On the Lasserre hierarchy of semidefinite programming relaxations of convex polynomial optimization problems

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Klerk, E.; Laurent, M.

2011-01-01

The Lasserre hierarchy of semidefinite programming approximations to convex polynomial optimization problems is known to converge finitely under some assumptions. [J. B. Lasserre, Convexity in semialgebraic geometry and polynomial optimization, SIAM J. Optim., 19 (2009), pp. 1995–2014]. We give a

Positive semidefinite matrix completion, universal rigidity and the Strong Arnold Property

NARCIS (Netherlands)

M. Laurent (Monique); A. Varvitsiotis (Antonios)

2014-01-01

htmlabstractThis paper addresses the following three topics: positive semidefinite (psd) matrix completions, universal rigidity of frameworks, and the Strong Arnold Property (SAP). We show some strong connections among these topics, using semidefinite programming as unifying theme. Our main

Positive semidefinite matrix completion, universal rigidity and the Strong Arnold Property

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Laurent, Monique; Varvitsiotis, A.

This paper addresses the following three topics: positive semidefinite (psd) matrix completions, universal rigidity of frameworks, and the Strong Arnold Property (SAP). We show some strong connections among these topics, using semidefinite programming as unifying theme. Our main contribution is a

Global solutions of restricted open-shell Hartree-Fock theory from semidefinite programming with applications to strongly correlated quantum systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Veeraraghavan, Srikant; Mazziotti, David A

2014-03-28

We present a density matrix approach for computing global solutions of restricted open-shell Hartree-Fock theory, based on semidefinite programming (SDP), that gives upper and lower bounds on the Hartree-Fock energy of quantum systems. While wave function approaches to Hartree-Fock theory yield an upper bound to the Hartree-Fock energy, we derive a semidefinite relaxation of Hartree-Fock theory that yields a rigorous lower bound on the Hartree-Fock energy. We also develop an upper-bound algorithm in which Hartree-Fock theory is cast as a SDP with a nonconvex constraint on the rank of the matrix variable. Equality of the upper- and lower-bound energies guarantees that the computed solution is the globally optimal solution of Hartree-Fock theory. The work extends a previously presented method for closed-shell systems [S. Veeraraghavan and D. A. Mazziotti, Phys. Rev. A 89, 010502-R (2014)]. For strongly correlated systems the SDP approach provides an alternative to the locally optimized Hartree-Fock energies and densities with a certificate of global optimality. Applications are made to the potential energy curves of C2, CN, Cr2, and NO2.

A new semidefinite programming relaxation for cycles in binary matroids and cuts in graphs

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Gouveia, J.; Laurent, M.; Parrilo, P.; Thomas, R.

2012-01-01

The theta bodies of a polynomial ideal are a series of semidefinite programming relaxations of the convex hull of the real variety of the ideal. In this paper we construct the theta bodies of the vanishing ideal of cycles in a binary matroid. Applied to cuts in graphs, this yields a new hierarchy of

Spatial and Spin Symmetry Breaking in Semidefinite-Programming-Based Hartree-Fock Theory.

Science.gov (United States)

Nascimento, Daniel R; DePrince, A Eugene

2018-05-08

The Hartree-Fock problem was recently recast as a semidefinite optimization over the space of rank-constrained two-body reduced-density matrices (RDMs) [ Phys. Rev. A 2014 , 89 , 010502(R) ]. This formulation of the problem transfers the nonconvexity of the Hartree-Fock energy functional to the rank constraint on the two-body RDM. We consider an equivalent optimization over the space of positive semidefinite one-electron RDMs (1-RDMs) that retains the nonconvexity of the Hartree-Fock energy expression. The optimized 1-RDM satisfies ensemble N-representability conditions, and ensemble spin-state conditions may be imposed as well. The spin-state conditions place additional linear and nonlinear constraints on the 1-RDM. We apply this RDM-based approach to several molecular systems and explore its spatial (point group) and spin ( Ŝ 2 and Ŝ 3 ) symmetry breaking properties. When imposing Ŝ 2 and Ŝ 3 symmetry but relaxing point group symmetry, the procedure often locates spatial-symmetry-broken solutions that are difficult to identify using standard algorithms. For example, the RDM-based approach yields a smooth, spatial-symmetry-broken potential energy curve for the well-known Be-H 2 insertion pathway. We also demonstrate numerically that, upon relaxation of Ŝ 2 and Ŝ 3 symmetry constraints, the RDM-based approach is equivalent to real-valued generalized Hartree-Fock theory.

An easy way to obtain strong duality results in linear, linear semidefinite and linear semi-infinite programming

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Pop, P.C.; Still, Georg J.

1999-01-01

In linear programming it is known that an appropriate non-homogeneous Farkas Lemma leads to a short proof of the strong duality results for a pair of primal and dual programs. By using a corresponding generalized Farkas lemma we give a similar proof of the strong duality results for semidefinite

Chordal Graphs and Semidefinite Optimization

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Vandenberghe, Lieven; Andersen, Martin Skovgaard

2015-01-01

of a sparse positive definite matrix, positive semidefinite and Euclidean distance matrix completion problems, and the evaluation of gradients and Hessians of logarithmic barriers for cones of sparse positive semidefinite matrices and their dual cones. The purpose of the survey is to show how these techniques...

Quantum algorithms for the ordered search problem via semidefinite programming

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Childs, Andrew M.; Landahl, Andrew J.; Parrilo, Pablo A.

2007-01-01

One of the most basic computational problems is the task of finding a desired item in an ordered list of N items. While the best classical algorithm for this problem uses log 2 N queries to the list, a quantum computer can solve the problem using a constant factor fewer queries. However, the precise value of this constant is unknown. By characterizing a class of quantum query algorithms for the ordered search problem in terms of a semidefinite program, we find quantum algorithms for small instances of the ordered search problem. Extending these algorithms to arbitrarily large instances using recursion, we show that there is an exact quantum ordered search algorithm using 4 log 605 N≅0.433 log 2 N queries, which improves upon the previously best known exact algorithm

Low-rank quadratic semidefinite programming

KAUST Repository

Yuan, Ganzhao

2013-04-01

Low rank matrix approximation is an attractive model in large scale machine learning problems, because it can not only reduce the memory and runtime complexity, but also provide a natural way to regularize parameters while preserving learning accuracy. In this paper, we address a special class of nonconvex quadratic matrix optimization problems, which require a low rank positive semidefinite solution. Despite their non-convexity, we exploit the structure of these problems to derive an efficient solver that converges to their local optima. Furthermore, we show that the proposed solution is capable of dramatically enhancing the efficiency and scalability of a variety of concrete problems, which are of significant interest to the machine learning community. These problems include the Top-k Eigenvalue problem, Distance learning and Kernel learning. Extensive experiments on UCI benchmarks have shown the effectiveness and efficiency of our proposed method. © 2012.

Low-rank quadratic semidefinite programming

KAUST Repository

Yuan, Ganzhao; Zhang, Zhenjie; Ghanem, Bernard; Hao, Zhifeng

2013-01-01

Low rank matrix approximation is an attractive model in large scale machine learning problems, because it can not only reduce the memory and runtime complexity, but also provide a natural way to regularize parameters while preserving learning accuracy. In this paper, we address a special class of nonconvex quadratic matrix optimization problems, which require a low rank positive semidefinite solution. Despite their non-convexity, we exploit the structure of these problems to derive an efficient solver that converges to their local optima. Furthermore, we show that the proposed solution is capable of dramatically enhancing the efficiency and scalability of a variety of concrete problems, which are of significant interest to the machine learning community. These problems include the Top-k Eigenvalue problem, Distance learning and Kernel learning. Extensive experiments on UCI benchmarks have shown the effectiveness and efficiency of our proposed method. © 2012.

Semidefinite linear complementarity problems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eckhardt, U.

1978-04-01

Semidefinite linear complementarity problems arise by discretization of variational inequalities describing e.g. elastic contact problems, free boundary value problems etc. In the present paper linear complementarity problems are introduced and the theory as well as the numerical treatment of them are described. In the special case of semidefinite linear complementarity problems a numerical method is presented which combines the advantages of elimination and iteration methods without suffering from their drawbacks. This new method has very attractive properties since it has a high degree of invariance with respect to the representation of the set of all feasible solutions of a linear complementarity problem by linear inequalities. By means of some practical applications the properties of the new method are demonstrated. (orig.) [de

Regulation of Dynamical Systems to Optimal Solutions of Semidefinite Programs: Algorithms and Applications to AC Optimal Power Flow

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dall' Anese, Emiliano; Dhople, Sairaj V.; Giannakis, Georgios B.

2015-07-01

This paper considers a collection of networked nonlinear dynamical systems, and addresses the synthesis of feedback controllers that seek optimal operating points corresponding to the solution of pertinent network-wide optimization problems. Particular emphasis is placed on the solution of semidefinite programs (SDPs). The design of the feedback controller is grounded on a dual e-subgradient approach, with the dual iterates utilized to dynamically update the dynamical-system reference signals. Global convergence is guaranteed for diminishing stepsize rules, even when the reference inputs are updated at a faster rate than the dynamical-system settling time. The application of the proposed framework to the control of power-electronic inverters in AC distribution systems is discussed. The objective is to bridge the time-scale separation between real-time inverter control and network-wide optimization. Optimization objectives assume the form of SDP relaxations of prototypical AC optimal power flow problems.

Primal-dual predictor-corrector interior point algorithm for quadratic semidefinite programming%二次半定规划的原始对偶预估校正内点算法

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

黄静静; 商朋见; 王爱文

2011-01-01

将半定规划(Semidefinite Programming,SDP)的内点算法推广到二次半定规划(QuadraticSemidefinite Programming,QSDP),重点讨论了AHO搜索方向的产生方法.首先利用Wolfe对偶理论推导得到了求解二次半定规划的非线性方程组,利用牛顿法求解该方程组,得到了求解QSDP的内点算法的AHO搜索方向,证明了该搜索方向的存在唯一性,最后给出了求解二次半定规划的预估校正内点算法的具体步骤,并对基于不同搜索方向的内点算法进行了数值实验,结果表明基于NT方向的内点算法最为稳健.%This paper extends the interior point algorithm for solving Semidefinite Programming (SDP) to Quadratic Semidefinite Programming(QSDP) and especially discusses the generation of AHO search direction. Firstly, we derive the nonlinear equations for solving QSDP using Wolfe's dual theorem.The AHO search direction is got by applying Newton' s method to the equations. Then we prove the existence and uniqueness of the search direction, and give the detaied steps of predictor-corrector interior-point algorithm. At last, this paper provides a numerical comparison of the algoritms using three different search directions and suggests the algorithm using NT direction is the most robust.

Semi-definite relaxations for optimal control problems with oscillation and concentration effects

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Claeys, M.; Henrion, D.; Kružík, Martin

2017-01-01

Roč. 23, č. 1 (2017), s. 95-117 ISSN 1292-8119 Institutional support: RVO:67985556 Keywords : optimal control * impulsive control * semidefinite programming Subject RIV: BA - General Mathematics OBOR OECD: Pure mathematics Impact factor: 1.540, year: 2016 http://library.utia.cas.cz/separaty/2017/MTR/kruzik-0470207.pdf

Combining heterogeneous features for colonic polyp detection in CTC based on semi-definite programming

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Shijun; Yao, Jianhua; Petrick, Nicholas A.; Summers, Ronald M.

2009-02-01

Colon cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. Computed tomographic colonography (CTC) combined with a computer aided detection system provides a feasible combination for improving colonic polyps detection and increasing the use of CTC for colon cancer screening. To distinguish true polyps from false positives, various features extracted from polyp candidates have been proposed. Most of these features try to capture the shape information of polyp candidates or neighborhood knowledge about the surrounding structures (fold, colon wall, etc.). In this paper, we propose a new set of shape descriptors for polyp candidates based on statistical curvature information. These features, called histogram of curvature features, are rotation, translation and scale invariant and can be treated as complementing our existing feature set. Then in order to make full use of the traditional features (defined as group A) and the new features (group B) which are highly heterogeneous, we employed a multiple kernel learning method based on semi-definite programming to identify an optimized classification kernel based on the combined set of features. We did leave-one-patient-out test on a CTC dataset which contained scans from 50 patients (with 90 6-9mm polyp detections). Experimental results show that a support vector machine (SVM) based on the combined feature set and the semi-definite optimization kernel achieved higher FROC performance compared to SVMs using the two groups of features separately. At a false positive per patient rate of 7, the sensitivity on 6-9mm polyps using the combined features improved from 0.78 (Group A) and 0.73 (Group B) to 0.82 (p<=0.01).

Bounding Averages Rigorously Using Semidefinite Programming: Mean Moments of the Lorenz System

Science.gov (United States)

Goluskin, David

2018-04-01

We describe methods for proving bounds on infinite-time averages in differential dynamical systems. The methods rely on the construction of nonnegative polynomials with certain properties, similarly to the way nonlinear stability can be proved using Lyapunov functions. Nonnegativity is enforced by requiring the polynomials to be sums of squares, a condition which is then formulated as a semidefinite program (SDP) that can be solved computationally. Although such computations are subject to numerical error, we demonstrate two ways to obtain rigorous results: using interval arithmetic to control the error of an approximate SDP solution, and finding exact analytical solutions to relatively small SDPs. Previous formulations are extended to allow for bounds depending analytically on parametric variables. These methods are illustrated using the Lorenz equations, a system with three state variables ( x, y, z) and three parameters (β ,σ ,r). Bounds are reported for infinite-time averages of all eighteen moments x^ly^mz^n up to quartic degree that are symmetric under (x,y)\\mapsto (-x,-y). These bounds apply to all solutions regardless of stability, including chaotic trajectories, periodic orbits, and equilibrium points. The analytical approach yields two novel bounds that are sharp: the mean of z^3 can be no larger than its value of (r-1)^3 at the nonzero equilibria, and the mean of xy^3 must be nonnegative. The interval arithmetic approach is applied at the standard chaotic parameters to bound eleven average moments that all appear to be maximized on the shortest periodic orbit. Our best upper bound on each such average exceeds its value on the maximizing orbit by less than 1%. Many bounds reported here are much tighter than would be possible without computer assistance.

Bandgap optimization of two-dimensional photonic crystals using semidefinite programming and subspace methods

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Men, H.; Nguyen, N.C.; Freund, R.M.; Parrilo, P.A.; Peraire, J.

2010-01-01

In this paper, we consider the optimal design of photonic crystal structures for two-dimensional square lattices. The mathematical formulation of the bandgap optimization problem leads to an infinite-dimensional Hermitian eigenvalue optimization problem parametrized by the dielectric material and the wave vector. To make the problem tractable, the original eigenvalue problem is discretized using the finite element method into a series of finite-dimensional eigenvalue problems for multiple values of the wave vector parameter. The resulting optimization problem is large-scale and non-convex, with low regularity and non-differentiable objective. By restricting to appropriate eigenspaces, we reduce the large-scale non-convex optimization problem via reparametrization to a sequence of small-scale convex semidefinite programs (SDPs) for which modern SDP solvers can be efficiently applied. Numerical results are presented for both transverse magnetic (TM) and transverse electric (TE) polarizations at several frequency bands. The optimized structures exhibit patterns which go far beyond typical physical intuition on periodic media design.

Positive semidefinite tensor factorizations of the two-electron integral matrix for low-scaling ab initio electronic structure.

Science.gov (United States)

Hoy, Erik P; Mazziotti, David A

2015-08-14

Tensor factorization of the 2-electron integral matrix is a well-known technique for reducing the computational scaling of ab initio electronic structure methods toward that of Hartree-Fock and density functional theories. The simplest factorization that maintains the positive semidefinite character of the 2-electron integral matrix is the Cholesky factorization. In this paper, we introduce a family of positive semidefinite factorizations that generalize the Cholesky factorization. Using an implementation of the factorization within the parametric 2-RDM method [D. A. Mazziotti, Phys. Rev. Lett. 101, 253002 (2008)], we study several inorganic molecules, alkane chains, and potential energy curves and find that this generalized factorization retains the accuracy and size extensivity of the Cholesky factorization, even in the presence of multi-reference correlation. The generalized family of positive semidefinite factorizations has potential applications to low-scaling ab initio electronic structure methods that treat electron correlation with a computational cost approaching that of the Hartree-Fock method or density functional theory.

Positive semidefinite tensor factorizations of the two-electron integral matrix for low-scaling ab initio electronic structure

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hoy, Erik P.; Mazziotti, David A., E-mail: damazz@uchicago.edu [Department of Chemistry and The James Franck Institute, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60637 (United States)

2015-08-14

Tensor factorization of the 2-electron integral matrix is a well-known technique for reducing the computational scaling of ab initio electronic structure methods toward that of Hartree-Fock and density functional theories. The simplest factorization that maintains the positive semidefinite character of the 2-electron integral matrix is the Cholesky factorization. In this paper, we introduce a family of positive semidefinite factorizations that generalize the Cholesky factorization. Using an implementation of the factorization within the parametric 2-RDM method [D. A. Mazziotti, Phys. Rev. Lett. 101, 253002 (2008)], we study several inorganic molecules, alkane chains, and potential energy curves and find that this generalized factorization retains the accuracy and size extensivity of the Cholesky factorization, even in the presence of multi-reference correlation. The generalized family of positive semidefinite factorizations has potential applications to low-scaling ab initio electronic structure methods that treat electron correlation with a computational cost approaching that of the Hartree-Fock method or density functional theory.

Handbook on semidefinite, conic and polynomial optimization

CERN Document Server

Anjos, Miguel F

2012-01-01

This book offers the reader a snapshot of the state-of-the-art in the growing and mutually enriching areas of semidefinite optimization, conic optimization and polynomial optimization. It covers theory, algorithms, software and applications.

Binary Positive Semidefinite Matrices and Associated Integer Polytopes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Letchford, Adam N.; Sørensen, Michael Malmros

2012-01-01

We consider the positive semidefinite (psd) matrices with binary entries, along with the corresponding integer polytopes. We begin by establishing some basic properties of these matrices and polytopes. Then, we show that several families of integer polytopes in the literature-the cut, boolean qua...

A Semidefinite Programming Based Search Strategy for Feature Selection with Mutual Information Measure.

Science.gov (United States)

Naghibi, Tofigh; Hoffmann, Sarah; Pfister, Beat

2015-08-01

Feature subset selection, as a special case of the general subset selection problem, has been the topic of a considerable number of studies due to the growing importance of data-mining applications. In the feature subset selection problem there are two main issues that need to be addressed: (i) Finding an appropriate measure function than can be fairly fast and robustly computed for high-dimensional data. (ii) A search strategy to optimize the measure over the subset space in a reasonable amount of time. In this article mutual information between features and class labels is considered to be the measure function. Two series expansions for mutual information are proposed, and it is shown that most heuristic criteria suggested in the literature are truncated approximations of these expansions. It is well-known that searching the whole subset space is an NP-hard problem. Here, instead of the conventional sequential search algorithms, we suggest a parallel search strategy based on semidefinite programming (SDP) that can search through the subset space in polynomial time. By exploiting the similarities between the proposed algorithm and an instance of the maximum-cut problem in graph theory, the approximation ratio of this algorithm is derived and is compared with the approximation ratio of the backward elimination method. The experiments show that it can be misleading to judge the quality of a measure solely based on the classification accuracy, without taking the effect of the non-optimum search strategy into account.

Semidefinite Relaxation-Based Optimization of Multiple-Input Wireless Power Transfer Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Lang, Hans-Dieter; Sarris, Costas D.

2017-11-01

An optimization procedure for multi-transmitter (MISO) wireless power transfer (WPT) systems based on tight semidefinite relaxation (SDR) is presented. This method ensures physical realizability of MISO WPT systems designed via convex optimization -- a robust, semi-analytical and intuitive route to optimizing such systems. To that end, the nonconvex constraints requiring that power is fed into rather than drawn from the system via all transmitter ports are incorporated in a convex semidefinite relaxation, which is efficiently and reliably solvable by dedicated algorithms. A test of the solution then confirms that this modified problem is equivalent (tight relaxation) to the original (nonconvex) one and that the true global optimum has been found. This is a clear advantage over global optimization methods (e.g. genetic algorithms), where convergence to the true global optimum cannot be ensured or tested. Discussions of numerical results yielded by both the closed-form expressions and the refined technique illustrate the importance and practicability of the new method. It, is shown that this technique offers a rigorous optimization framework for a broad range of current and emerging WPT applications.

