Search results for: public private partnerships
Commenced in January 2007
Frequency: Monthly
Edition: International
Paper Count: 1280

Search results for: public private partnerships

440 The Portrayal of Muslim Militants "Southern Bandits" in Thai Newspapers

Authors: Treepon Kirdnark

Abstract:

This paper examines the depiction of Muslim militants in Thai newspapers in 2004. Stuart Hall-s “representation" and “public idioms" are used as theoretical frameworks. Critical Discourse Analysis is employed as a methodology to examine 240 news articles from two leading Thai language newspapers. The results show that the militants are usually labeled as “southern bandits." This suggests that they are just a culprit of the violence in the deep south of Thailand. They are usually described as people who cause turbulence. Consequently, the military have to get rid of them. However, other aspects of the groups such as their political agenda or the failures of the Thai state in dealing with the Malay Muslims were not mention in the news stories. In the time of violence, the researcher argues that this kind of newspaper coverage may help perpetuate the discourse of Malay Muslim, instead of providing fuller picture of the ongoing conflicts.

Keywords: News Discourse, Newspapers, Thailand, Thai Muslims.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1777
439 Supporting Technology Transfer with Communities and Social Software Solutions

Authors: G. Schuh, S. Aghassi

Abstract:

In order to bridge the gap between research and industry, promoting technology and knowledge transfer becomes increasingly important. Especially small- and medium-sized enterprises, having only little R&D resources themselves, depend on external technology development activities for remaining innovative. Academia research on the other hand needs potential industrial partners, who are capable and willing to commercialize their technologies as most public funding programs require some sort of technology transfer or dissemination activities. Modern web technologies offer more and more “social” functionalities and open up new ways of user interaction. In the past years several technology transfer platforms were developed, making use of modern web technologies in order to enable and support technology transfer. In this paper we report on the results of a state-of-the art analyses of existing technology transfer platforms, point out their advantages and deficits and give a perspective to the development of an improved technology transfer platform.

Keywords: Knowledge transfer, social software, technology management, technology transfer.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1677
438 Optimal Sizing of a Hybrid Wind/PV Plant Considering Reliability Indices

Authors: S. Dehghan, B. Kiani, A. Kazemi, A. Parizad

Abstract:

The utilization of renewable energy sources in electric power systems is increasing quickly because of public apprehensions for unpleasant environmental impacts and increase in the energy costs involved with the use of conventional energy sources. Despite the application of these energy sources can considerably diminish the system fuel costs, they can also have significant influence on the system reliability. Therefore an appropriate combination of the system reliability indices level and capital investment costs of system is vital. This paper presents a hybrid wind/photovoltaic plant, with the aim of supplying IEEE reliability test system load pattern while the plant capital investment costs is minimized by applying a hybrid particle swarm optimization (PSO) / harmony search (HS) approach, and the system fulfills the appropriate level of reliability.

Keywords: Distributed Generation, Fuel Cell, HS, Hybrid Power Plant, PSO, Photovoltaic, Reliability.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2277
437 Role of Environmental Focus in Legal Protection and Efficient Management of Wetlands in the Republic of Kazakhstan

Authors: K. R. Balabiyev, A. O. Kaipbayeva

Abstract:

The article discusses the legal framework of the government’s environmental function and analyzes the role of the national policy in protection of wetlands. The problem is of interest for it deals with the most important branch of economy – utilization of Kazakhstan’s natural resources, protection of health and environmental wellbeing of the population. Development of a longterm environmental program addressing the protection of wetlands represents the final stage of the government’s environmental policy, and is a relatively new function for the public administration system. It appeared due to the environmental measures that require immediate decisions to be taken. It is an integral part of the effort in the field of management of state-owned natural resource, as well as of the measures aimed at efficient management of natural resources to avoid their early depletion or contamination.

