There is increasing demand from stakeholders for tools to support outcome-based approaches in environmental management. For such tools to be useful, understanding user requirements is key. In Scotland, UK, stakeholders were engaged in the development of an Environmental Decision Support System (EDSS) to support the management of land and freshwater resources for multiple policy outcomes. A structured participatory engagement process was employed to determine stakeholder requirements, establish development principles to fulfil these requirements and road-test prototypes. The EDSS specification that emerged from this bottom-up process was spatially-explicit, free at the point of use, and touch and mobile device compatible. This application, which is under development, does not closely resemble most existing published EDSS. We suggest that there is a mismatch between the way scientists typically conceptualise EDSS and the kinds of applications that are likely to be useful to decision-makers on the ground. Interactive mobile and web-based geospatial information services have become ubiquitous in our daily lives, but their importance is not reflected in current literature on EDSS. The current focus in environmental management on adaptive, stakeholder-centred strategies based on outcomes offers an opportunity to make better use of these new technologies to aid decision-making processes.

Serious crime modelling typically needs to be undertaken securely behind a firewall where police knowledge and capabilities can remain undisclosed. Data informing an ongoing incident is often sparse, with a large proportion of relevant data only coming to light after the incident culminates or after police intervene - by which point it is too late to make use of the data to aid real-time decision making for the incident in question. Much of the data that is available to police to support real-time decision making is highly confidential so cannot be shared with academics, and is therefore missing to them. In this paper, we describe the development of a formal protocol where a graphical model is used as a framework for securely translating a model designed by an academic team to a model for use by a police team. We then show, for the first time, how libraries of these models can be built and used for real-time decision support to circumvent the challenges of data missingness and tardiness seen in such a secure environment. The parallel development described by this protocol ensures that any sensitive information collected by police, and missing to academics, remains secured behind a firewall. The protocol nevertheless guides police so that they are able to combine the typically incomplete data streams that are open source with their more sensitive information in a formal and justifiable way. We illustrate the application of this protocol by describing how a new entry - a suspected vehicle attack - can be embedded into such a police library of criminal plots.

Big data is considered to be the solution to many complex problems, but its application appears to be relegated to the problems that are factorable (e.g., the tensor-like operations which reflect separable elements), not the non-factorable data from teamwork, team intelligence, and possibly not individual consciousness. In contrast, the quantum likeness of interdependence is set apart from the standard science of teams by recognizing a measurement problem between a team and its individual teammates, and between individual beliefs and actions. Teams that concern us are based on artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) systems, which we find lacking for two reasons. First, neither AI nor ML models the human's timeless need for debate to solve a problem at the social level when facing uncertainty or complexity, where the debate of proposed actions serves to establish the boundaries of a problem in reality, no matter how complex nor uncertain. Second, at the individual level exists the illusion of a unified reality propagated by a bifurcated brain that we assume is split to determine a context with narrative and bounded spaces. We hypothesize that the quantum-likeness of interdependence applied to autonomous human-machine teams suggests that at the social level, debate models an individual's bifurcated brain, providing advantages for human-machine teams in freer systems over those oppressed by command and control systems (e.g., authoritarian regimes). Human-machine teams are coming, but they are not yet available, forcing us to rely on data from human systems. We close with plans for future research.

In an era marked by digitization and automation, extracting relevant information from business documents, like electricity invoices, remains a major challenge. To address this, we need to use machine-learning techniques to automate the process, reduce manual labor, and minimize errors. This work introduces a new method for extracting key values from this type of invoice, including customer personal data, bill breakdown, electricity consumption, or marketer data. We evaluate several machine learning techniques, such as Naive Bayes, Logistic Regression, Random Forests, or Support Vector Machines. Our approach uses a bag-of-words strategy and custom-designed features specifically tailored for electricity data. We tested the method on the IDSEM dataset, which includes 75.000 electricity invoices with eighty-six different fields. The method converts PDF invoices into text and processes each word separately using a context of eleven words. The results of our experiments indicate that Support Vector Machines and Random Forests perform exceptionally well in capturing numerous values with high precision. The study also explores the advantages of our custom features and evaluates the performance of the model on unseen documents. The precision obtained with Support Vector Machines is 91,86%, peaking at 98,47% for one document template. These results demonstrate the effectiveness of our method in accurately extracting key values from invoices.

This research presents a novel approach to film analysis, leveraging word vectors to objectively evaluate movie critiques. Focusing on Director Chanwook Park’s award-winning film, ’Decision to Leave’, the study employs word vectors derived from the movie’s script of Korean text. Traditional critiques often emphasize contrasting elements and themes, but their subjective nature poses challenges in objective validation. To address this, we trained a language model using LSTM on the film’s script, obtaining word vectors that capture the essence of the narrative. These vectors were then used to perform various text analyses, including similarity and analogy operation for the keywords suggested by the critiques. By comparing the semantic relationships in the critiques with those derived from the word vectors, we could objectively validate the critiques’ assertions. Furthermore, we visualized the word vectors in a two-dimensional space, confirming the spatial relationships of key terms highlighted in critiques. The study underscores the potential of word vectors in providing a more objective lens for film analysis, bridging the gap between traditional film criticism and data-driven insights.

SQL injection attacks are one of the most common types of attacks on web applications. These attacks exploit vulnerabilities in the application’s database access mechanisms, allowing attackers to execute unauthorized SQL queries. In this study, we propose an architecture for detecting SQL injection attacks using a recurrent neural network (RNN) autoencoder. The proposed architecture was trained on a publicly available dataset of SQL injection attacks. Then compared with several other machine learning models, including ANN, CNN, Decision Tree, Naïve Bayes, SVM, Random Forest, and Logistic Regression. The experimental result showed that the proposed approach achieved an accuracy of 94% and an F1 score of 92%, which demonstrate its effectiveness in detecting QL injection attacks with high accuracy in comparison with other models covered in the study.

Symmetry in biological and physical systems is a product of self-organization driven by evolutionary processes, or mechanical systems under constraints. Symmetry-based feature extraction or representation by neural networks may unravel the most informative contents in large image databases. Despite significant achievements of artificial intelligence in recognition and classification of regular patterns, the problem of uncertainty remains a major challenge in ambiguous data. In this study, we present an artificial neural network that detects symmetry uncertainty states in human observers. To this end, we exploit a neural network metric in the output of a biologically inspired Self-Organizing Map, the Quantization Error (SOM-QE). Shape pairs with perfect geometric mirror symmetry but a non-homogenous appearance, caused by local variations in hue, saturation, or lightness within and/or across the shapes in a given pair produce, as shown here, longer choice RT for ‘yes’ responses relative to symmetry. These data are consistently mirrored by the variations in the SOM-QE from unsupervised neural network analysis of the same stimulus images. The neural network metric is thus capable of detecting and scaling human symmetry uncertainty in response to patterns. Such capacity is tightly linked to the metric’s proven selectivity to local contrast and color variations in large and highly complex image data.

