Search results for: Directed diffusion
321 On a Negative Relation between Bacterial Taxis and Turing Pattern Formation
Authors: A. Elragig, S. Townley, H. Dreiwi
Abstract:
In this paper we introduce a bacteria-leukocyte model with bacteria chemotaxsis. We assume that bacteria develop a tactic defence mechanism as a response to Leukocyte phagocytosis. We explore the effect of this tactic motion on Turing space in two parameter spaces. A fine tuning of bacterial chemotaxis shows a significant effect on developing a non-uniform steady state.
Keywords: Chemotaxis-diffusion driven instability, bacterial chemotaxis.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1778320 Evaluating Performance of Quality-of-Service Routing in Large Networks
Authors: V. Narasimha Raghavan, M. Venkatesh, T. Peer Meera Labbai, Praveen Dwarakanath Prabhu
Abstract:
The performance and complexity of QoS routing depends on the complex interaction between a large set of parameters. This paper investigated the scaling properties of source-directed link-state routing in large core networks. The simulation results show that the routing algorithm, network topology, and link cost function each have a significant impact on the probability of successfully routing new connections. The experiments confirm and extend the findings of other studies, and also lend new insight designing efficient quality-of-service routing policies in large networks.
Keywords: QoS, Link-State Routing, Dijkstra, Path Selection, Path Computation.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1581319 All-Pairs Shortest-Paths Problem for Unweighted Graphs in O(n2 log n) Time
Authors: Udaya Kumar Reddy K. R, K. Viswanathan Iyer
Abstract:
Given a simple connected unweighted undirected graph G = (V (G), E(G)) with |V (G)| = n and |E(G)| = m, we present a new algorithm for the all-pairs shortest-path (APSP) problem. The running time of our algorithm is in O(n2 log n). This bound is an improvement over previous best known O(n2.376) time bound of Raimund Seidel (1995) for general graphs. The algorithm presented does not rely on fast matrix multiplication. Our algorithm with slight modifications, enables us to compute the APSP problem for unweighted directed graph in time O(n2 log n), improving a previous best known O(n2.575) time bound of Uri Zwick (2002).
Keywords: Distance in graphs, Dynamic programming, Graphalgorithms, Shortest paths.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 3690318 Adolescents’ Role in Family Buying Decision Making
Authors: Harleen Kaur, Deepika Jindal Singla
Abstract:
Buying decision making is a complicated process, in which consumer’s decision is under the impact of others. The buying decision making is directed in a way that they have to act as customers in the society. Media and family are key socialising agents for adolescents’. Moreover, changes in the socio-cultural environment in India necessitate that adolescents’ influence in family’s buying decision-making should be investigated. In comparison to Western society, Indian is quite different, when compared in terms of family composition and structure, behaviour, values and norms which effect adolescents’ buying decision-making.
Keywords: Adolescents’, buying behaviour, Indian urban families, consumer socialization.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 930317 Automatic Generation of Ontology from Data Source Directed by Meta Models
Authors: Widad Jakjoud, Mohamed Bahaj, Jamal Bakkas
Abstract:
Through this paper we present a method for automatic generation of ontological model from any data source using Model Driven Architecture (MDA), this generation is dedicated to the cooperation of the knowledge engineering and software engineering. Indeed, reverse engineering of a data source generates a software model (schema of data) that will undergo transformations to generate the ontological model. This method uses the meta-models to validate software and ontological models.
Keywords: Meta model, model, ontology, data source.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1998316 FPGA Implementation of RSA Encryption Algorithm for E-Passport Application
Authors: Khaled Shehata, Hanady Hussien, Sara Yehia
Abstract:
Securing the data stored on E-passport is a very important issue. RSA encryption algorithm is suitable for such application with low data size. In this paper the design and implementation of 1024 bit-key RSA encryption and decryption module on an FPGA is presented. The module is verified through comparing the result with that obtained from MATLAB tools. The design runs at a frequency of 36.3 MHz on Virtex-5 Xilinx FPGA. The key size is designed to be 1024-bit to achieve high security for the passport information. The whole design is achieved through VHDL design entry which makes it a portable design and can be directed to any hardware platform.
