bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Co-optimization of Enhanced Oil Recovery and Carbon Dioxide Sequestration in a Compositionally Grading Iranian Oil Reservoir; Technical and Economic Approach
Authors: Mokhtari Rasoul , Ayatollahi Shahab , Hamid Karim , Zonnouri Ashkan
Published: November 2016

Geological sequestration of carbon dioxide through enhanced oil recovery operation has been recognized as one of the more viable means of reducing emissions of anthropogenic CO2 into the atmosphere. The objective of this paper is to find the best EOR scenario for a compositional grading Iranian oil reservoir to be fed by a giant power plant which produces huge amount of CO2 emission, through simulation study. For this purpose a three-dimensional simplified yet realistic model of the reservoir considering compositional grading was built based on long term production data. Various simulation cases to combine different injection schemes and examining the effect of injection rate were conducted to propose an injection-production strategy that can optimize the oil recovery along with CO2 storage. This study is the first attempt to investigate technical and economic aspects of simultaneous CO2-EOR and sequestration for the nominated reservoir. Besides, this approach could be used for any gas cycling and natural gas storage process into this reservoir.

The results presented in the study clearly demonstrated that continuous CO2 injection scheme through one injection and one production well, is the best scenario for simultaneous EOR and sequestration/gas storage which lead to higher CO2 storage and oil recovery efficiency. Through continuous CO2 injection, this reservoir has potential for large scale CO2-EOR and storage projects (injection of more than 240 thousand metric tons of CO2 per year with only one injection well without any field development plan). Finally an economic study is performed to confirm the best scenario.
The Identification of Octocorals from the Northern Region of Straits of Malacca
Authors: Mahadi Mohammad  , Zaharatul Naa'imah Apandi  , Hana Abdul Wahab Marican  , Nadthikphorn Kamphol  , Nur Ain Amani Abdul Mubin  , Sazlina Salleh  , Md Nizam Ismail
Published: November 2016

Coral reefs in the northern region of the Straits of Malacca have a diverse group of octocorals growing on its bed. The octocorals identified in this study are from islands along the Straits. In this study, 23 specimens were identified, belonging to 4 sub-orders, which have been subdivided into 8 families. From these 8 families, 15 different genera have been identified. The identification process for this research was conducted based on five important keys; the external form and colouration, polyps or colonial and fundamental structure of colonies, monomorphic or dimorphic, the arrangement of polyps, and the arrangement of sclerites.
The Effects of Light and Height of Building in Attracting Paederus fuscipes Curtis to Disperse towards Human Residential Areas
Authors: Sufian Maryam  , Nik Fadzly  , Wan Fatma Zuharah
Published: November 2016

Paederus fuscipes Curtis is a nocturnal insect. The attractiveness of artificial light sources from residential premises eventually causes the risk of severe dermatitis effect, once Paederus is in contact with human skin. The objective of this study is to investigate whether the light and height factors of residential buildings and its’ association to rice cultivation phases are primary reasons for P. fuscipes’s mass dispersal into human residential areas. The study site was located in residential premises that were built adjacent to rice field areas (? 32–60 m and 164 m) north of the rice field located in Teluk Air Tawar, mainland of Pulau Pinang. Overall, both light sources and rice cultivation phases caused a significant effect for P. fuscipes beetles dispersal flight to invade human settlements. More P. fuscipes were captured near the bright light source with the highest number of beetles found during harvesting stage. Whereas, significantly higher number of P. fuscipes were captured at level 2 and 3 compared to ground and level 1 of the apartment building and P. fuscipes was also found significantly affected by the rice cultivation phases at different elevation levels. This indicates that bright light sources and higher elevation levels are the main factors in attracting P. fuscipes beetles to disperse and causes infestations in residential areas. This finding could create awareness among the public on P. fuscipes dispersal pattern.
The Effects of Salinity on the Filtration Rates of Juvenile Tropical Oyster Crassostrea iredalei
Authors: Geraldine Olive Ju Lien Chang  , Lai Ven Inn  , Aileen Tan Shau Hwai  , Zulfigar Yasin
Published: November 2016

A small scale laboratory study was conducted to determine the effects of salinity ranging from 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, and 45 ppt on the filtration rates of juvenile oyster Crassostrea iredalei with 25 ppt as the control. Three juvenile oysters (shell weight: 1.04 ± 0.12 g; shell length: 1.9 ± 0.2 cm; shell height: 1.9 ± 0.1 cm) were used to test the filtration rates in each salinity over the course of 8 hours. The hourly filtration rates were determined from the exponential decrease in algal (Chaetoceros calcitrans) concentration as a function of time. The oyster in 35 ppt salinity produced the highest overall filtration rate (FR2) with 134.06 ± 15.66 mL–1 hr–1 oyster–1 and the lowest overall filtration rate (FR2) occurred in oyster exposed to 15 ppt and 45 ppt with 31.30 ± 6.90 mL–1 hr–1 oyster–1 and 32.11 ± 7.68 mL–1 hr–1 oyster–1 respectively throughout the 8 hours. The result from this study can be useful for optimum oyster culturing and the oysters can be employed as a natural biofilter in marine polyculture farming.
Radon-222 from different sources of water and the assessment of health hazard
Authors: Ademola Janet A. , Ojeniran Oluwaferanmi R.
Published: November 2016

