Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Investigating the dependence of light-absorption properties of combustion carbonaceous aerosols on combustion conditions

Abstract We performed controlled combustion experiments to investigate the dependence of the mass absorption cross-section (MAC) and absorption Ångström exponent (AAE) of combustion carbonaceous aerosol emissions on combustion conditions. Using benzene and toluene as fuels, we obtained a wide range of combustion conditions by varying the combustion temperature and equivalence ratio. We also used nitrogen as a passive diluent to tune the combustion conditions. We calculated MAC and AAE from multi-wavelength light-absorption measurements using a photoacoustic spectrophotometer and aerosol mass loadings estimated from thermal-optical analysis. Starting with relatively low-temperature and fuel-rich combustion conditions and progressively increasing the temperature and/or decreasing the equivalence ratio, we produced emissions with progressive change from weakly absorbing brown carbon (BrC) (MAC at 532 nm (MAC532) = 0.24 m2/g and AAE = 8.6) to strongly absorbing BrC (MAC532 = 2.1 m2/g and AAE = 3.1) to mixtures of black carbon (BC) and strongly absorbing BrC (MAC532 = 7.7 m2/g and AAE = 1.5). These findings indicate that combustion conditions are important in dictating the light-absorption properties of the emitted aerosols. Furthermore, regardless of fuel type and combustion conditions, the emitted aerosols exhibit a unified continuum of light-absorption properties that can be characterized by MAC532 and AAE pairs. The MAC532 and AAE pairs are well-correlated with the elemental carbon-to-organic carbon ratio (EC/OC), which is a proxy of combustion conditions, confirming previous findings that EC/OC is a practical basis for parameterizing the light-absorption properties of combustion carbonaceous aerosols. Copyright © 2019 American Association for Aerosol Research
Integrated Library Software: A Survey of Lahore

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to evaluate the most used library software in Lahore using a checklist and seek librarians' opinions about them. It also aims to seek librarians' opinions about the most desired and needed features of Integrated Library Software (ILS). Design/methodology/approach – The paper is based on questionnaire survey, interview, document analysis and personal communication. The questionnaire survey was conducted within automated libraries of Lahore, while interviews were conducted with selected librarians from Lahore. Collected data were analyzed both quantitatively and qualitatively to reach conclusions.Findings – A variety of software is being used by the libraries of Lahore. Nor is there available, any standard tool or directory for the selection and evaluation of the software. Evaluation of the software against a checklist reveals the better functionality of Library Information Management System and Library Automation and Management Program than INMAGIC and WINISIS, but lib.
Lexical retrieval processes and strategies in second language writing: a synthesis of empirical research

Lexical access and retrieval are essential processes in fluent and efficient second language (L2) oral and written productive uses of language. In the case of L2 writing, attention to vocabulary is of paramount importance, although the retrieval of relevant lexis while composing in an L2 frequently entails different degrees of problem-solving activity given the lack of (automatic) access to the necessary linguistic resources characteristic of L2 communication. When engaged in this problem-solving behaviour, L2 writers have been reported to deploy a range of L1-based and L2-based lexical retrieval strategies. After situating lexical retrieval processes in cognitive views of written production, the main part of this paper is devoted to a review of the available empirical evidence on lexical retrieval processes and strategies in L2 writing. The paper finishes with some conclusions at the levels of theory and research.
Source modelling, queueing analysis, and bandwidth allocation for VBR MPEG-2 video traffic in ATM networks

The authors propose a mini-source based discrete-time Markov modulated deterministic process (D-MMDP) to model the macro-frame smoothed VBR MPEG-2 traffic. It is shown that such a modelling technique is sufficiently accurate and implies the involved queueing analysis for relevant system performance measures. It also provides a simple and accurate solution to the bandwidth allocation problem for VBR MPEG-2 video traffic.
Co-Channel Interference of Spread Spectrum Systems in a Multiple User Environment

