Search results for: level sets

Authors: Raphael M. Ritti-Dias, Marilia A. Correia, Wagner J. R. Domingues, Aline C. Palmeira, Paulo Longano, Nelson Wolosker, Lauro C. Vianna, Gabriel G. Cucato

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Patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD) have a high prevalence of hypertension, which contributes to a high risk of acute cardiovascular events and cardiovascular mortality. Strategies to reduce cardiovascular risk of these patients are needed. Meta-analysis studies have shown that isometric handgrip training promotes reductions in clinical blood pressure in normotensive, pre-hypertensive and hypertensive individuals. However, the effect of this exercise training on other cardiovascular function indicators in PAD patients remains unknown. Thus, the aim of this study was to analyze the effects of isometric handgrip training on blood pressure in patients with PAD. In this clinical trial, 28 patients were randomly allocated into two groups: isometric handgrip training (HG) and control (CG). The HG conducted the unilateral handgrip training three days per week (four sets of two minutes, with 30% of maximum voluntary contraction with an interval of four minutes between sets). CG was encouraged to increase their physical activity levels. At baseline and after eight weeks blood pressure and heart rate were obtained. ANOVA two-way for repeated measures with the group (GH and GC) and time (pre- and post-intervention) as factors was performed. After 8 weeks of training there were no significant changes in systolic blood pressure (HG pre 141 ± 24.0 mmHg vs. HG post 142 ± 22.0 mmHg; CG pre 140 ± 22.1 mmHg vs. CG post 146 ± 16.2 mmHg; P=0.18), diastolic blood pressure (HG pre 74 ± 10.4 mmHg vs. HG post 74 ± 11.9 mmHg; CG pre 72 ± 6.9 mmHg vs. CG post 74 ± 8.0 mmHg; P=0.22) and heart rate (HG pre 61 ± 10.5 bpm vs. HG post 62 ± 8.0 bpm; CG pre 64 ± 11.8 bpm vs. CG post 65 ± 13.6 bpm; P=0.81). In conclusion, our preliminary data indicate that isometric handgrip training did not modify blood pressure and heart rate in patients with PAD.

Keywords: blood pressure, exercise, isometric, peripheral artery disease

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Authors: Sayed Abdallah Mohamed Dahy

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Aswan High Dam Reservoir extends for 500 km along the Nile River; it is a vast reservoir in southern Egypt and northern Sudan. It was created as a result of the construction of the Aswan High Dam between 1958 and 1970; about 95% of the main water resources for Egypt are from it. The purpose of this study is to discuss and understand the effect of the fluctuation of the water level in the reservoir on natural and human-induced environmental like earthquakes in the Aswan area, Egypt. In summary, the correlation between the temporal variations of earthquake activity and water level changes in the Aswan reservoir from 1982 to 2014 are investigated and analyzed. This analysis confirms a weak relation between the fluctuation of the water level and earthquake activity in the area around Aswan reservoir. The result suggests that the seismicity in the area becomes active during a period when the water level is decreasing from the maximum to the minimum. Behavior of the water level in this reservoir characterized by a special manner that is the unloading season extends to July or August, and the loading season starts to reach its maximum in October or November every year. Finally, daily rate of change in the water level did not show any direct relation with the size of the earthquakes, hence, it is not possible to be used as a single tool for prediction.

Keywords: Aswan high dam reservoir, earthquake activity, environmental, Egypt

Procedia PDF Downloads 353

Authors: Nopadol Burananat, Kedsara Tripaichayonsak

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This research aims to study the level of expectations and participation of personnel in implementing educational quality assurance of programs in Graduate School, Rajabhat Suan Sunandha University. The sample used in this study is 60 participants. The tool used for data collection is a questionnaire constructed by the researcher. The analysis is done by frequency, percentage, mean and standard deviation. It was found that the level of expectations personnel in Graduate School, Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University in implementing educational quality assurance is at high level. The category which received the most score is Action, followed by Check, Do and Plan, respectively. For the level of participation of personnel at program level of Graduate School, Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University in implementing educational quality assurance, the overall score is at high level. The category which received the most score is Action, followed by Do, Check and Plan, respectively.

Keywords: participation, implementation of educational quality assurance, educational quality assurance, expectations and participation

Procedia PDF Downloads 363

Authors: Murat Yucel, Murat Yucel, Nail Ferhat Ozturk, Halim Haldun Goktas, Cemal Gemci, Fatih Vehbi Celebi

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In this study, Brillouin gain spectrum (BGS) is experimentally analyzed in the Brillouin optical time domain reflectometry (BOTDR) and Brillouin optical time domain analyzer (BOTDA). For this purpose, the signal level of the microwave generator is varied and the effects of BGS are investigated. In the setups, 20 km conventional single mode fiber is used to both setups and laser wavelengths are selected around 1550 nm. To achieve best results, it can be used between 5 dBm to 15 dBm signal level of microwave generator for BOTDA and BOTDR setups.

