Search results for: Pablo D. Lemoine
Commenced in January 2007
Frequency: Monthly
Edition: International
Paper Count: 87

Search results for: Pablo D. Lemoine

87 Mother Tounge Based Multilingual Education Policy: Voices of Two Cities, 'The Voice of Laguna'

Authors: Cecilia Velasco, Q.

Abstract:

This study was undertaken to find out the perceived efficiency, appropriateness effectiveness, acceptability and relevance, if at all such exist, of the Mother Tongue Based Multilingual Education Policy under the K-12 Curriculum, as seen by the stakeholders who are directly affected by this policy. The researcher believed that it is right and fitting to get the views and opinions of the people directly involved and/or concerned about this education policy. The results of the study will hopefully guide lawmakers and/or policymakers to fine-tune educational policy or policies. The locale of the study was the DepEd schools in Laguna, (San Pablo City and other nearby cities). The subjects of the study were the teachers (first phase) from the public schools of Department of Education (San Pablo City), in particular and parents (second phase) from nearby cities who are the direct stakeholders of this Policy. To determine the perception of the teachers toward Mother Tongue Based Multilingual Education Policy; its acceptability, efficiency, appropriateness, effectiveness and relevance, factor analysis was used to refine the instrument (questionnaire). To find out the significant difference between the perceptions of the primary and intermediate group of teachers, including those who teach mother tongue and non-mother tongue subjects, t-test of difference between means was employed.

Keywords: DepEd, K12 curriculum, MTBMLE, stakeholders

Procedia PDF Downloads 276
86 Evolution of Mineral Nutrition in Two Species of Atriplex (halimus and canescens) under Salt Stress

Authors: Z. Mahi, L. Marousset, C. Roudaut, M. Belkhodja, R. Lemoine

Abstract:

The strong accumulation of salts in the soil as well as in irrigation water greatly disrupts the growth and development of almost all plants. The study of these disturbances in halophytes helps provide better guidance on the deteriorating effect of salinity. Evaluation of salt stress in two species of Atriplex (halimus and canescens) through the study of mineral nutrition (dosage of sodium and potassium) shows a variability of responses. The results show that the Na+ ion accumulates in the three organs whatever the applied concentration. This accumulation increases with the high salt concentrations in halimus whereas in canescens, 600 mM treatment shows a reduction of the amount of this element. A decrease in the amount of potassium is observed for all organs except halimus rods 100 mM. Unlike halimus, canescens K + accumulates in high concentrations of salt at the roots and leaves. The ratio Na+/K+ decreases the salt by halimus against it increases in levels canescens roots and treated with high concentrations of NaCl (600 mM) leaves.

Keywords: Atriplex, canescens, halimus, Na +, K +, Na Cl, tolerance

Procedia PDF Downloads 331
85 Cultural Cognition and Voting: Understanding Values and Perceived Risks in the Colombian Population

Authors: Andrea N. Alarcon, Julian D. Castro, Gloria C. Rojas, Paola A. Vaca, Santiago Ortiz, Gustavo Martinez, Pablo D. Lemoine

Abstract:

