Search results for: Digital pulse oxygen saturation level
Commenced in January 2007
Frequency: Monthly
Edition: International
Paper Count: 4851

Search results for: Digital pulse oxygen saturation level

3351 Improving the Flexibility of Employment in Polish Economic Practice

Authors: A. Bodak, A. Cierniak-Emerych, M. Gableta, A. Pietroń-Pyszczek, K. Piwowar-Sulej

Abstract:

Modern organizations operate under the pressure of dynamic and often unpredictable changes, both in external and internal environment. Market success, in this context, requires a particular competence in the form of flexibility, interpreted here both on the level of individuals and on the level of organization. This paper addresses the changes taking place in the sphere of employment, as observed in economic entities operating on Polish market. Based on own empirical studies, the authors focus on the progressing trend of ‘flexibilization’ of employment, particularly in the context of transformations in organizational structure, designed to facilitate the transition into management by projects and differentiation of labor forms.

Keywords: Flexibility of employment, changes in organizational structure, forms of employment, social effects of flexibility.

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3350 Comparison of Selected Behavioural Patterns of German Shepherd Puppies in Open-Field Test by Practical Assessment Report

Authors: Igor Miňo, Lenka Lešková

Abstract:

Over the past 80 years, open-field method has evolved as a commonly used tool for the analysis of animal behaviour. The study was carried out using 50 kennel-reared purebred puppies of the German Shepherd dog breed. All dogs were tested in 5th, 7th, and 9th week of age. For the purpose of behavioural analysis, an open-field evaluation report was designed prior to testing to ensure the most convenient, rapid, and suitable way to assess selected behavioural patterns in field conditions. Onset of vocalisation, intensity of vocalisation, level of physical activity, response to sound, and overall behaviour was monitored in the study. Correlations between measures of height, weight and chest circumference, and behavioural characteristics in the 5th, 7th, and 9th week of age were not statistically significant. Onset of vocalisation, intensity of vocalisation, level of physical activity and response to sound differed on statistically significant level between 5th, 7th, and 9th week of age. Results suggest that our practical assessment report may be used as an applicable method to evaluate the suitability of service dog puppies for future working roles.

Keywords: Dog, behaviour, open-field, testing.

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3349 Influence of Environment-Friendly Organic Wastes on the Properties of Sandy Soil under Growing Zea mays L. in Arid Regions

Authors: Mohamed Rashad, Mohamed Hafez, Mohamed Emran, Emad Aboukila, Ibrahim Nassar

Abstract:

Environment-friendly organic wastes of Brewers' spent grain, a byproduct of the brewing process, have recently used as soil amendment to improve soil fertility and plant production. In this work, treatments of 1% (T1) and 2% (T2) of spent grains, 1% (C1) and 2% (C2) of compost and mix of both sources (C1T1) were used and compared to the control for growing Zea mays L. on sandy soil under arid Mediterranean climate. Soils were previously incubated at 65% saturation capacity for a month. The most relevant soil physical and chemical parameters were analysed. Water holding capacity and soil organic matter (OM) increased significantly along the treatments with the highest values in T2. Soil pH decreased along the treatments and the lowest pH was in C1T1. Bicarbonate decreased by 69% in C1T1 comparing to control. Total nitrogen (TN) and available P varied significantly among all treatments and T2, C1T1 and C2 treatments increased 25, 17 and 11 folds in TN and 1.2, 0.6 and 0.3 folds in P, respectively related to control. Available K showed the highest values in C1T1. Soil micronutrients increased significantly along all treatments with the highest values in T2. After corn germination, significant variation was observed in the velocity of germination coefficients (VGC) among all treatments in the order of C1T1>T2>T1>C2>C1>control. The highest records of final germination and germination index were in C1T1 and T2. The spent grains may compensate deficiencies of macro and micronutrients in newly reclaimed sandy soils without adverse effects to sustain crop production with a rider that excessive or continuous use need to be circumvented.

Keywords: Spent grain, compost, micronutrients, macronutrients, water holding capacity, plant growth.

