Abstract: This paper presents the development of a wavelet
based algorithm, for distinguishing between magnetizing inrush
currents and power system fault currents, which is quite adequate,
reliable, fast and computationally efficient tool. The proposed
technique consists of a preprocessing unit based on discrete wavelet
transform (DWT) in combination with an artificial neural network
(ANN) for detecting and classifying fault currents. The DWT acts as
an extractor of distinctive features in the input signals at the relay
location. This information is then fed into an ANN for classifying
fault and magnetizing inrush conditions. A 220/55/55 V, 50Hz
laboratory transformer connected to a 380 V power system were
simulated using ATP-EMTP. The DWT was implemented by using
Matlab and Coiflet mother wavelet was used to analyze primary
currents and generate training data. The simulated results presented
clearly show that the proposed technique can accurately discriminate
between magnetizing inrush and fault currents in transformer
protection.
Abstract: Efficient storage, transmission and use of video information are key requirements in many multimedia applications currently being addressed by MPEG-4. To fulfill these requirements, a new approach for representing video information which relies on an object-based representation, has been adopted. Therefore, objectbased watermarking schemes are needed for copyright protection. This paper proposes a novel blind object watermarking scheme for images and video using the in place lifting shape adaptive-discrete wavelet transform (SA-DWT). In order to make the watermark robust and transparent, the watermark is embedded in the average of wavelet blocks using the visual model based on the human visual system. Wavelet coefficients n least significant bits (LSBs) are adjusted in concert with the average. Simulation results shows that the proposed watermarking scheme is perceptually invisible and robust against many attacks such as lossy image/video compression (e.g. JPEG, JPEG2000 and MPEG-4), scaling, adding noise, filtering, etc.
Abstract: As the information age matures, major social
infrastructures such as communication, finance, military and energy,
have become ever more dependent on information communication
systems. And since these infrastructures are connected to the Internet,
electronic intrusions such as hacking and viruses have become a new
security threat. Especially, disturbance or neutralization of a major
social infrastructure can result in extensive material damage and social
disorder. To address this issue, many nations around the world are
researching and developing various techniques and information
security policies as a government-wide effort to protect their
infrastructures from newly emerging threats. This paper proposes an
evaluation method for information security levels of CIIP (Critical
Information Infrastructure Protection), which can enhance the security
level of critical information infrastructure by checking the current
security status and establish security measures accordingly to protect
infrastructures effectively.
Abstract: Knowledge management (KM) is generally
considered to be a positive process in an organisation, facilitating
opportunities to achieve competitive advantage via better quality
information handling, compilation of expert know-how and rapid
response to fluctuations in the business environment. The KM
paradigm as portrayed in the literature informs the processes that can
increase intangible assets so that corporate knowledge is preserved.
However, in some instances, knowledge management exists in a
universe of dynamic tension among the conflicting needs to respect
privacy and intellectual property (IP), to guard against data theft, to
protect national security and to stay within the laws. While the
Knowledge Management literature focuses on the bright side of the
paradigm, there is also a different side in which knowledge is
distorted, suppressed or misappropriated due to personal or
organisational motives (the paradox). This paper describes the ethical
paradoxes that occur within the taxonomy and deontology of
knowledge management and suggests that recognising both the
promises and pitfalls of KM requires wisdom.
Abstract: In this paper, we propose a new robust and secure
system that is based on the combination between two different
transforms Discrete wavelet Transform (DWT) and Contourlet
Transform (CT). The combined transforms will compensate the
drawback of using each transform separately. The proposed
algorithm has been designed, implemented and tested successfully.
The experimental results showed that selecting the best sub-band for
embedding from both transforms will improve the imperceptibility
and robustness of the new combined algorithm. The evaluated
imperceptibility of the combined DWT-CT algorithm which gave a
PSNR value 88.11 and the combination DWT-CT algorithm
improves robustness since it produced better robust against Gaussian
noise attack. In addition to that, the implemented system shored a
successful extraction method to extract watermark efficiently.
