Impact of automatic region-of-interest coding on perceived quality in mobile video

At present, the most reliable method to obtain end-user perceived quality is through subjective tests. In this paper, the impact of automatic region-of-interest (ROI) coding on perceived quality of mobile video is investigated. The evidence, which is based on perceptual comparison analysis, shows that the coding strategy improves perceptual quality. This is particularly true in low bit rate situations. The ROI detection method used in this paper is based on two approaches: - (1) automatic ROI by analyzing the visual contents automatically, and; - (2) eye-tracking based ROI by aggregating eye-tracking data across many users, used to both evaluate the accuracy of automatic ROI detection and the subjective quality of automatic ROI encoded video. The perceptual comparison analysis is based on subjective assessments with 54 participants, across different content types, screen resolutions, and target bit rates while comparing the two ROI detection methods. The results from the user study demonstrate that ROI-based video encoding has higher perceived quality compared to normal video encoded at a similar bit rate, particularly in the lower bit rate range.

Other Side of This Life : Death, Value, and Social Being in Thomas Pynchon's Fiction

This dissertation analyzes the interrelationship between death, the conditions of (wo)man s social being, and the notion of value as it emerges in the fiction of the American novelist Thomas Pynchon (1937 ). Pynchon s present work includes six novels V. (1963), The Crying of Lot 49 (1966), Gravity s Rainbow (1973), Vineland (1990), Mason & Dixon (1997), Against the Day (2006) and several short stories. Death constitues a central thematic in Pynchon s work, and it emerges through recurrent questions of mortality, suicide, mass destruction, sacrifice, afterlife, entropy, the relationship between the animate and the inanimate, and the limits of representation. In Pynchon, death is never a mere biological given (or event); it is always determined within a certain historical, cultural, and ideological context. Throughout his work, Pynchon questions the strict ontological separation of life and death by showing the relationship between this separation and social power. Conceptual divisions also reflect the relationship between society and its others, and death becomes that through which lines of social demarcation are articulated. Determined as a conceptual and social "other side", death in Pynchon forms a challenge to modern culture, and makes an unexpected return: the dead return to haunt the living, the inanimate and the animate fuse, and technoscientific attempts at overcoming and controlling death result in its re-emergence in mass destruction and ecological damage. The questioning of the ontological line also affects the structuration of Pynchon's prose, where the recurrent narrated and narrative desire to reach the limits of representation is openly associated with death. Textualized, death appears in Pynchon's writing as a sudden rupture within the textual functioning, when the "other side", that is, the bare materiality of the signifier is foregrounded. In this study, Pynchon s cultural criticism and his poetics come together, and I analyze the subversive role of death in his fiction through Jean Baudrillard s genealogy of the modern notion of death from L échange symbolique et la mort (1976). Baudrillard sees an intrinsic bond between the social repression of death in modernity and the emergence of modern political economy, and in his analysis economy and language appear as parallel systems for generating value (exchange value/ sign-value). For Baudrillard, the modern notion of death as negativity in relation to the positivity of life, and the fact that death cannot be given a proper meaning, betray an antagonistic relation between death and the notion of value. As a mode of negativity (that is, non-value), death becomes a moment of rupture in relation to value-based thinking in short, rationalism. Through this rupture emerges a form of thinking Baudrillard labels the symbolic, characterized by ambivalence and the subversion of conceptual opposites.

Getting value out of your sensory testing - the difference from control test

Non-parametric difference tests such as triangle and duo-trio tests traditionally are used to establish differences or similarities between products. However they only supply the researcher with partial answers and often further testing is required to establish the nature, size and direction of differences. This paper looks at the advantages of the difference from control (DFC) test (also known as degree of difference test) and discusses appropriate applications of the test. The scope and principle of the test, panel composition and analysis of results are presented with the aid of suitable examples. Two of the major uses of the DFC test are in quality control and shelf-life testing. The role DFC takes in these areas and the use of other tests to complement the testing is discussed. Controls or standards are important in both these areas and the use of standard products, mental and written standards and blind controls are highlighted. The DFC test has applications in products where the duo-trio and triangle tests cannot be used because of the normal heterogeneity of the product. While the DFC test is a simple difference test it can be structured to give the researcher more valuable data and scope to make informed decisions about their product.

