Search results for: human auditory system model

Authors: Young-Kwan Choi, Han-Sang Jeong

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Floating photovoltaic system is a technology that combines photovoltaic power generation with floating structure. However, since floating technology has not been utilized in photovoltaic generation, there are no standardized criteria. It is separately developed and used by different installation bodies. This paper aims to discuss the change of floating photovoltaic system technology based on examples of floating photovoltaic systems installed in Korea.

Keywords: floating photovoltaic system, floating PV installation, ocean floating photovoltaic system, tracking type floating photovoltaic system

Procedia PDF Downloads 555

Authors: Ramish, Farhan Khalique Awan

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Kinematic redundancy within the manipulators presents extended dexterity and manipulability to the manipulators. Redundant serial robotic manipulators are very popular in industries due to its competencies to keep away from singularities during normal operation and fault tolerance because of failure of one or more joints. Such fault tolerant manipulators are extraordinarily beneficial in applications where human interference for repair and overhaul is both impossible or tough; like in case of robotic arms for space programs, nuclear applications and so on. The design of this sort of fault tolerant serial 3 DoF manipulator is presented in this paper. This work was the extension of the author’s previous work of designing the simple 3R serial manipulator. This work is the realization of the previous design with optimizing the link lengths for incorporating the feature of fault tolerance. Various measures have been followed by the researchers to quantify the fault tolerance of such redundant manipulators. The fault tolerance in this work has been described in terms of the worst-case measure of relative manipulability that is, in fact, a local measure of optimization that works properly for certain configuration of the manipulators. An optimum fault tolerant Jacobian matrix has been determined first based on prescribed null space properties after which the link parameters have been described to meet the given Jacobian matrix. A solid model of the manipulator was then developed to realize the mathematically rigorous design. Further work was executed on determining the dynamic properties of the fault tolerant design and simulations of the movement for various trajectories have been carried out to evaluate the joint torques. The mathematical model of the system was derived via the Euler-Lagrange approach after which the same has been tested using the RoboAnalyzer© software. The results have been quite in agreement. From the CAD model and dynamic simulation data, the manipulator was fabricated in the workshop and Advanced Machining lab of NED University of Engineering and Technology.

Keywords: fault tolerant, Graham matrix, Jacobian, kinematics, Lagrange-Euler

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Authors: Susana Almeida

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The right to adequate food is a human right protected under several international human rights treaties of universal or regional application. In addition, this social right is – as we intend to demonstrate – guaranteed under the Portuguese Constitution. Therefore, in order to assure the protection of this right, the Portuguese State must not only abstain from interfering with this human right (negative obligation) but also take action to secure the human right to adequate food (positive obligation). In this context, the Portuguese State has developed several governmental policies, such as taxing sugary drinks, setting the maximum amount of salt in the bread or creating the National Program for the Promotion of Healthy Food. Nevertheless, we intend to demonstrate that special attention should be given to advertising, as advertisements have an extreme influence on the consumers' decisions and hence on the food decisions. In this paper, besides explaining the cross construction of the human right to adequate food, we aim to examine the Advertising Portuguese Code and to study the several provisions that could be held by the Portuguese consumer to challenge some advertisements due to the violation of the right to health and the right to adequate food. Moreover, having in mind the influence of advertising on the food decisions and the serious problems that unhealthy food may bring (e.g., child obesity), one should ask if this legal framework should not be reviewed in order to lay out some restrictions on advertising, namely setting advices like in alcohol advertisements.

Keywords: advertising code, consumer law, right to adequate food, social human right

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Authors: Adji Achmad Rinaldo Fernandes

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SEM analysis is a complex multivariate analysis because it involves a number of exogenous and endogenous variables that are interconnected to form a model. The measurement model is divided into two, namely, the reflective model (reflecting) and the formative model (forming). Before carrying out further tests on SEM, there are assumptions that must be met, namely the linearity assumption, to determine the form of the relationship. There are three modeling approaches to path analysis, including parametric, nonparametric and semiparametric approaches. The aim of this research is to develop semiparametric SEM and obtain the best model. The data used in the research is secondary data as the basis for the process of obtaining simulation data. Simulation data was generated with various sample sizes of 100, 300, and 500. In the semiparametric SEM analysis, the form of the relationship studied was determined, namely linear and quadratic and determined one and two knot points with various levels of error variance (EV=0.5; 1; 5). There are three levels of closeness of relationship for the analysis process in the measurement model consisting of low (0.1-0.3), medium (0.4-0.6) and high (0.7-0.9) levels of closeness. The best model lies in the form of the relationship X1Y1 linear, and. In the measurement model, a characteristic of the reflective model is obtained, namely that the higher the closeness of the relationship, the better the model obtained. The originality of this research is the development of semiparametric SEM, which has not been widely studied by researchers.

