bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Custom-Made Cloud Enterprise Architecture for Small Medium and Micro Enterprises
Authors: Mvelase Promise , Dlodlo Nomusa , Williams Quentin , Adigun Matthew O.
Published: October 2011

Small, Medium, and Micro enterprises (SMMEs) usually do not have adequate funds to acquire ICT infrastructure and often use cloud computing. In this paper, the authors discuss the implementation of virtual enterprises (VE) to enable SMMEs to respond quickly to customers’ demands and market opportunities. The virtual enterprise model is based on the ability to create temporary co-operations and realize the value of a short term business opportunity that the partners cannot fully capture on their own. The model of virtual enterprise is made possible through virtualisation technology, which is a building block of cloud computing. To achieve a common goal, enterprises integrate resources, organisational models, and process models. Through the virtual business operating environment offered by cloud computing, the SMMEs are able to increase productivity and gain competitive advantage due to the cost benefit incurred. In this paper, the authors propose a virtual enterprise enabled cloud enterprise architecture based on the concept of virtual enterprise at both business and technology levels. The business level comprises of organisational models, process models, skills, and competences whereas the technology level comprises of IT resources.
Cloud Computing Towards Technological Convergence
Authors: Sasikala P.
Published: October 2011

With the popularization and improvement of social and industrial IT development, information appears to explosively increase, and people put much higher expectations on the services of computing, communication and network. Today’s public communication network is developing in the direction that networks are widely interconnected using communication network infrastructure as backbone and Internet protocols; at the same time, cloud computing, a computing paradigm in the ascendant, provides new service modes. Communication technology has the trend of developing towards computing technology and applications, and computing technology and applications have the trend of stepping towards service orientation architecture. Communication technology and information technology truly comes to a convergence. Telecom operators are planning to be providers of comprehensive information services in succession. To adopt cloud computing technology not only facilitates the upgrade of their communication network technology, service platform and supporting systems, but also facilitates the construction of the infrastructure and operating capacity of providing comprehensive information services. In this paper, the development processes of public communication network and computing are reviewed along with some new concepts for cloud computing.
Normalisation Revisited
Authors: Bax Stephen
Published: October 2011

This article revisits the issue of the normalisation of technology in language education, defined as the stage at which a technology is used in language education without our being consciously aware of its role as a technology, as an effective element in the language learning process (Bax, 2003). It draws on the literature relating to the history of sociotechnical innovation (Bijker, 1997) to develop the theoretical basis of the concept and examines normalisation in the light of a neo-Vygotskian conceptual framework, in order to establish a set of central principles by which to understand and interpret the normalisation process. It then considers the implications for the language teacher and other change agents, with proposals for how to introduce new technologies into language education settings with maximum impact.
Do Students Wish to ’Go Mobile’?
Authors: Bibby Simon
Published: October 2011

Handheld devices are increasingly powerful items in terms of both hardware and software. They have ceased being merely tools of mobile telephony, and are now powerful, multi-purpose, mini-PCs. Technology provision within higher education was via clusters of tethered PCs in designated rooms, but an increasing number of universities are trialing the use of handheld devices to deliver mobile learning. The present research study provides a detailed review of the mobile learning literature, and profiles student usage of PCs and cell phones. Student preferences for a homework vehicle are identified. The results demonstrate that students express a clear preference for the cell phone over the PC as a tool of choice, and state a readiness to ‘go mobile’ with their learning.
Poker Gambling Virtual Communities
Authors: Parke Adrian , Griffiths Mark D.
Published: October 2011

Internationally, the prevalence of online poker gambling is estimated to be between one percent and eight percent of the general adult population. In relation to these estimated prevalence rates, the potential for addictive behaviour and the paucity of theory, online poker is an important concern for public health. Individuals may seek knowledge that will assist in developing poker gambling skill via virtual community interactions. In this paper, the authors use a virtual ethnography design to observe knowledge creation, transfer, and retrieval processes within a poker-focused virtual community. The paper develops current knowledge and understanding of how computer-mediated communication (CMC) is used by poker gamblers to develop their executive cognitive skills and enhance their proficiency. Two independent poker gambling virtual communities were observed for a six-month period. Data were collected through participant observation, and content analysis was used to identify emergent themes. Two central behavioural themes emerged from the participant observation (i.e., ‘Experiential Reporting’ and ‘Development of Poker Skill’). The implications of poker gambling knowledge creation, transfer, and retrieval via CMC on responsible gambling are also discussed.
Characterization of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Profiles by Multivariate Statistical Analysis
Authors: Marino D. J. , Castro E. A. , Massolo L. , Mueller A. , Herbarth O. , Ronco A. E.
Published: October 2011