Predicting wood value in Queensland Caribbean pine plantations using a decision support system

A decision support system has been developed in Queensland to evaluate how changes in silvicultural regimes affect wood quality, and specifically the graded recovery of structural timber. Models of tree growth, branch architecture and wood properties were developed from data collected in routine Caribbean pine plantations and specific silvicultural experiments. These models were incorporated in software that simulates the conversion of standing trees into logs, and the logs into boards, and generates detailed data on knot location and basic density distribution. The structural grade of each board was determined by simulating the machine stress-grading process, and the predicted graded recovery provided an indicator of wood value. The decision support system improves the basis of decision-making by simulating the performance of elite genetic material under specified silvicultural regimes and by predicting links between wood quality and general stand attributes such as stocking and length of rotation.

Assessment of transit quality of service with occupancy load factor and passenger travel time measures

This paper investigates quality of service (QoS) and resource productivity implications of transit route passenger loading and travel time. It highlights the value of occupancy load factor as a direct passenger comfort QoS measure. Automatic Fare Collection data for a premium radial bus route in Brisbane, Australia, is used to investigate time series correlation between occupancy load factor and passenger average travel time. Correlation is strong across the entire span of service in both directions. Passengers tend to be making longer, peak direction commuter trips under significantly less comfortable conditions than off-peak. The Transit Capacity and Quality of Service Manual uses segment based load factor as a measure of onboard loading comfort QoS. This paper provides additional insight into QoS by relating the two route based dimensions of occupancy load factor and passenger average travel time together in a two dimensional format, both from the passenger’s and operator’s perspectives. Future research will apply Value of Time to QoS measurement, reflecting perceived passenger comfort through crowding and average time spent onboard. This would also assist in transit service quality econometric modeling. The methodology can be readily applied in a practical setting where AFC data for fixed scheduled routes is available. The study outcomes also provide valuable research and development directions.

Online grocery shopping: The impact of shopping frequency on perceived risk

Online grocery shopping has enjoyed strong growth and it is predicted this channel will continue to grow exponentially in the coming years. While online shopping has attracted an abundance of research interest, examinations of online grocery shopping behaviour are only now emerging. Shopping online for groceries differs considerably from general online shopping due to the perishability and variability of the product, and frequency of the shopping activity. Two salient gaps underpin this research into online grocery shopping. This study responds to calls to investigate the online shoppers’ experience in the context of online purchasing frequency. Second, this study examines the mediating effect of perceived risk between trust and online repurchase intention of groceries. An online survey was employed to collect data from shoppers who were recruited from a multi-channel grocery e-retailer’s database. The online survey, comprising 16 reflective validated scale items, was sent to 555 frequent and infrequent online grocery shoppers. Results find that while customer satisfaction predicts trust for both infrequent and frequent online grocery shoppers, perceived risk fully mediates the effect of trust on repurchase intentions for infrequent online grocery shoppers. Furthermore path analysis reveals that the developed behavioural model is variant across both groups of shoppers. Theoretically, we provide a deeper understanding of the online customer experience, while gaining insight into two shopper segments identified as being important to grocery e-retailers. For managers, this study tests an online customer behavioural model with actual purchasing behaviour and identifies the continued presence of perceived risk in grocery e-retailing regardless of purchase frequency or experience.

Value-adding Australian sardines: Factors affecting rates of deterioration in sardine (Sardinops sagax) quality during post-harvest handling

Deficiencies in sardine post-harvest handling methods were seen as major impediments to development of a value-adding sector supplying Australian bait and human consumption markets. Factors affecting sardine deterioration rates in the immediate post-harvest period were investigated and recommendations made for alternative handling procedures to optimise sardine quality. Net to factory sampling showed that post-mortem autolysis was probably caused by digestive enzyme activity contributing to the observed temporal increase in sardine Quality Index. Belly burst was not an issue. Sardine quality could be maintained by reducing tank loading, and rapid temperature reduction using dedicated, on-board value-adding tanks. Fish should be iced between the jetty and the processing factory, and transport bins chilled using an efficient cooling medium such as flow ice.

