cometadata/datacite-rtg-text-other-reclassification-records huggingface dataset:
Bioconversion of organic waste : the potential for recycling domestic organic waste in Hobart, Tasmania
Creators: name: Jay, Paul
Publisher: name: University Of Tasmania
Year: 2023

description: This study examined the potential for recycling domestic organic waste in Hobart, within the context of the Tasmanian Solid Waste Management Policy (1994), which encompasses both home composting and centralised large scale composting. The effectiveness of the Hobart City Council's home composting program and the viability, for the Council to establish a centralised composting scheme, was examined. The study analysed the impact of state legislation and policies on waste management in Tasmania and examined the rationale for bioconverting organic waste into compost. The biological aspects of bioconvertion, and the various composting systems, composting technologies and the process control required for large scale composting, were investigated. A survey, to determine the community's current recycling experiences and practices for organic waste and to assess community support for a centralised composting scheme lwas carried out in April 1997 in the Hobart municipality. The study found anomalies, with a significant proportion of the community either excluded from, or not satisfied with, the levels of information in the Council's home composting program. The type of compost bins promoted in the Council's incentive based program were also not found to be conducive for use in all housing types. The study analysed the limitations in the Council's home composting program and proposed a number of approaches for the Hobart City Council to improve its promotional and educational strategies, and incentive based programs. The study found that there is strong community support for the Council to pursue large scale composting, as an alternative to landfilling organic waste. The majority of households indicated willingness to pay for the cost and ensure logistic support for the recycling scheme. The study identified a number of concerns associated with centralised composting schemes and proposed a number of strategies for the Council to take into consideration when embarking with the recycling scheme. The study concludes by offering areas of future research and the potential to encourage the wider involvement of all councils in waste management issues.
Galaxy shear estimation from stacked images
Creators: name: Lewis, Antony
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2009
Subjects: subject: Astrophysics of Galaxies (astro-ph.GA)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Statistics of the weak lensing of galaxies can be used to constrain cosmology if the galaxy shear can be estimated accurately. In general this requires accurate modelling of unlensed galaxy shapes and the point spread function (PSF). I discuss suboptimal but potentially robust methods for estimating galaxy shear by stacking images such that the stacked image distribution is closely Gaussian by the central limit theorem. The shear can then be determined by radial fitting, requiring only an accurate model of the PSF rather than also needing to model each galaxy accurately. When noise is significant asymmetric errors in the centroid must be corrected, but the method may ultimately be able to give accurate un-biased results when there is a high galaxy density with constant shear. It provides a useful baseline for more optimal methods, and a test-case for estimating biases, though the method is not directly applicable to realistic data. I test stacking methods on the simple toy simulations with constant PSF and shear provided by the GREAT08 project, on which most other existing methods perform significantly more poorly, and briefly discuss generalizations to more realistic cases. In the appendix I discuss a simple analytic galaxy population model where stacking gives optimal errors in a perfect ideal case.
description: 7 pages, 1 figure. Updated to match MNRAS-accepted version; added appendix describing an analytic galaxy population model
Dual Augmented Lagrangian Method for Efficient Sparse Reconstruction
Creators: name: Tomioka, Ryota
name: Sugiyama, Masashi
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2009
Subjects: subject: Machine Learning (stat.ML)
subject: Methodology (stat.ME)
subject: FOS: Computer and information sciences

description: We propose an efficient algorithm for sparse signal reconstruction problems. The proposed algorithm is an augmented Lagrangian method based on the dual sparse reconstruction problem. It is efficient when the number of unknown variables is much larger than the number of observations because of the dual formulation. Moreover, the primal variable is explicitly updated and the sparsity in the solution is exploited. Numerical comparison with the state-of-the-art algorithms shows that the proposed algorithm is favorable when the design matrix is poorly conditioned or dense and very large.
description: 10 pages, 3 figures
G-Aminobutyric Acid-Producing Bacteria: Screening, Probiotic Potential, and Impact on Gut Microbiota Under a Simulated Human Colon
Creators: name: Mousavi, Rojaalsadat
Publisher: name: Université d'Ottawa / University of Ottawa
Year: 2021
Subjects: Lactic acid bacteria
Y-aminobutyric acid
Probiotic potential
Gut microbiota

