Abstract: Since the initial creation of the Barbie doll in 1959, it
became a symbol of US society. Likewise, the Licca-chan, a Japanese
doll created in 1967, also became a Japanese symbolic doll of Japanese
society. Prior to the introduction of Licca-chan, Barbie was already
marketed in Japan but their sales were dismal. Licca-chan (an actual
name: Kayama Licca) is a plastic doll with a variety of sizes ranging
from 21.0 cm to 29.0 cm which many Japanese girls dream of having.
For over 35 years, the manufacturer, Takara Co., Ltd. has sold over 48
million dolls and has produced doll houses, accessories, clothes, and
Licca-chan video games for the Nintendo DS. Many First-generation
Licca-chan consumers still are enamored with Licca-chan, and go to
Licca-chan House, in an amusement park with their daughters. These
people are called Licca-chan maniacs, as they enjoy touring the
Licca-chan’s factory in Tohoku or purchase various Licca-chan
accessories. After the successful launch of Licca-chan into the
Japanese market, a mixed-like doll from the US and Japan, a doll,
JeNny, was later sold in the same Japanese market by Takara Co., Ltd.
in 1982.
Comparison of these cultural iconic dolls, Barbie and Licca-chan,
are analyzed in this paper. In fact, these dolls have concepts of girls’
dreams. By using concepts of mythology of Jean Baudrillard, these
dolls can be represented idealized images of figures in the products for
consumers, but at the same time, consumers can see products with
different perspectives, which can cause controversy.
Abstract: Previous studies on financial distress prediction choose
the conventional failing and non-failing dichotomy; however, the
distressed extent differs substantially among different financial
distress events. To solve the problem, “non-distressed”, “slightlydistressed”
and “reorganization and bankruptcy” are used in our article
to approximate the continuum of corporate financial health. This paper
explains different financial distress events using the two-stage method.
First, this investigation adopts firm-specific financial ratios, corporate
governance and market factors to measure the probability of various
financial distress events based on multinomial logit models.
Specifically, the bootstrapping simulation is performed to examine the
difference of estimated misclassifying cost (EMC). Second, this work
further applies macroeconomic factors to establish the credit cycle
index and determines the distressed cut-off indicator of the two-stage
models using such index. Two different models, one-stage and
two-stage prediction models are developed to forecast financial
distress, and the results acquired from different models are compared
with each other, and with the collected data. The findings show that the
one-stage model has the lower misclassification error rate than the
two-stage model. The one-stage model is more accurate than the
two-stage model.
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: This article deals with geographical conditions in
terrain and their effect on the movement of vehicles, their effect on
speed and safety of movement of people and vehicles. Finding of the
optimal routes outside the communication is studied in the Army
environment, but it occur in civilian as well, primarily in crisis
situation, or by the provision of assistance when natural disasters
such as floods, fires, storms etc., have happened. These movements
require the optimization of routes when effects of geographical
factors should be included. The most important factor is the surface
of a terrain. It is based on several geographical factors as are slopes,
soil conditions, micro-relief, a type of surface and meteorological
conditions. Their mutual impact has been given by coefficient of
deceleration. This coefficient can be used for the commander`s
decision. New approaches and methods of terrain testing,
mathematical computing, mathematical statistics or cartometric
investigation are necessary parts of this evaluation.
Abstract: Epidermal Growth Factor (EGF, Mw=6,045) has been
reported to have high efficiency of wound repair and anti-wrinkle
effect. However, the half-life of EGF in the body is too short to exert
the biological activity effectively when applied in free form. Growth
Factors can be stabilized by immobilization with carbohydrates from
thermal and proteolytic degradation. Low molecular weight chitosan
(LMCS) and its derivate prepared by hydrogen peroxide has high
solubility. LM6A6DC was successfully prepared as a reactive
carbohydrate for the stabilization of EGF by the reactions of LMCS
with alkalization, tosylation, azidation and reduction. The structure of
LM6A6DC was confirmed by FT-IR, 1H NMR and elementary
analysis. For enhancing the stability of free EGF, EGF was attached
with LM6A6DC by using water-soluble carbodiimide.
EGF-LM6A6DC conjugates did not show any cytotoxicity on the
Normal Human Dermal Fibroblast (NHDF) 3T3 proliferation at least
under 100 μg/ml. In the result, it was considered that LM6A6DC is
suitable to immobilize of growth factor.
Abstract: In this paper, performances of shuffled frog leaping
algorithm was investigated on the stealth laser dicing process. Effect
of problem on the performance of the algorithm was based on the
tolerance of meandering data. From the customer specification it
could be less than five microns with the target of zero microns.
