Towards the automatic detection of spontaneous agreement and disagreement based on nonverbal behaviour: A survey of related cues,databases, and tools

While detecting and interpreting temporal patterns of nonverbal behavioural cues in a given context is a natural and often unconscious process for humans, it remains a rather difficult task for computer systems. Nevertheless, it is an important one to achieve if the goal is to realise a naturalistic communication between humans and machines. Machines that are able to sense social attitudes like agreement and disagreement and respond to them in a meaningful way are likely to be welcomed by users due to the more natural, efficient and human‐centred interaction they are bound to experience. This paper surveys the nonverbal behavioural cues that could be present during displays of agreement and disagreement; discusses a number of methods that could be used or adapted to detect these suggested cues; lists some publicly available databases these tools could be trained on for the analysis of spontaneous, audiovisual instances of agreement and disagreement, it examines the few existing attempts at agreement and disagreement classification, and finally discusses the challenges in automatically detecting agreement and disagreement.     

Intelligent forest fire monitoring system

This paper presents iForestFire, an Environmental Monitoring Information System for forest fire protection. The system is composed of several components, each having a particular function. Automatic fire detection is a crucial component of the system. It is based on various complex image processing algorithms. Complexity of the system also emerges from integration, based on multi agent technology, of different environment information. The presented system contributes to the environment protection and is in use in Croatia for several years.     

Spectroscopic evaluation of the colour play effect of thermochromic liquid crystal printing inks

Colour changes of a thermochromic liquid crystal (TLC) ink printed on a black substrate are clearly observed by the naked eye, and therefore it is reasonable to expect that every approach recommended for colour measurements of samples with solid colour would be appropriate. In addition, the published spectroscopic analyses of TLC inks do not provide any guidance or limitations for the measurement geometry. On the other hand, our study demonstrates that spectroscopic measurements of such samples are not so straightforward. When using the most simple and commonly used measurement equipment with a directional illumination and viewing approach, the temperature-dependent spectral features resolve in a narrow spectral region that gives only a small part of the colour play effect. Detection of the entire effect requires the use of integrating spheres, which spatially integrate the radiant flux reflected on a sample in any direction; better results are obtained by spheres of larger diameter. The comparision of spectroscopic and colorimetric results obtained when different measurement geometries are applied on the same sample may demonstrate certain properties of the liquid crystal material inside microcapsules and help in understanding some details of the optical properties of the ink layer.     

Shear bond strength to dentine of dental adhesives containing hydroxyapatite nano-fillers

The aim of this study was to compare the effect of hydroxyapatite (HAP) nano-rods (HAP_rods) and HAP nano-sticks (HAP_sticks) added to commercial adhesives on the macro-shear bond strength (SBS) to dentine and morphology of the adhesive–dentine interface. HAP was added to Single Bond Universal (SBU, 3M ESPE) and Te-Econom Bond (TeE; Ivoclar Vivadent), in the form of water suspensions to avoid agglomeration of nano-particles and to achieve HAP concentrations of 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5 wt%. Following a ‘total-etch’ or a ‘self-etch’ protocol, the adhesives were applied to flat dentine surface of 162 intact human, third molars (N = 6/group). Composite (Z250, 3M ESPE) was built-up using a split stainless steel mould, 3 mm in diameter. SBS was tested using a universal testing machine at 1 mm/min until fracture. Data were statistically analysed using two-way and one-way analysis of variance with Tukey’s post-test (α = 0.05). HAP_rods had no significant effect on SBS of the tested adhesives while HAP_sticks improved bond strength to dentine only of adhesives applied following the ‘total-etch’ total-etch protocol. SBS values of SBU containing 1% HAP_sticks (15.10 ± 2.96 MPa) and TeE containing 0.5% HAP_sticks applied following the total-etch protocol (12.96 ± 4.48 MPa) were higher than those of their respective control groups (10.36 ± 2.68 and 7.97 ± 3.64 MPa). Samples with higher SBS showed more ‘mixed’ failures. HAP nano-fillers may improve bond strength of total-etch adhesives without an adverse effect on adhesive dispersion on dentine and its ability to infiltrate dentinal tubules.     

