Multi-Touch Table for Enhancing Collaboration during Software Design

Encouraging collaborative software design through the use of Multi-touch interfaces has become increasingly important because such surfaces can accommodate more than one user concurrently, which is particularly useful for collaborative software design. This study investigated the differences in collaborative design among groups of students working in PC-based and Multi-touch table conditions to determine the potential of the Multi-touch table to increase the effectiveness of collaboration during software design. The literature includes several interesting studies reflecting the role of Multi-touch tables in enhancing collaborative activities. Research has found that Multi-touch tables increase group interaction and therefore increase the attainment of group goals. Although many research efforts have facilitated collaboration among users in software design using Unified Modelling Language (UML), these studies examined distributed collaboration and not face-to-face collaboration. However, existing research that studied facilitating co-located collaborative software design has some limitations such as using technologies that prevent parallel design activities. Collaborative software design using Multi-touch table has not been widely explored. A structured literature review revealed that no Multi-touch collaborative UML design tool is available. Thus, a Multi-touch enabled tool called MT-CollabUML was developed for this study to encourage students to work collaboratively on software design using UML in a co-located setting. Eighteen master’s level students enrolled in the Software Engineering for the Internet module were selected to participate in the study. The participants formed nine pairs. The experiment followed a counterbalanced within-subjects design where groups switched experiment conditions to ensure each group used the Multi-touch table and PC-based conditions. All collaborative UML diagramming activities were video recorded for quantitative and qualitative analysis. Results show that using the MT-CollabUML tool in the Multi-touch table condition enhanced the level of collaboration among the team members and increased their shared contribution. It also increased the equity of participation; the individuals contributed almost equally to the task, and single-person domination decreased in the Multi-touch condition. Results also show that the Multi-touch table encourages parallel-participative design where both group members work in a parallel manner to accomplish the final agreed-upon design. The analysis of verbal communication shows that both experiment conditions encouraged subjects to use collaborative learning skills

