Fabrication of Polymeric Multimode Waveguides for Application in the Local Area Network and Optical Interconnects.

We report the fabrication of multimode polymeric waveguides using spin coating, photolithography, and reactive ion etching. Different layer structures have been used, e.g., a UV curable resin is used as a core layer and PMMA as a lower and upper cladding. The layer systems can be spun with good uniformity with thicknesses matching multimode fiber dimensions, and smooth waveguide side-walls have been obtained after etching. The measured performance of these waveguides demonstrates that low-loss waveguides can be fabricated cheaply. The waveguides are used in the realization of novel compact multimode power splitters and star couplers

Agricultural Growth, Poverty Reduction and Millennium Development Goals in Africa: Outcomes of AAAE Conference

This report is a summary of emerging issues affecting African agriculture, recent experiences and policy proposals that can guide interventions in improving the sector’s productivity. Agriculture is at the centre of rural poverty reduction in Africa and urgent measures are needed to increase farm yields and incomes in order to stem collapse of economies and societies.AAAE, African Association of Agricultural Economists, millennium development goals in Africa, agricultural policies, agricultural research systems, poverty reduction, agricultural productivity, Agricultural and Food Policy, Community/Rural/Urban Development, Farm Management, Food Security and Poverty, Production Economics, Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies, Q010, Q130, Q170, Q180, Q560,

Building a Multimodal, Trust-Based E-Voting System

This paper addresses the issue of voter identification and authentication, voter participation and trust in the electoral system. A multimodal/hybrid identification and authentication scheme is proposed which captures what a voter knows – PIN, what he has – smartcard and what he is – biometrics. Massive participation of voters in and out of the country of origin was enhanced through an integrated channel (kiosk and internet voting). A multi-trust voting system is built based on service oriented architecture. Microsoft Visual C#.Net, ASP.Net and Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Express Edition components of Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 was used to realize the Windows and Web-based solutions for the electronic voting system

Usulan Perbaikan Fasilitas Kerja Yang Ergonomis Pada Stasiun Perakitan Cover Assy 24dc (Studi Kasus PT. Sanwa Engineering Batam)

PT. Sanwa Enginering Batam merupakan Perusahaan yang bergerak dalam bidang Molding dan Perakitan . Perusahan ini berlokasi dikawasan industry Batamindo. Berdasarkan hasil penelitian yang dilakukan distasiun perakitan cover assy 24DC, terdapat keluhan yang sering dialami operator, yaitu rasa sakit dan nyeri pada punggung dan kaki. Hal ini dikarenakan adanya fasilitas kerja yang tidak ergonomis distasiun tersebut, sehingga menimbulkan rasa sakit dan nyeri dibeberapa anggota tubuh.Penelitian bertujuan untuk melakukan perbaikan fasilitas kerja yang ergonomis berdasarkan prinsip –prinsip antropometri, sehingga dapat memberikan kepuasan kepada Perusahaan, karena dalam penelitian ini Perusahaan dapat mengetahui fasilitas kerja yang seharusnya dipakai, sehingga dapat mengurangi keluhan rasa sakit angdi alami operator.Penelitian dilakukan pada stasiun cover assy 24DC sebagai pembatasan masalah dari penelitian. Model penelitian yang digunakan adalah penelitian kuantitatif yang mana dituntut untuk menggunakan angka mulai dari pengumpulan dan pengolahan data sampai pada pembahasan. Data yang digunakan untuk usulan fasilitas berdasarkan hasil pengukuran lansung, dan data yang diambil hanya lah data yang diperlukan dalam melakukan perbaikan fasilitas. Kmemudian data yang telah didapatkan akan diolah dengan mencari nilai rata - rata, standar deviasi, selanjutnya data tersebut akan diuji keseragaman dan kecukupanya dan mencari nilai persentilnya.Hasil akhir yang didapat pada penelitian ini adalah usulan perbaikan fasilitas kerja yang dapat mengurangi keluhan rasa sakit operator distasiun perakitan cover assy 24DC

Timing and correction of stepping movements with a virtual reality avatar

Research into the ability to coordinate one’s movements with external cues has focussed on the use of simple rhythmic, auditory and visual stimuli, or interpersonal coordination with another person. Coordinating movements with a virtual avatar has not been explored, in the context of responses to temporal cues. To determine whether cueing of movements using a virtual avatar is effective, people’s ability to accurately coordinate with the stimuli needs to be investigated. Here we focus on temporal cues, as we know from timing studies that visual cues can be difficult to follow in the timing context. Real stepping movements were mapped onto an avatar using motion capture data. Healthy participants were then motion captured whilst stepping in time with the avatar’s movements, as viewed through a virtual reality headset. The timing of one of the avatar step cycles was accelerated or decelerated by 15% to create a temporal perturbation, for which participants would need to correct to, in order to remain in time. Step onset times of participants relative to the corresponding step-onsets of the avatar were used to measure the timing errors (asynchronies) between them. Participants completed either a visual-only condition, or auditory-visual with footstep sounds included, at two stepping tempo conditions (Fast: 400ms interval, Slow: 800ms interval). Participants’ asynchronies exhibited slow drift in the Visual-Only condition, but became stable in the Auditory-Visual condition. Moreover, we observed a clear corrective response to the phase perturbation in both the fast and slow tempo auditory-visual conditions. We conclude that an avatar’s movements can be used to influence a person’s own motion, but should include relevant auditory cues congruent with the movement to ensure a suitable level of entrainment is achieved. This approach has applications in physiotherapy, where virtual avatars present an opportunity to provide the guidance to assist patients in adhering to prescribed exercises

