Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Enhancement of Mixing for Electro-Kinetically Driven Side Channel Type Micromixer

Electro-osmotic flow (EOF) in microchannels is restricted to low Reynolds number regimes. Since the inertia forces are extremely weak in such regimes, turbulent conditions do not readily develop. Therefore, species mixing occurs primarily by diffusion, with the result that extended mixing channels are generally required. In this paper we present an investigation to predict the optimal applied voltage for the side channel type micromixer (SCTM) which is capable of continuous sample mixing for microfluidic applications. The device uses electrokinetical focusing which is an important EOF phenomenon. In this study, according to the conservation of mass, a simple theoretical model, based on the ‘flow-rate-ratio’ model and Kirchhoff’s law, is first proposed to predict the performance of the device. Computational fluid dynamics simulations are performed to investigate the effect of this model on the mixing efficiency. The results reveal that the mixing efficiency can be enhanced by using ‘flow-rate-ratio’ model and Kirchhoff’s law to predict the optimal applied voltage.Copyright © 2005 by ASME
Quasi-steady-state linearisation of the racing vehicle acceleration envelope: a limited slip differential example

In the motorsport environment, passive limited slip differentials are a well-established means of improving the traction limitation imposed by the open differential. Torque sensing types are highly adjustable, and can alter both the stability and agility of the vehicle in the various cornering phases of a typical manoeuvre. In this paper, an adjustable clutch plate or ‘Salisbury’ differential model is presented, which can significantly alter its torque bias characteristics through adjustments in the drive/coast ramp angle, the number of friction faces and preload. To allow robust evaluation of differential parameter changes on ultimate vehicle performance and handling balance, a unified acceleration or ‘GG’ diagram framework is then described. This builds on traditional GG diagram approaches, by using nonlinear constrained optimisation to define both the vehicle acceleration limits and a ‘feasibility’ region within the performance envelope. By linearising a seven degrees of freedom vehicle model at multiple operating points, eigenvalue and yaw rate response analysis is then used to establish contours of stability and agility throughout the GG envelope. This brings new insights into the way in which handling balance changes below and up to the vehicle's acceleration limits.
The mechanisms of chip formation in machining hardened steels

The formation of saw-tooth chips is one of the primary characteristics in the machining of hardened steels with geometrically defined cutting tools. Catastrophic failure within the primary shear zone during saw-tooth chip formation is usually attributed to either cyclic crack initiation and propagation or to the occurrence of a thermo-plastic instability. The results presented here show that the primary instability resulting in the formation of saw-tooth chips is initiation of adiabatic shear at the tool tip and propagation partway towards the free surface. Depending on the work material hardness and cutting conditions, catastrophic failure within the upper region of the primary shear zone occurs through either ductile fracture or large strain plastic deformation. Prior to the onset of chip segmentation, which occurs with increases in work material hardness and cutting speed, there is a transition in the morphology of the free surface of continuous chips, from the familiar lamellar structure to what has been termed a fold-type structure. This transition is attributed to the operation of thermally softened micro-shear zones, which, it is suggested, are a precursor to adiabatic shear initiation.
Electric

The COVID-19 pandemic and its countermeasures radically affected the energy sector. Within a matter of days, whole countries were into lockdown causing the largest energy impact of the last decades. This study explores the pandemic and its effects on the isolated power systems of Cape Verde, a small island-based developing state in Africa. Historical data from 2013 to 2021 is combined with ARIMA-based forecasting to estimate a COVID-free scenario. The results show how the country’s electricity demand suffered a 10% drop distributed among the islands proportionally to GDP per capita. The energy mix was unaffected, but the lower demand motivated 6% less emissions. The reliability of the system improved with respect previous years, but the transmission losses increased by 5% due to energy theft caused by the severe economic crisis suffered in the archipelago. In that sense, the impact on revenue and energy sector workers was quite limited. Furthermore, we also studied the effects of the pandemic in other energy related sectors such as water desalination and transport. The recovery started in the third quarter of 2020 as marked by the increased electricity demand, but also with the rapid growth of passengers and goods in the transport sector.
Acid Tars: Their Production, Treatment and Disposal in the U.K

