Abstract: The detection of moving objects from a video image
sequences is very important for object tracking, activity recognition,
and behavior understanding in video surveillance.
The most used approach for moving objects detection / tracking is
background subtraction algorithms. Many approaches have been
suggested for background subtraction. But, these are illumination
change sensitive and the solutions proposed to bypass this problem
are time consuming.
In this paper, we propose a robust yet computationally efficient
background subtraction approach and, mainly, focus on the ability to
detect moving objects on dynamic scenes, for possible applications in
complex and restricted access areas monitoring, where moving and
motionless persons must be reliably detected. It consists of three
main phases, establishing illumination changes invariance,
background/foreground modeling and morphological analysis for
noise removing.
We handle illumination changes using Contrast Limited Histogram
Equalization (CLAHE), which limits the intensity of each pixel to
user determined maximum. Thus, it mitigates the degradation due to
scene illumination changes and improves the visibility of the video
signal. Initially, the background and foreground images are extracted
from the video sequence. Then, the background and foreground
images are separately enhanced by applying CLAHE.
In order to form multi-modal backgrounds we model each channel
of a pixel as a mixture of K Gaussians (K=5) using Gaussian Mixture
Model (GMM). Finally, we post process the resulting binary
foreground mask using morphological erosion and dilation
transformations to remove possible noise.
For experimental test, we used a standard dataset to challenge the
efficiency and accuracy of the proposed method on a diverse set of
dynamic scenes.
Abstract: Meeting the growth in demand for digital services
such as social media, telecommunications, and business and cloud
services requires large scale data centres, which has led to an increase
in their end use energy demand. Generally, over 30% of data centre
power is consumed by the necessary cooling overhead. Thus energy
can be reduced by improving the cooling efficiency. Air and liquid
can both be used as cooling media for the data centre. Traditional
data centre cooling systems use air, however liquid is recognised as a
promising method that can handle the more densely packed data
centres. Liquid cooling can be classified into three methods; rack heat
exchanger, on-chip heat exchanger and full immersion of the
microelectronics. This study quantifies the improvements of heat
transfer specifically for the case of immersed microelectronics by
varying the CPU and heat sink location. Immersion of the server is
achieved by filling the gap between the microelectronics and a water
jacket with a dielectric liquid which convects the heat from the CPU
to the water jacket on the opposite side. Heat transfer is governed by
two physical mechanisms, which is natural convection for the fixed
enclosure filled with dielectric liquid and forced convection for the
water that is pumped through the water jacket. The model in this
study is validated with published numerical and experimental work
and shows good agreement with previous work. The results show that
the heat transfer performance and Nusselt number (Nu) is improved
by 89% by placing the CPU and heat sink on the bottom of the
microelectronics enclosure.
Abstract: In this work, we report, a systematic study on the
structural and optical properties of Pr-doped ZnO nanostructures and
PVA:Zn98Pr2O polymer matrix nanocomposites free standing films.
These particles are synthesized through simple wet chemical route
and solution casting technique at room temperature, respectively.
Structural studies carried out by X-ray diffraction method confirm
that the prepared pure ZnO and Pr doped ZnO nanostructures are in
hexagonal wurtzite structure and the microstrain is increased upon
doping. TEM analysis reveals that the prepared materials are in sheet
like nature. Absorption spectra show free excitonic absorption band
at 370 nm and red shift for the Pr doped ZnO nanostructures. The
PVA:Zn98Pr2O composite film exhibits both free excitonic and PVA
absorption bands at 282 nm. Fourier transform infrared spectral
studies confirm the presence of A1 (TO) and E1 (TO) modes of Zn-O
bond vibration and the formation of polymer composite materials.
