A time-of-flight mass spectrometer (TOF) was evaluated as a potential monitor for light gases present as impurities in the uranium enrichment cascade at the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant. Currently, light gases, namely nitrogen, oxygen, hydrogen fluoride, carbon dioxide, and dichlorotetrafluoroethane (R-114), are monitored by a magnetic sector mass spectrometer. In these preliminary studies, laboratory tests were designed to determine if the TOF would be an acceptable substitute for the in-service instrument and possibly an improvement over it. For the purpose of comparison, the sample inputs of the two mass spectrometers were paralleled, and supportive electronics for the TOF were designed and constructed to emulate the sector instrument. Various light gases were examined, and the fragmentation components of R-14 were identified. Specific mass signals were examined for relative sensitivity and selectivity. The favorable performance of TOF in these preliminary tests established that (1) the TOF is capable of functioning in a manner analogous to that of the magnetic sector spectrometer, (2) the resolution and reproducibility obtained with the TOF may well exceed that of the equipment presently in use, and (3) the TOF seems well-adapted for automation. However, prior to incorporation into the cascade, questions as to reliability, sensitivity, physical longevity,more » and cost differential between the two instruments must be resolved. Also, since the potential exists for direct processing of analytical results if an instrument package with greater adaptability and flexibility can be developed, this possibility should be further investigated.« less


Surface attachment of the manganese-oxo cluster known as Mn-12 provided aqueous solution stabilization that allowed investigation of the use of the cluster as an MRI contrast agent.


A useful nano-power circuit is presented for edge detection in integrated vision systems. Based on a compact front-end of only five MOS devices, this circuit features a tunable threshold and discrete output and is ideal for interfacing to digital electronics.


Aim: The aim of this study was to explore the physicochemical, phytochemical and HPTLC analysis of the Siddha herbomineral formulation, Arputha Mathirai (AM), in tablet form, for its potential in treating PCOS (Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome). The objective was to analyze the tablet and assess its physicochemical properties, as well as the presence of bioactive compounds derived from plant sources.
Place of Study: The physicochemical and phytochemical analysis was conducted at The Tamilnadu Dr.MGR Medical University, located at No.69, Anna Salai, Guindy, Chennai – 600 032. The High-Performance Thin Layer Chromatography (HPTLC) was carried out at Noble Research Solutions in Kolathur, Chennai – 600 099.
Materials and Methods: Arputha Mathirai, the Siddha herbomineral formulation, was prepared in compliance with Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) guidelines. The formulation underwent a thorough analysis of its physicochemical and phytochemical properties at The Tamilnadu Dr.MGR Medical university, Guindy, Chennai. The analysis was conducted following the standards set by the Pharmacopoeial Laboratory for Indian Medicine (PLIM) in accordance with the guidelines established by AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani, Siddha, Homoeopathy), the governing body for traditional health systems in India. HPTLC was peformed at Noble Research Solutions, Kolathur, Chennai – 600 099.
Results: Physico-chemical analysis of AM showed 10.08% of loss on drying at 1050 C, 15.39% total ash value, 2.45% acid-insoluble ash, 12.18% water-soluble ash, 20.55% water-soluble extraction, and 8.46% alcohol-soluble extraction. According to the phytochemical analysis of AM, alkaloids, carbohydrates, saponins, flavonoids, diterpenes, gum, and mucilage were all found in the sample. Additionally, it demonstrated the absence of quinones, tannins, and phenols. HPTLC finger printing analysis of the sample revealed the presence of five prominent peaks corresponding to the presence of five versatile phytocomponents present with in it. Rf value of the peaks ranged from 0.02 to 0.56.
Conclusion: The findings of this study provided a comprehensive understanding of the physicochemical properties, bio active phytochemicals and phytocomponents of Arputha Mathirai (AM). These results contribute to establishing the nature of the formulation's composition and its safety profile. Moreover, the standardization of the tablet formulation based on these parameters supports its suitability for therapeutic use in the treatment of PCOS. These outcomes validate the quality and potential effectiveness of AM in addressing PCOS, enhancing its credibility as a viable treatment option.


A range of work in applied machine learning, psychology, and social science involves inferring a person's preferences and beliefs from their choices or decisions. This includes work in economics on Structural Estimation, which has been used to infer beliefs about the rewards of education from observed work and education choices [1] and preferences for health outcomes from smoking behavior [2]. In machine learning, Inverse Reinforcement Learning has been applied to diverse planning and decision tasks to learn preferences and task-specific strategies [3, 4]. Large-scale systems in industry also learn preferences from behavior: for example, people's behavior on social networking sites is used to infer what movies, articles, and photos they will like [5].


In this paper, a novel shape descriptor, based on empty morphological skeleton subsets, is proposed. This new descriptor possesses many properties required for practical shape recognition i.e. it is non-specific, robust to scale, rotation and boundary variations. One advantage of the proposed descriptor is that the empty morphological skeleton subset pattern may be used to distinguish different objects even with an identical union of skeleton subsets. Implementation of this descriptor, for recognition of objects, has been successfully realized using neural networks.


During the Anti-Japanese War and the Liberation War, Mao Ze Dong attached great importance to slogans and adopted right slogan tactics. Slogan tactic thoughts are the organic unity of Mao's thoughts in politics, military, economy and culture. Mao Ze Dong gave a series of analysis of the usage, principle and utilization of slogans.


An analysis of the longitudinal aerodynamics of the Shuttle Orbiter in the hypersonic flight regime is made through the use of computational fluid dynamics (CFD). Particular attention is given to establishing the cause of the 'pitching moment anomaly' which occurred on the Orbiter's first flight and to computing the aerodynamics of a complete Orbiter configuration at flight conditions. Data from ground based facilities as well as Orbiter flight data are used to validate the computed results. Analysis shows that the 'pitching moment anomaly' is a real gas chemistry effect which cannot be simulated in ground-based facilities. Computed flight aerodynamics for the Orbiter are within 5 percent of the measured flight values and trim bodyflap deflections are predicted to within 10 percent.


We provide a compilation of 146 species of soft scale insects that are considered either pests or represent a threat to United States agriculture. Included for each species, where applicable, is reference to origin and date of introduction if applicable, establishment in the United States; pest or threat status In the United States along with a validation citation, principle hosts, and biogeographical region of origin.


based their judgments on the wider ground that to hold the contract unlawful did not involve the enforcement of such a law. Thus: " These courts will not enforce such laws [i.e., penal, revenue and political] at the instance of the foreign country. It is quite another matter to say that we will take no notice of them."' " . . . it is wrong to say that one shall take no notice of laws of this kind, as distinct from saying that one shall not enforce such laws." 10 " . . . this is not a case in which such a law is sought to be enforced either directly or indirectly." " The distinction between enforcement and recognition is nowhere more important in the conflict of laws than in the field of foreign public law. The courts lack jurisdiction to enforce such rules, i.e., to assist a foreign State or its nominee to obtain some remedy or award thereunder, but (public policy apart ") there is no reason why they should be denied all or any effect when they form part of a legal system which is relevant under an English choice of law rule. A failure to distinguish between enforcement and recognition (together with the extended meaning which has been given to the word " penal" ) has confused the whole of the field which is comprehended in Dicey's Rule 22, and the Court of Appeal's exposition of the true position is accordingly much to be welcomed.


Solid tumour therapy with chemotherapeutic drugs is hampered by a number of factors resulting in poor results and failure of initially promising drugs. From the application of Tumour Necrosis Factor α in the melphalan-based Isolated Limb perfusion some lessons could be learned. Most importantly, combination of treatment approaches, certainly when multiple targets are involved, increases the effectiveness of the therapy. Clinical outcome may improve dramatically when the tumour pathophysiology is changed in such a way that co-administered chemotherapeutics are more active or are capable of reaching the tumour cells better. Here some of the methodologies and drug combinations which improve solid tumour therapy through acting on the tumour pathophysiology are discussed.


Telon M-CA is a novel class of metal-free acid dyes.It has the following features: dye up-take above 98%,excellent compatibility,higher building up properties and good levelness.Compared with Telon series dyes,Telon M-CA has advantages of better thermal stability,higher soaping and light fastness.


The global increasing of bacterial drug resistance as well as the serious side effects of pharmaceutical chemicals, have encouraged researchers to focus on alternative drugs. Plants are able to make compounds with important biological effects such as anti-bacterial activities. Therefore research about anti-bacterial activities of plants as a natural source has been considered to find out a substitution to chemical synthesis. The quality and quantity of hexane extract from Anthemis coelopoda Boiss. (Family Compositae) roots and stems were analyzed by GC and GC/MS. The anti-bacterial activities of the chloroform extract of Anthemis coelopoda Boiss. roots and stems were evaluated by well diffusion method and disc diffusion method against four bacterial strains including: Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhi. Finally minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) values by microdilution method were determined. The yields of the roots and stems on dry weight basis were 1%. Twenty-two components in roots and stems (95%) were identified. The major components including: Ascorbic acid 2, 6-dihexadecanoate (32.1%), 1, 2Benzenedicarboxylic acid, bis (2-methylpropyl) ester (14.8%) and Trioctylamine (6.08%). Maximum inhibition zone (12 mm) of the extract was obtained against Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis, at concentration of 6mg/ml and the best results of MIC and MBC were obtained for Bacillus subtilis at the concentration of 0.187 mg/ml and 0.375 mg/ml respectively. This study showed that Anthemis coelopoda Boiss. can be considered a natural antibacterial source.


