Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An Unsteady Prescribed Wake Model for Vertical Axis Wind Turbines

This paper describes the development of a fully unsteady three-dimensional aerodynamic performance prediction scheme for vertical axis wind turbines (VAWTs). The method is based on the prescribed wake approach of Basuno in which the turbine is represented by a series of bound vortex segments from which emanates a wake consisting of shed and trailing vorticity filaments. Unlike a free vortex method, these wake filaments are constrained to follow a predetermined path, the shape of which is dictated by momentum considerations. By coupling this technique with the unsteady aerofoil performance method of Leishman and Beddoes, a fully unsteady V AWT model is developed. The difficulties associated with coupling the two techniques are discussed and a new formulation for the tangential blade force is introduced. The resulting calculation scheme is shown to agree well with field data from a straight bladed vertical axis wind turbine, even at very low tip speed ratios.
Mapping biological soil crusts in a Hawaiian dryland

ABSTRACT Historical and ongoing land use patterns in the Hawaiian Islands have degraded the Islands’ drylands, causing erosion and detrimentally affecting adjacent coastal marine ecosystems. Biological soil crust (biocrust) communities have been shown to increase soil stability in drylands worldwide, but their efficacy in mitigating soil erosion in Hawaiian drylands is largely unknown. Using a combination of field data and imagery collected by small unmanned aerial systems (sUAS), we mapped biocrusts and examined their influence on soil stability in the Kawaihae watershed, an erosion-prone dryland on leeward Hawai`i Island. We created classified maps of biocrust cover from imagery collected at three spatial resolutions (1.2, 2.1 and 2.8 cm/pixel) using the pixel-based Support Vector Machine (SVM) classifier and investigated the impacts of spatial resolution and biocrust level of development on classification accuracy. Our medium (2.1 cm) resolution image produced the highest overall classification accuracy when biocrust was treated as a single class (82.1%). We explored the spatial impacts of biocrusts on soil loss via sUAS-derived measurements of elevation change over a four-year time span. We found differences in soil loss among land cover types, but robustly quantifying these was a challenge, as much of the change fell below statistically significant limits of detection. We investigated the relationship between biocrust development and soil stability by conducting soil aggregate stability testing at the three biocrust levels of development (LODs) present at the study site. We found a significant increase in soil stability from soils without surface biocrusts (LOD score of 0) to those with biocrusts at any development level (LOD 1–3). Our research adds to the body of biocrust knowledge by presenting new information about biocrust distribution and soil stabilization capabilities in Hawaiian drylands. We also provide insights into the trade-offs between spatial resolution and classification accuracy for biocrust classification and land cover analysis.
Property rights and health for the urban housing poor in Nairobi: Evidence from a phased-in natural experiment

ABSTRACT Proponents of property rights claim that ownership rights are associated with tenure security and better health among the poor and recommend titling programs. There is a dearth of empirical studies testing these claims in Africa. This paper examines effects of property rights on tenure security, physical, and psychological health. The study took advantage of the phased in approach to housing delivery in Kibera, Nairobi, allowing for the study to be designed as a phased-in natural experiment involving three sites. The first site was Kibera Zone B, which had potential beneficiaries living in slum conditions. The second was Lang’ata, which had potential beneficiaries who were transferred from slum conditions to temporary housing in conditions similar to the newly constructed housing. Third was Canaan Estate, which had beneficiaries living in the newly constructed housing. Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), Kruskal-Wallis H-Test, Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression and propensity score matching were employed. The paper shows that property rights increase tenure security, which reduces fears and worries about the possibility of eviction, and in turn improves psychological health. However, when states provide property rights along with adequate dwelling, the dwelling is what is associated with many positive effects.
Supporting component-based software development with active component repository systems

It is widely believed and empirically proven that component reuse improves both the quality and productivity of software development. Before software components are reused, however, they must be located. Component repository systems provide a means to locate software components. Current component repository systems are designed to support the paradigm of development-with-reuse , which views reuse as a process independent of the whole software development process and relies on programmers to take the reuse initiative. Such systems fall short in supporting programmers who make no attempt to reuse because they do not know the existence of reusable components or they perceive reuse costs more than programming from scratch. This dissertation advocates a paradigm shift from development-with-reuse to reuse-within-development, which views reuse as an integral part of software development, and component repository systems as information systems that augment programmers' insufficient knowledge about reusable components and assist them in accomplishing their tasks. Active component repository systems—component repository systems equipped with active information delivery mechanisms—support reuse-within-development. They can be seamlessly integrated with programming environments. Through this integration, their active information delivery mechanism delivers task-relevant and user-specific components, without being given explicit reuse queries, to help programmers reuse unknown components and to reduce the cost of reuse. An active component repository system, CodeBroker, has been developed and evaluated. CodeBroker runs continuously in the background of a programming environment and infers programmers' needs for reusable components by monitoring their interactions with the environment. Potentially reusable components that match reuse queries extracted from comments and signatures in the programming environment are autonomously located and actively delivered to programmers. Formal evaluations of the CodeBroker system have indicated that it motivated programmers to reuse once relevant components were delivered, and that it was able to deliver components relevant to both the task and the background knowledge of programmers.
RESISTANCE OF BULK LATHYRUS TO AIRFLOW