Keywords: microwave signal level, Brillouin gain spectrum, BOTDA, BOTDR

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Authors: Sudhir Kumar Singh, Debashish Chakravarty

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Slope stability analysis is an important aspect in the field of geotechnical engineering. It is also important from safety, and economic point of view as any slope failure leads to loss of valuable lives and damage to property worth millions. This paper aims at mitigating the risk of slope failure by studying the effect of different joint sets on the stability of mine pit slopes under the influence of various external factors, namely degree of saturation, rainfall intensity, and seismic coefficients. Supervised machine learning approach has been utilized for making accurate and reliable predictions regarding the stability of slopes based on the value of Factor of Safety. Numerous cases have been studied for analyzing the stability of slopes using the popular Finite Element Method, and the data thus obtained has been used as training data for the supervised machine learning models. The input data has been trained on different supervised machine learning models, namely Random Forest, Decision Tree, Support vector Machine, and XGBoost. Distinct test data that is not present in training data has been used for measuring the performance and accuracy of different models. Although all models have performed well on the test dataset but Random Forest stands out from others due to its high accuracy of greater than 95%, thus helping us by providing a valuable tool at our disposition which is neither computationally expensive nor time consuming and in good accordance with the numerical analysis result.

Keywords: finite element method, geotechnical engineering, machine learning, slope stability

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Authors: Faisal Ali, Hasssan Saad Mohammed Hilmi, Mustafa Mohamed, Shamseddin Musa

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The Gash rivers an ephemeral river, it usually flows from July to September, it has a braided pattern with high sediment content, of 15200 ppm in suspension, and 360 kg/sec as bed load. The Gash river bed has an average slope of 1.3 m/Km. The objectives of this study were: assessing the Gash River bed level patterns; quantifying the annual variations in Gash bed level; and recommending a suitable method to reduce the sediment accumulation on the Gash River bed. The study covered temporally the period 1905-2013 using datasets included the Gash river flows, and the cross sections. The results showed that there is an increasing trend in the river bed of 5 cm3 per year. This is resulted in changing the behavior of the flood routing and consequently the flood hazard is tremendously increased in Kassala city.

Keywords: bed level, cross section, gash river, sedimentation

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Authors: Rodolfo Lorbieski, Silvia Modesto Nassar

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Many supervised machine learning tasks require decision making across numerous different classes. Multi-class classification has several applications, such as face recognition, text recognition and medical diagnostics. The objective of this article is to analyze an adapted method of Stacking in multi-class problems, which combines ensembles within the ensemble itself. For this purpose, a training similar to Stacking was used, but with three levels, where the final decision-maker (level 2) performs its training by combining outputs from the tree-based pair of meta-classifiers (level 1) from Bayesian families. These are in turn trained by pairs of base classifiers (level 0) of the same family. This strategy seeks to promote diversity among the ensembles forming the meta-classifier level 2. Three performance measures were used: (1) accuracy, (2) area under the ROC curve, and (3) time for three factors: (a) datasets, (b) experiments and (c) levels. To compare the factors, ANOVA three-way test was executed for each performance measure, considering 5 datasets by 25 experiments by 3 levels. A triple interaction between factors was observed only in time. The accuracy and area under the ROC curve presented similar results, showing a double interaction between level and experiment, as well as for the dataset factor. It was concluded that level 2 had an average performance above the other levels and that the proposed method is especially efficient for multi-class problems when compared to binary problems.

Keywords: stacking, multi-layers, ensemble, multi-class

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Authors: Bjornar Kjellstadli, Shaher A. I. Shalfawi

