Search results for: Natural language understanding
2146 Moroccan Mountains: Forest Ecosystems and Biodiversity Conservation Strategies
Authors: Mohammed Sghir Taleb
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Forest ecosystems in Morocco are subject increasingly to natural and human pressures. Conscious of this problem, Morocco set a strategy that focuses on programs of in-situ and ex-situ biodiversity conservation. This study is the result of a synthesis of various existing studies on biodiversity and forest ecosystems. It gives an overview of Moroccan mountain forest ecosystems and flora diversity. It also focuses on the efforts made by Morocco to conserve and sustainably manage biodiversity.
Keywords: Mountain, forest, ecosystems, conservation, Morocco.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 13672145 Simulation of Inverter Fed Induction Motor Drive with LabVIEW
Authors: R. Gunabalan, S. Immanuel Prabakaran, J. Reegan, S. Ganesh
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This paper describes a software approach for modeling inverter fed induction motor drive using Laboratory Virtual Instrument Engineering Workbench (LabVIEW). The reason behind the selection of LabVIEW software is because of its strong graphical interface, flexibility of its programming language combined with built-in tools designed specifically for test, measurement and control. LabVIEW is generally used in most of the applications for data acquisition, test and control. In this paper, inverter and induction motor are modeled using LabVIEW toolkits. Simulation results are presented and are validated.
Keywords: Induction motor, LabVIEW, State model.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 85762144 On a New Inverse Polynomial Numerical Scheme for the Solution of Initial Value Problems in Ordinary Differential Equations
Authors: R. B. Ogunrinde
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This paper presents the development, analysis and implementation of an inverse polynomial numerical method which is well suitable for solving initial value problems in first order ordinary differential equations with applications to sample problems. We also present some basic concepts and fundamental theories which are vital to the analysis of the scheme. We analyzed the consistency, convergence, and stability properties of the scheme. Numerical experiments were carried out and the results compared with the theoretical or exact solution and the algorithm was later coded using MATLAB programming language.Keywords: Differential equations, Numerical, Initial value problem, Polynomials.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 17722143 Design of Local Interconnect Network Controller for Automotive Applications
Authors: Jong-Bae Lee, Seongsoo Lee
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Local interconnect network (LIN) is a communication protocol that combines sensors, actuators, and processors to a functional module in automotive applications. In this paper, a LIN ver. 2.2A controller was designed in Verilog hardware description language (Verilog HDL) and implemented in field-programmable gate array (FPGA). Its operation was verified by making full-scale LIN network with the presented FPGA-implemented LIN controller, commercial LIN transceivers, and commercial processors. When described in Verilog HDL and synthesized in 0.18 μm technology, its gate size was about 2,300 gates.
Keywords: Local interconnect network, controller, transceiver, processor.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 15872142 Agro-Morphological Characterization of Vicia faba L. Accessions in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Authors: Zia Amjad, Salem S. Alghamdi
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The study was conducted at the student educational farm at the College of Food and Agriculture in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The aim of study was to characterize 154 Vicia faba L. accessions using agro-morphological traits based on The International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV) and The International Board for Plant Genetic Resources (IBPGR) descriptors. This research is significant as it contributes to the understanding of the genetic diversity and potential yield of V. faba in Saudi Arabia. In the study, 24 agro-morphological characters including 11 quantitative and 13 qualitative were observed for genetic variation. All the results were analyzed using multivariate analysis i.e., principal component analysis (PCA). First, six principal components (PC) had eigenvalues greater than one; accounted for 72% of available V. faba genetic diversity. However, first three components revealed more than 10% of genetic diversity each i.e., 22.36%, 15.86% and 10.89% respectively. PCA distributed the V. faba accessions into different groups based on their performance for the characters under observation. PC-1, which represented 22.36% of the genetic diversity, was positively associated with stipule spot pigmentation, intensity of streaks, pod degree of curvature and to some extent with 100 seed weight. PC-2 covered 15.86 of the genetic diversity and showed positive association for average seed weight per plant, pod length, number of seeds per plant, 100 seed weight, stipule spot pigmentation, intensity of streaks (same as in PC-1) and to some extent for pod degree of curvature and number of pods per plant. PC-3 revealed 10.89% of genetic diversity and expressed positive association for number of pods per plant and number of leaflets per plant. This study contributes to the understanding of the genetic diversity and potential yield of V. faba in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. By establishing a core collection of V. faba, the research provides a valuable resource for future conservation and utilization of this crop worldwide.
