Search results for: geometric attenuation term

Authors: Prasansha Kumari

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This research intends to identify and analyze the new trends of usage the traditional farming methods to modern paddy cultivation. Information gathered through conducting interviews with total of 200 farmers in selected paddy cultivation areas in Kurunegalla district. As well as this research utilized by case study and observation in Ulpotha Traditional Village, Galgamuwa of Sri Lanka. Secondary data collected from books, articles, relevant websites and other relevant documents. Collected data analyzed by descriptive research methodology. Outcomes are there is growing interest in usage the traditional farming methods to the small consumption level paddy lands that have emerged during the last few decades as well as the research revealed that traditional farming method has identified the ecofriendly farming practices to restrict long term side effects inherited from the modern methods. The study finds out the demand of traditional rice varieties has been growing among the community as health and nutrition purpose.

Keywords: traditional farming, organic, inorganic, paddy cultivation

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Authors: Roger L. Goodwin

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The US Consumer Price Indices (CPIs) measures hundreds of items in the US economy. Many social programs and government benefits index to the CPIs. In mid to late 1990, much research went into changes to the CPI by a Congressional Advisory Committee. One thing can be said from the research is that, aside from there are alternative estimators for the CPI; any fundamental change to the CPI will affect many government programs. The purpose of this project is to modernize an existing process. This paper will show the development of a small, visual, software product that documents the Economic Price Adjustment (EPA) for long-term contracts. The existing workbook does not provide the flexibility to calculate EPAs where the base-month and the option-month are different. Nor does the workbook provide automated error checking. The small, visual, software product provides the additional flexibility and error checking. This paper presents the feedback to project.

Keywords: Consumer Price Index, Economic Price Adjustment, contracts, visualization tools, database, reports, forms, event procedures

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Authors: Pauline Swee Choo Goh, Kung Teck Wong

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The research reported here investigates variation in beginning teachers’ early experiences of their own teaching competency. A phenomenographic research approach was used to show the qualitatively different ways teacher competence was understood amongst beginning teachers in Malaysia. Phenomenographic interviews were conducted with 18 beginning teachers who had started full time teaching for between 1-3 years. Analysis revealed that beginning teachers ‘saw’, ‘understood’ the conceptions of competency in five different ways: i) the ability to manage classroom and student behavior, ii) a strong knowledge of the subject content, iii) the ability to reach out for assistance and support, iv) understanding the students they teach, and v) possessing values of professionalism. The relationships between these different ways are represented diagrammatically. This investigation gives an insider’s perspective a strong voice of what constitutes teacher competence, as well as illustrates that if teacher competence is to be used for any articulation of teacher standards, the term must be carefully defined through the help of the group most affected by any judgements of their competency to avoid misunderstandings, unhappiness and discontent.

Keywords: pre-service teachers, phenomenology, competency, teacher education

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Authors: Radul Shishkov, Orlin Davchev

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The digital era has revolutionized architectural practices, with building information modeling (BIM) emerging as a pivotal tool for architects, engineers, and construction professionals. However, the transition from traditional methods to BIM-centric approaches poses significant challenges, particularly in the context of existing structures. This research introduces a technical approach to bridge this gap through the development of algorithms that facilitate the automated transformation of 3D point cloud data into detailed BIM models. The core of this research lies in the application of algorithmic modeling and computational design methods to interpret and reconstruct point cloud data -a collection of data points in space, typically produced by 3D scanners- into comprehensive BIM models. This process involves complex stages of data cleaning, feature extraction, and geometric reconstruction, which are traditionally time-consuming and prone to human error. By automating these stages, our approach significantly enhances the efficiency and accuracy of creating BIM models for existing buildings. The proposed algorithms are designed to identify key architectural elements within point clouds, such as walls, windows, doors, and other structural components, and to translate these elements into their corresponding BIM representations. This includes the integration of parametric modeling techniques to ensure that the generated BIM models are not only geometrically accurate but also embedded with essential architectural and structural information. Our methodology has been tested on several real-world case studies, demonstrating its capability to handle diverse architectural styles and complexities. The results showcase a substantial reduction in time and resources required for BIM model generation while maintaining high levels of accuracy and detail. This research contributes significantly to the field of architectural technology by providing a scalable and efficient solution for the integration of existing structures into the BIM framework. It paves the way for more seamless and integrated workflows in renovation and heritage conservation projects, where the accuracy of existing conditions plays a critical role. The implications of this study extend beyond architectural practices, offering potential benefits in urban planning, facility management, and historic preservation.

Keywords: BIM, 3D point cloud, algorithmic modeling, computational design, architectural reconstruction

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Authors: M. Karimpour, N. Elkhoury, L. Hitihamillage, S. Moridpour, R. Hesami

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There is a necessity among rail transportation authorities for a superior understanding of the rail track degradation overtime and the factors influencing rail degradation. They need an accurate technique to identify the time when rail tracks fail or need maintenance. In turn, this will help to increase the level of safety and comfort of the passengers and the vehicles as well as improve the cost effectiveness of maintenance activities. An accurate model can play a key role in prediction of the long-term behaviour of railroad tracks. An accurate model can decrease the cost of maintenance. In this research, the rail track degradation is predicted using an autoregressive moving average with exogenous input (ARMAX). An ARMAX has been implemented on Melbourne tram data to estimate the values for the tram track degradation. Gauge values and rail usage in Million Gross Tone (MGT) are the main parameters used in the model. The developed model can accurately predict the future status of the tram tracks.