One often hears that digital media is changing the economics of the media marketplace. That is overstating things somewhat—the basic economics has not changed, but some economic factors clearly have, and that raises new issues and requires a rethinking of traditional approaches, particularly when dealing with digital media and the Internet. This edited volume addresses many of those issues and changes, combining several chapters dealing with some fundamental issues of the economics of information and information goods, with other sections focusing on issues of particular interest to Internet publishers and digital media providers. As such, it provides a good introduction to the general issues and a guide for information goods and services producers in how to extract value from their products. The applications of the theoretical examinations are primarily to Internet-related goods and services, and a variety of online publishing applications (news and academic) in particular. After a short introduction by the editors, the book starts off in earnest with an excellent foundational chapter by J. Bradford DeLong and A. Michael Froomkin, titled "Speculative Microeconomics for Tomorrow's Economy." The chapter addresses the quixotic nature of information as an economic good, features that make it difficult to apply traditional microeconomic methods. Although acknowledging the public good aspects of information that illustrate some of those problematic aspects and creates problems for traditional models, they take an interesting and somewhat different tack by arguing that the problem lies more with the traditional market model, rather than with the distinctive nature of information goods. DeLong and Froomkin use a variety of Internet-based information goods and services (including public beta releases, shop-bots, online auctions, metasites, and collaborative filtering) to illustrate the failures of traditional laissez-faire market models. They argue that the shift to an information economy will increasingly reveal the flaws of traditional laissez-faire market models, and call for the transition to a different market rationale. Or, in the absence of reconceptualizing markets and THE JOURNAL OF MEDIA ECONOMICS, 17(1), 79–81 Copyright © 2004, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.


Abstract Pure rotational spectra of seven isotopomers of Ne-OCS (Ne-OCS, 22 Ne-OCS, 21 Ne-OCS, Ne- 18 OCS, Ne-O 13 CS, Ne-OC 34 S, and Ne-OC 33 S have been investigated using a pulsed jet cavity microwave Fourier transform spectrometer. Rotational and centrifugal distortion constants have been determined for all species, as well as the nuclear quadrupole coupling constants of 33 S and 21 Ne in Ne-OC 33 S and 21 Ne-OCS, respectively. Harmonic force field analyses have been performed which account for the variations in the distortion constants between the isotopomers. Effective and ground state average structures have been obtained and are discussed in light of the nuclear quadrupole coupling constants and of dipole moment measurements. The determined coupling constants have provided a means of comparing the effects of perturbation of the electronic structures of both constituents upon complexation. An electrostatic model has been applied to calculate the 21 Ne coupling constants and a possible source of their disagreement with experiment is discussed.


The book gives a brief introduction to the 100 years' seamless steel production history (1855~1951) and especially describes the invention of cross-rolling piercing mill and pilger mitl by Mannesmann brothers and the findings of conical roll and barrel roll piercing mills by Stiefel.


A 4-40 UMC-2A, 321 stainless steel welded stud (4.77 +- 0.38 mm or 0.188 +- 0.015 in.) could not be adapted to production because of its short length. A longer stud with a necked area was developed for the production process. After percussive arc welding the stud, the material above the necked ared was removed by applying torque leaving a welded stud which meets the original design requirements. The torque applied to remove excess material provides quality acceptance of the welded part.


After collagenase treatment and mechanical disruption, acetycholinestrase (AChE) activity on the surface of individual flexor brevis muscle fibers fell by 88%. During the next 48 hr in culture, surface AChE activity continued to decline, while intracellular activity changed little. After 1 week in culture total muscle fiber AChE activity fell to very low levels and intracellular AChe activity could no longer be detected, probably as a result of reduced synthesis and rapid externalization of intracellular AChE. Apart from the removal of most of the surface activity, cultured muscle fibers had similar AChE activity to muscle fibers that had been denervated in vivo, suggesting that the change observed in culture reflect the loss of neuro muscular interaction and not to any contributory effects of the dissociation process.


Resightings of recognizable individual Florida manatees, Trichechus manatus latirostris, in Sarasota Bay provided information on life history and reproductive parameters. These parameters have been documented at winter aggregation sites, but few data existed for Florida's west coast at non-winter sites. Life history data are needed to estimate annual reproduction and survival rates and construct population models for manatees along west central Florida. Observations of 113 recognizable manatees of known sex sighted between 1993 and 1997 indicated a 1: 1 sex ratio. Fifty-three females produced at least 55 calves during five years of observation. Two large, presumably sexually mature females were never observed with calves in over five years of monitoring. Not surprisingly, several reproductive parameters matched those measured in previous studies at winter sites with a mean of 1.8 seasons of calf dependence, 2.2 seasons between births, and age of sexual maturity at 3–4 yr. Birth rates, fecundity, and proportions of females with calves varied only slightly among investigations.


1 See Lora and Márquez (1998) for a detailed description of these calculations , which compare earnings between workers having the same personal characteristics (education, experience, age and family status) and occupying similar jobs in different countries (department manager of a given size company , secretary, driver, construction worker, etc.). The calculation method ensures that the comparisons are not affected by changes in the composition of the labor supply or in employment, or by price phenomena at the macroeconomic level (inflation, exchange rate fluctuations, etc.). The world's largest per capita income inequalities are found in Latin America. The region's extreme income differences among workers lie at the heart of this inequality. Anywhere in the world, higher wages are paid to workers who are more skilled or occupy management and administrative positions than to workers having little education, who are normally placed in manual production jobs. Globalization and the introduction of new labor-saving technologies have widened these gaps in both industrial and developing countries. The gaps in Latin America, however, have widened even more rapidly. Figure 2.1 is based on worldwide wage information by occupation, and uses the (relative) wage gap in industrial countries as a basis of comparison. The figure shows that Latin America's gaps are twice as wide as those of the industrial countries. In the Asian " four tigers, " wage differentials between office workers and manual laborers are similar to those in industrial countries. Relative wage gaps are larger among other developing countries in Asia and Africa, but they are less pronounced than in Latin America. Further, while the wage differentials in these groups of countries have gradually been approaching those of industrial countries, this trend was interrupted in Latin America at the end of the 1980s, and has been on the rise during the 1990s. 1 These earnings gaps between occupations illustrate why they serve as a conduit for the main factors in labor income differentiation. The most substantial differences arise from educational levels and from how the market remunerates different types of education. However , these are not the only factors in income differentiation. Persons with more experience earn more; men are paid more than women; and people with permanent jobs in formal sector enterprises earn more than those working for informal sector businesses or the self-employed. There are also differences between rural and urban areas and between economic sectors. In addition, some differentiation factors …


Abstract We study webs in quantum type C, focusing on the rank three case. We define a linear pivotal category
$\textbf {Web}(\mathfrak {sp}_{6})$
 diagrammatically by generators and relations, and conjecture that it is equivalent to the category
$\textbf {FundRep}(U_q(\mathfrak {sp}_{6}))$
 of quantum
$\mathfrak {sp}_{6}$
 representations generated by the fundamental representations, for generic values of the parameter q. We prove a number of results in support of this conjecture, most notably that there is a full, essentially surjective functor
$\textbf {Web}(\mathfrak {sp}_{6}) \rightarrow \textbf {FundRep}(U_q(\mathfrak {sp}_{6}))$
 , that all
$\textrm {Hom}$
 -spaces in
$\textbf {Web}(\mathfrak {sp}_{6})$
 are finite-dimensional, and that the endomorphism algebra of the monoidal unit in
$\textbf {Web}(\mathfrak {sp}_{6})$
 is one-dimensional. The latter corresponds to the statement that all closed webs can be evaluated to scalars using local relations; as such, we obtain a new approach to the quantum
$\mathfrak {sp}_{6}$
 link invariants, akin to the Kauffman bracket description of the Jones polynomial.


Access to quality, accurate and timely weather information is important. In order to improve weather information quality and quantity, increasing the number of operational Automatic Weather Stations, also referred to in this document as densification should be prioritized. In this paper, we provide research findings of a survey conducted from November 2014 to January 2015 to ascertain the status of weather stations in Uganda. Weather station density was found to be sparse and yet many of the available weather stations were non-functional. Based on the distribution of available operational weather stations, we are proposing densification strategies including climatological zones, security and land policies. To achieve sustainability of the weather stations, we commend improving human resources aspects among other things.


This article talks about the concept of children's education according to Nasih Ulwan. Nashih Ulwan is a staunch in the Islamic movement devoted them to preaching and joins the Muslim Brotherhood. Nashih Ulwan said that the the most important and cared for responsibility by Islam is the responsibility of educators to children. They are eligible to receive guidance, instruction, and education from them. Educators are referred to here other than the parent, also including teachers in formal schools, among teachers in the education of children. Explicitly Nashih Ulwan 5 educational methods suggested in the book, namely: 1) Education by example, 2) Education with customs (repetition). 3) Education with advice, 4) education by providing care and supervision. 5) Education through punishman. Ulwan emphases on children's education; 1) Attention in terms of faith in children. 2) Caution in terms of morals. 3) Attention children mentally and intellectually. 4). In terms of physical child's attention. 5) The attention in terms of the psychology of children. 6) Attention in terms of social development.


