Word formation in Bengali : a whole word morphological description and its theoretical implications

Thèse numérisée par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal

How does product packaging features influence the purchase decision of young adult?

Packaging is more than just a suitable way of showcasing a product or getting a product to the consumer without reaching any damage. Here, we intended to know the relative significance of different features of packaging in purchase decision-making. We controlled the diversity of products and their confounding effect in the decision-making task by giving participants a particular product category (toiletries items) in the instruction. A survey was conducted on 386 Bangladeshi adult participants to rate their attitudes toward 11 different packing features when they make a purchase decision. The finding shows that participants rated printed detail on the package as the most important attribute which can manipulate their purchase choice. Moreover, they rated Convenience packaging, Hygienic wrapping material, convincing words on the packet, and attractiveness as the top five packaging features for young Bangladeshi adults, respectively. We found some significant gender differences in four features of product packaging. Bangladeshi adult females are more influenced by the attractiveness, colourful packet, convenience packaging, and convincing words on the packet than male customers. This finding could be an important addition to consumer behaviour literature. Moreover, marketers and designers would know their customer's needs and will be able to use this knowledge in product packaging as a reliable source of marketing strategy to increase their product sales. Keywords: product packaging; consumer behaviour; decision making; young adult

The effects of compaction delay and environmental temperature on the Mechanical and Hydraulic properties of lime-stabilized extremely high plastic clays

yesA comprehensive experimental programme was performed with the focus on assessing the effects of compaction delay and ambient temperature on the physical, mechanical and hydraulic properties of lime treated expansive clays. Specimens were mellowed for a period of 0, 3, 6, 12, 24 and 48 h at two different temperatures of 20°C and 40°C prior to being compacted, tested and/or cured for up to 28 days for evaluating the impacts on long-term strength development. All specimens were prepared with the same dry unit weight of 12.16 kN/m3 and moisture content of 40% except for tests aimed at determining dry unit weight as a function of mellowing period. The results revealed that as the mellowing duration increased the dry unit weight declined remarkably at both temperature within the first 12 h. In addition, higher reduction rate was observed when specimens were mel-lowed at a temperature of 40°C. A 97% reduction in swelling pressure was obtained when the specimens were compacted upon mixing (zero hour mellowing period) and left to cure for 24 h prior to testing. Permeability coefficient of lime treated expansive clays was increased by up to 40 times when compaction was delayed for 24 h or when specimens were mellowed at 40°C. Specimens mellowed at a temperature of 40°C showed rela-tively stable values of permeability coefficient over the measurement period which could be attributable to accelerated pozzolanic reaction. The Unconfined Compressive Strength tests revealed that strength of lime treated expansive clays is significantly affected by compaction delay. An increase of 234% and 282% in the Unconfined Compressive Strength was achieved after 24 h of mixing with no compaction delay at 20°C and 40°C respectively. Gradual long-term gain in strength was observable within the 28 days post mixing but the rate of strength gain becomes slower and independent of temperature after the first 24 h of mixing. The results sug-gested that the four key reaction mechanisms occur concurrently with the first 12–24 h after lime addition recognized as being the most crucial period of time. Damaging the cementitious compounds by delayed com-paction is harmful to strength and restraining of swelling potential of lime treated expansive clays

A better numerical approach for finding the steady-state waiting time and the average queue length of a system for the arithmetic GI/G/1 queue

In this research, an efficient numerical method is developed to determine the steady-state waiting time distribution of a GI/G/1 queue by solving the discrete-time version of Lindley’s equation, when the queue is bounded on a finite interval. Then, by using Little’s Formula, we calculate the stationary distribution for the total number of customers in the queue. The derivations are based on the Wiener-Hopf factorization of random walks. The method is carried out using a successive approximation method, by improving the weighted average. Finally, to prove the effectiveness of our method, we apply the algorithm for Uniform, Geometric, and Gamma distributions, to find an approximation. An analytical interpretation is also presented to find the waiting time distribution for the Geom/Geom/1 queue, which is not based on a finite interval, as an example of the GI/G/1 queue. Moreover, compare to the other related methods it has been proven that our method is numerically stable, simple, and robust.Arts and Sciences, Irving K. Barber School of (Okanagan)Computer Science, Mathematics, Physics and Statistics, Department of (Okanagan)Graduat

ANN-GA-based model for multiple objective management of\ud coastal aquifers

A linked simulation-optimization model using artificial neural networks ANNs and genetic algorithms GAs is developed\ud for deriving multiple objective management strategies for coastal aquifers. The GA-based optimization approach is especially suitable for externally linking a numerical simulation model within the optimization model. However, the solution of a linked simulation-optimization model is computationally intensive, as a very large number of iterations between the optimization and the simulation models are necessary to arrive at an optimal management strategy. Computational efficiency and feasibility for such linked models can be enhanced by simplifying the simulation process by an approximation. A possible approach for such approximation is the use of an ANN model. In this paper, an ANN model is developed initially as an approximate simulator of the three-dimensional density dependent flow and transport processes in a coastal aquifer. A simulation-optimization model is then developed by linking the ANN model with a GA-based optimization model for solving multiple objective saltwater management problems. The performance of the optimization models is evaluated using an illustrative study area. For comparison of the solution results, a multiple objective management model is also solved using embedded formulation and classical nonlinear optimization technique. The comparison of results shows potential feasibility of the proposed methodology in solving multiple objective management model for coastal aquifers