Keywords: ARMAX, dynamic systems, MGT, prediction, rail degradation

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Authors: Sara Nasiri Semnani, Alireza Ramzani

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Background and Aims: Sodium bicarbonate is a supplementation that used to reduce fatigue and increase power output in short-term training. On the other hand, the Ischemic Reperfusion Preconditioning (IRPC) is an appropriate stimulus to increase the submaximal contractile response. Materials and methods: 9 female student-athletes in double-blind randomized crossover design were three mode, sodium bicarbonate + IRPC, sodium bicarbonate and placebo+ IRPC. Participants moved forward single arm dumbbell hand with a weight of 2 kg can be carried out most frequently. Results: The results showed that plasma lactate concentration and records of sodium bicarbonate + IRPC and sodium bicarbonate conditions were significantly different compared to placebo + IRPC (Respectively p=0.001, p=0/02). Conclusion: According to the research findings, bicarbonate supplementation in IRPC training condition increased force and delay fatigue in submaximal dynamic contraction.

Keywords: ischemic reperfusion, preconditioning, sodium bicarbonate, submaximal dynamic force

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Authors: Nini Johana Marín Rodríguez, William Fernando Oquendo Patino

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In this work, we model a coupled system where we explore the effects of steady and random behavior on a linear system like an extension of the classic Strogatz model. This is exemplified by modeling a couple love dynamics as a linear system of two coupled differential equations and studying its stability for four types of lovers chosen as CC='Cautious- Cautious', OO='Only other feelings', OP='Opposites' and RR='Romeo the Robot'. We explore the effects of, first, introducing saturation, and second, adding a random variation to one of the CC-type lover, which will shape his character by trying to model how its variability influences the dynamics between love and hate in couple in a long run relationship. This work could also be useful to model other kind of systems where interactions can be modeled as linear systems with external or internal random influence. We found the final results are not easy to predict and a strong dependence on initial conditions appear, which a signature of chaos.

Keywords: differential equations, dynamical systems, linear system, love dynamics

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Authors: G. B. M. Carvalho, V. A. C. Vale, E. T. L. Cöuras Ford

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A heated pool makes it possible to use it during all hours of the day and in the seasons, especially in physiotherapies and sports centers. However, the cost of installation, operation and maintenance often makes it difficult to deploy. In addition, the current global policy for the use of natural resources from energy sources contradicts the most common means of heating swimming pools, such as the use of gas (Natural Gas and Liquefied Petroleum Gas), the use of firewood or oil and the use of electricity (heat pumps and electrical resistances). In this sense, this work focuses on the use of solar water heaters to be used in swimming pools of physiotherapy centers, in order to analyze their viability for this purpose in view of the costs linked to the medium and/or long term heating. For this, materials of low cost, low weight, easy commercial acquisition were used besides easy manufacture. Parameters such as flow, temperature distribution, efficiency and technical-economic feasibility were evaluated.

Keywords: heating, water, pool, solar energy, solar collectors, temperature, efficiency

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Authors: Aneesa Shafi

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Reproduction is a complex term in a setting where it is continuously being shaped by epistemological shifts in knowledge. It denotes not just fertility, birth and childcare related practices but also the ideas that shape those practices. These ideas and practices figure into understandings of social and cultural renewal. Patriarchy continues to be a dominating force in the formation of these ideas and practices. Contemporary times are characterized by the resurgence of the whims of patriarchal politics in delineating the margins of women’s health care. This has further emboldened the struggle for reproductive rights on the global stage. The paper examines the subordination of the right to bodily autonomy of women within the ambit of their reproductive rights. Reproductive rights are recognized human rights and women’s rights. Why these rights of women face stiff opposition is established, as is the structure that creates hurdles to their enjoyment. The negotiation of this structure in the everyday life through women’s agency is also established. The reproductive sphere includes not just the process of reproduction but also social reproduction- domestic work, spheres of production and reproduction, population and birth (control) issues.

Keywords: patriarchy, women, reproduction, gender

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Authors: Slimani Halima

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One of the main problems of degradation of arid steppe rangelands in the southern Mediterranean is the loss of plant diversity and changes in soil properties. During the last decades, these rangelands faced two main driving forces: climate through more or less lasting and recurrent droughts and overgrazing by sheep. In the present work, the preexisting system was an arid steppe with alfa grass (Stipa tenacissima L.) as the dominant plant, which was considered to be the "keystone" species toward the whole ecosystem structure and functioning. Vegetation and soil change was monitored for 45 years along a grazing intensity gradient. Changes in species richness and diversity, in the vegetation and in the soil, enabled to better understand climate fluctuations effects in comparison to overgrazing ones. The aim is to assess the impacts of grazing and climatic variability and change on biodiversity,vegetation and soil over a period of 45 years, based on data from seven reference years.

