bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
High-strength steel plates in hybrid fiber-reinforced polymer–concrete–steel columns: Concept and behavior
Authors: Yu Tao , Teh Lip H , Hadi Muhammad NS
Published: July 2016

Applications of high-strength steel products in civil engineering have been limited by elastic local buckling, by the perceived lack of ductility, and by the perceived difficulties of welding such steels. This article proposes a new column (i.e. high-strength steel plate–concrete-filled fiber-reinforced polymer tube) consisting of an outer fiber-reinforced polymer tube, concrete infill, and encased high-strength steel plates that are connected to each other by bolted angle brackets at discrete elevations. The column offers an ideal opportunity for the use of high-strength steel plates in construction, with their high yield stresses being fully utilized and without welding (and without welding residual stresses). The rationale for the column form and its expected advantages are explained and demonstrated through laboratory tests. Prefabricated glass fiber-reinforced polymer tubes of 1.5 and 3.0 mm thick and 203 mm diameter were infilled with concrete having a nominal strength of 32 MPa, with most specimens encasing steel plates of various configurations and yield stresses ranging from 290 to 455 MPa. Results from concentric and eccentric compression tests involving 13 specimens are presented to confirm the expected structural advantages. The results demonstrated that the concrete in the tested specimens was very effectively confined, and that buckling of all the steel plates was prevented by the encasing concrete up to and beyond the rupture of the fiber-reinforced polymer tubes, leading to full structural utilization of the construction materials and very ductile column responses under concentric and eccentric loadings. The needs for future research on high-strength steel plate–concrete-filled fiber-reinforced polymer tube columns are also discussed.
Electricity Consumption and Economic Growth in South Asia
Authors: Raza Syed Ali , Jawaid Syed Tehseen , Siddiqui Mohammad Haris
Published: July 2016

This study investigates the effect of electricity consumption on economic growth of four South Asian countries, namely, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, by employing time series annual data from 1980 to 2010. Pedroni’s panel cointegration results confirm that there exists valid long-run relationship between electricity consumption and economic growth in South Asia. Results of random effects model suggest the positive and significant impact of electricity consumption on economic growth of South Asian countries. Robustness of the initial findings of positive and significant relationship is confirmed by four different sensitivity analyses. Results of panel Granger causality test confirm the unidirectional causal relationship runs from electricity consumption to economic growth. It is therefore recommended that the South Asian countries should consider the development initiative and low-cost mode to produce electricity to enhance economic growth in the region.
Mega Trading Blocks
Authors: Ratna Rajan Sudesh , Sharma Sachin Kumar
Published: July 2016

The plethora of Regional Trade Agreements, especially in Asia, has created a complex web of noodle bowl, which has made trade more difficult. Many countries of Asia are now trying to be part of mega-free trade agreements (FTAs). While Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is consolidating through ASEAN+1 initiative leading to Regional Cooperation and Economic Partnership (RCEP), no such effort has been initiated so far by the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). This study thus examines the possible effects of regional integration between ASEAN and SAARC on various sectors, as well as on macro-economic and trade areas by using the Global Trade Analysis Project (GTAP) model and database. A scenario of a complete integration between ASEAN and SAARC is simulated using the GTAP model, where the tariffs between ASEAN and SAARC are eliminated on all items but maintained for other trading partners. This article suggests for, among others, consolidation of ASEAN and SAARC FTAs, which will have a greater welfare enhancement, though some sectors will require adjustments due to their sensitivities. The article recommends for a policy dialogue between ASEAN and SAARC as such a process can only be initiated through a political engagement. It also recommends that the developing countries shall eliminate their tariffs in 5 years and allow longer time frame for the LDCs.
The Effect of Integration with Global Apparel Value Chain
Authors: Rahman Mizanur , Sayeda Takrima
Published: July 2016

This article estimates the effect of integration with global apparel value chain on performance of Bangladesh apparel firms. The study does it by estimating an augmented Cobb–Douglas production function. The findings show that both backward linkage with foreign suppliers of intermediate inputs and forward linkage with global retailers of apparels positively affect firms’ output and labour productivity. By contrast, backward linkages with local suppliers have adverse effects on firm performances. The findings imply that it is a firm’s integration with the global apparel value chain, not the conventional backward linkage with domestic suppliers, that defines success of Bangladesh apparel industry in a globalizing world.
Domestic Value-added Growth is Vital
Authors: Gupta Neha
Published: July 2016

