20000 research outputs found
Sort by
Variations of the two-spiral task
No full textThe two-spiral task is a well-known benchmark for binary classification. The data consist of points on two intertwined spirals which cannot be linearly separated. This article reviews how this task and some of its variations have significantly inspired the development of several important methods in the history of artificial neural networks. The two-spiral task became popular for several different reasons: (1) it was regarded as extremely challenging; (2) it belonged to a suite of standard benchmark tasks; and (3) it had visual appeal and was convenient to use in pilot studies. The article also presents an example which demonstrates how small variations of the two-spiral task such as relative rotations of the two spirals can lead to qualitatively different generalisation results
The place of expansive clays in the framework of unsaturated soil mechanics
No full textThis paper reviews and re-examines the place of expansive clay soils within the framework of unsaturated soil mechanics. Direct and indirect physical evidence is presented and discussed, which recognizes that natural expansive clays remain perpetually saturated (i.e. degree of saturation is one) as they gain or lose water over the suction range that is of interest to engineers, and that is likely to be encountered under normal field conditions. As a consequence, expansive soils do not have a unique saturated water content. Perpetual saturation is a consequence of the small particle size of smectitic clays, which in a structured clay soil, leads to very small pores and a high air entry value. The behaviour of structural soil elements is distinguished from the behaviour of the total soil mass, to consider expansive clay soils as composite soil materials on a macro scale, composed of saturated, structured soil peds, separated by air-filled cracks. It is considered that peds of expansive clay soils in natural environments evolve, under cycles of wetting and drying, to attain an equilibrium micro-structure which allows them to shrink and swell by significant amounts in a completely reversible way. As peds remain saturated during wetting and drying, volume change behaviour is simplified, because the volume of water gained or lost from the soil equates directly to the volume change of the soil peds, and to the change in crack volume in the soil mass. This behaviour is discussed in the context of the normal shrinkage concept as used in soil science. It is suggested that constitutive models formulated in a continuum mechanics approach may be unsuited to the modeling of desiccating expansive clay soils even though they are commonly used
Antenatal Care In Three Provinces Of Vietnam: Long An, Ben Tre And Quang Ngai
No full textPhD Doctorat
Young East Timorese in Australia: Becoming Part of a New Culture and the Impact of Refugee Experiences on Identity and Belonging
No full textMasters Thesi
An investigation of an audit expectation gap concerning the use of computer assisted audit techniques in developing countries - the case of Jordanian audit firms
No full textAuditing in Jordan employs relative primitive techniques in testing internal controls and substantive testing of companies’ computer generated financial records. Arguably, against a background of Jordanian companies using computerized systems it is reasonable to suspect a potential for the general public to entertain expectations that Jordan’s auditors use cutting-edge technology in the form of Computer Assisted Audit Techniques. Generally they do not. Reasonable expectations, bearing in mind the widespread use of computerized information systems by Jordanian companies. The audit profession in Jordan is exposed to overseas influences from the affiliation of Jordan’s audit firms with the leading international auditors. It is reasonable to expect a flow-on of the use of CAATs by those overseas affiliates to the local profession’s fieldwork. This study is motivated by the potential for the general public to be misled. A survey of Jordanian firms reveals that Jordan’s auditors do not use contemporary technology in a manner consistent with their knowledge of it. That is a curious outcome. For the majority of companies listed on the Amman Stock Exchange are audited by Jordanian firms with overseas affiliates using CAATs in their domestic audits, the benefits of using CAATs are recognized by the Jordan audit firms, and CAATs usage is recognized by them to be essential in a computerized environment. Strangely CAATs have relatively greater support from Jordanian firms without, than from those with, an overseas affiliate.
Low audit fees, the small size of the local firms, lack of education and training programmes to inculcate necessary EDP auditing skills, and the high cost of CAAT technology, emerge as obstacles inhibiting the use of CAATs. Auditing in Jordan is anomalous, relatively immature, and its technically primitive practices possibly engender misleading expectations concerning how it goes about its work
Flutracking: a weekly Australian community online survey of influenza-like illness in 2006, 2007 and 2008
No full textSurveillance for influenza is an important public health function as it allows initiation and evaluation of public health measures. Flutracking is a weekly online survey of influenza-like illness (ILI) completed by community members that has been trialled in the 2006, 2007, and 2008 winter influenza seasons. The online survey allows participants to record their past and current influenza immunisation status and they receive a weekly email prompt to answer questions on the previous week's experience of cough, fever and time absent from normal activities. The weekly survey takes participants less than 15 seconds to complete. Symptom rates of Flutracking participants were compared by influenza vaccination status to estimate the incidence and severity of influenza and the field effectiveness of influenza vaccine. Participation rates increased from 394 in 2006 to 982 in 2007 and 4,827 in 2008. In 2008, 56% of participants were from New South Wales and 26% were from Tasmania. Greater than 70% of respondents replied within 24 hours of the survey being sent in 2007 and 2008. The 2008 influenza season appeared milder than 2007 with the peak weekly rate of cough and fever among all unvaccinated participants at 7% in 2008 compared with 15% in 2007. The peak week of influenza activity detected by Flutracking in 2008 was the week ending 31 August, which was contemporaneous with the peak week in other syndromic and laboratory influenza surveillance systems. Participation in the survey continues to grow and appears sustainable. A more balanced recruitment across jurisdictions will provide a more national perspective