Apoferritin Modified Magnetic Particles as Doxorubicin Carriers for Anticancer Drug Delivery

Magnetic particle mediated transport in combination with nanomaterial based drug carrier has a great potential for targeted cancer therapy. In this study, doxorubicin encapsulation into the apoferritin and its conjugation with magnetic particles was investigated by capillary electrophoresis with laser-induced fluorescence detection (CE-LIF). The quantification of encapsulated doxorubicin was performed by fluorescence spectroscopy and compared to CE-LIF. Moreover, the significant enhancement of the doxorubicin signal was observed by addition of methanol into the sample solution.     

Post Audit Analysis of a Groundwater Level Prediction Model in Developed Semiconfined Aquifer System

This paper assesses groundwater recharge under conditions of long-term groundwater pumping at the Ravnik pumping site in Croatia and analyses the groundwater level prediction model used in prior aquifer modelling. The results of model calibration revealed a very low net infiltration rate at the start of the pumping site’s operation. As the operation continued, the net infiltration rate slowly increased, while the percentage of infiltrated rainfall scaled up with increasing pumping rates. The predicted recharge of the covering aquitard amounts approximately 14–15 % of the mean annual precipitation. The aquifer recharge takes place from aquitard by seepage. A subsequent simulation of the pumping site’s operation was performed for the 9 years period on the assumption that the pumping rates and the groundwater recharge would be the same as those recorded during the final calibration years. Results show that the post audit measured levels correspond relatively well to the predicted levels and that increasing of the pumping rate causes changes in the water budget in advantage of net groundwater recharge as a consequence of spreading recharge area outside of previous model boundaries.     

Alternating Current Electrophoretic Deposition of Antibacterial Bioactive Glass-Chitosan Composite Coatings

Alternating current (AC) electrophoretic deposition (EPD) was used to produce multifunctional composite coatings combining bioactive glass (BG) particles and chitosan. BG particles of two different sizes were used, i.e., 2 μm and 20–80 nm in average diameter. The parameter optimization and characterization of the coatings was conducted by visual inspection and by adhesion strength tests. The optimized coatings were investigated in terms of their hydroxyapatite (HA) forming ability in simulated body fluid (SBF) for up to 21 days. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy results showed the successful HA formation on the coatings after 21 days. The first investigations were conducted on planar stainless steel sheets. In addition, scaffolds made from a TiAl4V6 alloy were considered to show the feasibility of coating of three dimensional structures by EPD. Because both BG and chitosan are antibacterial materials, the antibacterial properties of the as-produced coatings were investigated using E. coli bacteria cells. It was shown that the BG particle size has a strong influence on the antibacterial properties of the coatings.     

Soft computing agents for e-Health in application to the research and control of unknown diseases

This paper presents an ontology-based holonic diagnostic system (OHDS) that combines the holonic paradigm with multi-agent system technology and ontology design, for the organization of unstructured biomedical research into structured disease information. We use ontologies as ‘brain’ for the holonic diagnostic system to enhance its ability to structure information in a meaningful way and share information fast. To integrate distributed heterogeneous knowledge available on the Web we use intelligent agents augmented by the mechanisms of the technology of fuzzy sets, which automatically structures the information in the adequate ontology template. Our vision of how this system implementation should be supported by a solid security shield that ensures the privacy and safety of medical information concludes the paper.     

Influence of a prefilming treatment on the corrosion resistance of aluminium brass in aqueous solutions

The influence of a short-time prefilming treatment with benzimidazole-2-thiol on the corrosion resistance of Cu Zn 22Al 2 has been examined. The efficiency of the prefilming treatment has been evaluated by recording the anodic and the cathodic polarization curves in 0.1 N NaCl. Ellipsometric measurements have been carried out in order to obtain some information on the properties of the layer. Comparative data on “prefilmed” and “bare” Cu Zn 22Al2 specimens have been obtained in aqueous chloride solutions circulating in a corrosion loop and by tests in moist atmosphere containing SO₂. Galvanic corrosion testing have been carried out by using small not prefilmed areas and large prefilmed ones, simulating in this way the partial removal of the film from the metallic surface. The results suggest that a metal-inhibitor film forms on Al-brass, which mainly affects the cathodic reaction rate. Furthermore, the tests clearly indicate that the effect of benzimidazole-2-thiol is strongly influenced by a pre-existing oxide layer on the alloy surface. A good protection against atmospheric corrosion is reached by prefilming treatment. Corrosion loop testing indicate that prefilming does not hinder the formation of protective corrosion products on the surface of the alloy in flowing aqueous solutions.