Bag-of-Features Image Indexing and Classification in Microsoft SQL Server Relational Database

This paper presents a novel relational database architecture aimed to visual objects classification and retrieval. The framework is based on the bag-of-features image representation model combined with the Support Vector Machine classification and is integrated in a Microsoft SQL Server database.Comment: 2015 IEEE 2nd International Conference on Cybernetics (CYBCONF), Gdynia, Poland, 24-26 June 201

Examining how country-level science policy shapes publication patterns: The case of Poland

This work was supported by the DIALOG Programme [Grant name ‘Research into Excellence Patterns in Science and Art’].This country case study describes how science policy instruments are designed to shape publication patterns and identifies the changes in researchers’ productivity that can be observed over the period 2009–2016 in Poland by analysing data on 452,277 publications submitted to the country’s national research evaluation system. Our analysis reveals that policy instruments used in the country’s national research evaluation system, academic promotion procedures and competitive grants have increased the number of articles with an impact factor without compromising publication quality, as measured by a bibliometric indicator. Our findings highlight that only clear and stable incentives have influenced researchers’ publications. Therefore, patterns in scholarly book publications—for which regulations were not clear and stable—have not been significantly shaped by science policy

What share of researchers publish monographs?

This work was supported by the DIALOG Program (grant name “Research into Excellence Patterns in Science and Art”).In this study, we investigate what share of researchers publish monographs across fields, gender and seniority. We acquire data from the Polish current research information system, containing metadata about all publications by 67,415 Polish researchers, including 30,185 monographs and 638,779 articles from 2013-2016. The data are aggregated at the researcher level which allow us to shed new light on publication patterns in all fields, especially on monograph patterns which in previous studies have been investigated mostly in only the social sciences and humanities. The key finding of our study is twofold. Firstly, we show that scholars who publish monographs also publish journal articles at the same time. This pattern is observed in all dimensions, i.e. fields, gender and seniority. However, substantial differences between the fields are observed. Secondly, presenting the publication patterns at the researcher level allows us to argue that a monograph is the key publication channel for social sciences and humanities. The discussion summarizes our empirical findings and positions them in the light of other methods of data aggregation

Publication counting methods for a national research evaluation exercise

This work was supported by the DIALOG Program (Grant name “Research into Excellence Patterns in Science and Art”) financed by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education in Poland.In this paper, we investigate the effects of using four methods of publication counting (complete, whole, fractional, square root fractional) and limiting the number of publications (at researcher and institution levels) on the results of a national research evaluation exercise across fields using Polish data. We use bibliographic information on 0.58 million publications from the 2013–2016 period. Our analysis reveals that the largest effects are in those fields within which a variety publication and cooperation patterns can be observed (e.g. in Physical sciences or History and archeology). We argue that selecting the publication counting method for national evaluation purposes needs to take into account the current situation in the given country in terms of the excellence of research outcomes, level of internal, external and international collaboration, and publication patterns in the various fields of sciences. Our findings show that the social sciences and humanities are not significantly influenced by the different publication counting methods and limiting the number of publications included in the evaluation, as publication patterns in these fields are quite different from those observed in the so-called hard sciences. When discussing the goals of any national research evaluation system, we should be aware that the ways of achieving these goals are closely related to the publication counting method, which can serve as incentives for certain publication practices

Researchers publishing monographs are more productive and more local‑oriented

This work was supported by the DIALOG Program (grant name “Research into Excellence Patterns in Science and Art”) financed by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education in Poland. (Grant no: 0093/DLG/2017/10).In this study, we investigate what share of researchers publish monographs across fields, gender and seniority. We acquired data from the Polish current research information system (POL-on) containing metadata of about 1,031,141 peer-reviewed publications from 67,415 Polish researchers, including 30,185 monographs from 2013 to 2016. The data are aggregated at the researcher level, which allows us to shed new light on publication patterns in all fields. We show that scholars who publish monographs also publish journal articles at the same time. This pattern is observed in all dimensions, i.e. research fields, gender and seniority. However, substantial differences between the fields are observed. Moreover, we show that researchers who publish monographs are also more productive in terms of the number of publications than researchers who did not publish any monographs. This result is independent of the publication counting method, i.e. fractional or whole counting. At the same time, scholars who publish monographs are more local-oriented in terms of the publication channels they choose

Efficient image retrieval by fuzzy rules from boosting and metaheuristic

Fast content-based image retrieval is still a challenge for computer systems. We present a novel method aimed at classifying images by fuzzy rules and local image features. The fuzzy rule base is generated in the first stage by a boosting procedure. Boosting meta-learning is used to find the most representative local features. We briefly explore the utilization of metaheuristic algorithms for the various tasks of fuzzy systems optimization. We also provide a comprehensive description of the current best-performing DISH algorithm, which represents a powerful version of the differential evolution algorithm with effective embedded mechanisms for stronger exploration and preservation of the population diversity, designed for higher dimensional and complex optimization tasks. The algorithm is used to fine-tune the fuzzy rule base. The fuzzy rules can also be used to create a database index to retrieve images similar to the query image fast. The proposed approach is tested on a state-of-the-art image dataset and compared with the bag-of-features image representation model combined with the Support Vector Machine classification. The novel method gives a better classification accuracy, and the time of the training and testing process is significantly shorter. © 2020 Marcin Korytkowski et al., published by Sciendo.program of the Polish Minister of Science and Higher Education under the name "Regional Initiative of Excellence" in the years 2019-2022 [020/RID/2018/19