In the present study, statistical methods based on multivariate analyses such as the Descriptive Discriminant Analysis (DDA) and Principal Component Analysis (PCA) were applied to determine relationships between particle sizes and the composition of the associated semi-volatile compounds, in addition to evaluating these observations in relation to the emission sources, study areas, sampling campaigns and season. Results from the DDA showed that the PAHs distributions give the best discrimination capacity within the data set, whereas the PAH distribution in intermediate particle fractions incorporates noise in the statistical analysis. The PCA was useful in identifying the main emission sources in each study area. It showed that in the city of La Plata the most important pollution sources are traffic emissions and the industrial activity associated with oil and petrochemical plants. In Leipzig, the main sources are those associated with traffic and also a power plant. The combined PCA and DDA methods applied to PAH distributions is a valuable tool in characterizing types of emissions burdens and also in obtaining a differentiation of sample identity according to study areas and sampling times.
Using Chemical Structural Indicators for Periodic Classification of Local Anaesthetics
Authors: Torrens Francisco , Castellano Gloria
Published: October 2011

Algorithms for classification and taxonomy based on criteria as information entropy and its production are proposed. Some local anaesthetics, currently in use, are classified using five characteristic chemical properties of different portions of their molecules. Many classification algorithms are based on information entropy. When applying the procedures to sets of moderate size, an excessive number of results appear compatible with data and the number suffers a combinatorial explosion. However, after the equipartition conjecture one has a selection criterion between different variants resulting from classification between hierarchical trees. Information entropy and principal component analyses agree. A table of periodic properties of anaesthetics is obtained. The first three features denote the group while the last two indicate the period in the table. The anaesthetics in the same group and period are suggested to present maximum similarity in properties. Furthermore the ones with only the same group will present important resemblance.
Exploring the Thermodynamic Aspects of Structure Formation During Wet-Spinning of Polyacrylonitrile Fibres
Authors: Arbab Shahram , Zeinolebadi A. , Noorpanah Parviz
Published: October 2011

Wet-spun polyacrylonitrile fibres are the main precursor for high strength carbon fibres. The properties of carbon fibres strongly depend on the structure of the precursor fibre. Polyacrylonitrile fibres were spun from solutions with varying solvent/nonsolvent content and different draw ratios. Wet-spinning is an immersion precipitation process, thus thermodynamic affinity of spinning dope to the coagulation medium was considered as the driving force of phase-separation, while viscosity of the solution accounted for the resistive force against phase separation and growth of the nucleated voids. Thermodynamic affinity was estimated by modifying Ruaan’s theory and viscosity of the solution was assessed on-line by measuring flow rate and back pressure at the spinneret. Hence, the parameter X (thermodynamic affinity/viscosity) was introduced to predict the porous morphology of the fibres. Generally, an increase in X led to fibres with higher porosity. A combination of electron scanning microscopy (SEM), porosimetry and thermoporometry was applied to fully characterize microstructure of fibres. Based on image analysis of SEM micrographs and data obtained from thermoporometry and porosimetry fractions of dense polymer ligament, micrometer size voids (macrovoids) and nanometer size voids (nanovoids) were estimated. Increasing polymer content or nonsolvent content in the spinning dope caused an increase in the solution viscosity and resulted in fibres with lower porosity. Imposing drawing on the as-spun fibres further decreased the porosity. Drawing also shifted the size distribution of nanovoids toward smaller values.
Correlation of the Drug Activities of Some Anti-Tubercular Chalcone Derivatives in Terms of the Quantum Mechanical Reactivity Descriptors
Authors: Chakraborty Tanmoy , Ghosh Dulal C.
Published: October 2011

Under the QSPR/QSAR paradigm, a comparative study is made of the known drug activity of as many as 15 anti-tubercular drugs vis-à-vis the computed quantum mechanical global reactivity descriptors like global hardness, global softness and global electrophilicity index. The comparative study reveals that the experimentally determined activity of drug molecules, including its variation with side substitution on the parent moiety, correlate nicely with the theoretical descriptors. The global electrophilicity index of a molecule may be useful in predicting the mechanism of the drug receptor interaction. In addition, the authors predicted the QSAR models to correlate the antitubercular activities with quantum mechanical descriptors like global hardness, electronegativity, global softness, and global electrophilicity index. The multilinear model using all four global descriptors computed through PM3 method, effectively predicts the antitubercular activities for a series of chalcone derivatives. The high value of R2 (0.961) supports the validity of that particular model. A nice correlation between the predicted and experimental activities validates the effort.
Automatic Facial Expression Recognition by Facial Parts Location with Boosted-LBP
Authors: Ji Yi , Idrissi Khalid
Published: October 2011