Keywords: Environmental focus, government’s environmental function, protection of wetlands.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1548
436 Computer Generated Hologram for SemiFragile Watermarking with Encrypted Images

Authors: G. Schirripa Spagnolo, M. De Santis

Abstract:

The protection of the contents of digital products is referred to as content authentication. In some applications, to be able to authenticate a digital product could be extremely essential. For example, if a digital product is used as a piece of evidence in the court, its integrity could mean life or death of the accused. Generally, the problem of content authentication can be solved using semifragile digital watermarking techniques. Recently many authors have proposed Computer Generated Hologram Watermarking (CGHWatermarking) techniques. Starting from these studies, in this paper a semi-fragile Computer Generated Hologram coding technique is proposed, which is able to detect malicious tampering while tolerating some incidental distortions. The proposed technique uses as watermark an encrypted image, and it is well suitable for digital image authentication.

Keywords: Asymmetric cryptography, Semi-Fragile watermarking, Image authentication, Hologram watermark, Public- Key Cryptography, RSA.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1590
435 Machine Learning Methods for Environmental Monitoring and Flood Protection

Authors: Alexander L. Pyayt, Ilya I. Mokhov, Bernhard Lang, Valeria V. Krzhizhanovskaya, Robert J. Meijer

Abstract:

More and more natural disasters are happening every year: floods, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, etc. In order to reduce the risk of possible damages, governments all around the world are investing into development of Early Warning Systems (EWS) for environmental applications. The most important task of the EWS is identification of the onset of critical situations affecting environment and population, early enough to inform the authorities and general public. This paper describes an approach for monitoring of flood protections systems based on machine learning methods. An Artificial Intelligence (AI) component has been developed for detection of abnormal dike behaviour. The AI module has been integrated into an EWS platform of the UrbanFlood project (EU Seventh Framework Programme) and validated on real-time measurements from the sensors installed in a dike.

Keywords: Early Warning System, intelligent environmentalmonitoring, machine learning, flood protection.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 4068
434 Sovereign Credit Risk Measures

Authors: Kristýna Pokorná, Petr Teplý

Abstract:

This paper focuses on sovereign credit risk meaning a hot topic related to the current Eurozone crisis. In the light of the recent financial crisis, market perception of the creditworthiness of individual sovereigns has changed significantly. Before the outbreak of the financial crisis, market participants did not differentiate between credit risk born by individual states despite different levels of public indebtedness. In the proceeding of the financial crisis, the market participants became aware of the worsening fiscal situation in the European countries and started to discriminate among government issuers. Concerns about the increasing sovereign risk were reflected in surging sovereign risk premium. The main of this paper is to shed light on the characteristics of the sovereign risk with the special attention paid to the mutual relation between credit spread and the CDS premium as the main measures of the sovereign risk premium.

Keywords: cointegration, credit default swap, credit risk, credit spread, sovereign risk

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1926
433 Electronic Government Services Adoption from Multi-Nationalities Perspectives

Authors: Isaac Kofi Mensah, Jianing Mi, Cheng Feng

Abstract:

Electronic government is the application of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) by the government to improve public service delivery to citizens and businesses. The purpose of this study is to investigate factors influencing the adoption and use of e-government services from different nationalities perspectives. The Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) will be used as the theoretical framework for the study. A questionnaire would be developed and administered to 500 potential respondents who are students from different nationalities in China. Predictors such as perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, computer self-efficacy, trust in both the internet and government, social influence and perceived service quality would be examined with regard to their impact on the intention to use e-government services. This research is currently at the design and implementation stage. The completion of this study will provide useful insights into understanding factors impacting the decision to use e-government services from a cross and multi nationalities perspectives.

Keywords: Different nationalities, e-government, e-government services, technology acceptance model.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 766
432 A Survey on the Requirements of University Course Timetabling

Authors: Nurul Liyana Abdul Aziz, Nur Aidya Hanum Aizam

Abstract:

Course timetabling problems occur every semester in a university which includes the allocation of resources (subjects, lecturers and students) to a number of fixed rooms and timeslots. The assignment is carried out in a way such that there are no conflicts within rooms, students and lecturers, as well as fulfilling a range of constraints. The constraints consist of rules and policies set up by the universities as well as lecturers’ and students’ preferences of courses to be allocated in specific timeslots. This paper specifically focuses on the preferences of the course timetabling problem in one of the public universities in Malaysia. The demands will be considered into our existing mathematical model to make it more generalized and can be used widely. We have distributed questionnaires to a number of lecturers and students of the university to investigate their demands and preferences for their desired course timetable. We classify the preferences thus converting them to construct one mathematical model that can produce such timetable.