Image compression is process to remove the redundant information from the image so that only essential information can be stored to reduce the storage size, transmission bandwidth and transmission time. The essential information is extracted by various transforms techniques such that it can be reconstructed without losing quality and information of the image. In this paper comparative analysis of image compression is done by three transform method, which are Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT),Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT) & Hybrid (DCT+DWT) Transform. Matlab programs were written for each of the above method and concluded based on the results obtained that hybrid DWT-DCT algorithm performs much better than the standalone JPEG-based DCT, DWT algorithms in terms of peak signal to noise ratio (PSNR), as well as visual perception at higher compression ratio. KeywordsImage compression, DCT, DWT, HYBRID (DCT+DWT). Introduction: The main purpose of image compression is to reduce the redundancy and irrelevancy present in the image, so that it can be stored and transferred efficiently. The compressed image is represented by less number of bits compared to original. Hence, the required storage size will be reduced, consequently maximum images can be stored and it can transferred in faster way to save the time, transmission bandwidth. In image compression methodology, generally spectral and spatial redundancy should be reduced as much as possible. There are many applications where the image compression is used to effectively increased efficiency and performance. Applications are like Health Industries, Retail Stores, Security Industries, Museums and Galleries etc. For this purpose many compression techniques i.e. scalar/vector quantization, differential encoding, predictive image coding, transform coding have been introduced. Among all these, transform coding is most efficient especially at low bit rate [1]. Transform coding relies on the principle that pixels in an image show a certain level of correlation with their neighbouring pixels. Consequently, these correlations can be exploited to predict the value of a pixel from its respective neighbours. A transformation is, therefore, defined to map this spatial (correlated) data into transformed (uncorrelated) coefficients. Clearly, the transformation should utilize the fact that the information content of an individual pixel is relatively small i.e., to a large extent visual contribution of a pixel can be predicted using its neighbours. Depending on the compression techniques the image can be reconstructed with and without perceptual loss. In lossless compression, the reconstructed image after compression is numerically identical to the original image. In lossy compression scheme, the reconstructed image contains degradation relative to the original. Lossy technique causes image quality degradation in each compression or decompression step. In general, lossy techniques provide for greater compression ratios than lossless techniques i.e. Lossless compression gives good quality of compressed images, but yields only less compression whereas the lossy compression techniques [2] lead to loss of data with higher compression ratio .The approaches for lossy compression include lossy predictive coding and transform coding. Transform coding, which applies a Fourier-related transform such as DCT and Wavelet Transform such as DWT are the most commonly used approach [3]. In this paper we made a comparative analysis of three transform coding techniques, viz. DCT, DWT and hybrid i.e. combination of both DCT and DWT based on different performance measure such as Peak Signal to Noise Ratio (PSNR), Mean Square Error (MSE), Compression Ratio (CR), computational complexity. This paper is divided as follows :Section 2 explains Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT) algorithm; Section 3 describes the Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT) algorithm ; combination of both DCT and DWT algorithm explained in Section 4 ; Section 5 included comparative analysis and result in tabular form and in last Section gives the conclusions. 2 DISCRETE COSINE TRANSFORM (DCT) Typical image compression block is shown in fig.1, which explains flow of process involved in image compression. Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT) exploits cosine functions, it transform a signal from spatial representation into frequency domain. The DCT represents an image as a sum of sinusoids of varying magnitudes and frequencies. Fig.1 Image compression model DCT has the property that, for a typical image most of the visually significant information about an image is concentrated in just few coefficients of DCT. After the computation of DCT coefficients, they are normalized according to a quantization table with different scales provided by the JPEG standard computed by psycho visual evidence. Selection of quantization table affects the entropy and compression ratio. The value of quantization is inversely proportional to quality of reconstructed image, better mean square error and better compression ratio. In a lossy compression technique, during a step called Quantization, the less important frequencies are discarded, Then the most important frequencies that remain are used to retrieve the image in decomposition process. [4]. After quantization, quantized coefficients are rearranged in a zigzag order for further compressed by an efficient lossy coding algorithm . DCT has many advantages: (1) It has the ability to pack most information in fewest coefficients. (2) It minimizes the block like appearance called blocking artifact that results when boundaries between sub-images become visible [4]. An image is represented as a two dimensional matrix, 2-D DCT is used to compute the DCT Coefficients of an image. The 2-D DCT for an NXN input sequence can be defined as follows [5]: D (i,j) = √ ( ) ( )∑ ∑ ( )


Although steel reinforcing bars can be used as post-installed anchors to integrate new structural members to the existing structural system in the seismic retrofit of reinforced concrete structures, premature cone-type concrete failure can reduce the bars' efficiency when they are anchored into low-strength concrete. This study investigates pullout behaviors of fully and partially bonded chemical anchors post-installed in low-strength concrete. The test parameters are the embedment length, the bonded length of the anchors, and the humidity and dust surface conditions of the anchor holes. The pullout behavior is examined through the load-displacement curves, modes of failure, and anchorage strengths of specimens. The results show that the pullout performance of partially bonded, post-installed chemical anchors embedded in low-strength concrete is significantly better than conventional fully bonded post-installed chemical anchors, which suggests that partially bonded anchoring of deformed bars could be useful for anchorages in seismic retrofit applications. A model is proposed for predicting the pullout strength of anchors that fail due to a combination of concrete cone and bond failures. A good correlation is found between the model predictions and test results from this study compared with previously-published experimental findings.


Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) is rapidly emerging as a popular mechanism among policy makers to increase the penetration of renewable in the electricity markets, requiring the electricity supply industry to include a minimum threshold level of electricity generation from renewable energy sources. Sri Lankan energy policy has set a target of 10% of grid electricity by 2015 to come from mini-hydro, biomass including dendro power and wind energy, which have been identified as the three leading, sustainable, non-conventional forms of renewable energy promoted in Sri Lanka for electricity generation to feed into the national grid. The present installed capacity of grid-connected non-conventional renewable energy based electricity generation in Sri Lanka is around 100 MW and these plants are mainly connected to the primary distribution system. All these plants contribute to the nation's energy requirement generating only a small fraction of total generation amounting to approximately 2.5%. Further the long-term least-cost power generation expansion plan has given rise to the installation of oil-fired and coal-fired thermal plants to meet the increasing demand without giving adequate consideration to the non-conventional technologies as supply-side options. The study presented in this paper investigates the impact of the RPS of 10% on the least-cost power generation expansion plan considering aforementioned renewable technologies as supply-side options together with their technical potential and economic feasibility. The paper also examines the impact on emissions with this new renewable energy policy. It has been determined that this target can be achieved with an additional cost of US$ 93.18 million on the government by 2015. The results also show that mini-hydro is the only mature non-conventional technology. Wind power and dendro power require substantial government subsidies if they are to play a role in RPS.


The emerge of semantic data on the web puts the development of dynamic web applications to the test. On the one hand, we witness more and more semantic information becoming available on the web. On the other hand, we can see web-based applications evolve from server-side applications to responsive client-side applications running in a web browser. In this paper we present a framework that bridges the gap between semantic data defined in OWL ontologies and client-side web applications implemented in JavaScript.


Abstract : This research deals with low temperature investigations of elastomeric polymers, with particular emphasis on their use as seals at cryogenic temperatures. The present report starts with a study of correlations between physical properties and cryogenic seal performance based on work previously reported. Best performing elastomers and most significant physical properties are summarized. Seal and force decay measurements were completed. A constant force experiment was designed to investigate methods and materials for reduction of flange loads. A technique for placing a thin layer of indium between the elastomer and the flange was developed. This elastomer-indium seal induces the required flange load by a factor of three, and in addition makes a more reliable seal than the plain elastomer. Appendices include a state of the art review of low temperature static seals and a paper on the design of elastomeric seals for cryogenic temperatures. (Author)


Join the Latin American & Iberian Institute and Universities Libraries for a presentation with Dr. Jacqueline Avila, a Richard E. Greenleaf Visiting Library Scholar, who will discuss her current research on Mexican film music during the first half of the twentieth century. This is an interdisciplinary project that examines the function of music in the prominent film genres developed during Mexico's silent (1896–1930) and early sound period (1931–1952). Looking at several examples of popular, regional, and orchestral music in select films, Dr. Avila examines how music contributed to creating and accentuating cinematic tropes and archetypes considered central to Mexican cultural nationalism.


The morphogenesis process, which allows the full growth of living beings from individual cells, has been very attractive to create algorithms that control agent swarms because, like biological systems, it is distributed, robust and not dependent on external positioning. One of its key issues is how to specify complex swarm three-dimensional shape formation and the paradigm is also able to implement shapes with unlimited canonical dimensions and create Hyper-Surface shapes. In this paper we present an implementation approach of a distributed shape formation algorithm inspired in the morphogenesis paradigm and its performance simulation results against all the factors and parameters of the algorithm. We will show the advantages of this approaches related to the exibility, robustness and applicability.


The new paradigm of education development actualizes the problem of the formation of highly qualified teaching staff who masterfully mastered communicative competence, which is based on communicative skills. In the face of growing competition in the higher education market, effective communications management is becoming increasingly important. Among the various ways to attract consumers of educational services to study at higher educational institutions, communications are becoming more and more relevant - one of the most important components of the activities of higher educational institutions, provides the process of transferring the necessary information about the range of educational services to consumers. The main participants in the educational services market are: the state represented by executive authorities at different levels, higher education institutions, organizations and enterprises, households, and individual citizens.


The famous EkVP holds in complete metric spaces and its validity implies the completeness of the underlying metric space. A quasi-metric space is a pair (X, d), where d satisfies all the axioms of a metric but symmetry: it is possible that d(x,y) be different from d(y,x) for some x,y. This, apparently minor, modification of the axioms of a metric drastically changes the properties of these spaces, mainly in what concern completeness and compactness (there are 7 notions of Cauchy sequence yielding 14 notions of completeness and the known characterizations of compactness in metric spaces fail in the quasi-metric case). The aim of this talk is to present some versions of EkVP in quasi-metric spaces in connection with the completeness properties of these spaces.


