Toy Models of a Nonassociative Quantum Mechanics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dzhunushaliev, V.

2007-01-01

Toy models of a nonassociative quantum mechanics are presented. The Heisenberg equation of motion is modified using a nonassociative commutator. Possible physical applications of a nonassociative quantum mechanics are considered. The idea is discussed that a nonassociative algebra could be the operator language for the nonperturbative quantum theory. In such approach the nonperturbative quantum theory has observables and un observables quantities.

Toy model for two chiral nonets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fariborz, Amir H.; Jora, Renata; Schechter, Joseph

2005-01-01

Motivated by the possibility that nonets of scalar mesons might be described as mixtures of 'two quark' and 'four quark' components, we further study a toy model in which corresponding chiral nonets (containing also the pseudoscalar partners) interact with each other. Although the 'two quark' and 'four quark' chiral fields transform identically under SU(3) L xSU(3) R transformations, they transform differently under the U(1) A transformation which essentially counts total (quark+antiquark) content of the mesons. To implement this, we formulate an effective Lagrangian which mocks up the U(1) A behavior of the underlying QCD. We derive generating equations which yield Ward identity type relations based only on the assumed symmetry structure. This is applied to the mass spectrum of the low lying pseudoscalars and scalars, as well as their 'excitations'. Assuming isotopic spin invariance, it is possible to disentangle the amount of 'two quark' vs 'four quark' content in the pseudoscalar π,K,η-type states and in the scalar κ-type states. It is found that a small 'four quark' content in the lightest pseudoscalars is consistent with a large 'four quark' content in the lightest of the scalar κ mesons. The present toy model also allows one to easily estimate the strength of a 'four quark' vacuum condensate. There seems to be a rich and interesting structure

Simple inhomogeneous cosmological (toy) models

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Isidro, Eddy G. Chirinos; Zimdahl, Winfried; Vargas, Cristofher Zuñiga

2016-01-01

Based on the Lemaître-Tolman-Bondi (LTB) metric we consider two flat inhomogeneous big-bang models. We aim at clarifying, as far as possible analytically, basic features of the dynamics of the simplest inhomogeneous models and to point out the potential usefulness of exact inhomogeneous solutions as generalizations of the homogeneous configurations of the cosmological standard model. We discuss explicitly partial successes but also potential pitfalls of these simplest models. Although primarily seen as toy models, the relevant free parameters are fixed by best-fit values using the Joint Light-curve Analysis (JLA)-sample data. On the basis of a likelihood analysis we find that a local hump with an extension of almost 2 Gpc provides a better description of the observations than a local void for which we obtain a best-fit scale of about 30 Mpc. Future redshift-drift measurements are discussed as a promising tool to discriminate between inhomogeneous configurations and the ΛCDM model.

The emergence of geometry: a two-dimensional toy model

CERN Document Server

Alfaro, Jorge; Puigdomenech, Daniel

2010-01-01

We review the similarities between the effective chiral lagrangrian, relevant for low-energy strong interactions, and the Einstein-Hilbert action. We use these analogies to suggest a specific mechanism whereby gravitons would emerge as Goldstone bosons of a global SO(D) X GL(D) symmetry broken down to SO(D) by fermion condensation. We propose a two-dimensional toy model where a dynamical zwei-bein is generated from a topological theory without any pre-existing metric structure, the space being endowed only with an affine connection. A metric appears only after the symmetry breaking; thus the notion of distance is an induced effective one. In spite of several non-standard features this simple toy model appears to be renormalizable and at long distances is described by an effective lagrangian that corresponds to that of two-dimensional gravity (Liouville theory). The induced cosmological constant is related to the dynamical mass M acquired by the fermion fields in the breaking, which also acts as an infrared re...

UNDERSTANDING HOW PLANETS BECOME MASSIVE. I. DESCRIPTION AND VALIDATION OF A NEW TOY MODEL

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ormel, C. W.; Kobayashi, H.

2012-01-01

The formation of giant planets requires the accumulation of ∼10 Earth masses in solids; but how do protoplanets acquire their mass? There are many, often competing, processes that regulate the accretion rate of protoplanets. To assess their effects we present a new, publicly available toy model. The rationale behind the toy model is that it encompasses as many physically relevant processes as possible, but at the same time does not compromise its simplicity, speed, and physical insight. The toy model follows a modular structure, where key features—e.g., planetesimal fragmentation, radial orbital decay, nebula turbulence—can be switched on or off. Our model assumes three discrete components (fragments, planetesimals, and embryos) and is zero dimensional in space. We have tested the outcomes of the toy model against literature results and generally find satisfactory agreement. We include, for the first time, model features that capture the three-way interactions among small particles, gas, and protoplanets. Collisions among planetesimals will result in fragmentation, transferring a substantial amount of the solid mass to small particles, which couple strongly to the gas. Our results indicate that the efficiency of the accretion process then becomes very sensitive to the gas properties—especially to the turbulent state and the magnitude of the disk headwind (the decrease of the orbital velocity of the gas with respect to Keplerian)—as well as to the characteristic fragment size.

[Acoustical parameters of toys].

Science.gov (United States)

Harazin, Barbara

2010-01-01

Toys play an important role in the development of the sight and hearing concentration in children. They also support the development of manipulation, gently influence a child and excite its emotional activities. A lot of toys emit various sounds. The aim of the study was to assess sound levels produced by sound-emitting toys used by young children. Acoustical parameters of noise were evaluated for 16 sound-emitting plastic toys in laboratory conditions. The noise level was recorded at four different distances, 10, 20, 25 and 30 cm, from the toy. Measurements of A-weighted sound pressure levels and noise levels in octave band in the frequency range from 31.5 Hz to 16 kHz were performed at each distance. Taking into consideration the highest equivalent A-weighted sound levels produced by tested toys, they can be divided into four groups: below 70 dB (6 toys), from 70 to 74 dB (4 toys), from 75 to 84 dB (3 toys) and from 85 to 94 dB (3 toys). The majority of toys (81%) emitted dominant sound levels in octave band at the frequency range from 2 kHz to 4 kHz. Sound-emitting toys produce the highest acoustic energy at the frequency range of the highest susceptibility of the auditory system. Noise levels produced by some toys can be dangerous to children's hearing.

Emergence of geometry: A two-dimensional toy model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alfaro, Jorge; Espriu, Domene; Puigdomenech, Daniel

2010-01-01

We review the similarities between the effective chiral Lagrangrian, relevant for low-energy strong interactions, and the Einstein-Hilbert action. We use these analogies to suggest a specific mechanism whereby gravitons would emerge as Goldstone bosons of a global SO(D)xGL(D) symmetry broken down to SO(D) by fermion condensation. We propose a two-dimensional toy model where a dynamical zweibein is generated from a topological theory without any preexisting metric structure, the space being endowed only with an affine connection. A metric appears only after the symmetry breaking; thus the notion of distance is an induced effective one. In spite of several nonstandard features this simple toy model appears to be renormalizable and at long distances is described by an effective Lagrangian that corresponds to that of two-dimensional gravity (Liouville theory). The induced cosmological constant is related to the dynamical mass M acquired by the fermion fields in the breaking, which also acts as an infrared regulator. The low-energy expansion is valid for momenta k>M, i.e. for supra-horizon scales. We briefly discuss a possible implementation of a similar mechanism in four dimensions.

A toy model for higher spin Dirac operators

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eelbode, D.; Van de Voorde, L.

2010-01-01

This paper deals with the higher spin Dirac operator Q 2,1 acting on functions taking values in an irreducible representation space for so(m) with highest weight (5/2, 3/2, 1/2,..., 1/2). . This operator acts as a toy model for generalizations of the classical Rarita-Schwinger equations in Clifford analysis. Polynomial null solutions for this operator are studied in particular.

Toys for Preschool Children

Science.gov (United States)

Stephenson, Audrey

1977-01-01

In emphasizing the importance of play and toys in a child's development, this article describes the kinds of toys suitable for preschool children of all ages. Floor toys, building and hammering toys, transport, and imaginative and creative play are some of the topics covered. (JK)

How Young Children and Their Mothers Experience Two Different Types of Toys: A Traditional Stuffed Toy versus an Animated Digital Toy

Science.gov (United States)

Sung, Jihyun

2018-01-01

Background: Despite widespread use of digital toys, research evidence of how a digital toy's features affect children's development and the nature of parent-child interactions during play is limited. Objective: The present study aimed to examine how mother-child dyads experience a traditional stuffed toy and an animated digital toy by comparing…

Investigating Flight with a Toy Helicopter

Science.gov (United States)

Liebl, Michael

2010-01-01

Flight fascinates people of all ages. Recent advances in battery technology have extended the capabilities of model airplanes and toy helicopters. For those who have never outgrown a childhood enthusiasm for the wonders of flight, it is possible to buy inexpensive, remotely controlled planes and helicopters. A toy helicopter offers an opportunity…

A toy MCT model for multiple glass transitions: Double swallow tail singularity

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ryzhov, V.N. [Institute for High Pressure Physics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Troitsk 142190, Moscow region (Russian Federation); Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, 141700 Moscow (Russian Federation); Tareyeva, E.E. [Institute for High Pressure Physics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Troitsk 142190, Moscow region (Russian Federation)

2014-11-07

We propose a toy model to describe in the frame of Mode Coupling Theory multiple glass transitions. The model is based on the postulated simple form for static structure factor as a sum of two delta-functions. This form makes it possible to solve the MCT equations in almost analytical way. The phase diagram is governed by two swallow tails resulting from two A{sub 4} singularities and includes liquid–glass transition and multiple glasses. The diagram has much in common with those of binary and quasibinary systems. - Highlights: • A simple toy model is proposed for description of glass–glass transitions. • The static structure factor of the model has the form of a sum of delta-functions. • The phase diagram contains A{sub 4} bifurcation singularities and A{sub 3} end points. • The results can be applied for the qualitative description of quasibinary systems.

Toys in space

Science.gov (United States)

1985-01-01

The pictured toys will be carried aboard the Challenger on the STS 51-D mission as part of a study of physics in cooperation with the Houston Museum of Natural Sciences. The toys include a yoyo, paddleball, friction powered toy car, flipping mouse, top, ball and jacks, gyroscopes, Slinky and Wheelo.

Lotus Effect Toy

Science.gov (United States)

Shakerin, Said

2011-01-01

This is a short article about Aqua Drop, a toy that employs a superhydrophobic surface. After defining superhydrophobic surface, its occurrence in nature, and its importance in science and technology, I describe the toy, followed by several student activities that can be performed with the toy and easily found natural objects.

Mean transverse momenta correlations in hadron-hadron collisions in MC toy model with repulsing strings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Altsybeev, Igor

2016-01-01

In the present work, Monte-Carlo toy model with repulsing quark-gluon strings in hadron-hadron collisions is described. String repulsion creates transverse boosts for the string decay products, giving modifications of observables. As an example, long-range correlations between mean transverse momenta of particles in two observation windows are studied in MC toy simulation of the heavy-ion collisions

``Models'' CAVEAT EMPTOR!!!: ``Toy Models Too-Often Yield Toy-Results''!!!: Statistics, Polls, Politics, Economics, Elections!!!: GRAPH/Network-Physics: ``Equal-Distribution for All'' TRUMP-ED BEC ``Winner-Take-All'' ``Doctor Livingston I Presume?''

Science.gov (United States)

Preibus-Norquist, R. N. C.-Grover; Bush-Romney, G. W.-Willard-Mitt; Dimon, J. P.; Adelson-Koch, Sheldon-Charles-David-Sheldon; Krugman-Axelrod, Paul-David; Siegel, Edward Carl-Ludwig; D. N. C./O. F. P./''47''%/50% Collaboration; R. N. C./G. O. P./''53''%/49% Collaboration; Nyt/Wp/Cnn/Msnbc/Pbs/Npr/Ft Collaboration; Ftn/Fnc/Fox/Wsj/Fbn Collaboration; Lb/Jpmc/Bs/Boa/Ml/Wamu/S&P/Fitch/Moodys/Nmis Collaboration

2013-03-01

``Models''? CAVEAT EMPTOR!!!: ``Toy Models Too-Often Yield Toy-Results''!!!: Goldenfeld[``The Role of Models in Physics'', in Lects.on Phase-Transitions & R.-G.(92)-p.32-33!!!]: statistics(Silver{[NYTimes; Bensinger, ``Math-Geerks Clearly-Defeated Pundits'', LATimes, (11/9/12)])}, polls, politics, economics, elections!!!: GRAPH/network/net/...-PHYSICS Barabasi-Albert[RMP (02)] (r,t)-space VERSUS(???) [Where's the Inverse/ Dual/Integral-Transform???] (Benjamin)Franklin(1795)-Fourier(1795; 1897;1822)-Laplace(1850)-Mellin (1902) Brillouin(1922)-...(k,)-space, {Hubbard [The World According to Wavelets,Peters (96)-p.14!!!/p.246: refs.-F2!!!]},and then (2) Albert-Barabasi[]Bose-Einstein quantum-statistics(BEQS) Bose-Einstein CONDENSATION (BEC) versus Bianconi[pvt.-comm.; arXiv:cond-mat/0204506; ...] -Barabasi [???] Fermi-Dirac

Toy Model of Frame-Dragging Magnetosphere for the M87 Jet

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

2016-01-27

Jan 27, 2016 ... Toy Model of Frame-Dragging Magnetosphere for the M87 Jet ... The outermost layer of jet is driven by the frame-dragging effect in the Kerr ... All these have helped shorten the publication time and have improved the visibility ...

Coupled intertwiner dynamics: A toy model for coupling matter to spin foam models

Science.gov (United States)

Steinhaus, Sebastian

2015-09-01

The universal coupling of matter and gravity is one of the most important features of general relativity. In quantum gravity, in particular spin foams, matter couplings have been defined in the past, yet the mutual dynamics, in particular if matter and gravity are strongly coupled, are hardly explored, which is related to the definition of both matter and gravitational degrees of freedom on the discretization. However, extracting these mutual dynamics is crucial in testing the viability of the spin foam approach and also establishing connections to other discrete approaches such as lattice gauge theories. Therefore, we introduce a simple two-dimensional toy model for Yang-Mills coupled to spin foams, namely an Ising model coupled to so-called intertwiner models defined for SU (2 )k. The two systems are coupled by choosing the Ising coupling constant to depend on spin labels of the background, as these are interpreted as the edge lengths of the discretization. We coarse grain this toy model via tensor network renormalization and uncover an interesting dynamics: the Ising phase transition temperature turns out to be sensitive to the background configurations and conversely, the Ising model can induce phase transitions in the background. Moreover, we observe a strong coupling of both systems if close to both phase transitions.

Toy Control Program evaluation.

Science.gov (United States)

Stewart, H A; Ormond, C; Seeger, B R

1991-08-01

The Toy Control Program for the Apple IIe microcomputer is a software and hardware package developed for the training of single-switch scanning skills. The specially designed scanning programs provide on screen visual feedback and activate a battery-powered toy to reinforce performance. This study examined whether the training of preschool subjects in single-switch scanning skills with the Toy Control Program would result in increased task completion scores and increased levels of attention to task, as compared with conditions of toy activation only and microcomputer programs with screen reinforcement only. The results showed that the subjects paid significantly more attention to the toys as reinforcers (p less than .01). No significant difference was found for the performance results of the three conditions. These findings support the use of a program like the Toy Control Program, which integrates the instructional capabilities of a computer with the reinforcement potential of a toy and the creativity of a therapist.

Toy nanoindentation model and incipient plasticity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Plans, I.; Carpio, A.; Bonilla, L.L.

2009-01-01

A toy model of two dimensional nanoindentation in finite crystals is proposed. The crystal is described by periodized discrete elasticity whereas the indenter is a rigid strain field of triangular shape representing a hard knife-like indenter. Analysis of the model shows that there are a number of discontinuities in the load vs penetration depth plot which correspond to the creation of dislocation loops. The stress vs depth bifurcation diagram of the model reveals multistable stationary solutions that appear as the dislocation-free branch of solutions develops turning points for increasing stress. Dynamical simulations show that an increment of the applied load leads to nucleation of dislocation loops below the nanoindenter tip. Such dislocations travel inside the bulk of the crystal and accommodate at a certain depth in the sample. In agreement with experiments, hysteresis is observed if the stress is decreased after the first dislocation loop is created. Critical stress values for loop creation and their final location at equilibrium are calculated.

Stability and replica symmetry in the ising spin glass: a toy model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

De Dominicis, C.; Mottishaw, P.

1986-01-01

Searching for possible replica symmetric solutions in an Ising spin glass (in the tree approximation) we investigate a toy model whose bond distribution has two non vanishing cumulants (instead of one only as in a gaussian distribution)

Folk toys in Central Thailand: Product development for a creative economy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wanna Pichetpruth

2015-11-01

, cap gun, nungstrik gun, whistle, pong-pang, bamboo flute, wote and wihoksaipha; 2 pleasure and imaginative toys, such as kanghan, rotated kanghan, airplane, kalong, chackachan, pla-tapian, waling karian bird and flying bird; 3 games, such as kalakaokwai, wooden alligators, wooden swords and arrows; and 4 models, such as talapcap, trucks, tricycles, boats, lookfat, kites, eko, mokawmokeang, dinosaurs, buffalo, tang, motorcycles, jet planes and house models. Nowadays, toys are made as an enterprise, using more external materials, chemical colors, different styles and models. Furthermore, toy production helps to conserve central Thai identity, child growth and Thai lifestyle.

2 + 1 quantum gravity as a toy model for the 3 + 1 theory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ashtekar, A.; Husain, V.; Smolin, L.; Samuel, J.; Utah Univ., Salt Lake City, UT

1989-01-01

2 + 1 Einstein gravity is used as a toy model for testing a program for non-perturbative canonical quantisation of the 3 + 1 theory. The program can be successfully implemented in the model and leads to a surprisingly rich quantum theory. (author)

Toy Story

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cole, Anne Jodon; Petersson Brooks, Eva

2016-01-01

a mediating device between adults and children. The question then becomes, how does a display of static toys speak to a child’s culture of play? Through interviews with toy museum curators and personal observations it was found that the exhibition was designed to have adults share and reflect stories about...

Assessment of toxic metals and phthalates in children's toys and clays.

Science.gov (United States)

Korfali, Samira I; Sabra, Rayan; Jurdi, Mey; Taleb, Robin I

2013-10-01

Toxic metals and phthalates are introduced in the manufacturing of plastic toys and modeling clays. In Lebanon, inexpensive plastic toys and modeling clays (sold in dollar stores) are affordable and popular, and there is no legislation to monitor or regulate such toys. This study aimed to assess the quality of inexpensive plastic toys and modeling clays imported in Lebanon. Metal concentrations in toys, namely, zinc [not detectable (ND) to 3,708 μg/g], copper (ND to 140), chromium (ND to 75 μg/g), tin (ND to 39 μg/g), and cadmium (Cd) (ND to 20 μg/g), were lower than the European Union (EU) Directive limits, whereas lead (ND to 258 μg/g) in 10% of samples and antimony (Sb) (ND to 195 μg/g) in 5% of samples were greater than the EU limits. In modeling clays, most of the metals were lower than the EU Directive limits except for Cd and arsenic (As). Cd was detected in 83% of samples, with a mean level of 9.1 μg/g, which is far greater than the EU Directive limit (1.9 μg/g). The As mean level of 4.5 μg/g was greater than the EU limit (4.0 μg/g) and was detected in 9% of samples. Phthalic acid esters (PAEs) were found in 60% of children's toys and 77% of modeling clays. Phthalic acid butyl ester had the highest-level PAE encountered and was ≤59.1 % in one type of clay. However, among children's toys, di(4-octyl) ester terephthalic acid was the highest encountered phthalate at a concentration of 25.7%. The community survey indicated that 82% of households purchase their toys from inexpensive shops and that only 17% of parents were aware of the health hazard of such toys. Consequently, an intervention plan was proposed for the provision of safe toys to children.

Children's Reactions to Television Advertising for Toys.

Science.gov (United States)

Gorn, Gerald J.; Goldberg, Marvin E.

This study investigated both the effects of expectancy and TV commercials using an expectancy-value model. In a 3 x 5 factorial design, eight- to ten-year-old boys (N=133) were presented with low, moderate or high expectancies of winning a toy, followed by exposure to 0, 1 or 3 repetitions of a TV commercial for the toy. High expectancy led to…

Nonlinear dynamics and modelling of various wooden toys with impact and friction

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Leine, R.I.; Campen, van D.H.; Glocker, C.

2003-01-01

In this paper, we study bifurcations in systems with impact and friction, modeled with a rigid multibody approach. Knowledge from the field of nonlinear dynamics is therefore combined with theory from the field of non-smooth mechanics. We study the nonlinear dynamics of three commercial wooden toys.

Art Toys in the contemporary art scene

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Laura Sernissi

2014-03-01

Full Text Available The Art Toys phenomenon, better known as Art Toy Movement, was born in China in the mid-nineties and quickly spread out to the rest of the world. The toys are an artistic production of serial sculpture, made by handcrafts or on an industrial scale. There are several types of toys, such as custom toys and canvas toys, synonyms of designer toys, although they are often defined according to the constituent material, such as vinyl toys (plastic and plush toys (fabric. Art toys are the heirs of an already pop-surrealist and neo-pop circuit, which since the eighties of the twentieth century has pervaded the Japanese-American art scene, winking to the playful spirit of the avant-garde of the early century. Some psychoanalytic, pedagogical and anthropological studies about “play theories”, may also help us to understand and identify these heterogeneous products as real works of art and not simply as collectible toys.

Grid Transmission Expansion Planning Model Based on Grid Vulnerability

Science.gov (United States)

Tang, Quan; Wang, Xi; Li, Ting; Zhang, Quanming; Zhang, Hongli; Li, Huaqiang

2018-03-01

Based on grid vulnerability and uniformity theory, proposed global network structure and state vulnerability factor model used to measure different grid models. established a multi-objective power grid planning model which considering the global power network vulnerability, economy and grid security constraint. Using improved chaos crossover and mutation genetic algorithm to optimize the optimal plan. For the problem of multi-objective optimization, dimension is not uniform, the weight is not easy given. Using principal component analysis (PCA) method to comprehensive assessment of the population every generation, make the results more objective and credible assessment. the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed model are validated by simulation results of Garver-6 bus system and Garver-18 bus.

History of European and national toys

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Smirnova E.O.

2016-03-01

Full Text Available The article examines the role of toys in the life and development of children. It traces the developmental trajectory of shaped toys in Europe and Russia from antiquity to the present day. It also shows the role of ideological factors in shaping the image of toys as well as long lasting contradiction between the developing features of toys and their market values. The article presents the comparative analysis of the image and the playing potential of the traditional and modern popular dolls. Functions of toys as mediums and tools for the transmission of cultural norms is exemplifies by gender stereotypes: it shows how the peculiarity of toys for boys and girls, affects the nature of the game. In the conclusion the article examines the main trends and problems of development of the market of modern toys.

Multi-technique quantitative analysis and socioeconomic considerations of lead, cadmium, and arsenic in children's toys and toy jewelry.

Science.gov (United States)

Hillyer, Margot M; Finch, Lauren E; Cerel, Alisha S; Dattelbaum, Jonathan D; Leopold, Michael C

2014-08-01

A wide spectrum and large number of children's toys and toy jewelry items were purchased from both bargain and retail vendors and analyzed for arsenic, cadmium, and lead metal content using multiple analytical techniques, including flame and furnace atomic absorption spectroscopy as well as X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy. Particularly dangerous for young children, metal concentrations in toys/toy jewelry were assessed for compliance with current Consumer Safety Product Commission (CPSC) regulations (F963-11). A conservative metric involving multiple analytical techniques was used to categorize compliance: one technique confirmation of metal in excess of CPSC limits indicated a "suspect" item while confirmation on two different techniques warranted a non-compliant designation. Sample matrix-based standard addition provided additional confirmation of non-compliant and suspect products. Results suggest that origin of purchase, rather than cost, is a significant factor in the risk assessment of these materials with 57% of toys/toy jewelry items from bargain stores non-compliant or suspect compared to only 15% from retail outlets and 13% if only low cost items from the retail stores are compared. While jewelry was found to be the most problematic product (73% of non-compliant/suspect samples), lead (45%) and arsenic (76%) were the most dominant toxins found in non-compliant/suspect samples. Using the greater Richmond area as a model, the discrepancy between bargain and retail children's products, along with growing numbers of bargain stores in low-income and urban areas, exemplifies an emerging socioeconomic public health issue. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Introducing Interactive Technology--"Toy Story 3"

Science.gov (United States)

Nikirk, Martin

2011-01-01

"To infinity and beyond!" is the catchphrase of Buzz Lightyear, Universe Protection Unit space ranger, a character in the Disney/Pixar "Toy Story" franchise. The three films in the franchise--"Toy Story," 1993; "Toy Story 2," 1999; and "Toy Story 3," 2010--incorporate an innovative blend of many different genres, having spun off video games and…

Helicopter Toy and Lift Estimation

Science.gov (United States)

Shakerin, Said

2013-01-01

A $1 plastic helicopter toy (called a Wacky Whirler) can be used to demonstrate lift. Students can make basic measurements of the toy, use reasonable assumptions and, with the lift formula, estimate the lift, and verify that it is sufficient to overcome the toy's weight. (Contains 1 figure.)

Children's Gender-Typed Toy Interests: Does Propulsion Matter?

Science.gov (United States)

Dinella, Lisa M; Weisgram, Erica S; Fulcher, Megan

2017-07-01

Children's toy play is at the foundation of child development. However, gender differentiation in early play experiences may result in gender differences in cognitive abilities, social interactions, and vocational choices. We investigated gender-typing of toys and toys' propulsive properties (e.g., wheels, forward motion) as possible factors impacting children's toy interests, perceptions of other children's interests, and children's actual toy choices during free play. In Studies 1 and 2, 82 preschool children (42 boys, 40 girls; mean age = 4.90 years) were asked to report their interest and perceptions of other children's interests in toys. In Study 1, masculine, feminine, and neutral toys with and without propulsive properties were presented. Children reported greater interest in gender-typed toys and neutral toys compared to cross-gender-typed toys. In Study 2, unfamiliar, neutral toys with and without propulsive properties were presented. Propulsive properties did not affect children's interest across both studies. Study 3 was an observational study that assessed toy preferences among 42 preschool children (21 males, 21 females, mean age = 4.49 years) during a play session with masculine, feminine, and neutral toys with and without propulsive properties. Gender-typed toy preferences were less apparent than expected, with children showing high interest in neutral toys, and girls playing with a wide variety of masculine, feminine, and neutral toys. Gender differences in interest for toys with propulsion properties were not evident. Overall, gender differences in children's interest in toys as a function of propulsion properties were not found in the three experiments within this study.

Modern Toys: Risks and Dangers (Materials from the Workshop at the MSUPE Center for Play and Toys

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Smirnova E.O.,

2016-07-01

Full Text Available The article presents the seminar which is based on the “harmful” toys. This seminar was organized in the Centre of games and toys in MSUPE. The theme of the seminar is linked with the requirements of the public and parental controls to restrict the production and sale of these toys which can harm the mental health and the development of children. The discussion was attended by the leading child psychiatrists, psychotherapists and psychologists. They discussed the issues that were associated with the risks and hazards from the toys, and the possibility of studying the potential harmful effects of toys. All participants of this discussion were agree with this fact, that a toy itself cannot harm a mental health, while at the same time, a toy (along with cartoons, multimedia, games and so on. takes part in the formation of certain needs and views of children. This workshop demonstrated the complexity of the problem and the necessity for its further development.

Character Toys as Psychological Tools

Science.gov (United States)

Smirnova, Elena O.

2011-01-01

The main characteristic of children's play is its mental aspect--the fact that it is based on thoughts and feelings and not on objective reality. During imaginary play, children go beyond the limits of reality, and toys are tools that help them to do this. Children need character toys--toys that play the role of companion or partner--in the early…

A Generic Danish Distribution Grid Model for Smart Grid Technology Testing

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cha, Seung-Tae; Wu, Qiuwei; Østergaard, Jacob

2012-01-01

This paper describes the development of a generic Danish distribution grid model for smart grid technology testing based on the Bornholm power system. The frequency dependent network equivalent (FDNE) method has been used in order to accurately preserve the desired properties and characteristics...... as a generic Smart Grid benchmark model for testing purposes....... by comparing the transient response of the original Bornholm power system model and the developed generic model under significant fault conditions. The results clearly show that the equivalent generic distribution grid model retains the dynamic characteristics of the original system, and can be used...

The one loop calculation of the strong coupling β function in the Toy Model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bai Zhiming; Jiang Yuanfang

1991-01-01

The background field quantization is used to calculate the one-loop β function in the Toy Model which has the strong coupling and the SU(3) symmetry. The function obtained is consistent with the Appalquist-Carrazone theorem in the low energy condition

Investigation of toy phenomenon in western psychology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Smirnova E.O.

2012-12-01

Full Text Available The article reviews the latest foreign psychological studies of toys. It presents the thematic variety of these studies and also different levels of analysis of the problem in the question. In terms of socio-cultural approach to toy it is regarded as a text, as a secondary artifact presenting real objects and tools. Some articles in this review are devoted to the problem of choosing toys in conditions of a contemporary market-oriented society. Some articles in this review, analyzing the historical background of toys, compare those of a past age with present time toys. In some studies the role of certain kinds of toys (like construction kits or doll's houses in child's life is discussed. The review also presents children's gender preferences in choice of toys.

A SIMPLE TOY MODEL OF THE ADVECTIVE-ACOUSTIC INSTABILITY. I. PERTURBATIVE APPROACH

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Foglizzo, T.

2009-01-01

Some general properties of the advective-acoustic instability are described and understood using a toy model, which is simple enough to allow for analytical estimates of the eigenfrequencies. The essential ingredients of this model, in the unperturbed regime, are a stationary shock and a subsonic region of deceleration. For the sake of analytical simplicity, the two-dimensional unperturbed flow is parallel and the deceleration is produced adiabatically by an external potential. The instability mechanism is determined unambiguously as the consequence of a cycle between advected and acoustic perturbations. The purely acoustic cycle, considered alone, is proven to be stable in this flow. Its contribution to the instability can be either constructive or destructive. A frequency cutoff is associated with the advection time through the region of deceleration. This cutoff frequency explains why the instability favors eigenmodes with a low frequency and a large horizontal wavelength. The relation between the instability occurring in this highly simplified toy model and the properties of standing accretion shock instability observed in the numerical simulations of stellar core collapse is discussed. This simple setup is proposed as a benchmark test to evaluate the accuracy, in the linear regime, of numerical simulations involving this instability. We illustrate such benchmark simulations in a companion paper.

Quantum Big Bang without fine-tuning in a toy-model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Znojil, Miloslav

2012-01-01

The question of possible physics before Big Bang (or after Big Crunch) is addressed via a schematic non-covariant simulation of the loss of observability of the Universe. Our model is drastically simplified by the reduction of its degrees of freedom to the mere finite number. The Hilbert space of states is then allowed time-dependent and singular at the critical time t = t c . This option circumvents several traditional theoretical difficulties in a way illustrated via solvable examples. In particular, the unitary evolution of our toy-model quantum Universe is shown interruptible, without any fine-tuning, at the instant of its bang or collapse t = t c .

Quantum Big Bang without fine-tuning in a toy-model

Science.gov (United States)

Znojil, Miloslav

2012-02-01

The question of possible physics before Big Bang (or after Big Crunch) is addressed via a schematic non-covariant simulation of the loss of observability of the Universe. Our model is drastically simplified by the reduction of its degrees of freedom to the mere finite number. The Hilbert space of states is then allowed time-dependent and singular at the critical time t = tc. This option circumvents several traditional theoretical difficulties in a way illustrated via solvable examples. In particular, the unitary evolution of our toy-model quantum Universe is shown interruptible, without any fine-tuning, at the instant of its bang or collapse t = tc.

77 FR 37834 - Revocation of Certain Requirements Pertaining to Caps Intended for Use With Toy Guns and Toy Guns...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-06-25

... Certain Requirements Pertaining to Caps Intended for Use With Toy Guns and Toy Guns Not Intended for Use With Caps AGENCY: Consumer Product Safety Commission. ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking. SUMMARY... compliance than our existing regulations pertaining to caps intended for use with toy guns and toy guns not...

History of European and national toys

OpenAIRE

Smirnova E.O.; Sokolova M.V.

2016-01-01

The article examines the role of toys in the life and development of children. It traces the developmental trajectory of shaped toys in Europe and Russia from antiquity to the present day. It also shows the role of ideological factors in shaping the image of toys as well as long lasting contradiction between the developing features of toys and their market values. The article presents the comparative analysis of the image and the playing potential of the traditional and modern popular dolls. ...

Triple-layer smart grid business model

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ma, Zheng; Lundgaard, Morten; Jørgensen, Bo Nørregaard

2016-01-01

Viewing the smart grid with the theory of business models may open opportunities in understanding and capturing values in new markets. This study tries to discover and map the smart grid ecosystem-based business model framework with two different environments (sub-Saharan Africa and Denmark......), and identifies the parameters for the smart grid solutions to the emerging markets. This study develops a triple-layer business model including the organizational (Niche), environmental (Intermediate), and global (Dominators) factors. The result uncovers an interface of market factors and stakeholders...... in a generic smart grid constellation. The findings contribute the transferability potential of the smart grid solutions between countries, and indicate the potential to export and import smart grid solutions based on the business modeling....

Quantifying infant physical interactions using sensorized toys in a natural play environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Goyal, Vatsala; Torres, Wilson; Rai, Roshan; Shofer, Frances; Bogen, Daniel; Bryant, Phillip; Prosser, Laura; Johnson, Michelle J

2017-07-01

Infants with developmental delays must be detected early in their development to minimize the progression of motor and neurological impairments. Our objective is to quantify how sensorized toys in a natural play environment can promote infant-toy physical interactions. We created a hanging elephant toy, equipped with an inertial measurement unit (IMU), a pressure transducer, and multiple feedback sensors, to be a hand-grasping toy. We used a 3 DoF robotic model with inputs from the IMU to calculate multiple kinematic metrics and an equation to calculate haptic metrics from the pressure transducer. Six typical infants were tested in the gym set-up. Three infants interacted with the toy for more than half the trial time. The youngest infant exhibited the largest toy displacement with ΔD = 27.6 cm, while the oldest infant squeezed the toy with the largest mean pressure of 4.5 kPa. More data on on both typical and atypical infants needs to be collected. After testing atypical infants in the SmarToyGym set-up, we will be able to identify interaction metrics that differentiate atypical and typical infants.

Phthalates in toys available in Indian market.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, Sapna; Saikia, Nirmali; Sahu, Ramakant

2011-06-01

Twenty four children's toys and child care articles available in the local market of India were analyzed for eight phthalates as children toys are plasticized with phthalates. All toy samples showed the presence of one or more phthalates including di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (96% of the samples), di-iso-nonyl phthalate and di-iso-decyl phthalate (42% of the samples) at a concentration ranging from 0.1% to 16.2%. Soft toys contain higher levels of phthalates as compared to hard toys as primary function of phthalates is softening of hard plastic materiel.

Microscopic and probabilistic approach to thermal steady state based on a dice and coin toy model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Onorato, Pasquale; Moggio, Lorenzo; Oss, Stefano; Malgieri, Massimiliano

2017-01-01

In this article we present an educational approach to thermal equilibrium which was tested on a group of 13 undergraduate students at the University of Trento. The approach is based on a stochastic toy model, in which bodies in thermal contact are represented by rows of squares on a cardboard table, which exchange coins placed on the squares based on the roll of two dice. The discussion of several physical principles, such as the exponential approach to equilibrium, the determination of the equilibrium temperature, and the interpretation of the equilibrium state as the most probable macrostate, proceeds through a continual comparison between the outcomes obtained with the toy model and the results of a real experiment on the thermal contact of two masses of water at different temperatures. At the end of the sequence, a re-analysis of the experimental results in view of both the Boltzmann and Clausius definitions of entropy reveals some limits of the toy model, but also allows for a critical discussion of the concepts of temperature and entropy. In order to provide the reader with a feeling of how the sequence was received by students, and how it helped them understand the topics introduced, we discuss some excerpts from their answers to a conceptual item given at the end of the sequence. (paper)

Children's Gender-Based Reasoning about Toys.

Science.gov (United States)

Martin, Carol Lynn; And Others

1995-01-01

Three studies examined how preschool children used gender-based reasoning in making judgments about toy preferences for themselves and for others. Found that children used gender labels to guide their own preferences and their expectations of others. Even with very attractive toys, children liked the toys less if they were labeled as being for the…

Towards the graviton from spinfoams: the 3d toy model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Speziale, Simone

2006-01-01

Recently, a proposal has appeared for the extraction of the 2-point function of linearised quantum gravity, within the spinfoam formalism. This relies on the use of a boundary state, which introduces a semi-classical flat geometry on the boundary. In this paper, we investigate this proposal considering a toy model in the (Riemannian) 3d case, where the semi-classical limit is better understood. We show that in this limit the propagation kernel of the model is the one for the harmonic oscillator. This is at the origin of the expected 1/l behaviour of the 2-point function. Furthermore, we numerically study the short scales regime, where deviations from this behaviour occur

Food marketing to children through toys: response of restaurants to the first U.S. toy ordinance.

Science.gov (United States)

Otten, Jennifer J; Hekler, Eric B; Krukowski, Rebecca A; Buman, Matthew P; Saelens, Brian E; Gardner, Christopher D; King, Abby C

2012-01-01

On August 9, 2010, Santa Clara County CA became the first U.S. jurisdiction to implement an ordinance that prohibits the distribution of toys and other incentives to children in conjunction with meals, foods, or beverages that do not meet minimal nutritional criteria. Restaurants had many different options for complying with this ordinance, such as introducing more healthful menu options, reformulating current menu items, or changing marketing or toy distribution practices. To assess how ordinance-affected restaurants changed their child menus, marketing, and toy distribution practices relative to non-affected restaurants. Children's menu items and child-directed marketing and toy distribution practices were examined before and at two time points after ordinance implementation (from July through November 2010) at ordinance-affected fast-food restaurants compared with demographically matched unaffected same-chain restaurants using the Children's Menu Assessment tool. Affected restaurants showed a 2.8- to 3.4-fold improvement in Children's Menu Assessment scores from pre- to post-ordinance with minimal changes at unaffected restaurants. Response to the ordinance varied by restaurant. Improvements were seen in on-site nutritional guidance; promotion of healthy meals, beverages, and side items; and toy marketing and distribution activities. The ordinance appears to have positively influenced marketing of healthful menu items and toys as well as toy distribution practices at ordinance-affected restaurants, but did not affect the number of healthful food items offered. Copyright © 2012 American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Safety of light emitting diodes in toys.

Science.gov (United States)

Higlett, M P; O'Hagan, J B; Khazova, M

2012-03-01

Light emitting diodes (LEDs) are increasingly being used in toys. An assessment methodology is described for determining the accessible emission limits for the optical radiation from the toys, which takes account of expected use and reasonably foreseeable misuse of toys. Where data are available, it may be possible to assess the toy from the data sheet alone. If this information is not available, a simple measurement protocol is proposed.

Safety of light emitting diodes in toys

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Higlett, M P; O'Hagan, J B; Khazova, M

2012-01-01

Light emitting diodes (LEDs) are increasingly being used in toys. An assessment methodology is described for determining the accessible emission limits for the optical radiation from the toys, which takes account of expected use and reasonably foreseeable misuse of toys. Where data are available, it may be possible to assess the toy from the data sheet alone. If this information is not available, a simple measurement protocol is proposed.

