FCI: remedy development for the fuel performance improvement program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Buckman, F.W.; Crouthamel, C.E.; Freshley, M.D.

1979-01-01

Out-of-reactor experiments and irradiations are being utilized to develop and demonstrate the efficacy of specific advanced fuel designs to improve FCI behavior. The advanced light water reactor fuel designs being evaluated combine annular pellets, graphite coating on the inner surface of the cladding, and helium pressurization. A sphere-pac fuel design is also being developed. Characterization of the graphite coatings includes studies of composition, application methods, thickness control, moisture control, thermal conductivity, compatibility with the zircaloy cladding, strain-to-failure, and friction and wear characteristics. Rods of the different fuel designs, as well as reference rods, are being irradiated in the Halden Boiling Water Reactor and the Big Rock Point Reactor to accumulate burnup prior to ramping tests

Integrated Fuel-Coolant Interaction (IFCI 7.0) Code User's Manual

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Young, Michael F.

1999-01-01

The integrated fuel-coolant interaction (IFCI) computer code is being developed at Sandia National Laboratories to investigate the fuel-coolant interaction (FCI) problem at large scale using a two-dimensional, three-field hydrodynamic framework and physically based models. IFCI will be capable of treating all major FCI processes in an integrated manner. This document is a description of IFCI 7.0. The user's manual describes the hydrodynamic method and physical models used in IFCI 7.0. Appendix A is an input manual provided for the creation of working decks

Fuel-coolant interaction-phenomena under prompt burst conditions. [LMFBR

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jacobs, H.; Young, M.F.; Reil, K.O.

1979-01-01

The Prompt Burst Energetics (PBE) experiments conducted at Sandia Laboratories are a series of in-pile tests with fresh uranium oxide or uranium carbide fuel pins in stagnant sodium. Fuel-coolant-interactions in PBE-9S (oxide/sodium system) and PBE-SG2 (carbide/sodium) have been analyzed with the MURTI parametric FCI code. The purpose is to gain insight into possible FCI scenarios in the experiments and sensitivity of results to input parameters. Results are in approximate agreement for the second (triggered) event in PBE-9S (32 MPa peak) and the initial interaction in PBE-SG2 (190 MPa peak).

A reassessment of the potential for an alpha-mode containment failure and a review of the current understanding of broader fuel-coolant interaction issues. Second steam explosion review group workshop

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Basu, S. [Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC (United States); Ginsberg, T. [Brookhaven National Lab., Upton, NY (United States)

1996-08-01

This report summarizes the review and evaluation by experts of the current understanding of the molten fuel-coolant interaction (FCI) issues covering the complete spectrum of interactions, i.e., from mild quenching to very energetic interactions including those that could lead to the alpha-mode containment failure. Of the eleven experts polled, all but two concluded that the alpha-mode failure issue was resolved from a risk perspective, meaning that this mode of failure is of very low probability, that it is of little or no significance to the overall risk from a nuclear power plant, and that any further reduction in residual uncertainties is not likely to change the probability in an appreciable manner. To a lesser degree, discussions also took place on the broader FCI issues such as mild quenching of core melt during non-explosive FCI, and shock loading of lower head and ex-vessel support structures arising from explosive localized FCIs. These latter issues are relevant with regard to determining the efficacy of certain accident management strategies for operating reactors as well as for advanced light water reactors. The experts reviewed the status of understanding of the FCI phenomena in the context of these broader issues, identified residual uncertainties in the understanding, and recommended future research (both experimental and analytical) to reduce the uncertainties.

A reassessment of the potential for an alpha-mode containment failure and a review of the current understanding of broader fuel-coolant interaction issues. Second steam explosion review group workshop

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Basu, S.; Ginsberg, T.

1996-08-01

This report summarizes the review and evaluation by experts of the current understanding of the molten fuel-coolant interaction (FCI) issues covering the complete spectrum of interactions, i.e., from mild quenching to very energetic interactions including those that could lead to the alpha-mode containment failure. Of the eleven experts polled, all but two concluded that the alpha-mode failure issue was resolved from a risk perspective, meaning that this mode of failure is of very low probability, that it is of little or no significance to the overall risk from a nuclear power plant, and that any further reduction in residual uncertainties is not likely to change the probability in an appreciable manner. To a lesser degree, discussions also took place on the broader FCI issues such as mild quenching of core melt during non-explosive FCI, and shock loading of lower head and ex-vessel support structures arising from explosive localized FCIs. These latter issues are relevant with regard to determining the efficacy of certain accident management strategies for operating reactors as well as for advanced light water reactors. The experts reviewed the status of understanding of the FCI phenomena in the context of these broader issues, identified residual uncertainties in the understanding, and recommended future research (both experimental and analytical) to reduce the uncertainties

An assessment of ex-vessel fuel-coolant interaction energetics for advanced light water reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Murphy, J.G.; Corradini, M.L.

1997-01-01

The occurrence of an energetic fuel/coolant interaction (FCI) below the reactor pressure vessel in the cavity of advanced light water reactors (ALWRs) are analyzed to determine the possible hazard to structural walls as a result of dynamic liquid phase pressures. Such analyses are important to demonstrate that these cavity walls will maintain their integrity so that ex-vessel core debris coolability is possible. Past studies that have examined this or related issues are reviewed, and a methodology is proposed to analyze the occurrence of this physical event using the IFCI and TEXAS models for the FCI as well as dynamic shock wave propagation estimates using hand calculations as well as the CTH hydro model. Scenarios for the ALWRs are reviewed, and one severe accident scenario is used as an example to demonstrate the methodology. Such methodologies are recommended for consideration in future safety studies. These methodologies should be verified with direct comparison to energetic FCI data such as that being produced in KROTOS at the Joint Research Centre, Ispra

Proceedings of the OECD/CSNI specialists meeting on fuel-coolant interactions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Akiyama, Mamoru; Yamano, Norihiro; Sugimoto, Jun [eds.

1998-01-01

The OECD/CSNI Specialists Meeting on Fuel Coolant Interactions (FCI) was held at Tokai-mura in Japan on May 19 through 21, 1997, and attended by 80 participants from 14 countries and one international organizations. In the meeting 36 papers were presented followed by active discussions in six sessions on various aspects of FCI issues, such as reactor application, premixing, propagation/trigger, experiments and code/models. At the end of the Meeting, the participants have reached to the consensus on the summary and recommendations, which consists of the following items; (1) We find no new evidence that would change or violate the conclusion of SERG-2 (1996) that alpha-mode failure is not risk significant. (2) Significant progress has been made since the Santa Barbara meeting (1993). (3) Several areas have been identified, which need further investigations to understand the basic FCI phenomena, and to improve the modeling. (4) We recommend maximizing open communication between various research groups in order to accelerate the resolution of the remaining issues. (5) We recommend that the next specialist meeting be held within 3 to 5 years in order to synthesize the activities described above. (J.P.N.)

78 FR 76813 - Igor Bobel, Inmate #-67253-066, FCI Loretto, Federal Correctional Institution, P.O. Box 1000...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-12-19

... DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE Bureau of Industry and Security Igor Bobel, Inmate -67253-066, FCI Loretto, Federal Correctional Institution, P.O. Box 1000, Loretto, PA 15940; Order Denying Export Privileges On May... 1000, Loretto, PA 15940, and when acting for or on behalf of Bobel, his representatives, assigns...

Accelerating Full Configuration Interaction Calculations for Nuclear Structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang, Chao; Sternberg, Philip; Maris, Pieter; Ng, Esmond; Sosonkina, Masha; Le, Hung Viet; Vary, James; Yang, Chao

2008-01-01

One of the emerging computational approaches in nuclear physics is the full configuration interaction (FCI) method for solving the many-body nuclear Hamiltonian in a sufficiently large single-particle basis space to obtain exact answers - either directly or by extrapolation. The lowest eigenvalues and corresponding eigenvectors for very large, sparse and unstructured nuclear Hamiltonian matrices are obtained and used to evaluate additional experimental quantities. These matrices pose a significant challenge to the design and implementation of efficient and scalable algorithms for obtaining solutions on massively parallel computer systems. In this paper, we describe the computational strategies employed in a state-of-the-art FCI code MFDn (Many Fermion Dynamics - nuclear) as well as techniques we recently developed to enhance the computational efficiency of MFDn. We will demonstrate the current capability of MFDn and report the latest performance improvement we have achieved. We will also outline our future research directions

Integrated Fuel-Coolant Interaction (IFCI 7.0) Code User's Manual

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Young, Michael F.

1999-05-01

The integrated fuel-coolant interaction (IFCI) computer code is being developed at Sandia National Laboratories to investigate the fuel-coolant interaction (FCI) problem at large scale using a two-dimensional, three-field hydrodynamic framework and physically based models. IFCI will be capable of treating all major FCI processes in an integrated manner. This document is a description of IFCI 7.0. The user's manual describes the hydrodynamic method and physical models used in IFCI 7.0. Appendix A is an input manual provided for the creation of working decks.

78 FR 49470 - Adrian Jesus Reyna, Inmate Number #80629-280, FCI Bastrop, Federal Correctional Institution, P.O...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-08-14

... DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE Bureau of Industry and Security Adrian Jesus Reyna, Inmate Number 80629-280... Privileges On January 27, 2012, in the U.S. District Court, Western District of Texas, Adrian Jesus Reyna.... Until January 27, 2022, Adrian Jesus Reyna, with a last known address at: Inmate Number 80629-280, FCI...

KROTOS FCI experimental programme at CEA Cadarache: new features and status

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bonnet, J.M.; Bullado, Y.; Journeau, C.; Fouquart, P.; Piluso, P.; Sergeant, C.; Magallon, D.

2005-01-01

Full text of publication follows: KROTOS facility has been operated by the European Commission at JRC-Ispra for many years until 1999 as part of the FARO/KROTOS programme. The programme had to be stopped at JRC due to new EC priorities, and an agreement was concluded with CEA to transfer the KROTOS facility and know-how to Cadarache to continue investigating the pending FCI issues. By this agreement, CEA became owner of the facility. The main objective of the KROTOS programme at CEA Cadarache is understanding the role of melt properties in steam explosion propagation and energetics and, in particular, steam explosion behaviour of prototypical corium melts. Possible influence of physicochemical processes on explosiveness will also be explored. Actually, analysis of alumina debris produced at Ispra have shown that formation of metastable phases and chemical reaction with water at high temperature may play a significant role in enhancing heat transfer to water in the explosion phase. In order to reach the objective, steam explosion experiments are performed in well characterised conditions for a large spectrum of conditions and melt compositions of interest for both in- and ex-vessel situations. A trigger is applied as a rule. Advanced technology and instrumentation is used to reduce uncertainties on initial conditions and characterise the various phases of an explosion, with emphasis on high energy X-ray cinematography to qualify pre-mixing. This advanced instrumentation will enable the measurement of detailed variables to consolidate the qualification of the FCI codes. The use of high energy X-rays made it necessary to construct a new building to house the facility and its components. The facility should newly become operative early 2005. Main improvements with respect to Ispra concern melt delivery, hydrogen measurement and X-ray imaging. Preliminary studies have demonstrated that identification of the pre-mixture-water interface and coherent melt jet core, and

KROTOS FCI experimental programme at CEA Cadarache: new features and status

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bonnet, J.M.; Bullado, Y.; Journeau, C.; Fouquart, P.; Piluso, P.; Sergeant, C.; Magallon, D. [CEA-Cadarache, DTN/STRI/LMA, Bat 708, BP1, 13108 Saint Paul lez Durance cedex (France)

2005-07-01

Full text of publication follows: KROTOS facility has been operated by the European Commission at JRC-Ispra for many years until 1999 as part of the FARO/KROTOS programme. The programme had to be stopped at JRC due to new EC priorities, and an agreement was concluded with CEA to transfer the KROTOS facility and know-how to Cadarache to continue investigating the pending FCI issues. By this agreement, CEA became owner of the facility. The main objective of the KROTOS programme at CEA Cadarache is understanding the role of melt properties in steam explosion propagation and energetics and, in particular, steam explosion behaviour of prototypical corium melts. Possible influence of physicochemical processes on explosiveness will also be explored. Actually, analysis of alumina debris produced at Ispra have shown that formation of metastable phases and chemical reaction with water at high temperature may play a significant role in enhancing heat transfer to water in the explosion phase. In order to reach the objective, steam explosion experiments are performed in well characterised conditions for a large spectrum of conditions and melt compositions of interest for both in- and ex-vessel situations. A trigger is applied as a rule. Advanced technology and instrumentation is used to reduce uncertainties on initial conditions and characterise the various phases of an explosion, with emphasis on high energy X-ray cinematography to qualify pre-mixing. This advanced instrumentation will enable the measurement of detailed variables to consolidate the qualification of the FCI codes. The use of high energy X-rays made it necessary to construct a new building to house the facility and its components. The facility should newly become operative early 2005. Main improvements with respect to Ispra concern melt delivery, hydrogen measurement and X-ray imaging. Preliminary studies have demonstrated that identification of the pre-mixture-water interface and coherent melt jet core, and

FCI experiments in the corium/water system

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Huhtiniemi, I.; Hohmann, H.; Magallon, D.

1995-09-01

The KROTOS fuel coolant interaction (FCI) tests aim at providing benchmark data to examine the effect of fuel/coolant initial conditions and mixing on explosion energetics. Experiments, fundamental in nature, are performed in well-controlled geometries and are complementary to the FARO large scale tests. Recently, a new test series was started using 3 kg of prototypical core material (80 w/o UO{sub 2}, 20 w/o ZrO{sub 2}) which was poured into a water column of {le} 1.25 m in height (95 mm and 200 mm in diameter) under 0.1 MPa ambient pressure. Four tests have been performed in the test section of 95 mm in diameter (ID) with different subcooling levels (10-80K) and with and without an external trigger. Additionally, one test has been performed with a test section of 200 mm in diameter (ID) and with an external trigger. No spontaneous or triggered energetic FCIs (steam explosions) have been observed in these corium tests. This is in sharp contrast with the steam explosions observed in the previously reported Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} test series which had the same initial conditions of ambient pressure and subcooling. The post-test analysis of the corium experiments indicated that strong vaporisation at the melt/water contact led to a partial expulsion of the melt from the test section into the pressure vessel. In order to avoid this and to obtain a good penetration and premixing os the corium melt, an additional test has been performed with a larger diameter test section. In all the UO{sub 2}-ZrO{sub 2} tests an efficient quenching process (0.7-1.2 MW/kg-melt) with total fuel fragmentation (mass mean diameter 1.4-2.5 mm) was observed. Results from Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} tests under the same initial conditions are also presented for further confirmation of the observed differences in behaviour between Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} and UO{sub 2}-ZrO{sub 2} melts.

Introduction to the modified TROI test facility for fuel coolant interaction under a submerged reactor vessel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Na, Young Su; Hong, Seong-Wan; Song, Jin Ho; Hong, Seong-Ho

2014-01-01

The molten Fuel-Coolant Interaction (FCI) can threaten the integrity of the reactor cavity under a severe accident. A steam explosion can be occurred by the rapid energy transfer in the high-temperature corium melt jet penetrating into water, which makes the dynamic load applying to the surrounding structure. Before a steam explosion, the corium melt jet breaks into small-sized particles, and the steam is generated continuously by the film boiling on the hot surface of the melt contacting with water. The premixing phase consisting of the corium melt, water, and steam can determine the intensity of the steam explosion. Unfortunately, the previous experimental studies on the FCI phenomena have carried out under a free fall of the corium melt jet in a gas phase before interacting with water. The previous TROI (Test for Real cOrium Interaction with water) test facility, that is a well-known test facility for the FCI phenomena in the world, has observed a steam explosion under a free fall of a corium melt jet in a gas phase before contacting a coolant since 2000, which is changing to simulate the FCI phenomena under a submerged reactor vessel. This study introduces the modified TROI test facility as shown in Fig. 1 and the considerations for the experiment with success. The previous TROI test facility, that has observed the molten Fuel-Coolant Interaction (FCI) with a free fall of the prototypic corium melt in a gas phase before contacting a coolant, was modified to simulate the FCI phenomena under a submerged reactor vessel for the assessment of the In-Vessel Retention (IVR) concept, i.e., without a free-fall distance of the corium melt before contacting water. The superheated prototypic corium melt created by the cold crucible melting method moves on a releasing valve newly installed just above the water level in the interaction vessel. The corium melt will stay on a releasing valve in less than 0.2 seconds to reduce heat loss for preventing the solidification, and

A sparse matrix based full-configuration interaction algorithm

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rolik, Zoltan; Szabados, Agnes; Surjan, Peter R.

2008-01-01

We present an algorithm related to the full-configuration interaction (FCI) method that makes complete use of the sparse nature of the coefficient vector representing the many-electron wave function in a determinantal basis. Main achievements of the presented sparse FCI (SFCI) algorithm are (i) development of an iteration procedure that avoids the storage of FCI size vectors; (ii) development of an efficient algorithm to evaluate the effect of the Hamiltonian when both the initial and the product vectors are sparse. As a result of point (i) large disk operations can be skipped which otherwise may be a bottleneck of the procedure. At point (ii) we progress by adopting the implementation of the linear transformation by Olsen et al. [J. Chem Phys. 89, 2185 (1988)] for the sparse case, getting the algorithm applicable to larger systems and faster at the same time. The error of a SFCI calculation depends only on the dropout thresholds for the sparse vectors, and can be tuned by controlling the amount of system memory passed to the procedure. The algorithm permits to perform FCI calculations on single node workstations for systems previously accessible only by supercomputers

Material effect in the fuel-coolant interaction: structural characterization of the steam explosion debris and solidification mechanism

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tyrpekl, V.

2012-01-01

described. The chapter 2 summarizes the theoretical aspects of the fuel - coolant interaction. It is divided in four thematic fields according to the FCI progression. In general, FCI has four stages: i) Premixing - hot melt is poured in water and fragmented in coarse droplets surrounded by steam film ii) Triggering - steam film around melt droplets is destabilized allowing fine fragmentation iii) Propagation - the fine fragmentation propagate through the pre-mixture increasing the melt - water interface area, which leads to large steam production iv) Expansion (explosion) - Thermal energy transferred from the melt to water is changed into mechanical work of the steam. The chapter 3 summarizes the research conducted in different experimental facilities using nonradioactive simulant or radioactive prototypic materials. The chapter 4 shows the results of thermodynamic calculations, by which the possible chemical reactions between melts and water/steam at high temperatures were modeled. Second part presents the results of 1 D calculations of radiation heat transfer from FCI materials to water/steam. The chapter 5 describes the material analyses of non-radioactive simulant debris coming from MISTEE experimental research program (KTH, Sweden) and PREMIX, ECO facilities (FZK, Germany). The chapters 6 to 8 describe the material analyses of radioactive prototypic debris coming from KROTOS research program (CEA, France). The KROTOS KS2 test used melt composition 70 w. % UO 2 and 30 w. % ZrO 2 , the KS4 test 80 w. % UO 2 and 20 w. % ZrO 2 , the last KS5 test used sub-oxidized melt 80.1 w. % UO 2 and 11.4 w. % ZrO 2 and 8.5 w. % metallic Zr. The chapter 9 concludes the work and presents future perspectives. (author) [fr

Fuel Coolant Interaction Results in the Fuel Pins Melting Facility (PMF)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Urunashi, H.; Hirabayashi, T.; Mizuta, H.

1976-01-01

The experimental work related to FCI at PNC has been concentrated into the molten UO 2 dropping test. After the completion of molten UO 2 drop experiments, emphasis is directed toward the FCI phenomena of the initiating conditions of the accident under the more realistic geometry. The experiments are conducted within the Pin Melt Facility (PMF) in which UO 2 pellets clad in stainless steel are melted by direct electric heating under the stagnant or flowing sodium. The primary objectives of the PMF test are to: - obtain detail experimental results (heat-input, clad temperature, sodium temperature, etc.) on the FCI under TOP and LOF conditions; - observe the movement of the fuel before and after the pin failure by the X-ray cinematography; - observe the degree of coherence of the pin failures; - accumulate the experience of the FCI experiment which is applicable to the subassembly or more larger scale; - simulate the fuel behavior of the in-pile test (GETR, CABRI). The preliminary conclusions can be drawn from the foregoing observations are as follows: - Although the fuel motion and FCI of the closed test section appeared to be different from those of the open test section, the conclusion of the effect of the inside pressure on FCI needs more experimental data. - The best heating condition of the UO 2 pellet for the FCI study with PMF is established as 40 w/cm at the steady state and 1680 J/g of UO 2 during the additional transient state. The total energy deposition of the UO 2 pellet is thus estimated in the range of 2400 J/g of UO 2 -2600 J/g of UO 2 . The analytical model of the fuel pin failure and the subsequent FCI are suggested to count the following parameters: - The fuel pin failure due to the fuel vaporization due to the rapid energy deposition; - Molten fuel, clad and sodium interaction in the fuel pin after the pin failure; - The upward flow of molten fuel with molten clad or vapor sodium, as well as the slumping of molten fuel

Simulation of isothermal multi-phase fuel-coolant interaction using MPS method with GPU acceleration

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gou, W.; Zhang, S.; Zheng, Y. [Zhejiang Univ., Hangzhou (China). Center for Engineering and Scientific Computation

2016-07-15

The energetic fuel-coolant interaction (FCI) has been one of the primary safety concerns in nuclear power plants. Graphical processing unit (GPU) implementation of the moving particle semi-implicit (MPS) method is presented and used to simulate the fuel coolant interaction problem. The governing equations are discretized with the particle interaction model of MPS. Detailed implementation on single-GPU is introduced. The three-dimensional broken dam is simulated to verify the developed GPU acceleration MPS method. The proposed GPU acceleration algorithm and developed code are then used to simulate the FCI problem. As a summary of results, the developed GPU-MPS method showed a good agreement with the experimental observation and theoretical prediction.

Mechanical energy yields and pressure volume and pressure time curves for whole core fuel-coolant interactions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Coddington, P [United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority, Atomic Energy Establishment, Winfrith, Dorchester, Dorset (United Kingdom)

1979-10-15

In determining the damage consequences of a whole core Fuel-Coolant Interaction (FCI), one measure of the strength of a FCI that can be used and is independent of the system geometry is the constant volume mixing mechanical yield (often referred to as the Hicks-Menzies yield), which represents a near upper limit to the mechanical work of a FCI. This paper presents a recalculation of the Hicks-Menzies yields for UO{sub 2} and sodium for a range of initial fuel temperatures and fuel to coolant mass ratios, using recently published UO{sub 2} and sodium equation of state data. The work presented here takes a small number of postulated FCIs with as wide range as possible of thermal interaction parameters and determines their pressure-volume P(V) and pressure-time P(t) relations, using geometrical constraints representative of the reactor. Then by examining these P(V) and P(t) curves a representative pressure-relative volume curve or range of possible curves, for use in containment analysis, is recommended

The Effect of the UO2/ZrO2 Composition on Fuel/Coolant Interaction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Song, Jin Ho; Kim, Jong Hwan

2005-01-01

A series of experiments on fuel/coolant interaction (FCI) was performed in the TROI facility, where the composition of the mixture was varied. The compositions of the UO 2 and ZrO 2 mixture in weight percent were 50:50, 70:30, 80:20, and pure ZrO 2 . The responses of the system including the temperature of the pool of water in the test vessel, pressure and temperature of the containment vessel, and dynamic pressures and force were measured. In addition, high-speed movies were taken through the windows. The tests using corium with a 70:30 composition and pure zirconia resulted in a spontaneous energetic steam explosion, while the tests with other compositions did not lead to an energetic FCI. The debris size distribution and pressure and temperature responses clearly indicated the cases with an energetic explosion and the cases without an explosion. The high-speed movie taken during the FCI through the visible window clearly disclosed the outstanding phases of the FCI, which were the melt entry phase, the triggering phase, and the continued melt jet and expansion of the mixing zone phase

FCI experiments and analysis. Contributions to basic understanding

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Corradini, M.L.; Cho, D.; Magallon, D.; Basu, S.

1998-01-01

Past safety analyses considered the hazard from vapor explosions in a conservative manner where engineering judgement and conservative analyses were used to estimate the likelihood of nuclear reactor containment failure from explosion-induced missile generation (alpha-mode failure). However, recent safety analyses may require less conservative methods to determine the hazard from vapor explosions; thus, one may need to consider more detailed scaling of vapor explosion energetics, considering fuel-coolant mixing and explosion propagation. The United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission is supporting a coordinated set of experiments to address this issue, given a lack of appropriate benchmark data and associated analyses. These experiments, KROTOS, WFCI and ZrEX are mutually complimentary and provide the first consistent set of data for FCI phenomena under controlled conditions for a wide range of simulant materials that approximate the fuel melt. The scaling logic for these tests is that essentially one-dimensional geometry with rigid constraints would maximize the explosion energetics for a given set of mixing conditions. Thus, only variations in the axial boundary conditions and fuel-coolant initial conditions (mass, composition and temperatures) can affect the mixing and energetics. Our hypothesis is that clear limits to energetics below thermodynamic values can be identified for these high temperature fuel melts along with fundamental understanding, which can aid in issue resolution. (author)

Fuel coolant interaction experiment by direct electrical heating method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takeda, Tsuneo; Hirano, Kenmei

1979-01-01

In the PCM (Power Cooling Mismatch) experiments, the FCI (Fuel Coolant Interaction) test is one of necessary tests in order to predict various phenomena that occur during PCM in the core. A direct electrical heating method is used for the FCI tests for fuel pellet temperature of over 1000 0 C. Therefore, preheating is required before initiating the direct electrical heating. The fuel pin used in the FCI tests is typical LWR fuel element, which is surrounded by coolant water. It is undersirable to heat up the coolant water during preheating of the fuel pin. Therefore, a zirconia (ZrO 2 ) pellet which is similar to a UO 2 pellet in physical and chemical properties is used. Electric property (electric conductivity) of ZrO 2 is particularly suitable for direct electrical heating as in the case of UO 2 . In this experiment, ZrO 2 pellet (melting point 2500 0 C) melting was achieved by use of both preheating and direct electrical heating. Temperature changes of coolant and fuel surface, as well as the pressure change of coolant water, were measured. The molten fuel interacted with the coolant and generated shock waves. A portion of this molten fuel fragmented into small particles during this interaction. The peak pressure of the observed shock wave was about 35 bars. The damaged fuel pin was photographed after disassembly. This report shows the measured coolant pressure changes and the coolant temperature changes, as well as photographs of damaged fuel pin and fuel fragments. (author)

Experimental studies of thermal and chemical interactions between oxide and silicide nuclear fuels with water

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

farahani, A.A.; Corradini, M.L. [Univ. of Wisconsi, Madison, WI (United States)

1995-09-01

Given some transient power/cooling mismatch is a nuclear reactor and its inability to establish the necessary core cooling, energetic fuel-coolant interactions (FCI`s commonly called `vapor explosions`) could occur as a result of the core melting and coolant contact. Although a large number of studies have been done on energetic FCI`s, very few experiments have been performed with the actual fuel materials postulated to be produced in severe accidents. Because of the scarcity of well-characterized FCI data for uranium allows in noncommercial reactors (cermet and silicide fuels), we have conducted a series of experiments to provide a data base for the foregoing materials. An existing 1-D shock-tube facility was modified to handle depleted radioactive materials (U{sub 3}O{sub 8}-Al, and U{sub 3}Si{sub 2}-Al). Our objectives have been to determine the effects of the initial fuel composition and temperature and the driving pressure (triggering) on the explosion work output, dynamic pressures, transient temperatures, and the hydrogen production. Experimental results indicate limited energetics, mainly thermal interactions, for these fuel materials as compared to aluminum where more chemical reactions occur between the molten aluminum and water.

FARO test L-14 on fuel coolant interaction and quenching. Comparison report, volume 1 + 2, analysis of the results

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Annunziato, A.; Addabbo, C.; Yerkess, A.; Silverii, R.; Brewka, W.; Leva, G.

1997-01-01

This report provides a comparative analysis of the results from the ISP-39 exercise promoted by OECD-CSNI in the frame of the NEA activities. ISP-39 has been conceived to benchmark the predictive capabilities of computer codes used in the evaluation of fuel-coolant interaction (FCI) and quenching phenomenologies of relevance in water cooled reactors severe accidents safety analysis. The ISP-39 reference case is FARO test L-14, a non-energetic FCI test performed under realistic melt composition and prototypical accident conditions in the FARO experimental installation (Ispra, Italy). Thirteen research organizations from ten countries participated in the exercise submitting 15 prediction calculations with 8 different codes or code versions (COMETA, MC3D, IVA, IFCI, JASMINE, TEXAS, THIRMAL, VAPEX). ISP-39 was conducted as an open exercise. Conclusions are given concerning code capabilities, users effect and sensitivity analyses, numerical accuracy quantification of the predictions, code improvements, general considerations

THE EDUCATIONAL POTENTIAL OF FATHERHOOD: CONCEPTUAL BASES OF RESEARCH AND SUPPORT

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V. I. Zagvyazinsky

2017-01-01

interpreted.The concept “language” of the father-child interaction (FCI, new to psychology and pedagogical knowledge, is introduced. Given the above concept consists in the direct emotional and communicative interaction based on empathy and “episodic” relation of a father to a child's life, i.e. pragmatic love.The general logic of FCI can be presented as “language-form-value”; particular options of implementation of the general formula can be “sport-training-health”, “literature-reading-meaning”, “arts-concerts-tastes”, etc. According to the authors, practical application of concrete substantial forms-units (“languages” of the FCI system is an effective pedagogical tool for individual and personal updating of fatherhood in order to positively influence the formation of a child’s socialization.The concept of educational potential of fatherhood which includes three key determinants is worked out: knowledge and erudition of a father-parent; his personal qualities; system of motives and values.Practical significance. The proposed three-part model of determinants for educational potential of fatherhood could be applied to undertake the diagnostics of this potential among parents for organization of their pedagogical support. The idea of “languages” of FCI might be useful for social projects implementation to support families and institute of fatherhood.

Experimental Study on Conversion of Stored Thermal Energy to Mechanical Work in FCI

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fujii-e, Y.; Kondo, S.; Mivazaki, K.

1976-01-01

In the present study the process how the thermal energy stored in the coolant should be converted into the mechanical work is emphasized as well as the generation of pressure waves, eliminating the complicated problems involved in FCI, such as fragmentation, heat transfer from molten fuel to coolant, etc. A simulation experiment has been performed in a small scale vertical channel using stagnant potassium. Large superheat inherent in liquid metals was utilized as the method to accumulate the thermal energy. The following experimental parameters were chosen to examine their effects on the energy conversion ratio: the heat flux, the cover gas pressure, the liquid column length, the temperature of the upper unheated region and the incipient boiling superheat (corresponding to the stored thermal energy). The results are summarized that the conversion ratio from thermal to kinetic energies has increasing trends with increases of the incipient boiling superheat, the cover gas pressure and the temperature of upper unheated region, ranging over 0.02-0.75% in the present experiment. The important conclusions of the present experiment are summarized as follows. The thermal to kinetic energy conversion ratio n k ranges over 0.02-0.75 % for ΔT s = 10-150 deg.C, estimating from the maximum velocity measured. The thermal to mechanical work conversion ratio n w ranges over 0.14-5.6%. The effect of the heat flux on the both conversion ratios is small within the range covered by the present experiment (g≤133 W/cm 2 ). The effect of the liquid column length is not presented. The thermal to kinetic energy conversion ratio increases with the incipient boiling superheat which corresponds to the stored thermal energy in the present experiment. The both conversion ratio decrease with a decrease of the cover gas pressure. This is attributable to the thermal contact in the upper unheated region. The both conversion ratios increase with an increase in the temperature of the upper

The 1988 CEA progress report on laser research programs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1988-01-01

The 1988 CEA progress report, concerning laser investigations, is presented. The aim of the research programs on laser/matter interactions is to contribute to the military application works on this field, as well as to the development of the inertial confinement fusion physics. The activities related to the installation and starting of Phebus laser system are described. The development of soft x-ray instrumentation are included. In the field of numerical simulations, the improvement of FCI 1 and 2 codes are extended for increasing the field of the physical phenomena taken into account and getting their use more flexible to the experiment analysis [fr

Identification of relevant conditions and experiments for fuel-coolant interactions in nuclear power plants - SERENA Co-ordinated Programme (Steam Explosion Resolution for Nuclear Applications) Phase 1, Task 1 - Final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Magallon, D.; Scott de Martinville, E.; Chaumont, B.; Filippi, M.; Meignen, R.; Berthoud, G.; Ratel, G.; Melikhov, O.I.; Melikhov, V.I.; Jacobs, H.; Buerger, Manfred; Buck, Michael; Moriyama, K.; Nakamura, H.; Hirano, M.; Muramatsu, K.; Ishikawa, J.; Song, Jinho; Bang, Kwanghyun; Suh, Namduk; Sairanen, Risto; Lindholm, Ilona

2004-01-01

SERENA (Steam Explosion Resolution for Nuclear Applications) is an international OECD programme for the resolution of FCI remaining issues. The programme has origin the concerns expressed by the Senior Group Experts on Nuclear Safety Research and Programme (SESAR/FAP) about de-emphasis of FCI research all over the world, while uncertainties still exist on some aspects of FCI. After an evaluation of remaining needs by FCI experts in a meeting October 2000, a proposal was matured during 2001 following CSNI recommendations that existing knowledge should be carefully assessed before carrying out new experiments, and reactor application should be the focus of any new action. The work programme was approved by CSNI December 2001. The programme started January 2002. The overall objective of SERENA is to obtain convergence on the understanding of FCI processes and energetics, as well as on method(s) for reliable estimate of the magnitude of loadings for realistic reactor conditions, in order to bring understanding and predictability of FCI energetics to desirable levels for risk management. The work is performed in two phases: - Phase 1 analyses and evaluates knowledge and data on FCI by using available tools with the aim to identify areas where large uncertainties/ discrepancies still subsist and are important for predicting loads in reactors with a sufficient level of confidence, and work to be done, if any, to reduce these uncertainties/discrepancies. - Phase 2 will implement analytical and experimental actions to resolve these uncertainties/ discrepancies, if required. The objective of Phase 1 is reached through comparative calculations by available tools of existing experiments and reactor cases. It is divided into five tasks: 1. Identification of relevant conditions for FCI in reactor, 2. Comparison of various approaches for calculating jet break-up and pre-mixing, 3. Comparison of various approaches for calculating the explosion phase, 4. Reactor applications, 5

Nanoscale multireference quantum chemistry: full configuration interaction on graphical processing units.

Science.gov (United States)

Fales, B Scott; Levine, Benjamin G

2015-10-13

Methods based on a full configuration interaction (FCI) expansion in an active space of orbitals are widely used for modeling chemical phenomena such as bond breaking, multiply excited states, and conical intersections in small-to-medium-sized molecules, but these phenomena occur in systems of all sizes. To scale such calculations up to the nanoscale, we have developed an implementation of FCI in which electron repulsion integral transformation and several of the more expensive steps in σ vector formation are performed on graphical processing unit (GPU) hardware. When applied to a 1.7 × 1.4 × 1.4 nm silicon nanoparticle (Si72H64) described with the polarized, all-electron 6-31G** basis set, our implementation can solve for the ground state of the 16-active-electron/16-active-orbital CASCI Hamiltonian (more than 100,000,000 configurations) in 39 min on a single NVidia K40 GPU.

Action Research and Interactive Research

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Svensson, lennart; Nielsen, Kurt Aagaard

2006-01-01

The authors present trends in Nordic action research. They ask critical questions in the development towards mode 2 and points out alternative roads for a scientific consolidation of action research and interactive research.......The authors present trends in Nordic action research. They ask critical questions in the development towards mode 2 and points out alternative roads for a scientific consolidation of action research and interactive research....

Fuel-Coolant Interactions: Visualization and Mixing Measurements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Loewen, Eric P.; Bonazza, Riccardo; Corradini, Michael L.; Johannesen, Robert E.

2002-01-01

Dynamic X-ray imaging of fuel-coolant interactions (FCI), including quantitative measurement of fuel-coolant volume fractions and length scales, has been accomplished with a novel imaging system at the Nuclear Safety Research Center at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. The imaging system consists of visible-light high-speed digital video, low-energy X-ray digital imaging, and high-energy X-ray digital imaging subsystems. The data provide information concerning the melt jet velocity, melt jet configuration, melt volume fractions, void fractions, and spatial and temporal quantification of premixing length scales for a model fuel-coolant system of molten lead poured into a water pool (fuel temperatures 500 to 1000 K; jet diameters 10 to 30 mm; coolant temperatures 20 to 90 deg. C). Overall results indicate that the FCI has three general regions of behavior, with the high fuel-coolant temperature region similar to what might be expected under severe accident conditions. It was observed that the melt jet leading edge has the highest void fraction and readily fragments into discrete masses, which then subsequently subdivide into smaller masses of length scales <10 mm. The intact jet penetrates <3 to 5 jet length/jet diameter before this breakup occurs into discrete masses, which continue to subdivide. Hydrodynamic instabilities can be visually identified at the leading edge and along the jet column with an interfacial region that consists of melt, vapor, and water. This interface region was observed to grow in size as the water pool temperature was increased, indicating mixing enhancement by boiling processes

Gender Fairness within the Force Concept Inventory

Science.gov (United States)

Traxler, Adrienne; Henderson, Rachel; Stewart, John; Stewart, Gay; Papak, Alexis; Lindell, Rebecca

2018-01-01

Research on the test structure of the Force Concept Inventory (FCI) has largely ignored gender, and research on FCI gender effects (often reported as "gender gaps") has seldom interrogated the structure of the test. These rarely crossed streams of research leave open the possibility that the FCI may not be structurally valid across…

An investigation on the material effect on the result of fuel coolant interactions in the TROI experiments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, I. K.; Kim, J. H.; Min, B. T.; Hong, S. W.

