Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Enhanced Variable On-time Control of Critical Conduction Mode Boost Power Factor Correction Converters

Critical conduction mode boost power factor correction converters operating at the boundary of continuous conduction mode and discontinuous conduction mode have been widely used for power applications lower than 300W. This paper proposes an enhanced variable on-time control method for the critical conduction mode boost PFC converter to improve the total harmonic distortion characteristic. The inductor current, which varies according to the input voltage, is analyzed in detail and the optimal on-time is obtained to minimize the total harmonic distortion with a digital controller using a TMS320F28335. The switch on-time varies according to the input voltage based on the computed optimal on-time. The performance of the proposed control method is verified by a 100W PFC converter. It is shown that the optimized on-time reduces the total harmonic distortion about 52% (from 10.48% to 5.5%) at 220V when compared to the variable on-time control method.
Paradoxes and Opportunities in Logistic Outsourcing Research

Historically, very few logistic trends have caught the attention of academics and practitioners to the same extent as outsourcing. A comprehensive literature review reveals two reasons for this continual topicality. The problem complexity and the business environment dynamics – including an interaction with other main trends in logistics and modern supply chains – both led to a permanent literature gap, indicating the need to explore some new aspects of logistics outsourcing (LO). In this paper, a new LO research perspective has been explored by identifying some weaknesses in the main LO research streams and related common viewpoints which led to six ‘logistics outsourcing research paradoxes’. Each of these paradoxes is briefly described and their links with research streams and common views on LO discussed. Finally, the nature of some known opportunities for further research is better explained and some overlooked research opportunities are highlighted.
Blind adaptive channel shortening by single lag autocorrelation minimisation

A blind adaptive channel shortening algorithm based on minimising the sum of the squared autocorrelations (SAM) of the effective channel was recently proposed. We submit that essentially identical channel shortening can be achieved by minimising the square of only a single autocorrelation. Our proposed single lag autocorrelation minimisation (SLAM) algorithm has very low complexity. We also constrain the autocorrelation minimisation with a novel stopping criterion so that the shortening signal-to-noise ratio (SSNR) of the effective channel is not minimised by the autocorrelation minimisation. The simulations show that SLAM achieves higher bit rates than SAM.
Heat fluxes and electrodes temperature in a proton exchange membrane fuel cell

Measurement of heat fluxes and electrodes temperature in a proton exchange membrane fuel cell were performed using platinum wires and heat flux sensors. A temperature difference of 6 °C to 9 °C between the electrodes and the bipolar plates was observed for a cell operating at a current density of 1.5 A.cm -2 . These measurements show a strong non-uniformity of the temperature profile through the membrane electrode assembly that future models should take into account. Simultaneous heat fluxes measurements have allowed to evaluate in situ the effective thermal conductivity of the porous layers. Values of the order of 0.3 W.m -1 . K -1 were found.
Multilevel space vector PWM technique based on phase-shift harmonic suppression

A new multilevel space vector PWM technique is proposed for high power applications. The technique is developed for H-bridge series-connected multilevel inverters. A phase-shift between space vectors produced by power cells is used for harmonic suppression. As a result, hardware and software implementation is greatly simplified. The phase-shift concept has been verified by simulations and experiments with a two-cell (five-level) series-connected voltage inverter with a space vector PWM. The proposed technique can be easily extended to higher level inverters.
GaAs MESFET large-signal modelling for multiport Volterra series analysis

A new large-signal model of a GaAs MESFET suitable for Volterra series analysis is developed. The nonlinear model includes 14 linear and five two-dimensional nonlinear elements. An offset model is introduced which significantly improves the convergence of the Volterra series. The model is verified through comparison with nonlinear two-tone measurements. Good agreement is obtained for input levels up to about -2 dBm with a bias point close to pinch-off (as in mixer applications) with an eighth order Volterra series analysis. Changes in the DC drain-source current up to 50% can be predicted with good results.
Incorporating Clinical Imaging into the Delivery of Microbeam Radiation Therapy