Projective limits of state spaces III. Toy-models

Science.gov (United States)

Lanéry, Suzanne; Thiemann, Thomas

2018-01-01

In this series of papers, we investigate the projective framework initiated by Kijowski (1977) and Okołów (2009, 2014, 2013) [1,2], which describes the states of a quantum theory as projective families of density matrices. A short reading guide to the series can be found in Lanéry (2016). A strategy to implement the dynamics in this formalism was presented in our first paper Lanéry and Thiemann (2017) (see also Lanéry, 2016, section 4), which we now test in two simple toy-models. The first one is a very basic linear model, meant as an illustration of the general procedure, and we will only discuss it at the classical level. In the second one, we reformulate the Schrödinger equation, treated as a classical field theory, within this projective framework, and proceed to its (non-relativistic) second quantization. We are then able to reproduce the physical content of the usual Fock quantization.

Is zero-point energy physical? A toy model for Casimir-like effect

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nikolić, Hrvoje

2017-01-01

Zero-point energy is generally known to be unphysical. Casimir effect, however, is often presented as a counterexample, giving rise to a conceptual confusion. To resolve the confusion we study foundational aspects of Casimir effect at a qualitative level, but also at a quantitative level within a simple toy model with only 3 degrees of freedom. In particular, we point out that Casimir vacuum is not a state without photons, and not a ground state for a Hamiltonian that can describe Casimir force. Instead, Casimir vacuum can be related to the photon vacuum by a non-trivial Bogoliubov transformation, and it is a ground state only for an effective Hamiltonian describing Casimir plates at a fixed distance. At the fundamental microscopic level, Casimir force is best viewed as a manifestation of van der Waals forces. - Highlights: • A toy model for Casimir-like effect with only 3 degrees of freedom is constructed. • Casimir vacuum can be related to the photon vacuum by a non-trivial Bogoliubov transformation. • Casimir vacuum is a ground state only for an effective Hamiltonian describing Casimir plates at a fixed distance. • At the fundamental microscopic level, Casimir force is best viewed as a manifestation of van der Waals forces.

Embedding Sensory Preference into Toys to Enhance Toy Play in Toddlers with Disabilities

Science.gov (United States)

DiCarlo, Cynthia F.; Schepis, Maureen M.; Flynn, Linda

2009-01-01

Playing with toys as a means of environmental engagement has long been considered important in early child development (D. J. Messer, D. Rachford, M. E. McCarthy, & L. J. Yarrow, 1987; M. Wolery, M. G. Werts, & M. Holcombe, 1994). However, children with highly significant disabilities often engage in toy play less frequently than their peers…

The Einstein action for algebras of matrix valued functions - Toy models

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hajac, P.M.

1995-10-01

Two toy models are considered within the framework of noncommutative differential geometry. In the first one, the Einstein action of the Levi-Civita connection is computed for the algebra of matrix valued functions on a torus. It is shown that, assuming some constraints on the metric, this action splits into a classical-like, a quantum-like and a mixed term. In the second model, an analogue of the Palatini method of variation is applied to obtain critical points of the Einstein action functional for M 4 (R). It is pointed out that a solution to the Palatini variational problem is not necessarily a Levi-Civita connection. In this model, no additional assumptions regarding metrics are made. (author). 14 refs

A toy story: Association between young children's knowledge of fast food toy premiums and their fast food consumption.

Science.gov (United States)

Longacre, Meghan R; Drake, Keith M; Titus, Linda J; Cleveland, Lauren P; Langeloh, Gail; Hendricks, Kristy; Dalton, Madeline A

2016-01-01

Fast food restaurants spend millions of dollars annually on child-targeted marketing, a substantial portion of which is allocated to toy premiums for kids' meals. The objectives of this study were to describe fast food toy premiums, and examine whether young children's knowledge of fast food toy premiums was associated with their fast food consumption. Parents of 3- to 5-year old children were recruited from pediatric and WIC clinics in Southern New Hampshire, and completed a cross-sectional survey between April 2013-March 2014. Parents reported whether their children usually knew what toys were being offered at fast food restaurants, and whether children had eaten at any of four restaurants that offer toy premiums with kids' meals (McDonald's, Burger King, Subway, Wendy's) during the 7 days preceding the survey. Seventy-one percent of eligible parents participated (N = 583); 48.4% did not receive any education beyond high school, and 27.1% of children were non-white. Half (49.7%) the children had eaten at one or more of the four fast food restaurants in the past week; one-third (33.9%) had eaten at McDonald's. The four restaurants released 49 unique toy premiums during the survey period; McDonald's released half of these. Even after controlling for parent fast food consumption and sociodemographics, children were 1.38 (95% CI = 1.04, 1.82) times more likely to have consumed McDonald's if they usually knew what toys were offered by fast food restaurants. We did not detect a relationship between children's toy knowledge and their intake of fast food from the other restaurants. In this community-based sample, young children's knowledge of fast food toys was associated with a greater frequency of eating at McDonald's, providing evidence in support of regulating child-directed marketing of unhealthy foods using toys. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Displacement-noise-free gravitational-wave detection with a single Fabry-Perot cavity: A toy model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tarabrin, Sergey P.; Vyatchanin, Sergey P.

2008-01-01

We propose a detuned Fabry-Perot cavity, pumped through both the mirrors, as a toy model of the gravitational-wave (GW) detector partially free from displacement noise of the test masses. It is demonstrated that the noise of cavity mirrors can be eliminated, but the one of lasers and detectors cannot. The isolation of the GW signal from displacement noise of the mirrors is achieved in a proper linear combination of the cavity output signals. The construction of such a linear combination is possible due to the difference between the reflected and transmitted output signals of detuned cavity. We demonstrate that in low-frequency region the obtained displacement-noise-free response signal is much stronger than the f gw 3 -limited sensitivity of displacement-noise-free interferometers recently proposed by S. Kawamura and Y. Chen. However, the loss of the resonant gain in the noise cancelation procedure results is the sensitivity limitation of our toy model by displacement noise of lasers and detectors

Nonlinear Dynamics of the Woodpecker Toy

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Leine, R.I.; Glocker, C.; Campen, van D.H.

2001-01-01

This paper studies bifurcations in systems with impact andfriction, modeled with a rigid multibody approach. Knowledgefrom the field of Nonlinear Dynamics is therefore combined withtheory from the field of Nonsmooth Mechanics. The nonlineardynamics is studied of a commercial wooden toy. The toyshows

Proposal of a new model to improve the collection of small WEEE: a pilot project for the recovery and recycling of toys.

Science.gov (United States)

Solé, Miquel; Watson, Jenna; Puig, Rita; Fullana-i-Palmer, Pere

2012-11-01

A new collection model was designed and tested in Catalonia (Spain) to foster the separate collection and recycling of electrical and electronic toys, with the participation of selected primary and secondary schools, as well as waste collection points and municipalities. This project approach is very original and important because small household WEEE has low rates of collection (16-21% WEEE within the EU or 5-7% WEEE in Spain) and no research on new approaches to enhance the collection of small WEEE is found in the literature. The project was successful in achieving enhanced toys collection and recycling rates, which went up from the national Spanish average of 0.5% toys before the project to 1.9 and 6% toys during the two project years, respectively. The environmental benefits of the campaign were calculated through a life-cycle approach, accounting for the avoided impact afforded by the reuse of the toys and the recycling of the valuable materials contained therein (such as metals, batteries and circuit boards) and subtracting the additional environmental burdens associated with the establishment of the collection campaign.

Reaction-diffusion processes in zero transverse dimensions as toy models for high-energy QCD

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Armesto, Nestor; Bondarenko, Sergey; Quiroga-Arias, Paloma; Milhano, Jose Guilherme

2008-01-01

We examine numerically different zero-dimensional reaction-diffusion processes as candidate toy models for high-energy QCD evolution. Of the models examined-Reggeon Field Theory, Directed Percolation and Reversible Processes-only the latter shows the behaviour commonly expected, namely an increase of the scattering amplitude with increasing rapidity. Further, we find that increasing recombination terms, quantum loops and the heuristic inclusion of a running of the couplings, generically slow down the evolution.

A study of the Boltzmann and Gibbs entropies in the context of a stochastic toy model

Science.gov (United States)

Malgieri, Massimiliano; Onorato, Pasquale; De Ambrosis, Anna

2018-05-01

In this article we reconsider a stochastic toy model of thermal contact, first introduced in Onorato et al (2017 Eur. J. Phys. 38 045102), showing its educational potential for clarifying some current issues in the foundations of thermodynamics. The toy model can be realized in practice using dice and coins, and can be seen as representing thermal coupling of two subsystems with energy bounded from above. The system is used as a playground for studying the different behaviours of the Boltzmann and Gibbs temperatures and entropies in the approach to steady state. The process that models thermal contact between the two subsystems can be proved to be an ergodic, reversible Markov chain; thus the dynamics produces an equilibrium distribution in which the weight of each state is proportional to its multiplicity in terms of microstates. Each one of the two subsystems, taken separately, is formally equivalent to an Ising spin system in the non-interacting limit. The model is intended for educational purposes, and the level of readership of the article is aimed at advanced undergraduates.

Gribov horizon and i-particles: About a toy model and the construction of physical operators

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baulieu, L.; Dudal, D.; Vandersickel, N.; Guimaraes, M. S.; Sorella, S. P.; Huber, M. Q.; Zwanziger, D.

2010-01-01

Restricting the functional integral to the Gribov region Ω leads to a deep modification of the behavior of Euclidean Yang-Mills theories in the infrared region. For example, a gluon propagator of the Gribov type, (k 2 /k 4 +γ 4 ), can be viewed as a propagating pair of unphysical modes, called here i-particles, with complex masses ±iγ 2 . From this viewpoint, gluons are unphysical and one can see them as being confined. We introduce a simple toy model describing how a suitable set of composite operators can be constructed out of i-particles whose correlation functions exhibit only real branch cuts, with associated positive spectral density. These composite operators can thus be called physical and are the toy analogy of glueballs in the Gribov-Zwanziger theory.

The Einstein action for algebras of matrix valued functions - Toy models

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hajac, P M

1995-10-01

Two toy models are considered within the framework of noncommutative differential geometry. In the first one, the Einstein action of the Levi-Civita connection is computed for the algebra of matrix valued functions on a torus. It is shown that, assuming some constraints on the metric, this action splits into a classical-like, a quantum-like and a mixed term. In the second model, an analogue of the Palatini method of variation is applied to obtain critical points of the Einstein action functional for M{sub 4}(R). It is pointed out that a solution to the Palatini variational problem is not necessarily a Levi-Civita connection. In this model, no additional assumptions regarding metrics are made. (author). 14 refs.

PLAY ACTIVITY WITH MILITARY TOYS AT PRESCHOOL AGE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Irina Nikolaevna Aleshina

2013-12-01

Full Text Available The article analyzes various attitudes to military toys, both positive and negative, existing in Russia and abroad. Toy weapons are viewed as a separate type of military toy. The study looks at the impact of military toys on children’s emotions and personality. The study looks at how children play games on their own and the way they organize them. We have conducted an experiment where three types of toys were used – military toys, soft toys and objects that act as toy substitutes. The study of games and the roles children took showed their poor playing skills. The research has detected existing connection between imagination and thinking ability and the children’s play activity. None of the children took the role of ‘the defender of the weak’ or ‘Patria’s defender’, which contradicts the results of an opinion survey of children’s parents who think that military toys help to develop ‘patriotism’, ‘courage’, and ‘teach to protect the weak’.Repeated observation of the way the same children play with military toys has shown that they take the role of defenders of the motherland or the weak only after watching TV-programmes or fiction films which show male characters defending their motherland or the weak using weapons, which shows that children’s games have social character.The experiment’s results detected what activity adults, who are concerned with the young generation’s attitude to weapons and violence, should perform. It is vital to strengthen children’s moral, ethical and cognitive spheres first, and only in second place fight against sales of military toys both in Russia and abroad.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.12731/2218-7405-2013-8-53

A Possible Minimum Toy Model with Negative Differential Capacitance for Self-sustained Current Oscillation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xiong Gang; Sun Zhouzhou; Wang Xiangrong

2007-01-01

We generalize a simple model for superlattices to include the effect of differential capacitance. It is shown that the model always has a stable steady-state solution (SSS) if all differential capacitances are positive. On the other hand, when negative differential capacitance is included, the model can have no stable SSS and be in a self-sustained current oscillation behavior. Therefore, we find a possible minimum toy model with both negative differential resistance and negative differential capacitance which can include the phenomena of both self-sustained current oscillation and I-V oscillation of stable SSSs.

78 FR 66840 - Revocation of Certain Requirements Pertaining to Caps Intended for Use With Toy Guns and Toy Guns...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-11-07

... Certain Requirements Pertaining to Caps Intended for Use With Toy Guns and Toy Guns Not Intended for Use With Caps AGENCY: Consumer Product Safety Commission. ACTION: Final rule. SUMMARY: Section 106 of the... regulations pertaining to caps intended for use with toy guns refer to obsolete equipment, but the ASTM F963...

A Toy Story: Association between Young Children’s Knowledge of Fast Food Toy Premiums and their Fast Food Consumption

Science.gov (United States)

Longacre, Meghan R.; Drake, Keith M.; Titus, Linda J.; Cleveland, Lauren P.; Langeloh, Gail; Hendricks, Kristy; Dalton, Madeline A.

2015-01-01

Fast food restaurants spend millions of dollars annually on child-targeted marketing, a substantial portion of which is allocated to toy premiums for kids’ meals. The objectives of this study were to describe fast food toy premiums, and examine whether young children’s knowledge of fast food toy premiums was associated with their fast food consumption. Parents of 3- to 5-year old children were recruited from pediatric and WIC clinics in Southern New Hampshire, and completed a cross-sectional survey between April 2013–March 2014. Parents reported whether their children usually knew what toys were being offered at fast food restaurants, and whether children had eaten at any of four restaurants that offer toy premiums with kids’ meals (McDonald’s, Burger King, Subway, Wendy’s) during the 7 days preceding the survey. Seventy-one percent of eligible parents participated (N=583); 48.4% did not receive any education beyond high school, and 27.1% of children were non-white. Half (49.7%) the children had eaten at one or more of the four fast food restaurants in the past week; one-third (33.9%) had eaten at McDonald’s. The four restaurants released 49 unique toy premiums during the survey period; McDonald’s released half of these. Even after controlling for parent fast food consumption and sociodemographics, children were 1.38 (95% CI=1.04, 1.82) times more likely to have consumed McDonald’s if they usually knew what toys were offered by fast food restaurants. We did not detect a relationship between children’s toy knowledge and their intake of fast food from the other restaurants. In this community-based sample, young children’s knowledge of fast food toys was associated with a greater frequency of eating at McDonald’s, providing evidence in support of regulating child-directed marketing of unhealthy foods using toys. PMID:26471803

One-neutron transfer reaction: a toy model in one dimension

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

G. Galilei, Padova, Italy INFN, Sezione di Padova, Padova (Italy))" data-affiliation=" (Dipartimento di Fisica e Astronomia G. Galilei, Padova, Italy INFN, Sezione di Padova, Padova (Italy))" >Moschini, L

2014-01-01

A simple 1D toy model to study one-neutron transfer reactions is developed. It is based on the solution of the time dependent Schroedinger equation for a particle initially bound by a fixed potential well, perturbed by a second moving potential, which accounts for the second partner of the reaction. At the end of the time evolution it is possible to evaluate the probability of the transfer of the particle from a potential to the other, as well as the transfer to continuum states in the case of weakly-bound systems. Although rather simple, the model accounts for most of the physical characteristics of these kind of reactions: such as the existence of an optimum Q-value and the dependence on the parameters defining the relative motion of the two potentials

Limiting hazardous noise exposure from noisy toys: simple, sticky solutions.

Science.gov (United States)

Weinreich, Heather M; Jabbour, Noel; Levine, Samuel; Yueh, Bevan

2013-09-01

To assess noise levels of toys from the Sight & Hearing Association (SHA) 2010 Noisy Toys List and evaluate the change in noise of these toys after covering the speakers with tape or glue. One Group Pretest-Posttest Design. SHA 2010 Toys List (n = 18) toys were tested at distances of 0 and 25 cm from sound source in a soundproof booth using a digital sound-level meter. The dBA level of sound produced by toy was obtained. Toys with speakers (n = 16) were tested before and after altering speakers with plastic packing tape or nontoxic glue. Mean noise level for non-taped toys at 0 and 25 cm was 107.6 dBA (SD ± 8.5) and 82.5 dBA (SD ± 8.8), respectively. With tape, there was a statistically significant decrease in noise level at 0 and 25 cm: 84.2 dBA and 68.2 dBA (P toys. However, there was no significant difference between tape or glue. Overall, altering the toy can significantly decrease the sound a child may experience when playing with toys. However, some toys, even after altering, still produce sound levels that may be considered dangerous. Copyright © 2013 The American Laryngological, Rhinological and Otological Society, Inc.

Children's exposure to polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) through mouthing toys.

Science.gov (United States)

Ionas, Alin C; Ulevicus, Jocelyn; Gómez, Ana Ballesteros; Brandsma, Sicco H; Leonards, Pim E G; van de Bor, Margot; Covaci, Adrian

2016-02-01

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) have previously been detected in children toys, yet the risk of child exposure to these chemicals through the mouthing of toys or other items is still unknown. We aimed to expand on the current knowledge by investigating the impact of infants' mouthing activities on exposure to PBDEs present in toys. This was established by a leaching model for determining the amount PBDEs that can leach from toys into saliva in simulated conditions. The PBDE migration rate was at its highest for the 15 min low-exposure scenario incubations (198 pg/cm(2) × min) with the ERM EC-591 certified reference material (CRM) (0.17% w/w PBDEs). The leaching process was congener-dependent, since the percentage of lower brominated PBDE congeners that leached out was up to 4.5 times higher than for the heavier PBDEs. To study the scenario in which a child would mouth on a toy flame retarded with BDE 209 alone, a plastic item containing 7% BDE 209 (w/w) was also tested. The BDE 209 amounts leached out in only 15 min were higher than the amounts leached from the CRM after the 16 h incubation. For the Belgian population, the exposure scenario from mouthing on toys containing PBDEs in amounts similar to the REACH threshold was found to be lower than the exposure from mother's milk, but higher than the exposure through diet or even dust. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A pressure drop model for PWR grids

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oh, Dong Seok; In, Wang Ki; Bang, Je Geon; Jung, Youn Ho; Chun, Tae Hyun [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Taejon (Korea, Republic of)

1999-12-31

A pressure drop model for the PWR grids with and without mixing device is proposed at single phase based on the fluid mechanistic approach. Total pressure loss is expressed in additive way for form and frictional losses. The general friction factor correlations and form drag coefficients available in the open literatures are used to the model. As the results, the model shows better predictions than the existing ones for the non-mixing grids, and reasonable agreements with the available experimental data for mixing grids. Therefore it is concluded that the proposed model for pressure drop can provide sufficiently good approximation for grid optimization and design calculation in advanced grid development. 7 refs., 3 figs., 3 tabs. (Author)

A pressure drop model for PWR grids

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oh, Dong Seok; In, Wang Ki; Bang, Je Geon; Jung, Youn Ho; Chun, Tae Hyun [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Taejon (Korea, Republic of)

1998-12-31

A pressure drop model for the PWR grids with and without mixing device is proposed at single phase based on the fluid mechanistic approach. Total pressure loss is expressed in additive way for form and frictional losses. The general friction factor correlations and form drag coefficients available in the open literatures are used to the model. As the results, the model shows better predictions than the existing ones for the non-mixing grids, and reasonable agreements with the available experimental data for mixing grids. Therefore it is concluded that the proposed model for pressure drop can provide sufficiently good approximation for grid optimization and design calculation in advanced grid development. 7 refs., 3 figs., 3 tabs. (Author)

The eGo grid model: An open source approach towards a model of German high and extra-high voltage power grids

Science.gov (United States)

Mueller, Ulf Philipp; Wienholt, Lukas; Kleinhans, David; Cussmann, Ilka; Bunke, Wolf-Dieter; Pleßmann, Guido; Wendiggensen, Jochen

2018-02-01

There are several power grid modelling approaches suitable for simulations in the field of power grid planning. The restrictive policies of grid operators, regulators and research institutes concerning their original data and models lead to an increased interest in open source approaches of grid models based on open data. By including all voltage levels between 60 kV (high voltage) and 380kV (extra high voltage), we dissolve the common distinction between transmission and distribution grid in energy system models and utilize a single, integrated model instead. An open data set for primarily Germany, which can be used for non-linear, linear and linear-optimal power flow methods, was developed. This data set consists of an electrically parameterised grid topology as well as allocated generation and demand characteristics for present and future scenarios at high spatial and temporal resolution. The usability of the grid model was demonstrated by the performance of exemplary power flow optimizations. Based on a marginal cost driven power plant dispatch, being subject to grid restrictions, congested power lines were identified. Continuous validation of the model is nescessary in order to reliably model storage and grid expansion in progressing research.

INFLUENCE OF MARKETING ENVIRONMENT ON THE TOY MARKET

OpenAIRE

Violeta A. ANDREIANA (Mihaescu); Calelia G. STOICA (Stanciu); Cornelia D. IVAN (Trandafiroiu)

2014-01-01

Along with the passage of time, parents have manifested a different attitude towards their children, trying to offer them everything they wanted in what concerns the toys. Therefore, the toy market is constantly expending, and the tough competition leads to the quality improvement of the toys and enforces certain standards on the market. The originality and topicality of the theme consist in the change in the toy consumers’ and users’ preferences which required greater attention to be pa...

76 FR 55056 - Toy Safety Standard: Strategic Outreach and Education Plan

Science.gov (United States)

2011-09-06

... to test and certify to the toy safety standard. We plan to use traditional and social media to... testing and certification requirements for children's toys and toy chests and their compliance with ASTM... manufacturers of children's toys must ensure that covered toys are tested for compliance with the toy safety...

Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy and chemometrics for classification of toys relying on toxic elements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Godoi, Quienly; Leme, Flavio O.; Trevizan, Lilian C.; Pereira Filho, Edenir R.; Rufini, Iolanda A.; Santos, Dario; Krug, Francisco J.

2011-01-01

Quality control of toys for avoiding children exposure to potentially toxic elements is of utmost relevance and it is a common requirement in national and/or international norms for health and safety reasons. Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) was recently evaluated at authors' laboratory for direct analysis of plastic toys and one of the main difficulties for the determination of Cd, Cr and Pb was the variety of mixtures and types of polymers. As most norms rely on migration (lixiviation) protocols, chemometric classification models from LIBS spectra were tested for sampling toys that present potential risk of Cd, Cr and Pb contamination. The classification models were generated from the emission spectra of 51 polymeric toys and by using Partial Least Squares - Discriminant Analysis (PLS-DA), Soft Independent Modeling of Class Analogy (SIMCA) and K-Nearest Neighbor (KNN). The classification models and validations were carried out with 40 and 11 test samples, respectively. Best results were obtained when KNN was used, with corrected predictions varying from 95% for Cd to 100% for Cr and Pb.

Toys and games in play therapy.

Science.gov (United States)

Meschiany, A; Krontal, S

1998-01-01

The present article discusses the difference between play therapy with toys and play therapy with games from a psychodynamic point of view. Toys are regarded as offering the child an opportunity to develop a variety of transference reactions, while games, because of their inherent competitive characteristic, restrain the scope of possible transference reactions. The authors claim that therapists should consider these eventualities when choosing which games or toys are to be available in the therapy room. This choice might determine, in advance, the initial characteristics of the patient's transference.

Indonesian Traditional Toys and the Development of Batik Motifs

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bagus Indrayana

2016-06-01

Full Text Available There is a wide array of traditional toys in Indonesia. In the past, traditional toys played an important role for skill and creativity development of children. Today, the position of traditional toys in the society is displaced by toys from large-scale manufacturers. Given the critical role of traditional toys for children’s motoric and social development, there is a need to develop media that can be used to promote these traditional products and strengthen their position in the public. We propose to use Batik as a way to effectively disseminate and promote traditional toys to the general public. Apart from this, using traditional toys to create new Batik motifs can have an economic value for the producers of Batik, promote Indonesian products and enrich the Indonesian Batik. This study aims to explore the variety of traditional toys, mainly from Klaten and Magelang, in the Central Java province of Indonesia, and use them as the basis for the development of Batik motif creation. This study used Trilogi Keseimbangan (or Harmony Trilogy aesthetic theory analytical approach that explains the creation of craft consists of the following phases: exploration, design, and materialization. The creation method in this study adopts Tiga Tahap Enam Langkah (Three Phases, Six Steps method offered in the theory. The finding in the field found that the traditional toys material used in Klaten and Magelang, mostly made from waste wood, plywood, and zinc. The manufacturing process is done manually by two or three craftsmen using a simple technology. The traditional toys are designed by the artisans mostly, although there may be designs from the clients. In addition, we also found that the traditional toys have never been used as a Batik motif. The traditional toys Batik motif presented in this work is researcher’s design. For the purposes of this study, we first research the variety of traditional toys available in the market today in Indonesia. We look

Models for the modern power grid

Science.gov (United States)

Nardelli, Pedro H. J.; Rubido, Nicolas; Wang, Chengwei; Baptista, Murilo S.; Pomalaza-Raez, Carlos; Cardieri, Paulo; Latva-aho, Matti

2014-10-01

This article reviews different kinds of models for the electric power grid that can be used to understand the modern power system, the smart grid. From the physical network to abstract energy markets, we identify in the literature different aspects that co-determine the spatio-temporal multilayer dynamics of power system. We start our review by showing how the generation, transmission and distribution characteristics of the traditional power grids are already subject to complex behaviour appearing as a result of the the interplay between dynamics of the nodes and topology, namely synchronisation and cascade effects. When dealing with smart grids, the system complexity increases even more: on top of the physical network of power lines and controllable sources of electricity, the modernisation brings information networks, renewable intermittent generation, market liberalisation, prosumers, among other aspects. In this case, we forecast a dynamical co-evolution of the smart grid and other kind of networked systems that cannot be understood isolated. This review compiles recent results that model electric power grids as complex systems, going beyond pure technological aspects. From this perspective, we then indicate possible ways to incorporate the diverse co-evolving systems into the smart grid model using, for example, network theory and multi-agent simulation.

Market Analysis, Opportunity Recognition and Strategy Diagnosis in Toy Industry

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Khajeheian, Datis

2018-01-01

According to many market researches and industrial reports Iran is one of the biggest toy markets in the Middle East and North Africa region. The Iranian toy market has been identified as a niche market with lots of unexploited opportunities. Nonetheless, the Iranian toy industry has shown...... for this misdirection were that the Iranian toy industry lacked a traditional structure, a strategic perspective and also absence of international cooperation. This research suggests that the Iranian toy industries need to move its focus from manufacturing, where the country has no competitive advantage, toward toy...

The role of spatial topology in a toy model of classical electrodynamics in (1+1) dimensions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boozer, A.D.

2010-01-01

We discuss the role of spatial topology in a toy model of classical electrodynamics in (1+1) dimensions. The model describes a collection of Newtonian point particles coupled to a pair of scalar fields E(t,x) and B(t,x), which mediate forces between the particles and support freely propagating radiation. We formulate the model on both a line and a circle, and show that the behavior of the model strongly depends on the choice of spatial topology.

Supply Chain Management Practices in Toy Supply Chains

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Arlbjørn, Jan Stentoft; Johansen, J.; Wong, C. Y.

2005-01-01

Purpose - Innovative products usually experience highly unpredictable and variable demand. This is especially valid for the volatile and seasonal toy industry, which produces high obsolete inventory, lost sales and markdown. In such a volatile industry, what supply chain management (SCM) practices...... (traditional mass-production or push-models). These low-responsive practices in the toy supply chain are not caused only by slow knowledge diffusion. SCM know-how is not yet capable of managing such levels of volatility and seasonality. Therefore, explanations of these theoretical gaps and what new theories...... are required for such extreme volatility and seasonality are proposed. Originality/value - It reveals actual SCM practices in a volatile and seasonal supply chain, such that theoretical and practical gaps are identified. Also, it proposes a model to match manufacturing SCM-practices with retailer SCM-practices....

Noise Measurement and Frequency Analysis of Commercially Available Noisy Toys

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shohreh Jalaie

2005-06-01

Full Text Available Objective: Noise measurement and frequency analysis of commercially available noisy toys were the main purposes of the study. Materials and Methods: 181 noisy toys commonly found in toy stores in different zones of Tehran were selected and categorized into 10 groups. Noise measurement were done at 2, 25, and 50 cm from toys in dBA. The noisiest toy of each group was frequency analyzed in octave bands. Results: The highest and the lowest intensity levels belonged to the gun (mean=112 dBA and range of 100-127 dBA and to the rattle-box (mean=84 dBA and range of 74-95 dBA, respectively. Noise intensity levels significantly decreased with increasing distance except for two toys. Noise frequency analysis indicated energy in effective hearing frequencies. Most of the toys energies were in the middle and high frequency region. Conclusion: As intensity level of the toys is considerable, mostly more than 90 dBA, and also their energy exist in the middle and high frequency region, toys should be considered as a cause of the hearing impairment.

Flute-like musical instruments: A toy model investigated through numerical continuation

Science.gov (United States)

Terrien, Soizic; Vergez, Christophe; Fabre, Benoît

2013-07-01

Self-sustained musical instruments (bowed string, woodwind and brass instruments) can be modelled by nonlinear lumped dynamical systems. Among these instruments, flutes and flue organ pipes present the particularity to be modelled as a delay dynamical system. In this paper, such a system, a toy model of flute-like instruments, is studied using numerical continuation. Equilibrium and periodic solutions are explored with respect to the blowing pressure, with focus on amplitude and frequency evolutions along the different solution branches, as well as "jumps" between periodic solution branches. The influence of a second model parameter (namely the inharmonicity) on the behaviour of the system is addressed. It is shown that harmonicity plays a key role in the presence of hysteresis or quasiperiodic regime. Throughout the paper, experimental results on a real instrument are presented to illustrate various phenomena, and allow some qualitative comparisons with numerical results.

A quantal toy model for heavy-ion collisions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cassing, W.

1987-01-01

A one-dimensional toy model of moving finite boxes is analysed with respect to quantal phenomena associated with heavy-ion dynamics at low and intermediate energies. Special attention is payed to the relation between energy and momentum of the nucleons inside and outside the time-dependent mean field. A Wigner transformation of the one-body density matrix in space and time allows for a unique comparison with classical phase-space dynamics. It is found that high momentum components of the nuclear groundstate wave function approximately become on-shell during the heavy-ion reaction. This leads to the emission of energetic nucleons which do not appear classically. It is furthermore shown, that the low lying eigenstates of the dinuclear system for fixed time are only partly occupied throughout the reaction at intermediate energies. This opens up final phase space for nucleons after producing e.g. a pion or energetic photon. Through the present model does not allow for a reliable calculation of double differential nucleon spectra, pion or photon cross sections, it transparently shows the peculiar features of quantum dynamics in heavy-ion collisions. (orig.)

Designing Toys to Support Children's Development

Science.gov (United States)

Page, Tom; Thorsteinsson, Gisli

2017-01-01

This article reports a study that aimed to contribute to the theory of good toy design in terms of the value of using toys for children development. Moreover, the study attempts to evaluate ways in which children play and study the toys they commonly use with respect to how it influence their adulthood. The authors firstly looked into the…

Sex differences in rhesus monkey toy preferences parallel those of children

Science.gov (United States)

Hassett, Janice M.; Siebert, Erin R.; Wallen, Kim

2008-01-01

Socialization processes, parents, or peers encouraging play with gender specific toys are thought to be the primary force shaping sex differences in toy preference. A contrast in view is that toy preferences reflect biologically determined preferences for specific activities facilitated by specific toys. Sex differences in juvenile activities, such as rough and tumble play, peer preferences, and infant interest, share similarities in humans and monkeys. Thus if activity preferences shape toy preferences, male and female monkeys may show toy preferences similar to those seen in boys and girls. We compared the interactions of 34 rhesus monkeys, living within a 135 monkey troop, with human wheeled toys and plush toys. Male monkeys, like boys, showed consistent and strong preferences for wheeled toys, while female monkeys, like girls, showed greater variability in preferences. Thus, the magnitude of preference for wheeled over plush toys differed significantly between males and females. The similarities to human findings demonstrate that such preferences can develop without explicit gendered socialization. We offer the hypothesis that toy preferences reflect hormonally influenced behavioral and cognitive biases which are sculpted by social processes into the sex differences seen in monkeys and humans. PMID:18452921

Analysis of sound pressure levels emitted by children's toys.

Science.gov (United States)

Sleifer, Pricila; Gonçalves, Maiara Santos; Tomasi, Marinês; Gomes, Erissandra

2013-06-01

To verify the levels of sound pressure emitted by non-certified children's toys. Cross-sectional study of sound toys available at popular retail stores of the so-called informal sector. Electronic, mechanical, and musical toys were analyzed. The measurement of each product was carried out by an acoustic engineer in an acoustically isolated booth, by a decibel meter. To obtain the sound parameters of intensity and frequency, the toys were set to produce sounds at a distance of 10 and 50cm from the researcher's ear. The intensity of sound pressure [dB(A)] and the frequency in hertz (Hz) were measured. 48 toys were evaluated. The mean sound pressure 10cm from the ear was 102±10 dB(A), and at 50cm, 94±8 dB(A), with ptoys was above 85dB(A). The frequency ranged from 413 to 6,635Hz, with 56.3% of toys emitting frequency higher than 2,000Hz. The majority of toys assessed in this research emitted a high level of sound pressure.

Beauty for pedestrians toy models for CP violation and baryon asymmetry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lipkin, H.J.

1995-01-01

Why are particles different from antiparticles? C and P Violation - 1956; CP Violation - 1964. Why so little new experimental information in thirty years? Where has all the antimatter gone? Toy models are presented showing: (1) How CPT and ΔI = 1/2 make life difficult in kaon physics by requiring equal K ± total widths and also equal partial widths to many exclusive channels. (2) How to understand and get around CPT restrictions. (3) How CP asymmetries can occur in exclusive partial widths and still add up to equal total widths. (4) Sakharov's 1966 scenario for how CP Violation + proton decay can explain baryon asymmetry (5) How B physics can help

INFLUENCE OF MARKETING ENVIRONMENT ON THE TOY MARKET

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Violeta A. ANDREIANA (Mihaescu

2014-04-01

Full Text Available Along with the passage of time, parents have manifested a different attitude towards their children, trying to offer them everything they wanted in what concerns the toys. Therefore, the toy market is constantly expending, and the tough competition leads to the quality improvement of the toys and enforces certain standards on the market. The originality and topicality of the theme consist in the change in the toy consumers’ and users’ preferences which required greater attention to be paid to the influence manifested by the marketing environment on this market. The case study identifies the occurred problems and the toy influence factors by an analysis over the marketing environment components, i.e.: marketing internal environment, micro-environment and macro-environment. The study ends with the recommendation of several solutions for the improvement of the current situation.

Loudness and acoustic parameters of popular children's toys.

Science.gov (United States)

Ghavami, Yaser; Bhatt, Jay; Maducdoc, Marlon; Yau, Amy; Mahboubi, Hossein; Ziai, Kasra; Lin, Harrison W; Djalilian, Hamid R

2015-12-01

This project was conducted to evaluate the loudness and acoustic parameters of toys designed for children. In addition, we investigated whether occluding the toys' speaker with tape would result in a significant loudness reduction; thereby potentially reducing the risk of noise induced hearing loss. Twenty-six toys were selected after an initial screening at two national retailers. Noise amplitudes at 0.25, 0.5, 1, 2, 4, and 8kHz were measured using a digital sound level meter at a distance of 0 and 30cm. The toys' speakers were then occluded using adhesive tape and the same acoustic parameters were re-measured. Mean maximum noise amplitude of the toys at 0cm and 30cm was 104dBA (range, 97-125dBA) and 76dBA (range, 67-86dBA), respectively. Mean maximum noise amplitude after occlusion at 0cm and 30cm distances was 88dBA (range, 73-110dBA) and 66dBA (range, 55-82dBA), respectively, with a p-value toys at a distant of 30cm between the speaker and the child's ear will likely not pose a risk of noise-induced hearing loss. However, since most toys are used at closer distances, use of adhesive tape is recommended as an effective modification to decrease the risk of hearing loss. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.

The popularity of toys and play of pre-school children

OpenAIRE

Kump, Janja

2016-01-01

This thesis presents popularity of play and toys in pre-school period, influence of important factors on a play and selection of toys and differences in duration of the play, depending on children's age and gender. In the theoretical part we defined children's play and its importance, also we detaily described development of children's play and presented the meaning of toys. We classified toys according to the basic function and according to adequacy of toys for certain age group. We focu...

Evaluation of load flow and grid expansion in a unit-commitment and expansion optimization model SciGRID International Conference on Power Grid Modelling

Science.gov (United States)

Senkpiel, Charlotte; Biener, Wolfgang; Shammugam, Shivenes; Längle, Sven

2018-02-01

Energy system models serve as a basis for long term system planning. Joint optimization of electricity generating technologies, storage systems and the electricity grid leads to lower total system cost compared to an approach in which the grid expansion follows a given technology portfolio and their distribution. Modelers often face the problem of finding a good tradeoff between computational time and the level of detail that can be modeled. This paper analyses the differences between a transport model and a DC load flow model to evaluate the validity of using a simple but faster transport model within the system optimization model in terms of system reliability. The main findings in this paper are that a higher regional resolution of a system leads to better results compared to an approach in which regions are clustered as more overloads can be detected. An aggregation of lines between two model regions compared to a line sharp representation has little influence on grid expansion within a system optimizer. In a DC load flow model overloads can be detected in a line sharp case, which is therefore preferred. Overall the regions that need to reinforce the grid are identified within the system optimizer. Finally the paper recommends the usage of a load-flow model to test the validity of the model results.

Development of a smart DC grid model

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dalimunthe, Amty Ma’rufah Ardhiyah; Mindara, Jajat Yuda; Panatarani, Camellia; Joni, I. Made, E-mail: imadejoni@phys.unpad.ac.id [Lab. of Instrumentation System and Functional Material Processing, Physics Department, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Padjadjaran University, Jl. Raya Bandung-Sumedang KM21, Jatinangor 45363, Jawa Barat (Indonesia)

2016-03-11

Smart grid and distributed generation should be the solution of the global climate change and the crisis energy of the main source of electrical power generation which is fossil fuel. In order to meet the rising electrical power demand and increasing service quality demands, as well as reduce pollution, the existing power grid infrastructure should be developed into a smart grid and distributed power generation which provide a great opportunity to address issues related to energy efficiency, energy security, power quality and aging infrastructure systems. The conventional of the existing distributed generation system is an AC grid while for a renewable resources requires a DC grid system. This paper explores the model of smart DC grid by introducing a model of smart DC grid with the stable power generation give a minimal and compressed circuitry that can be implemented very cost-effectively with simple components. The PC based application software for controlling was developed to show the condition of the grid and to control the grid become ‘smart’. The model is then subjected to a severe system perturbation, such as incremental change in loads to test the performance of the system again stability. It is concluded that the system able to detect and controlled the voltage stability which indicating the ability of power system to maintain steady voltage within permissible rangers in normal condition.