Recently, electoral results across many countries have shown to be inconsistent with rational decision theory, which states that individuals make decisions based on maximizing benefits and reducing risks. An alternative explanation has emerged: Fear and rage-driven vote have been proved to be highly effective for political persuasion and mobilization. This phenomenon has been evident in the 2016 elections in the United States, 2006 elections in Mexico, 1998 elections in Venezuela, and 2004 elections in Bolivia. In Colombia, it has occurred recently in the 2016 plebiscite for peace and 2018 presidential elections. The aim of this study is to explain this phenomenon using cultural cognition theory, referring to the psychological predisposition individuals have to believe that its own and its peer´s behavior is correct and, therefore, beneficial to the entire society. Cultural cognition refers to the tendency of individuals to fit perceived risks, and factual beliefs into group shared values; the Cultural Cognition Worldview Scales (CCWS) measures cultural perceptions through two different dimensions: Individualism-communitarianism and hierarchy-egalitarianism. The former refers to attitudes towards social dominance based on conspicuous and static characteristics (sex, ethnicity or social class), while the latter refers to attitudes towards a social ordering in which it is expected from individuals to guarantee their own wellbeing without society´s or government´s intervention. A probabilistic national sample was obtained from different polls from the consulting and public opinion company Centro Nacional de Consultoría. Sociodemographic data was obtained along with CCWS scores, a subjective measure of left-right ideological placement and vote intention for 2019 Mayor´s elections were also included in the questionnaires. Finally, the question “In your opinion, what is the greatest risk Colombia is facing right now?” was included to identify perceived risk in the population. Preliminary results show that Colombians are highly distributed among hierarchical communitarians and egalitarian individualists (30.9% and 31.7%, respectively), and to a less extent among hierarchical individualists and egalitarian communitarians (19% and 18.4%, respectively). Males tended to be more hierarchical (p < .000) and communitarian (p=.009) than females. ANOVA´s revealed statistically significant differences between groups (quadrants) for the level of schooling, left-right ideological orientation, and stratum (p < .000 for all), and proportion differences revealed statistically significant differences for groups of age (p < .001). Differences and distributions for vote intention and perceived risks are still being processed and results are yet to be analyzed. Results show that Colombians are differentially distributed among quadrants in regard to sociodemographic data and left-right ideological orientation. These preliminary results indicate that this study may shed some light on why Colombians vote the way they do, and future qualitative data will show the fears emerging from the identified values in the CCWS and the relation this has with vote intention.

Keywords: communitarianism, cultural cognition, egalitarianism, hierarchy, individualism, perceived risks

Procedia PDF Downloads 124
84 Availability of Metals in Fired Bricks Incorporating Harbour Sediments

Authors: Fabienne Baraud, Lydia Leleyter, Sandra Poree, Melanie Lemoine, Fatiha Oudghiri

Abstract:

Alternative solutions to immersion at sea are searched for the huge amounts of dredged sediments around the world that might contain various types of contaminants. Possible re-uses of such materials in civil engineering appear as sustainable solutions. The French SEDIBRIC project (valorisation de SEDIments en BRIQues et tuiles) aims to replace a part of natural clays with dredged sediments in the preparation of fired bricks. The potential environmental impact of this re-use is explored to complete the technical and economic feasibility of the study. As part of the project, we investigate the environmental availability of metallic elements (Al, Ca, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Ni, Mg, Mn, Pb, Ti, and Zn) initially present in the dredged sediments selected for the project. Leaching tests (with H₂O, HCl, or EDTA) are conducted in the sediments than in the final bricks in order to evaluate the possible influence of some steps of the bricks manufacturing (desalination pre-treatment, firing, etc.). The desalination pre-treatment using tap water has no or few impacts on the environmental availability of the studied elements. On the opposite, the firing process (900°C) affects the value of the total content of elements detected in the bricks but also the environmental availability for various elements. For instance, Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn are stabilized in the bricks, whereas the availability of some other elements (i.e., Cr, Ni) increases, depending on the nature of the extracting solution.

Keywords: availability, bricks, dredged sediments, metals

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83 Life Expansion: Visual Autobiography, Identity, Representation and the Degrees of Fictionalization of the Self on Instagram

Authors: Pablo De Macedo Silveira Vallejos

Abstract:

This article aims to observe autobiographical and visual narrative practices among users on Instagram. In this way, the work proposes to reflect on how image resources are used to develop edited representations of the self in that social network. The research aims to explore the uses of editing and the degrees of fictionalization present on Instagram.

Keywords: autobiography, visual narratives, representation, fiction, social media

Procedia PDF Downloads 55
82 Use of Chemical Extractions to Estimate the Metals Availability in Bricks Made of Dredged Sediments

Authors: Fabienne Baraud, Lydia Leleyter, Sandra Poree, Melanie Lemoine

Abstract:

SEDIBRIC (valorization de SEDIments en BRIQues et tuiles) is a French project that aims to replace a part of natural clays with dredged sediments in the preparation of fired bricks in order to propose an alternative solution for the management of harbor dredged sediments. The feasibility of such re-use is explored from a technical, economic, and environmental point of view. The present study focuses on the potential environmental impact of various chemical elements (Al, Ca, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Ni, Mg, Mn, Pb, Ti, and Zn) that are initially present in the dredged sediments. The total content (after acid digestion) and the environmental availability (estimated by single extractions with various extractants) of these elements are determined in the raw sediments and in the obtained fired bricks. The possible influence of some steps of the manufacturing process (sediment pre-treatment, firing) is also explored. The first results show that the pre-treatment step, which uses tap water to desalinate the raw sediment, does not influence the environmental availability of the studied elements. However, the firing process, performed at 900°C, can affect the amount of some elements detected in the bricks, as well as their environmental availability. We note that for Cr, or Ni, the HCl or EDTA availability was increased in the brick (compared to the availability in the raw sediment). For Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn, the HCl and EDTA availability was reduced in the bricks, meaning that these elements were stabilized within the bricks.

