Search results for: the good of the relationship.
Commenced in January 2007
Frequency: Monthly
Edition: International
Paper Count: 3397

Search results for: the good of the relationship.

1657 Happiness, Media and Sustainability of Communities in Donkeaw, Mearim District, Chiang Mai, Thailand

Authors: Panida Jongsuksomsakul

Abstract:

This study of the ‘happiness’ and ‘sustainability’ in the community of Donkeaw, Amphoe Mae Rim, Chiang Mai Province during the non-election period in Thailand, noted that their happiness levels are in the middle-average range. This was found using a mixed approach of qualitative and quantitative methods (N = 386, α = 0.05). The study explores indicators for six aspects of well-being and happiness, including, good local governance, administrative support for the health system that maintains people’s mental and physical health, environment and weather, job security and a regular income aids them in managing a sustainable lifestyle. The impact of economic security and community relationships on social and cultural capital, and the way these aspects impact on the life style of the community, affects the sustainable well-being of people. Moreover, living with transparency and participatory communication led to diverse rewards in many areas.

Keywords: Communication, happiness, well-being, Donkeaw community, social and cultural capital.

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1656 Lattice Boltzmann Method for Turbulent Heat Transfer in Wavy Channel Flows

Authors: H.Y. Lai, S. C. Chang, W. L. Chen

Abstract:

The hydrodynamic and thermal lattice Boltzmann methods are applied to investigate the turbulent convective heat transfer in the wavy channel flows. In this study, the turbulent phenomena are modeling by large-eddy simulations with the Smagorinsky model. As a benchmark, the laminar and turbulent backward-facing step flows are simulated first. The results give good agreement with other numerical and experimental data. For wavy channel flows, the distribution of Nusselt number and the skin-friction coefficients are calculated to evaluate the heat transfer effect and the drag force. It indicates that the vortices at the trough would affect the magnitude of drag and weaken the heat convection effects on the wavy surface. In turbulent cases, if the amplitude of the wavy boundary is large enough, the secondary vortices would be generated at troughs and contribute to the heat convection. Finally, the effects of different Re on the turbulent transport phenomena are discussed.

Keywords: Heat transfer, lattice Boltzmann method, turbulence, wavy channel.

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1655 Software Process Improvement: A Organizational Change that Need to be Managed and Motivated

Authors: Marília Guterres Ferreira, Raul Sidnei Wazlawick

Abstract:

As seen in literature, about 70% of the improvement initiatives fail, and a significant number do not even get started. This paper analyses the problem of failing initiatives on Software Process Improvement (SPI), and proposes good practices supported by motivational tools that can help minimizing failures. It elaborates on the hypothesis that human factors are poorly addressed by deployers, especially because implementation guides usually emphasize only technical factors. This research was conducted with SPI deployers and analyses 32 SPI initiatives. The results indicate that although human factors are not commonly highlighted in guidelines, the successful initiatives usually address human factors implicitly. This research shows that practices based on human factors indeed perform a crucial role on successful implantations of SPI, proposes change management as a theoretical framework to introduce those practices in the SPI context and suggests some motivational tools based on SPI deployers experience to support it.

Keywords: Change management, human factors, motivation, software process improvement.

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1654 Measurement Tools of the Maturity Model for IT Service Outsourcing in Higher Education Institutions

Authors: Victoriano Valencia García, Luis Usero Aragonés, Eugenio J. Fernández Vicente

Abstract:

Nowadays, the successful implementation of ICTs is vital for almost any kind of organization. Good governance and ICT management are essential for delivering value, managing technological risks, managing resources and performance measurement. In addition, outsourcing is a strategic IT service solution which complements IT services provided internally in organizations. This paper proposes the measurement tools of a new holistic maturity model based on standards ISO/IEC 20000 and ISO/IEC 38500, and the frameworks and best practices of ITIL and COBIT, with a specific focus on IT outsourcing. These measurement tools allow independent validation and practical application in the field of higher education, using a questionnaire, metrics tables, and continuous improvement plan tables as part of the measurement process. Guidelines and standards are proposed in the model for facilitating adaptation to universities and achieving excellence in the outsourcing of IT services.