Acid tar is a hazardous waste produced by several industries which use concentrated sulphuric acid for the treatment of hydrocarbon materials. It is an acrid, corrosive substance with persistent, hazardous properties. Recent concern about the unsatisfactory treatment and disposal of acid tar has led to research into two main areas of interest: the potential problems which might be created by the legacy of historical disposal sites, and the most effective route for acid tar disposal. This work has found that problems will be created by historical dumps of acid tars, due to the potentially high number of tipping sites and the difficulties encountered in site rehabilitation. Incineration of acid tars in cement kilns is the most promising route for present arisings, because it provides effective and permanent disposal. However, more work is needed to assess its technical feasibility and application.
Torsional Coupling in Sliding Base‐Isolated Structures

The lateral‐torsional response of base‐isolated structures, with sliding isolation system due to bidirectional lateral ground motion, is studied. The objective of the study is to identify the key system parameters that lead to significant torsional coupling in sliding base‐isolated structures. The analysis procedure adopted can capture the highly nonlinear behavior of sliding systems in plane motion. The nonlinear biaxial stick‐slip characteristics of sliding bearings and the velocity dependence of coefficient of friction are accounted for. The study considers multistoried structures with variable number of bearings subjected to the effects of earthquakes with various frequency content and different peak ground accelerations. It is shown that, although the total superstructure response is reduced significantly due to the effects of sliding base isolation, torsional coupling can be significant depending on the superstructure eccentricity and the lateral‐torsional flexibility of the superstructure and the base.
Singapore's construction: moving toward a knowledge-based industry

Advanced economies of the world have progressed beyond the industrial stage toward a knowledge-based economy. Singapore has formulated a set of integrated blueprints to guide its socio-economic development into the knowledge age. The nature of the knowledge-based economy and its implications for construction, along with Singapore's strategies for developing its construction industry, are examined, focusing on the development of the workforce, training and professionalism, as highlighted in the Construction 21 Report. It is suggested that construction firms should emphasize learning among their employees and formulate corporate strategies for human resource development and information technology implementation. A more effective partnership between government and industry is needed to implement the transition to a competitive, knowledge-based construction industry. Dans le monde, les économies les plus avancées ont désormais dépassé le stade industriel pour se lancer dans une économie basée sur la connaissance. Singapour a élaboré un ensemble de modèles intégrés destinés à guider son développement socio-économique dans l'âge de la connaissance. La nature de l'économie basée sur la connaissance et ses implications dans la construction, ainsi que les stratégies adoptées par Singapour pour développer son industrie de la construction, sont examinées dans cet article, l'accent étant mis sur le développement de la main-d'oeuvre, sa formation et son professionnalisme, autant de points qui sont mis en lumière dans le rapport Construction 21. Les auteurs suggèrent que les entreprises du secteur de la construction devraient insister auprès de leur personnel sur l'apprentissage et élaborer des stratégies d'entreprise axées sur le développement des ressources humaines et la mise en oeuvre des technologies de l'information. Il est nécessaire d'établir un partenariat plus efficace entre le gouvernement et l'industrie afin de favoriser le passage à une industrie de la construction, compétitive et basée sur la connaissance.
Do national cultural differences affect the nature and characteristics of HRM practices? Evidence from Australian and Hong Kong construction firms on remuneration and job autonomy

Human resource management (HRM) plays a pivotal role in attracting and retaining talent. However, there is growing recognition in international HRM literature that the adoption of the widely accepted US/Harvard-inspired HRM model ignores the influences of cultural contexts on HRM practices in different countries. This notion has not been empirically investigated in the construction industry. Based on survey responses from 604 construction professionals from Australia and Hong Kong, this study examines whether: (1) national cultural differences influence individuals’ preferences for types of remuneration and job autonomy; (2) actual organizational HRM practices reflect such preferences; and (3) gaps between individuals’ preferences and actual organizational HRM practices affect job satisfaction. The results showed significant differences in HRM preferences between Australian and Hong Kong respondents and these are reflected in the distinct types of HRM practices adopted by construction firms in the two countries. The findings further indicated that the gap between individuals’ preferences and actual organizational HRM practices is associated with job satisfaction. The results support existing mainstream research and highlight the deficiency of the acultural treatment of HRM that is still apparent in construction management literature. An uncritical literature in the area not only hinders theory development but also potentially undermines the ability of construction firms to attract, recruit and retain scarce talent.
Effectiveness of educational tools for hurricane resilience in homes