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The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of strength training Cluster set-method compared to traditional set-method 30 m sprinting time and maximum strength in squats and bench-press. Thirteen Physical Education students, 7 males and 6 females between the age of 19-28 years old were recruited. The students were random divided in three groups. Traditional set group (TSG) consist of 2 males and 2 females aged (±SD) (22.3 ± 1.5 years), body mass (79.2 ± 15.4 kg) and height (177.5 ± 11.3 cm). Cluster set group (CSG) consist of 3 males and 2 females aged (22.4 ± 3.29 years), body mass (81.0 ± 24.0 kg) and height (179.2 ± 11.8 cm) and a control group (CG) consist of 2 males and 2 females aged (21.5 ± 2.4 years), body mass (82.1 ± 17.4 kg) and height (175.5 ± 6.7 cm). The intervention consisted of performing squat and bench press at 70% of 1RM (twice a week) for 8 weeks using 10 repetition and 4 sets. Two types of strength-training methods were used , cluster set (CS) where the participants (CSG) performed 2 reps 5 times with a 10 s recovery in between reps and 50 s recovery between sets, and traditional set (TS) where the participants (TSG) performed 10 reps each set with 90 s recovery in between sets. The pre-tests and post-tests conducted were 1 RM in both squats and bench press, and 10 and 30 m sprint time. The 1RM test were performed with Eleiko XF barbell (20 kg), Eleiko weight plates, rack and bench from Hammerstrength. The speed test was measured with the Brower speed trap II testing system (Brower Timing Systems, Utah, USA). The participants received an individualized training program based on the pre-test of the 1RM. In addition, a mid-term test of 1RM was carried out to adjust training intensity. Each training session were supervised by the researchers. Beast sensors (Milano, Italy) were also used to monitor and quantify the training load for the participants. All groups had a statistical significant improvement in bench press 1RM (TSG 1RM from 56.3 ± 28.9 to 66 ± 28.5 kg; CSG 1RM from 69.8 ± 33.5 to 77.2 ± 34.1 kg and CG 1RM from 67.8 ± 26.6 to 72.2 ± 29.1 kg), whereas only the TSG (1RM from 84.3 ± 26.8 to 114.3 ± 26.5 kg) and CSG (1RM from 100.4 ± 33.9 to 129 ± 35.1 kg) had a statistical significant improvement in Squats 1RM (P < 0.05). However, a between groups examination reveals that there were no marked differences in 1RM squat performance between TSG and CSG (P > 0.05) and both groups had a marked improvements compared to the CG (P < 0.05). On the other hand, no differences between groups were observed in Bench press 1RM. The within groups results indicate that none of the groups had any marked improvement in the distances from 0-10 m and 10-30 m except the CSG which had a notable improvement in the distance from 10-30 m (-0.07 s; P < 0.05). Furthermore, no differences in sprinting abilities were observed between groups. The results from this investigation indicate that traditional set strength training at 70% of 1RM gave close results compared to Cluster set strength training at the same intensity. However, the results indicate that the cluster set had an effect on flying time (10-30 m) indicating that the velocity at which those repetitions were performed could be the explanation factor of this this improvement.

Keywords: physical performance, 1RM, pushing velocity, velocity based training

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Authors: Abdolrasoul Daneshjoo, Fatemeh Akbari Ghara

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Background and Purpose: Obesity is an increasing factor in cardiovascular disease and serum levels of cellular adhesion molecule. It plays an important role in predicting risk for coronary artery disease. The purpose of this research was to study the effect of eight weeks moderate intensity interval training and curcumin intake on ICAM-1 & VCAM-1 levels of menopausal fat rats. Materials and methods: in this study, 28 Wistar Menopausal fat rats aged 6-8 weeks with an average weight of 250-300 (gr) were randomly divided into four groups: control, curcumin supplement, moderate intensity interval training and moderate intensity interval training + curcumin supplement. (7 rats each group). The training program was planned as 8 weeks and 3 sessions per week. Each session consisted of 10 one-min sets with 50 percent intensity and the 2-minutes interval between sets in the first week. Subjects started with 14 meters per minute, and 2 (m/min) was added to increase their speed weekly until the speed of 28 (m/min) in the 8th week. Blood samples were taken 48 hours after the last training session, and ICAM-1 A and VCAM-1 levels were measured. SPSS software, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Pearson correlation coefficient were used to assess the results. Results: The results showed that eight weeks of training and taking curcumin had significant effects on ICAM-1 levels of the rats (p ≤ 0.05). However, it had no significant effect on VCAM-1 levels in menopausal obese rates (p ≥ 0.05). There was no significant correlation between the levels of ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 in eight weeks training and taking curcumin. Conclusion: Implementation of moderate intensity interval training and the use of curcumin decreased ICAM-1 significantly.

Keywords: curcumin, interval training , ICMA, VCAM

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Authors: Linyu Wang, Liguo Qiao, Jianhong Xiang, Hao Xu

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In semantic communication, the existing joint Source Channel coding (JSCC) wireless communication system without pilot has unstable transmission performance and can not effectively capture the global information and location information of images. In this paper, a pilot-free image transmission system of joint source channel based on multi-level semantic information (Multi-level JSCC) is proposed. The transmitter of the system is composed of two networks. The feature extraction network is used to extract the high-level semantic features of the image, compress the information transmitted by the image, and improve the bandwidth utilization. Feature retention network is used to preserve low-level semantic features and image details to improve communication quality. The receiver also is composed of two networks. The received high-level semantic features are fused with the low-level semantic features after feature enhancement network in the same dimension, and then the image dimension is restored through feature recovery network, and the image location information is effectively used for image reconstruction. This paper verifies that the proposed multi-level JSCC algorithm can effectively transmit and recover image information in both AWGN channel and Rayleigh fading channel, and the peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) is improved by 1~2dB compared with other algorithms under the same simulation conditions.

