Microsoft Word - brain_vol8_issue3_v6_ok1.docx 119 INSTRUCTIONS FOR AUTHORS Author guidelines Authors must submit their papers via email to brain@edusoft.ro or they can create an account and submit their papers online, at www.brain.edusoft.ro. Submitted papers must be written in DOC/DOCX format (Microsoft Word document), in as clear and as simple as possible English. Preferred maximum paper length for the papers is 20 pages, including figures. The template for the paper is at this address: http://brain.edusoft.ro/New_Template_for_BRAIN.doc The text is single-spaced; uses a 12-point Times New Roman font; employs italics, rather than underlining (except with URL addresses); and all illustrations, figures, and tables are placed within the text at the appropriate points, rather than at the end. The title will be bold 14-point, and the author will be 12-point italic. Figures have caption in bottom-center side, and tables have captions in left-top side. Use a tab for identing each paragraph and the subtitles, too. The subtitles will be bold 12-point. Please use Microsoft Word 97-2003, or Word 2010, 2013. We encourage the authors to use the camera ready format even for the first submission. All paper submissions will be carefully reviewed by an editor, and by the members of the scientific board or independent experts, who will provide a written feedback with comments and ratings. Authors will be notified of acceptance in maximum 3 weeks. Accepted manuscripts should be revised according to the comments of the reviewers and of the editors. For questions concerning manuscript submission, contact Dr. Bogdan Patrut by e-mail at brain@edusoft.ro. Submission Preparation Checklist As part of the submission process, authors are required to check off their submission's compliance with all of the following items, and submissions may be returned to authors that do not adhere to these guidelines. 1. The submission has not been previously published, nor is it before another journal for consideration (or an explanation has been provided in Comments to the Editor). 2. The submission file is in Microsoft Word (DOC, DOCX) or RTF document file format. 3. Where available, URLs for the references have been provided. 4. The text is single-spaced; uses a 12-point font; employs italics, rather than underlining (except with URL addresses); and all illustrations, figures, and tables are placed within the text at the appropriate points, rather than at the end. 5. The text adheres to the stylistic and bibliographic requirements outlined in the Author Guidelines, which is found in About the Journal. 6.The instructions in Ensuring a Blind Review have been followed. Ensuring a Blind Peer Review To ensure the integrity of the blind peer-review for submission to this journal, every effort should be made to prevent the identities of the authors and reviewers from being known to each other. This involves the authors, editors, and reviewers (who upload documents as part of their review) checking to see if the following steps have been taken with regard to the text and the file properties: 1. The authors of the document have deleted their names from the text, with "Author" and year used in the references and footnotes, instead of the authors' name, article title, etc. 2. With Microsoft Office documents, author identification should also be removed from the properties for the file (see under File in Word), by clicking on the following, beginning with File on the main menu of the Microsoft application: File > Save As > Tools (or Options with a Mac) > Security > Remove personal information from file properties on save > Save. BRAIN: Broad Research in Artificial Intelligence and Neuroscience Volume 8, Issue 3, September 2017, ISSN 2067-3957 (online), ISSN 2068-0473 (print) 120 3. With PDFs, the authors' names should also be removed from Document Properties found under File on Adobe Acrobat's main menu. Copyright Notice Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the nonexclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work Privacy Statement The names and email addresses entered in this journal site will be used exclusively for the stated purposes of this journal and will not be made available for any other purpose or to any other party. It is understood that only original manuscripts can be submitted to the journal. The work has to be an unpublished one, which is not under consideration somewhere else. BRAIN journal does not tolerate plagiarism, and absolutely requires proper citation. Each submitted paper will be checked for originality using both human evaluation or in-house developed anti-plagiarism software. 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University of Nevada, Reno 29. Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München 30. Dowling College, New York State 31. Colgate University, New York State 122 ABSTRACTS BRAIN. Broad Research in Artificial Intelligence and Neuroscience ISSN 2068 – 0473, E-ISSN 2067 - 3957 Volume 8, Issue 3 September 2017 www.brain.edusoft.ro Editor in Chief: Bogdan Pătruţ 1. A Robust Approach of Facial Orientation Recognition from Facial Features Kishor Datta Gupta, Md Manjurul Ahsan, Stefan Andrei, Kazi Md. Rokibul Alam Abstract Face orientation recognition is an important topic in computer vision and pattern recognition. Due to the non-rigid properties of faces, it is computationally expensive and difficult to achieve good recognition accuracy and robustness in face orientation recognition. In this paper, we propose an image mapping technique for face analysis in smart camera networks with a feature extraction and data from the facial feature. We estimate the face orientation angles in all camera views, based on the matched imaged data. Our objective is to obtain a set of facial structures which can work as landmarks for tracking and recognition of facial expressions. 