Keywords: biodiversity, desertification, droughts, el bayadh, overgrazing, soil, steppe

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Authors: Mahdi Farajzadeh Ajirlou

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Ordinary fetal brain development can be considered by in vivo attractive reverberation imaging (MRI) from the 18th gestational week (GW) to term and depends fundamentally on T2-weighted and diffusion-weighted (DW) arrangements. The foremost commonly suspected brain pathologies alluded to fetal MRI for assist assessment are ventriculomegaly, lost corpus callosum, and anomalies of the posterior fossa. Brain division could be a crucial to begin with step in neuroimage examination. Within the case of fetal MRI it is especially challenging and critical due to the subjective introduction of the hatchling, organs that encompass the fetal head, and irregular fetal movement. A few promising strategies have been proposed but are constrained in their execution in challenging cases and in realtime division. Fetal MRI is routinely performed on a 1.5-Tesla scanner without maternal or fetal sedation. The mother lies recumbent amid the course of the examination, the length of which is ordinarily 45 to 60 minutes. The accessibility and continuous approval of standardizing fetal brain development directions will give critical devices for early discovery of impeded fetal brain development upon which to oversee high-risk pregnancies.

Keywords: brain, fetal, MRI, imaging

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Authors: Pingping Lin, Xudong Luo, Yifan Fan

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Sentiment analysis is a very active research topic. Every day, Facebook, Twitter, Weibo, and other social media, as well as significant e-commerce websites, generate a massive amount of comments, which can be used to analyse peoples opinions or emotions. The existing methods for sentiment analysis are based mainly on sentiment dictionaries, machine learning, and deep learning. The first two kinds of methods rely on heavily sentiment dictionaries or large amounts of labelled data. The third one overcomes these two problems. So, in this paper, we focus on the third one. Specifically, we survey various sentiment analysis methods based on convolutional neural network, recurrent neural network, long short-term memory, deep neural network, deep belief network, and memory network. We compare their futures, advantages, and disadvantages. Also, we point out the main problems of these methods, which may be worthy of careful studies in the future. Finally, we also examine the application of deep learning in multimodal sentiment analysis and aspect-level sentiment analysis.

Keywords: document analysis, deep learning, multimodal sentiment analysis, natural language processing

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Authors: Raghad A. Altowairgi

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With the wide spread of social media platforms, young people tend to use them extensively as the first means of communication due to their ease and modernity. But these platforms often create a fertile ground for bullies to practice their aggressive behavior against their victims. Platform usage cannot be reduced, but intelligent mechanisms can be implemented to reduce the abuse. This is where machine learning comes in. Understanding and classifying text can be helpful in order to minimize the act of cyberbullying. Artificial intelligence techniques have expanded to formulate an applied tool to address the phenomenon of cyberbullying. In this research, machine learning models are built to classify text into two classes; cyberbullying and non-cyberbullying. After preprocessing the data in 4 stages; removing characters that do not provide meaningful information to the models, tokenization, removing stop words, and lowering text. BoW and TF-IDF are used as the main features for the five classifiers, which are; logistic regression, Naïve Bayes, Random Forest, XGboost, and Catboost classifiers. Each of them scores 92%, 90%, 92%, 91%, 86% respectively.

Keywords: cyberbullying, machine learning, Bag-of-Words, term frequency-inverse document frequency, natural language processing, Catboost

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Authors: Lisandy Arinta Suryana, Santi Novani, Utomo Sarjono

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Paradox of business strategic is associated with the contradictory practice. It becomes one of the critical way to survive and win in the dynamic competitive landscape – high level of uncertainty and rapid change in the business environment. Those characteristics are similar with the environment of hijab fashion business, especially in Indonesia. This paper aims to describe the success of paradoxical strategic based on historical data of hijab fashion business which have been validated by qualitative approach. This paper discusses two main aspects of paradoxical strategic such as paradox in human resource management, and logistic center management. Then, the detail effects from each practice are described in term of causal loop diagram. Moreover, the practice of paradoxical strategic depends on leadership that can make a brave and dynamic decision by capturing the main problems and opportunities in their business, and also build commitment to achieve a specific goal.

Keywords: paradox of business strategic, paradoxical strategic, causal loop diagram, sustainable business, hijab fashion business, business strategic

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Authors: Alexandra Kennedy

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Making use of the notion of ‘epodic spaces’ this paper presents a reconsideration of non-objective art practices, proposing alternatives to established materialist, formalist, process-based conceptualist approaches to such work. In his Neo-Concrete Manifesto (1959) Ferreira Gullar (1930-2016) sought to create a distinction between various forms of non-objective art. He distinguished the ‘geometric’ arts of neoplasticism, constructivism, and suprematism – which he described as ‘dangerously acute rationalism’ – from other non-objective practices. These alternatives, he proposed, have an expressive potential lacking in the former and this formed the basis for their categorisation as neo-concrete. Gullar prioritized the phenomenological over the rational, with an emphasis on the role of the spectator (a key concept of minimalism). Gullar highlighted the central role of sensual experience, colour and the poetic in such work. In the early twentieth century, Russian Cosmism – an esoteric philosophical movement – was highly influential on Russian avant-garde artists and can account for suprematist artists’ interest in, and approach to, planar geometry and four-dimensional space as demonstrated in the abstract paintings of Kasimir Malevich (1879-1935). Nikolai Fyodorov (1823-1903) promoted the idea of anti-gravity and cosmic space as the field for artistic activity. The artist and writer Kuzma Petrov-Vodkin (1878-1939) wrote on the concept of Euclidean space, the overcoming of such rational conceptions of space and the breaking free from the gravitational field and the earth’s sphere. These imaginary spaces, which also invoke a bodily experience, present a poetic dimension to the work of the suprematists. It is a dimension that arguably aligns more with Gullar’s formulation of his neo-concrete rather than that of his alignment of Suprematism with rationalism. While found in experiments with planar geometry, the interest in forms suggestive of an experience of breaking free–both physically from the earth and conceptually from rational, mathematical space (in a pre-occupation with non-Euclidean space and anti-geometry) and in their engagement with the spatial properties of colour, Suprematism presents itself as imaginatively epodic. The paper discusses both historical and contemporary non-objective practices in this context, drawing attention to the manner in which the category of the non-objective is used to categorise art works which are, arguably, qualitatively different.