2008-01-01

One of the findings from the TROI experiments is that the results of the fuel coolant interaction (FCI) are strongly dependent on the composition of the corium, which is composed of UO 2 , ZrO 2 , Zr, steel. TEXAS- V simulation for the TROI experiments indicated that a relatively low void fraction seems to have resulted in a strong steam explosion and the low voided mixture must be induced by big size particles. The particle sizes of the non-explosive TROI tests were analyzed because the explosive tests do not represent the particles during mixing. It indicates that the debris size seems to reflect the material difference, and the trend is the same as the debris size in the TEXAS-V simulation. TEXAS-V calculation for the alumina/water system indicates that the conductivity is also related to the material effect on the FCI result. The heat loss evaluation using a single sphere film boiling model shows that a reasonable conductivity and particle size give a reliable estimation for the FCI result. Thus reliable values for the physical properties such as the surface tension and a better understanding for the breakup process would be necessary for a more convincible nuclear safety analysis. (authors)

Secondary implementation of interactive engagement teaching techniques: Choices and challenges in a Gulf Arab context

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

G. W. Hitt

2014-10-01

Full Text Available We report on efforts to design the “Collaborative Workshop Physics” (CWP instructional strategy to deliver the first interactive engagement (IE physics course at Khalifa University of Science, Technology and Research (KU, United Arab Emirates (UAE. To our knowledge, this work reports the first calculus-based, introductory mechanics course on the Arabian Peninsula using physics education research (PER-based instruction. A brief history and present context of general university and STEM teaching in the UAE is given. We present this secondary implementation (SI as a case study of a novel context and use it to determine if PER-based instruction can be successfully implemented far from the cultural context of the primary developer and, if so, how might such SIs differ from SIs within the United States (U.S. in terms of criteria for and risks to their success. With these questions in view, a prereform baseline comprised of Maryland Physics Expectations in Physics survey, Force Concept Inventory (FCI, course exam grades, and English language proficiency data are used to design a hybrid implementation of Cooperative Group Problem Solving. We find that for students with high English proficiency, normalized gain on FCI improves substantially, from ⟨g⟩=0.16±0.10 prereform to ⟨g⟩=0.47±0.08 in the CWP pilot (standard errors, indicating a successful SI. However, we also find evidence that normalized gains on FCI are strongly modulated by language proficiency and discuss likely causes. Regardless of language ability, problem-solving skill is also substantially improved and course drop-fail-withdrawal rates are cut from 50% to 24%. In particular, we find evidence in postreform student interviews that prior classroom experiences, and not broader cultural expectations about education, are the more significant cause of expectations that are at odds with the classroom norms of well-functioning PER-based instruction. We present this result as evidence

Secondary implementation of interactive engagement teaching techniques: Choices and challenges in a Gulf Arab context

Science.gov (United States)

Hitt, G. W.; Isakovic, A. F.; Fawwaz, O.; Bawa'aneh, M. S.; El-Kork, N.; Makkiyil, S.; Qattan, I. A.

2014-12-01

We report on efforts to design the "Collaborative Workshop Physics" (CWP) instructional strategy to deliver the first interactive engagement (IE) physics course at Khalifa University of Science, Technology and Research (KU), United Arab Emirates (UAE). To our knowledge, this work reports the first calculus-based, introductory mechanics course on the Arabian Peninsula using physics education research (PER)-based instruction. A brief history and present context of general university and STEM teaching in the UAE is given. We present this secondary implementation (SI) as a case study of a novel context and use it to determine if PER-based instruction can be successfully implemented far from the cultural context of the primary developer and, if so, how might such SIs differ from SIs within the United States (U.S.) in terms of criteria for and risks to their success. With these questions in view, a prereform baseline comprised of Maryland Physics Expectations in Physics survey, Force Concept Inventory (FCI), course exam grades, and English language proficiency data are used to design a hybrid implementation of Cooperative Group Problem Solving. We find that for students with high English proficiency, normalized gain on FCI improves substantially, from ⟨g⟩=0.16±0.10 prereform to ⟨g⟩=0.47±0.08 in the CWP pilot (standard errors), indicating a successful SI. However, we also find evidence that normalized gains on FCI are strongly modulated by language proficiency and discuss likely causes. Regardless of language ability, problem-solving skill is also substantially improved and course drop-fail-withdrawal rates are cut from 50% to 24%. In particular, we find evidence in postreform student interviews that prior classroom experiences, and not broader cultural expectations about education, are the more significant cause of expectations that are at odds with the classroom norms of well-functioning PER-based instruction. We present this result as evidence that PER

Suppression of stratified explosive interactions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Meeks, M.K.; Shamoun, B.I.; Bonazza, R.; Corradini, M.L. [Wisconsin Univ., Madison, WI (United States). Dept. of Nuclear Engineering and Engineering Physics

1998-01-01

Stratified Fuel-Coolant Interaction (FCI) experiments with Refrigerant-134a and water were performed in a large-scale system. Air was uniformly injected into the coolant pool to establish a pre-existing void which could suppress the explosion. Two competing effects due to the variation of the air flow rate seem to influence the intensity of the explosion in this geometrical configuration. At low flow rates, although the injected air increases the void fraction, the concurrent agitation and mixing increases the intensity of the interaction. At higher flow rates, the increase in void fraction tends to attenuate the propagated pressure wave generated by the explosion. Experimental results show a complete suppression of the vapor explosion at high rates of air injection, corresponding to an average void fraction of larger than 30%. (author)

Tensor representation techniques for full configuration interaction: A Fock space approach using the canonical product format.

Science.gov (United States)

Böhm, Karl-Heinz; Auer, Alexander A; Espig, Mike

2016-06-28

In this proof-of-principle study, we apply tensor decomposition techniques to the Full Configuration Interaction (FCI) wavefunction in order to approximate the wavefunction parameters efficiently and to reduce the overall computational effort. For this purpose, the wavefunction ansatz is formulated in an occupation number vector representation that ensures antisymmetry. If the canonical product format tensor decomposition is then applied, the Hamiltonian and the wavefunction can be cast into a multilinear product form. As a consequence, the number of wavefunction parameters does not scale to the power of the number of particles (or orbitals) but depends on the rank of the approximation and linearly on the number of particles. The degree of approximation can be controlled by a single threshold for the rank reduction procedure required in the algorithm. We demonstrate that using this approximation, the FCI Hamiltonian matrix can be stored with N(5) scaling. The error of the approximation that is introduced is below Millihartree for a threshold of ϵ = 10(-4) and no convergence problems are observed solving the FCI equations iteratively in the new format. While promising conceptually, all effort of the algorithm is shifted to the required rank reduction procedure after the contraction of the Hamiltonian with the coefficient tensor. At the current state, this crucial step is the bottleneck of our approach and even for an optimistic estimate, the algorithm scales beyond N(10) and future work has to be directed towards reduction-free algorithms.

Succeeding with interactive research

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Krogh, Andreas Hagedorn; Nielsen, Morten Velsing

2017-01-01

Increasingly, social science research is carried out in collaboration with partners outside universities, yet research methodology is lacking on how to manoeuvre in a terrain where multiple actors set expectations for research. This article conceptualizes interactive research as research...... the capacity for critique and ensuring that scientific standards are met. Based on our own experience and theories of interactive governance, network management and collaborative leadership, as well as on existing methodological literature, we provide guidance and suggest concrete tools and methods...

Succeeding with interactive research

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Krogh, Andreas Hagedorn; Nielsen, Morten Velsing

2017-01-01

the capacity for critique and ensuring that scientific standards are met. Based on our own experience and theories of interactive governance, network management and collaborative leadership, as well as on existing methodological literature, we provide guidance and suggest concrete tools and methods......Increasingly, social science research is carried out in collaboration with partners outside universities, yet research methodology is lacking on how to manoeuvre in a terrain where multiple actors set expectations for research. This article conceptualizes interactive research as research...

Research report on design allowable values of structural materials for LMFBR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1978-11-01

The present report is composed of following two main parts. i) review and re-evaluation on test results by FCI Sub-committee studies, performed from 1973 to 1976, ii) review on procedures for determining design allowable values of structural materials for LMFBR components. Re-evaluation works have been made on monotonic tensile properties at elevated temperatures, creep and creep rupture properties, creep-fatigue properties (strain rate and tensile strain hold time effects on strain fatigue properties at elevated temperatures) of Types 316 and 304 stainless steel and 2 1/4Cr-1Mo steel (base and weld metals) produced in Japan. In the first half of the present report, creep-fatigue test results obtained by FCI Sub-committee studies are subjected to re-evaluation by the present P-FCI Sub-committee. Reviews have been made on testing methods on FCI's-creep-fatigue experiments with other test data of the test materials; high temperature monotonic tensile data, creep and creep rupture data, and origin of the test materials. The data of FCI studies are compared with other reference data obtained by several Japanese laboratories. In the latter half of the present report, procedures including ASME's are reviewed for setting design allowable values for LMFBR components on the basis of high temperature strength properties obtained with materials produced in Japan. A creep rupture data of Japanese steels are issued and examined to make proposal for a design allowable stress of S sub(t) through parameter survey. (author)

Comparing large lecture mechanics curricula using the Force Concept Inventory: A five thousand student study

Science.gov (United States)

Caballero, Marcos D.; Greco, Edwin F.; Murray, Eric R.; Bujak, Keith R.; Jackson Marr, M.; Catrambone, Richard; Kohlmyer, Matthew A.; Schatz, Michael F.

2012-07-01

The performance of over 5000 students in introductory calculus-based mechanics courses at the Georgia Institute of Technology was assessed using the Force Concept Inventory (FCI). Results from two different curricula were compared: a traditional mechanics curriculum and the Matter & Interactions (M&I) curriculum. Both were taught with similar interactive pedagogy. Post-instruction FCI averages were significantly higher for the traditional curriculum than for the M&I curriculum; the differences between curricula persist after accounting for factors such as pre-instruction FCI scores, grade point averages, and SAT scores. FCI performance on categories of items organized by concepts was also compared; traditional averages were significantly higher in each concept. We examined differences in student preparation between the curricula and found that the relative fraction of homework and lecture topics devoted to FCI force and motion concepts correlated with the observed performance differences. Concept inventories, as instruments for evaluating curricular reforms, are generally limited to the particular choice of content and goals of the instrument. Moreover, concept inventories fail to measure what are perhaps the most interesting aspects of reform: the non-overlapping content and goals that are not present in courses without reform.

Seniority and orbital symmetry as tools for establishing a full configuration interaction hierarchy.

Science.gov (United States)

Bytautas, Laimutis; Henderson, Thomas M; Jiménez-Hoyos, Carlos A; Ellis, Jason K; Scuseria, Gustavo E

2011-07-28

We explore the concept of seniority number (defined as the number of unpaired electrons in a determinant) when applied to the problem of electron correlation in atomic and molecular systems. Although seniority is a good quantum number only for certain model Hamiltonians (such as the pairing Hamiltonian), we show that it provides a useful partitioning of the electronic full configuration interaction (FCI) wave function into rapidly convergent Hilbert subspaces whose weight diminishes as its seniority number increases. The primary focus of this study is the adequate description of static correlation effects. The examples considered are the ground states of the helium, beryllium, and neon atoms, the symmetric dissociation of the N(2) and CO(2) molecules, as well as the symmetric dissociation of an H(8) hydrogen chain. It is found that the symmetry constraints that are normally placed on the spatial orbitals greatly affect the convergence rate of the FCI expansion. The energy relevance of the seniority zero sector (determinants with all paired electrons) increases dramatically if orbitals of broken spatial symmetry (as those commonly used for Hubbard Hamiltonian studies) are allowed in the wave function construction. © 2011 American Institute of Physics

The effect of constraint on fuel-coolant interactions in a confined geometry

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Park, H.; Corradini, M.L. [Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States)

1995-09-01

A Fuel-Coolant Interaction (FCI or vapor explosion) is the phenomena in which a hot liquid rapidly transfers its internal energy into a surrounding colder and more volatile liquid. The energetics of such a complex multi-phase and multi-component phenomenon is partially determined by the surrounding boundary conditions. As one of the boundary conditions, we studied the effect of constraint on FCIs. The WFCI-D series of experiments were performed specifically to observe this effect. The results from these and our previous WFCI tests as well as those of other investigators are compared.

EPRI research on soil-structure interaction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tang, H.T.

1986-01-01

The paper briefly discusses the background of soil-structure interaction research and identifies the nuclear industry's need for a realistic, experimentally qualified soil-structure interaction analysis methodology for nuclear power plant design to reduce excessive conservatism and stabilize the licensing process. EPRI research and joint research efforts between EPRI and Niagara Mohawk Power Corporation, Taiwan Power Company, and the Japanese Century Research Institute for Electric Power Industry are outlined. As a result of these and other research efforts, improvement in soil-structure interactions methodologies is being realized

A simulation experiment and analysis on the effects of in-coherence in fuel coolant interaction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kondo, S.; Togo, Y.; Iwamura, T.

1976-01-01

Experimental and analytical studies were conducted to investigate effects of incoherence (space time behavior of molten fuel) on molten fuel coolant interaction. In experiments, a 2 mm diameter molten tin jet was injected upward into the water in a slender tank. The results were analyzed based on the pressure records and high speed photographs. The pressure records indicated that there were two types of interaction between molten jet and water, intermittent explosion mode and continuous one. The explosion mode appeared when the temperature of molten tin was above 350 0 C or so and that of water was below 70 0 C or so. The high speed photograph indicated that an establishment of a stable jet column was necessary for an explosive interaction and that a bubble like region grew and collapsed at the root of the jet in accordance with the generation of pressure pulse. It was found that the mass of metal which contributed to the vapor explosion was only a small part of the injected metal in the case of jet injection type contact mode and this was the reason why the gross thermal to mechanical energy conversion ratio was around 0.03% in this type of contact mode, though this ratio was around 2% if only the part of record around the pressure pulse was taken into consideration. In the analysis part, a multi-channel FCI model was developed to evaluate the spatial incoherence effect on pressure at subassembly exit. The calculated pressure trace indicated that the spatial incoherence has considerable effects for an evaluation of structure response under FCI pressure loading. (auth.)

Interaction Modeling at PROS Research Center

OpenAIRE

Panach , José ,; Aquino , Nathalie; PASTOR , Oscar

2011-01-01

Part 1: Long and Short Papers; International audience; This paper describes how the PROS Research Center deals with interaction in the context of a model-driven approach for the development of information systems. Interaction is specified in a conceptual model together with the structure and behavior of the system. Major achievements and current research challenges of PROS in the field of interaction modeling are presented.

Gender fairness within the Force Concept Inventory

Science.gov (United States)

Traxler, Adrienne; Henderson, Rachel; Stewart, John; Stewart, Gay; Papak, Alexis; Lindell, Rebecca

2018-01-01

Research on the test structure of the Force Concept Inventory (FCI) has largely ignored gender, and research on FCI gender effects (often reported as "gender gaps") has seldom interrogated the structure of the test. These rarely crossed streams of research leave open the possibility that the FCI may not be structurally valid across genders, particularly since many reported results come from calculus-based courses where 75% or more of the students are men. We examine the FCI considering both psychometrics and gender disaggregation (while acknowledging this as a binary simplification), and find several problematic questions whose removal decreases the apparent gender gap. We analyze three samples (total Npre=5391 , Npost=5769 ) looking for gender asymmetries using classical test theory, item response theory, and differential item functioning. The combination of these methods highlights six items that appear substantially unfair to women and two items biased in favor of women. No single physical concept or prior experience unifies these questions, but they are broadly consistent with problematic items identified in previous research. Removing all significantly gender-unfair items halves the gender gap in the main sample in this study. We recommend that instructors using the FCI report the reduced-instrument score as well as the 30-item score, and that credit or other benefits to students not be assigned using the biased items.

Gender fairness within the Force Concept Inventory

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adrienne Traxler

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Research on the test structure of the Force Concept Inventory (FCI has largely ignored gender, and research on FCI gender effects (often reported as “gender gaps” has seldom interrogated the structure of the test. These rarely crossed streams of research leave open the possibility that the FCI may not be structurally valid across genders, particularly since many reported results come from calculus-based courses where 75% or more of the students are men. We examine the FCI considering both psychometrics and gender disaggregation (while acknowledging this as a binary simplification, and find several problematic questions whose removal decreases the apparent gender gap. We analyze three samples (total N_{pre}=5391, N_{post}=5769 looking for gender asymmetries using classical test theory, item response theory, and differential item functioning. The combination of these methods highlights six items that appear substantially unfair to women and two items biased in favor of women. No single physical concept or prior experience unifies these questions, but they are broadly consistent with problematic items identified in previous research. Removing all significantly gender-unfair items halves the gender gap in the main sample in this study. We recommend that instructors using the FCI report the reduced-instrument score as well as the 30-item score, and that credit or other benefits to students not be assigned using the biased items.

Numerical modeling of first experiments on PbLi MHD flows in a rectangular duct with foam-based SiC flow channel insert

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Smolentsev, S., E-mail: sergey@fusion.ucla.edu [University of California, Los Angeles (United States); Courtessole, C.; Abdou, M.; Sharafat, S. [University of California, Los Angeles (United States); Sahu, S. [Institute of Plasma Research (India); Sketchley, T. [University of California, Los Angeles (United States)

2016-10-15

Highlights: • Numerical studies were performed as a pre-experimental analysis to the experiment on MHD PbLi flows in a rectangular duct with a flow channel insert (FCI). • Dynamic testing of foam-based SiC foam-based CVD coated FCI has been performed using MaPLE facility at UCLA. • Two physical models were proposed to explain the experimental results and 3D and 2D computations performed using COMSOL, HIMAG and UCLA codes. • The obtained results suggest that more work on FCI development, fabrication and testing has to be done to assure good hermetic properties before the implementation in a fusion device. - Abstract: A flow channel insert (FCI) is the key element of the DCLL blanket concept. The FCI serves as electrical and thermal insulator to reduce the MHD pressure drop and to decouple the temperature-limited ferritic structure from the flowing hot lead-lithium (PbLi) alloy. The main focus of the paper is on numerical computations to simulate MHD flows in the first experiments on PbLi flows in a stainless steel rectangular duct with a foam-based silicon carbide (SiC) FCI. A single uninterrupted long-term (∼6500 h) test has recently been performed on a CVD coated FCI sample in the flowing PbLi in a magnetic field up to 1.5 T at the PbLi temperature of 300 °C using the MaPLE loop at UCLA. An unexpectedly high MHD pressure drop measured in this experiment suggests that a PbLi ingress into the FCI occurred in the course of the experiment, resulting in degradation of electroinsulating FCI properties. The ingress through the protective CVD layer was further confirmed by the post-experimental microscopic analysis of the FCI. The numerical modeling included 2D and 3D computations using HIMAG, COMSOL and a UCLA research code to address important flow features associated with the FCI finite length, fringing magnetic field, rounded FCI corners and also to predict changes in the MHD pressure drop in the unwanted event of a PbLi ingress. Two physical

Rasch model based analysis of the Force Concept Inventory

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maja Planinic

2010-03-01

Full Text Available The Force Concept Inventory (FCI is an important diagnostic instrument which is widely used in the field of physics education research. It is therefore very important to evaluate and monitor its functioning using different tools for statistical analysis. One of such tools is the stochastic Rasch model, which enables construction of linear measures for persons and items from raw test scores and which can provide important insight in the structure and functioning of the test (how item difficulties are distributed within the test, how well the items fit the model, and how well the items work together to define the underlying construct. The data for the Rasch analysis come from the large-scale research conducted in 2006-07, which investigated Croatian high school students’ conceptual understanding of mechanics on a representative sample of 1676 students (age 17–18 years. The instrument used in research was the FCI. The average FCI score for the whole sample was found to be (27.7±0.4%, indicating that most of the students were still non-Newtonians at the end of high school, despite the fact that physics is a compulsory subject in Croatian schools. The large set of obtained data was analyzed with the Rasch measurement computer software WINSTEPS 3.66. Since the FCI is routinely used as pretest and post-test on two very different types of population (non-Newtonian and predominantly Newtonian, an additional predominantly Newtonian sample (N=141, average FCI score of 64.5% of first year students enrolled in introductory physics course at University of Zagreb was also analyzed. The Rasch model based analysis suggests that the FCI has succeeded in defining a sufficiently unidimensional construct for each population. The analysis of fit of data to the model found no grossly misfitting items which would degrade measurement. Some items with larger misfit and items with significantly different difficulties in the two samples of students do require further

Premixing of corium into water during a Fuel-Coolant Interaction. The models used in the 3 field version of the MC3D code and two examples of validation on Billeau and FARO experiments

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Berthoud, G.; Crecy, F. de; Duplat, F.; Meignen, R.; Valette, M. [CEA/Grenoble, DRN/DTP, 17 Avenue des Martyrs, 38054 Grenoble Cedex 9 (France)

1998-01-01

This paper presents the <> application of the multiphasic 3D computer code MC3D. This application is devoted to the premixing phase of a Fuel Coolant Interaction (FCI) when large amounts of molten corium flow into water and interact with it. A description of the new features of the model is given (a more complete description of the full model is given in annex). Calculations of Billeau experiments (cold or hot spheres dropped into water) and of a FARO test (<> corium dropped into 5 MPa saturated water) are presented. (author)

SIMMER-III applications to fuel-coolant interactions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Morita, K.; Kondo, Sa.; Tobita, Y.; Brear, D.J. [Power Reactor and Nuclear Fuel Development Corp., Oarai, Ibaraki (Japan). Oarai Engineering Center

1998-01-01

The main purpose of the SIMMER-III code is to provide a numerical simulation of complex multiphase, multicomponent flow problems essential to investigate core disruptive accidents in liquid-metal fast reactors (LMFRs). However, the code is designed to be sufficiently flexible to be applied to a variety of multiphase flows, in addition to LMFR safety issues. In the present study, some typical experiments relating to fuel-coolant interactions (FCIs) have been analyzed by SIMMER-III to demonstrate that the code is applicable to such complex and highly transient multiphase flow situations. It is shown that SIMMER-III can reproduce the premixing phase both in water and sodium systems as well as the propagation of steam explosion. It is thus demonstrated the code is basically capable of simulating integral multiphase thermal-hydraulic problems included in FCI experiments. (author)

Contextual Interaction Design Research: Enabling HCI

OpenAIRE

Murer , Martin; Meschtscherjakov , Alexander; Fuchsberger , Verena; Giuliani , Manuel; Neureiter , Katja; Moser , Christiane; Aslan , Ilhan; Tscheligi , Manfred

2015-01-01

International audience; Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) has always been about humans, their needs and desires. Contemporary HCI thinking investigates interactions in everyday life and puts an emphasis on the emotional and experiential qualities of interactions. At the Center for Human-Computer Interaction we seek to bridge meandering strands in the field by following a guiding metaphor that shifts focus to what has always been the core quality of our research field: Enabling HCI, as a leitmo...

Breakup of jet and drops during premixing phase of fuel coolant interactions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Haraldsson, Haraldur Oskar

2000-05-01

During the course of a hypothetical severe accident in a light water reactor, molten liquid may be introduced into a volatile coolant, which, under certain conditions, results in explosive interactions. Such fuel-coolant interactions (FCI) are characterised by an initial pre-mixing phase during which the molten liquid, metallic or oxidic in nature, undergoes a breakup (fragmentation) process which significantly increase the area available for melt-coolant contact, and thus energy transfer. Although substantial progress in the understanding of phenomenology of the FCI events has been achieved in recent years, there remain uncertainties in describing the primary and secondary breakup processes. The focus of this work is on the melt jet and drop breakup during the premixing phase of FCI. The objectives are to gain insight into the premixing phase of the FCI phenomena, to determine what fraction of the melt fragments and determine the size distribution. The approach is to perform experiments with various simulant materials, at different scales, different conditions and with variation of controlling parameters affecting jet and drop breakup processes. The analysis approach is to investigate processes at different level of detail and complexity to understand the physics, to rationalise experimental results and to develop and validate models. In the first chapter a brief introduction and review of the status of the FCI phenomena is performed. A review of previous and current experimental projects is performed. The status of the experimental projects and major findings are outlined. The first part of the second chapter deals with experimental investigation of jet breakup. Two series of experiments were performed with low and high temperature jets. The low temperature experiments employed cerrobend-70 as jet liquid. A systematic investigation of thermal hydraulic conditions and melt physical properties on the jet fragmentation and particle debris characteristics was

Dividing the Force Concept Inventory into two equivalent half-length tests

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jing Han

2015-05-01

Full Text Available The Force Concept Inventory (FCI is a 30-question multiple-choice assessment that has been a building block for much of the physics education research done today. In practice, there are often concerns regarding the length of the test and possible test-retest effects. Since many studies in the literature use the mean score of the FCI as the primary variable, it would be useful then to have different shorter tests that can produce FCI-equivalent scores while providing the benefits of being quicker to administer and overcoming the test-retest effects. In this study, we divide the 1995 version of the FCI into two half-length tests; each contains a different subset of the original FCI questions. The two new tests are shorter, still cover the same set of concepts, and produce mean scores equivalent to those of the FCI. Using a large quantitative data set collected at a large midwestern university, we statistically compare the assessment features of the two half-length tests and the full-length FCI. The results show that the mean error of equivalent scores between any two of the three tests is within 3%. Scores from all tests are well correlated. Based on the analysis, it appears that the two half-length tests can be a viable option for score based assessment that need to administer tests quickly or need to measure short-term gains where using identical pre- and post-test questions is a concern.

The effect of coolant quantity on local fuel–coolant interactions in a molten pool

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cheng, Songbai; Matsuba, Ken-ichi; Isozaki, Mikio; Kamiyama, Kenji; Suzuki, Tohru; Tobita, Yoshiharu

2015-01-01

Highlights: • We investigate local fuel–coolant interactions in a molten pool. • As water volume increases, limited pressurization and mechanical energy observed. • Only a part of water is evaporated and responsible for the pressurization. - Abstract: Studies on local fuel–coolant interactions (FCI) in a molten pool are important for severe accident analyses of sodium-cooled fast reactors (SFRs). Motivated by providing some evidence for understanding this interaction, in this study several experimental tests, with comparatively larger difference in coolant volumes, were conducted by delivering a given quantity of water into a simulated molten fuel pool (formed with a low-melting-point alloy). Interaction characteristics including the pressure-buildup as well as mechanical energy release and its conversion efficiency are evaluated and compared. It is found that as water quantity increases, a limited pressure-buildup and the resultant mechanical energy release are observable. The performed analyses also suggest that only a part of water is probably vaporized during local FCIs and responsible for the pressurization and mechanical energy release, especially for those cases with much larger water volumes

Symbolic Interaction and Applied Social Research

Science.gov (United States)

Kotarba, Joseph A.

2014-01-01

In symbolic interaction, a traditional yet unfortunate and unnecessary distinction has been made between basic and applied research. The argument has been made that basic research is intended to generate new knowledge, whereas applied research is intended to apply knowledge to the solution of practical (social and organizational) problems. I will argue that the distinction between basic and applied research in symbolic interaction is outdated and dysfunctional. The masters of symbolic interactionist thought have left us a proud legacy of shaping their scholarly thinking and inquiry in response to and in light of practical issues of the day (e.g., Znaniecki, and Blumer). Current interactionist work continues this tradition in topical areas such as social justice studies. Applied research, especially in term of evaluation and needs assessment studies, can be designed to serve both basic and applied goals. Symbolic interaction provides three great resources to do this. The first is its orientation to dynamic sensitizing concepts that direct research and ask questions instead of supplying a priori and often impractical answers. The second is its orientation to qualitative methods, and appreciation for the logic of grounded theory. The third is interactionism’s overall holistic approach to interfacing with the everyday life world. The primary illustrative case here is the qualitative component of the evaluation of an NIH-funded, translational medical research program. The qualitative component has provided interactionist-inspired insights into translational research, such as examining cultural change in medical research in terms of changes in the form and content of formal and informal discourse among scientists; delineating the impact of significant symbols such as "my lab" on the social organization of science; and appreciating the essence of the self-concept "scientist" on the increasingly bureaucratic and administrative identities of medical researchers. This

Dividing the Force Concept Inventory into Two Equivalent Half-Length Tests

Science.gov (United States)

Han, Jing; Bao, Lei; Chen, Li; Cai, Tianfang; Pi, Yuan; Zhou, Shaona; Tu, Yan; Koenig, Kathleen

2015-01-01

The Force Concept Inventory (FCI) is a 30-question multiple-choice assessment that has been a building block for much of the physics education research done today. In practice, there are often concerns regarding the length of the test and possible test-retest effects. Since many studies in the literature use the mean score of the FCI as the…

Applying the Socratic Method to Physics Education

Science.gov (United States)

Corcoran, Ed

2005-04-01

We have restructured University Physics I and II in accordance with methods that PER has shown to be effective, including a more interactive discussion- and activity-based curriculum based on the premise that developing understanding requires an interactive process in which students have the opportunity to talk through and think through ideas with both other students and the teacher. Studies have shown that in classes implementing this approach to teaching as compared to classes using a traditional approach, students have significantly higher gains on the Force Concept Inventory (FCI). This has been true in UPI. However, UPI FCI results seem to suggest that there is a significant conceptual hole in students' understanding of Newton's Second Law. Two labs in UPI which teach Newton's Second Law will be redesigned replacing more activity with students as a group talking through, thinking through, and answering conceptual questions asked by the TA. The results will be measured by comparing FCI results to those from previous semesters, coupled with interviews. The results will be analyzed, and we will attempt to understand why gains were or were not made.

Overview of severe accident research at the USNRC

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Basu, S.; Ader, C.E.

1999-01-01

This paper summarizes the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission's (USNRC) severe accident research activities, in particular, progress made in the past year toward the resolution and/or improved understanding of a number of severe accident issues. The direct containment heating (DCH) is nearing resolution for Combustion Engineering and Babcock and Wilcox type pressurized water reactors (PWRs) are well as for ice condensers. Additionally, two lower pressure DCH tests were conducted recently at the Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) under the NRC/IPSN/FzK sponsorship to provide data regarding intentional depressurization as an accident management strategy to mitigate DCH loads. In the area of lower head integrity, the experimental program to investigate boiling heat transfer on downward facing curved surfaces with insulation was completed. Finally, the SNL program investigating the creep rupture behavior of the lower head under the combined thermo-mechanical loading was completed recently. Additional lower head experiments at SNL are being planned as an OECD project. During the past year, the USNRC participated in two programs aimed at extending the data base on hydrogen combustion into more prototypic situations. Testing was performed at the Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) to investigate detonation transmission at elevated temperatures. In a cooperative program under the sponsorship of NRC/IPSN/FzK, Russian Research Center (RRC) investigated hydrogen combustion issues at large scale at the RUT facility. The experimental program at the SNL to examine the performance of Passive Autocatalytic Recombiners (PARs) was completed also this year. In the fuel-coolant interaction (FCI) area, the experimental work at the Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) to investigate chemical augmentation of FCI energetics was completed as was the experimental work at the University of Wisconsin (UW) involving one-dimensional propagation experiments (similar to KROTOS). The USNRC is

A full-configuration-interaction nuclear orbital approach and application for small doped He clusters

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lara-Castells, M. P. de, E-mail: delara@iff.csic.es; Aguirre, N. F., E-mail: delara@iff.csic.es; Delgado-Barrio, G., E-mail: delara@iff.csic.es; Villarreal, P., E-mail: delara@iff.csic.es [Instituto de Física Fundamental (CSIC), Serrano 123, 28006 Madrid (Spain); Mitrushchenkov, A. O. [Université Paris-Est, Laboratoire Modélisation et Simulation Multi Echelle, MSME UMR 8208 CNRS, 5 bd Descartes, 77454 Marne-la-Vallée (France)

2015-01-22

An efficient full-configuration-interaction 'nuclear orbital' treatment was developed as a benchmark quantum-chemistry-like method to calculate, ground and excited, fermionic 'solvent' wave-functions and applied to {sup 3}He{sub N} clusters with atomic or molecular impurities [J. Chem. Phys. (Communication) 125, 221101 (2006)]. The main difficulty in handling doped {sup 3}He{sub N} clusters lies in the Fermi-Dirac nuclear statistics, the wide amplitudes of the He-dopant and He-He motions, and the hard-core He-He interaction at short distances. This paper overviews the theoretical approach and its recent applications to energetic, structural and spectroscopic aspects of different dopant-{sup 3}He{sub N} clusters. Preliminary results by using the latest version of the FCI-NO computational implementation, to bosonic Cl{sub 2}(X)-({sup 4}He){sub N} clusters, are also shown.

Designing interaction, voice, and inclusion in AAC research.

Science.gov (United States)

Pullin, Graham; Treviranus, Jutta; Patel, Rupal; Higginbotham, Jeff

2017-09-01

The ISAAC 2016 Research Symposium included a Design Stream that examined timely issues across augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), framed in terms of designing interaction, designing voice, and designing inclusion. Each is a complex term with multiple meanings; together they represent challenging yet important frontiers of AAC research. The Design Stream was conceived by the four authors, researchers who have been exploring AAC and disability-related design throughout their careers, brought together by a shared conviction that designing for communication implies more than ensuring access to words and utterances. Each of these presenters came to AAC from a different background: interaction design, inclusive design, speech science, and social science. The resulting discussion among 24 symposium participants included controversies about the role of technology, tensions about independence and interdependence, and a provocation about taste. The paper concludes by proposing new directions for AAC research: (a) new interdisciplinary research could combine scientific and design research methods, as distant yet complementary as microanalysis and interaction design, (b) new research tools could seed accessible and engaging contextual research into voice within a social model of disability, and (c) new open research networks could support inclusive, international and interdisciplinary research.

Topological and conventional order of spinless fermions in 2D lattices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kourtis, Stefanos

2014-01-01

After an introduction to the quintessential properties characterizing quantum Hall effects and topological phases in Part I of the present text, Part II has ventured into the less explored realm of correlated topological states in lattices. Haldane-like models were doped to fractional fillings of the gapped lower band and short-range interactions were used to induce lattice reincarnations of fractional quantum Hall states, called fractional Chern insulators (FCI). In Chapter 5, it was shown that band dispersion, which is usually taken to be zero to mimic Landau levels, can affect the competition between CDW and FCI states and actually favor the latter against the former. Furthermore, a first rudimentary look at the effect of magnetic disorder on a fractionally quantized topological invariant indicated that, even though the impact of disorder is intricate, the quantization of the invariant remains intact. The results presented in Chapter 6 demonstrate that FCI states do not necessarily need to come purely from a single Chern band, since strong interactions that mix bands seem to enhance their stability. The possibility for obtaining exotic correlated topological states was exemplified by the topological pinball liquid - a composite quantum state comprising of a CDW and a FCI - in Chapter 7. The conclusions of the preceding Chapters can be now set forth as answers to the questions posed in the beginning of Part II: - Are weak or strong interactions more favorable to correlated topological states? - Are insulators or semiconductors more suitable hosts? - Are dispersive or flat bands more susceptible to topological order? - Are correlated topological phases beyond the fractional quantum Hall paradigm possible in single-species many-particle systems?

Topological and conventional order of spinless fermions in 2D lattices

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kourtis, Stefanos

2014-10-15

After an introduction to the quintessential properties characterizing quantum Hall effects and topological phases in Part I of the present text, Part II has ventured into the less explored realm of correlated topological states in lattices. Haldane-like models were doped to fractional fillings of the gapped lower band and short-range interactions were used to induce lattice reincarnations of fractional quantum Hall states, called fractional Chern insulators (FCI). In Chapter 5, it was shown that band dispersion, which is usually taken to be zero to mimic Landau levels, can affect the competition between CDW and FCI states and actually favor the latter against the former. Furthermore, a first rudimentary look at the effect of magnetic disorder on a fractionally quantized topological invariant indicated that, even though the impact of disorder is intricate, the quantization of the invariant remains intact. The results presented in Chapter 6 demonstrate that FCI states do not necessarily need to come purely from a single Chern band, since strong interactions that mix bands seem to enhance their stability. The possibility for obtaining exotic correlated topological states was exemplified by the topological pinball liquid - a composite quantum state comprising of a CDW and a FCI - in Chapter 7. The conclusions of the preceding Chapters can be now set forth as answers to the questions posed in the beginning of Part II: - Are weak or strong interactions more favorable to correlated topological states? - Are insulators or semiconductors more suitable hosts? - Are dispersive or flat bands more susceptible to topological order? - Are correlated topological phases beyond the fractional quantum Hall paradigm possible in single-species many-particle systems?.

Breakup of jet and drops during premixing phase of fuel coolant interactions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haraldsson, Haraldur Oskar

2000-05-01

During the course of a hypothetical severe accident in a light water reactor, molten liquid may be introduced into a volatile coolant, which, under certain conditions, results in explosive interactions. Such fuel-coolant interactions (FCI) are characterised by an initial pre-mixing phase during which the molten liquid, metallic or oxidic in nature, undergoes a breakup (fragmentation) process which significantly increase the area available for melt-coolant contact, and thus energy transfer. Although substantial progress in the understanding of phenomenology of the FCI events has been achieved in recent years, there remain uncertainties in describing the primary and secondary breakup processes. The focus of this work is on the melt jet and drop breakup during the premixing phase of FCI. The objectives are to gain insight into the premixing phase of the FCI phenomena, to determine what fraction of the melt fragments and determine the size distribution. The approach is to perform experiments with various simulant materials, at different scales, different conditions and with variation of controlling parameters affecting jet and drop breakup processes. The analysis approach is to investigate processes at different level of detail and complexity to understand the physics, to rationalise experimental results and to develop and validate models. In the first chapter a brief introduction and review of the status of the FCI phenomena is performed. A review of previous and current experimental projects is performed. The status of the experimental projects and major findings are outlined. The first part of the second chapter deals with experimental investigation of jet breakup. Two series of experiments were performed with low and high temperature jets. The low temperature experiments employed cerrobend-70 as jet liquid. A systematic investigation of thermal hydraulic conditions and melt physical properties on the jet fragmentation and particle debris characteristics was

Teaching assistants’ performance at identifying common introductory student difficulties in mechanics revealed by the Force Concept Inventory

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alexandru Maries

2016-05-01

Full Text Available The Force Concept Inventory (FCI has been widely used to assess student understanding of introductory mechanics concepts by a variety of educators and physics education researchers. One reason for this extensive use is that many of the items on the FCI have strong distractor choices which correspond to students’ alternate conceptions in mechanics. Instruction is unlikely to be effective if instructors do not know the common alternate conceptions of introductory physics students and explicitly take into account students’ initial knowledge states in their instructional design. Here, we discuss research involving the FCI to evaluate one aspect of the pedagogical content knowledge of teaching assistants (TAs: knowledge of introductory student alternate conceptions in mechanics as revealed by the FCI. For each item on the FCI, the TAs were asked to identify the most common incorrect answer choice of introductory physics students. This exercise was followed by a class discussion with the TAs related to this task, including the importance of knowing student difficulties in teaching and learning. Then, we used FCI pretest and post-test data from a large population (∼900 of introductory physics students to assess the extent to which TAs were able to identify alternate conceptions of introductory students related to force and motion. In addition, we carried out think-aloud interviews with graduate students who had more than two semesters of teaching experience in recitations to examine how they reason about the task. We find that while the TAs, on average, performed better than random guessing at identifying introductory students’ difficulties with FCI content, they did not identify many common difficulties that introductory physics students have after traditional instruction. We discuss specific alternate conceptions, the extent to which TAs are able to identify them, and results from the think-aloud interviews that provided valuable information

Researching patient-professional interactions.