Synchrotron microbeam radiation therapy is a promising pre-clinical radiation treatment modality; however, it comes with many technical challenges. This study describes the image guidance protocol used for Australia’s first long-term pre-clinical MRT treatment of rats bearing 9L gliosarcoma tumours. The protocol utilises existing infrastructure available at the Australian Synchrotron and the adjoining Monash Biomedical Imaging facility. The protocol is designed and optimised to treat small animals utilising high-resolution clinical CT for patient specific tumour identification, coupled with conventional radiography, using the recently developed SyncMRT program for image guidance. Dosimetry performed in small animal phantoms shows patient dose is comparable to standard clinical doses, with a CT associated dose of less than 1.39cGy and a planar radiograh dose of less than 0.03cGy. Experimental validation of alignment accuracy with radiographic film demonstrates end to end accuracy of less than ±0.34mm in anatomical phantoms. Histological analysis of tumour-bearing rats treated with microbeam radiation therapy verifies that tumours are targeted well within applied treatment margins. To date, this technique has been used to treat 35 tumour-bearing rats.
DETERMINATION OF PURCHASE AND REPURCHASE DECISIONS: PRODUCT QUALITY AND PRICE ANALYSIS (CASE STUDY ON SAMSUNG SMARTPHONE CONSUMERS IN THE CITY OF JAKARTA)

This study aims to analyze the effect of Product Quality and Price on Purchase Decisions and their impact on Repurchase on Samsung smartphone consumers in the city of Jakarta. The population in this study are consumers who have purchased and used Samsung smartphone products located in the city of Jakarta. The number of samples used is based on the number of indicators multiplied by 5 to obtain 180 respondents. The research data was obtained through a survey conducted using a questionnaire and data analysis using Partial Least Square (PLS) version 3.0. The results showed that product quality and price had a positive and significant effect on purchasing decisions, product quality had no effect on repurchases, prices had a positive and significant effect on repurchases, and purchase decisions were not able to mediate the relationship between product quality and repurchase, but were able to mediate relationship between Price and Repurchase.
Crime rate, real earnings management and managerial ability

Purpose This paper aims to examine the effect of managerial ability (MA) on real earnings management and the effect of real earnings management by higher ability managers on future profitability, at a different level of the crime rate. Design/methodology/approach The research sample includes 864 manufacturing firms-years listed on the Indonesian Stock Exchange. MA uses an efficiency score by data envelopment analysis. Real earnings management is measured by abnormal activities. The crime rate is measured by logarithm natural of the number of crimes per 100.000 citizens in the region where the firm is headquartered. Data analysis uses fixed-effect regression. Findings MA increases real earnings management in the region where the firm is headquartered with a higher crime rate while MA will reduce real earnings management in the region where the firm is headquartered with a lower crime rate. Also, real earnings management by higher-ability managers gives a signal of better future profitability in the region where the firm is headquartered with a lower crime rate. Originality/value This research contributes to filling the previous gap of managerial characteristics ability-related on real earnings management by providing regional crime rate as a determinant factor of managers’ ethical behavior. This research is the first one to considers the regional crime rate treatment to the relationship between MA and real earnings management especially in Indonesia. This research also provides new evidence of efficient real earnings management for a lower crime rate group of samples to give a signal of better future profitability.
Modeling the relationship between principal leadership and teacher professional learning in Kuwait: The mediating effects of Trust and Teacher Agency

Research has revealed that appropriate school leadership practices can positively support and promote teacher learning. This study examines the influences of Learning-Centered Leadership upon Teacher Agency, Trust and professional learning in a Kuwaiti context. Following results from recent empirical research, this study tested a model of principal leadership effects upon teacher learning via the mediators of Teacher Trust and Agency. The researchers collected data from 1060 teachers working at 64 Kuwaiti public schools and analyzed this data using confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling. Results validated this model, showing that Learning-Centered Leadership affects teacher professional development via Teacher Trust and Agency. This improves our understanding of the relationship between school leadership and teacher professional learning both in Kuwait and internationally; relevant recommendations are listed.
A genetic algorithm solution to the unit commitment problem

This paper presents a genetic algorithm (GA) solution to the unit commitment problem. GAs are general purpose optimization techniques based on principles inspired from the biological evolution using metaphors of mechanisms such as natural selection, genetic recombination and survival of the fittest. A simple GA algorithm implementation using the standard crossover and mutation operators could locate near optimal solutions but in most cases failed to converge to the optimal solution. However, using the varying quality function technique and adding problem specific operators, satisfactory solutions to the unit commitment problem were obtained. Test results for power systems of up to 100 units and comparisons with results obtained using Lagrangian relaxation and dynamic programming are also reported.
Management of Pseudotumor Cerebri Secondary to Dural Venous Sinus Thrombosis in Children