This paper proposes an automatic facial expression recognition system, which uses new methods in both face detection and feature extraction. In this system, considering that facial expressions are related to a small set of muscles and limited ranges of motions, the facial expressions are recognized by these changes in video sequences. First, the differences between neutral and emotional states are detected. Faces can be automatically located from changing facial organs. Then, LBP features are applied and AdaBoost is used to find the most important features for each expression on essential facial parts. At last, SVM with polynomial kernel is used to classify expressions. The method is evaluated on JAFFE and MMI databases. The performances are better than other automatic or manual annotated systems.
A Marked Point Process Model Including Strong Prior Shape Information Applied to Multiple Object Extraction From Images
Authors: Kulikova Maria , Jermyn Ian , Descombes Xavier , Zhizhina Elena , Zerubia Josiane
Published: October 2011

Object extraction from images is one of the most important tasks in remote sensing image analysis. For accurate extraction from very high resolution (VHR) images, object geometry needs to be taken into account. A method for incorporating strong yet flexible prior shape information into a marked point process model for the extraction of multiple objects of complex shape is presented. To control the computational complexity, the objects considered are defined using the image data and the prior shape information. To estimate the optimal configuration of objects, the process is sampled using a Markov chain based on a stochastic birth-and-death process on the space of multiple objects. The authors present several experimental results on the extraction of tree crowns from VHR aerial images.
Construction of 3D Triangles on Dupin Cyclides
Authors: Belbis Bertrand , Garnier Lionel , Foufou Sebti
Published: October 2011

This paper considers the conversion of the parametric Bézier surfaces, classically used in CAD-CAM, into patched of a class of non-spherical degree 4 algebraic surfaces called Dupin cyclides, and the definition of 3D triangle with circular edges on Dupin cyclides. Dupin cyclides was discovered by the French mathematician Pierre-Charles Dupin at the beginning of the 19th century. A Dupin cyclide has one parametric equation, two implicit equations, and a set of circular lines of curvature. The authors use the properties of these surfaces to prove that three families of circles (meridian arcs, parallel arcs, and Villarceau circles) can be computed on every Dupin cyclide. A geometric algorithm to compute these circles so that they define the edges of a 3D triangle on the Dupin cyclide is presented. Examples of conversions and 3D triangles are also presented to illustrate the proposed algorithms.
An Improved Dynavote E-Voting Protocol Implementation
Authors: AbdulRahim Abdulwasiu Kailani , Folorunso Olusegun , Sharma Sushil
Published: October 2011

Electronic voting—the use of computers or computerized voting equipment to cast and tabulate and tally ballots in an election in a trustable manner—is a pillar of e-Government. The DynaVote voting protocol system proposed by Cetinkaya and Koc (2007) is assumed secure and practicable on a network. However, the DynaVote e-Voting protocol does not completely protect the voting counter against impersonated votes, especially when the pseudo-Vote identities are known by the wrong voter or compromised by authorities. To address this problem, a prototype called improved DynaVote e-Vote protocol was designed to protect the counter from anomalies associated with counting impersonated votes (multiple votes) in the same election. This was achieved by introducing biometric fingerprint and pseudo voter identities (PVID) encryption for each voter during voter registration via online or data mining of population data containing fingerprint biometrics. Furthermore, fingerprint reader and RSA public key cryptography is used in PVID to eliminate counting impersonated votes. The performance results showed that improved DynaVote e-Vote protocol is more reliable, eligible, and accurate, and protects voter privacy against other e-Vote protocols.
A New Efficient and Effective Fuzzy Modeling Method for Binary Classification
Authors: Liao T. Warren
Published: October 2011

This paper presents a new fuzzy modeling method that can be classified as a grid partitioning method, in which the domain space is partitioned by the fuzzy equalization method one dimension at a time, followed by the computation of rule weights according to the max-min composition. Five datasets were selected for testing. Among them, three datasets are high-dimensional; for these datasets only selected features are used to control the model size. An enumerative method is used to determine the best combination of fuzzy terms for each variable. The performance of each fuzzy model is evaluated in terms of average test error, average false positive, average false negative, training error, and CPU time taken to build model. The results indicate that this method is best, because it produces the lowest average test errors and take less time to build fuzzy models. The average test errors vary greatly with model sizes. Generally large models produce lower test errors than small models regardless of the fuzzy modeling method used. However, the relationship is not monotonic. Therefore, effort must be made to determine which model is the best for a given dataset and a chosen fuzzy modeling method.
A Novel Fuzzy Associative Memory Architecture for Stock Market Prediction and Trading
Authors: Quek Chai , Guo Zaiyi , Maskell Douglas L.
Published: October 2011

