Search results for: Region/Edge Cooperation.

Authors: Masahiro Takahashi, Kosuke Harada, Shihomi Nakao, Mitsuhiro Higashihata, Hiroshi Ikenoue, Daisuke Nakamura, Tatsuo Okada

Abstract:

Zinc oxide (ZnO) is one of the light emitting materials in ultraviolet (UV) region. In addition, ZnO nanostructures are also attracting increasing research interest as buildingblocks for UV optoelectronic applications. We have succeeded in synthesizing vertically-aligned ZnO nanostructures by laser interference patterning, which is catalyst-free and non-contact technique. In this study, vertically-aligned ZnO nanowall arrays were synthesized using two-beam interference. The maximum height and average thickness of the ZnO nanowalls were about 4.5µm and 200 nm, respectively.UV lasing from a piece of the ZnO nanowall was obtained under the third harmonic of a Q-switched Nd:YAG laser excitation, and the estimated threshold power density for lasing was about 150 kW/cm². Furthermore, UV lasing from the vertically-aligned ZnO nanowall was also achieved. The results indicate that ZnO nanowalls can be applied to random laser.

Keywords: Zinc Oxide, nanowall, interference laser, UV lasing.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2077

Authors: Chiara Mansanta, Daniela Sani

Abstract:

This paper studies the concept of intrapreneurship discovery for innovation and technology development related to the manufacturing industries set up in the center of Italy, in Marche Region. The study underlined the key drivers of the innovation process and the main factors that influence innovation. Starting from a literature study on open innovation, this paper examines the role of human capital to support company’s development. The empirical part of the study is based on a survey to 151 manufacturing companies that represent the 34% of that universe at the regional level. The survey underlined the main KPI’s that influence companies in their decision processes; then tools for these decision processes are presented.

Keywords: Business model, decision making, intrapreneurship discovery, open innovation, standard methodology.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 953

Authors: Shuangquan Liu, Jinwen Wang, Dada Wang

Abstract:

A case study of the generation scheduling optimization of the multi-hydroplants on the Yuan River Basin in China is reported in this paper. Concerning the uncertainty of the inflows, the long/mid-term generation scheduling (LMTGS) problem is solved by a stochastic model in which the inflows are considered as stochastic variables. For the short-term generation scheduling (STGS) problem, a constraint violation priority is defined in case not all constraints are satisfied. Provided the stage-wise separable condition and low dimensions, the hydroplant-based operational region schedules (HBORS) problem is solved by dynamic programming (DP). The coordination of LMTGS and STGS is presented as well. The feasibility and the effectiveness of the models and solution methods are verified by the numerical results.

Keywords: generation scheduling, multi-hydroplants, optimization.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1551

Authors: Juntae Kim, Jaeyoung Park, Kyoungkun Lee, Jong Tae Kim

Abstract:

The H.264/AVC standard is a highly efficient video codec providing high-quality videos at low bit-rates. As employing advanced techniques, the computational complexity has been increased. The complexity brings about the major problem in the implementation of a real-time encoder and decoder. Parallelism is the one of approaches which can be implemented by multi-core system. We analyze macroblock-level parallelism which ensures the same bit rate with high concurrency of processors. In order to reduce the encoding time, dynamic data partition based on macroblock region is proposed. The data partition has the advantages in load balancing and data communication overhead. Using the data partition, the encoder obtains more than 3.59x speed-up on a four-processor system. This work can be applied to other multimedia processing applications.

Keywords: H.264/AVC, video coding, thread-level parallelism, OpenMP, multimedia

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1795

Authors: Sawangjit Sopid

Abstract:

Atrazine, a herbicide widely used in sugarcane and corn production, is a frequently detected groundwater contaminant. An atrazine-degrading bacterium, strain KB02, was obtained from long-term atrazine-treated sugarcane field soils in Kanchanaburi province of Thailand. Strain KB02 had a rod-to-coccus morphological cycle during growth. Sequence analysis of the PCR product indicated that the 16S rRNA gene in strain KB02 was ranging from 97-98% identical to the same region in Klebsiella sp. Based on biochemical, physiological analysis and 16S rDNA sequence analysis of one representative isolate, strain KB02, the isolates belong to the genus Klebsiella in the family Enterobacteriaceae. Interestingly that the various primers for atzA, B and C failed to amplify genomic DNA of strain KB02. Whereas the expected PCR product of atzA, B and C were obtained from the reference strain, Arthrobacter sp. strain KU001.