Keywords: University course timetabling problem, integer programming, preferences, constraints.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1799
431 The Female Beauty Myth Fostered by the Mass Media

Authors: Yoojin Chung

Abstract:

This paper starts with a critical view of beautiful female images in the mass media being frequently generated by a stereotypical Korean concept of beauty. Several female beauty myths have evolved in Korea during the present decade. Nearly all of them have formed due to a deeply-ingrained androcentric ideology which objectifies women. Mass media causes the public to hold a distorted concept about female beauty. There is a huge gap between women in reality and representative women in the mass media. It is essential to have an unbiased perception of female images presented in the mass media. Due to cosmetic advertisements projecting contemporary images of female beauty to promote products, cosmetics images will be examined in regard to female beauty myths portrayed by the mass media. This paper will analyze features of female beauty myths in Korea and their intrinsic characteristics.

Keywords: Cosmetics Advertisements, Female Beauty Myth, Korean ideologies, Roland Barthes' Mythology Theory

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 3852
430 Impact of Ownership Structure on Provision of Staff and Infrastructure for Implementing Computer Aided Design Curriculum in Universities in South-East Nigeria

Authors: Kelechi E. Ezeji

Abstract:

Instruction towards acquiring skills in the use of Computer Aided Design technologies has become a vital part of architectural education curriculum in the digital era. Its implementation, however, requires deployment of extra resources to build new infrastructure, acquisition and maintenance of new equipment, retraining of staff and recruitment of new ones who are knowledgeable in this area. This study sought to examine the impact that ownership structure of Nigerian universities had on provision of staff and infrastructure for implementing computer aided design curriculum with a view to developing a framework for the evaluation for appropriate implementation by the institutions. Survey research design was employed. The focus was on departments of architecture in universities in south-east Nigeria accredited by the National Universities Commission. Data were obtained in the areas of infrastructure and personnel for CAD implementation. A multi-stage stratified random sampling method was adopted. The first stage of stratification involved the accredited departments. Random sampling by balloting was then carried out. At the second stage, sampling size formulae was applied to obtain respondents’ number. For data analysis, analysis of variance tool for testing differences of means was used. With ρ < 0.5, the study found that there was significant difference between private-funded, state-funded and federal-funded departments of architecture in the provision of personnel and infrastructure. The implications of these findings were that for successful implementation leading to attainment of CAD proficiency to occur in every institution regardless of ownership structure, minimum evaluation guidelines needed to be set. A regular comparison of implementation in institutions was recommended as a means of rating performance. This will inform better interaction with those who consistently show weakness to challenge them towards improvement.

Keywords: Computer-aided design, curriculum, funding, infrastructure.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 762
429 Achieving Performance in an Organization through Marketing Innovation

Authors: Andreea Maier, Diana Nicoară, Dorin Maier, Maria-Mihaela Suărăsan, Alexandra Anastasiu

Abstract:

Innovation is becoming more and more important in modern society. There are a lot of researches on different kinds of innovation but marketing innovation is one kind of innovation that has not been studied frequently before. Marketing innovation is defined as a new way in which companies can market themselves to potential or existing customers. The study shows some key elements for marketing innovation that are worth paying attention to when implementing marketing innovation projects. Examples of such key elements are: paying attention to the neglected market, suitable market segmentatio reliable market information, public relationship, increased customer value, combination of market factors, explore different marketing channels and the use of technology in combination with what? Beside the key elements for marketing innovation, we also present some risks that may occur, such as cost, market uncertainty, information leakage, imitation and overdependence on experience. By proposing a set of indicators to measure marketing innovation, the article offers solutions for marketing innovation implementation so that any organization can achieve optimal results.