Keywords: IT Governance, IT Management, IT Services, Maturity Model, Measurement Tools, Outsourcing.

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1653 Investigation of Public Perception of Air Pollution and Life Quality in Tehran

Authors: R. Karami, A. Gharaei

Abstract:

This study was undertaken at four different sites (north polluted, south polluted, south healthy and north healthy) in Tehran, in order to examine whether there was a relationship between publicly available air quality data and the public’s perception of air quality and to suggest some guidelines for reducing air pollution. A total of 200 people were accidentally filled out the research questionnaires at mentioned sites and air quality data were obtained simultaneously from the Air Quality Control Department. Data was analyzed in Excel and SPSS software’s. Clean air and job security were of great importance to people comparing to other pleasant aspect of life. Also air pollution and serious diseases were the most important of people concerns. Street monitors and news paper services on air quality were little used by the public as a means of obtaining information on air pollution. Using public transportation and avoiding inevitable journeys are the most important ways for reducing air pollution. The results reveal that the public’s perception of air quality is not a reliable indicator of the actual levels of air pollution.

Keywords: Air pollution, Quality of life, Opinion poll, Public participation.

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1652 Effect of Hooked-End Steel Fibres Geometry on Pull-Out Behaviour of Ultra-High Performance Concrete

Authors: Sadoon Abdallah, Mizi Fan, Xiangming Zhou

Abstract:

In this study, a comprehensive approach has been adopted to examine in detail the effect of various hook geometries on bond-slip characteristics. Extensive single fibre pull-out tests on ultra-high performance matrix with three different W/B ratios and embedded lengths have been carried out. Test results showed that the mechanical deformation of fibre hook is the main mechanism governing the pull-out behaviour. Furthermore, the quantitative analyses have been completed to compare the hook design contribution of 3D, 4D and 5D fibres to assess overall pull-out behaviour. It was also revealed that there is a strong relationship between the magnitude of hook contribution and W/B ratio (i.e. matrix strength). Reducing the W/B ratio from 0.20 to 0.11 greatly optimizes the interfacial transition zone (ITZ) and enables better mobilization, straightening of the hook and results in bond-slip-hardening behaviour.

Keywords: Bond mechanisms, fibre-matrix interface, hook geometry, pullout behaviour and water to binder ratio.

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1651 Grocery Customer Behavior Analysis using RFID-based Shopping Paths Data

Authors: In-Chul Jung, Young S. Kwon

Abstract:

Knowing about the customer behavior in a grocery has been a long-standing issue in the retailing industry. The advent of RFID has made it easier to collect moving data for an individual shopper's behavior. Most of the previous studies used the traditional statistical clustering technique to find the major characteristics of customer behavior, especially shopping path. However, in using the clustering technique, due to various spatial constraints in the store, standard clustering methods are not feasible because moving data such as the shopping path should be adjusted in advance of the analysis, which is time-consuming and causes data distortion. To alleviate this problem, we propose a new approach to spatial pattern clustering based on the longest common subsequence. Experimental results using real data obtained from a grocery confirm the good performance of the proposed method in finding the hot spot, dead spot and major path patterns of customer movements.

Keywords: customer path, shopping behavior, exploratoryanalysis, LCS, RFID

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1650 Effects of Mobile Design Quality and Innovation Characteristics on Intention to Use Mobile Tourism Guide

Authors: Numtip Trakulmaykee, Ahmad Suhaimi Baharudin, Muhammad Rafie Mohd. Arshad

Abstract:

This study investigates theoretical model of tourist intention in the context of mobile tourism guide. The research model consists of three constructs: mobile design quality, innovation characteristics, and intention to use mobile tourism guide. In order to investigate the effects of determinants and examine the relationships, partial least squares is employed for data analysis and research model development. The results show that mobile design quality and innovation quality significantly impact on tourists’ intention to use mobile tourism guide. Furthermore, mobile design quality has a strong influence on innovation characteristics, and cannot be the moderator on the relationship between innovation characteristics and tourists’ intention to use mobile tourism guide. Our findings propose theoretical model for mobile research and provide an important guideline for developing mobile application.

