cometadata/datacite-rtg-text-other-reclassification-records huggingface dataset:
The competitive structure of the coffee industry and the impact of fair trade coffee
Creators: name: Kojima, Hiroaki
Publisher: name: University of British Columbia
Year: 2009

description: This thesis examines the current coffee market especially from the viewpoint of market structure. Though several previous literature suggest the presence of market power by large roasters or distributors in consuming countries, none of them showed any models or empirical analyses to prove this. Thus, the main research question of this thesis is to examine whether or not the distribution system in consuming countries has market power within the coffee market. To answer this question, the Farm-Retail Price model developed by Wohlgenant (1989) and Holloway (1991) (the Holloway model) was applied to the Canadian coffee sector. The advantage of this Holloway model is that linear restrictions imposed on the parameters in three-equation model can be used to test whether or not market sectors of agricultural commodities are competitive. The Canadian coffee market was picked up as an example because the coffee market inside Canada is not so large and it might be easier for several companies to obtain market power. Test results for market competitiveness, using Canadian data, provide evidence which implies that the Canadian coffee market might be perfectly competitive at the national level. Nevertheless, as regression results show a relatively poor fit to the data, these test results could be a rejection of the model itself. These test results indicate that the direct application of the Holloway model might have several problems in case of the Canadian coffee market. For example, the import price might need to be treated as exogenous and a time lag might be necessary to reach the market clearing condition. Considering that the Holloway model to examine perfect competition does not incorporate these elements in the model, the Holloway model seems to have certain limitations. Then, the findings of empirical analyses are used to examine the meaning and impact of FT coffee. According to several literature, FT coffee scheme appears to be based on the idea that large roasters in consuming countries are distorting the world coffee market. However, regression results weakly indicate that the Canadian coffee market is close to competitive. These findings suggest that FT coffee scheme may be built on an incorrect premise, at least in Canada. Since the willingness to pay for FT coffee seems higher than that for non-FT coffee, FT coffee is expected to have an effect to shift the retail demand curve rightward. It is considered that this effect leads to an increase in the equilibrium price and quantity. Nevertheless, as the market share of FT coffee among the total coffee is very small, this impact to increase coffee prices will be very limited. After all, the introduction of FT coffee cannot rectify main causes of the low and unstable world prices such as an oversupply of coffee and the cyclical fluctuation of the world coffee production. Considering also the market scale of FT coffee, it can be concluded that FT coffee does not have a large impact on the world coffee market.
Competing orders in a frustrated Heisenberg model on the Fisher lattice
Creators: name: Maity, Atanu
name: Iqbal, Yasir
name: Mandal, Saptarshi
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Strongly Correlated Electrons (cond-mat.str-el)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We investigate the Heisenberg model on a decorated square (Fisher) lattice in the presence of first-neighbor $J_{1}$, second-neighbor $J_{2}$, and third-neighbor $J_{3}$ exchange couplings, with antiferromagnetic $J_{1}$. The classical ground-state phase diagram obtained within a Luttinger-Tisza framework is spanned by two antiferromagnetically ordered phases, and an infinitely degenerate antiferromagnetic chain phase. Employing classical Monte Carlo simulations we show that thermal fluctuations fail to lift the degeneracy of the antiferromagnetic chain phase. Interestingly, the spin-wave spectrum of the Néel state displays three Dirac nodal loops out of which two are symmetry protected while for the antiferromagnetic chain phase we find symmetry-protected Dirac lines. Furthermore, we investigate the spin $S=\frac{1}{2}$ limit employing a bond operator formalism which captures the singlet-triplet dynamics, and find a rich ground-state phase diagram host to a variety of valence bond solid orders in addition to antiferromagnetically ordered phases.
description: 18 pages, 13 figures
Neutrinos from Earth-Bound Dark Matter Annihilation
Creators: name: Pospelov, Maxim
name: Ray, Anupam
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2023
Subjects: subject: High Energy Physics - Phenomenology (hep-ph)
subject: Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics (astro-ph.CO)
subject: Earth and Planetary Astrophysics (astro-ph.EP)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: A sub-component of dark matter with a short collision length compared to a planetary size leads to efficient accumulation of dark matter in astrophysical bodies. We analyze possible neutrino signals from the annihilation of such dark matter and conclude that in the optically thick regime for dark matter capture, the Earth provides the largest neutrino flux. Using the results of the existing searches, we consider two scenarios for the neutrino flux, from stopped mesons and prompt higher-energy neutrinos. In both cases we exclude some previously unexplored parts of the parameter space (dark matter mass, its abundance, and the scattering cross section on nuclei) by recasting the existing neutrino searches.
description: v2: 15 pages, 5 figures. Minor clarifications added, conclusion unchanged. Published in JCAP
Food-safety Standards and Farmers Health: Evidence from Kenyan’s Export Vegetable Growers
Creators: name: Asfaw, Solomon
name: Mithofer, Dagmar
name: Waibel, Hermann
name: Asfaw, Solomon
name: Mithofer, Dagmar
name: Waibel, Hermann
Publisher: name: Unknown
Year: 2009
Subjects: subject: Agribusiness
subject: Agricultural and Food Policy
subject: Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety
subject: International Development
subject: vegetables
subject: GlobalGAP standards
subject: adoption
subject: pesticide
subject: farmer’s health
subject: Kenya

