Abstract: With a surge of stream processing applications novel
techniques are required for generation and analysis of association
rules in streams. The traditional rule mining solutions cannot handle
streams because they generally require multiple passes over the data
and do not guarantee the results in a predictable, small time. Though
researchers have been proposing algorithms for generation of rules
from streams, there has not been much focus on their analysis.
We propose Association rule profiling, a user centric process for
analyzing association rules and attaching suitable profiles to them
depending on their changing frequency behavior over a previous
snapshot of time in a data stream.
Association rule profiles provide insights into the changing nature
of associations and can be used to characterize the associations. We
discuss importance of characteristics such as predictability of
linkages present in the data and propose metric to quantify it. We
also show how association rule profiles can aid in generation of user
specific, more understandable and actionable rules.
The framework is implemented as SUPAR: System for Usercentric
Profiling of Association Rules in streaming data. The
proposed system offers following capabilities:
i) Continuous monitoring of frequency of streaming item-sets
and detection of significant changes therein for association rule
profiling.
ii) Computation of metrics for quantifying predictability of
associations present in the data.
iii) User-centric control of the characterization process: user
can control the framework through a) constraint specification and b)
non-interesting rule elimination.
Abstract: In this paper, SFQ (Start Time Fair Queuing)
algorithm is analyzed when this is applied in computer networks to
know what kind of behavior the traffic in the net has when different
data sources are managed by the scheduler. Using the NS2 software
the computer networks were simulated to be able to get the graphs
showing the performance of the scheduler. Different traffic sources
were introduced in the scripts, trying to establish the real scenario.
Finally the results were that depending on the data source, the traffic
can be affected in different levels, when Constant Bite Rate is
applied, the scheduler ensures a constant level of data sent and
received, but the truth is that in the real life it is impossible to ensure
a level that resists the changes in work load.
Abstract: Mixed convection in two-dimensional shallow rectangular enclosure is considered. The top hot wall moves with constant velocity while the cold bottom wall has no motion. Simulations are performed for Richardson number ranging from Ri = 0.001 to 100 and for Reynolds number keeping fixed at Re = 408.21. Under these conditions cavity encompasses three regimes: dominating forced, mixed and free convection flow. The Prandtl number is set to 6 and the effects of cavity inclination on the flow and heat transfer are studied for different Richardson number. With increasing the inclination angle, interesting behavior of the flow and thermal fields are observed. The streamlines and isotherm plots and the variation of the Nusselt numbers on the hot wall are presented. The average Nusselt number is found to increase with cavity inclination for Ri ³ 1 . Also it is shown that the average Nusselt number changes mildly with the cavity inclination in the dominant forced convection regime but it increases considerably in the regime with dominant natural convection.
Abstract: Laser Doppler flowmetry is a modern method of noninvasive
microcirculation investigation. The aim of our study was to
use this method in the examination of patients with secondary
lymphedema of the lower extremities and obliterating atherosclerosis
of lower extremities. In the analysis of the amplitude-frequency
spectrum of secondary lymphedema patients we have identified
remarkable changes. To describe the changes we used a special
amplitude rate. In both of patients groups this rate was significally
(p
Abstract: This project aims to investigate the potential of
torrefaction to improve the properties of Malaysian palm kernel shell
(PKS) as a solid fuel. A study towards torrefaction of PKS was
performed under various temperature and residence time of 240, 260,
and 280oC and 30, 60, and 90 minutes respectively. The torrefied
PKS was characterized in terms of the mass yield, energy yield,
elemental composition analysis, calorific value analysis, moisture and
volatile matter contents, and ash and fixed carbon contents. The mass
and energy yield changes in the torrefied PKS were observed to
prove that the temperature has more effect compare to residence time
in the torrefaction process. The C content of PKS increases while H
and O contents decrease after torrefaction, which resulted in higher
heating value between 5 to 16%. Meanwhile, torrefaction caused the
ash and fixed carbon content of PKS to increase, and the moisture
and volatile matter to decrease.
Abstract: The Czech Republic is a country whose economy has
undergone a transformation since 1989. Since joining the EU it has
been striving to reduce the differences in its economic standard and
the quality of its institutional environment in comparison with
developed countries. According to an assessment carried out by the
World Bank, the Czech Republic was long classed as a country
whose institutional development was seen as problematic. For many
years one of the things it was rated most poorly on was its bankruptcy
law. The new Insolvency Act, which is a modern law in terms of its
treatment of bankruptcy, was first adopted in the Czech Republic in
2006. This law, together with other regulatory measures, offers debtridden
Czech economic subjects legal instruments which are well
established and in common practice in developed market economies.
