Clustering composite SaaS components in Cloud computing using a Grouping Genetic Algorithm

Recently, Software as a Service (SaaS) in Cloud computing, has become more and more significant among software users and providers. To offer a SaaS with flexible functions at a low cost, SaaS providers have focused on the decomposition of the SaaS functionalities, or known as composite SaaS. This approach has introduced new challenges in SaaS resource management in data centres. One of the challenges is managing the resources allocated to the composite SaaS. Due to the dynamic environment of a Cloud data centre, resources that have been initially allocated to SaaS components may be overloaded or wasted. As such, reconfiguration for the components’ placement is triggered to maintain the performance of the composite SaaS. However, existing approaches often ignore the communication or dependencies between SaaS components in their implementation. In a composite SaaS, it is important to include these elements, as they will directly affect the performance of the SaaS. This paper will propose a Grouping Genetic Algorithm (GGA) for multiple composite SaaS application component clustering in Cloud computing that will address this gap. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first attempt to handle multiple composite SaaS reconfiguration placement in a dynamic Cloud environment. The experimental results demonstrate the feasibility and the scalability of the GGA

Hubungan Antara Kepemimpinan Pengajaran Pengetua Wanita dengan Iklim Sekolah

Sejumlah 218 orang guru dari lima buah sekolah menengah dalam daerah Alor Gajah, telah dipilih sebagai sampel kajian. Mereka telah diberi satu set soal selidik yang terdiri daripada tiga bahagian, iaitu (1) Bahagian A, Latar Belakang Guru, (2) Bahagian B, The Principal Instructional Management Rating Scale' (PIMRS), untuk mengukur persepsi guru terhadap amalan kepemimpinan pengajaran, dan (3) Bahagian C, The CFK School Climate Profile' (CFKSCP), untuk mengukur persepsi guru terhadap jenis iklim sekolah. Keboleh percayaan soal selidik kajian telah dianalisis menggunakan model Alpha Cronbach. Nilai alpha bagi soal selidik PIMRS ialah 0.97, manakala soal selidik CFKSCP ialah 0.94. Hasil kajian mendapati , tidak terdapat perbezaan persepsi yang signifikan terhadap amalan kepemimpinan pengajaran berdasarkan faktor demografi guru kecuali gender (t = 2.11, P < .05). Guru lelaki (min = 2.92) telah mempersepsi amalan kepemimpinan pengajaran pengetua wanita lebih positif berbanding guru wanita (min = 2.78). Secara keseluruhannya persepsi guru-guru terhadap amalan kepemimpinan pengajaran pengetua wanita berada dalam kategori "Kerap" (min = 2.83). Peratus guru yang memilih skala " Kerap" (71.1%) dalam mempersepsi amalan kepemimpinan pengajaran pengetua wanita, paling tinggi berbanding skala-skala lain, iaitu "Tidak Pernah" (0.0%), "Jarang-Jarang" (22.9%) , dan "Sangat Kerap" (6.0%). Hasil kajian ini juga mendapati 69.7% guru telah mempersepsi iklim sekolah sebagai "Sederhana Terbuka" .Wujud perbezaan persepsi yang signifikan terhadap iklim sekolah berdasarkan faktor demografi , iaitu kategori (t=2.01, p <.05) dan pengalaman (F = 3.12, P <.05). Guru siswazah (min = 3.19) dan guru yang berpengalaman 16 - 20 tahun (min = 3.45) telah mempersepsi iklim sekolah lebih positif berbanding guru-guru lain. Selain itu kajian ini juga menunjukkan wujud hubungan positif dan rendah yang signifikan di antara kekerapan amalan kepemimpinan pengajaran dengan iklim sekolah (r = 0.35, P <.05). Secara lebih terperinci , setiap dimensi kepemimpinan pengaj aran, iaitu Dimensi Penta krifan Matlamat Sekolah (r = 0.27), Dimensi Pengurusan Program- Program Pengajaran (r = 0.38, P < .05), dan Dimensi Pemupu kan Iklim Pengajaran dan Pembelajaran (r = 0.36, P < .05), juga menunjukkan hubungan positif dan rendah dengan iklim sekolah

Site Characterization Of Surface And Sub-Surface Spatial Data In Producing Riverbank Filtration Site Suitability Map

