Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Influence of cyclic test protocols on performance of wood-based shear walls

This paper compares the test results obtained from three cyclic test protocols in a series of studies on lateral resistance of wood-based shear walls built with oriented strand board panels. When the shear walls were subjected to a long sequence of cycle groups, the failure mode was dominated by low cycle fatigue failure of nail connectors which was rarely observed under seismic conditions. Alternate cyclic loading protocols with large amplitude but short sequence allowed shear walls to avoid this type of nail failure. The results also indicate that under the high amplitude short sequence cyclic test protocol, a higher racking resistance of the shear wall can be achieved which approaches the peak loads from monotonic tests.Key words: wood shear wall, oriented strand board, oversized panel, cyclic lateral loading, earthquake, connector failure mode, energy dissipation.
Current reference generator for 50-Hz and 16.7-Hz shunt active power filters

This article describes a high-performance reference signal generator for shunt-type active power filters in frequency-variant environments. First, it extracts the fundamental frequency component from the distorted load current. The actual current reference is obtained by subtracting the recofundamental harmonic from the measured load current, and inverting the resulting harmonics waveform before feeding it to a current-controlled IGBT inverter section. To achieve a high-quality fundamental sinusoid estimation and real-time computational efficiency, our reference generator employs an adaptive and predictive multiplicative general parameter finite impulse response (MGP-FIR) band pass filter designed by evolutionary programming. Detailed procedures of MGP-FIR filtering and evolutionary optimisation are discussed. Presented theoretical conclusions are verified by simulation results and experiments performed on a designed laboratory prototype of the single-phase active power filter of rated power of 5.75 kVA. This is the first article reporting any kind of prototyping results with the MGP-FIR system.
Sustainable urban transport in Pakistan: threats and opportunities

Purpose – The purpose of the paper is to explore this phenomenon, how initial choice in the history of transport policy in Pakistan became “locked into” suboptimal transport policies biased towards private vehicles and roads and now resisting change to a more sustainable transport policy.Design/methodology/approach – The methodology was designed by applying the concept of “path dependence” on a case study of Pakistan. This approach helped to locate the “critical juncture” for explaining how transport decision has been made over time and on which basis.Findings – Pakistan transport development, including urban transport planning, has become both “resource dependent” and “path dependent” upon international agencies which shapes the outcomes and limits the application of sustainable solutions in transport in ways that could be consistent with the local situation.Research limitations/implications – The paper is a part of a research project, “identifying the institutional barriers to sustainable urban transpor.
Scaling behaviors of reset voltages and currents in unipolar resistance switching

The wide distributions of switching voltages in unipolar switching currently pose major obstacles for scientific advancement and practical applications. Using NiO capacitors, we investigated the distributions of the reset voltage and current. We found that they scaled with the resistance value Ro in the low resistance state and that the scaling exponents varied at Ro≈30 Ω. We explain these intriguing scaling behaviors and their crossovers by analogy with percolation theory. We show that the connectivity of conducting filaments plays a crucial role in the reset process.
Strike Actions and Pre-Service NCE Teachers’ Learning Outcomes: Differential Effects of Gender and Schools of Affiliation

The effect of repeated closures of schools and institutions of learning due to strike actions is debilitating and casts a dark shadow on the educational sector in Nigeria. This paper thus examines the effect of strike actions on the learning outcomes of pre-service teachers in Emmanuel Alayande College of Education, Oyo adopting a mixed method of research with qualitative and quantitative approaches, sample randomly 371 NCE 1, 2, and 3 pre-service teachers that witnessed the saga of incessant industrial actions using two instruments for data collection, Effects of Strike Action on Students Learning Outcomes Questionnaire (ESASLQ, r=0.79) and Effects of Strike Action on Students Learning Outcomes Interview Scale (ESASOI, r=0.72). Data was analysed using frequency counts and percentages, t-test and ANOVA. There was significant pre-service teachers’ perceived effects of strike action on pre-service teachers’ learning outcomes (x =66.12; df= 326; t= 96.63; p<.05). The pre-service NCE teachers’ perceived effects of strike action was significant on their lecture attendance (x =15.30; df= 326; t= 101.77; p<.05), writing lecture note (x =14.70; df= 326; t= 96.57; p<.05). , preparing for tests and assignment (x =14.60; df= 326; t= 85.31; p<.05), preparation for examinations (x =14.26; df= 326; t= 79.56; p<.05), respect for constituted authority (x =13.98; df= 326; t= 77.92; p<.05) and academic results (x =13.57; df= 326; t=60.14; p<.05). The effect was significantly differentiated by their schools of affiliation (F(5, 285)= 34.36, p<. 05). It was recommended that government should conceive education as social function and fund it appropriately to forestall future catastrophe.
Seven Factors in Evaluating Recommender System

Recommender system (RS) has been evaluated in many but incomparable ways beyond accuracy and thus proposing an evaluation framework to synthesize the existing strategies seems a solution. However, few scholars did it so far. Through literature review, user interview and expert assessment, this study proposed a theoretical evaluation model of RS and then formed the assessment tool, RS Evaluation Questionnaire (RSE). The results showed that RSE was an effective tool to evaluate a recommender system, with its reliability (Cronbachs α=0.803) and validity meeting the requirements of psychometrics. Seven factors such as Perceived Quality and Perceived Ease of Use were generated by factor analysis, accounting for 63.126% of the variance. Furthermore, regression analysis indicated that different combinations of RSE factors could significantly predict User Satisfaction, Reuse Intention and positive Word-Of-Mouth (WOM) spreading willingness. Enlightenments for future research and practice were discussed as well in the end.
Performance-Based Evaluation of Reinforced Concrete Building Exterior Joints for Seismic Excitation

Beam-column joints of nonductile reinforced concrete buildings that were built prior to the current seismic code provisions have been investigated using several performance-based criteria. Four half-scale reinforced concrete exterior joints were tested to investigate their behavior in a shear-critical failure mode. The joints were subjected to quasi-static cyclic loading, and their performance was examined in terms of lateral load capacity, drift ratio, axial load reduction in the column at high drift ratios, joint shear strength, ductility, shear deformation angle of the joint, and residual strength. Two levels of axial compressive column load were investigated to determine how this variable might influence the performance of the joint. Specific performance levels for this type of reinforced concrete joint were established and a comparison was made to current design and rehabilitation standards. A limit states model was established, which could be used for performance evaluation or seismic rehabilitation.
10.4.2 Al‐Qaeda as an Adaptive Organization: a Case Study

Since September 11, 2001, al‐Qaeda has proven itself to be an organization capable of surviving in a hostile environment where they are consistently targeted by the U.S. in political and military actions. Their survival is due, in large part, to their ability to adapt to the environment in which they operate. This level of adaptability—or agility—makes them an excellent target for a case study on adaptability. In ongoing research, the authors explain that by studying the organization and identifying elements which make them agile, some recommendation can be made for strategies to increase agility in similar, open organizations. Some potential implications for other types of organizations are also discussed.
Effective Antenna Modellings for NF-FF Transformations with Spherical Scanning Using the Minimum Number of Data

Two efficient probe-compensated near-field-far-field transformations with spherical scanning for antennas having two dimensions very different from the third one are here developed. They rely on the nonredundant sampling representations of the electromagnetic fields and on the optimal sampling interpolation expansions, and use effective antenna modellings. In particular, an antenna with a predominant dimension is no longer considered as enclosed in a sphere but in a cylinder ended in two half spheres, whereas a surface formed by two circular “bowls” with the same aperture diameter but different lateral bends is adopted to shape an antenna with two predominant dimensions. These modellings are able to fit very well a lot of antennas by properly setting their geometric parameters. It is so possible to remarkably lower the number of data to be acquired, thus significantly reducing the measurement time. Numerical tests assessing the accuracy and the robustness of the techniques are reported.
Broadband gap‐coupled half hexagonal microstrip antennas

Three configurations of compact gap‐coupled half hexagonal microstrip antennas have been presented for broad bandwidth. Parametric studies for the effect of coupling gap and feed point location on the performance of these antennas have been investigated and the results have been validated experimentally. Increase in bandwidth is more than twice for the two configurations and about four times for the third case when compared with that of the corresponding hexagonal microstrip antenna. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 50: 271–275, 2008; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/mop.23069
Validation and Application of a CFD-Based Model for Solid Oxide Fuel Cells and Stacks

The National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) has developed a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) model based on commercial computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software. This new tool is being used to support the US DOE Solid State Energy Conversion Alliance Fuel Cell Program, which will require advanced fuel cell designs in order to meet the program goal of reaching $400/kW for small (∼5kW) systems. The NETL model combines a special SOFC electrochemical model with an electrical potential field model in the finite-volume commercial CFD code from Fluent Incorporated (Lebanon NH). Mass and energy sources and sinks resulting from the electrochemical reactions and electrical current flow are coupled to the fluid flow, chemical species transport, heat transfer, porous media flow, and gas phase chemistry capabilities available in the base CFD model. The NETL SOFC model has also been recently extended to model SOFC stacks with cells connected in electrical series. The model is able to predict detailed, spatially resolved current flow through the electrolyte and through all conducting media in three-dimensional SOFC cells and cell stacks. In conjunction with the SOFC model development program, NETL has an experimental facility in place to generate data for validation of the SOFC model. The experimental program includes collaboration with the University of Utah, a supplier of test specimens and preliminary cell performance data. Well-characterized SOFC test specimens are being tested in the NETL fuel cell test stands for single cell and short-stack arrangements. Anode-supported cells with controlled electrode microstructures, electrode thickness, and electrolyte thickness are being tested. Operating data from the test stands includes cell and stack polarization curves, temperature data, and chemical composition of reactant streams. Using NETL and University of Utah data, an extensive validation program is now underway for the NETL SOFC model. The model is being tested using a simple button-cell configuration. A parametric study of varying operating conditions, cell geometries and cell properties is being performed. Good agreement between predicted and measured cell performance has been observed and is presented. The model has also been applied to planar single cell and cell stack configurations to help in the design of NETL experimental test facilities.Copyright © 2003 by ASME
Compact four bit carry look-ahead CMOS adder in multi-output DCVS logic

A four-bit carry look-ahead (CLA) CMOS adder based on transistor sharing in a multi-output differential cascode voltage switch (MODCVS) logic is presented. This adder uses a new enhanced CLA unit, which enables the generation of all output carries in one single compact gate structure. Simulation results using HSPICE with CMOS 1.0 /spl mu/m technology designs show that the four-bit adder proposed has 15.7% less transistors, 27.2% less silicon area, /spl sim/14% speed improvement, and a 29.1% reduction in average power consumption compared to a standard DCVS implementation.
Overview of Vitamin D, its status and consequences: Challenges and prospects for Pakistani population: A Review

Vitamin D, like other vitamins, is an essential micronutrient required for proper human metabolic function. It refers to a group of compounds, the most important of which are D2 (ergocalciferol) and D3 (cholecalciferol). Vitamin D is acquired from two main sources, synthesis in lower layers of the skin triggered by exposure to the sun (90%) and through diet (10%). Vitamin D levels can be determined by measuring 25(OH)D concentration in the serum and deficiencies are responsible for a wide range of issues including bone-related problems, depression, diabetes, autoimmune disorders, cardio and respiratory problems, infections, autism and obesity. Synthesis in the body can be affected by a variety of factors including skin color, age, lifestyle, clothing, weather and even general health illiteracy. In terms of diet, the staple foods of the Pakistani population are generally deficient in vitamin D. As a result, a significant proportion of the Pakistani population, in particular women and children, suffer from vitamin D deficiency. The various challenges that need to be addressed to overcome this issue are discussed, along with potentially employable strategies such as food fortification (for example by micro and nano encapsulation technologies) and bio fortification.
In-situ characterization of foamed bitumen treated layer mixes for heavy-duty pavements

As the cost of the hot mixed asphalt mixtures (HMA) continuously increases and the availability of good materials is limited, cold in-place recycling (CIPR) using foamed bitumen treatment offers an attractive alternative to other pavement rehabilitation options. Since there is a lack of sufficient experience concerning the early life pavement performance using the aforementioned technique for heavy duty pavements, the Greek Ministry of Public Works undertook a field experiment for the purpose of rehabilitating a severely damaged heavily trafficked highway, part of the trans European network (TEN). In order to achieve this goal, a two-year comprehensive monitoring of pavement performance and data analysis research study was performed by the Laboratory of Highway Engineering of the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA). This study focuses on the in situ characterization of foamed bitumen treated recycled pavement layer mixes using both in situ non destructive tests (NDTs) as well as laboratory tests on extracted cores accomplished with advanced analysis tools. The major findings of the research study are presented and discussed in the present work.
Variation in Freeway Lane Use Patterns with Volume, Time of Day, and Location

Lane flow data for five extended freeway segments in the San Diego, California, area were used to examine the effects of freeway and ramp volumes on lane flow distributions and to explore the extent to which these relationships vary by time and location. The proportion of the flow using particular lanes varies significantly with the freeway volume but not with the on-ramp volume. Relationships between freeway volume and the proportion of flow in particular lanes vary significantly by time of day, with flows in different lanes more nearly equal in midday periods than before the morning peak period or after the evening peak period. Such relationships are relatively similar for different days at the same location and different locations within the same extended freeway section but are quite dissimilar for different sections. As a general rule, the proportion of flow in the median lane increases with increasing volume and is greater than that for other lanes in congested flow and high-volume uncongested flow; however, in some cases it increases continuously with increasing volume, and in others it increases up to a point and then decreases. The major implications for behavioral theories of traffic flow are that lane use behavior varies with driver population characteristics and that in making lane use decisions, drivers are sensitive to both speed and vehicle spacing.
Minimum Message Length in Hybrid ARMA and LSTM Model Forecasting

Modeling and analysis of time series are important in applications including economics, engineering, environmental science and social science. Selecting the best time series model with accurate parameters in forecasting is a challenging objective for scientists and academic researchers. Hybrid models combining neural networks and traditional Autoregressive Moving Average (ARMA) models are being used to improve the accuracy of modeling and forecasting time series. Most of the existing time series models are selected by information-theoretic approaches, such as AIC, BIC, and HQ. This paper revisits a model selection technique based on Minimum Message Length (MML) and investigates its use in hybrid time series analysis. MML is a Bayesian information-theoretic approach and has been used in selecting the best ARMA model. We utilize the long short-term memory (LSTM) approach to construct a hybrid ARMA-LSTM model and show that MML performs better than AIC, BIC, and HQ in selecting the model—both in the traditional ARMA models (without LSTM) and with hybrid ARMA-LSTM models. These results held on simulated data and both real-world datasets that we considered.We also develop a simple MML ARIMA model.
Dynamic Control of Construction Supply Chain to Improve Labor Performance

AbstractOne of the critical tasks in the construction industry is to accomplish the required levels of quality. In considering the quality as a managerial target, former methodologies stipulated that the ultimate goal should be focused on final quality. However, with the advent of total quality management, the dynamic approach began to grab the attention of the research field. The goal of this research is to present a proactive concept of quality control that is holistic in nature, defining quality as a function of process waste generated along the construction supply chain. To verify the proposed method, the field testing in this paper discusses the prefabricated rebar supply system of an actual construction site in Kensington, New South Wales, Australia. The high quality of rebar supply ensured by the master-bundle concept enabled the steel fixers to increase their productive time from 31.5 to 77.4%. As expected, this radical change was accompanied by a drastic reduction of process waste from 45.5 to 6.
Manufacturing vision and competitiveness

Discusses a refinement to the process by which manufacturing strategy is created. Builds on an existing strategy process (Platts, 1990) and adapts it to fit more closely within the dynamic manufacturing vision. The method for creating a manufacturing vision allows a business to do this in a two‐ to three‐week period as part of a 10‐12 week manufacturing strategy project. A conceptual model of manufacturing vision has been developed that enables practitioners to explore the factors that influenced the potential competitive contribution of manufacturing and to agree an explicit direction for change. Describes the successful application of the process in six manufacturing organizations and highlights the practical limitations of the approach.
Can the Last Interglacial Constrain Projections of Future Antarctic Ice Mass Loss and Sea-level Rise?

Previous studies have interpreted Last Interglacial (LIG; ̃129–116 ka) sea-level estimates in multiple different ways to calibrate projections of future Antarctic ice-sheet (AIS) mass loss and associated sea-level rise. This study systematically explores the extent to which LIG constraints could inform future Antarctic contributions to sea-level rise. We develop a Gaussian process emulator of an ice-sheet model to produce continuous probabilistic projections of Antarctic sea-level contributions over the LIG and a future high-emissions scenario. We use a Bayesian approach conditioning emulator projections on a set of LIG constraints to find associated likelihoods of model parameterizations. LIG estimates inform both the probability of past and future ice-sheet instabilities and projections of future sea-level rise through 2150. Although best-available LIG estimates do not meaningfully constrain Antarctic mass loss projections or physical processes through 2060, they become increasingly informative over the next 130 years. Uncertainties of up to 50 cm remain in future projections even if LIG Antarctic mass loss is precisely known (+/5 cm), indicating there is a limit to how informative the LIG could be for ice-sheet model future projections. The efficacy of LIG constraints on Antarctic mass loss also depends on assumptions about the Greenland ice sheet and LIG sea-level chronology. However, improved field measurements and understanding of LIG sea-levels still have potential to improve future sea-level projections, highlighting the importance of continued observational efforts.
New very high rate punctured convolutional codes

New very high rate punctured convolutional codes suitable for Viterbi decoding are presented. These codes extend recent results on high rate convolutional codes by employing an efficient computer search technique and are optimum in that they minimise the residual bit error rate over all puncturing patterns given a particular basis code. Tables of new codes of rate (n–1)/n are given for n = 9, 10, 11 and 12.
A hardware architecture for time reversal of short impulses based on frequency domain approach

In this paper, a compact and low-cost electronic circuit system is designed to time reverse short impulses in microwave regime. The proposed system consists of three major parts: (i) Fourier transform, to obtain discrete spectra of input impulses; (ii) Digital signal processing, to digitize spectral samples resulted from the first part and process them; and finally (iii) Inverse Fourier transform, to synthesize time-reversed impulses using discrete continuous wave elements. This architecture is composed of commercially available semi-conductor components, including oscillators, multipliers/mixers, band-pass-filters, amplifiers, and switches. Thus, it can embody a system-on-chip implementation of real-time time-reversal. Its performance is demonstrated by Advanced Design System simulations, with time-reversal of impulses with around 1.4 ns temporal width and [22, 29] GHz spectral coverage in noisy environments as examples.