Keywords: anti-gravity, neo-concrete, non-Euclidian geometry, non-objective painting

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Authors: Alexander Blokhin, Ekaterina Kruglova, Boris Semisalov

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Mathematical model based on the mesoscopic theory of polymer dynamics is developed for numerical simulation of the flows of polymeric liquid between two coaxial cylinders. This model is a system of nonlinear partial differential equations written in the cylindrical coordinate system and coupled with the heat conduction equation including a specific dissipation term. The stationary flows similar to classical Poiseuille ones are considered, and the resolving equations for the velocity of flow and for the temperature are obtained. For solving them, a fast pseudospectral method is designed based on Chebyshev approximations, that enables one to simulate the flows through the channels with extremely small relative values of the radius of inner cylinder. The numerical analysis of the dependance of flow on this radius and on the values of dissipation constant is done.

Keywords: dynamics of polymeric liquid, heat dissipation, singularly perturbed problem, pseudospectral method, Chebyshev polynomials, stabilization technique

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Authors: Zaki Ahmad Khan, Jamshed Siddiqui, Abdus Samad

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The Scheduling and mapping of tasks on a set of processors is considered as a critical problem in parallel and distributed computing system. This paper deals with the problem of dynamic scheduling on a special type of multiprocessor architecture known as Linear Crossed Cube (LCQ) network. This proposed multiprocessor is a hybrid network which combines the features of both linear type of architectures as well as cube based architectures. Two standard dynamic scheduling schemes namely Minimum Distance Scheduling (MDS) and Two Round Scheduling (TRS) schemes are implemented on the LCQ network. Parallel tasks are mapped and the imbalance of load is evaluated on different set of processors in LCQ network. The simulations results are evaluated and effort is made by means of through analysis of the results to obtain the best solution for the given network in term of load imbalance left and execution time. The other performance matrices like speedup and efficiency are also evaluated with the given dynamic algorithms.

Keywords: dynamic algorithm, load imbalance, mapping, task scheduling

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Authors: Arda Ozturk, Turgay Ozgur, Mursit Aksoy, Bahar O. Ozgur, Ozan Yilmaz

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The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of 8 weeks of basic basketball and volleyball exercises to Bodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence (BKI) levels in 245 (92 girls and 154 boys) adolescents aged between 12 and 14 years. Data collected via Bodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence scale as a subdimension of Multiple Intelligences Inventory. BKI levels were not different between basketball and volleyball groups. Statistical analyses were made based on gender, age groups (12, 13, 14 years) and exercise type. Independent samples t-test revealed that there was no significant difference between boy’s and girl’s BKI levels. One way ANOVA test revealed that there was significant difference between age group’s (12, 13, 14) BKI levels in post-test. However, Paired samples t-test revealed no significant differences between pre-post test results of adolescent’s BKI levels. In conclusion, despite the relatively long-term (8 weeks) physical activity. BKI levels have not shown significant differences.

Keywords: bodily-kinesthetic intelligence, adolescent, basketball, volleyball

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Authors: Alaa H. J. Al-Rkaby, A. Chegenizadeh, H. R. Nikraz

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The technique of reinforcing soil is an efficient, reliable and cost-effective alternative way for improving the performance of soil in civil engineering applications. Despite the anisotropic states of stresses induced within soil elements by many geotechnical structures such as footings, highways and offshore, most of the previous studies have been carried out under isotropic conditions. The anisotropic stress state in term of the inclined principal stress and the inequality of the intermediate and minor principal stresses cannot be investigated using conventional devices. Therefore, the advanced hollow cylinder apparatus, used in this work, provides a great opportunity to simulate such anisotropic stress states. To date, very little consideration has been given to how the direction of principal stress α and intermediate principal stress ratio b can affect the performance of the reinforced sand. This study presented that the anisotropic conditions of α and b resulted in significant variations in the deviator stress and volumetric strain of sand reinforced with geosynthetics. Anisotropic effect has been decreased by adding clay content.