Keywords: deep learning, JSCC, pilot-free picture transmission, multilevel semantic information, robustness

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Authors: Saira Iqbal

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Occupational Health and Safety issues nowadays have become an important esteem in the context of Industrial Production. This study is designed to measure the workplace hazards at Kohinoor Energy Limited. Mainly focused hazards were Heat Stress, Noise Level, Light Level and Ergonomics. Measurements for parameters like Wet, Dry, Globe, WBGTi and RH% were taken directly by visiting the Study Area. The temperature in Degrees was recoded at Control Room and Engine Hall. Highest Temperature was recoded in Engine Hall which was about 380C. Efforts were made to record emissions of Noise Levels from the main area of concern like Engines in Engine hall, parking area, and mechanical workshop. Permissible level for measuring Noise is 85 and its Unit of Measurement is dB (A). In Engine Hall Noise was very high which was about 109.6 dB (A) and that level was exceeding the limits. Illumination Level was also recorded at different areas of Power Plant. The light level was though under permissible limits but in some areas like Engine Hall and Boiler Room, level of light was very low especially in Engine Hall where the level was 29 lx. Practices were performed for measuring hazards in context of ergonomics like extended reaching, deviated body postures, mechanical stress, and vibration exposures of the worker at different units of plants by just observing workers during working hours. Since KEL is ISO 8000 and 14000 certified, the researcher found no serious problems in the parameter Ergonomics however it was a common scenario that workers were reluctant to apply PPEs.

Keywords: workplace hazards, heat hazard, noise hazard, illumination, ergonomics

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Authors: Youjeong Hwang

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Purpose: Insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) promotes B-cell development, immunoglobulin formation, and interleukin-6 (IL-6) production, then regulate the immune response and inflammation. As IGF-I and their receptor also exist in the periodontal tissue, they may affect the immune response caused by periodontal pathogens in aggressive periodontitis (AgP) patients. The function of IGF is regulated by IGF binding proteins (IGFBPs), and IGFBP-3 is known to most abundant in plasma. The aim of the present study was to assess the concentration of IGF-I and IGFBP-3 in plasma and gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) in AgP patients and to find out their association. Methods: Nine patients with AgP (test group) and nine healthy subjects (control group) were included in this study. None of the subjects had a history of systemic disease, smoking or steroids medication. GCF samples were collected by microcapillary pipettes and plasma samples were obtained by venipuncture. Probing pocket depth (PD), clinical attachment level (CAL) and bleeding on probing (BOP) were recorded. Samples were assayed for IGF-I and IGFBP-3 levels using ELISA. Results: Mean IGF-I level in GCF was higher in the test group than control. Mean IGF-I level in plasma and IGFBP-3 level in GCF and plasma in control group were higher than that of the test group. However, there was no statistical significance (p > 0.05). The mean level of IGF-I and IGFBP-3 in GCF was lower than those in plasma. Mean IGF-I level in plasma showed a negative correlation with PD and CAL (p < 0.05) in both groups. The levels of IGF-I and IGFBP-3 in GCF seemed to be negatively correlated with BOP in the test group (p < 0.05). Conclusions: The difference in the level of IGF-I and IGFBP-3 between AgP and healthy subjects was not significant. Further studies that explain the mechanism of the protective role of IGF-I with more samples are needed.

Keywords: aggressive periodontitis, pathogenesis, insulin-like growth factor, insulin-like growth factor binding protein

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Authors: Amiya Kumar Pati, Spandan Sahu, Kishanjit Kumar Khatua

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River is our main source of water which is a form of open channel flow and the flow in the open channel provides with many complex phenomena of sciences that needs to be tackled such as the critical flow conditions, boundary shear stress, and depth-averaged velocity. The development of society, more or less solely depends upon the flow of rivers. The rivers are major sources of many sediments and specific ingredients which are much essential for human beings. A river flow consisting of small and shallow channels sometimes divide and recombine numerous times because of the slow water flow or the built up sediments. The pattern formed during this process resembles the strands of a braid. Braided streams form where the sediment load is so heavy that some of the sediments are deposited as shifting islands. Braided rivers often exist near the mountainous regions and typically carry coarse-grained and heterogeneous sediments down a fairly steep gradient. In this paper, the apparent shear stress formulae were suitably modified, and the Energy Concept Method (ECM) was applied for the prediction of discharges at the junction of a two-flow braided compound channel. The Energy Concept Method has not been applied for estimating the discharges in the braided channels. The energy loss in the channels is analyzed based on mechanical analysis. The cross-section of channel is divided into two sub-areas, namely the main-channel below the bank-full level and region above the bank-full level for estimating the total discharge. The experimental data are compared with a wide range of theoretical data available in the published literature to verify this model. The accuracy of this approach is also compared with Divided Channel Method (DCM). From error analysis of this method, it is observed that the relative error is less for the data-sets having smooth floodplains when compared to rough floodplains. Comparisons with other models indicate that the present method has reasonable accuracy for engineering purposes.

