Search results for: policy development
2639 Creative Skills Supported by Multidisciplinary Learning: Case Innovation Course at the Seinäjoki University of Applied Sciences
Authors: Satu Lautamäki
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This paper presents findings from a multidisciplinary course (bachelor level) implemented at Seinäjoki University of Applied Sciences, Finland. The course aims to develop innovative thinking of students, by having projects given by companies, using design thinking methods as a tool for creativity and by integrating students into multidisciplinary teams working on the given projects. The course is obligatory for all first year bachelor students across four faculties (business and culture, food and agriculture, health care and social work, and technology). The course involves around 800 students and 30 pedagogical coaches, and it is implemented as an intensive one-week course each year. The paper discusses the pedagogy, structure and coordination of the course. Also, reflections on methods for the development of creative skills are given. Experts in contemporary, global context often work in teams, which consist of people who have different areas of expertise and represent various professional backgrounds. That is why there is a strong need for new training methods where multidisciplinary approach is at the heart of learning. Creative learning takes place when different parties bring information to the discussion and learn from each other. When students in different fields are looking for professional growth for themselves and take responsibility for the professional growth of other learners, they form a mutual learning relationship with each other. Multidisciplinary team members make decisions both individually and collectively, which helps them to understand and appreciate other disciplines. Our results show that creative and multidisciplinary project learning can develop diversity of knowledge and competences, for instance, students’ cultural knowledge, teamwork and innovation competences, time management and presentation skills as well as support a student’s personal development as an expert. It is highly recommended that higher education curricula should include various studies for students from different study fields to work in multidisciplinary teams.
Keywords: Multidisciplinary learning, creative skills, innovative thinking, project-based learning.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 5312638 Overview of E-government Adoption and Implementation in Ghana
Authors: Isaac Kofi Mensah
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E-government has been adopted and used by many governments/countries around the world including Ghana to provide citizens and businesses with more accurate, real-time, and high quality services and information. The objective of this paper is to present an overview of the Government of Ghana’s (GoG) adoption and implement of e-government and its usage by the Ministries, Departments and its agencies (MDAs) as well as other public sector institutions to deliver efficient public service to the general public i.e. citizens, business etc. Government implementation of e-government focused on facilitating effective delivery of government service to the public and ultimately to provide efficient government-wide electronic means of sharing information and knowledge through a network infrastructure developed to connect all major towns and cities, Ministries, Departments and Agencies and other public sector organizations in Ghana. One aim for the Government of Ghana use of ICT in public administration is to improve productivity in government administration and service by facilitating exchange of information to enable better interaction and coordination of work among MDAs, citizens and private businesses. The study was prepared using secondary sources of data from government policy documents, national and international published reports, journal articles, and web sources. This study indicates that through the e-government initiative, currently citizens and businesses can access and pay for services such as renewal of driving license, business registration, payment of taxes, acquisition of marriage and birth certificates as well as application for passport through the GoG electronic service (eservice) and electronic payment (epay) portal. Further, this study shows that there is enormous commitment from GoG to adopt and implement e-government as a tool not only to transform the business of government but also to bring efficiency in public services delivered by the MDAs. To ascertain this, a further study need to be carried out to determine if the use of e-government has brought about the anticipated improvements and efficiency in service delivery of MDAs and other state institutions in Ghana.
