Search results for: multiple scales method

Authors: Leonard Simoni, Ilir Alimehmeti, Ervina Shirka, Endri Hasimi, Ndricim Kallashi, Verona Beka, Suerta Kabili, Artan Goda

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Background: Diabetes Mellitus type 2, small vessel calibre, stented length of vessel, complex lesion morphology, and prior bypass surgery have resulted risk factors for In-Stent Restenosis (ISR). However, there are some contradictory results about body mass index (BMI) as a risk factor for ISR. Purpose: We want to identify clinical, lesional and procedural factors that can predict clinical ISR in our patients. Methods: Were enrolled 759 patients who underwent first-time elective PCI with Bare Metal Stents (BMS) from September 2011 to December 2013 in our Department of Cardiology and followed them for at least 1.5 years with a median of 862 days (2 years and 4 months). Only the patients re-admitted with ischemic heart disease underwent control coronary angiography but no routine angiographic control was performed. Patients were categorized in ISR and non-ISR groups and compared between them. Multivariate analysis - Binary Logistic Regression: Forward Conditional Method was used to identify independent predictive risk factors. P was considered statistically significant when <0.05. Results: ISR compared to non-ISR individuals had a significantly lower BMI (25.7±3.3 vs. 26.9±3.7, p=0.004), higher risk anatomy (LM + 3-vessel CAD) (23% vs. 14%, p=0.03), higher number of stents/person used (2.1±1.1 vs. 1.75±0.96, p=0.004), greater length of stents/person used (39.3±21.6 vs. 33.3±18.5, p=0.01), and a lower use of clopidogrel and ASA (together) (95% vs. 99%, p=0.012). They also had a higher, although not statistically significant, prevalence of Diabetes Mellitus (42% vs. 32%, p=0.072) and a greater number of treated vessels (1.36±0.5 vs. 1.26±0.5, p=0.08). In the multivariate analysis, Diabetes Mellitus type 2 and multiple stents used were independent predictors risk factors for In-Stent Restenosis, OR 1.66 [1.03-2.68], p=0.039, and OR 1.44 [1.16-1.78,] p=0.001, respectively. On the other side higher BMI and use of clopidogrel and ASA together resulted protective factors OR 0.88 [0.81-0.95], p=0.001 and OR 0.2 [0.06-0.72] p=0.013, respectively. Conclusion: Diabetes Mellitus and multiple stents are strong predictive risk factors, whereas the use of clopidogrel and ASA together are protective factors for clinical In-Stent Restenosis. Paradoxically High BMI is a protective factor for In-stent Restenosis, probably related to a larger diameter of vessels and consequently a larger diameter of stents implanted in these patients. Further studies are needed to clarify this finding.

Keywords: body mass index, diabetes mellitus, in-stent restenosis, percutaneous coronary intervention

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Authors: Triveni Gogoi, Rima Chatterjee

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Shear wave velocity (Vs) estimation is an important approach in the seismic exploration and characterization of a hydrocarbon reservoir. There are varying methods for prediction of S-wave velocity, if recorded S-wave log is not available. But all the available methods for Vs prediction are empirical mathematical models. Shear wave velocity can be estimated using P-wave velocity by applying Castagna’s equation, which is the most common approach. The constants used in Castagna’s equation vary for different lithologies and geological set-ups. In this study, multiple regression analysis has been used for estimation of S-wave velocity. The EMERGE module from Hampson-Russel software has been used here for generation of S-wave log. Both single attribute and multi attributes analysis have been carried out for generation of synthetic S-wave log in Upper Assam basin. Upper Assam basin situated in North Eastern India is one of the most important petroleum provinces of India. The present study was carried out using four wells of the study area. Out of these wells, S-wave velocity was available for three wells. The main objective of the present study is a prediction of shear wave velocities for wells where S-wave velocity information is not available. The three wells having S-wave velocity were first used to test the reliability of the method and the generated S-wave log was compared with actual S-wave log. Single attribute analysis has been carried out for these three wells within the depth range 1700-2100m, which corresponds to Barail group of Oligocene age. The Barail Group is the main target zone in this study, which is the primary producing reservoir of the basin. A system generated list of attributes with varying degrees of correlation appeared and the attribute with the highest correlation was concerned for the single attribute analysis. Crossplot between the attributes shows the variation of points from line of best fit. The final result of the analysis was compared with the available S-wave log, which shows a good visual fit with a correlation of 72%. Next multi-attribute analysis has been carried out for the same data using all the wells within the same analysis window. A high correlation of 85% has been observed between the output log from the analysis and the recorded S-wave. The almost perfect fit between the synthetic S-wave and the recorded S-wave log validates the reliability of the method. For further authentication, the generated S-wave data from the wells have been tied to the seismic and correlated them. Synthetic share wave log has been generated for the well M2 where S-wave is not available and it shows a good correlation with the seismic. Neutron porosity, density, AI and P-wave velocity are proved to be the most significant variables in this statistical method for S-wave generation. Multilinear regression method thus can be considered as a reliable technique for generation of shear wave velocity log in this study.