Keywords: critical flow, energy concept, open channel flow, sediment, two-flow braided compound channel

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Authors: Burcu Uçan

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The certification approach differs in civil and military projects in aviation. Sets of criteria and standards created by airworthiness authorities for the determination of certification basis are distinct. While the civil standards are more understandable and clear because of not only include detailed specifications but also the help of guidance materials such as Advisory Circular, military criteria do not provide this level of guidance. Therefore, specifications that are more negotiable and sometimes more difficult to reconcile arise for the certification basis of a military aircraft. This study investigates a method of how to develop a military specification set by taking advantage of civil standards, regarding the European Military Airworthiness Criteria (EMACC) that establishes the airworthiness criteria for aircraft systems. Airworthiness Certification Criteria (MIL-HDBK-516C) is a handbook published for guidance that contains qualitative evaluation for military aircrafts meanwhile Certification Specifications (CS-29) is published for civil aircrafts by European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). This method intends to compare and contrast specifications that MIL-HDBK-516C and CS-29 contain within the scope of Human Factors. Human Factors supports human performance and aims to improve system performance by encompassing knowledge from a range of scientific disciplines. Human Factors focuses on how people perform their tasks and reduce the risk of an accident occurring due to human physical and cognitive limitations. Hence, regardless of whether the project is civil or military, the specifications must be guided at a certain level by taking into account human limits. This study presents an advisory method for this purpose. The method in this study develops a solution for the military certification process by identifying the CS requirement corresponding to the criteria in the MIL-HDBK-516C by means of EMACC. Thus, it eases understanding the expectations of the criteria and establishing derived requirements. As a result of this method, it may not always be preferred to derive new requirements. Instead, it is possible to add remarks to make the expectancy of the criteria and required verification methods more comprehensible for all stakeholders. This study contributes to creating a certification basis for military aircraft, which is difficult and takes plenty of time for stakeholders to agree due to gray areas in the certification process for military aircrafts.

Keywords: human factors, certification, aerospace, requirement

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Authors: Novita Verayanti Manalu, Alvin Salim

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Background: Palliative care is caring holistically for patients and families to improve their quality of life. Experts stated that palliative care could be applied not only for terminally ill cases but also for acute illnesses. Therefore, this study wants to find out the level of knowledge about palliative care of the nurses along with the relationship with attitude and performance. Method: This study applies a cross-sectional survey design and allows the respondents to fill two questionnaires to determine the level of knowledge and attitude toward palliative care, while one questionnaire is filled out by the head nurse to evaluate nurses’ performance. The relationship was analyzed by Spearman rho’s correlation in alpha < 0,05 by SPSS. Results: The majority of respondents were females, aged above 25 years old, and married. Most of the nurses are staff nurses and the ratio of education level is not significantly different. The knowledge level is poor, while the attitude and performance are at an adequate level. Knowledge may affect attitude, but it doesn’t happen toward performance. Conclusion: There is a need for increased knowledge about palliative care to improve attitude and work performance. Future researchers might use this finding as a reference to conduct further study in improving knowledge of palliative care.

Keywords: knowledge, attitude, work performance, palliative care

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Authors: Mazharuddin Syed Ahmed

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This research presents a framework used to develop The Ara Polytechnic College of Architecture Studies building “Kahukura” which is Green Building certified. This framework integrates the development of a smart building digital twin by utilizing Building Information Modelling (BIM) and its BIM maturity levels, including Levels of Development (LOD), eight dimensions of BIM, Heritage-BIM (H-BIM) and Facility Management BIM (FM BIM). The research also outlines a structured approach to building performance analysis and integration with the circular economy, encapsulated within a five-level digital twin framework. Starting with Level 1, the Descriptive Twin provides a live, editable visual replica of the built asset, allowing for specific data inclusion and extraction. Advancing to Level 2, the Informative Twin integrates operational and sensory data, enhancing data verification and system integration. At Level 3, the Predictive Twin utilizes operational data to generate insights and proactive management suggestions. Progressing to Level 4, the Comprehensive Twin simulates future scenarios, enabling robust “what-if” analyses. Finally, Level 5, the Autonomous Twin, represents the pinnacle of digital twin evolution, capable of learning and autonomously acting on behalf of users.

Keywords: building information modelling, circular economy integration, digital twin, predictive analytics

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Authors: Koninika Tanzim

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The gaseous pollutants, SO2, NO2, CO and O3 affect the environment of Dhaka City. These pollutants are mainly released from stationary sources, like, fossil-fueled, power plants, industrial units and brickfields around the city. Suspended particulate matters including PM10 and PM2.5 are also contributing to air pollution in Dhaka City. SO2, NO2 and O3 are determined by using UV and visible spectrophotometry. The sensor type devised has been used for the determination of CO in ambient air. Lead in the suspended particulate matter was determined by using atomic absorption spectrometry. The samples were collected at ground level and on the roof of a seven-storied building. For all the criteria pollutants, the concentration at the roof was found to the lower than that at the ground level. The average concentration of PM10 and PM2.5 were found to the 241.5 and 81.1 mg/m3 at the ground level. On the roof of a 7 storied building was however 49.99 mg/m3 and 25.88 mg/m3 for PM10 and PM2.5 respectively. The concentration of Pb varied from 0.011 to 0.04 mg/m3 at the ground level. The values for Pb at the roof level were significantly lower. The values for SO2, NO2, CO and O3 were found to be higher than the USEPA values.

