A Unified Model For Developmental Robotics

We present the architecture and distributed algorithms of an implemented system called NeuSter, that unifies learning, perception and action for autonomous robot control. NeuSter comprises several sub-systems that provide online learning for networks of million neurons on machine clusters. It extracts information from sensors, builds its own representations of the environment in order to learn non-predefined goals

East Meets West: The Adaptation of Vietnamese International Students to California Community Colleges

This study explores seven adaptation aspects that include language and communication, cultural awareness, loneliness and isolation, new educational settings, financial concerns, gender-based differences, and the political impact of the anti-communist Vietnamese American community. Based on Person/Environment Interactionism theory, case studies of eight students from Vietnam at two Southern California community colleges are considered utilizing data derived from weekly diaries, individual interviews, a final group meeting, and academic records. The students’ prior assumptions and expectations are identified and their coping strategies to various adaptation issues are documented and analyzed. The ethnic diversity of Orange County generally facilitated the students’ adaptation efforts in the aspects of language and communications, cultural awareness, and loneliness and isolation. The students seemed to readily adapt to the new educational settings and excel academically despite some different educational practices. There were no apparent gender-based differences in the students’ adaptation. However, unwelcoming attitudes from the anti-communist members of the Vietnamese American community adversely impacted the international students’ socialization with Vietnamese Americans, but did not impact their academic performance

Indoor experimental validation of MPC-based trajectory tracking for a quadcopter via a flat mapping approach

Differential flatness has been used to provide diffeomorphic transformations for non-linear dynamics to become a linear controllable system. This greatly simplifies the control synthesis since in the flat output space, the dynamics appear in canonical form (as chains of integrators). The caveat is that mapping from the original to the flat output space often leads to nonlinear constraints. In particular, the alteration of the feasible input set greatly hinders the subsequent calculations. In this paper, we particularize the problem for the case of the quadcopter dynamics and investigate the deformed input constraint set. An optimization-based procedure will achieve a non-conservative, linear, inner-approximation of the non-convex, flat-output derived, input constraints. Consequently, a receding horizon problem (linear in the flat output space) is easily solved and, via the inverse flat mapping, provides a feasible input to the original, nonlinear, dynamics. Experimental validation and comparisons confirm the benefits of the proposed approach and show promise for other class of flat systems

USING EXPERIMENTAL PLANNING TO OPTIMIZE THE HYDROLYSIS OF SUGAR CANE BAGASSE INTO FERMENTABLE SUGARS FOR BIOETHANOL PRODUCTION BY FUNGAL ENZYME MIXTURE

In this study, the unpretreated sugar cane bagasse was milled to a particle size of 0.5 – 1 mm and be used as material for bioconversion into fermentable sugars by using an enzyme cocktail acted synergistically. Experimental planning was used to optimize the enzyme conversion through assessment and analysis of individual parameter. As the result, the optimal condition for enzymatic conversion of sugar cane bagasse into reducing sugar product are at pH = 5, 400C, and 48 h incubation in rate of enzyme (Cell/Xyl, AltFAE, XpoAE) and substrate (bagasse meal) is 3.1. From the above application, the mathematical model is found to describe equation of the bioconversion of bagasse into reducing sugars: = 206.946 + 29.954x1 + 5.501x2 + 7.323x3 + 2.288x2x3 – 7.011; and using flexible algorithm of nonlinear planning to identify optimal conditions of enzyme mixture of conversion into reducing sugars that the reaction reached max = 251.86 mg per gram bagasse with x1 = 1.215, x2 = 1.215, x3 = 1.215 or Cell/Xyl = 1 ml (100U), AltFAE = 0.5 ml (7.56U), XpoAE = 0.4 ml (10.8U) on the test range. Experimental verification has the same result in constant conditons and reached total reducing sugars of 260.2 mg per gram substrate.In this study, the unpretreated sugar cane bagasse was milled to a particle size of 0.5 – 1 mm and be used as material for bioconversion into fermentable sugars by using an enzyme cocktail acted synergistically. Experimental planning was used to optimize the enzyme conversion through assessment and analysis of individual parameter. As the result, the optimal condition for enzymatic conversion of sugar cane bagasse into reducing sugar product are at               pH = 5, 40 oC, and 48 h incubation in rate of enzyme (Cell/Xyl, AltFAE, XpoAE) and substrate (bagasse meal) is 3.1. From the above application, the mathematical model is found to describe equation of the bioconversion of bagasse into reducing sugars: = 206.946 + 29.954x1 + 5.501x2 + 7.323x3 + 2.288x2x3 – 7.011; and using flexible algorithm of nonlinear planning to identify optimal conditions of enzyme mixture of conversion into reducing sugars that the reaction reached max = 251.86 mg per gram bagasse with x1 = 1.215, x2 = 1.215, x3 = 1.215 or Cell/Xyl = 1 ml (100U), AltFAE = 0.5 ml (7.56U), XpoAE = 0.4 ml (10.8U) on the test range. Experimental verification has the same result in constant conditons and reached total reducing sugars of 260.2 mg per gram substrate