This paper considers the mutual interference problem of several users employing the same spread spectrum technique in selected multiple user environments. The spread spectrum techniques consist of pseudo noise (PN), time division multiple access/PN, synchronous and asynchronous frequency hopping (FH). The environment consists of a desired transmitter-receiver pair located in an area where there are M interfering users distributed in accordance with a specified probability density function. Both coherent phase-shift-keyed-and noncoherent frequency-shift-keyed modulations are considered. The general relationship between the probability of bit error of PN and FH systems is derived which is independent of the signal modulation and distribution of users. The degradation of the communication system performance (average probability of bit error) of the desired link as a function of the total number of interfering users within the considered area is investigated. The analysis shows that the mutual interference problem is less severe with users employing synchronous FH than with the other spread spectrum techniques. The comparison between asynchronous FH and PN is highly dependent on the relative location of interferers to the desired link and the time duty factor of the hopping.
Parallel Search in Gecode

Constraint programming is an area of computer science which has developed rapidly over the last years. Constraint programming offers the tools needed to solve larger combinatorial problems with sufficient speed. The key to the success of constraint programmings success in combinatorial problem-solving over conventional search are clever algorithms and resource management. Today, computers with multiple processors working on shared memory are increasingly common. It is therefor natural to provide tools to use multiple processors for solving combinatorial problems with constraint programming. GECODE is a constraint programming library which introduces new and faster algorithms for finding solutions and using resources. GECODE however lacks support for using multiple processors. This thesis describes the work done too produce an adaptible system for using GECODE to do parallel search in a shared memory environment. This thesis handles the design and implementation of the tools needed for GECODE to transparently take advantage of multiple processors in a shared memory environment.
Chemical composition, antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of essential oils of different Pinus species from Kosovo

ABSTRACT Chemical profile, antioxidant and antimicrobial activity of total and fractionated essential oils (EOs) derived from Pinus heldreichii, P. peuce, P. mugo, Pinus nigra and P. sylvestris, along with the volatiles profile (VOCs) of needles of these species were investigated. The EOs and their fractions (direct solid phase extraction, SPE) were analysed by GC-MS, while VOCs of needles were determined by HS-SPME-GC-MS. 112 compounds were identified in EOs and their fractions. The same trend was observed in the needles’ VOCs. The EOs antioxidant activities were lower than those of the corresponding fractions, with F2 the strongest in all cases. EOs and fractions showed different degrees of antibacterial efficacy against different microbial pathogens. The components responsible for the antioxidant and antimicrobial activity were oxygenated monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes. These activities seem to be regulated by reciprocal interactions among the different subclasses of phytochemical species present in the EOs.
New particle formation from sulfuric acid and ammonia: nucleation and growth model based on thermodynamics derived from CLOUD measurements for a wide range of conditions

Abstract. Understanding new particle formation and growth is important because of the strong impact of these processes on climate and air quality. Measurements to elucidate the main new particle formation mechanisms are essential; however, these mechanisms have to be implemented in models to estimate their impact on the regional and global scale. Parameterizations are computationally cheap ways of implementing nucleation schemes in models, but they have their limitations, as they do not necessarily include all relevant parameters. Process models using sophisticated nucleation schemes can be useful for the generation of look-up tables in large-scale models or for the analysis of individual new particle formation events. In addition, some other important properties can be derived from a process model that implicitly calculates the evolution of the full aerosol size distribution, e.g., the particle growth rates. Within this study, a model (SANTIAGO – Sulfuric acid Ammonia NucleaTIon And GrOwth model) is constructed that simulates new particle formation starting from the monomer of sulfuric acid up to a particle size of several hundred nanometers. The smallest sulfuric acid clusters containing one to four acid molecules and a varying amount of base (ammonia) are allowed to evaporate in the model, whereas growth beyond the pentamer (five sulfuric acid molecules) is assumed to be entirely collision-controlled. The main goal of the present study is to derive appropriate thermodynamic data needed to calculate the cluster evaporation rates as a function of temperature. These data are derived numerically from CLOUD (Cosmics Leaving OUtdoor Droplets) chamber new particle formation rates for neutral sulfuric acid–water–ammonia nucleation at temperatures between 208 and 292 K. The numeric methods include an optimization scheme to derive the best estimates for the thermodynamic data (dH and dS) and a Monte Carlo method to derive their probability density functions. The derived data are compared to literature values. Using different data sets for dH and dS in SANTIAGO detailed comparison between model results and measured CLOUD new particle formation rates is discussed.
Communicating uncertainty in hydro‐meteorological forecasts: mission impossible?

