Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Improving the performance of circular foundations using structural skirts

This paper presents the results of an experimental study on the behaviour of circular foundations with a structural skirt resting on sand. The structural skirts are fixed to the perimeter of the foundations, and can be used for new or existing shallow foundations. The test results indicate that this type of reinforcement increases the bearing capacity of subgrades and modifies the load–displacement behaviour of the footing. Skirt factors are proposed that take into account the variables that affect the bearing capacity, and they are used within the general bearing capacity equation for shallow circular foundations on sand. Also it was found that the structural skirts reduce the settlement of surface footings compared with footings without structural skirts. At a working stress equal to 50% of the ultimate bearing capacity, the settlement of a surface footing can be reduced to just 11% of that for a footing without a structural skirt. Cet expose presente les resultats d'une etude experimentale sur le compo.
Macrogenetics reveals multifaceted influences of environmental variation on vertebrate population genetic diversity across the Americas

Relative to species diversity gradients, the broad scale distribution of population-specific genetic diversity (PGD) across taxa remains understudied. We used nuclear DNA data collected from 6285 vertebrate populations across the Americas to assess the role environmental variables play in structuring the spatial/latitudinal distribution of PGD, a key component of adaptive potential in the face of environmental change. Our results provide key evidence for taxa-specific responses and that temperature variability in addition to mean temperature may be a primary driver of PGD. Additionally, we found some positive influence of precipitation, productivity, and elevation on PGD; identified trends were dependent on the metric of PGD. In contrast to the classic negative relationship between species diversity and latitude, we report either a positive or taxa-dependent relationship between PGD and latitude, depending on the metric of PGD. The inconsistent latitudinal gradient in different metrics of PGD may be due to opposing processes diminishing patterns across latitudes that operate on different timescales, as well as the flattening of large-scale genetic gradients when assessing across species versus within species. Our study highlights the nuance required to assess broad patterns in genetic diversity, and the need for developing balanced conservation strategies that ensure population, species, and community persistence.
Advanced Numerical Modeling of Cracked Tubular K Joints: BEM and FEM Comparison

A critical aspect in the design of tubular bridges is the fatigue performance of the structural joints. The estimation of a fatigue crack life using the linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM) theory involves the calculation of stress intensity factors (SIF) at a number of discrete crack depths. The most direct way is to carry out modeling by either the finite-element method (FEM) or the boundary-element method (BEM). For tubular joints commonly found in tubular bridges and off-shore structures, due to the complicated geometry resulting from the tube intersections and welding, the construction of the numerical model often becomes a complex process. This paper presents two different model construction techniques that have been developed independently at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL) and the Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore, that are based in the BEM and the FEM, respectively. The SIF values obtained by these two methods are compared. It is found that as long as consistent geometric models are employed, compatible SIF values can be obtained by both approaches. The best and the most consistent values are obtained for the deepest point along the crack front and should be used for fatigue-life computations. DOI: 10.1061/(ASCE)BE.1943-5592.0000274. © 2012 American Society of Civil Engineers. CE Database subject headings: Finite element method; Cracking; Stress; Welded connections; Bridges; Joints. Author keywords: Boundary elements; Finite elements; Fracture mechanics; Stress intensity factors; Welded joints; Tubular bridges; K joints.
The use of electromagnetic transient programs for voltage sag analysis

This paper discusses some of the modeling considerations when simulating voltage sags, and gives examples of voltage sag studies performed by using EMTP. Component models are discussed for overhead lines, underground cables, induction motors and synchronous generators. Examples are given of EMTP simulations of voltage sags due to three-phase and phase-to-phase faults. The influence of synchronous generators and induction motors on the voltage is shown. When voltage sags are only described through one magnitude and one duration, rather simple system and component models are sufficient. However, when the influence of dynamic loads, particularly induction motor loads, on voltage sags needs to be considered detailed power system modeling techniques, like EMTP, are needed.
Renovation techniques for fatigue cracked orthotropic steel bridge decks

This dissertation presents the research into renovation techniques for orthotropic steel bridge decks. These techniques are needed to solve fatigue problems in the decks of these bridges, as several fatigue cracks have been detected in the deck structure of these bridges the last decade. A well-known example of fatigue cracks are those observed in the deck plate of the Van Brienenoord bascule bridge in 1997, at that time a 7 year old bridge. The renovation techniques are part of a proposed maintenance philosophy for steel bridge decks. Lifetime calculations, inspections and renovation techniques are the three essential parts of this philosophy. A reliable lifetime calculation model for fatigue damage in the deck plate is described, including the influence of the asphalt surfacing. Accurate calculation results are obtained, both for movable and fixed bridges. Inspection programs can be based on the lifetime calculation results. Several innovative inspection techniques are presented briefly. For fixed bridges the replacement of the asphalt surfacing with a reinforced high performance concrete surfacing is an effective renovation method. For movable bridge decks three solutions that extend the lifetime of the orthotropic deck structure were researched in this thesis.
Biodiesel: awareness, use and perceptions of students at four U. S. universities.

