Abstract: Using a methodology grounded in business process
change theory, we investigate the critical success factors that affect
ERP implementation success in United States and India.
Specifically, we examine the ERP implementation at two case study
companies, one in each country. Our findings suggest that certain
factors that affect the success of ERP implementations are not
culturally bound, whereas some critical success factors depend on the
national culture of the country in which the system is being
implemented. We believe that the understanding of these critical
success factors will deepen the understanding of ERP
implementations and will help avoid implementation mistakes,
thereby increasing the rate of success in culturally different contexts.
Implications of the findings and future research directions for both
academicians and practitioners are also discussed.
Abstract: In recent years, many researches to mine the exploding Web world, especially User Generated Content (UGC) such as
weblogs, for knowledge about various phenomena and events in the physical world have been done actively, and also Web services
with the Web-mined knowledge have begun to be developed for
the public. However, there are few detailed investigations on how accurately Web-mined data reflect physical-world data. It must be
problematic to idolatrously utilize the Web-mined data in public Web services without ensuring their accuracy sufficiently. Therefore,
this paper introduces the simplest Web Sensor and spatiotemporallynormalized
Web Sensor to extract spatiotemporal data about a target
phenomenon from weblogs searched by keyword(s) representing the
target phenomenon, and tries to validate the potential and reliability of the Web-sensed spatiotemporal data by four kinds of granularity
analyses of coefficient correlation with temperature, rainfall, snowfall,
and earthquake statistics per day by region of Japan Meteorological
Agency as physical-world data: spatial granularity (region-s population
density), temporal granularity (time period, e.g., per day vs. per week), representation granularity (e.g., “rain" vs. “heavy rain"), and
media granularity (weblogs vs. microblogs such as Tweets).
Abstract: Testing accounts for the major percentage of technical
contribution in the software development process. Typically, it
consumes more than 50 percent of the total cost of developing a
piece of software. The selection of software tests is a very important
activity within this process to ensure the software reliability
requirements are met. Generally tests are run to achieve maximum
coverage of the software code and very little attention is given to the
achieved reliability of the software. Using an existing methodology,
this paper describes how to use Bayesian Belief Networks (BBNs) to
select unit tests based on their contribution to the reliability of the
module under consideration. In particular the work examines how the
approach can enhance test-first development by assessing the quality
of test suites resulting from this development methodology and
providing insight into additional tests that can significantly reduce
the achieved reliability. In this way the method can produce an
optimal selection of inputs and the order in which the tests are
executed to maximize the software reliability. To illustrate this
approach, a belief network is constructed for a modern software
system incorporating the expert opinion, expressed through
probabilities of the relative quality of the elements of the software,
and the potential effectiveness of the software tests. The steps
involved in constructing the Bayesian Network are explained as is a
method to allow for the test suite resulting from test-driven
development.
Abstract: Cancer becomes one of the leading cause of death in
many countries over the world. Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR)
spectra of human lung cancer cells (A549) treated with PMF (natural
product extracted from PM 701) for different time intervals were
examined. Second derivative and difference method were taken in
comparison studies. Cesium (Cs) and Rubidium (Rb) nanoparticles in
PMF were detected by Energy Dispersive X-ray attached to Scanning
Electron Microscope SEM-EDX. Characteristic changes in protein
secondary structure, lipid profile and changes in the intensities of
DNA bands were identified in treated A549 cells spectra. A
characteristic internucleosomal ladder of DNA fragmentation was
also observed after 30 min of treatment. Moreover, the pH values
were significantly increases upon treatment due to the presence of Cs
and Rb nanoparticles in the PMF fraction. These results support the
previous findings that PMF is selective anticancer agent and can
produce apoptosis to A549 cells.
Abstract: Contamination of aromatic compounds in water can
cause severe long-lasting effects not only for biotic organism but also
on human health. Several alternative technologies for remediation of
polluted water have been attempted. One of these is adsorption
process of aromatic compounds by using organic modified clay
mineral. Porous structure of clay is potential properties for molecular
adsorptivity and it can be increased by immobilizing hydrophobic
structure to attract organic compounds. In this work natural
montmorillonite were modified with cetyltrimethylammonium
(CTMA+) and was evaluated for use as adsorbents of aromatic
compounds: benzene, toluene, and 2-chloro phenol in its single and
multicomponent solution by ethanol:water solvent. Preparation of
CTMA-montmorillonite was conducted by simple ion exchange
procedure and characterization was conducted by using x-day
diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infra red (FTIR) and gas
sorption analysis. The influence of structural modification of
montmorillonite on its adsorption capacity and adsorption affinity of
organic compound were studied. It was shown that adsorptivity of
montmorillonite was increased by modification associated with
arrangements of CTMA+ in the structure even the specific surface
area of modified montmorillonite was lower than raw
montmorillonite. Adsorption rate indicated that material has affinity
to adsorb compound by following order: benzene> toluene > 2-chloro
phenol. The adsorption isotherms of benzene and toluene showed 1st
order adsorption kinetic indicating a partition phenomenon of
compounds between the aqueous and organophilic CTMAmontmorillonite.