Water samples collected from different sources were analysed for radon concentrations in order to evaluate the health effect associated with radon in water. The radon concentrations were in the range of 3.56–98.57, 0.88–25.49, 0.73–1.35 and 0.24–1.03 Bq.L−1 for borehole, well, packaged and utility water, respectively. Samples from boreholes had the highest radon concentrations with about 67% being higher than the threshold value of 11.1 Bq.L−1 recommended by the USEPA. The mean annual effective dose (AED) due to ingestion for adult, child and infant ranged from 8.71 × 10−3 to 0.831 mSv.y−1 for the different sources. The mean AED calculated for consuming water from boreholes and wells for the three age groups were higher than the recommended reference dose level of 0.1 mSv.y−1. The mean AED due to inhalation of radon in drinking water was negligible, ranging from 0.13 to 6.20 μSv.y−1. The health burden associated with radon in water in the study is through ingestion of water directly from boreholes.
Norovirus genogroups I and II in environmental water samples from Belém city, Northern Brazil
Authors: Teixeira Dielle Monteiro , Spada Paula Katharine de Pontes , Morais Lena Líllian Canto de Sá , Fumian Tulio Machado , de Lima Ian Carlos Gomes , Oliveira Darleise de Souza , Bandeira Renato da Silva , Gurjão Tereza Cristina Monteiro , de Sousa Maísa Silva , Mascarenhas Joana D'Arc Pereira , Gabbay Yvone Benchimol
Published: November 2016

This study investigated the presence of norovirus (NoV) GI and GII in environmental samples from the northern region of Brazil. Water samples were collected monthly (November 2008/October 2010) from different sources and sewage and concentrated by the adsorption-elution method. The NoV investigation used molecular methods followed by sequencing reactions. The general positivity for NoV was 33.9% (57/168). Considering the results obtained only in the semi-nested RT-PCR (reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction) and only in the TaqMan® real-time PCR, the rates were 26.8% (45/168) and 27.4% (46/168), respectively, being for NoV GI 22.2% (10/45) and 19.6% (9/46); for GII 17.8% (8/45) and 15.2% (7/46); and for GI + GII 60% (27/45) and 65.2% (30/46), respectively. Different GI (GI.1, GI.4, GI.7 and GI.8) and GII (GII.4, GII.6, GII.9, GII.12 and GII.14) genotypes were detected. These results demonstrated the NoV was disseminated in the waters of Belém city due to a lack of sanitation that allowed the discharge of contaminated effluents into these aquatic ecosystems.
Do storm event samples bias the comparison between sewer deposits contribution?
Authors: Rammal Mohamad , Chebbo Ghassan , Vazquez José , Joannis Claude
Published: November 2016

Previous researches demonstrated the occurrence of unique in-sewer sediment, the organic layer, on the Marais site in Paris, capable of explaining the entire wet weather sewer production of suspended particles. Other studies on sites having no similar organic sediment, Clichy in Paris and Ecully in Lyon, demonstrated a wet weather sewer deposits contribution (SDC) to effluent pollution comparable to that of the Marais site, casting therefore doubts on the implication of the organic layer to the outlet discharge pollution. So, an in-depth comparative investigation of the different sites' mean SDC was carried out to confirm or refute the major role of this layer vis-à-vis sewer production. The size and characteristics of the events' sample used to calculate the SDC were analyzed to find whether a statistical bias may have masked a difference that would be more coherent with field observations. After homogenizing these elements, the organic layer regained some of its previously alleged participation in sewer contribution (a maximum of 36% of the total SDC) but another unknown source was still dominant. This suggests that sewer sediment production during wet weather is a result of multiple sediment erosion: the organic layer and another major source not yet identified.
Feature Selection Algorithm Based on Mutual Information and Lasso for Microarray Data
Authors: Zhongxin Wang , Gang Sun , Jing Zhang , Jia Zhao
Published: November 2016

With the development of microarray technology, massive microarray data is produced by gene expression experiments, and it provides a new approach for the study of human disease. Due to the characteristics of high dimensionality, much noise and data redundancy for microarray data, it is difficult to my knowledge from microarray data profoundly and accurately,and it also brings enormous difficulty for information genes selection. Therefore, a new feature selection algorithm for high dimensional microarray data is proposed in this paper, which mainly involves two steps. In the first step, mutual information method is used to calculate all genes, and according to the mutual information value, information genes is selected as candidate genes subset and irrelevant genes are filtered. In the second step, an improved method based on Lasso is used to select information genes from candidate genes subset, which aims to remove the redundant genes. Experimental results show that the proposed algorithm can select fewer genes, and it has better classification ability, stable performance and strong generalization ability. It is an effective genes feature selection algorithm.
Before Lagoa Santa: Micro-remain and technological analysis in a lithic artifact from the Itaparica industry
Authors: Angeles Flores Rodrigo , Moreno de Sousa João Carlos , Araujo Astolfo Gomes de Mello , Ceccantini Gregório
Published: November 2016