Keywords: semiparametric SEM, measurement model, structural model, reflective model, formative model

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Authors: Premjit K. Sanjram, Gagan Jakhotiya, Apoorv Goyal, Shanu Shukla

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In psychological research, laboratory experiments often face the trade-off issue between experimental control and mundane realism. With the advent of Immersive Virtual Environment Technology (IVET), this issue seems to be at bay. However there is a growing challenge within the IVET itself to design and develop system or software that captures the psychological phenomenon of everyday lives. One such phenomena that is of growing interest is ‘media-multitasking’ To aid laboratory researches in media-multitasking this paper introduces Query Task Modulator (QTM), a computerized experimentation system to study media-multitasking behavior in a controlled laboratory environment. The system provides a computerized platform in conducting an experiment for experimenters to study media-multitasking in which participants will be involved in a query task. The system has Instant Messaging, E-mail, and Voice Call features. The answers to queries are provided on the left hand side information panel where participants have to search for it and feed the information in the respective communication media blocks as fast as possible. On the whole the system will collect multitasking behavioral data. To analyze performance there is a separate output table that records the reaction times and responses of the participants individually. Information panel and all the media blocks will appear on a single window in order to ensure multi-modality feature in media-multitasking and equal emphasis on all the tasks (thus avoiding prioritization to a particular task). The paper discusses the development of QTM in the light of current techniques of studying media-multitasking.

Keywords: experimentation system, human performance, media-multitasking, query-task

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Authors: Mella Ismelina Farma Rahayu

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Environmental problems could not be separated from unethical human perspectives and behaviors toward the environment. There is a fundamental error in the philosophy of people’s perspective about human and nature and their relationship with the environment, which in turn will create an inappropriate behavior in relation to the environment. The aim of this study is to investigate and to understand the ethics of the environment in the context of humans interacting with the environment by using the hermeneutic approach. The related theories and concepts collected from literature review are used as data, which were analyzed by using interpretation, critical evaluation, internal coherence, comparisons, and heuristic techniques. As a result of this study, there will be a picture related to the interaction of human and environment in the perspective of environmental ethics, as well as the problems of the value of ecological justice in the interaction of humans and environment. We suggest that the interaction between humans and environment need to be based on environmental ethics, in a spirit of mutual respect between humans and the natural world.

Keywords: environment, environmental ethics, interaction, value

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Authors: Konrad Rejdak, Agnieszka Korchut, Sebastian Szklener, Urszula Skrobas, Justyna Gerlowska, Katarzyna Grabowska-Aleksandrowicz, Dorota Szczesniak-Stanczyk

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Introduction: Neurodegenerative diseases are frequently accompanied by loss and unwanted change in functional independence, social relationships, and economic circumstances. Currently, the achievements of social robots to date is being projected to improve multidimensional quality of life among people with cognitive impairment and others. Objectives: Identification of particular human needs in context of the changes occurring in course of neurodegenerative diseases. Methods: Based on the 110 surveys performed in Medical University of Lublin from medical staff, patients, and caregivers we made prioritization of the users' needs as: high, medium, and low. The issues included in the surveys concerned four aspects: user acceptance, functional requirements, design of the robotic assistant and preferred types of human-robot interaction. Results: We received completed questionnaires: 50 from medical staff, 30 from caregivers and 30 from potential users. Above 90% of the respondents from each of the three groups, accepted robotic assistant as a potential caregiver. High priority functional capability of assistive technology was to handle emergencies in a private home like recognizing life-threatening situations and reminding about medication intake. With reference to design of the robotic assistant, the majority of the respondent would like to have an anthropomorphic appearance with positive emotionally expressive face. The most important type of human-robot interaction was voice-operated system and by touchscreen. Conclusion: The results from our study might contribute to a better understanding of the system and users’ requirements for the development of a service robot intended to support patients with dementia.

Keywords: social robot, dementia, requirements, patients needs

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Authors: Issa Hussein Manita

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This paper presents an example of industrial information system design and implementation (IIDC), the most common software engineering design steps that are applied to the different design stages. We are going through the life cycle of software system development. We start by a study of system requirement and end with testing and delivering system, going by system design and coding, program integration and system integration step. The most modern software design tools available used in the design this includes, but not limited to, Unified Modeling Language (UML), system modeling, SQL server side application, uses case analysis, design and testing as applied to information processing systems. The system is designed to perform tasks specified by the client with real data. By the end of the implementation of the system, default or user defined acceptance policy to provide an overall score as an indication of the system performance is used. To test the reliability of he designed system, it is tested in different environment and different work burden such as multi-user environment.