Keywords: Castagna's equation, multi linear regression, multi attribute analysis, shear wave logs

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Authors: Luísa Pedro, José Pais-Ribeiro, João Páscoa Pinheiro

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Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a chronic disease of the central nervous system that affects more often young adults in the prime of his career and personal development, with no cure and unknown causes. The most common signs and symptoms are fatigue, muscle weakness, changes in sensation, ataxia, changes in balance, gait difficulties, memory difficulties, cognitive impairment and difficulties in problem solving. MS is a relatively common neurological disorder in which various impairments and disabilities impact strongly on function and daily life activities. The aim of this study is to examine the implications of the program of self-regulation in the perception of illness and mental health (psychological well-being domain) in MS patients. MS is a relatively common neurological disorder in which various impairments and disabilities impact strongly on function and daily life activities. The aim of this study is to examine the implications of the program of self-regulation in the perception of illness and mental health (psychological well-being domain) in MS patients. After this, a set of exercises was implemented to be used in daily life activities, according to studies developed with MS patients. We asked the subjects the question “Please classify the severity of your disease?” and used the domain of psychological well-being, the Mental Health Inventory (MHI-38) at the beginning (time A) and end (time B) of the program of self-regulation. We used the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20. A non-parametric statistical hypothesis test (Wilcoxon test) was used for the variable analysis. The intervention followed the recommendations of the Helsinki Declaration. The age range of the subjects was between 20 and 58 years with a mean age of 44 years. 58.3 % were women, 37.5 % were currently married, 67% were retired and the mean level of education was 12.5 years. In the correlation between the severity of the disease perception and psychological well before the self-regulation program, an obtained result (r = 0.26, p <0.05), then the self-regulation program, was (r = 0.37, p <0.01), from a low to moderate correlation. We conclude that the program of self-regulation for physical activity in patients with MS can improve the relationship between the perception of disease severity and psychological well-being.

Keywords: psychological well-being, multiple sclerosis, self-regulation, physical activity

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Authors: Longxiang Guo, Haoyan Hao, Xueli Sheng, Hanjun Yu, Jingwei Yin

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In order to prevent target splitting and ensure the accuracy of fusion, system error registration is an important step in multi-static sonar fusion detection system. To eliminate the inherent system errors including distance error and angle error of each sonar in detection, this paper uses offline estimation method for error registration. Suppose several sonars from different platforms work together to detect a target. The target position detected by each sonar is based on each sonar’s own reference coordinate system. Based on the two-dimensional stereo projection method, this paper uses real-time quality control (RTQC) method and least squares (LS) method to estimate sensor biases. The RTQC method takes the average value of each sonar’s data as the observation value and the LS method makes the least square processing of each sonar’s data to get the observation value. In the underwater acoustic environment, matlab simulation is carried out and the simulation results show that both algorithms can estimate the distance and angle error of sonar system. The performance of the two algorithms is also compared through the root mean square error and the influence of measurement noise on registration accuracy is explored by simulation. The system error convergence of RTQC method is rapid, but the distribution of targets has a serious impact on its performance. LS method can not be affected by target distribution, but the increase of random noise will slow down the convergence rate. LS method is an improvement of RTQC method, which is widely used in two-dimensional registration. The improved method can be used for underwater multi-target detection registration.

Keywords: data fusion, multi-static sonar detection, offline estimation, sensor registration problem

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Authors: H. Samadiyeh, R. Khajavi

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A new FD-based procedure, modal finite difference method (MFDM), is proposed for seismic wave propagation modeling, in which simulation is dealt with in the modal space. The method employs eigenvalues of a characteristic matrix formed by appropriate time-space FD stencils. Since MFD runs for different modes are totally independent of each other, MFDM can easily be parallelized while considerable simplicity in parallel-algorithm is also achieved. There is no requirement to any domain-decomposition procedure and inter-core data exchange. More important is the possibility to skip processing of less-significant modes, which enables one to adjust the procedure up to the level of accuracy needed. Thus, in addition to considerable ease of parallel programming, computation and storage costs are significantly reduced. The method is qualified for its efficiency by some numerical examples.

Keywords: Finite Difference Method, Graphics Processing Unit (GPU), Message Passing Interface (MPI), Modal, Wave propagation

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Authors: Shih-Heng Tung, Ming-Hsiang Shih, Wen-Pei Sung

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Because of the rapid development of digital camera and computer, digital image correlation method has drawn lots of attention recently and has been applied to a variety of fields. However, the image distortion is inevitable when the image is captured through a lens. This image distortion problem can result in an innegligible error while using digital image correlation method. There are already many different ways to correct the image distortion, and most of them require specific image patterns or precise control points. A new distortion correction method is proposed in this study. The proposed method is based on the fact that a flat surface should keep flat when it is measured using three-dimensional (3D) digital image measurement technique. Lens distortion can be divided into radial distortion, decentering distortion and thin prism distortion. Because radial distortion has a more noticeable influence than the other types of distortions, this method deals only with radial distortion. The simplified 3D digital image measurement technique is adopted to measure the surface coordinates of a flat specimen. Then the gradient method is applied to find the best correction parameters. A few experiments are carried out in this study to verify the correctness of this method. The results show that this method can achieve a good accuracy and it is suitable for both large and small distortion conditions. The most important advantage is that it requires neither mark with specific pattern nor precise control points.