Development of a smart DC grid model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dalimunthe, Amty Ma’rufah Ardhiyah; Mindara, Jajat Yuda; Panatarani, Camellia; Joni, I. Made

2016-01-01

Smart grid and distributed generation should be the solution of the global climate change and the crisis energy of the main source of electrical power generation which is fossil fuel. In order to meet the rising electrical power demand and increasing service quality demands, as well as reduce pollution, the existing power grid infrastructure should be developed into a smart grid and distributed power generation which provide a great opportunity to address issues related to energy efficiency, energy security, power quality and aging infrastructure systems. The conventional of the existing distributed generation system is an AC grid while for a renewable resources requires a DC grid system. This paper explores the model of smart DC grid by introducing a model of smart DC grid with the stable power generation give a minimal and compressed circuitry that can be implemented very cost-effectively with simple components. The PC based application software for controlling was developed to show the condition of the grid and to control the grid become ‘smart’. The model is then subjected to a severe system perturbation, such as incremental change in loads to test the performance of the system again stability. It is concluded that the system able to detect and controlled the voltage stability which indicating the ability of power system to maintain steady voltage within permissible rangers in normal condition.

[Survey of plasticizers in polyvinyl chloride toys].

Science.gov (United States)

Abe, Yutaka; Yamaguchi, Miku; Mutsuga, Motoh; Hirahara, Yoshichika; Kawamura, Yoko

2012-01-01

Plasticizers in 101 samples of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) toys on the Japanese market were surveyed. No phthalates were detected in designated toys, though bis(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate, diisononyl phthalate, diisobutyl phthalate, dibutyl phthalate, diisodecyl phthalate and benzyl butyl phthalate were detected in more than half of other toys. 2,2,4-Tributyl-1,3-pentanediol diisobutylate, o-acetyl tributyl citrate, adipates and diacetyl lauroyl glycerol, which are alternative plasticizers to phthalates, were detected. The results of structural analysis confirmed the presence of di(2-ethylhexyl)terephthalate, tributyl citrate, diisononyl 1,2-cyclohexanedicarboxylate and neopentyl glycol esters; these have not previonsly been reported in Japan. There appears to be a shift in plasticizers used for designated toys from phthalates to new plasticizers, and the number of different plasticizers is increasing.

A study on the visual effect of toy in children life

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gholamreza Azarbouyeh Dinaky

2013-06-01

Full Text Available This research is aimed at studying features and visual qualities of images in toys and toys packaging. This research is trying to find answers for toys and toys packaging processes from design to production, what should be considered by an illustrator and also collecting information for interested people and students in arrival to the labor market and recognizing the existing challenges. This research method was fundamental and theoretical and the most important research question was that, what is the first impression of images on the toys and packaging surfaces containing toys? And what are the most important features of images on the toys and toys packaging surfaces? The most important obtained results were that although the quick attraction of the purchaser is the most effective factor in images, it cannot be the first effect on toys and toys packaging surfaces. Features such as color, attractive design and revealing the inside containing of the packaging are the most important features of images in this packaging. Now we can say that images as visual part of the toys and toys packaging have the most important role in introducing the capabilities, function and the attractiveness of a production. Images especially for children who have a closer relationship with fiction world is more attractive than other visual elements and also despite of the visual attraction such as color coordination, adaptation of plan with packaging and etc.

STS-54 DSO 802, Educational activities 'Physics of Toys', equipment

Science.gov (United States)

1993-01-01

Toys for STS-54 Detailed Supplementary Objective (DSO) 802, Educational activities 'Physics of Toys', are displayed on a table top. Part of the educational activities onboard Endeavour, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 105, will include several experiments with these toys. DSO 802 will allow the crewmembers to experiment with the various types of toys in a microgravity environment while talking to pupils who will be able to monitor (via classroom television (TV) sets) the onboard activities at their schools. NOTE: Also labeled the Application Specific Preprogrammed Experiment Culture System Physic of Toys (ASPEC).

Food packaged with toys: an investigation on potential obesogenic effects in Indian children.

Science.gov (United States)

Gregori, Dario; Gulati, Achal; Hochdorn, Alexander; Ballali, Simonetta; Paramesh, Haralappa; Kumar, Malathi; Baldi, Ileana

2014-09-01

To investigate, in a large pan Indian sample of school children, whether gadgets (toys) added to food increase food consumption, and if contemporary exposure to TV and/or advertising is a further promoting factor. A total of 1,680 Indian children were first randomized to food exposure with or without toy and then to a five-level exposure to TV viewing and advertising according to a 2 × 5 full factorial ad libitum eating design study. The sample size was computed to detect a difference of 20 Kcal of caloric intake (assuming the same standard deviation of 20 Kcal in both groups) between "food with gadget" (Toy) and "food alone" (No Toy) groups in each level of the exposure to TV and advertising factor, given an alpha error equal to 0.05 and a power of 0.90. Mean caloric intake both in "Toy" and "No Toy" group was around 223 Kcal. When considering exposure to TV and advertising, mean values varied negligibly between 222 and 225 Kcal. According to linear models for the effect of gadget and exposure to TV and/or advertising on children's intake, no significant adjusted associations were found, neither as main effects nor as interactions. Food consumption by children is not influenced by the presence of added toys, even after adjustment for several potential confounding factors. The city where they live and age significantly influences Indian children's caloric intake.

Toys are a potential source of cross-infection in general practitioners' waiting rooms.

Science.gov (United States)

Merriman, Eileen; Corwin, Paul; Ikram, Rosemary

2002-01-01

The waiting rooms of general practitioners' surgeries usually have toys provided for children. The level of contamination of these toys and the effectiveness of toy decontamination was investigated in this study. Hard toys from general practitioners' waiting rooms had relatively low levels of contamination, with only 13.5% of toys showing any coliform counts. There were no hard toys with heavy contamination by coliforms or other bacteria. Soft toys were far more likely to be contaminated, with 20% of toys showing moderate to heavy coliform contamination and 90% showing moderate to heavy bacterial contamination. Many waiting-room toys are not cleaned routinely. Soft toys are hard to disinfect and tend to rapidly become recontaminated after cleaning. Conversely, hard toys can be cleaned and disinfected easily. Soft toys in general practitioners' waiting rooms pose an infectious risk and it is therefore recommended that soft toys are unsuitable for doctors' waiting rooms. PMID:11885823

Toys in Space, 2

Science.gov (United States)

Herbert, Dexter (Editor)

1993-01-01

In this educational video from the 'Liftoff to Learning' series, astronauts from the STS-54 Mission (Mario Runco, John Casper, Don McMonagle, Susan Helms, and Greg Harbaugh) explain how microgravity and weightlessness in space affects motion by using both mechanical and nonmechanical toys (gravitrons, slinkys, dart boards, magnetic marbles, and others). The gravitational effects on rotation, force, acceleration, magnetism, magnetic fields, center of axis, and velocity are actively demonstrated using these toys through experiments onboard the STS-54 Mission flight as a part of their spaceborne experiment payload. [Resource Guide referenced in the video is not available.

Current Trends in providing the Toys Security and Consumer Protection

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luiela Magdalena Csorba

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The goods and services market is not in equilibrium. This affects continuously the consumers under multiple aspects: economic, educational, health insurance and security, and so on. Not even the toys market outlets or the toys trading market aren’t trouble free. Because publications in the toys consumer protection field are seldom (legislation is the starting point in analyzing this area, the checks carried out at national level which showed the marketed toys insecurity and the abuses of the economic agents in this sector determined us to analyze the degree in which people knows the toy-related injuries and the danger to which they expose their own children when purchasing dangerous toys. That’s why a quantitative research was conducted, using the method of questionnaire, distributed through the Romanian consumers, with the aim to check the empirically awareness and the seriousness with which they relate the risks concerning the toys consume.

Role of toys in the development of healthy infants

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Emilia Mikołajewska

2015-04-01

Emilia Mikołajewska Rehabilitation Clinic Military Clinical Hospital No. 10 and Polyclinic Bydgoszcz, Poland e-mail: e.mikolajewska@wp.pl, emiliam@cm.umk.pl www: http://emikolajewska.netstrefa.eu       Keywords: rehabilitation; development; gesture; toy use; parent–child interaction;       Abstract   Developmental outcomes in infants can be significantly improved thanks to promising use of approapriate toys. Objective assessment of their positive influence to functional achievements in healthy infants may completely change attitude to new generation of toys, developing motor, cognitive, and social skills. Despite advances in toys assessment their true influence remains incomplete. This study aims at assessment how current knowledge and experience influences principles of the toys selection and use in healthy infants.

[Audit "Toys and incubators in neonatology"].

Science.gov (United States)

Raginel, T; Bigoin-Dupont, M; Aguelon, V; Fines-Guyon, M; Guillemin, M G

2009-08-01

Owing to an increase in nosocomial septicaemias in the Neonatalogy department, we've judged it necessary to consider the role of items not linked to the nursing procedures, and nevertheless present in the incubators, as well as the hygiene techniques applied to them. In November 2007, we've made a longitudinal prospective study consisting in an observation audit during 3 successive days, observing every single incubator with a newborn baby. In each incubator, we've checked whether there were or not items that weren't required by the nursing activities, along with their characteristics and the hygiene procedures applied to them. We've inquired as well whether the parents and the nursing staff knew and applied the required hygiene procedures. In 13 among the 17 incubators under survey, at least one item not strictly required by the nursing procedures could be found. The number of toys in each incubator varied from seven to one. Among the 33 toys surveyed, 24 (73%) of them showed a score of maximum fluffiness (4 out of 4), and only 10 wore labels giving cleansing advice from the manufacturers. Without any record about the cleaning/disinfecting of the toys brought in hospital, we have observed that the parents were given varied advice about how to clean the toys at home before putting them in the incubators (only four parents had washed the toys in their washing machines at more than 30 degrees C). From the six samples under scrutiny, all the culture results were tested positive. In particular two of the soft toys sampled were found infected by a Pseudomonas oryzihabitans. These particular toys belonged to a baby who had been diagnosed with a septicaemia characterized by hemocultures positive to a P. oryzihabitans of a different strain. Our audit has been an efficient reminder that any item put in an incubator is a potential vector and reservoir of pathogen organisms. After a general feedback towards the department staff, the medical staff then prescribed to

Propagator with positive cosmological constant in the 3D Euclidean quantum gravity toy model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bunting, William E; Rovelli, Carlo

2014-01-01

We study the propagator on a single tetrahedron in a three-dimensional toy model of quantum gravity with positive cosmological constant. The cosmological constant is included in the model via q-deformation of the spatial symmetry algebra, that is, we use the Turaev–Viro amplitude. The expected repulsive effect of dark energy is recovered in numerical and analytic calculations of the propagator at large scales comparable to the infrared cutoff. However, due to the simplicity of the model, we do not obtain the exact Newton limit of the propagator. This is a first step toward the similar calculation in the full 3+1 dimensional theory with larger numbers of simplicies. (paper)

Familiarizing with Toy Food: Preliminary Research and Future Directions

Science.gov (United States)

Lynch, Meghan

2012-01-01

Objective: A qualitative content analysis of children and parents interacting with toy food in their homes in view of recommendations for developing healthful food preferences. Methods: YouTube videos (n = 101) of children and parents interacting in toy kitchen settings were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Toy food was categorized…

Respiratory viral RNA on toys in pediatric office waiting rooms.

Science.gov (United States)

Pappas, Diane E; Hendley, J Owen; Schwartz, Richard H

2010-02-01

Toys in pediatric office waiting rooms may be fomites for transmission of viruses. Eighteen samples were taken from office objects on 3 occasions. Samples were tested for presence of picornavirus (either rhinovirus or enterovirus) on all 3 sample days; in addition, January samples were tested for respiratory syncytial virus and March samples were tested for influenza A and B. In addition, 15 samples were obtained from the sick waiting room before and after cleaning. Polymerase chain reaction was used to detect picornavirus, respiratory syncytial virus, and influenza A or B virus. Finally, 20 samples were obtained from the fingers of a researcher after handling different toys in the sick waiting room, and samples were then obtained from all the same toys; all samples were tested for picornavirus by polymerase chain reaction. Viral RNA was detected on 11 of 52 (21%) of toys sampled. Ten of the positives were picornavirus; 1 was influenza B virus. Three (30%) of 10 toys from the new toy bag, 6 of 30 (20%) in the sick child waiting room, and 2 of 12 (17%) in the well child waiting room were positive. Six (40%) of 15 toys in the sick waiting room were positive for picornaviral RNA before cleaning; after cleaning, 4 (27%) of 15 were positive in spite of the fact that RNA was removed from 4 of 6 of the original positives. Three (15%) of 20 toys in the sick waiting room were positive for picornaviral RNA, but RNA was not transferred to the fingers of the investigator who handled these toys. About 20% of the objects in a pediatric office may be contaminated with respiratory viral RNA, most commonly picornavirus RNA. Cleaning with a disinfectant cloth was only modestly effective in removing the viral RNA from the surfaces of toys, but transfer of picornaviral RNA from toys to fingers was inefficient.

Application Note: Power Grid Modeling With Xyce.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sholander, Peter E. [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)

2015-06-01

This application note describes how to model steady-state power flows and transient events in electric power grids with the SPICE-compatible Xyce TM Parallel Electronic Simulator developed at Sandia National Labs. This application notes provides a brief tutorial on the basic devices (branches, bus shunts, transformers and generators) found in power grids. The focus is on the features supported and assumptions made by the Xyce models for power grid elements. It then provides a detailed explanation, including working Xyce netlists, for simulating some simple power grid examples such as the IEEE 14-bus test case.

Choosing Safe Toys

Science.gov (United States)

... and other groups can help you make those buying decisions. Still, use your own best judgment — and consider your child's temperament, habits, and behavior whenever you buy a new toy. You may ...

Toying with Motion.

Science.gov (United States)

Galus, Pamela J.

2002-01-01

Presents a variety of activities that support the development of an understanding of Newton's laws of motion. Activities use toy cars, mobile roads, and a seat-of-nails. Includes a scoring rubric. (DDR)

Modelling Chinese Smart Grid

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Yuksel, Ender; Nielson, Hanne Riis; Nielson, Flemming

In this document, we consider a specific Chinese Smart Grid implementation and try to address the verification problem for certain quantitative properties including performance and battery consumption. We employ stochastic model checking approach and present our modelling and analysis study using...

Surface state decoherence in loop quantum gravity, a first toy model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Feller, Alexandre; Livine, Etera R

2017-01-01

The quantum-to-classical transition through decoherence is a major facet of the semi-classical analysis of quantum models that are supposed to admit a classical regime, as quantum gravity should be. A particular problem of interest is the decoherence of black hole horizons and holographic screens induced by the bulk-boundary coupling with interior degrees of freedom. Here in this paper we present a first toy-model, in the context of loop quantum gravity, for the dynamics of a surface geometry as an open quantum system. We discuss the resulting decoherence and recoherence and compare the exact density matrix evolution to the commonly used master equation approximation à la Lindblad underlining its merits and limitations. The prospect of this study is to have a clearer understanding of the boundary decoherence of black hole horizons seen by outside observers. (paper)

Ecosystem Based Business Model of Smart Grid

OpenAIRE

Lundgaard, Morten Raahauge; Ma, Zheng; Jørgensen, Bo Nørregaard

2015-01-01

This paper tries to investigate the ecosystem based business model in a smart grid infrastructure and the potential of value capture in the highly complex macro infrastructure such as smart grid. This paper proposes an alternative perspective to study the smart grid business ecosystem to support the infrastructural challenges, such as the interoperability of business components for smart grid. So far little research has explored the business ecosystem in the smart grid concept. The study on t...

Toys and toilets: cross-sectional study using children's toys to evaluate environmental faecal contamination in rural Bangladeshi households with different sanitation facilities and practices.

Science.gov (United States)

Vujcic, Jelena; Ram, Pavani K; Hussain, Faruqe; Unicomb, Leanne; Gope, Partha Sarathi; Abedin, Jaynal; Mahmud, Zahid Hayat; Islam, M Sirajul; Luby, Stephen P

2014-05-01

To evaluate household faecal contamination using children's toys among 100 rural Bangladeshi households categorised as 'cleaner' (toilet that reliably separates faeces from the environment and no human faeces in/around living space) or 'less clean' (no toilet or toilet that does not reliably separate faeces from the environment and human faeces in/around living space). We distributed toy balls to each household and rinsed each study toy and a toy already owned by the household in 200 ml of Ringer's solution. We enumerated faecal coliforms and faecal streptococci from each rinse using membrane filtration methods. Study toys from 39 cleaner households had lower mean faecal coliform contamination than toys from 61 less clean households (2.4 log10 colony-forming units (CFU)/200 ml vs. 3.2 log10 CFU/200 ml, P = 0.03). However, wealth measures explained a portion of this relationship. Repeat measures were moderately variable [coefficient of variation (CV) = 6.5 between two toys in the household at the same time, CV = 37.6 between toys in the household at two different times 3-4 days apart]. Too few households owned a non-porous toy to compare groups without risk of bias. In rural Bangladesh, improved sanitation facilities and practices were associated with less environmental contamination. Whether this association is independent of household wealth and whether the difference in contamination improves child health merit further study. The variation found was typical for measures of environmental contamination, and requires large sample sizes to ascertain differences between groups with statistical significance. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Modelling noise propagation using Grid Resources. Progress within GDI-Grid

Science.gov (United States)

Kiehle, Christian; Mayer, Christian; Padberg, Alexander; Stapelfeld, Hartmut

2010-05-01

Modelling noise propagation using Grid Resources. Progress within GDI-Grid. GDI-Grid (english: SDI-Grid) is a research project funded by the German Ministry for Science and Education (BMBF). It aims at bridging the gaps between OGC Web Services (OWS) and Grid infrastructures and identifying the potential of utilizing the superior storage capacities and computational power of grid infrastructures for geospatial applications while keeping the well-known service interfaces specified by the OGC. The project considers all major OGC webservice interfaces for Web Mapping (WMS), Feature access (Web Feature Service), Coverage access (Web Coverage Service) and processing (Web Processing Service). The major challenge within GDI-Grid is the harmonization of diverging standards as defined by standardization bodies for Grid computing and spatial information exchange. The project started in 2007 and will continue until June 2010. The concept for the gridification of OWS developed by lat/lon GmbH and the Department of Geography of the University of Bonn is applied to three real-world scenarios in order to check its practicability: a flood simulation, a scenario for emergency routing and a noise propagation simulation. The latter scenario is addressed by the Stapelfeldt Ingenieurgesellschaft mbH located in Dortmund adapting their LimA software to utilize grid resources. Noise mapping of e.g. traffic noise in urban agglomerates and along major trunk roads is a reoccurring demand of the EU Noise Directive. Input data requires road net and traffic, terrain, buildings and noise protection screens as well as population distribution. Noise impact levels are generally calculated in 10 m grid and along relevant building facades. For each receiver position sources within a typical range of 2000 m are split down into small segments, depending on local geometry. For each of the segments propagation analysis includes diffraction effects caused by all obstacles on the path of sound propagation

Design, development, and clinical validation of therapeutic toys for autistic children.

Science.gov (United States)

Tseng, Kevin C; Tseng, Sung-Hui; Cheng, Hsin-Yi Kathy

2016-07-01

[Purpose] One of the characteristics of autistic children is social interaction difficulties. Although therapeutic toys can promote social interaction, however its related research remains insufficient. The aim of the present study was to build a set of cooperative play toys that are suitable for autistic children. [Subjects and Methods] This study used an innovative product design and development approach as the basis for the creation of cooperative play toys. [Results] The present study has successfully developed cooperative play toys. Compared to the traditional game therapy for autism, cooperative play toy therapy can significantly improve the interactions between autistic children and their peers. [Conclusion] The most critical design theme of cooperative play toys focuses on captivating the interest of autistic children. Based on the needs of the individual cases, the design of the therapeutic toy set was specifically tailored, i.e., by reinforcing the sound and light effects to improve the attractiveness of the toys. In the future, different play modes can be combined with this toy set to further enhance the degree of interaction of autistic children and improve their quality of life and social skills.

Gifting with Purpose: Choose Learning Toys This Holiday Season

Science.gov (United States)

Exceptional Parent, 2011

2011-01-01

Kids aged five and under learn best through play. Instead of buying just any toy, look for toys or activities with things to teach: like the alphabet or names of different animals, and more. Children will play with their new toy and not even realize they are learning while they play. This article focuses on gift ideas for the holiday season, with…

Modelling of Diesel Generator Sets That Assist Off-Grid Renewable Energy Micro-grids

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Johanna Salazar

2015-08-01

Full Text Available This paper focuses on modelling diesel generators for off-grid installations based on renewable energies. Variations in Environmental Variables (for example, Solar Radiation and Wind Speed make necessary to include these auxiliary systems in off-grid renewable energy installations, in order to ensure minimal services when the produced renewable energy is not sufficient to fulfill the demand. This paper concentrates on modelling the dynamical behaviour of the diesel generator, in order to use the models and simulations for developing and testing advanced controllers for the overall off-grid system. The Diesel generator is assumed to consist of a diesel motor connected to a synchronous generator through an electromagnetic clutch, with a flywheel to damp variations. Each of the components is modelled using physical models, with the corresponding control systems also modelled: these control systems include the speed and the voltage regulation (in cascade regulation.

The Smart Grid Impact on the Danish DSOs’ Business Model

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ma, Zheng; Sommer, Simon; Jørgensen, Bo Nørregaard

2016-01-01

The transformation progress of the smart grid challenges the market players' business models. One of those market players is the Distribution System Operators (DSOs). This paper aims to elaborate how smart grid influences the DSOs' business models with case studies of two Danish DSOs — Energi......Fyn and TREFOR. The main findings indicate that the Danish smart grid transformation process influences the Danish DSOs' business models via four smart grid related factors: (1) smart meters, (2) Distributed Energy Resources (DERs), (3) Bidirectional electricity flow, and (4) R&D. Therefore, the results show...... that the smart grid incrementally not revolutionary influences the Danish DSOs' business models, and the smart grid transformation of the Danish electricity grid is slower than the agenda of the official Danish smart grid development strategy....

Security and Privacy Analyses of Internet of Things Toys

OpenAIRE

Chu, Gordon; Apthorpe, Noah; Feamster, Nick

2018-01-01

This paper investigates the security and privacy of Internet-connected children's smart toys through case studies of three commercially-available products. We conduct network and application vulnerability analyses of each toy using static and dynamic analysis techniques, including application binary decompilation and network monitoring. We discover several publicly undisclosed vulnerabilities that violate the Children's Online Privacy Protection Rule (COPPA) as well as the toys' individual pr...

Philosophical Toys Today

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Dvořák, Tomáš

2013-01-01

Roč. 35, č. 2 (2013), s. 173-196 ISSN 1210-0250 R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GAP401/11/2338 Institutional support: RVO:67985955 Keywords : philosophical toys * scientific instruments * modern visual culture Subject RIV: AA - Philosophy ; Religion

The eGo grid model: An open-source and open-data based synthetic medium-voltage grid model for distribution power supply systems

Science.gov (United States)

Amme, J.; Pleßmann, G.; Bühler, J.; Hülk, L.; Kötter, E.; Schwaegerl, P.

2018-02-01

The increasing integration of renewable energy into the electricity supply system creates new challenges for distribution grids. The planning and operation of distribution systems requires appropriate grid models that consider the heterogeneity of existing grids. In this paper, we describe a novel method to generate synthetic medium-voltage (MV) grids, which we applied in our DIstribution Network GeneratOr (DINGO). DINGO is open-source software and uses freely available data. Medium-voltage grid topologies are synthesized based on location and electricity demand in defined demand areas. For this purpose, we use GIS data containing demand areas with high-resolution spatial data on physical properties, land use, energy, and demography. The grid topology is treated as a capacitated vehicle routing problem (CVRP) combined with a local search metaheuristics. We also consider the current planning principles for MV distribution networks, paying special attention to line congestion and voltage limit violations. In the modelling process, we included power flow calculations for validation. The resulting grid model datasets contain 3608 synthetic MV grids in high resolution, covering all of Germany and taking local characteristics into account. We compared the modelled networks with real network data. In terms of number of transformers and total cable length, we conclude that the method presented in this paper generates realistic grids that could be used to implement a cost-optimised electrical energy system.

Ecosystem Based Business Model of Smart Grid

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lundgaard, Morten Raahauge; Ma, Zheng; Jørgensen, Bo Nørregaard

2015-01-01

This paper tries to investigate the ecosystem based business model in a smart grid infrastructure and the potential of value capture in the highly complex macro infrastructure such as smart grid. This paper proposes an alternative perspective to study the smart grid business ecosystem to support...... the infrastructural challenges, such as the interoperability of business components for smart grid. So far little research has explored the business ecosystem in the smart grid concept. The study on the smart grid with the theory of business ecosystem may open opportunities to understand market catalysts. This study...... contributes an understanding of business ecosystem applicable for smart grid. Smart grid infrastructure is an intricate business ecosystem, which have several intentions to deliver the value proposition and what it should be. The findings help to identify and capture value from markets....

Bayesian decision theory : A simple toy problem

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Erp, H.R.N.; Linger, R.O.; van Gelder, P.H.A.J.M.

2016-01-01

We give here a comparison of the expected outcome theory, the expected utility theory, and the Bayesian decision theory, by way of a simple numerical toy problem in which we look at the investment willingness to avert a high impact low probability event. It will be found that for this toy problem

Identification of grid model parameters using synchrophasor measurements

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Boicea, Valentin; Albu, Mihaela [Politehnica University of Bucharest (Romania)

2012-07-01

Presently a critical element of the energy networks is represented by the active distribution grids, where generation intermittency and controllable loads contribute to a stochastic varability of the quantities characterizing the grid operation. The capability of controlling the electrical energy transfer is also limited by the incomplete knowledge of the detailed electrical model of each of the grid components. Asset management in distribution grids has to consider dynamic loads, while high loading of network sections might already have degraded some of the assets. Moreover, in case of functional microgrids, all elements need to be modelled accurately and an appropriate measurement layer enabling online control needs to be deployed. In this paper a method for online identification of the actual parameter values in grid electrical models is proposed. Laboratory results validating the proposed method are presented. (orig.)

Chiral dynamics and heavy quark symmetry in a solvable toy field-theoretic model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bardeen, W.A.; Hill, C.T.

1994-01-01

We study a solvable QCD-like toy theory, a generalization of the Nambu--Jona-Lasinio model, which implements chiral symmetries of light quarks and heavy quark symmetry. The chiral symmetric and chiral broken phases can be dynamically tuned. This implies a parity-doubled heavy-light meson system, corresponding to a (0 - ,1 - ) multiplet and a (0 + ,1 + ) heavy spin multiplet. Consequently the mass difference of the two multiplets is given by a Goldberger-Treiman relation and g A is found to be small. The Isgur-Wise function ξ(w), the decay constant f B , and other observables are studied

Analytical Chemical Control of Phthalates in Toys

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rastogi, S. C.; Jensen, G. H.; Worsøe, I. M.

The content of phthalates in toys and other articles for children up to 3 years of age is regulated by the Statutory Order of Danish Ministry of Environment and Energy, No. 151 of 15th March 1999. In the present investigation, 35 products (toys and other articles for children up to 3 years of age...

Analytical Chemical Control of Phthalates in Toys

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rastogi, S. C.; Worsøe, I. M.

The content of phthalates in toys and other articles for children up to 3 years of age is regulated by the Statutory Order of Danish Ministry of Environment and Energy, No. 151 of 15th March 1999. In the present investigation, 20 products (toys and other articles for children up to 3 years of age...

Distal antebrachial fractures in toy-breed dogs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Muir, P.

1997-01-01

Antebrachial fractures account for approximately 17% of all canine fractures, with motor vehicle trauma cited as one of the primary causes. However, antebrachial fractures in toy-breed dogs are often sustained after apparently minimal trauma, such as jumping or falling, and are usually distal. The cause of antebrachial fractures in toy breeds is not well understood. Complications after treatment of distal antebrachial fractures in toy-breed dogs, including delayed union, nonunion, and malunion, are common and are potentially serious because they may necessitate limb amputation. This article reports on distal antebrachial fractures in 26 toy-breed dogs that wee presented to the University of California, Davis, Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital from April 1987 to March 1996. The author found that (1) these fractures typically occur in growing or adolescent dogs; (2) the presence of complications of union is typically associated with prior treatment using intramedullary pinning or external coaptation; and (3) successful healing of this type of fracture is obtained via rigid stabilization with bone plating in combination with cancellous bone autograft

Smart Toys Designed for Detecting Developmental Delays.

Science.gov (United States)

Rivera, Diego; García, Antonio; Alarcos, Bernardo; Velasco, Juan R; Ortega, José Eugenio; Martínez-Yelmo, Isaías

2016-11-20

In this paper, we describe the design considerations and implementation of a smart toy system, a technology for supporting the automatic recording and analysis for detecting developmental delays recognition when children play using the smart toy. To achieve this goal, we take advantage of the current commercial sensor features (reliability, low consumption, easy integration, etc.) to develop a series of sensor-based low-cost devices. Specifically, our prototype system consists of a tower of cubes augmented with wireless sensing capabilities and a mobile computing platform that collect the information sent from the cubes allowing the later analysis by childhood development professionals in order to verify a normal behaviour or to detect a potential disorder. This paper presents the requirements of the toy and discusses our choices in toy design, technology used, selected sensors, process to gather data from the sensors and generate information that will help in the decision-making and communication of the information to the collector system. In addition, we also describe the play activities the system supports.

Smart Toys Designed for Detecting Developmental Delays

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Diego Rivera

2016-11-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we describe the design considerations and implementation of a smart toy system, a technology for supporting the automatic recording and analysis for detecting developmental delays recognition when children play using the smart toy. To achieve this goal, we take advantage of the current commercial sensor features (reliability, low consumption, easy integration, etc. to develop a series of sensor-based low-cost devices. Specifically, our prototype system consists of a tower of cubes augmented with wireless sensing capabilities and a mobile computing platform that collect the information sent from the cubes allowing the later analysis by childhood development professionals in order to verify a normal behaviour or to detect a potential disorder. This paper presents the requirements of the toy and discusses our choices in toy design, technology used, selected sensors, process to gather data from the sensors and generate information that will help in the decision-making and communication of the information to the collector system. In addition, we also describe the play activities the system supports.

Toys, sociocognitive traits, and occupations: Italian children's endorsement of gender stereotypes.

Science.gov (United States)

De Caroli, Maria Elvira; Sagone, Elisabetta

2007-06-01

In a sample of 136 Italian children ages 8 to 12 years (M = 9.6, SD = 1.2; 68 boys, 68 girls), gender stereotypes related to gender-typed toys, traits, and occupational choices were examined, using the forced-choice technique between a male and a female silhouette. Stereotypy was established considering boys' and girls' choices for the 70%-100% range. Differences in gender stereotyping for age and sex of participants were verified. Analysis indicated children attributed toys prevalently connected with aesthetic aspect and domestic activities to the female silhouette, while technology, warfare, locomotion, and construction toys were attributed to the male. Children attributed physical and verbal aggressiveness and dominance to the male silhouette; the female profile was exclusively characterized by sweetness. The occupational stereotypical male model was structured in both practical-manual activities and of highly cultural and specialist relevance, while for the female model the number of activities, mainly of a domestic type, were reduced. Significant main effect of sex of children was found, but no significant age-related differences in the three domains. Results were discussed within the framework of gender-stereotype theories.

Advertising Violent Toys in Weekly Circulars of Popular Retailers in the United States

Science.gov (United States)

Basch, Corey H.; Guerra, Laura A.; Reeves, Rachel; Basch, Charles E.

2015-01-01

Background: Violence is a pervasive problem in the United States. Toys, far from trivial playthings, are a reflection of society, including its beliefs and values. The purpose of this study was to describe the extent to which violent toys are marketed in online weekly flyers of popular retailers, how the violence is manifested, and whether violent toys are marketed differentially to boys and girls. Methods: For this cross-sectional observational study, online circulars from 5 major retailers were downloaded and examined each week for 14 weeks during the fall of 2014. For each retailer, the total number of toys, as well as the total number of violent and non-violent toys, was recorded. In addition, each violent toy was categorized into one of five groups: picturing a figure with a weapon, a figure with intent to strike (with fists drawn or an angry face), a toy with a violent name, a toy that was a weapon itself, or a set of toys that included two or more of these criteria. Results: A total number of 3,459 toys were observed, of which 1,053 (30%) were deemed violent. Of the violent toys, 95% were marketed to boys (n=1,003) versus 5% to girls (n=50). The most prevalent violent category was a figure with a weapon such as a sword, knife or gun (29%), followed by figures with fists out and aggressive faces (26%). Conclusion: Parents should be mindful of toy retailer‟s marketing of violent toys, especially toward boys, and the potential for those toys to de-sensitize their children to violence PMID:26634197

Toys as Tools for Skill-building and Creativity in Adult Life

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Katriina Heljakka

2015-11-01

Full Text Available Previous understandings of adult use of toys are connected with ideas of collecting and hobbying, not playing. This study aims to address toys as play objects employed in imaginative scenarios and as learning devices. This article situates toys (particularly, character toys such as Blythe dolls as socially shared tools for skill-building and learning in adult life. The interviews with Finnish doll players and analyses of examples of their productive, toy-related play patterns showcased in both offline and digital playscapes reveal how toy play leads to skill-building and creativity at a mature age.The meanings attached to and developed around playthings expand purposely by means of digital and social media. (Audiovisual content-sharing platforms, such as Flickr, Pinterest, Instagram and YouTube, invite mature audiences to join playful dialogues involving mass-produced toys enhanced through do-it-yourself practices. Activities circulated in digital play spaces, such as blogs and photo management applications, demonstrate how adults, as non-professional ‘everyday players’, approach, manipulate and creatively cultivate contemporary playthings. Mature players educate potential players by introducing how to use and develop skills by sharing play patterns associated with their playthings. Producing and broadcasting tutorials on how to play creatively with toys encourage others to build their skills through play.

Development of Numerical Grids for UZ Flow and Transport Modeling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hinds, J.

2001-01-01

This Analysis/Model Report (AMR) describes the methods used to develop numerical grids of the unsaturated hydrogeologic system beneath Yucca Mountain. Numerical grid generation is an integral part of the development of a complex, three-dimensional (3-D) model, such as the Unsaturated-Zone Flow and Transport Model (UZ Model) of Yucca Mountain. The resulting numerical grids, developed using current geologic, hydrogeologic, and mineralogic data, provide the necessary framework to: (1) develop calibrated hydrogeologic property sets and flow fields, (2) test conceptual hypotheses of flow and transport, and (3) predict flow and transport behavior under a variety of climatic and thermal loading conditions. Revision 00 of the work described herein follows the planning and work direction outlined in the ''Development of Numerical Grids for UZ Flow and Transport Modeling'' (CRWMS M and O 1999c). The technical scope, content, and management of ICN 01 of this AMR is currently controlled by the planning document, ''Technical Work Plan for Unsaturated Zone (UZ) Flow and Transport Process Model Report'' (BSC 2001a). The scope for the TBV resolution actions in this ICN is described in the ''Technical Work Plan for: Integrated Management of Technical Product Input Department'' (BSC 2001 b, Addendum B, Section 4.1). The steps involved in numerical grid development include: (1) defining the location of important calibration features, (2) determining model grid layers and fault geometry based on the Geologic Framework Model (GFM), the Integrated Site Model (ISM), and definition of hydrogeologic units (HGUs), (3) analyzing and extracting GFM and ISM data pertaining to layer contacts and property distributions, (4) discretizing and refining the two-dimensional (2-D), plan-view numerical grid, (5) generating the 3-D grid with finer resolution at the repository horizon and within the Calico Hills nonwelded (CHn) hydrogeologic unit, and (6) formulating the dual-permeability mesh. The

Multi-terminal direct-current grids modeling, analysis, and control

CERN Document Server

Chaudhuri, Nilanjan; Majumder, Rajat; Yazdani, Amirnaser

2014-01-01

A comprehensive modeling, analysis, and control design framework for multi-terminal direct current (MTDC) grids is presented together with their interaction with the surrounding AC networks and the impact on overall stability. The first book of its kind on the topic of multi-terminal DC (MTDC) grids  Presents a comprehensive modeling framework for MTDC grids which is compatible with the standard AC system modeling for stability studies Includes modal analysis and study of the interactions between the MTDC grid and the surrounding AC systems Addresses the problems of autonomous power sharing an

Modelling of dynamic equivalents in electric power grids

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Craciun, Diana Iuliana

2010-01-01

In a first part, this research thesis proposes a description of the context and new constraints of electric grids: architecture, decentralized production with the impact of distributed energy resource systems, dynamic simulation, and interest of equivalent models. Then, the author discusses the modelling of the different components of electric grids: synchronous and asynchronous machines, distributed energy resource with power electronic interface, loading models. She addresses the techniques of reduction of electric grid models: conventional reduction methods, dynamic equivalence methods using non linear approaches or evolutionary algorithm-based methods of assessment of parameters. This last approach is then developed and implemented, and a new method of computation of dynamic equivalents is described

Characteristics of particulate matter emissions from toy cars with electric motors.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Xiaofei; Williams, Brent J; Biswas, Pratim

2015-04-01

Aerosol emissions from toy cars with electric motors were characterized. Particle emission rates from the toy cars, as high as 7.47×10(7) particles/s, were measured. This emission rate is lower than other indoor sources such as smoking and cooking. The particles emitted from toy cars are generated from spark discharges inside the electric motors that power the toy cars. Size distribution measurements indicated that most particles were below 100 nm in diameter. Copper was the dominant inorganic species in these particles. By deploying aerosol mass spectrometers, high concentrations of particulate organic matter were also detected and characterized in detail. Several organic compounds were identified using a thermal desorption aerosol gas chromatography. The mass size distribution of particulate organic matter was bimodal. The formation mechanism of particulate organic matter from toy cars was elucidated. A possible new source of indoor air pollution, particles from electric motors in toy cars, was identified. This study characterized aerosol emissions from toy cars in detail. Most of these particles have a diameter less than 100 nm. Copper and some organics are the major components of these particles. Conditions that minimize these emissions were determined.

Optimal variable-grid finite-difference modeling for porous media

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, Xinxin; Yin, Xingyao; Li, Haishan

2014-01-01

Numerical modeling of poroelastic waves by the finite-difference (FD) method is more expensive than that of acoustic or elastic waves. To improve the accuracy and computational efficiency of seismic modeling, variable-grid FD methods have been developed. In this paper, we derived optimal staggered-grid finite difference schemes with variable grid-spacing and time-step for seismic modeling in porous media. FD operators with small grid-spacing and time-step are adopted for low-velocity or small-scale geological bodies, while FD operators with big grid-spacing and time-step are adopted for high-velocity or large-scale regions. The dispersion relations of FD schemes were derived based on the plane wave theory, then the FD coefficients were obtained using the Taylor expansion. Dispersion analysis and modeling results demonstrated that the proposed method has higher accuracy with lower computational cost for poroelastic wave simulation in heterogeneous reservoirs. (paper)

Systematic assessment of noise amplitude generated by toys intended for young children.

Science.gov (United States)

Mahboubi, Hossein; Oliaei, Sepehr; Badran, Karam W; Ziai, Kasra; Chang, Janice; Zardouz, Shawn; Shahriari, Shawn; Djalilian, Hamid R

2013-06-01

To systematically evaluate the noise generated by toys targeted for children and to compare the results over the course of 4 consecutive holiday shopping seasons. Experimental study. Academic medical center. During 2008-2011, more than 200 toys marketed for children older than 6 months were screened for loudness. The toys with sound output of more than 80 dBA at speaker level were retested in a soundproof audiometry booth. The generated sound amplitude of each toy was measured at speaker level and at 30 cm away from the speaker. Ninety different toys were analyzed. The mean (SD) noise amplitude was 100 (8) dBA (range, 80-121 dBA) at the speaker level and 80 (11) dBA (range, 60-109 dBA) at 30 cm away from the speaker. Eighty-eight (98%) had more than an 85-dBA noise amplitude at speaker level, whereas 19 (26%) had more than an 85-dBA noise amplitude at a 30-cm distance. Only the mean noise amplitude at 30 cm significantly declined during the studied period (P toys specified for different age groups. Our findings demonstrate the persistence of extremely loud toys marketed for very young children. Acoustic trauma from toys remains a potential risk factor for noise-induced hearing loss in this age group, warranting promotion of public awareness and regulatory considerations for manufacture and marketing of toys.

