WorldWideScience

Sample records for safe boundaries bases

  1. Planetary Boundaries: Exploring the Safe Operating Space for Humanity

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Richardson, Katherine; Rockström, Johan; Steffen, Will

    2009-01-01

    boundaries are rough, first estimates only, surrounded by large uncertainties and knowledge gaps. Filling these gaps will require major advancements in Earth System and resilience science. The proposed concept of "planetary boundaries" lays the groundwork for shifting our approach to governance...... and management, away from the essentially sectoral analyses of limits to growth aimed at minimizing negative externalities, toward the estimation of the safe space for human development. Planetary boundaries define, as it were, the boundaries of the "planetary playing field" for humanity if we want to be sure...

  2. Planetary boundaries: exploring the safe operating space for humanity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johan Rockström; Will Steffen; Kevin Noone; Asa Persson; F. Stuart Chapin; Eric Lambin; Timothy M. Lenton; Marten Scheffer; Carl Folke; Hans Joachim Schellnhuber; Björn Nykvist; Cynthia A. de Wit; Terry Hughes; Sander van der Leeuw; Henning Rodhe; Sverker Sörlin; Peter K. Snyder; Robert Costanza; Uno Svedin; Malin Falkenmark; Louise Karlberg; Robert W. Corell; Victoria J. Fabry; James Hansen; Brian Walker; Diana Liverman; Katherine Richardson; Paul Crutzen; Jonathan Foley

    2009-01-01

    Anthropogenic pressures on the Earth System have reached a scale where abrupt global environmental change can no longer be excluded. We propose a new approach to global sustainability in which we define planetary boundaries within which we expect that humanity can operate safely. Transgressing one or more planetary boundaries may be deleterious or even catastrophic due...

  3. Understanding the occupational and organizational boundaries to safe hospital discharge.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Waring, Justin; Marshall, Fiona; Bishop, Simon

    2015-01-01

    Safe hospital discharge relies upon communication and coordination across multiple occupational and organizational boundaries. Our aim was to understand how these boundaries can exacerbate health system complexity and represent latent sociocultural threats to safe discharge. An ethnographic study was conducted in two local health and social care systems (health economies) in England, focusing on two clinical areas: stroke and hip fracture patients. Data collection involved 345 hours of observations and 220 semi-structured interviews with health and social care professionals, patients and their lay carers. Hospital discharge involves a dynamic network of interactions between heterogeneous health and social care actors, each characterized by divergent ways of organizing discharge activities; cultures of collaboration and interaction and understanding of what discharge involves and how it contributes to patient recovery. These interrelated dimensions elaborate the occupational and organisational boundaries that can influence communication and coordination in hospital discharge. Hospital discharge relies upon the coordination of multiple actors working across occupational and organizational boundaries. Attention to the sociocultural boundaries that influence communication and coordination can help inform interventions that might support enhanced discharge safety. © The Author(s) 2014 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav.

  4. From Planetary Boundaries to national fair shares of the global safe operating space - How can the scales be bridged?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Häyhä, Tiina; Cornell, Sarah; Lucas, Paul; van Vuuren, Detlef; Hoff, Holger

    2016-04-01

    The planetary boundaries framework proposes precautionary quantitative global limits to the anthropogenic perturbation of crucial Earth system processes. In this way, it marks out a planetary 'safe operating space' for human activities. However, decisions regarding resource use and emissions are mostly made at much smaller scales, mostly by (sub-)national and regional governments, businesses, and other local actors. To operationalize the planetary boundaries, they need to be translated into and aligned with targets that are relevant at these smaller scales. In this paper, we develop a framework that addresses the three dimension of bridging across scales: biophysical, socio-economic and ethical, to provide a consistent universally applicable approach for translating the planetary boundaries into national level context-specific and fair shares of the safe operating space. We discuss our findings in the context of previous studies and their implications for future analyses and policymaking. In this way, we help link the planetary boundaries framework to widely- applied operational and policy concepts for more robust strong sustainability decision-making.

  5. From Planetary Boundaries to national fair shares of the global safe operating space — How can the scales be bridged?

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Häyhä, Tiina; Lucas, Paul L.|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/272607444; van Vuuren, Detlef P.|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/11522016X; Cornell, Sarah E.; Hoff, Holger

    2016-01-01

    The planetary boundaries framework proposes quantitative global limits to the anthropogenic perturbation of crucial Earth system processes, and thus marks out a planetary safe operating space for human activities. Yet, decisions regarding resource use and emissions are mostly made at less aggregated

  6. Beyond Safe Operating Space: Finding Chemical Footprinting Feasible

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Posthuma, Leo; Bjørn, Anders; Zijp, Michiel C.

    2014-01-01

    undefined boundary in their selection of planetary boundaries delineating the “safe operating space for humanity”. Can we use the well-known concept of “ecological footprints” to express a chemical pollution boundary aimed at preventing the overshoot of the Earth’s capacity to assimilate environmental...... scenarios that allow us to avoid “chemical overshoot” beyond the Earth’s safe operating space....

  7. Model-based estimation with boundary side information or boundary regularization

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chiao, P.C.; Rogers, W.L.; Fessler, J.A.; Clinthorne, N.H.; Hero, A.O.

    1994-01-01

    The authors have previously developed a model-based strategy for joint estimation of myocardial perfusion and boundaries using ECT (Emission Computed Tomography). The authors have also reported difficulties with boundary estimation in low contrast and low count rate situations. In this paper, the authors propose using boundary side information (obtainable from high resolution MRI and CT images) or boundary regularization to improve both perfusion and boundary estimation in these situations. To fuse boundary side information into the emission measurements, the authors formulate a joint log-likelihood function to include auxiliary boundary measurements as well as ECT projection measurements. In addition, the authors introduce registration parameters to align auxiliary boundary measurements with ECT measurements and jointly estimate these parameters with other parameters of interest from the composite measurements. In simulated PET O-15 water myocardial perfusion studies using a simplified model, the authors show that the joint estimation improves perfusion estimation performance and gives boundary alignment accuracy of <0.5 mm even at 0.2 million counts. The authors implement boundary regularization through formulating a penalized log-likelihood function. The authors also demonstrate in simulations that simultaneous regularization of the epicardial boundary and myocardial thickness gives comparable perfusion estimation accuracy with the use of boundary side information

  8. Predicting Loss-of-Control Boundaries Toward a Piloting Aid

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barlow, Jonathan; Stepanyan, Vahram; Krishnakumar, Kalmanje

    2012-01-01

    This work presents an approach to predicting loss-of-control with the goal of providing the pilot a decision aid focused on maintaining the pilot's control action within predicted loss-of-control boundaries. The predictive architecture combines quantitative loss-of-control boundaries, a data-based predictive control boundary estimation algorithm and an adaptive prediction method to estimate Markov model parameters in real-time. The data-based loss-of-control boundary estimation algorithm estimates the boundary of a safe set of control inputs that will keep the aircraft within the loss-of-control boundaries for a specified time horizon. The adaptive prediction model generates estimates of the system Markov Parameters, which are used by the data-based loss-of-control boundary estimation algorithm. The combined algorithm is applied to a nonlinear generic transport aircraft to illustrate the features of the architecture.

  9. How to bring absolute sustainability into decision-making: An industry case study using a Planetary Boundary-based methodology

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ryberg, Morten W.; Owsianiak, Mikołaj; Clavreul, Julie

    2018-01-01

    The Planetary Boundaries concept has emerged as a framework for articulating environmental limits, gaining traction as a basis for considering sustainability in business settings, government policy and international guidelines. There is emerging interest in using the Planetary Boundaries concept...... as part of life cycle assessment (LCA) for gauging absolute environmental sustainability. We tested the applicability of a novel Planetary Boundaries-based life cycle impact assessment methodology on a hypothetical laundry washing case study at the EU level. We express the impacts corresponding...... to the control variables of the individual Planetary Boundaries together with a measure of their respective uncertainties. We tested four sharing principles for assigning a share of the safe operating space (SoSOS) to laundry washing and assessed if the impacts were within the assigned SoSOS. The choice...

  10. Proposal for a new normalization reference in LCA based on “safe operating space”: presentation of framework and global factors at midpoint level

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bjørn, Anders; Hauschild, Michael Zwicky

    Planetary boundaries have been suggested for a range of environmental impacts,such as climate change, eutrophying nutrients and land use. The boundaries demarcate the safe operating space of humanity: Staying within the space ensures environmental sustainability, while exceeding it risks pushing...... ecosystems into alternative regimes, leading to adverse effects for humanity. Planetary boundaries can be applied as policy targets. To promote a societal development in the direction of these targets, an indicator system is needed that measures the fraction of the safe operating space that a given activity...... normalization factors in units compatible with characterized results at midpoint level in LCA. Our suggested framework allows expressing normalized results in units of “sustainable person years”. Normalization factors are derived by dividing the safe operating space by the global population. The proposed...

  11. Model-based estimation with boundary side information or boundary regularization [cardiac emission CT].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chiao, P C; Rogers, W L; Fessler, J A; Clinthorne, N H; Hero, A O

    1994-01-01

    The authors have previously developed a model-based strategy for joint estimation of myocardial perfusion and boundaries using ECT (emission computed tomography). They have also reported difficulties with boundary estimation in low contrast and low count rate situations. Here they propose using boundary side information (obtainable from high resolution MRI and CT images) or boundary regularization to improve both perfusion and boundary estimation in these situations. To fuse boundary side information into the emission measurements, the authors formulate a joint log-likelihood function to include auxiliary boundary measurements as well as ECT projection measurements. In addition, they introduce registration parameters to align auxiliary boundary measurements with ECT measurements and jointly estimate these parameters with other parameters of interest from the composite measurements. In simulated PET O-15 water myocardial perfusion studies using a simplified model, the authors show that the joint estimation improves perfusion estimation performance and gives boundary alignment accuracy of <0.5 mm even at 0.2 million counts. They implement boundary regularization through formulating a penalized log-likelihood function. They also demonstrate in simulations that simultaneous regularization of the epicardial boundary and myocardial thickness gives comparable perfusion estimation accuracy with the use of boundary side information.

  12. Opportunities and trade-offs of biomass based negative emissions within planetary boundaries

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heck, Vera; Gerten, Dieter; Lucht, Wolfgang

    2017-04-01

    The Paris Agreement requires "a balance between anthropogenic emissions by sources and removals by sinks of greenhouse gases in the second half of the century" (UNFCCC, 2015). Without a full decarbonization of the energy and land use sector until the second half of this century, negative emission technologies (NETs) are required to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions. Integrated assessment studies indicate that bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS), a land based NET, has the potential to contribute substantially to balancing anthropogenic fossil fuel emissions. However, significant negative emission potentials from BECCS require substantial biomass potentials, which can only be achieved by intensively managed (fertilized and irrigated) large-scale biomass plantations. Additional to direct trade-offs of land and water availability, the implementation of large-scale biomass plantations implies major restructuring of the land surface on top of existing land use and would be accompanied by indirect trade-offs such as changes in moisture and energy fluxes. In the context of the planetary boundaries framework as proposed by Rockström et al. (2009), BECCS might contribute to reduce the transgression of the planetary boundary (PB) for climate change, but would most likely steer the Earth system closer to the PB for freshwater use and lead to further transgression of the PBs for land system change, biosphere integrity and biogeochemical flows. This presentation will investigate the opportunities of second generation biomass potentials within the safe operating space for humanity and highlight the multidimensional trade-offs between biomass potentials for BECCS in relation to the PBs. Scenarios of land availability for biomass plantations and land based carbon sequestration were developed with a spatially explicit multi-criterial optimization framework, considering the precautionary need to stay within the safe operating space vis-à-vis the need to

  13. Voting based object boundary reconstruction

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tian, Qi; Zhang, Like; Ma, Jingsheng

    2005-07-01

    A voting-based object boundary reconstruction approach is proposed in this paper. Morphological technique was adopted in many applications for video object extraction to reconstruct the missing pixels. However, when the missing areas become large, the morphological processing cannot bring us good results. Recently, Tensor voting has attracted people"s attention, and it can be used for boundary estimation on curves or irregular trajectories. However, the complexity of saliency tensor creation limits its applications in real-time systems. An alternative approach based on tensor voting is introduced in this paper. Rather than creating saliency tensors, we use a "2-pass" method for orientation estimation. For the first pass, Sobel d*etector is applied on a coarse boundary image to get the gradient map. In the second pass, each pixel puts decreasing weights based on its gradient information, and the direction with maximum weights sum is selected as the correct orientation of the pixel. After the orientation map is obtained, pixels begin linking edges or intersections along their direction. The approach is applied to various video surveillance clips under different conditions, and the experimental results demonstrate significant improvement on the final extracted objects accuracy.

  14. Steering teens safe: a randomized trial of a parent-based intervention to improve safe teen driving.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peek-Asa, Corinne; Cavanaugh, Joseph E; Yang, Jingzhen; Chande, Vidya; Young, Tracy; Ramirez, Marizen

    2014-07-31

    Crashes are the leading cause of death for teens, and parent-based interventions are a promising approach. We assess the effectiveness of Steering Teens Safe, a parent-focused program to increase safe teen driving. Steering Teens Safe aimed to improve parental communication with teens about safe driving using motivational interviewing techniques in conjunction with 19 safe driving lessons. A randomized controlled trial involved 145 parent-teen dyads (70 intervention and 75 control). Intervention parents received a 45-minute session to learn the program with four follow-up phone sessions, a DVD, and a workbook. Control parents received a standard brochure about safe driving. Scores were developed to measure teen-reported quantity and quality of parental communication about safe driving. The main outcome measure was a previously validated Risky Driving Score reported by teens. Because the Score was highly skewed, a generalized linear model based on a gamma distribution was used for analysis. Intervention teens ranked their parent's success in talking about driving safety higher than control teens (p = 0.035) and reported that their parents talked about more topics (non-significant difference). The Risky Driving Score was 21% lower in intervention compared to control teens (85% CI = 0.60, 1.00). Interaction between communication quantity and the intervention was examined. Intervention teens who reported more successful communication had a 42% lower Risky Driving Score (95% CI = 0.37, 0.94) than control parents with less successful communication. This program had a positive although not strong effect, and it may hold the most promise in partnership with other programs, such as Driver's Education or Graduated Driver's License policies. ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01014923. Registered Nov. 16, 2009.

  15. How to bring absolute sustainability into decision-making: An industry case study using a Planetary Boundary-based methodology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ryberg, Morten W; Owsianiak, Mikołaj; Clavreul, Julie; Mueller, Carina; Sim, Sarah; King, Henry; Hauschild, Michael Z

    2018-09-01

    The Planetary Boundaries concept has emerged as a framework for articulating environmental limits, gaining traction as a basis for considering sustainability in business settings, government policy and international guidelines. There is emerging interest in using the Planetary Boundaries concept as part of life cycle assessment (LCA) for gauging absolute environmental sustainability. We tested the applicability of a novel Planetary Boundaries-based life cycle impact assessment methodology on a hypothetical laundry washing case study at the EU level. We express the impacts corresponding to the control variables of the individual Planetary Boundaries together with a measure of their respective uncertainties. We tested four sharing principles for assigning a share of the safe operating space (SoSOS) to laundry washing and assessed if the impacts were within the assigned SoSOS. The choice of sharing principle had the greatest influence on the outcome. We therefore highlight the need for more research on the development and choice of sharing principles. Although further work is required to operationalize Planetary Boundaries in LCA, this study shows the potential to relate impacts of human activities to environmental boundaries using LCA, offering company and policy decision-makers information needed to promote environmental sustainability. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  16. BSLIC: SLIC Superpixels Based on Boundary Term

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hai Wang

    2017-02-01

    Full Text Available A modified method for better superpixel generation based on simple linear iterative clustering (SLIC is presented and named BSLIC in this paper. By initializing cluster centers in hexagon distribution and performing k-means clustering in a limited region, the generated superpixels are shaped into regular and compact hexagons. The additional cluster centers are initialized as edge pixels to improve boundary adherence, which is further promoted by incorporating the boundary term into the distance calculation of the k-means clustering. Berkeley Segmentation Dataset BSDS500 is used to qualitatively and quantitatively evaluate the proposed BSLIC method. Experimental results show that BSLIC achieves an excellent compromise between boundary adherence and regularity of size and shape. In comparison with SLIC, the boundary adherence of BSLIC is increased by at most 12.43% for boundary recall and 3.51% for under segmentation error.

  17. Safe Grid

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chow, Edward T.; Stewart, Helen; Korsmeyer, David (Technical Monitor)

    2003-01-01

    The biggest users of GRID technologies came from the science and technology communities. These consist of government, industry and academia (national and international). The NASA GRID is moving into a higher technology readiness level (TRL) today; and as a joint effort among these leaders within government, academia, and industry, the NASA GRID plans to extend availability to enable scientists and engineers across these geographical boundaries collaborate to solve important problems facing the world in the 21 st century. In order to enable NASA programs and missions to use IPG resources for program and mission design, the IPG capabilities needs to be accessible from inside the NASA center networks. However, because different NASA centers maintain different security domains, the GRID penetration across different firewalls is a concern for center security people. This is the reason why some IPG resources are been separated from the NASA center network. Also, because of the center network security and ITAR concerns, the NASA IPG resource owner may not have full control over who can access remotely from outside the NASA center. In order to obtain organizational approval for secured remote access, the IPG infrastructure needs to be adapted to work with the NASA business process. Improvements need to be made before the IPG can be used for NASA program and mission development. The Secured Advanced Federated Environment (SAFE) technology is designed to provide federated security across NASA center and NASA partner's security domains. Instead of one giant center firewall which can be difficult to modify for different GRID applications, the SAFE "micro security domain" provide large number of professionally managed "micro firewalls" that can allow NASA centers to accept remote IPG access without the worry of damaging other center resources. The SAFE policy-driven capability-based federated security mechanism can enable joint organizational and resource owner approved remote

  18. Topology of sustainable management of dynamical systems with desirable states: from defining planetary boundaries to safe operating spaces in the Earth System

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heitzig, Jobst; Kittel, Tim; Donges, Jonathan; Molkenthin, Nora

    2016-04-01

    To keep the Earth System in a desirable region of its state space, such as defined by the recently suggested "tolerable environment and development window", "guardrails", "planetary boundaries", or "safe (and just) operating space for humanity", one not only needs to understand the quantitative internal dynamics of the system and the available options for influencing it (management), but also the structure of the system's state space with regard to certain qualitative differences. Important questions are: Which state space regions can be reached from which others with or without leaving the desirable region? Which regions are in a variety of senses "safe" to stay in when management options might break away, and which qualitative decision problems may occur as a consequence of this topological structure? In this work, we develop a mathematical theory of the qualitative topology of the state space of a dynamical system with management options and desirable states, as a complement to the existing literature on optimal control which is more focussed on quantitative optimization and is much applied in both the engineering and the integrated assessment literature. We suggest a certain terminology for the various resulting regions of the state space and perform a detailed formal classification of the possible states with respect to the possibility of avoiding or leaving the undesired region. Our results indicate that before performing some form of quantitative optimization such as of indicators of human well-being for achieving certain sustainable development goals, a sustainable and resilient management of the Earth System may require decisions of a more discrete type that come in the form of several dilemmas, e.g., choosing between eventual safety and uninterrupted desirability, or between uninterrupted safety and larger flexibility. We illustrate the concepts and dilemmas drawing on conceptual models from climate science, ecology, coevolutionary Earth System modeling

  19. Fail-safe computer-based plant protection systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Keats, A.B.

    1983-01-01

    A fail-safe mode of operation for computers used in nuclear reactor protection systems was first evolved in the UK for application to a sodium cooled fast reactor. The fail-safe properties of both the hardware and the software were achieved by permanently connecting test signals to some of the multiplexed inputs. This results in an unambiguous data pattern, each time the inputs are sequentially scanned by the multiplexer. The ''test inputs'' simulate transient excursions beyond defined safe limits. The alternating response of the trip algorithms to the ''out-of-limits'' test signals and the normal plant measurements is recognised by hardwired pattern recognition logic external to the computer system. For more general application to plant protection systems, a ''Test Signal Generator'' (TSG) is used to compute and generate test signals derived from prevailing operational conditions. The TSG, from its knowledge of the sensitivity of the trip algorithm to each of the input variables, generates a ''test disturbance'' which is superimposed upon each variable in turn, to simulate a transient excursion beyond the safe limits. The ''tripped'' status yielded by the trip algorithm when using data from a ''disturbed'' input forms part of a pattern determined by the order in which the disturbances are applied to the multiplexer inputs. The data pattern formed by the interleaved test disturbances is again recognised by logic external to the protection system's computers. This fail-safe mode of operation of computer-based protection systems provides a powerful defence against common-mode failure. It also reduces the importance of software verification in the licensing procedure. (author)

  20. ISAT promises fail-safe computer-based reactor protection

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    1989-01-01

    AEA Technology's ISAT system is a multiplexed microprocessor-based reactor protection system which has very extensive self-monitoring capabilities and is inherently fail safe. It provides a way of addressing software reliability problems that have tended to hamper widespread introduction of computer-based reactor protection. (author)

  1. Direct displacement-based design of special composite RC shear walls with steel boundary elements

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    H. Kazemi

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Special composite RC shear wall (CRCSW with steel boundary elements is a kind of lateral force resisting structural system which is used in earthquake-prone regions. Due to their high ductility and energy dissipation, CRCSWs have been widely used in recent years by structural engineers. However, there are few studies in the literature on the seismic design of such walls. Although there are many studies in the literature on the Direct Displacement-Based Design (DDBD of RC structures, however, no study can be found on DDBD of CRCSWs. Therefore, the aim of present study is to evaluate the ability of DDBD method for designing CRCSWs. In this study, four special composite reinforced concrete shear walls with steel boundary elements of 4, 8, 12 and 16 story numbers were designed using the DDBD method for target drift of 2%. The seismic behavior of the four CRCSWs was studied using nonlinear time-history dynamic analyses. Dynamic analyses were performed for the mentioned walls using 7 selected earthquake records. The seismic design parameters considered in this study includes: lateral displacement profile, inelastic dynamic inter-story drift demand, failure pattern and the composite RC shear walls overstrength factor. For each shear wall, the overall overstrength factor was calculated by dividing the ultimate dynamic base shear demand (Vu by the base shear demand (Vd as per the Direct Displacement Based-Design (DDBD method. The results show that the DDBD method can be used to design CRCSWs safely in seismic regions with predicted behavior.

  2. Contaminant Boundary at the Faultless Underground Nuclear Test

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Greg Pohll; Karl Pohlmann; Jeff Daniels; Ahmed Hassan; Jenny Chapman

    2003-01-01

    The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (NDEP) have reached agreement on a corrective action strategy applicable to address the extent and potential impact of radionuclide contamination of groundwater at underground nuclear test locations. This strategy is described in detail in the Federal Facility Agreement and Consent Order (FFACO, 2000). As part of the corrective action strategy, the nuclear detonations that occurred underground were identified as geographically distinct corrective action units (CAUs). The strategic objective for each CAU is to estimate over a 1,000-yr time period, with uncertainty quantified, the three-dimensional extent of groundwater contamination that would be considered unsafe for domestic and municipal use. Two types of boundaries (contaminant and compliance) are discussed in the FFACO that will map the three-dimensional extent of radionuclide contamination. The contaminant boundary will identify the region wi th 95 percent certainty that contaminants do not exist above a threshold value. It will be prepared by the DOE and presented to NDEP. The compliance boundary will be produced as a result of negotiation between the DOE and NDEP, and can be coincident with, or differ from, the contaminant boundary. Two different thresholds are considered for the contaminant boundary. One is based on the enforceable National Primary Drinking Water Regulations for radionuclides, which were developed as a requirement of the Safe Drinking Water Act. The other is a risk-based threshold considering applicable lifetime excess cancer-risk-based criteria The contaminant boundary for the Faultless underground nuclear test at the Central Nevada Test Area (CNTA) is calculated using a newly developed groundwater flow and radionuclide transport model that incorporates aspects of both the original three-dimensional model (Pohlmann et al., 1999) and the two-dimensional model developed for the Faultless data decision

  3. Safe semi-supervised learning based on weighted likelihood.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kawakita, Masanori; Takeuchi, Jun'ichi

    2014-05-01

    We are interested in developing a safe semi-supervised learning that works in any situation. Semi-supervised learning postulates that n(') unlabeled data are available in addition to n labeled data. However, almost all of the previous semi-supervised methods require additional assumptions (not only unlabeled data) to make improvements on supervised learning. If such assumptions are not met, then the methods possibly perform worse than supervised learning. Sokolovska, Cappé, and Yvon (2008) proposed a semi-supervised method based on a weighted likelihood approach. They proved that this method asymptotically never performs worse than supervised learning (i.e., it is safe) without any assumption. Their method is attractive because it is easy to implement and is potentially general. Moreover, it is deeply related to a certain statistical paradox. However, the method of Sokolovska et al. (2008) assumes a very limited situation, i.e., classification, discrete covariates, n(')→∞ and a maximum likelihood estimator. In this paper, we extend their method by modifying the weight. We prove that our proposal is safe in a significantly wide range of situations as long as n≤n('). Further, we give a geometrical interpretation of the proof of safety through the relationship with the above-mentioned statistical paradox. Finally, we show that the above proposal is asymptotically safe even when n(')

  4. Be-safe travel, a web-based geographic application to explore safe-route in an area

    Science.gov (United States)

    Utamima, Amalia; Djunaidy, Arif

    2017-08-01

    In large cities in developing countries, the various forms of criminality are often found. For instance, the most prominent crimes in Surabaya, Indonesia is 3C, that is theft with violence (curas), theft by weighting (curat), and motor vehicle theft (curanmor). 3C case most often occurs on the highway and residential areas. Therefore, new entrants in an area should be aware of these kind of crimes. Route Planners System or route planning system such as Google Maps only consider the shortest distance in the calculation of the optimal route. The selection of the optimal path in this study not only consider the shortest distance, but also involves other factors, namely the security level. This research considers at the need for an application to recommend the safest road to be passed by the vehicle passengers while drive an area. This research propose Be-Safe Travel, a web-based application using Google API that can be accessed by people who like to drive in an area, but still lack of knowledge of the pathways which are safe from crime. Be-Safe Travel is not only useful for the new entrants, but also useful for delivery courier of valuables goods to go through the safest streets.

  5. Online Dectection and Modeling of Safety Boundaries for Aerospace Application Using Bayesian Statistics

    Science.gov (United States)

    He, Yuning

    2015-01-01

    The behavior of complex aerospace systems is governed by numerous parameters. For safety analysis it is important to understand how the system behaves with respect to these parameter values. In particular, understanding the boundaries between safe and unsafe regions is of major importance. In this paper, we describe a hierarchical Bayesian statistical modeling approach for the online detection and characterization of such boundaries. Our method for classification with active learning uses a particle filter-based model and a boundary-aware metric for best performance. From a library of candidate shapes incorporated with domain expert knowledge, the location and parameters of the boundaries are estimated using advanced Bayesian modeling techniques. The results of our boundary analysis are then provided in a form understandable by the domain expert. We illustrate our approach using a simulation model of a NASA neuro-adaptive flight control system, as well as a system for the detection of separation violations in the terminal airspace.

  6. Let the Right One In: Ethnic Boundaries in a Colombian Immigrant Youth Program

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pineda, Claudia G.

    2017-01-01

    Although research on minority youth has established the value of coethnic spaces for safe ethnic identity exploration, research has seldom examined how youth in these spaces draw ethnic boundaries or offered appropriate frameworks addressing boundary-setting. This study uses Berry's acculturation framework to explore ethnic boundary-setting within…

  7. Safe and Secure Services Based on NGN

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fukazawa, Tomoo; Nisase, Takemi; Kawashima, Masahisa; Hariu, Takeo; Oshima, Yoshihito

    Next Generation Network (NGN), which has been undergoing standardization as it has developed, is expected to create new services that converge the fixed and mobile networks. This paper introduces the basic requirements for NGN in terms of security and explains the standardization activities, in particular, the requirements for the security function described in Y.2701 discussed in ITU-T SG-13. In addition to the basic NGN security function, requirements for NGN authentication are also described from three aspects: security, deployability, and service. As examples of authentication implementation, three profiles-namely, fixed, nomadic, and mobile-are defined in this paper. That is, the “fixed profile” is typically for fixed-line subscribers, the “nomadic profile” basically utilizes WiFi access points, and the “mobile profile” provides ideal NGN mobility for mobile subscribers. All three of these profiles satisfy the requirements from security aspects. The three profiles are compared from the viewpoint of requirements for deployability and service. After showing that none of the three profiles can fulfill all of the requirements, we propose that multiple profiles should be used by NGN providers. As service and application examples, two promising NGN applications are proposed. The first is a strong authentication mechanism that makes Web applications more safe and secure even against password theft. It is based on NGN ID federation function. The second provides an easy peer-to-peer broadband virtual private network service aimed at safe and secure communication for personal/SOHO (small office, home office) users, based on NGN SIP (session initiation protocol) session control.

  8. Quality performance-based training enhances safe and effective transport operations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    McCall, D.L.

    1993-01-01

    If the hazardous materials transportation industry is to reduce human error, reduce accidents, and improve its public image, there must be assurance that transportation personnel are properly trained and qualified to perform their jobs in a safe and efficient manner. This training must make them intimately aware of the hazards and risks associated with transport activities, ensure understanding of responsibilities and liabilities unique to their job, and ensure that they can competently perform functional duties vital to safety. To ensure that trained and qualified personnel are on the job, it is essential that the training be performance-based and require trainees to demonstrate functional proficiency. Performance-based training has proven to be a highly effective means of ensuring personnel are qualified to conduct their assignments safely and efficiently. This training is designed around the basic premise that training must be provided that supplies the information necessary for each worker to perform their assigned duties at a predetermined and acceptable level of expertise and skill. (J.P.N.)

  9. Planetary boundaries : Governing emerging risks and opportunities

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Galaz, V.; de Zeeuw, Aart; Shiroyama, Hideaki; Tripley, Debbie

    The climate, ecosystems and species, ozone layer, acidity of the oceans, the flow of energy and elements through nature, landscape change, freshwater systems, aerosols, and toxins—these constitute the planetary boundaries within which humanity must find a safe way to live and prosper. These are

  10. Automatic discrimination between safe and unsafe swallowing using a reputation-based classifier

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nikjoo Mohammad S

    2011-11-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Swallowing accelerometry has been suggested as a potential non-invasive tool for bedside dysphagia screening. Various vibratory signal features and complementary measurement modalities have been put forth in the literature for the potential discrimination between safe and unsafe swallowing. To date, automatic classification of swallowing accelerometry has exclusively involved a single-axis of vibration although a second axis is known to contain additional information about the nature of the swallow. Furthermore, the only published attempt at automatic classification in adult patients has been based on a small sample of swallowing vibrations. Methods In this paper, a large corpus of dual-axis accelerometric signals were collected from 30 older adults (aged 65.47 ± 13.4 years, 15 male referred to videofluoroscopic examination on the suspicion of dysphagia. We invoked a reputation-based classifier combination to automatically categorize the dual-axis accelerometric signals into safe and unsafe swallows, as labeled via videofluoroscopic review. From these participants, a total of 224 swallowing samples were obtained, 164 of which were labeled as unsafe swallows (swallows where the bolus entered the airway and 60 as safe swallows. Three separate support vector machine (SVM classifiers and eight different features were selected for classification. Results With selected time, frequency and information theoretic features, the reputation-based algorithm distinguished between safe and unsafe swallowing with promising accuracy (80.48 ± 5.0%, high sensitivity (97.1 ± 2% and modest specificity (64 ± 8.8%. Interpretation of the most discriminatory features revealed that in general, unsafe swallows had lower mean vibration amplitude and faster autocorrelation decay, suggestive of decreased hyoid excursion and compromised coordination, respectively. Further, owing to its performance-based weighting of component classifiers, the static

  11. Has land use pushed terrestrial biodiversity beyond the planetary boundary? A global assessment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Newbold, Tim; Hudson, Lawrence N; Arnell, Andrew P; Contu, Sara; De Palma, Adriana; Ferrier, Simon; Hill, Samantha L L; Hoskins, Andrew J; Lysenko, Igor; Phillips, Helen R P; Burton, Victoria J; Chng, Charlotte W T; Emerson, Susan; Gao, Di; Pask-Hale, Gwilym; Hutton, Jon; Jung, Martin; Sanchez-Ortiz, Katia; Simmons, Benno I; Whitmee, Sarah; Zhang, Hanbin; Scharlemann, Jörn P W; Purvis, Andy

    2016-07-15

    Land use and related pressures have reduced local terrestrial biodiversity, but it is unclear how the magnitude of change relates to the recently proposed planetary boundary ("safe limit"). We estimate that land use and related pressures have already reduced local biodiversity intactness--the average proportion of natural biodiversity remaining in local ecosystems--beyond its recently proposed planetary boundary across 58.1% of the world's land surface, where 71.4% of the human population live. Biodiversity intactness within most biomes (especially grassland biomes), most biodiversity hotspots, and even some wilderness areas is inferred to be beyond the boundary. Such widespread transgression of safe limits suggests that biodiversity loss, if unchecked, will undermine efforts toward long-term sustainable development. Copyright © 2016, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

  12. Bayesian Statistics and Uncertainty Quantification for Safety Boundary Analysis in Complex Systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    He, Yuning; Davies, Misty Dawn

    2014-01-01

    The analysis of a safety-critical system often requires detailed knowledge of safe regions and their highdimensional non-linear boundaries. We present a statistical approach to iteratively detect and characterize the boundaries, which are provided as parameterized shape candidates. Using methods from uncertainty quantification and active learning, we incrementally construct a statistical model from only few simulation runs and obtain statistically sound estimates of the shape parameters for safety boundaries.

  13. Brain-Based Learning and Educational Neuroscience: Boundary Work

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Edelenbosch, R.M.; Kupper, J.F.H.; Krabbendam, A.C.; Broerse, J.E.W.

    2015-01-01

    Much attention has been given to "bridging the gap" between neuroscience and educational practice. In order to gain better understanding of the nature of this gap and of possibilities to enable the linking process, we have taken a boundary perspective on these two fields and the brain-based learning

  14. Agriculture production as a major driver of the Earth system exceeding planetary boundaries

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bruce M. Campbell

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available We explore the role of agriculture in destabilizing the Earth system at the planetary scale, through examining nine planetary boundaries, or "safe limits": land-system change, freshwater use, biogeochemical flows, biosphere integrity, climate change, ocean acidification, stratospheric ozone depletion, atmospheric aerosol loading, and introduction of novel entities. Two planetary boundaries have been fully transgressed, i.e., are at high risk, biosphere integrity and biogeochemical flows, and agriculture has been the major driver of the transgression. Three are in a zone of uncertainty i.e., at increasing risk, with agriculture the major driver of two of those, land-system change and freshwater use, and a significant contributor to the third, climate change. Agriculture is also a significant or major contributor to change for many of those planetary boundaries still in the safe zone. To reduce the role of agriculture in transgressing planetary boundaries, many interventions will be needed, including those in broader food systems.

  15. Brain-Based Learning and Educational Neuroscience: Boundary Work

    Science.gov (United States)

    Edelenbosch, Rosanne; Kupper, Frank; Krabbendam, Lydia; Broerse, Jacqueline E. W.

    2015-01-01

    Much attention has been given to "bridging the gap" between neuroscience and educational practice. In order to gain better understanding of the nature of this gap and of possibilities to enable the linking process, we have taken a boundary perspective on these two fields and the brain-based learning approach, focusing on…

  16. Approaches to defining a planetary boundary for biodiversity

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Mace, G.M.; Reyers, B.; Alkemade, R.; Biggs, R.; Stuart Chapin, F.; Cornell, S.E.; Diaz, S.

    2014-01-01

    The idea that there is an identifiable set of boundaries, beyond which anthropogenic change will put the Earth system outside a safe operating space for humanity, is attracting interest in the scientific community and gaining support in the environmental policy world. Rockstrom et al. (2009)

  17. Safe medication management in specialized home healthcare - an observational study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lindblad, Marléne; Flink, Maria; Ekstedt, Mirjam

    2017-08-24

    Medication management is a complex, error-prone process. The aim of this study was to explore what constitutes the complexity of the medication management process (MMP) in specialized home healthcare and how healthcare professionals handle this complexity. The study is theoretically based in resilience engineering. Data were collected during the MMP at three specialized home healthcare units in Sweden using two strategies: observation of workplaces and shadowing RNs in everyday work, including interviews. Transcribed material was analysed using grounded theory. The MMP in home healthcare was dynamic and complex with unclear boundaries of responsibilities, inadequate information systems and fluctuating work conditions. Healthcare professionals adapted their everyday clinical work by sharing responsibility and simultaneously being authoritative and preserving patients' active participation, autonomy and integrity. To promote a safe MMP, healthcare professionals constantly re-prioritized goals, handled gaps in communication and information transmission at a distance by creating new bridging solutions. Trade-offs and workarounds were necessary elements, but also posed a threat to patient safety, as these interim solutions were not systematically evaluated or devised learning strategies. To manage a safe medication process in home healthcare, healthcare professionals need to adapt to fluctuating conditions and create bridging strategies through multiple parallel activities distributed over time, space and actors. The healthcare professionals' strategies could be integrated in continuous learning, while preserving boundaries of safety, instead of being more or less interim solutions. Patients' and family caregivers' as active partners in the MMP may be an underestimated resource for a resilient home healthcare.

  18. Preconditioned characteristic boundary conditions based on artificial compressibility method for solution of incompressible flows

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hejranfar, Kazem; Parseh, Kaveh

    2017-09-01

    The preconditioned characteristic boundary conditions based on the artificial compressibility (AC) method are implemented at artificial boundaries for the solution of two- and three-dimensional incompressible viscous flows in the generalized curvilinear coordinates. The compatibility equations and the corresponding characteristic variables (or the Riemann invariants) are mathematically derived and then applied as suitable boundary conditions in a high-order accurate incompressible flow solver. The spatial discretization of the resulting system of equations is carried out by the fourth-order compact finite-difference (FD) scheme. In the preconditioning applied here, the value of AC parameter in the flow field and also at the far-field boundary is automatically calculated based on the local flow conditions to enhance the robustness and performance of the solution algorithm. The code is fully parallelized using the Concurrency Runtime standard and Parallel Patterns Library (PPL) and its performance on a multi-core CPU is analyzed. The incompressible viscous flows around a 2-D circular cylinder, a 2-D NACA0012 airfoil and also a 3-D wavy cylinder are simulated and the accuracy and performance of the preconditioned characteristic boundary conditions applied at the far-field boundaries are evaluated in comparison to the simplified boundary conditions and the non-preconditioned characteristic boundary conditions. It is indicated that the preconditioned characteristic boundary conditions considerably improve the convergence rate of the solution of incompressible flows compared to the other boundary conditions and the computational costs are significantly decreased.

  19. Misorientation related microstructure at the grain boundary in a nickel-based single crystal superalloy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Huang, Ming; Zhuo, Longchao; Liu, Zhanli; Lu, Xiaogang; Shi, Zhenxue; Li, Jiarong; Zhu, Jing

    2015-01-01

    The mechanical properties of nickel-based single crystal superalloys deteriorate with increasing misorientation, thus the finished product rate of the casting of single crystal turbine airfoils may be reduced due to the formation of grain boundaries especially when the misorientation angle exceeds to some extent. To this day, evolution of the microstructures at the grain boundaries with misorientation and the relationship between the microstructures and the mechanical properties are still unclear. In this work a detailed characterization of the misorientation related microstructure at the grain boundary in DD6 single crystal superalloy has been carried out using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques; the elemental distribution at the grain boundaries has been analyzed by energy dispersive (EDS) X-ray mapping; and the effect of precipitation of μ phases at the grain boundary on the mechanical property has been evaluated by finite element calculation. It is shown that the proportion of γ phase at the grain boundaries decreases, while the proportion of γ′ phase at the grain boundaries increases with increasing misorientation; the μ phase is precipitated at the grain boundaries when the misorientation angle exceeds about 10° and thus it could lead to a dramatic deterioration of the mechanical properties, as well as that the enrichment of Re and W gradually disappears as the misorientation angle increases. All these factors may result in the degradation of the mechanical properties at the grain boundaries as the misorientation increases. Furthermore, the finite element calculation confirms that precipitation of μ phases at the grain boundary is responsible for the significant deterioration of the mechanical properties when the misorientation exceeds about 10°. This work provides a physical imaging of the microstructure for understanding the relationship between the mechanical properties and the misorientation

  20. Algorithm based on regional separation for automatic grain boundary extraction using improved mean shift method

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhenying, Xu; Jiandong, Zhu; Qi, Zhang; Yamba, Philip

    2018-06-01

    Metallographic microscopy shows that the vast majority of metal materials are composed of many small grains; the grain size of a metal is important for determining the tensile strength, toughness, plasticity, and other mechanical properties. In order to quantitatively evaluate grain size in metals, grain boundaries must be identified in metallographic images. Based on the phenomenon of grain boundary blurring or disconnection in metallographic images, this study develops an algorithm based on regional separation for automatically extracting grain boundaries by an improved mean shift method. Experimental observation shows that the grain boundaries obtained by the proposed algorithm are highly complete and accurate. This research has practical value because the proposed algorithm is suitable for grain boundary extraction from most metallographic images.

  1. Plasma-based actuators for turbulent boundary layer control in transonic flow

    Science.gov (United States)

    Budovsky, A. D.; Polivanov, P. A.; Vishnyakov, O. I.; Sidorenko, A. A.

    2017-10-01

    The study is devoted to development of methods for active control of flow structure typical for the aircraft wings in transonic flow with turbulent boundary layer. The control strategy accepted in the study was based on using of the effects of plasma discharges interaction with miniature geometrical obstacles of various shapes. The conceptions were studied computationally using 3D RANS, URANS approaches. The results of the computations have shown that energy deposition can significantly change the flow pattern over the obstacles increasing their influence on the flow in boundary layer region. Namely, one of the most interesting and promising data were obtained for actuators basing on combination of vertical wedge with asymmetrical plasma discharge. The wedge considered is aligned with the local streamlines and protruding in the flow by 0.4-0.8 of local boundary layer thickness. The actuator produces negligible distortion of the flow at the absence of energy deposition. Energy deposition along the one side of the wedge results in longitudinal vortex formation in the wake of the actuator providing momentum exchange in the boundary layer. The actuator was manufactured and tested in wind tunnel experiments at Mach number 1.5 using the model of flat plate. The experimental data obtained by PIV proved the availability of the actuator.

  2. Safe affordable fission engine (SAFE 30) module conductivity test thermal model correlation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Roman, Jose

    2001-01-01

    The SAFE 30 is a simple, robust space fission power system that is comprised of several independent modules. Each module contains 4 fuel tubes bonded to a central heatpipe. Fission energy is conducted from the fuel tubes to the heatpipe, which in turn transfers the energy to a power conversion system. This paper benchmarks a thermal model of the SAFE 30 with actual test data from simulated SAFE 30 module tests. Two 'dummy' SAFE 30 modules were fabricated - each consisted of 4 1-inch dia. tubes (simulating the fuel tubes) bonded to a central '1' dia. tube (simulating the heatpipe). In the first module the fuel tubes were simply brazed to the heatpipe along the line of contact (leaving void space in the interstices), and in the second module the tubes and heatpipe were brazed via tri-cusps that completely fill the interstices between the tubes. In these tests, fission energy is simulated by placing resistance heaters within each of the 4 fuel tubes. The tests were conducted in a vacuum chamber in 4 configurations: tri-cusps filled with and without an outer insulation wrap, and no tri-cusps with and without an outer insulation wrap. The baseline SAFE 30 configuration uses the brazed tri-cusps. During the tests, the power applied to the heaters was varied in a stepwise fashion, until a steady-state temperature profile was reached. These temperature levels varied between 773 K and 1073 K. To benchmark the thermal model, the input energy and chamber surface temperature were used as boundary conditions for the model. The analytical results from the nodes at the same location as the test thermocouples were plotted again test data to determinate the accuracy of the analysis. The unknown variables on the analysis are the radiation emissivity of the pipe and chamber and the radiation view factor between the module and the chamber. A correlation was determined using a parametric analysis by varying the surface emissivity and view factor until a good match was reached. This

  3. The Safe Area in the Parieto-Occipital Lobe in the Human Brain: Diffusion Tensor Tractography.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jang, Sung Ho; Kim, Seong Ho; Kwon, Hyeok Gyu

    2015-06-01

    A recent study reported on the relatively safe area in the frontal lobe for performance of neurological interventions; however, no study on the posterior safe area has been reported. In this study, using diffusion tensor tractography, we attempted to identify the safe area in the parieto-occipital lobe in healthy subjects. A total of 47 healthy subjects were recruited for this study. Eleven neural tracts were reconstructed in and around the parieto-occipital area of the brain using diffusion tensor tractography. The safe area, which is free from any trajectory of 10 neural tracts, was measured anteriorly and medially from the line of the most posterior and lateral margin of the brain at 5 axial levels (from the cerebral cortex to the corona radiata). The anterior boundaries of the safe area in the upper cerebral cortex, lower cerebral cortex, centrum semiovale, upper corona radiata, and lower corona radiata levels were located at 31.0, 32.6, 32.7, 35.1, and 35.2 mm anteriorly from the line of the most posterior margin of the brain, respectively, and the medial boundaries were located at an average of 34.7, 38.1, 39.2, 36.1, and 33.6 mm medially from the line of the most lateral margin of the brain, respectively. According to our findings, the safe area was located in the posterolateral portion of the parieto-occipital lobe in the shape of a triangle. However, we found no safe area in the deep white matter around the lateral ventricle. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  4. Operationalizing safe operating space for regional social-ecological systems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hossain, Md Sarwar; Dearing, John A; Eigenbrod, Felix; Johnson, Fiifi Amoako

    2017-04-15

    This study makes a first attempt to operationalize the safe operating space concept at a regional scale by considering the complex dynamics (e.g. non-linearity, feedbacks, and interactions) within a systems dynamic model (SD). We employ the model to explore eight 'what if' scenarios based on well-known challenges (e.g. climate change) and current policy debates (e.g. subsidy withdrawal). The findings show that the social-ecological system in the Bangladesh delta may move beyond a safe operating space when a withdrawal of a 50% subsidy for agriculture is combined with the effects of a 2°C temperature increase and sea level rise. Further reductions in upstream river discharge in the Ganges would push the system towards a dangerous zone once a 3.5°C temperature increase was reached. The social-ecological system in Bangladesh delta may be operated within a safe space by: 1) managing feedback (e.g. by reducing production costs) and the slow biophysical variables (e.g. temperature, rainfall) to increase the long-term resilience, 2) negotiating for transboundary water resources, and 3) revising global policies (e.g. withdrawal of subsidy) that negatively impact at regional scales. This study demonstrates how the concepts of tipping points, limits to adaptations, and boundaries for sustainable development may be defined in real world social-ecological systems. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  5. Clarification of Safe Delivery by Iranian Experts Based on Clinical Governance: A Qualitative Study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Forozun Olfati

    2015-10-01

    Full Text Available Objective:To clarify the principles of a safe delivery based on Clinical Governance Criteria, as recommended by the pertinent experts.Materials and methods:The current study was part of a qualitative research conducted by content analysis method in 2013 and purposive sampling, performing 24 in-depth interviews based on semi-structured questions and analyzed using thematic content analysis. The participants in this research included midwives, obstetricians, managers, and hospital doctors. The data were under continuous consideration and comparative analysis in order to achieve data saturation.Results:The main concepts derived from interpretations of the pertinent experts include: Patient & Public involvement; Risk Management; Education; Clinical efficiency; Clinical audit; Personnel & Management.Conclusion:In a safe delivery, there is a vicious cycle of causes the elimination of which is only possible through benchmarking patterns that attend to most aspects of a safe delivery.Changes to services require utilization of appropriate change management strategies.

  6. A Hamiltonian-based derivation of Scaled Boundary Finite Element Method for elasticity problems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hu Zhiqiang; Lin Gao; Wang Yi; Liu Jun

    2010-01-01

    The Scaled Boundary Finite Method (SBFEM) is a semi-analytical solution approach for solving partial differential equation. For problem in elasticity, the governing equations can be obtained by mechanically based formulation, Scaled-boundary-transformation-based formulation and principle of virtual work. The governing equations are described in the frame of Lagrange system and the unknowns are displacements. But in the solution procedure, the auxiliary variables are introduced and the equations are solved in the state space. Based on the observation that the duality system to solve elastic problem proposed by W.X. Zhong is similar to the above solution approach, the discretization of the SBFEM and the duality system are combined to derive the governing equations in the Hamilton system by introducing the dual variables in this paper. The Precise Integration Method (PIM) used in Duality system is also an efficient method for the solution of the governing equations of SBFEM in displacement and boundary stiffness matrix especially for the case which results some numerical difficulties in the usually uses the eigenvalue method. Numerical examples are used to demonstrate the validity and effectiveness of the PIM for solution of boundary static stiffness.

  7. Wireless-Delimited Secure Zones with Encrypted Attribute-Based Broadcast for Safe Firearms

    OpenAIRE

    Portnoi, Marcos; Shen, Chien-Chung

    2014-01-01

    This work presents an application of the highly expressive Attribute-Based Encryption to implement wireless-delimited Secure Zones for firearms. Within these zones, radio-transmitted local policies based on attributes of the consumer and the firearm are received by embedded hardware in the firearms, which then advises the consumer about safe operations. The Secure Zones utilize Attribute-Based Encryption to encode the policies and consumer or user attributes, and providing privacy and securit...

  8. The role of dynamic trade-offs in creating safety—A qualitative study of handover across care boundaries in emergency care

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sujan, Mark; Spurgeon, Peter; Cooke, Matthew

    2015-01-01

    The paper aims to demonstrate how the study of everyday clinical work can contribute novel insights into a common and stubborn patient safety problem—the vulnerabilities of handover across care boundaries in emergency care. Based on a dialectical interpretation of the empirical evidence gathered in five National Health Service organisations, the paper argues that performance variability is an essential component in the delivery of safe care, as practitioners translate tensions they encounter in their everyday work into safe practices through dynamic trade-offs based on their experience and the requirements of the specific situation. The findings may shed new light on the vulnerabilities of the handover process, and they might help explain why improvements to handover have remained largely elusive and what type of future recommendations may be appropriate for improving patient safety. - Highlights: • Qualitative study of emergency care handover across boundaries. • Description of tensions in everyday clinical work. • Exploration of the role of dynamic trade-offs. • Application of resilience engineering thinking to handover

  9. SenSafe: A Smartphone-Based Traffic Safety Framework by Sensing Vehicle and Pedestrian Behaviors

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zhenyu Liu

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Traffic accident involving vehicles is one of the most serious problems in the transportation system nowadays. How to detect dangerous steering and then alarm drivers in real time is a problem. What is more, walking while using smartphones makes pedestrian more susceptible to various risks. Although dedicated short range communication (DSRC provides the way for safety communications, most of vehicles have not been deployed with DSRC components. Even worse, DSRC is not supported by the smartphones for vehicle-to-pedestrian (V2P communication. In this paper, a smartphone-based framework named SenSafe is developed to improve the traffic safety. SenSafe is a framework which only utilizes the smartphone to sense the surrounding events and provides alerts to drivers. Smartphone-based driving behaviors detection mechanism is developed inside the framework to discover various steering behaviors. Besides, the Wi-Fi association and authentication overhead is reduced to broadcast the compressed sensing data using the Wi-Fi beacon to inform the drivers of the surroundings. Furthermore, a collision estimation algorithm is designed to issue appropriate warnings. Finally, an Android-based implementation of SenSafe framework has been achieved to demonstrate the application reliability in real environments.

  10. Nonlinear Lyapunov-based boundary control of distributed heat transfer mechanisms in membrane distillation plant

    KAUST Repository

    Eleiwi, Fadi; Laleg-Kirati, Taous-Meriem

    2015-01-01

    This paper presents a nonlinear Lyapunov-based boundary control for the temperature difference of a membrane distillation boundary layers. The heat transfer mechanisms inside the process are modeled with a 2D advection-diffusion equation. The model

  11. Sensitivity of boundary-layer stability to base-state distortions at high Mach numbers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Park, Junho; Zaki, Tamer

    2017-11-01

    The stability diagram of high-speed boundary layers has been established by evaluating the linear instability modes of the similarity profile, over wide ranges of Reynolds and Mach numbers. In real flows, however, the base state can deviate from the similarity profile. Both the base velocity and temperature can be distorted, for example due to roughness and thermal wall treatments. We review the stability problem of high-speed boundary layer, and derive a new formulation of the sensitivity to base-state distortion using forward and adjoint parabolized stability equations. The new formulation provides qualitative and quantitative interpretations on change in growth rate due to modifications of mean-flow and mean-temperature in heated high-speed boundary layers, and establishes the foundation for future control strategies. This work has been funded by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) Grant: FA9550-16-1-0103.

  12. Industrial rag cleaning process for the environmentally safe removal of petroleum-based solvents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fierro, J.V.

    1993-01-01

    A process for the cleaning of industrial rags contaminated with environmentally unsafe petroleum-based solvent is described, comprising the step of: (a) placing a load of the industrial rags in a mechanically driven rotary drum; (b) revolving the drum at a high speed sufficient to physically extract liquid petroleum-based solvent contaminate from the industrial rags; (c) routing the extracted petroleum-based solvent contaminate from the rotary drum to a waste solvent collection line for environmentally safe disposal; (d) revolving the rotary drum to cause a tumbling of the industrial rags while maintaining the temperature within the drum at below the flash point of the petroleum-based solvent; (e) intermittently forcing cold air and hot air through the rotary drum to vaporize solvent from the industrial rags; (f) routing the vaporized petroleum-based solvent contaminant from the rotary drum to a condenser wherein the petroleum-based solvent contaminate is condensed and thereafter further routing said condensed solvent to a waste collection line for environmentally safe disposal; and (g) cleaning the industrial rags in the presence of a dry cleaning solvent to remove residual petroleum-based solvents and soil

  13. Improvement of creep-rupture properties by serrated grain boundaries in high-tungsten cobalt-base superalloys

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tanaka, Manabu

    1993-01-01

    The improvement of creep-rupture properties by serrated grain boundaries was investigated using cobalt-base superalloys containing about 14 to 20 wt.% tungsten at 1089 and 1311 K. Serrated grain boundaries improved both the rupture life and the ductility, especially under lower stresses at 1089 K. The increase in rupture life was larger in the alloys containing a larger amount of W. Ductile grain boundary fracture surfaces, which involved dimple patterns and grain boundary ledges, were observed in the specimens with serrated grain boundaries whereas brittle grain boundary facets were observed in the specimens with normal straight grain boundaries ruptured at 1089 K. The strengthening by serrated grain boundaries was also effective at 1311 K, but there was little difference in rupture life between the specimens with serrated grain boundaries and those with straight grain boundaries under lower stresses, since serrated grain boundaries developed also in the specimens with straight grain boundaries according to grain boundary precipitates forming during creep at 1311 K. The increase in W content of the alloys led to the increase in rupture life of the specimens with serrated grain boundaries at 1089 and 1311 K. (orig.) [de

  14. Overview of Boundary Layer Clouds Using Satellite and Ground-Based Measurements

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xi, B.; Dong, X.; Wu, P.; Qiu, S.

    2017-12-01

    A comprehensive summary of boundary layer clouds properties based on our few recently studies will be presented. The analyses include the global cloud fractions and cloud macro/micro- physical properties based on satellite measurements using both CERES-MODIS and CloudSat/Caliposo data products,; the annual/seasonal/diurnal variations of stratocumulus clouds over different climate regions (mid-latitude land, mid-latitude ocean, and Arctic region) using DOE ARM ground-based measurements over Southern great plain (SGP), Azores (GRW), and North slope of Alaska (NSA) sites; the impact of environmental conditions to the formation and dissipation process of marine boundary layer clouds over Azores site; characterizing Arctice mixed-phase cloud structure and favorable environmental conditions for the formation/maintainess of mixed-phase clouds over NSA site. Though the presentation has widely spread topics, we will focus on the representation of the ground-based measurements over different climate regions; evaluation of satellite retrieved cloud properties using these ground-based measurements, and understanding the uncertainties of both satellite and ground-based retrievals and measurements.

  15. Superpixel-based and boundary-sensitive convolutional neural network for automated liver segmentation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Qin, Wenjian; Wu, Jia; Han, Fei; Yuan, Yixuan; Zhao, Wei; Ibragimov, Bulat; Gu, Jia; Xing, Lei

    2018-05-01

    Segmentation of liver in abdominal computed tomography (CT) is an important step for radiation therapy planning of hepatocellular carcinoma. Practically, a fully automatic segmentation of liver remains challenging because of low soft tissue contrast between liver and its surrounding organs, and its highly deformable shape. The purpose of this work is to develop a novel superpixel-based and boundary sensitive convolutional neural network (SBBS-CNN) pipeline for automated liver segmentation. The entire CT images were first partitioned into superpixel regions, where nearby pixels with similar CT number were aggregated. Secondly, we converted the conventional binary segmentation into a multinomial classification by labeling the superpixels into three classes: interior liver, liver boundary, and non-liver background. By doing this, the boundary region of the liver was explicitly identified and highlighted for the subsequent classification. Thirdly, we computed an entropy-based saliency map for each CT volume, and leveraged this map to guide the sampling of image patches over the superpixels. In this way, more patches were extracted from informative regions (e.g. the liver boundary with irregular changes) and fewer patches were extracted from homogeneous regions. Finally, deep CNN pipeline was built and trained to predict the probability map of the liver boundary. We tested the proposed algorithm in a cohort of 100 patients. With 10-fold cross validation, the SBBS-CNN achieved mean Dice similarity coefficients of 97.31  ±  0.36% and average symmetric surface distance of 1.77  ±  0.49 mm. Moreover, it showed superior performance in comparison with state-of-art methods, including U-Net, pixel-based CNN, active contour, level-sets and graph-cut algorithms. SBBS-CNN provides an accurate and effective tool for automated liver segmentation. It is also envisioned that the proposed framework is directly applicable in other medical image segmentation scenarios.

  16. Boundary lubrication of bearing steel in water-based lubricants with functional additives

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Wu, Y.

    2017-01-01

    This thesis focuses on the effect of additives on boundary lubrication of bearing steel for water-based lubrication systems. The oil-in-water (O/W) emulsion and the water-glycol based liquid were selected as the base fluids for research. Sulfur compounds, nitrogen heterocycles and graphene

  17. A novel transferable individual tree crown delineation model based on Fishing Net Dragging and boundary classification

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Tao; Im, Jungho; Quackenbush, Lindi J.

