Effect of oil palm empty fruit bunches (OPEFB) fibers to the compressive strength and water absorption of concrete

Growing popularity based on environmentally-friendly, low cost and lightweight building materials in the construction industry has led to a need to examine how these characteristics can be achieved and at the same time giving the benefit to the environment and maintain the material requirements based on the standards required. Recycling of waste generated from industrial and agricultural activities as measures of building materials is not only a viable solution to the problem of pollution but also to produce an economic design of building

Tourism and the smartphone app: capabilities, emerging practice and scope in the travel domain.

Based on its advanced computing capabilities and ubiquity, the smartphone has rapidly been adopted as a tourism travel tool.With a growing number of users and a wide varietyof applications emerging, the smartphone is fundamentally altering our current use and understanding of the transport network and tourism travel. Based on a review of smartphone apps, this article evaluates the current functionalities used in the domestic tourism travel domain and highlights where the next major developments lie. Then, at a more conceptual level, the article analyses how the smartphone mediates tourism travel and the role it might play in more collaborative and dynamic travel decisions to facilitate sustainable travel. Some emerging research challenges are discussed

The New Grid

The New Grid seeks to provide mobile users with an additional method for off-grid communication, or communication without connection to Internet infrastructure. The motivation for this project was to find another alternative to Internet-dependent communication. Current Internet infrastructure is antiquated; it is expensive to maintain and expand, it has numerous vulnerabilities and high-impact points of failure, and can be rendered unusable for lengthy periods of time by natural disasters or other catastrophes. This current grid will eventually need to be replaced by a more modern, scalable, and adaptive infrastructure. The results of the projects research showed that implementing a library to allow for the creation of mobile peer-to-peer mesh networks could serve as a starting point for a transition from current Internet infrastructure to a more scalable, adaptive, and reliable Internet- independent network grid. Development of The New Grid largely followed the Rational Unified Process, in which the development process is split into four phases: requirements gathering, system design, implementation, and testing. Most of fall quarter was spent outlining functional requirements for the system, designing possible methods of implementation, and researching similar solutions that seek to transition mass mobile communication to a newer, more modern network grid. The New Grid differs from similar solutions because it has been implemented as a modular library. Current systems that allow for off-grid mobile connection exist as independent applications with a defined context and predetermined usability scope. We, the design team, found that implementing the system in the form of a modular library has multiple benefits. Primarily, this implementation would allow The New Grid to be deployed as widely as possible. Developers can both write applications around our library as well as include specific modules into existing applications without impacting other modules or introducing additional overhead into a system. Another benefit of deploying the system as a modular library is adaptability. The current, initial stable build of The New Grid uses Bluetooth Low Energy as its backbone for facilitating communication within large networks of mobile devices; however, this library could use any existing or future communication protocol to facilitate connection as long as a hook is written to allow The New Grid to interface with that protocol. Thus, The New Grid is not limited by which connection protocols currently exist, a property that other similar systems do not possess. The New Grid can be used in any application that requires connection between users. The most common applications would likely be messaging, file sharing, or social networking. While developers may find a variety of uses for The New Grid, its primary purpose is to facilitate reliable connection and secure data transfer in an environment with a large user base. Achieving this goal was proven feasible through research and testing the library with a small cluster of Android devices communicating solely with Bluetooth Low Energy. Expanding this group of a few phones to a larger mesh network of hundreds of devices was shown to be feasible through testing the librarys algorithms and protocols on a large network of virtual devices. As long as developers seek to create applications that allow users to communicate independent of Internet infrastructure, The New Grid will allow smartphone users to communicate off-grid and hopefully spur a switch from infrastructure-dependent mobile communication to user-centric, adaptive, and flexible connection

Improving Mobile Video Streaming with Mobility Prediction and Prefetching in Integrated Cellular-WiFi Networks