Keywords: 3D DIC, radial distortion, distortion correction, planarity

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Authors: Shunsuke Miyoshi, Yasuyuki Nogami, Takuya Kusaka, Nariyoshi Yamai

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Elliptic curve discrete logarithm problem (ECDLP) is one of problems on which the security of pairing-based cryptography is based. This paper considers Pollard's rho method to evaluate the security of ECDLP on Barreto-Naehrig (BN) curve that is an efficient pairing-friendly curve. Some techniques are proposed to make the rho method efficient. Especially, the group structure on BN curve, distinguished point method, and Montgomery trick are well-known techniques. This paper applies these techniques and shows its optimization. According to the experimental results for which a large-scale parallel system with MySQL is applied, 94-bit ECDLP was solved about 28 hours by parallelizing 71 computers.

Keywords: Pollard's rho method, BN curve, Montgomery multiplication

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Authors: Shimaa Nagro, Russell Campion

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Mobile devices are becoming ever more widely available, with growing functionality, and are increasingly used as an enabling technology to give students access to educational material anytime and anywhere. However, the design of educational material user interfaces for mobile devices is beset by many unresolved research issues such as those arising from emphasising the information concepts then mapping this information to appropriate media (modelling information then mapping media effectively). This report describes a multimedia user interface design method for mobile learning. The method covers specification of user requirements and information architecture, media selection to represent the information content, design for directing attention to important information, and interaction design to enhance user engagement based on Human-Computer Interaction design strategies (HCI). The method will be evaluated by three different case studies to prove the method is suitable for application to different areas / applications, these are; an application to teach about major computer networking concepts, an application to deliver a history-based topic; (after these case studies have been completed, the method will be revised to remove deficiencies and then used to develop a third case study), an application to teach mathematical principles. At this point, the method will again be revised into its final format. A usability evaluation will be carried out to measure the usefulness and effectiveness of the method. The investigation will combine qualitative and quantitative methods, including interviews and questionnaires for data collection and three case studies for validating the MDMLM method. The researcher has successfully produced the method at this point which is now under validation and testing procedures. From this point forward in the report, the researcher will refer to the method using the MDMLM abbreviation which means Multimedia Design Mobile Learning Method.

Keywords: human-computer interaction, interface design, mobile learning, education

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Authors: Katarzyna Baruch, Agata Szelag, Jaroslaw Rubacha, Bartlomiej Chojnacki, Tadeusz Kamisinski

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Methodology used to measure the reduction of transmitted impact sound by floor coverings situated on a massive floor is described in ISO 10140-3: 2010. To carry out such tests, the standardised reverberation room separated by a standard floor from the second measuring room are required. The need to have a special laboratory results in high cost and low accessibility of this measurement. The authors propose their own engineering method to measure the impact sound improvement with floor coverings. This method does not require standard rooms and floor. This paper describes the measurement procedure of proposed engineering method. Further, verification tests were performed. Validation of the proposed method was based on the analytical model, Statistical Energy Analysis (SEA) model and empirical measurements. The received results were related to corresponding ones obtained from ISO 10140-3:2010 measurements. The study confirmed the usefulness of the engineering method.

Keywords: building acoustic, impact noise, impact sound insulation, impact sound transmission, reduction of impact sound

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Authors: A. Oliveira-Brochado, R. Silva, C. Paulino

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The aim of this paper is to use an experiential view of wine tourism to develop a battery of items that can potentially capture the overall Douro Valley experience from the tourist’s perspective. The Douro Valley, a UNESCO World Heritage region located in Portugal, was the target of this study. The research took a mixed approach using both qualitative and quantitative designs. Firstly, we combine the literature review on service quality scales with a content analysis of five in-depth interviews with winery managers and a focus group with wine tourists to identify the main dimensions of the overall tourism experience and to develop a battery of items for each dimension. Eight dimensions of the overall wine tourism experience came out, as follows: winery service and staff, winery facilities, winery service, wine product, wine region environment, wine region accessibilities, wine region´s offerings, and the wine region and winery reputation.

Keywords: wine tourism, Douro region, survey, wineries, experience

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Authors: Yusuke Kuramitsu, Tomoaki Hashimoto, Hirokazu Tahara

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The control problem of underactuated spacecrafts has attracted a considerable amount of interest. The control method for a spacecraft equipped with less than three control torques is useful when one of the three control torques had failed. On the other hand, the quantized control of systems is one of the important research topics in recent years. The random dither quantization method that transforms a given continuous signal to a discrete signal by adding artificial random noise to the continuous signal before quantization has also attracted a considerable amount of interest. The objective of this study is to develop the control method based on random dither quantization method for stabilizing the rotational motion of a rigid spacecraft with two control inputs. In this paper, the effectiveness of random dither quantization control method for the stabilization of rotational motion of spacecrafts with two torque inputs is verified by numerical simulations.

Keywords: spacecraft control, quantized control, nonlinear control, random dither method

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Authors: Te-Jen Chang, Ping-Sheng Huang, Shan-Ten Cheng, Chih-Lin Lin, I-Hui Pan, Tsung- Hsien Lin

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RSA system is a great contribution for the encryption and the decryption. It is based on the modular exponentiation. We call this system as “a large of numbers for calculation”. The operation of a large of numbers is a very heavy burden for CPU. For increasing the computational speed, in addition to improve these algorithms, such as the binary method, the sliding window method, the addition chain method, and so on, the cluster computer can be used to advance computational speed. The cluster system is composed of the computers which are installed the MPICH2 in laboratory. The parallel procedures of the modular exponentiation can be processed by combining the sliding window method with the addition chain method. It will significantly reduce the computational time of the modular exponentiation whose digits are more than 512 bits and even more than 1024 bits.