Synthesis And Characterization Of Polydiene-Grafted Nanoparticles

This dissertation presents the design, synthesis, and characterization of polydiene grafted nanoparticles as a way to tailor nanocomposite interfaces and properties via interface design. The polymerization of dienes was done via reversible addition fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization. The grafting of polymer chains on the surface of silica nanoparticles can be controlled through the molecular design of the RAFT agents attached to the nanoparticles surface. The properties of the nanocomposites largely depended on the interface between the particles and the polymer matrix. In the first part of this work, the polymerization of diene monomers was done on 15 nm diameter silica nanoparticles. SI-RAFT polymerization of isoprene and chloroprene on silica NPs was studied in detail and revealed living character for all these polymerizations. Composites of matrix-free grafted NPs were prepared and analyzed to find the effects of chain length on the dispersibility and organization of particles throughout the matrix. A wide range of grafted polydiene brush molecular weights and graft densities were polymerized on SiO2 NPs to investigate mechanical properties of composites. Multiple vii characterizations such as DSC, WAXS, and SAXS were applied to study the interaction of the polydiene brushes on the inorganic fillers. The surface modified particles with diene polymer brushes were capable of creating a welldispersed state that resulted in improved mechanical properties of matrix-free composites. High loadings of inorganic particles were attained while avoiding particle aggregation and the improvement in mechanical properties correlated with the loading of the core silica loading level. In the second part, both free and SI-RAFT polymerization of 2,3-dimethyl butadiene (DMB) was studied. The kinetic study of DMB monomer was studied with free and SI-RAFT polymerization and compared to other diene monomers. The SI-RAFT polymerization was done with two different graft densities to represent both low and high-density graft regimes. The dispersion of particles was investigated and showed that for both low and high graft density an acceptable level of dispersion was observed throughout the final composite which was confirmed with TEM and SAXS studies. The resulting polydimethyl butadiene (PDMB) grafted silica nanoparticles were directly crosslinked to obtain matrix-free nanocomposites that showed good nanoparticle dispersion and much improved mechanical properties compared with the unfilled crosslinked matrix. viii The third part of this study examined the reversible additionfragmentation chain transfer polymerization of chloroprene on the surface of 15 nm diameter silica nanoparticles to obtain polychloroprene-grafted-silica nanoparticles which were dispersed in an industrial matrix of polychloroprene to obtain PCP nanocomposites with different silica core loadings. Two graft densities and a wide range of molecular weights were studied to examine the effects of these key parameters on the cured composite properties. The dispersion of the grafted nanoparticles in a commercial PCP matrix were excellent for both high and low graft densities. The mechanical properties were enhanced for all composites compared to unfilled cured matrix and proportionally improved with increasing silica loading and grafted polymer chain length. Stress-strain properties were most improved in composites using nanoparticles with low graft density and high molecular weight grafted chains. Finally, polyisoprene (PIP) grafted nanoparticles were prepared and studied for use in rubbery nanocomposites. Scale up approaches were successful and detailed mechanical property studies were conducted to evaluate the advantages of these new polymer grafted nanoparticle based rubbery composites. These trans-PIP grafted particles were dispersed in commercial cisPIP and in-house prepared trans-PIP matrices to obtain PIP nanocomposites with different silica loadings and a single graft density. Miscibility and dispersion of ix particles in both matrices were also studied to examine the compatibility of the different isomers. The trans-PIP-g-NPs were relatively well-dispersed in the cisPIP matrix where the molecular weights of the grafted and matrix polymers were nearly the same (35 kDa-grafted and 40 kDa matrix). However, the mechanical properties of the trans-PIP-g-NPs in the trans-PIP matrix showed better mechanical properties, likely due to the polymer compatibility even though the molecular weights of the grafted and matrix chains (35 kDa-grafted and 52 kDa matrix) were mis-matched and the particles were not dispersed as well in the matrix

Towards Accommodating Gerunds within the Sign Language Lexicon

This work is part of ongoing research work that focuses on the linguistic analysis and computational description of five different Sign Languages (SLs) namely Irish Sign Language (ISL), Flemish Sign Language (VGT), Dutch Sign Language (NGT), Spanish Sign Language (LSE), and British Sign Language (BSL) as part of the SignON project. This work will be leveraged to inform the development of SL lexicon entries for a Sign Language Machine Translation (SLMT) system. In particular, this research focuses on ISL. We investigate the existence of constructions similar to or equivalent in functionality to gerunds in spoken language, in particular, English. The initial findings indicate that such constructions do indeed exist and that they can take many forms.https://arrow.tudublin.ie/cddpos/1022/thumbnail.jp

Interference coordination for LTE-advanced and FM broadcasting interoperability

The surest way to guarantee that multiple wireless systems can concurrently exist harmlessly, when operating in the same or adjacent channel, is by analyzing spectrum overlapping. This paper proposes a more accurate model to evaluate the interference power from co-channel and adjacent channel of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing-based long term evolution-advanced (LTE-Advanced) towards broadcasting frequency modulation systems at 800 MHz. Power spectral density overlapping factor is employed, and closed form of the interference power loss is derived. Numerical results demonstrate that the proposed method evaluates more exact interference power than the advanced minimum coupling loss (A-MCL) method, where the co-channel and adjacent channel interference powers are reduced by 1.3 and 3 dB, correspondingly, compared to that obtained using the AMCL method. This decreases the minimum separation distance between the two systems, which can eventually lead to efficient radio spectrum resources utilization

Design and implementation of single bit error correction linear block code system based on FPGA