Keywords: Atrazine, atz gene, Biodegradation, bioremediation, Klebsiella

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1960

Authors: Bhausaheb L. Pangarkar, Saroj B. Parjane, M.G. Sane

Abstract:

In India, the quarrel between the budding human populace and the planet-s unchanging supply of freshwater and falling water tables has strained attention the reuse of gray water as an alternative water resource in rural development. This paper present the finest design of laboratory scale gray water treatment plant, which is a combination of natural and physical operations such as primary settling with cascaded water flow, aeration, agitation and filtration, hence called as hybrid treatment process. The economical performance of the plant for treatment of bathrooms, basins and laundries gray water showed in terms of deduction competency of water pollutants such as COD (83%), TDS (70%), TSS (83%), total hardness (50%), oil and grease (97%), anions (46%) and cations (49%). Hence, this technology could be a good alternative to treat gray water in residential rural area.

Keywords: Gray water treatment plant, gray water, naturaltechnology, pollutant.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 4145

Authors: Andreja Benko

Abstract:

Article presents a short overview of the architects’ profession over time with outlined work of the architectural theoreticians. In the continuation is described a former affiliation of Slovenia as well as the spatial planning documents that were in use until the Slovenia joint Yugoslavia (last part in 1919). This legislation from former Austro-Hungarian monarchy was valid almost until 1950 in some parts of Yugoslavia even longer. Upon that will be mentioned some valid Slovenian spatial documents which will be compared with the German legislation. Analyzed will be the number of architect and spatial planners in Slovenia and also their number upon certain region in Slovenia. Based on that will be given also the number from statistical office of Slovenia of the number of buildings between years 2007 and 2012, and described also the collapse of the major construction companies in Slovenia and consequences of that. At the end will be outlined the morality and ethics by spatial interventions and lack of the architectural law in Slovenia as well as the problematic of minimal collaboration between the Ministry of infrastructure and spatial planning with the profession.

Keywords: Architect, history, legislation, Slovenia.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1675

Authors: George Leventakis, George Kokkinis, Nikos Moustakidis, George Papalexandratos, Ioanna Vasiliadou

Abstract:

Enhancing the feeling of public safety and crime prevention are tasks customarily assigned to the Police. Police departments have, however, recognized that traditional ways of policing methods are becoming obsolete; Community Policing (CP) philosophy; however, when applied appropriately, leads to seamless collaboration between various stakeholders like the Police, NGOs and the general public and provides the opportunity to identify risks, assist in solving problems of crime, disorder, safety and crucially contribute to improving the quality of life for everyone in a community. Social Media, on the other hand, due to its high level of infiltration in modern life, constitutes a powerful mechanism which offers additional and direct communication channels to reach individuals or communities. These channels can be utilized to improve the citizens’ perception of the Police and to capture individual and community needs, when their feedback is taken into account by Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs) in a structured and coordinated manner. This paper presents research conducted under INSPEC²T (Inspiring CitizeNS Participation for Enhanced Community PoliCing AcTions), a project funded by the European Commission’s research agenda to bridge the gap between CP as a philosophy and as an organizational strategy, capitalizing on the use of Social Media. The project aims to increase transparency, trust, police accountability, and the role of civil society. It aspires to build strong, trusting relationships between LEAs and the public, supporting two-way, contemporary communication while at the same time respecting anonymity of all affected parties. Results presented herein summarize the outcomes of four online multilingual surveys, focus group interviews, desktop research and interviews with experts in the field of CP practices. The above research activities were conducted in various EU countries aiming to capture requirements of end users from diverse backgrounds (social, cultural, legal and ethical) and determine public expectations regarding CP, community safety and crime prevention.