Keywords: cluster system, modular exponentiation, sliding window, addition chain

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Authors: Ahmad Al-Zoabi

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Development of research approaches for identifying images of the past in the built environment is at a beginning stage, and a review of the current literature reveals a limited body of research in this area. This study seeks to make a contribution to fill this void. It investigates the theoretical and empirical studies that examine the built environment as a medium for communicating the past in order to understand how images of the past are operationalized in these studies. Findings revealed that image could be operationalized in several ways depending on the focus of the study. Three concerns were addressed in this study when defining the image of the past: (a) to investigate an 'everyday' popular image of the past; (b) to look at the building's image as an integrated part of a larger image for the city; and (c) to find patterns within residents' images of the past. This study concludes that a future study is needed to address the effects of different scales (size and depth of history) of cities and of different cultural backgrounds of images of the past.

Keywords: architecture, built environment, image of the past, research approaches

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Authors: Prajakta M. Wazat, D. N. Raut

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The study consists of a fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) beverage company wherein a portion of the supply chain which deals with outbound logistics is taken for improvement in order to reduce its logistics cost by using critical path method (CPM) method. Logistics is a major portion of the supply chain where customers are not willing to pay as it adds cost to product without adding value. In this study, it is necessary to ensure that products are delivered to clients at the right time while preserving high-quality standards from the beginning to the end of the supply chain. CPM is a logical sequencing method where in the most efficient route is achieved by arranging the series of events. CPM enables to identify a critical factor in order to minimize the delays and interruption by providing a feasible solution.

Keywords: FMCG, supply chain, outbound logistics, vehicle turnaround time, critical path method, cost reduction

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Authors: Gil-Eon Jeong, Sung-Kie Youn, K. C. Park

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Treatment for the non-matching interface is an important computational issue. To handle this problem, the method of Lagrange multipliers including classical and localized versions are the most popular technique. It essentially imposes the interface compatibility conditions by introducing Lagrange multipliers. However, the numerical system becomes unstable and inefficient due to the Lagrange multipliers. The interface element-independent formulation that does not include the Lagrange multipliers can be obtained by modifying the independent variables mathematically. Through this modification, more efficient and stable system can be achieved while involving equivalent accuracy comparing with the conventional method. A numerical example is conducted to verify the validity of the presented method.

Keywords: element-independent formulation, interface coupling, methods of Lagrange multipliers, non-matching interface

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Authors: Ahmed Saeed, Sadok Sassi, Mohammad Roshun

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Gears are important components with a vital role in many rotating machines. One of the common gear failure causes is tooth fatigue crack; however, its early detection is still a challenging task. The objective of this study is to develop a numerical model that simulates the effect of teeth cracks on the resulting gears vibrations and permits consequently to perform an early fault detection. In contrast to other published papers, this work incorporates the possibility of multiple simultaneous cracks with different depths. As cracks alter significantly the stiffness of the tooth, finite element software is used to determine the stiffness variation with respect to the angular position, for different combinations of crack orientation and depth. A simplified six degrees of freedom nonlinear lumped parameter model of a one-stage spur gear system is proposed to study the vibration with and without cracks. The model developed for calculating the stiffness with the crack permitted to update the physical parameters of the second-degree-of-freedom equations of motions describing the vibration of the gearbox. The vibration simulation results of the gearbox were by obtained using Simulink/Matlab. The effect of one crack with different levels was studied thoroughly. The change in the mesh stiffness and the vibration response were found to be consistent with previously published works. In addition, various statistical time domain parameters were considered. They showed different degrees of sensitivity toward the crack depth. Multiple cracks were also introduced at different locations and the vibration response along with the statistical parameters were obtained again for a general case of degradation (increase in crack depth, crack number and crack locations). It was found that although some parameters increase in value as the deterioration level increases, they show almost no change or even decrease when the number of cracks increases. Therefore, the use of any statistical parameters could be misleading if not considered in an appropriate way.

Keywords: Spur gear, cracked tooth, numerical simulation, time-domain parameters

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Authors: Rahim Jafari, Tuba Okutucu-Özyurt

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The hydrodynamics and heat transfer characteristics of a vaporized elongated bubble in a rectangular microchannel have been simulated based on Cahn-Hilliard phase-field method. In the simulations, the initially nucleated bubble starts growing as it comes in contact with superheated water. The growing shape of the bubble compared with the available experimental data in the literature.