Keywords: Design quality, Innovation characteristics, Intention, Mobile tourism guide.

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1649 Analysis of a TBM Tunneling Effect on Surface Subsidence: A Case Study from Tehran, Iran

Authors: A. R. Salimi, M. Esmaeili, B. Salehi

Abstract:

The development and extension of large cities induced a need for shallow tunnel in soft ground of building areas. Estimation of ground settlement caused by the tunnel excavation is important engineering point. In this paper, prediction of surface subsidence caused by tunneling in one section of seventh line of Tehran subway is considered. On the basis of studied geotechnical conditions of the region, tunnel with the length of 26.9km has been excavated applying a mechanized method using an EPB-TBM with a diameter of 9.14m. In this regard, settlement is estimated utilizing both analytical and numerical finite element method. The numerical method shows that the value of settlement in this section is 5cm. Besides, the analytical consequences (Bobet and Loganathan-Polous) are 5.29 and 12.36cm, respectively. According to results of this study, due tosaturation of this section, there are good agreement between Bobet and numerical methods. Therefore, tunneling processes in this section needs a special consolidation measurement and support system before the passage of tunnel boring machine.

Keywords: TBM, Subsidence, Numerical Method, Analytical Method.

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1648 Improving University Operations with Data Mining: Predicting Student Performance

Authors: Mladen Dragičević, Mirjana Pejić Bach, Vanja Šimičević

Abstract:

The purpose of this paper is to develop models that would enable predicting student success. These models could improve allocation of students among colleges and optimize the newly introduced model of government subsidies for higher education. For the purpose of collecting data, an anonymous survey was carried out in the last year of undergraduate degree student population using random sampling method. Decision trees were created of which two have been chosen that were most successful in predicting student success based on two criteria: Grade Point Average (GPA) and time that a student needs to finish the undergraduate program (time-to-degree). Decision trees have been shown as a good method of classification student success and they could be even more improved by increasing survey sample and developing specialized decision trees for each type of college. These types of methods have a big potential for use in decision support systems.

Keywords: Data mining, knowledge discovery in databases, prediction models, student success.

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1647 Applying Bowen’s Theory to Intern Supervision

Authors: Jeff A. Tysinger, Dawn P. Tysinger

Abstract:

The aim of this paper is to theoretically apply Bowen’s understanding of triangulation and triads to school psychology intern supervision so that it can assist in the conceptualization of the dynamics of intern supervision and provide some key methods to address common issues. The school psychology internship is the capstone experience for the school psychologist in training. It involves three key participants whose relationships will determine the success of the internship.  To understand the potential effect, Bowen’s family systems theory can be applied to the supervision relationship. He describes a way to resolve stress between two people by triangulating or binging in a third person. He applies this to a nuclear family, but school psychology intern supervision requires the marriage of an intern, field supervisor, and university supervisor; thus, setting all up for possible triangulation. The consequences of triangulation can apply to standards and requirements, direct supervision, and intern evaluation. Strategies from family systems theory to decrease the negative impact of supervision triangulation.

Keywords: Family systems theory, intern supervision, triangulation, school psychology.