description: Limited empirical evidence exists either to confirm or refute the hypotheses that food-safety standards confer a positive external effect on farmers adopting it. This article makes use of health indicators obtained from a random cross-section sample of 439 small-scale export farmers in Kenya to evaluate the impact of EU retailer food-safety standards on producers’ health. Results show average cost of pesticide-related health risks at about 165 KSh and 324 KSh per cropping season for GlobalGAP adopters and non-adopters export producers, respectively. These costs equal 86.4% of the mean household chemical expenditure per cropping season for non-adopters and 39.6% of those adopters. Using instrumental variable econometric techniques we demonstrate that pesticide ascribed incidence of acute illness symptoms and its associated cost of illness significantly decrease with adoption of standards. Ceteris paribus, farmer’s who adopt standards experience 70% lesser incidence of acute illness and spent about 50% less on restoring their health compared to non-adopters. Although standards can potentially prevent resource-poor smallholders from maintaining their position in the lucrative export markets, they can also result in positive changes in the health of those small-scale farmers who adopt it, as shown by these results. The implication is that if adopted at large-scale standards may reduce production externalities corroborating the view that it may serve as a catalyst to transform the farm production systems in developing countries.
Personalhistorie for Trondhjems By og Omegn i et tidsrum af circa 1 1/2 Aarhundrede (omfattende ca 1300 Personer) : avsluttet omkring 1876 Chr. Thaulow [manuskript]
Creators: name: Thaulow, Chr.
Publisher: name: Unknown
Year: 0

description: Trykt utgave: Trondhjem 1919
Supplemental Material from Numerical accuracy of closed-loop steady-state in a 0D cardiovascular model
Creators: name: van Osta, Nick
name: van den Acker, Gitte
name: van Loon, Tim A.M.
name: Arts, Theo
name: Delhaas, Tammo
name: Lumens, Joost
Publisher: name: The Royal Society
Year: 2025
Subjects: classificationCode: 460207
subject: Modelling and simulation

description: 2024_numerical_credibility_assessment._supplemental.pdf
Non-perturbative finite $T$ broadening of the $ρ$ meson and dilepton emission in heavy ion-collisions
Creators: name: Ruppert, Jörg
name: Renk, Thorsten
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2004
Subjects: subject: Nuclear Theory (nucl-th)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We study self-consistently the finite $T$ broadening of the $ρ$-meson and its implications for dilepton emission in heavy ion-collisions. For this purpose finite width effects at finite temperature due to the $ρ$-$π$ interaction are investigated in a self-consistent $Φ$-functional approach. The temperature dependence of the $ρ$-meson and pion spectral functions and self-energies is discussed. The spectral functions show considerable broadening in comparison with a perturbative calculation on the one-loop level. Using these spectral functions, we make a comparison to dilepton emission data from the CERES NA49 collaboration employing a parametrized fireball evolution model of collision. We demonstrate that these non-perturbative finite width effects are in-medium modifications relevant to the understanding of the enhancement of the low invariant mass spectrum of dileptons emitted in A-A collisions.
description: Revised version as accepted for publication in Phys. Rev. C
The Role of Income Diversification, Transaction Cost and Production Risk in Fertilizer Market Participation
Creators: name: Olale, Edward
name: Cranfield, John A.L.
name: Olale, Edward
name: Cranfield, John A.L.
Publisher: name: Unknown
Year: 2009
Subjects: subject: Agricultural and Food Policy
subject: Consumer/Household Economics
subject: Production Economics
subject: Risk and Uncertainty
subject: Income diversification
subject: transaction cost
subject: production risk