Since then, analyses performed by the World Bank and the London
EBRD have shown that there have been significant steps forward in
the quality of Czech bankruptcy law. The Czech Republic still lacks
an analytical apparatus which can offer a structured characterisation
of the general and specific conditions of Czech company and
household debt which is subject to current changes in the global
economy. This area has so far not been given the attention it
deserves. The lack of research is particularly clear as regards analysis
of household debt and householders- ability to settle their debts in a
reasonable manner using legal and other state means of regulation.
We assume that Czech households have recourse to a modern
insolvency law, yet the effective application of this law is hampered
by the inconsistencies in the formal and informal institutions
involved in resolving debt. This in turn is based on the assumption
that this lack of consistency is more marked in cases of personal
bankruptcy. Our aim is to identify the symptoms which indicate that
for some time the effective application of bankruptcy law in the
Czech Republic will be hindered by factors originating in
householders- relative inability to identify the risks of falling into
debt.
Abstract: With increasing number of wireless devices like
laptops, Wi-Fi Web Cams, network extenders, etc., a new kind of
problems appeared, mostly related to poor Wi-Fi throughput or
communication problems. In this paper an investigation on wireless
networks and it-s saturation in Vilnius City and its surrounding is
presented, covering the main problems of wireless saturation and
network load during day. Also an investigation on wireless channel
selection and noise levels were made, showing the impact of
neighbor AP to signal and noise levels and how it changes during the
day.
Abstract: Bay leaves have been shown to improve insulin
function in vitro but the effects on people have not been determined.
The objective of this study was to determine if bay leaves may be
important in the prevention and/or alleviation of type 1 diabetes.
Methods: Fifty five people with type 1 diabetes were divided into
two groups, 45 given capsules containing 3 g of bay leaves per day
for 30 days and 10 given a placebo capsules. Results All the patients
consumed bay leaves shows reduced serum glucose with significant
decreases 27% after 30 d. Total cholesterol decreased, 21 %, after 30
days with larger decreases in low density lipoprotein (LDL) 24%.
High density lipoprotein (HDL) increased 20% and Triglycerides
also decreased 26%. There were no significant changes in the
placebo group. Conclusion, this study demonstrates that consumption
of bay leaves, 3 g/d for 30 days, decreases risk factors for diabetes
and cardiovascular diseases and suggests that bay leaves may be
beneficial for people with type 1 diabetes.
Abstract: The log periodogram regression is widely used in empirical
applications because of its simplicity, since only a least squares
regression is required to estimate the memory parameter, d, its good
asymptotic properties and its robustness to misspecification of the
short term behavior of the series. However, the asymptotic distribution
is a poor approximation of the (unknown) finite sample distribution
if the sample size is small. Here the finite sample performance of different
nonparametric residual bootstrap procedures is analyzed when
applied to construct confidence intervals. In particular, in addition to
the basic residual bootstrap, the local and block bootstrap that might
adequately replicate the structure that may arise in the errors of the
regression are considered when the series shows weak dependence in
addition to the long memory component. Bias correcting bootstrap
to adjust the bias caused by that structure is also considered. Finally,
the performance of the bootstrap in log periodogram regression based
confidence intervals is assessed in different type of models and how
its performance changes as sample size increases.
Abstract: The goal of speech parameterization is to extract the relevant information about what is being spoken from the audio signal. In speech recognition systems Mel-Frequency Cepstral Coefficients (MFCC) and Relative Spectral Mel-Frequency Cepstral Coefficients (RASTA-MFCC) are the two main techniques used. It will be shown in this paper that it presents some modifications to the original MFCC method. In our work the effectiveness of proposed changes to MFCC called Modified Function Cepstral Coefficients (MODFCC) were tested and compared against the original MFCC and RASTA-MFCC features. The prosodic features such as jitter and shimmer are added to baseline spectral features. The above-mentioned techniques were tested with impulsive signals under various noisy conditions within AURORA databases.
Abstract: This work was conducted to improve the level of
resistant starch (RS) in a rice noodle using unripe banana flour and to
investigate the effect of substitution of unripe banana flour for rice
flour on the physical properties of rice noodle. In order to prepare
rice noodles, the unripe banana flour were replaced the rice flour
with different degrees of substitutions including 0, 20, 40, 60, 80, and
100%. The results indicated that substitution of unripe banana flour
was significantly affected the viscosity properties of noodle flour,
color, cooking loss, RS and total starch content of noodle. It was
found that the noodle prepared from 100% unripe banana indicated
the greatest changes on the viscosity properties and color profiles. It
also showed the highest values of cooking loss (2.53%), tensile
strength (129.03%), and RS content (13.15%).