Keywords: bricks, chemical extraction, metals, sediment

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81 Life Expansion: Autobiography, Ficctionalized Digital Diaries and Forged Narratives of Everyday Life on Instagram

Authors: Pablo M. S. Vallejos

Abstract:

The article aims to analyze the autobiographical practices of users on Instagram, observing the instrumentalization of image resources in the construction of visual narratives that make up that archive and digital diary. Through bibliographical review, discourse exploration and case studies, the research also aims to present a new theoretical perception about everyday records - edited with a collage of filters and aesthetic tools - that permeate that social network, understanding it as a platform fictionalizing and an expansion of life. In this way, therefore, the work reflects on possible futures in the elaboration of representations and identities in the context of digital spaces in the 21st century.

Keywords: visual culture, social media, autobiography, image

Procedia PDF Downloads 55
80 Hypergeometric Solutions to Linear Nonhomogeneous Fractional Equations with Spherical Bessel Functions of the First Kind

Authors: Pablo Martin, Jorge Olivares, Fernando Maass

Abstract:

The use of fractional derivatives to different problems in Engineering and Physics has been increasing in the last decade. For this reason, we have here considered partial derivatives when the integral is a spherical Bessel function of the first kind in both regular and modified ones simple initial conditions have been also considered. In this way, the solution has been found as a combination of hypergeometric functions. The case of a general rational value for α of the fractional derivative α has been solved in a general way for alpha between zero and two. The modified spherical Bessel functions of the first kind have been also considered and how to go from the regular case to the modified one will be also shown.

Keywords: caputo fractional derivatives, hypergeometric functions, linear differential equations, spherical Bessel functions

Procedia PDF Downloads 300
79 The Role of Group Size, Public Employees’ Wages and Control Corruption Institutions in a Game-Theoretical Model of Public Corruption

Authors: Pablo J. Valverde, Jaime E. Fernandez

Abstract:

This paper shows under which conditions public corruption can emerge. The theoretical model includes variables such as the public employee wage (w), a control corruption parameter (c), and the group size of interactions (GS) between clusters of public officers and contractors. The system behavior is analyzed using phase diagrams based on combinations of such parameters (c, w, GS). Numerical simulations are implemented in order to contrast analytic results based on Nash equilibria of the theoretical model. Major findings include the functional relationship between wages and network topology, which attempts to reduce the emergence of corrupt behavior.

Keywords: public corruption, game theory, complex systems, Nash equilibrium.

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78 Senior Management in Innovative Companies: An Approach from Creativity and Innovation Management

Authors: Juan Carlos Montalvo-Rodriguez, Juan Felipe Espinosa-Cristia, Pablo Islas Madariaga, Jorge Cifuentes Valenzuela

Abstract:

This article presents different relationships between top management and innovative companies, based on the developments of creativity and innovation management. First of all, it contextualizes the innovative company in relation to management, creativity, and innovation. Secondly, it delves into the vision of top management of innovative companies, from the perspectives of the management of creativity and innovation. Thirdly, their commonalities are highlighted, bearing in mind the importance that both approaches attribute to aspects such as leadership, networks, strategy, culture, technology, environment, and complexity in the top management of innovative companies. Based on the above, an integration of both fields of study is proposed, as an alternative to deepen the relationship between senior management and the innovative company.

