bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
100 YEARS OF ELECTRIFICATION: HISTORICAL EXPERIENCE AND MODERN CHALLENGES
Authors: Avdanin Vladimir V.
Published: December 2020

Basing on the principles of historicism and objective analysis the article examines the features and problems of implementing two state electrification plans: GOELRO plan adopted 100 years ago, under which the construction of local power plants in the Middle Volga region began, and the General Plan for the USSR Electrification, approved in 1932, which laid down the main solutions to radically redevelop the industry and agriculture of the region on the basis of using the sources of hydroelectric power, constructed on the Volga. In this regard, the historical and comparative method made it possible to highlight the main stages in creation and development of the power system of the Chuvash Republic, which since the mid 1950s has acted as a central a link in the country’s unified electric power system. The idea of creating energy hubs of the Volga Cascade, which in the years that followed provided the rise of industrial and agricultural production of the region, was based on the need for the priority development of the integrated power grid taking into account a strictly defined sequence of regional power plant construction, however, these aspects of implementing the electrification plans are not exampled in the domestic historical literature devoted to the reform of the energy industry. The article notes the pivotal role of scientific and technical cooperation between Leningrad and Cheboksary power engineers and instrument makers in solving the most complicated tasks in times of peace and during the war, it considers the contribution of Chuvash power engineers, who provided the construction and modernization of dozens of trunk transmission lines, which made it possible to fully implement the country’s electrification plan and to ensure energy security of the region.
Job Satisfaction and Commitment at the Workplace. Perceived Organizational Support as a Moderator
Authors: Ioniță Alia
Published: December 2020

This paper has as main purposes the examination of the moderating role of the perceived organizational support in the relation of job satisfaction with job commitment for all participants, respectively, for the group consists of intens and volunteers. Sample has 157 participants aged between 20 and 68 (M=30.52, SD=10.14), both men (28%) and women (72%). The moderating effect is statistically significant on the relationship mentioned above only for the group of interns and volunteers, but not at a global or vocational level. Also, a significant positive relationship is observed between satisfaction and commitment. In addition, there is a stronger link between job satisfaction and continued type for non-vocational jobs than vocational ones.
PANDEMİ SÜRECİNDE BİREYLERİN KORONAVİRÜS (KOVİD-19) KORKUSU: ÇORUM ÖRNEĞİ
Authors: GENCER Nevzat
Published: December 2020

Tüm dünyayı etkisi altına alan koronavirüs (Kovid-19) salgınının kesin tedavisine yönelik belirsizlik halen devam etmektedir. Vaka ve ölüm oranlarının anlık olarak yükselmesi, basında salgın ile ilgili haberlerin sürekli gündemde olması, aşısının henüz bulunamamış olması gibi nedenler herkesi kaygılandırmaktadır. Bazı bireylerde ise bu durum kaygı düzeyini aşarak korkuya dönüşebilmektedir. Bu çalışmada; bireylerin koronavirüs salgınına ilişkin korku düzeyleri bazı değişkenlere göre incelenmiştir. Araştırma, Çorum ilinde yaşayan 369’u kadın, 199’u da erkek olmak üzere gönüllü 568 kişi ile yürütülmüştür. Araştırmanın verileri demografik özellikler bilgi formu ile “Koronavirüs (Covid-19) Korkusu Ölçeği” [The Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV-19S)] aracılığıyla toplanmıştır. Koronavirüs (Covid-19) Korkusu Ölçeğinin Cronbach Alpha güvenirlik katsayısı .89 olarak bulunmuştur. Araştırma sonucunda, Koronavirüs (Covid-19) Korkusu ölçeğinden alınan genel puan ortalamasının ortaya yakın düzeyde olduğu görülmüştür (X̄=2.42). Örneklem grubunun koronavirüs korku puan ortalamalarının cinsiyet, yaş ve medeni durum değişkenlerine göre anlamlı farklılık gösterdiği belirlenmiştir. Koronavirüs korkusu puan ortalamalarında eğitim düzeyi ve kronik hastalık değişkenlerine göre ise anlamlı bir farklılık bulunmamıştır.
Mobile Phone Ownership and Welfare
Authors: Miyajima Ken
Published: December 2020

Digitalization is accelerating as countries fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. In this context, the impact of mobile phone ownership on welfare (represented by consumption) is estimated for South Africa using rich household survey data in a panel format, the National Income Dynamics Study (NIDS) with 5 waves spanning 2008–17. The literature argues mobile phone ownership facilitates greater and more affordable access to information and generate welfare gains. We attempt to disentangle the two-way relationship between consumption and mobile phone ownership, which is inherently difficult, and add to the literature by investigating distributional effects. Estimated results suggest that consumption of mobile phone owners tends to be 10–20 percent above that of non-owners. Benefits tend to accrue more on individuals with relatively low levels of consumption, potentially as a greater number of new users, likely with higher marginal positive effects on consumption, and a faster rate of user cost reduction help reap greater gains.
Optimism Bias in Growth Forecasts—The Role of Planned Policy Adjustments
Authors: Ismail Kareem , Perrelli Roberto , Yang Jessie
Published: December 2020

