Abstract: As days go by, we hear more and more about HIV,
Ebola, Bird Flu and other dreadful viruses which were unknown a
few decades ago. In both detecting and fighting viral diseases
ordinary methods have come across some basic and important
difficulties. Vaccination is by a sense introduction of the virus to the
immune system before the occurrence of the real case infection. It is
very successful against some viruses (e.g. Poliomyelitis), while
totally ineffective against some others (e.g. HIV or Hepatitis-C). On
the other hand, Anti-virus drugs are mostly some tools to control and
not to cure a viral disease. This could be a good motivation to try
alternative treatments. In this study, some key features of possible
physical-based alternative treatments for viral diseases are presented.
Electrification of body parts or fluids (especially blood) with micro
electric signals with adjusted current or frequency is also studied. The
main approach of this study is to find a suitable energy field, with
appropriate parameters that are able to kill or deactivate viruses. This
would be a lengthy, multi-disciplinary research which needs the
contribution of virology, physics, and signal processing experts. It
should be mentioned that all the claims made by alternative cures
researchers must be tested carefully and are not advisable at the time
being.
Abstract: Our study proposes an alternative method in building
Fuzzy Rule-Based System (FRB) from Support Vector Machine
(SVM). The first set of fuzzy IF-THEN rules is obtained through
an equivalence of the SVM decision network and the zero-ordered
Sugeno FRB type of the Adaptive Network Fuzzy Inference System
(ANFIS). The second set of rules is generated by combining the
first set based on strength of firing signals of support vectors using
Gaussian kernel. The final set of rules is then obtained from the
second set through input scatter partitioning. A distinctive advantage
of our method is the guarantee that the number of final fuzzy IFTHEN
rules is not more than the number of support vectors in the
trained SVM. The final FRB system obtained is capable of performing
classification with results comparable to its SVM counterpart, but it
has an advantage over the black-boxed SVM in that it may reveal
human comprehensible patterns.
Abstract: This paper describes the shape optimization of impeller
blades for a anti-heeling bidirectional axial flow pump used in ships.
In general, a bidirectional axial pump has an efficiency much lower
than the classical unidirectional pump because of the symmetry of the
blade type. In this paper, by focusing on a pump impeller, the shape of
blades is redesigned to reach a higher efficiency in a bidirectional axial
pump. The commercial code employed in this simulation is CFX v.13.
CFD result of pump torque, head, and hydraulic efficiency was
compared. The orthogonal array (OA) and analysis of variance
(ANOVA) techniques and surrogate model based optimization using
orthogonal polynomial, are employed to determine the main effects
and their optimal design variables. According to the optimal design,
we confirm an effective design variable in impeller blades and explain
the optimal solution, the usefulness for satisfying the constraints of
pump torque and head.
Abstract: Business rules and data warehouse are concepts and
technologies that impact a wide variety of organizational tasks. In
general, each area has evolved independently, impacting application
development and decision-making. Generating knowledge from data
warehouse is a complex process. This paper outlines an approach to
ease import of information and knowledge from a data warehouse
star schema through an inference class of business rules. The paper
utilizes the Oracle database for illustrating the working of the
concepts. The star schema structure and the business rules are stored
within a relational database. The approach is explained through a
prototype in Oracle-s PL/SQL Server Pages.
Abstract: Sorting appears the most attention among all computational tasks over the past years because sorted data is at the heart of many computations. Sorting is of additional importance to parallel computing because of its close relation to the task of routing data among processes, which is an essential part of many parallel algorithms. Many parallel sorting algorithms have been investigated for a variety of parallel computer architectures. In this paper, three parallel sorting algorithms have been implemented and compared in terms of their overall execution time. The algorithms implemented are the odd-even transposition sort, parallel merge sort and parallel rank sort. Cluster of Workstations or Windows Compute Cluster has been used to compare the algorithms implemented. The C# programming language is used to develop the sorting algorithms. The MPI (Message Passing Interface) library has been selected to establish the communication and synchronization between processors. The time complexity for each parallel sorting algorithm will also be mentioned and analyzed.
