Development of a license plate recognition system for a non-ideal environment

A new algorithm for license plate character recognition system is proposed on the basis of Signature analysis properties and features extraction. Signature analysis has been used to locate license plate region and its properties can be further utilised in supporting and affirming the license plate character recognition. This paper presents the implementation of Signature Analysis combined with Features Extraction to form feature vector for each character with a length of 56. Implementation of these two methods is used in tracking of vehicle’s automatic license plate recognition system (ALPR). The developed ALPR comprises of three phase. The recognition stage utilised the vector to be trained in a simple multi-layer feed-forward back-propagation Neural Network with 56 inputs and 34 neurons in its output layer. The network is trained with both ideal and noisy characters. The results obtained show that the proposed system is capable to recognise both ideal and non-ideal license plate characters. The system also capable to tackle the common character misclassification problems due to similarity in characters

Development of a web-based insulin decision aid for the elderly: usability barriers and guidelines

In recent years, researchers have attempted to shift patient decision aids (PDAs) from paper-based to web-based to increase its accessibility. Insulin decision aids help diabetes patients, most of whom are elderly to make an informed decision to start insulin. However, the lack of usability guidelines applicable for such target group causes developers to struggle to answer the challenging question ‘How can such web service be made usable, and, ultimately, acceptable and accessible for elderly patients?’. Hence, the purpose of this study is to identify the common usability requirements that may facilitate good practices to empower elderly diabetes patients in utilizing a web-based insulin decision aid for their benefit. We set out an approach to use prototyping and retrospective think-aloud techniques to explore web usability barriers that elderly patients may encounter when using an insulin decision aid web site and use the feedback for improving the prototype. Usability requirements were captured iteratively through scoping, brainstorming, prototype, testing and evaluating. The study suggests that the insights from experts and users are equally important to assure the validity of the identified usability guidelines; they reflect the accessibility needs of the aging community while complementing the key requirements of an insulin decision aid. The study contributes to recommend web usability guidelines backed by a series of expert and user evaluations which could be a proactive resource to improve usability, acceptability and accessibility of online insulin decision aids for elderly with diabetes

Antimicrobial resistance among migrants in Europe: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are rising globally and there is concern that increased migration is contributing to the burden of antibiotic resistance in Europe. However, the effect of migration on the burden of AMR in Europe has not yet been comprehensively examined. Therefore, we did a systematic review and meta-analysis to identify and synthesise data for AMR carriage or infection in migrants to Europe to examine differences in patterns of AMR across migrant groups and in different settings. METHODS: For this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched MEDLINE, Embase, PubMed, and Scopus with no language restrictions from Jan 1, 2000, to Jan 18, 2017, for primary data from observational studies reporting antibacterial resistance in common bacterial pathogens among migrants to 21 European Union-15 and European Economic Area countries. To be eligible for inclusion, studies had to report data on carriage or infection with laboratory-confirmed antibiotic-resistant organisms in migrant populations. We extracted data from eligible studies and assessed quality using piloted, standardised forms. We did not examine drug resistance in tuberculosis and excluded articles solely reporting on this parameter. We also excluded articles in which migrant status was determined by ethnicity, country of birth of participants' parents, or was not defined, and articles in which data were not disaggregated by migrant status. Outcomes were carriage of or infection with antibiotic-resistant organisms. We used random-effects models to calculate the pooled prevalence of each outcome. The study protocol is registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42016043681. FINDINGS: We identified 2274 articles, of which 23 observational studies reporting on antibiotic resistance in 2319 migrants were included. The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or AMR infection in migrants was 25·4% (95% CI 19·1-31·8; I2 =98%), including meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (7·8%, 4·8-10·7; I2 =92%) and antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (27·2%, 17·6-36·8; I2 =94%). The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or infection was higher in refugees and asylum seekers (33·0%, 18·3-47·6; I2 =98%) than in other migrant groups (6·6%, 1·8-11·3; I2 =92%). The pooled prevalence of antibiotic-resistant organisms was slightly higher in high-migrant community settings (33·1%, 11·1-55·1; I2 =96%) than in migrants in hospitals (24·3%, 16·1-32·6; I2 =98%). We did not find evidence of high rates of transmission of AMR from migrant to host populations. INTERPRETATION: Migrants are exposed to conditions favouring the emergence of drug resistance during transit and in host countries in Europe. Increased antibiotic resistance among refugees and asylum seekers and in high-migrant community settings (such as refugee camps and detention facilities) highlights the need for improved living conditions, access to health care, and initiatives to facilitate detection of and appropriate high-quality treatment for antibiotic-resistant infections during transit and in host countries. Protocols for the prevention and control of infection and for antibiotic surveillance need to be integrated in all aspects of health care, which should be accessible for all migrant groups, and should target determinants of AMR before, during, and after migration. FUNDING: UK National Institute for Health Research Imperial Biomedical Research Centre, Imperial College Healthcare Charity, the Wellcome Trust, and UK National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit in Healthcare-associated Infections and Antimictobial Resistance at Imperial College London

Surgical site infection after gastrointestinal surgery in high-income, middle-income, and low-income countries: a prospective, international, multicentre cohort study