We present and evaluate a procedure that utilizes mobility and throughput prediction to prefetch video streaming data in integrated cellular and WiFi networks. The effective integration of such heterogeneous wireless technologies will be significant for supporting high performance and energy efficient video streaming in ubiquitous networking environments. Our evaluation is based on trace-driven simulation considering empirical measurements and shows how various system parameters influence the performance, in terms of the number of paused video frames and the energy consumption; these parameters include the number of video streams, the mobile, WiFi, and ADSL backhaul throughput, and the number of WiFi hotspots. Also, we assess the procedure's robustness to time and throughput variability. Finally, we present our initial prototype that implements the proposed approach.Comment: 7 pages, 15 figure

Use of fitness and nutrition apps : associations with body mass index, snacking, and drinking habits in adolescents

Background: Efforts to improve snacking and drinking habits are needed to promote a healthy body mass index (BMI) in adolescents. Although commercial fitness and nutrition mobile phone apps are widely used, little is known regarding their potential to improve health behaviors, especially in adolescents. In addition, evidence on the mechanisms through which such fitness and nutrition apps influence behavior is lacking. Objectives: This study assessed whether the use of commercial fitness or nutrition apps was associated with a lower BMI and healthier snacking and drinking habits in adolescents. Additionally, it explored if perceived behavioral control to eat healthy; attitudes to eat healthy for the good taste of healthy foods, for overall health or for appearance; social norm on healthy eating and social support to eat healthy mediated the associations between the frequency of use of fitness or nutrition apps and BMI, the healthy snack, and beverage ratio. Methods: Cross-sectional self-reported data on snack and beverage consumption, healthy eating determinants, and fitness and nutrition app use of adolescents (N=889; mean age 14.7 years, SD 0.8; 54.8% [481/878] boys; 18.1% [145/803] overweight) were collected in a representative sample of 20 schools in Flanders, Belgium. Height and weight were measured by the researchers. The healthy snack ratio and the healthy beverage ratio were calculated as follows: gram healthy snacks or beverages/(gram healthy snacks or beverages+ gram unhealthy snacks or beverages) x100. Multilevel regression and structural equation modeling were used to analyze the proposed associations and to explore multiple mediation. Results: A total of 27.6% (245/889) of the adolescents used fitness, nutrition apps or both. Frequency of using nutrition apps was positively associated with a higher healthy beverage ratio (b=2.96 [1.11], P=.008) and a higher body mass index z-scores (zBMI; b=0.13 [0.05], P=.008. A significant interaction was found between the frequency of using nutrition and for the zBMI (b=-0.03 [0.02], P=.04) and the healthy snack ratio (b=-0.84 [0.37], P=.03). Attitude to eat healthy for appearance mediated both the fitness app use frequency-zBMI (a x b=0.02 [0.01], P=.02) and the nutrition app use frequency-zBMI (a x b= 0.04 [0.01], P=.001) associations. No mediation was observed for the associations between the frequency of use of fitness or nutrition apps and the healthy snack or beverage ratio. Conclusions: Commercial fitness and nutrition apps show some association with healthier eating behaviors and BMI in adolescents. However, effective behavior change techniques should be included to affect key determinants of healthy eating