A b s t r a c t . The experiment was conducted to determine the airflow resistance of lathyrus. The raw material was brought from a university farm. Ai rflow resistances of three varieties of lathyrus (c v. NLK-40, Pratik and Ratan) were studied with a laboratory instrument at moisture content of 7.33 to 18. 80, 6.75 to 18.30 and 7.90 to 19.40% (d.b.) for superfi cial air velocities ranging from 0.04 to 1.26, 0.04 to 1.40 and 0.04 to 1.48 m 3 s -1 m -2 at bed depths of 0.2 to 0.6 m with bulk density ra nging from 805 to 895, 795 to 875 and 770 to 850 kg m -3 , respectively. The airflow resistance of lathyrus increased with increase in airflow rate, bulk density, bed depth and decrea sed with moisture content. Modified Shedd equation, Hukill and Ives equation and modified Erguns equation were examined for pressure drop prediction. Airflow resistance was accurately described by modified Shedd equation followed by Hukill and Ives equation and modified Erguns equation. The developed statistical model, comprising airflow rate, moisture content and bulk density, could fit the pressu re drop data reasonably well. K e y w o r d s : Airflow resistance, pressure drop, lathyr us List of symbols used
Assessing Wind Farm Reliability Using Weather Dependent Failure Rates

Using reliability data comprising of two modern, large scale wind farm sites and wind data from two onsite met masts, a model is developed which calculates wind speed dependant failure rates which are used to populate a Markov Chain. Monte Carlo simulation is then exercised to simulate three wind farms which are subjected to controlled wind speed conditions from three separate potential UK sites. The model then calculates and compares wind farm reliability due to corrective maintenance and component failure rates influenced by the wind speed of each of the sites. Results show that the components affected most by changes in average daily wind speed are the control system and the yaw system. A comparison between this model and a more simple estimation of site yield is undertaken. The model takes into account the effects of the wind speed on the cost of operation and maintenance and also includes the impact of longer periods of downtime in the winter months and shorter periods in the summer. By taking these factors into account a more detailed site assessment can be undertaken. There is significant value to this model for operators and manufacturers.
Determination of University Students’ Solutions to Climate Change through PESTEL Analysis in The Sample of Ataturk University

Climate change is an important problem for the world since it causes serious impacts on humans. Action to take measures is to raise awareness among people using innovative methods. PESTEL is an effective environmental analysis method used in planning for businesses. Present study uses this analysis to determine youth’s opinions about the solutions to the problems caused by climate change. The study adopts three – staged application including one conference, training and workshop using PESTEL analysis over 60 university students from the academic departments related to the factors of PESTEL. As the result of the study, students’ views on the solution of climate change are categorised into six factor categories, political, urban issues, agricultural problems, energy, economic matters and education. Results also show that the students find political factors, education and urbanisation as the most important three keywords which can solve climate change problem and where measures should be taken.
Energy Absorption of Seated Body Exposed to Single and Three-Axis Whole Body Vibration

The absorbed power characteristics of seated body exposed to whole-body vibration along the individual and combined fore-aft (x), lateral (y) and vertical (z) axes are investigated through measurements of body-seat interactions at the two driving-points formed by the body and the seat-pan, and upper body and the seat backrest. The experiments involved two levels of back support (no back support and vertical backrest) and two levels of broad-band vibration with nearly constant acceleration power spectral density in the 0.5–20 Hz frequency range applied along the individual x-, y- and z- axis (0.25 and 0.4 m/s2 rms acceleration), and along the three-axis (0.23 and 0.4 m/s2 rms acceleration along each axis). The biodynamic responses, measured at the seat-pan and the backrest are applied to characterize the total seated body's energy transfer along each axis. Furthermore, an alternative frequency response function method Hv is employed to capture the coupling in the seated body responses to uncorrelated multi-axis vibration. The total vibration absorbed power responses to simultaneous x, y and z –axis vibration are subsequently derived as the summation of vibration absorbed power along the individual axis within each one-third frequency band. The mean responses measured at the seat-pan suggest strong effects of the back support, and the direction and magnitude of vibration. The total vibration power absorbed by the seated body is further estimated under a multi-axis vibration environment of four different work vehicles. The results suggest that total average power absorbed under reported vehicular vibration varies with the effective acceleration in a nearly quadratic manner.
Constructing Efficient Stated Choice Experimental Designs

