Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
One Acceptor is Enough

The celebrated Paxos protocol implements a reliable service as a state machine replicated over several machines. Replication provides reliability against permanent failures and availability against temporary crash failures. Whereas, in theory, Paxos can tolerate any number f of crash failures using 2f + 1 replicas, in practice, it is often appealing to use it in order to tolerate a single failure using three replicas for the probability of two simultaneous failures is sometimes considered low enough. We show in this paper how, in this particular case of three replicas, we can increase the throughput of Multi-Paxos, which is an efficient variation of Paxos used in deployed systems [4, 2], by a factor of 2 by using a new protocol we call OneAcceptor. In short, OneAcceptor changes Multi-Paxos to use only a single acceptor role and to switch it with another acceptor in the case of failure. The number of exchanged messages between replicas reduces considerably, without trading, however, neither the consistency nor the availability of Multi-Paxos.
A statistical overview of the Welsh language

This volume looks at a wide range of statistics relating to the Welsh language. Several areas are examined in detail, but it is not a comprehensive document. A decision was made to concentrate on the number and percentage of Welsh speakers, their literacy skills, and the practical use they make of the language. The media are not touched on at all. The volume’s main concerns are the sustainability of the present situation and the outlook for the future. These are some of the most important conclusions. The percentage of people able to speak Welsh increased between 1991 and 2001, principally owing to the growth in the teaching of Welsh as a second language in schools over that period. The number and percentage of first-language speakers among the young continue to increase as a result of the growth of Welsh-medium education. Out-migration is having a substantial effect on the number of people in Wales able to speak Welsh. In-migration is having a substantial effect on the percentage of people in Wales able to speak Welsh. At the time of the 2001 Census, 20% of the population had been born in England (Figure 72). We can expect the percentage to be higher by this time and still rising. There appears to be a net out-migration of fluent Welsh-speakers from Wales. The figures suggest that the number of fluent speakers in Wales is decreasing every year. The geographical distribution of Welsh speakers changed between 1991 and 2001. This meant that the likelihood of one Welsh speaker meeting another at random decreased over that period. Such a change has implications for language use and for the formation of households where Welsh is used. Neither the results of recent surveys nor the calculated projections suggest that we shall see a substantial increase in the percentage of people who can speak Welsh in the near future.
Physical and numerical modelization of the behavior of rockfi ll dams during overtopping scenarios

In recent years the technology on embankments dams has developed sensibly due to the advances in soil mechanic, and in all related sciences. Nevertheless their vulnerability to overtopping is still an open theme of discussion. Such an extreme phenomenon can lead to catastrophic consequences with loss of stability and failure of the entire structure. In spite of that, the consequences of an overtopping are still difficult to analyze and to prevent optimally. The possibility to define a numerical instrument to provide support for analyzing the failure of a dam is an important step ahead for organizing the intervention measures and for optimizing the economic plan. This is the principal reason why the Spanish ministry of Science and Innovation is funding the XPRES project, between the Polytechnic University of Madrid (UPM), the Centre for Hydrographical Studies of CEDEX and the International Centre for Numerical Methods in Engineering (CIMNE). The characterization of the failure process is dealt with by combining new numerical models, developed by CIMNE, with experimental tests on physical models of different sizes and scales carried out by UPM and CEDEX. In the present paper the work carried out by CIMNE is presented. The numerical model is based on combination of Lagrangian Particle Finite Element Method (PFEM) and Eulerian level set techniques in order to optimize the coupling between the dynamic effect of water inside and outside the dam, with the structural deformation and collapse induced on the down stream shoulder. The breaching formation and the consequent beginning of the failure are analyzed with particular interest. The specific features of the adopted method make it appropriate to treat the rockfill material and its large deformations and shape changes. A variable viscosity law and an energetic erosion criterion are used to take into account mass sliding and erosion acting in combined or alternative way.
Prevailing Standards and Dimensions Governing Sanitary and Phyto-Sanitary Compliance in Indian Black Pepper Supply Chain

Sanitary and phyto-sanitary (SPS) compliance in agricultural trade has received considerable attention from policy makers, agribusiness firms, exporters and researchers for its perceived ability to contribute towards production and development of safe and quality agri-products for domestic and international markets. This paper has examined the prevailing standard practices and major dimensions governing SPS compliance along the black pepper supply chain in India. It has been found that knowledge generation and dissemination of food safety aspects are essential to upgrade domestic food safety standards as to comply with the international standards. The important dimensions include application of Good Agricultural Practices, Good Manufacturing Practices, Good Handling Practices and Hygienic Practices besides physical and financial infrastructures along the supply chain. An important policy implication of this study is that the efforts and investments should be targeted towards promotion of important dimensions governing SPS compliance along the supply chain.
Investigation of the effects of inlet shapes on fan noise radiation