Keywords: Community partnerships, next generation community policing, public safety, social media.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1530

Authors: N. K. Singh, S. Sarkar

Abstract:

Direct numerical simulation (DNS) is used to study the evolution of a boundary layer that was laminar initially followed by separation and then reattachment owing to generation of turbulence. This creates a closed region of recirculation, known as the laminar-separation bubble. The present simulation emulates the flow environment encountered in a modern LP turbine blade, where a laminar separation bubble may occur on the suction surface. The unsteady, incompressible three-dimensional (3-D) Navier-Stokes (NS) equations have been solved over a flat plate in the Cartesian coordinates. The adverse pressure gradient, which causes the flow to separate, is created by a boundary condition. The separated shear layer undergoes transition through appearance of ╬ø vortices, stretching of these create longitudinal streaks. Breakdown of the streaks into small and irregular structures makes the flow turbulent downstream.

Keywords: Adverse pressure gradient, direct numerical simulation, laminar separation bubble.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2603

Authors: Mikhail P. Strongin, Ragupathi Soundararajan

Abstract:

The purpose of this work is fast design optimization of the seal chamber. The study includes the mass transfer between lower and upper chamber on seal chamber for hot water application pumps. The use of Fluent 12.1 commercial code made it possible to capture complex flow with heat-mass transfer, radiation, Tailor instability, and buoyancy effect. Realizable k-epsilon model was used for turbulence modeling. Radiation heat losses were taken into account. The temperature distribution at seal region is predicted with respect to heat addition. Results show the possibilities of the model simplifications by excluding the water domain in low chamber from calculations. CFD simulations permit to improve seal chamber design to meet target water temperature around the seal. This study can be used for the analysis of different seal chamber configurations.

Keywords: CFD, heat transfer, seal chamber, high temperature water

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1675

Authors: Andrus Pedai, Igor Astrov

Abstract:

In modern telecommunications industry, demand & supply chain management (DSCM) needs reliable design and versatile tools to control the material flow. The objective for efficient DSCM is reducing inventory, lead times and related costs in order to assure reliable and on-time deliveries from manufacturing units towards customers. In this paper the multi-rate expert system based methodology for developing simulation tools that would enable optimal DSCM for multi region, high volume and high complexity manufacturing environment was proposed.

Keywords: Demand & supply chain management, expert systems, inventory control, multi-rate control, performance metrics.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1891

Authors: Eileen M. J. Knight

Abstract:

This study examines the structural and systematic processes of the Human Resources Division at The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago for evidence of incorporation of the University's 2012- 2017 Strategic Plan. In conducting the study the structure of the Human Resources Management Division and its functions were carefully reviewed and measured against the strategic direction of the organisation. Findings indicate disconnect between these areas as there is apparent failure of the Human Resources Division to totally align its mandate with that of the organisation-s strategic direction. This action serves to threaten the viability of the organisation and its efficiency and effectiveness as an institution. The recommendations being put forward are for the realignment of the Human Resources Management Division and for its focus to mirror that of the organisation and the organisation-s goals and objectives. This may entail a restructuring of the Division.

Keywords: Commonwealth Caribbean, Realignment, Region, Strategic Plan.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1860

Authors: Frantisek Bozek, Lenka Jesonkova, Jiri Dvorak, Milos Bozek, Eduard Bakos

Abstract:

The contents of nitrates and nitrites were monitored in 15 ground water resources of a selected region earmarked for the emergency supply of population. The resources have been selected on the basis of previous assessment of natural conditions and the exploitation of territory in the infiltration area as well as the surroundings of water resources. The health risk analysis carried out in relation to nitrates and nitrites, which were found to be the most serious water contaminants, proved, that 14 resources met the health standards in relation to the assessed criterion and could be included in crisis plans. Water quality of ground resources may be assessed in the same way with regard to other contaminants.

