Semantic spaces revisited: investigating the performance of auto-annotation and semantic retrieval using semantic spaces

Semantic spaces encode similarity relationships between objects as a function of position in a mathematical space. This paper discusses three different formulations for building semantic spaces which allow the automatic-annotation and semantic retrieval of images. The models discussed in this paper require that the image content be described in the form of a series of visual-terms, rather than as a continuous feature-vector. The paper also discusses how these term-based models compare to the latest state-of-the-art continuous feature models for auto-annotation and retrieval

We Provided Psychological First Aid After the Las Vegas Shooting – Here’s What We Learned.

What is “psychological first aid”? How do mental health experts like you work side by side with traditional first responders? The goal of psychological first aid is to sooth, assist and help people function and cope in a healthy way in the wake of a traumatic event. It’s employed in the hours and days following the event, when people’s immediate needs, including medical care, as well as basic needs like food, shelter and water, must be met, along with their psychological and physical safety needs

BGS Library : a world of information

Over the last 175 years the British Geological Survey Library has grown and developed into one of the world's major earth science libraries. We have extensive collections of books, maps, journals and BGS publications. We also hold special collections of British geological photographs and archive material, chiefly the historical archives of the BGS. Published material is acquired by exchange with overseas surveys and institutes as well as by purchase. In the past our collections have been enhanced by the incorporation of other collections such as the extensive holdings of the former Overseas Geological Surveys

A new methodology for learning design

This paper describes the development of a new methodology for learning design. Our approach is predicated on the view that no one, simple, view of design is appropriate, because of the inherently messy and creative nature of design. Instead we are adopting an interactive and multi-faceted approach which consists of a series of cycles of user consultation, focus groups and workshops alongside the development of learning design tools and resources. In particular we will describe how we have adapted an existing mind mapping and argumentation tool, Compendium, so that it can be used as a means of guiding designers through the learning design decision making process in the creation of learning activities. We will describe the initial evaluations of the use of this tool, along with our findings to date on a series of fact finding exercises to better understand individual and team approaches to design

A comparison of the responses of mature and young clonal tea to drought.

To assist commercial producers with optimising the use of irrigation water, the responses to drought of mature and young tea crops (22 and 5 years after field planting respectively) were compared using data from two adjacent long-term irrigation experiments in Southern Tanzania. Providing the maximum potential soil water deficit was below about 400-500 mm for mature, and 200-250 mm for young plants (clone 6/8), annual yields of dry tea from rainfed or partially irrigated crops were similar to those from the corresponding well-watered crops. At deficits greater than this, annual yields declined rapidly in young tea (up to 22 kg (ha mm)-1) but relatively slowly in mature tea (up to 6.5 kg (ha mm)- 1). This apparent insensitivity of the mature crop to drought was due principally to compensation that occurred during the rains for yield lost in the dry season. Differences in dry matter distribution and shoot to root ratios contributed to these contrasting responses. Thus, the total above ground dry mass of well-irrigated, mature plants was about twice that for young plants. Similarly, the total mass of structural roots (>1 mm diameter), to 3 m depth, was four times greater in the mature crop than in the young crop and, for fine roots (<1 mm diameter), eight times greater. The corresponding shoot to root ratios (dry mass) were about 1:1 and 2:1 respectively. In addition, each unit area of leaf in the canopy of a mature plant had six times more fine roots (by weight) available to extract and supply water than did a young plant. Despite the logistical benefits resulting from more even crop distribution during the year when crops are fully irrigated, producers currently prefer to save water and energy costs by allowing a substantial soil water deficit to develop prior to the start of the rains, up to 250 mm in mature tea, knowing that yield compensation will occur later

Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and Opportunities for Sustainable Development

OPEC is in the business of natural resources which inherently connects them to the concept of sustainable development. The main focus of this research is to answer the following question: Does OPEC have the power to implement measures consistent with the concept of sustainable development? During the course of this research, the paper Sustainable Development and OPEC, by Herman E. Daly, was uncovered. Daly proposes a sink tax to be implemented by OPEC. This would act as a global fiduciary which would, in theory, bring the consumption level of oil down to a more sustainable level by raising the price and lowering the demand. The research in this paper finds that Dalys speculative idea, while interesting, is unrealistic; the idea is not feasible given OPECs stated goals. In addition, there are ethical considerations concerning a conflict of interest on a global and local scale

Computer Aided Technique for Energy Estimation

In this paper, the estimation of electric energy output for a wind farm is carried out by using a computer aided technique which uses unpublished collected field data for 3 years 10 months from October 2010 to August 2014 at Satara, India. The inputs for this analysis are such as temperature, pressure, wind speed, wind direction and wind turbine power curve. The results demonstrate that this is an efficient methodology for taking techno commercial decisions

Lessons Learned For Future Designs From Thermal Treatment Of Perchlorate In Soil

A soil remediation project using ex-situ thermal desorption to remove explosive compounds was modified at the latter stages of planning to include treatment of perchlorate. The design-build approach consisted of a bench scale study, which verified the treatability of perchlorate at baseline treatment conditions, and pilot scale studies, which helped refine the process parameters for full-scale treatment. During initial full-scale operations, a high number of treated soil batches failed to meet the project treatment criteria. Analytical results of samples collected from various stages along the treatment train indicated a potential for perchlorate contamination to by-pass the primary treatment process. Slower feed rates and higher operating temperatures did not show any conclusive positive impact on treatment efficiency. Recycling the particulates from the air pollution control equipment back into the feed soil was initially considered, but was deemed infeasible with the current equipment design configuration. A cost-effective solution was achieved by reducing the size of the treated soil sample batch volume, thereby reducing the amount of soil requiring re-treatment when occasional failures occurred. Future plant designs intended for treatment of perchlorate could potentially improve destruction efficiency by recycling particulates to the beginning of the process instead of the treated soil discharge