In this paper, a novel stock trading framework based on a neuro-fuzzy associative memory (FAM) architecture is proposed. The architecture incorporates the approximate analogical reasoning schema (AARS) to resolve the problem of discontinuous (staircase) response and inefficient memory utilization with uniform quantization in the associative memory structure. The resultant structure is conceptually clearer and more computationally efficient than the Compositional Rule Inference (CRI) and Truth Value Restriction (TVR) fuzzy inference schemes. The local generalization characteristic of the associative memory structure is preserved by the FAM-AARS architecture. The prediction and trading framework exploits the price percentage oscillator (PPO) for input preprocessing and trading decision making. Numerical experiments conducted on real-life stock data confirm the validity of the design and the performance of the proposed architecture.
Applying the Linguistic Strategy-Oriented Aggregation Approach to Determine the Supplier Performance with Ordinal and Cardinal Data Forms
Authors: Wang Shih-Yuan , Chang Sheng-Lin , Wang Reay-Chen
Published: October 2011

Supply chain management is a new and evolving paradigm for enterprises to cope with international competition and to improve global logistics efficiency. The suppliers’ performances affect not only supply chain execution results but also the profit capability and business survivability. However, suppliers’ performance assessment always involves a large dimension of supplier behaviors. Information on supplier behaviors is often difficult to be accurately demonstrated as quantitative data. For this reason, the study employs a 2-tuple linguistic variable to perform the initial evaluation and final assessment while keeping track of both linguistic information and data, which can avoid a tied result. Additionally, the modified linguistic ordered weighted averaging (M-LOWA) operator with maximum entropy is used to derive the maximum aggregation value under the current business strategy to reflect on the criteria. The focal company can then rapidly rely on the assessment results to represent the performance of suppliers and provide integrated information to decision makers. This study draws the complete framework for the issue of supplier performance assessment without limitations on categories of variables and scales.
Integrated Circuit Emission Model Extraction with a Fuzzy Logic System
Authors: Lin Tsung-Chih , Kuo Ming-Jen , Boyer Alexandre
Published: October 2011

This paper describes a novel technique for multiple parameter extraction of the S12X TEM cell model using a fuzzy logic system (FLS). The FLS is utilized to capture the circuit information and to extract the circuit parameters based on experiential knowledge. The proposed extraction technique uses both linguistic information (i.e., human-like knowledge and experience) and numerical data of measurement to construct the fuzzy macromodel. The simulation results confirm the validity and estimation performance of the equivalent circuit by the advocated design methodology.
A Short Primer on the Correlation Coefficient of Vague Sets
Authors: P. John Robinson , E.C. Henry Amirtharaj
Published: October 2011

Intuitionistic fuzzy sets and vague sets are generalizations of the concept of fuzzy sets. Various researchers have studied the vagueness of data through vague sets, and it was later demonstrated that vague sets are indeed intuitionistic fuzzy sets. Since its entry in the literature, vague set theory has received increased attention. Many real life problems involve information in the form of vague values, due to the increasing complexity of the socio-economic environment and the vagueness of the inherent subjective nature of human thinking. Instead of using point-based membership as in fuzzy sets, interval-based membership is used in a vague set. This paper presents a detailed comparison between vague sets and intuitionistic fuzzy sets, from various perspectives of algebraic properties, graphical representations, and practical applications. Methods of calculating the correlation coefficient of intuitionistic fuzzy sets and interval-valued intuitionistic fuzzy sets are already found in the literature. This paper defines the correlation coefficient of vague sets through simple examples.
On Possibilistic and Probabilistic Information Fusion
Authors: Yager Ronald R.
Published: October 2011

This article discusses the basic features of information provided in terms of possibilistic uncertainty. It points out the entailment principle, a tool that allows one to infer less specific from a given piece of information. The problem of fusing multiple pieces of possibilistic information is and the basic features of probabilistic information are described. The authors detail a procedure for transforming information between possibilistic and probabilistic representations, and using this to form the basis for a technique for fusing multiple pieces of uncertain information, some of which is possibilistic and some probabilistic. A procedure is provided for addressing the problems that arise when the information to be fused has some conflicts.
Hand Gesture Recognition Using Multivariate Fuzzy Decision Tree and User Adaptation
Authors: Jeon Moon-Jin , Lee Sang Wan , Bien Zeungnam
Published: October 2011

As an emerging human-computer interaction (HCI) technology, recognition of human hand gesture is considered a very powerful means for human intention reading. To construct a system with a reliable and robust hand gesture recognition algorithm, it is necessary to resolve several major difficulties of hand gesture recognition, such as inter-person variation, intra-person variation, and false positive error caused by meaningless hand gestures. This paper proposes a learning algorithm and also a classification technique, based on multivariate fuzzy decision tree (MFDT). Efficient control of a fuzzified decision boundary in the MFDT leads to reduction of intra-person variation, while proper selection of a user dependent (UD) recognition model contributes to minimization of inter-person variation. The proposed method is tested first by using two benchmark data sets in UCI Machine Learning Repository and then by a hand gesture data set obtained from 10 people for 15 days. The experimental results show a discernibly enhanced classification performance as well as user adaptation capability of the proposed algorithm.
DataPlay
Authors: Macklin Colleen
Published: October 2011

