Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Validation of Procedures for Pavement Design on Expansive Soils

Abstract : This report documents site investigations and design recommendations for airport pavements on expansive soils at three sites. The methods used were developed previously in an FAA-sponsored research project. The design procedure involves soil characterization, determination of surface characteristics and evaluation of soil-pavement interaction. Investigations at three airports are reported; they are Murdo, South Dakota, Mesquite, Texas, and Love Field, Dallas, Texas. Soils data are used along with climatic information to obtain estimates of the equivalent thickness of pavement required for each site. The work at Love Field was somewhat different than the other sites since NMERI Was not directly conducting the investigation. Results are reported in the form of pavement thickness required to adequately perform, in terms of surface roughness, on the soil surface characteristics predicted fo reach site. Recommendations are included for consideration in rehabilitation of each site since all were experiencing surface roughness at the time of the investigations. These results confirm that methods developed for evaluating airport pavements on expansive soils provide useful information for pavement design. This method specifically addresses the expansive soil problem and does not address the effects of traffic or load-induced pavement distress. These aspects are believed to be adequately covered in standard FAA design procedures. Keywords: Thermocouple psychrometer; Roughness; Filter paper.
Monte-Carlo simulation of dielectric polarization

Monte Carlo simulation is used to study electrostatic dipole-dipole interaction and its influence on dielectric polarization. In systems of disordered permanent dipoles the dipole-dipole interaction is shown to reduce the polarization. The influence of the interaction is stronger in dipole systems with three allowed axes than in systems with bidirectional dipoles with one axis only. Due to interaction in systems with bidirectional dipoles a hysteresis loop of P(E) is found. When dipoles are placed on cubic lattice sites, the interaction results in an increase of the polarization similar to the prediction according to the Lorentz field. <<ETX>>
Influence of mass ratio and structural compatibility on the severity of injuries sustained by the near side occupants in car-to-car side collisions

In 1344 car-to-car side collisons, the risk of serious or fatal injury to the occupants of struck vehicles seems to increase proportionally with the difference in mass ratios in favor of the striking vehicle. However, in-depth analysis of 63 collisions reveals that the difference in mass ratios is not the principal determinant of injury severity. The frequency and severity of injuries correlates better with the amount of intrusion of the side panel, when the bumper and structure in front of the side rail of the striking car override the rocker panel of the struck car. The relationship between the severity of chest, abdominal and pelvic injuries sustained by occupants seated perpendicularly to the intruding panel and parameters characterizing the colliding vehicles is shown. The paper also discusses structural modifications which might improve protection of occupants involved in side collision with another car. Language: en
Analysis of Polarization Mode Dispersion in Fibers and its Mitigation using an Optical Compensation Technique

The maximum channel density for digital transmission can be achieved by increase the bit rate. When the bit rate cross the 2.5Gbps , the PMD degrade the transmission characteristics. PMD occurs in single mode fiber and because of PMD it impossible to transmit data reliability at high speed. This effects results the widening the pulses and reduce the capacity of transmission of the fiber. This work analyzes the effect of PMD in optical fiber in one hindered km link fiber. The eye diagram, Q value and bit rate for analyzing the PMD. Also an optical compensation technique by which the effect of PMD can be reduced is also analyzed. bit error rate can be achieved by simulating with OptSim 5.3, which includes the algorithms to guarantee the maximum possible accuracy and correct results.
Opium for the Masses

Abstract The opium poppy, Papaver somniferum L. , constitutes one of the most widely exploited psychoactive substances in human history. Hitherto, the investigation of the antiquity of the opium poppy's use by humans for narcotic purposes has predominantly relied on implicit archaeological data that suggests, but does not demonstrate such a use. In acknowledgment of the various geochemical processes involved in the creation, preservation, and decomposition of residues in archaeological contexts, an experimental archaeological approach was utilized to model the degradation of opium alkaloids. Procedures of the controlled creation, artificial aging, and the molecular characterization by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry of opium residues are presented. Experimental results and implications are also discussed.
VSC transmission model for analytical studies

This paper presents a model of voltage source converters (VSC) based transmission that can be used for wide range of stability studies and controller design with MATLAB software. The model is intended for analytical studies in the frequency domain above 5 Hz. The system model has modular structure and includes three separate units in state-space form: AC rectifier model, AC inverter and DC system model. The converters, controllers and phased locked loop (PLL) units are included in the DC model and the model is linked with other units using input-output matrices in the state-space models. The converter non-linear model is linearized assuming small deviations around the steady-state. The model is tested against the PSCAD/EMTDC non-linear model and the results show satisfactory accuracy. The tests also confirm that the analytical model well represents multivariable system properties. An example of the model used is given showing the eigenvalue study of the influence of PLL gains on the system stability. It is concluded that increased PLL gains deteriorate system stability.
Long-term Ingham and Mackay farming system experiments: comparisons between permanent non-tilled beds and re-formed beds.