    2015-12-01

    This study provides a novel approach to individual tree crown delineation (ITCD) using airborne Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data in dense natural forests using two main steps: crown boundary refinement based on a proposed Fishing Net Dragging (FiND) method, and segment merging based on boundary classification. FiND starts with approximate tree crown boundaries derived using a traditional watershed method with Gaussian filtering and refines these boundaries using an algorithm that mimics how a fisherman drags a fishing net. Random forest machine learning is then used to classify boundary segments into two classes: boundaries between trees and boundaries between branches that belong to a single tree. Three groups of LiDAR-derived features-two from the pseudo waveform generated along with crown boundaries and one from a canopy height model (CHM)-were used in the classification. The proposed ITCD approach was tested using LiDAR data collected over a mountainous region in the Adirondack Park, NY, USA. Overall accuracy of boundary classification was 82.4%. Features derived from the CHM were generally more important in the classification than the features extracted from the pseudo waveform. A comprehensive accuracy assessment scheme for ITCD was also introduced by considering both area of crown overlap and crown centroids. Accuracy assessment using this new scheme shows the proposed ITCD achieved 74% and 78% as overall accuracy, respectively, for deciduous and mixed forest.

  18. Explicit treatment for Dirichlet, Neumann and Cauchy boundary conditions in POD-based reduction of groundwater models

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gosses, Moritz; Nowak, Wolfgang; Wöhling, Thomas

    2018-05-01

    In recent years, proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) has become a popular model reduction method in the field of groundwater modeling. It is used to mitigate the problem of long run times that are often associated with physically-based modeling of natural systems, especially for parameter estimation and uncertainty analysis. POD-based techniques reproduce groundwater head fields sufficiently accurate for a variety of applications. However, no study has investigated how POD techniques affect the accuracy of different boundary conditions found in groundwater models. We show that the current treatment of boundary conditions in POD causes inaccuracies for these boundaries in the reduced models. We provide an improved method that splits the POD projection space into a subspace orthogonal to the boundary conditions and a separate subspace that enforces the boundary conditions. To test the method for Dirichlet, Neumann and Cauchy boundary conditions, four simple transient 1D-groundwater models, as well as a more complex 3D model, are set up and reduced both by standard POD and POD with the new extension. We show that, in contrast to standard POD, the new method satisfies both Dirichlet and Neumann boundary conditions. It can also be applied to Cauchy boundaries, where the flux error of standard POD is reduced by its head-independent contribution. The extension essentially shifts the focus of the projection towards the boundary conditions. Therefore, we see a slight trade-off between errors at model boundaries and overall accuracy of the reduced model. The proposed POD extension is recommended where exact treatment of boundary conditions is required.

  19. A dynamic fail-safe approach to the design of computer-based safety systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Smith, I.C.; Miller, M.

    1994-01-01

    For over 30 years AEA Technology has carried out research and development in the field of nuclear instrumentation and protection systems. Throughout the course of this extensive period of research and development the dominant theme has been the achievement of fully fail-safe designs. These are defined as designs in which the failure of any single component will result in the unit output reverting to a demand for trip action status. At an early stage it was recognized that the use of dynamic rather than static logic could ease the difficulties inherent in achieving a fail-safe design. The first dynamic logic systems coupled logic elements magnetically. The paper outlines the evolution from these early concepts of a dynamic fail-safe approach to the design of computer-based safety systems. Details are given of collaboration between AEA Technology and Duke Power Co. to mount an ISAT TM demonstration at Duke's Oconee Nuclear Power Station

  20. Negotiating boundaries

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Aarhus, Rikke; Ballegaard, Stinne Aaløkke

    2010-01-01

    to maintain the order of the home when managing disease and adopting new healthcare technology. In our analysis we relate this boundary work to two continuums of visibility-invisibility and integration-segmentation in disease management. We explore five factors that affect the boundary work: objects......, activities, places, character of disease, and collaboration. Furthermore, the processes are explored of how boundary objects move between social worlds pushing and shaping boundaries. From this we discuss design implications for future healthcare technologies for the home.......To move treatment successfully from the hospital to that of technology assisted self-care at home, it is vital in the design of such technologies to understand the setting in which the health IT should be used. Based on qualitative studies we find that people engage in elaborate boundary work...

  1. Safe sex

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... sex; Sexually transmitted - safe sex; GC - safe sex; Gonorrhea - safe sex; Herpes - safe sex; HIV - safe sex; ... contact. STIs include: Chlamydia Genital herpes Genital warts Gonorrhea Hepatitis HIV HPV Syphilis STIs are also called ...

  2. A radial distribution function-based open boundary force model for multi-centered molecules

    KAUST Repository

    Neumann, Philipp

    2014-06-01

    We derive an expression for radial distribution function (RDF)-based open boundary forcing for molecules with multiple interaction sites. Due to the high-dimensionality of the molecule configuration space and missing rotational invariance, a computationally cheap, 1D approximation of the arising integral expressions as in the single-centered case is not possible anymore. We propose a simple, yet accurate model invoking standard molecule- and site-based RDFs to approximate the respective integral equation. The new open boundary force model is validated for ethane in different scenarios and shows very good agreement with data from periodic simulations. © World Scientific Publishing Company.

  3. Slovenian-Croatian boundary: backgrounds of boundary-making and boundary-breaking in Istria regarding the contemporary boundary dispute

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Damir Josipovič

    2012-06-01

    Full Text Available Boundary-making in Istria is an old undertaking. It has actually never ceasesed, not even today. Istrian peninsula has thus undergone substantial boundary shifts during the last couple of centuries (especially after the Venetian demise in 1797. But Istria carries its worldwide fame also due to one of probably the harshest disputes on the post-war European grounds – the Trieste territory dispute. In author's perspective, this dispute is one of the four main corner-stones of the current Slovenian-Croatian boundary dispute. The remaining three include the Kozler's boundary around Dragonja (Rokava River, the ungraspable notions of Austrian censuses in Istria, and the narratives of partisan settlements on military jurisdiction. However, there are other very important aspects which significantly shaped the development of the dispute, but we will focus at assessing the importance of the aforementioned ones. In this sense, the analysis of the effects of the outcome of the Trieste dispute and its implications to the contemporary interstate dispute is set forth. By unveiling its material and consequently its psychological effects upon the contemporary bilateral relations, its analyses simultaneously reveals backgrounds of never answered question, why Kozler's proposed linguistic boundary around Dragonja (Rokava River turned out to become a boundary of national character. Though nowadays disputed, there is absolutely no chance for both involved parties to substantially draw away from once decisively drawn line of a layman. Despite the fierce battle of words in Slovenian public media on whether should the interstate boundary be placed on Mirna (Quieto or Dragonja Rivers, it will be argued here that the actual choice of the Valley of Dragonja as a boundary is by all means Slovenian. The arguments are based on extensive analyses of cartographic materials, relevant literature, documents, and statistical data.

  4. Slovenian-Croatian boundary: backgrounds of boundary-making and boundary-breaking in Istria regarding the contemporary boundary dispute

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Damir Josipovič

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Boundary-making in Istria is an old undertaking. It has actually never ceasesed, not even today. Istrian peninsula has thus undergone substantial boundary shifts during the last couple of centuries (especially after the Venetian demise in 1797. But Istria carries its worldwide fame also due to one of probably the harshest disputes on the post-war European grounds – the Trieste territory dispute. In author's perspective, this dispute is one of the four main corner-stones of the current Slovenian-Croatian boundary dispute. The remaining three include the Kozler's boundary around Dragonja (Rokava River, the ungraspable notions of Austrian censuses in Istria, and the narratives of partisan settlements on military jurisdiction. However, there are other very important aspects which significantly shaped the development of the dispute, but we will focus at assessing the importance of the aforementioned ones. In this sense, the analysis of the effects of the outcome of the Trieste dispute and its implications to the contemporary interstate dispute is set forth. By unveiling its material and consequently its psychological effects upon the contemporary bilateral relations, its analyses simultaneously reveals backgrounds of never answered question, why Kozler's proposed linguistic boundary around Dragonja (Rokava River turned out to become a boundary of national character. Though nowadays disputed, there is absolutely no chance for both involved parties to substantially draw away from once decisively drawn line of a layman. Despite the fierce battle of words in Slovenian public media on whether should the interstate boundary be placed on Mirna (Quieto or Dragonja Rivers, it will be argued here that the actual choice of the Valley of Dragonja as a boundary is by all means Slovenian. The arguments are based on extensive analyses of cartographic materials, relevant literature, documents, and statistical data.

  5. Challenges in implementing a Planetary Boundaries based Life-Cycle Impact Assessment methodology

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ryberg, Morten; Owsianiak, Mikolaj; Richardson, Katherine

    2016-01-01

    of resolving the challenges and developing such methodology is discussed. The challenges are related to technical issues, i.e., modelling and including the Earth System processes and their control variables as impact categories in Life-Cycle Impact Assessment and to theoretical considerations with respect...... to the interpretation and use of Life-Cycle Assessment results in accordance with the Planetary Boundary framework. The identified challenges require additional research before a Planetary Boundaries based Life-Cycle Impact Assessment method can be developed. Research on modelling the impacts on Earth System processes......Impacts on the environment from human activities are now threatening to exceed thresholds for central Earth System processes, potentially moving the Earth System out of the Holocene state. To avoid such consequences, the concept of Planetary Boundaries was defined in 2009, and updated in 2015...

  6. Process-based investigation of cross-boundary environmental pressure from urban household consumption

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yang, Dewei; Lin, Yanjie; Gao, Lijie; Sun, Yanwei; Wang, Run; Zhang, Guoqin

    2013-01-01

    Sustainability research at the city scale is increasingly focusing on urban household consumption in the context of global climate change. We use a complementary emergy accounting (EMA) and carbon footprint accounting (CFA) method to investigate the environmental pressure generated by household consumption in Xiamen, China. We distinguish between the resource extraction, consumption and disposal stages within an urban spatial conceptual framework, comprising the Urban Footprint Region (UFR) and Urban Sprawl Region (USR), and analyze five environmental footprint categories associated with cross-boundary household emergy and carbon flows. Cross-boundary activities, which link the USR with its UFR, contributed nearly 90% of total emergy and 70% of total GHG emissions in CFA. Transport fuel, building materials and food contribute most to environmental pressure in both EMA and CFA. The results indicate a significant cross-boundary resource burden and environmental footprint associated with household activities. The employed framework, method, and scope challenge the conventional spatial boundary of the urban system, and the results have important policy implications for urban sustainability and cross-boundary environmental management. - Highlights: ► We propose an urban spatial conceptual framework that includes USR and UFRs. ► A complementary EMA and CFA method is employed in urban household consumption system. ► Process-based cross-boundary environmental pressure of household consumption are evaluated. ► USR exerts pressure on its UFRs by extensive resource extraction and environmental emissions. ► We elucidate the USR–UFR environmental relationships and household energy policy

  7. Equivalence-point electromigration acid-base titration via moving neutralization boundary electrophoresis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Qing; Fan, Liu-Yin; Huang, Shan-Sheng; Zhang, Wei; Cao, Cheng-Xi

    2011-04-01

    In this paper, we developed a novel method of acid-base titration, viz. the electromigration acid-base titration (EABT), via a moving neutralization boundary (MNR). With HCl and NaOH as the model strong acid and base, respectively, we conducted the experiments on the EABT via the method of moving neutralization boundary for the first time. The experiments revealed that (i) the concentration of agarose gel, the voltage used and the content of background electrolyte (KCl) had evident influence on the boundary movement; (ii) the movement length was a function of the running time under the constant acid and base concentrations; and (iii) there was a good linearity between the length and natural logarithmic concentration of HCl under the optimized conditions, and the linearity could be used to detect the concentration of acid. The experiments further manifested that (i) the RSD values of intra-day and inter-day runs were less than 1.59 and 3.76%, respectively, indicating similar precision and stability in capillary electrophoresis or HPLC; (ii) the indicators with different pK(a) values had no obvious effect on EABT, distinguishing strong influence on the judgment of equivalence-point titration in the classic one; and (iii) the constant equivalence-point titration always existed in the EABT, rather than the classic volumetric analysis. Additionally, the EABT could be put to good use for the determination of actual acid concentrations. The experimental results achieved herein showed a new general guidance for the development of classic volumetric analysis and element (e.g. nitrogen) content analysis in protein chemistry. Copyright © 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  8. Prediction of safe driving Behaviours based on health belief model: the case of taxi drivers in Bandar Abbas, Iran.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Razmara, Asghar; Aghamolaei, Teamur; Madani, Abdoulhossain; Hosseini, Zahra; Zare, Shahram

    2018-03-20

    Road accidents are among the main causes of mortality. As safe and secure driving is a key strategy to reduce car injuries and offenses, the present research aimed to explore safe driving behaviours among taxi drivers based on the Health Belief Model (HBM). This study was conducted on 184 taxi drivers in Bandar Abbas who were selected based on a multiple stratified sampling method. Data were collected by a questionnaire comprised of a demographic information section along with the constructs of the HBM. Data were analysed by SPSS ver19 via a Pearson's correlation coefficient and multiple regressions. The mean age of the participants was 45.1 years (SD = 11.1). They all had, on average, 10.3 (SD = 7/5) years of taxi driving experience. Among the HBM components, cues to action and perceived benefits were shown to be positively correlated with safe driving behaviours, while perceived barriers were negatively correlated. Cues to action, perceived barriers and perceived benefits were shown to be the strongest predictors of a safe drivers' behaviour. Based on the results of this study in designing health promotion programmes to improve safe driving behaviours among taxi drivers, cues to action, perceived benefits and perceived barriers are important. Therefore, advertising, the design of information campaigns, emphasis on the benefits of safe driving behaviours and modification barriers are recommended.

  9. A constitutive model of nanocrystalline metals based on competing grain boundary and grain interior deformation mechanisms

    KAUST Repository

    Gurses, Ercan; El Sayed, Tamer S.

    2011-01-01

    In this work, a viscoplastic constitutive model for nanocrystalline metals is presented. The model is based on competing grain boundary and grain interior deformation mechanisms. In particular, inelastic deformations caused by grain boundary

  10. From boundaries to boundary work: middle managers creating inter-organizational change.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Oldenhof, Lieke; Stoopendaal, Annemiek; Putters, Kim

    2016-11-21

    Purpose In healthcare, organizational boundaries are often viewed as barriers to change. The purpose of this paper is to show how middle managers create inter-organizational change by doing boundary work: the dual act of redrawing boundaries and coordinating work in new ways. Design/methodology/approach Theoretically, the paper draws on the concept of boundary work from Science and Technology Studies. Empirically, the paper is based on an ethnographic investigation of middle managers that participate in a Dutch reform program across health, social care, and housing. Findings The findings show how middle managers create a sense of urgency for inter-organizational change by emphasizing "fragmented" service provision due to professional, sectoral, financial, and geographical boundaries. Rather than eradicating these boundaries, middle managers change the status quo gradually by redrawing composite boundaries. They use boundary objects and a boundary-transcending vocabulary emphasizing the need for societal gains that go beyond production targets of individual organizations. As a result, work is coordinated in new ways in neighborhood teams and professional expertise is being reconfigured. Research limitations/implications Since boundary workers create incremental change, it is necessary to follow their work for a longer period to assess whether boundary work contributes to paradigm change. Practical implications Organizations should pay attention to conditions for boundary work, such as legitimacy of boundary workers and the availability of boundary spaces that function as communities of practice. Originality/value By shifting the focus from boundaries to boundary work, this paper gives valuable insights into "how" boundaries are redrawn and embodied in objects and language.

  11. Boundary and sub-boundary hardening in tempered martensitic 9Cr steel during long-term creep at 650 C

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Abe, Fujio [National Institute for Materials Science, Sengen, Tsukuba (Japan)

    2010-07-01

    The boundary and sub-boundary hardening is shown to be the most important strengthening mechanism in creep of the 9% Cr steel base metal and welded joints. The addition of boron reduces the coarsening rate of M{sub 23}C{sub 6} carbides along boundaries near prior austenite grain boundaries during creep, enhancing the boundary and sub-boundary hardening. This improves long-term creep strength of base metal. The enhancement of boundary and sub-boundary hardening is significantly reduced in fine-grained region of Ac{sub 3} HAZ simulated specimens of conventional steel P92. In NIMS 9Cr boron steel welded joints, the grain size and distribution of carbonitrides are substantially the same between the HAZ and base metal, where fine carbonitrides are distributed along the lath and block boundaries as well as along prior austenite grain boundaries. This is essential for the suppression of Type IV fracture in NIMS 9% Cr boron steel welded joints. Newly alloy-designed 9Cr steel with 160 ppm boron and 85 ppm nitrogen exhibits much higher creep rupture strength of base metal than P92 and also no Tpe-IV fracture in welded joints at 650 C. (orig.)

  12. A methodology of SiP testing based on boundary scan

    Science.gov (United States)

    Qin, He; Quan, Haiyang; Han, Yifei; Zhu, Tianrui; Zheng, Tuo

    2017-10-01

    System in Package (SiP) play an important role in portable, aerospace and military electronic with the microminiaturization, light weight, high density, and high reliability. At present, SiP system test has encountered the problem on system complexity and malfunction location with the system scale exponentially increase. For SiP system, this paper proposed a testing methodology and testing process based on the boundary scan technology. Combining the character of SiP system and referencing the boundary scan theory of PCB circuit and embedded core test, the specific testing methodology and process has been proposed. The hardware requirement of the under test SiP system has been provided, and the hardware platform of the testing has been constructed. The testing methodology has the character of high test efficiency and accurate malfunction location.

  13. A survey of repair practices for nuclear power plant containment metallic pressure boundaries

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Oland, C.B.; Naus, D.J. [Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (United States)

    1998-05-01

    The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has initiated a program at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory to provide assistance in their assessment of the effects of potential degradation on the structural integrity and leaktightness of metal containment vessels and steel liners of concrete containments in nuclear power plants. One of the program objectives is to identify repair practices for restoring metallic containment pressure boundary components that have been damaged or degraded in service. This report presents issues associated with inservice condition assessments and continued service evaluations and identifies the rules and requirements for the repair and replacement of nonconforming containment pressure boundary components by welding or metal removal. Discussion topics include base and welding materials, welding procedure and performance qualifications, inspection techniques, testing methods, acceptance criteria, and documentation requirements necessary for making acceptable repairs and replacements so that the plant can be returned to a safe operating condition.

  14. A survey of repair practices for nuclear power plant containment metallic pressure boundaries

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Oland, C.B.; Naus, D.J.

    1998-05-01

    The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has initiated a program at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory to provide assistance in their assessment of the effects of potential degradation on the structural integrity and leaktightness of metal containment vessels and steel liners of concrete containments in nuclear power plants. One of the program objectives is to identify repair practices for restoring metallic containment pressure boundary components that have been damaged or degraded in service. This report presents issues associated with inservice condition assessments and continued service evaluations and identifies the rules and requirements for the repair and replacement of nonconforming containment pressure boundary components by welding or metal removal. Discussion topics include base and welding materials, welding procedure and performance qualifications, inspection techniques, testing methods, acceptance criteria, and documentation requirements necessary for making acceptable repairs and replacements so that the plant can be returned to a safe operating condition

  15. Boundary fitting based segmentation of fluorescence microscopy images

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Soonam; Salama, Paul; Dunn, Kenneth W.; Delp, Edward J.

    2015-03-01

    Segmentation is a fundamental step in quantifying characteristics, such as volume, shape, and orientation of cells and/or tissue. However, quantification of these characteristics still poses a challenge due to the unique properties of microscopy volumes. This paper proposes a 2D segmentation method that utilizes a combination of adaptive and global thresholding, potentials, z direction refinement, branch pruning, end point matching, and boundary fitting methods to delineate tubular objects in microscopy volumes. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method achieves better performance than an active contours based scheme.

  16. Implementation Evaluation of "Steering Teens Safe": Engaging Parents to Deliver a New Parent-Based Teen Driving Intervention to Their Teens

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ramirez, Marizen; Yang, Jingzhen; Young, Tracy; Roth, Lisa; Garinger, Anne; Snetselaar, Linda; Peek-Asa, Corinne

    2013-01-01

    Parents play a fundamental role in teaching their children safe driving skills to reduce risk of motor vehicle crashes, the leading cause of death for teens. "Steering Teens Safe" is a new parent-based intervention that equips parents with communication skills to talk about, demonstrate, and practice safe driving behaviors and skills…

  17. 44 CFR 65.5 - Revision to special hazard area boundaries with no change to base flood elevation determinations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... zones and floodways) it may be feasible to elevate areas with engineered earthen fill above the base... area boundaries with no change to base flood elevation determinations. 65.5 Section 65.5 Emergency... § 65.5 Revision to special hazard area boundaries with no change to base flood elevation determinations...

  18. SAFE/SNAP application to shipboard security

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Grady, L.M.; Walker, J.L.; Polito, J.

    1981-11-01

    An application of the combined Safeguards Automated Facility Evaluation/Safeguards Network Analysis Procedure (SAFE/SNAP) modeling technique to a physical protection system (PPS) aboard a generic ship is described. This application was performed as an example of how the SAFE and SNAP techniques could be used. Estimates of probability of interruption and neutralization for the example shipboard PPS are provided by SAFE as well as an adversary scenario, which serves as input to SNAP. This adversary scenario is analyzed by SNAP through four cases which incorporate increasingly detailed security force tactics. Comparisons between the results of the SAFE and SNAP analyses are made and conclusions drawn on the validity of each technique. Feedback from SNAP to SAFE is described, and recommendations for upgrading the ship based on the results of the SAFE/SNAP application are also discussed

  19. Agriculture production as a major driver of the earth system exceeding planetary boundaries

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Campbell, Bruce Morgan; Beare, Douglas J.; Bennett, Elena M.

    2017-01-01

    We explore the role of agriculture in destabilizing the Earth system at the planetary scale, through examining nine planetary boundaries, or “safe limits”: land-system change, freshwater use, biogeochemical flows, biosphere integrity, climate change, ocean acidification, stratospheric ozone...

  20. Lyapunov Based Estimation of Flight Stability Boundary under Icing Conditions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Binbin Pei

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Current fight boundary of the envelope protection in icing conditions is usually defined by the critical values of state parameters; however, such method does not take the interrelationship of each parameter and the effect of the external disturbance into consideration. This paper proposes constructing the stability boundary of the aircraft in icing conditions through analyzing the region of attraction (ROA around the equilibrium point. Nonlinear icing effect model is proposed according to existing wind tunnel test results. On this basis, the iced polynomial short period model can be deduced further to obtain the stability boundary under icing conditions using ROA analysis. Simulation results for a series of icing severity demonstrate that, regardless of the icing severity, the boundary of the calculated ROA can be treated as an estimation of the stability boundary around an equilibrium point. The proposed methodology is believed to be a promising way for ROA analysis and stability boundary construction of the aircraft in icing conditions, and it will provide theoretical support for multiple boundary protection of icing tolerant flight.

  1. An Evaluation of a Phase-Lag Boundary Condition for Francis Hydroturbine Simulations Using a Pressure-Based Solver

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wouden, Alex; Cimbala, John; Lewis, Bryan

    2014-11-01

    While the periodic boundary condition is useful for handling rotational symmetry in many axisymmetric geometries, its application fails for analysis of rotor-stator interaction (RSI) in multi-stage turbomachinery flow. The inadequacy arises from the underlying geometry where the blade counts per row differ, since the blade counts are crafted to deter the destructive harmonic forces of synchronous blade passing. Therefore, to achieve the computational advantage of modeling a single blade passage per row while preserving the integrity of the RSI, a phase-lag boundary condition is adapted to OpenFOAM® software's incompressible pressure-based solver. The phase-lag construct is accomplished through restating the implicit periodic boundary condition as a constant boundary condition that is updated at each time step with phase-shifted data from the coupled cells adjacent to the boundary. Its effectiveness is demonstrated using a typical Francis hydroturbine modeled as single- and double-passages with phase-lag boundary conditions. The evaluation of the phase-lag condition is based on the correspondence of the overall computational performance and the calculated flow parameters of the phase-lag simulations with those of a baseline full-wheel simulation. Funded in part by DOE Award Number: DE-EE0002667.

  2. Validation of a knowledge-based boundary detection algorithm: a multicenter study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Groch, M.W.; Erwin, W.D.; Murphy, P.H.; Ali, A.; Moore, W.; Ford, P.; Qian Jianzhong; Barnett, C.A.; Lette, J.

    1996-01-01

    A completely operator-independent boundary detection algorithm for multigated blood pool (MGBP) studies has been evaluated at four medical centers. The knowledge-based boundary detector (KBBD) algorithm is nondeterministic, utilizing a priori domain knowledge in the form of rule sets for the localization of cardiac chambers and image features, providing a case-by-case method for the identification and boundary definition of the left ventricle (LV). The nondeterministic algorithm employs multiple processing pathways, where KBBD rules have been designed for conventional (CONV) imaging geometries (nominal 45 LAO, nonzoom) as well as for highly zoomed and/or caudally tilted (ZOOM) studies. The resultant ejection fractions (LVEF) from the KBBD program have been compared with the standard LVEF calculations in 253 total cases in four institutions, 157 utilizing CONV geometry and 96 utilizing ZOOM geometries. The criteria for success was a KBBD boundary adequately defined over the LV as judged by an experienced observer, and the correlation of KBBD LVEFs to the standard calculation of LVEFs for the institution. The overall success rate for all institutions combined was 99.2%, with an overall correlation coefficient of r=0.95 (P<0.001). The individual success rates and EF correlations (r), for CONV and ZOOM geometers were: 98%, r=0.93 (CONV) and 100%, r=0.95 (ZOOM). The KBBD algorithm can be adapted to varying clinical situations, employing automatic processing using artificial intelligence, with performance close to that of a human operator. (orig.)

  3. Identification of complex model thermal boundary conditions based on exterior temperature measurement

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lu Jianming; Ouyang Guangyao; Zhang Ping; Rong Bojun

    2012-01-01

    Combining the advantages of the finite element software in temperature field analyzing with the multivariate function optimization arithmetic, a feasibility method based on the exterior temperature was proposed to get the thermal boundary conditions, which was required in temperature field analyzing. The thermal boundary conditions can be obtained only by some temperature measurement values. Taking the identification of the convection heat transfer coefficient of a high power density diesel engine cylinder head as an example, the calculation result shows that when the temperature measurement error was less than 0.5℃, the maximum relative error was less than 2%. It is shown that the new method was feasible (authors)

  4. Stability of boundary layer flow based on energy gradient theory

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dou, Hua-Shu; Xu, Wenqian; Khoo, Boo Cheong

    2018-05-01

    The flow of the laminar boundary layer on a flat plate is studied with the simulation of Navier-Stokes equations. The mechanisms of flow instability at external edge of the boundary layer and near the wall are analyzed using the energy gradient theory. The simulation results show that there is an overshoot on the velocity profile at the external edge of the boundary layer. At this overshoot, the energy gradient function is very large which results in instability according to the energy gradient theory. It is found that the transverse gradient of the total mechanical energy is responsible for the instability at the external edge of the boundary layer, which induces the entrainment of external flow into the boundary layer. Within the boundary layer, there is a maximum of the energy gradient function near the wall, which leads to intensive flow instability near the wall and contributes to the generation of turbulence.

  5. Properties of grain boundaries in BCC iron and iron-based alloys

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Terentyev, D.; He, Xinfu

    2010-01-01

    The report contains a summary of work done within the collaboration established between SCK-CEN and CIEA, performed during the internship of Xinfu He (CIAE) in the period of September 2009 to June 2010. In this work, we have carried out an atomistic study addressing the properties of grain boundaries in BCC Fe and Fe-Cr alloys. Throughout this work we report on the structural and cohesive properties of grain boundaries; thermal stability; interaction of grain boundaries with He and diffusivity of He in the core of the grain boundaries; equilibrium segregation of Cr near the grain boundary zone; cleavage fracture of grain boundaries; influence of the Cr precipitates, voids and He bubbles on the structure and strength of grain boundaries.

  6. Properties of grain boundaries in BCC iron and iron-based alloys

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Terentyev, D.; He, Xinfu

    2010-08-15

    The report contains a summary of work done within the collaboration established between SCK-CEN and CIEA, performed during the internship of Xinfu He (CIAE) in the period of September 2009 to June 2010. In this work, we have carried out an atomistic study addressing the properties of grain boundaries in BCC Fe and Fe-Cr alloys. Throughout this work we report on the structural and cohesive properties of grain boundaries; thermal stability; interaction of grain boundaries with He and diffusivity of He in the core of the grain boundaries; equilibrium segregation of Cr near the grain boundary zone; cleavage fracture of grain boundaries; influence of the Cr precipitates, voids and He bubbles on the structure and strength of grain boundaries.

  7. Safe use of ionizing radiations

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1973-01-01

    Based on the ''Code of Practice for the protection of persons against ionizing radiations arising from medical and dental use'' (CIS 74-423), this handbook shows how hospital staff can avoid exposing themselves and others to these hazards. It is designed particularly for junior and student nurses. Contents: ionizing radiations, their types and characteristics; their uses and dangers; basic principles in their safe use; safe use in practice; explanation of terms.

  8. Borders, boundaries and desirable wishes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Luca Pinciaroli

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available “Borders, boundaries and desirable wishes” is the title of the residential workshop offered to a group of young adults (aged 18-25 of the Centro di Salute Mentale (Mental Health Center of the DSM Basaglia of ASL TO2 in Turin. The idea of the workshop, the definition of the objectives and the topics, which are clearly expressed in the title, come from the work of the team dedicated to group psychotherapies, which has been offering group psychodrama sessions to young adults of this age since 2008. In the delicate move to the adult age, these young adults are lost and stuck in static realities where it is not possible to open up to the dimension of desire nor to the transforming encounter with the Other, since they didn’t have the experience of boundaries and lack. These two elements are necessary to acquire the ability to make projects for oneself. During the workshop the following instruments were used: group, psychodrama and art therapy. The group, as a paternal function, ensured the presence of safe boundaries enabling individuals to experiment; psychodrama and art therapy enabled the bodies to experience encounters and transformations, using doing as a metaphor for the movement against the inhibition of doing and as a way to show oneself to the Other and be able to see the Other. 

  9. The anterior interhemispheric approach: a safe and effective approach to anterior skull base lesions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mielke, Dorothee; Mayfrank, Lothar; Psychogios, Marios Nikos; Rohde, Veit

    2014-04-01

    Many approaches to the anterior skull base have been reported. Frequently used are the pterional, the unilateral or bilateral frontobasal, the supraorbital and the frontolateral approach. Recently, endoscopic transnasal approaches have become more popular. The benefits of each approach has to be weighted against its complications and limitations. The aim of this study was to investigate if the anterior interhemispheric approach (AIA) could be a safe and effective alternative approach to tumorous and non-tumorous lesions of the anterior skull base. We screened the operative records of all patients with an anterior skull base lesion undergoing transcranial surgery. We have used the AIA in 61 patients. These were exclusively patients with either olfactory groove meningioma (OGM) (n = 43), ethmoidal dural arteriovenous fistula (dAVF) ( n = 6) or frontobasal fractures of the anterior midline with cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leakage ( n = 12). Patient records were evaluated concerning accessibility of the lesion, realization of surgical aims (complete tumor removal, dAVF obliteration, closure of the dural tear), and approach related complications. The use of the AIA exclusively in OGMs, ethmoidal dAVFs and midline frontobasal fractures indicated that we considered lateralized frontobasal lesions not suitable to be treated successfully. If restricted to these three pathologies, the AIA is highly effective and safe. The surgical aim (complete tumor removal, complete dAVF occlusion, no rhinorrhea) was achieved in all patients. The complication rate was 11.5 % (wound infection (n = 2; 3.2 %), contusion of the genu of the corpus callosum, subdural hygroma, epileptic seizure, anosmia and asymptomatic bleed into the tumor cavity (n = 1 each). Only the contusion of the corpus callosum was directly related to the approach (1.6 %). Olfaction, if present before surgery, was preserved in all patients, except one (1.6 %). The AIA is an effective and a safe approach

  10. Characteristics of nocturnal coastal boundary layer in Ahtopol based on averaged SODAR profiles

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barantiev, Damyan; Batchvarova, Ekaterina; Novitzky, Mikhail

    2014-05-01

    The ground-based remote sensing instruments allow studying the wind regime and the turbulent characteristics of the atmosphere with height, achieving new knowledge and solving practical problems, such as air quality assessments, mesoscale models evaluation with high resolution data, characterization of the exchange processes between the surface and the atmosphere, the climate comfort conditions and the risk for extreme events, etc. Very important parameter in such studies is the height of the atmospheric boundary layer. Acoustic remote sensing data of the coastal atmospheric boundary layer were explored based on over 4-years continuous measurements at the meteorological observatory of Ahtopol (Bulgarian Southern Black Sea Coast) under Bulgarian - Russian scientific agreement. Profiles of 12 parameters from a mid-range acoustic sounding instrument type SCINTEC MFAS are derived and averaged up to about 600 m according filtering based on wind direction (land or sea type of night fowls). From the whole investigated period of 1454 days with 10-minute resolution SODAR data 2296 profiles represented night marine air masses and 1975 profiles represented the night flow from land during the months May to September. Graphics of averaged profiles of 12 SODAR output parameters with different availability of data in height are analyzed for both cases. A marine boundary-layer height of about 300 m is identified in the profiles of standard deviation of vertical wind speed (σw), Turbulent Kinetic Energy (TKE) and eddy dissipation rate (EDR). A nocturnal boundary-layer height of about 420 m was identified from the profiles of the same parameters under flows from land condition. In addition, the Buoyancy Production (BP= σw3/z) profiles were calculated from the standard deviation of the vertical wind speed and the height z above ground.

  11. Boundary lubrication of stainless steel and CoCrMo alloy materials based on three ester-based additives

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Yan, J.; Zeng, Xiangqiong; Ren, T.; van der Heide, Emile

    2014-01-01

    Material selection and lubricant additive development are two important aspects for engineering applications. This work explores the possibilities of three different ester-based additives (DBOP, ODOC and DOB) to generate boundary films on two corrosion and wear resistant materials, stainless steel

  12. Boundary and sub-boundary hardening in high-Cr ferritic steels during long-term creep at 650 C

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Abe, F. [National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS) (Japan)

    2008-07-01

    The sub-boundary hardening is shown to be the most important strengthening mechanism in creep of the 9% Cr steel base metal and welded joints. The addition of boron reduces the coarsening rate of M{sub 23}C{sub 6} carbides along boundaries near prior austenite grain boundaries during creep, enhancing the sub-boundary hardening. This improves long-term creep strength. The enhancement of boundary and subboundary hardening by fine distribution of precipitates along boundaries is significantly reduced in fine-grained region of Ac{sub 3} HAZ simulated specimens of conventional steels P92 and P122. In NIMS 9% Cr boron steel welded joints, the grain size and distribution of carbonitrides are substantially the same between the HAZ and base metal, where fine carbonitrides are distributed along the lath and block boundaries as well as along prior austenite grain boundaries. This is essential for the suppression of Type IV fracture in NIMS 9% Cr boron steel welded joints. (orig.)

  13. A radial distribution function-based open boundary force model for multi-centered molecules

    KAUST Repository

    Neumann, Philipp; Eckhardt, Wolfgang; Bungartz, Hans-Joachim

    2014-01-01

    We derive an expression for radial distribution function (RDF)-based open boundary forcing for molecules with multiple interaction sites. Due to the high-dimensionality of the molecule configuration space and missing rotational invariance, a

  14. Compliance boundaries for multiple-frequency base station antennas in three directions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thielens, Arno; Vermeeren, Günter; Kurup, Divya; Joseph, Wout; Martens, Luc

    2013-09-01

    In this article, compliance boundaries and allowed output powers are determined for the front, back, and side of multiple-frequency base station antennas, based on the root-mean-squared electric field, the whole-body averaged specific absorption rate (SAR), and the 10 g averaged SAR in both the limbs and the head and trunk. For this purpose, the basic restrictions and reference levels defined by the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) for both the general public and occupational exposure are used. The antennas are designed for Global System for Mobile Communications around 900 MHz (GSM900), GSM1800, High Speed Packet Access (HSPA), and Long Term Evolution (LTE), and are operated with output powers at the individual frequencies up to 300 W. The compliance boundaries are estimated using finite-difference time-domain simulations with the Virtual Family Male and have been determined for three directions with respect to the antennas for 800, 900, 1800, and 2600 MHz. The reference levels are not always conservative when the radiating part of the antenna is small compared to the length of the body. Combined compliance distances, which ensure compliance with all reference levels and basic restrictions, have also been determined for each frequency. A method to determine a conservative estimation of compliance boundaries for multiple-frequency (cumulative) exposure is introduced. Using the errors on the estimated allowed powers, an uncertainty analysis is carried out for the compliance distances. Uncertainties on the compliance distances are found to be smaller than 122%. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  15. Boundary Spanning

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Zølner, Mette

    The paper explores how locals span boundaries between corporate and local levels. The aim is to better comprehend potentialities and challenges when MNCs draws on locals’ culture specific knowledge. The study is based on an in-depth, interpretive case study of boundary spanning by local actors in...... approach with pattern matching is a way to shed light on the tacit local knowledge that organizational actors cannot articulate and that an exclusively inductive research is not likely to unveil....

  16. An Automated Safe-to-Mate (ASTM) Tester

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nguyen, Phuc; Scott, Michelle; Leung, Alan; Lin, Michael; Johnson, Thomas

    2013-01-01

    Safe-to-mate testing is a common hardware safety practice where impedance measurements are made on unpowered hardware to verify isolation, continuity, or impedance between pins of an interface connector. A computer-based instrumentation solution has been developed to resolve issues. The ASTM is connected to the circuit under test, and can then quickly, safely, and reliably safe-to-mate the entire connector, or even multiple connectors, at the same time.

  17. A constitutive model of nanocrystalline metals based on competing grain boundary and grain interior deformation mechanisms

    KAUST Repository

    Gurses, Ercan

    2011-12-01

    In this work, a viscoplastic constitutive model for nanocrystalline metals is presented. The model is based on competing grain boundary and grain interior deformation mechanisms. In particular, inelastic deformations caused by grain boundary diffusion, grain boundary sliding and dislocation activities are considered. Effects of pressure on the grain boundary diffusion and sliding mechanisms are taken into account. Furthermore, the influence of grain size distribution on macroscopic response is studied. The model is shown to capture the fundamental mechanical characteristics of nanocrystalline metals. These include grain size dependence of the strength, i.e., both the traditional and the inverse Hall-Petch effects, the tension-compression asymmetry and the enhanced rate sensitivity. © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  18. 16 CFR Appendix I to Part 1402 - Recommended Outline for Instruction Booklet on “How To Safely Install Your CB Base Station Antenna”

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... on âHow To Safely Install Your CB Base Station Antennaâ I Appendix I to Part 1402 Commercial Practices CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY ACT REGULATIONS CB BASE STATION... Outline for Instruction Booklet on “How To Safely Install Your CB Base Station Antenna” I. Required...

  19. Output Feedback-Based Boundary Control of Uncertain Coupled Semilinear Parabolic PDE Using Neurodynamic Programming.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Talaei, Behzad; Jagannathan, Sarangapani; Singler, John

    2018-04-01

    In this paper, neurodynamic programming-based output feedback boundary control of distributed parameter systems governed by uncertain coupled semilinear parabolic partial differential equations (PDEs) under Neumann or Dirichlet boundary control conditions is introduced. First, Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman (HJB) equation is formulated in the original PDE domain and the optimal control policy is derived using the value functional as the solution of the HJB equation. Subsequently, a novel observer is developed to estimate the system states given the uncertain nonlinearity in PDE dynamics and measured outputs. Consequently, the suboptimal boundary control policy is obtained by forward-in-time estimation of the value functional using a neural network (NN)-based online approximator and estimated state vector obtained from the NN observer. Novel adaptive tuning laws in continuous time are proposed for learning the value functional online to satisfy the HJB equation along system trajectories while ensuring the closed-loop stability. Local uniformly ultimate boundedness of the closed-loop system is verified by using Lyapunov theory. The performance of the proposed controller is verified via simulation on an unstable coupled diffusion reaction process.

  20. Probabilistic wind power forecasting based on logarithmic transformation and boundary kernel

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhang, Yao; Wang, Jianxue; Luo, Xu

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • Quantitative information on the uncertainty of wind power generation. • Kernel density estimator provides non-Gaussian predictive distributions. • Logarithmic transformation reduces the skewness of wind power density. • Boundary kernel method eliminates the density leakage near the boundary. - Abstracts: Probabilistic wind power forecasting not only produces the expectation of wind power output, but also gives quantitative information on the associated uncertainty, which is essential for making better decisions about power system and market operations with the increasing penetration of wind power generation. This paper presents a novel kernel density estimator for probabilistic wind power forecasting, addressing two characteristics of wind power which have adverse impacts on the forecast accuracy, namely, the heavily skewed and double-bounded nature of wind power density. Logarithmic transformation is used to reduce the skewness of wind power density, which improves the effectiveness of the kernel density estimator in a transformed scale. Transformations partially relieve the boundary effect problem of the kernel density estimator caused by the double-bounded nature of wind power density. However, the case study shows that there are still some serious problems of density leakage after the transformation. In order to solve this problem in the transformed scale, a boundary kernel method is employed to eliminate the density leak at the bounds of wind power distribution. The improvement of the proposed method over the standard kernel density estimator is demonstrated by short-term probabilistic forecasting results based on the data from an actual wind farm. Then, a detailed comparison is carried out of the proposed method and some existing probabilistic forecasting methods

  1. LiveWire interactive boundary extraction algorithm based on Haar wavelet transform and control point set direction search

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cheng, Jun; Zhang, Jun; Tian, Jinwen

    2015-12-01

    Based on deep analysis of the LiveWire interactive boundary extraction algorithm, a new algorithm focusing on improving the speed of LiveWire algorithm is proposed in this paper. Firstly, the Haar wavelet transform is carried on the input image, and the boundary is extracted on the low resolution image obtained by the wavelet transform of the input image. Secondly, calculating LiveWire shortest path is based on the control point set direction search by utilizing the spatial relationship between the two control points users provide in real time. Thirdly, the search order of the adjacent points of the starting node is set in advance. An ordinary queue instead of a priority queue is taken as the storage pool of the points when optimizing their shortest path value, thus reducing the complexity of the algorithm from O[n2] to O[n]. Finally, A region iterative backward projection method based on neighborhood pixel polling has been used to convert dual-pixel boundary of the reconstructed image to single-pixel boundary after Haar wavelet inverse transform. The algorithm proposed in this paper combines the advantage of the Haar wavelet transform and the advantage of the optimal path searching method based on control point set direction search. The former has fast speed of image decomposition and reconstruction and is more consistent with the texture features of the image and the latter can reduce the time complexity of the original algorithm. So that the algorithm can improve the speed in interactive boundary extraction as well as reflect the boundary information of the image more comprehensively. All methods mentioned above have a big role in improving the execution efficiency and the robustness of the algorithm.

  2. Stratification of TAD boundaries reveals preferential insulation of super-enhancers by strong boundaries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gong, Yixiao; Lazaris, Charalampos; Sakellaropoulos, Theodore; Lozano, Aurelie; Kambadur, Prabhanjan; Ntziachristos, Panagiotis; Aifantis, Iannis; Tsirigos, Aristotelis

    2018-02-07

    The metazoan genome is compartmentalized in areas of highly interacting chromatin known as topologically associating domains (TADs). TADs are demarcated by boundaries mostly conserved across cell types and even across species. However, a genome-wide characterization of TAD boundary strength in mammals is still lacking. In this study, we first use fused two-dimensional lasso as a machine learning method to improve Hi-C contact matrix reproducibility, and, subsequently, we categorize TAD boundaries based on their insulation score. We demonstrate that higher TAD boundary insulation scores are associated with elevated CTCF levels and that they may differ across cell types. Intriguingly, we observe that super-enhancers are preferentially insulated by strong boundaries. Furthermore, we demonstrate that strong TAD boundaries and super-enhancer elements are frequently co-duplicated in cancer patients. Taken together, our findings suggest that super-enhancers insulated by strong TAD boundaries may be exploited, as a functional unit, by cancer cells to promote oncogenesis.

  3. 76 FR 12719 - Safe Schools/Healthy Students Program; Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools; Safe Schools/Healthy...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-03-08

    ... DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Safe Schools/Healthy Students Program; Office of Safe and Drug- Free Schools; Safe Schools/Healthy Students Program; Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Numbers: 84... priorities, requirements, and definitions under the Safe Schools/Healthy Students (SS/HS) program. Since...

  4. Structural Evolution of the R-T Phase Boundary in KNN-Based Ceramics

    KAUST Repository

    Lv, Xiang

    2017-10-04

    Although a rhombohedral-tetragonal (R-T) phase boundary is known to substantially enhance the piezoelectric properties of potassium-sodium niobate ceramics, the structural evolution of the R-T phase boundary itself is still unclear. In this work, the structural evolution of R-T phase boundary from -150 °C to 200 °C is investigated in (0.99-x)K0.5Na0.5Nb1-ySbyO3-0.01CaSnO3-xBi0.5K0.5HfO3 (where x=0~0.05 with y=0.035, and y=0~0.07 with x=0.03) ceramics. Through temperature-dependent powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns and Raman spectra, the structural evolution was determined to be Rhombohedral (R, <-125 °C) → Rhombohedral+Orthorhombic (R+O, -125 °C to 0 °C) → Rhombohedral+Tetragonal (R+T, 0 °C to 150 °C) → dominating Tetragonal (T, 200 °C to Curie temperature (TC)) → Cubic (C, >TC). In addition, the enhanced electrical properties (e.g., a direct piezoelectric coefficient (d33) of ~450±5 pC/N, a conversion piezoelectric coefficient (d33*) of ~580±5 pm/V, an electromechanical coupling factor (kp) of ~0.50±0.02, and TC~250 °C), fatigue-free behavior, and good thermal stability were exhibited by the ceramics possessing the R-T phase boundary. This work improves understanding of the physical mechanism behind the R-T phase boundary in KNN-based ceramics and is an important step towards their adoption in practical applications. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

  5. Stability of impulsively-driven natural convection with unsteady base state: implications of an adiabatic boundary

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ihle, Christian F.; Nino, Yarko

    2011-01-01

    Stability conditions of a quiescent, horizontally infinite fluid layer with adiabatic bottom subject to sudden cooling from above are studied. Here, at difference from Rayleigh-Benard convection, the temperature base state is never steady. Instability limits are studied using linear analysis while stability is analyzed using the energy method. Critical stability curves in terms of Rayleigh numbers and convection onset times were obtained for several kinematic boundary conditions. Stability curves resulting from energy and linear approaches exhibit the same temporal growth rate for large values of time, suggesting a bound for the temporal asymptotic behavior of the energy method. - Highlights: → Non-penetrative convection appears after a time-evolving temperature base state. → Global stability and instability limits were analyzed. → Critical Rayleigh numbers were computed for different kinematic boundary conditions. → Adiabatic, bottom boundary was found to have a de-stabilizing effect. → System is less stable than in Benard convection.

  6. Observation-based estimation of aerosol-induced reduction of planetary boundary layer height

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zou, Jun; Sun, Jianning; Ding, Aijun; Wang, Minghuai; Guo, Weidong; Fu, Congbin

    2017-09-01

    Radiative aerosols are known to influence the surface energy budget and hence the evolution of the planetary boundary layer. In this study, we develop a method to estimate the aerosol-induced reduction in the planetary boundary layer height (PBLH) based on two years of ground-based measurements at a site, the Station for Observing Regional Processes of the Earth System (SORPES), at Nanjing University, China, and radiosonde data from the meteorological station of Nanjing. The observations show that increased aerosol loads lead to a mean decrease of 67.1 W m-2 for downward shortwave radiation (DSR) and a mean increase of 19.2 W m-2 for downward longwave radiation (DLR), as well as a mean decrease of 9.6 Wm-2 for the surface sensible heat flux (SHF) in the daytime. The relative variations of DSR, DLR and SHF are shown as a function of the increment of column mass concentration of particulate matter (PM2.5). High aerosol loading can significantly increase the atmospheric stability in the planetary boundary layer during both daytime and nighttime. Based on the statistical relationship between SHF and PM2.5 column mass concentrations, the SHF under clean atmospheric conditions (same as the background days) is derived. In this case, the derived SHF, together with observed SHF, are then used to estimate changes in the PBLH related to aerosols. Our results suggest that the PBLH decreases more rapidly with increasing aerosol loading at high aerosol loading. When the daytime mean column mass concentration of PM2.5 reaches 200 mg m-2, the decrease in the PBLH at 1600 LST (local standard time) is about 450 m.

  7. Some free boundary problems in potential flow regime usinga based level set method

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Garzon, M.; Bobillo-Ares, N.; Sethian, J.A.

    2008-12-09

    Recent advances in the field of fluid mechanics with moving fronts are linked to the use of Level Set Methods, a versatile mathematical technique to follow free boundaries which undergo topological changes. A challenging class of problems in this context are those related to the solution of a partial differential equation posed on a moving domain, in which the boundary condition for the PDE solver has to be obtained from a partial differential equation defined on the front. This is the case of potential flow models with moving boundaries. Moreover the fluid front will possibly be carrying some material substance which will diffuse in the front and be advected by the front velocity, as for example the use of surfactants to lower surface tension. We present a Level Set based methodology to embed this partial differential equations defined on the front in a complete Eulerian framework, fully avoiding the tracking of fluid particles and its known limitations. To show the advantages of this approach in the field of Fluid Mechanics we present in this work one particular application: the numerical approximation of a potential flow model to simulate the evolution and breaking of a solitary wave propagating over a slopping bottom and compare the level set based algorithm with previous front tracking models.

  8. 4Kids.org: Topical, Searchable, and Safe Internet-Based Resource for Children and Youth

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bacon, Melanie; Blood, Leslie; Ault, Marilyn; Adams, Doug

    2008-01-01

    4Kids.org is an online resource with an accompanying syndicated print publication created to promote safe access to websites and technology literacy. 4Kids.org, created by ALTEC at the University of Kansas in 1995, provides a variety of Internet-based activities as well as access to a database of websites reviewed for educational content,…

  9. Defining Boundaries between School and Work: Teachers and Students' Attribution of Quality to School-Based Vocational Training

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jonasson, Charlotte

    2014-01-01

    School-based vocational training has been organised to support students' boundary crossing between school and work. Such training has the potential to engage students in relevant work-oriented schooling. Drawing on theories of boundary connections and symbolic resources, it is argued that school participants define and attribute quality to…

  10. Cool and Safe: Multiplicity in Safe Innovation at Unilever

    Science.gov (United States)

    Penders, Bart

    2011-01-01

    This article presents the making of a safe innovation: the application of ice structuring protein (ISP) in edible ices. It argues that safety is not the absence of risk but is an active accomplishment; innovations are not "made safe afterward" but "safe innovations are made". Furthermore, there are multiple safeties to be accomplished in the…

  11. Intrinsically Safe and Economical Reactor (ISER)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wakabayashi, Hiroaki; Asahi, Yoshiro

    1991-01-01

    The Intrinsically Safe and Economical Reactor (ISER) is designed based on the principle of a process inherent ultimate safe reactor, PIUS, a so-called inherently safe reactor (ISR). ISER has been developed joingly by the members of the Kanagawa Institute of Technology, the University of Tokyo, the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI) and several industrial firms in Japan. This paper describes the requirements for the next generation of power reactor, the safety design philosphy of ISR and ISER, the controllability of ISER and the results of analyses of some of the design-based accidents (DBA) of ISER, namely station blackout, accidents in which the pressurizer relief valve becomes jammed and stuck in open position and tube breaks in the steam generator. It is concluded that the ISER can ensure a wide range of contraollabitily and fuel integrity for all the analysed DBAs. (orig.)

  12. InaSAFE applications in disaster preparedness

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pranantyo, Ignatius Ryan; Fadmastuti, Mahardika; Chandra, Fredy

    2015-04-01

    Disaster preparedness activities aim to reduce the impact of disasters by being better prepared to respond when a disaster occurs. In order to better anticipate requirements during a disaster, contingency planning activities can be undertaken prior to a disaster based on a realistic disaster scenario. InaSAFE is a tool that can inform this process. InaSAFE is a free and open source software that estimates the impact to people and infrastructure from potential hazard scenarios. By using InaSAFE, disaster managers can develop scenarios of disaster impacts (people and infrastructures affected) to inform their contingency plan and emergency response operation plan. While InaSAFE provides the software framework exposure data and hazard data are needed as inputs to run this software. Then InaSAFE can be used to forecast the impact of the hazard scenario to the exposure data. InaSAFE outputs include estimates of the number of people, buildings and roads are affected, list of minimum needs (rice and clean water), and response checklist. InaSAFE is developed by Indonesia's National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) and the Australian Government, through the Australia-Indonesia Facility for Disaster Reduction (AIFDR), in partnership with the World Bank - Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR). This software has been used in many parts of Indonesia, including Padang, Maumere, Jakarta, and Slamet Mountain for emergency response and contingency planning.

  13. Ranking of healthcare programmes based on health outcome, health costs and safe delivery of care in hospital pharmacy practice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brisseau, Lionel; Bussières, Jean-François; Bois, Denis; Vallée, Marc; Racine, Marie-Claude; Bonnici, André

    2013-02-01

    To establish a consensual and coherent ranking of healthcare programmes that involve the presence of ward-based and clinic-based clinical pharmacists, based on health outcome, health costs and safe delivery of care. This descriptive study was derived from a structured dialogue (Delphi technique) among directors of pharmacy department. We established a quantitative profile of healthcare programmes at five sites that involved the provision of ward-based and clinic-based pharmaceutical care. A summary table of evidence established a unique quality rating per inpatient (clinic-based) or outpatient (ward-based) healthcare programme. Each director rated the perceived impact of pharmaceutical care per inpatient or outpatient healthcare programme on three fields: health outcome, health costs and safe delivery of care. They agreed by consensus on the final ranking of healthcare programmes. A ranking was assigned for each of the 18 healthcare programmes for outpatient care and the 17 healthcare programmes for inpatient care involving the presence of pharmacists, based on health outcome, health costs and safe delivery of care. There was a good correlation between ranking based on data from a 2007-2008 Canadian report on hospital pharmacy practice and the ranking proposed by directors of pharmacy department. Given the often limited human and financial resources, managers should consider the best evidence available on a profession's impact to plan healthcare services within an organization. Data are few on ranking healthcare programmes in order to prioritize which healthcare programme would mostly benefit from the delivery of pharmaceutical care by ward-based and clinic-based pharmacists. © 2012 The Authors. IJPP © 2012 Royal Pharmaceutical Society.

  14. Implementation of Safe-by-Design for Nanomaterial Development and Safe Innovation: Why We Need a Comprehensive Approach.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kraegeloh, Annette; Suarez-Merino, Blanca; Sluijters, Teun; Micheletti, Christian

    2018-04-14

    Manufactured nanomaterials (MNMs) are regarded as key components of innovations in various fields with high potential impact (e.g., energy generation and storage, electronics, photonics, diagnostics, theranostics, or drug delivery agents). Widespread use of MNMs raises concerns about their safety for humans and the environment, possibly limiting the impact of the nanotechnology-based innovation. The development of safe MNMs and nanoproducts has to result in a safe as well as functional material or product. Its safe use, and disposal at the end of its life cycle must be taken into account too. However, not all MNMs are similarly useful for all applications, some might bear a higher hazard potential than others, and use scenarios could lead to different exposure probabilities. To improve both safety and efficacy of nanotechnology, we think that a new proactive approach is necessary, based on pre-regulatory safety assessment and dialogue between stakeholders. On the basis of the work carried out in different European Union (EU) initiatives, developing and integrating MNMs Safe-by-Design and Trusted Environments (NANoREG, ProSafe, and NanoReg2), we present our point of view here. This concept, when fully developed, will allow for cost effective industrial innovation, and an exchange of key information between regulators and innovators. Regulators are thus informed about incoming innovations in good time, supporting a proactive regulatory action. The final goal is to contribute to the nanotechnology governance, having faster, cheaper, effective, and safer nano-products on the market.

  15. Tokamak plasma shape identification based on the boundary integral equations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kurihara, Kenichi; Kimura, Toyoaki

    1992-05-01

    A necessary condition for tokamak plasma shape identification is discussed and a new identification method is proposed in this article. This method is based on the boundary integral equations governing a vacuum region around a plasma with only the measurement of either magnetic fluxes or magnetic flux intensities. It can identify various plasmas with low to high ellipticities with the precision determined by the number of the magnetic sensors. This method is applicable to real-time control and visualization using a 'table-look-up' procedure. (author)

  16. A new computational scheme on quantitative inner pipe boundary identification based on the estimation of effective thermal conductivity

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fan Chunli; Sun Fengrui; Yang Li

    2008-01-01

    In the paper, the irregular configuration of the inner pipe boundary is identified based on the estimation of the circumferential distribution of the effective thermal conductivity of pipe wall. In order to simulate the true temperature measurement in the numerical examples, the finite element method is used to calculate the temperature distribution at the outer pipe surface based on the irregular shaped inner pipe boundary to be determined. Then based on this simulated temperature distribution the inverse identification work is conducted by employing the modified one-dimensional correction method, along with the finite volume method, to estimate the circumferential distribution of the effective thermal conductivity of the pipe wall. Thereafter, the inner pipe boundary shape is calculated based on the conductivity estimation result. A series of numerical experiments with different temperature measurement errors and different thermal conductivities of pipe wall have certified the effectiveness of the method. It is proved that the method is a simple, fast and accurate one for this inverse heat conduction problem.

  17. C.A.M.P.: A Community-Based Approach to Promoting Safe Sex Behavior in Adolescence.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guzman, Bianca L.; Casad, Bettina J.; Schlehofer-Sutton, Michele M.; Villanueva, Christina M.; Feria, Aida

    The primary goal of this study was to assess the Community Awareness Motivation Partnership (C.A.M.P.) theater intervention based on the behavioral ecological model. C.A.M.P addresses the role of contraceptive use in safe sex behavior through an informative and entertaining culturally relevant dramatization program. Adolescents (N=1613) between…

  18. Arsenic-Safe Aquifers in Coastal Bangladesh: AN Investigation with Ordinary Kriging Estimation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hassan, M. M.; Ahamed, R.