Abstract: Fungal mutant strains have produced cellulase and
xylanase enzymes, and have induced high hydrolysis with enhanced
of rice straw. The mutants were obtained by exposing Penicillium
strain to UV-light treatments. Screening and selection after treatment
with UV-light were carried out using cellulolytic and xylanolytic
clear zones method to select the hypercellulolytic and
hyperxylanolytic mutants. These mutants were evaluated for their
cellulase and xylanase enzyme production as well as their abilities for
biodegradation of rice straw. The mutant 12 UV/1 produced 306.21%
and 209.91% cellulase and xylanase, respectively, as compared with
the original wild type strain. This mutant showed high capacity of
rice straw degradation. The effectiveness of tested mutant strain and
that of wild strain was compared in relation to enhancing the
composting process of rice straw and animal manures mixture. The
results obtained showed that the compost product of inoculated
mixture with mutant strain (12 UV/1) was the best compared to the
wild strain and un-inoculated mixture. Analysis of the composted
materials showed that the characteristics of the produced compost
were close to those of the high quality standard compost. The results
obtained in the present work suggest that the combination between
rice straw and animal manure could be used for enhancing the
composting process of rice straw and particularly when applied with
fungal decomposer accelerating the composting process.
Abstract: Power systems are operating under stressed condition
due to continuous increase in demand of load. This can lead to
voltage instability problem when face additional load increase or
contingency. In order to avoid voltage instability suitable size of
reactive power compensation at optimal location in the system is
required which improves the load margin. This work aims at
obtaining optimal size as well as location of compensation in the 39-
bus New England system with the help of Bacteria Foraging and
Genetic algorithms. To reduce the computational time the work
identifies weak candidate buses in the system, and then picks only
two of them to take part in the optimization. The objective function is
based on a recently proposed voltage stability index which takes into
account the weighted average sensitivity index is a simpler and faster
approach than the conventional CPF algorithm. BFOA has been
found to give better results compared to GA.
Abstract: Skin aging is a slow multifactorial process influenced
by both internal as well as external factors. Ultra-violet radiations
(UV), diet, smoking and personal habits are the most common
environmental factors that affect skin aging. Fat contents and fibrous
proteins as collagen and elastin are core internal structural
components. The direct influence of UV on elastin integrity and
health is central on aging of skin especially by time. The deposition
of abnormal elastic material is a major marker in a photo-aged skin.
Searching for compounds that may protect against cutaneous photodamage
is exceedingly valued. Retinoids and alpha hydroxy acids
have been endorsed by some researchers as possible candidates for
protecting and or repairing the effect of UV damaged skin. For
consolidating a better system of anti- and protective effects of such
anti-aging agents, we evaluated the combinatory effects of various
dosages of lactic acid and retinol on the dermal fibroblast’s elastin
levels exposed to UV. The UV exposed cells showed significant
reduction in the elastin levels. A combination of drugs with a higher
concentration of lactic acid (30 -35 mM) and a lower concentration of
retinol (10-15mg/mL) showed to work better in maintaining elastin
concentration in UV exposed cells. We assume this preservation
could be the result of increased tropo-elastin gene expression
stimulated by retinol whereas lactic acid probably repaired the UV
irradiated damage by enhancing the amount and integrity of the
elastin fibers.
Abstract: This paper addresses the issue of the autonomous
mobile robot (AMR) navigation task based on the hybrid control
modes. The novel hybrid control mode, based on multi-sensors
information by using the fuzzy approach, has been presented in this
research. The system operates in real time, is robust, enables the robot
to operate with imprecise knowledge, and takes into account the
physical limitations of the environment in which the robot moves,
obtaining satisfactory responses for a large number of different
situations. An experiment is simulated and carried out with a pioneer
mobile robot. From the experimental results, the effectiveness and
usefulness of the proposed AMR obstacle avoidance and navigation
scheme are confirmed. The experimental results show the feasibility,
and the control system has improved the navigation accuracy. The
implementation of the controller is robust, has a low execution time,
and allows an easy design and tuning of the fuzzy knowledge base.
Abstract: In this paper, we used data mining to extract
biomedical knowledge. In general, complex biomedical data
collected in studies of populations are treated by statistical methods,
although they are robust, they are not sufficient in themselves to
harness the potential wealth of data. For that you used in step two
learning algorithms: the Decision Trees and Support Vector Machine
(SVM). These supervised classification methods are used to make the
diagnosis of thyroid disease. In this context, we propose to promote
the study and use of symbolic data mining techniques.