Currently, the meandering levels are unsatisfactory when compared
to the customer specification. Firstly, the two-level factorial design
was applied to preliminarily study the statistically significant effects
of five process variables. In this study one influential process variable
is integer. From the experimental results, the new operating condition
from the algorithm was superior when compared to the current
manufacturing condition.
Abstract: Livestock is one of the fastest-growing sectors in
agriculture. If carefully managed, have potential opportunities for
economic growth, food sovereignty and food security. In this study
we mainly analyse and compare long-term i.e. for year 2030 climate
variability impact on predicted productivity of meat i.e. beef, mutton
and poultry for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia w.r.t three factors i.e. i)
climatic-change vulnerability ii) CO2 fertilization and iii) water
scarcity and compare the results with two countries of the region i.e.
Iraq and Yemen. We do the analysis using data from diverse sources,
which was extracted, transformed and integrated before usage. The
collective impact of the three factors had an overall negative effect on
the production of meat for all the three countries, with adverse impact
on Iraq. High similarity was found between CO2 fertilization
(effecting animal fodder) and water scarcity i.e. higher than that
between production of beef and mutton for the three countries
considered. Overall, the three factors do not seem to be favorable for
the three Middle-East countries considered. This points to possibility
of a vegetarian year 2030 based on dependency on indigenous livestock
population.
Abstract: This paper develops and extended eclectic paradigm
to fit the firm internationalization process with the real international
business world. The approach is based on Dunning´s, introducing
new concepts like mode of entry, international joint venture o
international mergers and acquisitions. At the same time is presented
a model to describe the Spanish international mergers and
acquisitions in order to determinate the most important factor that
influence in this type of foreign direct investment.
Abstract: This paper outlines the basic installation and operation of magnetic inductive flow velocity sensors on large underground cooling water pipelines. Research on the effects of cathodic protection as well as into other factors that might influence the overall performance of the meter is presented in this paper. The experiments were carried out on an immersion type magnetic meter specially used for flow measurement of cooling water pipeline. An attempt has been made in this paper to outline guidelines that can ensure accurate measurement related to immersion type magnetic meters on underground pipelines.
Abstract: In review the generalized data about different methods
of synthesis of biological activity halogenated di-, tri- and tetrahydroxyanthraquinones
is presented. The basic regularity of a
synthesis is analyzed. Action of temperature, pH, solubility, catalysts
and other factors on a reaction product yield is revealed.
Abstract: The goal of this study is to identify success factors
that could influence the ISMS self-implementation in government
sector from qualitative perspective. This study is based on a case
study in one of the Malaysian government agency. Semi-structured
interviews involving five key informants were conducted to examine
factors addressed in the conceptual framework. Subsequently,
thematic analysis was executed to describe the influence of each
factor on the success implementation of ISMS. The result of this
study indicates that management commitment, implementer
commitment and implementer competency are part of the success
factors for ISMS self-implementation in Malaysian Government
Sector.
Abstract: The implementation of e-assessment as tool to support
the process of teaching and learning in university has become a
popular technological means in universities. E-Assessment provides
many advantages to the users especially the flexibility in teaching and
learning. The e-assessment system has the capability to improve its
quality of delivering education. However, there still exists a
drawback in terms of security which limits the user acceptance of the
online learning system. Even though there are studies providing
solutions for identified security threats in e-learning usage, there is no
particular model which addresses the factors that influences the
acceptance of e-assessment system by lecturers from security
perspective. The aim of this study is to explore security aspects of eassessment
in regard to the acceptance of the technology. As a result
a conceptual model of secure acceptance of e-assessment is proposed.
Both human and security factors are considered in formulation of this
conceptual model. In order to increase understanding of critical issues
related to the subject of this study, interpretive approach involving
convergent mixed method research method is proposed to be used to
execute the research. This study will be useful in providing more
insightful understanding regarding the factors that influence the user
acceptance of e-assessment system from security perspective.
Abstract: Wind energy offers a significant advantage such as no
fuel costs and no emissions from generation. However, wind energy
sources are variable and non-dispatchable. The utility grid is able to
accommodate the variability of wind in smaller proportion along with
the daily load. However, at high penetration levels, the variability can
severely impact the utility reserve requirements and the cost
associated with it. In this paper the impact of wind energy is
evaluated in detail in formulating the total utility cost. The objective
is to minimize the overall cost of generation while ensuring the
proper management of the load. Overall cost includes the curtailment
cost, reserve cost and the reliability cost, as well as any other penalty
imposed by the regulatory authority. Different levels of wind
penetrations are explored and the cost impacts are evaluated. As the
penetration level increases significantly, the reliability becomes a
critical question to be answered. Here we increase the penetration
from the wind yet keep the reliability factor within the acceptable
limit provided by NERC. This paper uses an economic dispatch (ED)
model to incorporate wind generation into the power grid. Power
system costs are analyzed at various wind penetration levels using
Linear Programming. The goal of this study is show how the
increases in wind generation will affect power system economics.