Abstract: Customer-supplier collaboration enables firms to
achieve greater success than acting independently. Nevertheless, not
many firms have fully utilized the potential of collaboration. This
paper presents organizational and human related success factors for
collaboration in manufacturing supply chains in casting industry. Our
research approach was a case study including multiple cases. Data
was gathered by interviews and group discussions in two different
research projects. In the first research project we studied seven firms
and in the second five. It was found that the success factors are
interrelated, in other words, organizational and human factors
together enable success but not any of them alone. Some of the found
success factors are a culture of following agreements, and a speed of
informing the partner about changes affecting to the product or the
delivery chain.
Abstract: The morphological short-term evolution of Ponta do Tubarão Island (PTI) was investigated through high accurate surveys based on post-processed kinematic (PPK) relative positioning on Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS). PTI is part of a barrier island system on a high energy northeast Brazilian coastal environment and also an area of high environmental sensitivity. Surveys were carried out quarterly over a two years period from May 2010 to May 2012. This paper assesses statically the performance of digital elevation models (DEM) derived from different interpolation methods to represent morphologic features and to quantify volumetric changes and TIN models shown the best results to that purposes. The MDE allowed quantifying surfaces and volumes in detail as well as identifying the most vulnerable segments of the PTI to erosion and/or accumulation of sediments and relate the alterations to climate conditions. The coastal setting and geometry of PTI protects a significant mangrove ecosystem and some oil and gas facilities installed in the vicinities from damaging effects of strong oceanwaves and currents. Thus, the maintenance of PTI is extremely required but the prediction of its longevity is uncertain because results indicate an irregularity of sedimentary balance and a substantial decline in sediment supply to this coastal area.
Abstract: The effect of flakes from biologically activated hullless barley grain and malt extract on microbiological safety of yoghurt was studied. Pasteurized milk, freeze-dried yoghurt culture YF-L811 (Chr. Hansen, Denmark), flakes from biologically activated hull-less barley grain (Latvia) and malt extract (Ilgezeem, Latvia) were used for experiments. Yoghurt samples with flakes from biologically activated hull-less barley grain and malt extract were analyzed for total plate count of mesophylic aerobic and facultative anaerobic microorganisms, as well yeasts and moulds population during shelflife. Results showed that the changes of pH and titratable acidity affected the concentration of added malt extract. The lowest pH and the highest titratable acidity were determined in samples YFBG5% ME4% and YFBG5% ME6% on the 14th day. The total plate count decreased in all yoghurt samples except sample YFBG5% ME6%, where was determined the increase of microorganisms from 7th till 14th day. The adding of flakes from biologically activated hull-less barley grain in yoghurt samples caused the higher initial content of yeasts and moulds comparing with control. The growth of yeasts and moulds during shelf-life provided the added malt extract in yoghurt samples. Yoghurt enriched with flakes from biologically activated hull-less barley grain and malt extract from a microbiological perspective is safe product.
Abstract: This study examined the toxicological effects and
safety of polypeptide k isolated from the seeds of Momordica
charantia in laboratory rats. 30 male Sprague Dawley rats (12 weeks
old, bodyweight 180-200 g) were randomly divided into 3 groups
(1000 mg/kg, 500 mg and 0 mg/kg). Rats were acclimatized to
laboratory conditions for 7 days and at day 8 rats were dosed orally
with polypeptide k (in 2% DMSO/normal saline) and the controls
received the dosed vehicle only. Rats were then observed for 72
hours before sacrificed. Rats were anaesthetized by pentobarbital
(50 mg/kg ip) and 2-3.0 mL of blood was taken by cardiac puncture
and rats were scarified by anaesthetic overdose. Immediately, organs
(heart, lungs, liver, kidneys) were weigh and taken for histology.
Organ sections were then evaluated by a histopathologist. Serum
samples were assayed for liver functions (ALT and γ-GT) and kidney
functions (BUN and creatinine). All rats showed normal behavior
after the dosing and no statistical changes were observed in all blood
parameters and organ weight. Histological examinations revealed
normal organ structures. In conclusion, dosing of rats up to 1000
mg/kg did not have any effects on the rat behavior, liver or kidney
functions nor histology of the selected organs.