In this article we present the results of a series of analysis performed on a lithic artifact from the Itaparica industry, a limace, found in Lapa Grande de Taquaraçu, an archaeological site bordering the Lagoa Santa area in Central Brazil. The site was occupied between 11.477 ± 133 cal. BP and 1.087 ±78 cal. BP, and the archaeological record for this occupation is related to the archaeological Lagoa Santa Tradition. However, the artifact was found in deeper and relative older archaeological levels, in a different stratigraphy context. The technological analysis confirms its exotic nature, not corresponding to the Lagoa Santa industry, but to another Paleoindian archaeological tradition instead. Its technological features are similar to the limaces related to Itaparica Tradition lithic industries. It’s important to notice that this is the only limace found at Lagoa Santa until now, and archaeological context did not allow us to associate it to the Lagoa Santa Tradition. In order to have an insight on the use of this artifact we performed some technological and micro-remain analysis. Various starch grains and other materials were recovered from the active parts of the artifact. The microbotanical analysis indicated the use of the artifact for processing starchy plants. As far as we know, this is the most ancient evidence of the processing of starchy plants in the Americas.
Studies of indigenous lithic procurement in Uruguay and their implications for Southern Cone archaeology
Authors: Batalla Arlys Nicolás
Published: November 2016

Being a territory with several minerals and rocks suitable for knapping and grinding, Uruguay offered a lithic-rich environment for past indigenous cultures in the Southern Cone of South America. In this paper, a history of lithic procurement studies in Uruguay is presented. Three main periods are discriminated, paying attention to authors’ theoretical and methodological contributions to the field. Firstly, a period with general mention to raw materials utilised by indigenous groups, including those historically known, is recognised at least since the last decades of the nineteenth century. Secondly, a period involving description of lithic resources available at a national scale as well as the first detailed observations of lithic sources and possible means of procurement can be distinguished between the 1950s and the mid-1980s. Lastly, beginning with salvage archaeology in the eastern region, the current period of research (i.e. the last thirty years) is characterised by contextualising lithic procurement within issues of lithic technological organisation and settlement patterns of indigenous groups. The current period of studies has involved two different approaches: 1) technological analysis of lithic artefacts and comparison of raw material with previously-published geological data; 2) utilisation of field survey data that locate and map lithic resources, and characterisation of visual (macroscopic,  microscopic, or both macroscopic and microscopic) and geochemical components of these resources. Within the latter, studies can be further arranged according to the main temporal framework used to contextualise research problems. On the one hand, questions involving lithic procurement of early hunter-gatherers (who arrived ca. 12,000 BP) since the end of the 1990s have included surveys of potential and utilised sources, the first thin-section-based petrographic studies and the distinction of different local, regional and long-distance procurement strategies. On the other hand, cultural changes since the Middle Holocene have framed lithic source survey studies to answer questions of resource accessibility for coastal groups during sea level changes, as well as for other now-diverse groups such as the lowland moundbuilders. Finally, considerations for future research are made by reconsidering recent developments alongside the history of lithic procurement studies in Uruguay.
Threshold-based hybrid relay selection and power allocation scheme
Authors: Song Xin , Zhang MingLei , Liu WenMIn , Wang ShengBao
Published: November 2016

Abstract—To minimize total transmit power in a system while guaranteeing the outage probability at the same time in a cooperative system, we propose and analyse two threshold-based hybrid relay selection and power allocation schemes for a three-node cooperative relaying system. They are designated as: the hybrid amplify-direct-forward relaying (HADF) and incremental hybrid decode-direct-forward relaying (IHDDF) schemes. In the HADF scheme, a specific outage probability threshold is derived to determine that the system chooses to optimize power allocation of its source and relay in amplify-and-forward (AF) mode or optimize the power of its source in direct-transmit (DT) mode without a relay. In IHDDF, according to the outage probability threshold, the system chooses to optimize its power in turn with incremental decode-and-forward opportunistic relaying (IDFO) mode or DT mode. Closed-form expressions of the total transmit power of the proposed HADF and IHDDF schemes are derived. The proposed schemes have low computational complexity and system cost. Theoretical analysis and simulation results show that the HADF scheme outperforms the AF and DT schemes, and the total transmission power of the IHDDF scheme is reduced significantly compared with the IDFO and DT schemes. Compared with the HADF scheme, the IHDDF scheme has a better total transmit power in special channel condition.Keywords—power allocation, three-node cooperative relaying system, amplify-and-forward, incremental decode-and-forward opportunistic relaying.
The Effectiveness of the Fused Weighted Filter Feature Selection Method to Improve Software Fault Prediction
Authors: Alighardashi Fatemeh , Zare Chahooki Mohammad Ali
Published: November 2016

