base soils has been carried out, using a powerful Finite Element Method (FEM) software package ANSYS v14.5. Results lead to some very important conclusions regarding time period, deflection and acceleration responses.

Keywords: dynamic response, multi-storey building, soil-structure interaction, varying soil types

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Authors: Emma Pope, Demos Parapanos

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Rural tourism has become more obvious and prevalent, with tourists’ increasingly seeking authentic experiences. This movement accelerated post-Covid, putting destinations in danger of reaching levels of saturation called ‘overtourism’. Whereas the phenomenon of overtourism has been frequently discussed in the urban context by academics and practitioners over recent years, it has hardly been referred to in the context of rural tourism, where perhaps it is even more difficult to manage. Rural tourism was historically considered small-scale, marked by its traditional character and by having little impact on nature and rural society. The increasing number of rural areas experiencing overtourism, however, demonstrates the need for new approaches, especially as the impacts and enablers of overtourism are context specific. Cumbria, with approximately 47 million visitors each year, and 23,000 operational enterprises, is one of these rural areas experiencing overtourism in the UK. Using the county of Cumbria as an example, this paper aims to explore better planning and management in rural destinations by clustering the area into rural and ‘urban-rural’ tourism zones. To achieve the aim, this study uses secondary data from a variety of sources to identify variables relating to visitor economy development and demand. These data include census data relating to population and employment, tourism industry-specific data including tourism revenue, visitor activities, and accommodation stock, and big data sources such as Trip Advisor and All Trails. The combination of these data sources provides a breadth of tourism-related variables. The subsequent analysis of this data draws upon various validated models. For example, tourism and hospitality employment density, territorial tourism pressure, and accommodation density. In addition to these statistical calculations, other data are utilized to further understand the context of these zones, for example, tourist services, attractions, and activities. The data was imported into ARCGIS where the density of the different variables is visualized on maps. This study aims to provide an understanding of the geographical context of visitor economy development and tourist behavior in rural areas. The findings contribute to an understanding of the spatial dynamics of tourism within the region of Cumbria through the creation of thematized maps. Different zones of tourism industry clusters are identified, which include elements relating to attractions, enterprises, infrastructure, tourism employment and economic impact. These maps visualize hot and cold spots relating to a variety of tourism contexts. It is believed that the strategy used to provide a visual overview of tourism development and demand in Cumbria could provide a strategic tool for rural areas to better plan marketing opportunities and avoid overtourism. These findings can inform future sustainability policy and destination management strategies within the areas through an understanding of the processes behind the emergence of both hot and cold spots. It may mean that attract and disperse needs to be reviewed in terms of a strategic option. In other words, to use sector or zonal policies for the individual hot or cold areas with transitional zones dependent upon local economic, social and environmental factors.

Keywords: overtourism, rural tourism, sustainable tourism, tourism planning, tourism zones

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Authors: Fahad Alanazi, Andrew Jones

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Digital forensics seeks to achieve the successful investigation of digital crimes through obtaining acceptable evidence from digital devices that can be presented in a court of law. Thus, the digital forensics investigation is normally performed through a number of phases in order to achieve the required level of accuracy in the investigation processes. Since 1984 there have been a number of models and frameworks developed to support the digital investigation processes. In this paper, we review a number of the investigation processes that have been produced throughout the years and introduce a proposed digital forensic model which is based on the scope of the Saudi Arabia investigation process. The proposed model has been integrated with existing models for the investigation processes and produced a new phase to deal with a situation where there is initially insufficient evidence.

Keywords: digital forensics, process, metadata, Traceback, Sauid Arabia

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Authors: S. Ali, R. Yunus, A. Arif, Y. Ayaz, M. Baber Sial, R. Asif, N. Naseer, M. Jawad Khan

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In this study, we have proposed a gesture to emotion recognition method using flex sensors mounted on metacarpophalangeal joints. The flex sensors are fixed in a wearable glove. The data from the glove are sent to PC using Wi-Fi. Four gestures: finger pointing, thumbs up, fist open and fist close are performed by five subjects. Each gesture is categorized into sad, happy, and excited class based on the velocity and acceleration of the hand gesture. Seventeen inspectors observed the emotions and hand gestures of the five subjects. The emotional state based on the investigators assessment and acquired movement speed data is compared. Overall, we achieved 77% accurate results. Therefore, the proposed design can be used for emotional state detection applications.