Keywords: Innovation, marketing innovation, performance in an organization.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1567
428 Cryptography Over Elliptic Curve Of The Ring Fq[e], e4 = 0

Authors: Chillali Abdelhakim

Abstract:

Groups where the discrete logarithm problem (DLP) is believed to be intractable have proved to be inestimable building blocks for cryptographic applications. They are at the heart of numerous protocols such as key agreements, public-key cryptosystems, digital signatures, identification schemes, publicly verifiable secret sharings, hash functions and bit commitments. The search for new groups with intractable DLP is therefore of great importance.The goal of this article is to study elliptic curves over the ring Fq[], with Fq a finite field of order q and with the relation n = 0, n ≥ 3. The motivation for this work came from the observation that several practical discrete logarithm-based cryptosystems, such as ElGamal, the Elliptic Curve Cryptosystems . In a first time, we describe these curves defined over a ring. Then, we study the algorithmic properties by proposing effective implementations for representing the elements and the group law. In anther article we study their cryptographic properties, an attack of the elliptic discrete logarithm problem, a new cryptosystem over these curves.

Keywords: Elliptic Curve Over Ring, Discrete Logarithm Problem.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 3556
427 Challenges of e-Government Services Adoption in Saudi Arabia from an e-Ready Citizen Perspective

Authors: Mohammed Alshehri, Steve Drew

Abstract:

More and more governments around the world are introducing e-government as a means of reducing costs, improving services, saving time and increasing effectiveness and efficiency in the public sector Therefore e-government has been identified as one of the top priorities for Saudi government and all its agencies. However, the adoption of e-government is facing many challenges and barriers such as technological, cultural, organizational, and social issues which must be considered and treated carefully by any government contemplating its adoption. This paper reports on a pilot study amongst online (e-ready) citizens to identify the challenges and barriers that affect the adoption of e-government services especially from their perspective in Saudi society. Based on the analysis of data collected from an online survey the researcher was able to identify some of the important barriers and challenges from the e-ready citizen perspective. As a result, this study has generated a list of possible strategies to move towards successful adoption of egovernment services in Saudi Arabia.

Keywords: Challenges, E-government services, adoption, SaudiArabia

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 3627
426 The Environmental Conservation Behavior of the Applied Health Science Students of Green and Clean University

Authors: Nareelux Suwannobol, Plernpit Promrak, Kiattisak Batsungnoen

Abstract:

The aim of this study was to investigate the environmental conservation behavior of the Applied Health Science students of Suranaree University of Technology, a green and clean university. The sample group was 184 Applied Health Science students (medical, nursing, and public health). A questionnaire was used to collect information. The result of the study found that the students had more negative than positive behaviors towards energy, water, and forest conservation. This result can be used as basic information for designing long-term behavior modification activities or research projects on environmental conservation. Thus Applied Health Science students will be encouraged to be conscious and also be a good example of environmental conservation behavior.

Keywords: Energy conservation behavior, Water conservationbehavior, Forest conservation behavior, Green and clean University.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1726
425 Research on Residential Block Fabric: A Case Study of Hangzhou West Area

Authors: Wang Ye, Wei Wei

Abstract:

Residential block construction of big cities in China began in the 1950s, and four models had far-reaching influence on modern residential block in its development process, including unit compound and residential district in 1950s to 1980s, and gated community and open community in 1990s to now. Based on analysis of the four models’ fabric, the article takes residential blocks in Hangzhou west area as an example and carries on the studies from urban structure level and block spacial level, mainly including urban road network, land use, community function, road organization, public space and building fabric. At last, the article puts forward “Semi-open Sub-community” strategy to improve the current fabric.

Keywords: Hangzhou West Area, residential block model, residential block fabric, “Semi-open Sub-community” strategy.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1386
424 Heterogeneity-Aware Load Balancing for Multimedia Access over Wireless LAN Hotspots

Authors: Yen-Cheng Chen, Gong-Da Fang

Abstract:

Wireless LAN (WLAN) access in public hotspot areas becomes popular in the recent years. Since more and more multimedia information is available in the Internet, there is an increasing demand for accessing multimedia information through WLAN hotspots. Currently, the bandwidth offered by an IEEE 802.11 WLAN cannot afford many simultaneous real-time video accesses. A possible way to increase the offered bandwidth in a hotspot is the use of multiple access points (APs). However, a mobile station is usually connected to the WLAN AP with the strongest received signal strength indicator (RSSI). The total consumed bandwidth cannot be fairly allocated among those APs. In this paper, we will propose an effective load-balancing scheme via the support of the IAPP and SNMP in APs. The proposed scheme is an open solution and doesn-t need any changes in both wireless stations and APs. This makes load balancing possible in WLAN hotspots, where a variety of heterogeneous mobile devices are employed.