Improving the software product quality before releasing by periodic tests is one of the most expensive activities in software projects. Due to limited resources to modules test in software projects, it is important to identify fault-prone modules and use the test sources for fault prediction in these modules. Software fault predictors based on machine learning algorithms, are effective tools for identifying fault-prone modules. Extensive studies are being done in this field to find the connection between features of software modules, and their fault-prone. Some of features in predictive algorithms are ineffective and reduce the accuracy of prediction process. So, feature selection methods to increase performance of prediction models in fault-prone modules are widely used. In this study, we proposed a feature selection method for effective selection of features, by using combination of filter feature selection methods. In the proposed filter method, the combination of several filter feature selection methods presented as fused weighed filter method. Then, the proposed method caused convergence rate of feature selection as well as the accuracy improvement. The obtained results on NASA and PROMISE with ten datasets, indicates the effectiveness of proposed method in improvement of accuracy and convergence of software fault prediction.
Biothermal conditions on Mt. Zlatibor based on thermophysiological indices
Authors: Pecelj Milica , Djordjevic Aleksandar , Pecelj Milovan , Pecelj-Purkovic Jelena , Filipovic Dejan , Secerov Velimir
Published: November 2016

This paper presents part of the research in the field of human bioclimatology
and refers to biothermal conditions in different geographical environments
in Serbia: an urban area and a mountain of medium height. The goal of the
paper was to show bioclimatic differences during the summer between the city
of Belgrade (116 m a.s.l.) and the mountain resort of Zlatibor (1498 m
a.s.l.). The basic principle of bioclimatic analysis is the human heat
balance between man and environment. This methodological approach is a
combination of physiological and meteorological parameters that result in
thermophysiological bioclimatic indices: heat load (HL) in man and the
Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI). For this analysis, weather data for
July, as the warmest month, was obtained, using daily meteorological data
for the decade from 2000 to 2010. Results for July indicate a considerable
difference between the two abovementioned environments. HL in Belgrade was
dominated by degrees of comfort ?hot? and ?extremely hot, with the highest
value of 4.540, while for Zlatibor the dominant degree of comfort was
?warm?. The UTCI in Belgrade has dominated by strong heat stress and
moderate heat stress, compared to Zlatibor where the UTCI is dominated by
moderate heat stress. In addition, a significant part of the monitored
decade on Mt. Zlatibor was without heat stress, with the exception of 2006
and 2007, indicating favorable biothermal characteristics. Therefore,
compared to Belgrade, with its considerably lower overall heat stress
Zlatibor has the characteristics of a site with favorable bioclimatic
qualities.
Cytotoxic activity of the aqueous extract of Micromeria fruticosa (L.) Druce subsp. serpyllifolia on human U-87 MG cell lines
Authors: Koc Kubra , Ozdemir Ozlem , Kizilkaya Faruk , Sengul Meryem , Turkez Hasan
Published: November 2016

Micromeria fruticosa (L.) Druce subsp. serpyllifolia, which is widely used in
folk medicine as a medicinal herbal tea, is grown in different areas of
Turkey and the Mediterranean region. The present study was conducted to
evaluate the aqueous extract of Micromeria fruticosa subsp. serpyllifolia for
its antioxidant and antiproliferative activity on a human glioblastoma
multiforme cell line (U-87 MG), which has not been reported before. Here, the
extract was added to cultures at 8 different concentrations (0-200 ?g/mL).
Cell viability and cell membrane damage was determined using the MTT and LDH
assays for 48 h, respectively. To examine the oxidative effects, total
antioxidant capacity (TAC) and total oxidant status (TOS) levels were
measured. The extract displayed considerable antiproliferative activities at
the high concentrations of 175 and 200 ?g/mL. Furthermore, the extract caused
a significant increase in the release of the lactate dehydrogenase (LDH)
enzyme in a concentration-dependent manner; 200 ?g/mL of extract enhanced the
release of LDH. Treatments with extract at higher doses increased TOS levels
and decreased TAC levels in human U-87 MG cells. Our study suggests that the
aqueous extract of Micromeria fruticosa ssp. serpyllifolia was capable of
inducing growth inhibition of cancer cells. These results encourage further
research to assess the value of the extract in modern phytotherapy.
Promotion of cytoplasmic vacuolation-mediated cell death of human prostate cancer PC-3 cells by oxidative stress induced by daucusol, a new guaiane-type sesquiterpenoid from Daucus carota L.
Authors: Han Haote , Liu Na , Zhang Lin , Gong Minghua , Cao Ming , Li Baoguo , Kaisa Sulaiman , Yu Xiuying , Tian Jingkui
Published: November 2016

We investigated the antitumor activity of daucusol (DS) derived from Daucus carota L. in PC-3, A549 and HeLa cell lines by the MTT assay. Optical microscopy revealed that exposure of PC-3 cells to DS resulted in cytoplasmic vacuolation. Flow cytometry analysis of the phase of the cell cycle did not reveal a sub-G1 peak, and no caspase-dependent activation was observed after DS treatment. The levels of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress biomarkers, LC3B-II and ubiquitinated proteins were increased. It was also observed that oxidative stress played an important role in the activation of the cytoplasmic vacuolation-mediated cell-death pathway. In vivo, DS inhibited tumor growth in nude mice by 39.13% compared to the vehicle. Protein expression in the tumor tissue was consistent with their expression in vitro. Our findings indicate that DS induced cytoplasmic vacuolation-mediated death in PC-3 cells by triggering oxidative stress and suggest that targeting this pathway could serve as a novel therapeutic approach for prostate cancer.
Enhancement and assessment of students’ systems thinking skills by application of systemic synthesis questions in the organic chemistry course
Authors: Hrin Tamara , Milenkovic Dusica , Segedinac Mirjana , Horvat Sasa
Published: November 2016