A novel framework to promote eco-driving through smartphone-vehicle integration

Tesis por compendioIt was not that long ago, just in the first half on the 1990s, when mobile phones were first introduced, being big and expensive. All you could do with them was to make phone calls. Since then mobile devices have experienced a great technological advance: we carry smartphones in our pockets that provide Internet access, having accelerometers that can measure acceleration, a gyroscope that can provide orientation information, different wireless interfaces such as Bluetooth connections, and above all, great computing power. On the other hand, the automobile industry has evolved significantly during the last 10 years. One of the most exciting advances in vehicle development is vehicle-to-vehicle V2V communication, which allows cars to communicate with each other over a dedicated Wi-Fi band, and share information about vehicle speed, route direction, traffic flow, and road and weather conditions. An example of such a system is GM's (General Motors) OnStar, introduced in 1996, and that provides automatic response in case of an accident, stolen-vehicle recovery, remote door unlock, and vehicle diagnostics. Also, the standard On Board Diagnosis (OBD-II), available for several years, allows us to connect to the Electronic Control Unit (ECU) via a Bluetooth OBD-II connector. This connection interface allows connectivity between the smartphone and the vehicle, and can be purchased for just over 15 euros. The spectrum of possibilities that arise when combining the car and the smartphone is unlimited, such as performing the diagnosis of the car by assuming the tasks performed by the car's On Board Unit (OBU), or sending the collected data to a platform where the diagnosis or maintenance of the system can be realized in order to detect possible faults, help you to save gas and reduce environment pollution, and notify you of your car's problems, among other features. The general objective pursued with this doctoral thesis is to help drivers to correct bad habits in their driving. To achieve this we promote the combination between smartphones and vehicular networks to design and develop a platform able to offer useful tips to achieve safer driving and greater fuel economy. It is well-known that intelligent driving can lead to lower fuel consumption, with the consequent positive impact on the environment. The proposal that has been carried out in this doctoral thesis begins with the data capture from the vehicles' OBD-II port and data analysis through the use of graphs, maps, and statistics, both, on the server itself and in the smartphone's application developed. We applied data mining techniques and neural networks to analyze, study and generate a classiffication on driving styles based on the analysis of the characteristics of each specific route used for testing. In a second phase, we demostrate the relationship between fuel consumption and driving style. To achieve that goal, the first thing that we had to realize was how to apply different algorithms for the instantaneous consumption calculation (this parameter cannot be obtained directly from the vehicle ECU). Later, we studied and analyzed all data that was collected from the drivers who shared their monitored data with the server. Although drivers do not recognize themselves as being in a state of anxiety while driving, they are more stressed than in any other daily activity, for example, when trying to stay in the right lane, keeping the car at a certain speed, and starting and stopping the vehicle. In general, drivers are more concentrated than they think, which causes an increase in the heart rate. Many factors influence heart rate while at rest, e.g. stress, medications, medical conditions, even genes play a role. In our study we also investigate how stress and the driving behavior influence the heart rate. So, in the last phase, we demostrate the correlation between heart rate and driving style, showing how the driving style can make the heart rate vary by 3 %.No hace mucho tiempo, tan sólo en la primera mitad en la década de los 90, cuando los teléfonos móviles aparecieron, eran grandes y caros, todo lo que se podía hacer con ellos era realizar llamadas telefónicas. Desde entonces los dispositivos móviles han experimentado un gran avance tecnológico, llevamos teléfonos inteligentes en el bolsillo con acceso a Internet, acelerómetros que calculan la aceleración instantánea, giroscopios que proporcionan información de orientación, diferentes conexiones inalámbricas como Bluetooth, y sobre todo, gran capacidad de computación. Por otro lado, la industria del automóvil ha evolucionado mucho durante los últimos 10 años. Uno de los avances más interesantes en el desarrollo de vehículos ha sido la conectividad, V2V, o comunicación vehículo a vehículo, permite a los automóviles comunicarse mediante Wi-Fi y compartir información sobre la velocidad del vehículo, la dirección de la ruta actual, el tráfico, así como las condiciones de la carretera y las condiciones ambientales. Por otra parte, el estándar On Board Diagnosis (OBD-II), disponible desde hace varios años, permite conectarnos de forma sencilla a la ECU (Electronic Control Unit) mediante un conector Bluetooth OBD-II. Este interfaz de conexión permite la conectividad entre el dispositivo móvil y el vehículo, se puede adquirir por poco más de 15 euros. El espectro de posibilidades que surgen al combinar el automóvil y el Smartphone es amplísimo, como por ejemplo realizar el diagnóstico del coche a través del móvil asumiendo las tareas que hace la unidad On Board Unit (OBU) del coche, o bien enviar los datos recogidos a una plataforma donde se pueda realizar el diagnóstico o mantenimiento del sistema, detectando posibles fallos puede ayudar a ahorrar en el consumo de combustible, notificar los problemas del coche en tiempo real, entre otras características. El objetivo general que se persigue con esta tesis doctoral es ayudar al conductor a