Production of didactic toys to children aged 3–6 years

OpenAIRE

Fajdiga, Ani

2013-01-01

The motivation for writing my diploma thesis titled Production of didactic toys to children aged 3–6 years came during arts and crafts course at the faculty when I made some didactic toys and took them to the kindergarten. There I observed how children eagerly examined the toys and asked me lots of questions about them with curiosity. Since there are not many good toys with which the children can play in the kindergarten, a thought sprang to mind that the children could acquire new knowledge ...

Salty popcorn in a homogeneous low-dimensional toy model of holographic QCD

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Elliot-Ripley, Matthew

2017-01-01

Recently, a homogeneous ansatz has been used to study cold dense nuclear matter in the Sakai–Sugimoto model of holographic QCD. To justify this homogeneous approximation we here investigate a homogeneous ansatz within a low-dimensional toy version of Sakai–Sugimoto to study finite baryon density configurations and compare it to full numerical solutions. We find the ansatz corresponds to enforcing a dyon salt arrangement in which the soliton solutions are split into half-soliton layers. Within this ansatz we find analogues of the proposed baryonic popcorn transitions, in which solutions split into multiple layers in the holographic direction. The homogeneous results are found to qualitatively match the full numerical solutions, lending confidence to the homogeneous approximations of the full Sakai–Sugimoto model. In addition, we find exact compact solutions in the high density, flat space limit which demonstrate the existence of further popcorn transitions to three layers and beyond. (paper)

Grid computing in large pharmaceutical molecular modeling.

Science.gov (United States)

Claus, Brian L; Johnson, Stephen R

2008-07-01

Most major pharmaceutical companies have employed grid computing to expand their compute resources with the intention of minimizing additional financial expenditure. Historically, one of the issues restricting widespread utilization of the grid resources in molecular modeling is the limited set of suitable applications amenable to coarse-grained parallelization. Recent advances in grid infrastructure technology coupled with advances in application research and redesign will enable fine-grained parallel problems, such as quantum mechanics and molecular dynamics, which were previously inaccessible to the grid environment. This will enable new science as well as increase resource flexibility to load balance and schedule existing workloads.

Noise levels of toys for children between the ages of birth and 3 ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Design. A quantitative, non-experimental, descriptive research design was employed for this study. Subjects. Twenty toys, 5 from each of 4 categories, were chosen from a popular toy store in ... the noise levels of toys on the packaging and adherence to ASTM International standards for toy manufacturers are recommended.

Wave Resource Characterization Using an Unstructured Grid Modeling Approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wei-Cheng Wu

2018-03-01

Full Text Available This paper presents a modeling study conducted on the central Oregon coast for wave resource characterization, using the unstructured grid Simulating WAve Nearshore (SWAN model coupled with a nested grid WAVEWATCH III® (WWIII model. The flexibility of models with various spatial resolutions and the effects of open boundary conditions simulated by a nested grid WWIII model with different physics packages were evaluated. The model results demonstrate the advantage of the unstructured grid-modeling approach for flexible model resolution and good model skills in simulating the six wave resource parameters recommended by the International Electrotechnical Commission in comparison to the observed data in Year 2009 at National Data Buoy Center Buoy 46050. Notably, spectral analysis indicates that the ST4 physics package improves upon the ST2 physics package’s ability to predict wave power density for large waves, which is important for wave resource assessment, load calculation of devices, and risk management. In addition, bivariate distributions show that the simulated sea state of maximum occurrence with the ST4 physics package matched the observed data better than with the ST2 physics package. This study demonstrated that the unstructured grid wave modeling approach, driven by regional nested grid WWIII outputs along with the ST4 physics package, can efficiently provide accurate wave hindcasts to support wave resource characterization. Our study also suggests that wind effects need to be considered if the dimension of the model domain is greater than approximately 100 km, or O (102 km.

Tips for Teachers Selecting Toys to Facilitate Social Interaction

Science.gov (United States)

Vail, Cynthia O.; Elmore, Shannon Renee

2011-01-01

Toy selection is an important role for early childhood teachers. This research-to-practice article describes what research tells us about how toys can affect the social interactions and communication of young children including those with developmental delays.

Mathematical toy model inspired by the problem of the adaptive origins of the sexual orientation continuum

Science.gov (United States)

Skinner, Brian

2016-09-01

Same-sex sexual behaviour is ubiquitous in the animal kingdom, but its adaptive origins remain a prominent puzzle. Here, I suggest the possibility that same-sex sexual behaviour arises as a consequence of the competition between an evolutionary drive for a wide diversity in traits, which improves the adaptability of a population, and a drive for sexual dichotomization of traits, which promotes opposite-sex attraction and increases the rate of reproduction. This trade-off is explored via a simple mathematical `toy model'. The model exhibits a number of interesting features and suggests a simple mathematical form for describing the sexual orientation continuum.

Can a Toy Encourage Lower Calorie Meal Bundle Selection in Children? A Field Experiment on the Reinforcing Effects of Toys on Food Choice.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martin Reimann

Full Text Available The goal of this research was to test whether including an inexpensive nonfood item (toy with a smaller-sized meal bundle (420 calories, but not with the regular-sized meal bundle version (580 calories, would incentivize children to choose the smaller-sized meal bundle, even among children with overweight and obesity. Logistic regression was used to evaluate the effect in a between-subjects field experiment of a toy on smaller-sized meal choice (here, a binary choice between a smaller-sized or regular-sized meal bundles. A random sample of 109 elementary school children from two schools in the Tucson, Arizona metropolitan area (55 females; Mage = 8.53 years, SDage = 2.14; MBMI = 18.30, SDBMI = 4.42 participated. Children's height and weight were measured and body-mass-index (BMI was calculated, adjusting for age and sex. In our sample, 21 children were considered to be either overweight or obese. Logistic regression was used to evaluate the effect of a toy on smaller-sized meal choice. Results revealed that the inclusion of a toy with a smaller-sized meal, but not with the regular-sized version, predicted smaller-sized meal choice (P < .001, suggesting that children can be incentivized to choose less food when such is paired with a toy. BMI neither moderated nor nullified the effect of toy on smaller-sized meal choice (P = .125, suggesting that children with overweight and obesity can also be incentivized to choose less. This article is the first to suggest that fast-food restaurant chains may well utilize toys to motivate children to choose smaller-sized meal bundles. Our findings may be relevant for consumers, health advocates, policy makers, and marketers who would benefit from a strategy that presents healthier, but still desirable, meal bundle options.

Estimation of Lead (Pb in Toys Using X-Ray Fluorescence Technology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sandipayan Dutta

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Lead exists extensively in the environment and it is a heavy metal, which is neurotoxic in nature which is harmful to children. In contrast to trace elements such as iron (Fe and zinc (Zn, lead has no recognized benecial effects in human body. With the economic development in India in recent years, the concentration of lead has increased in the environment and henceforth, lead pollution has become a severe problem in the country. Lead poisoning can create an immense damage and irreversible harm to foetal growth, the growth of teenagers and psychological, behavioural and cognitive development. Aim and Objectives: To estimate the lead content in the sample of toys. Material and Methods: 97 different toys were collected and coded as TS, these toys were kept in plastic lock cover which were lead proof. At rst the toys were arranged in order according to the serial number of the code (TS1 – TS97. The FP X-ray uorescence (Innov-X ray analyzer instrument was placed with the window of the analyzer on the surface of the toy vertically in such a way that there was no gap between the toy surface and the sampling window. The parts per million (ppm values of all toys were recorded. Results: Out of 97 samples tested, 22 samples were above permissible limits. The different materials demonstrate signicant correlation with the lead content in ppm. Lead is used as a stabilizer in some toys as well as children's items made from PVC plastic. Baby toys made up of plastic have higher concentration of lead. Lead can leach out of products when children handle and swallow them involuntarily.

Social interactions and play patterns of parents and toddlers with feminine, masculine, and neutral toys.

Science.gov (United States)

Caldera, Y M; Huston, A C; O'Brien, M

1989-02-01

Children as young as 18 months display sex-stereotyped toy choices. The present study was designed to determine whether parents encourage involvement with sex-stereotyped toys or avoidance of cross-sex-stereotyped toys and to determine whether masculine and feminine toys lead to different patterns of parent-child interaction, regardless of gender. 40 parent-toddler dyads were videotaped while playing with 6 different sets of sex-stereotyped toys. Equal numbers of boys and girls were observed with mothers and fathers. The children showed greater involvement when playing with same-sex-typed toys than with cross-sex toys even when statistically controlling for parents' behaviors. Parents' verbal behaviors, involvement, and proximity to the child differed across toy groups, regardless of the parent's or child's gender. Parents' initial nonverbal responses to the toys, however, were more positive when the toys were stereotyped for the child's and parent's gender than when they were not.

Parity-Time Symmetry and the Toy Models of Gain-Loss Dynamics near the Real Kato’s Exceptional Points

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Miloslav Znojil

2016-06-01

Full Text Available For a given operator D ( t of an observable in theoretical parity-time symmetric quantum physics (or for its evolution-generator analogues in the experimental gain-loss classical optics, etc. the instant t c r i t i c a l of a spontaneous breakdown of the parity-time alias gain-loss symmetry should be given, in the rigorous language of mathematics, the Kato’s name of an “exceptional point”, t c r i t i c a l = t ( E P . In the majority of conventional applications the exceptional point (EP values are not real. In our paper, we pay attention to several exactly tractable toy-model evolutions for which at least some of the values of t ( E P become real. These values are interpreted as “instants of a catastrophe”, be it classical or quantum. In the classical optical setting the discrete nature of our toy models might make them amenable to simulations. In the latter context the instant of Big Bang is mentioned as an illustrative sample of possible physical meaning of such an EP catastrophe in quantum cosmology.

Cat, dog and house dust mite allergen levels on children's soft toys.

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Francis Fu-Sheng; Wu, Mei-Wen; Ting, Ming-Hui; Crane, Julian; Siebers, Rob

2014-02-01

Children's soft toys are known to harbour house dust mite (HDM) allergens, but little is known whether they harbour cat or dog allergens. The objective of the study was to measure cat (Fel d 1), dog (Can f 1) and HDM allergens on children's soft toys. Dust was collected from 40 children's soft toys and their mattresses. Data were collected on pet ownership. Dust samples were analysed for Fel d 1, Can f 1, Der p 1 and Der f 1 by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and results are expressed as median levels with inter-quartile ranges. Thirty-five (87.5%) soft toys had detectable Fel d 1 levels (median: 0.73 µg/g; inter-quartile range: 0.26-2.56 µg/g) while 34 (85%) had detectable Can f 1 levels (1.20 µg/g; 0.53-2.68). Correspondingly, 32 (80%) mattresses had detectable Fel d 1 levels (0.18 µg/g, 0.07-1.01) while 34 (85%) had detectable Can f 1 levels (0.50 µg/g; 0.33-1.06). All mattresses and soft toys had detectable HDM allergen (Der p 1 + Der f 1) levels with soft toys containing about three times higher levels than mattresses. In homes with cats (n = 10) Fel d 1 levels were higher on soft toys than homes without cats (2.49 versus 0.48 µg/g; p = 0.0009). In homes with dogs (n = 25) Can f 1 levels were generally higher on soft toys (1.38 versus 0.63 µg/g; p = 0.10). This study has shown that soft toys can harbour cat and dog allergen as well as HDM allergens, some with very high levels. Cat and dog ownership resulted in higher Fel d 1 and Can f 1 levels on soft toys and mattresses. The levels of Fel d 1, Can f 1 and HDM allergens on soft toys could be of importance to sensitized asthmatic children.

Smart Grid Interoperability Maturity Model

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Widergren, Steven E.; Levinson, Alex; Mater, J.; Drummond, R.

2010-04-28

The integration of automation associated with electricity resources (including transmission and distribution automation and demand-side resources operated by end-users) is key to supporting greater efficiencies and incorporating variable renewable resources and electric vehicles into the power system. The integration problems faced by this community are analogous to those faced in the health industry, emergency services, and other complex communities with many stakeholders. To highlight this issue and encourage communication and the development of a smart grid interoperability community, the GridWise Architecture Council (GWAC) created an Interoperability Context-Setting Framework. This "conceptual model" has been helpful to explain the importance of organizational alignment in addition to technical and informational interface specifications for "smart grid" devices and systems. As a next step to building a community sensitive to interoperability, the GWAC is investigating an interoperability maturity model (IMM) based on work done by others to address similar circumstances. The objective is to create a tool or set of tools that encourages a culture of interoperability in this emerging community. The tools would measure status and progress, analyze gaps, and prioritize efforts to improve the situation.

Grid Frequency Extreme Event Analysis and Modeling: Preprint

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Florita, Anthony R [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Clark, Kara [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Gevorgian, Vahan [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Folgueras, Maria [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Wenger, Erin [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

2017-11-01

Sudden losses of generation or load can lead to instantaneous changes in electric grid frequency and voltage. Extreme frequency events pose a major threat to grid stability. As renewable energy sources supply power to grids in increasing proportions, it becomes increasingly important to examine when and why extreme events occur to prevent destabilization of the grid. To better understand frequency events, including extrema, historic data were analyzed to fit probability distribution functions to various frequency metrics. Results showed that a standard Cauchy distribution fit the difference between the frequency nadir and prefault frequency (f_(C-A)) metric well, a standard Cauchy distribution fit the settling frequency (f_B) metric well, and a standard normal distribution fit the difference between the settling frequency and frequency nadir (f_(B-C)) metric very well. Results were inconclusive for the frequency nadir (f_C) metric, meaning it likely has a more complex distribution than those tested. This probabilistic modeling should facilitate more realistic modeling of grid faults.

Quantification of toy sword kinematics with male pediatric volunteers.

Science.gov (United States)

Beeman, Stephanie M; Rowson, Steven; Duma, Stefan M

2014-01-01

While extensive research in toy safety has been performed, data is unavailable with regard to the kinematics of toy swords. To improve upon design criteria, knowledge of a child’s physical capacity is essential. The purpose of this study was to quantify the linear and angular velocities generated by children swinging toy swords. A total of 36 male subjects, ages 4-14 years old, each participated in one trial. Subjects were instructed to swing a toy sword as fast and hard as possible for ~10 seconds. A Vicon motion analysis system was used to capture subject and sword kinematics. Peak linear and angular sword velocities were calculated. A strong correlation was identified between age and velocity. The 8-14 year old males were not significantly different. The 4 year old males generated significantly lower velocities than the 8-14 year old males. The 6 year old males produced significantly lower velocities than the 10- 14 year old males. It was concluded that age had a significant effect on the linear and angular velocities generated by children. The trends observed within this study likely result from typical pediatric and adolescent development. By accounting for the physical capabilities of a specific population, toys can be designed with decreased inherent risks of injury.

Hazardous metals in vintage plastic toys measured by a handheld X-ray fluorescence spectrometer.

Science.gov (United States)

Miller, Gillian Zaharias; Harris, Zoe E

2015-01-01

Over 100 plastic toys from the 1970s and 1980s, both polyvinyl chloride ("vinyl") and nonvinyl, were analyzed in the study described here using a handheld X-ray fluorescence spectrometer to quantify hazardous metal content. A sampling of recent vinyl toys was also tested. The majority of nonvinyl samples were Fisher Price brand toys. The vinyl toys consisted largely of Barbie dolls and other dolls. Overall, lead or cadmium was found in 67% of vintage plastic toys, frequently at concentrations exceeding current U.S. and European limits. Arsenic was detected at levels of concern in 16% of the samples. In the nonvinyl toys, heavy metal content was found to correlate with certain colors of plastic. The likely sources of the detected metals are discussed. None of the contemporary vinyl toys contained detectable cadmium, lead, or arsenic. Given that vintage toys remain in widespread use by children in homes and other locations, the results illuminate a potential source of heavy metal exposure for children.

The potential of artificial intelligence toys

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dai, Zheng

2008-01-01

Artificial intelligence is moving to a next step of development and application areas. From electronic games to human-like robots, AI toy is a good choice for next step during this process. Technology-based design is fit to the development of AI toy. It can exert the advantages and explore more...... value for existing resources. It combines AI programs and common sensors to realize the function of intelligence input and output. Designers can use technology-based criteria to design and need to consider the possible issues in this new field. All of these aspects can be referenced from electronic game...

BLACK HOLE-NEUTRON STAR MERGERS AND SHORT GAMMA-RAY BURSTS: A RELATIVISTIC TOY MODEL TO ESTIMATE THE MASS OF THE TORUS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pannarale, Francesco; Tonita, Aaryn; Rezzolla, Luciano

2011-01-01

The merger of a binary system composed of a black hole (BH) and a neutron star (NS) may leave behind a torus of hot, dense matter orbiting around the BH. While numerical-relativity simulations are necessary to simulate this process accurately, they are also computationally expensive and unable at present to cover the large space of possible parameters, which include the relative mass ratio, the stellar compactness, and the BH spin. To mitigate this and provide a first reasonable coverage of the space of parameters, we have developed a method for estimating the mass of the remnant torus from BH-NS mergers. The toy model makes use of an improved relativistic affine model to describe the tidal deformations of an extended tri-axial ellipsoid orbiting around a Kerr BH and measures the mass of the remnant torus by considering which of the fluid particles composing the star are on bound orbits at the time of the tidal disruption. We tune the toy model by using the results of fully general-relativistic simulations obtaining relative precisions of a few percent and use it to investigate the space of parameters extensively. In this way, we find that the torus mass is largest for systems with highly spinning BHs, small stellar compactnesses, and large mass ratios. As an example, tori as massive as M b,tor ≅ 1.33 M sun can be produced for a very extended star with compactness C ≅ 0.1 inspiralling around a BH with dimensionless spin parameter a = 0.85 and mass ratio q ≅ 0.3. However, for a more astrophysically reasonable mass ratio q ≅ 0.14 and a canonical value of the stellar compactness C ≅ 0.145, the toy model sets a considerably smaller upper limit of M b,tor ∼ sun .

Task-and-role-based access-control model for computational grid

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

LONG Tao; HONG Fan; WU Chi; SUN Ling-li

2007-01-01

Access control in a grid environment is a challenging issue because the heterogeneous nature and independent administration of geographically dispersed resources in grid require access control to use fine-grained policies. We established a task-and-role-based access-control model for computational grid (CG-TRBAC model), integrating the concepts of role-based access control (RBAC) and task-based access control (TBAC). In this model, condition restrictions are defined and concepts specifically tailored to Workflow Management System are simplified or omitted so that role assignment and security administration fit computational grid better than traditional models; permissions are mutable with the task status and system variables, and can be dynamically controlled. The CG-TRBAC model is proved flexible and extendible. It can implement different control policies. It embodies the security principle of least privilege and executes active dynamic authorization. A task attribute can be extended to satisfy different requirements in a real grid system.

Advertising Violent Toys in Weekly Circulars of Popular Retailers in the United States

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Corey H. Basch

2015-10-01

with fists out and aggressive faces (26%. Conclusion: Parents should be mindful of toy retailer’s marketing of violent toys, especially toward boys, and the potential for those toys to desensitize their children to violence.

Comparative analysis of existing models for power-grid synchronization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nishikawa, Takashi; Motter, Adilson E

2015-01-01

The dynamics of power-grid networks is becoming an increasingly active area of research within the physics and network science communities. The results from such studies are typically insightful and illustrative, but are often based on simplifying assumptions that can be either difficult to assess or not fully justified for realistic applications. Here we perform a comprehensive comparative analysis of three leading models recently used to study synchronization dynamics in power-grid networks—a fundamental problem of practical significance given that frequency synchronization of all power generators in the same interconnection is a necessary condition for a power grid to operate. We show that each of these models can be derived from first principles within a common framework based on the classical model of a generator, thereby clarifying all assumptions involved. This framework allows us to view power grids as complex networks of coupled second-order phase oscillators with both forcing and damping terms. Using simple illustrative examples, test systems, and real power-grid datasets, we study the inherent frequencies of the oscillators as well as their coupling structure, comparing across the different models. We demonstrate, in particular, that if the network structure is not homogeneous, generators with identical parameters need to be modeled as non-identical oscillators in general. We also discuss an approach to estimate the required (dynamical) system parameters that are unavailable in typical power-grid datasets, their use for computing the constants of each of the three models, and an open-source MATLAB toolbox that we provide for these computations. (paper)

Hygiene of Toys in Day Care Centers: a Care With Children

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Evelise Pires Cogo Simão

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Objective: to investigate how the hygiene of the toys used in day care centers and the possible tendencies in the processes are done. Method: descriptive, cross-sectional study, having as a unit of observation 51 day care centers. The object of investigation was the toy hygiene procedure, in which the information on the variables was obtained by interview and recorded in an online questionnaire. Results: It was observed that water and soap was the most used method of hygiene (72.5% and the periodicity of cleaning was 2 times a month or more in 50% of the units interviewed, and six nurseries declared no Such procedure. Conclusion: there was no standardized procedures in the toy hygiene technique used in the sample of nurseries studied. Although most institutions demonstrate intent to carry out the toy hygiene procedure, it is necessary to equip practitioners to deal with this issue. Descriptors: Day Care Centers; Fomites; Disinfection; Play Sets and Toys; Nursing.

Burn Injury Arise From Flying Balloon Toys

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yalcin Kulahci

2007-08-01

Full Text Available Many of peoples are faced minor or major burn injuries in their life. Even the most widespread burn cause is flame injuries, too different burn cause pointed out in literature like Acetylen burns. The cases which imply in literature, mostly causes from explosion of high pressure acetylene tube, metal oxygene patch flame or carbide lamp using from cave explorers. An interesting acetylene burn cause in Turkey was publised by the authors. This cases was to come into being from flying toy balloons flame. 80 person was injured from flying toy ballons flame in a meeting in 2002. Although this potential risks of acetylene, helium have not any of some risk. But helium was provided from other countries and have more price. The injuries which caused from acetylene burns like 1st -2nd degree burns. Consequently that was known helium is more avaliable for using in toy sector, and never cause burn injuries like this. [TAF Prev Med Bull. 2007; 6(4: 291-296

Modelling and Analysis of Smart Grid: A Stochastic Model Checking Case Study

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Yuksel, Ender; Zhu, Huibiao; Nielson, Hanne Riis

2012-01-01

that require novel methods and applications. In this context, an important issue is the verification of certain quantitative properties of the system. In this paper, we consider a specific Chinese Smart Grid implementation as a case study and address the verification problem for performance and energy......Cyber-physical systems integrate information and communication technology functions to the physical elements of a system for monitoring and controlling purposes. The conversion of traditional power grid into a smart grid, a fundamental example of a cyber-physical system, raises a number of issues...... consumption. We employ stochastic model checking approach and present our modelling and analysis study using PRISM model checker....

[Benefits from the use of toys during nursing care delivered to hospitalized children].

Science.gov (United States)

Jansen, Michele Ferraz; dos Santos, Rosane Maria; Favero, Luciane

2010-06-01

It is a qualitative research study, descriptive-exploratory in nature, which aims to verify the benefits from the use of toys during nursing care to hospitalized children. Ten subjects participated in the study: three children and seven mothers of hospitalized children. Data were collected between May and July, 2008 by means of specific instruments for each age group and further organized in thematic categories: the use of toys to lessen hospitalization stress; toys facilitating understanding and acceptance of procedures; and the experience of using toys and hospitalization process. The results show that the use of toys is an excellent nursing resource to render care to admitted children. The features of the toys facilitated communication, participation, acceptance of procedure and child motivation, what enabled them to keep their individuality, lessen the stress and the possibility to implement children's and families' non-traumatic care.

Toys That Squeak: Toy Type Impacts Quality and Quantity of Parent-Child Interactions

Science.gov (United States)

Miller, Jennifer L.; Lossia, Amanda; Suarez-Rivera, Catalina; Gros-Louis, Julie

2017-01-01

Given the dependent nature of parent-infant interactions necessary for language development, it is important to understand how context may influence these interactions. This study examines how contextual variables influence communicative, cognitive and social measures of parent-infant interactions. Specifically, how do feedback toys and…

Schwarz-Christoffel Conformal Mapping based Grid Generation for Global Oceanic Circulation Models

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Shiming

2015-04-01

We propose new grid generation algorithms for global ocean general circulation models (OGCMs). Contrary to conventional, analytical forms based dipolar or tripolar grids, the new algorithm are based on Schwarz-Christoffel (SC) conformal mapping with prescribed boundary information. While dealing with the conventional grid design problem of pole relocation, it also addresses more advanced issues of computational efficiency and the new requirements on OGCM grids arisen from the recent trend of high-resolution and multi-scale modeling. The proposed grid generation algorithm could potentially achieve the alignment of grid lines to coastlines, enhanced spatial resolution in coastal regions, and easier computational load balance. Since the generated grids are still orthogonal curvilinear, they can be readily 10 utilized in existing Bryan-Cox-Semtner type ocean models. The proposed methodology can also be applied to the grid generation task for regional ocean modeling when complex land-ocean distribution is present.

Robotic Toys as a Catalyst for Mathematical Problem Solving

Science.gov (United States)

Highfield, Kate

2010-01-01

Robotic toys present unique opportunities for teachers of young children to integrate mathematics learning with engaging problem-solving tasks. This article describes a series of tasks using Bee-bots and Pro-bots, developed as part a larger project examining young children's use of robotic toys as tools in developing mathematical and metacognitive…

Yakutat Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Yakutat, Alaska Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST...

Development of numerical Grids for UZ Flow and Transport Modeling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

P. Dobson

2004-01-01

This report describes the methods used to develop numerical grids of the unsaturated hydrogeologic system beneath Yucca Mountain, Nevada. Numerical grid generation is an integral part of the development of the unsaturated zone (UZ) flow and transport model, a complex, three-dimensional (3-D) model of Yucca Mountain. This revision contains changes made to improve the clarity of the description of grid generation. The numerical grids, developed using current geologic, hydrogeologic, and mineralogic data, provide the necessary framework to: (1) develop calibrated hydrogeologic property sets and flow fields, (2) test conceptual hypotheses of flow and transport, and (3) predict flow and transport behavior under a variety of climatic and thermal-loading conditions. The technical scope, content, and management for the current revision of this report are described in the planning document ''Technical Work Plan for: Unsaturated Zone Flow Analysis and Model Report Integration'' (BSC 2004 [DIRS 169654], Section 2). Grids generated and documented in this report supersede those documented in Revision 00 of this report, ''Development of Numerical Grids for UZ Flow and Transport Modeling'' (BSC 2001 [DIRS 159356]). The grids presented in this report are the same as those developed in Revision 01 (BSC 2003 [DIRS 160109]); however, the documentation of the development of the grids in Revision 02 has been updated to address technical inconsistencies and achieve greater transparency, readability, and traceability. The constraints, assumptions, and limitations associated with this report are discussed in the appropriate sections that follow

Semantic Information Modeling for Emerging Applications in Smart Grid

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhou, Qunzhi; Natarajan, Sreedhar; Simmhan, Yogesh; Prasanna, Viktor

2012-04-16

Smart Grid modernizes power grid by integrating digital and information technologies. Millions of smart meters, intelligent appliances and communication infrastructures are under deployment allowing advanced IT applications to be developed to secure and manage power grid operations. Demand response (DR) is one such emerging application to optimize electricity demand by curtailing/shifting power load when peak load occurs. Existing DR approaches are mostly based on static plans such as pricing policies and load shedding schedules. However, improvements to power management applications rely on data emanating from existing and new information sources with the growth of Smart Grid information space. In particular, dynamic DR algorithms depend on information from smart meters that report interval-based power consumption measurement, HVAC systems that monitor buildings heat and humidity, and even weather forecast services. In order for emerging Smart Grid applications to take advantage of the diverse data influx, extensible information integration is required. In this paper, we develop an integrated Smart Grid information model using Semantic Web techniques and present case studies of using semantic information for dynamic DR. We show the semantic model facilitates information integration and knowledge representation for developing the next generation Smart Grid applications.

Design, development, and clinical validation of therapeutic toys for autistic children

OpenAIRE

Tseng, Kevin C.; Tseng, Sung-Hui; Cheng, Hsin-Yi Kathy

2016-01-01

[Purpose] One of the characteristics of autistic children is social interaction difficulties. Although therapeutic toys can promote social interaction, however its related research remains insufficient. The aim of the present study was to build a set of cooperative play toys that are suitable for autistic children. [Subjects and Methods] This study used an innovative product design and development approach as the basis for the creation of cooperative play toys. [Results] The present study has...

Bermuda Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Bermuda Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST is a...

Inducing self-organized criticality in a network toy model by neighborhood assortativity.

Science.gov (United States)

Allen-Perkins, Alfonso; Galeano, Javier; Pastor, Juan Manuel

2016-11-01

Complex networks are a recent type of framework used to study complex systems with many interacting elements, such as self-organized criticality (SOC). The network nodes' tendency to link to other nodes of similar type is characterized by assortative mixing. Real networks exhibit assortative mixing by vertex degree, however, typical random network models, such as the Erdős-Rényi or the Barabási-Albert model, show no assortative arrangements. In this paper we introduce the notion of neighborhood assortativity as the tendency of a node to belong to a community (its neighborhood) showing an average property similar to its own. Imposing neighborhood assortative mixing by degree in a network toy model, SOC dynamics can be found. These dynamics are driven only by the network topology. The long-range correlations resulting from criticality have been characterized by means of fluctuation analysis and show an anticorrelation in the node's activity. The model contains only one parameter and its statistics plots for different values of the parameter can be collapsed into a single curve. The simplicity of the model allows us to perform numerical simulations and also to study analytically the statistics for a specific value of the parameter, making use of the Markov chains.

Modeling and Grid Generation of Iced Airfoils

Science.gov (United States)

Vickerman, Mary B.; Baez, Marivell; Braun, Donald C.; Hackenberg, Anthony W.; Pennline, James A.; Schilling, Herbert W.

2007-01-01

SmaggIce Version 2.0 is a software toolkit for geometric modeling and grid generation for two-dimensional, singleand multi-element, clean and iced airfoils. A previous version of SmaggIce was described in Preparing and Analyzing Iced Airfoils, NASA Tech Briefs, Vol. 28, No. 8 (August 2004), page 32. To recapitulate: Ice shapes make it difficult to generate quality grids around airfoils, yet these grids are essential for predicting ice-induced complex flow. This software efficiently creates high-quality structured grids with tools that are uniquely tailored for various ice shapes. SmaggIce Version 2.0 significantly enhances the previous version primarily by adding the capability to generate grids for multi-element airfoils. This version of the software is an important step in streamlining the aeronautical analysis of ice airfoils using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) tools. The user may prepare the ice shape, define the flow domain, decompose it into blocks, generate grids, modify/divide/merge blocks, and control grid density and smoothness. All these steps may be performed efficiently even for the difficult glaze and rime ice shapes. Providing the means to generate highly controlled grids near rough ice, the software includes the creation of a wrap-around block (called the "viscous sublayer block"), which is a thin, C-type block around the wake line and iced airfoil. For multi-element airfoils, the software makes use of grids that wrap around and fill in the areas between the viscous sub-layer blocks for all elements that make up the airfoil. A scripting feature records the history of interactive steps, which can be edited and replayed later to produce other grids. Using this version of SmaggIce, ice shape handling and grid generation can become a practical engineering process, rather than a laborious research effort.

Using Toys to Support Infant-Toddler Learning and Development

Science.gov (United States)

Guyton, Gabriel

2011-01-01

Choosing toys and activities that are suitable for infants and toddlers can challenge even the most experienced teacher. By being mindful of the basic principles of child development and the role of play, teachers can intentionally select toys to meet young children's unique needs and interests, supporting learning. It is also important to be…

Science toys

Science.gov (United States)

Crease, Robert P.

2009-01-01

"I have a low boredom threshold," Tim Rowett explains, ushering in my son Alex and me. Rowett is a jovial, professorishlooking man with wire-rimmed glasses and a short, white beard. Alex and I have gone to his flat in Twickenham, on the edge of London, to see his collection of fun stuff - jokes, games, puzzles and other toys related to science. When I ask what they have in common, Rowett has a ready, if not illuminating, answer: "They're just things that make people go 'Wow!'."

Midway Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Midway Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST is a suite...

Detection of pathogenic micro-organisms on children's hands and toys during play.

Science.gov (United States)

Martínez-Bastidas, T; Castro-del Campo, N; Mena, K D; Castro-del Campo, N; León-Félix, J; Gerba, C P; Chaidez, C

2014-06-01

This study aimed to determine if the children's leisure activities impact the presence of pathogens on their hands and toys. To assess the microbiological hazard in playground areas, a pilot study that included 12 children was conducted. We then conducted an intervention study; children's hands and toys were washed before playing. Faecal coliforms, pathogenic bacteria and Giardia lamblia were quantified by membrane filtration, selective media and flotation techniques, respectively; rotavirus, hepatitis A and rhinovirus by RT-PCR. Pilot study results revealed faecal contamination on children's hands and toys after playing on sidewalks and in public parks. Pathogenic bacteria, hepatitis A and G. lamblia on children's hands were also found. In the intervention study, Staphylococcus aureus and Klebsiella pneumoniae were found on children's hands at concentrations up to 2·5 × 10(4) and 1 × 10(4) CFU hands(-1), respectively. E. coli and Kl. pneumoniae were detected on toys (2·4 × 10(3) and 2·7 × 10(4) CFU toy(-1), respectively). Salmonella spp, Serratia spp and G. lamblia cysts were also present on toys. Children's play activities influence microbial presence on hands and toys; the transfer seems to occur in both ways. Control strategy needs to be implemented to protect children from infectious diseases. © 2014 The Society for Applied Microbiology.

Development of Numerical Grids for UZ Flow and Transport Modeling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

P. Dobson

2003-01-01

This Scientific Analysis report describes the methods used to develop numerical grids of the unsaturated hydrogeologic system beneath Yucca Mountain. Numerical grid generation is an integral part of the development of the Unsaturated Zone Flow and Transport Model (UZ Model), a complex, three-dimensional (3-D) model of Yucca Mountain. This revision incorporates changes made to both the geologic framework model and the proposed repository layout. The resulting numerical grids, developed using current geologic, hydrogeologic, and mineralogic data, provide the necessary framework to: (1) develop calibrated hydrogeologic property sets and flow fields, (2) test conceptual hypotheses of flow and transport, and (3) predict flow and transport behavior under a variety of climatic and thermal-loading conditions. The technical scope, content, and management of this Scientific Analysis report was initially controlled by the planning document, ''Technical Work Plan (TWP) for: Unsaturated Zone Sections of License Application Chapters 8 and 12'' (BSC 2002 [159051], Section 1.6.4). This TWP was later superseded by ''Technical Work Plan for: Performance Assessment Unsaturated Zone'' (BSC 2002 [160819]), which contains the Data Qualification Plan used to qualify the DTN: MO0212GWLSSPAX.000 [161271] (See Attachment IV). Grids generated and documented in this report supersede those documented in previous versions of this report (BSC 2001 [159356]). The constraints, assumptions, and limitations associated with this report are discussed in the appropriate sections that follow. There were no deviations from the TWP scope of work in this report. Two software packages not listed in Table IV-2 of the TWP (BSC 2002 [159051]), ARCINFO V7.2.1 (CRWMS M and O 2000 [157019]; USGS 2000 [148304]) and 2kgrid8.for V1.0 (LBNL 2002 [154787]), were utilized in the development of the numerical grids; the use of additional software is accounted for in the TWP (BSC 2002 [159051], Section 13). The use of

Serious Fun: Using Toys to Demonstrate Fluid Mechanics Principles

Science.gov (United States)

Saviz, Camilla M.; Shakerin, Said

2014-01-01

Many students have owned or seen fluids toys in which two immiscible fluids within a closed container can be tilted to generate waves. These types of inexpensive and readily available toys are fun to play with, but they are also useful for provoking student learning about fluid properties or complex fluid behavior, including drop formation and…

Development of Gender Discrimination: Effect of Sex-Typical and Sex-Atypical Toys.

Science.gov (United States)

Etaugh, Claire; Duits, Terri L.

Toddlers (41 girls and 35 boys) between 18 and 37 months of age were given four gender discrimination tasks each consisting of 6 pairs of color drawings. Three of the tasks employed color drawings of preschool girls and boys holding either a sex-typical toy, a sex-atypical toy, or no toy. The fourth employed pictures of sex-typical masculine and…

Brominated flame retardants in children's toys: concentration, composition, and children's exposure and risk assessment.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, She-Jun; Ma, Yun-Juan; Wang, Jing; Chen, Da; Luo, Xiao-Jun; Mai, Bi-Xian

2009-06-01

Brominated flame retardants (BFRs), including polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), 1,2-bis(2,4,6-tribromophenoxy)ethane (BTBPE), decabromodiphenyl ethane (DBDPE), and polybrominated biphenyls (PBBs) were found in children's toys purchased from South China. The median BFR concentrations in the hard plastic toys were 53,000, 5540 ng/g, 101.1 ng/g, and 27.9 ng/g, fortotal PBDEs, DBDPE, BTBPE, and PBBs, respectively,which were notably higher than values in other toys. The PBDE concentrations were below the threshold limit (1000 ppm) required bythe European Commission's Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) and Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) directives in all of the toys, except for one hard plastic toy with a total PBDE concentration of 5,344,000 ng/g. The BFR profiles in the toys were consistent with the patterns of their current production and consumption in China, where PBDEs, specifically decaBDE product, were the dominant BFR, followed by the emerging DBDPE. The relatively high concentrations of octa- and nonaBDEs in the foam toys and the results of principal component analysis (PCA) may suggest the decomposition of highly brominated BDEs during the manufacturing processes of the toys. Daily total PBDE exposures associated with toys via inhalation, mouthing, dermal contact, and oral ingestion ranged from 82.6 to 8992 pg/kg bw-day for children of 3 months to 14 years of age. Higher exposures, predominantly contributed through the mouthing pathway, were observed for infants and toddlers than for the other subgroups. In most cases, children's BFR exposure via the toys likely accounts for a small proportion of their daily BFR exposure, and the hazard quotients for noncancer risk evaluation were far below 1. To the author's knowledge, this is the first study to examine the concentrations of BFRs in toys, and the potential exposures to children.

Application of a Steady Meandering River with Piers Using a Lattice Boltzmann Sub-Grid Model in Curvilinear Coordinate Grid

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Liping Chen

2018-05-01

Full Text Available A sub-grid multiple relaxation time (MRT lattice Boltzmann model with curvilinear coordinates is applied to simulate an artificial meandering river. The method is based on the D2Q9 model and standard Smagorinsky sub-grid scale (SGS model is introduced to simulate meandering flows. The interpolation supplemented lattice Boltzmann method (ISLBM and the non-equilibrium extrapolation method are used for second-order accuracy and boundary conditions. The proposed model was validated by a meandering channel with a 180° bend and applied to a steady curved river with piers. Excellent agreement between the simulated results and previous computational and experimental data was found, showing that MRT-LBM (MRT lattice Boltzmann method coupled with a Smagorinsky sub-grid scale (SGS model in a curvilinear coordinates grid is capable of simulating practical meandering flows.