Abstract: Anxiety is a common disorder that attacks many people in society and often accompanied by physiological sensations such as tachycardia, chest pain, shortness of breath, insensitivity and etc. The purpose of this study is to characterize the putative anxiolytic-like effects of DEV (dichloromethane extracts of valerian) using the elevated plus maze (EPM) in rats. DEV was dissolved in DMSO and orally administered at different doses to adult male wistar rats, 0.5, 1.5 and 3 hours before behavioral evaluation in an EPM respectively. Control rats were treated with an equal volume of DMSO. Single treatment of DEV (at 0.1,0.2. 0.3, and 0.4 g/kg) significantly increased time-spent and arm entries into open arms of EPM versus control groups (p
Abstract: Business Process Management (BPM) helps in optimizing the business processes inside an enterprise. But BPM architecture does not provide any help for extending the enterprise. Modern business environments and rapidly changing technologies are asking for brisk changes in the business processes. Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) can help in enabling the success of enterprise-wide BPM. SOA supports agility in software development that is directly related to achieve loose coupling of interacting software agents. Agility is a premium concern of the current software designing architectures. Together, BPM and SOA provide a perfect combination for enterprise computing. SOA provides the capabilities for services to be combined together and to support and create an agile, flexible enterprise. But there are still many questions to answer; BPM is better or SOA? and what is the future track of BPM and SOA? This paper tries to answer some of these important questions.
Abstract: Due to adverse pressure gradient along the diverging
walls of wide-angled diffusers, the attached flow separates from
one wall and remains attached permanently to the other wall in a
process called stalling. Stalled diffusers render the whole fluid flow
system, in which they are part of, very inefficient. There is then an
engineering need to try to understand the whole process of diffuser
stall if any meaningful attempts to improve on diffuser efficiency
are to be made. In this regard, this paper provides a data bank
contribution for the mean flow-field in wide-angled diffusers where
the complete velocity and static pressure fields, and pressure recovery
data for diffusers in the fully stalled flow regime are experimentally
measured. The measurements were carried out at Reynolds numbers
between 1.07×105 and 2.14×105 based on inlet hydraulic diameter
and centreline velocity for diffusers whose divergence angles were
between 30Ôùª and 50Ôùª. Variation of Reynolds number did not significantly
affect the velocity and static pressure profiles. The wall static
pressure recovery was found to be more sensitive to changes in the
Reynolds number. By increasing the velocity from 10 m/s to 20 m/s,
the wall static pressure recovery increased by 8.31%. However, as the
divergence angle was increased, a similar increase in the Reynolds
number resulted in a higher percentage increase in pressure recovery.
Experimental results showed that regardless of the wall to which
the flow was attached, both the velocity and pressure fields were
replicated with discrepancies below 2%.
Abstract: Most HWRs currently use natural uranium fuel. Using enriched uranium fuel results in a significant improvement in fuel cycle costs and uranium utilization. On the other hand, reactivity changes of HWRs over the full range of operating conditions from cold shutdown to full power are small. This reduces the required reactivity worth of control devices and minimizes local flux distribution perturbations, minimizing potential problems due to transient local overheating of fuel. Analyzing heavy water effectiveness on neutronic parameters such as enrichment requirements, peaking factor and reactivity is important and should pay attention as primary concepts of a HWR core designing. Two nuclear nuclear reactors of CANDU-type and hexagonal-type reactor cores of 33 fuel assemblies and 19 assemblies in 1.04 P/D have been respectively simulated using MCNP-4C code. Using heavy water and light water as moderator have been compared for achieving less reactivity insertion and enrichment requirements. Two fuel matrixes of (232Th/235U)O2 and (238/235U)O2 have been compared to achieve more economical and safe design. Heavy water not only decreased enrichment needs, but it concluded in negative reactivity insertions during moderator density variations. Thorium oxide fuel assemblies of 2.3% enrichment loaded into the core of heavy water moderator resulted in 0.751 fission to absorption ratio and peaking factor of 1.7 using. Heavy water not only provides negative reactivity insertion during temperature raises which changes moderator density but concluded in 2 to 10 kg reduction of enrichment requirements, depend on geometry type.
Abstract: The back-propagation algorithm calculates the weight
changes of an artificial neural network, and a two-term algorithm
with a dynamically optimal learning rate and a momentum factor
is commonly used. Recently the addition of an extra term, called a
proportional factor (PF), to the two-term BP algorithm was proposed.
The third term increases the speed of the BP algorithm. However,
the PF term also reduces the convergence of the BP algorithm, and
optimization approaches for evaluating the learning parameters are
required to facilitate the application of the three terms BP algorithm.
This paper considers the optimization of the new back-propagation
algorithm by using derivative information. A family of approaches
exploiting the derivatives with respect to the learning rate, momentum
factor and proportional factor is presented. These autonomously
compute the derivatives in the weight space, by using information
gathered from the forward and backward procedures. The three-term
BP algorithm and the optimization approaches are evaluated using
the benchmark XOR problem.