corregir malos hábitos en su forma de conducción. Conseguimos esto mediante la combinación entre smartphones y las redes vehiculares, diseñamos y desarrollamos una plataforma capaz de ofrecer consejos útiles para conseguir una conducción más segura y un mayor ahorro de combustible. Es conocido que una conducción inteligente puede llevarnos a un menor consumo de combustible, con el consiguiente impacto positivo que ello conlleva sobre el medio ambiente. La propuesta que se ha llevado a cabo en esta tesis doctoral comienza con la obtención de los datos desde el OBD-II del coche y su presentación y análisis mediante el uso de gráficas, mapas, estadísticas, tanto en el propio servidor como en la aplicación móvil desarrollada para la obtención de datos recibidos desde la ECU. Se aplicaron técnicas de minería de datos y redes neuronales para analizar, estudiar y generar una clasificación sobre los estilos de conducción en base al análisis de las características de la vía sobre la que ha realizado la ruta. En una segunda fase se demostró la relación entre el consumo de combustible con el estilo de conducción, para ello lo primero que tuvimos que realizar fue aplicar diversos algoritmos para el cálculo del consumo instantáneo, este parámetro no es posible obtenerlo directamente de la ECU del vehículo. Posteriormente se realizó el estudio y el análisis de todos los datos que se recogieron de los conductores que se prestaron a la realización del estudio enviando los datos al servidor. Muchos factores influyen en la frecuencia cardíaca en reposo, por ejemplo, el estrés, los medicamentos, las condiciones médicas, incluso los genes tienen su influencia, el envejecimiento tiende a acelerarlo, y el ejercicio regular tiende a ralentizarlo. En nuestro estudio también investigamos cómo el estrés y el comportamiento en la conducción influyen en la frecuencia cardíaca. En la última fase vemos la correlación existente entre el riNo fa molt de temps, tan sols en la primera mitat en la dècada dels 90, quan els telèfons mòbils van aparéixer, eren grans i cars, tot el que es podia fer amb ells era realitzar telefonades. Des de llavors els dispositius mòbils han experimentat un gran avanç tecnològic, portem telèfons intel_ligents en la butxaca amb accés a Internet, acceleròmetres que calculen l'acceleració instantània, giroscopis que proporcionen informació d'orientació, diferents connexions sense _ls com Bluetooth, i sobretot gran capacitat de computació. D'altra banda, la indústria de l'automòbil ha evolucionat molt durant els últims 10 anys. Un dels avanços més interessants en el desenrotllament de vehicles ha sigut la connectivitat, V2V, o comunicació vehicle a vehicle, permet als automòbils comunicar-se per mitjà de la banda de Wi-Fi i compartir información sobre la velocitat del vehicle, la direcció de la ruta actual, les condicions del trà_c, així com l'estat de la carretera i les condicions ambientals. D'altra banda l'estàndard On Board Diagnosi (OBD-II), disponible des de fa diversos anys, permet connectar-nos de forma senzilla a l'ECU (Electronic Control Unit) per mitjà d'un connector Bluetooth OBD-II. Esta interfície de connexió permet la connectivitat entre el dispositiu mòbil i el vehicle, es pot adquirir per poc més de 15 euros. L'espectre de possibilitats que sorgixen al combinar l'automòbil i el Smartphone és il_limitat, com per exemple realitzar el diagnòstic del cotxe a través del móvil assumint les tasques que fa la unitat On Board Unit (OBU) del cotxe, o bé enviar les dades arreplegades a una plataforma on es puga realitzar el diagnòstic o manteniment del sistema, detectant possibles fallades, ajuda a estalviar en el consum de combustible, noti_car els problemes del cotxe en temps real, entre altres característiques. L'objectiu general que es perseguix amb esta tesi doctoral és ajudar al conductor a corregir mals hàbits en la seua forma de conducció. Aconseguim açò mitjançant de la combinació entre smartphones i les xarxes vehiculares, dissenyem i desenrotllem una plataforma capaç d'oferir consells útils per a aconseguir una conducció més segura i un major estalvi de combustible. És conegut que una conducció intel_ligent pot emportar-nos a un menor consum de combustible, amb el consegüent impacte positiu que això comporta sobre el medi ambient. La proposta que s'ha dut a terme en esta tesi doctoral comença amb l'obtenció de les dades des de l'OBD-II del cotxe i la seua presentació i anàlisi per mitjà de l'ús de grà_ques, mapes, estadístiques, tant en el propi servidor, com en l'aplicació mòbil desenrotllada per a l'obtenció de dades rebudes des de l'ECU. S'apliquen tècniques de mineria de dades i xarxes neuronals per a analitzar, estudiar i generar una classi_cació sobre els estils de conducció basant-se en l'anàlisi de les característiques de la via sobre la qual ha realitzat la ruta. En una segona fase es va a demostrar la relació entre el consum de combustible amb l'estil de conducció, per a això la primera cosa que vam haver de realizar va ser aplicar diversos algorismes per al càlcul del consum instantani, este paràmetre no és possible obtindre-ho directament de l'ECU del vehicle. Posteriorment es va realitzar l'estudi i l'anàlisi de totes les dades que es van arreplegar dels conductors que es van prestar a la realització de l'estudi enviant les dades al servidor. Molts factors in_ueixen en la freqüència cardíaca en repòs, per exemple, l'estrès, els medicaments, les condicions mèdiques, _ns i tot els gens tenen la seua in_uència, l'envelliment tendeix a accelerar-ho, i l'exercici regular tendeix a ralentir-ho. En el nostre estudi només estem interessats en com l'estrès i el comportament en la conducció in_ueixen en la freqüència cardíaca. En l'última fase vam veure la correlació existent entre el ritme cardíac i l'estil de conducciMeseguer Anastasio, JE. (2017). A novel framework to promote eco-driving through smartphone-vehicle integration [Tesis doctoral no publicada]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/84287TESISCompendi