    2017-10-01

    Spatial point pattern is one of the most suitable methods for analysing groundwater arsenic concentrations. Groundwater arsenic poisoning in Bangladesh has been one of the biggest environmental health disasters in recent times. About 85 million people are exposed to arsenic more than 50 μg/L in drinking water. The paper seeks to identify the existing suitable aquifers for arsenic-safe drinking water along with "spatial arsenic discontinuity" using GIS-based spatial geostatistical analysis in a small study site (12.69 km2) in the coastal belt of southwest Bangladesh (Dhopakhali union of Bagerhat district). The relevant spatial data were collected with Geographical Positioning Systems (GPS), arsenic data with field testing kits, tubewell attributes with observation and questionnaire survey. Geostatistics with kriging methods can design water quality monitoring in different aquifers with hydrochemical evaluation by spatial mapping. The paper presents the interpolation of the regional estimates of arsenic data for spatial discontinuity mapping with Ordinary Kriging (OK) method that overcomes the areal bias problem for administrative boundary. This paper also demonstrates the suitability of isopleth maps that is easier to read than choropleth maps. The OK method investigated that around 80 percent of the study site are contaminated following the Bangladesh Drinking Water Standards (BDWS) of 50 μg/L. The study identified a very few scattered "pockets" of arsenic-safe zone at the shallow aquifer.

  19. Moment-based boundary conditions for lattice Boltzmann simulations of natural convection in cavities

    KAUST Repository

    Allen, Rebecca

    2016-06-29

    We study a multiple relaxation time lattice Boltzmann model for natural convection with moment-based boundary conditions. The unknown primary variables of the algorithm at a boundary are found by imposing conditions directly upon hydrodynamic moments, which are then translated into conditions for the discrete velocity distribution functions. The method is formulated so that it is consistent with the second order implementation of the discrete velocity Boltzmann equations for fluid flow and temperature. Natural convection in square cavities is studied for Rayleigh numbers ranging from 103 to 108. An excellent agreement with benchmark data is observed and the flow fields are shown to converge with second order accuracy. Copyright © 2016 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.

  20. Pressure effect on grain boundary diffusion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Smirnova, E.S.; Chuvil'deev, V.N.

    1997-01-01

    The influence of hydrostatic pressure on grain boundary diffusion and grain boundary migration in metallic materials is theoretically investigated. The model is suggested that permits describing changes in activation energy of grain boundary self-diffusion and diffusion permeability of grain boundaries under hydrostatic pressure. The model is based on the ideas about island-type structure of grain boundaries as well as linear relationship of variations in grain boundary free volume to hydrostatic pressure value. Comparison of theoretical data with experimental ones for a number of metals and alloys (α-Zr, Sn-Ge, Cu-In with Co, In, Al as diffusing elements) shows a qualitative agreement

  1. Research on the Automatic Fusion Strategy of Fixed Value Boundary Based on the Weak Coupling Condition of Grid Partition

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, X. Y.; Dou, J. M.; Shen, H.; Li, J.; Yang, G. S.; Fan, R. Q.; Shen, Q.

    2018-03-01

    With the continuous strengthening of power grids, the network structure is becoming more and more complicated. An open and regional data modeling is used to complete the calculation of the protection fixed value based on the local region. At the same time, a high precision, quasi real-time boundary fusion technique is needed to seamlessly integrate the various regions so as to constitute an integrated fault computing platform which can conduct transient stability analysis of covering the whole network with high accuracy and multiple modes, deal with the impact results of non-single fault, interlocking fault and build “the first line of defense” of the power grid. The boundary fusion algorithm in this paper is an automatic fusion algorithm based on the boundary accurate coupling of the networking power grid partition, which takes the actual operation mode for qualification, complete the boundary coupling algorithm of various weak coupling partition based on open-loop mode, improving the fusion efficiency, truly reflecting its transient stability level, and effectively solving the problems of too much data, too many difficulties of partition fusion, and no effective fusion due to mutually exclusive conditions. In this paper, the basic principle of fusion process is introduced firstly, and then the method of boundary fusion customization is introduced by scene description. Finally, an example is given to illustrate the specific algorithm on how it effectively implements the boundary fusion after grid partition and to verify the accuracy and efficiency of the algorithm.

  2. The topology of non-linear global carbon dynamics: from tipping points to planetary boundaries

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anderies, J M; Carpenter, S R; Steffen, Will; Rockström, Johan

    2013-01-01

    We present a minimal model of land use and carbon cycle dynamics and use it to explore the relationship between non-linear dynamics and planetary boundaries. Only the most basic interactions between land cover and terrestrial, atmospheric, and marine carbon stocks are considered in the model. Our goal is not to predict global carbon dynamics as it occurs in the actual Earth System. Rather, we construct a conceptually reasonable heuristic model of a feedback system between different carbon stocks that captures the qualitative features of the actual Earth System and use it to explore the topology of the boundaries of what can be called a ‘safe operating space’ for humans. The model analysis illustrates the existence of dynamic, non-linear tipping points in carbon cycle dynamics and the potential complexity of planetary boundaries. Finally, we use the model to illustrate some challenges associated with navigating planetary boundaries. (letter)

  3. The topology of non-linear global carbon dynamics: from tipping points to planetary boundaries

    Science.gov (United States)

    Anderies, J. M.; Carpenter, S. R.; Steffen, Will; Rockström, Johan

    2013-12-01

    We present a minimal model of land use and carbon cycle dynamics and use it to explore the relationship between non-linear dynamics and planetary boundaries. Only the most basic interactions between land cover and terrestrial, atmospheric, and marine carbon stocks are considered in the model. Our goal is not to predict global carbon dynamics as it occurs in the actual Earth System. Rather, we construct a conceptually reasonable heuristic model of a feedback system between different carbon stocks that captures the qualitative features of the actual Earth System and use it to explore the topology of the boundaries of what can be called a ‘safe operating space’ for humans. The model analysis illustrates the existence of dynamic, non-linear tipping points in carbon cycle dynamics and the potential complexity of planetary boundaries. Finally, we use the model to illustrate some challenges associated with navigating planetary boundaries.

  4. Conformal boundaries of warped products

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kokkendorff, Simon Lyngby

    2006-01-01

    In this note we prove a result on how to determine the conformal boundary of a type of warped product of two length spaces in terms of the individual conformal boundaries. In the situation, that we treat, the warping and conformal distortion functions are functions of distance to a base point....... The result is applied to produce examples of CAT(0)-spaces, where the conformal and ideal boundaries differ in interesting ways....

  5. Two-point functions and logarithmic boundary operators in boundary logarithmic conformal field theories

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ishimoto, Yukitaka

    2004-01-01

    Amongst conformal field theories, there exist logarithmic conformal field theories such as c p,1 models. We have investigated c p,q models with a boundary in search of logarithmic theories and have found logarithmic solutions of two-point functions in the context of the Coulomb gas picture. We have also found the relations between coefficients in the two-point functions and correlation functions of logarithmic boundary operators, and have confirmed the solutions in [hep-th/0003184]. Other two-point functions and boundary operators have also been studied in the free boson construction of boundary CFT with SU(2) k symmetry in regard to logarithmic theories. This paper is based on a part of D. Phil. Thesis [hep-th/0312160]. (author)

  6. Global opportunities in land and water use while staying within the safe (and just) operating space: quantifications of interactions and tradeoffs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gerten, Dieter; Jägermeyr, Jonas; Heck, Vera

    2016-04-01

    Staying within the safe and just operating space as defined by multiple planetary boundaries will be a major challenge especially in view of anticipated future increases in food demand, the potential need for balancing climate change (e.g. through terrestrial carbon dioxide removal) and its impacts, and the water and land demand associated with these goals and measures. This presentation will show simulation results from a comprehensive model-based study on the global potentials of diverse crop management options considered as opportunities to stay within the planetary boundaries for human freshwater use and land-system change. The quantified on-farm options include rainwater harvesting, soil conservation and more efficient irrigation, all of which are designed to use neither more water nor more land for agriculture than is presently the case. Results show that irrigation efficiency improvements could save substantial amounts of water in many river basins (globally 48% of non-productive water consumption in an ambitious scenario), and if rerouted to irrigate neighbouring rainfed systems, could at the same time boost kilocalorie production by 26% globally. Low-tech solutions for small-scale farmers on water-limited croplands show the potential to increase rainfed yields to a similar extent. In combination, such ambitious yet achievable integrated water management strategies could increase global kcal production by 41% and close the water-related yield gap by 62%. Global climate change would have adverse effects on crop yields in many regions, but the improvements in water management quantified here could buffer such effects to a significant degree. Thus, a substantial amount of anticipated future needs for food production could be fulfilled without further approaching / transgressing planetary boundaries. In addition, it will be shown how large-scale biomass plantations for the purpose of terrestrial CO2 removal (climate engineering, potentially implemented should

  7. The Challenges of Applying Planetary Boundaries as a Basis for Strategic Decision-Making in Companies with Global Supply Chains

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Clift, Roland; Sim, Sarah; King, Henry

    2017-01-01

    The Planetary Boundaries (PB) framework represents a significant advance in specifying the ecological constraints on human development. However, to enable decision-makers in business and public policy to respect these constraints in strategic planning, the PB framework needs to be developed...... in operationalizing the planetary boundaries needs be complemented with progress in addressing the equity and ethical issues in allocating the safe operating space between companies and sectors....

  8. Prepare to protect: Operating and maintaining a tornado safe room.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Herseth, Andrew; Goldsmith-Grinspoon, Jennifer; Scott, Pataya

    2017-06-01

    Operating and maintaining a tornado safe room can be critical to the effective continuity of business operations because a firm's most valuable asset is its people. This paper describes aspects of operations and maintenance (O&M) for existing tornado safe rooms as well as a few planning and design aspects that affect the ultimate operation of a safe room for situations where a safe room is planned, but not yet constructed. The information is based on several Federal Emergency Management Agency safe room publications that provide guidance on emergency management and operations, as well as the design and construction of tornado safe rooms.

  9. The SafeCOP ECSEL Project: Safe Cooperating Cyber-Physical Systems Using Wireless Communication

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pop, Paul; Scholle, Detlef; Hansson, Hans

    2016-01-01

    This paper presents an overview of the ECSEL project entitled "Safe Cooperating Cyber-Physical Systems using Wireless Communication" (SafeCOP), which runs during the period 2016 -- 2019. SafeCOP targets safety-related Cooperating Cyber-Physical Systems (CO-CPS) characterised by use of wireless...... detection of abnormal behaviour, triggering if needed a safe degraded mode. SafeCOP will also develop methods and tools, which will be used to produce safety assurance evidence needed to certify cooperative functions. SafeCOP will extend current wireless technologies to ensure safe and secure cooperation...

  10. The use of collaboration to implement evidence-based safe practices.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clarke, John R

    2013-12-01

    The Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority receives over 235,000 reports of medical error per year. Near miss and serious event reports of common and interesting problems are analysed to identify best practices for preventing harmful errors. Dissemination of this evidence-based information in the peer-reviewed Pennsylvania Patient Safety Advisory and presentations to medical staffs are not sufficient for adoption of best practices. Adoption of best practices has required working with institutions to identify local barriers to and incentives for adopting best practices and redesigning the delivery system to make desired behaviour easy and undesirable behaviour more difficult. Collaborations, where institutions can learn from the experiences of others, have show decreases in harmful events. The Pennsylvania Program to Prevent Wrong-Site Surgery is used as an example. Two collaborations to prevent wrong-site surgery have been completed, one with 30 institutions in eastern Pennsylvania and one with 19 in western Pennsylvania. The first collaboration achieved a 73% decrease in the rolling average of wrong-site events over 18 months. The second collaboration experienced no wrong-site operating room procedures over more than one year. Significance for public healthSince the Institute of Medicine's To Err is Human identified medical errors as a major cause of death, the public has been interested in the recommendations for reporting of medical errors and implementing safe systems for the delivery of healthcare. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has followed those recommendations and found that an essential intermediate step between analysing reports and implementing safe systems is collaborative learning among healthcare institutions. The experience in Pennsylvania should be useful to other public organizations wishing to improve safety.

  11. Local and social facets of planetary boundaries: right to nutrients

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kahiluoto, Helena; Kuisma, Miia; Kuokkanen, Anna; Mikkilä, Mirja; Linnanen, Lassi

    2015-01-01

    Anthropogenic nutrient flows exceed the planetary boundaries. The boundaries and the current excesses vary spatially. Such variations have both an ecological and a social facet. We explored the spatial variation using a bottom-up approach. The local critical boundaries were determined through the current or accumulated flow of the preceding five years before the planetary boundary criteria were met. Finland and Ethiopia served as cases with contrasting ecology and wealth. The variation in excess depends on historical global inequities in the access to nutrients. Globally, the accumulated use per capita is 2300 kg reactive nitrogen (N r ) and 200 kg phosphorus (P). For Finland, the accumulated use per capita is 3400 kg N r and 690 kg P, whereas for Ethiopia, it is 26 kg N r and 12 kg P. The critical N boundary in Finland is currently exceeded by 40 kg cap −1 a −1 and the accumulated excess is 65 kg cap −1 a −1 , while the global current excess is 24 kg cap −1 a −1 and there is space in Ethiopia to increase even the accumulated flow. The critical P boundary is exceeded in Finland and (although less so) in Ethiopia, but for contrary reasons: (1) the excessive past inflow to the agrifood system in Finland and (2) the excessive outflow from the agrifood system triggered by deficits in inflow and waste management in Ethiopia. The critical boundaries set by Finnish marine systems are lower and those set by freshwaters are higher than the planetary boundaries downscaled per capita. The shift to dominance of internal loading in watercourses represents a tipping point. We conclude that food security within the safe boundaries requires global redistribution of nutrients in residues, soils and sediments and of rights to use nutrients. Bottom-up assessments reveal local dynamics that shed new light on the relevant boundary criteria and on estimates and remedies. (letter)

  12. Safe Kids Worldwide

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Blog Videos Newsletter facebook twitter instagram pinterest gplus youtube Search Menu Why It Matters Who We Are What We Do Find Your Safe Kids Safe Kids Day Main menu Keeping All Kids Safe Safety Tips Get Involved 4 Star Charity Donate Text Burns and Scalds 4 tips ...

  13. A Source-Term Based Boundary Layer Bleed/Effusion Model for Passive Shock Control

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baurle, Robert A.; Norris, Andrew T.

    2011-01-01

    A modeling framework for boundary layer effusion has been developed based on the use of source (or sink) terms instead of the usual practice of specifying bleed directly as a boundary condition. This framework allows the surface boundary condition (i.e. isothermal wall, adiabatic wall, slip wall, etc.) to remain unaltered in the presence of bleed. This approach also lends itself to easily permit the addition of empirical models for second order effects that are not easily accounted for by simply defining effective transpiration values. Two effusion models formulated for supersonic flows have been implemented into this framework; the Doerffer/Bohning law and the Slater formulation. These models were applied to unit problems that contain key aspects of the flow physics applicable to bleed systems designed for hypersonic air-breathing propulsion systems. The ability of each model to predict bulk bleed properties was assessed, as well as the response of the boundary layer as it passes through and downstream of a porous bleed system. The model assessment was performed with and without the presence of shock waves. Three-dimensional CFD simulations that included the geometric details of the porous plate bleed systems were also carried out to supplement the experimental data, and provide additional insights into the bleed flow physics. Overall, both bleed formulations fared well for the tests performed in this study. However, the sample of test problems considered in this effort was not large enough to permit a comprehensive validation of the models.

  14. Influence of a Game-Based Application on Secondary School Students' Safe Internet Use

    Science.gov (United States)

    Durak, Gürhan; Cankaya, Serkan; Yünkül, Eyup; Taylan, Ufuk; Erten, Emine; Akpinar, Sükran

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of a game called Wild Web Woods (WWW) designed by the European Council for safe Internet use on secondary school students' safe Internet use. In line with this purpose, for the purpose of determining the students' awareness of safe Internet use, a total of 504 students from different…

  15. Inherently safe light water reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ise, Takeharu

    1987-01-01

    Today's large nuclear power reactors of world-wise use have been designed based on the philosophy. It seems that recent less electricity demand rates, higher capital cost and the TMI accident let us acknowledge relative small and simplified nuclear plants with safer features, and that Chernobyl accident in 1983 underlines the needs of intrinsic and passive safety characteristics. In such background, several inherently safe reactor concepts have been presented abroad and domestically. First describing 'Can inherently safe reactors be designed,' then I introduce representative reactor concepts of inherently safe LWRs advocated abroad so far. All of these innovative reactors employ intrinsic and passive features in their design, as follows: (1) PIUS, an acronym for Process Inherent Ultimate Safety, or an integral PWR with passive heat sink and passive shutdown mechanism, advocated by ASEA-ATOM of Sweden. (2) MAP(Minimum Attention Plant), or a self-pressurized, natural circulation integral PWR, promoted by CE Inc. of the U.S. (3) TPS(TRIGA Power System), or a compact PWR with passive heat sink and inherent fuel characteristics of large prompt temperature coefficient, prompted by GA Technologies Inc. of the U.S. (4) PIUS-BWR, or an inherently safe BWR employing passively actuated fluid valves, in competition with PIUS, prompted by ORNL of the U.S. Then, I will describe the domestic trends in Japan and the innovative inherently safe LWRs presented domestically so far. (author)

  16. Morphometric Evaluation of Occipital Condyles: Defining Optimal Trajectories and Safe Screw Lengths for Occipital Condyle-Based Occipitocervical Fixation in Indian Population.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bosco, Aju; Venugopal, Prakash; Shetty, Ajoy Prasad; Shanmuganathan, Rajasekaran; Kanna, Rishi Mugesh

    2018-04-01

    Computed tomographic (CT) morphometric analysis. To assess the feasibility and safety of occipital condyle (OC)-based occipitocervical fixation (OCF) in Indians and to define anatomical zones and screw lengths for safe screw placement. Limitations of occipital squama-based OCF has led to development of two novel OC-based OCF techniques. Morphometric analysis was performed on the OCs of 70 Indian adults. The feasibility of placing a 3.5-mm-diameter screw into OCs was investigated. Safe trajectories and screw lengths for OC screws and C0-C1 transarticular screws without hypoglossal canal or atlantooccipital joint compromise were estimated. The average screw length and safe sagittal and medial angulations for OC screws were 19.9±2.3 mm, ≤6.4°±2.4° cranially, and 31.1°±3° medially, respectively. An OC screw could not be accommodated by 27% of the population. The safe sagittal angles and screw lengths for C0-C1 transarticular screw insertion (48.9°±5.7° cranial, 26.7±2.9 mm for junctional entry technique; 36.7°±4.6° cranial, 31.6±2.7 mm for caudal C1 arch entry technique, respectively) were significantly different than those in other populations. The risk of vertebral artery injury was high for the caudal C1 arch entry technique. Screw placement was uncertain in 48% of Indians due to the presence of aberrant anatomy. There were significant differences in the metrics of OC-based OCF between Indian and other populations. Because of the smaller occipital squama dimensions in Indians, OC-based OCF techniques may have a higher application rate and could be a viable alternative/salvage option in selected cases. Preoperative CT, including three-dimensional-CT-angiography (to delineate vertebral artery course), is imperative to avoid complications resulting from aberrant bony and vascular anatomy. Our data can serve as a valuable reference guide in placing these screws safely under fluoroscopic guidance.

  17. "Same Room, Safe Place".

    Science.gov (United States)

    Keene Woods, Nikki

    2017-04-01

    There are many different professional stances on safe sleep and then there is the reality of caring for a newborn. There is a debate among professionals regarding safe sleep recommendations. The continum of recommendations vary from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Safe Sleep Guidelines to the bed-sharing recommendations from the Mother-Baby Behavioral Sleep Laboratory. The lack of consistent and uniform safe sleep recommendations from health professionals has been confusing for families but has more recently raised a real professional ethical dilemma. Despite years of focused safe sleep community education and interventions, sleep-related infant deaths are on the rise in many communities. This commentary calls for a united safe sleep message from all health professionals to improve health for mothers and infants most at-risk, "Same Room, Safe Place."

  18. Study of flow control by localized volume heating in hypersonic boundary layers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Keller, M. A.; Kloker, M. J.; Kirilovskiy, S. V.; Polivanov, P. A.; Sidorenko, A. A.; Maslov, A. A.

    2014-12-01

    Boundary-layer flow control is a prerequisite for a safe and efficient operation of future hypersonic transport systems. Here, the influence of an electric discharge—modeled by a heat-source term in the energy equation—on laminar boundary-layer flows over a flat plate with zero pressure gradient at Mach 3, 5, and 7 is investigated numerically. The aim was to appraise the potential of electro-gasdynamic devices for an application as turbulence generators in the super- and hypersonic flow regime. The results with localized heat-source elements in boundary layers are compared to cases with roughness elements serving as classical passive trips. The numerical simulations are performed using the commercial code ANSYS FLUENT (by ITAM) and the high-order finite-difference DNS code NS3D (by IAG), the latter allowing for the detailed analysis of laminar flow instability. For the investigated setups with steady heating, transition to turbulence is not observed, due to the Reynolds-number lowering effect of heating.

  19. Accurate and robust brain image alignment using boundary-based registration.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Greve, Douglas N; Fischl, Bruce

    2009-10-15

    The fine spatial scales of the structures in the human brain represent an enormous challenge to the successful integration of information from different images for both within- and between-subject analysis. While many algorithms to register image pairs from the same subject exist, visual inspection shows that their accuracy and robustness to be suspect, particularly when there are strong intensity gradients and/or only part of the brain is imaged. This paper introduces a new algorithm called Boundary-Based Registration, or BBR. The novelty of BBR is that it treats the two images very differently. The reference image must be of sufficient resolution and quality to extract surfaces that separate tissue types. The input image is then aligned to the reference by maximizing the intensity gradient across tissue boundaries. Several lower quality images can be aligned through their alignment with the reference. Visual inspection and fMRI results show that BBR is more accurate than correlation ratio or normalized mutual information and is considerably more robust to even strong intensity inhomogeneities. BBR also excels at aligning partial-brain images to whole-brain images, a domain in which existing registration algorithms frequently fail. Even in the limit of registering a single slice, we show the BBR results to be robust and accurate.

  20. Effectiveness of community based safe motherhood promoters in improving the utilization of obstetric care. The case of Mtwara Rural District in Tanzania

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jahn Albrecht

    2010-04-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background In Tanzania, maternal mortality ratio remains unacceptably high at 578/100,000 live births. Despite a high coverage of antenatal care (96%, only 44% of deliveries take place within the formal health services. Still, "Ensure skilled attendant at birth" is acknowledged as one of the most effective interventions to reduce maternal deaths. Exploring the potential of community-based interventions in increasing the utilization of obstetric care, the study aimed at developing, testing and assessing a community-based safe motherhood intervention in Mtwara rural District of Tanzania. Method This community-based intervention was designed as a pre-post comparison study, covering 4 villages with a total population of 8300. Intervention activities were implemented by 50 trained safe motherhood promoters (SMPs. Their tasks focused on promoting early and complete antenatal care visits and delivery with a skilled attendant. Data on all 512 deliveries taking place from October 2004 to November 2006 were collected by the SMPs and cross-checked with health service records. In addition 242 respondents were interviewed with respect to knowledge on safe motherhood issues and their perception of the SMP's performance. Skilled delivery attendance was our primary outcome; secondary outcomes included antenatal care attendance and knowledge on Safe Motherhood issues. Results Deliveries with skilled attendant significantly increased from 34.1% to 51.4% (ρ Conclusion The study has demonstrated the effectiveness of community-based safe motherhood intervention in promoting the utilization of obstetric care and a skilled attendant at delivery. This improvement is attributed to the SMPs' home visits and the close collaboration with existing community structures as well as health services.

  1. Composition-Driven Phase Boundary and Piezoelectricity in Potassium-Sodium Niobate-Based Ceramics.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zheng, Ting; Wu, Jiagang; Xiao, Dingquan; Zhu, Jianguo; Wang, Xiangjian; Lou, Xiaojie

    2015-09-16

    The piezoelectricity of (K,Na)NbO3 ceramics strongly depends on the phase boundary types as well as the doped compositions. Here, we systematically studied the relationships between the compositions and phase boundary types in (K,Na) (Nb,Sb)O3-Bi0.5Na0.5AO3 (KNNS-BNA, A=Hf, Zr, Ti, Sn) ceramics; then their piezoelectricity can be readily modified. Their phase boundary types are determined by the doped elements. A rhombohedral-tetragonal (R-T) phase boundary can be driven in the compositions range of 0.035≤BNH≤0.040 and 0.035≤BNZ≤0.045; an orthorhombic-tetragonal (O-T) phase boundary is formed in the composition range of 0.005≤BNT≤0.02; and a pure O phase can be only observed regardless of BNS content (≤0.01). In addition, the phase boundary types strongly affect their corresponding piezoelectricities. A larger d33 (∼440-450 pC/N) and a higher d33* (∼742-834 pm/V) can be attained in KNNS-BNA (A=Zr and Hf) ceramics due to the involvement of R-T phase boundary, and unfortunately KNNS-BNA (A=Sn and Ti) ceramics possess a relatively poor piezoelectricity (d33≤200 and d33*piezoelectricity and phase boundary types were also discussed. We believe that comprehensive research can design more excellent ceramic systems concerning potassium-sodium niobate.

  2. Escola segura Safe school

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Edson Ferreira Liberal

    2005-11-01

    Full Text Available OBJETIVO: Revisão das estratégias para tornar o ambiente escolar seguro. Inicialmente os autores contextualizam a violência e os acidentes no ambiente escolar e fazem recomendações, baseadas em dados da literatura, para a implantação de escolas seguras. FONTE DE DADOS: Artigos publicados entre 1993 e 2005 na base de dados MEDLINE. Dados nacionais epidemiológicos e da literatura também foram pesquisados. SÍNTESE DOS DADOS: Há evidência crescente de que a intervenção tem múltiplos componentes. O foco político é a prática em educação em saúde com o envolvimento de toda a comunidade. O norte dessas intervenções é ajudar estudantes e toda a comunidade a adotar um comportamento seguro e saudável. As escolas estão assumindo um envolvimento crescente na promoção da saúde, prevenção de doenças e prevenção de trauma. Nesse contexto de prevenção de causas externas de morbimortalidade, é importante reconhecer o risco ambiental, locais e comportamentos de risco como favoráveis ao trauma e à violência, além de um novo conceito de acidentes como algo que possa ser evitado. CONCLUSÃO: A implementação da escola segura representa uma nova direção promissora para o trabalho preventivo baseado na escola. É importante notar que uma escola segura deve intervir não meramente na sua estrutura física, mas também torná-la tão segura quanto possível, trabalhando com a comunidade escolar por meio de educação em saúde, discutindo principalmente o comportamento saudável.OBJECTIVE: To review the strategies to make school a safe environment. The paper first addresses the social context of accidents and violence in the school environment, and makes recommendations, based on the literature data, for the implementation of safe schools. SOURCE OF DATA: Articles published between 1993 and 2005 in the MEDLINE database. Brazilian epidemiological and literature data have also been searched. SUMMARY OF THE FINDINGS: There is

  3. Large eddy simulation of atmospheric boundary layer over wind farms using a prescribed boundary layer approach

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Chivaee, Hamid Sarlak; Sørensen, Jens Nørkær; Mikkelsen, Robert Flemming

    2012-01-01

    Large eddy simulation (LES) of flow in a wind farm is studied in neutral as well as thermally stratified atmospheric boundary layer (ABL). An approach has been practiced to simulate the flow in a fully developed wind farm boundary layer. The approach is based on the Immersed Boundary Method (IBM......) and involves implementation of an arbitrary prescribed initial boundary layer (See [1]). A prescribed initial boundary layer profile is enforced through the computational domain using body forces to maintain a desired flow field. The body forces are then stored and applied on the domain through the simulation...... and the boundary layer shape will be modified due to the interaction of the turbine wakes and buoyancy contributions. The implemented method is capable of capturing the most important features of wakes of wind farms [1] while having the advantage of resolving the wall layer with a coarser grid than typically...

  4. Providing safe drinking water to 1.2 billion unserved people

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gadgil, Ashok J.; Derby, Elisabeth A.

    2003-06-01

    Despite substantial advances in the past 100 years in public health, technology and medicine, 20% of the world population, mostly comprised of the poor population segments in developing countries (DCs), still does not have access to safe drinking water. To reach the United Nations (UN) Millennium Goal of halving the number of people without access to safe water by 2015, the global community will need to provide an additional one billion urban residents and 600 million rural residents with safe water within the next twelve years. This paper examines current water treatment measures and implementation methods for delivery of safe drinking water, and offers suggestions for making progress towards the goal of providing a timely and equitable solution for safe water provision. For water treatment, based on the serious limitations of boiling water and chlorination, we suggest an approach based on filtration coupled with ultraviolet (UV) disinfection, combined with public education. Additionally, owing to the capacity limitations for non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to take on this task primarily on their own, we suggest a strategy based on financially sustainable models that include the private sector as well as NGOs.

  5. The generation of simple compliance boundaries for mobile communication base station antennas using formulae for SAR estimation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thors, B; Hansson, B; Törnevik, C

    2009-07-07

    In this paper, a procedure is proposed for generating simple and practical compliance boundaries for mobile communication base station antennas. The procedure is based on a set of formulae for estimating the specific absorption rate (SAR) in certain directions around a class of common base station antennas. The formulae, given for both whole-body and localized SAR, require as input the frequency, the transmitted power and knowledge of antenna-related parameters such as dimensions, directivity and half-power beamwidths. With knowledge of the SAR in three key directions it is demonstrated how simple and practical compliance boundaries can be generated outside of which the exposure levels do not exceed certain limit values. The conservativeness of the proposed procedure is discussed based on results from numerical radio frequency (RF) exposure simulations with human body phantoms from the recently developed Virtual Family.

  6. Safe operation of critical assemblies and research reactors

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1960-09-15

    Some countries have accumulated considerable experience in the operation of these reactors and have in the process developed safe practices. On the other hand, other countries which have recently acquired, or will soon acquire, such reactors do not have sufficient background of experience with them to have developed full knowledge regarding their safe operation. In this situation, the International Atomic Energy Agency has considered that it would be useful to make available to all its Member States a set of recommendations on the safe operation of these reactors, based on the accumulated experience and best practices. The Director General accordingly nominated a Pane Ion Safe Operation of Critical Assemblies and Research Reactors to assist the Agency's Secretariat in drafting such recommendations

  7. Setting priorities for safe motherhood interventions in resource-scarce settings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Prata, Ndola; Sreenivas, Amita; Greig, Fiona; Walsh, Julia; Potts, Malcolm

    2010-01-01

    Guide policy-makers in prioritizing safe motherhood interventions. Three models (LOW, MED, HIGH) were constructed based on 34 sub-Saharan African countries to assess the relative cost-effectiveness of available safe motherhood interventions. Cost and effectiveness data were compiled and inserted into the WHO Mother Baby Package Costing Spreadsheet. For each model we assessed the percentage in maternal mortality reduction after implementing all interventions, and optimal combinations of interventions given restricted budgets of US$ 0.50, US$ 1.00, US$ 1.50 per capital maternal health expenditures respectively for LOW, MED, and HIGH models. The most cost-effective interventions were family planning and safe abortion (fpsa), antenatal care including misoprostol distribution for postpartum hemorrhage prevention at home deliveries (anc-miso), followed by sepsis treatment (sepsis) and facility-based postpartum hemorrhage management (pph). The combination of interventions that avert the greatest number of maternal deaths should be prioritized and expanded to cover the greatest number of women at risk. Those which save the most number of lives in each model are 'fpsa, anc-miso' and 'fpsa, sepsis, safe delivery' for LOW; 'fpsa, anc-miso' and 'fpsa, sepsis, safe delivery' for MED; and 'fpsa, anc-miso, sepsis, eclampsia treatment, safe delivery' for HIGH settings. Safe motherhood interventions save a significant number of newborn lives.

  8. Ergonomics: safe patient handling and mobility.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hallmark, Beth; Mechan, Patricia; Shores, Lynne

    2015-03-01

    This article reviews and investigates the issues surrounding ergonomics, with a specific focus on safe patient handling and mobility. The health care worker of today faces many challenges, one of which is related to the safety of patients. Safe patient handling and mobility is on the forefront of the movement to improve patient safety. This article reviews the risks associated with patient handling and mobility, and informs the reader of current evidence-based practice relevant to this area of care. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  9. Safe teleoperation based on flexible intraoperative planning for robot-assisted laser microsurgery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mattos, Leonardo S; Caldwell, Darwin G

    2012-01-01

    This paper describes a new intraoperative planning system created to improve precision and safety in teleoperated laser microsurgeries. It addresses major safety issues related to real-time control of a surgical laser during teleoperated procedures, which are related to the reliability and robustness of the telecommunication channels. Here, a safe solution is presented, consisting in a new planning system architecture that maintains the flexibility and benefits of real-time teleoperation and keeps the surgeon in control of all surgical actions. The developed system is based on our virtual scalpel system for robot-assisted laser microsurgery, and allows the intuitive use of stylus to create surgical plans directly over live video of the surgical field. In this case, surgical plans are defined as graphic objects overlaid on the live video, which can be easily modified or replaced as needed, and which are transmitted to the main surgical system controller for subsequent safe execution. In the process of improving safety, this new planning system also resulted in improved laser aiming precision and improved capability for higher quality laser procedures, both due to the new surgical plan execution module, which allows very fast and precise laser aiming control. Experimental results presented herein show that, in addition to the safety improvements, the new planning system resulted in a 48% improvement in laser aiming precision when compared to the previous virtual scalpel system.

  10. Microstructure, local mechanical properties and stress corrosion cracking susceptibility of an SA508-52M-316LN safe-end dissimilar metal weld joint by GTAW

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ming, Hongliang; Zhu, Ruolin [Key Laboratory of Nuclear Materials and Safety Assessment, Liaoning KeyLaboratory for Safety and Assessment Technique of Nuclear Materials, Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang 110016 (China); University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 19 Yuquan Road, Beijing 100049 (China); Zhang, Zhiming [Key Laboratory of Nuclear Materials and Safety Assessment, Liaoning KeyLaboratory for Safety and Assessment Technique of Nuclear Materials, Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang 110016 (China); Wang, Jianqiu, E-mail: wangjianqiu@imr.ac.cn [Key Laboratory of Nuclear Materials and Safety Assessment, Liaoning KeyLaboratory for Safety and Assessment Technique of Nuclear Materials, Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang 110016 (China); Han, En.-Hou.; Ke, Wei [Key Laboratory of Nuclear Materials and Safety Assessment, Liaoning KeyLaboratory for Safety and Assessment Technique of Nuclear Materials, Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang 110016 (China); Su, Mingxing [Shanghai Research Center for Weld and Detection Engineering Technique of Nuclear Equipment, Shanghai 201306 (China)

    2016-07-04

    The microstructure, local mechanical properties and local stress corrosion cracking susceptibility of an SA508-52M-316LN domestic dissimilar metal welded safe-end joint used for AP1000 nuclear power plant prepared by automatic gas tungsten arc welding was studied in this work by optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (with electron back scattering diffraction and an energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy system), micro-hardness testing, local mechanical tensile testing and local slow strain rate tests. The micro-hardness, local mechanical properties and stress corrosion cracking susceptibility across this dissimilar metal weld joint vary because of the complex microstructure across the fusion area and the dramatic chemical composition change across the fusion lines. Briefly, Type I boundaries and Type II boundaries exist in 52Mb near the SA508-52Mb interface, a microstructure transition was found in SA508 heat affected zone, the residual strain and grain boundary character distribution changes as a function of the distance from the fusion boundary in 316LN heat affected zone, micro-hardness distribution and local mechanical properties along the DMWJ are heterogeneous, and 52Mw-316LN interface has the highest SCC susceptibility in this DMWJ while 316LN base metal has the lowest one.

  11. Diffusion mechanisms in grain boundaries in solids

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Peterson, N.L.

    1982-01-01

    A critical review is given of our current knowledge of grain-boundary diffusion in solids. A pipe mechanism of diffusion based on the well-established dislocation model seems most appropriate for small-angle boundaries. Open channels, which have atomic configurations somewhat like dislocation cores, probably play a major role in large-angle grain-boundary diffusion. Dissociated dislocations and stacking faults are not efficient paths for grain-boundary diffusion. The diffusion and computer modeling experiments are consistent with a vacancy mechanism of diffusion by a rather well-localized vacancy. The effective width of a boundary for grain-boundary diffusion is about two atomic planes. These general features of grain-boundary diffusion, deduced primarily from experiments on metals, are thought to be equally applicable for pure ceramic solids. The ionic character of many ceramic oxides may cause some differences in grain-boundary structure from that observed in metals, resulting in changes in grain-boundary diffusion behavior. 72 references, 5 figures

  12. Nonlinear Lyapunov-based boundary control of distributed heat transfer mechanisms in membrane distillation plant

    KAUST Repository

    Eleiwi, Fadi

    2015-07-01

    This paper presents a nonlinear Lyapunov-based boundary control for the temperature difference of a membrane distillation boundary layers. The heat transfer mechanisms inside the process are modeled with a 2D advection-diffusion equation. The model is semi-descretized in space, and a nonlinear state-space representation is provided. The control is designed to force the temperature difference along the membrane sides to track a desired reference asymptotically, and hence a desired flux would be generated. Certain constraints are put on the control law inputs to be within an economic range of energy supplies. The effect of the controller gain is discussed. Simulations with real process parameters for the model, and the controller are provided. © 2015 American Automatic Control Council.

  13. DroidSafe

    Science.gov (United States)

    2016-12-01

    Massachusetts Avenue, Build E19-750 Cambridge , MA 02139-4307 8. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION REPORT NUMBER 9. SPONSORING/MONITORING AGENCY NAME(S) AND ADDRESS...Activity objects illustrating the challenges of points-to and information flow analysis...measure how many malicious flows Droid- Safe was able to detect). As these results illustrate , DroidSafe implements an analysis of unprece- dented

  14. Safe use of nanomaterials

    CERN Multimedia

    2013-01-01

    The use of nanomaterials  is on the increase worldwide, including at CERN. The HSE Unit has established a safety guideline to inform you of the main requirements for the safe handling and disposal of nanomaterials at CERN.   A risk assessment tool has also been developed which guides the user through the process of evaluating the risk for his or her activity. Based on the calculated risk level, the tool provides a list of recommended control measures.   We would therefore like to draw your attention to: Safety Guideline C-0-0-5 - Safe handling and disposal of nanomaterials; and Safety Form C-0-0-2 - Nanomaterial Risk Assessment   You can consult all of CERN’s safety rules and guidelines here. Please contact the HSE Unit for any questions you may have.   The HSE Unit

  15. Feeling safe during an inpatient hospitalization: a concept analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mollon, Deene

    2014-08-01

    This paper aims to explore the critical attributes of the concept feeling safe. The safe delivery of care is a high priority; however; it is not really known what it means to the patient to 'feel safe' during an inpatient hospitalization. This analysis explores the topic of safety from the patient's perspective. Concept analysis. The data bases of CINAHL, Medline, PsychInfo and Google Scholar for the years 1995-2012 were searched using the terms safe and feeling safe. The eight-step concept analysis method of Walker and Avant was used to analyse the concept of feeling safe. Uses and defining attributes, as well as identified antecedents, consequences and empirical referents, are presented. Case examples are provided to assist in the understanding of defining attributes. Feeling safe is defined as an emotional state where perceptions of care contribute to a sense of security and freedom from harm. Four attributes were identified: trust, cared for, presence and knowledge. Relationship, environment and suffering are the antecedents of feeling safe, while control, hope and relaxed or calm are the consequences. Empirical referents and early development of a theory of feeling safe are explored. This analysis begins the work of synthesizing qualitative research already completed around the concept of feeling safe by defining the key attributes of the concept. Support for the importance of developing patient-centred models of care and creating positive environments where patients receive high-quality care and feel safe is provided. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  16. Standards for safe operation of research reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1996-01-01

    The safety of research reactors is based on many factors such as suitable choice of location, design and construction according to the international standards, it also depends on well trained and qualified operational staff. These standards determine the responsibilities of all who are concerned with the research reactors safe operation, and who are responsible of all related activities in all the administrative and technical stages in a way that insures the safe operation of the reactor

  17. Safe havens in Europe

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Paldam, Martin

    2013-01-01

    Eleven safe havens exist in Europe providing offshore banking and low taxes. Ten of these states are very small while Switzerland is moderately small. All 11 countries are richer than their large neighbors. It is shown that causality is from small to safe haven to wealth, and that theoretically...... equilibriums are likely to exist where a certain regulation is substantially lower in a small country than in its big neighbor. This generates a large capital inflow to the safe havens. The pool of funds that may reach the safe havens is shown to be huge. It is far in excess of the absorptive capacity...... of the safe havens, but it still explains, why they are rich. Microstates offer a veil of anonymity to funds passing through, and Switzerland offers safe storage of funds....

  18. Assessing the 'system' in safe systems-based road designs: using cognitive work analysis to evaluate intersection designs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cornelissen, M; Salmon, P M; Stanton, N A; McClure, R

    2015-01-01

    While a safe systems approach has long been acknowledged as the underlying philosophy of contemporary road safety strategies, systemic applications are sparse. This article argues that systems-based methods from the discipline of Ergonomics have a key role to play in road transport design and evaluation. To demonstrate, the Cognitive Work Analysis framework was used to evaluate two road designs - a traditional Melbourne intersection and a cut-through design for future intersections based on road safety safe systems principles. The results demonstrate that, although the cut-through intersection appears different in layout from the traditional intersection, system constraints are not markedly different. Furthermore, the analyses demonstrated that redistribution of constraints in the cut-through intersection resulted in emergent behaviour, which was not anticipated and could prove problematic. Further, based on the lack of understanding of emergent behaviour, similar design induced problems are apparent across both intersections. Specifically, incompatibilities between infrastructure, vehicles and different road users were not dealt with by the proposed design changes. The importance of applying systems methods in the design and evaluation of road transport systems is discussed. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. Traveling Safely with Medicines

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Medications Safely My Medicine List How to Administer Traveling Safely with Medicines Planes, trains, cars – even boats ... your trip, ask your pharmacist about how to travel safely with your medicines. Make sure that you ...

  20. Diagnosis of boundary-layer circulations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beare, Robert J; Cullen, Michael J P

    2013-05-28

    Diagnoses of circulations in the vertical plane provide valuable insights into aspects of the dynamics of the climate system. Dynamical theories based on geostrophic balance have proved useful in deriving diagnostic equations for these circulations. For example, semi-geostrophic theory gives rise to the Sawyer-Eliassen equation (SEE) that predicts, among other things, circulations around mid-latitude fronts. A limitation of the SEE is the absence of a realistic boundary layer. However, the coupling provided by the boundary layer between the atmosphere and the surface is fundamental to the climate system. Here, we use a theory based on Ekman momentum balance to derive an SEE that includes a boundary layer (SEEBL). We consider a case study of a baroclinic low-level jet. The SEEBL solution shows significant benefits over Ekman pumping, including accommodating a boundary-layer depth that varies in space and structure, which accounts for buoyancy and momentum advection. The diagnosed low-level jet is stronger than that determined by Ekman balance. This is due to the inclusion of momentum advection. Momentum advection provides an additional mechanism for enhancement of the low-level jet that is distinct from inertial oscillations.

  1. 'Sold by our own shadow' Human detection in uas based boundary ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Areas with fuzzy boundaries can easily become conflict hotspots as they are prone to attract cross national movements, resulting in crime, military action and illegal migration. This is a growing challenge in world economies. In developing countries, human security details often man and patrol international boundary areas ...

  2. Recent advances in boundary element methods

    CERN Document Server

    Manolis, GD

    2009-01-01

    Addresses the needs of the computational mechanics research community in terms of information on boundary integral equation-based methods and techniques applied to a variety of fields. This book collects both original and review articles on contemporary Boundary Element Methods (BEM) as well as on the Mesh Reduction Methods (MRM).

  3. Integral Method of Boundary Characteristics: Neumann Condition

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kot, V. A.

    2018-05-01

    A new algorithm, based on systems of identical equalities with integral and differential boundary characteristics, is proposed for solving boundary-value problems on the heat conduction in bodies canonical in shape at a Neumann boundary condition. Results of a numerical analysis of the accuracy of solving heat-conduction problems with variable boundary conditions with the use of this algorithm are presented. The solutions obtained with it can be considered as exact because their errors comprise hundredths and ten-thousandths of a persent for a wide range of change in the parameters of a problem.

  4. Premiering SAFE for Safety Added Fuel Element - 15020

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bhowmik, P.K.; Shamim, J.A.; Suh, K.Y.; Suh, K.S.

    2015-01-01

    The impact of the Fukushima accident has been the willingness to implement passive safety measures in reactor design and to simplify reactor design itself. Within this framework, a new fuel element, named SAFE (Safety Added Fuel Element) based on the concept of accident tolerant fuel, is presented. SAFE is a new type of fuel element cooled internally and externally by light water and with stainless steel as the cladding material. The removal of boron may trigger a series of changes which may simplify the system greatly. A simplified thermal analysis of SAFE shows that the fuel centerline temperature is well below the maximal limit during the normal operation of the plant

  5. Rearranging social space: Boundary-making and boundary-work in a joint forest management project, Andhra Pradesh, India

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Saito-Jensen Moeko

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available Since the 1990s, there has been an increasing trend in developing countries to shift from state driven approaches to Community-based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM. In order to ensure sustainability of resources, the need for creating and maintaining clear resource use boundaries has been emphasised, both theoretically and in practice. However, there has been less attention to the varied social consequences for involved villages (whose inhabitants can access resources within the new boundaries and for excluded villages (whose inhabitants are prevented from accessing resources due to these boundaries. Drawing on a case study of three villages affected by the Joint Forest Management project in Andhra Pradesh, India, this article shows how resource use boundaries interact with social categories such as caste, gender and livelihood occupation in ways that facilitate asymmetric distribution of costs and benefits among local people. The article calls for more consultative processes in constituting new resources use boundaries and for flexible interventions to reconcile conflicts arising from boundary-making.

  6. Implementation evaluation of steering teens safe: engaging parents to deliver a new parent-based teen driving intervention to their teens.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ramirez, Marizen; Yang, Jingzhen; Young, Tracy; Roth, Lisa; Garinger, Anne; Snetselaar, Linda; Peek-Asa, Corinne

    2013-08-01

    Parents play a fundamental role in teaching their children safe driving skills to reduce risk of motor vehicle crashes, the leading cause of death for teens. Steering Teens Safe is a new parent-based intervention that equips parents with communication skills to talk about, demonstrate, and practice safe driving behaviors and skills with their teens. This implementation evaluation focuses on a sample of 83 parents who delivered Steering Teens Safe to their teens. One-, 2- and 3-month follow-up assessments were conducted with intervention parents to evaluate the self-reported quantity and quality of talking about, demonstrating, and practicing safe driving goals with teens; perceived success and benefit of the program; and barriers to implementation. Over 3 months of follow-up, parents discussed driving goals with their teens for a median of 101.5 minutes. The most frequently addressed topics were general safety principles, including distracted driving, driving in bad weather, wearing a seat belt, and being a safe passenger. Parents spent a median of 30 minutes practicing safe driving skills such as changing lanes. Sixty-seven percent of parents talked to their children about rural road safety, but just 36% demonstrated and half practiced these skills with their teens. Barriers to implementation include time and opportunity barriers and resistant attitudes of their teens. However, barriers neither affected frequency of engagement nor parents' perceived benefit and comfort in delivering the program. Parents with time/opportunity barriers also had higher practice and demonstration times than parents without these barriers. Findings indicate high acceptability among parent implementers and promise for real-world delivery. Future studies are needed to assess intervention impact.

  7. Context based Coding of Binary Shapes by Object Boundary Straightness Analysis

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Aghito, Shankar Manuel; Forchhammer, Søren

    2004-01-01

    A new lossless compression scheme for bilevel images targeted at binary shapes of image and video objects is presented. The scheme is based on a local analysis of the digital straightness of the causal part of the object boundary, which is used in the context definition for arithmetic encoding....... Tested on individual images of binary shapes and binary layers of digital maps the algorithm outperforms PWC, JBIG and MPEG-4 CAE. On the binary shapes the code lengths are reduced by 21%, 25%, and 42%, respectively. On the maps the reductions are 34%, 32%, and 59%, respectively. The algorithm is also...

  8. Identifying Phase Space Boundaries with Voronoi Tessellations

    CERN Document Server

    Debnath, Dipsikha; Kilic, Can; Kim, Doojin; Matchev, Konstantin T.; Yang, Yuan-Pao

    2016-11-24

    Determining the masses of new physics particles appearing in decay chains is an important and longstanding problem in high energy phenomenology. Recently it has been shown that these mass measurements can be improved by utilizing the boundary of the allowed region in the fully differentiable phase space in its full dimensionality. Here we show that the practical challenge of identifying this boundary can be solved using techniques based on the geometric properties of the cells resulting from Voronoi tessellations of the relevant data. The robust detection of such phase space boundaries in the data could also be used to corroborate a new physics discovery based on a cut-and-count analysis.

  9. Safe Sleep for Babies PSA (:60)

    Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

    This 60 second public service announcement is based on the January 2018 CDC Vital Signs report. Every year, there are about 3,500 sleep-related deaths among U.S. babies. Learn how to create a safe sleep environment for babies.

  10. Technology for Boundaries

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bødker, Susanne; Kristensen, Jannie Friis; Nielsen, Christina

    2003-01-01

    .After analysing the history and the current boundary work, the paper will propose new technological support for boundary work. In particular the paper will suggest means of supporting boundaries when these are productive and for changing boundaries when this seems more appropriate. In total, flexible technologies......This paper presents a study of an organisation, which is undergoing a process transforming organisational and technological boundaries. In particular, we shall look at three kinds of boundaries: the work to maintain and change the boundary between the organisation and its customers; boundaries...... seem a core issue when dealing with technology for boundaries....

  11. Safe motherhood at risk?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thompson, A

    1996-12-01

    Health professionals' negative attitudes toward clients often exacerbate the problems women face in terms of health status and access to health care. Thus, the health professionals can themselves be obstacles to women seeking the health care they need. A key challenge to midwives, in addition to providing technically competent services, is gaining insight into the people for whom they are responsible so that childbirth traditions are treated with respect and women are offered dignity. Safe motherhood requires intersectoral collaboration. Many innovative approaches to safe motherhood are based on the community's participation in planning services that meet the needs of women. Other approaches are based on decentralization of services. For example, a large university teaching hospital in Lusaka, Zambia, set up birthing centers around the city to take the pressure off the hospital. Midwives head up these centers, which are close to the women's homes. Decentralization of delivery services has improved the physical and emotional outcomes for mothers and newborns. Midwives must be prepared to articulate concerns about inequalities and deficiencies in the health care system in order to persuade the government to change. Women, including midwives, need to form multidisciplinary alliances to work together to effect change. The front-line workers in maternity care are midwives. They should adopt the following strategies to become even more effective in their efforts to make motherhood safer. They should listen to what women say about their needs. They should scale services to a manageable, human scale. They should learn the skills to become politically active advocates. They should work with other midwives, women, leaders, and other professional groups. Motherhood can be safe when women have more control over their own decision making, the education to liberate themselves to make their own decisions, and access to skilled care.

  12. Risk-based priorities for inspection of nuclear pressure boundary components at selected LWRs

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vo, T.V.; Simonen, F.A.; Gore, B.F.; Doctor, S.R.; Smith, B.W.

    1990-01-01

    Data from existing probabilistic risk assessments for eight representative nuclear power plants were used to identify and prioritize the most relevant systems to plant safety. The objective of this paper is to assess current in-service inspection requirements for pressure boundary systems and components, and to develop recommendations for improvements. This study demonstrates the feasibility of using risk-based methods to develop plant-specific inspection plans. Results for the eight representative plants also indicate generic trends that suggest improvements in current inspection plans now based on priorities set in accordance with code definitions of Class 1, 2, and 3 systems

  13. Risk-based priorities for inspection of nuclear pressure boundary components at selected LWRs

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vo, T.V.; Simonen, F.A.; Gore, B.F.; Doctor, S.R.; Smith, B.W.

    1990-03-01

    Data from existing probabilistic risk assessments for eight representative nuclear power plants were used to identify and prioritize the most relevant systems to plant safety. The objective was to assess current in-service inspection requirements for pressure boundary systems and components, and to develop recommendations for improvements. This study demonstrates the feasibility of using risk-based methods to develop plant-specific inspection plans. Results for the eight representative plants also indicate generic trends that suggest improvements in current inspection plans now based on priorities set in accordance with code definitions of Class 1, 2, and 3 systems. 2 refs., 4 figs., 5 tabs

  14. Points-Based Safe Path Planning of Continuum Robots

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Khuram Shahzad

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available Continuum robots exhibit great potential in a number of challenging applications where traditional rigid link robots pose certain limitations, e.g., working in unstructured environments. In order to enable the usage of continuum robots in safety-critical applications, such as surgery and nuclear decontamination, it is extremely important to ensure a safe path for the robot's movement. Existing algorithms for continuum robot path planning have certain limitations that need to be addressed. These include the fact that none of the algorithms provide safety assurance parameters and control for path planning. They are computationally expensive, applicable to a specific type of continuum robots, and mostly they do not incorporate design and kinematics constraints. In this paper, we propose a points-based path planning (PoPP algorithm for continuum robots that computes the path by imposing safety constraints and improves upon the limitations of existing approaches. In the algorithm, we exploit the constant curvature-bending property of continuum robots in their path planning process. The algorithm is computationally efficient and provides a good tradeoff between accuracy and efficiency that can be implemented to enable the safety-critical application of continuum robots. This algorithm also provides information regarding path volume and flexibility in movement. Simulation results confirm that the algorithm possesses promising potential for all types of continuum robots (following the constant curvature-bending property. We believe that this effectively balances the desired safety and efficiency requirements.

  15. A Probabilistic Approach for Breast Boundary Extraction in Mammograms

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hamed Habibi Aghdam

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available The extraction of the breast boundary is crucial to perform further analysis of mammogram. Methods to extract the breast boundary can be classified into two categories: methods based on image processing techniques and those based on models. The former use image transformation techniques such as thresholding, morphological operations, and region growing. In the second category, the boundary is extracted using more advanced techniques, such as the active contour model. The problem with thresholding methods is that it is a hard to automatically find the optimal threshold value by using histogram information. On the other hand, active contour models require defining a starting point close to the actual boundary to be able to successfully extract the boundary. In this paper, we propose a probabilistic approach to address the aforementioned problems. In our approach we use local binary patterns to describe the texture around each pixel. In addition, the smoothness of the boundary is handled by using a new probability model. Experimental results show that the proposed method reaches 38% and 50% improvement with respect to the results obtained by the active contour model and threshold-based methods respectively, and it increases the stability of the boundary extraction process up to 86%.

  16. Project SFR 1 SAR-08. Update of priority of FEPs from Project SAFE

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gordon, Anna; Loefgren, Martin; Lindgren, Maria

    2008-03-01

    SFR 1 is a repository for final disposal of low and intermediate level radioactive waste produced at Swedish nuclear power plants, as well as at Swedish industrial, research, and medical treatment facilities. The repository obtained operational license in March 1988. The aim of Project SFR 1 SAR-08 is to perform an updated safety analysis, according to requirements in the regulations. A major difference between this and previous safety analyses is that repository safety should be demonstrated for 100,000 years after repository closure. This should be compared with the time frame of the safety assessment in Project SAFE that was 10,000 years. Due to the extended time frame, permafrost and glaciation have to be considered in the reference evolution of Project SFR 1 SAR-08. Other rationales for the update are recent input from the authorities concerning SAFE documents and the SFR 1 repository, as well as new data concerning the SFR 1 inventory. This report describes the outcome of revisiting the qualitative FEP (Features, Events and Processes) analysis carried out within Project SAFE for the SFR 1 repository. Each and every interaction definition, as defined in SAFE, has been examined with the aim at assuring that the SAFE interaction matrices are also applicable for SAR-08. It was found that this is generally the case, but seven new interactions were defined in order to make the interaction matrices more applicable for SAR-08. The priority of all interactions assigned priority 1 and many interactions assigned priority 2 in SAFE have been carefully examined. The examination has been made in the context of the general initial and boundary conditions that should also form the basis for the SAR-08 main scenario and less probable scenarios. In 48 cases, the priority of the interaction needed upgrading, compared to in SAFE. In a majority of these cases, the upgrade is due to the extended time frame of the safety assessment, from 10,000 years in SAFE to 100,000 years in SAR

  17. Project SFR 1 SAR-08. Update of priority of FEPs from Project SAFE

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gordon, Anna (Swedish Nuclear Fuel and Waste Management Co., Stockholm (SE)); Loefgren, Martin; Lindgren, Maria (Kemakta Konsult AB, Stockholm (SE)) (eds.)

    2008-03-15

    SFR 1 is a repository for final disposal of low and intermediate level radioactive waste produced at Swedish nuclear power plants, as well as at Swedish industrial, research, and medical treatment facilities. The repository obtained operational license in March 1988. The aim of Project SFR 1 SAR-08 is to perform an updated safety analysis, according to requirements in the regulations. A major difference between this and previous safety analyses is that repository safety should be demonstrated for 100,000 years after repository closure. This should be compared with the time frame of the safety assessment in Project SAFE that was 10,000 years. Due to the extended time frame, permafrost and glaciation have to be considered in the reference evolution of Project SFR 1 SAR-08. Other rationales for the update are recent input from the authorities concerning SAFE documents and the SFR 1 repository, as well as new data concerning the SFR 1 inventory. This report describes the outcome of revisiting the qualitative FEP (Features, Events and Processes) analysis carried out within Project SAFE for the SFR 1 repository. Each and every interaction definition, as defined in SAFE, has been examined with the aim at assuring that the SAFE interaction matrices are also applicable for SAR-08. It was found that this is generally the case, but seven new interactions were defined in order to make the interaction matrices more applicable for SAR-08. The priority of all interactions assigned priority 1 and many interactions assigned priority 2 in SAFE have been carefully examined. The examination has been made in the context of the general initial and boundary conditions that should also form the basis for the SAR-08 main scenario and less probable scenarios. In 48 cases, the priority of the interaction needed upgrading, compared to in SAFE. In a majority of these cases, the upgrade is due to the extended time frame of the safety assessment, from 10,000 years in SAFE to 100,000 years in SAR

  18. Project SFR 1 SAR-08. Update of priority of FEPs from Project SAFE

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gordon, Anna [Swedish Nuclear Fuel and Waste Management Co., Stockholm (SE); Loefgren, Martin; Lindgren, Maria [Kemakta Konsult AB, Stockholm (SE); eds.