Many studies in the field of science education have emphasized the fact that
systems thinking is a very important higher-order thinking skill which
should be fostered during classes. However, more attention has been
dedicated to the different ways of systems thinking skills assessment, and
less to their enhancement. Taking this into consideration, the goal of our
study was not only to validate secondary school students? systems thinking
skills, but also to help students in the complex process of their
development. With this goal, new instructional and assessment tools -
systemic synthesis questions [SSynQs], were constructed, and an experiment
with one experimental (E) and one control (C) group was conducted during
organic chemistry classes. Namely, the instructional teaching/learning
method for both E and C groups was the same in processing the new contents,
but different on classes for the revision of the selected organic chemistry
contents. The results showed that students exposed to the new instructional
method (E group) achieved higher performance scores on three different types
of systems thinking than students from the C group, who were taught by the
traditional method. The greatest difference between the groups was found in
the most complex dimension of systems thinking construct - in the II level
of procedural systems thinking. Along with this dimension, structural
systems thinking and I level of procedural systems thinking were also
observed.
Revenue Benchmark Beating and the Sector-Level Investor Pricing of Revenue and Earnings
Authors: Zhao Rong
Published: November 2016

SYNOPSIS

Prior research examines financial reporting of revenue in the context of how the incentives to achieve the earnings goal affect revenue reporting. In contrast, this study investigates how firms respond to sector-level incentives related to both revenue and earnings when evaluating the importance of revenue benchmarks. Results show that the importance of revenue benchmarks varies over time and across industry sectors. Regression analyses show that the sector-level incentives related to revenue and earnings affect revenue benchmark beating in opposite ways. Firms are more (less) likely to meet or just beat revenue benchmarks when the sector-level investor pricing of revenue (earnings) is high. Cross-sectional tests reveal that the association between revenue benchmark beating and the sector-level investor pricing of revenue (earnings) is stronger (weaker) among relatively young firms.
Screw-type device diameter and orthodontic loading influence adjacent bone remodeling
Authors: Francis Jonathan Christian , Oz Ulas , Cunningham Larry L. , Emecen Huja Pinar , Kryscio Richard J. , Huja Sarandeep S.
Published: November 2016

Objective:

To evaluate the effect of diameter and orthodontic loading of a screw-type implantable device on bone remodeling.

Materials and Methods:

Screw-shaped devices of four distinct diameters, 1.6, 2, 3, and 3.75 mm, were placed into edentulous sites in five skeletally mature beagle dogs (n = 14/dog) following premolar extraction. Using a split-mouth design, devices on one side were loaded using calibrated 2N coil springs. Epifluorescent bone labels were administered intravenous prior to sacrifice. Bone-implant sections (∼ 70 μm) were evaluated to quantify bone formation rate (BFR), and other histomorphometric variables were assessed in the implant supporting bone.

Results:

The mean BFR ranged from 10.93 percent per year to 38.91 percent per year. BFR in the bone adjacent to the device was lower for the loaded 1.6-mm screws when compared with the nonloaded 1.6-mm screws (P < .01) and the loaded 2.0-, 3.0-, and 3.75-mm diameter screws (P < .01). No significant differences in BFR were noted, regardless of loading condition, between the 2.0-, 3.0-, and 3.75-mm diameter screws.

Conclusions:

We detected a dramatic reduction in bone remodeling. Although orthodontic loading of 2N did not alter bone remodeling associated with screws with a 2.0-mm diameter or larger, it did decrease bone remodeling adjacent to a loaded 1.6-mm screw. The long-term effect of this diminished remodeling should be further investigated.
Reliability of clinical crown center to predict marginal ridge leveling
Authors: Barros Sérgio Estelita , Ficht Denise , Janson Guilherme , Chiqueto Kelly , Ferreira Eduardo
Published: November 2016

Objective:

To evaluate the null hypothesis that there is no difference between the vertical compensation necessary to level the clinical crown centers and that required to level the marginal ridges.

Materials and Methods:

Initial dental casts selected from 200 patients that met the selection criteria were included. The vertical position of the clinical crown center (VPCC) and marginal ridge (VPMR) of posterior teeth were measured in both arches using a digital height gauge with 0.01mm precision. The vertical discrepancy between the clinical crown centers (VDCC) and marginal ridges (VDMR) of adjacent posterior teeth were calculated and compared. The significance level was set at P < .05.

Results:

In general, vertical discrepancies between VDCC and VDMR were statistically significant (P < .05). Clinically significant differences were observed between the maxillary second premolar and first molar and between the mandibular molars. The VPCC was significantly and positively correlated with patient age.