Are IMF growth forecasts systematically optimistic? And if so, what is the role of planned policy adjustments on this outcome? Are program forecasts as biased as surveillance forecasts? We try to answer these questions using a comprehensive database on IMF forecasts of economic growth in surveillance and program cases during 2003–2017. We find that large planned fiscal and external adjustments are associated with optimistic growth projections, with significant non-linearities for both program and surveillance cases. Specifically, we find evidence that larger planned fiscal adjustment is associated with higher growth optimism in IMF non-concessional, non-precautionary financial arrangements. Our results show the tendency for optimism has persisted in the period after the Global Financial Crisis. Moreover, the strong correlation between the magnitude of the optimism and expected fiscal consolidation provides a cautionary signal for the post-COVID IMF projections as countries embark on a path of fiscal adjustment.
Protecting Lives and Livelihoods with Early and Tight Lockdowns
Authors: Caselli Francesca , Grigoli Francesco , Lian Weicheng , Sandri Damiano
Published: December 2020

Using high-frequency proxies for economic activity over a large sample of countries, we show that the economic crisis during the first seven months of the COVID-19 pandemic was only partly due to government lockdowns. Economic activity also contracted because of voluntary social distancing in response to higher infections. We also show that lockdowns can substantially reduce COVID-19 infections, especially if they are introduced early in a country's epidemic. Despite involving short-term economic costs, lockdowns may thus pave the way to a faster recovery by containing the spread of the virus and reducing voluntary social distancing. Finally, we document that lockdowns entail decreasing marginal economic costs but increasing marginal benefits in reducing infections. This suggests that tight short-lived lockdowns are preferable to mild prolonged measures.
China’s Rebalancing
Authors: Aasaavari Nitya , Di Vittorio Fabio , Lariau Ana , Li Yuebo , Mano Rui , Rodriguez Pedro
Published: December 2020

Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), two regions with large growth potential, have become increasingly connected over the last 20 years. China has emerged not only as a top trading partner, but also as an important competitor of LAC exports. China’s retreat from certain markets, due to the ongoing rebalancing process, could open new opportunities for LAC exporters but also entail some challenges. Our results show that China’s rebalancing will have an overall positive effect on LAC’s GDP and exports in the long run, but this effect is small and uneven across countries, leading to winners and losers. We also provide evidence that other countries, such as India, are currently trying to fill the gap left by China and could undermine LAC’s competitive advantage in some export markets. In this context, reduction of trade barriers and further integration within the region and/or with the rest of the world would lead to unequivocally positive outcomes for all LAC countries. The COVID-19 shock might exacerbate the effects identified in our analysis.
Liability Insurance as a (Social) Response to the Changing Regulatory Framework: From Prohibited to Compulsory
Authors: Petrović Tomić Nataša
Published: December 2020

The article analyzes the relationship between the institutions of liability and liability insurance, aimed at identifying the modalities of their interaction. Insurance indisputably affects the development and scope of tort law, but this influence is not one-sided. At the present development level it has been noted that liability insurance also plays an indispensable role in indemnity litigation. The development path of liability insurance shows that the developed legal order entails two mutually compatible systems. Whilst objective liability for damages is the response to numerous activities that render realistic the possibility of causing damage to others, regardless of whether the damage could have been avoided through cautious behavior, liability insurance is the response to the changed regulatory framework, which leads to liability reaching unprecedented proportions. Therefore, the author concludes that insurance does not threaten to substitute the principle of compensatory damages with the logic of loss-spreading.
"Legality" of the Legal Order in Postwar Serbia From 1944 to 1946: Organization and Work of the Judiciary
Authors: Dabetić Valerija
Published: December 2020

The judiciary in Serbia is heir to a long tradition of political influence, which was particularly visible during the communist regime after World War II. Violations of the presumption of innocence, retroactive sentencing and a denial of basic human rights are just some of the features of the work of the postwar “judiciary” in Serbia, between 1944 and 1946. This paper analyzes the implications of revolutionary legislative activity, the structure and organization of the Military Court and the Court of Honor, and examines to what extent the dominant political culture, implemented through the state coercive apparatus, influenced judicial adjudication. The paper elaborates on Radbruch’s idea of “statutory lawlessness”, Fuller’s notion of “procedural natural law” and “internal morality of law” and argues that the postwar law of communist Serbia did not exercise formal and procedural justice, and cannot be called a legal system in the full sense of the word.
Assessment of diagnostic tools managerial skills
Authors: Mundrievskaya Elena
Published: December 2020

This article presents an original approach to assessing the effectiveness of modern tools for diagnosing managerial abilities on the example of the "Potential in Focus (PIF)" test. The assessing is based on a universal scale of performance levels and requirements for the subject of activity, which are necessary to comply with these levels. It is concluded about the fundamental need to review the diagnostic tools of managerial abilities.
Causes and factors of conflicts in real sector enterprises
Authors: Obolonsky Yuri
Published: December 2020