Keywords: software engineering, design, system requirement, integration, unified modeling language

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Authors: Yibin Qiu, Yubo Ouyang, Shihan Li, Guorui Zhang, Qi Li, Weirong Chen

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This paper aims at exploring the impacts of high dimensional dependencies of wind speed among wind farms on probabilistic optimal power flow. To obtain the reactive power optimization faster and more accurately, a mixture vine Copula structure model combining the K-means clustering, C vine copula and D vine copula is proposed in this paper, through which a more accurate correlation model can be obtained. Moreover, a Modified Backtracking Search Algorithm (MBSA), the three-point estimate method is applied to probabilistic optimal power flow. The validity of the mixture vine copula structure model and the MBSA are respectively tested in IEEE30 node system with measured data of 3 adjacent wind farms in a certain area, and the results indicate effectiveness of these methods.

Keywords: mixture vine copula structure model, three-point estimate method, the probability integral transform, modified backtracking search algorithm, reactive power optimization

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Authors: Nantale Prossy Nabatte, Josephat Nyagero, Elizabeth Kemigisha

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Background: Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) is a prevalent sexually transmitted infection (STI) in the world. It is important to screen for HPV so that women found positive receive early treatment to prevent the development of cervical cancer. The broad aim of the research was to explore the types, occurrence, and associated correlates of HPV infection by genotyping Human papillomavirus among a cohort of WLHIV attending an antiretroviral therapy clinic in Mukono, Uganda. Methods: A cross-sectional study was used to collect data for socio-demographic, sexual practices, and medical history factors associated with HPV genotypes using a pretested interview guide subjected to 342 WLHIV. The respondents’ results for HPV genotypes were obtained retrospectively from respective laboratory records. Data was entered in Epidata v4.6 and analysed using STATA V14. The prevalence of hr-HPV was estimated as a proportion of the entire sample size. Analysis for the correlates of hr-HPV infection was done using a modified Poisson regression model. Results: Slightly more than a half of respondents were aged below 35 years (56.7%), married (52.6%), and with a primary level of education (51.2%). The prevalence of hr-HPV was 39.8% at a 95% confidence interval (CI: 34.40- 44.78). The hr-HPV was higher among those between 30-34 years of age (n= 41, 30.2%) than those between the age of 45-49 years (n=16, 11.8%). In terms of associated correlates, age 45-49 years (aPR: 1.95, 95% CI: 1.41- 2.69), being married (aPR: 1.30, 95% CI: 1.00, 1.69), use of condoms (aPR: 1.31, 95% CI: 1.00 -1.71) and age of sexual debut (aPR: 1.42, 95% CI: 1.08-1.87) were significantly associated with Human papillomavirus genotypes. Conclusion and Recommendation: The prevalence of hr-HPV infection was high, indicative of a risk to the health of WLHIV in Mukono, Uganda, and worldwide at large. The correlates are age 45-49 years, being married, use of condoms, and age of sexual debut. Based on the results, it is recommended that the implementing teams in such projects put more emphasis on the diagnosis of hr-HPV infection and monitoring the treatment. More research is required to determine the effect of ART therapy on hr-HPV persistence.

Keywords: human papillomavirus genotypes, and their correlates, among women living with HIV, attending antiretroviral clinic

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Authors: Larry Powell, Seth Polsley, Drew Casey, Tracy Hammond

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Human activity recognition (HAR) systems have shown positive performance when recognizing repetitive activities like walking, running, and sleeping. Water-based activities are a reasonably new area for activity recognition. However, water-based activity recognition has largely focused on supporting the elite and competitive swimming population, which already has amazing coordination and proper form. Beginner swimmers are not perfect, and activity recognition needs to support the individual motions to help beginners. Activity recognition algorithms are traditionally built around short segments of timed sensor data. Using a time window input can cause performance issues in the machine learning model. The window’s size can be too small or large, requiring careful tuning and precise data segmentation. In this work, we present a method that uses a time window as the initial segmentation, then separates the data based on the change in the sensor value. Our system uses a multi-phase segmentation method that pulls all peaks and valleys for each axis of an accelerometer placed on the swimmer’s lower back. This results in high recognition performance using leave-one-subject-out validation on our study with 20 beginner swimmers, with our model optimized from our final dataset resulting in an F-Score of 0.95.

Keywords: time window, peak/valley segmentation, feature extraction, beginner swimming, activity recognition

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Authors: Daniela E. Marin, Cornelia Braicu, Gina C. Pistol, Roxana Cojocneanu-Petric, Ioana Berindan Neagoe, Mihail A. Gras, Ionelia Taranu