Strawberry breeding in a subtropical environment

Strawberry breeding aims to provide cultivars that maximise consumer satisfaction and producer profitability in a changing environment. In this paper some concepts of profitability, consumer satisfaction and sustainability are explored for a subtropical climate using Queensland Australia, and Florida USA, as examples. The typical production environment is annual autumn planting of bare rooted runners into polythene covered raised beds at about 40000 plants/ha. Harvesting is late autumn to early spring, with fruit arriving at the major markets up to 2000km away from the production area within 1-4 days of harvest. The basic premise in the breed-big work is that consumers must enjoy the experience of eating strawberries, and that perceived flavour, sweetness, and juiciness are the major contributors to this experience. Using market chain information, we developed a basic value model comprised of costs, returns, and sustainability of market. To this basic outline are applied operational descriptors, such as 'speed of harvest', and associated plant characteristics, such as 'fruit display'. The expression of each plant characteristic is ascribed a value or level and together numerically describe the phenotype. This description is mathematically manipulated to provide a 'value index' for the cultivar. Nine cultivars including 'Strawberry Festival', 'Kabarla', 'DPI Rubygem' and 'Sweet Charlie' are described, and environmental issues that may impact on the subtropical strawberry breeding objectives are discussed. Product differentiation and the use of exotic germplasm as a new source of genes for flavour and resistance to disease and environmental stress will likely be the cornerstones of future progress in subtropical strawberry breeding. This approach should satisfy both consumers and producers.

Nutritional management for reproductive efficiency

Nutrition influences reproductive efficiency and the survival of lambs and weaners but the costs of supplementary feeding or maintaining low stocking rates are not justified by the resulting income from higher lamb weaning rates and reduced weaner mortality. The current practice of segmenting the ewe flock using ultrasound scanning to determine the number of foetuses still results in groups of ewes with a wide range of condition scores and with widely differing nutritional requirements. This report describes an approach to precision management of pregnant ewes and weaners that is based on the e-sheep platform of technologies and uses computer-directed drafting for nutritional management of individual animals and walk-through weighing to monitor changing nutritional status. It is estimated that the cost of feeding a thousand-ewe flock can be reduced from $14,000 for feeding all animals to $3300 for targeted feeding of 25% of ewes requiring additional nutrition and 20% of weaners at risk of dying. The cost of the targeted feeding strategy is more than justified by the value of additional 12-month-old animals, which is $9000. The e-sheep precision nutrition system is not attractive to industry at this stage because of the cost of the e-sheep infrastructure, the perceived complexity of the technology and the requirement for further research, but it is expected to be a commercial option within three years.

Use of part records in Merino breeding programs - The inheritance of wool growth and fibre traits during different times of the year to determine their value in Merino breeding programs