CIGARETTE SMOKING AMONG ECONOMICALLY ACTIVE POPULATION

Background: Tobacco smoking is one of the major risk factors for chronic diseases and results in huge economic and social costs. The aim of the study was to evaluate the prevalence of smoking. Moreover, we evaluated the association between selected socio-economic factors and tobacco smoking among economically active individuals. Material and Methods: The study population covered 2254 economically active men and 1666 women. Data were derived from the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS). Results: About 37.3% of men and 28.2% of women smoke regularly. Daily smoking was significantly associated with low level of education in men (primary vs. high education OR = 3.2, 95% CI: 1.9-5.3; p < 0.001; vocational vs. high education: OR = 2.1, 95% CI: 1.5-3.0; p < 0.001) and women (primary vs. high education OR = 2.8, CI: 1.4-5.5; p < 0.01; vocational vs. high education: OR = 1.9, 95% CI: 1.2-2.9; p < 0.01). Daily smoking was significantly associated with age of women (40-49 years vs. 20-29 years OR = 1.64, 95% CI: 1.1-2.44; p < 0.01), lack of awareness of health effects of smoking in both genders (men unaware vs. aware: OR = 2.9, 95% CI: 1.8-4.6; p < 0.01 and women unaware vs. aware: OR = 2,9, 95% CI: 1.5-5.7; p < 0.01). Smoking was associated with lack of complete smoking bans at workplaces of respondents. Conclusions: Comprehensive interventions are needed to reduce the prevalence of smoking among economically active individuals. Med Pr 2013;64(3):359–37

Evolutionary algorithm for content-based image search

Content-based image retrieval systems attempt to provide a means of searching for images in large repositories without using any information other than that contained in the image itself, usually in the form of low-level descriptors. Since these descriptors do not accurately represent the semantics of the image, evaluating the perceptual similarity between two images based only on them is not a trivial task. This paper describes an effective method for image recovery based on evolutionary computing techniques. The results are compared with those obtained by the classical approach of the movement of the query point and the rescheduling of the axes and by a technique based on self-organizing maps, showing a remarkably higher performance in the repositories

Negocio de reciclaje de botellas plásticas mediante el uso de Reverse Vending Machine (RVM)

La tesis propuesta pretende ilustrar la implementación de un negocio basado en un sistema de reciclaje automático que brinda incentivos para los usuarios por medio de máquinas RVM (Reverse Vending Machines), cuyo objetivo es el de incrementar el reciclaje formal de botellas de PET en Lima. Para asegurar el éxito de la implementación, se acota el alcance a Lima Moderna, implementando 30 RVM durante los primeros tres años del proyecto, las cuales estarán distribuidas estratégicamente en Centros Comerciales, Supermercados, así como otros locales que aseguren la accesibilidad para los usuarios y una alta afluencia. El sustento del negocio se basa en los aportes por venta de espacios publicitarios, respaldando el soporte elegido por los anunciantes con el alto contenido de responsabilidad social que el proyecto implica, lo que genera una percepción positiva en los consumidores y usuarios, que se espera que sean cada vez más sensibles a los problemas de contaminación de océanos, ocasionados por los desechos plásticos. Las RVM, que serán importadas a pedido de China, se manejarán mediante un sistema que permitirá registrar la información de usuarios y del material reciclado, así como el esquema de descuentos y beneficios ofrecidos al usuario que serán proporcionados por las empresas auspiciadoras, fomentando así la rotación de sus productos y beneficiándose con el impacto social de las RVM. Los ingresos mensuales de publicidad por máquina se estiman en US$1,200 mensuales, y permitirán cubrir los gastos operativos, incluyendo los costos de funcionamiento de las mismas, dejando una tasa de retorno económico de 33Vending Machines), whose objective is to increase the formal recycling of PET bottles in Lima. To ensure the success of the implementation, the scope is limited to Modern Lima, implementing 30 RVMs during the first 3 years of the project, which will be strategically distributed in Shopping Centers, Supermarkets, as well as other premises that ensure accessibility for users and a high influx. The sustenance of the business is based on contributions from the sale of advertising space, supporting the support chosen by advertisers with the high content of social responsibility that the project implies, which generates a positive perception in consumers and users, which we hope will be each. increasingly sensitive to the problems of ocean pollution, caused by plastic waste. The RVM, which will be imported at the request of China, will be managed by a system that will allow the registration of user information and recycled material, as well as the discount and benefits scheme offered to the user that will be provided by the sponsoring companies, thus promoting the rotating their products and benefiting from the social impact of RVMs. The monthly income from advertising per machine is estimated at US$ 1,200 per month and will cover operating expenses, including operating costs, leaving an economic rate of return of 33% and a financial return of 35%