Abstract: On a such wide-area environment as a Grid, data
placement is an important aspect of distributed database systems. In
this paper, we address the problem of initial placement of database
no-replicated fragments in Grid architecture. We propose a graph
based approach that considers resource restrictions. The goal is to
optimize the use of computing, storage and communication
resources. The proposed approach is developed in two phases: in the
first phase, we perform fragment grouping using knowledge about
fragments dependency and, in the second phase, we determine an
efficient placement of the fragment groups on the Grid. We also
show, via experimental analysis that our approach gives solutions
that are close to being optimal for different databases and Grid
configurations.
Abstract: Mechanical buckling analysis of rectangular plates
with central circular cutout is performed in this paper. The finiteelement
method is used to study the effects of plate-support
conditions, aspect ratio, and hole size on the mechanical buckling
strength of the perforated plates subjected to linearly varying loading.
Results show that increasing the hole size does not necessarily reduce
the mechanical buckling strength of the perforated plates. It is also
concluded that the clamped boundary condition increases the
mechanical buckling strength of the perforated plates more than the
simply-supported boundary condition and the free boundary
conditions enhance the mechanical buckling strength of the
perforated plates more effectively than the fixed boundary conditions.
Furthermore, for the bending cases, the critical buckling load of
perforated plates with free edges is less than perforated plates with
fixed edges.
Abstract: A novel low-cost impedance control structure is
proposed for monitoring the contact force between end-effector and
environment without installing an expensive force/torque sensor.
Theoretically, the end-effector contact force can be estimated from the
superposition of each joint control torque. There have a nonlinear
matrix mapping function between each joint motor control input and
end-effector actuating force/torques vector. This new force control
structure can be implemented based on this estimated mapping matrix.
First, the robot end-effector is manipulated to specified positions, then
the force controller is actuated based on the hall sensor current
feedback of each joint motor. The model-free fuzzy sliding mode
control (FSMC) strategy is employed to design the position and force
controllers, respectively. All the hardware circuits and software
control programs are designed on an Altera Nios II embedded
development kit to constitute an embedded system structure for a
retrofitted Mitsubishi 5 DOF robot. Experimental results show that PI
and FSMC force control algorithms can achieve reasonable contact
force monitoring objective based on this hardware control structure.
Abstract: When it comes to last, it is regarded as the critical
foundation of shoe design and development. A computer aided
methodology for various last form designs is proposed in this study.
The reverse engineering is mainly applied to the process of scanning
for the last form. Then with the minimum energy for revision of
surface continuity, the surface reconstruction of last is rebuilt by the
feature curves of the scanned last. When the surface reconstruction of
last is completed, the weighted arithmetic mean method is applied to
the computation on the shape morphing for the control mesh of last,
thus 3D last form of different sizes is generated from its original form
feature with functions remained. In the end, the result of this study is
applied to an application for 3D last reconstruction system. The
practicability of the proposed methodology is verified through later
case studies.
Abstract: In current global economics the application of Business Continuity Management is the prerequisite for sustainable competitive advantage in an organization. Business Continuity Management is a managerial which identifies the potential impact of losses in an organization. The aim of this paper is to identify and critically evaluate the relative advantages and disadvantages of deploying Business Continuity Management in an organization on the basis of seven criteria. The strongest advantage of Business Continuity Management is in its capacity to identify a crisis situation and help the organization to flexibly and also to keep the critical knowledge within the organization. By contrast the main disadvantage is that establishing Business Continuity Management in an organization is time-consuming and its implementation as an integral part of the organizational culture present significant difficulties.
