An enhanced method based on intermediate significant bit technique for watermark images

Intermediate Significant Bit digital watermarking technique (ISB) is a new approved technique of embedding a watermark by replacing the original image pixels with new pixels. This is done by ensuring a close connection between the new pixels and the original, and at the same time, the watermark data can be protected against possible damage. One of the most popular methods used in watermarking is the Least Significant Bit (LSB). It uses a spatial domain that includes the insertion of the watermark in the LSB of the image. The problem with this method is it is not resilient to common damage, and there is the possibility of image distortion after embedding a watermark. LSB may be used through replacing one bit, two bits, or three bits; this is done by changing the specific bits without any change in the other bits in the pixel. The objective of this thesis is to formulate new algorithms for digital image watermarking with enhanced image quality and robustness by embedding two bits of watermark data into each pixel of the original image based on ISB technique. However, to understand the opposite relationship between the image quality and robustness, a tradeoff between them has been done to create a balance and to acquire the best position for the two embedding bits. Dual Intermediate Significant Bits (DISB) technique has been proposed to solve the existing LSB problem. Trial results obtained from this technique are better compared with the LSB based on the Peak Signal to Noise Ratio (PSNR) and Normalized Cross Correlation (NCC). The work in this study also contributes new mathematical equations that can study the change on the other six bits in the pixel after embedding two bits

Legal issues in the alienation of lands for housing development projects in Peninsular Malaysia: A case study of Kedah Darul Aman

A housing developer requires land for housing development projects.In Malaysia, the land which is to be developed into a housing development project may be originally owned by the housing developer, the developer may obtain it through purchase from an interested seller, through a joint venture agreement with the land proprietor, or through alienation of land granted by the State Authority.The alienation of land is made based on the approval of the State Authority during the application to alienate the land to the applicant housing developers.There have been cases whereby the State Authority has approved the applications to alienate the land to the housing developers without duly taking into consideration the capability and suitability of the applicant housing developers concerned in carrying out the intended housing development project and the suitability of the land.The incapability of the developers includes lack of experience of the applicant housing developers in housing development projects or lack of funds to run housing development projects.These shortcomings, in the extreme case, may result in the problematic housing development projects.The questions that arise include: Why had the State Authority approved the applications to alienate lands to incapable housing developers and/or alienated unsuitable lands? What are the power, responsibility, and liability of the State Authority in alienating lands to applicant housing developers for housing development projects? This research aims to explain the scenarios occurring in Kedah regarding the powers and responsibilities of the State Authority and its machinery in alienating lands for housing development projects to applicant housing developers.It also identifies the problems and issues in alienation of lands for housing development projects which may lead to problematic housing development projects.The methodology used in this research is a composite of the qualitative case study and legal research. Further, this research compares between the positions of the law and practice on alienation of lands in the Republic of Singapore and New South Wales, Australia.This research rounds off with the researcher recommending certain legal approaches to overcome these problems and issues in the alienation of lands to applicant housing developers for housing development projects by the State Authority in order to avoid problematic housing development projects and other pressing issues which are detrimental to the housing developers.This research also proposes certain legislative amendments to the act governing alienation of land in order to avoid possible re-occurrences of issues and problems as identified

Internationalization of Social Work Education in Asia

Japan College of Social Wor

Certificateless Proxy Signature from RSA

Although some good results were achieved in speeding up the computation of pairing function in recent years, it is still interesting to design efficient cryptosystems with less bilinear pairing operation. A proxy signature scheme allows a proxy signer to sign messages on behalf of an original signer within a given context. We propose a certificateless proxy signature (CLPS) scheme from RSA and prove its security under the strongest security model where the Type I/II adversary is a super Type I/II adversary

Modelling, Dimensioning and Optimization of 5G Communication Networks, Resources and Services

This reprint aims to collect state-of-the-art research contributions that address challenges in the emerging 5G networks design, dimensioning and optimization. Designing, dimensioning and optimization of communication networks resources and services have been an inseparable part of telecom network development. The latter must convey a large volume of traffic, providing service to traffic streams with highly differentiated requirements in terms of bit-rate and service time, required quality of service and quality of experience parameters. Such a communication infrastructure presents many important challenges, such as the study of necessary multi-layer cooperation, new protocols, performance evaluation of different network parts, low layer network design, network management and security issues, and new technologies in general, which will be discussed in this book