4,4′-(Hexafluoro-isopropylidene) diphthalic anhydride-2,3,5,6-tetramethyl-1,4-phenylenediamine (6FDA-TeMPD) was synthesized and reacted with polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) to form an ABA-type triblock copolymer by atom transfer radical polymerization. The solid-state and optical properties of the resulting copolymers were systematically investigated, and their electronic states were analyzed. As the POSS concentration increased, the transparency across the entire wavelength range increased. In the ABA-type triblock copolymers, a new transition was observed between the highest occupied molecular orbital in POSS and the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital in 6FDA-TeMPD because of their high molecular size dispersion. Since the refractive index of 6FDA-TeMPD decreased linearly as the POSS concentration increased, the refractive index of the ABA-type triblock copolymers of 6FDA-TeMPD with POSS could be easily controlled. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2017. © 2017 Society of Plastics Engineers


Abstract The formation of hydrotalcite in mixed suspensions of magnesium hydroxide and aluminum hydroxycarbonate was found to be influenced by factors affecting heterocoagulation of the separate particles. A model of the system employing large particles of magnesium hydroxide exposed to an aluminum hydroxycarbonate suspension demonstrated rapid hydrotalcite formation when pH conditions were adjusted to prohibit heterocoagulation. Scanning electron micrographs of the particles indicated that nucleation and growth of the mixed crystal was occurring directly on the magnesium hydroxide surface. The appearance of hydrotalcite was delayed in mixed suspensions wherein heterocoagulation resulted in an occlusive coating of aluminum hydroxycarbonate on the magnesium hydroxide. Formation of hydrotalcite occurred sooner in systems having higher initial pH values presumably due to earlier exposure of magnesium hydroxide surfaces resulting from more rapid aging of the aluminum hydroxycarbonate coating. Mixed suspensions of magnesium hydroxide and other aluminum-containing hydroxides, wherein an occlusive coating did not form on the magnesium hydroxide particles, demonstrated rapid hydrotalcite formation.


The article describes in detail the process of initial public distribution of securities, and identifies its features. The author focuses on the functions of the underwriter and its role in the implementation of an IPO conducted by the company not only to attract additional capital, but also to extract income


T

his article proposes a methodology to study Shakespearean intertexts in contemporary complex TV series. While the presence of Shakespeare's inter-texts in contemporary complex TV seems ubiquitous, a sustained and theoretically focused academic study of the impact of Shakespeare in these works has not been produced. Reviewers and social media users' comments have proposed readings of the series pointing at the importance of the series' redemptive qualities. Taking Hannah Wolfe Eisner's "Into the Middle of Things: Traumatic Redemption and the Politics of Form" as basis, I am presenting a theoretical model to study serial Shakespeares, with which I am referring to a limited corpus of American complex TV series appropriating Shakespeare's texts, as narratives embedded in a cultural politics of trauma and redemption. Additionally, it shows that such series potentially work as guidelines to study the overall impact of traumatic redemption in other contemporary adaptations of Shakespearean plays.


We always use projection transformation to display and draw 3D object. With the aid of matrix transformation algorithm, this paper deduces projection transformation matrix of 3D object's three views, gets these points'planar coordinate, then we can present the three views. It has practical application value.


Cruising for parking has long been perceived as a major source of congestion and emissions in urban areas, but recent empirical work has suggested that parking may not be as onerous as folklore suggests, and that the amount of vehicle travel attributable to cruising is minimal. In this paper, we reconcile these perspectives through a dynamic programming model of parking search, and empirical insights from a large-scale GPS dataset in San Francisco and the California Household Travel Survey. We first draw a conceptual distinction between parking search, the time between the driver's decision to park and when a parking space is taken; and cruising, defined as excess vehicle travel from parking search. In places with little or no through traffic, up to half of traffic can be searching for parking, but cruising can be zero. We then operationalize this distinction through a dynamic programming model. The model predicts that when parking is perceived to be scarce, drivers are more willing to take a convenient available space, even if it is some distance from their destination. Counter-intuitively, scarce parking can even suppress vehicle travel as perceived parking scarcity leads drivers to stop short of their destinations and accept a longer walk to their destinations. Empirical data from California indicate that neighborhood density (a proxy for parking availability) has little impact on cruising for parking, but increases walk distances from parking locations to final destinations. We conclude that cruising for parking is self-regulating, and that in certain circumstances parking scarcity can even reduce vehicle travel. Millard-Ball, Hampshire, Weinberger: The curious lack of cruising for parking 2


Corrosion is an ever-present problem in all different environments and particularly in marine applications. A simple model of coplanar electrodes will be used when simulating the effects of temperature and salinity on galvanic corrosion of metals in seawater. This investigation will look at both Nickel-Copper Alloy 400 (Monel) and a Nickel-Chromium-Molybdenum Alloy (Inconel 625) when paired with HY-80 steel. COMSOL Multiphysics will be used to solve Laplace's equation for the electropotential distribution within the electrolyte (seawater) under different environmental conditions including electrolyte layer depth and salinity. The simulation results will be used to characterize the amount of corrosion that can be expected for the scenarios analyzed. Introduction/Background Corrosion is known as the breakdown of materials, namely metals, through some chemical reaction within their environment. Corrosion is a consideration in virtually all manufacturing applications. Each year, industries invest time and money into trying to curtail the effects of corrosion. Many different corrosion environments have been studied and monitored to develop corrosion impedance methods. There are different types of corrosion, including galvanic corrosion. Galvanic corrosion is an electrochemical process that occurs when two dissimilar metals are in electrical contact with one another, and are in a conducting environment known as an electrolyte. Galvanic corrosion is particularly prevalent in marine applications because seawater acts as a naturally free flowing electrolyte.


numbers in this study were small, however, and it may have been underpowered for outcome analysis but results were encouraging. !5.17 A recent randomised double-blind trial by Manchkanti et aF! looked at epiduroscopy with adhesiolysis plus targeted local and steroid injection compared with a control group who had epiduroscopy to the sacral level and injection of local with steroid but without adhesiolysis. Significant improvement with regard to pain relief and improved function in the adhesiolysis group was maintained at one, three and six months compared to baseline and control group, with 57% patients showing significant improvement. Although numbers in the study were small, this study described no major adverse effects with this technique and medium term benefits are encouraging. It is acknowledged that further follow up studies and larger randsomised controlled trials are required to evaluate the longer term benefits of this promising technique."


Earnings information is paramount for investors because they can provide an overview of how dividends will be paid when investing their capital. Income smoothing is the practice of profit manipulation to reduce fluctuations in net income over a period of time. This study aims to determine how company size, financial leverage and audit quality affect earnings smoothing in manufacturing companies listed on the Indonesian Stock Exchange over the period 2017-2020. Targeted sampling is used as the sampling method, sample companies based on criteria was 31 companies with an observation period of 4 years, 2017 to 2020, so that 124 research samples were obtained. Eckel index measuring income smoothing using the technique of logistic regression analysis. Theory of eckel is used to calculate income smoothing. Hypothesis testing with logistic regression analysis. Research resultshow that company size, financial leverage and audit quality all have an impact on income smoothing. Firm size has no significant positive effect on income smoothing, financial leverage as measured by debt to equity ratio has no significant negative effect on income smoothing, while audit quality has a significant and negative effect on income smoothing.


The purpose of this article is to clarify the relations between the way of spatial thought and the social structure in early medieval Japan by investigating the writing pattern of spatial representation of title deeds (shomon), including various types of documents such as baiken (land transaction document), shobun-jo (inheritance document), kishin-jo (donation document). The study area here is Yamato Province (present Nara Prefecture), where numerous documents have survived since the early medieval period. The study period (783 to 1250) are recognized as Heian and the first half of Kamakura Periods.For historians, such documents are the principal material for research. Recently, there has been a renewed interest in the attitude of people toward documentation of right in ancient and medieval Japan. Those studies tell us interesting facts, but almost all of them remain fragmented and discuss only some interesting aspects of documents. Except Kanno (1994), comprehensive research about the writing pattern of spatial representation of documents is lacking indeed.We need to refer to previous discussions concerned with land registers, basic documents of land management and those with land management in ancient and medieval Japan. In the discipline of historical geography, Kinda (1985, 1993) has achieved excellent systematic studies from this perspective: mainly based on empirical research of grid patterns (jori plan), he has elucidated the relationship with various types of small area place names, including the four-edges (shiishi) and territorial units such as county (gun) and "hundred" (go). It is considered that such a focus on the jori plan would be quite effective for clarifying institutional changes of land management.This category of research, however, has the drawback that different spatial representations are usually explained only with changing land management. Thus, different representations due to different actors as well as their regional differences tend to be difficult to examine. To further this standpoint, it is necessary to explore how the changing process of institutions was related to the changing process of document forms and in what representations the process was reflected.To deal with these problems, statistical approaches were selected. To begin with, matrices whose cells consists of binary data (0 or 1), need to be prepared from title deeds. The data sources here are Heian-ibun and Kamakura-ibun, both of which are compiled historical records. Generally, one sample was extracted from one document. In some cases, plural samples are extracted from one document, when the contracts of two or more places are recorded in one document. Through this extraction, 989 samples were prepared finally, and they were arranged in rows of the data matrices. In the columns, the attributes of the samples were arranged, and the attributes were classified into the two types: one concerns the spatial representations found in the documents like jori, shiishi, small place name and territorial units (gun, go and so on), and the other concerns the situation of document preparation such as period, area, social class of document maker, land size and land use.In the third section, the context of document preparation is discussed. It is quantitatively confirmed that the number of documents increased since the 12th century. This shows the penetration of the mentality that documentation of rights was essential in the alienation of property.In the fourth section, relations between each of the spatial representations and each of the contexts of document preparation are analyzed individually based on the two-dimensional contingency tables (see Table 2). As a result, Kindas schema that difference of period causes the variation of spatial representations, especially of jori, is confirmed quantitatively.