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3348 Alternating Current Photovoltaic Module Model

Authors: Irtaza M. Syed, Kaamran Raahemifar

Abstract:

This paper presents modeling of an Alternating Current (AC) Photovoltaic (PV) module using Matlab/Simulink. The proposed AC-PV module model is simple, realistic, and application oriented. The model is derived on module level as compared to cell level directly from the information provided by the manufacturer data sheet. DC-PV module, MPPT control, BC, VSI and LC filter, all were treated as a single unit. The model accounts for changes in variations of both irradiance and temperature. The AC-PV module proposed model is simulated and the results are compared with the datasheet projected numbers to validate model’s accuracy and effectiveness. Implementation and results demonstrate simplicity and accuracy, as well as reliability of the model.

Keywords: AC PV Module, Datasheet, Matlab/Simulink, PV modeling.

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3347 Review of the Road Crash Data Availability in Iraq

Authors: Abeer K. Jameel, Harry Evdorides

Abstract:

Iraq is a middle income country where the road safety issue is considered one of the leading causes of deaths. To control the road risk issue, the Iraqi Ministry of Planning, General Statistical Organization started to organise a collection system of traffic accidents data with details related to their causes and severity. These data are published as an annual report. In this paper, a review of the available crash data in Iraq will be presented. The available data represent the rate of accidents in aggregated level and classified according to their types, road users’ details, and crash severity, type of vehicles, causes and number of causalities. The review is according to the types of models used in road safety studies and research, and according to the required road safety data in the road constructions tasks. The available data are also compared with the road safety dataset published in the United Kingdom as an example of developed country. It is concluded that the data in Iraq are suitable for descriptive and exploratory models, aggregated level comparison analysis, and evaluation and monitoring the progress of the overall traffic safety performance. However, important traffic safety studies require disaggregated level of data and details related to the factors of the likelihood of traffic crashes. Some studies require spatial geographic details such as the location of the accidents which is essential in ranking the roads according to their level of safety, and name the most dangerous roads in Iraq which requires tactic plan to control this issue. Global Road safety agencies interested in solve this problem in low and middle-income countries have designed road safety assessment methodologies which are basing on the road attributes data only. Therefore, in this research it is recommended to use one of these methodologies.

Keywords: Data availability, Iraq, road safety.

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3346 Understanding Grip Choice and Comfort Whilst Hoovering

Authors: S.R.Kamat, A.Yoxall, C.Craig , M.J.Carré, J.Rowson

Abstract:

The hand is one of the essential parts of the body for carrying out Activities of Daily Living (ADLs). Individuals use their hands and fingers in everyday activities in the both the workplace and home. Hand-intensive tasks require diverse and sometimes extreme levels of exertion, depending on the action, movement or manipulation involved. The authors have undertaken several studies looking at grip choice and comfort. It is hoped that in providing improved understanding of discomfort during ADLs this will aid in the design of consumer products. Previous work by the authors outlined a methodology for calculating pain frequency and pain level for a range of tasks. From an online survey undertaken by the authors with regards manipulating objects during everyday tasks, tasks involving gripping were seen to produce the highest levels of pain and discomfort. Questioning of the participants showed that cleaning tasks were seen to be ADL's that produced the highest levels of discomfort, with women feeling higher levels of discomfort than men. This paper looks at the methodology for calculating pain frequency and pain level with particular regards to gripping activities. This methodology shows that activities such as mopping, sweeping and hoovering shows the highest numbers of pain frequency and pain level at 3112.5 frequency per month while the pain level per person doing this action was 0.78.The study then uses thin-film force sensors to analyze the force distribution in the hand whilst hoovering and compares this for differing grip styles and genders. Women were seen to have more of their hand under a higher pressure than men when undertaking hoovering. This suggests that women may feel greater discomfort than men since their hand is at a higher pressure more of the time.

Keywords: hovering, grip, pain

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3345 Design and Implementation of a Microcontroller Based LCD Screen Digital Stop Watch

Authors: Mr. Khalid I. Saad, Ms. Nusrat Afrin, Mr. Rajib Mikail

Abstract:

The stop watch is used to measure the time required for a certain event. This is different from normal clocks in many ways, one of which is the accuracy of time. The stop watch requires much more accuracy than the normal clocks. In this paper, an ATmega8535 microcontroller was used to control the stop watch, by which perfect accuracy can be ensured. For compiling the C code and for loading the compiled .hex file into the microcontroller, AVR studio and PonyProg were used respectively. The stop watch is also different from traditional stop watches, as it contains two different timing modes namely 'Split timing' and 'Lap timing'.

Keywords: Stop Watch, Microcontroller, Split timing, Laptiming, LCD.