Remote sensing, Geographic Information System (GIS) and electrical resistivity technique were used in this study to develop the site suitability map for river bank filtration (RBF) locations for a case study in Jenderam Hilir, Dengkil. A high resolution 2012 GeoEye-1 satellite image was classified into six classes using the supervised maximum likelihood classification process. The classified image was further analyzed using GIS technique such as overlaying, buffering and Boolean analysis, to identify the suitability of a RBF location area based on location, distance from the river and distance from built up area. The classified image results show that the overall accuracy is 89% with kappa statistic of 0.864. For the subsurface profile, the electrical images method was used for investigating the aquifer existence and to evaluating the extent of soil subsurface. Electrical-imaging resistivity results showed the lithology of sandy clay to sandy silt sediments at more than 3 m deep. From the inverse model of resistivity variation with depth indicated the occurrence of potential aquifer mostly in silty sand zones within the traps and below it. Based on lithology, a potential water-bearing aquifer was identified at a depth of 3 m depth which is good agreement with interpreted results. A site suitability map was developed and RBF locations were identified. The suitability map also coincides with the existing borehole location at study area

The Relationship between customer satisfaction, Corporate Social Responsibility activities towards customer loyalty in TNB Kuantan Pahang

The potential opening of the power sector's retail space will give customers more options to buy their electricity and is likely to have earnings impact on Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB). As of right now, TNB is the only retail energy provider in Peninsular Malaysia. Recent reports suggested that the government was investigating the possibility of allowing new energy suppliers to enter the market and the findings are expected to be made public in the near future. Loyalty on the part of customers is recognized as one of the most important goals that TNB should strive for in order to build a sustainable advantage in the market. Customer loyalty is one of the most important yardsticks for achievement for unique organizations in a competitive business climate. It is shown by the customers' continued patronage of the unique enterprises. The degree to which customers are committed to the missions, priorities, products, and services that TNB reveals a lot about how successful their business is in the marketplace. This study is to examine the relationship between TNB Corporate Social Responsibility activities and Customer Satisfaction Index towards Customer Loyalty for TNB customers in Kuantan, Pahang. The quantitative survey method was used to collect the data. Part of customers of TNB were chosen as the sample of the study. The result of preliminary analyses, testes, discusses and come out the result of all variables of study, the factor analysis, correlation, and the regressions analyses on the direct and indirect relationship among the variables. The result revealed direct significant relationships between the independent variables (corporate social responsibility and customer satisfaction) and dependent variable (customer loyalty)

Yusoh wood store inventory system /Siti Aisyah Yusoh

Yusoh wood Store is a company that provides all kinds of woods. Currently, the company is using manual system in storing data and inventory process. Sometimes, staffs in the company faced with some problems such as stock out, get the wrong inventory information and also lost some stock out and stock in details. The inventory system is a system or software that can help manage the inventory process in the company. All the product transaction has been stored in the system. After the customer buys the product, the staffs will fill the stock out and stock in form to store all the transactions. Each product will have their maximum level, minimum level and reorder level. The system is developed to enhance the storing process of inventory transaction and also store all the information about product info. The system is simple and easy to manage. This system has been developed based on Waterfall model that consists of Analysis, design, implementation, testing and integration and operation & maintenance. After the development has been done, user testing was distributed to get some feedback from user. Based on the evaluations that have been done, the system meets the user requirement and achieved the objectives of the system. The feedback from the staff is good and positive. The result shows that the system is usable and can help staff manage the inventory process. The inventory system has given a positive impact to the company performance