NACTA Journal • March 2015 Abstract Knowledge about renewable energy is limited and a lack of information pertaining to biofuels is prevalent. If consumers believe there are negative consequences towards use of biofuels then they are less likely to use biodiesel. Based on perceptions portrayed through media formats, the battle between food and fuel has been formulated and presented to the public. This study sought to examine selected college students’ awareness, use and perceptions of biodiesel and determine if there was variance between selected regions based on gender, major (agriculture vs. non-agriculture), type of area where students were raised (farm, rural non-farm, town or city), or political orientation (conservative, moderate, or liberal). Findings indicated that one in five (20.9%) participants reported owning or driving a vehicle fueled by diesel while over three-fourths (76.4%) had heard of biodiesel. Furthermore, males, agriculture majors, and students raised on a farm were significantly more likely to have heard of biodiesel than females, nonagriculture majors, and students raised in a town or city. Illinois State University students tended to be more likely to have purchased biodiesel, be more positive about the benefits of biodiesel and have a lower level of concern about the effects of biodiesel.
Big sand stalls: best thing ever or bad idea?

The basic premise of milking more efficiently through a parlor, while being able to keep larger groups of cows together in management groups in larger herds is sound from a management and economic perspective. Cows are ‘free’ to move between a feedbunk where a Total Mixed Ration is available every hour of every day, and a stall, designed to provide her ample rest on a clean dry comfortable surface. This is the ideal – the question is whether it is the reality.
Selection Model for Delivery Methods for Multifamily-Housing Construction Projects

Selecting an appropriate delivery method that will achieve a project’s objectives and characteristics is one of the most critical factors for the project’s success. A selection model for this study was developed by using actual construction case data in quantitative data analysis methods such as logistic regression, factor analysis, and correlation analysis. The model was developed on the basis of the design-build and design-bid-build methods from various project delivery methods. To validate the developed model, comparative tests were conducted on the selection of the delivery method for multifamily-housing construction projects, which showed that the model resulted in 95.0% accuracy. It is expected that the developed selection model will enable owners to select delivery methods that accurately meet their needs characteristics, project characteristics, and external environments.
Theoretical Analysis of the Steering Behaviour of Articulated Frame Steer Vehicles

SUMMARY A theoretical analysis of the steering behaviour of articulated frame steer vehicles is presented. It includes details of the hydraulic steering system as well as the equations governing motion of the front and rear body units. Both oscillatory and exponential instabilities can occur with this type of vehicle. The most sensitive design feature is the steering system, which governs the effective torsional stiffness around the pivot. Other important features which influence stability are speed and centre of gravity positions of the bodies.
Evaluation of Pre-Northridge Low-Rise Steel Buildings. II: Reliability

The redundancy of building structures under earthquake ground motion attracted more attention after the 1994 Northridge and 1995 Kobe earthquakes. Very little, however, is known on redundancy under stochastic dynamic loads primarily due to the analytical difficulty associated with such problems. This paper proposes a method for evaluation of structural reliability and redundancy of steel buildings under earthquakes in terms of maximum column drift ratio (MCDR). The seismic hazard is expressed in terms of annual exceedance probability of biaxial spectral displacement (BSD). A power law relationship between MCDR and BSD is then established from regression analyses of building response under SAC (SEAOC, ATC, CUREe) ground motions for a wide range of intensity. The annual exceedance probability of MCDR is then determined from the BSD hazard curve for a given MCDR threshold multiplied by a correction factor for the capacity and modeling uncertainties. The effects of brittle connection failure, biaxial interact.
Effectivity of Handmade Tubular Lyophilized Amnion Membrane as A Nerve Conduit in Repair of Peripheral Nerve Injury with 5 mm Gap in Rats