DataPlay is a research project inspired by the concept of a “ludic age” (Chaplin & Zimmerman, 2008), where the challenges of extracting knowledge from the “data deluge” of the information age (Economist, 2010) are met with game-based approaches to information design. This paper examines Mannahatta: The Game in order to illustrate the issues involved in translating large datasets into games and game mechanics. The prescriptive work of Tufte (1983, 1990) regarding information visualization provides a conceptual framework and is applied to this paper. Tufte’s (1983, 1990) approach is convergent and divergent from the strategies uncovered in the research into games as ways to not just visualize, but directly experience data.
Forming The Guild
Authors: Ellcessor Elizabeth , Duncan Sean C.
Published: October 2011

This paper expands on Gee’s (2004) notion of “affinity spaces” by placing them in the context of games, media stars, and their fans and combining cultural studies and new literacies approaches. The Guild, a web series about the misadventures of MMO-players, written by and starring actor, writer, producer, and gamer Felicia Day, is examined. On WatchTheGuild.com, fans of The Guild enact literacy practices, particularly those that align with Day’s activities and star persona, such as media production and critique. These literacy practices are constrained by the limitations of projective identity in the context of star-based affinity spaces. Taking on projective identities within The Guild’s affinity space, individuals are faced with the impossibility of fully achieving the star’s – Day’s – successful identity as simultaneously gamer and media producer. The imbalance in cultural power allows the professionally manufactured star image to remain forever unattainable. This paper proposes reconsidering projective identity to move beyond the affinity space to develop one’s own sense of mastery outside the context of star-based fandom.
Background Music in Educational Games
Authors: Linek Stephanie B. , Marte Birgit , Albert Dietrich
Published: October 2011

Most game-designers likely stick to the assumption that background music is a design feature for fostering fun and game play. From a psychological point of view, these (intuitive) aspects act upon the intrinsic motivation and the flow experience of players. However, from a pure cognitive perspective on instructional design, background music could also be considered to be redundant information, which distracts from learning. The presented study investigated the influence of background music (present vs. not present) within an educational adventure game on motivational (intrinsic motivation, experienced flow) and cognitive variables (cognitive load, learning success). The results suggest a high motivational potential of background music. However, neither positive nor negative effects on learning were detected. Thus, background music can be considered as a motivating design element of educational games without negative side-effects on learning.
Identification, Transparency, Interactivity
Authors: Carroll Brian , Richardson R. Randolph
Published: October 2011

This article explores traditional conceptualizations of credibility relying on quantitative and qualitative analyses of data collected by the Institute for the Future of the Book, which conducted an online survey of readers of Pharyngula and Informed Comment, two popular, widely read, single-author blogs. The results suggest that a new pattern for online information credibility is emerging for blogs that supplements credibility’s traditionally understood dimensions of expertise, accuracy, and absence of bias with new, medium-specific or medium-enabled dimensions, including interactivity, transparency and, perhaps most significantly, identification. The responses indicate that mainstream news media may want to adopt more of the principles and techniques of blogging and readers of the two blogs appreciate the conversation each author facilitates. This preference for real human voices, especially when combined with the explosion of interest in and use of online social networks like Facebook and Twitter, indicates the need for a “re-voicing” of journalism.
Hypercitizens from a Distinct Society
Authors: Giasson Thierry , Raynauld Vincent , Darisse Cyntia
Published: October 2011

While many, mostly American, scholars have recently conducted quantitative and qualitative investigations of the structure and content of political blogs, few have focused on the political involvement of their authors. Based on data collected through an online survey conducted in April 2008, this paper proposes the first detailed account of the sociopolitical profile of 56 members of the Quebec political blogosphere. The description of these bloggers’ involvement in content dispersion and online social networks as well as their participation in offline political activities helps to better understand the particularities of an emergent community of active citizens. Additionally, the research draws contrasts with previous studies of the U.S. political blogosphere and argues for the production of more detailed analysis considering the specificities of different communities of North American political bloggers.
The Status of Journalistic Routines within Reporter-Run Political Blogs
Authors: Dunn Robert Andrew
Published: October 2011

The present research explores the relationships between newspaper circulation size (small vs. large), blog post focus (national vs. local/state), and blog post topic (political vs. government) and whether reporters who blog produce posts that break with journalistic routines or include references to the author. Analysis of 960 blog posts from nine newspapers suggests that smaller newspapers were more likely to produce posts that break with journalistic routines and include self-references than larger newspapers. Posts that focused on national news were more likely to break with journalistic routines but were not more likely to include self-references. Posts about political news were more likely to both break with journalistic routines and to include self-references.
XKFitler
Authors: Yang Weidong , Fang Fei , Li Nan , Lu Zhongyu (Joan)
Published: October 2011

