Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Relationship between Mindfulness and Safety Performance of Building Repair and Maintenance: An Empirical Study in Australia

The importance of building repair and maintenance (R&M) has become more significant in recent years as the volume of building stock has expanded globally. With this growth in building stock coupled with R&M complexity unforeseen safety risks has become an increasing problem to solve. In such complex working environment a type of organisation known as high reliability organisation (HRO) is known to operate successfully. The concept of mindfulness from HRO theory has been identified as a key strategy for addressing unforeseen risks derived from the complexity in socio-technical systems. Therefore, this study aims to examine the relationship between mindfulness and safety performance of building R&M companies. Initially, a comprehensive literature review was conducted on HROs and the concept of mindfulness to develop the research hypothesis. A questionnaire survey was utilised to collect the data from Australian building R&M professionals. A Pearson correlation analysis was conducted to examine the relationship between mindfulness and safety performance. This study found that mindfulness has a significant impact on accident prevention in building R&M companies through discovering and managing the unexpected events owing to the complexity. The findings have implications for organisations in the way they train and implement professional development programs for their staff.
Unravelling the challenges for long-term planning post-disaster resettlement in Cagayan de Oro, Philippines

Typhoon Washi hit the southern Philippine city of Cagayan de Oro in December 2011, causing massive destruction and displacing 40 per cent of the city’s population, 85 per cent of whom were informal settlers of highly vulnerable areas on the riverbanks. Informal settlers considered by the government as the most vulnerable residents were forcibly resettled in relocation sites in the peri-urban areas. The new settlements and houses fulfilled minimum Philippine standards for emergency housing with limited understanding of local conditions and creating gaps in the residents’ needs. In the following years, residents proactively modified their houses to fill initial housing gaps. The impacts of the residents’ self-help initiatives related to construction safety and the creation of new risks associated with low construction quality, materials and increased density in the houses are major concerns for the government which is responsible for policies to guide the urban development of these sites. This paper aims to assess the impacts of policies in the urban development of the resettlement sites for low-income disaster-affected communities. To do so, this paper analyses interviews with local government officials, analysing residents’ self-help housing construction seven years after the disaster and how these were considered in the local planning policies. Furthermore, the country’s post-disaster recovery planning changes will be analysed. The findings will provide insights into government-related challenges to guarantee the technical performance of the houses and the advances and crucial remaining governance challenges for implementing urban development policies.
Exploring Off-site Construction and Building Information Modelling Integration Challenges; Enhancing Capabilities within New Zealand Construction Sector

Over the last few years off-site construction (OSC); which is essentially manufacturing different components in a controlled environment, has become popular in the construction industry. This method has the advantages of simplicity, speed, reducing project duration, and minimising construction waste. Therefore, a growing body of literature recognises the importance of OSC to gain better project performance. While OSC has received considerable critical attention, to enhance OSC applications, integrating advanced technologies such as building information modelling (BIM) is essential. There is a lack of research addressing the integration of BIM and OSC, particularly in New Zealand, and few studies investigated the current subject. Therefore, this study focuses on finding the existing OSC and BIM integration challenges within the New Zealand construction sector. The objective of this study has been investigated through literature review and interviews with experts. The common challenges of OSC and BIM integration were identified and classified. Human resources, documentation, managerial, and organisational are the main challenges. This paper is dedicated to exploring OSC and BIM integration in New Zealand, an essential step for the OSC application strategies within the construction sector. This study findings will lend to the construction sector expanding capabilities to improve the status quo and optimise OSC applications through advanced technologies.
Proton-nucleus total inelastic cross sections - An empirical formula for E greater than 10 MeV

An empirical formula for the total inelastic cross section of protons on nuclei with charge greater than 1 is presented. The formula is valid with a varying degree of accuracy down to proton energies of 10 MeV. At high energies (> or =2 GeV) the formula reproduces experimental data to within reported errors (approx.2%).
An investigation into green gentrification in the Silo District, Cape Town, South Africa