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1646 Optical Road Monitoring of the Future Smart Roads – Preliminary Results

Authors: Maria Jokela, Matti Kutila, Jukka Laitinen, Florian Ahlers, Nicolas Hautière, TobiasSchendzielorz

Abstract:

It has been shown that in most accidents the driver is responsible due to being distracted or misjudging the situation. In order to solve such problems research has been dedicated to developing driver assistance systems that are able to monitor the traffic situation around the vehicle. This paper presents methods for recognizing several circumstances on a road. The methods use both the in-vehicle warning systems and the roadside infrastructure. Preliminary evaluation results for fog and ice-on-road detection are presented. The ice detection results are based on data recorded in a test track dedicated to tyre friction testing. The achieved results anticipate that ice detection could work at a performance of 70% detection with the right setup, which is a good foundation for implementation. However, the full benefit of the presented cooperative system is achieved by fusing the outputs of multiple data sources, which is the key point of discussion behind this publication.

Keywords: Smart roads, traffic monitoring, traffic scenedetection.

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1645 Solving the Nonlinear Heat Conduction in a Spherical Coordinate with Electrical Simulation

Authors: A. M. Gheitaghy, H. Saffari, G. Q. Zhang

Abstract:

Numerical approach based on the electrical simulation method is proposed to solve a nonlinear transient heat conduction problem with nonlinear boundary for a spherical body. This problem represents a strong nonlinearity in both the governing equation for temperature dependent thermal property and the boundary condition for combined convective and radiative cooling. By analysing the equivalent electrical model using the electrical circuit simulation program HSPICE, transient temperature and heat flux distributions at sphere can be obtained easily and fast. The solutions clearly illustrate the effect of the radiation-conduction parameter Nrc, the Biot number and the linear coefficient of temperature dependent conductivity and heat capacity. On comparing the results with corresponding numerical solutions, the accuracy and efficiency of this computational method is found to be good.

Keywords: Convective boundary, radiative boundary, electrical simulation method, nonlinear heat conduction, spherical coordinate.

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1644 Margin-Based Feed-Forward Neural Network Classifiers

Authors: Han Xiao, Xiaoyan Zhu

Abstract:

Margin-Based Principle has been proposed for a long time, it has been proved that this principle could reduce the structural risk and improve the performance in both theoretical and practical aspects. Meanwhile, feed-forward neural network is a traditional classifier, which is very hot at present with a deeper architecture. However, the training algorithm of feed-forward neural network is developed and generated from Widrow-Hoff Principle that means to minimize the squared error. In this paper, we propose a new training algorithm for feed-forward neural networks based on Margin-Based Principle, which could effectively promote the accuracy and generalization ability of neural network classifiers with less labelled samples and flexible network. We have conducted experiments on four UCI open datasets and achieved good results as expected. In conclusion, our model could handle more sparse labelled and more high-dimension dataset in a high accuracy while modification from old ANN method to our method is easy and almost free of work.

Keywords: Max-Margin Principle, Feed-Forward Neural Network, Classifier.

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1643 Effect of Medium Capacity on the Relationship between Chemical Heterogeneity and Linearly Adsorbed Solute Dispersion into Fixed Beds

Authors: K. Kaabeche-Djerafi, N. Bendjaballah-Lalaoui, S. Semra

Abstract:

The paper aims at investigating influence of medium capacity on linear adsorbed solute dispersion into chemically heterogeneous fixed beds. A discrete chemical heterogeneity distribution is considered in the one-dimensional advectivedispersive equation. The partial differential equation is solved using finite volumes method based on the Adam-Bashforth algorithm. Increased dispersion is estimated by comparing breakthrough curves second order moments and keeping identical hydrodynamic properties. As a result, dispersion increase due to chemical heterogeneity depends on the column size and surprisingly on the solid capacity. The more intense capacity is, the more important solute dispersion is. Medium length which is known to favour this effect vanishing according to the linear adsorption in fixed bed seems to create nonmonotonous variation of dispersion because of the heterogeneity. This nonmonotonous behaviour is also favoured by high capacities.