Abstract Stated choice (SC) experiments are often used in transportation studies for estimating and forecasting behaviour of travellers, road authorities, etc. This kind of experiment relies on underlying experimental designs. Whilst orthogonal designs are mainstream for practitioners, many researchers now realize that so‐called efficient designs are able to produce more efficient data in the sense that more reliable parameter estimates can be achieved with an equal or lower sample size. This paper describes several processes for generating SC experiments and is intended to give an overview of the current state‐of‐the‐art. Different methods are described.
Places to belong? Narrating childhood(s) and the coast as a home across three generations in a community of islands

ABSTRACT Coastal societies are characterized by being in transition with regard to economies, work, demography, and social–cultural life. Based on life biographies across three generations, we explore childhood and the coast as a home, tracing experienced changes as these are narrated from today back to 1945. The site of investigation is a coastal community in Norway, transformed from being a traditional homogenous fishing community until early 1970s, to an ethnically diverse society today with booming fish farming industry. Findings reveal a continuum of belonging between different families, illuminating significant social differentiation and inequalities. Home making and belonging are diverse and complex relational processes, embedded in the dynamics between global–local discourses. Contemporary youth is positioned, constrained and enabled by their various relational histories in choices related to homemaking and belonging.
Cortical Temporal Integration Window for Binaural Cues accounts for Sluggish Auditory Spatial Perception

The auditory system has exquisite temporal coding in the periphery which is transformed into a rate-based code in central auditory structures like auditory cortex. However, the cortex is still able to synchronize, albeit at lower modulation rates, to acoustic fluctuations. The perceptual significance of this cortical synchronization is unknown. We estimated physiological synchronization limits of cortex (in humans with electroencephalography) and brainstem neurons (in chinchillas) to dynamic binaural cues using a novel system-identification technique, along with parallel perceptual measurements. We find that cortex can synchronize to dynamic binaural cues up to approximately 10 Hz, which aligns well with our measured limits of perceiving dynamic spatial information and utilizing dynamic binaural cues for spatial unmasking, i.e. measures of binaural sluggishness. We also find the tracking limit for frequency modulation (FM) is similar to the limit for spatial tracking, demonstrating that this sluggish tracking is a more general perceptual limit that can be accounted for by cortical temporal integration limits.
Speed Control of Nine Switch Z Source Inverter Using Space Vectors Modulation Technique

Recently, nine-switch inverter and nine-switch-z-source inverter have been proposed as dual output inverters. In this paper, the space vector modulation (SVM) of nine-switch inverter and nine-switch-z-source inverter is proposed. The proposed method increases the sum of modulation indices up to 15% in contrast with the conventional, scheme in which the sum of modulation indices is equal or less than one. The extra voltage available for a given input dc-voltage, translates to a higher torque-a critical factor for defining the capacity of products in marketplace. Also, in order to further reduce the cost of power devices and also thermal heat effect, and to reduce the number of semiconductor switching, specific SVM switching pattern is presented. This feature will be advantageous for high-power inverter applications where cost and efficiency are key decision factors. Furthermore, a novel SVM is proposed for minimizing total harmonic distortion. The performance of the proposed SVM for both nine-switch inverter and nineswitch-z-source inverter is verified by simulation. Experimental results validate the simulation results as well as the superiority of the proposed SVM.
Effects of nonsinusoidal voltage on the operation performance of a three-phase induction motor

This paper uses a real load test to investigate the effects of each order of harmonic from 2 to 13 under various voltage distortion factors (VDF) on the performance of a three-phase induction motor. The investigation includes input current, power factor, efficiency, temperature rise and their impacts on the consumers and utility companies. Since the life span of the motors is dramatically affected by the temperature rise, a new derating factor is proposed in this paper. Besides, the impacts of harmonics on electricity energy, consumers and the life span of a motor are also discussed, respectively. Finally, it is strongly suggested that even order harmonics and harmonics having an order below 5 should be considered in related regulations of harmonics control and limits.
Exercise and Nutrition Impact on Osteoporosis and Sarcopenia—The Incidence of Osteosarcopenia: A Narrative Review