Gains under the global value chains (GVCs) depend on how much of a country’s domestic value added (DVA) is passing onto other countries. However, India’s manufacturing sector is found to be hollowing out, that is, its DVA growth is declining. This article estimates the linkages of manufacturing sector into GVCs, focusing on machinery and textiles industries. It measures foreign value added in exports and gains under GVCs using intercountry input–output tables of OECD–WTO Trade in Value Added (TiVA) database (2015). TiVA shows a decline in India’s share of DVA exports in its gross exports. However, India has ‘net gains’ from linking into GVCs in the two industries as the ratio of forward linkages to backward linkages is greater than one. This indicates that value-added exports are greater than value-added imports. Thus, India has enough potential to compete with other countries in the upper ends of value chains in both its machinery and textiles industries.
A practical method and its applications to prioritize volatile organic compounds emitted from building materials based on ventilation rate requirements and ozone-initiated reactions
Authors: Ye Wei , Won Doyun , Zhang Xu
Published: July 2016

Volatile organic compounds emissions from building materials can be a major pollution source in low-occupant-density spaces. Composite-style indoor air quality references, which reflect the combined effects of multiple volatile organic compounds, can be used to determine ventilation rate requirements based on building material emissions. The lowest concentration of interest concept was adopted to implement the idea. Twenty-eight building materials selected from the National Research Council of Canada database were subjected to emission modelling, resulting in 101 volatile organic compounds as a starting volatile organic compound pool. A method was proposed to generate a volatile organic compound priority list that determines ventilation rate requirements while considering ozone-initiated reactions. Three priority lists were obtained based on three lowest concentration of interest schemes, i.e., AFSSET, AgBB and EU-LCI, with each consisting of 17–21 volatile organic compounds that were most likely to attribute to large ventilation rate requirements. Also, analyses of selected volatile organic compounds showed that the changes in the composition of the priority lists due to ozone-initiated reactions could be ignored at a typical indoor ozone concentration level. The application of priority lists was discussed for source control and air cleaning device testing. This paper provides a method to prioritize the chemicals based on ventilation rate requirements with a goal of developing volatile organic compound control strategies at building design stage.
Radiocarpal Injuries: Cone Beam Computed Tomography Arthrography, Magnetic Resonance Arthrography, and Arthroscopic Correlation among 21 Patients
Authors: Suojärvi N. , Haapamäki V. , Lindfors N. , Koskinen S. K.
Published: July 2016

Background and Aims:

Patients with acute or chronic wrist pain often undergo wrist arthroscopy for evaluation of chondral and ligamentous abnormalities. The purpose of this study was to compare findings of wrist arthroscopy with cone beam computed tomography arthrography and magnetic resonance arthrography.

Materials and Methods:

Altogether, 21 patients with wrist pain underwent cone beam computed tomography arthrography, magnetic resonance arthrography, and wrist arthroscopy. Chondral surfaces of the scaphoid, lunate, and radius facing the scaphoid and lunate were evaluated. The scapholunate ligament, the lunotriquetral ligament, and the triangular fibrocartilage complex were classified as either intact or torn. Sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, and accuracy with 95% confidence intervals were assessed.

Results:

For chondral lesions (n = 10), cone beam computed tomography arthrograms showed slightly higher specificity than magnetic resonance arthrography. The sensitivity of cone beam computed tomography arthrography was also better for these lesions, except for those on the chondral surface of the lunate. For triangular fibrocartilage complex injuries (n = 9), cone beam computed tomography arthrography showed a better specificity and sensitivity than magnetic resonance arthrography. For ligamentous injuries (n = 6), cone beam computed tomography arthrograms were more sensitive, but less specific than magnetic resonance arthrography images. However, the number of lesions was very small and the 95% confidence intervals are overlapping.

Conclusion:

Cone beam computed tomography is an emerging imaging modality that offers several advantages over computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging. Its usefulness particularly in ligamentous injuries should be further explored in a larger study. Cone beam computed tomography arthrography seems to offer similar sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy compared to magnetic resonance arthrography and therefore serves as a valuable option in evaluating patients with wrist pain.
Policing policies in cities dependent on tourism
Authors: Mawby Rob I
Published: July 2016

Tourism has long been recognised as a crime generator, with resorts acting as honeypots for offenders. Much of the research on tourism and crime has suggested that many tourist resorts suffer higher than average crime rates and that tourists are disproportionately victimised, but also that tourists often cause crime and disorder problems. This poses a dilemma for areas seeking to expand their tourism industry and in many resort areas the police have worked in local partnerships to alleviate the problems. However, there is surprisingly little hard data available for resort areas to allow policy-makers to develop and evaluate appropriate responses. Using the author’s experiences as external advisor to a recent European initiative, this article considers the contribution of the police on two levels: first, as providers of robust data on the relationship between tourism and crime; and second, in how they might respond to the problems identified by developing effective policies and assessing their effectiveness.
Multi-objective optimum design of ANFIS for modelling and prediction of deformation of thin plates subjected to hydrodynamic impact loading
Authors: Jamali A , Babaei H , Nariman-Zadeh N , Ashraf Talesh SH , Mirzababaie Mostofi T
Published: July 2016

