Search Results (13)

Amidst the globalization of markets, there has been a continuous intensification of competitiveness between enterprises. The modern business environment has caused a shift in how business is conducted. Opportunities and challenges arise, which put a tremendous pressure on enterprises regardless of size and industry. Entrepreneurship in enterprises plays an important role in obtaining a competitive edge in the market. Thus, entrepreneurial intentions in enterprises can often shape the future and survival of the enterprise. In this paper, the prediction of entrepreneurial intentions in enterprises through Internet marketing predictors is addressed. For this, several statistical methods in data mining were used. First, simpler approaches such as linear regression, logistic regression were used. Afterward, classifier decision trees QUEST (quick, unbiased, efficient, statistical tree), and CHAID (chi-squared automatic interaction detection) were used. The sample for analysis was 137 enterprises from Serbia. Furthermore, a supervised machine learning algorithm, support vector machine (SVM) was used. Finally, a feed-forward neural network (FNN) was applied. The results varied across the applied approach, thus providing significant insights into the dynamics of data mining for prediction outcomes in an enterprise setting. Full article

Globalization, Industry 4.0, and the dynamics of the modern business environment caused by the pandemic have created immense challenges for enterprises across industries. Achieving and maintaining competitiveness requires enterprises to adapt to the new business paradigm that characterizes the framework of the global economy. In this paper, the applications of various statistical methods in data mining are presented. The sample included data from 214 enterprises. The structured survey used for the collection of data included questions regarding ICT implementation intentions within enterprises. The main goal was to present the application of statistical methods that are used in data mining, ranging from simple/basic methods to algorithms that are more complex. First, linear regression, binary logistic regression, a multicollinearity test, and a heteroscedasticity test were conducted. Next, a classifier decision tree/QUEST (Quick, Unbiased, Efficient, Statistical Tree) algorithm and a support vector machine (SVM) were presented. Finally, to provide a contrast to these classification methods, a feed-forward neural network was trained on the same dataset. The obtained results are interesting, as they demonstrate how algorithms used for data mining can provide important insight into existing relationships that are present in large datasets. These findings are significant, and they expand the current body of literature. Full article

Youth unemployment rates present an issue both in developing and developed countries. The importance of analyzing entrepreneurial activities comes from their significant role in economic development and economic growth. In this study, a 10-year research was conducted. The dataset included 5670 participants—students from Serbia. The main goal of the study is to attempt to predict entrepreneurial intentions among the Serbian youth by analyzing demographics characteristics, close social environment, attitudes, awareness of incentive means, and environment assessment as potential influencing factors. The data analysis included Chi-square, Welch’s t-test, z-test, linear regression, binary logistic regression, ARIMA (Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average) regression, and a QUEST (Quick, Unbiased, Efficient, Statistical Tree) classification tree algorithm. The results are interesting and indicate that entrepreneurial intentions can be partially predicted using the dataset in this current study. Further, most likely due to the robust dataset, the results are not complementary with similar studies in this domain; therefore, these findings expand the current literature and invite future research. Full article

Go/no-go execution decisions are one of the most important strategic decisions for owners during the early stages of construction projects. Restructuring the process of decision-making during these early stages may have sustainable results in the long run. The purpose of this paper is to establish proper go/no-go decision-tree models for owners. The decision-tree models were developed using Exhaustive Chi-square Automatic Interaction Detector (Exhaustive CHAID) and Quick, Unbiased, Efficient Statistical Tree (QUEST) algorithms. Twenty-three go/no-go key factors were collected through an extensive literature review. These factors were divided into four main risk categories: organizational, project/technical, legal, and financial/economic. In a questionnaire distributed among the construction professionals, the go/no-go variables were asked to be ranked according to their perceived significance. Split-sample validation was applied for testing and measuring the accuracy of the Exhaustive CHAID and QUEST models. Moreover, Spearman’s rank correlation and analysis of variance (ANOVA) tests were employed to identify the statistical features of the 100 responses received. The result of this study benchmarks the current assessment models and develops a simple and user-friendly decision model for owners. The model is expected to evaluate anticipated risk factors in the project and reduce the level of uncertainty. The Exhaustive CHAID and QUEST models are validated by a case study. This paper contributes to the current body of knowledge by identifying the factors that have the biggest effect on an owner’s decision and introducing Exhaustive CHAID and QUEST decision-tree models for go/no-go decisions for the first time, to the best of the authors’ knowledge. From the “sustainability” viewpoint, this study is significant since the decisions of the owner, based on a rigorous model, will yield sustainable and efficient projects. Full article

