ICT Systems and Sustainability

Proceedings of ICT4SD 2020 Volume 1

Milan Tuba
Visit to download the full and correct content document:
https://textbookfull.com/product/ict-systems-and-sustainability-proceedings-of-ict4sd-2
020-volume-1-milan-tuba/
More products digital (pdf, epub, mobi) instant
download maybe you interests ...

Information and Communication Technology for

Sustainable Development Proceedings of ICT4SD 2018
Milan Tuba

https://textbookfull.com/product/information-and-communication-
technology-for-sustainable-development-proceedings-of-
ict4sd-2018-milan-tuba/

ICT Analysis and Applications: Proceedings of ICT4SD

2020, Volume 2 Simon Fong

https://textbookfull.com/product/ict-analysis-and-applications-
proceedings-of-ict4sd-2020-volume-2-simon-fong/

Proceedings of International Conference on ICT for

Sustainable Development ICT4SD 2015 Volume 1 1st
Edition Suresh Chandra Satapathy

https://textbookfull.com/product/proceedings-of-international-
conference-on-ict-for-sustainable-development-
ict4sd-2015-volume-1-1st-edition-suresh-chandra-satapathy/

Proceedings of International Conference on ICT for

Sustainable Development ICT4SD 2015 Volume 2 1st
Edition Suresh Chandra Satapathy

https://textbookfull.com/product/proceedings-of-international-
conference-on-ict-for-sustainable-development-
ict4sd-2015-volume-2-1st-edition-suresh-chandra-satapathy/
Data Management, Analytics and Innovation: Proceedings
of ICDMAI 2020, Volume 1 Neha Sharma

https://textbookfull.com/product/data-management-analytics-and-
innovation-proceedings-of-icdmai-2020-volume-1-neha-sharma/

Computational Methods and Data Engineering: Proceedings

of ICMDE 2020, Volume 1 Vijendra Singh

https://textbookfull.com/product/computational-methods-and-data-
engineering-proceedings-of-icmde-2020-volume-1-vijendra-singh/

Intelligent Systems and Applications: Proceedings of

the 2020 Intelligent Systems Conference (IntelliSys)
Volume 2 Kohei Arai

https://textbookfull.com/product/intelligent-systems-and-
applications-proceedings-of-the-2020-intelligent-systems-
conference-intellisys-volume-2-kohei-arai/

Intelligent Systems and Applications: Proceedings of

the 2020 Intelligent Systems Conference (IntelliSys)
Volume 3 Kohei Arai

https://textbookfull.com/product/intelligent-systems-and-
applications-proceedings-of-the-2020-intelligent-systems-
conference-intellisys-volume-3-kohei-arai/

Proceedings of the Future Technologies Conference (FTC)

2020, Volume 1 Kohei Arai

https://textbookfull.com/product/proceedings-of-the-future-
technologies-conference-ftc-2020-volume-1-kohei-arai/
Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing 1270

Milan Tuba
Shyam Akashe
Amit Joshi Editors

ICT Systems and

Sustainability
Proceedings of ICT4SD 2020, Volume 1
Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing

Volume 1270

Series Editor
Janusz Kacprzyk, Systems Research Institute, Polish Academy of Sciences,
Warsaw, Poland

Advisory Editors
Nikhil R. Pal, Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata, India
Rafael Bello Perez, Faculty of Mathematics, Physics and Computing,
Universidad Central de Las Villas, Santa Clara, Cuba
Emilio S. Corchado, University of Salamanca, Salamanca, Spain
Hani Hagras, School of Computer Science and Electronic Engineering,
University of Essex, Colchester, UK
László T. Kóczy, Department of Automation, Széchenyi István University,
Gyor, Hungary
Vladik Kreinovich, Department of Computer Science, University of Texas
at El Paso, El Paso, TX, USA
Chin-Teng Lin, Department of Electrical Engineering, National Chiao
Tung University, Hsinchu, Taiwan
Jie Lu, Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology,
University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
Patricia Melin, Graduate Program of Computer Science, Tijuana Institute
of Technology, Tijuana, Mexico
Nadia Nedjah, Department of Electronics Engineering, University of Rio de Janeiro,
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Ngoc Thanh Nguyen , Faculty of Computer Science and Management,
Wrocław University of Technology, Wrocław, Poland
Jun Wang, Department of Mechanical and Automation Engineering,
The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong
The series “Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing” contains publications
on theory, applications, and design methods of Intelligent Systems and Intelligent
Computing. Virtually all disciplines such as engineering, natural sciences, computer
and information science, ICT, economics, business, e-commerce, environment,
healthcare, life science are covered. The list of topics spans all the areas of modern
intelligent systems and computing such as: computational intelligence, soft comput-
ing including neural networks, fuzzy systems, evolutionary computing and the fusion
of these paradigms, social intelligence, ambient intelligence, computational neuro-
science, artificial life, virtual worlds and society, cognitive science and systems,
Perception and Vision, DNA and immune based systems, self-organizing and
adaptive systems, e-Learning and teaching, human-centered and human-centric
computing, recommender systems, intelligent control, robotics and mechatronics
including human-machine teaming, knowledge-based paradigms, learning para-
digms, machine ethics, intelligent data analysis, knowledge management, intelligent
agents, intelligent decision making and support, intelligent network security, trust
management, interactive entertainment, Web intelligence and multimedia.
The publications within “Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing” are
primarily proceedings of important conferences, symposia and congresses. They
cover significant recent developments in the field, both of a foundational and
applicable character. An important characteristic feature of the series is the short
publication time and world-wide distribution. This permits a rapid and broad
dissemination of research results.
Indexed by SCOPUS, DBLP, EI Compendex, INSPEC, WTI Frankfurt eG,
zbMATH, Japanese Science and Technology Agency (JST), SCImago.
All books published in the series are submitted for consideration in Web of
Science.

More information about this series at http://www.springer.com/series/11156

Milan Tuba Shyam Akashe Amit Joshi
• •

Editors

ICT Systems
and Sustainability
Proceedings of ICT4SD 2020, Volume 1

123
Editors
Milan Tuba Shyam Akashe
Singidunum University ITM University
Belgrade, Serbia Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, India

Amit Joshi
Global Knowledge Research Foundation
Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India

ISSN 2194-5357 ISSN 2194-5365 (electronic)

Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing
ISBN 978-981-15-8288-2 ISBN 978-981-15-8289-9 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-8289-9

© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature
Singapore Pte Ltd. 2021
This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether
the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of
illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and
transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar
or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed.
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this
publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from
the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this
book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the
authors or the editors give a warranty, expressed or implied, with respect to the material contained
herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard
to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

This Springer imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
The registered company address is: 152 Beach Road, #21-01/04 Gateway East, Singapore 189721,
Singapore
Preface

The Fifth International Conference on ICT for Sustainable Development (ICT4SD

2020) targets theory, development, applications, experiences and evaluation of
interaction sciences with fellow students, researchers and practitioners. The con-
ference is devoted to increasing the understanding role of technology issues, how
engineering has day by day evolved to prepare human-friendly technology. The
conference provided a platform for bringing forth significant research and literature
across the field of ICT for Sustainable Development and provided an overview
of the technologies awaiting unveiling. This interaction will be the focal point for
leading experts to share their insights, provide guidance and address participant’s
questions and concerns. The conference was to be held during July 23–24, 2020, at
Hotel Vivanta by Taj, Panaji, Goa, India, but due to the pandemic, this year it was
organized through digital mode. The conference was organized by Global
Knowledge Research Foundation, Supporting Partner InterYIT, International
Federation for Information Processing, State Chamber Partner Goa Chamber of
Commerce & Industry, National Chamber Partner as Knowledge Chamber of
Commerce & Industry. Research submissions in various advanced technology areas
were received after a rigorous peer review process with the help of program
committee members and 187 external reviewers for 1000+ papers from 19 different
countries including Algeria, USA, United Arab Emirates, Serbia, Qatar, Mauritius,
Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia, Oman out of which 160 were accepted with an
acceptance ratio of 0.15. Technology is the driving force of progress in this era of
globalization. Information and communication technology (ICT) has become a
functional requirement for the socioeconomic growth and sustained development of
any country. The influence of information communications technology (ICT) in
shaping the process of globalization, particularly in productivity, commercial and
financial spheres, is widely recognized. The ICT sector is undergoing a revolution
that has momentous implications for the current and future social and economic
situation of all the countries in the world. ICT plays a pivotal role in empowering
people for self-efficacy and how it can facilitate this mission to reach out to
grassroots level. Finally, it is concluded that ICT is a significant contributor to the
success of the ongoing initiative of Startup India. In order to recognize and reward

v
vi Preface

the extraordinary performance and achievements by ICT and allied sectors and
promote universities, researchers and students through their research work adapting
new scientific technologies and innovations. The two-day conference had presen-
tations from the researchers, scientists, academia and students on the research
work carried out by them in different sectors. ICT4SD Summit is a flagship event
of the G R Foundation. This is the fourth edition. The summit was addressed by
eminent dignitaries including Shri Manguirsh Pai Raikar, Chairperson,
ASSOCHAM MSME National Council; Shri. Prajyot Mainkar, Chairman, IT
Committee of Goa Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Mike Hinchey, President,
IFIP and Chair IEEE, UK and Ireland; Milan Tuba, Vice-Rector for International
Relations, Singidunum University, Serbia; Prof. Lance Fung, Australia; Prof.
Jagdish Bansal, India; Mr. Aninda Bose, Springer; Dr. Amit Joshi, Director, G R
Foundation. The overall conference had one inaugural session, one keynote session
and 18 technical sessions during two days.