Background: The purpose of this study is to follow the clinical course and required management of children suffering from Pseudotumor cerebri (PTC) secondary to Dural Sinus Thrombosis (DST) to understand the natural history of a rare condition and its need for surgery as well as outcome after Cerebro-Spinal Fluid (CSF) diversion surgeries. Methods: A retrospective consecutive case series study based on examining medical records of patients who were referred to neurosurgical pediatric clinic suffering from PTC secondary to DTS. Data review included patients’ archives for clinical, radiological, surgical records and follow up visits. Only patients below 18 years old were included. Results: Fourteen patients met inclusion criteria, 7 of them required CSF diversion procedure, while the other 50% responded to medical conservative therapy. Headache improved immediately for most of the surgical group, while took 7 weeks to reach satisfactory results for medical group. Visual improvement took place for both groups approximately at the same time interval with average 5 weeks. Conclusion: Surgical intervention in the form of CSF diversion procedure was required for 50 % of the patients, which is safe and effective line of treatment to prevent further deterioration of vision for case who were not responsive to medical therapy.
Analysis of Surface Tracking of Micro and Nano Size Alumina Filled Silicone Rubber for High Voltage AC Transmission

� Abstract�-�Thispaperdiscussestheexperimentalresultsinanefforttounderstandthetrackingand� erosionresistanceofthemicroandnanosizeAl2O3�filledsiliconerubber�(SIR)�materialwhichhas� beenstudiedundertheACvoltages,�withammoniumchlorideasacontaminant,�asperIEC�60587�test� procedures. �Thecharacteristicchangesinthetrackingresistanceofthemicroandnanosizefilled� specimenswereanalyzedthroughleakagecurrentmeasurementandtheerodedmasseswereusedto� evaluatetherelativeerosionandtrackingresistanceofthecomposites. �Thefundamental,�thirdandfifth� harmonicoftheleakagecurrentduringthetrackingstudywereanalyzedusingmovingaveragecurrent� technique. �Itwasobservedthattheharmoniccomponentsofleakagecurrentshowgoodcorrelation� withthetrackinganderosionresistanceofthematerial. �Thethermogravimetry��derivativethermo� gravimetric�(TGDTG)�studieswereperformedtounderstandthethermaldegradationofthe� composites. �Thephysicalandchemicalstudieswerecarriedoutbyusingscanningelectronmicroscope� (SEM),�EnergyDispersiveXrayanalysis�(EDAX)�andFourierTransformInfrared�(FTIR)� Spectroscopy. �TheobtainedresultindicatedthattheperformanceofnanofilledSIRwasbetterthanthe� microfilledSIRmaterialwhenthe�%�wt. �offillerincreased. �
Regulation of Agricultural Drainage to San Joaquin River

A Technical Committee made up of staff from the California State Water Resources Control Board (State Board) and the California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Central Valley Region (Regional Board) has investigated water quality concerns in the San Joaquin River Basin related to agricultural drainage. They have reported back to the State Board on: (1) Proposed water quality objectives for the San Joqaqun River Basin; (2) proposed effluent limitations for agricultural drainage discharges in the basin to achieve these objectives; and (3) a proposal to regulate these discharges. The costs and economic impact of achieving various alternative water quality objectives were also evaluated. The information gathered by the Technical Committee will be used by the Regional Board along with other information in their review of the San Joaquin River Basin Water Quality Control Plan and their actions to regulate agricultural drainage in the San Joaquin Valley. This paper summarizes the results of the Technical Committee’s efforts as reported in “Regulation of Agricultural Drainage to the San Joaquin River,” August 1987.
The CORDEX-CORE EXP-I initiative: Description and highlight results from the initial analysis

We describe the first effort within the Coordinated Regional Climate Downscaling Experiment - Coordinated Output for Regional Evaluation, or CORDEX-CORE EXP-I. It consists of a set of 21st century projections with two regional climate models (RCMs) downscaling three global climate model (GCM) simulations from the CMIP5 program, for two greenhouse gas concentration pathways (RCP8.5 and RCP2.6), over 9 CORDEX domains at ~25 km grid spacing. Illustrative examples from the initial analysis of this ensemble are presented, covering a wide range of topics, such as added value of RCM nesting, extreme indices, tropical and extratropical storms, monsoons, ENSO, severe storm environments, emergence of change signals, energy production. They show that the CORDEX-CORE EXP-I ensemble can provide downscaled information of unprecedented comprehensiveness to increase understanding of processes relevant for regional climate change and impacts, and to assess the added value of RCMs. The CORDEX-CORE EXP-I dataset, which will be incrementally augmented with new simulations, is intended to be a public resource available to the scientific and end-user communities for application to process studies, impacts on different socioeconomic sectors and climate service activities. The future of the CORDEX-CORE initiative is also discussed.
Litter Fall, Leaf Litter Decomposition, Soil Microfungi and Nutrient Content in Cocoa and Food Crop Agroforest Farmlands in Southeastern Ghana

