Search results for: Learning activities
953 Application of Neural Networks for 24-Hour-Ahead Load Forecasting
Authors: Fatemeh Mosalman Yazdi
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One of the most important requirements for the operation and planning activities of an electrical utility is the prediction of load for the next hour to several days out, known as short term load forecasting. This paper presents the development of an artificial neural network based short-term load forecasting model. The model can forecast daily load profiles with a load time of one day for next 24 hours. In this method can divide days of year with using average temperature. Groups make according linearity rate of curve. Ultimate forecast for each group obtain with considering weekday and weekend. This paper investigates effects of temperature and humidity on consuming curve. For forecasting load curve of holidays at first forecast pick and valley and then the neural network forecast is re-shaped with the new data. The ANN-based load models are trained using hourly historical. Load data and daily historical max/min temperature and humidity data. The results of testing the system on data from Yazd utility are reported.Keywords: Artificial neural network, Holiday forecasting, pickand valley load forecasting, Short-term load-forecasting.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2193952 The Impact of the Number of Neurons in the Hidden Layer on the Performance of MLP Neural Network: Application to the Fast Identification of Toxic Gases
Authors: Slimane Ouhmad, Abdellah Halimi
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In this work, neural networks methods MLP type were applied to a database from an array of six sensors for the detection of three toxic gases. The choice of the number of hidden layers and the weight values are influential on the convergence of the learning algorithm. We proposed, in this article, a mathematical formula to determine the optimal number of hidden layers and good weight values based on the method of back propagation of errors. The results of this modeling have improved discrimination of these gases and optimized the computation time. The model presented here has proven to be an effective application for the fast identification of toxic gases.
Keywords: Back-propagation, Computing time, Fast identification, MLP neural network, Number of neurons in the hidden layer.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2262951 Prediction Compressive Strength of Self-Compacting Concrete Containing Fly Ash Using Fuzzy Logic Inference System
Authors: O. Belalia Douma, B. Boukhatem, M. Ghrici
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Self-compacting concrete (SCC) developed in Japan in the late 80s has enabled the construction industry to reduce demand on the resources, improve the work condition and also reduce the impact of environment by elimination of the need for compaction. Fuzzy logic (FL) approaches has recently been used to model some of the human activities in many areas of civil engineering applications. Especially from these systems in the model experimental studies, very good results have been obtained. In the present study, a model for predicting compressive strength of SCC containing various proportions of fly ash, as partial replacement of cement has been developed by using Fuzzy Inference System (FIS). For the purpose of building this model, a database of experimental data were gathered from the literature and used for training and testing the model. The used data as the inputs of fuzzy logic models are arranged in a format of five parameters that cover the total binder content, fly ash replacement percentage, water content, superplasticizer and age of specimens. The training and testing results in the fuzzy logic model have shown a strong potential for predicting the compressive strength of SCC containing fly ash in the considered range.