Drop hammer impact experiments have been carried out to assess the dynamic plastic response of fully clamped circular and rectangular plates made of aluminum and steel subjected to hydrodynamic impact loading at various energy levels. Also, the effective parameters in forming process are proposed in non-dimensional forms for modeling and prediction of the central deflection of plates using adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system in conjunction with genetic algorithm and singular value decomposition method. Genetic algorithm is used for optimal scheme of Gaussian membership function’s variables and multi-objective Pareto optimal design of adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system model. Also, the singular value decomposition method is applied to compute the linear parameters of the adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system method. The important conflicting objectives of developed adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system, namely, training error and prediction error, are obtained by dividing date sets into two parts. Hence, various optimal choices of adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system model are provided which are non-dominated states from each other. Moreover, optimal Pareto front of such model leads to trade-off between the conflicting pair of considered objectives for two series of experiments. The results of this work indicate that multi-objective Pareto optimal design of adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system predicts central deflection of plates with a good accuracy. In addition, the comparison between the adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system model and exiting one demonstrates superior performance of the present approach in simulating central deflection of plates.
Acoustic comparison of propellers
Authors: Barakos GN , Johnson CS
Published: July 2016

This paper presents the results of computational fluid dynamics for flows around the propellers and compares their aerodynamic performance as well as their acoustics. After some validation of the employed computational fluid dynamics method, using wind tunnel experiments, a modern propeller design was assessed. Using the same baseline blade, different propellers were put together by adding stagger at the blade hub and small variations of the inter-blade angle. The employed method produced results showing differences in the propeller acoustics regarding the frequency spectrum produced by each design and the level of the acoustic tones. The effect of changing the hub was to generate frequencies in-between the tones of the baseline design while keeping the overall propeller performance the same. The effect of the employed hub changes was to generate tones in-between the harmonics of the fundamental blade passing frequency that dominated the baseline design. Installed and un-installed blades were compared and the results show that the wing, nacelle and fuselage around the blades influence the obtained level of noise but not the frequency content. Computations for a climbing case also show the strong effect of the flight conditions on the acoustic results.
Time-resolved PIV measurements of a tip leakage flow
Authors: Jacob Marc C , Jondeau Emmanuel , Li Bo
Published: July 2016

Time-resolved PIV and time-resolved stereo PIV measurements are carried out in the tip leakage vortex of a single non-rotating airfoil placed in the potential core of a flanged rectangular jet in free field conditions. The experiment is based on the improvement of an existing rig: a cambered airfoil (NACA5510) now mounted with a [Formula: see text] angle of attack between two horizontal plates, a [Formula: see text] gap being maintained between the airfoil tip and the lower (casing) plate. The mean flow velocity is [Formula: see text] , which corresponds to a [Formula: see text] Mach number and a chord-based Reynolds number of [Formula: see text] . Unlike in the former experiment carried out with this rig, the boundary layer thickness is now smaller than the gap, which significantly reduces the interaction between the upstream turbulence and the airfoil leading edge as well as the resulting interaction noise. The measurements described here include the far field. The upstream flow is characterised with hotwire anemometry. LDV profiles are also obtained in the tip leakage region and compared to the PIV measurements. The experiment is also designed to provide validation data for unsteady CFD computations of the same configuration as shown in a companion paper.
Enhancing the Psychology Curriculum Through Service Learning
Authors: Bringle Robert G. , Ruiz Ana I. , Brown Margaret A. , Reeb Roger N.
Published: July 2016

Educators in psychology should aspire to encourage students’ holistic growth in academic, personal, and civic domains. We propose that service learning is the most potent pedagogy for developing well-rounded, psychologically literate citizens capable of meeting the goals for the undergraduate psychology major. This article defines service learning, delineates the rationales for service learning, and summarizes research demonstrating the efficacy of this pedagogical approach. The article also describes the learning objectives derived from the American Psychological Association Guidelines for the Undergraduate Major (Version 2.0, 2013), with an emphasis on the ways in which service learning contributes to academic learning, civic learning, and personal growth. Finally, the article illustrates the four types of service learning, and it provides a concrete example for structuring reflection in order to connect community experiences with course content in a service learning psychology course.
HRD Scholars Who Laid the Foundations of HRD
Authors: Short Darren C.
Published: July 2016

Problem: The work to formalize the academic knowledge of HRD generated a research literature base to influence HRD practice and to form the basis for further research and theory-building. Current HRD scholarship builds on the foundations that were laid in the 1970s through 1990s. As the field continues to grow, it is important that we understand the work of the early scholars and the impact they have had on HRD. Solution: Many researchers were involved in the early HRD scholarly work, and a handful were recognized by the Academy of Human Resource Development (AHRD) through its Outstanding Scholar Award. The early winners of the award largely framed HRD as an emerging academic discipline. This article summarizes the work of the first seven winners. Stakeholders: It is important that HRD researchers and students know the work of the seven scholars described in this article. In addition, HRD practitioners will see how some of their current practices evolved from the early research and theory-building undertaken by these scholars.
Implementation of Sexually Transmitted Infection Interventions
Authors: Tibbits Melissa , Siahpush Mohammad
Published: July 2016

