Tabu search for attribute reduction in rough set theory

In this paper, we consider a memory-based heuristic of tabu search to solve the attribute reduction problem in rough set theory. The proposed method, called tabu search attribute reduction (TSAR), is a high-level TS with long-term memory. Therefore, TSAR invokes diversification and intensification search schemes besides the TS neighborhood search methodology. TSAR shows promising and competitive performance compared with some other CI tools in terms of solution qualities. Moreover, TSAR shows a superior performance in saving the computational costs.     

Defect mode in periodic and quasiperiodic one-dimensional photonic structures

The properties of one-dimensional periodic and quasiperiodic photonic crystals with a defect layer have been investigated. Transfer matrix method (TMM) has been used throughout this study. For periodic photonic crystals, results demonstrate the independence of the defect mode frequency on the defect layer while the defect mode transmission coefficient varies with the position of the defect layer position. On the other hand, defect mode frequency is not that responsive to the index of refraction of the defect layer. The quality factor of the defect mode has been studied as a function of the defect layer position as well as its thickness. For quasiperiodic photonic crystals, the frequency of the defect mode is very sensitive to the defect layer position as well as its thickness. An enhancement of the quality factor of the defect mode has been observed. This study may be valuable in designing optical devices and it may also provide a more accurate method to measure the index of refraction.     

Potential of spectroscopic data sets for sugarcane thrips (Fulmekiola serrata Kobus) damage detection

Sugarcane thrips was detected in South African sugarcane in 2004. Since then it has become widespread in South Africa. The South African Sugarcane Research Institute (SASRI) conducts field surveys to monitor this pest, but this is time intensive and costly. As a first step towards evaluation of remote sensing for thrips monitoring, a preliminary experiment and analysis at leaf level were conducted using a handheld field spectroradiometer covering the 350 to 2500 nm range of the electromagnetic spectrum to detect sugarcane thrips damage. Reflectance spectra of sugarcane leaves with different levels of thrips damage, from two popular varieties (N19 and N12), were measured and statistically analysed using one-way analysis of variance, sensitivity analysis and canonical discriminant analysis. The results of the analyses showed that there were significant differences in spectral reflectance and derived variables used in the study at the different levels of damage. The red edge region of the visible portion gave the highest significant differences and levels of separability among the damage classes. It is hypothesized that this might be associated with chlorophyll and nitrogen deficiencies induced by thrips.     

Predicting Eucalyptus spp. stand volume in Zululand,South Africa: an analysis using a stochastic gradient boosting regression ensemble with multi-source data sets

Accurate, reliable, and up-to-date forest stand volume information is a prerequisite for a detailed evaluation of commercial forest resources and their sustainable management. Commercial forest responses to global climate change remain uncertain, and hence the mapping of stand volume as carbon sinks is fundamentally important in understanding the role of forests in stabilizing climate change effects. The aim of this study was to examine the utility of stochastic gradient boosting (SGB) and multi-source data to predict stand volume of a Eucalyptus plantation in South Africa. The SGB ensemble, random forest (RF), and stepwise multiple-linear regression (SMLR) were used to predict Eucalyptus stand volume and other related tree-structural attributes such as mean tree height and mean diameter at breast height (DBH). Multi-source data consisted of SPOT-5 raw spectral features (four bands), 14 spectral vegetation indices, rainfall data, and stand age. When all variables were used, the SGB algorithm showed that stand volume can be accurately estimated (R² = 0.78 and RMSE = 33.16 m³ ha^?1 (23.01% of the mean)). The competing RF ensemble produced an R² value of 0.76 and a RMSE value of 37.28 m³ ha^?1 (38.28% of the mean). SMLR on the other hand, produced an R² value of 0.65 and an RMSE value of 42.50 m³ ha^?1 (42.50% of the mean). Our study further showed that Eucalyptus mean tree height (R² = 0.83 and RMSE = 1.63 m (9.08% of the mean)) and mean diameter at breast height (R² = 0.74 and RMSE = 1.06 (7.89% of the mean)) can also be reasonably predicted using SGB and multi-source data. Furthermore, when the most important SGB model-selected variables were used for prediction, the predictive accuracies improved significantly for mean DBH (R² = 0.81 and RMSE = 1.21 cm (6.12% of the mean)), mean tree height (R² = 0.86 and RMSE = 1.39 m (7.02% of the mean)), and stand volume (R² = 0.83 and RMSE = 29.58 m³ ha^?1 (17.63% of the mean)). These results underscore the importance of integrating multi-source data with remotely sensed data for predicting Eucalyptus stand volume and related tree-structural attributes.     

