Search results for: M. Imran Khalid
304 Association Between Malnutrition and Dental Caries in Children
Authors: Mohammed Khalid Mahmood, Delphine Tardivo, Romain Lan
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Dental caries is one of the most common diseases in the world, affecting billions of people and significantly lowering the quality of life. Malnutrition, on the other hand, is defined as inadequate, imbalanced, or excessive consumption of macronutrients, micronutrients, or both, which is characterized as an abnormal physiological condition. Oral health is impacted by malnutrition, and malnutrition can result from poor oral health. The objective of this paper was to study the association of serum Vitamin D level and body mass index as representatives of malnutrition at micro and macro levels, respectively, on dental caries. Results showed that: 1. The majority of the population studied (70%) are Vitamin D deficient. 2. Having a normal and even a sufficient level of serum Vitamin D and having a normal body mass index increase the chances of children being caries-free and having a lower caries index.Keywords: children, dental Caries, malnutrition, vitamin D
Procedia PDF Downloads 82303 Atomic Force Microscopy Studies of DNA Binding Properties of the Archaeal Mini Chromosome Maintenance Complex
Authors: Amna Abdalla Mohammed Khalid, Pietro Parisse, Silvia Onesti, Loredana Casalis
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Basic cellular processes as DNA replication are crucial to cell life. Understanding at the molecular level the mechanisms that govern DNA replication in proliferating cells is fundamental to understand disease connected to genomic instabilities, as a genetic disease and cancer. A key step for DNA replication to take place, is unwinding the DNA double helix and this carried out by proteins called helicases. The archaeal MCM (minichromosome maintenance) complex from Methanothermobacter thermautotrophicus have being studied using Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), imaging in air and liquid (Physiological environment). The accurate analysis of AFM topographic images allowed to understand the static conformations as well the interaction dynamic of MCM and DNA double helix in the present of ATP.Keywords: DNA, protein-DNA interaction, MCM (mini chromosome manteinance) complex, atomic force microscopy (AFM)
Procedia PDF Downloads 309302 Collect Meaningful Information about Stock Markets from the Web
Authors: Saleem Abuleil, Khalid S. Alsamara
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Events represent a significant source of information on the web; they deliver information about events that occurred around the world in all kind of subjects and areas. These events can be collected and organized to provide valuable and useful information for decision makers, researchers, as well as any person seeking knowledge. In this paper, we discuss an ongoing research to target stock markets domain to observe and record changes (events) when they happen, collect them, understand the meaning of each one of them, and organize the information along with meaning in a well-structured format. By using Semantic Role Labeling (SRL) technique, we identified four factors for each event in this paper: verb of action and three roles associated with it, entity name, attribute, and attribute value. We have generated a set of rules and techniques to support our approach to analyze and understand the meaning of the events taking place in stock markets.Keywords: natuaral language processing, Arabic language, event extraction and understanding, sematic role labeling, stock market
Procedia PDF Downloads 393301 Causality Channels between Corruption and Democracy: A Threshold Non-Linear Analysis
Authors: Khalid Sekkat, Fredj Fhima, Ridha Nouira
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This paper focuses on three main limitations of the literature regarding the impact of corruption on democracy. These limitations relate to the distinction between causality and correlation, the components of democracy underlying the impact and the shape of the relationship between corruption and democracy. The study uses recent developments in panel data causality econometrics, breaks democracy down into different components, and examines the types of the relationship. The results show that Control of Corruption leads to a higher quality of democracy. Regarding the estimated coefficients of the components of democracy, they are significant at the 1% level, and their signs and levels are in accordance with expectations except in a few cases. Overall, the results add to the literature in three respects: i). corruption has a causal effect on democracy and, hence, single equation estimation may pose a problem, ii) the assumption of the linearity of the relationships between control of corruption and democracy is also possibly problematic, and iii) the channels of transmission of the effects of corruption on democracy can be diverse. Disentangling them is useful from a policy perspective.Keywords: corruption, governance, causality, threshold models
Procedia PDF Downloads 50300 Mapping the Future: Participatory Master Planning for Pioneer Village Tourism in Cibubuan, Sumedang