To design geotechnical structures efficiently, it is important to examine soil’s physical properties. Therefore, classifying soil with respect to geophysical parameters is an advantageous and popular approach. Novel, quick, cost, and time effective machine learning techniques can facilitate this classification. This study employs three kinds of machine learning models, including the Decision Tree, Artificial Neural Networks, and Bayesian Networks. The Decision tree models included the chi-square automatic interaction detection (CHAID), classification and regression trees (CART), quick, unbiased, and efficient statistical tree (QUEST), and C5; the Artificial Neural Networks models included Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP) and Radial Basis Function (RBF); and BN models included the Tree Augmented Naïve (TAN) and Markov Blanket, which were employed to predict the soil classifications using geophysics investigations and laboratory tests. The performance of each model was assessed through the accuracy, stability and gains. The results showed that while the BAYESIANMARKOV model achieved the highest overall accuracy (100%) in training phase, this model achieved the lowest accuracy (34.21%) in testing phases. Thus, this model had the worst stability. The QUEST had the second highest overall training accuracy (99.12%) and had the highest overall testing accuracy (94.74%). Thus, this model was somewhat stable and had an acceptable overall training and testing accuracy to predict the soil characteristics. The future studies can use the findings of this paper as a benchmark to classify the soil characteristics and select the best machine learning technique to perform this classification. Full article

In some arid regions, groundwater is the only source of water for human needs, so understanding groundwater potential is essential to ensure its sustainable use. In this study, three machine learning models (Genetic Algorithm for Rule-Set Production (GARP), Quick Unbiased Efficient Statistical Tree (QUEST), and Random Forest (RF)) were applied and verified for spatial prediction of groundwater in a mountain bedrock aquifer in Piranshahr Watershed, Iran. A spring location dataset consisting of 141 springs was prepared by field surveys, and from this three different sample datasets (S1–S3) were randomly generated (70% for training and 30% for validation). A total of 10 groundwater conditioning factors were prepared for modeling, namely slope percent, relative slope position (RSP), plan curvature, altitude, drainage density, slope aspect, topographic wetness index (TWI), terrain ruggedness index (TRI), land use, and lithology. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) and true skill statistic (TSS) were used to evaluate the accuracy of models. The results indicated that all models had excellent goodness-of-fit and predictive performance, but that RF (AUC_mean = 0.995, TSS_mean = 0.89) and GARP (AUC_mean = 0.957, TSS_mean = 0.82) outperformed QUEST (AUC_mean = 0.949, TSS_mean = 0.74). In robustness analysis, RF was slightly more sensitive than GARP and QUEST, making it necessary to consider several random partitioning options for preparing training and validation groups. The outcomes of this study can be useful in sustainable management of groundwater resources in the study region. Full article

This trial aimed to integrate metadata that spread over farm-to-fork continuum of 110 Protected Designation of Origin (PDO)Maine-Anjou cows and combine two statistical approaches that are chemometrics and supervised learning; to identify the potential predictors of beef tenderness analyzed using the instrumental Warner-Bratzler Shear force (WBSF). Accordingly, 60 variables including WBSF and belonging to 4 levels of the continuum that are farm-slaughterhouse-muscle-meat were analyzed by Partial Least Squares (PLS) and three decision tree methods (C&RT: classification and regression tree; QUEST: quick, unbiased, efficient regression tree and CHAID: Chi-squared Automatic Interaction Detection) to select the driving factors of beef tenderness and propose predictive decision tools. The former method retained 24 variables from 59 to explain 75% of WBSF. Among the 24 variables, six were from farm level, four from slaughterhouse level, 11 were from muscle level which are mostly protein biomarkers, and three were from meat level. The decision trees applied on the variables retained by the PLS model, allowed identifying three WBSF classes (Tender (WBSF ≤ 40 N/cm²), Medium (40 N/cm² < WBSF < 45 N/cm²), and Tough (WBSF ≥ 45 N/cm²)) using CHAID as the best decision tree method. The resultant model yielded an overall predictive accuracy of 69.4% by five splitting variables (total collagen, µ-calpain, fiber area, age of weaning and ultimate pH). Therefore, two decision model rules allow achieving tender meat on PDO Maine-Anjou cows: (i) IF (total collagen < 3.6 μg OH-proline/mg) AND (µ-calpain ≥ 169 arbitrary units (AU)) AND (ultimate pH < 5.55) THEN meat was very tender (mean WBSF values = 36.2 N/cm², n = 12); or (ii) IF (total collagen < 3.6 μg OH-proline/mg) AND (µ-calpain < 169 AU) AND (age of weaning < 7.75 months) AND (fiber area < 3100 µm²) THEN meat was tender (mean WBSF values = 39.4 N/cm², n = 30). Full article

