Abstract: Substandard and counterfeit antimalarials is a major problem in malaria endemic areas. The availability of counterfeit/ substandard medicines is not only decreasing the efficacy in patients, but it is also one of the contributing factors for developing antimalarial drug resistance. Owing to this, a pilot study was conducted to survey quality of drugs collected from different malaria endemic areas of India. Artesunate+Sulphadoxine-Pyrimethamine (AS+SP), Artemether-Lumefantrine (AL), Chloroquine (CQ) tablets were randomly picked from public health facilities in selected states of India. The quality of antimalarial drugs from these areas was assessed by using Global Pharma Health Fund Minilab test kit. This includes physical/visual inspection and disintegration test. Thin-layer chromatography (TLC) was carried out for semi-quantitative assessment of active pharmaceutical ingredients. A total of 45 brands, out of which 21 were for CQ, 14 for AL and 10 for AS+SP were tested from Uttar Pradesh (U.P.), Mizoram, Meghalaya and Gujrat states. One out of 45 samples showed variable disintegration and retension factor. The variable disintegration and retention factor which would have been due to substandard quality or other factors including storage. However, HPLC analysis confirms standard active pharmaceutical ingredient, but may be due to humid temperature and moisture in storage may account for the observed result.
Abstract: High-rises and placemaking is an understudied combination which receives more and more interest with the proliferation of this typology in many British cities. The reason for studying three major cities in England: London, Birmingham and Manchester, is to learn from the latest advances in urban design in well-developed and prominent urban environment. The analysis of several high-rise sites reveals the weaknesses in urban design of contemporary British cities and presents an opportunity to study from the implemented examples. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to analyze design approaches towards creating a sustainable and varied urban environment when high-rises are involved. The research questions raised by the study are: what is the quality of high-rises and their surroundings; what facilities and features are deployed in the research area; what is the role of the high-rise buildings in the placemaking process; what urban design principles are applicable in this context. The methodology utilizes observation of the researched area by structured questions, developed by the author to evaluate the outdoor qualities of the high-rise surroundings. In this context, the paper argues that the quality of the public realm around the high-rises is quite low, missing basic but vital elements such as plazas, public art, and seating, along with landscaping and pocket parks. There is lack of coherence, the rhythm of the streets is often disrupted, and even though the high-rises are very aesthetically appealing, they fail to create a sense of place on their own. The implications of the study are that future planning can take into consideration the critique in this article and provide more opportunities for urban design interventions around high-rise buildings in the British cities.
Abstract: Cybersecurity is one of the greatest challenges society faces in an age revolving around technological development. With cyber-attacks on the continuous rise, the nation needs to understand and learn ways that can prevent such attacks. A major contribution that can change the education system is to implement laboratories and competitions into academia. This method can improve and educate students with more hands-on exercises in a highly motivating setting. Considering the fact that students are the next generation of the nation’s workforce, it is important for students to understand concepts not only through books, but also through actual hands-on experiences in order for them to be prepared for the workforce. An effective cybersecurity education system is critical for creating a strong cyber secure workforce today and for the future. This paper emphasizes the need for awareness and the need for competitions and cybersecurity laboratories to be implemented into the education system.
Abstract: The development of change prediction models can help the software practitioners in planning testing and inspection resources at early phases of software development. However, a major challenge faced during the training process of any classification model is the imbalanced nature of the software quality data. A data with very few minority outcome categories leads to inefficient learning process and a classification model developed from the imbalanced data generally does not predict these minority categories correctly. Thus, for a given dataset, a minority of classes may be change prone whereas a majority of classes may be non-change prone. This study explores various alternatives for adeptly handling the imbalanced software quality data using different sampling methods and effective MetaCost learners. The study also analyzes and justifies the use of different performance metrics while dealing with the imbalanced data. In order to empirically validate different alternatives, the study uses change data from three application packages of open-source Android data set and evaluates the performance of six different machine learning techniques. The results of the study indicate extensive improvement in the performance of the classification models when using resampling method and robust performance measures.
Abstract: A simple and robust approach for developing secure software. A Four Phase methodology consists in developing the non-secure software in phase one, and for the next three phases, one phase for each of the secure developing types (i.e. self-protected software, secure code transformation, and the secure shield). Our methodology requires first the determination and understanding of the type of security level needed for the software. The methodology proposes the use of several teams to accomplish this task. One Software Engineering Developing Team, a Compiler Team, a Specification and Requirements Testing Team, and for each of the secure software developing types: three teams of Secure Software Developing, three teams of Code Breakers, and three teams of Intrusion Analysis. These teams will interact among each other and make decisions to provide a secure software code protected against a required level of intruder.