Belgrade, Serbia Milan Tuba

Gwalior, India Shyam Akashe
Ahmedabad, India Amit Joshi
Contents

Challenges in Adoption of Secure Digitization of Graduate

Assessments: Scope for Blockchain Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
S. K. Shankar, Rajeswari Mukesh, and M. K. Badrinarayanan
Non-performing Asset Analysis Using Machine Learning . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Rohan Ninan Jacob
Volatile Memory Disk Forensics: Investigate the Criminal Activity
of RAMDisk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Nilay Mistry, Annan Christian, and Bansari Bhavsar
Modem Functionality Diagnostic Tool with Graphical User
Interface for Cellular Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Arghya Biswas, Sudakar Singh Chauhan, and Antara Borwankar
Regression Model to Estimate Effort for Software-Oriented
Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
V. Vignaraj Ananth, S. Aditya, S. Ragul Kesavan, and B. Keerthiga
Innovative Technology-Based Social Enterprises for Inclusive
Sustainable Healthcare in India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Pradnya Vishwas Chitrao, Pravin Kumar Bhoyar, and Rajiv Divekar
Classification of Leaves Using Convolutional Neural Network
and Logistic Regression . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Sapan Naik and Hinal Shah
A Low-Cost IoT-Enabled Device for Real-Time Air Quality
Monitoring System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Sai Surya Kiran Pokala, V. Panchami, Kelavath Jaisingh,
and Sandeep Kumar Yedla
Fuzzy-Based Predictive Analytics for Early Detection of
Disease—A Machine Learning Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
V. Kakulapati, R. Sai Sandeep, V. Kranthi kumar, and R. Ramanjinailu

vii
viii Contents

A Framework for Remote Health Monitoring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

K. Viswavardhan Reddy and Navin Kumar
GenNext—An Extractive Graph-Based Text Summarization Model
for User Reviews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Komal Kothari, Aagam Shah, Satvik Khara, and Himanshu Prajapati
An Adaptive Control for Surrogate Assisted Multi-objective
Evolutionary Algorithms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Duc Dinh Nguyen and Long Nguyen
Study and Analysis of NOMA Downlink Transmission Model
in 5G Wireless System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
Sanjeev Kumar Srivastava
Network Structural Analysis Based on Graphical Measures and
Metrics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Atul Kumar Verma, Mahipal Jadeja, and Rahul Saxena
Lung Tumor Classification Using CNN- and GLCM-Based
Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Amrita Naik and Damodar Reddy Edla
A Distributed Implementation of Signature Matching Algorithms
for IoT Intrusion Detection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
Menachem Domb
Graph-Based Multi-document Text Summarization Using NLP . . . . . . . 177
Abhilasha More and Vipul Dalal
Fault Exploratory Data Analysis of Real-Time Marine Diesel
Engine Data Using R Programming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Cheng Siong Chin and Nursyafiqah Binte Nazli
A Hybrid Key Management System Based on ECC and Data
Classification to Secure Data in the Cloud . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Hinddeep Purohit and Ravirajsinh Vaghela
Life Cycle Management for Indian Naval Warship Equipment . . . . . . . 209
Alok Bhagwat and Pradnya Vishwas Chitrao
Framework for Securing IoT Ecosystem Using Blockchain:
Use Cases Suggesting Theoretical Architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223
Anshul Jain, Tanya Singh, and Nitesh Jain
Feature Selection for Handwritten Signature Recognition Using
Neighborhood Component Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
Kamlesh Kumari and Sanjeev Rana
Blockchain-Based E-Voting Protocol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245
Shreya Shailendra Chafe, Divya Ashok Bangad, and Harsha Sonune
Contents ix

SOLID: A Web System to Restore the Control of Users’

Personal Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257
Manishkumar R. Solanki
Enhanced Three-Dimensional DV-Hop Algorithm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
Abhinesh Kaushik and D. K. Lobiyal
Synthesis of VLSI Structural Cell Partitioning Using Genetic
Algorithm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279
P. Rajeswari, Theodore S. Chandra, and Amith Kiran Kumar
Identification and Classification of Foreign Bodies from Rice Grains
Using Digital Image Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 289
Rajlakshmi Ghatkamble
Improving Collaboration Between Government and Citizens for
Environmental Issues: Lessons Learned from a Case in Sri Lanka . . . . 297
Mohamed Sapraz and Shengnan Han
A Study on Blockchain Scalability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 307
Manjula K. Pawar, Prakashgoud Patil, and P. S. Hiremath
What Influences Consumer Behavior Toward Information and
Communication Technology Applications: A Systematic Literature
Review of UTAUT2 Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 317
Jick Castanha, Subhash Kizhakanveatil Bhaskaran Pillai, and Indrawati
Secure and Energy-Efficient Remote Monitoring Technique
(SERMT) for Smart Grid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 329
Sohini Roy and Arunabha Sen
Balanced Accuracy of Collaborative Recommender System . . . . . . . . . . 341
Akanksha Bansal Chopra and Veer Sain Dixit
Using Transfer Learning for Detecting Drug Mentions in Tweets . . . . . 357
Laiba Mehnaz and Rajni Jindal
A Comprehensive and Critical Analysis of Cross-Domain Federated
Identity Management Deployments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365
Tejaswini Apte and Jatinderkumar R. Saini
Concentric Morphology Model in Detection of Masses from
Mammogram: A Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 373
Madhavi Pingili, M. Shankar Lingam, and E. G. Rajan
A Survey on DevOps Techniques Used in Cloud-Based
IOT Mashups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 383
M. Ganeshan and P. Vigneshwaran
Digital Assistant with Augmented Reality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 395
Vijay Verma, Aditya Sharma, Ketan Kumar Jain, and Sushant Adlakha
x Contents

An Experimental Approach Toward Type 2 Diabetes Diagnosis

Using Cultural Algorithm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 405
Ratna Patil, Sharvari Tamane, and Kanishk Patil
Predicting Students Performance Through Behavior and
Computational Thinking in Programming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 417
Vinayak Hegde, H. N. Meghana, R. Spandana, and M. S. Pallavi
Deployment of Ambulance with Maximum Area Coverage by Using
Particle Swarm Optimization Algorithm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 431
Amandeep Kaur
Detection of DDOS Attacks Using Machine Learning Techniques:
A Hybrid Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 439
Datla Anurag Varma, Ravi Ashish, V. Venkata Sai Sandeep, B. Venkatesh,
and R. Kannadasan
Revisiting Algorithms for Resource Discovery in Unstructured
Peer to Peer Networks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 447
Abhijith Jayan, Subi George Samuel, and P. Jayakumar
802.11 Frame-level Network IDS for Public Wireless Networks . . . . . . . 453
Anish Sujanani and Shashidhar Pai
Machine Learning for Malicious URL Detection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 463
Gold Wejinya and Sajal Bhatia
Implementation of OSPFv3 in IPv4 and IPv6 for Establishing
a Wide Area Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 473
Fatema Zaman Sinthia, Afsana Nasir, Bijan Paul,
Mohammad Rifat Ahmmad Rashid, and Md Nasim Adnan
Obstacle Avoiding and Fire Extinguishing Robot for Everyday
Fire Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 483
Moumita Kabir, Fatima Noor Popy, Bijan Paul,
Mohammad Rifat Ahmmad Rashid, and Khan Raqib Mahmud
A Survey on Internet of Things (IoT): Communication Model,
Open Challenges, Security and Privacy Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 493
R. Venkadeshan and M. Jegatha
Violence Detection Through Surveillance System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 503
Abhishek Deshmukh, Kshitij Warang, Yash Pente, and Nilesh Marathe
Influence of Big Data Capabilities in Knowledge
Management—MSMEs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 513
Ravi Shankar Jha and Priti Ranjan Sahoo
Logistically Supervised Aspect Category Detection Using Data
Co-occurrence for Sentiment Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 525
Anice John and Reshma Sheik
Contents xi

Automated Dietary Monitoring System: A Novel Framework . . . . . . . . 535

Samiul Mamud, Punyasha Chatterjee, Saubhik Bandyopadhyay,
and Suchandra Bhandari
Intruder Insinuation and Smart Surveillance Using Face Detection
and Mask Detection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 543
M. Rajesh Khanna, G. Prakash Raj, S. Prem Kumar,
and N. S. Vignesh Raaj
Misinformation Analysis During Covid-19 Pandemic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 553
Shubhangi Rastogi and Divya Bansal
An Agent-Based Cloud Service Negotiation in Hybrid Cloud
Computing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 563
Saurabh Deochake and Debajyoti Mukhopadhyay
IoT-Based Smart Farming Application for Sustainable Agriculture . . . . 573
Sanjeevakumar M. Hatture and Pallavi V. Yankati
Follow Me: A Human Following Robot Using Wi-Fi Received
Signal Strength Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 585
V. Geetha, Sanket Salvi, Gurdeep Saini, Naveen Yadav,
and Rudra Pratap Singh Tomar
Implementation of Arithmetic Unit for RNS Using 2n+ 3 as Base . . . . . 595
Nagaraj R. Aiholli, Uday V. Wali, and Rashmi Rachh
Hybridization of Artificial Bee Colony Algorithm with Estimation
of Distribution Algorithm for Minimum Weight Dominating
Set Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 607
Sima Shetgaonkar and Alok Singh
Privacy Preservation for Data Sharing with Multi-party Access
Control in Cloud Computing: A Review Paper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 621
Shubhangi Tanaji Khot, Amrita A. Manjrekar, and Rashmi J. Deshmukh
Pixel-Based Attack on ODENet Classifiers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 629
Nitheesh Chandra Yaratapalli, Reethesh Venkataraman,
Abhishek Dinesan, Ashni Manish Bhagvandas, and Padmamala Sriram
Survey on Advanced Spectrum Sharing Using Cognitive Radio
Technique . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 639
Mohamed Hassan, Manwinder Singh, and Khaild Hamid
An AI-Based Pedagogical Tool for Creating Sketched Representation
of Emotive Product Forms in the Conceptual Design Stages . . . . . . . . . 649
Sunny Prakash Prajapati, Rahul Bhaumik, Tarun Kumar, and Unais Sait
xii Contents

