Abstract: The purposes of this study are 1) to study the frequent
English writing errors of students registering the course: Reading and
Writing English for Academic Purposes II, and 2) to find out the
results of writing error correction by using coded indirect corrective
feedback and writing error treatments. Samples include 28 2nd year
English Major students, Faculty of Education, Suan Sunandha
Rajabhat University. Tool for experimental study includes the lesson
plan of the course; Reading and Writing English for Academic
Purposes II, and tool for data collection includes 4 writing tests of
short texts. The research findings disclose that frequent English
writing errors found in this course comprise 7 types of grammatical
errors, namely Fragment sentence, Subject-verb agreement, Wrong
form of verb tense, Singular or plural noun endings, Run-ons
sentence, Wrong form of verb pattern and Lack of parallel structure.
Moreover, it is found that the results of writing error correction by
using coded indirect corrective feedback and error treatment reveal
the overall reduction of the frequent English writing errors and the
increase of students’ achievement in the writing of short texts with
the significance at .05.
Abstract: This paper discusses the causal explanation capability
of QRIOM, a tool aimed at supporting learning of organic chemistry
reactions. The development of the tool is based on the hybrid use of
Qualitative Reasoning (QR) technique and Qualitative Process
Theory (QPT) ontology. Our simulation combines symbolic,
qualitative description of relations with quantity analysis to generate
causal graphs. The pedagogy embedded in the simulator is to both
simulate and explain organic reactions. Qualitative reasoning through
a causal chain will be presented to explain the overall changes made
on the substrate; from initial substrate until the production of final
outputs. Several uses of the QPT modeling constructs in supporting
behavioral and causal explanation during run-time will also be
demonstrated. Explaining organic reactions through causal graph
trace can help improve the reasoning ability of learners in that their
conceptual understanding of the subject is nurtured.
Abstract: In illumination variant face recognition, existing
methods extracting face albedo as light normalized image may lead to
loss of extensive facial details, with light template discarded. To
improve that, a novel approach for realistic facial texture
reconstruction by combining original image and albedo image is
proposed. First, light subspaces of different identities are established
from the given reference face images; then by projecting the original
and albedo image into each light subspace respectively, texture
reference images with corresponding lighting are reconstructed and
two texture subspaces are formed. According to the projections in
texture subspaces, facial texture with normal light can be synthesized.
Due to the combination of original image, facial details can be
preserved with face albedo. In addition, image partition is applied to
improve the synthesization performance. Experiments on Yale B and
CMUPIE databases demonstrate that this algorithm outperforms the
others both in image representation and in face recognition.
Abstract: Structural representation and technology mapping of
a Boolean function is an important problem in the design of nonregenerative
digital logic circuits (also called combinational logic
circuits). Library aware function manipulation offers a solution to
this problem. Compact multi-level representation of binary networks,
based on simple circuit structures, such as AND-Inverter Graphs
(AIG) [1] [5], NAND Graphs, OR-Inverter Graphs (OIG), AND-OR
Graphs (AOG), AND-OR-Inverter Graphs (AOIG), AND-XORInverter
Graphs, Reduced Boolean Circuits [8] does exist in
literature. In this work, we discuss a novel and efficient graph
realization for combinational logic circuits, represented using a
NAND-NOR-Inverter Graph (NNIG), which is composed of only
two-input NAND (NAND2), NOR (NOR2) and inverter (INV) cells.
The networks are constructed on the basis of irredundant disjunctive
and conjunctive normal forms, after factoring, comprising terms with
minimum support. Construction of a NNIG for a non-regenerative
function in normal form would be straightforward, whereas for the
complementary phase, it would be developed by considering a virtual
instance of the function. However, the choice of best NNIG for a
given function would be based upon literal count, cell count and
DAG node count of the implementation at the technology
independent stage. In case of a tie, the final decision would be made
after extracting the physical design parameters.
We have considered AIG representation for reduced disjunctive
normal form and the best of OIG/AOG/AOIG for the minimized
conjunctive normal forms. This is necessitated due to the nature of
certain functions, such as Achilles- heel functions. NNIGs are found
to exhibit 3.97% lesser node count compared to AIGs and
OIG/AOG/AOIGs; consume 23.74% and 10.79% lesser library cells
than AIGs and OIG/AOG/AOIGs for the various samples considered.