Linear block code (LBC) is an error detection and correction code that is widely used in communication systems. In this paper a special type of LBC called Hamming code was implemented and debugged using FPGA kit with integrated software environments ISE for simulation and tests the results of the hardware system. The implemented system has the ability to correct single bit error and detect two bits error. The data segments length was considered to give high reliability to the system and make an aggregation between the speed of processing and the hardware ability to be implemented. An adaptive length of input data has been consider, up to 248 bits of information can be handled using Spartan 3E500 with 43% as a maximum slices utilization. Input/output data buses in FPGA have been customized to meet the requirements where 34% of input/output resources have been used as maximum ratio. The overall hardware design can be considerable to give an optimum hardware size for the suitable information rate

Energy and Exergy Performance Calculation of Solar Photovoltaic/ Thermal Hybrid System under the Baghdad Environment

نظام الطاقة الشمسية الكهروضوئية / الحرارية (PV / T) هو نظام مدمج يتكون من وحدات PV مع وسائط استخراج الحرارة على سبيل المثال الهواء أو الماء، وينتج الكهرباء والطاقة الحرارية في آن واحد. يمكن تحسين الكفاءة الكهربائية للوحدة الكهروضوئية (PV) عن طريق خفض درجة حرارة التشغيل لوحدة الطاقة الكهروضوئية عن طريق إزالة الطاقة الحرارية في وقت واحد والتي ترتبط بالوحدة الكهروضوئية. يعطي التصميم الهجين PV / T الشمسية مزايا إضافية. مع زيادة قدرها 1 درجة مئوية في درجة الحرارة هناك انخفاض في كفاءة التحويل الكهروضوئي بنسبة 0.5 ٪. في هذا العمل الحالي، تم إجراء محاولة لوصف فعالية من حيث الاكسيرجي من نظام الطاقة الشمسية الكهروضوئية الحرارية (PV / T) التي تولد الكهرباء والطاقة الحرارية معا. لوحظ أن درجة الحرارة وحدة PV لديها تأثير كبير على الكفاءة الحرارية والكهربائية والاكسيرجي. تم حساب كفاءة الطاقة والطاقة وتحويل الطاقة لعدة أيام على أساس المعلمات المقاسة مثل شدة الطاقة الشمسية ودرجة حرارة الوحدة ودرجة الحرارة المحيطة. نجد أن كفاءة الاكسبرجي تتراوح بين (2.16 و12.27٪)، وتتراوح كفاءة تحويل الطاقة بين (5.2 و11.2٪) وتتراوح كفاءة الطاقة بين (6.89 و14.9٪) خلال الأيام من (9:00 صباحاً إلى 15:00). لوحظ أن درجة الحرارة وحدة PV لديها تأثير كبير على الكفاءة الحرارية والكهربائية والاكسيرجي. يمكن تحسين الكفاءة الحرارية والكهربائية والعفوية إذا أمكن إزالة الحرارة من سطح الوحدة الكهروضوئية.A combined system with photovoltaic panel modules, which extracts heat from water or air and produces thermal and electrical energy which is called a solar photovoltaic or solar thermal photovoltaic thermal (PV/T) system. A way to enhance the electrical efficiency of the PV module is by diminishing the temperature at which the module is working, i.e. by extracting thermal energy. The design of the solar Photovoltaic/Thermal provides certain advantages. When the temperature is increased 1°C, the photoelectric efficiency decrease by 0.5%. This work is principally aimed to clarify the effectiveness by means of the exergy generated in a PV/T hybrid water module, a photovoltaic thermal module, generating thermal and electrical energy. Were determined the energy, exergy and the efficiency of the power conversion for a certain amount of days in function of the solar intensity, the temperature of the module and environmental temperature. During the hours 9:00 am to 3:00 pm, the efficiencies of exergy and power conversion varies according to the following values, between 2.16 - 12.27% for the exergy efficiency and between 5.2 - 11.2% for the power conversion efficiency as well as, the energy efficiency varies between 6.89 – 14.9%. The temperature of the photovoltaic module has a great impact on the electrical, thermal and exergy efficiencies. Moreover, these efficiencies can be enhanced by removing energy in form of heat from the surface of the photovoltaic module