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Aristolochic acid (AA) is a carcinogenic, mutagenic, and nephrotoxic compound commonly found in the Aristolochiaceae family of plants. AA is frequently associated with urothelial carcinoma of the upper urinary tract in human and animals and is considered as being responsible for Balkan Endemic Nephropathy. The pig provides a good animal model because the porcine urological system is very similar to that of humans, both in aspects of physiology and anatomy. MicroRNA (miRNA) are small non-coding RNAs that have an impact on a wide range of biological processes by regulating gene expression at post-transcriptional level. The objective of this study was to analyze the miRNA profiling in the kidneys of AA intoxicated swine. For this purpose, ten TOPIGS-40 crossbred weaned piglets, 4-week-old, male and females with an initial average body weight of 9.83 ± 0.5 kg were studied for 28 days. They were given ad libitum access to water and feed and randomly allotted to one of the following groups: control group (C) or aristolochic acid group (AA). They were fed a maize-soybean-meal-based diet contaminated or not with 0.25mgAA/kg. To profile miRNA in the kidneys of pigs, microarrays and bioinformatics approaches were applied to analyze the miRNA in the kidney of control and AA intoxicated pigs. After normalization, our results have shown that a total of 5 known miRNAs and 4 novel miRNAs had different profiling in the kidney of intoxicated animals versus control ones. Expression of miR-32-5p, miR-497-5p, miR-423-3p, miR-218-5p, miR-128-3p were up-regulated by 0.25mgAA/kg feed, while the expression of miR-9793-5p, miR-9835-3p, miR-9840-3p, miR-4334-5p was down-regulated. The microRNA profiling in kidney of intoxicated animals was associated with modified expression of target genes as: RICTOR, LASP1, SFRP2, DKK2, BMI1, RAF1, IGF1R, MAP2K1, WEE1, HDGF, BCL2, EIF4E etc, involved in cell division cycle, apoptosis, cell differentiation and cell migration, cell signaling, cancer etc. In conclusion, this study provides new data concerning the microRNA profiling in kidney after aristolochic acid intoxications with important implications for human and animal health.

Keywords: aristolochic acid, kidney, microRNA, swine

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Authors: Rajpal Kaur, Pooja Choudhary

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Biometrics, which refers to identifying an individual based on his or her physiological or behavioral characteristics, has the capabilities to the reliably distinguish between an authorized person and an imposter. The Signature recognition systems can categorized as offline (static) and online (dynamic). This paper presents Surf Feature based recognition of offline signatures system that is trained with low-resolution scanned signature images. The signature of a person is an important biometric attribute of a human being which can be used to authenticate human identity. However the signatures of human can be handled as an image and recognized using computer vision and HMM techniques. With modern computers, there is need to develop fast algorithms for signature recognition. There are multiple techniques are defined to signature recognition with a lot of scope of research. In this paper, (static signature) off-line signature recognition & verification using surf feature with HMM is proposed, where the signature is captured and presented to the user in an image format. Signatures are verified depended on parameters extracted from the signature using various image processing techniques. The Off-line Signature Verification and Recognition is implemented using Mat lab platform. This work has been analyzed or tested and found suitable for its purpose or result. The proposed method performs better than the other recently proposed methods.

Keywords: offline signature verification, offline signature recognition, signatures, SURF features, HMM

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Authors: Yang Xiong, Hua Cheng

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In this paper, for the basic problem of wireless sensor network topology control and deployment, the Roesser model in rectangular grid sensor networks is presented. In addition, a general constructive realization procedure will be proposed. The procedure enables a distributed implementation of linear systems on a sensor network. A non-trivial example is illustrated.

Keywords: grid sensor networks, Roesser model, state-space realization, multidimensional systems

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Authors: Erik Kuravsky

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One of the problems with a post-structuralist account of agency is that it appears to reject the freedom of an acting subject, thus seeming to deny the very phenomenon of agency. However, this is only a problem if we think that human beings can be agents exclusively in terms of being subjects, that is, if we think agency subjectively. Indeed, we tend to understand traditional theories of human freedom (e.g., Plato’s or Kant’s) in terms of a peculiar ability of the subject. The paper suggests to de-subjectivize agency with the help of Heidegger’s later thought. To do it, ir argues that classical theories of agency may indeed be interpreted as subject-oriented (sometimes even by their authors), but do not have to be read as such. Namely, the claim is that what makes agency what it is, what is essential in agency, is not its belonginess to a subject, but its ontological configuration. We may say that agency “happens,” and that there is a very specific ontological characteristics to this happening. The argument of the paper is that we can find these characteristic in the classical accounts of agency and that these characteristics are sufficient to distinguish human freedom from other natural phenomena. In particular, it offers to think agency not as one of human characteristics, but as an ontological event in which human beings take part. Namely, agency is a (non-human) characteristic of the different modes in which the experienceable existence of beings is determined by Being. To be an agent then is to participate in such ontological determination. What enables this participation is the ways human beings non-thematically understand the ontological difference. For example, for Plato, one acts freely only if one is led by an idea of the good, while for Kant the imperative for free action is categorial. The agency of an agent is thus dependent on the differentiation between ideas/categories and beings met in experience – one is “free” from contingent sensibility in terms of what is different from it ontologically. In this light, modern dependence on subjectivity is evident in the fact that the ontological difference is thought as belonging to one’s thinking, consciousness etc. That is, it is taken subjectively. A non-subjective account of agency, on the other hand, requires thinking this difference as belonging to Being itself, and thinking human beings as a medium within which occurs the non-human force of ontological differentiation.