Fibre diameter can vary dramatically along a wool staple, especially in the Mediterranean environment of southern Australia with its dry summers and abundance of green feed in spring. Other research results have shown a very low phenotypic correlation between fibre diameter grown between seasons. Many breeders use short staples to measure fibre diameter for breeding purposes and also to promote animals for sale. The effectiveness of this practice is determined by the relative response to selection by measuring fibre traits on a full 12 months wool staple as compared to measuring them only on part of a staple. If a high genetic correlation exists between the part record and the full record, then using part records may be acceptable to identify genetically superior animals. No information is available on the effectiveness of part records. This paper investigated whether wool growth and fibre diameter traits of Merino wool grown at different times of the year in a Mediterranean environment, are genetically the same trait, respectively. The work was carried out on about 7 dyebanded wool sections/animal.year, on ewes from weaning to hogget age, in the Katanning Merino resource flocks over 6 years. Relative clean wool growth of the different sections had very low heritability estimates of less than 0.10, and they were phenotypically and genetically poorly correlated with 6 or 12 months wool growth. This indicates that part record measurement of clean wool growth of these sections will be ineffective as indirect selection criteria to improve wool growth genetically. Staple length growth as measured by the length between dyebands, would be more effective with heritability estimates of between 0.20 and 0.30. However, these measurements were shown to have a low genetic correlation with wool grown for 12 months which implies that these staple length measurements would only be half as efficient as the wool weight for 6 or 12 months to improve total clean wool weight. Heritability estimates of fibre diameter, coefficient of variation of fibre diameter and fibre curvature were relatively high and were genetically and phenotypically highly correlated across sections. High positive phenotypic and genetic correlations were also found between fibre diameter, coefficient of variation of fibre diameter and fibre curvature of the different sections and similar measurements for wool grown over 6 or 12 months. Coefficient of variation of fibre diameter of the sections also had a moderate negative phenotypic and genetic correlation with staple strength of wool staples grown over 6 months indicating that coefficient of variation of fibre diameter of any section would be as good an indirect selection criterion to improve stable strength as coefficient of variation of fibre diameter for wool grown over 6 or 12 months. The results indicate that fibre diameter, coefficient of variation of fibre diameter and fibre curvature of wool grown over short periods of time have virtually the same heritability as that of wool grown over 12 months, and that the genetic correlation between fibre diameter, coefficient of variation of fibre diameter and fibre curvature on part and on full records is very high (rg > 0.85). This indicates that fibre diameter, coefficient of variation of fibre diameter and fibre curvature on part records can be used as selection criteria to improve these traits. However, part records of greasy and clean wool growth would be much less efficient than fleece weight for wool grown over 6 or 12 months because of the low heritability of part records and the low genetic correlation between these traits on part records and on wool grown for 12 months.

Potential of VIS-NIR Spectroscopy to predict perceived ‘muddy’ taint in australian farmed barramundi

Sensory analysis of food involves the measurement, interpretation and understanding of human responses to the properties of food perceived by the senses such as sight, smell, and taste (Cozzolino et al. 2005). It is important to have a quantitative means for assessing sensory properties in a reasonable way, to enable the food industry to rapidly respond to the changing demands of both consumers and the market. Aroma and flavour are among the most important properties for the consumer, and numerous studies have been performed in attempts to find correlations between sensory qualities and objective instrumental measurements. Rapid instrumental methods such as near infrared spectroscopy (NIR) might be advantageous to predict quality of different foods and agricultural products due to the speed of analysis, minimum sample preparation and low cost. The advantages of such technologies is not only to assess chemical structures but also to build an spectrum, characteristic of the sample, which behaves as a “finger print” of the sample.

Fundamental Principles and Rights At Work: Value, Viability, Incidence and Importance as Elements For Economic Progress and Social Justice

Working Paper prepared for the ILO by Maria Luz Vega Ruiz and Daniel Martinez, focusing on the rights at work in Latin America and the Caribbean.

The value of having no wild rabbits in south-east Queensland

Rabbits released in Australia in 1859 spread to most areas of suitable habitat by 1910 causing great damage to the environment and primary industries. Measurement of damage is essential to justify spending money and utilising resources to remove rabbits. Damage to pasture and biodiversity may be irreversible and therefore difficult to measure without comparison with an area that has never suffered such damage. A rabbit proof fence completed in 1906 protected a large part of south east Queensland from rabbits. The Darling Downs Moreton Rabbit Board (DDMRB) continues to maintain the fence and keep the area relatively free of rabbits. This area is unique because it is highly suitable for rabbits and yet it has never ‘experienced’ the damage caused by plagues of uncontrolled rabbits. A study site was established where the DDMRB fence separates an area heavily used by rabbits (‘dirty side’) from an area that has never been infested by rabbits (‘clean side’). The number and location of all rabbit warrens and log piles were recorded. The absence of warrens from the ‘clean side’ shows clearly that the rabbit proof fence has prevented rabbits from establishing warren systems. The ‘dirty side’ is characterised by a high number of warrens, a high density of rabbits, fewer pasture species and low macropod activity. Future work will determine whether the rabbit populations are viable in the absence of rabbit warrens. We plan to radio collar rabbits on both sides of the fence to measure their survival rate. In selected warrens and log piles of varying degrees of complexity and size, rabbits will be trapped and information on reproduction and age structure will be collected. This will allow better targeting of the source of rabbits during control operations. Once the initial comparative analysis of the site has been completed, all rabbit warrens will be destroyed on the dirty side of the fence. After rabbits are removed from this area, monitoring will continue to determine if pasture and biodiversity on opposite sides of the fence begin to mirror each other.

