Telephone Lines Research Articles

Empirical Wavelet Transform Based ECG Signal Compression

ABSTRACTTransmission of biomedical signals over telephone lines or other communication channels is currently an important issue for the telemedicine applications. An efficient compression algorithm is needed to achieve a reduced information rate, for the storage and transmission purposes. In this paper, empirical wavelet transform (EWT) along with discrete wavelet transform (DWT) has been used for compression and reconstruction of the ECG signals. Key point lies in using different threshold for different modes obtained by applying EWT. Proposed algorithm has been tested on self-acquired (on BIOPAC®MP150) ECG signals of 20 subjects, each of 12 minutes duration and 360,000 samples with sampling rate 500 Hz and average 31.2 compression ratio (CR) and 3.28% percentage ratio distortion (PRD) have been obtained. Algorithm has also been applied on all 48 arrhythmia signals of Massachusetts Institute of Technology-Beth Israel Hospital (MIT-BIH)77777\\+766 database, each of 30 minutes duration and 650,000 samples, sampled at 360 Hz and an average 33.1 CR and 3.3% PRD are obtained.

Are Electronic Health Records Good for Health Care?

Are Electronic Health Records Good for Health Care?

“Human Telephone Lines”: Flag Post Mail Relay Runners in British Southern Cameroon (1916–1955) and the Establishment of a Modern Communications Network

AbstractThe flag post mail relay runners, a communications system established in Cameroon during British colonial rule, laid the foundations for the communications structure of this colonial state. They were a remnant of a pre-colonial communications system and, with the advancement of “modern” communications structures such as roads, telephone lines, and post houses, the flag post runner gradually disappeared. This article explores the role of the runners for the colonial administration in Cameroon and is based mostly on archival research. It describes the runners’ system and how it influenced the colonial communications landscape. In addition, the questions of how these runners were involved in the colonial state and what forms of resistance emerged among runners are analysed. Finally, the article discusses the degree to which the subsequent construction of roads, telegraphic communications, and postal networks reflected the role played by mail runners in the British colonial period up to the 1950s.

A pilot study on mobile phones as a means to access maternal health education in eastern rural Uganda

Maternal mortality in Uganda has remained relatively high since 2006. We studied access to mobile phones and people's interest in receiving audio-based maternal health lessons delivered via a toll-free telephone line. Interviews were conducted, using a male and a female translator, with 42 men and 41 women in four villages located in eastern rural Uganda. Most of the participants were recruited through systematic sampling, but some were recruited through community organizations and antenatal clinics. Ownership of a mobile phone was reported by 79% of men and by 42% of women. Among those who did not own a mobile phone, 67% of men and 88% of women reported regularly borrowing a mobile phone. Among women, 98% reported interest in receiving maternal mobile health lessons, and 100% of men. Providing local communities with mobile maternal health education offers a new potential method of reducing maternal mortality.

A necessary safety net: use of a confidential internal telephone line to report unethical behaviour

This study examined employee likelihood of using a confidential internal telephone line (the Blueline) to discuss an ethical issue or to report unethical behaviour within a policing context. One-hundred and sixty-six Western Australia Police employees completed an online survey. Regression analysis indicated three factors that were significantly related to an increased likelihood of using the Blueline. These factors were: support for the existence of an internal reporting system, belief that agency support would be adequate during/after using the Blueline and perceived need for an anonymous internal reporting system. Although likelihood of using the Blueline was low, employees expressed that the telephone line was necessary for situations when other reporting avenues are deemed unsuitable.

P2HYMN: 발전소 정비지원 하이브리드 네트워크 시스템

Due to the complicated steel structure and safety concern, it is very difficult to deploy wireless networks in power plants. This paper presents a hybrid network, named as <TEX>$P^2HYMN$</TEX> (Power Plant HYbrid Maintenance Network), encompassing PLC (Power Line Communication), TLC (Telephone Line Communication), and Wireless LAN. The design goal of <TEX>$P^2HYMN$</TEX> is to integrate multimedia data such as design drawings of control equipment, process data, and video image data for maintenance operation in electric power plants. A Multiplex Line Communication (MLC) device was designed and implemented to integrate PLC, TLC, and Wireless LAN into <TEX>$P^2HYMN$</TEX>. Performance test of <TEX>$P^2HYMN$</TEX> has been conducted on a testbed under various conditions. The throughput of TLC was shown as 39 Mbps. Because the bandwidth requirement per camera is 8.5 Mbps on average, TLC is expected to support more thant four video camera at the same time.

Randomized controlled trial of the Tobacco Tactics website versus 1-800-QUIT-NOW telephone line among Operating Engineers

Materials and methods Smokers attending workplace safety training groups were randomized to either the Tobacco Tactics website with nurse phone counseling and access to nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) or to the 1-800-QUIT-NOW telephone line which provided an equal number of phone calls and NRT. Participating Operating Engineers completed a baseline survey as well as mailed surveys at 30-days and 6-months. Urinary cotinine tests were used to verify 6-month smoking status. The outcomes were compared using c2 tests, t-tests, mixed models, generalized mixed models, and logistic regression models.

