Advancements in Image Classification using Convolutional Neural Network

Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) is the state-of-the-art for image classification task. Here we have briefly discussed different components of CNN. In this paper, We have explained different CNN architectures for image classification. Through this paper, we have shown advancements in CNN from LeNet-5 to latest SENet model. We have discussed the model description and training details of each model. We have also drawn a comparison among those models.Comment: 9 pages, 15 figures, 3 Tables. Submitted to 2018 Fourth International Conference on Research in Computational Intelligence and Communication Networks(ICRCICN 2018

Impacts of Covid-19 on Cooperatives in Sweden : a Case Study of Arla Foods

Different organizations face diverse challenges to survive during Covid-19. Rare external disruptions due to natural causes such as pandemics affect a company's ability to continue operations, from obtaining raw materials from suppliers to delivering finished products directly to the market. Such as short-term or long-term closings, decreased job opportunities, failed projects with financial effects, and challenges in executing new strategies etc. Various authors argue that member-centric cooperatives are more resilient in times of crisis compared to traditional enterprises. Because cooperatives are owned and controlled by their owners to maximize the value of members' goods, services, or savings rather than profit as a financial organization, this thesis aims to examine and finds out how Covid-19 effects Swedish dairy cooperative Arla economically and how they are coping with the pandemic crisis through a qualitative case study methodology. The purpose of this thesis is to examine how Arla as a cooperative remains economically viable during covid. The results of empirical data from semi-structured interviews suggest that the appropriate application of crisis decision-making framework practices strengthens this organization's workflow and withstands environmental disturbances like covid to achieve business continuity. Arla's existing organizational structure, diversified business portfolio, supply chain design, and combination of global and local business strategies gave them an edge to better manage their operations and helped its management to be quick in decisions and adopt reactive measures to adjust to the new situation of the pandemic. This thesis illustrates how appropriate practice of crisis decision-making framework consisting of four elements (cognition, communication, coordination, and control) of a leading dairy industry in Sweden increased the ability to act even in unprecedented events such as the corona pandemic

Separation and modification of lignin from oil palm empty fruit bunch and its application as a phenolic lignin adhesive in wood composites

Lignin is a polyphenolic molecule that can be used as a partial phenol substitution in phenolic resin compositions. Due to the phenolic structure and huge available quantities of lignin, lignin is an excellent bio-based component for phenol substitution in phenolic resin. However, the reactivity of lignin is low with formaldehyde when phenol formaldehyde (PF) resin is prepared. The present work aims to increase the lignin reactivity by chemical modification (phenolation) and utilize the lignin and modified lignin as a partial substitute for phenol in PF wood adhesive. In this work, lignin was extracted by the kraft pulping process from oil palm empty fruit bunch (OPEFB), and the extracted lignin is known as kraft lignin (KL). In the kraft pulping method, two solvents were used, 19% NaOH and 25% Na2S based on raw materials, with fiber to solvent ratio of 1:8, the pulping temperature and time were 170°C and 3 h, respectively. Then, KL was modified using the phenolation method, in which the KL was reacted with phenol in different ratios (1:1, 1:1.5, and 1:2) in an acidic medium (H2SO4), resulting in a considerable drop in aliphatic hydroxyl groups and a rise in phenolic hydroxyl groups of that lignin. For the preparation of phenolated kraft lignin (PKL), the reaction temperature varied from 90 to 130°C, and the reaction time varied from 100 to 140 min. KL and PKL were characterized using FTIR, 1HNMR, and elemental analysis. The physical properties such as moisture, solid, and ash content of KL and PKL were also studied. Both KL and PKL were introduced to the PF resin by substituting a certain percentage (10-50%) of phenol. The synthesized kraft lignin phenol formaldehyde (KLPF) and phenolated kraft lignin phenol formaldehyde (PKLPF) resins were also compared to PF resin. FTIR and DSC were used to characterize all the resins. The physical properties of all resins, such as viscosity, gel time, solid content, free phenol content, and free formaldehyde content, were studied. The water absorption, thickness swelling, formaldehyde emission, and shear strength of the plywood panels bonded with these adhesives were measured according to the standard method. The outcomes demonstrated that the phenolation process improved the lignin's reactivity as well as the PLPF's adhesive properties. The shear strength of plywood bonding with PKLPF resin meets the criteria of the relevant standards specifications and is substantially superior to that of panels bonding with PF resin. The effects of KL and PKL substitutions in resin for shear strength and formaldehyde emission of plywood were studied. The effects of phenol substitution with lignin or phenolated lignin, the hot press temperature and the pressing time were investigated and optimized to obtain the best possible pressing time and temperature for the performance of plywood adhesive. The response surface methodology (RSM) was used to optimize the hot-press temperature and press time for the plywood preparation process. The experiments have been conducted in the pressing time range from 50 s to 250 s and at temperatures ranging from 120 to 200oC. The experimental results showed a significant increase in plywood shear strength and a decrease in formaldehyde emission. The optimized percentage of phenol substitution with PKL in the PF adhesive was 30% and with KL it was 20%. The maximum shear strength of 3.2 MPa and minimum formaldehyde emission of 0.633 mg/L were found in the PKLPF adhesive. This research demonstrated the use of PKL as a renewable replacement of phenol in phenolic resin formulation and strongly suggested that phenolated lignin can be used as a high-value-added product in wood adhesive applications