Holographic quantum error-correcting codes: toy models for the bulk/boundary correspondence

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pastawski, Fernando; Yoshida, Beni [Institute for Quantum Information & Matter and Walter Burke Institute for Theoretical Physics,California Institute of Technology,1200 E. California Blvd., Pasadena CA 91125 (United States); Harlow, Daniel [Princeton Center for Theoretical Science, Princeton University,400 Jadwin Hall, Princeton NJ 08540 (United States); Preskill, John [Institute for Quantum Information & Matter and Walter Burke Institute for Theoretical Physics,California Institute of Technology,1200 E. California Blvd., Pasadena CA 91125 (United States)

2015-06-23

We propose a family of exactly solvable toy models for the AdS/CFT correspondence based on a novel construction of quantum error-correcting codes with a tensor network structure. Our building block is a special type of tensor with maximal entanglement along any bipartition, which gives rise to an isometry from the bulk Hilbert space to the boundary Hilbert space. The entire tensor network is an encoder for a quantum error-correcting code, where the bulk and boundary degrees of freedom may be identified as logical and physical degrees of freedom respectively. These models capture key features of entanglement in the AdS/CFT correspondence; in particular, the Ryu-Takayanagi formula and the negativity of tripartite information are obeyed exactly in many cases. That bulk logical operators can be represented on multiple boundary regions mimics the Rindler-wedge reconstruction of boundary operators from bulk operators, realizing explicitly the quantum error-correcting features of AdS/CFT recently proposed in http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/JHEP04(2015)163.

Hybrid Spatial Data Model for Indoor Space: Combined Topology and Grid

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhiyong Lin

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The construction and application of an indoor spatial data model is an important prerequisite to meet the requirements of diversified indoor spatial location services. The traditional indoor spatial topology model focuses on the construction of topology information. It has high path analysis and query efficiency, but ignores the spatial location information. The grid model retains the plane position information by grid, but increases the data volume and complexity of the model and reduces the efficiency of the model analysis. This paper presents a hybrid model for interior space based on topology and grid. Based on the spatial meshing and spatial division of the interior space, the model retains the position information and topological connectivity information of the interior space by establishing the connection or affiliation between the grid subspace and the topological subspace. The model improves the speed of interior spatial analysis and solves the problem of the topology information and location information updates not being synchronized. In this study, the A* shortest path query efficiency of typical daily indoor activities under the grid model and the hybrid model were compared for the indoor plane of an apartment and a shopping mall. The results obtained show that the hybrid model is 43% higher than the A* algorithm of the grid model as a result of the existence of topology communication information. This paper provides a useful idea for the establishment of a highly efficient and highly available interior spatial data model.

Can a Toy Encourage Lower Calorie Meal Bundle Selection in Children? A Field Experiment on the Reinforcing Effects of Toys on Food Choice.

Science.gov (United States)

Reimann, Martin; Lane, Kristen

2017-01-01

The goal of this research was to test whether including an inexpensive nonfood item (toy) with a smaller-sized meal bundle (420 calories), but not with the regular-sized meal bundle version (580 calories), would incentivize children to choose the smaller-sized meal bundle, even among children with overweight and obesity. Logistic regression was used to evaluate the effect in a between-subjects field experiment of a toy on smaller-sized meal choice (here, a binary choice between a smaller-sized or regular-sized meal bundles). A random sample of 109 elementary school children from two schools in the Tucson, Arizona metropolitan area (55 females; Mage = 8.53 years, SDage = 2.14; MBMI = 18.30, SDBMI = 4.42) participated. Children's height and weight were measured and body-mass-index (BMI) was calculated, adjusting for age and sex. In our sample, 21 children were considered to be either overweight or obese. Logistic regression was used to evaluate the effect of a toy on smaller-sized meal choice. Results revealed that the inclusion of a toy with a smaller-sized meal, but not with the regular-sized version, predicted smaller-sized meal choice (P restaurant chains may well utilize toys to motivate children to choose smaller-sized meal bundles. Our findings may be relevant for consumers, health advocates, policy makers, and marketers who would benefit from a strategy that presents healthier, but still desirable, meal bundle options.

Grid based calibration of SWAT hydrological models

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

D. Gorgan

2012-07-01

Full Text Available The calibration and execution of large hydrological models, such as SWAT (soil and water assessment tool, developed for large areas, high resolution, and huge input data, need not only quite a long execution time but also high computation resources. SWAT hydrological model supports studies and predictions of the impact of land management practices on water, sediment, and agricultural chemical yields in complex watersheds. The paper presents the gSWAT application as a web practical solution for environmental specialists to calibrate extensive hydrological models and to run scenarios, by hiding the complex control of processes and heterogeneous resources across the grid based high computation infrastructure. The paper highlights the basic functionalities of the gSWAT platform, and the features of the graphical user interface. The presentation is concerned with the development of working sessions, interactive control of calibration, direct and basic editing of parameters, process monitoring, and graphical and interactive visualization of the results. The experiments performed on different SWAT models and the obtained results argue the benefits brought by the grid parallel and distributed environment as a solution for the processing platform. All the instances of SWAT models used in the reported experiments have been developed through the enviroGRIDS project, targeting the Black Sea catchment area.

Gender, Toys and Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Francis, Becky

2010-01-01

In spite of continuing patterning of curriculum subject preference and choice by gender, there has been little recent attention to the argument developed in the 1970s that children play with different toys according to their gender, and that these provide girls and boys with (different) curriculum-related skills. The article describes a…

The MicroGrid: A Scientific Tool for Modeling Computational Grids

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

H.J. Song

2000-01-01

Full Text Available The complexity and dynamic nature of the Internet (and the emerging Computational Grid demand that middleware and applications adapt to the changes in configuration and availability of resources. However, to the best of our knowledge there are no simulation tools which support systematic exploration of dynamic Grid software (or Grid resource behavior. We describe our vision and initial efforts to build tools to meet these needs. Our MicroGrid simulation tools enable Globus applications to be run in arbitrary virtual grid resource environments, enabling broad experimentation. We describe the design of these tools, and their validation on micro-benchmarks, the NAS parallel benchmarks, and an entire Grid application. These validation experiments show that the MicroGrid can match actual experiments within a few percent (2% to 4%.

The more the merrier: grid based modelling of Kepler dwarfs with 5-dimensional stellar grids

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Serenelli Aldo

2017-01-01

Full Text Available We present preliminary results of our grid based modelling (GBM of the dwarf/subgiant sample of stars observed with Kepler including global asteroseismic parameters. GBM analysis in this work is based on a large grid of stellar models that is characterized by five independent parameters: model mass and age, initial metallicity (Zini, initial helium (Yini, and mixing length parameter (αMLT. Using this grid relaxes assumptions used in all previous GBM work where the initial composition is determined by a single parameter and that αMLT is fixed to a solar-calibrated value. The new grid allows us to study, for example, the impact of different galactic chemical enrichment models on the determination of stellar parameters such as mass radius and age. Also, it allows to include new results from stellar atmosphere models on αMLT in the GBM analysis in a simple manner. Alternatively, it can be tested if global asteroseismology is a useful tool to constraint our ignorance on quantities such as Yini and αMLT. Initial findings show that mass determination is robust with respect to freedom in the latter quantities, with a 4.4% maximum deviation for extreme assumptions regarding prior information on Yini – Zini relations and aMLT. On the other hand, tests carried out so far seem to indicate that global seismology does not have much power to constrain Yini – Zni relations of αMLT values without resourcing to additional information.

Model-driven Privacy Assessment in the Smart Grid

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Knirsch, Fabian [Salzburg Univ. (Austria); Engel, Dominik [Salzburg Univ. (Austria); Neureiter, Christian [Salzburg Univ. (Austria); Frincu, Marc [Univ. of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA (United States); Prasanna, Viktor [Univ. of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA (United States)

2015-02-09

In a smart grid, data and information are transported, transmitted, stored, and processed with various stakeholders having to cooperate effectively. Furthermore, personal data is the key to many smart grid applications and therefore privacy impacts have to be taken into account. For an effective smart grid, well integrated solutions are crucial and for achieving a high degree of customer acceptance, privacy should already be considered at design time of the system. To assist system engineers in early design phase, frameworks for the automated privacy evaluation of use cases are important. For evaluation, use cases for services and software architectures need to be formally captured in a standardized and commonly understood manner. In order to ensure this common understanding for all kinds of stakeholders, reference models have recently been developed. In this paper we present a model-driven approach for the automated assessment of such services and software architectures in the smart grid that builds on the standardized reference models. The focus of qualitative and quantitative evaluation is on privacy. For evaluation, the framework draws on use cases from the University of Southern California microgrid.

Toys in Physics Lectures and Demonstrations--A Brief Review

Science.gov (United States)

Guemez, J.; Fiolhais, C.; Fiolhais, M.

2009-01-01

The use of toys in physics teaching is common. This brief review of the physics of toys intends to show that they are not only very useful in lectures and demonstrations in order to motivate students but also very interesting from a scientific point of view. However, since their physics is sometimes too cumbersome, the effect can be the opposite.…

New ghost-node method for linking different models with varied grid refinement

Science.gov (United States)

James, S.C.; Dickinson, J.E.; Mehl, S.W.; Hill, M.C.; Leake, S.A.; Zyvoloski, G.A.; Eddebbarh, A.-A.

2006-01-01

A flexible, robust method for linking grids of locally refined ground-water flow models constructed with different numerical methods is needed to address a variety of hydrologic problems. This work outlines and tests a new ghost-node model-linking method for a refined "child" model that is contained within a larger and coarser "parent" model that is based on the iterative method of Steffen W. Mehl and Mary C. Hill (2002, Advances in Water Res., 25, p. 497-511; 2004, Advances in Water Res., 27, p. 899-912). The method is applicable to steady-state solutions for ground-water flow. Tests are presented for a homogeneous two-dimensional system that has matching grids (parent cells border an integer number of child cells) or nonmatching grids. The coupled grids are simulated by using the finite-difference and finite-element models MODFLOW and FEHM, respectively. The simulations require no alteration of the MODFLOW or FEHM models and are executed using a batch file on Windows operating systems. Results indicate that when the grids are matched spatially so that nodes and child-cell boundaries are aligned, the new coupling technique has error nearly equal to that when coupling two MODFLOW models. When the grids are nonmatching, model accuracy is slightly increased compared to that for matching-grid cases. Overall, results indicate that the ghost-node technique is a viable means to couple distinct models because the overall head and flow errors relative to the analytical solution are less than if only the regional coarse-grid model was used to simulate flow in the child model's domain.

Cellular Automaton Modeling of Dendritic Growth Using a Multi-grid Method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Natsume, Y; Ohsasa, K

2015-01-01

A two-dimensional cellular automaton model with a multi-grid method was developed to simulate dendritic growth. In the present model, we used a triple-grid system for temperature, solute concentration and solid fraction fields as a new approach of the multi-grid method. In order to evaluate the validity of the present model, we carried out simulations of single dendritic growth, secondary dendrite arm growth, multi-columnar dendritic growth and multi-equiaxed dendritic growth. From the results of the grid dependency from the simulation of single dendritic growth, we confirmed that the larger grid can be used in the simulation and that the computational time can be reduced dramatically. In the simulation of secondary dendrite arm growth, the results from the present model were in good agreement with the experimental data and the simulated results from a phase-field model. Thus, the present model can quantitatively simulate dendritic growth. From the simulated results of multi-columnar and multi-equiaxed dendrites, we confirmed that the present model can perform simulations under practical solidification conditions. (paper)

Solar Measurement and Modeling | Grid Modernization | NREL

Science.gov (United States)

Measurement and Modeling Solar Measurement and Modeling NREL supports grid integration studies , industry, government, and academia by disseminating solar resource measurements, models, and best practices have continuously gathered basic solar radiation information, and they now gather high-resolution data

The extended RBAC model based on grid computing

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

CHEN Jian-gang; WANG Ru-chuan; WANG Hai-yan

2006-01-01

This article proposes the extended role-based access control (RBAC) model for solving dynamic and multidomain problems in grid computing, The formulated description of the model has been provided. The introduction of context and the mapping relations of context-to-role and context-to-permission help the model adapt to dynamic property in grid environment.The multidomain role inheritance relation by the authorization agent service realizes the multidomain authorization amongst the autonomy domain. A function has been proposed for solving the role inheritance conflict during the establishment of the multidomain role inheritance relation.

Magic, science and masculinity: marketing toy chemistry sets.

Science.gov (United States)

Al-Gailani, Salim

2009-12-01

At least since the late nineteenth century, toy chemistry sets have featured in standard scripts of the achievement of eminence in science, and they remain important in constructions of scientific identity. Using a selection of these toys manufactured in Britain and the United States, and with particular reference to the two dominant American brands, Gilbert and Chemcraft, this paper suggests that early twentieth-century chemistry sets were rooted in overlapping Victorian traditions of entertainment magic and scientific recreations. As chemistry set marketing copy gradually reoriented towards emphasising scientific modernity, citizenship, discipline and educational value, pre-twentieth-century traditions were subsumed within domestic-and specifically masculine-tropes. These developments in branding strategies point to transformations in both users' engagement with their chemistry sets and the role of scientific toys in domestic play. The chemistry set serves here as a useful tool for measuring cultural change and lay engagement with chemistry.

Toy Trucks in Video Analysis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Buur, Jacob; Nakamura, Nanami; Larsen, Rainer Rye

2015-01-01

discovered that using scale-models like toy trucks has a strongly encouraging effect on developers/designers to collaboratively make sense of field videos. In our analysis of such scale-model sessions, we found some quite fundamental patterns of how participants utilise objects; the participants build shared......Video fieldstudies of people who could be potential users is widespread in design projects. How to analyse such video is, however, often challenging, as it is time consuming and requires a trained eye to unlock experiential knowledge in people’s practices. In our work with industrialists, we have...... narratives by moving the objects around, they name them to handle the complexity, they experience what happens in the video through their hands, and they use the video together with objects to create alternative narratives, and thus alternative solutions to the problems they observe. In this paper we claim...

When the toys take over.

Science.gov (United States)

2016-08-17

When a 60-year-old man with mild learning difficulties began obsessively collecting soft toys after his mother died, David O'Driscoll used the work of psychoanalyst Donald Winnicott to help the client manage his feelings of grief and loss.

Percentage of toxic trace elements; Pb, Cr and Cd in certain plastic toys, Isfahan City

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

F Kavehzadeh

2006-04-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Recent investigations have detected the presence of significant levels of heavy metals (chromium, lead and cadmium in toys and other PVC products manufactured for children. In some countries, addition of compounds containing toxic metals to toys are limited or prohibited. Methods: To evaluate the safety of some of the plastic toys in the city of Isfahan with respect to toxic trace metals, pb, cr and cd, 75 samples of three types of toys were collected from the toy shop’s and were digested with acid with the two methods ISIRI and ASTM. The heavy metals were determined using atomic absorption spectrophotometer. Variance analysis and T-test were used for data analysis. Results: The result of the study showed that the products tested contained lead, chromium and cadmium and the highest and lowest concentration were related to Pb and Cd, respectively. The statistical analysis of the samples showed that there are no significant differences between ASTM and ISIRI digestion methods. The study revealed that none of the heavy metals in the toy samples exceeded the recommended standard levels. Highest average concentration of Pb and Cd were related to toys with green color and the highest Cr concentration was related to yellow toys in this study. Conclusion: Extensive studies are required to evaluate the quality of the toys being used by children and the toxic trace elements should be eliminated from the plastic materials used for making toys.

Power Grid Construction Project Portfolio Optimization Based on Bi-level programming model

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Erdong; Li, Shangqi

2017-08-01

As the main body of power grid operation, county-level power supply enterprises undertake an important emission to guarantee the security of power grid operation and safeguard social power using order. The optimization of grid construction projects has been a key issue of power supply capacity and service level of grid enterprises. According to the actual situation of power grid construction project optimization of county-level power enterprises, on the basis of qualitative analysis of the projects, this paper builds a Bi-level programming model based on quantitative analysis. The upper layer of the model is the target restriction of the optimal portfolio; the lower layer of the model is enterprises’ financial restrictions on the size of the enterprise project portfolio. Finally, using a real example to illustrate operation proceeding and the optimization result of the model. Through qualitative analysis and quantitative analysis, the bi-level programming model improves the accuracy and normative standardization of power grid enterprises projects.

Investigating the Activities of Children toward a Smart Storytelling Toy

Science.gov (United States)

Kara, Nuri; Aydin, Cansu Cigdem; Cagiltay, Kursat

2013-01-01

This paper introduces StoryTech, a smart storytelling toy that features a virtual space, which includes computer-based graphics and characters, and a real space, which includes plush toys, background cards, and a communication interface. When children put real objects on the receiver panel, the computer program shows related backgrounds and…

Imagination, Playfulness, and Creativity in Children's Play with Different Toys

Science.gov (United States)

Mo????ller, Signe?? Juhl?

2015-01-01

Based on a four-month experimental study of preschool children's play with creative-construction and social-fantasy toys, the author examines the in?uence of both types of toys on the play of preschool children. Her comparative analysis considers the impact of transformative play on the development of imagination during play activities and…

Design of an inclusive & interactive educational textile toy

Science.gov (United States)

Pereira, C.; Cunha, J.

2017-10-01

The market for educational toys is scarce in products specifically developed for blind and low sighted children, aiming not only at their motor and cognitive development as well as to the non-stigmatization of these children. Considering the development of educational toys, and based in previous research work [1], we found that textile materials offer an enormous application capability in this regard due not only to their flexibility in use and maintenance of properties, but also because of our familiarity with these materials. The main goal of this project is the study of the emotional response to an interactive educational textile toy by children with visual impairments - blind or partially sighted. In this way the project is based on four main axes: knowing the user, identifying his specific needs; knowing the product-user relationship with a special focus on tactile and emotional perception; study textile structures to best fit the design; and, finally, evaluate the user’s response to the developed product by evaluating the product experience.

Qualitative Differences Among Gender-Stereotyped Toys: Implications for Cognitive and Social Development in Girls and Boys.

Science.gov (United States)

Miller, Cynthia L.

1987-01-01

Evaluates a system of toy classification developed to improve the assessment of gender differences in cognitive and social development. One hundred adults rated 50 children's toys on 122 "functional" dimensions. Results showed that these toys could be reliably described according to multidimensional similarities, and confirmed that toys considered…

Introduction to statistical field theory: from a toy model to a one-component plasma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Frydel, Derek

2015-01-01

Working with a toy model whose partition function consists of a discrete summation, we introduce the statistical field theory methodology by transforming a partition function via a formal Gaussian integral relation (the Hubbard–Stratonovich transformation). We then consider Gaussian-type approximations, wherein correlational contributions enter as harmonic fluctuations around the saddle-point solution. This work focuses on how to arrive at a self-consistent, non-perturbative approximation without recourse to a standard variational construction based on the Gibbs–Bogolyubov–Feynman inequality that is inapplicable to a complex action. To address this problem, we propose a construction based on selective satisfaction of a set of exact relations generated by considering a dual representation of a partition function, in its original and transformed form. (paper)

Inhalation exposure of children to fragrances present in scented toys.

Science.gov (United States)

Masuck, I; Hutzler, C; Jann, O; Luch, A

2011-12-01

When utilized in the perfuming of children's toys, fragrances capable of inducing contact allergy in human skin may also become bioavailable to children via the inhalation route. The aim of this study was to determine the area-specific emission rates of 24 fragrances from a plasticized PVC reference material that was meant to mimic a real plastic toy. This material was introduced into an emission chamber for 28 days at handling conditions or at worst-case conditions. As a result, fragrances can be separated into three categories according to their emission rates ranging from 0.0041 to 16.2 mg/m² × h, i.e., highly volatile, semivolatile, and low-volatile compounds. Compounds of the first and second categories were monitored with decreasing emission rates. Substances of the third category were detected with increasing emission rates over time. Further, higher temperatures led to higher emission rates. The emission concentration of fragrances from four real scented toys varied between 1.10 and 107 μg/m³ at day 1 in the test chamber. Therefore, short-term inhalation exposure to fragrances originating from toys was in the range of 0.53-2700 ng/kg BW/d for the children of age 1 and older. Long-term exposure to these fragrances was calculated in the range of 2.2-220 ng/kg BW/d. Besides household products and cosmetics, fragrances can be found in toys for children. Some fragrances are known contact allergens in the skin, but there is a lack of information on their effects in the human respiratory tract. Here, we analyzed and categorized fragrances present in a plasticized PVC reference material according to their emission profiles and volatility. We also demonstrate that volatile fragrances are being emitted from real toys and thus may get inhaled under consumer conditions to different extents. © 2011 John Wiley & Sons A/S.

Accurate path integration in continuous attractor network models of grid cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Burak, Yoram; Fiete, Ila R

2009-02-01

Grid cells in the rat entorhinal cortex display strikingly regular firing responses to the animal's position in 2-D space and have been hypothesized to form the neural substrate for dead-reckoning. However, errors accumulate rapidly when velocity inputs are integrated in existing models of grid cell activity. To produce grid-cell-like responses, these models would require frequent resets triggered by external sensory cues. Such inadequacies, shared by various models, cast doubt on the dead-reckoning potential of the grid cell system. Here we focus on the question of accurate path integration, specifically in continuous attractor models of grid cell activity. We show, in contrast to previous models, that continuous attractor models can generate regular triangular grid responses, based on inputs that encode only the rat's velocity and heading direction. We consider the role of the network boundary in the integration performance of the network and show that both periodic and aperiodic networks are capable of accurate path integration, despite important differences in their attractor manifolds. We quantify the rate at which errors in the velocity integration accumulate as a function of network size and intrinsic noise within the network. With a plausible range of parameters and the inclusion of spike variability, our model networks can accurately integrate velocity inputs over a maximum of approximately 10-100 meters and approximately 1-10 minutes. These findings form a proof-of-concept that continuous attractor dynamics may underlie velocity integration in the dorsolateral medial entorhinal cortex. The simulations also generate pertinent upper bounds on the accuracy of integration that may be achieved by continuous attractor dynamics in the grid cell network. We suggest experiments to test the continuous attractor model and differentiate it from models in which single cells establish their responses independently of each other.

A grid-independent EMMS/bubbling drag model for bubbling and turbulent fluidization

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Luo, Hao; Lu, Bona; Zhang, Jingyuan

2017-01-01

The EMMS/bubbling drag model takes the effects of meso-scale structures (i.e. bubbles) into modeling of drag coefficient and thus improves coarse-grid simulation of bubbling and turbulent fluidized beds. However, its dependence on grid size has not been fully investigated. In this article, we adopt...... a two-step scheme to extend the EMMS/bubbling model to the sub-grid level. Thus the heterogeneity index, HD, which accounts for the hydrodynamic disparity between homogeneous and heterogeneous fluidization, can be correlated as a function of both local voidage and slip velocity. Simulations over...... a periodic domain show the new drag model is less sensitive to grid size because of the additional dependence on local slip velocity. When applying the new drag model to simulations of realistic bubbling and turbulent fluidized beds, we find grid-independent results are easier to obtain for high...

Play Therapy Utilizing the Sony EyeToy®

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Brooks, Tony; Petersson, Eva

2005-01-01

An international collaborative explorative pilot study is detailed between hospitals in Denmark and Sweden involving rehabilitation medical staff and children where the affordable, popular and commercially available Sony Playstation 2 EyeToy® is used to investigate our goal in enquiring to the po......An international collaborative explorative pilot study is detailed between hospitals in Denmark and Sweden involving rehabilitation medical staff and children where the affordable, popular and commercially available Sony Playstation 2 EyeToy® is used to investigate our goal in enquiring...

Sensorized toys for measuring manipulation capabilities of infants at home.

Science.gov (United States)

Passetti, Giovanni; Cecchi, Francesca; Baldoli, Ilaria; Sgandurra, Giuseppina; Beani, Elena; Cioni, Giovanni; Laschi, Cecilia; Dario, Paolo

2015-01-01

Preterm infants, i.e. babies born after a gestation period shorter than 37 weeks, spend less time exploring objects. The quantitative measurement of grasping actions and forces in infants can give insights on their typical or atypical motor development. The aim of this work was to test a new tool, a kit of sensorized toys, to longitudinally measure, monitor and promote preterm infants manipulation capabilities with a purposive training in an ecological environment. This study presents preliminary analysis of grasping activity. Three preterm infants performed 4 weeks of daily training at home. Sensorized toys with embedded pressure sensors were used as part of the training to allow quantitative analysis of grasping (pressure and acceleration applied to toys while playing). Each toy was placed on the midline, while the infant was in supine position. Preliminary data show differences in the grasping parameters in relation to infants age and the performed daily training. Ongoing clinical trial will allow a full validation of this new tool for promoting object exploration in preterm infants.

Kaleidoscope on the Internet of Toys: Safety, security, privacy and societal insights

OpenAIRE

CHAUDRON STEPHANE; DI GIOIA Rosanna; GEMO Monica; HOLLOWAY Donell; MARSH Jackie; MASCHERONI Giovanna; PETER Jochen; YAMADA-RICE Dylan

2016-01-01

This paper gives an insight on safety, security, privacy and scocietal questions emerging from the rise of the Internet of Toys, meaning Internet Connected Toys that participate along with the wave of other domestic connected objects, the Internet of Things in increasing the ubiquity of the ICT within our everyday, closer to ourselves and our children more than ever. What changes and challenges 24/7 Internet connected devices, and Connected Toys particularly, will bring in our Society? What p...

The AgMIP GRIDded Crop Modeling Initiative (AgGRID) and the Global Gridded Crop Model Intercomparison (GGCMI)

Science.gov (United States)

Elliott, Joshua; Muller, Christoff

2015-01-01

Climate change is a significant risk for agricultural production. Even under optimistic scenarios for climate mitigation action, present-day agricultural areas are likely to face significant increases in temperatures in the coming decades, in addition to changes in precipitation, cloud cover, and the frequency and duration of extreme heat, drought, and flood events (IPCC, 2013). These factors will affect the agricultural system at the global scale by impacting cultivation regimes, prices, trade, and food security (Nelson et al., 2014a). Global-scale evaluation of crop productivity is a major challenge for climate impact and adaptation assessment. Rigorous global assessments that are able to inform planning and policy will benefit from consistent use of models, input data, and assumptions across regions and time that use mutually agreed protocols designed by the modeling community. To ensure this consistency, large-scale assessments are typically performed on uniform spatial grids, with spatial resolution of typically 10 to 50 km, over specified time-periods. Many distinct crop models and model types have been applied on the global scale to assess productivity and climate impacts, often with very different results (Rosenzweig et al., 2014). These models are based to a large extent on field-scale crop process or ecosystems models and they typically require resolved data on weather, environmental, and farm management conditions that are lacking in many regions (Bondeau et al., 2007; Drewniak et al., 2013; Elliott et al., 2014b; Gueneau et al., 2012; Jones et al., 2003; Liu et al., 2007; M¨uller and Robertson, 2014; Van den Hoof et al., 2011;Waha et al., 2012; Xiong et al., 2014). Due to data limitations, the requirements of consistency, and the computational and practical limitations of running models on a large scale, a variety of simplifying assumptions must generally be made regarding prevailing management strategies on the grid scale in both the baseline and

Westport, Washington Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Westport, Washington Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model....

Nawiliwili, Hawaii Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Nawiliwili, Hawaii Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model....

Monterey, California Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Monterey, California Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model....

New Ghost-node method for linking different models with varied grid refinement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mehl, Steffen W.; Hill, Mary Catherine; James, Scott Carlton; Leake, Stanley A.; Zyvoloski, George A.; Dickinson, Jesse E.; Eddebbarh, Al A.

2006-01-01

A flexible, robust method for linking grids of locally refined models constructed with different numerical methods is needed to address a variety of hydrologic problems. This work outlines and tests a new ghost-node model-linking method for a refined 'child' model that is contained within a larger and coarser 'parent' model that is based on the iterative method of Mehl and Hill (2002, 2004). The method is applicable to steady-state solutions for ground-water flow. Tests are presented for a homogeneous two-dimensional system that has either matching grids (parent cells border an integer number of child cells; Figure 2a) or non-matching grids (parent cells border a non-integer number of child cells; Figure 2b). The coupled grids are simulated using the finite-difference and finite-element models MODFLOW and FEHM, respectively. The simulations require no alteration of the MODFLOW or FEHM models and are executed using a batch file on Windows operating systems. Results indicate that when the grids are matched spatially so that nodes and child cell boundaries are aligned, the new coupling technique has error nearly equal to that when coupling two MODFLOW models (Mehl and Hill, 2002). When the grids are non-matching, model accuracy is slightly increased over matching-grid cases. Overall, results indicate that the ghost-node technique is a viable means to accurately couple distinct models because the overall error is less than if only the regional model was used to simulate flow in the child model's domain

A Reduced Wind Power Grid Model for Research and Education

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Akhmatov, Vladislav; Lund, Torsten; Hansen, Anca Daniela

2007-01-01

A reduced grid model of a transmission system with a number of central power plants, consumption centers, local wind turbines and a large offshore wind farm is developed and implemented in the simulation tool PowerFactory (DIgSILENT). The reduced grid model is given by Energinet.dk, Transmission...

What do children do when they play? Acts of game with a doll and a toy car

OpenAIRE

Zborníková, Dana

2016-01-01

Game is a key activity in preschool age, theme of my thesis is therefore related to acts of game and a role of toys in this particular age. Aim of my research is to describe gaming activities with toys, primarily with a doll and a toy car, which are the most typical toys for preschool children. It is very important for kindergarten teachers to know childrens preferences and attitude to the most used types of toys, because it is them, who choose the offer of toys and equipment of class. In the...

Florence, Oregon Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Florence, Oregon Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST...

Lahaina, Hawaii Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Lahaina, Hawaii Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST...

Newport, Oregon Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Newport, Oregon Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST...

Garibaldi, Oregon Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Garibaldi, Oregon Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST...

Keauhou, Hawaii Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Keauhou, Hawaii Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST...

Hanalei, Hawaii Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Hanalei, Hawaii Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST...

Seaside, Oregon Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Seaside, Oregon Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST...

Nikolski, Alaska Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Nikolski, Alaska Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST...

Kahului, Hawaii Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Kahului, Hawaii Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST...

Haleiwa, Hawaii Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Haleiwa, Hawaii Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST...

Savannah, Georgia Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Savannah, Georgia Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST...

Commercial Television Exposure, Fast Food Toy Collecting, and Family Visits to Fast Food Restaurants among Families Living in Rural Communities.

Science.gov (United States)

Emond, Jennifer A; Bernhardt, Amy M; Gilbert-Diamond, Diane; Li, Zhigang; Sargent, James D

2016-01-01

To assess the associations between children's exposure to television (TV) networks that aired child-directed advertisements for children's fast food meals with the collection of fast food meal toy premiums and frequency of family visits to those restaurants. One hundred parents of children 3-7 years old were recruited from a rural pediatrics clinic during 2011; families receiving Medicaid were oversampled. Parents reported the child's TV viewing habits and family visit frequency to the fast food restaurants participating in child-directed TV marketing at the time, and their child's requests for visits to and the collecting of toy premiums from those restaurants. Logistic regression models assessed adjusted associations between a child's TV viewing with more frequent restaurant visits (≥monthly in this population). Structural equation modeling assessed if child requests or toy collecting mediated that association. Thirty-seven percent of parents reported ≥monthly visits to the select fast food restaurants. Among children, 54% requested visits to and 29% collected toys from those restaurants. Greater child commercial TV viewing was significantly associated with more frequent family visits to those fast food restaurants (aOR 2.84 for each 1-unit increase in the child's commercial TV viewing scale, P restaurants. Child desire for toy premiums may be a mediating factor. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Commercial TV exposure, fast-food toy collecting and family visits to fast food restaurants among families living in rural communities

Science.gov (United States)

Emond, Jennifer A.; Bernhardt, Amy M.; Gilbert-Diamond, Diane; Li, Zhigang; Sargent, James D.

2015-01-01

Objective To assess the associations between children's exposure to TV networks that aired child-directed advertisements for children's fast food meals with the collection of fast food meal toy premiums and frequency of family visits to those restaurants. Study design One hundred parents of children 3–7 years old were recruited from a rural pediatrics clinic during 2011; families receiving Medicaid were oversampled. Parents reported the child's television viewing habits and family visit frequency to the fast food restaurants participating in child-directed TV marketing at the time, and their child's requests for visits to and the collecting of toy premiums from those restaurants. Logistic regression models assessed adjusted associations between a child's TV viewing with more frequent restaurant visits (≥monthly in this population). Structural equation modeling assessed if child requests or toy collecting mediated that association. Results Thirty-seven percent of parents reported ≥monthly visits to the select fast food restaurants. Among children, 54% requested visits to and 29% collected toys from those restaurants. Greater child commercial TV viewing was significantly associated with more frequent family visits to those fast food restaurants (adjusted odds ratio 2.84 for each one-unit increase in the child's commercial TV viewing scale, prestaurants. Child desire for toy premiums may be a mediating factor. PMID:26526362

The impact of model detail on power grid resilience measures

Science.gov (United States)

Auer, S.; Kleis, K.; Schultz, P.; Kurths, J.; Hellmann, F.

2016-05-01

Extreme events are a challenge to natural as well as man-made systems. For critical infrastructure like power grids, we need to understand their resilience against large disturbances. Recently, new measures of the resilience of dynamical systems have been developed in the complex system literature. Basin stability and survivability respectively assess the asymptotic and transient behavior of a system when subjected to arbitrary, localized but large perturbations in frequency and phase. To employ these methods that assess power grid resilience, we need to choose a certain model detail of the power grid. For the grid topology we considered the Scandinavian grid and an ensemble of power grids generated with a random growth model. So far the most popular model that has been studied is the classical swing equation model for the frequency response of generators and motors. In this paper we study a more sophisticated model of synchronous machines that also takes voltage dynamics into account, and compare it to the previously studied model. This model has been found to give an accurate picture of the long term evolution of synchronous machines in the engineering literature for post fault studies. We find evidence that some stable fix points of the swing equation become unstable when we add voltage dynamics. If this occurs the asymptotic behavior of the system can be dramatically altered, and basin stability estimates obtained with the swing equation can be dramatically wrong. We also find that the survivability does not change significantly when taking the voltage dynamics into account. Further, the limit cycle type asymptotic behaviour is strongly correlated with transient voltages that violate typical operational voltage bounds. Thus, transient voltage bounds are dominated by transient frequency bounds and play no large role for realistic parameters.

Bacterial contamination on household toys and association with water, sanitation and hygiene conditions in Honduras.

Science.gov (United States)

Stauber, Christine E; Walters, Adam; Fabiszewski de Aceituno, Anna M; Sobsey, Mark D

2013-04-18

There is growing evidence that household water treatment interventions improve microbiological water quality and reduce diarrheal disease risk. Few studies have examined, however, the impact of water treatment interventions on household-level hygiene and sanitation. This study examined the association of four water and sanitation conditions (access to latrines, improved sanitation, improved water and the plastic biosand filter) on the levels of total coliforms and E. coli on existing and introduced toys during an on-going randomized controlled trial of the plastic biosand filter (plastic BSF). The following conditions were associated with decreased bacterial contamination on children's toys: access to a latrine, access to improved sanitation and access to the plastic BSF. Overall, compared to existing toys, introduced toys had significantly lower levels of both E. coli and total coliforms. Results suggest that levels of fecal indicator bacteria contamination on children's toys may be associated with access to improved water and sanitation conditions in the home. In addition, the fecal indicator bacteria levels on toys probably vary with duration in the household. Additional information on how these toys become contaminated is needed to determine the usefulness of toys as indicators or sentinels of water, sanitation and hygiene conditions, behaviors and risks.

Shemya, Alaska Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Shemya, Alaska Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST is...

Kodiak, Alaska Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Kodiak, Alaska Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST is...

Sitka, Alaska Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Sitka, Alaska Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST is...

Homer, Alaska Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Homer, Alaska Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST is...

Seward, Alaska Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Seward, Alaska Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST is...

Kihei, Hawaii Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Kihei, Hawaii Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST is...

Nickel and cobalt release from children's toys purchased in Denmark and the United States.

Science.gov (United States)

Jensen, Peter; Hamann, Dathan; Hamann, Carsten R; Jellesen, Morten S; Jacob, Sharon E; Thyssen, Jacob P

2014-01-01

Nickel is the most common allergen detected by patch testing in children. There is an increasing number of cases in children who have not had exposure to piercing. Although the clinical relevance of nickel patch test reactions in children is sometimes uncertain, continued vigilance to identify new sources of nickel exposure in this age group is important. Recent case reports have described allergic nickel contact dermatitis in children following exposure to toys, but the magnitude of this problem is unknown. The aim of this study was to evaluate nickel and cobalt release from children's toys. We purchased 212 toys in 18 different retail and online stores in the United States and Denmark. Nickel and cobalt release was tested using the dimethylglyoxime and cobalt screening spot tests. A total of 73 toys (34.4%) released nickel, and none released cobalt. Toys are a commonly overlooked source of nickel exposure and sensitization. Therefore, dermatologists, allergists, and pediatricians should consider the role of toys in their evaluation of children with dermatitis, and the parents of children with positive nickel patch test reactions should be told that toys may release nickel and be a potential chemical source in the manifestation of allergic contact dermatitis.

Wake Island Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Wake Island Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST is a...

Adak, Alaska Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Adak, Alaska Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST is a...

Hilo, Hawaii Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Hilo, Hawaii Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST is a...

Downsides of the recycling process: harmful organic chemicals in children's toys.

Science.gov (United States)

Ionas, Alin C; Dirtu, Alin C; Anthonissen, Tim; Neels, Hugo; Covaci, Adrian

2014-04-01

Most of the materials used in consumer goods contain a number of additives which are meant to improve key properties like plasticity or flame resistance. At the end-of-life of the product, many polymeric materials are recycled and the additives they contain, such as flame retardants (FRs) and plasticizers, are transferred to the newly manufactured goods. We have investigated the occurrence and profiles of FRs, such as polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and phosphate FR (PFRs) and of plasticisers, such as phthalate esters, in 106 toys samples. Low levels and detection frequencies of components of the technical Penta-BDE and Deca-BDE mixtures were found, with BDE 209 being the dominant PBDE in all samples (maximum value was 0.14mg/g or 0.014%). The levels of PFRs and phthalates were up to 10,000 times higher than those of the PBDEs, with triphenyl phosphate and diethylhexyl phthalate being the major representatives of these classes. Maximum values were 1.3 and 6.9%, respectively. The detection frequencies were up to 50% for PFRs and 98% for phthalates. All but one of the toys produced after the REACH regulation went into force complied with its provisions. The samples were grouped according to relevant selection criteria to assess the risk for children of different age groups. Using models in the literature, exposure to these chemicals was tentatively assessed. It is clear that at the levels found in the investigated toys, these additives do not contribute to the intended characteristics of the materials, but in some cases may pose a health hazard to the children. Most likely, recycled materials are an important source of these additives in toys and therefore, their (re)use in products for children should be subject to stricter restrictions. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Living on the edge: a toy model for holographic reconstruction of algebras with centers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Donnelly, William; Marolf, Donald; Michel, Ben; Wien, Jason [Department of Physics, University of California,Santa Barbara, CA 93106 (United States)

2017-04-18

We generalize the Pastawski-Yoshida-Harlow-Preskill (HaPPY) holographic quantum error-correcting code to provide a toy model for bulk gauge fields or linearized gravitons. The key new elements are the introduction of degrees of freedom on the links (edges) of the associated tensor network and their connection to further copies of the HaPPY code by an appropriate isometry. The result is a model in which boundary regions allow the reconstruction of bulk algebras with central elements living on the interior edges of the (greedy) entanglement wedge, and where these central elements can also be reconstructed from complementary boundary regions. In addition, the entropy of boundary regions receives both Ryu-Takayanagi-like contributions and further corrections that model the ((δArea)/(4G{sub N})) term of Faulkner, Lewkowycz, and Maldacena. Comparison with Yang-Mills theory then suggests that this ((δArea)/(4G{sub N})) term can be reinterpreted as a part of the bulk entropy of gravitons under an appropriate extension of the physical bulk Hilbert space.