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3344 Improving the Shunt Active Power Filter Performance Using Synchronous Reference Frame PI Based Controller with Anti-Windup Scheme

Authors: Consalva J. Msigwa, Beda J. Kundy, Bakari M. M. Mwinyiwiwa

Abstract:

In this paper the reference current for Voltage Source Converter (VSC) of the Shunt Active Power Filter (SAPF) is generated using Synchronous Reference Frame method, incorporating the PI controller with anti-windup scheme. The proposed method improves the harmonic filtering by compensating the winding up phenomenon caused by the integral term of the PI controller. Using Reference Frame Transformation, the current is transformed from om a - b - c stationery frame to rotating 0 - d - q frame. Using the PI controller, the current in the 0 - d - q frame is controlled to get the desired reference signal. A controller with integral action combined with an actuator that becomes saturated can give some undesirable effects. If the control error is so large that the integrator saturates the actuator, the feedback path becomes ineffective because the actuator will remain saturated even if the process output changes. The integrator being an unstable system may then integrate to a very large value, the phenomenon known as integrator windup. Implementing the integrator anti-windup circuit turns off the integrator action when the actuator saturates, hence improving the performance of the SAPF and dynamically compensating harmonics in the power network. In this paper the system performance is examined with Shunt Active Power Filter simulation model.

Keywords: Phase Locked Loop (PLL), Voltage SourceConverter (VSC), Shunt Active Power Filter (SAPF), PI, Pulse WidthModulation (PWM).

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3343 Neuro-Fuzzy System for Equalization Channel Distortion

Authors: Rahib H. Abiyev

Abstract:

In this paper the application of neuro-fuzzy system for equalization of channel distortion is considered. The structure and operation algorithm of neuro-fuzzy equalizer are described. The use of neuro-fuzzy equalizer in digital signal transmission allows to decrease training time of parameters and decrease the complexity of the network. The simulation of neuro-fuzzy equalizer is performed. The obtained result satisfies the efficiency of application of neurofuzzy technology in channel equalization.

Keywords: Neuro-fuzzy system, noise equalization, neuro-fuzzy equalizer, neural system.

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3342 An Infrared Investigation on Surface Species over Iron-Based Catalysts: Implications for Oxygenates Formation

Authors: Wanyu Mao, Hongfang Ma, Haitao Zhang, WeixinQian, Weiyong Ying

Abstract:

The nature of adsorbed species on catalytic surface over an industrial precipitated iron-based high temperature catalyst during FTS was investigated by in-situ DRIFTS and chemical trapping. The formulation of the mechanism of oxygenates formation and key intermediates were also discussed. Numerous oxygenated precursors and crucial intermediates were found by in-situ DRIFTS, such as surface acetate, acetyl and methoxide. The results showed that adsorbed molecules on surface such as methanol or acetaldehyde could react with basic sites such as lattice oxygen or free surface hydroxyls. Adsorbed molecules also had reactivity of oxidizing. Moreover, acetyl as a key intermediate for oxygenates was observed by investigation of CH3OH + CO and CH3I + CO + H2. Based on the nature of surface properties, the mechanism of oxygenates formation on precipitated iron-based high temperature catalyst was discussed.

Keywords: Iron-based catalysts, intermediates, oxygenates, in-situ DRIFTS, chemical trapping.

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3341 Estimating the Technological Deviation Impact on the Value of the Output Parameter of the Induction Converter

Authors: Marinka K. Baghdasaryan, Siranush M. Muradyan, Avgen A. Gasparyan

Abstract:

Based on the experimental data, the impact of resistance and reactance of the winding, as well as the magnetic permeability of the magnetic circuit steel material on the value of the electromotive force of the induction converter is investigated. The obtained results allow estimating the main technological spreads and determining the maximum level of the electromotive force change. By the method of experiment planning, the expression of a polynomial for the electromotive force which can be used to estimate the adequacy of mathematical models to be used at the investigation and design of induction converters is obtained.

Keywords: Induction converter, electromotive force, expectation, technological spread, deviation, planning an experiment, polynomial, confidence level.