Keywords: Drinking water, health risks, methemoglobinemia, nitrates, nitrites, water pollution.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2041

Authors: Stepan Petrosyan, Ashkhen Yesayan, Suren Nersesyan

Abstract:

We have developed an analytic model for the radial pn-junction in a nanowire (NW) core-shell structure utilizing as a new building block in different semiconductor devices. The potential distribution through the p-n-junction is calculated and the analytical expressions are derived to compute the depletion region widths. We show that the widths of space charge layers, surrounding the core, are the functions of core radius, which is the manifestation of so called classical size effect. The relationship between the depletion layer width and the built-in potential in the asymptotes of infinitely large core radius transforms to square-root dependence specific for conventional planar p-n-junctions. The explicit equation is derived to compute the capacitance of radial p-n-junction. The current-voltage behavior is also carefully determined taking into account the “short base" effects.

Keywords: Snanowire, p-n- junction, barrier capacitance, high injection.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2787

Authors: Zh.Mingaleva, K.Balkova

Abstract:

Innovations and innovative activity get the increasing value for successful financial and economic activity of the countries and regions. The level of innovative sphere development determines place of a country or a region in world economy and forms a basis of steady economic growth. This article is devoted to different aspects of organization of the national economic safety in the conditions of innovative development, its problems, risks and threats. Economy can be considered as aspiring for transition to innovative way only with finding of economic safety: financial independence, power stability and technological progress. There are statistical indicators, defining the level of economic security and factors, threatening economic safety of the state. The research is based on the analysis of factors and indicators in conditions of innovative development. The paper is illustrated by the examples of possible estimated system of the economic safety level.

Keywords: Economic safety, innovative activity, innovative development, innovative economy

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1536

Authors: Ahmed Shuhaiber, Hans Lehmann

Abstract:

Mobile payments have been deployed by businesses for more than a decade. Customers use mobile payments if they trust in this relatively new payment method, have a belief and confidence in, as well as reliance on its services and applications. Despite its potential, the current literature shows that there is lack of customer trust in B2C mobile payments, and a lack of studies that determine the factors that influence their trust in these payments; which make these factors yet to be understood, especially in the Middle East region. Thus, this study aims to explore the factors that influence customer trust in mobile payments. The empirical data for this explorative study was collected by establishing four focus group sessions in the UAE. The results indicate that the explored significant factors can be classified into five main groups: customer characteristics, environmental (social and cultural) influences, provider characteristics, mobile-device characteristics, and perceived risks.

Keywords: B2C mobile payments, Mobile commerce, Mobile payment services and application, Trust in mobile payments.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2724

Authors: Abdel-Samad M. Ali

Abstract:

Given the motivation of maps impact in enhancing the perception of the quality of life in a region, this work examines the use of spatial analytical techniques in exploring the role of space in shaping human development patterns in Assiut governorate. Variations of human development index (HDI) of the governorate-s villages, districts and cities are mapped using geographic information systems (GIS). Global and local spatial autocorrelation measures are employed to assess the levels of spatial dependency in the data and to map clusters of human development. Results show prominent disparities in HDI between regions of Assiut. Strong patterns of spatial association were found proving the presence of clusters on the distribution of HDI. Finally, the study indicates several "hot-spots" in the governorate to be area of more investigations to explore the attributes of such levels of human development. This is very important for accomplishing the development plan of poorest regions currently adopted in Egypt.

Keywords: Human development, Egypt, GIS, Spatial analysis.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2445

Authors: Piyush Samant, Ravinder Agarwal

Abstract:

Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) techniques are quite popular and effective for chronic diseases. Iridology is more than 150 years old CAM technique which analyzes the patterns, tissue weakness, color, shape, structure, etc. for disease diagnosis. The objective of this paper is to validate the use of iridology for the diagnosis of the diabetes. The suggested model was applied in a systemic disease with ocular effects. 200 subject data of 100 each diabetic and non-diabetic were evaluated. Complete procedure was kept very simple and free from the involvement of any iridologist. From the normalized iris, the region of interest was cropped. All 63 features were extracted using statistical, texture analysis, and two-dimensional discrete wavelet transformation. A comparison of accuracies of six different classifiers has been presented. The result shows 89.66% accuracy by the random forest classifier.