description: This study aimed to isolate and characterize in-vitro and under simulated colonic conditions, probiotic candidates isolated from food environment producing γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), a major inhibitory neuromediator of the enteric nervous system with a potential role in modulating the immune system in many health disorders. Several lactic acid bacteria were isolated and detected for the presence of the gadB gene using PCR and GAD enzymatic assay. The most active strains with high and fast production kinetics were identified, characterized, and included Streptococcus thermophilus, Lactiplantibacillus plantarum, and Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus. The biological safety (i.e., sensitivity to antibiotics and the presence of virulence factors) and probiotic potential (i.e., resistance to gastrointestinal conditions and whole-genome sequencing) of identified bioactive strains was also confirmed in vitro. The growth, GABA production, and competitiveness of selected probiotic candidates (B. animalis, S. thermophilus, and L. bulgaricus) were investigated in the presence of human gut microbiota ex vivo in a model of a proximal colon mimicking physiological and microbiological conditions of the human large intestine. Supplementation with GABA-producing probiotic candidates did not affect the overall gut microbiota diversity over 48 h of treatment. However, we observed modulation of the microbiome composition, especially change of Bacteroides population, a key gut microbe associated with anti-depressive and anti-inflammatory activities. The level of microbiota-generated butyrate within 12 h of treatment was significantly increased compared to control. Results from this study demonstrated the probiotic potential of tested GABA-producing bacteria and their impact on gut microbiota structure and metabolism, suggesting their suitability for gut health-promoting application.
The turbulent transfer mechanisms in the atmospheric surface layer
Creators: name: McBean, Gordon Almon
Publisher: name: University of British Columbia
Year: 2011

description: The objective of this study was to investigate the turbulent transfer mechanisms near the surface. Direct measurements of the turbulent fluxes of momentum, heat, and moisture were made in the atmospheric surface layer: principally, 2 m above a grass surface at Ladner, Canada, and for comparison 8 m above the Atlantic Ocean near Barbados. The spectral correlation coefficients were considered to be a measure of the transfer efficiency as a function of scale size. For momentum transfer the efficiency decreased at all scales as instability increased. It was postulated that this was due to greater amounts of momentum being transferred in bursts of short duration, thus making the spectral correlation coefficient, averaged over sufficient time, smaller. The Ladner results for heat transfer showed that its transfer efficiency increased at all scales when instability increased. The ratios of the transfer efficiency of heat to that of momentum were greater than 1 for most scales, even for near neutral stratifications, and increased to between 2 and 3 for more unstable conditions. The efficiency of moisture transfer, when moisture is a passive scalar, was usually smaller than that for heat transfer and was found to depend on the correlation between moisture fluctuations and those of temperature, which is the active scalar. The results from Barbados pointed out two main differences between the subtropics and mid-latitudes: that the temperature spectrum is much narrower in bandwidth and that the humidity fluctuations make an equally important contribution to buoyancy. These features are reflected in the transfer mechanisms.
Exceptional N=6 and N=2 AdS_4 Supergravity, and Zero-Center Modules
Creators: name: Andrianopoli, L.
name: D'Auria, R.
name: Ferrara, S.
name: Grassi, P. A.
name: Trigiante, M.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2008
Subjects: subject: High Energy Physics - Theory (hep-th)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We study the gauging of the orthosymplectic algebras OSp(6|4)xSO(2) and its "dual" OSp(2|4)x SO(6), both based on supergravities with the same exceptional coset SO*(12)/U(6), and gauge group SO(6)xSO(2). The two dual theories are obtained by two different truncations of gauged N=8 AdS_4 supergravity. We explicitly study the gauge sector of the two dual theories with the most general group allowed by supersymmetry. In the ungauged (super-Poincaré) case they exhibit the same (large) black-hole attractor solutions with dual relations between the 1/N-BPS and non-BPS configurations. The N=6 gravity multiplet has also the exceptional property to be a {\em zero-center module} of OSp(6|4), as it is the case for superconformal Yang--Mills theory in four dimensions based on SU(2,2|n) (PSU(2,2|4) for n=4) or OSp(n|4).
description: 27 pages, LaTeX source, typos and formulas in Section 4 corrected, references added, Section 5 and Appendix C added
Implementation of the American Urological Association's microhematuria guideline in primary care
Creators: name: Haggerty, Mackenzie
Publisher: name: No Publisher Supplied
Year: 2025

description: Purpose of the Project: To increase proper evaluation of adults who present with microscopic hematuria by implementing the standardized use of the American Urological Association’s (AUA) microscopic hematuria guideline by primary care providers. Methodology: A primary care provider in Northern NJ implemented the AUA’s microhematuria guideline into his practice to evaluate patients who presented with microhematuria. A retrospective chart review was performed to assess the evaluation of the adult patients (n=15) who presented to the office prior to the intervention and a prospective chart review was performed to assess adult patients (n=15) with microhematuria who presented after the intervention. Results Age: pre-intervention M=69.53, SD=9.841, post-intervention: M=65.93, SD=14518. Gender: pre-intervention: 9 females (60%), 6 males (40%), post-intervention: 7 females (46.7%), 8 males (53.5%). Smoker: 19 (63.3%). Non-smoker: 11 (36.7%). Risk factors: pre-intervention: 15 (100%), post-intervention: 15 (100%). Blood (+) on dipstick: pre-intervention: 15 (100%), post-intervention 15 (100%). Blood on microUA (>3RBCs/HPF): Pre-intervention: 11 (73.3%), post-intervention: 13 (86.7%). Diagnosis of microhematuria: Pre-intervention: 11 (73.3%), post-intervention: 13 (86.7%). Appropriate evaluation according to AUA guideline: pre-intervention: 1 (6.7%), post-intervention: 17 (100%). Correct referral to urologist: Pre-intervention: 11 (73.3%), post-intervention: 15 (100%), Pearson Chi-Square: p=0.032, df=1. Implications for Practice: The data and statistical analysis reveal the utilization of the AUA microhematuria guideline enhances patient evaluations and referrals to urologists, which could lead to overall improved patient outcomes.
On the regular representation of an (essentially) finite 2-group
Creators: name: Elgueta, Josep
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2009
Subjects: subject: Category Theory (math.CT)
subject: Representation Theory (math.RT)
subject: FOS: Mathematics