Keywords: Self-compacting concrete, fly ash, strength prediction, fuzzy logic.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2851950 Discovery of Fuzzy Censored Production Rules from Large Set of Discovered Fuzzy if then Rules
Authors: Tamanna Siddiqui, M. Afshar Alam
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Censored Production Rule is an extension of standard production rule, which is concerned with problems of reasoning with incomplete information, subject to resource constraints and problem of reasoning efficiently with exceptions. A CPR has a form: IF A (Condition) THEN B (Action) UNLESS C (Censor), Where C is the exception condition. Fuzzy CPR are obtained by augmenting ordinary fuzzy production rule “If X is A then Y is B with an exception condition and are written in the form “If X is A then Y is B Unless Z is C. Such rules are employed in situation in which the fuzzy conditional statement “If X is A then Y is B" holds frequently and the exception condition “Z is C" holds rarely. Thus “If X is A then Y is B" part of the fuzzy CPR express important information while the unless part acts only as a switch that changes the polarity of “Y is B" to “Y is not B" when the assertion “Z is C" holds. The proposed approach is an attempt to discover fuzzy censored production rules from set of discovered fuzzy if then rules in the form: A(X) ÔçÆ B(Y) || C(Z).Keywords: Uncertainty Quantification, Fuzzy if then rules, Fuzzy Censored Production Rules, Learning algorithm.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1485949 Modeling and Simulation of Position Estimation of Switched Reluctance Motor with Artificial Neural Networks
Authors: Oguz Ustun, Erdal Bekiroglu
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In the present study, position estimation of switched reluctance motor (SRM) has been achieved on the basis of the artificial neural networks (ANNs). The ANNs can estimate the rotor position without using an extra rotor position sensor by measuring the phase flux linkages and phase currents. Flux linkage-phase current-rotor position data set and supervised backpropagation learning algorithm are used in training of the ANN based position estimator. A 4-phase SRM have been used to verify the accuracy and feasibility of the proposed position estimator. Simulation results show that the proposed position estimator gives precise and accurate position estimations for both under the low and high level reference speeds of the SRM
Keywords: Artificial neural networks, modeling andsimulation, position observer, switched reluctance motor.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2062948 A Fuzzy Approach to Liver Tumor Segmentation with Zernike Moments
Authors: Abder-Rahman Ali, Antoine Vacavant, Manuel Grand-Brochier, Adélaïde Albouy-Kissi, Jean-Yves Boire
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In this paper, we present a new segmentation approach for liver lesions in regions of interest within MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging). This approach, based on a two-cluster Fuzzy CMeans methodology, considers the parameter variable compactness to handle uncertainty. Fine boundaries are detected by a local recursive merging of ambiguous pixels with a sequential forward floating selection with Zernike moments. The method has been tested on both synthetic and real images. When applied on synthetic images, the proposed approach provides good performance, segmentations obtained are accurate, their shape is consistent with the ground truth, and the extracted information is reliable. The results obtained on MR images confirm such observations. Our approach allows, even for difficult cases of MR images, to extract a segmentation with good performance in terms of accuracy and shape, which implies that the geometry of the tumor is preserved for further clinical activities (such as automatic extraction of pharmaco-kinetics properties, lesion characterization, etc.).Keywords: Defuzzification, floating search, fuzzy clustering, Zernike moments.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2050947 Diversity and Structure of Trichoptera Communities and Water Quality Variables in Streams, Northern Thailand
Authors: T. Prommi, P. Thamsenanupap
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The influence of physicochemical water quality parameters on the abundance and diversity of caddisfly larvae was studied in seven sampling stations in Mae Tao and Mae Ku watersheds, Mae Sot District, Tak Province, northern Thailand. The streams: MK2 and MK8 as reference site, and impacted streams (MT1-MT5) were sampled bi-monthly during July 2011 to May 2012. A total of 4,584 individual of caddisfly larvae belonging to 10 family and 17 genera were found. The larvae of family Hydropsychidae were the most abundance, followed by Philopotamidae, Odontoceridae, and Leptoceridae, respectively. The genus Cheumatopsyche, Hydropsyche, and Chimarra were the most abundance genera in this study. Results of CCA ordination showed the total dissolved solids, sulfate, water temperature, dissolved oxygen and pH were the most important physicochemical factors to affect distribution of caddisflies communities. Changes in the caddisfly fauna may indicate changes in physicochemical factors owing to agricultural pollution, urbanization, or other human activities. Results revealed that the order Trichoptera, identified to species or genus, can be potentially used to assess environmental water quality status in freshwater ecosystems.Keywords: Caddisfly larvae, environmental variables, diversity, streams.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2120946 An Improved Scheduling Strategy in Cloud Using Trust Based Mechanism