Keywords: Electronic government, electronic services, electronic payment, MDAs.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 45872637 Women's Political Participation in Korea
Authors: Minjeoung Kim
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This paper deals with the development and obstacles of Korean women-s political participation in recent years. Since the year 1948 after the declaration of a modern state, Korea has tried to establish the democracy but still in the field of women-s political participation it meets a lot of problems such as women-s political consciousness, male dominated political culture and institutional constraints. After the introduction of quota system in the list of political party, women-s political participation began to change its configuration. More women candidates have willingly presented at elections.Keywords: Korean women, political participation, quota, education.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 41562636 Selective Wet-Etching of Amorphous/Crystallized Sb20se80 Thin Films
Authors: O. Shiman, V. Gerbreders, E. Sledevskis, A. Bulanovs, V.Pashkevich
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The selective wet-etching of amorphous and crystalline region of Sb20Se80 thin films was carried out using organic based solution e.g. amines. We report the development of an in situ real-time method to study the wet chemical etching process of thin films. Characterization of the structure and surface of films studied by X-ray diffraction, SEM and EBSD methods has been done and potential application suggested.Keywords: amorphous and crystalline phases, chalcogenide thinfilm, etching process
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 19822635 Choosing an Ontology Language
Authors: Anna V. Zhdanova, Uwe Keller
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We summarize information that facilitates choosing an ontology language for knowledge intensive applications. This paper is a short version of the ontology language state-of-the-art and evolution analysis carried out for choosing an ontology language in the IST Esperonto project. At first, we analyze changes and evolution that took place in the filed of Semantic Web languages during the last years, in particular, around the ontology languages of the RDF/S and OWL family. Second, we present current trends in development of Semantic Web languages, in particular, rule support extensions for Semantic Web languages and emerging ontology languages such as WSMO languages.Keywords: OWL, RDF/S, Semantic Web Languages, WSML
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 17602634 An Improved Design of Area Efficient Two Bit Comparator
Authors: Shashank Gautam, Pramod Sharma
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In present era, development of digital circuits, signal processors and other integrated circuits, magnitude comparators are challenged by large area and more power consumption. Comparator is most basic circuit that performs comparison. This paper presents a technique to design a two bit comparator which consumes less area and power. DSCH and MICROWIND version 3 are used to design the schematic and design the layout of the schematic, observe the performance parameters at different nanometer technologies respectively.
Keywords: Chip design, consumed power, layout area, two bit comparator.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 12262633 Hydrogen and Diesel Combustion on a Single Cylinder Four Stroke Diesel Engine in Dual Fuel mode with Varying Injection Strategies
Authors: Probir Kumar Bose, Rahul Banerjee, Madhujit Deb
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The present energy situation and the concerns about global warming has stimulated active research interest in non-petroleum, carbon free compounds and non-polluting fuels, particularly for transportation, power generation, and agricultural sectors. Environmental concerns and limited amount of petroleum fuels have caused interests in the development of alternative fuels for internal combustion (IC) engines. The petroleum crude reserves however, are declining and consumption of transport fuels particularly in the developing countries is increasing at high rates. Severe shortage of liquid fuels derived from petroleum may be faced in the second half of this century. Recently more and more stringent environmental regulations being enacted in the USA and Europe have led to the research and development activities on clean alternative fuels. Among the gaseous fuels hydrogen is considered to be one of the clean alternative fuel. Hydrogen is an interesting candidate for future internal combustion engine based power trains. In this experimental investigation, the performance and combustion analysis were carried out on a direct injection (DI) diesel engine using hydrogen with diesel following the TMI(Time Manifold Injection) technique at different injection timings of 10 degree,45 degree and 80 degree ATDC using an electronic control unit (ECU) and injection durations were controlled. Further, the tests have been carried out at a constant speed of 1500rpm at different load conditions and it can be observed that brake thermal efficiency increases with increase in load conditions with a maximum gain of 15% at full load conditions during all injection strategies of hydrogen. It was also observed that with the increase in hydrogen energy share BSEC started reducing and it reduced to a maximum of 9% as compared to baseline diesel at 10deg ATDC injection during maximum injection proving the exceptional combustion properties of hydrogen.Keywords: Hydrogen, performance, combustion, alternative fuels.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 34252632 Scenario and Decision Analysis for Solar Energy in Egypt by 2035 Using Dynamic Bayesian Network
Authors: Rawaa H. El-Bidweihy, Hisham M. Abdelsalam, Ihab A. El-Khodary
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Bayesian networks are now considered to be a promising tool in the field of energy with different applications. In this study, the aim was to indicate the states of a previous constructed Bayesian network related to the solar energy in Egypt and the factors affecting its market share, depending on the followed data distribution type for each factor, and using either the Z-distribution approach or the Chebyshev’s inequality theorem. Later on, the separate and the conditional probabilities of the states of each factor in the Bayesian network were derived, either from the collected and scrapped historical data or from estimations and past studies. Results showed that we could use the constructed model for scenario and decision analysis concerning forecasting the total percentage of the market share of the solar energy in Egypt by 2035 and using it as a stable renewable source for generating any type of energy needed. Also, it proved that whenever the use of the solar energy increases, the total costs decreases. Furthermore, we have identified different scenarios, such as the best, worst, 50/50, and most likely one, in terms of the expected changes in the percentage of the solar energy market share. The best scenario showed an 85% probability that the market share of the solar energy in Egypt will exceed 10% of the total energy market, while the worst scenario showed only a 24% probability that the market share of the solar energy in Egypt will exceed 10% of the total energy market. Furthermore, we applied policy analysis to check the effect of changing the controllable (decision) variable’s states acting as different scenarios, to show how it would affect the target nodes in the model. Additionally, the best environmental and economical scenarios were developed to show how other factors are expected to be, in order to affect the model positively. Additional evidence and derived probabilities were added for the weather dynamic nodes whose states depend on time, during the process of converting the Bayesian network into a dynamic Bayesian network.
