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The use of old building design codes and improper execution of recent seismic design practices resulted in substandard and vulnerable reinforced concrete building stock, the majority of which is built with weak beam-column joint connections (i.e. joint panels having no transverse reinforcement and built in low strength concrete). In order to understand the seismic response and damage behavior of recent special moment resisting frame (SMRF) structures with the defect of weak beam-column joints, shake table tests were performed on two 1:3 reduced scale two storey and one bay RC frame models. Reference code design and weak beam-column joint frame models were subjected to unidirectional dynamic excitation of increasing intensities using the natural record of 1994 Northridge Earthquake. The input scaled excitation were applied from 5 % to 130 % of the maximum input peak ground acceleration record, to force the test models from elastic to inelastic stage and then to fully plastic incipient collapse stage. The weak beam-column frame experienced flexural cracking of the columns, longitudinal bar-slip in beam members, cover concrete spalling and severe damageability of the joint panels under multiple dynamic excitations. The deficient frame was able to resist only 40 % of the maximum acceleration record as compared to the code design frame, which was able to resist up to130 %. Based on the experimental observations, a drift-based damage scale was developed for different performance limits states that can be employed for the global performance assessment of deficient weak beam-column joint RC frames.

Hydroxyapatite (HA) exhibits several desirable characteristics, but it still lacks osteoinduction, which is a necessary requirement for a bone scaffold. HA-based composites with different amounts of Bioglass® (BG) were prepared using spark plasma sintering (SPS). Careful selection of the SPS parameters avoided undesirable reactions between the calcium phosphate (CaP) and bioglass (BG present in the form of powder and fibres), as confirmed through X-ray diffraction analysis. Scanning electron microscopy images of the composite scaffolds revealed a fibre like appearance of the glassy region. The in vitro bioactivity and biodegradation analyses were performed by immersing the composites in simulated body fluid (SBF) and tris(hydroxymethyl)aminomethane (Tris), respectively. The ability to obtain only the CaP phase and glassy phase with desirable bioactive and biodegradation behaviour, indicated that these SPS scaffolds can be employed as bone scaffolds for clinical trials, after further in vivo analyses.

In order to assess the seismic damage response of reinforced concrete deficient, weak beam-column connection frame structures, this study presents experimental shake table testing on representative 1/3rd reduced size and double story frame models. Two test models were considered for experimental testing, including a reference code design specimen and another frame with a similar characteristic, but was not provided with any shear reinforcement in the critical joint connection region and, was constructed with concrete having a compressive strength of 33 % less than the code specified value. The input scaled excitations were applied from 5 % to 130 % of the maximum input peak ground acceleration record, to deformed the test models from elastic to inelastic stage and then to fully plastic incipient collapse stage. The weak beam-column frame sustained plastic hinging at column bases and beam ends, with longitudinal reinforcement bar-slip and severe damageability of the joint panels upon subjected to multiple dynamic excitations. The deficient frame model was only able to resist 40 % of the maximum acceleration record as compared to the code design frame which was able to resist about 130 %.

Software is a complex entity, and its development needs careful planning and a high amount of time and cost. To assess quality of program, software measures are very helpful. Amongst the existing measures, coupling is an important design measure, which computes the degree of interdependence among the entities of a software system. Higher coupling leads to cognitive complexity and thus a higher probability occurrence of faults. Well in time prediction of fault-prone modules assists in saving time and cost of testing. This paper aims to capture important aspects of coupling and then assess the effectiveness of these aspects in determining fault-prone entities in the software system. We propose two coupling metrics, i.e., Vovel-in and Vovel-out, that capture the level of coupling and the volume of information flow. We empirically evaluate the effectiveness of the Vovel metrics in determining the fault-prone classes using five projects, i.e., Eclipse JDT, Equinox framework, Apache Lucene, Mylyn, and Eclipse PDE UI. Model building is done using univariate logistic regression and later Spearman correlation coefficient is computed with the existing coupling metrics to assess the coverage of unique information. Finally, the least correlated metrics are used for building multivariate logistic regression with and without the use of Vovel metrics, to assess the effectiveness of Vovel metrics. The results show the proposed metrics significantly improve the predicting of fault prone classes. Moreover, the proposed metrics cover a significant amount of unique information which is not covered by the existing well-known coupling metrics, i.e., CBO, RFC, Fan-in, and Fan-out. This paper, empirically evaluates the impact of coupling metrics, and more specifically the importance of level and volume of coupling in software fault prediction. The results advocate the prudent addition of proposed metrics due to their unique information coverage and significant predictive ability.