Although community-wide, multilevel interventions are widely regarded as the most effective method for addressing complex health issues such as sexually transmitted infections (STIs), there is a dearth of research about the implementation of interventions of this nature. The aim of this study was to determine the implementation of locally developed and evidence-based STI interventions across an urban community using the Institute of Medicine’s intervention spectrum as a framework, to highlight collaborations, and to identify barriers to the implementation of community-wide, multilevel interventions. Semistructured interviews were conducted ( N = 20) with staff from schools, after-school programs, community organizations, and clinics in a Midwestern metropolitan area. Results indicate that interventions were implemented at all levels of the Institute of Medicine’s intervention spectrum, although selective interventions that served a small number of youth were most common. Most interventions were locally developed or adapted from evidence-based programs. Despite reported collaboration between agencies, there was relatively little community-wide coordination of STI interventions due to factors such as community norms and competition for limited funding. These findings offer further insight into the gap between best practice recommendations and the implementation of community-wide, multilevel interventions. Implications for intervention development and implementation are discussed.
Developing a Policy Brief
Authors: Keepnews David M.
Published: July 2016

A policy brief is a document that provides a succinct explanation and analysis of a policy issue or problem, together with policy options and recommendations for addressing that issue or problem. This article provides an explanation of what a policy brief is, how it is used, and how it is developed.
Participation in Out-of-Home Environments for Young Children With and Without Developmental Disabilities
Authors: Lim Chun Yi , Law Mary , Khetani Mary , Pollock Nancy , Rosenbaum Peter
Published: July 2016

This study examines caregivers’ perceptions of participation patterns and environmental supports and barriers for young children with and without developmental disabilities within their child care/preschool and community settings. The Young Children’s Participation and Environment Measure (YC-PEM) was completed by 151 parents of Singaporean children (0-7 years old) with and without developmental disabilities. Setting-specific summary and item-level scores of these children were compared using ANCOVA, Mann–Whitney U, and Pearson chi-square tests. Children with developmental disabilities had significantly lower participation and environment summary scores in both settings as compared with children without developmental disabilities ( p < .05; [Formula: see text] = 0.03-0.31). Group differences were also evident at the item level, particularly when comparing the percentage of parents who desire change in their child’s activity participation. Adequate financial support, public awareness, programs, and services have been identified as environmental factors that are potentially important to parents of children with developmental disabilities.
Collusion-Tolerable and Efficient Privacy-Preserving Time-Series Data Aggregation Protocol
Authors: Li Yongkai , Liu Shubo , Wang Jun , Liu Mengjun
Published: July 2016

Many miraculous ideas have been proposed to deal with the privacy-preserving time-series data aggregation problem in pervasive computing applications, such as mobile cloud computing. The main challenge consists in computing the global statistics of individual inputs that are protected by some confidentiality mechanism. However, those works either suffer from collusive attack or require time-consuming initialization at every aggregation request. In this paper, we proposed an efficient aggregation protocol which tolerates up to k passive adversaries that do not try to tamper the computation. The proposed protocol does not require a trusted key dealer and needs only one initialization during the whole time-series data aggregation. We formally analyzed the security of our protocol and results showed that the protocol is secure if the Computational Diffie-Hellman (CDH) problem is intractable. Furthermore, the implementation showed that the proposed protocol can be efficient for the time-series data aggregation.
An Energy Efficient Multiuser Uplink Transmission Scheme in the Next Generation WLAN for Internet of Things
Authors: Ahn Woojin , Kim Young Yong , Kim Ronny Yongho
Published: July 2016

This paper proposes a novel and energy efficient Internet of Things (IoT) communication scheme for next generation Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN). There are a couple of crucial requirements among unique IoT requirements: a large number of communication devices must be supported, and they must have low power consumption. Since sensor-type IoT devices, which are expected to be one of the major types of IoT devices, normally generate uplink traffic rather than downlink traffic, an energy efficient multiuser uplink transmission scheme is a crucial feature of IoT communication. In the next generation WLAN, IEEE 802.11ax, Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) is adopted to support a greater number of devices. However, uplink OFDMA procedures that consider the unique IoT requirements have not been fully considered in the next generation WLANs. A random access-based WLAN uplink OFDMA transmission scheme is proposed in this paper, and analytical modeling of the proposed scheme is provided. The proposed random access-based WLAN uplink OFDMA transmission scheme is able to dynamically adjust the number of contending users by uniquely applying congestion status in a very simple and distributed manner. Our numerical analysis and extensive simulation corroborate the fact that the proposed scheme is able to support a greater number of IoT devices with less power consumption.
A Greedy Algorithm on Constructing the Minimum Connected Dominating Set in Wireless Network
Authors: Fu Deqian , Han Lihua , Yang Zifen , Jhang Seong Tae
Published: July 2016