Abstract: The purpose of this study is investigating the influences of logistics performance on organizational performance including both marketing & financial aspects, and showing the financial impacts of selecting the right marketing and logistics priorities in line with their supply chain type, and also giving the practitioners an advance identification of their priorities and participation types of supply chain, and the best combination of their strategies and resources in this regard. We made use of the original model’s questionnaire to gather all expert’s data and also SPSS and AMOS Ver.22 to analyze the gathered data. CFA method was also used to test whether a relationship between observed variables and their underlying latent constructs exists. Supply chain strategy implementation leads to logistics performance improvement, and marketing performance will be affected as well. Logistics service providers should focus on enhancement of supply chain performance, since logistics performance has been considered as a basis of evaluation of supply chain management strategy. Consequently, performance of the organization will be enhanced. This case is the first research made in Iran that analyzes the relationship between Logistics & Organizational performance in Home Appliances and Home Entertainment companies.
Abstract: In this current era of competitive machinery productions, the industries are designed to place more emphasis on the product quality and reduction of cost whilst abiding by the pollution-preventing policy. In attempting to delve into the concerns, the industries are aware that the effectiveness of existing lubrication systems must be improved to achieve power-efficient and pollution-preventing machining processes. As such, this research is targeted to study on a plausible solution to the issue in grinding titanium alloy (Ti-6Al-4V) by using nanolubrication, as an alternative to flood grinding. The aim of this research is to evaluate the optimum condition of grinding force and surface roughness using MQL lubricating system to deliver nano-oil at different level of weight concentration of Silicon Dioxide (SiO2) mixed normal mineral oil. Taguchi Design of Experiment (DoE) method is carried out using a standard Taguchi orthogonal array of L16(43) to find the optimized combination of weight concentration mixture of SiO2, nozzle orientation and pressure of MQL. Surface roughness and grinding force are also analyzed using signal-to-noise(S/N) ratio to determine the best level of each factor that are tested. Consequently, the best combination of parameters is tested for a period of time and the results are compared with conventional grinding method of dry and flood condition. The results show a positive performance of MQL nanolubrication.
Abstract: In this paper, we present the results of a study of TiN thin films which are deposited by a Physical Vapour Deposition (PVD) and Ion Beam Assisted Deposition (IBAD). In the present investigation the subsequent ion implantation was provided with N5+ ions. The ion implantation was applied to enhance the mechanical properties of surface. The thin film deposition process exerts a number of effects such as crystallographic orientation, morphology, topography, densification of the films. A variety of analytic techniques were used for characterization, such as scratch test, calo test, Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Atomic Force Microscope (AFM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Energy Dispersive X-ray analysis (EDAX).
Abstract: Neuromuscular control of posture as understood
through studies of responses to mechanical sudden acceleration
automatically has been previously demonstrated in individuals with
chronic ankle instability (CAI), but the presence of acute condition
has not been previously explored specially in a sudden acceleration.
The aim of this study was to determine neuromuscular control pattern
in those with and without unilateral acute ankle sprains. Design: Case
- control. Setting: University research laboratory. The sinker–card
protocol with surface translation was be used as a sudden acceleration
protocol with study of EMG upon 4 posture stabilizer muscles in two
sides of the body in response to sudden acceleration in forward and
backward directions. 20 young adult women in two groups (10 LAS;
23.9 ± 2.03 yrs and 10 normal; 26.4 ± 3.2 yrs). The data of EMG
were assessed by using multivariate test and one-way repeated
measures 2×2×4 ANOVA (P< 0.05). The results showed a significant
muscle by direction interaction. Higher TA activity of left and right
side in LAS group than normal group in forward direction
significantly be showed. Higher MGR activity in normal group than
LAS group in backward direction significantly showed. These
findings suggest that compared two sides of the body in two
directions for 4 muscles EMG activities between and within group for
neuromuscular control of posture in avoiding fall. EMG activations
of two sides of the body in lateral ankle sprain (LAS) patients were
symmetric significantly. Acute ankle instability following once ankle
sprains caused to coordinated temporal spatial patterns and strategy
selection.
Abstract: This article presents an interactive system for data acquisition in vehicle testing according to the test process defined in automotive directive 2004/104/EC. The project has been designed and developed by authors for the Spanish company Applus-LGAI. The developed project will result in a new process, which will involve the creation of braking cycle test defined in the aforementioned automotive directive. It will also allow the analysis of new vehicle features that was not feasible, allowing an increasing interaction with the vehicle. Potential users of this system in the short term will be vehicle manufacturers and in a medium term the system can be extended to testing other automotive components and EMC tests.