Keywords: Agro-morphological characterization, genetic diversity, core collection, PCA, Vicia faba L.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2022141 Preparation and Characterization of Pectin Based Proton Exchange Membranes Derived by Solution Casting Method for Direct Methanol Fuel Cells
Authors: Mohanapriya Subramanian, V. Raj
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Direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs) are considered to be one of the most promising candidates for portable and stationary applications in the view of their advantages such as high energy density, easy manipulation, high efficiency and they operate with liquid fuel which could be used without requiring any fuel-processing units. Electrolyte membrane of DMFC plays a key role as a proton conductor as well as a separator between electrodes. Increasing concern over environmental protection, biopolymers gain tremendous interest owing to their eco-friendly bio-degradable nature. Pectin is a natural anionic polysaccharide which plays an essential part in regulating mechanical behavior of plant cell wall and it is extracted from outer cells of most of the plants. The aim of this study is to develop and demonstrate pectin based polymer composite membranes as methanol impermeable polymer electrolyte membranes for DMFCs. Pectin based nanocomposites membranes are prepared by solution-casting technique wherein pectin is blended with chitosan followed by the addition of optimal amount of sulphonic acid modified Titanium dioxide nanoparticle (S-TiO2). Nanocomposite membranes are characterized by Fourier Transform-Infra Red spectroscopy, Scanning electron microscopy, and Energy dispersive spectroscopy analyses. Proton conductivity and methanol permeability are determined into order to evaluate their suitability for DMFC application. Pectin-chitosan blends endow with a flexible polymeric network which is appropriate to disperse rigid S-TiO2 nanoparticles. Resulting nanocomposite membranes possess adequate thermo-mechanical stabilities as well as high charge-density per unit volume. Pectin-chitosan natural polymeric nanocomposite comprising optimal S-TiO2 exhibits good electrochemical selectivity and therefore desirable for DMFC application.Keywords: Biopolymers, fuel cells, nanocomposite, methanol crossover.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 12022140 Place and Role of Corporate Governance in Japan
Authors: Feddaoui Amina
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In a broad sense, corporate governance covers the organization of the control and management. The term is also used in a narrower sense, to refer to the relationship between shareholders, and the company’s board. There are a lot of discussions devoted to the understanding of the corporate governance role and its principles. In this paper, we are going to describe the definition of corporate governance as a control system and its principles, and find the role of corporate governance and its pillars. Finally, we are going to drop the theoretical study on the case of Japan.
Keywords: Corporate governance, place, role, Japan.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 7682139 Design of Expert System for Search Allergy and Selection of the Skin Tests using CLIPS
Authors: St. Karagiannis, A. I. Dounis, T. Chalastras, P. Tiropanis, D. Papachristos
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This work presents the design of an expert system that aims in the procurement of patient medial background and in the search for suitable skin test selections. Skin testing is the tool used most widely to diagnose allergies. The language of expert systems CLIPS is used as a tool of designing. Finally, we present the evaluation of the proposed expert system which was achieved with the import of certain medical cases and the system produced with suitable successful skin tests.
Keywords: Artificial intelligence, expert system - CLIPS, allergy and skin test.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 28322138 Model Membrane from Shed Snake Skins
Authors: M. Kumpugdee-Vollrath, T. Subongkot, T. Ngawhirunpat
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In this project we are interested in studying different kinds of shed snake skins in order to apply them as a model membrane for pharmaceutical purposes instead of human stratum corneum. Many types of shed snake skins as well as model drugs were studied by different techniques. The data will give deeper understanding about the interaction between drugs and model membranes and may allow us to choose the suitable model membrane for studying the effect of pharmaceutical products.
Keywords: DSC, FTIR, permeation, SAXS, shed snake skin.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 23922137 An Automated Approach for Assembling Modular Fixtures Using SolidWorks
Authors: Uday Hameed Farhan, Majid Tolouei-Rad, Simona O'Brien
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Modular fixtures (MFs) are very important tools in manufacturing processes in terms of reduction the cost and the production time. This paper introduces an automated approach for assembling MFs elements by employing SolidWorks as a powerful 3D CAD software. Visual Basic (VB) programming language was applied integrating with SolidWorks API (Application programming interface) functions. This integration allowed creating plug-in file and generating new menus in the SolidWorks environment. The menus allow the user to select, insert, and assemble MFs elements.Keywords: Assembly automation, modular fixtures, SolidWorks, Visual Basic.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 27832136 Clustering Categorical Data Using Hierarchies (CLUCDUH)
Authors: Gökhan Silahtaroğlu
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Clustering large populations is an important problem when the data contain noise and different shapes. A good clustering algorithm or approach should be efficient enough to detect clusters sensitively. Besides space complexity, time complexity also gains importance as the size grows. Using hierarchies we developed a new algorithm to split attributes according to the values they have and choosing the dimension for splitting so as to divide the database roughly into equal parts as much as possible. At each node we calculate some certain descriptive statistical features of the data which reside and by pruning we generate the natural clusters with a complexity of O(n).Keywords: Clustering, tree, split, pruning, entropy, gini.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 15562135 Performance Management Guide for Research and Development Process
Authors: Heejung Lee
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Performance management seems to be essential in business area and is also an exciting topic. Despite significant and myriads of research efforts, performance management guide today as a rigorous approach is still in an immature state and metrics are often selected based on intuitive and heuristic approach. In R&D side, the difficulty to guide the proper performance management is even more increasing due to the natural characteristics of R&D such as unique or domain-specific problems. In our approach, we present R&D performance management guide considering various characteristics of R&D side: performance evaluation objectives, dimensions, metrics, and uncertainties of R&D sector.Keywords: Performance management, R&D, metrics.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 15502134 Functioning of Turkic Elements in Modern Hindi
Authors: B. S. Bokuleva, R. A. Avakova, A. A. Sultangubieva, U. Schamiloglu
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It is discussed about modern usage of adopted words and their vocabularies, Turkism usage fields, phonetic, grammatical and lexis-semantic assimilation of the typological-morphological structures of entering to different Hindi languages in comparative typological aspects in this scientific article. The lexis vocabulary is rich, the prevalence area is wide and it has researched the entering process of vocabulary into the great languages of Turkic elements from the speakers- numbers. The research work has worked on the base of Hindi vocabulary.Keywords: Adopted words, language communications, Turkism, Turkic languages.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 21662133 Synchronization of Chaos in a Food Web in Ecological Systems
Authors: Anuraj Singh, Sunita Gakkhar
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The three-species food web model proposed and investigated by Gakkhar and Naji is known to have chaotic behaviour for a choice of parameters. An attempt has been made to synchronize the chaos in the model using bidirectional coupling. Numerical simulations are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness and feasibility of the analytical results. Numerical results show that for higher value of coupling strength, chaotic synchronization is achieved. Chaos can be controlled to achieve stable synchronization in natural systems.
Keywords: Lyapunov Exponent, Bidirectional Coupling, ChaosSynchronization, Synchronization Manifold
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 13072132 IKEv1 and IKEv2: A Quantitative Analyses
Authors: H.Soussi, M.Hussain, H.Afifi, D.Seret
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Key management is a vital component in any modern security protocol. Due to scalability and practical implementation considerations automatic key management seems a natural choice in significantly large virtual private networks (VPNs). In this context IETF Internet Key Exchange (IKE) is the most promising protocol under permanent review. We have made a humble effort to pinpoint IKEv2 net gain over IKEv1 due to recent modifications in its original structure, along with a brief overview of salient improvements between the two versions. We have used US National Institute of Technology NIIST VPN simulator to get some comparisons of important performance metrics.
Keywords: Quantitative Analyses, IKEv1, IKEv2, NIIST.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 45932131 Query Optimization Techniques for XML Databases
Authors: Su Cheng Haw, G. S. V. Radha Krishna Rao
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Over the past few years, XML (eXtensible Mark-up Language) has emerged as the standard for information representation and data exchange over the Internet. This paper provides a kick-start for new researches venturing in XML databases field. We survey the storage representation for XML document, review the XML query processing and optimization techniques with respect to the particular storage instance. Various optimization technologies have been developed to solve the query retrieval and updating problems. Towards the later year, most researchers proposed hybrid optimization techniques. Hybrid system opens the possibility of covering each technology-s weakness by its strengths. This paper reviews the advantages and limitations of optimization techniques.Keywords: indexing, labeling scheme, query optimization, XML storage.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 20382130 Contraception in Guatemala, Panajachel and the Surrounding Areas: Barriers Affecting Women’s Contraceptive Usage
Authors: Natasha Bhate
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Contraception is important in helping to reduce maternal and infant mortality rates by allowing women to control the number and spacing in-between their children. It also reduces the need for unsafe abortions. Women worldwide use contraception; however, the contraceptive prevalence rate is still relatively low in Central American countries like Guatemala. There is also an unmet need for contraception in Guatemala, which is more significant in rural, indigenous women due to barriers preventing contraceptive use. The study objective was to investigate and analyse the current barriers women face, in Guatemala, Panajachel and the surrounding areas, in using contraception, with a view of identifying ways to overcome these barriers. This included exploring the contraceptive barriers women believe exist and the influence of males in contraceptive decision making. The study took place at a charity in Panajachel, Guatemala, and had a cross-sectional, qualitative design to allow an in-depth understanding of information gathered. This particular study design was also chosen to help inform the charity with qualitative research analysis, in view of their intent to create a local reproductive health programme. A semi-structured interview design, including photo facilitation to improve cross-cultural communication, with interpreter assistance, was utilized. A pilot interview was initially conducted with small improvements required. Participants were recruited through purposive and convenience sampling. The study host at the charity acted as a gatekeeper; participants were identified through attendance of the charity’s women’s-initiative programme workshops. 20 participants were selected and agreed to study participation with two not attending; a total of 18 participants were interviewed in June 2017. Interviews were audio-recorded and data were stored on encrypted memory sticks. Framework analysis was used to analyse the data using NVivo11 software. The University of Leeds granted ethical approval for the research. Religion, language, the community, and fear of sickness were examples of existing contraceptive barrier themes recognized by many participants. The influence of men was also an important barrier identified, with themes of machismo and abuse preventing contraceptive use in some women. Women from more rural areas were believed to still face barriers which some participants did not encounter anymore, such as distance and affordability of contraceptives. Participants believed that informative workshops in various settings were an ideal method of overcoming existing contraceptive barriers and allowing women to be more empowered. The involvement of men in such workshops was also deemed important by participants to help reduce their negative influence in contraceptive usage. Overall, four recommendations following this study were made, including contraceptive educational courses, a gender equality campaign, couple-focused contraceptive workshops, and further qualitative research to gain a better insight into men’s opinions regarding women using contraception.Keywords: Barrier, contraception, machismo, religion.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 6222129 An Alternative Proof for the Topological Entropy of the Motzkin Shift
Authors: Fahad Alsharari, Mohd Salmi Md Noorani
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A Motzkin shift is a mathematical model for constraints on genetic sequences. In terms of the theory of symbolic dynamics, the Motzkin shift is nonsofic, and therefore, we cannot use the Perron- Frobenius theory to calculate its topological entropy. The Motzkin shift M(M,N) which comes from language theory, is defined to be the shift system over an alphabet A that consists of N negative symbols, N positive symbols and M neutral symbols. For an x in the full shift, x will be in the Motzkin subshift M(M,N) if and only if every finite block appearing in x has a non-zero reduced form. Therefore, the constraint for x cannot be bounded in length. K. Inoue has shown that the entropy of the Motzkin shift M(M,N) is log(M + N + 1). In this paper, a new direct method of calculating the topological entropy of the Motzkin shift is given without any measure theoretical discussion.
Keywords: Motzkin shift, topological entropy.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 20112128 Analysis of S.P.O Techniques for Prediction of Dynamic Behavior of the Plate
Authors: Byung-kyoo Jung, Weui-bong Jeong
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In most cases, it is considerably difficult to directly measure structural vibration with a lot of sensors because of complex geometry, time and equipment cost. For this reason, this paper deals with the problem of locating sensors on a plate model by four advanced sensor placement optimization (S.P.O) techniques. It also suggests the evaluation index representing the characteristic of orthogonal between each of natural modes. The index value provides the assistance to selecting of proper S.P.O technique and optimal positions for monitoring of dynamic systems without the experiment.Keywords: Genetic algorithm, Modal assurance criterion, Sensor placement optimization.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 16792127 The Onset of Ironing during Casing Expansion
Authors: W. Assaad, D. Wilmink, H. R. Pasaribu, H. J. M. Geijselaers
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Shell has developed a mono-diameter well concept for oil and gas wells as opposed to the traditional telescopic well design. A Mono-diameter well design allows well to have a single inner diameter from the surface all the way down to reservoir to increase production capacity, reduce material cost and reduce environmental footprint. This is achieved by expansion of liners (casing string) concerned using an expansion tool (e.g. a cone). Since the well is drilled in stages and liners are inserted to support the borehole, overlap sections between consecutive liners exist which should be expanded. At overlap, the previously inserted casing which can be expanded or unexpanded is called the host casing and the newly inserted casing is called the expandable casing. When the cone enters the overlap section, an expandable casing is expanded against a host casing, a cured cement layer and formation. In overlap expansion, ironing or lengthening may appear instead of shortening in the expandable casing when the pressure exerted by the host casing, cured cement layer and formation exceeds a certain limit. This pressure is related to cement strength, thickness of cement layer, host casing material mechanical properties, host casing thickness, formation type and formation strength. Ironing can cause implications that hinder the deployment of the technology. Therefore, the understanding of ironing becomes essential. A physical model is built in-house to calculate expansion forces, stresses, strains and post expansion casing dimensions under different conditions. In this study, only free casing and overlap expansion of two casings are addressed while the cement and formation will be incorporated in future study. Since the axial strain can be predicted by the physical model, the onset of ironing can be confirmed. In addition, this model helps in understanding ironing and the parameters influencing it. Finally, the physical model is validated with Finite Element (FE) simulations and small-scale experiments. The results of the study confirm that high pressure leads to ironing when the casing is expanded in tension mode.
Keywords: Casing expansion, cement, formation, metal forming, plasticity, well design.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 7792126 Dataset Analysis Using Membership-Deviation Graph
Authors: Itgel Bayarsaikhan, Jimin Lee, Sejong Oh
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Classification is one of the primary themes in computational biology. The accuracy of classification strongly depends on quality of a dataset, and we need some method to evaluate this quality. In this paper, we propose a new graphical analysis method using 'Membership-Deviation Graph (MDG)' for analyzing quality of a dataset. MDG represents degree of membership and deviations for instances of a class in the dataset. The result of MDG analysis is used for understanding specific feature and for selecting best feature for classification.Keywords: feature, classification, machine learning algorithm.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 14452125 Metamorphism, Formal Grammars and Undecidable Code Mutation
Authors: Eric Filiol
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This paper presents a formalisation of the different existing code mutation techniques (polymorphism and metamorphism) by means of formal grammars. While very few theoretical results are known about the detection complexity of viral mutation techniques, we exhaustively address this critical issue by considering the Chomsky classification of formal grammars. This enables us to determine which family of code mutation techniques are likely to be detected or on the contrary are bound to remain undetected. As an illustration we then present, on a formal basis, a proof-of-concept metamorphic mutation engine denoted PB MOT, whose detection has been proven to be undecidable.
Keywords: Polymorphism, Metamorphism, Formal Grammars, Formal Languages, Language Decision, Code Mutation, Word Problem
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 24292124 Social Media and Counseling: Opportunities, Risks and Ethical Considerations
Authors: Kyriaki G. Giota, George Kleftaras
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The purpose of this article is to briefly review the opportunities that social media present to counselors and psychologists. Particular attention was given to understanding some of the more important common risks inherent in social media and the potential ethical dilemmas which may arise for counselors and psychologists who embrace them in their practice. Key considerations of issues pertinent to an online presence such as multiple relationships, visibility and privacy, maintaining ethical principles and professional boundaries are being discussed.
Keywords: Social Media, Counseling, Risks, Ethics.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 79732123 Recycled Cellulosic Fibers and Lignocellulosic Aggregates for Sustainable Building Materials
Authors: N. Stevulova, I. Schwarzova, V. Hospodarova, J. Junak, J. Briancin
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Sustainability is becoming a priority for developers and the use of environmentally friendly materials is increasing. Nowadays, the application of raw materials from renewable sources to building materials has gained a significant interest in this research area. Lignocellulosic aggregates and cellulosic fibers are coming from many different sources such as wood, plants and waste. They are promising alternative materials to replace synthetic, glass and asbestos fibers as reinforcement in inorganic matrix of composites. Natural fibers are renewable resources so their cost is relatively low in comparison to synthetic fibers. With the consideration of environmental consciousness, natural fibers are biodegradable so their using can reduce CO2 emissions in the building materials production. The use of cellulosic fibers in cementitious matrices have gained importance because they make the composites lighter at high fiber content, they have comparable cost - performance ratios to similar building materials and they could be processed from waste paper, thus expanding the opportunities for waste utilization in cementitious materials. The main objective of this work is to find out the possibility of using different wastes: hemp hurds as waste of hemp stem processing and recycled fibers obtained from waste paper for making cement composite products such as mortars based on cellulose fibers. This material was made of cement mortar containing organic filler based on hemp hurds and recycled waste paper. In addition, the effects of fibers and their contents on some selected physical and mechanical properties of the fiber-cement plaster composites have been investigated. In this research organic material have used to mortars as 2.0, 5.0 and 10.0 % replacement of cement weight. Reference sample is made for comparison of physical and mechanical properties of cement composites based on recycled cellulosic fibers and lignocellulosic aggregates. The prepared specimens were tested after 28 days of curing in order to investigate density, compressive strength and water absorbability. Scanning Electron Microscopy examination was also carried out.Keywords: Hemp hurds, organic filler, recycled paper, sustainable building materials.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 20652122 The Cave Paintings of Libyc Inscriptions of Tifra, Kabylia, Algeria
Authors: Samia Ait Ali Yahia
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The Tifra site is one of 54 sites with rock paintings discovered in Kabylia (Algeria). It consists of two shelters: Ifran I and Ifran II. From an aesthetic point of view, these two shelters appear poor. It shows a human silhouette, a hand, enigmatic designs and especially Libyc inscriptions. The paint used, is the natural red ocher. Today, these paintings are threatened by the frequentation of tourists to the sites as well as by the degradation which result from it. It is therefore vital to us to list and analyze these paintings before they disappear. The analysis of these paintings will be focused on the epigraphic and iconographic level and their meanings.
Keywords: Cave painting, Libyc inscription, conservation, valorization.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 6762121 Model Checking Consistency of UML Diagrams Using Alloy
Authors: Akie Nimiya, Tomoyuki Yokogawa, Hisashi Miyazaki, Sousuke Amasaki, Yoichiro Sato, Michiyoshi Hayase
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In this paper, we proposed a method for detecting consistency violation between UML state machine diagrams and communication diagrams using Alloy. Using input language of Alloy, the proposed method expresses system behaviors described by state machine diagrams, message sequences described by communication diagrams, and a consistency property. As a result of application for an example system, we confirmed that consistency violation could be detected using Alloy correctly.
Keywords: Model checking, UML, state machine diagrams, communication diagram, alloy.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 15852120 Detecting the Edge of Multiple Images in Parallel
Authors: Prakash K. Aithal, U. Dinesh Acharya, Rajesh Gopakumar
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Edge is variation of brightness in an image. Edge detection is useful in many application areas such as finding forests, rivers from a satellite image, detecting broken bone in a medical image etc. The paper discusses about finding edge of multiple aerial images in parallel. The proposed work tested on 38 images 37 colored and one monochrome image. The time taken to process N images in parallel is equivalent to time taken to process 1 image in sequential. Message Passing Interface (MPI) and Open Computing Language (OpenCL) is used to achieve task and pixel level parallelism respectively.Keywords: Edge detection, multicore, GPU, openCL, MPI.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 23392119 Sustainable Balanced Scorecard for Kaizen Evaluation: Comparative Study between Egypt and Japan
Authors: Ola I. S. El Dardery, Ismail Gomaa, Adel R. M. Rayan, Ghada El Khayat, Sara H. Sabry
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Continuous improvement activities are becoming a key organizational success factor; those improvement activities include but are not limited to kaizen, six sigma, lean production, and continuous improvement projects. Kaizen is a Japanese philosophy of continuous improvement by making small incremental changes to improve an organization’s performance, reduce costs, reduce delay time, reduce waste in production, etc. This research aims at proposing a measuring system for kaizen activities from a sustainable balanced scorecard perspective. A survey was developed and disseminated among kaizen experts in both Egypt and Japan with the purpose of allocating key performance indicators for both kaizen process (critical success factors) and result (kaizen benefits) into the five sustainable balanced scorecard perspectives. This research contributes to the extant literature by presenting a kaizen measurement of both kaizen process and results that will illuminate the benefits of using kaizen. Also, the presented measurement can help in the sustainability of kaizen implementation across various sectors and industries. Thus, grasping the full benefits of kaizen implementation will contribute to the spread of kaizen understanding and practice. Also, this research provides insights on the social and cultural differences that would influence the kaizen success. Determining the combination of the proper kaizen measures could be used by any industry, whether service or manufacturing for better kaizen activities measurement. The comparison between Japanese implementation of kaizen, as the pioneers of continuous improvement, and Egyptian implementation will help recommending better practices of kaizen in Egypt and contributing to the 2030 sustainable development goals. The study results reveal that there is no significant difference in allocating kaizen benefits between Egypt and Japan. However, with regard to the critical success factors some differences appeared reflecting the social differences and understanding between both countries, a single integrated measurement was reached between the Egyptian and Japanese allocation highlighting the Japanese experts’ opinion as the ultimate criterion for selection.
Keywords: continuous improvements, kaizen, performance, sustainable balanced scorecard
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 6322118 Evaluation of Corrosion by Impedance Spectroscopy of Embedded Steel in an Alternative Concrete Exposed to the Chloride Ion
Authors: Erika J. Ruíz, Jairo R. Cortes, Willian A. Aperador
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In this article was evaluated the protective effect of the alternative concrete obtained from the binary mixture of fly ash, and iron and steel slag. After mixing the cement with aggregates, structural steel was inserted in the matrix cementitious. The study was conducted comparatively with specimens exposed to natural conditions free of chloride ion. The chloride ion effect on the specimens accelerated under controlled conditions (3.5% NaCl and 25°C temperature). The impedance data were acquired in a range of 1 mHz to 100 kHz.
Keywords: Alternative concrete, corrosion, alkaline activation.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 14172117 Study on Various Measures for Flood in Specific Region: A Case Study of the 2008 Lao Flood
Authors: Douangmala Kounsana, Toru Takahashi
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In recent years, the number of natural disasters in Laos has a trend to increase, especially the disaster of flood. To make a flood plan risk management in the future, it is necessary to understand and analyze the characteristics of the rainfall and Mekong River level data. To reduce the damage, this paper presents the flood risk analysis in Luangprabang and Vientiane, the prefecture of Laos. In detail, the relationship between the rainfall and the Mekong River level has evaluated and appropriate countermeasure for flood was discussed.
Keywords: Lao flood, Mekong river, rainfall, risk management.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1839