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The aim of this article is to obtain a stable tensegrity structure by using the minimum knowledge of the structure.

Three methods have been formulated based on the eigen value decomposition (EVD) and singular value decomposition theorems. These two theorems are being implemented on the matrices, which are computed from the minimal data of the structure. The required minimum data for the structure is the dimension of the structure, the connectivity matrix of the structure and the initial force density matrix computed from the type of elements. The stability of the structure is analyzed based on the rank deficiency of the force density matrix and equilibrium matrix.

The main purpose of this article is to use the defined methods to find (1) the nodal coordinates of the structure, (2) the final force density values of the structure, (3) single self-stress from multiple self-stresses and (4) the stable structure.

By using the defined approaches, one can understand the difference of each method, which includes, (1) the selection of eigenvalues, (2) the selection of nodal coordinates from the first decomposition theorem, (3) the selection of mechanism mode and force density values further and (4) the solution of single feasible self-stress from multiple self-stresses.

This chapter focusses on the identification of sustainability factors. Out of the 77 variables used in the questionnaire for collection of the information, on sustainability of financial innovation in e-payment system (EPS), the important factors are identified and derived using exploratory factor analysis (EFA). This chapter further presents validation of the identified factors through confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Based on the identified factors, a model for EPS is proposed. The chapter also presents a scale developed based on identified factors.

The purpose of this manuscript is to detect heart fault using Electrocardiogram. Mutually low and high frequency noises such as electromyography (EMG) and power line interference (PLI) degrades the performance of ECG signals.

The ECG record depicts the procedural electrical movement of the heart, which is non-invasive foot age obtained by placing surface electrodes on designated locations of the patient’s skin. The main concept of this manuscript is to present a novel filtering method to cancel the unwanted noises in ECG signal. Here, intrinsic time scale decomposition (ITD) is introduced to suppress the effect of PLI from ECG signals.

In the existing ITD, the gain control parameter is a constant value; however, in this paper it is an adaptive feature that varies according to certain constraints. Simulation outcomes show that the proposed method effectively reduces the effect of PLI and quantitatively express the effectiveness with different evaluation metrics.

The results found by the proposed method are compared with Fourier decomposition technique and eigen value decomposition methods (EDM) to validate the effectiveness of the proposed method.

The purpose of this paper is to present a fresh approach to stimulate individual creativity. It introduces a mathematical representation for creative ideas, six creativity operators and methods of matrix-algebra to evaluate, improve and stimulate creative ideas. Creativity begins with ideas to resolve a problem or tackle an opportunity. By definition, a creative idea must be simultaneously novel and useful. To inject analytic rigor into these concepts of creative ideas, the author introduces a feature-attribute matrix-construct to represent ideas, creativity operators that use ideas as operands and methods of matrix algebra. It is demonstrated that it is now possible to analytically and quantitatively evaluate the intensity of the variables that make an idea more, equal or less, creative than another. The six creativity operators are illustrated with detailed multi-disciplinary real-world examples. The mathematics and working principles of each creativity operator are discussed.

The unit of analysis is ideas, not theory. Ideas are man-made artifacts. They are represented by an original feature-attribute matrix construct. Using matrix algebra, idea matrices can be manipulated to improve their creative intensity, which are now quantitatively measurable. Unlike atoms and cute rabbits, creative ideas, do not occur in nature. Only people can conceive and develop creative ideas for embodiment in physical, non-physical forms, or in a mix of both. For example, as widgets, abstract theorems, business processes, symphonies, organization structures, and so on. The feature-attribute matrix construct is used to represent novelty and usefulness. The multiplicative product of these two matrices forms the creativity matrix. Six creativity operators and matrix algebra are introduced to stimulate and measure creative ideas. Creativity operators use idea matrices as operands. Uses of the six operators are demonstrated using multi-disciplinary real-world examples. Metrics for novelty, usefulness and creativity are in ratio scales, grounded on the Weber–Fechner Law. This law is about persons’ ability to discern differences in the intensity of stimuli.