Keywords: top management, creativity, innovation, innovative firm, leadership, strategy

Procedia PDF Downloads 234
77 Probabilistic Approach to Contrast Theoretical Predictions from a Public Corruption Game Using Bayesian Networks

Authors: Jaime E. Fernandez, Pablo J. Valverde

Abstract:

This paper presents a methodological approach that aims to contrast/validate theoretical results from a corruption network game through probabilistic analysis of simulated microdata using Bayesian Networks (BNs). The research develops a public corruption model in a game theory framework. Theoretical results suggest a series of 'optimal settings' of model's exogenous parameters that boost the emergence of corruption. The paper contrasts these outcomes with probabilistic inference results based on BNs adjusted over simulated microdata. Principal findings indicate that probabilistic reasoning based on BNs significantly improves parameter specification and causal analysis in a public corruption game.

Keywords: Bayesian networks, probabilistic reasoning, public corruption, theoretical games

Procedia PDF Downloads 185
76 Comparative between Different Methodological Procedures Used to Obtain Information on the First Lexical Development in Bilingual Basque-Spanish Children

Authors: Asier Romero Andonegi, Irati De Pablo Delgado

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The objective of this study is to explore the different methodological procedures that are used to obtain information on the early linguistic development of children. To this end, two different methodological procedures were carried out on the same sample: on the one hand, the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventories, in its adaptations in Spanish and Basque; and on the other hand, longitudinal observation through professional software: ELAN and CHAT. The sample consists of 8 Basque children/ages 16 to 30 months with different mother tongue (L1). The results show the usefulness of inventories in obtaining information on the development of early communication and language skills, but also their limitations mostly focused on the interpretive overvaluation of their children’s lexical development.

Keywords: early language development, language evaluation, lexicon, MacArthur-Bates communicative development inventories

Procedia PDF Downloads 135
75 Influence of Shock Absorber Condition on the Vertical Dynamic Load Applied on the Pavement by a Truck’s Front Suspension

Authors: Pablo Kubo, Cassio Paiva, Adelino Ferreira

Abstract:

The main objective of this research study is to present the results of the influence of shock absorber condition, from a truck front suspension, on the vertical dynamic load applied on the pavement. For the measurements, it has been used a durability test track located in Brazil. The shock absorber conditions were new, used and failed with a constant load of 6 tons on the front suspension, the maximum allowed load for front axle according to Brazilian legislation. By applying relative damage concept, it is possible to conclude that the variation on the shock absorber conditions will significantly affect the load applied on the pavement. Although, it is recommended to repeat the same methodology in order to analyze the influence on the variation of the quarter car model variants.

Keywords: damage, shock absorber, vertical dynamic load, absorber

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74 Linear fractional differential equations for second kind modified Bessel functions

Authors: Jorge Olivares, Fernando Maass, Pablo Martin

Abstract:

Fractional derivatives have been considered recently as a way to solve different problems in Engineering. In this way, second kind modified Bessel functions are considered here. The order α fractional differential equations of second kind Bessel functions, Kᵥ(x), are studied with simple initial conditions. The Laplace transform and Caputo definition of fractional derivatives are considered. Solutions have been found for ν=1/3, 1/2, 2/3, -1/3, -1/2 and (-2/3). In these cases, the solutions are the sum of two hypergeometric functions. The α fractional derivatives have been for α=1/3, 1/2 and 2/3, and the above values of ν. No convergence has been found for the integer values of ν Furthermore when α has been considered as a rational found m/p, no general solution has been found. Clearly, this case is more difficult to treat than those of first kind Bessel Function.

Keywords: Caputo, modified Bessel functions, hypergeometric, linear fractional differential equations, transform Laplace

Procedia PDF Downloads 316
73 Comparison of E-Waste Management in Switzerland and in Australia: A Qualitative Content Analysis

Authors: Md Tasbirul Islam, Pablo Dias, Nazmul Huda

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E-waste/Waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) is one of the fastest growing waste streams across the globe. This paper aims to compare the e-waste management system in Switzerland and Australia in terms of four features - legislative initiatives, disposal practice, collection and financial mechanisms. The qualitative content analysis is employed as a research method in the study. Data were collected from various published academic research papers, industry reports, and web sources. In addition, a questionnaire survey is conducted in Australia to understand the public awareness and opinions on the features. The results of the study provide valuable insights to policymakers in Australia developing better e-waste management system in conjunction with the public consensus, and the state-of-the-art operational strategies currently being practiced in Switzerland.