Keywords: Bayesian network, Chebyshev, decision variable, dynamic Bayesian network, Z-distribution
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 5162631 Web-Based Instructional Program to Improve Professional Development: Recommendations and Standards for Radioactive Facilities in Brazil
Authors: Denise Levy, Gian M. A. A. Sordi
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This web based project focuses on continuing corporate education and improving workers' skills in Brazilian radioactive facilities throughout the country. The potential of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) shall contribute to improve the global communication in this very large country, where it is a strong challenge to ensure high quality professional information to as many people as possible. The main objective of this system is to provide Brazilian radioactive facilities a complete web-based repository - in Portuguese - for research, consultation and information, offering conditions for learning and improving professional and personal skills. UNIPRORAD is a web based system to offer unified programs and inter-related information about radiological protection programs. The content includes the best practices for radioactive facilities in order to meet both national standards and international recommendations published by different organizations over the past decades: International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP), International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and National Nuclear Energy Commission (CNEN). The website counts on concepts, definitions and theory about optimization and ionizing radiation monitoring procedures. Moreover, the content presents further discussions related to some national and international recommendations, such as potential exposure, which is currently one of the most important research fields in radiological protection. Only two publications of ICRP develop expressively the issue and there is still a lack of knowledge of fail probabilities, for there are still uncertainties to find effective paths to quantify probabilistically the occurrence of potential exposures and the probabilities to reach a certain level of dose. To respond to this challenge, this project discusses and introduces potential exposures in a more quantitative way than national and international recommendations. Articulating ICRP and AIEA valid recommendations and official reports, in addition to scientific papers published in major international congresses, the website discusses and suggests a number of effective actions towards safety which can be incorporated into labor practice. The WEB platform was created according to corporate public needs, taking into account the development of a robust but flexible system, which can be easily adapted to future demands. ICTs provide a vast array of new communication capabilities and allow to spread information to as many people as possible at low costs and high quality communication. This initiative shall provide opportunities for employees to increase professional skills, stimulating development in this large country where it is an enormous challenge to ensure effective and updated information to geographically distant facilities, minimizing costs and optimizing results.
Keywords: Distance learning, information and communication technology, nuclear science, radioactive facilities.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 12792630 Augmented Reality in Schools: Preliminary Evaluation Results from a Summer School
Authors: Alexandru Balog, Costin Pribeanu, Dragos Iordache
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Formative usability evaluation aims at finding usability problems during the development process. The earlier these problems are identified, the less expensive to fix they are. This paper presents some preliminary results from a formative usability testing of the 1st prototype developed for the ARiSE (Augmented Reality in School Environments) project.Keywords: AR-based educational systems, formative evaluation, usability evaluation, user testing.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 25602629 Two-Level Identification of HVAC Consumers for Demand Response Potential Estimation Based on Setpoint Change
Authors: M. Naserian, M. Jooshaki, M. Fotuhi-Firuzabad, M. Hossein Mohammadi Sanjani, A. Oraee
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In recent years, the development of communication infrastructure and smart meters have facilitated the utilization of demand-side resources which can enhance stability and economic efficiency of power systems. Direct load control programs can play an important role in the utilization of demand-side resources in the residential sector. However, investments required for installing control equipment can be a limiting factor in the development of such demand response programs. Thus, selection of consumers with higher potentials is crucial to the success of a direct load control program. Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems, which due to the heat capacity of buildings feature relatively high flexibility, make up a major part of household consumption. Considering that the consumption of HVAC systems depends highly on the ambient temperature and bearing in mind the high investments required for control systems enabling direct load control demand response programs, in this paper, a solution is presented to uncover consumers with high air conditioner demand among a large number of consumers and to measure the demand response potential of such consumers. This can pave the way for estimating the investments needed for the implementation of direct load control programs for residential HVAC systems and for estimating the demand response potentials in a distribution system. In doing so, we first cluster consumers into several groups based on the correlation coefficients between hourly consumption data and hourly temperature data using K-means algorithm. Then, by applying a recent algorithm to the hourly consumption and temperature data, consumers with high air conditioner consumption are identified. Finally, demand response potential of such consumers is estimated based on the equivalent desired temperature setpoint changes.
