Development Of Smart Vehicle Blind Spot Detection System Based On 24 GHz Radar Sensors

Road safety has become more concern due to the number of accidents that keeps increasing every year. The safety system includes from simple installation such as seat belt, air bag and rear camera to more complicated and intelligent system such as braking assist, lane change assist and blind spot monitoring. This paper proposed a Smart Vehicle Blind Spot Detection System (VBDS) to observe the blind spot region based on ISO 17387: 2008(E). This system is mounted with two programmable 24 GHz radar sensors on the left and right rear side of the car. In addition, this system provides an audible and visual alert to the driver if the system senses any vehicles in the blind spot region using buzzer and LED, respectively. To analyze the performance of the system, test had been conducted at different demography condition. The accuracy of the system is analyzed by comparing number of vehicles detected within blind spot region and ground truth data. This system will alert the driver automatically to ensure the driver safety and reduce road accident. As conclusion, the system had been proofed applicable to use at different demography condition

The analysis of road traffic fatality pattern for Selangor, Malaysia case study

Road traffic fatality is a burden towards low- and middle-income countries including Malaysia. Seeing that Selangor has the highest number of road traffic fatalities in Malaysia for the year 2019, therefore the state is selected as a case study. The aim of the article is 1) to understand the road traffic crash pattern and road traffic fatality pattern in Selangor 2) to determine the ability of 16 road traffic features in classifying road traffic fatality occurrence. The preliminary data screening shows that road traffic crash patterns and road traffic fatality patterns in Selangor have many similarities. However, both of them also have few dissimilarities such as crash time of occurrence, day of occurrence, number of vehicles involved in a crash, and type of vehicle first hit for the crash. Supervised machine learning algorithm in Orange data mining software was considered in this analysis. The analysed algorithms among others are neural network, random forest, decision tree, logistic regression, naïve Bayes, and support vector machine. Neural network was seen as the best algorithm to classify road traffic fatality occurrence with 97.0% classification accuracy outperform other algorithms. The result of the article can be used by the relevant traffic stakeholders to execute safety intervention in a more focused manner in Selangor to reduce the number of road traffic fatalities

Coffee and its waste repel gravid Aedes albopictus females and inhibit the development of their embryos

Background Dengue is a prevalent arboviral disease and the development of insecticide resistance among its vectors impedes endeavors to control it. Coffee is drunk by millions of people daily worldwide, which is associated with the discarding of large amounts of waste. Coffee and its waste contain large amounts of chemicals many of which are highly toxic and none of which have a history of resistance in mosquitoes. Once in solution, coffee is brownish in colour, resembling leaf infusion, which is highly attractive to gravid mosquitoes. To anticipate the environmental issues related to the increasing popularity of coffee as a drink, and also to combat insecticide resistance, we explored the deterrence potentials of coffee leachates against the ovipositing and embryonic stages of the dengue vector, Aedes albopictus. Methods In a series of choice, no-choice, and embryo toxicity bioassays, we examined changes in the ovipositional behaviours and larval eclosion of Ae. albopictus in response to coffee extracts at different concentrations. Results Oviposition responses were extremely low when ovicups holding highly concentrated extract (HCE) of coffee were the only oviposition sites. Gravid females retained increased numbers of mature eggs until 5 days post-blood feeding. When provided an opportunity to oviposit in cups containing coffee extracts and with water, egg deposition occurred at lower rates in those containing coffee, and HCE cups were far less attractive to females than those containing water only. Females that successfully developed in a coffee environment preferentially oviposited in such cups when in competition with preferred oviposition sites (water cups), but this trait did not continue into the fourth generation. Larval eclosion occurred at lower rates among eggs that matured in a coffee environment, especially among those that were maintained on HCE-moistened substrates. Conclusions The observations of the present study indicate a pronounced vulnerability of Ae. albopictus to the presence of coffee in its habitats during the early phases of its life cycle. The observations that coffee repels gravid females and inhibits larval eclosion provide novel possibilities in the search for novel oviposition deterrents and anti-larval eclosion agents against dengue vectors.This work was supported by funds (No. 096010) from the Central Research Institute of Fukuoka University and “Long Term Research Grant (LRGS) for Infectious Diseases, 2011 – 2014, Ministry of Higher Education, Malaysia” and USM (304/Pbiology/650575/U112)

Effects of ride comfort on different non-driving related activities in fully automated driving experience

A fully automated vehicle (AV) is projected to free users from driving activities. However, motion sickness (MS) is expected to be experienced by the users when engaging in Non-Driving Activities (NDRAs) such as reading, and watching a video because they will be exposed to low-frequency movement that contributes to the development of motion sickness. This study analyzed the difference in users’ ride comfort when traveling in an AV in a real-road situation. The Wizard of Oz method was implemented for the participants to experience fully automated driving. The study was divided into three stages: pre-, during, and post-driven, to measure the user’s comfort, safety, likeness, and motion sickness level through self-report questionnaires. Three conditions of NDRA consisting of baseline (doing nothing), reading, and watching a video were tested among the young participants (18 to 28 years old, Mean = 21.4, Standard Deviation = 2.84). Statistical analysis showed a statistically significant difference between the three different NDRAs. Reading imposed the highest experienced MS followed by watching a video and doing nothing. Understanding ride comfort in AV riding is vital in designing an AV that makes the passenger enjoy the ride without any discomfort feeling (motion sickness), especially when engaging in any NDRA

