Abstract: Although the usefulness of fuzzy databases has been
pointed out in several works, they are not fully developed in numerous
domains. A task that is mostly disregarded and which is the topic
of this paper is the determination of suitable inequalities for fuzzy
sets in fuzzy query languages. This paper examines which kinds
of fuzzy inequalities exist at all. Afterwards, different procedures
are presented that appear theoretically appropriate. By being applied
to various examples, their strengths and weaknesses are revealed.
Furthermore, an algorithm for an efficient computation of the selected
fuzzy inequality is shown.
Abstract: In the last decades to supply the various and different
demands of clients, a lot of manufacturers trend to use the mixedmodel
assembly line (MMAL) in their production lines, since this
policy make possible to assemble various and different models of the
equivalent goods on the same line with the MTO approach.
In this article, we determine the sequence of (MMAL) line, with
applying the kitting approach and planning of rest time for general
workers to reduce the wastages, increase the workers effectiveness
and apply the sector of lean production approach.
This Multi-objective sequencing problem solved in small size with
GAMS22.2 and PSO meta heuristic in 10 test problems and compare
their results together and conclude that their results are very similar
together, next we determine the important factors in computing the
cost, which improving them cost reduced. Since this problem, is NPhard
in large size, we use the particle swarm optimization (PSO)
meta-heuristic for solving it. In large size we define some test
problems to survey it-s performance and determine the important
factors in calculating the cost, that by change or improved them
production in minimum cost will be possible.
Abstract: Web applications have become very complex and
crucial, especially when combined with areas such as CRM
(Customer Relationship Management) and BPR (Business Process
Reengineering), the scientific community has focused attention to
Web applications design, development, analysis, and testing, by
studying and proposing methodologies and tools. This paper
proposes an approach to automatic multi-dimensional concern
mining for Web Applications, based on concepts analysis, impact
analysis, and token-based concern identification. This approach lets
the user to analyse and traverse Web software relevant to a particular
concern (concept, goal, purpose, etc.) via multi-dimensional
separation of concerns, to document, understand and test Web
applications. This technique was developed in the context of WAAT
(Web Applications Analysis and Testing) project. A semi-automatic
tool to support this technique is currently under development.
Abstract: The dispersion of heavy particles line in an isotropic
and incompressible three-dimensional turbulent flow has been
studied using the Kinematic Simulation techniques to find out the
evolution of the line fractal dimension. In this study, the fractal
dimension of the line is found for different cases of heavy particles
inertia (different Stokes numbers) in the absence of the particle
gravity with a comparison with the fractal dimension obtained in the
diffusion case of material line at the same Reynolds number. It can
be concluded for the dispersion of heavy particles line in turbulent
flow that the particle inertia affect the fractal dimension of a line
released in a turbulent flow for Stokes numbers 0.02 < St < 2. At the
beginning for small times, most of the different cases are not affected
by the inertia until a certain time, the particle response time τa, with
larger time as the particles inertia increases, the fractal dimension of
the line increases owing to the particles becoming more sensitive to
the small scales which cause the change in the line shape during its
journey.
Abstract: Different agricultural waste peels were assessed for
their suitability to be used as primary substrates for the
bioremediation of free cyanide (CN-) by a cyanide-degrading fungus
Aspergillus awamori isolated from cyanide containing wastewater.
The bioremediated CN- concentration were in the range of 36 to 110
mg CN-/L, with Orange (C. sinensis) > Carrot (D. carota) > Onion
(A. cepa) > Apple (M. pumila), being chosen as suitable substrates
for large scale CN- degradation processes due to: 1) the high
concentration of bioremediated CN-, 2) total reduced sugars released
into solution to sustain the biocatalyst, and 3) minimal residual NH4-
N concentration after fermentation. The bioremediation rate constants
(k) were 0.017h-1 (0h < t < 24h), with improved bioremediation rates
(0.02189h-1) observed after 24h. The averaged nitrilase activity was
~10 U/L.
Abstract: Marketing is an essential issue to the survival of any
real estate company in Turkey. There are some factors which are
constraining the achievements of the marketing and sales strategies in
the Turkey real estate industry. This study aims to identify and
prioritise the most significant constraints to marketing in real estate
sector and new strategies based on those constraints. This study is
based on survey method, where the respondents such as credit
counsellors, real estate investors, consultants, academicians and
marketing representatives in Turkey were asked to rank forty seven
sub-factors according to their levels of impact. The results of Multiattribute
analytical technique indicated that the main subcomponents
having impact on marketing in real estate sector are interest rates, real
estate credit availability, accessibility, company image and consumer
real income, respectively. The identified constraints are expected to
guide the marketing team in a sales-effective way.
Abstract: Interventional cardiologists are at greater risk from
radiation exposure as a result of the procedures they undertake than
most other medical specialists. A study was performed to evaluate
operator dose during interventional cardiology procedures and to
establish methods of operator dose reduction with a radiation
protective device. Different procedure technique and use of
protective tools can explain big difference in the annual equivalent
dose received by the professionals. Strategies to prevent and
monitor radiation exposure, advanced protective shielding and
effective radiation monitoring methods should be applied.