Feeling Better, Performing Better? Holistically-Oriented Top Performance and Well-Being (HOPE) : Performance Enhancement and Its Perceived Impacts on Musicians

Most musicians choose a career in music based on their love of the art and a desire to share it with others. However, being a performing musician is highly demanding. Despite considerable evidence of the great frequency of performance-related problems (e.g. debilitating performance anxiety) among professional musicians or aspiring musicians in the current Western classical music tradition these problems are seldom discussed openly. The existing system offers musicians very little help in learning how to build sustainable performance success into their musical career. This study it is first of its kind in Finland which addresses the issue on larger scale in a systematic way. I devised the HOPE intervention (Holistically-Oriented Top Performance and Well-Being Enhancement), in order to learn how to integrate professional peak performance and a sense of personal well-being into the lives and careers of musicians. Unlike most interventions in previous research, the HOPE intervention is explicitly holistic and aims at enhancing the whole musician, not just alleviating performance anxiety. Earlier research has not in principle focused on musicians´ psychological well-being or on their subjective perceptions. The main purpose of the study is to understand the perceived impacts of the specially devised HOPE intervention on the participants and particularly in four key areas: performing, playing or singing well-being, and overall (performing, playing or singing and well-being combined). Furthermore, it is hoped that a deeper understanding of performers´ development will be gained. The research method is interdisciplinary and mainly qualitative. The primary data consist of a series of linked questionnaires (before and after the intervention) and semi-structured follow-up interviews collected during action research-oriented HOPE intervention courses for music majors in the Sibelius Academy. With the longitudinal group called Hope 1, the core data were collected during a nine month HOPE intervention course and from follow-up interviews conducted six months later in 2003-2004. The core data of Hope 1 (nine participants) are compared with the perceived impacts on fifty-three other participants in the HOPE courses during the period since their inception, 2001-2006. The focus is particularly on participants´ subjective perceptions. Results of the study suggest that the HOPE intervention is beneficial in enhancing overall performance capacity, including music performance, and a personal sense of well-being in a music university setting. The findings indicate that within all key areas significant positive changes take place between the beginning and the end of a HOPE intervention course. The longitudinal data imply that the perceived positive changes are still ongoing six months after the HOPE intervention course is finished. The biggest change takes place within the area of performing and the smallest, in participants´ perception of their playing or singing. The main impacts include reduced feelings of stress and anxiety (an enhanced sense of well-being) as well as increased sense of direction and control in one's life. Since the results of the present research gave no other reason to believe otherwise, it is to be expected that the HOPE intervention and the results of the study can be exploited in other areas of human activity as well, especially where continuous professional top performance is a prerequisite such as in business or sports. Keywords: performance enhancement, professional top performance, subjective well-being, subjective perceptions, holism, coaching, music performance anxiety, studying music, music.

Emotional intelligence development in radiation therapy students: A longitudinal study

Purpose: Emotional intelligence (EI) is an increasingly important aspect of a health professional’s skill set. It is strongly associated with empathy, reflection and resilience; all key aspects of radiotherapy practice. Previous work in other disciplines has formed contradictory conclusions concerning development of EI over time. This study aimed to determine the extent to which EI can develop during a radiotherapy undergraduate course and identify factors affecting this. Methods and materials: This study used anonymous coded Likert-style surveys to gather longitudinal data from radiotherapy students relating to a range of self-perceived EI traits during their 3-year degree. Data were gathered at various points throughout the course from the whole cohort. Results: A total of 26 students provided data with 14 completing the full series of datasets. There was a 17·2% increase in self-reported EI score with a p-value<0·0001. Social awareness and relationship skills exhibited the greatest increase in scores compared with self-awareness. Variance of scores decreased over time; there was a reduced change in EI for mature students who tended to have higher initial scores. EI increase was most evident immediately after clinical placements. Conclusions: Radiotherapy students increase their EI scores during a 3-year course. Students reported higher levels of EI immediately after their clinical placement; radiotherapy curricula should seek to maximise on these learning opportunities.