Introduction. Peripheral nerve injury with 5–30 mm gap which is caused by direct injury cases (87%) or iatrogenic(12%) become a special concern because it may cause a serious disability in the future. Therefore, we need manykind of nerve repair methods without adding morbidity to the patient. One of the methods is entubulation method, byusing natural or synthetic material. Materials & Methods. This is an animal experimental research by using post-test only control group design inPharmacology Laboratory Faculty of Medicine Universitas Padjadjaran Bandung in May 2012. In this study, weused 14 Wistar rats divided into 2 groups. After creating gap on sciatic nerve, nerve conduit is installed on treatmentgroup by using handmade tubular lyophilized amnion membrane. Nerve conduit is not installed on control group.After 21 observation days, conduction test and histopathology examination were done. Data was analyzed using nonparametricstatistical analysis Sign test. Results. Result showed significant difference between two groups; the conduction test=0.016 (p<0.05), nerve growthto distal gap=0.063 (p<0.05), no radial direction of nerve growth=0.031 (p<0.05). Reaction of inflammation wasminimal and there was no difference between two groups.Conclusions. Handmade tubular lyophilized amnion membrane is effective as nerve conduit in repair of peripheralnerve injury with 5 mm gap. Key words: Handmade tubular lyophilized amnion membrane, nerve conduit, peripheral nerve injury
Correlates of Social Competences among Polish Adolescents: Physical Activity, Self-Esteem, Participation in Sports and Screen Time

Adolescents’ social competences determine the effectiveness of social functioning. In the long term, a higher level of social competence increases readiness for university and increases the chance of achieving success in a professional career. The primary objective of this study is to examine the association between social competences and self-esteem, physical activity, screen time, and participation in sports among Polish adolescents. 106 adolescents completed the Social Competences Questionnaire (SCQ) and Rosenberg’s Self-Esteem Scale (RSES), as well as selected questions from the Health Behavior in School Aged Children (HBSC). Analysis of the study variables showed a moderate statistically significant relationship between social competences and self-esteem (rs = 0.55, p < 0.001). Statistical analysis also showed that adolescents who engage in moderate and vigorous physical activity (MVPA; ≥5 days/week) have significantly higher levels of social competences than adolescents with lower MVPA (Z = 3.50, p ˂ 0.001). No significant statistical association was found between social competences and screen time, or participation in sport. Hierarchical multiple regression also suggested that higher self-esteem and engaging in moderate and vigorous physical activity is positively associated with higher social competences among adolescents. Adolescents’ social competences are significantly associated with self-esteem and physical activity. The results can help those working with young people with social functioning difficulties in performing effective interventions and shaping policies.
Near‐fault ground motions, and the response of elastic and inelastic single‐degree‐of‐freedom (SDOF) systems

In order to investigate the response of structures to near‐fault seismic excitations, the ground motion input should be properly characterized and parameterized in terms of simple, yet accurate and reliable, mathematical models whose input parameters have a clear physical interpretation and scale, to the extent possible, with earthquake magnitude. Such a mathematical model for the representation of the coherent (long‐period) ground motion components has been proposed by the authors in a previous study and is being exploited in this article for the investigation of the elastic and inelastic response of the single‐degree‐of‐freedom (SDOF) system to near‐fault seismic excitations. A parametric analysis of the dynamic response of the SDOF system as a function of the input parameters of the mathematical model is performed to gain insight regarding the near‐fault ground motion characteristics that significantly affect the elastic and inelastic structural performance. A parameter of the mathematical representation of near‐fault motions, referred to as ‘pulse duration’ (TP), emerges as a key parameter of the problem under investigation. Specifically, TP is employed to normalize the elastic and inelastic response spectra of actual near‐fault strong ground motion records. Such normalization makes feasible the specification of design spectra and reduction factors appropriate for near‐fault ground motions. The ‘pulse duration’ (TP) is related to an important parameter of the rupture process referred to as ‘rise time’ (τ) which is controlled by the dimension of the sub‐events that compose the mainshock. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A comparison of rotor fault detection techniques with respect to the assessment of fault severity

This contribution compares rotor fault detection techniques of squirrel cage induction machines such as motor current signature analysis, Park's vector, motor power, torque, search coils, vibrations and acoustic emissions. Innumerable papers have been published about those techniques so far. Yet, the assessment of the severity of the actual fault has not received much attention. The term severity refers to the grade of electrical asymmetry of the rotor. This paper examines fault assessment and the respective specification. The objective is to compare those rotor fault assessment techniques which reflect the state of the art. A wide range of literature is cited in order to provide appropriate references. The authors also present and compare some measuring results in order to illustrate the investigated techniques.
Internal Structures of Known Pinctada Maxima Pearls: Cultured Pearls from Operated Marine Mollusks