Osteoporosis and sarcopenia are diseases which affect the myoskeletal system and often occur in older adults. They are characterized by low bone density and loss of muscle mass and strength, factors which reduce the quality of life and mobility. Recently, apart from pharmaceutical interventions, many studies have focused on non-pharmaceutical approaches for the prevention of osteoporosis and sarcopenia with exercise and nutrition to being the most important and well studied of those. The purpose of the current narrative review is to describe the role of exercise and nutrition on prevention of osteoporosis and sarcopenia in older adults and to define the incidence of osteosarcopenia. Most of the publications which were included in this review show that resistance and endurance exercises prevent the development of osteoporosis and sarcopenia. Furthermore, protein and vitamin D intake, as well as a healthy diet, present a protective role against the development of the above bone diseases. However, current scientific data are not sufficient for reaching solid conclusions. Although the roles of exercise and nutrition on osteoporosis and sarcopenia seem to have been largely evaluated in literature over the recent years, most of the studies which have been conducted present high heterogeneity and small sample sizes. Therefore, they cannot reach final conclusions. In addition, osteosarcopenia seems to be caused by the effects of osteoporosis and sarcopenia on elderly. Larger meta-analyses and randomized controlled trials are needed designed based on strict inclusion criteria, in order to describe the exact role of exercise and nutrition on osteoporosis and sarcopenia.
The protective effects of vitamins A, C, and E on zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs)-induced liver oxidative stress in male Wistar rats

Abstract The ever-increasing use of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) in industrial and consumer products leads to concerns about their safety. Liver is one of the most important target organs of nanoparticles after entering the body. As such, the aim of this study was to evaluate the protective effects of vitamins (Vit) A, C, and E on ZnO NPs-induced liver oxidative stress. For this task, 54 male Wistar rats were randomly divided into nine groups of six: control 1 (water), control 2 (olive oil), Vit A (1000 IU/kg), Vit C (200 mg/kg), Vit E (100 IU/kg), ZnO (200 mg/kg), ZnO + VitA, ZnO + VitC, and ZnO + VitE. The animals received ZnO for 2 weeks while treatment with Vit started one week before the ZnO administration. In order to specify oxidative stress status, total antioxidant capacity (TAC), total oxidative status and malondialdehyde were determined by colorimetric assay. In addition, the activity and gene expression of antioxidant enzymes including superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), and catalase (CAT) were evaluated by colorimetric assay kit and qRT-PCR, respectively. Moreover, histological analysis was conducted to estimate the extent of liver damage. Our results indicate that the oxidative parameters are increased while the content of TAC, antioxidant enzymes activity, and gene expression of SOD, GPX, and CAT show a significant reduction in the liver of ZnO-treated rats compared to the control (p< 0.05). In contrast, the administration of Vit could significantly modulate the aforementioned changes. Overall, Vit A, E, and C can mitigate oxidative stress caused by ZnO NPs.
Recent advances in dielectric-resonator antenna technology

This paper features some of the advances in dielectric-resonator antenna technology at the Communications Research Centre. Several novel elements are presented that offer significant enhancements to parameters such as impedance bandwidth, circular-polarization bandwidth, gain, or coupling to various feed structures. Several linear and planar arrays are also presented, to illustrate the performance of dielectric-resonator antenna elements in the array environment.
Task Driven Skill Learning in a Soft-Robotic Arm

In this paper we introduce a novel technique that aims to dynamically control a two-module bio-inspired soft-robotic arm in order to qualitatively reproduce a path defined by sparse way-points. The main idea behind this work is based on the assumption that a complex trajectory may be derived as a combination of a discrete set of parameterizable simple movements, as suggested by Movement Primitive (MP) theory. Capitalising on recent advances in this field, the proposed controller uses a Probabilistic MP (ProMP) model which initially creates an abstract mapping in the primitive-level between the task and the actuation space, and subsequently guides the movement’s composition by exploiting its unique properties - conditioning and blending. At the same time, a learning-based adaptive controller updates the composition parameters by estimating the inverse kinematics of the robot, while an auxiliary process through replanning ensures that the trajectory complies with the new estimation. The learning architecture is evaluated on both a simulation model, and a real soft-robotic arm. The research findings show that the proposed methodology constitutes a novel approach that successfully manages to simplify the trajectory control task for robots of complex dynamics when high-precision is not required.
Technology Transformation: Promoting Sustainable Indonesia MSMEs and Cooperative by Digitalization

This research was conducted to find out what steps the government has taken in striving for society to be 'digital literate', what obstacles are faced and what digital forms have been implemented by MSME players and cooperatives that have gone digital. The method used is an integrative review. The results of this study found that the government has tried various ways to make SMEs and cooperatives more “digitally literate”, from infrastructure, training to collaborating with related institutions and companies that have gone online first in terms of systems of operational (transaction), marketing and also payment. Obstacles to infrastructure and available facilities as well as the lack of information and human resource skills in utilizing digital are challenges faced by the government, SMEs and cooperatives. Therefore, better coordination from up to bottom is needed so that understanding and utilization of digital can be distributed evenly. For MSMEs and cooperatives that have “go digital”, found that they are still at the basic and intermediate levels, while the platforms used are still in the sharing economy, e-commerce, social media, cloud computing and other digital platforms related to applications to simplify transactions and operations.