2. Validation of Enhanced Emotion Enabled Cognitive Agent Using Virtual Overlay Multi- Agent System Approach Faisal Riaz, Muaz A. Niazi Abstract Making roads safer by avoiding road collisions is one of the main reasons for inventing Autonomous vehicles (AVs). In this context, designing agent-based collision avoidance components of AVs which truly represent human cognition and emotions look is a more feasible approach as agents can replace human drivers. However, to the best of our knowledge, very few human emotion and cognition-inspired agent-based studies have previously been conducted in this domain. Furthermore, these agent-based solutions have not been validated using any key validation technique. Keeping in view this lack of validation practices, we have selected state-of-the-art Emotion Enabled Cognitive Agent (EEC_Agent), which was proposed to avoid lateral collisions between semi-AVs. The architecture of EEC_Agent has been revised using Exploratory Agent Based Modeling (EABM) level of the Cognitive Agent Based Computing (CABC) framework and real-time fear emotion generation mechanism using the Ortony, Clore & Collins (OCC) model has also been introduced. Then the proposed fear generation mechanism has been validated using the Validated Agent Based Modeling level of CABC framework using a Virtual Overlay MultiAgent System (VOMAS). Extensive simulation and practical experiments demonstrate that the Enhanced EEC_Agent exhibits the capability to feel different levels of fear, according to different traffic situations and also needs a smaller Stopping Sight Distance (SSD) and Overtaking Sight Distance (OSD) as compared to human drivers. Abstracts 123 3. Teaching Area Studies through Two Different On-line Platforms Valentina Marinescu Abstract E-learning includes forms of teaching supported by the Internet, computers, mobile devices, video tapes, and satellite TV. The term can apply both to out-of-classroom and in-classroom teaching. In recent years e-learning has become increasingly popular at universities around the world, because technology is a part of virtually every aspect of life. Rapid evolution of communication has changed language pedagogy and language use, enabling new forms of discourse and new ways to create and participate in communities (Kern 2006, 1). Under such circumstances it is important to explore new possibilities in teaching new topics and to give students a taste of new challenges. According to Blake (2008, 2) technology, if used wisely, could play a major role in enhancing L2 learners’ contact with the other cultures and languages, especially in the absence of studying abroad. Traditional classes can become more interesting when combined with technology. Wong and Looi (2010, 14) claim that online-learning can fill in the gaps between formal learning styles. The present article presents the opinions and attitudes towards on-line set of courses for a sample of 80 Romanian students who were enrolled in an on-line learning project in “Area studies” - namely, East Asia Studies. The project covered two Academic years (2015 and 2016) and leads to the establishment of a virtual network of East European and Central Asia Universities on “Area Studies”. At the end of each course students were asked to fill a short questionnaire about the online course they attend. The results of this small-scale survey showed both the positive character of using e-learning tools for teaching “Area Studies” and their limitations. At the same time, due to the length of the project (e.g. two years covered through different courses) the results allowed to make a comparison between two online platforms used during classes – Bluejeans and Cisco Webex – and to devise the ways of improving the future uses of online platforms during the next Academic year’ courses. 4. Social Media as Medical Validator Laura Broasca, Versavia-Maria Ancusa, Horia Ciocarlie Abstract Big data mining can lead to previously undiscovered links between genes, diseases, symptoms, drugs, etc. However, this mathematical correlation needs medical confirmation and that implies additional efforts of time, human and financial resources that are not always possible. Internet reviews, posts, hashtags can establish an informal corroboration tool, easily available. This paper explores the receptiveness towards a negative bias in health-related electronic Word of Mouth. 