Authors: Sarojini Imran, Riza Firmansyah, Aula Ramadhan, Chudamul Furqon, Achfriyatama Oktariflandi
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This article delves into the participatory approach in formulating a master plan for the development of pioneer village tourism in Cibubuan, Sumedang. We explore the process of participatory mapping that involves the active participation of the local community in planning and envisioning the future of village tourism. This research considers the positive impact that arises when the community takes an active role in designing a master plan that benefits the local economy while preserving culture and the environment. The results of this research reveal that the participatory approach can create a more accurate and community-responsive mapping that aligns with the aspirations of the people in Cibubuan Village. It also provides a deep insight into how community-developed mapping can guide the development of sustainable tourism. By offering a deeper understanding of the participatory role in village tourism development planning, this article provides essential insights for stakeholders and researchers in this field. We hope this article will inspire more communities to adopt a participatory approach in planning the future of their village tourism.Keywords: participatory masterplan, pioneer village tourism, sustainable tourism, community engagement, Cibubuan Village
Procedia PDF Downloads 68299 Development and Evaluation of Gastro Retentive Floating Tablets of Ayurvedic Vati Formulation
Authors: Imran Khan Pathan, Anil Bhandari, Peeyush K. Sharma, Rakesh K. Patel, Suresh Purohit
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Floating tablets of Marichyadi Vati were developed with an aim to prolong its gastric residence time and increase the bioavailability of drug. Rapid gastrointestinal transit could result in incomplete drug release from the drug delivery system above the absorption zone leading to diminished efficacy of the administered dose. The tablets were prepared by wet granulation technique, using HPMC E50 LV act as Matrixing agent, Carbopol as floating enhancer, microcrystalline cellulose as binder, sodium bi carbonate as effervescent agent with other excipients. The simplex lattice design was used for selection of variables for tablets formulation. Formulation was optimized on the basis of floating time and in vitro drug release. The results showed that the floating lag time for optimized formulation was found to be 61 second with about 97.32 % of total drug release within 3 hours. The in vitro release profiles of drug from the formulation could be best expressed zero order with highest linearity r2 = 0.9943. It was concluded that the gastroretentive drug delivery system can be developed for Marichyadi Vati containing piperine to increase the residence time of the drug in the stomach and thereby increasing bioavailability.Keywords: piperine, Marichyadi Vati, gastroretentive drug delivery, floating tablet
Procedia PDF Downloads 457298 Psychological Effects of Economic Recession on Educated Youth: Evidences from Pakistan
Authors: Mubashra Khalid, Saadia Amir
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This study initiated to explore the empirical relationship between psychological effects of economic recession on the educated youth in Pakistan. The diminishing economic resources during recession can create certain psychological consequences on the physical and cognitive aspects of the individuals. It may generate symptoms like aggression, depression, anxiety, frustration, stress and physical health related problems among the young generation. The sample of the study was consisted of 300 students belonging to six public sector universities of the Punjab province of Pakistan. Two hypotheses were advanced in this study regarding the relationship between recession and its effects on educated youth. The findings of the research represent that a significant relationship exists between decrease in employment opportunities and growing rate of aggression among educated youth and a significant association was found between economic instability and its influence on the learning abilities of the students during recession.Keywords: psychological effects, recession, educated youth
Procedia PDF Downloads 510297 The EFL Mental Lexicon: Connectivity and the Acquisition of Lexical Knowledge Depth
Authors: Khalid Soussi
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The study at hand has attempted to describe the acquisition of three EFL lexical knowledge aspects - meaning, synonymy and collocation – across three academic levels: Baccalaureate, second year and fourth year university levels in Morocco. The research also compares the development of the three lexical knowledge aspects between knowledge (reception) and use (production) and attempts to trace their order of acquisition. This has led to the use of three main data collection tasks: translation, acceptability judgment and multiple choices. The study has revealed the following findings. First, L1 and EFL mental lexicons are connected at the lexical knowledge depth. Second, such connection is active whether in language reception or use. Third, the connectivity between L1 and EFL mental lexicons tends to relatively decrease as the academic level of the learners increases. Finally, the research has revealed a significant 'order' of acquisition between the three lexical aspects, though not a very strong one.Keywords: vocabulary acquisition, EFL lexical knowledge, mental lexicon, vocabulary knowledge depth