Science.gov (United States)

Bury, Mike

2004-01-01

This paper explores the nature and future of social research on patient-professional interactions. It first sketches the historical background to such research and notes that in the UK and US this was characterised by a focus on the doctor-patient relationship. This research embodied a sceptical view of the power of the medical profession in sustaining and promoting social inequalities, and a critique of 'medical dominance' over other health care professionals and patients. The paper then goes on to outline changes occurring in the nature of professional practice that suggest a fundamental shift in the social relations of health care and the role of medicine. These include a putative loss of public confidence in the medical profession and the authority of science, an increased role of the media in informing patients, and a change in the state's relationship with health care professionals. Finally, the paper outlines some items for a future research agenda, including the need to understand better patient preferences about changes in health care delivery, including a willingness to engage in 'partnership', and the possibilities and barriers to change in professional practice.

Quantum computing applied to calculations of molecular energies: CH2 benchmark.

Science.gov (United States)

Veis, Libor; Pittner, Jiří

2010-11-21

Quantum computers are appealing for their ability to solve some tasks much faster than their classical counterparts. It was shown in [Aspuru-Guzik et al., Science 309, 1704 (2005)] that they, if available, would be able to perform the full configuration interaction (FCI) energy calculations with a polynomial scaling. This is in contrast to conventional computers where FCI scales exponentially. We have developed a code for simulation of quantum computers and implemented our version of the quantum FCI algorithm. We provide a detailed description of this algorithm and the results of the assessment of its performance on the four lowest lying electronic states of CH(2) molecule. This molecule was chosen as a benchmark, since its two lowest lying (1)A(1) states exhibit a multireference character at the equilibrium geometry. It has been shown that with a suitably chosen initial state of the quantum register, one is able to achieve the probability amplification regime of the iterative phase estimation algorithm even in this case.

A Commentary on Parent-Child Cognitive Interaction Research: What Have we Learned From Two Decades of Research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yvette Renee Harris

2016-08-01

Full Text Available The role of family influences on preschool and school age cognitive development has received considerable empirical attention from cognitive developmental psychology researchers in the last few decades. As a result of the interest, investigators have focused their attention on developing coding/observational systems to capture the interactions occurring between mothers and their young children. This paper reviews a select body of research on parent child cognitive learning interactions with the goal of determining how the researchers have operationalized the behaviors that occur within learning interactions. The paper concludes with a discussion of the suggestions on next steps for conducting parent child cognitive learning interaction research in the future.

LETTERS AND COMMENTS: Comment on 'The effects of students' reasoning abilities on conceptual understanding and problem-solving skills in introductory mechanics'

Science.gov (United States)

Coletta, Vincent P.; Phillips, Jeffrey A.; Savinainen, Antti; Steinert, Jeffrey J.

2008-09-01

In a recent article, Ates and Cataloglu (2007 Eur. J. Phys. 28 1161-71), in analysing results for a course in introductory mechanics for prospective science teachers, found no statistically significant correlation between students' pre-instruction scores on the Lawson classroom test of scientific reasoning ability (CTSR) and post-instruction scores on the force concept inventory (FCI). As a possible explanation, the authors suggest that the FCI does not probe for skills required to determine reasoning abilities. Our previously published research directly contradicts the authors' finding. We summarize our research and present a likely explanation for their observation of no correlation.

OECD/NEA SERENA Project for a Resolution of Ex-vessel Steam Explosion Risks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hong, S. W.; Kim, J. H.; Min, B. T.; Park, I. K.; Ha, K. S.; Hong, S. H.; Song, J. H.; Lee, J. Y.; Kim, H. D.

2008-01-01

Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI) has conducted the TROI (Test for Real cOrium Interaction with water) program for a study on a fuel coolant interaction (FCI) since 2001. More than 50 experiments using several prototypic materials have been carried out so far. SERENA phase 2 project which has been conducting since 1st Oct. 2007 is aimed a the resolution of the uncertainties on the void fraction and the melt composition effect by performing a limited number of well-designed tests with advanced instrumentations to clarify the nature of a prototypic material with mild steam explosion characteristics and to provide innovative experimental data for a computer code validation

Characterization of topological phases in models of interacting fermions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Motruk, Johannes

2016-01-01

The concept of topology in condensed matter physics has led to the discovery of rich and exotic physics in recent years. Especially when strong correlations are included, phenomenons such as fractionalization and anyonic particle statistics can arise. In this thesis, we study several systems hosting topological phases of interacting fermions. In the first part, we consider one-dimensional systems of parafermions, which are generalizations of Majorana fermions, in the presence of a Z N charge symmetry. We classify the symmetry-protected topological (SPT) phases that can occur in these systems using the projective representations of the symmetries and find a finite number of distinct phases depending on the prime factorization of N. The different phases exhibit characteristic degeneracies in their entanglement spectrum (ES). Apart from these SPT phases, we report the occurrence of parafermion condensate phases for certain values of N. When including an additional Z N symmetry, we find a non-Abelian group structure under the addition of phases. In the second part of the thesis, we focus on two-dimensional lattice models of spinless fermions. First, we demonstrate the detection of a fractional Chern insulator (FCI) phase in the Haldane honeycomb model on an infinite cylinder by means of the density-matrix renormalization group (DMRG). We report the calculation of several quantities characterizing the topological order of the state, i.e., (i) the Hall conductivity, (ii) the spectral flow and level counting in the ES, (iii) the topological entanglement entropy, and (iv) the charge and topological spin of the quasiparticles. Since we have access to sufficiently large system sizes without band projection with DMRG, we are in addition able to investigate the transition from a metal to the FCI at small interactions which we find to be of first order. In a further study, we consider a time-reversal symmetric model on the honeycomb lattice where a Chern insulator (CI) induced

[Research in elementary particles and interactions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Adair, R.; Sandweiss, J.; Schmidt, M.

1992-05-01

Research of the Yale University groups in the areas of elementary particles and their interactions are outlined. Work on the following topics is reported: development of CDF trigger system; SSC detector development; study of heavy flavors at TPL; search for composite objects produced in relativistic heavy-ion collisions; high-energy polarized lepton-nucleon scattering; rare K + decays; unpolarized high-energy muon scattering; muon anomalous magnetic moment; theoretical high-energy physics including gauge theories, symmetry breaking, string theory, and gravitation theory; study of e + e - interactions with the SLD detector at SLAC; and the production and decay of particles containing charm and beauty quarks

Symbolic Interaction and Applied Social Research: A FOCUS ON TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCE RESEARCH1.

Science.gov (United States)

Kotarba, Joseph A

2014-08-01

In symbolic interaction, a traditional yet unfortunate and unnecessary distinction has been made between basic and applied research. The argument has been made that basic research is intended to generate new knowledge, whereas applied research is intended to apply knowledge to the solution of practical (social and organizational) problems. I will argue that the distinction between basic and applied research in symbolic interaction is outdated and dysfunctional. The masters of symbolic interactionist thought have left us a proud legacy of shaping their scholarly thinking and inquiry in response to and in light of practical issues of the day (e.g., Znaniecki, and Blumer). Current interactionist work continues this tradition in topical areas such as social justice studies. Applied research, especially in term of evaluation and needs assessment studies, can be designed to serve both basic and applied goals. Symbolic interaction provides three great resources to do this. The first is its orientation to dynamic sensitizing concepts that direct research and ask questions instead of supplying a priori and often impractical answers. The second is its orientation to qualitative methods, and appreciation for the logic of grounded theory. The third is interactionism's overall holistic approach to interfacing with the everyday life world. The primary illustrative case here is the qualitative component of the evaluation of an NIH-funded, translational medical research program. The qualitative component has provided interactionist-inspired insights into translational research, such as examining cultural change in medical research in terms of changes in the form and content of formal and informal discourse among scientists; delineating the impact of significant symbols such as "my lab" on the social organization of science; and appreciating the essence of the self-concept "scientist" on the increasingly bureaucratic and administrative identities of medical researchers. This

Contemporary state of spacecraft/environment interaction research

CERN Document Server

Novikov, L S

1999-01-01

Various space environment effects on spacecraft materials and equipment, and the reverse effects of spacecrafts and rockets on space environment are considered. The necessity of permanent updating and perfection of our knowledge on spacecraft/environment interaction processes is noted. Requirements imposed on models of space environment in theoretical and experimental researches of various aspects of the spacecraft/environment interaction problem are formulated. In this field, main problems which need to be solved today and in the nearest future are specified. The conclusion is made that the joint analysis of both aspects of spacecraft/environment interaction problem promotes the most effective solution of the problem.

Human-Robot Interaction Directed Research Project

Science.gov (United States)

Rochlis, Jennifer; Ezer, Neta; Sandor, Aniko

2011-01-01

Human-robot interaction (HRI) is about understanding and shaping the interactions between humans and robots (Goodrich & Schultz, 2007). It is important to evaluate how the design of interfaces and command modalities affect the human s ability to perform tasks accurately, efficiently, and effectively (Crandall, Goodrich, Olsen Jr., & Nielsen, 2005) It is also critical to evaluate the effects of human-robot interfaces and command modalities on operator mental workload (Sheridan, 1992) and situation awareness (Endsley, Bolt , & Jones, 2003). By understanding the effects of interface design on human performance, workload, and situation awareness, interfaces can be developed that support the human in performing tasks with minimal errors and with appropriate interaction time and effort. Thus, the results of research on human-robot interfaces have direct implications for design. Because the factors associated with interfaces and command modalities in HRI are too numerous to address in 3 years of research, the proposed research concentrates on three manageable areas applicable to National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) robot systems. These topic areas emerged from the Fiscal Year (FY) 2011 work that included extensive literature reviews and observations of NASA systems. The three topic areas are: 1) video overlays, 2) camera views, and 3) command modalities. Each area is described in detail below, along with relevance to existing NASA human-robot systems. In addition to studies in these three topic areas, a workshop is proposed for FY12. The workshop will bring together experts in human-robot interaction and robotics to discuss the state of the practice as applicable to research in space robotics. Studies proposed in the area of video overlays consider two factors in the implementation of augmented reality (AR) for operator displays during teleoperation. The first of these factors is the type of navigational guidance provided by AR symbology. In the proposed

Technology and Teacher-Student Interactions: A Review of Empirical Research

Science.gov (United States)

Harper, Ben

2018-01-01

As technology becomes ubiquitous in education, it is critical to understand the ways in which technology influences interactions between teachers and their students. The overarching research question that guided this systematic review was: What does research tell us about how technology influences interactions between teachers and students in K-12…

Research-practice interactions as reported in recent design research studies: Still promising, still hazy

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ormel, Bart; Pareja Roblin, Natalie; McKenney, Susan; Voogt, Joke; Pieters, Jules

2012-01-01

Ormel, B., Pareja Roblin, N., McKenney, S., Voogt, J., & Pieters, J. (2012). Research-practice interactions as reported in recent design research studies: Still promising, still hazy. Educational Technology Research & Development, 60(6), 967-986. doi:10.1007/s11423-012-9261-6

Correlation of understanding of physics and psychological symptoms among high-school students in Greece

Science.gov (United States)

Aggeliki, Anagnostopoulou; Miltiades, Kyprianou; Antigoni-Elisavet, Rota; Evangelia, Pavlatou; Loizos, Zaphiris

2017-09-01

Depression may essentially influence cognitive function contributing to poor school performance. The present study undertakes to determine the existence and strength of correlation between depressive symptomatology and other mental conditions with the acquired level of understanding of Newtonian physics taught in schools. The current study recruited 490 students (262 girls, 228 boys) attending the first semester of the Greek Second Grade of General Lyceum School. Force Concept Inventory (FCI) tested the depth of the students’ understanding of Newtonian Physics. Symptom Checklist-90-R assessed general mental status. The tests took place in the classroom during a 1 h session. Low FCI scores significantly correlated with mental conditions, with depression ranking first. Girls had higher scores in all nine symptoms scales of SCL-90 and lower FCI scores. Stepwise regression models proved that the gender effect on FCI could be effectively explained through the significant effect of depression. An understanding of Newtonian physics among high school students may be restricted by common problematic mental conditions, with depression being the greatest among all. Further research, using a more systematic approach to measure depression among adolescents with poor understanding of physics, would help to elucidate the nature of the effect.

Video elicitation interviews: a qualitative research method for investigating physician-patient interactions.

Science.gov (United States)

Henry, Stephen G; Fetters, Michael D

2012-01-01

We describe the concept and method of video elicitation interviews and provide practical guidance for primary care researchers who want to use this qualitative method to investigate physician-patient interactions. During video elicitation interviews, researchers interview patients or physicians about a recent clinical interaction using a video recording of that interaction as an elicitation tool. Video elicitation is useful because it allows researchers to integrate data about the content of physician-patient interactions gained from video recordings with data about participants' associated thoughts, beliefs, and emotions gained from elicitation interviews. This method also facilitates investigation of specific events or moments during interactions. Video elicitation interviews are logistically demanding and time consuming, and they should be reserved for research questions that cannot be fully addressed using either standard interviews or video recordings in isolation. As many components of primary care fall into this category, high-quality video elicitation interviews can be an important method for understanding and improving physician-patient interactions in primary care.

Video Elicitation Interviews: A Qualitative Research Method for Investigating Physician-Patient Interactions

Science.gov (United States)

Henry, Stephen G.; Fetters, Michael D.

2012-01-01

We describe the concept and method of video elicitation interviews and provide practical guidance for primary care researchers who want to use this qualitative method to investigate physician-patient interactions. During video elicitation interviews, researchers interview patients or physicians about a recent clinical interaction using a video recording of that interaction as an elicitation tool. Video elicitation is useful because it allows researchers to integrate data about the content of physician-patient interactions gained from video recordings with data about participants’ associated thoughts, beliefs, and emotions gained from elicitation interviews. This method also facilitates investigation of specific events or moments during interactions. Video elicitation interviews are logistically demanding and time consuming, and they should be reserved for research questions that cannot be fully addressed using either standard interviews or video recordings in isolation. As many components of primary care fall into this category, high-quality video elicitation interviews can be an important method for understanding and improving physician-patient interactions in primary care. PMID:22412003

Interpreting force concept inventory scores: Normalized gain and SAT scores

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jeffrey J. Steinert

2007-05-01

Full Text Available Preinstruction SAT scores and normalized gains (G on the force concept inventory (FCI were examined for individual students in interactive engagement (IE courses in introductory mechanics at one high school (N=335 and one university (N=292 , and strong, positive correlations were found for both populations ( r=0.57 and r=0.46 , respectively. These correlations are likely due to the importance of cognitive skills and abstract reasoning in learning physics. The larger correlation coefficient for the high school population may be a result of the much shorter time interval between taking the SAT and studying mechanics, because the SAT may provide a more current measure of abilities when high school students begin the study of mechanics than it does for college students, who begin mechanics years after the test is taken. In prior research a strong correlation between FCI G and scores on Lawson’s Classroom Test of Scientific Reasoning for students from the same two schools was observed. Our results suggest that, when interpreting class average normalized FCI gains and comparing different classes, it is important to take into account the variation of students’ cognitive skills, as measured either by the SAT or by Lawson’s test. While Lawson’s test is not commonly given to students in most introductory mechanics courses, SAT scores provide a readily available alternative means of taking account of students’ reasoning abilities. Knowing the students’ cognitive level before instruction also allows one to alter instruction or to use an intervention designed to improve students’ cognitive level.

Interpreting force concept inventory scores: Normalized gain and SAT scores

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vincent P. Coletta

2007-05-01

Full Text Available Preinstruction SAT scores and normalized gains (G on the force concept inventory (FCI were examined for individual students in interactive engagement (IE courses in introductory mechanics at one high school (N=335 and one university (N=292, and strong, positive correlations were found for both populations (r=0.57 and r=0.46, respectively. These correlations are likely due to the importance of cognitive skills and abstract reasoning in learning physics. The larger correlation coefficient for the high school population may be a result of the much shorter time interval between taking the SAT and studying mechanics, because the SAT may provide a more current measure of abilities when high school students begin the study of mechanics than it does for college students, who begin mechanics years after the test is taken. In prior research a strong correlation between FCI G and scores on Lawson’s Classroom Test of Scientific Reasoning for students from the same two schools was observed. Our results suggest that, when interpreting class average normalized FCI gains and comparing different classes, it is important to take into account the variation of students’ cognitive skills, as measured either by the SAT or by Lawson’s test. While Lawson’s test is not commonly given to students in most introductory mechanics courses, SAT scores provide a readily available alternative means of taking account of students’ reasoning abilities. Knowing the students’ cognitive level before instruction also allows one to alter instruction or to use an intervention designed to improve students’ cognitive level.

2004 Atomic and Molecular Interactions Gordon Research Conference

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dr. Paul J. Dagdigian

2004-01-01

The 2004 Gordon Research Conference on Atomic and Molecular Interactions was held July 11-16 at Colby-Sawyer College, New London, New Hampshire. This latest edition in a long-standing conference series featured invited talks and contributed poster papers on dynamics and intermolecular interactions in a variety of environments, ranging from the gas phase through surfaces and condensed media. A total of 90 conferees participated in the conference

2004 Atomic and Molecular Interactions Gordon Research Conference

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dr. Paul J. Dagdigian

2004-10-25

The 2004 Gordon Research Conference on Atomic and Molecular Interactions was held July 11-16 at Colby-Sawyer College, New London, New Hampshire. This latest edition in a long-standing conference series featured invited talks and contributed poster papers on dynamics and intermolecular interactions in a variety of environments, ranging from the gas phase through surfaces and condensed media. A total of 90 conferees participated in the conference.

Research progress in machine learning methods for gene-gene interaction detection.

Science.gov (United States)

Peng, Zhe-Ye; Tang, Zi-Jun; Xie, Min-Zhu

2018-03-20

Complex diseases are results of gene-gene and gene-environment interactions. However, the detection of high-dimensional gene-gene interactions is computationally challenging. In the last two decades, machine-learning approaches have been developed to detect gene-gene interactions with some successes. In this review, we summarize the progress in research on machine learning methods, as applied to gene-gene interaction detection. It systematically examines the principles and limitations of the current machine learning methods used in genome wide association studies (GWAS) to detect gene-gene interactions, such as neural networks (NN), random forest (RF), support vector machines (SVM) and multifactor dimensionality reduction (MDR), and provides some insights on the future research directions in the field.

Characterization of topological phases in models of interacting fermions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Motruk, Johannes

2016-05-25

The concept of topology in condensed matter physics has led to the discovery of rich and exotic physics in recent years. Especially when strong correlations are included, phenomenons such as fractionalization and anyonic particle statistics can arise. In this thesis, we study several systems hosting topological phases of interacting fermions. In the first part, we consider one-dimensional systems of parafermions, which are generalizations of Majorana fermions, in the presence of a Z{sub N} charge symmetry. We classify the symmetry-protected topological (SPT) phases that can occur in these systems using the projective representations of the symmetries and find a finite number of distinct phases depending on the prime factorization of N. The different phases exhibit characteristic degeneracies in their entanglement spectrum (ES). Apart from these SPT phases, we report the occurrence of parafermion condensate phases for certain values of N. When including an additional Z{sub N} symmetry, we find a non-Abelian group structure under the addition of phases. In the second part of the thesis, we focus on two-dimensional lattice models of spinless fermions. First, we demonstrate the detection of a fractional Chern insulator (FCI) phase in the Haldane honeycomb model on an infinite cylinder by means of the density-matrix renormalization group (DMRG). We report the calculation of several quantities characterizing the topological order of the state, i.e., (i) the Hall conductivity, (ii) the spectral flow and level counting in the ES, (iii) the topological entanglement entropy, and (iv) the charge and topological spin of the quasiparticles. Since we have access to sufficiently large system sizes without band projection with DMRG, we are in addition able to investigate the transition from a metal to the FCI at small interactions which we find to be of first order. In a further study, we consider a time-reversal symmetric model on the honeycomb lattice where a Chern insulator (CI

Fuel fragmentation model advances using TEXAS-V

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Corradini, M.L.; El-Beshbeeshy, M.; Nilsuwankowsit, S.; Tang, J. [Wisconsin Univ., Madison, WI (United States). Dept. of Nuclear Engineering and Engineering Physics

1998-01-01

Because an energetic fuel-coolant interaction may be a safety hazard, experiments are being conducted to investigate the fuel-coolant mixing/quenching process (FARO) as well as the energetics of vapor explosion propagation for high temperature fuel melt simulants (KROTOS, WFCI, ZrEX). In both types of experiments, the dynamic breakup of the fuel is one of the key aspects that must be fundamentally understood to better estimate the magnitude of the mixing/quenching process or the explosion energetics. To aid our understanding the TEXAS fuel-coolant interaction computer model has been developed and is being used to analyze these experiments. Recently, the models for dynamic fuel fragmentation during the mixing and explosion phases of the FCI have been improved by further insights into these processes. The purpose of this paper is to describe these enhancements and to demonstrate their improvements by analysis of particular JRC FCI data. (author)

Fuel-Coolant-Interaction modeling and analysis work for the High Flux Isotope Reactor Safety Analysis Report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Taleyarkhan, R.P.; Georgevich, V.; Nestor, C.W.; Chang, S.J.; Freels, J.; Gat, U.; Lepard, B.L.; Gwaltney, R.C.; Luttrell, C.; Kirkpatrick, J.

1993-07-01

A brief historical background and a description of short- and long-term task plan development for effective closure of this important safety issue for the HFIR are given. Short-term aspects deal with Fuel-Coolant-Interaction (FCI) issues experimentation, modeling, and analysis for the flow-blockage-induced steam explosion events in direct support of the SAR. Long-term aspects deal with addressing FCI issues resulting from other accidents in conjunction with issues dealing with aluminum ignition, which can result in an order of magnitude increase in overall energetics. Problem formulation, modeling, and computer code simulation for the various phases of steam explosions are described. The evaluation of core melt initiation propagation, and melt superheat are described. Core melt initiation and propagation have been studied using simple conservative models as well as from modeling and analysis using RELAP5. Core debris coolability, heatup, and melting/freezing aspects have been studied by use of the two-dimensional melting/freezing analysis code 2DKO, which was also benchmarked with MELCOR code predictions. Descriptions are provided for the HM, BH, FCIMOD, and CTH computer codes that have been implemented for studying steam explosion energetics from the standpoint of evaluating bounding loads by thermodynamic models or best-estimate loads from one- and two-dimensional simulations of steam explosion energetics. Vessel failure modeling and analysis was conducted using the principles of probabilistic fracture mechanics in conjunction with ADINA code calculations. Top head bolts failure modeling has also been conducted where the failure criterion was based upon stresses in the bolts exceeding the material yield stress for a given time duration. Missile transport modeling and analysis was conducted by setting up a one-dimensional mathematical model that accounts for viscous dissipation, virtual mass effects, and material inertia

Heat transfer and thermal stress analysis in fluid-structure coupled field

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Ming-Jian; Pan, Jun-Hua; Ni, Ming-Jiu; Zhang, Nian-Mei

2015-01-01

In this work, three-dimensional simulation on conjugate heat transfer in a fluid-structure coupled field was carried out. The structure considered is from the dual-coolant lithium-lead (DCLL) blanket, which is the key technology of International Thermo-nuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER). The model was developed based on finite element-finite volume method and was employed to investigate mechanical behaviours of Flow Channel Insert (FCI) and heat transfer in the blanket under nuclear reaction. Temperature distribution, thermal deformation and thermal stresses were calculated in this work, and the effects of thermal conductivity, convection heat transfer coefficient and flow velocity were analyzed. Results show that temperature gradients and thermal stresses of FCI decrease when FCI has better heat conductivity. Higher convection heat transfer coefficient will result in lower temperature, thermal deformations and stresses in FCI. Analysis in this work could be a theoretical basis of blanket optimization. - Highlights: • We use FVM and FEM to investigate FCI structural safety considering heat transfer and FSI effects. • Higher convective heat transfer coefficient is beneficial for the FCI structural safety without much affect to bulk flow temperature. • Smaller FCI thermal conductivity can better prevent heat leakage into helium, yet will increase FCI temperature gradient and thermal stress. • Three-dimensional simulation on conjugate heat transfer in a fluid-structure coupled field was carried out

OECD/SERENA Project Report. Summary and Conclusions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2015-02-01

The OECD/SERENA Project Integration Report summarises the outcome of a broad range of activities conducted in the framework of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Steam Explosion Resolution for Nuclear Applications Project (OECD/SERENA) to address remaining issues on fuel-coolant interaction (FCI) mechanisms and their effect on ex-vessel steam explosion energetics. The scope the OECD/SERENA project was to resolve uncertainties in the remaining issues and to bring the code capabilities to an adequate level for use in reactor safety applications. This scope was accomplished with the completion of three major tasks: (1) an experimental programme consisting of two sets of steam explosion experiments in two different facilities; (2) an analytical programme consisting of pre-test calculations in support of test specifications and post-test calculations in support of data analysis and code assessment, and also a code benchmark exercise; and (3) a reactor calculation exercise repeating the one performed in the framework of the CSNI/WGAMA SERENA activity performed from 2001 to 2006 (also referred to as SERENA Phase I, published as CSNI/R(2007)/11). The objectives of the experimental programme were to provide data: (1) to clarify the explosion behaviour of prototypic corium melts and for validation of steam explosion models for prototypic materials; and (2) for steam explosion behaviour in two different geometries to verify the geometrical extrapolation capabilities of the codes. These objectives were to be accomplished by conducting complementary sets of six experiments each at two different facilities: KROTOS at the Commissariat l'Energie Atomique et aux Energies Alternatives (CEA) in Cadarache, France, representing one-dimensional FCI configuration involving nominally 5 kilograms of prototypic corium melt, and TROI at Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI) in Daejeon, Korea, representing multi-dimensional FCI configuration

A transient single particle model under FCI conditions

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

LI Xiao-Yan; SHANG Zhi; XU Ji-Jun

2005-01-01

The paper is focused on the coupling effect between film boiling heat transfer and evaporation drag around a hot-particle in cold liquid. Based on the continuity, momentum and energy equations of the vapor film, a transient two-dimensional single particle model has been established. This paper contains a detailed description of HPMC (High-temperature Particle Moving in Coolant) model for studying some aspects of the premixing stage of fuel-coolant interactions (FCIs). The transient process of high-temperature particles moving in coolant can be simulated. Comparisons between the experiment results and the calculations using HPMC model demonstrate that HPMC model achieves a good agreement in predicting the time-varying characteristic of high-temperature spheres moving in coolant.

Assessment of the condition of a consumer market: interactive research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anastasiya Yevgenyevna Sudakova

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Results of an assessment of a condition of the consumer market are presented in the article on the basis of official statistics data. At the heart of an assessment, the method of the indicative analysis lies. The technique includes five modules: quality of consumer goods, works, services; food security, nonfood safety; safety of services; security of participants of the consumer market. Also results of interactive Internet research of the condition of the ultimate consumer are presented in the article, by means of the carried out research. Interactive research is presented by 3 blocks: the general block (allows to make the respondent’s portrait; the special block (allows to estimate the changes in price, quality and the range of consumer goods and services; the additional block (allows respondents to leave comments. On the basis of the conducted research, it is possible to draw a conclusion that the assessment of the state received on the basis of methodical tools, shows positive dynamics, nevertheless, the condition of the consumer market remains unsatisfactory that also is confirmed by results of interactive research. The recommendations, allowing to lower the rise in prices and increase the quality of consumer goods and services are presented in the article

The IRIS network of excellence : Integrating research in interactive storytelling

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Cavazza, Marc; Donikian, Stéphane; Christie, Marc; Spierling, Ulrike; Szilas, Nicolas; Vorderer, Peter; Hartmann, Tilo; Klimmt, Christoph; André, Elisabeth; Champagnat, Ronan; Petta, Paolo; Olivier, Patrick

2008-01-01

Interactive Storytelling is a major endeavour to develop new media which could offer a radically new user experience, with a potential to revolutionise digital entertainment. European research in Interactive Storytelling has played a leading role in the development of the field, and this creates a

Research on the improvement of nuclear safety -A study on the establishment of severe accident experimental facility-

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Seo, Kune Yull; Ryu, Keon Joong; Park, Chang Kyu; Sim, Seok Ku; Kim, Sang Baek; Nho, Ki Mann; Bang, Kwang Hyun; Park, Rae Jun; Lee, Seong Jae; Kang, Kyung Ho; Jo, Young Ro; Hong, Sung Wan; Jeong, Moon Ki; Park, Chun Kyung; Cheon, Se Young; Kim, In Sik; Moon, Sang Ki; Kim, Jong Hwan; Kim, Seong Ho; Sin, Ki Yeol; Cho, Jae Sun [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Taejon (Korea, Republic of)

1995-07-01

For the first phase (1992-1995) of the current research program under nuclear reactor safety enhancement project, the primary objective was placed on the development of an improved cavity design and on the improvement of theoretical models of the separate effects for major severe accident phenomena occurring in the reactor cavity. Also, during the fourth year of this project, small-scale experiments were performed to visualize the fundamental phenomena of boiling in narrow spaces that may exist between the debris crust and the reactor vessel lower head in preparation for the large-scale in-vessel cooling experiment planned for the second phase of the project (1996-2001). Separate effect tests have been performed during the first phase spanning the high pressure melt ejection (HPME) resulting in the direct containment heating (DCH), crust formation during cooling of the high temperature melt, fuel coolant interaction (FCI) in the process of injecting coolant onto the reactor cavity, and the molten core concrete interaction (MCCI). Some research programs were subcontracted with universities. Steam condensation on the containment inner wall was investigated by the POSTECH, while the experimental technique for the simultaneous measurement of particle size and velocity was developed by the KAIST. The second phase experimental projects center about the in-vessel accident management tests SONATA-IV (Simulation of Naturally Arrested Thermal Attack in Vessel) and ex-vessel accident management tests TOCATA-XV (Tests on Cavity Arrested Thermal Attack ex Vessel). In preparation for the second phase in-vessel experimental program, one of our research staff has participated in the PHEBUS-FP program in CEA Cadarache, France. Small-scale scoping tests were performed for the study of in-vessel cooling of debris in the lower head. (Abstract Truncated)

Human-Computer Interaction and Information Management Research Needs

Data.gov (United States)

Networking and Information Technology Research and Development, Executive Office of the President — In a visionary future, Human-Computer Interaction HCI and Information Management IM have the potential to enable humans to better manage their lives through the use...

Force Concept Inventory-based multiple-choice test for investigating students’ representational consistency

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pasi Nieminen

2010-08-01

Full Text Available This study investigates students’ ability to interpret multiple representations consistently (i.e., representational consistency in the context of the force concept. For this purpose we developed the Representational Variant of the Force Concept Inventory (R-FCI, which makes use of nine items from the 1995 version of the Force Concept Inventory (FCI. These original FCI items were redesigned using various representations (such as motion map, vectorial and graphical, yielding 27 multiple-choice items concerning four central concepts underpinning the force concept: Newton’s first, second, and third laws, and gravitation. We provide some evidence for the validity and reliability of the R-FCI; this analysis is limited to the student population of one Finnish high school. The students took the R-FCI at the beginning and at the end of their first high school physics course. We found that students’ (n=168 representational consistency (whether scientifically correct or not varied considerably depending on the concept. On average, representational consistency and scientifically correct understanding increased during the instruction, although in the post-test only a few students performed consistently both in terms of representations and scientifically correct understanding. We also compared students’ (n=87 results of the R-FCI and the FCI, and found that they correlated quite well.

2010 Atomic & Molecular Interactions Gordon Research Conference

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Todd Martinez

2010-07-23

The Atomic and Molecular Interactions Gordon Conferences is justifiably recognized for its broad scope, touching on areas ranging from fundamental gas phase and gas-condensed matter collision dynamics, to laser-molecule interactions, photophysics, and unimolecular decay processes. The meeting has traditionally involved scientists engaged in fundamental research in gas and condensed phases and those who apply these concepts to systems of practical chemical and physical interest. A key tradition in this meeting is the strong mixing of theory and experiment throughout. The program for 2010 conference continues these traditions. At the 2010 AMI GRC, there will be talks in 5 broadly defined and partially overlapping areas of intermolecular interactions and chemical dynamics: (1) Photoionization and Photoelectron Dynamics; (2) Quantum Control and Molecules in Strong Fields; (3) Photochemical Dynamics; (4) Complex Molecules and Condensed Phases; and (5) Clusters and Reaction Dynamics. These areas encompass many of the most productive and exciting areas of chemical physics, including both reactive and nonreactive processes, intermolecular and intramolecular energy transfer, and photodissociation and unimolecular processes. Gas phase dynamics, van der Waals and cluster studies, laser-matter interactions and multiple potential energy surface phenomena will all be discussed.

The embodied turn in research on language and social interaction

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nevile, Maurice

2015-01-01

I use the term the embodied turn to mean the point when interest in the body became established among researchers on language and social interaction, exploiting the greater ease of video-recording. This review paper tracks the growth of "embodiment" in over 400 papers published in Research...... on Language and Social Interaction from 1987-2013. I consider closely two areas where analysts have confronted challenges, and how they have responded: settling on precise and analytically helpful terminology for the body; and transcribing and representing the body, particularly its temporality and manner....

Nuclear Fusion Research Understanding Plasma-Surface Interactions

CERN Document Server

Clark, Robert E.H

2005-01-01

It became clear in the early days of fusion research that the effects of the containment vessel (erosion of "impurities") degrade the overall fusion plasma performance. Progress in controlled nuclear fusion research over the last decade has led to magnetically confined plasmas that, in turn, are sufficiently powerful to damage the vessel structures over its lifetime. This book reviews current understanding and concepts to deal with this remaining critical design issue for fusion reactors. It reviews both progress and open questions, largely in terms of available and sought-after plasma-surface interaction data and atomic/molecular data related to these "plasma edge" issues.

Synopsis of the results of ISP-39 on FARO test L-14

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Addabbo, C.; Annunziato, A.; Magallon, D. [Commission of the European Communities, Ispra (Italy). Joint Research Center

1998-01-01

This paper provides a synopsis of the salient results from the ISP(International Standard Problem)-39 exercise promoted by OECD-CSNI in the frame of the NEA activities aimed at fostering international cooperation in reactor safety research and development. ISP-39 has been conceived to benchmark the predictive capabilities of computer codes used in the evaluation of FCI and quenching phenomenologies of relevance in water cooled reactors severe accidents safety analysis. The ISP-39 reference case is FARO test L-14, a non-energetic FCI test performed in the FARO experimental installation under realistic melt composition and prototypical test conditions. (author)

Cookbook Procedures in MBL Physics Exercises.

Science.gov (United States)

Royuk, Brent; Brooks, David W.

2003-01-01

Presents results of a controlled experiment comparing the conceptual mechanics learning gains as measured by the Force Concept Inventory (FCI) between two laboratory groups. One group completed cookbook labs while the other completed Interactive-Engagement (IE) labs in RealTime Physics. Suggests that laboratory activities should engage students in…

Research and Development Issues for Interactive Electronic Technical Manuals

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Ricci, Katrina

2002-01-01

... technologies to support Interactive Electronic Technical Manuals (IETMs). A workshop was conducted at the NAVAIR Orlando, Training Systems Division to discuss the domain and to present current research in this area...

Large scale FCI experiments in subassembly geometry. Test facility and model experiments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beutel, H.; Gast, K.

A program is outlined for the study of fuel/coolant interaction under SNR conditions. The program consists of a) under water explosion experiments with full size models of the SNR-core, in which the fuel/coolant system is simulated by a pyrotechnic mixture. b) large scale fuel/coolant interaction experiments with up to 5kg of molten UO 2 interacting with liquid sodium at 300 deg C to 600 deg C in a highly instrumented test facility simulating an SNR subassembly. The experimental results will be compared to theoretical models under development at Karlsruhe. Commencement of the experiments is expected for the beginning of 1975

Accurate quantum chemical calculations

Science.gov (United States)

Bauschlicher, Charles W., Jr.; Langhoff, Stephen R.; Taylor, Peter R.

1989-01-01

An important goal of quantum chemical calculations is to provide an understanding of chemical bonding and molecular electronic structure. A second goal, the prediction of energy differences to chemical accuracy, has been much harder to attain. First, the computational resources required to achieve such accuracy are very large, and second, it is not straightforward to demonstrate that an apparently accurate result, in terms of agreement with experiment, does not result from a cancellation of errors. Recent advances in electronic structure methodology, coupled with the power of vector supercomputers, have made it possible to solve a number of electronic structure problems exactly using the full configuration interaction (FCI) method within a subspace of the complete Hilbert space. These exact results can be used to benchmark approximate techniques that are applicable to a wider range of chemical and physical problems. The methodology of many-electron quantum chemistry is reviewed. Methods are considered in detail for performing FCI calculations. The application of FCI methods to several three-electron problems in molecular physics are discussed. A number of benchmark applications of FCI wave functions are described. Atomic basis sets and the development of improved methods for handling very large basis sets are discussed: these are then applied to a number of chemical and spectroscopic problems; to transition metals; and to problems involving potential energy surfaces. Although the experiences described give considerable grounds for optimism about the general ability to perform accurate calculations, there are several problems that have proved less tractable, at least with current computer resources, and these and possible solutions are discussed.