Living on the edge: a toy model for holographic reconstruction of algebras with centers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Donnelly, William; Marolf, Donald; Michel, Ben; Wien, Jason

2017-01-01

We generalize the Pastawski-Yoshida-Harlow-Preskill (HaPPY) holographic quantum error-correcting code to provide a toy model for bulk gauge fields or linearized gravitons. The key new elements are the introduction of degrees of freedom on the links (edges) of the associated tensor network and their connection to further copies of the HaPPY code by an appropriate isometry. The result is a model in which boundary regions allow the reconstruction of bulk algebras with central elements living on the interior edges of the (greedy) entanglement wedge, and where these central elements can also be reconstructed from complementary boundary regions. In addition, the entropy of boundary regions receives both Ryu-Takayanagi-like contributions and further corrections that model the ((δArea)/(4G N )) term of Faulkner, Lewkowycz, and Maldacena. Comparison with Yang-Mills theory then suggests that this ((δArea)/(4G N )) term can be reinterpreted as a part of the bulk entropy of gravitons under an appropriate extension of the physical bulk Hilbert space.

Digital Music Toys for Young Children: Parents' Review of the "Munchkin Mozart Magic™ Cube"

Science.gov (United States)

Costa-Giomi, Eugenia; Hunt, Edward

2014-01-01

The purpose of this study is to gather information about caregivers' views of the value of a digital music toy, its musical features, as well as their comments about children's responses to the toy. Instead of asking parents to provide their opinions about a broad category of interactive music toys, the authors selected one of the many toys…

Bimanual Behaviours in Children Aged 8-18 Months: A Literature Review to Select Toys that Elicit the Use of Two Hands

Science.gov (United States)

Greaves, Susan; Imms, Christine; Krumlinde-Sundholm, Lena; Dodd, Karen; Eliasson, Ann-Christin

2012-01-01

Toys that provoke the use of both hands are required to develop a test of bimanual performance in children 8-18 months with unilateral cerebral palsy (Mini-AHA). To choose the toys, a conceptual model based on perception-action theory and object use was used to guide a literature review. Evidence was sought for three critical relationships…

Nantucket, Massachusetts Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Nantucket, Massachusetts Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST)...

Hydrography-driven coarsening of grid digital elevation models

Science.gov (United States)

Moretti, G.; Orlandini, S.

2017-12-01

A new grid coarsening strategy, denoted as hydrography-driven (HD) coarsening, is developed in the present study. The HD coarsening strategy is designed to retain the essential hydrographic features of surface flow paths observed in high-resolution digital elevation models (DEMs): (1) depressions are filled in the considered high-resolution DEM, (2) the obtained topographic data are used to extract a reference grid network composed of all surface flow paths, (3) the Horton order is assigned to each link of the reference grid network, and (4) within each coarse grid cell, the elevation of the point lying along the highest-order path of the reference grid network and displaying the minimum distance to the cell center is assigned to this coarse grid cell center. The capabilities of the HD coarsening strategy to provide consistent surface flow paths with respect to those observed in high-resolution DEMs are evaluated over a synthetic valley and two real drainage basins located in the Italian Alps and in the Italian Apennines. The HD coarsening is found to yield significantly more accurate surface flow path profiles than the standard nearest neighbor (NN) coarsening. In addition, the proposed strategy is found to reduce drastically the impact of depression-filling procedures in coarsened topographic data. The HD coarsening strategy is therefore advocated for all those cases in which the relief of the extracted drainage network is an important hydrographic feature. The figure below reports DEMs of a synthetic valley and extracted surface flow paths. (a) 10-m grid DEM displaying no depressions and extracted surface flow path (gray line). (b) 1-km grid DEM obtained from NN coarsening. (c) 1-km grid DEM obtained from NN coarsening plus depression-filling and extracted surface flow path (light blue line). (d) 1-km grid DEM obtained from HD coarsening and extracted surface flow path (magenta line).

Maximum capacity model of grid-connected multi-wind farms considering static security constraints in electrical grids

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhou, W; Oodo, S O; He, H; Qiu, G Y

2013-01-01

An increasing interest in wind energy and the advance of related technologies have increased the connection of wind power generation into electrical grids. This paper proposes an optimization model for determining the maximum capacity of wind farms in a power system. In this model, generator power output limits, voltage limits and thermal limits of branches in the grid system were considered in order to limit the steady-state security influence of wind generators on the power system. The optimization model was solved by a nonlinear primal-dual interior-point method. An IEEE-30 bus system with two wind farms was tested through simulation studies, plus an analysis conducted to verify the effectiveness of the proposed model. The results indicated that the model is efficient and reasonable.

Maximum capacity model of grid-connected multi-wind farms considering static security constraints in electrical grids

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, W.; Qiu, G. Y.; Oodo, S. O.; He, H.

2013-03-01

An increasing interest in wind energy and the advance of related technologies have increased the connection of wind power generation into electrical grids. This paper proposes an optimization model for determining the maximum capacity of wind farms in a power system. In this model, generator power output limits, voltage limits and thermal limits of branches in the grid system were considered in order to limit the steady-state security influence of wind generators on the power system. The optimization model was solved by a nonlinear primal-dual interior-point method. An IEEE-30 bus system with two wind farms was tested through simulation studies, plus an analysis conducted to verify the effectiveness of the proposed model. The results indicated that the model is efficient and reasonable.

Assessment of grid optimisation measures for the German transmission grid using open source grid data

Science.gov (United States)

Böing, F.; Murmann, A.; Pellinger, C.; Bruckmeier, A.; Kern, T.; Mongin, T.

2018-02-01

The expansion of capacities in the German transmission grid is a necessity for further integration of renewable energy sources into the electricity sector. In this paper, the grid optimisation measures ‘Overhead Line Monitoring’, ‘Power-to-Heat’ and ‘Demand Response in the Industry’ are evaluated and compared against conventional grid expansion for the year 2030. Initially, the methodical approach of the simulation model is presented and detailed descriptions of the grid model and the used grid data, which partly originates from open-source platforms, are provided. Further, this paper explains how ‘Curtailment’ and ‘Redispatch’ can be reduced by implementing grid optimisation measures and how the depreciation of economic costs can be determined considering construction costs. The developed simulations show that the conventional grid expansion is more efficient and implies more grid relieving effects than the evaluated grid optimisation measures.

Virginia Beach Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Virginia Beach, Virginia Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST)...

A business model for the establishment of the European grid infrastructure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Candiello, A; Cresti, D; Ferrari, T; Mazzucato, M; Perini, L

2010-01-01

An international grid has been built in Europe during the past years in the framework of various EC-funded projects to support the growth of e-Science. After several years of work spent to increase the scale of the infrastructure, to expand the user community and improve the availability of the services delivered, effort is now concentrating on the creation of a new organizational model, capable of fulfilling the vision of a sustainable European grid infrastructure. The European Grid Initiative (EGI) is the proposed framework to seamlessly link at a global level the European national grid e-Infrastructures operated by the National Grid Initiatives and European International Research Organizations, and based on a European Unified Middleware Distribution, which will be the result of a joint effort of various European grid Middleware Consortia. This paper describes the requirements that EGI addresses, the actors contributing to its foundation, the offering and the organizational structure that constitute the EGI business model.

A staggered-grid convolutional differentiator for elastic wave modelling

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Weijia; Zhou, Binzhong; Fu, Li-Yun

2015-11-01

The computation of derivatives in governing partial differential equations is one of the most investigated subjects in the numerical simulation of physical wave propagation. An analytical staggered-grid convolutional differentiator (CD) for first-order velocity-stress elastic wave equations is derived in this paper by inverse Fourier transformation of the band-limited spectrum of a first derivative operator. A taper window function is used to truncate the infinite staggered-grid CD stencil. The truncated CD operator is almost as accurate as the analytical solution, and as efficient as the finite-difference (FD) method. The selection of window functions will influence the accuracy of the CD operator in wave simulation. We search for the optimal Gaussian windows for different order CDs by minimizing the spectral error of the derivative and comparing the windows with the normal Hanning window function for tapering the CD operators. It is found that the optimal Gaussian window appears to be similar to the Hanning window function for tapering the same CD operator. We investigate the accuracy of the windowed CD operator and the staggered-grid FD method with different orders. Compared to the conventional staggered-grid FD method, a short staggered-grid CD operator achieves an accuracy equivalent to that of a long FD operator, with lower computational costs. For example, an 8th order staggered-grid CD operator can achieve the same accuracy of a 16th order staggered-grid FD algorithm but with half of the computational resources and time required. Numerical examples from a homogeneous model and a crustal waveguide model are used to illustrate the superiority of the CD operators over the conventional staggered-grid FD operators for the simulation of wave propagations.

Model-driven development of smart grid services using SoaML

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kosek, Anna Magdalena; Gehrke, Oliver

2014-01-01

This paper presents a model-driven software devel- opment process which can be applied to the design of smart grid services. The Service Oriented Architecture Modelling Language (SoaML) is used to describe the architecture as well as the roles and interactions between service participants....... The individual modelling steps and an example design of a SoaML model for a voltage control service are presented and explained. Finally, the paper discusses a proof-of-concept implementation of the modelled service in a smart grid testing laboratory....

77 FR 45297 - Children's Toys and Child Care Articles Containing Phthalates; Proposed Guidance on Inaccessible...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-07-31

... CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION 16 CFR Part 1199 [Docket No. CPSC-2012-0040] Children's Toys... containing phthalates does not apply to any component part of children's toys or child care articles that is... guidance on inaccessible component parts in children's toys or child care articles subject to section 108...

Spekkens’ toy model in all dimensions and its relationship with stabiliser quantum mechanics

Science.gov (United States)

Catani, Lorenzo; E Browne, Dan

2017-07-01

Spekkens’ toy model is a non-contextual hidden variable model with an epistemic restriction, a constraint on what an observer can know about reality. The aim of the model, developed for continuous and discrete prime degrees of freedom, is to advocate the epistemic view of quantum theory, where quantum states are states of incomplete knowledge about a deeper underlying reality. Many aspects of quantum mechanics and protocols from quantum information can be reproduced in the model. In spite of its significance, a number of aspects of Spekkens’ model remained incomplete. Formal rules for the update of states after measurement had not been written down, and the theory had only been constructed for prime-dimensional and infinite dimensional systems. In this work, we remedy this, by deriving measurement update rules and extending the framework to derive models in all dimensions, both prime and non-prime. Stabiliser quantum mechanics (SQM) is a sub-theory of quantum mechanics with restricted states, transformations and measurements. First derived for the purpose of constructing error correcting codes, it now plays a role in many areas of quantum information theory. Previously, it had been shown that Spekkens’ model was operationally equivalent to SQM in the case of odd prime dimensions. Here, exploiting known results on Wigner functions, we extend this to show that Spekkens’ model is equivalent to SQM in all odd dimensions, prime and non-prime. This equivalence provides new technical tools for the study of technically difficult compound-dimensional SQM.

Spekkens’ toy model in all dimensions and its relationship with stabiliser quantum mechanics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Catani, Lorenzo; Browne, Dan E

2017-01-01

Spekkens’ toy model is a non-contextual hidden variable model with an epistemic restriction, a constraint on what an observer can know about reality. The aim of the model, developed for continuous and discrete prime degrees of freedom, is to advocate the epistemic view of quantum theory, where quantum states are states of incomplete knowledge about a deeper underlying reality. Many aspects of quantum mechanics and protocols from quantum information can be reproduced in the model. In spite of its significance, a number of aspects of Spekkens’ model remained incomplete. Formal rules for the update of states after measurement had not been written down, and the theory had only been constructed for prime-dimensional and infinite dimensional systems. In this work, we remedy this, by deriving measurement update rules and extending the framework to derive models in all dimensions, both prime and non-prime. Stabiliser quantum mechanics (SQM) is a sub-theory of quantum mechanics with restricted states, transformations and measurements. First derived for the purpose of constructing error correcting codes, it now plays a role in many areas of quantum information theory. Previously, it had been shown that Spekkens’ model was operationally equivalent to SQM in the case of odd prime dimensions. Here, exploiting known results on Wigner functions, we extend this to show that Spekkens’ model is equivalent to SQM in all odd dimensions, prime and non-prime. This equivalence provides new technical tools for the study of technically difficult compound-dimensional SQM. (paper)

Eureka, California Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Eureka, California Forecast Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST is a...

Unalaska, Alaska Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Unalaska, Alaska Forecast Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST is a...

Cordova, Alaska Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Cordova, Alaska Forecast Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST is a...

Chignik, Alaska Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Chignik, Alaska Forecast Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST is a...

A Costing Analysis for Decision Making Grid Model in Failure-Based Maintenance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Burhanuddin M. A.

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Background. In current economic downturn, industries have to set good control on production cost, to maintain their profit margin. Maintenance department as an imperative unit in industries should attain all maintenance data, process information instantaneously, and subsequently transform it into a useful decision. Then act on the alternative to reduce production cost. Decision Making Grid model is used to identify strategies for maintenance decision. However, the model has limitation as it consider two factors only, that is, downtime and frequency of failures. We consider third factor, cost, in this study for failure-based maintenance. The objective of this paper is to introduce the formulae to estimate maintenance cost. Methods. Fish bone analysis conducted with Ishikawa model and Decision Making Grid methods are used in this study to reveal some underlying risk factors that delay failure-based maintenance. The goal of the study is to estimate the risk factor that is, repair cost to fit in the Decision Making Grid model. Decision Making grid model consider two variables, frequency of failure and downtime in the analysis. This paper introduces third variable, repair cost for Decision Making Grid model. This approaches give better result to categorize the machines, reduce cost, and boost the earning for the manufacturing plant. Results. We collected data from one of the food processing factories in Malaysia. From our empirical result, Machine C, Machine D, Machine F, and Machine I must be in the Decision Making Grid model even though their frequency of failures and downtime are less than Machine B and Machine N, based on the costing analysis. The case study and experimental results show that the cost analysis in Decision Making Grid model gives more promising strategies in failure-based maintenance. Conclusions. The improvement of Decision Making Grid model for decision analysis with costing analysis is our contribution in this paper for

Noise Producing Toys and the Efficacy of Product Standard Criteria to Protect Health and Education Outcomes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stuart J. McLaren

2013-12-01

Full Text Available An evaluation of 28 commercially available toys imported into New Zealand revealed that 21% of these toys do not meet the acoustic criteria in the ISO standard, ISO 8124-1:2009 Safety of Toys, adopted by Australia and New Zealand as AS/NZS ISO 8124.1:2010. While overall the 2010 standard provided a greater level of protection than the earlier 2002 standard, there was one high risk toy category where the 2002 standard provided greater protection. A secondary set of toys from the personal collections of children known to display atypical methods of play with toys, such as those with autism spectrum disorders (ASD, was part of the evaluation. Only one of these toys cleanly passed the 2010 standard, with the remainder failing or showing a marginal-pass. As there is no tolerance level stated in the standards to account for interpretation of data and experimental error, a value of +2 dB was used. The findings of the study indicate that the current standard is inadequate in providing protection against excessive noise exposure. Amendments to the criteria have been recommended that apply to the recently adopted 2013 standard. These include the integration of the new approaches published in the recently amended European standard (EN 71 on safety of toys.

Contamination by ten harmful elements in toys and children's jewelry bought on the North American market.

Science.gov (United States)

Guney, Mert; Zagury, Gerald J

2013-06-04

Toys and children's jewelry may contain metals to which children can be orally exposed. The objectives of this research were (1) to determine total concentrations (TC's) of As, Ba, Cd, Cr, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb, Sb, and Se in toys and jewelry (n = 72) bought on the North American market and compare TC's to regulatory limits, and (2) to estimate oral metal bioavailability in selected items (n = 4) via bioaccessibility testing. For metallic toys and children's jewelry (n = 24) 20 items had TC's exceeding migratable concentration limits (European Union). Seven of seventeen jewelry items did not comply with TC limits in U.S. and Canadian regulations. Samples included articles with very high Cd (37% [w/w]), Pb (65%), and Cu (71%) concentrations. For plastic toys (n = 18), toys with paint or coating (n = 12), and brittle or pliable toys (n = 18), TC's were below the EU migration limits (except in one toy for each category). Bioaccessibility tests showed that a tested jewelry item strongly leached Pb (gastric: 698 μg, intestinal: 705 μg) and some Cd (1.38 and 1.42 μg). Especially in metallic toys and jewelry, contamination by Pb and Cd, and to a lesser extent by Cu, Ni, As, and Sb, still poses an acute problem in North America.

Noise producing toys and the efficacy of product standard criteria to protect health and education outcomes.

Science.gov (United States)

McLaren, Stuart J; Page, Wyatt H; Parker, Lou; Rushton, Martin

2013-12-19

An evaluation of 28 commercially available toys imported into New Zealand revealed that 21% of these toys do not meet the acoustic criteria in the ISO standard, ISO 8124-1:2009 Safety of Toys, adopted by Australia and New Zealand as AS/NZS ISO 8124.1:2010. While overall the 2010 standard provided a greater level of protection than the earlier 2002 standard, there was one high risk toy category where the 2002 standard provided greater protection. A secondary set of toys from the personal collections of children known to display atypical methods of play with toys, such as those with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), was part of the evaluation. Only one of these toys cleanly passed the 2010 standard, with the remainder failing or showing a marginal-pass. As there is no tolerance level stated in the standards to account for interpretation of data and experimental error, a value of +2 dB was used. The findings of the study indicate that the current standard is inadequate in providing protection against excessive noise exposure. Amendments to the criteria have been recommended that apply to the recently adopted 2013 standard. These include the integration of the new approaches published in the recently amended European standard (EN 71) on safety of toys.

Safe Energy Source in Battery-operated Toys for Children.

Science.gov (United States)

Rossi, Alfredo; Vignola, Silvia; Nason, Francesca; Boschetti, Federica; Bramerio, Manuela; Bailini, Alessandro; Pinarello, Giordano

2017-11-01

Serious and even fatal consequences of disk batteries ingestion in children are well known. Among other applications, disk batteries are used to power small toys, from which they can be unexpectedly extracted and swallowed. We tested a new cell intended for little toys (green cell [GC]), after 6 and 12 hours of in vitro close contact with esophageal swine mucosa. The GC was compared with lithium and silver button batteries under the same experimental conditions. Tissues in contact with the GC did not show pH variations nor histological alterations after 6 and 12 hours. In such conditions, statistically significant differences were found between the GC and the lithium and silver batteries. So far, multidisciplinary medical effort has been driven to both emergency approach and subsequent operative strategies in children with ingested batteries. Our trial demonstrates the possibility to primarily prevent battery-induced damages by designing new-generation safe cells with no tissue toxicity to power little toys intended for children.

Infants' preferences for toys, colors, and shapes: sex differences and similarities.

Science.gov (United States)

Jadva, Vasanti; Hines, Melissa; Golombok, Susan

2010-12-01

Girls and boys differ in their preferences for toys such as dolls and trucks. These sex differences are present in infants, are seen in non-human primates, and relate, in part, to prenatal androgen exposure. This evidence of inborn influences on sex-typed toy preferences has led to suggestions that object features, such as the color or the shape of toys, may be of intrinsically different interest to males and females. We used a preferential looking task to examine preferences for different toys, colors, and shapes in 120 infants, ages 12, 18, or 24 months. Girls looked at dolls significantly more than boys did and boys looked at cars significantly more than girls did, irrespective of color, particularly when brightness was controlled. These outcomes did not vary with age. There were no significant sex differences in infants' preferences for different colors or shapes. Instead, both girls and boys preferred reddish colors over blue and rounded over angular shapes. These findings augment prior evidence of sex-typed toy preferences in infants, but suggest that color and shape do not determine these sex differences. In fact, the direction of influence could be the opposite. Girls may learn to prefer pink, for instance, because the toys that they enjoy playing with are often colored pink. Regarding within sex differences, as opposed to differences between boys and girls, both boys and girls preferred dolls to cars at age 12-months. The preference of young boys for dolls over cars suggests that older boys' avoidance of dolls may be acquired. Similarly, the sex similarities in infants' preferences for colors and shapes suggest that any subsequent sex differences in these preferences may arise from socialization or cognitive gender development rather than inborn factors.

The Stagger-grid: A grid of 3D stellar atmosphere models. I. Methods and general properties

Science.gov (United States)

Magic, Z.; Collet, R.; Asplund, M.; Trampedach, R.; Hayek, W.; Chiavassa, A.; Stein, R. F.; Nordlund, Å.

2013-09-01

Aims: We present the Stagger-grid, a comprehensive grid of time-dependent, three-dimensional (3D), hydrodynamic model atmospheres for late-type stars with realistic treatment of radiative transfer, covering a wide range in stellar parameters. This grid of 3D models is intended for various applications besides studies of stellar convection and atmospheres per se, including stellar parameter determination, stellar spectroscopy and abundance analysis, asteroseismology, calibration of stellar evolution models, interferometry, and extrasolar planet search. In this introductory paper, we describe the methods we applied for the computation of the grid and discuss the general properties of the 3D models as well as of their temporal and spatial averages (here denoted ⟨3D⟩ models). Methods: All our models were generated with the Stagger-code, using realistic input physics for the equation of state (EOS) and for continuous and line opacities. Our ~ 220 grid models range in effective temperature, Teff, from 4000 to 7000 K in steps of 500 K, in surface gravity, log g, from 1.5 to 5.0 in steps of 0.5 dex, and metallicity, [Fe/H], from - 4.0 to + 0.5 in steps of 0.5 and 1.0 dex. Results: We find a tight scaling relation between the vertical velocity and the surface entropy jump, which itself correlates with the constant entropy value of the adiabatic convection zone. The range in intensity contrast is enhanced at lower metallicity. The granule size correlates closely with the pressure scale height sampled at the depth of maximum velocity. We compare the ⟨3D⟩ models with currently widely applied one-dimensional (1D) atmosphere models, as well as with theoretical 1D hydrostatic models generated with the same EOS and opacity tables as the 3D models, in order to isolate the effects of using self-consistent and hydrodynamic modeling of convection, rather than the classical mixing length theory approach. For the first time, we are able to quantify systematically over a broad

Social Behaviors Increase in Children with Autism in the Presence of Animals Compared to Toys

Science.gov (United States)

O'Haire, Marguerite E.; McKenzie, Samantha J.; Beck, Alan M.; Slaughter, Virginia

2013-01-01

Background Previous research has demonstrated the capacity of animal presence to stimulate social interaction among humans. The purpose of this study was to examine the interactions of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) with an adult and their typically-developing peers in the presence of animals (two guinea pigs) compared to toys. Methods Ninety-nine children from 15 classrooms in 4 schools met the inclusion criteria and participated in groups of three (1 child with ASD and 2 typically-developing peers). Each group was video-recorded during three 10-minute, free-play sessions with toys and three 10-minute, free-play sessions with two guinea pigs. Two blinded observers coded the behavior of children with ASD and their peers. To account for the nested study design, data were analyzed using hierarchical generalized linear modeling. Results Participants with ASD demonstrated more social approach behaviors (including talking, looking at faces, and making tactile contact) and received more social approaches from their peers in the presence of animals compared to toys. They also displayed more prosocial behaviors and positive affect (i.e., smiling and laughing) as well as less self-focused behaviors and negative affect (i.e., frowning, crying, and whining) in the presence of animals compared to toys. Conclusions These results suggest that the presence of an animal can significantly increase positive social behaviors among children with ASD. PMID:23468902

Social behaviors increase in children with autism in the presence of animals compared to toys.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marguerite E O'Haire

Full Text Available Previous research has demonstrated the capacity of animal presence to stimulate social interaction among humans. The purpose of this study was to examine the interactions of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD with an adult and their typically-developing peers in the presence of animals (two guinea pigs compared to toys.Ninety-nine children from 15 classrooms in 4 schools met the inclusion criteria and participated in groups of three (1 child with ASD and 2 typically-developing peers. Each group was video-recorded during three 10-minute, free-play sessions with toys and three 10-minute, free-play sessions with two guinea pigs. Two blinded observers coded the behavior of children with ASD and their peers. To account for the nested study design, data were analyzed using hierarchical generalized linear modeling.Participants with ASD demonstrated more social approach behaviors (including talking, looking at faces, and making tactile contact and received more social approaches from their peers in the presence of animals compared to toys. They also displayed more prosocial behaviors and positive affect (i.e., smiling and laughing as well as less self-focused behaviors and negative affect (i.e., frowning, crying, and whining in the presence of animals compared to toys.These results suggest that the presence of an animal can significantly increase positive social behaviors among children with ASD.

Social behaviors increase in children with autism in the presence of animals compared to toys.

Science.gov (United States)

O'Haire, Marguerite E; McKenzie, Samantha J; Beck, Alan M; Slaughter, Virginia

2013-01-01

Previous research has demonstrated the capacity of animal presence to stimulate social interaction among humans. The purpose of this study was to examine the interactions of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) with an adult and their typically-developing peers in the presence of animals (two guinea pigs) compared to toys. Ninety-nine children from 15 classrooms in 4 schools met the inclusion criteria and participated in groups of three (1 child with ASD and 2 typically-developing peers). Each group was video-recorded during three 10-minute, free-play sessions with toys and three 10-minute, free-play sessions with two guinea pigs. Two blinded observers coded the behavior of children with ASD and their peers. To account for the nested study design, data were analyzed using hierarchical generalized linear modeling. Participants with ASD demonstrated more social approach behaviors (including talking, looking at faces, and making tactile contact) and received more social approaches from their peers in the presence of animals compared to toys. They also displayed more prosocial behaviors and positive affect (i.e., smiling and laughing) as well as less self-focused behaviors and negative affect (i.e., frowning, crying, and whining) in the presence of animals compared to toys. These results suggest that the presence of an animal can significantly increase positive social behaviors among children with ASD.

A priori modeling of chemical reactions on computational grid platforms: Workflows and data models

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rampino, S.; Monari, A.; Rossi, E.; Evangelisti, S.; Laganà, A.

2012-01-01

Graphical abstract: The quantum framework of the Grid Empowered Molecular Simulator GEMS assembled on the European Grid allows the ab initio evaluation of the dynamics of small systems starting from the calculation of the electronic properties. Highlights: ► The grid based GEMS simulator accurately models small chemical systems. ► Q5Cost and D5Cost file formats provide interoperability in the workflow. ► Benchmark runs on H + H 2 highlight the Grid empowering. ► O + O 2 and N + N 2 calculated k (T)’s fall within the error bars of the experiment. - Abstract: The quantum framework of the Grid Empowered Molecular Simulator GEMS has been assembled on the segment of the European Grid devoted to the Computational Chemistry Virtual Organization. The related grid based workflow allows the ab initio evaluation of the dynamics of small systems starting from the calculation of the electronic properties. Interoperability between computational codes across the different stages of the workflow was made possible by the use of the common data formats Q5Cost and D5Cost. Illustrative benchmark runs have been performed on the prototype H + H 2 , N + N 2 and O + O 2 gas phase exchange reactions and thermal rate coefficients have been calculated for the last two. Results are discussed in terms of the modeling of the interaction and advantages of using the Grid is highlighted.

Swimming Performance of Toy Robotic Fish

Science.gov (United States)

Petelina, Nina; Mendelson, Leah; Techet, Alexandra

2015-11-01

HEXBUG AquaBotsTM are a commercially available small robot fish that come in a variety of ``species''. These models have varying caudal fin shapes and randomly-varied modes of swimming including forward locomotion, diving, and turning. In this study, we assess the repeatability and performance of the HEXBUG swimming behaviors and discuss the use of these toys to develop experimental techniques and analysis methods to study live fish swimming. In order to determine whether these simple, affordable model fish can be a valid representation for live fish movement, two models, an angelfish and a shark, were studied using 2D Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) and 3D Synthetic Aperture PIV. In a series of experiments, the robotic fish were either allowed to swim freely or towed in one direction at a constant speed. The resultant measurements of the caudal fin wake are compared to data from previous studies of a real fish and simplified flapping propulsors.

78 FR 2281 - Certain Robotic Toys and Components Thereof; Notice of Receipt of Complaint; Solicitation of...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-01-10

... INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION [Docket No. 2930] Certain Robotic Toys and Components Thereof... Trade Commission has received a complaint entitled Certain Robotic Toys and Components Thereof, DN 2930... States after importation of certain robotic toys and components thereof. The complaint names as...

Estimating children's exposure to toxic elements in contaminated toys and children's jewelry via saliva mobilization.

Science.gov (United States)

Guney, Mert; Nguyen, Alain; Zagury, Gerald J

2014-09-19

Children's potential for exposure to potentially toxic elements in contaminated jewelry and toys via mouth contact has not yet been fully evaluated. Various toys and jewelry (metallic toys and jewelry [MJ], plastic toys, toys with paint or coating, and brittle/pliable toys; n = 32) were tested using the saliva extraction (mouthing) compartment of the DIN and RIVM bioaccessibility protocols to assess As, Ba, Cd, Cr, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb, Sb, and Se mobilization via saliva. Total concentrations of As, Cd, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Sb were found elevated in analyzed samples. Four metals were mobilized to saliva from 16 MJ in significant quantities (>1 μg for highly toxic Cd and Pb, >10 μg for Cu and Ni). Bioaccessible concentrations and hazard index values for Cd exceeded limit values, for young children between 6 mo- and 3 yr-old and according to both protocols. Total and bioaccessible metal concentrations were different and not always correlated, encouraging the use of bioaccessibility for more accurate hazard assessments. Bioaccessibility increased with increasing extraction time. Overall, the risk from exposure to toxic elements via mouthing was high only for Cd and for MJ. Further research on children's exposure to toxic elements following ingestion of toy or jewelry material is recommended.

78 FR 10503 - Children's Toys and Child Care Articles Containing Phthalates; Final Guidance on Inaccessible...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-02-14

... CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION [Docket No. CPSC-2012-0040] 16 CFR Part 1199 Children's Toys... does not apply to any component part of children's toys or child care articles that is not accessible... parts in children's toys or child care articles subject to section 108 of the CPSIA. DATES: This rule is...

High-resolution subgrid models: background, grid generation, and implementation

Science.gov (United States)

Sehili, Aissa; Lang, Günther; Lippert, Christoph

2014-04-01

The basic idea of subgrid models is the use of available high-resolution bathymetric data at subgrid level in computations that are performed on relatively coarse grids allowing large time steps. For that purpose, an algorithm that correctly represents the precise mass balance in regions where wetting and drying occur was derived by Casulli (Int J Numer Method Fluids 60:391-408, 2009) and Casulli and Stelling (Int J Numer Method Fluids 67:441-449, 2010). Computational grid cells are permitted to be wet, partially wet, or dry, and no drying threshold is needed. Based on the subgrid technique, practical applications involving various scenarios were implemented including an operational forecast model for water level, salinity, and temperature of the Elbe Estuary in Germany. The grid generation procedure allows a detailed boundary fitting at subgrid level. The computational grid is made of flow-aligned quadrilaterals including few triangles where necessary. User-defined grid subdivision at subgrid level allows a correct representation of the volume up to measurement accuracy. Bottom friction requires a particular treatment. Based on the conveyance approach, an appropriate empirical correction was worked out. The aforementioned features make the subgrid technique very efficient, robust, and accurate. Comparison of predicted water levels with the comparatively highly resolved classical unstructured grid model shows very good agreement. The speedup in computational performance due to the use of the subgrid technique is about a factor of 20. A typical daily forecast can be carried out in less than 10 min on a standard PC-like hardware. The subgrid technique is therefore a promising framework to perform accurate temporal and spatial large-scale simulations of coastal and estuarine flow and transport processes at low computational cost.

The emissions of monoaromatic hydrocarbons from small polymeric toys placed in chocolate food products.

Science.gov (United States)

Marć, Mariusz; Formela, Krzysztof; Klein, Marek; Namieśnik, Jacek; Zabiegała, Bożena

2015-10-15

The article presents findings on the emissions of selected monoaromatic hydrocarbons from children's toys placed in chocolate food products. The emission test system involved the application of a new type of microscale stationary emission chamber, μ-CTE™ 250. In order to determine the type of the applied polymer in the manufacture of the tested toys, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and thermogravimetric analysis coupled with differential scanning calorimetry were used. It was found that the tested toy components or the whole toys (figurines) are made of two main types of polymers: polyamide and acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene copolymer. Total number of studied small polymeric toys was 52. The average emissions of selected monoaromatic hydrocarbons from studied toys made of polyamide were as follows: benzene: 0.45 ± 0.33 ng/g; toluene: 3.3 ± 2.6 ng/g; ethylbenzene: 1.4 ± 1.4 ng/g; p,m-xylene: 2.5 ± 4.5 ng/g; and styrene: 8.2 ± 9.9 ng/g. In the case of studied toys made of acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene copolymer the average emissions of benzene, toluene, ethylbeznene, p,m-xylene and styrene were: 0.31 ± 0.29 ng/g; 2.5 ± 1.4 ng/g; 4.6 ± 8.9 ng/g; 1.4 ± 1.1 ng/g; and 36 ± 44 ng/g, respectively. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier B.V.

[Determination of 21 fragrance allergens in toys by gas chromatography-ion trap mass spectrometry].

Science.gov (United States)

Lü, Qing; Zang, Qing; Bai, Hua; Li, Haiyu; Kang, Suyuan; Wang, Chao

2012-05-01

A method of gas chromatography-ion trap mass spectrometry (GC-IT-MS) was developed for the determination of 21 fragrance allergens in sticker toys, plush toys and plastic toys. The experimental conditions, such as sample pretreatment conditions, and the analytical conditions of GC-IT-MS, were optimized. The sticker toy samples and plush toy samples were extracted with acetone by ultrasonic wave, and the extracts were separated on an Agilent HP-1 MS column (50 m x 0.2 mm x 0.5 microm), then determined by IT-MS and quantified by external standard method. The plastic toy samples were extracted by the dissolution-precipitation approach, cleaned up with an Envi-carb solid phase extraction column and concentrated by rotary evaporation and nitrogen blowing, then determined by GC-IT-MS and quantified by external standard method. The calibration curves showed good linearity in the range of 0.002-50 mg/L with the correlation coefficients greater than 0.996 8. The limits of quantification (LOQ, S/N > 10) were 0.02-40 mg/kg. The average recoveries of the target compounds spiked in the sample at three concentration levels were in the range of 82.2%-110.8% with the relative standard deviations (RSDs) of 0.6%-10.5%. These results show that this method is accurate and sensitive for the qualitative and quantitative determination of the 21 fragrance allergens in the 3 types of toys.

Archaeology and Developmental Psychology: A Brief Survey of Ancient Athenian Toys

Science.gov (United States)

Sommer, Maria; Sommer, Dion

2017-01-01

The authors note that ancient Athens, in important ways, connected children, toys, and play. But they also find the scholarship of toys sparse and scattered. They discuss obstacles that can skew our modern view of the Greek mind, and they caution that modern eyes should not see play where the Greeks saw ritual and religious devotion. With these…

MAGNETOHYDRODYNAMIC MODELING OF SOLAR SYSTEM PROCESSES ON GEODESIC GRIDS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Florinski, V. [Department of Physics, University of Alabama, Huntsville, AL 35899 (United States); Guo, X. [Center for Space Plasma and Aeronomic Research, University of Alabama, Huntsville, AL 35899 (United States); Balsara, D. S.; Meyer, C. [Department of Physics, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556 (United States)

2013-04-01

This report describes a new magnetohydrodynamic numerical model based on a hexagonal spherical geodesic grid. The model is designed to simulate astrophysical flows of partially ionized plasmas around a central compact object, such as a star or a planet with a magnetic field. The geodesic grid, produced by a recursive subdivision of a base platonic solid (an icosahedron), is free from control volume singularities inherent in spherical polar grids. Multiple populations of plasma and neutral particles, coupled via charge-exchange interactions, can be simulated simultaneously with this model. Our numerical scheme uses piecewise linear reconstruction on a surface of a sphere in a local two-dimensional 'Cartesian' frame. The code employs Haarten-Lax-van-Leer-type approximate Riemann solvers and includes facilities to control the divergence of the magnetic field and maintain pressure positivity. Several test solutions are discussed, including a problem of an interaction between the solar wind and the local interstellar medium, and a simulation of Earth's magnetosphere.

MAGNETOHYDRODYNAMIC MODELING OF SOLAR SYSTEM PROCESSES ON GEODESIC GRIDS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Florinski, V.; Guo, X.; Balsara, D. S.; Meyer, C.

2013-01-01

This report describes a new magnetohydrodynamic numerical model based on a hexagonal spherical geodesic grid. The model is designed to simulate astrophysical flows of partially ionized plasmas around a central compact object, such as a star or a planet with a magnetic field. The geodesic grid, produced by a recursive subdivision of a base platonic solid (an icosahedron), is free from control volume singularities inherent in spherical polar grids. Multiple populations of plasma and neutral particles, coupled via charge-exchange interactions, can be simulated simultaneously with this model. Our numerical scheme uses piecewise linear reconstruction on a surface of a sphere in a local two-dimensional 'Cartesian' frame. The code employs Haarten-Lax-van-Leer-type approximate Riemann solvers and includes facilities to control the divergence of the magnetic field and maintain pressure positivity. Several test solutions are discussed, including a problem of an interaction between the solar wind and the local interstellar medium, and a simulation of Earth's magnetosphere.

16 CFR 1145.2 - Paint (and other similar surface-coating materials) containing lead; toys, children's articles...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... materials) containing lead; toys, children's articles, and articles of furniture bearing such paint (or... materials) containing lead; toys, children's articles, and articles of furniture bearing such paint (or...) Paint and other similar surface-coating materials containing lead and toys, children's articles, and...

Fluidized bed catalytic cracking regenerator model: grid effects

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Errazu, A.F. (Universidad Nacional del Sur, Conicet, Argentina); De Lasa, H.I.; Sarti, F.

1979-04-01

A grid model including thermal effects is proposed. The aim is the simulation of a fluidized catalytic cracking regenerator similar to the industrial unit of Destileria La Palta, YPF, Argentina. It is demonstrated that a simple C.S.T.R. model without bypass of gas feed entering the bed provides a good approach for representing the fluidized bed including the grid region. In addition, by means of the C.S.T.R. model, it is shown that there exist two characteristic operating regions: a zone where (C/sub 0//sup 0/ to C/sub c/) depends on the initial coke concentration and a zone where (C/sub c//sub 0/ to C/sub c/) is controlled by oxygen supply. 40 references, 6 figures, 5 tables.

The Public Health Challenge of Consumer Non-Compliance to Toy Product Recalls and Proposed Solutions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiayang Yu

2018-03-01

Full Text Available This paper addresses the public health issue of toy product recalls in the United States, an under-addressed topic in scholarly literature, yet highly relevant to the prevention of pediatric injuries. Toy-related injuries led to 274,000 emergency room visits and seven fatalities in 2016 in the United States, and toy-related injury rates have remained stable over the last five years despite declining incidences of recalls. While dangerous toys not being recalled and the misuse of “safe” products are possible contributing factors, consumer non-response to recall notices also contributes to unintentional child injury from dangerous toys. We discuss the process of recalling toys, and the role of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission in that process. We also review potential factors behind significant consumer non-response to recall notifications, citing economic and psychological theories as explanations for the actions of multiple stakeholders in the recall process. We close by proposing reforms at the regulatory, consumer, and retailer levels that might boost compliance with recall notifications and ultimately reduce injury morbidity and mortality.