APPLICATION OF IMAGE-BASED HIGH CONTENT ANALYSIS FOR THE SCREENING OF BIOACTIVE NATURAL PRODUCTS

Each bioactive compound induces phenotypic changes in target cells that can be made visible by labelling selected molecules of the cells with fluorescent dyes and/or directly observed under the high-throughput microscope. A comparison of the cellular phenotype induced by a compound of interest with known cellular targets allows predicting its mode of action. Over the past 15 years, high-throughput microscopy has been one of the fastest growing fields in cell biology. When combined with automated multiparametric image and data analysis, it is referred to as high-content screening (HCS). Whilst HCS has been successfully applied to the bioactivity characterization of natural products, recent studies used automated microscopy and software to increase speed and to reduce subjective interpretation. In 2017, Institute of Natural Products Chemistry (INPC-VAST) has been equipped with a HCS platform (Olympus Scan^R) that designed for fully automated image acquisition and analysis of biological samples to visually inspect the cellular morphology induced by hit compounds as well as to discriminate from false positives. Accordingly, this short review covers the concepts of HCS and its application in screening of biologically active natural products whose molecular targets could be identified through such approaches

Investigation of Performance of Soil-Cement Pile in Support of Foundation Systems for High-Rise Buildings

This paper presents the experimental study of Soil-Cement Pile (SCpile) by wet mixing method in sandy soils, with the typical project at An Trung Complex apartment, Da Nang city, Vietnam. With the characteristic of soil layers is sandy soil, the strength of laboratory stabilized soils with the amount of cement from 150¸300 kg/m3 was determined. Simultaneously, the authors also performed the experiments of 20 test piles collected from the site which has cement content about 280 kg/m3 and the unconfined compressive strength qu= (4.5-6.0) MPa. After that, a full-scale model static axial compressive load tests of two single piles and a group of four piles with diameter 800 mm and 12 m length were also conducted. The experiment results show that the bearing capacity of every single pile is 1.200 kN with settlement 6.93 mm and the group of four CSpiles is 3.200 kN with settlement 5.03 mm. The results presented in the paper illustrate that SCpile is the suitable solution for foundation construction process with low cost and saving time for high rise buildings. The result shows a capable application of soil cement piles for support of high-rise buildings

The Influence of Investor's Characteristics on the Perception About the Selling Price of Luxury Apartments in Hanoi

This research was conducted to investigate the impact of investor's characteristics on the perception about the selling price of luxury apartments in Hanoi, Vietnam. Data were collected through a survey with 458 real estate employees from Hanoi. With this data, we have used descriptive statistics, Cronbach's Alpha to determine the level of impact of the independent variable on the dependent variable, i.e. the perception about the selling price of luxury apartments. The results showed that the determinant is the investor's characteristics which have positive relationships with the perception about the selling price of luxury apartments in Hanoi. Based on this finding, this paper gives several recommendations for improvement the perception about the selling price of luxury apartments in Hanoi. Keywords: the perception about the selling price of luxury apartme, investor's characteristics, real estate JEL codes: G12, G13, G14, L80, L85 DOI: 10.7176/EJBM/12-9-06 Publication date:March 31st 202