Effects of ride comfort on different non-driving related activities in fully automated driving experience

A fully automated vehicle (AV) is projected to free users from driving activities. However, motion sickness (MS) is expected to be experienced by the users when engaging in Non-Driving Activities (NDRAs) such as reading, and watching a video because they will be exposed to low-frequency movement that contributes to the development of motion sickness. This study analyzed the difference in users’ ride comfort when traveling in an AV in a real-road situation. The Wizard of Oz method was implemented for the participants to experience fully automated driving. The study was divided into three stages: pre-, during, and post-driven, to measure the user’s comfort, safety, likeness, and motion sickness level through self-report questionnaires. Three conditions of NDRA consisting of baseline (doing nothing), reading, and watching a video were tested among the young participants (18 to 28 years old, Mean = 21.4, Standard Deviation = 2.84). Statistical analysis showed a statistically significant difference between the three different NDRAs. Reading imposed the highest experienced MS followed by watching a video and doing nothing. Understanding ride comfort in AV riding is vital in designing an AV that makes the passenger enjoy the ride without any discomfort feeling (motion sickness), especially when engaging in any NDRA

Pairing as an instructional strategy to promote soft skills amongst clinical dental students

Training dentists today is challenging as they are expected to provide a wide range of dental care. In the provision of good dental care, soft skills are equally important as clinical skills. Therefore in dental education the development of soft skills are of prime concern. This study sought to identify the development of soft skills when dental students are paired in their clinical training. In this perception study, four open-ended items were used to elicit students’ feedback on the appropriateness of using clinical pairing as an instructional strategy to promote soft skills. The most frequently cited soft skills were teamwork (70%) and communication (25%) skills. However, both negative and positive behaviours were reported. As for critical thinking and problem solving skills, more positive behaviours were reported for abilities such as to explain, analyze, find ideas and alternative solutions, and make decisions. Leadership among peers was not evident as leading without legitimate authority could be a hindrance to its development. If clinical pairing is to be used as an effective instructional strategy to promote soft skills amongst students, clear guidelines need to be developed to prepare students to work in a dental team and the use of appropriate assessment tools can facilitate the development of these soft skills

Analisis rasch sebagai teknik untuk menyemak ciri psikometrik item soalan pendidikan Islam

Achievement test is a tool to measure attainment of teaching and learning objectives, monitor learning progress, and diagnose students' learning difficulties. And accuracy in measurement is essential to help teachers/practitioners in designing effective intervention stategies. In order to arrive at accurate and valid measures of student achievement, robust statistical methods are necessary to assess the quality of test items. This article illustrates how the Rasch Measruement Model is used to examine the psychometric characteristics of an Islamic Education test, and ways in which to improve the accuracy and precision of the 40 items used in the test

Biting rhythm and demographic attributes of Aedes albopictus (Skuse) females from different urbanized settings in Penang Island, Malaysia under uncontrolled laboratory conditions.

Urbanization could potentially modify Aedes albopictus' ecology by changing the dynamics of the species, and affecting their breeding sites due to environmental changes, and thus contribute to dengue outbreaks. Thus, this study was conducted to evaluate the biting rhythm, fecundity and longevity of adult female Ae. albopictus in relation to urbanization strata; urban, suburban and rural areas in Penang Island, Malaysia. The experiments were done in comparison to a laboratory strain. Twenty-four hours biting activity of all the mosquito strains showed a clear bimodal biting activity, with morning and evening twilight peaks. The interaction effect between biting time and mosquito strains was not significant. Meanwhile, differences in fecundity among mosquito strains were statistically significant (F(3,442) = 10.559, P < 0.05) with urban areas having higher mean number of eggs (mean = 107.69, standard error = 3.98) than suburban (mean = 94.48, standard error = 5.18), and rural areas (mean = 72.52, standard error = 3.87). Longevity of adult females were significantly higher (F(3,441) = 31.259, P < 0.05) for mosquito strains from urban areas compared to the other strains. These findings would provide crucial information for the planning of control programs in Malaysia, particularly Penang

Changes in the biting activity of a dengue vector relative to larval and adult nutritional histories : implications for preventive measures

The magnitude of dengue transmission depends largely on the level of human–vector contact. Therefore, knowledge regarding the biting periodicity of mosquitoes is crucial to determine transmission periods' risk, and in planning personal protection measures. Dengue vectors are day-active and endure transitory periods of starvation overnight. However, it is unclear how their blood feeding activity pattern is related to body size when temporarily deprived of their main source of energy — sugar. We examined the changes in Aedes albopictus diurnal biting activity, taking into account larval nutritional history and adult starvation. Overall, large body size and non-starvation conditions were associated with better blood feeding success, but these parameters did not significantly modify the timing of first blood feeding attempt. Females of both sizes showed significant temporal variations in their blood feeding activities. Under conditions of starvation, blood meal uptake was much greater in large females from morning to evening. Similar variations of feeding activity were observed in small females, except in the morning. Under non-starvation conditions, the blood feeding activity of small mosquitoes tended to decrease over time, whereas blood meal uptake activity was high and remained almost constant from morning to evening for larger mosquitoes. This work emphasizes the importance of body size and hunger on the dynamics of vector–host interaction and has important implications for the development of novel strategies for the prevention of disease transmission. Knowing when dengue vectors actively bite during the day can help in timing effective personal protective measures