In the past 20 years, the connected dominating set (CDS) as a virtual backbone network has been widely used in the wireless networks. Many researchers have been devoted to designing approximate algorithms for CDS problem since constructing the minimum CDS (MCDS) is NP-hard problem. Different from the most existing algorithms with two phases, we employ greedy strategy to design a centralized algorithm GR_CDS in only one phase to get MCDS, with the time complexity of [Formula: see text]. Afterwards, another algorithm P_CDS is designed for pruning redundant nodes in the obtained MCDS with the time complexity of [Formula: see text].
Energy Harvesting for Throughput Enhancement of Cooperative Wireless Sensor Networks
Authors: Nguyen Van-Dinh , Nguyen Chuyen T. , Shin Oh-Soon
Published: July 2016

We consider an energy harvesting for cooperative wireless sensor networks with a nonlinear power consumption model. The information transmission from the source node to the destination node is assumed to occur via several clusters of decode-and-forward relay nodes. We assume that all the source and relay nodes have the ability to harvest energy from the environment and use that harvested energy to transmit and forward the information to the next hop. Under such assumption, the objective of our design is to improve the total throughput of the end-to-end link over a number of transmission blocks subject to constraints on energy causality, battery overflow, and time duration for energy harvesting. The optimization problem is found to be a nonconvex maximin fractional program, which is difficult to solve in general. We present an efficient iterative algorithm to solve the optimization problem. Specifically, by introducing novel transformations, we apply an approximate convex technique to obtain a convex problem at each iteration. We then propose an iterative power allocation algorithm which converges to a locally optimal solution at a Karush-Kuhn-Tucker point. Numerical results are provided to evaluate the proposed scheme.
SSN: Senior Social Network for Improving Quality of Life
Authors: Marcelino Isabel , Laza Rosalía , Pereira António
Published: July 2016

The world population is aging and loneliness has become one of the major issues affecting the quality of life of our senior citizens. Additionally, we have observed that social computing increases social contexts through the use of Information Communication Technology (ICT). Smartphone and tablet proliferation also empower people to interact and create and share contents, strengthening new forms of communication independent of time and space. Therefore, the senior population would have a lot to gain by using social networks to overcome their solitude. Nevertheless, the elderly are still digitally excluded due to their lack of technological skills, as well as age-related impairments. This work presents a social network tailored for the senior population where the feelings of belonging, companionship and connectivity, well-being and interaction, meaningfulness, and emotional comfort are empowered. Our contribution aims to digitally include all seniors—independent of their educational level, literacy, or technological skills—by promoting a social network that allows them to share their life experiences, strengthen communication, improve their awareness of still playing an active and useful role in society, encourage emotional comfort, improve their health condition, and provide new forms of joyful entertainment in their lives. The final evaluation indicates that all seniors were very enthusiastic about the experience.
Traffic Anomaly Detection Algorithm for Wireless Sensor Networks Based on Improved Exploitation of the GM(1,1) Model
Authors: Yu Qin , Lyu Jibin , Jiang Lirui , Li Longjiang
Published: July 2016

As WSNs gain popularity, they are becoming more and more necessary for traffic anomaly detection. Because worms, attacks, intrusions, and other kinds of malicious behaviors can be recognized by traffic analysis and anomaly detection, WSN traffic anomaly detection provides useful tools for timely reaction and appropriate prevention in network security. In the paper, we improve exploitation of GM(1,1) model to make traffic prediction and judge the traffic anomaly in WSNs. Based on our systematical researches on the characteristics of WSN traffic, the causes of WSN abnormal traffic, and latest related research and development, we better exploit the GM(1,1) model following four guidelines: using a sliding window to determine historical data for modeling, optimizing initial value of one-order grey differential equation, making traffic prediction by short step exponential weighted average method, and judging whether the traffic of the next moment is abnormal by Euclidean distance. Then, we propose a traffic anomaly detection algorithm for WSNs based on the improved exploitation of GM(1,1) model. Simulation results and comparative analyses demonstrate that our proposed WSN traffic anomaly detection algorithm can reduce the undetected rate and has better anomaly detection accuracy than traditional traffic anomaly detection algorithms.
Cumulated Checksum and Dynamic Addresses for Secure Wireless Sensor Networks
Authors: Zhang Qiong
Published: July 2016