Abstract: Recycling, as part of any sustainable environment, is continuously evolving and impacting on new materials in manufacturing. One example of this is the recycled solid waste of Tetra Pak ™ packaging, which is a highly pollutant waste as it is not biodegradable since it is manufactured with different materials. The Tetra Pak ™ container consists of thermally joined layers of paper, aluminum and polyethylene. Once disposed, this packaging is recycled by completely separating the paperboard from the rest of the materials. The aluminum and the polyethylene remain together and are used to create the poly-aluminum, which is widely used to manufacture roof tiles. These recycled tiles have different thermal and acoustic properties compared with traditional manufactured ceramic and cement tiles. In this work, we compare a group of tiles using nondestructive optical testing to measure the superficial micro deformations of the tiles under well controlled experiments. The results of the acoustic and thermal tests show remarkable differences between the recycled tile and the traditional ones. These results help to determine which tile could be better suited to the specific environmental conditions in countries where extreme climates, ranging from tropical, desert-like, to very cold are experienced throughout the year.
Abstract: This study investigates the relationship between external debt and military spending in case of India over the period of 1970–2012. In doing so, we have applied the structural break unit root tests to examine stationarity properties of the variables. The Auto-Regressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) bounds testing approach is used to test whether cointegration exists in presence of structural breaks stemming in the series. Our results indicate the cointegration among external debt, military spending, debt servicing, and economic growth. Moreover, military spending and debt servicing add in external debt. Economic growth helps in lowering external debt. The Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) analysis and Granger causality test reveal that military spending and economic growth cause external debt. The feedback effect also exists between external debt and debt servicing in case of India.
Abstract: The paper presents and energy management strategy for a Fuel Cell, Ultracapacitor, Battery hybrid energy storage. The fuel cell hybrid power system is devised basically for emergency power requirements and transient load applications. The power density of an Ultracapacitor is extremely high and for a battery, it is subtle. For a fuel cell, the value of power density is medium. The energy density of these three stockpiling gadgets is contrarily about the power density, i.e. for the batteries it is most noteworthy and for the Ultracapacitor, it is least. Again the fuel cell has medium energy density. The proposed Energy Management System (EMS) is trying to rationalize these parameters viz. the energy density and power density. The working of the fuel cell, Ultracapacitor and batteries are controlled in a coordinated environment in a way to optimize the energy usage and at the same time to get benefits of power and energy density from their inherent characteristics. MATLAB/ Simulink® based test bench is created by using different DC-DC converters for all energy storage devices and an inverter is modeled to supply the time varying load. The results provided by the EMS are highly satisfactory that proves its adaptability.
Abstract: This paper describes the use of by-products as
adsorbents for removing heavy metals from aqueous effluent
solutions. Products of almond skin, walnut shell, saw dust, rice bran
and egg shell were evaluated as metal ion adsorbents in aqueous
solutions. A comparative study was done with commercial adsorbents
like ion exchange resins and activated carbon too. Batch experiments
were investigated to determine the affinity of all of biomasses for,
Cd(ΙΙ), Cr(ΙΙΙ), Ni(ΙΙ), and Pb(ΙΙ) metal ions at pH 5. The rate of
metal ion removal in the synthetic wastewater by the biomass was
evaluated by measuring final concentration of synthetic wastewater.
At a concentration of metal ion (50 mg/L), egg shell adsorbed high
levels (98.6 – 99.7%) of Pb(ΙΙ) and Cr(ΙΙΙ) and walnut shell adsorbed
high levels (35.3 – 65.4%) of Ni(ΙΙ) and Cd(ΙΙ). In this study, it has
been shown that by-products were excellent adsorbents for removal
of toxic ions from wastewater with efficiency comparable to
commercially available adsorbents, but at a reduced cost. Also
statistical studies using Independent Sample t Test and ANOVA Oneway
for statistical comparison between various elements adsorption
showed that there isn’t a significant difference in some elements
adsorption percentage by by-products and commercial adsorbents.
Abstract: Proper selection of welding parameters for getting
excellent weld is a challenge. HAZ simulation helps in identifying
suitable welding parameters like heating rate, cooling rate, peak
temperature, and energy input. In this study, the influence of weld
thermal cycle of heat affected zone (HAZ) is simulated for
Submerged Arc Welding (SAW) using Gleeble ® 3800 thermomechanical
simulator. A (Micro-alloyed) MA steel plate of thickness
18 mm having yield strength 450MPa is used for making test
specimens. Determination of the mechanical properties of weld
simulated specimens including Charpy V-notch toughness and
hardness is performed. Peak temperatures of 1300°C, 1150°C,
1000°C, 900°C, 800°C, heat energy input of 22KJ/cm and preheat
temperatures of 30°C have been used with Rykalin-3D simulation
model. It is found that the impact toughness (75J) is the best for the
simulated HAZ specimen at the peak temperature 900ºC. For parent
steel, impact toughness value is 26.8J at -50°C in transverse
direction.