Social Interaction-Enabled Industrial Internet of Things for Predictive

Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 661
M. S. Roopa, B. Pallavi, Rajkumar Buyya, K. R. Venugopal, S. S. Iyengar,
and L. M. Patnaik
Emerging Trends in the Marketing of Financially Engineered
Insurance Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 675
Sunitha Ratnakaram, Venkamaraju Chakravaram, Nitin Simha Vihari,
and G. Vidyasagar Rao
Attitude of the International Students Towards Integrating
ICT in Foreign Language Learning: A Case Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 685
Khushboo Kuddus and Nafis Mahmud Khan
Limiting Check Algorithm: Primality Test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 697
Gunjan Sethi and Harsh
Factors Affecting the Local Governance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 707
Ngo Sy Trung, Do Huu Hai, Pham Van Tuan, and Nguyen Tien Long
A Multi-factorial Code Coverage Based Test Case Selection
and Prioritization for Object Oriented Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 721
Prashant Vats, Zunaid Aalam, Satnam Kaur, Amritpal Kaur,
and Saravjit Kaur
New Horizons for the Application of Microalgae in the National
Economy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 733
L. N. Medvedeva and O. Roiss
Context of the Ghanaian Government: Social Media and Access
to Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 741
Adasa Nkrumah Kofi Frimpong, Ping Li, Samuel Adu-Gyamfi,
and Sandra Chukwudumebi Obiora
Convolutional Neural Network and Data Augmentation for
Behavioral-Based Biometric User Identification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 753
Sakorn Mekruksavanich and Anuchit Jitpattanakul
Cybersecurity Attacks: Analysis of “WannaCry” Attack and
Proposing Methods for Reducing or Preventing Such Attacks
in Future . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 763
Sumaiah Algarni
Enhancing Trust and Immutability in Cloud Forensics . . . . . . . . . . . . . 771
Pranay Chauhan and Pratosh Bansal
A Fuzzy Time Series Prediction Model of the COVID-19 Epidemic . . . . 779
Mohammad Minhazul Alam, S. M. Shahadat Hossain,
Md. Romman Riyadh Shishir, Sadman Hasan, Eumna Huda,
Sabrina Yeasmin, Abdul Motaleb, and Rashedur M. Rahman
Contents xiii

Modelling of Generation and Utilization Control for Isolated

Hybrid Microgrid for Rural Electrification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 791
Kuldip Singh, Satyasis Mishra, Davinder Singh Rathee,
Demissie Jobir Gemecha, and R. C. Mohanty
Toyama de Walking: Practice of Location-Based Data Collection
Using Augmented Reality Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 805
Yuya Ieiri, Hung-Ya Tsai, and Reiko Hishiyama
Graphene-Based Wireless Power Transmission:
Charge as You Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 815
P. C. Nissimagoudar, H. M. Gireesha, R. M. Shet, Nalini C. Iyer,
Ajit Bijapur, and H. R. Aishwarya
Vision-Based Driver Authentication and Alertness Detection
Using HOG Feature Descriptor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 825
P. C. Nissimagoudar, A. V. Nandi, H. M. Gireesha, R. M. Shet,
and Nalini C. Iyer
ICT4D in Channelling Welfare Services in India: Case Study
of Haqdarshak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 835
Komal Ramdey and Hasnain Bokhari

Author Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 845

About the Editors

Milan Tuba is the Vice Rector for International Relations, Singidunum

University, Belgrade, Serbia and was the Head of the Department for Mathematical
Sciences at State University of Novi Pazar and the Dean of the Graduate School of
Computer Science at John Naisbitt University. He received B.S. in Mathematics,
M.S. in Mathematics, M.S. in Computer Science, M.Ph. in Computer Science,
Ph.D. in Computer Science from University of Belgrade and New York University.
From 1983 to 1994 he was in the U.S.A. first at Vanderbilt University in Nashville
and Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences, New York University and later as
Assistant Professor of Electrical Engineering at Cooper Union School of
Engineering, New York. During that time he was the founder and director of
Microprocessor Lab and VLSI Lab, leader of scientific projects and theses super-
visor. From 1994 he was Assistant Professor of Computer Science and Director of
Computer Center at University of Belgrade, from 2001 Associate Professor, Faculty
of Mathematics, University of Belgrade, from 2004 also a Professor of Computer
Science and Dean of the College of Computer Science, Megatrend University
Belgrade. He was teaching more than 20 graduate and undergraduate courses, from
VLSI Design and Computer Architecture to Computer Networks, Operating
Systems, Image Processing, Calculus and Queuing Theory. His research interest
includes nature-inspired optimizations applied to computer networks, image pro-
cessing and combinatorial problems. Prof. Tuba is the author or coauthor of more
than 200 scientific papers and co editor or member of the editorial board or sci-
entific committee of a number of scientific journals and conferences. He was invited
and delivered around 60 keynote and plenary lectures at international conferences.
Member of the ACM, IEEE, AMS, SIAM, IFNA.

Shyam Akashe is a Professor at ITM University, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, India.

He completed his Ph.D. at Thapar University, Punjab, and his M.Tech. in
Electronics and Communication Engineering at the Institute of Technology &
Management, Gwalior. He has authored 190 publications, including more than 50
papers in SCI-indexed journals. His main research focus is low-power system on
chip (SoC) applications in which static random access memories (SRAMs) are

xv
xvi About the Editors

omnipresent. He has authored two books entitled Moore’s Law Alive:

Gate-All-Around (GAA) Next Generation Transistor published by LAMBERT
Academic Publishing, Germany, and Low Power High Speed CMOS Multiplexer
Design published by Nova Science Publishers, Inc., New York, USA. He has also
published over 120 papers in leading national and international refereed journals of
repute. Dr. Akashe has participated in numerous national and international
conferences and presented over 100 papers.

Amit Joshi is currently the Director of Global Knowledge Research Foundation,

also an Entrepreneur & Researcher who has completed his Masters and research in
the areas of cloud computing and cryptography in medical imaging. Dr. Joshi has
an experience of around 10 years in academic and industry in prestigious organi-
zations. Dr. Joshi is an active member of ACM, IEEE, CSI, AMIE, IACSIT,
Singapore, IDES, ACEEE, NPA, and many other professional societies. Currently,
Dr. Joshi is the International Chair of InterYIT at International Federation of
Information Processing (IFIP, Austria). He has presented and published more than
50 papers in national and international journals/conferences of IEEE and ACM. Dr.
Joshi has also edited more than 40 books which are published by Springer, ACM,
and other reputed publishers. Dr. Joshi has also organized more than 50 national
and international conferences and programs in association with ACM, Springer, and
IEEE to name a few across different countries including India, UK, Europe, USA,
Canada, Thailand, Egypt, and many more.
Challenges in Adoption of Secure
Digitization of Graduate Assessments:
Scope for Blockchain Technologies

S. K. Shankar, Rajeswari Mukesh, and M. K. Badrinarayanan

Abstract Blockchain technology finds variety of applications in everyday life. It

is also capable of disrupting the implications on activities which were founded
on time-stamped record keeping of titles of ownership. In education, blockchain
technology shall disrupt activities such as the qualifications, licensing and accred-
itation, management of student records, IPR management and payments. Hence,
blockchain technology-based products or services are significantly different from
previous Internet-based commercial developments. Also blockchain is catching up
interest in the education sector. However, the stakeholders within education are
largely unaware of the social advantages and potential of blockchain technology.
Within the educational sphere, the adoption of blockchain technology in the replace-
ment of paper-based assessments has both advantages and challenges. This paper
attempts to explore the challenges faced by faculty and graduate students in the
adoption of digitized assessments and technical issues in achieving secured system.
By identifying the challenges in implementation, it will be easy to achieve successful
adoption of digitized assessments in a large scale.

Keywords Blockchain · Assessments · Accreditation

S. K. Shankar (B) · R. Mukesh · M. K. Badrinarayanan

Hindustan Institute of Technology & Science, Padur, Chennai, India
e-mail: skshankar@hindustanuniv.ac.in
R. Mukesh
e-mail: rajeswarim@hindustanuniv.ac.in
M. K. Badrinarayanan
e-mail: mkbadri@hindustanuniv.ac.in

© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license 1
to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2021
M. Tuba et al. (eds.), ICT Systems and Sustainability, Advances in Intelligent Systems
and Computing 1270, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-8289-9_1
2 S. K. Shankar et al.

