Reconstruction of 3D faces by shape estimation and texture interpolation

This paper aims to address the ill-posed problem of reconstructing 3D faces from single 2D face images. An extended Tikhonov regularization method is connected with the standard 3D morphable model in order to reconstruct the 3D face shapes from a small set of 2D facial points. Further, by interpolating the input 2D texture with the model texture and warping the interpolated texture to the reconstructed face shapes, 3D face reconstruction is achieved. For the texture warping, the 2D face deformation has been learned from the model texture using a set of facial landmarks. Our experimental results justify the robustness of the proposed approach with respect to the reconstruction of realistic 3D face shapes

Characterization of steel fiber and/or polymer concrete mixes and applications to slender rectangular and I -beams

This dissertation presents results from experimental studies related to polymer modified concrete, steel fiber reinforced concrete, and steel fiber/polymer modified concrete. As a first stage of this research, the properties of different concrete mixes were characterized. These mixes were: plain concrete, steel fiber concrete with fiber volume fraction of 1%, polymer modified concrete with 1% to 7.5% solids of polymer, and steel fiber/polymer modified concrete with 1% to 7.5% polymer solids and I% steel fiber fraction. Concrete cylinders and 4 x 4 inches beams were tested under compressive, tensile, flexural, and bar pull-out loadings; In the second phase of this research, slender beams with a depth to width ratio of three were tested under four point loading for shear and flexure. Half I-beams, with gross aspect ratio of four and web aspect ratio of three were tested under the combined loading of bending, shear, and torsion. Lateral eccentric loads were applied transversely in the shallow direction to the 3 x 9 inches beams and the half I-beams. Dog bone shaped reinforced and un-reinforced specimens with 3 x 3 inches square sections were tested under pure torsional loaDing The addition of 1% steel fibers alone or with 5% solids of polymers to concrete mixes improved their toughness and ductility. The contribution of steel fibers to bending, shear, and torsion in slender and half I-beams is presented. The ACI code methods for calculating the torsional, shear, and flexural resistance of beams are compared to the experimental results. Post crack analysis performed on the slender beams and half I-beams indicated that the tested specimens could carry 70% of the maximum applied loads after initial concrete cracking and failure. The reduction in the tensile stresses of stirrups and longitudinal reinforcing bars, due to the steel fibers and polymer, are presented. Fibers and polymers increase bending and toughness in concrete

Near NP-Completeness for Detecting p-adic Rational Roots in One Variable

We show that deciding whether a sparse univariate polynomial has a p-adic rational root can be done in NP for most inputs. We also prove a polynomial-time upper bound for trinomials with suitably generic p-adic Newton polygon. We thus improve the best previous complexity upper bound of EXPTIME. We also prove an unconditional complexity lower bound of NP-hardness with respect to randomized reductions for general univariate polynomials. The best previous lower bound assumed an unproved hypothesis on the distribution of primes in arithmetic progression. We also discuss how our results complement analogous results over the real numbers.Comment: 8 pages in 2 column format, 1 illustration. Submitted to a conferenc

Sub-2 μm Silica Particles in Chiral Separation

For decades, the race for the shortest chromatogram with the best resolution and separation efficiency has been the focus of researchers and manufacturers. Considerable advancement has been attained in the field of separation science with the widespread applications and outstanding performance of nanomaterials. According to the van Deemter equation, sub-2 micron particles employed in a conventional HPLC short column should subsequently result in analysis time reduction and efficiency improvements without the drawbacks of high pressure associated with sub-2 micron particles. This chapter provides comprehensive discussion about the applications of the new sub 2 microns silica particles in chiral separation of racemates

Educating engineering students in Egypt: recommendations for improvement

Egyptian schools of engineering (government faculties, private faculties and private higher engineering institutes) award degrees to 35000 graduates annually. There have been concerns from the Egyptian Engineers Syndicate, experienced engineers, local & international employers, parents and other society stakeholders about the knowledge and skills gained by engineering graduates. In this article, first the institutions were analyzed from a fresh business perspective. The analysis highlighted several constraints that hinder radical reforms. In part two of this article the aspirations of stakeholders were collected and identified. In part three, recommendations were made based on the experiences of engineering education providers worldwide

Management of congenital esophageal stenosis associated with esophageal atresia and its impact on postoperative esophageal stricture

Aim The aim of this work was to study the incidence, management of congenital esophageal stenosis (CES) associated with esophageal atresia (EA) and tracheoesophageal fistula (TEF), and its impact on esophageal stricture (ES) after primary repair.Patients and methods From January 2006 to December 2014, 41 sequential cases of EA with distal TEF were retrospectively studied. Cases with significant ES after primary repair were included in the study. Associated CES was diagnosed in the neonatal period by taking histopathologic samples from the tips of the esophageal pouches, failure to pass a size-6 nasogastric tube distally during primary repair, and by initial esophagogram.Results Significant ES developed in 19 patients (46.3%); of them, six had CES (32%). Three patients had tracheobronchial remnants at the anastomotic site. Two of them had refractory strictures requiring resections and one had mainly major esophageal dysmotility. Patients 4 and 5 had CES distal to the anastomotic site on initial esophagogram. Patient 4 responded well to dilatations, whereas the other one had refractory stricture. Patient 6 had distal CES due to fibromuscular stenosis diagnosed by failure to pass a size-6 nasogastric tube distally. The patient responded well to dilatation, myectomy, and Thal’s fundoplication.Conclusion One-third of the patients with significant stricture had CES; half of them were refractory to dilatation. Failure to have histology specimens and a high index of suspicion will make the incidence of this association a rarity. Diagnosis and management of CES with EA/TEF in the neonatal period is possible. Esophageal dilatation is the initial management for all cases with a low threshold for gastric fundoplication and gastrostomy. Resection is reserved for refractory stenosis.Keywords: congenital esophageal stenosis, esophageal atresia, esophageal stricture, tracheoesophageal fistul

Understanding the nature of dropouts in MFIs: Evidence from rural Bangladesh

The present study aims to comprehend the nature of drop out from the microfinance institutes (MFIs) in Bangladesh.To this aim, the research incorporates several variables ranging from the demographic to demandled factors that may affect the dropping out behavior of the rural poor in MFIs.Multiple regression model has been used to analyze the data (n = 280) that are collected from the dropout-members from six regions of Bangladesh.The findings demonstrate that eleven of fourteen explanatory variables including the demographics are statistically significant to influence the dropping out behavior of the dropouts in rural Bangladesh