Abstract: Hypericum perforatum L. is a member of the Hypericaceae (Guttiferae) family and commonly known as St. John’s wort. There is a growing interest in this medicinal plant because of the constituents of this genus. A number of species have been shown to possess various biological activities such as antiviral, wound healing, analgesic, hepatoprotective, antimicrobial and antioxidant activities and also have therapeutic effects on burns, bruises, swelling, anxiety and mild to moderate depression.
In this study, the aerial parts of Hypericum perforatum L. are extracted and the main and effective constituents are determined. The analysis of the extracts was performed by GC-MS and LC-MS. As a next step, it is aimed to investigate the usage of the main constituents of the medicinal plant.
Abstract: Dehydration behavior gives a hint about thermal properties of materials. It is important for the usage areas and transportation of minerals. Magnesium borates can be used as additive materials in areas such as in the production of superconducting materials, in the composition of detergents, due to the content of boron in the friction-reducing additives in oils and insulating coating compositions due to their good mechanic and thermal properties.
In this study, thermal dehydration behavior of admontite (MgO(B2O3)3.7(H2O)), which is a kind of magnesium borate mineral, is experimented by microwave energy at 360W. Structure of admontite is suitable for the investigation of dehydration behavior by microwave because of its seven moles of crystal water. It is seen that admontite lost its 28.7% of weight at the end of the 120 minutes heating in microwave furnace.
Abstract: In general, reports are a form of representing data in
such way that user gets the information he needs. They can be built in
various ways, from the simplest (“select from") to the most complex
ones (results derived from different sources/tables with complex
formulas applied). Furthermore, rules of calculations could be written
as a program hard code or built in the database to be used by dynamic
code. This paper will introduce two types of reports, defined in the
DB structure. The main goal is to manage calculations in optimal
way, keeping maintenance of reports as simple and smooth as
possible.
Abstract: The multiindex Mittag-Leffler (M-L) function and the multiindex Dzrbashjan-Gelfond-Leontiev (D-G-L) differentiation and integration play a very pivotal role in the theory and applications of generalized fractional calculus. The object of this paper is to investigate the relations that exist between the Riemann-Liouville fractional calculus and multiindex Dzrbashjan-Gelfond-Leontiev differentiation and integration with multiindex Mittag-Leffler function.
Abstract: The novelty proposed in this study is twofold and consists in the developing of a new color similarity metric based on the human visual system and a new color indexing based on a textual approach. The new color similarity metric proposed is based on the color perception of the human visual system. Consequently the results returned by the indexing system can fulfill as much as possibile the user expectations. We developed a web application to collect the users judgments about the similarities between colors, whose results are used to estimate the metric proposed in this study. In order to index the image's colors, we used a text indexing engine to facilitate the integration of visual features in a database of text documents. The textual signature is build by weighting the image's colors in according to their occurrence in the image. The use of a textual indexing engine, provide us a simple, fast and robust solution to index images. A typical usage of the system proposed in this study, is the development of applications whose data type is both visual and textual. In order to evaluate the proposed method we chose a price comparison engine as a case of study, collecting a series of commercial offers containing the textual description and the image representing a specific commercial offer.
Abstract: Economic models are complex dynamic systems with a lot of uncertainties and fuzzy data. Conventional modeling approaches using well known methods and techniques cannot provide realistic and satisfactory answers to today-s challenging economic problems. Qualitative modeling using fuzzy logic and intelligent system theories can be used to model macroeconomic models. Fuzzy Cognitive maps (FCM) is a new method been used to model the dynamic behavior of complex systems. For the first time FCMs and the Mamdani Model of Intelligent control is used to model macroeconomic models. This new model is referred as the Mamdani Rule-Based Fuzzy Cognitive Map (MBFCM) and provides the academic and research community with a new promising integrated advanced computational model. A new economic model is developed for a qualitative approach to Macroeconomic modeling. Fuzzy Controllers for such models are designed. Simulation results for an economic scenario are provided and extensively discussed
Abstract: Magnesium wastes are produced by many industrial activities. This waste problem is becoming a future problem for the world. Magnesium borates have many advantages such as; high corrosion resistance, heat resistance, high coefficient of elasticity and can also be used in the production of material against radiation. Addition, magnesium borates have great potential in sectors
including ceramic and detergents industry and superconducting materials.
In this study, using the starting materials of waste magnesium and H3BO3 the hydrothermal method was applied at a moderate
temperature of 70oC. Several mole ratios of waste magnesium to H3BO3 are selected as; 1:2, 1:4, 1:6, 1:8, 1:10. Reaction time was determined as 1 hour. After the synthesis, X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR) techniques are applied to products. As a result the forms of mcallisterite “Mg2(B6O7(OH)6)2.9(H2O)”, admontite “MgO(B2O3)3.7(H2O)” and magnesium boron hydrate (MgO(B2O3)3.6(H2O)” are obtained.
