Abstract: Software developed for a specific customer under contract
typically undergoes a period of testing by the customer before
acceptance. This is known as user acceptance testing and the process
can reveal both defects in the system and requests for changes to
the product. This paper uses nonhomogeneous Poisson processes to
model a real user acceptance data set from a recently developed
system. In particular a split Poisson process is shown to provide an
excellent fit to the data. The paper explains how this model can be
used to aid the allocation of resources through the accurate prediction
of occurrences both during the acceptance testing phase and before
this activity begins.
Abstract: Delay and Disruption Tolerant Networking is part of
the Inter Planetary Internet with primary application being Deep
Space Networks. Its Terrestrial form has interesting research
applications such as Alagappa University Delay Tolerant Water
Monitoring Network which doubles as test beds for improvising its
routing scheme. DTNs depend on node mobility to deliver packets
using a store-carry-and forward paradigm. Throwboxes are small and
inexpensive stationary devices equipped with wireless interfaces and
storage. We propose the use of Throwboxes to enhance the contact
opportunities of the nodes and hence improve the Throughput. The
enhancement is evaluated using Alunivdtnsim, a desktop simulator in
C language and the results are graphically presented.
Abstract: Multi-site damage (MSD) has been a challenge to
aircraft, civil and power plant structures. In real life components are subjected to cracking at many vulnerable locations such as the bolt
holes. However, we do not consider for the presence of multiple cracks. Unlike components with a single crack, these components are
difficult to predict. When two cracks approach one another, their
stress fields influence each other and produce enhancing or shielding effect depending on the position of the cracks. In the present study,
numerical studies on fracture analysis have been conducted by using
the developed code based on the modified virtual crack closure integral (MVCCI) technique and finite element analysis (FEA) software ABAQUS for computing SIF of plates with multiple cracks.
Various parametric studies have been carried out and the results have
been compared with literature where ever available and also with the solution, obtained by using ABAQUS. By conducting extensive
numerical studies expressions for SIF have been obtained for collinear cracks and non-aligned cracks.
Abstract: Environmental statistics reveals that the pollution of
acid rain in South Korea is a serious issue. Yet the awareness of people
is low. Even after a gradual decrease of pollutant emission in Korea,
the acidity has not been reduced. There no boundaries in the
atmosphere are set and the influence of the neighboring countries such
as China is apparent. Governmental efforts among China, Japan and
Korea have been made on this issue. However, not much progress has
been observed. Along with the governmental activities, therefore, an
active monitoring of the pollution among the countries and the
promotion of environmental awareness at the civil level including
especially the middle and high schools are highly recommended. It
will be this young generation who will face damaged country as
inheritance not the current generation.
Abstract: This paper dissertates about issues which may occur
after next year will be major part of civil aviation in EU included into
system of Emission trading. This system should help to fight against
global warming and to fulfill Kyoto Protocol commitments of
European countries. Main issues mentioned in this paper are
connected with problem of radiative forcing from emissions and lack
of their monitoring and charging in EU legislative. There are
mentioned main differences between industrial emissions and
emissions form aviation with notification about possible negative
impacts of neglecting these differences. Special attention is dedicated
to risk of possible reverse effect of inclusion aviation in EU ETS,
which may theoretically occur.
Abstract: Quality of 2D and 3D cross-sectional images produce
by Computed Tomography primarily depend upon the degree of
precision of primary and secondary X-Ray intensity detection.
Traditional method of primary intensity detection is apt to errors.
Recently the X-Ray intensity measurement system along with smart
X-Ray sensors is developed by our group which is able to detect
primary X-Ray intensity unerringly. In this study a new smart X-Ray
sensor is developed using Light-to-Frequency converter TSL230
from Texas Instruments which has numerous advantages in terms of
noiseless data acquisition and transmission. TSL230 construction is
based on a silicon photodiode which converts incoming X-Ray
radiation into the proportional current signal. A current to frequency
converter is attached to this photodiode on a single monolithic CMOS
integrated circuit which provides proportional frequency count to
incoming current signal in the form of the pulse train. The frequency
count is delivered to the center of PICDEM FS USB board with
PIC18F4550 microcontroller mounted on it. With highly compact
electronic hardware, this Demo Board efficiently read the smart
sensor output data. The frequency output approaches overcome
nonlinear behavior of sensors with analog output thus un-attenuated
X-Ray intensities could be measured precisely and better
normalization could be acquired in order to attain high resolution.