description: The regular representation of an essentially finite 2-group $\mathbb{G}$ in the 2-category $\mathbf{2Vect}_k$ of (Kapranov and Voevodsky) 2-vector spaces is defined and cohomology invariants classifying it computed. It is next shown that all hom-categories in $\mathbf{Rep}_{\mathbf{2Vect}_k}(\mathbb{G})$ are 2-vector spaces under quite standard assumptions on the field $k$, and a formula giving the corresponding "intertwining numbers" is obtained which proves they are symmetric. Finally, it is shown that the forgetful 2-functor ${\boldmath$ω$}:\mathbf{Rep}_{\mathbf{2Vect}_k}(\mathbb{G})\To\mathbf{2Vect}_k$ is representable with the regular representation as representing object. As a consequence we obtain a $k$-linear equivalence between the 2-vector space $\mathbf{Vect}_k^{\mathcal{G}}$ of functors from the underlying groupoid of $\mathbb{G}$ to $\mathbf{Vect}_k$, on the one hand, and the $k$-linear category $\mathcal{E} nd({\boldmath$ω$})$ of pseudonatural endomorphisms of ${\boldmath$ω$}$, on the other hand. We conclude that $\mathcal{E} nd({\boldmath$ω$})$ is a 2-vector space, and we (partially) describe a basis of it.
description: 29 pages
Non-line-of-sight Node Localization based on Semi-Definite Programming in Wireless Sensor Networks
Creators: name: Chen, Hongyang
name: Lui, Kenneth W. K.
name: Wang, Zizhuo
name: So, H. C.
name: Poor, H. Vincent
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2010
Subjects: subject: Information Theory (cs.IT)
subject: FOS: Computer and information sciences

description: An unknown-position sensor can be localized if there are three or more anchors making time-of-arrival (TOA) measurements of a signal from it. However, the location errors can be very large due to the fact that some of the measurements are from non-line-of-sight (NLOS) paths. In this paper, we propose a semi-definite programming (SDP) based node localization algorithm in NLOS environment for ultra-wideband (UWB) wireless sensor networks. The positions of sensors can be estimated using the distance estimates from location-aware anchors as well as other sensors. However, in the absence of LOS paths, e.g., in indoor networks, the NLOS range estimates can be significantly biased. As a result, the NLOS error can remarkably decrease the location accuracy. And it is not easy to efficiently distinguish LOS from NLOS measurements. In this paper, an algorithm is proposed that achieves high location accuracy without the need of identifying NLOS and LOS measurement.
description: submitted to IEEE ICC'10
Graviton production in non-inflationary cosmology
Creators: name: Durrer, Ruth
name: Rinaldi, Massimiliano
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2009
Subjects: subject: Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics (astro-ph.CO)
subject: General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology (gr-qc)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We discuss the creation of massless particles in a Universe, which transits from a radiation-dominated era to any other expansion law. We calculate in detail the generation of gravitons during the transition to a matter dominated era. We show that the resulting gravitons generated in the standard radiation/matter transition are negligible. We use our result to constrain one or more previous matter dominated era, or any other expansion law, which may have taken place in the early Universe. We also derive a general formula for the modification of a generic initial graviton spectrum by an early matter dominated era.
description: 7 pages 2 figure extended version accepted for publication in PRD
The power of story and ecological consciousness : five twentieth-century films
Creators: name: Jenkins, M
Publisher: name: University Of Tasmania
Year: 2023