Authors: D. Sumathi, P. Poongodi
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Cloud Computing refers to applications delivered as services over the internet, and the datacenters that provide those services with hardware and systems software. These were earlier referred to as Software as a Service (SaaS). Scheduling is justified by job components (called tasks), lack of information. In fact, in a large fraction of jobs from machine learning, bio-computing, and image processing domains, it is possible to estimate the maximum time required for a task in the job. This study focuses on Trust based scheduling to improve cloud security by modifying Heterogeneous Earliest Finish Time (HEFT) algorithm. It also proposes TR-HEFT (Trust Reputation HEFT) which is then compared to Dynamic Load Scheduling.Keywords: Software as a Service (SaaS), Trust, Heterogeneous Earliest Finish Time (HEFT) algorithm, Dynamic Load Scheduling.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2196945 Sustainable Urban Transport Management and Its Strategies
Authors: Touba Amirazodi
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Rapid process of urbanism development has increased the demand for some infrastructures such as supplying potable water, electricity network and transportation facilities and etc. Nonefficiency of the existing system with parallel managements of urban traffic management has increased the gap between supply and demand of traffic facilities. A sustainable transport system requires some activities more important than air pollution control, traffic or fuel consumption reduction and the studies show that there is no unique solution for solving complicated transportation problems and solving such a problem needs a comprehensive, dynamic and reliable mechanism. Sustainable transport management considers the effects of transportation development on economic efficiency, environmental issues, resources consumption, land use and social justice and helps reduction of environmental effects, increase of transportation system efficiency as well as improvement of social life and aims to enhance efficiency, goods transportation, provide services with minimum access problems that cannot be realized without reorganization of strategies, policies and plans.Keywords: Sustainable Urban Transport, Environment, Social Justice, Air Pollution
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2526944 Teaching Light Polarization by Putting Art and Physics Together
Authors: Fabrizio Logiurato
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Light Polarization has many technological applications, and its discovery was crucial to reveal the transverse nature of the electromagnetic waves. However, despite its fundamental and practical importance, in high school, this property of light is often neglected. This is a pity not only for its conceptual relevance, but also because polarization gives the possibility to perform many brilliant experiments with low cost materials. Moreover, the treatment of this matter lends very well to an interdisciplinary approach between art, biology and technology, which usually makes things more interesting to students. For these reasons, we have developed, and in this work, we introduce a laboratory on light polarization for high school and undergraduate students. They can see beautiful pictures when birefringent materials are set between two crossed polarizing filters. Pupils are very fascinated and drawn into by what they observe. The colourful images remind them of those ones of abstract painting or alien landscapes. With this multidisciplinary teaching method, students are more engaged and participative, and also, the learning process of the respective physics concepts is more effective.
Keywords: Light polarization, optical activity, multidisciplinary education, science and art.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1095943 Experiences on the Application of WIKI Based Coursework in a Fourth-Year Engineering Module
Authors: D. Hassell, D. De Focatiis
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This paper presents work on the application of wiki based coursework for a fourth-year engineering module delivered as part of both a MEng and MSc programme in Chemical Engineering. The module was taught with an equivalent structure simultaneously on two separate campuses, one in the United Kingdom (UK) and one in Malaysia, and the subsequent results were compared. Student feedback was sought via questionnaires, with 45 respondents from the UK and 49 from Malaysia. Results include discussion on; perceived difficulty; student enjoyment and experiences; differences between MEng and MSc students; differences between cohorts on different campuses. The response of students to the use of wiki-based coursework was found to vary based on their experiences and background, with UK students being generally more positive on its application than those in Malaysia.