Conclusions:

Differences between VDCC and VDMR showed that the VPCC may not be an accurate predictor of marginal ridge leveling because the vertical compensation necessary to level the VPCCs is not similar to that required to level the marginal ridges, requiring caution in its utilization, mainly in teenagers.
Microstructural evolution in the welding zone of laser shock peened 316L stainless steel tube
Authors: Lu J. Z. , Zhang W. Q. , Jing X. , Wu L. J. , Luo K. Y.
Published: November 2016

Typical microstructure morphologies in the near-surface layer of the welding zone of gas tungsten arc welded 316L stainless steel tube with and without laser shock peening (LSP) were characterized by optical microscopy and transmission electron microscopy observations. Experimental results and analysis indicated that massive LSP treatment has an important influence on microstructures in the welding zone and heat-affected zone of the welded stainless steel tube. Special attention has been paid to the grain refinement mechanism induced by massive LSP treatment is proposed in the near-surface layer of the welding zone, consisting of the formation of dislocation tangles and dislocation walls due to the pile up of dislocation lines, the development and formation of subgrain boundaries, and the evolution from subgrain boundaries to new grain boundaries. Meanwhile, under laser shock wave, the coarse grain in the near-surface layer in heat-affected zone of the welded specimen was also divided by dislocation movement.
Complications associated with intrauterine glass marbles in five mares
Authors: de Amorim Mariana Diel , Chenier Tracey , Nairn Dawne , Green Jodyne , Manning Stephen , Card Claire
Published: November 2016

CASE DESCRIPTION 5 mares were evaluated because of reproductive complications following long-term (> 1 year) use of intrauterine glass marbles for estrus suppression.

CLINICAL FINDINGS 3 mares had 1 intrauterine glass marble, and 2 mares had 2 intrauterine glass marbles. On examination, 2 mares had signs of chronic endometritis, and 3 had signs of pyometra. Marbles or glass shards adhered to the endometrium were identified by means of hysteroscopy in 3 of 5 mares. Five of 7 marbles had surface imperfections or were broken.

TREATMENT AND OUTCOME All patients were treated with uterine lavage and intrauterine and systemic administration of antimicrobials chosen on the basis of results of bacterial culture and susceptibility testing. Two of 5 mares were treated with intrauterine Tris-EDTA. One mare underwent 3 unsuccessful embryo transfer procedures and was subsequently lost to follow-up. One mare was euthanized because of severe vaginal and cervical adhesions and chronic vaginal discharge. Three mares had no apparent signs of reproductive disease at the time of follow-up but were not rebred.

CLINICAL RELEVANCE Results of the present small case series suggested that use of intrauterine glass marbles should be discouraged because of the potential for severe reproductive consequences.
Broadening Educational Practice to Include Translanguaging: An Outcome of Educator Inquiry into Multilingual Students’ Learning Needs
Authors: Stille Saskia Van Viegen , Bethke Robin , Bradley-Brown Jackie , Giberson Janet , Hall Gillian
Published: November 2016

This paper reports research findings relating to a recent initiative to build capacity and support professional learning among educators to meet the needs of English language learners in Ontario schools. Drawing on data from case studies of educator teams in 16 school districts, the paper explores whether and how collaborative inquiry promoted effective professional learning and enhanced student learning. In particular, these findings suggest that engaging in collaborative inquiry shifted teacher attitudes, perspectives, and beliefs about language in education, deepened understanding of students’ bilingual learning processes, and generated openness to the value of home languages and translanguaging for content curriculum learning. The findings are illustrated with examples from classroom practice, and implications for teacher professional learning are discussed.
Lack of Confidence in Police Creates a “Blue Ceiling” for Sex Workers' Safety
Authors: Benoit Cecilia , Smith Michaela , Jansson Mikael , Magnus Samantha , Ouellet Nadia , Atchison Chris , Casey Lauren , Phillips Rachel , Reimer Bill , Reist Dan , Shaver Frances M.
Published: November 2016

Confidence in the police is fundamental to citizens' willingness to report unlawful behaviour, share intelligence about crime, seek help when victimized, and generally comply with the law. Marginalized groups overwhelmingly report a lack of confidence that police will apply the law fairly. Although sex work research reports a wide range of negative experiences with the police, it is not known how common these experiences are because most research focuses solely on street-based sex workers and does not include quantitative measures. We report on confidence in the police through the analysis of relevant data gathered from in-person interviews with sex workers from six census metropolitan areas of Canada. Under the pre-2014 legal regime, our non-random sample of sex workers had lower confidence in police than estimated for other Canadians by the General Social Survey and were particularly unlikely to see police as treating sex workers fairly. Thematic analysis suggests this is primarily driven by stigma and discrimination. We also found a significant minority who reported the police to be a source of aid, suggesting that appropriate policy and program regimes could be developed to improve sex worker–police relations.
‘Inequality is the root of social evil,’ or Maybe Not? Two Stories about Inequality and Public Policy
Authors: Corak Miles
Published: November 2016

Income inequality is on the rise, and everyone, from President Obama and Pope Francis to Prince Charles and Standard & Poor's, is talking about it. But these conversations about what are arguably the most significant changes in the distribution of incomes and earnings since the 1940s are leading to very different views on how public policy should respond. This is as true in Canada as it is in almost all of the other rich countries where inequality has risen. In this paper, I tell two stories about inequality—one from the perspective of those who feel it is not a problem worth the worry, and the other from the perspective of those who see it as the defining challenge of our time—to clarify the issues facing Canadians and what public policy should do about them.
Use of High-Resolution Signal Controller Data to Identify Red Light Running
Authors: Lavrenz Steven M. , Day Christopher M. , Grossman Jay , Freije Richard , Bullock Darcy M.
Published: November 2016