Keywords: anisotropy, reinforced sand, direction of principal stress, intermediate principal stress ratio

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Authors: A. K. Tekile, I. L. Kim, J. Y. Lee

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Human activities put freshwater quality under risk, mainly due to expansion of agriculture and industries, damming, diversion and discharge of inadequately treated wastewaters. The rapid human population growth and climate change escalated the problem. External controlling actions on point and non-point pollution sources are long-term solution to manage water quality. To have a holistic approach, these mechanisms should be coupled with the in-water control strategies. The available in-lake or river methods are either costly or they have some adverse effect on the ecological system that the search for an alternative and effective solution with a reasonable balance is still going on. This study aimed at the physical and chemical water quality improvement in a stagnant Yeo-cheon River reach (Korea), which has recently shown sign of water quality problems such as scum formation and fish death. The river water quality was monitored, for the duration of three months by operating only water flow generator in the first two weeks and then ultrasonic irradiation device was coupled to the flow unit for the remaining duration of the experiment. In addition to assessing the water quality improvement, the correlation among the parameters was analyzed to explain the contribution of the ultra-sonication. Generally, the combined strategy showed localized improvement of water quality in terms of dissolved oxygen, Chlorophyll-a and dissolved reactive phosphate. At locations under limited influence of the system operation, chlorophyll-a was highly increased, but within 25 m of operation the low initial value was maintained. The inverse correlation coefficient between dissolved oxygen and chlorophyll-a decreased from 0.51 to 0.37 when ultrasonic irradiation unit was used with the flow, showing that ultrasonic treatment reduced chlorophyll-a concentration and it inhibited photosynthesis. The relationship between dissolved oxygen and reactive phosphate also indicated that influence of ultra-sonication was higher than flow on the reactive phosphate concentration. Even though flow increased turbidity by suspending sediments, ultrasonic waves canceled out the effect due to the agglomeration of suspended particles and the follow-up settling out. There has also been variation of interaction in the water column as the decrease of pH and dissolved oxygen from surface to the bottom played a role in phosphorus release into the water column. The variation of nitrogen and dissolved organic carbon concentrations showed mixed trend probably due to the complex chemical reactions subsequent to the operation. Besides, the intensive rainfall and strong wind around the end of the field trial had apparent impact on the result. The combined effect of water flow and ultrasonic irradiation was a cumulative water quality improvement and it maintained the dissolved oxygen and chlorophyll-a requirement of the river for healthy ecological interaction. However, the overall improvement of water quality is not guaranteed as effectiveness of ultrasonic technology requires long-term monitoring of water quality before, during and after treatment. Even though, the short duration of the study conducted here has limited nutrient pattern realization, the use of ultrasound at field scale to improve water quality is promising.

Keywords: stagnant, ultrasonic irradiation, water flow, water quality

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Authors: Khalid Obaed Mahmod, Mesut Cevik

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The term smart city has appeared recently and was accompanied by many definitions and concepts, but as a simplified and clear definition, it can be said that the smart city is a geographical location that has gained efficiency and flexibility in providing public services to citizens through its use of technological and communication technologies, and this is what distinguishes it from other cities. Smart cities connect the various components of the city through the main and sub-networks in addition to a set of applications and thus be able to collect data that is the basis for providing technological solutions to manage resources and provide services. The basis of the work of the smart city is the use of artificial intelligence and the technology of the Internet of Things. The work presents the concept of smart cities, the pillars, standards, and evaluation indicators on which smart cities depend, and the reasons that prompted the world to move towards its establishment. It also provides a simplified hypothetical way to measure the ideal smart city model by defining some indicators and key pillars, simulating them with logic circuits, and testing them to determine if the city can be considered an ideal smart city or not.

Keywords: factors, indicators, logic gates, pillars, smart city

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Authors: Axel Thallemer, Aleksandar Kostadinov, Abel Fam, Alex Teo

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For centuries, the forming processes in nature served as a source of inspiration for both architects and designers. It seems as most human artifacts are based on ideas which stem from the observation of the biological world and its principles of growth. As a fact, in the cultural history of Homo faber, materials have been mostly used in their solid state: From hand axe to computer mouse, the principle of employing matter has not changed ever since the first creation. In the scope of history only recently and by the help of additive-generative fabrication processes through Computer Aided Design (CAD), designers were enabled to deconstruct solid artifacts into an outer skin and an internal lattice structure. The intention behind this approach is to create a new topology which reduces resources and integrates functions into an additively manufactured component. However, looking at the currently employed lattice structures, it is very clear that those lattice structure geometries have not been thoroughly designed, but rather taken out of basic-geometry libraries which are usually provided by the CAD. In the here presented study, a group of 20 industrial design students created new and unique lattice structures using natural paragons as their models. The selected natural models comprise both the animate and inanimate world, with examples ranging from the spiraling of narwhal tusks, off-shooting of mangrove roots, minimal surfaces of soap bubbles, up to the rhythmical arrangement of molecular geometry, like in the case of SiOC (Carbon-Rich Silicon Oxicarbide). This ideation process leads to a design of a geometric cell, which served as a basic module for the lattice structure, whereby the cell was created in visual analogy to its respective natural model. The spatial lattices were fabricated additively in mostly [X]3 by [Y]3 by [Z]3 units’ volumes using selective powder bed melting in polyamide with (z-axis) 50 mm and 100 µm resolution and subdued to mechanical testing of their elastic zone in a biomedical laboratory. The results demonstrate that additively manufactured lattice structures can acquire different properties when they are designed in analogy to natural models. Several of the lattices displayed the ability to store and return kinetic energy, while others revealed a structural failure which can be exploited for purposes where a controlled collapse of a structure is required. This discovery allows for various new applications of functional lattice structures within industrially created objects.