Internet Privacy

The benefits of the Internet have come at some cost, one of which is a loss of privacy, which is often regarded as a moral right or a legal right. Internet privacy is primarily concerned with protecting user information. It is widely acknowledged as the top consideration in any online interaction. New threats to privacy and civil liberties are emerging daily and privacy practices are not one size fits all. This paper provides a brief introduction to online privacy

Structural Characterization of Lithium Doped Nzp Na1-xLixZr(PO4)3(x=0.00-0.75)

Sodium zirconium phosphate (NZP) of composition Na1-xLixZr2(PO4)3 (x=0.0-0.75) have been synthesized using solid state reaction, with a view to minimizing the ZrO2 second phase normally present .The compositions have been characterized by XRD and SEM for phase composition, lattice parameters and density. No ZrO2 second phase was detected in some of the compositions, rather NasZr(PO4)3 and the density showed a systematic decrease with increase of Li. All The compositions belong to the rhombohedral crystal system and were indexed based on hexagonal lattice structure. The density of the composition x=0.00 as calculated from the XRD data is 3.02g/cm3.The grain sizes of the compositions are in the range 1-2&#956m, 2-5&#956m, 3-7 &#956m and 2&#956m for x=0,0.25,0.5 and 0.75, respectively. Keywords: solid state synthesis, NZP, XR

Prediction of Natural Gas Compressibility Factor in a Single-Phase Gas Reservoir: A Comparative Study

Natural gas compressibility factor plays important roles in pipeline design, reserve estimation and gas metering. The aim of this study is to presents the most accurate and reliable method of computing gas compressibility factor in a single-phase gas reservoir at various reservoir pressures. In this study, the gas compositions and the specific gravity of the respective gas compounds were retrieved from literatures. This specific gravity determine the pseudo critical and the pseudo reduced properties (temperature and pressure) of the respective gas compounds being studied. The predicted methods studied are Papay correlation, Hall-Yarborough equation of state (EOS), viral EOS, Beggs and Brill and Dranchuk-Abu-Kassem correlation. The methods are expressed as functions of the pseudo-reduced temperature and pressure, thereby predicting the compressibility factor of the predicted methods. The accuracy and the performance of the methods were tested by comparing the results obtained from the methods studied with experimental z-factor values obtained from the literatures. The experimental z-factor values were set as standard for the predicted methods studied. Six (6) statistical parameters and various charts (line and column charts) were used to attest the effectiveness and the precision of the methods. The statistical tools are average absolute error (AAE), average absolute relative error (AARE), root mean square error (RMSE), residual sum of square (RSS), mean square error (MSE) and coefficient of determination (R2). The results of the study shows that, the Papay correlation has the highest coefficient of regression, R2= 92%, rated as the most accurate, reliable and best method. The Hall-Yarborough equation of state has R2 of 86%. The Viral equation of state has R2 of 83%. The Beggs and Brill correlation has R2 of 42%. The Dranchuk-Abu-Kassem correlation has R2 of 10.5%. The Beggs and Brills correlation method is not suitable for application, if the pseudo-reduced pressure is less than 0.92. The Dranchuk-Abu-Kassem correlation is only applicable, if the pseudo-reduced properties are within the range of 0.2<Ppr<15, 1.0<Tpr<3.0. The Hall-Yarborough equation of state cannot be used if the pseudo-reduced temperature is less than one

The Influence of Green Marketing Mix on Consumer Purchase Intention Towards Green Products

Today, the whole world is experiencing environmental problems such as climate changes, global warming and ozone depletion. All the problems have eventually led to disruption and losses for businesses. To ensure smooth operations, businesses are starting to shift their business model favouring towards producing environmentally friendly products. The right marketing strategy will persuade customers to purchase the product offered. Therefore, green marketing is recommended to be used as part of the strategy to guarantee green product purchases among customers. However, the use of green marketing can influence customers are still widely in need of exploration and research. Hence, this paper aims to look into and explore the acceptances of green marketing mix that influence consumer purchase intention towards green products. The study examined green marketing elements towards purchase intention. A total number of 150 responses are analysed to find the acceptances of green marketing mix by using regression analysis. The result indicates that the green marketing mix has positive impact towards customer purchase intention