Keywords: Data-driven analysis, demand response, direct load control, HVAC system.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2512628 Study on Changes of Land Use impacting the Process of Urbanization, by Using Landsat Data in African Regions: A Case Study in Kigali, Rwanda
Authors: Delphine Mukaneza, Lin Qiao, Wang Pengxin, Li Yan, Chen Yingyi
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Human activities on land use make the land-cover gradually change or transit. In this study, we examined the use of Landsat TM data to detect the land use change of Kigali between 1987 and 2009 using remote sensing techniques and analysis of data using ENVI and ArcGIS, a GIS software. Six different categories of land use were distinguished: bare soil, built up land, wetland, water, vegetation, and others. With remote sensing techniques, we analyzed land use data in 1987, 1999 and 2009, changed areas were found and a dynamic situation of land use in Kigali city was found during the 22 years studied. According to relevant Landsat data, the research focused on land use change in accordance with the role of remote sensing in the process of urbanization. The result of the work has shown the rapid increase of built up land between 1987 and 1999 and a big decrease of vegetation caused by the rebuild of the city after the 1994 genocide, while in the period of 1999 to 2009 there was a reduction in built up land and vegetation, after the authority of Kigali city established, a Master Plan where all constructions which were not in the range of the master Plan were destroyed. Rwanda's capital, Kigali City, through the expansion of the urban area, it is increasing the internal employment rate and attracts business investors and the service sector to improve their economy, which will increase the population growth and provide a better life. The overall planning of the city of Kigali considers the environment, land use, infrastructure, cultural and socio-economic factors, the economic development and population forecast, urban development, and constraints specification. To achieve the above purpose, the Government has set for the overall planning of city Kigali, different stages of the detailed description of the design, strategy and action plan that would guide Kigali planners and members of the public in the future to have more detailed regional plans and practical measures. Thus, land use change is significantly the performance of Kigali active human area, which plays an important role for the country to take certain decisions. Another area to take into account is the natural situation of Kigali city. Agriculture in the region does not occupy a dominant position, and with the population growth and socio-economic development, the construction area will gradually rise and speed up the process of urbanization. Thus, as a developing country, Rwanda's population continues to grow and there is low rate of utilization of land, where urbanization remains low. As mentioned earlier, the 1994 genocide massacres, population growth and urbanization processes, have been the factors driving the dramatic changes in land use. The focus on further research would be on analysis of Rwanda’s natural resources, social and economic factors that could be, the driving force of land use change.Keywords: Land use change, urbanization, Kigali City, Landsat.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 10672627 A Global Framework to Manage the Digital Transformation Process in the Post-COVID Era
Authors: Driss Kettani
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In this paper, we shed light on the “Digital Divide 2.0,” which we see as COVID-19’s version of the digital divide. We believe that “fighting” against digital divide 2.0 necessitates for a country to be seriously advanced in the global digital transformation that is, naturally, a complex, delicate, costly and long-term process. We build an argument supporting our assumption and, from there, we present the foundations of a computational framework to guide and streamline digital transformation at all levels.