Keywords: Heidegger, freedom, agency, poststructuralism

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Authors: Hans Schumann, Colin Domnauer, Louis Rosenberg

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In this study, machine learning techniques were deployed on real-time human swarm data to forecast the likelihood of outcomes for English Premier League matches in the 2020/21 season. These techniques included ensemble models in combination with neural networks and were tested against an industry standard of Vegas Oddsmakers. Predictions made from the collective intelligence of human swarm participants managed to achieve a positive return on investment over a full season on matches, empirically proving the usefulness of a new artificial intelligence valuing human instinct and intelligence.

Keywords: artificial intelligence, data science, English Premier League, human swarming, machine learning, sports betting, swarm intelligence

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Authors: Mohammed Abdulridha Hamdan

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To face the water crisis, understanding the role of human activities on nutrient concentrations in aquatic ecosystems needs more investigations compare to extensively studies which have been carried out to understand these impacts on water quality of different aquatic ecosystems. We hypothesized human activates on the catchments of Tigris river may change nutrient concentrations in water along the river. The results showed that phosphate concentration differed significantly among the studied sites due to distributed human activities, while nitrate concentration did not. Phosphate and nitrate concentrations were not affected by water temperature. We concluded that human activities on the surrounding landscapes could be more essential sources for nutrients of aquatic ecosystems than role of ongoing climate warming. Despite the role of warming in driving nutrients availability in aquatic ecosystems, our findings suggest to take the different activities on the surrounding catchments into account in the studies caring about trophic status classification of aquatic ecosystems.

Keywords: phosphate, nitrate, anthropogenic, warming

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Authors: Mohammed Abdulridha Hamdan

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To face the water crisis, understanding the role of human activities on nutrient concentrations in aquatic ecosystems needs more investigations compare to extensively studies, which have been carried out to understand these impacts on water quality of different aquatic ecosystems. We hypothesized human activates on the catchments of Tigris river may change nutrient concentrations in water along the river. The results showed that phosphate concentration differed significantly among the studied sites due to distributed human activities, while nitrate concentration did not. Phosphate and nitrate concentrations were not affected by water temperature. We concluded that human activities on the surrounding landscapes could be more essential sources for nutrients of aquatic ecosystems than role of ongoing climate warming. Despite the role of warming in driving nutrients availability in aquatic ecosystems, our findings suggest to take the different activities on the surrounding catchments into account in the studies caring about trophic status classification of aquatic ecosystems.

Keywords: phosphate, nitrate, Anthropogenic, warming

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Authors: Noha El-Gohary, Thanaa El-Shater, A. A. Mahfouz, M. M. Sakr

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Searching for high power conversion efficiency and long lifetime are important goals when designing a power supply subsystem for satellite applications. To fulfill these goals, this paper presents a power supply subsystem for small satellites in which flywheel energy storage system is used as a secondary power source instead of chemical battery. In this paper, the model of flywheel energy storage system is introduced; a DC bus regulation control algorithm for charging and discharging of flywheel based on space vector pulse width modulation technique and motor current control is also introduced. Simulation results showed the operation of the flywheel for charging and discharging mode during illumination and shadowed period. The advantages of the proposed system are confirmed by the simulation results of the power supply system.

Keywords: small-satellites, flywheel energy storage system, space vector pulse width modulation, power conversion

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Authors: Prashant Pandey

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In the present article, an effective Laguerre collocation method is used to obtain the approximate solution of a system of coupled fractional-order non-linear reaction-advection-diffusion equation with prescribed initial and boundary conditions. In the proposed scheme, Laguerre polynomials are used together with an operational matrix and collocation method to obtain approximate solutions of the coupled system, so that our proposed model is converted into a system of algebraic equations which can be solved employing the Newton method. The solution profiles of the coupled system are presented graphically for different particular cases. The salient feature of the present article is finding the stability analysis of the proposed method and also the demonstration of the lower variation of solute concentrations with respect to the column length in the fractional-order system compared to the integer-order system. To show the higher efficiency, reliability, and accuracy of the proposed scheme, a comparison between the numerical results of Burger’s coupled system and its existing analytical result is reported. There are high compatibility and consistency between the approximate solution and its exact solution to a higher order of accuracy. The exhibition of error analysis for each case through tables and graphs confirms the super-linearly convergence rate of the proposed method.

Keywords: fractional coupled PDE, stability and convergence analysis, diffusion equation, Laguerre polynomials, spectral method

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Authors: Anuraj Singh

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The complex dynamics is explored in a prey predator system with multiple delays. The predator dynamics is governed by Leslie-Gower scheme. The existence of periodic solutions via Hopf bifurcation with respect to delay parameters is established. To substantiate analytical findings, numerical simulations are performed. The system shows rich dynamic behavior including chaos and limit cycles.