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3340 Water Quality and Freshwater Fish Diversity at Khao Luang National Park, Thailand

Authors: S. Sutin, M. Jaroensutasinee, K. Jaroensutasinee

Abstract:

Water quality and freshwater fish diversity from nine waterfalls at Khao Luang National Park, Thailand was examined. Streams were shallow, fast flowing with clear water and rocky and sandy substrate. The mean water quality of waterfalls at Khao Luang National Park were as following pH 7.50, air temperature 24.27 °C, water temperature 26.37 °C, dissolved oxygen 7.88 mg/l, hardness 4.44-21.33 mg/l, alkalinity 3.55-11.88 mg/(as CaCO3). Twenty fish species were found at Khao Luang National Park belonging to nine families. A cluster analysis of water quality at Khao Luang National Park revealed that waterfalls at Khao Luang National Park were divided into two groups: A and B. Group A composed of two waterfalls (i.e. Aie Kaew and Wangmaipak) that flew to the Gulf of Thailand side. Group B composed of seven waterfalls (i.e. Promlok, Kalom, Nuafa, Suankun, Soidaw, Suanhai, and Thapae) that flew to the Andaman Sea side (Fig. 2) .The Cyprinids represented the major species in all the waterfalls comprising of 45%.

Keywords: Water quality, Freshwater fishes, National Park, Khao Luang, Thailand.

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3339 Vibration Analysis of a Solar Powered UAV

Authors: Kevin Anderson, Sukhwinder Singh Sandhu, Nouh Anies, Shilpa Ravichandra, Steven Dobbs, Donald Edberg

Abstract:

This paper presents the results of a Finite Element based vibration analysis of a solar powered Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV). The purpose of this paper was to quantify the free vibration, forced vibration response due to differing point inputs in order to predict the relative response magnitudes and frequencies at various wing locations of vibration induced power generators (magnet in coil) excited by gust and/or control surface pulse-decays used to help power the flight of the electric UAV. A Fluid Structure Interaction (FSI) study was performed in order to ascertain pertinent design stresses and deflections as well as aerodynamic parameters of the UAV airfoil. The 10 ft span airfoil is modeled using Mylar as the primary material. Results show that the free mode in bending is 4.8 Hz while the first forced bending mode is on range of 16.2 to 16.7 Hz depending on the location of excitation. The free torsional bending mode is 28.3 Hz, and the first forced torsional mode is range of 26.4 to 27.8 Hz, depending on the location of excitation. The FSI results predict the coefficients of aerodynamic drag and lift of 0.0052 and 0.077, respectively, which matches hand-calculations used to validate the Finite Element based results. FSI based maximum von Mises stresses and deflections were found to be 0.282 MPa and 3.4 mm, respectively. Dynamic pressures on the airfoil range from 1.04 to 1.23 kPa corresponding to velocity magnitudes in range of 22 to 66 m/s.

Keywords: ANSYS, finite element, FSI, UAV, vibrations.

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3338 Influence of Active Packaging on the Shelf Life of Apple-Black Currant Marmalade Candies

Authors: Sandra Muizniece-Brasava, Lija Dukalska, Solvita Kampuse, Irisa Murniece, Martins Sabovics, IlonaDabina-Bicka, Emils Kozlinskis, Svetlana Sarvi

Abstract:

The research object was apple-black currant marmalade candies. Experiments were carried out at the Faculty of Food Technology of the Latvia University of Agriculture. An active packaging in combination with modified atmosphere (MAP, CO2 100%) was examined and compared with traditional packaging in air ambiance. Polymer Multibarrier 60 and paper bags were used. Influence of iron based oxygen absorber in sachets of 500 cc obtained from Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Europe Ageless® was tested on the quality during the shelf of marmalade. Samples of 80±5 g were packaged in polymer pouches (110 mm x 110 mm), hermetically sealed by MULTIVAC C300 vacuum chamber machine, and stored in room temperature +20.0±1.0 °C. The physiochemical properties – weight losses, moisture content, hardness, aw, pH, colour, changes of atmosphere content (CO2 and O2) in headspace of packs, and microbial conditions were analysed before packaging and in the 1st, 3rd , 5th, 8th, 11th and 15th weeks of storage.

Keywords: Active packaging, marmalade candies, shelf life

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3337 Video Mining for Creative Rendering

Authors: Mei Chen

Abstract:

More and more home videos are being generated with the ever growing popularity of digital cameras and camcorders. For many home videos, a photo rendering, whether capturing a moment or a scene within the video, provides a complementary representation to the video. In this paper, a video motion mining framework for creative rendering is presented. The user-s capture intent is derived by analyzing video motions, and respective metadata is generated for each capture type. The metadata can be used in a number of applications, such as creating video thumbnail, generating panorama posters, and producing slideshows of video.