Keywords: Digital divide 2.0, digital transformation, ICTs for development, computational outcomes assessment.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 4362626 A Design Methodology and Tool to Support Ecodesign Implementation in Induction Hobs
Authors: Anna Costanza Russo, Daniele Landi, Michele Germani
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Nowadays, the European Ecodesign Directive has emerged as a new approach to integrate environmental concerns into the product design and related processes. Ecodesign aims to minimize environmental impacts throughout the product life cycle, without compromising performances and costs. In addition, the recent Ecodesign Directives require products which are increasingly eco-friendly and eco-efficient, preserving high-performances. It is very important for producers measuring performances, for electric cooking ranges, hobs, ovens, and grills for household use, and a low power consumption of appliances represents a powerful selling point, also in terms of ecodesign requirements. The Ecodesign Directive provides a clear framework about the sustainable design of products and it has been extended in 2009 to all energy-related products, or products with an impact on energy consumption during the use. The European Regulation establishes measures of ecodesign of ovens, hobs, and kitchen hoods, and domestic use and energy efficiency of a product has a significant environmental aspect in the use phase which is the most impactful in the life cycle. It is important that the product parameters and performances are not affected by ecodesign requirements from a user’s point of view, and the benefits of reducing energy consumption in the use phase should offset the possible environmental impact in the production stage. Accurate measurements of cooking appliance performance are essential to help the industry to produce more energy efficient appliances. The development of ecodriven products requires ecoinnovation and ecodesign tools to support the sustainability improvement. The ecodesign tools should be practical and focused on specific ecoobjectives in order to be largely diffused. The main scope of this paper is the development, implementation, and testing of an innovative tool, which could be an improvement for the sustainable design of induction hobs. In particular, a prototypical software tool is developed in order to simulate the energy performances of the induction hobs. The tool is focused on a multiphysics model which is able to simulate the energy performances and the efficiency of induction hobs starting from the design data. The multiphysics model is composed by an electromagnetic simulation and a thermal simulation. The electromagnetic simulation is able to calculate the eddy current induced in the pot, which leads to the Joule heating of material. The thermal simulation is able to measure the energy consumption during the operational phase. The Joule heating caused from the eddy currents is the output of electromagnetic simulation and the input of thermal ones. The aims of the paper are the development of integrated tools and methodologies of virtual prototyping in the context of the ecodesign. This tool could be a revolutionary instrument in the field of industrial engineering and it gives consideration to the environmental aspects of product design and focus on the ecodesign of energy-related products, in order to achieve a reduced environmental impact.
Keywords: Ecodesign, induction hobs, virtual prototyping, energy efficiency.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 12782625 Evaluation of Static Modulus of Elasticity Depending on Concrete Compressive Strength
Authors: K. Krizova, R. Hela
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The paper is focused on monitoring of dependencies of different composition concretes on elastic modulus values. To obtain a summary of elastic modulus development in dependence of concrete composition design variability was the objective of the experiment. Essential part of this work was initiated as a reaction to building practice when questions of elastic moduli arose at the same time and which mostly did not obtain the required and expected values from concrete constructions.Keywords: Concrete, Compressive strength, Modulus of elasticity, EuroCode 2.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 28612624 Challenges on Adopting Scrum for Distributed Teams in Home Office Environments
Authors: Marlon Luz, Daniel Gazineu, Mauro Teófilo
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This paper describes the two actual tendencies in the software development process usage: 'Scrum' and 'work in home office'. It-s exposed the four main challenges to adopt Scrum framework for distributed teams in this cited kind of work. The challenges are mainly based on the communication problems due distances since the Scrum encourages the team to work together in the same room, and this is not possible when people work distributed in their homes.Keywords: Agile, Scrum, Distributed Work, Home Office.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 24392623 Ergonomics and Its Applicability in the Design Process in Egypt Challenges and Prospects
Authors: Mohamed Moheyeldin Mahmoud
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Egypt suffers from a severe shortage of data and charts concerning the physical dimensions, measurements, qualities and consumer behavior. The shortage of needed information and appropriate methods has forced the Egyptian designer to use any other foreign standard when designing a product for the Egyptian consumer which has led to many problems. The urgently needed database concerning the physical specifications, measurements of the Egyptian consumers, as well as the need to support the Ergonomics given courses in many colleges and institutes with the latest technologies, is stated as the research problem. Descriptive analytical method relying on the compiling, comparing and analyzing of information and facts in order to get acceptable perceptions, ideas and considerations is the used methodology by the researcher. The research concludes that: 1. Good interaction relationship between users and products shows the success of that product. 2. An integration linkage between the most prominent fields of science specially Ergonomics, Interaction Design and Ethnography should be encouraged to provide an ultimately updated database concerning the nature, specifications and environment of the Egyptian consumer, in order to achieve a higher benefit for both user and product. 3. Chinese economic policy based on the study of market requirements long before any market activities should be emulated. 4. Using Ethnography supports the design activities creating new products or updating existent ones through measuring the compatibility of products with their environment and user expectations, While contracting a joint cooperation between military colleges, sports education institutes from one side, and design institutes from the other side to provide an ultimately updated (annually updated) database concerning some specifications about students of both sexes applying in those institutes (height, weight, etc.) to provide the Industrial designer with the needed information when creating a new product or updating an existing one concerning that category is recommended by the researcher.