Keywords: gaseous air pollutant, PM, lead, gravimetry, spectrophotometry, atomic absorption, ambient air quality

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Authors: Mehmet Akif Aslan, Mehmet Simsek, Eyup Sensoy

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Big Data stands for today’s cutting-edge technology. As the technology becomes widespread, so does Data. Utilizing massive data sets enable companies to get competitive advantages over their adversaries. Out of many area of Big Data usage, logistics has significance role in both commercial sector and military. This paper lays out what big data is and how it is used in both military and commercial logistics.

Keywords: big data, logistics, operational efficiency, risk management

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Authors: Anil Giri, Kyle Lovercamp, Sankalp Sharma

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Farm level incomes fluctuate significantly due to extreme weather events such as drought. In the light of recent extreme weather events it is important to understand the implications of extreme weather events, flood and drought, on farm level incomes. This study examines the variation in farm level incomes for the United States in drought and no- drought years. Factoring heterogeneity in different enterprises (crop, livestock) and geography this paper analyzes the impact of drought in farm level incomes at state and national level. Livestock industry seems to be affected more by the lag in production of input feed for production, crops, as preliminary results show. Furthermore, preliminary results also show that while crop producers are not affected much due to drought, as price and quantity effect worked on opposite direction with same magnitude, that was not the case for livestock and horticulture enterprises. Results also showed that even when price effect was not as high the crop insurance component helped absorb much of shock for crop producers. Finally, the effect was heterogeneous for different states more on the coastal states compared Midwest region. This study should generate a lot of interest from policy makers across the world as some countries are actively seeking to increase subsidies in their agriculture sector. This study shows how subsidies absorb the shocks for one enterprise more than others. Finally, this paper should also be able to give an insight to economists to design/recommend policies such that it is optimal given the production level of different enterprises in different countries.

Keywords: farm level income, United States, crop, livestock

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Authors: Somkiat Korbuakaew, Bongkoch Puttawong

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This research aims to study the level of e-office system competence of Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University graded by age, education background, position and work experience. Sample of this research is 291 staff at Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University. Data were collected by questionnaire. Statistics used in the research are percentage, mean and standard deviation. The result shows that the overall competence of E-office System of the university staff is at average level. When considered in each aspect, it was found that competency level for creating-forwarding-signing documents is high, while competency level for booking meeting rooms, requesting for transportation service, blackboard system, public relations and making appointment and meeting are average.

Keywords: competence, e-office, education background, work experience

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Authors: Yousfi Abdelkader, Chaker Abdelkader, Bot Youcef

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This article proposes a five-level shunt active power filter for power quality improvement using a interval type-2 fuzzy logic controller (IT2 FLC). The reference compensating current is extracted using the P-Q theory. The majority of works previously reported are based on two-level inverters with a conventional Proportional integral (PI) controller, which requires rigorous mathematical modeling of the system. In this paper, a IT2 FLC controlled five-level active power filter is proposed to overcome the problem associated with PI controller. The IT2 FLC algorithm is applied for controlling the DC-side capacitor voltage as well as the harmonic currents of the five-level active power filter. The active power filter with a IT2 FLC is simulated in MATLAB Simulink environment. The simulated response shows that the proposed shunt active power filter controller has produced a sinusoidal supply current with low harmonic distortion and in phase with the source voltage.

Keywords: power quality, shunt active power filter, interval type-2 fuzzy logic controller (T2FL), multilevel inverter

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Authors: Susanne Gustafsson

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Life-history research is an extraordinarily fruitful method to use for social analysis and gendered health analysis in particular. Its potential is illustrated through a case study drawn from a Swedish project. It reveals an old type of masculinity that faces difficulties when carrying out two sets of demands simultaneously, as a worker/manager and as a father/husband. The paper illuminates the historical transformation of masculinity and the consequences of this for health. We draw on the idea of the “changing faces of masculinity” to explore the dynamism and complexity of gendered health. An empirical case is used for its illustrative abilities. Jan, a middle-level manager and father employed in the energy sector in urban Sweden is the subject of this paper. Jan’s story is one of 32 semi-structured interviews included in an extended study focusing on well-being at work. The results reveal a face of masculinity conceived of in middle-level management as tacitly linked to the neoliberal doctrine. Over a couple of decades, the idea of “flexibility” was turned into a valuable characteristic that everyone was supposed to strive for. This resulted in increased workloads. Quite a few employees, and managers, in particular, find themselves working both day and night. This may explain why not having enough time to spend with children and family members is a recurring theme in the data. Can this way of doing be linked to masculinity and health? The first author’s research has revealed that the use of gender in health science is not sufficiently or critically questioned. This lack of critical questioning is a serious problem, especially since ways of doing gender affect health. We suggest that gender reproduction and gender transformation are interconnected, regardless of how they affect health. They are recognized as two sides of the same phenomenon, and minor movements in one direction or the other become crucial for understanding its relation to health. More or less, at the same time, as Jan’s masculinity was reproduced in response to workplace practices, Jan’s family position was transformed—not totally but by a degree or two, and these degrees became significant for the family’s health and well-being. By moving back and forth between varied events in Jan’s biographical history and his sociohistorical life span, it becomes possible to show that in a time of gender transformations, power relations can be renegotiated, leading to consequences for health.