Abstract: Scatter behavior of fatigue life in die-cast AM60B
alloy was investigated. For comparison, those in rolled AM60B alloy
and die-cast A365-T5 aluminum alloy were also studied. Scatter
behavior of pore size was also investigated to discuss dominant
factors for fatigue life scatter in die-cast materials. Three-parameter
Weibull function was suitable to explain the scatter behavior of both
fatigue life and pore size. The scatter of fatigue life in die-cast
AM60B alloy was almost comparable to that in die-cast A365-T5
alloy, while it was significantly large compared to that in the rolled
AM60B alloy. Scatter behavior of pore size observed at fracture
nucleation site on the fracture surface was comparable to that
observed on the specimen cross-section and also to that of fatigue
life. Therefore, the dominant factor for large scatter of fatigue life in
die-cast alloys would be the large scatter of pore size. This
speculation was confirmed by the fracture mechanics fatigue life
prediction, where the pore observed at fatigue crack nucleation site
was assumed as the pre-existing crack.
Abstract: The paper presents a part of the results obtained in a
complex research project on Romanian Grey Steppe breed, owner of
some remarkable qualities such as hardiness, longevity, adaptability,
special resistance to ban weather and diseases and included in the
genetic fund (G.D. no. 822/2008.) from Romania.
Following the researches effectuated, we identified alleles of six
loci, codifying the six types of major milk proteins: alpha-casein S1
(α S1-cz); beta-casein (β-cz); kappa-casein (K-cz); beta-lactoglobulin
(β-lg); alpha-lactalbumin (α-la) and alpha-casein S2 (α S2-cz). In
system αS1-cz allele αs1-Cn B has the highest frequency (0.700), in
system β-cz allele β-Cn A2 ( 0.550 ), in system K-cz allele k-CnA2 (
0.583 ) and heterozygote genotype AB ( 0.416 ) and BB (0.375), in
system β-lg allele β-lgA1 has the highest frequency (0.542 ) and
heterozygote genotype AB ( 0.500 ), in system α-la there is
monomorphism for allele α-la B and similarly in system αS2-cz for
allele αs2-Cn A.
The milk analysis by the isoelectric focalization technique (I.E.F.)
allowed the identification of a new allele for locus αS1-casein, for two
of the individuals under analysis, namely allele called αS1-casein
IRV. When experiments were repeated, we noticed that this is not a
proteolysis band and it really was a new allele that has not been
registered in the specialized literature so far. We identified two
heterozygote individuals, carriers of this allele, namely: BIRV and
CIRV. This discovery is extremely important if focus is laid on the
national genetic patrimony.
Abstract: The classic problem of recovering arbitrary values of
a band-limited signal from its samples has an added complication
in software radio applications; namely, the resampling calculations
inevitably fold aliases of the analog signal back into the original
bandwidth. The phenomenon is quantified by the spur-free dynamic
range. We demonstrate how a novel application of the Remez (Parks-
McClellan) algorithm permits optimal signal recovery and SFDR, far
surpassing state-of-the-art resamplers.
Abstract: This paper explored the use of Importance- Performance Analysis in assessing the competitiveness of China-s Macao Special Administrative Region as a city for international conventions. Determinants of destination choice for convention tourists are grouped under three factors, namely the convention factor, the city factor and the tourism factor. Attributes of these three factors were studied through a survey with the convention participants and exhibitors of Macao SAR. Results indicate that the city boasts of strong traditional tourist attractions and infrastructure, but is deficient in specialized convention experts and promotion mechanisms. A reflection on the findings suggests that an urban city such as the Macao SAR can co-develop its the convention and the traditional tourism for a synergistic effect. With proper planning and co-ordination, both areas of the city-s tourism industry will grow as they feed off each other.
Abstract: The purpose of this study is to revisit the concept of
rape as represented by professionals in the literature as well as its
perception (beliefs and attitudes) in the population at large and to
propose methodological improvements to its measurement tool. Rape
is a serious crime threatening its victim-s physical and mental health
and integrity; and as such is legally prosecuted in all modern
societies. The problem is not in accepting or rejecting rape as a
criminal act, but rather in the vagueness of its interpretations and
“justifications" maintained in the mentality of modern societies -
known in the literature as the phenomenon of "rape-myth". The rapemyth
can be studied from different perspectives: criminology,
sociology, ethics, medicine and psychology. Its investigation requires
rigorous scientific objectivity, free of passion (victims of rape are at
risk of emotional bias), free of activism (social activists, even if wellintentioned
are also biased), free of any pre-emptive assumptions or
prejudices. To apply a rigorous scientific procedure, we need a solid,
valid and reliable measurement. Rape is a form of heterosexual or
homosexual aggression, violently forcing the victim to give-in in the
sexual activity of the aggressor against her/his will. Human beings
always try to “understand" or find a reason justifying their acts.