Complexity of the positive semidefinite matrix completion problem with a rank constraint.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

M. Eisenberg-Nagy (Marianna); M. Laurent (Monique); A. Varvitsiotis (Antonios); K. Bezdek; A. Deza; Y. Ye

2013-01-01

htmlabstractWe consider the decision problem asking whether a partial rational symmetric matrix with an all-ones diagonal can be completed to a full positive semidefinite matrix of rank at most k. We show that this problem is NP-hard for any fixed integer k ≥ 2. Equivalently, for k ≥ 2, it is

Complexity of the positive semidefinite matrix completion problem with a rank constraint.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

M. Eisenberg-Nagy (Marianna); M. Laurent (Monique); A. Varvitsiotis (Antonios)

2012-01-01

htmlabstractWe consider the decision problem asking whether a partial rational symmetric matrix with an all-ones diagonal can be completed to a full positive semidefinite matrix of rank at most k. We show that this problem is NP-hard for any fixed integer k ≥ 2. Equivalently, for k ≥ 2, it is

Complexity of the positive semidefinite matrix completion problem with a rank constraint

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nagy, M.; Laurent, M.; Varvitsiotis, A.; Bezdek, K.; Deza, A.; Ye, Y.

2013-01-01

We consider the decision problem asking whether a partial rational symmetric matrix with an all-ones diagonal can be completed to a full positive semidefinite matrix of rank at most k. We show that this problem is NP-hard for any fixed integer k ≥ 2. In other words, for k ≥ 2, it is NP-hard to test

Construction of an optimal background profile for the Kuramoto–Sivashinsky equation using semidefinite programming

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fantuzzi, G.; Wynn, A.

2015-01-01

A method to construct systematically an optimal background profile for the Kuramoto–Sivashinsky equation is developed by formulating the classical problem as an optimisation problem. In particular, we show that the infinite-dimensional problem can be rewritten as a finite-dimensional convex semidefinite problem, which is solved to construct a background profile and to obtain an upper bound on the energy of the solution ‖u‖ that applies to the infinite-dimensional PDE. The results are compared to existing analytical results, and support the fact that limsup t→∞ ‖u‖≤O(L 3/2 ) is the optimal estimate achievable with the background profile method and a quadratic Lyapunov function. - Highlights: • Optimal background profiles are constructed for the Kuramoto–Sivashinsky equation. • Analytical L 2 bounds for the solution are found using convex optimisation. • The optimal background profile is a double shock profile. • Results attest that L 1.5 scaling is optimal within the classic Lyapunov argument. • We improve the proportionality constant of the scaling law for the attracting set

A Class of Weighted Low Rank Approximation of the Positive Semidefinite Hankel Matrix

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jianchao Bai

2015-01-01

Full Text Available We consider the weighted low rank approximation of the positive semidefinite Hankel matrix problem arising in signal processing. By using the Vandermonde representation, we firstly transform the problem into an unconstrained optimization problem and then use the nonlinear conjugate gradient algorithm with the Armijo line search to solve the equivalent unconstrained optimization problem. Numerical examples illustrate that the new method is feasible and effective.

Non-Interior Continuation Method for Solving the Monotone Semidefinite Complementarity Problem

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Huang, Z.H.; Han, J.

2003-01-01

Recently, Chen and Tseng extended non-interior continuation smoothing methods for solving linear/ nonlinear complementarity problems to semidefinite complementarity problems (SDCP). In this paper we propose a non-interior continuation method for solving the monotone SDCP based on the smoothed Fischer-Burmeister function, which is shown to be globally linearly and locally quadratically convergent under suitable assumptions. Our algorithm needs at most to solve a linear system of equations at each iteration. In addition, in our analysis on global linear convergence of the algorithm, we need not use the assumption that the Frechet derivative of the function involved in the SDCP is Lipschitz continuous. For non-interior continuation/ smoothing methods for solving the nonlinear complementarity problem, such an assumption has been used widely in the literature in order to achieve global linear convergence results of the algorithms

A class of singular Ro-matrices and extensions to semidefinite linear complementarity problems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sivakumar K.C.

2013-01-01

Full Text Available For ARnxn and qRn, the linear complementarity problem LCP(A, q is to determine if there is xRn such that x ≥ 0; y = Ax + q ≥ 0 and xT y = 0. Such an x is called a solution of LCP(A,q. A is called an Ro-matrix if LCP(A,0 has zero as the only solution. In this article, the class of R0-matrices is extended to include typically singular matrices, by requiring in addition that the solution x above belongs to a subspace of Rn. This idea is then extended to semidefinite linear complementarity problems, where a characterization is presented for the multplicative transformation.

Comparison of Semidefinite Relaxation Detectors for High-Order Modulation MIMO Systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Z. Y. Shao

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO system is considered to be one of the key technologies of LTE since it achieves requirements of high throughput and spectral efficiency. The semidefinite relaxation (SDR detection for MIMO systems is an attractive alternative to the optimum maximum likelihood (ML decoding because it is very computationally efficient. We propose a new SDR detector for 256-QAM MIMO system and compare its performance with two other SDR detectors, namely, BC-SDR detector and VA-SDR detector. The tightness and complexity of these three SDR detectors are analyzed. Both theoretical analysis and simulation results demonstrate that the proposed SDR can provide the best BLER performance among the three detectors, while the BC-SDR detector and the VA-SDR detector provide identical BLER performance. Moreover, the BC-SDR has the lowest computational complexity and the VA-SDR has the highest computational complexity, while the proposed SDR is in between.

An Augmented Lagrangian Method for a Class of Inverse Quadratic Programming Problems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Jianzhong; Zhang Liwei

2010-01-01

We consider an inverse quadratic programming (QP) problem in which the parameters in the objective function of a given QP problem are adjusted as little as possible so that a known feasible solution becomes the optimal one. We formulate this problem as a minimization problem with a positive semidefinite cone constraint and its dual is a linearly constrained semismoothly differentiable (SC 1 ) convex programming problem with fewer variables than the original one. We demonstrate the global convergence of the augmented Lagrangian method for the dual problem and prove that the convergence rate of primal iterates, generated by the augmented Lagrange method, is proportional to 1/r, and the rate of multiplier iterates is proportional to 1/√r, where r is the penalty parameter in the augmented Lagrangian. As the objective function of the dual problem is a SC 1 function involving the projection operator onto the cone of symmetrically semi-definite matrices, the analysis requires extensive tools such as the singular value decomposition of matrices, an implicit function theorem for semismooth functions, and properties of the projection operator in the symmetric-matrix space. Furthermore, the semismooth Newton method with Armijo line search is applied to solve the subproblems in the augmented Lagrange approach, which is proven to have global convergence and local quadratic rate. Finally numerical results, implemented by the augmented Lagrangian method, are reported.

Integer programming

CERN Document Server

Conforti, Michele; Zambelli, Giacomo

2014-01-01

This book is an elegant and rigorous presentation of integer programming, exposing the subject’s mathematical depth and broad applicability. Special attention is given to the theory behind the algorithms used in state-of-the-art solvers. An abundance of concrete examples and exercises of both theoretical and real-world interest explore the wide range of applications and ramifications of the theory. Each chapter is accompanied by an expertly informed guide to the literature and special topics, rounding out the reader’s understanding and serving as a gateway to deeper study. Key topics include: formulations polyhedral theory cutting planes decomposition enumeration semidefinite relaxations Written by renowned experts in integer programming and combinatorial optimization, Integer Programming is destined to become an essential text in the field.

Science.gov (United States)

Trinker, Horst

2011-10-28

We study the distribution of triples of codewords of codes and ordered codes. Schrijver [A. Schrijver, New code upper bounds from the Terwilliger algebra and semidefinite programming, IEEE Trans. Inform. Theory 51 (8) (2005) 2859-2866] used the triple distribution of a code to establish a bound on the number of codewords based on semidefinite programming. In the first part of this work, we generalize this approach for ordered codes. In the second part, we consider linear codes and linear ordered codes and present a MacWilliams-type identity for the triple distribution of their dual code. Based on the non-negativity of this linear transform, we establish a linear programming bound and conclude with a table of parameters for which this bound yields better results than the standard linear programming bound.

A positive semi-definite action in a Kaluza-Klein theory with compactification onto time-like extra dimensions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pollock, M.D.

1986-01-01

We consider the (4+N)-dimensional theory whose Lagrangian function is Lsub(4+N)=√-g-circumflex α R-circumflex 2 , where R-circumflex is the Ricci scalar and α is a positive constant. The metric is g-circumflexsub(AB)= diag(gsub(ab), phi -1 g-barsub(mn)). Dimensional reduction leads to an effective four-dimensional Lagrangian of induced-gravity type. The positive semi-definiteness of L avoids the difficulties, pointed out recently by Horowitz and by Rubakov, which can arise in quantum cosmology when the (Euclidean) action becomes negative. The compactification is onto a time-like internal space g-barsub(mn), as suggested by Aref'eva and Volovich, giving a four-dimensional de Sitter space-time with phi=constant, which however is classically unstable on a time scale approx. H -1 . Decrease of the radius phisup(-1/2) of the internal space is ultimately halted by quantum effects, via some V(phi), and L 4 then includes the usual Hilbert term and a cosmological constant. (author)

Implementing corporate wellness programs: a business approach to program planning.

Science.gov (United States)

Helmer, D C; Dunn, L M; Eaton, K; Macedonio, C; Lubritz, L

1995-11-01

1. Support of key decision makers is critical to the successful implementation of a corporate wellness program. Therefore, the program implementation plan must be communicated in a format and language readily understood by business people. 2. A business approach to corporate wellness program planning provides a standardized way to communicate the implementation plan. 3. A business approach incorporates the program planning components in a format that ranges from general to specific. This approach allows for flexibility and responsiveness to changes in program planning. 4. Components of the business approach are the executive summary, purpose, background, ground rules, approach, requirements, scope of work, schedule, and financials.

Distributionally Robust Joint Chance Constrained Problem under Moment Uncertainty

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ke-wei Ding

2014-01-01

Full Text Available We discuss and develop the convex approximation for robust joint chance constraints under uncertainty of first- and second-order moments. Robust chance constraints are approximated by Worst-Case CVaR constraints which can be reformulated by a semidefinite programming. Then the chance constrained problem can be presented as semidefinite programming. We also find that the approximation for robust joint chance constraints has an equivalent individual quadratic approximation form.

Design of polynomial fuzzy observer-controller for nonlinear systems with state delay: sum of squares approach

Science.gov (United States)

Gassara, H.; El Hajjaji, A.; Chaabane, M.

2017-07-01

This paper investigates the problem of observer-based control for two classes of polynomial fuzzy systems with time-varying delay. The first class concerns a special case where the polynomial matrices do not depend on the estimated state variables. The second one is the general case where the polynomial matrices could depend on unmeasurable system states that will be estimated. For the last case, two design procedures are proposed. The first one gives the polynomial fuzzy controller and observer gains in two steps. In the second procedure, the designed gains are obtained using a single-step approach to overcome the drawback of a two-step procedure. The obtained conditions are presented in terms of sum of squares (SOS) which can be solved via the SOSTOOLS and a semi-definite program solver. Illustrative examples show the validity and applicability of the proposed results.

A Unified Approach to Modeling and Programming

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Madsen, Ole Lehrmann; Møller-Pedersen, Birger

2010-01-01

of this paper is to go back to the future and get inspiration from SIMULA and propose a unied approach. In addition to reintroducing the contributions of SIMULA and the Scandinavian approach to object-oriented programming, we do this by discussing a number of issues in modeling and programming and argue3 why we......SIMULA was a language for modeling and programming and provided a unied approach to modeling and programming in contrast to methodologies based on structured analysis and design. The current development seems to be going in the direction of separation of modeling and programming. The goal...

Enhancing Pseudo-Telepathy in the Magic Square Game

Science.gov (United States)

Pawela, Łukasz; Gawron, Piotr; Puchała, Zbigniew; Sładkowski, Jan

2013-01-01

We study the possibility of reversing an action of a quantum channel. Our principal objective is to find a specific channel that reverses as accurately as possible an action of a given quantum channel. To achieve this goal we use semidefinite programming. We show the benefits of our method using the quantum pseudo-telepathy Magic Square game with noise. Our strategy is to move the pseudo-telepathy region to higher noise values. We show that it is possible to reverse the action of a noise channel using semidefinite programming. PMID:23762246

Constrained blind deconvolution using Wirtinger flow methods

KAUST Repository

Walk, Philipp

2017-09-04

In this work we consider one-dimensional blind deconvolution with prior knowledge of signal autocorrelations in the classical framework of polynomial factorization. In particular this univariate case highly suffers from several non-trivial ambiguities and therefore blind deconvolution is known to be ill-posed in general. However, if additional autocorrelation information is available and the corresponding polynomials are co-prime, blind deconvolution is uniquely solvable up to global phase. Using lifting, the outer product of the unknown vectors is the solution to a (convex) semi-definite program (SDP) demonstrating that -theoretically- recovery is computationally tractable. However, for practical applications efficient algorithms are required which should operate in the original signal space. To this end we also discuss a gradient descent algorithm (Wirtinger flow) for the original non-convex problem. We demonstrate numerically that such an approach has performance comparable to the semidefinite program in the noisy case. Our work is motivated by applications in blind communication scenarios and we will discuss a specific signaling scheme where information is encoded into polynomial roots.

Constrained blind deconvolution using Wirtinger flow methods

KAUST Repository

Walk, Philipp; Jung, Peter; Hassibi, Babak

2017-01-01

In this work we consider one-dimensional blind deconvolution with prior knowledge of signal autocorrelations in the classical framework of polynomial factorization. In particular this univariate case highly suffers from several non-trivial ambiguities and therefore blind deconvolution is known to be ill-posed in general. However, if additional autocorrelation information is available and the corresponding polynomials are co-prime, blind deconvolution is uniquely solvable up to global phase. Using lifting, the outer product of the unknown vectors is the solution to a (convex) semi-definite program (SDP) demonstrating that -theoretically- recovery is computationally tractable. However, for practical applications efficient algorithms are required which should operate in the original signal space. To this end we also discuss a gradient descent algorithm (Wirtinger flow) for the original non-convex problem. We demonstrate numerically that such an approach has performance comparable to the semidefinite program in the noisy case. Our work is motivated by applications in blind communication scenarios and we will discuss a specific signaling scheme where information is encoded into polynomial roots.

A Cloud-Computing-Based Data Placement Strategy in High-Speed Railway

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hanning Wang

2012-01-01

Full Text Available As an important component of China’s transportation data sharing system, high-speed railway data sharing is a typical application of data-intensive computing. Currently, most high-speed railway data is shared in cloud computing environment. Thus, there is an urgent need for an effective cloud-computing-based data placement strategy in high-speed railway. In this paper, a new data placement strategy named hierarchical structure data placement strategy is proposed. The proposed method combines the semidefinite programming algorithm with the dynamic interval mapping algorithm. The semi-definite programming algorithm is suitable for the placement of files with various replications, ensuring that different replications of a file are placed on different storage devices, while the dynamic interval mapping algorithm ensures better self-adaptability of the data storage system. A hierarchical data placement strategy is proposed for large-scale networks. In this paper, a new theoretical analysis is provided, which is put in comparison with several other previous data placement approaches, showing the efficacy of the new analysis in several experiments.

Which Introductory Programming Approach Is Most Suitable for Students: Procedural or Visual Programming?

Science.gov (United States)

Eid, Chaker; Millham, Richard

2012-01-01

In this paper, we discuss the visual programming approach to teaching introductory programming courses and then compare this approach with that of procedural programming. The involved cognitive levels of students, as beginning students are introduced to different types of programming concepts, are correlated to the learning processes of…

Developmental Programming of Renal Function and Re-Programming Approaches.

Science.gov (United States)

Nüsken, Eva; Dötsch, Jörg; Weber, Lutz T; Nüsken, Kai-Dietrich

2018-01-01

Chronic kidney disease affects more than 10% of the population. Programming studies have examined the interrelationship between environmental factors in early life and differences in morbidity and mortality between individuals. A number of important principles has been identified, namely permanent structural modifications of organs and cells, long-lasting adjustments of endocrine regulatory circuits, as well as altered gene transcription. Risk factors include intrauterine deficiencies by disturbed placental function or maternal malnutrition, prematurity, intrauterine and postnatal stress, intrauterine and postnatal overnutrition, as well as dietary dysbalances in postnatal life. This mini-review discusses critical developmental periods and long-term sequelae of renal programming in humans and presents studies examining the underlying mechanisms as well as interventional approaches to "re-program" renal susceptibility toward disease. Clinical manifestations of programmed kidney disease include arterial hypertension, proteinuria, aggravation of inflammatory glomerular disease, and loss of kidney function. Nephron number, regulation of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, renal sodium transport, vasomotor and endothelial function, myogenic response, and tubuloglomerular feedback have been identified as being vulnerable to environmental factors. Oxidative stress levels, metabolic pathways, including insulin, leptin, steroids, and arachidonic acid, DNA methylation, and histone configuration may be significantly altered by adverse environmental conditions. Studies on re-programming interventions focused on dietary or anti-oxidative approaches so far. Further studies that broaden our understanding of renal programming mechanisms are needed to ultimately develop preventive strategies. Targeted re-programming interventions in animal models focusing on known mechanisms will contribute to new concepts which finally will have to be translated to human application. Early

Simple proof of the impossibility of bit commitment in generalized probabilistic theories using cone programming

Science.gov (United States)

Sikora, Jamie; Selby, John

2018-04-01

Bit commitment is a fundamental cryptographic task, in which Alice commits a bit to Bob such that she cannot later change the value of the bit, while, simultaneously, the bit is hidden from Bob. It is known that ideal bit commitment is impossible within quantum theory. In this work, we show that it is also impossible in generalized probabilistic theories (under a small set of assumptions) by presenting a quantitative trade-off between Alice's and Bob's cheating probabilities. Our proof relies crucially on a formulation of cheating strategies as cone programs, a natural generalization of semidefinite programs. In fact, using the generality of this technique, we prove that this result holds for the more general task of integer commitment.

INDDGO: Integrated Network Decomposition & Dynamic programming for Graph Optimization

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Groer, Christopher S [ORNL; Sullivan, Blair D [ORNL; Weerapurage, Dinesh P [ORNL

2012-10-01

It is well-known that dynamic programming algorithms can utilize tree decompositions to provide a way to solve some \\emph{NP}-hard problems on graphs where the complexity is polynomial in the number of nodes and edges in the graph, but exponential in the width of the underlying tree decomposition. However, there has been relatively little computational work done to determine the practical utility of such dynamic programming algorithms. We have developed software to construct tree decompositions using various heuristics and have created a fast, memory-efficient dynamic programming implementation for solving maximum weighted independent set. We describe our software and the algorithms we have implemented, focusing on memory saving techniques for the dynamic programming. We compare the running time and memory usage of our implementation with other techniques for solving maximum weighted independent set, including a commercial integer programming solver and a semi-definite programming solver. Our results indicate that it is possible to solve some instances where the underlying decomposition has width much larger than suggested by the literature. For certain types of problems, our dynamic programming code runs several times faster than these other methods.