Urban forests are an important component of the urban ecosystem. Urban forest types are a key piece of information required for monitoring the condition of an urban ecosystem. In this study, we propose an urban forest type discrimination method based on linear spectral mixture analysis (LSMA) and a support vector machine (SVM) in the case study of Xuzhou, east China. From 10-m Sentinel-2A imagery data, three different vegetation endmembers, namely broadleaved forest, coniferous forest, and low vegetation, and their abundances were extracted through LSMA. Using a combination of image spectra, topography, texture, and vegetation abundances, four SVM classification models were performed and compared to investigate the impact of these features on classification accuracy. With a particular interest in the role that vegetation abundances play in classification, we also compared SVM and other classifiers, i.e., random forest (RF), artificial neural network (ANN), and quick unbiased efficient statistical tree (QUEST). Results indicate that (1) the LSMA method can derive accurate vegetation abundances from Sentinel-2A image data, and the root-mean-square error (RMSE) was 0.019; (2) the classification accuracies of the four SVM models were improved after adding topographic features, textural features, and vegetation abundances one after the other; (3) the SVM produced higher classification accuracies than the other three classifiers when identical classification features were used; and (4) vegetation endmember abundances improved classification accuracy regardless of which classifier was used. It is concluded that Sentinel-2A image data has a strong capability to discriminate urban forest types in spectrally heterogeneous urban areas, and that vegetation abundances derived from LSMA can enhance such discrimination. Full article

We assessed landslide susceptibility using Chi-square Automatic Interaction Detection (CHAID), exhaustive CHAID, and Quick, Unbiased, and Efficient Statistical Tree (QUEST) decision tree models in Jumunjin-eup, Gangneung-si, Korea. A total of 548 landslides were identified based on interpretation of aerial photographs. Half of the 548 landslides were selected for modeling, and the remaining half were used for verification. We used 20 landslide control factors that were classified into five categories, namely topographic elements, hydrological elements, soil maps, forest maps, and geological maps, to determine landslide susceptibility. The relationships of landslide occurrence with landslide-inducing factors were analyzed using CHAID, exhaustive CHAID, and QUEST models. The three models were then verified using the area under the curve (AUC) method. The results showed that the CHAID model (AUC = 87.1%) was more accurate than the exhaustive CHAID (AUC = 86.9%) and QUEST models (AUC = 82.8%). The verification results showed that the CHAID model had the highest accuracy. There was high susceptibility to landslides in mountainous areas and low susceptibility in coastal areas. Analyzing the characteristics of the landslide control factors in advance will enable us to obtain more accurate results. Full article

This study aims to establish a rigorous and effective model to detect enterprises’ financial statements fraud for the sustainable development of enterprises and financial markets. The research period is 2004–2014 and the sample is companies listed on either the Taiwan Stock Exchange or the Taipei Exchange, with a total of 160 companies (including 40 companies reporting financial statements fraud). This study adopts multiple data mining techniques. In the first stage, an artificial neural network (ANN) and a support vector machine (SVM) are deployed to screen out important variables. In the second stage, four types of decision trees (classification and regression tree (CART), chi-square automatic interaction detector (CHAID), C5.0, and quick unbiased efficient statistical tree (QUEST)) are constructed for classification. Both financial and non-financial variables are selected, in order to build a highly accurate model to detect fraudulent financial reporting. The empirical findings show that the variables screened with ANN and processed by CART (the ANN + CART model) yields the best classification results, with an accuracy of 90.83% in the detection of financial statements fraud. Full article