1 Introduction

1.1 Blockchain Technology

The blockchain technology has provided fresh opportunities to deliver new business
models in the consolidated markets. The implementation of blockchain technology
in the education sector is in its nascent phase, and more tangible results can be
achieved in the future [1–5]. With the widespread usage of cryptocurrencies such as
Bitcoins, Ethereum or Swarm which offer a stable public blockchain that can be used
for secondary purposes such as document verification, it can be used for verification
of university degrees and can provide a timely and solid solution. The blockchain
technology has proven itself to be easy, trustworthy and cost-effective; hence, it can
be adopted with ease [1].
Blockchain [1] is a new technology which is based on new forms of distributed
software architectures, which withers the dependence on centralized integration
points, decentralizes transactional data sharing across large networks of untrusted
participants where components find agreements on shared states.
Blockcerts, an open-source platform, are mainly used for issuing and verifying
the certificates which have been issued digitally using blockchain.
In this paper, we analyse the challenges faced by faculty and graduate students in
adoption of digitized assessments and technical issues in achieving a secured system.
By identifying the challenges in implementation, it will be easy to achieve successful
adoption of digitized assessments in a large scale.

1.2 Digitized Assessments

With the changing industry requirements, evolving learner aspirations and increasing
expectations of the society, it becomes essential to infuse new models of curriculum
with components of technology adoption by the institutions of higher education. The
changes in existing higher education scenario are essential in order to improve the
quality of education, make it suitable to the young learners and increase its ability to
trigger innovation, build research interests and contribute actively to the development
of industry and the society. Innovations in higher education should be reflected in
terms of freedom to develop new curriculum, designing industry-relevant courses,
introduction of new assessment methods and greater flexibility for the students to
have plethora of course choices matching their interests, needs and long-term career
goals [1, 2].
Digitization of assessments shall be an effective starting point for bringing about
changes in higher education. However, the most challenging aspects in adoption of
digitization of assessments are access, quality, values, relevance and ethics. This
study focuses on challenges in digitization of assessments from the perspective of
faculty members who are the implementers of this change in the front end.
Challenges in Adoption of Secure Digitization of Graduate … 3

2 Study Methodology

The study is descriptive. It was conducted with selected faculty members who have
developed and implemented digitized assessments through platforms like Google
Classrooms, Moodle, etc.
A list of benefits and challenges in digitization of assessments were collected
from literature, which were reorganized as suitable to the present study under the
guidance of expert faculty members in the domain of blockchain technologies.
The sampling method was purposive sampling, where that faculties who were
enthusiastic about digitization of assessment and have implemented the same for
the courses they handle were specifically selected for the study. The data from the
filled in questionnaire were processed using Google analytical tools to get descriptive
statistics, and the results were interpreted.

3 Analysis

In the new era of higher education, the focus has shifted from teacher-centric to
learner-centric education. The emphasis is on learning which has placed the learner
as the focal point of all academic transactions. Teachers being the important stake-
holder, it is essential to understand their perspective and opinion about the digi-
tized assessment systems. The present study draws upon the perspectives of teachers
problems faced and recommended suggestions for better implementation of secure
digitization of graduate assessments.
The data for the study were collected by administering a four-part questionnaire
with a five-point grading scale.
The digitization of assessments comes with both benefits and challenges. The
perception of faculty members employing digitized assessment procedures is impor-
tant for repeated use and successful implementation of digitized assessments. The
perceived benefits and challenges of digitized assessments are given below.

3.1 Perceived Benefits

They are low cost, high security, enhancing student’s assessments, better control
of data access, enhancing accountability, identity authentication, improving the
management of student’s records and enhancing learner’s interactivity.
4 S. K. Shankar et al.

3.2 Perceived Challenges

They are preparatory issues, scalability, immutability, cost, question settings, fitness
to all domains (creative subjects), typing ability of students, privacy and security,
trust building and familiarity with the interface.
From the analysis presented above, it could be clearly observed that a majority of
the faculty members feel that digitized assessments are useful. But we cannot ignore
the fact that a sizeable number of faculty members, a little less than half of them, are
still not convinced that digitized assessments are useful.
While taking a closer look at the perceived benefits of digitized assessments
Fig. 1), better control of data access, enhanced students assessments and improved
management of student records emerge to be the top three in the perceived bene-
fits. There are concerns about the learner’s interactivity, security and cost dimen-
sions, which can be attributed to the limited platforms which are being used by the
respondents.
Among the perceived challenges, Fig. 2, the top three issues mentioned by the
respondents are typing ability of the students, structural limitations in question

Fig. 1 Perceived benefits of digitized assessments

Fig. 2 Perceived challenges in digitized assessments

Challenges in Adoption of Secure Digitization of Graduate … 5

Fig. 3 Overall usefulness of digitized assessments

setting and familiarity with the interface. While typing ability and familiarity can
be built through training of students over a period of time, the platform support
needs to be worked out for supporting diverse formats of questions sometimes
formula-based/pictorial to overcome the challenge (Fig. 3).

4 Multiple Regression Analysis

Multiple regression analysis is a powerful technique used to predict the value of

a variable based on the values of one or more variables of others. To understand
the influence of the perceived challenges on the perception of overall usefulness of
digitized assessments, a multiple regression analysis was performed, and the results
are presented (Tables 1 and 2).
It can be observed from the results, Table 3, that only two variables, viz. cost
and scalability have significant p-values and can be inferred to be having a stronger
impact on the perception of overall usefulness of the digitized assessments (Tables 4
and 5).
Among the perceived benefits, Table 6, enhancing learners’ interactivity,
enhancing accountability and transparency and better control of data access emerge

Table 1 Regression
Regression statistics
statistics—challenges
Multiple R 0.900101097
R square 0.810181985
Adjusted R square 0.710277767
Standard error 0.631098104
Observations 30
6 S. K. Shankar et al.

Table 2 Multiple regression analysis—significance statistics

df SS MS F Significance F
Regression 10.00 32.30 3.23 8.11 0.00
Residual 19.00 7.57 0.40
Total 29.00 39.87

Table 3 Multiple regression analysis—challenges

Coefficients Standard t stat P-value Lower Upper Lower Upper
error 95% 95% 95.0% 95.0%
Intercept 0.21 0.58 0.37 0.72 −1.01 1.44 −1.01 1.44
Familiarity 0.24 0.19 1.23 0.23 −0.16 0.64 −0.16 0.64
with the
interface
Trust 0.07 0.17 0.43 0.67 −0.28 0.43 −0.28 0.43
building
Privacy and −0.10 0.16 −0.58 0.57 −0.44 0.25 −0.44 0.25
security
Cost 0.35 0.14 2.53 0.02 0.06 0.64 0.06 0.64
Immutability 0.10 0.18 0.54 0.60 −0.29 0.48 −0.29 0.48
Scalability 0.24 0.14 1.75 0.10 −0.05 0.54 −0.05 0.54
Preparatory −0.17 0.19 0.89 0.39 −0.56 0.23 −0.56 0.23
issues
Structural −0.10 0.20 0.52 0.61 −0.52 0.32 −0.52 0.32
limitations in
question
settings
Fitness to all 0.17 0.13 1.31 0.21 −0.10 0.43 −0.10 0.43
domains
(creative
subjects)
Typing ability 0.18 0.20 0.91 0.38 −0.24 0.60 −0.24 0.60
of students

Table 4 Regression
Regression statistics
statistics—benefits
Multiple R 0.90
R square 0.80
Adjusted R square 0.73
Standard error 0.61
Observations 30.00
Challenges in Adoption of Secure Digitization of Graduate … 7

Table 5 Multiple regression analysis—significance benefits statistics

df SS MS F Significance F
Regression 8 31.94 3.99 10.57 0
Residual 21 7.93 0.38
Total 29 39.87

Table 6 Multiple regression analysis—benefits

Coefficients Standard t stat P-value Lower Upper Lower Upper
error 95% 95% 95.0% 95.0%
Intercept 1.14 0.63 1.81 0.08 −0.17 2.46 −0.17 2.46
Enhancing 0.63 0.16 3.91 0.00 0.29 0.96 0.29 0.96
learners
interactivity
Improving the −0.32 0.23 −1.36 0.19 −0.80 0.17 −0.80 0.17
management
of students
records
Identity −0.09 0.18 −0.47 0.64 −0.46 0.29 −0.46 0.29
authentication
Enhancing 0.48 0.17 2.74 0.01 0.11 0.84 0.11 0.84
accountability
and
transparency
Better control −0.42 0.23 −1.86 0.08 −0.89 0.05 −0.89 0.05
of data access
Enhancing 0.35 0.22 1.61 0.12 −0.10 0.79 −0.10 0.79
students
assessments
High security −0.05 0.21 −0.25 0.81 −0.49 0.39 −0.49 0.39
Low cost 0.15 0.16 0.98 0.34 −0.17 0.48 −0.17 0.48

as the significant variables in influencing the overall perceived usefulness of the

digitized assessments.
It is important to indicate at this point that it is essential to integrate the digital
assessment into the entire learning process from the course design. It is also for
essential assess what they learn and not just what they have learnt. Considering
the fact that learning is an ongoing process that assessment should also be done
continuously, and instructional design can be helpful for planning and implementing
the same, and we have to select the right methodologies (i.e. assessment), strategies
and learning technology to enhance it.
One more strategy that should be considered is to use different assessment methods
for measuring different processes and outcomes. Apart from the popular ones like
8 S. K. Shankar et al.

multiple choice questions, online role-plays, scenario-based activities, judged mathe-

matical expression and online discussions, one can also utilize techniques like ePort-
folios assessment, concept maps or personal response systems. Usage of ePortfolios,
scenario-based activities, role-paying and simulations can make the process authentic
since they provide evidence of learning. These also help in assessing the skills like
critical thinking, decision-making, team work, etc.
For several generations, the idea of feedback has been associated with the last
mile wrap up activity. It is essential to acknowledge that for effective learning to take
place, learners need substantial, regular and meaningful ongoing feedback. Digitized
assessments offer an appropriate format for providing such regular feedback. The
suggestions can be personalized and be given by different stakeholders including self,
peers, teacher and professionals. Such a feedback shall be used to improve learning
in the process and not kept aside as a final activity. Providing continuous feedback
will encourage learners to make course corrections and enhance their learning expe-
rience. In order to scale up digitized assessments, self-regulated learning should be
promoted.