    2008-03-15

    SFR 1 is a repository for final disposal of low and intermediate level radioactive waste produced at Swedish nuclear power plants, as well as at Swedish industrial, research, and medical treatment facilities. The repository obtained operational license in March 1988. The aim of Project SFR 1 SAR-08 is to perform an updated safety analysis, according to requirements in the regulations. A major difference between this and previous safety analyses is that repository safety should be demonstrated for 100,000 years after repository closure. This should be compared with the time frame of the safety assessment in Project SAFE that was 10,000 years. Due to the extended time frame, permafrost and glaciation have to be considered in the reference evolution of Project SFR 1 SAR-08. Other rationales for the update are recent input from the authorities concerning SAFE documents and the SFR 1 repository, as well as new data concerning the SFR 1 inventory. This report describes the outcome of revisiting the qualitative FEP (Features, Events and Processes) analysis carried out within Project SAFE for the SFR 1 repository. Each and every interaction definition, as defined in SAFE, has been examined with the aim at assuring that the SAFE interaction matrices are also applicable for SAR-08. It was found that this is generally the case, but seven new interactions were defined in order to make the interaction matrices more applicable for SAR-08. The priority of all interactions assigned priority 1 and many interactions assigned priority 2 in SAFE have been carefully examined. The examination has been made in the context of the general initial and boundary conditions that should also form the basis for the SAR-08 main scenario and less probable scenarios. In 48 cases, the priority of the interaction needed upgrading, compared to in SAFE. In a majority of these cases, the upgrade is due to the extended time frame of the safety assessment, from 10,000 years in SAFE to 100,000 years in SAR

  19. Effectiveness of community based Safe Motherhood promoters in improving the utilization of obstetric care. The case of Mtwara Rural District in Tanzania.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mushi, Declare; Mpembeni, Rose; Jahn, Albrecht

    2010-04-01

    In Tanzania, maternal mortality ratio remains unacceptably high at 578/100,000 live births. Despite a high coverage of antenatal care (96%), only 44% of deliveries take place within the formal health services. Still, "Ensure skilled attendant at birth" is acknowledged as one of the most effective interventions to reduce maternal deaths. Exploring the potential of community-based interventions in increasing the utilization of obstetric care, the study aimed at developing, testing and assessing a community-based safe motherhood intervention in Mtwara rural District of Tanzania. This community-based intervention was designed as a pre-post comparison study, covering 4 villages with a total population of 8300. Intervention activities were implemented by 50 trained safe motherhood promoters (SMPs). Their tasks focused on promoting early and complete antenatal care visits and delivery with a skilled attendant. Data on all 512 deliveries taking place from October 2004 to November 2006 were collected by the SMPs and cross-checked with health service records. In addition 242 respondents were interviewed with respect to knowledge on safe motherhood issues and their perception of the SMP's performance. Skilled delivery attendance was our primary outcome; secondary outcomes included antenatal care attendance and knowledge on Safe Motherhood issues. Deliveries with skilled attendant significantly increased from 34.1% to 51.4% (rho utilization of obstetric care and a skilled attendant at delivery. This improvement is attributed to the SMPs' home visits and the close collaboration with existing community structures as well as health services.

  20. Graph Theory-Based Technique for Isolating Corrupted Boundary Conditions in Continental-Scale River Network Hydrodynamic Simulation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yu, C. W.; Hodges, B. R.; Liu, F.

    2017-12-01

    Development of continental-scale river network models creates challenges where the massive amount of boundary condition data encounters the sensitivity of a dynamic nu- merical model. The topographic data sets used to define the river channel characteristics may include either corrupt data or complex configurations that cause instabilities in a numerical solution of the Saint-Venant equations. For local-scale river models (e.g. HEC- RAS), modelers typically rely on past experience to make ad hoc boundary condition adjustments that ensure a stable solution - the proof of the adjustment is merely the sta- bility of the solution. To date, there do not exist any formal methodologies or automated procedures for a priori detecting/fixing boundary conditions that cause instabilities in a dynamic model. Formal methodologies for data screening and adjustment are a critical need for simulations with a large number of river reaches that draw their boundary con- dition data from a wide variety of sources. At the continental scale, we simply cannot assume that we will have access to river-channel cross-section data that has been ade- quately analyzed and processed. Herein, we argue that problematic boundary condition data for unsteady dynamic modeling can be identified through numerical modeling with the steady-state Saint-Venant equations. The fragility of numerical stability increases with the complexity of branching in river network system and instabilities (even in an unsteady solution) are typically triggered by the nonlinear advection term in Saint-Venant equations. It follows that the behavior of the simpler steady-state equations (which retain the nonlin- ear term) can be used to screen the boundary condition data for problematic regions. In this research, we propose a graph-theory based method to isolate the location of corrupted boundary condition data in a continental-scale river network and demonstrate its utility with a network of O(10^4) elements. Acknowledgement

  1. RANS-based simulation of turbulent wave boundary layer and sheet-flow sediment transport processes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Fuhrman, David R.; Schløer, Signe; Sterner, Johanna

    2013-01-01

    A numerical model coupling the horizontal component of the incompressible Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) equationswith two-equation k−ω turbulence closure is presented and used to simulate a variety of turbulent wave boundary layer processes. The hydrodynamic model is additionally coupled...... with bed and suspended load descriptions, the latter based on an unsteady turbulent-diffusion equation, for simulation of sheet-flow sediment transport processes. In addition to standard features common within such RANS-based approaches, the present model includes: (1) hindered settling velocities at high...

  2. Shared care and boundaries:

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Winthereik, Brit Ross

    2008-01-01

    Purpose – The paper seeks to examine how an online maternity record involving pregnant women worked as a means to create shared maternity care. Design/methodology/approach – Ethnographic techniques have been used. The paper adopts a theoretical/methodological framework based on science and techno......Purpose – The paper seeks to examine how an online maternity record involving pregnant women worked as a means to create shared maternity care. Design/methodology/approach – Ethnographic techniques have been used. The paper adopts a theoretical/methodological framework based on science...... and technology studies. Findings – The paper shows how a version of “the responsible patient” emerges from the project which is different from the version envisioned by the project organisation. The emerging one is concerned with the boundary between primary and secondary sector care, and not with the boundary......, IT designers and project managers should attend to the specific ways in which boundaries are inevitably enacted and to the ways in which care is already shared. This will provide them with opportunities to use the potentials of new identities and concerns that emerge from changing the organisation...

  3. Inverse boundary element calculations based on structural modes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Juhl, Peter Møller

    2007-01-01

    The inverse problem of calculating the flexural velocity of a radiating structure of a general shape from measurements in the field is often solved by combining a Boundary Element Method with the Singular Value Decomposition and a regularization technique. In their standard form these methods sol...

  4. Communication and Culture in the Surgical Intensive Care Unit: Boundary Production and the Improvement of Patient Care.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Conn, Lesley Gotlib; Haas, Barbara; Cuthbertson, Brian H; Amaral, Andre C; Coburn, Natalie; Nathens, Avery B

    2016-06-01

    This ethnography explores communication around critically ill surgical patients in three surgical intensive care units (ICUs) in Canada. A boundary framework is used to articulate how surgeons', intensivists', and nurses' communication practices shape and are shaped by their respective disciplinary perspectives and experiences. Through 50 hours of observations and 43 interviews, these health care providers are found to engage in seven communication behaviors that either mitigate or magnify three contested symbolic boundaries: expertise, patient ownership, and decisional authority. Where these boundaries are successfully mitigated, experiences of collaborative, high-quality patient care are produced; by contrast, boundary magnification produces conflict and perceptions of unsafe patient care. Findings reveal that high quality and safe patient care are produced through complex social and cultural interactions among surgeons, intensivists, and nurses that are also expressions of knowledge and power. This enhances our understanding of why current quality improvement efforts targeting communication may be ineffective. © The Author(s) 2015.

  5. The SAFE-T assessment tool: derivation and validation of a web-based application for point-of-care evaluation of gastroenterology fellow performance in colonoscopy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kumar, Navin L; Kugener, Guillaume; Perencevich, Molly L; Saltzman, John R

    2018-01-01

    Attending assessment is a critical part of endoscopic education for gastroenterology fellows. The aim of this study was to develop and validate a concise assessment tool to evaluate real-time fellow performance in colonoscopy administered via a web-based application. The Skill Assessment in Fellow Endoscopy Training (SAFE-T) tool was derived as a novel 5-question evaluation tool that captures both summative and formative feedback adapted into a web-based application. A prospective study of 15 gastroenterology fellows (5 fellows each from years 1 to 3 of training) was performed using the SAFE-T tool. An independent reviewer evaluated a subset of these procedures and completed the SAFE-T tool and Mayo Colonoscopy Skills Assessment Tool (MCSAT) for reliability testing. Twenty-six faculty completed 350 SAFE-T evaluations of the 15 fellows in the study. The mean SAFE-T overall score (year 1, 2.00; year 2, 3.84; year 3, 4.28) differentiated each sequential fellow year of training (P case complexity score, with straightforward cases compared with average cases (4.07 vs 3.50, P cases compared with challenging cases (3.50 vs 3.08, P = .0134). In dual-observed procedures, the SAFE-T tool showed excellent inter-rater reliability with a kappa agreement statistic of 0.898 (P  0.90, P tool, a concise and web-based means of assessing real-time gastroenterology fellow performance in colonoscopy. Copyright © 2018 American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  6. Development of polygon elements based on the scaled boundary finite element method

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chiong, Irene; Song Chongmin

    2010-01-01

    We aim to extend the scaled boundary finite element method to construct conforming polygon elements. The development of the polygonal finite element is highly anticipated in computational mechanics as greater flexibility and accuracy can be achieved using these elements. The scaled boundary polygonal finite element will enable new developments in mesh generation, better accuracy from a higher order approximation and better transition elements in finite element meshes. Polygon elements of arbitrary number of edges and order have been developed successfully. The edges of an element are discretised with line elements. The displacement solution of the scaled boundary finite element method is used in the development of shape functions. They are shown to be smooth and continuous within the element, and satisfy compatibility and completeness requirements. Furthermore, eigenvalue decomposition has been used to depict element modes and outcomes indicate the ability of the scaled boundary polygonal element to express rigid body and constant strain modes. Numerical tests are presented; the patch test is passed and constant strain modes verified. Accuracy and convergence of the method are also presented and the performance of the scaled boundary polygonal finite element is verified on Cook's swept panel problem. Results show that the scaled boundary polygonal finite element method outperforms a traditional mesh and accuracy and convergence are achieved from fewer nodes. The proposed method is also shown to be truly flexible, and applies to arbitrary n-gons formed of irregular and non-convex polygons.

  7. Safe pill-dispensing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Testa, Massimiliano; Pollard, John

    2007-01-01

    Each patient is supplied with a smart-card containing a Radio Frequency IDentification (RFID) chip storing a unique identification code. The patient places the Smart-card on a pill-dispenser unit containing an RFID reader. The RFID chip is read and the code sent to a Base-station via a wireless Bluetooth link. A database containing both patient details and treatment information is queried at the Base-station using the RFID as the search key. The patient's treatment data (i.e., drug names, quantities, time, etc.) are retrieved and sent back to the pill-dispenser unit via Bluetooth. Appropriate quantities of the required medications are automatically dispensed, unless the patient has already taken his/her daily dose. Safe, confidential communication and operation is ensured.

  8. SAFE Newsletter

    OpenAIRE

    2013-01-01

    The Center of Excellence SAFE – “Sustainable Architecture for Finance in Europe” – is a cooperation of the Center for Financial Studies and Goethe University Frankfurt. It is funded by the LOEWE initiative of the State of Hessen (Landes-Offensive zur Entwicklung wissenschaftlich-ökonomischer Exzellenz). SAFE brings together more than 40 professors and just as many junior researchers who are all dedicated to conducting research in support of a sustainable financial architecture. The Center has...

  9. Identifying phase-space boundaries with Voronoi tessellations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Debnath, Dipsikha; Matchev, Konstantin T.; Gainer, James S.; Kilic, Can; Yang, Yuan-Pao; Kim, Doojin

    2016-01-01

    Determining the masses of new physics particles appearing in decay chains is an important and longstanding problem in high energy phenomenology. Recently it has been shown that these mass measurements can be improved by utilizing the boundary of the allowed region in the fully differentiable phase space in its full dimensionality. Here we show that the practical challenge of identifying this boundary can be solved using techniques based on the geometric properties of the cells resulting from Voronoi tessellations of the relevant data. The robust detection of such phase-space boundaries in the data could also be used to corroborate a new physics discovery based on a cut-and-count analysis. (orig.)

  10. Identifying phase-space boundaries with Voronoi tessellations

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Debnath, Dipsikha; Matchev, Konstantin T. [University of Florida, Physics Department, Gainesville, FL (United States); Gainer, James S. [University of Hawaii, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Honolulu, HI (United States); Kilic, Can; Yang, Yuan-Pao [The University of Texas at Austin, Theory Group, Department of Physics and Texas Cosmology Center, Austin, TX (United States); Kim, Doojin [University of Florida, Physics Department, Gainesville, FL (United States); CERN, Theory Division, Geneva 23 (Switzerland)

    2016-11-15

    Determining the masses of new physics particles appearing in decay chains is an important and longstanding problem in high energy phenomenology. Recently it has been shown that these mass measurements can be improved by utilizing the boundary of the allowed region in the fully differentiable phase space in its full dimensionality. Here we show that the practical challenge of identifying this boundary can be solved using techniques based on the geometric properties of the cells resulting from Voronoi tessellations of the relevant data. The robust detection of such phase-space boundaries in the data could also be used to corroborate a new physics discovery based on a cut-and-count analysis. (orig.)

  11. How to operate safely steam generators with multiple tube through-wall defects

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hernalsteen, P.

    1993-01-01

    For a Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) of the Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) type, the Steam Generator (SG) tube bundle represents the major but also the thinnest part of the primary pressure boundary. To the extent that no tube material has yet been identified to be immune to corrosion, defects may initiate in service and easily propagate through wall. While not a desirable feature, a Through Wall Deep (TWD) defect does not necessarily pose a threat to either the structural integrity or leaktightness and this paper shows how SG can (and indeed, do) operate safely and reliably while having many tubes affected by deep and even TWD defects

  12. A pseudospectra-based approach to non-normal stability of embedded boundary methods

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rapaka, Narsimha; Samtaney, Ravi

    2017-11-01

    We present non-normal linear stability of embedded boundary (EB) methods employing pseudospectra and resolvent norms. Stability of the discrete linear wave equation is characterized in terms of the normalized distance of the EB to the nearest ghost node (α) in one and two dimensions. An important objective is that the CFL condition based on the Cartesian grid spacing remains unaffected by the EB. We consider various discretization methods including both central and upwind-biased schemes. Stability is guaranteed when α Funds under Award No. URF/1/1394-01.

  13. N13 - based reactor coolant pressure boundary leakage system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dissing, E.; Marbaeck, L.; Sandell, S.; Svansson, L.

    1980-05-01

    A system for the monitoring of leakage of coolant from the reactor coolant pressure boundary and auxiliary systems to the reactor containment, based on the detection of the N13 content in the atmosphere, has been tested. N13 is produced from the oxyegen of the reactor water via the recoil photon nuclear process H1 + 016 + He4. The generation of N13 is therefore independent of fuel element leakage and of the corrosion product content in the water. In the US AEC regulatory guide 1.45 has a leakage increase of 4 liter/ min been suggested as the response limit. The experiments carried out in Ringhals indicate, that with the accomplishment of minor improvements in the installation, a 4 liter/min leakage to the containment will give rise to a signal with a random error range of +- 0.25 liter/min, 99.7 % confidence level. (author)

  14. An iterative kernel based method for fourth order nonlinear equation with nonlinear boundary condition

    Science.gov (United States)

    Azarnavid, Babak; Parand, Kourosh; Abbasbandy, Saeid

    2018-06-01

    This article discusses an iterative reproducing kernel method with respect to its effectiveness and capability of solving a fourth-order boundary value problem with nonlinear boundary conditions modeling beams on elastic foundations. Since there is no method of obtaining reproducing kernel which satisfies nonlinear boundary conditions, the standard reproducing kernel methods cannot be used directly to solve boundary value problems with nonlinear boundary conditions as there is no knowledge about the existence and uniqueness of the solution. The aim of this paper is, therefore, to construct an iterative method by the use of a combination of reproducing kernel Hilbert space method and a shooting-like technique to solve the mentioned problems. Error estimation for reproducing kernel Hilbert space methods for nonlinear boundary value problems have yet to be discussed in the literature. In this paper, we present error estimation for the reproducing kernel method to solve nonlinear boundary value problems probably for the first time. Some numerical results are given out to demonstrate the applicability of the method.

  15. The boundary characteristics of lucid dreamers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Galvin, F

    1990-06-01

    Based on the previously established personality correlates of frequent lucid dreaming and frequent nightmare dreaming, several hypotheses were generated regarding the boundary characteristics of these dreamers relative to each other and to a control group of non-lucid and comparatively nightmare-free dreamers. The data from Hartmann's Boundary Questionnaire obtained from 40 subjects in each dreamer group (who were individually matched for sex, age, and background as far as possible) were analyzed. The results of the study give evidence that lucid dreamers have "thin" boundaries in many of the same senses that nightmare sufferers do, but can be differentiated from nightmare dreamers by the greater degree of coherence of their psychological sense of self as measured on the Self-Coherence Subscale of the Boundary Questionnaire. The suggestion is made that, given the similarity of "thin" boundaries, perhaps nightmare sufferers could become lucid dreamers and possibly resolve their nightmare condition while in the dream state.

  16. Boundaries of dreams, boundaries of dreamers: thin and thick boundaries as a new personality measure.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hartmann, E

    1989-11-01

    Previous work by the author and his collaborators on frequent nightmare sufferers demonstrated that these people had striking personality characteristics which could be called "thin boundaries" in a number of different senses. In order to measure thin and thick boundaries, a 145-item questionnaire, the Boundary Questionnaire, has been developed which has now been taken by over 1,000 persons. Preliminary results are presented indicating that, as predicted a priori, several new groups of nightmare sufferers and groups of art students scored usually "thin," whereas a group of naval officers had usually "thick" boundaries. Overall, thinness on the Boundary Questionnaire correlated highly positively (r = .40) with frequency of dream recall and also significantly (r = .16) with length of sleep.

  17. Development of Safe Food Handling Guidelines for Korean Consumers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kang, Hee-Jin; Lee, Min-Woo; Hwang, In-Kyeong; Kim, Jeong-Weon

    2015-08-01

    The purpose of this study was to develop guidelines for Korean consumers with regard to safe food handling practices at home by identifying current food handling issues. Korean consumers' behaviors regarding their safe food handling were identified via survey questionnaires that included items on individual hygiene practices, prepreparation steps when cooking, the cooking process, and the storage of leftover foods. The subjects were 417 Korean parents with elementary school children living in Seoul and Gyeonggi Province in the central area of Korea. The survey results revealed gaps between the knowledge or practices of Korean consumers and scientific evidence pertaining to safe food handling practices. Based on these findings, a leaflet on safe food handling guidelines was developed in accordance with Korean food culture. These guidelines suggest personal hygiene practices as well as fundamental principles and procedures for safe food handling from the stage of food purchase to that of keeping leftover dishes. A pilot application study with 50 consumers revealed that the guidelines effectively improved Korean consumers' safe food handling practices, suggesting that they can serve as practical educational material suitable for Korean consumers.

  18. Slip patterns and preferred dislocation boundary planes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Winther, G.

    2003-01-01

    The planes of deformation induced extended planar dislocation boundaries are analysed in two different co-ordinate systems, namely the macroscopic system defined by the deformation axes and the crystallographic system given by the crystallographic lattice. The analysis covers single and polycryst......The planes of deformation induced extended planar dislocation boundaries are analysed in two different co-ordinate systems, namely the macroscopic system defined by the deformation axes and the crystallographic system given by the crystallographic lattice. The analysis covers single...... and polycrystals of fcc metals in three deformation modes (rolling, tension and torsion). In the macroscopic system, boundaries lie close to the macroscopically most stressed planes. In the crystallographic system, the boundary plane depends on the grain/crystal orientation. The boundary planes in both co......-ordinate systems are rationalised based on the slip. The more the slip is concentrated on a slip plane, the closer the boundaries lie to this. The macroscopic preference arises from the macroscopic directionality of the slip. The established relations are applied to (a) prediction of boundary planes from slip...

  19. Web-based lecture technologies: blurring the boundaries between face-to-face and distance learning

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Karen Woo

    2008-12-01

    Full Text Available Web-based lecture technologies (WBLT have gained popularity amongst universities in Australia as a tool for delivering lecture recordings to students in close to real time. This paper reports on a selection of results from a larger research project investigating the impact of WBLT on teaching and learning. Results show that while staff see the advantages for external students, they question the extent to which these advantages apply to internal students. In contrast both cohorts of students were positive about the benefits of the technologies for their learning and they adopted similar strategies for their use. With the help of other technologies, some external students and staff even found WBLT useful for fostering communication between internal and external students. As such, while the traditional boundary between internal and external students seems to remain for some staff, students seem to find the boundary much less clear.

  20. Tropical-Extratropical Exchange Based on Argo Profiles and Ship-Based Observations Near the Western Boundary

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yuan, D.; Li, B.; Yang, L.

    2014-12-01

    The tropical-extratropical exchange in the northwestern Pacific Ocean is studied using the absolute geostrophic currents based on Argo Profiles and the observations of the western boundary currents (WBCs) during two cruises in the winters of 2010 and 2012. The absolute geostrophic currents are calculated using the P-vector method for the period of 2004 through 2011. The transport of the geostrophic currents is compared with the Sverdrup theory and found to differ significantly in several locations. Analyses have shown that errors of wind stress estimation cannot account for all of the differences. The largest differences are found in the area, where nonlinear activities are vigorous. It is, therefore, suggested that the linear dynamics of the Sverdrup theory is deficient in explaining the geostrophic transport of the tropical northwestern Pacific Ocean. Previous studies suggest recharge and discharge of the tropical Pacific Ocean heat content through the interior circulation of the North Pacific Ocean, based on the Sverdrup theory, and that the WBCs play the role opposite to the interior ocean recharge and discharge anomalies. Using ocean observations from two cruises in a La Niña winter and a normal winter, it is suggested that the Kuroshio transport decreases significantly and the Mindanao Current transport increases significantly at the peak of 2010 La Niña, opposite to the prediction of existing theory. The anomalies of the western boundary current transport are found much larger than those of the meridional circulation in the entire interior of the North Pacific Ocean, the dynamics of which are suggested to be associated with the Kelvin wave propagation around the Philippine islands. The results suggest that the WBCs dominate the interannual recharge and discharge of the western Pacific warm pool during the 2010 La Niña.

  1. C-SAFE: A Computer-Delivered Sexual Health Promotion Program for Latinas.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Klein, Charles H; Kuhn, Tamara; Altamirano, Midori; Lomonaco, Carmela

    2017-07-01

    This article describes the development and evaluation of C-SAFE (Sexual Awareness for Everyone), a computer-delivered sexual health promotion program for Latinas. We first describe the process of adapting an evidence-based, group-level intervention into an individually administered computer-delivered program. We then present the methods and results of a randomized control trial with 321 Latinas in California and Florida to test C-SAFE's preliminary efficacy in reducing sexual health risk. We found no statistically significant differences between the two conditions at a six-month follow-up in terms of sexual behaviors or attitudes toward sexually transmitted infections and condoms, although C-SAFE women reported fewer days in the past month when their mental health was not good (p = .02). C-SAFE condition women also reported more satisfaction than control condition women in their assessment of information presentation (on a scale of 1 = poor and 5 = excellent; C-SAFE = 4.45 vs. control = 4.25, p = .053) and having learned something new (C-SAFE = 95.1% vs. control = 79.3%, χ 2 importance of teachable moments, matching of delivery modalities to implementation contexts, and possible directions for evidence-based sexual health promotion programs given the current sexual health landscape.

  2. Grain boundary corrosion of copper canister material

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fennell, P.A.H.; Graham, A.J.; Smart, N.R.; Sofield, C.J.

    2001-03-01

    The proposed design for a final repository for spent fuel and other long-lived residues in Sweden is based on the multi-barrier principle. The waste will be encapsulated in sealed cylindrical canisters, which will then be placed in granite bedrock and surrounded by compacted bentonite clay. The canister design is based on a thick cast inner container fitted inside a corrosion-resistant copper canister. During fabrication of the outer copper canisters there will be some unavoidable grain growth in the welded areas. As grains grow they will tend to concentrate impurities within the copper at the new grain boundaries. The work described in this report was undertaken to determine whether there is any possibility of enhanced corrosion at grain boundaries within the copper canister. The potential for grain boundary corrosion was investigated by exposing copper specimens, which had undergone different heat treatments and hence had different grain sizes, to aerated artificial bentonite-equilibrated groundwater with two concentrations of chloride, for increasing periods of time. The degree of grain boundary corrosion was determined by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and optical microscopy. AFM showed no increase in grain boundary 'ditching' for low chloride groundwater. In high chloride groundwater the surface was covered uniformly with a fine-grained oxide. No increases in oxide thickness were observed. No significant grain boundary attack was observed using optical microscopy either. The work suggests that in aerated artificial groundwaters containing chloride ions, grain boundary corrosion of copper is unlikely to adversely affect SKB's copper canisters

  3. Behaviour of boundary functions for quantum billiards

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Baecker, A; Fuerstberger, S; Schubert, R; Steiner, F

    2002-01-01

    We study the behaviour of the normal derivative of eigenfunctions of the Helmholtz equation inside billiards with Dirichlet boundary condition. These boundary functions are of particular importance because they uniquely determine the eigenfunctions inside the billiard and also other physical quantities of interest. Therefore, they form a reduced representation of the quantum system, analogous to the Poincare section of the classical system. For the normal derivatives we introduce an equivalent to the standard Green function and derive an integral equation on the boundary. Based on this integral equation we compute the first two terms of the mean asymptotic behaviour of the boundary functions for large energies. The first term is universal and independent of the shape of the billiard. The second one is proportional to the curvature of the boundary. The asymptotic behaviour is compared with numerical results for the stadium billiard, different limacon billiards and the circle billiard, and good agreement is found. Furthermore, we derive an asymptotic completeness relation for the boundary functions

  4. Management accounting as the inter-organisational boundary

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jakobsen, Morten

    2010-01-01

    Purpose - The literature on managing inter-organisational relationships typically suggests managing these relationships based on the formalised exchange of information across the organisational boundary with due respect to trust build-up through successive interactions. This article argues...... that a focus on trust reduces the flexibility and accessibility of resources and hence ruins the advantages of inter-organisational relationships. The article focuses on power as a means for absorbing uncertainty when managing inter-organisational relationships. Methodology - The article is based on findings...... from a case study of inter-organisational relationships. Governmentality is used as a framework for analysing the practise of managing inter-organisational relationships. Findings - A number of representations are employed along the boundary between the case study parties and thereby the boundary...

  5. Inherently safe reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Maartensson, Anders

    1992-01-01

    A rethinking of nuclear reactor safety has created proposals for new designs based on inherent and passive safety principles. Diverging interpretations of these concepts can be found. This article reviews the key features of proposed advanced power reactors. An evaluation is made of the degree of inherent safety for four different designs: the AP-600, the PIUS, the MHTGR and the PRISM. The inherent hazards of today's most common reactor principles are used as reference for the evaluation. It is concluded that claims for the new designs being inherently, naturally or passively safe are not substantiated by experience. (author)

  6. TRENDS AND ISSUES IN SAFE DRIVER ASSISTANCE SYSTEMS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sadayuki TSUGAWA

    2006-01-01

    Full Text Available In recent years, ITS projects in Japan, Europe and the US have been characterized by a strong emphasis on safe driver assistance systems designed to prevent traffic accidents. As it has become clear that eradicating accidents will be impossible by means of vehicle passive safety and single-vehicle active safety efforts alone, research and development of systems for preventing accidents through road-vehicle cooperation and vehicle-vehicle cooperation have been promoted in Japan (ASV, AHS, Europe (PReVENT, SAFESPOT and the US (VII. The key to such technology is road-to-vehicle communications and inter-vehicle communications. On the other hand, a number of driver assistance systems have been brought to market, including lidar-based forward collision warnings, ACC, lane keeping support and drowsiness warnings, but their penetration rates in Japan are extremely low. Furthermore, one major challenge is that safe driver assistance systems based on road-vehicle and vehicle-vehicle cooperation are premised upon a high penetration rate. Finally, we introduce a system for improving driver acceptance of safe driver assistance systems based on driver monitoring and forward monitoring as well as cooperative driver assistance systems for elderly drivers, an issue now receiving attention in Japan.

  7. A General 2D Meshless Interpolating Boundary Node Method Based on the Parameter Space

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hongyin Yang

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available The presented study proposed an improved interpolating boundary node method (IIBNM for 2D potential problems. The improved interpolating moving least-square (IIMLS method was applied to construct the shape functions, of which the delta function properties and boundary conditions were directly implemented. In addition, any weight function used in the moving least-square (MLS method was also applicable in the IIMLS method. Boundary cells were required in the computation of the boundary integrals, and additional discretization error was not avoided if traditional cells were used to approximate the geometry. The present study applied the parametric cells created in the parameter space to preserve the exact geometry, and the geometry was maintained due to the number of cells. Only the number of nodes on the boundary was required as additional information for boundary node construction. Most importantly, the IIMLS method can be applied in the parameter space to construct shape functions without the requirement of additional computations for the curve length.

  8. Grain-boundary unzipping by oxidation in polycrystalline graphene

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alexandre, Simone; Lucio, Aline; Nunes, Ricardo

    2011-03-01

    The need for large-scale production of graphene will inevitably lead to synthesis of the polycrystalline material [1,2]. Understanding the chemical, mechanical, and electronic properties of grain boundaries in graphene polycrystals will be crucial for the development of graphene-based electronics. Oxidation of this material has been suggested to lead to graphene ribbons, by the oxygen-driven unzipping mechanism. A cooperative-strain mechanism, based on the formation of epoxy groups along lines of parallel bonds in the hexagons of graphene's honeycomb lattice, was proposed to explain the unzipping effect in bulk graphene In this work we employ ab initio calculations to study the oxidation of polycrystalline graphene by chemisorption of oxygen at the grain boundaries. Our results indicate that oxygen tends to segregate at the boundaries, and that the unzipping mechanism is also operative along the grain boundaries, despite the lack of the parallel bonds due to the presence of fivefold and sevenfold carbon rings along the boundary core. We acknowledge support from the Brazilian agencies: CNPq, Fapemig, and INCT-Materiais de Carbono.

  9. Boundary issues

    Science.gov (United States)

    Townsend, Alan R.; Porder, Stephen

    2011-03-01

    can (and ultimately must) learn to capture and re-use P in human and animal wastes. And, as Carpenter and Bennett highlight, inequities in P availability across world regions are not just a problem, they are an opportunity: transfers from P-rich to P-poor regions could simultaneously reduce environmental and food security risks. Above all, Carpenter and Bennett's analyses highlight the need for new management strategies that better target not only P's environmental risks, but also recognize the element's standing as an irreplaceable resource. Human society has been built from the massive alteration of four global biogeochemical cycles (C, N, H2O and P). We can replace carbon-based fuels, plant legumes in lieu of Haber-Bosch-based N fixation, and the rain will still fall. But for P, there is neither substitute nor renewal. Without an almost closed loop between fertilizer application, food consumption, and waste management, society could solve the remainder of the environmental threats Rockström and colleagues identify, and still be facing a bleak future. References Carpenter S R and Bennett E M 2011 Reconsideration of the planetary boundary for phosphorus Environ. Res. Lett. 6 014009 Childers C L, Corman J, Edwards M and Elser J J 2011 Sustainability challenges of phosphorus and food: solutions from closing the human phosphorus cycle BioScience 61 117-24 Cordell D, Drangert J-O and White S 2009 The story of phosphorus: Global food security and food for thought global Environmental Change 19 292-305 Diamond J 2005 Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed (New York: Viking) Engelhardt H T and Caplan A L (ed) 1987 Scientific Controversies: Case Studies in the Resolution and Closure of Disputes in Science and Technology (New York: Cambridge University Press) Filippelli G M 2008 The global phosphorus cycle: Past, present, and future Elements 4 89-95 Galloway J N, Townsend A R, Erisman J W, Bekunda M, Cai Z C, Freney J R, Martinelli L A, Seitzinger S P and Sutton M

  10. The Challenges of Applying Planetary Boundaries as a Basis for Strategic Decision-Making in Companies with Global Supply Chains

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Roland Clift

    2017-02-01

    Full Text Available The Planetary Boundaries (PB framework represents a significant advance in specifying the ecological constraints on human development. However, to enable decision-makers in business and public policy to respect these constraints in strategic planning, the PB framework needs to be developed to generate practical tools. With this objective in mind, we analyse the recent literature and highlight three major scientific and technical challenges in operationalizing the PB approach in decision-making: first, identification of thresholds or boundaries with associated metrics for different geographical scales; second, the need to frame approaches to allocate fair shares in the ‘safe operating space’ bounded by the PBs across the value chain and; third, the need for international bodies to co-ordinate the implementation of the measures needed to respect the Planetary Boundaries. For the first two of these challenges, we consider how they might be addressed for four PBs: climate change, freshwater use, biosphere integrity and chemical pollution and other novel entities. Four key opportunities are identified: (1 development of a common system of metrics that can be applied consistently at and across different scales; (2 setting ‘distance from boundary’ measures that can be applied at different scales; (3 development of global, preferably open-source, databases and models; and (4 advancing understanding of the interactions between the different PBs. Addressing the scientific and technical challenges in operationalizing the planetary boundaries needs be complemented with progress in addressing the equity and ethical issues in allocating the safe operating space between companies and sectors.

  11. Boundary rings and N=2 coset models

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lerche, W.; Walcher, J.

    2002-01-01

    We investigate boundary states of N=2 coset models based on Grassmannians Gr(n,n+k), and find that the underlying intersection geometry is given by the fusion ring of U(n). This is isomorphic to the quantum cohomology ring of Gr(n,n+k+1), which in turn can be encoded in a 'boundary' superpotential whose critical points correspond to the boundary states. In this way the intersection properties can be represented in terms of a soliton graph that forms a generalized, Z n+k+1 symmetric McKay quiver. We investigate the spectrum of bound states and find that the rational boundary CFT produces only a small subset of the possible quiver representations

  12. Derivation Method for the Foundation Boundaries of Hydraulic Numerical Simulation Models Based on the Elastic Boussinesq Solution

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jintao Song

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available The foundation boundaries of numerical simulation models of hydraulic structures dominated by a vertical load are investigated. The method used is based on the stress formula for fundamental solutions to semi-infinite space body elastic mechanics under a vertical concentrated force. The limit method is introduced into the original formula, which is then partitioned and analyzed according to the direction of the depth extension of the foundation. The point load will be changed to a linear load with a length of 2a. Inverse proportion function assumptions are proposed at parameter a and depth l of the calculation points to solve the singularity questions of elastic stress in a semi-infinite space near the ground. Compared with the original formula, changing the point load to a linear load with a length of 2a is more reasonable. Finally, the boundary depth criterion of a hydraulic numerical simulation model is derived and applied to determine the depth boundary formula for gravity dam numerical simulations.

  13. Exploring the planetary boundary for chemical pollution.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Diamond, Miriam L; de Wit, Cynthia A; Molander, Sverker; Scheringer, Martin; Backhaus, Thomas; Lohmann, Rainer; Arvidsson, Rickard; Bergman, Åke; Hauschild, Michael; Holoubek, Ivan; Persson, Linn; Suzuki, Noriyuki; Vighi, Marco; Zetzsch, Cornelius

    2015-05-01

    Rockström et al. (2009a, 2009b) have warned that humanity must reduce anthropogenic impacts defined by nine planetary boundaries if "unacceptable global change" is to be avoided. Chemical pollution was identified as one of those boundaries for which continued impacts could erode the resilience of ecosystems and humanity. The central concept of the planetary boundary (or boundaries) for chemical pollution (PBCP or PBCPs) is that the Earth has a finite assimilative capacity for chemical pollution, which includes persistent, as well as readily degradable chemicals released at local to regional scales, which in aggregate threaten ecosystem and human viability. The PBCP allows humanity to explicitly address the increasingly global aspects of chemical pollution throughout a chemical's life cycle and the need for a global response of internationally coordinated control measures. We submit that sufficient evidence shows stresses on ecosystem and human health at local to global scales, suggesting that conditions are transgressing the safe operating space delimited by a PBCP. As such, current local to global pollution control measures are insufficient. However, while the PBCP is an important conceptual step forward, at this point single or multiple PBCPs are challenging to operationalize due to the extremely large number of commercial chemicals or mixtures of chemicals that cause myriad adverse effects to innumerable species and ecosystems, and the complex linkages between emissions, environmental concentrations, exposures and adverse effects. As well, the normative nature of a PBCP presents challenges of negotiating pollution limits amongst societal groups with differing viewpoints. Thus, a combination of approaches is recommended as follows: develop indicators of chemical pollution, for both control and response variables, that will aid in quantifying a PBCP(s) and gauging progress towards reducing chemical pollution; develop new technologies and technical and social

  14. Economics of place-based monitoring under the safe drinking water act, part II: design and development of place-based monitoring strategies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brands, Edwin; Rajagopal, R

    2008-08-01

    The goals of environmental legislation and associated regulations are to protect public health, natural resources, and ecosystems. In this context, monitoring programs should provide timely and relevant information so that the regulatory community can implement legislation in a cost-effective and efficient manner. The Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) of 1974 attempts to ensure that public water systems (PWSs) supply safe water to its consumers. As is the case with many other federal environmental statutes, SDWA monitoring has been implemented in relatively uniform fashion across the United States. In this three part series, spatial and temporal patterns in water quality data are utilized to develop, compare, and evaluate the economic performance of alternative place-based monitoring approaches to current monitoring practice. Part II: Several factors affect the performance of monitoring strategies, including: measurable objectives, required precision in estimates, acceptable confidence levels of such estimates, available budget for sampling. In this paper, we develop place-based monitoring strategies based on extensive analysis of available historical water quality data (1960-1994) of 19 Iowa community water systems. These systems supply potable water to over 350,000 people. In the context of drinking water, the objective is to protect public health by utilizing monitoring resources to characterize contaminants that are detectable, and are close to exceeding health standards. A place-based monitoring strategy was developed in which contaminants were selected based on their historical occurrence, rather than their appearance on the SDWA contaminant list. In a subset of the water systems, the temporal frequency of monitoring for one ubiquitous contaminant, nitrate, was tailored to patterns in its historical occurrence and concentration. Three sampling allocation models (linear, quadratic, and cubic) based on historic patterns in peak occurrence were developed and

  15. System and method for free-boundary surface extraction

    KAUST Repository

    Algarni, Marei

    2017-10-26

    A method of extracting surfaces in three-dimensional data includes receiving as inputs three-dimensional data and a seed point p located on a surface to be extracted. The method further includes propagating a front outwardly from the seed point p and extracting a plurality of ridge curves based on the propagated front. A surface boundary is detected based on a comparison of distances between adjacent ridge curves and the desired surface is extracted based on the detected surface boundary.

  16. The complex variable boundary element method: Applications in determining approximative boundaries

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hromadka, T.V.

    1984-01-01

    The complex variable boundary element method (CVBEM) is used to determine approximation functions for boundary value problems of the Laplace equation such as occurs in potential theory. By determining an approximative boundary upon which the CVBEM approximator matches the desired constant (level curves) boundary conditions, the CVBEM is found to provide the exact solution throughout the interior of the transformed problem domain. Thus, the acceptability of the CVBEM approximation is determined by the closeness-of-fit of the approximative boundary to the study problem boundary. ?? 1984.

  17. Microlocal methods in the analysis of the boundary element method

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pedersen, Michael

    1993-01-01

    The application of the boundary element method in numerical analysis is based upon the use of boundary integral operators stemming from multiple layer potentials. The regularity properties of these operators are vital in the development of boundary integral equations and error estimates. We show...

  18. SaRDIn - A Safe Reconfigurable Distributed Interlocking

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Fantechi, Alessandro; Gnesi, S.; Haxthausen, Anne Elisabeth

    2016-01-01

    Current computer-based interlocking systems most often have a centralized design, with all logic residing in a single computer. Centralized interlockings are complex to design. Following the general trend in Cyber-Physical Systems, the SaRDIn (Safe Reconfigurable Distributed Interlockings) concept...

  19. Grain boundary corrosion of copper canister weld material

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gubner, Rolf; Andersson, Urban; Linder, Mats; Nazarov, Andrej; Taxen, Claes

    2006-01-01

    The proposed design for a final repository for spent fuel and other long-lived residues in Sweden is based on the multi-barrier principle. The waste will be encapsulated in sealed cylindrical canisters, which will then be placed in granite bedrock and surrounded by compacted bentonite clay. The canister design is based on a thick cast inner container fitted inside a corrosion-resistant copper canister. During fabrication of the outer copper canisters there will be some unavoidable grain growth in the welded areas. As grains grow, they will tend to concentrate impurities within the copper at the new grain boundaries. The work described in this report was undertaken to determine whether there is any possibility of enhanced corrosion at grain boundaries within the copper canister, based on the recommendations of the report SKB-TR--01-09 (INIS ref. 32025363). Grain boundary corrosion of copper is not expected to be a problem for the copper canisters in a repository. However, as one step in the experimental verification it is necessary to study grain boundary corrosion of copper in an environment where it may occur. A literature study aimed to find one or several solutions that are aggressive with respect to grain boundary corrosion of copper. Copper specimens cut from welds of real copper canisters where exposed to aerated ammonium hydroxide solution for a period of 14 days at 80 degrees C and 10 bar pressure. The samples were investigated prior to exposure using the scanning Kelvin probe technique to characterize anodic and cathodic areas on the samples. The degree of corrosion was determined by optical microscopy. No grain boundary corrosion could be observed in the autoclave experiments, however, a higher rate of corrosion was observed for the weld material compared to the base material. The work suggests that grain boundary corrosion of copper weld material is most unlikely to adversely affect SKB's copper canisters under the conditions in the repository

  20. Grain boundary corrosion of copper canister weld material

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gubner, Rolf; Andersson, Urban; Linder, Mats; Nazarov, Andrej; Taxen, Claes [Corrosion and Metals Research Inst. (KIMAB), Stockholm (Sweden)

    2006-01-15

    The proposed design for a final repository for spent fuel and other long-lived residues in Sweden is based on the multi-barrier principle. The waste will be encapsulated in sealed cylindrical canisters, which will then be placed in granite bedrock and surrounded by compacted bentonite clay. The canister design is based on a thick cast inner container fitted inside a corrosion-resistant copper canister. During fabrication of the outer copper canisters there will be some unavoidable grain growth in the welded areas. As grains grow, they will tend to concentrate impurities within the copper at the new grain boundaries. The work described in this report was undertaken to determine whether there is any possibility of enhanced corrosion at grain boundaries within the copper canister, based on the recommendations of the report SKB-TR--01-09 (INIS ref. 32025363). Grain boundary corrosion of copper is not expected to be a problem for the copper canisters in a repository. However, as one step in the experimental verification it is necessary to study grain boundary corrosion of copper in an environment where it may occur. A literature study aimed to find one or several solutions that are aggressive with respect to grain boundary corrosion of copper. Copper specimens cut from welds of real copper canisters where exposed to aerated ammonium hydroxide solution for a period of 14 days at 80 degrees C and 10 bar pressure. The samples were investigated prior to exposure using the scanning Kelvin probe technique to characterize anodic and cathodic areas on the samples. The degree of corrosion was determined by optical microscopy. No grain boundary corrosion could be observed in the autoclave experiments, however, a higher rate of corrosion was observed for the weld material compared to the base material. The work suggests that grain boundary corrosion of copper weld material is most unlikely to adversely affect SKB's copper canisters under the conditions in the repository.

  1. Smart aircraft fastener evaluation (SAFE) system: a condition-based corrosion detection system for aging aircraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schoess, Jeffrey N.; Seifert, Greg; Paul, Clare A.

    1996-05-01

    The smart aircraft fastener evaluation (SAFE) system is an advanced structural health monitoring effort to detect and characterize corrosion in hidden and inaccessible locations of aircraft structures. Hidden corrosion is the number one logistics problem for the U.S. Air Force, with an estimated maintenance cost of $700M per year in 1990 dollars. The SAFE system incorporates a solid-state electrochemical microsensor and smart sensor electronics in the body of a Hi-Lok aircraft fastener to process and autonomously report corrosion status to aircraft maintenance personnel. The long-term payoff for using SAFE technology will be in predictive maintenance for aging aircraft and rotorcraft systems, fugitive emissions applications such as control valves, chemical pipeline vessels, and industrial boilers. Predictive maintenance capability, service, and repair will replace the current practice of scheduled maintenance to substantially reduce operational costs. A summary of the SAFE concept, laboratory test results, and future field test plans is presented.

  2. Strategies and challenges for safe injection practice in developing countries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gyawali, Sudesh; Rathore, Devendra Singh; Shankar, P Ravi; Kumar, Kc Vikash

    2013-01-01

    Injection is one of the important health care procedures used globally to administer drugs. Its unsafe use can transmit various blood borne pathogens. This article aims to review the history and status of injection practices, its importance, interventions and the challenges for safe injection practice in developing countries. The history of injections started with the discovery of syringe in the early nineteenth century. Safe injection practice in developed countries was initiated in the early twentieth century but has not received adequate attention in developing countries. The establishment of "Safe Injection Global Network (SIGN)" was an milestone towards safe injection practice globally. In developing countries, people perceive injection as a powerful healing tool and do not hesitate to pay more for injections. Unsafe disposal and reuse of contaminated syringe is common. Ensuring safe injection practice is one of the greatest challenges for healthcare system in developing countries. To address the problem, interventions with active involvement of a number of stakeholders is essential. A combination of educational, managerial and regulatory strategies is found to be effective and economically viable. Rational and safe use of injections can save many lives but unsafe practice threatens life. Safe injection practice is crucial in developing countries. Evidence based interventions, with honest commitment and participation from the service provider, recipient and community with aid of policy makers are required to ensure safe injection practice.

  3. Administrative Area Boundaries 2 (State Boundaries), Region 9, 2010, NAVTEQ

    Data.gov (United States)

    U.S. Environmental Protection Agency — NAVTEQ Administrative Area Boundaries 2 (State Boundaries) for Region 9. There are five Administrative Area Boundaries layers (1, 2, 3, 4, 5). These layers contain...

  4. Administrative Area Boundaries 4 (City Boundaries), Region 9, 2010, NAVTEQ

    Data.gov (United States)

    U.S. Environmental Protection Agency — NAVTEQ Administrative Area Boundaries 4 (City Boundaries) for Region 9. There are five Administrative Area Boundaries layers (1, 2, 3, 4, 5). These layers contain...

  5. Usability and Feasibility of an Internet-Based Virtual Pedestrian Environment to Teach Children to Cross Streets Safely

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schwebel, David C.; McClure, Leslie A.; Severson, Joan

    2013-01-01

    Child pedestrian injury is a preventable global health challenge. Successful training efforts focused on child behavior, including individualized streetside training and training in large virtual pedestrian environments, are laborious and expensive. This study considers the usability and feasibility of a virtual pedestrian environment “game” application to teach children safe street-crossing behavior via the internet, a medium that could be broadly disseminated at low cost. Ten 7- and 8-year-old children participated. They engaged in an internet-based virtual pedestrian environment and completed a brief assessment survey. Researchers rated children's behavior while engaged in the game. Both self-report and researcher observations indicated the internet-based system was readily used by the children without adult support. The youth understood how to engage in the system and used it independently and attentively. The program also was feasible. It provided multiple measures of pedestrian safety that could be used for research or training purposes. Finally, the program was rated by children as engaging and educational. Researcher ratings suggested children used the program with minimal fidgeting or boredom. The pilot test suggests an internet-based virtual pedestrian environment offers a usable, feasible, engaging, and educational environment for child pedestrian safety training. If future research finds children learn the cognitive and perceptual skills needed to cross streets safely within it, internet-based training may provide a low-cost medium to broadly disseminate child pedestrian safety training. The concept may be generalized to other domains of health-related functioning such as teen driving safety, adolescent sexual risk-taking, and adolescent substance use. PMID:24678263

  6. Overall performance assessment for scramjet with boundary-layer ejection control based on thermodynamics

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    He, Yubao; Cao, Ruifeng; Huang, Hongyan; Qin, Jiang; Yu, Daren

    2017-01-01

    To avoid the inlet unstart at high equivalence ratio and increase the performance of scramjet with ram-mode, a flow control method of boundary-layer ejection is implemented based on the potential thermodynamic process in a turbo-pump supply system of fuel vapor within a cooling channel. The effect of ejection on overall scramjet performance is studied by taking the integration of measures including numerical simulation and stream thrust analysis. Results indicate that the critical backpressure is significantly increased as the ejection total pressure increased, thereby increasing the compression capacity and efficiency, and decreasing the irreversible losses of shock wave and viscous dissipation. For the ejection total pressure of P_t_,_e_j_e = 2.40–4.00 × 10"6 Pa, the critical backpressure ratio is quantitatively increased by 1.18–11.8% along with the utilization of ejection mass flow rate of about 88.0–100% overall mass flow rate of methane fuel gas, and simultaneously the total pressure ratio, kinetic efficiency is also increased by 7.32–13.1%, and 1.63–2.96%, respectively, while the dimensionless entropy increase is decreased by 14.5–26.8%. On this basis, the specific thrust, specific impulse, and total efficiency is increased by 2.84–4.69%, 2.80–4.68%, and 2.87–4.70%, respectively, which re-emphasizes that the boundary-layer ejection is an available fluid control method. - Highlights: • Pressure ratio affects cycle efficiency based on Brayton cycle analysis. • Ejection control concept is defined based on potential thermodynamic process. • Ejection increases compression capacity, efficiency and engine overall performance.

  7. Numerical simulation of tsunami-scale wave boundary layers

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Williams, Isaac A.; Fuhrman, David R.

    2016-01-01

    This paper presents a numerical study of the boundary layer flow and properties induced by tsunami-scalewaves. For this purpose, an existing one-dimensional vertical (1DV) boundary layer model, based on the horizontal component of the incompressible Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) equation...

  8. Elementare Bildungseinrichtungen als safe spaces für (religiöse) Differenz

    OpenAIRE

    Helena Stockinger

    2016-01-01

    ENGLISH: Educational institutions sometimes do not offer a space for (religious) difference. Based on this fact the term safe space is theoretically specified. It seems important to develop kindergartens as safe spaces in wich learning, belonging and recognizing are possible. As one characteristic of the culture of safe spaces the recognition of (religious) difference is pointed out, especially being sensitive about and broaching the issue of difference. DEUTSCH: Bildungseinrichtungen stellen...

  9. The use of MACSYMA for solving elliptic boundary value problems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thejll, Peter; Gilbert, Robert P.

    1990-01-01

    A boundary method is presented for the solution of elliptic boundary value problems. An approach based on the use of complete systems of solutions is emphasized. The discussion is limited to the Dirichlet problem, even though the present method can possibly be adapted to treat other boundary value problems.

  10. Conformal boundary loop models

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jacobsen, Jesper Lykke; Saleur, Hubert

    2008-01-01

    We study a model of densely packed self-avoiding loops on the annulus, related to the Temperley-Lieb algebra with an extra idempotent boundary generator. Four different weights are given to the loops, depending on their homotopy class and whether they touch the outer rim of the annulus. When the weight of a contractible bulk loop x≡q+q -1 element of (-2,2], this model is conformally invariant for any real weight of the remaining three parameters. We classify the conformal boundary conditions and give exact expressions for the corresponding boundary scaling dimensions. The amplitudes with which the sectors with any prescribed number and types of non-contractible loops appear in the full partition function Z are computed rigorously. Based on this, we write a number of identities involving Z which hold true for any finite size. When the weight of a contractible boundary loop y takes certain discrete values, y r ≡([r+1] q )/([r] q ) with r integer, other identities involving the standard characters K r,s of the Virasoro algebra are established. The connection with Dirichlet and Neumann boundary conditions in the O(n) model is discussed in detail, and new scaling dimensions are derived. When q is a root of unity and y=y r , exact connections with the A m type RSOS model are made. These involve precise relations between the spectra of the loop and RSOS model transfer matrices, valid in finite size. Finally, the results where y=y r are related to the theory of Temperley-Lieb cabling

  11. Electronic and atomic structures of KFe2Se2 grain boundaries

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fan, Wei; Liu, Da-Yong; Zeng, Zhi

    2014-01-01

    Highlights: •Twist grain boundary has lower grain-boundary energy. •Twist grain-boundary has similar electronic structure to that in crystal. •Charge and magnetic-moment fluctuations are large within tilt grain boundary. •Bi-collinear AFM is most stable even with existence of grain boundary. •Insulating Fe-vacancy phase is stable with existence of twist grain boundary. -- Abstract: The electronic and atomic structures of the twist and tilt grain boundaries (GB) of the iron-based superconductor KFe 2 Se 2 are studied based on the simulations of the first principles density functional theory. Our results have clarified that the Σ5[0 0 1] twist grain boundary of KFe 2 Se 2 with layered structure has the lower grain-boundary energy. The local structure and the main features of the basic electronic structure within the [0 0 1] twist grain-boundary region have small differences compared with those in KFe 2 Se 2 crystal. The large fluctuations of the charges and magnetic moments are found in the [0 0 1] tilt grain-boundary regions, especially the former are more prominent. The bi-collinear anti-ferromagnetic order is the most stable magnetic order even with grain boundaries in the bulk. The √(5)a×√(5)a superstructure of Fe-vacancies in K 2 Fe 4 Se 5 phase is intrinsically related to the coincident-site lattice of Σ5[0 0 1] twist grain boundary

  12. Fluid-solid boundary conditions for multiparticle collision dynamics

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Whitmer, Jonathan K; Luijten, Erik

    2010-01-01

    The simulation of colloidal particles suspended in solvent requires an accurate representation of the interactions between the colloids and the solvent molecules. Using the multiparticle collision dynamics method, we examine several proposals for stick boundary conditions, studying their properties in both plane Poiseuille flow (where fluid interacts with the boundary of a stationary macroscopic solid) and particle-based colloid simulations (where the boundaries are thermally affected and in motion). In addition, our simulations compare various collision rules designed to remove spurious slip near solid surfaces, and the effects of these rules on the thermal motion of colloidal particles. Furthermore, we demonstrate that stochastic reflection of the fluid at solid boundaries fails to faithfully represent stick boundary conditions, and conclude that bounce-back conditions should be applied at both mobile and stationary surfaces. Finally, we generalize these ideas to create partial slip boundary conditions at both stationary and mobile surfaces.

  13. Reactive, Safe Navigation for Lunar and Planetary Robots

    Science.gov (United States)

    Utz, Hans; Ruland, Thomas

    2008-01-01

    When humans return to the moon, Astronauts will be accompanied by robotic helpers. Enabling robots to safely operate near astronauts on the lunar surface has the potential to significantly improve the efficiency of crew surface operations. Safely operating robots in close proximity to astronauts on the lunar surface requires reactive obstacle avoidance capabilities not available on existing planetary robots. In this paper we present work on safe, reactive navigation using a stereo based high-speed terrain analysis and obstacle avoidance system. Advances in the design of the algorithms allow it to run terrain analysis and obstacle avoidance algorithms at full frame rate (30Hz) on off the shelf hardware. The results of this analysis are fed into a fast, reactive path selection module, enforcing the safety of the chosen actions. The key components of the system are discussed and test results are presented.

  14. SCC propagation and cessation behavior near the fusion boundary of dissimilar weld joint with Ni-based weld metal and low alloy steel

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ishizawa, Makoto; Abe, Hiroshi; Watanabe, Yutaka

    2009-01-01

    The purpose of this study is to investigate the following items focused on the microstructure near the fusion boundary of dissimilar weld joint with Ni-based weld metal and low alloy steel; (1) Microstructural characteristics near the fusion boundary, (2) Dominant factor that makes crack retardation near the fusion boundary. Main conclusions can be summarized as follows; (1) From the results of CBB tests, it has been understood that the low alloy steel has no SCC susceptibility and that there is a difference in oxidation behavior between high and low sulfur containing low alloy steel, (2) In Alloy182/LAS sample, most of crack tips were located at the fusion boundary. It has been thought that crack become less active when crack reach at fusion boundary, (3) It has been suggested that the dominant factor of crack retardation is low SCC susceptibility of low alloy steel in high temperature water. (author)

  15. Periodic Boundary Conditions in the ALEGRA Finite Element Code

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aidun, John B.; Robinson, Allen C.; Weatherby, Joe R.

    1999-01-01

    This document describes the implementation of periodic boundary conditions in the ALEGRA finite element code. ALEGRA is an arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian multi-physics code with both explicit and implicit numerical algorithms. The periodic boundary implementation requires a consistent set of boundary input sets which are used to describe virtual periodic regions. The implementation is noninvasive to the majority of the ALEGRA coding and is based on the distributed memory parallel framework in ALEGRA. The technique involves extending the ghost element concept for interprocessor boundary communications in ALEGRA to additionally support on- and off-processor periodic boundary communications. The user interface, algorithmic details and sample computations are given

  16. A visual detection of protein content based on titration of moving reaction boundary electrophoresis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Hou-Yu; Guo, Cheng-Ye; Guo, Chen-Gang; Fan, Liu-Yin; Zhang, Lei; Cao, Cheng-Xi

    2013-04-24

    A visual electrophoretic titration method was firstly developed from the concept of moving reaction boundary (MRB) for protein content analysis. In the developed method, when the voltage was applied, the hydroxide ions in the cathodic vessel moved towards the anode, and neutralized the carboxyl groups of protein immobilized via highly cross-linked polyacrylamide gel (PAG), generating a MRB between the alkali and the immobilized protein. The boundary moving velocity (V(MRB)) was as a function of protein content, and an acid-base indicator was used to denote the boundary displacement. As a proof of concept, standard model proteins and biological samples were chosen for the experiments to study the feasibility of the developed method. The experiments revealed that good linear calibration functions between V(MRB) and protein content (correlation coefficients R>0.98). The experiments further demonstrated the following merits of developed method: (1) weak influence of non-protein nitrogen additives (e.g., melamine) adulterated in protein samples, (2) good agreement with the classic Kjeldahl method (R=0.9945), (3) fast measuring speed in total protein analysis of large samples from the same source, and (4) low limit of detection (0.02-0.15 mg mL(-1) for protein content), good precision (R.S.D. of intra-day less than 1.7% and inter-day less than 2.7%), and high recoveries (105-107%). Crown Copyright © 2013. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  17. Combining the boundary shift integral and tensor-based morphometry for brain atrophy estimation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Michalkiewicz, Mateusz; Pai, Akshay; Leung, Kelvin K.; Sommer, Stefan; Darkner, Sune; Sørensen, Lauge; Sporring, Jon; Nielsen, Mads

    2016-03-01

    Brain atrophy from structural magnetic resonance images (MRIs) is widely used as an imaging surrogate marker for Alzheimers disease. Their utility has been limited due to the large degree of variance and subsequently high sample size estimates. The only consistent and reasonably powerful atrophy estimation methods has been the boundary shift integral (BSI). In this paper, we first propose a tensor-based morphometry (TBM) method to measure voxel-wise atrophy that we combine with BSI. The combined model decreases the sample size estimates significantly when compared to BSI and TBM alone.