Keywords: chaos, Hopf bifurcation, stability, time delay

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Authors: Chamika Chiran Perera, Dananjaya Perera, Chirath Dasanayake, Banuka Athuraliya

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Male infertility is a major problem in the world, and it is a neglected and sensitive health issue in Sri Lanka. It can be determined by analyzing human semen samples. Sperm motility is one of many factors that can evaluate male’s fertility potential. In Sri Lanka, this analysis is performed manually. Manual methods are time consuming and depend on the person, but they are reliable and it can depend on the expert. Machine learning and deep learning technologies are currently being investigated to automate the spermatozoa motility analysis, and these methods are unreliable. These automatic methods tend to produce false positive results and false detection. Current automatic methods support different techniques, and some of them are very expensive. Due to the geographical variance in spermatozoa characteristics, current automatic methods are not reliable for motility analysis in Sri Lanka. The suggested system, DeepMotile, is to explore a method to analyze motility of human spermatozoa automatically and present it to the andrology laboratories to overcome current issues. DeepMotile is a novel deep learning method for analyzing spermatozoa motility parameters in the Sri Lankan population. To implement the current approach, Sri Lanka patient data were collected anonymously as a dataset, and glass slides were used as a low-cost technique to analyze semen samples. Current problem was identified as microscopic object detection and tackling the problem. YOLOv5 was customized and used as the object detector, and it achieved 94 % mAP (mean average precision), 86% Precision, and 90% Recall with the gathered dataset. StrongSORT was used as the object tracker, and it was validated with andrology experts due to the unavailability of annotated ground truth data. Furthermore, this research has identified many potential ways for further investigation, and andrology experts can use this system to analyze motility parameters with realistic accuracy.

Keywords: computer vision, deep learning, convolutional neural networks, multi-target tracking, microscopic object detection and tracking, male infertility detection, motility analysis of human spermatozoa

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Authors: Alhasan Hakami, Arun Kumar, Sung J. Shim, Yousef Abu Nahleh

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In recent years, many high intensity earthquakes have occurred around the world, such as the 2011 earthquake in Tohoku, Japan. These large-scale disasters caused huge casualties and losses. In addition, inefficient disaster response operations also caused the second wave of casualties and losses, and expanded the damage. Effective disaster management can be used to respond to the chaotic situation, and reduce the damage. However, some inefficient disaster response operations are still used. Therefore, this case study chose the 921 earthquakes for analysing disaster emergency logistics problems and proposed the Soft Systems Methodology (SSM) to solve disaster emergency logistics problems. Moreover, it analyses the effect of human factors on system operation, and suggests a solution to improve the system.

Keywords: soft systems methodology, emergency logistics, earthquakes, Japan, system operation

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Authors: Faezeh Mosallat, Eric L. Bibeau, Tarek El Mekkawy

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Availability of a wide variety of renewable resources, such as large reserves of hydro, biomass, solar and wind in Canada provides significant potential to improve the sustainability of energy uses. As buildings represent a considerable portion of energy use in Canada, application of distributed solar energy systems for heating and cooling may increase the amount of renewable energy use. Parabolic solar trough systems have seen limited deployments in cold northern climates as they are more suitable for electricity production in southern latitudes. Heat production by concentrating solar rays using parabolic troughs can overcome the poor efficiencies of flat panels and evacuated tubes in cold climates. A numerical dynamic model is developed to simulate an installed parabolic solar trough facility in Winnipeg. The results of the numerical model are validated using the experimental data obtained from this system. The model is developed in Simulink and will be utilized to simulate a tri-generation system for heating, cooling and electricity generation in remote northern communities. The main objective of this simulation is to obtain operational data of solar troughs in cold climates as this is lacking in the literature. In this paper, the validated Simulink model is applied to simulate a solar assisted absorption cooling system along with electricity generation using organic Rankine cycle (ORC) and thermal storage. A control strategy is employed to distribute the heated oil from solar collectors among the above three systems considering the temperature requirements. This modeling provides dynamic performance results using real time minutely meteorological data which are collected at the same location the solar system is installed. This is a big step ahead of the current models by accurately calculating the available solar energy at each time step considering the solar radiation fluctuations due to passing clouds. The solar absorption cooling is modeled to use the generated heat from the solar trough system and provide cooling in summer for a greenhouse which is located next to the solar field. A natural gas water heater provides the required excess heat for the absorption cooling at low or no solar radiation periods. The results of the simulation are presented for a summer month in Winnipeg which includes the amount of generated electric power from ORC and contribution of solar energy in the cooling load provision

Keywords: absorption cooling, parabolic solar trough, remote community, validated model

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Authors: Shakila N. Senarath, Dinesh Asanka, Janaka Wijayanayake