Keywords: RSA, VHDL, FPGA, modular multiplication, modular exponential.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 5416315 A Qualitative Description of the Dynamics in the Interactions between Three Populations: Pollinators, Plants, and Herbivores
Authors: Miriam Sosa-Díaz, Faustino Sánchez-Garduño
Abstract:
In population dynamics the study of both, the abundance and the spatial distribution of the populations in a given habitat, is a fundamental issue a From ecological point of view, the determination of the factors influencing such changes involves important problems. In this paper a mathematical model to describe the temporal dynamic and the spatiotemporal dynamic of the interaction of three populations (pollinators, plants and herbivores) is presented. The study we present is carried out by stages: 1. The temporal dynamics and 2. The spatio-temporal dynamics. In turn, each of these stages is developed by considering three cases which correspond to the dynamics of each type of interaction. For instance, for stage 1, we consider three ODE nonlinear systems describing the pollinator-plant, plant-herbivore and plant-pollinator-herbivore, interactions, respectively. In each of these systems different types of dynamical behaviors are reported. Namely, transcritical and pitchfork bifurcations, existence of a limit cycle, existence of a heteroclinic orbit, etc. For the spatiotemporal dynamics of the two mathematical models a novel factor are introduced. This consists in considering that both, the pollinators and the herbivores, move towards those places of the habitat where the plant population density is high. In mathematical terms, this means that the diffusive part of the pollinators and herbivores equations depend on the plant population density. The analysis of this part is presented by considering pairs of populations, i. e., the pollinator-plant and plant-herbivore interactions and at the end the two mathematical model is presented, these models consist of two coupled nonlinear partial differential equations of reaction-diffusion type. These are defined on a rectangular domain with the homogeneous Neumann boundary conditions. We focused in the role played by the density dependent diffusion term into the coexistence of the populations. For both, the temporal and spatio-temporal dynamics, a several of numerical simulations are included.Keywords: Bifurcation, heteroclinic orbits, steady state, traveling wave.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1497314 A Grid-based Neural Network Framework for Multimodal Biometrics
Authors: Sitalakshmi Venkataraman
Abstract:
Recent scientific investigations indicate that multimodal biometrics overcome the technical limitations of unimodal biometrics, making them ideally suited for everyday life applications that require a reliable authentication system. However, for a successful adoption of multimodal biometrics, such systems would require large heterogeneous datasets with complex multimodal fusion and privacy schemes spanning various distributed environments. From experimental investigations of current multimodal systems, this paper reports the various issues related to speed, error-recovery and privacy that impede the diffusion of such systems in real-life. This calls for a robust mechanism that caters to the desired real-time performance, robust fusion schemes, interoperability and adaptable privacy policies. The main objective of this paper is to present a framework that addresses the abovementioned issues by leveraging on the heterogeneous resource sharing capacities of Grid services and the efficient machine learning capabilities of artificial neural networks (ANN). Hence, this paper proposes a Grid-based neural network framework for adopting multimodal biometrics with the view of overcoming the barriers of performance, privacy and risk issues that are associated with shared heterogeneous multimodal data centres. The framework combines the concept of Grid services for reliable brokering and privacy policy management of shared biometric resources along with a momentum back propagation ANN (MBPANN) model of machine learning for efficient multimodal fusion and authentication schemes. Real-life applications would be able to adopt the proposed framework to cater to the varying business requirements and user privacies for a successful diffusion of multimodal biometrics in various day-to-day transactions.Keywords: Back Propagation, Grid Services, MultimodalBiometrics, Neural Networks.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1917313 On the Fast Convergence of DD-LMS DFE Using a Good Strategy Initialization
Authors: Y.Ben Jemaa, M.Jaidane
Abstract:
In wireless communication system, a Decision Feedback Equalizer (DFE) to cancel the intersymbol interference (ISI) is required. In this paper, an exact convergence analysis of the (DFE) adapted by the Least Mean Square (LMS) algorithm during the training phase is derived by taking into account the finite alphabet context of data transmission. This allows us to determine the shortest training sequence that allows to reach a given Mean Square Error (MSE). With the intention of avoiding the problem of ill-convergence, the paper proposes an initialization strategy for the blind decision directed (DD) algorithm. This then yields a semi-blind DFE with high speed and good convergence.