This study aims to develop a prototype of therapeutic language acts for the intervention in children with behavioral spectrum autism. This was a research and development study employing the R2D2 (Recursive, Reflective, Design, and Development) model. It consisted of product design, product validation, tryout, product revision, and mass production. The prototype of therapeutic language acts was collaboratively developed by involving the developer, expert team (a language expert and a clinical expert), and practitioner (a therapist). The data were collected through observations, field notes, and questionnaires. The results show that the developed prototype of therapeutic language acts satisfies the criteria for accuracy, utility, and appropriateness. The conclusion is that the prototype of therapeutic language acts for the intervention in children with behavioral spectrum autism satisfies the criteria for acceptability and can be used as a reference to deal with children with behavioral disorder autism.


With the growing expansion of data size, in-depth s tudy on the social network clustering algorithm get s prominence. A wide range of researches, from the sp ectral clustering based on modularity, the hierarch ical overlapping clustering algorithm to clustering algo rithm based on local information, are mainly based on local neighbor information. The current network nod e cluster typically has a lower time complexity, th us more suitable for large-scale network data sets. In this paper a detailed analysis of the LPA algorith m based on local information is done. The algorithm is not only able to effectively tap the cluster structure of social networks, but also the concept is more simple and e asy to be understood. Further research and analysis show that the LPA algorithm in the network cluster structure of the division can be further enhanced, so this article is committed to this direction. The LP A algorithm is proposed to improve the LPA-the SNA algorithm.


The abundance of cis-regulatory polymorphisms in humans suggests that many may have been important in human evolution, but evidence for their role is relatively rare. Four common polymorphisms in the 5Ј promoter region of factor VII (F7), a coagulation factor, have been shown to affect its transcription and protein abundance both in vitro and in vivo. Three of these polymorphisms have low-frequency alleles that decrease expression of F7 and may provide protection against myocardial infarction (heart attacks). The fourth polymorphism has a minor allele that increases the level of transcription. To look for evidence of natural selection on the cis-regulatory variants flanking F7, we genotyped three of the polymorphisms in six Old World populations for which we also have data from a group of putatively neutral SNPs. Our population genetic analysis shows evidence for selection within humans; surprisingly, the strongest evidence is due to a large increase in frequency of the high-expression variant in Singaporean Chinese. Further characterization of a Japanese population shows that at least part of the increase in frequency of the high-expression allele is found in other East Asian populations. In addition, to examine interspecific patterns of selection we sequenced the homologous 5Ј noncoding region in chimpanzees, bonobos, a gorilla, an orangutan, and a baboon. Analysis of these data reveals an excess of fixed differences within transcription factor binding sites along the human lineage. Our results thus further support the hypothesis that regulatory mutations have been important in human evolution. C HANGE in transcriptional regulation is a crucial Here we examine the patterns of variation and change contributor to phenotypic evolution (Raff and over time in the well-characterized cis-regulatory region multiple evolutionary forces. Genetic changes in cis-regulatory sequences controlling Factor VII is a vitamin K-dependent protease essential transcription can be as important to gene function as for coagulation. When blood vessel injury occurs, tissue any change in coding sequences; indeed, it has been factor is released and binds to circulating F7, allowing hypothesized that the changes distinguishing humans proteolysis of F7 to its active form and the initiation of from our closest relatives reside in cis-regulatory regions blood coagulation through the production of thrombin (King and Wilson 1975; Wilson 1975). The ubiquity and fibrin clots. The cause of most myocardial infarc-of cis-regulatory polymorphisms that have significant tions is thrombosis, the presence of a blood clot within phenotypic effects in humans (Rockman and Wray a blood vessel (Fuster …


The possibility of the occurrence of a finite-temperature thermodynamic glass transition in a twocomponent Lennard-Jones system is investigated using a numerical domain-wall scaling approach. Our study is based on the assumption that some degrees of freedom of the system get frozen below a certain temperature and act as a source of quenched disorder for the remaining active degrees of freedom. Our results rule out the possibility of the occurrence of a finite-temperature phase transition and suggest a zero-temperature transition with correlation length exponent v \approx 1.5. [S0031-9007(96)00859-9]


This paper describes how transport infrastructure and equipment have been the target of terrorist actions for a number of reasons, among them, it: (1) is relatively accessible; (2) can attract significant public attention and media coverage; (3) is often linked with national symbols such as national airlines; and (4) can affect large number of people in a single strike. The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 in New York and Washington forever modified the way security is approached in the transport sector. The use of transport vehicles as actual weapons of destruction, targeting both passengers in the vehicles and individuals located in the target buildings exposed a whole new degree of vulnerability within the transport system. The second section of the paper examines policy developments in transport security since 2002, which includes a special reference to transport security measures during the Athens 2004 Olympic Games. The third section points to some of the key policy questions that have emerged since 2002, and the fourth section proposes key conclusions for transport decision makers.


A new terrain matching neural network algorithm mode is constructed by means of multi-features fusion, which includes different statistical and geometrical features. By analyzing of the real terrain and the reference terrain, the connective weight function between different nodes is deduced, and the energy formula of the network system is structured. The matching position can be acquired by seeking the least system energy. As the algorithm can utilize different features sufficiently, it has higher matching precision, and also better (robustness to noise) and geometric distortion. The experimental results reveal that its performance is better than that of the conventional.


Due to power limitations and coexistence in ISM bands, up to 50% of the Long Range (LoRa)-frames are corrupted at low signal strengths (≈ -115dBm) and the built-in redundancy schemes in LoRa-Wide Area Network (LoRaWAN) cannot correct the corrupted bytes. To address this, higher Spreading Factors (SF) are used resulting in wasted energy, increased traffic load, and highly compromised effective data rate. Our on-field experiments showed a high correlation in the corruption of close-by frames. We propose a novel Divide & Code (DC) scheme for LoRaWANs as an alternative to using higher SF. DC pre-encodes LoRa payloads using lightweight and memoryless encoding. After receiving a corrupted frame, DC uses a combination of most probable patterns of errors, Time Thresholds (TT), and splitting of payloads into subgroups for batch processing to recover frames effectively and maintain low complexity and timely operation. By implementing DC on our LoRa-testbed, we show it outperforms vanilla-LoRaWAN and Reed-Solomon codes in decoding and energy consumption. Our schemes decode up to 80.5% of corrupted payloads on SF10 by trying only 0.03% of all patterns of error combinations. TT keeps processing times below 2 ms with only minor reductions in the decoding ratio of corrupted payloads. Finally, we showcase that introducing 30% redundancy with DC results in minimum energy consumption and high decoding ratio at low SNRs.


In the classical hashing theory, collision is a coincidence of the values of a function with different arguments. This paper formulates a quantum analogue of the collision property. A variant of formalization of the concept of quantum function resistant to collisions was proposed. Within the framework of this formalization, the theorem (sufficient condition) on the quantum function that is resistant to collisions was proved.


Infrared wave numbers, relative intensities, and percent transmission curves have been obtained for CF3Br and CF3I in the region 400–2200 cm−1. Assignments are given for the observed bands, in which the assignments of Plyler and Acquista for ν2 and ν3 are interchanged. Potential constants were calculated for both molecules by the Wilson FG matrix method. And, finally, the heat content, free energy, entropy, and heat capacity for the ideal gaseous state at 1 atmos pressure were calculated for 12 temperatures from 100°to 1000°K, using a rigid rotator, harmonic oscillator approximation.


We consider the Navier-Stokes equations in R 3 subject to the initial condition with initial velocity field in L 2loc ( R 3 ) such that lim sup R → + ∞ R − 1 k u 0 k L 2 ( B ( R )) < + ∞ . Our aim is to show the local existence of a weak solution, global existence of weak solution if C = 0 and the partial regularity in the sense of Caffarelli-Kohn-Nirenberg.


An improved particle swarm optimization(PSO)algorithm is proposed to optimize the operation of high-dimensional and complex cascade reservoirs.By adopting a differential evolution technique,this combination algorithm can preserve the variety of PSO and avoid the premature of PSO.It was verified by application to a case study and would provide a new approach to optimal operation of cascade reservoirs.


Lake management is a relatively young applied science, built upon fundamental principles developed from research endeavors over about 5 decades, and greatly advanced over the last 20 years. We have learned enough through research and experience to base most decisions on adequate data and sound ecological principles and to develop rational guidelines for application o f a wide range o f techniques. A number of published texts cover the lake and watershed management planning process and address the applicability and details of specific techniques (HoLDREN et al. 2001, McCoMAS 2002, MATISON et al. 2004, COOKE et al. 2005).


Aims: To develop and validate a short recovery questionnaire in collaboration with service users. Method: 126 people with experience of psychosis were recruited via the National Health Service (NHS) Trust and self‐help organisations nationwide. Items were generated from in‐depth interviews into recovery and developed into a 25‐item self‐report questionnaire. Data were factor analysed, and a final 22‐item measure (the QPR) was tested for reliability and validity. To assess validity the QPR was administered together with measures of: psychological distress (the General Health Questionnaire – GHQ); empowerment (the Making Decisions and Empowerment Scale – MDES), and quality of life (the Schizophrenia Quality of Life Scale – SQLS). The QPR was administered again at two weeks to assess reliability. Results: The QPR is comprised of two subscales (intrapersonal and interpersonal). Internal consistency and reliability of the scale was satisfactory. There was a high level of association with MDES, GHQ and SQLS scores, and between QPR scores at time one and time two. Conclusions: The QPR possesses internal consistency, construct validity and reliability, and promises to be a useful tool for assisting clients to set goals, evaluation of these goals and promoting recovery from psychosis in routine service evaluation and research trials.


