Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
How are characteristics of urban green space related to levels of physical activity: Examining the links

This study investigates the associations between characteristics of urban green spaces and frequency and duration of self-reported physical activity in the city of Aydın, Turkey. Data were collected through a survey with 420 participants. We analysed the associations between characteristics of urban green spaces and frequency and duration of general population’ physical activity and physical activity of physically active people with multivariate linear regression while controlling for sex, age, marital status, education level, occupation and household income level. Results showed that for the general population, short distance to urban green spaces, many trees, exercise equipment and picnic areas were positively associated with frequency of physical activity, while barbecue and fire places negatively associated with duration of physical activity. For physically active people, many trees, soccer and basketball fields were positively associated with their frequency of physical activity, but water features were negatively correlated with frequency of physical activity. In regard to duration of physical activity for physically active people, findings showed lawn and exercise equipment were positively correlated with duration of physical activity, while water features, barbecue and fire places were negatively correlated with duration of physical activity. The findings indicate that levels of physical activity in urban green spaces could be promoted with many trees, exercise equipment, picnic areas and lawn. However, causal relationship needs to be conducted with intervention or longitudinal studies.
Production and Evaluation of Carbonized Electrospun Fibers from Bioethanol Lignin

Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) - Leaders Opportunity Fund (LOF) (Project # 22604); Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) of Canada - Discovery Grants individual (Project # 400320); NSERC NCE AUTO21 (Project # 460373); the Ontario Ministry of Economic Development and Innovation (MEDI) - Ontario Research Fund (ORF) Research Excellence (RE) Round-4 (Project # 050289); Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA) - University of Guelph Bioeconomy Industrial Uses Research Program (Project # 200371).
The eco-driving effect of electric vehicles compared to conventional gasoline vehicles

Eco-driving is attractive to the public, not only users of internal-combustion-engine vehicles (ICEVs) including hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) but also users of electric vehicles (EVs) have interest in eco-driving. In this context, a quantitative evaluation of eco-driving effect of EVs was conducted using a chassis dynamometer (C/D) with an “eco-driving test mode. ” This mode comprised four speed patterns selected from fifty-two real-world driving datasets collected during an eco-driving test-ride event. The four patterns had the same travel distance (5.2 km), but showed varying eco-driving achievement levels. Three ICEVs, one HEV and two EVs were tested using a C/D. Good linear relationships were found between the eco-driving achievement level and electric or fuel consumption rate of all vehicles. The reduction of CO2 emissions was also estimated. The CO2-reduction rates of the four conventional (including hybrid) vehicles were 10.9%–12.6%, while those of two types of EVs were 11.7%–18.4%. These results indicate that the eco-driving tips for conventional vehicles are effective to not only ICEVs and HEVs but also EVs. Furthermore, EVs have a higher potential of eco-driving effect than ICEVs and HEVs if EVs could maintain high energy conversion efficiency at low load range. This study is intended to support the importance of the dissemination of tools like the intelligent speed adaptation (ISA) to obey the regulation speed in real time. In the future, also in the development and dissemination of automated driving systems, the viewpoint of achieving the traveling purpose with less kinetic energy would be important.
Direct Measurement of U235 and Pu239 in Spent Fuel Rods with Gamma-Ray Mirrors

The amounts of fissile Pu and U in spent nuclear fuel are of primary concern to the safeguards community. In particular, there are issues when safeguards transitions from an item accountancy basis (such as fuel bundles) to a fissile material mass basis as occurs when spent fuel enters a reprocessing plant. Discrepancies occur because item accountancy requires estimating the content of fissile material using indirect techniques such as the fuel burn-up and item-level measurements of radiation emissions from fission by-products. Direct measurement of the fissile content by monitoring line emissions from fissile species themselves is impossible because the lines are much weaker than those emitted by shorter-lived isotopes in the fuel. The goal of this project is to develop a technique to directly measure these weaker lines despite the presence of overwhelming radiation from other isotopes. This is achieved by using gamma-ray mirrors as a narrow band-pass filter. The mirrors reflect only energies of interest toward a HPGe detector that is shielded from direct view of the spent fuel and its fierce emissions. This can significantly improve the reliability with which the mass of fissile material is tracked.
Comparative study of the design and manufacturing processes of electrical motors with low and high energy permanent magnets

The author reviews the evolution of permanent magnet materials and different permanent magnet electrical motors. Comparative aspects of the designs, magnet systems and manufacturing methods are discussed for brushed and brushless motors with 'metallic', 'ferrite' and 'rare earth' magnets. Electro-magnetic design data and performance of typical motors are given from a manufacturing range of 20 mm to 300 mm outside diameters and 2 poles to 36 poles for both 'power' and 'torque' applications. >
Online Education: A Unique Opportunity to Develop Online Communication Skills while Controlling Your Personal Brand