Nonparametric assessments of police technical and scale efficiency is challenging because of the stochastic nature of criminal behavior and because of the subjective dependence on multiple decision criteria, which can lead to a more or less efficiency prospect depending on the regulation, necessity, or organizational objective. There is a trade-off between efficiency and effectiveness in many police performance assessments, i.e., efficient departments (producing more clear-ups with a given resource) are crime-specialized or cannot reproduce those good results effectively on more severe or complex occurrences. This study proposes a combined methodology for carrying out efficiency and effectiveness analysis of Police departments. A conditional non-parametric approach, which allows to include crime as an external factor in the analysis, is combined with a non-compensatory ranking based on the PROMETHEE II methodology for the approach illustrated on the multidimensional efficiency and effectiveness comparison of 145 Pernambuco (Brazil)'s police departments. The application results offer compelling perspectives for public administrations concerning the strategic prioritization of units for rewards or interventions.

Validation and verification are the critical requirements in the knowledge acquisition method for the clinical decision support system (CDSS). After acquiring the medical knowledge from diverse sources, the rigorous validation and formal verification process are required before creating the final knowledge model. Previously, we have proposed a hybrid knowledge acquisition method for acquiring medical knowledge from clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) and patient data in the Smart CDSS for treatment of oral cavity cancer. The final knowledge model was created by combining knowledge models obtained from CPGs and patient data after passing through a rigorous validation process. However, detailed analysis shows that due to lack of formal verification process, it involves various inconsistencies in knowledge relevant to the formalism of knowledge, conformance to CPGs, quality of knowledge, and complexities of knowledge acquisition artifacts. Therefore, it is required to enhance a hybrid knowledge acquisition method that thwarts the inconsistencies using formal verification. This paper presents the verification process using the Z formal method and its outcome as an enhanced acquisition method – known as the refined knowledge acquisition (ReKA) method. The ReKA method adopted verification method and explored the mechanism of theorem proving using the Z notation. It enables to identify inconsistencies in the validation process used for hybrid knowledge acquisition. Additionally, it refines the hybrid knowledge acquisition method by discovering the missing steps in the current validation process at the acquisition stage. Consequently, ReKA adds a set of nine additional criteria to be used to have a final valid refined clinical knowledge model. The criteria ensure the validity of final knowledge model concerning formalism of knowledge, conformance to GPGs, quality of the knowledge, usage of stringent conditions and treatment plans, and inconsistencies possibly resulting from the complexities. Evaluation, using four medical knowledge acquisition scenarios, shows that newly added knowledge in CDSS due to the addition of criteria by ReKA method always produces a valid knowledge model. The final knowledge model was also evaluated with 1229 oral cavity patient cases, which outperformed with an accuracy of 72.57\% compared to a similar approach with an accuracy of 69.7\%. Furthermore, ReKA method identified a set of decision paths (about 47.8%) in the existing approach, which results in a final knowledge model with low quality, non-conformed from standard CPGs. In conclusion, ReKA is formally proved method which always yields valid knowledge model having high quality, supporting local practices, and influenced from standard guidelines.

Thresholding is considered as a statistical-decision making theory which can lessen the average error incurred in allocating pixels to two or more groups. The traditional Bayes decision rule can be applied with the prior knowledge of the Probability Density Function (PDF) of each class. It is surmised that a threshold resulting in the best class separation is the optimal one. In this paper, Otsu’s thresholding for image segmentation has been implemented. The well-known Otsu’s method is to learn a threshold that can maximize the between-class variance or equivalently make light of the within-class variance of the entire image. At first, a color image of a tree is taken. After that, the image is transformed into a grayscale image. Then in the first part, two-level thresholding is conducted, and later on, three-level thresholding is also applied. Again, two-level thresholding, as well as three level thresholding, are also applied to some other images. Finally, the comparison is made between two level thresholding and three level thresholding

Compared with conventional methods of fault diagnosis for power transformers, which have defects such as imperfect encoding and too absolute encoding boundaries, this paper systematically discusses various intelligent approaches applied in fault diagnosis and decision making for large oil-immersed power transformers based on dissolved gas analysis (DGA), including expert system (EPS), artificial neural network (ANN), fuzzy theory, rough sets theory (RST), grey system theory (GST), swarm intelligence (SI) algorithms, data mining technology, machine learning (ML), and other intelligent diagnosis tools, and summarizes existing problems and solutions. From this survey, it is found that a single intelligent approach for fault diagnosis can only reflect operation status of the transformer in one particular aspect, causing various degrees of shortcomings that cannot be resolved effectively. Combined with the current research status in this field, the problems that must be addressed in DGA-based transformer fault diagnosis are identified, and the prospects for future development trends and research directions are outlined. This contribution presents a detailed and systematic survey on various intelligent approaches to faults diagnosing and decisions making of the power transformer, in which their merits and demerits are thoroughly investigated, as well as their improvement schemes and future development trends are proposed. Moreover, this paper concludes that a variety of intelligent algorithms should be combined for mutual complementation to form a hybrid fault diagnosis network, such that avoiding these algorithms falling into a local optimum. Moreover, it is necessary to improve the detection instruments so as to acquire reasonable characteristic gas data samples. The research summary, empirical generalization and analysis of predicament in this paper provide some thoughts and suggestions for the research of complex power grid in the new environment, as well as references and guidance for researchers to choose optimal approach to achieve DGA-based fault diagnosis and decision of the large oil-immersed power transformers in preventive electrical tests.

Low learning rates in Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) for image segmentation tasks can lead to convergence issues, unstable models, large oscillations, risk of divergence, sensitivity to the initial weights, and biases of the model. All these challenges make CNNs computationally expensive and require considerable training data. In contrast, achieving a high learning rate has been a significant challenge for CNNs. In response to the abovementioned challenge, this work aims to increase the learning rate of the image segmentation process. Images of any object in the universe taken from any camera can broadly be divided into spectral and geometric properties. Both these properties are prominently visible in satellite images. Therefore, if a method can classify satellite images, it can be applied to classify any image using the same technique. In this paper, Evolutionary Convergent Functions (ECF) are proposed. They convert features' spectral and geometric properties in a satellite image into mathematical equations using a decision tree and then converge with a neural network. Different high-resolution data have been chosen to extract additional features from it. This transformation process, anchored in decision tree methodology, converges with neural networks to yield unparalleled results, all while eliminating the need for computationally intensive convolutions. The proposed method extends beyond conventional boundaries by using varied high-resolution datasets. Each dataset is carefully selected with distinctive features. This research explores the untapped potential of ECF to advance the field of automated image classification, aiming to broaden the scope of current methodologies. The synergy between spectral and geometric properties emerges as a powerful combination, endowing our methods with the ability to extract nuanced and context-rich information for image analysis. The results show a high accuracy, i.e., above 90%, in almost all objects of different shapes and spectral signatures. Additionally, in terms of prediction time, ECF is faster than U-Net, a state-of-the-art method that is evidence of ECF efficiency and speed.