Keywords: linear adsorption; chemical heterogeneity;dispersion; fixed bed; porous media

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1642 Lubricating Grease from Waste Cooking Oil and Waste Motor Sludge

Authors: Aseem Rajvanshi, Pankaj Kumar Pandey

Abstract:

Increase in population has increased the demand of energy to fulfill all its needs. This will result in burden on fossil fuels especially crude oil. Waste oil due to its disposal problem creates environmental degradation. In this context, this paper studies utilization of waste cooking oil and waste motor sludge for making lubricating grease. Experimental studies have been performed by variation in time and concentration of mixture of waste cooking oil and waste motor sludge. The samples were analyzed using penetration test (ASTM D-217), dropping point (ASTM D-566), work penetration (ASTM D-217) and copper strip test (ASTM D-408). Among 6 samples, sample 6 gives the best results with a good drop point and a fine penetration value. The dropping point and penetration test values were found to be 205 °C and 315, respectively. The penetration value falls under the category of NLGI (National Lubricating Grease Institute) consistency number 1.

Keywords: Crude oil, copper strip corrosion test, dropping point, penetration test.

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1641 Improvement on a CNC Gantry Machine Structure Design for Higher Machining Speed Capability

Authors: Ahmed A. D. Sarhan, S. R. Besharaty, Javad Akbaria, M. Hamdi

Abstract:

The capability of CNC gantry milling machines in manufacturing long components has caused the expanded use of such machines. On the other hand, the machines’ gantry rigidity can reduce under severe loads or vibration during operation. Indeed, the quality of machining is dependent on the machine’s dynamic behavior throughout the operating process. For this reason, these types of machines have always been used widely and are not efficient. Therefore, they can usually be employed for rough machining and may not produce adequate surface finishing. In this paper, a CNC gantry milling machine with the potential to produce good surface finish has been designed and analyzed. The lowest natural frequency of this machine is 202 Hz corresponding to 12000 rpm at all motion amplitudes with a full range of suitable frequency responses. Meanwhile, the maximum deformation under dead loads for the gantry machine is 0.565*m, indicating that this machine tool is capable of producing higher product quality.

Keywords: Finite element, frequency response, gantry design, gantry machine, static and dynamic analysis.

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1640 Sustainability Policies and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR): Ergonomics Contribution Regarding Work in Companies

Authors: I. Bolis, S. N. Morioka, L. I. Sznelwar

Abstract:

The growing importance of sustainability in corporate policies represents a great opportunity for workers to gain more consideration, with great benefits to their well being. Sustainable work is believed to be one which improves the organization-s performance and fosters professional development as well as workers- health. In a multiple case study based on document research, information was sought about work activities and their sustainability or corporate social responsibility (CSR) policies, as disseminated by corporations. All the companies devoted attention to work activities and delivered a good amount of information about them. Nevertheless, the information presented was generic; all the actions developed were top-down and there was no information about the impact of changes aimed at sustainability on the workers- activities. It was found that the companies seemed to be at an early stage. In the future, they need to show more commitment through concrete goals: they must be aware that workers contribute directly to the corporations- sustainability. This would allow room for Ergonomics and Work Psychodynamics to be incorporated and to be useful for both companies and society, so as to promote and ensure work sustainability.

Keywords: Sustainability, ergonomics, work psychodynamics, multinational companies.

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1639 Discovering User Behaviour Patterns from Web Log Analysis to Enhance the Accessibility and Usability of Website

Authors: Harpreet Singh

Abstract:

Finding relevant information on the World Wide Web is becoming highly challenging day by day. Web usage mining is used for the extraction of relevant and useful knowledge, such as user behaviour patterns, from web access log records. Web access log records all the requests for individual files that the users have requested from the website. Web usage mining is important for Customer Relationship Management (CRM), as it can ensure customer satisfaction as far as the interaction between the customer and the organization is concerned. Web usage mining is helpful in improving website structure or design as per the user’s requirement by analyzing the access log file of a website through a log analyzer tool. The focus of this paper is to enhance the accessibility and usability of a guitar selling web site by analyzing their access log through Deep Log Analyzer tool. The results show that the maximum number of users is from the United States and that they use Opera 9.8 web browser and the Windows XP operating system.