Algorithm Appreciation: Algorithmic Performance, Developmental Processes, and User Interactions

© 2020 IEEE. In this research, we conduct an online experiment to better understand perceptions of algorithmic features (fairness, accountability, transparency, and explainability) This study identifies key factors of algorithm and conceptualizes such issues in relation to trust by testing how they affect user emotion and satisfaction of personalized machine learning algorithms. The results indicate the heuristic roles of algorithmic characteristics in terms of their underlying links to trust and subsequent behaviors. Users experience a dual-process in assessing AI features and formulating trust through their heuristic-systematic evaluations. Heuristic and systematic processes are positively linked to trust and systematic processes are positively connected to trust and performance expectancy, which serve as antecedents of emotions. Heuristic and systematic processes offer a useful perspective on the conceptualization of AI experience and interaction. User cognitive processes identified provide solid foundations for algorithm design and development and a stronger basis for the design of sensemaking AI services

Enhanced Instruction Set Randomization Design Space Exploration

The purpose of this work was to analyze design requirements of Instruction Set Randomization defense for Heterogeneous System Architectures

Modeling Depth as a Constraining Factor for Optimum Groundwater Yield - A case Study

This research work focused on the contribution of depth to the yield of boreholes for water supply project in parts of Fadama Floodplain West Chad Basin, Northeastern Nigeria. An integrated method involving geoelectric and borehole lithological analysis and record of yields and aquifer hydraulic properties from boreholes was employed. Four distinct subsurface geologic layers and corresponding depths were delineated. These included the topsoil, alluvial sand, Chad Formation/weathered column and the bedrock. The thicknesses of the upper three layers were 0.4 – 6.7; 1.6 - 32.2 and 15.9 -168.6 m respectively. The depth to rockheads varied from 18.4 to 175.5 m.  The second layer presumably alluvium layer constitutes the main aquifer unit with optimum depth not greater than 30 m. However, within the upper 25 - 30 m, high groundwater yield of between 9 – 13.4 l/s (779.3 – 1163.8 m3/day ) with  hydraulic conductivity and transmissivity values of  6.7 to 1329.4 m/day and 122.7 to 10427.5 m3/day respectively were obtained. Beyond this depth, yields were wholly retarded between 2.0 l/s (172.8 m3/day) and 6.9 l/s (602.2 m3/day) arising from the significant contribution of the poor hydrogeological materials . It is, therefore, concluded that borehole depth model (25 - 30 m) and not those terminated at rock heads or within bedrock depression zones as in general case gave an optimum groundwater yield with a cumulative discharge capacity greater than 420 l/s (36,288 m3/day) expected from a battery of maximum of 42 boreholes in this part of the Chad Basin. Keywords: Depth, Contribution, Yield, Borehole, Transmissivity, Permeable, Floodplain

Application and Performance Analysis of DSDV Routing Protocol in ad-hoc Wireless Sensor Network with Help of NS2 Knowledge

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) are characterized by multi-hop wireless connectivity, frequently changing network topology and need for efficient routing protocols. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate performance of routing protocol DSDV in wireless sensor network (WSN) scales regarding the End-to-End delay and throughput PDR with mobility factor .Routing protocols are a critical aspect to performance in mobile wireless networks and play crucial role in determining network performance in terms of packet delivery fraction, end-to-end delay and packet loss. Destination-sequenced distance vector (DSDV) protocol is a proactive protocol depending on routing tables which are maintained at each node. The routing protocol should detect and maintain optimal route(s) between source and destination nodes. In this paper, we present application of DSDV in WSN as extend to our pervious study to the design and implementation the details of the DSDV routing protocol in MANET using the ns-2 network simulator. also, the performance of DSDV protocol in sensor network of randomly distributed mobile nodes with mobile source and sink nodes is investigated for MAC IEEE802.15.4 network by ns-2 simulator.