This study harnesses the potential of artificial intelligence (AI) focusing on machine learning (ML) to improve decision-making in advanced engineering education. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic compelled a swift transformation in higher education methodologies, particularly in the domain of course modality. This study aims to align institutional decisions with student and faculty preferences in the face of rapid changes in instructional approaches, particularly learning styles, theoretical, practical, and theoretical-practical, prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic. To ascertain the preferences of students and instructors regarding class modalities across various courses, we utilized the Cognitive Process-Embedded Systems and E-learning conceptual framework. This framework effectively delineates the task execution process within the scope of technology-enhanced learning environments for both students and instructors. This study was conducted in seven Iranian universities and their STEM departments, examining their preferences for different learning styles. After analyzing the variables by different feature selection methods, we used three ML methods—decision trees (DT), support vector machines (SVM), and random forest (RF)—for comparative analysis. The results demonstrated the high performance of the RF model in predicting curriculum style preferences, making it a powerful decision-making tool in the evolving post-COVID educational landscape. This study not only demonstrates the effectiveness of ML in predicting educational preferences but also contributes to understanding the role of self-regulated learning in educational policy and decision-making in higher education.

Debt collection companies buy overdue debts on the market in order to collect them and recover the highest possible amounts of a debt. The pursuit of debt recovery by employees of collection agencies is a very demanding task. The aim of the article is to propose a rule-based model for managing the process of mass debt collection in a debt collection company, which will make the debt collection process more efficient. To achieve this, we have chosen a decision tree as a machine learning technique best suited for creating rules based on extensive data from the debt collection company. The classification accuracy of the decision tree, regardless of the possibility of acquiring rule-based knowledge, proved to be the highest among the tested machine learning methods, with an accuracy rate of 85.5%. Through experiments, we generated 16 stable rules to assist in the debt collection process. The proposed approach allows for the elimination of debts that are difficult to recovery at the initial stage of recovery process and to decide whether to pursue amicable debt collection or to escalate the debt recovery process to legal action. Our approach also enables the determination of specific actions during each stage of the proceedings. Abandoning certain actions or reducing their frequency will alleviate the burden on collection agency employees and help avoid the typical burnout associated with this line of work. This is the path to making the organizational culture of a collection agency more sustainable. Our model confirms also the possibility of using data from debt collection companies to automatically generate procedural rules and automate the process of purchasing and collecting debts. However, this would require a larger set of attributes than what we currently possess.

Bipolar disorder is a severe mood disorder and is one of the top 20 reasons of disability in the world. It causes a huge burden on society. In this study, the prediction models of bipolar disorder were constructed based on the concept of knowledge distillation. The input data consisted of patients of bipolar disorder and matched controls, all of which were selected from the open database MIMIC. The method of kernel density estimation (KDE) was exploited to generate probability density functions (PDF) which identify distributions of input data. The PDF values referred to as the soft labels were combined with the input data to construct the prediction models of bipolar disorder using decision tree and artificial neural network respectively. According to the evaluation results, indicators for identifying positive samples of bipolar disorder were improved. Meanwhile, the indicators for identifying negative samples have also been advanced. In addition, the branching attributes selected by the decision trees can be mapped back to specific disease diagnoses, which are all associated with bipolar disorder. In conclusion, using KDE to generate the soft label information of the input data can make knowledge distillation work and has improved the performances of prediction models for bipolar disorder.

This article presents a field-performance investigation on an Integrated Solar Water Supply System (SWSS) at two isolated agricultural areas in Thailand. The two case-study villages (Pongluek and Bangkloy ) have experienced severe draughts in the last decades, and therefore water supply has become a major issue. A stand-alone 15.36 kW solar power and a 15 kW solar submersible pump were installed along with the input power generated by solar panels supported by four solar trackers. The aim is to lift water at the static head of 64 and 48 m via piping length of 400 metres for each village to be stored in 1,000 m3 and 1,800 m3 reservoirs at an average of 300 m3 and 400 m3 per day, respectively for Pongluek and Bangkloy villages. The case study results have shown that the real costs of electricity generated by SWSS using solar PV systems intergraded with the solar tracking system yield better performance and are more advantageous compared with the non-tracking system. This study illustrates how system integration has been employed. System design and commercially available simulation predictions are elaborated. Construction, installation, and field tests for SWSS are discussed and highlighted. Performances of the SWSS in different weather conditions such as sunny, cloudy, and rainy days were analysed to make valuable suggestions for higher efficiency of the integrated solar water supply systems.

This paper proposes a Case-Based Reasoning (CBR) system to contribute to reinforce the sustainable performance of an environmental management system. The CBR system aims to support the decision-making process to select environmental management actions aimed at reducing risky trends of the environmental state of a region. The CBR system takes advantage of a set of situation-solution pairs called cases, which are stored in a memory and then retrieved as candidates to solve new problems. Situations in this work are represented by a set of risky trends of the following key environmental variables: CO2 emissions, Air-Quality, Loss of Vegetation Cover, Water Availability, and Solid Waste, whose combination damage the environmental state quality of a region. Meanwhile, solutions are represented by a set of environmental management actions. Similar situations to a given current situation are retrieved from the memory of cases and then their solutions are combined, through an adaptation mechanism, until the solution of the current problem is obtained. We used risky trends derived from real data related to the environmental states of a Mexican region to test the proposed CBR system. The results obtained provided insights into the potential of CBR systems to support the decision-making process to select environmental management actions aimed at reducing risky trends of current environmental states.

Changes in extreme weather patterns are expected under climate change. In this study, a risk assessment was conducted using 4 building damage history datasets and 33 weather datasets (precipitation, wind speed, snow, and temperature) from 230 regions in South Korea to quantitatively analyze and predict building damage caused by potential future natural disasters. Decision tree analysis was used to evaluate building damage risk in 230 regions. The decision tree model to determine the risk of flood, gale, and typhoon was generated, which excluded gales, with less damage. The weight (variable importance) and limit value (damage limit) of the weather variables ware derived using the decision tree model. Using these two factors, we assessed the building damage risk in 230 regions in South Korea until 2100. The number of regions at risk of flood damage increased by more than 30% in average. Conversely, regions at risk of snowfall damage decreased by more than 90%. The regions at risk of typhoons decreased by 57.5% on average, and the number of regions at high risk of typhoon damage increased by up to 62.5% in RCP 8.5. These results can be used as objective data to minimize future building damage throughout South Korea, representing the first step towards sustainable development in the region with respect to disaster response.

Effective waste elimination is critical for the success of construction projects. Although several studies have focused on various aspects of construction waste, limited efforts have investigated the dynamic effect of Making-Do (MD) practices on productivity, rework, defects, and materials wastage. From a lean construction perspective, this study aims to address MD waste using the Last Planner System (LPS) and BIM. First, the casual structure that can cause MD in construction projects was expressed in a casual loop diagram (CLD), and thematic analysis uncovered the strategies of LPS-BIM to eliminate MD identified by reviewing the literature. Secondly, twenty-five strategies from the LPS and BIM strategies to address MD using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) were assessed. Subsequently, a system dynamics model (SDM) for investigating LPS-BIM strategies on MD decisions in a construction project was formulated based on the underlying causal loop diagrams and the mathematical relations among the variables. Finally, the model was applied to three projects, and simulations for four LPS-BIM scenarios were carried out. The findings show that dynamic interactions among diverse production planning and control factors are critical in evaluating MD impacts on a construction project. The results demonstrate that the LPS-BIM approach resulted in an average 43.8% reduction in the tasks performed with MD, 45.3% of constraints, 66.5% of construction waste, increasing 13.7% completion rate, and 29.3% cost reduction, demonstrating that LPS-BIM as a more efficient solution for MD mitigation and construction planning.