We compare the power efficiency and delay improvement achieved
by optimal NNIGs over minimal AIGs and OIG/AOG/AOIGs for
various case studies. In comparison with functionally equivalent,
irredundant and compact AIGs, NNIGs report mean savings in power
and delay of 43.71% and 25.85% respectively, after technology
mapping with a 0.35 micron TSMC CMOS process. For a
comparison with OIG/AOG/AOIGs, NNIGs demonstrate average
savings in power and delay by 47.51% and 24.83%. With respect to
device count needed for implementation with static CMOS logic
style, NNIGs utilize 37.85% and 33.95% lesser transistors than their
AIG and OIG/AOG/AOIG counterparts.
Abstract: This paper presents a solution for the behavioural animation of autonomous virtual agent navigation in virtual environments. We focus on using Dempster-Shafer-s Theory of Evidence in developing visual sensor for virtual agent. The role of the visual sensor is to capture the information about the virtual environment or identifie which part of an obstacle can be seen from the position of the virtual agent. This information is require for vitual agent to coordinate navigation in virtual environment. The virual agent uses fuzzy controller as a navigation system and Fuzzy α - level for the action selection method. The result clearly demonstrates the path produced is reasonably smooth even though there is some sharp turn and also still not diverted too far from the potential shortest path. This had indicated the benefit of our method, where more reliable and accurate paths produced during navigation task.
Abstract: A comprehensive discussion of feasible strategies for sustainable energy supply is urgently needed to achieve a turnaround of the current energy situation. The necessary fundamentals required for the development of a long term energy vision are lacking to a great extent due to the absence of reasonable long term scenarios that fulfill the requirements of climate protection and sustainable energy use. The contribution of the study is based on a search for sustainable energy paths in the long run for Austria. The analysis makes use of secondary data predominantly. The measures developed to avoid CO2 emissions and other ecological risk factors vary to a great extent among all economic sectors. This is shown by the calculation of CO2 cost of abatement curves. In this study it is demonstrated that the most effective technical measures with the lowest CO2 abatement costs yield solutions to the current energy problems. Various scenarios are presented concerning the question how the technological and environmental options for a sustainable energy system for Austria could look like in the long run. It is shown how sustainable energy can be supplied even with today-s technological knowledge and options available. The scenarios developed include an evaluation of the economic costs and ecological impacts. The results are not only applicable to Austria but demonstrate feasible and cost efficient ways towards a sustainable future.
Abstract: Transpedicular screw fixation in spinal fractures,
degenerative changes, or deformities is a well-established procedure.
However, important rate of fixation failure due to screw bending,
loosening, or pullout are still reported particularly in weak bone stock
in osteoporosis. To overcome the problem, mechanism of failure has
to be fully investigated in vitro. Post-mortem human subjects are less
accessible and animal cadavers comprise limitations due to different
geometry and mechanical properties. Therefore, the development of a
synthetic model mimicking the realistic human vertebra is highly
demanded. A bone surrogate, composed of Polyurethane (PU) foam
analogous to cancellous bone porous structure, was tested for 3
different densities in this study. The mechanical properties were
investigated under uniaxial compression test by minimizing the end
artifacts on specimens. The results indicated that PU foam of 0.32
g.cm-3 density has comparable mechanical properties to human
cancellous bone in terms of young-s modulus and yield strength.
Therefore, the obtained information can be considered as primary
step for developing a realistic cancellous bone of human vertebral
body. Further evaluations are also recommended for other density
groups.
Abstract: Previous research has demonstrated that negative
attitudes towards people with physical disabilities and obesity are
predicted by a component of perceived vulnerability to disease; germ
aversion. These findings have been suggested as illustrations of an
evolved but over-active mechanism which promotes the avoidance of
pathogen-carrying individuals. To date, this interpretation of attitude
formation has not been explored with regard to people with
intellectual disability, and no attempts have been made to examine
possible mediating factors. This study examined attitudes in 333
adults and demonstrated that the moderate positive relationship
between germ aversion and negative attitudes toward people with
intellectual disability is fully mediated by social dominance
orientation, a general preference for hierarchies and inequalities
among social groups. These findings have implications for the
design of programs which attempt to promote community acceptance
and inclusion of people with disabilities.