In certain situations, conflicts in the organization are not only possible, but also desirable. Their role depends on how effectively they are managed. Managers, as subjects of conflict management, must determine the strategic line of behavior and program of action, as well as the tactics of influencing this complex object of management. This requires making effective management decisions, checking the results of their practical implementation, adjusting if necessary, promptly obtaining information about the effectiveness or ineffectiveness of the measures taken in order to find the optimal option for overcoming (resolving) the conflict.
Sobre a definição de inovação em design: O uso da análise de redes para explorar conceitos complexos
Authors: Pinheiro Igor Reszka , Merino Eugenio , Gontijo Leila
Published: December 2020

Este artigo, com o objetivo de compreender as diferentes definições de inovação em design, mapeou todas as citações desse termo em um dos periódicos que melhor reflete o estado da arte das pesquisas desta área. O estudo exploratório, quantitativo e qualitativo foi realizado utilizando-se de uma variante das técnicas de análise de conteúdo e de análise de redes. Com base nos 13 artigos adequados encontrados, discerniu-se 163 categorias semânticas completamente conectadas em uma rede composta por oito clusters. De acordo com o quadro de referência compilado, a inovação em design aparentemente refere-se às alternativas empresariais socialmente aceitas para enfrentar os atuais problemas e os riscos futuros, especialmente através do desenvolvimento de novos produtos voltados para a satisfação das necessidades do mercado.
Projeto Centrado no Ser Humano: um panorâma bibliométrico | Human Centred Design: a bibliometric overview based on Science Direct com base na Science Direct
Authors: Garcia Lucas José , Merino Giselle Schmidt Alves Díaz , Domenech Susana Cristina , Merino Eugenio Andres Díaz , Pinto Adilson Luiz
Published: December 2020

Este artigo tem como objetivo realizar uma revisão bibliométrica na Science Direct para criação de um panorama sobre o tema Projeto Centrado no Ser Humano, com o intuito de identificar os autores, as revistas e as palavras-chave mais significativas, bem como o termo mais recorrente para designação do assunto, para facilitar a busca de artigos. A metodologia utilizada consiste na aplicação das três leis bibliométricas clássicas: Lei do Quadrado Inverso de Lotka, Lei da Dispersão do Conhecimento de Bradford e, Lei da Distribuição e Frequência das Palavras em um Texto de Zipf. Os resultados apontam para o fato do tema não ser constituído como uma linha principal tanto na área do Design quanto nas áreas afins e não apresenta, com base na Science Direct, um autor referência. As revistas que concentram maior repertório de artigos sobre o tema são o International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics e a Applied Ergonomics.AbstractThis article aims to realize a bibliometric review on Science Direct to create a outlook about Human Centred Design in order to identify the most significant authors, journals and key-words as well as the most recurrent denomination about the subject. The method employed consist of application of three classical bibliometric laws: the Inverse Square Law of Lotka; the Bradford’s Law of Scattering and; The frequency law of words in a text of Zipf. The results indicate that the subject is not a main subject of Design and related areas and does not have a main author based on Science Direct. The journals covered with more articles about the subject are the International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics and the Applied Ergonomics.
Alternativas epistemológicas para o design da informação: a forma enquanto conteúdo | Epistemological alternatives for information design: form as content
Authors: Souza Eduardo Antonio , Oliveira Gabriela Araujo , Miranda Eva Rolim , Coutinho Solange Galvão , Waechter Hans Da Nóbrega , Porto Filho Gentil
Published: December 2020

A partir da revisão bibliográfica, delineamos quatro categorias de definições de design da informação que evidenciam princípios fundamentais para o campo. Encontramos que o design da informação define-se como uma atividade de mediação por excelência, buscando, de maneira ideal, tornar-se transparente para a apreensão de um dado por um usuário. Associando teoria à história do design, argumentamos que essa perspectiva epistemológica deriva de uma visão moderna de mundo que se reflete em opções estéticas que não se reconhecem como tal – um paradigma contradito pela corrente do pós-modernismo crítico da escola de Cranbrook. Por fim, argumentamos através de conceitos de Vilém Flusser que a forma no design não consiste apenas de escolhas estilísticas, mas de reflexos de modelos que estruturam a realidade, possibilitando alternativas epistemológicas para a prática.After reviewing the literature, we proposed four categories to organize definitions of information design, each of which highlights fundamental principles for the practice. We found that information design defines itself as an activity of mediation per excellence, looking forward to ultimately become a transparent treatment of the data towards the user. By relating design theory to its history, we argue that this epistemological view comes from a modern worldview and unfolds as aesthetic choices that are not recognized as such – a paradigm that critical post-modernism form Cranbrook school argued against. At last, using concepts from Vilém Flusser we argue that form in design is not just about stylistic choices, but reflects models that structure reality, finally providing epistemological alternatives for the practice.
Leitura e análise da comunicação visual no espaço urbano
Authors: Bustos Carolina , Scherer Fabiano De Vargas , Bakos Fernando
Published: December 2020