Abstract: Monitoring of ecological systems is one of the major
issues in ecosystem research. The concepts and methodology of
mathematical systems theory provide useful tools to face this
problem. In many cases, state monitoring of a complex ecological
system consists in observation (measurement) of certain state
variables, and the whole state process has to be determined from the
observed data. The solution proposed in the paper is the design of an
observer system, which makes it possible to approximately recover
the state process from its partial observation. The method is
illustrated with a trophic chain of resource – producer – primary
consumer type and a numerical example is also presented.
Abstract: Concrete performance is strongly affected by the
particle packing degree since it determines the distribution of the
cementitious component and the interaction of mineral particles. By
using packing theory designers will be able to select optimal
aggregate materials for preparing concrete with low cement content,
which is beneficial from the point of cost. Optimum particle packing
implies minimizing porosity and thereby reducing the amount of
cement paste needed to fill the voids between the aggregate particles,
taking also the rheology of the concrete into consideration. For
reaching good fluidity superplasticizers are required. The results from
pilot tests at Luleå University of Technology (LTU) show various
forms of the proposed theoretical models, and the empirical approach
taken in the study seems to provide a safer basis for developing new,
improved packing models.
Abstract: Seismic design may require non-conventional
concept, due to the fact that the stiffness and layout of the structure
have a great effect on the overall structural behaviour, on the seismic
load intensity as well as on the internal force distribution. To find an
economical and optimal structural configuration the key issue is the
optimal design of the lateral load resisting system. This paper focuses
on the optimal design of regular, concentric braced frame (CBF)
multi-storey steel building structures. The optimal configurations are
determined by a numerical method using genetic algorithm approach,
developed by the authors. Aim is to find structural configurations
with minimum structural cost. The design constraints of objective
function are assigned in accordance with Eurocode 3 and Eurocode 8
guidelines. In this paper the results are presented for various building
geometries, different seismic intensities, and levels of energy
dissipation.
Abstract: The present research was designed to investigate the
anti-microbial activity of aristolochic acid from the root of
Aristolochia bracteata. From the methanolic & ethyl extract extracts
of Aristolochia bracteata aristolochic acid I was isolated and
conformed through IR, NMR & MS. The percentage purity of
aristolochic acid I was determined by UV & HPLC method. Antibacterial
activity of extracts of Aristolochia bracteata and the
isolated compound was determined by disc diffusion method. The
results reveled that the isolated aristolochic acid from methanolic
extract was more pure than the compound from ethyl acetate extract.
The various extracts (500μg/disc) of Aristolochia bracteata showed
moderate antibacterial activity with the average zone of inhibition of
7-18 mm by disc diffusion method. Among the extracts, ethyl acetate
& methanol extracts were shown good anti-microbial activity and the
growth of E.coli (18 mm) was strongly inhibited. Microbial assay of
isolated compound (Aristolochic acid I) from ethyl acetate &
methanol extracts were shown good antimicrobial activity and the
zone of inhibition of both at higher concentration 50 μg/ml was
similar with the standard aristolochic acid. It may be concluded that
the isolated compound of aristolochic acid I has good anti-bacterial
activity.
Abstract: The selection of parents and breeding strategies for
the successful maize hybrid production will be facilitated by
heterotic groupings of parental lines and determination of combining
abilities of them. Fourteen maize inbred lines, used in maize breeding
programs in Iran, were crossed in a diallel mating design. The 91 F1
hybrids and the 14 parental lines were studied during two years at
four locations of Iran for investigation of combining ability of
gentypes for grain yield and to determine heterotic patterns among
germplasm sources, using both, the Griffing-s method and the biplot
approach for diallel analysis. The graphical representation offered by
biplot analysis allowed a rapid and effective overview of general
combining ability (GCA) and specific combining ability (SCA)
effects of the inbred lines, their performance in crosses, as well as
grouping patterns of similar genotypes. GCA and SCA effects were
significant for grain yield (GY). Based on significant positive GCA
effects, the lines derived from LSC could be used as parent in crosses
to increase GY. The maximum best- parent heterosis values and
highest SCA effects resulted from crosses B73 × MO17 and A679 ×
MO17 for GY. The best heterotic patterns were LSC × RYD, which
would be potentially useful in maize breeding programs to obtain
high-yielding hybrids in the same climate of Iran.
Abstract: The past decade has witnessed a good opportunities
for city development schemes in UK. The government encouraged
restoration of city centers to comprise mixed use developments with
high density residential apartments. Investments in regeneration areas
were doing well according to the analyses of Property Databank
(IPD). However, more recent analysis by IPD has shown that since
2007, property in regeneration areas has been more vulnerable to the
market downturn than other types of investment property. The early
stages of a property market downturn may be felt most in
regeneration where funding, investor confidence and occupier
demand would dissipate because the sector was considered more
marginal or risky when development costs rise. Moreover, the Bank
of England survey shows that lenders have sequentially tightened the
availability of credit for commercial real estate since mid-2007. A
sharp reduction in the willingness of banks to lend on commercial
property was recorded. The credit crunch has already affected
commercial property but its impact has been particularly severe in
certain kinds of properties where residential developments are
extremely difficult, in particular city centre apartments and buy-to-let
markets. Commercial property – retail, industrial leisure and mixed
use were also pressed, in Birmingham; tens of mixed use plots were
built to replace old factories in the heart of the city. The purpose of
these developments was to enable young professionals to work and
live in same place. Thousands of people lost their jobs during the
recession, moreover lending was more difficult and the future of
many developments is unknown. The recession casts its shadow upon
the society due to cuts in public spending by government, Inflation,
rising tuition fees and high rise in unemployment generated anger and
hatred was spreading among youth causing vandalism and riots in
many cities. Recent riots targeted many mixed used development in
the UK where banks, shops, restaurants and big stores were robbed
and set into fire leaving residents with horror and shock. This paper
examines the impact of the recession and riots on mixed use
development in UK.
Abstract: A large quantity of world-s oil reserves exists in
carbonate reservoirs. Carbonate reservoirs are very sensitive to
chemical enhanced oil recovery process because of containing large
amount of calcite, dolomite and calcium sulfate minerals. These
minerals cause major obstacles during alkali-surfactant-polymer
(ASP) flooding. Alkali reacts with these minerals and form undesired
precipitations which plug effective porous openings, reduce
permeability and cause scale occurrence at the wellbore. In this
paper, a new chemical combination consists of acrylic acid and alkali
was used to minimize precipitation problem during ASP flooding. A
series of fluid-fluid compatibility tests were performed using acrylic
acid and different concentrations of alkaline. Two types of alkalis
namely; sodium carbonate and sodium metaborate were screened. As
a result, the combination of acrylic acid and sodium carbonate was
not effective in preventing calcium and magnesium precipitations.
However, acrylic acid and sodium metaborate showed promising
results for keeping all solutions without any precipitations. The ratio
of acrylic acid to sodium metaborate of 0.7:1.0 was found to be
optimum for achieving a compatible solution for 30 days at 80oC.
Abstract: Bones are dynamic and responsive organs, they
regulate their strength and mass according to the loads which they are subjected. Because, the Wnt/β-catenin pathway has profound
effects on the regulation of bone mass, we hypothesized that mechanical loading of bone cells stimulates Wnt/β-catenin signaling, which results in the generation of new bone mass.
Mechanical loading triggers the secretion of the Wnt molecule, which after binding to transmembrane proteins, causes GSK-3β (Glycogen synthase kinase 3 beta) to cease the phosphorylation of β-catenin. β-catenin accumulation in the cytoplasm, followed by its
transport into the nucleus, binding to transcription factors (TCF/LEF)
that initiate transcription of genes related to bone formation. To test this hypothesis, we used TOPGAL (Tcf Optimal Promoter
β-galactosidase) mice in an experiment in which cyclic loads were
applied to the forearm. TOPGAL mice are reporters for cells effected
by the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. TOPGAL mice are genetically engineered mice in which transcriptional activation of β-
catenin, results in the production of an enzyme, β-galactosidase. The
presence of this enzyme allows us to localize transcriptional
activation of β-catenin to individual cells, thereby, allowing us to quantify the effects that mechanical loading has on the Wnt/β-catenin pathway and new bone formation. The ulnae of loaded TOPGAL
mice were excised and transverse slices along different parts of the
ulnar shaft were assayed for the presence of β-galactosidase.
Our results indicate that loading increases β-catenin transcriptional
activity in regions where this pathway is already primed (i.e. where basal activity is already higher) in a load magnitude dependent
manner. Further experiments are needed to determine the temporal and spatial activation of this signaling in relation to bone formation.
Abstract: Fatigue cracking continues to be the main challenges in
improving the performance of bituminous mixture pavements. The
purpose of this paper is to look at some aspects of the effects of fine
aggregate properties on the fatigue behaviour of hot mixture asphalt.
Two types of sand (quarry and mining sand) with two conventional
bitumen (PEN 50/60 & PEN 80/100) and four polymers modified
bitumen PMB (PM1_82, PM1_76, PM2_82 and PM2_76) were used.
Physical, chemical and mechanical tests were performed on the sands
to determine their effect when incorporated with a bituminous
mixture. According to the beam fatigue results, quarry sand that has
more angularity, rougher, higher shear strength and a higher
percentage of Aluminium oxide presented higher resistance to
fatigue. Also a PMB mixture gives better fatigue results than
conventional mixtures, this is due to the PMB having better viscosity
property than that of the conventional bitumen.
Abstract: In this study, a longitudinal joint connection was
proposed for the short-span slab-type modular bridges with rapid
construction. The slab-type modular bridge consists of a number of
precast slab modules and has the joint connection between the
modules in the longitudinal direction of the bridge. A finite element
based parameter analysis was conducted to design the shape and the
dimensions of the longitudinal joint connection. Numbers of shear
keys within the joint, height and depth of the shear key, tooth angle,
and the spacing were considered as the design parameters. Using the
local cracking load at the corner of the shear key and the
cross-sectional area of the joint, an efficiency factor was proposed to
evaluate the effectiveness of the longitudinal joint connection. The
dimensions of shear key were determined by comparing the cracking
loads and the efficiency factors obtained from the finite element
analysis.
Abstract: The possibility of using cassava residue containing
49.66% starch, 21.47% cellulose, 12.97% hemicellulose, and 21.86%
lignin as a raw material to produce glucose using enzymatic
hydrolysis was investigated. In the experiment, each reactor
contained the cassava residue, bacteria cells, and production medium.
The effects of particles size (40 mesh and 60 mesh) and strains of
bacteria (A002 and M015) isolated from Thai higher termites,
Microcerotermes sp., on the glucose concentration at 37°C were
focused. High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with a
refractive index detector was used to determine the quantity of
glucose. The maximum glucose concentration obtained at 37°C using
strain A002 and 60 mesh of the cassava residue was 1.51 g/L at 10 h.
Abstract: Role of acoustic driving pressure on the
translational-radial dynamics of a moving single bubble
sonoluminescence (m-SBSL) has been numerically
investigated. The results indicate that increase in the
amplitude of the driving pressure leads to increase in the
bubble peak temperature. The length and the shape of the
trajectory of the bubble depends on the acoustic pressure and
because of the spatially dependence of the radial dynamics of
the moving bubble, its peak temperature varies during the
acoustical pulses. The results are in good agreement with the
experimental reports on m-SBSL.
Abstract: Polyurethane foam (PUF) were prepared by
reacting polyols synthesized from soy-oil into mixture of 2,4-
Toluene diisocyanate (TDI) with 4,4--Methylene Diamine
Isocyanate (MDI) with ratio of 70:30. The polyols obtained
via esterification reaction were categorize into different
temperature of reaction and by used of varied concentration
of phosphoric acid catalyst. The purpose of catalysts is to
shifting selectivity to a desired and value added of product.
The effect of stoichiometric balance (molar ratio of
epoxide/ethylene glycol) to the concentration of the catalyst
on the final properties was evaluated.
Abstract: The study of tourist activities and the mapping of their routes in space and time has become an important issue in tourism management. Here we represent space-time paths for the tourism industry by visualizing individual tourist activities and the paths followed using a 3D Geographic Information System (GIS). Considerable attention has been devoted to the measurement of accessibility to shopping, eating, walking and other services at the tourist destination. I turns out that GIS is a useful tool for studying the spatial behaviors of tourists in the area. The value of GIS is especially advantageous for space-time potential path area measures, especially for the accurate visualization of possible paths through existing city road networks. This study seeks to apply space-time concepts with a detailed street network map obtained from Google Maps to measure tourist paths both spatially and temporally. These paths are further determined based on data obtained from map questionnaires regarding the trip activities of 40 individuals. The analysis of the data makes it possible to determining the locations of the more popular paths. The results can be visualized using 3D GIS to show the areas and potential activity opportunities accessible to tourists during their travel time.
Abstract: The influence of viscosity on droplet diameter for
water-in-crude oil (w/o) emulsion with two different ratios; 20-80 %
and 50-50 % w/o emulsion was examined in the Brookfield
Rotational Digital Rheometer. The emulsion was prepared with
sorbitan sesquiolate (Span 83) act as emulsifier at varied temperature
and stirring speed in rotation per minute (rpm). Results showed that
the viscosity of w/o emulsion was strongly augmented by increasing
volume of water and decreased the temperature. The changing of
viscosity also altered the droplet size distribution. Changing of
droplet diameter was depends on the viscosity and the behavior of
emulsion either Newtonian or non-Newtonian.