Abstract: The rapid development of manufacturing and information systems has caused significant changes in manufacturing environments in recent decades. Mass production has given way to flexible manufacturing systems, in which an important characteristic is customized or "on demand" production. In this scenario, the seamless and without gaps information flow becomes a key factor for success of enterprises. In this paper we present a framework to support the mapping of features into machining workingsteps compliant with the ISO 14649 standard (known as STEP-NC). The system determines how the features can be made with the available manufacturing resources. Examples of the mapping method are presented for features such as a pocket with a general surface.
Abstract: In this era of competitiveness, there is a growing need for supply chains also to become competitive enough to handle pressures like varying customer’s expectations, low cost high quality products to be delivered at the minimum time and the most important is throat cutting competition at world wide scale. In the recent years, supply chain competitiveness has been, therefore, accepted as one of the most important philosophies in the supply chain literature. Various researchers and practitioners have tried to identify and implement strategies in supply chains which can bring competitiveness in the supply chains i.e. supply chain competitiveness. The purpose of this paper is to suggest select strategies for supply chain competitiveness in the Indian manufacturing sector using an integrated approach of literature review and exploratory interviews with eminent professionals from the supply chain area in various industries, academia and research. The aim of the paper is to highlight the important area of competitiveness in the supply chain and to suggest recommendations to the industry and managers of manufacturing sector.
Abstract: In this paper, we have proposed a novel FinFET with
extended body under the poly gate, which is called EB-FinFET, and
its characteristic is demonstrated by using three-dimensional (3-D)
numerical simulation. We have analyzed and compared it with
conventional FinFET. The extended body height dependence on the
drain induced barrier lowering (DIBL) and subthreshold swing (S.S)
have been also investigated. According to the 3-D numerical
simulation, the proposed structure has a firm structure, an acceptable
short channel effect (SCE), a reduced series resistance, an increased
on state drain current (I
on) and a large normalized I
DS. Furthermore,
the structure can also improve corner effect and reduce self-heating
effect due to the extended body. Our results show that the EBFinFET
is excellent for nanoscale device.
Abstract: In this paper we propose a new traffic simulation
package, TDMSim, which supports both macroscopic and
microscopic simulation on free-flowing and regulated traffic systems.
Both simulators are based on travel demands, which specify the
numbers of vehicles departing from origins to arrive at different
destinations. The microscopic simulator implements the carfollowing
model given the pre-defined routes of the vehicles but also
supports the rerouting of vehicles. We also propose a macroscopic
simulator which is built in integration with the microscopic simulator
to allow the simulation to be scaled for larger networks without
sacrificing the precision achievable through the microscopic
simulator. The macroscopic simulator also enables the reuse of
previous simulation results when simulating traffic on the same
networks at later time. Validations have been conducted to show the
correctness of both simulators.
Abstract: Chaiyaphum Starch Co. Ltd. is one of many starch
manufacturers that has introduced machinery to aid in manufacturing.
Even though machinery has replaced many elements and is now a
significant part in manufacturing processes, problems that must be
solved with respect to current process flow to increase efficiency still
exist. The paper-s aim is to increase productivity while maintaining
desired quality of starch, by redesigning the flipping machine-s
mechanical control system which has grossly low functional lifetime.
Such problems stem from the mechanical control system-s bearings,
as fluids and humidity can access into said bearing directly, in
tandem with vibrations from the machine-s function itself. The wheel
which is used to sense starch thickness occasionally falls from its
shaft, due to high speed rotation during operation, while the shaft
may bend from impact when processing dried bread. Redesigning its
mechanical control system has increased its efficiency, allowing
quality thickness measurement while increasing functional lifetime
an additional 62 days.
Abstract: Practicum placements are an critical factor for student teachers on Education Programs. How can student teachers become professionals? This study was to investigate problems, weakness and obstacles of practicum placements and develop guidelines for partnership in the practicum placements. In response to this issue, a partnership concept was implemented for developing student teachers into professionals. Data were collected through questionnaires on attitude toward problems, weaknesses, and obstacles of practicum placements of student teachers in Rajabhat universities and included focus group interviews. The research revealed that learning management, classroom management, curriculum, assessment and evaluation, classroom action research, and teacher demeanor are the important factors affecting the professional development of Education Program student teachers. Learning management plan and classroom management concerning instructional design, teaching technique, instructional media, and student behavior management are another important aspects influencing the professional development for student teachers.