Keywords: Engineering education, student differences, student learning, web-based coursework.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 821942 A Two-Stage Multi-Agent System to Predict the Unsmoothed Monthly Sunspot Numbers
Authors: Mak Kaboudan
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A multi-agent system is developed here to predict monthly details of the upcoming peak of the 24th solar magnetic cycle. While studies typically predict the timing and magnitude of cycle peaks using annual data, this one utilizes the unsmoothed monthly sunspot number instead. Monthly numbers display more pronounced fluctuations during periods of strong solar magnetic activity than the annual sunspot numbers. Because strong magnetic activities may cause significant economic damages, predicting monthly variations should provide different and perhaps helpful information for decision-making purposes. The multi-agent system developed here operates in two stages. In the first, it produces twelve predictions of the monthly numbers. In the second, it uses those predictions to deliver a final forecast. Acting as expert agents, genetic programming and neural networks produce the twelve fits and forecasts as well as the final forecast. According to the results obtained, the next peak is predicted to be 156 and is expected to occur in October 2011- with an average of 136 for that year.Keywords: Computational techniques, discrete wavelet transformations, solar cycle prediction, sunspot numbers.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1329941 Social Assistive Robots, Reframing the Human Robotics Interaction Benchmark of Social Success
Authors: Antonio Espingardeiro
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It is likely that robots will cross the boundaries of industry into households over the next decades. With demographic challenges worldwide, the future ageing populations will require the introduction of assistive technologies capable of providing, care, human dignity and quality of life through the aging process. Robotics technology has a high potential for being used in the areas of social and healthcare by promoting a wide range of activities such as entertainment, companionship, supervision or cognitive and physical assistance. However such close Human Robotics Interaction (HRI) encompass a rich set of ethical scenarios that need to be addressed before Socially Assistive Robots (SARs) reach the global markets. Such interactions with robots may seem a worthy goal for many technical/financial reasons but inevitably require close attention to the ethical dimensions of such interactions. This article investigates the current HRI benchmark of social success. It revises it according to the ethical principles of beneficence, non-maleficence and justice aligned with social care ethos. An extension of such benchmark is proposed based on an empirical study of HRIs conducted with elderly groups.
Keywords: HRI, SARs, Social Success, Benchmark, Elderly care.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2049940 Analysing the Elementary Science and Technology Coursebook and Student Workbook in Terms of Constructivism
Authors: Nil Duban
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The curriculum of the primary school science course was redesigned on the basis of constructivism in 2005-2006 academic years, in Turkey. In this context, the name of this course has been changed as “Science and Technology"; and both content and course books, students workbooks for this course have been redesigned in light of constructivism. The aim of this study is to determine whether the Science and Technology course books and student work books for primary school 5th grade are appropriate for the constructivism by evaluating them in terms of the fundamental principles of constructivism. In this study, out of qualitative research methods, documentation technique (i.e. document analysis) is applied; while selecting samples, criterion-sampling is used out of purposeful sampling techniques. When the Science and Technology course book and workbook for the 5th grade in primary education are examined, it is seen that both books complete each other in certain areas. Consequently, it can be claimed that in spite of some inadequate and missing points in the course book and workbook of the primary school Science and Technology course for the 5th grade students, these books are attempted to be designed in terms of the principles of constructivism. To overcome the inadequacies in the books, it can be suggested to redesign them. In addition to them, not to ignore the technology dimension of the course, the activities that encourage the students to prepare projects using technology cycle should be included.