The goal of this dissertation is to determine precisely how an object is moving in three-dimensional space and to determine the three-dimensional relationship of points on the surface of the object. The only information available is a sequence of photographic images taken as the object moves across the field of view.
The problem can be broken down into two sub-problems: the problem of determining the correspondence of feature points in one image with feature points in the next image, and once correspondence is established, the mathematical analysis required to determine the model and the movement.
The correspondence problem, i.e., matching, is investigated using images of moving blocks. The corners of the blocks constitute the feature points to be put in correspondence between images. Several matching methods are combined into a hierarchy so that if one method fails another method can take over to help complete the matching process. The top level of the hierarchy matches by searching for feature points in the image of expected positions as computed from the expected movement of the object. The next hierarchy level matches an object by its position relative to other objects in the image, a property that is assumed to change only gradually. The next hierarchy level matches a block's faces by relative position. Once faces have been matched, feature points bordering the faces not already matched by expected position can be put in correspondence.
The mathematical analysis of the problem shows that there are an infinite number of geometrically similar solutions, each solution differing from the others by a scaling factor. A specific solution can be found by setting the scaling factor to an arbitrary number. Two views of six feature points or three views of four feature points are required to find the model and movement. For good accuracy, however, considerably more points, two views of twelve or fifteen points, for example, are needed.


: The Construction of the Oath and Its Implementation in the Serawai Tribe Society. Oath practices in religious communities that have been dominated by tradition are considered as oaths originating from the teachings of Islam. Oaths are also known in the Serawai tribal community. The Serawai tribe is an ethnic group with the second largest population living in the Bengkulu area. Most of the Serawai tribal people live in South Bengkulu district, including in the sub-districts of Sukaraja, Seluma, Talo, Pino, Manna, and Seginim. It can be understood that the oath in the Serawai tribal community is truly sacred and sacred because it should not be used as a toy or a joke. And surely he will get the punishment according to what he said.


Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of exercise therapy and relaxation therapy on the level of ACTH and cortisol in workers and to determine, from this information, the effectiveness of applied exercise therapy and relaxation therapy as a nursing intervention method for workers experiencing stress. Method: The subjects were divided into an exercise therapy group. a relaxation therapy group, and a control group. The research design was a nonequivalent control group pretest-posttest design (exercise therapy : n=12. relaxation therapy: n=12, control group, the group without exercise or relaxation therapy: n= 12). The subjects in the exercise therapy group were given a particular intensity for each kp over 30 min, bicycle ergometer which uses the LX PE training system before and after four weeks of training. The subjects did 60-70% exercise intensity exercise therapy for eight weeks The relaxation therapy subjects were trained using a modified Jacobson's relaxation technique for eight weeks. The exercise and relaxation therapy groups were trained at the following intensity for eight weeks (3 times/week, 30 min/day). Changes in the levels of ACTH and cortisol were identified. Two-way ANOVA and multiple range test (SNK: Student Newman Keul) were used to examine the effects of exercise therapy and relaxation therapy at four and eight weeks. Result: 1. Changes in the level of ACTH in the relaxation therapy group were statistically significant at .05 level, and were better than that of the exercise therapy group after eight weeks. But there was no significant difference between the exercise therapy group and the control group. 2. Change in the level of cortisol in the relaxation therapy group were statistically significant at .05 level as compared to the exercise therapy group and the control group after four weeks, but not after eight weeks. Also, the relaxation therapy was statistically significant at .05 level after four weeks compared to before treatment, but there was a tendency toward increased cortisol after eight weeks. Conclusion: Relaxation therapy was found to be more effective in stress treatment than exercise therapy and as such is a desirable nursing intervention method for stress hormone reduction in workers.


ABSTRACT To study the effect of NH3 on nitrogen oxides (NOx) formation and reduction in a fuel-rich zone during pulverized coal combustion, the reaction properties of urea solution with NOx have been investigated using a drop-tube furnace system. The results indicate that NOx could be reduced by urea solution effectively in a fuel-rich zone, when the temperatures are in the range of 1200–1400 ºC. The lower stoichiometric ratio (SR) in the combustion zone makes NOx reduction more effective by the injection of urea solution. High normalized stoichiometric ratio (NSR) results in a high percentage of NOx reduction under strong reducing atmosphere conditions. The maximum NOx reduction efficiency can reach up to 94.1%, of which 13.4% is achieved by injecting urea solution in the fuel-rich zone. The concentration of NOx emission decreased with the increase of quantity of water. However, the extent of decrease was inconspicuous.


"IS THE LORD IN OUR MIDST OR NOT?" Especially in the seasons of Advent and Christmas, the church responds to this plaintive question from Exod 17:7 by welcoming Jesus the Christ as Immanuel, "God with us" (cf. Matt 1:23; 28:20). But both the familiar answer, which is a generous interpretation of the "sign" given to King Ahaz in Isaiah 7, and the import of the question itself are illuminated by taking account of their larger context in biblical traditions.


(1) Background: Bioeconomy aims to reduce dependence on non-renewable resources and foster economic growth through the development of new bio-based products and services. Achieving this goal requires social acceptance and stakeholder engagement in the development of sustainable technologies. The objective of this data article is to provide a dataset derived from a survey with a representative sample of 500 citizens over 18 years old based in the Community of Madrid. (2) Methods: We created a questionnaire on the social acceptance of technologies and bio-based products to later gather the responses using a SurveyMonkey panel for the Community of Madrid through an online CAWI survey; (3) Results: A dataset with a total of 82 columns with all responses is the result of this study. (4) Conclusions: This data article provides not only a valuable representative dataset of citizens of the Community of Madrid but also sufficient resources to replicate the same study in other regions.


Nuclear electron capture posses prominent position among other weak interaction processes occuring in explosive nucleosynthesis. In particular, this process plays important role in the core-colapse of massive stars by modifying the electron to baryon ratio Ye. From a nuclear theory point of view, such processes may be studied by using the same nuclear methods (e.g. the quasi-particle random phase approximation, QRPA), employed in the present work with these used for the one-body charge changing nuclear reactions (β-decay modes, charged-current electron-neutrino absorption by nuclei, etc). In this work we calculate e−-capture cross sections on 56Fe using two different approaches. At first, original cross section calculations are perfored by using the pn-QRPA method considering all the accessible transitions of the final nucleus 56Mn. Secondly, we evaluate the Gamow-Teller strength distributions and obtain the cross sections at the limit of zero-momentum transfer. The agreement between the two methods is very good.


Dielectric measurement was carried out on the polystyrene(PSt) suspensions in electrolyte aqueous solution with different concentration. A couple of dielectric relaxations were found in frequency range from 40 Hz to 110 MHz. On the basis of dielectric model, theoretical analysis for the mechanism of the two relaxations show that low(kilohertz) and high-frequency(megahertz) relaxation were respectively attributed to the diffusion of counter ions in electrical double layer and to the accumulation of space charges on phase interface. Phase parameters and electric information of the microsphere interior were estimated from the relaxation parameters by using Hanai's equation, and reasonable explication was suggested. The validity of the model and method used in this work have been examined by theoretical calculation.


Women's power in sexual relationships is thought to be an important predictor of condom use. However, research on correlates of condom use often relies on participant reporting of behavior, which has questionable validity. We evaluated the association between scores from the modified Sexual Relationship Power Scale (SRPS-M) and biological detection of semen exposure in a prospective study of adult women attending a sexually transmitted infection clinic in Kingston, Jamaica with cervicitis or abnormal vaginal discharge in 2010-2011. At enrollment, women were counseled to avoid sex while on treatment and were asked to return in six days for a follow-up visit. At both study visits, women were administered a questionnaire and had vaginal swabs collected to test for prostate-specific antigen (PSA), a biological marker of recent semen exposure. We found no association at enrollment or follow up between SRPS-M scores and semen exposure, as measured with either self-reported data (p=0.63 and p=0.82, respectively) or PSA positivity. Semen biomarkers could be used to develop and validate new scales on relationship power and self-efficacy related to condom use.


INTRODUCTION Knee cap pain is the most common knee complaint seen in young adults. 1,2,3 Knee pain treatment research is vast. However little research has been conducted with a popular and relatively new treatment called the myofascial release technique (MRT). This treatment is a hands-on soft-tissue injury treatment utilized globally by many health care professionals. The objective of this study was to evaluate propectively the effect of MRT on quadriceps muscle inhibition, pain, strength, electromyography (EMG), and knee function in physically active adults with anterior knee pain or patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS).


The color temperature is one set of adjusting the white balance whenever picking-up images. If the color temperature is not adjusted right, images will fall short of the required effect. This article introduces that the coral filter, color temperature orange (CTO) gel and lights are used to adjust the color temperature, and a white card and non-linear editors. The technique is simple and good.


Underneath the apparent homogeneity of a "positivistic" mentality, Valery has never ceased to wonder about "things Vague and Impure". Trying to understand the interieur and the choses absentes particularly gives an answer to the need to place these "unknown" within the horizon of the possible, beyond the immediate grasp of knowledge. The primary vector of this operation is a thorough investigation of the "ambiguous" sphere of sensitivity, and in particular the uncanny meaning of "my-body".


Theoretical study of a convergence of a deformable body stress state, which is obtained by different approaches, provided in the paper. The following methods are used: Hertzian stress contact theory and finite element analysis. As a result of the research, high convergence of both calculation approaches is reached.