Most existing XML stream processing systems adopt full structured query languages, such as XPath or XQuery, but they are difficult for ordinary users to learn and use. Keyword search is a user-friendly information discovery technique that has been extensively studied for text documents. This paper presents an XML stream filter system called XKFitler, which is the first system for supporting keyword search over XML stream. In XKFitler, the concepts of XLCA (eXclusive Lowest Common Ancestor) and XLCA Connecting Tree (XLCACT) are used to define the search semantic and results of keywords, and present an approach to filter XML stream according to keywords. The prototype XKFilter is implemented in the experiments.
Query Recommendation for Improving Search Engine Results
Authors: Zahera Hamada M. , El-Hady Gamal F. , El-Wahed W. F. Abd
Published: October 2011

As web contents grow, the importance of search engines become more critical and at the same time user satisfaction decreases. Query recommendation is a new approach to improve search results in web. In this paper a method is proposed that, given a query submitted to a search engine, suggests a list of queries that are related to the user input query. The related queries are based on previously issued queries, and can be issued by the user to the search engine to tune or redirect the search process. The proposed method is based on clustering processes in which groups of semantically similar queries are detected. The clustering process uses the content of historical preferences of users registered in the query log of the search engine. This facility provides queries that are related to the ones submitted by users in order to direct them toward their required information. This method not only discovers the related queries but also ranks them according to a similarity measure. The method has been evaluated using real data sets from the search engine query log.
The Paradigm Shift in Organizational Research
Authors: Zhang Yanli , Wang Yawei , Colucci William , Wang Zhongxian
Published: October 2011

The creation and development of theory and methods used in the study of organizations is predominantly carried out grounded in the positivist paradigm – epistemological and methodological assumptions similar to those of the natural sciences. This essay looks at the limitations of that paradigm for the study of human organizations and the benefits of relativist, humanist and post-modern assumptions, theory and methods. Limitations of the predominant paradigm are taken up by analyzing basic assumptions – objectivity, generality, empiricism, and linearity. The benefits of a more inclusive paradigm are reviewed in terms of two topic areas: Organizational learning and decision making, and financial markets and price distortion.
Recycling of Waste Epoxy-Polyester Powders for Foam Production
Authors: Lucignano Carmine , Squeo Erica Anna , Guglielmotti Alessandro , Quadrini Fabrizio
Published: October 2011

This paper proposes a new foaming technology (solid-state foaming) to produce structural foams from waste thermosetting resins. The proposed technology is easy and does not require specific and expensive equipments. Solid tablets are produced by cold compaction of resin powder, and foam by heating in an oven. Composite foams can be produced by mixing fillers and resin powder before the cold compaction. In the experiment, an epoxy-polyester (EP-PE) resin powder, deriving from the waste of a manufacturer of domestic appliances, was used with montmorillonite (MMT) particles. Resulting foams with a filler content ranging from 0 to 10 wt% were characterized in terms of physical and mechanical properties (by compression tests). Although the effect of the MMT content seems to be negative for the adopted resin, the feasibility of producing composite foams by recycling waste industrial powders is shown. The properties of the unfilled foams are sufficient for many industrial applications.
The Impact of FEM Modeling Parameters on the Computed Thermo-Mechanical Behavior of SLA Copper Shelled Electrodes
Authors: Iakovakis Vassilios , Kechagias John , Petropoulos George , Maropoulos Stergios
Published: October 2011

In this study, the authors use the finite element method to model and analyse a cylindrical copper shelled SLA electrode for EDM operations, which is investigated experimentally in literature. A uniform silver paint thickness and copper shell thickness is assumed around the SLA epoxy core. In the experiment, 2-D analysis was used due to the axissymmetric shape, and steady state and transient die sink EDMing simulations were followed. Modelling parameters are varied and their impact on the resulting temperature and stress fields is evaluated. The intermittent nature of the electrode thermal loading is also simulated with FEM transient analysis. It is shown that, using the finite element method, the influence of the copper shelled SLA electrode manufacturing and EDM-process parameters can be studied.
Attribute Based Selection of Thermoplastic Resin for Vacuum Infusion Process
Authors: Prabhakaran R. T. Durai , Lystrup Aage , Andersen Tom Løgstrup
Published: October 2011