  18. Safe structural food bolus in elderly: the relevant parameters

    OpenAIRE

    Vandenberghe-Descamps, Mathilde; Septier, Chantal; Prot, Aurélie; Tournier, Carole; Hennequin, Martine; Vigneau, Evelyne; Feron, Gilles; Labouré, Hélène

    2017-01-01

    Mastication is essential to prepare food into a bolus ready to be swallowed safely, with no choking risk. Based on food bolus properties, a masticatory normative indicator was developed by Woda et al. (2010) to identify impaired masticatory function within good oral health population. The aim of the present study was to identify relevant parameters of bolus' structure to differentiate safe to unsafe bolus among elderly contrasting by their dental status.93 elderly, 58% with at least 7 posteri...

  19. Safe Exploration for Identifying Linear Systems via Robust Optimization

    OpenAIRE

    Lu, Tyler; Zinkevich, Martin; Boutilier, Craig; Roy, Binz; Schuurmans, Dale

    2017-01-01

    Safely exploring an unknown dynamical system is critical to the deployment of reinforcement learning (RL) in physical systems where failures may have catastrophic consequences. In scenarios where one knows little about the dynamics, diverse transition data covering relevant regions of state-action space is needed to apply either model-based or model-free RL. Motivated by the cooling of Google's data centers, we study how one can safely identify the parameters of a system model with a desired ...

  20. Low-temperature thermionics in space nuclear power systems with the safe-type fast reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zrodnikov, A.V.; Yarygin, V.I.; Lazarenko, G.E.; Zabudko, A.N.; Ovcharenko, M.K.; Pyshko, A.P.; Mironov, V.S.; Kuznetsov, R.V.

    2007-01-01

    The potentialities of the use of the low-temperature thermionic converters (TIC) with the emitter temperature ≤ 1500 K in the space nuclear power system (SNPS) with the SAFE-type (Safe Affordable Fission Engine) fast reactor proposed and developed by common efforts of American experts have been considered. The main directions of the 'SAFE-300-TEG' SNPS (300 kW(thermal)) design update by replacing the thermoelectric converters with the low-temperature high-performance thermionic converters (with the barrier index V B ≤ 1.9 eV and efficiency ≥ 10%) meant for a long-term operation (5 years at least) as the components of the SAFE-300-TIC SNPS for a Lunar base have been discussed. The concept of the SNPS with the SAFE-type fast reactor and low-temperature TICs with specific electric power of about 1.45 W/cm 2 as the components of the SAFE-300-TIC system meeting the Nasa's initial requirements to a Lunar base with the electric power demand of about 30 kW(electrical) for robotic mission has been considered. The results, involving optimization and mass-and-size estimation, show that the SAFE-300-TIC system meets the initial requirements by Nasa to the lunar base power supply. The main directions of the system update aimed at the output electric power increase up to 100 kW(electrical) have also been presented. (authors)

  1. The SafeBoosC II randomized trial

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Plomgaard, Anne M; van Oeveren, Wim; Petersen, Tue Hvass

    2016-01-01

    BACKGROUND: The SafeBoosC phase II multicentre randomized clinical trial investigated the benefits and harms of monitoring cerebral oxygenation by near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) combined with an evidence-based treatment guideline vs. no NIRS data and treatment as usual in the control group...

  2. Pilot Implementation of two evidence based programs (SafeCare and IncredibleYears in Child Protection Services in Gipuzkoa (Spain

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Joaquín de Paul

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available This paper describes the implementation process of two evidence-based programs in Gipuzko as Child Protection System (Spain: SafeCare and Incredible Years. SafeCare is a home visiting program for high-riskand neglectful families with children under 5 years. Incredible Years is a parenting skills training program for families with children between 4 to 8 years with behavior problems whose parents have significantdifficulties to manage. The paper describes the process by which public institutions responsible for child protection in Gipuzkoa decided to shift from current intervention programs towards more structured, focused, and short-term programs that have shown positive results in previous applications in other countries. Issues related to programs adaptation, selection, and training of professionals and pre- and postresults obtained in the preliminary application of SafeCare and Incredible Years to a limited set of families are presented. Finally, the next step of the implementation process (pilot implementation with a randomized control trial design is described. The paper discusses a significant number of issues that have been important throughout this process and that may be useful for administrations and institutions that wish to undertake a similar process.

  3. Are Detox Diets Safe?

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Safe Videos for Educators Search English Español Are Detox Diets Safe? KidsHealth / For Teens / Are Detox Diets ... seguras las dietas de desintoxicación? What Is a Detox Diet? The name sounds reassuring — everyone knows that ...

  4. Boundary-layer transition prediction using a simplified correlation-based model

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xia Chenchao

    2016-02-01

    Full Text Available This paper describes a simplified transition model based on the recently developed correlation-based γ-Reθt transition model. The transport equation of transition momentum thickness Reynolds number is eliminated for simplicity, and new transition length function and critical Reynolds number correlation are proposed. The new model is implemented into an in-house computational fluid dynamics (CFD code and validated for low and high-speed flow cases, including the zero pressure flat plate, airfoils, hypersonic flat plate and double wedge. Comparisons between the simulation results and experimental data show that the boundary-layer transition phenomena can be reasonably illustrated by the new model, which gives rise to significant improvements over the fully laminar and fully turbulent results. Moreover, the new model has comparable features of accuracy and applicability when compared with the original γ-Reθt model. In the meantime, the newly proposed model takes only one transport equation of intermittency factor and requires fewer correlations, which simplifies the original model greatly. Further studies, especially on separation-induced transition flows, are required for the improvement of the new model.

  5. Fiat or bona fide boundary--a matter of granular perspective.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lars Vogt

    Full Text Available Distinguishing bona fide (i.e. natural and fiat (i.e. artificial physical boundaries plays a key role for distinguishing natural from artificial material entities and is thus relevant to any scientific formal foundational top-level ontology, as for instance the Basic Formal Ontology (BFO. In BFO, the distinction is essential for demarcating two foundational categories of material entity: object and fiat object part. The commonly used basis for demarcating bona fide from fiat boundary refers to two criteria: (i intrinsic qualities of the boundary bearers (i.e. spatial/physical discontinuity, qualitative heterogeneity and (ii mind-independent existence of the boundary. The resulting distinction of bona fide and fiat boundaries is considered to be categorial and exhaustive.By Referring to various examples from biology, we demonstrate that the hitherto used distinction of boundaries is not categorial: (i spatial/physical discontinuity is a matter of scale and the differentiation of bona fide and fiat boundaries is thus granularity-dependent, and (ii this differentiation is not absolute, but comes in degrees. By reducing the demarcation criteria to mind-independence and by also considering dispositions and historical relations of the bearers of boundaries, instead of only considering their spatio-structural properties, we demonstrate with various examples that spatio-structurally fiat boundaries can nevertheless be mind-independent and in this sense bona fide.We argue that the ontological status of a given boundary is perspective-dependent and that the strictly spatio-structural demarcation criteria follow a static perspective that is ignorant of causality and the dynamics of reality. Based on a distinction of several ontologically independent perspectives, we suggest different types of boundaries and corresponding material entities, including boundaries based on function (locomotion, physiology, ecology, development, reproduction and common history

  6. Battery parameterisation based on differential evolution via a boundary evolution strategy

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Yang, Guangya

    2013-01-01

    the advances of evolutionary algorithms (EAs). Differential evolution (DE) is selected and modified to parameterise an equivalent circuit model of lithium-ion batteries. A boundary evolution strategy (BES) is developed and incorporated into the DE to update the parameter boundaries during the parameterisation......, as the equivalent circuit model is an abstract map of the battery electric characteristics, the determination of the possible ranges of parameters can be a challenging task. In this paper, an efficient yet easy to implement method is proposed to parameterise the equivalent circuit model of batteries utilising...

  7. Parcels and Land Ownership, Parcel boundaries for Johnson County Kansas based off of legal description. Used to show spatial reference to parcel boundaries of Johnson County Kansas., Published in 2007, Johnson County Government.

    Data.gov (United States)

    NSGIC Local Govt | GIS Inventory — Parcels and Land Ownership dataset current as of 2007. Parcel boundaries for Johnson County Kansas based off of legal description. Used to show spatial reference to...

  8. Coupled vs. decoupled boundary layers in VOCALS-REx

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    C. R. Jones

    2011-07-01

    Full Text Available We analyze the extent of subtropical stratocumulus-capped boundary layer decoupling and its relation to other boundary-layer characteristics and forcings using aircraft observations from VOCALS-REx along a swath of the subtropical southeast Pacific Ocean running west 1600 km from the coast of Northern Chile. We develop two complementary and consistent measures of decoupling. The first is based on boundary layer moisture and temperature stratification in flight profiles from near the surface to above the capping inversion, and the second is based the difference between the lifted condensation level (LCL and a mean lidar-derived cloud base measured on flight legs at 150 m altitude. Most flights took place during early-mid morning, well before the peak in insolation-induced decoupling.

    We find that the boundary layer is typically shallower, drier, and well mixed near the shore, and tends to deepen, decouple, and produce more drizzle further offshore to the west. Decoupling is strongly correlated to the "mixed layer cloud thickness", defined as the difference between the capping inversion height and the LCL; other factors such as wind speed, cloud droplet concentration, and inversion thermodynamic jumps have little additional explanatory power. The results are broadly consistent with the deepening-warming theory of decoupling.

    In the deeper boundary layers observed well offshore, there was frequently nearly 100 % boundary-layer cloud cover despite pronounced decoupling. The cloud cover was more strongly correlated to a κ parameter related to the inversion jumps of humidity and temperature, though the exact functional relation is slightly different than found in prior large-eddy simulation studies.

  9. Mixed Boundary Value Problem on Hypersurfaces

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    R. DuDuchava

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of the present paper is to investigate the mixed Dirichlet-Neumann boundary value problems for the anisotropic Laplace-Beltrami equation divC(A∇Cφ=f on a smooth hypersurface C with the boundary Γ=∂C in Rn. A(x is an n×n bounded measurable positive definite matrix function. The boundary is decomposed into two nonintersecting connected parts Γ=ΓD∪ΓN and on ΓD the Dirichlet boundary conditions are prescribed, while on ΓN the Neumann conditions. The unique solvability of the mixed BVP is proved, based upon the Green formulae and Lax-Milgram Lemma. Further, the existence of the fundamental solution to divS(A∇S is proved, which is interpreted as the invertibility of this operator in the setting Hp,#s(S→Hp,#s-2(S, where Hp,#s(S is a subspace of the Bessel potential space and consists of functions with mean value zero.

  10. Wing aeroelasticity analysis based on an integral boundary-layer method coupled with Euler solver

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ma Yanfeng

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available An interactive boundary-layer method, which solves the unsteady flow, is developed for aeroelastic computation in the time domain. The coupled method combines the Euler solver with the integral boundary-layer solver (Euler/BL in a “semi-inverse” manner to compute flows with the inviscid and viscous interaction. Unsteady boundary conditions on moving surfaces are taken into account by utilizing the approximate small-perturbation method without moving the computational grids. The steady and unsteady flow calculations for the LANN wing are presented. The wing tip displacement of high Reynolds number aero-structural dynamics (HIRENASD Project is simulated under different angles of attack. The flutter-boundary predictions for the AGARD 445.6 wing are provided. The results of the interactive boundary-layer method are compared with those of the Euler method and experimental data. The study shows that viscous effects are significant for these cases and the further data analysis confirms the validity and practicability of the coupled method.

  11. Knowledge Sharing Across Global-Local Boundaries

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Zølner, Mette

    The paper explores how locals span boundaries between corporate and local levels. The aim is to better comprehend potentialities and challenges when MNCs draws on locals’ culture specific knowledge. The study is based on an in-depth, interpretive case study of boundary spanning by local actors in...... approach with pattern matching is a way to shed light on the tacit local knowledge that organizational actors cannot articulate and that an exclusively inductive research is not likely to unveil....

  12. Project Management Plan to Maintain Safe and Compliant Conditions at the Plutonium Finishing Plant

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    COX, G.J.

    1999-01-01

    This Project Management Plan presents the overall plan, description, mission, and workscope for the Plutonium Finishing Plant (PFP) maintain safe and compliant conditions project at PFP. This plan presents the overall description, mission, work scope, and planning for the Plutonium Finishing Plant (PFP) Maintain Safe and Compliant Conditions Project at PFP. This project includes all tasks required to maintain the safety boundary for the PFP Complex, except for the 2736-2 Vault Complex and the 234-52 vaults and vault-type rooms. The intent of this plan is to describe how this project will be managed and integrated with the stabilization, and deactivation activities. This plan supplements the overall integrated plan presented in the Plutonium Finishing Plant Integrated Project Management Plan (IPMP), HNF-3617, Rev. 0. This is the top-level definitive project management document that specifies the technical (work scope), schedule, and cost baselines that will manage the execution of this project. It describes the organizational approach and roles/responsibilities implemented to execute the project. This plan is under configuration management and any deviations must be authorized by appropriate change control action

  13. Screening-level exposure-based prioritization to identify potential POPs, vPvBs and planetary boundary threats among Arctic contaminants

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Efstathios Reppas-Chrysovitsinos

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available A report that reviews Arctic contaminants that are not currently regulated as persistent organic pollutants (POPs under international treaties was recently published by the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP. We evaluated 464 individual chemicals mentioned in the AMAP report according to hazard profiles for POPs, very persistent and very bioaccumulative (vPvB chemicals, and two novel and distinct hazard profiles we derived from the planetary boundary threat framework. The two planetary boundary threat profiles assign high priority to chemicals that will be mobile and poorly reversible environmental contaminants. Utilizing persistence as a proxy for poor reversibility, we defined two exposure-based hazard profiles; airborne persistent contaminants (APCs and waterborne persistent contaminants (WPCs that are potential planetary boundary threats. We used in silico estimates of physicochemical properties and multimedia models to calculate hazard metrics for persistence, bioaccumulation and long-range transport potential, then we synthesized this information into four exposure-based hazard scores of the potential of each AMAP chemical to fit each of the POP, vPvB, APC and WPC exposure-based hazard profiles. As an alternative to adopting a “bright line” score that represented cause for concern, we scored the AMAP chemicals by benchmarking against a reference set of 148 known and relatively well-studied contaminants and expressed their exposure-based hazard scores as percentile ranks against the scores of the reference set chemicals. Our results show that scores in the four exposure-based hazard profiles provide complementary information about the potential environmental exposure-based hazards of the AMAP chemicals. Our POP, vPvB, APC and WPC exposure-based hazard scores identify high priority chemicals for further study from among the AMAP contaminants.

  14. The safe zone for blinded sternal interventions based on CT evaluation of midline congenital sternal foramina

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Boruah, Deb K.; Dhingani, Dhaval D.; Achar, Shashidhar; Augustine, Antony; Mahanta, Kangkana; Prakash, Arjun; Yadav, Rajnikant R.

    2016-01-01

    The aim of this study was to evaluate the safe zone for performing blind sternal procedures based on computed tomography (CT) evaluation of congenital midline sternal foramina using multidetector computed tomography (MDCT). This retrospective study was carried out on 1,180 patients who underwent MDCT of the thorax from March 2015 to February 2016. The MDCT images were evaluated in axial and reformatted planes. Morphometry and prevalence of midline congenital sternal foramina (SF) and manubrio-foraminal distance (MFD) were evaluated. The safe zone was defined for a blinded intervention, based on palpable anatomical landmarks. Data were presented in terms of percentage, mean ± standard deviation and calculations were carried out using Microsoft Excel. The prevalence of SF in our study sample was 11.6 %. The majority of SF were located in a typical position in the lower sternal body at the level of fifth costo-chondral junction (CCJ) in 108 patients (78.8 %). The structure directly beneath the SF was mediastinal fat in 73 patients (53.3 %), followed by anterior pericardium in 44 patients (32.1 %) and lung parenchyma in 20 patients (14.6 %). The mean MFD in our study population was 11.90 ± 1.31 cm. Sternal interventions should be avoided at the level of fourth to sixth CCJ, which is considered the danger zone. An intervention at the fourth to sixth CCJ may lead to disastrous consequences in patients who have SF. (orig.)

  15. The safe zone for blinded sternal interventions based on CT evaluation of midline congenital sternal foramina

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Boruah, Deb K.; Dhingani, Dhaval D.; Achar, Shashidhar; Augustine, Antony; Mahanta, Kangkana [Assam Medical College and Hospital, Department of Radio-diagnosis, Dibrugarh, Assam (India); Prakash, Arjun [NIMHANS, Department of Radio-diagnosis, Bangalore, Karnataka (India); Yadav, Rajnikant R. [Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute and Medical Sciences, Department of Radio-diagnosis, Lucknow (India)

    2016-12-15

    The aim of this study was to evaluate the safe zone for performing blind sternal procedures based on computed tomography (CT) evaluation of congenital midline sternal foramina using multidetector computed tomography (MDCT). This retrospective study was carried out on 1,180 patients who underwent MDCT of the thorax from March 2015 to February 2016. The MDCT images were evaluated in axial and reformatted planes. Morphometry and prevalence of midline congenital sternal foramina (SF) and manubrio-foraminal distance (MFD) were evaluated. The safe zone was defined for a blinded intervention, based on palpable anatomical landmarks. Data were presented in terms of percentage, mean ± standard deviation and calculations were carried out using Microsoft Excel. The prevalence of SF in our study sample was 11.6 %. The majority of SF were located in a typical position in the lower sternal body at the level of fifth costo-chondral junction (CCJ) in 108 patients (78.8 %). The structure directly beneath the SF was mediastinal fat in 73 patients (53.3 %), followed by anterior pericardium in 44 patients (32.1 %) and lung parenchyma in 20 patients (14.6 %). The mean MFD in our study population was 11.90 ± 1.31 cm. Sternal interventions should be avoided at the level of fourth to sixth CCJ, which is considered the danger zone. An intervention at the fourth to sixth CCJ may lead to disastrous consequences in patients who have SF. (orig.)

  16. Safe Anesthesia For Every Tot

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Weiss, Markus; Vutskits, Laszlo; Hansen, Tom G

    2015-01-01

    PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The term 'safe use of anesthesia in children is ill-defined and requires definition of and focus on the 'safe conduct of pediatric anesthesia'. RECENT FINDINGS: The Safe Anesthesia For Every Tot initiative (www.safetots.org) has been set up during the last year to focus...... on the safe conduct of pediatric anesthesia. This initiative aims to provide guidance on markers of quality anesthesia care. The introduction and implementation of national regulations of 'who, where, when and how' are required and will result in an improved perioperative outcome in vulnerable children....... The improvement of teaching, training, education and supervision of the safe conduct of pediatric anesthesia are the main goals of the safetots.org initiative. SUMMARY: This initiative addresses the well known perioperative risks in young children, perioperative causes for cerebral morbidity as well as gaps...

  17. Development of a life-cycle impact assessment methodology linked to the Planetary Boundaries framework

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ryberg, Morten W.; Owsianiak, Mikolaj; Richardson, Katherine

    2018-01-01

    to quantify the share of the “safe operating space� that human activities occupy, as was illustrated by calculating indicator scores for about 10,600 products, technologies and services exemplifying several sectors, including materials, energy, transport, and processing. The PB-LCIA can be used...... by companies interested in gauging their activities against the Planetary Boundaries to support decisions that help to reduce the risk of human activities moving the Earth System out of the Holocene state....

  18. Combining boundary-based methods with tensor-based morphometry in the measurement of longitudinal brain change.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fletcher, Evan; Knaack, Alexander; Singh, Baljeet; Lloyd, Evan; Wu, Evan; Carmichael, Owen; DeCarli, Charles

    2013-02-01

    Tensor-based morphometry is a powerful tool for automatically computing longitudinal change in brain structure. Because of bias in images and in the algorithm itself, however, a penalty term and inverse consistency are needed to control the over-reporting of nonbiological change. These may force a tradeoff between the intrinsic sensitivity and specificity, potentially leading to an under-reporting of authentic biological change with time. We propose a new method incorporating prior information about tissue boundaries (where biological change is likely to exist) that aims to keep the robustness and specificity contributed by the penalty term and inverse consistency while maintaining localization and sensitivity. Results indicate that this method has improved sensitivity without increased noise. Thus it will have enhanced power to detect differences within normal aging and along the spectrum of cognitive impairment.

  19. A Wave-Optics Approach to Paraxial Geometrical Laws Based on Continuity at Boundaries

    Science.gov (United States)

    Linares, J.; Nistal, M. C.

    2011-01-01

    We present a derivation of the paraxial geometrical laws starting from a wave-optics approach, in particular by using simple continuity conditions of paraxial spherical waves at boundaries (discontinuities) between optical media. Paraxial geometrical imaging and magnification laws, under refraction and reflection at boundaries, are derived for…

  20. Boundary-value problems with free boundaries for elliptic systems of equations

    CERN Document Server

    Monakhov, V N

    1983-01-01

    This book is concerned with certain classes of nonlinear problems for elliptic systems of partial differential equations: boundary-value problems with free boundaries. The first part has to do with the general theory of boundary-value problems for analytic functions and its applications to hydrodynamics. The second presents the theory of quasiconformal mappings, along with the theory of boundary-value problems for elliptic systems of equations and applications of it to problems in the mechanics of continuous media with free boundaries: problems in subsonic gas dynamics, filtration theory, and problems in elastico-plasticity.

  1. Safe transport of radioactive materials in Egypt

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    El-Shinawy, R.M.K.

    1994-01-01

    In Egypt the national regulations for safe transport of radioactive materials (RAM) are based on the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) regulations. In addition, regulations for the safe transport of these materials through the Suez Canal (SC) were laid down by the Egyptian Atomic Energy Authority (EAEA) and the Suez Canal Authority (SCA). They are continuously updated to meet the increased knowledge and the gained experience. The technical and protective measures taken during transport of RAM through SC are mentioned. Assessment of the impact of transporting radioactive materials through the Suez Canal using the INTERTRAN computer code was carried out in cooperation with IAEA. The transported activities and empty containers, the number of vessels carrying RAM through the canal from 1963 and 1991 and their nationalities are also discussed. The protective measures are mentioned. A review of the present situation of the radioactive wastes storage facilities at the Atomic Energy site at Inshas is given along with the regulation for safe transportation and disposal of radioactive wastes. (Author)

  2. Self-Reconfiguration Planning of Robot Embodiment for Inherent Safe Performance

    Science.gov (United States)

    Uchida, Masafumi; Nozawa, Akio; Asano, Hirotoshi; Onogaki, Hitoshi; Mizuno, Tota; Park, Young-Il; Ide, Hideto; Yokoyama, Shuichi

    In the situation in which a robot and a human work together by collaborating with each other, a robot and a human share one working environment, and each interferes in each other. In other ward, it is impossible to avoid the physical contact and the interaction of force between a robot and a human. The boundary of each complex dynamic occupation area changes in the connection movement which is the component of collaborative works at this time. The main restraint condition which relates to the robustness of that connection movement is each physical charactristics, that is, the embodiment. A robot body is variability though the embodiment of a human is almost fixed. Therefore, the safe and the robust connection movement is brought when a robot has the robot body which is well suitable for the embodiment of a human. A purpose for this research is that the colaboration works between the self-reconfiguration robot and a human is realized. To achieve this purpose, a self-reconfiguration algorithm based on some indexes to evaluate a robot body in the macroscopic point of view was examined on a modular robot system of the 2-D lattice structure. In this paper, it investigated effect specially that the object of learning of each individual was limited to the cooperative behavior between the adjoining modules toward the macroscopic evaluation index.

  3. Iser: an international inherently safe reactor concept

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wakabayashi, Hiroaki

    1988-01-01

    Iser is a modular standardised 200-300 MWe power reactor based on the PIUS principle. It differs from PIUS in being simpler, and making full use of existing steel-vessel-based LWR technology. Iser is an inherently safe reactor concept under development in Japan. It is a generic concept, not a patented commodity, and it is expected that an international association to develop the concept will be formed. (U.K.)

  4. The Network of Excellence 'Knowledge-based Multicomponent Materials for Durable and Safe Performance'

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Moreno, Arnaldo

    2008-01-01

    The Network of Excellence 'Knowledge-based Multicomponent Materials for Durable and Safe Performance' (KMM-NoE) consists of 36 institutional partners from 10 countries representing leading European research institutes and university departments (25), small and medium enterprises, SMEs (5) and large industry (7) in the field of knowledge-based multicomponent materials (KMM), more specifically in intermetallics, metal-ceramic composites, functionally graded materials and thin layers. The main goal of the KMM-NoE (currently funded by the European Commission) is to mobilise and concentrate the fragmented scientific potential in the KMM field to create a durable and efficient organism capable of developing leading-edge research while spreading the accumulated knowledge outside the Network and enhancing the technological skills of the related industries. The long-term strategic goal of the KMM-NoE is to establish a self-supporting pan-European institution in the field of knowledge-based multicomponent materials--KMM Virtual Institute (KMM-VIN). It will combine industry oriented research with educational and training activities. The KMM Virtual Institute will be founded on three main pillars: KMM European Competence Centre, KMM Integrated Post-Graduate School, KMM Mobility Programme. The KMM-NoE is coordinated by the Institute of Fundamental Technological Research (IPPT) of the Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland

  5. The Network of Excellence ``Knowledge-based Multicomponent Materials for Durable and Safe Performance''

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moreno, Arnaldo

    2008-02-01

    The Network of Excellence "Knowledge-based Multicomponent Materials for Durable and Safe Performance" (KMM-NoE) consists of 36 institutional partners from 10 countries representing leading European research institutes and university departments (25), small and medium enterprises, SMEs (5) and large industry (7) in the field of knowledge-based multicomponent materials (KMM), more specifically in intermetallics, metal-ceramic composites, functionally graded materials and thin layers. The main goal of the KMM-NoE (currently funded by the European Commission) is to mobilise and concentrate the fragmented scientific potential in the KMM field to create a durable and efficient organism capable of developing leading-edge research while spreading the accumulated knowledge outside the Network and enhancing the technological skills of the related industries. The long-term strategic goal of the KMM-NoE is to establish a self-supporting pan-European institution in the field of knowledge-based multicomponent materials—KMM Virtual Institute (KMM-VIN). It will combine industry oriented research with educational and training activities. The KMM Virtual Institute will be founded on three main pillars: KMM European Competence Centre, KMM Integrated Post-Graduate School, KMM Mobility Programme. The KMM-NoE is coordinated by the Institute of Fundamental Technological Research (IPPT) of the Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland.

  6. Safe Sleep for Babies PSA (:60)

    Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

    2018-01-09

    This 60 second public service announcement is based on the January 2018 CDC Vital Signs report. Every year, there are about 3,500 sleep-related deaths among U.S. babies. Learn how to create a safe sleep environment for babies.  Created: 1/9/2018 by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).   Date Released: 1/9/2018.

  7. Asymptotic boundary conditions for dissipative waves: General theory

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hagstrom, Thomas

    1990-01-01

    An outstanding issue in the computational analysis of time dependent problems is the imposition of appropriate radiation boundary conditions at artificial boundaries. Accurate conditions are developed which are based on the asymptotic analysis of wave propagation over long ranges. Employing the method of steepest descents, dominant wave groups are identified and simple approximations to the dispersion relation are considered in order to derive local boundary operators. The existence of a small number of dominant wave groups may be expected for systems with dissipation. Estimates of the error as a function of domain size are derived under general hypotheses, leading to convergence results. Some practical aspects of the numerical construction of the asymptotic boundary operators are also discussed.

  8. Asymptotic boundary conditions for dissipative waves - General theory

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hagstrom, Thomas

    1991-01-01

    An outstanding issue in computational analysis of time dependent problems is the imposition of appropriate radiation boundary conditions at artificial boundaries. Accurate conditions are developed which are based on the asymptotic analysis of wave propagation over long ranges. Employing the method of steepest descents, dominant wave groups are identified and simple approximations to the dispersion relation are considered in order to derive local boundary operators. The existence of a small number of dominant wave groups may be expected for systems with dissipation. Estimates of the error as a function of domain size are derived under general hypotheses, leading to convergence results. Some practical aspects of the numerical construction of the asymptotic boundary operators are also discussed.

  9. The safe home project.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Arphorn, Sara; Jiraniratisai, Sopaphan; Rungtakul, Rungsri; Phutta, Nikom

    2011-12-01

    The Thai Health Promotion Foundation supported the Improvement of Quality of Life of Informal Workers project in Ban Luang District, Amphur Photaram, Ratchaburi Province. There were many informal workers in Ban Luang District. Sweet-crispy fish producers in Ban Luang were the largest group among the sweet-crispy fish producers in Thailand. This project was aimed at improving living and working conditions of informal workers, with a focus on the sweet-crispy fish group. Good practices of improved living and working conditions were used to help informal workers build safe, healthy and productive work environments. These informal workers often worked in substandard conditions and were exposed to various hazards in the working area. These hazards included risk of exposure to hot work environment, ergonomics-related injuries, chemical hazards, electrical hazards etc. Ergonomics problems were commonly in the sweet-crispy fish group. Unnatural postures such as prolonged sitting were performed dominantly. One hundred and fifty informal workers participated in this project. Occupational health volunteers were selected to encourage occupational health and safety in four groups of informal workers in 2009. The occupational health volunteers trained in 2008 were farmers, beauty salon workers and doll makers. The occupational health and safety knowledge is extended to a new informal worker group: sweet-crispy fish producer, in 2009. The occupational health and safety training for sweet-crispy fish group is conducted by occupational health volunteers. The occupational health volunteers increased their skills and knowledge assist in to make safe home and safe community through participatory oriented training. The improvement of living and working condition is conducted by using a modified WISH, Work Improvement for Safe Home, checklist. The plans of improvement were recorded. The informal workers showed improvement mostly on material handling and storage. The safe uses and safe

  10. A safe and reliable neutralization assay based on pseudovirus to measure neutralizing antibody titer against poliovirus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Shaohua; Song, Dongmei; Bai, Han; Lu, Weiwei; Dai, Xinxian; Hao, Chunsheng; Zhang, Zhongyang; Guo, Huijie; Zhang, Yue; Li, Xiuling

    2017-12-01

    With the promotion of inactivated poliomyelitis vaccine (IPV) and live attenuated oral poliomyelitis vaccine (OPV), the global reported cases of poliomyelitis have reduced sharply from 0.35 million in 1988 to 74 in 2015. The Polio Eradication & Endgame Strategic Plan published by WHO in 2013 included the strategy of implementation of poliovirus safe handling and containment measures to minimize the risks of facility-associated reintroduction of virus into the polio-free community to prevent the re-import of poliovirus. Toward this strategy, we produced replication-incompetent pseudovirus of poliovirus type 1, 2, 3 attenuated strains by constructing poliovirus capsid expression vectors and poliovirus replicon then transfecting HEK293T cells and developed a pseudovirus-based neutralization assay (pNA) to determine neutralizing antibody titer which is more secure, time-saving and reliable than conventional neutralization assay (cNA). By using anti-poliovirus rat serum, we demonstrated excellent correlation between neutralizing antibody titers measured by cNA and pNA. It was concluded that pNA can be a potential alternative to replace cNA as a safe and time-saving system for titer determination after live poliovirus's safekeeping. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  11. Boundary organizations to boundary chains: Prospects for advancing climate science application

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Christine J. Kirchhoff

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Adapting to climate change requires the production and use of climate information to inform adaptation decisions. By facilitating sustained interaction between science producers, boundary organizations narrow the gap between science and decision-making and foster the co-production of actionable knowledge. While traditional boundary organization approaches focused on intense one-on-one interactions between producers and users increases usability, this approach requires significant time and resources. Forming “boundary chains”, linking complimentary boundary organizations together, may reduce those costs. In this paper, we use longitudinal observations of a boundary chain, interviews and surveys to explore: (1 how producer-user interactions increase understanding and information usability and (2 if and how efficiencies in climate information production, dissemination and use arise as a result of the boundary chain. We find that forming and sustaining an effective boundary chain requires not only interest, commitment and investment from every link in the chain but also a level of non-overlapping mutual dependency and complementary skill sets. In this case, GLISA’s strength in producing scientific information and their credibility as climate scientists and HRWC’s strengths in facilitation, connection with potential information users, and their recognition and reputation in the watershed add value to the boundary chain enabling the boundary chain to accomplish more with greater efficiency than if each organization in the chain tried to work independently. Finally, data show how the boundary chain increased efficiencies in educating potential users about the strengths and limitations of climate science and improving the production, dissemination, and use of climate information.

  12. Architectural Blueprint for Plate Boundary Observatories based on interoperable Data Management Platforms

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kerschke, D. I.; Häner, R.; Schurr, B.; Oncken, O.; Wächter, J.

    2014-12-01

    Interoperable data management platforms play an increasing role in the advancement of knowledge and technology in many scientific disciplines. Through high quality services they support the establishment of efficient and innovative research environments. Well-designed research environments can facilitate the sustainable utilization, exchange, and re-use of scientific data and functionality by using standardized community models. Together with innovative 3D/4D visualization, these concepts provide added value in improving scientific knowledge-gain, even across the boundaries of disciplines. A project benefiting from the added value is the Integrated Plate boundary Observatory in Chile (IPOC). IPOC is a European-South American network to study earthquakes and deformation at the Chilean continental margin and to monitor the plate boundary system for capturing an anticipated great earthquake in a seismic gap. In contrast to conventional observatories that monitor individual signals only, IPOC captures a large range of different processes through various observation methods (e.g., seismographs, GPS, magneto-telluric sensors, creep-meter, accelerometer, InSAR). For IPOC a conceptual design has been devised that comprises an architectural blueprint for a data management platform based on common and standardized data models, protocols, and encodings as well as on an exclusive use of Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) including visualization components. Following the principles of event-driven service-oriented architectures, the design enables novel processes by sharing and re-using functionality and information on the basis of innovative data mining and data fusion technologies. This platform can help to improve the understanding of the physical processes underlying plate deformations as well as the natural hazards induced by them. Through the use of standards, this blueprint can not only be facilitated for other plate observing systems (e.g., the European Plate

  13. Nonlinear observer-based Lyapunov boundary control of distributed heat transfer mechanisms for membrane distillation plant

    KAUST Repository

    Eleiwi, Fadi

    2016-09-19

    This paper presents a nonlinear observer-based Lyapunov control for a membrane distillation (MD) process. The control considers the inlet temperatures of the feed and the permeate solutions as inputs, transforming it to boundary control process, and seeks to maintain the temperature difference along the membrane boundaries around a sufficient level to promote water production. MD process is modeled with advection diffusion equation model in two dimensions, where the diffusion and convection heat transfer mechanisms are best described. Model analysis, effective order reduction and parameters physical interpretation, are provided. Moreover, a nonlinear observer has been designed to provide the control with estimates of the temperature evolution at each time instant. In addition, physical constraints are imposed on the control to have an acceptable range of feasible inputs, and consequently, better energy consumption. Numerical simulations for the complete process with real membrane parameter values are provided, in addition to detailed explanations for the role of the controller and the observer. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Elaboration of Safe Community Assessment System

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Birutė Mikulskienė

    2013-08-01

    Full Text Available The paper aims to design an assessment system to monitor and evaluate safety parameters and administrative efforts with the purpose to increase safety in municipalities. The safety monitoring system considered is to be the most important tool for creation and development of safe communities in Lithuania. Several methods were applied to achieve this purpose. In order to determine the role of local government in ensuring the safety of people, property and environment at the local level of a meta-analysis of research reports, the Lithuanian national legislation, strategic planning documents of the state and local government were carried out. Analysis of statistical data, structural analysis, comparative analysis and synthesis methods were used while investigating the areas of safety uncertainty, risk groups, identifying safety risk factors, determining their relationship, and creating a safe community assessment system. A safe community assessment system, which consists of two types of criteria, has been elaborated. The assessment system is based on the multi-level criteria for safety monitoring and the multi-level criteria for the evaluation of municipal activities in the field of building safety. Links between the criteria, peculiarities of their application and advantages in the process of safe community creation and development are analyzed. Design and implementation of the safe community assessment system is one of the most important stages to implement the idea of safe communities. The proposed system integrates a variety of risk areas, the safety achievement criteria are linked to the criteria used in the strategic planning. Periodic assessment of the safety situation using the proposed system ensures possibility to monitor current local safety conditions and assess the changes and the trends. A safe community assessment system is proposed to be used as a tool to unified municipalities safety comprehensiveness and compare safety level in

  15. Elaboration of Safe Community Assessment System

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Algirdas Astrauskas

    2011-12-01

    Full Text Available The paper aims to design an assessment system to monitor and evaluate safety parameters and administrative efforts with the purpose to increase safety in municipalities. The safety monitoring system considered is to be the most important tool for creation anddevelopment of safe communities in Lithuania. Several methods were applied to achieve this purpose. In order to determine the role of local government in ensuring the safety of people, property and environment at the local level of a meta-analysis of research reports,the Lithuanian national legislation, strategic planning documents of the state and local government were carried out. Analysis of statistical data, structural analysis, comparative analysis and synthesis methods were used while investigating the areas of safety uncertainty, risk groups, identifying safety risk factors, determining their relationship, and creating a safe community assessment system.A safe community assessment system, which consists of two types of criteria, has been elaborated. The assessment system is based on the multi-level criteria for safety monitoring and the multi-level criteria for the evaluation of municipal activities in the field of building safety. Links between the criteria, peculiarities of their application and advantages in the process of safe community creation and development are analyzed.Design and implementation of the safe community assessment system is one of the most important stages to implement the idea of safe communities. The proposed system integrates a variety of risk areas, the safety achievement criteria are linked to the criteria used in thestrategic planning. Periodic assessment of the safety situation using the proposed system ensures possibility to monitor current local safety conditions and assess the changes and the trends. A safe community assessment system is proposed to be used as a tool to unified municipalities safety comprehensiveness and compare safety level in

  16. Boundary-enhancement in propagation-based x-ray phase-contrast tomosynthesis improves depth position characterization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guan, Huifeng; Xu, Qiaofeng; Garson, Alfred B; Anastasio, Mark A

    2015-04-21

    Propagation-based x-ray phase-contrast (PB XPC) tomosynthesis combines the concepts of tomosynthesis and XPC imaging to realize the advantages of both for biological imaging applications. Tomosynthesis permits reductions in acquisition times compared with full-view tomography, while XPC imaging provides the opportunity to resolve weakly absorbing structures. In this note, an investigation of the depth resolving properties of PB XPC tomosynthesis is conducted. The results demonstrate that in-plane structures display strong boundary-enhancement while out-of-plane structures do not. This effect can facilitate the identification of in-plane structures in PB XPC tomosynthesis that could normally not be distinguished from out-of-plane structures in absorption-based tomosynthesis.

  17. Boundary-enhancement in propagation-based x-ray phase-contrast tomosynthesis improves depth position characterization

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Guan, Huifeng; Xu, Qiaofeng; Garson, Alfred B III; Anastasio, Mark A

    2015-01-01

    Propagation-based x-ray phase-contrast (PB XPC) tomosynthesis combines the concepts of tomosynthesis and XPC imaging to realize the advantages of both for biological imaging applications. Tomosynthesis permits reductions in acquisition times compared with full-view tomography, while XPC imaging provides the opportunity to resolve weakly absorbing structures. In this note, an investigation of the depth resolving properties of PB XPC tomosynthesis is conducted. The results demonstrate that in-plane structures display strong boundary-enhancement while out-of-plane structures do not. This effect can facilitate the identification of in-plane structures in PB XPC tomosynthesis that could normally not be distinguished from out-of-plane structures in absorption-based tomosynthesis. (note)

  18. SAFE-KBS, Substantiating the safety of systems containing knowledge-based components

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mesa, E.; Jimenez, A.

    1998-01-01

    The overall objective of the Safe-KBS project is to develop generic development and certification methodologies that allow the introduction of knowledge-based components in safety-related applications. The expert system technology presents a set of features, such as the capability to provide the rationale for its conclusions, that may significantly contribute to the new operation support systems. Nevertheless, the use of this technology in safety-related applications is limited by the lack of recognised methodologies and standards that allow a formal demonstration of the quality and reliability of these systems, as required for obtaining the approval for their use at nuclear power plants. The development methodology is structured in three hierarchical levels: life cycle model, i.e., processes and activities constituting the life cycle, life cycle plans, i.e., tasks, and support packages, i.e., set of techniques and methods to perform certain activities or tasks. The certification methodology consists of a set of certification requirements and a certification scheme for demonstrating the compliance with these requirements. This project was developed within the European framework ESPRIT, with the collaboration of Sextant, Cise, Qualience, Ilog, Computes, DNV and Uninfo. (Author)

  19. Characterization of geostationary particle signatures based on the 'injection boundary' model

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mauk, B.H.; Meng, C.

    1983-01-01

    To lend further support to the 'injection boundary' concept, this paper characterizes the details of geostationary particle signatures using a very simple-minded analysis procedure. The signatures are generated using the time of flight effects which evolve from an initial sharply defined, double-spiraled boundary configuration. By using only the most fundamental characteristics of standard convection configurations, the very complex and highly variable dispersion patterns frequently observed by geostationary satellites are successfully reproduced. In particular, seven distinctly different ion-electron paired dispersion patterns on energy versus time spectrograms (1 eV to 100 KeV) are predicted, and all seven of these are observed on a regular basis by both the SCATHA satellite (in the near geostationary orbit) and the ATS-6 satellite. Many of the details of the patterns have not been previously presented. It is concluded that most dynamical dispersion features (including energetic ion and electron echoes) can be mapped to the double-spiral boundary without further ad hoc assumptions. It is shown further that the predicted and observed dispersion patterns have symmetries which are distinct from the symmetries generally associated with the quasistationary particle convection patterns

  20. Brain response to prosodic boundary cues depends on boundary position

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Julia eHolzgrefe

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available Prosodic information is crucial for spoken language comprehension and especially for syntactic parsing, because prosodic cues guide the hearer’s syntactic analysis. The time course and mechanisms of this interplay of prosody and syntax are not yet well understood. In particular, there is an ongoing debate whether local prosodic cues are taken into account automatically or whether they are processed in relation to the global prosodic context in which they appear. The present study explores whether the perception of a prosodic boundary is affected by its position within an utterance. In an event-related potential (ERP study we tested if the brain response evoked by the prosodic boundary differs when the boundary occurs early in a list of three names connected by conjunctions (i.e., after the first name as compared to later in the utterance (i.e., after the second name. A closure positive shift (CPS — marking the processing of a prosodic phrase boundary — was elicited only for stimuli with a late boundary, but not for stimuli with an early boundary. This result is further evidence for an immediate integration of prosodic information into the parsing of an utterance. In addition, it shows that the processing of prosodic boundary cues depends on the previously processed information from the preceding prosodic context.

  1. Linear segmentation algorithm for detecting layer boundary with lidar.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mao, Feiyue; Gong, Wei; Logan, Timothy

    2013-11-04

    The automatic detection of aerosol- and cloud-layer boundary (base and top) is important in atmospheric lidar data processing, because the boundary information is not only useful for environment and climate studies, but can also be used as input for further data processing. Previous methods have demonstrated limitations in defining the base and top, window-size setting, and have neglected the in-layer attenuation. To overcome these limitations, we present a new layer detection scheme for up-looking lidars based on linear segmentation with a reasonable threshold setting, boundary selecting, and false positive removing strategies. Preliminary results from both real and simulated data show that this algorithm cannot only detect the layer-base as accurate as the simple multi-scale method, but can also detect the layer-top more accurately than that of the simple multi-scale method. Our algorithm can be directly applied to uncalibrated data without requiring any additional measurements or window size selections.

  2. INCOMPRESSIBLE LAMINAR BOUNDARY LAYER CONTROL BY BLOWING AND SUCTION

    OpenAIRE

    AZZEDINE NAHOUI; LAKHDAR BAHI

    2013-01-01

    A two-dimensional incompressible laminar boundary layer and its control using blowing and suction over a flat plate and around the NACA 0012 and 661012 profiles, is studied numerically. The study is based on the Prandtl boundary layer model using the finite differences method and the Crank-Nicolson scheme. The velocity distribution, the boundary layer thickness and the friction coefficient, are determined and presented with and without control. The application of the control technique, has de...

  3. Unified bulk-boundary correspondence for band insulators

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rhim, Jun-Won; Bardarson, Jens H.; Slager, Robert-Jan

    2018-03-01

    The bulk-boundary correspondence, a topic of intensive research interest over the past decades, is one of the quintessential ideas in the physics of topological quantum matter. Nevertheless, it has not been proven in all generality and has in certain scenarios even been shown to fail, depending on the boundary profiles of the terminated system. Here, we introduce bulk numbers that capture the exact number of in-gap modes, without any such subtleties in one spatial dimension. Similarly, based on these 1D bulk numbers, we define a new 2D winding number, which we call the pole winding number, that specifies the number of robust metallic surface bands in the gap as well as their topological character. The underlying general methodology relies on a simple continuous extrapolation from the bulk to the boundary, while tracking the evolution of Green's function's poles in the vicinity of the bulk band edges. As a main result we find that all the obtained numbers can be applied to the known insulating phases in a unified manner regardless of the specific symmetries. Additionally, from a computational point of view, these numbers can be effectively evaluated without any gauge fixing problems. In particular, we directly apply our bulk-boundary correspondence construction to various systems, including 1D examples without a traditional bulk-boundary correspondence, and predict the existence of boundary modes on various experimentally studied graphene edges, such as open boundaries and grain boundaries. Finally, we sketch the 3D generalization of the pole winding number by in the context of topological insulators.

  4. Dynamic Boundaries of Action Based Learning: the Longitudinal Impact (Invited Paper

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    D. Song

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available How do communities and group-based efforts create, learn and evolve? This paper argues that communities are dynamic, continuously creating connections through cyclical learning processes, regardless of how tight or loosely formulated group based efforts are (Hall et al. 2012. Learning cycles or epicycles processes are relevant for action-based investigation within organizational and social structures. The question of behaviors across boundaries or groups maybe influenced by their positioning within a larger adaptive system, including the type of focus, determined goals and the type of connections that have been developed over time (longitudinally. These types of community or group efforts can be described as autopoietic systems, which operate within larger adaptive societal webs (Nousala 2014. The learning methodologies involved in investigating these types of dynamic phenomena need themselves to be dynamic. These methods can be viewed through longitudinal cycles, (which are essentially feedback loops that include extensive reflective time lines, integration before repetition exposing these epicycles at work. The continuous recording of various processes through epicycles (which are the basis for learning cycles provide a means to "qualitatively measuring" change, which would normally go unseen (Hall et. al 2012; Hall et al. 2005; Nousala and Hall 2008; Wenger and Synder 2000; Garduno et al. 2015.

  5. Estimate of safe human exposure levels for lunar dust based on comparative benchmark dose modeling.

    Science.gov (United States)

    James, John T; Lam, Chiu-Wing; Santana, Patricia A; Scully, Robert R

    2013-04-01

    Brief exposures of Apollo astronauts to lunar dust occasionally elicited upper respiratory irritation; however, no limits were ever set for prolonged exposure to lunar dust. The United States and other space faring nations intend to return to the moon for extensive exploration within a few decades. In the meantime, habitats for that exploration, whether mobile or fixed, must be designed to limit human exposure to lunar dust to safe levels. Herein we estimate safe exposure limits for lunar dust collected during the Apollo 14 mission. We instilled three respirable-sized (∼2 μ mass median diameter) lunar dusts (two ground and one unground) and two standard dusts of widely different toxicities (quartz and TiO₂) into the respiratory system of rats. Rats in groups of six were given 0, 1, 2.5 or 7.5 mg of the test dust in a saline-Survanta® vehicle, and biochemical and cellular biomarkers of toxicity in lung lavage fluid were assayed 1 week and one month after instillation. By comparing the dose--response curves of sensitive biomarkers, we estimated safe exposure levels for astronauts and concluded that unground lunar dust and dust ground by two different methods were not toxicologically distinguishable. The safe exposure estimates were 1.3 ± 0.4 mg/m³ (jet-milled dust), 1.0 ± 0.5 mg/m³ (ball-milled dust) and 0.9 ± 0.3 mg/m³ (unground, natural dust). We estimate that 0.5-1 mg/m³ of lunar dust is safe for periodic human exposures during long stays in habitats on the lunar surface.

  6. Microstructure of a safe-end dissimilar metal weld joint (SA508-52-316L) prepared by narrow-gap GTAW

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ming, Hongliang [Key Laboratory of Nuclear Materials and Safety Assessment, Liaoning Key Laboratory for Safety and Assessment Technique of Nuclear Materials, Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang 110016 (China); University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 19 Yuquan Road, Beijing 100049 (China); Zhang, Zhiming [Key Laboratory of Nuclear Materials and Safety Assessment, Liaoning Key Laboratory for Safety and Assessment Technique of Nuclear Materials, Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang 110016 (China); Wang, Jianqiu, E-mail: wangjianqiu@imr.ac.cn [Key Laboratory of Nuclear Materials and Safety Assessment, Liaoning Key Laboratory for Safety and Assessment Technique of Nuclear Materials, Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang 110016 (China); Han, En-Hou [Key Laboratory of Nuclear Materials and Safety Assessment, Liaoning Key Laboratory for Safety and Assessment Technique of Nuclear Materials, Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang 110016 (China); Wang, Peipei; Sun, Zhiyuan [Shanghai Research Center for Weld and Detection Engineering Technique of Nuclear Equipment, Shanghai 201306 (China)

    2017-01-15

    The microstructure, residual strain and interfacial chemical composition distribution of a safe-end dissimilar metal weld joint (DMWJ, SA508-52-316L) prepared by narrow-gap gas-tungsten arc welding (NG-GTAW) were studied by optical microscope (OM) and scanning electron microscope equipped with an energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis (SEM/EDX) and an electron back scattering diffraction (EBSD) system. Complex microstructure and chemical composition distribution are found, especially at the SA508-52 interface and the 52-316L interface. In brief, a complicated microstructure transition exists within the SA508 heat affected zone (HAZ); the residual strain, the fraction of high angle random grain boundaries and low angle boundaries decrease with increasing the distance from the fusion boundary in 316L HAZ; neither typical type II boundary nor obvious carbon-depleted zone is found near the SA508-52 interface; dramatic and complicated changes of the contents of the main elements, Fe, Cr and Ni, are observed at the distinct interfaces, especially at the SA508-52 interface. No carbon concentration is found at the SA508-52 interface. - Highlights: •Residual strain and GBCD change as a function of the distance from FB in 316L HAZ. •Neither type II boundary nor obvious carbon-depleted zone is found in SA508 HAZ. •No carbon concentration is found at the SA508-52 interface. •The middle part of the DMWJ has the highest residual strain.

  7. Variational boundary conditions based on the Nitsche method for fitted and unfitted isogeometric discretizations of the mechanically coupled Cahn-Hilliard equation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhao, Ying; Schillinger, Dominik; Xu, Bai-Xiang

    2017-07-01

    The primal variational formulation of the fourth-order Cahn-Hilliard equation requires C1-continuous finite element discretizations, e.g., in the context of isogeometric analysis. In this paper, we explore the variational imposition of essential boundary conditions that arise from the thermodynamic derivation of the Cahn-Hilliard equation in primal variables. Our formulation is based on the symmetric variant of Nitsche's method, does not introduce additional degrees of freedom and is shown to be variationally consistent. In contrast to strong enforcement, the new boundary condition formulation can be naturally applied to any mapped isogeometric parametrization of any polynomial degree. In addition, it preserves full accuracy, including higher-order rates of convergence, which we illustrate for boundary-fitted discretizations of several benchmark tests in one, two and three dimensions. Unfitted Cartesian B-spline meshes constitute an effective alternative to boundary-fitted isogeometric parametrizations for constructing C1-continuous discretizations, in particular for complex geometries. We combine our variational boundary condition formulation with unfitted Cartesian B-spline meshes and the finite cell method to simulate chemical phase segregation in a composite electrode. This example, involving coupling of chemical fields with mechanical stresses on complex domains and coupling of different materials across complex interfaces, demonstrates the flexibility of variational boundary conditions in the context of higher-order unfitted isogeometric discretizations.

  8. Analytical solution for the convectively-mixed atmospheric boundary layer

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Ouwersloot, H.G.; Vilà-Guerau de Arellano, J.

    2013-01-01

    Based on the prognostic equations of mixed-layer theory assuming a zeroth order jump at the entrainment zone, analytical solutions for the boundary-layer height evolution are derived with different degrees of accuracy. First, an exact implicit expression for the boundary-layer height for a situation

  9. Chernobyl new safe confinement

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dodd, L.

    2011-01-01

    The author presents the new safe confinement that will be commissioned at Unit 4 of the Chernobyl NPP in 2015. The confinement will ensure that Chernobyl Unit 4 will be placed in an environmentally safe condition for at least next 100 years. The article highlights the current work status, future perspectives and the feasibility of confinement concept [ru

  10. Asymptotically Safe Dark Matter

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sannino, Francesco; Shoemaker, Ian M.

    2015-01-01

    We introduce a new paradigm for dark matter (DM) interactions in which the interaction strength is asymptotically safe. In models of this type, the coupling strength is small at low energies but increases at higher energies, and asymptotically approaches a finite constant value. The resulting...... searches are the primary ways to constrain or discover asymptotically safe dark matter....

  11. Rigid supersymmetry with boundaries

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Belyaev, D.V. [Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY), Hamburg (Germany); Van Nieuwenhuizen, P. [State Univ. of New York, Stony Brook, NY (United States). C.N. Yang Inst. for Theoretical Physics

    2008-01-15

    We construct rigidly supersymmetric bulk-plus-boundary actions, both in x-space and in superspace. For each standard supersymmetric bulk action a minimal supersymmetric bulk-plus-boundary action follows from an extended F- or D-term formula. Additional separately supersymmetric boundary actions can be systematically constructed using co-dimension one multiplets (boundary superfields). We also discuss the orbit of boundary conditions which follow from the Euler-Lagrange variational principle. (orig.)

  12. Safe and effective use of medicines for ethnic minorities

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dam, Pernille; El-Souri, Mira Mahmoud; Herborg, Hanne

    2015-01-01

    , there was a need to adapt a previously developed and validated medicine-based intervention “safe and effective use of medicines” to this vulnerable group of unemployed ethnic minority patients. Methods: The objective of this before-after study was to improve medicines adherence, health status and work ability...... of the target group through an individualized pharmacist delivered intervention with focus on safe and effective implementation of medical treatments. The target group was ethnic minorities of non-western origin affiliated with a job center. Results: At baseline, 35.7 % of the patients had a potential adherence...... to the intervention. Conclusion: The counseling program “Safe and effective use of medicines” was successfully adapted to unemployed ethnic minority patients, and tested in a new collaboration between job centers and community pharmacies. The counseling program resulted in statistically significant improvements...

  13. Development of Safe and Effective Botanical Dietary Supplements.

    Science.gov (United States)

    van Breemen, Richard B

    2015-11-12

    Regulated differently than drugs or foods, the market for botanical dietary supplements continues to grow worldwide. The recently implemented U.S. FDA regulation that all botanical dietary supplements must be produced using good manufacturing practice is an important step toward enhancing the safety of these products, but additional safeguards could be implemented, and unlike drugs, there are currently no efficacy requirements. To ensure a safe and effective product, botanical dietary supplements should be developed in a manner analogous to pharmaceuticals that involves identification of mechanisms of action and active constituents, chemical standardization based on the active compounds, biological standardization based on pharmacological activity, preclinical evaluation of toxicity and potential for drug-botanical interactions, metabolism of active compounds, and finally, clinical studies of safety and efficacy. Completing these steps will enable the translation of botanicals from the field to safe human use as dietary supplements.

  14. Development of Safe and Effective Botanical Dietary Supplements

    Science.gov (United States)

    2015-01-01

    Regulated differently than drugs or foods, the market for botanical dietary supplements continues to grow worldwide. The recently implemented U.S. FDA regulation that all botanical dietary supplements must be produced using good manufacturing practice is an important step toward enhancing the safety of these products, but additional safeguards could be implemented, and unlike drugs, there are currently no efficacy requirements. To ensure a safe and effective product, botanical dietary supplements should be developed in a manner analogous to pharmaceuticals that involves identification of mechanisms of action and active constituents, chemical standardization based on the active compounds, biological standardization based on pharmacological activity, preclinical evaluation of toxicity and potential for drug–botanical interactions, metabolism of active compounds, and finally, clinical studies of safety and efficacy. Completing these steps will enable the translation of botanicals from the field to safe human use as dietary supplements. PMID:26125082

  15. A variable K - planetary boundary layer model

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Misra, P.K.

    1976-07-01

    The steady-state, homogeneous and barotropic equations of motion within the planetary boundary layer are solved with the assumption that the coefficient of eddy viscosity varies as K(Z) = K 0 (1-Z/h)sup(p), where h is the height of the boundary layer and p a parameter which depends on the atmospheric stability. The solutions are compared with the observed velocity profiles based on the Wangara data. They compare favourably. (author)

  16. Divergence-Free Wavelets on the Hypercube : General Boundary Conditions

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Stevenson, R.

    2016-01-01

    On the n-dimensional hypercube, for given k∈N, wavelet Riesz bases are constructed for the subspace of divergence-free vector fields of the Sobolev space Hk((0,1)n)n with general homogeneous Dirichlet boundary conditions, including slip or no-slip boundary conditions. Both primal and suitable dual

  17. Boundary conditions for the numerical solution of elliptic equations in exterior regions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bayliss, A.; Gunzburger, M.; Turkel, E.

    1982-01-01

    Elliptic equations in exterior regions frequently require a boundary condition at infinity to ensure the well-posedness of the problem. Examples of practical applications include the Helmholtz equation and Laplace's equation. Computational procedures based on a direct discretization of the elliptic problem require the replacement of the condition at infinity by a boundary condition on a finite artificial surface. Direct imposition of the condition at infinity along the finite boundary results in large errors. A sequence of boundary conditions is developed which provides increasingly accurate approximations to the problem in the infinite domain. Estimates of the error due to the finite boundary are obtained for several cases. Computations are presented which demonstrate the increased accuracy that can be obtained by the use of the higher order boundary conditions. The examples are based on a finite element formulation but finite difference methods can also be used

  18. Safe Re-use Practices in Wastewater-Irrigated Urban Vegetable Farming in Ghana

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Keraita, Bernard; Abaidoo, R.C; Beernaerts, I.