Abstract: Digital broadcasting has been an area of active
research, development, innovation and business models development
in recent years. This paper presents a survey on the characteristics of
the digital terrestrial television broadcasting (DTTB) standards, and
implementation status of DTTB worldwide showing the standards
adopted. It is clear that only the developed countries and some in the
developing ones shall be able to beat the ITU set analogue to digital
broadcasting migration deadline because of the challenges that these
countries faces in digitizing their terrestrial broadcasting. The
challenges to keep on track the DTTB migration plan are also
discussed in this paper. They include financial, technology gap,
policies alignment with DTTB technology, etc. The reported
performance comparisons for the different standards are also
presented. The interesting part is that the results for many
comparative studies depends to a large extent on the objective behind
such studies, hence counter claims are common.
Abstract: This paper presents a novel method for remaining
useful life prediction using the Elliptical Basis Function (EBF)
network and a Markov chain. The EBF structure is trained by a
modified Expectation-Maximization (EM) algorithm in order to take
into account the missing covariate set. No explicit extrapolation is
needed for internal covariates while a Markov chain is constructed to
represent the evolution of external covariates in the study. The
estimated external and the unknown internal covariates constitute an
incomplete covariate set which are then used and analyzed by the EBF
network to provide survival information of the asset. It is shown in the
case study that the method slightly underestimates the remaining
useful life of an asset which is a desirable result for early maintenance
decision and resource planning.
Abstract: A Negotiation Support is required on a value-based decision to enable each stakeholder to evaluate and rank the solution alternatives before engaging into negotiation with the other stakeholders. This study demonstrates a process of negotiation support model for selection of a building system from value-based design perspective. The perspective is based on comparison of function and cost of a building system. Multi criteria decision techniques were applied to determine the relative value of the alternative solutions for performing the function. A satisfying option game theory are applied to the criteria of value-based decision which are LCC (life cycle cost) and function based FAST. The results demonstrate a negotiation process to select priorities of a building system. The support model can be extended to an automated negotiation by combining value based decision method, group decision and negotiation support.
Abstract: As the air traffic increases at a hub airport, some
flights cannot land or depart at their preferred target time. This event
happens because the airport runways become occupied to near their
capacity. It results in extra costs for both passengers and airlines
because of the loss of connecting flights or more waiting, more fuel
consumption, rescheduling crew members, etc. Hence, devising an
appropriate scheduling method that determines a suitable runway and
time for each flight in order to efficiently use the hub capacity and
minimize the related costs is of great importance. In this paper, we
present a mixed-integer zero-one model for scheduling a set of mixed
landing and departing flights (despite of most previous studies
considered only landings). According to the fact that the flight cost is
strongly affected by the level of airline, we consider different airline
categories in our model. This model presents a single objective
minimizing the total sum of three terms, namely 1) the weighted
deviation from targets, 2) the scheduled time of the last flight (i.e.,
makespan), and 3) the unbalancing the workload on runways. We
solve 10 simulated instances of different sizes up to 30 flights and 4
runways. Optimal solutions are obtained in a reasonable time, which
are satisfactory in comparison with the traditional rule, namely First-
Come-First-Serve (FCFS) that is far apart from optimality in most
cases.
Abstract: We consider the methods of construction simple
polygons for a set S of n points and applying them for searching the
minimal area polygon. In this paper we propose the approximate
algorithm, which generates the simple polygonalizations of a fixed
set of points and finds the minimal area polygon, in O (n3) time and
using O(n2) memory.
Abstract: This study shows the effect of carbon towards
molybdenum carbide alloy when exposed to Microwave. This
technique is also known as Microwave Induced Alloying (MIA) for
the preparation of molybdenum carbide. In this study ammonium
heptamolybdate solution and carbon black powder were
heterogeneously mixed and exposed to microwave irradiation for 2
minutes. The effect on amount of carbon towards the produced alloy
on morphological and oxidation states changes during microwave is
presented. In this experiment, it is expected carbon act as a reducing
agent with the ratio 2:7 molybdenum to carbon as the optimum for
the production of molybdenum carbide alloy. All the morphological
transformations and changes in this experiment were followed and
characterized using X-Ray Diffraction and FESEM.
Abstract: Copolymerization of ethylene with 1-hexene was
carried out using two ansa-fluorenyl titanium derivative complexes.