5 Conclusion

Digitization of assessments is the order of the day, and the higher education system
has to adopt the digital way at a rapid pace. The digital learning platforms are
attracting users across the globe and redefining the assessment and learning experi-
ence altogether. Though the penetration into the market like India is currently low,
it is not a far future that these complimentors shall replace the brick and mortar
higher education system. In this scenario, to implement digitized assessments in
a mass scale, it is essential to understand the perspectives of faculty who are the
opinion leaders and implementers at the ground level. This study is an attempt in that
direction and has found that there are few operational challenges, but the perceived
benefits outweigh the challenges. With proper training to both faculty and students,
building secure platforms with blockchain technology will help to overcome the
challenges identified, and the digitization of assessments will be soon a reality in
higher education sector.

References

1. S. Nakamoto, Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System (2008). Available online https://
bitcoin.org/bitcoin.pdf. Accessed on 12 June 2019
2. A. Grech, A.F. Camilleri, Blockchain in Education (Publications Once of the European Union,
Luxembourg, 2017)
3. R. Collins, Blockchain: a new architecture for digital content. E-Content 39, 22–23 (2016)
Challenges in Adoption of Secure Digitization of Graduate … 9

4. M. Memon, U.A. Bajwa, A. Ikhlas, Y. Memon, S. Memon, M. Malani, Blockchain beyond

Bitcoin: block maturity level consensus protocol, in Proceedings of the 2018 IEEE 5th Inter-
national Conference on Engineering Technologies and Applied Sciences (ICETAS), Bangkok,
Thailand, 22–23 November 2018, pp. 1–5
5. V. Gatteschi, F. Lamberti, C. Demartini, C. Pranteda, V. Santamaría, Blockchain and smart
contracts for insurance: is the technology mature enough? Future Internet 10, 20
Non-performing Asset Analysis Using
Machine Learning

Rohan Ninan Jacob

Abstract Loans are given by the banks to the customer, according to their needs,
and are being monitored by various entities within the organization, so that adequate
amount is received to the customers and assuring that they would not default or certain
financial advisories can help them in letting know whether a non-performing assets
(NPA) case can be triggered or not. Though there are many softwares in market which
can do this job quite well, but for small financial institutions and banks, it becomes a
big hurdle to deploy such solution. Unfortunately, there has not been a cost-effective
method of identifying and predicting these cases and has also led to some failure in
monitoring of NPA activities, in organizations. Therefore, an effective approach is to
use a machine learning algorithm, with the use of open-source softwares, that could
help in predicting the NPAs by using the essential parameters and thereby giving
a cost-effective solution to such an issue, which many of the banking and financial
organizations are facing.

Keywords NPA · Parameters · XGBoost · Gradient boosting · Feature importance

1 Introduction

The international monetary fund devises the NPA standards for the financial institu-
tions, based on which the loan is standardized to be NPA [1] if the criteria are met.
Of which some of them are as follows:
• Payments that are related to interest as well as principal that can be up to 90 days
or more
• A minimum 90 days of payments comprising of interest which is capitalized,
delayed or refinanced because of agreement clause by the organization

R. N. Jacob (B)
Department of Electronics and Telecommunications Engineering, Fr. Conceicao Rodrigues
Institute of Technology, Vashi, Navi Mumbai, India
e-mail: rohanninanjacob@gmail.com

© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license 11
to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2021
M. Tuba et al. (eds.), ICT Systems and Sustainability, Advances in Intelligent Systems
and Computing 1270, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-8289-9_2
12 R. N. Jacob

• Payments which are less than overdue for 90 days, but there are other reasons of
doubt whether those payments would be made in full or not.
Conventional collection and recovery process of the financial institution have
always been manual-driven and not data-driven. These are involved by a large number
of people who adopt various techniques (mostly manual) for the collection process
and hence lack professional approach. This generic process of collection and recovery
which is lacking focused approach has been resulting in accumulated non-performing
assets, the ever-increasing cost of collection, and dissatisfied customers.
With the advent of credit risk management solutions or other NPA detection soft-
wares, it is possible to track fraud cases resulting in NPA and makes tracking of these
quite easy. However, such software costs a lot and hence an efficient cost-effective
method could help the organization to monitor and track such activities, thereby
relying on the power of open-source softwares. Due to increase in the development
and a great community support of open source, it was possible to implement an
algorithm that helped in resolving such cases.
The paper presents an analysis which can be done by various financial institutions
and organizations, in making sure that NPAs can be in control implying to which
will give them better decisions to monitor such incidents and help them in saving a
ton of money.
The main algorithm that is used here is the XGBoost algorithm that would help
in the execution speed and the model performance. The essential part of the algo-
rithm is the scalability that helps in the fast learning by parallel and distributed
[2] computing, offering adequate memory usage. It is one of the gradient boosting
methods which falls in a supervised learning technique and aims in predicting target
variable. XGBoost is an ensemble-based learning which is composed of several base
learners.

2 Algorithm and Program Flow

The gradient boosting, when used in regression, the regression tree, helps in mapping
the input data point to one of the leaves which comprises a continuous score. Here,
the XGBoost algorithm helps in minimizing a regularized objective function which
results in the combining of a convex loss function (based on the difference between
the predicted and target outputs) as well as a penalty term for model complexity (in
other words, the regression tree functions). The training proceeds iteratively, adding
new trees and predicting the residuals or errors of prior trees that are then combined
with previous trees to make the final prediction. The fact that requires adding new
tress is to aggregate the number of trees or predictors which are individually weak
classifiers, so aggregation is required in order that prediction can improve. It is called
gradient boosting because it uses a gradient descent algorithm to minimize the loss
when adding new models.
Non-Performing Asset Analysis Using Machine Learning 13

While gradient boosting has an approach of negative gradients, in order to optimize

loss function, this makes use of Taylor series which is to calculate value of this loss
function by means of distinguished base learners [3].
XGBoost need not explore all possible tree structures but helps in the building up
of a tree greedily, whereby the regularization term is helping to reduce the building
up of complex tree by means of several leaf nodes [4].
Apart from that, XGBoost consists of other techniques which include column
subsampling, shrinkage, splitting criteria, etc.
Details of the work flow are as follows:
• Input data was provided by Hacker Earth, which was later on then converted to
test and train data to check and validate the accuracy as well as the precision and
the parameters which had to be monitored along with its description was also
provided by the same.
• With the large data which was received, there were many changes which needed
to be done in data, like in fields: ‘income’ and ‘undreamt’ were missing and hence
needed to be filled in with the mean values. Such values had to be filled by taking
upon mean values and then filling up of the result at those blank values or ‘Nan’,
which is the process of imputing missing values. Some parameters need not need
to be a part of this analysis and hence were dropped out of the consideration.
Apart from that, for better understanding of the terms, renaming was done.
• Splitting of both training and test set was performed in which 70% of data was
used in training and 30% used in the test set. It is important to make sure that
the splitting ratio should never be the same, which will alter the efficiency and
reliability of the model. It even helps in gaining deeper insights into reliable
decisions.
• For increasing the efficiency of the model, we performed cross-validation. It is
used to help in enhancing the predictive as well as accuracy performance of the
developed models, helping in seeing how they work outside the sample [5] to a
new data set, i.e., test data. The reasons come in for a cross-validation technique
are when we fit a model, we are fitting it to a training data set. Without cross-
validation, we only have information which gives us insights into how will the
model perform with respect to the sample data. Ideally, we would like to see
how the model performs when we have a new data in terms of accuracy of its
predictions [6]. In science, theories are judged by its predictive performance.
There two types of cross-validation you can perform: leave one out and k fold.
• After training the model, the best iteration is selected, due to which, we came to
know the accuracy of the model, giving us the prediction. Also, we came to know
the ROC-AUC.
Accuracy is one of the essential factors for evaluating classification models. It is
nothing but the fraction of predictions which represents the correctness of the model,
which is given by [7] (Fig. 1).
14 R. N. Jacob

Fig. 1 Accuracy equation

Fig. 2 AUC equation

The reason why predictions are important in machine learning is because machine
learning model predictions help the businesses to make highly accurate guesses in
order that they are likely outcomes of a question based on historical data [8].
The area under a curve (AUC) for a classifier on a given data set can be represented
as the probability of P(f (X+) > f (X−)), where f (X+)corresponds to a random variable
which pertains to distribution of the outputs (scores) for the classifier, belonging to the
positive observations and f (X−) the one corresponding to the negative observations.
Mathematically, represented ⎧ by [9] (Fig. 2).
⎨ 0 if x < 0,
where g() is defined as 0.5 if x = 0,
⎩
1 if x > 0.
The ROC-AUC curve gives us an indication on how well the model created is
performing with the data. This gives also an insight whether the model which is
deployed has underfit or overfit the training and test set.
A graphical workflow of program is illustrated as follows (Fig. 3).