Keywords: Adapt ergonomics, ethnography, interaction design.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 8172622 Stewardship of Urban Greenery in an Era of Global Urbanisation
Authors: Rhoda M. Darkwah, Patrick B. Cobbinah
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Urban greenery remains the bastion of urban landscape and a key to sustainable development due to its integral connections to the general health and wellbeing of urban residents. However, in an era of rapid urbanisation, recent studies indicate that urban greenery, especially ecologically sensitive areas, in many African cities is becoming increasingly depleted. Given the scale and rate of natural and anthropogenic change, effective management of urban greenery as the ultimate goal of restoring depleting urban landscapes is urgent. This review advocates for an urban resilience model to managing urban greenery.
Keywords: Green spaces, resilience, urbanisation, urban greenery.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 30342621 Collaborative Web-Based E-learning Environment for Information Security Curriculum
Authors: Wei Hu, Tianzhou Chen, Qingsong Shi
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In recent years, the development of e-learning is very rapid. E-learning is an attractive and efficient way for computer education. Student interaction and collaboration also plays an important role in e-learning. In this paper, a collaborative web-based e-learning environment is presented. A wide range of interactive and collaborative methods are integrated into a web-based environment. This e-learning environment is designed for information security curriculum.Keywords: E-learning, information Security, curriculum, web-based environment.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 17342620 Soil Quality State and Trends in New Zealand’s Largest City after 15 Years
Authors: Fiona Curran-Cournane
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Soil quality monitoring is a science-based soil management tool that assesses soil ecosystem health. A soil monitoring program in Auckland, New Zealand’s largest city extends from 1995 to the present. The objective of this study was to firstly determine changes in soil parameters (basic soil properties and heavy metals) that were assessed from rural land in 1995-2000 and repeated in 2008-2012. The second objective was to determine differences in soil parameters across various land uses including native bush, rural (horticulture, pasture and plantation forestry) and urban land uses using soil data collected in more recent years (2009- 2013). Across rural land, mean concentrations of Olsen P had significantly increased in the second sampling period and was identified as the indicator of most concern, followed by soil macroporosity, particularly for horticultural and pastoral land. Mean concentrations of Cd were also greatest for pastoral and horticultural land and a positive correlation existed between these two parameters, which highlights the importance of analysing basic soil parameters in conjunction with heavy metals. In contrast, mean concentrations of As, Cr, Pb, Ni and Zn were greatest for urban sites. Native bush sites had the lowest concentrations of heavy metals and were used to calculate a ‘pollution index’ (PI). The mean PI was classified as high (PI > 3) for Cd and Ni and moderate for Pb, Zn, Cr, Cu, As and Hg, indicating high levels of heavy metal pollution across both rural and urban soils. From a land use perspective, the mean ‘integrated pollution index’ was highest for urban sites at 2.9 followed by pasture, horticulture and plantation forests at 2.7, 2.6 and 0.9, respectively. It is recommended that soil sampling continues over time because a longer spanning record will allow further identification of where soil problems exist and where resources need to be targeted in the future. Findings from this study will also inform policy and science direction in regional councils.
Keywords: Heavy metals, Pollution Index, Rural and Urban land use.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 22162619 Development of 3D Laser Scanner for Robot Navigation
Authors: A. Emre Ozturk, Ergun Ercelebi
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Autonomous robotic systems need an equipment like a human eye for their movement. In this study a 3D laser scanner has been designed and implemented for those autonomous robotic systems. In general 3D laser scanners are using 2 dimension laser range finders that are moving on one-axis (1D) to generate the model. In this study, the model has been obtained by a one-dimensional laser range finder that is moving in two –axis (2D) and because of this the laser scanner has been produced cheaper.
Keywords: 3D Laser Scanner, embedded systems.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 24372618 A Generalized Framework for Working with Multiagent Systems
Authors: Debal Saha, NirmalBaranHui
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The present paper discusses the basic concepts and the underlying principles of Multi-Agent Systems (MAS) along with an interdisciplinary exploitation of these principles. It has been found that they have been utilized for lots of research and studies on various systems spanning across diverse engineering and scientific realms showing the need of development of a proper generalized framework. Such framework has been developed for the Multi-Agent Systems and it has been generalized keeping in mind the diverse areas where they find application. All the related aspects have been categorized and a general definition has been given where ever possible.