Abstract: In this study, a comparison of two control methods,
Proportional Control (PC) and Fuzzy Logic Control (FLC), which
have been used to develop an ideal thermoelectric renal hypothermia
system in order to use in renal surgery, has been carried out. Since
the most important issues in long-lasting parenchymatous renal
surgery are to provide an operation medium free of blood and to
prevent renal dysfunction in the postoperative period, control of the
temperature has become very important in renal surgery. The final
product is seriously affected from the changes in temperature,
therefore, it is necessary to reach some desired temperature points
quickly and avoid large overshoot. PIC16F877 microcontroller has
been used as controller for both of these two methods. Each control
method can simply ensure extra renal hypothermia in the targeted
way. But investigation of advantages and disadvantages of every
control method to each other is aimed and carried out by the
experimental implementations. Shortly, investigation of the most
appropriate method to use for development of system and that can be
applied to people safely in the future, has been performed. In this
sense, experimental results show that fuzzy logic control gives out
more reliable responses and efficient performance.
Abstract: In data mining, the association rules are used to search
for the relations of items of the transactions database. Following the
data is collected and stored, it can find rules of value through
association rules, and assist manager to proceed marketing strategy
and plan market framework. In this paper, we attempt fuzzy partition
methods and decide membership function of quantitative values of
each transaction item. Also, by managers we can reflect the
importance of items as linguistic terms, which are transformed as
fuzzy sets of weights. Next, fuzzy weighted frequent pattern growth
(FWFP-Growth) is used to complete the process of data mining. The
method above is expected to improve Apriori algorithm for its better
efficiency of the whole association rules. An example is given to
clearly illustrate the proposed approach.
Abstract: The characterization and modeling of the dynamic
behavior of many built-up structures under vibration conditions is still
a subject of current research. The present study emphasizes the
theoretical investigation of slip damping in layered and jointed
welded cantilever structures using finite element approach.
Application of finite element method in damping analysis is relatively
recent, as such, some problems particularly slip damping analysis has
not received enough attention. To validate the finite element model
developed, experiments have been conducted on a number of mild
steel specimens under different initial conditions of vibration. Finite
element model developed affirms that the damping capacity of such
structures is influenced by a number of vital parameters such as;
pressure distribution, kinematic coefficient of friction and micro-slip
at the interfaces, amplitude, frequency of vibration, length and
thickness of the specimen. Finite element model developed can be
utilized effectively in the design of machine tools, automobiles,
aerodynamic and space structures, frames and machine members for
enhancing their damping capacity.
Abstract: An exploration in the competency of the optical
multilevel Mapping Multiplexing Technique (MMT) system in
tolerating to the impact of nonlinearities as Self Phase Modulation
(SPM) during the presence of dispersion compensation methods. The
existence of high energy pulses stimulates deterioration in the chirp
compression process attained by SPM which introduces an upper
power boundary limit. An evaluation of the post and asymmetric prepost
fiber compensation methods have been deployed on the MMT
system compared with others of the same bit rate modulation formats.
The MMT 40 Gb/s post compensation system has 1.4 dB
enhancements to the 40 Gb/s 4-Arysystem and less than 3.9 dB
penalty compared to the 40 Gb/s OOK-RZsystem. However, the
optimized Pre-Post asymmetric compensation has an enhancement of
4.6 dB compared to the Post compensation MMT configuration for a
30% pre compensation dispersion.
Abstract: Addition of an oily waste to a co-composting process of dairy cow manure with food waste, and the influence in the final product was evaluated. Three static composting piles with different substrates concentrations were assessed. Sawdust was also added to all composting piles to attain 60%, humidity at the beginning of the process. In pile 1, the co-substrates were the solid-phase of dairy cow manure, food waste and sawdust as bulking agent. In piles 2 and 3 there was an extra input of oily waste of 7 and 11% of the total volume, respectively, corresponding to 18 and 28% in dry weight. The results showed that the co-composting process was feasible even at the highest fat content. Another positive effect due to the oily waste addition was the requirement of extra humidity, due to the hydrophobic properties of this specific waste, which may imply reduced need of a bulking agent. Moreover, this study shows that composting can be a feasible way of adding value to fatty wastes. The three final composts presented very similar and suitable properties for land application.