Experiments involving row spacing and tillage, originally established in Mackay and Ingham in 2001, were planted to a second cycle of sugarcane in 2006 following a soybean break. In the second cycle 1.5 m and 1.8 m single and 1.8 m dual rows were established into fully prepared land or land that was kept in permanent beds, receiving no tillage since 2001. In the plant crop in both experiments, tillage produced a highly significant increase in cane and sugar yield but there was no effect of row spacing. The response to tillage could be attributed to the removal of compaction caused by harvester and haul-outs during the previous cycle. In the first ratoon there was again no effect of row spacing, and surprisingly, no effect of the tillage applied prior to planting in either experiment. The lack of a tillage response in the first ratoon suggests that much of the damage caused by compaction is inflicted during harvesting of the plant crop. Despite large yield differences, economic analysis indicated that there would be little difference in gross margins because of the much higher costs of the tilled system. It is concluded that without GPS guidance, as was the case with these experiments, cane yields are likely to be reduced with no tillage but these problems may well be overcome by implementing minimum strategic tillage to remove compaction from the planting row.
Taxation and Innovation

Innovation is the cornerstone of sustained economic growth and prosperity. In a globalised world, innovation is a key driver of competitiveness between businesses and it plays a critical role in the rapid growth of emerging economies. At the same time, the global financial crisis has increased the relevance of a better understanding of the role that innovation can play in restoring sustainable growth while giving focus to the issue of constrained public resources and effective public expenditure. Especially in the current context of a global financial and economic downturn, it is particularly important that tax policies continue to provide efficient incentives to fostering innovation.
Electrical characterisation of matched pairs for evaluation of integrated circuit technologies

This thesis is about evaluating differences between electrical properties of closely spaced, supposedly identical, transistors (matched pairs) in integrated circuits (IC's). Electrical properties of transistors in IC's generally exhibit relatively large spreads due to variations of production equipment. Such spreads limit the attainable performances of IC's and deteriorate the precision by which certain (analogue) signal processing algorithms can be realised. Closely spaced identical transistors in one IC however, are fabricated simultaneously and under practically identical conditions, which results is substantially smaller differences (mismatch) of electrical performances. This attribute, usually indicated with the term 'matching', is used in many IC's to realise better performances. The remaining mismatches between transistors of matched pairs are generally of a stochastic nature and are hence indicated with the term mismatch fluctuations. By measuring and characterising populations of matched pairs, mismatch fluctuations can be quantified and evaluated. The observed effects are generally attributable to fluctuations of microscopic transistor construction elements such as doping atoms, edge roughness and grain boundaries. Besides these stochastic effects, so-called systematic mismatch effects are frequently encountered in practice. These are caused by the fact that transistors of a matched pair cannot always be realised or used identically. This thesis discusses the required microelectronic test structures and measurement capabilities for correctly analysing and evaluating mismatch effects. The discussed examples demonstrate that mismatch studies can provide valuable insights into the, not always equally well chosen, microscopic architecture of transistors. The discussed techniques and insights are used to optimise IC technologies and lead to better electronic performances and higher product yields.
Double-output induction generator operating at subsynchronous and supersynchronous speeds: steady-state performance optimisation and wind-energy recovery

The paper covers the steady-state analysis of a wound-rotor induction generator operated at varying shaft speeds in the subsynchronous and supersynchronous regions, by control of both the magnitude and direction of slip power. A modified equivalent circuit is used in the analyses in which core losses and harmonics are ignored. The resulting nonlinear algebraic equations are solved numerically. An optimum control strategy, which maximises the total electrical power output of the double output induction generator is determined, and theoretical results are verified experimentally with particular emphasis on the system including naturally commutated convertors. The limitations of naturally commutated convertor circuits and their effects on the output power characteristic of the system are also discussed. This system shows considerable advantage in the field of wind-energy conversion. Its performance is optimised on the basis of annual energy production by calculating optimum values of gear ratio and generator size for the given turbine characteristic and site wind regime. Also, a comparison is made among optimised versions of alternative induction generator schemes used in wind-energy conversion systems, on the bases of annual energy production and transfer characteristic for the same site and turbine.
Purchased Services, Outsourcing, Computers, and Productivity in Manufacturing