Keywords: Generalized framework, multiagent systems.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 17922617 Aligning IS Development with Users- Work Habits
Authors: Abbas Moshref Razavi, Rodina Ahmad
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As a primitive assumption, if a new information system is able to remind users their old work habits, it should have a better opportunity to be accepted, adopted and finally, utilized. In this paper some theoretical concepts borrowed from psychodynamic theory e.g. ego defenses are discussed to show how such resemblance can be made without necessarily affecting the performance of the new system. The main assertion is a new system should somehow imitate old work habits, not literally, but through following their paces in terms of the order of habitual tensional states including stimulation, defensive actions and satisfactions.Keywords: information Systems, users' habits, psychodynamic
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 13542616 Research on Software Security Testing
Authors: Gu Tian-yang, Shi Yin-sheng, Fang You-yuan
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Software security testing is an important means to ensure software security and trustiness. This paper first mainly discusses the definition and classification of software security testing, and investigates methods and tools of software security testing widely. Then it analyzes and concludes the advantages and disadvantages of various methods and the scope of application, presents a taxonomy of security testing tools. Finally, the paper points out future focus and development directions of software security testing technology.
Keywords: security testing, security functional testing, securityvulnerability testing, testing method, testing tool
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 51462615 Investigating the Role of Community in Heritage Conservation through the Ladder of Citizen Participation Approach: Case Study, Port Said, Egypt
Authors: Sara S. Fouad, Omneya Messallam
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Egypt has countless prestigious buildings and diversity of cultural heritage which are located in many cities. Most of the researchers, archaeologists, stakeholders and governmental bodies are paying more attention to the big cities such as Cairo and Alexandria, due to the country’s centralization nature. However, there are other historic cities that are grossly neglected and in need of emergency conservation. For instance, Port Said which is a former colonial city that was established in nineteenth century located at the edge of the northeast Egyptian coast between the Mediterranean Sea and the Suez Canal. This city is chosen because it presents one of the important Egyptian archaeological sites that archive Egyptian architecture of the 19th and 20th centuries. The historic urban fabric is divided into three main districts; the Arab, the European (Al-Afrang), and Port Fouad. The European district is selected to be the research case study as it has culture diversity, significant buildings, and includes the largest number of the listed heritage buildings in Port Said. Based on questionnaires and interviews, since 2003 several initiative trials have been taken by Alliance Francaise, the National Organization for Urban Harmony (NOUH), some Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), and few number of community residents to highlight the important city legacy and protect it from being demolished. Unfortunately, the limitation of their participation in decision-making policies is considered a crucial threat facing sustainable heritage conservation. Therefore, encouraging the local community to participate in their architecture heritage conservation would create a self-confident one, capable of making decisions for the city’s future development. This paper aims to investigate the role of the local inhabitants in protecting their buildings heritage through listing the community level of participations twice (2012 and 2018) in preserving their heritage based on the ladder citizen participation approach. Also, it is to encourage community participation in order to promote city architecture conservation, heritage management, and sustainable development. The methodology followed in this empirical research involves using several data assembly methods such as structural observations, questionnaires, interviews, and mental mapping. The questionnaire was distributed among 92 local inhabitants aged 18-60 years. However, the outset of this research at the beginning demonstrated the majority negative attitude, motivation, and confidence of the local inhabitants’ role to safeguard their architectural heritage. Over time, there was a change in the negative attitudes. Therefore, raising public awareness and encouraging community participation by providing them with a real opportunity to take part in the decision-making. This may lead to a positive relationship between the community residents and the built heritage, which is essential for promoting its preservation and sustainable development.
Keywords: Al-Afrang/Port Said, community participation, heritage conservation, ladder of citizen participation, NGOs.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 14982614 Language Politics and Identity in Translation: From a Monolingual Text to Multilingual Text in Chinese Translations
Authors: Chu-Ching Hsu
Abstract:
This paper focuses on how the government-led language policies and the political changes in Taiwan manipulate the languages choice in translations and what translation strategies are employed by the translator to show his or her language ideology behind the power struggles and decision-making. Therefore, framed by Lefevere’s theoretical concept of translating as rewriting, and carried out a diachronic and chronological study, this paper specifically sets out to investigate the language ideology and translator’s idiolect of Chinese language translations of Anglo-American novels. The examples drawn to explore these issues were taken from different versions of Chinese renditions of Mark Twain’s English-language novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in which there are several different dialogues originally written in the colloquial language and dialect used in the American state of Mississippi and reproduced in Mark Twain’s works. Also, adapted corpus methodology, many examples are extracted as instances from the translated texts and source text, to illuminate how the translators in Taiwan deal with the dialectal features encoded in Twain’s works, and how different versions of Chinese translations are employed by Taiwanese translators to confirm the language polices and to express their language identity textually in different periods of the past five decades, from the 1960s onward. The finding of this study suggests that the use of Taiwanese dialect and language patterns in translations does relate to the movement of the mother-tongue language and language ideology of the translator as well as to the issue of language identity raised in the island of Taiwan. Furthermore, this study confirms that the change of political power in Taiwan does bring significantly impact in language policy-- assimilationism, pluralism or multiculturalism, which also makes Taiwan from a monolingual to multilingual society, where the language ideology and identity can be revealed not only in people’s daily communication but also in written translations.