Estudo da comunicao visual urbana, observando o conceito de poluio visual e de diferentes definies da mesma. Pesquisa multidisciplinar da relao entre o espao urbano e a insero de elemen- tos de comunicao, atravs da anlise da percepo visual ambiental, do design emocional e do design universal. Dentro do campo do design, estabelece relaes entre comunicao urbana e usurio.
Técnicas Baseadas em Etnografia e Prototipagem no Design de interface de Aplicativo Mobile para Gerenciamento Acadêmico
Authors: Santa Rosa José Guilherme , Gurgel Andrei , Passos Marcel De Oliveira
Published: December 2020

Baseado na metodologia de design participativo, este artigo relata o processo de pesquisa e desenvolvimento de uma verso mobile de um sistema j existente para desktop e amplamente utilizado para o compartilhamento de informaes acadmicas em uma universidade federal do Brasil. A pesquisa foi realizada em duas etapas. Na Etapa I foram realizados estudos baseados em etnografia envolvendo docentes e discentes: Grupo de Foco, Anlise Contextual, Avaliao Heurstica Participativa e Avaliao Cooperativa. Por meio dos resultados foi possvel identificar funcionalidades e requisitos desejveis, problemas de usabilidade de uma verso mobile j em processo inicial de desenvolvimento, bem como e elaborao de uma nova interface grfica. Na Etapa II foram avaliados modelos de interao por meio de prottipos especificamente projetados para testes no mecanismo de lanamento de frequncia do sistema mobile que, em seguida, foram avaliados atravs de testes de usabilidade e questionrio de satisfao do usurio.
Comparação de eficiência de métodos de avaliação de usabilidade pelo método binário
Authors: Formiga Eliana De Lemos , De Moraes Anamaria
Published: December 2020

A partir de pesquisa de compreensibilidade de imagens pictricas e usabilidade de guias de aplicao de colorantes de cabelos, propomos comparar a eficincia dos mtodos aplicados com especialistas e usurios usando a Tcnica de Avaliao Binria por meio de critrios ponderados proposta por David Meister. Esta proposta parte da pesquisa de doutorado do articulista.
A cultivated planet in 2010 – Part 2: The global gridded agricultural-production maps
Authors: Yu Qiangyi , You Liangzhi , Wood-Sichra Ulrike , Ru Yating , Joglekar Alison K. B. , Fritz Steffen , Xiong Wei , Lu Miao , Wu Wenbin , Yang Peng
Published: December 2020

Abstract. Data on global agricultural production are usually
available as statistics at administrative units, which does not give any
diversity and spatial patterns; thus they are less informative for subsequent
spatially explicit agricultural and environmental analyses. In the second
part of the two-paper series, we introduce SPAM2010 – the latest global
spatially explicit datasets on agricultural production circa 2010 – and
elaborate on the improvement of the SPAM (Spatial Production Allocation
Model) dataset family since 2000. SPAM2010 adds further methodological
and data enhancements to the available crop downscaling modeling, which
mainly include the update of base year, the extension of crop list, and the
expansion of subnational administrative-unit coverage. Specifically, it not
only applies the latest global synergy cropland layer (see Lu et al.,
submitted to the current journal) and other relevant data but also expands
the estimates of crop area, yield, and production from 20 to 42 major crops
under four farming systems across a global 5 arcmin grid. All the SPAM
maps are freely available at the MapSPAM website (http://mapspam.info/, last access: 11 December 2020),
which not only acts as a tool for validating and improving the performance
of the SPAM maps by collecting feedback from users but is also a
platform providing archived global agricultural-production maps for better
targeting the Sustainable Development Goals. In particular, SPAM2010 can be
downloaded via an open-data repository (DOI: https://doi.org/10.7910/DVN/PRFF8V; IFPRI, 2019).
Inequality-constrained free-surface evolution in a full Stokes ice flow model (evolve_glacier v1.1)
Authors: Wirbel Anna , Jarosch Alexander Helmut
Published: December 2020