Abstract: The objectives of study are the following: To study
the way of life in terms of one hundred years co-existence of the
Muslim and local community in this area 2) To analyze factors affect
to this community with happy co-existence. The study requires
quantitative research to study a history together with the study of
humanity. The result of this study showed that the area of Petchburi
7 community is an ancient area which has owned by the Muslim for
almost 100 years. There is a sanctuary as & center of unity. Later
Bangkok becomes developed and provides more infrastructures like
motorway and other transportation: however, the owners of lands in
this community still keep their lands and build many buildings to run
business. With this purpose, there are many non-Muslim people come
to live here with co-existence. Not only are they convenient to work
but also easy to transport by sky train. There are factors that make
them live harmonious as following: 1) All Muslims in this area are
strict to follow their rules and allocate their community for business.
2) All people, who come and live here, are middle-aged and working
men and women. They, rent rooms closed to their work. 3) There are
Muslim food and desserts, especially Roti, the popular fried flour,
and local Chachak, tea originated from the south of Thailand. All
these food and desserts are famous for working men and women to
home and join after work 4) All Muslim in this area are independent
to lead their own lives although a society changes rapidly.
Abstract: Conservation works in Malaysia that is procured by
public organisation usually follow the traditional approach where the
works are tendered based on Bills of Quantities (BQ). One of the
purposes of tendering is to enable the selection of a competent
contractor that offers a competitive price. While competency of the
contractors are assessed by their technical knowledge, experience and
track records, the assessment of pricing will be dependent on the
tender amount. However, the issue currently faced by the
conservation works sector is the difficulty in assessing the
competitiveness and reasonableness of the tender amount due to the
high variance between the tenders amount. Thus, this paper discusses
the factors that cause difficulty to the tenderers in pricing
competitively in a bidding exercise for conservation tenders. Data on
tendering is collected from interviews with conservation works
contractors to gain in-depth understanding of the barriers faced in
pricing tenders of conservation works. Findings from the study lent
support to the contention that the variance of tender amount is very
high amongst tenderers. The factors identified in the survey are the
format of BQ, hidden works, experience and labour and material
costs.
Abstract: In review the generalized data about different methods
of synthesis of biological activity aminated hydroxyanthraquinones is
presented. The basic regularity of a synthesis is analyzed. Action of
temperature, pH, solubility, catalysts and other factors on a reaction
product yield is revealed.
Abstract: The objective of this study was to assess whether
living in proximity to a roofing fiber cement factory in southern
Thailand was associated with physical, mental, social, and spiritual
health domains measured in a self-reported health risk assessment
(HRA) questionnaire. A cross-sectional study was conducted among
community members divided into two groups: near population (living
within 0-2km of factory) and far population (living within 2-5km of
factory) (N=198). A greater proportion of those living far from the
factory (65.34%) reported physical health problems than the near
group (51.04%) (p =0.032). This study has demonstrated that the near
population group had higher proportion of participants with positive
ratings on mental assessment (30.34%) and social health impacts
(28.42%) than far population group (10.59% and 16.67%,
respectively) (p
Abstract: This paper presents two types of microstrip bandpass
filter (BPF) at microwave frequencies. The first one is a tunable BPF
using planar patch resonators based on a varactor diode. The filter is
formed by a triple mode circular patch resonator with two pairs of
slots, in which the varactor diodes are connected. Indeed, this filter is
initially centered at 2.4 GHz; the center frequency of the tunable
patch filter could be tuned up to 1.8 GHz simultaneously with the
bandwidth, reaching high tuning ranges. Lossless simulations were
compared to those considering the substrate dielectric, conductor
losses and the equivalent electrical circuit model of the tuning
element in order to assess their effects. Within these variations,
simulation results showed insertion loss better than 2 dB and return
loss better than 10 dB over the passband. The second structure is a
BPF for ultra-wideband (UWB) applications based on multiple-mode
resonator (MMR) and rectangular-shaped defected ground structure
(DGS). This filter, which is compact size of 25.2 x 3.8 mm2, provides
in the pass band an insertion loss of 0.57 dB and a return loss greater
than 12 dB. The proposed filters presents good performances and the
simulation results are in satisfactory agreement with the
experimentation ones reported elsewhere.
Abstract: Comparisons of financial development across
countries are central to answering many of the questions on factors
leading to economic development. For this reason this study analyzes
the implications of financial system’s development on country’s
economic development. The aim of the article: to analyze the impact
of financial system’s development on economic development. The
following research methods were used: systemic, logical and
comparative analysis of scientific literature, analysis of statistical
data, time series model (Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL)
Model). The empirical results suggest about positive short and long
term effect of stock market development on GDP per capita.