Subsurface and bulk mechanical properties of polyurethane nanocomposite films

A series of exfoliated and intercalated polyurethane (PU) organoclay nanocomposites, polyurethane-graphite oxide (GO) and polyurethane carbon nanotubes (single-walled (SWNT) and multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNT)) were prepared by in situ polymerization. It is believed that the preparation of polymer/clay or polymer/CNTs nanocomposites with homogeneous dispersion of nanofillers in the matrices is a crucial step to developing high-performance polymer nanocomposites. The effects of various organoclays and carbon nanotubes (CNTs), polyol types and dispersion situation i.e. intercalation or exfoliation on viscosity were investigated. The interactions between the polyol and nanofillers and the mixing temperature play an important role in the occurrence of exfoliation and intercalation in polyurethane nanocomposite. The mechanism of exfoliation of clay was proposed based on the rheological data. The surface mechanical properties of the polyurethane nanocomposite films were investigated by means of nanoindentation. The results showed that the hardness and elastic modulus of the nanocomposites dramatically increased with the incorporation of nanofillers. This improvement was dependent on the content of nanofillers as well as the formation structure of organoclay in the polyurethane matrix. At 3wt% clay content, the hardness and elastic modulus of intercalated nanocomposites increased by approximately 16% and 44%, respectively, compared to the pure PU. For the exfoliated clay/PU nanocomposites, the improvement in these properties was about 3.5 (hardness) and 1.6 (modulus) times higher than the intercalated ones. For the polyurethane graphite oxide (GO) nanocomposites both the hardness and the elastic modulus were enhanced as a function of GO concentration. With incorporation of 4wt% GO, the hardness and modulus increased nearly ~400% and ~350%, respectively. Upon incorporation of only 1wt% SWNT, the hardness of polyurethane was greatly improved by about 150% from 3 MPa to 7.8 MPa and the modulus was improved by about 50% from 12MPa to 18.5 MPa. For only 1wt% MWNT, the hardness of polyurethane was improved by about 50% and the modulus is just slightly improved by about ~5%. The creep behaviour of bulk and sub-surface of the polyurethane nanocomposites were investigated by means of uniaxial conventional creep testing and nanoindentation, respectively. The results showed that the creep resistance of the PU was significantly improved by incorporation of nanofillers. The enhancement of creep resistance was dependent on the filler. With 1wt% clay, the creep resistance increased by approximately 50% for the intercalated system and 67% for the exfoliated system, respectively, compared to the pure PU. The elastic-viscoelastic (EVE) model was employed to examine the effect of organoclay loadings on the creep performance of PU nanocomposites. Results showed the model was in good agreement with the experimental data. A similar results were also noticed in polyurethane with GO and CNTs. The creep deformation decreases when the GO content increases, as expected from the addition of a rigid reinforcement of GO and CNTs into a polyurethane matrix. In scratch test, the results pronounced that with incorporation of nanofillers the scratch depth of polyurethane matrix was dramatically reduced

Fun Learning Tools to Enhance Students Interest in Science via e-Book

The paper discusses on the impact of e-Book technology on the books market, status of e-Book usage in basic education and where to improve e-book technology in order to help teachers to expand beyond linear, text-based learning, to engage students who learn best in other ways and to enhance students‟ interest in learning. Its role in schools has evolved from a contained “computer class” into a versatile learning tool that could change how we demonstrate concepts, assign projects and assess progress. There are two types of data collection being done in this research; qualitative and quantitative survey. From the result of the survey done on Terengganu‟s students which were already familiar with e-Book, 82% agreed that e-Book allow them to have fun while learning in class. In future, it is being hope that the e-Book technology can be widely used in education, not just for an additional tools in class

A novel technique to identify source of the Neutral to Earth Voltage (NTEV) using support vector machine (SVM) based on timefrequency analysis / Mohd Abdul Talib Mat Yusoh