Contents of fragrance allergens in children's cosmetics and cosmetic-toys

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rastogi, S C; Johansen, Jeanne Duus; Menné, T

1999-01-01

was present in a maximum concentration of 0.07%. In one cosmetic-toy, cinnamic alcohol was present at 3.7% which exceeds the current industry guideline for safe products by a factor of 5. In all types of products other fragrance allergens were frequently found. In conclusion, children are already exposed......Fragrances are one of the major causes of allergic contact dermatitis from use of cosmetics. The aim of the current study was to assess the possible exposure of infants and children to fragrance allergens from cosmetic products and "toy-cosmetics". 25 children's cosmetics or toy-cosmetic products...... at an early age to well-known allergens, sometimes at concentrations which are considered to be unsafe. As contact allergy usually persists for life, manufacturers of children's cosmetics should be aware of their special responsibility and apply the highest possible safety standards....

Quantitative modelling and analysis of a Chinese smart grid: a stochastic model checking case study

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Yuksel, Ender; Nielson, Hanne Riis; Nielson, Flemming

2014-01-01

Cyber-physical systems integrate information and communication technology with the physical elements of a system, mainly for monitoring and controlling purposes. The conversion of traditional power grid into a smart grid, a fundamental example of a cyber-physical system, raises a number of issues...... that require novel methods and applications. One of the important issues in this context is the verification of certain quantitative properties of the system. In this paper, we consider a specific Chinese smart grid implementation as a case study and address the verification problem for performance and energy...... consumption.We employ stochastic model checking approach and present our modelling and analysis study using PRISM model checker....

25 CFR 309.21 - What are examples of dolls and toys that are Indian products?

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 25 Indians 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false What are examples of dolls and toys that are Indian... OF INDIAN ARTS AND CRAFTS PRODUCTS § 309.21 What are examples of dolls and toys that are Indian products? Dolls, toys, and related items made by an Indian, including, but not limited to, no face dolls...

Fajardo, Puerto Rico Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Fajardo, Puerto Rico Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model....

Ponce, Puerto Rico Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Ponce, Puerto Rico Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model....

Daytona Beach, Florida Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Daytona Beach, Florida Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model....

Sand Point, Alaska Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Sand Point, Alaska Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model....

Neah Bay, Washington Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Neah Bay, Washington Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model....

Toke Point, Washington Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Toke Point, Washington Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model....

Palm Beach, Florida Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Palm Beach, Florida Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model....

Pearl Harbor, Hawaii Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Pearl Harbor, Hawaii Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model....

Arecibo, Puerto Rico Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Arecibo, Puerto Rico Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model....

Port Orford, Oregon Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Port Orford, Oregon Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model....

Kailua-Kona, Hawaii Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Kailua-Kona, Hawaii Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model....

Ocean City, Maryland Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Ocean City, Maryland Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model....

Port Alexander, Alaska Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Port Alexander, Alaska Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model....

La Push, Washington Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The La Push, Washington Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model....

Determination of 48 fragrance allergens in toys using GC with ion trap MS/MS.

Science.gov (United States)

Lv, Qing; Zhang, Qing; Li, Wentao; Li, Haiyu; Li, Pi; Ma, Qiang; Meng, Xianshuang; Qi, Meiling; Bai, Hua

2013-11-01

This paper presents a method for the simultaneous determination of 48 fragrance allergens in four types of toys (plastic toys, play clays, plush toys, and paper toys) based on GC with ion trap MS/MS. Compared with single-stage MS, MS/MS is superior in terms of the qualification and quantification of a large range of compounds in complicated matrices. Procedures for extraction and purification were optimized for each toy type. The method proved to be linear over a wide range of concentrations for all analytes with correlation coefficients between 0.9768 and 0.9999. Validation parameters, namely, LODs and LOQs, ranged from 0.005-5.0 and from 0.02-20 mg/kg, respectively. Average recoveries of target compounds (spiked at three concentration levels) were in the range of 79.5-109.1%. Intraday and interday repeatabilities of the proposed method varied from 0.7-10.5% and from 3.1-13.4%, respectively. The proposed method was used to monitor fragrance allergens in commercial toy products. Our findings indicate that this method is an accurate and effective technique for analyzing fragrance allergens in materials composed of complex components. © 2013 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Not Just Fun and Games: Toy Advertising on Television Targeting Children Promotes Sedentary Play.

Science.gov (United States)

Potvin Kent, Monique; Velkers, Clive

2017-10-01

To examine the volume of television toy advertising targeting Canadian children and to determine if it promotes active or sedentary play, targets males or females more frequently, and has changed over time. Data for toy/game advertising from 27 television stations in Toronto for the month of May in 2006 and 2013 were licensed from Neilsen Media Research (Montreal, Quebec, Canada). A content analysis was performed on all ads to determine what age group and gender were targeted and whether physical or sedentary activity was being promoted. Comparisons were made between 2006 and 2013. There were 3.35 toy ads/h/children's specialty station in 2013 (a 15% increase from 2006). About 88% of toy ads promoted sedentary play in 2013, a 27% increase from 2006 levels, while toy ads promoting active play decreased by 33%. In both 2006 and 2013, a greater number of sedentary toy ads targeted males (n = 1519, May 2006; n = 2030, May 2013) compared with females (n = 914, May 2006; n = 1619, May 2013), and between 2006 and 2013, these ads increased significantly for both males and females. Future research should explore whether such advertising influences children's preferences for activities and levels of physical activity.

Parameterized Finite Element Modeling and Buckling Analysis of Six Typical Composite Grid Cylindrical Shells

Science.gov (United States)

Lai, Changliang; Wang, Junbiao; Liu, Chuang

2014-10-01

Six typical composite grid cylindrical shells are constructed by superimposing three basic types of ribs. Then buckling behavior and structural efficiency of these shells are analyzed under axial compression, pure bending, torsion and transverse bending by finite element (FE) models. The FE models are created by a parametrical FE modeling approach that defines FE models with original natural twisted geometry and orients cross-sections of beam elements exactly. And the approach is parameterized and coded by Patran Command Language (PCL). The demonstrations of FE modeling indicate the program enables efficient generation of FE models and facilitates parametric studies and design of grid shells. Using the program, the effects of helical angles on the buckling behavior of six typical grid cylindrical shells are determined. The results of these studies indicate that the triangle grid and rotated triangle grid cylindrical shell are more efficient than others under axial compression and pure bending, whereas under torsion and transverse bending, the hexagon grid cylindrical shell is most efficient. Additionally, buckling mode shapes are compared and provide an understanding of composite grid cylindrical shells that is useful in preliminary design of such structures.

The Role of Peers' Gender in Children's Naturally Occurring Interest in Toys.

Science.gov (United States)

Shell, Rita; Eisenberg, Nancy

1990-01-01

Examined the effect of observation of gender-related information in the peer group on preschoolers' attention to toys that were not clearly delineated as appropriate for one sex or the other. Contemporaneous peer involvement was significantly associated with children's toy adoption, but cumulative peer involvement was not. (Author/BB)

Background Television and Infants' Allocation of Their Attention during Toy Play

Science.gov (United States)

Setliff, Alissa E.; Courage, Mary L.

2011-01-01

The effect of background television on 6- and 12-month-olds' attention during 20 min of toy play was examined. During the first or second half of the session, a clip from a variety of commonly available television programs was presented. The duration and frequency of infants' looks to the toys and to the television indicated that regardless of age…

Key West, Florida Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Key West, Florida Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST...

Montauk, New York Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Montauk, New York Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST...

Bar Harbor, ME Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Bar Harbor, Maine Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST...

Apra Harbor, Guam Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Apra Harbor, Guam Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST...

Metal Construction Toys of the Early Twentieth Century: Their Astronomical Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Rumstay, K. S.

2004-12-01

During the early twentieth century several toy manufacturers around the globe introduced construction toys in the form of sets of metal parts which could be assembled into a variety of models. The two most successful were the Erector Set, introduced in the United States by A.C. Gilbert in 1913, and the Meccano Set, patented in 1901 in England by Frank Hornby. Whereas the Erector Set never developed beyond being a child's toy, Hornby envisioned his Meccano system as providing a way to teach principles of mechanical engineering to young schoolboys. Indeed, his sets were first marketed under the name "Mechanics Made Easy", and were endorsed by Dr. H.S. Hele-Shaw, Head of the Engineering Department at Liverpool University. Popularity of the new Meccano sets spread throughout the world, spawning the formation of numerous amateur societies composed of adolescent boys and an increasing number of adult hobbyists. The variety of parts increased during the first third of the century, and increasingly sophisticated models were constructed and exhibited in competitive events. Among these were several clocks of remarkable accuracy, and at least one equatorial mounting for a small astronomical telescope. At the same time, many university science and engineering departments found these interchangeable metal parts invaluable in the construction of experimental apparatus. In 1934 a small-scale replica of Vannevar Bush's Differential Analyzer was constructed at the University of Manchester, and used for many years to perform mathematical computations. The introduction in 1928 of a flanged ring with 73 (a sub-multiple of 365) teeth allowed for construction of accurate orreries and astronomical clocks. The most remarkable of these was the Astronomical Clock constructed in the period 1924-1932 by M. Alexandre Rahm of Paris.

Investigating the obesogenic effects of marketing snacks with toys: an experimental study in Latin America.

Science.gov (United States)

Gregori, Dario; Ballali, Simonetta; Gafare, Claudia Elena; Casella, Adriana; Stefanini, Giulia; de Sousa Alves, Rogenia; Franchin, Laura; Amador, Ignacio; Da Silva, Neila Maria Almedia; Dibildox, Javier

2013-07-10

The inclusion of toys in food packages is a common marketing practice, and it is suspected of promoting obesogenic behaviours. This study aimed to determine whether toys packaged with food are indeed increasing the amount of food eaten by children, and if this effect is enhanced by contemporary exposure to TV and/or advertising. A total of 600 children (balanced according to gender and age groups, 3-6 and 7-10 years old) were randomized in three school facilities in Argentina, Brazil and Mexico and exposed to food (snacks) alone or food associated with toys in an experimental setting. All of the children received the same meal at lunchtime. The products were packages in which chocolate was associated with toys in an egg-shaped container partially filled by chocolate. The children were asked to eat ad libitum for 20 minutes during the afternoon break. In addition, the children were randomized into two groups and either shown or not shown a movie cartoon, with three different levels of exposure to commercials in the TV viewing condition (1, 2 or 3 advertisements). No significant differences emerged between the "toys" and "no toys" groups even after taking into account exposure to TV, commercials and other confounding factors. The inclusion of toys in food packages was not shown per se to lead to an increase in the caloric intake of children.

Modeling storage and demand management in power distribution grids

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schroeder, Andreas

2011-01-01

Grahical abstract: The model informs an optimal investment sizing decision as regards specific 'smart grid' applications such as storage facilities and meters enabling load control. Results indicate that central storage facilities are a more promising option for generation cost reductions as compared to demand management. Highlights: → Stochastic versus deterministic model increases investment efficiency up to 5%. → Deterministic model under-estimates value of load control and storage. → Battery storage is beneficial at investment cost below 850 EUR/MW h. → Demand management equipment is not beneficial at cost beyond 200 EUR. → The stylized 10 kV grid constitutes no shortage factor. -- Abstract: Storage devices and demand control may constitute beneficial tools to optimize electricity generation with a large share of intermittent resources through inter-temporal substitution of load. This paper quantifies the related cost reductions in a simulation model of a simplified stylized medium-voltage grid (10 kV) under uncertain demand and wind output. Benders Decomposition Method is applied to create a two-stage stochastic optimization program. The model informs an optimal investment sizing decision as regards specific 'smart' applications such as storage facilities and meters enabling load control. Model results indicate that central storage facilities are a more promising option for generation cost reductions as compared to demand management. Grid extensions are not appropriate in any of the scenarios. A sensitivity analysis is applied with respect to the market penetration of uncoordinated Plug-In Electric Vehicles which are found to strongly encourage investment into load control equipment for 'smart' charging and slightly improve the case for central storage devices.

On the use of Schwarz-Christoffel conformal mappings to the grid generation for global ocean models

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, S.; Wang, B.; Liu, J.

2015-10-01

In this article we propose two grid generation methods for global ocean general circulation models. Contrary to conventional dipolar or tripolar grids, the proposed methods are based on Schwarz-Christoffel conformal mappings that map areas with user-prescribed, irregular boundaries to those with regular boundaries (i.e., disks, slits, etc.). The first method aims at improving existing dipolar grids. Compared with existing grids, the sample grid achieves a better trade-off between the enlargement of the latitudinal-longitudinal portion and the overall smooth grid cell size transition. The second method addresses more modern and advanced grid design requirements arising from high-resolution and multi-scale ocean modeling. The generated grids could potentially achieve the alignment of grid lines to the large-scale coastlines, enhanced spatial resolution in coastal regions, and easier computational load balance. Since the grids are orthogonal curvilinear, they can be easily utilized by the majority of ocean general circulation models that are based on finite difference and require grid orthogonality. The proposed grid generation algorithms can also be applied to the grid generation for regional ocean modeling where complex land-sea distribution is present.

Modeling and Grid impedance Variation Analysis of Parallel Connected Grid Connected Inverter based on Impedance Based Harmonic Analysis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kwon, JunBum; Wang, Xiongfei; Bak, Claus Leth

2014-01-01

This paper addresses the harmonic compensation error problem existing with parallel connected inverter in the same grid interface conditions by means of impedance-based analysis and modeling. Unlike the single grid connected inverter, it is found that multiple parallel connected inverters and grid...... impedance can make influence to each other if they each have a harmonic compensation function. The analysis method proposed in this paper is based on the relationship between the overall output impedance and input impedance of parallel connected inverter, where controller gain design method, which can...

Maturity Model for Advancing Smart Grid Interoperability

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Knight, Mark; Widergren, Steven E.; Mater, J.; Montgomery, Austin

2013-10-28

Abstract—Interoperability is about the properties of devices and systems to connect and work properly. Advancing interoperability eases integration and maintenance of the resulting interconnection. This leads to faster integration, lower labor and component costs, predictability of projects and the resulting performance, and evolutionary paths for upgrade. When specifications are shared and standardized, competition and novel solutions can bring new value streams to the community of stakeholders involved. Advancing interoperability involves reaching agreement for how things join at their interfaces. The quality of the agreements and the alignment of parties involved in the agreement present challenges that are best met with process improvement techniques. The GridWise® Architecture Council (GWAC) sponsored by the United States Department of Energy is supporting an effort to use concepts from capability maturity models used in the software industry to advance interoperability of smart grid technology. An interoperability maturity model has been drafted and experience is being gained through trials on various types of projects and community efforts. This paper describes the value and objectives of maturity models, the nature of the interoperability maturity model and how it compares with other maturity models, and experiences gained with its use.

Home-based, early intervention with mechatronic toys for preterm infants at risk of neurodevelopmental disorders (CARETOY)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sgandurra, Giuseppina; Bartalena, Laura; Cioni, Giovanni

2014-01-01

BACKGROUND: Preterm infants are at risk for neurodevelopmental disorders, including motor, cognitive or behavioural problems, which may potentially be modified by early intervention. The EU CareToy Project Consortium (http://www.caretoy.eu) has developed a new modular system for intensive...... parents will sign a written informed consent for participation, will be randomized in CareToy training and control groups at baseline (T0). CareToy group will perform four weeks of personalized activities with the CareToy system, customized by the rehabilitation staff. The control group will continue...

Grid refinement model in lattice Boltzmann method for stream function-vorticity formulations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shin, Myung Seob [Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Dongyang Mirae University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2015-03-15

In this study, we present a grid refinement model in the lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) for two-dimensional incompressible fluid flow. That is, the model combines the desirable features of the lattice Boltzmann method and stream function-vorticity formulations. In order to obtain an accurate result, very fine grid (or lattice) is required near the solid boundary. Therefore, the grid refinement model is used in the lattice Boltzmann method for stream function-vorticity formulation. This approach is more efficient in that it can obtain the same accurate solution as that in single-block approach even if few lattices are used for computation. In order to validate the grid refinement approach for the stream function-vorticity formulation, the numerical simulations of lid-driven cavity flows were performed and good results were obtained.

A HYBRID SOLAR WIND MODEL OF THE CESE+HLL METHOD WITH A YIN-YANG OVERSET GRID AND AN AMR GRID

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Feng Xueshang; Zhang Shaohua; Xiang Changqing; Yang Liping; Jiang Chaowei; Wu, S. T.

2011-01-01

A hybrid three-dimensional (3D) MHD model for solar wind study is proposed in the present paper with combined grid systems and solvers. The computational domain from the Sun to Earth space is decomposed into the near-Sun and off-Sun domains, which are respectively constructed with a Yin-Yang overset grid system and a Cartesian adaptive mesh refinement (AMR) grid system and coupled with a domain connection interface in the overlapping region between the near-Sun and off-Sun domains. The space-time conservation element and solution element method is used in the near-Sun domain, while the Harten-Lax-Leer method is employed in the off-Sun domain. The Yin-Yang overset grid can avoid well-known singularity and polar grid convergence problems and its body-fitting property helps achieve high-quality resolution near the solar surface. The block structured AMR Cartesian grid can automatically capture far-field plasma flow features, such as heliospheric current sheets and shock waves, and at the same time, it can save significant computational resources compared to the uniformly structured Cartesian grid. A numerical study of the solar wind structure for Carrington rotation 2069 shows that the newly developed hybrid MHD solar wind model successfully produces many realistic features of the background solar wind, in both the solar corona and interplanetary space, by comparisons with multiple solar and interplanetary observations.

The MammoGrid Project Grids Architecture

CERN Document Server

McClatchey, Richard; Hauer, Tamas; Estrella, Florida; Saiz, Pablo; Rogulin, Dmitri; Buncic, Predrag; Clatchey, Richard Mc; Buncic, Predrag; Manset, David; Hauer, Tamas; Estrella, Florida; Saiz, Pablo; Rogulin, Dmitri

2003-01-01

The aim of the recently EU-funded MammoGrid project is, in the light of emerging Grid technology, to develop a European-wide database of mammograms that will be used to develop a set of important healthcare applications and investigate the potential of this Grid to support effective co-working between healthcare professionals throughout the EU. The MammoGrid consortium intends to use a Grid model to enable distributed computing that spans national borders. This Grid infrastructure will be used for deploying novel algorithms as software directly developed or enhanced within the project. Using the MammoGrid clinicians will be able to harness the use of massive amounts of medical image data to perform epidemiological studies, advanced image processing, radiographic education and ultimately, tele-diagnosis over communities of medical "virtual organisations". This is achieved through the use of Grid-compliant services [1] for managing (versions of) massively distributed files of mammograms, for handling the distri...

Lead migration from toys by anodic stripping voltammetry using a bismuth film electrode.

Science.gov (United States)

Leal, M Fernanda C; Catarino, Rita I L; Pimenta, Adriana M; Souto, M Renata S; Afonso, Christelle S; Fernandes, Ana F Q

2016-09-02

Metals may be released from toys via saliva during mouthing, via sweat during dermal contact, or via gastric and intestinal fluids after partial or whole ingestion. In this study, we determined the lead migration from toys bought on the Portuguese market for children below 3 years of age. The lead migration was performed according to the European Committee for Standardization EN 71-3, which proposes a 2-hour migration test that simulates human gastric conditions. The voltammetric determination of migrated lead was performed by anodic stripping voltammetry (ASV) at a bismuth film electrode (BiFE). For all the analyzed toys, the values of migrated lead did not exceed the limits imposed by the European Committee for Standardization EN 71-3 (90 mg kg -1 ) and by the EU Directive 2009/48/EC (13.5 mg kg -1 ) on the safety of toys.

Port Angeles, Washington Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Port Angeles, Washington Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST)...

Los Angeles, California Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Los Angeles, California Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST)...

Crescent City, California Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Crescent City, California Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST)...

Christiansted, Virgin Islands Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Christiansted, Virgin Islands Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST)...

Santa Barbara, California Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Santa Barbara, California Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST)...

Point Reyes, California Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Point Reyes, California Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST)...

San Francisco, California Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The San Francisco, California Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST)...

British Columbia, Canada Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The British Columbia, Canada Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST)...

Large Eddy Simulation of Wall-Bounded Turbulent Flows with the Lattice Boltzmann Method: Effect of Collision Model, SGS Model and Grid Resolution

Science.gov (United States)

Pradhan, Aniruddhe; Akhavan, Rayhaneh

2017-11-01

Effect of collision model, subgrid-scale model and grid resolution in Large Eddy Simulation (LES) of wall-bounded turbulent flows with the Lattice Boltzmann Method (LBM) is investigated in turbulent channel flow. The Single Relaxation Time (SRT) collision model is found to be more accurate than Multi-Relaxation Time (MRT) collision model in well-resolved LES. Accurate LES requires grid resolutions of Δ+ LBM requires either grid-embedding in the near-wall region, with grid resolutions comparable to DNS, or a wall model. Results of LES with grid-embedding and wall models will be discussed.

Consumer behaviour and environmental education in the field of waste electrical and electronic toys: A Spanish case study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pérez-Belis, V. [Department of Mechanical Engineering & Construction, Universitat Jaume I, Av. Sos Baynat s/n, 12071 Castellón (Spain); Bovea, M.D., E-mail: bovea@uji.es [Department of Mechanical Engineering & Construction, Universitat Jaume I, Av. Sos Baynat s/n, 12071 Castellón (Spain); Simó, A. [Department of Mathematics, Universitat Jaume I, Av. Sos Baynat s/n, E12071 Castellón (Spain)

2015-02-15

Highlights: • Consumption/disposal habits of waste electrical and electronic toys. • Environmental education as a key factor to improve WEEE management. • Three environmental education actions to increase the collection of waste toys. - Abstract: This paper reports on a project focused on obtaining the current consumption and disposal habits of electrical and electronic toys from a survey aimed at parents of children of nine pre- and primary schools. In addition, it is also focused on identifying the most effective way of transmitting environmental information to parents and children to promote the collection of electrical and electronic toys at their end-of-life. The study was implemented in a Spanish municipality. With regard to the consumption habits, aspects related to the amount of toys that children receive annually and percentage of those which are electrical and electronic toys have been obtained and classified according to the family size. Results from Chi-squared analysis and Ordinal Logistic Regression show that there is a statistically significance relationship among these variables. Regarding disposal habits, aspects related to the reasons and way for discarding electrical and electronic toys, time that toys are kept at home or the willingness to rent or buy second hand e-toys have been obtained. What really attracts attention is that, apart from consumers who donate the toy to family or social associations, 67.1% of consumers discard them along with other waste fractions in domestic bins, whereas only 32.9% do so at recycling points, as Directive 2012/19/EU requires. To increase this percentage, three environmental education actions (distinguishing from each other by the way used to transmit the environmental information: paper, audiovisual or personal communication) have been designed, applied and evaluated their efficiency according to the amount of waste toys collected.

Consumer behaviour and environmental education in the field of waste electrical and electronic toys: A Spanish case study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pérez-Belis, V.; Bovea, M.D.; Simó, A.

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Consumption/disposal habits of waste electrical and electronic toys. • Environmental education as a key factor to improve WEEE management. • Three environmental education actions to increase the collection of waste toys. - Abstract: This paper reports on a project focused on obtaining the current consumption and disposal habits of electrical and electronic toys from a survey aimed at parents of children of nine pre- and primary schools. In addition, it is also focused on identifying the most effective way of transmitting environmental information to parents and children to promote the collection of electrical and electronic toys at their end-of-life. The study was implemented in a Spanish municipality. With regard to the consumption habits, aspects related to the amount of toys that children receive annually and percentage of those which are electrical and electronic toys have been obtained and classified according to the family size. Results from Chi-squared analysis and Ordinal Logistic Regression show that there is a statistically significance relationship among these variables. Regarding disposal habits, aspects related to the reasons and way for discarding electrical and electronic toys, time that toys are kept at home or the willingness to rent or buy second hand e-toys have been obtained. What really attracts attention is that, apart from consumers who donate the toy to family or social associations, 67.1% of consumers discard them along with other waste fractions in domestic bins, whereas only 32.9% do so at recycling points, as Directive 2012/19/EU requires. To increase this percentage, three environmental education actions (distinguishing from each other by the way used to transmit the environmental information: paper, audiovisual or personal communication) have been designed, applied and evaluated their efficiency according to the amount of waste toys collected

The Sony PlayStation II EyeToy: low-cost virtual reality for use in rehabilitation.

Science.gov (United States)

Rand, Debbie; Kizony, Rachel; Weiss, Patrice Tamar L

2008-12-01

The objective of this study was to investigate the potential of using a low-cost video-capture virtual reality (VR) platform, the Sony PlayStation II EyeToy, for the rehabilitation of older adults with disabilities. This article presents three studies that were carried out to provide information about the EyeToy's potential for use in rehabilitation. The first study included the testing of healthy young adults (N = 34) and compared their experiences using the EyeToy with those using GestureTek's IREX VR system in terms of a sense of presence, level of enjoyment, control, success, and perceived exertion. The second study aimed to characterize the VR experience of healthy older adults (N = 10) and to determine the suitability and usability of the EyeToy for this population and the third study aimed to determine the feasibility of the EyeToy for use by individuals (N = 12) with stroke at different stages. The implications of these three studies for applying the system to rehabilitation are discussed.

About the Need of Combining Power Market and Power Grid Model Results for Future Energy System Scenarios

Science.gov (United States)

Mende, Denis; Böttger, Diana; Löwer, Lothar; Becker, Holger; Akbulut, Alev; Stock, Sebastian

2018-02-01

The European power grid infrastructure faces various challenges due to the expansion of renewable energy sources (RES). To conduct investigations on interactions between power generation and the power grid, models for the power market as well as for the power grid are necessary. This paper describes the basic functionalities and working principles of both types of models as well as steps to couple power market results and the power grid model. The combination of these models is beneficial in terms of gaining realistic power flow scenarios in the grid model and of being able to pass back results of the power flow and restrictions to the market model. Focus is laid on the power grid model and possible application examples like algorithms in grid analysis, operation and dynamic equipment modelling.

A mathematical model for turbulent incompressible flows through mixing grids

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Allaire, G.

1989-01-01

A mathematical model is proposed for the computation of turbulent incompressible flows through mixing grids. This model is obtained as follows: in a three-dimentional-domain we represent a mixing grid by small identical wings of size ε 2 periodically distributed at the nodes of a plane regular mesh of size ε, and we consider incompressible Navier-Stokes equations with a no-slip condition on the wings. Using an appropriate homogenization process we pass to the limit when ε tends to zero and we obtain a Brinkman equation, i.e. a Navier-Stokes equation plus a zero-order term for the velocity, in a homogeneous domain without anymore wings. The interest of this model is that the spatial discretization is simpler in a homogeneous domain, and, moreover, the new term, which expresses the grid's mixing effect, can be evaluated with a local computation around a single wing

Investigating Solids, Liquids, and Gases with TOYS: States of Matter and Changes of State. Activities for Middle School Grades.

Science.gov (United States)

Sarquis, Jerry; Hogue, Lynn; Sarquis, Mickey; Woodward, Linda

The project Teaching Science with TOYS promotes toys as an ideal mechanism for science instruction, because they are an everyday part of the students' world and carry a user-friendly message. TOYS Teacher Resource Modules are collections of "TOYS" activities grouped around a topic or theme with supporting science content and pedagogical…

Arena Cove, California Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Arena Cove, California Forecast Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST...

Dimensions of Childhood Play and Toys

Science.gov (United States)

Sandberg, Anette; Vuorinen, Tuula

2008-01-01

The purpose of this article is to describe and analyse play through a contemporary historical perspective, based upon pre-school teachers', students majoring in education, and teacher education students' descriptions of memories from their childhood regarding play and toys. The overall method is retrospective. The data consists of 111 interviews…

Association of the Type of Toy Used During Play With the Quantity and Quality of Parent-Infant Communication.

Science.gov (United States)

Sosa, Anna V

2016-02-01

The early language environment of a child influences language outcome, which in turn affects reading and academic success. It is unknown which types of everyday activities promote the best language environment for children. To investigate whether the type of toy used during play is associated with the parent-infant communicative interaction. Controlled experiment in a natural environment of parent-infant communication during play with 3 different toy sets. Participant recruitment and data collection were conducted between February 1, 2013, and June 30, 2014. The volunteer sample included 26 parent-infant (aged 10-16 months) dyads. Fifteen-minute in-home parent-infant play sessions with electronic toys, traditional toys, and books. Numbers of adult words, child vocalizations, conversational turns, parent verbal responses to child utterances, and words produced by parents in 3 different semantic categories (content-specific words) per minute during play sessions. Among the 26 parent-infant dyads, toy type was associated with all outcome measures. During play with electronic toys, there were fewer adult words (mean, 39.62; 95% CI, 33.36-45.65), fewer conversational turns (mean, 1.64; 95% CI, 1.12-2.19), fewer parental responses (mean, 1.31; 95% CI, 0.87-1.77), and fewer productions of content-specific words (mean, 1.89; 95% CI, 1.49-2.35) than during play with traditional toys or books. Children vocalized less during play with electronic toys (mean per minute, 2.9; 95% CI, 2.16-3.69) than during play with books (mean per minute, 3.91; 95% CI, 3.09-4.68). Parents produced fewer words during play with traditional toys (mean per minute, 55.56; 95% CI, 46.49-64.17) than during play with books (mean per minute, 66.89; 95% CI, 59.93-74.19) and use of content-specific words was lower during play with traditional toys (mean per minute, 4.09; 95% CI, 3.26-4.99) than during play with books (mean per minute, 6.96; 95% CI, 6.07-7.97). Play with electronic toys is associated with

STS-54 Physics of Toys

Science.gov (United States)

1993-01-01

Greg Vogt, NASA Headquarters Education Specialist, and Carolyn Sumners, Houston Museum of Natural Science, give an overview of the spaceborne experiments that will take place on the STS-54 Endeavour mission. Mr. Vogt discusses the objectives and procedures of the experiments, which are structured around using toys to show the effects of microgravity. Mr. Vogt and Ms. Sumners then answer questions from the press.

Nonuniform grid implicit spatial finite difference method for acoustic wave modeling in tilted transversely isotropic media

KAUST Repository

Chu, Chunlei

2012-01-01

Discrete earth models are commonly represented by uniform structured grids. In order to ensure accurate numerical description of all wave components propagating through these uniform grids, the grid size must be determined by the slowest velocity of the entire model. Consequently, high velocity areas are always oversampled, which inevitably increases the computational cost. A practical solution to this problem is to use nonuniform grids. We propose a nonuniform grid implicit spatial finite difference method which utilizes nonuniform grids to obtain high efficiency and relies on implicit operators to achieve high accuracy. We present a simple way of deriving implicit finite difference operators of arbitrary stencil widths on general nonuniform grids for the first and second derivatives and, as a demonstration example, apply these operators to the pseudo-acoustic wave equation in tilted transversely isotropic (TTI) media. We propose an efficient gridding algorithm that can be used to convert uniformly sampled models onto vertically nonuniform grids. We use a 2D TTI salt model to demonstrate its effectiveness and show that the nonuniform grid implicit spatial finite difference method can produce highly accurate seismic modeling results with enhanced efficiency, compared to uniform grid explicit finite difference implementations. © 2011 Elsevier B.V.

Grid modeling, analysis and simulation of different scenarios for a smart low-voltage distribution grid

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mihet-Popa, Lucian; Han, Xue; Bindner, Henrik W.

2013-01-01

, the number of cabinets and customers and the load per customer. The aim of the model is to design, implement and test the proposed configuration and to investigate whether the low-voltage distribution grid is prepared for the expected future increase of PV penetration, heat pumps and electric cars. The model...

Preferences for 'Gender-typed' Toys in Boys and Girls Aged 9 to 32 Months

OpenAIRE

Todd, B.; Barry, J.A.; Thommessen, S.

2017-01-01

Many studies have found that a majority of boys and girls prefer to play with toys that are typed to their own gender but there is still uncertainty about the age at which such sex differences first appear, and under what conditions. Applying a standardized research protocol and using a selection of gender-typed toys, we observed the toy preferences of boys and girls engaged in independent play in UK nurseries, without the presence of a parent. The 101 boys and girls fell into three age group...

Smart grid

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Choi, Dong Bae

2001-11-01

This book describes press smart grid from basics to recent trend. It is divided into ten chapters, which deals with smart grid as green revolution in energy with introduction, history, the fields, application and needed technique for smart grid, Trend of smart grid in foreign such as a model business of smart grid in foreign, policy for smart grid in U.S.A, Trend of smart grid in domestic with international standard of smart grid and strategy and rood map, smart power grid as infrastructure of smart business with EMS development, SAS, SCADA, DAS and PQMS, smart grid for smart consumer, smart renewable like Desertec project, convergence IT with network and PLC, application of an electric car, smart electro service for realtime of electrical pricing system, arrangement of smart grid.

Vector models and generalized SYK models

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Peng, Cheng [Department of Physics, Brown University,Providence RI 02912 (United States)

2017-05-23

We consider the relation between SYK-like models and vector models by studying a toy model where a tensor field is coupled with a vector field. By integrating out the tensor field, the toy model reduces to the Gross-Neveu model in 1 dimension. On the other hand, a certain perturbation can be turned on and the toy model flows to an SYK-like model at low energy. A chaotic-nonchaotic phase transition occurs as the sign of the perturbation is altered. We further study similar models that possess chaos and enhanced reparameterization symmetries.

A Mediated Definite Delegation Model allowing for Certified Grid Job Submission

CERN Document Server

Schreiner, Steffen; Grigoras, Costin; Litmaath, Maarten

2012-01-01

Grid computing infrastructures need to provide traceability and accounting of their users" activity and protection against misuse and privilege escalation. A central aspect of multi-user Grid job environments is the necessary delegation of privileges in the course of a job submission. With respect to these generic requirements this document describes an improved handling of multi-user Grid jobs in the ALICE ("A Large Ion Collider Experiment") Grid Services. A security analysis of the ALICE Grid job model is presented with derived security objectives, followed by a discussion of existing approaches of unrestricted delegation based on X.509 proxy certificates and the Grid middleware gLExec. Unrestricted delegation has severe security consequences and limitations, most importantly allowing for identity theft and forgery of delegated assignments. These limitations are discussed and formulated, both in general and with respect to an adoption in line with multi-user Grid jobs. Based on the architecture of the ALICE...

Elfin Cove, Alaska Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Elfin Cove, Alaska Forecast Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model. MOST is a...

Analysis of a power grid using a Kuramoto-like model

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Filatrella, G.; Nielsen, Arne Hejde; Pedersen, Niels Falsig

2008-01-01

We show that there is a link between the Kuramoto paradigm and another system of synchronized oscillators, namely an electrical power distribution grid of generators and consumers. The purpose of this work is to show both the formal analogy and some practical consequences. The mapping can be made...... quantitative, and under some necessary approximations a class of Kuramoto-like models, those with bimodal distribution of the frequencies, is most appropriate for the power-grid. In fact in the power-grid there are two kinds of oscillators: the “sources" delivering power to the “consumers"....

From the grid to the smart grid, topologically

Science.gov (United States)

Pagani, Giuliano Andrea; Aiello, Marco

2016-05-01

In its more visionary acceptation, the smart grid is a model of energy management in which the users are engaged in producing energy as well as consuming it, while having information systems fully aware of the energy demand-response of the network and of dynamically varying prices. A natural question is then: to make the smart grid a reality will the distribution grid have to be upgraded? We assume a positive answer to the question and we consider the lower layers of medium and low voltage to be the most affected by the change. In our previous work, we analyzed samples of the Dutch distribution grid (Pagani and Aiello, 2011) and we considered possible evolutions of these using synthetic topologies modeled after studies of complex systems in other technological domains (Pagani and Aiello, 2014). In this paper, we take an extra important step by defining a methodology for evolving any existing physical power grid to a good smart grid model, thus laying the foundations for a decision support system for utilities and governmental organizations. In doing so, we consider several possible evolution strategies and apply them to the Dutch distribution grid. We show how increasing connectivity is beneficial in realizing more efficient and reliable networks. Our proposal is topological in nature, enhanced with economic considerations of the costs of such evolutions in terms of cabling expenses and economic benefits of evolving the grid.

Toy Gliders

Science.gov (United States)

1997-01-01

Toy designers at Hasbro, Inc. wanted to create a foam glider that a child could fly with little knowledge of aeronautics. But early in its development, the Areo Nerf gliders had one critical problem: they didn't fly so well. Through NASA's Northeast Regional Technology Transfer Center, Hasbro was linked with aeronautical experts at Langley Research Center. The engineers provided information about how wing design and shape are integral to a glider's performance. The Hasbro designers received from NASA not only technical guidance but a hands-on tutorial on the physics of designing and flying gliders. Several versions of the Nerf glider were realized from the collaboration. For instance, the Super Soaring Glider can make long-range, high performance flights while the Ultra-Stunt Glider is ideal for performing aerial acrobatics.

[Eyeball perforation of a 7-year-old girl caused by the "Must-Have Office Toy 2017" : The potential risk of injury by a spinning toy (fidget spinner)].

Science.gov (United States)

Nessmann, A; Chaloupka, K; Böni, C

2018-03-01

A 7-year-old girl presented to the emergency department of the eye clinic with an eyeball perforation with iris prolapse and corneal as well as scleral wounds of the left eye caused by a spinning toy (fidget spinner). A surgical wound inspection with iris reposition and corneal and scleral suture were performed without delay. This case report demonstrates the potential risk of this popular toy.

Probabilistic Modelling of Robustness and Resilience of Power Grid Systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Qin, Jianjun; Sansavini, Giovanni; Nielsen, Michael Havbro Faber

2017-01-01

The present paper proposes a framework for the modeling and analysis of resilience of networked power grid systems. A probabilistic systems model is proposed based on the JCSS Probabilistic Model Code (JCSS, 2001) and deterministic engineering systems modeling techniques such as the DC flow model...... cascading failure event scenarios (Nan and Sansavini, 2017). The concept of direct and indirect consequences proposed by the Joint Committee on Structural Safety (JCSS, 2008) is utilized to model the associated consequences. To facilitate a holistic modeling of robustness and resilience, and to identify how...... these characteristics may be optimized these characteristics, the power grid system is finally interlinked with its fundamental interdependent systems, i.e. a societal model, a regulatory system and control feedback loops. The proposed framework is exemplified with reference to optimal decision support for resilience...

Nickel and Cobalt Release From Children's Toys Purchased in Denmark and the United States

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, P.; Hamann, Dathan; Hamann, Carsten R.

2014-01-01

from children's toys. Methods : We purchased 212 toys in 18 different retail and online stores in the United States and Denmark. Nickel and cobalt release was tested using the dimethylglyoxime and cobalt screening spot tests. Results : A total of 73 toys (34.4%) released nickel, and none released......Background : Nickel is the most common allergen detected by patch testing in children. There is an increasing number of cases in children who have not had exposure to piercing. Although the clinical relevance of nickel patch test reactions in children is sometimes uncertain, continued vigilance...

Testing for lead in toys at day care centers.

Science.gov (United States)

Sanders, Martha; Stolz, Julie; Chacon-Baker, Ashley

2013-01-01

Exposure to lead-based paint or material has been found to impact children's cognitive and behavioral development at blood lead levels far below current standards. The purpose of the project was to screen for lead in toy items in daycare centers in order to raise awareness of inside environmental lead exposures and minimize lead-based exposures for children. Occupational therapy students in a service learning class tested for lead in ten daycare or public centers using the XRF Thermo Scientific Niton XL3t, a method accepted by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). A total of 460 items were tested over a two-month period for an average of 66 toys per setting. Fifty six (56) items tested > 100 ppm, which represented 12% of the entire sample. Items with high lead levels included selected toys constructed with lead-based paint, lead metals, plastics using lead as a color enhancer, and decorative objects. While the actual number of lead-based products is small, the cumulative exposure or habitual use may pose an unnecessary risk to children. Indoor exposures occurred for all day care centers regardless of socio-economic levels. Recommendations to minimize exposures are provided.

