Pavement crack and pothole identification are important tasks in transportation maintenance and road safety. This study offers a novel technique for automatic asphalt pavement crack and pothole detection which is based on image processing. Different types of cracks (transverse, longitudinal, alligator-type, and potholes) can be identified with such techniques. The goal of this research is to evaluate road surface damage by extracting cracks and potholes, categorizing them from images and videos, and comparing the manual and the automated methods. The proposed method was tested on 50 images. The results obtained from image processing showed that the proposed method can detect cracks and potholes and identify their severity levels with a medium validity of 76%. There are two kinds of methods, manual and automated, for distress evaluation that are used to assess pavement condition. A committee of three expert engineers in the maintenance department of the Mayoralty of Baghdad did the manual assessment of a highway in Baghdad city by using a Pavement Condition Index (PCI). The automated method was assessed by processing the videos of the road. By comparing the automated with the manual method, the accuracy percentage for this case study was 88.44%. The suggested method proved to be an encouraging solution for identifying cracks and potholes in asphalt pavements and sorting their severity. This technique can replace manual road damage assessment.
The aim: to evaluate combined microscopy techniques for determining the morphological and optical properties of methadone hydrochloride (MDN) crystals. Materials and methods: MDN crystal formation was optimized using a closed container method and crystals were characterized using polarized light microscope (PLM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and confocal microscopy (CM). SEM and CM were used to determine MDN crystal thickness and study its relationship with crystal retardation colours using the Michel-Levy Birefringence approach. Results: Dimensions (mean±SD) of diamond shaped MDN crystals were confirmed using SEM and CM. Crystals were 46.4±15.2 Vs 32.0±8.3 µm long, 28.03±8.2 Vs 20.85±5.5 µm wide, and 6.62±
... Show MoreCurrent numerical research was devoted to investigating the effect of castellated steel beams without and with strengthening. The composite concrete asymmetrical double hot rolled steel channels bolted back to back to obtain a built-up I-shape form are used in this study. The top half part of the steel is smaller than the bottom half part, and the two parts were connected by bolting and welding. The ABAQUS/2019 program employed the same length and conditions of loading for four models: The first model is the reference without castellated and strengthening; the second model was castellated without strengthened; the third model was castellated and strengthened with reactive powder concrete encased in the
... Show MoreAttacking a transferred data over a network is frequently happened millions time a day. To address this problem, a secure scheme is proposed which is securing a transferred data over a network. The proposed scheme uses two techniques to guarantee a secure transferring for a message. The message is encrypted as a first step, and then it is hided in a video cover. The proposed encrypting technique is RC4 stream cipher algorithm in order to increase the message's confidentiality, as well as improving the least significant bit embedding algorithm (LSB) by adding an additional layer of security. The improvement of the LSB method comes by replacing the adopted sequential selection by a random selection manner of the frames and the pixels wit
... Show MoreAbstract Background: This in-vitro study was to evaluated bitewing radiograph and tactile examination for detection secondary caries adjacent to amalgam restorations. Material and method: Sixty primary extracted molars with class I and class II amalgam restorations were selected from children, and examined by bitewing radiographs were taken by using film holders and interpreted on a backlit screen without magnification. Then, we used tactile examination with blunt probe. Result: The result of this study showed that the best cut-off points for the sample were found by a Receiver Operator Characteristic (ROC) analysis, and the area under the ROC curve and the sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of the techniques were calculated for enamel (
... Show MoreUltrasound has been used as a diagnostic modality for many intraocular diseases, due its safety, low cost, real time and wide availability. Unfortunately, ultrasound images suffer from speckle artifact that are tissue dependent. In this work, we will offer a method to reduce speckle noise and improve ultrasound image to raise the human diagnostic performance. This method combined undecimated wavelet transform with a wavelet coefficient mapping function: where UDWT used to eliminate the noise and a wavelet coefficient mapping function used to enhance the contrast of denoised images obtained from the first component. This methods can be used not only as a means for improving visual quality of medical images but also as a preprocessing
... Show MoreBackground: Prosthodontic services have changed markedly due to an introduction of new materials, techniques and treatment options. The aim of this study were to identify the type of materials and the methods used by dental practitioners in their clinics to construct conventional complete dentures and to specify the type and design for removable partial dentures (RPDs); and to then compare them with those taught in dental schools. Materials and methods: A total of 153 dental practitioners in Sulaimani city completed a written questionnaire. The questionnaire included 19 questions regarding complete and RPDs fabrication. Results: Most of the practitioners provide complete dentures (81.6%) and RPDs (95.3%) in their clinics. Polyvinyl silox
... Show MoreWhile many educators are highly focused on state test, it is important to consider that
over the course of a year, instructors can build in many opportunities to assess how learners
are learning. Therefore, assessment techniques are considered a good method to get benefit
for both instructors and learners in the process of teaching and learning. The sample consists
of 27 learners who participated in TOEFL training course in the Development and Continuous
Education Centre. Validity and reliability were verified.
To fulfill the aims and verify the hypothesis which reads as follows” It is hypothesized
that the TOEFL learners' scores will not be increased after TOEFL course training.” T-test
for two dependent samp
Scams remain among top cybercrime incidents happening around the world. Individuals with high susceptibility to persuasion are considered as risk-takers and prone to be scam victims. Unfortunately, limited number of research is done to investigate the relationship between appeal techniques and individuals' personality thus hindering a proper and effective campaigns that could help to raise awareness against scam. In this study, the impact of fear and rational appeal were examined as well as to identify suitable approach for individuals with high susceptibility to persuasion. To evaluate the approach, pretest and posttest surveys with 3 separate controlled laboratory experiments were conducted. This study found that rational appeal treatm
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