RECOMMENDING SERVICES IN A DIFFERNTIATED TRUST-BASED DECENTRALIZED USER MODELING SYSTEM

Trust and reputation mechanisms are often used in peer-to-peer networks, multi-agent systems and online communities for trust-based interactions among the users. Trust values are used to differentiate among members of the community as well as to recommend service providers. Although different users have different needs and expectations in different aspects of the service providers, traditional trust-based models do not use trust values on neighbors for judging different aspects of service providers. In this thesis, I use multi-faceted trust models for users connected in a network who are looking for suitable service providers according to their preferences. Each user has two sets of trust values: i) trust in different aspects of the quality of service providers, ii) trust in recommendations provided for these aspects. These trust models are used in a decentralized user modeling system where agents (representing users) have different preference weights in different criteria of service providers. My approach helps agents by recommending the best possible service provider for each agent according to its preferences. The approach is evaluated by conducting simulation on both small and large social networks. The results of the experiments illustrate that agents find better matches or more suitable service providers for themselves using my trust-based recommender system without the help of any central server. To the best of my knowledge this is the first system that uses multi-faceted trust values both in the qualities of service-providers and in other users’ ability to evaluate these qualities of service providers in a decentralized user modeling system

Evaluating Cartogram Effectiveness

Cartograms are maps in which areas of geographic regions (countries, states) appear in proportion to some variable of interest (population, income). Cartograms are popular visualizations for geo-referenced data that have been used for over a century and that make it possible to gain insight into patterns and trends in the world around us. Despite the popularity of cartograms and the large number of cartogram types, there are few studies evaluating the effectiveness of cartograms in conveying information. Based on a recent task taxonomy for cartograms, we evaluate four major different types of cartograms: contiguous, non-contiguous, rectangular, and Dorling cartograms. Specifically, we evaluate the effectiveness of these cartograms by quantitative performance analysis, as well as by subjective preferences. We analyze the results of our study in the context of some prevailing assumptions in the literature of cartography and cognitive science. Finally, we make recommendations for the use of different types of cartograms for different tasks and settings

Impact of Globalization on Human Rights in Developing Countries: Connecting the Dots towards the SDGs

This study focuses on the complex interaction between globalization and human rights. The study uses a multifaceted approach to analyze the possible overlaps and conflicts between globalization and human rights to find ways to lessen negative effects and maximize good ones. The research intends to identify the gaps and possibilities of implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by looking at the particular difficulties encountered by developing countries. The study reveals the intricate interactions between globalization and human rights using data from several case studies as well as a thorough examination of the literature. It identifies several significant impact areas, such as labor rights, access to healthcare and education, environmental sustainability, gender equality, and the defense of indigenous peoples' rights. Additionally, the study evaluates how governments, civil society, international organizations, and other stakeholders are addressing the adverse effects of globalization on human rights and sustainable development. The paper unleashes mitigating factors and emphasizes the obligations of the many UN stakeholders to defend human rights and assist in the achievement of the SDGs. By resolving these issues, developing nations may more effectively take advantage of globalization's potential advantages while defending human rights and pursuing sustainable development objectives within the SDG framework. One of the key limitations of this paper is the lack of access to achieving primary data and the generalization of the concept itself. The impact of globalization has a deeper and specific scope of discussion

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the education of medical, dental and non-medical healthcare professionals in Bangladesh : findings and connotation

Lockdown measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic had an appreciable impact on the education of all medical, dental, and non-medical healthcare professional (HCP) students. These included the closure of universities necessitating a rapid move to e-learning and new approaches to practical’s. However initially, there was a lack of knowledge and expertise regarding e-learning approaches and the affordability of internet bundles and equipment. We initially con-ducted two pilot studies to assess such current challenges, replaced by a two-stage approach including a full investigation involving 32 private and public universities during the early stages of the pandemic followed by a later study assessing the current environment brought about by the forced changes. Top challenges at the start of the pandemic included a lack of familiarity with e-learning approaches, cost of the internet, lack of IT equipment and the quality of the classes. Universities offered support to staff and students to a varying degree to address identified challenges. Since then, e-learning approaches have widened the possibilities for teaching and learning at convenient times. However, challenges remain. In conclusion, there were considerable challenges at the start of them pandemic. Several key issues have been addressed with hybrid learning here to stay. Remaining challenges include a lack of ICT equipment. However, new innovations will continue

