12,784 research outputs found
Predictive models as screening tools for DNA recovery from baked and burned porcine bones
Burnt bones and skeletal remnants continue to challenge the proficiency of
forensic investigations in human individualization and identification. The various
natural disasters and human inflicted crimes involving fire leave the forensic
investigators with very little to work on. Thus, demand for practical studies to
obtain useful facts for improvisation of current techniques and to overcome
the short comings is a prerequisite. In this study Design of Experiments (DOE)
as an investigative and screening tool to relate the different variables (burning
temperature, time, thickness of flesh, presence of accelerants) involved in
the burning process and to detect the probability of obtaining successful DNA
identification from burnt bones is proposed. We show that high temperature
and large base pair PCR primer have a significant effect on DNA retrieval and
amplification. The baking study provides reproducible DNA identification with
maximum retrieval temperature of 320°C for the smallest (106bp) amplicon.
The study involving accelerants demonstrates that those with high specific heat
capacity decrease DNA recovery, hence suggesting probable damage to DNA.
Through this study the positive effect of presence of flesh for DNA recovery
was also verified with a maximum DNA recovery temperature of 500°C. Utilizing
all these information through DOE, predictive models were also created with
regression equations to calculate positive DNA amplification and to predict the
different variables respective to the burning process. These models created
using porcine bones could be related for real scenarios and with more data
procurement it could be used effectively in forensic investigations
Modeling and forecasting gender-based violence through machine learning techniques
Gender-Based Violence (GBV) is a serious problem that societies and governments must address using all applicable resources. This requires adequate planning in order to optimize both resources and budget, which demands a thorough understanding of the magnitude of the problem, as well as analysis of its past impact in order to infer future incidence. On the other hand, for years, the rise of Machine Learning techniques and Big Data has led different countries to collect information on both GBV and other general social variables that in one way or another can affect violence levels. In this work, in order to forecast GBV, firstly, a database of features related to more than a decade’s worth of GBV is compiled and prepared from official sources available due to Spain’s open access. Then, secondly, a methodology is proposed that involves testing different methods of features selection so that, with each of the subsets generated, four techniques of predictive algorithms are applied and compared. The tests conducted indicate that it is possible to predict the number of GBV complaints presented to a court at a predictive horizon of six months with an accuracy (Root Median Squared Error) of 0.1686 complaints to the courts per 10,000 inhabitants—throughout the whole Spanish territory—with a Multi-Objective Evolutionary Search Strategy for the selection of variables, and with Random Forest as the predictive algorithm. The proposed methodology has also been successfully applied to three specific Spanish territories of different populations (large, medium, and small), pointing to the presented method’s possible use elsewhere in the world
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Iterated Nonlinear Control of Ship's Manoeuvring Models
This paper addresses the control design for a nonlinear vessel manoeuvring model. The authors consider a highly nonlinear vessel 4 DOF model. The proposed control algorithm consists of a combination of an iteration technique that approximates the original nonlinear model by a sequence of linear time varying (LTV) equations whose solution converge to the solution of the original nonlinear problem and, a lead compensation design in which for each of the iterated linear time varying systems, the controller is optimized at each time on the interval. The control designed for the last iteration is then applied to the original nonlinear problem. Simulations results show good performance of this approximation methodology and accurate tracking for certain manoeuvring cases under the control of the designed lead controller. The main characteristic of the nonlinear system's response are the reduction of the settling time and the elimination of the steady state error and overshoot
Acute effects of combined cycling and plyometrics on vertical jump performance in active males
VLBA determination of the distance to nearby star-forming regions I. The distance to T Tauri with 0.4% accuracy
In this article, we present the results of a series of twelve 3.6-cm radio
continuum observations of T Tau Sb, one of the companions of the famous young
stellar object T Tauri. The data were collected roughly every two months
between September 2003 and July 2005 with the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA).
Thanks to the remarkably accurate astrometry delivered by the VLBA, the
absolute position of T Tau Sb could be measured with a precision typically
better than about 100 micro-arcseconds at each of the twelve observed epochs.
The trajectory of T Tau Sb on the plane of the sky could, therefore, be traced
very precisely, and modeled as the superposition of the trigonometric parallax
of the source and an accelerated proper motion. The best fit yields a distance
to T Tau Sb of 147.6 +/- 0.6 pc. The observed positions of T Tau Sb are in good
agreement with recent infrared measurements, but seem to favor a somewhat
longer orbital period than that recently reported by Duchene et al. (2006) for
the T Tau Sa/T Tau Sb system.Comment: 24 pages, 3 pages, AASTEX format, accepted for publication in Ap
Difference schemes with point symmetries and their numerical tests
Symmetry preserving difference schemes approximating second and third order
ordinary differential equations are presented. They have the same three or
four-dimensional symmetry groups as the original differential equations. The
new difference schemes are tested as numerical methods. The obtained numerical
solutions are shown to be much more accurate than those obtained by standard
methods without an increase in cost. For an example involving a solution with a
singularity in the integration region the symmetry preserving scheme, contrary
to standard ones, provides solutions valid beyond the singular point.Comment: 26 pages 7 figure
Аналіз текстури фрактографічних зображень на основі спектра фрактальних розмірностей Реньї
У статті досліджено застосування спектра фрактальних розмірностей Реньї для аналізу текстури
фрактографічних зображень. Запропоновано використовувати цей підхід для класифікації типів зламів.В статье исследовано применение спектра фрактальных размерностей Реньи для анализа текстуры
фрактографических изображений. Предложено использовать этот подход для классификации типов
изломов.Investigated the use of the spectrum of fractal dimensions Renyi for texture analysis fraktohraphic images.
Proposed to use this approach for the classification of types of fractures
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