Part I The Coal Supply System of the Former USSR. Part II The Scientific and Technological Problems Associated with Development of the CIS Coal Industry. References. Index.


We previously demonstrated a potent angiogenic effect of a newly developed adenosine‐like agent named COA‐Cl. COA‐Cl exerted tube forming activity in human umbilical vein endothelial cells in the presence of normal human dermal fibroblasts (NHDF). We therefore explored whether and how COA‐Cl modulates gene expression and protein secretion of VEGF, a master regulator of angiogenesis, in NHDF. RT‐PCR and ELISA revealed that COA‐Cl upregulated VEGF mRNA expression and protein secretion in NHDF. HIF1α (hypoxia‐inducible factor 1α), a transcription factor, and PGC‐1α (peroxisome proliferator‐activated receptor‐γ coactivator‐1α), a transcriptional coactivator, are known to positively regulate the VEGF gene. Immunoblot and RT‐PCR analyses revealed that COA‐Cl markedly upregulated the expression of PGC‐1α protein and mRNA. COA‐Cl had no effect on the expression of HIF1α protein and mRNA in both hypoxia and normoxia. Silencing PGC‐1α gene, but not HIF1α gene, by small interfering RNA attenuated the ability of COA‐Cl to promote VEGF secretion. When an N‐terminal fragment of PGC‐1α was cotransfected with its partner transcription factor ERRα (estrogen‐related receptor‐α) in COS‐7 cells, COA‐Cl upregulated the expression of the endogenous VEGF mRNA. However, COA‐Cl had no effect on the expression of VEGF, when HIF1α was transfected. COA‐Cl induces VEGF gene expression and protein secretion in fibroblasts. The transcriptional coactivator PGC‐1α, in concert with ERRα, plays a key role in the COA‐Cl‐induced VEGF production. COA‐Cl‐induced activation of PGC‐1α‐ERRα‐VEGF pathway has a potential as a novel means for therapeutic angiogenesis.


Understanding the association between quasi-indexer ownership and insider trading is important given the externalities that insider trading can impose on shareholders, the importance of quasi-indexers in the capital markets, and their mixed monitoring incentives. The prior literature has produced an inconsistent set of results regarding this association. These results are difficult to interpret because the association between them is likely endogenous, and prior studies have not employed effective identification strategies to address this issue. In this study, we examine the effects of quasi-indexer institutional ownership on insider trading using the plausibly exogenous discontinuity in quasi-indexer ownership around the Russell 1000/2000 index cutoff. Using both regression discontinuity and instrumental variable research designs, we find higher quasi-indexer ownership leads to less insider trading (both buys and sells) and less profitable sell trades. The effects for sells are concentrated among insider trades that, ex ante, are more likely to be based on private information. Our evidence on the profitability of buys is mixed. In addition, we find firms with higher quasi-indexer ownership are more likely to have and/or more strictly enforce blackout policies. Overall, our results suggest that quasi-indexers can reduce the agency costs associated with insider trading through their direct and indirect monitoring activities.


In our main paper, to emphasize effectiveness of the recovery process, we present some extremely disordered cases and simply introduce the stroke extraction process. Ine this section, we visualize the stroke disorder algorithm step by step. The simplest case is shown in Fig. 1. Ln1 has already grouped the pixels into enough strokes. In most cases, however, these exists only one or two stroke in the sketch. So we execute Ln2-9 to divided the pixels into more strokes: 1) we find a chokepoint; 2) we obtain a direction of maximum variance in the neighborhood pixels, i.e., v; 3) we cut the stroke along the direction perpendicular to v. The processes are visualized in Fig.2. We cut a long stroke at the chokepoint because we assumes that a stroke is likely to end up there. There exists some cases where the algorithm might not well even if the assumption is true. For example, when two ends of the stroke are connected to a larger stroke, the stroke is unlikely to be truncated since both ends are unlikely to be removed in Ln6. Case(1) in Fig.2 is a typical case. Many wheel spokes are connected with the hub and the rim. Although the algorithm tries to cut the rim side of the stroke, some strokes are still connected to the hub. ns controls the integrity of strokes. A larger breaks the strokes into more pieces. Empirically, setting ns = 10 is marginally better than ns = 5. Setting it to 2 might be the best for visualization, but it yields unsatisfactory performance.


Interactive learning by computer is adopting an increasingly important role in medical education in many countries. Traditional methods of medical education can be enhanced and augmented by the addition of self‐directed computer‐assisted learning. While it is desirable for specialists in a medical content to create their own computer‐based teaching programmes, authoring with hypertext and multimedia can pose significant difficulties for non‐computer programmes. This paper describes how the authors approached the design and creation of a medical education programme on sexually transmitted diseases using StackMaker, a new hypermedia authoring environment.


Every worker has the right to protection against unjustified dismissal, in accordance with Union law and national laws and practices.


An investigation was made of the influence of different excitation conditions on the self-focusing of stimulated Raman-scattered light. It was found that the dimensions of self-focusing filaments and their number depended on the energy of the exciting radiation and the thickness of the scattering layer. In the situation in which self-focusing points were observed at both ends of a Dewar flask, the anti-Stokes scattering included (in addition to rings of class 1) scattering along the axis. Estimates were obtained of the self-focusing threshold power related to the Kerr effect and to the increase in the polarizability of molecules due to excitation. It was found that the first of these mechanisms could not give rise to self-focusing of the Raman-scattered light, whereas the threshold of the second mechanism was close to the excitation energy at which such self-focusing was observed.


EXECUTIVE SUMMARY * CPAs with specific training and understanding of life insurance in estate planning sometimes are trustees of trust-owned life insurance (TOLI). With the complexity of many policies, responsibilities of annual policy review and fiduciary duties under the Uniform Prudent Investor Act, however, many may decide to serve their clients by helping them select a trust company to handle TOLI management and then continue to advise the grantor and monitor the trust's performance. * Whether the trustee is a CPA or other professional, the trustee should ensure premiums are sufficient to cover any decrease in interest rate for universal life policies or investment subaccount results for variable universal life. Shortfalls may result in a loan that in the case of a policy lapse could cause cancellation-of-debt taxable income to the client. * The annual policy review should also check for proper crediting of premiums and titling of ownership and beneficiaries, and evaluate the performance of the insurance carrier and the policy, using an in-force reprojection. If the policy is under performing, options may include replacing the policy or selling it in a life settlement. ********** Many CPAs recommend that their high-net-worth clients use trust-owned life insurance (TOLI) as the cornerstone of their estate plan. In addition, many CPAs choose to serve as trustees of such trusts. CPAs who are considering accepting a trustee designation should be well aware of the hazards inherent to the task and make sure they have the skills and knowledge to take on the challenge, which will usually involve some specific training in life insurance. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Even if they shun this weighty responsibility, CPAs can still serve critical client needs in this area. This article is designed to help CPAs decide whether to accept the trustee designation. If they do accept it or are already a trustee, they can assess their approach against fiduciary requirements and best practices. With the passage of the Uniform Prudent Investor Act in the mid1990s, trustees' fiduciary duties are held to a higher standard than under previous law. Many of those practices, however, also apply to life insurance generally, whether or not a trust is involved. As trusted advisers, CPAs have an obligation to educate their clients about the pending crisis in TOLI. A real problem looms on the horizon. Certain studies have shown that more than 25% of nonguaranteed flexible TOLI policies will lapse during the insured's lifetime ("TOLI Risk Management at Litigation Crossroads," Steve Leimberg's Estate Planning Email Newsletter, no. 1110, April 12, 2007). You should take the opportunity to work with a competent insurance professional to protect your clients' plans and assist your clients in developing a best-practices review for their TOLI. In many cases, CPAs can best serve their clients by assisting them with obtaining a competent corporate fiduciary, or trust company, to serve as trustee. CPAs should also advise clients against choosing as the trustee a family member who knows nothing about life insurance. Ed Linsley, senior vice president and manager of personal trust at Reliance Trust Co., recommends evaluating a trust company by how long it has been in business, how much in assets it manages, whether it has local representation to serve the client, and whether its fees are reasonable. Also, inquire whether the trust company does business in irrevocable life insurance trusts (ILITs). If so, how many trusts does it administer and does it audit them? THE POLICY Permanent life insurance policies sold over the last 25 years have typically been whole life or flexible premium nonguaranteed policies (universal, variable universal and adjustable life products) or a blend of each with term insurance. Whole life contracts provide for a guaranteed fixed premium, death benefit and cash surrender value. …


A simple, flexible, and relatively inexpensive microcomputer‐controlled shutter system intended, principally, for use with molecular‐beam epitaxial reactors is described. Eight pneumatic shutters, each one controlling the molecular‐beam emission of a corresponding effusion cell, can be operated in any combination simultaneously or sequentially. Such a system has been built and is being used to grow heterojunction and superlattice structures of binary and ternary III‐V alloys.