Psychological literature provides multiple clinical and experimental
examples of it; just to mention the famous studies by Milgram on the
level of electroshock delivered by the “teacher" towards the “learner"
if “scientifically justifiable" or the studies on the behavior of
“prisoners" and the “guards" and many other experiments and field
observations. Sigmund Freud presented the phenomenon of
unconscious justification and called it rationalization. The multiple
justifications, rationalizations and repeated opinions about sexual
behavior contribute to a myth maintained in the society. What kind of
“rationale" our societies apply to “understand" the non-consensual
sexual behavior? There are many, just to mention few:
• Sex is a ludistic activity for both participants, therefore –
even if not consented – it should bring pleasure to both.
• Everybody wants sex, but only men are allowed to manifest
it openly while women have to pretend the opposite, thus men have
to initiate sexual behavior and women would follow.
• A person who strongly needs sex is free to manifest it and
struggle to get it; the person who doesn-t want it must not reveal
her/his sexual attraction and avoid risky situations; otherwise she/he
is perceived as a promiscuous seducer.
• A person who doesn-t fight against the sexual initiator
unconsciously accepts the rape (does it explain why homosexual
rapes are reported less frequently than rapes against women?).
• Women who are raped deserve it because their wardrobe is
very revealing and seducing and they ''willingly'' go to highly risky
places (alleys, dark roads, etc.).
• Men need to ventilate their sexual energy and if they are
deprived of a partner their urge to have sex is difficult to control.
• Men are supposed to initiate and insist even by force to have
sex (their testosterone makes them both sexual and aggressive).
The paper overviews numerous cultural beliefs about masculine
versus feminine behavior and their impact on the “rape myth".
Abstract: In a recent year usage of VoIP subscription has increased tremendously as compare to Public Switching Telephone System(PSTN). A VoIP subscriber would like to know the exact tariffs of the calls made using VoIP. As the usage increases, the rate of fraud is also increases, causing users complain about excess billing. This in turn hampers the growth of VoIP .This paper describe the common frauds and attack on VoIP based system and make an attempt to solve the billing attack by creating secured channel between caller and callee.
Abstract: In this work, Experimental tie-line results and
solubility (binodal) curves were obtained for the ternary systems
(water + acetic acid + methyl isobutyl ketone (MIBK)), (water +
lactic acid+ methyl isobutyl ketone) at T = 294.15K and atmospheric
pressure. The consistency of the values of the experimental tie-lines
was determined through the Othmer-Tobias and Hands correlations.
For the extraction effectiveness of solvents, the distribution and
selectivity curves were plotted. In addition, these experimental tieline
data were also correlated with NRTL model. The interaction
parameters for the NRTL model were retrieved from the obtained
experimental results by means of a combination of the homotopy
method and the genetic algorithms.
Abstract: The study examines the determinants of corporate cash holding of non-financial quoted firms in Nigeria using a sample of fifty four non-financial quoted firms listed on the Nigeria Stock Exchange for the period 1995-2009. Data were sourced from the Annual reports of the sampled firms and analyzed using Generalized Method of Moments(GMM). The study finds evidence supportive of a target adjustment model and that firms can not instantaneously adjust towards the target cash level owing to the fact that adjustment cost being costly,. Also, the result shows significant negative relationship between cash holdings and firm size, net working capital, return on asset and bank relationship and positive relationship with growth opportunities, leverage, inventories, account receivables and financial distress. Furthermore, there is no significant relationship between cash holdings and cash flow. In Nigerian setting, most of the variables that are relevant for explaining cash holdings in the Developed countries are found by this study to be relevant also in Nigeria.
Abstract: The scientific achievements coming from molecular
biology depend greatly on the capability of computational
applications to analyze the laboratorial results. A comprehensive
analysis of an experiment requires typically the simultaneous study
of the obtained dataset with data that is available in several distinct
public databases. Nevertheless, developing a centralized access to
these distributed databases rises up a set of challenges such as: what
is the best integration strategy, how to solve nomenclature clashes,
how to solve database overlapping data and how to deal with huge
datasets. In this paper we present GeNS, a system that uses a simple and yet innovative approach to address several biological data integration issues. Compared with existing systems, the main
advantages of GeNS are related to its maintenance simplicity and to its coverage and scalability, in terms of number of supported
databases and data types. To support our claims we present the current use of GeNS in two concrete applications. GeNS currently contains more than 140 million of biological relations and it can be
publicly downloaded or remotely access through SOAP web services.