Abstract. Like any gravitationally driven flow that is not constrained at the upper surface, glaciers and ice sheets feature a free surface, which becomes a free-boundary problem within simulations.
A kinematic boundary condition is often used to describe the evolution of this free surface.
However, in the case of glaciers and ice sheets, the naturally occurring constraint that the ice surface elevation (S) cannot fall below the bed topography (B) (S-B≥0), in combination with a non-zero mass balance rate complicates the matter substantially.
We present an open-source numerical simulation framework to simulate the free-surface evolution of glaciers that directly incorporates this natural constraint.
It is based on the finite-element software package FEniCS solving the Stokes equations for ice flow and a suitable transport equation, i.e. “kinematic boundary condition”, for the free-surface evolution.
The evolution of the free surface is treated as a variational inequality, constrained by the bedrock underlying the glacier or the topography of the surrounding ground.
This problem is solved using a “reduced space” method, where a Newton line search is performed on a subset of the problem (Benson and Munson, 2006).
Therefore, the “constrained” non-linear problem-solving capabilities of PETSc's (Portable, Extensible Toolkit for Scientific Computation, Balay et al., 2019) SNES (Scalable Non-linear Equations Solver) interface are used.
As the constraint is considered in the solving process, this approach does not require any ad hoc post-processing steps to enforce non-negativity of ice thickness and corresponding mass conservation.
The simulation framework provides the possibility to divide the computational domain into different subdomains so that individual forms of the relevant equations can be solved for different subdomains all at once.
In the presented setup, this is used to distinguish between glacierised and ice-free regions.
The option to chose different time discretisations, spatial stabilisation schemes and adaptive mesh refinement make it a versatile tool for glaciological applications. We present a set of benchmark tests that highlight that the simulation framework is able to reproduce the free-surface evolution of complex geometries under different conditions for which it is mass-conserving and numerically stable.
Real-world glacier examples demonstrate high-resolution change in glacier geometry due to fully resolved 3D velocities and spatially variable mass balance rate, whereby realistic glacier recession and advance states can be simulated.
Additionally, we provide a thorough analysis of different spatial stabilisation techniques as well as time discretisation methods.
We discuss their applicability and suitability for different glaciological applications.
El Archivo Antiguo del Consejo de Castilla
Authors: Bernal Alonso Eva
Published: December 2020

El llamado Archivo Antiguo del Consejo de Castilla está formado por las consultas y decretos de esta institución datadas entre el último cuarto del siglo XVI y el primer cuarto del siglo XVIII. Esta serie documental, pese a lo extraordinario de su contenido, ha venido siendo poco utilizada para la investigación sobre el periodo debido, principalmente, a su denominación ambigua, que habitualmente ha generado dudas sobre su propia naturaleza; a las múltiples manipulaciones sufridas desde su formación hasta nuestros días, que hace que su consulta sea engorrosa y problemática; y a la falta de un trabajo de descripción coherente de la misma. Con este trabajo se pretende analizar su estructura y comprender las condiciones en que ha llegado hasta nuestros días, dar noticia de su alcance y establecer un método de consulta para ofrecerlo a la investigación de modo que se ponga en valor este excepcional conjunto documental.
Monitoring and bioremediation of organochlorine pesticides in surface water with Enterobacter asburiae
Authors: El-Gendy Seham S. , Belal Elsayed B. , Sidkey Nagwa M. , Abdelrazek Mohamed A. S. , Metwaly Metwaly M. S. , Gad Waseem A.
Published: December 2020

Aim of study: One of the safest techniques regarding the remediation of contaminated water is biological remediation. This study aimed to: (i) monitoring of a collection of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) in three agricultural drainages (Nashart, no. 9, and El-shoka), located in Kafr El-Sheikh governorate, Egypt; and ii) investigate the biodegradation potential of different bacterial isolates regarding organochlorine pesticides.Material and methods: Analysis of OCPs was carried out by gas chromatography, Enrichment cultures were used for isolation of the bacterial strains capable of OCPs biodegradation and the most efficient isolate was identified based on morphological, biochemical ad molecular characteristics.Main results: The determination of OCPs in water samples by gas chromatography showed varying values of OCPs ranging from 0.0 mg/L (below detection limit) to 0.0385 mg/L. A total of four morphologically different bacterial isolates were obtained, which showed a remarkable capability of OCPs biodegradation detected in mineral salt medium containing 17 OCPs active ingredients by two approaches including the analysis of the OCP residues at the end of the incubation period and measuring the bacterial growth in terms of total viable count and optical density. The bacterial isolate N2 showed the highest degradation capability when the screening process was carried out to select the most efficient isolates, which was identified according to the morphological, biochemical and molecular characterization as Enterobacter asburiae.Research highlights: The biodegradation of OCPs using E. asburiae was proved to be a promising approach for the detoxification and removal of OCPs residues in aqueous systems.
Environmental Liability – Tools to Mitigate Financial Consequences of Environmental Liability through Insurance
Authors: Orzechowska Renata
Published: December 2020

This article focuses on environmental liability insurance of entities using environment against damage caused as a result of their activity. An insurance contract may be the most optimal form of securing claims related to an imminent threat of environmental damage. As a rule, entrepreneurs have freedom in choosing the scope of insurance and in deciding whether to conclude an insurance contract or not. However, for certain types of activity, operators are required by the legislator to have financial protection covering possible environmental damage. Moreover, the article discusses the basic principles of environmental liability and the possibility of insuring this liability, including the cases of statutory obligation to be financially protected. Finally, it evaluates the effects of introducing compulsory environmental insurance.
Initial studies on the influence of Aspergillus niger on the wood components of Populus sp.
Authors: Lisiecka Ewa , Lesiak Anna , Szadkowski Jan , Szadkowska Dominika , Radomski Andrzej , Andres Bogusław
Published: December 2020