Network Traffic Aware Smartphone Energy Savings

In today\u27s world of ubiquitous Smartphone use, extending the battery life has become an important issue. A significant contributor to battery drain is wireless networking. Common usage patterns expect Smartphones to maintain a constant Internet connection which exacerbates the problem.;Our research entitled A Network Traffic Approach to Smartphone Energy Savings focuses on extending Smartphone battery life by investigating how network traffic impacts power management of wireless devices. We explore 1) Real-time VoIP application energy savings by exploiting silence periods in conversation. WiFi is opportunistically placed into low power mode during Silence periods. 2.) The priority of Smartphone Application network traffic is used to modifiy WiFi radio power management using machine learning assisted prioritization. High priority network traffic is optimized for performance, consuming more energy while low priority network traffic is optimized for energy conservation. 3.) A hybrid multiple PHY, MAC layer approach to saving energy is also utilized. The Bluetooth assisted WiFi approach saves energy by combining high power, high throughput WiFi with low power, lower throughput Bluetooth. The switch between Bluetooth and WiFi is done opportunistically based upon the current data rate and health of the Bluetooth connection.;Our results show that application specific methods for wireless energy savings are very effective. We have demonstrated energy savings exceeding 50% in generic cases. With real-time VoIP applications we have shown upwards of 40% energy savings while maintaining good call quality. The hybrid multiple PHY approach saves more than 25% energy over existing solutions while attaining the capability of quickly adapting to changes in network traffic