Keywords: emotion identification, emotion models, gesture recognition, user perception

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Authors: Ayman Hijazi, Witold Kwapinski, J. J. Leahy

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Finding a sustainable alternative energy to fossil fuel is an urgent need as various environmental challenges in the world arise. Therefore, formic acid (FA) decomposition has been an attractive field that lies at the center of the biomass platform, comprising a potential pool of hydrogen energy that stands as a distinct energy vector. Liquid FA features considerable volumetric energy density of 6.4 MJ/L and a specific energy density of 5.3 MJ/Kg that qualifies it in the prime seat as an energy source for transportation infrastructure. Additionally, the increasing research interest in FA decomposition is driven by the need for in-situ H₂ production, which plays a key role in the hydrogenation reactions of biomass into higher-value components. It is reported elsewhere in the literature that catalytic decomposition of FA is usually performed in poorly designed setups using simple glassware under magnetic stirring, thus demanding further energy investment to retain the used catalyst. Our work suggests an approach that integrates designing a distinct catalyst featuring magnetic properties with a robust setup that minimizes experimental & measurement discrepancies. One of the most prominent active species for the dehydrogenation/hydrogenation of biomass compounds is palladium. Accordingly, we investigate the potential of engrafting palladium metal onto functionalized magnetic nanoparticles as a heterogeneous catalyst to favor the production of CO-free H₂ gas from FA. Using an ordinary magnet to collect the spent catalyst renders core-shell magnetic nanoparticles as the backbone of the process. Catalytic experiments were performed in a jacketed batch reactor equipped with an overhead stirrer under an inert medium. Through a distinct approach, FA is charged into the reactor via a high-pressure positive displacement pump at steady-state conditions. The produced gas (H₂+CO₂) was measured by connecting the gas outlet to a measuring system based on the amount of the displaced water. The uniqueness of this work lies in designing a very responsive catalyst, pumping a consistent amount of FA into a sealed reactor running at steady-state mild temperatures, and continuous gas measurement, along with collecting the used catalyst without the need for centrifugation. Catalyst characterization using TEM, XRD, SEM, and CHN elemental analyzer provided us with details of catalyst preparation and facilitated new venues to alter the nanostructure of the catalyst framework. Consequently, the introduction of amine groups has led to appreciable improvements in terms of dispersion of the doped metals and eventually attaining nearly complete conversion (100%) of FA after 7 hours. The relative importance of the process parameters such as temperature (35-85°C), stirring speed (150-450rpm), catalyst loading (50-200mgr.), and Pd doping ratio (0.75-1.80wt.%) on gas yield was assessed by a Taguchi design-of-experiment based model. Experimental results showed that operating at a lower temperature range (35-50°C) yielded more gas, while the catalyst loading and Pd doping wt.% were found to be the most significant factors with P-values 0.026 & 0.031, respectively.

Keywords: formic acid decomposition, green catalysis, hydrogen, mesoporous silica, process optimization, nanoparticles

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Authors: Marsudi, Noor Hidayat, Ratno Bagus Edy Wibowo

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This paper considers a deterministic model for the transmission dynamics of HIV/AIDS in which condom campaign and treatment are both important for the disease management. In modelling of the spread of AIDS, the population is divided into six subpopulations, namely susceptible population, susceptible population who change their behavior due to education condom campaign, infected population, pre-AIDS population, treated population and full-blown AIDS population. We calculate the effective reproduction number using the next generation matrix method and investigate the existence and stability of the equilibrium points. A sensitivity analysis discovers parameters that have a high impact on effective reproduction number and should be targeted by intervention strategies. Numerical simulations are given to illustrate and verify our analytic results.