Construction of ion accelerator for ion-surface interaction research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Obara, Kenziro; Ohtsuka, Hidewo; Yamada, Rayji; Abe, Tetsuya; Sone, Kazuho

1977-09-01

A Cockcroft-Walton type ion accelerator for ion-surface interaction research was installed at Plasma Engineering Laboratory, Division of Thermonuclear Fusion Research, JAERI, in March 1977. Its maximum accelerating voltage is 400 kV. The accelerator has some outstanding features compared with the conventional type. Described are setup of the accelerator specification of the major components, safety system and performance. (auth.)

Facile preparation and enhanced microwave absorption properties of flake carbonyl iron/Fe3O4 composite

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Min, Dandan; Zhou, Wancheng; Luo, Fa; Zhu, Dongmei

2017-01-01

Highlights: • Flake carbonyl iron/Fe 3 O 4 composites were prepared by surface oxidation technique. • Lower permittivity and modest permeability was obtained by the FCI/Fe 3 O 4 composites. • Enhanced absorption efficiency and broader absorption band were obtained. - Abstract: Flake carbonyl iron/Fe 3 O 4 (FCI/Fe 3 O 4 ) composites with enhanced microwave absorption properties were prepared by a direct and flexible surface oxidation technique. The phase structures, morphology, magnetic properties, frequency-dependent electromagnetic and microwave absorption properties of the composites were investigated. The measurement results showed that lower permittivity as well as modest permeability was obtained by the FCI/Fe 3 O 4 composites. The calculated microwave absorption properties indicated that enhanced absorption efficiency and broader absorption band were obtained by the FCI/Fe 3 O 4 composite comparing with the FCI composite. The absorption frequency range with reflection loss (RL) below −5 dB of FCI/Fe 3 O 4 composites at reaction time of 90 min at thickness of 1.5 mm is 13.3 GHz from 4.7 to 18 GHz, while the bandwidth of the FCI composite is only 5.9 GHz from 2.6 to 8.5 GHz at the same thickness. Thus, such absorbers could act as effective and wide broadband microwave absorbers in the GHz range.

Using Interactive Technology to Disseminate Research Findings to a Diverse Population

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Denise Stockley

2009-09-01

Full Text Available This paper demonstrates how case stories can be used to disseminate the findings of several case studies on negotiating accommodations in the workplace. It highlights the power of interactive technology and of the partnership between the researchers and the Canadian Council for Rehabilitation and Work (CCRW. The paper describes the process of designing an interactive web-based case story for the purpose of disseminating research findings. The interactive case story is an extension of both the case study and the narrative case story. As part of a larger research project, it is our goal to use interactive case stories to investigate the impact of essential skills training on workers with disabilities who negotiate with employers for workplace accommodations. Résumé Le présent article montre comment les histoires de cas peuvent être utilisées pour diffuser les conclusions de plusieurs études de cas sur la négociation entourant l’aménagement du milieu de travail. Il met en évidence le pouvoir de la technologie interactive et du partenariat entre les chercheurs et le Conseil canadien de la réadaptation et du travail (CCRT. L’article décrit le processus de conception d’une histoire de cas interactive en ligne visant à diffuser des résultats de recherche. L’histoire de cas interactive est un prolongement à la fois de l’étude de cas et du récit de l’histoire de cas. Dans le cadre d’un plus vaste projet de recherche, notre but est d’utiliser des histoires de cas interactives pour étudier l’impact de la formation sur les compétences essentielles chez les travailleurs handicapés qui négocient avec leur employeur pour l’aménagement de leur milieu de travail.

Interactive Volume Rendering of Diffusion Tensor Data

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hlawitschka, Mario; Weber, Gunther; Anwander, Alfred; Carmichael, Owen; Hamann, Bernd; Scheuermann, Gerik

2007-03-30

As 3D volumetric images of the human body become an increasingly crucial source of information for the diagnosis and treatment of a broad variety of medical conditions, advanced techniques that allow clinicians to efficiently and clearly visualize volumetric images become increasingly important. Interaction has proven to be a key concept in analysis of medical images because static images of 3D data are prone to artifacts and misunderstanding of depth. Furthermore, fading out clinically irrelevant aspects of the image while preserving contextual anatomical landmarks helps medical doctors to focus on important parts of the images without becoming disoriented. Our goal was to develop a tool that unifies interactive manipulation and context preserving visualization of medical images with a special focus on diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) data. At each image voxel, DTI provides a 3 x 3 tensor whose entries represent the 3D statistical properties of water diffusion locally. Water motion that is preferential to specific spatial directions suggests structural organization of the underlying biological tissue; in particular, in the human brain, the naturally occuring diffusion of water in the axon portion of neurons is predominantly anisotropic along the longitudinal direction of the elongated, fiber-like axons [MMM+02]. This property has made DTI an emerging source of information about the structural integrity of axons and axonal connectivity between brain regions, both of which are thought to be disrupted in a broad range of medical disorders including multiple sclerosis, cerebrovascular disease, and autism [Mos02, FCI+01, JLH+99, BGKM+04, BJB+03].

How Design-based Research, Action Research and Interaction Design Contributes to the Development of Designs for Learning

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Majgaard, Gunver; Misfeldt, Morten; Nielsen, Jacob

2011-01-01

This article explores how action research, design based research and interaction design can be combined and used in the development of educational robotic tools. Our case study is the development of Number Blocks and it combines physical interaction, learning, and immediate feedback. Number Blocks...... supports the children's understanding of place value in the sense that it allows them to experiment with creating large numbers. The development was done in collaboration with a class of 7-8 year old children and their mathematics teacher. The article argues that elements from different research methods...... allowed a structured approach to projects that combines educational research and innovation of new learning technologies. Key elements of this approach is acknowledging the users input, developing a theoretical pre-analysis and using an iterative approach....

Quantum Chemistry on Quantum Computers: A Polynomial-Time Quantum Algorithm for Constructing the Wave Functions of Open-Shell Molecules.

Science.gov (United States)

Sugisaki, Kenji; Yamamoto, Satoru; Nakazawa, Shigeaki; Toyota, Kazuo; Sato, Kazunobu; Shiomi, Daisuke; Takui, Takeji

2016-08-18

Quantum computers are capable to efficiently perform full configuration interaction (FCI) calculations of atoms and molecules by using the quantum phase estimation (QPE) algorithm. Because the success probability of the QPE depends on the overlap between approximate and exact wave functions, efficient methods to prepare accurate initial guess wave functions enough to have sufficiently large overlap with the exact ones are highly desired. Here, we propose a quantum algorithm to construct the wave function consisting of one configuration state function, which is suitable for the initial guess wave function in QPE-based FCI calculations of open-shell molecules, based on the addition theorem of angular momentum. The proposed quantum algorithm enables us to prepare the wave function consisting of an exponential number of Slater determinants only by a polynomial number of quantum operations.

New interpretation on formation of UO2 Post-Accident Heat Removal particulate in sodium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schins, H.

1986-01-01

A comparative experimental study on quenching in sodium of four molten fuel materials, UO 2 Al 2 P 3 , Cu and stainless steel, is presented. Experimental results like temperatures, pressures, particle shapes, particle size distributions, crack patterns and crystal grain sizes are given and interpreted. These fuel-coolant interactions (FCI) can be understood as all being characterized by transition boiling of sodium. The fuel is first fragmented by the sodium vapor bubble growth and collapse process. These particulates have smooth surfaces. The two materials, UO 2 and Al 2 O 3 , are fragmented further by a delayed mechanism which is thermal stress shrinkage cracking. Delayed particles are fragments of larger ones. Furthermore, attention is drawn to the theoretical results which show that pure FCI-particulate is significantly finer

Current food chain information provides insufficient information for modern meat inspection of pigs.

Science.gov (United States)

Felin, Elina; Jukola, Elias; Raulo, Saara; Heinonen, Jaakko; Fredriksson-Ahomaa, Maria

2016-05-01

Meat inspection now incorporates a more risk-based approach for protecting human health against meat-borne biological hazards. Official post-mortem meat inspection of pigs has shifted to visual meat inspection. The official veterinarian decides on additional post-mortem inspection procedures, such as incisions and palpations. The decision is based on declarations in the food chain information (FCI), ante-mortem inspection and post-mortem inspection. However, a smooth slaughter and inspection process is essential. Therefore, one should be able to assess prior to slaughter which pigs are suitable for visual meat inspection only, and which need more profound inspection procedures. This study evaluates the usability of the FCI provided by pig producers and considered the possibility for risk ranking of incoming slaughter batches according to the previous meat inspection data and the current FCI. Eighty-five slaughter batches comprising 8954 fattening pigs were randomly selected at a slaughterhouse that receives animals from across Finland. The mortality rate, the FCI and the meat inspection results for each batch were obtained. The current FCI alone provided insufficient and inaccurate information for risk ranking purposes for meat inspection. The partial condemnation rate for a batch was best predicted by the partial condemnation rate calculated for all the pigs sent for slaughter from the same holding in the previous year (p<0.001) and by prior information on cough declared in the current FCI (p=0.02) statement. Training and information to producers are needed to make the FCI reporting procedures more accurate. Historical meat inspection data on pigs slaughtered from the same holdings and well-chosen symptoms/signs for reporting, should be included in the FCI to facilitate the allocation of pigs for visual inspection. The introduced simple scoring system can be easily used for additional information for directing batches to appropriate meat inspection procedures. To

Development and use of interactive displays in real-time ground support research facilities

Science.gov (United States)

Rhea, Donald C.; Hammons, Kvin R.; Malone, Jacqueline C.; Nesel, Michael C.

1989-01-01

The NASA Western Aeronautical Test Range (WATR) is one of the world's most advanced aeronautical research flight test support facilities. A variety of advanced and often unique real-time interactive displays has been developed for use in the mission control centers (MCC) to support research flight and ground testing. These dispalys consist of applications operating on systems described as real-time interactive graphics super workstations and real-time interactive PC/AT compatible workstations. This paper reviews these two types of workstations and the specific applications operating on each display system. The applications provide examples that demonstrate overall system capability applicable for use in other ground-based real-time research/test facilities.

Research of Ve current charge interactions in the NOMAD experience

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Manola-Poggioli, E.

1996-01-01

Written during the two first years of the NOMAD experiment working, this thesis is divided into two parts. In the first part, a partly equipped detector gives the 1994's results. It allows to identify and to select the NOMAD main interactions (muon neutrino charging current (CC) interactions) in the target. Thank to a events selection, the origin of the produced electrons is studied to better understand simulation's programs. In the second part, neutrino-electron CC interactions represent the main background noise to the oscillations research in the electronic mode. Electrons identification's algorithms are developed and inelastic interactions kinematic properties of electron neutrinos are discussed. (TEC). 57 refs., 72 figs., 18 tabs

Facile preparation and enhanced microwave absorption properties of flake carbonyl iron/Fe{sub 3}O{sub 4} composite

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Min, Dandan, E-mail: mdd4776@126.com; Zhou, Wancheng; Luo, Fa; Zhu, Dongmei

2017-08-01

Highlights: • Flake carbonyl iron/Fe{sub 3}O{sub 4} composites were prepared by surface oxidation technique. • Lower permittivity and modest permeability was obtained by the FCI/Fe{sub 3}O{sub 4} composites. • Enhanced absorption efficiency and broader absorption band were obtained. - Abstract: Flake carbonyl iron/Fe{sub 3}O{sub 4} (FCI/Fe{sub 3}O{sub 4}) composites with enhanced microwave absorption properties were prepared by a direct and flexible surface oxidation technique. The phase structures, morphology, magnetic properties, frequency-dependent electromagnetic and microwave absorption properties of the composites were investigated. The measurement results showed that lower permittivity as well as modest permeability was obtained by the FCI/Fe{sub 3}O{sub 4} composites. The calculated microwave absorption properties indicated that enhanced absorption efficiency and broader absorption band were obtained by the FCI/Fe{sub 3}O{sub 4} composite comparing with the FCI composite. The absorption frequency range with reflection loss (RL) below −5 dB of FCI/Fe{sub 3}O{sub 4} composites at reaction time of 90 min at thickness of 1.5 mm is 13.3 GHz from 4.7 to 18 GHz, while the bandwidth of the FCI composite is only 5.9 GHz from 2.6 to 8.5 GHz at the same thickness. Thus, such absorbers could act as effective and wide broadband microwave absorbers in the GHz range.

Influence of benefits, results and obstacles’ perceptions by research groups on interactions with companies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Veneziano de Castro Araujo

2015-02-01

Full Text Available The aim of this paper is to investigate how expected perceptions of academic research groups about results, benefits and obstacles influence the number of interactions with firms, based on a survey of university-industry interactions in Brazil. For this purpose, by means of a nonparametric Item Response Theory (NIRT, non ad hoc clusters were created from patterns of survey answers related with the analyzed perceptions. Using these clusters, a model was estimated to identify how perceptions influence the number of interactions of research groups. The results indicate that research groups that perceive intangible benefits and knowledge results as more important tend to have more interactions with firms. In addition, transactional obstacles imply in less interactions with firms. Finally, some implications on public policies are presented.

A STUDY ON THE INTERACTION BETWEEN SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH AND PROFESSIONAL ACCOUNTING PRACTICE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ana Paula Batista da Silva

2012-06-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to analyze the interaction between scientific research and professional accounting practice. In this exploratory study, as it examines a theme that has been little explored in Brazil, a quantitative approach was adopted and a survey was used as the data collection technique, supported by a research instrument with questions on aspects like: interest in and use of research; study and development of themes; means to disseminate the research; and causes of the gap between research and practice. Considering the objectives, it is classified as descriptive, since it was described how this interaction occurs. Data were analyze through factor analysis in R, resuming them in factors for further analysis, validated through the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO test and Bartlett’s sphericity yet. In conclusion, due to their different characteristics, it is natural that some distancing exists between research and accounting practice. This can be minimized though, among other factors, through professionals’ great interest in knowing and applying the research results in practice, and also by confirming that the most researched themes in accountancy are the themes of greatest interest in accounting professionals’ opinion. These results suggest that greater attention is due to the interaction and communication between the academy and accounting professionals, with a view to greater efficacy.

Report of the 1991 workshop on particle-material interactions for fusion research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-11-01

The Annual Workshop on Particle-Material Interactions in the Working Group of the Research Committee on A and M Data was held at the head-quarters of JAERI, Tokyo, on December 12-13, 1991. The purpose of the Workshop was to obtain future prospects for the activities of the Working Group, by discussing current states and problems in the research on particle-material interactions relevant to the thermocontrolled fusion. The present report contains 16 papers presented at the Workshop, which are mainly concerned with plasma-facing materials in ITER, radiation damage in carbon materials, trapping, emission and permeation of hydrogen in metals, and heavy ion-solid surface interactions. (author)

Analysis of the KROTOS KFC test by coupling X-Ray image analysis and MC3D calculations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Brayer, C.; Charton, A.; Grishchenko, D.; Fouquart, P.; Bullado, Y.; Compagnon, F.; Correggio, P.; Cassiaut-Louis, N.; Piluso, P. [Commissariat a l' Energie Atomique et Aux Energies Alternatives, CEA Cadarache, DEN, F-13108 Saint-Paul-Les-Durance (France)

2012-07-01

During a hypothetical severe accident sequence in a Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR), the hot molten materials (corium) issuing from the degraded reactor core may generate a steam explosion if they come in contact with water and may damage the structures and threaten the reactor integrity. The SERENA program is an international OECD project that aims at helping the understanding of this phenomenon also called Fuel Coolant Interaction (FCI) by providing data. CEA takes part in this program by performing tests in its KROTOS facility where steam explosions using prototypic corium can be triggered. Data about the different phases in the premixing are extracted from the KROTOS X-Ray radioscopy images by using KIWI software (KROTOS Image analysis of Water-corium Interaction) currently developed by CEA. The MC3D code, developed by IRSN, is a thermal-hydraulic multiphase code mainly dedicated to FCI studies. It is composed of two applications: premixing and explosion. An overall FCI calculation with MC3D requires a premixing calculation followed by an explosion calculation. The present paper proposes an alternative approach in which all the features of the premixing are extracted from the X-Ray pictures using the KIWI software and transferred to an MC3D dataset for a direct simulation of the explosion. The main hypothesis are discussed as well as the first explosion results obtained with MC3D for the KROTOS KFC test. These results are rather encouraging and are analyzed on the basis of comparisons with the experimental data. (authors)

Analysis of the KROTOS KFC test by coupling X-Ray image analysis and MC3D calculations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brayer, C.; Charton, A.; Grishchenko, D.; Fouquart, P.; Bullado, Y.; Compagnon, F.; Correggio, P.; Cassiaut-Louis, N.; Piluso, P.

2012-01-01

During a hypothetical severe accident sequence in a Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR), the hot molten materials (corium) issuing from the degraded reactor core may generate a steam explosion if they come in contact with water and may damage the structures and threaten the reactor integrity. The SERENA program is an international OECD project that aims at helping the understanding of this phenomenon also called Fuel Coolant Interaction (FCI) by providing data. CEA takes part in this program by performing tests in its KROTOS facility where steam explosions using prototypic corium can be triggered. Data about the different phases in the premixing are extracted from the KROTOS X-Ray radioscopy images by using KIWI software (KROTOS Image analysis of Water-corium Interaction) currently developed by CEA. The MC3D code, developed by IRSN, is a thermal-hydraulic multiphase code mainly dedicated to FCI studies. It is composed of two applications: premixing and explosion. An overall FCI calculation with MC3D requires a premixing calculation followed by an explosion calculation. The present paper proposes an alternative approach in which all the features of the premixing are extracted from the X-Ray pictures using the KIWI software and transferred to an MC3D dataset for a direct simulation of the explosion. The main hypothesis are discussed as well as the first explosion results obtained with MC3D for the KROTOS KFC test. These results are rather encouraging and are analyzed on the basis of comparisons with the experimental data. (authors)

“So, it is about how negative it is?!” Understanding researcher/researched interactions as relations between intersectional social positions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sune Qvotrup Jensen

2012-09-01

Full Text Available The article argues that interactions in qualitative interviews and ethnography can be analyzed as relations between intersectional social positions. It draws attention to the importance of class and geographical location in such analysis. It further argues that such interactions work through typifications, that they have a power dimension and that they entail processes of identity formation. The identities being offered through these processes can, however, be negotiated or resisted. The article then analyses such interactions as they were experienced in two research projects the author participated in: His PhD project about young marginalized ethnic minority men, and the collective project INTERLOC which focused on the interplay between gender, class, ethnicity and ‘race’ in an underprivileged Danish suburb. It is demonstrated that relationality influences the assumptions research participants have about the researcher. It is also demonstrated that the research encounter entails powerful mechanism of identity formation. The informants, however, sometimes resist these processes resulting in blurred and unstable, sometimes antagonistic, power relations. It is finally argued that analyses of such interactions can provide central insight into the subject studied.

2012 Gordon Research Conference, Electron donor-acceptor interactions, August 5-10 2012

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

McCusker, James [Michigan State Univ., East Lansing, MI (United States)

2012-08-10

The upcoming incarnation of the Gordon Research Conference on Electron Donor Acceptor Interactions will feature sessions on classic topics including proton-coupled electron transfer, dye-sensitized solar cells, and biological electron transfer, as well as emerging areas such as quantum coherence effects in donor-acceptor interactions, spintronics, and the application of donor-acceptor interactions in chemical synthesis.

Restriction of Variance Interaction Effects and Their Importance for International Business Research

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cortina, Jose M.; Köhler, Tine; Nielsen, Bo Bernhard

2015-01-01

A recent Journal of International Business Studies editorial on interaction effects within and across levels highlighted the importance of and difficulty associated with justifying and reporting of such interaction effects. The purpose of this editorial is to describe a type of interaction...... hypothesis that is very common in international business (IB) research: the restricted variance (RV) hypothesis. Specifically, we describe the nature of an RV interaction and its evidentiary requirements. We also offer several IB examples involving interactions that could have been supported with RV...

Experimental research on crossing shock wave boundary layer interactions

Science.gov (United States)

Settles, G. S.; Garrison, T. J.

1994-10-01

An experimental research effort of the Penn State Gas Dynamics Laboratory on the subject of crossing shock wave boundary layer interactions is reported. This three year study was supported by AFOSR Grant 89-0315. A variety of experimental techniques were employed to study the above phenomena including planar laser scattering flowfield visualization, kerosene lampblack surface flow visualization, laser-interferometer skin friction surveys, wall static pressure measurements, and flowfield five-hole probe surveys. For a model configuration producing two intersecting shock waves, measurements were made for a range of oblique shock strengths at freestream Mach numbers of 3.0 and 3.85. Additionally, measurements were made at Mach 3.85 for a configuration producing three intersecting waves. The combined experimental dataset was used to formulate the first detailed flowfield models of the crossing-shock and triple-shock wave/boundary layer interactions. The structure of these interactions was found to be similar over a broad range of interaction strengths and is dominated by a large, separated, viscous flow region.

Synthesis of qualitative linguistic research--a pilot review integrating and generalizing findings on doctor-patient interaction.

Science.gov (United States)

Nowak, Peter

2011-03-01

There is a broad range qualitative linguistic research (sequential analysis) on doctor-patient interaction that had only a marginal impact on clinical research and practice. At least in parts this is due to the lack of qualitative research synthesis in the field. Available research summaries are not systematic in their methodology. This paper proposes a synthesis methodology for qualitative, sequential analytic research on doctor-patient interaction. The presented methodology is not new but specifies standard methodology of qualitative research synthesis for sequential analytic research. This pilot review synthesizes twelve studies on German-speaking doctor-patient interactions, identifies 45 verbal actions of doctors and structures them in a systematics of eight interaction components. Three interaction components ("Listening", "Asking for information", and "Giving information") seem to be central and cover two thirds of the identified action types. This pilot review demonstrates that sequential analytic research can be synthesized in a consistent and meaningful way, thus providing a more comprehensive and unbiased integration of research. Future synthesis of qualitative research in the area of health communication research is very much needed. Qualitative research synthesis can support the development of quantitative research and of educational materials in medical training and patient training. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Frequency of consuming foods predicts changes in cravings for those foods during weight loss: The POUNDS Lost Study

Science.gov (United States)

Apolzan, John W.; Myers, Candice A.; Champagne, Catherine M.; Beyl, Robbie A.; Raynor, Hollie A.; Anton, Stephen A.; Williamson, Donald A.; Sacks, Frank M.; Bray, George A.; Martin, Corby K.

2017-01-01

Objective Food cravings are thought to be the result of conditioning or pairing hunger with consumption of certain foods. Methods In a two-year weight loss trial, subjects were randomized to one of four diets that varied in macronutrient content. The Food Craving Inventory (FCI) was used to measure cravings at baseline, 6, and 24 months. Also, food intake was measured at those time points. To measure free-living consumption of food items measured in the FCI, items on the FCI were matched to the foods consumed from the food intake assessments. Secondarily, we analyzed the amount of food consumed on food intake assessments from foods on the FCI. Results 367 subjects who were overweight and obese were included. There was an association between change from baseline FCI item consumption and change in cravings at months 6 (p<0.001) and 24 (p<0.05). There was no association between change from baseline amount of energy consumed per FCI item and change in cravings. Conclusions Altering frequency of consuming craved foods is positively associated with cravings; however, changing the amount of foods consumed does not appear to alter cravings. These results support the conditioning model of food cravings and provide guidance on how to reduce food cravings. PMID:28618170

Assess program: Interactive data management systems for airborne research

Science.gov (United States)

Munoz, R. M.; Reller, J. O., Jr.

1974-01-01

Two data systems were developed for use in airborne research. Both have distributed intelligence and are programmed for interactive support among computers and with human operators. The C-141 system (ADAMS) performs flight planning and telescope control functions in addition to its primary role of data acquisition; the CV-990 system (ADDAS) performs data management functions in support of many research experiments operating concurrently. Each system is arranged for maximum reliability in the first priority function, precision data acquisition.

Researching Classroom Interaction in the light of social justice. : [paper presentation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nicolina Montesano-Montessori; Prof.Dr. Petra Ponte

2010-01-01

A research into classroom interaction (behaviour and communication) between teachers and pupils in the light of social justice. The research is based on the concern that educational praxis, defined as 'practice which implies a conscious awareness of the practitioners that their actions are morally

Grafting computer projected simulations and interactive engagement methods within a traditional classroom setting: The influence on secondary level students' understanding of Newtonian mechanics and on attitudes towards physics

Science.gov (United States)

Zoubeir, Wassim Fouad

This research explored the effects of a constructivist approach using computer projected simulations (CPS) and interactive engagement (IE) methods on 12th grade school students. The treatment lasted 18 weeks during the 1999-2000 fall semester and seeked to evaluate three variations in students': (1)conceptual understanding of Newtonian mechanics as measured by the Force Concept Inventory (FCI), (2)modification of their views about science as measured by the Views About Science Survey (VASS), and (3)achievement on traditional examinations, as measured by their end of semester grades. Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) was applied to determine the differences between the mean scores of the experimental group students, and students of the control group, who were exposed to traditional teaching methods only. The FCI data analysis showed that, after 18 weeks, conceptual understanding of Newtonian mechanics had markedly improved only in the experimental group (F(1,99) = 44.739, p performance on the VASS instrument for both groups (F(1,99) = .033, p = .856), confirming previous and comparable findings for studies of short implementation period. The lack of statistically significant difference between the control and experimental groups in graded achievement, while controlling for students' previous achievement, was unexpected (F(1,99) = 1.178, p = .280). It is suggested that in this particular setting, the influence of a technical factor may have been overlooked: the monitored and systematic drill exercises using elaborate math formulae to prepare students for traditional math-loaded exams. Still, despite being intentionally deprived of such preparation throughout the study, students of the experimental group did not achieve less than their counterpart, and in addition, they had gained a satisfactory understanding of Newtonian mechanics. This result points unmistakably at a plausible positive correlation between a better grasp of basic concepts in physics in a challenging

Handling interactions among SDGs: a critical role for research

Science.gov (United States)

Stafford Smith, M.

2015-12-01

At Rio+20, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were conceived mainly as a mechanism to integrate and coordinate among the many multilateral agreements that already exist at the global level, as well as to identify any gaps among them. In Sep 2015 nations signed off on 17 goals with 169 targets, which had been developed through the most open process of consultation the United Nations has ever run. Agreement on a reasonably concise set of goals for achieving global sustainability and human development is an existential step forward, and to be applauded. However, the process led to much fragmented lobbying which is reflected in a loss of focus on the original objective of integration. There are many areas of the goals where interactions lead to trade-offs that need managing, and synergies which should be captured capturing. A few trade-offs, such as that between more energy use and less greenhouse gas emissions, are explicit in a target to double the rate of improvement in energy efficiency by 2030 (target 7.3). But there are many other interactions which are characterised poorly or not at all. In some cases integrative indicators are known; in others we do not necessarily know what to focus on to manage the interaction. Furthermore, the package of SDGs will be implemented at both global and national levels. Integrated thinking will be needed in this process of implementation, for example to assist developing countries to leapfrog western development pathways, and to promote a systems view on how environmental, social and economic outcomes are deeply integrated in the effecting of country development plans. Existing research can inform many of these interactions, whilst in other areas there in fact profound and fascinating new research needed to help decision makers. I will discuss this framing and highlight research, both existing and needed, that could speed up the world's ability to deliver on its SDG commitment.

Educational Technology Research Journals: "Interactive Learning Environments," 2004-2013

Science.gov (United States)

Christensen, Steven S.; Andrews, Carolyn; Harris, Scott P.; Lloyd, Adam; Turley, Chad; West, Richard E.

2015-01-01

This study examined the journal "Interactive Learning Environments" to discover trends from 2004-2013. The authors looked at trends in article topics, research methods, authorship, citations, keyword frequencies, phrase counts of article abstracts, and article citations according to Google Scholar. Evidence is provided of the journal's…

A new research trend in social neuroscience: Towards an interactive-brain neuroscience.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Tao; Pelowski, Matthew

2014-09-01

The ability to flexibly modulate our behaviors in social contexts and to successfully interact with other persons is a fundamental, but pivotal, requirement for human survival. Although previous social neuroscience research with single individuals has contributed greatly to our understanding of the basic mechanisms underlying social perception and social emotions, much of the dynamic nature of interactions between persons remains beyond the reach of single-brain studies. This has led to a growing argument for a shift to the simultaneous measurement of the brain activity of two or more individuals in realistic social interactions-an approach termed "hyperscanning." Although this approach offers important promise in unlocking the brain's role in truly social situations, there are multiple procedural and theoretical questions that require review and analysis. In this paper we discuss this research trend from four aspects: hyperscanning apparatus, experimental task, quantification method, and theoretical interpretation. We also give four suggestions for future research: (a) electroencephalography and near-infrared spectroscopy are useful tools by which to explore the interactive brain in more ecological settings; (b) games are an appropriate method to simulate daily life interactions; (c) transfer entropy may be an important method by which to quantify directed exchange of information between brains; and (d) more explanation is needed of the results of interbrain synchronization itself. © 2014 The Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Wiley Publishing Asia Pty Ltd.

Using Psycho-Physiological Interaction Analysis with fMRI-Data in IS Research

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hubert, Marco; Linzmajer, Marc; Riedl, René

2017-01-01

The integration of neuroscientific methods in Information Systems (IS) research to better understand how the brain interacts with IS-relevant context has gained in importance. Many papers that highlight the potential of neuroIS and that discuss methodological issues associated with using functional...... brain imaging already exist. However, neuroIS researchers have to keep in mind that the emergence of complex mental processes such as trust in IS contexts is based on activity in a network of brain regions rather than on activity in one area alone. Accordingly, we introduce psycho......-physiological interaction (PPI) analysis, a technique that one can use to analyze fMRI data. Specifically, we review how one can conduct PPI analysis, provide a concrete research example, and show how this analysis can inform IS trust research. Thus, we introduce neuroIS researchers working in the domain of functional...

Web-based (HTML5) interactive graphics for fusion research and collaboration

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, E.N.; Schissel, D.P.; Abla, G.; Flanagan, S.; Lee, X.

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Interactive data visualization is supported via the Web without a browser plugin and provides users easy, real-time access to data of different types from various locations. ► Crosshair, zoom, pan as well as toggling dimensionality and a slice bar for multi-dimensional data are available. ► Data with PHP API can be applied: MDSplus and SQL have been tested. ► Modular in design, this has been deployed to support both the experimental and the simulation research arenas. - Abstract: With the continuing development of web technologies, it is becoming feasible for websites to operate a lot like a scientific desktop application. This has opened up more possibilities for utilizing the web browser for interactive scientific research and providing new means of on-line communication and collaboration. This paper describes the research and deployment for utilizing these enhanced web graphics capabilities on the fusion research tools which has led to a general toolkit that can be deployed as required. It allows users to dynamically create, interact with and share with others, the large sets of data generated by the fusion experiments and simulations. Hypertext Preprocessor (PHP), a general-purpose scripting language for the Web, is used to process a series of inputs, and determine the data source types and locations to fetch and organize the data. Protovis, a Javascript and SVG based web graphics package, then quickly draws the interactive graphs and makes it available to the worldwide audience. This toolkit has been deployed to both the simulation and experimental arenas. The deployed applications will be presented as well as the architecture and technologies used in producing the general graphics toolkit.

Effects of increasing the allowable compressive stress at release on the shear strength of prestressed concrete girders.

Science.gov (United States)

2008-09-01

In recent years, several research projects have been conducted to study the feasibility of increasing the allowable : compressive stress in concrete at prestress transfer, currently defined as 0.60f'ci in the AASHTO LRFD Bridge : Design Specification...

Study on mechanical interaction between molten alloy and water

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nishimura, Satoshi; Ueda, Nobuyuki; Nishi, Yoshihisa; Furuya, Masahiro; Kinoshita, Izumi

1999-01-01

Simulant experiments using low melting point molten alloy and water have been conducted to observe both fragmentation behavior of molten jet and boiling phenomena of water, and to measure both particle size and shape of fragmented solidified jet, focusing on post-pin-failure molten fuel-coolant interaction (FCl) which was important to evaluate the sequence of the initiating phase for metallic fueled FBR. In addition, characteristics of coolant boiling phenomena on FCIs have been investigated, focusing on the boiling heat transfer in the direct contact heat transfer mode. As a results, it is concluded that the fragmentation of poured molten alloy jet is affected by a degree of boiling of water and is classified into three modes by thermal conditions of both the instantaneous contact interface temperature of two liquids and subcooling of water. In the case of forced convection boiling in direct contact mode, it is found that the heat transfer performance is enhanced by increase of the heat transfer area, due to oscillation of the surface and fragmentation of molten alloy. As a results of preliminary investigation of FCI behavior for metallic fuel core based on these results, it is expected that the ejected molten fuel is fragmented into almost spherical particles due to the developed boiling of sodium. (author)

Exploration of Textual Interactions in CALL Learning Communities: Emerging Research and Opportunities

Science.gov (United States)

White, Jonathan R.

2017-01-01

Computer-assisted language learning (CALL) has greatly enhanced the realm of online social interaction and behavior. In language classrooms, it allows the opportunity for students to enhance their learning experiences. "Exploration of Textual Interactions in CALL Learning Communities: Emerging Research and Opportunities" is an ideal…

How Do Interaction Experiences Influence Doctoral Students’ Academic Pursuits in Biomedical Research?

Science.gov (United States)

Kong, Xiaoqing; Chakraverty, Devasmita; Jeffe, Donna B.; Andriole, Dorothy A.; Wathington, Heather D.; Tai, Robert H.

2014-01-01

This exploratory qualitative study investigated how doctoral students reported their personal and professional interaction experiences that they believed might facilitate or impede their academic pursuits in biomedical research. We collected 19 in-depth interviews with doctoral students in biomedical research from eight universities, and we based our qualitative analytic approach on the work of Miles and Huberman. The results indicated that among different sources and types of interaction, academic and emotional interactions from family and teachers in various stages essentially affected students’ persistence in the biomedical science field. In addition, co-mentorship among peers, departmental environment, and volunteer experiences were other essential factors. This study also found related experiences among women and underrepresented minority students that were important to their academic pursuit. PMID:26166928

How Do Interaction Experiences Influence Doctoral Students' Academic Pursuits in Biomedical Research?

Science.gov (United States)

Kong, Xiaoqing; Chakraverty, Devasmita; Jeffe, Donna B; Andriole, Dorothy A; Wathington, Heather D; Tai, Robert H

2013-01-01

This exploratory qualitative study investigated how doctoral students reported their personal and professional interaction experiences that they believed might facilitate or impede their academic pursuits in biomedical research. We collected 19 in-depth interviews with doctoral students in biomedical research from eight universities, and we based our qualitative analytic approach on the work of Miles and Huberman. The results indicated that among different sources and types of interaction, academic and emotional interactions from family and teachers in various stages essentially affected students' persistence in the biomedical science field. In addition, co-mentorship among peers, departmental environment, and volunteer experiences were other essential factors. This study also found related experiences among women and underrepresented minority students that were important to their academic pursuit.

The effects of modeling instruction on high school physics academic achievement

Science.gov (United States)

Wright, Tiffanie L.

The purpose of this study was to explore whether Modeling Instruction, compared to traditional lecturing, is an effective instructional method to promote academic achievement in selected high school physics classes at a rural middle Tennessee high school. This study used an ex post facto , quasi-experimental research methodology. The independent variables in this study were the instructional methods of teaching. The treatment variable was Modeling Instruction and the control variable was traditional lecture instruction. The Treatment Group consisted of participants in Physical World Concepts who received Modeling Instruction. The Control Group consisted of participants in Physical Science who received traditional lecture instruction. The dependent variable was gains scores on the Force Concepts Inventory (FCI). The participants for this study were 133 students each in both the Treatment and Control Groups (n = 266), who attended a public, high school in rural middle Tennessee. The participants were administered the Force Concepts Inventory (FCI) prior to being taught the mechanics of physics. The FCI data were entered into the computer-based Statistical Package for the Social Science (SPSS). Two independent samples t-tests were conducted to answer the research questions. There was a statistically significant difference between the treatment and control groups concerning the instructional method. Modeling Instructional methods were found to be effective in increasing the academic achievement of students in high school physics. There was no statistically significant difference between FCI gains scores for gender. Gender was found to have no effect on the academic achievement of students in high school physics classes. However, even though there was not a statistically significant difference, female students' gains scores were higher than male students' gains scores when Modeling Instructional methods of teaching were used. Based on these findings, it is recommended

Analyzing false positives of four questions in the Force Concept Inventory

Science.gov (United States)

Yasuda, Jun-ichiro; Mae, Naohiro; Hull, Michael M.; Taniguchi, Masa-aki

2018-06-01

In this study, we analyze the systematic error from false positives of the Force Concept Inventory (FCI). We compare the systematic errors of question 6 (Q.6), Q.7, and Q.16, for which clearly erroneous reasoning has been found, with Q.5, for which clearly erroneous reasoning has not been found. We determine whether or not a correct response to a given FCI question is a false positive using subquestions. In addition to the 30 original questions, subquestions were introduced for Q.5, Q.6, Q.7, and Q.16. This modified version of the FCI was administered to 1145 university students in Japan from 2015 to 2017. In this paper, we discuss our finding that the systematic errors of Q.6, Q.7, and Q.16 are much larger than that of Q.5 for students with mid-level FCI scores. Furthermore, we find that, averaged over the data sample, the sum of the false positives from Q.5, Q.6, Q.7, and Q.16 is about 10% of the FCI score of a midlevel student.