Keywords: bio-inspired, biomimetic, lattice structures, additive manufacturing

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Authors: Nelson Ponce Jr., Jonas R. Gazoli, Alessandro Sete, Roberto M. G. Velásquez, Valério L. Borges, Moacir A. S. de Andrade

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The search for increased efficiency in generation systems has been of great importance in recent years to reduce the impact of greenhouse gas emissions and global warming. For clean energy sources, such as the generation systems that use concentrated solar power technology, this efficiency improvement impacts a lower investment per kW, improving the project’s viability. For the specific case of parabolic trough solar concentrators, their performance is strongly linked to their geometric precision of assembly and the individual efficiencies of their main components, such as parabolic mirrors and receiver tubes. Thus, for accurate efficiency analysis, it should be conducted empirically, looking for mounting and operating conditions like those observed in the field. The Brazilian power generation and distribution company Eletrobras Furnas, through the R&D program of the National Agency of Electrical Energy, has developed a plant for testing parabolic trough concentrators located in Aparecida de Goiânia, in the state of Goiás, Brazil. The main objective of this test plant is the characterization of the prototype concentrator that is being developed by the company itself in partnership with Eudora Energia, seeking to optimize it to obtain the same or better efficiency than the concentrators of this type already known commercially. This test plant is a closed pipe system where a pump circulates a heat transfer fluid, also calledHTF, in the concentrator that is being characterized. A flow meter and two temperature transmitters, installed at the inlet and outlet of the concentrator, record the parameters necessary to know the power absorbed by the system and then calculate its efficiency based on the direct solar irradiation available during the test period. After the HTF gains heat in the concentrator, it flows through heat exchangers that allow the acquired energy to be dissipated into the ambient. The goal is to keep the concentrator inlet temperature constant throughout the desired test period. The developed plant performs the tests in an autonomous way, where the operator must enter the HTF flow rate in the control system, the desired concentrator inlet temperature, and the test time. This paper presents the methodology employed for design and operation, as well as the instrumentation needed for the development of a parabolic trough test plant, being a guideline for standardization facilities.

Keywords: parabolic trough, concentrated solar power, CSP, solar power, test plant, energy efficiency, performance characterization, renewable energy

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Authors: Mehmood Ali, Attaullah Khan, Md. Abul Kalam

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Petroleum crude oil reserves are going to deplete in future due to the consumption of fossil fuels in transportation and energy generating sector. Thus, increasing the fossil fuel prices and also causing environmental degradation issues such as climate change and global warming due to air pollution. Therefore, to tackle these issues the environmentally friendly fuels are the potential substitute with lower emissions of toxic gases. A non-edible vegetable oilseed crop, Jatropha curcas, from different origins such as Malaysia, Thailand and India were cultivated in Pakistan. The harvested seeds physical, chemical and mechanical properties were measured, having an influence on the post-harvesting machines design parameters for dehulling, storing bins, drying, oil extraction from seeds with a screw expeller and in-situ transesterification reaction to produce biodiesel fuel. The seed variety from Thailand was found better in comparison of its properties with other varieties from Malaysia and India. The seed yield from these three varieties i.e. Malaysia, Thailand and India were 829, 943 and 735 kg/ acre/ year respectively. While the oil extraction yield from Thailand variety seed was found higher (i.e. 32.61 % by wt.) as compared to other two varieties from Malaysia and India were 27.96 and 24.96 % by wt respectively. The physical properties investigated showed the geometric mean diameter of seeds from three varieties Malaysia, Thailand and India were 11.350, 10.505 and 11.324 mm, while the sphericity of seeds were found 0.656, 0.664 and 0.655. The bulk densities of the powdered seeds from three varieties Malaysia, Thailand and India, were found as 0.9697, 0.9932 and 0.9601 g/cm³ and % passing was obtained with sieve test were 78.7, 87.1 and 79.3 respectively. The densities of the extracted oil from three varieties Malaysia, Thailand and India were found 0.902, 0.898 and 0.902 g/ mL with corresponding kinematic viscosities 54.50, 49.18 and 48.16 mm2/sec respectively. The higher heating values (HHV) of extracted oil from Malaysia, Thailand and India seed varieties were measured as 40.29, 36.41 and 34.27 MJ/ kg, while the HHV of de-oiled cake from these varieties were 21.23, 20.78 and 17.31 MJ/kg respectively. The de-oiled cake can be used as compost with nutrients and carbon content to enhance soil fertility to grow future Jatropha curcas oil seed crops and also can be used as a fuel for heating and cooking purpose. Moreover, the mechanical parameter micro Vickers hardness of Malaysia seed was found lowest 16.30 HV measured with seed in a horizontal position to the loading in comparison to other two varieties as 25.2 and 18.7 HV from Thailand and India respectively. The fatty acid composition of three varieties of seed oil showed the presence of C8-C22, required to produce good quality biodiesel fuel. In terms of physicochemical properties of seeds and its extracted oil, the variety from Thailand was found better as compared to the other two varieties.