3 Results

The test set results were compared with respect to the training set, for making sure
that the model worked well and has a good efficiency in its performance. We even
determined the accuracy in proving it so. The feature importance was evaluated,
which gives us an insight into every feature in the data and more its score, the more
it signifies to decision making. Some of the important features during the analysis of
this problem was total interest fees, home ownership, employee length, loan amount,
batch enrolled, etc.
The training process was initiated, where the best iterations were determined.
Below figure represents the start of the iteration (Fig. 4).
While the training set of iterations were ongoing and later on completed, the best
iteration was selected, thus evaluated the model accuracy and ROC-AUC (Fig. 5).
The feature importance of all features was evaluated, which are represented in the
plot as shown below, which includes all the features used during our analysis. The
y-axis represents the feature importance values, and the x-axis shows the features
used in the model building (Fig. 6).
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
 ARAB WOMEN AND CHILDREN
(Photo. The Photochrome Co. Ld.)

To the women fall all work and drudgery about camp. We have seen
that they make and pitch the tents. They are the water-carriers, and
many a weary tramp they have, returning exhausted, with the
sweating girbies on their backs. If the fountain or cistern is very far
off, they may have donkeys on which to bring the precious liquid, in
“bottles” of partially tanned goat-skins. They, of course, do the
cooking, and must hold themselves in readiness at every moment to
obey their lords’ behests. When the tribe moves on, they must pack
all the goods, strike the tents, and put everything in place, ready for
the camels to carry. Their lazy masters, meantime, are lounging in
whatever shade there may be, changing their position as the sun
moves, “drinking”—i.e. smoking—tobacco, indulging in coffee with
the sheikh, or yawning over some tale told for the hundredth time.
But when a ghazzu, or “raid,” is projected, then all is stir and
excitement among them. Each man girds on his weapons, mounts
his riding-camel, and eagerly pushes forward in search of plunder.
The degradation of the women is completed by the practice of
polygamy and the freedom of divorce. The husband may in a
moment of displeasure simply utter the formula of divorce, and his
wife ceases absolutely to belong to him. No particular disgrace
attaches to the divorced wife, who easily finds a place in the harîm of
another. But the husband whose wife has run away from him smarts
for long under the indignity. The mother of daughters is despised; but
she who bears many sons is held in reverence, as one who has
contributed to the honour of the family, to the strength and dignity of
the tribe.
The wealth of the Beduw consists, like that of Abraham and the
patriarchs, in flocks and herds. The true representatives, indeed, of
Abraham, that grand old sheikh, are not to be sought among the
pale-faced slaves of Talmud and Rabbi, huddled together in the
close, unhealthy towns of Western Palestine; but in the dark-
skinned, free-spirited children of the desert. They roam over wide
tracts, wherever vegetation is found, and water to allay thirst, that
haunts the wilderness like the shadow of death. The humbler men
and youths take charge of the flocks, “leading them forth” to
pastures, alas, not often green; and conducting them every second
or third day to the watering. Here one may see any day a
reproduction, true even to minor details, of the strife between the
herdsmen of Isaac and Abimelech. To the stranger’s eye the
confusion of flocks at the watering is complete. In reality there is
mingling, but no confusion. When the shepherd sees that his
charges are satisfied, he simply steps apart and makes his own
peculiar cry, when they at once leave the throng and follow him, for
“they know his voice.” A stranger they will not follow although he
copy their shepherd’s call never so skilfully, for “they know not the
voice of strangers.”
The scenes at desert wells are not always so peaceful. Mr. Doughty
tells a gruesome tale of a band of wild outriders from the Yemen
quarter who, after a long hot ride, reached a little pool. The first man
sprang forward, and filling a vessel, put it to his lips. He never drank.
The second man, with an awful oath, plunged his sword in his
fellow’s heart, seized the vessel, and raised it to drink, when he also
fell, bleeding to death under a sword-cut from the man who followed
him, and who in a similar frenzy of thirst would not wait until his
comrade drank. Then the leader of the band exercised his authority.
The fierce fellows were placed in a row, and water was handed to
them in turn. What a man of iron that commander must have been.
To every camp is attached a number of dogs, that belong in a
general way to the community. They are ferocious brutes, and it is by
no means safe for a stranger to approach them alone. They seem to
be asleep most of the day, and awake most of the night. They are
trusty guardians of the flocks during the dark hours, from beasts of
prey, their voices of challenge giving the herdsmen due warning of
their enemies’ approach.
Among the nobler sort these “houses of hair” are the very homes of
open-hearted hospitality. In speaking of the Druzes we saw that the
practice of hospitality was associated with religious ideas long
prevalent in Arabia. The particular idea seems to be more clearly
recognised by the Beduw. When, in the slant beams of dying day,
the weary traveller draws near, the Bedawy sees in him a guest sent
by God, and so he is called Daif Ullah—“guest of God,” who for sake
of God must be bountifully dealt with. For, are not all men “guests of
God,” spending the brief hours of life’s fleeting day under the blue
canopy of His great tent, sharing together His hospitality? With such
an one the Bedawy will cheerfully share the last food in his
possession. For, did not God give the food? and did not He send the
guest? His bounty will not fail in what is needful for the morrow. How
might two guests sit together in the great Host’s tent, one eating and
the other hungry? Hence we have the Arabian proverbs: “Loaf for
loaf, and your neighbour dies not of hunger”; and “He who has bread
is debtor to him who has none.” Thus do we find in the nobler
phases of desert life a fine reflection of the Christian principle, so
well realised by the Apostle Paul, who felt himself debtor to every
one who knew not the light and joy of the Gospel as he did. The
bread of life must be received and dispensed in the generous spirit
of Oriental hospitality.
 ARABS AT HOME
(Photo. The Photochrome Co. Ld.)

It is curious that the Arab should feel himself relieved from all
obligation if he meet the stranger in the open; while if the latter can
but touch the most distant peg or cord of the tent, he is absolutely
safe. To provide for the security of his guest is a point of highest
honour with the Arab; and his comfort is considered before anything
else. He is made “master of the house” while he stays. The owner
will not sit down unless the guest invites him; nor will he eat until the
guest is satisfied. To eat under the same roof, or from the same dish,
constitutes a bond of brotherhood. The host is responsible for the
safety of his guest, as far as his authority or ability extends: the
guest is bound in every way to consider the honour and credit of his
host. The protection of the stranger may even anticipate his arrival at
the tent. If in peril, he may take shelter under the name of some
powerful sheikh. When he utters this name, it becomes the duty of all
to assist him in reaching his protector’s dwelling. Any injury done to
him is an outrage upon the man, who, thus invoked, becomes his
patron and avenger. So in the name of the Lord are deliverance and
safety found (Prov. xviii. 10, etc.). The guest may claim
entertainment for three days and three nights. The host may require
him to stay so long. If he stay beyond this period, the stranger may
have to do some work—a provision, probably, against idlers and
hangers-on. The guest may abide continually in the “house” of his
host only by becoming identified with the family through marriage or
adoption (Psalm xxiii. 6).
The guest is expected to show appreciation of the viands supplied in
ways not open to one in polite society. In drinking coffee, for
example, he should noisily draw it in with his breath, smack his lips,
and declare its excellence. But he must offer no payment for his
entertainment. This would be regarded as insult. The Arab eats not
in the morning; the guest departs with a simple “good-bye.” He has
had no more than his right; presently his host will enjoy the like
kindness at his own or some other brother’s hand. The recognition of
this obligation to the needy stranger must often have been the very
condition of life to wanderers in waste lands.
A fuller discussion of many interesting usages connected with
hospitality will be found in the writer’s article “Hospitality,” in
Hastings’ Dictionary of the Bible, vol. ii. pp. 427 f.
Save among the pests that lurk in solitary places, ready to spring
upon the lonely traveller unawares, to whom no life is sacred that
stands between them and plunder, who seem to find a diabolical
pleasure in the mere sight of blood, one need not greatly fear for his
life in any encounter with the Beduw. They may take all he
possesses, and even his clothes, wounding him if necessary to this
end; but they do not willingly take life, leaving the disposal of this to
Him who gave it.
Like the “bruisers” at home, the Arabs have a code of honour in
regard to hostile encounters; but it refers not to the manner of the
blow and the part where it falls. It has to do with the weapon. To
strike a man with the fist, or with a blunt instrument of any kind, is to
put a heavy insult upon him. On the other hand, to strike with a sharp
weapon, or smite with the edge of the sword, may be criminal, but it
involves no disgrace.
As between man and man, and tribe and tribe, the lex talionis is in
full force. The tribe is not regarded as an aggregate, but as an
organic unity, of which each man is a member, as the hand is of the
body. If the hand do one an injury, satisfaction is found in
punishment through the foot or any other member. Even so, if a
tribesman inflict an injury on one of a neighbouring tribe, and the
particular offender eludes the avenger, any member of his tribe may
be taken in his place. Injury for injury, blood for blood, is the stern
law. The offender’s tribe may confess that wrong has been done,
and offer to compound with the injured for a sum of money. The
amount in such cases is fixed in solemn conclave by delegates of
the different tribes, and the value is represented by a number of
camels or other animals. If these are accepted, the feud is at an end.
But among the aristocracy of the Beduw, the nobler sort, such
compounding for blood is esteemed dishonourable. Then the whole
tribe, and the wider circle of those with whom they claim relationship,
become a staunch confederacy for defence of the manslayer, and for
mutual protection against the enemy. Thus the absence of “cities of
refuge” is made good to the fugitive; the usages of hospitality come
in to relieve the gloom of dark, relentless passion. For the manslayer,
if he can but penetrate the tent and eat bread there, may claim
sanctuary from the “avenger of blood” himself. Even the father, who
thirsts to avenge the blood of a beloved son, will let him depart, and
neither pursue nor permit him to be pursued until the space of two
days and a night has passed.
The sheyûkh—“the chiefs” who administer justice among the Beduw
—are renowned for their integrity and for the equity of their
decisions. They scorn bribes. Stories are often told of the disputes of
townsmen who, rather than appear before the corrupt courts of the
land, where each must lose whoever wins, have submitted their case
to arbitration by sheyûkh el-Beduw, in whose judgment both parties
at once acquiesced. In cases where blows have been given, no
progress can be made until a balance of injuries has been struck.
Only when the least injured has suffered in person or in goods so as
to equalise the injuries will the case be heard and adjudicated upon.
The deliverance of the sheyûkh carries with it the moral weight of the
whole tribe. He who disregards it practically passes on himself
sentence of outlawry.