Despite the plethora of studies on gentrification, knowledge about green gentrification is limited, especially in a South African context. Green gentrification is the process in which providing green amenities and cleaning up pollution attracts wealthier residents or tenants to a previously rundown neighbourhood, thereby increasing property values. This paper explores whether the characteristics of green gentrification can be identified in the transformation of the Silo District of the V&A Waterfront, Cape Town, and therefore its effect on the perception of ‘green gentrification’, if it is found to occur in the area. The research was based on a single case study with three sources of data collection – a critical literature review, photographic and documentary evidence and semi-structured interviews. The findings show that the transforming of the Silo District, by implementing green and environmental amenities, attracted wealthy individuals and organisations to the area. The findings show that green gentrification occurs in the Silo District, and its transformation had a limited influence on this perception. The study reveals an inadvertent insidious phenomenon in redevelopment initiatives, especially with growing consciousness of sustainability issues. However, the limitations of a single case study research makes further research imperative, and results tested using contextually relevant methods.
Successful semen collection and cryopreservation of Banteng semen (Bos javanicus) using an artificial vagina

Gamete collection is feasible in Banteng (Bos javanicus) and is essential for conserving this species. The common practice of semen collection in wild animals is using the electroejaculation technique which is considered invasive with lower-quality results. This study aims to develop sperm collection further using an artificial vagina and to investigate the sperm motility of Banteng after being frozen-thawed. A Banteng bull kept in Taman Safari Indonesia was used for this study. Before semen collection, the bull is acclimatized to collection conditions. Semen collection is done once a month for six months. The semen was evaluated according to a method for bovine semen. Cryopreservation of semen was performed using an Andromed® extender, in 0.25 mL Ministraw®, and equilibrated at 4°C for 3 hours, followed by freezing in liquid nitrogen vapor. Quality testing was performed using the CASA IVOS II™. The result showed variations between batches, with the number of mountings 9.83±2.86(7-15) times, semen volume 8.42±1.42 (6-9) mL, straw produced 152±15.23 (130-172) straws, and total motility after thawing 44.28 ±12.14, (26.83-55.96). The quality of frozen semen of the later batch showed better results p<0.05. In conclusion, the collection of Banteng semen using an artificial vagina showed promising results with moderate quality.
Climate benefits of wooden construction in urban context

Wooden construction materials have two climate benefits compared to non-wooden options: lower lifecycle emissions and a carbon storage potential. This study estimates the implications of replacing concrete buildings with wooden ones for a period of 35 years in Helsinki metropolitan area, Finland. The study has three main steps. First, the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions difference between concrete and wooden buildings is estimated. Next, we select the most accurate carbon storage potential of wooden buildings. Finally, we compare future wooden and concrete building scenarios regarding the climate benefits for the metropolitan area. We use data provided by the regional authority of the study area on predicted residential building construction. According to our findings, switching to wooden construction in urban areas can have a significant climate benefit for the studied region. Increasing wooden construction can cut carbon emissions by 0.56 Mt and increase the carbon storage by 1.83 Mt in the study area, an amount that is four times bigger than the yearly emissions from traffic in the same urban area. The findings are not only useful for the city of Helsinki but also to other global cities which have committed to carbon neutral strategies and have sustainable forestry practices available.
Comparison of hierarchical basis functions for efficient multilevel solvers

V-cycle and non-standard W-cycle versions of a multiplicative Schwarz preconditioner based on hierarchical basis functions are presented. It is used together with a Krylov subspace method to efficiently solve the linear system that results from higher-order finite element (FE) discretisations of time-harmonic Maxwell equations. A recently developed hierarchical basis for H(curl)-conforming (vector-valued and tangentially continuous) FE spaces on tetrahedral meshes is also briefly presented. On this basis, a certain amount of orthogonality between basis functions of different orders is obtained through the requirement that the Nedelec interpolation of higher-order basis functions vanishes in lower-order FE spaces. Numerical experiments are used to show the good performance of the presented schemes. In these experiments, the performance obtained with the presented basis is compared with the performance obtained by several other hierarchical bases found in the literature. For third-order elements, it is observed that most bases give very similar performance and that the V-cycle preconditioner typically requires about 30% more computing time than the W-cycle one. For fourth-order elements, the new basis combined with the non-standard W-cycle preconditioner leads to the best performance. The computing times for the other combinations are about 40% longer, at best.
Management of infection prevention and control in the development of new hospital buildings – effective stakeholder engagement during design and construction

Specific elements of building services such as heating, ventilation or water supply systems can play a key role in infection prevention and control (IPC) within hospital buildings and links between the design of such systems and increased rates of healthcare associated infections (HAI) have been identified. These links are complex and multifactorial and several issues have a bearing on this relationship during the construction of a hospital buildings. One such issue is the nature and efficacy of the engagement of IPC specialists employed by the client end user during the development process. Good management of IPC issues not only supports effective IPC team engagement but depends upon it to achieve key aims. Research suggests, however, that the quality of IPC team engagement is not always optimal and there is a gap in knowledge around how this can be addressed. This research focuses on a qualitative evaluation of the nature and efficacy of the engagement of IPC teams in the construction lifecycle development of new hospitals. Using in-depth interview data, the experiences of IPC team members will be explored and barriers and facilitators to high quality engagement identified. This data will be used to develop the foundational principles of an improvement strategy for the engagement of IPC teams within the construction lifecycle development of new hospitals in the UK. Post-pandemic, the role of the built environment in the spread of infection and the processes developed to manage this will be under increased scrutiny. This paper adds to this growing body of research.
To be or not to be: why do transaction partners in construction industry avoid formulating agreements into contract documents?

Designing the construction contracts efficiently and effectively is vital for project success since contracts can not only motivate and regulate behaviours in projects, but also plays a crucial part in managing interfirm relationship. In practice, however, transaction partners in construction industry sometimes avoid formulating all the agreements into contract documents, which is contradictory to common logic. The aim of this research is to prove the existence of such phenomenon and to investigate the reasons for why it happens. Both questionnaire and semi-structured interviews were conducted in construction industry in China for data collection since China provides fertile context to explore the research questions. The questionnaire was used to prove the existence of such phenomenon and the interviews were used to explore the logic behind. The results show that in nearly 50% of the construction projects in China, the phenomenon of the transaction partners deliberately avoid formulating some agreements into contract documents exist. Given explanations as for why this happens include: 1) showing trust towards the other partner, 2) reducing risks in transaction, 3) increasing the possibility of further collaboration in the future, 4) bypassing the contract check in their own legal departments, and 5) preventing other competitor companies in the market from stealing technology through the contract documents. A comprehensive understanding for designing contract documents is generated in this research, which will not only help project managers for project success but also provides insights into drafting contract terms.
Transaction Cost of Offsite Construction (OSC): A New Zealand Study

Offsite construction (OSC) has been put forward as a solution to many prevailing challenges facing the construction industry, including but not limited to low productivity, housing shortage, lack of innovation, and poor-quality outputs. The uptake of OSC is relatively slow in the New Zealand construction industry. With only 10% of all the new builds using the OSC approach, it is evident that the potential of this construction approach is under-utilised. Many barriers have been identified as responsible for low uptake, including cost-related barriers. This study investigates the transaction cost of OSC, which is an extra cost to the project development cost and is generally overlooked in the project planning and development stage. This study aims to identify the factors that contribute to the transaction cost of OSC in New Zealand, alongside investigating the impact of transaction cost on overall project delivery and factors that can minimise the transaction cost. A questionnaire survey was conducted involving OSC practitioners in New Zealand. It was noted that consultation with building consent authority, the complexity of interface design, limited capacity of offsite manufacturers, and highly skilled workforce requirements contribute to transition cost during concept design, technical design and procurement, manufacturing, and on-site assembly stages. Consequently, disputes between stakeholders, uncertainty, an overall increase in project cost, and reluctance to use OSC may occur. It is noted that the use of innovation like automation, building information modeling, design for manufacturing and assembly, and consenting process to suit OSC holds the potential to reduce the transaction cost.
Multi-zone grey-box thermal building identification with real occupants

Model-based building control can optimize energy use and thermal comfort. To control each room individually and account for occupants' preferences, a multi-zone model is required to represent each room. For multi-zone models with grey box structures, the rooms can either be modeled uncoupledly (decentral) or coupledly by considering the heat exchange between rooms (central). Therefore, this paper analyzes (i) central and decentral model structures, (ii) different identification algorithms to estimate their parameters, and (iii) occupants and disturbances during the identification process. For each grey-box model structure, we evaluate the performance of a Genetic Algorithm (GA) and different gradient-based identification algorithms. The thermal dynamics of this study remain largely undisturbed on weekends when the building is unoccupied, but are greatly disturbed on weekdays by the occupants, e.g., by the opening of windows. Our results show that the occurrence of the disturbances during the identification has the most negative impact on grey-box model performance. Furthermore, we show that the lowest identification error can be attained with gradient-based optimization methods and that the model structure has a minor influence on the identification error.
STRONG CONSISTENCY OF LEAST SQUARES ESTIMATES IN DYNAMIC MODELS

The least squares estimate of the parameter matrix B in the model y, = B'xt + u,, where u, is an m-component vector of unobservable disturbances and x, is a p-component vector, converges to B with probability one under certain conditions on the behavior of x, and ut. When x, is stochastic and the conditional expectation of u, given x5 for s < t and u, for s < t is zero, then the least squares estimates are strongly consistent if the inverse of AT = MT IXtX't, where T is the sample size, converges to the zero matrix and if the ratio of the largest to the smallest characteristic root of AT is bounded with probability one.
A covariance components estimation procedure when modelling a road safety measure in terms of linear constraints

This paper deals with the asymptotic estimation of the covariance between the average effect of a road safety measure and the accident risks when the multidimensional parameter of interest is constrained. The explicit asymptotic covariance is achieved through Schur complements technical method. This approach also provides a powerful tool to formally compute the explicit covariance between two different accident risks whatever the experimental sites. The easiness of the obtention of the asymptotic covariances without matrix inversion is an attractive aspect of this new approach. Some examples of formal estimation are discussed to back up the method.
BayesX: Analyzing Bayesian Structural Additive Regression Models

There has been much recent interest in Bayesian inference for generalized additive and related models. The increasing popularity of Bayesian methods for these and other model classes is mainly caused by the introduction of Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) simulation techniques which allow realistic modeling of complex problems. This paper describes the capabilities of the free software package BayesX for estimating regression models with structured additive predictor based on MCMC inference. The program extends the capabilities of existing software for semiparametric regression included in S-PLUS, SAS, R or Stata. Many model classes well known from the literature are special cases of the models supported by BayesX. Examples are generalized additive (mixed) models, dynamic models, varying coefficient models, geoadditive models, geographically weighted regression and models for space-time regression. BayesX supports the most common distributions for the response variable. For univariate responses these are Gaussian, Binomial, Poisson, Gamma, negative Binomial, zero inflated Poisson and zero inflated negative binomial. For multicategorical responses, both multinomial logit and probit models for unordered categories of the response as well as cumulative threshold models for ordered categories can be estimated. Moreover, BayesX allows the estimation of complex continuous time survival and hazard rate models.
Jump and Sprint Performance Directly and 24 h After Velocity- vs. Failure-based Training

Abstract The combination of plyometric and resistance training (RT) is frequently used to increase power-related adaptations. Since plyometric training is most effective when athletes are in a well-rested state, the acute effect of RT on plyometric performance should be carefully considered. Thus, 15 highly trained males (23.1±3.5 yrs, 1.80±0.06 m, 79.1±7.9 kg) completed a load- and volume-matched velocity-based RT session with 10% velocity loss (VL10) and traditional 1-repetition maximum-based RT session to failure (TRF) in a randomized order. Repeated sprints (5 × 15 m), countermovement jumps (CMJs), and drop jumps (DJs) were measured before, immediately after, and 24 h after both sessions. Lactate, heart rate, and perceived effort (RPE) were measured. Sprint, CMJ, and DJ revealed significant interaction effects (rANOVA p <0.001, η p 2 ≥0.63). Immediately afterward, sprint, DJ, and CMJ were less negatively affected ( p ≤0.03, SMD≥|0.40|) by VL10 vs. TRF. Sprint and CMJ were already recovered 24 h post-testing and showed no significant differences between TRF and VL10 ( p ≥0.07, SMD≤|0.21|). Twenty-four hours post-testing, DJs were still reduced during TRF but already recovered during VL10 ( p =0.01, SMD=|0.70|). TRF resulted in higher lactate, heart rate, and RPE compared to VL10 ( p ≤0.019, η p 2 ≥0.27, SMD≥|0.68|). In conclusion, the non-failure-based VL10 impairs jump and sprint performance less than the failure-based TRF approach, despite matched volume and intensity.
Interactions between Internal Waves and Boundary Layer Vortices

Abstract The effect of internal waves on linear vortices in a homogeneous boundary layer is examined by taking a simple model with a horizontal array of line vortices or vortex cells lying in a layer bounded above by a rigid plane and below by a density interface on which interfacial waves are free to propagate. The interfacial waves stretch, compress, and displace the vortices, so changing their vorticity, orientation, and separation by amounts that are estimated. As a consequence, the instability of an array of vortices of alternating signs is enhanced in regions that depend on the local phase of the interfacial waves. The vortices force secondary disturbances on the wave-perturbed density interface. For parameter values typical of the ocean, the potential energy associated with these disturbances may be comparable with the kinetic energy in the vortices. The energy required to drive the vortices is therefore greater than that in the absence of internal waves, and this may affect the growth and developm.