Recently, approaches utilizing spatial-temporal features to form Bag-of-Words （BoWs） models have achieved great success due to their simplicity and effectiveness. But they still have difficulties when distinguishing...Recently, approaches utilizing spatial-temporal features to form Bag-of-Words （BoWs） models have achieved great success due to their simplicity and effectiveness. But they still have difficulties when distinguishing between actions with high inter-ambiguity. The main reason is that they describe actions by orderless bag of features, and ignore the spatial and temporal structure information of visual words. In order to improve classification performance, we present a novel approach called sequential Bag-of-Words. It captures temporal sequential structure by segmenting the entire action into sub-actions. Meanwhile, we pay more attention to the distinguishing parts of an action by classifying sub- actions separately, which is then employed to vote for the final result. Extensive experiments are conducted on challenging datasets and real scenes to evaluate our method. Concretely, we compare our results to some state-of-the-art classification approaches and confirm the advantages of our approach to distinguish similar actions. Results show that our approach is robust and outperforms most existing BoWs based classification approaches, especially on complex datasets with interactive activities, cluttered backgrounds and inter-class action ambiguities.展开更多
Online teaching and learning environments have been booming worldwide. However, many universities in developing countries cannot afford learning management systems, such as Blackboard or WebCT. Therefore, this qualita...Online teaching and learning environments have been booming worldwide. However, many universities in developing countries cannot afford learning management systems, such as Blackboard or WebCT. Therefore, this qualitative study explores the possibility of using social media sites for online instruction due to the fact that their prominent utilities are similar to those of Blackboard and other learning management systems. Through purposeful sampling, four university professors using social media for online instruction were selected as participants, in order to gain insights from their perspectives regarding its usage as an alternative instructional medium. Using the constant comparison method and open coding, data was gathered and triangulated from participant interviews, observations of participants＇ online courses on social media sites; documents collected from their online courses; and the researcher＇s reflexive journal. Thematic findings revealed that social media sites increased （1） interaction and communication between the instructor and students, （2） interaction, communication, and collaboration among students, （3） and interaction between students with materials. It is believed that the significance of the research findings can be transferred to the similar online teaching contexts where learning management systems cannot be afforded.展开更多
This study aims at investigating the AIS （Agricultural Information System） in Hamedan province, Iran, benefiting from the list of criteria for well functioning AISs that were identified in earlier researches. For th...This study aims at investigating the AIS （Agricultural Information System） in Hamedan province, Iran, benefiting from the list of criteria for well functioning AISs that were identified in earlier researches. For this purpose, a survey method with multi-stage stratified random sampling technique was used to select 31 agricultural researchers, and 62 extension workers in the province. The data were acquired by questionnaire and structured interviews. The instrument for data collection was subjected to pre-testing, validation and reliability tests. The results of the factor analysis revealed that the criteria could be categorized into four overarching groups based on their inter-correlation. The analysis of mentioned criteria in Hamedan province AIS showed less efficiency and effectiveness than studies conducted in other areas. But among these, two desirable criteria existed. It is recommended that the ecological knowledge system （EKS） should be integrated with AIS, and some ecological and sustainable development criteria should be added to the existing ones.展开更多
This study is a rapid appraisal procedure （RAP） of two forms of agriculture water delivery systems comprising two canal irrigation schemes and 26 Zimbabwean bush pumps in the Midlands and Masvingo Provinces. A longi...This study is a rapid appraisal procedure （RAP） of two forms of agriculture water delivery systems comprising two canal irrigation schemes and 26 Zimbabwean bush pumps in the Midlands and Masvingo Provinces. A longitudinal multiple data collection technique employed involved various primary and secondary sources including site visits, literature review, observation, interviews with key personnel and group discussions. General findings of this study indicate： （1） the available coping mechanisms in smallholder farming in a climate change context and （2） the challenges faced in the actual delivery of water in terms of design, management, physical and institutional factors. The study provides pragmatic recommendations for overall improvement and performance in a local, technical and socio-economic context through evaluation of the current situation, practices and processes. An integrated approach to addressing climate change impacts should include water management, rehabilitation, complete overhaul and introduction of other relevant water systems and water saving farming techniques. Yet, ownership of these technologies by communities remains instrumental. Rural development and agricultural policies that ensure maximum and full capacity utilisation of water systems to improve rural livelihoods, mitigation and adaptation to climate change are recommended.展开更多