ARAB HORSEMAN
The devotion of the Arab to his steed has been sung in many
tongues and in many lands. His mare is the first care of the Bedawy;
more to him than either wife or child, save perhaps his firstborn son,
when green food is scarce, and at evening the camels are brought to
be milked, the mare first drinks from the foaming vessel; wives and
children share what she leaves. On his robber raids he rides out
upon his camel, the mare being led, saddled and ready, by his side.
In the hour of peril he will commit himself to her fleet limbs; and not
once nor twice in the course of his roving life the Arab will owe safety
and all else to the speed of his four-footed friend. Tenderly cared for
at other times, her every want anticipated, when the moment of trial
comes she will fly off like the wind; and the distances often covered
ere fatigue stays her career would seem fabulous in European ears.
The fondness of the Arab for the horse frequently becomes a craze,
leading him into the ridiculous. If a man is too poor to own a horse,
e.g., he will take a bone of the noble animal and preserve it in his
tent! Again, a horse may be the property not of one or two, but of
many. It is considered as consisting of so many parts, which are
bought by different parties. Each is thus entitled to say, with an
approach to truth, that he owns horse-flesh. The owner of a good
horse never willingly parts with it. If pressed by necessity, he may
allow another to become part proprietor. Even then he will hardly sell
outright. The man who has the rasan (“halter”) feeds the horse, and
in return enjoys the use of it. Thus it was with a beautiful mare, half
of which, with the rasan, was owned by the present writer. The other
partners were a native Christian gentleman, a rich Moslem merchant
in Acre, and the pasha of the province.
We have referred to the religious connection of certain Arab
customs. From this it might be inferred that they are a religious
people. This is strictly true. Nominally they are Moslems; but their
religious knowledge is scanty at best, and their thinking far from
clear.
They believe in the existence of God; they are taught to consider
themselves His special favourites. All non-Moslems are regarded as
His enemies and theirs. But of the moral character of God they have
hardly the glimmering of an idea. They will “thank God” as heartily for
success in a robber-raid as for recovery from sickness. One must
know something of the character of God before he can understand
what sin is, and why God abhors it. But the Allah of the Moslem,
capricious in his choice of favourites, is very indulgent towards the
frailties and failings of those who confess him and his prophet. It is
futile to seek to identify Allah with the God of Christianity. His name
is for ever on the lips of his devotees. The most trivial expressions
they confirm by appeal to Deity, and that with equal glibness whether
they be true or false. Some isolated articles of faith they have, and
certain rites, such as circumcision, which are religious in their origin,
but they have nothing which can properly be called a religious
system. The mind of the Orient, indeed, while singularly fruitful in
ideas, is deficient in the elements essential to the thinking of ideas
together. It is mystical, reflective, analytic, but it lacks the power of
synthesis. There are no great Arabic philosophers, in our meaning of
the term. Their “philosophers” are gifted men, whose wit flashes forth
in sparkling epigram, in wise discriminations and sage counsels for
the conduct of life. For systematic treatment of the problems of being
and well-being we search among them in vain. Even what by
courtesy we call the “system” of Islâm is not an organic unity, but
rather an aggregation of ideas around the great central dogma. For
the hints as to systematic treatment of the revelation in Jesus Christ
found in the Epistles of St. Paul—for even here there is hardly
anything beyond hints—we are indebted not to his Hebrew training,
but to his Gentile learning, and especially to his acquaintance with
Roman Law. While the Oriental mind has been prolific in originating
thought, the great task of synthesis has been given specially to the
mind of the West.
Give to a rude, untutored people the simple idea of the unity of God,
without any conception of His moral character, together with the
further idea that they are His peculiar favourites, and you have
prepared the way for a descent not to be thought of without a
shudder. If, after long generations, we find this people one “whose
heart is not right with God,” “whose mouth is full of cursing and
deceit,” our wonder may be, not so much that they are fallen so low,
as that they have preserved their nobler institutions and maintained
themselves as well as they have done against the tides of corruption.
And there are signs of a yearning among them for better things. Let
one authentic story suffice.
External influences affecting the Beduw are few and slight. Peddling
Jews from Damascus, Safed, Tiberias, Jerusalem perambulate their
country by times; but their trade is almost entirely confined to the
barbarous ornaments worn by the women. The Moslem pilgrimage
which yearly passes through their territory is doubtless a power for
evil, fortunately limited in its effects to the districts more immediately
adjoining the great Hajj road. Once in a while, however, some of the
men may journey to esh-Shâm (Damascus), city of wonder and
beauty to their uncultured minds, returning with strange tales as to its
greatness, and confused ideas of its streets, orchards, and musical
waters. One such had visited this “earthly paradise,” the Arab’s
dream of splendour and pleasure. He, however, was most of all
impressed with what he saw of worship in the great mosque. The
effect upon his own spirit was deep, and this he conveyed to his
fellows in the solitudes when he returned. It stirred the slumbering
necessity in all their hearts for communion with God. At sunset he
drew them up upon the sand, and, standing before them, he imitated
as well as he could the movements of the worshippers he had seen,
and in these he was followed by his friends. Ya Allah! he said, mitl
ma bikûlu fî esh-Shâm; and his fellows responded in turn, Wa
azwad, wa azwad, wa azwad. “O Allah! just as they say in
Damascus.” “And more, and more, and more”! The tale may seem
ludicrous, if not absurd; but it has also a pathetic aspect. Does it not
seem like a cry from the hearts of men in darkness, yearning for light
on the Godward road? Are we not debtors to such as they?
 CHAPTER XI
Ride to Jerash—Magnificent ruins—Circassian colonists—
History—Preservation of buildings—East of Jordan—Sûf
—A moonlight scene—Down to the Jabbok.

