Pedestrian Flow Simulation Validation and Verification Techniques

For the verification and validation of microscopic simulation models of pedestrian flow, we have performed experiments for different kind of facilities and sites where most conflicts and congestion happens e.g. corridors, narrow passages, and crosswalks. The validity of the model should compare the experimental conditions and simulation results with video recording carried out in the same condition like in real life e.g. pedestrian flux and density distributions. The strategy in this technique is to achieve a certain amount of accuracy required in the simulation model. This method is good at detecting the critical points in the pedestrians walking areas. For the calibration of suitable models we use the results obtained from analyzing the video recordings in Hajj 2009 and these results can be used to check the design sections of pedestrian facilities and exits. As practical examples, we present the simulation of pilgrim streams on the Jamarat bridge. The objectives of this study are twofold: first, to show through verification and validation that simulation tools can be used to reproduce realistic scenarios, and second, gather data for accurate predictions for designers and decision makers.Comment: 19 pages, 10 figure

Tracking Individual Targets in High Density Crowd Scenes Analysis of a Video Recording in Hajj 2009

In this paper we present a number of methods (manual, semi-automatic and automatic) for tracking individual targets in high density crowd scenes where thousand of people are gathered. The necessary data about the motion of individuals and a lot of other physical information can be extracted from consecutive image sequences in different ways, including optical flow and block motion estimation. One of the famous methods for tracking moving objects is the block matching method. This way to estimate subject motion requires the specification of a comparison window which determines the scale of the estimate. In this work we present a real-time method for pedestrian recognition and tracking in sequences of high resolution images obtained by a stationary (high definition) camera located in different places on the Haram mosque in Mecca. The objective is to estimate pedestrian velocities as a function of the local density.The resulting data of tracking moving pedestrians based on video sequences are presented in the following section. Through the evaluated system the spatio-temporal coordinates of each pedestrian during the Tawaf ritual are established. The pilgrim velocities as function of the local densities in the Mataf area (Haram Mosque Mecca) are illustrated and very precisely documented.Comment: 20 pages, 17 figures, correction of some reference

Des masses rénales, pancréatiques et surrénaliennes

La maladie de Von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) est un syndrome familial rare autosomique dominant associé à des tumeurs malignes ou bénignes surtout des hémangioblastomes rétiniens, cérébelleux, de la moelle épinière, carcinomes à cellules rénales ou phéochromocytomes. Nous rapportons le cas d'une patiente âgée de 35 ans sans antécédents notables, issue d'un mariage non consanguin qui rapporte des douleurs abdominales isolées. L'examen clinique notait une protéinurie à 1+ aux bandelettes urinaires, 2 tâches café au lait centimétriques au niveau de l,abdomen et du cou et une douleur lombaire droite. L,examen neurologique était normal. Il n'y avait pas d'HTA. La biologie notait un SIB. Le scanner abdominal a montré un pancréas siège de multiples masses kystiques intra-glandulaires diffuses dont la plus volumineuse siège en céphalo-isthmique refoulant le cadre duodénal et venant au contact sans envahissement du tronc spléno-mésaraique. Le rein droit est le siège d'une masse tissulaire médio-rénale de 21 mm, se rehaussant de façon hétérogène sans infiltration de la graisse péri rénale. Le rein gauche est le siège de deux masses tissulaires médio-rénale et polaire inférieure de 18*63 mm. Nodule surrénalien gauche spontanément isodense, prenant le contraste et mesurant 17*15 mm. Une phacomatose de VHL était évoquée devant: les masses rénales, les lésions pancréatiques et le nodule surrénalien. L'IRM cérébro-médullaire, le fond d’œil et l'angiographie rétinienne étaient normaux. L'étude génétique a mis en évidence une mutation située sur l'exon 1 du gène VHL. La patiente a eu une tumorectomie droite et une néphrectomie gauche concluant à un carcinome à cellules claires du rein ce qui confortait le diagnostic. Le recul actuel est de 10 mois

Achieving Education for All Goals: Does Corruption Matter?

The Education for All (EFA) programme has received and continues to receive a great deal of attention since the convening of the World Conference on Education in Jomtien (Thailand, 1990). Several reports have been published over the past decade, especially by the UNESCO, to assess the progress being made by different nations and regions in moving towards EFA goals. A common finding of these reports is that achievement registered in many parts of the world was not as great as expected. The aim of this paper is to explore whether differences in corruption levels can explain differences in the progress towards EFA goals across countries and regions. Using the 2007 EFA Development Index which incorporates data on progress towards four EFA targets (universal primary education, gender parity, adult literacy and education quality), we show that countries and regions with high corruption levels are those who registered the worst progress towards EFA

Achieving Education for All Goals: Does Corruption Matter?

The Education for All (EFA) programme has received and continues to receive a great deal of attention since the convening of the World Conference on Education in Jomtien (Thailand, 1990). Several reports have been published over the past decade, especially by the UNESCO, to assess the progress being made by different nations and regions in moving towards EFA goals. A common finding of these reports is that achievement registered in many parts of the world was not as great as expected. The aim of this paper is to explore whether differences in corruption levels can explain differences in the progress towards EFA goals across countries and regions. Using the 2007 EFA Development Index which incorporates data on progress towards four EFA targets (universal primary education, gender parity, adult literacy and education quality), we show that countries and regions with high corruption levels are those who registered the worst progress towards EFA

Corruption and Economic Growth: The Transmission Channels

The relationship between corruption and economic growth has been the focus of numerous studies. However, no consensus seems to exist on the mechanisms via which corruption should reduce growth. The aim of this paper is to identify the transmission channels through which corruption is likely to affect economic growth. Unlike most previous analysis in this area that used the decomposition method [Mo (2001), Pellegrini and Gerlagh (2004) and, Pellegrini (2011)], we employ a Channel Methodology [developed by Tavares and Wacziarg (2001) and applied by Wacziarg (2001) and, more recently, by Lorentzen, McMillan and Wacziarg (2008)]. This methodology based on a system of simultaneous equations to evaluate the effects of corruption on various determinants of economic growth, will allow us to show how corruption affects growth via each possible channel. Our results suggest that the negative effect of corruption on economic growth is mainly transmitted by its impact on human capital and political instability

Corruption dans le Secteur d'Education : Une Typologie de Conséquences

The aim of this paper is to focus on corrupt practices that develop within the education sector and the consequences associated with them. Given the fact that most previous studies dealing with the costs of corruption put emphasis only on corruption from public officials, we propose a typology of consequences that allows a comprehensive understanding of the effects related to corrupt practices that could thrive in the education sector. The typology of consequences presented in this paper identifies three types of consequences: those related to the achievement of the goals of access, quality and equality given to the education system, those related to the demand for education and school performance and, those related to the achievement of broader objectives of the education sector and the development of society as a whole

Corruption dans le Secteur d'Education : Une Typologie de Conséquences

The aim of this paper is to focus on corrupt practices that develop within the education sector and the consequences associated with them. Given the fact that most previous studies dealing with the costs of corruption put emphasis only on corruption from public officials, we propose a typology of consequences that allows a comprehensive understanding of the effects related to corrupt practices that could thrive in the education sector. The typology of consequences presented in this paper identifies three types of consequences: those related to the achievement of the goals of access, quality and equality given to the education system, those related to the demand for education and school performance and, those related to the achievement of broader objectives of the education sector and the development of society as a whole