Keywords: changing faces of masculinity, gendered health, life-history research method, subverter

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Authors: Sandra Thomas

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This study tries to analyse the level of food security and dietary diversity among households of different socio-economic classes in the urban centers of Thrissur. The study revealed that there is no much difference in purchasing patterns of food articles among the socio-economic classes indicating a very high level of both physical and economic accessibility of food. On analysing the dietary diversity of the households none of the households scored below five and fifty-three per cent of the households scored eleven or twelve indicating higher diversity in diet. It was also found that income and education are the two important factors that influence the level of household food security.

Keywords: food security, dietary diversity, household level, socio-economic classes

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Authors: Shamila Ahmed

Abstract:

The paper examines how the fluidity between the local level and the global level is an intrinsic feature of new terrorism. Through using cosmopolitanism, the narratives of the two opposing sides of ISIS and the ‘war on terrorism’ response are explored. It is demonstrated how the fluidity between these levels facilitates the radicalisation process through exploring how groups such as ISIS highlight the perceived injustices against Muslims locally and globally and therefore exploit the globalisation process which has reduced the space between these levels. Similarly, it is argued that the ‘war on terror’ involves the intersection of fear, security, threat, risk and social control as features of both the international ‘war on terror’ and intra state policies.

Keywords: terrorism, war on terror, cosmopolitanism, global level terrorism

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Authors: Mohab Magdy Mostafa Mohamed

Abstract:

The objective of this paper is to introduce a vertical handover (VHO) algorithm between wireless LANs (WLANs) and LTE mobile networks. The proposed algorithm is based on the fuzzy control theory and takes into consideration power level, subscriber velocity, and target cell load instead of only power level in traditional algorithms. Simulation results show that network performance in terms of number of handovers and handover occurrence distance is improved.

Keywords: vertical handover, fuzzy control theory, power level, speed, target cell load

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Authors: Justyna P. Majewska, Szymon M. Truskolaski

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The growing importance of digitalized services in the so-called new economy, including the e-sports industry, can be observed recently. Various demographic or technological changes lead consumers to modify their needs, not regarding the services themselves but the method of their application (attracting customers, forms of payment, new content, etc.). In the case of leisure-related to competitive spectating activities, there is a growing need to participate in events whose content is not sports competitions but computer games challenge – e-sport. The literature in this area so far focuses on determining the number of e-sport fans with elements of a simple statistical description (mainly concerning demographic characteristics such as age, gender, place of residence). Meanwhile, the development of the industry is influenced by a combination of many different, intertwined demographic, personality and psychosocial characteristics of customers, as well as the characteristics of their environment. Therefore, there is a need for a deeper recognition of the determinants of the behavioral patterns upon selecting digitalized services by customers, which, in the absence of available large data sets, can be achieved by using econometric simulations – multi-agent modeling. The cognitive aim of the study is to reveal internal and external determinants of behavioral patterns of customers taking into account various variants of economic development (the pace of digitization and technological development, socio-demographic changes, etc.). In the paper, an agent-based model with heterogeneous agents (characteristics of customers themselves and their environment) was developed, which allowed identifying a three-stage development scenario: i) initial interest, ii) standardization, and iii) full professionalization. The probabilities regarding the transition process were estimated using the Method of Simulated Moments. The estimation of the agent-based model parameters and sensitivity analysis reveals crucial factors that have driven a rising trend in e-sport spectating and, in a wider perspective, the development of digitalized services. Among the psychosocial characteristics of customers, they are the level of familiarization with the rules of games as well as sports disciplines, active and passive participation history and individual perception of challenging activities. Environmental factors include general reception of games, number and level of recognition of community builders and the level of technological development of streaming as well as community building platforms. However, the crucial factor underlying the good predictive power of the model is the level of professionalization. While in the initial interest phase, the entry barriers for new customers are high. They decrease during the phase of standardization and increase again in the phase of full professionalization when new customers perceive participation history inaccessible. In this case, they are prone to switch to new methods of service application – in the case of e-sport vs. sports to new content and more modern methods of its delivery. In a wider context, the findings in the paper support the idea of a life cycle of services regarding methods of their application from “traditional” to digitalized.