Young people will have to change their names in order to escape their “cyber past,” prophesized Eric Schmidt (Google’s CEO) in August 2010. This provocative thought from the principal opponent of Facebook may be considered a strategic maneuver, but it also highlights the deep societal changes coming with the continuing development of social media. From the instructors’ perspective, people may wonder if online education could help students develop their communication skills in the era of web 2.0. But others may contend that a priority has to be given to the class content, not to another use of the media, which simply provides a new channel to enhance the learning experience. This chapter proposes a first step to reconcile the two perspectives and shows that improving students’ communication skills and awareness when teaching in an online environment can enhance student learning and help personal branding, i.e. developing the ability to package their skills and to showcase their distinctive attributes. To help demonstrate this, results from the authors’ courses are provided.
Towards the new Croatian terrestrial reference frame based on CROPOS - preliminary results

Since the establishment of CROPOS, almost seven years have passed. Initial and also the last adjustment CROPOS network was carried out in 2008 using only seven 24h session data in GPS Week 1503 (ETRF2000 R05 ; e2008, 83). In the recent period there have been significant changes - Croatian State Geodetic Administration (CSGA) signed an agreement on the exchange of data of national positioning systems neighboring countries: Slovenia (SIGNAL), Hungary (GNSSnet.hu), Montenegro (MontePOS), Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiHPOS) and Republika Srpska (SRPOS). This paper presents the results of long-term stability of coordinates of CROPOS stations through absolute comparison of ETRF2000 coordinates from initial adjustment with the combined networked solution of CROPOS and nearby positioning systems, calculated on the basis of 1463 daily solutions for the time span of four years.
Analysis and optimisation of objective vehicle dynamics testing in winter conditions

ABSTRACT Objective testing of vehicle handling in winter conditions has not been implemented yet because of its low repeatability and its low signal-to-noise ratio. Enabling this testing, by identifying robust manoeuvres and metrics, was the aim of this study. This has been achieved by using both experimental data, gathered with steering-robot tests on ice, and simulation models of different complexities. Simple bicycle models with brush and MF-tyre models were built, both optimally parameterised against the experimental data. The brush model presented a better balance in complexity performance. This model was also implemented in a Kalman filter to reduce measurement noise; however, a simpler low-pass filter showed almost similar results at lower cost. A more advanced full vehicle model was built in VI-CarRealTime, based on kinematics and compliance data, damper measurements, and real tyre measurements in winter conditions. This model offered better results and was therefore chosen to optimise the initial manoeuvres through test design and simulations. A sensitivity analysis (ANOVA) of the experimental data allowed one to classify the robustness of the metrics. Finally, to validate the results, the proposed and the initial manoeuvres were tested back to back in a new winter campaign.
Time-Expanded Network Model of Train-Level Subway Ridership Flows Using Actual Train Movement Data

Subway ridership estimates are important to transit operators for both internal applications (e.g., setting service frequencies, prioritizing station upgrades) and external reporting (e.g., to the National Transit Database). New York City Transit (NYCT) is developing a new model that will accomplish three primary objectives: (a) estimating subway ridership at a train level for the first time, (b) basing path choice on actual train movements rather than on schedules so that uneven loadings can be accurately captured, and (c) running fast enough to be used daily and being sufficiently automated to run with minimal human intervention. The model integrates entry data from fare cards with actual train movement data from a wide range of electronic systems and schedules. The model assigns riders to trains by using a Frank–Wolfe approach, including Dijkstra’s algorithm for shortest paths, with customizations designed for transit. These customizations improve speed, enable the algorithm to model delays better, and allow for multiple types of riders with different preferences for transfers and crowding. The size and the complexity of the NYCT system make for a challenging test case computationally. Approximately 6 million trips are made on a busy weekday, and these are assigned to a time-expanded network containing more than 3 million nodes and 7 million arcs. The model is automated and runs fast enough that it can be used daily. Validation against manual counts indicates strong results, with the R2 for max load point volumes for the morning peak hour equal to . 91.
NEMS/MEMS integration in submicron CMOS Technologies