Intersection crashes are a safety concern for many transportation agencies, and crashes related to red light running (RLR) vehicles are of particular interest. Many camera-based RLR detection systems are controversial with the public, and there is relatively little published literature on the methodologies. This study proposes a methodology that combines high-resolution signal controller data with conventional stop bar loop detection to identify vehicles that enter the intersection after the start of red, when many of the most serious RLR crashes occur. The methodology was validated with on-site video collection at several locations, and the algorithm was refined to reduce the incidence of false RLR indications. One case study demonstrated that an increase on the side street of the green split from 20% to 24% of the cycle length was associated with a 34% reduction in daily RLR counts and a reduction in the likelihood of RLR by a factor of 1.7—a substantial safety improvement for minimal cost. Law enforcement and transportation agencies can use this technique to more efficiently manage and deploy safety resources, especially in cases for which detailed crash histories are unknown or infrequent.
Detector-Free Signal Offset Optimization with Limited Connected Vehicle Market Penetration: Proof-of-Concept Study
Authors: Day Christopher M. , Bullock Darcy M.
Published: November 2016

Connected vehicle (CV) data have the potential to transform traffic signal operations, but the success of control methods that are based on CV data depends on the level of market penetration. Recent studies of real-time operational strategies in CV environments suggest that penetrations exceeding 20% is required. This study explored the feasibility of using CV data to generate arrival profiles for optimizing arterial progression. Applications to offline (3-h analysis period) and online (15-min analysis period) offset optimization were considered. Vehicle arrival profiles obtained from real-world measurement were used as a basis for comparison. Subsampled distributions were used to estimate the potential distributions that might be obtained from CVs, and these distributions were statistically analyzed to explore the effects of penetration rate, analysis period, and traffic volume. For selected penetration rates ranging from 0.1% to 50%, the subsampled distributions were used to optimize the corridor, and the results were evaluated in the complete data model. The results show that over a 3-h window, successful offline optimization can be achieved with a CV penetration rate as low as 1%. Layering multiple days of data might allow offline optimization with penetration rates as low as 0.1%. Online optimization with 15-min windows requires somewhat higher penetration rates of at least 5%. The results suggest that early applications of CV data may be possible at very low levels of market penetration. In corridors with a high penetration rate of connected mobile devices, some private-sector probe data services may be on the cusp of providing the necessary data to facilitate detector-free optimization.
Multimodal Intelligent Traffic Signal System Simulation Model Development and Assessment
Authors: Ahn Kyoungho , Rakha Hesham A. , Kang Kyungwon , Vadakpat Govindarajan
Published: November 2016

The study demonstrated the multimodal intelligent traffic signal system (MMITSS) simulation tool to assess the potential effects of a broader MMITSS deployment that would ultimately facilitate the site-independent analysis of MMITSS applications. The study also identified the most beneficial operational conditions for each MMITSS operational scenario by considering a combination of simulation variables and traffic demand levels. The MMITSS simulation platform consists of the Vissim microscopic traffic simulation software, the basic safety message distributor program, an Econolite ASC/3 traffic controller emulator that runs on a Windows platform, and a roadside equipment module that runs on a Linux platform. The study demonstrated that the intelligent traffic signal system reduced vehicle delay by up to 35% and increased average traffic stream speed by up to 27%. In addition, transit signal priority (TSP) reduced travel time for both transit and passenger vehicles on the corridor by up to 29% and 28%, respectively. However, TSP can increase systemwide delay because it reduces green times on the side streets. Freight signal priority (FSP) can be used effectively along major freight routes. Although FSP significantly reduced truck delay, networkwide delay was increased substantially, especially in the scenario with a large percentage of trucks in the traffic composition. The TSP and FSP bundle simulation study demonstrated that the bundle operation successfully executed a hierarchical level of priority and provided higher priority for trucks. MMITSS applications effectively improve vehicle travel time and delay for equipped and potentially nonequipped vehicles, depending on the scenarios considered. Typically, systemwide disbenefits are observed when TSP, FSP, or both are applied.
Dynamic Optimal Vehicle Relocation in Carshare Systems
Authors: Jian Sisi , Rey David , Dixit Vinayak
Published: November 2016

One-way carsharing, providing users with more flexibility on returning stations, has attracted larger market demand than has the traditional round-trip service. However, the main challenge faced by a one-way carsharing system is the vehicle stock imbalance due to the uneven distribution of user demand. This study attempted to address this problem by proposing an optimization model that integrated with a discrete choice model. The model accounts for the interdependent relationship between carshare demand and supply. User demand is influenced by the availability of carshare vehicles; meanwhile, conversely, the demand further changes vehicle availability as well as vehicle stock distribution. The model determines the optimal relocation decisions to maximize the profit for carshare operators that offer both one-way and round-trip services. This model was applied to the network of a carshare operator in Australia to evaluate the impacts of different pricing and capacity policies on the system profit. The results indicate that the one-way trip price has a more significant impact on system profit than does vehicle pod capacity. Further, the maximum profit occurs when the price of a one-way trip is around four times higher than that of the round trip.
Planning of Resource Replenishment Location for Service Trucks Under Network Congestion and Routing Constraints
Authors: Hajibabai Leila , Ouyang Yanfeng
Published: November 2016