Keywords: Adaptive Decision Feedback Equalizer, PerformanceAnalysis, Finite Alphabet Case, Ill-Convergence, Convergence speed.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2071312 The Differential Transform Method for Advection-Diffusion Problems
Authors: M. F. Patricio, P. M. Rosa
Abstract:
In this paper a class of numerical methods to solve linear and nonlinear PDEs and also systems of PDEs is developed. The Differential Transform method associated with the Method of Lines (MoL) is used. The theory for linear problems is extended to the nonlinear case, and a recurrence relation is established. This method can achieve an arbitrary high-order accuracy in time. A variable stepsize algorithm and some numerical results are also presented.
Keywords: Method of Lines, Differential Transform Method.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1744311 Active Learning in Computer Exercises on Electronics
Authors: Zoja Raud, Valery Vodovozov
Abstract:
Modelling and simulation provide effective way to acquire engineering experience. An active approach to modelling and simulation proposed in the paper involves, beside the compulsory part directed by the traditional step-by-step instructions, the new optional part basing on the human’s habits to design thus stimulating the efforts towards success in active learning. Computer exercises as a part of engineering curriculum incorporate a set of effective activities. In addition to the knowledge acquired in theoretical training, the described educational arrangement helps to develop problem solutions, computation skills, and experimentation performance along with enhancement of practical experience and qualification.
Keywords: Modelling, simulation, engineering education, electronics, active learning.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2367310 Stability of Interconnected Systems under Structural Perturbation: Decomposition-Aggregation Approach
Authors: M. Kidouche, H. Habbi, M. Zelmat
Abstract:
In this paper, the decomposition-aggregation method is used to carry out connective stability criteria for general linear composite system via aggregation. The large scale system is decomposed into a number of subsystems. By associating directed graphs with dynamic systems in an essential way, we define the relation between system structure and stability in the sense of Lyapunov. The stability criteria is then associated with the stability and system matrices of subsystems as well as those interconnected terms among subsystems using the concepts of vector differential inequalities and vector Lyapunov functions. Then, we show that the stability of each subsystem and stability of the aggregate model imply connective stability of the overall system. An example is reported, showing the efficiency of the proposed technique.Keywords: Composite system, Connective stability, Lyapunovfunctions.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1505309 Sampling Effects on Secondary Voltage Control of Microgrids Based on Network of Multiagent
Authors: M. J. Park, S. H. Lee, C. H. Lee, O. M. Kwon
Abstract:
This paper studies a secondary voltage control framework of the microgrids based on the consensus for a communication network of multiagent. The proposed control is designed by the communication network with one-way links. The communication network is modeled by a directed graph. At this time, the concept of sampling is considered as the communication constraint among each distributed generator in the microgrids. To analyze the sampling effects on the secondary voltage control of the microgrids, by using Lyapunov theory and some mathematical techniques, the sufficient condition for such problem will be established regarding linear matrix inequality (LMI). Finally, some simulation results are given to illustrate the necessity of the consideration of the sampling effects on the secondary voltage control of the microgrids.Keywords: Microgrids, secondary control, multiagent, sampling, LMI.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1450308 Chain Extender on Property Relationships of Polyurethane Derived from Soybean Oil
Authors: Flora Elvistia Firdaus
Abstract:
Polyurethane foams (PUF) has been prepared from vegetable; soybean based polyols. They were characterized into flexible and semi rigid polyurethane foam. This work is directed to production of flexible polyurethane foams by a process involving the reaction of mixture of 2,4- and 2,6-Toluene di Isocyanate isomers, with portion of to blends of soy polyols with petroleum polyol in the presence of other ingredients such as blowing agents, silicone surfactants and accelerating agents. Additon of chain extender improves the property then further decreases the properties on further addition of the same. The objective of this work was to study the effect of chain extender and role of phosphoric acid catalyst to the final properties and correlate the morphology image with mechanical properties of these foams.Keywords: polyurethane, soy polyol, chain extender
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 4040307 A Problem in Microstretch Thermoelastic Diffusive Medium
Authors: Devinder Singh, Arbind Kumar, Rajneesh Kumar
Abstract:
The general solution of the equations for a homogeneous isotropic microstretch thermo elastic medium with mass diffusion for two dimensional problems is obtained due to normal and tangential forces. The Integral transform technique is used to obtain the components of displacements, microrotation, stress and mass concentration, temperature change and mass concentration. A particular case of interest is deduced from the present investigation.