Procedia PDF Downloads 284296 Efficiency of Background Chlorine Residuals against Accidental Microbial Episode in Proto-Type Distribution Network (Rig) Using Central Composite Design (CCD)
Authors: Sajida Rasheed, Imran Hashmi, Luiza Campos, Qizhi Zhou, Kim Keu
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A quadratic model (p ˂ 0.0001) was developed by using central composite design of 50 experimental runs (42 non-center + 8 center points) to assess efficiency of background chlorine residuals in combating accidental microbial episode in a prototype distribution network (DN) (rig). A known amount of background chlorine residuals were maintained in DN and a required number of bacteria, Escherichia coli K-12 strain were introduced by an injection port in the pipe loop system. Samples were taken at various time intervals at different pipe lengths. Spread plate count was performed to count bacterial number. The model developed was significant. With microbial concentration and time (p ˂ 0.0001), pipe length (p ˂ 0.022), background chlorine residuals (p ˂ 0.07) and time^2 (p ˂ 0.09) as significant factors. The ramp function of variables shows that at the microbial count of 10^6, at 0.76 L/min, and pipe length of 133 meters, a background residual chlorine 0.16 mg/L was enough for complete inactivation of microbial episode in approximately 18 minutes.Keywords: central composite design (CCD), distribution network, Escherichia coli, residual chlorine
Procedia PDF Downloads 463295 Mathematical Models for Drug Diffusion Through the Compartments of Blood and Tissue Medium
Authors: M. A. Khanday, Aasma Rafiq, Khalid Nazir
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This paper is an attempt to establish the mathematical models to understand the distribution of drug administration in the human body through oral and intravenous routes. Three models were formulated based on diffusion process using Fick’s principle and the law of mass action. The rate constants governing the law of mass action were used on the basis of the drug efficacy at different interfaces. The Laplace transform and eigenvalue methods were used to obtain the solution of the ordinary differential equations concerning the rate of change of concentration in different compartments viz. blood and tissue medium. The drug concentration in the different compartments has been computed using numerical parameters. The results illustrate the variation of drug concentration with respect to time using MATLAB software. It has been observed from the results that the drug concentration decreases in the first compartment and gradually increases in other subsequent compartments.Keywords: Laplace transform, diffusion, eigenvalue method, mathematical model
Procedia PDF Downloads 337294 High-Frequency Induction Heat Sintering of Al/SiC/GNS Nanocomposites and Their Tribological Properties
Authors: Mohammad Islam, Iftikhar Ahmad, Hany S. Abdo, Yasir Khalid
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High-frequency induction heat sintering (HFIHS) is a fast, efficient powder consolidation technique. In this work, aluminum (Al) powder was mixed with silicon carbide (SiC) and/or graphene nanosheets (GNS) in different proportions and compacted using HFIHS process to produce dense nanocomposites. The nanostructures dispersion was assessed via electron microscopy using both SEM and TEM. Tribological behavior of the nanocomposites was investigated at different loads to determine wear rate and coefficient of friction. The scratch profiles were examined under the microscope to correlate wear properties with the microstructure. While the addition of SiC nanoparticles enhances microhardness values, GNS incorporation promotes dry lubricity with strikingly different wear scratch morphologies. Such Al/SiC/GNS material compositions can be explored for use in automotive brake pad and thermal management applications.Keywords: aluminum nanocomposites, silicon carbide, graphene nanosheets, tribology
Procedia PDF Downloads 313293 Political Discourse Used in the TV Talk Shows of Pakistani Media
Authors: Hafiz Sajjad Hussain, Asad Razzaq
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The study aims to explore the relationship between application of speech and discourse used by the political workers and their leaders for maintaining authoritative approach and dialog power. The representation of these relationships between ideology and language in the analysis of discourse and spoken text following Van Dijk Socio-Cognitive model. Media and political leaders are two pillars of a state and their role is so important for development and effects on the society. Media has become an industry in the recent years in the globe, and especially, the private sector developed a lot in the last decade in Pakistan. Media is the easiest way of communication with the large community in a short time and used discourse independently. The prime time of the news channels in Pakistan presents the political programs on most favorite story or incident of the day. The current program broadcasted by a private channel ARY News July 6, 2014 covered the most top story of the day. The son of Ex. CJ Arslan Iftikhar moves an application to Election Commission of Pakistan about the daughter of the most popular political leader and chairman PTI Imran Khan. This movement turns the whole scenario of the political parties and media got a hot issue form discussion. This study also shows that the ideology and meanings which are presented by the TV channels not always obvious for readers.Keywords: electronic media, political discourse, ideology of media, power, authoritative approach