Abstract: The use of bioindicators plants (lichens, bryophytes
and Sphagnum....) in monitoring pollution by heavy metals has been
the subject of several works. However, few studies have addressed
the impact of specific type-s pollutants (fertilizers, pesticides.) on
these organisms.
We propose in this work to make the highlighting effect of NPKs
(NPK: nitrogen-phosphate-potassium-sulfate (NP2O5K2O) (15,15,15),
at concentrations of 10, 20, 30 , 40 and 50mM/L) on the activity of
detoxification enzymes (GSH/GST, CAT, APX and MDA) of plant
bioindicators (mosses and lichens) after treatment for 3 and 7 days.
This study shows the important role of the defense system in the
accumulation and tolerance to chemical pollutants through the
activation of enzymatic (GST (glutathione-S-transferase, APX
(ascorbat peroxidase), CAT (catalase)) and nonenzymatic biomarkers
(GSH (glutathione), MDA (malondialdehyde)) against oxidative
stress generated by the NPKs.
Abstract: The primary cause of Total Hip Replacement (THR)
failure for younger patients is aseptic loosening. This complication is
twice more likely to happen in acetabular cup than in femoral stem.
Excessive micromotion between bone and implant will cause
loosening and it depends in patient activities, age and bone. In this
project, the effects of different metal back design of press fit on
osseointegration of the acetabular cup are carried out. Commercial
acetabular cup designs, namely Spiked, Superfix and Quadrafix are
modelled and analyzed using commercial finite element software.
The diameter of acetabular cup is based on the diameter of acetabular
rim to make sure the component fit to the acetabular cavity. A new
design of acetabular cup are proposed and analyzed to get better
osseointegration between the bones and implant interface. Results
shows that the proposed acetabular cup designs are more stable
compared to other designs with respect to stress and displacement
aspects.
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: An efficient architecture for low jitter All Digital
Phase Locked Loop (ADPLL) suitable for high speed SoC
applications is presented in this paper. The ADPLL is designed using
standard cells and described by Hardware Description Language
(HDL). The ADPLL implemented in a 90 nm CMOS process can
operate from 10 to 200 MHz and achieve worst case frequency
acquisition in 14 reference clock cycles. The simulation result shows
that PLL has cycle to cycle jitter of 164 ps and period jitter of 100 ps
at 100MHz. Since the digitally controlled oscillator (DCO) can
achieve both high resolution and wide frequency range, it can meet
the demands of system-level integration. The proposed ADPLL can
easily be ported to different processes in a short time. Thus, it can
reduce the design time and design complexity of the ADPLL, making
it very suitable for System-on-Chip (SoC) applications.
Abstract: There are two common methodologies to verify
signatures: the functional approach and the parametric approach. This
paper presents a new approach for dynamic handwritten signature
verification (HSV) using the Neural Network with verification by the
Conjugate Gradient Neural Network (NN). It is yet another avenue in
the approach to HSV that is found to produce excellent results when
compared with other methods of dynamic. Experimental results show
the system is insensitive to the order of base-classifiers and gets a
high verification ratio.
Abstract: This paper argues that networks, such as the ECN and the American network, are affected by certain small events which are inherent to path dependence and preclude the full evolution towards efficiency. It is advocated that the American network is superior to the ECN in many respects due to its greater flexibility and longer history. This stems in particular from the creation of the American network, which was based on a small number of cases. Such a structure encourages further changes and modifications which are not necessarily radical. The ECN, by contrast, was established by legislative action, which explains its rigid structure and resistance to change. This paper is an attempt to transpose the superiority of the American network on to the ECN. It looks at concepts such as judicial cooperation, harmonisation of procedure, peer review and regulatory impact assessments (RIAs), and dispute resolution procedures.