Due to the broadcast nature of wireless channel, attacks against wireless sensor networks are much easier to carry out as compared to wired networks. Passive attacks such as eavesdropping and traffic analysis cannot be eliminated even if cryptographic technologies are used. Conventional frames are usually designed to include checksum, which facilitates to adversaries capturing correct frames for further attacks. In most wireless sensor networks, source address and destination address at data link layer are unprotected, which makes traffic analysis quite easy. In this paper, we argue that the long-hold design principles of data link layer protocols are unreasonable from the perspective of wireless security. A secure ARQ scheme for wireless sensor networks named Sec-ARQ is proposed. Without the help of preshared keys or complex authentication infrastructure, Sec-ARQ protects frame checksum and addresses by cumulated checksum. Cumulated checksum is unknown to adversaries because of unavoidable wireless transmission errors. As frame checksum is unavailable to adversaries, error frames caused by collision cannot be detected, rendering eavesdropping useless. Addresses protection provided by cumulated checksum disables traffic analysis attacks. Sec-ARQ can defend against passive attacks effectively. Simulation results prove that Sec-ARQ can improve wireless security with little performance sacrifice, which is more suitable for resource-constrained wireless sensor networks.
Weight-Based Link Scheduling for Convergecast in WirelessHART Network
Authors: Zhang Kewang , Feng Zhou , Li Xin
Published: July 2016

WirelessHART is considered to be one of the most promising wireless network protocols for its high robustness comparing to other similar wireless networks. Convergecast is an efficient approach for industrial control. But in WirelessHART specifications, no scheduling algorithms are defined for convergecast. In this paper, an efficient link arrangement strategy for packet delivering named WBLSS (Weight-Based Link Scheduling Strategy) is proposed. In order to improve the communication reliability and assign time slots to nodes in the network evenly, WBLSS considers network topology for time slot assignment. Nodes with more children in the communication tree have more time slots for communication, which improves the global throughput dramatically. As compared to the existing link arrangement strategy in WirelessHART, both the throughput of the network and the real-time performance are improved in WBLSS.
Clustering Analysis in Wireless Sensor Networks: The Ambit of Performance Metrics and Schemes Taxonomy
Authors: Zeb Asim , Islam A. K. M. Muzahidul , Zareei Mahdi , Al Mamoon Ishtiak , Mansoor Nafees , Baharun Sabariah , Katayama Yoshiaki , Komaki Shozo
Published: July 2016

Research on wireless sensor network (WSN) has increased tremendously throughout the years. In WSN, sensor nodes are deployed to operate autonomously in remote environments. Depending on the network orientation, WSN can be of two types: flat network and hierarchical or cluster-based network. Various advantages of cluster-based WSN are energy efficiency, better network communication, efficient topology management, minimized delay, and so forth. Consequently, clustering has become a key research area in WSN. Different approaches for WSN, using cluster concepts, have been proposed. The objective of this paper is to review and analyze the latest prominent cluster-based WSN algorithms using various measurement parameters. In this paper, unique performance metrics are designed which efficiently evaluate prominent clustering schemes. Moreover, we also develop taxonomy for the classification of the clustering schemes. Based on performance metrics, quantitative and qualitative analyses are performed to compare the advantages and disadvantages of the algorithms. Finally, we also put forward open research issues in the development of low cost, scalable, robust clustering schemes.
Node-Gosper Curve-Based Unknown Sensor Localization Using Single Mobile Anchor in Wireless Sensor Networks
Authors: Chen Chi-Chang , Wang Sheng-Bo
Published: July 2016

The node-Gosper curve is a fractal space-filling curve constructed by recursively replacing each node by a seven-segment generator curve. Here, we propose a novel scheme for describing the path of a node-Gosper curve; the scheme can be used to calculate the coordinates of each turning point of the curve efficiently. The node-Gosper curve serves as a routing path for a single mobile anchor to help unknown sensors locate themselves in the wireless sensor network. In our proposed localization method, the mobile anchor travels along the node-Gosper curve, which covers the entire sensing field, and when it reaches the turning points of the node-Gosper curve, it broadcasts its current location to unknown sensors within a preset communication range. Each unknown sensor estimates its location when it receives at least three messages from the mobile anchor from different locations. Experimental results show that the proposed method outperforms several well-known mobile anchor localization methods in terms of localization accuracy and energy consumption.
Developing an Ultra Wideband Indoor Navigation System for Visually Impaired People
Authors: Alnafessah Ahmad , Al-Ammar Mai , Al-Hadhrami Suheer , Al-Salman Abdulmalik , Al-Khalifa Hend
Published: July 2016

The number of individuals who suffer from visual impairment is increasing rapidly. The most significant barrier to improving the lives of the blind and visually impaired people is their inability to navigate independently and safely. Indoor navigation systems for blind and visually impaired people aim to guide them in navigating independently in familiar and unfamiliar environments. Our system aims to provide an assistive technology for blind and visually impaired individuals by exploiting popular existing technologies that are often used by blind individuals, such as the smartphone. The system provides users with guidance statements that help them navigate from their current positions to desired destinations. The system consists of four main components: mapping, positioning, navigation, and interface. In order to implement these components, three main applications need to be developed: application in localization server, application in communication server, and application in smartphone, each of which is located in a different place but connected to the others. Functionalities test and blind test were conducted to evaluate the system. The system proved its ability to aid blind individuals effectively.
Constrained Widely Linear Beamforming Antijammer Technique for Satellite-Borne Distributed Sensor Data Acquisition System
Authors: Wang Yongyong , Liang Guang , Zhao Lulu , Yu Jinpei , He Lianxing
Published: July 2016

