Abstract: With the increasing popularity of the Internet, online reading has become an essential source for EFL readers. Using strategies to comprehend information on online reading texts play a crucial role in students’ academic success. Metacognitive reading strategies are effective factors that enhance EFL learners reading comprehension. This study aimed at exploring the use of online metacognitive reading strategies by postgraduate Libyan EFL students. Quantitative data was collected using the Survey of Online Reading Strategies (OSORS). The findings revealed that the participants were moderate users of metacognitive online reading strategies. Problem solving strategies were the most frequently reported used strategies, while support reading strategies were the least. The five most and least frequently reported strategies were identified. Based on the findings, some future research recommendations were presented.
Abstract: Lately, with the increasing number of location-based applications, demand for highly accurate and reliable indoor localization became urgent. This is a challenging problem, due to the measurement variance which is the consequence of various factors like obstacles, equipment properties and environmental changes in complex nature of indoor environments. In this paper we propose low-cost custom-setup infrastructure solution and localization algorithm based on the Weighted Centroid Localization (WCL) method. Localization accuracy is increased by several enhancements: calibration of RSSI values gained from wireless nodes, repetitive measurements of RSSI to exclude deviating values from the position estimation, and by considering orientation of the device according to the wireless nodes. We conducted several experiments to evaluate the proposed algorithm. High accuracy of ~1m was achieved.
Abstract: This research presents the design, fabrication and application of a flavor sensor for an integrated electronic tongue and electronic nose that can allow rapid characterization of multi-component mixtures in a solution. The odor gas and liquid are separated using hydrophobic porous membrane in micro fluidic channel. The sensor uses an array composed of microbeads in micromachined cavities localized on silicon wafer. Sensing occurs via colorimetric and fluorescence changes to receptors and indicator molecules that are attached to termination sites on the polymeric microbeads. As a result, the sensor array system enables simultaneous and near-real-time analyses using small samples and reagent volumes with the capacity to incorporate significant redundancies. One of the key parts of the system is a passive pump driven only by capillary force. The hydrophilic surface of the fluidic structure draws the sample into the sensor array without any moving mechanical parts. Since there is no moving mechanical component in the structure, the size of the fluidic structure can be compact and the fabrication becomes simple when compared to the device including active microfluidic components. These factors should make the proposed system inexpensive to mass-produce, portable and compatible with biomedical applications.
Abstract: Hand grip strength has been utilized as an indicator to evaluate the motor ability of hands, responsible for performing multiple body functions. It is, however, difficult to evaluate other factors (other than hand muscular strength) utilizing the hand grip strength only. In this study, we analyzed the motor ability of hands using EMG and the hand grip strength, simultaneously in order to evaluate concentration, muscular strength reaction time, instantaneous muscular strength change, and agility in response to visual reaction. In results, the average time (and their standard deviations) of muscular strength reaction EMG signal and hand grip strength was found to be 209.6 ± 56.2 ms and 354.3 ± 54.6 ms, respectively. In addition, the onset time which represents acceleration time to reach 90% of maximum hand grip strength, was 382.9 ± 129.9 ms.
Abstract: The research studied and examined the
competitiveness of the animation industry in Thailand. Data were
collected based on articles, related reports and websites, news,
research, and interviews of key persons from both public and private
sectors. The diamond model was used to analyze the study. The
major factor driving the Thai animation industry forward includes a
quality workforce, their creativity and strong associations. However,
discontinuity in government support, infrastructure, marketing, IP
creation and financial constraints were factors keeping the Thai
animation industry less competitive in the global market.
Abstract: To understand the factors which affect impact damage on composite structures, particularly the effects of impact position and ribs. In this paper, a finite element model (FEM) of low-velocity impact damage on the composite structure was established via the nonlinear finite element method, combined with the user-defined materials subroutine (VUMAT) of the ABAQUS software. The structural elements chosen for the investigation comprised a series of stiffened composite panels, representative of real aircraft structure. By impacting the panels at different positions relative to the ribs, the effect of relative position of ribs was found out. Then the simulation results and the experiments data were compared. Finally, the factors which affect impact damage on the structures were discussed. The paper was helpful for the design of stiffened composite structures.
Abstract: The protective effect of hesperidin was investigated in
rats exposed to liver injury induced by a single intraperitoneal
injection of cyclophosphamide (CYP) at a dose of 150 mg kg-1.
Hesperidin treatment (100 mg kg-1/day, orally) was applied for seven
days, starting five days before CYP administration. Hesperidin
significantly decreased the CYP-induced elevations of serum alanine
aminotransferase, and hepatic malondialdehyde and myeloperoxidase
activity, significantly prevented the depletion of hepatic glutathione
peroxidase activity resulted from CYP administration. Also,
hesperidin ameliorated the CYP-induced liver tissue injury observed
by histopathological examination. In addition, hesperidin decreased
the CYP-induced expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase, tumor
necrosis factor-α, cyclooxygenase-2, Fas ligand, and caspase-9 in
liver tissue. It was concluded that hesperidin may represent a
potential candidate to protect against CYP-induced hepatotoxicity.