Keywords: Web usage mining, log file, web mining, data mining, deep log analyser.

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1638 High Order Cascade Multibit ΣΔ Modulator for Wide Bandwidth Applications

Authors: S. Zouari, H. Daoud, M. Loulou, P. Loumeau, N. Masmoudi

Abstract:

A wideband 2-1-1 cascaded ΣΔ modulator with a single-bit quantizer in the two first stages and a 4-bit quantizer in the final stage is developed. To reduce sensitivity of digital-to-analog converter (DAC) nonlinearities in the feedback of the last stage, dynamic element matching (DEM) is introduced. This paper presents two modelling approaches: The first is MATLAB description and the second is VHDL-AMS modelling of the proposed architecture and exposes some high-level-simulation results allowing a behavioural study. The detail of both ideal and non-ideal behaviour modelling are presented. Then, the study of the effect of building blocks nonidealities is presented; especially the influences of nonlinearity, finite operational amplifier gain, amplifier slew rate limitation and capacitor mismatch. A VHDL-AMS description presents a good solution to predict system-s performances and can provide sensitivity curves giving the impact of nonidealities on the system performance.

Keywords: behavioural study, DAC nonlinearity, DEM, ΣΔ modulator, VHDL-AMS modelling.

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1637 Colour Image Compression Method Based On Fractal Block Coding Technique

Authors: Dibyendu Ghoshal, Shimal Das

Abstract:

Image compression based on fractal coding is a lossy compression method and normally used for gray level images range and domain blocks in rectangular shape. Fractal based digital image compression technique provide a large compression ratio and in this paper, it is proposed using YUV colour space and the fractal theory which is based on iterated transformation. Fractal geometry is mainly applied in the current study towards colour image compression coding. These colour images possesses correlations among the colour components and hence high compression ratio can be achieved by exploiting all these redundancies. The proposed method utilises the self-similarity in the colour image as well as the cross-correlations between them. Experimental results show that the greater compression ratio can be achieved with large domain blocks but more trade off in image quality is good to acceptable at less than 1 bit per pixel.

Keywords: Fractal coding, Iterated Function System (IFS), Image compression, YUV colour space.

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1636 Adaptive Naïve Bayesian Anti-Spam Engine

Authors: Wojciech P. Gajewski

Abstract:

The problem of spam has been seriously troubling the Internet community during the last few years and currently reached an alarming scale. Observations made at CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research located in Geneva, Switzerland) show that spam mails can constitute up to 75% of daily SMTP traffic. A naïve Bayesian classifier based on a Bag Of Words representation of an email is widely used to stop this unwanted flood as it combines good performance with simplicity of the training and classification processes. However, facing the constantly changing patterns of spam, it is necessary to assure online adaptability of the classifier. This work proposes combining such a classifier with another NBC (naïve Bayesian classifier) based on pairs of adjacent words. Only the latter will be retrained with examples of spam reported by users. Tests are performed on considerable sets of mails both from public spam archives and CERN mailboxes. They suggest that this architecture can increase spam recall without affecting the classifier precision as it happens when only the NBC based on single words is retrained.

Keywords: Text classification, naïve Bayesian classification, spam, email.

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1635 Frame Texture Classification Method (FTCM) Applied on Mammograms for Detection of Abnormalities

Authors: Kjersti Engan, Karl Skretting, Jostein Herredsvela, Thor Ole Gulsrud

Abstract:

Texture classification is an important image processing task with a broad application range. Many different techniques for texture classification have been explored. Using sparse approximation as a feature extraction method for texture classification is a relatively new approach, and Skretting et al. recently presented the Frame Texture Classification Method (FTCM), showing very good results on classical texture images. As an extension of that work the FTCM is here tested on a real world application as detection of abnormalities in mammograms. Some extensions to the original FTCM that are useful in some applications are implemented; two different smoothing techniques and a vector augmentation technique. Both detection of microcalcifications (as a primary detection technique and as a last stage of a detection scheme), and soft tissue lesions in mammograms are explored. All the results are interesting, and especially the results using FTCM on regions of interest as the last stage in a detection scheme for microcalcifications are promising.