Keywords: Constructivism, coursebooks, science and technology education.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1962939 Collaborative Design System based on Object- Oriented Modeling of Supply Chain Simulation: A Case Study of Thai Jewelry Industry
Authors: Somlak Wannarumon, Apichai Ritvirool, Thana Boonrit
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The paper proposes a new concept in developing collaborative design system. The concept framework involves applying simulation of supply chain management to collaborative design called – 'SCM–Based Design Tool'. The system is developed particularly to support design activities and to integrate all facilities together. The system is aimed to increase design productivity and creativity. Therefore, designers and customers can collaborate by the system since conceptual design. JAG: Jewelry Art Generator based on artificial intelligence techniques is integrated into the system. Moreover, the proposed system can support users as decision tool and data propagation. The system covers since raw material supply until product delivery. Data management and sharing information are visually supported to designers and customers via user interface. The system is developed on Web–assisted product development environment. The prototype system is presented for Thai jewelry industry as a system prototype demonstration, but applicable for other industry.Keywords: Collaborative design, evolutionary art, jewelry design, supply chain management.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1744938 Collaborative Design System based on Object-Oriented Modeling of Supply Chain Simulation: A Case Study of Thai Jewelry Industry
Authors: Somlak Wannarumon, Apichai Ritvirool, Thana Boonrit
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The paper proposes a new concept in developing collaborative design system. The concept framework involves applying simulation of supply chain management to collaborative design called – 'SCM–Based Design Tool'. The system is developed particularly to support design activities and to integrate all facilities together. The system is aimed to increase design productivity and creativity. Therefore, designers and customers can collaborate by the system since conceptual design. JAG: Jewelry Art Generator based on artificial intelligence techniques is integrated into the system. Moreover, the proposed system can support users as decision tool and data propagation. The system covers since raw material supply until product delivery. Data management and sharing information are visually supported to designers and customers via user interface. The system is developed on Web–assisted product development environment. The prototype system is presented for Thai jewelry industry as a system prototype demonstration, but applicable for other industry.Keywords: Collaborative design, evolutionary art, jewelry design, supply chain management.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1542937 Static Balance in the Elderly: Comparison between Elderly Performing Physical Activity and Fine Motor Coordination Activity
Authors: Andreia Guimarães Farnese, Mateus Fernandes Réu Urban, Leandro Procópio, Renato Zângaro, Regiane Albertini
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Senescence changes include postural balance, inferring the risk of falls, and can lead to fractures, bedridden, and the risk of death. Physical activity, e.g., cardiovascular exercises, is notable for improving balance due to brain cell stimulations, but fine coordination exercises also elevate cell brain metabolism. This study aimed to verify whether the elderly person who performs fine motor activity has a balance similar to that of those who practice physical activity. The subjects were divided into three groups according to the activity practice: control group (CG) with seven participants for the sedentary individuals, motor coordination group (MCG) with six participants, and physical activity group (PAG) with eight participants. Data comparisons were from the Berg balance scale, Time up and Go test, and stabilometric analysis. Descriptive statistical and ANOVA analyses were performed for data analysis. The results reveal that including fine motor activities can improve the balance of the elderly and indirectly decrease the risk of falls.
Keywords: Balance, barapodometer, coordination, elderly.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 530936 Parallel Text Processing: Alignment of Indonesian to Javanese Language
Authors: Aji P. Wibawa, Andrew Nafalski, Neil Murray, Wayan F. Mahmudy
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Parallel text alignment is proposed as a way of aligning bahasa Indonesia to words in Javanese. Since the one-to-one word translator does not have the facility to translate pragmatic aspects of Javanese, the parallel text alignment model described uses a phrase pair combination. The algorithm aligns the parallel text automatically from the beginning to the end of each sentence. Even though the results of the phrase pair combination outperform the previous algorithm, it is still inefficient. Recording all possible combinations consume more space in the database and time consuming. The original algorithm is modified by applying the edit distance coefficient to improve the data-storage efficiency. As a result, the data-storage consumption is 90% reduced as well as its learning period (42s).
Keywords: Parallel text alignment, phrase pair combination, edit distance coefficient, Javanese-Indonesian language.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2482935 Reciprocal Interferences in Bilingual English-Igbo Speaking Society: The Implications in Language Pedagogy
Authors: Ugwu Elias Ikechukwu
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Discussions on bilingualism have always dwelt on how the mother tongue interferes with the target language. This interference is considered a serious problem in second language learning. Usually, the interference has been phonological. But the objective of this research is to explore how the target language interferes with the mother tongue. In the case of the Igbo language, it interferes with English mostly at the phonological level while English interferes with Igbo at the realm of vocabulary. The result is a new language \"Engligbo\" which is a hybrid of English and Igbo. The Igbo language spoken by about 25 million people is one of the three most prominent languages in Nigeria. This paper discusses the phenomenal Engligbo, and other implications for Igbo learners of English. The method of analysis is descriptive. A number of recommendations were made that would help teachers handle problems arising from such mutual interferences.