The composite industry looks toward a new material system (resins) based on thermoplastic polymers for the vacuum infusion process, similar to the infusion process using thermosetting polymers. A large number of thermoplastics are available in the market with a variety of properties suitable for different engineering applications, and few of those are available in a not yet polymerised form suitable for resin infusion. The proper selection of a new resin system among these thermoplastic polymers is a concern for manufactures in the current scenario and a special mathematical tool would be beneficial. In this paper, the authors introduce a new decision making tool for resin selection based on significant attributes. This article provides a broad overview of suitable thermoplastic material systems for vacuum infusion process available in today’s market. An illustrative example—resin selection for vacuum infused of a wind turbine blade—is shown to demonstrate the intricacies involved in the proposed methodology for resin selection.
A Finite Element Study of Chip Formation Process in Orthogonal Machining
Authors: Priyadarshini Amrita , Pal Surjya K. , Samantaray Arun K.
Published: October 2011

This paper examines the plane strain 2D Finite Element (FE) modeling of segmented, as well as continuous chip formation while machining AISI 4340 with a negative rake carbide tool. The main objective is to simulate both the continuous and segmented chips from the same FE model based on FE code ABAQUS/Explicit. Both the adiabatic and coupled temperature displacement analysis has been performed to simulate the right kind of chip formation. It is observed that adiabatic hypothesis plays a critical role in the simulation of segmented chip formation based on adiabatic shearing. The numerical results dealing with distribution of stress, strain and temperature for segmented and continuous chip formations were compared and found to vary considerably from each other. The simulation results were also compared with other published results; thus validating the developed model.
Preparation of Copper Oxide (CuO) Nanoparticles and their Bactericidal Activity
Authors: Al-Marzouki F. M. , Al-Hartomy O. A. , Shah M. A.
Published: October 2011

Single crystalline nanoparticles of copper oxide (CuO) having almost uniform particle size of ~40±10nm have been synthesized by a facile and versatile route. The technique employed is free from toxic solvents, organics, and amines, and is based on a simple reaction of copper powder and de-ionized water (DI) at very low temperatures of 180oC. The morphology, chemical composition, and crystalline structure of the nanoparticles were carefully investigated by the various characterization techniques. Besides simplicity, the advantages of producing nanoparticles by this method are that it is easeful, flexible, fast, cost effective, and pollution free. The synthesized nanoparticles are under investigations for various applications including their antibacterial activity.
Design and Evaluation of Hydro-Pneumatic Friction Damper Suspension System
Authors: Gorabal S.V. , Kurbet S.N. , Appukuttan K.K.
Published: October 2011

Perceived comfort level and ride stability are the two most important factors in the evaluation of suspension system in a mobile vehicle. It is extremely difficult to simultaneously maintain a high standard of vehicle ride, handling and body control in the vehicle by using conventional passive suspension system. However, the use of active suspensions would result in better comforts than the passive ones. This paper presents the design and analysis of a pneumatic friction damper and hydro-pneumatic friction damper. A non-linear quarter car model is developed, which includes pneumatic actuation by pressure regulation. The performance of the proposed model was assessed in terms of level of vibration reduction. Simulations on a prototype model show that the proposed system has good performance and robustness.
Dynamic Characteristics of Tiny Ultrasonic Linear Actuators
Authors: Hernández Hermes , Velázquez Ramiro
Published: October 2011

Tiny ultrasonic linear actuators (TULAs) are used in many industrial applications and a full characterization of their dynamic behavior is needed. This paper presents a detailed theoretical-experimental study of TULAs. The general structure and operation principle of TULAs are introduced. The actuator dynamics is then described using a simple piezoelectric model. In practice, TULAs are most often used as actuators for positioning mechanisms. The proposed model includes electromechanical relations which offer designers a broad range of possibilities for precise positioning and reliable model-based control. TULAs are experimentally investigated to determine the conditions that allow an optimal performance.
An Efficient Agent Based Rumor Propagation for Wireless Sensor Networks
Authors: Kheroua Leila , Moussaoui Samira , Mansour Louiza
Published: October 2011

In the context of Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs), in this paper, the authors present a new agent based routing protocol named Fast Rumor Agents protocol (FRA). The FRA protocol optimizes the agent (respectively the query) propagation through the network preventing backward paths. With FRA, a rumor must have a straight trajectory, reducing the total overhead of the network. Performances comparisons of ZRR and FRA protocols show that the main contributions of FRA protocol are the reduction of time of path establishment, the overhead caused in the network, and consequently, the energy consumption.
An SOA-Based Architecture to Share Medical Data with Privacy Preservation
Authors: Barhamgi Mahmoud , Benslimane Djamal , Ghedira Chirine , Medjahed Brahim
Published: October 2011