description: Past agricultural input market participation studies have generally ignored the joint influence of income diversification, transaction cost and production risk on input market participation decisions. This study develops an analytical framework that jointly incorporates the three factors and other household factors in farmer-fertilizer market participation decisions. The framework is then tested by analyzing the entry and intensity decisions of fertilizer market participation in semi-arid eastern Kenya, at the farm level. Transaction costs and production risk negatively influence both the entry and intensity decisions, while income diversification positively influences the entry decisions. These results are confirmed by nested likelihood ratio tests which show that inclusion of each of the three factors improve the explanatory power of both the entry and intensity decision models except in one case: inclusion of income diversification in the intensity decision model. Inclusion of all three factors is therefore strongly recommended in future agricultural input market participation studies.
Multiple states in turbulent large-aspect ratio thermal convection: What determines the number of convection rolls?
Creators: name: Wang, Qi
name: Verzicco, Roberto
name: Lohse, Detlef
name: Shishkina, Olga
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Fluid Dynamics (physics.flu-dyn)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Recent findings suggest that wall-bounded turbulent flow can take different statistically stationary turbulent states, with different transport properties, even for the very same values of the control parameters. What state the system takes depends on the initial conditions. Here we analyze the multiple states in large-aspect ratio ($Γ$) two-dimensional turbulent Rayleigh--Bénard flow with no-slip plates and horizontally periodic boundary conditions as model system. We determine the number $n$ of convection rolls, their mean aspect ratios $Γ_r = Γ/n$, and the corresponding transport properties of the flow (i.e., the Nusselt number $Nu$), as function of the control parameters Rayleigh ($Ra$) and Prandtl number. The effective scaling exponent $β$ in $Nu \sim Ra^β$ is found to depend on the realized state and thus $Γ_r$, with a larger value for the smaller $Γ_r$. By making use of a generalized Friedrichs inequality, we show that the elliptical instability and viscous damping determine the $Γ_r$-window for the realizable turbulent states. The theoretical results are in excellent agreement with our numerical finding $2/3 \le Γ_r \le 4/3$, where the lower threshold is approached for the larger $Ra$. Finally, we show that the theoretical approach to frame $Γ_r$ also works for free-slip boundary conditions.
description: 6 pages, 5 figures
Generative Agent-Based Modeling: Unveiling Social System Dynamics through Coupling Mechanistic Models with Generative Artificial Intelligence
Creators: name: Ghaffarzadegan, Navid
name: Majumdar, Aritra
name: Williams, Ross
name: Hosseinichimeh, Niyousha
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2023
Subjects: subject: Artificial Intelligence (cs.AI)
subject: Machine Learning (cs.LG)
subject: Multiagent Systems (cs.MA)
subject: Adaptation and Self-Organizing Systems (nlin.AO)
subject: Physics and Society (physics.soc-ph)
subject: FOS: Computer and information sciences
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We discuss the emerging new opportunity for building feedback-rich computational models of social systems using generative artificial intelligence. Referred to as Generative Agent-Based Models (GABMs), such individual-level models utilize large language models such as ChatGPT to represent human decision-making in social settings. We provide a GABM case in which human behavior can be incorporated in simulation models by coupling a mechanistic model of human interactions with a pre-trained large language model. This is achieved by introducing a simple GABM of social norm diffusion in an organization. For educational purposes, the model is intentionally kept simple. We examine a wide range of scenarios and the sensitivity of the results to several changes in the prompt. We hope the article and the model serve as a guide for building useful diffusion models that include realistic human reasoning and decision-making.
description: System Dynamics Review (2024)
Two-phase argon and xenon avalanche detectors based on Gas Electron Multipliers
Creators: name: Bondar, A.
name: Buzulutskov, A.
name: Grebenuk, A.
name: Pavlyuchenko, D.
name: Snopkov, R.
name: Tikhonov, Y.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2005
Subjects: subject: Instrumentation and Detectors (physics.ins-det)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We study the performance of two-phase avalanche detectors based on Gas Electron Multipliers (GEMs) and operated in an electron-avalanching mode in Ar and Xe. Emission, gain, energy resolution and stability characteristics of the detectors were studied. Rather high gains, reaching 5000, and stable operation for several hours were observed in the two-phase Ar avalanche detector using a triple-GEM multiplier. The signals induced by X-rays, beta-particles and gamma-rays were successfully recorded. Preliminary results were obtained in the two-phase Xe avalanche detector: the maximum gain of the triple-GEM in two-phase Xe and Xe+2%CH4 was about 200. The results obtained are relevant in the field of two-phase detectors for dark matter searches, coherent neutrino scattering, PET and digital radiography.
description: 10 pages, 13 figures. Accepted for publication in Nucl. Instr. and Meth. A
Anomalous Hall effect in $κ$-type organic antiferromagnets
Creators: name: Naka, Makoto
name: Hayami, Satoru
name: Kusunose, Hiroaki
name: Yanagi, Yuki
name: Motome, Yukitoshi
name: Seo, Hitoshi
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Strongly Correlated Electrons (cond-mat.str-el)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We theoretically propose a mechanism for the anomalous Hall effect (AHE) in an antiferrromagnetic (AFM) state of $κ$-type organic conductors. We incorporate the spin-orbit coupling in the effective Hubbard model on the $κ$-type lattice structure taking into account the orientation of the molecules and their arrangement with dimerization. Treating this model by means of the Hartree-Fock approximation and the linear response theory, we find that an intrinsic contribution to the Hall conductivity becomes nonzero in the electron-doped AFM metallic phase with a small canted ferromagnetic moment. We show that, contrary to the conventional wisdom, the spin canting is irrelevant to the Hall response; the nonzero Hall conductivity originates from the collinear component of the AFM order in the presence of the spin-orbit coupling. These features are well explained analytically in the limit of strong dimerization on the anisotropic triangular lattice. Furthermore, we present an intuitive picture for the present AHE by considering the real-space configuration of emergent magnetic fluxes. We also find that the Hall response appears even in the undoped AFM insulating phase at nonzero frequency as the magneto-optical Kerr effect, which is enhanced around the charge transfer excitations. We discuss possible detections of the AHE in ET based compounds.
description: 10 pages, 8 figures
Climate Change and Texas Water Planning: an Economic Analysis of Inter-basin Water Transfers
Creators: name: Cai, Yongxia
name: McCarl, Bruce A.
name: Cai, Yongxia
name: McCarl, Bruce A.
Publisher: name: Unknown
Year: 2009
Subjects: subject: Environmental Economics and Policy
subject: Climate Change
subject: Inter-basin Water Transfers
subject: Water Scarcity
subject: Environmental Stream Flows