The substituent effect on the catalytic activity, monomer reactivity
ratio and polymer property was investigated. It was found that the
presence of t-Bu groups on fluorenyl ring exhibited remarkable
catalytic activity and produced polymer with high molecular weight.
However, these catalysts produce polymer with narrow molecular
weight distribution, indicating the characteristic of single-site
metallocene catalyst. Based on 13C NMR, we can observe that
monomer reactivity ratio was affected by catalyst structure. The rH
values of complex 2 were lower than that of complex 1 which might
be result from the higher steric hindrance leading to a reduction of 1-
hexene insertion step.
Abstract: Within the new world order, the term “crisis" is nowadays familiar to companies. Organizations are experiencing conditions which are surprising, uncertain, often adverse and usually unstable. The companies, who grasp the importance of transformation within the information age, have felt the need to develop modern methods to achieve the ability to thrive despite severe shocks. Through strategically managing human resource and developing appropriate elements of human resource system, companies can be assured for resolving the crisis. In this paper the role of HR system on resolving crisis has been evaluated. To help accomplish this, an insight on previous strategic HRM literature and an introduction to the elements and relationship within HR systems has been presented. It also reviews different attitude around resilience in literature. It continues by reviewing three elements central to developing an organization-s capacity for crisis resolving and it will demonstrate how designing proper elements of HR system can lead the organizations to possess the ability for passing through crisis. Finally it will evaluate an Iranian Insurance organization in case of one of the three central elements (specific cognitive ability) and observe how successful they were on developing an effective HR system to be ready for facing crisis.
Abstract: This paper deals with the combination of OSGi and
cloud computing. Both technologies are mainly placed in the field of
distributed computing. Therefore, it is discussed how different
approaches from different institutions work. In addition, the
approaches are compared to each other.
Abstract: In this longitudinal study, we examined the moderating role of personality in the relationship between communication behaviors and long-term dyadic adjustment. A sample of 82 couples completed the NEO Five-Factor Inventory and the Dyadic Adjustment Scale. These couples were also videotaped during a 15-minute problem-solving discussion. Approximately 2.5 years later, these couples completed again the Dyadic Adjustment Scale. Results show that personality of both men and women moderates the relationship between communication behaviors of the partner and long-term dyadic adjustment of the individual. Women-s openness and men-s extraversion moderate the relationship between some communication behaviors and long-term dyadic adjustment
Abstract: Time series forecasting is an important and widely
popular topic in the research of system modeling. This paper
describes how to use the hybrid PSO-RLSE neuro-fuzzy learning
approach to the problem of time series forecasting. The PSO
algorithm is used to update the premise parameters of the
proposed prediction system, and the RLSE is used to update the
consequence parameters. Thanks to the hybrid learning (HL)
approach for the neuro-fuzzy system, the prediction performance
is excellent and the speed of learning convergence is much faster
than other compared approaches. In the experiments, we use the
well-known Mackey-Glass chaos time series. According to the
experimental results, the prediction performance and accuracy in
time series forecasting by the proposed approach is much better
than other compared approaches, as shown in Table IV. Excellent
prediction performance by the proposed approach has been
observed.
Abstract: This paper presents the methodology from machine
learning approaches for short-term rain forecasting system. Decision
Tree, Artificial Neural Network (ANN), and Support Vector Machine
(SVM) were applied to develop classification and prediction models
for rainfall forecasts. The goals of this presentation are to
demonstrate (1) how feature selection can be used to identify the
relationships between rainfall occurrences and other weather
conditions and (2) what models can be developed and deployed for
predicting the accurate rainfall estimates to support the decisions to
launch the cloud seeding operations in the northeastern part of
Thailand. Datasets collected during 2004-2006 from the
Chalermprakiat Royal Rain Making Research Center at Hua Hin,
Prachuap Khiri khan, the Chalermprakiat Royal Rain Making
Research Center at Pimai, Nakhon Ratchasima and Thai
Meteorological Department (TMD). A total of 179 records with 57
features was merged and matched by unique date. There are three
main parts in this work. Firstly, a decision tree induction algorithm
(C4.5) was used to classify the rain status into either rain or no-rain.