Keywords: Motion mining, semantic abstraction, video mining, video representation.

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3336 Structure and Functions of Urban Surface Water System in Coastal Areas: The Case of Almere

Authors: Tao Zou, Zhengnan Zhou

Abstract:

In the context of global climate change, flooding and sea level rise is increasingly threatening coastal urban areas, in which large population is continuously concentrated. Dutch experiences in urban water system management provide high reference value for sustainable coastal urban development projects. Preliminary studies shows the urban water system in Almere, a typical Dutch polder city, have three kinds of operational modes, achieving functions as: (1) coastline control – strong multiple damming system prevents from storm surges and maintains sufficient capacity upon risks; (2) high flexibility – large area and widely scattered open water system greatly reduce local runoff and water level fluctuation; (3) internal water maintenance – weir and sluice system maintains relatively stable water level, providing excellent boating and landscaping service, coupling with water circulating model maintaining better water quality. Almere has provided plenty of hints and experiences for ongoing development of coastal cities in emerging economies.

Keywords: Coastal area, resilience, sustainable urban watersystem, water circulation.

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3335 RP-ADAS: Relative Position-Advanced Drive Assistant System based on VANET (GNSS)

Authors: Hun-Jung Lim, Tai-Myoung Chung

Abstract:

Few decades ago, electronic and sensor technologies are merged into vehicles as the Advanced Driver Assistance System(ADAS). However, sensor-based ADASs have limitations about weather interference and a line-of-sight nature problem. In our project, we investigate a Relative Position based ADAS(RP-ADAS). We divide the RP-ADAS into four main research areas: GNSS, VANET, Security/Privacy, and Application. In this paper, we research the GNSS technologies and determine the most appropriate one. With the performance evaluation, we figure out that the C/A code based GPS technologies are inappropriate for 'which lane-level' application. However, they can be used as a 'which road-level' application.

Keywords: Relative Positioning, VANET, GNSS, ADAS

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3334 Identification and Characterization of Heavy Metal Resistant Bacteria from the Klip River

Authors: P. Chihomvu, P. Stegmann, M. Pillay

Abstract:

Pollution of the Klip River has caused microorganisms inhabiting it to develop protective survival mechanisms. This study isolated and characterized the heavy metal resistant bacteria in the Klip River. Water and sediment samples were collected from six sites along the course of the river. The pH, turbidity, salinity, temperature and dissolved oxygen were measured in-situ. The concentrations of six heavy metals (Cd, Cu, Fe, Ni, Pb and Zn) of the water samples were determined by atomic absorption spectroscopy. Biochemical and antibiotic profiles of the isolates were assessed using the API 20E® and Kirby Bauer Method. Growth studies were carried out using spectrophotometric methods. The isolates were identified using 16SrDNA sequencing. The uppermost part of the Klip River with the lowest pH had the highest levels of heavy metals. Turbidity, salinity and specific conductivity increased measurably at Site 4 (Henley on Klip Weir). MIC tests showed that 16 isolates exhibited high iron and lead resistance. Antibiotic susceptibility tests revealed that the isolates exhibited multitolerances to drugs such as Tetracycline, Ampicillin, and Amoxicillin.

Keywords: Klip River, heavy metals, resistance.

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3333 Performance Analysis of Adaptive LMS Filter through Regression Analysis using SystemC

Authors: Hyeong-Geon Lee, Jae-Young Park, Suk-ki Lee, Jong-Tae Kim

Abstract:

The LMS adaptive filter has several parameters which can affect their performance. From among these parameters, most papers handle the step size parameter for controlling the performance. In this paper, we approach three parameters: step-size, filter tap-size and filter form. The regression analysis is used for defining the relation between parameters and performance of LMS adaptive filter with using the system level simulation results. The results present that all parameters have performance trends in each own particular form, which can be estimated from equations drawn by regression analysis.

Keywords: System level model, adaptive LMS FIR filter, regression analysis, systemC.