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The necessity of cosmetic products is arising to fulfill consumer needs of personality appearance and hygiene. A cosmetic product consists of various chemical ingredients which may help to keep the skin healthy or may lead to damages. Every chemical ingredient in a cosmetic product does not perform on every human. The most appropriate way to select a healthy cosmetic product is to identify the texture of the body first and select the most suitable product with safe ingredients. Therefore, the selection process of cosmetic products is complicated. Consumer surveys have shown most of the time, the selection process of cosmetic products is done in an improper way by consumers. From this study, a content-based system is suggested that recommends cosmetic products for the human factors. To such an extent, the skin type, gender and price range will be considered as human factors. The proposed system will be implemented by using Machine Learning. Consumer skin type, gender and price range will be taken as inputs to the system. The skin type of consumer will be derived by using the Baumann Skin Type Questionnaire, which is a value-based approach that includes several numbers of questions to derive the user’s skin type to one of the 16 skin types according to the Bauman Skin Type indicator (BSTI). Two datasets are collected for further research proceedings. The user data set was collected using a questionnaire given to the public. Those are the user dataset and the cosmetic dataset. Product details are included in the cosmetic dataset, which belongs to 5 different kinds of product categories (Moisturizer, Cleanser, Sun protector, Face Mask, Eye Cream). An alternate approach of TF-IDF (Term Frequency – Inverse Document Frequency) is applied to vectorize cosmetic ingredients in the generic cosmetic products dataset and user-preferred dataset. Using the IF-IPF vectors, each user-preferred products dataset and generic cosmetic products dataset can be represented as sparse vectors. The similarity between each user-preferred product and generic cosmetic product will be calculated using the cosine similarity method. For the recommendation process, a similarity matrix can be used. Higher the similarity, higher the match for consumer. Sorting a user column from similarity matrix in a descending order, the recommended products can be retrieved in ascending order. Even though results return a list of similar products, and since the user information has been gathered, such as gender and the price ranges for product purchasing, further optimization can be done by considering and giving weights for those parameters once after a set of recommended products for a user has been retrieved.

Keywords: content-based filtering, cosmetics, machine learning, recommendation system

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Authors: Xuan Zheng

Abstract:

China is home to one of the world’s largest Deaf and Hard of Hearing (DHH) populations. In the 1980s, the concept of inclusive education was introduced, giving rise to a unique “learning in regular class (随班就读)” model tailored to local contexts. China’s inclusive education for DHH students is diversifying with innovative models like special education classes at regular schools, regular classes at regular schools, resource classrooms, satellite classes, and bilingual-bimodal projects. The scope extends to preschool and higher education programs. However, the inclusive development of DHH students faces challenges. The prevailing pathological viewpoint on disabilities persists, emphasizing the necessity for favorable auditory and speech rehabilitation outcomes before DHH students can integrate into regular classes. In addition, inadequate support systems in inclusive schools result in poor academic performance and increased psychological disorders among the group, prompting a notable return to special education schools. Looking ahead, China’s inclusive education for DHH students needs a substantial shift from “learning in regular class” to “sharing equal regular education.” Particular attention should be devoted to the effective integration of DHH students who employ sign language into mainstream educational settings. It is crucial to strengthen regulatory frameworks and institutional safeguards, advance the professional development of educators specializing in inclusive education for DHH students, and consistently enhance resources tailored to this demographic. Furthermore, the establishment of a robust, multidimensional, and collaborative support network, engaging both families and educational institutions, is also a pivotal facet.

Keywords: deaf, hard of hearing, inclusive education, China

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Authors: André Augusto Ceballos Melo

Abstract:

Design to facilitate the recognition of congruent prosthetic movements, context-to-motion translations guided by image, verbal prompt, users nonverbal communication such as facial expressions, gestures, paralinguistics, scene context, and object recognition contributes to this process though it can also be applied to other tasks, such as walking, Prosthetic limbs as assistive technology through gestures, sound codes, signs, facial, body expressions, and scene context The context-to-motion model is a machine learning approach that is designed to improve the control and dexterity of prosthetic limbs. It works by using sensory input from the prosthetic limb to learn about the dynamics of the environment and then using this information to generate smooth, stable movements. This can help to improve the performance of the prosthetic limb and make it easier for the user to perform a wide range of tasks. There are several key benefits to using the context-to-motion model for prosthetic limb control. First, it can help to improve the naturalness and smoothness of prosthetic limb movements, which can make them more comfortable and easier to use for the user. Second, it can help to improve the accuracy and precision of prosthetic limb movements, which can be particularly useful for tasks that require fine motor control. Finally, the context-to-motion model can be trained using a variety of different sensory inputs, which makes it adaptable to a wide range of prosthetic limb designs and environments. Stable diffusion is a machine learning method that can be used to improve the control and stability of movements in robotic and prosthetic systems. It works by using sensory feedback to learn about the dynamics of the environment and then using this information to generate smooth, stable movements. One key aspect of stable diffusion is that it is designed to be robust to noise and uncertainty in the sensory feedback. This means that it can continue to produce stable, smooth movements even when the sensory data is noisy or unreliable. To implement stable diffusion in a robotic or prosthetic system, it is typically necessary to first collect a dataset of examples of the desired movements. This dataset can then be used to train a machine learning model to predict the appropriate control inputs for a given set of sensory observations. Once the model has been trained, it can be used to control the robotic or prosthetic system in real-time. The model receives sensory input from the system and uses it to generate control signals that drive the motors or actuators responsible for moving the system. Overall, the use of the context-to-motion model has the potential to significantly improve the dexterity and performance of prosthetic limbs, making them more useful and effective for a wide range of users Hand Gesture Body Language Influence Communication to social interaction, offering a possibility for users to maximize their quality of life, social interaction, and gesture communication.