The reduction of MEMS devices dimensions to the nano scale (NEMS) has allowed them to access a host of new physics and promise to revolutionize sensing applications. However this miniaturization has been obtained at an expense of dedicated, difficult and non reproducible fabrication processes. This thesis deals with the miniaturization of MEMS structures following a CMOS– MEMS approach. In order to it a small pitch CMOS technology (ST 65nm) is studied in depth, NEMS structures are defined using its available layers (width= 60 nm, thickness= 100nm in polysilicon and width= 90nm, thickness= 180nm in metal 1 based on copper) and a post-CMOS releasing process is developed in order to release them. Successful integration of NEMS devices is demostrated with the added value of a robust, reproducible fabrication and an easy integration with additional circuitry. However this aggressive scaling has a main drawback, small output signals. As an alternative to capacitive read-out, the implementation of a resonant gate transduction, based on the idea of modulate the charge of a transistor by the movement of a mechanical structure, is studied and implemented. The frequency response of a polysilicon resonator implemented in AMS 0.35um CMOS technology (24 MHz) has been successfully characterized and its operation as a low voltage switch (2.25 V pull-in) is demonstrated. In addition, we propose the use of mechanical switches not only as memory or logic devices (due to its energy efficiency), but also as the building blocks of a ring oscillator configuration composed exclusively by mechanical switches. This new approach extends their use to other application as mass sensing but with the added value of a digital output signal. In order to implement this new configuration a model to simulate its behavior is developed and mechanical switches are built using different CMOS technologies, trying always to reduce their dimensions. Low operating voltages (5 V, MIM approach), abrupt response (4.3 mV/decade, ST Metal 1) and good ION/IOFF ratio (1.10 , MIM approach) are obtained.
Particle Filters for Airborne Tracking and Lane-Level Map-Matching of Vehicles

This work presents two particle filter methods to address the challenges of airborne vehicle tracking and vehicle map-matching. For airborne vehicle tracking, limitations caused by the low spatial and temporal image resolution are reduced by adaptive particle sampling and weighting approaches. To solve ambiguities of map-matching a particle filter with integrated lane-level map-topology together with a medoid-shift clustering method is introduced. Both particle filter methods achieve robust results on real-world datasets in industrial applications.
Closed Loop Analysis of a High Efficient Single Stage Power Factor Correction (SSPFC) Converter

High power factor and low input current harmonics are more and more becoming mandatory performance criteria for power converters so that they meet agency standards. In this paper, a new Single stage power factor correction AC–DC converter with asymmetrical pulse width is presented. The proposed converter integrates the operation of the boost power factor correction and the three-level DC–DC converter. The converter is made to operate with two independent controllers -an input controller that performs power factor correction and regulates the DC bus and an output controller that regulates the output voltage. The outstanding feature of this converter is that it combines the performance of twostage converters with the reduction of cost of singlestage converters. Simulation was done in MATLAB/Simulink and results were verified for closed loop operation of converter.
Criminalità e scelte degli amministratori locali in tema di procedure di acquisto

Il lavoro analizza il nesso esistente tra il ricorso da parte dei Comuni agli strumenti "centralizzati" per l’acquisto di beni e servizi e il contesto in cui tali amministrazioni operano. Pur tenendo conto di un’ampia serie di fattori che possono spingere verso un maggiore o minore ricorso alla centrale unica di committenza a livello nazionale (Consip), il lavoro si concentra sul legame tra tale scelta e la presenza di criminalita a livello locale. L’analisi empirica mostra come soltanto in corrispondenza di bassi livelli di criminalita un aumento dei fenomeni delittuosi accresce la frequenza con cui si ricorre a fornitori selezionati da una terza parte, in connessione alla possibilita di limitare i rischi di inefficienza (passive waste). Di contro, in corrispondenza di livelli elevati di criminalita, il nesso si inverte, segnalando una crescente propensione a mantenere una gestione autonoma degli acquisti, che potrebbe essere connessa alla possibilita di estrarre parte delle relative rendite (active waste).
Component and Interface Renement in Closed-System Specications

A closed-system specication models a system in the context of its assumed environment. A component is then a view on the total system, where unnecessary details of other components and the external environment have been abstracted away. Starting from a crude initial model, details of components can be introduced in separate component renements, and the resulting views can be synthesized by composition into a detailed model of the total system. In contrast to open systems, also component interfaces can be rened in this process. The original model may therefore have abstract interfaces, whose implementability with the available mechanisms is one of the concerns in component re- nements. However, since component renements may then interfere, conditions are needed for their composability. Such conditions are de- rived in this paper, and the application of component renements to interface renement is investigated.
Effect of Educational Programs, Rigid Sharps Containers, and Universal Precautions on Reported Needlestick Injuries in Healthcare Workers

