Modeling of a Method of Cellular Technology Processing Systems and Pattern Recognition Images for Fast Recognition of Dynamic Images

Supervised learning has been considered as a hot topic as it is used in different fields that can exploit the advantages of artificial intelligence. This research introduces a new approach using cellular technology for solving various problems of processing and pattern recognition images that are invariant to the orientation, scale, and dynamic changes in real time. On the basis of the notion of geometric type solved the problem of information selection elements in the image recognition of shapes, lines and laser processing of personal identification for handwritten text. Keywords: cellular technology, pattern recognition, figures recognition, neural networ

Nullspace of Compound Magic Squares

In this chapter, we consider special compound 4 n × 4 n magic squares. We determine a 2 n − 3 dimensional subspace of the nullspace of the 4 n × 4 n squares. All vectors in the subspaces possess the property that the sum of all entries of each vector equals zero

Clinical evaluation of stretchable and wearable inkjet-printed strain gauge sensor for respiratory rate monitoring at different body postures

Respiratory rate (RR) is a vital sign with continuous, convenient, and accurate measurement which is difficult and still under investigation. The present study investigates and evaluates a stretchable and wearable inkjet-printed strain gauge sensor (IJP) to estimate the RR continuously by detecting the respiratory volume change in the chest area. As the volume change could cause different strain changes at different body postures, this study aims to investigate the accuracy of the IJP RR sensor at selected postures. The evaluation was performed twice on 15 healthy male subjects (mean ± SD of age: 24 ± 1.22 years). The RR was simultaneously measured in breaths per minute (BPM) by the IJP RR sensor and a reference RR sensor (e-Health nasal thermal sensor) at each of the five body postures namely standing, sitting at 90°, Flower’s position at 45°, supine, and right lateral recumbent. There was no significant difference in measured RR between IJP and reference sensors, between two trials, or between different body postures (all p \u3e 0.05). Body posture did not have any significant effect on the difference of RR measurements between IJP and the reference sensors (difference \u3c 0.01 BPM for each measurement in both trials). The IJP sensor could accurately measure the RR at different body postures, which makes it a promising, simple, and user-friendly option for clinical and daily uses

HDL-based Synthesis of Reversible Circuits : A Scalable Design Approach

Reversible computing is a promising research field due to its applications in several emerging technologies. Accordingly, several approaches for the design of reversible circuits have been introduced. Hardware Description Languages approach scales better than other methodologies, however, its main drawback is substantial amounts of additional circuit lines. This dissertation is an important step towards an elaborated scalable design flow of reversible circuits. In which, HDL-based design of reversible circuit is optimised, with line-awareness considered as the main objective. A line-aware programming style for a dedicated reversible hardware description language SyReC is proposed. Another contribution is a line-aware computation of HDL expressions. Reversible circuits' synthesis from a conventional hardware description language (VHDL) is examined. Finally, syntactical extensions to the dedicated hardware description language SyReC are suggested

Parent's Point of View towards Their Children Playing in the Jordanian Families

This study aims at identifying the parent's point of view of about their children's playing, and it has been conducting in the city of Amman - the capital of Jordan, by choosing (8) kindergartens spread over different parts of the capital city, and the study sample is consisted of (130 fathers and 130 mothers). Data was collected through the study tool, related to their personal information such as age, qualification, income and number of children, in order to identify the impact of these variables on parents, and on their children as will. Also the study aimed at addressing the active role to playing in building the child's personality, and providing the opportunities of healthy physical, social and emotional growth. And the role of parents in upbringing their children by participating in their happiest moments of their lives through playing and spending more time together without feeling bored or tired. So, the researcher hopes that the current study guides parents, teachers and researchers in the field of early childhood and the most important basics of the process of educational upbringing, and the importance of the relationship between the child and his parents, by highlighting the importance of planning and organizing of the balancing these playing activities, and finally to correct some wrong practices among parents and educators

Analysis of complex nonlinear reaction-diffusion equations

A mathematical analysis has been carried out for some nonlinear reaction- diffusion equations on open bounded convex domains Ω C R(^d)(d < 3) with Robin boundary conditions- Existence, uniqueness and continuous dependence on initial data of weak and strong solutions are proved. A numerical analysis has also been undertaken for these nonlinear reaction- diffusion equations on the above domains. A fully practical piecewise linear finite element approximation is proposed for which existence and uniqueness of the numerical solution are proved. Semi-discrete and fully discrete error estimates are given. A practical algorithm for computing the numerical solution is given and its convergence is proved. Finally, some numerical simulations in one-dimensional space are exhibited

Purification and characterization of Streptococcus pyogenes superantigen (Spe-C)

From 144 specimens of tonsillitis which were collected from patient, (children of 3 -12 year olds) there were 70 isolates beta hemolytic and 28 isolates were identified as S. pyogenes. Sensitivity of S. pyogenes isolates to antibiotics was tested, all isolates were sensitive to amoxicillin and cephaloxia while higher resistant were to erythromycin. One isolate whiche was 100 A had a stable characteristics and produce pyrogenic toxin was chosen for study and it was purified and characterized from the cell free supernatant of S. pyrogenes strain