The County of Avon in England was abolished in 1996 and replaced by four unitary planning authorities. Recently the authorities have been working closely to develop a West of England Joint Spatial Plan to facilitate better integration of policies on transport, housing, the environment etc. The Joint Spatial Plan team commissioned a multidisciplinary study to investigate whether the West of England has special characteristics of 'place' that engender shared interest and regional affinity, i.e. ‘sense of place’, to which emerging planning policies might positively respond. In this regard the present article is particularly focused on identifying whether the West of England has unique and unifying landscape characteristics, relating to topography, rural scenery, and flora and fauna, which combine with human experiences to distinguish the Region from adjoining areas. It is concluded that the West of England does indeed have real geographical integrity, being bound on all sides by attractive and prominent landscape features - the Mendip Hills, Cotswold Hills and Severn Estuary – that contribute to a sense of identity and belonging among its inhabitants. The alternating limestone ridges and broad clay vales that prevail across the Region’s heart, combined with low lying flatlands on the Region’s western fringe, provide further contrast with neighbouring regions, reinforcing the emotional bond to the landscape. Furthermore, it is suggested that the inhabitants of the West England show a particularly special environmental consciousness that sets them apart from neighbouring populations, complementing the influence of the physical environment in making the Region a special place to live.

The paper investigates into the intricacies of semiconductor manufacturing, a highly complex process entailing a wide array of subprocesses and diverse equipment. Semiconductors are miniaturized integrated circuits comprising numerous components. The semiconductor manufacturing process begins with the thin disc-shaped silicon wafers. On each wafer, up to thousands of identical chips can be prepared depending upon the diameter of the wafer to build up the circuits layer by layer in a wafer fab. The size of the semiconductors requires a high number of units to be produced, thus necessitating a large amount of data to control for improving the semiconductor manufacturing process. Therefore, the collection and analysis of the equipment data, process data, and machine history data throughout the manufacturing process are required to diagnose faults, monitor the process, and manage the manufacturing process effectively. This research is focused on improving the semiconductor manufacturing process through a rigorous analysis of collected manufacturing process data, employing statistical process control (SPC), data mining techniques, and data-driven decision models. The project's primary objective is to increase the manufacturing process stability and productivity by utilizing the latest data-driven technologies in the scientific community. A structured review was undertaken, exploring contemporary data-driven methodologies in semiconductor manufacturing process improvement, specifically pertaining to process capability, product yield rate, and process stability. This review accentuates a comprehensive evaluation of data-driven methodologies applicable to conventional semiconductor manufacturing facilities, aiming to drive substantial process improvements. It features a detailed demonstration facilitating the selection of optimal semiconductor manufacturing processes to enhance overall operational performance. This study of process improvement in the semiconductor manufacturing steps through the application of data-driven methodologies will be effective in delivering advanced, real-time, and proactive control decisions throughout the manufacturing facilities. This endeavor is expected to promptly provide critical insights for enterprise manufacturing decision-makers to reduce manufacturing cycle time, improve the product yield rate, and increase the overall efficiency of the manufacturing process.

This research experiments with a sustainability assessment based on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of Agenda 2030 through a process of their territorialisation and implementation. This process enables the development of a Spatial Decision Support System (SDSS) that can be integrated with strategic environmental assessments in urban planning. The assessment takes place on the transversality of the sustainability concept by trying to consider together the three dimensions (environmental, social and economic) into a single assessment through the Spatial Sustainability Assessment Model (SSAM) by integrating Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and multi-criteria analyses. Economic development, social equity, and ecological integrity represent three common visions for rethinking peri-urban edges.

Buildings can generate heats which are mostly generated from the machinery using inside the buildings, and these heats generally released to the atmosphere. Buildings can also block the wind flow by their canopies and trap the heat by using low albedo materials. These causes pointedly contribute to urban heat island and greenhouse effects. Likewise, urban development and building construction in Cambodia are growing rapidly. The construction has been recognized as a key development sector while thousands of buildings are being built and have been operated in the main cities. However, those buildings mostly have not been considered to incorporate sustainability concepts while the major final energy consumers in the country are buildings. The buildings’ energy consumption is also projected to increase more than double until 2040. Hence, sustainable building promotion in Cambodia is necessary, and sustainable building criteria are completely required. This research aims to find out significant sustainable building criteria for Cambodia and focused on planning and design criteria because having proper planning and design is a smart start leading to achieving building sustainability in all stages. This research used the Delphi methods to validate the relevant sustainable building criteria available in the literature and then select the significant ones for Cambodia based on the Delphi consensus. The results showed that ninety-nine consensus planning and design criteria were found to be significant for sustainable buildings in Cambodia.

Is it true that the nuclear technology applied to electric energy generation offers a clean, safe, reliable and affordable i.e. sustainable alternative? Yes it is, but its impact on the environment strongly depends on the implementation bearing residual risks due to a human factor, technical failures or natural catastrophes. A full response is therefore difficult and can first be given when the wicked multi-disciplinary problems get well formulated and “solved”. These problems have multi-dimensional nature lying at the interface between: necessary R&D effort, the industrial deployment and the technology impact in view of the environmental sustainability including the management of produced hazardous waste. This enormous complexity indicates that just a description of the problem might represent a problem. The paper proposes a holistic approach to assess the nuclear energy systems potential with respect to sustainable performance applying Multi-criteria decision analysis with a suitable objective tree and a multi-level criteria structure and examines the trading-off techniques for ranking of the alternatives. The framework proposes a multi-criteria and multi-stakeholders treatment which can be used as a pre-decisional support towards an implementation of nuclear fuel cycles adapted to national preferences and priorities. Proposed approach addresses some aspects of the environmental footprint of nuclear energy systems. Advanced nuclear fuel cycles, previously investigated by the NEA/OECD expert group WASTEMAN, are analyzed as a case study. Sustainability facets of waste management, resource utilization and economics are in focus.

This study introduces a robust methodology utilizing Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) combined with the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) to repurpose abandoned hydrocarbon fields for energy storage, supporting the transition to renewable energy sources. We use a geostatistical approach integrated with Python scripting to analyze reservoir parameters—including porosity, permeability, thickness, lithology, temperature, heat capacity, and thermal conductivity—from a decommissioned hydrocarbon field in Southeast Hungary. Our workflow leverages stochastic simulation data to identify potential zones for energy storage, categorizing them into high, moderate, and low suitability scenarios. This innovative approach provides rapid and precise analysis, enabling effective decision-making for energy storage implementation in depleted fields.