Purpose – In the disaster mitigation community, one of the most important tasks is that of information transfer prior to, and following natural disasters. The purpose of this research project was to increase the understanding of key aspects (such as attractiveness and educational value) that influence the utility and effectiveness of educational media tools for home resilience during hurricanes.Design/methodology/approach – A total of three types of educational media were developed – pulp board coasters, tri‐fold pamphlets, and a web hosted video. The contents of these media were developed based on data from federal agencies, as well as scholarly articles and technical reports to form an inclusive body of information. Several focus groups of homeowners and potential homeowners were held to evaluate participant's preference of these three media tools with regards to their usefulness for making homes safer during natural disasters, specifically during wind and wind‐driven rain events (e.g. hurricanes). Findi.
An investigation on industry-sponsored design projects' effectiveness at the first-year level: potential issues and preliminary results

This paper presents the preliminary work for developing guidelines to ensure that industry-sponsored projects in first-year courses aid, not hamper, retention of students. Specifically, the overall research plan includes the following steps: (1) investigating the appropriateness of industry projects in a required introduction to engineering design course (approximately 1000 students per year), (2) assessing the impact of industry-sponsored projects on first-year students' learning and retention, and (3) promoting an awareness of issues involved in successfully introducing industry projects in the first year. It is expected that the outcomes of this work will result in guidelines widely applicable by other institutions looking into or currently using industry projects in the first year, thereby addressing the recognized national need of increasing retention rates, especially amongst women and minorities. This paper covers a review of potential factors affecting industry-sponsored projects' appropriateness at the first year, and related preliminary data.
Interferometric Analysis of Strong Ground Motion for Structural Health Monitoring: The Example of the L’Aquila, Italy, Seismic Sequence of 2009

Abstract Structural health monitoring (SHM) aims to improve knowledge of the safety and maintainability of civil structures. The usage of recording systems exploiting wireless communication technology is particularly suitable for SHM, especially for rapid response following earthquakes. In this study, both of these issues are combined, and we report on the application of seismic interferometry to SHM using a dataset of seven earthquakes collected using a novel wireless system of accelerometers during the L’Aquila, Italy, seismic sequence in 2009. We show that interferometric analysis allows the estimation of the shear-wave velocity of seismic phases propagating throughout a structure, and, most important for SHM purposes, allows the monitoring of the velocity variations during the aftershock sequence. Moreover, innovatively we apply the S transform to the building response functions retrieved by interferometry to estimate the fundamental resonance frequency and the quality factor Q .
Attendance and Academic Performance of First BAMS Students in Subject Rachana Sharir: A Retrospective Cohort Study

Student’s absenteeism is a continuous problem in medical education despite of mandatory attendance policies introduced by the universities. Aim and objective of the study was to correlate the class attendance and academic performance in theory examination in Rachana Sharir. Hence a retrospective cohort study was conducted at Rachana Sharir Department, DMAMCHRC Nagpur. Total 100 students from batch 2018 who were appeared for both internal assessment examination and final University examination of first BAMS were included in the study. Three groups were formed based on theory attendance percentage, Group I with more than an equal to 75%, Group II less than 75% and more than an equal to 50% and Group III with less than 50%. Data of first and second internal assessment theory examination as well as University theory examination of these 100 students was taken. Average marks of the students of these three groups were compared with their attendance percentage. Gender wise and residence wise (Hosteller -non hosteller) correlation studied. Female students and non-hostellers have more attendance and higher score in internal assessment and University examination. Significantly higher marks in internal assessment and University examination were observed in students with high attendance percentage. There was significantly high pass percentage in University examination in students with high attendance. Performance in internal assessment and University examinations were significantly affected by the attendance percentage of students.
Design and Analysis of a Robot-Assisted Manipulator in Retinal Vascular Bypass Surgery

Retinal vascular bypass surgery (RVBS) is a kind of complicated operation, with high precision and dexterous manipulation limited to small workspace. It is necessary to design a robot-assisted manipulator for performing such a task. The process of RVBS is described according to clinic operation at first. The motion of surgeon and workspace of surgical instruments are analyzed; correspondingly, motions of robot-assisted manipulator are obtained. Then, mechanism of manipulator including remote center of motion (RCM) is proposed through considering constraints induced by pierce points of sclera. Finally, inverse kinematics of the proposed robot-assisted manipulator is done to realize retinal surface motion. The analysis results show the end-effectors of robot-assisted manipulator can reach arbitrary position on the retinal surface.
The effect of IT-enabled supply chain integration on performance