Determinants of nurses' pain management practices in Jordan: The moderating role of patient's barriers

In spite of the significant advancement in methods and tools associated with pain management, there is still a deficiency in the pain management practices. Therefore, the aim of this study is to empirically determine the level of pain management practices, evaluate the significant predictors of pain management practices (i.e. knowledge, attitude, subjective norm and self-efficacy), examine the moderating effect of patient barriers on the relationship between the predictors and the pain management practices, and to investigate the applicability of Field theory in explaining the pain management practices in Jordan. Six latent variables were involved including five exogenous and one endogenous variables and a cross-sectional survey was used in conducting the study. The instrument is consisted of 93 items adapted from the previous studies. The questionnaires were distributed to 600 nurses in 13 hospitals located in the central region of Jordan. The nurses were selected at random using a multistage cluster technique. Of 600, only 307 questionnaires were returned and used for analysis. Data collection was carried out for the period of six months from October 2014 until March 2015. Data were analyzed using partial least squares-structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). The findings support the majority of the hypothesized relationships, specifically the hypothesized direct effects of attitude, self-efficacy, knowledge, and subjective norms on the pain management practices. In addition, patient-related barriers moderate one of these relationships. That is, the relationship between attitudes towards the pain management and the pain management practices is weaker for nurses who perceived high barriers from their patients as opposed to nurses who perceived low patient-related barriers. Collectively, the determinant variables of pain management practices accounted for 78% of the variance in the pain management practices. Theoretical, methodological, and practical implications are discussed

Optical and thermal optimisation of parabolic trough solar collectors for heating applications via a novel receiver tube

Non-renewable energy sources (fossil fuels) remain economically advantageous because of their abundance and capacity to generate a large amount of energy in single location. Pollution is a major issue of utilising this energy, while it is becoming more challenging to extract them. In the world in each second approximately 1.2 million kilograms of CO2 are released into the atmosphere; non-renewable resources contribute the majority of these emissions, because they are mostly responsible for energy generation. The resultant climate change increases the earth’s surface temperature, leading to loss of ice mass, elevation of sea level and flooding. Therefore, due to the increase in the world’s fossil fuel energy consumption, limit to its resources and growing worldwide pollution issues, there is an urgent need for environmentally-friendly and sustainable energy resources. Renewable energy resources are sustainable resources that produce zero greenhouse gas emissions while producing the energy. It should be noted that pollution is generated during the manufacture and decommissioning of renewable technology components. Solar energy is the most abundant and geographically widespread resource and it has tremendous advantages over other renewable energy resources. Concentrating solar power (CSP) is the main solar thermal technology for commercially converting solar energy into electricity, in addition to its ability to provide energy for heating applications. Among all of the CSP technologies, Parabolic Trough Solar Collectors (PTSC) are the most mature, efficient and cost-effective technology. The main principle of PTSC operation is to reflect direct solar radiation from a parabolic mirror (the reflector) that focusses the radiation on the receiver tube to heat a Heat Transfer Fluid (HTF). The receiver tube is constructed by encasing the metal absorber tube (through which the HTF flows) with a glass envelope; the space between the absorber tube and glass envelope is evacuated in many existing designs. There are some challenges with the operation of PTSC systems. PTSC optical efficiency is principally reduced by the reflected radiation deviating from the focal line due to geometric inaccuracies, such as collector and receiver tube misalignments, in addition to wind changes. Moreover, the HTF temperature can reach 400 °C, increasing the temperature of the glass cover surrounding the absorber tube. The resultant heat losses reduce the useful heat gain and decrease the PTSC thermal efficiency. In addition, the bottom portion of the receiver tube is normally exposed to concentrating sunlight, whereas the upper part of the receiver is subjected to direct normal solar radiation. As a results the heat flux distribution on the absorber tube receiver surface is highly non-uniform, which results in high temperature gradients. Consequently thermal deformation in the absorber tube occurs, could break the glass cover. The evacuated receiver tube is costly, amounting to 30% of the total initial material cost of the PTSC solar field; it is difficult to repair any faults, which results in a high replacement cost. Therefore, the goal of this thesis is to design, model and investigate an alternative receiver tube for PTSC systems. This new design can reduce the optical and heat transfer losses in addition to improving (making more uniform) the solar heat flux and temperature distributions on the absorber tube. By achieving this goal there is an economic benefit due to improving PTSC performance (producing more heat), while simultaneously reducing the maintenance and replacement costs. This will result in greater acceptance of PTSC technology, improving its commercial market. To achieve this goal, optical and thermal enhancements have been implemented. For the optical aspect, a PTSC heating system consisting of two identical collectors has been designed and manufactured; one collector was used as a control during each test. To confirm the suitability of the control, the collectors were setup identically; the tests confirmed that there was no bias in the system. The standard configuration (a parabolic collector and absorber tube) was designated 'Cp'. The other collector was modified by attaching a smaller, secondary parabola (SP) with a mirror sheet (SPM) on the opposite side of the absorber tube so that the primary collector and SP shared the same focal line. This configuration was called Cs. The purpose of the SPM is to reflect any deviated solar radiation towards the absorber tube, and also to potentially distribute some of the reflected heat flux onto the upper part of the absorber tube. The Cs was directly compared to Cp in some experiments to assess the potential improvements in efficiency of the SPM. Because the SPM blocks some of the solar radiation from reaching the absorber tube or the primary mirror in Cs configuration, another SP was painted black (SPB). The SPB was setup in the same manner as the SPM in configuration 'Cb'. Therefore, the effect of the lost direct radiation was isolated by comparing Cs and Cb directly. Two types of experimental tests were performed for the two configuration comparisons: tracking tests, where the PTSC tracked the sun throughout the day from sunrise until sunset; and fixed tests, where the PTSC was aimed at the noon position of the sun (simulating the noon position of the sun throughout the year). The experimental results for the Cs and Cp overall average efficiencies during the tracking stage were 44.94% ± 0.04% and 44.55% ± 0.04% respectively (Cp efficiency equals 99% of the Cs efficiency), while their overall average annual noontime efficiencies during the fixed stage were 23.74% ± 0.02% and 20.55% ± 0.02% respectively (Cp efficiency equals 86% of the Cs efficiency). This means that the SPM improved the optical efficiency of the Cs collector, because 8.5% of its aperture area was blocked by the SPM aperture area. The mirror on the SP improved the thermal efficiency of the Cs when compared to the Cb efficiency. The experimental results for the Cs and Cb overall average efficiencies during the tracking stage were 42.92% ± 0.03% and 38.52% ± 0.03% respectively (Cb efficiency equals 86% of the Cs efficiency), while their overall average annual noontime efficiencies during the fixed stage were 18.43% ± 0.02% and 13.95 ± 0.02% respectively (Cb efficiency equals 75% of the Cs efficiency). Improving the PTSC optical performance by using an SPM increased the HTF temperature. However, this increased fluid temperature could augment the receiver tube heat loss. Therefore, the blocked area that resulted due to utilising the SPM geometry (optical enhancement) was employed for receiver tube thermal enhancement by including thermal insulation in the receiver tube. The insulation layer that was placed on the inner surface of the upper part of the receiver glass envelope has the same shape and covered the same area as the SPM. This configuration was investigated using 3D Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). Due to the low thermal conductivity of the insulation layer, conduction heat transfer across the glass cover is reduced and therefore the glass cover outer surface temperature was reduced. This reduced the heat transfer loss between the glass outer surface and the atmosphere. In addition, the insulation layer also increased the air temperature between the absorber tube and the glass envelope for a non-evacuated receiver tube, especially in the upper portion of this region. This produced a better temperature distribution on the absorber tube outer surface, which would reduce its propensity for thermal deformation. Several designs of receiver tube cross-section were tested for various wind speeds. It was found that the insulation enhanced the collecting efficiency for each cross-section, and the efficiency of the circular receiver tube was the highest. These results demonstrate that modification of the receiver tube is a viable possibility for a future design that improves the operating efficiency and working life of the receiver tube