Keywords: Language politics and policies, literary translation, mother-tongue, multiculturalism, translator’s ideology.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 11342613 Social Anthropology of Convergence and Nomadic Computing
Authors: Emilia Nercissians
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The paper attempts to contribute to the largely neglected social and anthropological discussion of technology development on the one hand, and to redirecting the emphasis in anthropology from primitive and exotic societies to problems of high relevance in contemporary era and how technology is used in everyday life. It draws upon multidimensional models of intelligence and ideal type formation. It is argued that the predominance of computational and cognitive cosmovisions have led to technology alienation. Injection of communicative competence in artificially intelligent systems and identity technologies in the coming information society are analyzedKeywords: convergence, nomadic computing, solidarity, status.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 15082612 Promoting Creative and Critical Thinking in Mathematics: An Exploratory Study
Abstract:
The Japanese art of origami provides a rich context for designing exploratory mathematical activities for children and young people. By folding a simple sheet of paper, fascinating and surprising planar and spatial configurations emerge. Equally surprising is the unfolding process, which also produces striking patterns. The procedure of folding, unfolding, and folding again allows the exploration of interesting geometric patterns. When adequately and systematically done, we may deduce some of the mathematical rules ruling origami. As the child/youth folds the sheet of paper repeatedly, he can physically observe how the forms he obtains are transformed and how they relate to the pattern of the corresponding unfolding, creating space for the understanding/discovery of mathematical principles regulating the folding-unfolding process. As part of a 2023 Summer Academy organized by a Portuguese university, a session entitled “Folding, Thinking and Generalizing” took place. 23 students attended the session, all enrolled in the 2nd cycle of Portuguese Basic Education and aged between 10 and 12 years old. The main focus of this session was to foster the development of critical cognitive and socio-emotional skills among these young learners, using origami. These skills included creativity, critical analysis, mathematical reasoning, collaboration, and communication. Employing a qualitative, descriptive, and interpretative analysis of data, collected during the session through field notes and students’ written productions, our findings reveal that structured origami-based activities not only promote student engagement with mathematical concepts in a playful and interactive but also facilitate the development of socio-emotional skills, which include collaboration and effective communication between participants. This research highlights the value of integrating origami into educational practices, highlighting its role in supporting comprehensive cognitive and emotional learning experiences.
Keywords: Active learning, hands-on activities, origami, creativity, critical thinking.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1572611 Lyric Poetry and the Motives in the Works of Poets of Syr Darya River Vicinity
Authors: Nuraddin Sadykov, Saule Erzhanova, Akmaral Dalelbekkyzy, Mukhit Tolegenov
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This article provides a comparative analysis of poetries of diverse nations around the world while largely focusing on Kazakh lyric poetry (Kazakh zhyraulyq oneri). Alongside, it sheds the light to the historical development and contemporary progress path of foremost poetry school located along the Syr Darya coast. Hereby, it-s content and central motives are examined.
Keywords: Lyric poetry (zhyraulyq oner), poet-musician (zhyrshy), Sufi tradition (sopylyq dastur), hermeneutics (germenevtica).
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 17562610 Mechanism of Changing a Product Concept
Authors: Kiyohiro Yamazaki
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The purpose of this paper is to examine the hypothesis explaining the mechanism in the case, where the product is deleted or reduced the fundamental function of the product through the product concept changes in the digital camera industry. This paper points out not owning the fundamental technology might cause the change of the product concept. Casio could create new competitive factor so that this paper discusses a possibility of the mechanism of changing the product concept.
Keywords: Casio, digital camera, mechanism, product concept, product development process.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1835