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3332 Pupils´ Questions at School Attendance Beginning and Teachers´ Teaching Strategy

Authors: Marie Pavelková, Hana Lukášová

Abstract:

Pupils´ inquisitiveness at the beginning of their school attendance is reflected by characteristics of the questions they ask. Clearly most of the classroom communication sequences are initiated by the teacher. But the teaching process also includes questions initiated by pupils in the need to satisfy their need for knowledge. The purpose of our research is to present the results of our pre-research strategy of occurrence of pupil-initiated questions in math lessons at the lower elementary school level, and to reveal the extent to which they are influenced by the teacher´s teaching strategy. We used the research methods of direct and indirect observations of fifth year classes in primary school. We focused on questions asked by the pupils in their math lessons. Our research sample for the pre-research observation method was a collection of video recordings available online. We used them for analysing the nature of pupils´ questions identified there. On the basis of the analysis, we hereby present the results concerning the nature of pupils´ questions asked in math lessons on the lower elementary school level. The interpretation of the collected results will be the starting point for the selection of research strategies in the next research stages concerning pupils’ questions in the future.

Keywords: Alternative strategies, 1ower elementary school level, pupil´s question, teaching strategies.

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3331 Self-Esteem and Stress Level among Traumatic Brain Injured Adults with Mild, Moderate and Severe Injuries attending a Day Program Rehabilitation Facility

Authors: Nicole S. McKinney

Abstract:

The purpose of the study was to determine if, among 32 brain injured adults in community rehabilitation programs, there is a statistically significant relationship between the degree of severity of brain injury and these adults- level of self-esteem and stress. The researcher hypothesized there would be a statistically significant difference and a statistically significant relationship in self-esteem and stress levels among and TBI adults. A Pearson product moment correlational analysis was implemented and results found a statistically significant relationship between self-esteem and stress levels. Future recommendations were suggested upon completion of research.

Keywords: anxiety, community recovery center, head-trauma persons, self-concept

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3330 Impact of Non-parental Early Childhood Education on Digital Friendship Tendency

Authors: Sheel Chakraborty

Abstract:

Modern society in developed countries has distanced itself from the earlier norm of joint family living, and with the increase of economic pressure, parents' availability for their children during their infant years has been consistently decreasing over the past three decades. This has been promoted in the US through the legislature and funding. Early care and education may have a positive impact on young minds, but a growing number of kids facing social challenges in making friendships in their teenage years raises serious concerns about its effectiveness. The survey-based primary research presented here shows that a statistically significant number of millennials between the ages of 10 and 25 years prefer to build friendships virtually than face-to-face interactions. Moreover, many teenagers depend more on their virtual friends whom they never met. Contrary to the belief that early social interactions in a non-home setup make the kids confident and more prepared for the real world, many shy-natured kids seem to develop a sense of shakiness in forming social relationships, resulting in loneliness by the time they are young adults. Reflecting on George Mead’s theory of self that is made up of “I” and “Me”, most functioning homes provide the required freedom and forgivable, congenial environment for building the "I" of a toddler; however, daycare or preschools can barely match that. It seems social images created from the “Me” perspective in preschoolers in a daycare environment has interfered and greatly overpowered the formation of a confident "I" thus created a crisis around the inability to form friendships face to face when they grow older. Though the pervasive nature of social media cannot be ignored, the non-parental early care and education practices adopted largely by the urban population have created a favorable platform of teen psychology on which social media popularity thrived, especially providing refuge to shy Gen-Z teenagers. This can explain why young adults today perceive social media as their preferred outlet of expression and a place to form dependable friendships, despite the risk of being cyberbullied.

Keywords: Digital socialization, shyness, developmental psychology, friendship, early education.

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3329 Planning for Minimization of Socioeconomic Inequalities within Vidarbha Region, Maharashtra, India

Authors: Amruta Khairnar, Joy Sen

Abstract:

Disparity in India has been persisting since independence causing many socioeconomic problems and its removal has become the most prime objective of the planned development in India. Hence the paper attempts to study the disparity at State and Regional level and gives inclusive planning guidelines to achieve balanced regional development. At State level, the relative socioeconomic backwardness of Vidarbha Region based on Interregional analysis using selected indicators like Foreign Direct Investment, Human Development Index, Per Capita District Domestic Product has been assessed and broad guidelines have been proposed. In the later part at Regional level, the relative backwardness of districts based on Intraregional analysis using socioeconomic indicators has been assessed within Nagpur sub region and factors responsible for backwardness & disparity have been indicated. The policy guidelines for Identified sub region have been proposed based on the most significant factor and their extent of relationship explaining backwardness Nagpur sub region.