description: This interdisciplinary thesis explores ecological issues and values in relation to five films and associated literature, thereby including film as an extension of the recently consolidated field of ecocriticism, also known as ecological literary (or film) criticism. The main purpose of the thesis is to highlight the ways in which stories, particularly filmic stories, affect our culture and our ecology. The five films examined in the thesis, The Crucible, Oscar and Lucinda, The Piano, Jesus of Montreal, and Blade Runner, are mainstream but they do not necessarily reflect Hollywood mainstream values. Any work, fiction or non-fiction, novel or film, may be viewed through the prism of ecocriticism, but the denser, more layered and intertextual a film, the greater the opportunity it provides for the study of ecological issues and values. Biblical stories encompass the life cycle of humanity and are major sources of material in mythology, literature, and film, all of which have a powerful effect on our society, our culture, and our understanding of the world in which we live. Our attitudes and actions are shaped by stories, but not always for the better. Chemical and genetic engineering corporation~ and their public relation experts, for example, do not usually create stories that benefit ecological systems. Each of the films is anthropocentric, presented for entertainment and box-office success, with nature sometimes seen as background to the story, and sometimes playing a stronger role. A combination of factors are likely to contribute to a viewer's response to nature and the ecological issues and values in the under-layers of the films, including the contribution of multi-media information related to local and global ecological issues. The truism that nothing works in isolation is relevant. The ongoing popularity of the films studied has attracted numerous and various opinions and deepening insights -- hence the ongoing debates, websites, essays, novels and anthologies. Because stories have power and film is a popular mediator of story, the thesis concludes that ecocritical analysis of mainstream film is one of many ways that can contribute to a deepening of ecological consciousness.
Block renormalization group transformations and overlap fermions
Creators: name: Cundy, Nigel
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2008
Subjects: subject: High Energy Physics - Lattice (hep-lat)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: In this preliminary work, I provide the outline of an argument (leaving the full proof to a future publication) that there exists a valid renormalization group blocking transformation which converts the continuum fermion action into a Ginsparg-Wilson lattice action. I construct the blocking for the massless overlap operator as a specific example, indicating how other Ginsparg-Wilson lattice Dirac operators can be derived in a similar fashion. This renormalization group transformation modifies the gauge action and adds a number of irrelevant terms to the lattice action. The procedure is not valid for lattice Dirac operators which do not exactly satisfy the Ginsparg-Wilson relation, for example the Wilson operator.
description: 7 Pages, Lattice 2008 (chiral symmetry)
New Insights into Dissipation in the Electron Layer During Magnetic Reconnection
Creators: name: Ji, H.
name: Ren, Y.
name: Yamada, M.
name: Dorfman, S.
name: Daughton, W.
name: Gerhardt, S. P.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2010
Subjects: subject: Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics (astro-ph.IM)
subject: Solar and Stellar Astrophysics (astro-ph.SR)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Detailed comparisons are reported between laboratory observations of electron-scale dissipation layers near a reconnecting X-line and direct two-dimensional full-particle simulations. Many experimental features of the electron layers, such as insensitivity to the ion mass, are reproduced by the simulations; the layer thickness, however, is about 3-5 times larger than the predictions. Consequently, the leading candidate 2D mechanism based on collisionless electron nongyrotropic pressure is insufficient to explain the observed reconnection rates. These results suggest that, in addition to the residual collisions, 3D effects play an important role in electron-scale dissipation during fast reconnection.
description: 17 pages, 4 figures
Probing viscoelastic properties of a thin polymer film sheared between a beads layer and quartz crystal resonator
Creators: name: Leopoldes, Julien
name: Jia, Xiaoping
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2009
Subjects: subject: Soft Condensed Matter (cond-mat.soft)
subject: Materials Science (cond-mat.mtrl-sci)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We report measurements of viscoelastic properties of thin polymer films of 10-100 nm at the MHz range. These thin films are confined between a quartz crystal resonator and a millimetric bead layer, producing an increase of both resonance frequency and dissipation of the quartz resonator. The shear modulus and dynamic viscosity of thin films extracted from these measurements are consistent with the bulk values of the polymer. This modified quartz resonator provides an easily realizable and effective tool for probing the rheological properties of thin films at ambient environment.
description: submitted to apl
Constitution of the hemicelluloses of corn leaves and corn stalks.
Creators: name: Kabir, Mohammad Shahjahan
Publisher: name: University of British Columbia
Year: 2011