Developmental Programming of Renal Function and Re-Programming Approaches

Science.gov (United States)

Nüsken, Eva; Dötsch, Jörg; Weber, Lutz T.; Nüsken, Kai-Dietrich

2018-01-01

Chronic kidney disease affects more than 10% of the population. Programming studies have examined the interrelationship between environmental factors in early life and differences in morbidity and mortality between individuals. A number of important principles has been identified, namely permanent structural modifications of organs and cells, long-lasting adjustments of endocrine regulatory circuits, as well as altered gene transcription. Risk factors include intrauterine deficiencies by disturbed placental function or maternal malnutrition, prematurity, intrauterine and postnatal stress, intrauterine and postnatal overnutrition, as well as dietary dysbalances in postnatal life. This mini-review discusses critical developmental periods and long-term sequelae of renal programming in humans and presents studies examining the underlying mechanisms as well as interventional approaches to “re-program” renal susceptibility toward disease. Clinical manifestations of programmed kidney disease include arterial hypertension, proteinuria, aggravation of inflammatory glomerular disease, and loss of kidney function. Nephron number, regulation of the renin–angiotensin–aldosterone system, renal sodium transport, vasomotor and endothelial function, myogenic response, and tubuloglomerular feedback have been identified as being vulnerable to environmental factors. Oxidative stress levels, metabolic pathways, including insulin, leptin, steroids, and arachidonic acid, DNA methylation, and histone configuration may be significantly altered by adverse environmental conditions. Studies on re-programming interventions focused on dietary or anti-oxidative approaches so far. Further studies that broaden our understanding of renal programming mechanisms are needed to ultimately develop preventive strategies. Targeted re-programming interventions in animal models focusing on known mechanisms will contribute to new concepts which finally will have to be translated to human application

Developmental Programming of Renal Function and Re-Programming Approaches

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eva Nüsken

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Chronic kidney disease affects more than 10% of the population. Programming studies have examined the interrelationship between environmental factors in early life and differences in morbidity and mortality between individuals. A number of important principles has been identified, namely permanent structural modifications of organs and cells, long-lasting adjustments of endocrine regulatory circuits, as well as altered gene transcription. Risk factors include intrauterine deficiencies by disturbed placental function or maternal malnutrition, prematurity, intrauterine and postnatal stress, intrauterine and postnatal overnutrition, as well as dietary dysbalances in postnatal life. This mini-review discusses critical developmental periods and long-term sequelae of renal programming in humans and presents studies examining the underlying mechanisms as well as interventional approaches to “re-program” renal susceptibility toward disease. Clinical manifestations of programmed kidney disease include arterial hypertension, proteinuria, aggravation of inflammatory glomerular disease, and loss of kidney function. Nephron number, regulation of the renin–angiotensin–aldosterone system, renal sodium transport, vasomotor and endothelial function, myogenic response, and tubuloglomerular feedback have been identified as being vulnerable to environmental factors. Oxidative stress levels, metabolic pathways, including insulin, leptin, steroids, and arachidonic acid, DNA methylation, and histone configuration may be significantly altered by adverse environmental conditions. Studies on re-programming interventions focused on dietary or anti-oxidative approaches so far. Further studies that broaden our understanding of renal programming mechanisms are needed to ultimately develop preventive strategies. Targeted re-programming interventions in animal models focusing on known mechanisms will contribute to new concepts which finally will have to be translated

Large scale 2D spectral compressed sensing in continuous domain

KAUST Repository

Cai, Jian-Feng

2017-06-20

We consider the problem of spectral compressed sensing in continuous domain, which aims to recover a 2-dimensional spectrally sparse signal from partially observed time samples. The signal is assumed to be a superposition of s complex sinusoids. We propose a semidefinite program for the 2D signal recovery problem. Our model is able to handle large scale 2D signals of size 500 × 500, whereas traditional approaches only handle signals of size around 20 × 20.

Large scale 2D spectral compressed sensing in continuous domain

KAUST Repository

Cai, Jian-Feng; Xu, Weiyu; Yang, Yang

2017-01-01

We consider the problem of spectral compressed sensing in continuous domain, which aims to recover a 2-dimensional spectrally sparse signal from partially observed time samples. The signal is assumed to be a superposition of s complex sinusoids. We propose a semidefinite program for the 2D signal recovery problem. Our model is able to handle large scale 2D signals of size 500 × 500, whereas traditional approaches only handle signals of size around 20 × 20.

A linear programming approach for placement of applicants to academic programs.

Science.gov (United States)

Kassa, Biniyam Asmare

2013-01-01

This paper reports a linear programming approach for placement of applicants to study programs developed and implemented at the college of Business & Economics, Bahir Dar University, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia. The approach is estimated to significantly streamline the placement decision process at the college by reducing required man hour as well as the time it takes to announce placement decisions. Compared to the previous manual system where only one or two placement criteria were considered, the new approach allows the college's management to easily incorporate additional placement criteria, if needed. Comparison of our approach against manually constructed placement decisions based on actual data for the 2012/13 academic year suggested that about 93 percent of the placements from our model concur with the actual placement decisions. For the remaining 7 percent of placements, however, the actual placements made by the manual system display inconsistencies of decisions judged against the very criteria intended to guide placement decisions by the college's program management office. Overall, the new approach proves to be a significant improvement over the manual system in terms of efficiency of the placement process and the quality of placement decisions.

A linear programming approach for placement of applicants to academic programs

OpenAIRE

Kassa, Biniyam Asmare

2013-01-01

This paper reports a linear programming approach for placement of applicants to study programs developed and implemented at the college of Business & Economics, Bahir Dar University, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia. The approach is estimated to significantly streamline the placement decision process at the college by reducing required man hour as well as the time it takes to announce placement decisions. Compared to the previous manual system where only one or two placement criteria were considered, the ...

Beginning Java programming the object-oriented approach

CERN Document Server

Baesens, Bart; vanden Broucke, Seppe

2015-01-01

A comprehensive Java guide, with samples, exercises, case studies, and step-by-step instruction Beginning Java Programming: The Object Oriented Approach is a straightforward resource for getting started with one of the world's most enduringly popular programming languages. Based on classes taught by the authors, the book starts with the basics and gradually builds into more advanced concepts. The approach utilizes an integrated development environment that allows readers to immediately apply what they learn, and includes step-by-step instruction with plenty of sample programs. Each chapter c

Moments, positive polynomials and their applications

CERN Document Server

Lasserre, Jean Bernard

2009-01-01

Many important applications in global optimization, algebra, probability and statistics, applied mathematics, control theory, financial mathematics, inverse problems, etc. can be modeled as a particular instance of the Generalized Moment Problem (GMP) . This book introduces a new general methodology to solve the GMP when its data are polynomials and basic semi-algebraic sets. This methodology combines semidefinite programming with recent results from real algebraic geometry to provide a hierarchy of semidefinite relaxations converging to the desired optimal value. Applied on appropriate cones,

A reliability program approach to operational safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mueller, C.J.; Bezella, W.A.

1985-01-01

A Reliability Program (RP) model based on proven reliability techniques is being formulated for potential application in the nuclear power industry. Methods employed under NASA and military direction, commercial airline and related FAA programs were surveyed and a review of current nuclear risk-dominant issues conducted. The need for a reliability approach to address dependent system failures, operating and emergency procedures and human performance, and develop a plant-specific performance data base for safety decision making is demonstrated. Current research has concentrated on developing a Reliability Program approach for the operating phase of a nuclear plant's lifecycle. The approach incorporates performance monitoring and evaluation activities with dedicated tasks that integrate these activities with operation, surveillance, and maintenance of the plant. The detection, root-cause evaluation and before-the-fact correction of incipient or actual systems failures as a mechanism for maintaining plant safety is a major objective of the Reliability Program. (orig./HP)

OPTIMIZATION-BASED APPROACH TO TILING OF FINITE AREAS WITH ARBITRARY SETS OF WANG TILES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marek Tyburec

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Wang tiles proved to be a convenient tool for the design of aperiodic tilings in computer graphics and in materials engineering. While there are several algorithms for generation of finite-sized tilings, they exploit the specific structure of individual tile sets, which prevents their general usage. In this contribution, we reformulate the NP-complete tiling generation problem as a binary linear program, together with its linear and semidefinite relaxations suitable for the branch and bound method. Finally, we assess the performance of the established formulations on generations of several aperiodic tilings reported in the literature, and conclude that the linear relaxation is better suited for the problem.

Polynomial fuzzy observer designs: a sum-of-squares approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Tanaka, Kazuo; Ohtake, Hiroshi; Seo, Toshiaki; Tanaka, Motoyasu; Wang, Hua O

2012-10-01

This paper presents a sum-of-squares (SOS) approach to polynomial fuzzy observer designs for three classes of polynomial fuzzy systems. The proposed SOS-based framework provides a number of innovations and improvements over the existing linear matrix inequality (LMI)-based approaches to Takagi-Sugeno (T-S) fuzzy controller and observer designs. First, we briefly summarize previous results with respect to a polynomial fuzzy system that is a more general representation of the well-known T-S fuzzy system. Next, we propose polynomial fuzzy observers to estimate states in three classes of polynomial fuzzy systems and derive SOS conditions to design polynomial fuzzy controllers and observers. A remarkable feature of the SOS design conditions for the first two classes (Classes I and II) is that they realize the so-called separation principle, i.e., the polynomial fuzzy controller and observer for each class can be separately designed without lack of guaranteeing the stability of the overall control system in addition to converging state-estimation error (via the observer) to zero. Although, for the last class (Class III), the separation principle does not hold, we propose an algorithm to design polynomial fuzzy controller and observer satisfying the stability of the overall control system in addition to converging state-estimation error (via the observer) to zero. All the design conditions in the proposed approach can be represented in terms of SOS and are symbolically and numerically solved via the recently developed SOSTOOLS and a semidefinite-program solver, respectively. To illustrate the validity and applicability of the proposed approach, three design examples are provided. The examples demonstrate the advantages of the SOS-based approaches for the existing LMI approaches to T-S fuzzy observer designs.

Tightness of Semidefinite Programming Relaxation to Robust Transmit Beamforming with SINR Constraints

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yanjun Wang

2013-01-01

Full Text Available This paper considers a multiuser transmit beamforming problem under uncertain channel state information (CSI subject to SINR constraints in a downlink multiuser MISO system. A robust transmit beamforming formulation is proposed. This robust formulation is to minimize the transmission power subject to worst-case signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR constraints on the receivers. The challenging problem is that the worst-case SINR constraints correspond to an infinite number of nonconvex quadratic constraints. In this paper, a natural semidifinite programming (SDP relaxation problem is proposed to solve the robust beamforming problem. The main contribution of this paper is to establish the tightness of the SDP relaxation problem under proper assumption, which means that the SDP relaxation problem definitely yields rank-one solutions under the assumption. Then the SDP relaxation problem provides globally optimum solutions of the primal robust transmit beamforming problem under proper assumption and norm-constrained CSI errors. Simulation results show the correctness of the proposed theoretical results and also provide a counterexample whose solutions are not rank one. The existence of counterexample shows that the guess that the solutions of the SDP relaxation problem must be rank one is wrong, except that some assumptions (such as the one proposed in this paper hold.

Local Model Predictive Control for T-S Fuzzy Systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Donghwan; Hu, Jianghai

2017-09-01

In this paper, a new linear matrix inequality-based model predictive control (MPC) problem is studied for discrete-time nonlinear systems described as Takagi-Sugeno fuzzy systems. A recent local stability approach is applied to improve the performance of the proposed MPC scheme. At each time k , an optimal state-feedback gain that minimizes an objective function is obtained by solving a semidefinite programming problem. The local stability analysis, the estimation of the domain of attraction, and feasibility of the proposed MPC are proved. Examples are given to demonstrate the advantages of the suggested MPC over existing approaches.

An Improved Semidefinite Programming Hierarchy for Testing Entanglement

Science.gov (United States)

Harrow, Aram W.; Natarajan, Anand; Wu, Xiaodi

2017-06-01

We present a stronger version of the Doherty-Parrilo-Spedalieri (DPS) hierarchy of approximations for the set of separable states. Unlike DPS, our hierarchy converges exactly at a finite number of rounds for any fixed input dimension. This yields an algorithm for separability testing that is singly exponential in dimension and polylogarithmic in accuracy. Our analysis makes use of tools from algebraic geometry, but our algorithm is elementary and differs from DPS only by one simple additional collection of constraints.

School District Program Cost Accounting: An Alternative Approach

Science.gov (United States)

Hentschke, Guilbert C.

1975-01-01

Discusses the value for school districts of a program cost accounting system and examines different approaches to generating program cost data, with particular emphasis on the "cost allocation to program system" (CAPS) and the traditional "transaction-based system." (JG)

Rethink, Reform, Reenter: An Entrepreneurial Approach to Prison Programming.

Science.gov (United States)

Keena, Linda; Simmons, Chris

2015-07-01

The purpose of this article was to present a description and first-stage evaluation of the impact of the Ice House Entrepreneurship Program on the learning experience of participating prerelease inmates at a Mississippi maximum-security prison and their perception of the transfer of skills learned in program into securing employment upon reentry. The Ice House Entrepreneurship Program is a 12-week program facilitated by volunteer university professors to inmates in a prerelease unit of a maximum-security prison in Mississippi. Participants' perspectives were examined through content analysis of inmates' answers to program Reflection and Response Assignments and interviews. The analyses were conducted according to the constant comparative method. Findings reveal the emergent of eight life-lessons and suggest that this is a promising approach to prison programming for prerelease inmates. This study discusses three approaches to better prepare inmates for a mindset change. The rethink, reform, and reenter approaches help break the traditional cycle of release, reoffend, and return. © The Author(s) 2014.

Comparing approaches to generic programming in Haskell

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hinze, R.; Jeuring, J.T.; Löh, A.

2006-01-01

The last decade has seen a number of approaches to generic programming: PolyP, Functorial ML, `Scrap Your Boilerplate', Generic Haskell, `Generics for the Masses', etc. The approaches vary in sophistication and target audience: some propose full-blown pro- gramming languages, some suggest

Detection of Crossing White Matter Fibers with High-Order Tensors and Rank-k Decompositions

KAUST Repository

Jiao, Fangxiang; Gur, Yaniv; Johnson, Chris R.; Joshi, Sarang

2011-01-01

Fundamental to high angular resolution diffusion imaging (HARDI), is the estimation of a positive-semidefinite orientation distribution function (ODF) and extracting the diffusion properties (e.g., fiber directions). In this work we show that these two goals can be achieved efficiently by using homogeneous polynomials to represent the ODF in the spherical deconvolution approach, as was proposed in the Cartesian Tensor-ODF (CT-ODF) formulation. Based on this formulation we first suggest an estimation method for positive-semidefinite ODF by solving a linear programming problem that does not require special parameterization of the ODF. We also propose a rank-k tensor decomposition, known as CP decomposition, to extract the fibers information from the estimated ODF. We show that this decomposition is superior to the fiber direction estimation via ODF maxima detection as it enables one to reach the full fiber separation resolution of the estimation technique. We assess the accuracy of this new framework by applying it to synthetic and experimentally obtained HARDI data. © 2011 Springer-Verlag.

Comparing approaches to generic programming in Haskell

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hinze, R.; Jeuring, J.T.; Löh, A.

2006-01-01

The last decade has seen a number of approaches to data- type-generic programming: PolyP, Functorial ML, `Scrap Your Boiler- plate', Generic Haskell, `Generics for the Masses', etc. The approaches vary in sophistication and target audience: some propose full-blown pro- gramming languages, some

A programming approach to computability

CERN Document Server

Kfoury, A J; Arbib, Michael A

1982-01-01

Computability theory is at the heart of theoretical computer science. Yet, ironically, many of its basic results were discovered by mathematical logicians prior to the development of the first stored-program computer. As a result, many texts on computability theory strike today's computer science students as far removed from their concerns. To remedy this, we base our approach to computability on the language of while-programs, a lean subset of PASCAL, and postpone consideration of such classic models as Turing machines, string-rewriting systems, and p. -recursive functions till the final chapter. Moreover, we balance the presentation of un solvability results such as the unsolvability of the Halting Problem with a presentation of the positive results of modern programming methodology, including the use of proof rules, and the denotational semantics of programs. Computer science seeks to provide a scientific basis for the study of information processing, the solution of problems by algorithms, and the design ...

An Approach for Solving Linear Fractional Programming Problems

OpenAIRE

Andrew Oyakhobo Odior

2012-01-01

Linear fractional programming problems are useful tools in production planning, financial and corporate planning, health care and hospital planning and as such have attracted considerable research interest. The paper presents a new approach for solving a fractional linear programming problem in which the objective function is a linear fractional function, while the constraint functions are in the form of linear inequalities. The approach adopted is based mainly upon solving the problem algebr...

GloptiPoly: Global optimization over polynomials with Matlab and SeDuMi

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Henrion, Didier; Lasserre, J.-B.

č. 2 (2003), s. 165-194 ISSN 0098-3500 R&D Projects: GA MŠk ME 496 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z1075907 Keywords : polynomial programming * semidefinite programming * linear matrix inequality Subject RIV: BC - Control Systems Theory Impact factor: 0.979, year: 2003

Policy Iteration for $H_\\infty $ Optimal Control of Polynomial Nonlinear Systems via Sum of Squares Programming.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, Yuanheng; Zhao, Dongbin; Yang, Xiong; Zhang, Qichao

2018-02-01

Sum of squares (SOS) polynomials have provided a computationally tractable way to deal with inequality constraints appearing in many control problems. It can also act as an approximator in the framework of adaptive dynamic programming. In this paper, an approximate solution to the optimal control of polynomial nonlinear systems is proposed. Under a given attenuation coefficient, the Hamilton-Jacobi-Isaacs equation is relaxed to an optimization problem with a set of inequalities. After applying the policy iteration technique and constraining inequalities to SOS, the optimization problem is divided into a sequence of feasible semidefinite programming problems. With the converged solution, the attenuation coefficient is further minimized to a lower value. After iterations, approximate solutions to the smallest -gain and the associated optimal controller are obtained. Four examples are employed to verify the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm.

Fuzzy Multi-objective Linear Programming Approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Amna Rehmat

2007-07-01

Full Text Available Traveling salesman problem (TSP is one of the challenging real-life problems, attracting researchers of many fields including Artificial Intelligence, Operations Research, and Algorithm Design and Analysis. The problem has been well studied till now under different headings and has been solved with different approaches including genetic algorithms and linear programming. Conventional linear programming is designed to deal with crisp parameters, but information about real life systems is often available in the form of vague descriptions. Fuzzy methods are designed to handle vague terms, and are most suited to finding optimal solutions to problems with vague parameters. Fuzzy multi-objective linear programming, an amalgamation of fuzzy logic and multi-objective linear programming, deals with flexible aspiration levels or goals and fuzzy constraints with acceptable deviations. In this paper, a methodology, for solving a TSP with imprecise parameters, is deployed using fuzzy multi-objective linear programming. An example of TSP with multiple objectives and vague parameters is discussed.

PSHED: a simplified approach to developing parallel programs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mahajan, S.M.; Ramesh, K.; Rajesh, K.; Somani, A.; Goel, M.

1992-01-01

This paper presents a simplified approach in the forms of a tree structured computational model for parallel application programs. An attempt is made to provide a standard user interface to execute programs on BARC Parallel Processing System (BPPS), a scalable distributed memory multiprocessor. The interface package called PSHED provides a basic framework for representing and executing parallel programs on different parallel architectures. The PSHED package incorporates concepts from a broad range of previous research in programming environments and parallel computations. (author). 6 refs

A comprehensive approach to RCM-based preventive maintenance program development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hall, B.E.; Davis, T.; Pennington, A.J.