Keywords: Wireless LAN, Load balancing, IAPP, SNMP.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1756
423 Novelty as a Measure of Interestingness in Knowledge Discovery

Authors: Vasudha Bhatnagar, Ahmed Sultan Al-Hegami, Naveen Kumar

Abstract:

Rule Discovery is an important technique for mining knowledge from large databases. Use of objective measures for discovering interesting rules leads to another data mining problem, although of reduced complexity. Data mining researchers have studied subjective measures of interestingness to reduce the volume of discovered rules to ultimately improve the overall efficiency of KDD process. In this paper we study novelty of the discovered rules as a subjective measure of interestingness. We propose a hybrid approach based on both objective and subjective measures to quantify novelty of the discovered rules in terms of their deviations from the known rules (knowledge). We analyze the types of deviation that can arise between two rules and categorize the discovered rules according to the user specified threshold. We implement the proposed framework and experiment with some public datasets. The experimental results are promising.

Keywords: Knowledge Discovery in Databases (KDD), Interestingness, Subjective Measures, Novelty Index.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1784
422 Demythologization of Female Smokers in Korean Films

Authors: Yoojin Chung

Abstract:

Compare to western cultures, women who smoke in Korea are not tolerated. Korean people are prejudiced against women smoking. In spite of the relative prevalence of sexual equality in South Korea, women too often feel obliged to confine their smoking to only a few public spaces, such as designated smoking rooms, coffee shops or pubs. Korean Confucianism classifies people according to gender and social status. According to Confucian culture, cigarettes convey clear social meanings as well as reinforcing status, age and gender, beyond personal preferences. For these reasons, the significant of people smoking in Korea varies according to their gender. This study will determine reasons for the ongoing sexual discrimination against female Korean smokers thorough analyzing Korean films. Since film is a medium reflects social phenomenon. Roland Barthes- Mythology Theory will be used to analyze films.

Keywords: Korean films, Mythology, Sexual discrimination, Women Smoking

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2001
421 Kazakhstani Koreans- Conflict of Linguistic Identity: In–between the Sovietized and Kazakhstani Citizens

Authors: Soon-ok Myong, Byong-soon Chun

Abstract:

This paper intends to identify the ethnic Kazakhstani Koreans- political process of identity formation by exploring their narrative and practice about the state language represented in the course of their becoming the new citizens of a new independent state. The Russophone Kazakhstani Koreans- inability to speak the official language of their affiliated state is considered there as dissatisfying the basic requirement of citizens of the independent state, so that they are becoming marginalized from the public sphere. Their contradictory attitude that at once demonstrates nominal reception and practical rejection of the obligatory state language unveils a high barrier inside between their self-language and other-language. In this paper, the ethnic Korean group-s conflicting linguistic identity is not seen as a free and simple choice, but as a dynamic struggle and political process in which the subject-s past experiences and memories intersect with the external elements of pressure.

Keywords: Ethnic Kazakhstani Koreans, Soviet Korean's Russification, Linguistic Identity, Russian-Kazakh Dichotomy.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1564
420 Governance of Inter-Organizational Research Cooperation

Authors: Guenther Schuh, Sebastian Woelk

Abstract:

Companies face increasing challenges in research due to higher costs and risks. The intensifying technology complexity and interdisciplinarity require unique know-how. Therefore, companies need to decide whether research shall be conducted internally or externally with partners. On the other hand, research institutes meet increasing efforts to achieve good financing and to maintain high research reputation. Therefore, relevant research topics need to be identified and specialization of competency is necessary. However, additional competences for solving interdisciplinary research projects are also often required. Secured financing can be achieved by bonding industry partners as well as public fundings. The realization of faster and better research drives companies and research institutes to cooperate in organized research networks, which are managed by an administrative organization. For an effective and efficient cooperation, necessary processes, roles, tools and a set of rules need to be determined. Goal of this paper is to show the state-of-art research and to propose a governance framework for organized research networks.