Abstract: This paper discusses a genetic algorithm (GA) based optimal load shedding that can apply for electrical distribution networks with and without dispersed generators (DG). Also, the proposed method has the ability for considering constant and variable capacity deficiency caused by unscheduled outages in the bulked generation and transmission system of bulked power supply. The genetic algorithm (GA) is employed to search for the optimal load shedding strategy in distribution networks considering DGs in two cases of constant and variable modelling of bulked power supply of distribution networks. Electrical power distribution systems have a radial network and unidirectional power flows. With the advent of dispersed generations, the electrical distribution system has a locally looped network and bidirectional power flows. Therefore, installed DG in the electrical distribution systems can cause operational problems and impact on existing operational schemes. Introduction of DGs in electrical distribution systems has introduced many new issues in operational and planning level. Load shedding as one of operational issue has no exempt. The objective is to minimize the sum of curtailed load and also system losses within the frame-work of system operational and security constraints. The proposed method is tested on a radial distribution system with 33 load points for more practical applications.
Abstract: The information revealed by derivatives can help to
better characterize digital near-end crosstalk signatures with the
ultimate goal of identifying the specific aggressor signal.
Unfortunately, derivatives tend to be very sensitive to even low
levels of noise. In this work we approximated the derivatives of both
quiet and noisy digital signals using a wavelet-based technique. The
results are presented for Gaussian digital edges, IBIS Model digital
edges, and digital edges in oscilloscope data captured from an actual
printed circuit board. Tradeoffs between accuracy and noise
immunity are presented. The results show that the wavelet technique
can produce first derivative approximations that are accurate to
within 5% or better, even under noisy conditions. The wavelet
technique can be used to calculate the derivative of a digital signal
edge when conventional methods fail.
Abstract: The purposes of this research are: 1) to study the media
literacy of early teenagers, and 2) to study the interaction between
gender and timing of media exposure that affects the media literacy
of teenagers. The sample of the study included 400 young people
aged between 11 to 17 and who were living in Bangkok. The data
was collected using questionnaires. Two-way ANOVA was used in
analyzing the collected data. The result revealed that gender and
timing of media exposure affected the media literacy of early
teenagers with statistical significance at the level of 0.05.
Abstract: International markets driven forces are changing
continuously, therefore companies need to gain a competitive edge in
such markets. Improving the company's products, processes and
practices is no longer auxiliary. Lean production is a production
management philosophy that consolidates work tasks with minimum
waste resulting in improved productivity. Lean production practices
can be mapped into many production areas. One of these is
Manufacturing Equipment and Technology (MET). Many lean
production practices can be implemented in MET, namely, specific
equipment configurations, total preventive maintenance, visual
control, new equipment/ technologies, production process
reengineering and shared vision of perfection.The purpose of this
paper is to investigate the implementation level of these six practices
in Jordanian industries. To achieve that a questionnaire survey has
been designed according to five-point Likert scale. The questionnaire
is validated through pilot study and through experts review. A sample
of 350 Jordanian companies were surveyed, the response rate was
83%. The respondents were asked to rate the extent of
implementation for each of practices. A relationship conceptual
model is developed, hypotheses are proposed, and consequently the
essential statistical analyses are then performed. An assessment tool
that enables management to monitor the progress and the
effectiveness of lean practices implementation is designed and
presented. Consequently, the results show that the average
implementation level of lean practices in MET is 77%, Jordanian
companies are implementing successfully the considered lean
production practices, and the presented model has Cronbach-s alpha
value of 0.87 which is good evidence on model consistency and
results validation.
Abstract: This paper considers the exclusion of consumer rights by the New Zealand Consumer Guarantees Act 1993 in eauctions. The paper asserts that the absence of an individual auctioneer conducting each e-auction means that e-auctions may not be auctions at all. The paper also questions the justification for excluding consumer rights in e-auctions because the rationale for excluding consumer rights in traditional auctions does not fit with e-auctions due to the significant differences in the sale processes. The paper recommends reform by way of statutory amendment.
Abstract: Female breast cancer is the second in frequency after cervical cancer. Surgery is the most common treatment for breast cancer, followed by chemotherapy as a treatment of choice. Although effective, it causes serious side effects. Controlled-release drug delivery is an alternative method to improve the efficacy and safety of the treatment. It can release the dosage of drug between the minimum effect concentration (MEC) and minimum toxic concentration (MTC) within tumor tissue and reduce the damage of normal tissue and the side effect. Because an in vivo experiment of this system can be time-consuming and labor-intensive, a mathematical model is desired to study the effects of important parameters before the experiments are performed. Here, we describe a 3D mathematical model to predict the release of doxorubicin from pluronic gel to treat human breast cancer. This model can, ultimately, be used to effectively design the in vivo experiments.
Abstract: The task of face recognition has been actively
researched in recent years. This paper provides an up-to-date review of major human face recognition research. We first present an
overview of face recognition and its applications. Then, a literature review of the most recent face recognition techniques is presented.