1988-01-01

In late 1986, Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE ampersand G) concluded that to support its vision and strategic planning it would be necessary to develop a consistent approach to maintenance for all nuclear units at the artificial island. General Physics Corporation was selected to lead a consultant team to support full-scale development of a preventive maintenance (PM) program for Salem and Hope Creek generating stations based on a reliability-centered maintenance (RCM) approach. RCM was selected because it represents a systematic approach to developing a PM program that provides a logical, consistent, and traceable methodology and produces a well-documented engineering basis for the program. Early in 1987, primary objectives for the PM program were defined. The Phase I tasks addressed key programmatic areas such as maintenance philosophy, procedures, condition monitoring, performance trending, equipment failure data base, ogranization, PM program effectiveness evaluation, RCM process, reliability/availability modeling, information management, training, spare parts, software/hardware, and commitments. Phase I of the PM program development project was completed in January 1988. Highlights of the Phase I work and the PM program manual are described

Mathematical solution of multilevel fractional programming problem with fuzzy goal programming approach

Science.gov (United States)

Lachhwani, Kailash; Poonia, Mahaveer Prasad

2012-08-01

In this paper, we show a procedure for solving multilevel fractional programming problems in a large hierarchical decentralized organization using fuzzy goal programming approach. In the proposed method, the tolerance membership functions for the fuzzily described numerator and denominator part of the objective functions of all levels as well as the control vectors of the higher level decision makers are respectively defined by determining individual optimal solutions of each of the level decision makers. A possible relaxation of the higher level decision is considered for avoiding decision deadlock due to the conflicting nature of objective functions. Then, fuzzy goal programming approach is used for achieving the highest degree of each of the membership goal by minimizing negative deviational variables. We also provide sensitivity analysis with variation of tolerance values on decision vectors to show how the solution is sensitive to the change of tolerance values with the help of a numerical example.

Mathematical-programming approaches to test item pool design

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Veldkamp, Bernard P.; van der Linden, Willem J.; Ariel, A.

2002-01-01

This paper presents an approach to item pool design that has the potential to improve on the quality of current item pools in educational and psychological testing andhence to increase both measurement precision and validity. The approach consists of the application of mathematical programming

Adding Robustness to Support Vector Machines Against Adversarial Reverse Engineering

KAUST Repository

Alabdulmohsin, Ibrahim; Gao, Xin; Zhang, Xiangliang

2014-01-01

their risk. In particular, we derive a semidefinite programming (SDP) formulation for learning a distribution of classifiers subject to the constraint that any single classifier picked at random from such distribution provides reliable predictions with a high

Myth 8: The "Patch-On" Approach to Programming Is Effective

Science.gov (United States)

Tomlinson, Carol Ann

2009-01-01

It is not likely that any group of educators of the gifted ever sat around a table and came to the decision that a "patch-on" approach to programming for bright learners represented best practice. Nonetheless, it is as common today as 25 years ago that programming for students identified as gifted often represents such an approach. Patch-on…

Optimization of Structural Topology in the High-Porosity Regime

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Kohn, Robert

2004-01-01

...." Moreover there is a simple formula for the Hooke's law of a single-scale laminate. It reduces the task of structural optimization for minimum weight and maximal stiffness to a convex optimization specifically, a problem of semidefinite programming...

An approach for solving linear fractional programming problems ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The paper presents a new approach for solving a fractional linear programming problem in which the objective function is a linear fractional function, while the constraint functions are in the form of linear inequalities. The approach adopted is based mainly upon solving the problem algebraically using the concept of duality ...

A New Approach to Programming Language Education for Beginners with Top-Down Learning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daisuke Saito

2013-12-01

Full Text Available There are two basic approaches in learning new programming language: a bottom-up approach and a top-down approach. It has been said that if a learner has already acquired one language, the top-down approach is more efficient to learn another while, for a person who has absolutely no knowledge of any programming languages; the bottom-up approach is preferable. The major problem of the bottom-up approach is that it requires longer period to acquire the language. For quicker learning, this paper applies a top-down approach for a beginners who has not yet acquired any programming languages.

Exploiting Sparsity in SDP Relaxation for Sensor Network Localization

NARCIS (Netherlands)

S. Kim (Sunyoung); M. Kojima; H. Waki (Hayato)

2008-01-01

htmlabstract A sensor network localization problem can be formulated as a quadratic optimization problem (QOP). For quadratic optimization problems, semidefinite programming (SDP) relaxation by Lasserre with relaxation order 1 for general polynomial optimization problems (POPs) is known to be

Exploiting Sparsity in SDP Relaxation for Sensor Network Localization

NARCIS (Netherlands)

S. Kim (Sunyoung); M. Kojima; H. Waki (Hayato)

2009-01-01

htmlabstract A sensor network localization problem can be formulated as a quadratic optimization problem (QOP). For quadratic optimization problems, semidefinite programming (SDP) relaxation by Lasserre with relaxation order 1 for general polynomial optimization problems (POPs) is known to be

Multifaceted Approach to Designing an Online Masters Program.

Science.gov (United States)

McNeil, Sara G.; Chernish, William N.; DeFranco, Agnes L.

At the Conrad N. Hilton College of Hotel and Restaurant Management at the University of Houston (Texas), the faculty and administrators made a conscious effort to take a broad, extensive approach to designing and implementing a fully online masters program. This approach was entered in a comprehensive needs assessment model and sought input from…

Bounds on Entanglement Dimensions and Quantum Graph Parameters via Noncommutative Polynomial Optimization

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Gribling, Sander; de Laat, David; Laurent, Monique

2017-01-01

In this paper we study bipartite quantum correlations using techniques from tracial polynomial optimization. We construct a hierarchy of semidefinite programming lower bounds on the minimal entanglement dimension of a bipartite correlation. This hierarchy converges to a new parameter: the minimal

Adaptive Dynamic Programming for Discrete-Time Zero-Sum Games.

Science.gov (United States)

Wei, Qinglai; Liu, Derong; Lin, Qiao; Song, Ruizhuo

2018-04-01

In this paper, a novel adaptive dynamic programming (ADP) algorithm, called "iterative zero-sum ADP algorithm," is developed to solve infinite-horizon discrete-time two-player zero-sum games of nonlinear systems. The present iterative zero-sum ADP algorithm permits arbitrary positive semidefinite functions to initialize the upper and lower iterations. A novel convergence analysis is developed to guarantee the upper and lower iterative value functions to converge to the upper and lower optimums, respectively. When the saddle-point equilibrium exists, it is emphasized that both the upper and lower iterative value functions are proved to converge to the optimal solution of the zero-sum game, where the existence criteria of the saddle-point equilibrium are not required. If the saddle-point equilibrium does not exist, the upper and lower optimal performance index functions are obtained, respectively, where the upper and lower performance index functions are proved to be not equivalent. Finally, simulation results and comparisons are shown to illustrate the performance of the present method.

LMITOOL: a Package for LMI Optimization in Scilab User's Guide

OpenAIRE

Nikoukhah , Ramine; Delebecque , François; El Ghaoui , Laurent

1995-01-01

Projet META2; This report describes a user-friendly Scilab package, and in particular its two main functions {\\tt lmisolver} and {\\tt lmitool} for solving Linear Matrix Inequalities problems. This package uses Scilab function {\\tt semidef}, an interface to the program Semidefinite Programming {\\bf SP} (Copyright \\copyright 1994 by Lieven Vandenberghe and Stephen Boyd) distributed with Scilab.

An Improved Dynamic Programming Decomposition Approach for Network Revenue Management

OpenAIRE

Dan Zhang

2011-01-01

We consider a nonlinear nonseparable functional approximation to the value function of a dynamic programming formulation for the network revenue management (RM) problem with customer choice. We propose a simultaneous dynamic programming approach to solve the resulting problem, which is a nonlinear optimization problem with nonlinear constraints. We show that our approximation leads to a tighter upper bound on optimal expected revenue than some known bounds in the literature. Our approach can ...

On the implicit programming approach in a class of mathematical programs with equilibrium constraints

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Outrata, Jiří; Červinka, Michal

2009-01-01

Roč. 38, 4B (2009), s. 1557-1574 ISSN 0324-8569 R&D Projects: GA ČR GA201/09/1957 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z10750506 Keywords : mathematical problem with equilibrium constraint * state constraints * implicit programming * calmness * exact penalization Subject RIV: BA - General Mathematics Impact factor: 0.378, year: 2009 http://library.utia.cas.cz/separaty/2010/MTR/outrata-on the implicit programming approach in a class of mathematical programs with equilibrium constraints.pdf

A cutting- plane approach for semi- infinite mathematical programming

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Many situations ranging from industrial to social via economic and environmental problems may be cast into a Semi-infinite mathematical program. In this paper, the cutting-plane approach which lends itself better for standard non-linear programs is exploited with good reasons for grappling with linear, convex and ...

Grid-free compressive beamforming

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Xenaki, Angeliki; Gerstoft, Peter

2015-01-01

sparsity on a continuous optimization variable. The DOA estimation problem with infinitely many unknowns, i.e., source locations and amplitudes, is solved over a few optimization variables with semidefinite programming. The grid-free CS reconstruction provides high-resolution imaging even with non...

Concurrent object-oriented programming: The MP-Eiffel approach

OpenAIRE

Silva, Miguel Augusto Mendes Oliveira e

2004-01-01

This article evaluates several possible approaches for integrating concurrency into object-oriented programming languages, presenting afterwards, a new language named MP-Eiffel. MP-Eiffel was designed attempting to include all the essential properties of both concurrent and object-oriented programming with simplicity and safety. A special care was taken to achieve the orthogonality of all the language mechanisms, allowing their joint use without unsafe side-effects (such as inh...

Constraint Logic Programming approach to protein structure prediction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fogolari Federico

2004-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The protein structure prediction problem is one of the most challenging problems in biological sciences. Many approaches have been proposed using database information and/or simplified protein models. The protein structure prediction problem can be cast in the form of an optimization problem. Notwithstanding its importance, the problem has very seldom been tackled by Constraint Logic Programming, a declarative programming paradigm suitable for solving combinatorial optimization problems. Results Constraint Logic Programming techniques have been applied to the protein structure prediction problem on the face-centered cube lattice model. Molecular dynamics techniques, endowed with the notion of constraint, have been also exploited. Even using a very simplified model, Constraint Logic Programming on the face-centered cube lattice model allowed us to obtain acceptable results for a few small proteins. As a test implementation their (known secondary structure and the presence of disulfide bridges are used as constraints. Simplified structures obtained in this way have been converted to all atom models with plausible structure. Results have been compared with a similar approach using a well-established technique as molecular dynamics. Conclusions The results obtained on small proteins show that Constraint Logic Programming techniques can be employed for studying protein simplified models, which can be converted into realistic all atom models. The advantage of Constraint Logic Programming over other, much more explored, methodologies, resides in the rapid software prototyping, in the easy way of encoding heuristics, and in exploiting all the advances made in this research area, e.g. in constraint propagation and its use for pruning the huge search space.

Constraint Logic Programming approach to protein structure prediction.

Science.gov (United States)

Dal Palù, Alessandro; Dovier, Agostino; Fogolari, Federico

2004-11-30

The protein structure prediction problem is one of the most challenging problems in biological sciences. Many approaches have been proposed using database information and/or simplified protein models. The protein structure prediction problem can be cast in the form of an optimization problem. Notwithstanding its importance, the problem has very seldom been tackled by Constraint Logic Programming, a declarative programming paradigm suitable for solving combinatorial optimization problems. Constraint Logic Programming techniques have been applied to the protein structure prediction problem on the face-centered cube lattice model. Molecular dynamics techniques, endowed with the notion of constraint, have been also exploited. Even using a very simplified model, Constraint Logic Programming on the face-centered cube lattice model allowed us to obtain acceptable results for a few small proteins. As a test implementation their (known) secondary structure and the presence of disulfide bridges are used as constraints. Simplified structures obtained in this way have been converted to all atom models with plausible structure. Results have been compared with a similar approach using a well-established technique as molecular dynamics. The results obtained on small proteins show that Constraint Logic Programming techniques can be employed for studying protein simplified models, which can be converted into realistic all atom models. The advantage of Constraint Logic Programming over other, much more explored, methodologies, resides in the rapid software prototyping, in the easy way of encoding heuristics, and in exploiting all the advances made in this research area, e.g. in constraint propagation and its use for pruning the huge search space.

A stochastic programming approach to manufacturing flow control

OpenAIRE

Haurie, Alain; Moresino, Francesco

2012-01-01

This paper proposes and tests an approximation of the solution of a class of piecewise deterministic control problems, typically used in the modeling of manufacturing flow processes. This approximation uses a stochastic programming approach on a suitably discretized and sampled system. The method proceeds through two stages: (i) the Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman (HJB) dynamic programming equations for the finite horizon continuous time stochastic control problem are discretized over a set of sample...

Linear decomposition approach for a class of nonconvex programming problems.

Science.gov (United States)

Shen, Peiping; Wang, Chunfeng

2017-01-01

This paper presents a linear decomposition approach for a class of nonconvex programming problems by dividing the input space into polynomially many grids. It shows that under certain assumptions the original problem can be transformed and decomposed into a polynomial number of equivalent linear programming subproblems. Based on solving a series of liner programming subproblems corresponding to those grid points we can obtain the near-optimal solution of the original problem. Compared to existing results in the literature, the proposed algorithm does not require the assumptions of quasi-concavity and differentiability of the objective function, and it differs significantly giving an interesting approach to solving the problem with a reduced running time.

A numerical evaluation of the bounded degree sum-of-squares hierarchy of Lasserre, Toh, and Yang on the pooling problem

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Marandi, Ahmadreza; Dahl, Joachim; de Klerk, Etienne

2017-01-01

The bounded degree sum-of-squares (BSOS) hierarchy of Lasserre, Toh, and Yang [EURO J. Comput. Optim., 2015] constructs lower bounds for a general polynomial optimization problem with compact feasible set, by solving a sequence of semi-definite programming (SDP) problems. Lasserre, Toh, and Yang

Multigraph approach to quantum non-locality

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rabelo, Rafael; Duarte, Cristhiano; Cunha, Marcelo Terra; López-Tarrida, Antonio J; Cabello, Adán

2014-01-01

Non-contextuality (NC) and Bell inequalities can be expressed as bounds Ω for positive linear combinations S of probabilities of events, S⩽Ω. Exclusive events in S can be represented as adjacent vertices of a graph called the exclusivity graph of S. In the case that events correspond to the outcomes of quantum projective measurements, quantum probabilities are intimately related to the Grötschel–Lovász–Schrijver theta body of the exclusivity graph. Then, one can easily compute an upper bound to the maximum quantum violation of any NC or Bell inequality by optimizing S over the theta body and calculating the Lovász number of the corresponding exclusivity graph. In some cases, this upper bound is tight and gives the exact maximum quantum violation. However, in general, this is not the case. The reason is that the exclusivity graph does not distinguish among the different ways exclusivity can occur in Bell-inequality (and similar) scenarios. An interesting question is whether there is a graph-theoretical concept which accounts for this problem. Here we show that, for any given N-partite Bell inequality, an edge-coloured multigraph composed of N single-colour graphs can be used to encode the relationships of exclusivity between each party's parts of the events. Then, the maximum quantum violation of the Bell inequality is exactly given by a refinement of the Lovász number that applies to these edge-coloured multigraphs. We show how to calculate upper bounds for this number using a hierarchy of semi-definite programs and calculate upper bounds for I 3 , I 3322 and the three bipartite Bell inequalities whose exclusivity graph is a pentagon. The multigraph-theoretical approach introduced here may remove some obstacles in the program of explaining quantum correlations from first principles. This article is part of a special issue of Journal of Physics A: Mathematical and Theoretical devoted to ‘50 years of Bell’s theorem’. (paper)

Self-regulated learning in higher education: strategies adopted by computer programming students when supported by the SimProgramming approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniela Pedrosa

Full Text Available Abstract The goal of the SimProgramming approach is to help students overcome their learning difficulties in the transition from entry-level to advanced computer programming, developing an appropriate set of learning strategies. We implemented it at the University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro (Portugal, in two courses (PM3 and PM4 of the bachelor programmes in Informatics Engineering and ICT. We conducted semi-structured interviews with students (n=38 at the end of the courses, to identify the students’ strategies for self-regulation of learning in the assignment. We found that students changed some of their strategies from one course edition to the following one and that changes are related to the SimProgramming approach. We believe that changes to the educational approach were appropriate to support the assignment goals. We recommend applying the SimProgramming approach in other educational contexts, to improve educational practices by including techniques to help students in their learning.

Finite-Time Stability and Controller Design of Continuous-Time Polynomial Fuzzy Systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiaoxing Chen

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Finite-time stability and stabilization problem is first investigated for continuous-time polynomial fuzzy systems. The concept of finite-time stability and stabilization is given for polynomial fuzzy systems based on the idea of classical references. A sum-of-squares- (SOS- based approach is used to obtain the finite-time stability and stabilization conditions, which include some classical results as special cases. The proposed conditions can be solved with the help of powerful Matlab toolbox SOSTOOLS and a semidefinite-program (SDP solver. Finally, two numerical examples and one practical example are employed to illustrate the validity and effectiveness of the provided conditions.

Dynamic Programming Approach for Exact Decision Rule Optimization

KAUST Repository

Amin, Talha M.; Chikalov, Igor; Moshkov, Mikhail; Zielosko, Beata

2013-01-01

This chapter is devoted to the study of an extension of dynamic programming approach that allows sequential optimization of exact decision rules relative to the length and coverage. It contains also results of experiments with decision tables from

Training Program Handbook: A systematic approach to training

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1994-08-01

This DOE handbook describes a systematic method for establishing and maintaining training programs that meet the requirements and expectations of DOE Orders 5480.18B and 5480.20. The systematic approach to training includes 5 phases: Analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation.

A combined stochastic programming and optimal control approach to personal finance and pensions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Konicz, Agnieszka Karolina; Pisinger, David; Rasmussen, Kourosh Marjani

2015-01-01

The paper presents a model that combines a dynamic programming (stochastic optimal control) approach and a multi-stage stochastic linear programming approach (SLP), integrated into one SLP formulation. Stochastic optimal control produces an optimal policy that is easy to understand and implement....

A numerical evaluation of the bounded degree sum-of-squares hierarchy of Lasserre, Toh, and Yang on the pooling problem

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Marandi, Ahmadreza; Dahl, Joachim; De Klerk, E.

2018-01-01

The bounded degree sum-of-squares (BSOS) hierarchy of Lasserre et al. (EURO J Comput Optim 1–31, 2015) constructs lower bounds for a general polynomial optimization problem with compact feasible set, by solving a sequence of semi-definite programming (SDP) problems. Lasserre, Toh, and Yang prove

Interactive Approach for Multi-Level Multi-Objective Fractional Programming Problems with Fuzzy Parameters

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M.S. Osman

2018-03-01

Full Text Available In this paper, an interactive approach for solving multi-level multi-objective fractional programming (ML-MOFP problems with fuzzy parameters is presented. The proposed interactive approach makes an extended work of Shi and Xia (1997. In the first phase, the numerical crisp model of the ML-MOFP problem has been developed at a confidence level without changing the fuzzy gist of the problem. Then, the linear model for the ML-MOFP problem is formulated. In the second phase, the interactive approach simplifies the linear multi-level multi-objective model by converting it into separate multi-objective programming problems. Also, each separate multi-objective programming problem of the linear model is solved by the ∊-constraint method and the concept of satisfactoriness. Finally, illustrative examples and comparisons with the previous approaches are utilized to evince the feasibility of the proposed approach.

PlayIt: Game Based Learning Approach for Teaching Programming Concepts

Science.gov (United States)

Mathrani, Anuradha; Christian, Shelly; Ponder-Sutton, Agate

2016-01-01

This study demonstrates a game-based learning (GBL) approach to engage students in learning and enhance their programming skills. The paper gives a detailed narrative of how an educational game was mapped with the curriculum of a prescribed programming course in a computing diploma study programme. Two separate student cohorts were invited to…

Interactive Fuzzy Goal Programming approach in multi-response stratified sample surveys

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gupta Neha

2016-01-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we applied an Interactive Fuzzy Goal Programming (IFGP approach with linear, exponential and hyperbolic membership functions, which focuses on maximizing the minimum membership values to determine the preferred compromise solution for the multi-response stratified surveys problem, formulated as a Multi- Objective Non Linear Programming Problem (MONLPP, and by linearizing the nonlinear objective functions at their individual optimum solution, the problem is approximated to an Integer Linear Programming Problem (ILPP. A numerical example based on real data is given, and comparison with some existing allocations viz. Cochran’s compromise allocation, Chatterjee’s compromise allocation and Khowaja’s compromise allocation is made to demonstrate the utility of the approach.