Keywords: Requirements prioritization, Next release plan, Software product planning, Decision support, MoSCoW, AHP, K-Menas, GMM, BIRCH, PAM, Hierarchical, Clustering, Clusters Evaluation

Liability to prevent consequences of an unhealthy situation due to accumulating toxic and hazardous emissions caused by open dumping of municipal solid waste with increasing urbanization has necessitated a renewed thinking on waste disposal. Grate fired incineration systems were adopted by urban managements in past and present but with criticisms due to formation of air borne emissions. Improved combustion methods like fluidized bed are now propagated because of current requirements like efficient energy recovery potential, stricter emission norms, adaptability with urban growth, adaptability to co-firing with other waste like biomass, edible oil wastes or industrial effluent and integration with conventional energy generation. Such a comprehensive and futuristic approach is more sustainable for the community. Multi-criteria decision-making tool is used to identify the best technology option among grate combustion and fluidized bed combustion for disposing and energy recovery from waste. Ten different collection and disposal options involving two combustion methods, namely, grate combustion and fluidized bed method are considered. Utilization of the energy is done for three end uses, namely, power generation, water distillation and district cooling. Two different regions in Saudi Arabia are considered for this study under two types of scenario, namely with recycling and without recycling. The different options are prioritized based on their overall ranking using five major performance factors.

Panoramic and periapical radiograph tools help dentists diagnose the most common dental diseases. Generally, dentists identify dental caries manually by inspecting X-ray images. However, due to their heavy workload, or poor image quality, dentists may sometimes overlook some unnoticeable dental caries, which may ultimately hinder the patient treatment. The purpose of this study was to develop an algorithm that classifies the teeth X-Ray images into three categories of “Normal”, “Caries”, and “Filled”. Our study used a dataset of 116 patients and 3712 single teeth images for training, validation and testing. Images were pre-processed using a sharpening filter and an intensity color map. We used a pre-trained transfer learning model, the NASNetMobile, which served as the feature extractor and the Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) model served as the classifier. The training dataset had a “Recall” of 0.92, 0.90 and 0.91 for “Normal”, “Caries” and “Filled” respectively and the test dataset had a “Recall” of 0.86, 0.81 and 0.85 for “Normal”, “Caries” and “Filled” respectively. The classification of the teeth X-Rays was successful and can be valuable for dentist as the artificial intelligence algorithm can serve as a decision support tool to aid dentists when they need to diagnose dental treatment.

The objective of this study was to identify the key elements used by prehospital emergency physicians (EP) to decide whether or not to attempt advanced life support (ALS) in asystolic out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). From 01.01.2009 to 01.01.2017, all adult victims of asystolic OHCA in Geneva, Switzerland, were retrospectively included. Patients with signs of "obvious death" or with a Do-Not-Attempt-Resuscitation order were excluded. Patients were categorized as having received ALS if this was mentioned in the medical record, or, failing that, if at least one dose of adrenaline had been administered during cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR). Prognostic factors known at the time of EP's decision were included in a multivariable logistic regression model. 784 patients were included. Factors favourably influencing the decision to provide ALS were witnessed OHCA (OR=2.14, 95%CI1.43–3.20) and bystander CPR (OR=4.10, 95%CI2.28–7.39). Traumatic aetiology (OR=0.04, 95%CI0.02–0.08), age >80 years (OR=0.14, 95%CI0.09–0.24) and a Charlson comorbidity index greater than 5 (OR=0.12, 95%CI0.06–0.27) were the factors most strongly associated with the decision not to attempt ALS. Factors influencing the EP’s decision to attempt ALS in asystolic OHCA are the relatively young age of the patients, few comorbidities, presumed medical aetiology, witnessed OHCA and bystander CPR.

Background: In 2014 the World Health Organization (WHO) warned of an emerging world-wide crisis of antibiotic resistant microorganisms. In response, government and professional organizations recommended that health care systems adopt antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs). In the United States, the Centers for Medicare Services (CMS) mandated antimicrobial stewardship in the hospital inpatient setting. Effective January 1, 2020, the Joint Commission required ambulatory centers that prescribe antibiotics, such as wound centers, to institute an ASP. Chronic wounds often remain open for months, during which time patients may receive multiple courses of antibiotics and numerous antimicrobial topical treatments. The wound clinician plays an integral role in reducing antimicrobial resistance in the outpatient setting: antibiotics prescribed for skin and soft tissue infections are among the most common in an outpatient setting. One of the most challenging aspects of antimicrobial stewardship in treating chronic wounds is the inaccuracy of bacterial and infection diagnosis. Methods: Joint Commission lists five elements of performance (EP): (1) Identifying an antimicrobial stewardship leader, (2) establishing an annual antimicrobial stewardship goal, (3) implementing evidence-based practice guidelines related to the antimicrobial stewardship goal, (4) providing clinical staff with educational resources related to the antimicrobial stewardship goal, and (5) collecting, analyzing, and reporting data related to the antimicrobial stewardship goal. This article focuses on choosing and implementing an evidence-based ASP goal for 2020. Discussion: Clinical trials have demonstrated the ability of fluorescence imaging (MLiX) to detect clinically significant levels of bacteria in chronic wounds. Combined with clinical examination of signs and symptoms of infection, the MLiX procedure improves the clinician’s ability to diagnose infection and can guide antimicrobial use. In order to satisfy the elements of performance, the MLiX procedure was incorporated into the annual ASP goal for several wound care centers. Clinicians were educated on the fluorescence imaging device and guidelines were instituted. Collection of antimicrobial utilization data is underway.

Multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA), one of the prevalent branches of operations research, aims to design mathematical and computational tools for selecting the best alternative among several choices with respect to specific criteria. In the cloud, MCDA based online brokers uses customer specified criteria to rank different service providers. However, subjected to limited domain knowledge, the customer may exclude relevant or include irrelevant criterion, which could result in suboptimal ranking of service providers. To deal with such misspecification, this research proposes a model, which uses notion of factor analysis from the domain of unsupervised machine learning. The model is evaluated using two quality-of-service (QoS) based datasets. The first dataset i.e., feedback from customers, was compiled using leading review websites such as Cloud Hosting Reviews, Best Cloud Computing Providers, and Cloud Storage Reviews and Ratings. The second dataset i.e., feedback from servers, was generated from cloud brokerage architecture that was emulated using high performance computing (HPC) cluster at University of Luxembourg (HPC @ Uni.lu). The simulation runs in a stable cloud environment i.e. when uncertainty is low, shows that online broker (equipped with the proposed model) produces optimized ranking of service providers as compared to other brokers. This is due the fact that proposed model assigns priorities to criteria objectively (using machine learning) rather than using priorities based on subjective judgments of the customer. This research will benefit potential cloud customers that view insufficient domain knowledge as a limiting factor for acquisition of web services in the cloud.

In the contemporary era, the movement for women empowerment is not merely a social cause but a transformative force reshaping societies across the globe. The article "Breaking Barriers: Women Empowerment Transforming Societies in Modern Times Building a Better Future" delves into the multifaceted impact of empowering women, highlighting how it transcends individual upliftment and fosters widespread societal progress. It also delves into the transformative impact of women’s empowerment on societies, highlighting successful initiatives, case studies, and personal narratives that illustrate the journey towards gender parity. It examines the challenges and opportunities in this ongoing struggle, emphasizing the need for continued advocacy, education, and policy reform. By fostering an environment where women can thrive, societies can unlock unprecedented potential and build a better, more prosperous future for all. By examining key areas such as education, economic participation, political representation, and social inclusion, the article elucidates how empowering women leads to more equitable, prosperous, and resilient communities. It underscores the importance of dismantling historical and cultural barriers that have long hindered women's potential, while celebrating the strides made towards gender equality. Furthermore, the narrative showcases inspiring stories of women leaders, entrepreneurs, and change-makers who are spearheading efforts to build a better future for all. This exploration not only emphasizes the moral imperative of gender equality but also its critical role in driving sustainable development and global advancement.