ICT possession among Congolese SMEs: an exploratory study

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the possession of information and communication technologies (ICTs) among small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the developing economy of the Democratic Republic (DR) of the Congo. Design/methodology/approach – A survey of Congolese SMEs in two major cities was conducted. Findings – The results of the study demonstrate that nearly 51 percent of SMEs in the sample reported a cell phone number, making this tool the most popular among SMEs studied. In total, 31 percent of SMEs reported an e-mail address while only 3 percent of them reported having a firm web site. Far &lt;1 percent reported a fax number, while none of the SMEs in the sample used a fixed telephone line. The telecommunications sector demonstrated the highest rate of ICT usage. The findings give consistency to what the body of research has concluded relative to the use of mobile telephone by SMEs in developing economies. Originality/value – This study fills a gap in the research into ICT usage by SMEs in developing countries by analyzing a sample of SMEs in the DR Congo ever attempted.

Standards for More, Better, Faster Pixels [Report from the Standards Vice President

In 1926, Scottish inventor John Logic Baird demonstrated the first viable television system using mechanical picture scanning with electronic amplification at the transmitter and at the receiver. It could be sent by radio or over ordinary telephone lines, leading to historic trans-Atlantic transmissions of television from London to New York in February 1928. In 1929, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) began broadcasting using the 30-line Baird system. By November 1936, the BBC was conducting regular, ‘high-resolution’ electronic television broadcasts on the 405-line standard.

Randomized Trial on Mindfulness Training for Smokers Targeted to a Disadvantaged Population

We report the results of a randomized trial comparing a novel smoking cessation treatment Mindfulness Training for Smokers (MTS) to a usual care therapy (Controls), which included the availability of a tobacco quit line and nicotine patches. Data were collected from 196 low socioeconomic status smokers in 2010–2011 in Madison, Wisconsin. Participants were randomized to either MTS or a telephonic quit line. The primary outcome was 6-month smoking abstinence measured by carbon monoxide breath testing and Time-Line Follow-Back. Among treatment initiators (randomized participants who participated in the intervention), abstinence rates were significantly different between the MTS (38.7%) and control (20.6%, p = .05) groups. Study limitations are also discussed. Results suggest that further study is warranted.

The Impact of Information and Communication Technology Availability on Economic Growth

This study studies the impact of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) availability on economic growth in different countries and regions of the world. The results indicate that there is a positive relationship between growth rate of real GDP per capita and ICT access index (as measured by the fixed telephone lines per 100 inhabitants, mobile cellular telephone subscriptions per 100 inhabitants, international internet bandwidth per Internet user, proportion of households with a computer and proportion of households with Internet access at home) for 142 countries over the world. This study also finds that ICT access in the high income group has a higher effect on economic growth than other groups. This implies that if these countries seek to enhance their economic growth, they need to implement specific policies that facilitate ICT access.

A General Purpose Connection CTI Server Based on the SIP Protocol and Its Implementation

SUMMARYIn this paper, we propose a general purpose connection Computer Telephony Integration (CTI) server that provides various CTI services such as voice logging where the CTI server communicates with IP‐PBX using the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP), and accumulates voice packets of external line telephone calls flowing between an IP telephone for extension and a VoIP gateway connected to outside line networks. The CTI server realizes CTI services such as voice logging, telephone conference, or interactive voice response (IVR) with accumulating and processing voice packets sampled. Furthermore, the CTI server incorporates a web server function which can provide various CTI services such as a Web telephone directory via a Web browser to PCs, cellular telephones or smart‐phones in mobile environments.

Phase detection method embedded devices in telephone line

Interception of telephone communications and listening rooms equipped with telephones is the most likely threats to information security telecommunication subscribers. Although developed many methods and identify telephonebugs, but given the development of information technology, the search for new methods of detecting unauthorized connections to ATL. Design and investigate of linear bridge adapter for detecting unauthorized connectionsto telephone lines is described in this article. Ablock diagram of device for implementing the phase detection method of telephone bags is shown. A mathematical model of the linear adapter is developed and an efficiencyof its operations is analyzed. The synchronousdetection using for increasing of the device noise immunityis augmented.

ANALYSIS OF A QUEUEING MODEL FOR A CALL CENTER WITH IMPATIENT CUSTOMERS AND AFTER-CALL WORK

Two essential features needed for queueing models of call centers are and after-call work (ACW) of operators. Their effects on the performance are comparable to those of service times. We pro- pose and analyze a queueing model of a call center with impatient customers and ACW. We consider a two-dimensional birth-and-death process for the state combining the number of calls waiting or being served in the system and the number of operators working on ACW. The steady-state distribution is ob- tained numerically, from which we compute a variety of performance measures, including the blocking probability, the probability of wait, the mean waiting time, the ratio of getting service and abandonment, and the fraction of opera- tors who are serving customers, working on ACW, or being idle at an arbitrary time. Furthermore, we show a method of finding the mean waiting time for those customers who get served and for those who abandon while waiting. Our analysis is validated by numerical examples for a call center model of realistic size, namely 40 operators and 30 incoming telephone lines.