Dynamic Programming Approach for Exact Decision Rule Optimization

KAUST Repository

Amin, Talha

2013-01-01

This chapter is devoted to the study of an extension of dynamic programming approach that allows sequential optimization of exact decision rules relative to the length and coverage. It contains also results of experiments with decision tables from UCI Machine Learning Repository. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2013.

A Mobile Device Based Serious Gaming Approach for Teaching and Learning Java Programming

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tobias Jordine

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Most first year computer science students find that learning object-oriented programming is hard. Serious games have ever been used as one approach to handle this problem. But most of them cannot be played with mobile devices. This obviously does not suit the era of mobile computing that intends to allow students to learn programming skills in anytime anywhere. To enhance mobile teaching and learning, a research project started over a year ago and aims to create a mobile device based serious gaming approach along with a serious game for enhancing mobile teaching and learning for Java programming. So far the project has completed a literature review for understanding existing work and identifying problems in this area, conducted a survey for eliciting students’ requirements for mobile gaming approach, and then established a mobile-device based serious gaming approach with a developed prototype of the game. This paper introduces the project in details, and in particularly presents and discusses its current results. It is expected that the presented project will be helpful and useful to bring more efficient approaches with new mobile games into teaching object-oriented programming and to enhance students’ learning experiences.

Path Following in the Exact Penalty Method of Convex Programming.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Hua; Lange, Kenneth

2015-07-01

Classical penalty methods solve a sequence of unconstrained problems that put greater and greater stress on meeting the constraints. In the limit as the penalty constant tends to ∞, one recovers the constrained solution. In the exact penalty method, squared penalties are replaced by absolute value penalties, and the solution is recovered for a finite value of the penalty constant. In practice, the kinks in the penalty and the unknown magnitude of the penalty constant prevent wide application of the exact penalty method in nonlinear programming. In this article, we examine a strategy of path following consistent with the exact penalty method. Instead of performing optimization at a single penalty constant, we trace the solution as a continuous function of the penalty constant. Thus, path following starts at the unconstrained solution and follows the solution path as the penalty constant increases. In the process, the solution path hits, slides along, and exits from the various constraints. For quadratic programming, the solution path is piecewise linear and takes large jumps from constraint to constraint. For a general convex program, the solution path is piecewise smooth, and path following operates by numerically solving an ordinary differential equation segment by segment. Our diverse applications to a) projection onto a convex set, b) nonnegative least squares, c) quadratically constrained quadratic programming, d) geometric programming, and e) semidefinite programming illustrate the mechanics and potential of path following. The final detour to image denoising demonstrates the relevance of path following to regularized estimation in inverse problems. In regularized estimation, one follows the solution path as the penalty constant decreases from a large value.

Optimized entanglement witnesses for Dicke states

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bergmann, Marcel; Guehne, Otfried [Naturwissenschaftlich-Technische Fakultaet, Universitaet Siegen, Department Physik, Walter-Flex-Strasse 3, D-57068 Siegen (Germany)

2013-07-01

Quantum entanglement is an important resource for applications in quantum information processing like quantum teleportation and cryptography. Moreover, the number of particles that can be entangled experimentally using polarized photons or ion traps has been significantly enlarged. Therefore, criteria to decide the question whether a given multi-particle state is entangled or not have to be improved. Our approach to this problem uses the notion of PPT mixtures which form an approximation to the set of bi-separable states. With this method, entanglement witnesses can be obtained in a natural manner via linear semi-definite programming. In our contribution, we will present analytical results for entanglement witnesses for Dicke states. This allows to overcome the limitations of convex optimization.

A study of concept-based similarity approaches for recommending program examples

Science.gov (United States)

Hosseini, Roya; Brusilovsky, Peter

2017-07-01

This paper investigates a range of concept-based example recommendation approaches that we developed to provide example-based problem-solving support in the domain of programming. The goal of these approaches is to offer students a set of most relevant remedial examples when they have trouble solving a code comprehension problem where students examine a program code to determine its output or the final value of a variable. In this paper, we use the ideas of semantic-level similarity-based linking developed in the area of intelligent hypertext to generate examples for the given problem. To determine the best-performing approach, we explored two groups of similarity approaches for selecting examples: non-structural approaches focusing on examples that are similar to the problem in terms of concept coverage and structural approaches focusing on examples that are similar to the problem by the structure of the content. We also explored the value of personalized example recommendation based on student's knowledge levels and learning goal of the exercise. The paper presents concept-based similarity approaches that we developed, explains the data collection studies and reports the result of comparative analysis. The results of our analysis showed better ranking performance of the personalized structural variant of cosine similarity approach.

On the solution of large-scale SDP problems by the modified barrier method using iterative solvers

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Kočvara, Michal; Stingl, M.

2007-01-01

Roč. 109, 2-3 (2007), s. 413-444 ISSN 0025-5610 R&D Projects: GA AV ČR IAA1075402 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z10750506 Keywords : semidefinite programming * iterative methods * preconditioned conjugate gradient s * augmented lagrangian methods Subject RIV: BA - General Mathematics Impact factor: 1.475, year: 2007

Dynamic programming approach to optimization of approximate decision rules

KAUST Repository

Amin, Talha M.; Chikalov, Igor; Moshkov, Mikhail; Zielosko, Beata

2013-01-01

This paper is devoted to the study of an extension of dynamic programming approach which allows sequential optimization of approximate decision rules relative to the length and coverage. We introduce an uncertainty measure R(T) which is the number

TEACCH and SIT Approach Program in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maryam Abshirini

2016-10-01

Full Text Available Objective: Sensory Integration Therapy (SIT is one of the most commonly used treatment approaches for Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD. Treatment and Education of Autistic and related Communication-handicapped Children (TEACCH is another less known approach in Iran. The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness of SIT and TEACCH approaches in children with ASD. Design: The study design was quasi- experimental, which was conducted on 2014 in Autism center of Bushehr city, based in south of Iran. Method: Study participants were children aged 3 to 9 with normal IQ who were diagnosed with ASD. Intervention included SIT and TEACCH treatment approaches for a 6 months duration to two groups of children (n=20. One group did not receive any intervention during the 6 months. Main outcome was the total score of Autism Treatment Evaluation Checklist (ATEC. Results: There was no significant difference in ATEC score between the three groups at the base line. ATEC score was significantly different among three groups after intervention using one-way ANOVA test. Tukey test showed that TEACCH group had more improvement in autism score compared to SIT group. The results of ANCOVA test showed that 70% of variation in autism score is due to the interventional approaches. Conclusion: This study showed that TEACCH program was effective in Iranian culture as well, and can be used widely in Iranian Autism centers and TEACCH program was more effective than SIT program.

A two-stage stochastic programming approach for operating multi-energy systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Zeng, Qing; Fang, Jiakun; Chen, Zhe

2017-01-01

This paper provides a two-stage stochastic programming approach for joint operating multi-energy systems under uncertainty. Simulation is carried out in a test system to demonstrate the feasibility and efficiency of the proposed approach. The test energy system includes a gas subsystem with a gas...

The Elements of Language Curriculum: A Systematic Approach to Program Development.

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, James Dean

A systematic approach to second language curriculum development is outlined, enumerating the phases and activities involved in developing and implementing a sound and effective language program. The first chapter describes a system whereby all language teaching activities can be classified into approaches, syllabuses, techniques, exercises, or…

Comparison between goal programming and cointegration approaches in enhanced index tracking

Science.gov (United States)

Lam, Weng Siew; Jamaan, Saiful Hafizah Hj.

2013-04-01

Index tracking is a popular form of passive fund management in stock market. Passive management is a buy-and-hold strategy that aims to achieve rate of return similar to the market return. Index tracking problem is a problem of reproducing the performance of a stock market index, without purchasing all of the stocks that make up the index. This can be done by establishing an optimal portfolio that minimizes risk or tracking error. An improved index tracking (enhanced index tracking) is a dual-objective optimization problem, a trade-off between maximizing the mean return and minimizing the tracking error. Enhanced index tracking aims to generate excess return over the return achieved by the index. The objective of this study is to compare the portfolio compositions and performances by using two different approaches in enhanced index tracking problem, which are goal programming and cointegration. The result of this study shows that the optimal portfolios for both approaches are able to outperform the Malaysia market index which is Kuala Lumpur Composite Index. Both approaches give different optimal portfolio compositions. Besides, the cointegration approach outperforms the goal programming approach because the cointegration approach gives higher mean return and lower risk or tracking error. Therefore, the cointegration approach is more appropriate for the investors in Malaysia.

Program Management Approach to the Territorial Development of Small Business

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Natalia Aleksandrovna Knysh

2016-06-01

Full Text Available This article presents the results of the research of the application on a state level of the program management approach to the territorial development of small business. Studying the main mechanism of the state policy implementation in the sphere of small business on a regional level, the authors have revealed the necessity to take into account the territorial specificity while the government programs of small business development are being formed. The analysis of the national practice of utilizing the program management mechanism in the regional system of the government support of small entrepreneurship was conducted on the example of Omsk region. The results of the analysis have shown the inefficiency of the current support system for small business and have determined the need to create an integrated model of territorial programming, which would not only contribute to the qualitative development of small business, but also provide the functioning efficiency of program management mechanism. As a result, the authors have created the two-level model of the programming of the territorial development of small business, which allows to satisfy purposefully the needs of entrepreneurship taking into account the specificity of the internal and external environment of the region. The first level of the model is methodological one and it is based on the marketing approach (the concepts of place marketing and relationship marketing to the operation of the program management mechanism. The second level of the model is methodical one. It offers the combination of the flexible methods of management of programming procedure (benchmarking, foresight, crowdsourcing and outsourcing. The given model raises the efficiency of the management decisions of the state structures in the sphere of small business. Therefore, it is interesting for the government authorities, which are responsible for the regional and municipal support programs of small business, as well

[Efficacy of the program "Testas's (mis)adventures" to promote the deep approach to learning].

Science.gov (United States)

Rosário, Pedro; González-Pienda, Julio Antonio; Cerezo, Rebeca; Pinto, Ricardo; Ferreira, Pedro; Abilio, Lourenço; Paiva, Olimpia

2010-11-01

This paper provides information about the efficacy of a tutorial training program intended to enhance elementary fifth graders' study processes and foster their deep approaches to learning. The program "Testas's (mis)adventures" consists of a set of books in which Testas, a typical student, reveals and reflects upon his life experiences during school years. These life stories are nothing but an opportunity to present and train a wide range of learning strategies and self-regulatory processes, designed to insure students' deeper preparation for present and future learning challenges. The program has been developed along a school year, in a one hour weekly tutorial sessions. The training program had a semi-experimental design, included an experimental group (n=50) and a control one (n=50), and used pre- and posttest measures (learning strategies' declarative knowledge, learning approaches and academic achievement). Data suggest that the students enrolled in the training program, comparing with students in the control group, showed a significant improvement in their declarative knowledge of learning strategies and in their deep approach to learning, consequently lowering their use of a surface approach. In spite of this, in what concerns to academic achievement, no statistically significant differences have been found.

Moment matrices, border bases and radical computation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lasserre, J.B.; Laurent, M.; Mourrain, B.; Rostalski, P.; Trébuchet, P.

2013-01-01

In this paper, we describe new methods to compute the radical (resp. real radical) of an ideal, assuming its complex (resp. real) variety is finite. The aim is to combine approaches for solving a system of polynomial equations with dual methods which involve moment matrices and semi-definite

Chance-constrained programming approach to natural-gas curtailment decisions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Guldmann, J M

1981-10-01

This paper presents a modeling methodology for the determination of optimal-curtailment decisions by a gas-distribution utility during a chronic gas-shortage situation. Based on the end-use priority approach, a linear-programming model is formulated, that reallocates the available gas supply among the utility's customers while minimizing fuel switching, unemployment, and utility operating costs. This model is then transformed into a chance-constrained program in order to account for the weather-related variability of the gas requirements. The methodology is applied to the East Ohio Gas Company. 16 references, 2 figures, 3 tables.

Variational minimization of atomic and molecular ground-state energies via the two-particle reduced density matrix

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mazziotti, David A.

2002-01-01

Atomic and molecular ground-state energies are variationally determined by constraining the two-particle reduced density matrix (2-RDM) to satisfy positivity conditions. Because each positivity condition corresponds to correcting the ground-state energies for a class of Hamiltonians with two-particle interactions, these conditions collectively provide a new approach to many-body theory that, unlike perturbation theory, can capture significantly correlated phenomena including the multireference effects of potential-energy surfaces. The D, Q, and G conditions for the 2-RDM are extended through generalized lifting operators inspired from the formal solution of N-representability. These lifted conditions agree with the hierarchy of positivity conditions presented by Mazziotti and Erdahl [Phys. Rev. A 63, 042113 (2001)]. The connection between positivity and the formal solution explains how constraining higher RDMs to be positive semidefinite improves the N representability of the 2-RDM and suggests using pieces of higher positivity conditions that computationally scale like the D condition. With the D, Q, and G conditions as well as pieces of higher positivity the electronic energies for Be, LiH, H 2 O, and BH are computed through a primal-dual interior-point algorithm for positive semidefinite programming. The variational method produces potential-energy surfaces that are highly accurate even far from the equilibrium geometry where single-reference perturbation-based methods often fail to produce realistic energies

A primal-dual interior point method for large-scale free material optimization

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Weldeyesus, Alemseged Gebrehiwot; Stolpe, Mathias

2015-01-01

Free Material Optimization (FMO) is a branch of structural optimization in which the design variable is the elastic material tensor that is allowed to vary over the design domain. The requirements are that the material tensor is symmetric positive semidefinite with bounded trace. The resulting...... optimization problem is a nonlinear semidefinite program with many small matrix inequalities for which a special-purpose optimization method should be developed. The objective of this article is to propose an efficient primal-dual interior point method for FMO that can robustly and accurately solve large...... of iterations the interior point method requires is modest and increases only marginally with problem size. The computed optimal solutions obtain a higher precision than other available special-purpose methods for FMO. The efficiency and robustness of the method is demonstrated by numerical experiments on a set...

Portfolio optimization in enhanced index tracking with goal programming approach

Science.gov (United States)

Siew, Lam Weng; Jaaman, Saiful Hafizah Hj.; Ismail, Hamizun bin

2014-09-01

Enhanced index tracking is a popular form of passive fund management in stock market. Enhanced index tracking aims to generate excess return over the return achieved by the market index without purchasing all of the stocks that make up the index. This can be done by establishing an optimal portfolio to maximize the mean return and minimize the risk. The objective of this paper is to determine the portfolio composition and performance using goal programming approach in enhanced index tracking and comparing it to the market index. Goal programming is a branch of multi-objective optimization which can handle decision problems that involve two different goals in enhanced index tracking, a trade-off between maximizing the mean return and minimizing the risk. The results of this study show that the optimal portfolio with goal programming approach is able to outperform the Malaysia market index which is FTSE Bursa Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Composite Index because of higher mean return and lower risk without purchasing all the stocks in the market index.

Practical approaches to implementing facility wide equipment strengthening programs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kincaid, R.H.; Smietana, E.A.

1989-01-01

Equipment strengthening programs typically focus on components required to ensure operability of safety related equipment or to prevent the release of toxic substances. Survival of non-safety related equipment may also be crucial to ensure rapid recovery and minimize business interruption losses. Implementing a strengthening program for non-safety related equipment can be difficult due to the large amounts of equipment involved and limited budget availability. EQE has successfully implemented comprehensive equipment strengthening programs for a number of California corporations. Many of the lessons learned from these projects are applicable to DOE facilities. These include techniques for prioritizing equipment and three general methodologies for anchoring equipment. Pros and cons of each anchorage approach are presented along with typical equipment strengthening costs

A Genetic-Algorithms-Based Approach for Programming Linear and Quadratic Optimization Problems with Uncertainty

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Weihua Jin

2013-01-01

Full Text Available This paper proposes a genetic-algorithms-based approach as an all-purpose problem-solving method for operation programming problems under uncertainty. The proposed method was applied for management of a municipal solid waste treatment system. Compared to the traditional interactive binary analysis, this approach has fewer limitations and is able to reduce the complexity in solving the inexact linear programming problems and inexact quadratic programming problems. The implementation of this approach was performed using the Genetic Algorithm Solver of MATLAB (trademark of MathWorks. The paper explains the genetic-algorithms-based method and presents details on the computation procedures for each type of inexact operation programming problems. A comparison of the results generated by the proposed method based on genetic algorithms with those produced by the traditional interactive binary analysis method is also presented.

A New Approach to Commercialization of NASA's Human Research Program Technologies, Phase I

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — This Phase I SBIR proposal describes, "A New Approach to Commercialization of NASA's Human Research Program Technologies." NASA has a powerful research program that...

Marketing the dental hygiene program. A public relations approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Nielsen, C

1989-09-01

Since 1980 there has been a decline in dental hygiene enrollment and graduates. Marketing dental hygiene programs, a recognized component of organizational survival, is necessary to meet societal demands for dental hygiene care now and in the future. The purpose of this article is to examine theories on the marketing of education and to describe a systematic approach to marketing dental hygiene education. Upon examination of these theories, the importance of analysis, planning, implementation, and evaluation/control of a marketing program is found to be essential. Application of the four p's of marketing--product/service, price, place, and promotion--is necessary to achieve marketing's goals and objectives and ultimately the program's mission and goals. Moreover, projecting a quality image of the dental hygiene program and the profession of dental hygiene must be included in the overall marketing plan. Results of an effective marketing plan should increase the number of quality students graduating from the dental hygiene program, ultimately contributing to the quality of oral health care in the community.

Dynamic Programming Approaches for the Traveling Salesman Problem with Drone

OpenAIRE

Bouman, Paul; Agatz, Niels; Schmidt, Marie

2017-01-01

markdownabstractA promising new delivery model involves the use of a delivery truck that collaborates with a drone to make deliveries. Effectively combining a drone and a truck gives rise to a new planning problem that is known as the Traveling Salesman Problem with Drone (TSP-D). This paper presents an exact solution approach for the TSP-D based on dynamic programming and present experimental results of different dynamic programming based heuristics. Our numerical experiments show that our a...

Synthesis of robust disturbance-feedback strategies by using semi-definite programming

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Trottemant, E.J.

2015-01-01

Systems in real-life have to deal with uncertainty in such a manner that a high level of performance is guaranteed under all conditions. The objective in this thesis is to obtain robust strategies that provide an upper bound (worst-case) on the performance of an uncertain system against all

My Family-Study, Early-Onset Substance use Prevention Program: An Application of Intervention Mapping Approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mehdi Mirzaei-Alavijeh

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Background and Objectives: Based on different studies, substance use is one of the health problems in the Iranian society. The prevalence of substance use is on a growing trend; moreover, the age of the onset of substance use has declined to early adolescence and even lower. Regarding this, the present study aimed to develop a family-based early-onset substance use prevention program in children (My Family-Study by using intervention mapping approach. Materials and Methods: This study descirbes the research protocol during which the intervention mapping approach was used as a framework to develop My Family-Study. In this study, six steps of intervention mapping were completed. Interviews with experts and literature review fulfilled the need assessment. In the second step, the change objectivs were rewritten based on the intersection of the performance objectives and the determinants associated in the matrices. After designing the program and planning the implementation of the intervention, the evaluation plan of the program was accomplished. Results: The use of intervention mapping approach facilitated the develop-pment of a systematic as well as theory- and evidence-based program. Moreover, this approach was helful in the determination of outcomes, performance and change objectives, determinants, theoretical methods, practical application, intervention, dissemination, and evaluation program. Conclusions: The intervention mapping provided a systematic as well as theory- and evidence-based approach to develop a quality continuing health promotion program.