    2012-01-01

    of stakeholders at different levels along the food chain. This paper presents an overview of safe re-use practices including farm-based water treatment methods, water application techniques, post-harvest handling practices, and washing methods. The overview is based on a comprehensive analysis of the literature......Irrigation using untreated wastewater poses health risks to farmers and consumers of crop products, especially vegetables. With hardly any wastewater treatment in Ghana, a multiple-barrier approach was adopted and safe re-use practices were developed through action research involving a number...... and our own specific studies, which used data from a broad range of research methods and approaches. Identifying, testing, and assessment of safe practices were done with the active participation of key actors using observations, extensive microbiological laboratory assessments, and field...

  19. On boundary superalgebras

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Doikou, Anastasia

    2010-01-01

    We examine the symmetry breaking of superalgebras due to the presence of appropriate integrable boundary conditions. We investigate the boundary breaking symmetry associated with both reflection algebras and twisted super-Yangians. We extract the generators of the resulting boundary symmetry as well as we provide explicit expressions of the associated Casimir operators.

  20. 75 FR 1734 - Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule Safe Harbor Proposed Self-Regulatory Guidelines; i-SAFE...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-13

    ... Proposed Self-Regulatory Guidelines; i-SAFE, Inc. Application for Safe Harbor AGENCY: Federal Trade... for public comment concerning proposed self-regulatory guidelines submitted by i-SAFE, Inc. under the... approval self-regulatory guidelines that would implement the Rule's protections.\\3\\ \\1\\ 64 FR 59888 (1999...

  1. Grain boundary structure and properties

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Balluffi, R.W.

    1979-01-01

    An attempt is made to distinguish those fundamental aspects of grain boundaries which should be relevant to the problem of the time dependent fracture of high temperature structural materials. These include the basic phenomena which are thought to be associated with cavitation and cracking at grain boundaries during service and with the more general microstructural changes which occur during both processing and service. A very brief discussion of the current state of our knowledge of these fundamentals is given. Included are the following: (1) structure of ideal perfect boundaries; (2) defect structure of grain boundaries; (3) diffusion at grain boundaries; (4) grain boundaries as sources/sinks for point defects; (5) grain boundary migration; (6) dislocation phenomena at grain boundaries; (7) atomic bonding and cohesion at grain boundaries; (8) non-equilibrium properties of grain boundaries; and (9) techniques for studying grain boundaries

  2. Vision-based weld pool boundary extraction and width measurement during keyhole fiber laser welding

    Science.gov (United States)

    Luo, Masiyang; Shin, Yung C.

    2015-01-01

    In keyhole fiber laser welding processes, the weld pool behavior is essential to determining welding quality. To better observe and control the welding process, the accurate extraction of the weld pool boundary as well as the width is required. This work presents a weld pool edge detection technique based on an off axial green illumination laser and a coaxial image capturing system that consists of a CMOS camera and optic filters. According to the difference of image quality, a complete developed edge detection algorithm is proposed based on the local maximum gradient of greyness searching approach and linear interpolation. The extracted weld pool geometry and the width are validated by the actual welding width measurement and predictions by a numerical multi-phase model.

  3. A Novel Mesh Quality Improvement Method for Boundary Elements

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hou-lin Liu

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available In order to improve the boundary mesh quality while maintaining the essential characteristics of discrete surfaces, a new approach combining optimization-based smoothing and topology optimization is developed. The smoothing objective function is modified, in which two functions denoting boundary and interior quality, respectively, and a weight coefficient controlling boundary quality are taken into account. In addition, the existing smoothing algorithm can improve the mesh quality only by repositioning vertices of the interior mesh. Without destroying boundary conformity, bad elements with all their vertices on the boundary cannot be eliminated. Then, topology optimization is employed, and those elements are converted into other types of elements whose quality can be improved by smoothing. The practical application shows that the worst elements can be eliminated and, with the increase of weight coefficient, the average quality of boundary mesh can also be improved. Results obtained with the combined approach are compared with some common approach. It is clearly shown that it performs better than the existing approach.

  4. A Method for Extracting Road Boundary Information from Crowdsourcing Vehicle GPS Trajectories.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Wei; Ai, Tinghua; Lu, Wei

    2018-04-19

    Crowdsourcing trajectory data is an important approach for accessing and updating road information. In this paper, we present a novel approach for extracting road boundary information from crowdsourcing vehicle traces based on Delaunay triangulation (DT). First, an optimization and interpolation method is proposed to filter abnormal trace segments from raw global positioning system (GPS) traces and interpolate the optimization segments adaptively to ensure there are enough tracking points. Second, constructing the DT and the Voronoi diagram within interpolated tracking lines to calculate road boundary descriptors using the area of Voronoi cell and the length of triangle edge. Then, the road boundary detection model is established integrating the boundary descriptors and trajectory movement features (e.g., direction) by DT. Third, using the boundary detection model to detect road boundary from the DT constructed by trajectory lines, and a regional growing method based on seed polygons is proposed to extract the road boundary. Experiments were conducted using the GPS traces of taxis in Beijing, China, and the results show that the proposed method is suitable for extracting the road boundary from low-frequency GPS traces, multi-type road structures, and different time intervals. Compared with two existing methods, the automatically extracted boundary information was proved to be of higher quality.

  5. A Method for Extracting Road Boundary Information from Crowdsourcing Vehicle GPS Trajectories

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wei Yang

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available Crowdsourcing trajectory data is an important approach for accessing and updating road information. In this paper, we present a novel approach for extracting road boundary information from crowdsourcing vehicle traces based on Delaunay triangulation (DT. First, an optimization and interpolation method is proposed to filter abnormal trace segments from raw global positioning system (GPS traces and interpolate the optimization segments adaptively to ensure there are enough tracking points. Second, constructing the DT and the Voronoi diagram within interpolated tracking lines to calculate road boundary descriptors using the area of Voronoi cell and the length of triangle edge. Then, the road boundary detection model is established integrating the boundary descriptors and trajectory movement features (e.g., direction by DT. Third, using the boundary detection model to detect road boundary from the DT constructed by trajectory lines, and a regional growing method based on seed polygons is proposed to extract the road boundary. Experiments were conducted using the GPS traces of taxis in Beijing, China, and the results show that the proposed method is suitable for extracting the road boundary from low-frequency GPS traces, multi-type road structures, and different time intervals. Compared with two existing methods, the automatically extracted boundary information was proved to be of higher quality.

  6. Dynamic Phase Boundary Estimation in Two-phase Flows Based on Electrical Impedance Tomography

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lee, Jeong Seong; Muhammada, Nauman Malik; Kim, Kyung Youn; Kim, Sin

    2008-01-01

    For the dynamic visualization of the phase boundary in two-phase flows, the electrical impedance tomography (EIT) technique is introduced. In EIT, a set of predetermined electrical currents is injected through the electrodes placed on the boundary of the flow passage and the induced electrical potentials are measured on the electrodes. With the relationship between the injected currents and the induced voltages, the electrical conductivity distribution across the flow domain is estimated through the image reconstruction algorithm where the conductivity distribution corresponds to the phase distribution. In the application of EIT to two-phase flows where there are only two conductivity values, the conductivity distribution estimation problem can be transformed into the boundary estimation problem. This paper considers phase boundary estimation with EIT in annular two-phase flows. As the image reconstruction algorithm, the unscented Kalman filter (UKF) is adopted since from the control theory it is reported that the UKF shows better performance than the extended Kalman filter (EKF) that has been commonly used. For the present problem, the formulation of UKF algorithm involved its incorporation in the adopted image reconstruction algorithm. Also, phantom experiments have been conducted to evaluate the improvement reported by UKF

  7. Safeness of radiological machinery

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yokoyama, Shun

    1979-01-01

    The human factors affecting the safeness of radiological machinery, which are often very big and complicated machines, are described from the stand point of handling. 20 to 50% of the troubles on equipments seem to be caused by men. This percentage will become even higher in highly developed equipments. Human factors have a great influence on the safeness of radiological equipments. As the human factors, there are sensory factors and knowledge factors as well as psychological factors, and the combination of these factors causes mishandling and danger. Medical services at present are divided in various areas, and consist of the teamwork of the people in various professions. Good human relationship, education and control are highly required to secure the safeness. (Kobatake, H.)

  8. GIVETIAN–FRASNIAN BOUNDARY CONODONTS FROM KERMAN PROVINCE, CENTRAL IRAN

    OpenAIRE

    GHOLAMALIAN, HOSSEIN; HAIRAPETIAN, VACHIK; BARFEHEI, NAHID; MANGELIAN, SOHEYLA; FARIDI, PARVANEH

    2013-01-01

    The Middle - Late Devonian boundary is investigated based on twenty-two conodont species and subspecies from three sections in the north and west of Kerman, southeastern central Iran. Upper Givetian - lower Frasnian carbonates of the basal part of the Bahram Formation transgressively overlie the sandstone beds of the top of (?) Early - Middle Devonian Padeha Formation. These massive skeletal limestones encompass the G-F boundary. The base of Frasnian is identified by the appearance of early f...

  9. Elementare Bildungseinrichtungen als safe spaces für (religiöse Differenz

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Helena Stockinger

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available ENGLISH: Educational institutions sometimes do not offer a space for (religious difference. Based on this fact the term safe space is theoretically specified. It seems important to develop kindergartens as safe spaces in wich learning, belonging and recognizing are possible. As one characteristic of the culture of safe spaces the recognition of (religious difference is pointed out, especially being sensitive about and broaching the issue of difference. DEUTSCH: Bildungseinrichtungen stellen teilweise keinen Artikulationsraum für (religiöse Differenz bereit, wodurch einzelne Kinder organisational benachteiligt werden. Elementare Bildungseinrichtungen könnten aber Räume sein, in denen Lernen, Zugehörigkeit und Anerkennung möglich sind. Hierzu wird der Begriff des safe space beleuchtet und auf elementare Bildungseinrichtungen übertragen. Als ein Merkmal der Kultur der safe spaces gilt die Anerkennung der (religiösen Differenz, indem diese sensibel wahrgenommen und thematisiert wird.

  10. Emerging boundaries

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Løvschal, Mette

    2014-01-01

    of temporal and material variables have been applied as a means of exploring the processes leading to their socioconceptual anchorage. The outcome of this analysis is a series of interrelated, generative boundary principles, including boundaries as markers, articulations, process-related devices, and fixation...

  11. Changing Boundaries

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Brodkin, Evelyn; Larsen, Flemming

    2013-01-01

    project that is altering the boundary between the democratic welfare state and the market economy. We see workfare policies as boundary-changing with potentially profound implications both for individuals disadvantaged by market arrangements and for societies seeking to grapple with the increasing...

  12. Comparison of additional boundary conditions based on thermoreflectance spectra of the Asub(n=1)-exciton in CdS crystals at oblique incidence

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Stoessel, W.; Wagner, H.J.

    1978-01-01

    Thermoreflectance spectra of the Asub(n=1)-exciton in CdS are measured at 8 K for angles of incidence of the light ranging from 5 0 to 85 0 , using three different spatial arrangements between the c-axis, the E- and k-vector of light. Additional boundary conditions of Pekar, Ting et al. Agarwal et al. are discussed for the first time in terms of optical constants. The refractive indices for these additional boundary conditions are derived, considering special features of CdS, such as optical anisotropy, exciton symmetry, and effective exciton mass anisotropy. Fitting calculations based on the experimental data show that Pekar's additional boundary condition gives the best agreement between theory and experiment. (author)

  13. An Efficient Constraint Boundary Sampling Method for Sequential RBDO Using Kriging Surrogate Model

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kim, Jihoon; Jang, Junyong; Kim, Shinyu; Lee, Tae Hee [Hanyang Univ., Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Cho, Sugil; Kim, Hyung Woo; Hong, Sup [Korea Research Institute of Ships and Ocean Engineering, Busan (Korea, Republic of)

    2016-06-15

    Reliability-based design optimization (RBDO) requires a high computational cost owing to its reliability analysis. A surrogate model is introduced to reduce the computational cost in RBDO. The accuracy of the reliability depends on the accuracy of the surrogate model of constraint boundaries in the surrogated-model-based RBDO. In earlier researches, constraint boundary sampling (CBS) was proposed to approximate accurately the boundaries of constraints by locating sample points on the boundaries of constraints. However, because CBS uses sample points on all constraint boundaries, it creates superfluous sample points. In this paper, efficient constraint boundary sampling (ECBS) is proposed to enhance the efficiency of CBS. ECBS uses the statistical information of a kriging surrogate model to locate sample points on or near the RBDO solution. The efficiency of ECBS is verified by mathematical examples.

  14. Influence of Variable Thermal Conductivity on MHD Boundary Layer Slip Flow of Ethylene-Glycol Based Cu Nanofluids over a Stretching Sheet with Convective Boundary Condition

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    N. Bhaskar Reddy

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available An analysis is carried out to investigate the influence of variable thermal conductivity and partial velocity slip on hydromagnetic two-dimensional boundary layer flow of a nanofluid with Cu nanoparticles over a stretching sheet with convective boundary condition. Using similarity transformation, the governing boundary layer equations along with the appropriate boundary conditions are transformed to a set of ordinary differential equations. Employing Runge-kutta fourth-order method along with shooting technique, the resultant system of equations is solved. The influence of various pertinent parameters such as nanofluid volume fraction parameter, the magnetic parameter, radiation parameter, thermal conductivity parameter, velocity slip parameter, Biot number, and suction or injection parameter on the velocity of the flow field and heat transfer characteristics is computed numerically and illustrated graphically. The present results are compared with the existing results for the case of regular fluid and found an excellent agreement.

  15. Nested Bethe Ansatz for Spin Ladder Model with Open Boundary Conditions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wu Junfang; Zhang Chunmin; Yue Ruihong; Li Runling

    2005-01-01

    The nested Bethe ansatz (BA) method is applied to find the eigenvalues and the eigenvectors of the transfer matrix for spin-ladder model with open boundary conditions. Based on the reflection equation, we find the general diagonal solution, which determines the general boundary interaction in the Hamiltonian. We introduce the spin-ladder model with open boundary conditions. By finding the solution K ± of the reflection equation which determines the nontrivial boundary terms in the Hamiltonian, we diagonalize the transfer matrix of the spin-ladder model with open boundary conditions in the framework of nested BA.

  16. Experiment-based modelling of grain boundary β-phase (Mg2Al3) evolution during sensitisation of aluminium alloy AA5083.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, R; Steiner, M A; Agnew, S R; Kairy, S K; Davies, C H J; Birbilis, N

    2017-06-07

    An empirical model for the evolution of β-phase (Mg 2 Al 3 ) along grain boundaries in aluminium alloy AA5083 (Al-Mg-Mn) during isothermal exposures is proposed herein. Developing a quantitative understanding of grain boundary precipitation is important to interpreting intergranular corrosion and stress corrosion cracking in this alloy system. To date, complete ab initio models for grain boundary precipitation based upon fundamental principles of thermodynamics and kinetics are not available, despite the critical role that such precipitates play in dictating intergranular corrosion phenomena. Empirical models can therefore serve an important role in advancing the understanding of grain boundary precipitation kinetics, which is an approach applicable beyond the present context. High resolution scanning electron microscopy was to quantify the size and distribution of β-phase precipitates on Ga-embrittled intergranular fracture surfaces of AA5083. The results are compared with the degree of sensitisation (DoS) as judged by nitric acid mass loss testing (ASTM-G67-04), and discussed with models for sensitisation in 5xxx series Al-alloys. The work herein allows sensitisation to be quantified from an unambiguous microstructural perspective.

  17. Collaboration in Healthcare Through Boundary Work and Boundary Objects

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Meier, Ninna

    2015-01-01

    This article contributes to our understanding of how boundary work is practiced in healthcare settings. Previous studies have shown how boundaries are constantly changing, multiple, and co-existing, and can also be relatively stable cognitive and social distinctions between individuals and groups...

  18. A finite difference method for free boundary problems

    KAUST Repository

    Fornberg, Bengt

    2010-04-01

    Fornberg and Meyer-Spasche proposed some time ago a simple strategy to correct finite difference schemes in the presence of a free boundary that cuts across a Cartesian grid. We show here how this procedure can be combined with a minimax-based optimization procedure to rapidly solve a wide range of elliptic-type free boundary value problems. © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  19. Optimal boundary control and boundary stabilization of hyperbolic systems

    CERN Document Server

    Gugat, Martin

    2015-01-01

    This brief considers recent results on optimal control and stabilization of systems governed by hyperbolic partial differential equations, specifically those in which the control action takes place at the boundary.  The wave equation is used as a typical example of a linear system, through which the author explores initial boundary value problems, concepts of exact controllability, optimal exact control, and boundary stabilization.  Nonlinear systems are also covered, with the Korteweg-de Vries and Burgers Equations serving as standard examples.  To keep the presentation as accessible as possible, the author uses the case of a system with a state that is defined on a finite space interval, so that there are only two boundary points where the system can be controlled.  Graduate and post-graduate students as well as researchers in the field will find this to be an accessible introduction to problems of optimal control and stabilization.

  20. Plasma boundary phenomena in tokamaks

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Stangeby, P.C.

    1989-06-01

    The focus of this review is on processes occurring at the edge, and on the connection between boundary plasma - the scrape-off layer (SOL) and the radiating layer - and central plasma processes. Techniques used for edge diagnosis are reviewed and basic experimental information (n e and T e ) is summarized. Simple models of the SOL are summarized, and the most important effects of the boundary plasma - the influence on the fuel particles, impurities, and energy - on tokamak operation dealt with. Methods of manipulating and controlling edge conditions in tokamaks and the experimental data base for the edge during auxiliary heating of tokamaks are reviewed. Fluctuations and asymmetries at the edge are also covered. (9 tabs., 134 figs., 879 refs.)

  1. Dynamic multiple thresholding breast boundary detection algorithm for mammograms

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wu, Yi-Ta; Zhou Chuan; Chan, Heang-Ping; Paramagul, Chintana; Hadjiiski, Lubomir M.; Daly, Caroline Plowden; Douglas, Julie A.; Zhang Yiheng; Sahiner, Berkman; Shi Jiazheng; Wei Jun

    2010-01-01

    Purpose: Automated detection of breast boundary is one of the fundamental steps for computer-aided analysis of mammograms. In this study, the authors developed a new dynamic multiple thresholding based breast boundary (MTBB) detection method for digitized mammograms. Methods: A large data set of 716 screen-film mammograms (442 CC view and 274 MLO view) obtained from consecutive cases of an Institutional Review Board approved project were used. An experienced breast radiologist manually traced the breast boundary on each digitized image using a graphical interface to provide a reference standard. The initial breast boundary (MTBB-Initial) was obtained by dynamically adapting the threshold to the gray level range in local regions of the breast periphery. The initial breast boundary was then refined by using gradient information from horizontal and vertical Sobel filtering to obtain the final breast boundary (MTBB-Final). The accuracy of the breast boundary detection algorithm was evaluated by comparison with the reference standard using three performance metrics: The Hausdorff distance (HDist), the average minimum Euclidean distance (AMinDist), and the area overlap measure (AOM). Results: In comparison with the authors' previously developed gradient-based breast boundary (GBB) algorithm, it was found that 68%, 85%, and 94% of images had HDist errors less than 6 pixels (4.8 mm) for GBB, MTBB-Initial, and MTBB-Final, respectively. 89%, 90%, and 96% of images had AMinDist errors less than 1.5 pixels (1.2 mm) for GBB, MTBB-Initial, and MTBB-Final, respectively. 96%, 98%, and 99% of images had AOM values larger than 0.9 for GBB, MTBB-Initial, and MTBB-Final, respectively. The improvement by the MTBB-Final method was statistically significant for all the evaluation measures by the Wilcoxon signed rank test (p<0.0001). Conclusions: The MTBB approach that combined dynamic multiple thresholding and gradient information provided better performance than the breast boundary

  2. Parametric boundary reconstruction algorithm for industrial CT metrology application.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yin, Zhye; Khare, Kedar; De Man, Bruno

    2009-01-01

    High-energy X-ray computed tomography (CT) systems have been recently used to produce high-resolution images in various nondestructive testing and evaluation (NDT/NDE) applications. The accuracy of the dimensional information extracted from CT images is rapidly approaching the accuracy achieved with a coordinate measuring machine (CMM), the conventional approach to acquire the metrology information directly. On the other hand, CT systems generate the sinogram which is transformed mathematically to the pixel-based images. The dimensional information of the scanned object is extracted later by performing edge detection on reconstructed CT images. The dimensional accuracy of this approach is limited by the grid size of the pixel-based representation of CT images since the edge detection is performed on the pixel grid. Moreover, reconstructed CT images usually display various artifacts due to the underlying physical process and resulting object boundaries from the edge detection fail to represent the true boundaries of the scanned object. In this paper, a novel algorithm to reconstruct the boundaries of an object with uniform material composition and uniform density is presented. There are three major benefits in the proposed approach. First, since the boundary parameters are reconstructed instead of image pixels, the complexity of the reconstruction algorithm is significantly reduced. The iterative approach, which can be computationally intensive, will be practical with the parametric boundary reconstruction. Second, the object of interest in metrology can be represented more directly and accurately by the boundary parameters instead of the image pixels. By eliminating the extra edge detection step, the overall dimensional accuracy and process time can be improved. Third, since the parametric reconstruction approach shares the boundary representation with other conventional metrology modalities such as CMM, boundary information from other modalities can be directly

  3. A New Algorithm of Shape Boundaries Based on Chain Coding

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zhao Xin

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available A new method to obtain connected component in binary images is presented. The method uses DFA automaton to obtain chain code and label the component boundary. It is theoretically proved that the algorithm improves the image encoding efficiency closer to the lowest time consumption.

  4. Safe Cooperating Cyber-Physical Systems using Wireless Communication

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pop, Paul; Scholle, Detlef; Sljivo, Irfan

    2017-01-01

    This paper presents an overview of the ECSEL project entitled ―Safe Cooperating Cyber-Physical Systems using Wireless Communication‖ (SafeCOP), which runs during the period 2016–2019. SafeCOP targets safety-related Cooperating Cyber-Physical Systems (CO-CPS) characterised by use of wireless...... detection of abnormal behaviour, triggering if needed a safe degraded mode. SafeCOP will also develop methods and tools, which will be used to produce safety assurance evidence needed to certify cooperative functions. SafeCOP will extend current wireless technologies to ensure safe and secure cooperation...

  5. Boundary error analysis and categorization in the TRECVID news story segmentation task

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Arlandis, J.; Over, P.; Kraaij, W.

    2005-01-01

    In this paper, an error analysis based on boundary error popularity (frequency) including semantic boundary categorization is applied in the context of the news story segmentation task from TRECVTD1. Clusters of systems were defined based on the input resources they used including video, audio and

  6. Global stability analysis of axisymmetric boundary layer over a circular cylinder

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bhoraniya, Ramesh; Vinod, Narayanan

    2018-05-01

    This paper presents a linear global stability analysis of the incompressible axisymmetric boundary layer on a circular cylinder. The base flow is parallel to the axis of the cylinder at inflow boundary. The pressure gradient is zero in the streamwise direction. The base flow velocity profile is fully non-parallel and non-similar in nature. The boundary layer grows continuously in the spatial directions. Linearized Navier-Stokes (LNS) equations are derived for the disturbance flow quantities in the cylindrical polar coordinates. The LNS equations along with homogeneous boundary conditions forms a generalized eigenvalues problem. Since the base flow is axisymmetric, the disturbances are periodic in azimuthal direction. Chebyshev spectral collocation method and Arnoldi's iterative algorithm is used for the solution of the general eigenvalues problem. The global temporal modes are computed for the range of Reynolds numbers and different azimuthal wave numbers. The largest imaginary part of the computed eigenmodes is negative, and hence, the flow is temporally stable. The spatial structure of the eigenmodes shows that the disturbance amplitudes grow in size and magnitude while they are moving towards downstream. The global modes of axisymmetric boundary layer are more stable than that of 2D flat-plate boundary layer at low Reynolds number. However, at higher Reynolds number they approach 2D flat-plate boundary layer. Thus, the damping effect of transverse curvature is significant at low Reynolds number. The wave-like nature of the disturbance amplitudes is found in the streamwise direction for the least stable eigenmodes.

  7. A positive view on road safety: Can 'car karma' contribute to safe driving styles?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kleisen, Lucienne M B

    2013-01-01

    Many studies in the field of road safety are occupied with studying road unsafety since it generally concentrates on traffic crashes, crash, risk, and aberrant driving behaviour, especially in relation to young drivers. However, this study shows there is scope for thinking about driving and driver training from a different vantage point, that is in terms of safe or normal driving. The findings are reported from four group interviews with young drivers (18-25 years of age); the young drivers discussed their ideas of safe driving and their reasons for using (or not using) safe driving styles. The data show a type of optimistic thinking among young drivers which they call 'car karma'. This finding offers an opportunity to reconceptualise driving in a way that is focused on normal, safe driving styles, a topic that has received less attention in the past. The paper argues that greater focus on safe driving styles could be more conducive to young drivers actually driving safely than focusing on, for instance, crashes, which on an individual level are relatively rare (Elander et al., 1993, p. 277). Based on empirical research, the first positively stated definition of road safety is proposed based on the notion of 'car karma'. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  8. Simulation of microcirculatory hemodynamics: estimation of boundary condition using particle swarm optimization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pan, Qing; Wang, Ruofan; Reglin, Bettina; Fang, Luping; Pries, Axel R; Ning, Gangmin

    2014-01-01

    Estimation of the boundary condition is a critical problem in simulating hemodynamics in microvascular networks. This paper proposed a boundary estimation strategy based on a particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm, which aims to minimize the number of vessels with inverted flow direction in comparison to the experimental observation. The algorithm took boundary values as the particle swarm and updated the position of the particles iteratively to approach the optimization target. The method was tested in a real rat mesenteric network. With random initial boundary values, the method achieved a minimized 9 segments with an inverted flow direction in the network with 546 vessels. Compared with reported literature, the current work has the advantage of a better fit with experimental observations and is more suitable for the boundary estimation problem in pulsatile hemodynamic models due to the experiment-based optimization target selection.

  9. On boundary conditions in three-dimensional AdS gravity

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Miskovic, Olivera [Instituto de Fisica, P. Universidad Catolica de Valparaiso, Casilla 4059, Valparaiso (Chile) and Departamento de Fisica, P. Universidad Catolica de Chile, Casilla 306, Santiago 22 (Chile)]. E-mail: olivera.miskovic@ucv.cl; Olea, Rodrigo [Departamento de Fisica, P. Universidad Catolica de Chile, Casilla 306, Santiago 22 (Chile) and Centro Multidisciplinar de Astrofisica, CENTRA, Departamento de Fisica, Instituto Superior Tecnico, Universidade Tecnica de Lisboa, Av. Rovisco Pais 1, 1049-001 Lisbon (Portugal)]. E-mail: rolea@fisica.ist.utl.pt

    2006-09-07

    A finite action principle for three-dimensional gravity with negative cosmological constant, based on a boundary condition for the asymptotic extrinsic curvature, is considered. The bulk action appears naturally supplemented by a boundary term that is one half the Gibbons-Hawking term, that makes the Euclidean action and the Noether charges finite without additional Dirichlet counterterms. The consistency of this boundary condition with the Dirichlet problem in AdS gravity and the Chern-Simons formulation in three dimensions, and its suitability for the higher odd-dimensional case, are also discussed.

  10. A boundary integral equation for boundary element applications in multigroup neutron diffusion theory

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ozgener, B.

    1998-01-01

    A boundary integral equation (BIE) is developed for the application of the boundary element method to the multigroup neutron diffusion equations. The developed BIE contains no explicit scattering term; the scattering effects are taken into account by redefining the unknowns. Boundary elements of the linear and constant variety are utilised for validation of the developed boundary integral formulation

  11. Safe shutdown analysis for submerged equipment inside containment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Song, Dong Soo; Lee, Seung Chan; Yoon, Duk Joo; Ha, Sang Jun

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of the paper is to analyze internal flooding effects on the submerged safety-related components inside containment building. Safe shutdown analysis has been performed based on the criteria, assumptions and guideline provided in ANSI/ANS-56.11-1988 and ANSI/ANS-58.11-1988. Flooding can be postulated from a failure of several systems located inside the containment. Loss of coolant accident (LOCA), Feed water line break (FWLB), and other pipe breaks/cracks are assumed. The worst case flooding scenario is a large break LOCA. The maximum flood level for a large break LOCA is calculated based on the combined inventory of the reactor coolant system, the three accumulators, the boron injection tank (BIT), the chemical additive tank (CAT), and the refueling water storage tank (RWST) flooding the containment. The maximum flood level that could occur from all of the water which is available in containment is 2.3 m from the base elevation. A detailed flooding analysis for the components has been performed to demonstrate that internal flooding resulting from a postulated initiating event does not cause the loss of equipment required to achieve and maintain safe shutdown of the plant, emergency core cooling capability, or equipment whose failure could result in unacceptable offsite radiological consequences. The flood height can be calculated as h = (dh/dt) x (t-t 0 ) + h 0 , where h = time dependent flood height and subscript 0 means the initial value and height slope dh/dt. In summary, the submerged components inside containment are acceptable because they complete the mission of safety injection (SI) prior to submeregency or have no safe shutdown function including containment isolation during an accident. (author)

  12. The identification of possible future provincial boundaries for South Africa based on an intramax analysis of journey-to-work data

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    JH Nel

    2008-12-01

    Full Text Available National census data contain information on place of residence and place of work. It is possible to combine this information~and create journey-to-work flows. The process of establishing these flows are presented in this paper. The intramax method is explained and used to identify functional regions based upon these flows. Interesting applications, such as the demarcation of regions in South Africa are considered and solutions to disputed areas are put forward. The process of the creation of the current provincial boundaries are discussed. New boundaries, based on the intramax analysis of the journey-to-work data are proposed for four or five new provinces. Results compare favourably with those from a principal component and cluster analysis, which has previously been used to demarcate the South African space economy into a hierarchy of development regions.

  13. Boundary objects in complementary and alternative medicine: acupuncture vs. Christian Science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Owens, Kellie

    2015-03-01

    Nearly four in ten American use complementary or alternative medicine (CAM) each year. Even with a large number of patients, CAM practitioners face scrutiny from physicians and biomedical researchers who, in an era of evidence-based medicine, argue there is little evidence to support CAM treatments. Examining how CAM has or has not been integrated into American health care is crucial in understanding the contemporary boundaries of healthcare systems. An analytical tool from science and technology studies, boundary objects, can help scholars of medicine understand which practices become integrated into these systems. Using a comparative analysis based on archival and interview data, this paper examines the use of boundary objects in two alternative medical practices - acupuncture and Christian Science. While boundary objects alone cannot explain what health practices succeed or fail, juxtaposing the use of boundary objects by different CAM groups identifies the work boundary objects do to facilitate integration and the conditions under which they "work." I find that acupuncturists' use of sterile needles as a boundary objects assists in their effective integration into U.S. healthcare because needles are both a symbol of biomedical prowess and a potentially unsafe device requiring regulation. Christian Scientists' use of the placebo effect as a boundary object has not succeeded because they fail to acknowledge the different contextual definitions of the placebo effect in biomedical communities. This comparative analysis highlights how context affects which boundary objects "work" for CAM practices and theorizes why alternative health practices succeed or fail to become integrated into healthcare systems. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Safe Minimum Internal Temperature Chart

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Internal Temperature Chart Safe steps in food handling, cooking, and storage are essential in preventing foodborne illness. You can't see, smell, or taste harmful bacteria that may cause illness. In every step of food preparation, follow the four guidelines to keep food safe: ...

  15. Concept of an inherently-safe high temperature gas-cooled reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ohashi, Hirofumi; Sato, Hiroyuki; Tachibana, Yukio; Kunitomi, Kazuhiko; Ogawa, Masuro

    2012-01-01

    As the challenge to ensure no harmful release of radioactive materials at the accidents by deterministic approach instead to satisfy acceptance criteria or safety goal for risk by probabilistic approach, new concept of advanced reactor, an inherently-safe high temperature gas-cooled reactor, is proposed based on the experience of the operation of the actual High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor (HTGR) in Japan, High Temperature Engineering Test Reactor (HTTR), and the design of the commercial plant (GTHTR300), utilizing the inherent safety features of the HTGR (i.e., safety features based on physical phenomena). The safety design philosophy of the inherently-safe HTGR for the safety analysis of the radiological consequences is determined as the confinement of radioactive materials is assured by only inherent safety features without engineered safety features, AC power or prompt actions by plant personnel if the design extension conditions occur. Inherent safety features to prevent the loss or degradation of the confinement function are identified. It is proposed not to apply the probabilistic approach for the evaluation of the radiological consequences of the accidents in the safety analysis because no inherent safety features fail for the mitigation of the consequences of the accidents. Consequently, there are no event sequences to harmful release of radioactive materials if the design extension conditions occur in the inherently-safe HTGR concept. The concept and future R and D items for the inherently-safe HTGR are described in this paper.

  16. DYNAMIC SURFACE BOUNDARY-CONDITIONS - A SIMPLE BOUNDARY MODEL FOR MOLECULAR-DYNAMICS SIMULATIONS

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    JUFFER, AH; BERENDSEN, HJC

    1993-01-01

    A simple model for the treatment of boundaries in molecular dynamics simulations is presented. The method involves the positioning of boundary atoms on a surface that surrounds a system of interest. The boundary atoms interact with the inner region and represent the effect of atoms outside the

  17. A global boundary-layer height climatology

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dop, H. van; Krol, M.; Holtslag, B. [Inst. for Marine and Atmospheric Research Utrecht, IMAU, Utrecht (Netherlands)

    1997-10-01

    In principle the ABL (atmospheric boundary layer) height can be retrieved from atmospheric global circulation models since they contain algorithms which determine the intensity of the turbulence as a function of height. However, these data are not routinely available, or on a (vertical) resolution which is too crude in view of the application. This justifies the development of a separate algorithm in order to define the ABL. The algorithm should include the generation of turbulence by both shear and buoyancy and should be based on readily available atmospheric parameters. There is obviously a wide application for boundary heights in off-line global and regional chemistry and transport modelling. It is also a much used parameter in air pollution meteorology. In this article we shall present a theory which is based on current insights in ABL dynamics. The theory is applicable over land and sea surfaces in all seasons. The theory is (for various reasons) not valid in mountainous areas. In areas where boundary-layer clouds or deep cumulus convection are present the theory does not apply. However, the same global atmospheric circulation models contain parameterizations for shallow and deep convection from which separate estimates can be obtained for the extent of vertical mixing. (au)

  18. Is a structured, manualized, evidence-based treatment protocol culturally competent and equivalently effective among American Indian parents in child welfare?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chaffin, Mark; Bard, David; Bigfoot, Dolores Subia; Maher, Erin J

    2012-08-01

    In a statewide implementation, the manualized SafeCare home-based model was effective in reducing child welfare recidivism and producing high client satisfaction. Concerns about the effectiveness and acceptability of structured, manualized models with American Indians have been raised in the literature, but have rarely been directly tested. This study tests recidivism reduction equivalency and acceptability among American Indian parents. A subpopulation of 354 American Indian parents was drawn from a larger trial that compared services with versus without modules of the SafeCare model. Outcomes were 6-year recidivism, pre/post/follow-up measures of depression and child abuse potential, and posttreatment consumer ratings of working alliance, service satisfaction, and cultural competency. Recidivism reduction among American Indian parents was found to be equivalent for cases falling within customary SafeCare inclusion criteria. When extended to cases outside customary inclusion boundaries, there was no apparent recidivism advantage or disadvantage. Contrary to concerns, SafeCare had higher consumer ratings of cultural competency, working alliance, service quality, and service benefit. Findings support using SafeCare with American Indians parents who meet customary SafeCare inclusion criteria. Findings do not support concerns in the literature that a manualized, structured, evidence-based model might be less effective or culturally unacceptable for American Indians.

  19. A two-dimensional embedded-boundary method for convection problems with moving boundaries

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Y.J. Hassen (Yunus); B. Koren (Barry)

    2010-01-01

    htmlabstractIn this work, a two-dimensional embedded-boundary algorithm for convection problems is presented. A moving body of arbitrary boundary shape is immersed in a Cartesian finite-volume grid, which is fixed in space. The boundary surface is reconstructed in such a way that only certain fluxes

  20. African boundary politics: a case of Ethiopian-Eritrean boundary ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    This paper examined the boundary discord between Ethiopia and Eritrea over the region around Badme which started as a result of artificial boundaries created by the Italian imperialists. The study depicts the evolution of Italian colonialism in Ethiopia between 1936 and 1941. It exposes the differentials existing between the ...

  1. Precession electron diffraction for SiC grain boundary characterization in unirradiated TRISO fuel

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lillo, T.M.; Rooyen, I.J. van; Wu, Y.Q.

    2016-01-01

    Highlights: • SiC grain orientation determined by TEM-based precession electron diffraction. • Orientation data improved with increasing TEM sample thickness. • Fraction of low angle grain boundaries lower from PED data than EBSD data. • Fractions of high angle and CSL-related boundaries similar to EBSD data. - Abstract: Precession electron diffraction (PED), a transmission electron microscopy-based technique, has been evaluated for the suitability for evaluating grain boundary character in the SiC layer of tristructural isotropic (TRISO) fuel. This work reports the effect of transmission electron microscope (TEM) lamella thickness on the quality of data and establishes a baseline comparison to SiC grain boundary characteristics, in an unirradiated TRISO particle, determined previously using a conventional electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) scanning electron microscope (SEM)-based technique. In general, it was determined that the lamella thickness produced using the standard focused ion beam (FIB) fabrication process (∼80 nm), is sufficient to provide reliable PED measurements, although thicker lamellae (∼120 nm) were found to produce higher quality orientation data. Also, analysis of SiC grain boundary character from the TEM-based PED data showed a much lower fraction of low-angle grain boundaries compared to SEM-based EBSD data from the SiC layer of a TRISO-coated particle made using the same fabrication parameters and a SiC layer deposited at a slightly lower temperature from a surrogate TRISO particle. However, the fractions of high-angle and coincident site lattice (CSL)-related grain boundaries determined by PED are similar to those found using SEM-based EBSD. Since the grain size of the SiC layer of TRSIO fuel can be as small as 250 nm (Kirchhofer et al., 2013), depending on the fabrication parameters, and since grain boundary fission product precipitates in irradiated TRISO fuel can be nano-sized, the TEM-based PED orientation data

  2. Boundary regularity of Nevanlinna domains and univalent functions in model subspaces

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Baranov, Anton D; Fedorovskiy, Konstantin Yu

    2011-01-01

    In the paper we study boundary regularity of Nevanlinna domains, which have appeared in problems of uniform approximation by polyanalytic polynomials. A new method for constructing Nevanlinna domains with essentially irregular nonanalytic boundaries is suggested; this method is based on finding appropriate univalent functions in model subspaces, that is, in subspaces of the form K Θ =H 2 ominus ΘH 2 , where Θ is an inner function. To describe the irregularity of the boundaries of the domains obtained, recent results by Dolzhenko about boundary regularity of conformal mappings are used. Bibliography: 18 titles.

  3. Post Fire Safe Shutdown Analysis Using a Fault Tree Logic Model

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yim, Hyun Tae; Park, Jun Hyun

    2005-01-01

    Every nuclear power plant should have its own fire hazard analysis including the fire safe shutdown analysis. A safe shutdown (SSD) analysis is performed to demonstrate the capability of the plant to safely shut down for a fire in any given area. The basic assumption is that there will be fire damage to all cables and equipment located within a common fire area. When evaluating the SSD capabilities of the plant, based on a review of the systems, equipment and cables within each fire area, it should be determined which shutdown paths are either unaffected or least impacted by a postulated fire within the fire area. Instead of seeking a success path for safe shutdown given all cables and equipment damaged by a fire, there can be an alternative approach to determine the SSD capability: fault tree analysis. This paper introduces the methodology for fire SSD analysis using a fault tree logic model

  4. METHODOLOGICAL APPROACHES TO ORGANIZATION OF SAFE INFORMATION AND EDUCATIONAL ENVIRONMENT OF THE UNIVERSITY

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A. N. Privalov

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Introduction. One of the tendencies of modern higher education is the ubiquitous use of information and communication technologies. At the same time, the functioning of the electronic information and educational environment (IEE of the university should be based on the means of IEE and the condition of its information security.The aim of the research is conceptualization of a problem of the rational organization of the safe information and education environment of higher education institution wherein reliable protection of its infrastructure, the personal and unique information of a pupil and teacher and virtual space of their educational interaction is provided.Methodology and research methods. System-based approach is a key approach to organization of safe educational environment of the university. From the point of view of authors, personal-activity and functional approaches are expedient while designing and development of a safe IEE. Socio-historical and theoretical-methodological analysis, modeling, research and synthesis of experience of effective application of the systems approach in educational professional organizations are used.Results and scientific novelty. The concept «safe information educational environment of the university» is specified wherein the first word has to express a predominant quality of the system. Creating a safe information environment in educational professional organizations provides a convenient and safe educational environment in the process of professional training of university students. The components and directions for the organization of the safe IEE are highlighted. Practical recommendations for its design and successful functioning are given.Practical significance. The materials of the present research can be demanded by managers and administrative employees of educational organizations. 

  5. Using Molecular Genetic Markers to Resolve a Subspecies Boundary: The Northern Boundary of the Southwestern Willow Flycatcher in the Four-Corner States

    Science.gov (United States)

    Paxton, Eben H.; Sogge, Mark K.; Theimer, Tad C.; Girard, Jessica; Keim, Paul

    2008-01-01

    , but should be more biologically meaningful because it incorporates the landscape features that may be driving separation of the subspecies. Even so, we caution that using any narrow boundary line as an indicator of subspecies identity could be misleading because biologically the boundary is a region of intergradation rather than a discrete line. Designating, a boundary ultimately becomes a regulatory and management decision based on how much of the genetic variation unique to a subspecies should be protected. We discuss how the results of this study can help guide this decision process by wildlife policy makers.

  6. A phase field study of strain energy effects on solute–grain boundary interactions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Heo, Tae Wook; Bhattacharyya, Saswata; Chen Longqing

    2011-01-01

    We have studied strain-induced solute segregation at a grain boundary and the solute drag effect on boundary migration using a phase field model integrating grain boundary segregation and grain structure evolution. The elastic strain energy of a solid solution due to the atomic size mismatch and the coherency elastic strain energy caused by the inhomogeneity of the composition distribution are obtained using Khachaturyan’s microelasticity theory. Strain-induced grain boundary segregation at a static planar boundary is studied numerically and the equilibrium segregation composition profiles are validated using analytical solutions. We then systematically studied the effect of misfit strain on grain boundary migration with solute drag. Our theoretical analysis based on Cahn’s analytical theory shows that enhancement of the drag force with increasing atomic size mismatch stems from both an increase in grain boundary segregation due to the strain energy reduction and misfit strain relaxation near the grain boundary. The results were analyzed based on a theoretical analysis in terms of elastic and chemical drag forces. The optimum condition for solute diffusivity to maximize the drag force under a given driving force was identified.

  7. Discrete Green's Theorem, Green's Functions and Stable Radiative FDTD Boundary Conditions

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Arnold, J.M.; Hon, de B.P.

    2007-01-01

    We propose a radiative boundary condition for the discrete-grid formulation of Helmholtz’ equation, based on rational approximation in the frequency domain of a Green’s function for the discretised system. This boundary condition is free from instabilities.

  8. Making Boundaries Great Again: Essentialism and Support for Boundary-Enhancing Initiatives.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roberts, Steven O; Ho, Arnold K; Rhodes, Marjorie; Gelman, Susan A

    2017-12-01

    Psychological essentialism entails a focus on category boundaries (e.g., categorizing people as men or women) and an increase in the conceptual distance between those boundaries (e.g., accentuating the differences between men and women). Across eight studies, we demonstrate that essentialism additionally entails an increase in support for boundary-enhancing legislation, policies, and social services, and that it does so under conditions that disadvantage social groups, as well as conditions that benefit them. First, individual differences in essentialism were associated with support for legislation mandating that transgender people use restrooms corresponding with their biological sex, and with support for the boundary-enhancing policies of the 2016 then-presumptive Republican presidential nominee (i.e., Donald Trump). Second, essentialism was associated with support for same-gender classrooms designed to promote student learning, as well as support for services designed to benefit LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer) individuals. These findings demonstrate the boundary-enhancing implications of essentialism and their social significance.

  9. A simple and efficient outflow boundary condition for the incompressible Navier–Stokes equations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yibao Li

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Many researchers have proposed special treatments for outlet boundary conditions owing to lack of information at the outlet. Among them, the simplest method requires a large enough computational domain to prevent or reduce numerical errors at the boundaries. However, an efficient method generally requires special treatment to overcome the problems raised by the outlet boundary condition used. For example, mass flux is not conserved and the fluid field is not divergence-free at the outlet boundary. Overcoming these problems requires additional computational cost. In this paper, we present a simple and efficient outflow boundary condition for the incompressible Navier–Stokes equations, aiming to reduce the computational domain for simulating flow inside a long channel in the streamwise direction. The proposed outflow boundary condition is based on the transparent equation, where a weak formulation is used. The pressure boundary condition is derived by using the Navier–Stokes equations and the outlet flow boundary condition. In the numerical algorithm, a staggered marker-and-cell grid is used and temporal discretization is based on a projection method. The intermediate velocity boundary condition is consistently adopted to handle the velocity–pressure coupling. Characteristic numerical experiments are presented to demonstrate the robustness and accuracy of the proposed numerical scheme. Furthermore, the agreement of computational results from small and large domains suggests that our proposed outflow boundary condition can significantly reduce computational domain sizes.

  10. Staying Safe in the Water

    Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

    In this podcast, Dr. Julie Gilchrist, a pediatrician and medical epidemiologist from CDC’s Injury Center, talks about staying safe in the water. Tips are for all audiences, with a focus on preventing drownings and keeping children safe in and around the pool, lake, or ocean.

  11. The Boundary Function Method. Fundamentals

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kot, V. A.

    2017-03-01

    The boundary function method is proposed for solving applied problems of mathematical physics in the region defined by a partial differential equation of the general form involving constant or variable coefficients with a Dirichlet, Neumann, or Robin boundary condition. In this method, the desired function is defined by a power polynomial, and a boundary function represented in the form of the desired function or its derivative at one of the boundary points is introduced. Different sequences of boundary equations have been set up with the use of differential operators. Systems of linear algebraic equations constructed on the basis of these sequences allow one to determine the coefficients of a power polynomial. Constitutive equations have been derived for initial boundary-value problems of all the main types. With these equations, an initial boundary-value problem is transformed into the Cauchy problem for the boundary function. The determination of the boundary function by its derivative with respect to the time coordinate completes the solution of the problem.

  12. Safe biodegradable fluorescent particles

    Science.gov (United States)

    Martin, Sue I [Berkeley, CA; Fergenson, David P [Alamo, CA; Srivastava, Abneesh [Santa Clara, CA; Bogan, Michael J [Dublin, CA; Riot, Vincent J [Oakland, CA; Frank, Matthias [Oakland, CA

    2010-08-24

    A human-safe fluorescence particle that can be used for fluorescence detection instruments or act as a safe simulant for mimicking the fluorescence properties of microorganisms. The particle comprises a non-biological carrier and natural fluorophores encapsulated in the non-biological carrier. By doping biodegradable-polymer drug delivery microspheres with natural or synthetic fluorophores, the desired fluorescence can be attained or biological organisms can be simulated without the associated risks and logistical difficulties of live microorganisms.

  13. Occupational driver safety: conceptualising a leadership-based intervention to improve safe driving performance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Newnam, Sharon; Lewis, Ioni; Watson, Barry

    2012-03-01

    Occupational driving crashes are the most common cause of death and injury in the workplace. The physical and psychological outcomes following injury are also very costly to organizations. Thus, safe driving poses a managerial challenge. Some research has attempted to address this issue through modifying discrete and often simple target behaviours (e.g., driver training programs). However, current intervention approaches in the occupational driving field generally consider the role of organizational factors in workplace safety. This study adopts the A-B-C framework to identify the contingencies associated with an effective exchange of safety information within the occupational driving context. Utilizing a sample of occupational drivers and their supervisors, this multi-level study examines the contingencies associated with the exchange of safety information within the supervisor-driver relationship. Safety values are identified as an antecedent of the safety information exchange, and the quality of the leader-member exchange relationship and safe driving performance is identified as the behavioural consequences. We also examine the function of role overload as a factor influencing the relationship between safety values and the safety information exchange. Hierarchical linear modelling found that role overload moderated the relationship between supervisors' perceptions of the value given to safety and the safety information exchange. A significant relationship was also found between the safety information exchange and the subsequent quality of the leader-member exchange relationship. Finally, the quality of the leader-member exchange relationship was found to be significantly associated with safe driving performance. Theoretical and practical implications of these results are discussed. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Safe Haven.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bush, Gail

    2003-01-01

    Discusses school libraries as safe havens for teenagers and considers elements that foster that atmosphere, including the physical environment, lack of judgments, familiarity, leisure, and a welcoming nature. Focuses on the importance of relationships, and taking the time to listen to teens and encourage them. (LRW)

  15. Transient Simulations in Hydropower Stations Based on a Novel Turbine Boundary

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yanna Liu

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Most accidents in hydropower stations happened during transient processes; thus, simulation of these processes is important for station design and safety operation. This study establishes a mathematical model of the transient process in hydropower stations and presents a new method to calculate the hydraulic turbine boundary based on an error function of the rotational speed. The mathematical derivation shows that the error function along the equal-opening characteristic curve is monotonic and has opposite signs at the two sides, which means that a unique solution exists to make the error function null. Thus, iteration of the transient simulation is unique and monotonous, which avoids iterative convergence or false solution and improves the solution efficiency compared with traditional methods. Simulation of an engineering case illustrates that the results obtained by the error function are reasonable. Then, the accuracy and feasibility of the mathematical model using the proposed solution are verified by comparison with model and field tests.

  16. Flow stress anisotropy caused by geometrically necessary boundaries

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hansen, N.; Juul Jensen, D.

    1992-01-01

    of dislocations. A model has been proposed for this microstructural anisotropy based on the assumptions that (i) the average slip plane is at an angle of 45-degrees to the direction of the applied stress and that (ii) a strengthening parameter is the mean distance in the slip plane between the geometrically...... necessary boundaries. For different macroscopic arrangements of such boundaries, the model predictions are in good qualitative and quantitative agreement with experiments....

  17. Evolution of grain boundary character distributions in alloy 825 tubes during high temperature annealing: Is grain boundary engineering achieved through recrystallization or grain growth?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bai, Qin; Zhao, Qing; Xia, Shuang; Wang, Baoshun; Zhou, Bangxin; Su, Cheng

    2017-01-01

    Grain boundary engineering (GBE) of nickel-based alloy 825 tubes was carried out with different cold drawing deformations by using a draw-bench on a factory production line and subsequent annealing at various temperatures. The microstructure evolution of alloy 825 during thermal-mechanical processing (TMP) was characterized by means of the electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) technique to study the TMP effects on the grain boundary network and the evolution of grain boundary character distributions during high temperature annealing. The results showed that the proportion of ∑ 3 n coincidence site lattice (CSL) boundaries of alloy 825 tubes could be increased to > 75% by the TMP of 5% cold drawing and subsequent annealing at 1050 °C for 10 min. The microstructures of the partially recrystallized samples and the fully recrystallized samples suggested that the proportion of low ∑ CSL grain boundaries depended on the annealing time. The frequency of low ∑ CSL grain boundaries increases rapidly with increasing annealing time associating with the formation of large-size highly-twinned grains-cluster microstructure during recrystallization. However, upon further increasing annealing time, the frequency of low ∑ CSL grain boundaries decreased markedly during grain growth. So it is concluded that grain boundary engineering is achieved through recrystallization rather than grain growth. - Highlights: •The grain boundary engineering (GBE) is applicable to 825 tubes. •GBE is achieved through recrystallization rather than grain growth. •The low ∑ CSL grain boundaries in 825 tubes can be increased to > 75%.

  18. Anti-3D Weapon Model Detection for Safe 3D Printing Based on Convolutional Neural Networks and D2 Shape Distribution

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Giao N. Pham

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available With the development of 3D printing, weapons are easily printed without any restriction from the production managers. Therefore, anti-3D weapon model detection is necessary issue in safe 3D printing to prevent the printing of 3D weapon models. In this paper, we would like to propose an anti-3D weapon model detection algorithm to prevent the printing of anti-3D weapon models for safe 3D printing based on the D2 shape distribution and an improved convolutional neural networks (CNNs. The purpose of the proposed algorithm is to detect anti-3D weapon models when they are used in 3D printing. The D2 shape distribution is computed from random points on the surface of a 3D weapon model and their geometric features in order to construct a D2 vector. The D2 vector is then trained by improved CNNs. The CNNs are used to detect anti-3D weapon models for safe 3D printing by training D2 vectors which have been constructed from the D2 shape distribution of 3D weapon models. Experiments with 3D weapon models proved that the D2 shape distribution of 3D weapon models in the same class is the same. Training and testing results also verified that the accuracy of the proposed algorithm is higher than the conventional works. The proposed algorithm is applied in a small application, and it could detect anti-3D weapon models for safe 3D printing.

  19. FoodWiki: Ontology-Driven Mobile Safe Food Consumption System

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Duygu Çelik

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available An ontology-driven safe food consumption mobile system is considered. Over 3,000 compounds are being added to processed food, with numerous effects on the food: to add color, stabilize, texturize, preserve, sweeten, thicken, add flavor, soften, emulsify, and so forth. According to World Health Organization, governments have lately focused on legislation to reduce such ingredients or compounds in manufactured foods as they may have side effects causing health risks such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes, allergens, and obesity. By supervising what and how much to eat as well as what not to eat, we can maximize a patient’s life quality through avoidance of unhealthy ingredients. Smart e-health systems with powerful knowledge bases can provide suggestions of appropriate foods to individuals. Next-generation smart knowledgebase systems will not only include traditional syntactic-based search, which limits the utility of the search results, but will also provide semantics for rich searching. In this paper, performance of concept matching of food ingredients is semantic-based, meaning that it runs its own semantic based rule set to infer meaningful results through the proposed Ontology-Driven Mobile Safe Food Consumption System (FoodWiki.

  20. Uniqueness of solution to a stationary boundary kinetic problem

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhykharsky, A.V.

    1992-01-01

    The paper treats the question of uniqueness of solution to the boundary kinetic problem. This analysis is based on the accurate solutions to the stationary one-dimensional boundary kinetic problem for the limited plasma system. In the paper a simplified problem statement is used (no account is taken of the external magnetic field, a simplest form of boundary conditions is accepted) which, however, covers all features of the problem considered. Omitting the details of the conclusion we will write a set of Vlasov stationary kinetic equations for the cases of plane, cylindrical and spherical geometry of the problem. (author) 1 ref

  1. Grain boundary migration

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dimitrov, O.

    1975-01-01

    Well-established aspects of grain-boundary migration are first briefly reviewed (influences of driving force, temperature, orientation and foreign atoms). Recent developments of the experimental methods and results are then examined, by considering the various driving of resistive forces acting on grain boundaries. Finally, the evolution in the theoretical models of grain-boundary motion is described, on the one hand for ideally pure metals and, on the other hand, in the presence of solute impurity atoms [fr

  2. International boundary experiences by the United Nations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kagawa, A.

    2013-12-01

    of geospatial solutions, some of the good practices that have been applied in preceding projects, but there have been challenges and limitations faced. However, these challenges need to be seen as an opportunity to improve the geospatial technology solutions in future international boundary projects. This presentation will also share the aspirations that the United Nations Cartographic Section has in becoming a facilitator in geospatial technical aspects related to international boundary issues as we increasingly develop our geospatial institutional knowledge base and expertise. The presentation will conclude by emphasizing the need for more collaboration between different actors dealing with geospatial technology on borderland issues in order to meet the main goal of the United Nations - to live and work together as "We the Peoples of the United Nations".

  3. Quantum effective action in spacetimes with branes and boundaries

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Barvinsky, A.O.; Nesterov, D.V.

    2006-01-01

    We construct quantum effective action in spacetime with branes/boundaries. This construction is based on the reduction of the underlying Neumann type boundary value problem for the propagator of the theory to that of the much more manageable Dirichlet problem. In its turn, this reduction follows from the recently suggested Neumann-Dirichlet duality which we extend beyond the tree-level approximation. In the one-loop approximation this duality suggests that the functional determinant of the differential operator subject to Neumann boundary conditions factorizes into the product of its Dirichlet counterpart and the functional determinant of a special operator on the brane--the inverse of the brane-to-brane propagator. As a byproduct of this relation we suggest a new method for surface terms of the heat kernel expansion. This method allows one to circumvent well-known difficulties in the heat kernel theory on manifolds with boundaries for a wide class of generalized Neumann boundary conditions. In particular, we easily recover several lowest-order surface terms in the case of Robin and oblique boundary onditions. We briefly discuss multiloop applications of the suggested Dirichlet reduction and the prospects of constructing the universal background-field method for systems with branes/boundaries, analogous to the Schwinger-DeWitt technique

  4. Flexible and Safe Control of Mobile Surface Systems, Phase I

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The primary innovation of this work is a novel Petri net based approach for safe and flexible control of highly capable mobile surface systems, such as long-duration...

  5. Precipitates and boundaries interaction in ferritic ODS steels

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sallez, Nicolas, E-mail: nicolas.sallez@simap.grenoble-inp.fr [Univ. Grenoble Alpes, SIMAP, F-38000 Grenoble (France); Hatzoglou, Constantinos [Groupe de Physique des Matériaux, Université et INSA de Rouen, UMR CNRS 6634, Normandie Université (France); Delabrouille, Fredéric [EDF–EDF R& D, Les Renardières, 77818 Moret-sur-Loing (France); Sornin, Denis; Chaffron, Laurent [CEA, DEN, Service de Recherches Métallurgiques Appliqué, 91191 Gif-sur-Yvette (France); Blat-Yrieix, Martine [EDF–EDF R& D, Les Renardières, 77818 Moret-sur-Loing (France); Radiguet, Bertrand; Pareige, Philippe [Groupe de Physique des Matériaux, Université et INSA de Rouen, UMR CNRS 6634, Normandie Université (France); Donnadieu, Patricia; Bréchet, Yves [Univ. Grenoble Alpes, SIMAP, F-38000 Grenoble (France)

    2016-04-15

    Based on the previous observations, a dissolution mechanism of the metastable yttrium precipitates at the grain boundaries is proposed.

  6. Transonic shock wave. Boundary layer interaction at a convex wall

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Koren, B.; Bannink, W.J.