description: Panel models with random effects are used to estimate how climate influences in-stream surface water supply, municipal water demand, crop yields and irrigation water use. The results are added into TEXRIVERSIM, a state wide economic, hydrological, environmental and inter-basin water transfer (IBTs) investment model, through the objective function and hydrological constraints. A climate change related scenario analysis from the Global Circulation Models (GCMs)--Hadley, Canadian, BCCR and NCAR with SRES scenarios A1B, B1, and A2 indicates that inter-basin water transfers not only greatly relax water scarcity problems for major cities and industrial counties, but also create growth opportunity for Houston. However, while destination basins receive the benefits, source basins will experience dramatic reduction in in-stream flow and water flows to bays and estuaries. Climate change requires accelerated water development with more IBTs proving economically feasible depending on the GCMs and SRES scenarios.
COVID-19 Prognostic Score Methods Database.xlsx
Creators: name: Tisch, Charlotte
name: Friedman, Ari B
Publisher: name: figshare
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: 110804 Medical Virology
subject: FOS: Health sciences
subject: 110310 Intensive Care
subject: FOS: Clinical medicine
subject: 110899 Medical Microbiology not elsewhere classified

description: This database includes papers pulled from PubMed and MedRxiv pertaining to COVID-19 prognostic scores. This version was last updated 6/26/20. Link to google doc version is below. Contact author through google sheets for editing permission.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1BgjdvoYH1New2lTmt_0lQ4htC4vtaHq3r3lpsR9c1pw/edit?usp=sharing
The Choice of Participation Forms in Community-Based Group Farming and Efficiency in Team Production
Creators: name: Nakajima, Shinsaku
name: Tahara, Kengo
name: Nakajima, Shinsaku
name: Tahara, Kengo
Publisher: name: Unknown
Year: 2009
Subjects: subject: Farm Management
subject: Institutional and Behavioral Economics
subject: Land Economics/Use
subject: Agricultural Collectives
subject: Tenancy Contract
subject: Moral Hazard

description: Past studies suggest that family farming is more productive than farming groups, but empirical studies are not enough to conclude which is more efficient. This paper tries to econometrically analyze the efficiency difference between farming groups and family farming, using original plot yield data from a district in Japan. We accomplish this by, first, analyzing the empirical determinants behind the farmers’ choice of participation forms in farming groups based on communities. Second, we verify the presence of free-riding at community-based farming groups which adopts an income-pooling system. Results of the regression analysis showed that for the choice of participation forms in farming groups the most important factor is family labor force. Estimating yield differences between farming group plots and family farming plots shows that farming groups is less efficient due to the incentive problem. Since the core problem of community-based farming groups seems to be the trade-off between efficiency and equity, even if farming groups yield level decreases, the adoption of commission paid according to each plot’s yield is not necessarily desirable. Therefore, a profit distribution mechanism in community-based farming groups should be designed, taking equity issues also into consideration.
Growth of Linear Perturbations before the Era of the First Galaxies
Creators: name: Naoz, Smadar
name: Barkana, Rennan
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2005
Subjects: subject: Astrophysics (astro-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We calculate the evolution of linear density and temperature perturbations in a universe with dark matter, baryons, and radiation, from cosmic recombination until the epoch of the first galaxies. In addition to gravity, the perturbations are effected by electron scattering with the radiation, by radiation pressure, and by gas pressure. We include the effect of spatial fluctuations in the baryonic sound speed and show that they induce a >10% change in the baryonic density power spectrum on small scales, and a larger change on all scales in the power spectrum of gas temperature fluctuations. A precise calculation of the growth of linear perturbations is essential since they provide the initial conditions for the formation of galaxies and they can also be probed directly via cosmological 21cm fluctuations. We also show that in general the thermal history of the cosmic gas can be measured from 21cm fluctuations using a small-scale anisotropic cutoff due to the thermal width of the 21cm line.
description: 8 pages, 6 figures, MNRAS, accepted
Modelling the value of a multifunctional landscape – A discrete choice experiment
Creators: name: Borresch, Rene
name: Maas, Sarah
name: Schmitz, Kim
name: Schmitz, P. Michael
name: Borresch, Rene
name: Maas, Sarah
name: Schmitz, Kim
name: Schmitz, P. Michael
Publisher: name: Unknown
Year: 2009
Subjects: subject: Agricultural and Food Policy
subject: Environmental Economics and Policy
subject: Landscape multifunctionality
subject: CHOICE
subject: Discrete choice experiments
subject: Willingness-to-Pay
subject: Cost-benefit-analysis

description: In the context of today’s intensive discussion of landscape multifunctionality, one primary objective of the current European Union policy is to support the implementation of multifunctionaly within the EU. In order to assess the economical feasibility of the implementation of a multifunctional land use in the Wetterau region in Germany this study addresses the question whether the local population, which is above all affected by the degradation of landscapes, benefits from a change from today’s landscape dominated by intensive agricultural production towards a multifunctional landscape. Based on data obtained by discrete choice experiments in the Wetterau region, a cost-benefit-analysis is carried out using the modelling and assessment framework CHOICE. The results show that the local population of the Wetterau region assigns a high value to a landscape that takes into account ecological aspects of landscape composition. In fact, the CHOICE model suggests that the willingness-to-pay for the multifunctionality scenario is higher than for all other scenarios under study. Moreover, taking implementation costs into account a regional cost-benefit-analysis indicates that the provision of a multifunctional landscape will lead to a positive net benefit for society.
Yang-Mills Connections on Conformally Compact Manifolds
Creators: name: Usula, Marco
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Differential Geometry (math.DG)
subject: FOS: Mathematics