A SDP based design of relay precoding for the power minimization of MIMO AF-relay networks

KAUST Repository

Rao, Anlei

2015-09-11

Relay precoding for multiple-input and multiple-output (MIMO) relay networks has been approached by either optimizing the efficiency performance with given power consumption constraints or minimizing the power consumption with quality-of-service (QoS) requirements. For the later type design, previous works has worked on minimizing the approximated power consumption. In this paper, exact power consumption for all relays is derived into a quadratic form by diagonalizing the minimum-square error (MSE) matrix, and the relay precoding matrix is designed by optimizing this quadratic form with the help of semidefinite programming (SDP) relaxation. Our simulation results show that such a design can achieve a gain of around 3 dB against the previous design, which optimized the approximated power consumption. © 2015 IEEE.

COMPETENCE-BASED APPROACH TO MODELLING STRUCTURES OF THE MAIN EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V. A. Gerasimova

2015-01-01

Full Text Available By the analysis results of scientific works in the field of competence-based approach in education authors proved need of computer support of the planning and development stage of the main educational program, they developed the main educational program structure automatic formation model on the graphs basis, offered the integrated criterion of an discipline assessment and developed a strategic map of a discipline complex assessment. The executed theoretical researches are a basis for creation of the main educational program planning and development support automated system.

Multilevel approach to mentoring in the Research Experiences for Undergraduates programs

Science.gov (United States)

Bonine, K. E.; Dontsova, K.; Pavao-Zuckerman, M.; Paavo, B.; Hogan, D.; Oberg, E.; Gay, J.

2015-12-01

This presentation focuses on different types of mentoring for students participating in Research Experiences for Undergraduates programs with examples, including some new approaches, from The Environmental and Earth Systems Research Experiences for Undergraduates Program at Biosphere 2. While traditional faculty mentors play essential role in students' development as researchers and professionals, other formal and informal mentoring can be important component of the REU program and student experiences. Students receive mentoring from program directors, coordinators, and on site undergraduate advisors. While working on their research projects, REU students receive essential support and mentoring from undergraduate and graduate students and postdoctoral scientists in the research groups of their primary mentors. Cohort living and group activities give multiple opportunities for peer mentoring where each student brings their own strengths and experiences to the group. Biosphere 2 REU program puts strong emphasis on teaching students to effectively communicate their research to public. In order to help REUs learn needed skills the outreach personnel at Biosphere 2 mentor and advise students both in groups and individually, in lecture format and by personal example, on best outreach approaches in general and on individual outreach projects students develop. To further enhance and strengthen outreach mentoring we used a novel approach of blending cohort of REU students with the Cal Poly STAR (STEM Teacher And Researcher) Program fellows, future K-12 STEM teachers who are gaining research experience at Biosphere 2. STAR fellows live together with the REU students and participate with them in professional development activities, as well as perform research side by side. Educational background and experiences gives these students a different view and better preparation and tools to effectively communicate and adapt science to lay audiences, a challenge commonly facing

A Branch and Bound Approach for Truss Topology Design Problems with Valid Inequalities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cerveira, Adelaide; Agra, Agostinho; Bastos, Fernando; Varum, Humberto

2010-01-01

One of the classical problems in the structural optimization field is the Truss Topology Design Problem (TTDP) which deals with the selection of optimal configuration for structural systems for applications in mechanical, civil, aerospace engineering, among others. In this paper we consider a TTDP where the goal is to find the stiffest truss, under a given load and with a bound on the total volume. The design variables are the cross-section areas of the truss bars that must be chosen from a given finite set. This results in a large-scale non-convex problem with discrete variables. This problem can be formulated as a Semidefinite Programming Problem (SDP problem) with binary variables. We propose a branch and bound algorithm to solve this problem. In this paper it is considered a binary formulation of the problem, to take advantage of its structure, which admits a Knapsack problem as subproblem. Thus, trying to improve the performance of the Branch and Bound, at each step, some valid inequalities for the Knapsack problem are included.

Fuzzy multinomial logistic regression analysis: A multi-objective programming approach

Science.gov (United States)

Abdalla, Hesham A.; El-Sayed, Amany A.; Hamed, Ramadan

2017-05-01

Parameter estimation for multinomial logistic regression is usually based on maximizing the likelihood function. For large well-balanced datasets, Maximum Likelihood (ML) estimation is a satisfactory approach. Unfortunately, ML can fail completely or at least produce poor results in terms of estimated probabilities and confidence intervals of parameters, specially for small datasets. In this study, a new approach based on fuzzy concepts is proposed to estimate parameters of the multinomial logistic regression. The study assumes that the parameters of multinomial logistic regression are fuzzy. Based on the extension principle stated by Zadeh and Bárdossy's proposition, a multi-objective programming approach is suggested to estimate these fuzzy parameters. A simulation study is used to evaluate the performance of the new approach versus Maximum likelihood (ML) approach. Results show that the new proposed model outperforms ML in cases of small datasets.

Value Iteration Adaptive Dynamic Programming for Optimal Control of Discrete-Time Nonlinear Systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Wei, Qinglai; Liu, Derong; Lin, Hanquan

2016-03-01

In this paper, a value iteration adaptive dynamic programming (ADP) algorithm is developed to solve infinite horizon undiscounted optimal control problems for discrete-time nonlinear systems. The present value iteration ADP algorithm permits an arbitrary positive semi-definite function to initialize the algorithm. A novel convergence analysis is developed to guarantee that the iterative value function converges to the optimal performance index function. Initialized by different initial functions, it is proven that the iterative value function will be monotonically nonincreasing, monotonically nondecreasing, or nonmonotonic and will converge to the optimum. In this paper, for the first time, the admissibility properties of the iterative control laws are developed for value iteration algorithms. It is emphasized that new termination criteria are established to guarantee the effectiveness of the iterative control laws. Neural networks are used to approximate the iterative value function and compute the iterative control law, respectively, for facilitating the implementation of the iterative ADP algorithm. Finally, two simulation examples are given to illustrate the performance of the present method.

A Notion of Total Dual Integrality for Convex, Semidefinite, and Extended Formulations

OpenAIRE

Silva, Marcel K. de Carli; Tunçel, Levent

2018-01-01

Total dual integrality is a powerful and unifying concept in polyhedral combinatorics and integer programming that enables the refinement of geometric min-max relations given by linear programming Strong Duality into combinatorial min-max theorems. The definition of total dual integrality (TDI) revolves around the existence of optimal dual solutions that are integral, and thus naturally applies to a host of combinatorial optimization problems that are cast as integer programs whose LP relaxat...

76 FR 55673 - Vulnerability Assessments in Support of the Climate Ready Estuaries Program: A Novel Approach...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-09-08

... ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY [FRL-9460-8; Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-ORD-2011-0485] Vulnerability... titled, Vulnerability Assessments in Support of the Climate Ready Estuaries Program: A Novel Approach...) and Vulnerability Assessments in Support of the Climate Ready Estuaries Program: A Novel Approach...

Structured-Exercise-Program (SEP): An Effective Training Approach to Key Healthcare Professionals

Science.gov (United States)

Miazi, Mosharaf H.; Hossain, Taleb; Tiroyakgosi, C.

2014-01-01

Structured exercise program is an effective approach to technology dependent resource limited healthcare area for professional training. The result of a recently conducted data analysis revealed this. The aim of the study is to know the effectiveness of the applied approach that was designed to observe the level of adherence to newly adopted…

USING OF TASK APPROACH METHOD WHILE TEACHING PROGRAMMING TO THE FUTURE INFORMATICS TEACHERS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Oleksandr M. Kryvonos

2014-04-01

Full Text Available This article is dedicated to the problem of teaching programming to the future informatics teachers from the standpoint of competence approach in teaching. The article defines the role and the place of task approach in the process of teaching the module on “Procedure programming”, which is the part of the programming course; it scrutinizes the systematization of levels of tasks, which are proposed by D. Toleengerov. The article describes the levels of complexity of tasks (reproductive, partially searching, research (creative, which are used in the formation of methodological provision for programming course. It also presents the examples of tasks of specific topics to solve which a student should have habits which are crucial for informational communicational technological competence.

Reinventing the Wheel: One Program's Approach to Redesign of Didactic Courses.

Science.gov (United States)

Hudak, Nicholas M; Scott, Victoria; Spear, Sherrie B; Hills, Karen J

2015-12-01

Curriculum and course redesign are expected and intentional efforts in health professions education. For physician assistant (PA) education, ongoing program self-assessment is a required accreditation standard and may guide deliberate changes within curriculum. The purpose of this article is to describe one PA program’s approach to the redesign of 4 courses into 3 courses that span the entire didactic phase. Significant lessons learned include the importance of planning ahead, identifying key players, documenting the process as part of ongoing self-assessment, competency mapping, and being prepared to make real-time modifications and changes based on course evaluations and faculty feedback. Our approach and guiding principles to the successful redesign of the didactic courses may provide both established and new PA educational programs with useful methods to apply in their own unique curricula.

SPATIAL SEARCH IN COMMERCIAL FISHING: A DISCRETE CHOICE DYNAMIC PROGRAMMING APPROACH

OpenAIRE

Smith, Martin D.; Provencher, Bill

2003-01-01

We specify a discrete choice dynamic programming model of commercial fishing participation and location choices. This approach allows us to examine how fishermen collect information about resource abundance and whether their behavior is forward-looking.

Discussion of Regulatory Guide 7.10, emphasizing the graded approach for establishing QA programs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gordon, L.; Lake, W.H.

1983-01-01

To assist applicants in establishing an acceptable QA program to meet the programmatic elements of Appendix E to 10 CFR Part 71, Regulatory Guide 7.10 was developed. Regulatory Guide 7.10 is organized in three self-contained ANNEXES. Guidance applicable to designer/fabricators, to users, and users of radiographic devices are in separate annexes. QA programs for packaging to transport radioactive material are similar in regard to the various operations a licensee may be involved in. However, the appropriate QA/QC effort to verify the program elements may vary significantly. This is referred to as the graded approach. Appendix A in the guide addresses the graded approach

Holistic Approach to Learning and Teaching Introductory Object-Oriented Programming

Science.gov (United States)

Thota, Neena; Whitfield, Richard

2010-01-01

This article describes a holistic approach to designing an introductory, object-oriented programming course. The design is grounded in constructivism and pedagogy of phenomenography. We use constructive alignment as the framework to align assessments, learning, and teaching with planned learning outcomes. We plan learning and teaching activities,…

DBS Programming: An Evolving Approach for Patients with Parkinson’s Disease

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aparna Wagle Shukla

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Deep brain stimulation (DBS surgery is a well-established therapy for control of motor symptoms in Parkinson’s disease. Despite an appropriate targeting and an accurate placement of DBS lead, a thorough and efficient programming is critical for a successful clinical outcome. DBS programming is a time consuming and laborious manual process. The current approach involves use of general guidelines involving determination of the lead type, electrode configuration, impedance check, and battery check. However there are no validated and well-established programming protocols. In this review, we will discuss the current practice and the recent advances in DBS programming including the use of interleaving, fractionated current, directional steering of current, and the use of novel DBS pulses. These technological improvements are focused on achieving a more efficient control of clinical symptoms with the least possible side effects. Other promising advances include the introduction of computer guided programming which will likely impact the efficiency of programming for the clinicians and the possibility of remote Internet based programming which will improve access to DBS care for the patients.

78 FR 18932 - Public Meeting: Unmanned Aircraft Systems Test Site Program; Privacy Approach

Science.gov (United States)

2013-03-28

... discussion about which privacy issues are raised by UAS operations and how law, public policy, and the...-0061] Public Meeting: Unmanned Aircraft Systems Test Site Program; Privacy Approach AGENCY: Federal... a public engagement session on Wednesday, April 3, 2013, on the proposed privacy policy approach for...

Effects of Maternal Obesity on Fetal Programming: Molecular Approaches

Science.gov (United States)

Neri, Caterina; Edlow, Andrea G.

2016-01-01

Maternal obesity has become a worldwide epidemic. Obesity and a high-fat diet have been shown to have deleterious effects on fetal programming, predisposing offspring to adverse cardiometabolic and neurodevelopmental outcomes. Although large epidemiological studies have shown an association between maternal obesity and adverse outcomes for offspring, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Molecular approaches have played a key role in elucidating the mechanistic underpinnings of fetal malprogramming in the setting of maternal obesity. These approaches include, among others, characterization of epigenetic modifications, microRNA expression, the gut microbiome, the transcriptome, and evaluation of specific mRNA expression via quantitative reverse transcription polmerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) in fetuses and offspring of obese females. This work will review the data from animal models and human fluids/cells regarding the effects of maternal obesity on fetal and offspring neurodevelopment and cardiometabolic outcomes, with a particular focus on molecular approaches. PMID:26337113

An Implementation Research Approach to Evaluating Health Insurance Programs: Insights from India

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Krishna D. Rao

2016-05-01

Full Text Available One of the distinguishing features of implementation research is the importance given to involve implementers in all aspects of research, and as users of research. We report on a recent implementation research effort in India, in which researchers worked together with program implementers from one of the longest serving government funded insurance schemes in India, the Rajiv Aarogyasri Scheme (RAS in the state of undivided Andhra Pradesh, that covers around 70 million people. This paper aims to both inform on the process of the collaborative research, as well as, how the nature of questions that emerged out of the collaborative exercise differed in scope from those typically asked of insurance program evaluations. Starting in 2012, and over the course of a year, staff from the Aarogyasri Health Care Trust (AHCT, and researchers held a series of meetings to identify research questions that could serve as a guide for an evaluation of the RAS. The research questions were derived from the application of a Logical Framework Approach (“log frame” to the RAS. The types of questions that emerged from this collaborative effort were compared with those seen in the published literature on evaluations of insurance programs in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs. In the published literature, 60% of the questions pertained to output/outcome of the program and the remaining 40%, relate to processes and inputs. In contrast, questions generated from the RAS participatory research process between implementers and researchers had a remarkably different distribution – 81% of questions looked at program input/processes, and 19% on outputs and outcomes. An implementation research approach can lead to a substantively different emphasis of research questions. While there are several challenges in collaborative research between implementers and researchers, an implementation research approach can lead to incorporating tacit knowledge of program implementers

Gas contract portfolio management: a stochastic programming approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haurie, A.; Smeers, Y.; Zaccour, G.

1991-01-01

This paper deals with a stochastic programming model which complements long range market simulation models generating scenarios concerning the evolution of demand and prices for gas in different market segments. Agas company has to negociate contracts with lengths going from one to twenty years. This stochastic model is designed to assess the risk associated with committing the gas production capacity of the company to these market segments. Different approaches are presented to overcome the difficulties associated with the very large size of the resulting optimization problem

A Proposal for the Common Safety Approach of Space Programs

Science.gov (United States)

Grimard, Max

2002-01-01

For all applications, business and systems related to Space programs, Quality is mandatory and is a key factor for the technical as well as the economical performances. Up to now the differences of applications (launchers, manned space-flight, sciences, telecommunications, Earth observation, planetary exploration, etc.) and the difference of technical culture and background of the leading countries (USA, Russia, Europe) have generally led to different approaches in terms of standards and processes for Quality. At a time where international cooperation is quite usual for the institutional programs and globalization is the key word for the commercial business, it is considered of prime importance to aim at common standards and approaches for Quality in Space Programs. For that reason, the International Academy of Astronautics has set up a Study Group which mandate is to "Make recommendations to improve the Quality, Reliability, Efficiency, and Safety of space programmes, taking into account the overall environment in which they operate : economical constraints, harsh environments, space weather, long life, no maintenance, autonomy, international co-operation, norms and standards, certification." The paper will introduce the activities of this Study Group, describing a first list of topics which should be addressed : Through this paper it is expected to open the discussion to update/enlarge this list of topics and to call for contributors to this Study Group.

Quantum resource theory of non-stabilizer states in the one-shot regime

Science.gov (United States)

Ahmadi, Mehdi; Dang, Hoan; Gour, Gilad; Sanders, Barry

Universal quantum computing is known to be impossible using only stabilizer states and stabilizer operations. However, addition of non-stabilizer states (also known as magic states) to quantum circuits enables us to achieve universality. The resource theory of non-stablizer states aims at quantifying the usefulness of non-stabilizer states. Here, we focus on a fundamental question in this resource theory in the so called single-shot regime: Given two resource states, is there a free quantum channel that will (approximately or exactly) convert one to the other?. To provide an answer, we phrase the question as a semidefinite program with constraints on the Choi matrix of the corresponding channel. Then, we use the semidefinite version of the Farkas lemma to derive the necessary and sufficient conditions for the conversion between two arbitrary resource states via a free quantum channel. BCS appreciates financial support from Alberta Innovates, NSERC, China's 1000 Talent Plan and the Institute for Quantum Information and Matter.

FGP Approach for Solving Multi-level Multi-objective Quadratic Fractional Programming Problem with Fuzzy parameters

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

m. s. osman

2017-09-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we consider fuzzy goal programming (FGP approach for solving multi-level multi-objective quadratic fractional programming (ML-MOQFP problem with fuzzy parameters in the constraints. Firstly, the concept of the ?-cut approach is applied to transform the set of fuzzy constraints into a common deterministic one. Then, the quadratic fractional objective functions in each level are transformed into quadratic objective functions based on a proposed transformation. Secondly, the FGP approach is utilized to obtain a compromise solution for the ML-MOQFP problem by minimizing the sum of the negative deviational variables. Finally, an illustrative numerical example is given to demonstrate the applicability and performance of the proposed approach.

The Building Block Simulation Approach to Program Assessment: The Case of Agriculture Canada's Meat Hygiene Program, 1970-1984

OpenAIRE

Brinkman, George L.

2003-01-01

For many decades a major emphasis in public policy has been the assurance of food safety and security. Measurement of the economic returns to these programs is often difficult and challenging. In many cases the difficulty in obtaining data and the sheer complexity of the issues make the use of traditional econometric and programming approaches impractical for assessing these activities. This paper presents a summary of an innovative method for measuring benefits and costs of hard-to-assess pr...

The INEL approach: Environmental Restoration Program management and implementation methodology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-01-01

The overall objectives of the INEL Environmental Restoration (ER) Program management approach are to facilitate meeting mission needs through the successful implementation of a sound, and effective project management philosophy. This paper outlines the steps taken to develop the ER program, and explains further the implementing tools and processes used to achieve what can be viewed as fundamental to a successful program. The various examples provided will demonstrate how the strategies for implementing these operating philosophies are actually present and at work throughout the program, in spite of budget drills and organizational changes within DOE and the implementing contractor. A few of the challenges and successes of the INEL Environmental Restoration Program have included: a) completion of all enforceable milestones to date, b) acceleration of enforceable milestones, c) managing funds to reduce uncosted obligations at year end by utilizing greater than 99% of FY-95 budget, d) an exemplary safety record, e) developing a strategy for partial Delisting of the INEL by the year 2000, f) actively dealing with Natural Resource Damages Assessment issues, g) the achievement of significant project cost reductions, h) and implementation of a partnering charter and application of front end quality principles

Evaluating a physician leadership development program - a mixed methods approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Throgmorton, Cheryl; Mitchell, Trey; Morley, Tom; Snyder, Marijo

2016-05-16

Purpose - With the extent of change in healthcare today, organizations need strong physician leaders. To compensate for the lack of physician leadership education, many organizations are sending physicians to external leadership programs or developing in-house leadership programs targeted specifically to physicians. The purpose of this paper is to outline the evaluation strategy and outcomes of the inaugural year of a Physician Leadership Academy (PLA) developed and implemented at a Michigan-based regional healthcare system. Design/methodology/approach - The authors applied the theoretical framework of Kirkpatrick's four levels of evaluation and used surveys, observations, activity tracking, and interviews to evaluate the program outcomes. The authors applied grounded theory techniques to the interview data. Findings - The program met targeted outcomes across all four levels of evaluation. Interview themes focused on the significance of increasing self-awareness, building relationships, applying new skills, and building confidence. Research limitations/implications - While only one example, this study illustrates the importance of developing the evaluation strategy as part of the program design. Qualitative research methods, often lacking from learning evaluation design, uncover rich themes of impact. The study supports how a PLA program can enhance physician learning, engagement, and relationship building throughout and after the program. Physician leaders' partnership with organization development and learning professionals yield results with impact to individuals, groups, and the organization. Originality/value - Few studies provide an in-depth review of evaluation methods and outcomes of physician leadership development programs. Healthcare organizations seeking to develop similar in-house programs may benefit applying the evaluation strategy outlined in this study.