Keywords: E-waste management, WEEE, awareness, pro-environmental behavior, Australia, Switzerland

Procedia PDF Downloads 255
72 Economic Design of a Quality Control Chart for the Proportion of Defective Items

Authors: Encarnación Álvarez-Verdejo, Raúl Amor-Pulido, Pablo J. Moya-Fernández, Juan F. Muñoz-Rosas, Francisco J. Blanco-Encomienda

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Many companies use the statistical tool named as statistical quality control, and which can have a high cost for the companies interested on these statistical tools. The evaluation of the quality of products and services is an important topic, but the reduction of the cost of the implantation of the statistical quality control also has important benefits for the companies. For this reason, it is important to implement a economic design for the various steps included into the statistical quality control. In this paper, we describe some relevant aspects related to the economic design of a quality control chart for the proportion of defective items. They are very important because the suggested issues can reduce the cost of implementing a quality control chart for the proportion of defective items. Note that the main purpose of this chart is to evaluate and control the proportion of defective items of a production process.

Keywords: proportion, type I error, economic plan, distribution function

Procedia PDF Downloads 419
71 Modeling Football Penalty Shootouts: How Improving Individual Performance Affects Team Performance and the Fairness of the ABAB Sequence

Authors: Pablo Enrique Sartor Del Giudice

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Penalty shootouts often decide the outcome of important soccer matches. Although usually referred to as ”lotteries”, there is evidence that some national teams and clubs consistently perform better than others. The outcomes are therefore not explained just by mere luck, and therefore there are ways to improve the average performance of players, naturally at the expense of some sort of effort. In this article we study the payoff of player performance improvements in terms of the performance of the team as a whole. To do so we develop an analytical model with static individual performances, as well as Monte Carlo models that take into account the known influence of partial score and round number on individual performances. We find that within a range of usual values, the team performance improves above 70% faster than individual performances do. Using these models, we also estimate that the new ABBA penalty shootout ordering under test reduces almost all the known bias in favor of the first-shooting team under the current ABAB system.

Keywords: football, penalty shootouts, Montecarlo simulation, ABBA

Procedia PDF Downloads 141
70 Spin-Dipole Excitations Produced On-Demand in the Fermi Sea

Authors: Mykhailo Moskalets, Pablo Burset, Benjamin Roussel, Christian Flindt

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The single-particle injection from the Andreev level and how such injection is simulated using a voltage pulse are discussed. Recently, high-speed quantum-coherent electron sources injecting one- to few-particle excitations into the Fermi sea have been experimentally realized. The main obstacle to using these excitations as flying qubits for quantum-information processing purposes is decoherence due to the long-range Coulomb interaction. An obvious way to get around this difficulty is to employ electrically neutral excitations. Here it is discussed how such excitations can be generated on-demand using the same injection principles as in existing electron sources. Namely, with the help of a voltage pulse of a certain shape applied to the Fermi sea or using a driven quantum dot with superconducting correlations. The advantage of the latter approach is the possibility of varying the electron-hole content in the excitation and the possibility of creating a charge-neutral but spin-dipole excitation.

Keywords: Andreev level, on-demand, single-electron, spin-dipole

Procedia PDF Downloads 64
69 A Network-Theorical Perspective on Music Analysis

Authors: Alberto Alcalá-Alvarez, Pablo Padilla-Longoria

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The present paper describes a framework for constructing mathematical networks encoding relevant musical information from a music score for structural analysis. These graphs englobe statistical information about music elements such as notes, chords, rhythms, intervals, etc., and the relations among them, and so become helpful in visualizing and understanding important stylistic features of a music fragment. In order to build such networks, musical data is parsed out of a digital symbolic music file. This data undergoes different analytical procedures from Graph Theory, such as measuring the centrality of nodes, community detection, and entropy calculation. The resulting networks reflect important structural characteristics of the fragment in question: predominant elements, connectivity between them, and complexity of the information contained in it. Music pieces in different styles are analyzed, and the results are contrasted with the traditional analysis outcome in order to show the consistency and potential utility of this method for music analysis.