Abstract: Air pollution is a major environmental health
problem, affecting developed and developing countries around the
world. Increasing amounts of potentially harmful gases and
particulate matter are being emitted into the atmosphere on a global
scale, resulting in damage to human health and the environment.
Petroleum-related air pollutants can have a wide variety of adverse
environmental impacts. In the crude oil production sectors, there is a
strong need for a thorough knowledge of gaseous emissions resulting
from the flaring of associated gas of known composition on daily
basis through combustion activities under several operating
conditions. This can help in the control of gaseous emission from
flares and thus in the protection of their immediate and distant
surrounding against environmental degradation.
The impacts of methane and non-methane hydrocarbons emissions
from flaring activities at oil production facilities at Kuwait Oilfields
have been assessed through a screening study using records of flaring
operations taken at the gas and oil production sites, and by analyzing
available meteorological and air quality data measured at stations
located near anthropogenic sources. In the present study the
Industrial Source Complex (ISCST3) Dispersion Model is used to
calculate the ground level concentrations of methane and nonmethane
hydrocarbons emitted due to flaring in all over Kuwait
Oilfields.
The simulation of real hourly air quality in and around oil
production facilities in the State of Kuwait for the year 2006,
inserting the respective source emission data into the ISCST3
software indicates that the levels of non-methane hydrocarbons from
the flaring activities exceed the allowable ambient air standard set by
Kuwait EPA. So, there is a strong need to address this acute problem
to minimize the impact of methane and non-methane hydrocarbons
released from flaring activities over the urban area of Kuwait.
Abstract: In this paper, a one-dimensional numerical approach is
used to study the effect of applying electrohydrodynamics on the
temperature and species mass fraction profiles along the microcombustor.
Premixed mixture is H2-Air with a multi-step chemistry
(9 species and 19 reactions). In the micro-scale combustion because
of the increasing ratio of area-to-volume, thermal and radical
quenching mechanisms are important. Also, there is a significant heat
loss from the combustor walls. By inserting a number of electrodes
into micro-combustor and applying high voltage to them corona
discharge occurs. This leads in moving of induced ions toward
natural molecules and colliding with them. So this phenomenon
causes the movement of the molecules and reattaches the flow to the
walls. It increases the velocity near the walls that reduces the wall
boundary layer. Consequently, applying electrohydrodynamics
mechanism can enhance the temperature profile in the microcombustor.
Ultimately, it prevents the flame quenching in microcombustor.
Abstract: The data exchanged on the Web are of different nature
from those treated by the classical database management systems;
these data are called semi-structured data since they do not have a
regular and static structure like data found in a relational database;
their schema is dynamic and may contain missing data or types.
Therefore, the needs for developing further techniques and
algorithms to exploit and integrate such data, and extract relevant
information for the user have been raised. In this paper we present
the system OSIX (Osiris based System for Integration of XML
Sources). This system has a Data Warehouse model designed for the
integration of semi-structured data and more precisely for the
integration of XML documents. The architecture of OSIX relies on
the Osiris system, a DL-based model designed for the representation
and management of databases and knowledge bases. Osiris is a viewbased
data model whose indexing system supports semantic query
optimization. We show that the problem of query processing on a
XML source is optimized by the indexing approach proposed by
Osiris.
Abstract: The crop rice is the staple food of most Sierra Leone
with no close substitute. However, its cultivation has been on its last
legs over the years. The decline in the domestic rice cultivation has
had vicious socio-economic implications such as hiking consumer
prices, balance of payment dilemmas with debt burden. The objective
of this study is thus, to assess the effect of the shift of rural labour
towards non-agricultural sectors on rice cultivation. The tools utilized
for analyzing the problem under consideration involved a thorough
descriptive statistics and generalized linear model using OLS
technique. Increased rural population was established positive and
significant in affecting rice cultivation. Fertilizer utilization was
insignificant in rice cultivation. For reducing the shift of rural labor
force towards nonagricultural sectors, the government should make
the agricultural sector very lucrative.