description: We study the moduli space of Yang--Mills connections on bundles over a conformally compact manifold $\overline{M}$. We prove that, for every Yang--Mills connection $A$ that satisfies an appropriate nondegeneracy condition, and for every small deformation $γ$ of $A_{|\partial\overline{M}}$, there is a Yang--Mills connection in the interior that extends $A_{|\partial\overline{M}}+γ$. As a corollary, we confirm an expectation of Witten mentioned in his foundational paper about holography [arXiv:hep-th/9802150].
description: Replaced with fully revised version. The preliminary sections containing preliminary material have been reduced, and now contain only the background tools needed to prove the main theorem; the main theorem (Theorem 63) and its proof are essentially unchanged; Theorem 65 has been removed for the sake of brevity; Theorem 75 has been removed while I try and fix a gap in the proof
Price-based Valuation of Rice Genetic Diversity in Nepal
Creators: name: Pant, Krishna Prasad
name: Pant, Krishna Prasad
Publisher: name: Unknown
Year: 2009
Subjects: subject: Consumer/Household Economics
subject: Environmental Economics and Policy
subject: agro biodiversity
subject: rice landrace
subject: biodiversity valuation

description: The study valuates different useful traits of rice landraces in Nepal to demonstration an empirical methodology for biodiversity valuation. A sample of 200 rice growers in hills and plain area was surveyed for the production of different landraces and their market price. For estimating the value put by the consumers on different rice traits a hedonic pricing model was used to disaggregate the prices paid by the consumers for different useful traits of rice. For estimating derived demand of seeds with different useful traits by the farmers, a contingent valuation method is employed. The results show that the consumers value Rs 11 billion per annum for aromatic trait and rupees two billion for tasty trait. The findings of the study will be helpful to prepare market based strategies for rice biodiversity conservation.
Overview of Computer Vision Techniques in Robotized Wire Harness Assembly: Current State and Future Opportunities
Creators: name: Wang, Hao
name: Salunkhe, Omkar
name: Quadrini, Walter
name: Lämkull, Dan
name: Ore, Fredrik
name: Johansson, Björn
name: Stahre, Johan
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2023
Subjects: subject: Robotics (cs.RO)
subject: Artificial Intelligence (cs.AI)
subject: Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition (cs.CV)
subject: FOS: Computer and information sciences