Keywords: Balanced Growth, Foreign Direct Investment, Human Development Index, Per Capita District Domestic Product, Regional Disparity, Socioeconomic Inequality, Vidarbha Region.

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3328 A Robust Reception of IEEE 802.15.4a IR-TH UWB in Dense Multipath and Gaussian Noise

Authors: Farah Haroon, Haroon Rasheed, Kazi M Ahmed

Abstract:

IEEE 802.15.4a impulse radio-time hopping ultra wide band (IR-TH UWB) physical layer, due to small duty cycle and very short pulse widths is robust against multipath propagation. However, scattering and reflections with the large number of obstacles in indoor channel environments, give rise to dense multipath fading. It imposes serious problem to optimum Rake receiver architectures, for which very large number of fingers are needed. Presence of strong noise also affects the reception of fine pulses having extremely low power spectral density. A robust SRake receiver for IEEE 802.15.4a IRTH UWB in dense multipath and additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) is proposed to efficiently recover the weak signals with much reduced complexity. It adaptively increases the signal to noise (SNR) by decreasing noise through a recursive least square (RLS) algorithm. For simulation, dense multipath environment of IEEE 802.15.4a industrial non line of sight (NLOS) is employed. The power delay profile (PDF) and the cumulative distribution function (CDF) for the respective channel environment are found. Moreover, the error performance of the proposed architecture is evaluated in comparison with conventional SRake and AWGN correlation receivers. The simulation results indicate a substantial performance improvement with very less number of Rake fingers.

Keywords: Adaptive noise cancellation, dense multipath propoagation, IEEE 802.15.4a, IR-TH UWB, industrial NLOS environment, SRake receiver

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3327 Rubber Wood as a Potential Biomass Feedstock for Biochar via Slow Pyrolysis

Authors: Adilah Shariff, Radin Hakim, Nurhayati Abdullah

Abstract:

Utilisation of biomass feedstock for biochar has received increasing attention because of their potential for carbon sequestration and soil amendment. The aim of this study is to investigate the characteristics of rubber wood as a biomass feedstock for biochar via slow pyrolysis process. This was achieved by using proximate, ultimate, and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) as well as heating value, pH and lignocellulosic determination. Rubber wood contains 4.13 mf wt.% moisture, 86.30 mf wt.% volatile matter, 0.60 mf wt.% ash content, and 13.10 mf wt.% fixed carbon. The ultimate analysis shows that rubber wood consists of 44.33 mf wt.% carbon, 6.26 mf wt.% hydrogen, 19.31 mf wt.% nitrogen, 0.31 mf wt.% sulphur, and 29.79 mf wt.% oxygen. The higher heating value of rubber wood is 22.5 MJ/kg, and its lower heating value is 21.2 MJ/kg. At 27 °C, the pH value of rubber wood is 6.83 which is acidic. The lignocellulosic analysis revealed that rubber wood composition consists of 2.63 mf wt.% lignin, 20.13 mf wt.% cellulose, and 65.04 mf wt.% hemicellulose. The volatile matter to fixed carbon ratio is 6.58. This led to a biochar yield of 25.14 wt.% at 500 °C. Rubber wood is an environmental friendly feedstock due to its low sulphur content. Rubber wood therefore is a suitable and a potential feedstock for biochar production via slow pyrolysis.

Keywords: Biochar, biomass, rubber wood, slow pyrolysis.

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3326 Heterogeneous-Resolution and Multi-Source Terrain Builder for CesiumJS WebGL Virtual Globe

Authors: Umberto Di Staso, Marco Soave, Alessio Giori, Federico Prandi, Raffaele De Amicis

Abstract:

The increasing availability of information about earth surface elevation (Digital Elevation Models DEM) generated from different sources (remote sensing, Aerial Images, Lidar) poses the question about how to integrate and make available to the most than possible audience this huge amount of data. In order to exploit the potential of 3D elevation representation the quality of data management plays a fundamental role. Due to the high acquisition costs and the huge amount of generated data, highresolution terrain surveys tend to be small or medium sized and available on limited portion of earth. Here comes the need to merge large-scale height maps that typically are made available for free at worldwide level, with very specific high resolute datasets. One the other hand, the third dimension increases the user experience and the data representation quality, unlocking new possibilities in data analysis for civil protection, real estate, urban planning, environment monitoring, etc. The open-source 3D virtual globes, which are trending topics in Geovisual Analytics, aim at improving the visualization of geographical data provided by standard web services or with proprietary formats. Typically, 3D Virtual globes like do not offer an open-source tool that allows the generation of a terrain elevation data structure starting from heterogeneous-resolution terrain datasets. This paper describes a technological solution aimed to set up a so-called “Terrain Builder”. This tool is able to merge heterogeneous-resolution datasets, and to provide a multi-resolution worldwide terrain services fully compatible with CesiumJS and therefore accessible via web using traditional browser without any additional plug-in.