Keywords: microchannel, boiling, Cahn-Hilliard method, simulation

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Authors: Sylwia Gieraltowska, Lukasz Wachnicki, Bartlomiej S. Witkowski, Marek Godlewski

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Oxide layers doped with rare-earth (RE) ions in optimized way can absorb short (ultraviolet light), which will be converted to visible light by so-called down-conversion. Down-conversion mechanisms are usually exploited to modify the incident solar spectrum. In down conversion, multiple low-energy photons are generated to exploit the energy of one incident high-energy photon. These RE-doped oxide materials have attracted a great deal of attention from researchers because of their potential for optical manipulation in optical devices (detectors, temperature sensors, and compact solid-state lasers, light-emitting diodes), bio-analysis, medical therapy, display technologies, and light harvesting (such as in photovoltaic cells). The zirconium dioxide (ZrO2) doped RE ions (Eu, Tb, Ce) multilayer structures were tested as active layers, which can convert short wave emission to light in the visible range (the down-conversion mechanism). For these applications original approach of deposition ZrO2 layers using the Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) method and doping these layers with RE ions using the spin-coating technique was used. ALD films are deposited at relatively low temperature (well below 250°C). This can be an effective method to achieve the white-light emission and to improve on this way light conversion efficiency, by an extension of absorbed spectral range by a solar cell material. Photoluminescence (PL), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and atomic force microscope (AFM) measurement are analyzed. The research was financially supported by the National Science Centre (decision No. DEC-2012/06/A/ST7/00398 and DEC- 2013/09/N/ST5/00901).

Keywords: ALD, oxide layers, photovoltaics, thin films

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Authors: Vijay Kumar Singh, Pooja Kushwaha, Prabhat Ranjan, Krishna Kumar Ojha, Jitendra Kumar

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Present day high-throughput genomic technologies, NGS/microarrays, are producing large volume of data that require improved analysis methods to make sense of the data. The correlation between genes and samples has been regularly used to gain insight into many biological phenomena including, but not limited to, co-expression/co-regulation, gene regulatory networks, clustering and pattern identification. However, presence of outliers and violation of assumptions underlying Pearson correlation is frequent and may distort the actual correlation between the genes and lead to spurious conclusions. Here, we report a method to measure the strength of association between genes. The method assumes that the expression values of a gene are Bernoulli random variables whose outcome depends on the sample being probed. The method considers the two genes as uncorrelated if the number of sample with same outcome for both the genes (Ns) is equal to certainly expected number (Es). The extent of correlation depends on how far Ns can deviate from the Es. The method does not assume normality for the parent population, fairly unaffected by the presence of outliers, can be applied to qualitative data and it uses the binomial distribution to assess the significance of association. At this stage, we would not claim about the superiority of the method over other existing correlation methods, but our method could be another way of calculating correlation in addition to existing methods. The method uses binomial distribution, which has not been used until yet, to assess the significance of association between two variables. We are evaluating the performance of our method on NGS/microarray data, which is noisy and pierce by the outliers, to see if our method can differentiate between spurious and actual correlation. While working with the method, it has not escaped our notice that the method could also be generalized to measure the association of more than two variables which has been proven difficult with the existing methods.

Keywords: binomial distribution, correlation, microarray, outliers, transcriptome

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Authors: Rubens P. Costa, Marcelo A. Leigui de Oliveira

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The comprehension of features on the energy spectra, the chemical compositions, and the origins of Ultra-High Energy Cosmic Rays (UHECRs) - mainly atomic nuclei with energies above ~1.0 EeV (exa-electron volts) - are intrinsically linked to the problem of determining the magnitude of their deflections in cosmic magnetic fields on cosmological scales. In addition, as they propagate from the source to the observer, modifications are expected in their original energy spectra, anisotropy, and the chemical compositions due to interactions with low energy photons and matter. This means that any consistent interpretation of the nature and origin of UHECRs has to include the detailed knowledge of their propagation in a three-dimensional environment, taking into account the magnetic deflections and energy losses. The parameter space range for the magnetic fields in the universe is very large because the field strength and especially their orientation have big uncertainties. Particularly, the strength and morphology of the Extragalactic Magnetic Fields (EGMFs) remain largely unknown, because of the intrinsic difficulty of observing them. Monte Carlo simulations of charged particles traveling through a simulated magnetized universe is the straightforward way to study the influence of extragalactic magnetic fields on UHECRs propagation. However, this brings two major difficulties: an accurate numerical modeling of charged particles diffusion in magnetic fields, and an accurate numerical modeling of the magnetized Universe. Since magnetic fields do not cause energy losses, it is important to impose that the particle tracking method conserve the particle’s total energy and that the energy changes are results of the interactions with background photons only. Hence, special attention should be paid to computational effects. Additionally, because of the number of particles necessary to obtain a relevant statistical sample, the particle tracking method must be computationally efficient. In this work, we present an analysis of the propagation of ultra-high energy charged particles in the intergalactic medium. The EGMFs are considered to be coherent within cells of 1 Mpc (mega parsec) diameter, wherein they have uniform intensities of 1 nG (nano Gauss). Moreover, each cell has its field orientation randomly chosen, and a border region is defined such that at distances beyond 95% of the cell radius from the cell center smooth transitions have been applied in order to avoid discontinuities. The smooth transitions are simulated by weighting the magnetic field orientation by the particle's distance to the two nearby cells. The energy losses have been treated in the continuous approximation parameterizing the mean energy loss per unit path length by the energy loss length. We have shown, for a particle with the typical energy of interest the integration method performance in the relative error of Larmor radius, without energy losses and the relative error of energy. Additionally, we plotted the distance amplification from rectilinear propagation as a function of the traveled distance, particle's magnetic rigidity, without energy losses, and particle's energy, with energy losses, to study the influence of particle's species on these calculations. The results clearly show when it is necessary to use a full three-dimensional simulation.