description: Wire harnesses are essential hardware for electronic systems in modern automotive vehicles. With a shift in the automotive industry towards electrification and autonomous driving, more and more automotive electronics are responsible for energy transmission and safety-critical functions such as maneuvering, driver assistance, and safety system. This paradigm shift places more demand on automotive wire harnesses from the safety perspective and stresses the greater importance of high-quality wire harness assembly in vehicles. However, most of the current operations of wire harness assembly are still performed manually by skilled workers, and some of the manual processes are problematic in terms of quality control and ergonomics. There is also a persistent demand in the industry to increase competitiveness and gain market share. Hence, assuring assembly quality while improving ergonomics and optimizing labor costs is desired. Robotized assembly, accomplished by robots or in human-robot collaboration, is a key enabler for fulfilling the increasingly demanding quality and safety as it enables more replicable, transparent, and comprehensible processes than completely manual operations. However, robotized assembly of wire harnesses is challenging in practical environments due to the flexibility of the deformable objects, though many preliminary automation solutions have been proposed under simplified industrial configurations. Previous research efforts have proposed the use of computer vision technology to facilitate robotized automation of wire harness assembly, enabling the robots to better perceive and manipulate the flexible wire harness. This article presents an overview of computer vision technology proposed for robotized wire harness assembly and derives research gaps that require further study to facilitate a more practical robotized assembly of wire harnesses.
description: Presented at the 56th CIRP Conference on Manufacturing Systems (CIRP CMS 2023), Cape Town, South Africa, 24-26 October 2023. Published in Procedia CIRP
Influence of frozen capillary waves on contact mechanics
Creators: name: Persson, B. N. J.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2005
Subjects: subject: Soft Condensed Matter (cond-mat.soft)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Free surfaces of liquids exhibit thermally excited (capillary) surface waves. We show that the surface roughness which results from capillary waves when a glassy material is cooled below the glass transition temperature can have a large influence on the contact mechanics between the solids. The theory suggest a new explanation for puzzling experimental results [L. Bureau, T. Baumberger and C. Caroli, arXiv:cond-mat/0510232] about the dependence of the frictional shear stress on the load for contact between a glassy polymer lens and flat substrates. It also lend support for a recently developed contact mechanics theory.
description: 4 pages, 2 figures
Geometric frustration of hard-disk packings on cones
Creators: name: Sun, Jessica H.
name: Plummer, Abigail
name: Zhang, Grace H.
name: Nelson, David R.
name: Manoharan, Vinothan N.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2023
Subjects: subject: Soft Condensed Matter (cond-mat.soft)
subject: Statistical Mechanics (cond-mat.stat-mech)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Conical surfaces pose an interesting challenge to crystal growth: a crystal growing on a cone can wrap around and meet itself at different radii. We use a disk-packing algorithm to investigate how this closure constraint can geometrically frustrate the growth of single crystals on cones with small opening angles. By varying the crystal seed orientation and cone angle, we find that -- except at special commensurate cone angles -- crystals typically form a seam that runs along the axial direction of the cone, while near the tip, a disordered particle packing forms. We show that the onset of disorder results from a finite-size effect that depends strongly on the circumference and not on the seed orientation or cone angle. This finite-size effect occurs also on cylinders, and we present evidence that on both cylinders and cones, the defect density increases exponentially as circumference decreases. We introduce a simple model for particle attachment at the seam that explains the dependence on the circumference. Our findings suggest that the growth of single crystals can become frustrated even very far from the tip when the cone has a small opening angle. These results may provide insights into the observed geometry of conical crystals in biological and materials applications.
description: 12 pages, 13 figures
Dust and Ionized Gas in Nine Nearby Early-Type Galaxies Imaged with the HST Advanced Camera for Surveys
Creators: name: Martel, A. R.
name: Ford, H. C.
name: Bradley, L. D.
name: Tran, H. D.
name: Menanteau, F.
name: Tsvetanov, Z. I.
name: Illingworth, G. D.
name: Hartig, G. F.
name: Clampin, M.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2004
Subjects: subject: Astrophysics (astro-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We present $V$ and $I$ continuum images and H$α$+[N II] maps of nine early-type galaxies observed with the Wide Field Channel of the Advanced Camera for Surveys on the Hubble Space Telescope. Dust and ionized gas are detected in all galaxies. The optical nebulae are primarily concentrated on the nuclei and extend out to radii of a few hundred parsecs, in compact clumps, filaments, or disks. Two galaxies, NGC 6166 and NGC 6338, also possess diffuse, ionized filaments on kiloparsec scales. The ionized gas is entirely contained within the nuclear disks of ESO 208-G021, NGC 3078, and NGC 7720. In the radio-loud galaxy NGC 6166, emission-line filaments are detected along the radio lobes, possibly as a result of shock ionization. A wide range of ionized gas masses, $M_g\approx7\times10^2-3\times10^6$ $M_\odot$, are calculated from the observed fluxes. Even in this small sample, the orientation of the ionized material correlates well with the major or minor axis of the galaxies, consistent with an external origin for the dust and gas.
description: Accepted for publication in the Astronomical Journal, to appear Dec 4, 2004. 14 pages, 4 figures
Kinematics and dynamics of freely rising spheroids at high Reynolds numbers
Creators: name: Will, J. B.
name: Mathai, V.
name: Huisman, S. G.
name: Lohse, D.
name: Sun, C.
name: Krug, D.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Fluid Dynamics (physics.flu-dyn)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We experimentally investigate the effect of geometrical anisotropy for buoyant ellipsoidal particles rising in a still fluid. All other parameters, such as the Galileo number $Ga \approx 6000$ and the particle density ratio $Γ\approx 0.53$ are kept constant. The geometrical aspect ratio, $χ$, of the particle is varied systematically from $χ$ = 0.2 (oblate) to 5 (prolate). Based on tracking all degrees of particle motion, we identify six regimes characterised by distinct rise dynamics. Firstly, for $0.83 \le χ\le 1.20$, increased rotational dynamics are observed and the particle flips over semi-regularly in a "tumbling"-like motion. Secondly, for oblate particles with $0.29 \le χ\le 0.75$, planar regular "zig-zag" motion is observed, where the drag coefficient is independent of $χ$. Thirdly, for the most extreme oblate geometries ($χ\le 0.25$) a "flutter"-like behaviour is found, characterised by precession of the oscillation plane and an increase in the drag coefficient. For prolate geometries, we observed two coexisting oscillation modes that contribute to complex trajectories: the first is related to oscillations of the pointing vector and the second corresponds to a motion perpendicular to the particle's symmetry axis. We identify a "longitudinal" regime ($1.33 \le χ\le 2.5$), where both modes are active and a different one, the "broadside"-regime ($3 \le χ\le 4$), where only the second mode is present. Remarkably, for the most prolate particles ($χ= 5$), we observe an entirely different "helical" rise with completely unique features.
description: 46 pages, 20 figures
Estimation of Actual and potential adoption rates and determinants of a new technology not universally known in the population: The case of NERICA rice varieties in Guinea
Creators: name: Diagne, Aliou
name: Sogbossi, Marie-Josee
name: Simtowe, Franklin
name: Diawara, Sekou
name: Diallo, Abdoulaye Sadio
name: Barry, Alpha Bacar
name: Diagne, Aliou
name: Sogbossi, Marie-Josee
name: Simtowe, Franklin
name: Diawara, Sekou
name: Diallo, Abdoulaye Sadio
name: Barry, Alpha Bacar
Publisher: name: Unknown
Year: 2009
Subjects: subject: International Development
subject: Research Methods/ Statistical Methods
subject: NERICA varieties
subject: Technology Diffusion and adoption
subject: Average Treatment Effect
subject: Guinea