JERASH, GATEWAY
Our Bozrah guide was first in the saddle, and, starting out along the
valley, he led the way towards Jerash; from this point, however, his
office was a sinecure, the road being well marked. We followed the
winding path through wooded vale and over wooded hill until we
reached a height overlooking rich, cultivated flats, to which we
descended by a rocky track, leaving for a time the woodland behind
us. Here we found a road on which some labour had been
expended, passing between fields partly surrounded by stone walls.
Going forward, we met a cart of antique shape, drawn by a team of
oxen, guided by a sturdy Circassian, who was seated in front. The
cart was long, narrow, and deep; the axles were wide, and the
wheels low. It resembled those still to be seen in many country
districts on the continent of Europe. The type may have been
introduced into this country by the German colonists. These carts are
the only wheeled vehicles used as yet by agriculturists in Palestine,
of whom, next to the Germans, the Circassians are perhaps the most
successful. We spoke to the driver, but received for reply only a bow,
and sundry gestures by which he manifestly sought to make himself
agreeable, from which it could also be inferred that he knew no
Arabic. Our way led round the left shoulder of a little hill, and down a
gentle incline, when, suddenly, almost the whole extent of the ruins
on the southern bank of the stream came into view. Men and animals
were gladdened by the cheerful sound of flowing water. Just where
the road turns sharply to the right towards the ancient city gate, we
struck an irrigation channel, full of clear, cool water. After a general
scramble for the refreshing liquid, in which riders and horses seemed
to mingle indiscriminately, spectacles, etc., being dropped into the
stream and duly fished up again, we assumed a more dignified
attitude, and prepared to enter the city. On the height to the right
were several empty sarcophagi and burial caverns. We traversed the
whole length of the city on the northern side of the valley, and
pitched our tents under the cliffs just outside the boundary, beyond a
copious fountain, over which remains of Greek buildings are still
standing. It was yet early afternoon, and most of us were at once
drawn forth to see the splendid ruins.
Jerash, or, as it was anciently called, Gerasa, stands in Wady ed-
Deir, on either side of a perennial stream which flows into the Jabbok
a few miles to the south, and one of the sources of which is the
fountain above mentioned, at the north-west corner of the city. All the
principal buildings of which anything noteworthy remains are on the
southern bank of the brook. The ground rises quickly from the bed of
the stream, some fifty to a hundred feet, and then slopes gradually
backward. Upon this higher part, almost all the magnificence of the
old city was gathered. From north-west to south-east runs the
famous street, paved throughout, and lined on either side its whole
length with fine columns, many of which are standing, capitals and
architrave being in parts almost perfect still.
Of Jerash we may say generally, it is the best preserved of all the
ruined cities east of Jordan. The ruins are weather-worn and beaten
with the storms of centuries; earthquakes have shaken down many
once splendid buildings, but there were no traces of the destroying
hand of man. The Circassians have now supplied this lack. One
fears that much of value and interest has already perished under
their hammers, as they sought materials to build their houses. This
points the urgent necessity to have the ruins thoroughly explored,
and measures taken at once to secure what is worth preserving.
Passing along the street from the north-west, we first saw a small
theatre to the right, now sadly ruined. A little farther forward, on the
same side, stands what must have been by far the finest building of
all, as it still is the most imposing ruin. This is known as the Temple
of the Sun. Situated on an elevated terrace, it is approached by a
broad stairway, which leads to the portico. This consists of three
rows of columns of magnificent proportions and artistic
workmanship. Originally fourteen in number, the greater part are still
in position. Of the principal building, the area is now blocked up with
fallen stones. The temple stands in the middle of a court, once
surrounded by a colonnade, and measures some eighty feet by
seventy. The position commands a fine view of the city. In the near
neighbourhood to the south and west are traces of columns, arches,
etc., which may have belonged to smaller temples. There are also
remains of a church. But all are so buried beneath their own ruins
that it is impossible now to speak of them with certainty. On the other
side of the road are remains of baths and of a basilica. The pillared
street terminates in a circular area surrounded by columns, of which
nearly all are standing; many still supporting pieces of the architrave.
 JERASH, TEMPLE OF THE SUN
Beyond this, on rising ground, close to the ancient city wall, are the
ruins of a large theatre and temple. The rows of stone seats in the
former are well preserved. The slopes in front are literally heaped
with great stones and pieces of colossal columns, while the amount
of building underground seems almost equal to what is seen above.
The acoustics of these theatres are perfect. Once, with some friends,
I made trial of that at Gadara; the lowest articulate sounds were
audible throughout the entire building. A little to the east of the
temple, a road leads off directly to the south, passing under a
triumphal arch, dating, probably, from the time of Trajan. To the west
of the road, just inside the triumphal arch, lay the Naumachia (for
mock sea-fights), without which these cities would seem to have
been incomplete. Westward, outside the city wall, are great numbers
of sarcophagi. This, apparently, was the chief ancient burying-
ground. Nowhere, not even at Gadara where these are numerous,
have I seen so many stony receptacles of the dead lying exposed.
All have been opened long ago, many of the lids being broken, no
doubt, in the feverish search for hidden treasure.
Turning back, we walked the whole length of the street, noting the
remains of a tetrapylon near the southern end, and of another not far
from the northern end, in each case traces of the ruined arches
being distinguishable. The ancient gateway to the north is blocked
up, but a passage is cut through the great mound of stones which
once formed the wall; and along this a considerable volume of water,
caught in the higher reaches of the valley and led captive hither,
passes, to turn the picturesque old mill below. Above the city, on the
southern bank of the stream, are numbers of sarcophagi, many of
them adorned with sculptured wreaths, roses, and heads in relief.
There are traces of what must have been a large and fine building,
with broken columns and sculptured stones. Several mutilated Greek
inscriptions are to be seen among the ruins. In the cliffs north-east of
the stream, above the spot where our camp was pitched, are several
large natural caverns, which do not seem to have been used for any
other purpose than the sheltering of flocks. Beyond the city wall, to
the north-east, however, are many sepulchral caves, some of those
visited being hewn out of the living rock.
The northern bank of the stream is now occupied by a colony of
Circassians, whose neatly-built and plastered houses, each with a
walled court in front, contrast most favourably with those of any of
the native peasants in Palestinian villages. The houses were built for
the most part of ordinary materials, very few of the sculptured stones
from the ancient city being employed. This may be accounted for by
the fact that few public buildings of any importance stood on this side
of the stream. Since then these settlers have gone farther afield, to
the peril, as we have seen, of what lends Jerash its attractions for
us. Entering the town from the north, we find the fountain arched
over, from which the main supply of the colony is obtained; beautiful,
clear, cool water it is. In the lower ground to the right are vestiges of
a temple, around which the colonists have fine gardens. Turning up
to the left, for a long distance the city wall is almost intact. Within the
wall, to the south-east, are prostrate columns and sculptured stones,
marking the site of a building of no little splendour, but whether
palace or temple, it is impossible to say.
Outside the wall are scanty remains which may indicate the position
of an ancient church. Judging by the magnificence of many of the
sarcophagi found here, this may have been the burying-ground of
the greater ones. Just below, by the wayside, at the entrance to the
modern village, lies the Circassian graveyard. The graves are of the
ordinary Moslem type—little mounds with a protuberance at each
end, supposed resting-places for the angels. Here, however, the
Circassians seem to expend but little care. The whole place was
overgrown with rank grass, nettles, and thistles. The stream which
divides ancient from modern Jerash is lined with oleanders, whose
luxuriant growth in many places quite hides the rippling waters. Just
where it passes beyond the boundary of the town it plunges in foamy
streaks over a high cliff into a romantic ravine, whence issues the
music of a water-mill.
Of the Circassians who now occupy the place, we learned that only
some six years before they had come hither. The Turk, finding it hard
to control these brave, free-spirited people among their native
mountains, has been carrying out gradually the policy of expatriation,
adopted wholesale by ancient conquerors in these regions.
Removed from the associations of childhood and the inspiring
memories that haunt the scenes around them in their highland
homes, required to work hard for the mere necessities of life, their
rulers hope to make docile subjects out of these once turbulent
clans. Colonies are scattered over all Syria and Palestine. One large
village is occupied by them on the heights between Tiberias and
Tabor. Old Kuneitera, in the Jaulân, is awakening to new life at their
touch. In their agricultural enterprises they are protected by their
reputation for absolute fearlessness, unwavering resolution in
avenging an injury, and skill in the handling of their weapons. Roving
Bedawy and robber peasant alike stand in wholesome dread of their
keen blade and unerring bullet. They can thus reckon with certainty
on reaping what they have sown, and enjoying the fruits of their
labours. They scruple not, therefore, to put hard work into the soil.
Gathering the stones from the surface, they form walls along the
boundaries of their fields. Their implements, although antiquated, are
yet an improvement on those employed by the ordinary fellahîn. The
qualities that protect them from thief and robber also secure them in
great measure against the unjust exactions of a corrupt Government,
and guarantee them entire immunity from outrage at the hands of the
soldiery, to which the miserable peasants have so often to submit.
Of the history of Jerash but little is known. Josephus places it in the
Decapolis, and in his day it must have been a city of some
importance. It was one of the chief cities in the Roman province of
Arabia. In the days of Bozrah’s splendour, Jerash must also have
been a wealthy commercial centre, Arabian and Egyptian caravans
probably passing this way to the north. Baldwin II., in 1121, is said to
have marched against Jerash, but already in the thirteenth century
the city is described as deserted. Why, we cannot tell.

JERASH, STREET OF COLUMNS

To the west of Jordan there are very few ancient sites where remains
of any consequence are to be seen. The few half-buried pillars of
Herod’s colonnade at Samaria and the ruined synagogue at Tell
Hûm are about the most important, outside the discoveries made in
Jerusalem. The most famous sites are marked only by pottery-
strewn heaps, or stretches of shapeless ruins. These are
insignificant when compared with the massive walls and stately
columns with artistic adornments that meet one everywhere on the
east of Jordan. The west, more open to influences from without, has
suffered heavily under the many changes it has experienced.
Ancient structures were carried off bodily to form new buildings of a
more temporary character. These soon perished, the old materials
being thus scattered or buried under the debris and dirt. Several
causes have contributed to the better preservation of the cities east
of Jordan. The land has been much more secluded from foreign
influence, and, since the days of the Mohammedan conquest, can
hardly be said to have been in contact with the outside world at all.
The inhabitants, being chiefly dwellers in tents, have had no
occasion to employ ancient materials for the building of houses. The
peasants who do occupy stone houses have usually found all the
shelter they required in the durable structures of basalt, which are so
numerous, ready to their hands. A company, moving to village or
town, simply swung back the stone doors, opened the stone
shutters, swept out the rooms, and took possession, finding thus
much finer houses than they could have constructed for themselves.
If they did require to build, the smaller stones of the ruins around
served their purposes admirably, and the remains of the larger
buildings, spared through centuries by storm and earthquake,
secured immunity from attack.
Sûf, reputed Mizpah, the famous meeting-place of Jacob and Laban,
where he fled with his wives, children, and possessions, lies only
about an hour to the north-west of Jerash. On the occasion of a
second visit to the district, I passed through this village. It stands on
the south-west lip of the wady, which here is of considerable depth.
The houses are of the common type, built of white limestone and
mud. It is inhabited by Moslems. When I saw it, a large weather-
worn, goats’-hair tent was pitched in the middle of the village, where
the youth of Sûf assembled to learn verses of the Korʾân from the
lips of the Khatîb—probably the only man in the village who knew
how to read and write. The numerous dolmens in the vicinity point
back to a very high antiquity.
On the same occasion I enjoyed the exquisite pleasure of seeing the
beautiful ruins of Jerash under the mellow beams of the moon. It was
a sight never to be forgotten. The kindly light, hiding all that was
defective, seemed to reveal only what was fair, throwing its delicate
splendours over tall column and massive wall, until the ancient city
seemed to stand before us in all its ancient magnificence; and one
could almost imagine, through the quiet night, the echoing footfall of
the Roman guard along the pillared street.

JERASH, GENERAL VIEW

Our road lay through the triumphal arch and down Wady ed-Deir to
the Jabbok. Just on the point of starting we were treated to another
entertainment by our friend the cook. From this point southward he
was quite familiar with the country, but he feigned first ignorance and
then fear, in order to secure a convoy from Jerash. For sake of
peace and pleasantness we had almost yielded to his importunity,
but the man he brought forward was so exorbitant in his demands,