Terminology for the body in social interaction, as appearing in papers published in the journal 'Research on Language and Social Interaction', 1987-2013

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nevile, Maurice Richard

2016-01-01

This is a list of terms referring generally to the body in descriptions and analyses of social interaction, as used by authors in papers published in ROLSI. The list includes over 200 items, grouped according to common phrasing and within alphabetical order. The list was compiled in preparation...... for the review paper: Nevile, M. (2015) The embodied turn in research on language and social interaction. Research on Language and Social Interaction,48(2): 121-151....

The required interactions among institutions involved with Research and Development in the power sector

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vieira Filho, X; Medeiros, J C; Szechtman, M [Centro de Pesquisas de Energia Eletrica (CEPEL), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil)

1994-12-31

This paper presents the form which CEPEL (Brazilian Federal Research Center in Electric Energy) works for the Brazilian electric system, the interaction with associates, especially with ELETROBRAS (the Federal holding company in Brazil), the modern way of CEPEL operation and interactions with clients, the partnership in Research and Development, the CEPEL philosophy of transferring technology to its clients, and the cost-benefit analysis of Research and Development activities. (author) 2 refs., 4 figs., 1 tab.

Web-based (HTML5) interactive graphics for fusion research and collaboration

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, E.N., E-mail: kimny@fusion.gat.com [General Atomics, P.O. Box 85608, San Diego, CA (United States); Schissel, D.P.; Abla, G.; Flanagan, S.; Lee, X. [General Atomics, P.O. Box 85608, San Diego, CA (United States)

2012-12-15

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Interactive data visualization is supported via the Web without a browser plugin and provides users easy, real-time access to data of different types from various locations. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Crosshair, zoom, pan as well as toggling dimensionality and a slice bar for multi-dimensional data are available. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Data with PHP API can be applied: MDSplus and SQL have been tested. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Modular in design, this has been deployed to support both the experimental and the simulation research arenas. - Abstract: With the continuing development of web technologies, it is becoming feasible for websites to operate a lot like a scientific desktop application. This has opened up more possibilities for utilizing the web browser for interactive scientific research and providing new means of on-line communication and collaboration. This paper describes the research and deployment for utilizing these enhanced web graphics capabilities on the fusion research tools which has led to a general toolkit that can be deployed as required. It allows users to dynamically create, interact with and share with others, the large sets of data generated by the fusion experiments and simulations. Hypertext Preprocessor (PHP), a general-purpose scripting language for the Web, is used to process a series of inputs, and determine the data source types and locations to fetch and organize the data. Protovis, a Javascript and SVG based web graphics package, then quickly draws the interactive graphs and makes it available to the worldwide audience. This toolkit has been deployed to both the simulation and experimental arenas. The deployed applications will be presented as well as the architecture and technologies used in producing the general graphics toolkit.

Soil fauna-microbe interactions: towards a conceptual framework for research.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hassall, M.; Adl, S.; Berg, M.P.; Griffiths, B.; Scheu, S.

2006-01-01

We explore the potential for applying broad ecological theories to interactions between soil animals and micro-organisms to generate a predictive framework within which more hypothesis led research can be undertaken. The paper stems from discussions during a workshop at the XIVth International

Modeling the fine fragmentation following the triggering stage of a vapor explosion; Modelisation de la fragmentaton fine lors de la phase de declenchement d`une explosion de vapeur

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Darbord, I [CEA Grenoble, 38 (France). Service d` Etudes et de Modelisation Thermohydraulique

1997-06-11

In the frame of PWR severe accidents, where the core melt, this thesis studies one of the stages of an FCI (fuel coolant interaction) or vapor explosion. An FCI is a rapid evaporation of a coolant when it comes into contact with a hot liquid. More precisely, the subject of this study is the triggering stage of the FCI, when a fuel drop of diameter around one centimeter breaks up into many fragments, diameter of which is around a hundred micrometers. The model describes the cyclic collapse and growth of a vapor bubble around the fuel droplet and its fragmentation. The main features of the model are: - the destabilization of the film or the vapor bubble due to the growth of Rayleigh-Taylor instabilities (those form coolant jets that contact the fuel surface); - The mechanisms of fragmentation, following the contacts (in the case of entrapment of a certain amount of coolant in the fuel, the entrapped coolant evaporates violently after it has been heated to the homogeneous nucleation temperature); - the transient heat transfer from the fragments to the coolant and the elevated vapor production, which leads to an important expansion of the bubble (about this point, the cooling of the fragments has been described by a transient heat transfer coefficient linked to nucleate boiling). The results of the model show good agreement with experimental data. (Author) 68 refs.

Modeling the fine fragmentation following the triggering stage of a vapor explosion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Darbord, I.

1997-01-01

In the frame of PWR severe accidents, where the core melt, this thesis studies one of the stages of an FCI (fuel coolant interaction) or vapor explosion. An FCI is a rapid evaporation of a coolant when it comes into contact with a hot liquid. More precisely, the subject of this study is the triggering stage of the FCI, when a fuel drop of diameter around one centimeter breaks up into many fragments, diameter of which is around a hundred micrometers. The model describes the cyclic collapse and growth of a vapor bubble around the fuel droplet and its fragmentation. The main features of the model are: - the destabilization of the film or the vapor bubble due to the growth of Rayleigh-Taylor instabilities (those form coolant jets that contact the fuel surface); - The mechanisms of fragmentation, following the contacts (in the case of entrapment of a certain amount of coolant in the fuel, the entrapped coolant evaporates violently after it has been heated to the homogeneous nucleation temperature); - the transient heat transfer from the fragments to the coolant and the elevated vapor production, which leads to an important expansion of the bubble (about this point, the cooling of the fragments has been described by a transient heat transfer coefficient linked to nucleate boiling). The results of the model show good agreement with experimental data. (Author)

USING RESEARCH METHODS IN HUMAN COMPUTER INTERACTION TO DESIGN TECHNOLOGY FOR RESILIENCE

OpenAIRE

Lopes, Arminda Guerra

2016-01-01

ABSTRACT Research in human computer interaction (HCI) covers both technological and human behavioural concerns. As a consequence, the contributions made in HCI research tend to be aware to either engineering or the social sciences. In HCI the purpose of practical research contributions is to reveal unknown insights about human behaviour and its relationship to technology. Practical research methods normally used in HCI include formal experiments, field experiments, field studies, interviews, ...

Final Project Summary Report Bechtel Nevada and Fiberchem Environmental, Inc., Cooperative Research and Technology Development Project

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

R. J. Pollina

1999-04-01

This is a report summarizing work on a small project dedicated to adapting a new chemical sensing platform for the US Department of Energy and its customers. At the same time and in the spirit of technology transfer, FCI Environmental, Inc., would receive technical support in the form of expertise from the US Department of Energy to assist in developing this product. The sensor is a hybrid integrated-circuit, optical waveguide, chemical sensor that is patented by FCI Environmental, Inc., and manufactured under license by Texas Instruments, Inc. A down-hole penetrometer probe was designed for use in hot, 60 C, hydrocarbon-saturated, saline environment at a depth of 200 feet. The probe design includes three chemical sensing, hybrid integrated-circuits with chemical reference and measurement channels, a water seal, output electronics, and a removable measurement head for replacement in the field. A hand-held chemical detector prototype--containing a hybrid integrated-circuit chemical sensor with reference channel, user alarm, and level display--was designed and constructed, and a software interface developed to operate the hand-held sensor interfaced with a laboratory data acquisition system.

Active Learning in PhysicsTechnology and Research-based Techniques Emphasizing Interactive Lecture Demonstrations

Science.gov (United States)

Thornton, Ronald

2010-10-01

Physics education research has shown that learning environments that engage students and allow them to take an active part in their learning can lead to large conceptual gains compared to traditional instruction. Examples of successful curricula and methods include Peer Instruction, Just in Time Teaching, RealTime Physics, Workshop Physics, Scale-Up, and Interactive Lecture Demonstrations (ILDs). An active learning environment is often difficult to achieve in lecture sessions. This presentation will demonstrate the use of sequences of Interactive Lecture Demonstrations (ILDs) that use real experiments often involving real-time data collection and display combined with student interaction to create an active learning environment in large or small lecture classes. Interactive lecture demonstrations will be done in the area of mechanics using real-time motion probes and the Visualizer. A video tape of students involved in interactive lecture demonstrations will be shown. The results of a number of research studies at various institutions (including international) to measure the effectiveness of ILDs and guided inquiry conceptual laboratories will be presented.

Plant Virus–Insect Vector Interactions: Current and Potential Future Research Directions

Science.gov (United States)

Dietzgen, Ralf G.; Mann, Krin S.; Johnson, Karyn N.

2016-01-01

Acquisition and transmission by an insect vector is central to the infection cycle of the majority of plant pathogenic viruses. Plant viruses can interact with their insect host in a variety of ways including both non-persistent and circulative transmission; in some cases, the latter involves virus replication in cells of the insect host. Replicating viruses can also elicit both innate and specific defense responses in the insect host. A consistent feature is that the interaction of the virus with its insect host/vector requires specific molecular interactions between virus and host, commonly via proteins. Understanding the interactions between plant viruses and their insect host can underpin approaches to protect plants from infection by interfering with virus uptake and transmission. Here, we provide a perspective focused on identifying novel approaches and research directions to facilitate control of plant viruses by better understanding and targeting virus–insect molecular interactions. We also draw parallels with molecular interactions in insect vectors of animal viruses, and consider technical advances for their control that may be more broadly applicable to plant virus vectors. PMID:27834855

The Presence of Gender Disparity on the Force Concept Inventory in a Sample of Canadian Undergraduate Students

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Magdalen Normandeau

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Concept inventories (CI are validated, research-based, multiple-choice tests, which are widely used to assess the effectiveness of pedagogical practices in bringing about conceptual change. In order to be a useful diagnostic tool, a CI must reflect only the student understanding of the conceptual material. The Force Concept Inventory (FCI is arguably the standard for testing conceptual understanding of Newtonian mechanics. Studies in the United States and United Kingdom have shown the existence of a gender gap in FCI scores and gains between male and female students. This study aimed to examine whether such a gap exists for Canadian students at a mid-sized university. Four-hundred and thirty-four men and 379 women taking first-term introductory physics courses from the past nine years were assessed with the FCI prior to and after receiving instruction. A gender gap in the pre-instruction and post instruction scores was revealed in favour of male students (p < 0.01. There also existed a gender disparity in the learning gains between the two tests, where males had significantly higher gains (p < 0.01, although the effect size was small. Further analysis found that both male and female students who studied in classes that included interactive engagement methods had somewhat higher gains than students in traditional lecture courses, but that the interactive engagement methods did not eliminate the gender gap between male and female students (p < 0.01. Our results sound a cross-disciplinary note of caution for anyone using concept inventories as research or self-assessment tools. Les inventaires de concepts sont des questionnaires à choix multiples validés basés sur la recherche qui sont largement utilisés pour évaluer l’efficacité de pratiques pédagogiques en instaurant un changement conceptuel. Afin d’être des outils diagnostiques utiles, les inventaires de concepts doivent refléter uniquement la compréhension qu’a l’étudiant de

Education Program for Doctoral Researchers by Industrial-Government-Academic Cooperation and Interaction between Different Research Fields

Science.gov (United States)

Oki, Kazuya; Sawaragi, Tetsuo; Hasebe, Shinji; Morisawa, Shinsuke

New education program to train graduate students and postdoctoral researchers who can be good leaders in a variety of social fields by cooperation of graduate school of engineering and pharmaceutical sciences is conducted as an advanced activity in Kyoto University. This program consists of four sub-programs and the educational effect by the collaboration of industry-government-academic and the interaction between dissimilar research fields is described in this paper. Trainees in this program acquire the ability to understand objectively one’ s research from comprehensive point of view and to debate with researchers in different fields. This program supports them to become ‘Global Leaders’ who play an important role internationally in advanced technology.

The Global Interaction Research Initiative at the IT University of Copenhagen, Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bardram, Jakob Eyvind; Bjørn, Pernille; Glenstrup, Arne John

2011-01-01

This showcase paper describes the Global Interaction Research Initiative – GIRI – recently inaugurated at the IT University of Copenhagen. It presents the motivation for this initiative, namely that the use of information technology is the core enabling factor for global collaboration and business...... initiative, and we invite other researchers to join....

A STUDY ON THE INTERACTION BETWEEN SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH AND PROFESSIONAL ACCOUNTING PRACTICE

OpenAIRE

Ana Paula Batista da Silva; Ernani Ott

2012-01-01

The aim of this study was to analyze the interaction between scientific research and professional accounting practice. In this exploratory study, as it examines a theme that has been little explored in Brazil, a quantitative approach was adopted and a survey was used as the data collection technique, supported by a research instrument with questions on aspects like: interest in and use of research; study and development of themes; means to disseminate the research; and causes of the gap betwe...

Theoretical & Experimental Research in Weak, Electromagnetic & Strong Interactions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nandi, Satyanarayan [Oklahoma State Univ., Stillwater, OK (United States); Babu, Kaladi [Oklahoma State Univ., Stillwater, OK (United States); Rizatdinova, Flera [Oklahoma State Univ., Stillwater, OK (United States); Khanov, Alexander [Oklahoma State Univ., Stillwater, OK (United States); Haley, Joseph [Oklahoma State Univ., Stillwater, OK (United States)

2015-09-17

The conducted research spans a wide range of topics in the theoretical, experimental and phenomenological aspects of elementary particle interactions. Theory projects involve topics in both the energy frontier and the intensity frontier. The experimental research involves energy frontier with the ATLAS Collaboration at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). In theoretical research, novel ideas going beyond the Standard Model with strong theoretical motivations were proposed, and their experimental tests at the LHC and forthcoming neutrino facilities were outlined. These efforts fall into the following broad categories: (i) TeV scale new physics models for LHC Run 2, including left-right symmetry and trinification symmetry, (ii) unification of elementary particles and forces, including the unification of gauge and Yukawa interactions, (iii) supersummetry and mechanisms of supersymmetry breaking, (iv) superworld without supersymmetry, (v) general models of extra dimensions, (vi) comparing signals of extra dimensions with those of supersymmetry, (vii) models with mirror quarks and mirror leptons at the TeV scale, (viii) models with singlet quarks and singlet Higgs and their implications for Higgs physics at the LHC, (ix) new models for the dark matter of the universe, (x) lepton flavor violation in Higgs decays, (xi) leptogenesis in radiative models of neutrino masses, (xii) light mediator models of non-standard neutrino interactions, (xiii) anomalous muon decay and short baseline neutrino anomalies, (xiv) baryogenesis linked to nucleon decay, and (xv) a new model for recently observed diboson resonance at the LHC and its other phenomenological implications. The experimental High Energy Physics group has been, and continues to be, a successful and productive contributor to the ATLAS experiment at the LHC. Members of the group performed search for gluinos decaying to stop and top quarks, new heavy gauge bosons decaying to top and bottom quarks, and vector-like quarks

Exploring Action Research as an Approach to Interactive (Participatory) Evaluation

Science.gov (United States)

Chaudary, Imran Anjum; Imran, Shahida

2012-01-01

This investigation seeks to understand "action research" as an approach to "interactive form of evaluation". The first half of the investigation illuminates the approach with the help of the selective body of literature and the second half draws attention to its application in the field with the help of an authentic evaluation…

Data on the interaction between thermal comfort and building control research.

Science.gov (United States)

Park, June Young; Nagy, Zoltan

2018-04-01

This dataset contains bibliography information regarding thermal comfort and building control research. In addition, the instruction of a data-driven literature survey method guides readers to reproduce their own literature survey on related bibliography datasets. Based on specific search terms, all relevant bibliographic datasets are downloaded. We explain the keyword co-occurrences of historical developments and recent trends, and the citation network which represents the interaction between thermal comfort and building control research. Results and discussions are described in the research article entitled "Comprehensive analysis of the relationship between thermal comfort and building control research - A data-driven literature review" (Park and Nagy, 2018).

Interactive Voice/Web Response System in clinical research.

Science.gov (United States)

Ruikar, Vrishabhsagar

2016-01-01

Emerging technologies in computer and telecommunication industry has eased the access to computer through telephone. An Interactive Voice/Web Response System (IxRS) is one of the user friendly systems for end users, with complex and tailored programs at its backend. The backend programs are specially tailored for easy understanding of users. Clinical research industry has experienced revolution in methodologies of data capture with time. Different systems have evolved toward emerging modern technologies and tools in couple of decades from past, for example, Electronic Data Capture, IxRS, electronic patient reported outcomes, etc.

Action Research and Interactive Research

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

First part of the book is written by senior researchers on specific issues like validity, gender, new forms of organisations, methodologies and methods, earlier and new trends. - The second part of the book is written by doctoral students reporting experiences doing action research in their PhD-projects....

The ferroelectric phase transition and modulated valence electrons in the incommensurate phase of ammonium tetrafluoroberyllate

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Palatinus, Lukáš; van Smaalen, S.

2004-01-01

Roč. 305, - (2004), s. 49-52 ISSN 0015-0193 Grant - others:DFG and FCI(DE) XX Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z1010914 Keywords : Maximum Entropy Method * modulated structures * charge density Subject RIV: BM - Solid Matter Physics ; Magnetism Impact factor: 0.517, year: 2004

Applications of the Maximum Entropy Method in superspace

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

van Smaalen, S.; Palatinus, Lukáš

2004-01-01

Roč. 305, - (2004), s. 57-62 ISSN 0015-0193 Grant - others:DFG and FCI(DE) XX Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z1010914 Keywords : Maximum Entropy Method * modulated structures * charge density Subject RIV: BM - Solid Matter Physics ; Magnetism Impact factor: 0.517, year: 2004

TECHNIQUES AND ALGORITHMS OF INTERACTIVE AUGMENTED REALITY VISUALIZATION: RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

OpenAIRE

Kravtsov A. A.

2015-01-01

The author performed a research with the purpose of improving visualization of three-dimensional objects by means of augmented reality technology with the use of massively available mobile devices as a platform. This article summarizes the main results and provides suggestions for future research. Since graphical user interfaces made it to the consumer market about 30 years ago, interaction with the computer has not changed significantly. The focus of current user interface techniques is only...

Using module analysis for multiple choice responses

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Brewe, Eric; Bruun, Jesper; Bearden, Ian

2016-01-01

We describe a methodology for carrying out a network analysis of Force Concept Inventory (FCI) responses that aims to identify communities of incorrect responses. This method first treats FCI responses as a bipartite, student X response, network. We then use Locally Adaptive Network Sparsificatio...

Personality types and student performance in an introductory physics course

Science.gov (United States)

Harlow, Jason J. B.; Harrison, David M.; Justason, Michael; Meyertholen, Andrew; Wilson, Brian

2017-12-01

We measured the personality type of the students in a large introductory physics course of mostly life science students using the True Colors instrument. We found large correlations of personality type with performance on the precourse Force Concept Inventory (FCI), both term tests, the postcourse FCI, and the final examination. We also saw correlations with the normalized gain on the FCI. The personality profile of the students in this course is very different from the profile of the physics faculty and graduate students, and also very different from the profile of students taking the introductory physics course intended for physics majors and specialists.

Advantages of flow cytometry immunophenotyping for the diagnosis of central nervous system non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in AIDS patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Subirá, D; Górgolas, M; Castañón, S; Serrano, C; Román, A; Rivas, F; Tomás, J F

2005-01-01

Neurological disorders are common in HIV-infected patients. Central nervous system (CNS) lymphoma should always be considered because it is an important cause of morbidity and mortality. To investigate the clinical utility of flow cytometry immunophenotyping (FCI) in diagnosing or discarding leptomeningeal involvement in HIV-infected patients and to compare its sensitivity with that of conventional cytological methods. Fifty-six cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples from 29 HIV-infected patients were independently evaluated by flow cytometry and cytology. The description of an aberrant immunophenotype was the criterion used to define the malignant nature of any CSF cell population. FCI and cytology gave concordant results for 48 of the 56 CSF samples studied: 37 were negative for malignancy and 11 had evidence of CNS lymphoma. Discordant results were obtained for eight CSF samples, and the accuracy of the FCI findings could be demonstrated for four CSF samples described as positive for malignancy according to the FCI criteria. A high level of agreement was found between the results obtained using the two methods, but FCI gave at least 25% higher sensitivity than conventional cytomorphological methods for the detection of malignant cells. This advantage suggests that, in case of negative flow cytometry results, disorders other than non-Hodgkin's lymphoma should be strongly considered.

Productive interactions for societal impact: Developing a research information system for agriculture (RIS-Agric) at Stellenbosch University, South Africa

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Boshoff, N.; Esterhuyse, H.

2016-07-01

Assessments of the societal impact of research rely on primary data as input to the relevant indicators. In the current project, the data collection for indicator construction is guided by the SIAMPI approach to societal impact assessment. According to SIAMPI, the achievement of societal impact involves two elements: stakeholders and productive interactions. The latter includes three kinds of interactions: direct personal interactions; indirect interactions where contact is mediated by a material or human ‘carrier’; and financial interactions that refer to the economic exchanges between researchers and stakeholders. The question to be explored is whether the assessment of the societal impact of research can be facilitated by capturing any direct, indirect and financial interactions between researchers and societal stakeholders in a research information system. CREST/SciSTIP is developing such a system, called RIS-Agric, in cooperation with the Faculty of AgriSciences at Stellenbosch University and four agricultural research funders in South Africa that represent different agricultural commodities. A RIS with productive interactions at its core – and the funded research project as the unit of observation – will produce the necessary data for indicators linked to the societal impact of research, in addition to generating insights about the ‘pathway’ from research to societal impact. The indicators need to be ‘socially robust’ in the sense that their validation processes should include the research beneficiaries and their representatives. In doing so, RIS-Agric will produce a useful, standardised measurement mechanism that is aligned across the different commodities. The focus on productive interactions will be supplemented by other methods in order to enable the quantification of societal impact in the form of ‘impact scores’. (Author)

Research Techniques Made Simple: Emerging Methods to Elucidate Protein Interactions through Spatial Proximity.

Science.gov (United States)

Che, Yonglu; Khavari, Paul A

2017-12-01

Interactions between proteins are essential for fundamental cellular processes, and the diversity of such interactions enables the vast variety of functions essential for life. A persistent goal in biological research is to develop assays that can faithfully capture different types of protein interactions to allow their study. A major step forward in this direction came with a family of methods that delineates spatial proximity of proteins as an indirect measure of protein-protein interaction. A variety of enzyme- and DNA ligation-based methods measure protein co-localization in space, capturing novel interactions that were previously too transient or low affinity to be identified. Here we review some of the methods that have been successfully used to measure spatially proximal protein-protein interactions. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Visualisation and research strategy for computational spatial and structural design interaction

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Peeten, D.; Hofmeyer, H.; Thabet, W

2010-01-01

A research engine is under development for studying the interaction of spatial and structural design processes. The design processes are being implemented as two separate configurable transformation steps; a conversion step and an optimisation step. A significant part of the spatial-to-structural

Computational psychotherapy research: scaling up the evaluation of patient-provider interactions.

Science.gov (United States)

Imel, Zac E; Steyvers, Mark; Atkins, David C

2015-03-01

In psychotherapy, the patient-provider interaction contains the treatment's active ingredients. However, the technology for analyzing the content of this interaction has not fundamentally changed in decades, limiting both the scale and specificity of psychotherapy research. New methods are required to "scale up" to larger evaluation tasks and "drill down" into the raw linguistic data of patient-therapist interactions. In the current article, we demonstrate the utility of statistical text analysis models called topic models for discovering the underlying linguistic structure in psychotherapy. Topic models identify semantic themes (or topics) in a collection of documents (here, transcripts). We used topic models to summarize and visualize 1,553 psychotherapy and drug therapy (i.e., medication management) transcripts. Results showed that topic models identified clinically relevant content, including affective, relational, and intervention related topics. In addition, topic models learned to identify specific types of therapist statements associated with treatment-related codes (e.g., different treatment approaches, patient-therapist discussions about the therapeutic relationship). Visualizations of semantic similarity across sessions indicate that topic models identify content that discriminates between broad classes of therapy (e.g., cognitive-behavioral therapy vs. psychodynamic therapy). Finally, predictive modeling demonstrated that topic model-derived features can classify therapy type with a high degree of accuracy. Computational psychotherapy research has the potential to scale up the study of psychotherapy to thousands of sessions at a time. We conclude by discussing the implications of computational methods such as topic models for the future of psychotherapy research and practice. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

Research on Interaction-oriented Gesture Recognition

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lu Huang

2014-01-01

Full Text Available This thesis designs a series of gesture interaction with the features of the natural human-machine interaction; besides, it utilizes the 3D acceleration sensors as interactive input. Afterwards, it builds the Discrete Hidden Markov Model to make gesture recognition by introducing the collection proposal of gesture interaction based on the acceleration sensors and pre-handling the gesture acceleration signal obtained in the collection. In the end, the thesis proofs the design proposal workable and effective according to the experiments.

The flux-coordinate independent approach applied to X-point geometries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hariri, F.; Hill, P.; Ottaviani, M.; Sarazin, Y.

2014-01-01

A Flux-Coordinate Independent (FCI) approach for anisotropic systems, not based on magnetic flux coordinates, has been introduced in Hariri and Ottaviani [Comput. Phys. Commun. 184, 2419 (2013)]. In this paper, we show that the approach can tackle magnetic configurations including X-points. Using the code FENICIA, an equilibrium with a magnetic island has been used to show the robustness of the FCI approach to cases in which a magnetic separatrix is present in the system, either by design or as a consequence of instabilities. Numerical results are in good agreement with the analytic solutions of the sound-wave propagation problem. Conservation properties are verified. Finally, the critical gain of the FCI approach in situations including the magnetic separatrix with an X-point is demonstrated by a fast convergence of the code with the numerical resolution in the direction of symmetry. The results highlighted in this paper show that the FCI approach can efficiently deal with X-point geometries

Orthorhombic versus monoclinic symmetry of the charge-ordered state of NaV.sub.2./sub.O.sub.5./sub..

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

van Smaalen, S.; Daniels, P.; Palatinus, Lukáš; Kremer, R. K.

2002-01-01

Roč. 65, č. 6 (2002), 060101/1-060101/4 ISSN 0163-1829 Grant - others:DFG and FCI(DE) XX Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z1010914 Keywords : charge ordering * sodium vanadate * spin-ladder compound Subject RIV: BM - Solid Matter Physics ; Magnetism Impact factor: 3.327, year: 2002

Interaction Matrices as a Tool for Prioritizing Radioecology Research

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mora, J.C.; Robles, Beatriz [Centro de Investigaciones Energeticas, Medioambientales y Tecnologicas - CIEMAT (Spain); Bradshaw, Clare; Stark, Karolina [Stockholm University (Sweden); Sweeck, Liev; Vives i Batlle, Jordi [Belgian Nuclear Research Centre SCK-CEN (Belgium); Beresford, Nick [Centre for Ecology and Hydrology - CEH (United Kingdom); Thoerring, Havard; Dowdall, Mark [Norwegian Radiation Protection Authority - NRPA (Norway); Outola, Iisa; Turtiainen, Tuukka; Vetikko, Virve [STUK - Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (Finland); Steiner, Martin [Federal Office for Radiation Protection - BfS (Germany); Beaugelin-Seiller, Karine; Fevrier, Laureline; Hurtevent, Pierre; Boyer, Patrick [Institut de Radioprotection et de Surete Nucleaire - IRSN (France)

2014-07-01

Interaction Matrices as a Tool for Prioritizing Radioecology Research J.C. Mora CIEMAT In 2010 the Strategy for Allied Radioecology (STAR) was launched with several objectives aimed towards integrating the radioecology research efforts of nine institutions in Europe. One of these objectives was the creation of European Radioecology Observatories. The Chernobyl Exclusion Zone (CEZ) and the Upper Silesian Coal Basin (USCB), a coal mining area in Poland, have been chosen after a selection process. A second objective was to develop a system for improving and validating the capabilities of predicting the behaviour of the main radionuclides existing at these observatories. Interaction Matrices (IM) have been used since the 1990's as a tool for developing ecological conceptual models and have also been used within radioecology. The Interaction Matrix system relies on expert judgement for structuring knowledge of a given ecosystem at the conceptual level and was selected for use in the STAR project. A group of experts, selected from each institution of STAR, designed two matrices with the main compartments for each ecosystem (a forest in CEZ and a lake in USCB). All the features, events and processes (FEPs) which could affect the behaviour of the considered radionuclides, focusing on radiocaesium in the Chernobyl forest and radium in the Rontok-Wielki lake, were also included in each IM. Two new sets of experts were appointed to review, improve and prioritize the processes included in each IM. A first processing of the various candidate interaction matrices produced a single interaction matrix for each ecosystem which incorporated all experts combined knowledge. During the prioritization of processes in the IMs, directed towards developing a whole predictive model of radionuclides behaviour in those ecosystems, raised interesting issues related to the processes and parameters involved, regarding the existing knowledge in them. This exercise revealed several processes

Multiple charge-density waves in R.sub.5./sub.Ir.sub.4 ./sub.Si.sub.10./sub. (R=Ho, Er, Tm, and Lu)

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

van Smaalen, S.; Shaz, M.; Palatinus, Lukáš; Daniels, P.; Galli, F.; Nieuwenhuys, G.J.; Mydosh, J.A.

2004-01-01

Roč. 69, č. 1 (2004), 014103/1-014103/11 ISSN 0163-1829 Grant - others:DFG a FCI(DE) XX Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z1010914 Keywords : charge-density wave * rare-earth silicide * incommensurate phase Subject RIV: BM - Solid Matter Physics ; Magnetism Impact factor: 3.075, year: 2004

Using Interactive "Shiny" Applications to Facilitate Research-Informed Learning and Teaching

Science.gov (United States)

Fawcett, Lee

2018-01-01

In this article we discuss our attempt to incorporate research-informed learning and teaching activities into a final year undergraduate Statistics course. We make use of the Shiny web-based application framework for R to develop "Shiny apps" designed to help facilitate student interaction with methods from recently published papers in…

Analysis of information on food chain in Europe and Piedmont region, Italy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniele Pattono

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Food chain information (FCI is an innovation of the new European regulation. Its purpose is to enhance the concept of food security. FCI includes specifications such as: health status, information on treatments and diseases, analytical reports on control plans, zoonoses or environmental contaminants, production performance, etc. The aim of this article is to compare the different European guidelines and analyse the situation in Piedmont in order to assess potential problems and propose solutions. European guidelines are similar one another, but they have been tailored to the epidemiological situations of each state. Except for Spain and Germany, FCI models are different for each species and the poultry sector is the most detailed. Unfortunately, Italy has not provided guidelines yet, and this has generated considerable differences. Overall, the number of FCI models with incomplete information is the largest group compared to the models not completed for each entry. The main deficiencies are related to pharmacological treatments. The health status of the farm is listed consistently regarding the compulsory eradication plans, but other national voluntary or accreditation plans are rarely mentioned. The situation is similar in other European countries. In conclusion, FCI is an effective tool if applied with consistency and reason. Only in this way the collection of data will be effective and representative of the food chain.

Comparison between the performance of some KEK-klystrons and simulation results

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fukuda, Shigeki [National Lab. for High Energy Physics, Tsukuba, Ibaraki (Japan)

1997-04-01

Recent developments of various klystron simulation codes have enabled us to realistically design klystrons. This paper presents various simulation results using the FCI code and the performances of tubes manufactured based on this code. Upgrading a 30-MW S-band klystron and developing a 50-MW S-band klystron for the KEKB projects are successful examples based on FCI-code predictions. Mass-productions of these tubes have already started. On the other hand, a discrepancy has been found between the FCI simulation results and the performance of real tubes. In some cases, the simulation results lead to high-efficiency results, while manufactured tubes show the usual value, or a lower value, of the efficiency. One possible cause may come from a data mismatch between the electron-gun simulation and the input data set of the FCI code for the gun region. This kind of discrepancy has been observed in 30-MW S-band pulsed tubes, sub-booster pulsed tubes and L-band high-duty pulsed klystrons. Sometimes, JPNDSK (one-dimensional disk-model code) gives similar results. Some examples using the FCI code are given in this article. An Arsenal-MSU code could be applied to the 50-MW klystron under collaboration with Moscow State University; a good agreement has been found between the prediction of the code and performance. (author)

The importance of symbolic interaction in grounded theory research on women's health.

Science.gov (United States)

Crooks, D L

2001-01-01

A variety of grounded theory studies are presented in this issue of Health Care for Women International that attend to different factors and situations impacting women's health. In this paper I will provide the basic principles of symbolic interactionism (SI) for the reader unfamiliar with the conceptual underpinnings of the grounded theory research method. I will discuss why SI is a fitting perspective for use in the study of women, women's perspectives, and women's health. I will conclude with a brief discussion of challenges to researchers maintaining the symbolic interaction perspective in grounded theory research.

Integrating Micro-level Interactions with Social Network Analysis in Tie Strength Research

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Torre, Osku; Gupta, Jayesh Prakash; Kärkkäinen, Hannu

2017-01-01

of tie strength based on reciprocal interaction from publicly available Facebook data, and suggest that this approach could work as a basis for further tie strength studies. Our approach makes use of weak tie theory, and enables researchers to study micro-level interactions (i.e. discussions, messages......A social tie is a target for ongoing, high-level scientific debate. Measuring the tie strength in social networks has been an important topic for academic studies since Mark Granovetter's seminal papers in 1970's. However, it is still a problematic issue mainly for two reasons: 1) existing tie...... strengthening process in online social networks. Therefore, we suggest a new approach to tie strength research, which focuses on studying communication patterns (edges) more rather than actors (nodes) in a social network. In this paper we build a social network analysis-based approach to enable the evaluation...

Deriving common comorbidity indices from the MedDRA classification and exploring their performance on key outcomes in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

Science.gov (United States)

Putrik, Polina; Ramiro, Sofia; Lie, Elisabeth; Michaud, Kaleb; Kvamme, Maria K; Keszei, Andras P; Kvien, Tore K; Uhlig, Till; Boonen, Annelies

2018-03-01

To develop algorithms for calculating the Rheumatic Diseases Comorbidity Index (RDCI), Charlson-Deyo Index (CDI) and Functional Comorbidity Index (FCI) from the Medical Dictionary for Regulatory Activities (MedDRA), and to assess how these MedDRA-derived indices predict clinical outcomes, utility and health resource utilization (HRU). Two independent researchers linked the preferred terms of the MedDRA classification into the conditions included in the RDCI, the CDI and the FCI. Next, using data from the Norwegian Register-DMARD study (a register of patients with inflammatory joint diseases treated with DMARDs), the explanatory value of these indices was studied in models adjusted for age, gender and DAS28. Model fit statistics were compared in generalized estimating equation (prediction of outcome over time) models using as outcomes: modified HAQ, HAQ, physical and mental component summary of SF-36, SF6D and non-RA related HRU. Among 4126 patients with RA [72% female, mean (s.d.) age 56 (14) years], median (interquartile range) of RDCI at baseline was 0.0 (1.0) [range 0-6], CDI 0.0 (0.0) [0-7] and FCI 0.0 (1.0) [0-6]. All the comorbidity indices were associated with each outcome, and differences in their performance were moderate. The RDCI and FCI performed better on clinical outcomes: modified HAQ and HAQ, hospitalization, physical and mental component summary, and SF6D. Any non-RA related HRU was best predicted by RDCI followed by CDI. An algorithm is now available to compute three commonly used comorbidity indices from MedDRA classification. Indices performed comparably well in predicting a variety of outcomes, with the CDI performing slightly worse when predicting outcomes reflecting functioning and health. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Society for Rheumatology. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com

The Presence of Gender Disparity on the Force Concept Inventory in a Sample of Canadian Undergraduate Students

Science.gov (United States)

Normandeau, Magdalen; Iyengar, Seshu; Newling, Benedict

2017-01-01

Concept inventories (CI) are validated, research-based, multiple-choice tests, which are widely used to assess the effectiveness of pedagogical practices in bringing about conceptual change. In order to be a useful diagnostic tool, a CI must reflect only the student understanding of the conceptual material. The Force Concept Inventory (FCI) is…

Influence of thermal performance on design parameters of a He/LiPb dual coolant DEMO concept blanket design

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mas de les Valls, E., E-mail: elisabet.masdelesvalls@gits.ws [Technical University of Catalonia (UPC), Jordi Girona 1-3, 08034 Barcelona (Spain); Technology for Fusion (T4F) Research Group, GREENER, Department of Heat Engines, Barcelona (Spain); Batet, L. [Technical University of Catalonia (UPC), Jordi Girona 1-3, 08034 Barcelona (Spain); Technology for Fusion (T4F) Research Group, GREENER, Department of Physics and Nuclear Engineering, Barcelona (Spain); Medina, V. de [Technical University of Catalonia (UPC), Jordi Girona 1-3, 08034 Barcelona (Spain); Sediment Transport Research Group, Department of Engineering Hydraulic, Marine and Environmental Engineering, Barcelona (Spain); Fradera, J. [Technical University of Catalonia (UPC), Jordi Girona 1-3, 08034 Barcelona (Spain); Technology for Fusion (T4F) Research Group, GREENER, Department of Physics and Nuclear Engineering, Barcelona (Spain); Sanmarti, M. [bFUS-IREC, Jardins de les Dones de Negre 1, 08930 Sant Adria del Besos (Spain); Sedano, L.A. [EURATOM-CIEMAT Association, 28040 Madrid (Spain)

2012-08-15

Spanish Breeding Blanket Technology Programme TECNO{sub F}US is exploring the technological capabilities of a Dual-Coolant He/Pb15.7Li breeding blanket for DEMO and studying new breeding blanket design specifications. The progress of the channel conceptual design is being conducted in parallel with the extension of MHD computational capabilities of CFD tools and the underlying physics of MHD models. A qualification of MHD effects under present blanket design specifications and some approaches to their modelling were proposed by the authors in . The analysis was accomplished with the 2D transient algorithm from Sommeria and Moreau and implemented in the OpenFOAM CFD toolbox . The thermal coupling was implemented by means of the Boussinesq hypothesis. Previous analyses showed the need of improvement of FCI thickness and thermal properties in order to obtain a desirable liquid metal temperature gain of 300 Degree-Sign C. In the present study, an assessment through sensitivity and parametric analyses of the required FCI thickness is performed. Numerical simulations have been carried out considering a Robin-type thermal boundary condition which assumes 1D steady state thermal balance across the solid FCI and Eurofer layers. Such boundary condition has been validated with a fluid-solid coupled domain analysis. Results for the studied flow conditions and channel dimensions show that, in order to obtain a liquid metal temperature gain of about 300 Degree-Sign C, the required FCI material should have a very small effective heat transfer coefficient ((k/{delta}) {<=} 1 W/m{sup 2}K) and fluid velocities should be about 0.2 m/s or less. Moreover, special attention has to be placed on the temperature difference across the FCI layer. However, for a maximised liquid metal thermal gain, higher velocities would be preferable, what would also imply a reduced temperature difference across the FCI layer.