description: Fractionation of the polysaccharides from corn leaves by extraction with dilute alkali furnishes a branched chain arabinoxylan containing D-glucuronic acid, small amounts of 4-O-methyl-D-glucuronic acid and D-glucose. Complete acid hydrolysis of the periodate oxidised polysaccharide gives ethylene glycol, glycerol, erythritol and D-xylose in a molar ratio of 1:34:8:18. Hydrolysis of the methylated hemicellulose has yielded a mixture of 2-O- and 3-O-methyl-D-xylose; 2,3-di-O-methyl-D-xylose; 2,3,4-tri-O-methyl-D-xylose; 2,3,5-tri-O-methyl-L-arabinose and 2-O-(2,3,4-tri-O-methyl-α-D-glucopyranosyluronic acid)-3-O-methyl-D-xylose in a molar ratio of 4.6:3:40:1:4.5:6. The side chains of the polysaccharide consist of single units of uronic acid and single units of L-arabofuranose joined to positions 2 and 3, respectively, of D-xylo-pyranose units of the xylan molecular framework. A similar polysaccharide is present in corn stalks. The variety used was Golden Bantam.
Scale free effects in world currency exchange network
Creators: name: Gorski, A. Z.
name: Drozdz, S.
name: Kwapien, J.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2008
Subjects: subject: Statistical Finance (q-fin.ST)
subject: Physics and Society (physics.soc-ph)
subject: FOS: Economics and business
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: A large collection of daily time series for 60 world currencies' exchange rates is considered. The correlation matrices are calculated and the corresponding Minimal Spanning Tree (MST) graphs are constructed for each of those currencies used as reference for the remaining ones. It is shown that multiplicity of the MST graphs' nodes to a good approximation develops a power like, scale free distribution with the scaling exponent similar as for several other complex systems studied so far. Furthermore, quantitative arguments in favor of the hierarchical organization of the world currency exchange network are provided by relating the structure of the above MST graphs and their scaling exponents to those that are derived from an exactly solvable hierarchical network model. A special status of the USD during the period considered can be attributed to some departures of the MST features, when this currency (or some other tied to it) is used as reference, from characteristics typical to such a hierarchical clustering of nodes towards those that correspond to the random graphs. Even though in general the basic structure of the MST is robust with respect to changing the reference currency some trace of a systematic transition from somewhat dispersed -- like the USD case -- towards more compact MST topology can be observed when correlations increase.
description: Eur. Phys. J. B (2008) in press
A theoretical study of the cluster glass-Kondo-magnetic disordered alloys
Creators: name: Zimmer, F. M.
name: Magalhães, S. G.
name: Coqblin, B.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2009
Subjects: subject: Strongly Correlated Electrons (cond-mat.str-el)
subject: Disordered Systems and Neural Networks (cond-mat.dis-nn)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: The physics of disordered alloys, such as typically the well known case of CeNi1-xCux alloys, showing an interplay among the Kondo effect, the spin glass state and a magnetic order, has been studied firstly within an average description like in the Sherrington-Kirkpatrick model. Recently, a theoretical model (PRB 74, 014427 (2006)) involving a more local description of the intersite interaction has been proposed to describe the phase diagram of CeNi1-xCux. This alloy is an example of the complex interplay between Kondo effect and frustration in which there is in particular the onset of a cluster-glass state. Although the model given in Ref. PRB 74, 014427 (2006) has reproduced the different phases relatively well, it is not able to describe the cluster-glass state. We study here the competition between the Kondo effect and a cluster glass phase within a Kondo Lattice model with an inter-cluster random Gaussian interaction. The inter-cluster term is treated within the cluster mean-field theory for spin glasses, while, inside the cluster, an exact diagonalisation is performed including inter-site ferromagnetic and intra-site Kondo interactions. The cluster glass order parameters and the Kondo correlation function are obtained for different values of the cluster size, the intra-cluster ferromagnetic coupling and the Kondo intra-site coupling. We obtain, for instance, that the increase of the Kondo coupling tends to destroy the cluster glass phase.
description: 6 pages, 2 figures, Accepted for publication in Physica B
Spaces admitting homogeneous G2-structures
Creators: name: Reidegeld, Frank
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2009
Subjects: subject: Differential Geometry (math.DG)
subject: FOS: Mathematics

description: We classify all seven-dimensional spaces which admit a homogeneous cosymplectic G2-structure. The motivation for this classification is that each of these spaces is a possible principal orbit of a parallel Spin(7)-manifold of cohomogeneity one.
description: 20 pages, no figures
Confined Dirac Fermions in a Constant Magnetic Field
Creators: name: Jellal, Ahmed
name: Alhaidari, Abdulaziz D.
name: Bahlouli, Hocine
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2009
Subjects: subject: High Energy Physics - Theory (hep-th)
subject: Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics (cond-mat.mes-hall)
subject: Mathematical Physics (math-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We obtain an exact solution of the Dirac equation in (2+1)-dimensions in the presence of a constant magnetic field normal to the plane together with a two-dimensional Dirac-oscillator potential coupling. The solution space consists of a positive and negative energy solution, each of which splits into two disconnected subspaces depending on the sign of an azimuthal quantum number, k = 0, \pm 1, \pm 2,... and whether the cyclotron frequency is larger or smaller than the oscillator frequency. The spinor wavefunction is written in terms of the associated Laguerre polynomials. For negative k, the relativistic energy spectrum is infinitely degenerate due to the fact that it is independent of k. We compare our results with already published work and point out the relevance of these findings to a systematic formulation of the relativistic quantum Hall effect in a confining potential.
description: 15 pages, 3 tables
An investigative report into security policies of SME's in Australia
Creators: name: Lim, Jehn
Publisher: name: University Of Tasmania
Year: 2023