Procedia PDF Downloads 529292 Heat Transfer Studies on CNT Nanofluids in a Turbulent Flow Heat Exchanger
Authors: W. Rashmi, M. Khalid, O. Seiksan, R. Saidur, A. F. Ismail
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Nanofluids have received much more attention since its discovery. They are believed to be promising coolants in heat transfer applications due to their enhanced thermal conductivity and heat transfer characteristics. In this study, the enhancement in heat transfer of CNT-nanofluids under turbulent flow conditions is investigated experimentally. Carbon nanotube (CNTs) concentration was varied between 0.051-0.085 wt%. The nanofluid suspension was stabilized by gum arabic (GA) through a process of homogenisation and sonication. The flow rates of cold fluid (water) is varied from 1.7-3 L/min and flow rates of the hot fluid is varied between 2-3.5 L/min. Thermal conductivity, density and viscosity of the nanofluids were also measured as a function of temperature and CNT concentration. The experimental results are validated with theoretical correlations for turbulent flow available in the literature. Results showed an enhancement in heat transfer range between 9-67% as a function of temperature and CNT concentration.Keywords: nanofluids, carbon nanotubes (CNT), heat transfer enhancement, heat transfer
Procedia PDF Downloads 501291 Impact of Dairy Polysaccharides on Caloric Intake and Postprandial Metabolic Responses in Young Adults
Authors: Muhammad Umair Arshad, Saima Ishtiaq, Ali Imran
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Different polysaccharides contribute towards the management of glycemic and satiety and consequently manage the metabolic syndrome. In the present study, we compared the postprandial glycemic and satiety responses of different dietary polysaccharides when added to milk (2% Milk Fat). The objective of this study was to evaluate different polysaccharides against postprandial glucose, appetite responses, and food intake at subsequent meals. In a repeated measures crossover design, 30 females (18–30 years) consumed 250 ml milk with 2% M.F. (control), or milk with carrageenan (2.5 g), guar gum (2.5 g) and alginate (2.5 g), followed by an ad libitum pizza meal after 120 min. Alginate and guar gum addition resulted in lower caloric intake at subsequent pizza meal. The post-treatment (0–120 min) glucose and average appetite were suppressed by alginate and guar gum (p < 0.0001), with a more pronounced effect of guar gum. However, alginate resulted in lower blood glucose (p < 0.0001) compared with control and carrageenan during post-treatment. Alginate and guar gum, added milk, and other beverages would be beneficial in the short-term regulation of postprandial glycemia and satiety.Keywords: satiety, glycemic control, milk polysaccharides, food intake
Procedia PDF Downloads 69290 A Comparative Study between Different Techniques of Off-Page and On-Page Search Engine Optimization
Authors: Ahmed Ishtiaq, Maeeda Khalid, Umair Sajjad
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In the fast-moving world, information is the key to success. If information is easily available, then it makes work easy. The Internet is the biggest collection and source of information nowadays, and with every single day, the data on internet increases, and it becomes difficult to find required data. Everyone wants to make his/her website at the top of search results. This can be possible when you have applied some techniques of SEO inside your application or outside your application, which are two types of SEO, onsite and offsite SEO. SEO is an abbreviation of Search Engine Optimization, and it is a set of techniques, methods to increase users of a website on World Wide Web or to rank up your website in search engine indexing. In this paper, we have compared different techniques of Onpage and Offpage SEO, and we have suggested many things that should be changed inside webpage, outside web page and mentioned some most powerful and search engine considerable elements and techniques in both types of SEO in order to gain high ranking on Search Engine.Keywords: auto-suggestion, search engine optimization, SEO, query, web mining, web crawler
Procedia PDF Downloads 151289 Transient Stability Improvement in Multi-Machine System Using Power System Stabilizer (PSS) and Static Var Compensator (SVC)
Authors: Khoshnaw Khalid Hama Saleh, Ergun Ercelebi