文摘Recently, approaches utilizing spatial-temporal features to form Bag-of-Words （BoWs） models have achieved great success due to their simplicity and effectiveness. But they still have difficulties when distinguishing between actions with high inter-ambiguity. The main reason is that they describe actions by orderless bag of features, and ignore the spatial and temporal structure information of visual words. In order to improve classification performance, we present a novel approach called sequential Bag-of-Words. It captures temporal sequential structure by segmenting the entire action into sub-actions. Meanwhile, we pay more attention to the distinguishing parts of an action by classifying sub- actions separately, which is then employed to vote for the final result. Extensive experiments are conducted on challenging datasets and real scenes to evaluate our method. Concretely, we compare our results to some state-of-the-art classification approaches and confirm the advantages of our approach to distinguish similar actions. Results show that our approach is robust and outperforms most existing BoWs based classification approaches, especially on complex datasets with interactive activities, cluttered backgrounds and inter-class action ambiguities.
文摘Online teaching and learning environments have been booming worldwide. However, many universities in developing countries cannot afford learning management systems, such as Blackboard or WebCT. Therefore, this qualitative study explores the possibility of using social media sites for online instruction due to the fact that their prominent utilities are similar to those of Blackboard and other learning management systems. Through purposeful sampling, four university professors using social media for online instruction were selected as participants, in order to gain insights from their perspectives regarding its usage as an alternative instructional medium. Using the constant comparison method and open coding, data was gathered and triangulated from participant interviews, observations of participants＇ online courses on social media sites; documents collected from their online courses; and the researcher＇s reflexive journal. Thematic findings revealed that social media sites increased （1） interaction and communication between the instructor and students, （2） interaction, communication, and collaboration among students, （3） and interaction between students with materials. It is believed that the significance of the research findings can be transferred to the similar online teaching contexts where learning management systems cannot be afforded.
文摘This study aims at investigating the AIS （Agricultural Information System） in Hamedan province, Iran, benefiting from the list of criteria for well functioning AISs that were identified in earlier researches. For this purpose, a survey method with multi-stage stratified random sampling technique was used to select 31 agricultural researchers, and 62 extension workers in the province. The data were acquired by questionnaire and structured interviews. The instrument for data collection was subjected to pre-testing, validation and reliability tests. The results of the factor analysis revealed that the criteria could be categorized into four overarching groups based on their inter-correlation. The analysis of mentioned criteria in Hamedan province AIS showed less efficiency and effectiveness than studies conducted in other areas. But among these, two desirable criteria existed. It is recommended that the ecological knowledge system （EKS） should be integrated with AIS, and some ecological and sustainable development criteria should be added to the existing ones.
文摘This study is a rapid appraisal procedure （RAP） of two forms of agriculture water delivery systems comprising two canal irrigation schemes and 26 Zimbabwean bush pumps in the Midlands and Masvingo Provinces. A longitudinal multiple data collection technique employed involved various primary and secondary sources including site visits, literature review, observation, interviews with key personnel and group discussions. General findings of this study indicate： （1） the available coping mechanisms in smallholder farming in a climate change context and （2） the challenges faced in the actual delivery of water in terms of design, management, physical and institutional factors. The study provides pragmatic recommendations for overall improvement and performance in a local, technical and socio-economic context through evaluation of the current situation, practices and processes. An integrated approach to addressing climate change impacts should include water management, rehabilitation, complete overhaul and introduction of other relevant water systems and water saving farming techniques. Yet, ownership of these technologies by communities remains instrumental. Rural development and agricultural policies that ensure maximum and full capacity utilisation of water systems to improve rural livelihoods, mitigation and adaptation to climate change are recommended.