Initial studies on the influence of Aspergillus niger on the wood components of Populus sp. An attempt was made to determine the content of structural substances (cellulose, holocellulose, lignin) and non-structural substances in poplar wood (Populus sp.) infected with the mentioned fungus. For this purpose, wood chips were infected with spore suspension and then incubated under sterile and suitable growth conditions. After 7, 14 and 21 days the degree of poplar wood degradation was assessed by determining the substances contained in the wood by performing chemical analyses: Kürschner-Hoffer cellulose, holocellulose by the sodium chlorite method, lignin in accordance with PN-92/P50092 standard and non-structural components. The conducted analyses made it possible to determine the effect of Aspergillus niger’s presence time on the degree of degradation of individual wood components.
O sertanejo Bernardino e a fábrica britânica de Maraú
Authors: Castro Rute Andrade
Published: December 2020

A segunda metade do século XIX foi um período de agitação econômica na vila de São Sebastião de Maraú pois, para surpresa de todos, descobriram nas margens do rio que de nome à vila vários tipos de minérios cobiçados pela indústria. Um grupo de brasileiros se dedicou a tais explorações mas tiveram tal direito arrancado em nome dos interesses governamentais, que pendiam para o atendimento às ambições britânicas e por isso Edward Pellew Wilson conseguiu por decreto imperial ser o responsável pela extração de tais riquezas. Anos depois transferiu ao seu conterrâneo John Cameron Grant tal benefício e este, através da John Grant & Companhia, construíram na fazenda João Branco daquela vila uma fábrica que produzia ácido sulfúrico, velas, sabão etc. Lá trabalhou o sertanejo Bernardino Moreira de Souza, homem sobre o qual a maior fonte de informações vem do processo instaurado por ocasião de sua morte que aconteceu quando tentou matar seus empregadores britânicos.
Avaliação de Desempenho de Computadores Raspberry Pi com Algoritmos para o Reconhecimento Automático de Placas Veiculares
Authors: Soares Felipe , Fernandes Lucas , da Rocha Atslands , Rego Paulo , Maia José , de Souza José
Published: December 2020

Este trabalho apresenta uma avaliação de desempenho (acurácia, tempo de execução, uso de RAM e consumo de energia) de dois algoritmos para reconhecimento automático de placas (Automatic License-Plate Recognition), ALPR, em hardware de baixo custo comumente usado em ambientes de Internet das Coisas, computadores Raspberry Pi, modelos 3B, 3B + e 4B. Os objetivos dessa analise são verificar qual algoritmo entrega o melhor custo-benefício aos dispositivos sobre as métricas avaliadas, se os computadores podem executar este tipo de aplicação e como o desempenho melhorou nos diferentes modelos. Os resultados mostram que todos esses dispositivos podem lidar bem com a aplicação, embora o processamento de vídeo em tempo real não seja viável. Para o conjunto de dados testado, o algoritmo mais leve, que dispensa uma das etapas realizada pelo outro, quando executado no Raspberry Pi 4 superou os demais em todos os aspectos.
Taguchi Method as a Robust Design Tool
Authors: Hamzaçebi Coşkun
Published: December 2020

Taguchi Method is a powerful technique to optimize performance of the products or process. Taguchi’s main purpose is to reduce the variability around the target value of product properties via a systematic application of statistical experimental design which called robust design. Robust Design is an important technique for product manufacturability and product life. Taguchi simplified the usage of orthogonal arrays to setup experimental design. Thanks to this development, researchers and engineers saved both time and money. Furthermore, Taguchi proposed the usage of S/N ratio in order to measure the effects of factors on the performance characteristics. In this study a brief knowledge about the Taguchi Method is given. Orthogonal Arrays and S/N ratios are described. Summary of a case study is given.
Critical phenomena in amorphous materials
Authors: Ren Jing-Li  , Yu Li-Ping  , Zhang Li-Ying  ,   School of Mathematics and Statistics, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450001, China
Published: December 2020