Keywords: computational musicology, mathematical music modelling, music analysis, style classification

Procedia PDF Downloads 72
68 Parallel Transformation Processes of Historical Centres: The Cases of Sevilla and Valparaiso

Authors: Jorge Ferrada Herrera, Pablo M. Millán-Millán

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The delimitation in the cities of heritage areas implicit in strong processes of transformation, both social and material. The study shows how two cities, seemingly different as Seville (Spain) and Valparaiso (Chile), share the same transformation process from its declaration as heritage cities. The metdología used in research has been on the one hand the analytic-criticism has shown us all processes and the level of involvement of these. On the other hand the direct observation methodology has allowed us to ratify all studied. Faced with these processes research shows social resources that people have developed to address each of them. The study concludes the need to strengthen the social and associative fabric in heritage areas as a resource to ensure the survival of heritage, not only material but also social and cultural. As examples, we have chosen Seville and Valparaiso: the gentrification of Seville prior to the universal exhibition of ‘92 –with pretty specific plans-- is paralleled by Valparaiso’s plan to revitalize its port and its protected (UNESCO) area. The whole of our theoretical discourse will be based thereupon.

Keywords: historical centers, tourism, heritage, social processes

Procedia PDF Downloads 280
67 Scale, Technique and Composition Effects of CO2 Emissions under Trade Liberalization of EGS: A CGE Evaluation for Argentina

Authors: M. Priscila Ramos, Omar O. Chisari, Juan Pablo Vila Martínez

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Current literature about trade liberalization of environmental goods and services (EGS) raises doubts about the extent of the triple win-win situation for trade, development and the environment. However, much of this literature does not consider the possibility that this agreement carries technological transmissions, either through trade or foreign direct investment. This paper presents a computable general equilibrium model calibrated for Argentina, where there are alternative technologies (one dirty and one clean according to carbon emissions) to produce the same goods. In this context, the trade liberalization of EGS allows to increase GDP, trade, reduce unemployment and improve the households welfare. However, the capital mobility appears as the key assumption to jointly reach the environmental target, when the positive scale effect generated by the increase in trade is offset by the change in the composition of production (composition and technical effects by the use of the clean alternative technology) and of consumption (composition effect by substitution of relatively lesspolluting imported goods).

Keywords: CGE modeling, CO2 emissions, composition effect, scale effect, technique effect, trade liberalization of EGS

Procedia PDF Downloads 356
66 European Environmental Policy for Road Transport: Analysis of the Perverse Effects Generated and Proposals for a Good Practice Guide

Authors: Pedro Pablo Ramírez Sánchez, Alassane Ballé Ndiaye, Roberto Rendeiro Martín-Cejas

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The aim of this paper is to analyse the different environmental policies adopted in Europe for car emissions, to comment on some of the possible perverse effects generated and point out these policies which are considered more efficient under the environmental perspective. This paper is focused on passenger cars as this category is the most significant in road transport. The utility of this research lies in this being the first step or basis to improve and optimise actual policies. The methodology applied in this paper refers to a comparative analysis from a practical and theoretical point of view of European environmental policies in road transport. This work describes an overview of the road transport industry in Europe pointing out some relevant aspects such as the contribution of road transport to total emissions and the vehicle fleet in Europe. Additionally, we propose a brief practice guide with the combined policies in order to optimise their aim.

Keywords: air quality, climate change, emission, environment, perverse effect, road transport, tax policy

Procedia PDF Downloads 137
65 Nonhomogeneous Linear Fractional Differential Equations Will Bessel Functions of the First Kind Giving Hypergeometric Functions Solutions

Authors: Fernando Maass, Pablo Martin, Jorge Olivares

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Fractional derivatives have become very important in several areas of Engineering, however, the solutions of simple differential equations are not known. Here we are considering the simplest first order nonhomogeneous differential equations with Bessel regular functions of the first kind, in this way the solutions have been found which are hypergeometric solutions for any fractional derivative of order α, where α is rational number α=m/p, between zero and one. The way to find this result is by using Laplace transform and the Caputo definitions of fractional derivatives. This method is for values longer than one. However for α entire number the hypergeometric functions are Kumer type, no integer values of alpha, the hypergeometric function is more complicated is type ₂F₃(a,b,c, t2/2). The argument of the hypergeometric changes sign when we go from the regular Bessel functions to the modified Bessel functions of the first kind, however it integer seems that using precise values of α and considering no integers values of α, a solution can be obtained in terms of two hypergeometric functions. Further research is required for future papers in order to obtain the general solution for any rational value of α.