Background: Surgical site infection (SSI) is one of the most common infections associated with health care, but its importance as a global health priority is not fully understood. We quantified the burden of SSI after gastrointestinal surgery in countries in all parts of the world. Methods: This international, prospective, multicentre cohort study included consecutive patients undergoing elective or emergency gastrointestinal resection within 2-week time periods at any health-care facility in any country. Countries with participating centres were stratified into high-income, middle-income, and low-income groups according to the UN's Human Development Index (HDI). Data variables from the GlobalSurg 1 study and other studies that have been found to affect the likelihood of SSI were entered into risk adjustment models. The primary outcome measure was the 30-day SSI incidence (defined by US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention criteria for superficial and deep incisional SSI). Relationships with explanatory variables were examined using Bayesian multilevel logistic regression models. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02662231. Findings: Between Jan 4, 2016, and July 31, 2016, 13 265 records were submitted for analysis. 12 539 patients from 343 hospitals in 66 countries were included. 7339 (58·5%) patient were from high-HDI countries (193 hospitals in 30 countries), 3918 (31·2%) patients were from middle-HDI countries (82 hospitals in 18 countries), and 1282 (10·2%) patients were from low-HDI countries (68 hospitals in 18 countries). In total, 1538 (12·3%) patients had SSI within 30 days of surgery. The incidence of SSI varied between countries with high (691 [9·4%] of 7339 patients), middle (549 [14·0%] of 3918 patients), and low (298 [23·2%] of 1282) HDI (p < 0·001). The highest SSI incidence in each HDI group was after dirty surgery (102 [17·8%] of 574 patients in high-HDI countries; 74 [31·4%] of 236 patients in middle-HDI countries; 72 [39·8%] of 181 patients in low-HDI countries). Following risk factor adjustment, patients in low-HDI countries were at greatest risk of SSI (adjusted odds ratio 1·60, 95% credible interval 1·05–2·37; p=0·030). 132 (21·6%) of 610 patients with an SSI and a microbiology culture result had an infection that was resistant to the prophylactic antibiotic used. Resistant infections were detected in 49 (16·6%) of 295 patients in high-HDI countries, in 37 (19·8%) of 187 patients in middle-HDI countries, and in 46 (35·9%) of 128 patients in low-HDI countries (p < 0·001). Interpretation: Countries with a low HDI carry a disproportionately greater burden of SSI than countries with a middle or high HDI and might have higher rates of antibiotic resistance. In view of WHO recommendations on SSI prevention that highlight the absence of high-quality interventional research, urgent, pragmatic, randomised trials based in LMICs are needed to assess measures aiming to reduce this preventable complication

The effects of copyright law on the supply of creative work : new evidence from the United States sound recording industry

While copyright law extensions have often been seen as having significant impacts towards the supply of creative work, the importance of economic factors should also be considered as they still play a crucial role in the United States sound recording industry. This paper thus investigates the issue of the implementation of the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act as well as economic incentives towards the supply of new creative sound recording work in the U.S. context. Our empirical analysis considers a time-series dataset covering a period of 18 years from 1990-2007 to represent the supply of the U.S. commercial sound recordings. The dataset is extracted and compiled from third party sources, namely the U.S. Copyright Office and the CEIC database. The empirical evidence indicates that although the copyright law extension is found to have a positive impact on the supply of sound recordings, it is statistically insignificant. Conversely, other economic factors, the amount of money spent on audio and visual equipment in particular, appears to have a more significant impact on the supply of sound recordings. This leads us to conclude that economic incentives may have a more significant impact than copyright law extensions in influencing the U.S. supply of creative sound recordings.Bachelor of Art

Corporate social responsibility : a focus on the community and environment.

This project seeks to examine the extent to which CSR practices have yet to catch on in Singapore’s companies and to investigate the reasons behind this apparent lack of proactivity, despite CSR’s positive correlation with profits in foreign companies with an established CSR framework

Effects of fancy job titles on recruitment success for the information technology industry.

This study aims to investigate the effect of fancy job titles on recruitment success of Information Technology (IT) Working Professionals and Tertiary Students who are currently majoring in IT-related courses. In addition, working experience in IT-related fields was used as an operationalization to investigate if there is a moderator effect of job titles on recruitment success. The research was conducted on two different groups of respondents: Working Professionals and Tertiary Students. The respondents were asked to fill up a questionnaire on a particular job in the IT industry. Besides the job titles and job descriptions, other details such as the organization name and work location were omitted to control for biasness. The respondents were requested to read about a scenario and then answer several questions on Job Attractiveness, Job Prestige and Job Acceptance. Findings indicate that fancy job titles have an impact on Job Attractiveness. However, the effect on Job Prestige and Job Acceptance was not significant. Implications for recruitment purposes and future research were also discussed

Multiple vehicles license plate tracking and recognition via isotropic dilation

In this paper, a new algorithm for Automatic License Plate Localisation and Recognition (ALPR) is proposed on the basis of isotropic dilation that can be achieved using the binary image Euclidean distance transform. In a blob analysis problem, any two Region of Interest (RoIs) that is discontinuous are typically treated as separate blobs. However, the proposed algorithm combine with Connected Component Analysis (CCA) are coded to seek for RoI within a certain distance of other RoI to be treated as non-unique. This paper investigates the design and implementation of several pre-processing techniques and isotropic dilation algorithm to classify moving vehicles with different backgrounds and varying angles. A multi-layer feed-forward back-propagation Neural Network is used to train the segmented and refined characters. The results obtained can be used for implementation in the vehicle parking management system

Explant Biopsy and Remuzzi Scoring Outperforms Kidney Donor Profile Index (KDPI) in Selection of Extended Criteria Donor Kidneys for Single Implant

10.1097/01.tp.0000543173.47952.4c27th International Congress of the Transplantation-Society (TTS)102Supplement 7S401-S40