The effect of inlet shape on forward radiated fan tone noise directivities was investigated under experimentally simplified zero flow conditions. Simulated fan tone noise was radiated to the far field through various shaped zero flow inlets. Baseline data were collected for the simplest baffled and unbaffled straight pipe inlets. These data compared well with prediction. The more general inlet shapes tested were the conical, circular, and exponential surfaces of revolution and an asymmetric inlet achieved by cutting a straight pipe inlet at an acute angle. Approximate theories were developed for these general shapes and some comparisons with data are presented. The conical and exponential shapes produced directivities that differed considerably from the baseline data while the circular shape produced directivities similar to the baseline data. The asymmetric inlet produced asymmetric directivities with significant reductions over the straight pipe data for some angles.
Experimental stress analysis of stiffened cylinders with cutouts: Pure torsion

Torsion tests were made on a cylindrical semimonocoque shell of circular cross section. The cylinder was first tested without a cutout, and then with a rectangular cutout which was successively enlarged through six sizes varying from 30 degrees to 130 degrees in circumference and from 1 to 2 bays in length. Strain measurements were made with resistance-type wire strain gages near the cutout on the stringers, the skin, and the rings for each size of cutout, and the stresses obtained are presented in tables. (author).
Nonstandard analysis of uniform spaces

There are nonstandard characterizations of classical topological concepts like total boundedness, completeness, comapactness etc., in metric spaces. In this article we present nonstandard extensions of these characterizations to uniform spaces. We also furnish completion of uniform spaces. We accomplish this by extending the methods in metric spaces by way of passing from sequences to filters and nets.
Bounding a Matching Estimator: The Case of a Norwegian Training Program

In this paper we evaluate a Norwegian vocational rehabilitation program by comparing employment outcomes of trainees and nonparticipants using nonexperimental data. A matching estimator is used to calculate the training effect for different subgroups of the sample. We demonstrate how bounding the matching estimator can be used to evaluate the intrinsic uncertianty of estimated training effects due to selection on unobservables.
Small Thermoelectric Radioisotope Power Sources

Promising design concepts for small radioisotope power sources (RPS) are being sought for use in various space applications, including a multitude of future NASA scientific missions. To date, the RPS units used on various space programs have provided power levels ranging from ten to several hundred watts. Smaller spacecraft in recently proposed scientific space missions and special terrestrial applications suggest the need for lower power levels. Radioisotope power sources have the potential to enable long‐lived applications such as meteorological or seismological stations distributed across planetary surfaces, surface probes, deep space micro‐spacecraft and sub‐satellites, terrestrial sensors, transmitters, and micro‐electromechanical systems. The milliwatt size RPS ranges from 1 mW to several hundred mW and the multi‐watt RPS is in the range of 1 W to 50 W. The primary technical requirements are long life, high reliability, high specific power, and high power density. Thermoelectric conversion is of par.
Enhancement and Field Test Evaluation of New Battery-Less Wireless Traffic Sensors

This project focused on the enhancement of a previous battery-less wireless traffic flow sensor so as to enable it to provide weigh-in-motion (WIM) measurements and provide enhanced telemetry distance. The sensor consists of a 6-feet-long device which is embedded in a slot in the road flush with the pavement. As a vehicle travels over the sensor, vibrations are induced in the sensor. Using piezoelectric elements, energy is harvested from the vibrations and used to power the electronics in the sensor for signal measurements and wireless transmission. The sensor’s performance was evaluated by embedding it in a slot in concrete pavement and driving various vehicles of known weight over it at a number of different speeds on different days. The sensor was found to meet the specification of 500 feet telemetry distance. It was able to provide WIM measurements with an accuracy of better than ±15% in the absence of vehicle suspension vibrations. However, much of the WIM data during the latter period of sensor testing was obtained in the presence of significant suspension vibrations. The project also evaluated the use of 4 consecutive WIM sensors in the road to remove the influence of suspension vibrations.
Loss calculation and thermal analysis of a high-speed generator