Abstract: In Thailand, both the 1997 and the current 2007 Thai Constitutions have mentioned the establishment of independent organizations as a new mechanism to play a key role in proposing policy recommendations to national decision-makers in the interest of collective consumers. Over the last ten years, no independent organizations have yet been set up. Evidently, nobody could point out who should be key players in establishing provincial independent consumer bodies. The purpose of this study was to find definitive stakeholders in establishing and developing independent consumer bodies in a Thai context. This was a cross-sectional study between August and September 2007, using a postal questionnaire with telephone follow-up. The questionnaire was designed and used to obtain multiple stakeholder assessment of three key attributes (power, interest and influence). Study population was 153 stakeholders associated with policy decision-making, formulation and implementation processes of civil-based consumer protection in pilot provinces. The population covered key representatives from five sectors (academics, government officers, business traders, mass media and consumer networks) who participated in the deliberative forums at 10 provinces. A 49.7% response rate was achieved. Data were analyzed, comparing means of three stakeholder attributes and classification of stakeholder typology. The results showed that the provincial health officers were the definitive stakeholders as they had legal power, influence and interest in establishing and sustaining the independent consumer bodies. However, only a few key representatives of the provincial health officers expressed their own paradigm on the civil-based consumer protection. Most provincial health officers put their own standpoint of building civic participation at only a plan-implementation level. For effective policy implementation by the independent consumer bodies, the Thai government should provide budgetary support for the operation of the provincial health officers with their paradigm shift as well as their own clarified standpoint on corporate governance.
Abstract: Over Current Relays (OCRs) and Directional Over Current Relays (DOCRs) are widely used for the radial protection and ring sub transmission protection systems and for distribution systems. All previous work formulates the DOCR coordination problem either as a Non-Linear Programming (NLP) for TDS and Ip or as a Linear Programming (LP) for TDS using recently a social behavior (Particle Swarm Optimization techniques) introduced to the work. In this paper, a Modified Particle Swarm Optimization (MPSO) technique is discussed for the optimal settings of DOCRs in power systems as a Non-Linear Programming problem for finding Ip values of the relays and for finding the TDS setting as a linear programming problem. The calculation of the Time Dial Setting (TDS) and the pickup current (Ip) setting of the relays is the core of the coordination study. PSO technique is considered as realistic and powerful solution schemes to obtain the global or quasi global optimum in optimization problem.
Abstract: This paper proposes an easy-to-use instruction hiding
method to protect software from malicious reverse engineering
attacks. Given a source program (original) to be protected, the
proposed method (1) takes its modified version (fake) as an input,
(2) differences in assembly code instructions between original and
fake are analyzed, and, (3) self-modification routines are introduced
so that fake instructions become correct (i.e., original instructions)
before they are executed and that they go back to fake ones after
they are executed. The proposed method can add a certain amount
of security to a program since the fake instructions in the resultant
program confuse attackers and it requires significant effort to discover
and remove all the fake instructions and self-modification routines.
Also, this method is easy to use (with little effort) because all a user
(who uses the proposed method) has to do is to prepare a fake source
code by modifying the original source code.
Abstract: As a by-product of its "cyberspace" status, electronic
commerce is global, encompassing a whole range of B2C
relationships which need to be approached with solutions provided at
a local level while remaining viable when applied to global issues.
Today, the European Union seems to be endowed with a reliable
legal framework for consumer protection. A question which remains,
however, is enforcement of this protection. This is probably a matter
of time and awareness from both parties in the B2C relationship.
Business should realize that enhancing trust in the minds of
consumers is more than a question of technology; it is a question of
best practice. Best practice starts with the online service of high
street banks as well as with the existence of a secure, user-friendly
and cost-effective payment system. It also includes the respect of
privacy and the use of smart cards as well as enhancing privacy
technologies and fair information practice. In sum, only by offering
this guarantee of privacy and security will the consumer be assured
that, in cyberspace, his/her interests will be protected in the same
manner as in a traditional commercial environment.
Abstract: The use of contour strips of perennial vegetation with
bio-fuel potential can improve surface water quality by reducing
NO3-N and sediment outflow from cropland to surface water-bodies.