Calculation of Complexity Costs – An Approach for Rationalizing a Product Program

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Christian Lindschou; Mortensen, Niels Henrik; Hvam, Lars

2012-01-01

This paper proposes an operational method for rationalizing a product program based on the calculation of complexity costs. The method takes its starting point in the calculation of complexity costs on a product program level. This is done throughout the value chain ranging from component invento...... of a product program. These findings represent an improved decision basis for the planning of reactive and proactive initiatives of rationalizing a product program.......This paper proposes an operational method for rationalizing a product program based on the calculation of complexity costs. The method takes its starting point in the calculation of complexity costs on a product program level. This is done throughout the value chain ranging from component...... inventories at the factory sites, all the way to the distribution of finished goods from distribution centers to the customers. The method proposes a step-wise approach including the analysis, quantification and allocation of product program complexity costs by the means of identifying of a number...

Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Approach for Seniors (MBCAS): Program Development and Implementation.

Science.gov (United States)

Zellner Keller, Brigitte; Singh, Nirbhay N; Winton, Alan S W

2014-01-01

A number of cognitive interventions have been developed to enhance cognitive functioning in the growing population of the elderly. We describe the Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Approach for Seniors (MBCAS), a new training program designed especially for seniors. It was conceived in the context of self-development for seniors who wish to enhance their relationship with their inner and outer selves in order to navigate their aging process more easily and fluently. Physical and psychosocial problems related to aging, as well as some temporal issues, were taken into account in developing this program. Unlike clinically oriented mindfulness-based programs, which are generally delivered during an 8-week period, the MBCAS training program is presented over a period of 8 months. The main objectives of this program are to teach seniors to observe current experiences with nonjudgmental awareness, to identify automatic behaviors or reactions to current experiences that are potentially nonadaptive, and to enhance and reinforce positive coping with typical difficulties that they face in their daily lives. Details of the program development and initial implementation are presented, with suggestions for evaluating the program's effectiveness.

The bottom-up approach to integrative validity: a new perspective for program evaluation.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Huey T

2010-08-01

The Campbellian validity model and the traditional top-down approach to validity have had a profound influence on research and evaluation. That model includes the concepts of internal and external validity and within that model, the preeminence of internal validity as demonstrated in the top-down approach. Evaluators and researchers have, however, increasingly recognized that in an evaluation, the over-emphasis on internal validity reduces that evaluation's usefulness and contributes to the gulf between academic and practical communities regarding interventions. This article examines the limitations of the Campbellian validity model and the top-down approach and provides a comprehensive, alternative model, known as the integrative validity model for program evaluation. The integrative validity model includes the concept of viable validity, which is predicated on a bottom-up approach to validity. This approach better reflects stakeholders' evaluation views and concerns, makes external validity workable, and becomes therefore a preferable alternative for evaluation of health promotion/social betterment programs. The integrative validity model and the bottom-up approach enable evaluators to meet scientific and practical requirements, facilitate in advancing external validity, and gain a new perspective on methods. The new perspective also furnishes a balanced view of credible evidence, and offers an alternative perspective for funding. Copyright (c) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A Comparison of Student Academic Performance with Traditional, Online, And Flipped Instructional Approaches in a C# Programming Course

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jason H. Sharp

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Aim/Purpose: Compared student academic performance on specific course requirements in a C# programming course across three instructional approaches: traditional, online, and flipped. Background: Addressed the following research question: When compared to the online and traditional instructional approaches, does the flipped instructional approach have a greater impact on student academic performance with specific course requirements in a C# programming course? Methodology: Quantitative research design conducted over eight 16-week semesters among a total of 271 participants who were undergraduate students en-rolled in a C# programming course. Data collected were grades earned from specific course requirements and were analyzed with the nonparametric Kruskal Wallis H-Test using IBM SPSS Statistics, Version 23. Contribution: Provides empirical findings related to the impact that different instructional approaches have on student academic performance in a C# programming course. Also describes implications and recommendations for instructors of programming courses regarding instructional approaches that facilitate active learning, student engagement, and self-regulation. Findings: Resulted in four statistically significant findings, indicating that the online and flipped instructional approaches had a greater impact on student academic performance than the traditional approach. Recommendations for Practitioners: Implement instructional approaches such as online, flipped, or blended which foster active learning, student engagement, and self-regulation to increase student academic performance. Recommendation for Researchers: Build upon this study and others similar to it to include factors such as gender, age, ethnicity, and previous academic history. Impact on Society: Acknowledge the growing influence of technology on society as a whole. Higher education coursework and programs are evolving to encompass more digitally-based learning contexts, thus

Program-oriented approach to resource saving issues in construction materials industry

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Novikova Galina

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The construction as a sector of the economy is one of the largest consumers of energy resources, and the building materials industry is today one of the most energy-intensive construction industry. At the enterprises of the building materials industry the different approaches and methods are used to solve resource and energy problems. Energy saving is considered not as an complex approach in the enterprise activity, but as activity for the implementation of specific energy-saving projects, which have limitations in time and in resources. The authors suggest to use a softwareoriented approach to solving the problems of resource and energy saving. For practical application of program-oriented approach we offer to use a structuring method of the decision-making, not previously used to solve problems of resource and energy saving.

An e-Learning Collaborative Filtering Approach to Suggest Problems to Solve in Programming Online Judges

Science.gov (United States)

Toledo, Raciel Yera; Mota, Yailé Caballero

2014-01-01

The paper proposes a recommender system approach to cover online judge's domains. Online judges are e-learning tools that support the automatic evaluation of programming tasks done by individual users, and for this reason they are usually used for training students in programming contest and for supporting basic programming teachings. The…

New approach in the evaluation of a fitness program at a worksite.

Science.gov (United States)

Shirasaya, K; Miyakawa, M; Yoshida, K; Tanaka, C; Shimada, N; Kondo, T

1999-03-01

The most common methods for the economic evaluation of a fitness program at a worksite are cost-effectiveness, cost-benefit, and cost-utility analyses. In this study, we applied a basic microeconomic theory, "neoclassical firm's problems," as the new approach for it. The optimal number of physical-exercise classes that constitute the core of the fitness program are determined using the cubic health production function. The optimal number is defined as the number that maximizes the profit of the program. The optimal number corresponding to any willingness-to-pay amount of the participants for the effectiveness of the program is presented using a graph. For example, if the willingness-to-pay is $800, the optimal number of classes is 23. Our method can be applied to the evaluation of any health care program if the health production function can be estimated.

Low-income DSM Programs: Methodological approach to determining the cost-effectiveness of coordinated partnerships

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Brown, M.A.; Hill, L.J.

1994-05-01

As governments at all levels become increasingly budget-conscious, expenditures on low-income, demand-side management (DSM) programs are being evaluated more on the basis of efficiency at the expense of equity considerations. Budgetary pressures have also caused government agencies to emphasize resource leveraging and coordination with electric and gas utilities as a means of sharing the expenses of low-income programs. The increased involvement of electric and gas utilities in coordinated low-income DSM programs, in turn, has resulted in greater emphasis on estimating program cost-effectiveness. The objective of this study is to develop a methodological approach to estimate the cost- effectiveness of coordinated low-income DSM programs, given the special features that distinguish these programs from other utility-operated DSM programs. The general approach used in this study was to (1) select six coordinated low-income DSM programs from among those currently operating across the United States, (2) examine the main features of these programs, and (3) determine the conceptual and pragmatic problems associated with estimating their cost-effectiveness. Three types of coordination between government and utility cosponsors were identified. At one extreme, local agencies operate {open_quotes}parallel{close_quotes} programs, each of which is fully funded by a single sponsor (e.g., one funded by the U.S. Department of Energy and the other by a utility). At the other extreme are highly {open_quotes}coupled{close_quotes} programs that capitalize on the unique capabilities and resources offered by each cosponsor. In these programs, agencies employ a combination of utility and government funds to deliver weatherization services as part of an integrated effort. In between are {open_quotes}supplemental{close_quotes} programs that utilize resources to supplement the agency`s government-funded weatherization, with no changes to the operation of that program.

A fuzzy compromise programming approach for the Black-Litterman portfolio selection model

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohsen Gharakhani

2013-01-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we examine advanced optimization approach for portfolio problem introduced by Black and Litterman to consider the shortcomings of Markowitz standard Mean-Variance optimization. Black and Litterman propose a new approach to estimate asset return. They present a way to incorporate the investor’s views into asset pricing process. Since the investor’s view about future asset return is always subjective and imprecise, we can represent it by using fuzzy numbers and the resulting model is multi-objective linear programming. Therefore, the proposed model is analyzed through fuzzy compromise programming approach using appropriate membership function. For this purpose, we introduce the fuzzy ideal solution concept based on investor preference and indifference relationships using canonical representation of proposed fuzzy numbers by means of their correspondingα-cuts. A real world numerical example is presented in which MSCI (Morgan Stanley Capital International Index is chosen as the target index. The results are reported for a portfolio consisting of the six national indices. The performance of the proposed models is compared using several financial criteria.

The integrated approach to teaching programming in secondary school

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martynyuk A.A.

2018-02-01

Full Text Available the article considers an integrated approach to teaching programming with the use of technologies of computer modeling and 3D-graphics, allowing to improve the quality of education. It is shown that this method will allow you to systematize knowledge, improve the level of motivation through the inclusion of relevant technologies, to develop skills of project activities, to strengthen interdisciplinary connections, and promotes professional and personal self-determination of students of secondary school.

An Evaluation System for Training Programs: A Case Study Using a Four-Phase Approach

Science.gov (United States)

Lingham, Tony; Richley, Bonnie; Rezania, Davar

2006-01-01

Purpose: With the increased importance of training in organizations, creating important and meaningful programs are critical to an organization and its members. The purpose of this paper is to suggest a four-phase systematic approach to designing and evaluating training programs that promotes collaboration between organizational leaders, trainers,…

A Multifaceted Approach to Teamwork Assessment in an Undergraduate Business Program

Science.gov (United States)

Kemery, Edward R.; Stickney, Lisa T.

2014-01-01

We describe a multifaceted, multilevel approach to teamwork learning and assessment. It includes teamwork knowledge, peer and self-appraisal of teamwork behavior, and individual and team performance on objective tests for teaching and assessing teamwork in an undergraduate business program. At the beginning of this semester-long process, students…

Limit analysis of solid reinforced concrete structures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Larsen, Kasper Paaske

2009-01-01

Recent studies have shown that Semidefinite Programming (SDP) can be used effectively for limit analysis of isotropic cohesive-frictional continuums using the classical Mohr-Coulomb yield criterion. In this paper we expand on this previous research by adding reinforcement to the model and a solid...... reinforcement and it is therefore possible to analyze structures with complex reinforcement layouts. Tests are conducted to validate the method against well-known analytical solutions....

Contributions to fuzzy polynomial techniques for stability analysis and control

OpenAIRE

Pitarch Pérez, José Luis

2014-01-01

The present thesis employs fuzzy-polynomial control techniques in order to improve the stability analysis and control of nonlinear systems. Initially, it reviews the more extended techniques in the field of Takagi-Sugeno fuzzy systems, such as the more relevant results about polynomial and fuzzy polynomial systems. The basic framework uses fuzzy polynomial models by Taylor series and sum-of-squares techniques (semidefinite programming) in order to obtain stability guarantees...

From SCIS to PELE: Approaches to Effective Dissemination Implementation and Adaptation of Instructional Programs.

Science.gov (United States)

Thier, Herbert D.

1981-01-01

Discusses in general terms the approaches necessary for effective dissemination and implementation of an educational program in a country and then relates these approaches to the cooperative relationship between the University of California at Berkeley and the Israel Science Teaching Center's MATAL and PELE Projects. (CS)

Organizational Wellness Program Implementation and Evaluation: A Holistic Approach to Improve the Wellbeing of Middle Managers.

Science.gov (United States)

Medina, Maria Del Consuelo; Calderon, Angelica; Blunk, Dan I; Mills, Brandy W; Leiner, Marie

2018-06-01

: Employee wellness programs can provide benefits to institutions as well as employees and their families. Despite the attempts of some organizations to implement programs that take a holistic approach to improve physical, mental, and social wellness, the most common programs are exclusively comprised of physical and nutritional components. In this study, we implemented a wellness program intervention, including training using a holistic approach to improve the wellbeing of middle managers in several multinational organizations. We included control and experimental groups to measure wellness and teamwork with two repeated measures. Our results indicated that employees receiving the intervention had improved measures of wellness and teamwork. A positive relationship was found between wellness and teamwork in the experimental group when compared with the control group. Taken together, the data suggest that implementation of these programs would provide valuable outcomes for both employees and organizations.

Demonstrating a small utility approach to demand-side program implementation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1991-01-01

The US DOE awarded a grant to the Burlington Electric Department (B.E.D.) to test a demand-side management (DSM) demonstration program designed to quickly save a significant amount of power with little disruption to the utility's customers or its normal operations. B.E.D. is a small municipal utility located in northern Vermont, with a lengthy history of successful DSM involvement. In our grant application, we proposed to develop a replicable program and approach to DSM that might be useful to other small utilities and to write a report to enable such replication. We believe that this DSM program and/or individual program components are replicable. This report is designed to allow other utilities interested in DSM to replicate this program or specific program design features to meet their DSM goals. We also wanted to use the opportunity of this grant to test the waters of residential heating fuel-switching. We hoped to test the application of one fuel-switching technology, and to benefit from the lessons learned in developing a full-scale DSM program for this end- use. To this end the pilot effort has been very successful. In the pilot pressure we installed direct-vent gas fired space heaters sized as supplemental heating units in 44 residences heated solely by electric resistance heat. We installed the gas space heating units at no cost to the owners or residents. We surveyed participating customers. The results of those surveys are included in this report and preliminary estimates of winter peak capacity load reductions are also noted in this report

Demonstrating a small utility approach to demand-side program implementation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1991-10-01

The US DOE awarded a grant to the Burlington Electric Department (B.E.D.) to test a demand-side management (DSM) demonstration program designed to quickly save a significant amount of power with little disruption to the utility's customers or its normal operations. B.E.D. is a small municipal utility located in northern Vermont, with a lengthy history of successful DSM involvement. In our grant application, we proposed to develop a replicable program and approach to DSM that might be useful to other small utilities and to write a report to enable such replication. We believe that this DSM program and/or individual program components are replicable. This report is designed to allow other utilities interested in DSM to replicate this program or specific program design features to meet their DSM goals. We also wanted to use the opportunity of this grant to test the waters of residential heating fuel-switching. We hoped to test the application of one fuel-switching technology, and to benefit from the lessons learned in developing a full-scale DSM program for this end- use. To this end the pilot effort has been very successful. In the pilot pressure we installed direct-vent gas fired space heaters sized as supplemental heating units in 44 residences heated solely by electric resistance heat. We installed the gas space heating units at no cost to the owners or residents. We surveyed participating customers. The results of those surveys are included in this report and preliminary estimates of winter peak capacity load reductions are also noted in this report.

Dynamic Programming Approach for Construction of Association Rule Systems

KAUST Repository

Alsolami, Fawaz

2016-11-18

In the paper, an application of dynamic programming approach for optimization of association rules from the point of view of knowledge representation is considered. The association rule set is optimized in two stages, first for minimum cardinality and then for minimum length of rules. Experimental results present cardinality of the set of association rules constructed for information system and lower bound on minimum possible cardinality of rule set based on the information obtained during algorithm work as well as obtained results for length.

Dynamic Programming Approach for Construction of Association Rule Systems

KAUST Repository

Alsolami, Fawaz; Amin, Talha M.; Chikalov, Igor; Moshkov, Mikhail; Zielosko, Beata

2016-01-01

In the paper, an application of dynamic programming approach for optimization of association rules from the point of view of knowledge representation is considered. The association rule set is optimized in two stages, first for minimum cardinality and then for minimum length of rules. Experimental results present cardinality of the set of association rules constructed for information system and lower bound on minimum possible cardinality of rule set based on the information obtained during algorithm work as well as obtained results for length.

Scheduling of head-dependent cascaded hydro systems: Mixed-integer quadratic programming approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Catalao, J.P.S.; Pousinho, H.M.I.; Mendes, V.M.F.

2010-01-01

This paper is on the problem of short-term hydro scheduling, particularly concerning head-dependent cascaded hydro systems. We propose a novel mixed-integer quadratic programming approach, considering not only head-dependency, but also discontinuous operating regions and discharge ramping constraints. Thus, an enhanced short-term hydro scheduling is provided due to the more realistic modeling presented in this paper. Numerical results from two case studies, based on Portuguese cascaded hydro systems, illustrate the proficiency of the proposed approach.

Toward a global space exploration program: A stepping stone approach

Science.gov (United States)

Ehrenfreund, Pascale; McKay, Chris; Rummel, John D.; Foing, Bernard H.; Neal, Clive R.; Masson-Zwaan, Tanja; Ansdell, Megan; Peter, Nicolas; Zarnecki, John; Mackwell, Steve; Perino, Maria Antionetta; Billings, Linda; Mankins, John; Race, Margaret

2012-01-01

In response to the growing importance of space exploration in future planning, the Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) Panel on Exploration (PEX) was chartered to provide independent scientific advice to support the development of exploration programs and to safeguard the potential scientific assets of solar system objects. In this report, PEX elaborates a stepwise approach to achieve a new level of space cooperation that can help develop world-wide capabilities in space science and exploration and support a transition that will lead to a global space exploration program. The proposed stepping stones are intended to transcend cross-cultural barriers, leading to the development of technical interfaces and shared legal frameworks and fostering coordination and cooperation on a broad front. Input for this report was drawn from expertise provided by COSPAR Associates within the international community and via the contacts they maintain in various scientific entities. The report provides a summary and synthesis of science roadmaps and recommendations for planetary exploration produced by many national and international working groups, aiming to encourage and exploit synergies among similar programs. While science and technology represent the core and, often, the drivers for space exploration, several other disciplines and their stakeholders (Earth science, space law, and others) should be more robustly interlinked and involved than they have been to date. The report argues that a shared vision is crucial to this linkage, and to providing a direction that enables new countries and stakeholders to join and engage in the overall space exploration effort. Building a basic space technology capacity within a wider range of countries, ensuring new actors in space act responsibly, and increasing public awareness and engagement are concrete steps that can provide a broader interest in space exploration, worldwide, and build a solid basis for program sustainability. By engaging

A Qualitative Approach to Examining Knowledge Sharing in Iran Tax Administration Reform Program

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mehdi Shami Zanjanie

2012-02-01

Full Text Available The paper aims to examine knowledge sharing infrastructure of "Iran Tax Administration Reform Program". The qualitative approach by using case study method was applied in this research. In order to meet the research goal, four infrastructural dimensions of knowledge sharing were studied: leadership & strategy, culture, structure, and information technology. To the authors’ knowledge, this was maybe the first paper which examined knowledge sharing infrastructure in programs environment

Chemical Exposure Assessment Program at Los Alamos National Laboratory: A risk based approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stephenson, D.J.

1996-01-01

The University of California Contract And DOE Order 5480.10 require that Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) perform health hazard assessments/inventories of all employee workplaces. In response to this LANL has developed the Chemical Exposure Assessment Program. This program provides a systematic risk-based approach to anticipation, recognition, evaluation and control of chemical workplace exposures. Program implementation focuses resources on exposures with the highest risks for causing adverse health effects. Implementation guidance includes procedures for basic characterization, qualitative risk assessment, quantitative validation, and recommendations and reevaluation. Each component of the program is described. It is shown how a systematic method of assessment improves documentation, retrieval, and use of generated exposure information

The Impact of Different Teaching Approaches and Languages on Student Learning of Introductory Programming Concepts

Science.gov (United States)

Kunkle, Wanda M.