Keywords: Caputo, fractional calculation, hypergeometric, linear differential equations

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64 School Autonomy in the United Kingdom: A Correlational Study Applied to English Principals

Authors: Pablo Javier Ortega-Rodriguez, Francisco Jose Pozuelos-Estrada

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Recently, there has been a renewed interest in school autonomy in the United Kingdom and its impact on students' outcomes. English principals have a pivotal role in decision-making. The aim of this paper is to explore the correlation between the type of school (public or private) and the considerable responsibilities of English principals which participated in PISA 2015. The final sample consisted of 419 principals. Descriptive data (percentages and means) were generated for the variables related to professional autonomy. Pearson's chi-square test was used to determine if there is an association between the type of school and principals' responsibilities for relevant tasks. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS software, version 22. Findings suggest a significant correlation between the type of school and principals' responsibility for firing teachers and formulating the school budget. This study confirms that the type of school is not associated with principals' responsibility for choosing which textbooks are used at school. The present study establishes a quantitative framework for defining four models of professional autonomy and some proposals to improve school autonomy in the United Kingdom.

Keywords: decision making, principals, professional autonomy, school autonomy

Procedia PDF Downloads 681
63 Comparison Of Data Mining Models To Predict Future Bridge Conditions

Authors: Pablo Martinez, Emad Mohamed, Osama Mohsen, Yasser Mohamed

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Highway and bridge agencies, such as the Ministry of Transportation in Ontario, use the Bridge Condition Index (BCI) which is defined as the weighted condition of all bridge elements to determine the rehabilitation priorities for its bridges. Therefore, accurate forecasting of BCI is essential for bridge rehabilitation budgeting planning. The large amount of data available in regard to bridge conditions for several years dictate utilizing traditional mathematical models as infeasible analysis methods. This research study focuses on investigating different classification models that are developed to predict the bridge condition index in the province of Ontario, Canada based on the publicly available data for 2800 bridges over a period of more than 10 years. The data preparation is a key factor to develop acceptable classification models even with the simplest one, the k-NN model. All the models were tested, compared and statistically validated via cross validation and t-test. A simple k-NN model showed reasonable results (within 0.5% relative error) when predicting the bridge condition in an incoming year.

Keywords: asset management, bridge condition index, data mining, forecasting, infrastructure, knowledge discovery in databases, maintenance, predictive models

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62 The Organizational Justice-Citizenship Behavior Link in Hotels: Does Customer Orientation Matter?

Authors: Pablo Zoghbi-Manrique-de-Lara, Miguel A. Suárez-Acosta

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The goal of the present paper is to model two classic lines of research in which employees starred, organizational justice and citizenship behaviour (OCB), but that have never been studied together when targeting customers. The suggestion is made that a hotel’s fair treatment (in terms of distributive, procedural, and interactional justice) toward customers will be appreciated by the employees, who will reciprocate in kind by favouring the hotel with increased customer-oriented behaviours (COBs). Data were collected from 204 employees at eight upscale hotels in the Canary Islands (Spain). Unlike in the case of perceptions of distributive justice, results of structural equation modelling demonstrate that employees substantively react to interactional and procedural justice toward guests by engaging in customer-oriented behaviours (COBs). The findings offer new reasons why employees decide to engage in COBs, and they highlight potentially beneficial effects of fair treatment toward guests bring to hospitality through promoting COBs.

Keywords: hotel guests’ (mis) treatment, customer-oriented behaviours, employee citizenship, organizational justice, third-party observers, third-party intervention

Procedia PDF Downloads 246
61 A Unified Deep Framework for Joint 3d Pose Estimation and Action Recognition from a Single Color Camera

Authors: Huy Hieu Pham, Houssam Salmane, Louahdi Khoudour, Alain Crouzil, Pablo Zegers, Sergio Velastin

Abstract:

We present a deep learning-based multitask framework for joint 3D human pose estimation and action recognition from color video sequences. Our approach proceeds along two stages. In the first, we run a real-time 2D pose detector to determine the precise pixel location of important key points of the body. A two-stream neural network is then designed and trained to map detected 2D keypoints into 3D poses. In the second, we deploy the Efficient Neural Architecture Search (ENAS) algorithm to find an optimal network architecture that is used for modeling the Spatio-temporal evolution of the estimated 3D poses via an image-based intermediate representation and performing action recognition. Experiments on Human3.6M, Microsoft Research Redmond (MSR) Action3D, and Stony Brook University (SBU) Kinect Interaction datasets verify the effectiveness of the proposed method on the targeted tasks. Moreover, we show that our method requires a low computational budget for training and inference.