A Review on Data Fusion of Multidimensional Medical and Biomedical Data

Data fusion aims to provide a more accurate description of a sample than any one source of data alone. At the same time, data fusion minimizes the uncertainty of the results by combining data from multiple sources. Both aim to improve the characterization of samples and might improve clinical diagnosis and prognosis. In this paper, we present an overview of the advances achieved over the last decades in data fusion approaches in the context of the medical and biomedical fields. We collected approaches for interpreting multiple sources of data in different combinations: image to image, image to biomarker, spectra to image, spectra to spectra, spectra to biomarker, and others. We found that the most prevalent combination is the image-to-image fusion and that most data fusion approaches were applied together with deep learning or machine learning methods

Integrating STEM Approach in Primary Education of Bangladesh: Perception and Challenges of the Teachers

Bangladesh is aspiring to develop a competitive workforce for the 21st century To reach this aspiration STEM education can be a good way as it has widely been considered to have the potential to prepare students with 21stcentury skills The potentiality of STEM can be fully utilized only when teachers apply STEM approaches effectively in their practices Since teachers prior views and perceptions influence their STEM teaching the study aims to explore the teachers perception of STEM education This study also analyzes the challenges of introducing STEM at primary education in Bangladesh A qualitative research design is adopted in this study Teachers perception of STEM education was explored through semi-structured interviews Additionally in-depth and semi-structured interviews were conducted to examine the challenges of implementing STEM education at the primary level Data were analyzed thematically following an inductive approach One of the key discoveries made in this research is that a large majority of teachers have limited knowledge about STEM education Despite this lack of familiarity it was observed that these teachers occasionally apply the STEM approach unintentionally Most teachers perceive STEM education as effective however it has several challenges to implement such as a lack of teachers knowledge about the discipline and pedagogical approach inadequate physical facilities lack of STEM-related training the mindset of stakeholders etc The findings of the study can be practical guidelines for academic institutions curriculum developers teachers trainers and policymaker

PIPER CHABA EXTRACTS WITH ANTIBIOFILM ACTIVITY INFLUENCE ANTIHYPERGLYCEMIC AND ANTIHYPERLIPIDEMIC RESPONSES IN DIABETIC WISTER RATS

Objectives: Piper chaba, native to South and Southeast Asia, has been traditionally used as a medicinal plant. Aim of this study was to evaluate the antihyperglycemic and antihyperlipidemic activities of P. chaba root extracts (RE) in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats along with its antimicrobial activity. Methods: Diabetes was induced in Wister rats through the intraperitoneal administration of STZ (50 mg/kg b.w.). Antidiabetic and antilipidemic activities of the RE (in methanol, ethanol, ethyl acetate and distilled water) were evaluated by administering oral dose (200 mg/kg b.w.) for 21 days. Metformin (12.1 mg/kg b.w.) was used as a positive control. Blood samples of rats were drawn by tail vein puncture and cardiac puncture to determine the fasting blood glucose (FBG) and serum level of total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), and high-density lipoprotein (HDL), respectively. Standard protocols were followed to determine the antimicrobial and antibiofilm activities against two different strains of bacteria. Results: Oral administration of P. chaba RE for 21 days resulted in a significant (p< 0.001) decrease in FBG and TC, TG, and LDL levels (p<0.001), when compared to the untreated diabetic rats. Significant (p<0.001) increase of HDL was observed when ethyl acetate and aqueous RE were administered. Out of four, two extracts showed varying antimicrobial activities, particularly against the gram-positive bacteria.  Conclusion: It became evident for the first time that P. chaba extracts possess antimicrobial activities and can serve as biochemical compounds with great alternative therapeutic potential in the management of diabetes and hypercholesterolemia

Promising fortitude of vegetables worth in Dhaka city: A supply chain analysis

Vegetables trading require some vital support of integrated supply chain system and also depend on function of intermediaries, where transport facilities are most important The objective of paper is to analyze the role of vegetables supply chain in Bangladesh. The paper is exploring determination of vegetables price in Dhaka city which is ever-increasing fast with respect to rural market price in Bangladesh. Data were collected from different areas of Dhaka city and others districts for present study on vegetables price from rural to urban market where prices are very much discrimination. Analyzing the collected data it has been found that vegetables market and exploring the analysis of supply chain on the vegetables price is important. Study has further found that there have many barriers in vegetables market

Redescription of Arcotheres placunae and three new records, A. aff. alcocki, A. casta and Pinnotheres quadratus from Pakistan with a note on previously recorded Pakistani Pinnotherid crabs

Arcotheres placunae a commen commensal of bivalve Placuna placenta is redescribed;two species of the same genus :A. aff. alcocki and A. casta and one species of another genus Pinnotheres P.quadratus are reported as new records from Pakistan. Previously recorded Pakistani pinnotherid crabs are reviewed