Investor-state arbitration in the Sultanate of Oman: lessons to be learned from the European Union’s approach to the investment court system

The Sultanate of Oman strives to promote economic growth. Foreign investment is one of the most important vehicles for achieving this purpose. The Oman Vision 2040 identifies Foreign Direct Investment as the basis of future economic development. To make Oman a more attractive destination for foreign direct investment, the government has developed and implemented a variety of policies. Modernizing the legal framework governing FDI is central to these policies. Considering this, the question arises as to whether the legislative structure governing investor-state arbitration as a means to ensure that Oman fulfils its obligations to international investors requires modification.Investor-state arbitration has played a crucial role in promoting direct foreign investment. It represents one of the legal procedures for resolving investment disputes between host states and foreign investors. Typically, bilateral investment treaties or multilateral free trade agreements provide for investor-state arbitration as a means of settling potential disputes between host states and international investors. However, investor-state arbitration has been criticised in recent years for being partial, less transparent, and severely impacting the regulatory authority of the host state. This critique has prompted calls for reform of the system for resolving investment disputes. The European Union has undertaken reforms to this system through the investment court system (ICS).This thesis analysis the legislative framework governing investor-state arbitration in Sultanate of Oman and evaluates the need for reform considering mentioned conditions and the Oman's desire to become a more attractive destination for international investments. This necessitates an examination of Oman's national laws pertaining to arbitration and foreign investment in order to identify potential weakness. In addition, bilateral and regional investment treaties, as well as international Conventions related to investor-state arbitration, to which Oman is a signatory, are examined in order to determine Oman's obligations in relation to investor-state arbitration. Furthermore, a comparison is made between ICSID arbitration and the EU's model of the Investment Court System in order to assess the EU's approach to reforming the investment dispute settlement system. This thesis concludes that many aspects of Oman's legal framework governing investor-state arbitration require revision. As a result, the Oman government must adopt an integrated plan to review and modernise this framework in response to Oman Vision 2040 and as part of its broader foreign investment and economic development policy