Enhanced Q fever risk exposure surveillance may permit better informed vaccination policy
No full textThe association between farming risks and Q fever is not well documented in Australia. In a review of New South Wales notifications, data were analysed using 3-year study periods from 1993 to 2007 to investigate possible trends and explore reported risk exposures. A retrospective case series was also conducted using acute Q fever cases notified during 2007 from a rural area of New South Wales. Occupation was recorded for less than 50% of Q fever notifications in New South Wales during the study period. A significant decline in the proportion of notifications occurred in the occupational group reported as ‘Abattoir/Meat’ worker and a significant increase occurred in the ‘Farmer/Livestock’ category. The case series found that in the month prior to illness onset 78% (42/54) reported direct contact with animals. In the month prior to becoming ill with Q fever 71% (31/51) of employed cases had contact with newly introduced livestock in their workplace. As a result of their Q fever illness 93% of cases required time off work or school, with a median of 21 days. At the time of the structured interviews 63% had not fully recovered. The epidemiology of Q fever disease in New South Wales has changed and amongst notified cases the relative importance of non-abattoir contact with livestock, wildlife or feral animals appears to be increasing. The surveillance field ‘Occupation’ no longer alone adequately describes risk exposure for many of the people notified with Q fever and a new field that better describes risk exposures is required. This may allow more finely tuned vaccination policy
Encephalitis in Australia, 1979-2006: trends and aetiologies
No full textThe acute encephalitis syndrome has heralded the emergence of multiple virulent pathogens, including Murray Valley encephalitis, Hendra virus and Australian bat lyssavirus, which may result in severe morbidity and mortality. In Australia, encephalitis is not notifiable and there has been no analysis of trends in encephalitis death rates or causation. Australian Bureau of Statistics mortality and population data for the period 1979–2006 were obtained and cause of death data were extracted using ICD-9 (1979–1998) and ICD-10 (1999–2006) codes that included all relevant encephalitis related diagnoses. Encephalitis-associated deaths were analysed by cause, year, age and gender. Between 1979 and 2006 there were 1,118 encephalitis-associated deaths in Australia. The average annual death rate was 2.3 per 1 million population (range 1.3–3.6). There was a significant decline in encephalitis-associated deaths, particularly due to 'known' pathogens (4.3% decline per year, 95%CI 3.1–5.4%, P<0.0001). The aetiology of 576 deaths were unknown and the proportion of deaths due to 'unknown' encephalitis increased from 47.0% between 1979 and 1992, to 57.2% from 1993 to 2006. Downward trends in encephalitis deaths due to 'known' causes can largely be explained by changes in treatment and prevention methods, particularly for herpes encephalitis (use of acyclovir), and measles encephalitis and subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (measles vaccination). The high proportion of encephalitis deaths from 'unknown' pathogens in Australia highlights the importance of monitoring encephalitis morbidity and mortality with a view to improving pathogen diagnosis and identifying emerging infectious diseases
Egg-associated Salmonella outbreak in an aged care facility, New South Wales, 2008
No full textSalmonellosis is a bacterial disease that causes acute gastroenteritis, with sudden onset of headache, abdominal pain, diarrhoea, nausea and sometimes vomiting. Infection is often associated with the consumption of foods prepared using raw eggs. During July to August 2008 an outbreak at an aged care facility (ACF) in New South Wales was confirmed as Salmonella Typhimurium phage type 44 (Stm 44) in eight of 45 residents. Two additional probable cases also occurred. Cases were located in each unit of the ACF and for 5 cases, onset of diarrhoea was between 45 to 64 hours (median of 46 hours) after consumption of a dessert containing raw eggs. Onset for 5 further cases occurred up to 9 days after this meal. Eggs were supplied to the ACF from a local farm. Stm 44 was detected on an egg in an unopened box at the ACF from this supplier. The raw-egg dessert was epidemiologically implicated as the likely source of the Salmonella and delayed onset cases may have resulted from ingestion of a smaller dose of Salmonella , or ongoing transmission through cross-contamination of kitchen machinery or surfaces. This outbreak demonstrates that inadequate cooking of eggs continues to pose a risk for Salmonella infection in settings with vulnerable populations. The findings of the investigation provide support for the importance of food safety regulations and demand further advocacy for measures to reduce the risks associated with the distribution, storage and preparation of shell eggs
Remote sensing space weather events: Antarctic-Arctic Radiation-belt (Dynamic) Deposition-VLF Atmospheric Research Konsortium network
No full textThe Antarctic-Arctic Radiation-belt (Dynamic) Deposition-VLF Atmospheric Research Konsortium (AARDDVARK) provides a network of continuous long-range observations of the lower ionosphere in the polar regions. Our ultimate aim is to develop the network of sensors to detect changes in ionization levels from ~30–90 km altitude, globally, continuously, and with high time resolution, with the goal of increasing the understanding of energy coupling between the Earth's atmosphere, the Sun, and space. This science area impacts our knowledge of space weather processes, global atmospheric change, communications, and navigation. The joint New Zealand-United Kingdom AARDDVARK is a new extension of a well-established experimental technique, allowing long-range probing of ionization changes at comparatively low altitudes. Most other instruments which can probe the same altitudes are limited to essentially overhead measurements. At this stage AARDDVARK is essentially unique, as similar systems are only deployed at a regional level. The AARDDVARK network has contributed to the scientific understanding of a growing list of space weather science topics including solar proton events, the descent of NOx into the middle atmosphere, substorms, precipitation of energetic electrons by plasmaspheric hiss and electromagnetic ion cyclotron waves, the impact of coronal mass ejections upon the radiation belts, and relativistic electron microbursts. Future additions to the receiver network will increase the science potential and provide global coverage of space weather event signatures