Keywords: cosmic rays propagation, extragalactic magnetic fields, magnetic deflections, ultra-high energy

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Authors: Guangzhuang Yu, Chun-Chu Liu

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With the advent of the Internet era in recent years, social music education has gradually shifted from the original entity education mode to the mode of entity plus network teaching. No matter for school music education, professional music education or social music education, the teaching quality is the most important evaluation index. Regarding the research on teaching quality evaluation, scholars at home and abroad have contributed a lot of research results on the basis of multiple methods and evaluation subjects. However, to our best knowledge the complete evaluation model for the virtual teaching interaction mode of the emerging network music education Application (APP) has not been established. This research firstly found out the basic dimensions that accord with the teaching quality required by the three parties, constructing the quality evaluation index system; and then, on the basis of expounding the connotation of each index, it determined the weight of each index by using method of fuzzy analytic hierarchy process, providing ideas and methods for scientific, objective and comprehensive evaluation of the teaching quality of network education APP.

Keywords: network music education APP, teaching quality evaluation, index and connotation

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Authors: Ming-Chu Yin, Ping-An Du

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The shielding ability of a shielding cavity is affected greatly by its resonances, which include resonance modes and frequencies. The equivalent circuit method and numerical method of transmission line matrix (TLM) are used to analyze the effect of aperture-cavity coupling on electromagnetic resonances of a cavity with an aperture in this paper. Both theoretical and numerical results show that the resonance modes of a shielding cavity with an aperture can be considered as the combination of cavity and aperture inherent resonance modes with resonance frequencies shifting, and the reason of this shift is aperture-cavity coupling. Because aperture sizes are important parameters to aperture-cavity coupling, variation rules of electromagnetic resonances of a shielding cavity with its aperture sizes are given, which will be useful for the design of shielding cavities.

Keywords: aperture-cavity coupling, equivalent circuit method, resonances, shielding equipment

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Authors: Hazha Hidayat, Shayma Ibrahim

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Folate metabolism plays a crucial role in the normal development of the neonatal central nervous system. It is regulated by MTHFR gene polymorphism. Any factors, which will affect this metabolism either by hereditary or gene mutation will lead to many mental disorders. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether MTHFR gene mutation contributes to the development of mental retardation and CP combined with mental retardation in Erbil city. DNA was isolated from the peripheral blood samples of 40 cases suffering from mental retardation (MR) and CP combined with MR were recruited, sequence the 4, 6, 7, 8 exons of the MTHFR gene were done to identify the variants. Exons were amplified by PCR technique and then sequenced according to Sanger method to show the differences with MTHFR reference sequences. We observed (14) mutations in 4, 6, 7, 8 exons in the MTHFR gene associated with Cerebral Palsy combined with mental retardation included deletion, insertion, Substitution. The current study provides additional evidence that multiple variations in the MTHFR gene are associated with mental retardation and Cerebral Palsy.

Keywords: methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) gene, SNPs, homocysteine, sequencing

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Authors: Laith F. Gulli, Nicole M. Mallory

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The undertaking to develop a psychometric instrument is monumental. Understanding the relationship between variables and events is important in structural and exploratory design of psychometric instruments. Considering this, we describe a method used to group, pair and combine multiple Philosophical Assumption statements that assisted in development of a 13 item psychometric screening instrument. We abbreviated our Philosophical Assumptions (PA)s and added parameters, which were then condensed and mathematically modeled in a specific process. This model produced clusters of combinatorics which was utilized in design and development for 1) information retrieval and categorization 2) item development and 3) estimation of interactions among variables and likelihood of events. The psychometric screening instrument measured Knowledge, Assessment (education) and Beliefs (KAB) of New Addictions Research (NAR), which we called KABNAR. We obtained an overall internal consistency for the seven Likert belief items as measured by Cronbach’s α of .81 in the final study of 40 Clinicians, calculated by SPSS 14.0.1 for Windows. We constructed the instrument to begin with demographic items (degree/addictions certifications) for identification of target populations that practiced within Outpatient Substance Abuse Counseling (OSAC) settings. We then devised education items, beliefs items (seven items) and a modifiable “barrier from learning” item that consisted of six “choose any” choices. We also conceptualized a close relationship between identifying various degrees and certifications held by Outpatient Substance Abuse Therapists (OSAT) (the demographics domain) and all aspects of their education related to EB-NAR (past and present education and desired future training). We placed a descriptive (PA)1tx in both demographic and education domains to trace relationships of therapist education within these two domains. The two perceptions domains B1/b1 and B2/b2 represented different but interrelated perceptions from the therapist perspective. The belief items measured therapist perceptions concerning EB-NAR and therapist perceptions using EB-NAR during the beginning of outpatient addictions counseling. The (PA)s were written in simple words and descriptively accurate and concise. We then devised a list of parameters and appropriately matched them to each PA and devised descriptive parametric (PA)s in a domain categorized information grid. Descriptive parametric (PA)s were reduced to simple mathematical symbols. This made it easy to utilize parametric (PA)s into algorithms, combinatorics and clusters to develop larger information grids. By using matching combinatorics we took paired demographic and education domains with a subscript of 1 and matched them to the column with each B domain with subscript 1. Our algorithmic matching formed larger information grids with organized clusters in columns and rows. We repeated the process using different demographic, education and belief domains and devised multiple information grids with different parametric clusters and geometric arrays. We found benefit combining clusters by different geometric arrays, which enabled us to trace parametric variables and concepts. We were able to understand potential differences between dependent and independent variables and trace relationships of maximum likelihoods.