Abstract: This paper proposes a GLMM with spatial and
temporal effects for malaria data in Thailand. A Bayesian method is
used for parameter estimation via Gibbs sampling MCMC. A
conditional autoregressive (CAR) model is assumed to present the
spatial effects. The temporal correlation is presented through the
covariance matrix of the random effects. The malaria quarterly data
have been extracted from the Bureau of Epidemiology, Ministry of
Public Health of Thailand. The factors considered are rainfall and
temperature. The result shows that rainfall and temperature are
positively related to the malaria morbidity rate. The posterior means
of the estimated morbidity rates are used to construct the malaria
maps. The top 5 highest morbidity rates (per 100,000 population) are
in Trat (Q3, 111.70), Chiang Mai (Q3, 104.70), Narathiwat (Q4,
97.69), Chiang Mai (Q2, 88.51), and Chanthaburi (Q3, 86.82).
According to the DIC criterion, the proposed model has a better
performance than the GLMM with spatial effects but without
temporal terms.
Abstract: This research investigates the distribution of food
demand for animal food and the optimum amount of that food
production at minimum cost. The data consist of customer purchase
orders for the food of laying hens, price of food for laying hens, cost
per unit for the food inventory, cost related to food of laying hens in
which the food is out of stock, such as fine, overtime, urgent
purchase for material. They were collected from January, 1990 to
December, 2013 from a factory in Nakhonratchasima province. The
collected data are analyzed in order to explore the distribution of the
monthly food demand for the laying hens and to see the rate of
inventory per unit. The results are used in a stochastic linear
programming model for aggregate planning in which the optimum
production or minimum cost could be obtained. Programming
algorithms in MATLAB and tools in Linprog software are used to get
the solution. The distribution of the food demand for laying hens and
the random numbers are used in the model. The study shows that the
distribution of monthly food demand for laying has a normal
distribution, the monthly average amount (unit: 30 kg) of production
from January to December. The minimum total cost average for 12
months is Baht 62,329,181.77. Therefore, the production planning
can reduce the cost by 14.64% from real cost.
Abstract: The purpose of this study is to investigate hedonic online shopping motivations. A qualitative analysis was conducted to explore the factors influencing online hedonic shopping motivations. The results of the study indicate that traditional hedonic values, consisting of social, role, self-gratification, learning trends, pleasure of bargaining, stimulation, diversion, status, and adventure, and dimensions of flow theory, consisting of control, curiosity, enjoyment, and telepresence, exist in the online shopping environment. Two hedonic motivations unique to Internet shopping, privacy and online shopping achievement, were found. It appears that the most important hedonic value to online shoppers is having the choice to interact or not interact with others while shopping on the Internet. This study serves as a basis for the future growth of Internet marketing.
Abstract: Power, responsibility sharing, and democratic decision-making are the central ethos to co-management. It is assumed that involving local community in the decision-making process can create a sense of ownership and responsibility of that community and motivate the community towards collective action. But this paper demonstrated that the process to involve local community is not simple and straightforward as it is influenced by structural aspects, power relations among the actors, and social embedded institutions. These factors shape the process in that way who will participate, how they will participate and how the local community maneuvers their agency in the decision-making process. To grasp the complexities that materialize in the process of participation and to understand the inclusionary and exclusionary nature of participation, this paper examines the subjective understanding of different stakeholders concerning participation and furthermore observes the enabling or constraining factors that affect the community to exercise their agency.
Abstract: In recent years, the adoption of mobile phones has been exceptionally rapid in many parts of the world, and Tanzania is not exceptional. We are witnessing a number of new mobile network operators being licensed from time to time by Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA). This makes competition in the telecommunications market very stiff. All mobile phone companies are struggling to earn more new customers into their networks. This trend courses a stiff competition. The various measures are being taken by different companies including, lowering tariff, and introducing free short messages within and out of their networks, and free calls during off-peak periods. This paper is aimed at investigating the influence of tariffs on students’ mobile customers in selecting their mobile network operators. About seventy seven students from high learning institutions in Dodoma Municipality, Tanzania, participated in responding to the prepared questionnaires. The sought information was aimed at determining if tariffs influenced students into selection of their current mobile operators. The results indicate that tariffs were the major driving factor in selection of mobile operators. However, female mobile customers were found to be more easily attracted into subscribing to a mobile operator due to low tariffs, a bigger number of free short messages or discounted call charges than their fellow male customers.
Abstract: The objectives of this project are to study on the work
efficiency of the employees, sorted by their profiles, and to study on
the relation between job attributes and work efficiency of employees
of Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University. The samples used for this
study are 292 employees. The statistics used in this study are
frequencies, standard deviations, One-way ANOVA and Pearson’s
correlation coefficient. Majority of respondent were male with an
undergraduate degree, married and lives together. The average age of
respondents was between 31-41 years old, married and the
educational background are higher than bachelor’s degree. The job
attribute is correlated to the work efficiency with the statistical
significance level of.o1. This concurs with the predetermined
hypothesis. The correlation between the two main factors is in the
moderate level. All the categories of job attributes such as the variety
of skills, job clarity, job importance, freedom to do work are
considered separately.