Companies increasingly rely on information technology (IT) to improve supply chain management practices. However, past evidence suggests that implementing IT in the supply chain process does not guarantee enhanced firm performance. This study extends prior supply chain research by conceptualising supply chain integration (SCI) as a multidimensional construct in the context of IT implementation and exploring the effect of multiple dimensions of IT-enabled SCI on performance. The conceptual framework is tested using data from a sample of 214 manufacturing firms in China. The results indicate positive direct relationships between IT implementation and three dimensions of SCI, namely internal, customer and supplier integration. The results also suggest that IT-enabled internal integration is significantly and positively related to both operational and financial performance.
EVALUATION OF INPUFF-2 MODEL FOR PREDICTING DOWNWIND ODORS FROM ANIMAL PRODUCTION FACILITIES

This article presents data evaluating an air dispersion model, INPUFF-2, in predicting downwind odors from animal production facilities. According to the Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test, the model is able to predict the downwind odor levels at distances of 100, 200, and 300 m from odor sources with confidence of 95%, 92%, and 81%, respectively. At farther distances, such as 400 and 500 m, the accuracy of prediction by the model is significantly reduced. This reduction could be due to the reduction in the nasal sensitivity of human sniffers for low levels of odors at such distances, which increases the errors in differentiation. Further research on methods of evaluating air dispersion models for a long range is needed to determine the performance of models. In addition, it was found that INPUFF-2 model can predict downwind odor concentrations as measured in units of odor threshold from either a single or multiple sources with confidence ranging from 81 to 90% based on the Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test.
Essay competition: The individual and the intelligent facade

In recent years, the design of the modern of® ce building has developed to encompass renewed concerns over energy ef® ciency and occupant comfort. One by-product of this evolution is that designers are rediscovering the importance of the building facade and its in ̄ uence upon the indoor climate. By integrating traditional principles of vernacular architecture with the use of modern building materials and controls, building skins have emerged that possess the ability to act as climate ® lters or moderators, by accepting and rejecting free energy from the external environment depending on seasonal and diurnal variations.
Multisensory warning signals for event perception and safe driving

This article reviews various different approaches to the design of unimodal and multisensory warning signals, in particular warning signals for use in alerting drivers to potentially dangerous situations. The design of optimal warning signals that are maximally effective in terms of the limitations that constrain human information processing are discussed in light of the latest findings emerging from cognitive neuroscience research. A new approach to the design of multisensory warning signals, involving the presentation of warning signals in different regions of space around a driver, is then critically examined.
A novel cellular automata based approach to storm sewer design

Optimal storm sewer design aims at minimizing capital investment on infrastructure whilst ensuring good system performance under specified design criteria. An innovative sewer design approach based on cellular automata (CA) principles is introduced in this paper. Cellular automata have been applied as computational simulation devices in various scientific fields. However, some recent research has indicated that CA can also be a viable and efficient optimization engine. This engine is heuristic and largely relies on the key properties of CA: locality, homogeneity, and parallelism. In the proposed approach, the CA-based optimizer is combined with a sewer hydraulic simulator, the EPA Storm Water Management Model (SWMM). At each optimization step, according to a set of transition rules, the optimizer updates all decision variables simultaneously based on the hydraulic situation within each neighbourhood. Two sewer networks (one small artificial network and one large real network) have been tested in this study. The CA optimizer demonstrated its ability to obtain near-optimal solutions in a remarkably small number of computational steps in a comparison of its performance with that of a genetic algorithm.
Are you for real? Decoding hyperrealistic AI-generated faces from neural activity

Can we trust our eyes? Until recently, we rarely had to question whether what we see is indeed what exists, but this is changing. Artificial neural networks can now generate hyperrealistic images that challenge our perception of what is real. This new reality can have significant implications in cybersecurity, counterfeiting, fake news, and border security. We investigated how the human brain encodes and interprets hyperrealistic artificially generated images using behaviour and brain imaging. We found that we could reliably detect AI-generated fake images using neural activity, even though people could not consciously report seeing differences between real and fake images. Understanding this dissociation between brain and behaviour may be key in determining the 'real' in our new reality.
Biomechanical analyses of rat locomotion during walking and climbing as a base for the design and construction of climbing robots

Ecological generalists, such as rats, may be used as biological paragons for the design and construction of adaptive light-weight climbing robots. We applied the inverse dynamic approach (IDA) on rats walking and climbing at different inclinations in order to estimate joint forces, torques and power in extremities and the trunk. If we understand the adaptive nature of small mammals’ moving on sloped supports, via biomimetic transfer the principles uncovered may be applied to the design and construction of more adaptive climbing machines.