Neutral to Earth Voltage (NTEV) rise in the commercial building has been categorised as one of the major Power Quality problems. Based on the IEEE Std 1695 and Hydro- Quebec standards, the tolerable limit for the NTEV rise should be below 10V. However, its magnitude tends to exceed the tolerable threshold value due to several factors, such as nonlinear load, heavy neutral current load, lightning strikes, and improper wiring connection. Based on the corresponding problems, the NTEV rise contributes to the heating, incorrect operation and malfunctions of equipment, frequent tripping, and electromagnetic interference to the system. Therefore, the development of a comprehensive technique is required to identify the NTEV rise in the commercial building, where the conservative effort to solve the standing problems can be minimised. The objectives of this research are to identify the source that contributes the NTEV rise in the commercial building. Thus, the initial work carried out in this study focuses on the derivation of the grounding system modelling, which is related to NTEV in the commercial building during multi-frequency variation. The RLC grounding system is proposed in this derivation model, where its performance is compared with the conventional grounding system to produce the profile of the NTEV in normal condition, similar to the profile of an actual data measurement. Furthermore, the mathematical models of NTEV rise are also developed according to problems caused by loose termination, open conductor and lightning strike. In relation to the NTEV models, a classification technique is developed by employing the combination of S-transform (ST) and several types of classifier tools. The classifier tools utilised in this study comprised the Probabilistic Neural Network (PNN), General Regression Neural Network (GRNN), Support Vector Machine (SVM), and K-Nearest Neighbor (K-NN). Moreover, a novel technique is developed to identify the source location of NTEV rise in the commercial building. In this state, the identification techniques are concentrated on the problems due to loose termination and open conductor. To illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed technique, the simulations are carried out on the 7- feeder distribution system and 13-node distribution system using MATLAB/Simulink software. Fourier Transform (FT) with respect to DC component analysis is utilised in a novel technique to identify the standing problems that occur either on the upstream or downstream location. The results showed that the RLC model of the grounding system outperformed the conventional grounding system in terms of percentage error, mean squared error (MSE) and Pearson correlation coefficient. The result of the percentage error, MSE and Pearson correlation coefficient using the RLC model are 2.5473,0.0165 and 0.9503, respectively. In addition, the results of the NTEV rise have also been successfully derived in the mathematical model. The results of the classification have shown that the SVM classifier outperformed the other classifiers in terms of accuracy value. The overall accuracy results of PNN, GRNN, K-NN, and SVM are 94.7%, 97.7%, 97.7%, and 98.3%, respectively. Finally, the results of a novel technique could identify the source location of the NTEV rise when the problems occur either on the upstream or downstream location with respect to the measurement points. The upstream and downstream locations are seen identified based on the negative and positive polarities of the proposed technique

Development of a single phase active Power filter for rectifier load

This project presents the employment of a single-phase active power filter (APF) to compensate harmonics generated by battery charger. The presence of the harmonics leads to various problems and poor power quality. The objectives of this project are to reduce the harmonic distortion of the single-phase system with battery charger load. The operation of APF is verified using the simulations in Matlab/Simulink. Conventional proportional-integral-derivative (PID) control based Shunt APF is being used to regulate the DC bus voltage and hysteresis current controller is employed to generate signal for switching purpose. The process is based on sensing line currents, filter currents and DC side capacitor voltage. The error signal caused by the filter has been computed firstly. Then this error signal has been compensated using the PID controller. The reference filter currents signal then obtained by subtracts the line current with the compensated signal from the controller. This reference current is feed to the hysteresis current controller and compare with the sensed filter currents to obtain the switching signal for active power filter. Simulation results are obtained with the conventional PID. The results are compared and analyzed. The proposed method offers an efficient control method under the varying load and supply conditions. Based on the simulation and experiment results this project verified the ability of proposed method to compensate harmonics generated by the single phase rectifier battery charger.

Mechanical And Physical Properties of Wood-Plastic Composites Made of Polypropylene, Wood Flour and Nanoclay

The focus of this study was to characterize mechanical and physical properties of experimental composition prepared from nanoclays (Cloisite® 20A), wood flour (WF) and polypropylene (PP). Nanoclays with different concentrations were used as reinforcing filler for wood plastic compositions (WPCs). Maleic anhydride grafted polypropylene (MAPP) was added as a coupling agent to increase the interaction between the components of wood-plastic composites. Nanoclay based wood-plastic composites were made by extrusion process and then injection molding. Mechanical and physical properties of the as-prepared composites were evaluated. The results of strength measurements showed that the flexural modulus of the composite was increased by 56.33 % with increasing of nanoclays contents to 5 wt. %, reaching approximately 3.58 GPa compared to WPC containing 0% of nanoclays. Moreover, the flexural and tensile strengths reached their maximum values when the concentrations of nanoclays was 2.5 wt. %. When maintaining the nanoclays at a low concentration, it was well dispersed in the WPC. However, when more nanoclays (4 –5 wt. %) was introduced, the enhancing effect began to diminish because of the agglomeration of nanoclays which caused poor interfacial adhesion. The addition of nanoclays decreased the average water uptake by 13 %, compared to the control sample (without nanoclays). The improvement of physical and mechanical properties confirmed that nanoclays has good reinforcement and the optimum effect of nanoclays was archived at 2.5 wt. %