The overall accuracy of classification tree achieves 94.41% with the
five-fold cross validation. The C4.5 algorithm was also used to
classify the rain amount into three classes as no-rain (0-0.1 mm.),
few-rain (0.1- 10 mm.), and moderate-rain (>10 mm.) and the overall
accuracy of classification tree achieves 62.57%. Secondly, an ANN
was applied to predict the rainfall amount and the root mean square
error (RMSE) were used to measure the training and testing errors of
the ANN. It is found that the ANN yields a lower RMSE at 0.171 for
daily rainfall estimates, when compared to next-day and next-2-day
estimation. Thirdly, the ANN and SVM techniques were also used to
classify the rain amount into three classes as no-rain, few-rain, and
moderate-rain as above. The results achieved in 68.15% and 69.10%
of overall accuracy of same-day prediction for the ANN and SVM
models, respectively. The obtained results illustrated the comparison
of the predictive power of different methods for rainfall estimation.
Abstract: The paper represents a reflection on how to select proper indicators to assess the progress of regional contexts towards a knowledge-based society. Taking the first research methodologies elaborated at an international level (World Bank, OECD, etc.) as a reference point, this work intends to identify a set of indicators of the knowledge economy suitable to adequately understand in which manner and to which extent the territorial development dynamics are correlated with the knowledge-base of the considered local society. After a critical survey of the variables utilized within other approaches adopted by international or national organizations, this paper seeks to elaborate a framework of variables, named Regional Knowledge Economy Indicators (ReKEI), necessary to describe the knowledge-based relations of subnational socio-economic contexts. The realization of this framework has a double purpose: an analytical one consisting in highlighting the regional differences in the governance of knowledge based processes, and an operative one consisting in providing some reference parameters for contributing to increasing the effectiveness of those economic policies aiming at enlarging the knowledge bases of local societies.
Abstract: The main objective of this study was to remove and recover Ni, Cu and Fe from a mixed metal system using sodium hypophosphite as a reducing agent and nickel powder as seeding material. The metal systems studied consisted of Ni-Cu, Ni-Fe and Ni-Cu-Fe solutions. A 5 L batch reactor was used to conduct experiments where 100 mg/l of each respective metal was used. It was found that the metals were reduced to their elemental form with removal efficiencies of over 80%. The removal efficiency decreased in the order Fe>Ni>Cu. The metal powder obtained contained between 97-99% Ni and was almost spherical and porous. Size enlargement by aggregation was the dominant particulate process.
Abstract: Cardiovascular diseases, principally atherosclerosis, are responsible for 30% of world deaths. Atherosclerosis is due to the formation of plaque. The fatty plaque may be at risk of rupture, leading typically to stroke and heart attack. The plaque is usually associated with a high degree of lumen reduction, called a stenosis.It is increasingly recognized that the initiation and progression of disease and the occurrence of clinical events is a complex interplay between the local biomechanical environment and the local vascular biology. The aim of this study is to investigate the flow behavior through a stenosed artery. A physical experiment was performed using an artery model and blood analogue fluid. An axisymmetric model constructed consists of contraction and expansion region that follow a mathematical form of cosine function. A 30% diameter reduction was used in this study. The flow field was measured using particle image velocimetry (PIV). Spherical particles with 20μm diameter were seeded in a water-glycerol-NaCl mixture. Steady flow Reynolds numbers are 250. The area of interest is the region after the stenosis where the flow separation occurs. The velocity field was measured and the velocity gradient was investigated. There was high particle concentration in the recirculation zone. High velocity gradient formed immediately after the stenosis throat created a lift force that enhanced particle migration to the flow separation area.