description: The NERICA (New Rice for Africa) rice varieties, developed by the Africa Rice Center during the 1990s, are providing hopes for raising the productivity of upland rice farmers in Africa because of their reported high yield potential and adaptability to the African conditions. The varieties are new and not widely disseminated in farming communities and there is lot of interest in the donor community in knowing their potential for widespread adoption across sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). However, when a technology is new and the target population is not universally exposed it, the observed sample adoption rate and classical models of adoption widely used in adoption studies does not inform reliably on its potential adoption and constraint to it in the full population. The paper uses the Average Treatment Effect (ATE) estimation framework and data from a sample of 1467 rice farmers in Guinea to document the actual and potential adoption rates of NERICA varieties and their determinants in Guinea, a country reported to have seen the largest number of adopting farmers among the SSA countries. The results of the analysis indicate that only 37% of the sample households were exposed to NERICA rice varieties in 2001 and that 20% of the sampled rice farmers adopted NERICA The potential adoption rate for the population is estimated at 61% with the adoption gap (difference between the 61% potential adoption rate and the 20% actual adoption rate) resulting from the incomplete exposure of the population to the NERICA varieties estimated at 41%. The findings suggest a relatively large unmet demand for the NERICA varieties in Guinea that justify investment in its further dissemination in Guinea.
Lattice expansion and non-collinear to collinear ferrimagnetic order in MnCr$_2$O$_4$ nanoparticle
Creators: name: Bhowmik, R. N.
name: Ranganathan, R.
name: Nagarajan, R.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2005
Subjects: subject: Materials Science (cond-mat.mtrl-sci)
subject: Disordered Systems and Neural Networks (cond-mat.dis-nn)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We report magnetic behaviour of MnCr$_2$O$_4$, which belongs to a special class of spinel, known as chromite. Bulk MnCr$_2$O$_4$ shows a sequence of magnetic states, which follows paramagnetic (PM) to collinear ferrimagnetic (FM) state below T$_C$ $\sim$ 45 K and collinear FM state to non-collinear FM state below T$_S$ $\sim$ 18 K. The non-collinear spin structure has been modified on decreasing the particle size, and magnetic transition at T$_S$ decreases in nanoparticle samples. However, ferrimagnetic order is still dominating in nanoparticles, except the observation of superparamagnetic like blocking and decrease of spontaneous magnetization for nanoparticle. This may, according to the core-shell model of ferrimagnetic nanoparticle, be the surface disorder effect of nanoparticle. The system also show the increase of T$_C$ in nanoparticle samples, which is not consistent with the core-shell model. The analysis of the M(T) data, applying spin wave theory, has shown an unusual Bloch exponent value 3.35 for bulk MnCr$_2$O$_4$, which decreases and approaches to 1.5, a typical value for any standard ferromagnet, with decreasing the particle size. MnCr$_2$O$_4$ has shown a few more unusual behaviour. For example, lattice expansion in nanoparticle samples. The present work demonstrates the correlation between a systematic increase of lattice parameter and the gradual decrease of B site non-collinear spin structure in the light of magnetism of MnCr$_2$O$_4$ nanoparticles.
The Bi-objective Long-haul Transportation Problem on a Road Network
Creators: name: Archetti, Claudia
name: Mor, Andrea
name: Jabali, Ola
name: Simonetto, Alberto
name: Speranza, M. Grazia
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2021
Subjects: subject: Optimization and Control (math.OC)
subject: FOS: Mathematics

description: In this paper we study a long-haul truck scheduling problem where a path has to be determined for a vehicle traveling from a specified origin to a specified destination. We consider refueling decisions along the path, while accounting for heterogeneous fuel prices in a road network. Furthermore, the path has to comply with Hours of Service (HoS) regulations. Therefore, a path is defined by the actual road trajectory traveled by the vehicle, as well as the locations where the vehicle stops due to refueling, compliance with HoS regulations, or a combination of the two. This setting is cast in a bi-objective optimization problem, considering the minimization of fuel cost and the minimization of path duration. An algorithm is proposed to solve the problem on a road network. The algorithm builds a set of non-dominated paths with respect to the two objectives. Given the enormous theoretical size of the road network, the algorithm follows an interactive path construction mechanism. Specifically, the algorithm dynamically interacts with a geographic information system to identify the relevant potential paths and stop locations. Computational tests are made on real-sized instances where the distance covered ranges from 500 to 1500 km. The algorithm is compared with solutions obtained from a policy mimicking the current practice of a logistics company. The results show that the non-dominated solutions produced by the algorithm significantly dominate the ones generated by the current practice, in terms of fuel costs, while achieving similar path durations. The average number of non-dominated paths is 2.7, which allows decision makers to ultimately visually inspect the proposed alternatives.
Utrykte Arbeider af Henrik A. Bjerregaard samlede af [Conrad Nicolai] Schwach [manuskript]
Creators: name: Bjerregaard, Henrik Anker
name: Schwach, Conrad Nicolai 1793-1860
Publisher: name: Unknown
Year: 0