There is a common agreement in the scientific community that communicating uncertain hydro‐meteorological forecasts to water managers, civil protection authorities and other stakeholders is far from being a resolved issue. This paper focuses on the communication of uncertain hydrological forecasts to decision‐makers such as operational hydrologists and water managers in charge of flood warning and scenario‐based reservoir operation. Results from case studies conducted together with flood forecasting experts in Europe and operational forecasters from the hydroelectric sector in France are presented. They illustrate some key issues on dealing with probabilistic hydro‐meteorological forecasts and communicating uncertainty in operational flood forecasting. Copyright © 2010 Royal Meteorological Society
Statistical performance comparisons of computers

As a fundamental task in computer architecture research, performance comparison has been continuously hampered by the variability of computer performance. In traditional performance comparisons, the impact of performance variability is usually ignored (i.e., the means of performance measurements are compared regardless of the variability), or in the few cases where it is factored in using parametric confidence techniques, the confidence is either erroneously computed based on the distribution of performance measurements (with the implicit assumption that it obeys the normal law), instead of the distribution of sample mean of performance measurements, or too few measurements are considered for the distribution of sample mean to be normal. We first illustrate how such erroneous practices can lead to incorrect comparisons. Then, we propose a non-parametric Hierarchical Performance Testing (HPT) framework for performance comparison, which is significantly more practical than standard parametric techniques because it does not require to collect a large number of measurements in order to achieve a normal distribution of the sample mean. This HPT framework has been implemented as an open-source software.
Organic aerosol source apportionment in Zurich using an extractive electrospray ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometer (EESI-TOF-MS) – Part 2: Biomass burning influences in winter

Abstract. Real-time, in situ molecular composition measurements of the organic fraction of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) remain challenging, hindering a full understanding of the climate impacts and health effects of PM2.5. In particular, the thermal decomposition and ionization-induced fragmentation affecting current techniques has limited a detailed investigation of secondary organic aerosol (SOA), which typically dominates OA. Here we deploy a novel extractive electrospray ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometer (EESI-TOF-MS) during winter 2017 in downtown Zurich, Switzerland, which overcomes these limitations, together with an Aerodyne high-resolution time-of-flight aerosol mass spectrometer (HR-TOF-AMS) and supporting instrumentation. Positive matrix factorization (PMF) implemented within the Multilinear Engine (ME-2) program was applied to the EESI-TOF-MS data to quantify the primary and secondary contributions to OA. An 11-factor solution was selected as the best representation of the data, including five primary and six secondary factors. Primary factors showed influence from cooking, cigarette smoke, biomass burning (two factors) and a special local unknown event occurred only during two nights. Secondary factors were affected by biomass burning (three factors, distinguished by temperature and/or wind direction), organonitrates, monoterpene oxidation, and undetermined regional processing, in particular the contributions of wood combustion. While the AMS attributed slightly over half the OA mass to SOA but did not identify its source, the EESI-TOF-MS showed that most (>70 %) of the SOA was derived from biomass burning. Together with significant contributions from less aged biomass burning factors identified by both AMS and EESI-TOF-MS, this firmly establishes biomass burning as the single most important contributor to OA mass at this site during winter. High correlation was obtained between EESI-TOF-MS and AMS PMF factors where specific analogues existed, as well as between total signal and POA–SOA apportionment. This suggests the EESI-TOF-MS apportionment in the current study can be approximately taken at face value, despite ion-by-ion differences in relative sensitivity. The apportionment of specific ions measured by the EESI-TOF-MS (e.g., levoglucosan, nitrocatechol, and selected organic acids) and utilization of a cluster analysis-based approach to identify key marker ions for the EESI-TOF-MS factors are investigated. The interpretability of the EESI-TOF-MS results and improved source separation relative to the AMS within this pilot campaign validate the EESI-TOF-MS as a promising approach to source apportionment and atmospheric composition research.
The evolution of the molecular relaxation parameters described by the Cole–Cole model at the isotropic-nematic phase transition*