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Increasingly complex modern power systems require stability, especially for transient and small disturbances. Transient stability plays a major role in stability during fault and large disturbance. This paper compares a power system stabilizer (PSS) and static Var compensator (SVC) to improve damping oscillation and enhance transient stability. The effectiveness of a PSS connected to the exciter and/or governor in damping electromechanical oscillations of isolated synchronous generator was tested. The SVC device is a member of the shunt FACTS (flexible alternating current transmission system) family, utilized in power transmission systems. The designed model was tested with a multi-machine system consisting of four machines six bus, using MATLAB/SIMULINK software. The results obtained indicate that SVC solutions are better than PSS.Keywords: FACTS, MATLAB/SIMULINK, multi-machine system, PSS, SVC, transient stability
Procedia PDF Downloads 456288 Evolving Digital Circuits for Early Stage Breast Cancer Detection Using Cartesian Genetic Programming
Authors: Zahra Khalid, Gul Muhammad Khan, Arbab Masood Ahmad
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Cartesian Genetic Programming (CGP) is explored to design an optimal circuit capable of early stage breast cancer detection. CGP is used to evolve simple multiplexer circuits for detection of malignancy in the Fine Needle Aspiration (FNA) samples of breast. The data set used is extracted from Wisconsins Breast Cancer Database (WBCD). A range of experiments were performed, each with different set of network parameters. The best evolved network detected malignancy with an accuracy of 99.14%, which is higher than that produced with most of the contemporary non-linear techniques that are computational expensive than the proposed system. The evolved network comprises of simple multiplexers and can be implemented easily in hardware without any further complications or inaccuracy, being the digital circuit.Keywords: breast cancer detection, cartesian genetic programming, evolvable hardware, fine needle aspiration
Procedia PDF Downloads 216287 Spatial Distribution of Cellular Water in Pear Fruit: An Experimental Investigation
Authors: Md. Imran H. Khan, T. Farrell, M. A. Karim
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Highly porous and hygroscopic characteristics of pear make it complex to understand the cellular level water distribution. In pear tissue, water is mainly distributed in three different spaces namely, intercellular water, intracellular water, and cell wall water. Understanding of these three types of water in pear tissue is crucial for predicting actual heat and mass transfer during drying. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate the proportion of intercellular water, intracellular water, and cell wall water inside the pear tissue. During this study, Green Anjou Pear was taken for the investigation. The experiment was performed using 1H-NMR- T2 relaxometry. Various types of water component were calculated by using multi-component fits of the T2 relaxation curves. The experimental result showed that in pear tissue 78-82% water exist in intracellular space; 12-16% water in intercellular space and only 2-4% water exist in the cell wall space. The investigated results quantify different types of water in plant-based food tissue. The highest proportion of water exists in intracellular spaces. It was also investigated that the physical properties of pear and the proportion of the different types of water has a strong relationship. Cell wall water depends on the proportion of solid in the sample tissue whereas free water depends on the porosity of the material.Keywords: intracellular water, intercellular water, cell wall water, physical property, pear
Procedia PDF Downloads 253286 Influence and Dissemination of Solecism among Moroccan High School and University Students
Authors: Rachid Ed-Dali, Khalid Elasri
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Mass media seem to provide a rich content for language acquisition. Exposure to television, the Internet, the mobile phone and other technological gadgets and devices helps enrich the student’s lexicon positively as well as negatively. The difficulties encountered by students while learning and acquiring second languages in addition to their eagerness to comprehend the content of a particular program prompt them to diversify their methods so as to achieve their targets. The present study highlights the significance of certain media channels and their involvement in language acquisition with the employment of the Natural Approach to further grasp whether students, especially secondary and high school students, learn and acquire errors through watching subtitled television programs. The chief objective is investigating the deductive and inductive relevance of certain programs beside the involvement of peripheral learning while acquiring mistakes.Keywords: errors, mistakes, Natural Approach, peripheral learning, solecism
Procedia PDF Downloads 118285 Enhancement of Dissolved Oxygen Concentration during the Electrocoagulation Process Using an Innovative Flow Column: Electrocoagulation Reactor
Authors: Khalid S. Hashim, Andy Shaw, Rafid Alkhaddar