It also has economic benefits of producing ethanol. In this study,
The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model was applied to
a watershed in Iowa, USA to examine the effectiveness of contour
strips of switch grass in reducing the NO3-N outflows from crop
fields to rivers or lakes. Numerical experiments were conducted to
identify potential subbasins in the watershed that have high water
quality impact, and to examine the effects of strip size on NO3-N
reduction under various meteorological conditions, i.e. dry, average
and wet years. Useful information was obtained for the evaluation of
economic feasibility of growing switch grass for bio-fuel in contour
strips. The results can assist in cost-benefit analysis and decisionmaking
in best management practices for environmental protection.
Abstract: This paper presents a new approach for the protection
of Thyristor-Controlled Series Compensator (TCSC) line using
Support Vector Machine (SVM). One SVM is trained for fault
classification and another for section identification. This method use
three phase current measurement that results in better speed and
accuracy than other SVM based methods which used single phase
current measurement. This makes it suitable for real-time protection.
The method was tested on 10,000 data instances with a very wide
variation in system conditions such as compensation level, source
impedance, location of fault, fault inception angle, load angle at
source bus and fault resistance. The proposed method requires only
local current measurement.
Abstract: Digital watermarking is one of the techniques for
copyright protection. In this paper, a normalization-based robust
image watermarking scheme which encompasses singular value
decomposition (SVD) and discrete cosine transform (DCT)
techniques is proposed. For the proposed scheme, the host image is
first normalized to a standard form and divided into non-overlapping
image blocks. SVD is applied to each block. By concatenating the
first singular values (SV) of adjacent blocks of the normalized image,
a SV block is obtained. DCT is then carried out on the SV blocks to
produce SVD-DCT blocks. A watermark bit is embedded in the highfrequency
band of a SVD-DCT block by imposing a particular
relationship between two pseudo-randomly selected DCT
coefficients. An adaptive frequency mask is used to adjust local
watermark embedding strength. Watermark extraction involves
mainly the inverse process. The watermark extracting method is blind
and efficient. Experimental results show that the quality degradation
of watermarked image caused by the embedded watermark is visually
transparent. Results also show that the proposed scheme is robust
against various image processing operations and geometric attacks.
Abstract: Developing a nation geared by the principle of
sustainable development has been one of the piers in moulding a
greater nation for Malaysia since its independence. This is seen by
the act of joining the United Nations in 1957, just a month after
gaining their independence. The United Nations is an international
organization that aims to unite the nations worldwide based on
justice, human dignity and human well-being. Malaysia has
established a local body called the United Nations Malaysia which
collaborates with the government to accomplish the aim of
supporting sustainable development in Malaysia. Agenda 21 is an
international document produced from the Earth Summit providing
guidelines of implementing sustainable development globally,
nationally and locally. Initiatives of applying Agenda 21 in Malaysia
have been taken by the government and non-profit organizations to
expose issues regarding sustainable development and providing
environmental education to the community to increase awareness
towards environmental protection.
Abstract: With the turn of this century, many researchers
started showing interest in Embedded Firewall (EF) implementations.
These are not the usual firewalls that are used as checkpoints at network gateways. They are, rather, applied near those hosts that need protection. Hence by using them, individual or grouped network
components can be protected from the inside as well as from external attacks.
This paper presents a study of EF-s, looking at their architecture and problems. A comparative study assesses how practical each kind is. It particularly focuses on the architecture, weak points, and
portability of each kind. A look at their use by different categories of users is also presented.
Abstract: More and more natural disasters are happening every
year: floods, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, etc. In order to reduce
the risk of possible damages, governments all around the world are
investing into development of Early Warning Systems (EWS) for
environmental applications. The most important task of the EWS is
identification of the onset of critical situations affecting environment
and population, early enough to inform the authorities and general
public. This paper describes an approach for monitoring of flood
protections systems based on machine learning methods. An
Artificial Intelligence (AI) component has been developed for
detection of abnormal dike behaviour. The AI module has been
integrated into an EWS platform of the UrbanFlood project (EU
Seventh Framework Programme) and validated on real-time
measurements from the sensors installed in a dike.