Abstract: This qualitative, quantitative mixed-method study explores how students- motivation and interest in creative hands-on activities affected their conceptual understanding of science. The objectives of this research include developing a greater understanding about how creative activities, incorporated into the classroom as instructional strategies, increase student motivation and their learning or mastery of science concepts. The creative activities are viewed as a motivational tool, a specific type of task, which have an impact on student goals. Pre-and-post tests, pre-and-post interviews, and student responses measure motivational-goal theory variables, interest in the activity, and conceptual change. Implications for education and future research will be discussed.
Abstract: In this work, new experimental data for slugging
frequency in inclined gas-liquid flow are reported, and a new
correlation is proposed. Scale experiments were carried out using a
mixture of air and water in a 6 m long pipe. Two different pipe
diameters were used, namely, 38 and 67 mm. The data were taken
with capacitance type sensors at a data acquisition frequency of 200
Hz over an interval of 60 seconds. For the range of flow conditions
studied, the liquid superficial velocity is observed to influence the
frequency strongly. A comparison of the present data with
correlations available in the literature reveals a lack of agreement. A
new correlation for slug frequency has been proposed for the inclined
flow, which represents the main contribution of this work.
Abstract: In this paper the authors present the framework of a
system for assisting users through counseling on personal health, the
Personal Health Assistance Service Expert System (PHASES).
Personal health assistance systems need Personal Health Records
(PHR), which support wellness activities, improve the understanding
of personal health issues, enable access to data from providers of
health services, strengthen health promotion, and in the end improve
the health of the population. This is especially important in societies
where the health costs increase at a higher rate than the overall
economy. The most important elements of a healthy lifestyle are
related to food (such as balanced nutrition and diets), activities for
body fitness (such as walking, sports, fitness programs), and other
medical treatments (such as massage, prescriptions of drugs). The
PHASES framework uses an ontology of food, which includes
nutritional facts, an expert system keeping track of personal health
data that are matched with medical treatments, and a comprehensive
data transfer between patients and the system.
Abstract: The purpose of this work was to inspect the potential
of vincristine-dextran complex loaded solid lipid nanoparticles for
drug delivery to the brain.
The nanoparticles were stained with a fluorescence dye and their
plasma pharmacokinetic and brain concentrations were investigated
following injection to rats.
The result revealed a significant improvement in the plasma
concentration profile of the SLN injected animals as well as a sharp
increased concentration in the brains.
Abstract: German electricity European options on futures using
Lévy processes for the underlying asset are examined. Implied
volatility evolution, under each of the considered models, is
discussed after calibrating for the Merton jump diffusion (MJD),
variance gamma (VG), normal inverse Gaussian (NIG), Carr, Geman,
Madan and Yor (CGMY) and the Black and Scholes (B&S) model.
Implied volatility is examined for the entire sample period, revealing
some curious features about market evolution, where data fitting
performances of the five models are compared. It is shown that
variance gamma processes provide relatively better results and that
implied volatility shows significant differences through time, having
increasingly evolved. Volatility changes for changed uncertainty, or
else, increasing futures prices and there is evidence for the need to
account for seasonality when modelling both electricity spot/futures
prices and volatility.
Abstract: The fluid flow and the properties of the hydraulic
fluid inside a torque converter are the main topics of interest in this
research. The primary goal is to investigate the applicability of
various viscous fluids inside the torque converter. The Taguchi
optimization method is adopted to analyse the fluid flow in a torque
converter from a design perspective. Calculations are conducted in
maximizing the pressure since greater the pressure, greater the torque
developed. Using the values of the S/N ratios obtained, graphs are
plotted. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analysis is also
conducted.
Abstract: Based on different experiences in the historic centers
of Spain, we propose an global strategy for the regeneration of the
pre-tertiary fabrics and its application to the specific case of San
Mateo neighborhood, in Jerez de la Frontera (Andalusia), through a
diagnosis that focus particularly on the punishments the last-decade
economic situation (building boom and crisis) and shows the tragic
transition from economic center to an imminent disappearance with
an image similar to the ruins of war, due to the loss of their
traditional roles. From it we will learn their historically-tested
mechanisms of environment adaptation, which distill the vernacular
architecture essence and that we will apply to our strategy of action
based on a dotacional-and-free-space rhizome which rediscovers its
hidden character. The architectural fact will be crystallized in one of
the example-pieces proposed: The Artistic Revitalization Center.
Abstract: In this paper we apply one of approaches in category of heuristic methods as Genetic Algorithms for obtaining approximate solution of optimal control problems. The firs we convert optimal control problem to a quasi Assignment Problem by defining some usual characters as defined in Genetic algorithm applications. Then we obtain approximate optimal control function as an piecewise constant function. Finally the numerical examples are given.