GEMS & GEMOLOGY FALL 2021 P inctada maxima (the silveror gold-lipped pearl oyster), Pinctada margaritifera (the blacklipped pearl oyster), and Pinctada fucata (martensii) (“the akoya pearl oyster”) are the main mollusks of the Pinctada genus that are commercially farmed. They are routinely used to produce bead cultured (BC) pearls and, as a consequence, sometimes also produce non-bead cultured (NBC) pearls (Otter et al., 2014; Sturman et al., 2016; Nilpetploy et al., 2018a). P. maxima is the largest species in the genus (Scarratt et al., 2012) and generally requires a minimum two-year growth period to yield BC pearls with the thickest nacre layers of all BC pearls (Gervis and Sims, 1992; Cartier and Krzemnicki, 2016). Cultured pearls from the P. maxima mollusk are often referred to as “South Sea” in the market. Australia is the largest producer of white P. maxima (silver-lipped) cultured pearls, while Indonesia, Myanmar, and the Philippines are major producers of “golden” P. maxima (gold-lipped) cultured pearls. The farms producing these pearls are located between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn, which coincides with the native P. maxima mollusk’s geographic distribution. The silver-lipped shells are found mostly south of the equator, while the gold-lipped shells populate the region north of the equator (Strack, 2006). P. maxima mollusks used for pearl culturing production in Australia are predominantly wildcaught shells collected in accordance with the annual quota that takes the shell sizes into account (between 120 and 175 mm shell length) and allows fishing INTERNAL STRUCTURES OF KNOWN PINCTADA MAXIMA PEARLS: CULTURED PEARLS FROM OPERATED MARINE MOLLUSKS
Determination of bending losses in rectangular waveguides

This paper details an accurate method for computation of bending losses in rectangular optical waveguides which we combine with perturbation theory to account for the fields in the (outer) corner regions of the guiding channel. In the case of the weakly guiding channels of interest in optical signal processing, the correction to the loss coefficient due to the corner fields is shown to be in excess of 50%.
High performance CMOS current comparator using resistive feedback network

A new high speed, low power and small area CMOS current comparator based on a resistive feedback network is proposed. Simulation results employing 0.35 /spl mu/m CMOS parameters demonstrate 7 ns response time and 0.45 mW power consumption for 0.1 /spl mu/A input current, which represents a /spl sim/400% improvement in power-delay product over existing current comparators. In this design, the bias current and the input impedance are well controlled parameters, and the inherent autozeroing scheme does not require any offset compensation.
Ambulatory assessment of medication adherence in high cardiovascular-risk patients. The Polish population of the EUROASPIRE V survey

Introduction: Patients’ non-compliance with therapeutic recommendations is an important factor limiting the effectiveness of the treatment. This study aimed to compare patients’ declarations regarding their drug intake (Medication Adherence Questionnaire) with the results of the Adherence in Chronic Disease Scale (ACDS). Material and methods: The study included 200 patients (66.5% women) without prior cardiovascular events, diagnosed with hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, or diabetes within 6-24 months before the inclusion. To assess the therapeutic plan implementation the ACDS and the MAQ questionnaires were used. Results: Based on patients’ declarations, a satisfactory level of adherence (MAQ 5 and MAQ 4) was reported for 75.58% of patients treated for hypertension, 51.62% for diabetes, and 62.22% for hypercholesterolemia. A non-adherence risk assessment with the use of the ACDS yielded high results (i.e. low risk of non-ad-herence) in 38.58% of hypertension patients, 51.61% of diabetes patients 41.11% of hypercholesterolemia patients. Regardless of the disease, the patients indicating full (MAQ 5) or almost full (MAQ 4) therapeutic plan implementation often did not confirm that in similar question 1 of the ACDS. Conclusions: Patients’ self-assessment of the implementation of a therapeutic plan poses a risk of over-estimation; particularly when it is based on answering only a single question. Additional application of the ACDS seems to help assess the risk of non-adherence as well as define barriers, beliefs, and behaviors that determine it. This assessment provides the basis to take action to improve the therapeutic plan implementation.
Multiport $S$ -Parameter and $T$ -Parameter Conversion With Symmetry Extension

We propose a generalized T -matrix definition that facilitates the conversion between the S-parameter and T-parameter for multiport networks based on the well understood and mathematically simple two-port relations. This approach generalizes all multiport networks into two cases: balanced and unbalanced. Balanced networks have the same number of entrance and exit ports and are symmetric to the two-port network. Unbalanced networks generate a nonsquare T -matrix and do not have the same number of entrance and exit ports. Through careful selection of the T -matrix, this method extends two-port symmetry to multiport networks and provides an engineering implementable relationship between the S-parameter and T-parameter for multiport networks. This symmetry extension allows a practical means to cascade and de-embed such networks.