Wavelet-based compression of ECG signals

Compression of digital Electrocardiogram (ECG) signals is desirable for two reasons: economic use of storage space for databases and reduction of the data for transmission on telephone lines. This paper deals with waveletbased compression method. This method of ECG data compression leads to substantial amount of ECG reduction with less amount of the data loss. The wavelet functions can be used to decompose the ECG signal and upon reconstruction, the signal can be presented without loss of signal morphology. The analysis and synthesis filters play a very important role in this process. The analysis filter decomposes the signal using a pair of low-pass and high-pass filters, whereas the synthesis filter reconstructs the decomposed part. There is a faithful reconstruction on applying the synthesis filter to the ECG signal which is acceptable to the cardiologists. The performance parameters can support the technique of data compression. It is observed that even for higher Compression Ratio (CR) fidelity can be maintained and is verified by Cross-Correlation Coefficient (CCC).

HEDONIC ESTIMATION OF HOUSING MARKET PRICES IN TURKEY

In this study, there has been aimed to determine the factors that affect the price of flats in the housing sector in Turkey with a hedonic pricing model. According to the model results, the house’s having residential swimming pool, a jacuzzi and a water tank, its being a duplex, its central heating system, its being closer to the center, the size of the house, the bathroom floor’s being vinyl or PVC, being closer to banking services and compulsory education services, its having cable TV, telephone lines and parking opportunities increases the value of the house. The house is in the basement or ground floor of the building construction date is first, the room is the floor of ceramic tiles, bathroom floor screed (concrete road) the fuel used is coal, reduces the value of the house.

The impact of information and communication technology on international trade in fruit and vegetables in APEC

The global food marketing network is being constantly reshaped, providing opportunities and challenges for information and communication technology (ICT) to develop and improve international trade in food products. A gravity model of international trade is employed to see if ICT positively affects bilateral international trade in fruit and vegetables between member Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) economies. We examine if the use of the Internet, mobile telephones, and fixed telephone lines determine the value of bilateral trade. Empirical results for the importance of ICT differ markedly between importing activities and exporting activities in the international value chain of fruit and vegetables in APEC countries. Changes in ICT levels in the import sector of the value chain have no effect on international trade in fruit and vegetables. However, in the export sector, growth in some ICT products has significant positive effects on trade in fruit and vegetables between APEC countries. Surprisingly, the strongest impact was discerned for the traditional form of ICT, fixed telephone lines, but this impact probably reflects the fact that fixed telephone lines are a proxy variable for the general level of infrastructure development. Of the two digital ICTs, mobile telephony and the Internet, only the Internet had a significant impact on trade levels. The further development of the Internet and its diffusion should make exporters in APEC countries more competitive in the fruit and vegetables value chain, and boost their trade values in these products.

Measurements of Medium-Frequency Propagation Characteristics of a Transmission Line in an Underground Coal Mine

In underground coal mines, medium frequency (MF) communication systems couple their signals to metal infrastructures such as ac power cables and wire-based telephone lines, which guide the signals to propagate for a long distance. To better understand the propagation characteristics of MF signals, an easy-to-use measurement method was recently developed at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. The method will be introduced along with an equivalent transmission line model for a long metallic infrastructure in underground coal mines. The model serves as the fundamental driver for the method development. Propagation measurements on a twisted pair of telephone lines in an underground mine were made using this method. The measurements confirmed the low MF signal attenuation rate and the dependence of the propagation characteristics of the line on the electrical properties of surrounding coal and rock as theoretical studies predicted.

An exploratory study on determinants of customer satisfaction of leading mobile network providers – case of Kolkata, India

PurposeThe study is designed to explore the drivers of customer satisfaction of leading mobile network providers in a high‐growth market like Kolkata a metropolitan city in India.Design/methodologyA framework was developed based on earlier study of eminent researchers pertinent to customer satisfaction of mobile network providers in Germany, France, Korea, Canada, the USA and Greece. The construct flexibility was considered as a new determinant for customer satisfaction. For this data were collected from 277 respondents and pertinent analysis were made using multivariate techniques.FindingsThe study finds that generic requirements, price, and flexibility are major drivers of customer satisfaction of mobile network providers and brand wise relevance of these key determinants.Research limitations/implicationsThe fixed line telephone directory was the sampling frame, and all the respondents considered in the survey had a fixed line but there are situations where customer subscribes only to mobile phones. It is also necessary to study other metropolitan cities of India to validate the results we have obtained for Kolkata. Originality/value – The current research has taken into account new driver of customer satisfaction in a high‐growth market and this is the first study on drivers of customer satisfaction of leading mobile network providers in the city of Kolkata, India.

P6.044 Scaling Up STI Resource and Educational Capacity For General Practise in New South Wales, Australia

BackgroundIncreasing access to STI resources and education for general practise (GP) and improving referral pathways to specialised STI care were key objectives of the 2006 STI Strategy, New South Wales...