Simulation and measurement: Feasibility study of Tactile Internet applications for mmWave virtual reality

Numerous wearable technology companies have recently developed several head‐mounted display (HMD) products for virtual reality (VR) services. 5G wireless networks aim at providing high‐quality 3D multimedia services such as VR, augmented reality, and mixed reality. In this study, we examine the application of millimeter‐wave (mmWave) technology to realize low‐latency wireless communication between an HMD and its content server. However, the propagation characteristics of mmWave present several challenges such as the deafness, blockage, and beam alignment problems, and interference among content servers. In this study, we focus on an environment that provides VR services in the mmWave band and introduce existing techniques for addressing such challenges. In addition, we employ a commercialized IEEE 802.11ad VR dongle to measure the actual data rate of an mmWave VR application and identify the degree to which the performance deteriorates when the above problems occur. Finally, we verify the feasibility of the proposed solutions through a simulation of several VR scenarios in the mmWave band.     

A hybrid computational intelligence approach for predicting soil shear strength for urban housing construction: a case study at Vinhomes Imperia project,Hai Phong city (Vietnam)

This research proposes an alternative for estimating shear strength of soil based on a hybridization of Support Vector Regression (SVR) and Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO). SVR is used as a function approximation method for making prediction of the soil shear strength based on a set of twelve variables including sample depth, sand content, loam content clay content, moisture content, wet density, dry density, void ratio, liquid limit, plastic limit, plastic index, and liquid index. The hybrid framework, named as PSO–SVR, relies on PSO, as a metaheuristic, to optimize the training phase of the employed function approximator. A data set consisting of 443 soil samples associated with the experimental results of shear strength has been collected from a housing project in Vietnam. This data set is then used to train and verify the performance of the PSO–SVR model specifically constructed for shear strength estimation. The hybrid model has achieved a good modeling outcome with Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) = 0.038, Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE) = 9.701%, and Coefficient of Determination (R2) = 0.888. Hence, the PSO–SVR model can be a potential alternative to be participated in the design phase of high-rise housing projects.     

Fuzzy logic and slip controller of clutch and vibration for hybrid vehicle

This paper is the second part of the paper titled “Simulation and Control of Hybrid Electric Vehicles” published in IJCAS, Vol. 10(2)/2012 where the model predictive control has been built to handle the clutch engagement between the combustion engine and the electrical motor. In this research, a fuzzy logic and slip controller of clutch and vibration of the hybrid vehicle have been considered and tested as a second control strategy. The use of the fuzzy logic control can avoid the need of the complex and rigorous mathematical modeling since the fuzzy logic can work very successfully on the uncertain and imprecise information. The clutch slip controller is implemented in an experimental test vehicle for the critical vibration reduction.     

Evolving dispatching rules using genetic programming for solving multi-objective flexible job-shop problems

We solve the multi-objective flexible job-shop problems by using dispatching rules discovered through genetic programming. While Simple Priority Rules have been widely applied in practice, their efficacy remains poor due to lack of a global view. Composite dispatching rules have been shown to be more effective as they are constructed through human experience. In this paper, we evaluate and employ suitable parameter and operator spaces for evolving composite dispatching rules using genetic programming, with an aim towards greater scalability and flexibility. Experimental results show that composite dispatching rules generated by our genetic programming framework outperforms the single dispatching rules and composite dispatching rules selected from literature over five large validation sets with respect to minimum makespan, mean tardiness, and mean flow time objectives. Further results on sensitivity to changes (in coefficient values and terminals among the evolved rules) indicate that their designs are robust.     

Inactivation of pectin Methylesterase and Lactobacillus Plantarum by ohmic heating in pomelo juice

The use of ohmic heating (OH) to inactivate damaging elements in pomelo juice was evaluated. The work investigated the effect of frequencies (50–20 000 Hz) on pectin methylesterase (PME) and Lactobacillus plantarum (L. plantarum) in pomelo juice at 30 V cm⁻¹ of electric field strength. The results show that frequency does not affect PME inactivation (P > 0.05) but affects bacterial reduction and has the most efficiency at 60 Hz, followed by 50 Hz, and in the frequency range at or higher than 500 Hz (P < 0.05). Additionally, the inactivation kinetics of PME and L. plantarum and the impact of nonthermal factors were given. The nonthermal element has contributed to the inactivation enhancement of L. plantarum and PME to reduce the necessary treatment temperature and time. The major spoilage bacteria and enzyme destruction in pomelo juice occurred faster under OH than under conventional heating (CH) suggesting that OH can be effectively used to pasteurise pomelo juice.     

A Dystrophin Exon-52 Deleted Miniature Pig Model of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and Evaluation of Exon Skipping

Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is a lethal X-linked recessive disorder caused by mutations in the DMD gene and the subsequent lack of dystrophin protein. Recently, phosphorodiamidate morpholino oligomer (PMO)-antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) targeting exon 51 or 53 to reestablish the DMD reading frame have received regulatory approval as commercially available drugs. However, their applicability and efficacy remain limited to particular patients. Large animal models and exon skipping evaluation are essential to facilitate ASO development together with a deeper understanding of dystrophinopathies. Using recombinant adeno-associated virus-mediated gene targeting and somatic cell nuclear transfer, we generated a Yucatan miniature pig model of DMD with an exon 52 deletion mutation equivalent to one of the most common mutations seen in patients. Exon 52-deleted mRNA expression and dystrophin deficiency were confirmed in the skeletal and cardiac muscles of DMD pigs. Accordingly, dystrophin-associated proteins failed to be recruited to the sarcolemma. The DMD pigs manifested early disease onset with severe bodywide skeletal muscle degeneration and with poor growth accompanied by a physical abnormality, but with no obvious cardiac phenotype. We also demonstrated that in primary DMD pig skeletal muscle cells, the genetically engineered exon-52 deleted pig DMD gene enables the evaluation of exon 51 or 53 skipping with PMO and its advanced technology, peptide-conjugated PMO. The results show that the DMD pigs developed here can be an appropriate large animal model for evaluating in vivo exon skipping efficacy.     

The Relationship between Dioxin Congeners in the Breast Milk of Vietnamese Women and Sister Chromatid Exchange

The aim of this study was to clarify the relationship between dioxin concentrations in breast milk and the sister chromatid exchange (SCE) frequency in women from herbicide-sprayed and non sprayed areas. Blood samples were taken from 21 women with high TCDD (tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin) levels from sprayed areas, 23 women with moderate TCDD levels from sprayed areas, and 19 women from non sprayed areas to determine their SCE frequency. The SCE frequencies for the high and moderate TCDD groups from the sprayed area and for the non sprayed area group were 2.40, 2.19, and 1.48 per cell, respectively. Multiple regression analysis showed that the standardized β values for 1,2,3,6,7,8-hexaCDD (β = 0.60), 1,2,3,4,6,7,8-heptaCDD (β = 0.64), and octaCDD (β = 0.65) were higher than those for TCDD (β = 0.34) and 1,2,3,7,8-pentaCDD (β = 0.42). The adjusted R² value for polyCDDs (R² = 0.38) was higher than that for polyCDD toxic equivalents (TEQ (toxic equivalents); R² = 0.23). This study therefore shows that levels of hexa-, hepta-, and octaCDD, which were previously regarded as being less toxic than TCDD, are closely related to SCE frequency and that the level of dioxin (pg/g lipid) is potentially more useful as an indicator than TEQ value for explaining SCE frequency.     

Are cross-cultural comparisons of personality profiles meaningful? Differential item and facet functioning in the Revised NEO Personality Inventory.

Measurement invariance is a prerequisite for confident cross-cultural comparisons of personality profiles. Multigroup confirmatory factor analysis was used to detect differential item functioning (DIF) in factor loadings and intercepts for the Revised NEO Personality Inventory (P. T. Costa, Jr., & R. R. McCrae, 1992) in comparisons of college students in the United States (N = 261), Philippines (N = 268), and Mexico (N = 775). About 40%–50% of the items exhibited some form of DIF and item-level noninvariance often carried forward to the facet level at which scores are compared. After excluding DIF items, some facet scales were too short or unreliable for cross-cultural comparisons, and for some other facets, cultural mean differences were reduced or eliminated. The results indicate that considerable caution is warranted in cross-cultural comparisons of personality profiles. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)