Widely linear (WL) adaptive beamforming algorithms are proposed based on constrained minimum variance (CMV) and constrained constant modulus (CCM) criteria, respectively, to fully exploit both the desired signal and interferences' noncircularity. Modified conjugate gradient (MCG) algorithm is employed to ensure convergence with one iteration per sample. To further facilitate the adaptive processing, CCM criterion based WL beamforming algorithm is modified by second-order local approximation. Global convergence of the proposed algorithms is analyzed and constraints of parameters are given. Results of numerical simulations demonstrate that the proposed WL CCM beamformer has superior performance over WL CMV beamformer and conventional beamformers in convergence rate, robustness against direction of arrival (DOA) mismatch, and the noncircularity coefficient estimation error, while the former two have comparable low complexities without numerical instability.
QoS-Aware Routing Mechanism in OpenFlow-Enabled Wireless Multimedia Sensor Networks
Authors: Han Li , Sun Shimin , Joo Bokgyu , Jin Xianshu , Han Sunyoung
Published: July 2016

Applications supporting various multimedia data in wireless multimedia sensor networks (WMSNs) have specific QoS requirements on bandwidth, delay, and/or packet loss. Perception of applications' QoS requirements and detection of link states are indispensable for the design of QoS-aware routing mechanism. Software defined networking (SDN) is suitable for the purpose since it provides visibility of network resources and programmable interfaces. OpenFlow is the most recognized realization of SDN. We propose a QoS-aware routing mechanism for OpenFlow-enabled WMSNs. The mechanism consists of a framework and routing algorithms on SDN controller. The framework includes two functions: detection of link states among OpenFlow-enabled nodes and determination of flow's QoS requirements. The routing algorithms are achieved in two steps. First, the SDN controller seeks the feasible paths that satisfy QoS requirements of a flow. If there is no path which satisfies the required QoS, the path will be decided by the proposed algorithms depending on flow types: delay-sensitive, bandwidth-sensitive, and best-effort traffic. We conducted experiments on a SDN testbed to evaluate our mechanism and compared the results with conventional routing protocols. The results show that proposed routing mechanism increases the throughput by 43% for video data and reduces the delay by more than 30% for audio data.
Mutual Authentication Scheme Based on Lattice for NFC-PCM Payment Service Environment
Authors: Park Sung-Wook , Lee Im-Yeong
Published: July 2016

In recent years, the incorporation of NFC (Near Field Communication) technology into mobile devices has led to changes in payment system environments. Currently, the NFC mobile payment service is leading the mobile payment market. In particular, most electronic payment services, such as those used by Google Inc. and Apple Inc., are adopting payment methods based on NFC to replace credit cards. In addition, related groups from the Republic of Korea have enhanced safety in communication by using standard techniques for activating NFC services. However, various security threats are still present in electronic payment methods that use NFC. In this paper, we propose a mutual authentication scheme based on a lattice for conditional anonymity in NFC-PCM (Near Field Communication-Passive Communication Mode) payment services environments.
Specification Analysis, Design, and Prototyping of a Burr Hole Endoscope Stabilization Device
Authors: Paraskevopoulos Dimitrios
Published: July 2016

Objective. Aim of this study was to develop a prototype for an innovative, burr-hole mounted device, for stabilizing endoscopes during intracranial surgery. The objective was an easily maneuverable device, freeing one hand without compromising flexibility and safety. This could avoid the need for a second surgeon or a bulky holder, thus improving coordination. Methods. The initial concept arose from the observation that intraventricular endoscopy is often performed by 2 surgeons, 1 navigating the endoscope and 1 inserting/handling instruments through the working channel. A specification analysis was performed. Desired properties were specified through a literature review, as well as informal interviews with surgeons and engineers. Tools used for the design included blueprints, 3-dimensional computer aided-design and cooperating with engineers. The final prototype was 3D-printed and the toruses were produced with molding. Results. A prototype named BuESta (Burr hole Endoscope Stabililizer) was produced. This consists of 2 half hollow sphere parts and interchangeable toruses and has the following features: easy to produce, inexpensive, not prolonging surgical time, semirigid, variable fixation, easy to fix/release, safe, no bulky articulated arms, mimicking basic concepts of second hand fixation (index finger/thumb fixation, hand resting/stabilizing on skull). Conclusions. This work represents a feasibility study including specification analysis, design and prototyping of a novel Burr hole endoscope stabilizing device. The device offers variable support for the endoscope, from complete free-hand to semirigid to rigid, thus freeing one hand which is often used to stabilize the endoscope. It can potentially help achieve solo surgery.
Health Behavior Among Men With Multiple Family Roles: The Moderating Effects of Perceived Partner Relationship Quality
Authors: DePasquale Nicole , Polenick Courtney A. , Hinde Jesse , Bray Jeremy W. , Zarit Steven H. , Moen Phyllis , Hammer Leslie B. , Almeida David M.
Published: July 2016