For the sustainable use of groundwater, this study analyzed groundwater productivity-potential using a decision-tree approach in a geographic information system (GIS) in Boryeong and Pohang cities, Korea. The model was based on the relationship between groundwater-productivity data, including specific capacity (SPC), and its related hydrogeological factors. SPC data which is measured and calculated for groundwater productivity and data about related factors, including topography, lineament, geology, forest and soil data, were collected and input into a spatial database. A decision-tree model was applied and decision trees were constructed using the chi-squared automatic interaction detector (CHAID) and the quick, unbiased, and efficient statistical tree (QUEST) algorithms. The resulting groundwater-productivity-potential (GPP) maps were validated using area-under-the-curve (AUC) analysis with the well data that had not been used for training the model. In the Boryeong city, the CHAID and QUEST algorithms had accuracies of 83.31% and 79.47%, and in the Pohang city, the CHAID and QUEST algorithms had accuracies of 86.18% and 80.00%. As another validation, the GPP maps were validated by comparing the actual SPC data. As the result, in the Boryeong city, the CHAID and QUEST algorithms had accuracies of 96.55% and 94.92% and in the Pohang city, the CHAID and QUEST algorithms had accuracies of 87.88% and 87.50%. These results indicate that decision-tree models can be useful for development of groundwater resources. Full article

Here, we evaluated the potential of using bathymetric Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) to characterise shallow water (<30 m) benthic habitats of high energy subtidal coastal environments. Habitat classification, quantifying benthic substrata and macroalgal communities, was achieved in this study with the application of LiDAR and underwater video groundtruth data using automated classification techniques. Bathymetry and reflectance datasets were used to produce secondary terrain derivative surfaces (e.g., rugosity, aspect) that were assumed to influence benthic patterns observed. An automated decision tree classification approach using the Quick Unbiased Efficient Statistical Tree (QUEST) was applied to produce substrata, biological and canopy structure habitat maps of the study area. Error assessment indicated that habitat maps produced were primarily accurate (>70%), with varying results for the classification of individual habitat classes; for instance, producer accuracy for mixed brown algae and sediment substrata, was 74% and 93%, respectively. LiDAR was also successful for differentiating canopy structure of macroalgae communities (i.e., canopy structure classification), such as canopy forming kelp versus erect fine branching algae. In conclusion, habitat characterisation using bathymetric LiDAR provides a unique potential to collect baseline information about biological assemblages and, hence, potential reef connectivity over large areas beyond the range of direct observation. This research contributes a new perspective for assessing the structure of subtidal coastal ecosystems, providing a novel tool for the research and management of such highly dynamic marine environments. Full article

An understanding of the distribution and extent of marine habitats is essential for the implementation of ecosystem-based management strategies. Historically this had been difficult in marine environments until the advancement of acoustic sensors. This study demonstrates the applicability of supervised learning techniques for benthic habitat characterization using angular backscatter response data. With the advancement of multibeam echo-sounder (MBES) technology, full coverage datasets of physical structure over vast regions of the seafloor are now achievable. Supervised learning methods typically applied to terrestrial remote sensing provide a cost-effective approach for habitat characterization in marine systems. However the comparison of the relative performance of different classifiers using acoustic data is limited. Characterization of acoustic backscatter data from MBES using four different supervised learning methods to generate benthic habitat maps is presented. Maximum Likelihood Classifier (MLC), Quick, Unbiased, Efficient Statistical Tree (QUEST), Random Forest (RF) and Support Vector Machine (SVM) were evaluated to classify angular backscatter response into habitat classes using training data acquired from underwater video observations. Results for biota classifications indicated that SVM and RF produced the highest accuracies, followed by QUEST and MLC, respectively. The most important backscatter data were from the moderate incidence angles between 30° and 50°. This study presents initial results for understanding how acoustic backscatter from MBES can be optimized for the characterization of marine benthic biological habitats. Full article