Abstract: The purpose of this study is to investigate the kinematic
characteristics and differences of the snatch barbell trajectory of 53 kg
class female weight lifters. We take the 2014 Taiwan College Cup
players as examples, and tend to make kinematic applications through
the proven weightlifting barbell track system. The competition videos
are taken by consumer camcorder with a tripod which set up at the side
of the lifter. The results will be discussed in three parts, the first part is
various lifting phase, the second part is the compare lifting between
success and unsuccessful, and the third part is to compare the
outstanding player with the general. Conclusion through the barbell
can be used to observe the trajectories of our players lifting the usual
process cannot be observed in the presence of malfunction or habits, so
that the coach can find the problem and guide the players more
accurately. Our system can be applied in practice and competition to
increase the resilience of the lifter on the field.
Abstract: Poly vinyl acetate (PVA)-based titania (TiO2)–carbon
nanotube composite nanofibers (PVA-TCCNs) with various
PVA-to-solvent ratios and PVA-based TiO2 composite nanofibers
(PVA-TN) were synthesized using an electrospinning process,
followed by thermal treatment. The photocatalytic activities of these
nanofibers in the degradation of airborne monocyclic aromatics under
visible-light irradiation were examined. This study focuses on the
application of these photocatalysts to the degradation of the target
compounds at sub-part-per-million indoor air concentrations. The
characteristics of the photocatalysts were examined using scanning
electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, ultraviolet-visible
spectroscopy, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. For all the
target compounds, the PVA-TCCNs showed photocatalytic
degradation efficiencies superior to those of the reference PVA-TN.
Specifically, the average photocatalytic degradation efficiencies for
benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene, and o-xylene (BTEX) obtained using
the PVA-TCCNs with a PVA-to-solvent ratio of 0.3 (PVA-TCCN-0.3)
were 11%, 59%, 89%, and 92%, respectively, whereas those observed
using PVA-TNs were 5%, 9%, 28%, and 32%, respectively.
PVA-TCCN-0.3 displayed the highest photocatalytic degradation
efficiency for BTEX, suggesting the presence of an optimal
PVA-to-solvent ratio for the synthesis of PVA-TCCNs. The average
photocatalytic efficiencies for BTEX decreased from 11% to 4%, 59%
to 18%, 89% to 37%, and 92% to 53%, respectively, when the flow
rate was increased from 1.0 to 4.0 L min1. In addition, the average
photocatalytic efficiencies for BTEX increased 11% to ~0%, 59% to
3%, 89% to 7%, and 92% to 13%, respectively, when the input
concentration increased from 0.1 to 1.0 ppm. The prepared
PVA-TCCNs were effective for the purification of airborne aromatics
at indoor concentration levels, particularly when the operating
conditions were optimized.
Abstract: In this paper, reliable consensus of multi-agent systems
with sampled-data is investigated. By using a suitable
Lyapunov-Krasovskii functional and some techniques such as
Wirtinger Inequality, Schur Complement and Kronecker Product, the
results of such system are obtained by solving a set of Linear Matrix
Inequalities (LMIs). One numerical example is included to show the
effectiveness of the proposed criteria.
Abstract: Carbon Deposits are often occurred inside the
industrial coke oven during coking process. Accumulation of carbon
deposits may cause a big issue, which seriously influences the coking
operation. The carbon is burning off by injecting fresh air through
pipes into coke oven which is an efficient way practically operated in
industries. The burning off carbon deposition in coke oven performed
by Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) method has provided an
evaluation of the feasibility study. A three dimensional, transient,
turbulent reacting flow simulation has performed with three different
injecting air flow rate and another kind of injecting configuration. The
result shows that injection higher air flow rate would effectively
reduce the carbon deposits. In the meantime, the opened charging
holes would suck extra oxygen from atmosphere to participate in
reactions. In term of coke oven operating limits, the wall temperatures
are monitored to prevent over-heating of the adiabatic walls during
burn-off process.
Abstract: Pedagogy has always been open to other disciplines
that reflect about the educational process (philosophy, sociology,
psychology, anthropology, technology, etc.). Its interdisciplinary
openness puts education, as the subject of pedagogy within a broader
context of the community, enabling the knowledge of other
disciplines to contribute to a better understanding of the fundamental
pedagogical notion of education. The purpose of pedagogy as a
science serves humans, strives towards humans, must be for humans,
and this is its ultimate goal. Humans are essentially dependent on
education, which is also considered as a category of humans’ being,
because through education an entire world develops in humans.