Keywords: detection, mammogram, texture classification, dictionary learning, FTCM

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1634 A Pattern Language for Software Debugging

Authors: Mehdi Amoui, Mohammad Zarafshan, Caro Lucas

Abstract:

In spite of all advancement in software testing, debugging remains a labor-intensive, manual, time consuming, and error prone process. A candidate solution to enhance debugging process is to fuse it with testing process. To achieve this integration, a possible solution may be categorizing common software tests and errors followed by the effort on fixing the errors through general solutions for each test/error pair. Our approach to address this issue is based on Christopher Alexander-s pattern and pattern language concepts. The patterns in this language are grouped into three major sections and connect the three concepts of test, error, and debug. These patterns and their hierarchical relationship shape a pattern language that introduces a solution to solve software errors in a known testing context. Finally, we will introduce our developed framework ADE as a sample implementation to support a pattern of proposed language, which aims to automate the whole process of evolving software design via evolutionary methods.

Keywords: Coding Errors, Software debugging, Testing, Patterns, Pattern Language

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1633 Morphological and Dynamic Mechanical Analyses of a Local Clay/Plantain Fiber Filled Hybrid Polystyrene Composites

Authors: K. P. Odimayomi, A. G. Adeniyi, S. A. Abdulkareem, F. M. Oladipo Emmanuel, C. A. Adeyanju, M. A Amoloye

Abstract:

The abundant availability of the local clay/plantain fiber coupled with the various renewable and sustainability advantages has led to their choice as co-fillers in the development of a hybrid polystyrene composite. The prime objective of this study is to evaluate the morphological and dynamic mechanical properties using Scanning Electron Microscopy and Dynamic Mechanical Analysis. The hybrid polystyrene composite development was developed via the hand-lay-up method. All processing including the constituent mixing and curing were achieved at room temperature (25 ± 2 ℃).   The mechanical characteristics of the developed composites via Dynamic Mechanical Analysis (DMA) confirm an indirect relationship between time and storage modulus, this pattern becomes more evident at higher frequencies. It is clearly portrayed that the addition of clay and plantain fiber in the polystyrene matrix increases the stiffness of the developed composite.

Keywords: Morphology, DMA, Akerebiata clay, plantain fiber, hybrid polystyrene composites.

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1632 Best Option for Countercyclical Capital Buffer Implementation - Scenarios for Baltic States

Authors: Ģirts Brasliņš, Ilja Arefjevs, Nadežda Tarakanova

Abstract:

The objective of countercyclical capital buffer is to encourage banks to build up buffers in good times that can be drawn down in bad times. The aim of the report is to assess such decisions by banks derived from three approaches. The approaches are the aggregate credit-to-GDP ratio, credit growth as well as banking sector profits. The approaches are implemented for Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania for the time period 2000-2012. The report compares three approaches and analyses their relevance to the Baltic States by testing the correlation between a growth in studied variables and a growth of corresponding gaps. Methods used in the empirical part of the report are econometric analysis as well as economic analysis, development indicators, relative and absolute indicators and other methods. The research outcome is a cross-Baltic comparison of two alternative approaches to establish or release a countercyclical capital buffer by banks and their implications for each Baltic country.

Keywords: Basel III, countercyclical capital buffer, banks, credit growth, Baltic States.