German noise action plans aim to reduce negative health outcomes from noise exposure and identify quiet areas free of noise pollution. Quiet area identification in German noise action plans is based primarily on noise mapping and spatial analysis and not empirical or qualitative data about acoustic environments, thus leaving a gap in the understanding of the quality of formally recognized quiet areas in noise action plans. This work presents a comparative empirical case study in Dortmund, Germany, with the aim to describe the diurnal dB(A) and biophonic properties of quiet areas versus noise 'hot spots'. Sound observations were collected (n=282,764) in five different natural or recreational land use patch types larger than four acres within 33 proposed quiet areas in Dortmund (n=70) and 23 noise hot spots between April 27^th, 2022 and March 2^nd, 2023. We find that quiet areas are on average more than 20 dB(A) quieter than noise hot spots almost every hour of the day. Forests, managed tree stands, cemeteries, and agriculture diel patterns are dominated by dawn dusk chorus in spring and summer, whereas sport and recreation as well as noise hot spots are dominated by traffic and human noise. A novel composite biophony mapping procedure is presented that finds distinct temporal distribution of biophony in forested and agriculture peri-urban locations positively associated with patch size, distance away from LDEN > 55, proximity to water, and the number of vegetation layers in the plant community. Anthrophony distribution dominates urban land uses in all hours of the day, but expands during day and evening and contracts at night and in dusk hours. The procedures presented here illustrate how qualitative information regarding quiet areas can be integrated into German noise action planning.

In the dynamic and complex environment of industrial control rooms, operators are often inundated with a multitude of tasks and alerts, which can lead to an overwhelming situation known as task overload. This state can precipitate decision fatigue and a heavier reliance on cognitive biases, potentially compromising the decision-making process. To mitigate such risks, the implementation of decision support systems becomes crucial. These systems are designed to assist operators in making swift and well-informed decisions, particularly when they sense their own judgment may be faltering. Our research introduces an AI-based framework that leverages dynamic influence diagrams and reinforcement learning to construct an effective decision support system. The cornerstone of this framework is the creation of a robust, interpretable, and efficient tool that supports control room operators during critical process disturbances. By integrating expert knowledge, the dynamic influence diagram forms a comprehensive model that captures the uncertainties inherent in complex industrial processes. It is adept at anomaly detection and recommending optimal actions. Moreover, this model is enhanced through a strategic partnership with reinforcement learning algorithms, which fine-tune the recommendations to be more context-specific and precise. The ultimate goal of our framework is to provide operators with a live, reliable decision support system that can significantly improve their response during process upsets. This paper outlines the development of our AI framework and its application within a simulated control room environment. Our findings indicate that the use of decision support systems can lead to improved operator performance and reduced cognitive workload. However, it also reveals a trade-off with situation awareness, which tends to diminish as operators may become overly reliant on the system’s guidance. Trust emerges as a critical factor in the adoption and effectiveness of decision support systems. Our research underscores the importance of balancing the benefits of decision support with the need for maintaining operator engagement and comprehension during process operations.

As renewable energy generation prediction systems have been introduced into the energy trading market, accurate prediction of solar photovoltaic (PV) energy generation has become a crucial challenge for ensuring stable trade of variable energy. Therefore, it is essential to quantitatively investigate and analyze current prediction technology and develop more advanced prediction systems. In this study, three models for predicting PV energy generation were investigated. Multiple regression, random forest, and gradient boosting machine (GBM) models were con-structed for 15 utility-scale power plants throughout South Korea. Model performance was evaluated in terms of root mean square error (RMSE) and mean absolute error (MAE). The multiple regression-based model had an RMSE of 12.00% and MAE of 9.06%. The random forest model had an RMSE of 11.69% and MAE of 8.61%. The GBM model had an RMSE of 11.34% and MAE of 8.18%, indicating its superior accuracy among the three models in predicting PV energy generation. These findings provide valuable insights that may contribute to the development of advanced PV energy generation models and their application in grid operations.

The evolution of manual grooming and its implications have received little attention in the quest to understand the origins of simian primates and their social and technical intelligence. All simians groom manually, whereas prosimians groom orally despite comparable manual dexterity between some members of the two groups. Simians also exhibit a variable propensity for the manipulation of inanimate, non-food objects, which has culminated in tool making and tool use in some species. However, lemuriform primates also seem capable of tool use with training. Furthermore, lemuriforms appear to understand the concept of a tool and use their own body parts as “tools”, despite not using inanimate objects. This suggests that prosimian primates are pre-adapted for proprioceptive object manipulation and tool use, but do not express these cognitive abilities by default. This essay explores the paleontological, anatomical, cognitive, ethological, and neurological roots of these abilities and attempts to explain this behavioural divide between simians and prosimians. Common misconceptions about early primate evolution and captive behaviours are addressed, and chronological inconsistencies with Machiavellian Intelligence are examined. A “licking to picking” hypothesis is also proposed to explain a potential link between manual grooming and object manipulation, and to reconcile the inconsistencies of Machiavellian Intelligence. Bayesian decision theory, the evolution of the parietal cortex and enhanced proprioception, and analogies with behavioural changes resulting from artificial selection may help provide new insights into the minds of both our primate kin and ourselves.

In Data Science we are concerned with the integration of relevant sciences in observed and empirical contexts. This results in the unification of analytical methodologies, and of observed and empirical data contexts. Given the dynamic nature of convergence, described are the origins and many evolutions of the Data Science theme. The following are covered in this article: the rapidly growing post-graduate university course provisioning for Data Science; a preliminary study of employability requirements, and how past eminent work in the social sciences and other areas, certainly mathematics, can be of immediate and direct relevance and benefit for innovative methodology, and for facing and addressing the ethical aspect of Big Data analytics, relating to data aggregation and scale effects. Associated also with Data Science is how direct and indirect outcomes and consequences of Data Science include decision support and policy making, and both qualitative as well as quantitative outcomes. For such reasons, the importance is noted of how Data Science builds collaboratively on other domains, potentially with innovative methodologies and practice. Further sections point towards some of the most major current research issues.