Abstract: This paper aims to give a full study of the dynamic
behavior of a mono-phase active power filter. First, the principle of
the parallel active power filter will be introduced. Then, a
dimensioning procedure for all its components will be explained in
detail, such as the input filter, the current and voltage controllers.
This active power filter is simulated using OrCAD program showing
the validity of the theoretical study.
Abstract: A frequency grouping approach for multi-channel
instantaneous blind source separation (I-BSS) of convolutive
mixtures is proposed for a lower net residual inter-symbol
interference (ISI) and inter-channel interference (ICI) than the
conventional short-time Fourier transform (STFT) approach. Starting
in the time domain, STFTs are taken with overlapping windows to
convert the convolutive mixing problem into frequency domain
instantaneous mixing. Mixture samples at the same frequency but
from different STFT windows are grouped together forming unique
frequency groups.
The individual frequency group vectors are input to the I-BSS
algorithm of choice, from which the output samples are dispersed
back to their respective STFT windows. After applying the inverse
STFT, the resulting time domain signals are used to construct the
complete source estimates via the weighted overlap-add method
(WOLA). The proposed algorithm is tested for source deconvolution
given two mixtures, and simulated along with the STFT approach to
illustrate its superiority for fairly motionless sources.
Abstract: Accounts of language acquisition differ significantly in their treatment of the role of prediction in language learning. In particular, nativist accounts posit that probabilistic learning about words and word sequences has little to do with how children come to use language. The accuracy of this claim was examined by testing whether distributional probabilities and frequency contributed to how well 3-4 year olds repeat simple word chunks. Corresponding chunks were the same length, expressed similar content, and were all grammatically acceptable, yet the results of the study showed marked differences in performance when overall distributional frequency varied. It was found that a distributional model of language predicted the empirical findings better than a number of other models, replicating earlier findings and showing that children attend to distributional probabilities in an adult corpus. This suggested that language is more prediction-and-error based, rather than on abstract rules which nativist camps suggest.
Abstract: Ants are fascinating creatures that demonstrate the
ability to find food and bring it back to their nest. Their ability as a
colony, to find paths to food sources has inspired the development of
algorithms known as Ant Colony Systems (ACS). The principle of
cooperation forms the backbone of such algorithms, commonly used
to find solutions to problems such as the Traveling Salesman
Problem (TSP). Ants communicate to each other through chemical
substances called pheromones. Modeling individual ants- ability to
manipulate this substance can help an ACS find the best solution.
This paper introduces a Dynamic Ant Colony System with threelevel
updates (DACS3) that enhance an existing ACS. Experiments
were conducted to observe single ant behavior in a colony of
Malaysian House Red Ants. Such behavior was incorporated into the
DACS3 algorithm. We benchmark the performance of DACS3 versus
DACS on TSP instances ranging from 14 to 100 cities. The result
shows that the DACS3 algorithm can achieve shorter distance in
most cases and also performs considerably faster than DACS.
Abstract: This research aimed to study correlation between
work satisfaction and organization core value of officers in
Waterworks Authority, Bangkean Branch. Sample group of the study
was 112 officers who worked in the Waterworks Authority,
Bangkean Branch. Questionnaires were employed as a research tools,
while, Percentage, Mean, Standard Deviation, T-test, One-way
ANOVA, and Pearson Product Moment Correlation were claimed as
statistics used in this study. Researcher found that overall and
individual aspects of work satisfaction namely, work characteristic,
work progress, and colleagues significantly correlated with
organization core value in aspect of perception in choice of work at
0.5, 0.01, and 0.01 respectively. Also, such aspects were compatible
with income at .05 which indicated the low level of correlation, mid
low correlation respectively at the same direction, same direction,
opposite direction, and same direction, correspondingly.
Abstract: In this study is presented a general methodology to
predict the performance of a continuous near-critical fluid extraction
process to remove compounds from aqueous solutions using hollow
fiber membrane contactors. A comprehensive 2D mathematical
model was developed to study Porocritical extraction process. The
system studied in this work is a membrane based extractor of ethanol
and acetone from aqueous solutions using near-critical CO2.
Predictions of extraction percentages obtained by simulations have
been compared to the experimental values reported by Bothun et al.
[5]. Simulations of extraction percentage of ethanol and acetone
show an average difference of 9.3% and 6.5% with the experimental
data, respectively. More accurate predictions of the extraction of
acetone could be explained by a better estimation of the transport
properties in the aqueous phase that controls the extraction of this
solute.