Keywords: biodiesel, Jatropha curcas, mechanical property, physico-chemical properties

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Authors: Arindam Chaudhuri

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Classification of data has been actively used for most effective and efficient means of conveying knowledge and information to users. The prima face has always been upon techniques for extracting useful knowledge from data such that returns are maximized. With emergence of huge datasets the existing classification techniques often fail to produce desirable results. The challenge lies in analyzing and understanding characteristics of massive data sets by retrieving useful geometric and statistical patterns. We propose a supervised parallel fuzzy rough support vector machine (PFRSVM) for data classification in cloud environment. The classification is performed by PFRSVM using hyperbolic tangent kernel. The fuzzy rough set model takes care of sensitiveness of noisy samples and handles impreciseness in training samples bringing robustness to results. The membership function is function of center and radius of each class in feature space and is represented with kernel. It plays an important role towards sampling the decision surface. The success of PFRSVM is governed by choosing appropriate parameter values. The training samples are either linear or nonlinear separable. The different input points make unique contributions to decision surface. The algorithm is parallelized with a view to reduce training times. The system is built on support vector machine library using Hadoop implementation of MapReduce. The algorithm is tested on large data sets to check its feasibility and convergence. The performance of classifier is also assessed in terms of number of support vectors. The challenges encountered towards implementing big data classification in machine learning frameworks are also discussed. The experiments are done on the cloud environment available at University of Technology and Management, India. The results are illustrated for Gaussian RBF and Bayesian kernels. The effect of variability in prediction and generalization of PFRSVM is examined with respect to values of parameter C. It effectively resolves outliers’ effects, imbalance and overlapping class problems, normalizes to unseen data and relaxes dependency between features and labels. The average classification accuracy for PFRSVM is better than other classifiers for both Gaussian RBF and Bayesian kernels. The experimental results on both synthetic and real data sets clearly demonstrate the superiority of the proposed technique.

Keywords: FRSVM, Hadoop, MapReduce, PFRSVM

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Authors: Magdalena Rost-Roszkowska, Izabela Poprawa, Alina Chachulska-Zymelka, Lukasz Chajec, Grazyna Wilczek, Piotr Wilczek, Malgorzata Lesniewska

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Lithobius forficatus, commonly known as the brown centipede, is a widespread European species, which lives in the upper layers of soil, under stones, litter, rocks, and leaves. As the soil organism, it is exposed to numerous stressors such as xenobiotics, including heavy metals, temperature, starvation, pathogens, etc. Heavy metals are treated as the environmental pollutants of the soil because of their toxic effects on plants, animals and human being. One of the heavy metals which is xenobiotic and can be taken up by plants or animals from the soil is cadmium. The digestive system of centipedes is composed of three distinct regions: fore-, mid- and hindgut. The salivary glands of centipedes are the organs which belong to the anterior region of the digestive system and take part in the synthesis, accumulation, and secretion of many substances. The middle region having contact with the food masses is treated as one of the barriers which protect the organism against any stressors which originate from the external environment, e.g., toxic metals. As the material for our studies, we chose two organs of the digestive system in brown centipede, the organs which take part in homeostasis maintenance: the salivary glands and the midgut. The main purpose of the project was to investigate the relationship between the percentage of depolarized mitochondria, mitophagy and ATP level in cells of mentioned above organs. The animals were divided into experimental groups: K – the control group, the animals cultured in a laboratory conditions in a horticultural soil and fed with Acheta domesticus larvae; Cd1 – the animals cultured in a horticultural soil supplemented with 80 mg/kg (dry weight) of CdCl2, fed with A. domesticus larvae maintained in tap water, 12 days – short-term exposure; Cd2 – the animals cultured in a horticultural soil supplemented with 80 mg/kg (dry weight) of CdCl2, fed with A. domesticus larvae maintained in tap water, 45 days – long-term exposure. The studies were conducted using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), flow cytometry and confocal microscopy. Quantitative analysis revealed that regardless of the organ, a progressive increase in the percentage of cells with depolarized mitochondria was registered, but only in the salivary glands. These were statistically significant changes from the control. In both organs, there were no differences in the level of the analyzed parameter depending on the duration of exposure of individuals to cadmium. Changes in the ultrastructure of mitochondria have been observed. With the extension of the body's exposure time to metal, an increase in the ADP/ATP index was recorded. However, changes statistically significant to the control were demonstrated in the intestine and salivary glands. The size of this intestinal index and salivary glands in the Cd2 group was about thirty and twenty times higher, respectively than in control. Acknowledgment: The study has been financed by the National Science Centre, Poland, grant no 2017/25/B/NZ4/00420.

Keywords: cadmium, digestive system, ultrastructure, centipede

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Authors: Luisa Carrer, Lorenzo De Masi

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In this paper, we exploit the massive amount of information from Facebook to build a measure of gender attitudes in Italy at a previously impossible resolution—the municipal level. We construct our index via a machine learning method to replicate a benchmark region-level measure. Interestingly, we find that most of the variation in our Gender Norms Index (GNI) is across towns within narrowly defined geographical areas rather than across regions or provinces. In a second step, we show how this local variation in norms can be leveraged for identification purposes. In particular, we use our index to investigate whether these differences in norms carry over to the policy activity of politicians elected in the Italian Parliament. We document that females are more likely to sit in parliamentary committees focused on gender-sensitive matters, labor, and social issues, but not if they come from a relatively conservative town. These effects are robust to conditioning the legislative term and electoral district, suggesting the importance of social norms in shaping legislators’ policy activity.