Increases in purchased services, foreign outsourcing, and investments in computers are alleged to have resulted in an understatement of input growth in manufacturing, and thus. overstatement of growth in productivity. GNP, and value-added in industries heavily engaged in these activities. Based on Census Bureau data, we examine whether the recent (post-1979) improvement in measured manufacturing productivity growth can be attributed to an increase in the rate of foreign and domestic outsourcing. Our preliminary evidence, based on data that are not comprehensive, suggests that an industry's propensity to outsource is unrelated to its acceleration in productivity. In auditing the industry numbers, we found that a non-negligible number of sectors were not consistently defined over time. Using industry and establishment-level data sets (the NBER 4-digit SIC Productivity data set and the Longitudinal Research Database), we conclude that some of these anomalies may be due to the general decline in the magnitude of information solicited from establishments by the Census Bureau in conducting its economic surveys. Another consistency problem explored in this paper is the industry reclassification of large plants. Although these definitional and sampling problems are troubling and need to be carefully documented, there does not appear to be a systematic relationship between an industry's post-1979 productivity growth and attrition or "switches" in its ASM plants. We do find, however, positive and statistically significant relationship between total factor productivity growth and an industry's rate of investment in Computers.
A novel approach in cross-linking of bioprosthetic heart valves

Due to some form of heart valve disease, approximately 250000 patients worldwide undergo surgery to receive a new heart-valve each year. In about 70% of the cases a mechanical heart valve is used despite the fact that permanent anticoagulant therapy for the patient is required. The remaining 30% of the patients receive a bioprosthesis, made from porcine or bovine material. Since a porcine heart is similar to a human heart also complete porcine valves can be used. If bovine material is used, the valve leaflets are made from sheets of pericardium. Either bioprostheses which are constructed by mounting valve leaflets on a supporting rig (a stent) or complete stentless porcine valves including leaflets and root (wall) are used. Although the bioprosthetic valve has initially in many ways a superior performance compared to the mechanical valve, the reason why it is currently only employed in such a relatively small patient population is because after several years it is prone to increased incidents of degeneration, calcification and cusp rupture. These phenomena occur especially in young adults. Modern mechanical valves, on the other hand, are durable and have excellent flow characteristics, but have the propensity for thrombo-embolic complications, necessitating life long anticoagulation therapy with the result of increased risk of bleeding. This has triggered the desire to develop a better, i.e. more durable bioprosthesis and many attempts have been described in literature.
Insights into Water Mass Circulation and Origins in the Central Arctic Ocean from in-situ Dissolved Organic Matter Fluorescence.

The Arctic Ocean receives a large loading of dissolved organic matter (DOM) from its catchment and shelf sediments, which can be traced across much of the basin. This signature can be used as a tracer of water mass circulation. On the shelf seas, the combination of freshwater loading from rivers and ice formation modify water mass densities and mixing considerably. These waters are the source of the halocline layer that covers much of the Arctic ocean. Our knowledge of the origins, formation and maintenance of the halocline has mostly arisen from CTD proﬁles and chemical tracers such as oxygen stable isotopes and inorganic nutrients, but the halocline also contains elevated levels of DOM (DOM). Here we demonstrate how this can be used as a tracer and help improve our understanding of ocean circulation. DOM ﬂuoresce can be measured using in-situ ﬂuorometers and mounted on autonomous platforms these can provide high spatial resolution measurements. Here we present data derived from several Ice Tethered Proﬁlers. The data oﬀer a unique spatial coverage of the distribution of DOM in the surface 800m below Arctic ice. Water mass analysis using temperature, salinity and DOM ﬂuorescence, clearly distinguishs the halocline contribution of Siberian terrestrial DOM and marine DOM from the Chuckchi shelf. The ﬁndings oﬀer a new approach to trace the distribution of Paciﬁc waters and its export from the Arctic Ocean. Our results indicate the potential to extend the approach to fraction freshwater contributions from, sea ice melt, riverine discharge and Paciﬁc water.
A multi-agent approach to power system disturbance diagnosis

Power system disturbance diagnosis is a complex and time consuming task, requiring skilled engineers. Existing intelligent systems which assist with data interpretation require the engineer to further interpret and collate generated information so that a comprehensive diagnosis can be produced. Furthermore, long-term extensibility and flexibility are also restricted. This paper presents a multi-agent approach to power system disturbance diagnosis where existing intelligent systems are wrapped up as intelligent agents and, through a process of inter-agent communication, collaborate to provide disturbance diagnosis. This novel approach enables timely automated disturbance diagnosis within a flexible and extensible architecture.
External Knowledge Accession and Innovation Speed in the Small and Medium Sized Enterprise (SME)