Abstract: The preparation of good-quality Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) reports contribute to enhancing overall effectiveness of EIA. This component of the EIA process becomes more important in situation where public participation is weak and there is lack of expertise on the part of the competent authority. In Pakistan, EIA became mandatory for every project likely to cause adverse environmental impacts from July 1994. The competent authority also formulated guidelines for preparation and review of EIA reports in 1997. However, EIA is yet to prove as a successful decision support tool to help in environmental protection. One of the several reasons of this ineffectiveness is the generally poor quality of EIA reports. This paper critically reviews EIA reports of some randomly selected projects. Interviews of EIA consultants, project proponents and concerned government officials have also been conducted to underpin the root causes of poor quality of EIA reports. The analysis reveals several inadequacies particularly in areas relating to identification, evaluation and mitigation of key impacts and consideration of alternatives. The paper identifies some opportunities and suggests measures for improving the quality of EIA reports and hence making EIA an effective tool to help in environmental protection.
Abstract: This paper provides a new approach to solve the motion planning problems of flying robots in uncertain 3D dynamic environments. The robots controlled by this method can adaptively choose the fast way to avoid collision without information about the shapes and trajectories of obstacles. Based on sphere coordinates the new method accomplishes collision avoidance of flying robots without any other auxiliary positioning systems. The Self-protection System gives robots self-protection abilities to work in uncertain 3D dynamic environments. Simulations illustrate the validity of the proposed method.
Abstract: Measurements of radioactivity in the environment is of great importance to monitor and control the levels of radiation to which man is exposed directly or indirectly. It is necessary to show that regardless of working or being close to nuclear power plants, people are daily in contact with some amount of radiation from the actual environment and food that are ingested, contradicting the view of most of them. The aim of this study was to analyze the rate of natural and artificial radiation from radionuclides present in cement, soil and fertilizers used in Sergipe State – Brazil. The radionuclide activitiesmeasured all samples arebelow the Brazilian limit of the exclusion and exemption criteria from the requirement of radiation protection.It was detected Be-7 in organic fertilizers that means a short interval between the brewing processes for use in agriculture. It was also detected an unexpected Cs-137 in some samples; however its activities does not represent risk for the population. Th-231 was also found in samples of soil and cement in the state of Sergipe that is an unprecedented result.
Abstract: Environmental investments, including ecological
projects, relating to the protection of atmosphere are today a need.
However, investing in the environment should be based on rational
management rules. This comes across a problem of selecting a
method to assess substances reduced during projects. Therefore, a
method allowing for the assessment of decision rationality has to be
found.
The purpose of this article is to present and systematise pollution
reduction assessment methods and illustrate theoretical analyses with
empirical data.
Empirical results confirm theoretical considerations, which proved
that the only method for judging pollution reduction, free of apparent
disadvantages, is the Eco 99-ratio method. To make decisions on
environmental projects, financing institutions should take into
account a rationality rule. Therefore the Eco 99-ratio method could
be applied to make decisions relating to environmental investments in
the area of air protection.
Abstract: Information and communication service providers
(ICSP) that are significant in size and provide Internet-based services
take administrative, technical, and physical protection measures via
the information security check service (ISCS). These protection
measures are the minimum action necessary to secure the stability and
continuity of the information and communication services (ICS) that
they provide. Thus, information assets are essential to providing ICS,
and deciding the relative importance of target assets for protection is a
critical procedure. The risk analysis model designed to decide the
relative importance of information assets, which is described in this
study, evaluates information assets from many angles, in order to
choose which ones should be given priority when it comes to
protection. Many-sided risk analysis (MSRS) grades the importance of
information assets, based on evaluation of major security check items,
evaluation of the dependency on the information and communication
facility (ICF) and influence on potential incidents, and evaluation of
major items according to their service classification, in order to
identify the ISCS target. MSRS could be an efficient risk analysis
model to help ICSPs to identify their core information assets and take
information protection measures first, so that stability of the ICS can
be ensured.