description: Advances in technology have facilitated a new form of business opportunity: ecommerce. In the rush to join in on e-commerce activities, many companies fail to recognise the importance of security in this on-line business environment. This lack of attention to security was reflected in the Global Information Security Survey 2002 conducted by Ernst & Young. The survey found that 91% of businesses in Australia reported that their critical business systems are increasingly being interrupted. This is high compared to the global measure of 75%. SMEs are equally as susceptible to information security attacks as large corporations. However, SMEs do not normally have the abundant resources of larger corporations so the damage inflicted by security infringements will be greater. In Australia, it is essential that SMEs are aware of the importance of implementing stringent security measures since these enterprises account for nearly 50% of the total Gross Domestic Product and 35% of exports in APEC member economies. The aim of this research is to inform small medium enterprises (SMEs) of the risks they might face as a result of \e-commercialising\" their business activities. A secondary objective is to offer advice on how SMEs can protect their operations through the implementation of a security policy. To achieve these objectives this research will investigate the current security environment of SMEs throughout Australia. This research study adopted a quantitative approach. It was an empirical study that used mail survey questionnaires to collect data. These were sent out to a randomly selected group of SMEs from the five states and two territories of Australia proper. A number of hypotheses were tested. As a result it was found that although a minority of SMEs are knowledgeable on security issues and practice them the majority of them still do not have proper security policies in place. In other words the level of security stringency is indirectly proportional to the level of computer security infringement. Future research could include the investigation of the relation between security threat and the preferred security technologies of SMEs to protect against such threats. An investigation could be tested on the effectiveness of network security technologies against such threats. Finally the preference of network security technologies could be researched across countries or through a period of time."
Estimating generalised Lyapunov exponents for products of random matrices
Creators: name: Vanneste, J.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2009
Subjects: subject: Chaotic Dynamics (nlin.CD)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We discuss several techniques for the evaluation of the generalised Lyapunov exponents which characterise the growth of products of random matrices in the large-deviation regime. A Monte Carlo algorithm that performs importance sampling using a simple random resampling step is proposed as a general-purpose numerical method which is both efficient and easy to implement. Alternative techniques complementing this method are presented. These include the computation of the generalised Lyapunov exponents by solving numerically an eigenvalue problem, and some asymptotic results corresponding to high-order moments of the matrix products. Taken together, the techniques discussed in this paper provide a suite of methods which should prove useful for the evaluation of the generalised Lyapunov exponents in a broad range of applications. Their usefulness is demonstrated on particular products of random matrices arising in the study of scalar mixing by complex fluid flows.
description: Revised version: references added to the published version
The molecular genetics of familial non-medullary thyroid cancer
Creators: name: McKay, James Dowling
Publisher: name: University Of Tasmania
Year: 2023

description: Familial non-medullary thyroid cancer (fNMTC) has been recognised as a clinical entity. However, the susceptibility gene, or genes, that predispose patients to this form of cancer have yet to be identified. The initial genetic analysis of a large Tasmanian family (Tas 1) with eight patients affected with NMTC allowed the exclusion of the three fNMTC susceptibility loci that have been identified, MNG1,TCO and PRN1 on chromosomes 14, 19 and 1, respectively. Similarly, the candidate genes RET, NTRK1, APC, PTEN and MET were excluded using linkage analysis. As the susceptibility gene in Tasl appeared to be novel, a genome-wide search was performed. On 2q21, 7 of the 8 PTC cases in the Tas 1 family shared a haplotype. The significance of the 2q21 locus was tested in an independent set of 80 fNMTC pedigrees. Targeted linkage analysis using 13 markers positioned across this locus yielded a LOD score of 3.07 and an NPL score of 3.19 (p=0.001) with 42% of families estimated to be linked. Stratification by the phenotype over-represented in Tas 1 , fvPTC, revealed 17 families, and linkage analysis using this subgroup yielded a maximum HLOD score of 4.07, NPL=4.99 (p=0.00002) with 80% of families estimated to be linked. This data indicated the likelihood of a susceptibility locus for fNMTC at 2q21 and it was named NMTC1. Families with oxyphilia, which has been associated with the TCO locus, were stratified from the fNMTC family set. One large oxyphilic family, 103, showed suggestive evidence for linkage to TCO, LOD score of 2.0 at D19S391, and additionally at NMTC1, LOD score of 1.9 at marker D2S2215, suggesting interaction between these loci in conferring susceptibility to this trait. Four of the remaining smaller families with oxyphilia showed evidence for linkage to both loci. Under a two loci linkage analysis using a multiplicative risk model, the 103 family gave a LOD score of 3.2 and the smaller families also provided evidence for linkage, indicating the possibility of a multigenic inheritance pattern in fNMTC. Finally, recombinants in the families used in this study limited the candidate region containing the NMTCI susceptibility gene limited to approximately 200 000 bases, making its identification a realistic possibility in the near future.
Additional file 1 of Association between metabolically healthy overweight/obesity and gallstones in Chinese adults
Creators: name: Zhang, Junlu
name: Chen, Liangli
name: Shen, Keqing
name: Zhang, Jia
name: Zhu, Yue
name: Qiao, Qiaohua
name: Chen, Liying
Publisher: name: figshare
Year: 2023
Subjects: subject: Medicine
subject: Physiology
subject: FOS: Biological sciences
subject: Sociology
subject: FOS: Sociology
subject: Mathematical Sciences not elsewhere classified
subject: Cancer
subject: Computational Biology

description: Additional file 1. Table S1. Association between all phenotypes and gallstones in different ages group. Table S2. Association of other covariables with gallstones in different ages group.
Изображение Обороны Брестской крепости в кинематографе
Creators: name: Рябуха Юрий Валерьевич
name: Рябуха Елена Владимировна
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2025
Subjects: Великая Отечественная война
Брестская крепость
кинематограф
World War II
Brest Fortress
cinematography

description: Аннотация. Оборона Брестской крепости Красной Армией отражена в четырех кинофильмах – «Бессмертный гарнизон», «Битва за Москву», «Я – русский солдат» и «Брестская крепость». В основе всех сценариев лежит журналистское расследование Сергея Смирнова, оформленное им в нескольких книгах. Все фильмы, кроме «Брестской крепости», используют одну или несколько сюжетных линий, и лишь режиссер «Брестской крепости» пытается осветить ход событий целиком, но при этом ограничивая повествование событиями только одной, первой недели обороны.