Keywords: psychometric, parametric, domains, grids, therapists

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Authors: Naoya Ozaki, Takuya Watanabe, Ryosuke Matsumoto, Noriko Fukasawa

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In the metropolitan areas in Japan, in many stations, shopping areas are set up, and escalators and elevators are installed to make the stations be barrier-free. Further, many areas around the stations are being redeveloped. Railway business operators want to know how much effect these circumstances have on attractiveness of the station or number of passengers using the station. So, we performed a questionnaire survey of the station users in the metropolitan areas for finding factors to affect the attractiveness of stations. Then, based on the analysis of the survey, we developed a method to quantitatively evaluate attractiveness of the stations. We also developed an estimation method for number of passengers based on combination of attractiveness of the station quantitatively evaluated and the residential and labor population around the station. Then, we derived precise linear regression models estimating the attractiveness of the station and number of passengers of the station.

Keywords: attractiveness of the station, estimation method, number of passengers of the station, redevelopment around the station, renovation of the station

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Authors: Jeewantha Ranawaka, Gunawardane Kapila, Wijethunaga Mudiyanselage B. G. Jayathilake

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Introduction: Sweeping of the membranes is a fairly simple technique that may positively influence the shift from maintenance of pregnancy to the beginning of labor. Objective: To assess the effectiveness and acceptability of twice versus once-only membrane sweeping in uncomplicated primi gravid at 40 weeks of gestational age in a tertiary care hospital in Sri Lanka. Methods: A randomized controlled clinical trial was done in Ward 05 of Teaching Hospital, Kandy. The participants were primi-gravida with a singleton live fetus who was at 40 weeks of gestation with intact fetal membranes and with a Modified Bishop’s score <5. After randomization both groups received membrane sweeping at 40 weeks of gestation and the experimental group received membrane sweeping after 48 hours (40+2 days). The modified Bishop Score was assessed at 40+5 days. In two groups who did not go into natural labor at 40+5 days were managed according to the ward policy of cervical ripening and with labor induction at 40+5 days. Two different methods were used to assess discomfort and pain. Patient acceptability was assessed using recommendation to another patient and acceptance during next pregnancy. Perinatal, maternal and labour outcomes were assessed. Results: A change of the Bishops score was 67.3% (n= 31 of 46) in experimental group whereas in control group it was 57.5% (n= 38 of 66). (p = 0.21, OR-1.52, CI = 0.6 -3.34). Mean (SD) of Modified Bishop score was 6.36 (1.94) in experimental group and 6.03 (.84) in control group (p = 0.354). The probability of having the spontaneous onset of labour in experimental group was 61.6% (n=74 of 120) whereas in control group it was 45% (n= 54 of 120) (p=0.01, OR-1.966, CI = 1.17 – 3.28 NNT = 5.99). Recommending the method to another among experimental group was 75% (n= 90 of 120) whereas in control group it was 79.2% (n= 95 of 120) (p= 0.443). Accepting membrane Sweeping for subsequent pregnancy among experimental was 72.5% (n=87 of 120) whereas in control group was 72.5% (n=87 of 120) (p= 1.00) Need of formal induction of labour at 40+ 5 days in experimental group was 38.4% (n=46 of 120) whereas in control group was 61.6% (n=66 of 120) (p=0.01, OR=0.5, CI= 0.3 – 0.8, NNT=6). Neonatal outcome, labour outcome such as Cesarean -section rate, need for augmentation and maternal complications such as fever, Premature rupture of membrane, bleeding were comparable in two groups. Conclusions and Recommendations: It can be concluded that twice sweeping of membrane was effective to reduce the need of formal induction of labour and increase the chances of having spontaneous onset of labour (SOL) at 40+5 days without increasing maternal or fetal morbidity. Acceptability of twice sweeping is not different from sweeping once. Hence we recommend consideration of multiple membranes sweeping as first line for women at 40 weeks of gestation.

Keywords: acceptability, induction, labour, membrane sweeping

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Authors: Komang Rahayu Indrawati, Ni Wayan Sinthia Widiastuti, Ratna Dewi Santosa

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Today the career of Balinese working women has been highly developed where able to work with loyalty and high professionalism. Career for a woman is one conscious choice and a call of conscience, which provides financial support for her family. Career for women can develop their own potencies, intellectually, and socially, so women feel that their role is meaningful and beneficial for herself and others. Emotional support becomes important to understand certainly for women who have multirole like Balinese working women to meet the demands of their role and also enhancing their work motivation and the quality of work life. This research used quantitative research method with questionnaires dissemination to 120 respondents and analyzed using Multiple Regression Analysis. The purpose of this study was to see the role of emotional support for work motivation and quality of work life in working Balinese women. The results of this study showed that emotional support and work motivation give a significant role in the quality of work life on Balinese working women.