Description and limitations of face databases which are used to test
the performance of these face recognition algorithms are given. A
brief summary of the face recognition vendor test (FRVT) 2002, a
large scale evaluation of automatic face recognition technology, and
its conclusions are also given. Finally, we give a summary of the research results.
Abstract: This paper presents a new algorithm for the channel estimation of the OFDM system based on a pilot signal for the new generation of high data rate communication systems. In orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) systems over fast-varying fading channels, channel estimation and tracking is generally carried out by transmitting known pilot symbols in given positions of the frequency-time grid. In this paper, we propose to derive an improved algorithm based on the calculation of the mean and the variance of the adjacent pilot signals for a specific distribution of the pilot signals in the OFDM frequency-time grid then calculating of the entire unknown channel coefficients from the equation of the mean and the variance. Simulation results shows that the performance of the OFDM system increase as the length of the channel increase where the accuracy of the estimated channel will be increased using this low complexity algorithm, also the number of the pilot signal needed to be inserted in the OFDM signal will be reduced which lead to increase in the throughput of the signal over the OFDM system in compared with other type of the distribution such as Comb type and Block type channel estimation.
Abstract: The technological concepts such as wireless hospital
and portable cardiac telemetry system require the development of
physiological signal acquisition devices to be easily integrated into
the hospital database. In this paper we present the low cost, portable
wireless ECG acquisition hardware that transmits ECG signals to a
dedicated computer.The front end of the system obtains and
processes incoming signals, which are then transmitted via a
microcontroller and wireless Bluetooth module. A monitoring
purpose Bluetooth based end user application integrated with patient
database management module is developed for the computers. The
system will act as a continuous event recorder, which can be used to
follow up patients who have been resuscitatedfrom cardiac arrest,
ventricular tachycardia but also for diagnostic purposes for patients
with arrhythmia symptoms. In addition, cardiac information can be
saved into the patient-s database of the hospital.
Abstract: We review a knowledge extractor model in
constructing 3G Killer Applications. The success of 3G is essential
for Government as it became part of Telecommunications National
Strategy. The 3G wireless technologies may reach larger area and
increase country-s ICT penetration. In order to understand future
customers needs, the operators require proper information
(knowledge) lying inside. Our work approached future customers as
complex system where the complex knowledge may expose regular
behavior. The hidden information from 3G future customers is
revealed by using fractal-based questionnaires. Afterward, further
statistical analysis is used to match the results with operator-s
strategic plan. The developments of 3G applications also consider its
saturation time and further improvement of the application.
Abstract: The standard investigational method for obstructive
sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) diagnosis is polysomnography (PSG),
which consists of a simultaneous, usually overnight recording of
multiple electro-physiological signals related to sleep and
wakefulness. This is an expensive, encumbering and not a readily
repeated protocol, and therefore there is need for simpler and easily
implemented screening and detection techniques. Identification of
apnea/hypopnea events in the screening recordings is the key factor
for the diagnosis of OSAS. The analysis of a solely single-lead
electrocardiographic (ECG) signal for OSAS diagnosis, which may
be done with portable devices, at patient-s home, is the challenge of
the last years. A novel artificial neural network (ANN) based
approach for feature extraction and automatic identification of
respiratory events in ECG signals is presented in this paper. A
nonlinear principal component analysis (NLPCA) method was
considered for feature extraction and support vector machine for
classification/recognition. An alternative representation of the
respiratory events by means of Kohonen type neural network is
discussed. Our prospective study was based on OSAS patients of the
Clinical Hospital of Pneumology from Iaşi, Romania, males and
females, as well as on non-OSAS investigated human subjects. Our
computed analysis includes a learning phase based on cross signal
PSG annotation.
Abstract: As more people from non-technical backgrounds
are becoming directly involved with large-scale ontology
development, the focal point of ontology research has shifted
from the more theoretical ontology issues to problems
associated with the actual use of ontologies in real-world,
large-scale collaborative applications. Recently the National
Science Foundation funded a large collaborative ontology
development project for which a new formal ontology model,
the Ontology Abstract Machine (OAM), was developed to
satisfy some unique functional and data representation
requirements. This paper introduces the OAM model and the
related algorithms that enable maintenance of an ontology that
supports node-based user access. The successful software
implementation of the OAM model and its subsequent
acceptance by a large research community proves its validity
and its real-world application value.
Abstract: This research project is developed in order to study
managerial styles of modern Thai executives. The thorough
understanding will lead to continuous improvement and efficient
performance of Thai business organizations. Regarding managerial
skills, Thai executives focus heavily upon human skills. Also, the
negotiator roles are most emphasis in their management. In addition,
Thai executives pay most attention to the fundamental management
principles including Harmony and Unity of Direction of the
organizations. Moreover, the management techniques, consisting of
Team work and Career Planning are of their main concern. Finally,
Thai executives wish to enhance their firms- image and employees-
morale through conducting the ethical and socially responsible
activities. The major tactic deployed to stimulate employees- ethical
behaviors and mindset is Code of Ethics development.