Evaluating penalized logistic regression models to predict Heat-Related Electric grid stress days

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bramer, L. M.; Rounds, J.; Burleyson, C. D.; Fortin, D.; Hathaway, J.; Rice, J.; Kraucunas, I.

2017-11-01

Understanding the conditions associated with stress on the electricity grid is important in the development of contingency plans for maintaining reliability during periods when the grid is stressed. In this paper, heat-related grid stress and the relationship with weather conditions is examined using data from the eastern United States. Penalized logistic regression models were developed and applied to predict stress on the electric grid using weather data. The inclusion of other weather variables, such as precipitation, in addition to temperature improved model performance. Several candidate models and datasets were examined. A penalized logistic regression model fit at the operation-zone level was found to provide predictive value and interpretability. Additionally, the importance of different weather variables observed at different time scales were examined. Maximum temperature and precipitation were identified as important across all zones while the importance of other weather variables was zone specific. The methods presented in this work are extensible to other regions and can be used to aid in planning and development of the electrical grid.

GIS embedded hydrological modeling: the SID&GRID project

Science.gov (United States)

Borsi, I.; Rossetto, R.; Schifani, C.

2012-04-01

The SID&GRID research project, started April 2010 and funded by Regione Toscana (Italy) under the POR FSE 2007-2013, aims to develop a Decision Support System (DSS) for water resource management and planning based on open source and public domain solutions. In order to quantitatively assess water availability in space and time and to support the planning decision processes, the SID&GRID solution consists of hydrological models (coupling 3D existing and newly developed surface- and ground-water and unsaturated zone modeling codes) embedded in a GIS interface, applications and library, where all the input and output data are managed by means of DataBase Management System (DBMS). A graphical user interface (GUI) to manage, analyze and run the SID&GRID hydrological models based on open source gvSIG GIS framework (Asociación gvSIG, 2011) and a Spatial Data Infrastructure to share and interoperate with distributed geographical data is being developed. Such a GUI is thought as a "master control panel" able to guide the user from pre-processing spatial and temporal data, running the hydrological models, and analyzing the outputs. To achieve the above-mentioned goals, the following codes have been selected and are being integrated: 1. Postgresql/PostGIS (PostGIS, 2011) for the Geo Data base Management System; 2. gvSIG with Sextante (Olaya, 2011) geo-algorithm library capabilities and Grass tools (GRASS Development Team, 2011) for the desktop GIS; 3. Geoserver and Geonetwork to share and discover spatial data on the web according to Open Geospatial Consortium; 4. new tools based on the Sextante GeoAlgorithm framework; 5. MODFLOW-2005 (Harbaugh, 2005) groundwater modeling code; 6. MODFLOW-LGR (Mehl and Hill 2005) for local grid refinement; 7. VSF (Thoms et al., 2006) for the variable saturated flow component; 8. new developed routines for overland flow; 9. new algorithms in Jython integrated in gvSIG to compute the net rainfall rate reaching the soil surface, as input for

An Empiric Study about the Construction of Social Identity of Toy Art Consumer´s

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Renata Andreoni Barboza

2013-12-01

Full Text Available The existence of seemingly childish goods directed to adult consumers is a recent and growing market phenomenon. Having Toy Arts as an exemplar of such products, this investigation aims to understand how Toy Art consumers use it to build and manage their social identity, exploring the factors that trigger a process of extension of self. A qualitative study was conducted with in-depth interviews with 14 Toy collectors, male and female, between 19 and 38 years old, living in Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Sul, São Paulo and Distrito Federal, during July and August 2009. Results show that informants use Toy Arts to build and manage their social identities, relying on it as a form of social expression and differentiation.

Supervariable Approach to the Nilpotent Symmetries for a Toy Model of the Hodge Theory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Malik, R. P.; Bhanja, T.; Shukla, D.

2016-01-01

We exploit the standard techniques of the supervariable approach to derive the nilpotent Becchi-Rouet-Stora-Tyutin (BRST) and anti-BRST symmetry transformations for a toy model of the Hodge theory (i.e., a rigid rotor) and provide the geometrical meaning and interpretation to them. Furthermore, we also derive the nilpotent (anti-)co-BRST symmetry transformations for this theory within the framework of the above supervariable approach. We capture the (anti-)BRST and (anti-)co-BRST invariance of the Lagrangian of our present theory within the framework of augmented supervariable formalism. We also express the (anti-)BRST and (anti-)co-BRST charges in terms of the supervariables (obtained after the application of the (dual-)horizontality conditions and (anti-)BRST and (anti-)co-BRST invariant restrictions) to provide the geometrical interpretations for their nilpotency and anticommutativity properties. The application of the dual-horizontality condition and ensuing proper (i.e., nilpotent and absolutely anticommuting) fermionic (anti-)co-BRST symmetries are completely novel results in our present investigation.

Smart Grid Interoperability Maturity Model Beta Version

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Widergren, Steven E.; Drummond, R.; Giroti, Tony; Houseman, Doug; Knight, Mark; Levinson, Alex; longcore, Wayne; Lowe, Randy; Mater, J.; Oliver, Terry V.; Slack, Phil; Tolk, Andreas; Montgomery, Austin

2011-12-02

The GridWise Architecture Council was formed by the U.S. Department of Energy to promote and enable interoperability among the many entities that interact with the electric power system. This balanced team of industry representatives proposes principles for the development of interoperability concepts and standards. The Council provides industry guidance and tools that make it an available resource for smart grid implementations. In the spirit of advancing interoperability of an ecosystem of smart grid devices and systems, this document presents a model for evaluating the maturity of the artifacts and processes that specify the agreement of parties to collaborate across an information exchange interface. You are expected to have a solid understanding of large, complex system integration concepts and experience in dealing with software component interoperation. Those without this technical background should read the Executive Summary for a description of the purpose and contents of the document. Other documents, such as checklists, guides, and whitepapers, exist for targeted purposes and audiences. Please see the www.gridwiseac.org website for more products of the Council that may be of interest to you.

Gender Stereotypes of Children's Toys: Investigating the Perspectives of Adults Who Have and Do Not Have Children

Science.gov (United States)

Boekee, Kristy; Brown, Ted

2015-01-01

Often certain types of toys are considered more appropriate either for boys or for girls to play with. Therapists often use toys to engage children in intervention activities to promote skill development. This study investigated the gender stereotype perspectives of children's toys held by adults who were and were not parents. Fifty-two…

Metastable vacuum decay and θ dependence in gauge theory. Deformed QCD as a toy model

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bhoonah, Amit; Thomas, Evan, E-mail: zucchini@phas.ubc.ca; Zhitnitsky, Ariel R., E-mail: arz@phas.ubc.ca

2015-01-15

We study a number of different ingredients related to the θ dependence, metastable excited vacuum states and other related subjects using a simplified version of QCD, the so-called “deformed QCD”. This model is a weakly coupled gauge theory, which, however, preserves all the relevant essential elements allowing us to study hard and nontrivial features which are known to be present in real strongly coupled QCD. Our main focus in this work is to test the ideas related to the metastable vacuum states (which are known to be present in strongly coupled QCD in large N limit) in a theoretically controllable manner using the “deformed QCD” as a toy model. We explicitly show how the metastable states emerge in the system, why their lifetime is large, and why these metastable states must be present in the system for the self-consistency of the entire picture of the QCD vacuum. We also speculate on possible relevance of the metastable vacuum states in explanation of the violation of local P and CP symmetries in heavy ion collisions.

Metastable vacuum decay and θ dependence in gauge theory. Deformed QCD as a toy model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bhoonah, Amit; Thomas, Evan; Zhitnitsky, Ariel R.

2015-01-01

We study a number of different ingredients related to the θ dependence, metastable excited vacuum states and other related subjects using a simplified version of QCD, the so-called “deformed QCD”. This model is a weakly coupled gauge theory, which, however, preserves all the relevant essential elements allowing us to study hard and nontrivial features which are known to be present in real strongly coupled QCD. Our main focus in this work is to test the ideas related to the metastable vacuum states (which are known to be present in strongly coupled QCD in large N limit) in a theoretically controllable manner using the “deformed QCD” as a toy model. We explicitly show how the metastable states emerge in the system, why their lifetime is large, and why these metastable states must be present in the system for the self-consistency of the entire picture of the QCD vacuum. We also speculate on possible relevance of the metastable vacuum states in explanation of the violation of local P and CP symmetries in heavy ion collisions

Parallel processing and non-uniform grids in global air quality modeling

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Berkvens, P.J.F.; Bochev, Mikhail A.

2002-01-01

A large-scale global air quality model, running efficiently on a single vector processor, is enhanced to make more realistic and more long-term simulations feasible. Two strategies are combined: non-uniform grids and parallel processing. The communication through the hierarchy of non-uniform grids

Adaptive hierarchical grid model of water-borne pollutant dispersion

Science.gov (United States)

Borthwick, A. G. L.; Marchant, R. D.; Copeland, G. J. M.

Water pollution by industrial and agricultural waste is an increasingly major public health issue. It is therefore important for water engineers and managers to be able to predict accurately the local behaviour of water-borne pollutants. This paper describes the novel and efficient coupling of dynamically adaptive hierarchical grids with standard solvers of the advection-diffusion equation. Adaptive quadtree grids are able to focus on regions of interest such as pollutant fronts, while retaining economy in the total number of grid elements through selective grid refinement. Advection is treated using Lagrangian particle tracking. Diffusion is solved separately using two grid-based methods; one is by explicit finite differences, the other a diffusion-velocity approach. Results are given in two dimensions for pure diffusion of an initially Gaussian plume, advection-diffusion of the Gaussian plume in the rotating flow field of a forced vortex, and the transport of species in a rectangular channel with side wall boundary layers. Close agreement is achieved with analytical solutions of the advection-diffusion equation and simulations from a Lagrangian random walk model. An application to Sepetiba Bay, Brazil is included to demonstrate the method with complex flows and topography.

The GridSite Web/Grid security system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McNab, Andrew; Li Yibiao

2010-01-01

We present an overview of the current status of the GridSite toolkit, describing the security model for interactive and programmatic uses introduced in the last year. We discuss our experiences of implementing these internal changes and how they and previous rounds of improvements have been prompted by requirements from users and wider security trends in Grids (such as CSRF). Finally, we explain how these have improved the user experience of GridSite-based websites, and wider implications for portals and similar web/grid sites.

Bayesian grid matching

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hartelius, Karsten; Carstensen, Jens Michael

2003-01-01

A method for locating distorted grid structures in images is presented. The method is based on the theories of template matching and Bayesian image restoration. The grid is modeled as a deformable template. Prior knowledge of the grid is described through a Markov random field (MRF) model which r...

A Micro-Grid Simulator Tool (SGridSim) using Effective Node-to-Node Complex Impedance (EN2NCI) Models

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Udhay Ravishankar; Milos manic

2013-08-01

This paper presents a micro-grid simulator tool useful for implementing and testing multi-agent controllers (SGridSim). As a common engineering practice it is important to have a tool that simplifies the modeling of the salient features of a desired system. In electric micro-grids, these salient features are the voltage and power distributions within the micro-grid. Current simplified electric power grid simulator tools such as PowerWorld, PowerSim, Gridlab, etc, model only the power distribution features of a desired micro-grid. Other power grid simulators such as Simulink, Modelica, etc, use detailed modeling to accommodate the voltage distribution features. This paper presents a SGridSim micro-grid simulator tool that simplifies the modeling of both the voltage and power distribution features in a desired micro-grid. The SGridSim tool accomplishes this simplified modeling by using Effective Node-to-Node Complex Impedance (EN2NCI) models of components that typically make-up a micro-grid. The term EN2NCI models means that the impedance based components of a micro-grid are modeled as single impedances tied between their respective voltage nodes on the micro-grid. Hence the benefit of the presented SGridSim tool are 1) simulation of a micro-grid is performed strictly in the complex-domain; 2) faster simulation of a micro-grid by avoiding the simulation of detailed transients. An example micro-grid model was built using the SGridSim tool and tested to simulate both the voltage and power distribution features with a total absolute relative error of less than 6%.

The Happy Meal® Effect: the impact of toy premiums on healthy eating among children in Ontario, Canada.

Science.gov (United States)

Hobin, Erin P; Hammond, David G; Daniel, Samantha; Hanning, Rhona M; Manske, Steve

2012-05-24

"Toy premiums", offered with McDonald's Happy Meals®, are a prominent form of food marketing directed at children. Two California jurisdictions recently implemented policies that only permit offering fast-food toy premiums with meals that meet certain nutritional criteria. The primary objective of the current study was to examine elements of this policy in a Canadian context and determine if children select healthier food products if toy premiums are only offered with healthier food options. The study also examined if the impact of restricting toy premiums to healthier foods varied by gender and age. A between-groups experimental study was conducted with 337 children aged 6-12 years attending day camps in Ontario, Canada. Children were offered one of four McDonald's Happy Meals® as part of the camp lunch program: two "healthier" meals that met the nutritional criteria and two meals that did not. In the control condition, all four meals were offered with a toy premium. In the intervention condition, the toy was only offered with the two "healthier" meals. Children were significantly more likely to select the healthier meals when toys were only offered with meals that met nutritional criteria (OR=3.19, 95% CI: 1.89-5.40). The effect of pairing toys with healthier meals had a stronger effect on boys than girls (OR=1.90, 95% CI: 1.14-3.17). Policies that restrict toy premiums to food that meet nutritional criteria may promote healthier eating at fast-food restaurants.

San Juan, Puerto Rico Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The San Juan, Puerto Rico Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model....

Investigating the Quality of Time Kindergarten Children Spend with Television, Computer, Books, and Toys

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ali ÇAKMAK

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this study is to understand the place of four stimuli in lives of children attending early childhood; television, computer, books and toys. In the present study, data obtained from children’s drawing and interviews was analyzed. Fifty-one children between the age of 5 and 6 participated in the study. They were attending three private kindergartens. First, the children were asked to draw themselves with a television, computer, books and toys. Then, they were interviewed to learn about their use of television, computer, books and toys. Following, the pictures and interview transcripts were analyzed and coding categories were determined via content analysis. The findings indicate that children mention watching cartoons most; and they draw themselves as playing with popular cartoon characters. Children have positive feelings towards all of the stimuli; however, they used more powerful and detailed explanations of their feelings towards books and toys

Spring-Wound Toy Cars--Experiments in Mechanics.

Science.gov (United States)

Hanna, Charles

1983-01-01

Use of spring-wound toy cars in kinematics experiments is described. The cars, used in place of traditional dynamics carts rolling down an inclined plane, are inexpensive, motivational, and give reproducible results. Details of acceleration experiments and suggestions for additional experiments are provided. (JN)

Customer-­Centric Business Models for Smart Grid Development

OpenAIRE

Schabram, Sarah

2013-01-01

The digitalization of the electricity grid can provide politicians and different kinds of companies with solid benefits in terms of efficiency, renewable integration and control. However, some part of the deployment of smart grids is only possible with the engagement of consumers who are required to change their behavior significantly. This behavioral change can be induced if energy companies (incumbents and new players) adopt business models that do not sell a technology but use technology t...

Sign of the neutron-proton mass difference in an SU(2)xU(1) supersymmetric toy model: A possible scenario for solving the old puzzle

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Desai, B.R.; Xu, G.

1990-01-01

Based on the idea that electromagnetism is responsible for mass differences within isotopic multiplets (e.g., pointlike neutron and proton or u and d quarks), we generalize an SU(2)xU(1) model in a toy field theory of vectors to a supersymmetric model and investigate the finite mass difference within the isotopic doublet. It is found that under soft-supersymmetry breaking, a positive n-p mass difference can be obtained under reasonable assumptions for the parameters involved

From toys to tools

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Giones, Ferran; Brem, Alexander

2017-01-01

There is undoubtedly hype around drones and their applications for private and professional users. Based on a brief overview of the development of the drone industry in recent years, this article examines the co-evolution of drone technology and the entrepreneurial activity linked to it. Our...... results highlight the industry emergence described as concept validation, including product as well as market growth with different phases of technological meaning change. We argue that further steps are needed to develop drones from nice toys to professional tools—from photography and filming...

Modeling and simulation of a micro grid-connected solar PV system

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rameen AbdelHady

2017-04-01

Full Text Available In 2012, the Ministry of Electricity and Renewable Energy (MERE; began promoting the system of ‘Feed-in Tariff’ in billing. The introduced system allows the user to generate electricity through solar panels mounted on the roofs of residential buildings and governmental organizations and tied to the grid. To benefit from MERE’s approach, the National Water Research Center (NWRC (Qanatir, Egypt set up a pilot rooftop 91 kW PV system. All the generated electricity is fed into the 220 V, 50 Hz low voltage grid serving NWRC premises. In this manuscript a MATLAB Simulink model is constructed mimicking a detailed representation of the system tied either to the local low voltage grid or to the national high voltage grid. The aim of such modeling effort is to provide early evaluation of the system performance. The economical savings of both scenarios are compared based on the new billing system. Results show that the current system saves 100 thousand L.E./year, while tying the system to the national grid will save 235.8 thousand L.E./year.

Increasing Toy Play among Toddlers with Multiple Disabilities in an Inclusive Classroom: A More-to-Less, Child-Directed Intervention Continuum.

Science.gov (United States)

DiCarlo, Cynthia F.; Reid, Dennis H.; Stricklin, Sarintha B.

2003-01-01

A study evaluated a more-to-less, child-directed continuum of intervention to increase toy play among six toddlers with multiple disabilities. Toddlers were provided with repeated choices of preferred toys in a child-directed manner. Nonprompted toy play for two toddlers increased. Toy play also increased for another child after staff prompts and…

Coarse Grid Modeling of Turbine Film Cooling Flows Using Volumetric Source Terms

Science.gov (United States)

Heidmann, James D.; Hunter, Scott D.

2001-01-01

The recent trend in numerical modeling of turbine film cooling flows has been toward higher fidelity grids and more complex geometries. This trend has been enabled by the rapid increase in computing power available to researchers. However, the turbine design community requires fast turnaround time in its design computations, rendering these comprehensive simulations ineffective in the design cycle. The present study describes a methodology for implementing a volumetric source term distribution in a coarse grid calculation that can model the small-scale and three-dimensional effects present in turbine film cooling flows. This model could be implemented in turbine design codes or in multistage turbomachinery codes such as APNASA, where the computational grid size may be larger than the film hole size. Detailed computations of a single row of 35 deg round holes on a flat plate have been obtained for blowing ratios of 0.5, 0.8, and 1.0, and density ratios of 1.0 and 2.0 using a multiblock grid system to resolve the flows on both sides of the plate as well as inside the hole itself. These detailed flow fields were spatially averaged to generate a field of volumetric source terms for each conservative flow variable. Solutions were also obtained using three coarse grids having streamwise and spanwise grid spacings of 3d, 1d, and d/3. These coarse grid solutions used the integrated hole exit mass, momentum, energy, and turbulence quantities from the detailed solutions as volumetric source terms. It is shown that a uniform source term addition over a distance from the wall on the order of the hole diameter is able to predict adiabatic film effectiveness better than a near-wall source term model, while strictly enforcing correct values of integrated boundary layer quantities.

Global Harmonic Current Rejection of Nonlinear Backstepping Control with Multivariable Adaptive Internal Model Principle for Grid-Connected Inverter under Distorted Grid Voltage

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yang Yu

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Based on a brief review on current harmonics generation mechanism for grid-connected inverter under distorted grid voltage, the harmonic disturbances and uncertain items are immersed into the original state-space differential equation of grid-connected inverter. A new algorithm of global current harmonic rejection based on nonlinear backstepping control with multivariable internal model principle is proposed for grid-connected inverter with exogenous disturbances and uncertainties. A type of multivariable internal model for a class of nonlinear harmonic disturbances is constructed. Based on application of backstepping control law of the nominal system, a multivariable adaptive state feedback controller combined with multivariable internal model and adaptive control law is designed to guarantee the closed-loop system globally uniformly bounded, which is proved by a constructed Lyapunov function. The presented algorithm extends rejection of nonlinear single-input systems to multivariable globally defined normal form, the correctness and effectiveness of which are verified by the simulation results.

An adaptive grid to improve the efficiency and accuracy of modelling underwater noise from shipping

Science.gov (United States)

Trigg, Leah; Chen, Feng; Shapiro, Georgy; Ingram, Simon; Embling, Clare

2017-04-01

Underwater noise from shipping is becoming a significant concern and has been listed as a pollutant under Descriptor 11 of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive. Underwater noise models are an essential tool to assess and predict noise levels for regulatory procedures such as environmental impact assessments and ship noise monitoring. There are generally two approaches to noise modelling. The first is based on simplified energy flux models, assuming either spherical or cylindrical propagation of sound energy. These models are very quick but they ignore important water column and seabed properties, and produce significant errors in the areas subject to temperature stratification (Shapiro et al., 2014). The second type of model (e.g. ray-tracing and parabolic equation) is based on an advanced physical representation of sound propagation. However, these acoustic propagation models are computationally expensive to execute. Shipping noise modelling requires spatial discretization in order to group noise sources together using a grid. A uniform grid size is often selected to achieve either the greatest efficiency (i.e. speed of computations) or the greatest accuracy. In contrast, this work aims to produce efficient and accurate noise level predictions by presenting an adaptive grid where cell size varies with distance from the receiver. The spatial range over which a certain cell size is suitable was determined by calculating the distance from the receiver at which propagation loss becomes uniform across a grid cell. The computational efficiency and accuracy of the resulting adaptive grid was tested by comparing it to uniform 1 km and 5 km grids. These represent an accurate and computationally efficient grid respectively. For a case study of the Celtic Sea, an application of the adaptive grid over an area of 160×160 km reduced the number of model executions required from 25600 for a 1 km grid to 5356 in December and to between 5056 and 13132 in August, which

Photovoltaic Grid-Connected Modeling and Characterization Based on Experimental Results.

Science.gov (United States)

Humada, Ali M; Hojabri, Mojgan; Sulaiman, Mohd Herwan Bin; Hamada, Hussein M; Ahmed, Mushtaq N

2016-01-01

A grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) system operates under fluctuated weather condition has been modeled and characterized based on specific test bed. A mathematical model of a small-scale PV system has been developed mainly for residential usage, and the potential results have been simulated. The proposed PV model based on three PV parameters, which are the photocurrent, IL, the reverse diode saturation current, Io, the ideality factor of diode, n. Accuracy of the proposed model and its parameters evaluated based on different benchmarks. The results showed that the proposed model fitting the experimental results with high accuracy compare to the other models, as well as the I-V characteristic curve. The results of this study can be considered valuable in terms of the installation of a grid-connected PV system in fluctuated climatic conditions.

Young Children's Classification, Stereotyping and Play Behaviour for Gender Neutral and Ambiguous Toys

Science.gov (United States)

Cherney, Isabelle D.; Dempsey, Jessica

2010-01-01

Developmental intergroup theory would predict that children develop fewer or weaker stereotypes about toys that have less distinguishable gender attributes than those that are clearly associated with a gender. The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of neutral and ambiguous toys in 31 three- to five-year-old children's play behaviour…

Playing with Technology: Mother-Toddler Interaction Scores Lower during Play with Electronic Toys

Science.gov (United States)

Wooldridge, Michaela B.; Shapka, Jennifer

2012-01-01

To investigate play with electronic toys (battery-operated or digital), 25 mother-toddler (16-24 months old) dyads were videotaped in their homes playing with sets of age-appropriate electronic and non-electronic toys for approximately 10 min each. Parent-child interactions were coded from recorded segments of both of the play conditions using the…

Differential effects of voluntary wheel running and toy rotation on the mRNA expression of neurotrophic factors and FKBP5 in a post-traumatic stress disorder rat model with the shuttle-box task.

Science.gov (United States)

Tanichi, Masaaki; Toda, Hiroyuki; Shimizu, Kunio; Koga, Minori; Saito, Taku; Enomoto, Shingo; Boku, Shuken; Asai, Fumiho; Mitsui, Yumi; Nagamine, Masanori; Fujita, Masanori; Yoshino, Aihide

2018-06-18

Life-threatening experiences can result in the development of post-traumatic stress disorder. We have developed an animal model for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) using a shuttle box in rats. In this paradigm, the rats were exposed to inescapable foot-shock stress (IS) in a shuttle box, and then an avoidance/escape task was performed in the same box 2 weeks after IS. A previous study using this paradigm revealed that environmental enrichment (EE) ameliorated avoidance/numbing-like behaviors, but not hyperarousal-like behaviors, and EE also elevated hippocampal brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) expression. However, the differential effects of EE components, i.e., running wheel (RW) or toy rotation, on PTSD-like behaviors has remained unclear. In this experiment, we demonstrated that RW, toy rotation, and EE (containing RW and toy rotation) ameliorated avoidance/numbing-like behaviors, induced learning of avoidance responses, and improved depressive-like behaviors in traumatized rats. The RW increased the hippocampal mRNA expression of neurotrophic factors, especially BDNF and glial-cell derived neurotrophic factor. Toy rotation influenced FK506 binding protein 5 mRNA expression, which is believed to be a regulator of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA)-axis system, in the hippocampus and amygdala. This is the first report to elucidate the differential mechanistic effects of RW and toy rotation. The former appears to exert its effects via neurotrophic factors, while the latter exerts its effects via the HPA axis. Further studies will lead to a better understanding of the influence of environmental factors on PTSD. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Integration of distributed energy resources into low voltage grid: A market-based multiperiod optimization model

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mashhour, Elahe; Moghaddas-Tafreshi, S.M. [Faculty of Electrical Engineering, K.N. Toosi University of Technology, Seyd Khandan, P.O. Box 16315-1355, Shariati, Tehran (Iran)

2010-04-15

This paper develops a multiperiod optimization model for an interconnected micro grid with hierarchical control that participates in wholesale energy market to maximize its benefit (i.e. revenues-costs). In addition to the operational constraints of distributed energy resources (DER) including both inter-temporal and non-inter-temporal types, the adequacy and steady-state security constraints of micro grid and its power losses are incorporated in the optimization model. In the presented model, DER are integrated into low voltage grid considering both technical and economical aspects. This integration as a micro grid can participate in wholesale energy market as an entity with dual role including producer and consumer based on the direction of exchanged power. The developed model is evaluated by testing on a micro grid considering different cases and the results are analyzed. (author)

Consumer behaviour and environmental education in the field of waste electrical and electronic toys: a Spanish case study.

Science.gov (United States)

Pérez-Belis, V; Bovea, M D; Simó, A

2015-02-01

This paper reports on a project focused on obtaining the current consumption and disposal habits of electrical and electronic toys from a survey aimed at parents of children of nine pre- and primary schools. In addition, it is also focused on identifying the most effective way of transmitting environmental information to parents and children to promote the collection of electrical and electronic toys at their end-of-life. The study was implemented in a Spanish municipality. With regard to the consumption habits, aspects related to the amount of toys that children receive annually and percentage of those which are electrical and electronic toys have been obtained and classified according to the family size. Results from Chi-squared analysis and Ordinal Logistic Regression show that there is a statistically significance relationship among these variables. Regarding disposal habits, aspects related to the reasons and way for discarding electrical and electronic toys, time that toys are kept at home or the willingness to rent or buy second hand e-toys have been obtained. What really attracts attention is that, apart from consumers who donate the toy to family or social associations, 67.1% of consumers discard them along with other waste fractions in domestic bins, whereas only 32.9% do so at recycling points, as Directive 2012/19/EU requires. To increase this percentage, three environmental education actions (distinguishing from each other by the way used to transmit the environmental information: paper, audiovisual or personal communication) have been designed, applied and evaluated their efficiency according to the amount of waste toys collected. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effects of Toys on the Play Quality of Preschool Children: Influence of Gender, Ethnicity, and Socioeconomic Status

Science.gov (United States)

Trawick-Smith, Jeffrey; Wolff, Jennifer; Koschel, Marley; Vallarelli, Jamie

2015-01-01

This study examined the effects of nine toys on the play of 60 3- and 4-year-old children in culturally diverse preschool classrooms. The toys, which varied in their features and intended uses, were selected from a list of those that were nominated by teachers and parents as being developmentally beneficial. Each toy was video recorded for 240 h…

Chaotic Dynamics in Smart Grid and Suppression Scheme via Generalized Fuzzy Hyperbolic Model

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sun, Q.; Wang, Y.; Yang, J.; Qiu, Y.; Zhang, H.

2014-01-01

This paper presents a method to control chaotic behavior of a typical Smart Grid based on generalized fuzzy hyperbolic model (GFHM). As more and more distributed generations (DG) are incorporated into the Smart Grid, the chaotic behavior occurs increasingly. To verify the behavior, a dynamic model

Plastic toys as a source of exposure to bisphenol-A and phthalates at childcare facilities.

Science.gov (United States)

Andaluri, Gangadhar; Manickavachagam, Muruganandham; Suri, Rominder

2018-01-06

Infants and toddlers are constantly exposed to toys at childcare facilities. Toys are made of a variety of plastics that often use endocrine-disrupting chemicals such as bisphenol-A (BPA) and phthalates as their building blocks. The goal of this study was to assess the non-dietary exposure of infants and toddlers to BPA and phthalates via leaching. We have successfully developed wipe tests to evaluate the leachability of BPA and phthalates from toys used at several day care facilities in Philadelphia. Our studies have shown an average leaching of 13-280 ng/cm 2 of BPA and phthalates. An estimate of total exposure of infants to BPA and phthalates is reported. The leaching of the chemicals was observed to be dependent on the washing procedures and the location of the day care facilities. Using bleach/water mixture two or more times a week to clean the toys seems to reduce the leaching of chemicals from the toys. There is a huge data gap in the estimated intake amounts and reported urinary concentrations; this is the first study that provides valuable information to address these data gaps in the existing literature.

Charlotte Amalie, Virgin Islands Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Charlotte Amalie, Virgin Islands Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami...

Harmonic current prediction by impedance modeling of grid-tied inverters

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pereira, Heverton A.; Freijedo, Francisco D.; Silva, M. M.

2017-01-01

and harmonic voltage profiles. Results reinforce that impedance models can represent with relatively accuracy the harmonic current emitted by the PV plants at the point of common coupling (PCC). Lastly, a stress test is performed to show how a variation in the harmonic voltage phase angle impacts the PV plant...... impedance models when used in harmonic integration studies. It is aimed to estimate the harmonic current contribution as a function of the background harmonic voltages components. Time domain simulations based on detailed and average models are compared with the impedance model developed in frequency domain....... In grids with harmonic voltages, impedance models can predict the current distortion for all active power injection scenarios. Furthermore, measurements in a 1.4 MW PV plant connected in a distributed grid are used to validate the simulation based on impedance models during different power injections...

Photovoltaic Grid-Connected Modeling and Characterization Based on Experimental Results

Science.gov (United States)

Humada, Ali M.; Hojabri, Mojgan; Sulaiman, Mohd Herwan Bin; Hamada, Hussein M.; Ahmed, Mushtaq N.

2016-01-01

A grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) system operates under fluctuated weather condition has been modeled and characterized based on specific test bed. A mathematical model of a small-scale PV system has been developed mainly for residential usage, and the potential results have been simulated. The proposed PV model based on three PV parameters, which are the photocurrent, IL, the reverse diode saturation current, Io, the ideality factor of diode, n. Accuracy of the proposed model and its parameters evaluated based on different benchmarks. The results showed that the proposed model fitting the experimental results with high accuracy compare to the other models, as well as the I-V characteristic curve. The results of this study can be considered valuable in terms of the installation of a grid-connected PV system in fluctuated climatic conditions. PMID:27035575

Climate modelling on the GRID Experiences in the EU-project EELA

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fernandez-Quiruelas, V.; Fernandez, J.; Cofino, A. S.; Gutierrez, J. M.; Baeza Retamal, C.; Abarca del Rio, R.; Miguel San Martin, R.; Carrillo, M.

2007-07-01

Recent trends in climate modeling find in GRID computing a powerful way to achieve results by sharing computing and data distributed resources. In particular, ensemble prediction is based on the generation of multiple simulations from perturbed model conditions to sample the existing uncertainties. In this work, we present a GRID application consisting of a sequence of two state-of-the-art climate models (one global model and one regional model), operable through a web portal (based on Genius). The main goal of the application is providing ensemble-based regional predictions. This requires managing a complex work flow involving long-term jobs and job dependencies in a user-transparent way. In doing so, we identified the weaknesses of current middle ware tools and developed a robust work flow by merging the optimal existing applications with an underlying self-developed work flow application based on the communication with metadata catalogs (currently AMGA) storing application status and dynamic model output generation. As an illustrative scientific challenge, the application is applied to study the El Nino phenomenon, by simulating an El Nino year with different forcing conditions and analyzing the precipitation response over south-american countries subject to flooding risk. GRID computing; Climate models; CAM model; WRF model; Work flow. (Author)

Climate modelling on the GRID Experiences in the EU-project EELA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fernandez-Quiruelas, V.; Fernandez, J.; Cofino, A. S.; Gutierrez, J. M.; Baeza Retamal, C.; Abarca del Rio, R.; Miguel San Martin, R.; Carrillo, M.

2007-01-01

Recent trends in climate modeling find in GRID computing a powerful way to achieve results by sharing computing and data distributed resources. In particular, ensemble prediction is based on the generation of multiple simulations from perturbed model conditions to sample the existing uncertainties. In this work, we present a GRID application consisting of a sequence of two state-of-the-art climate models (one global model and one regional model), operable through a web portal (based on Genius). The main goal of the application is providing ensemble-based regional predictions. This requires managing a complex work flow involving long-term jobs and job dependencies in a user-transparent way. In doing so, we identified the weaknesses of current middle ware tools and developed a robust work flow by merging the optimal existing applications with an underlying self-developed work flow application based on the communication with metadata catalogs (currently AMGA) storing application status and dynamic model output generation. As an illustrative scientific challenge, the application is applied to study the El Nino phenomenon, by simulating an El Nino year with different forcing conditions and analyzing the precipitation response over south-american countries subject to flooding risk. GRID computing; Climate models; CAM model; WRF model; Work flow. (Author)

Modified ride-on toy cars for early power mobility: a technical report.

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Hsiang-Han; Galloway, James C

2012-01-01

Children with significantly decreased mobility have limited opportunities to explore their physical and social environment. A variety of assistive technologies are available to increase mobility; however, no single device provides the level of functional mobility that children developing typically enjoy. The purpose of this technical report is to formally introduce a new power mobility option--the modified ride-on toy car. This report will provide (a) an overview of toy car features, (b) examples of basic electrical and mechanical modifications, and (c) a brief clinical case. With creative use and customized modifications, toy cars can function as a "general learning environment" for use in the clinic, home, and school. As such, we anticipate that these cars will become a multiuse clinical tool to address not only mobility goals but also goals involving body function and structure such as posture and movement impairments.

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Myrtle Beach, South Carolina Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST)...

Pago Pago, American Samoa Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Pago Pago, American Samoa Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST)...

Morehead City, North Carolina Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Morehead City, North Carolina Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST)...

Atlantic City, New Jersey Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Atlantic City, New Jersey Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST)...

Cape Hatteras, North Carolina Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Cape Hatteras, North Carolina Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST)...

Port San Luis, California Tsunami Forecast Grids for MOST Model

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Port San Luis, California Forecast Model Grids provides bathymetric data strictly for tsunami inundation modeling with the Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST)...

A Reference Model for Distribution Grid Control in the 21st Century

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Taft, Jeffrey D. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); De Martini, Paul [California Inst. of Technology (CalTech), Pasadena, CA (United States); Kristov, Lorenzo [California Independent System Operator, Folsom, CA (United States)

2015-07-01

Intensive changes in the structure of the grid due to the penetration of new technologies, coupled with changing societal needs are outpacing the capabilities of traditional grid control systems. The gap is widening at an accelerating rate with the biggest impacts occurring at the distribution level due to the widespread adoption of diverse distribution-connected energy resources (DER) . This paper outlines the emerging distribution grid control environment, defines the new distribution control problem, and provides a distribution control reference model. The reference model offers a schematic representation of the problem domain to inform development of system architecture and control solutions for the high-DER electric system.

Effects of Isolate and Social Toys on the Social Interactions of Preschoolers in an Inclusive Head Start Classroom

Science.gov (United States)

Elmore, Shannon Renee; Vail, Cynthia O.

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of manipulating toy sets on the social verbal interaction that occurs between preschool-age children with disabilities and their typically developing peers. A single-subject alternating-treatments design was used to evaluate the effects of manipulating social toy sets and isolate toy sets on…

Books, toys, parent-child interaction, and development in young Latino children.

Science.gov (United States)

Tomopoulos, Suzy; Dreyer, Benard P; Tamis-LeMonda, Catherine; Flynn, Virginia; Rovira, Irene; Tineo, Wendy; Mendelsohn, Alan L

2006-01-01

To describe the interrelationships between books and toys in the home, parent-child interaction, and child development at 21 months among low-income Latino children. Latino mother-infant dyads enrolled in a level 1 nursery and infants were followed to 21 months. The subjects consisted of the control group of a larger intervention study. At 6 and 18 months, the number of books and toys in the home and the frequency of reading aloud were measured by the StimQ. At 21 months, child cognitive and language development and parent-child interaction were assessed by the Bayley Mental Development Index (MDI), the Preschool Language Scale-3 (PLS-3), and the Caregiver-Child Interaction Rating Scale, respectively. Eligibility for early intervention (EI) services was determined on the basis of the MDI and PLS-3. Data were obtained for 46 (63.0%) of 73 at 21 months. In multiple regression analysis, books provided at 18 months predicted both cognition (semipartial correlation [sr] = .49, P= .001) and receptive language (sr = .37, P= .02), whereas toys provided at both 6 and 18 months predicted 21-month receptive language (sr = .40, P= .01; sr = .32, P= .047, respectively). Reading aloud by parents > or =4 days a week was associated with decreased EI eligibility (adjusted odds ratio = 0.16, 95% confidence interval 0.03-0.99). Reading aloud and provision of toys are associated with better child cognitive and language development as well as with decreased likelihood of EI eligibility.

A study on improvement of analytical prediction model for spacer grid pressure loss coefficients

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lim, Jonh Seon

2002-02-01

Nuclear fuel assemblies used in the nuclear power plants consist of the nuclear fuel rods, the control rod guide tubes, an instrument guide tube, spacer grids,a bottom nozzle, a top nozzle. The spacer grid is the most important component of the fuel assembly components for thermal hydraulic and mechanical design and analyses. The spacer grids fixed with the guide tubes support the fuel rods and have the very important role to activate thermal energy transfer by the coolant mixing caused to the turbulent flow and crossflow in the subchannels. In this paper, the analytical spacer grid pressure loss prediction model has been studied and improved by considering the test section wall to spacer grid gap pressure loss independently and applying the appropriate friction drag coefficient to predict pressure loss more accurately at the low Reynolds number region. The improved analytical model has been verified based on the hydraulic pressure drop test results for the spacer grids of three types with 5x5, 16x16, 17x17 arrays, respectively. The pressure loss coefficients predicted by the improved analytical model are coincident with those test results within ±12%. This result shows that the improved analytical model can be used for research and design change of the nuclear fuel assembly

Harmonic Interaction Analysis in Grid Connected Converter using Harmonic State Space (HSS) Modeling

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)