Abstract: Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) is now being widely used as a preferred choice for various types of operations. The need to detect various tactile properties, justifies the key role of tactile sensing that is currently missing in MIS. In this regard, Laparoscopy is one of the methods of minimally invasive surgery that can be used in kidney stone removal surgeries. At this moment, determination of the exact location of stone during laparoscopy is one of the limitations of this method that no scientific solution has been found for so far. Artificial tactile sensing is a new method for obtaining the characteristics of a hard object embedded in a soft tissue. Artificial palpation is an important application of artificial tactile sensing that can be used in different types of surgeries. In this study, a new method for determining the exact location of stone during laparoscopy is presented. In the present study, the effects of stone existence on the surface of kidney were investigated using conceptual 3D model of kidney containing a simulated stone. Having imitated palpation and modeled it conceptually, indications of stone existence that appear on the surface of kidney were determined. A number of different cases were created and solved by the software and using stress distribution contours and stress graphs, it is illustrated that the created stress patterns on the surface of kidney show not only the existence of stone inside, but also its exact location. So three-dimensional analysis leads to a novel method of predicting the exact location of stone and can be directly applied to the incorporation of tactile sensing in artificial palpation, helping surgeons in non-invasive procedures.
Abstract: In this paper, different approaches to solve the
forward kinematics of a three DOF actuator redundant hydraulic
parallel manipulator are presented. On the contrary to series
manipulators, the forward kinematic map of parallel manipulators
involves highly coupled nonlinear equations, which are almost
impossible to solve analytically. The proposed methods are using
neural networks identification with different structures to solve the
problem. The accuracy of the results of each method is analyzed in
detail and the advantages and the disadvantages of them in
computing the forward kinematic map of the given mechanism is
discussed in detail. It is concluded that ANFIS presents the best
performance compared to MLP, RBF and PNN networks in this
particular application.
Abstract: Heart failure is the most common reason of death
nowadays, but if the medical help is given directly, the patient-s life
may be saved in many cases. Numerous heart diseases can be
detected by means of analyzing electrocardiograms (ECG). Artificial
Neural Networks (ANN) are computer-based expert systems that
have proved to be useful in pattern recognition tasks. ANN can be
used in different phases of the decision-making process, from
classification to diagnostic procedures. This work concentrates on a
review followed by a novel method.
The purpose of the review is to assess the evidence of healthcare
benefits involving the application of artificial neural networks to the
clinical functions of diagnosis, prognosis and survival analysis, in
ECG signals. The developed method is based on a compound neural
network (CNN), to classify ECGs as normal or carrying an
AtrioVentricular heart Block (AVB). This method uses three
different feed forward multilayer neural networks. A single output
unit encodes the probability of AVB occurrences. A value between 0
and 0.1 is the desired output for a normal ECG; a value between 0.1
and 1 would infer an occurrence of an AVB. The results show that
this compound network has a good performance in detecting AVBs,
with a sensitivity of 90.7% and a specificity of 86.05%. The accuracy
value is 87.9%.
Abstract: With the advent of emerging personal computing paradigms such as ubiquitous and mobile computing, Web contents are becoming accessible from a wide range of mobile devices. Since these devices do not have the same rendering capabilities, Web contents need to be adapted for transparent access from a variety of client agents. Such content adaptation is exploited for either an individual element or a set of consecutive elements in a Web document and results in better rendering and faster delivery to the client device. Nevertheless, Web content adaptation sets new challenges for semantic markup. This paper presents an advanced components platform, called SMC, enabling the development of mobility applications and services according to a channel model based on the principles of Services Oriented Architecture (SOA). It then goes on to describe the potential for integration with the Semantic Web through a novel framework of external semantic annotation that prescribes a scheme for representing semantic markup files and a way of associating Web documents with these external annotations. The role of semantic annotation in this framework is to describe the contents of individual documents themselves, assuring the preservation of the semantics during the process of adapting content rendering. Semantic Web content adaptation is a way of adding value to Web contents and facilitates repurposing of Web contents (enhanced browsing, Web Services location and access, etc).