Anthropological assumptions of humans as "deficient beings" see the
solution in education, but they also indicate a wealth of shortcomings,
because they provide an opportunity for enrichment and formation of
culture, living and the self. In that context, this paper illustrates the
determination of pedagogy through an anthropological conception of
humans and the phenomenon of education. It presents a review of
anthropological ideas about education, by providing an analysis of
relevant literature dealing with the anthropological notion of humans,
which provides fruitful conditions for a pedagogical reconsideration
of education.
Abstract: The characteristics of temperature distribution and
electric field in a natural rubber glove (NRG) using microwave
energy during microwave heating process are investigated
numerically and experimentally. A three-dimensional model of NRG
and microwave oven are considered in this work. The influences of
position, heating time and rotation angle of NRG on temperature
distribution and electric field are presented in details. The coupled
equations of electromagnetic wave propagation and heat transfer are
solved using the finite element method (FEM). The numerical model
is validated with an experimental study at a frequency of 2.45 GHz.
The results show that the numerical results closely match the
experimental results. Furthermore, it is found that the temperature
distribution and electric field increases with increasing heating time.
The hot spot zone appears in NRG at the tip of middle finger while
the maximum temperature occurs in case of rotation angle of NRG =
60 degree. This investigation provides the essential aspects for a
fundamental understanding of heat transport of NRG using
microwave energy in industry.
Abstract: Co metal supported on SiO2 and Al2O3 catalysts with
a metal loading varied from 30 of 70 wt.% were evaluated for
decomposition of methane to COx free hydrogen and carbon
nanomaterials. The catalytic runs were carried out from 550-800oC
under atmospheric pressure using fixed bed vertical flow reactor. The
fresh and spent catalysts were characterized by BET surface area
analyzer, XRD, SEM, TEM and TG analysis. The data showed that
50% Co/Al2O3 catalyst exhibited remarkable higher activity at 800oC
with respect to H2 production compared to rest of the catalysts.
However, the catalytic activity and durability was greatly declined at
higher temperature. The main reason for the catalytic inhibition of Co
containing SiO2 catalysts is the higher reduction temperature of
Co2SiO4. TEM images illustrate that the carbon materials with
various morphologies, carbon nanofibers (CNFs), helical-shaped
CNFs and branched CNFs depending on the catalyst composition and
reaction temperature were obtained.
Abstract: The objective of this study was to evaluate the
physical and chemical characteristics of Serra da Estrela cheese and
compare these results with those of the sensory analysis. For the
study were taken six samples of Serra da Estrela cheese produced
with 6 different ecotypes of thistle in a dairy situated in Penalva do
Castelo. The chemical properties evaluated were moisture content,
protein, fat, ash, chloride and pH; the physical properties studied
were color and texture; and finally a sensory evaluation was
undertaken. The results showed moisture varying in the range 40-
48%, protein in the range 15-20%, fat between 41-45%, ash between
3.9-5.0% and chlorides varying from 1.2 to 3.0%. The pH varied
from 4.8 to 5.4. The textural properties revealed that the crust
hardness is relatively low (maximum 7.3 N), although greater than
flesh firmness (maximum 1.7 N), and also that these cheeses are in
fact soft paste type, with measurable stickiness and intense
adhesiveness. The color analysis showed that the crust is relatively
light (L* over 50), and with a predominant yellow coloration (b*
around 20 or over) although with a slight greenish tone (a* negative).
The results of the sensory analysis did not show great variability for
most of the attributes measured, although some differences were
found in attributes such as crust thickness, crust uniformity, and
creamy flesh.
Abstract: Emissions of atmospheric pollutants from ships and
harbour activities are a growing concern at international level given
their potential impacts on air quality and climate. These close-to-land
emissions have potential impact on local communities in terms of air
quality and health. Recent studies show that the impact of maritime
traffic to atmospheric particulate matter concentrations in several
coastal urban areas is comparable with the impact of road traffic of a
medium size town. However, several different approaches have been
used for these estimates making difficult a direct comparison of
results. In this work, an integrated approach based on emission
inventories and dedicated measurement campaigns has been applied
to give a comparable estimate of the impact of maritime traffic to
PM2.5 and particle number concentrations in three major harbours of
the Adriatic/Ionian Seas. The influences of local meteorology and of
the logistic layout of the harbours are discussed.