Depression and cognitive impairment are recognized complications of COVID-19. This study aimed to assess cognitive performance in clinically diagnosed post-COVID depression (PCD) patients using neuropsychological testing. The study involved 71 post-COVID patients, with matched control groups: recovered COVID-19 individuals without complications (n=18) and individuals without prior COVID-19 history (n=19). A post-COVID depression group (PCD, n=25) was identified based on psychiatric diagnosis, a comparison group (noPCD, n=46) included participants with neurological COVID-19 complications, excluding clinical depression. The PCD patients showed significantly less scores in the MoCA test, decreased immediate memory recall in the Word Memory Test, decreased processing speed and higher accuracy in the Trail Making Test, and near to significant worse executive control and processing speed in the Stroop task compared to controls and the noPCD patients. The number of post-COVID symptoms negatively correlated with immediate word memory recall and processing speed among all post-COVID patients. In PCD patients, negative correlations between number of post-COVID symptoms and delayed recall, between time after recovery and immediate recall, and positive correlation between the number of acute symptoms and processing speed in the incongruent condition of the Stroop task were found. No differences between groups in Sniffin’s stick olfactory test was found. Overall, our study revealed cognitive impairment in PCD patients similar to those in major depressive disorder.

Livestock management is challenging for resource-poor (R-P) farmers due to unavailability of quality feed, limited professional advice and rumor-spreading about animal health condition in a herd. This research seeks to improve animal health in southern Africa by promoting sericea lespedeza (Lespedeza cuneata), a nutraceutical fodder legume. An automated geospatial model for precision agriculture (PA) can identify suitable locations for its cultivation. Additionally, a novel approach of radio frequency identifier (RFID) supported telemetry technology can track animal movement, and the analyses of data using artificial intelligence can determine sickness of small ruminants. This RFID-based system is being connected to a smartphone app (under construction) to alert farmers of potential livestock health issues in real-time so they can take immediate corrective measures. An accompanying Decision Support System (DSS) site is being developed for R-P farmers to obtain all possible support on livestock production, including the designed PA and RFID-based DSS.

While current studies have focused on adoption and the relevant content of the app to become a decision support system, very few studies have focused on the farmer's intention and initial decision to adopt. Based on a survey of 394 smallholder farmers this study investigated Mexican farmers’ willingness to adopt an agricultural advice app. A Structural Equation Modelling approach, based on the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) was applied. To understand farmers’ adoption decision, extended constructs were studied (e.g. mastery-approach goals) along with farmers’ age and participation in an innovation hub. Results showed that the intention to adopt the app is predicted by how farmers believe that technical infrastructure exists and by the expectation of the farmers using the app to acquire new knowledge. The multi-group analysis revealed that performance expectancy is a relevant predictor of the intention to adopt, whereas the mastery-approach goal is relevant only for younger and farmers not connected to the innovation hub. The results may well be a baseline to research further suitable non-financial incentives for different farmers’ groups, then encourage initial adoption and enhance uptake. The findings are useful for practitioners and app developers designing digital decision support tools.

Human Face and facial parts are the most significant parts as it reveals a person’s true identity. It plays an important role in various biometric applications like crowd analysis, human tracking, photography, cosmetic surgery, etc. There are many techniques are available to detect a facial image. Among them, skin detection is the most popular one. The aim of this paper is to detect first the person's identity from facial image and finally check any spot present the the detected person. The first step is to detect the maximum skin region based on a combination method of RGB and HSV color space model. Next it is to verify the skin areas of human through machine learning approach. The Aggregated Channel Features (ACF) detector is used to identify the different facial parts like eye pairs, nose, and mouth. Bootstrap aggregation decision tree classifier is applied to classify the person’s identity based on Histogram Oriented Gradient (HOG) features value. The experimental results show that the proposed method gives the average 97% accuracy.

Pieron's and Chocholle’s seminal psychophysical work predicts that human response time to information relative to visual contrast and/or sound frequency decreases when contrast intensity or sound frequency increases. The goal of this study is to bring to the fore the ability of individuals to use visual contrast intensity and sound frequency in combination for faster perceptual decisions of relative depth (“nearer”) in planar (2D) object configurations on the basis of physical variations in luminance contrast. Computer controlled images with two abstract patterns of varying contrast intensity, one on the left and one on the right, preceded or not by a pure tone of varying frequency, were shown to healthy young humans in controlled experimental sequences. Their task (two-alternative forced-choice) was to decide as quickly as possible which of two patterns, the left or the right one, in a given image appeared to “stand out as if it were nearer” in terms of apparent (subjective) visual depth. The results show that the combinations of varying relative visual contrast with sounds of varying frequency exploited here produced an additive effect on choice response times in terms of facilitation, where a stronger visual contrast combined with a higher sound frequency produced shorter forced-choice response times. This new effect is predicted by cross-modal audio-visual probability summation.

The integration of artificial intelligence, particularly Large Language Models (LLMs), has the potential to significantly enhance therapeutic decision-making in clinical oncology. Initial studies across various disciplines have demonstrated that LLM based treatment recommendations can rival those of multidisciplinary tumor boards (MTBs); however, such data are currently lacking for urological cancers. This study provides the methodological foundation for the prospective CONCORDIA trial, which will generate this data for the first time. In this preliminary work, we evaluated the proposed measurement tool for the CONCORDIA study -the System-Causability-Scale (SCS) and its modified version (mSCS) - based on recommendations from ChatGPT-4 and an MTB for 40 urological cancer-scenarios. Both scales demonstrated strong validity, reliability (all aggregated Cohen’s K > 0.74), and internal consistency (all Cronbach’s Alpha > 0.9), with the mSCS showing superior reliability, internal consistency, and clinical applicability (p<0.01). Two Delphi processes were used to define the LLMs to be tested in the CONCORDIA study (ChatGPT-4 and Claude 3.5 Sonnet) and to establish the acceptable non-inferiority margin for LLM recommendations compared to MTB recommendations. The forthcoming ethics-approved and registered CONCORDIA non-inferiority trial will require 110 urological cancer scenarios, with an mSCS difference threshold of 0.15, a Bonferroni corrected alpha of 0.025, and a beta of 0.1. Blinded mSCS assessments of MTB recommendations will then be compared to those of the LLMs. In summary, this work establishes the necessary prerequisites prior to initiating the CONCORDIA study and validates a modified score with high applicability and reliability for this and future trials.

Given the complexity and variability of gastrointestinal polyps, there is a growing need for more accurate machine-learning algorithms that can assist medical professionals in decision-making processes. In our study, we employed machine learning (ML) techniques to classify gastrointestinal polyps seen in colonoscopy images, that present a risk of colon cancer, affecting a large portion of the population. The dataset used in the research comprised 152 instances and included three types of lesions, totaling 76 polyps. The study consisted of applying Logistic Regression (LR) to classify gastrointestinal images. The principal motivation for choosing this algorithm consists in the fact that is preferred by many medical researchers. Another motivation consisted in the fact to compare the polyps classification accuracy of physicians and LR with optimized hyperparameters. The approached model performance was evaluated with the following metrics: Accuracy, Precision, Recall, F1_Score and Macro-average. We used the Multiclass Logistic Regression (mLR) classifier to classify polyps into hyperplastic (27.63%), serrated (19.74%), and adenoma lesions (52.63%). It should be noted that serrated polyps are hard to diagnose, even by physicians, because they have characteristics of both hyperplastic and adenoma ones. One of the objectives consisted in the study of the hyperparameters tunning of the Logistic Regression to find the best-fitted model. To check the influence of the data mix on the results obtained, for the two best models (LR with liblinear solver, L1 penalty and C = 0.01), it was performed a comprehensive statistical analysis. Based on an algorithm that admits obtaining accurate results. Such analyses are mistakenly applied in the scientific literature. The model with optimized hyperparameters achieved an accuracy score of 70.39%, indicating a reasonable level of prediction, surpassing both beginner and expert physicians and obtaining results similar to those obtained by Random Subspace and Random Forest. The model successfully classifies the hyperplastic and adenoma polyps but showed to have a more limited ability to predict the serrated ones.