ABSTRACT This paper presents the dielectric properties of the isotropic liquid and nematic phase at the phase transition. One strong molecular relaxation is observed in both phases. It is interpreted as related to the relaxation around a short molecular axis, due to the fact that molecules possess a strong longitudinal dipole moment. In the isotropic liquid the relaxation is described by the Debye model, while after entering the nematic phase (at cooling) relaxation becomes described by the Cole–Cole model. The distribution parameter of the Cole–Cole model changes from 0.05 (10 degrees above the temperature of the Iso-N transition) to 0.09 (exactly at the phase transition Iso-N), and finally, it reaches 0.35 (10 degrees below the Iso-N transition). Additionally, we observe that ion contribution to the dielectric response is not influenced by the phase transition. All relaxation parameters are discussed within the context of the phase transition phenomena.
Attitudes towards english as an Academic lingua franca in translation

AbstractWhile the use of English as a lingua franca (ELF) has been extensively researched in applied linguistics, the issue has so far received relatively little attention in translation studies and translator training, although the translation of specialized texts often involves an encounter with ELF in a variety of contexts, ranging from business to academic settings. For pedagogical purposes, understanding how trainee translators perceive the role of ELF in academic settings can be particularly useful. This paper examines trainee translators’ attitudes towards academic ELF, comparing them with those of scholars from various disciplines who have extensive experience with reading and writing academic texts. Qualitative data on the attitudes of trainee translators and scholars were collected in a study involving 9 trainee translators and 9 scholars who participated in semi-structured interviews. Further quantitative data on trainee translators’ attitudes were obtained through questionnaires distributed to.
Who are innovative consumers of packed coffee drinks in Taiwan

Innovative consumers are more likely to be those who have tendencies to search new product information, are attracted by innovativeness, are relatively price insensitive, and are willing to pay for premiums of newly marketed products. The objective of this study is to identify characteristics of innovative consumers in the market of packed coffee drinks. Results are generated from the in-depth interviews of 11 informants and a consumer survey of 281 respondents. Less than 10% of respondents could be classified as innovative consumers of packed coffee drinks. Marketing strategies to reach young innovative consumers include emphasising uniqueness of the products, setting up high and distinguishable market prices, providing detailed information on the internet, and occasionally using television advertising to strengthen product images.
The Chubby Lock Service for Loosely-Coupled Distributed Systems

We describe our experiences with the Chubby lock service, which is intended to provide coarse-grained locking as well as reliable (though low-volume) storage for a loosely-coupled distributed system. Chubby provides an interface much like a distributed file system with advisory locks, but the design emphasis is on availability and reliability, as opposed to high performance. Many instances of the service have been used for over a year, with several of them each handling a few tens of thousands of clients concurrently. The paper describes the initial design and expected use, compares it with actual use, and explains how the design had to be modified to accommodate the differences.
Cooperative-Based Learning and the Zone of Proximal Development

Purpose. The purpose of this article is to introduce cooperative-based learning and Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development (ZPD) to the simulation literature as two important mutually supportive learning theories that may enhance the effectiveness of simulation-based instruction. Design/Methodology/Approach. A brief literature review of cooperative-based learning and Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development (ZPD) is presented, along with a description of how these two important learning theories may be applied to improve simulation-based instruction. Findings. When learning new material or skills, learners sometimes need to be assisted with moving through the disequilibrium process that can occur when the new information contrasts with their existing frames of reference or ways of knowing. Cooperative-based learning and the zone of proximal development (ZPD) can be used to assist the learner with working through the disequilibrium process, including accommodating and assimilating the new skills and information into their own practice. Limitations/Implications. Gaps in the simulation literature, including ways to implement both theories into practice, can lead to incomplete or ineffective simulation-based instruction practices. Originality/Value. Many organizations have implemented simulation into their patient safety program, but have not considered how the zone of proximal development (ZPD) and cooperative-based learning can be used to improve educational outcomes.
Pattern Matching, Validity, and Conceptualization in Program Evaluation

All social research is based on pattern matching ideas. A pattern match involves a correspondence between a theoretical or conceptual expectation pattern and an observed or measured pattern. Two quasi-experimental designs-the nonequivalent dependent variable design and the reversed treatment design—illustrate pattern matching logic well. In program evaluation three pattern matches are important: the program pattern match that assesses program implementation; the measurement pattern match that assesses the validity of the measures; and the effect pattern match that assesses the causal hypothesis Conceptualization methods are needed to facilitate the articulation of rich theoretical patterns. An example of a conceptualization study is presented and the utility of conceptualization methods for pattern-matching research is discussed.