Simple Summary Native values of herbage grown at different phenological periods and rumen diversity of microbial population would impact rumen fermentation end-products and milk compositions of yaks (Bos grunniens). The research was conducted in 12 female yaks grazing on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP). The results revealed that the phenological periods (VS: Vegetative stage, May; BS: Bloom stage, August; SS: Senescent stage, December) significantly influenced the nutritive values of herbages, microbial diversity and, as a consequence affected on the yak milk yield and compositions. We concluded that the observed differences resulted from the combined effects of phenological periods, herbage composition, and herbage availability. The findings of this study were of great value and useful for current understandings and onwards to conduct further research and for possible practical implementation for the yak cows grazing on QTP. Abstract To estimate how native herbage of three different phenological periods modify rumen performance and milk quality of yak grazing alpine meadow. In this study, milk composition and the diversity of the rumen microbial community were measured in 12 full-grazing female yaks on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP). The nutrient composition of three phenological periods was determined: Vegetative stage (VS), bloom stage (BS), and senescent stage (SS). High-throughput sequencing of the bacterial 16S rRNA gene was used. The results showed that crude protein (CP) content of herbage in BS was higher than that in vs. and SS (p < 0.05), and neutral detergent fiber (NDF) content of herbage in SS was higher than that in vs. and BS (p < 0.05). Milk solids and fat contents were higher in the vs. and SS than in BS (p < 0.05). However, milk protein content was higher for the vs. and BS than those for SS (p < 0.05). The total volatile fatty acid (VFA), acetate, and propionate concentrations were higher in vs. and BS than in SS (p < 0.05). The community richness estimates (Chao1 estimator) of vs. were higher than that in BS and the SS (p < 0.05). The diversity indices (Shannon index) of the BS were higher than that vs. and the SS (p < 0.05). Spearman correlation analysis between the milk composition, ruminal fermentation parameters, and the relative abundances of the rumen bacteria showed that milk protein content, total VFA, acetate, and propionate concentrations were positively correlated with the relative abundances of the genera Desulfovibrio, Prevotella_1, and Butyrivibrio_2 and was negatively correlated with Olsenella, Ruminococcaceae_UCG.010, and Rikenellaceae_RC9_gut_group abundances. Collectively, the results revealed that there were significant differences in nutrient composition of herbage, chemical composition of yak milk, and microbial diversity in rumen at different phenological stages. The correlations between ruminal fermentation parameters, chemical constituents of yak milk, and some genera of ruminal bacteria might be indicative that the ruminal fermentation parameters and chemical constituents of yak milk are strongly influenced by the rumen bacterial community composition.


its core constituency of direct production workers employed on outputbased incentive payment systems, while crafts such as toolmakers were organized alongside other less skilled groups in the Amalgamated Engineering Union (AEU). When BL substituted Measured Day Work for payment by results at the beginning of the 1970s, thereby eliminating craftsmen's traditional advantages of greater earnings security and lower work intensity, toolmakers and other indirect trades demanded institutionalized wage differentials over semiskilled production workers. Despite widespread skill shortages and considerable managerial sympathy, however, statutory incomes policies and opposition from the major unions (including the AEU) blocked effective redress of the craftsmen's grievances, precipitating a series of unofficial strikes led by an independent Toolroom Committee in 1976-1977 which brought BL, then Britain's largest manufacturing firm, to the brink of closure. Although the Toolroom Committee did not win separate bargaining rights in these disputes, the resulting internecine bitterness played a major part in undercutting workforce opposition to the draconian restructuring plan imposed by BL chairman Michael Edwardes in 1979-1980, and craftsmen received far more favorable treatment than production workers from corporate management during the following decade.


This paper presents the development of an automatic control of retardant system and parking of wagons, where after unloading in the car dumper, passing through retarders and switches and crossings. The retarder system is a device installed on the rails, at the end of the ramp and is responsible for braking the wagons. Automatic control of braking and objectively determine the optimal speed to ensure that the engagement is smooth to the other wagons. Without this control, or if it fails, there may be a short stop before reaching the destination, or cause strong impact on engagement because of high speed, leading to possible breakdowns in couplers and wagons.


India has been assigned as a land of Goddesses where Ma Lakshmi ,Ma Durga ,Ma Saraswati came, to let people know how much empowered a woman is .Women of India have come a long way from being insightful and erudite disciples in the Rig Vedic period to holding important positions in corporate world in present day times. Women today are occupying fifty percent of the managerial positions in multinational companies. In this paper, I  would like to elucidate the role of women in rural entrepreneurship.


Onion is a valuable food crop. The most important operation in the cultivation of onion crops is planting, because it is necessary to ensure the uniformity of the distribution of bulbs along the rows and targeted feeding them into the soil. However, as a result of interaction bulbs with coverer up to 50% of bulbs loses specified position which lead to lower yields of bulbous cultures in 2-3 times. That's why the disc type for treatment of bulbs in a furrow after their landing is proposed, it does not disturb the specified position of bulbs and the uniformity of the distribution. For definition of optimum design and technological parameters of the disk coverer, experimental studies were performed at the laboratory unit, to identify optimal values of the investigated factors, namely: the angle between the horizontal diameter of the disk and the direction of the translational motion of the disk а (angle of attack), heil; center distance between discs of coverer S, m; linear velocity of the disk of coverer V Д, м/с. As the optimization criterion was selected qualitative indicator of termination of bulbs number of embedded by soil bulbs located in down position and uniform distribution of the embedded by soil bulbs along the rows by disk coverer. After processing the results of the experiment, using a computer program Statistic 6.0, were gained optimal values of the investigated factors: the angle between the horizontal diameter of the disk and the direction of the translational motion of a disk а=20-25, center distance between discs of coverer S=0,1-0,15 м and the linear velocity of the disk coverer V Д =0,95... 1,15 м/с. As a result of laboratory researches of disk coverer it was established that the number of bulbs located in down position, after the termination of the soil in a furrow on optimum modes is 85...90 %, which corresponds to the existing recommendations when planting bulbs of seed onion.


The Expo feature information,the risk assessment model for SExpo information network and,the overall framework of SExpo information were described.The operation mode of the World Expo information was analysed.The C/S and B/S model of SExpo,the mixed-mode and grid-based SExpo mode as well as the application of grid-based data mining according to SExpo model and so on were introduced.


This paper provides an empirical examination of the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, Utah. Our analysis of taxable sales in the counties in which Olympic events took place finds that some sectors such as hotels and restaurants prospered while other retailers such as general merchandisers and department stores suffered. Overall the gains in the hospitality industry are lower than the losses experienced by other sectors in the economy. Given the experience of Utah, potential Olympic hosts should exercise caution before proceeding down the slippery slope of bidding for this event.


DNA computing, one of the constituents of nature-inspired computing has two forms, namely, in vitro DNA computing and in silico DNA computing. In vitro DNA computing is the most popular one, where the authors deal with the topology of a dynamic structure consists of macromolecules (e.g., DNA) to solve computational problems. It started with the work of Adleman where in vitro DNA strands were synthesized to solve the travelling salesman problem [5]. Ullah et al. [4] have given an account of the usages of in vitro DNA computing. On the other hand, in silico DNA computing, the other form of DNA computing takes inspirations from the central dogma of molecular biology [6] and performs computation in silicon-based computing machines (i.e., in ordinary computers) to solve computational problems. The central dogma of molecular biology means "once (sequential) information has passed into protein it cannot get out again" [6]. In other words, mappings of DNA/RNA to DNA/RNA/protein are possible but not protein to DNA/RNA/protein [3,4].


Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the professional dilemmas of historians of education in the USA. Design/methodology/approach – This paper uses historiographical analysis. Findings – While some aspects of both "prophet" and "fool" cultural archetypes fit some historians of education, neither archetype is a useful model for discussing the possible professional positions and roles of new scholars. Instead, "border-crossing" is an appropriate metaphor for new scholars in the history of education. Originality/value – This manuscript addresses a topic of concern to many historians of education in multiple countries. It moves beyond material concerns of intellectuals to discuss the cultural archetypes that may be at play.


The paper presents an approach to identify the state of fine sands on the basis of shear wave velocity measurement. Large body of experimental data was used to derive formulae which relate void ratio with shear wave velocity and mean effective stress for a given material. Two fine sands which contained 8 and 14% of fines were tested. The soils were tested in triaxial tests. Sands specimens were reconstituted in triaxial cell. In order to obtain predetermined void ratio values covering possible widest range of the parameter representing a very loose and dense state as well, the moist tamping method with use of undercompaction technique was adopted. Fully saturated soil underwent staged consolidation at the end of which shear wave velocity was measured. Since volume control of a specimen was enhanced by use of proximity transducers, representative 3 elements sets (i.e. void ratio e, mean effective stress p' and shear wave velocity VS) describing state of material were obtained. Analysis of the test results revealed that relationship between shear wave velocity and mean effective stress p' can be approximated by power function in distinguished void ratio ranges. This made possible to derive formula for calculating void ratio for a given state of stress on the basis of shear wave velocity measurement. The conclusion concerning sensitivity of this approach to the fines content was presented.


A novel fuzzy PI controller is proposed to improve the disturbance-resisting performance of permanent magnet synchronous motor servo systems.This controller combines a fuzzy controller and pi controller to show their advantages at different stages.A fuzzy switch is designed to choose the main controller according to the states of system.This controller is adopted in a servo system of PMSM.The simulation results show that when compared to the traditional PI control system,system with the proposed controller is characterized by performances of good robustness to disturbances and parameter varieties、quick response、and better stability.


Plastic mulch is often used in maize production systems on the Loess Plateau.The effect of plastic mulch on plant and soil nitrogen(N)(inorganic and total N)of maize in semi-arid farmland was investigated in a field experiment.There were two mulching treatments;mulching and no mulching.No fertilizer N was applied to any plots.The trial was a randomized block design with 3replicates.The results showed that:1)Soil NO3--N increased as the season progressed with little mulch effect on seasonal variation.2)No mulching resulted in more N allocated to the vegetative organs at physiological maturity compared to mulched,whereas the mulched treatment resulted in more N being transferred from the vegetative organs to the grains during the grain filling period.3)Mulching increased soil moisture.During the grain filling period the total N content of the aerial parts of the plants were closely related to soil N status.It is concluded that mulching significantly improved the yield and nutritional quality of maize.