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1631 The Relationship between Sheep Management and Lamb Mortality

Authors: T. M. Mousa-Balabel

Abstract:

This study was carried out to investigate lamb mortalities relating to ewes' breed and some managemental factors on 250 pregnant ewes (190-Rahmani, 30-Ossimi and 30-Romanov) at Mehallet Mousa, Animal Production Research Station, Kafr El- Sheikh Province, Egypt. These animals divided into five groups according to the managemental factors used. The results revealed that the lamb mortality was higher in Ossimi breed and lower in Romanov one. In addition, the highest lamb mortality occurred among lambs for unsupplemented ewes, for those had body condition score two and for lambs which born outdoor. Moreover, the lamb survivability was increased by the parity of ewes. From this study it can be concluded that the lamb mortality depends on ewes' body condition score, parity, lambing system (indoor or outdoor), nutrition during pregnancy period and selected breed. In addition, the most important period for lamb survival is the first week of age.

Keywords: lamb mortality, sheep breeds, sheep management, sheep parity.

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1630 The Temperature Effects on the Microstructure and Profile in Laser Cladding

Authors: P. C. Chiu, Jehnming Lin

Abstract:

In this study, a 50-W CO2 laser was used for the clad of 304L powders on the stainless steel substrate with a temperature sensor and image monitoring system. The laser power and cladding speed and focal position were modified to achieve the requirement of the workpiece flatness and mechanical properties. The numerical calculation is based on ANSYS to analyze the temperature change of the moving heat source at different surface positions when coating the workpiece, and the effect of the process parameters on the bath size was discussed. The temperature of stainless steel powder in the nozzle outlet reacting with the laser was simulated as a process parameter. In the experiment, the difference of the thermal conductivity in three-dimensional space is compared with single-layer cladding and multi-layer cladding. The heat dissipation pattern of the single-layer cladding is the steel plate and the multi-layer coating is the workpiece itself. The relationship between the multi-clad temperature and the profile was analyzed by the temperature signal from an IR pyrometer.

Keywords: Laser cladding, temperature, profile, microstructure.

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1629 Phylogenetic Inference from 18S rRNA Gene Sequences of Horseshoe Crabs, Tachypleus gigas between Tanjung Dawai, Kedah and Cherating, Pahang, Peninsular Malaysia

Authors: Ismail, N., Sarijan, S

Abstract:

The phylogenetic analysis using the most conservative portions of 18S rRNA gene revealed the phylogenetic relationship among the two populations where DNA divergence showed that the nucleotides diversity value were -0.00838 for the Tanjung Dawai, Kedah and -0.00708 for the Cherating, Pahang populations respectively. The net nucleotide divergence among populations (Da) was -0.0073 indicating a low polymorphism among the populations studied. Total number of mutations in the Tanjung Dawai, Kedah samples was higher than Cherating, Pahang samples, which are 73 and 59 respectively while shared mutations across the populations were 8, and reveal the evolutionary in the genome of Malaysian T. gigas. The tree topology of both populations inferred using Neigbour-joining method by comparing 1791 bp of partial 18S rRNA sequence revealed that T. gigas haplotypes were clustered into seven clades, suggesting that they are genetically diverse among populations which derived from a common ancestor.

Keywords: Horseshoe crabs, Tachypleus gigas, 18S rRNA genesequences, phylogenetic analysis

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1628 Experimental Set-Up for Investigation of Fault Diagnosis of a Centrifugal Pump

Authors: Maamar Ali Saud Al Tobi, Geraint Bevan, K. P. Ramachandran, Peter Wallace, David Harrison

Abstract:

Centrifugal pumps are complex machines which can experience different types of fault. Condition monitoring can be used in centrifugal pump fault detection through vibration analysis for mechanical and hydraulic forces. Vibration analysis methods have the potential to be combined with artificial intelligence systems where an automatic diagnostic method can be approached. An automatic fault diagnosis approach could be a good option to minimize human error and to provide a precise machine fault classification. This work aims to introduce an approach to centrifugal pump fault diagnosis based on artificial intelligence and genetic algorithm systems. An overview of the future works, research methodology and proposed experimental setup is presented and discussed. The expected results and outcomes based on the experimental work are illustrated.

Keywords: Centrifugal pump setup, vibration analysis, artificial intelligence, genetic algorithm.

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