Vortex-dislodged cells from bone marrow trephine biopsy yield satisfactory results for flow cytometric immunophenotyping.

Science.gov (United States)

Bommannan, K; Sachdeva, M U S; Gupta, M; Bose, P; Kumar, N; Sharma, P; Naseem, S; Ahluwalia, J; Das, R; Varma, N

2016-10-01

A good bone marrow (BM) sample is essential in evaluating many hematologic disorders. An unsuccessful BM aspiration (BMA) procedure precludes a successful flow cytometric immunophenotyping (FCI) in most hematologic malignancies. Apart from FCI, most ancillary diagnostic techniques in hematology are less informative. We describe the feasibility of FCI in vortex-dislodged cell preparation obtained from unfixed trephine biopsy (TB) specimens. In pancytopenic patients and dry tap cases, routine diagnostic BMA and TB samples were complemented by additional trephine biopsies. These supplementary cores were immediately transferred into sterile tubes filled with phosphate-buffered saline, vortexed, and centrifuged. The cell pellet obtained was used for flow cytometric immunophenotyping. Of 7955 BMAs performed in 42 months, 34 dry tap cases were eligible for the study. Vortexing rendered a cell pellet in 94% of the cases (32 of 34), and FCI rendered a rapid diagnosis in 100% of the cases (32 of 32) where cell pellets were available. We describe an efficient procedure which could be effectively utilized in resource-limited centers and reduce the frequency of repeat BMA procedures. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Research-practice interactions as reported in recent design studies: Still promising, still hazy

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ormel, Bart; Pareja Roblin, Natalie; McKenney, Susan

2012-01-01

Ormel, B., Pareja, N., & McKenney, S. (2011, 8-10 June). Research-practice interactions as reported in recent design studies: Still promising, still hazy. Paper presentation at the ORD annual meeting, Maastricht.

Secondary Students' Perceptions of an Interactive Mathematics Review Program: An Action Research Study

Science.gov (United States)

Wingard, Crystal Burroughs

2017-01-01

The present action research study describes an Interactive Mathematics Review Program (IMRP) developed by the participant-researcher to enable remedial algebra students to learn in a cooperative classroom with pedagogy that promoted collaboration and hands-on, active learning. Data are comprised of surveys, field notes, semi-structured interviews,…

The Institutional Embedding of Interactive Policy Making. Insights from a comparative research based on eight interactive projects in the Netherlands

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Edelenbos, J.; Klok, P.J.; Tatenhove, van J.P.M.

2009-01-01

In this article, the authors address citizen involvement at the central government level in the Netherlands. Through comparative research in which they systematically analyze eight interactive projects in three governmental departments, the authors especially pay attention to the relation between

The Institutional Embedding of Interactive Policy Making Insights From a Comparative Research Based on Eight Interactive Projects in the Netherlands

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Edelenbos, Jurian; Klok, Pieter J.; van Tatenhove, Jan

2009-01-01

In this article, the authors address citizen involvement at the central government level in the Netherlands. Through comparative research in which they systematically analyze eight interactive projects in three governmental departments, the authors especially pay attention to the relation between

Meteosat third generation imager: simulation of the flexible combined imager instrument chain

Science.gov (United States)

Just, Dieter; Gutiérrez, Rebeca; Roveda, Fausto; Steenbergen, Theo

2014-10-01

The Meteosat Third Generation (MTG) Programme is the next generation of European geostationary meteorological systems. The first MTG satellite, MTG-I1, which is scheduled for launch at the end of 2018, will host two imaging instruments: the Flexible Combined Imager (FCI) and the Lightning Imager. The FCI will provide continuation of the SEVIRI imager operations on the current Meteosat Second Generation satellites (MSG), but with an improved spatial, temporal and spectral resolution, not dissimilar to GOES-R (of NASA/NOAA). Unlike SEVIRI on the spinning MSG spacecraft, the FCI will be mounted on a 3-axis stabilised platform and a 2-axis tapered scan will provide a full coverage of the Earth in 10 minute repeat cycles. Alternatively, a rapid scanning mode can cover smaller areas, but with a better temporal resolution of up to 2.5 minutes. In order to assess some of the data acquisition and processing aspects which will apply to the FCI, a simplified end-to-end imaging chain prototype was set up. The simulation prototype consists of four different functional blocks: - A function for the generation of FCI-like references images - An image acquisition simulation function for the FCI Line-of-Sight calculation and swath generation - A processing function that reverses the swath generation process by rectifying the swath data - An evaluation function for assessing the quality of the processed data with respect to the reference images This paper presents an overview of the FCI instrument chain prototype, covering instrument characteristics, reference image generation, image acquisition simulation, and processing aspects. In particular, it provides in detail the description of the generation of references images, highlighting innovative features, but also limitations. This is followed by a description of the image acquisition simulation process, and the rectification and evaluation function. The latter two are described in more detail in a separate paper. Finally, results

Quantum Chemistry via Walks in Determinant Space

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Umrigar, Cyrus J. [Cornell Univ., Ithaca, NY (United States)

2016-01-05

There are many chemical questions of practical interest to the DOE that could be answered if there were an electronic structure method that provided consistently accurate results for all systems at an affordable computational cost. The coupled cluster method with single, double and perturbative triple excitations (CCSD(T)) is the most frequently used high-order method, but it has known deficiencies, e.g., in the description of stretched bonds. The full configuration interaction (FCI) method is the most robust method for treating electronic correlations, but it is little used because its computational cost scales exponentially in the size of the system. The largest calculation that has been done to date employed 10 billion determinants. In this regard, there was a major advance in 2010. The Alavi group at Cambridge University developed a stochastic approach to FCI --- combining it with ideas from quantum Monte Carlo (QMC) --- called FCIQMC, that allows one to go to a far larger number of determinants in certain circumstances. The computational cost is exponential in the system and basis size but with a much reduced exponent compared to conventional FCI. In this project Umrigar's group made several major improvements to the FCIQMC method that increased its efficiency by many orders of magnitude. In addition this project resulted in a cross-fertilization of ideas between the FCIQMC method, the older phaseless auxilliary-field quantum Monte Carlo (AFQMC) method developed by Zhang and Krakauer (two of the PI's of this project), and symmetry-restored wavefunctions developed by Scuseria (also a PI of this project).

Effective Online Interaction: Mapping Course Design to Bridge from Research to Practice

Science.gov (United States)

Thorpe, Mary

2008-01-01

Quantitative and qualitative research of a case study course confirmed that the course achieved a highly interactive learning experience, associated with more effective student support and high student retention. Computer conferencing achieved high participation from the beginning and evidence of dialogue and argumentation within online tutor…

The Representation of Human-Environment Interactions in Land Change Research and Modelling

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Verburg, P.H.; Manfredo, M.J.; Vaske, J.J.; Rechkemmer, A.; Duke, E.A.

2014-01-01

Land change is the result of multiple human-environment interactions operating across different scales. Land change research needs to account for processes ranging from global trade of food and energy to the local management of land resources at farm and landscape level. Land change has a pronounced

The Role of Student-Advisor Interactions in Apprenticing Undergraduate Researchers into a Scientific Community of Practice

Science.gov (United States)

Thiry, Heather; Laursen, Sandra L.

2011-12-01

Among science educators, current interest in undergraduate research (UR) is influenced both by the traditional role of the research apprenticeship in scientists' preparation and by concerns about replacing the current scientific workforce. Recent research has begun to demonstrate the range of personal, professional, and intellectual benefits for STEM students from participating in UR, yet the processes by which student-advisor interactions contribute to these benefits are little understood. We employ situated learning theory (Lave and Wenger, Situated learning: legitimate peripheral participation, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge in 1991) to examine the role of student-advisor interactions in apprenticing undergraduate researchers, particularly in terms of acculturating students to the norms, values, and professional practice of science. This qualitative study examines interviews with a diverse sample of 73 undergraduate research students from two research-extensive institutions. From these interviews, we articulate a continuum of practices that research mentors employed in three domains to support undergraduate scientists-in-training: professional socialization, intellectual support, and personal/emotional support. The needs of novice students differed from those of experienced students in each of these areas. Novice students needed clear expectations, guidelines, and orientation to their specific research project, while experienced students needed broader socialization in adopting the traits, habits, and temperament of scientific researchers. Underrepresented minority students, and to a lesser extent, women, gained confidence from their interactions with their research mentors and broadened their future career and educational possibilities. Undergraduate research at research-extensive universities exemplifies a cycle of scientific learning and practice where undergraduate researchers are mentored by graduate students and postdoctoral researchers, who are

Understanding the relationship between student attitudes and student learning

Science.gov (United States)

Cahill, Michael J.; McDaniel, Mark A.; Frey, Regina F.; Hynes, K. Mairin; Repice, Michelle; Zhao, Jiuqing; Trousil, Rebecca

2018-02-01

Student attitudes, defined as the extent to which one holds expertlike beliefs about and approaches to physics, are a major research topic in physics education research. An implicit but rarely tested assumption underlying much of this research is that student attitudes play a significant part in student learning and performance. The current study directly tested this attitude-learning link by measuring the association between incoming attitudes (Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey) and student learning during the semester after statistically controlling for the effects of prior knowledge [early-semester Force Concept Inventory (FCI) or Brief Electricity and Magnetism Assessment (BEMA)]. This study spanned four different courses and included two complementary measures of student knowledge: late-semester concept inventory scores (FCI or BEMA) and exam averages. In three of the four courses, after controlling for prior knowledge, attitudes significantly predicted both late-semester concept inventory scores and exam averages, but in all cases these attitudes explained only a small amount of variance in concept-inventory and exam scores. Results indicate that after accounting for students' incoming knowledge, attitudes may uniquely but modestly relate to how much students learn and how well they perform in the course.

Structure and sociodemographis characteristics of the family climate in Vojvodina

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mihić Ivana

2006-01-01

Full Text Available Research presented in this paper aimed to investigate psychometric characteristics and factor structure of Family Climate Inventory (FCI Kurdek et al., 1995, as well as the sociodemographic correlates of the quality of family environment operacionalized by this scale. The research sample consisted of 561 adolescents (average age 16. Four factores were extracted.Total variance explained by these four factors was 62. 29%. First factor has been defined as Acceptance, the second (Autonomy considers the estimated level of independence between family members. The third factor Conflicts implies frequency and influence of conflict situations and relations within the family. The fourth isolated factor- Supervision, was the dimension of original FCI scale, but has shown poor metric characteristics in our sample, and has been excluded from further analysis. The reduced Family Climate Inventory consists of 18 items, and has good psychometric characteristics (Cronbah a =.94. Family climate is assessed as better in dual earning families with egalitarian division of parental roles and household labor. Adolescents from rural families describe their family environment as better in quality.

Prediction of minimum UO2 particle size based on thermal stress initiated fracture model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Corradini, M.

1976-08-01

An analytic study was employed to determine the minimum UO 2 particle size that could survive fragmentation induced by thermal stresses in a UO 2 -Na Fuel Coolant Interaction (FCI). A brittle fracture mechanics approach was the basis of the study whereby stress intensity factors K/sub I/ were compared to the fracture toughness K/sub IC/ to determine if the particle could fracture. Solid and liquid UO 2 droplets were considered each with two possible interface contact conditions; perfect wetting by the sodium or a finite heat transfer coefficient. The analysis indicated that particles below the range of 50 microns in radius could survive a UO 2 -Na fuel coolant interaction under the most severe temperature conditions without thermal stress fragmentation. Environmental conditions of the fuel-coolant interaction were varied to determine the effects upon K/sub I/ and possible fragmentation. The underlying assumptions of the analysis were investigated in light of the analytic results. It was concluded that the analytic study seemed to verify the experimental observations as to the range of the minimum particle size due to thermal stress fragmentation by FCI. However the method used when the results are viewed in light of the basic assumptions indicates that the analysis is crude at best, and can be viewed as only a rough order of magnitude analysis. The basic complexities in fracture mechanics make further investigation in this area interesting but not necessarily fruitful for the immediate future

Research progress in neuro-immune interactions in Caenorhabditis elegans

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jin-ling CAI

2012-09-01

Full Text Available The innate immune response may be activated quickly once the organism is invaded by exotic pathogens. An excessive immune response may result in inflammation and tissue damage, whereas an insufficient immune response may result in infection. Nervous system may regulate the intensity of innate immune responses by releasing neurotransmitters, neuropeptides and hormones. Compared with the complicated neuro-immune system in mammals, it is much simpler in Caenorhabditis elegans. Besides, C. elegans is accessible to genetic, molecular biology and behavioral analyses, so it has been used in studies on neuro-immune interactions. It has been revealed recently in the studies with C. elegans that the neuronal pathways regulating innate immune responses primarily include a transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β pathway, an insulin/insulin-like growth factor receptor (IGF pathway and dopaminergic neurotransmission. Since these pathways are evolutionally conservative, so it might be able to provide some new ideas for the research on neuro-immune interactions at molecular levels. The recent progress in this field has been reviewed in present paper.

Information-theoretic metric as a tool to investigate nonclassical correlations

Science.gov (United States)

Rudolph, Alexander L.; Lamine, Brahim; Joyce, Michael; Vignolles, Hélène; Consiglio, David

2014-06-01

We report on a project to introduce interactive learning strategies (ILS) to physics classes at the Université Pierre et Marie Curie, one of the leading science universities in France. In Spring 2012, instructors in two large introductory classes, first-year, second-semester mechanics, and second-year introductory electricity and magnetism, enrolling approximately 500 and 250 students, respectively, introduced ILS into some, but not all, of the sections of each class. The specific ILS utilized were think-pair-share questions and Peer Instruction in the main lecture classrooms, and University of Washington Tutorials for Introductory Physics in recitation sections. Pre- and postinstruction assessments [Force Concept Inventory (FCI) and Conceptual Survey of Electricity and Magnetism (CSEM), respectively] were given, along with a series of demographic questions. Since not all lecture or recitation sections in these classes used ILS, we were able to compare the results of the FCI and CSEM between interactive and noninteractive classes taught simultaneously with the same curriculum. We also analyzed final exam results, as well as the results of student and instructor attitude surveys between classes. In our analysis, we argue that multiple linear regression modeling is superior to other common analysis tools, including normalized gain. Our results show that ILS are effective at improving student learning by all measures used: research-validated concept inventories and final exam scores, on both conceptual and traditional problem-solving questions. Multiple linear regression analysis reveals that interactivity in the classroom is a significant predictor of student learning, showing a similar or stronger relationship with student learning than such ascribed characteristics as parents’ education, and achieved characteristics such as grade point average and hours studied per week. Analysis of student and instructor attitudes shows that both groups believe that ILS improve

Replication in Interaction and Working Memory Research: Révész (2012) and Goo (2012)

Science.gov (United States)

Gass, Susan; Valmori, Lorena

2015-01-01

This paper argues for the replication of two studies, both of which consider feedback and working memory. In the first part of this paper, we discuss the role of interaction-based research and working memory research in second language acquisition research. We then describe two studies that have unified these two areas in recent published articles…

Neuroplasticity of selective attention: Research foundations and preliminary evidence for a gene by intervention interaction

Science.gov (United States)

Stevens, Courtney; Pakulak, Eric; Hampton Wray, Amanda; Bell, Theodore A.; Neville, Helen J.

2017-01-01

This article reviews the trajectory of our research program on selective attention, which has moved from basic research on the neural processes underlying selective attention to translational studies using selective attention as a neurobiological target for evidence-based interventions. We use this background to present a promising preliminary investigation of how genetic and experiential factors interact during development (i.e., gene × intervention interactions). Our findings provide evidence on how exposure to a family-based training can modify the associations between genotype (5-HTTLPR) and the neural mechanisms of selective attention in preschool children from lower socioeconomic status backgrounds. PMID:28819066

Neuroplasticity of selective attention: Research foundations and preliminary evidence for a gene by intervention interaction.

Science.gov (United States)

Isbell, Elif; Stevens, Courtney; Pakulak, Eric; Hampton Wray, Amanda; Bell, Theodore A; Neville, Helen J

2017-08-29

This article reviews the trajectory of our research program on selective attention, which has moved from basic research on the neural processes underlying selective attention to translational studies using selective attention as a neurobiological target for evidence-based interventions. We use this background to present a promising preliminary investigation of how genetic and experiential factors interact during development (i.e., gene × intervention interactions). Our findings provide evidence on how exposure to a family-based training can modify the associations between genotype (5-HTTLPR) and the neural mechanisms of selective attention in preschool children from lower socioeconomic status backgrounds.

Summary report on first research coordination meeting on heavy charged-particle interaction data for radiotherapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Palmans, H.; Noy, R.C.

2008-04-01

A summary is given of the First Research Coordination Meeting on Heavy Charged-Particle Interaction Data for Radiotherapy. A programme to compile and evaluate charged-particle nuclear data for therapeutic applications was proposed. Detailed coordinated research proposals were also agreed. Technical discussions and the resulting work plan of the Coordinated Research Project are summarized, along with actions and deadlines. (author)

The Use of Interactive Technologies to Improve Student Learning of Physics from Middle School to College

Science.gov (United States)

Sheldon, Peter; Wellington, Tracey

2003-03-01

The Physics Department at Randolph-Macon Woman's College, a liberal arts women's college of 720, has traditionally turned out approximately 0.6 majors/year. We have invigorated the program by adding community (e.g. SPS, physical space, organized activities), adding a significant technical component (e.g. web-assisted and computer interfaced labs and more technology in the classes [1]), and incorporating new learning techniques (JITT, Physlets, Peer Instruction [2], Interactive DVD's, and using the Personal Response System [3]). Students have responded well as evidenced by significant increases in enrollments as well as strong scores on the FCI. As an offshoot of this original project supported by the NSF, we have applied some of these teaching methods to teach younger children and teachers of younger children. In this presentation, we will discuss the implementation of the new curricular developments and the specific changes we have seen and hope to see in student learning. [1] This work is supported in part by the NSF CCLI Program under grant DUE-9980890. [2] See, for example, the project Galileo website http://galileo.harvard.edu for a description of all of these techniques. [3] The Personal Response System is a wireless response system made by Educue, www.educue.com.

Human machine interaction research experience and perspectives as seen from the OECD Halden Reactor Project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oewre, F.

1999-01-01

In this paper a short review is given on important safety issues in the field of human machine interaction as expressed by important nuclear organisations such as USNRC, IAEA and the OECD NEA. Further on, a presentation is offered of research activities at the OECD Halden Reactor Project in the field of human machine interaction aiming to clarify some of the issues outlined by the above mentioned organisations. The OECD Halden Reactor Project is a joint undertaking of national nuclear organisations in 19 countries sponsoring a jointly financed research programme under the auspices of the OECD - Nuclear Energy Agency. One of the research areas is the man-machine systems research addressing the operator tasks in a control room environment. The overall objective is to provide a basis for improving today's control rooms through introduction of computer-based solutions for effective and safe execution of surveillance and control functions in normal as well as off-normal plant situations. (author)

The Ethics of Translational Science: Imagining Public Benefit in Gene-Environment Interaction Research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sara L. Ackerman

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Biomedical research is increasingly informed by expectations of “translation,” which call for the production of scientific knowledge that can be used to create services and products that improve health outcomes. In this paper, we ask how translation, in particular the idea of social responsibility, is understood and enacted in the post-genomic life sciences. Drawing on theories examining what constitutes “good science,” and interviews with 35 investigators who study the role of gene-environment interactions in the etiology of cancer, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease, we describe the dynamic and unsettled ethics of translational science through which the expected social value of scientific knowledge about complex disease causation is negotiated. To describe how this ethics is formed, we first discuss the politics of knowledge production in interdisciplinary research collectives. Researchers described a commitment to working across disciplines to examine a wide range of possible causes of disease, but they also pointed to persistent disciplinary and ontological divisions that rest on the dominance of molecular conceptions of disease risk. The privileging of molecular-level causation shapes and constrains the kinds of knowledge that can be created about gene-environment interactions. We then turn to scientists’ ideas about how this knowledge should be used, including personalized prevention strategies, targeted therapeutics, and public policy interventions. Consensus about the relative value of these anticipated translations was elusive, and many scientists agreed that gene-environment interaction research is part of a shift in biomedical research away from considering important social, economic, political and historical causes of disease and disease disparities. We conclude by urging more explicit engagement with questions about the ethics of translational science in the post-genomic life sciences. This would include a consideration

Anthropology and Geosciences: Training and Collaboration Advancing Interdisciplinary Research of Human-environment Interaction

Science.gov (United States)

Brondizio, E.; Moran, E.

2005-05-01

Over the past thirteen years the Anthropological Center for Training and Research on Global Environmental Change (ACT) at Indiana University has pioneered the use of anthropological and environmental research approaches to address issues of land use change, and population-environment interaction, particularly in the Amazon. Our research and training objectives focus on how particular local populations manage resources and how those activities may be studied by integrating time-tested ethnographic methods, survey instruments, ecological field studies, and the spatial and temporal perspectives of remote sensing and Geographical Information Systems. The globalization of the environment crisis bears the risk of the research and training at universities being purely global or large scale in nature. This would fail to take into account the highly variable local causes of human activities or to discover sustainable solutions to the use, conservation, and restoration of human ecosystems. Our approach combines institutional and international collaboration, formal and hands-on laboratory and field activities developed within an interdisciplinary environment, but based on the strength of disciplinary programs. Over the past years, we have particularly emphasized collaboration between American and Brazilian scholars and students and intense work with local farmers and communities both during data collection and field research, as well as in returning data and results using different formats. In this paper, we address our experience, the challenges and advantages of theoretical and methodological development for students approaching interdisciplinary problems, innovations in linking levels of analysis, and new opportunities for international and collaborative training and research on human-environment interaction.

The development of mini project interactive media on junior statistical materials (developmental research in junior high school)

Science.gov (United States)

Fauziah, D.; Mardiyana; Saputro, D. R. S.

2018-05-01

Assessment is an integral part in the learning process. The process and the result should be in line, regarding to measure the ability of learners. Authentic assessment refers to a form of assessment that measures the competence of attitudes, knowledge, and skills. In fact, many teachers including mathematics teachers who have implemented curriculum based teaching 2013 feel confuse and difficult in mastering the use of authentic assessment instruments. Therefore, it is necessary to design an authentic assessment instrument with an interactive mini media project where teacher can adopt it in the assessment. The type of this research is developmental research. The developmental research refers to the 4D models development, which consist of four stages: define, design, develop and disseminate. The research purpose is to create a valid mini project interactive media on statistical materials in junior high school. The retrieved valid instrument based on expert judgment are 3,1 for eligibility constructions aspect, and 3,2 for eligibility presentation aspect, 3,25 for eligibility contents aspect, and 2,9 for eligibility didactic aspect. The research results obtained interactive mini media projects on statistical materials using Adobe Flash so it can help teachers and students in achieving learning objectives.

Visualization and Interaction in Research, Teaching, and Scientific Communication

Science.gov (United States)

Ammon, C. J.

2017-12-01

Modern computing provides many tools for exploring observations, numerical calculations, and theoretical relationships. The number of options is, in fact, almost overwhelming. But the choices provide those with modest programming skills opportunities to create unique views of scientific information and to develop deeper insights into their data, their computations, and the underlying theoretical data-model relationships. I present simple examples of using animation and human-computer interaction to explore scientific data and scientific-analysis approaches. I illustrate how valuable a little programming ability can free scientists from the constraints of existing tools and can facilitate the development of deeper appreciation data and models. I present examples from a suite of programming languages ranging from C to JavaScript including the Wolfram Language. JavaScript is valuable for sharing tools and insight (hopefully) with others because it is integrated into one of the most powerful communication tools in human history, the web browser. Although too much of that power is often spent on distracting advertisements, the underlying computation and graphics engines are efficient, flexible, and almost universally available in desktop and mobile computing platforms. Many are working to fulfill the browser's potential to become the most effective tool for interactive study. Open-source frameworks for visualizing everything from algorithms to data are available, but advance rapidly. One strategy for dealing with swiftly changing tools is to adopt common, open data formats that are easily adapted (often by framework or tool developers). I illustrate the use of animation and interaction in research and teaching with examples from earthquake seismology.

Photoabsorption in sodium clusters: first principles configuration interaction calculations

Science.gov (United States)

Priya, Pradip Kumar; Rai, Deepak Kumar; Shukla, Alok

2017-05-01

We present systematic and comprehensive correlated-electron calculations of the linear photoabsorption spectra of small neutral closed- and open-shell sodium clusters (Nan, n = 2 - 6), as well as closed-shell cation clusters (Nan+, n = 3, 5). We have employed the configuration interaction (CI) methodology at the full CI (FCI) and quadruple CI (QCI) levels to compute the ground, and the low-lying excited states of the clusters. For most clusters, besides the minimum energy structures, we also consider their energetically close isomers. The photoabsorption spectra were computed under the electric-dipole approximation, employing the dipole-matrix elements connecting the ground state with the excited states of each isomer. Our calculations were tested rigorously for convergence with respect to the basis set, as well as with respect to the size of the active orbital space employed in the CI calculations. These calculations reveal that as far as electron-correlation effects are concerned, core excitations play an important role in determining the optimized ground state geometries of various clusters, thereby requiring all-electron correlated calculations. But, when it comes to low-lying optical excitations, only valence electron correlation effects play an important role, and excellent agreement with the experimental results is obtained within the frozen-core approximation. For the case of Na6, the largest cluster studied in this work, we also discuss the possibility of occurrence of plasmonic resonance in the optical absorption spectrum. Supplementary material in the form of one pdf file available from the Journal web page at http://https://doi.org/10.1140/epjd/e2017-70728-3

Proceedings of study meeting on microscopic and phenomenological research of interaction for light heavy-ion systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1991-06-01

The Research Center for Nuclear Physics study meeting 'Microscopic and phenomenological research of interaction for light heavy-ion systems was held on March 7-9, 1990 as the study meeting in the second half of 1990, and 25 researchers took part in it. As the background of holding this study meeting, the fact that recently the rainbow scattering due to nuclear force was discovered experimentally in 16 O- 16 O system, and phenomenologically it was explained only by deep inter-nucleus potential. This should be evaluated as an important foothold for the research on the interaction for light heavy-ion systems and nuclear reaction mechanism. Accordingly, most of the papers presented this time were those related to the inter-nucleus potential and nuclear reaction mechanism. Also the development of theoretical analysis method was carried out and reported. Further, recently the experimental study on the structure and reaction of the neutron rich nucleus has advanced, and the theoretical research related to this topic was reported. (K.I.)

Organizational Influences on Interdisciplinary Interactions during Research and Design of Large-Scale Complex Engineered Systems

Science.gov (United States)

McGowan, Anna-Maria R.; Seifert, Colleen M.; Papalambros, Panos Y.

2012-01-01

The design of large-scale complex engineered systems (LaCES) such as an aircraft is inherently interdisciplinary. Multiple engineering disciplines, drawing from a team of hundreds to thousands of engineers and scientists, are woven together throughout the research, development, and systems engineering processes to realize one system. Though research and development (R&D) is typically focused in single disciplines, the interdependencies involved in LaCES require interdisciplinary R&D efforts. This study investigates the interdisciplinary interactions that take place during the R&D and early conceptual design phases in the design of LaCES. Our theoretical framework is informed by both engineering practices and social science research on complex organizations. This paper provides preliminary perspective on some of the organizational influences on interdisciplinary interactions based on organization theory (specifically sensemaking), data from a survey of LaCES experts, and the authors experience in the research and design. The analysis reveals couplings between the engineered system and the organization that creates it. Survey respondents noted the importance of interdisciplinary interactions and their significant benefit to the engineered system, such as innovation and problem mitigation. Substantial obstacles to interdisciplinarity are uncovered beyond engineering that include communication and organizational challenges. Addressing these challenges may ultimately foster greater efficiencies in the design and development of LaCES and improved system performance by assisting with the collective integration of interdependent knowledge bases early in the R&D effort. This research suggests that organizational and human dynamics heavily influence and even constrain the engineering effort for large-scale complex systems.

A Research-Informed, School-Based Professional Development Workshop Programme to Promote Dialogic Teaching with Interactive Technologies

Science.gov (United States)

Hennessy, Sara; Dragovic, Tatjana; Warwick, Paul

2018-01-01

The study reported in this article investigated the influence of a research-informed, school-based, professional development workshop programme on the quality of classroom dialogue using the interactive whiteboard (IWB). The programme aimed to develop a dialogic approach to teaching and learning mediated through more interactive uses of the IWB,…

Communications between volunteers and health researchers during recruitment and informed consent: qualitative content analysis of email interactions.

Science.gov (United States)

Townsend, Anne; Amarsi, Zubin; Backman, Catherine L; Cox, Susan M; Li, Linda C

2011-10-13

While use of the Internet is increasingly widespread in research, little is known about the role of routine electronic mail (email) correspondence during recruitment and early volunteer-researcher interactions. To gain insight into the standpoint of volunteers we analyzed email communications in an early rheumatoid arthritis qualitative interview study. The objectives of our study were (1) to understand the perspectives and motivations of individuals who volunteered for an interview study about the experiences of early rheumatoid arthritis, and (2) to investigate the role of emails in volunteer-researcher interactions during recruitment. Between December 2007 and December 2008 we recruited 38 individuals with early rheumatoid arthritis through rheumatologist and family physician offices, arthritis Internet sites, and the Arthritis Research Centre of Canada for a (face-to-face) qualitative interview study. Interested individuals were invited to contact us via email or telephone. In this paper, we report on email communications from 12 of 29 volunteers who used email as their primary communication mode. Emails offered insights into the perspective of study volunteers. They provided evidence prospectively about recruitment and informed consent in the context of early rheumatoid arthritis. First, some individuals anticipated that participating would have mutual benefits, for themselves and the research, suggesting a reciprocal quality to volunteering. Second, volunteering for the study was strongly motivated by a need to access health services and was both a help-seeking and self-managing strategy. Third, volunteers expressed ambivalence around participation, such as how far participating would benefit them, versus more general benefits for research. Fourth, practical difficulties of negotiating symptom impact, medical appointments, and research tasks were revealed. We also reflect on how emails documented volunteer-researcher interactions, illustrating typically

Human-Robot Interaction Directed Research Project

Science.gov (United States)

Sandor, Aniko; Cross, Ernest V., II; Chang, Mai Lee

2014-01-01

Human-robot interaction (HRI) is a discipline investigating the factors affecting the interactions between humans and robots. It is important to evaluate how the design of interfaces and command modalities affect the human's ability to perform tasks accurately, efficiently, and effectively when working with a robot. By understanding the effects of interface design on human performance, workload, and situation awareness, interfaces can be developed to appropriately support the human in performing tasks with minimal errors and with appropriate interaction time and effort. Thus, the results of research on human-robot interfaces have direct implications for the design of robotic systems. This DRP concentrates on three areas associated with interfaces and command modalities in HRI which are applicable to NASA robot systems: 1) Video Overlays, 2) Camera Views, and 3) Command Modalities. The first study focused on video overlays that investigated how Augmented Reality (AR) symbology can be added to the human-robot interface to improve teleoperation performance. Three types of AR symbology were explored in this study, command guidance (CG), situation guidance (SG), and both (SCG). CG symbology gives operators explicit instructions on what commands to input, whereas SG symbology gives operators implicit cues so that operators can infer the input commands. The combination of CG and SG provided operators with explicit and implicit cues allowing the operator to choose which symbology to utilize. The objective of the study was to understand how AR symbology affects the human operator's ability to align a robot arm to a target using a flight stick and the ability to allocate attention between the symbology and external views of the world. The study evaluated the effects type of symbology (CG and SG) has on operator tasks performance and attention allocation during teleoperation of a robot arm. The second study expanded on the first study by evaluating the effects of the type of

A qualitative analysis of an interactive online discussion by health professions educators on education research.

Science.gov (United States)

Damodar, Komaladevi S; Lingaraj, Jayalakshmi; Kumar, Latha R; Chacko, Thomas V

2012-01-01

In view of increasing demand for reforms in medical education in India, it is important to generate evidence through education research to increase the relevance and improve the quality of medical education. Education research is still at a nascent stage in India for a number of reasons. This study elicited health professions educators' views about the dearth of education research in Southeast Asia and what is needed to improve it. Qualitative content analysis of an interactive, online discussion on 'education research' between PSG-FAIMER Regional Institute fellows and faculty was carried out. Forty-four health professionals exchanged approximately 492 email messages during the discussion. One main concern expressed within the group was that the medical curriculum was not in tune with the health care needs of the society and reforms in the curriculum should be based on research. Most fellows felt that their work in education research was not appreciated in their schools. Participants felt that education research was done for altruistic reasons and only by self-motivated faculty. Participants also said that regulatory bodies were not concerned about the quality of education and its related research. Measures that could improve education research also emerged during the discussions. Interactive online discussions elicited important issues about education research in India. Participants noted that there is no recognition or rewards to encourage faculty to conduct education research. They also said that there is need to educate faculty about changes elsewhere in medical education and to make them more aware of education research generally.

Ex-Vessel Steam Explosion Analysis of Central Melt Pour Scenario

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ursic, M.; Leskovar, M.

2008-01-01

An ex-vessel steam explosion may develop during a severe reactor accident when the reactor vessel fails and the molten core interacts with the coolant in the reactor cavity. At this process part of the corium energy is intensively transferred to water in a very short time scale. The water vaporizes at high pressure and expands, doing work on its surrounding. Although the steam explosion has probably a low probability of occurrence, it is an important nuclear safety issue in case of a severe reactor accident. Namely, the formed very high pressure region induces dynamic loadings on the surrounding structures that may potentially lead to an early release of the radioactive material into the environment. Although the steam explosion events have being studied for several years, the level of the process and consequences understanding is still not adequate. To increase the level of confidence the OECD programme SERENA (Steam Explosion REsolution for Nuclear Applications) was established in 2002. The objectives of the program were to evaluate capabilities of the current generation of the FCI (Fuel-Coolant Interaction) computer codes in predicting the steam explosion induced loads, identifying key FCI phenomena and associated uncertainties impacting the predictability of the steam explosion energetics in the reactor situations and proposing confirmatory research to reduce the uncertainties to acceptable levels for the steam explosion risk assessment. To get a better insight into the most challenging ex-vessel steam explosions, analyses for different locations of the melt release, the cavity water sub-cooling, the primary system pressure overpressure and the triggering time were preformed for a typical pressurized water reactor cavity. The results of some scenarios revealed that significantly higher pressure loads are predicted than obtained in the OECD programme SERENA Phase 1. Among the performed analyses for the central melt pour scenarios, the maximum pressure loads were

Results of recent KROTOS FCI tests. Alumina vs. corium melts

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Huhtiniemi, I.; Magallon, D.; Hohmann, H. [Commission of the European Communities, Ispra (Italy). Joint Research Center

1998-01-01

Recent results from KROTOS fuel-coolant interaction experiments are discussed. Five tests with alumina were performed under highly subcooled conditions, all of these tests resulted in spontaneous steam explosions. Additionally, four tests were performed at low subcooling to confirm, on one hand, the suppression of spontaneous steam explosions under such conditions and, on the other hand, that such a system is still triggerable using an external initiator. The other test parameters in these alumina tests included the melt superheat and the initial pressure. All the tests in the investigated superheat range (150 K - 750 K) produced a steam explosion and no evidence of the explosion suppression by the elevated initial pressure (in the limited range of 0.1 - 0.375 MPa) was observed in the alumina tests. The corium test series include a test with 3 kg of melt under both subcooled and near saturated conditions at ambient pressure. Two additional tests were performed with subcooled water; one test was performed at an elevated pressure of 0.2 MPa with 2.4 kg of melt and another test with 5.1 kg of melt at ambient pressure. None of these tests with corium produced a propagating energetic steam explosion. However, propagating low energy (about twice the energy of the trigger pulse) events were observed. All corium tests produced significantly higher water level swells during the mixing phase than the corresponding alumina tests. Present experimental evidence suggests that the water depletion in the mixing zone suppresses energetic steam explosions with corium melts at ambient pressure and in the present pour geometry. Processes that could produce such a difference in void generation are discussed. (author)

Large-scale seismic test for soil-structure interaction research in Hualien, Taiwan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ueshima, T.; Kokusho, T.; Okamoto, T.

1995-01-01

It is important to evaluate dynamic soil-structure interaction more accurately in the aseismic design of important facilities such as nuclear power plants. A large-scale model structure with about 1/4th of commercial nuclear power plants was constructed on the gravelly layers in seismically active Hualien, Taiwan. This international joint project is called 'the Hualien LSST Project', where 'LSST' is short for Large-Scale Seismic Test. In this paper, research tasks and responsibilities, the process of the construction work and research tasks along the time-line, main results obtained up to now, and so on in this Project are described. (J.P.N.)