Abstract In this paper we examine the effects of two sources of external knowledge, alliances and outsourcing activities, on the innovation speed of small and medium enterprises (SMEs). We integrate relevant literature, consider key conceptual issues and tradeoffs, and develop falsifiable hypotheses related to these relationships. A multi-industry study of 158 new product development projects in 73 SMEs is presented that empirically tests the effects of alliances and outsourcing on SMEs’ innovation speed, for both radical and incremental technological advances. The clearest finding is that external sourcing does not appear to speed up innovation in SMEs and may indeed act as a barrier to fast-paced development.
Design optimisation of vehicle roof structures: benefits of using multiple surrogates

Rollover accidents have become more and more of an important issue for vehicle safety nowadays. On the basis of the final rule of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 216 (FMVSS 216), design optimisation of vehicle upper structures is performed to improve roof strength. Surrogate-based design optimisation is utilised to facilitate design space exploration and optimum search rapidly, in which the response of roof crush resistance force is approximated by surrogate models. Surrogates like kriging, radial basis function, support vector regression, etc. are used. Weighted average surrogates, including prediction -sum-of-squares-based (PRESS-based) weighted surrogate (PWS) and optimal weighted surrogate (OWS), constructed by above-mentioned individual surrogates, are also taken into consideration. The benefits of using the weighted average surrogate for function approximation and optimisation are investigated. The results demonstrate that OWS outperforms others in the context of prediction accuracy, and it also achieves the best improvement on crush resistance force by 41.7%, accompanied by 5.3% weight reduction compared with the original one. It seems an effective way to form an ensemble of surrogates to avoid a misleading optimum. The results also indicate that different surrogates would prefer different regions of design space. This indicates that simultaneous use of multiple surrogates could eliminate the surrogate dependency optimum, showing potential for surrogate-based design optimisation of non-linear problems.
Comparison of Active and Passive Surveillance of Dengue in Machala, Ecuador

Dengue is a major emerging infectious disease, endemic throughout the tropics and subtropics, with approximately 2.5 billion people at risk globally. Active (AS) and passive surveillance (PS), when combined, can improve our understanding of dengue’s complex disease dynamics to guide effective, targeted public health interventions. The objective of this study was to compare findings from the Ministry of Health (MoH) PS to a prospective AS arbovirus research study in Machala, Ecuador from 2014-2015. Dengue cases in the PS system were compared to laboratory confirmed acute dengue illness cases that entered the AS study during the study period. Variables of interest included age, class, and sex. Outbreak detection curves by epidemiologic week, overall cumulative incidence and age-specific incidence proportions were calculated. Descriptive statistics were tabulated for all variables of interest. Chi-square tests were performed to compare demographic characteristics between the AS and PS data sets in 2014 and 2015. 177 and 245 cases were identified from January 1, 2014 to December 31, 2015 by PS and AS, respectively; nine cases appeared in both systems. AS identified a greater number of laboratory-confirmed cases in 2014, accounting for more than 60% of dengue illness cases in the study area. In 2015, the opposite trend was observed with PS identifying 60% of the dengue illness cases in the region. Younger patients were more frequently identified by PS, while older patients were identified more frequently by AS. The cumulative incidence proportion for laboratory confirmed dengue illness reported via PS to the MoH was 4.12 cases per 10,000 Machala residents in 2014, and 2.21 cases per 10,000 Machala residents in 2015. Each surveillance system captured different demographic subgroups within the Machala population, possibly due to differences in healthcare seeking behaviors, access to care, emerging threats of other viruses transmitted by the same mosquito vector and/or differences in clinical presentation due to changes in the predominant dengue serotype in circulation. Integrating AS with pre-existing PS can aid in identifying additional cases in previously under diagnosed subpopulations, improving our understanding of disease dynamics, and facilitating the implementation of public health interventions to reduce the burden of disease.
Anwendung der Zonenmethode für brandbeanspruchte Stahlbetonstützen

Die Heißbemessung von Stahlbetonstützen mit der Zonenmethode (Vereinfachtes Verfahren) ist nach Eurocode grundsätzlich möglich und in verschiedenen europäischen Normen bereits eingeführt. In Deutschland wird das Verfahren für die Stützenbemessung in Zukunft jedoch voraussichtlich abgelehnt, da sich die Ergebnisse teilweise nicht mit denen der anerkannten Allgemeinen Verfahren decken.