Keywords: HIV/AIDS, condom campaign, antiretroviral treatment, effective reproduction number, stability and sensitivity analysis

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Authors: M. Y. Lee, S. H. Park, S. M. Yu, H. S. Jo, C. G. Song

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Photoacoustic imaging is the imaging technology that combines the optical imaging with ultrasound. It also provides the high contrast and resolution due to optical and ultrasound imaging, respectively. For these reasons, many studies take experiment in order to apply this method for many diagnoses. We developed the real-time photoacoustic tomography (PAT) system using linear-ultrasound transducer. In this study, we conduct the experiment using swine and detect the blood of carotid artery and femoral artery. We measured the blood of femoral and carotid artery of swine and reconstructed the image using 950nm due to the HbO₂ absorption coefficient. The photoacoustic image is overlaid with ultrasound image in order to match the position. In blood of artery, major composition of blood is HbO₂. In this result, we can measure the blood of artery.

Keywords: photoacoustic tomography, swine artery, carotid artery, femoral artery

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Authors: S. Merazga, F. Boudeffar, A. Bouaoua, A. Cheriet, M. Berouaken, M. Mebarki, K. Ayouz, N. Gabouze

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Several anode materials as transition metal oxides (Fe3O4, SnO2 a, SnO2, LiCoO2, and Li₄Ti₅O₁₂) has been used. Although titanium oxide has attracted great attention as a; superior electrode for Li-ion batteries due tohis excellent characteristic such as: high capacity, low cost and non-toxicity. In this work, the Synthesis and Characterization of Si Doped Li₄Ti₅O₁₂ with hydrothermal Method was electrochemically evaluated. The SEM images shows that the morphology of LTO powders sizes in the range 70nm.The electrochemical properties of synthesizer nanopowders are investigated for use as an anode active material for lithium-ion batteries by galvanostatic techniques in Li-half cells, obtaining reversible discharge capacity of 173.8 mAh/g at 0.1C even upon 100 cycles.Though the doped powders exhibit an upgrade in The electrical conductivity , This is suitable for use as a high-power cathode material for lithium-ion batteries.

Keywords: LTO, li-ion, battteries, anode

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Authors: Shabnam Dadparvar, Laijin Shen

Abstract:

After a period of conflict between Russia and the West, new signs of confrontation between the United States and China are observed. China, as the most populous country in the world with a high rate of economic growth, neither stands the hegemonic power of the United States nor has the intention of direct confrontation with it. By raising the costs of the United States’ leadership at the international level, China seeks to find a better status without direct confrontation with the US. Meanwhile, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), as a soft balancing strategy against the hegemony of the United States is used as a tool to reach this goal. The authors by using a descriptive-analytical method try to explain the policies of China and the United States on Shanghai Cooperation Organization as well as confrontation between these two countries within the framework of 'balance of soft power theory'.

Keywords: balance of soft power, Central Asia, Shanghai cooperation organization, terrorism

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Authors: P. Serrano-Pérez, M. C. Rodríguez-Molina, C. Palo, E. Palo, A. Lacasa

Abstract:

Phytophthora nicotianae is the principal causal agent of root and crown rot disease of red pepper plants in Extremadura (Western Spain). There is a need to develop a biologically-based method of soil disinfestation that facilitates profitable and sustainable production without the use of chemical fumigants. Anaerobic Soil Disinfestation (ASD), as well know as biodisinfestation, has been shown to control a wide range of soil-borne pathogens and nematodes in numerous crop production systems. This method implies soil wetting, incorporation of a easily decomposable carbon-rich organic amendment and covering with plastic film for several weeks. ASD with rapeseed cake (var. Tocatta, a glucosinolates-free variety) used as C-source was assayed in spring 2014, before the pepper crop establishment. The field experiment was conducted at the Agricultural Research Centre Finca La Orden (Southwestern Spain) and the treatments were: rapeseed cake (RCP); rapeseed cake without plastic cover (RC); control non-amendment (CP) and control non-amendment without plastic cover (C). The experimental design was a randomized complete block design with four replicates and a plot size of 5 x 5 m. On 26 March, rapeseed cake (1 kg·m-2) was incorporated into the soil with a rotovator. Biological probes with the inoculum were buried at 15 and 30-cm depth (biological probes were previously prepared with 100 g of disinfected soil inoculated with chlamydospores (chlam) of P. nicotianae P13 isolate [100 chlam·g-1 of soil] and wrapped in agryl cloth). Sprinkler irrigation was run until field capacity and the corresponding plots were covered with transparent plastic (PE 0.05 mm). On 6 May plastics were removed, the biological probes were dug out and a bioassay was established. One pepper seedling at the 2 to 4 true-leaves stage was transplanted in the soil from each biological probe. Plants were grown in a climatic chamber and disease symptoms were recorded every week during 2 months. Fragments of roots and crown of symptomatic plants were analyzed on NARPH media and soil from rizospheres was analyzed using carnation petals as baits. Results of “survival” were expressed as the percentage of soil samples where P. nicotianae was detected and results of “infectivity” were expressed as the percentage of diseased plants. No differences were detected in deep effect. Infectivity of P. nicotianae chlamydospores was successfully reduced in RCP treatment (4.2% of infectivity) compared with the controls (41.7% of infectivity). The pattern of survival was similar to infectivity observed by the bioassay: 21% of survival in RCP; 79% in CP; 83% in C and 87% in RC. Although ASD may be an effective alternative to chemical fumigants to pest management, more research is necessary to show their impact on the microbial community and chemistry of the soil.

Keywords: biodisinfestation, BSD, soil fumigant alternatives, organic amendments

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Authors: Dalicia Bouallouche, Jean-Baptiste Vioix, Stéphane Millot, Eric Busvelle

Abstract:

When researchers or logistics software developers deal with vehicle routing optimization, they mainly focus on minimizing the total travelled distance or the total time spent in the tours by the trucks, and maximizing the number of visited customers. They assume that the upstream real data given to carry the optimization of a transporter tours is free from errors, like customers’ real constraints, customers’ addresses and their GPS-coordinates. However, in real transporter situations, upstream data is often of bad quality because of address geocoding errors and the irrelevance of received addresses from the EDI (Electronic Data Interchange). In fact, geocoders are not exempt from errors and could give impertinent GPS-coordinates. Also, even with a good geocoding, an inaccurate address can lead to a bad geocoding. For instance, when the geocoder has trouble with geocoding an address, it returns those of the center of the city. As well, an obvious geocoding issue is that the mappings used by the geocoders are not regularly updated. Thus, new buildings could not exist on maps until the next update. Even so, trying to optimize tours with impertinent customers GPS-coordinates, which are the most important and basic input data to take into account for solving a vehicle routing problem, is not really useful and will lead to a bad and incoherent solution tours because the locations of the customers used for the optimization are very different from their real positions. Our work is supported by a logistics software editor Tedies and a transport company Upsilon. We work with Upsilon's truck routes data to carry our experiments. In fact, these trucks are equipped with TOMTOM GPSs that continuously save their tours data (positions, speeds, tachograph-information, etc.). We, then, retrieve these data to extract the real truck routes to work with. The aim of this work is to use the experience of the driver and the feedback of the real truck tours to validate GPS-coordinates of well geocoded addresses, and bring a correction to the badly geocoded addresses. Thereby, when a vehicle makes its tour, for each visited customer, the vehicle might have trouble with finding this customer’s address at most once. In other words, the vehicle would be wrong at most once for each customer’s address. Our method significantly improves the quality of the geocoding. Hence, we achieve to automatically correct an average of 70% of GPS-coordinates of a tour addresses. The rest of the GPS-coordinates are corrected in a manual way by giving the user indications to help him to correct them. This study shows the importance of taking into account the feedback of the trucks to gradually correct address geocoding errors. Indeed, the accuracy of customer’s address and its GPS-coordinates play a major role in tours optimization. Unfortunately, address writing errors are very frequent. This feedback is naturally and usually taken into account by transporters (by asking drivers, calling customers…), to learn about their tours and bring corrections to the upcoming tours. Hence, we develop a method to do a big part of that automatically.

Keywords: driver experience feedback, geocoding correction, real truck tours

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