    1984-01-01

    A standard finite element procedure has been applied to the problem of transonic shock wave – boundary layer interaction at a convex wall. The method is based on the analytical Bohning-Zierep model, where the boundary layer is perturbed by a weak normal shock wave which shows a singular pressure

  7. Grain Boundary Segregation in Metals

    CERN Document Server

    Lejcek, Pavel

    2010-01-01

    Grain boundaries are important structural components of polycrystalline materials used in the vast majority of technical applications. Because grain boundaries form a continuous network throughout such materials, their properties may limit their practical use. One of the serious phenomena which evoke these limitations is the grain boundary segregation of impurities. It results in the loss of grain boundary cohesion and consequently, in brittle fracture of the materials. The current book deals with fundamentals of grain boundary segregation in metallic materials and its relationship to the grain boundary structure, classification and other materials properties.

  8. Boundary element method for internal axisymmetric flow

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gokhman Alexander

    1999-01-01

    Full Text Available We present an accurate fast method for the computation of potential internal axisymmetric flow based on the boundary element technique. We prove that the computed velocity field asymptotically satisfies reasonable boundary conditions at infinity for various types of inlet/exit. Computation of internal axisymmetric potential flow is an essential ingredient in the three-dimensional problem of computation of velocity fields in turbomachines. We include the results of a practical application of the method to the computation of flow in turbomachines of Kaplan and Francis types.

  9. More than a Safe Space

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sadowski, Michael

    2016-01-01

    Over the past three decades, much of the conversation about LGBTQ students in schools has centered on safety--anti-bullying policies, the "safe space" of gay-straight alliances, and "safe zones" marked by rainbow-colored stickers on classroom doors. In this article, Michael Sadowski argues that it's time to move beyond safety…

  10. Safe injection procedures, injection practices, and needlestick ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Results: Safe injection procedures regarding final waste disposal were sufficiently adopted, while measures regarding disposable injection equipment, waste containers, hand hygiene, as well as injection practices were inadequately carried out. Lack of job aid posters that promote safe injection and safe disposal of ...

  11. How safe is safe?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hughes, C.F.; Flood, M.

    1996-01-01

    Full text: The Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods lists over 25,000 medical device types currently supplied to Australian consumers. It is widely assumed that all goods listed on this register have been fully evaluated for safety and efficacy by the Therapeutic Goods Administration. However, only 1,010 devices are registered and thereby subject to full premarket evaluation. Five classes of registerable devices were arbitrarily assigned in 1986 based on overseas experience (Canada and the USA) and the work of several Advisory Panels convened by the then Minister of Health, Dr Neal Blewett. Some products have been removed from registerable categories, while others have been added. These decisions were made after reviewing device performance and problems. In May 1987, the Therapeutic Device Evaluation Committee (TDEC) and the Therapeutic Goods Administration introduced the Australian Therapeutic Device Problem Reporting Scheme. Under this scheme, any interested person can report medical device related problems to the Department for investigation. Each problem is investigated, a cause and/or outcome assigned and appropriate action is taken. Analysis of problem reports received indicates that no regulatory action was necessary in 34% of investigations. However, 24% of products required product improvement and recalls and/or safety alerts were issued for approximately 10% of problems investigated. In only 5% was the problem not confirmed by departmental investigation. The actual effect of the problem reported was temporary or minor injury in 10% of patients. In 2%, death or serious injury resulted. Forty-four percent of problems did not lead to patient injury at all and in 44% the problem was not related to the patient and/or his well being. However, the potential effect of death or serious injury was present in 17% of device problems. In 26% of reported events, temporary or minor injury could have occurred. Specific device related problems include the Bjork Shiley

  12. Reconstruction of boundary conditions from internal conditions using viability theory

    KAUST Repository

    Hofleitner, Aude; Claudel, Christian G.; Bayen, Alexandre M.

    2012-01-01

    This article presents a method for reconstructing downstream boundary conditions to a HamiltonJacobi partial differential equation for which initial and upstream boundary conditions are prescribed as piecewise affine functions and an internal condition is prescribed as an affine function. Based on viability theory, we reconstruct the downstream boundary condition such that the solution of the Hamilton-Jacobi equation with the prescribed initial and upstream conditions and reconstructed downstream boundary condition satisfies the internal value condition. This work has important applications for estimation in flow networks with unknown capacity reductions. It is applied to urban traffic, to reconstruct signal timings and temporary capacity reductions at intersections, using Lagrangian sensing such as GPS devices onboard vehicles.

  13. Reconstruction of boundary conditions from internal conditions using viability theory

    KAUST Repository

    Hofleitner, Aude

    2012-06-01

    This article presents a method for reconstructing downstream boundary conditions to a HamiltonJacobi partial differential equation for which initial and upstream boundary conditions are prescribed as piecewise affine functions and an internal condition is prescribed as an affine function. Based on viability theory, we reconstruct the downstream boundary condition such that the solution of the Hamilton-Jacobi equation with the prescribed initial and upstream conditions and reconstructed downstream boundary condition satisfies the internal value condition. This work has important applications for estimation in flow networks with unknown capacity reductions. It is applied to urban traffic, to reconstruct signal timings and temporary capacity reductions at intersections, using Lagrangian sensing such as GPS devices onboard vehicles.

  14. Anatomical Basis for Safe and Effective Volumization of the Temple.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Breithaupt, Andrew D; Jones, Derek H; Braz, Andre; Narins, Rhoda; Weinkle, Susan

    2015-12-01

    One of the earliest but often unaddressed signs of facial aging is volume loss in the temple. Treatment of the area can produce satisfying results for both patient and practitioner. Safe injection requires explicit knowledge of the anatomy to avoid complications related to the multitude of vessels that course throughout the region at various depths. The authors aim to detail the anatomy of the area and provide a safe and easy-to-follow method for injection. The authors review the relevant anatomy of the temporal region and its application to cosmetic filler injections. The authors describe an easy-to-follow approach for a safe and effective injection window based on numerous anatomical studies. Injection in this area is not without risk, including potential blindness. The authors review the potential complications and their treatments. Hollowing of the temple is an early sign of aging that, when corrected, can lead to significant patient and practitioner satisfaction. Proper anatomically knowledge is required to avoid potentially severe complications. In this study, the authors present a reliable technique to safely and effectively augment this often undertreated area of the aging face.

  15. Dual boundary spanning

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Li-Ying, Jason

    2016-01-01

    The extant literature runs short in understanding openness of innovation regarding and the different pathways along which internal and external knowledge resources can be combined. This study proposes a unique typology for outside-in innovations based on two distinct ways of boundary spanning......: whether an innovation idea is created internally or externally and whether an innovation process relies on external knowledge resources. This yields four possible types of innovation, which represent the nuanced variation of outside-in innovations. Using historical data from Canada for 1945...

  16. Managing Cassini Safe Mode Attitude at Saturn

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burk, Thomas A.

    2010-01-01

    The Cassini spacecraft was launched on October 15, 1997 and arrived at Saturn on June 30, 2004. It has performed detailed observations and remote sensing of Saturn, its rings, and its satellites since that time. In the event safe mode interrupts normal orbital operations, Cassini has flight software fault protection algorithms to detect, isolate, and recover to a thermally safe and commandable attitude and then wait for further instructions from the ground. But the Saturn environment is complex, and safety hazards change depending on where Cassini is in its orbital trajectory around Saturn. Selecting an appropriate safe mode attitude that insures safe operation in the Saturn environment, including keeping the star tracker field of view clear of bright bodies, while maintaining a quiescent, commandable attitude, is a significant challenge. This paper discusses the Cassini safe table management strategy and the key criteria that must be considered, especially during low altitude flybys of Titan, in deciding what spacecraft attitude should be used in the event of safe mode.

  17. Subgroup report on grain boundary and interphase boundary structure and properties

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Balluffi, R.W.; Cannon, R.M.; Clarke, D.R.; Heuer, A.H.; Ho, P.S.; Kear, B.H.; Vitek, V.; Weertman, J.R.; White, C.L.

    1979-01-01

    In many high temperature structural applications, the performance characteristics of a materials system are largely controlled by the properties of its grain and interphase boundaries. Failure in creep and fatigue frequently occurs by cavitation, or cracking along grain boundaries. In a few special cases, this failure problem has been overcome by directional alignment of grain and interphase boundaries by various types of metallurgical processing such as directional solidification and directional recrystallization. A good example is to be found in the application of directionally aligned structures in high performance gas-turbine airfoils. However, where fine, equiaxed grain structures are desirable, other methods of controlling grain boundary properties have been developed. Important among these has been the introduction of improvements in primary melting practices, designed to control important impurities. This is of decisive importance because even traces of certain impurity elements present in grain boundaries in high temperature materials can seriously affect properties. Impurities are deleterious and need to be removed. However, in certain cases, (e.g., creep fracture) controlled impurity additions can be beneficial and result in improved properties

  18. Switching moving boundary models for two-phase flow evaporators and condensers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bonilla, Javier; Dormido, Sebastián; Cellier, François E.

    2015-03-01

    The moving boundary method is an appealing approach for the design, testing and validation of advanced control schemes for evaporators and condensers. When it comes to advanced control strategies, not only accurate but fast dynamic models are required. Moving boundary models are fast low-order dynamic models, and they can describe the dynamic behavior with high accuracy. This paper presents a mathematical formulation based on physical principles for two-phase flow moving boundary evaporator and condenser models which support dynamic switching between all possible flow configurations. The models were implemented in a library using the equation-based object-oriented Modelica language. Several integrity tests in steady-state and transient predictions together with stability tests verified the models. Experimental data from a direct steam generation parabolic-trough solar thermal power plant is used to validate and compare the developed moving boundary models against finite volume models.

  19. Classically integrable boundary conditions for affine Toda field theories

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bowcock, P.; Corrigan, E.; Dorey, P.E.; Rietdijk, R.H.

    1995-01-01

    Boundary conditions compatible with classical integrability are studied both directly, using an approach based on the explicit construction of conserved quantities, and indirectly by first developing a generalisation of the Lax pair idea. The latter approach is closer to the spirit of earlier work by Sklyanin and yields a complete set of conjectures for permissible boundary conditions for any affine Toda field theory. (orig.)

  20. Experimental Research on Boundary Shear Stress in Typical Meandering Channel

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Kai-hua; Xia, Yun-feng; Zhang, Shi-zhao; Wen, Yun-cheng; Xu, Hua

    2018-06-01

    A novel instrument named Micro-Electro-Mechanical System (MEMS) flexible hot-film shear stress sensor was used to study the boundary shear stress distribution in the generalized natural meandering open channel, and the mean sidewall shear stress distribution along the meandering channel, and the lateral boundary shear stress distribution in the typical cross-section of the meandering channel was analysed. Based on the measurement of the boundary shear stress, a semi-empirical semi-theoretical computing approach of the boundary shear stress was derived including the effects of the secondary flow, sidewall roughness factor, eddy viscosity and the additional Reynolds stress, and more importantly, for the first time, it combined the effects of the cross-section central angle and the Reynolds number into the expressions. Afterwards, a comparison between the previous research and this study was developed. Following the result, we found that the semi-empirical semi-theoretical boundary shear stress distribution algorithm can predict the boundary shear stress distribution precisely. Finally, a single factor analysis was conducted on the relationship between the average sidewall shear stress on the convex and concave bank and the flow rate, water depth, slope ratio, or the cross-section central angle of the open channel bend. The functional relationship with each of the above factors was established, and then the distance from the location of the extreme sidewall shear stress to the bottom of the open channel was deduced based on the statistical theory.

  1. Development status of PIUS/ISER - a inherently safe reactor for the international use

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wakabayashi, Hiroaki

    1987-01-01

    It is just in early 1980s that LWR-based nuclear power has become a substantial power source. Though the safety level of nuclear power is always claimed to be sufficiently high by the industry, it rests on the idea of defense in depth, the calculation by probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) or probabilistic safety assessment (PSA). The TMI-2 and Chernobyl-4 accidents occurred in the industrially most advanced countries. In this paper, an alternative way to safe nuclear power is sought in so-called inherently safe reactors (ISR) including the LWR type PIUS/ISER. With proper consideration into the design of nuclear reactor plants, those can be made basically safe through the use of passive safe mechanism for their design. In short, an ISR is a nuclear power reactor which has passive and intrinsic core cooling capability and automatic shutdown capability. As the nuclear power reactors which are currently claimed to be inherently safe, there are the process inherent and ultimately safe reactor (PIUS) of ASEA-ATOM Sweden and the inherently safe and economical reactor (ISER) of the University of Tokyo, Japan, of LWR type. The current status of the development, the reliability, and some technical problems of ISER/PIUS and the attitude of various countries toward ISER/PIUS are described. (Kako, I.)

  2. Computer generated structures of grain boundaries in Li2-type ordered alloys

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    DeHosson, J.Th.M.; Pestman, B.J.; Schapink, F.W.; Tichelaar, F.D.

    1988-01-01

    In recent years, the influence of the establishment of long-range order in cubic alloys on the structure of grain boundaries in Li 2 alloys has been considered. Thus, for example, for the Σ = 5 (310) tilt boundary the various possible structures have been investigated that are generated upon ordering, starting from plausible structures in the disordered state. However, apart from some rough energy estimates based upon nearest neighbor interactions, no reliable energy calculations have been performed of these different possible structures. In this paper, computer calculations based upon interatomic pair potentials constructed in such a way that the Li 2 structure is stable with respect to disordering, are reported for the Σ = 5 (310) boundary. The relative stability of various possible structures, with associated different boundary compositions, has been investigated

  3. The Extraction of Road Boundary from Crowdsourcing Trajectory Using Constrained Delaunay Triangulation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    YANG Wei

    2017-02-01

    Full Text Available Extraction of road boundary accurately from crowdsourcing trajectory lines is still a hard work.Therefore,this study presented a new approach to use vehicle trajectory lines to extract road boundary.Firstly, constructing constrained Delaunay triangulation within interpolated track lines to calculate road boundary descriptors using triangle edge length and Voronoi cell.Road boundary recognition model was established by integrating the two boundary descriptors.Then,based on seed polygons,a regional growing method was proposed to extract road boundary. Finally, taxi GPS traces in Beijing were used to verify the validity of the novel method, and the results also showed that our method was suitable for GPS traces with disparity density,complex road structure and different time interval.

  4. Boundary Effects and Shear Thickening of Colloidal Suspensions: A study based on measurement of Suspension Microstructure

    Science.gov (United States)

    Perera, M. Tharanga D.

    Microstructure is key to understanding rheological behaviors of flowing particulate suspensions. During the past decade, Stokesian Dynamics simulations have been the dominant method of determining suspension microstructure. Structure results obtained numerically reveal that an anisotropic structure is formed under high Peclet (Pe) number conditions. Researchers have used various experimental techniques such as small angle neutron scattering (SANS) and light scattering methods to validate microstructure. This work outlines an experimental technique based on confocal microscopy to study microstructure of a colloidal suspension in an index-matched fluid flowing in a microchannel. High resolution scans determining individual particle locations in suspensions 30-50 vol % yield quantitative results of the local microstructure in the form of the pair distribution function, g(r). From these experimentally determined g(r), the effect of shear rate, quantified by the Peclet number as a ratio of shear and Brownian stress, on the suspension viscosity and normal stress follow that seen in macroscopic rheological measurements and simulations. It is generally believed that shear thickening behavior of colloidal suspensions is driven by the formation of hydroclusters. From measurements of particle locations, hydroclusters are identified. The number of hydroclusters grows exponentially with increasing Pe, and the onset of shear thickening is driven by the increase in formation of clusters having 5-8 particles. At higher Pe, we notice the emergence of 12 or more particle clusters. The internal structure of these hydroclusters has been investigated, and there is some evidence that particles internal to hydroclusters preferentially align along the 45° and 135° axis. Beyond observations of bulk suspension behavior, the influence of boundaries on suspension microstructure is also investigated. Experiments were performed for suspensions flowing over smooth walls, made of glass

  5. The Coconut and the Peach: Understanding, Establishing, and Maintaining Interpersonal Boundaries with International Students

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yamashita, Miki; Schwartz, Harriet L.

    2012-01-01

    This chapter explores international students' perspectives of boundaries in the American graduate-level classroom, specifically considering the culturally based essence of boundaries. The authors focus on graduate-level Japanese international students. This population is particularly helpful in their consideration of boundaries because research…

  6. Dementia - keeping safe in the home

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... this page: //medlineplus.gov/ency/patientinstructions/000031.htm Dementia - keeping safe in the home To use the ... make sure the homes of people who have dementia are safe for them. Safety Tips for the ...

  7. Safeguards Automated Facility Evaluation (SAFE) methodology

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chapman, L.D.; Grady, L.M.; Bennett, H.A.; Sasser, D.W.; Engi, D.

    1978-01-01

    The SAFE procedure is an efficient method of evaluating the physical protection system of a nuclear facility. Since the algorithms used in SAFE for path generation and evaluation are analytical, many paths can be evaluated with a modest investment in computer time. SAFE is easy to use because the information required is well-defined and the interactive nature of this procedure lends itself to straightforward operation. The modular approach that has been taken allows other functionally equivalent modules to be substituted as they become available. The SAFE procedure has broad applications in the nuclear facility safeguards field as well as in the security field in general. Any fixed facility containing valuable materials or components to be protected from theft or sabotage could be analyzed using this same automated evaluation technique

  8. Grain boundary engineering for structure materials of nuclear reactors

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tan, L.; Allen, T. R.; Busby, J. T.

    2013-10-01

    Grain boundary engineering (GBE), primarily implemented by thermomechanical processing, is an effective and economical method of enhancing the properties of polycrystalline materials. Among the factors affecting grain boundary character distribution, literature data showed definitive effect of grain size and texture. GBE is more effective for austenitic stainless steels and Ni-base alloys compared to other structural materials of nuclear reactors, such as refractory metals, ferritic and ferritic-martensitic steels, and Zr alloys. GBE has shown beneficial effects on improving the strength, creep strength, and resistance to stress corrosion cracking and oxidation of austenitic stainless steels and Ni-base alloys.

  9. Grain boundary engineering for structure materials of nuclear reactors

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Tan, L., E-mail: tanl@ornl.gov [Materials Science and Technology Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory (United States); Allen, T.R. [Department of Engineering Physics, University of Wisconsin–Madison (United States); Busby, J.T. [Materials Science and Technology Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory (United States)

    2013-10-15

    Grain boundary engineering (GBE), primarily implemented by thermomechanical processing, is an effective and economical method of enhancing the properties of polycrystalline materials. Among the factors affecting grain boundary character distribution, literature data showed definitive effect of grain size and texture. GBE is more effective for austenitic stainless steels and Ni-base alloys compared to other structural materials of nuclear reactors, such as refractory metals, ferritic and ferritic–martensitic steels, and Zr alloys. GBE has shown beneficial effects on improving the strength, creep strength, and resistance to stress corrosion cracking and oxidation of austenitic stainless steels and Ni-base alloys.

  10. Iatrogenic Hepatitis C Virus Transmission and Safe Injection Practices.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Defendorf, Charles M; Paul, Sindy; Scott, George J

    2018-05-01

    Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection poses significant adverse health effects. Improper use of vials, needles, syringes, intravenous bags, tubing, and connectors for injections and infusions is a current preventable cause of iatrogenic HCV transmission. Numerous cases have demonstrated the need for continued vigilance and the widespread nature of this iatrogenic infection risk across a variety of medical practice settings in the United States. Failure to implement the evidence-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) infection prevention guidelines exposes patients to preventable harm. The guidelines establish the requirement to notify patients in cases of suspected virus transmission, as well as to screen those patients who would not otherwise have been at risk for HCV seroconversion and other bloodborne pathogens. Legal and regulatory ramifications, including state, criminal, and tort laws, hold physicians and other health care professionals accountable to use safe injection practices. This article reviews the major health risks of HCV infection, significant effects of iatrogenic infection transmission, CDC guidelines for safe injection practices, and legal regulations and ramifications designed to promote safe injection practices.

  11. Why Do Parents with Toddlers Store Poisonous Products Safely?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tinneke M. J. Beirens

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available Unintentional poisoning is a major cause of nonfatal injuries in children aged 0–24 months. Associations between self-reported habits on the child safe storage of medication and cleaning products and family, and psychosocial factors were assessed, using a model based on the Protection Motivation Theory. By identifying correlates of safety behavior in this manner, more insight in factors which influence this behavior is obtained. Health promotion activities in order to promote safety behavior should address these factors in order to increase the effectiveness of the health message. Data were gathered from a cross-sectional survey using self-administered questionnaires, mailed to a population sample of 2470 parents with toddlers. The results indicate that the promotion of safe storage of medication and cleaning products should address the family situation, personal cognitive factors as well as social factors. Interventions should particularly focus on parents' self-efficacy of storing poisonous products in a child safe manner and on the vulnerability of their child in their home concerning an unintentional poisoning incident.

  12. INCOMPRESSIBLE LAMINAR BOUNDARY LAYER CONTROL BY BLOWING AND SUCTION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    AZZEDINE NAHOUI

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available A two-dimensional incompressible laminar boundary layer and its control using blowing and suction over a flat plate and around the NACA 0012 and 661012 profiles, is studied numerically. The study is based on the Prandtl boundary layer model using the finite differences method and the Crank-Nicolson scheme. The velocity distribution, the boundary layer thickness and the friction coefficient, are determined and presented with and without control. The application of the control technique, has demonstrated its positive effect on the transition point and the friction coefficient. Both control procedures are compared for different lengths, speeds and angles of blowing and suction.

  13. Predicting soil acidification trends at Plynlimon using the SAFE model

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    B. Reynolds

    1997-01-01

    Full Text Available The SAFE model has been applied to an acid grassland site, located on base-poor stagnopodzol soils derived from Lower Palaeozoic greywackes. The model predicts that acidification of the soil has occurred in response to increased acid deposition following the industrial revolution. Limited recovery is predicted following the decline in sulphur deposition during the mid to late 1970s. Reducing excess sulphur and NOx deposition in 1998 to 40% and 70% of 1980 levels results in further recovery but soil chemical conditions (base saturation, soil water pH and ANC do not return to values predicted in pre-industrial times. The SAFE model predicts that critical loads (expressed in terms of the (Ca+Mg+K:Alcrit ratio for six vegetation species found in acid grassland communities are not exceeded despite the increase in deposited acidity following the industrial revolution. The relative growth response of selected vegetation species characteristic of acid grassland swards has been predicted using a damage function linking growth to soil solution base cation to aluminium ratio. The results show that very small growth reductions can be expected for 'acid tolerant' plants growing in acid upland soils. For more sensitive species such as Holcus lanatus, SAFE predicts that growth would have been reduced by about 20% between 1951 and 1983, when acid inputs were greatest. Recovery to c. 90% of normal growth (under laboratory conditions is predicted as acidic inputs decline.

  14. Development of boundary layers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Herbst, R.

    1980-01-01

    Boundary layers develop along the blade surfaces on both the pressure and the suction side in a non-stationary flow field. This is due to the fact that there is a strongly fluctuating flow on the downstream blade row, especially as a result of the wakes of the upstream blade row. The author investigates the formation of boundary layers under non-stationary flow conditions and tries to establish a model describing the non-stationary boundary layer. For this purpose, plate boundary layers are measured, at constant flow rates but different interferent frequency and variable pressure gradients. By introducing the sample technique, measurements of the non-stationary boundary layer become possible, and the flow rate fluctuation can be divided in its components, i.e. stochastic turbulence and periodical fluctuation. (GL) [de

  15. Alert: the dark side of chats--internet without boundaries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aderet, Avshalom

    2009-01-01

    mind was filled with suicidal thoughts he stumbled upon a group on the web that embraced the culture of death and suicide discussions. In his darkest moments, when he was on the verge of an abyss, he was probably pushed by these discussions into his death, and he was only 19-years-old. When Eshnav was created we saw the dangers of an Internet with no boundaries, a place where this remarkable technology was grossly misused. This is from the association's statement: "In a world without fences and boundaries clearer rules of conduct are needed." We emphasized that "the web is like a new world that has yet to determine its own boundaries. As such, it poses new challenges, both moral and ideological, which cannot be met based on past experience as this phenomenon is still too new and uncharted. We must do the utmost to be vigil about making the Internet as safe as possible even when this new frontier is constantly shifting and evolving." Let us bow our heads in sadness in memory of Eran whose strength did not withstand the great distress he was in, and who let himself be dragged by the death culture and darkness on the web into an untimely grave. We shall find strength in our determination to create a responsible web community in which freedom of speech will not be abused to hurt the individual rights of each and every human being to life, respect, reputation and privacy.

  16. Nonlinear Transient Growth and Boundary Layer Transition

    Science.gov (United States)

    Paredes, Pedro; Choudhari, Meelan M.; Li, Fei

    2016-01-01

    Parabolized stability equations (PSE) are used in a variational approach to study the optimal, non-modal disturbance growth in a Mach 3 at plate boundary layer and a Mach 6 circular cone boundary layer. As noted in previous works, the optimal initial disturbances correspond to steady counter-rotating streamwise vortices, which subsequently lead to the formation of streamwise-elongated structures, i.e., streaks, via a lift-up effect. The nonlinear evolution of the linearly optimal stationary perturbations is computed using the nonlinear plane-marching PSE for stationary perturbations. A fully implicit marching technique is used to facilitate the computation of nonlinear streaks with large amplitudes. To assess the effect of the finite-amplitude streaks on transition, the linear form of plane- marching PSE is used to investigate the instability of the boundary layer flow modified by spanwise periodic streaks. The onset of bypass transition is estimated by using an N- factor criterion based on the amplification of the streak instabilities. Results show that, for both flow configurations of interest, streaks of sufficiently large amplitude can lead to significantly earlier onset of transition than that in an unperturbed boundary layer without any streaks.

  17. Fuel Supply Shutdown Facility Interim Operational Safety Requirements

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    BENECKE, M.W.

    2000-01-01

    The Interim Operational Safety Requirements for the Fuel Supply Shutdown (FSS) Facility define acceptable conditions, safe boundaries, bases thereof, and management of administrative controls to ensure safe operation of the facility

  18. Food Safety Posters for Safe Handling of Leafy Greens

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rajagopal, Lakshman; Arendt, Susan W.; Shaw, Angela M.; Strohbehn, Catherine H.; Sauer, Kevin L.

    2016-01-01

    This article describes food safety educational tools depicting safe handling of leafy greens that are available as downloadable posters to Extension educators and practitioners (www.extension.iastate.edu). Nine visual-based minimal-text colored posters in English, Chinese, and Spanish were developed for use when formally or informally educating…

  19. Breastfeeding FAQs: Safely Storing Breast Milk

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Search English Español Breastfeeding FAQs: Safely Storing Breast Milk KidsHealth / For Parents / Breastfeeding FAQs: Safely Storing Breast ... may have. How do I store my breast milk? You can freeze and/or refrigerate your pumped ( ...

  20. Curiosity's Autonomous Surface Safing Behavior Design

    Science.gov (United States)

    Neilson, Tracy A.; Manning, Robert M.

    2013-01-01

    The safing routines on all robotic deep-space vehicles are designed to put the vehicle in a power and thermally safe configuration, enabling communication with the mission operators on Earth. Achieving this goal is made a little more difficult on Curiosity because the power requirements for the core avionics and the telecommunication equipment exceed the capability of the single power source, the Multi-Mission Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator. This drove the system design to create an operational mode, called "sleep mode", where the vehicle turns off most of the loads in order to charge the two Li-ion batteries. The system must keep the vehicle safe from over-heat and under-heat conditions, battery cell failures, under-voltage conditions, and clock failures, both while the computer is running and while the system is sleeping. The other goal of a safing routine is to communicate. On most spacecraft, this simply involves turning on the receiver and transmitter continuously. For Curiosity, Earth is above the horizon only a part of the day for direct communication to the Earth, and the orbiter overpass opportunities only occur a few times a day. The design must robustly place the Rover in a communicable condition at the correct time. This paper discusses Curiosity's autonomous safing behavior and describes how the vehicle remains power and thermally safe while sleeping, as well as a description of how the Rover communicates with the orbiters and Earth at specific times.

  1. Video and computer-based interactive exercises are safe and improve task-specific balance in geriatric and neurological rehabilitation: a randomised trial

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maayken van den Berg

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Question: Does adding video/computer-based interactive exercises to inpatient geriatric and neurological rehabilitation improve mobility outcomes? Is it feasible and safe? Design: Randomised trial. Participants: Fifty-eight rehabilitation inpatients. Intervention: Physiotherapist-prescribed, tailored, video/computer-based interactive exercises for 1 hour on weekdays, mainly involving stepping and weight-shifting exercises. Outcome measures: The primary outcome was the Short Physical Performance Battery (0 to 3 at 2 weeks. Secondary outcomes were: Maximal Balance Range (mm; Step Test (step count; Rivermead Mobility Index (0 to 15; activity levels; Activity Measure for Post Acute Care Basic Mobility (18 to 72 and Daily Activity (15 to 60; Falls Efficacy Scale (10 to 40, ED5D utility score (0 to 1; Reintegration to Normal Living Index (0 to 100; System Usability Scale (0 to 100 and Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale (0 to 126. Safety was determined from adverse events during intervention. Results: At 2 weeks the between-group difference in the primary outcome (0.1, 95% CI –0.2 to 0.3 was not statistically significant. The intervention group performed significantly better than usual care for Maximal Balance Range (38 mm difference after baseline adjustment, 95% CI 6 to 69. Other secondary outcomes were not statistically significant. Fifty-eight (55% of the eligible patients agreed to participate, 25/29 (86% completed the intervention and 10 (39% attended > 70% of sessions, with a mean of 5.6 sessions (SD 3.3 attended and overall average duration of 4.5 hours (SD 3.1. Average scores were 62 (SD 21 for the System Usability Scale and 62 (SD 8 for the Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale. There were no adverse events. Conclusion: The addition of video/computer-based interactive exercises to usual rehabilitation is a safe and feasible way to increase exercise dose, but is not suitable for all. Adding the exercises to usual rehabilitation resulted in task

  2. Considerations on Fail Safe Design for Design Basis Accident (DBA) vs. Design Extension Condition (DEC): Lesson Learnt from the Fukushima Accident

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ha, Jun Su; Kim, Sungyeop

    2014-01-01

    The fail safety design is referred to as an inherently safe design concept where the failure of an SSC (System, Structure or Component) leads directly to a safe condition. Usually the fail safe design has been devised based on the design basis accident (DBAs), because the nuclear safety has been assured by securing the capability to safely cope with DBAs. Currently regards have been paid to the DEC (Design Extension Condition) as an extended design consideration. Hence additional attention should be paid to the concept of the fail safe design in order to consider the DEC, accordingly. In this study, a case chosen from the Fukushima accident is studied to discuss the issue associated with the fail safe design in terms of DBA and DEC standpoints. For the fail safe design to be based both on the DBA and the DEC, a Mode Changeable Fail Safe Design (MCFSD) is proposed in this study. Additional discussions on what is needed for the MCFSD to be applied in the nuclear safety are addressed as well. One of the lessons learnt from the Fukushima accident should include considerations on the fail-safe design in a changing regulatory framework. Currently the design extension condition (DEC) including severe accidents should be considered during designing and licensing NPPs. Hence concepts on the fail safe design need to be changed to be based on not only the DBA but also the DEC. In this study, a case on a fail-safe design chosen from the Fukushima accident is studied to discuss the issue associated with the fail safe design in terms of DBA and DEC conditions. For the fail safe design to be based both on the DBA and the DEC, a Mode Changeable Fail Safe Design (MCFSD) is proposed in this study. Additional discussions on what is needed for the MCFSD to be applied in the nuclear safety are addressed as well

  3. Removing Hair Safely

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... For Consumers Home For Consumers Consumer Updates Removing Hair Safely Share Tweet Linkedin Pin it More sharing ... related to common methods of hair removal. Laser Hair Removal In this method, a laser destroys hair ...

  4. Evaluation of general non-reflecting boundary conditions for industrial CFD applications

    Science.gov (United States)

    Basara, Branislav; Frolov, Sergei; Lidskii, Boris; Posvyanskii, Vladimir

    2007-11-01

    The importance of having proper boundary conditions for the calculation domain is a known issue in Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). In many situations, it is very difficult to define a correct boundary condition. The flow may enter and leave the computational domain at the same time and at the same boundary. In such circumstances, it is important that numerical implementation of boundary conditions enforces certain physical constraints leading to correct results which then ensures a better convergence rate. The aim of this paper is to evaluate recently proposed non-reflecting boundary conditions (Frolov et al., 2001, Advances in Chemical Propulsion) on industrial CFD applications. Derivation of the local non-reflecting boundary conditions at the open boundary is based on finding the solution of linearized Euler equations vanishing at infinity for both incompressible and compressible formulations. This is implemented into the in-house CFD package AVL FIRE and some numerical details will be presented as well. The key applications in this paper are from automotive industry, e.g. an external car aerodynamics, an intake port, etc. The results will show benefits of using effective non-reflecting boundary conditions.

  5. Cellular automata model for traffic flow with safe driving conditions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lárraga María Elena; Alvarez-Icaza Luis

    2014-01-01

    In this paper, a recently introduced cellular automata (CA) model is used for a statistical analysis of the inner microscopic structure of synchronized traffic flow. The analysis focuses on the formation and dissolution of clusters or platoons of vehicles, as the mechanism that causes the presence of this synchronized traffic state with a high flow. This platoon formation is one of the most interesting phenomena observed in traffic flows and plays an important role both in manual and automated highway systems (AHS). Simulation results, obtained from a single-lane system under periodic boundary conditions indicate that in the density region where the synchronized state is observed, most vehicles travel together in platoons with approximately the same speed and small spatial distances. The examination of velocity variations and individual vehicle gaps shows that the flow corresponding to the synchronized state is stable, safe and highly correlated. Moreover, results indicate that the observed platoon formation in real traffic is reproduced in simulations by the relation between vehicle headway and velocity that is embedded in the dynamics definition of the CA model. (general)

  6. Management for nuclear power plants for safe operation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kueffer, K.

    1981-01-01

    This lecture covers management aspects which have an immediate bearing on safety and identifies the objectives and tasks of management which are required for safe operation of a nuclear power plant and is based on the Codes of Practice and Safety Guides of the IAEA as well as arrangements in use at the Swiss Nuclear Power Station Beznau. (orig./RW)

  7. Interactive eLearning - a safe place to practice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Einarson, Elisabeth; Moen, Anne; Kolberg, Ragnhild; Flingtorp, Gry; Linnerud, Eva

    2009-01-01

    Interactive web-based learning environment offers refreshing opportunities to create innovative solutions to explore and exploit informatics support on-the-job training. We report from a study where a hospital is created a interactive eLearning resource. The modules are creating a safe place to practice - to be used for introduction to the work and preparation for certification or re-certification of competencies.

  8. A general mixed boundary model reduction method for component mode synthesis

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Voormeeren, S.N.; Van der Valk, P.L.C.; Rixen, D.J.

    2010-01-01

    A classic issue in component mode synthesis (CMS) methods is the choice for fixed or free boundary conditions at the interface degrees of freedom (DoF) and the associated vibration modes in the components reduction base. In this paper, a novel mixed boundary CMS method called the “Mixed

  9. Community participation in fire management planning: The Trinity county fire safe council's fire plan

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yvonne Everett

    2008-01-01

    In 1999, Trinity County CA, initiated a participatory fire management planning effort. Since that time, the Trinity County Fire Safe Council has completed critical portions of a fire safe plan and has begun to implement projects defined in the plan. Completion of a GIS based, landscape scale fuels reduction element in the plan defined by volunteer fire fighters, agency...

  10. Numerical Treatment of Degenerate Diffusion Equations via Feller's Boundary Classification, and Applications

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cacio, Emanuela; Cohn, Stephen E.; Spigler, Renato

    2011-01-01

    A numerical method is devised to solve a class of linear boundary-value problems for one-dimensional parabolic equations degenerate at the boundaries. Feller theory, which classifies the nature of the boundary points, is used to decide whether boundary conditions are needed to ensure uniqueness, and, if so, which ones they are. The algorithm is based on a suitable preconditioned implicit finite-difference scheme, grid, and treatment of the boundary data. Second-order accuracy, unconditional stability, and unconditional convergence of solutions of the finite-difference scheme to a constant as the time-step index tends to infinity are further properties of the method. Several examples, pertaining to financial mathematics, physics, and genetics, are presented for the purpose of illustration.

  11. Disparities in abortion experience and access to safe abortion ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    In Ghana, abortion mortality constitutes 11% of maternal mortality. Empirical studies on possible disparities in abortion experience and access to safe abortion services are however lacking. Based on a retrospective survey of 1,370 women aged 15-49 years in two districts in Ghana, this paper examines disparities in ...

  12. A Parameter Estimation Method for Nonlinear Systems Based on Improved Boundary Chicken Swarm Optimization

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shaolong Chen

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Parameter estimation is an important problem in nonlinear system modeling and control. Through constructing an appropriate fitness function, parameter estimation of system could be converted to a multidimensional parameter optimization problem. As a novel swarm intelligence algorithm, chicken swarm optimization (CSO has attracted much attention owing to its good global convergence and robustness. In this paper, a method based on improved boundary chicken swarm optimization (IBCSO is proposed for parameter estimation of nonlinear systems, demonstrated and tested by Lorenz system and a coupling motor system. Furthermore, we have analyzed the influence of time series on the estimation accuracy. Computer simulation results show it is feasible and with desirable performance for parameter estimation of nonlinear systems.

  13. Developing Safe Schools Partnerships with Law Enforcement

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rosiak, John

    2009-01-01

    Safe schools are the concern of communities throughout the world. If a school is safe, and if children feel safe, students "are better able to learn. But what are the steps to make" this happen? First, it is important to understand the problem: What are the threats to school safety? These include crime-related behaviors that find their way to…

  14. Observation of Pseudopartial Grain Boundary Wetting in the NdFeB-Based Alloy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Straumal, B. B.; Mazilkin, A. A.; Protasova, S. G.; Schütz, G.; Straumal, A. B.; Baretzky, B.

    2016-08-01

    The NdFeB-based alloys were invented in 1980s and remain the best-known hard magnetic alloys. In order to reach the optimum magnetic properties, the grains of hard magnetic Nd2Fe14B phase have to be isolated from one another by the (possibly thin) layers of a non-ferromagnetic Nd-rich phase. In this work, we observe that the few-nanometer-thin layers of the Nd-rich phase appear between Nd2Fe14B grains due to the pseudopartial grain boundary (GB) wetting. Namely, some Nd2Fe14B/Nd2Fe14B GBs are not completely wetted by the Nd-rich melt and have the high contact angle with the liquid phase and, nevertheless, contain the 2-4-nm-thin uniform Nd-rich layer.

  15. Boundaries - US Army Corps of Engineers - St. Paul District (MVP) Civil Works

    Data.gov (United States)

    Army Corps of Engineers, Department of the Army, Department of Defense — The US Army Corps of Engineers - St. Paul District Civil Works boundary. Boundary is based on 1:24k watershed data and coordination with MVR to determine shared...

  16. On boundaries among magnetic structures at the sun

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ishkov, V. N.; Linke, J.

    1990-10-01

    Results of an analysis of published observational data on large complex active regions (CARs) on the sun are briefly discussed. Boundaries detected in the lower region of the solar atmosphere are shown to reveal the separation of independently developing magnetic structures, which may interact to produce eruption effects such as flares, reconnection, and flux-tube cancelling, as proposed by Linke and Bachmann (1989). The characteristics of these boundaries are illustrated with diagrams based on CAR data for June-July 1982, July-August 1983, and October 1979.

  17. Online Learning of Safe Patient Transfers in Occupational Therapy Education

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cynthia L. Hayden D. H. Ed., OTR/L, CHT

    2013-02-01

    Full Text Available Online higher education is steadily increasing. For programs in allied health to be offered effectively in an elearning format, clinical psychomotor skills need to be addressed. The aim of this research was to design, implement, and evaluate an online safe patient transfers module for occupational therapy assistant (OTAstudents. The efficacy of teaching safe patient transfers in an e-learning environment was appraised using both quantitative and qualitative analysis. The applied research project was completed at a Tennessee community college. A convenience sample of eighteen students participated in the pilot study. Twenty-five studentsparticipated in the subsequent study. The instructional design of the course was based on Mager’s CriterionReferenced Instruction model. Streaming video was used as the delivery method for course material. A pretest/posttest evaluated the students’ cognitive knowledge of safe patient transfers. A behavioral transferscompetency checklist was used to rate videotapes of students’ performance of assisted stand pivot and dependent sliding board transfers. Research findings indicated students were able to learn this psychomotor clinical skill online with beginning proficiency. A paired t-test showed marked improvement of cognitive knowledge. A student learning survey revealed the majority of students preferred at least one hands-on classroom session where instructor feedback and interaction with classmates confirmed safe and effectiveclinical technique.

  18. Regulatory control for safe usage of radiation sources in India

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ghosh, P.K.; Sonawane, A.U.

    1998-01-01

    The widespread applications of radioactive materials and radiation generating equipment in the field of industry, medicine agriculture and research in India necessitated the establishment of an efficient regulatory framework and consequently the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) was constituted to exercise regulatory control over the safe usage of the radioactive materials and the radiation generating equipment. The Atomic Energy Act, 1962 and the Radiation Protection Rules, 1971 promulgated under the Act forms the basis of radiation safety in India and Chairman, AERB is the Competent Authority to enforce the regulatory provisions of the Radiation Protection Rules, 1971, for safe use of radiation source in the country. AERB has published a number of documents such as Radiation Surveillance Procedures, Standards, Codes, Guides and Manuals for safe use and handling of radioactive materials and radiation generating equipment. Apart from nuclear fuel cycle documents, these publications pertain to industrial radiography, medical application of radiation, transport of radioactive material, industrial gamma irradiators, X-ray units etc. AERB safety related publications are based on international standards e.g. BSS, IAEA, ICRP, ISO etc. This paper outlines the methodology of regulatory control exercised by AERB for safe use of the radioactive materials and the radiation generating equipment in the country. (author)

  19. Boundary layer and fundamental problems of hydrodynamics (compatibility of a logarithmic velocity profile in a turbulent boundary layer with the experience values)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zaryankin, A. E.

    2017-11-01

    The compatibility of the semiempirical turbulence theory of L. Prandtl with the actual flow pattern in a turbulent boundary layer is considered in this article, and the final calculation results of the boundary layer is analyzed based on the mentioned theory. It shows that accepted additional conditions and relationships, which integrate the differential equation of L. Prandtl, associating the turbulent stresses in the boundary layer with the transverse velocity gradient, are fulfilled only in the near-wall region where the mentioned equation loses meaning and are inconsistent with the physical meaning on the main part of integration. It is noted that an introduced concept about the presence of a laminar sublayer between the wall and the turbulent boundary layer is the way of making of a physical meaning to the logarithmic velocity profile, and can be defined as adjustment of the actual flow to the formula that is inconsistent with the actual boundary conditions. It shows that coincidence of the experimental data with the actual logarithmic profile is obtained as a result of the use of not particular physical value, as an argument, but function of this value.

  20. Dike-induced contraction along oceanic and continental divergent plate boundaries

    KAUST Repository

    Trippanera, D.

    2014-10-28

    The axis of divergent plate boundaries shows extension fractures and normal faults at the surface. Here we present evidence of contraction along the axis of the oceanic ridge of Iceland and the continental Main Ethiopian Rift. Contraction is found at the base of the tilted hanging wall of dilational normal faults, balancing part of their extension. Our experiments suggest that these structures result from dike emplacement. Multiple dike injection induces subsidence above and uplift to the sides of the dikes; the transition in between is accommodated by reverse faults and subsequent peripheral inward dipping normal faults. Our results suggest that contraction is a direct product of magma emplacement along divergent plate boundaries, at various scales, marking a precise evolutionary stage and initiating part of the extensional structures (extension fractures and normal faults). Key Points Contraction along divergent plate boundaries results from dike emplacementContraction generates extensional structures along divergent plate boundariesSurface deformation along divergent plate boundaries may be magma induced

  1. Dike-induced contraction along oceanic and continental divergent plate boundaries

    KAUST Repository

    Trippanera, D.; Acocella, V.; Ruch, Joel

    2014-01-01

    The axis of divergent plate boundaries shows extension fractures and normal faults at the surface. Here we present evidence of contraction along the axis of the oceanic ridge of Iceland and the continental Main Ethiopian Rift. Contraction is found at the base of the tilted hanging wall of dilational normal faults, balancing part of their extension. Our experiments suggest that these structures result from dike emplacement. Multiple dike injection induces subsidence above and uplift to the sides of the dikes; the transition in between is accommodated by reverse faults and subsequent peripheral inward dipping normal faults. Our results suggest that contraction is a direct product of magma emplacement along divergent plate boundaries, at various scales, marking a precise evolutionary stage and initiating part of the extensional structures (extension fractures and normal faults). Key Points Contraction along divergent plate boundaries results from dike emplacementContraction generates extensional structures along divergent plate boundariesSurface deformation along divergent plate boundaries may be magma induced

  2. Safe abortion information hotlines: An effective strategy for increasing women's access to safe abortions in Latin America.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Drovetta, Raquel Irene

    2015-05-01

    This paper describes the implementation of five Safe Abortion Information Hotlines (SAIH), a strategy developed by feminist collectives in a growing number of countries where abortion is legally restricted and unsafe. These hotlines have a range of goals and take different forms, but they all offer information by telephone to women about how to terminate a pregnancy using misoprostol. The paper is based on a qualitative study carried out in 2012-2014 of the structure, goals and experiences of hotlines in five Latin American countries: Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela. The methodology included participatory observation of activities of the SAIH, and in-depth interviews with feminist activists who offer these services and with 14 women who used information provided by these hotlines to induce their own abortions. The findings are also based on a review of materials obtained from the five hotline collectives involved: documents and reports, social media posts, and details of public demonstrations and statements. These hotlines have had a positive impact on access to safe abortions for women whom they help. Providing these services requires knowledge and information skills, but little infrastructure. They have the potential to reduce the risk to women's health and lives of unsafe abortion, and should be promoted as part of public health policy, not only in Latin America but also other countries. Additionally, they promote women's autonomy and right to decide whether to continue or terminate a pregnancy. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  3. Application of Monte Carlo method to solving boundary value problem of differential equations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zuo Yinghong; Wang Jianguo

    2012-01-01

    This paper introduces the foundation of the Monte Carlo method and the way how to generate the random numbers. Based on the basic thought of the Monte Carlo method and finite differential method, the stochastic model for solving the boundary value problem of differential equations is built. To investigate the application of the Monte Carlo method to solving the boundary value problem of differential equations, the model is used to solve Laplace's equations with the first boundary condition and the unsteady heat transfer equation with initial values and boundary conditions. The results show that the boundary value problem of differential equations can be effectively solved with the Monte Carlo method, and the differential equations with initial condition can also be calculated by using a stochastic probability model which is based on the time-domain finite differential equations. Both the simulation results and theoretical analyses show that the errors of numerical results are lowered as the number of simulation particles is increased. (authors)

  4. Role of Grain Boundaries under Long-Time Radiation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhu, Yichao; Luo, Jing; Guo, Xu; Xiang, Yang; Chapman, Stephen Jonathan

    2018-06-01

    Materials containing a high proportion of grain boundaries offer significant potential for the development of radiation-resistant structural materials. However, a proper understanding of the connection between the radiation-induced microstructural behavior of a grain boundary and its impact at long natural time scales is still missing. In this Letter, point defect absorption at interfaces is summarized by a jump Robin-type condition at a coarse-grained level, wherein the role of interface microstructure is effectively taken into account. Then a concise formula linking the sink strength of a polycrystalline aggregate with its grain size is introduced and is well compared with experimental observation. Based on the derived model, a coarse-grained formulation incorporating the coupled evolution of grain boundaries and point defects is proposed, so as to underpin the study of long-time morphological evolution of grains induced by irradiation. Our simulation results suggest that the presence of point defect sources within a grain further accelerates its shrinking process, and radiation tends to trigger the extension of twin boundary sections.

  5. The role of remote engagement in supporting boundary chain networks across Alaska

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nathan P. Kettle

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Boundary organizations serve multiple roles in linking science and decision making, including brokering knowledge, supporting local- and cross-level networks, facilitating the co-production of knowledge, and negotiating conflict. Yet they face several challenges in providing services for an ever-increasing number of actors and institutions interested in climate information and adaptation. This study evaluates how the Alaska Center for Climate Assessment and Policy (ACCAP innovated its boundary spanning role to improve outcomes by partnering with other boundary organizations through its ongoing climate webinar series. We utilize the concept of boundary chains to investigate outcomes associated with different extended network connections. Our evaluation is based on the analysis three datasets, including interviews (2013 and two web-based questionnaires (2010 and 2013–2015. Findings from the evaluation reveal several ways that remote engagement via the ACCAP webinar series facilitates learning, decision application, and cross-level network building, and overcomes barriers associated with large geographic distances between communities. In an organic evolution and innovation of the climate webinar series, ACCAP partnered with other boundary organizations to establish satellite hub sites to facilitate in-person gatherings at remote locations, thereby increasing the number and diversity of participants served and supporting local networking within organizations, agencies, and communities. Leveraging complementary resources through the satellite hub sites provided mutual benefits for ACCAP and partnering boundary organizations. These findings advance our understanding of the value of remote engagement in supporting boundary spanning processes and how boundary organizations innovate their roles to build capacity and increase the usability of climate information.

  6. Theoretical skin-friction law in a turbulent boundary layer

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cheskidov, A.

    2005-01-01

    We study transitional and turbulent boundary layers using a turbulent velocity profile equation recently derived from the Navier-Stokes-alpha and Leray-alpha models. From this equation we obtain a theoretical prediction of the skin-friction coefficient in a wide range of Reynolds numbers based on momentum thickness, and deduce the maximal value of c f max =0.0063 for turbulent velocity profiles. A two-parameter family of solutions to the equation matches experimental data in the transitional boundary layers with different free-stream turbulence intensity, while one-parameter family of solutions, obtained using our skin-friction coefficient law, matches experimental data in the turbulent boundary layer for moderately large Reynolds numbers

  7. Optimal Growth in Hypersonic Boundary Layers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Paredes, Pedro; Choudhari, Meelan M.; Li, Fei; Chang, Chau-Lyan

    2016-01-01

    The linear form of the parabolized linear stability equations is used in a variational approach to extend the previous body of results for the optimal, nonmodal disturbance growth in boundary-layer flows. This paper investigates the optimal growth characteristics in the hypersonic Mach number regime without any high-enthalpy effects. The influence of wall cooling is studied, with particular emphasis on the role of the initial disturbance location and the value of the spanwise wave number that leads to the maximum energy growth up to a specified location. Unlike previous predictions that used a basic state obtained from a self-similar solution to the boundary-layer equations, mean flow solutions based on the full Navier-Stokes equations are used in select cases to help account for the viscous- inviscid interaction near the leading edge of the plate and for the weak shock wave emanating from that region. Using the full Navier-Stokes mean flow is shown to result in further reduction with Mach number in the magnitude of optimal growth relative to the predictions based on the self-similar approximation to the base flow.

  8. Towards Safe Robotic Surgical Systems

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sloth, Christoffer; Wisniewski, Rafael

    2015-01-01

    a controller for motion compensation in beating-heart surgery, and prove that it is safe, i.e., the surgical tool is kept within an allowable distance and orientation of the heart. We solve the problem by simultaneously finding a control law and a barrier function. The motion compensation system is simulated...... from several initial conditions to demonstrate that the designed control system is safe for every admissible initial condition....

  9. Staying Safe in the Water

    Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

    2008-05-15

    In this podcast, Dr. Julie Gilchrist, a pediatrician and medical epidemiologist from CDC’s Injury Center, talks about staying safe in the water. Tips are for all audiences, with a focus on preventing drownings and keeping children safe in and around the pool, lake, or ocean.  Created: 5/15/2008 by National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC).   Date Released: 5/19/2008.

  10. Grain-boundary engineering applied to grain growth in a high temperature material

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Huda, Z.

    1993-01-01

    Crystallography of grain boundaries are determined for a high temperature material, before and after grain growth processes, so as to study the induction of special properties useful for application in components of a gas-turbine engine. The philosophy of grain-boundary engineering is applied to grain growth in APK-6, a powder formed nickel-base superalloy so as to establish the possible structure/property relationships. The alloy in the as received condition is shown to possess a strong texture and contained coincident site lattices (CSL) boundaries with most boundaries having sigma values in the range of 3 > sigma > 25. A normal grain-growth heat treatment result in a good population of low angle grain boundaries, and drastically reduces the proportion of CSL boundaries. A strong [011] annealing texture is observed after an intermediate grain growth; most grain boundaries, here, tend to be high angle indicating a possibility of possessing special properties. (author)

  11. Corrected simulations for one-dimensional diffusion processes with naturally occurring boundaries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shafiey, Hassan; Gan, Xinjun; Waxman, David

    2017-11-01

    To simulate a diffusion process, a usual approach is to discretize the time in the associated stochastic differential equation. This is the approach used in the Euler method. In the present work we consider a one-dimensional diffusion process where the terms occurring, within the stochastic differential equation, prevent the process entering a region. The outcome is a naturally occurring boundary (which may be absorbing or reflecting). A complication occurs in a simulation of this situation. The term involving a random variable, within the discretized stochastic differential equation, may take a trajectory across the boundary into a "forbidden region." The naive way of dealing with this problem, which we refer to as the "standard" approach, is simply to reset the trajectory to the boundary, based on the argument that crossing the boundary actually signifies achieving the boundary. In this work we show, within the framework of the Euler method, that such resetting introduces a spurious force into the original diffusion process. This force may have a significant influence on trajectories that come close to a boundary. We propose a corrected numerical scheme, for simulating one-dimensional diffusion processes with naturally occurring boundaries. This involves correcting the standard approach, so that an exact property of the diffusion process is precisely respected. As a consequence, the proposed scheme does not introduce a spurious force into the dynamics. We present numerical test cases, based on exactly soluble one-dimensional problems with one or two boundaries, which suggest that, for a given value of the discrete time step, the proposed scheme leads to substantially more accurate results than the standard approach. Alternatively, the standard approach needs considerably more computation time to obtain a comparable level of accuracy to the proposed scheme, because the standard approach requires a significantly smaller time step.

  12. Between demarcation and discretion: The medical-administrative boundary as a locus of safety in high-volume organisational routines.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grant, Suzanne; Guthrie, Bruce

    2018-04-01

    Patient safety is an increasing concern for health systems internationally. The majority of administrative work in UK general practice takes place in the context of organisational routines such as repeat prescribing and test results handling, where high workloads and increased clinician dependency on administrative staff have been identified as an emerging safety issue. Despite this trend, most research to date has focused on the redistribution of the clinical workload between doctors, nurses and allied health professionals within individual care settings. Drawing on Strauss's negotiated order perspective, we examine ethnographically the achievement of safety across the medical-administrative boundary in key high-volume routines in UK general practice. We focus on two main issues. First, GPs engaged in strategies of demarcation by defining receptionist work as routine, unspecialised and dependent upon GP clinical knowledge and oversight as the safety net to deal with complexity and risk. Receptionists consented to this 'social closure' when describing their role, thus reinforcing the underlying inter-occupational relationship of medical domination. Second, in everyday practice, GPs and receptionists engaged in informal boundary-blurring to safely accommodate the complexity of everyday high-volume routine work. This comprised additional informal discretionary spaces for receptionist decision-making and action that went beyond the routine safety work formally assigned to them. New restratified intra-occupational hierarchies were also being created between receptionists based on the complexity of the safety work that they were authorised to do at practice level, with specialised roles constituting a new form of administrative 'professional project'. The article advances negotiated order theory by providing an in-depth examination of the ways in which medical-administrative boundary-making and boundary-blurring constitute distinct modes of safety in high

  13. Spark-safe power source

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mester, I M; Konushkin, N A; Nevozinskiy, A K; Rubinshteyn, B Sh; Serov, V I; Vasnev, M A

    1981-01-01

    A shortcoming of the known power sources is their low reliability. The purpose of the invention is to improve the reliability of the device. This is achieved because the spark-safe power source is equipped with a by-passing transistor and potentiometer, and also a generator of control interruptions in the circuit, an I-element, first separating transformer, control block, second separating transformer whose secondary winding has a relay winding whose contacts are connected to the load circuit are connected in series. The generator of control separations of the circuit is connected to the base of the by-passing transistor and to the power source outlet, the potentiometer is connected in series to the main thyristor. The middle point of the potentiometer is connected to the second inlet of the I-element.

  14. Boundaries & adolescents in residental teatment settings: what clinicians need to know.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bunner, Karen; Yonge, Olive

    2006-09-01

    Working with adolescents in psychiatric treatment settings poses unique challenges related to boundaries. Staff are typically from a range of disciplines, and some are from nonregulated professions. Three potential boundary-crossing areas are touching, gift giving, and self-disclosure. To enhance quality of care, staff needs an orientation aimed at boundary education, including the concepts of transference and countertransference; an atmosphere of safety to discuss their observations of themselves and others; to be willing to provide feedback; and a sound knowledge base of adolescent growth and development.

  15. On mathematical modelling and numerical simulation of transient compressible flow across open boundaries

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rian, Kjell Erik

    2003-07-01

    In numerical simulations of turbulent reacting compressible flows, artificial boundaries are needed to obtain a finite computational domain when an unbounded physical domain is given. Artificial boundaries which fluids are free to cross are called open boundaries. When calculating such flows, non-physical reflections at the open boundaries may occur. These reflections can pollute the solution severely, leading to inaccurate results, and the generation of spurious fluctuations may even cause the numerical simulation to diverge. Thus, a proper treatment of the open boundaries in numerical simulations of turbulent reacting compressible flows is required to obtain a reliable solution for realistic conditions. A local quasi-one-dimensional characteristic-based open-boundary treatment for the Favre-averaged governing equations for time-dependent three-dimensional multi-component turbulent reacting compressible flow is presented. A k-{epsilon} model for turbulent compressible flow and Magnussen's EDC model for turbulent combustion is included in the analysis. The notion of physical boundary conditions is incorporated in the method, and the conservation equations themselves are applied on the boundaries to complement the set of physical boundary conditions. A two-dimensional finite-difference-based computational fluid dynamics code featuring high-order accurate numerical schemes was developed for the numerical simulations. Transient numerical simulations of the well-known, one-dimensional shock-tube problem, a two-dimensional pressure-tower problem in a decaying turbulence field, and a two-dimensional turbulent reacting compressible flow problem have been performed. Flow- and combustion-generated pressure waves seem to be well treated by the non-reflecting subsonic open-boundary conditions. Limitations of the present open-boundary treatment are demonstrated and discussed. The simple and solid physical basis of the method makes it both favourable and relatively easy to

  16. Safe operating envelope

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Oliva, N [Ontario Hydro, Toronto, ON (Canada)

    1997-12-01

    Safe Operating Envelope is described representing: The outer bound of plant conditions within which day-to-day plant operation must be maintained in order to comply with regulatory requirements, associated safety design criteria and corporate nuclear safety goals. Figs.

