Abstract: Tea has several types of essential elements. Potassium,
magnesium and phosphorus are some examples of these elements.
Tea is widely used drink in Turkey, also some people puts a lemon
wedge to tea for different taste. In this study potassium, magnesium
and phosphorus contents after the hot water brewing of black and
green tea were determined by Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICPOES).
Furthermore, how the lemon addition to teas affects the
concentrations of the potassium, magnesium and phosphorus
amount are investigated.
From the results, potassium, magnesium and phosphorus
concentrations are found as 3003.3, 597.1, 1167.2 ppm in black tea
and 3718.0, 3830.5, 376.4 ppm in green tea, respectively. After
lemon addition potassium, magnesium and phosphorus
concentrations are changed to 14930, 830.4, 1113.5 ppm in black tea
and 15460.0, 909.5, 1152.5 ppm in green tea, respectively.
It is seen that lemon addition affects some essential elements in
black and green Turkish teas.
Abstract: A suitable e-learning system management needs to
carry out a web-information system in order to allow integrated
fruition of data and metadata concerning the activities typical of elearning
environment. The definition of a “web information system"
for e-learning takes advantage of the potentialities of Web
technologies both as for the access to metadata present on the several
platforms, and as for the implementation of courseware which make
up the relative didactic environment. What information systems have
in common is the technological environment on which they are
generally implemented and the use of metadata in order to structure
information at all cognitive and organization levels. In this work we
are going to define a methodology for the implementation of a
specific web information system for an e-learning environment.
Abstract: Does education matter to the quality of our life? The results of extensive studies offer an affirmative answer to this question: high education levels are positively associated with higher income, with more highly qualified professions, with lower risk of unemployment, with better physical health and also, it is said, with more happiness. However, exploring these relationships is far from straightforward. Aside from educational credentials, what properties distinguish functionally literate individuals? How can their personal level of satisfaction be measured? What are the social mechanisms whereby education affects well-being?Using a literacy index and several measures for well-being developed by secondary analysis of the Adult Literacy and Life Skills Survey database, this investigation examined the relationship between literacy skills and subjective wellbeing in several OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries. Special attention was been addressed to Italy, and in particular to two regions representing territorial differences in this country: Piedmont and Campania.
Abstract: The authors of this work indicate by means of a concrete example that it is possible to apply efficaciously the method of multiple criteria programming in dealing with the problem of determining the optimal production plan for a certain period of time. The work presents: (1) the selection of optimization criteria, (2) the setting of the problem of determining an optimal production plan, (3) the setting of the model of multiple criteria programming in finding a solution to a given problem, (4) the revised surrogate trade-off method, (5) generalized multicriteria model for solving production planning problem and problem of choosing technological variants in the metal manufacturing industry. In the final part of this work the authors reflect on the application of the method of multiple criteria programming while determining the optimal production plan in manufacturing enterprises.
Abstract: Global approximation using metamodel for complex
mathematical function or computer model over a large variable
domain is often needed in sensibility analysis, computer simulation,
optimal control, and global design optimization of complex, multiphysics
systems. To overcome the limitations of the existing
response surface (RS), surrogate or metamodel modeling methods for
complex models over large variable domain, a new adaptive and
regressive RS modeling method using quadratic functions and local
area model improvement schemes is introduced. The method applies
an iterative and Latin hypercube sampling based RS update process,
divides the entire domain of design variables into multiple cells,
identifies rougher cells with large modeling error, and further divides
these cells along the roughest dimension direction. A small number
of additional sampling points from the original, expensive model are
added over the small and isolated rough cells to improve the RS
model locally until the model accuracy criteria are satisfied. The
method then combines local RS cells to regenerate the global RS
model with satisfactory accuracy. An effective RS cells sorting
algorithm is also introduced to improve the efficiency of model
evaluation. Benchmark tests are presented and use of the new
metamodeling method to replace complex hybrid electrical vehicle
powertrain performance model in vehicle design optimization and
optimal control are discussed.
Abstract: Toxoplasma gondii is an intracellular parasite capable
of infecting all nucleated cells in a diverse array of species.
Toxoplasma plaque assay have been described using Bacto Agar.
Because of its experimental advantages carboxymethyl cellulose
overlay, medium viscosity was choosing and the aim of this work
was to develop alternative method for formation of T. gondii plaques.
Tachyzoites were inoculated onto monolayers of Vero cells and
cultured at 37° C under 5 % CO2. The cultures were followed up by
microscopy inspection. Small plaques were visible by naphtol blue
stain 4 days after infection. Larger plaques could be observed by day
10 of culture. The carboxymethyl cellulose is a cheap reagent and the
methodology is easier, faster than assays under agar overlay. This is
the first description of the carboxymethyl cellulose overlay use for
obtaining the formation of T. gondii plaques and may be useful in
consequent obtaining tachyzoites for detailed studies.
Abstract: Haptics has been used extensively in many applications especially in human machine interaction and virtual reality systems. Haptic technology allows user to perceive virtual reality as in real world. However, commercially available haptic devices are expensive and may not be suitable for educational purpose. This paper describes the design and development of a low cost haptic knob, with only one degree of freedom, for use in rehabilitation or training hand pronation and supination. End-effectors can be changed to suit different applications or variation in hand sizes and hand orientation.
Abstract: Thyroid dysfunction is one of the most frequently
reported complications of chronic blood transfusion therapy in patients with beta-thalassemia major (BTM). However, the occurrence of thyroid dysfunction and its possible association with
iron overload in BTM patients is still under debate. Therefore, this
study aimed to investigate the status of thyroid functions and iron overload in adolescent and young adult patients with BTM in Jordan population. Thirty six BTM patients aged 12-28 years and matched controls were included in this study. All patients have been receiving frequent blood transfusion to maintain pretransfusion hemoglobin
concentration above 10 g dl-1 and deferoxamine at a dose of 45 mg kg-1 day-1 (8 h, 5-7 days/week) by subcutaneous infusion. Blood
samples were drawn from patients and controls. The status of thyroid functions and iron overload was evaluated by measurements of serum
free thyroxine (FT4), triiodothyronine (FT3), thyrotropin (TSH) and
serum ferritin level. A number of some hematological and
biochemical parameters were also measured. It was found that hematocrit, serum ferritin, hemoglobin, FT3 and zinc, copper mean values were significantly higher in the patients than in the controls (P< 0.05). On other hand, leukocyte, FT4 and TSH mean values were
similar to that of the controls. In addition, our data also indicated that
all of the above examined parameters were not significantly affected
by the patient-s age and gender. Deferoxamine approach for removing excess iron from our BTM patient did not normalize the
values of serum ferritin, copper and zinc, suggesting poor compliance
with deferoxamine chelation therapy. Thus, we recommend the use
of a combination of deferoxamine and deferiprone to reduce the risk
of excess of iron in our patients. Furthermore, thyroid dysfunction
appears to be a rare complication, because our patients showed
normal mean levels for serum TSH and FT4. However, high mean
levels of serum ferritin, zinc, copper might be seen as potential risk
factors for initiation and development of thyroid dysfunctions and
other diseases. Therefore, further studies must be carried out at
yearly intervals with large sample number, to detect subclinical
thyroid dysfunction cases.
Abstract: This paper proves that the problem of finding connected
vertex cover in a 2-connected planar graph ( CVC-2 ) with maximum degree 4 is NP-complete. The motivation for proving this result is to
give a shorter and simpler proof of NP-Completeness of TRA-MLC (the Top Right Access point Minimum-Length Corridor) problem [1], by finding the reduction from CVC-2. TRA-MLC has many applications in laying optical fibre cables for data communication and electrical wiring in floor plans.The problem of finding connected vertex cover in any planar graph ( CVC ) with maximum degree 4 is NP-complete [2]. We first show that CVC-2 belongs to NP and then we find a polynomial reduction from CVC to CVC-2. Let a graph G0 and an integer K form an instance of CVC, where G0 is a planar graph and K is an upper bound on the size of the connected vertex cover in G0. We construct a 2-connected planar graph, say G, by identifying the blocks and cut vertices of G0, and then finding the planar representation of all the blocks of G0, leading to a plane graph G1. We replace the cut vertices with cycles in such a way that the resultant graph G is a 2-connected planar graph with maximum
degree 4. We consider L = K -2t+3 t i=1 di where t is the number of cut vertices in G1 and di is the number of blocks for which ith cut vertex is common. We prove that G will have a connected vertex
cover with size less than or equal to L if and only if G0 has a connected vertex cover of size less than or equal to K.
Abstract: For the last years, the variants of the Newton-s method with cubic convergence have become popular iterative methods to find approximate solutions to the roots of non-linear equations. These methods both enjoy cubic convergence at simple roots and do not require the evaluation of second order derivatives. In this paper, we present a new Newton-s method based on contra harmonic mean with cubically convergent. Numerical examples show that the new method can compete with the classical Newton's method.
Abstract: Semnan is a city in semnan province, northern Iran
with a population estimated at 119,778 inhabitants. It is the
provincial capital of semnan province. Iran is a developing country
and construction is a basic factor of developing too. Hence, Semnan
city needs to a special programming for construction of buildings,
structures and infrastructures. Semnan municipality tries to begin this
program. In addition to, city has some historical monuments which
can be interesting for tourists. Hence, Semnan inhabitants can benefit
from tourist industry. Optimization of Energy in construction
industry is another activity of this municipality and the inhabitants
who execute these regulations receive some discounts. Many parts of
Iran such as semnan are located in highly seismic zones and
structures must be constructed safe e.g., according to recent seismic
codes. In this paper opportunities of IT in construction industry of
Iran are investigated in three categories. Pre-construction phase,
construction phase and earthquake disaster mitigation are studied.
Studies show that information technology can be used in these items
for reducing the losses and increasing the benefits. Both government
and private sectors must contribute to this strategic project for
obtaining the best result.
Abstract: We examined whether children ( < 18 years old) had risk of intra-thoracic trauma during 'one-handed' chest compressions through MDCT images. We measured the length of the lower half of the sternum (Stotal/2~X). We also measured the distance from the diaphragm to the midpoint of the sternum (Stotal/2~D) and half the width of an adult hand (Wtotal/2). All the 1 year-old children had Stotal/2~X and Stotal/2~D less than Wtotal/2. Among the children aged 2 years, 6 (60.0%) had Stotal/2~X and Stotal/2~D less than Wtotal/2. Among those aged 3 years, 4 (26.7%) had Stotal/2~X and Stotal/2~D less than Wtotal/2, and among those aged 4 years, 2 (13.3%) had Stotal/2~X and Stotal/2~D less than Wtotal/2. However, Stotal/2~X and Stotal/2~D were greater than Wtotal/2 in children aged 5 years or more. We knew that small children may be at an increased risk of intra-thoracic trauma during 'one-handed' chest compressions.
Abstract: This paper summarizes the results of some experiments for finding the effective features for disambiguation of Turkish verbs. Word sense disambiguation is a current area of investigation in which verbs have the dominant role. Generally verbs have more senses than the other types of words in the average and detecting these features for verbs may lead to some improvements for other word types. In this paper we have considered only the syntactical features that can be obtained from the corpus and tested by using some famous machine learning algorithms.
Abstract: This paper proposes a new technique to detect code
clones from the lexical and syntactic point of view, which is based
on PALEX source code representation. The PALEX code contains
the recorded parsing actions and also lexical formatting information
including white spaces and comments. We can record a list of parsing
actions (shift, reduce, and reading a token) during a compiling process
after a compiler finishes analyzing the source code. The proposed
technique has advantages for syntax sensitive approach and language
independency.
Abstract: In the present work, Pulsed Electro Acoustic (PEA)
technique was adopted to understand the space charge dynamics in
elastomeric material. It is observed that the polarity of the applied
DC voltage voltage and its magnitude alters the space charge
dynamics in insulation structure. It is also noticed that any addition
of compound to the base material/processing technique have
characteristic variation in the space charge injection process. It could
be concluded based on the present work that the plasticizer could
inject heterocharges into the insulation medium. Also it is realized
that space charge magnitude is less with the addition of plasticizer. In
the PEA studies, it is observed that local electric field in the
insulating material can be much more than applied electric field due
to space charge formation. One of the important conclusions arrived
at based on PEA technique is that one could understand the safe
operating electric field of an insulation material and the charge trap
sites.
Abstract: We are proposing a simple watermarking method
based on visual cryptography. The method is based on selection of
specific pixels from the original image instead of random selection of
pixels as per Hwang [1] paper. Verification information is generated
which will be used to verify the ownership of the image without the
need to embed the watermark pattern into the original digital data.
Experimental results show the proposed method can recover the
watermark pattern from the marked data even if some changes are
made to the original digital data.
Abstract: Nowadays there is a growing environmental concern
and the business communities have slowly started recognising
environmental protection and sustainable utilization of natural
resources into their marketing strategies. This paper discusses the
various Ecolabeling and Certification Systems developed world
over to regulate and introduce Fair Trade in Ornamental Fish
Industry. Ecolabeling and green certification are considered as part
of these strategies implemented partly out of compulsion from the
National and International Regulatory Bodies and Environmental
Movements. All the major markets of ornamental fishes like
European Union, USA and Japan have started putting restrictions on
the trade to impose ecolabeling as a non tariff barrier like the one
imposed on seafood and aqua cultured products. A review was done
on the available Ecolabeling and Green Certification Schemes
available at local, national and international levels for fisheries
including aquaculture and ornamental fish trade and to examine the
success and constraints faced by these schemes during its
implementation. The primary downside of certification is the
multiplicity of ecolabels and cost incurred by applicants for
certification, costs which may in turn be passed on to consumers.
The studies reveal serious inadequacies in a number of ecolabels
and cast doubt on their overall contribution to effective fisheries
management and sustainability. The paper also discusses the
inititive taken in India to develop guidelines for Green Certification
of Fresh water ornamental fishes.
Abstract: The distribution of macrobenthic polychaetes along
the coastal waters of Penang National Park was surveyed to estimate
the effect of various environmental parameters at three stations
(200m, 600m and 1200m) from the shoreline, during six sampling
months, from June 2010 to April 2011.The use of polychaetes in
descriptive ecology is surveyed in the light of a recent investigation
particularly concerning the soft bottom biota environments.
Polychaetes, often connected in the former to the notion of
opportunistic species able to proliferate after an enhancement in
organic matter, had performed a momentous role particularly with
regard to effected soft-bottom habitats. The objective of this survey
was to investigate different environment stress over soft bottom
polychaete community along Teluk Ketapang and Pantai Acheh
(Penang National Park) over a year period. Variations in the
polychaete community were evaluated using univariate and
multivariate methods. The results of PCA analysis displayed a
positive relation between macrobenthic community structures and
environmental parameters such as sediment particle size and organic
matter in the coastal water. A total of 604 individuals were examined
which was grouped into 23 families. Family Nereidae was the most
abundant (22.68%), followed by Spionidae (22.02%), Hesionidae
(12.58%), Nephtylidae (9.27%) and Orbiniidae (8.61%). It is
noticeable that good results can only be obtained on the basis of good
taxonomic resolution. We proposed that, in monitoring surveys,
operative time could be optimized not only by working at a highertaxonomic
level on the entire macrobenthic data set, but by also
choosing an especially indicative group and working at lower
taxonomic and good level.
Abstract: The purpose of the paper is to develop an informationcontrol environment for overall management and self-reconfiguration of the reconfigurable multifunctional machine tool for machining both rotation and prismatic parts and high concentration of different technological operations - turning, milling, drilling, grinding, etc. For the realization of this purpose on the basis of defined sub-processes for the implementation of the technological process, architecture of the information-search system for machine control is suggested. By using the object-oriented method, a structure and organization of the search system based on agents and manager with central control are developed. Thus conditions for identification of available information in DBs, self-reconfiguration of technological system and entire control of the reconfigurable multifunctional machine tool are created.
Abstract: In the upgrade process of enterprise information
systems, whether new systems will be success and their development
will be efficient, depends on how to deal with and utilize those legacy systems. We propose an evaluation system, which comprehensively
describes the capacity of legacy information systems in five aspects.
Then a practical legacy systems evaluation method is scripted. Base on
the evaluation result, we put forward 4 kinds of migration strategy: eliminated, maintenance, modification, encapsulating. The methods
and strategies play important roles in practice.