Large-Scale Recombinant Production of the SARS-CoV-2 Proteome for High-Throughput and Structural Biology Applications

The highly infectious disease COVID-19 caused by the Betacoronavirus SARS-CoV-2 poses a severe threat to humanity and demands the redirection of scientific efforts and criteria to organized research projects. The international COVID19-NMR consortium seeks to provide such new approaches by gathering scientific expertise worldwide. In particular, making available viral proteins and RNAs will pave the way to understanding the SARS-CoV-2 molecular components in detail. The research in COVID19-NMR and the resources provided through the consortium are fully disclosed to accelerate access and exploitation. NMR investigations of the viral molecular components are designated to provide the essential basis for further work, including macromolecular interaction studies and high-throughput drug screening. Here, we present the extensive catalog of a holistic SARS-CoV-2 protein preparation approach based on the consortium’s collective efforts. We provide protocols for the large-scale production of more than 80% of all SARS-CoV-2 proteins or essential parts of them. Several of the proteins were produced in more than one laboratory, demonstrating the high interoperability between NMR groups worldwide. For the majority of proteins, we can produce isotope-labeled samples of HSQC-grade. Together with several NMR chemical shift assignments made publicly available on covid19-nmr.com, we here provide highly valuable resources for the production of SARS-CoV-2 proteins in isotope-labeled form

Cartogram Visualization: Methods, Applications, and Effectiveness

Cartograms are value-by-area maps which modify geographic regions, such as countries, in proportion to some variable of interest, such as population. These are popular georeferenced data visualizations that have been used for over a century to illustrate patterns and trends in the world around us. A wide variety of cartogram types exist, that were designed to optimize different cartogram dimensions, such as geographic accuracy and statistical accuracy. This work surveys cartogram research in visualization, cartography and geometry, covering a broad spectrum of different cartogram types: from the traditional rectangular cartograms, to Dorling and diffusion cartograms. Based on prior work in visualization and cartography, I propose a task taxonomy of cartograms, and describe a study of cartograms based on quantitative metric-based comparisons, task-based time-and-error evaluation, and subjective preference and feedback analysis. For these evaluations, I considered four major types of cartograms which allowed us to compare and analyze the evaluation strategies and discuss the implications of the surprising outcomes. In the context of maps, the ability to recall information shown in the map is one of the important factors in determining effectiveness. In spite of some early studies that involved cartograms, the memorability of different cartogram types has not been investigated. In order to create effective data presentations, we first need to understand what makes a visualization memorable. I investigate the memorability of contiguous and Dorling cartograms, both in terms of recognition of the map and recall of data. Finally, I describe bivariate cartograms, a technique specifically designed to allow for the simultaneous comparison of two geo-statistical variables. Traditional cartograms are designed to show only a single statistical variable, but in practice, it is often useful to show two variables (e.g., the total sales for two competing companies) simultaneously. Bivariate cartograms make it easy to find geographic patterns and outliers in a pre-attentive way. They are most effective for showing two variables from the same domain (e.g., population in two different years, sales for two different companies), although they can also be used for variables from different domains (e.g., population and income). I also describe a small-scale evaluation of the proposed techniques that indicates bivariate cartograms are especially effective for finding geo-statistical patterns, trends and outliers

Formulation and In-Vitro Evaluation of Orally Disintegrating Tablets (ODTs) of Tramadol Hydrochloride

Since orally disintegrating tablets (ODTs) of tramadol hydrochloride are not available in the market, so an attempt has been taken to formulate and evaluate ODT preparation of tramadol hydrochloride. In this present work, direct compression was the technique used for preparing ODT using superdisintegrants like croscarmellose sodium, sodium starch glycolate and crospovidone at different concentrations. Prepared formulations were evaluated for various quality parameters- angle of repose, Carr’s index, Hausner ratio, weight variation, friability, hardness, drug content, dispersion time, wetting time and in-vitro dissolution. The angle of repose data indicated that the flow property of all the formulations was good to excellent. Comparing with the specifications, the results of Carr's index (%) and Hausner’s ratio indicated that the flowability of all the formulations blend was significantly good. Prepared formulations showed average wetting time ranging from 40-45 seconds, average dispersion time with 3-6 minutes. In-vitro dissolution profile indicated the cumulative % drug release between 30-80% for most of the cases. Keywords: Orally disintegrating tablets, Tramadol hydrochloride, Superdisintegrants, Direct compression