Keywords: gender equality, gender norms index, Facebook, machine learning, politics

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Authors: Samira Baghbanbari, A. B. P. Lever, Payam S. Shabestari, Donald Weaver

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Existing signal transmission models, although undoubtedly useful, have proven insufficient to explain the full complexity of information transfer within the central nervous system. The development of transformative models will necessitate a more comprehensive understanding of neuronal lipid membrane electrophysiology. Pursuant to this goal, the role of highly organized interfacial phospholipid-water layers emerges as a promising case study. A series of phospholipids in neural-glial gap junction interfaces as well as cholesterol molecules have been computationally modelled using high-performance density functional theory (DFT) calculations. Subsequent 'charge decomposition analysis' calculations have revealed a net transfer of charge from phospholipid orbitals through the organized interfacial water layer before ultimately finding its way to cholesterol acceptor molecules. The specific pathway of charge transfer from phospholipid via water layers towards cholesterol has been mapped in detail. Cholesterol is an essential membrane component that is overrepresented in neuronal membranes as compared to other mammalian cells; given this relative abundance, its apparent role as an electronic acceptor may prove to be a relevant factor in further signal transmission studies of the central nervous system. The timescales over which this electronic charge transfer occurs have also been evaluated by utilizing a system design that systematically increases the number of water molecules separating lipids and cholesterol. Memory loss through hydrogen-bonded networks in water can occur at femtosecond timescales, whereas existing action potential-based models are limited to micro or nanosecond scales. As such, the development of future models that attempt to explain faster timescale signal transmission in the central nervous system may benefit from our work, which provides additional information regarding fast timescale energy transfer mechanisms occurring through interfacial water. The study possesses a dataset that includes six distinct phospholipids and a collection of cholesterol. Ten optimized geometric characteristics (features) were employed to conduct binary classification through an artificial neural network (ANN), differentiating cholesterol from the various phospholipids. This stems from our understanding that all lipids within the first group function as electronic charge donors, while cholesterol serves as an electronic charge acceptor.

Keywords: charge transfer, signal transmission, phospholipids, water layers, ANN

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Authors: Dilek Turan Eroğlu

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Educators have been searching the more effective and appalling methods of teaching for ages. It has always been an issue among the teachers and scientists to improve the quality of education and to ensure that all students have equal opportunities to learn. However, when it comes to the effective ways of learning,the learners are exposed to the ways which are chosen and approved to be effective by their teachers not by the learners themselves. This is the main problem of this study as the learners are not always happy to be in their classes being treated with their teachers’ favourite styles. This paper is telling the results of a study which has been conducted with the university students in Turkey. The students have been interviewed and asked to respond some questions related to best practices to find out their favourite styles, medium, techniques and strategies. The study has been conducted using qualitative research methods i.e one to one interviews and group discussions. The results show that the learners have significantly different views than the educators when it comes to modern teaching styles. Their definition of the term “modern teaching styles” is different than the general understanding. The university students expect their teachers to be “early adopter”. of ICT tools and or the other electronic devices, but a modern teacher must have many other characteristics for them.

Keywords: effective, innovation, teaching, modern teaching styles

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Authors: L. Serrano-Lara, J.M Alba-Gómez

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Qubbet el–Hawa Project has been documented archaeological artifacts as 3d models by laser scanning technique since 2015. Currently, research has obtained the right methodology to develop a high accuracy photographic texture for each geometrical 3D model. Furthermore, the right methodology to attach the complete digital surrogate into a 3DPDF document has been obtained; it is used as a catalogue worksheet that brings archaeological data and, at the same time, allows us to obtain precise measurements, volume calculations and cross-section mapping of each scanned artifact. This validated archaeological documentation is the first step for dissemination, application as Qubbet el-Hawa Virtual Museum, and, moreover, multi-sensory experience through 3D print archaeological artifacts. Material culture from four funerary complexes constructed in West Aswan has become physical replicas opening the archaeological research process itself and offering creative possibilities on museology or educational projects. This paper shares a method of acquiring texture for scanning´s output product in order to achieve a 3DPDF archaeological cataloguing, and, on the other hand, to allow the colorfully 3D printing of singular archaeological artifacts. The proposed method has undergone two concrete cases, a polychrome wooden ushabti, and, a cartonnage mask belonging to a lady, bought recovered on intact tomb QH34aa. Both 3D model results have been implemented on three main applications, archaeological 3D catalogue, public dissemination activities, and the 3D artifact model in a bachelor education program. Due to those three already mentioned applications, productive interaction among spectator and three-dimensional artifact have been increased; moreover, functionality as archaeological documentation has been consolidated. Finding the right methodology to assign a specific color to each vector on the geometric 3D model, we had been achieved two essential archaeological applications. Firstly, 3DPDF as a display document for an archaeological catalogue, secondly, the possibility to obtain a colored 3d printed object to be displayed in public exhibitions. Obsolescences 3D models have become updated archaeological documentation of QH43aa tomb cultural material. Therefore, Qubbet el-Hawa Project has been actualized the educational potential of its results thanks to a multi-sensory experience that arose from 3d scanned´s archaeological artifacts.

Keywords: 3D printed, 3D scanner, Middle Kingdom, Qubbet el-Hawa necropolis, virtual archaeology

Procedia PDF Downloads 133