Abstract: Based on 276 responses from academic staff in an
evaluation of an online learning environment (OLE), this paper
identifies those elements of the OLE that were most used and valued
by staff, those elements of the OLE that staff most wanted to see
improved, and those factors that most contributed to staff perceptions
that the use of the OLE enhanced their teaching. The most used and
valued elements were core functions, including accessing unit
information, accessing lecture/tutorial/lab notes, and reading online
discussions. The elements identified as most needing attention related
to online assessment: submitting assignments, managing assessment
items, and receiving feedback on assignments. Staff felt that using the
OLE enhanced their teaching when they were satisfied that their
students were able to access and use their learning materials, and
when they were satisfied with the professional development they
received and were confident with their ability to teach with the OLE.
Abstract: Tumor classification is a key area of research in the
field of bioinformatics. Microarray technology is commonly used in
the study of disease diagnosis using gene expression levels. The
main drawback of gene expression data is that it contains thousands
of genes and a very few samples. Feature selection methods are used
to select the informative genes from the microarray. These methods
considerably improve the classification accuracy. In the proposed
method, Genetic Algorithm (GA) is used for effective feature
selection. Informative genes are identified based on the T-Statistics,
Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) and F-Test values. The initial candidate
solutions of GA are obtained from top-m informative genes. The
classification accuracy of k-Nearest Neighbor (kNN) method is used
as the fitness function for GA. In this work, kNN and Support Vector
Machine (SVM) are used as the classifiers. The experimental results
show that the proposed work is suitable for effective feature
selection. With the help of the selected genes, GA-kNN method
achieves 100% accuracy in 4 datasets and GA-SVM method
achieves in 5 out of 10 datasets. The GA with kNN and SVM
methods are demonstrated to be an accurate method for microarray
based tumor classification.
Abstract: The relevance of the study of everyday life in Almaty
and Kyzylorda are associated with the emergence of the modern
trends in historiography and socializing areas of government reform.
The relevance is due to the fact that in the early twentieth century
Kyzylorda and Almaty began to develop as a city and this period has
a special place in the life of the state. An interesting aspect of the
everyday life of the inhabitants of the new city, which was built in the
era of Stalin's Five-Year Plans, can be examined through the eyes of
the Soviet people living in a specific environment, reflecting the life
of the citizens. The study of industrialization of the Soviet Union and
the attention paid to new developments in the first five years of
everyday aspects as the impact of the modernization of the 1930s was
one of the decisive factors in the lives of residents. Among these
factors, we would like to highlight the medical field, which is the
basis of all human life, specifically focusing on the state of medicine
in Alma-Ata in the first 20-30-years of the twentieth century, and
analyze the different aspects of human life, determining the quality of
medical care to the population during this period.
Abstract: We present a new numerical method for the computation of the steady-state solution of Markov chains. Theoretical analyses show that the proposed method, with a contraction factor α, converges to the one-dimensional null space of singular linear systems of the form Ax = 0. Numerical experiments are used to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed method, with applications to a class of interesting models in the domain of tandem queueing networks.
Abstract: Data mining has been integrated into application systems to enhance the quality of the decision-making process. This study aims to focus on the integration of data mining technology and Knowledge Management System (KMS), due to the ability of data mining technology to create useful knowledge from large volumes of data. Meanwhile, KMS vitally support the creation and use of knowledge. The integration of data mining technology and KMS are popularly used in business for enhancing and sustaining organizational performance. However, there is a lack of studies that applied data mining technology and KMS in the education sector; particularly students- academic performance since this could reflect the IHL performance. Realizing its importance, this study seeks to integrate data mining technology and KMS to promote an effective management of knowledge within IHLs. Several concepts from literature are adapted, for proposing the new integrative data mining technology and KMS framework to an IHL.
Abstract: Open and distance learning is a fairly new concept in
Malawi. The major public provider, the Malawi College of Distance
Education, rolled out its activities only about 40 years ago. Over the
years, the demand for distance education has tremendously increased.
The present government has displayed positive political will to uplift
ODL as outlined in the Malawi Growth and Development Strategy as
well as the National Education Sector Plan. A growing national
interest in education coupled with political stability and a booming
ICT industry also raise hope for success. However, a fragile economy
with a GNI per capita of -US$ 200 over the last decade, poor public
funding, erratic power supply and lack of expertise put strain on
efforts towards the promotion of ODL initiatives. Despite the
challenges, the nation appears determined to go flat out and explore
all possible avenues that could revolutionise education access and
equity through ODL.