Recent years have witnessed a growing interest in using Web services as a reliable means for medical data sharing inside and across healthcare organizations. In such service-based data sharing environments, Web service composition emerged as a viable approach to query data scattered across independent locations. Patient data privacy preservation is an important aspect that must be considered when composing medical Web services. In this paper, the authors show how data privacy can be preserved when composing and executing Web services. Privacy constraints are expressed in the form of RDF queries over a mediated ontology. Query rewriting algorithms are defined to process those queries while preserving users’ privacy.
Assessing Website Effectiveness of Airline Companies
Authors: Vrontis D. , Melanthiou Y.
Published: October 2011

Within the tourism industry, hotels and airlines are encouraging potential customers to make their reservations online. Because of the significant setup costs involved in website development, assessing online behaviour and website effectiveness is necessary. This paper explores the factors influencing online shopping. Moreover, by using three airline company websites as an indicative example, the research identifies whether website best practice principles are utilised and examines visitors’ perceptions of their effectiveness. Further, the results of the current study are compared with the results of a previous study carried out in a similar field to identify similarities/differences over time. Information was collected from both secondary and primary sources. Primary sources included structured interviews, from which 180 responses were collected. The results show that the factors considered when purchasing online are comparable, but with some significant differences, implying that consumers are more confident engaging in online shopping. The limitations of the study are restricted to the non-probability sampling method used. Practitioners are able to use the results from the study as suggested guidelines for their promotional efforts.
Examining the Online Wine Tourism Experience of California Wineries
Authors: Simeon Roblyn , Sayeed Lutfus
Published: October 2011

Online wine tourism is boosting the level of competition among wineries and wine regions around the world. This paper presents and extends a proven framework for examining the strategic orientation of winery web sites. By treating winery web sites as intensive information environments this paper shows how they can have a strategic impact on perceptions. Using a modified AIPD framework and statistical analyses, the authors show how certain California wineries are able to fully project the wine tourism experience online while targeting strategic perception goals that are effective at building virtual brand equity and boosting winery visitations at the same time. The result of this research indicates that it is possible to measure and evaluate both the web experience and the strategic perception aspects of winery web sites.
New Digital Media Marketing and Micro Business
Authors: Millman Cindy , El-Gohary Hatem
Published: October 2011

This paper considers innovative marketing within the context of a micro firm, exploring how such firm’s marketing practices can take advantage of digital media. Factors that influence a micro firm’s innovative activities are examined and the development and implementation of digital media in the firm’s marketing practice is explored. Despite the significance of marketing and innovation to SMEs, a lack of literature and theory on innovation in marketing theory exists. Research suggests that small firms’ marketing practitioners and entrepreneurs have identified their marketing focus on the 4Is. This paper builds on knowledge in innovation and marketing and examines the process in a micro firm. A qualitative approach is applied using action research and case study approach. The relevant literature is reviewed as the starting point to diagnose problems and issues anticipated by business practitioners. A longitudinal study is used to illustrate the process of actions taken with evaluations and reflections presented. The exploration illustrates that in practice much of the marketing activities within micro firms are driven by incremental innovation. This research emphasises that integrating Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) successfully in marketing requires marketers to take an active managerial role far beyond their traditional areas of competence and authority.
E-Commerce Adoption by Micro Firms
Authors: Millman Cindy
Published: October 2011

This paper discusses the next stage of Internet usage by micro-businesses in the tourism sector, namely e-Commerce. Motivations for e-Commerce adoptions are examined and the perceived barriers are investigated. Moreover, experiences of the adopters are explored to identify the benefits gained and problems encountered. A qualitative approach is used and a pilot study conducted. In-depth face-to-face interviews with semi-structured questionnaires were conducted with twenty case studies, with a mix of e-Commerce adopters and non-adopters. The Critical Incident technique was used to encourage business owners to identify their experiences with this new business method. Preliminary results show that there are a number of ‘push’ and ‘pull’ factors that reinforce business owners’ decisions in adopting the e-Commerce method. The findings have implications for researchers and policymakers. The diversity of small firms has led to the need to tailor policy initiatives and training programmes. In addition, this study is replicable in other small business sectors that face the next step of development in Internet usage.
Automatic Categorization of Reviews and Opinions of Internet
Authors: Žižka Jan , Rukavitsyn Vadim
Published: October 2011

E-shopping customers, blog authors, reviewers, and other web contributors can express their opinions of a purchased item, film, book, and so forth. Typically, various opinions are centered around one topic (e.g., a commodity, film, etc.). From the Business Intelligence viewpoint, such entries are very valuable; however, they are difficult to automatically process because they are in a natural language. Human beings can distinguish the various opinions. Because of the very large data volumes, could a machine do the same? The suggested method uses the machine-learning (ML) based approach to this classification problem, demonstrating via real-world data that a machine can learn from examples relatively well. The classification accuracy is better than 70%; it is not perfect because of typical problems associated with processing unstructured textual items in natural languages. The data characteristics and experimental results are shown.