  17. Safe operating envelope

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Oliva, N.

    1997-01-01

    Safe Operating Envelope is described representing: The outer bound of plant conditions within which day-to-day plant operation must be maintained in order to comply with regulatory requirements, associated safety design criteria and corporate nuclear safety goals. Figs

  18. Consistent boundary conditions for open strings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lindstroem, Ulf; Rocek, Martin; Nieuwenhuizen, Peter van

    2003-01-01

    We study boundary conditions for the bosonic, spinning (NSR) and Green-Schwarz open string, as well as for (1+1)-dimensional supergravity. We consider boundary conditions that arise from (1) extremizing the action, (2) BRST, rigid or local supersymmetry, or κ(Siegel)-symmetry of the action, (3) closure of the set of boundary conditions under the symmetry transformations, and (4) the boundary limits of bulk Euler-Lagrange equations that are 'conjugate' to other boundary conditions. We find corrections to Neumann boundary conditions in the presence of a bulk tachyon field. We discuss a boundary superspace formalism. We also find that path integral quantization of the open string requires an infinite tower of boundary conditions that can be interpreted as a smoothness condition on the doubled interval; we interpret this to mean that for a path-integral formulation of open strings with only Neuman boundary conditions, the description in terms of orientifolds is not just natural, but is actually fundamental

  19. A flexible software design to determine the plasma boundary in Damavand tokamak

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ghadiri, R.; Esteki, M.H.; Sadeghi, Y.

    2014-01-01

    A plasma boundary reconstruction code has been designed by using current filament method to calculate the magnetic flux and consequently plasma boundary in Damavand tokamak. Hence, a computer-based code “The Plasma Boundary Reconstruction Code in Tokamak (PBRCT)” was developed to make a graphical user interface and to speed up the plasma boundary estimation algorithm. All required tools as the plasma boundary and magnetic surface display (MSD), error display, primary conditions and modeling panel as well as a search motor to determine a good position and number of the current filaments to find a precise model have been considered. The core is a 3000 lines Matlab code and the graphical user interface is 10,000 lines in C language. (author)

  20. Critical boundary sine-Gordon revisited

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hasselfield, M.; Lee, Taejin; Semenoff, G.W.; Stamp, P.C.E.

    2006-01-01

    We revisit the exact solution of the two space-time dimensional quantum field theory of a free massless boson with a periodic boundary interaction and self-dual period. We analyze the model by using a mapping to free fermions with a boundary mass term originally suggested in Ref. [J. Polchinski, L. Thorlacius, Phys. Rev. D 50 (1994) 622]. We find that the entire SL (2, C) family of boundary states of a single boson are boundary sine-Gordon states and we derive a simple explicit expression for the boundary state in fermion variables and as a function of sine-Gordon coupling constants. We use this expression to compute the partition function. We observe that the solution of the model has a strong-weak coupling generalization of T-duality. We then examine a class of recently discovered conformal boundary states for compact bosons with radii which are rational numbers times the self-dual radius. These have simple expression in fermion variables. We postulate sine-Gordon-like field theories with discrete gauge symmetries for which they are the appropriate boundary states

  1. Solution of moving boundary problems with implicit boundary condition

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Moyano, E.A.

    1990-01-01

    An algorithm that solves numerically a model for studying one dimensional moving boundary problems, with implicit boundary condition, is described. Landau's transformation is used, in order to work with a fixed number of nodes at each instant. Then, it is necessary to deal with a parabolic partial differential equation, whose diffusive and convective terms have variable coefficients. The partial differential equation is implicitly discretized, using Laasonen's scheme, always stable, instead of employing Crank-Nicholson sheme, as it has been done by Ferris and Hill. Fixed time and space steps (Δt, Δξ) are used, and the iteration is made with variable positions of the interface, i.e. varying δs until a boundary condition is satisfied. The model has the same features of the oxygen diffusion in absorbing tissue. It would be capable of estimating time variant radiation treatments of cancerous tumors. (Author) [es

  2. Boundary-artifact-free phase retrieval with the transport of intensity equation II: applications to microlens characterization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zuo, Chao; Chen, Qian; Li, Hongru; Qu, Weijuan; Asundi, Anand

    2014-07-28

    Boundary conditions play a crucial role in the solution of the transport of intensity equation (TIE). If not appropriately handled, they can create significant boundary artifacts across the reconstruction result. In a previous paper [Opt. Express 22, 9220 (2014)], we presented a new boundary-artifact-free TIE phase retrieval method with use of discrete cosine transform (DCT). Here we report its experimental investigations with applications to the micro-optics characterization. The experimental setup is based on a tunable lens based 4f system attached to a non-modified inverted bright-field microscope. We establish inhomogeneous Neumann boundary values by placing a rectangular aperture in the intermediate image plane of the microscope. Then the boundary values are applied to solve the TIE with our DCT-based TIE solver. Experimental results on microlenses highlight the importance of boundary conditions that often overlooked in simplified models, and confirm that our approach effectively avoid the boundary error even when objects are located at the image borders. It is further demonstrated that our technique is non-interferometric, accurate, fast, full-field, and flexible, rendering it a promising metrological tool for the micro-optics inspection.

  3. Information dynamics of boundary perception

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kragness, Haley; Hansen, Niels Christian; Vuust, Peter

    It has long been noted that expert musicians lengthen notes at phrase boundaries in expressive performance. Recently, we have extended research on this phenomenon by showing that undergraduates with no formal musical training and children as young as 3 years lengthen phrase boundaries during self...... uncertain than low-entropy contexts. Because phrase boundaries tend to afford high-entropy continuations, thus generating uncertain expectations in the listener, one possibility is that boundary perception is directly related to entropy. In other words, it may be hypothesized that entropy underlies...... on predictive uncertainty to the timing domain, as well as potentially answer key questions relating to boundary perception in musical listening....

  4. Effective Field Theory on Manifolds with Boundary

    Science.gov (United States)

    Albert, Benjamin I.

    In the monograph Renormalization and Effective Field Theory, Costello made two major advances in rigorous quantum field theory. Firstly, he gave an inductive position space renormalization procedure for constructing an effective field theory that is based on heat kernel regularization of the propagator. Secondly, he gave a rigorous formulation of quantum gauge theory within effective field theory that makes use of the BV formalism. In this work, we extend Costello's renormalization procedure to a class of manifolds with boundary and make preliminary steps towards extending his formulation of gauge theory to manifolds with boundary. In addition, we reorganize the presentation of the preexisting material, filling in details and strengthening the results.

  5. The Community Boundary De-paradoxifyed

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dragsdahl Lauritzen, Ghita; Salomo, Søren

    2012-01-01

    . In order to improve connections and collaborations across interfaces, it is therefore necessary to improve our understanding of the community boundary construct. Existing studies of community boundaries within the user innovation literature predominantly describe boundaries as incentives for user...

  6. Science at the interface : grain boundaries in nanocrystalline metals.

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rodriguez, Mark Andrew; Follstaedt, David Martin; Knapp, James Arthur; Brewer, Luke N.; Holm, Elizabeth Ann; Foiles, Stephen Martin; Hattar, Khalid M.; Clark, Blythe B.; Olmsted, David L.; Medlin, Douglas L.

    2009-09-01

    Interfaces are a critical determinant of the full range of materials properties, especially at the nanoscale. Computational and experimental methods developed a comprehensive understanding of nanograin evolution based on a fundamental understanding of internal interfaces in nanocrystalline nickel. It has recently been shown that nanocrystals with a bi-modal grain-size distribution possess a unique combination of high-strength, ductility and wear-resistance. We performed a combined experimental and theoretical investigation of the structure and motion of internal interfaces in nanograined metal and the resulting grain evolution. The properties of grain boundaries are computed for an unprecedented range of boundaries. The presence of roughening transitions in grain boundaries is explored and related to dramatic changes in boundary mobility. Experimental observations show that abnormal grain growth in nanograined materials is unlike conventional scale material in both the level of defects and the formation of unfavored phases. Molecular dynamics simulations address the origins of some of these phenomena.

  7. OpenCL-Based FPGA Accelerator for 3D FDTD with Periodic and Absorbing Boundary Conditions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hasitha Muthumala Waidyasooriya

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Finite difference time domain (FDTD method is a very poplar way of numerically solving partial differential equations. FDTD has a low operational intensity so that the performances in CPUs and GPUs are often restricted by the memory bandwidth. Recently, deeply pipelined FPGA accelerators have shown a lot of success by exploiting streaming data flows in FDTD computation. In spite of this success, many FPGA accelerators are not suitable for real-world applications that contain complex boundary conditions. Boundary conditions break the regularity of the data flow, so that the performances are significantly reduced. This paper proposes an FPGA accelerator that computes commonly used absorbing and periodic boundary conditions in many 3D FDTD applications. Accelerator is designed using a “C-like” programming language called OpenCL (open computing language. As a result, the proposed accelerator can be customized easily by changing the software code. According to the experimental results, we achieved over 3.3 times and 1.5 times higher processing speed compared to the CPUs and GPUs, respectively. Moreover, the proposed accelerator is more than 14 times faster compared to the recently proposed FPGA accelerators that are capable of handling complex boundary conditions.

  8. A model of anelastic relaxation associated with polygonization boundary

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yan, S.C.

    1990-01-01

    A model of anelastic relaxation associated with polygonization boundary is proposed in order to explain internal friction peaks and other experimental phenomena observed recently. The model, which is referred to as vacancy-thermal jog model, shows that under conditions of high temperature and low applied stress with lower frequencies of vibration, thermal jog pairs are generated on dislocation segments of the boundaries. These jogs are in saturation with vacancies in the vicinity of them, and the vacancy current due to the concentration gradient of vacancy drifts among the boundaries. As a result, a diffusional creep is produced and a part of energy is dissipated. For vacancy drift, it is required that the thermal jogs emit (absorb) vacancies, which brings climbing bow of segments into operation, and another part of energy is dissipated so that there are two parts of energy dissipated in the strain process connected with polygonization boundary. Based on this point of view, the mathematical expressions of internal friction and modulus defect associated with polygonization boundary were subsequently derived and found to be in satisfactory agreement with experiments. (author). 13 refs, 6 figs

  9. USING THE SAFE SYSTEM APPROACH TO KEEP OLDER DRIVERS SAFELY MOBILE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jim LANGFORD

    2006-01-01

    Full Text Available In 2003, Australian road transport jurisdictions collectively accepted that the greatest road safety gains would be achieved through adopting a Safe System approach, derived from Sweden's Vision Zero and the Netherlands' Sustainable Safety strategies. A key objective of all three approaches is to manage vehicles, the road infrastructure, speeds, road users and the interactions between these components, to ensure that in the event of crashes, crash energies will remain at levels that minimize the probability of death and serious injury. Older drivers pose a particular challenge to the Safe System approach, given particularly their greater physical frailty, their driving patterns and for some at least, their reduced fitness to drive. This paper has analyzed the so-called ‘older driver problem’ and identified a number of key factors underpinning their crash levels, for which countermeasures can be identified and implemented within a Safe System framework. The recommended countermeasures consist of: (1 safer roads, through a series of design improvements particularly governing urban intersections; (2 safer vehicles, through both the promotion of crashworthiness as a critical consideration when purchasing a vehicle and the wide use of developed and developing ITS technologies; (3 safer speeds especially at intersections; and (4 safer road users, through both improved assessment procedures to identify the minority of older drivers with reduced fitness to drive and educational efforts to encourage safer driving habits particularly but not only through self-regulation.

  10. Migration energy barriers of symmetric tilt grain boundaries in body-centered cubic metal Fe

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wu, Minghui; Gu, Jianfeng; Jin, Zhaohui

    2015-01-01

    Graphical abstract: DFT calculated migration energy barrier (left) for symmetric grain boundary in metals is an essential physical property to measure the trend of grain boundary migration, in particular, in terms of the classical homogeneous nucleation model of GB dislocation/disconnection loops (right). - Migration energy barriers of two symmetric tilt grain boundaries in body-centered cubic metal Fe are obtained via first-principles calculations in combination with the nudged elastic band methods. Although the two grain boundaries show similar grain boundary energies, the migration energy barriers are different. Based on a homogeneous nucleation theory of grain-boundary dislocation loops, the calculated energy barrier provides a measure of intrinsic grain-boundary mobility and helps to evaluate effects due to vacancy and interstitial atoms such as carbon

  11. Speaking out on safe sleep: evidence-based infant sleep recommendations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bartick, Melissa; Smith, Linda J

    2014-11-01

    The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) issued recommendations in 2005 and 2011 to reduce sleep-related infant death, which advise against all bedsharing for sleep. These recommendations overemphasize the risks of bedsharing, and this overemphasis has serious unintended consequences. It may result in increased deaths on sofas as tired parents try to avoid feeding their infants in bed. Current evidence shows that other risks are far more potent, such as smoking, shared sleep on sofas, sleeping next to impaired caregivers, and formula feeding. The emphasis on separate sleep is diverting resources away from addressing these critical risk factors. Recommendations to avoid bedsharing may also interfere with breastfeeding. We examine both the evidence behind the AAP recommendations and the evidence omitted from those recommendations. We conclude that the only evidence-based universal advice to date is that sofas are hazardous places for adults to sleep with infants; that exposure to smoke, both prenatal and postnatal, increases the risk of death; and that sleeping next to an impaired caregiver increases the risk of death. No sleep environment is completely safe. Public health efforts must address the reality that tired parents must feed their infants at night somewhere and that sofas are highly risky places for parents to fall asleep with their infants, especially if parents are smokers or under the influence of alcohol or drugs. All messaging must be crafted and reevaluated to avoid unintended negative consequences, including impact on breastfeeding rates, or falling asleep in more dangerous situations than parental beds. We must realign our resources to focus on the greater risk factors, and that may include greater investment in smoking cessation and doing away with aggressive formula marketing. This includes eliminating conflicts of interest between formula marketing companies and organizations dedicated to the health of children.

  12. Sparse synthetic aperture with Fresnel elements (S-SAFE) using digital incoherent holograms

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kashter, Yuval; Rivenson, Yair; Stern, Adrian; Rosen, Joseph

    2015-01-01

    Creating a large-scale synthetic aperture makes it possible to break the resolution boundaries dictated by the wave nature of light of common optical systems. However, their implementation is challenging, since the generation of a large size continuous mosaic synthetic aperture composed of many patterns is complicated in terms of both phase matching and time-multiplexing duration. In this study we present an advanced configuration for an incoherent holographic imaging system with super resolution qualities that creates a partial synthetic aperture. The new system, termed sparse synthetic aperture with Fresnel elements (S-SAFE), enables significantly decreasing the number of the recorded elements, and it is free from positional constrains on their location. Additionally, in order to obtain the best image quality we propose an optimal mosaicking structure derived on the basis of physical and numerical considerations, and introduce three reconstruction approaches which are compared and discussed. The super-resolution capabilities of the proposed scheme and its limitations are analyzed, numerically simulated and experimentally demonstrated. PMID:26367947

  13. Stable Boundary Layer Issues

    OpenAIRE

    Steeneveld, G.J.

    2012-01-01

    Understanding and prediction of the stable atmospheric boundary layer is a challenging task. Many physical processes are relevant in the stable boundary layer, i.e. turbulence, radiation, land surface coupling, orographic turbulent and gravity wave drag, and land surface heterogeneity. The development of robust stable boundary layer parameterizations for use in NWP and climate models is hampered by the multiplicity of processes and their unknown interactions. As a result, these models suffer ...

  14. Polarity of translation boundaries in antiferroelectric PbZrO{sub 3}

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wei, Xian-Kui, E-mail: xiankui.wei@epfl.ch [Ceramics Laboratory, EPFL–Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Lausanne 1015 (Switzerland); Peter Grünberg Institute and Ernst Ruska Center for Microscopy and Spectroscopy with Electrons, Research Center Jülich, 52425 Jülich (Germany); Jia, Chun-Lin [Peter Grünberg Institute and Ernst Ruska Center for Microscopy and Spectroscopy with Electrons, Research Center Jülich, 52425 Jülich (Germany); International Centre of Dielectric Research, The School of Electronic and Information Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049 (China); Roleder, Krystian [Institute of Physics, University of Silesia, Katowice 40007 (Poland); Setter, Nava [Ceramics Laboratory, EPFL–Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Lausanne 1015 (Switzerland)

    2015-02-15

    Graphical abstract: Strain-free rigid model and aberration-corrected transmission electron microscopes are used to investigate the polarity of translation boundaries in antiferroelectric PbZrO{sub 3}. - Highlights: • Domain boundaries in antiferroelectric PbZrO{sub 3} show polar and antipolar property. • The antiphase boundary can split into “sub-domains”. • Polarization reversal possibly exists inside the translation boundaries. • Thermal treatment can alter morphology and density of the translation boundaries. - Abstract: The polarity of translation boundaries (TBs) in antiferroelectric PbZrO{sub 3} is investigated. We show that previous experimentally reported polar property of R{sub III-1} type TB can be well approximated by a strain-free rigid model. Based on this, the modeling investigation suggests that there are two additional polar TBs, three antipolar-like TBs and one antipolar antiphase boundary. High-resolution scanning-transmission-electron-microscopy study reveals that the straight R{sub III-1} type TB can split into “sub-domains” with possible polarization reversal, suggesting the occurrence of ferroic orders at the TBs. In addition, dependence of morphology and density of the TBs on thermal treatments is discussed according to our results.

  15. Schrödinger functional boundary conditions and improvement for N > 3

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hietanen, A.; Karavirta, T.; Vilaseca, P.

    2014-01-01

    The standard method to calculate non-perturbatively the evolution of the running coupling of a SU(N ) gauge theory is based on the Schrodinger functional (SF). In this paper we construct a family of boundary fields for general values of N which enter the standard definition of the SF coupling. We...... provide spatial boundary conditions for fermions in several representations which reduce the condition number of the squared Dirac operator. In addition, we calculate the improvement coefficients for N > 3 needed to remove boundary cutoff effects from the gauge action. After this, residual cutoff effects...

  16. On a price formation free boundary model by Lasry and Lions

    KAUST Repository

    Caffarelli, Luis A.

    2011-06-01

    We discuss global existence and asymptotic behaviour of a price formation free boundary model introduced by Lasry and Lions in 2007. Our results are based on a construction which transforms the problem into the heat equation with specially prepared initial datum. The key point is that the free boundary present in the original problem becomes the zero level set of this solution. Using the properties of the heat operator we can show global existence, regularity and asymptotic results of the free boundary. 2011 Académie des sciences.

  17. On a price formation free boundary model by Lasry and Lions

    KAUST Repository

    Caffarelli, Luis A.; Markowich, Peter A.; Pietschmann, Jan-F.

    2011-01-01

    We discuss global existence and asymptotic behaviour of a price formation free boundary model introduced by Lasry and Lions in 2007. Our results are based on a construction which transforms the problem into the heat equation with specially prepared initial datum. The key point is that the free boundary present in the original problem becomes the zero level set of this solution. Using the properties of the heat operator we can show global existence, regularity and asymptotic results of the free boundary. 2011 Académie des sciences.

  18. Political State Boundary (National)

    Data.gov (United States)

    Department of Transportation — State boundaries with political limit - boundaries extending into the ocean (NTAD). The TIGER/Line Files are shapefiles and related database files (.dbf) that are an...

  19. Segregation to grain boundaries in nimonic PE16 superalloy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nettleship, D.J.; Wild, R.K.

    1990-01-01

    Nimonic PE16 alloy is a nickel-based superalloy containing 34 wt.% iron and 16wt.% chromium with additions of molybdenum, titanium and aluminium. It is used in the fuel assembly of the UK advanced gas-cooled reactors (AGR). This component supports significant loads in service and its mechanical integrity is therefore of paramount importance. Mechanical properties may be influenced by the grain size and grain boundary composition, both of which can themselves alter during service. Scanning Auger microscopy is a well-established method for investigating grain boundaries, and has now been applied to the study of PE16. In order to expose PE16 grain boundary surfaces it is necessary to hydrogen charge samples and fracture by pulling in tension at a slow strain rate within the ultra-high vacuum chamber of the Auger microprobe. A series of casts of nimonic PE16 alloy that have received a range of thermal ageing treatments have been fractured in an intergranular manner and the grain boundary composition determined. Segregation of trace and minority elements, particularly Mo and P, has been detected at grain boundaries. Significant variations between different as-manufactured casts were observed, whilst ageing brought about the growth of chromium-rich particles on the grain boundaries. Ductile fracture in PE16 followed a path through Ti(C, N) particles. Many of these particles incorporated large amounts of sulphur. (author)

  20. How safe is safe enough?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Desnoyers, B.; Chanzy, Y.

    2004-01-01

    The IAEA Regulations for the Safe Transport of Radioactive Material, were historically established with the objective to reduce the probability that persons be exposed to unacceptable doses due to normal operation or accident situations during transport of radioactive material. Based on the International Basic Safety Standards for Protection against Ionizing Radiation (BSS), the definition, which was adopted for an unacceptable dose for an accident situation, is the excess of the maximum dose limits permissible in a single year for the occupational exposure of a worker in the BSS. Concerning the severity of accident situations, it has always be clearly stated that the objective of the tests for demonstrating ability to withstand accident conditions of transport was not to cover every accident condition, but solely most of them. The last available evaluations regarding the rate of accidents which are covered by the standardised accident conditions of transport defined in the IAEA Regulations give a range of about 80%, plus or minus 15% which depends on transport mode and studies. Consequently, slight variations in the capabilities of the packages to meet the specified performance would probably not have significant consequences on the protection level in case of accident. In the assessment of the compliance with the regulations, the tendency of experts, taking advantage of the enhanced performances of computer calculation codes, is to ask more and more calculations, with more and more accuracy, leading to more and more restrictions. Consequently, cost and delay are considerably increased without any evidence of an equivalent effect on the level of protection. This paper will initiate a reflection on the general objectives and principles when implementing the Regulations, in such a way that demonstrations remain cost effective, taking into account evolution of the techniques and a high level of safety

  1. The analytical solution for drug delivery system with nonhomogeneous moving boundary condition

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saudi, Muhamad Hakimi; Mahali, Shalela Mohd; Harun, Fatimah Noor

    2017-08-01

    This paper discusses the development and the analytical solution of a mathematical model based on drug release system from a swelling delivery device. The mathematical model is represented by a one-dimensional advection-diffusion equation with nonhomogeneous moving boundary condition. The solution procedures consist of three major steps. Firstly, the application of steady state solution method, which is used to transform the nonhomogeneous moving boundary condition to homogeneous boundary condition. Secondly, the application of the Landau transformation technique that gives a significant impact in removing the advection term in the system of equation and transforming the moving boundary condition to a fixed boundary condition. Thirdly, the used of separation of variables method to find the analytical solution for the resulted initial boundary value problem. The results show that the swelling rate of delivery device and drug release rate is influenced by value of growth factor r.

  2. Battery parameterisation based on differential evolution via a boundary evolution strategy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Guangya

    2014-01-01

    Attention has been given to the battery modelling in the electric engineering field following the current development of renewable energy and electrification of transportation. The establishment of the equivalent circuit model of the battery requires data preparation and parameterisation. Besides, as the equivalent circuit model is an abstract map of the battery electric characteristics, the determination of the possible ranges of parameters can be a challenging task. In this paper, an efficient yet easy to implement method is proposed to parameterise the equivalent circuit model of batteries utilising the advances of evolutionary algorithms (EAs). Differential evolution (DE) is selected and modified to parameterise an equivalent circuit model of lithium-ion batteries. A boundary evolution strategy (BES) is developed and incorporated into the DE to update the parameter boundaries during the parameterisation. The method can parameterise the model without extensive data preparation. In addition, the approach can also estimate the initial SOC and the available capacity. The efficiency of the approach is verified through two battery packs, one is an 8-cell battery module and one from an electrical vehicle.

  3. Creating Safe Spaces for Music Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hendricks, Karin S.; Smith, Tawnya D.; Stanuch, Jennifer

    2014-01-01

    This article offers a practical model for fostering emotionally safe learning environments that instill in music students a positive sense of self-belief, freedom, and purpose. The authors examine the implications for music educators of creating effective learning environments and present recommendations for creating a safe space for learning,…

  4. Nonlinear Elliptic Boundary Value Problems at Resonance with Nonlinear Wentzell Boundary Conditions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ciprian G. Gal

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Given a bounded domain Ω⊂RN with a Lipschitz boundary ∂Ω and p,q∈(1,+∞, we consider the quasilinear elliptic equation -Δpu+α1u=f in Ω complemented with the generalized Wentzell-Robin type boundary conditions of the form bx∇up-2∂nu-ρbxΔq,Γu+α2u=g on ∂Ω. In the first part of the article, we give necessary and sufficient conditions in terms of the given functions f, g and the nonlinearities α1, α2, for the solvability of the above nonlinear elliptic boundary value problems with the nonlinear boundary conditions. In other words, we establish a sort of “nonlinear Fredholm alternative” for our problem which extends the corresponding Landesman and Lazer result for elliptic problems with linear homogeneous boundary conditions. In the second part, we give some additional results on existence and uniqueness and we study the regularity of the weak solutions for these classes of nonlinear problems. More precisely, we show some global a priori estimates for these weak solutions in an L∞-setting.

  5. Keeping Food Safe

    Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

    2009-05-27

    This CDC Kidtastics podcast discusses things kids and parents can do to help prevent illness by keeping food safe.  Created: 5/27/2009 by National Center for Zoonotic, Vector-Borne, and Enteric Diseases (NCZVED).   Date Released: 5/27/2009.

  6. Plutonium safe handling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tvehlov, Yu.

    2000-01-01

    The abstract, prepared on the basis of materials of the IAEA new leadership on the plutonium safe handling and its storage (the publication no. 9 in the Safety Reports Series), aimed at presenting internationally acknowledged criteria on the radiation danger evaluation and summarizing the experience in the safe management of great quantities of plutonium, accumulated in the nuclear states, is presented. The data on the weapon-class and civil plutonium, the degree of its danger, the measures for provision of its safety, including the data on accident radiation consequences with the fission number 10 18 , are presented. The recommendations, making it possible to eliminate the super- criticality danger, as well as ignition and explosion, to maintain the tightness of the facility, aimed at excluding the radioactive contamination and the possibility of internal irradiation, to provide for the plutonium security, physical protection and to reduce irradiation are given [ru

  7. State Agency Administrative Boundaries

    Data.gov (United States)

    Kansas Data Access and Support Center — This database comprises 28 State agency boundaries and point of contact. The Kansas Geological Survey collected legal descriptions of the boundaries for various...

  8. A ghost-cell immersed boundary method for flow in complex geometry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tseng, Y.-H.; Ferziger, Joel H.

    2003-01-01

    An efficient ghost-cell immersed boundary method (GCIBM) for simulating turbulent flows in complex geometries is presented. A boundary condition is enforced through a ghost cell method. The reconstruction procedure allows systematic development of numerical schemes for treating the immersed boundary while preserving the overall second-order accuracy of the base solver. Both Dirichlet and Neumann boundary conditions can be treated. The current ghost cell treatment is both suitable for staggered and non-staggered Cartesian grids. The accuracy of the current method is validated using flow past a circular cylinder and large eddy simulation of turbulent flow over a wavy surface. Numerical results are compared with experimental data and boundary-fitted grid results. The method is further extended to an existing ocean model (MITGCM) to simulate geophysical flow over a three-dimensional bump. The method is easily implemented as evidenced by our use of several existing codes

  9. Intersection Group Dynamic Subdivision and Coordination at Intraregional Boundaries in Sudden Disaster

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ciyun Lin

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper aims at the traffic flow agglomeration effect characteristics and rapid evacuation requirement in sudden disaster; operation time of intraregional boundaries traffic signal coordination was presented firstly. Then intraregional boundaries intersection group dynamic subdivision and consolidation method based on relative similarity degree and similarity coefficient of adjacent intersections was put forward. As to make the traffic control strategy adapt to traffic condition of different intraregional boundaries intersection groups, this paper proposes an intraregional boundaries traffic signal coordination and optimization technology based on organic computing theory. Finally, this paper uses Delphi 7.0, MapX, and Oracle developing a software package, combined with Paramics V6 Simulator to validate the methods of this paper. The result shows that it can obviously improve disaster affected regional traffic signal control efficiency which reduces average traffic delay by 30–35%, decreases vehicle queue by more than 20% and reduces evacuation time more than 13.06%.

  10. Work and personal life boundary management: boundary strength, work/personal life balance, and the segmentation-integration continuum.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bulger, Carrie A; Matthews, Russell A; Hoffman, Mark E

    2007-10-01

    While researchers are increasingly interested in understanding the boundaries surrounding the work and personal life domains, few have tested the propositions set forth by theory. Boundary theory proposes that individuals manage the boundaries between work and personal life through processes of segmenting and/or integrating the domains. The authors investigated boundary management profiles of 332 workers in an investigation of the segmentation-integration continuum. Cluster analysis indicated consistent clusters of boundary management practices related to varying segmentation and integration of the work and personal life domains. But, the authors suggest that the segmentation-integration continuum may be more complicated. Results also indicated relationships between boundary management practices and work-personal life interference and work-personal life enhancement. Less flexible and more permeable boundaries were related to more interference, while more flexible and more permeable boundaries were related to more enhancement.

  11. The coordination of boundary tones and its interaction with prominence.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Katsika, Argyro; Krivokapić, Jelena; Mooshammer, Christine; Tiede, Mark; Goldstein, Louis

    2014-05-01

    This study investigates the coordination of boundary tones as a function of stress and pitch accent. Boundary tone coordination has not been experimentally investigated previously, and the effect of prominence on this coordination, and whether it is lexical (stress-driven) or phrasal (pitch accent-driven) in nature is unclear. We assess these issues using a variety of syntactic constructions to elicit different boundary tones in an Electromagnetic Articulography (EMA) study of Greek. The results indicate that the onset of boundary tones co-occurs with the articulatory target of the final vowel. This timing is further modified by stress, but not by pitch accent: boundary tones are initiated earlier in words with non-final stress than in words with final stress regardless of accentual status. Visual data inspection reveals that phrase-final words are followed by acoustic pauses during which specific articulatory postures occur. Additional analyses show that these postures reach their achievement point at a stable temporal distance from boundary tone onsets regardless of stress position. Based on these results and parallel findings on boundary lengthening reported elsewhere, a novel approach to prosody is proposed within the context of Articulatory Phonology: rather than seeing prosodic (lexical and phrasal) events as independent entities, a set of coordination relations between them is suggested. The implications of this account for prosodic architecture are discussed.

  12. New Boundary Constraints for Elliptic Systems used in Grid Generation Problems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaul, Upender K.; Clancy, Daniel (Technical Monitor)

    2002-01-01

    This paper discusses new boundary constraints for elliptic partial differential equations as used in grid generation problems in generalized curvilinear coordinate systems. These constraints, based on the principle of local conservation of thermal energy in the vicinity of the boundaries, are derived using the Green's Theorem. They uniquely determine the so called decay parameters in the source terms of these elliptic systems. These constraints' are designed for boundary clustered grids where large gradients in physical quantities need to be resolved adequately. It is observed that the present formulation also works satisfactorily for mild clustering. Therefore, a closure for the decay parameter specification for elliptic grid generation problems has been provided resulting in a fully automated elliptic grid generation technique. Thus, there is no need for a parametric study of these decay parameters since the new constraints fix them uniquely. It is also shown that for Neumann type boundary conditions, these boundary constraints uniquely determine the solution to the internal elliptic problem thus eliminating the non-uniqueness of the solution of an internal Neumann boundary value grid generation problem.

  13. Existence and smoothness of solutions to second initial boundary value problems for Schrodinger systems in cylinders with non-smooth bases

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nguyen Manh Hung

    2008-03-01

    Full Text Available In this paper, we consider the second initial boundary value problem for strongly general Schrodinger systems in both the finite and the infinite cylinders $Q_T, 0base $Omega$. Some results on the existence, uniqueness and smoothness with respect to time variable of generalized solution of this problem are given.

  14. Evaluation of safe performance secondary school driver education curriculum demonstration project

    Science.gov (United States)

    1983-06-01

    The primary objective of this Project was to determine the crash reduction potential of a quality, competency-based driver training program known as the Safe Performance Curriculum (SPC). The experimental design called for the random assignment of 18...

  15. GIVETIAN–FRASNIAN BOUNDARY CONODONTS FROM KERMAN PROVINCE, CENTRAL IRAN

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    HOSSEIN GHOLAMALIAN

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available The Middle - Late Devonian boundary is investigated based on twenty-two conodont species and subspecies from three sections in the north and west of Kerman, southeastern central Iran. Upper Givetian - lower Frasnian carbonates of the basal part of the Bahram Formation transgressively overlie the sandstone beds of the top of (? Early - Middle Devonian Padeha Formation. These massive skeletal limestones encompass the G-F boundary. The base of Frasnian is identified by the appearance of early forms of Ancyrodella rotundiloba . It helps to compare our biozones to those of global stratotype in southern France. A new species, Polygnathus hojedki n. sp. is described here. New range is suggested for P. praepolitus .

  16. Analysis of turbulent boundary layers

    CERN Document Server

    Cebeci, Tuncer

    1974-01-01

    Analysis of Turbulent Boundary Layers focuses on turbulent flows meeting the requirements for the boundary-layer or thin-shear-layer approximations. Its approach is devising relatively fundamental, and often subtle, empirical engineering correlations, which are then introduced into various forms of describing equations for final solution. After introducing the topic on turbulence, the book examines the conservation equations for compressible turbulent flows, boundary-layer equations, and general behavior of turbulent boundary layers. The latter chapters describe the CS method for calculati

  17. Safe drinking water act: Amendments, regulations and standards

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Calabrese, E.J.; Gilbert, C.E.; Pastides, H.

    1989-01-01

    This book approaches the topic of safe drinking water by communicating how the EPA has responded to the mandates of Congress. Chapter 1 summarizes what is and will be involved in achieving safe drinking water. Chapter 2 describes the historical development of drinking water regulations. Chapter 3 summarizes the directives of the Safe Drinking Water Act Amendments of 1986. Chapters 4 through 9 discuss each phase of the regulatory program in turn. Specific problems associated with volatile organic chemicals, synthetic organics, inorganic chemicals, and microbiological contaminants are assessed in Chapter 4 and 5. The unique characteristics of radionuclides and their regulation are treated in Chapter 6. The disinfection process and its resultant disinfection by-products are presented in Chapter 7. The contaminant selection process and the additional contaminants to be regulated by 1989 and 1991 and in future years are discussed in Chapters 8 and 9. EPA's Office of Drinking Water's Health Advisory Program is explained in Chapter 10. The record of public water system compliance with the primary drinking water regulations is detailed in Chapter 11. Chapter 12 offers a nongovernmental perspective on the general quality of drinking water and how this is affected by a wide range of drinking water treatment technologies. Separate abstracts are processed for 5 chapters in this book for inclusion in the appropriate data bases

  18. Patient Involvement in Safe Delivery: A Qualitative Study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Olfati, Forozun; Asefzadeh, Saeid; Changizi, Nasrin; Keramat, Afsaneh; Yunesian, Masud

    2015-09-28

    Patient involvement in safe delivery planning is considered important yet not widely practiced. The present study aimed at identifythe factors that affect patient involvementin safe delivery, as recommended by parturient women. This study was part of a qualitative research conducted by content analysis method and purposive sampling in 2013.The data were collected through 63 semi-structured interviews in4 hospitalsand analyzed using thematic content analysis. The participants in this research were women before discharge and after delivery. Findings were analyzed using Colaizzi's method. Four categories of factors that could affect patient involvement in safe delivery emerged from our analysis: patient-related (true and false beliefs, literacy, privacy, respect for patient), illness-related (pain, type of delivery, patient safety incidents), health care professional-relatedand task-related factors (behavior, monitoring &training), health care setting-related (financial aspects, facilities). More research is needed to explore the factors affecting the participation of mothers. It is therefore, recommended to: 1) take notice of mother education, their husbands, midwives and specialists; 2) provide pregnant women with insurance coverage from the outset of pregnancy, especially during prenatal period; 3) form a labor pain committee consisting of midwives, obstetricians, and anesthesiologists in order to identify the preferred painless labor methods based on the existing facilities and conditions, 4) carry out research on observing patients' privacy and dignity; 5) pay more attention on the factors affecting cesarean.

  19. A numerical solution of a singular boundary value problem arising in boundary layer theory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hu, Jiancheng

    2016-01-01

    In this paper, a second-order nonlinear singular boundary value problem is presented, which is equivalent to the well-known Falkner-Skan equation. And the one-dimensional third-order boundary value problem on interval [Formula: see text] is equivalently transformed into a second-order boundary value problem on finite interval [Formula: see text]. The finite difference method is utilized to solve the singular boundary value problem, in which the amount of computational effort is significantly less than the other numerical methods. The numerical solutions obtained by the finite difference method are in agreement with those obtained by previous authors.

  20. Feeling safe and motivated to achieve better health: Experiences with a partnership-based nursing practice programme for in-home patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Leine, Marit; Wahl, Astrid Klopstad; Borge, Christine Råheim; Hustavenes, Magne; Bondevik, Hilde

    2017-09-01

    To explore chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients' experiences with a partnership-based nursing practice programme in the home setting. Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease suffer from psychological and physiological problems, especially when they return home after hospitalisation from exacerbation. Many express a need for information and knowledge about chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Partnership as practice is a patient-centred framework providing an individualised practice for each patient. This study intends to achieve a nuanced and improved understanding of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients' experiences with a partnership-based nursing practice programme comprising home visits from a respiratory nurse after hospital discharge, alongside interdisciplinary collaboration. This study has a qualitative design with interviews. Six individual semi-structured interviews collected in 2012-2013 constitute the material. Interviews were recorded, transcribed to written text and analysed using systematic text condensation. Three key themes were identified: to be seen, talked with and understood; healthcare support at home-continuity, practical support and facilitation; and exchange of knowledge. However, there were two generic themes that permeated the material: feeling safe and comforted, and motivation to achieve better health. Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease can experience feeling safe and comforted, and be motivated to make changes in order to achieve better health after participating in a partnership-based nursing practice programme that includes home visits from a respiratory nurse and interdisciplinary cooperation after hospital discharge. To feel safe is of great importance, and how this relates to the patient's ability to cope with illness should be explored in further research. The results suggest that the partnership-based nursing practice programme that includes home visits and interdisciplinary

  1. EXTRACTION OF BUILDING BOUNDARY LINES FROM AIRBORNE LIDAR POINT CLOUDS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Y.-H. Tseng

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available Building boundary lines are important spatial features that characterize the topographic maps and three-dimensional (3D city models. Airborne LiDAR Point clouds provide adequate 3D spatial information for building boundary mapping. However, information of boundary features contained in point clouds is implicit. This study focuses on developing an automatic algorithm of building boundary line extraction from airborne LiDAR data. In an airborne LiDAR dataset, top surfaces of buildings, such as roofs, tend to have densely distributed points, but vertical surfaces, such as walls, usually have sparsely distributed points or even no points. The intersection lines of roof and wall planes are, therefore, not clearly defined in point clouds. This paper proposes a novel method to extract those boundary lines of building edges. The extracted line features can be used as fundamental data to generate topographic maps of 3D city model for an urban area. The proposed method includes two major process steps. The first step is to extract building boundary points from point clouds. Then the second step is followed to form building boundary line features based on the extracted boundary points. In this step, a line fitting algorithm is developed to improve the edge extraction from LiDAR data. Eight test objects, including 4 simple low buildings and 4 complicated tall buildings, were selected from the buildings in NCKU campus. The test results demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed method in extracting complicate building boundary lines. Some results which are not as good as expected suggest the need of further improvement of the method.

  2. Investigation of turbulent boundary layer over forward-facing step via direct numerical simulation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hattori, Hirofumi; Nagano, Yasutaka

    2010-01-01

    This paper presents observations and investigations of the detailed turbulent structure of a boundary layer over a forward-facing step. The present DNSs are conducted under conditions with three Reynolds numbers based on step height, or three Reynolds numbers based on momentum thickness so as to investigate the effects of step height and inlet boundary layer thickness. DNS results show the quantitative turbulent statistics and structures of boundary layers over a forward-facing step, where pronounced counter-gradient diffusion phenomena (CDP) are especially observed on the step near the wall. Also, a quadrant analysis is conducted in which the results indicate in detail the turbulence motion around the step.

  3. New formulations on the finite element method for boundary value problems with internal/external boundary layers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pereira, Luis Carlos Martins

    1998-06-01

    New Petrov-Galerkin formulations on the finite element methods for convection-diffusion problems with boundary layers are presented. Such formulations are based on a consistent new theory on discontinuous finite element methods. Existence and uniqueness of solutions for these problems in the new finite element spaces are demonstrated. Some numerical experiments shows how the new formulation operate and also their efficacy. (author)

  4. HUD GIS Boundary Files

    Data.gov (United States)

    Department of Housing and Urban Development — The HUD GIS Boundary Files are intended to supplement boundary files available from the U.S. Census Bureau. The files are for community planners interested in...

  5. Safe injection practice among health care workers, Gharbiya, Egypt.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ismail, Nanees A; Aboul Ftouh, Aisha M; El Shoubary, Waleed H

    2005-01-01

    A cross-sectional study was conducted in 25 health care facilities in Gharbiya governorate to assess safe injection practices among health care workers (HCWs). Two questionnaires, one to collect information about administrative issues related to safe injection and the other to collect data about giving injections, exposure to needle stick injuries, hepatitis B vaccination status and safe injection training. Practices of injections were observed using a standardized checklist. The study revealed that there was lack of both national and local infection control policies and lack of most of the supplies needed for safe injection practices. Many safe practices were infrequent as proper needle manipulation before disposal (41%), safe needle disposal (47.5%), reuse of used syringe & needle (13.2%) and safe syringe disposal (0%). Exposure to needle stick injuries were common among the interviewed HCWs (66.2%) and hand washing was the common post exposure prophylaxis measure (63.4%). Only 11.3% of HCWs had full course hepatitis B vaccination. Infection control -including safe injections- training programs should be afforded to all HCWs.

  6. SafeNet: a methodology for integrating general-purpose unsafe devices in safe-robot rehabilitation systems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vicentini, Federico; Pedrocchi, Nicola; Malosio, Matteo; Molinari Tosatti, Lorenzo

    2014-09-01

    Robot-assisted neurorehabilitation often involves networked systems of sensors ("sensory rooms") and powerful devices in physical interaction with weak users. Safety is unquestionably a primary concern. Some lightweight robot platforms and devices designed on purpose include safety properties using redundant sensors or intrinsic safety design (e.g. compliance and backdrivability, limited exchange of energy). Nonetheless, the entire "sensory room" shall be required to be fail-safe and safely monitored as a system at large. Yet, sensor capabilities and control algorithms used in functional therapies require, in general, frequent updates or re-configurations, making a safety-grade release of such devices hardly sustainable in cost-effectiveness and development time. As such, promising integrated platforms for human-in-the-loop therapies could not find clinical application and manufacturing support because of lacking in the maintenance of global fail-safe properties. Under the general context of cross-machinery safety standards, the paper presents a methodology called SafeNet for helping in extending the safety rate of Human Robot Interaction (HRI) systems using unsafe components, including sensors and controllers. SafeNet considers, in fact, the robotic system as a device at large and applies the principles of functional safety (as in ISO 13489-1) through a set of architectural procedures and implementation rules. The enabled capability of monitoring a network of unsafe devices through redundant computational nodes, allows the usage of any custom sensors and algorithms, usually planned and assembled at therapy planning-time rather than at platform design-time. A case study is presented with an actual implementation of the proposed methodology. A specific architectural solution is applied to an example of robot-assisted upper-limb rehabilitation with online motion tracking. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. A Matlab-based finite-difference solver for the Poisson problem with mixed Dirichlet-Neumann boundary conditions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reimer, Ashton S.; Cheviakov, Alexei F.

    2013-03-01

    A Matlab-based finite-difference numerical solver for the Poisson equation for a rectangle and a disk in two dimensions, and a spherical domain in three dimensions, is presented. The solver is optimized for handling an arbitrary combination of Dirichlet and Neumann boundary conditions, and allows for full user control of mesh refinement. The solver routines utilize effective and parallelized sparse vector and matrix operations. Computations exhibit high speeds, numerical stability with respect to mesh size and mesh refinement, and acceptable error values even on desktop computers. Catalogue identifier: AENQ_v1_0 Program summary URL:http://cpc.cs.qub.ac.uk/summaries/AENQ_v1_0.html Program obtainable from: CPC Program Library, Queen's University, Belfast, N. Ireland Licensing provisions: GNU General Public License v3.0 No. of lines in distributed program, including test data, etc.: 102793 No. of bytes in distributed program, including test data, etc.: 369378 Distribution format: tar.gz Programming language: Matlab 2010a. Computer: PC, Macintosh. Operating system: Windows, OSX, Linux. RAM: 8 GB (8, 589, 934, 592 bytes) Classification: 4.3. Nature of problem: To solve the Poisson problem in a standard domain with “patchy surface”-type (strongly heterogeneous) Neumann/Dirichlet boundary conditions. Solution method: Finite difference with mesh refinement. Restrictions: Spherical domain in 3D; rectangular domain or a disk in 2D. Unusual features: Choice between mldivide/iterative solver for the solution of large system of linear algebraic equations that arise. Full user control of Neumann/Dirichlet boundary conditions and mesh refinement. Running time: Depending on the number of points taken and the geometry of the domain, the routine may take from less than a second to several hours to execute.

  8. Numerical Simulations of Hypersonic Boundary Layer Transition

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bartkowicz, Matthew David

    Numerical schemes for supersonic flows tend to use large amounts of artificial viscosity for stability. This tends to damp out the small scale structures in the flow. Recently some low-dissipation methods have been proposed which selectively eliminate the artificial viscosity in regions which do not require it. This work builds upon the low-dissipation method of Subbareddy and Candler which uses the flux vector splitting method of Steger and Warming but identifies the dissipation portion to eliminate it. Computing accurate fluxes typically relies on large grid stencils or coupled linear systems that become computationally expensive to solve. Unstructured grids allow for CFD solutions to be obtained on complex geometries, unfortunately, it then becomes difficult to create a large stencil or the coupled linear system. Accurate solutions require grids that quickly become too large to be feasible. In this thesis a method is proposed to obtain more accurate solutions using relatively local data, making it suitable for unstructured grids composed of hexahedral elements. Fluxes are reconstructed using local gradients to extend the range of data used. The method is then validated on several test problems. Simulations of boundary layer transition are then performed. An elliptic cone at Mach 8 is simulated based on an experiment at the Princeton Gasdynamics Laboratory. A simulated acoustic noise boundary condition is imposed to model the noisy conditions of the wind tunnel and the transitioning boundary layer observed. A computation of an isolated roughness element is done based on an experiment in Purdue's Mach 6 quiet wind tunnel. The mechanism for transition is identified as an instability in the upstream separation region and a comparison is made to experimental data. In the CFD a fully turbulent boundary layer is observed downstream.

  9. Initializing a Mesoscale Boundary-Layer Model with Radiosonde Observations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Berri, Guillermo J.; Bertossa, Germán

    2018-01-01

    A mesoscale boundary-layer model is used to simulate low-level regional wind fields over the La Plata River of South America, a region characterized by a strong daily cycle of land-river surface-temperature contrast and low-level circulations of sea-land breeze type. The initial and boundary conditions are defined from a limited number of local observations and the upper boundary condition is taken from the only radiosonde observations available in the region. The study considers 14 different upper boundary conditions defined from the radiosonde data at standard levels, significant levels, level of the inversion base and interpolated levels at fixed heights, all of them within the first 1500 m. The period of analysis is 1994-2008 during which eight daily observations from 13 weather stations of the region are used to validate the 24-h surface-wind forecast. The model errors are defined as the root-mean-square of relative error in wind-direction frequency distribution and mean wind speed per wind sector. Wind-direction errors are greater than wind-speed errors and show significant dispersion among the different upper boundary conditions, not present in wind speed, revealing a sensitivity to the initialization method. The wind-direction errors show a well-defined daily cycle, not evident in wind speed, with the minimum at noon and the maximum at dusk, but no systematic deterioration with time. The errors grow with the height of the upper boundary condition level, in particular wind direction, and double the errors obtained when the upper boundary condition is defined from the lower levels. The conclusion is that defining the model upper boundary condition from radiosonde data closer to the ground minimizes the low-level wind-field errors throughout the region.

  10. When the Safe Alternative Is Not That Safe: Tramadol Prescribing in Children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Frédérique Rodieux

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available Children represent a vulnerable population in which management of nociceptive pain is complex. Drug responses in children differ from adults due to age-related differences. Moreover, therapeutic choices are limited by the lack of indication for a number of analgesic drugs due to the challenge of conducting clinical trials in children. Furthermore the assessment of efficacy as well as tolerance may be complicated by children’s inability to communicate properly. According to the World Health Organization, weak opioids such as tramadol and codeine, may be used in addition to paracetamol and ibuprofen for moderate nociceptive pain in both children and adults. However, codeine prescription has been restricted for the last 5 years in children because of the risk of fatal overdoses linked to the variable activity of cytochrome P450 (CYP 2D6 which bioactivates codeine. Even though tramadol has been considered a safe alternative to codeine, it is well established that tramadol pharmacodynamic opioid effects, efficacy and safety, are also largely influenced by CYP2D6 activity. For this reason, the US Food and Drug Administration recently released a boxed warning regarding the use of tramadol in children. To provide safe and effective tramadol prescription in children, a personalized approach, with dose adaptation according to CYP2D6 activity, would certainly be the safest method. We therefore recommend this approach in children requiring chronic or recurrent nociceptive pain treatment with tramadol. In case of acute inpatients nociceptive pain management, prescribing tramadol at the minimal effective dose, in a child appropriate dosage form and after clear instructions are given to the parents, remains reasonable based on current data. In all other situations, morphine should be preferred for moderate to severe nociceptive pain conditions.

  11. A Sharp-Interface Immersed Boundary Method with Improved Mass Conservation and Reduced Spurious Pressure Oscillations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Seo, Jung Hee; Mittal, Rajat

    2011-08-10

    A method for reducing the spurious pressure oscillations observed when simulating moving boundary flow problems with sharp-interface immersed boundary methods (IBMs) is proposed. By first identifying the primary cause of these oscillations to be the violation of the geometric conservation law near the immersed boundary, we adopt a cut-cell based approach to strictly enforce geometric conservation. In order to limit the complexity associated with the cut-cell method, the cut-cell based discretization is limited only to the pressure Poisson and velocity correction equations in the fractional-step method and the small-cell problem tackled by introducing a virtual cell-merging technique. The method is shown to retain all the desirable properties of the original finite-difference based IBM while at the same time, reducing pressure oscillations for moving boundaries by roughly an order of magnitude.

  12. An aqueous, polymer-based redox-flow battery using non-corrosive, safe, and low-cost materials

    Science.gov (United States)

    Janoschka, Tobias; Martin, Norbert; Martin, Udo; Friebe, Christian; Morgenstern, Sabine; Hiller, Hannes; Hager, Martin D.; Schubert, Ulrich S.

    2015-11-01

    For renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, and hydroelectric to be effectively used in the grid of the future, flexible and scalable energy-storage solutions are necessary to mitigate output fluctuations. Redox-flow batteries (RFBs) were first built in the 1940s and are considered a promising large-scale energy-storage technology. A limited number of redox-active materials--mainly metal salts, corrosive halogens, and low-molar-mass organic compounds--have been investigated as active materials, and only a few membrane materials, such as Nafion, have been considered for RFBs. However, for systems that are intended for both domestic and large-scale use, safety and cost must be taken into account as well as energy density and capacity, particularly regarding long-term access to metal resources, which places limits on the lithium-ion-based and vanadium-based RFB development. Here we describe an affordable, safe, and scalable battery system, which uses organic polymers as the charge-storage material in combination with inexpensive dialysis membranes, which separate the anode and the cathode by the retention of the non-metallic, active (macro-molecular) species, and an aqueous sodium chloride solution as the electrolyte. This water- and polymer-based RFB has an energy density of 10 watt hours per litre, current densities of up to 100 milliamperes per square centimetre, and stable long-term cycling capability. The polymer-based RFB we present uses an environmentally benign sodium chloride solution and cheap, commercially available filter membranes instead of highly corrosive acid electrolytes and expensive membrane materials.

  13. An aqueous, polymer-based redox-flow battery using non-corrosive, safe, and low-cost materials.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Janoschka, Tobias; Martin, Norbert; Martin, Udo; Friebe, Christian; Morgenstern, Sabine; Hiller, Hannes; Hager, Martin D; Schubert, Ulrich S

    2015-11-05

    For renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, and hydroelectric to be effectively used in the grid of the future, flexible and scalable energy-storage solutions are necessary to mitigate output fluctuations. Redox-flow batteries (RFBs) were first built in the 1940s and are considered a promising large-scale energy-storage technology. A limited number of redox-active materials--mainly metal salts, corrosive halogens, and low-molar-mass organic compounds--have been investigated as active materials, and only a few membrane materials, such as Nafion, have been considered for RFBs. However, for systems that are intended for both domestic and large-scale use, safety and cost must be taken into account as well as energy density and capacity, particularly regarding long-term access to metal resources, which places limits on the lithium-ion-based and vanadium-based RFB development. Here we describe an affordable, safe, and scalable battery system, which uses organic polymers as the charge-storage material in combination with inexpensive dialysis membranes, which separate the anode and the cathode by the retention of the non-metallic, active (macro-molecular) species, and an aqueous sodium chloride solution as the electrolyte. This water- and polymer-based RFB has an energy density of 10 watt hours per litre, current densities of up to 100 milliamperes per square centimetre, and stable long-term cycling capability. The polymer-based RFB we present uses an environmentally benign sodium chloride solution and cheap, commercially available filter membranes instead of highly corrosive acid electrolytes and expensive membrane materials.

  14. Louisiana Territorial Boundary, Geographic NAD83, LDOTD (1999) [state_boundary_la_LDOTD_1999

    Data.gov (United States)

    Louisiana Geographic Information Center — The dataset defines the state 'territorial' boundary of Louisiana. The state boundary extends 3 miles out into the Gulf of Mexico from the coastline. This data set...

  15. Allegheny County Municipal Boundaries

    Data.gov (United States)

    Allegheny County / City of Pittsburgh / Western PA Regional Data Center — This dataset demarcates the municipal boundaries in Allegheny County. Data was created to portray the boundaries of the 130 Municipalities in Allegheny County the...

  16. Allowing variance may enlarge the safe operating space for exploited ecosystems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carpenter, Stephen R; Brock, William A; Folke, Carl; van Nes, Egbert H; Scheffer, Marten

    2015-11-17

    Variable flows of food, water, or other ecosystem services complicate planning. Management strategies that decrease variability and increase predictability may therefore be preferred. However, actions to decrease variance over short timescales (2-4 y), when applied continuously, may lead to long-term ecosystem changes with adverse consequences. We investigated the effects of managing short-term variance in three well-understood models of ecosystem services: lake eutrophication, harvest of a wild population, and yield of domestic herbivores on a rangeland. In all cases, actions to decrease variance can increase the risk of crossing critical ecosystem thresholds, resulting in less desirable ecosystem states. Managing to decrease short-term variance creates ecosystem fragility by changing the boundaries of safe operating spaces, suppressing information needed for adaptive management, cancelling signals of declining resilience, and removing pressures that may build tolerance of stress. Thus, the management of variance interacts strongly and inseparably with the management of resilience. By allowing for variation, learning, and flexibility while observing change, managers can detect opportunities and problems as they develop while sustaining the capacity to deal with them.

  17. Implicit attitudes towards risky and safe driving

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Martinussen, Laila Marianne; Sømhovd, Mikael Julius; Møller, Mette

    ; further, self-reports of the intention to drive safely (or not) are socially sensitive. Therefore, we examined automatic preferences towards safe and risky driving with a Go/No-go Association Task (GNAT). The results suggest that (1) implicit attitudes towards driving behavior can be measured reliably...... with the GNAT; (2) implicit attitudes towards safe driving versus towards risky driving may be separable constructs. We propose that research on driving behavior may benefit from routinely including measures of implicit cognition. A practical advantage is a lesser susceptibility to social desirability biases......, compared to self-report methods. Pending replication in future research, the apparent dissociation between implicit attitudes towards safe versus risky driving that we observed may contribute to a greater theoretical understanding of the causes of unsafe and risky driving behavior....

  18. Social Boundaries and Secularism in the Lebanese Left

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Haugbølle, Sune

    2013-01-01

    This article explores the social meaning of boundaries in Lebanon through debates about secularism in and around the Lebanese Left. The aim is to elucidate the political and social meaning of ‘Left’ in a Lebanese context, and the positioning of liminal political subjectivity in a system organized...... along sectarian boundaries. Based on readings of debates about secularism in 1975 and 1976, the article proposes that the Left has since that year been forced to embrace secularism as its primary ideological marker. This experience in turn has become constitutive for what it means to be a leftist...

  19. The struggle for safe nuclear expansion in China

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xu, Y.C.

    2014-01-01

    After a temporary halt following the Fukushima nuclear disaster in March 2011, China resumed its fast, yet cautious, expansion of nuclear energy programme. Nuclear energy is considered as part of the general strategy to deal with the challenges of energy security and climate change and to advance with ‘state of the art’ technology in its development. This article briefly discusses recent development in and driving forces behind nuclear industry in China, and several challenges it has been facing: how to adopt, adapt, standardise and indigenise whose technologies, and how to address the shortage of qualified nuclear engineers, scientists, skilled labour force and qualified regulators. More importantly, it argues that safe and secure nuclear development requires consistent policies and effective regulations. Therefore, it is crucial to build policy and regulatory capacities based on coordination, planning and management of government agencies and the industry. - Highlights: • Nuclear energy development in China. • Nuclear technology selection. • Human capital. • Regulatory regime. • Safe and secure development

  20. A fail-safe microprocessor-based protection system utilising low-level multiplexed sensor signals

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Orme, S.; Evans, N.J.; Wey, B.O.

    1985-01-01

    The paper describes a fail-safe reactor protection system, called the individual sub-assembly temperature monitoring system (ISAT). It is being developed for the commercial demonstration fast reactor. The system incorporates recent advances in solid-state electronics and in particular microprocessors to implement time-shared data acquisition techniques to obtain and process data from around 1400 fast response thermocouples whilst meeting the required levels for reliability and availability. (author)