The machine under study is a permanent magnet synchronous generator intended for operation at high speeds together with a micro-turbine in a combined heat and power (CHP) unit. Target power is 110 kW at 70000 rpm. The study is both theoretical and experimental since it includes calculation of loss distribution and thermal analysis together with calorimetric measurements of losses and temperature measurements. In this paper the loss calculations and thermal analysis part of the work is described. The experimental part is covered in an accompanying paper.
A ground motion selection procedure for enforcing hazard consistency and estimating seismic demand hazard curves

This paper develops a procedure to select unscaled ground motions for estimating seismic demand hazard curves (SDHCs) in performance‐based earthquake engineering. Currently, SDHCs are estimated from a probabilistic seismic demand analysis, where several ensembles of ground motions are selected and scaled to a user‐specified scalar conditioning intensity measure (IM). In contrast, the procedure developed herein provides a way to select a single ensemble of unscaled ground motions for estimating the SDHC. In the context of unscaled motions, the proposed procedure requires three inputs: (i) database of unscaled ground motions, (ii) IM, the vector of IMs for selecting ground motions, and (iii) sample size, n; in the context of scaled motions, two additional inputs are needed: (i) a maximum acceptable scale factor, SFmax, and (ii) a target fraction of scaled ground motions, γ. Using a recently developed approach for evaluating ground motion selection and modification procedures, the proposed procedure is evaluated for a variety of inputs and is demonstrated to provide accurate estimates of the SDHC when the vector of IMs chosen to select ground motions is sufficient for the response quantity of interest. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Supervision: Concepts and Skill-Building

PART ONE: What is a Supervisor? Chapter 1: Modern Supervision: New Era Challenge PART TWO: Modern Supervision Challenges Chapter 2: Ensuring High Quality Chapter 3: Teamwork: Emphasizing Powerful Meetings Chapter 4: Meeting High Ethical Standards Chapter 5: Managing Diversity PART THREE: Functions of the Supervisor Chapter 6: Reaching Goals and Objectives Chapter 7: Organizing and Authority Chapter 8: The Supervisor as Leader Chapter 9: Problem Solving and Decision Making PART FOUR: Skills of the Supervisor Chapter 10: Communication Chapter 11: Motivating Employees Chapter 12: Improving Productivity Chapter 13: Supervising "Problem" Employees Chapter 14: Managing Time and Stress Chapter 15: Managing Conflict and Change Appendix: Negotiation and Politics PART FIVE: Supervision and Human Resources Chapter 16: Selecting Employees Chapter 17: Providing Orientation and Training Chapter 18: Appraising Performance Chapter 19: The Impact of the Law
How important are agglomeration effects for plant performance? Empirical evidence for Germany

The question whether agglomeration effects are of importance for regional development has a long tradition in regional science. This paper asks if regional characteristics and specifically agglomeration effects influence the performance of plants in Germany and, if so, in which direction. Hence, we aim at contributing to the still sparse empirical studies in this field of research by adding three aspects to the existing evidence. First, we provide the first plant-level evidence on regional agglomeration effects for Germany. Second, while earlier papers looked only at few sectors of the economy or only at manufacturing, we extend our analysis to the services sector. Finally, we are among the first who identify agglomeration effects while controlling for the internal structure of the establishments using a rich set of plant characteristics that are likely to influence productivity. To this end we estimate plant-level production functions augmented by regional characteristics and controlling in detail for plant-specific features. The analysis is conducted both within a static and a dynamic panel framework. We use the IAB Establishment Panel, a large-scale German establishment survey covering around 16,000 establishments each year. In the static framework we find support for the positive impact of localization economies and market size, while urbanization seems to have a negative influence. Results for the dynamic models are rather inconclusive.
Use of genetic algorithms and neural networks to optimize well locations and reduce well requirements

A goal common to both the environmental and petroleum industries is the reduction of costs and/or enhancement of profits by the optimal placement of extraction/production and injection wells. Formal optimization techniques facilitate this goal by searching among the potentially infinite number of possible well patterns for ones that best meet engineering and economic objectives. However, if a flow and transport model or reservoir simulator is being used to evaluate the effectiveness of each network of wells, the computational resources required to apply most optimization techniques to real field problems become prohibitively expensive. This paper describes a new approach to field-scale, nonlinear optimization of well patterns that is intended to make such searches tractable on conventional computer equipment. Artificial neural networks (ANNs) are trained to predict selected information that would normally be calculated by the simulator. The ANNs are then embedded in a variant of the genetic algorithm (GA), which drives the search for increasingly effective well patterns and uses the ANNs, rather than the original simulator, to evaluate the effectiveness of each pattern. Once the search is complete, the ANNs are reused in sensitivity studies to give additional information on the performance of individual or clusters of wells.
Clinical Gait Analysis: Theory and Practice