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Dissolved oxygen (DO) plays a key role in the electrocoagulation process (EC) as it oxidizes the heavy metals, ammonia, and cyanide into other forms that can be removed easily from water. Hence, many of the previous investigations used external aerators to provide the required DO inside EC reactors, especially when the water being treated had a low DO (such as leachate and high organic content waters), or when the DO depleted during the EC treatment. Although the external aeration process effectively enhances the DO concentration, it has a significant impact on energy consumption. Thus, the present project aims to fill a part of this gap in the literature by an innovative use of perforated flow columns in the design of an EC reactor (ECR1). In order to investigate the performance of ECR1, water samples with a controlled DO concentration were pumped at different flow rates (110, 220, and 440 ml/min) to the ECR1 for 10 min. The obtained results demonstrated that the ECR1 increased the DO concentration from 5.0 to 9.54, 10.53, and 11.0 mg/L, which is equivalent to 90.8%, 110.6%, and 120% at flow rates of 110, 220, and 440 mL/min respectively.Keywords: flow column, electrocoagulation, dissolved oxygen, water treatment
Procedia PDF Downloads 341284 A Smart Visitors’ Notification System with Automatic Secure Door Lock Using Mobile Communication Technology
Authors: Rabail Shafique Satti, Sidra Ejaz, Madiha Arshad, Marwa Khalid, Sadia Majeed
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The paper presents the development of an automated security system to automate the entry of visitors, providing more flexibility of managing their record and securing homes or workplaces. Face recognition is part of this system to authenticate the visitors. A cost effective and SMS based door security module has been developed and integrated with the GSM network and made part of this system to allow communication between system and owner. This system functions in real time as when the visitor’s arrived it will detect and recognizes his face and on the result of face recognition process it will open the door for authorized visitors or notifies and allows the owner’s to take further action in case of unauthorized visitor. The proposed system is developed and it is successfully ensuring security, managing records and operating gate without physical interaction of owner.Keywords: SMS, e-mail, GSM modem, authenticate, face recognition, authorized
Procedia PDF Downloads 790283 A Review on the Problems of Constructing a Theory of Quantum Gravity
Authors: Amber Jamal, Imran Siddiqui, Syed Tanveer Iqbal
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This review is aimed to shed some light on problems constructing a theory of spacetime and geometry in terms of all quantum degrees of freedom called ‘Quantum Gravity’. Such a theory, which is effective at all scales of distances and energies, describes the enigma of the beginning of the Universe, its possible end, and reducing to general relativity at large distances but in a semi-classical approximation. Furthermore, the theory of quantum gravity also describes the Universe as a whole and provides a description of most fundamental questions that have puzzled scientists for decades, such as: what is space, what is time, and what is the fundamental structure of the Universe, is the spacetime discrete, if it is, where does the continuum of spacetime come from at low energies and macroscopic scales and where does it emerge from its fundamentally discrete building blocks? Quantum Field Theory (QFT) is a framework which describes the microscopic properties and dynamics of the basic building blocks of any condensed matter system. In QFT, atoms are quanta of continuous fields. At smaller scales or higher energies, the continuum description of spacetime fails. Therefore, a new description is required in terms of microscopic constituents (atoms or molecules). The objective of this scientific endeavor is to discuss the above-mentioned problems rigorously and to discuss possible way-out of the problems.Keywords: QFT, quantum degrees of freedom, quantum gravity, semi-classical approximation
Procedia PDF Downloads 122282 Investigating Trophic Relationships in Moroccan Marine Ecosystems: A Study of the Mediterranean and Atlantic Using Ecopath
Authors: Salma Aboussalam, Karima Khalil, Khalid Elkalay
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An Ecopath model was employed to investigate the trophic structure, function, and current state of the Moroccan Mediterranean Sea ecosystem. The model incorporated 31 functional groups, including 21 fish species, 7 invertebrates, 2 primary producers, and a detritus group. The trophic interactions among these groups were analyzed, revealing an average trophic transfer efficiency of 23%. The results indicated that the ecosystem produced more energy than it consumed, with high respiration and consumption rates. Indicators of stability and development were low for the Finn cycle index (13.97), system omnivory index (0.18), and average Finn path length (3.09), indicating a disturbed ecosystem with a linear trophic structure. Keystone species were identified through the use of the keystone index and mixed trophic impact analysis, with demersal invertebrates, zooplankton, and cephalopods found to have a significant impact on other groups.Keywords: Ecopath, food web, trophic flux, Moroccan Mediterranean Sea