Keywords: human action recognition, pose estimation, D-CNN, deep learning

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60 On Estimating the Low Income Proportion with Several Auxiliary Variables

Authors: Juan F. Muñoz-Rosas, Rosa M. García-Fernández, Encarnación Álvarez-Verdejo, Pablo J. Moya-Fernández

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Poverty measurement is a very important topic in many studies in social sciences. One of the most important indicators when measuring poverty is the low income proportion. This indicator gives the proportion of people of a population classified as poor. This indicator is generally unknown, and for this reason, it is estimated by using survey data, which are obtained by official surveys carried out by many statistical agencies such as Eurostat. The main feature of the mentioned survey data is the fact that they contain several variables. The variable used to estimate the low income proportion is called as the variable of interest. The survey data may contain several additional variables, also named as the auxiliary variables, related to the variable of interest, and if this is the situation, they could be used to improve the estimation of the low income proportion. In this paper, we use Monte Carlo simulation studies to analyze numerically the performance of estimators based on several auxiliary variables. In this simulation study, we considered real data sets obtained from the 2011 European Union Survey on Income and Living Condition. Results derived from this study indicate that the estimators based on auxiliary variables are more accurate than the naive estimator.

Keywords: inclusion probability, poverty, poverty line, survey sampling

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59 Optimization of Operational Parameters and Design of an Electrochlorination System to Produce Naclo

Authors: Pablo Ignacio Hernández Arango, Niels Lindemeyer

Abstract:

Chlorine, as Sodium Hypochlorite (NaClO) solution in water, is an effective, worldwide spread, and economical substance to eliminate germs in the water. The disinfection potential of chlorine lies in its ability to degrade the outer surfaces of bacterial cells and viruses. This contribution reports the main parameters of the brine electrolysis for the production of NaClO, which is afterward used for the disinfection of water either for drinking or recreative uses. Herein, the system design was simulated, optimized, build, and tested based on titanium electrodes. The process optimization considers the whole process, from the salt (NaCl) dilution tank in order to maximize its operation time util the electrolysis itself in order to maximize the chlorine production reducing the energy and raw material (salt and water) consumption. One novel idea behind this optimization process is the modification of the flow pattern inside the electrochemical reactors. The increasing turbulence and residence time impact positively the operations figures. The operational parameters, which are defined in this study were compared and benchmarked with the parameters of actual commercial systems in order to validate the pertinency of those results.

Keywords: electrolysis, water disinfection, sodium hypochlorite, process optimization

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58 Optimal Rest Interval between Sets in Robot-Based Upper-Arm Rehabilitation

Authors: Virgil Miranda, Gissele Mosqueda, Pablo Delgado, Yimesker Yihun

Abstract:

Muscular fatigue affects the muscle activation that is needed for producing the desired clinical outcome. Integrating optimal muscle relaxation periods into a variety of health care rehabilitation protocols is important to maximize the efficiency of the therapy. In this study, four muscle relaxation periods (30, 60, 90, and 120 seconds) and their effectiveness in producing consistent muscle activation of the muscle biceps brachii between sets of elbow flexion and extension task was investigated among a sample of 10 subjects with no disabilities. The same resting periods were then utilized in a controlled exoskeleton-based exercise for a sample size of 5 subjects and have shown similar results. On average, the muscle activity of the biceps brachii decreased by 0.3% when rested for 30 seconds, and it increased by 1.25%, 0.76%, and 0.82% when using muscle relaxation periods of 60, 90, and 120 seconds, respectively. The preliminary results suggest that a muscle relaxation period of about 60 seconds is needed for optimal continuous muscle activation within rehabilitation regimens. Robot-based rehabilitation is good to produce repetitive tasks with the right intensity, and knowing the optimal resting period will make the automation more effective.

Keywords: rest intervals, muscle biceps brachii, robot rehabilitation, muscle fatigue

Procedia PDF Downloads 165