5. The Impact of Cooperative Learning on Female Medical Students’ Happiness and Social Support Ali Taghinezhad, Rahim Pendar, Samira Rahimi, Maryam Jamalzadeh, Mahboobeh Azadikhah Abstract Cooperative learning has appeared as a new approach to teaching. This approach is utilized for small heterogeneous groups of students who cooperate to achieve a common goal. This study aimed at investigating the impact of cooperative learning on female medical students’ happiness and social support. To this end, 72 female students of medicine at Shiraz Medical School were selected using cluster sampling and divided into experimental and control groups. The students were administered social support and happiness questionnaires as a pre-test. The same questionnaires were administered to them at the end of the term as a post-test. The students in the experimental group were taught to use cooperative learning strategies and the students in the control group followed the traditional approach. Data were analyzed using SPSS. The statistical procedures used for analyzing the data were mean, standard deviation, and multivariate analysis of covariance. The findings of the study indicated that cooperative learning had a significant impact on the level of happiness and social support of students compared to the conventional approach. BRAIN: Broad Research in Artificial Intelligence and Neuroscience Volume 8, Issue 3, September 2017, ISSN 2067-3957 (online), ISSN 2068-0473 (print) 124 6. Artificial Intelligence as a Decision-making Tool in Planning the Research Simina Maris, Titus Slavici, Petre Nenu, Liliana Baciu Abstract The quality of a finite product is influenced both on quantitative and qualitative factors and thus it is somewhat difficult to determine the major factors which affect it and their degree of influence. In this paper we present the usage of artificial intelligence (in particular artificial neural networks) in the development of an efficient research plan for studying the quality of finite products - in particular, wood briquettes obtained from various biomass mixtures. 7. An Intelligent Method to Process Romanian Language Internet Reviews Versavia-Maria Ancusa, Olimpia Ban, Marian Cornea Abstract Internet reviews are a valuable information mine, however most research is oriented towards English based ones. The Romanian language reviews exhibit specific grammar rules, dialect challenges and polymorphism, which need customized methods to be dealt with. This paper offers a method for aggregating heterogeneous Romanian language reviews into a homogenous corpus, fit for further analyse. 8. The Analysis of E-Commerce Sites with Eye-Tracking Technologies Octavian Dospinescu, Adriana Emilia Percă-Robu Abstract The e-commerce sites have many dimensions from the final user’s point of view. Making websites more usable and improving the users’ experience represent an important step when desiring to keep them from moving away. This study is examining the effects of the interactivity dimensions on users’ content comprehension and their attitudes towards e-commerce websites. By using the eye tracking technology, we investigate the websites interactivity dimensions, identified in the interactivity index, exploring the visual process and drawing the time spent on the site or on various regions of it, the heatmaps, the scanpaths, the percentage fixated, the fixations before, the time to first fixation or the total fixation duration. 9. Integrating MOOCs in Embedded Systems Blended Courses Razvan Bogdan Abstract Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) paradigm has been growing in less than a decade from a life-long learning approach to a state-of-the-art method of offering a large plethora of courses and even specializations. Not only higher education, but also private companies started to manifest a growing interest into all the possibilities this technology is offering. This phenomenon received extra-consideration when renowned universities like Stanford, Harvard, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Rice University started offering such courses. Embedded Systems field on the other side is one domain that continuously needs attention from educators. The concepts should be presented in a very friendly and approachable way, while in the same time preserving a practical, applicative vision. This paper is presenting a modality of integrating MOOCs into embedded systems higher education. The obtained results show that students prefer such a mix to the classical classroom methods of teaching. 10. Pseudo-holographic Displays as Teaching Tools in Mathematics Monica Ciobanu, Antoanela Naaji, Ioan Dascal, Ioan Virag Abstract Due to the fact that the abstract mathematical notions are often hard to grasp by students, without linking them to a specific physical representation or correlate them with regular facts, our team Abstracts 125 came up with the idea to create and implement a set of interactive teaching tool packages (ITTPs) to help them overcome such issues. The ITTPs are consisting of theoretical modules and applications in the framework of a Hungarian - Romanian cross-border project, developed with the aid of existing open source software and technologies. The focus of the Romanian team was on basic elements of linear algebra and analytic geometry, showcased using an autostereoscopic display for the purpose of image visualization. This paper presents an overview of similar technologies and the applications developed for representing pseudo-holographic images of geometric objects, namely vectors, straight lines, planes and conics. One of the developed packages was written using web technologies in order to make the applications available on mobile devices, as well as to eliminate the need to install any additional software.