Abstract. The defense of the Brest Fortress by the Red Army is reflected in four films - "The Immortal Garrison," "Battle for Moscow," "I, a Russian Soldier" and "The Brest Fortress." At the heart of all scenarios lies journalistic investigation of Sergey Smirnov, written out by him in several books. All films except " The Brest Fortress" use one or several storylines, and only the director of "The Brest Fortress" tries to cover the whole course of events, but at the same time limiting the narration to only one, the first week of the defense.
Risk factors for upper limb fractures in children
Creators: name: Ma, D
Publisher: name: University Of Tasmania
Year: 2023

description: Fractures in younger life are very common especially those involving the upper limb. However, the causes of these fractures are poorly understood. The aim of this population based case-control study was to evaluate the association of both bone dependent and independent factors with upper limb fracture risk in children 9-16 years of age. Areal (aBMD) and apparent (BMAD) bone mineral density were measured by dual energy Xray absorptiometry (DXA). Skeletal age (SA) and metacarpal index (MI) was determined by hand radiograph. Types and patterns of physical activity, risk taking and diet were assessed by interview-administered questionnaires. Coordination was measured using the 8-point movement ABC. A total of 321 fracture cases and 321 randomly selected ageand gender- matched controls were recruited. Fracture sites were as follow: hand: n=91, wrist and forearm: n=190, upper arm: n=40. Conditional logistic regression analysis showed wrist and forearm fracture risk was significantly associated with lumbar spine BMAD (OR: 1.52/SD reduction, 95% CI 1.18-1.96), MI (OR: 1.43/SD reduction, 95% CI 1.14-2.20), light physical activity (OR: 0.81/unit, 95% CI 0.65-1.00), cola consumption (OR: 1.43/category, 95% CI 1.08-1.88) but conclusions may be limited by sample size considerations. Obesity or overweight was not associated with any fracture type. For total fractures, there was a gender discordant effect of sports participation with an increased fracture risk in boys and decreased fracture risk in girls which reached statistical significance for total, contact, non-contact and high-risk sports participation as well as four individual sports (soccer, cricket, surfing and swimming). In conclusion, both bone dependent and independent factors are important determinants of upper limb fracture risk in children. There is heterogeneity of cause for both gender and different fracture sites that will necessitate different approaches to prevention.
Changes in alcohol use during the COVID-19 pandemic among a sample of cannabis users
Creators: name: Miller, Kyle
name: Laha-Walsh, Kirsten
name: Albright, David L.
name: McDaniel, Justin
Publisher: name: Taylor & Francis
Year: 2021
Subjects: subject: Medicine
subject: Pharmacology
subject: Biotechnology
subject: Sociology
subject: FOS: Sociology
subject: 69999 Biological Sciences not elsewhere classified
subject: FOS: Biological sciences
subject: Science Policy
subject: 111714 Mental Health
subject: FOS: Health sciences

description: Background: The Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has infiltrated all aspects of life in the U.S, including how consumers purchase and use alcohol. Given these changes and the use of alcohol to cope with states of distress, the primary objective of this study is to examine the association between alcohol use and the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: In this one-group longitudinal study, we administered a self-report online survey to cannabis users in December 2019 and June 2020. This survey included the AUDIT and was amended at Wave 2 for the inclusion of COVID-10 impacts, beliefs, and behaviors. Results: Most (68.6%) of the sample reported little to no change in alcohol use. Our results showed an overall decline in AUDIT scores from Wave 1 to Wave 2 (p d = .40). However, those who reported greater amounts of change in alcohol use had statistically significant differences in AUDIT scores compared to those reporting no change. Conclusion: This study highlights the initial effects of COVID-19 on alcohol use and provides direction for research and clinical practice. The decline in consumption aligns with predictive literature and the group differences warrant investigation into changes for alcohol education through in-person or socially distant modes.
Field observations of frequency domain statistics and nonlinear effects in wind-generated ocean waves
Creators: name: Garrett, John Frederick
Publisher: name: University of British Columbia
Year: 2011