Keywords: agent-based modeling, digitalized services, e-sport, spectators motives

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Authors: Zahra Tabarsi, Mehdi Marjani, Alireza Najafpour, Alborz Mirzade

Abstract:

The aim of this study was to evaluate and compare the macroscopic effect of low level laser and plasma jet for wound healing in rats. The study was performed on 40 old male white rats with an average weight of 250 g and an average age of the same age. After preparing the rats from Ibn Sina Research Institute, they were kept the same for one week under environmental conditions such as temperature, humidity and light, and nutrition such as the type of diet and the number of meals. Then, to start the research, rats were randomly divided into two groups (A): laser treatment of wounds, group (B): plasma wound treatment. All rats were inhibited 4 hours before each anesthesia under conditions of abstinence and up to 2 hours after drinking water. Rats were anesthetized by intraperitoneal injection of ketamine 10% and xylazine 2%.After scrubbing between two shoulders of each rat, a circular wound was created by sterile 5 mm biopsy puncture. Group A rats were treated with low level laser in three sessions and group B in three sessions with argon plasma. Based on the observed results, it seems that Low level laser radiation has more acceptable and appropriate effects than cold plasma on the healing of rat skin wounds.

Keywords: low-level laser, plasma jet, rat, wound healing

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Authors: Masaumi Nakahara, Sou Watanabe, Hiromichi Ogi, Atsuhiro Shibata, Kazunori Nomura

Abstract:

In the Japan Atomic Energy Agency, three types of experimental research, advanced reactor fuel reprocessing, radioactive waste disposal, and nuclear fuel cycle technology, have been carried out at the Chemical Processing Facility. The facility has generated high level radioactive liquid and solid wastes in hot cells. The high level radioactive solid waste is divided into three main categories, a flammable waste, a non-flammable waste, and a solid reagent waste. A plastic product is categorized into the flammable waste and molten with a heating mantle. The non-flammable waste is cut with a band saw machine for reducing the volume. Among the solid reagent waste, a used adsorbent after the experiments is heated, and an extractant is decomposed for its stabilization. All high level radioactive solid wastes in the hot cells are packed in a high level radioactive solid waste can. The high level radioactive solid waste can is transported to the 2nd High Active Solid Waste Storage in the Tokai Reprocessing Plant in the Japan Atomic Energy Agency.

Keywords: high level radioactive solid waste, advanced reactor fuel reprocessing, radioactive waste disposal, nuclear fuel cycle technology

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Authors: Chhabi Nigam, S. Ramakrishnan

Abstract:

This paper brings out the analysis of the airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) data to study the impact of Doppler centroid on Image quality and geocoding accuracy from the perspective of Stripmap mode of data acquisition. Although in Stripmap mode of data acquisition radar beam points at 90 degrees broad side (side looking), shift in the Doppler centroid is invariable due to platform motion. In-accurate estimation of Doppler centroid leads to poor image quality and image miss-registration. The effect of Doppler centroid is analyzed in this paper using multiple sets of data collected from airborne platform. Occurrences of ghost (ambiguous) targets and their power levels have been analyzed that impacts appropriate choice of PRF. Effect of aircraft attitudes (roll, pitch and yaw) on the Doppler centroid is also analyzed with the collected data sets. Various stages of the RDA (Range Doppler Algorithm) algorithm used for image formation in Stripmap mode, range compression, Doppler centroid estimation, azimuth compression, range cell migration correction are analyzed to find the performance limits and the dependence of the imaging geometry on the final image. The ability of Doppler centroid estimation to enhance the imaging accuracy for registration are also illustrated in this paper. The paper also tries to bring out the processing of low squint SAR data, the challenges and the performance limits imposed by the imaging geometry and the platform dynamics on the final image quality metrics. Finally, the effect on various terrain types, including land, water and bright scatters is also presented.

Keywords: ambiguous target, Doppler Centroid, image registration, Airborne SAR

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Authors: Abhishek Ranga

Abstract:

The study examined the effect of accounting choice and level of disclosure on the firm’s implied cost of equity in Indian environment. For the study accounting choice was classified as aggressive or conservative depending upon the firm’s choice of accounting methods, accounting policies and accounting estimates. Level of disclosure is the quantum of financial and non-financial information disclosed in firm’s annual report, essentially in note to accounts section, schedules forming part of financial statements and Management Discussion and Analysis report. Regression models were developed with cost of equity as a dependent variable and accounting choice, level of disclosure as an independent variable along with selected control variables. Cost of equity was measured using Edward-Bell-Ohlson (EBO) valuation model, to measure accounting choice Modified-Jones-Model (MJM) was used and level of disclosure was measured using a disclosure index essentially drawn from Botosan study. Results indicated a negative association between the implied cost of equity and conservative accounting choice and also between level of disclosure and cost of equity.

Keywords: aggressive accounting choice, conservative accounting choice, disclosure, implied cost of equity

Procedia PDF Downloads 437