Amorphous material usually exhibit a complex atomic structure including short-range order, long-range disorder and metastable state in thermodynamic, which is one of the existing states of matters. Amorphous alloy, also named metallic glass, is a new metallic material, and has a high strength, a good electromagnetic property, an excellent corrosionresistant and a high elasticity. The system of amorphous alloy can show some critical states and is a complicated system. In recent years, much atttentions have been paid to the researches of the phase transitions and critical phenomena of amorphous material. On a microscale, amorphous alloy can be regarded as a solid composed of many-particle systems. The investigation of the critical phenomena can significantly enhance the understanding of the interactions among these multi-particle systems. The structure of amorphous alloy is randomly and isotropic in macro performance, and ordered and anisotropic on a localized nanometer scale. The characteristics on different scales of amorphous alloy are not isolated. The structure of amorphous alloy determines the performance. The preparation process determines the nature of the microstructure. The microstructure is the internal cause dominating glass transition and deformation. Moreover, the effective cooling rate in preparation process of amorphous alloy affects the short-range rate of the amorphous phase. The nonperiodic short-range order plays a key role in the stability of amorphous phase. Furthermore, the glass transition and deformation of amorphous alloys are the responses to the external energy. The characteristics of the deformation process change with external condition. The external force can lead to the localized shear deformation and transformation between amorphous and liquid in the shear band. High temperature can cause a wide range of transformation from the amorphous solid to the liquid. So it is worth understanding in depth the basic principles of liquid and glass transition in order to prepare amorphous alloy in undercooled liquids. In this review article, we discuss the critical phenomena of amorphous alloys, which include the preparation process, the microstructure, the mechanical property and the electromagnetism. The correlation and the influence of microstructure on the macroscopic properties are analyzed. It will be helpful for understanding the nature of amorphous alloy, improving service reliability and exploring amorphous alloys with application values.
Time of flight technology based on multi-gap resistive plate chamber
Authors: Wang Yi , Zhang Qiu-Nan , Han Dong , Li Yuan-Jing ,   Key Laboratory of Particle and Radiation Imaging of Ministry of Education, Department of Engineering Physics, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
Published: December 2020

Particle identification is very important in nuclear and particle physics experiments. Time of flight system (TOF) plays an important role in particle identification such as the separation of pion, kaon and proton. Multi-gap resistive plate chamber (MRPC) is a new kind of avalanche gas detector and it has excellent time resolution power. The intrinsic time resolution of narrow gap MRPC is less than 10 ps. So the MRPC technology TOF system is widely used in modern physics experiments for particle identification. With the increase of accelerator energy and luminosity, the TOF system is required to indentify definite particles precisely under high rate environment. The MRPC technology TOF system can be defined as three generations according to the timing and rate requirement. The first-generation TOF is based on the float glass MRPC and its time resolution is around 80 ps, but the rate is relatively low (typically lower than 100 Hz/cm2). The typical systems are TOF of RHIC-STAR, LHC-ALICE and BES III endcap. For the second-generation TOF, its time resolution has the same order as that for the first generation, but the rate capability is much higher. Its rate capability can reach 30 kHz/cm2. The typical experiment with this high rate TOF is FAIR-CBM. The biggest challenge is in the third-generation TOF. For example, the momentum upper limit of \begin{document}$ {\rm{K}}/{\text{π}}$\end{document} separation is around 7 GeV/c for JLab-SoLID TOF system under high particle rate as high as 20 kHz/cm2, and the time requirement is around 20 ps. The readout electronics of first two generations is based on time over threshold method, and pulse shape sampling technology will be used in the third-generation TOF. In the same time, the machine learning technology LSTM network is also used to analyze the time performance. As a very successful sample, MRPC barrel TOF has been used in RHIC-STAR for more than ten years and many important physics results have been obtained. A prominent result is the observation of antimatter helium-4 nucleus. This discovery proves the existence of antimatter in the early universe. In this paper, we will describe the evolution of MRPC TOF technology and key technology of each generation of TOFs including MRPC detector and related electronics. The industrial and medical usage of MRPC are also introduced in the work finally.
New strategy for global tallying in Monte Carlo criticality calculation
Authors: Shangguan Dan-Hua , Ji Zhi-Cheng , Deng Li , Li Rui , Li Gang , Fu Yuan-Guang ,   Institute of Applied Physics and Computational Mathematics, Beijing 100094, China,   CAEP Software Center of High Performance Numerical Simulation, Beijing 100088, China
Published: December 2020

Traditionally, the Monte Carlo criticality calculation must set a maximum inactive step by experience to ensure that a fission source distribution has converged. The tallying process can only be invoked after this maximum inactive step to avoid the system error caused by the non-converged fission source distribution. In the same way, the uniform fission site algorithm for increasing the whole efficiency of global tallying should also be invoked after the fission source distribution has converged fully. The calculation must reach a maximum iteration step, then, this process can be stopped and the tallies can be printed. This old strategy has two defects. Firstly, the appointed maximum inactive step can only be set by experience, which will be insufficient in some cases; secondly, some iteration steps can be wasted because the precision of tallies has been enough and no one knows it. So, a new strategy is proposed in this article to overcome these defects. Based on an on-the-fly diagnostic method for the convergence of Shannon entropy sequence corresponding to the fission source distribution of each iteration step, the uniform fission site algorithm will be invoked after the iteration step whose serial number is the maximum of the first active step and the first converged step diagnosed by the above-mentioned rule. This rule will be helpful in ensuring that the uniform fission site algorithm can use enough accurate data to bias the secondary fission neutron number, thus avoiding the system error to some degree. Then, a global precision index will be calculated at each fixed step to judge whether the precision standard is reached. If so, the whole calculation is stopped. This process will be repeated until the pre-set maximum step number is reached. In this way, superfluous calculations can be skipped but the calculation precision can be guaranteed. In a word, this new strategy is beneficial to increasing the efficiency of global tallying in the Monte Carlo criticality calculation when appropriate parameters are adopted. This conclusion can be proved by the numerical result from the C5G7 benchmark model.
Femtosecond laser direct writing of optical quantum logic gates
Authors: Zhang Qian , Li Meng , Gong Qi-Huang , Li Yan ,   State Key Laboratory for Mesoscopic Physics, Department of Physics, Peking University and Collaborative Innovation Center of Quantum Matter, Beijing 100871, China,   Collaborative Innovation Center of Extreme Optics, Shanxi University, Taiyuan 030006, China
Published: December 2020