Keywords: Bilingualism, Implications, Language Pedagogy, Reciprocal Interferences.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 5662934 Renewal of The Swedish Million Dwelling Program, the Public Housing Company and the Local Community, Hindrances and Mutual Aid
Authors: Lars Steiner, Zahra Ahmadi
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Public housing is a vital factor in community development. Successful city, housing and eco system regeneration design is essential in providing positive community development. This concerns work places, nice dwellings, providing premises for child care, care of the elderly, providing qualitative premises for different kinds of commercial service, providing a nice built environment and housing areas and not the least activating tenants. The public housing companies give value to society by stimulating people, renovating socially and economically sustainable as well as being partners to local business and authorities. By their activities the housing companies contribute to sustainable local and regional growth and the identity and reputation of cities. A Social, Economic and Ecological Reputation Effect (SEERE) model for actions to promote housing and community reputation is presented. The model emphasizes regenerative actions to restore natural eco systems as part of housing renewal strategies and to strengthen municipality reputation.Keywords: Community Development, Image and Reputation, Public Housing, Renewal Strategies.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2058933 Psychometric Examination of the QUEST-25: An Online Assessment of Intellectual Curiosity and Scientific Epistemology
Authors: Matthew J. Zagumny
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The current study reports an examination of the QUEST-25 (Q-Assessment of Undergraduate Epistemology and Scientific Thinking) online version for assessing the dispositional attitudes toward scientific thinking and intellectual curiosity among undergraduate students. The QUEST-25 consists of scientific thinking (SIQ-25) and intellectual curiosity (ICIQ-25), which were correlated in hypothesized directions with the Religious Commitment Inventory, Curiosity and Exploration Inventory, Belief in Science scale, and measures of academic self-efficacy. Additionally, concurrent validity was established by the resulting significant differences between those identifying the centrality of religious belief in their lives and those who do not self-identify as being guided daily by religious beliefs. This study demonstrates the utility of the QUEST-25 for research, evaluation, and theory development.
Keywords: Guided-inquiry learning, intellectual curiosity, psychometric assessment, scientific thinking.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 760932 Application of Tacit Knowledge from Professional Packaging Designer for Teaching Packaging Design
Authors: Somsri Binraman, Boonliang Kaewnapan, Krittika Tanprasert
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In the package design industry, there are a lot of tacit knowledge resided within each designer. The objectives are to capture them and compile it to be used as a teaching resource and to create a video clip of package design process as well as to evaluate its quality and learning effectiveness. Interview were used as a technique for capturing knowledge in brand design concept, differentiation, recognition, rank of recognition factor, consumer survey, knowledge about marketing, research, graphic design, the effect of color, and law and regulation. Video clip about package design were created. The clip consisted of both the speech and clip of actual process. The quality of the video in term of media was ranked as good while the content was ranked as excellent. The students- score on post-test was significantly greater than that of pretest (p>0.001).