UAV or Drones for Remote Sensing Applications in GPS/GNSS Enabled and GPS/GNSS Denied Environments

The design of novel UAV systems and the use of UAV platforms integrated with robotic sensing and imaging techniques, as well as the development of processing workflows and the capacity of ultra-high temporal and spatial resolution data, have enabled a rapid uptake of UAVs and drones across several industries and application domains.This book provides a forum for high-quality peer-reviewed papers that broaden awareness and understanding of single- and multiple-UAV developments for remote sensing applications, and associated developments in sensor technology, data processing and communications, and UAV system design and sensing capabilities in GPS-enabled and, more broadly, Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS)-enabled and GPS/GNSS-denied environments.Contributions include:UAV-based photogrammetry, laser scanning, multispectral imaging, hyperspectral imaging, and thermal imaging;UAV sensor applications; spatial ecology; pest detection; reef; forestry; volcanology; precision agriculture wildlife species tracking; search and rescue; target tracking; atmosphere monitoring; chemical, biological, and natural disaster phenomena; fire prevention, flood prevention; volcanic monitoring; pollution monitoring; microclimates; and land use;Wildlife and target detection and recognition from UAV imagery using deep learning and machine learning techniques;UAV-based change detection

Proceedings of the 21st Conference on Formal Methods in Computer-Aided Design – FMCAD 2021

The Conference on Formal Methods in Computer-Aided Design (FMCAD) is an annual conference on the theory and applications of formal methods in hardware and system verification. FMCAD provides a leading forum to researchers in academia and industry for presenting and discussing groundbreaking methods, technologies, theoretical results, and tools for reasoning formally about computing systems. FMCAD covers formal aspects of computer-aided system design including verification, specification, synthesis, and testing

Saudi Arabia : the duality of the legal system and its implications on Financial Related Transactions

PhD thesisSaudi Arabia is moving towards a “free market” economy. This policy shift is consistent with the prevailing developmental views of the major international financial and economic institutions and of the major industrialised nations (which will form a given assumption for this thesis). A companion policy assumption fostered today by the international financial institutions and major industrialised nations is that essential to a sound market economy is a viable rule-based legal infrastructure that incorporates a substantive and procedural “rule of law” orientation. The recent economic legal reforms being undertaken by Saudi Arabia involve both enhancements and modifications to the basic Islamic law framework required under the Saudi Constitution to help facilitate the growing domestic demands of the Saudi economy and society and the de facto introduction of “modem” Western-based practices, approaches and techniques respecting commercial and financial transactions. That would be more attractive to foreign investors and financiers. While such reforms should make a positive contribution to the development of the desired market-based system, the overall effectiveness of these new reforms, as argued in this volume, may be adversely impacted or impeded by the existing de facto duality created by these reforms. This existing de facto duality is exemplified by having Islamic law (/'. e., Shari’a) as the paramount and primary legal system and, within this overall system, the separate, enactment of other positive laws related to the commercial, banking and financial sectors (i.e., “a system within a system”). This thesis argues that this current Saudi notion of legal duality needs to be reevaluated and an internal reconciliation needs to be effected to avoid any negative implications on the functionality of the financial system and on the effectiveness of financial transactions such as, merely by way of selective example used in this volume, securitisations and secured transactions, which are important elements in a “modem” market-based economy. To this effect, Saudi Arabia may consider the - advisability of further dualising the Saudi financial system whereby the “Western- based” component of the Saudi financial system is not functioning within an Islamic Shari'a system but alongside an Islamic financial system (i.e., a system alongside a system) as is the case in a successful emerging economy such as Malaysia. In doing so, Saudi Arabia is also advised to consider the “segregation” phenomenon, which is used in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), to segregate its conventional financial component from any inconsistencies with other Saudi laws. It is suggested that the Saudi government in implementing a combination of the Malaysian and DIFC models can better develop a complementary and reinforcing dual “parallel” financial system structure of a modem Western-oriented system and a modernised Islamic financial system, with both operating legitimately under the “umbrella” of an Islamic grounded Constitution. In effect, a dual financial system should provide an opportunity for the Saudi government to have the better of both worlds: a special and robust financial system that is well-rooted in the domestic culture and interconnected with the growing Islamic regional financial markets in the Gulf Region and that also makes foreign investment and financing in Saudi Arabia and the Region more attractive and “secure” while making it feasible to link it into the broader “global” international financial markets