Land use and land cover (LULC) change analysis is a systematic technique that aids in the comprehension of physical and non-physical interaction with the natural habitat and the pursuit of environmental sustainability. Research regarding LULC’s spatiotemporal changing patterns and the simulation of future scenarios offers a complete view of present and future development possibilities. To simulate the spatiotemporal change transition potential and future LULC simulation, we utilized multi-temporal remotely sensed big data from 1990 to 2020 with a 10-year interval. Independent variables (DEM, slope, and distance from roads) and an integrated CA-ANN methodology within the MOLUSCE plugin of QGIS were utilized. The findings reveal that physical and socioeconomic driving variables have a substantial effect on the patterns of the terrain. In the last three decades, the study area had a significant rise in impervious surface from 10.48% to 26.91%, as well as a minor increase in water from 1.30% to 1.67%. As a result, forest cover decreased from 12.60% to 8.74%, green space decreased from 26.34% to 16.57%, and barren land decreased from 49.28% to 46.11%. Additionally, the predictions (2030–2050) support the increasing trend towards impervious surface at the expense of significant quantities of forest and green space.

Abstract In recent years, automated human tracking over camera networks is getting essential for video surveillance. The tasks of tracking human over camera networks are not only inherently challenging due to changing human appearance, but also have enormous potentials for a wide range of practical applications, ranging from security surveillance to retail and health care. This review paper surveys the most widely used techniques and recent advances for human tracking over camera networks. Two important functional modules for the human tracking over camera networks are addressed, including human tracking within a camera and human tracking across non-overlapping cameras. The core techniques of human tracking within a camera are discussed based on two aspects, i.e., generative trackers and discriminative trackers. The core techniques of human tracking across non-overlapping cameras are then discussed based on the aspects of human re-identification, camera-link model-based tracking and graph model-based tracking. Our survey aims to address existing problems, challenges, and future research directions based on the analyses of the current progress made toward human tracking techniques over camera networks.

High protein content, excellent amino acid profile, absence of anti-nutritional factors (ANFs), high digestibility and good palatability of fishmeal (FM), make it a major source of protein in aquaculture. Naturally derived FM is at risk due to an increase in its demand, unsustainable practices, and price. Thus, there is an urgent need to find affordable and suitable protein sources to replace FM. Plant protein sources are suitable due to their widespread availability and low cost. However, they contained certain ANFs, deficiency of some amino acids, low nutrient bioavailability and poor digestibility due to presence of starch and fiber. These unfavourable characteristics make them less suitable for feed as compared to FM. Thus, these potential challenges and limitations associated with various plant proteins have to be overcome by using different methods, i.e. enzymatic pretreatments, solvent extraction, heat treatments and fermentation, that are discussed briefly in this review. This review assessed the impacts of plant products on growth performance, body composition, flesh quality, changes in metabolic activities and immune response of fishes. To minimize the negative effects and to enhance nutritional value of plant products, beneficial functional additives such as citric acid, phytase and probiotics could be incorporated into the plant-based FM. Interestingly, these additives improve growth of fishes by increasing digestibility and nutrient utilization of plant based feeds. Overall, this review demonstrated that the substitution of fishmeal by plant protein sources is a plausible, technically-viable and practical option for sustainable aquaculture feed production.