Abstract: The purposes of this research are to investigate Thai teens’ attitude toward prostitution on the internet, to discover the causes of teenage prostitution and to study the relationship between teenage promiscuity and the causes of teenage prostitution. This study is a mixed research which utilized both qualitative and quantitative approach. The population of this study included teenagers and early adults between 14-21 years old who were studying in high schools, colleges, or universities. A total of 600 respondents was sampled for interviews using a questionnaire, and 48 samples were chosen for an in-depth interview.
The findings revealed that the majority of respondents recognized that teenage prostitution on line was real. The reasons for choosing the internet to contact with customers included easy, convenient, safe, and anonymous. Moreover, the internet allowed teen prostitutes to contact customers anywhere and anytime. The correlation showed that promiscuity was related to the trend of teen prostitution. Other factors that contributed to increasing widespread teen prostitution online included their need for quick money to buy luxurious products and to support their extravagant behavior.
Abstract: The purpose of this research was to study the influence of accountants’ potential performance on their working process, a case study of Government Savings Banks in the northeast of Thailand. The independent variables included accounting knowledge, accounting skill, accounting value, accounting ethics, and accounting attitude, while the dependent variable included the success of the working process. A total of 155 accountants working for Government Savings Banks were selected by random sampling. A questionnaire was used as a tool for collecting data. Descriptive statistics in this research included percentage, mean, and multiple regression analyses.
The findings revealed that the majority of accountants were female with an age between 35-40 years old. Most of the respondents had an undergraduate degree with ten years of experience. Moreover, the factors of accounting knowledge, accounting skill, accounting a value and accounting ethics and accounting attitude were rated at a high level. The findings from regression analysis of observation data revealed a causal relationship in that the observation data could explain at least 51 percent of the success in the accountants’ working process.
Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to describe the main
characteristics of macroinvertebrate species in response to
environmental forcing factors. Overall, 23 species of Mollusca, 4
species of Arthropods, 3 species of Echinodermata and 3 species of
Annelida were identified at the 9 sampling stations during four
sampling periods. Individual species of Mollusca constituted 36.4%
of the total abundance, followed by Arthropods (27.01%), Annelida
(34.3%) and Echinodermata (2.4%). The results of Kruskal-Wallis
test indicated that a significant difference (p
Abstract: Interorganizational knowledge sharing is the major driving force to maximize the operational benefits across supply chain. Trust is considered as the key to facilitate knowledge sharing. This research proposes shared values and relational embeddedness as antecedents of interorganizational trust. Survey based on managers in major industrial parks in Taiwan confirm that trust is enforced when organizations develop shared values and formed social relational embeddedness. Trust leads to interorganizational knowledge sharing. This research has theoretical and practical implications.
Abstract: This research aims to create a knowledge-based system as a database for self-healthcare analysis, diagnosis of simple illnesses, and the use of Thai herbs instead of modern medicine by using principles of Thai traditional medication theory. These were disseminated by website network programs within Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University. The population used in this study was divided into two groups: the first group consisted of four experts of Thai traditional medication and the second group was 300 website users. The methods used for collecting data were paper questionnaires and poll questionnaires on the website. The statistics used for analyzing data was at an average level. The results were divided into three parts: the first part was the development of a knowledge-based system and the second part was applied programs on website. Both parts could be fulfilled and achieved according to the set goal. The third part was the evaluation of the study: The evaluation of the viewpoints of the experts towards website designs were evaluated at a good level of 4.20. The satisfaction evaluation of the users was found at a good level of average satisfactory level at 4.24. It was found that the young population of those under the age of 16 had less cares about their health than the population of other teenagers, working age adults and those of older age. The research findings should be extended in order to encourage the lifestyle modifications to people of all ages by using the self-healthcare principles.
Abstract: Digital information is expanding in exponential order in our life. Information that is residing online and offline are stored in huge repositories relating to every aspect of our lives. Getting the required information is a task of retrieval systems. Content based image retrieval (CBIR) is a retrieval system that retrieves the required information from repositories on the basis of the contents of the image. Time is a critical factor in retrieval system and using indexed views with CBIR system improves the time efficiency of retrieved results.
Abstract: A 3D-conjugate numerical investigation was conducted to predict heat transfer characteristics in a rectangular cross-sectional micro-channel employing simultaneously developing Tow-phase flows. The sole purpose for analyzing two phase flow heat transfer in rectangular micro channel is to pin point what are the different factors affecting this phenomenon. Different methods and techniques have been undertaken to analyze the equations arising constituting the flow of heat from gas phase to liquid phase and vice versa.Different models of micro channels have been identified and analyzed. How the geometry of micro channels affects their activity i.e. of circular and non-circular geometry has also been reviewed. To the study the results average Nusselt no plotted against the Reynolds no has been taken into consideration to study average heat exchange in micro channels against applied heat flux. High heat fluxes up to 140 W/cm2 were applied to investigate micro-channel thermal characteristics.