This study is a comparison of the litterfall, litter decomposition and soil microfungi species diversity in cocoa and mixed food crop agroforest farmlands. The study was carried out in the Atewa and Fanteakwa districts of the Eastern region of Ghana. A total of thirty six sampled plots size of five 25 m x 25 m were randomly demarcated in cocoa agroforest, mixed food crop agrorest and the natural forest reserve. Data collected on litterfall mass and leaf litter decomposition at monthly intervals for a period five months. Soil microfungi species diversity was analyzed from soil samples collected at two depths 0-5cm and 0-10 cm respectively using pour plate method. The reduction in mass of cocoa leaf litter was significantly negatively correlated with the number of days of decomposition. The rate of release of NPK was positively correlated with litter mass. Litter mass production significantly declined in the cocoa agroforest and mixed food crop agroforest farmlands. Initial rate of litter decomposition was generally slow in the cocoa and mixed food crop farmlands than in the natural forest. Soil microfungi species diversity was high in natural forest and low in the cocoa and mixed food crop agroforest farmlands.
Investigating the effects of intersection flow localization in equivalent-continuum-based upscaling of flow in discrete fracture networks

Abstract. Predicting effective permeabilities of fractured rock masses is a crucial component of reservoir modeling. Its often realized with the discrete fracture network (DFN) method, whereby single-phase incompressible fluid flow is modeled in discrete representations of individual fractures in a network. Depending on the overall number of fractures, this can result in high computational costs. Equivalent continuum models (ECMs) provide an alternative approach by subdividing the fracture network into a grid of continuous medium cells, over which hydraulic properties are averaged for fluid flow simulations. While continuum methods have the advantage of lower computational costs and the possibility of including matrix properties, choosing the right cell size to discretize the fracture network into an ECM is crucial to provide accurate flow results and conserve anisotropic flow properties. Whereas several techniques exist to map a fracture network onto a grid of continuum cells, the complexity related to flow in fracture intersections is often ignored. Here, numerical simulations of Stokes flow in simple fracture intersections are utilized to analyze their effect on permeability. It is demonstrated that intersection lineaments oriented parallel to the principal direction of flow increase permeability in a process we term intersection flow localization (IFL). We propose a new method to generate ECMs that includes this effect with a directional pipe flow parameterization: the fracture-and-pipe model. Our approach is compared against an ECM method that does not take IFL into account by performing ECM-based upscaling with a massively parallelized Darcy flow solver capable of representing permeability anisotropy for individual grid cells. While IFL results in an increase in permeability at the local scale of the ECM cell (fracture scale), its effects on network-scale flow are minor. We investigated the effects of IFL for test cases with orthogonal fracture formations for various scales, fracture lengths, hydraulic apertures, and fracture densities. Only for global fracture porosities above 30 % does IFL start to increase the systems permeability. For lower fracture densities, the effects of IFL are smeared out in the upscaling process. However, we noticed a strong dependency of ECM-based upscaling on its grid resolution. Resolution tests suggests that, as long as the cell size is smaller than the minimal fracture length and larger than the maximal hydraulic aperture of the considered fracture network, the resulting effective permeabilities and anisotropies are resolution-independent. Within that range, ECMs are applicable to upscale flow in fracture networks.
How to Defend a Network?

Modern economies rely heavily on their infrastructure networks. These networks face threats ranging from natural disasters to human attacks. As networks are pervasive, the investments needed to protect them are very large; this motivates the study of targeted defence. What are the ‘key’ nodes to defend to maximize functionality of the network? What are the incentives of individual nodes to protect themselves in a networked environment and how do these incentives correspond to collective welfare? We provide a characterization of equilibrium attack and defence in terms of two classical concepts in graph theory – separators and transversals. We study the welfare costs of decentralized defence. We apply our results to the defence of the US Airport Network and the London Underground.