Keywords: Balinese working women, emotional support, quality of work life, work motivation

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Authors: Vinesh Janarthanan, Mohammad H. Rahman

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There are numerous neurological conditions that may result in a loss of motor function. Such conditions may include cerebral palsy, Parkinson’s disease, stroke or multiple sclerosis. Due to impaired motor function, specifically in the hand and arm, living independently becomes tremendously more difficult. Rehabilitation programs are the main method to treat these kinds of disabled individuals. However, these programs require longtime commitment from the clinicians/therapists, demand person to person caring, and typically the treatment duration is usually very long. Aside from the treatment received from the therapist, the continuation of neuroplasticity at home is essential to maximizing development and restoring the biological function. To contribute in this area, we have researched and developed a portable and comfortable hand glove for fine motor skills rehabilitation. The glove provides interactive home-based therapy to engage the patient with simple games. The key to this treatment is the repetition of moving the hand and being capable of positioning the hand in various ways.

Keywords: home based, wearable sensors, glove, rehabilitation, motor function, video games

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Authors: Pallav Singh, Rajesh Yabaji, Rajesh Dhir, Chanakya Hridaya

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Supply Chain Costs for the Indian Industries have been on an exponential trend due to steep inflation on fundamental cost factors – Fuel, Labour, Rents. In this changing context organizations have been focusing on adopting multiple approaches to keep logistics costs under control to protect the profit margins. The lever of ‘Business to Business (B2B) collaboration’ can be used by organizations to garner higher value. Given the context of Indian Logistics Industry the penetration of B2B Collaboration initiatives have been limited. This paper outlines a structured framework for adoption of B2B collaboration through discussion of a successful initiative between ITC’s Leaf Tobacco Business and a leading Indian Media House. Multiple barriers to such a collaborative process exist which need to be addressed through comprehensive structured approaches. This paper outlines a generic framework approach to B2B collaboration for the Indian Logistics Space, outlining the guidelines for arriving at potential opportunities, identification of collaborators, effective tie-up process, design of operations and sustenance factors. The generic methods outlined can be used in any other industry and also builds a foundation for further research on many topics.

Keywords: business to business collaboration, reverse haul logistics, transportation cost optimization, exports logistics

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Authors: Rebecca Dewfall, Mark Coleman, Vladimir Basabe

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Oxide scale growth is an inevitable byproduct of the high temperature processing of steel. Blister is a phenomenon that occurs due to oxide growth, where high temperatures result in the swelling of surface scale, producing a bubble-like feature. Blisters can subsequently become embedded in the steel substrate during hot rolling in the finishing mill. This rolled in scale defect causes havoc within industry, not only with wear on machinery but loss of customer satisfaction, poor surface finish, loss of material, and profit. Even though blister is a highly prevalent issue, there is still much that is not known or understood. The classic iron oxidation system is a complex multiphase system formed of wustite, magnetite, and hematite, producing multi-layered scales. Each phase will have independent properties such as thermal coefficients, growth rate, and mechanical properties, etc. Furthermore, each additional alloying element will have different affinities for oxygen and different mobilities in the oxide phases so that oxide morphologies are specific to alloy chemistry. Therefore, blister regimes can be unique to each steel grade resulting in a diverse range of formation mechanisms. Laboratory conditions were selected to simulate industrial hot rolling with temperature ranges approximate to the formation of secondary and tertiary scales in the finishing mills. Samples with composition: 0.15Wt% C, 0.1Wt% Si, 0.86Wt% Mn, 0.036Wt% Al, and 0.028Wt% Cr, were oxidised in a thermo-gravimetric analyser (TGA), with an air velocity of 10litresmin-1, at temperaturesof 800°C, 850°C, 900°C, 1000°C, 1100°C, and 1200°C respectively. Samples were held at temperature in an argon atmosphere for 10minutes, then oxidised in air for 600s, 60s, 30s, 15s, and 4s, respectively. Oxide morphology and Blisters were characterised using EBSD, WDX, nanoindentation, FIB, and FEG-SEM imaging. Blister was found to have both a nucleation and growth process. During nucleation, the scale detaches from the substrate and blisters after a very short period, roughly 10s. The steel substrate is then exposed inside of the blister and further oxidised in the reducing atmosphere of the blister, however, the atmosphere within the blister is highly dependent upon the porosity of the blister crown. The blister crown was found to be consistently between 35-40um for all heating regimes, which supports the theory that the blister inflates, and the oxide then subsequently grows underneath. Upon heating, two modes of blistering were identified. In Mode 1 it was ascertained that the stresses produced by oxide growth will increase with increasing oxide thickness. Therefore, in Mode 1 the incubation time for blister formation is shortened by increasing temperature. In Mode 2 increase in temperature will result in oxide with a high ductility and high oxide porosity. The high oxide ductility and/or porosity accommodates for the intrinsic stresses from oxide growth. Thus Mode 2 is the inverse of Mode 1, and incubation time is increased with temperature. A new phenomenon was reported whereby blister formed exclusively through cooling at elevated temperatures above mode 2.

Keywords: FEG-SEM, nucleation, oxide morphology, surface defect

Procedia PDF Downloads 139