Ideas are represented using feature-attribute matrices. This construct is used to represent novel, useful and creative ideas with more clarity and precision than before. Using matrices, it is shown how to unambiguously and clearly represent creative ideas endowed with novelty and usefulness. It is shown that using matrix algebra, on idea matrices, makes it possible to analyze multi-disciplinary, real-world cases of creative ideas, with clarity and discriminatory power, to uncover insights about novelty and usefulness. Idea-matrices and the methods of matrix algebra have strong explanatory and predictive power. Using of matrix algebra and eigenvalue analyses, of idea-matrices, it is demonstrated how to quantitatively rank ideas, features and attributes of creative ideas. Matrix methods operationalize and quantitatively measure creativity, novelty and usefulness. The specific elementary variables that characterize creativity, novelty and usefulness factors, can now be quantitatively ranked. Creativity, novelty and usefulness factors are not considered as monolithic, irreducible factors, vague “lumpy” qualitative factors, but as explicit sets of elementary, specific and measurable variables in ratio scales. This significantly improves the acuity and discriminatory power in the analyses of creative ideas. The feature-attribute matrix approach and its matrix operators are conceptually consistent and complementary with key extant theories engineering design and creativity.

First to define and specify ideas as feature-attribute matrices. It is demonstrated that creative ideas, novel ideas and useful ideas can be analytically and unambiguously specified and measured for creativity. It is significant that verbose qualitative narratives will no longer be the exclusive means to specify creative ideas. Rather, qualitative narratives will be used to complement the matrix specifications of creative ideas. First to specify six creativity operators enabling matrix algebra to operate on idea-matrices as operands to generate new ideas. This capability informs and guides a person’s intuition. The myth and dependency, on non-repeatable or non-reproducible serendipity, flashes of “eureka” moments or divine inspiration, can now be vacated. Though their existence cannot be ruled out. First to specify matrix algebra and eigen-value methods of quantitative analyses of feature-attribute matrices to rank the importance of elementary variables that characterize factors of novelty, usefulness and creativity. Use of verbose qualitative narratives of novelty, usefulness and creativity as monolithic “lumpy” factors can now be vacated. Such lumpy narratives risk being ambiguous, imprecise, unreliable and non-reproducible, Analytic and quantitative methods are more reliable and consistent. First to define and specify a method of “attacking the negatives” to systematically pinpoint the improvements of an idea’s novelty, usefulness and creativity. This procedure informs and methodically guides the improvements of deficient ideas.

Task complexity is one of the significant factors that influences and is used for forecasting employee performance and determining labor cost. However, the complexity level of tasks is unstructured, dynamic and complicated to perform. This paper develops a new method for evaluating the complexity level of tasks in the production process to support production managers to control their manufacturing systems in terms of flexibility, reliability to production planning and labor cost.

The complexity level of tasks will be analyzed based on the structuralist concept. Using the structure of task, the factors that significantly affect the task complexity in an assembly line will be defined, and the complexity level of the task will be evaluated by measuring the number of task components. Using the proportional 2-tuples linguistic values, the difference between the complexity levels of tasks can be compared and described clearly.

Based on the structure of the task, three contributory factors including input factors, process-operation factors and output factors that significantly affect the task complexity in an assembly line are identified in the present study. The complexity level of the task is quantified through analyzing the details of the three factors according to two criteria and six sub-criteria within the textile case study.

The proposed approach provides a new insight about the factors that have an effect on the complexity of tasks in production and remedies some of limitations of previous methods. The combination of experts' experience and scientific knowledge will improve the accuracy in determining the complexity level of tasks.

The application of theories on group decision support is yet to be explored extensively in supplier selection literature, although the literature in both domains is extremely rich, in isolation. The purpose of this paper is to explore the application of group decision support theories for supplier selection.

The row geometric mean method (RGMM) of the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) has been used in this study for the prioritization of group preferences under consensus. A case study was conducted to test the theories of consensual group decision making and compare it with other approaches based on AHP.

The study establishes that the application of decision support theories for group decision making can improve the supplier selection process. Findings further imply that RGMM is more effective than eigen value method, for group decision making under consensus.

Methodologically, the study highlights the greater regularity in outcome of group decision making, vis-à-vis individual decision making, for the same decision-making context. Also, it highlights how RGMM is more effective since it preserves reciprocal properties and diversity in preferences better.

The study establishes that firms can improve supplier selection processes by leveraging on the collective expertise of a group rather than depending on individual decision-making expertise.