description: The objectives of this study were to show how far the statistical assumptions usually made when dealing with the theory of continuum nonlinear interactions were relevant to the case of fetch limited wind generated wave fields, and to observe some consequence of the nonlinearity as a check on the other results. The usual assumption, that the first order wave field is composed of Gaussian random wave components stationary in space and time, is shown to require that the real and imaginary parts of the complex Fourier coefficients of the observed surface elevation at a fixed point are normally distributed with zero mean, and that the real and imaginary parts of the complex coefficient for a given frequency band are independent. Coefficients from different frequency bands must also be independent. Four wave fields were observed and described in terms of their power spectra and frequency-wavenumber spectra. Although their directional spectra were found to be strongly influenced by the particular arrangement of fetch at the observing site, their power spectra agreed well with both theory and other observations, at least after correction for the observed currents. This agreement is important from the point of view of establishing the relevance of the results of this work to other field situations. Observations of the frequency domain statistics for these four wave fields indicated that the assumptions of stationarity and of normal distributions for the Fourier coefficients were correct to good accuracy. Two methods were tried for observing direct evidence of nonlinear effects in the wave field. One of these, the attempt to detect products of second order interactions in the frequency-wavenumber spectra, failed because of the poor resolution of the array of sensors. The other, the bispectrum, succeeded, with reasonable agreement being achieved between the observed bispectra and bispectra predicted from the power spectra using the results of perturbation of theory.
Supplementary Materials from The impact of COVID-19 on the worldwide air transportation network
Creators: name: Bao, Xiaoge
name: Ji, Peng
name: Lin, Wei
name: Perc, Matjaž
name: Kurths, Jürgen
Publisher: name: The Royal Society
Year: 2021
Subjects: subject: 80201 Analysis of Algorithms and Complexity
subject: FOS: Computer and information sciences

description: Air travel has been one of the hardest hit industries of COVID-19, with many flight cancellations and airport closures as a consequence. By analysing structural characteristics of the Official Aviation Guide flight data, we show that this resulted in an increased average distance between airports, and in an increased number of long-range routes. Based on our study of network robustness, we uncover that this disruption is consistent with the impact of a mixture of targeted and random global attack on the worldwide air transportation network. By considering the individual functional evolution of airports, we identify anomalous airports with high centrality but low degree, which further enables us to reveal the underlying transitions among airport-specific representations in terms of both geographical and geopolitical factors. During the evolution of the air transportation network, we also observe how the network attempted to cope by shifting centralities between different airports around the world. Since these shifts are not aligned with optimal strategies for minimizing delays and disconnects, we conclude that they are consistent with politics trumping science from the viewpoint of epidemic containment and transport.
Pion Polarizability in the NJL model and Possibilities of its Experimental Studies in Coulomb Nuclear Scattering
Creators: name: Bystritskiy, Yu. M.
name: Guskov, A. V.
name: Pervushin, V. N.
name: Volkov, M. K.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2009
Subjects: subject: High Energy Physics - Phenomenology (hep-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: The charge pion polarizability is calculated in the Nambu-Jona-Lasinio model, where the quark loops (in the mean field approximation) and the meson loops (in the $1/N_c$ approximation) are taken into account. We show that quark loop contribution dominates, because the meson loops strongly conceal each other. The sigma-pole contribution $(m^2_σ-t)^{-1}$ plays the main role and contains strong t-dependence of the effective pion polarizability at the region $|t|\geq 4M_π^2$. Possibilities of experimental test of this sigma-pole effect in the reaction of Coulomb Nuclear Scattering are estimated for the COMPASS experiment.
description: 11 pages, 8 figures
Techniques applied to the design of the TRIUMF magnet poles
Creators: name: Oraas, Sherman Roy
Publisher: name: University of British Columbia
Year: 2011

description: This thesis presents some of the techniques used in designing the sector-focused magnet for the TRIUMF cyclotron. An empirical method is given for calculating the magnet pole tip shape required to contain a 500 MeV beam of H⁻ ions. The method is good only for small changes in the shape. In the test case, the generated pole tip had a spiral angle correct to within ±5 degrees, and a hill angle correct to ±1 degree. The average field was found to be isochronous to ±70 gauss. An empirical solution to the problem of finding the field inside the magnet air gap is also given. The magnetic field resulting from a given pole tip contour is calculated at a point on the median surface by finding the perpendicular distance from the point to the edge of the pole and comparing this to an experimentally measured curve of field against distance. Fields generated by this technique have their averages correct to within 70 gauss and flutter to within 8%. Again, previous knowledge of similar pole tips is assumed. The method and results of calculating the pole edge position tolerances for the latest model magnet are given. The field strengths inside the steel return yoke as obtained from a series of flux measurements are also presented. Finally, it is shown that a simple approximation to the magnetic circuit of the magnet predicts the coil induction required to an accuracy of only 25%.
Brownian motion under annihilation dynamics
Creators: name: de Soria, M. I. Garcia
name: Maynar, P.
name: Trizac, E.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2009
Subjects: subject: Statistical Mechanics (cond-mat.stat-mech)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: The behavior of a heavy tagged intruder immersed in a bath of particles evolving under ballistic annihilation dynamics is investigated. The Fokker-Planck equation for this system is derived and the peculiarities of the corresponding diffusive behavior are worked out. In the long time limit, the intruder velocity distribution function approaches a Gaussian form, but with a different temperature from its bath counterpart. As a consequence of the continuous decay of particles in the bath, the mean squared displacement increases exponentially in the collision per particle time scale. Analytical results are finally successfully tested against Monte Carlo numerical simulations.