Keywords: Complementary and alternative medicine, Iridology, iris, feature extraction, classification, disease prediction.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1858

Authors: Fotios N. Vlachos, Anastasios D. Garetsos, Nikolaos K. Uzunoglu, Efstathios D. Gotsis

Abstract:

A four element prototype phased array surface probe has been designed and constructed to improve clinical human prostate spectroscopic data. The probe consists of two pairs of adjacent rectangular coils with an optimum overlap to reduce the mutual inductance. The two pairs are positioned on the anterior and the posterior pelvic region and two couples of varactors at the input of each coil undertake the procedures of tuning and matching. The probe switches off and on automatically during the consecutive phases of the MR experiment with the use of an analog switch that is triggered by a microcontroller. Experimental tests that were carried out resulted in high levels of tuning accuracy. Also, the switching mechanism functions properly for various applied loads and pulse sequence characteristics, producing only 10 μs of latency.

Keywords: Automatic tuning, prostate imaging, phased array, spectroscopy.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1680

Authors: Chengjie Wang, Li Yin, Chuanmin Wang

Abstract:

This paper presents a physics-based model for the high-voltage fast recovery diodes. The model provides a good trade-off between reverse recovery time and forward voltage drop realized through a combination of lifetime control and emitter efficiency reduction techniques. The minority carrier lifetime can be extracted from the reverse recovery transient response and forward characteristics. This paper also shows that decreasing the amount of the excess carriers stored in the drift region will result in softer characteristics which can be achieved using a lower doping level. The developed model is verified by experiment and the measurement data agrees well with the model.

Keywords: Emitter efficiency, lifetime control, P-i-N diode, physics-based model

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 3806

Authors: Sara Soltanpour, Adolfo Foriero

Abstract:

Frost heave is arguably the most problematic adverse phenomenon in cold region areas. It is a complex process that depends on heat and water transfer. The coupled physical fields generate considerable heave stresses as well as deformations. In the present study, a coupled Thermal-Hydraulic-Mechanical (THM) model using COMSOL Multiphysics in frozen unsaturated soils, such as fine sand, is investigated. Particular attention to the frost heave and temperature distribution, as well as the water migrating during soil freezing, is assessed. The results obtained from the numerical simulations are consistent with the results measured in the full-scale tests conducted by Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (CRREL).

Keywords: Frost heave, numerical simulations, COMSOL software, unsaturated freezing soil.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 291

Authors: Wardah, T., Kamil, A.A., Sahol Hamid, A.B., Maisarah, W.W.I

Abstract:

Quantitative precipitation forecast (QPF) from atmospheric model as input to hydrological model in an integrated hydro-meteorological flood forecasting system has been operational in many countries worldwide. High-resolution numerical weather prediction (NWP) models with grid cell sizes between 2 and 14 km have great potential in contributing towards reasonably accurate QPF. In this study the potential of two NWP models to forecast precipitation for a flood-prone area in a tropical region is examined. The precipitation forecasts produced from the Fifth Generation Penn State/NCAR Mesoscale (MM5) and Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) models are statistically verified with the observed rain in Kelantan River Basin, Malaysia. The statistical verification indicates that the models have performed quite satisfactorily for low and moderate rainfall but not very satisfactory for heavy rainfall.

Keywords: MM5, Numerical weather prediction (NWP), quantitative precipitation forecast (QPF), WRF

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2930

Authors: Bakr Hashem Paumey Ahmed Alashwal

Abstract:

The urban transformation processes in its framework and its general significance became a fundamental and vital subject of consideration for both the developed and the developing societies. It has become important to regulate the architectural systems adopted by the city, to sustain the present development on one hand, and on the other hand, to facilitate its future growth. Thus, the study dealt with the phenomenon of urban transformation of the Mediterranean cities, and the city of Alexandria in particular, because of its significant historical and cultural legacy, its historical architecture and its contemporary urbanization. This article investigates the entirety of cities in the Mediterranean region through the analysis of the relationship between inflation and growth of these cities and the extent of the complexity of the city barriers. We hope to analyze not only the internal transformations, but the external relationships (both imperial and post-colonial) that have shaped Alexandria city growth from the nineteenth century until today.

Keywords: Urban Transformations, Mediterranean cities, Modern Era, Alexandria.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2285

Authors: Jay Patel

Abstract:

This research is about investigating the ‘image’ of the city, and asks whether this ‘image’ holds any significance that can be changed. Kevin Lynch in the book ‘The Image of the City’ develops a framework that breaks down the city’s image into five physical elements. These elements (Paths, Edge, Nodes, Districts, and Landmarks), according to Lynch assess the legibility of the urbanscapes, that emerged from his perception-based study in three different cities (New Jersey, Los Angeles, and Boston) in the USA. The aim of this research is to investigate whether Lynch’s framework can be applied within an Indian context or not. If so, what are the possibilities and whether the imageability of Indian cities can be depicted through the Lynch’s physical elements or it demands an extension to the framework by either adding or subtracting a physical attribute. For this research project, the walled city of Jaipur was selected, as it is considered one of the futuristic designed cities of all time in India. The other significant reason for choosing Jaipur was that it is a historically planned city with solid historical, touristic and local importance; allowing an opportunity to understand the application of Lynch's elements to the city's image. In other words, it provides an opportunity to examine how the disadvantages of a city's implicit program (its relics of bygone eras) can be converted into assets by improving the imageability of the city. To obtain data, a structured semi-open ended interview method was chosen. The reason for selecting this method explicitly was to gain qualitative data from the users rather than collecting quantitative data from closed-ended questions. This allowed in-depth understanding and applicability of Kevin Lynch’s framework while assessing what needs to be added. The interviews were conducted in Jaipur that yielded varied inferences that were different from the expected learning outcomes, highlighting the need for extension on Lynch’s physical elements to achieve city’s image. Whilst analyzing the data, there were few attributes found that defined the image of Jaipur. These were categorized into two: a Physical aspect (streets and arcade entities, natural features, temples and temporary/informal activities) and Associational aspects (History, culture and tradition, medium of help in wayfinding, and intangible aspects).

Keywords: Imageability, Kevin Lynch, People’s Perception, associational aspects, physical aspects.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 452

Authors: Emmanuel U. Ingwu

Abstract:

The study examined the influence of pay differentials on employee retention in the State Colleges of Education in the South-South Region of Nigeria. 275 subjects drawn from members of the wage negotiating teams in the Colleges were administered questionnaires constructed for study. Analysis of Variance revealed that the observed pay differentials significantly influenced retainership, f(5,269 = 6.223, P< 0.05). However, the Multiple Classification Analysis and Post-Hoc test indicated that employees in two of the Colleges with slightly lower and higher pay levels may probably remain with their employers while employees in other Colleges with the least and highest pay levels suggested quitting. Based on these observations, the influence of pay on employee retention seems inconclusive. Generally, employees in the colleges studied are dissatisfied with current pay levels. Management should confront these challenges by improving pay packages to encourage employees to remain and be dedicated to duty.

Keywords: Employee, Influence, Pay differentials, Retention.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2349

Authors: P. Hajek, J. Stejskal

Abstract:

The aim of this paper is to analyze the ability to identify and acquire knowledge from external sources at the regional level in the Czech Republic. The results show that the most important sources of knowledge for innovative activities are sources within the businesses themselves, followed by customers and suppliers. Furthermore, the analysis of relationships between the objective of the innovative activity and the ability to identify and acquire knowledge implies that knowledge obtained from (1) customers aims at replacing outdated products and increasing product quality; (2) suppliers aims at increasing capacity and flexibility of production; and (3) competing businesses aims at growing market share and increasing the flexibility of production and services. Regions should therefore direct their support especially into development and strengthening of networks within the value chain.

Keywords: Knowledge, acquisition, innovative business, Czech republic, region.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1548

Authors: R. AlGhamdi, S. Drew, S. Alkhalaf

Abstract:

This paper explores the issues that influence online retailing in Saudi Arabia. Retailers in Saudi Arabia have been reserved in their adoption of electronically delivered aspects of their business. Despite the fact that Saudi Arabia has the largest and fastest growth of ICT marketplaces in the Arab region, e-commerce activities are not progressing at the same speed. Only very few Saudi companies, mostly medium and large companies from the manufacturing sector, are involved in e-commerce implementation. Based on qualitative data collected by conducting interviews with 16 retailers and 16 potential customers in Saudi Arabia, several factors influencing online retailing diffusion in Saudi Arabia are identified. However, government support comes the highest and most influencing factor for online retailing growth as identified by both parties; retailers and potential customers in Saudi Arabia.

Keywords: government support, key factor, online retailing growth, Saudi Arabia

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1850

Authors: Diriba Gemechu, Lamessa Abebe

Abstract:

The aim of this study was to examine the effect of cooperative learning method on student’s academic achievement and on the achievement level over a usual method in teaching different topics of mathematics. The study also examines the perceptions of students towards cooperative learning. Cooperative learning is the instructional strategy in which pairs or small groups of students with different levels of ability work together to accomplish a shared goal. The aim of this cooperation is for students to maximize their own and each other learning, with members striving for joint benefit. The teacher’s role changes from wise on the wise to guide on the side. Cooperative learning due to its influential aspects is the most prevalent teaching-learning technique in the modern world. Therefore the study was conducted in order to examine the effect of cooperative learning on the academic achievement of grade 9 students in Mathematics in case of Mettu secondary school. Two sample sections are randomly selected by which one section served randomly as an experimental and the other as a comparison group. Data gathering instruments are achievement tests and questionnaires. A treatment of STAD method of cooperative learning was provided to the experimental group while the usual method is used in the comparison group. The experiment lasted for one semester. To determine the effect of cooperative learning on the student’s academic achievement, the significance of difference between the scores of groups at 0.05 levels was tested by applying t test. The effect size was calculated to see the strength of the treatment. The student’s perceptions about the method were tested by percentiles of the questionnaires. During data analysis, each group was divided into high and low achievers on basis of their previous Mathematics result. Data analysis revealed that both the experimental and comparison groups were almost equal in Mathematics at the beginning of the experiment. The experimental group out scored significantly than comparison group on posttest. Additionally, the comparison of mean posttest scores of high achievers indicates significant difference between the two groups. The same is true for low achiever students of both groups on posttest. Hence, the result of the study indicates the effectiveness of the method for Mathematics topics as compared to usual method of teaching.

Keywords: Cooperative learning, academic achievement, experimental group, comparison group.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2110

Authors: N. Nacereddine, M. Tridi, S. S. Belaïfa, M. Zelmat

Abstract:

For the characterization of the weld defect region in the radiographic image, looking for features which are invariant regarding the geometrical transformations (rotation, translation and scaling) proves to be necessary because the same defect can be seen from several angles according to the orientation and the distance from the welded framework to the radiation source. Thus, panoply of geometrical attributes satisfying the above conditions is proposed and which result from the calculation of the geometrical parameters (surface, perimeter, etc.) on the one hand and the calculation of the different order moments, on the other hand. Because the large range in values of the raw features and taking into account other considerations imposed by some classifiers, the scaling of these values to lie between 0 and 1 is indispensable. The principal component analysis technique is used in order to reduce the number of the attribute variables in the aim to give better performance to the further defect classification.

Keywords: Geometric parameters, invariant attributes, principal component analysis, weld defect image.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2181

Authors: Mohammadamin Zanganeh, Vahid Khalajzadeh

Abstract:

The problems associated with wind predictions of WAsP model in complex terrain are already the target of several studies in the last decade. In this paper, the influence of surrounding orography on accuracy of wind data analysis of a train is investigated. For the case study, a site with complex surrounding orography is considered. This site is located in Manjil, one of the windiest cities of Iran. For having precise evaluation of wind regime in the site, one-year wind data measurements from two metrological masts are used. To validate the obtained results from WAsP, the cross prediction between each mast is performed. The analysis reveals that WAsP model can estimate the wind speed behavior accurately. In addition, results show that this software can be used for predicting the wind regime in flat sites with complex surrounding orography.

Keywords: Complex terrain, Meteorological mast, WAsPmodel, Wind prediction

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1790