Keywords: Tacit knowledge, interview, video, packaging, design.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1484931 Protection of Human Rights in Europe: The Parliamentary Dimension
Authors: Aleksandra Chiniaeva
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The following paper describes the activity of national and international parliamentary assemblies of the European region in protection and promotion of human rights. It may be said that parliamentarians have a “double mandate” — as members of the international assembly and of their respective national parliaments. In other words, parliamentarization at both international and national level provides a situation for parliamentarians, where they link people, national governments and international organizations. The paper is aimed towards demonstrating that the activity of the main international parliamentary assemblies of the European region have a real positive impact on the human rights situation in the European region. In addition, the paper describes the assemblies that include protection of human rights in their Agenda as one of the main subjects: the EP, the PACE, the OSCE PA and the IPA CIS. Co-operation activities such as joint election observation; participation in inter-parliamentary associations, such as the IPU; conclusion agreements allow assemblies to provide observation of human right situation in the states that are not members of the particular organization and as consequence make their impact broader.Keywords: Human rights, International parliamentary assembly, IPU, EP, PACE, OSCE, IPA CIS, international election observation.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1687930 Playing Games with Genetic Algorithms: Application on Price-QoS Competition in Telecommunications Market
Authors: M’hamed Outanoute, Mohamed Baslam, Belaid Bouikhalene
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The customers use the best compromise criterion between price and quality of service (QoS) to select or change their Service Provider (SP). The SPs share the same market and are competing to attract more customers to gain more profit. Due to the divergence of SPs interests, we believe that this situation is a non-cooperative game of price and QoS. The game converges to an equilibrium position known Nash Equilibrium (NE). In this work, we formulate a game theoretic framework for the dynamical behaviors of SPs. We use Genetic Algorithms (GAs) to find the price and QoS strategies that maximize the profit for each SP and illustrate the corresponding strategy in NE. In order to quantify how this NE point is performant, we perform a detailed analysis of the price of anarchy induced by the NE solution. Finally, we provide an extensive numerical study to point out the importance of considering price and QoS as a joint decision parameter.
Keywords: Pricing, QoS, Market share game, Genetic algorithms, Nash equilibrium, Learning, Price of anarchy.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1806929 Intellectual Property Implications in the Context of Space Exploration with a Focus on European Space Agency Rules and Regulations
Authors: Linda Ana Maria Ungureanu
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This article details the manner in which European law establishes the protection and ownership rights over works created in off-world environments or in relation to space exploration. In this sense, the analysis is focused on identifying the legal treatment applicable to creative works based on the provisions regulated under the International Space Treaties, on one side, and the International Intellectual Property (IP) Treaties and subsequent EU legislation, on the other side, with a special interest on European Space Agency (ESA) Rules and Regulations. Furthermore, the article analyses the manner in which ESA regulates the ownership regime applicable for creative works, taking into account the relationship existing between the inventor/creator and ESA and the environment in which the creative work was developed. Moreover, the article sets a series of de lege ferenda proposals for the regulation of IP matters in the context of space exploration, the main purpose being to identify legal measures and steps that need to be taken in order to ensure that creative activities are fostered and understood as a significant catalyst for encouraging space exploration.
Keywords: ESA guidelines, EU legislation, intellectual property law, international IP treaties.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 480928 The Application of an Ensemble of Boosted Elman Networks to Time Series Prediction: A Benchmark Study
Authors: Chee Peng Lim, Wei Yee Goh
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In this paper, the application of multiple Elman neural networks to time series data regression problems is studied. An ensemble of Elman networks is formed by boosting to enhance the performance of the individual networks. A modified version of the AdaBoost algorithm is employed to integrate the predictions from multiple networks. Two benchmark time series data sets, i.e., the Sunspot and Box-Jenkins gas furnace problems, are used to assess the effectiveness of the proposed system. The simulation results reveal that an ensemble of boosted Elman networks can achieve a higher degree of generalization as well as performance than that of the individual networks. The results are compared with those from other learning systems, and implications of the performance are discussed.
Keywords: AdaBoost, Elman network, neural network ensemble, time series regression.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1691927 Study of the Antimicrobial Activity of Aminoreductone against Pathogenic Bacteria in Comparison with Other Antibiotics
Authors: Vu Thu Trang, Lam Xuan Thanh, Samira Sarter, Tomoko Shimamura, Hiroaki Takeuchi
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Antimicrobial activities of aminoreductone (AR), a product formed in the initial stage of Maillard reaction, were screened against pathogenic bacteria. A significant growth inhibition of AR against all 7 isolates (Staphylococcus aureus ATCC® 25923™, Salmonella typhimurium ATCC® 14028™, Bacillus cereus ATCC® 13061™, Bacillus subtilis ATCC® 11774™, Escherichia coli ATCC® 25922™, Enterococcus faecalis ATCC® 29212™, Listeria innocua ATCC® 33090™) were observed by the standard disc diffusion methods. The inhibition zone for each isolate by AR (2.5 mg) ranged from 15±0mm to 28.3±0.4mm in diameter. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of AR ranging from 20mM to 26mM was proven in the 7 isolates tested. AR also showed the similar effect of growth inhibition in comparison with antibiotics frequently used for the treatment of infections bacteria, such as amikacin, ciprofloxacin, meropennem and levofloxacin. The results indicated that foods containing AR are valuable sources of bioactive compounds towards pathogenic bacteria.