Procedia PDF Downloads 103281 Investigating the Accessibility of Physically Disabled Individuals in Corporate Offices: A Case of Dhaka City
Authors: Ishrar Tabassum, Jay Andrew Saptok, Khalid Raihan Kabir, Elmee Tabassum
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The purpose of this study is to bring light to the current state of the working environments in the corporate environment and other such institutions with a particular focus on the Bangladesh National Building Code (BNBC) and its guidelines for accommodating the physically disabled. Data were collected via semi-formal interviews, site visits and focus groups conducted using a preset questionnaire as the guidelines. After conducting surveys at corporate offices of 20 organizations from major commercial sectors in Dhaka city, the auditing showed many inadequacies, as aside from the larger corporate offices, the offices have little to no accessibility for the physically disabled. This study hopes to shed light on the fact that the existing BNBCs lack of emphasis on ensuring the accessibility of the handicapped in corporate buildings in the hope that, in the future, the physically disabled will have greater opportunities at being productive members of the workforce.Keywords: person with disability, PWD, corporate buildings, Dhaka City
Procedia PDF Downloads 200280 An Assessment of the Temperature Change Scenarios Using RS and GIS Techniques: A Case Study of Sindh
Authors: Jan Muhammad, Saad Malik, Fadia W. Al-Azawi, Ali Imran
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In the era of climate variability, rising temperatures are the most significant aspect. In this study PRECIS model data and observed data are used for assessing the temperature change scenarios of Sindh province during the first half of present century. Observed data from various meteorological stations of Sindh are the primary source for temperature change detection. The current scenario (1961–1990) and the future one (2010-2050) are acted by the PRECIS Regional Climate Model at a spatial resolution of 25 * 25 km. Regional Climate Model (RCM) can yield reasonably suitable projections to be used for climate-scenario. The main objective of the study is to map the simulated temperature as obtained from climate model-PRECIS and their comparison with observed temperatures. The analysis is done on all the districts of Sindh in order to have a more precise picture of temperature change scenarios. According to results the temperature is likely to increases by 1.5 - 2.1°C by 2050, compared to the baseline temperature of 1961-1990. The model assesses more accurate values in northern districts of Sindh as compared to the coastal belt of Sindh. All the district of the Sindh province exhibit an increasing trend in the mean temperature scenarios and each decade seems to be warmer than the previous one. An understanding of the change in temperatures is very vital for various sectors such as weather forecasting, water, agriculture, and health, etc.Keywords: PRECIS Model, real observed data, Arc GIS, interpolation techniques
Procedia PDF Downloads 250279 Effect of Microencapsulated Butyric Acid Supplementation on Growth Performance, Ileal Digestibility of Protein, Gut Health and Immunity in Broilers
Authors: Saeed Ahmed, Muhammad Imran, Yasir Allah Ditta, Shahid Mehmood, Zahid Rasool
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A study was conducted to investigate the effect of different levels of microencapsulated butyric (MEB) on growth performance, gut health and immunity in commercial broiler chickens. In total, 336 day-old Hubbard classic broilers chicks were randomly assigned to 4 dietary treatments (Control, 0.25, 0.35 and 0.45g/kg of butyric acid) under completely randomized design. Each treatment was replicated 3 times with 28 birds in each replicate. Feed intake, body weight gain, feed conversion ratio, intestinal morphology, apparent ileal digestibility of protein and immunity parameters were evaluated. At the end of the experiment (35-d) 3 birds/replicate in each group were randomly selected and slaughtered to collect blood, duodenal samples and ileal digesta. The data were analyzed by using ANOVA technique. The results indicated improved body weight gain (P = 0.0222), feed conversion ratio (P = 0.0056), duodenal villus height (P = 0.0512), AID (P = 0.0098) antibody titer against Newcastle disease improved (P = 0.0326). Treatments remained unresponsive with respect to feed intake (P = 0.9685).Keywords: butyric acid, broilers, gut health, ileal digestibility
Procedia PDF Downloads 324278 Dynamic Distribution Calibration for Improved Few-Shot Image Classification
Authors: Majid Habib Khan, Jinwei Zhao, Xinhong Hei, Liu Jiedong, Rana Shahzad Noor, Muhammad Imran