description: a. Diktene. b. 22 skrivelser ang. diktene
Accelerating Deep Neuroevolution on Distributed FPGAs for Reinforcement Learning Problems
Creators: name: Asseman, Alexis
name: Antoine, Nicolas
name: Ozcan, Ahmet S.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Neural and Evolutionary Computing (cs.NE)
subject: Artificial Intelligence (cs.AI)
subject: Hardware Architecture (cs.AR)
subject: Distributed, Parallel, and Cluster Computing (cs.DC)
subject: Machine Learning (cs.LG)
subject: FOS: Computer and information sciences

description: Reinforcement learning augmented by the representational power of deep neural networks, has shown promising results on high-dimensional problems, such as game playing and robotic control. However, the sequential nature of these problems poses a fundamental challenge for computational efficiency. Recently, alternative approaches such as evolutionary strategies and deep neuroevolution demonstrated competitive results with faster training time on distributed CPU cores. Here, we report record training times (running at about 1 million frames per second) for Atari 2600 games using deep neuroevolution implemented on distributed FPGAs. Combined hardware implementation of the game console, image pre-processing and the neural network in an optimized pipeline, multiplied with the system level parallelism enabled the acceleration. These results are the first application demonstration on the IBM Neural Computer, which is a custom designed system that consists of 432 Xilinx FPGAs interconnected in a 3D mesh network topology. In addition to high performance, experiments also showed improvement in accuracy for all games compared to the CPU-implementation of the same algorithm.
description: 12 pages. Submitted to ACM Journal on Emerging Technologies in Computing Systems: Special Issue on Hardware and Algorithms for Efficient Machine Learning
The ethnographic study of the meaning of activity in the elderly
Creators: name: Gofsky, Marcia Nairn
Publisher: name: University of British Columbia
Year: 2009

description: This study explored the meaning of active living from the perspective of older persons. While there is growing research to support an active lifestyle as beneficial in many ways, there has been little investigation into how elders themselves conceive of active lifestyles. This ethnographic study represents an important first step, as it is imperative to understand how elders themselves view active living in order to develop and implement any strategies in the most effective and respectful manner. The findings that emerged from in-depth interviews of 14 purposefully-selected informants comprised themes that could be structured into a taxonomy—an ethnography of the meaning of active living. The analysis of these themes made it clear that the elders' conceptions of active living required a multi-faceted and interdependent conception of the self and personal well-being, which importantly included having meaningful relationships. The notions of "valuable activities" and "valuable time spent" were found to be central and semantically related to, and perhaps a derivative of, the meanings of "active living." One of the most successful manifestations of active living, at least in part, was perceived to be ongoing goal-directed activity characterized by engagement and commitment. Autonomy and opportunity were identified to play a significant role in the meaning of "active lifestyle." Finally, the informants' conceptions of activity and active living were importantly described as self-reinforcing and positive. As active living referred to a set of conditions and ongoing, specific activities thought to help achieve, maintain and enhance personal well-being, the development and discussion of the taxonomy helps to illuminate at least one alleged route to achieving, maintaining and/or improving overall personal well-being.
AquaFusion: An IoT-Based Aquaponics Monitoring System
Creators: name: Ursora II, Junester
name: Vallente, Janine Christine
name: Esguerra, Elijah Nicholas
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2023

description: Aquaponics closely resembles hydroponics but with an aspect of aquaculture added to it by adding a pond, reservoir, or tank to house aquatic creatures bred and farmed in it. Though some innovations and improvements to enhance the yields of aquaponics farming methods further, its digitalization still needs to be. This application aims to design and develop an IoT-based sensor-equipped system “AquaFusion”, that monitors the ambient conditions needed in an aquaponics farm. This application will also include real-time display of sensor values in graphical and numerical manner. This application was designed iteratively, creating test scenarios to ensure that the user’s requirements were met. The requirements were collected via structured interview and online survey questionnaires were treated using focus group method, which easily summarizes the qualitative data to determine the respondents’ reactions and summary statistics. As a result of the survey, the proponents found out that farmers are struggling to maintain and to produce more yield since monitoring the ambient condition values is so much laborious and time consuming. The inaccuracy of measuring the values results to poor yields and costly maintenance. This leads to the conclusion that AquaFusion is a great tool to help farmers to automate task and accurately monitor real time values that are crucial to increase yield and maintain accurate conditions.
Perspectives of TFD on String Theory
Creators: name: Abdalla, M. C. B.
name: Gadelha, A. L.
name: Nedel, Daniel L.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2004
Subjects: subject: High Energy Physics - Theory (hep-th)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Considering the type IIB superstring in a pp wave background some recent ideas and perspectives of Thermo Field Dynamics on string theory are presented. The thermal Fock space is constructed attempting to consider a possible finite temperature version of the BMN correspondence in this framework. Also, the thermal vacuum is identified as a string boundary state realizing the thermal torus interpretation in the ambit of Thermo Field Dynamics. Such a interpretation consists of a generalization of some recent analysis for the closed bosonic string.
description: 10 pages, revtex4, minor corrections. Contribution to Fourth International Winter Conference on Mathematical Methods in Physics, 09 - 13 August 2004, Centro Brasileiro de Pesquisas Fisicas (CBPF/MCT), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil