Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Terahertz Photon Mixing Effect In Graphene And Topological Insulator, Yee Sin Ang, Qinjun Chen, Xiaolin Wang, R A. Lewis, Chao Zhang

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

We theoretically investigate the nonlinear terahertz photon-mixing effect in graphene and topological insulator. We show that the nonlinear intraband optical absorption in both materials dominate over the linear response under a very moderate external electric field strength. The nonlinear response is thermally enhanced and the optical nonlinearity is well-preserved even in high temperature regime.

Pedestrian Lane Detection For The Visually Impaired, Manh Cuong Le, Son Lam Phung, Abdesselam Bouzerdoum

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

Traveling safely in outdoor environments is one of the most challenging activities for vision-disabled people. To improve the mobility of these people, an assistive navigation system is necessary. This paper is a step towards developing this system. We propose a robust method to detect the pedestrian marked lane at traffic junctions. The proposed method involves three stages: patches of interest (POI) extraction, lane marker detection and lane detection. The POI extraction is first performed to detect image patches located on the lane marker boundaries using template matching. Potential lane markers are then formed by using shape and intensity information. Finally, …

Using Context-Aware Sub Sorting Of Received Signal Strength Fingerprints For Indoor Localisation, Montserrat Ros, Brendan Schoots, Matthew D'Souza

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

Mobile indoor localisation has numerous uses for logistics, health, sport and social networking applications. Current wireless localisation systems experience reliability difficulties while operating within indoor environments due to interference caused by the presence of metallic infrastructure. Current position localisation use wireless channel propagation characteristics, such as RF receive signal strength to localise a user's position, which is subject to interference. To overcome this, we developed a Fingerprint Context Aware Partitioning tracking model for tracking people within a building. The Fingerprint Context Aware Partitioning tracking model used received RF signal strength fingerprinting, combined with localised context aware information about the user's …

Determining The Vertical Profile Of Reflectivity Using Radar Observations At Long Range, Kate Snow, Alan Seed, George Takacs

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

The Vertical Profile of Reflectivity (VPR) plays an important role when estimating the rain rate at the surface and has been the subject of radar meteorology research for many years. The VPR can either be sampled directly from observations that are close to the radar where the impact of the convolution with the beam pattern can be ignored, or the parameters for a theoretical form for the VPR are estimated using the available observations or climatology. In either case, a significant difficulty arises when a rain band approaches the radar and quantitative precipitation estimates are required before any detailed observations …

Utilising Non-Composite Steel-Concrete-Steel Panels For Protective Structures, A M. Remennikov, S Y. Kong, Brian Uy

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

A high-performance protective structure utilising non-composite steel-concrete-steel (SCS) sandwich panels for protecting buildings and facilities against close-range detonation of VBIEDs and heavy ve-hicle impacts has been developed. Unlike other existing composite sandwich panels, no shear connec-tors between the steel faceplates are utilised to construct protective panels in order to simplify the con-struction process. The concrete core of the panel is included to provide the mass for increased inertia effects, and the steel faceplates are designed to develop tensile membrane resistance at large displace-ment to dissipate impulsive energy. The energy dissipation capability and high ductility of the axially-restrained non-composite SCS panels …

Experimental Investigation Of Cable Catcher Systems For Office Building Blast Protection, Alexander Remennikov, L S. Brodie

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

High performance cable catcher systems are an effective means of protecting office building windows and façades from effects of explosive blast. This paper presents experimental results for the response a simple cable catcher system subject to impact loads delivered using a drop-hammer testing facility. The objectives of this experimental programme were to investigate the loaddeformation behaviour of steel strand cables and to evaluate the dynamic performance of cable catcher systems in reference to their ability to absorb blast energy. Two steel cable arrangements (compacted and normal spiral strand) have been tensile tested in order to provide load-deformation curves as well …

Chen's Conjecture And E-Superbiharmonic Submanifolds Of Riemannian Manifolds, Glen Wheeler

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

B.-Y. Chen famously conjectured that every submanifold of Eu- clidean space with harmonic mean curvature vector is minimal. In this note we prove a much more general statement for a large class of submanifolds sat- isfying a growth condition at innity. We discuss in particular two popular competing natural interpretations of the conjecture when the Euclidean back- ground space is replaced by an arbitrary Riemannian manifold. Introducing the notion of "-superbiharmonic submanifolds, which contains each of the pre- vious notions as special cases, we prove that "-superbiharmonic submanifolds of a complete Riemannian manifold which satisfy a growth condition at innity …

Investigation Into Feasibility Of Hybrid Laser-Gmaw Process For Welding High Strength Quenched And Tempered Steel, Lenka Kuzmikova, Nathan Larkin, Zengxi Pan, Mark Callaghan, Huijun Li, John Norrish

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

In this study, the feasibility of hybrid laser-gas metal arc welding process for replacement of conventional flux-cored arc welding procedure for welding high strength quenched and tempered steel was investigated. Experimental work focused on optimisation of process parameters to produce joint with desired properties. Hardness of the weld heat affected zone produced by both processes has been measured. Productivity and cost effectiveness of both processes were compared. It was concluded that hybrid laser-gas metal arc welding process is suitable for welding high strength quenched and tempered steel.

An Approach To Compensate The Object Movement Errors In Phase Shifting Profilometry, Lei Lu, Jiangtao Xi, Yanguang Yu, Limei Song

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

Phase shifting profilometry (PSP) technique is widely used as a 3-D shape measurement technique due to its robustness and accuracy. However, PSP requires multiple fringe pattern images to be projected onto an object and a reference plane to calculate the phase value, and also the object must maintain motionless when the measurement is taken. If the object moves during the measurement, significant errors will be introduced when calculating the phase value. This paper analyses the relationship between the object movement and the phase value, and proposes a method for compensating the errors caused by two-dimensional movement of object. This method …

Predicting The Fate Of Emerging Trace Organic Contaminants Of Concern During Mbr Treatment Based On Their Molecular Properties, K C. Wijekoon, L D. Nghiem, F I. Hai, J Kang, W E. Price

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

We demonstrate that the fate of emerging trace organic contaminants during membrane bioreactor (MBR) treatment can be qualitatively predicted by assessing their molecular properties. This work futher expands the qualitative framework for the prdiction of trace organic removal by MBR treatment reported in our recent study.

Coupling Powdered Activated Carbon (Pac) Adsorption With Membrane Bioreactor (Mbr) Treatment For Enhanced Removal Of Trace Organics, Luong Nguyen, Faisal Ibney Hai, Long Nghiem, Jinguo Kang, William Price

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

the occurrence of trace organics such as pesticides, pharmaceutically active compounds, natural and synthetic hormones as well as varous industrial compounds in the aquatic environment is of great concern due to their potential adverse effects on human health and those of other biota. Therefore, the removal of these compounds from wastewater is an important consideration to ensure safe drinking water and better protection of the environment. In the literature, several techniques have been explored for trace organics removal, namely, conventional activated sludge, membrane bioreactors (MBRs), and absorptioin. However it has been found that neither MBR nor activated carbon on its …

Science's Stagnant Thinking: Our Rivers Need A Revolution, Graham Harris

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

I've been away in the UK for a few years - and what do I find when I come back? In the Murray Darling we are still arguing over inputs (the amount of water to be returned to the river) instead of focusing on the state we actually want the river system to be in, and how to make it so.

Meet Boston Dynamics' Ls3 - The Latest Robotic War Machine, Katina Michael

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

On first viewing Boston Dynamics' latest creation, the LS3 (Legged Squad Support System), I could not help but be taken back to the AT-AT (All Terrain Armoured Transport) walker, as depicted in the Star Wars film The Empire Strikes Back. But it is the AT-TE (All Terrain Tactical Enforcer) walker that appears in Attack of the Clones which strikes the most eerie resemblance to the LS3 concept, as the two images below demonstrate.

Israel, Palestine And The Benefits Of Waging War Through Twitter, Katina Michael

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

Warfare, as we know, has gone digital, its volleys and counterattacks rattled out 140 characters at a time. Historically, nation states with superior military prowess have been in a position of influence, and are often dubbed superpowers. But in the post Cold War era, such geopolitical giants have not had a monopoly in terms of technological interventionism. Terrorist regimes have lifted the veil on conventional warfare and sought non-traditional methods to attack their counterparts. So-called "rogue states", such as Iran and North Korea, have been accused of hiding weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and developing nuclear programs. Today asymmetrical attacks …

Exponential-Family Random Graph Models For Valued Networks, Pavel N. Krivitsky

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

Exponential-family random graph models (ERGMs) provide a principled and flexible way to model and simulate features common in social networks, such as propensities for homophily, mutuality, and friend-of-a- friend triad closure, through choice of model terms (sufficient statistics). However, those ERGMs modeling the more complex features have, to date, been limited to binary data: presence or absence of ties. Thus, analysis of valued networks, such as those where counts, measurements, or ranks are observed, has necessitated dichotomizing them, losing information and introducing biases. In this work, we generalize ERGMs to valued networks. Focusing on modeling counts, we formulate an ERGM …

A Comparison Study Of Chain-Die Forming And Roll Forming By Forming A Top Hat Section, Yuankun Zhang, Shichao Ding

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

Chain-die Forming, a novel sheet metal forming method, has been proposed and developed recently to overcome the problems that arose in roll forming. As an extension to roll forming, Chain-die Forming has been proposed to elongate the deformation length by increasing the virtual roll radii, and employing discrete profiled die-blocks which move on a track board with the desired large radii to im-plement or simulate the rotation of the virtual large rolls. The roll radii are so large and the forming length is so long that all redundant strain components occurring in roll forming are significantly reduced or even eliminated.

Effects Of Feed Solution Characteristics And Membrane Fouling On N-Nitrosamine Rejection By Reverse Osmosis Membranes, Takahiro Fujioka, Long D. Nghiem, Stuart Khan, James Mcdonald, Yvan Poussade, Jörg Drewes

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

Augmentation of potable water sources with reclaimed municipal wastewater is an option of increasing importance for water security in regions and countries where severe water stress occurs. Consequently, the presence of emerging trace contaminants in reclaimed water has been recognised as a critical issue due to their potential adverse health effects. Notable examples of these trace organic chemicals include N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) and several other N-nitrosamines.

Whole-Body Torques For Generating Complex Movements In Humans And Humanoids, Layale Saab, Nicolas Mansard, Philippe Souères, J-Y Fourquet, Manish Sreenivasa, Yoshihiko Nakamura

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part B

This paper considers the problem of identifying the control torques associated with the generation of complex movements in an anthropomorphic system. We present a generic motion generation scheme for humanoid robots. Then we use the torques estimated from human motion capture and force sensor measurements, to compare with similar movements simulated on a humanoid robot. The general features of movement during a sequence of reaching tasks are analyzed. In particular we compare kinematics-based and dynamics-based movements. Finally, the variation of torques at the different joints are compared and discussed.

Session Communication And Integration, Guoxin Su, Mingsheng Ying, Chenqui Zhang

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part B

No abstract provided.

Photonic Chip Based Tunable Slow And Fast Light Via Stimulated Brillouin Scattering, Ravi Pant, Adam Byrnes, Christopher Poulton, Enbang Li, Duk-Yong Choi, Stephen J. Madden, Barry Luther-Davies, Benjamin J. Eggleton

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

We report the first (to our knowledge) demonstration of photonic chip based tunable slow and fast light via stimulated Brillouin scattering. Slow, fast, and negative group velocities were observed in a 7 cm long chalcogenide (As2S3) rib waveguide with a group index change ranging from ∼−44 to +130, which results in a maximum delay of ∼23  ns at a relatively low gain of ∼23  dB. Demonstration of large tunable delays in a chip scale device opens up applications such as frequency sensing and true-time delay for a phased array antenna, where integration and delays ∼10  ns are highly desirable.

Is It Important To Position Foot In Subtalar Joint Neutral Position During Non-Weight-Bearing Molding For Foot Orthoses?, Winson Lee, Christina Lee, Aaron Leung, Stephen W. Hutchins

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

When taking molds for foot orthoses, it is accepted practice to position the subtalar joint in its neutral position. However, foot orthoses have no contact with the talus, and this leads to a hypothesis that as long as there is correction available to appropriately align the forefoot relative to the hindfoot when taking a mold, changes in subtalar joint angles do not lead to significant alterations in the plantar surface shapes of the molds taken. This study tested this presumption with 20 subjects between 22 and 46 years old. During non-weight-bearing casting, the subtalar joints were aligned at positions of …

Comparison Of Custom-Moulded Ankle Orthosis With Hinged Joints And Off-The-Shelf Ankle Braces In Preventing Ankle Sprain In Lateral Cutting Movements, Winson Lee, Toshiki Kobayashi, Barton Choy, Aaron Leung

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

BACKGROUND: A custom moulded ankle orthosis with hinged joints potentially offers a better control over the subtalar joint and the ankle joint during lateral cutting movements, due to total contact design and increase in material strength. OBJECTIVES: To test the above hypothesis by comparing it to three other available orthoses. STUDY DESIGN: Repeated measures. METHODS: Eight subjects with a history of ankle sprains (Grade 2), and 11 subjects without such history performed lateral cutting movements in four test conditions: 1) non-orthotic, 2) custom-moulded ankle orthosis with hinges, 3) Sport-Stirrup, and 4) elastic ankle sleeve with plastic support. A VICON motion …

Effectiveness Of Adjustable Dorsiflexion Night Splint In Combination With Accommodative Foot Orthosis On Plantar Fasciitis, Winson Lee, W Y. Wong, Eddy Kung, Aaron Leung

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

Foot orthoses and night splints have been used separately to treat patients with plantar fasciitis, but were not always successful. Combined use of both orthoses might give better outcomes. This study evaluated the effectiveness of a soft and self-adjustable dorsiflexion night splint in combination with an accommodative foot orthosis for patients with plantar fasciitis. Twenty-eight patients were assigned to group A (foot orthosis only) and group B (combination of foot orthosis and dorsiflexion night splints). A foot function index (FFI) questionnaire was used to evaluate the pain and functions of feet just before, 2 weeks after, and 8 weeks after …

Dynamic Impression Insole In Rheumatoid Foot With Metatarsal Pain, Bao-Chi Chang, Jia-Yi Wang, Biing-Shiun Huang, Hsiao-Yi Lin, Winson Lee

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

Background

Custom molded insoles with metatarsal supports are used to redistribute excessive loading under the metatarsal heads in patients with metatarsalgia. However, these pressure reductions are usually insufficient for the rheumatoid foot with painful deformed metatarsal heads. We developed an effective insole made by sequential foam padding under successive walking impression.

Methods

Seventeen consecutive rheumatoid arthritic outpatients with metatarsal pain participated in this repeated measures study of 7-mm flat Ethylene Vinyl Acetate, custom molded and dynamic impression insoles. Peak plantar pressure, pressure-time integral, contact area and mean force were measured by a Pedar-X mobile system. Pain levels were assessed using …

Modélisation De La Mobilité Résidentielle En Vue D'Une Micro-Simulation Des Évolutions De Population, Eric Cornelis, Johan Barthelemy, Xavier Pauly, Fabien Walle