Heat transfer augmentation for air jet impinged on a rough surface

An experimental investigation of heat transfer from a round air jet impinging normally from below onto a heated square plate was performed. The objective of the investigation was to study the effect of roughness on both the heat transfer and the fluid flow characteristics. Smooth and rough plates were, therefore, used in the course of the experiments. The heat transfer data were collected for four jet Reynolds numbers, ranging from 6500 to 19 000. The Reynolds numbers are based on the jet-exit velocity (U_e) and the nozzle-exit diameter (D), Re_e=U_eD/ν. The nozzle-to-plate distance ranged from 0.05 to 15 nozzle-exit diameter to cover both the potential core and the far regions of the jet flow. The roughness was composed of cubes of 1 mm dimension distributed uniformly along the plate. The local and average Nusselt number values for the rough plate showed an increase ranging from 8.9% to 28% over those for the smooth plate. Roughness was found to have a strong effect on the flow characteristics; it affected the mean velocity as well as the turbulence intensity of the flow. The mean velocity profiles for the smooth case at radial distances of r/D=1 and r/D=2.5 showed steeper near-wall velocity gradients compared with the profiles of the rough case, where r is the radial distance measured from the plate center along the plate centerline. In addition, roughness caused an increase in the turbulence intensity of the flow.     

Differential effects of ethanol on baroreceptor heart rate responses of conscious spontaneously hypertensive and normotensive rats

This study investigated the acute effects of ethanol (0.25, 0.5, or 1 g/kg, iv) on mean arterial pressure, heart rate, and gain of the baroreceptor reflex control of heart rate (BRS) in conscious spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) and age-matched Wistar rats. BRS was substantially lower in the SHRs as compared with the Wistar rats when measured by phenylephrine (-0.95 +/- 0.16 vs. -2.02 +/- 0.22 beats/min/mm Hg) or nitroprusside (-1.90 +/- 0.2 vs -3.02 +/- 0.32 beats/min/mm Hg). None of the doses of ethanol influenced BRS in the SHR. In contrast, ethanol attenuated BRS in Wistar rats, but this effect was dependent on the dose used and the type of response. The lower doses attenuated the reflex tachycardic response, but had no effect on the reflex bradycardic response. On the other hand, the 1 g/kg dose of ethanol attenuated the reflex bradycardic but not the tachycardic response. Ethanol produced a pressor effect (15-25 mm Hg; 5-min duration), which was neither dose- nor strain-dependent. However, only in the SHR mean arterial pressure remained elevated (10-15 mm Hg above control) for 20 min in response to the 0.5 g/kg dose of ethanol, and its recovery coincided with the occurrence of a slowly developing negative chronotropic response. Ethanol produced a dose-related negative chronotropic effect in both strains of rats that was of longer duration in the SHR, particularly with the 1 g/kg dose. It is possible that the bradycardic effect of ethanol influenced negatively its pressor effects.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Determination of trace metals in cottonseed oil and hydrogenated cottonseed oil

The main vegetable oils used in Egypt are cottonseed oil and hydrogenated cottonseed oil; these are used as salad oil and for cooking. Determination of trace heavy metals in the oils is important. This is because of the association of trace metals with the origin of the oils, metal processing equipment and catalysts used for hydrogenation, and toxicity of edible oils, and because of the effect of trace metals on the characteristics, such as colour and taste, of finished products.Iron, copper, aluminium and magnesium were found in the cottonseed oil. These metals were also found in the hydrogenated cottonseed oil, together with lead, silver and calcium. The amounts of metals were below the limits permitted by public health and safety regulations.     

Contact force identification using the subharmonic resonance of a contact-mode atomic force microscopy

We propose a step-by-step experimental procedure for characterization of the nonlinear contact stiffness on surfaces using contact-mode atomic force microscopy. Our approach directly estimates the first-, second-, and third-order coefficients of the contact stiffness. It neither uses nor requires the underlying assumptions of the Hertzian contact theory. We use a primary resonance excitation of the probe to estimate the linear coefficient of the contact stiffness. We use the method of multiple scales to obtain closed-form expressions approximating the response of the probe to a subharmonic resonance excitation of order one-half. We utilize these expressions and higher-order spectral measurements to independently estimate the quadratic and cubic coefficients of the contact stiffness.     

Synthesis of multi-walled carbon nanotubes via pyrolysis of plastic waste using a two-stage process

The pyrolysis of different plastic waste types such as low density polyethylene (LDPE), high density polyethylene (HDPE), polypropylene (PP), polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polystyrene (PS) for producing multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) using a two-stage process has been investigated. Firstly, the cracking of plastic wastes was carried out at a temperature of 700°C to produce hydrocarbon gases. In the second stage, the produced hydrocarbon gases were decomposed at 650°C on the surface of the Ni-Mo/Al₂O₃ catalyst to form CNTs. Various analytical tools such as XRD, TPR, TGA, Raman spectroscopy and TEM were used to describe both the fresh catalyst and the obtained CNTs. The results showed that the amount of the hydrocarbon gases was related to the type of plastic waste and hence the CNT yield. Accordingly, LDPE or PP was decomposed to produce the largest gases yield of 72.5 or 70.7 wt%, respectively. As a result, a large CNTs yield of 5.8 and 5 g/g_cat can be achieved by pyrolysis of PP and LDPE waste, respectively. However, a small yield of CNTs with little quality and low purity was obtained by using PS or PET waste as the carbon feedstock.     

Efficiency Improvement of Dual-Band Wireless Power Transfer (DB-WPT) System with U-shape Resonator and Capacitively Loaded E-shape Defected Ground Structure (DGS)

Wireless Personal Communications - The ceaseless increase in the number of the wireless Internet of Things (IoT) devices has resulted in the need of different traffic engineering techniques to...