Part 1 Theory Temporal-spatial parameters Measurement of gait kinematics Three-dimensional gait analysis Ground reaction in normal gait Plantar pressure measurement Biomechanics of standing Measuring muscle activity Muscles Gravity and centre of mass Power Part 2 Practice Introduction Loading Support and forward progression Propulsion and swing Observational gait analysis Afterword
Expanding Airport Capacity Under Constraints in Large Urban Areas: The German Experience

Expanding airports is a topic which can easily make it to the first page of the national press. But this is highly unlikely as “bad news” is “good news” and most often failures and scandals make it to the front page. Berlin airport or the on-going failure to open up a nearly-complete new airport has been the front runner in this regard and gained so much international attention that the association of engineers fears that the world wide renowned reputation of German engineering might be seriously damaged.
The New Direct Marketing: How to Implement A Profit-Driven Database Marketing Strategy

From the Publisher: Now this best-selling guide to the art and science of database marketing has been extensively revised and updated. In no other single source can you find all the essential information you need to know about the technology behind database marketing; the fundamentals of targeting, modeling, and segmentation; the theory and economics of The New Direct Marketing; and the sources of data and database software. What's more, this new edition contains invaluable tips on how to use technology and targeting to acquire new customers, segment your customer database, retain existing customers, manage customer contacts, and increase your customers' lifetime value. You'll learn what results to expect once you move from the "old" direct marketing to the new, data driven, customer focused, new direct marketing. Equally important, you'll learn how to avoid the most common - and most costly - mistakes direct marketers make when building new database marketing systems. The New Direct Marketing, second edition, will teach you what you need to know about selecting outside vendors to build your marketing database; using internal data-processing resources; selecting the right statistical tools to analyze data and create market segments; predicting response rates, sales, retention, and lifetime value; and modeling the economic and financial implications of a profit-driven database marketing strategy. One glance at the expanded and updated table of contents for this second edition will demonstrate why The New Direct Marketing has become the indispensable handbook for direct marketing companies and users of direct marketing methods and why it will help you and your organization to become smarter, more efficient, and more effective marketers. This practical, step-by-step guide has been expanded to include the latest developments in client-server technology and decisions support systems. New modeling techniques, including the use of Exploratory Data Analysis, Principal Components Analysis,
On the automatic generation of plans for mechanical assembly

The problem of moving a set of parts from a given initial configuration to a given final configuration has been well studied. However, this classical problem differs in several important respects from the type of assembly planning problem most commonly encountered in manufacturing applications. In manufacturing, a worksite is normally configured specifically for each task, so the layout of the workspace and the initial configuration of the parts must be treated as outputs of the planning process, rather than as inputs. A system to solve such problems must be capable of reasoning about a larger variety of part insertion trajectories and must be able to optimize with respect to a more complex set of criteria than existing robot planning systems allow. Furthermore, such a system must be flexible enough to handle the wide variety of different criteria which arise in different assembly applications. After an analysis of the assembly planning problem, this dissertation describes an experimental assembly planner meeting these requirements which is capable of rapidly generating plans for building most assemblies. Only plans using no subassemblies or temporary positions are generated. It solves the problem of being able to reason about a large variety of trajectories by proposing them a priori and uses plug-in criteria modules to guide its search for optimal plans.
Uncertainty Budgets for Realization of ITS‐90 by Radiation Thermometry

Recent international comparisons [1,2] and key comparisons have shown that the realization of the International Temperature Scale of 1990 (ITS‐90) above the freezing point of silver and its dissemination is more difficult than expected. In many cases, the deviations of the local scale realizations were larger than the combined estimated uncertainties could reasonably justify. On the other hand, it must be considered that the realization of the ITS‐90 by radiation thermometry is a complex exercise involving a large number of operations with many influencing parameters. Furthermore, the key comparisons need a unified approach to the treatment of uncertainties. Consequently, a rigorous standard approach for the calculation of uncertainties is necessary. In this paper three different operational schemes have been identified for realizing the ITS‐90 by radiation thermometry. For all three schemes an analysis is presented of the baseline parameters underlying the scale realization above the freezing point of si.