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

Quels sont les déterminants de la mobilité résidentielle en Belgique ? Quand on déménage, quels sont les facteurs de choix d'une nouvelle commune de résidence ? Telles étaient les questions au cœur du projet MOBLOC. Dans ce cadre, un modèle a été développé en deux parties: un modèle de propension à migrer et un modèle de choix de nouvelle localisation. L'objectif étant de travailler avec un niveau de désagrégation spatiale fin (les 589 communes belges), des outils de micro-simulation étaient également nécessaires. La méthode originale développée par le GRT pour créer des populations synthétiques est donc utile de même que …

Simulated Angular Head Oscillation Enhances Vection In Depth, Juno Kim, Stephen Palmisano, Frederick Bonato

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Research has shown that adding simulated linear head oscillation to radial optic flow displays enhances the illusion of self-motion in depth (ie linear vection). We examined whether this oscillation advantage for vection was due to either the added motion parallax or retinal slip generated by insufficient compensatory eye movement during display oscillation. We constructed radial flow displays which simulated 1 Hz horizontal linear head oscillation (generates motion parallax) or angular head oscillation in yaw (generates no motion parallax).We found that adding simulated angular or linear head oscillation to radial flow increased the strength of linear vection in depth. Neither type …

Influence Of 18ghz Microwave Radiation On The Enzymatic Activity Of Escherichia Coli Lactate Dehydrogenase And Cytochrome C Oxidase, Yuri Shamis, Alex Traub, Rodney J. Croft, Russell Crawford, Elena Ivanova

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The catalytic activity of two common bacterial enzymes, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and cytochrome c oxidase (COX) from Escherichia coli, was examined following bacterial exposure to microwave (MW) radiation under well-defined experimental conditions. The experiments were conducted in a specialised microwave processing apparatus, with an exposure frequency of 18 GHz, and a temperature profile that was restricted to below 40oC to avoid thermal degradation of the bacteria. The absorbed power was calculated to be 1500 kW/m3 and the electric field was determined to be 300 V/m. Both values were theoretically confirmed using Computer Simulation Technology (CST) Microwave Studio 3D Electromagnetic Stimulation …

The Comparison Of The Effect Of Oat And Shiitake Mushroom Powder To Prevent Body Weight Gain In Rats Fed High Fat Diet, Dian Handayani, Barbara J. Meyer, Jiezhong Chen, Patricia Tang, Philip Chi Lip Kwok, Hak-Kim Chan, Xu-Feng Huang

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Preventing obesity could be done by lowering plasma TAG that inhibits adipogenesis. Oat and mushroom beta-glucans in the diet has been reported to lower plasma lipid; however the data focusing on their effects on TAG and obesity are insufficient. In the present study, lowering plasma triacylglycerol, fat deposition, body weight gain (BWG) in rats fed a high fat diet (HFD) was evaluated. Rats in the control group were given HFD only and rats in the treatment group fed HFD enriched with 0.2%, 0.6% and 1.8% (wt:wt) beta-glucan from oats (LD-O, MD-O, HD-O) or mushroom (LD-M, MD-M, HD-M). After 6 weeks …

The Vignette-Matching Procedure: An Innovative Approach To Assess Competencies In Psychology And Clinical Practicum. Final Report., Craig J. Gonsalvez

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

No abstract provided.

Group Cohesion And Homework Adherence In Multi-Family Group Therapy For Schizophrenia, Frank P. Deane, Joanne Mercer, Anahita Talyarkhan, Gordon Lambert, Judy Pickard

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

This study examined the relationship between levels of group cohesion, defined as whole group relationships, and between-session therapeutic homework adherence in a multi-family group therapy (MFGT) for people with schizophrenia. Participants from 18 consenting families attending MFGT groups completed weekly homework adherence ratings, group cohesion and spontaneous between-session activity measures. Levels of group cohesion at each session were compared with measures of scheduled and spontaneous homework adherence reported at the next session. It was hypothesised that higher levels of group cohesion would be related to homework adherence and other spontaneous between-session therapeutic activity completed by group members. Results show higher …