Keywords: Normal and tangential force, Microstretch, thermoelastic, The Integral transform technique.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2298306 Re-Engineering the Human: New Reproductive Technologies and the Specter of Frankenstein
Authors: Brian P. Bloomfield, Theo Vurdubakis
Abstract:
The virulent debates that have dogged research on, and the diffusion of, a wide range of technologies indicate a growing loss of confidence in what we might call, the techno-scientific endeavour to reshape the world. Utopian images of a world rendered ever more amenable to human desires are now closely shadowed by just as compelling dystopian visions of monstrosity and disaster that are nevertheless constructed from the same cultural material. The paper uses the case of the debates over developments in reproductive technology to offer some observations on the ways in which such technologies routinely become enmirred in cultural ambivalence.Keywords: Culture, media, new reproductive technologies, society.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1720305 The PARADIGMA Approach for Cooperative Work in the Medical Domain
Authors: Antonio Di Leva, Carla Reyneri, Michele Sonnessa
Abstract:
PARADIGMA (PARticipative Approach to DIsease Global Management) is a pilot project which aims to develop and demonstrate an Internet based reference framework to share scientific resources and findings in the treatment of major diseases. PARADIGMA defines and disseminates a common methodology and optimised protocols (Clinical Pathways) to support service functions directed to patients and individuals on matters like prevention, posthospitalisation support and awareness. PARADIGMA will provide a platform of information services - user oriented and optimised against social, cultural and technological constraints - supporting the Health Care Global System of the Euro-Mediterranean Community in a continuous improvement process.Keywords: Decision Support Systems, Ontology, Healt Care, Clinical Pathway
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1393304 Haar Wavelet Method for Solving Fitz Hugh-Nagumo Equation
Authors: G.Hariharan, K.Kannan
Abstract:
In this paper, we develop an accurate and efficient Haar wavelet method for well-known FitzHugh-Nagumo equation. The proposed scheme can be used to a wide class of nonlinear reaction-diffusion equations. The power of this manageable method is confirmed. Moreover the use of Haar wavelets is found to be accurate, simple, fast, flexible, convenient, small computation costs and computationally attractive.
Keywords: FitzHugh-Nagumo equation, Haar wavelet method, adomain decomposition method, computationally attractive.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2781303 The Bodybuilding Passage to the Act of the Adolescent
Authors: L. Chikhani, H. Issa
Abstract:
Objective: this work focuses on bodybuilding as narcissistic inscription of the relational dynamic of the ego and the body, in this sense we think that this symptomatic adolescent act highlights a defective image of the body, leading, by a sadistic passage exercized on the split body, to an Ego/body-ideal. Method: Semi structured interviews with 16 adolescents between 15 and 18 years old allowed us to highlight a lexical field related to the body and the excessiveness in sports;also, the administration of TAT to a bodybuilder (17 years old) for more than 2 years. Results: - Defectiveness in the structuration of the body image; the future bodybuilder will be fixated to the image of the narcissistic misrecognition. - Unsatisfying object relation, implicating incompleteness in the process of subjectivation. - Narcissistic and corporealizedego ideal leading the adolescent to a sadistic pathology directed toward one-s own body as a compensatory defense.