Keywords: Interorganizational cooperation, design of network governance, research network.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1465
419 Towards a Model of Support in the Areas of Services of Educational Assistance and Tutoring in Middle Education in Mexico

Authors: Margarita Zavala, Julio Rolón, Gabriel Chavira, José González, Jorge Orozco, Roberto Pichardo

Abstract:

Adolescence is a neuralgic stage in the formation of every human being, generally at this stage is when the middle school level is studied. In 2006 in Mexico incorporated “mentoring" space to assist students in their integration and participation in life. In public middle schools, is sometimes difficult to be aware of situations that affect students because of the number of them and traditional records management. Whit this they lose the opportunity to provide timely support as a preventive way. In order to provide this support, it is required to know the students by detecting the relevant information that has greater impact on their learning process. This research is looking to check if it is possible to identify student’s relevant information to detect when it is at risk, and then to propose a model to manage in a proper way such information.

Keywords: Adolescence, mentoring, middle school students, mentoring system support.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1610
418 Examining the Potential of Linear Parks as Sustainable Development Components

Authors: Andreas Savvides, Chloe Kadi

Abstract:

The objective of this study is to investigate how the planning and design of open parks within neighborhoods and communities can promote physical activity in order to enhance the health of the local population. A review of relevant literature was conducted for studies regarding the relationship between health and physical activity and the park characteristics that can promote physical activity among people. The findings of the literature review were then compared and analyzed, in order to identify the main characteristics of urban parks that can promote physical activity and enhance public health. In order to find out how the characteristics identified in the literature were applied in real life, an analysis of three existing parks in three different countries was conducted. The parks, apart from their geographical location, also vary in size and layout. The parks were chosen because they are urban open parks and they include facilities for physical activity.

Keywords: Urban planning, active living behavior, open parks, sustainable mobility.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 104
417 Biological Soil Conservation Planning by Spatial Multi-Criteria Evaluation Techniques (Case Study: Bonkuh Watershed in Iran)

Authors: Ali Akbar Jamali

Abstract:

This paper discusses site selection process for biological soil conservation planning. It was supported by a valuefocused approach and spatial multi-criteria evaluation techniques. A first set of spatial criteria was used to design a number of potential sites. Next, a new set of spatial and non-spatial criteria was employed, including the natural factors and the financial costs, together with the degree of suitability for the Bonkuh watershed to biological soil conservation planning and to recommend the most acceptable program. The whole process was facilitated by a new software tool that supports spatial multiple criteria evaluation, or SMCE in GIS software (ILWIS). The application of this tool, combined with a continual feedback by the public attentions, has provided an effective methodology to solve complex decisional problem in biological soil conservation planning.

Keywords: GIS, Biological soil conservation planning, Spatial multi-criteria evaluation, Iran

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1701
416 Characterization of Complex Electromagnetic Environment Created by Multiple Sources of Electromagnetic Radiation

Authors: C. Temaneh-Nyah, J. Makiche, J. Nujoma

Abstract:

This paper considers the characterization of a complex electromagnetic environment due to multiple sources of electromagnetic radiation as a five-dimensional surface which can be described by a set of several surface sections including: instant EM field intensity distribution maps at a given frequency and altitude, instantaneous spectrum at a given location in space and the time evolution of the electromagnetic field spectrum at a given point in space. This characterization if done over time can enable the exposure levels of Radio Frequency Radiation at every point in the analysis area to be determined and results interpreted based on comparison of the determined RFR exposure level with the safe guidelines for general public exposure given by recognized body such as the International commission on non-ionizing radiation protection (ICNIRP), Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE), the National Radiation Protection Authority (NRPA).

Keywords: Electromagnetic Environment, Electric Field Strength, Mathematical Models.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2550
415 Speech Acts and Politeness Strategies in an EFL Classroom in Georgia

Authors: Tinatin Kurdghelashvili

Abstract:

The paper deals with the usage of speech acts and politeness strategies in an EFL classroom in Georgia (Rep of). It explores the students’ and the teachers’ practice of the politeness strategies and the speech acts of apology, thanking, request, compliment / encouragement, command, agreeing / disagreeing, addressing and code switching. The research method includes observation as well as a questionnaire. The target group involves the students from Georgian public schools and two certified, experienced local English teachers. The analysis is based on Searle’s Speech Act Theory and Brown and Levinson’s politeness strategies. The findings show that the students have certain knowledge regarding politeness yet they fail to apply them in English communication. In addition, most of the speech acts from the classroom interaction are used by the teachers and not the students. Thereby, it is suggested that teachers should cultivate the students’ communicative competence and attempt to give them opportunities to practise more English speech acts than they do today.