This study explores the application of different theories based on AHP for consensual group decision making. It compares different approaches based on AHP and establishes that RGMM is a superior approach for supplier selection.

The purpose of this paper is to present a new marketing mix based on MBA students' attitudes and opinions towards the marketing initiatives of business schools in South Africa. The post‐graduate business education market is, and increasingly, getting more aggressive in their efforts to attract students on to their flagship degree, the MBA. The traditional marketing tools historically grouped into 4Ps (product, price, place and promotion), 5Ps (adding people) and 7Ps (adding physical facilities and processes) may be wanting in this market.

The approach taken was a quantitative survey of students registered at state subsidized universities in South Africa.

The factor analysed data showed seven quite distinct underlying factors in the marketing activities of these business schools, some covering the same elements of the traditional marketing mix: people, promotion, and price. There were, however, four different elements: programme, prominence, prospectus, and premiums.

While the survey included only MBA students from a sample drawn in South Africa, the study does highlight the fact that the traditional services marketing mix may not be as useful to the higher education sector as it might have been originally thought.

The development of marketing strategy may be better served by this 7P model rather than the services mix.

This paper presents the underlying factors that form the basis of a new marketing mix specifically for MBA recruitment.

The purpose of this paper is to develop two meshfree algorithms based on multiquadric radial basis functions (RBFs) and differential quadrature (DQ) technique for numerical simulation and to capture the shocks behavior of Burgers’ type problems.

The algorithms convert the problems into a system of ordinary differential equations which are solved by the Runge–Kutta method.

Two meshfree algorithms are developed and their stability is discussed. Numerical experiment is done to check the efficiency of the algorithms, and some shock behaviors of the problems are presented. The proposed algorithms are found to be accurate, simple and fast.

The present algorithms LRBF-DQM and GRBF-DQM are based on radial basis functions, which are new for Burgers’ type problems. It is concluded from the numerical experiments that LRBF-DQM is better than GRBF-DQM. The algorithms give better results than available literature.

The traditional methods have difficulty to inspection various types of copper strips defects as inclusions, pits and delamination defects under uneven illumination. Therefore, this paper aims to propose an optimal real Gabor filter model for inspection; however, improper selection of Gabor parameters will cause the boundary between the defect and the background image to be not very clear. This will make the defect and the background cannot be completely separated.

The authors proposed an optimal Real Gabor filter model for inspection of copper surface defects under uneven illumination. This proposed method only requires a single filter by calculating the specific convolution energy of the Gabor filter with the image. The Real Gabor filter’s parameter is optimized by particle swarm optimization (PSO), which objective fitness function is maximization of the Gabor filter’s energy average divided by the energy standard deviation, the objective makes a distinction between the defect and normal area.

The authors have verified the effect with different iterations of parameter optimization using PSO, the effects with different control constant of energy and neighborhood window size of real Gabor filter, the experimental results on a number of metal surface have shown the proposed method achieved a well performance in defect recognition of metal surface.

The authors propose a defect detection method based on particle swarm optimization for single Gabor filter parameters optimization. This proposed method only requires a single filter and finds the best parameters of the Gabor filter. By calculating the specific convolution energy of the Gabor filter and the image, to obtain the best Gabor filter parameters and to highlight the defects, the particle swarm optimization algorithm’s fitness objective function is maximize the Gabor filter's average energy divided by the energy standard deviation.

Total quality management (TQM) has been perceived as a competitive strategy to improve continually the quality of products and processes. However, the initial stages of TQM implementation may encounter major problems owing to misplaced efforts. The extent to which TQM is successful in an organization is determined by the initial impact of TQM efforts. Experts like Juran have suggested an incremental approach to TQM introduction, stressing pilot projects in some business units/areas of an organization. Presents a multiple‐criteria decision‐making (MCDM) model using the analytical hierarchy process (AHP) technique to identify and select key pilot TQM projects, and discusses model development and implementation issues. Illustrates the general applicability of this model by applying it to a hospital environment. Such an approach should help an organization to prioritize and enhance the returns from TQM efforts. Carefully selected projects will help to improve organizational acceptance of TQM efforts and overcome the gradually emerging criticism that the TQM approach is too general, without any focus on specific returns.