Keywords: Bodybuilding, body image, narcissism, object relation.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2804302 On the Construction of Lightweight Circulant Maximum Distance Separable Matrices
Authors: Qinyi Mei, Li-Ping Wang
Abstract:
MDS matrices are of great significance in the design of block ciphers and hash functions. In the present paper, we investigate the problem of constructing MDS matrices which are both lightweight and low-latency. We propose a new method of constructing lightweight MDS matrices using circulant matrices which can be implemented efficiently in hardware. Furthermore, we provide circulant MDS matrices with as few bit XOR operations as possible for the classical dimensions 4 × 4, 8 × 8 over the space of linear transformations over finite field F42 . In contrast to previous constructions of MDS matrices, our constructions have achieved fewer XORs.Keywords: Linear diffusion layer, circulant matrix, lightweight, MDS matrix.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 853301 A Similarity Measure for Clustering and its Applications
Authors: Guadalupe J. Torres, Ram B. Basnet, Andrew H. Sung, Srinivas Mukkamala, Bernardete M. Ribeiro
Abstract:
This paper introduces a measure of similarity between two clusterings of the same dataset produced by two different algorithms, or even the same algorithm (K-means, for instance, with different initializations usually produce different results in clustering the same dataset). We then apply the measure to calculate the similarity between pairs of clusterings, with special interest directed at comparing the similarity between various machine clusterings and human clustering of datasets. The similarity measure thus can be used to identify the best (in terms of most similar to human) clustering algorithm for a specific problem at hand. Experimental results pertaining to the text categorization problem of a Portuguese corpus (wherein a translation-into-English approach is used) are presented, as well as results on the well-known benchmark IRIS dataset. The significance and other potential applications of the proposed measure are discussed.Keywords: Clustering Algorithms, Clustering Applications, Similarity Measures, Text Clustering
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1571300 Self-Reliant and Auto-Directed Learning: Modes, Elements, Fields and Scopes
Authors: H. Mashhady, B. Lotfi, M. Doosti, M. Fatollahi
Abstract:
An exploration of the related literature reveals that all instruction methods aim at training autonomous learners. After the turn of second language pedagogy toward learner-oriented strategies, learners’ needs were more focused. Yet; the historical, social and political aspects of learning were still neglected. The present study investigates the notion of autonomous learning and explains its various facets from a pedagogical point of view. Furthermore; different elements, fields and scopes of autonomous learning will be explored. After exploring different aspects of autonomy, it is postulated that liberatory autonomy is highlighted since it not only covers social autonomy but also reveals learners’ capabilities and human potentials. It is also recommended that learners consider different elements of autonomy such as motivation, knowledge, confidence, and skills.
Keywords: Critical pedagogy, social autonomy, academic learning, cultural notions.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2044299 The Role of Branding for Success in the Georgian Tea Market
Authors: Maia Seturi, Tamari Todua
Abstract:
Economic growth is seen as the increase in the production capacity of a country. It enables a country to produce more and more material wealth and social benefits. Today, the success of any product on the market is closely related to the issue of branding. The brand is a source of information for a user/consumer, which helps to simplify the choice of goods and reduce consumer risk. The paper studies the role of branding in order to promote Georgian tea brands. The main focus of the research is directed to consumer attitudes regarding Georgian tea brands. The methodology of the paper is based on marketing research. The findings study revealed that the majority of consumers prefer foreign tea brands. The final part of the article presents the main recommendations.
Keywords: Marketing research, customer behavior, brand, successful brand.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 720298 Cognition of Driving Context for Driving Assistance
Authors: Manolo Dulva Hina, Clement Thierry, Assia Soukane, Amar Ramdane-Cherif
Abstract:
In this paper, we presented our innovative way of determining the driving context for a driving assistance system. We invoke the fusion of all parameters that describe the context of the environment, the vehicle and the driver to obtain the driving context. We created a training set that stores driving situation patterns and from which the system consults to determine the driving situation. A machine-learning algorithm predicts the driving situation. The driving situation is an input to the fission process that yields the action that must be implemented when the driver needs to be informed or assisted from the given the driving situation. The action may be directed towards the driver, the vehicle or both. This is an ongoing work whose goal is to offer an alternative driving assistance system for safe driving, green driving and comfortable driving. Here, ontologies are used for knowledge representation.Keywords: Cognitive driving, intelligent transportation system, multimodal system, ontology, machine learning.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1459297 A Novel Approach of Route Choice in Stochastic Time-varying Networks
Authors: Siliang Wang, Minghui Wang
Abstract:
Many exist studies always use Markov decision processes (MDPs) in modeling optimal route choice in stochastic, time-varying networks. However, taking many variable traffic data and transforming them into optimal route decision is a computational challenge by employing MDPs in real transportation networks. In this paper we model finite horizon MDPs using directed hypergraphs. It is shown that the problem of route choice in stochastic, time-varying networks can be formulated as a minimum cost hyperpath problem, and it also can be solved in linear time. We finally demonstrate the significant computational advantages of the introduced methods.Keywords: Markov decision processes (MDPs), stochastictime-varying networks, hypergraphs, route choice.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1555296 The Cytotoxic Effect of PM 701 and its Fractions on Cell Proliferation of Breast Cancer Cells, McF7
Authors: Faten A. Khorshid
Abstract:
Breast cancer is the most common malignancy in the world among women. Many therapies have been designed to treat this disease. Mamectomy, chemotherapy and radiotherapy are still the main therapies of breast cancer. However, the results were unsatisfactory and still far from the ideal treatment. PM 701is a natural product, has anticancer activity. The bioactive fraction PMF and subfraction PMFK had been isolated from PM701. PM 701 and its fractions were proved to have a cytotoxic properties against different cancer cell lines. This article is directed for the further examination of lyophilized PM701 and its active fractions on the growth of breast cancer cells (MCF-7). PM 701, PMF or PMFK were adding to the cultural medium, where MCF-7 is incubated. PM 701, PMF or PMFK were able to inhibit significantly the proliferation of MCF-7 cells, Moreover these new agents were proved to induce apoptosis of the breast cancer cells; through its direct effect on the nuclei.Keywords: Anticancer agent, breast carcinoma, MCF-7 cell line, PM 701
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1857295 A Theoretical Framework for Rural Tourism Motivation Factors
Authors: N. P. Tsephe, S. D. Eyono Obono
Abstract:
Rural tourism has many economical, environmental, and socio-cultural benefits. However, the development of rural tourism compared to urban tourism is also faced with several challenges added to the disadvantages of rural tourism. The aim of this study is to design a model of the factors affecting the motivations of rural tourists, in an attempt to improve the understanding of rural tourism motivation for the development of that form of tourism. The proposed model is based on a sound theoretical framework. It was designed following a literature review of tourism motivation theoretical frameworks and of rural tourism motivation factors. The tourism motivation theoretical framework that fitted to the best all rural tourism motivation factors was then chosen as the basis for the proposed model. This study hence found that the push and pull tourism motivation framework and the inner and outer directed values theory are the most adequate theoretical frameworks for the modeling of rural tourism motivation.
Keywords: Motivation factors, rural tourism, tourism motivation theories.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 9420294 The Role of Food Labeling on Consumers’ Buying Decision: Georgian Case
Authors: Nugzar Todua
Abstract:
The paper studies the role of food labeling in order to promote healthy eating issue in Georgia. The main focus of the research is directed to consumer attitudes regarding food labeling. The methodology of the paper is based on the focus group work, as well as online and face to face surveys. The data analysis has been provided through ANOVA. The study proves that the impact of variables such as the interest, awareness, reliability, assurance and satisfaction of consumers' on buying decision, is statistically important. The study reveals that consumers’ perception regarding to food labeling is positive, but their level of knowledge and ability is rather low. It is urgent to strengthen marketing promotions strategies in the process of implementations of food security policy in Georgia.Keywords: Food labeling, buying decision, Georgian consumers, marketing research.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1062293 Entrepreneurial Activity - Indicator of Regional Development in Croatia
Authors: Svjetlana Letinić, Katarina Štavlić
Abstract:
Given that entrepreneurship is a very significant factor of regional development, it is necessary to approach systematically the development with measures of regional politics. According to international classification The Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS II), there are three regions in Croatia. The indicators of entrepreneurial activities on the national level of Croatia are analyzed in the paper, taking into consideration the results of referent research. The level of regional development is shown based on the analysis of entrepreneurs- operations. The results of the analysis show a very unfavorable situation in entrepreneurial activities on the national level of Croatia. The origin of this situation is to be found in the surroundings with an expressed inequality of regional development, which is caused by the non-existence of a strategically directed regional policy. In this paper recommendations which could contribute to the reduction of regional inequality in Croatia, have been made.
Keywords: indicators of entrepreneurial activity, regional development, regional inequity.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1675292 Effect of Gas-Diffusion Oxynitriding on Microstructure and Hardness of Ti-6Al-4V Alloys
Authors: Dong Bok Lee, Min Jung Kim
Abstract:
The commercially available titanium alloy, Ti-6Al-4V, was oxynitrided in the deoxygenated nitrogen gas at high temperatures followed by cooling in oxygen-containing nitrogen in order to analyze the influence of oxynitriding parameters on the phase modification, hardness, and the microstructural evolution of the oxynitrided coating. The surface microhardness of the oxynitrided alloy increased due to the strengthening effect of the formed titanium oxynitrides, TiNxOy. The maximum microhardness was obtained, when TiNxOy had near equiatomic composition of nitrogen and oxygen. It could be attained under the optimum oxygen partial pressure and temperature-time condition.
Keywords: Oxynitriding, surface microhardness, titanium alloys, Ti-6Al-4V.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1155