Keywords: English as a foreign language, Georgia, politeness principles, speech acts.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 6166
414 Legal Knowledge of Legislated Employment Rights: An Empirical Study

Authors: Hapriza Ashari, Nik Ahmad Kamal Nik Mahmod

Abstract:

This article aims to assess the level of basic knowledge of statutory employment rights at the workplace as prescribed by the Malaysian Employment Act 1955. The statutory employment rights comprises of a variety of individual employment rights such as protections of wages, statutory right to the general standard of working time, statutory right to rest day, public holidays, annual leave and sick leave as well as female employee’s statutory right to paid maternity leave. A field survey was carried out to collect data by using self-administered questionnaires from Human Resource (HR) practitioners in the small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The results reveal that the level of basic knowledge of legislated employment rights varies between different types of statutory rights from high level to low level.

Keywords: Employment legislation, Human Resource (HR) practitioner, legal knowledge, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2427
413 Academic Digital Library's Evaluation Criteria: User-Centered Approach

Authors: Razilan A. Kadir, Wan A. K. W. Dollah, Fatimah A. Saaid, S. Diljit

Abstract:

Academic digital libraries emerged as a result of advances in computing and information systems technologies, and had been introduced in universities and to public. As results, moving in parallel with current technology in learning and researching environment indeed offers myriad of advantages especially to students and academicians, as well as researchers. This is due to dramatic changes in learning environment through the use of digital library system which giving spectacular impact on these societies- way of performing their study/research. This paper presents a survey of current criteria for evaluating academic digital libraries- performance. The goal is to discuss criteria being applied so far for academic digital libraries evaluation in the context of user-centered design. Although this paper does not comprehensively take into account all previous researches in evaluating academic digital libraries but at least it can be a guide in understanding the evaluation criteria being widely applied.

Keywords: Academic digital libraries, evaluation criteria, performance, user-centered.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2336
412 Sustainability Assessment of Municipal Wastewater Treatment

Authors: Yousra Zakaria Ahmed, Ahmed El Gendy, Salah El Haggar

Abstract:

In this paper, our methodology to assess sustainability of wastewater treatment technologies in Egypt is presented. The preliminary list of factors to be considered, as well as their ranking listed. The factors include, but are not limited to pollutants removal efficiency and energy consumption under the environmental dimension, construction cost, operation and maintenance costs and required land area cost under the economic dimension and public acceptance, noise and generating job opportunities for local residents. This methodology is intended to be a user-friendly screening tool to support the decision making process when investigating different wastewater treatment technologies in Egypt. Based on the research work results presented in this paper, it can be generally concluded that the categorization of some of the social and environmental aspects of sustainability is subjective and highly dependent on the local conditions and researchers’ background.

Keywords: Sustainability, wastewater treatment, sustainability assessment, Egypt.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1556
411 A Strategy for Scaling-Up Vitamin A Supplementation in a Remote Rural Setting

Authors: Wisdom G. Dube, Talent Makoni, Tasiana K. Nyadzayo, Namukolo M. Covic

Abstract:

Vitamin A deficiency is a public health problem in Zimbabwe. Addressing vitamin A deficiency has the potential of enhancing resistance to disease and reducing mortality especially in children less than 5 years. We implemented and adapted vitamin A outreach supplementation strategy within the National Immunization Days and Extended Programme of Immunization in a rural district in Zimbabwe. Despite usual operational challenges faced this approach enabled the district to increase delivery of supplementation coverage. This paper describes the outreach strategy that was implemented in the remote rural district. The strategy covered 63 outreach sites with 2 sites being covered per day and visited once per month for the whole year. Coverage reached 71% in an area of previous coverage rates of around less than 50%. We recommend further exploration of this strategy by others working in similar circumstances. This strategy can be a potential way for use by Scaling-Up-Nutrition member states.

Keywords: Coverage, Strategy, Supplementation, Vitamin A.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1642