Collaborative Research. Fundamental Science of Low Temperature Plasma-Biological Material Interactions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Graves, David Barry [Univ. California, Berkeley, CA (United States); Oehrlein, Gottlieb [Univ. of Maryland, College Park, MD (United States)

2014-09-01

Low temperature plasma (LTP) treatment of biological tissue is a promising path toward sterilization of bacteria due to its versatility and ability to operate under well-controlled and relatively mild conditions. The present collaborative research of an interdisciplinary team of investigators at University of Maryland, College Park (UMD), and University of California, Berkeley (UCB) focused on establishing our knowledge based with regard to low temperature plasma-induced chemical modifications in biomolecules that result in inactivation due to various plasma species, including ions, reactive radicals, and UV/VUV photons. The overall goals of the project were to identify and quantify the mechanisms by which low and atmospheric pressure plasma deactivates endotoxic biomolecules. Additionally, we wanted to understand the mechanism by which atmospheric pressure plasmas (APP) modify surfaces and how these modifications depend on the interaction of APP with the environment. Various low pressure plasma sources, a vacuum beam system and several atmospheric pressure plasma sources were used to accomplish this. In our work we elucidated for the first time the role of ions, VUV photons and radicals in biological deactivation of representative biomolecules, both in a UHV beam system and an inductively coupled, low pressure plasma system, and established the associated atomistic biomolecule changes. While we showed that both ions and VUV photons can be very efficient in deactivation of biomolecules, significant etching and/or deep modification (~200 nm) accompanied these biological effects. One of the most important findings in this work is the significant radical-induced deactivation and surface modification can occur with minimal etching. However, if radical fluxes and corresponding etch rates are relatively high, for example at atmospheric pressure, endotoxic biomolecule film inactivation may require near-complete removal of the film. These findings motivated further work at

Augmented reality as a tool for linguistic research: Intercepting and manipulating multimodal interaction

OpenAIRE

Pitsch, Karola; Neumann, Alexander; Schnier, Christian; Hermann, Thomas

2013-01-01

We suggest that an Augmented Reality (AR) system for coupled interaction partners provides a new tool for linguistic research that allows to manipulate the coparticipants’ real-time perception and action. It encompasses novel facilities for recording heterogeneous sensor-rich data sets to be accessed in parallel with qualitative/manual and quantitative/computational methods.

How do we interact online? An approach to researching multidimensionality of online communication

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Petrović Dalibor

2016-01-01

Full Text Available If different dimensions of online interaction are neglected and/or unknowingly combined in a research study there is a risk of misleading results due to compensatory effect. With respect to the multidimensionality of online interaction, two substantially different types of online communication are defined - procreative and transmissional. The procreative online communication is understood as a person's tendency to use the internet as a space for social interaction, which essentially differs from using the internet transmissionally, as a peer-to-peer communication channel between people who are familiar with one another. The aim of this paper is to explore more deeply the procreative dimensions of online communication. Based on our conceptual framework, we defined three procreativity dimensions and developed an Online Procreativity Scale (OPS to measure them. The OPS has been validated through EFA and CFA and the three-dimensional structure has been confirmed. Using the OLS regression analyses we found that gender and psychological characteristics and social network sites (SNS use have diverse influence depending on the procreativity dimension under observation. Gender, city size, share of unfamiliar SNS friends and loneliness predicted willingness to interact with strangers, while the time spent on SNS predicted only the tendency to participate in public online interaction.

From Human-Computer Interaction to Human-Robot Social Interaction

OpenAIRE

Toumi, Tarek; Zidani, Abdelmadjid

2014-01-01

Human-Robot Social Interaction became one of active research fields in which researchers from different areas propose solutions and directives leading robots to improve their interactions with humans. In this paper we propose to introduce works in both human robot interaction and human computer interaction and to make a bridge between them, i.e. to integrate emotions and capabilities concepts of the robot in human computer model to become adequate for human robot interaction and discuss chall...

A Study of Interactional Metadiscourse in English Abstracts of Chinese Economics Research Articles

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Ping; Huang, Xu

2017-01-01

This study adopts the revised interpersonal model of metadiscourse to discover whether and to what extent Chinese authors employ a varying amount of Interactional Metadiscourse (IM) in the past decade in English abstracts of economics Research Articles (RAs). The data was drawn from a prestigious economics journal in China to compose a corpus of…

Present status of plasma-wall interactions research and materials development activities in the US

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hirooka, Y.; Conn, R.W.

1989-08-01

It is well known in the fusion engineering community that the plasma confinement performance in magnetic fusion devices is strongly affected by edge-plasma interactions with surface components. These plasma-material interactions (PMI) include fuel particle recycling and impurity generation both during normal and off-normal operation. To understand and then to control PMI effects, considerable effort has been made, particularly over the last decade in US, supported by Department of Energy, Division of Development and Technology. Also, because plasma-facing components are generally expected to receive significant amount of heat due to plasma bombardment and run-away electrons, materials must tolerate high-heat fluxes (HHF). The HHF-component research has been conducted in parallel with PMI research. One strong motivation for these research activities is that DT-burning experiments are currently planned in the Tokamak Test Fusion Reactor (TFTR) in early 1990s. Several different but mutually complementary approaches have been taken in the PMI+HHF research. The first approach is to conduct PMI experiments using toroidal fusion devices such as TFTR. The second one is to simulate elemental processes involved in PMI using ion beams and electron beams, etc. The last one but not least is to use non-tokamak plasma facilities. Along with these laboratory activities, new materials have been developed and evaluated from the PMI+HHF point of view. In this paper, several major PMI+HHF research facilities in US and their activities are briefly reviewed. 21 refs., 10 figs., 2 tabs

Meta-analysis of teaching methods: a 50k+ student study

Science.gov (United States)

Sayre, Eleanor; Archibeque, Benjamin; Gomez, K. Alison; Heckendorf, Tyrel; Madsen, Adrian M.; McKagan, Sarah B.; Schenk, Edward W.; Shepard, Chase; Sorell, Lane; von Korff, Joshua

2015-04-01

The Force Concept Inventory (FCI) and the Force and Motion Conceptual Evaluation (FMCE) are the two most widely-used conceptual tests in introductory mechanics. Because they are so popular, they provide an excellent avenue to compare different teaching methods at different kinds of institutions with varying student populations. We conducted a secondary analysis of all peer-reviewed papers which publish data from US and Canadian colleges and universities. Our data include over fifty thousand students drawn from approximately 100 papers; papers were drawn from Scopus, ERIC, ComPADRE, and journal websites. We augment published data about teaching methods with institutional data such as Carnegie Classification and average SAT scores. We statistically determine the effectiveness of different teaching methods as measured by FCI and FMCE gains and mediated by institutional and course factors. As in the landmark 1998 Hake study, we find that classes using interactive engagement (IE) have significantly larger learning gains than classes using traditional instruction. However, we find a broader distribution of normalized gains occurs in each of traditional and IE classes, and the differences between IE and traditional instruction have changed over time and are more context dependent.

Effects of molten material temperatures and coolant temperatures on vapor explosion

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

LI Tianshu; YANG Yanhua; YUAN Minghao; HU Zhihua

2007-01-01

An observable experiment facility for low-temperature molten materials to be dropped into water was set up in this study to investigate the mechanism of the vapor explosion. The effect of the fuel and coolant interaction(FCI) on the vapor explosion during the severe accidents of a fission nuclear reactor has been studied. The experiment results showed that the molten material temperature has an important effect on the vapor explosion behavior and pressure. The increase of the coolant temperature would decrease the pressure of the vapor explosion.

PERSUASION, INTERACTION AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF KNOWLEDGE: REPRESENTING SELF AND OTHERS IN RESEARCH WRITING

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ken Hyland

2008-12-01

Full Text Available It is now increasingly accepted that academic knowledge is closely related to the social practices of academic communities, and particularly to their discourses. Texts are persuasive only when they employ rhetorical conventions that colleagues find convincing, and in recent years corpus analyses have helped to underpin this social constructivist position and to reveal some of the ways this is achieved. In this paper I discuss the role of interaction in this process. Based on an analysis of 240 published research papers from eight disciplines and insider informant interviews, I explore the nature of interactive persuasion in this genre. I show here the importance of interaction in academic argument, suggest some of the ways this is achieved, and indicate how these choices reflect and construct disciplinary communities.

Interactive Research on Innovations in Vocational Education and Training (VET): Lessons from Dutch and German Cases

Science.gov (United States)

Burchert, Joanna; Hoeve, Aimée; Kämäräinen, Pekka

2014-01-01

This article focuses on two examples of interactive research (IR) in vocational education and training. IR is a process which brings together practitioners and researchers with the aim to implement an innovation. This innovation in the first project meant to create a hybrid learning environment; in the second it supported introducing digital media…

Study on interaction of swift cluster ion beam with matter and irradiation effect (Joint research)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saito, Yuichi; Shibata, Hiromi

2010-07-01

This review covers results of the 'Study of interaction on swift cluster ion beam with matter and irradiation effect' supported by the Interorganization Atomic Energy Research Program from 2006FY to 2008FY. It is composed of a research abstract for each sub-group with viewgraphs which were presented at the group meeting held on March 2009 or 'Meeting of High LET radiation -From fundamental study among physics, chemistry and biology to medical applications-' sponsored by Japan Society of Radiation Chemistry, cosponsored by this research group. (author)

Basic Research in Human–Computer–Biosphere Interaction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hill Hiroki Kobayashi

2014-09-01

Full Text Available In this study, we present a vision of how a human–computer–biosphere interaction (HCBI can facilitate a sustainable society. HCBI extends and transforms the subject of human–computer interaction from countable people, objects, pets, and plants into an auditory biosphere that is an uncountable, a complex, and a non-linguistic soundscape. As an example, utilizing HCBI to experience forest soundscapes can help us feel one with nature, without physically being present in nature. The goal of HCBI is to achieve ecological interactions between humans and nature through computer systems without causing environmental destruction. To accomplish this, information connectivity must be created despite the physical separation between humans and the environment. This combination should also ensure ecological neutrality. In this paper, we present an overview of an HCBI concept, related work, methodologies, and developed interfaces. We used pre-recorded animal calls to enable a bio-acoustical feedback from the target wildlife. In this study, we primarily focus on the design and evaluation of a bio-acoustic interaction system utilizing tracking collars, microphones, speakers, infrared cameras, infrared heat sensors, micro-climate sensors, radio-tracking devices, GPS devices, radio clocks, embedded Linux boards, high-capacity batteries, and high-speed wireless communication devices. Our experiments successfully demonstrated bio-acoustic interactions between wildlife—more specifically, an endangered species of a wild cat—and human beings via a computer system, thus validating the HCBI concept.

The Effect Of Beryllium Interaction With Fast Neutrons On the Reactivity Of ETRR-2 Research Reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aziz, M.; El Messiry, A.M.

2000-01-01

The effect of beryllium interactions with fast neutrons is studied for Etrr 2 research reactors. Isotope build up inside beryllium blocks is calculated under different irradiation times. a new model for the Etrr 2 research reactor is designed using MCNP code to calculate the reactivity and flux change of the reactor due to beryllium poison

Comparative assessment of three different indices of multimorbidity for studies on health-related quality of life

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dubois Marie-France

2005-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Measures of multimorbidity are often applied to source data, populations or outcomes outside the scope of their original developmental work. As the development of a multimorbidity measure is influenced by the population and outcome used, these influences should be taken into account when selecting a multimorbidity index. The aim of this study was to compare the strength of the association of health-related quality of life (HRQOL with three multimorbidity indices: the Cumulative Illness Rating Scale (CIRS, the Charlson index (Charlson and the Functional Comorbidity Index (FCI. The first two indices were not developed in light of HRQOL. Methods We used data on chronic diseases and on the SF-36 questionnaire assessing HRQOL of 238 adult primary care patients who participated in a previous study. We extracted all the diagnoses for every patient from chart review to score the CIRS, the FCI and the Charlson. Data for potential confounders (age, sex, self-perceived economic status and self-perceived social support were also collected. We calculated the Pearson correlation coefficients (r of the SF-36 scores with the three measures of multimorbidity, as well as the coefficient of determination, R2, while controlling for confounders. Results The r values for the CIRS (range: -0.55 to -0.18 were always higher than those for the FCI (-0.47 to -0.10 and Charlson (-0.31 to -0.04 indices. The CIRS explained the highest percent of variation in all scores of the SF-36, except for the Mental Component Summary Score where the variation was not significant. Variations explained by the FCI were significant in all scores of SF-36 measuring physical health and in two scales evaluating mental health. Variations explained by the Charlson were significant in only three scores measuring physical health. Conclusion The CIRS is a better choice as a measure of multimorbidity than the FCI and the Charlson when HRQOL is the outcome of interest. However

Analyzing force concept inventory with item response theory

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Jing; Bao, Lei

2010-10-01

Item response theory is a popular assessment method used in education. It rests on the assumption of a probability framework that relates students' innate ability and their performance on test questions. Item response theory transforms students' raw test scores into a scaled proficiency score, which can be used to compare results obtained with different test questions. The scaled score also addresses the issues of ceiling effects and guessing, which commonly exist in quantitative assessment. We used item response theory to analyze the force concept inventory (FCI). Our results show that item response theory can be useful for analyzing physics concept surveys such as the FCI and produces results about the individual questions and student performance that are beyond the capability of classical statistics. The theory yields detailed measurement parameters regarding the difficulty, discrimination features, and probability of correct guess for each of the FCI questions.

Isometric arm strength and subjective rating of upper limb fatigue in two-handed carrying tasks.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Kai Way; Chiu, Wen-Sheng

2015-01-01

Sustained carrying could result in muscular fatigue of the upper limb. Ten male and ten female subjects were recruited for measurements of isometric arm strength before and during carrying a load for a period of 4 minutes. Two levels of load of carrying were tested for each of the male and female subjects. Exponential function based predictive equations for the isometric arm strength were established. The mean absolute deviations of these models in predicting the isometric arm strength were in the range of 3.24 to 17.34 N. Regression analyses between the subjective ratings of upper limb fatigue and force change index (FCI) for the carrying were also performed. The results indicated that the subjective rating of muscular fatigue may be estimated by multiplying the FCI with a constant. The FCI may, therefore, be adopted as an index to assess muscular fatigue for two-handed carrying tasks.

Analysis of 210Pb and 210Po concentrations in surface air by an α spectrometric method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Winkler, R.; Hoetzl, H.; Chatterjee, B.

1981-01-01

A method is presented for determining the concentrations of airborne 210 Pb and 210 Po. The method employs α spectrometry to measure the count rate of 210 Po present on an electrostatic filter sample at two post-sampling times. The individual air concentrations of 210 Po and 210 Pb can be calculated from equations given. Sensitivity of the procedure is about 0.2 fCi 210 Po per m 3 of air. The method was applied to the study of long-term variations and frequency distributions of 210 Po and 210 Pb concentrations in surface air at a nonpolluted location about 10 km outside of Munich, F.R.G., from 1976 through 1979. During this period the average concentration levels were found to be 14.2 fCi 210 Pb per m 3 of air and 0.77 fCi 210 Po per m 3 of air, respectively. (author)

Creating Research Impact: The Roles of Research Users in Interactive Research Mobilisation

Science.gov (United States)

Morton, Sarah

2015-01-01

An impact assessment of research into children's concerns about their families and relationships found many ways research had been used in different sectors by different actors. Specific impacts from the research were harder to identify. However, instances where there were clear impacts highlighted the ways research users had adapted research to…

Parent-child mediated learning interactions as determinants of cognitive modifiability: recent research and future directions.

Science.gov (United States)

Tzuriel, D

1999-05-01

The main objectives of this article are to describe the effects of mediated learning experience (MLE) strategies in mother-child interactions on the child's cognitive modifiability, the effects of distal factors (e.g., socioeconomic status, mother's intelligence, child's personality) on MLE interactions, and the effects of situational variables on MLE processes. Methodological aspects of measurement of MLE interactions and of cognitive modifiability, using a dynamic assessment approach, are discussed. Studies with infants showed that the quality of mother-infant MLE interactions predict later cognitive functioning and that MLE patterns and children's cognitive performance change as a result of intervention programs. Studies with preschool and school-aged children showed that MLE interactions predict cognitive modifiability and that distal factors predict MLE interactions but not the child's cognitive modifiability. The child's cognitive modifiability was predicted by MLE interactions in a structured but not in a free-play situation. Mediation for transcendence (e.g., teaching rules and generalizations) appeared to be the strongest predictor of children's cognitive modifiability. Discussion of future research includes the consideration of a holistic transactional approach, which refers to MLE processes, personality, and motivational-affective factors, the cultural context of mediation, perception of the whole family as a mediational unit, and the "mediational normative scripts."

Students' proficiency scores within multitrait item response theory

Science.gov (United States)

Scott, Terry F.; Schumayer, Daniel

2015-12-01

In this paper we present a series of item response models of data collected using the Force Concept Inventory. The Force Concept Inventory (FCI) was designed to poll the Newtonian conception of force viewed as a multidimensional concept, that is, as a complex of distinguishable conceptual dimensions. Several previous studies have developed single-trait item response models of FCI data; however, we feel that multidimensional models are also appropriate given the explicitly multidimensional design of the inventory. The models employed in the research reported here vary in both the number of fitting parameters and the number of underlying latent traits assumed. We calculate several model information statistics to ensure adequate model fit and to determine which of the models provides the optimal balance of information and parsimony. Our analysis indicates that all item response models tested, from the single-trait Rasch model through to a model with ten latent traits, satisfy the standard requirements of fit. However, analysis of model information criteria indicates that the five-trait model is optimal. We note that an earlier factor analysis of the same FCI data also led to a five-factor model. Furthermore the factors in our previous study and the traits identified in the current work match each other well. The optimal five-trait model assigns proficiency scores to all respondents for each of the five traits. We construct a correlation matrix between the proficiencies in each of these traits. This correlation matrix shows strong correlations between some proficiencies, and strong anticorrelations between others. We present an interpretation of this correlation matrix.

Few-Nucleon Research at TUNL: Probing Two- and Three-Nucleon Interactions with Neutrons

Science.gov (United States)

Howell, C. R.; Tornow, W.; Witała, H.

2016-03-01

The central goal of few-nucleon research at the Triangle Universities Nuclear Laboratory (TUNL) is to perform measurements that contribute to advancing ab-initio calculations of nuclear structure and reactions. The program aims include evaluating theoretical treatments of few-nucleon reaction dynamics through strategically comparing theory predictions to data, determining properties of the neutron-neutron interaction that are not accessible in two-nucleon reactions, and searching for evidence of longrange features of three-nucleon interactions, e.g., spin and isospin dependence. This paper will review studies of three- and four-nucleon systems at TUNL conducted using unpolarized and polarized neutron beams. Measurements of neutron-induced reactions performed by groups at TUNL over the last six years are described in comparison with theory predictions. The results are discussed in the context of the program goals stated above. Measurements of vector analyzing powers for elastic scattering in A=3 and A=4 systems, differential cross sections for neutron-deuteron elastic scattering and neutrondeuteron breakup in several final-state configurations are described. The findings from these studies and plans for the coming three years are presented in the context of worldwide activities in this front, in particular, research presented in this session.

Research on the Operation Mode of Intelligent-town Energy Internet Based on Source-Load Interaction

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Hao; Li, Wen; Miao, Bo; Li, Bin; Liu, Chang; Lv, Zhipeng

2018-01-01

On the background of the rise of intelligence and the increasing deepening of “Internet +”application, the energy internet has become the focus of the energy research field. This paper, based on the fundamental understanding on the energy internet of the intelligent town, discusses the mode of energy supply in the source-load interactive region, and gives an in-depth study on the output characteristics of the energy supply side and the load characteristics of the demand side, so as to derive the law of energy-load interaction of the intelligent-town energy internet.

Designing interactive systems to support and augment creativity - a roadmap for research and design

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dalsgaard, Peter; Halskov, Kim; Frich Pedersen, Jonas

2018-01-01

and developments, exemplary cases, and future initiatives to study and design systems and tools to augment creative practices. Participation in the workshop requires participants to contribute with a position paper on one of the above topics, and to read and comment on co-participants contributions before......The aims of the workshop are to examine and discuss the current state of research in designing interactive systems to support and augment creative work, and to outline a roadmap for future research initiatives. The workshop will explore methodological issues and approaches, overarching trends...

Breakup Behavior of Molten Wood's Metal Jet in Subcooled Water

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Heo, Hyo; Park, Seong Dae; Bang, In Cheol [Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, Ulsan (Korea, Republic of); Jerng, Dong Wook [Chung-Ang Univ., Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2014-10-15

There are safety characteristics of the metal fueled sodium fast-cooled reactor (SFR), by identifying the possibility of early termination of severe accidents. If the molten fuel is ejected from the cladding, the ejected molten fuel can interact with the coolant in the reactor vessel. This phenomenon is called as fuel-coolant interaction (FCI). The FCI occurs at the initial phase leading to severe accidents like core disruptive accident (CDA) in the SFR. A part of the corium energy is intensively transferred to the coolant in a very short time during the FCI. The coolant vaporizes at high pressure and expands so results in steam explosion that can threat to the integrity of nuclear reactor. The intensity of steam explosion is determined by jet breakup and the fragmentation behavior. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the jet breakup between the molten fuel jet and the coolant in order to evaluate whether the steam explosion occurs or not. The liquid jet breakup has been studied in various areas, such as aerosols, spray and combustion. In early studies, small diameter jets of low density liquids were studied. The jet breakup for large density liquids has been studied in nuclear reactor field with respect to safety. The existence of vapor film layer between the melt and liquid fluid is only in case of large density breakup. This paper deals with the jet breakup experiment in non-boiling conditions in order to analyze hydraulic effect on the jet behavior. In the present study, the wood's metal was used as the jet material. It has similar properties to the metal fuel. The physical properties of molten materials and coolants are listed in Table I, respectively. It is easy to conduct the experiment due to low melting point of the wood's metal. In order to clarify the dominant factors determining jet breakup and size distribution of the debris, the experiment that the molten wood's metal was injected into the subcooled condition was conducted. The

Laser plasma interaction in rugby-shaped hohlraums

Science.gov (United States)

Masson-Laborde, P.-E.; Philippe, F.; Tassin, V.; Monteil, M.-C.; Gauthier, P.; Casner, A.; Depierreux, S.; Seytor, P.; Teychenne, D.; Loiseau, P.; Freymerie, P.

2014-10-01

Rugby shaped-hohlraum has proven to give high performance compared to a classical similar-diameter cylinder hohlraum. Due to this performance, this hohlraum has been chosen as baseline ignition target for the Laser MegaJoule (LMJ). Many experiments have therefore been performed during the last years on the Omega laser facility in order to study in details the rugby hohlraum. In this talk, we will discuss the interpretation of these experiments from the point of view of the laser plasma instability problem. Experimental comparisons have been done between rugby, cylinder and elliptical shape rugby hohlraums and we will discuss how the geometry differences will affect the evolution of laser plasma instabilities (LPI). The efficiency of laser smoothing techniques on these instabilities will also be discussed as well as gas filling effect. The experimental results will be compared with FCI2 hydroradiative calculations and linear postprocessing with Piranah. Experimental Raman and Brillouin spectrum, from which we can infer the location of the parametric instabilities, will be compared to simulated ones, and will give the possibility to compare LPI between the different hohlraum geometries.

Future research needs on material interaction and relocation in LMFR safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Niwa, H.

1994-01-01

This paper firstly classify the principles in the reactor safety area in future liquid-metal-cooled fast reactors (LMFRs) in order to clarify fundamental objectives of the reactor safety research. Further reduction of the occurrence frequency and also reduction of the consequences of core disruptive accidents should be recognized as the fundamental objectives. Secondary objectives and key R and D issues are developed under these fundamental objectives. This structure of the objectives and R and D issues is proposed as a fundamental framework of the safety researches aiming at development of commercialized large-scale LMFRs. Secondly, we will summarize future experimental research needs in the reactor safety area referring to the fundamental framework mentioned above. Our interest is focused rather on in-pile experiments. Finally, another objective is proposed, that is how to reduce or eliminate the recriticality event by design, utilizing the current knowledge on material motion and interaction which has been accumulated thus far. In this report, we will show an basic approach by means of discharging fuel out of the core. We also propose a measure for discharging fuel to eliminate the recriticality concerns. Experimental needs are also addressed. (author)

Interactive Poster Survey Study of ACS Members' Knowledge and Needs on Research Ethics

Science.gov (United States)

Mabrouk, Patricia Ann; Schelble, Susan M.

2018-01-01

An interactive poster exhibited at two poster sessions at the Fall 2016 American Chemical Society (ACS) National Meeting was used as a vehicle to learn about ACS members' concerns and needs related to research ethics and to identify opportunities for engagement of the Society by the Committee on Ethics (ETHX) and others in terms of ethics…

You talkin' to me? Interactive playback is a powerful yet underused tool in animal communication research.

Science.gov (United States)

King, Stephanie L

2015-07-01

Over the years, playback experiments have helped further our understanding of the wonderful world of animal communication. They have provided fundamental insights into animal behaviour and the function of communicative signals in numerous taxa. As important as these experiments are, however, there is strong evidence to suggest that the information conveyed in a signal may only have value when presented interactively. By their very nature, signalling exchanges are interactive and therefore, an interactive playback design is a powerful tool for examining the function of such exchanges. While researchers working on frog and songbird vocal interactions have long championed interactive playback, it remains surprisingly underused across other taxa. The interactive playback approach is not limited to studies of acoustic signalling, but can be applied to other sensory modalities, including visual, chemical and electrical communication. Here, I discuss interactive playback as a potent yet underused technique in the field of animal behaviour. I present a concise review of studies that have used interactive playback thus far, describe how it can be applied, and discuss its limitations and challenges. My hope is that this review will result in more scientists applying this innovative technique to their own study subjects, as a means of furthering our understanding of the function of signalling interactions in animal communication systems. © 2015 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved.

Anniversary Article--Interactional Feedback in Second Language Teaching and Learning: A Synthesis and Analysis of Current Research

Science.gov (United States)

Nassaji, Hossein

2016-01-01

The role of interactional feedback has long been of interest to both second language acquisition researchers and teachers and has continued to be the object of intensive empirical and theoretical inquiry. In this article, I provide a synthesis and analysis of recent research and developments in this area and their contributions to second language…

2010 Electron Donor-Acceptor Interactions Gordon Research Conference, August 8 - 13, 2010.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gerald Meyer

2010-08-18

The Gordon Research Conference on Electron Donor Acceptor Interactions (GRC EDAI) presents and advances the current frontiers in experimental and theoretical studies of Electron Transfer Processes and Energy Conversion. The fundamental concepts underpinning the field of electron transfer and charge transport phenomena are understood, but fascinating experimental discoveries and novel applications based on charge transfer processes are expanding the discipline. Simultaneously, global challenges for development of viable and economical alternative energy resources, on which many researchers in the field focus their efforts, are now the subject of daily news headlines. Enduring themes of this conference relate to photosynthesis, both natural and artificial, and solar energy conversion. More recent developments include molecular electronics, optical switches, and nanoscale charge transport structures of both natural (biological) and man-made origin. The GRC EDAI is one of the major international meetings advancing this field, and is one of the few scientific meetings where fundamental research in solar energy conversion has a leading voice. The program includes sessions on coupled electron transfers, molecular solar energy conversion, biological and biomimetic systems, spin effects, ultrafast reactions and technical frontiers as well as electron transport in single molecules and devices. In addition to disseminating the latest advances in the field of electron transfer processes, the conference is an excellent forum for scientists from different disciplines to meet and initiate new directions; for scientists from different countries to make contacts; for young scientists to network and establish personal contacts with other young scientists and with established scientists who, otherwise, might not have the time to meet young people. The EDAI GRC also features an interactive atmosphere with lively poster sessions, a few of which are selected for oral presentations.

Evidence on the coherence-pieces debate from the force concept inventory

Science.gov (United States)

Badagnani, D.; Petrucci, D.; Cappannini, O.

2018-01-01

We use force concept inventory (FCI) data to probe the consistency of commonsense physics as a knowledge system. The source of this data is the administration of the FCI to first-year science university students. Data quality was checked using item response theory and studying answer distributions for each question. We find apparently paradoxical results: depending on how the data is analysed, answers seem highly systematic or almost random-like. These results are compatible with others found in the literature and can be construed as arising either from a coherent knowledge system or from knowledge in pieces. We hypothesise as a possible source of this apparent contradiction that predictions and explanations use different resources: the former would use reflex, low-cost cognitive resources while the latter would involve conceptualisations. We show that the articulation of both resources may be crucial for expert thinking productivity (the ability to apply a theory to novel situations). We sketch some consequences of the proposed structure of commonsense thinking for teaching and further research.

Few-Nucleon Research at TUNL: Probing Two- and Three-Nucleon Interactions with Neutrons

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Howell C.R.

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The central goal of few-nucleon research at the Triangle Universities Nuclear Laboratory (TUNL is to perform measurements that contribute to advancing ab-initio calculations of nuclear structure and reactions. The program aims include evaluating theoretical treatments of few-nucleon reaction dynamics through strategically comparing theory predictions to data, determining properties of the neutron-neutron interaction that are not accessible in two-nucleon reactions, and searching for evidence of longrange features of three-nucleon interactions, e.g., spin and isospin dependence. This paper will review studies of three- and four-nucleon systems at TUNL conducted using unpolarized and polarized neutron beams. Measurements of neutron-induced reactions performed by groups at TUNL over the last six years are described in comparison with theory predictions. The results are discussed in the context of the program goals stated above. Measurements of vector analyzing powers for elastic scattering in A=3 and A=4 systems, differential cross sections for neutron-deuteron elastic scattering and neutrondeuteron breakup in several final-state configurations are described. The findings from these studies and plans for the coming three years are presented in the context of worldwide activities in this front, in particular, research presented in this session.

Description and performance of the OGSE for VNIR absolute spectroradiometric calibration of MTG-I satellites

Science.gov (United States)

Glastre, W.; Marque, J.; Compain, E.; Deep, A.; Durand, Y.; Aminou, D. M. A.

2017-09-01

The Meteosat Third Generation (MTG) Programme is being realised through the well-established and successful Cooperation between EUMETSAT and ESA. It will ensure the future continuity of MSG with the capabilities to enhance nowcasting, global and regional numerical weather prediction, climate and atmospheric chemistry monitoring data from Geostationary Orbit. This will be achieved through a series of 6 satellites named MTG-I and MTG-S to bring to the meteorological community continuous high spatial, spectral and temporal resolution observations and geophysical parameters of the Earth based on sensors from the geo-stationary orbit. In particular, the imagery mission MTG-I will bring an improved continuation of the MSG satellites series with the Flexible Combined Imager (FCI) a broad spectral range (from UV to LWIR) with better spatial and spectral resolutions. The FCI will be able to take high spatial resolution pictures of the Earth within 8 VNIR and 8 IR channels. As one of the mission of this instrument is to provide a quantitative analysis of atmosphere compounds, the absolute observed radiance needs to be known with a specified accuracy for VNIR as low as to 5% at k=3 over its full dynamic. While the FCI is regularly recalibrated every 6 month at equinoxes, it is however requiring initial ground calibration for the beginning of its mission. The Multi Optical Test Assembly (MOTA) is one of the Optical Ground Support Equipment (OGSE) dedicated to various missions necessary for the integration of the FCI . This equipment, provided by Bertin Technologies, will be delivered to TAS-F by the end of 2016. One of its mission, is the on-ground absolute calibration of VNIR channels. In order to handle this, the MOTA will be placed in front of the FCI under representative vacuum conditions and will be able to project a perfectly known, calibrated radiance level within the full dynamic of FCI instrument. The main difficulty is the very demanding calibration level with

Toward equity through participation in Modeling Instruction in introductory university physics

Science.gov (United States)

Brewe, Eric; Sawtelle, Vashti; Kramer, Laird H.; O'Brien, George E.; Rodriguez, Idaykis; Pamelá, Priscilla

2010-06-01

We report the results of a five year evaluation of the reform of introductory calculus-based physics by implementation of Modeling Instruction (MI) at Florida International University (FIU), a Hispanic-serving institution. MI is described in the context of FIU’s overall effort to enhance student participation in physics and science broadly. Our analysis of MI from a “participationist” perspective on learning identifies aspects of MI including conceptually based instruction, culturally sensitive instruction, and cooperative group learning, which are consistent with research on supporting equitable learning and participation by students historically under-represented in physics (i.e., Black, Hispanic, women). This study uses markers of conceptual understanding as measured by the Force Concept Inventory (FCI) and odds of success as measured by the ratio of students completing introductory physics and earning a passing grade (i.e., C- or better) by students historically under-represented in physics to reflect equity and participation in introductory physics. FCI pre and post scores for students in MI are compared with lecture-format taught students. Modeling Instruction students outperform students taught in lecture-format classes on post instruction FCI (61.9% vs 47.9%, p<0.001 ), where these benefits are seen across both ethnic and gender comparisons. In addition, we report that the odds of success in MI are 6.73 times greater than in lecture instruction. Both odds of success and FCI scores within Modeling Instruction are further disaggregated by ethnicity and by gender to address the question of equity within the treatment. The results of this disaggregation indicate that although ethnically under-represented students enter with lower overall conceptual understanding scores, the gap is not widened during introductory physics but instead is maintained, and the odds of success for under-represented students is not different from majority students. Women

Toward equity through participation in Modeling Instruction in introductory university physics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eric Brewe

2010-05-01

Full Text Available We report the results of a five year evaluation of the reform of introductory calculus-based physics by implementation of Modeling Instruction (MI at Florida International University (FIU, a Hispanic-serving institution. MI is described in the context of FIU’s overall effort to enhance student participation in physics and science broadly. Our analysis of MI from a “participationist” perspective on learning identifies aspects of MI including conceptually based instruction, culturally sensitive instruction, and cooperative group learning, which are consistent with research on supporting equitable learning and participation by students historically under-represented in physics (i.e., Black, Hispanic, women. This study uses markers of conceptual understanding as measured by the Force Concept Inventory (FCI and odds of success as measured by the ratio of students completing introductory physics and earning a passing grade (i.e., C− or better by students historically under-represented in physics to reflect equity and participation in introductory physics. FCI pre and post scores for students in MI are compared with lecture-format taught students. Modeling Instruction students outperform students taught in lecture-format classes on post instruction FCI (61.9% vs 47.9%, p<0.001, where these benefits are seen across both ethnic and gender comparisons. In addition, we report that the odds of success in MI are 6.73 times greater than in lecture instruction. Both odds of success and FCI scores within Modeling Instruction are further disaggregated by ethnicity and by gender to address the question of equity within the treatment. The results of this disaggregation indicate that although ethnically under-represented students enter with lower overall conceptual understanding scores, the gap is not widened during introductory physics but instead is maintained, and the odds of success for under-represented students is not different from majority students

Research of interaction between technological and material parameters during densification of sunflower hulls

Science.gov (United States)

Križan, Peter; Matúš, Miloš; Beniak, Juraj; Šooš, Ľubomír

2018-01-01

During the biomass densification can be recognized various technological variables and also material parameters which significantly influences the final solid biofuels (pellets) quality. In this paper, we will present the research findings concerning relationships between technological and material variables during densification of sunflower hulls. Sunflower hulls as an unused source is a typical product of agricultural industry in Slovakia and belongs to the group of herbaceous biomass. The main goal of presented experimental research is to determine the impact of compression pressure, compression temperature and material particle size distribution on final biofuels quality. Experimental research described in this paper was realized by single-axis densification, which was represented by experimental pressing stand. The impact of mentioned investigated variables on the final briquettes density and briquettes dilatation was determined. Mutual interactions of these variables on final briquettes quality are showing the importance of mentioned variables during the densification process. Impact of raw material particle size distribution on final biofuels quality was also proven by experimental research on semi-production pelleting plant.

Current Status of Experimental and Theoretical Work on Sodium/Fuel Interaction (SFI) at Karlsruhe 'Code Developments'

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beutel, H.; Bojarsky, E.; Reiser, H.; Caldarola, L.; Jacobs, H.; Zyszkowski, W.

1976-01-01

The theoretical work follows two main lines: A. Code development; B. Theoretical work on fragmentation. Two computer codes have been developed. The first code contains a heat transfer model (during the vaporization phase) based on the inverse Leidenfrost phenomenon (which has been observed experimentally in water). The exact solution of the heat diffusion equation in a sphere is included in the code. The code accounts for the time history of each fuel particle by means of specially averaged temperature values. The presence of fission gases can also be taken into account. A size distribution of fuel particles has also been incorporated in the code as well as the effect of the friction due to the channel walls and that of the pressure losses at channel outlet. An extensive parametric study has been carried out with this code. The main conclusions are the following: 1. Total mechanical work strongly decreases with the fragmentation and/or mixing time constants. 2. Vapour blanketing during the vaporization phase is effective only if accompanied by a relatively slow process of fragmentation and mixing. In this case total mechanical work strongly decreased with degree of vapour blanketing. 3. Total mechanical work rises with initial length of sodium piston. 4. Time to empty the 120 cm long channel is 15-20 msecs. for values of the fragmentation and/or mixing time constants of the order of 5-10 msecs. 5. Effects due to particle size distribution and gas content are important only fora rapid fragmentation and mixing process. It must be painted out that (as far as the gas is concerned) this conclusion is valid only within the limits of the effects (due to the gas) which have been considered in the model. Propagation effects can be analysed by using the second code. The interaction region can be subdivided into an arbitrary number of sections, each containing fuel and coolant. The thermal conductivity of the liquid sodium has also been taken into account, as well as the

Confirmatory factor analysis applied to the Force Concept Inventory

Science.gov (United States)

Eaton, Philip; Willoughby, Shannon D.

2018-06-01

In 1995, Huffman and Heller used exploratory factor analysis to draw into question the factors of the Force Concept Inventory (FCI). Since then several papers have been published examining the factors of the FCI on larger sets of student responses and understandable factors were extracted as a result. However, none of these proposed factor models have been verified to not be unique to their original sample through the use of independent sets of data. This paper seeks to confirm the factor models proposed by Scott et al. in 2012, and Hestenes et al. in 1992, as well as another expert model proposed within this study through the use of confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and a sample of 20 822 postinstruction student responses to the FCI. Upon application of CFA using the full sample, all three models were found to fit the data with acceptable global fit statistics. However, when CFA was performed using these models on smaller sample sizes the models proposed by Scott et al. and Eaton and Willoughby were found to be far more stable than the model proposed by Hestenes et al. The goodness of fit of these models to the data suggests that the FCI can be scored on factors that are not unique to a single class. These scores could then be used to comment on how instruction methods effect the performance of students along a single factor and more in-depth analyses of curriculum changes may be possible as a result.