It is often very challenging to plan expedient and cost-effective operations for service trucks under network design constraints, particularly on congested urban roadways. Hence, it is beneficial to account simultaneously for decisions on truck facility location design and network expansion to mitigate the additional congestion caused by trucks and facilitate their routing. This study developed an integrated mathematical model for facility location design under network routing and congestion constraints. The model determines the optimal number and location of replenishment facilities, minimizes truck routing costs on the basis of proposed network design, assigns traffic in the network (for both general roadway users and service trucks), and selects candidate links for possible roadway capacity expansion. The model aims to minimize the total costs for new facility construction, truck routing, transportation infrastructure expansion, and transportation delay. A genetic algorithm framework was developed that incorporates a continuous approximation model for truck routing cost estimation and a traffic assignment algorithm. The numerical results show that the integrated solution technique can solve the problem effectively.
Optimal Heterogeneous Sensor Deployment Strategy for Dynamic Origin–Destination Demand Estimation
Authors: Zhu Senlai , Zheng Hong , Peeta Srinivas , Guo Yuntao , Cheng Lin , Sun Wei
Published: November 2016

A network sensor location problem (NSLP) model is proposed to determine the optimal heterogeneous sensor deployment strategy in terms of the number of links (counting) and node (video or image) sensors and their installation locations for dynamic origin–destination (O-D) demand estimates under a budget constraint. The proposed NSLP model also captures the impact of the time duration for which traffic data measurements are available on the optimal sensor deployment strategy; this topic had not been addressed in previous studies. A sequential sensor location algorithm that avoids matrix inversions was proposed to solve the NSLP model under the assumption of multivariate normal distribution for the prior dynamic O-D demand estimates. A network from a part of Chennai, India, was used to illustrate the performance of the proposed NSLP model and solution algorithm. The results show that the proposed algorithm can identify the sensor locations on the basis of the amount of information provided and can determine the number of each sensor type to maximize the accuracy of O-D demand estimation. The results also illustrate that the proposed NSLP model can capture the time-varying characteristics of the amount of information provided by each sensor location. The proposed method can be used to analyze the impacts of various sensor types, their number, location, and the time duration for which traffic data measurements are available for estimation of dynamic O-D demand under limited resources.
Data-Driven Prediction Methodology of Origin–Destination Demand in Large Network for Real-Time Service
Authors: Woo Soomin , Tak Sehyun , Yeo Hwasoo
Published: November 2016

Prediction of origin–destination (O-D) demand is an important topic in transportation engineering because it is a crucial input for a dynamic traffic management and control system. Previous literature has focused primarily on estimation and prediction of O-D demand with Kalman filtering; however, these forecasts lack efficiency when unusually fluctuating O-D demand of a large O-D network is predicted in real time. With true, real-time O-D demand data from South Korean expressways, a data-driven prediction framework of O-D demand in a large network for real-time service is proposed by modifying the k–nearest neighbor ( k-NN) algorithm. Three strategies that implement different feature vectors for k-NN prediction of single-level O-D demand, multilevel O-D demand, and single-level point demand are proposed. The strategies were tested on hourly O-D demand in South Korea. The average mean absolute percentage of error values of the three strategies in terms of total demand are 5.52%, 5.34%, and 3.36%, respectively; single-level point demand performs slightly better than do the other two strategies. Similarly, for the average mean absolute percentage and weighted average mean absolute percentage in terms of individual O-D demand, single-level point demand performs better than do the two other strategies, especially for O-D pairs with larger demand and for further prediction horizons. In addition, the single-level point demand shows the highest computation efficiency. Therefore, the single-level point demand strategy for k-NN prediction shows the best combination of accuracy and computation efficiency among the three strategies. Furthermore, a historical database size of at least 300 dates for this data-driven prediction algorithm seems required for accuracy.
Impact of Autonomous Vehicles on Traffic Management: Case of Dynamic Lane Reversal
Authors: Duell Melissa , Levin Michael W. , Boyles Stephen D. , Waller S. Travis
Published: November 2016

As the future of autonomous vehicles (AVs) becomes more certain, transport network managers may seek ways to reinvent elements of the traffic network to improve efficiency. One possibility is dynamic lane reversal, in which the network operator makes use of AV communications and behavior to change the direction of flow on a road link at smaller time intervals than would be possible with human drivers. Although there is much research into the mechanical details of AVs, this study motivates the need for future research by focusing on a planning application in which AVs are already present. A novel extension to an established system optimal dynamic traffic assignment model based on the cell transmission model was examined. The model determined the optimal lane configuration at small space–time intervals. Results demonstrate the model on a single link and a grid network and explore the dynamic demand scenarios that are most conducive to increasing system efficiency with dynamic lane reversal.