Keywords: Pathogenic bacteria, aminoreductone, Maillard reaction, antimicrobial activity.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2304926 A Combinatorial Approach to Planning Manufacturing Safety Programme
Authors: Kazeem A. Adebiyi
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Despite many success stories of manufacturing safety, many organizations are still reluctant, perceiving it as cost increasing and time consuming. The clear contributor may be due to the use of lagging indicators rather than leading indicator measures. The study therefore proposes a combinatorial model for determining the best safety strategy. A combination theory and cost benefit analysis was employed to develop a monetary saving / loss function in terms value of preventions and cost of prevention strategy. Documentations, interviews and structured questionnaire were employed to collect information on Before-And-After safety programme records from a Tobacco company between periods of 1993-2001(for pre-safety) and 2002-2008 (safety period) for the model application. Three combinatorial alternatives A, B, C were obtained resulting into 4, 6 and 4 strategies respectively with PPE and Training being predominant. A total of 728 accidents were recorded for a 9 year period of pre-safety programme and 163 accidents were recorded for 7 years period of safety programme. Six preventions activities (alternative B) yielded the best results. However, all the years of operation experienced except year 2004. The study provides a leading resources for planning successful safety programme
Keywords: Combination, Manufacturing Safety, Monetary Savings, Prevention Strategies.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1253925 Gender and Advertisements: A Content Analysis of Pakistani Prime Time Advertisements
Authors: Aaminah Hassan
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Advertisements carry a great potential to influence our lives because they are crafted to meet particular ends. Stereotypical representation in advertisements is capable of forming unconscious attitudes among people towards any gender and their abilities. This study focuses on gender representation in Pakistani prime time advertisements. For this purpose, 13 advertisements were selected from three different categories of foods and beverages, cosmetics, cell phones and cellular networks from the prime time slots of one of the leading Pakistani entertainment channel, ‘Urdu 1’. Both quantitative and qualitative analyses are carried out for range of variables like gender, age, roles, activities, setting, appearance and voice overs. The results revealed that gender representation in advertisements is stereotypical. Moreover, in few instances, the portrayal of women is not only culturally inappropriate but is demeaning to the image of women as well. Their bodily charm is used to promote products. Comparing different entertainment channels for their prime time advertisements and broadening the scope of this research will yield greater implications for the researchers who want to carry out the similar research. It is hoped that the current study would help in the promotion of media literacy among the viewers and media authorities in Pakistan.
Keywords: Advertisements, content analysis, gender, prime time.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1105924 Development of the Academic Model to Predict Student Success at VUT-FSASEC Using Decision Trees
Authors: Langa Hendrick Musawenkosi, Twala Bhekisipho
Abstract:
The success or failure of students is a concern for every academic institution, college, university, governments and students themselves. Several approaches have been researched to address this concern. In this paper, a view is held that when a student enters a university or college or an academic institution, he or she enters an academic environment. The academic environment is unique concept used to develop the solution for making predictions effectively. This paper presents a model to determine the propensity of a student to succeed or fail in the French South African Schneider Electric Education Center (FSASEC) at the Vaal University of Technology (VUT). The Decision Tree algorithm is used to implement the model at FSASEC.
Keywords: Academic environment model, decision trees, FSASEC, K-nearest neighbor, machine learning, popularity index, support vector machine.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1137