From advance exploration to real time steering of TBMs: A review on pertinent research in the Collaborative Research Center “Interaction Modeling in Mechanized Tunneling”

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

G. Meschke

2018-03-01

Full Text Available This paper reports on planning and construction related results from research performed at the Collaborative Research Center “Interaction Modeling in Mechanized Tunneling” at Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany. Research covers a broad spectrum of topics relevant for mechanized tunneling in soft soil conditions. This includes inverse numerical methods for advance exploration and models for the characterization of the in situ ground conditions, the interaction of the face support and the tail gap grouting with the porous soil, multi-scale models for the design of fiber reinforced segmental linings with enhanced robustness, computational methods for the numerical simulation of the tunnel advancement, the soil excavation and the material transport in the pressure chamber, logistics processes and risk analysis in urban tunneling. Targeted towards the continuous support of the construction process, a concept for real-time steering support of tunnel boring machines in conjunction with model update procedures and methods of uncertainty quantification is addressed. Keywords: Mechanized tunneling, Computational simulation, Tunnel reconnaissance, Tunnel linings, Face support, Tail void grouting, Real-time analysis, Abrasion, Process simulation

Interaction Analysis: Theory, Research and Application.

Science.gov (United States)

Amidon, Edmund J., Ed.; Hough, John J., Ed.

This volume of selected readings developed for students and practitioners at various levels of sophistication is intended to be representative of work done to date on interaction analysis. The contents include journal articles, papers read at professional meetings, abstracts of doctoral dissertations, and selections from larger monographs, plus 12…

RADIONUCLIDE STUDIES IN PEDIATRIC PRACTICE: INTERACTION OF RESEARCHER, CHILD AND PARENTS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

D.K. Fomin

2007-01-01

Full Text Available The authors consider the issues interaction between a doctor and a child during the radionuclide study. They also give recommendations of the pediatric council under auspices of the European society of the nuclear medicine to carry on the scintigraphic studies among the children. The article high lights the basic moments as to the psychoprophylactic preparation of the children for the radionuclide study with regard to their age and character peculiarities. The researchers offer approaches to define the psychic and emotional status of the child, degree of anxiety before the study and methods to eliminate it, allowing for considerable quality improvement of the performed procedure.Key words: children, radionuclide diagnostics, pediatric radiology, psychoprophylactic preparation.

The Relationship between Passibility, Agency and Social Interaction and Its Relevance for Research and Pedagogy

Science.gov (United States)

Kirch, Susan A.; Ma, Jasmine Y.

2016-01-01

The interaction analysis presented by Kim and Roth examines nine students, their teachers, the learning task and materials in a mixed second and third grade science classroom during the school day. In the research narrative readers are introduced to two resourceful and creative groups of students as they work on a task assigned by their…

Mobile Collocated Interactions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lucero, Andrés; Clawson, James; Lyons, Kent

2015-01-01

Mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets were originally conceived and have traditionally been utilized for individual use. Research on mobile collocated interactions has been looking at situations in which collocated users engage in collaborative activities using their mobile devices, thus...... going from personal/individual toward shared/multiuser experiences and interactions. However, computers are getting smaller, more powerful, and closer to our bodies. Therefore, mobile collocated interactions research, which originally looked at smartphones and tablets, will inevitably include ever......-smaller computers, ones that can be worn on our wrists or other parts of the body. The focus of this workshop is to bring together a community of researchers, designers and practitioners to explore the potential of extending mobile collocated interactions to the use of wearable devices....

Researching Primary Teachers' Professional Agency: Employing Interactive Ethnography to Overcome Reluctance to Teach Science

Science.gov (United States)

Martin, Jenny

2017-09-01

This paper provides a report of a case study on the professional agency of an experienced early years teacher, Sarah, who successfully embedded a chemical science program of teaching-learning for her students aged between 6 and 8. Interactive ethnography informs the research design, and discursive psychology provides the tools for the analysis of Sarah's speech acts for her positioning as a responsible agent. Reframing the problem of primary teacher reluctance to teach science in terms of primary teachers' professional agency using discursive psychology, this ontological study provides new insight into issues related to the provision of science education in primary schools and asks: How do primary teachers position themselves and others in relation to science curriculum and education? The research calls for research methodologies and reform efforts in primary science that are better grounded in the local moral orders of primary schools.

Research of Technical Knowledge and Creativity Development of Children in Pre-Primary Education through Interactive Whiteboard

Science.gov (United States)

Brecka, Peter; Cervenanská, Marcela

2016-01-01

The introduced study represents methodology and results of research focused on utilization of interactive whiteboard as didactic technology mediating information through multimedia worksheets applied in education process in pre-primary education. Its aim was to determine whether it can significantly increase the level of children's acquired…

40 Years of research at Risoe: A platform for the future - interacting with industry and society

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rosendahl, Lis; Lading, Lars [eds.

1998-08-01

Risoe`s 40th anniversary was celebrated June 3, 1998 by a symposium held at Risoe. The interaction of research at Risoe with academia and industry was presented in both national and international perspective. Most of the presentations are in English, a few in Danish. (au)

Water jet intrusion into hot melt concomitant with direct-contact boiling of water

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sibamoto, Yasuteru [Japan Atomic Energy Research Inst., Tokai Research Establishment, Tokai, Ibaraki (Japan)

2005-08-01

Boiling of water poured on surface of high-temperature melt (molten metal or metal oxide) provides an efficient means for heat exchange or cooling of melt. The heat transfer surface area can be extended by forcing water into melt. Objectives of the present study are to elucidate key factors of the thermal and hydrodynamic interactions for the water jet injection into melt (Coolant Injection mode). Proposed applications include in in-vessel heat exchangers for liquid metal reactor and emergency measures for cooling of molten core debris in severe accidents of light water reactor. Water penetration into melt may occurs also as a result of fuel-coolant interaction (FCI) in modes other than CI, it is anticipated that the present study contributes to understand the fundamental mechanism of the FCI process. The previous works have been limited on understanding the melt-water interaction phenomena in the water-injection mode because of difficulty in experimental measurement where boiling occurs in opaque invisible hot melt unlike the melt-injection mode. We conducted visualization and measurement of melt-water-vapor multiphase flow phenomena by using a high-frame-rate neutron radiography technique and newly-developed probes. Although limited knowledge, however, has been gained even such an approach, the experimental data were analyzed deeply by comparing with the knowledge obtained from relevant matters. As a result, we succeeded in revealing several key phenomena and validity in the conditions under which stable heat transfer is established. Moreover, a non-intrusive technique for measurement of the velocity and pressure fields adjacent to a moving free surface is developed. The technique is based on the measurement of fluid surface profile, which is useful for elucidation of flow mechanism accompanied by a free surface like the present phenomena. (author)

Magnetic field in laser plasmas: non-local electron transport and reconnection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Riquier, Raphael

2016-01-01

In the framework of the inertial confinement fusion, a pellet filled with the deuterium-tritium fuel is imploded, either through laser irradiation (direct drive, laser - low atomic number target interaction) or by the black body radiation from a cavity converting the laser radiation (indirect drive, laser - high atomic number target interaction). In both cases, a correct modeling of the electron transport is of first importance in order to have predictive hydro-radiative simulations. Nonetheless, it has been shown early on that the hypothesis of the linear transport are not valid in the framework of a solid target irradiated by a high power laser (I≅10 14 W/cm 2 ). This is due in part to very steep temperature gradients (kinetic effects, so-called 'non-local') and because of a magnetic field self-generated through the thermo-electric effect. Finally, the heat flux and the magnetic field are strongly coupled through two mechanisms: the advection of the field with the heat flux (Nernst effect) and the rotation and inhibition of the heat flux by the plasma's magnetization (Righi-Leduc effect).In this manuscript, we will first present the various electron transport models, particularly the non-local with magnetic field model included in the hydro-radiative code FCI2. Following, in order to validate this model, we will compare it first against a kinetic code, and then with an experiment during which the magnetic field has been probed through proton radiography. Once the model validated, we will use FCI2 simulations to explain the source and transport of the field, as well as its effect on the interaction. Finally, the reconnection of the magnetic field, during the irradiation of a solid target by two laser beams, will be studied. (author) [fr

Ion beam generated modes in the lower hybrid frequency range in a laboratory magnetoplasma

Science.gov (United States)

Van Compernolle, B.; Tripathi, S.; Gekelman, W. N.; Colestock, P. L.; Pribyl, P.

2012-12-01

The generation of waves by ion ring distributions is of great importance in many instances in space plasmas. They occur naturally in the magnetosphere through the interaction with substorms, or they can be man-made in ionospheric experiments by photo-ionization of neutral atoms injected perpendicular to the earth's magnetic field. The interaction of a fast ion beam with a low β plasma has been studied in the laboratory. Experiments were performed at the LArge Plasma Device (LAPD) at UCLA. The experiments were done in a Helium plasma (n ≃ 1012 \\ cm-3, B0 = 1000 G - 1800 G, fpe}/f{ce ≃ 1 - 5, Te = 0.25\\ eV, vte ≤ vA). The ion beam \\cite{Tripathi_ionbeam} is a Helium beam with energies ranging from 5 keV to 18 keV. The fast ion velocity is on the order of the Alfvén velocity. The beam is injected from the end of the machine, and spirals down the linear device. Waves were observed below fci in the shear Alfvén wave regime, and in a broad spectrum above fci in the lower hybrid frequency range, the focus of this paper. The wave spectra have distinct peaks close to ion cyclotron harmonics, extending out to the 100th harmonic in some cases. The wave generation was studied for various magnetic fields and background plasma densities, as well as for different beam energies and pitch angles. The waves were measured with 3-axis electric and magnetic probes. Detailed measurements of the perpendicular mode structure will be shown. Langmuir probes were used to measure density and temperature evolution due to the beam-plasma interaction. Retarding field energy analyzers captured the ion beam profiles. The work was performed at the LArge Plasma Device at the Basic Plasma Science Facility (BaPSF) at UCLA, funded by DOE/NSF.

Communications Between Volunteers and Health Researchers during Recruitment and Informed Consent: Qualitative Content Analysis of Email Interactions

OpenAIRE

Townsend, Anne; Amarsi, Zubin; Backman, Catherine L; Cox, Susan M; Li, Linda C

2011-01-01

Background While use of the Internet is increasingly widespread in research, little is known about the role of routine electronic mail (email) correspondence during recruitment and early volunteer?researcher interactions. To gain insight into the standpoint of volunteers we analyzed email communications in an early rheumatoid arthritis qualitative interview study. Objectives The objectives of our study were (1) to understand the perspectives and motivations of individuals who volunteered for ...

Analysis of soil-structure interaction and floor response spectrum of reactor building for China advanced research reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rong Feng; Wang Jiachun; He Shuyan

2006-01-01

Analysis of Soil-Structure Interaction (SSI) and calculation of Floor Response Spectrum (FRS) is substantial for anti-seismic design for China Advanced Research Reactor (CARR) project. The article uses direct method to analyze the seismic reaction of the reactor building in considering soil-structure interaction by establishing two-dimensional soil-structure co-acting model for analyzing and inputting of seismic waves from three directions respectively. The seismic response and floor response spectrum of foundation and floors of the building under different cases have been calculated. (authors)

Seven Years after the Manifesto: Literature Review and Research Directions for Technologies in Animal Computer Interaction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas

2018-06-01

Full Text Available As technologies diversify and become embedded in everyday lives, the technologies we expose to animals, and the new technologies being developed for animals within the field of Animal Computer Interaction (ACI are increasing. As we approach seven years since the ACI manifesto, which grounded the field within Human Computer Interaction and Computer Science, this thematic literature review looks at the technologies developed for (non-human animals. Technologies that are analysed include tangible and physical, haptic and wearable, olfactory, screen technology and tracking systems. The conversation explores what exactly ACI is whilst questioning what it means to be animal by considering the impact and loop between machine and animal interactivity. The findings of this review are expected to form the first grounding foundation of ACI technologies informing future research in animal computing as well as suggesting future areas for exploration.

Researching Online Foreign Language Interaction and Exchange: Theories, Methods and Challenges. Telecollaboration in Education. Volume 3

Science.gov (United States)

Dooly, Melinda; O'Dowd, Robert

2012-01-01

This book provides an accessible introduction to some of the methods and theoretical approaches for investigating foreign language (FL) interaction and exchange in online environments. Research approaches which can be applied to Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC) are outlined, followed by discussion of the way in which tools and techniques for…

2012 Gordon Research Conference and Seminar on Atomic and Molecular Interactions - Formal Schedule and Speaker/Poster Program

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zwier, Timothy S. [Purdue Univ., West Lafayette, IN (United States)

2012-07-20

The Gordon Research Conference on ATOMIC & MOLECULAR INTERACTIONS was held at Stonehill College Easton, Massachusetts, July 15-20, 2012. The Conference was well-attended with 121 participants (attendees list attached). The attendees represented the spectrum of endeavor in this field coming from academia, industry, and government laboratories, both U.S. and foreign scientists, senior researchers, young investigators, and students. Of the 121 attendees, 64 voluntarily responded to a general inquiry regarding ethnicity which appears on our registration forms. Of the 64 respondents, 11% were Minorities – 2% Hispanic, 9% Asian and 0% African American. Approximately 20% of the participants at the 2012 meeting were women. The Gordon Research SEMINAR on ATOMIC & MOLECULAR INTERACTIONS was held at Stonehill College Easton, Massachusetts, July 14 - 15, 2012. The Conference was well-attended with 42 participants (attendees list attached). The attendees represented the spectrum of endeavor in this field coming from academia, industry, and government laboratories, both U.S. and foreign scientists, senior researchers, young investigators, and students. Of the 42 attendees, 20 voluntarily responded to a general inquiry regarding ethnicity which appears on our registration forms. Of the 20 respondents, 10% were Minorities – 0% Hispanic, 10% Asian and 0% African American. Approximately 29% of the participants at the 2012 meeting were women. In designing the formal speakers program, emphasis was placed on current unpublished research and discussion of the future target areas in this field. There was a conscious effort to stimulate lively discussion about the key issues in the field today. Time for formal presentations was limited in the interest of group discussions. In order that more scientists could communicate their most recent results, poster presentation time was scheduled. Attached is a copy of the formal schedule and speaker program and the poster program. In addition to

Research on the Design of Visually Impaired Interactive Accessibility in Large Urban Public Transport System

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Weiru

2017-12-01

In medieval times, due to people’s reliance on belief, public space of Christianity came into being. With the rise of secularization, religion gradually turned into private belief, and accordingly public space returned to private space. In the 21st century, due to people’s reliance on intelligent devices, information-interactive public space emerges, and as information interaction is constantly constraining the visually impaired, public space regressed to the exclusive space of limited people[1]. Modernity is marked by technical rationality, but an ensuing basic problem lies in the separation between human action, ethics and public space. When technology fails to overcome obstacles for a particular group, the gap between the burgeoning intelligent phenomena and the increasing ratio of visually impaired is also expanding, ultimately resulting in a growing number of “blind spots” in information-interactive space. Technological innovation not only promotes the development of the information industry, but also promotes the rapid development of the transportation industry. Traffic patterns are diversifying and diverging nowadays, but it’s a fatal blow for people with visually disabilities, Because they still can only experience the most traditional mode of transportation, sometimes even not go out. How to guarantee their interactive accessibility in large urban public transport system right, currently, is a very important research direction.

Relations between representational consistency, conceptual understanding of the force concept, and scientific reasoning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pasi Nieminen

2012-05-01

Full Text Available Previous physics education research has raised the question of “hidden variables” behind students’ success in learning certain concepts. In the context of the force concept, it has been suggested that students’ reasoning ability is one such variable. Strong positive correlations between students’ preinstruction scores for reasoning ability (measured by Lawson’s Classroom Test of Scientific Reasoning and their learning of forces [measured by the Force Concept Inventory (FCI] have been reported in high school and university introductory courses. However, there is no published research concerning the relation between students’ ability to interpret multiple representations consistently (i.e., representational consistency and their learning of forces. To investigate this, we collected 131 high school students’ pre- and post-test data of the Representational Variant of the Force Concept Inventory (for representational consistency and the FCI. The students’ Lawson pretest data were also collected. We found that the preinstruction level of students’ representational consistency correlated strongly with student learning gain of forces. The correlation (0.51 was almost equal to the correlation between Lawson prescore and learning gain of forces (0.52. Our results support earlier findings which suggest that scientific reasoning ability is a hidden variable behind the learning of forces. In addition, we suggest that students’ representational consistency may also be such a factor, and that this should be recognized in physics teaching.

Patient preferences toward an interactive e-consent application for research using electronic health records.

Science.gov (United States)

Harle, Christopher A; Golembiewski, Elizabeth H; Rahmanian, Kiarash P; Krieger, Janice L; Hagmajer, Dorothy; Mainous, Arch G; Moseley, Ray E

2017-12-19

The purpose of this study was to assess patient perceptions of using an interactive electronic consent (e-consent) application when deciding whether or not to grant broad consent for research use of their identifiable electronic health record (EHR) information. For this qualitative study, we conducted a series of 42 think-aloud interviews with 32 adults. Interview transcripts were coded and analyzed using a modified grounded theory approach. We identified themes related to patient preferences, reservations, and mixed attitudes toward consenting electronically; low- and high-information-seeking behavior; and an emphasis on reassuring information, such as data protections and prohibitions against sharing data with pharmaceutical companies. Participants expressed interest in the types of information contained in their EHRs, safeguards protecting EHR data, and specifics on studies that might use their EHR data. This study supports the potential value of interactive e-consent applications that allow patients to customize their consent experience. This study also highlights that some people have concerns about e-consent platforms and desire more detailed information about administrative processes and safeguards that protect EHR data used in research. This study contributes new insights on how e-consent applications could be designed to ensure that patients' information needs are met when seeking consent for research use of health record information. Also, this study offers a potential electronic approach to meeting the new Common Rule requirement that consent documents contain a "concise and focused" presentation of key information followed by more details. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Medical Informatics Association. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com

United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission research program on core debris/concrete interactions and ex-vessel fission-product release

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Burson, S.B.

1987-01-01

The study of core debris/concrete interaction phenomena has been a significant element of the NRC's Severe Accident Research Program for a number of years. The CORCON and VANESA codes used to predict the consequences of high-temperature debris attack on concrete and fission-product aerosol release are state-of-the-art computational tools. The major thrust of current NRC sponsored research focuses on the refinement, verification, and validation of these codes. An overview of the analytical and experimental aspects of the NRC research program is presented

Using video-based observation research methods in primary care health encounters to evaluate complex interactions.

Science.gov (United States)

Asan, Onur; Montague, Enid

2014-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to describe the use of video-based observation research methods in primary care environment and highlight important methodological considerations and provide practical guidance for primary care and human factors researchers conducting video studies to understand patient-clinician interaction in primary care settings. We reviewed studies in the literature which used video methods in health care research, and we also used our own experience based on the video studies we conducted in primary care settings. This paper highlighted the benefits of using video techniques, such as multi-channel recording and video coding, and compared "unmanned" video recording with the traditional observation method in primary care research. We proposed a list that can be followed step by step to conduct an effective video study in a primary care setting for a given problem. This paper also described obstacles, researchers should anticipate when using video recording methods in future studies. With the new technological improvements, video-based observation research is becoming a promising method in primary care and HFE research. Video recording has been under-utilised as a data collection tool because of confidentiality and privacy issues. However, it has many benefits as opposed to traditional observations, and recent studies using video recording methods have introduced new research areas and approaches.

Research of fluid-induced pressure fluctuation due to impeller-volute interaction in a centrifugal pump

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, Q Z; Yang, K; Li, D Y; Gong, R Z

2013-01-01

The fluid pressure fluctuation generated by unsteady flow is a very important factor to induce vibration of the centrifugal pump. The relative movement between impeller and volute generates an unsteady interaction which affects not only the overall pump performance, but is also responsible for pressure fluctuations. Pressure fluctuations interact with the volute casing or even with the circuit and give rise to dynamic effects over the mechanical parts, which are one of the most important sources of vibration and hydraulic noise. To investigate the flow characteristic in the centrifugal pump, the unsteady flow is simulated by CFD methods in this paper. Unsteady flow characteristic in the centrifugal pump is obtained considering the impeller-volute interaction in the whole flow field. Based on the unsteady flow simulation, amplitude-frequency characteristics of the pressure fluctuation in the centrifugal pump are obtained through setting up monitoring point at the impeller outlet. The research shows that the frequency component include the blade passing frequency as the main component, the multiplication of blade passing frequency, and the harmonic interference due to the unsteady flow

Learning physics concepts as a function of colloquial language usage

Science.gov (United States)

Maier, Steven J.

Data from two sections of college introductory, algebra-based physics courses (n1 = 139, n2 = 91) were collected using three separate instruments to investigate the relationships between reasoning ability, conceptual gain and colloquial language usage. To obtain a measure of reasoning ability, Lawson's Classroom Test of Scientific Reasoning Ability (TSR) was administered once near mid-term for each sample. The Force Concept Inventory (FCI) was administered at the beginning and at the end of the term for pre- and post-test measures. Pre- and post-test data from the Mechanics Language Usage instrument were also collected in conjunction with FCI data collection at the beginning and end of the term. The MLU was developed specifically for this study prior to data collection, and results of a pilot test to establish validity and reliability are reported. T-tests were performed on the data collected to compare the means from each sample. In addition, correlations among the measures were investigated between the samples separately and combined. Results from these investigations served as justification for combining the samples into a single sample of 230 for performing further statistical analyses. The primary objective of this study was to determine if scientific reasoning ability (a function of developmental stage) and conceptual gains in Newtonian mechanics predict students' usages of "force" as measured by the MLU. Regression analyses were performed to evaluate these mediated relationships among TSR and FCI performance as a predictor of MLU performance. Statistically significant correlations and relationships existed among several of the measures, which are discussed at length in the body of the narrative. The findings of this research are that although there exists a discernable relationship between reasoning ability and conceptual change, more work needs to be done to establish improved quantitative measures of the role language usage has in developing understandings

Status of ANL out-of-pile investigations of severe accident phenomena for liquid metal reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Spencer, B.W.; Marchaterre, J.F.; Anderson, R.P.

1986-01-01

Research addressing LMFBR whole core accidents has been terminated, and there is now emphasis on quantifying reactivity feedbacks, and in particular enhancing negative feedback, so that advanced LMR designs will provide inherently safe operation. The status of recent HCDA-related laboratory research performed at ANL, up to the time that such activities were no longer needed to support CRBR licensing, is described. Included are descriptions of programs addressing sodium channel voiding, fuel sweepout, fuel dispersal and plugging, boiled-up pool, UO 2 /sodium FCI, and debris coolability. Descriptions of recent investigations involving the metal fuel/sodium system are also included

Interactions of Forests, Climate, Water Resources, and Humans in a Changing Environment: Research Needs

OpenAIRE

Sun, Ge; Segura, Catalina

2013-01-01

The aim of the special issue “Interactions of Forests, Climate, Water Resources, and Humans in a Changing Environment” is to present case studies on the influences of natural and human disturbances on forest water resources under a changing climate. Studies in this collection of six papers cover a wide range of geographic regions from Australia to Nigeria with spatial research scale spanning from a tree leaf, to a segment of forest road, and large basins with mixed land uses. T...

Blogging in a biostatistics and research design graduate dental course: for learning or interaction?

Science.gov (United States)

El Tantawi, Maha M A

2010-04-01

The use of the Internet in health professions education has markedly increased in recent years. There is a need to understand the methods used by students to benefit from Internet-based teaching methods, especially those initially designed to promote social interaction such as blogs. This study describes how students used a blog in a biostatistics and research design graduate dental course. The aims of the blog were to offer exercises to train students for the exam and to enhance interaction among students and between students and instructor. Some features of the blog were modified to suit the course. Posts and comments were counted and classified by type, and their time statistics were analyzed. Students filled out a questionnaire to indicate whether and how exactly they used the blog or reasons for not using it. The relation between final exam scores and different methods of using the blog was assessed. Most of the posts were by the instructor offering exercises and model answers, whereas most of the comments were by students answering the exercises. Students were significantly more satisfied with blog uses related to interaction than with uses related to exercises (9.15+/-1.19, 8.73+/-1.34, P=0.001). The most frequently cited reason for not using the blog was lack of time. The most frequently reported method of using the blog was reading exercises and answers without actively contributing to the blog. Methods of using the blog significantly associated with higher scores in the final exam were actively contributing to the blog by posts or comments and interacting with colleagues. The main advantage of using the blog was promoting interaction between students and instructor, which is essential for the success of online learning in particular and adult learning in general.

Frontiers of torenia research: innovative ornamental traits and study of ecological interaction networks through genetic engineering

Science.gov (United States)

2013-01-01

Advances in research in the past few years on the ornamental plant torenia (Torenia spps.) have made it notable as a model plant on the frontier of genetic engineering aimed at studying ornamental characteristics and pest control in horticultural ecosystems. The remarkable advantage of torenia over other ornamental plant species is the availability of an easy and high-efficiency transformation system for it. Unfortunately, most of the current torenia research is still not very widespread, because this species has not become prominent as an alternative to other successful model plants such as Arabidopsis, snapdragon and petunia. However, nowadays, a more global view using not only a few selected models but also several additional species are required for creating innovative ornamental traits and studying horticultural ecosystems. We therefore introduce and discuss recent research on torenia, the family Scrophulariaceae, for secondary metabolite bioengineering, in which global insights into horticulture, agriculture and ecology have been advanced. Floral traits, in torenia particularly floral color, have been extensively studied by manipulating the flavonoid biosynthetic pathways in flower organs. Plant aroma, including volatile terpenoids, has also been genetically modulated in order to understand the complicated nature of multi-trophic interactions that affect the behavior of predators and pollinators in the ecosystem. Torenia would accordingly be of great use for investigating both the variation in ornamental plants and the infochemical-mediated interactions with arthropods. PMID:23803155

An evaluation of the interaction of place and community-based participatory research as a research methodology in the implementation of a sexually transmitted infection intervention for Greenlandic youth.

Science.gov (United States)

Rink, Elizabeth

2016-01-01

Newly emerging research suggests that the actual physical location of a study and the geographic context in which a study is implemented influences the types of research methods most appropriate to use in a study as well as the study's research outcomes. This article presents a reflection on the extent to which place influenced the use of community-based participatory research (CBPR) as a research methodology in the implementation of an intervention to address sexually transmitted infections in Greenland. An evaluation of the interaction between place and CBPR suggests that the physicality of place influenced the intervention's successes and challenges. Future research that uses CBPR as a research methodology in sexual and reproductive health research in the Arctic warrants situating the research design, implementation and outcomes within the context of place.

Interaction of radiation with matter. Research progress report, November 1, 1979-October 31, 1980

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1980-09-01

The mechanisms of dissipation of energy in organic and inorganic materials, and the application of the technique developed to a study of selected problems of environmental concern in the production of energy from fossil fuels were studied. In the Inorganic Phase of the work the research involves (1) measurements of cross-sections for K and L-shell ionization processes for heavy projectiles in the low velocity region, (2) experimental tests of target dependence of the effective-charge theory for light projectiles, (3) theoretical studies on the energy loss of swift particles in plasmas over a broad density and temperature range. The organic phase of the work falls into a series of closely related areas, all derived from a study of the interaction of radiation with matter. (1) New techniques for the study of small particulates (approx. 1μ); composition, mass (to +-1 pg) and charge (+-1 electron) can be determined. (2) External photoelectric effects as a tool in arriving at the electronic structure of organic crystals. (3) The interaction of water with charge carriers in organic crystals, producing reactive chemical species, such as Oh and HSO 3 radicals. (4) Mechanisms of interaction of air-pollutant polycyclic aromatic carcinogens with DNA and the study of the conformation of the adducts

Twenty Years of Creativity Research in Human-Computer Interaction: Current State and Future Directions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Frich Pedersen, Jonas; Biskjaer, Michael Mose; Dalsgaard, Peter

2018-01-01

Creativity has been a growing topic within the ACM community since the 1990s. However, no clear overview of this trend has been offered. We present a thorough survey of 998 creativity-related publications in the ACM Digital Library collected using keyword search to determine prevailing approaches......, topics, and characteristics of creativity-oriented Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) research. . A selected sample based on yearly citations yielded 221 publications, which were analyzed using constant comparison analysis. We found that HCI is almost exclusively responsible for creativity......-oriented publications; they focus on collaborative creativity rather than individual creativity; there is a general lack of definition of the term ‘creativity’; empirically based contributions are prevalent; and many publications focus on new tools, often developed by researchers. On this basis, we present three...

Seniority zero pair coupled cluster doubles theory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stein, Tamar; Henderson, Thomas M.; Scuseria, Gustavo E.

2014-01-01

Coupled cluster theory with single and double excitations accurately describes weak electron correlation but is known to fail in cases of strong static correlation. Fascinatingly, however, pair coupled cluster doubles (p-CCD), a simplified version of the theory limited to pair excitations that preserve the seniority of the reference determinant (i.e., the number of unpaired electrons), has mean field computational cost and is an excellent approximation to the full configuration interaction (FCI) of the paired space provided that the orbital basis defining the pairing scheme is adequately optimized. In previous work, we have shown that optimization of the pairing scheme in the seniority zero FCI leads to a very accurate description of static correlation. The same conclusion extends to p-CCD if the orbitals are optimized to make the p-CCD energy stationary. We here demonstrate these results with numerous examples. We also explore the contributions of different seniority sectors to the coupled cluster doubles (CCD) correlation energy using different orbital bases. We consider both Hartree-Fock and Brueckner orbitals, and the role of orbital localization. We show how one can pair the orbitals so that the role of the Brueckner orbitals at the CCD level is retained at the p-CCD level. Moreover, we explore ways of extending CCD to accurately describe strongly correlated systems

Interaction of radiation with matter. Research progress report, January 1, 1982-December 31, 1982

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1982-12-01

The project is concerned with the mechanisms of dissipation of energy in organic and inorganic materials, and with the application of the technique developed to a study of selected problems of environmental concern in the production of energy from fossil fuels. The organic phase of this work falls into a series of closely related areas, all derived from a study of the interaction of radiation with matter. These are: (1) New techniques for the study of small particulates (approx. 1μ); composition, mass (to +- 1 pg) and charge (+- 1 electron) can be determined. (2) External photoelectric effects as a tool in arriving at the electronic structure of organic crystals. (3) The interaction of water with radical cations in organic crystals, producing reactive chemical species, such as OH and HSO 3 , NH 2 , and NO 3 radicals. (4) Mechanisms of interaction of air-pollutant polycyclic aromatic carcinogens with DNA and the study of the conformation of the adducts. (5) High excitation densities in organic systems and other photophysical phenomena, such as triplet exciton dynamics, and exoemission. (6) The interaction of #betta#-rays with protein solutions. In the inorganic phase of this work the research involves (1) measurements of cross-sections for K and L-shell ionization processes for heavy projectiles in the low velocity region, (2) experimental tests of target dependence of the effective-charge theory for light projectiles, (3) theoretical studies on the energy loss of swift particles in plasmas over a broad density and temperature range, and (4) studies of geminate recombination in alkane liquids as a function of alkane chain length

Comments on the current status and possible future directions of research on heavy-ion interactions near the Coulomb barrier

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Satchler, G.R.

1990-01-01

This paper contains comments on the current status and possible future directions of research on heavy-ion interactions near the Coulomb barrier. Fusion reactions, elastic and inelastic scattering and transfer reactions are discussed

Age and education corrected older adult normative data for a short form version of the Financial Capacity Instrument.

Science.gov (United States)

Gerstenecker, Adam; Eakin, Amanda; Triebel, Kristen; Martin, Roy; Swenson-Dravis, Dana; Petersen, Ronald C; Marson, Daniel

2016-06-01

Financial capacity is an instrumental activity of daily living (IADL) that comprises multiple abilities and is critical to independence and autonomy in older adults. Because of its cognitive complexity, financial capacity is often the first IADL to show decline in prodromal and clinical Alzheimer's disease and related disorders. Despite its importance, few standardized assessment measures of financial capacity exist and there is little, if any, normative data available to evaluate financial skills in the elderly. The Financial Capacity Instrument-Short Form (FCI-SF) is a brief measure of financial skills designed to evaluate financial skills in older adults with cognitive impairment. In the current study, we present age- and education-adjusted normative data for FCI-SF variables in a sample of 1344 cognitively normal, community-dwelling older adults participating in the Mayo Clinic Study of Aging (MCSA) in Olmsted County, Minnesota. Individual FCI-SF raw scores were first converted to age-corrected scaled scores based on position within a cumulative frequency distribution and then grouped within 4 empirically supported and overlapping age ranges. These age-corrected scaled scores were then converted to age- and education-corrected scaled scores using the same methodology. This study has the potential to substantially enhance financial capacity evaluations of older adults through the introduction of age- and education-corrected normative data for the FCI-SF by allowing clinicians to: (a) compare an individual's performance to that of a sample of similar age and education peers, (b) interpret various aspects of financial capacity relative to a normative sample, and (c) make comparisons between these aspects. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

The Jupyter/IPython architecture: a unified view of computational research, from interactive exploration to communication and publication.

Science.gov (United States)

Ragan-Kelley, M.; Perez, F.; Granger, B.; Kluyver, T.; Ivanov, P.; Frederic, J.; Bussonnier, M.

2014-12-01

IPython has provided terminal-based tools for interactive computing in Python since 2001. The notebook document format and multi-process architecture introduced in 2011 have expanded the applicable scope of IPython into teaching, presenting, and sharing computational work, in addition to interactive exploration. The new architecture also allows users to work in any language, with implementations in Python, R, Julia, Haskell, and several other languages. The language agnostic parts of IPython have been renamed to Jupyter, to better capture the notion that a cross-language design can encapsulate commonalities present in computational research regardless of the programming language being used. This architecture offers components like the web-based Notebook interface, that supports rich documents that combine code and computational results with text narratives, mathematics, images, video and any media that a modern browser can display. This interface can be used not only in research, but also for publication and education, as notebooks can be converted to a variety of output formats, including HTML and PDF. Recent developments in the Jupyter project include a multi-user environment for hosting notebooks for a class or research group, a live collaboration notebook via Google Docs, and better support for languages other than Python.

Creating Learning Experiences that Promote Informal Science Education: Designing Conservation-Focused Interactive Zoo Exhibits through Action Research

Science.gov (United States)

Kalenda, Peter

Research on exhibit design over the past twenty years has started to identify many different methods to increase the learning that occurs in informal education environments. This study utilized relevant research on exhibit design to create and study the effectiveness of a mobile interactive exhibit at the Seneca Park Zoo that promotes socialization, engagement in science, and conservation-related practices among guests. This study will serve as one component of a major redesign project at the Seneca Park Zoo for their Rocky Coasts exhibit. This action research study targeted the following question, "How can interactive exhibits be designed to promote socialization, engagement in science, and real-world conservation-related practices (RCPs) among zoo guests?" Specific research questions included: 1. In what ways did guests engage with the exhibit? 2. In what ways were guests impacted by the exhibit? a) What evidence exists, if any, of guests learning science content from the exhibit? b) What evidence exists, if any, of guests being emotionally affected by the exhibit? c) What evidence exists, if any, of guests changing their RCPs after visiting the exhibit? Data were collected through zoo guest surveys completed by zoo guests comparing multiple exhibits, interviews with guests before and after they used the prototype exhibit, observations and audio recordings of guests using the prototype exhibit, and follow-up phone interviews with guests who volunteered to participate. Data were analyzed collaboratively with members of the zoo's exhibit Redesign Team using grounded theory qualitative data analysis techniques to find patterns and trends among data. Initial findings from data analysis were used to develop shifts in the exhibit in order to increase visitor engagement and learning. This process continued for two full action research spirals, which resulted in three iterations of the prototype exhibit. The overall findings of this study highlight the ways in which

The local atomic quasicrystal structure of the icosahedral Mg25Y11Zn64 alloy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bruehne, S; Uhrig, E; Gross, C; Assmus, W; Masadeh, A S; Billinge, S J L

2005-01-01

A local and medium range atomic structure model for the face centred icosahedral (fci) Mg 25 Y 11 Zn 64 alloy has been established in a sphere of r = 27 A. The model was refined by least squares techniques using the atomic pair distribution (PDF) function obtained from synchrotron powder diffraction. Three hierarchies of the atomic arrangement can be found: (i) five types of local coordination polyhedra for the single atoms, four of which are of Frank-Kasper type. In turn, they (ii) form a three-shell (Bergman) cluster containing 104 atoms, which is condensed sharing its outer shell with its neighbouring clusters, and (iii) a cluster connecting scheme corresponding to a three-dimensional tiling leaving space for a few glue atoms. Inside adjacent clusters, Y 8 cubes are tilted with respect to each other and thus allow for overall icosahedral symmetry. It is shown that the title compound is essentially isomorphic to its holmium analogue. Therefore, fci-Mg-Y-Zn can be seen as the representative structure type for the other rare earth analogues fci-Mg-Zn-RE (RE = Dy, Er, Ho, Tb) reported in the literature

Chasing Ecological Interactions.

Science.gov (United States)

Jordano, Pedro

2016-09-01

Basic research on biodiversity has concentrated on individual species-naming new species, studying distribution patterns, and analyzing their evolutionary relationships. Yet biodiversity is more than a collection of individual species; it is the combination of biological entities and processes that support life on Earth. To understand biodiversity we must catalog it, but we must also assess the ways species interact with other species to provide functional support for the Tree of Life. Ecological interactions may be lost well before the species involved in those interactions go extinct; their ecological functions disappear even though they remain. Here, I address the challenges in studying the functional aspects of species interactions and how basic research is helping us address the fast-paced extinction of species due to human activities.

Interactive design of farm conversion : linking agricultural research and farmer learning for sustainable small scale horticulture production in Colombia

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lee, R.A.

2002-01-01

Key words: interactive conversion design / vegetable production / small farms / sustainable farming / Colombia / learning processes / facilitation / agricultural research methods