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Deep learning is increasingly employed in image classification, yet the scarcity and high cost of labeled data for training remain a challenge. Limited samples often lead to overfitting due to biased sample distribution. This paper introduces a dynamic distribution calibration method for few-shot learning. Initially, base and new class samples undergo normalization to mitigate disparate feature magnitudes. A pre-trained model then extracts feature vectors from both classes. The method dynamically selects distribution characteristics from base classes (both adjacent and remote) in the embedding space, using a threshold value approach for new class samples. Given the propensity of similar classes to share feature distributions like mean and variance, this research assumes a Gaussian distribution for feature vectors. Subsequently, distributional features of new class samples are calibrated using a corrected hyperparameter, derived from the distribution features of both adjacent and distant base classes. This calibration augments the new class sample set. The technique demonstrates significant improvements, with up to 4% accuracy gains in few-shot classification challenges, as evidenced by tests on miniImagenet and CUB datasets.Keywords: deep learning, computer vision, image classification, few-shot learning, threshold
Procedia PDF Downloads 67277 A Survey of Feature Selection and Feature Extraction Techniques in Machine Learning
Authors: Samina Khalid, Shamila Nasreen
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Dimensionality reduction as a preprocessing step to machine learning is effective in removing irrelevant and redundant data, increasing learning accuracy, and improving result comprehensibility. However, the recent increase of dimensionality of data poses a severe challenge to many existing feature selection and feature extraction methods with respect to efficiency and effectiveness. In the field of machine learning and pattern recognition, dimensionality reduction is important area, where many approaches have been proposed. In this paper, some widely used feature selection and feature extraction techniques have analyzed with the purpose of how effectively these techniques can be used to achieve high performance of learning algorithms that ultimately improves predictive accuracy of classifier. An endeavor to analyze dimensionality reduction techniques briefly with the purpose to investigate strengths and weaknesses of some widely used dimensionality reduction methods is presented.Keywords: age related macular degeneration, feature selection feature subset selection feature extraction/transformation, FSA’s, relief, correlation based method, PCA, ICA
Procedia PDF Downloads 497276 The Influence of Oil Price Fluctuations on Macroeconomics Variables of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Authors: Khalid Mujaljal, Hassan Alhajhoj
Abstract:
This paper empirically investigates the influence of oil price fluctuations on the key macroeconomic variables of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia using unrestricted VAR methodology. Two analytical tools- Granger-causality and variance decomposition are used. The Granger-causality test reveals that almost all specifications of oil price shocks significantly Granger-cause GDP and demonstrates evidence of causality between oil price changes and money supply (M3) and consumer price index percent (CPIPC) in the case of positive oil price shocks. Surprisingly, almost all specifications of oil price shocks do not Granger-cause government expenditure. The outcomes from variance decomposition analysis suggest that positive oil shocks contribute about 25 percent in causing inflation in the country. Also, contribution of symmetric linear oil price shocks and asymmetric positive oil price shocks is significant and persistent with 25 percent explaining variation in world consumer price index till end of the period.Keywords: Granger causality, oil prices changes, Saudi Arabian economy, variance decomposition
Procedia PDF Downloads 324275 Enhanced Calibration Map for a Four-Hole Probe for Measuring High Flow Angles
Authors: Jafar Mortadha, Imran Qureshi
Abstract:
This research explains and compares the modern techniques used for measuring the flow angles of a flowing fluid with the traditional technique of using multi-hole pressure probes. In particular, the focus of the study is on four-hole probes, which offer great reliability and benefits in several applications where the use of modern measurement techniques is either inconvenient or impractical. Due to modern advancements in manufacturing, small multi-hole pressure probes can be made with high precision, which eliminates the need for calibrating every manufactured probe. This study aims to improve the range of calibration maps for a four-hole probe to allow high flow angles to be measured accurately. The research methodology comprises a literature review of the successful calibration definitions that have been implemented on five-hole probes. These definitions are then adapted and applied on a four-hole probe using a set of raw pressures data. A comparison of the different definitions will be carried out in Matlab and the results will be analyzed to determine the best calibration definition. Taking simplicity of implementation into account as well as the reliability of flow angles estimation, an adapted technique from a research paper written in 2002 offered the most promising outcome. Consequently, the method is seen as a good enhancement for four-hole probes and it can substitute for the existing calibration definitions that offer less accuracy.Keywords: calibration definitions, calibration maps, flow measurement techniques, four-hole probes, multi-hole pressure probes
Procedia PDF Downloads 297