Keywords: Terrain builder, WebGL, virtual globe, CesiumJS, tiled map service, TMS, height-map, regular grid, Geovisual analytics, DTM.

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3325 Exergy Analysis of Combined Cycle of Air Separation and Natural Gas Liquefaction

Authors: Hanfei Tuo, Yanzhong Li

Abstract:

This paper presented a novel combined cycle of air separation and natural gas liquefaction. The idea is that natural gas can be liquefied, meanwhile gaseous or liquid nitrogen and oxygen are produced in one combined cryogenic system. Cycle simulation and exergy analysis were performed to evaluate the process and thereby reveal the influence of the crucial parameter, i.e., flow rate ratio through two stages expanders β on heat transfer temperature difference, its distribution and consequent exergy loss. Composite curves for the combined hot streams (feeding natural gas and recycled nitrogen) and the cold stream showed the degree of optimization available in this process if appropriate β was designed. The results indicated that increasing β reduces temperature difference and exergy loss in heat exchange process. However, the maximum limit value of β should be confined in terms of minimum temperature difference proposed in heat exchanger design standard and heat exchanger size. The optimal βopt under different operation conditions corresponding to the required minimum temperature differences was investigated.

Keywords: combined cycle simulation, exergy analysis, natural gas liquefaction.

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3324 Autobiographical Memory and Flexible Remembering: Gender Differences

Authors: A. Aizpurua, W. Koutstaal

Abstract:

In this study, we examined gender differences in: (1) a flexible remembering task, that asked for episodic memory decisions at an item-specific versus category-based level, and (2) the retrieval specificity of autobiographical memory during free recall. Differences favouring women were found on both measures. Furthermore, a significant association was observed, across gender groups, between level of specificity in the autobiographical memory interview and sensitivity to gist on the flexible remembering task. These results suggest that similar cognitive processes may partially contribute to both the ability for specific autobiographical recall and the capacity for inhibition of gist-information on the flexible remembering task.

Keywords: autobiographical memory, flexible remembering, gender, specificity.

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3323 Effects of Injection Conditions on Flame Structures in Gas-Centered Swirl Coaxial Injector

Authors: Wooseok Song, Sunjung Park, Jongkwon Lee, Jaye Koo

Abstract:

The objective of this paper is to observe the effects of injection conditions on flame structures in gas-centered swirl coaxial injector. Gaseous oxygen and liquid kerosene were used as propellants. For different injection conditions, two types of injector, which only differ in the diameter of the tangential inlet, were used in this study. In addition, oxidizer injection pressure was varied to control the combustion chamber pressure in different types of injector. In order to analyze the combustion instability intensity, the dynamic pressure was measured in both the combustion chamber and propellants lines. With the increase in differential pressure between the propellant injection pressure and the combustion chamber pressure, the combustion instability intensity increased. In addition, the flame structure was recorded using a high-speed camera to detect CH* chemiluminescence intensity. With the change in the injection conditions in the gas-centered swirl coaxial injector, the flame structure changed.

Keywords: Liquid rocket engine, flame structure, combustion instability, dynamic pressure.

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3322 Balanced Scorecard (BSC) Usage and Financial Performance of Branches in Jordanian Banking Industry

Authors: Hamzah Hussein Al-mawali, Yuserrie Zainuddin, Noor Nasir Kader Ali

Abstract:

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the body of knowledge in the area of management accounting, particularly performance measurement systems within the BSC framework, by investigating empirically the extent of multiple performance measures usage and their effects on the financial performance of Jordanian banks in the branches level. Nevertheless, the result of this study shows that the non-financial measures usages, particularly, customer oriented indicators and product/ service oriented indicators, appears to be important as it enhances firm performance. Remarkably, the findings reveal that there is positive relationship between the usages of multiple performance measures via overall BSC measures and financial performance in the branches level.

Keywords: Performance measurements systems, BalancedScorecard, Jordan.

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