Unlike classical digital computers in which a bit can represent either 1 or 0 at any time, quantum computers use a two-level system, i.e., a qubit, to implement logical operations based on quantum mechanical laws, which can represent both values at once. Owing to the superposition property of qubits, quantum computers have natural parallel processing advantages and thus have potential to exceed the computational efficiency of classical computers for particular tasks. Quantum logic gates are the generalization of classical logic gates in computational networks. It has been proved that two-qubit quantum gates together with one-qubit quantum gates are adequate for constructing networks with any possible quantum computational property. Directional couplers are the most critical elementsfor constructing the quantum gates. In recent years, photonic quantum technologies have emerged as a promising experimental platform for quantum computing. Single photons have robust noise resistance, long coherence time, high transmission speed and great compatibility with other systems. They can be easily manipulated and encoded in any of several degrees of freedom, for example, polarization, path, spatial mode or time bin. Optical waveguide technology enables the realizing of complex optical schemes comprised of many elements with desired scalability, stability and miniaturization. Femtosecond laser direct writing of waveguide has been adopted as a powerful tool for integrated quantum photonics with characteristics of rapidness, cost-effectiveness, mask-less and single-step process. In particular, it has the ability to build arbitrary three-dimensional circuits directly inside bulk materials, which is impossible to achieve with conventional lithography. In this article we review the femtosecond laser writing and quantum characterization of directional coupler and important one-qubit and two-qubit optical quantum logic gates, such as Hadamard gate, Pauli-X gate, controlled-NOT gate, and controlled-Phase gate. The qubits in these gates are usually encoded through optical paths or polarizations of photons. The key to the realization of polarization-encoded one-qubit gates is to achieve flexible wave-plate operations, which is described in detail. Controlled-NOT gate and controlled-phase gate are the most crucial two-qubit gates in the linear optics computation and sometimes they can be converted into each other by adding some one-qubit gates or special superposition states. Many different kinds of waveguide circuits have been used to implement these two-qubit gates. The outlook and challenges for the femtosecond laser writing of three-qubit gates, such as Toffoli gate and Fredkin gate, are briefly introduced.
Perovskite solar cells passivated by distorted two-dimensional structure
Authors: Fu Peng-Fei , Yu Dan-Ni , Peng Zi-Jian , Gong Jin-Kang , Ning Zhi-Jun ,   School of Physical Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai 201210, China,   Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, Shanghai 200050, China,   University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
Published: December 2020

Hybrid perovskites are a series of solution-processable materials for photovoltaic devices. To achieve better performance and stability, interface passivation is an effective method. So far, the most commonly used passivators are organic amines, which can tailor perovskite into a lower-dimensional structure (Ruddlesden-Popper perovskite). Here, we select a biimizole (BIM) molecule as a new passivator for perovskite. The BIM based single layer perovskite has a more rigid structure. And multi-layered structure cannot be formed due to large lattice mismatching and structural rigidity. By inducing the excess MAI (methanaminium iodide) into the lattice, the layered structure is maintained, and half of the BIM molecules are replaced by MA (methylamine). The mixed layered structure is distorted, because of the difference in size between two kinds of cations. We then investigate passivation effect of BIM on perovskite solar cells. By carefully controlling the feed ratio in precursor solutions, we fabricate solar cells with different passivation structures. We find that the introduction of BIM can cause Voc to increase generally, indicating that MAPbI3 is well passivated. The peak at 7.5° and 15° in X-ray diffraction pattern are corresponding to a two-dimensional (2D) phase with a shorter layer distance. There are no peaks at lower degrees, so that no multi-layered structure is formed in the film either. We suppose that a dual-phase 2D-3D (where 3D represents three-dimensional) structure is formed in the perovskite film. To explain the passivation effect of the two 2D structures, we investigate their lattice matching towards MAPbI3. The distorted 2D structure is well matched with (110) face of o-MAPbI3, and the mismatching rate is lower 1% in the two directions. On the other hand, the BIM based 2D structure cannot well match with (–110) face of o-MAPbI3, nor with (001) face of c-MAPbI3. We also consider that the less rigidity of distorted structure contributes to better passivation. As a result, we achieve a BIM passivated perovskite solar cell with a power conversion efficiency up to 14%. This work paves a new way to the interface engineering of perovskite solar cells.