Keywords: stable diffusion, neural interface, smart prosthetic, augmenting

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Authors: T. Aboumahboub, R. Brecha, H. B. Shrestha, U. F. Hutfilter, A. Geiges, W. Hare, M. Schaeffer, L. Welder, M. Gidden

Abstract:

The proposed stringent mitigation targets require an immediate start for a drastic transformation of the whole energy system. The current Australian energy system is mainly centralized and fossil fuel-based in most states with coal and gas-fired plants dominating the total produced electricity over the recent past. On the other hand, the country is characterized by a huge, untapped renewable potential, where wind and solar energy could play a key role in the decarbonization of the Australia’s future energy system. However, integrating high shares of such variable renewable energy sources (VRES) challenges the power system considerably due to their temporal fluctuations and geographical dispersion. This raises the concerns about flexibility gap in the system to ensure the security of supply with increasing shares of such intermittent sources. One main flexibility dimension to facilitate system integration of high shares of VRES is to increase the cross-sectoral integration through coupling of electricity to other energy sectors alongside the decarbonization of the power sector and reinforcement of the transmission grid. This paper applies a multi-sectoral energy system optimization model for Australia. We investigate the cost-optimal configuration of a renewable-based Australian energy system and its transformation pathway in line with the ambitious range of proposed climate change mitigation targets. We particularly analyse the implications of linking the electricity and transport sectors in a prospective, highly renewable Australian energy system.

Keywords: decarbonization, energy system modelling, renewable energy, sector coupling

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Authors: Falntina Ahmad Alata, Natheer Abu Obeid

Abstract:

This paper is a research report of an experimental study on a proposed typology system to diagnose and evaluate the affordances of varying architectural environments. The study focused on architectural environments which have been developed with a shift in their use of adaptive reuse. The novelty in the newly developed environments was tested in terms of human responsiveness and interaction using a variety of selected cases. The study is a follow-up on previous research by the same authors, in which a typology of 16 categories of environmental affordances was developed and introduced. The current study introduced other new categories, which together with the previous ones establish what could be considered a basic language of affordance typology. The experiment was conducted on ten architectural environments while adopting two processes: 1. Diagnostic process, in which the environments were interpreted in terms of their affordances using the previously developed affordance typology, 2. The evaluation process, in which the diagnosed environments were evaluated using measures of emotional experience and architectural evaluation criteria of beauty, economy and function. The experimental study demonstrated that the typology system was capable of diagnosing different environments in terms of their affordances. It also introduced new categories of human interaction: “multiple affordances,” “conflict affordances,” and “mix affordances.” The different possible combinations and mixtures of categories demonstrated to be capable of producing huge numbers of other newly developed categories. This research is an attempt to draw a roadmap for designers to diagnose and evaluate the affordances within different architectural environments. It is hoped to provide future guidance for developing the best possible adaptive reuse according to the best affordance category within their proposed designs.

Keywords: affordance theory, affordance categories, architectural environments, architectural evaluation criteria, adaptive reuse environment, emotional experience, shift in use environment

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Authors: Nan-Ting Yu, Boksun Kim, Long-Yuan Li

Abstract:

The cold-formed steel beams with web holes are widely used as the load-carrying members in structural engineering. The perforations can release the space of the building and let the pipes go through. However, the perforated cold-formed steel (PCFS) beams may fail by distortional buckling more easily than beams with plain web; this is because the rotational stiffness from the web decreases. It is well known that the distortional buckling can be described as the buckling of the compressed flange-lip system. In fact, near the ultimate failure, the flange/web corner would move laterally, which indicates the bending of the web should be taken account. The purpose of this study is to give a specific solution for the critical stress of flange/web distortional buckling of PCFS beams. The new model is deduced based on classical energy method, and the deflection of the web is represented by the shape function of the plane beam element. The finite element analyses have been performed to validate the accuracy of the proposed model. The comparison of the critical stress calculated from Hancock's model, FEA, and present model, shows that the present model can provide a splendid prediction for the flange/web distortional buckling of PCFS beams.

Keywords: cold-formed steel, beams, perforations, flange-web distortional buckling, finite element analysis

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