Heat metres are used to calculate the consumed energy in central heating systems. The subject of this article is to prepare a method of predicting a failure of a heat meter in the next settlement period. Predicting failures is essential to coordinate the process of exchanging the heat metres and to avoid inaccurate readings, incorrect billing and additional costs. The reliability analysis of heat metres was based on historical data collected over many years. Three independent models of machine learning were proposed, and they were applied to predict failures of metres. The efficiency of the models was confirmed and compared using the selected metrics. The optimisation of hyperparameters characteristics for each of models was successfully applied. The article shows that the diagnostics of devices does not have to rely only on newly collected information, but it is also possible to use the existing big data sets.

The need to increase the energy efficiency of buildings as well as the use of local renewable heat sources has caused that heat meters are used not only to calculate the consumed energy but also for the active management of central heating systems. Increasing the reading frequency and the use of measurement data to control the heating system expands the requirements for the reliability of heat meters. The aim of the research is to analyse a large set of meters in the real network and predict their faults to avoid inaccurate readings, incorrect billing, heating system disruption and unnecessary maintenance. The reliability analysis of heat metres, based on historical data collected over several years, shows some regularities which cannot be easily described by physics-based models. The failure rate is almost constant and does depend on the past but is a non-linear combination of state variables. To predict meters' failures in the next settlement period, three independent machine learning models are implemented and compared with selected metrics because even the high performance of a single model (87\% True Positive for Neural Network) may be insufficient to make a maintenance decision. Additionally, performing hyperparameters optimisation boosts models' performance by a few percent. Finally, three improved models are used to build an ensemble classifier which outperforms the individual models. The proposed procedure ensures the high efficiency of fault detection (>95\%), while maintaining overfitting at the minimum level. The methodology is universal and can be utilised to study the reliability and predict faults of other types of meters and different objects with the constant failure rate.

Predicting change from multivariate time series has relevant applications ranging from medical to engineering fields. Multisensory stimulation therapy in patients with dementia aims to change the patient’s behavioral state. For example, patients who exhibit a baseline of agitation may be paced to change their behavioral state to relaxed. This study aims to predict changes in behavioral state from the analysis of the physiological and neurovegetative parameters to support the therapist during the stimulation session. In order to extract valuable indicators for predicting changes, both handcrafted and learned features were evaluated and compared. The handcrafted features were defined starting from the CATCH22 feature collection, while the learned ones were extracted using a Temporal Convolutional Network, and the behavioral state was predicted through Bidirectional Long Short-Term Memory Auto-Encoder, operating jointly. From the comparison with the state-of-the-art, the learned features-based approach exhibits superior performance with accuracy rates of up to 99.42% with a time window of 70 seconds and up to 98.44% with a time window of 10 seconds.

The domain of construction engineering and management is evolving rapidly. Optimizing resource positioning is crucial for meeting the challenges of efficiency and productivity. This research presents a novel methodology that incorporates Agent-Based Modeling (ABM), Building Information Modeling (BIM), and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) technologies, augmented with a Client Early Warning System (CEWS) and a Decision Support System (DSS). What makes this study unique is that it provides a real-time methodology for resource allocation and project management, tailored to address the complexities of modern construction projects. The application of this integrated technological framework marks a significant leap in construction management, empowering data-driven decision-making and significantly improving project efficiency. Empirically validated through a case study at Helwan University's College of Engineering and substantiated by expert surveys, this research showcases a transformative model for resource management. The findings not only underscore the practical applicability of this approach but also open new horizons for its adoption in global construction practices, offering insights for future research endeavors focused on expanding these methodologies to a wider range of resources.

Keywords: Electrical power systems, Support vector machines, Random Forest, Machine learning, Wavelet transform, Transmission lines fault, Electrical power quality, Short circuit, Classification of faults, Localization of faults, Decision trees, Ensemble learning, K-nearest neighbors.

Digital technologies have changed the way supply chain operations are structured. In this article, we conduct systematic syntheses of literature on the impact of new technologies on supply chains and the related cyber risks. A taxonomic/cladistic approach is used for the evaluations of progress in the area of supply chain integration in the Industrial Internet of Things and Industry 4.0, with a specific focus on the mitigation of cyber risks. An analytical framework is presented, based on a critical assessment with respect to issues related to new types of cyber risk and the integration of supply chains with new technologies. This paper identifies a dynamic and self-adapting supply chain system supported with Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning (AI/ML) and real-time intelligence for predictive cyber risk analytics. The system is integrated into a cognition engine that enables predictive cyber risk analytics with real-time intelligence from IoT networks at the edge. This enhances capacities and assist in the creation of a comprehensive understanding of the opportunities and threats that arise when edge computing nodes are deployed, and when AI/ML technologies are migrated to the periphery of IoT networks.

Electricity demand prediction is vital for energy production management and proper exploitation of the present resources. Recently, several novel machine learning (ML) models have been employed for electricity demand prediction to estimate the future prospects of the energy requirements. The main objective of this study is to review the various ML models applied for electricity demand prediction. Through a novel search and taxonomy, the most relevant original research articles in the field are identified and further classified according to the ML modeling technique, perdition type, and the application area. A comprehensive review of the literature identifies the major ML models, their applications and a discussion on the evaluation of their performance. This paper further makes a discussion on the trend and the performance of the ML models. As the result, this research reports an outstanding rise in the accuracy, robustness, precision and the generalization ability of the prediction models using the hybrid and ensemble ML algorithms.

The study comprehensively evaluated the prognostic roles of PLR, NLR, MLR, BLR, and ELR in patients with acute exacerbation chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD). 619 patients with AECOPD and 300 healthy volunteers were retrospectively included into the study. The clinical characteristics containing laboratory findings of the AECOPD patients and the blood cell counts (CBCs) of the healthy volunteers were collected. Compared with the healthy volunteers, PLR, NLR, and MLR were elevated in COPD patients in stable condition, and were further ele-vated during exacerbation. ELR showed the opposite trend. PLR, NLR, and MLR were all posi-tively correlated with hospital LOS as well as CRP. In contrast, ELR was negatively correlated with hospital LOS as well as CRP. Elevated PLR, NLR, and MLR were all associated with more serious airflow limitation in AECOPD. Elevated PLR, NLR, and MLR were all associated with increased in-hospital mortality while Elevated ELR was associated with decreased in-hospital mortality in AECOPD. A nomogram was construct to predict in-hospital mortality in AECOPD. The nomo-gram had a C-index of 0.850 (95% CI: 0.799 – 0.901) with good predictive value and clinical ap-plicability. In summary, PLR, NLR, MLR, and ELR served as predictors for clinical outcomes in patients with AECOPD.