Abstract Objective: To evaluate the effect of infection control programs on reported needlestick injuries in a general hospital. Design: Surveillance of all reported needlestick injuries at the University of Cincinnati Hospital was maintained by the infection control department for five years, from 1985 through 1989. Data on individual workers were collected, tabulated on a monthly basis, and reviewed continually to monitor trends in injuries. During this time, the effects of each of three new infection control programs on reported injuries were evaluated sequentially. Setting: A 700-bed general hospital that serves as the main teaching hospital of the University of cincinnati. Participants: All employees of University Hospital who reported to personnel health for management of needlestick injuries. Interventions: In 1986, an educational program to prevent injuries was initiated and continued throughout the surveillance period. In 1987, rigid sharps disposal containers were placed in all hospital rooms. In 1988, universal precautions were introduced with an intensive inservice. Results: Surveillance identified 1,602 needlestick injuries (320/year) or 104/1 ,000/ year. After the educational program began, reported injuries increased rather than decreased, and this was attributed to increased reporting. Subsequently, after installation of the new disposal containers, reported injuries returned to the levels seen prior to the educational program, but recapping injuries showed a significant decrease from 63/year to 30, or 20/1,000/year to 10. This decrease was observed in nurses but not in other healthcare workers. After universal precautions were instituted, total injuries increased slightly, but recapping injuries remained at 50% of the levels reported prior to the use of rigid sharps disposal containers. Conclusions: The three infection control programs failed to produce a major reduction in reported needlestick injuries, except for a decrease in recapping injuries associated with the placement of rigid sharps disposal containers in all patient rooms. These observations indicate that new approaches are needed to reduce needlestick injuries.
Massive Online Open Course Assisted Mechatronics Learning: A Hybrid Approach

Massive open online courses (MOOCs), also known as kind of free and accessible online education environment, have been deeply appeals to people and broadly covered in different medium. Nowadays, it seems MOOCs are everywhere. Originally, MOOCs are designed to offer learning content to the participants who do not have an adequate educational infrastructure, or where cost has become a barrier to educational access. However, as the MOOCs become more popular, an important question need to be asked: how do traditional face-to-face learning students benefit from MOOC environments as well? This chapter introduces MOOCs as an assistant platform to rebuild the course structure in order to tie education more closely to work. The major advantage of this hybrid teaching and learning model is that it is flexible as it allows students to work through materials at their own pace and at a time that is most convenient to them. Although the successful integration of such different teaching and learning modalities is a big challenge, the presented case study and the preliminary experimental results demonstrated the effectiveness of the proposed hybrid methodology.
The Automotive Industry in Iran: A Critical Analysis

The removal of sanctions, contingent on the success of nuclear negotiations between Iran and leading world powers, could provide Iran with an opportunity to recommence manufacturing collaboration with Western firms. The case of the automotive industry discussed in this chapter indicates some of the challenges that Iran is likely to face if it once again wants to become a player in international markets.
Integration of Spherical 360° Panoramic Virtual Tour with Assessment Data for Risk Assessment and Maintenance of Tunnel and Cavern

Construct a tunnel is a challenge to nature. It releases stress by drilling and sometimes blasting different rock formation. Once it is constructed, existence of water seepage infiltrated through weakest formation of rock has developed distresses that become one of common problems in underground structure. This paper presents development a web based distress mapping application using visual assessment, non-destructive assessment and utilizing 360° spherical panoramic images to give real visualization experience tunnel and cavern of underground hydroelectric power plan. In developing the application, the virtual tour engine from krpano and scripting language Java Script were utilized. Statistical analysis on the condition of the distress was also discussed. The developed system is used to improve human experience on the assessment processes at location of distresses. By using this system, the assessment can be recorded into the database easily using any smart device with HTML browser capability and assist safety officer, engineers and tunnel owner to decide appropriate mitigation of maintenance and/or repair in order to prolong service life of the tunnel and caver of the hydroelectric power plan.
Evaluation of Sabine's formula on the prediction and control of reverberant noise in a modern LEED Platinum certified research building

ii LIST OF TABLES . v LIST OF FIGURES . vi CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION . 1 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW . 4 Introduction . 4 Reverberation . 5 Reverberant Field Measurement . 10 Reverberant Field Effects . 11 Reverberant Field Controls . 12 Reverberant Field Prediction . 13 CHAPTER 3: PURPOSE AND SCOPE . 15 CHAPTER 4: METHODS AND MATERIALS . 17 Study 1: Model Performance . 17 Reverberant Noise Modeling . 17 Reverberant Noise Measurement . 20 Statistical Analysis . 23 Study 2: Room Treatments . 23 Treatment Models . 23 Treatment Selection and Design . 24 CHAPTER 5: RESULTS . 26 Study 1: Model Performance . 26 Measured and Modeled RT60 Times . 26 Model Performance Factors . 29 Study 2: Room Treatments . 32 Treatment Models . 32 Treated Room Measurements . 35 CHAPTER 6: DISCUSSION . 37 Study 1: Model Performance . 37 Study 2: Room Treatments . 45 CHAPTER 7: CONCLUSION AND FUTURE WORK . 53 Study 1: Model Performance . 53 Study 2: Room Treatments . 56 REFERENCES . 59 APPENDIX . 61 A: RT60 Measurement Operating Procedure . 61