Abstract: Fuzzy regression models are useful for investigating
the relationship between explanatory variables and responses in fuzzy
environments. To overcome the deficiencies of previous models and
increase the explanatory power of fuzzy data, the graded mean
integration (GMI) representation is applied to determine
representative crisp regression coefficients. A fuzzy regression model
is constructed based on the modified dissemblance index (MDI),
which can precisely measure the actual total error. Compared with
previous studies based on the proposed MDI and distance criterion, the
results from commonly used test examples show that the proposed
fuzzy linear regression model has higher explanatory power and
forecasting accuracy.
Abstract: Forecasting electricity load plays a crucial role regards
decision making and planning for economical purposes. Besides, in
the light of the recent privatization and deregulation of the power
industry, the forecasting of future electricity load turned out to be a
very challenging problem. Empirical data about electricity load
highlights a clear seasonal behavior (higher load during the winter
season), which is partly due to climatic effects. We also emphasize
the presence of load periodicity at a weekly basis (electricity load is
usually lower on weekends or holidays) and at daily basis (electricity
load is clearly influenced by the hour). Finally, a long-term trend may
depend on the general economic situation (for example, industrial
production affects electricity load). All these features must be
captured by the model.
The purpose of this paper is then to build an hourly electricity load
model. The deterministic component of the model requires non-linear
regression and Fourier series while we will investigate the stochastic
component through econometrical tools.
The calibration of the parameters’ model will be performed by
using data coming from the Italian market in a 6 year period (2007-
2012). Then, we will perform a Monte Carlo simulation in order to
compare the simulated data respect to the real data (both in-sample
and out-of-sample inspection). The reliability of the model will be
deduced thanks to standard tests which highlight a good fitting of the
simulated values.
Abstract: With the rapid development of computer technology,
the design of computers and keyboards moves towards a trend of
slimness. The change of mobile input devices directly influences
users’ behavior. Although multi-touch applications allow entering
texts through a virtual keyboard, the performance, feedback, and
comfortableness of the technology is inferior to traditional keyboard,
and while manufacturers launch mobile touch keyboards and
projection keyboards, the performance has not been satisfying.
Therefore, this study discussed the design factors of slim
pressure-sensitive keyboards. The factors were evaluated with an
objective (accuracy and speed) and a subjective evaluation
(operability, recognition, feedback, and difficulty) depending on the
shape (circle, rectangle, and L-shaped), thickness (flat, 3mm, and
6mm), and force (35±10g, 60±10g, and 85±10g) of the keyboard.
Moreover, MANOVA and Taguchi methods (regarding
signal-to-noise ratios) were conducted to find the optimal level of each
design factor. The research participants, by their typing speed (30
words/ minute), were divided in two groups. Considering the
multitude of variables and levels, the experiments were implemented
using the fractional factorial design. A representative model of the
research samples were established for input task testing. The findings
of this study showed that participants with low typing speed primarily
relied on vision to recognize the keys, and those with high typing
speed relied on tactile feedback that was affected by the thickness and
force of the keys. In the objective and subjective evaluation, a
combination of keyboard design factors that might result in higher
performance and satisfaction was identified (L-shaped, 3mm, and
60±10g) as the optimal combination. The learning curve was analyzed
to make a comparison with a traditional standard keyboard to
investigate the influence of user experience on keyboard operation.
The research results indicated the optimal combination provided input
performance to inferior to a standard keyboard. The results could serve
as a reference for the development of related products in industry and
for applying comprehensively to touch devices and input interfaces
which are interacted with people.
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: Data driven dynamic logic is the high speed dynamic circuit with low area. The clock of the dynamic circuit is removed and data drives the circuit instead of clock for precharging purpose. This data driven dynamic nand gate is given static forward substrate biasing of Vsupply/2 as well as the substrate bias is connected to the input data, resulting in dynamic substrate bias. The dynamic substrate bias gives the shortest propagation delay with a penalty on the power dissipation. Propagation delay is reduced by 77.8% compared to the normal reverse substrate bias Data driven dynamic nand. Also dynamic substrate biased D3nand’s propagation delay is reduced by 31.26% compared to data driven dynamic nand gate with static forward substrate biasing of Vdd/2. This data driven dynamic nand gate with dynamic body biasing gives us the highest speed with no area penalty and finds its applications where power penalty is acceptable. Also combination of Dynamic and static Forward body bias can be used with reduced propagation delay compared to static forward biased circuit and with comparable increase in an average power. The simulations were done on hspice simulator with 22nm High-k metal gate strained Si technology HP models of Arizona State University, USA.