Abstract: Natural hydrocarbon seepage has helped petroleum
exploration as a direct indicator of gas and/or oil subsurface
accumulations. Surface macro-seeps are generally an indication of a
fault in an active Petroleum Seepage System belonging to a Total
Petroleum System. This paper describes a case study in which
multiple analytical techniques were used to identify and characterize
trace petroleum-related hydrocarbons and other volatile organic
compounds in groundwater samples collected from Sousse aquifer
(Central Tunisia). The analytical techniques used for analyses of
water samples included gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GCMS),
capillary GC with flame-ionization detection, Compound
Specific Isotope Analysis, Rock Eval Pyrolysis. The objective of the
study was to confirm the presence of gasoline and other petroleum
products or other volatile organic pollutants in those samples in order
to assess the respective implication of each of the potentially
responsible parties to the contamination of the aquifer. In addition,
the degree of contamination at different depths in the aquifer was also
of interest. The oil and gas seeps have been investigated using
biomarker and stable carbon isotope analyses to perform oil-oil and
oil-source rock correlations. The seepage gases are characterized by
high CH4 content, very low δ13CCH4 values (-71,9 ‰) and high
C1/C1–5 ratios (0.95–1.0), light deuterium–hydrogen isotope ratios (-
198 ‰) and light δ13CC2 and δ13CCO2 values (-23,8‰ and-23,8‰
respectively) indicating a thermogenic origin with the contribution of
the biogenic gas. An organic geochemistry study was carried out on
the more ten oil seep samples. This study includes light hydrocarbon
and biomarkers analyses (hopanes, steranes, n-alkanes, acyclic
isoprenoids, and aromatic steroids) using GC and GC-MS. The
studied samples show at least two distinct families, suggesting two
different types of crude oil origins: the first oil seeps appears to be
highly mature, showing evidence of chemical and/or biological
degradation and was derived from a clay-rich source rock deposited
in suboxic conditions. It has been sourced mainly by the lower
Fahdene (Albian) source rocks. The second oil seeps was derived
from a carbonate-rich source rock deposited in anoxic conditions,
well correlated with the Bahloul (Cenomanian-Turonian) source rock.
Abstract: Today, the pollution due to non-degradable material
such as plastics, has led to studies about the development of
environmental-friendly material. Because of biodegradability
obtained from natural sources, polylactid acid (PLA) and ijuk fiber
are interesting to modify into a composite. This material is also
expected to reduce the impact of environmental pollution. Surface
modification of ijuk fiber through alkalinization with 0.25 M NaOH
solution for 30 minutes was aimed to enhance its compatibility to
PLA, in order to improve properties of the composite such as the
mechanical properties. Alkalinization of the ijuk fibers annihilates
some surface components such as lignin, wax and hemicelloluse, so
the pore on the surface clearly appeared, decreasing of the density
and diameter of the ijuk fibers. The change of the ijuk fiber properties
leads to increase the mechanical properties of PLA composites
reinforced the ijuk fibers through strengthening of the mechanical
interlocking with the PLA matrix. An addition to enhance the
distribution of the fibers in the PLA matrix, the stirring during DCM
solvent evaporation from the mixture of the ijuk fibers and the
dissolved-PLA can reduce amount of the trapped-voids and fibers
pull-out phenomena, which can decrease the mechanical properties of
the composite.
Abstract: The paper deals with behaviour of the segment 50+ in
the financial market in the Czech Republic. This segment could be
said as the strong market power and it can be a crucial business
potential for financial business units. The main defined objective of
this paper is analysis of the customers´ behaviour of the segment 50-
60 years in the financial market in the Czech Republic and proposal
making of the suitable marketing approach to satisfy their demands in
the area of product, price, distribution and marketing communication
policy. This paper is based on data from one part of primary
marketing research. Paper determinates the basic problem areas as
well as definition of financial services marketing, defining the
primary research problem, hypothesis and primary research
methodology. Finally suitable marketing approach to selected sub
segment at age of 50-60 years is proposed according to marketing
research findings.