Men in the United States are increasingly involved in their children’s lives and currently represent 40% of informal caregivers to dependent relatives or friends aged 18 years and older. Yet much more is known about the health effects of varying family role occupancies for women relative to men. The present research sought to fill this empirical gap by first comparing the health behavior (sleep duration, cigarette smoking, alcohol consumption, exercise, fast food consumption) of men who only occupy partner roles and partnered men who also fill father, informal caregiver, or both father and informal caregiver (i.e., sandwiched) roles. The moderating effects of perceived partner relationship quality, conceptualized here as partner support and strain, on direct family role–health behavior linkages were also examined. A secondary analysis of survey data from 366 cohabiting and married men in the Work, Family and Health Study indicated that men’s multiple family role occupancies were generally not associated with health behavior. With men continuing to take on more family responsibilities, as well as the serious health consequences of unhealthy behavior, the implications of these null effects are encouraging - additional family roles can be integrated into cohabiting and married men’s role repertoires with minimal health behavior risks. Moderation analysis revealed, however, that men’s perceived partner relationship quality constituted a significant factor in determining whether multiple family role occupancies had positive or negative consequences for sleep duration, alcohol consumption, and fast food consumption. These findings are discussed in terms of their empirical and practical implications for partnered men and their families.
Pharmacy Medication Synchronization Service Works to Improve Medication Adherence
Authors: White Nicole D.
Published: July 2016

Medication adherence plays an important role in the effective management of chronic conditions, yet nonadherence related to therapeutic complexity and numerous visits to the pharmacy is well documented in the literature. Medication Synchronization (Med Sync) programs work to overcome this barrier by standardizing medication refills for a less frequent, generally once monthly pickup. Features of Med Sync programs as well the impact on adherence will be discussed.
Relative Lust: Accidental Incest’s Affective and Legal Resonances
Authors: Karaian Lara
Published: July 2016

This article explores the intimate relationship between the body, sexuality, technology, popular culture, and incest law. I examine the nature, meaning, and affective resonances of representations of consensual incest, “accidental incest,” and “technology facilitated accidental incest” in popular culture, pornography, and public service announcements. Drawing on a pastiche of affect theory; cultural and media studies theories of human-technological relations; queer, feminist and cultural posthumanist theories of embodiment, subjectivity and sexuality; and, Eve Sedgwick’s notion of a “reparative reading” I consider how these experiences and representations expand our emotional and erotic desires and alter our perceptions of our bodies’ parameters, their “proper” sexual objects and kinship relations, and their boundary violations. I argue that these affective residues pose a challenge to the “logic” underpinning the taboo’s intransigence, thus potentially contributing to the destigmatization and decriminalization of consensual adult incestuous relations.
Multi-state reliability assessment for hydraulic lifting system based on the theory of dynamic Bayesian networks
Authors: Su Chun , Lin Ning , Fu Yequn
Published: July 2016

Mechanical systems and their components usually have multiple failure modes and different performance states. Most existing system reliability modelling theories are developed on the basis of binary logic, which lack sufficient ability to describe the above phenomena. In this article, dynamic Bayesian network theory is employed to evaluate the multi-state reliability of a hydraulic lifting system. First, failure mode and effect analysis and structural analysis and design technique are comprehensively applied to analyse the functionalities and failure modes of the components. Afterwards, the time factor is integrated into the model by considering the state transition of the components. In this way, the multi-state reliability model of the system is established by dynamic Bayesian network. The reliability assessment and diagnostic analysis are performed by taking advantage of the dynamic Bayesian network’s bi-directional reasoning ability, and the results are in good agreement with actual situation. It shows that the proposed approach is effective and convenient for multi-state reliability modelling and analysis for mechanical systems.
Framing cooperation among regional economic powers: The South in global spheres of influence
Authors: Sosale Sujatha , Rosas-Moreno Tania Cantrell
Published: July 2016

This study examined the coverage of the trilateral commission of India, Brazil, and South Africa (IBSA) in the national press of these three countries over a 6-year period. Even though this group has pre-dated the Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa (BRICS) group and shares an affinity from political and economic standpoints, it has received little attention in media research. The goal of the study was to understand how news media framed the relationship among the IBSA member nations, and their individual and collective policy stances to their citizens. Each news source emphasized different areas of the cooperation; all three news sources expressed faith in IBSA to varying degrees, but also kept a close eye on the more recently formed BRICS. In sum, this study offers an exploratory view of cooperation among emerging regional economic powers located across and lobbying for the South in contemporary global spheres of influence.