2010-01-01

Many students experience difficulties learning to program. They find learning to program in the object-oriented paradigm particularly challenging. As a result, computing educators have tried a variety of instructional methods to assist beginning programmers. These include developing approaches geared specifically toward novices and experimenting…

Scheduling of head-dependent cascaded hydro systems: Mixed-integer quadratic programming approach

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Catalao, J.P.S.; Pousinho, H.M.I. [Department of Electromechanical Engineering, University of Beira Interior, R. Fonte do Lameiro, 6201-001 Covilha (Portugal); Mendes, V.M.F. [Department of Electrical Engineering and Automation, Instituto Superior de Engenharia de Lisboa, R. Conselheiro Emidio Navarro, 1950-062 Lisbon (Portugal)

2010-03-15

This paper is on the problem of short-term hydro scheduling, particularly concerning head-dependent cascaded hydro systems. We propose a novel mixed-integer quadratic programming approach, considering not only head-dependency, but also discontinuous operating regions and discharge ramping constraints. Thus, an enhanced short-term hydro scheduling is provided due to the more realistic modeling presented in this paper. Numerical results from two case studies, based on Portuguese cascaded hydro systems, illustrate the proficiency of the proposed approach. (author)

Electric generating capacity planning: A nonlinear programming approach

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yakin, M.Z.; McFarland, J.W.

1987-02-01

This paper presents a nonlinear programming approach for long-range generating capacity expansion planning in electrical power systems. The objective in the model is the minimization of total cost consisting of investment cost plus generation cost for a multi-year planning horizon. Reliability constraints are imposed by using standard and practical reserve margin requirements. State equations representing the dynamic aspect of the problem are included. The electricity demand (load) and plant availabilities are treated as random variables, and the method of cumulants is used to calculate the expected energy generated by each plant in each year of the planning horizon. The resulting model has a (highly) nonlinear objective function and linear constraints. The planning model is solved over the multiyear planning horizon instead of decomposing it into one-year period problems. This approach helps the utility decision maker to carry out extensive sensitivity analysis easily. A case study example is provided using EPRI test data. Relationships among the reserve margin, total cost and surplus energy generating capacity over the planning horizon are explored by analyzing the model.

Applications of polynomial optimization in financial risk investment

Science.gov (United States)

Zeng, Meilan; Fu, Hongwei

2017-09-01

Recently, polynomial optimization has many important applications in optimization, financial economics and eigenvalues of tensor, etc. This paper studies the applications of polynomial optimization in financial risk investment. We consider the standard mean-variance risk measurement model and the mean-variance risk measurement model with transaction costs. We use Lasserre's hierarchy of semidefinite programming (SDP) relaxations to solve the specific cases. The results show that polynomial optimization is effective for some financial optimization problems.

Using Balanced Scorecard (BSC) approach to improve ergonomics programs.

Science.gov (United States)

Fernandes, Marcelo Vicente Forestieri

2012-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to propose foundations for a theory of using the Balanced Scorecard (BSC) methodology to improve the strategic view of ergonomics inside the organizations. This approach may help to promote a better understanding of investing on an ergonomic program to obtain good results in quality and production, as well as health maintenance. It is explained the basics of balanced scorecard, and how ergonomists could use this to work with strategic enterprises demand. Implications of this viewpoint for the development of a new methodology for ergonomics strategy views are offered.

Systems engineering approach to U.S. Department of Energy's commercial nuclear waste transportation program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pardue, W.M.

1987-01-01

The U.S Department of Energy (DOE) has been given the responsibility of developing a program to transport commercially produced spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive wastes to disposal sites or storage facilities safely and cost-effectively. To accomplish this task it is desirable to plan, perform, and document all technical activities based on systems engineering principles. This paper presents an overview of the systems engineering approach being developed by Battelle for consideration by DOE, specifically the early identification of the required technical activities and approaches to technical management and decision making. The program should support the development of an integrated, well-documented transportation system acceptable to regulatory agencies and the public

SLFP: a stochastic linear fractional programming approach for sustainable waste management.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, H; Huang, G H

2011-12-01

A stochastic linear fractional programming (SLFP) approach is developed for supporting sustainable municipal solid waste management under uncertainty. The SLFP method can solve ratio optimization problems associated with random information, where chance-constrained programming is integrated into a linear fractional programming framework. It has advantages in: (1) comparing objectives of two aspects, (2) reflecting system efficiency, (3) dealing with uncertainty expressed as probability distributions, and (4) providing optimal-ratio solutions under different system-reliability conditions. The method is applied to a case study of waste flow allocation within a municipal solid waste (MSW) management system. The obtained solutions are useful for identifying sustainable MSW management schemes with maximized system efficiency under various constraint-violation risks. The results indicate that SLFP can support in-depth analysis of the interrelationships among system efficiency, system cost and system-failure risk. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

PASA - A Program for Automated Protein NMR Backbone Signal Assignment by Pattern-Filtering Approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xu Yizhuang; Wang Xiaoxia; Yang Jun; Vaynberg, Julia; Qin Jun

2006-01-01

We present a new program, PASA (Program for Automated Sequential Assignment), for assigning protein backbone resonances based on multidimensional heteronuclear NMR data. Distinct from existing programs, PASA emphasizes a per-residue-based pattern-filtering approach during the initial stage of the automated 13 C α and/or 13 C β chemical shift matching. The pattern filter employs one or multiple constraints such as 13 C α /C β chemical shift ranges for different amino acid types and side-chain spin systems, which helps to rule out, in a stepwise fashion, improbable assignments as resulted from resonance degeneracy or missing signals. Such stepwise filtering approach substantially minimizes early false linkage problems that often propagate, amplify, and ultimately cause complication or combinatorial explosion of the automation process. Our program (http://www.lerner.ccf.org/moleccard/qin/) was tested on four representative small-large sized proteins with various degrees of resonance degeneracy and missing signals, and we show that PASA achieved the assignments efficiently and rapidly that are fully consistent with those obtained by laborious manual protocols. The results demonstrate that PASA may be a valuable tool for NMR-based structural analyses, genomics, and proteomics

Convex Relaxation of OPF in Multiphase Radial Networks with Wye and Delta Connections

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhao, Changhong [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Dall-Anese, Emiliano [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Low, Steven [California Institute of Technology

2017-08-01

This panel presentation focuses on multiphase radial distribution networks with wye and delta connections, and proposes a semidefinite relaxation of the AC optimal power flow (OPF) problem. Two multiphase power flow models are developed to facilitate the integration of delta-connected loads or generation resources in the OPF problem. The first model is referred to as the extended branch flow model (EBFM). The second model leverages a linear relationship between phase-to-ground power injections and delta connections that holds under a balanced voltage approximation (BVA). Based on these models, pertinent OPF problems are formulated and relaxed to semidefinite programs (SDPs). Numerical studies on IEEE test feeders show that the proposed SDP relaxations can be solved efficiently by a generic optimization solver. Numerical evidence also indicates that solving the resultant SDP under BVA is faster than under EBFM. Moreover, both SDP solutions are numerically exact with respect to voltages and branch flows. It is further shown that the SDP solution under BVA has a small optimality gap, and the BVA model is accurate in the sense that it reproduces actual system voltages.

Optimal Power Flow in Multiphase Radial Networks with Delta Connections: Preprint

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhao, Changhong [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Dall-Anese, Emiliano [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Low, Steven H. [California Institute of Technology

2017-11-27

This paper focuses on multiphase radial distribution networks with mixed wye and delta connections, and proposes a semidefinite relaxation of the AC optimal power flow (OPF) problem. Two multiphase power-flow models are developed to facilitate the integration of delta-connected generation units/loads in the OPF problem. The first model extends traditional branch flow models - and it is referred to as extended branch flow model (EBFM). The second model leverages a linear relationship between per-phase power injections and delta connections, which holds under a balanced voltage approximation (BVA). Based on these models, pertinent OPF problems are formulated and relaxed to semidefinite programs (SDPs). Numerical studies on IEEE test feeders show that SDP relaxations can be solved efficiently by a generic optimization solver. Numerical evidences indicate that solving the resultant SDP under BVA is faster than under EBFM. Moreover, both SDP solutions are numerically exact with respect to voltages and branch flows. It is also shown that the SDP solution under BVA has a small optimality gap, while the BVA model is accurate in the sense that it reflects actual system voltages.

Small-grants programs: lessons from community-based approaches to changing nutrition environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, Donna B; Smith, Lynne T; Bruemmer, Barbara

2007-02-01

Providing small grants to community organizations can be an effective way to encourage changes in the environment that support better nutrition. This is effective because these organizations can provide insights into their communities, ready-made relationships with community members, and the trust of the community. Small-grants programs are more likely to be successful when they are tailored to the needs of individual communities, led by organizations that have established reputations with the community, fully supported by the lead community organization, and engage local partners that complement the skills and resources of the lead organization. An evaluation of a small-grants program, Grants for Healthy Youth, found that grantees developed unique approaches to improving their community nutrition environments, gained experience and skills in program development, built partnerships, and received recognition for their project work. Grantees faced some common barriers, especially with program evaluation. Small-grants programs can be an effective way to improve community nutrition environments, but granting agencies need to provide effective technical assistance to communities throughout the process.

A program approach for site safety at oil spills

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Whipple, F.L.; Glenn, S.P.; Ocken, J.J.; Ott, G.L.

1993-01-01

When OSHA developed the hazardous waste operations (Hazwoper) regulations (29 CFR 1910.120) members of the response community envisioned a separation of oil and open-quotes hazmatclose quotes response operations. Organizations that deal with oil spills have had difficulty applying Hazwoper regulations to oil spill operations. This hinders meaningful implementation of the standard for their personnel. We should approach oil spills with the same degree of caution that is applied to hazmat response. Training frequently does not address the safety of oil spill response operations. Site-specific safety and health plans often are neglected or omitted. Certain oils expose workers to carcinogens, as well as chronic and acute hazards. Significant physical hazards are most important. In responding to oil spills, the hazards must be addressed. It is the authors' contention that a need exists for safety program at oil spill sites. Gone are the days of labor pool hires cleaning up spills in jeans and sneakers. The key to meaningful programs for oil spills requires application of controls focused on relevant safety risks rather than minimal chemical exposure hazards. Working with concerned reviewers from other agencies and organizations, the authors have developed a general safety and health program for oil spill response. It is intended to serve as the basis for organizations to customize their own written safety and health program (required by OSHA). It also provides a separate generic site safety plan for emergency phase oil spill operations (check-list) and long term post-emergency phase operations

An iterative method for tri-level quadratic fractional programming problems using fuzzy goal programming approach

Science.gov (United States)

Kassa, Semu Mitiku; Tsegay, Teklay Hailay

2017-08-01

Tri-level optimization problems are optimization problems with three nested hierarchical structures, where in most cases conflicting objectives are set at each level of hierarchy. Such problems are common in management, engineering designs and in decision making situations in general, and are known to be strongly NP-hard. Existing solution methods lack universality in solving these types of problems. In this paper, we investigate a tri-level programming problem with quadratic fractional objective functions at each of the three levels. A solution algorithm has been proposed by applying fuzzy goal programming approach and by reformulating the fractional constraints to equivalent but non-fractional non-linear constraints. Based on the transformed formulation, an iterative procedure is developed that can yield a satisfactory solution to the tri-level problem. The numerical results on various illustrative examples demonstrated that the proposed algorithm is very much promising and it can also be used to solve larger-sized as well as n-level problems of similar structure.

The Critical Approach of ‘Plug’ in Re-Conceptualisation of Architectural Program

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bahar Beslioglu

2014-03-01

Full Text Available This paper explores the issue of ‘plug’ in designing program within particular experimental studies in architecture. There was what could be called a critical ‘elaboration’ of program in Archigram’s 1964 ‘Plug-In’ City project, while intriguingly the critical approach taken in the 2001 ‘Un-Plug’ project of Francois Roche and Stephanie Lavaux hinted at a ‘re-evaluation’ of ‘plug’ related to program in architecture. The embedded criticism and creative programmatic suggestions in both projects will be discussed from the point of view of using the accumulated urbanscape as a potential for contemplation, a theme that has also been elaborated, both theoretically and experimentally, by the artist/architect Gordon Matta-Clark in his 1978 ‘Balloon Housing’ project. These experimentations - about the ‘plug’ - need to be discussed in order to understand their contributions as traceable sources to program issue in contemporary architecture.

Web-Mediated Problem-Based Learning and Computer Programming: Effects of Study Approach on Academic Achievement and Attitude

Science.gov (United States)

Yagci, Mustafa

2018-01-01

In the relevant literature, it is often debated whether learning programming requires high-level thinking skills, the lack of which consequently results in the failure of students in programming. The complex nature of programming and individual differences, including study approaches, thinking styles, and the focus of supervision, all have an…

Cost-effectiveness of screening programs for Chlamydia trachomatis - A population-based dynamic approach

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Welte, R; Kretzschmar, M; Leidl, R; Van den Hoek, A; Jager, JC; Postma, MJ

2000-01-01

Background: Models commonly used for the economic assessment of chamydial screening programs do not consider population effects. Goal: To develop a novel dynamic approach for the economic evaluation of chlamydial prevention measures and to determine the cost-effectiveness of a general

Solving conic optimization problems via self-dual embedding and facial reduction: A unified approach

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Permenter, Frank; Friberg, Henrik A.; Andersen, Erling D.

2017-01-01

it fails to return a primal-dual optimal solution or a certificate of infeasibility. Using this observation, we give an algorithm based on facial reduction for solving the primal problem that, in principle, always succeeds. (An analogous algorithm is easily stated for the dual problem.) This algorithm has...... the appealing property that it only performs facial reduction when it is required, not when it is possible; e.g., if a primal-dual optimal solution exists, it will be found in lieu of a facial reduction certificate even if Slater's condition fails. For the case of linear, second-order, and semidefinite...

Empowering breeding programs with new approaches to overcome constraints for selecting superior quality traits of rice

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Calingacion, M.N.

2015-01-01

Empowering breeding programs with new approaches to overcome constraints for selecting superior quality traits of rice

Mariafe N. Calingacion

Most rice breeding programs have focused on improving agronomic traits such as yield, while enhancing grain quality traits

A Practical Approach to Implementing the Core Competencies in a Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Residency Program

Science.gov (United States)

Dingle, Arden D.; Sexson, Sandra B.

2007-01-01

Objective: The authors describe the development and implementation of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education's core competencies in a child and adolescent psychiatry residency program. Method: The authors identify the program's organizational approach and participants and detail various strategies and methods of defining,…

An integrated approach to strategic planning in the civilian high-level radioactive waste management program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sprecher, W.M.; Katz, J.; Redmond, R.J.

1992-01-01

This paper describes the approach that the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM) of the Department of Energy (DOE) is taking to the task of strategic planning for the civilian high-level radioactive waste management program. It highlights selected planning products and activities that have emerged over the past year. It demonstrates that this approach is an integrated one, both in the sense of being systematic on the program level but also as a component of DOE strategic planning efforts. Lastly, it indicates that OCRWM strategic planning takes place in a dynamic environment and consequently is a process that is still evolving in response to the demands placed upon it

Epidemiology program at the Savannah River Plant: a tiered approach to research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fayerweather, W.E.

1984-01-01

The epidemiology program at the Savannah River Plant (SRP) uses a tiered approach to research. As research progresses from lower through higher tiers, there is a corresponding increase in study complexity, cost, and time commitment. The approach provides a useful strategy for directing research efforts towards those employee subgroups and health endpoints that can benefit most from more in-depth studies. A variety of potential exposures, health endpoints, and employee subgroups have been and continued to be studied by research groups such as Oak Ridge Associated Universities, Los Alamos National Laboratories, Centers for Disease Control, SRP's Occupational Health Technology, and the Du Pont Company's corporate Epidemiology Section. These studies are discussed in the context of a tiered approach to research

Specific Cell (Re-)Programming: Approaches and Perspectives.

Science.gov (United States)

Hausburg, Frauke; Jung, Julia Jeannine; David, Robert

2018-01-01

Many disorders are manifested by dysfunction of key cell types or their disturbed integration in complex organs. Thereby, adult organ systems often bear restricted self-renewal potential and are incapable of achieving functional regeneration. This underlies the need for novel strategies in the field of cell (re-)programming-based regenerative medicine as well as for drug development in vitro. The regenerative field has been hampered by restricted availability of adult stem cells and the potentially hazardous features of pluripotent embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). Moreover, ethical concerns and legal restrictions regarding the generation and use of ESCs still exist. The establishment of direct reprogramming protocols for various therapeutically valuable somatic cell types has overcome some of these limitations. Meanwhile, new perspectives for safe and efficient generation of different specified somatic cell types have emerged from numerous approaches relying on exogenous expression of lineage-specific transcription factors, coding and noncoding RNAs, and chemical compounds.It should be of highest priority to develop protocols for the production of mature and physiologically functional cells with properties ideally matching those of their endogenous counterparts. Their availability can bring together basic research, drug screening, safety testing, and ultimately clinical trials. Here, we highlight the remarkable successes in cellular (re-)programming, which have greatly advanced the field of regenerative medicine in recent years. In particular, we review recent progress on the generation of cardiomyocyte subtypes, with a focus on cardiac pacemaker cells. Graphical Abstract.

A non-traditional multinational approach to construction inspection program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ram, Srinivasan; Smith, M.E.; Walker, T.F.

2007-01-01

The next generation of nuclear plants would be fabricated, constructed and licensed in markedly different ways than the present light water reactors. Non-traditional commercial nuclear industry suppliers, shipyards in Usa and international fabricators, would be a source to supply major components and subsystems. The codes of construction may vary depending upon the prevailing codes and standards used by the respective supplier. Such codes and standards need to be reconciled with the applicable regulations (e.g., 10 CFR 52). A Construction Inspection Program is an integral part of the Quality Assurance Measures required during the Construction Phase of the power plant. In order to achieve the stated cost and schedule goals of the new build plants, a nontraditional multi-national approach would be required. In lieu of the traditional approach of individual utility inspecting the quality of fabrication and construction, a multi-utility team approach is a method that will be discussed. Likewise, a multinational cooperative licensing approach is suggested taking advantage of inspectors of the regulatory authority where the component would be built. The multi-national approach proposed here is based on the principle of forming teaming agreements between the utilities, vendors and the regulators. For instance, rather than sending Country A's inspectors all over the world, inspectors of the regulator in Country B where a particular component is being fabricated would in fact be performing the required inspections for Country A's regulator. Similarly teaming arrangements could be set up between utilities and vendors in different countries. The required oversight for the utility or the vendor could be performed by their counterparts in the country where a particular item is being fabricated

From coach to colleague: adjusting pedagogical approaches and attitudes in accelerated nursing programs.

Science.gov (United States)

Bowie, Bonnie H; Carr, Katherine Camacho

2013-01-01

Accelerated nursing programs are an innovative approach to training nurses and advanced practice nurses that are growing steadily in number and popularity. Although there is ample evidence to show that these programs have good outcomes, acceptance by both faculty and nurses in the community remains low. This article gives a description of the accelerated nursing student, which provides some insight as to why this student is both a challenge and a joy to mentor. In addition, an overview of pedagogical approaches that may be helpful in teaching this bright group of accelerated nursing students is provided. Accelerated nursing students enrich the nursing profession with the myriad of skills and varied backgrounds they bring to nursing. As professionals, mentors, and educators, we need to not only embrace accelerated students but also be advocates and mentors for them as they assimilate into our profession. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Law and Justice CTE Program Offers a Hands-On Approach to Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Klein, Jennifer

2013-01-01

Tom Washburn, founder of the Law and Justice Program in Fulton County Schools in Atlanta, Georgia, sees career and technical education (CTE) as a framework for gains in reading comprehension, public speaking, math and science. "It's a holistic approach to learning, framed by law and justice. Behind the scenes we're reading novels, improving…

An Integrated Constraint Programming Approach to Scheduling Sports Leagues with Divisional and Round-robin Tournaments

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Carlsson, Mats; Johansson, Mikael; Larson, Jeffrey

2014-01-01

Previous approaches for scheduling a league with round-robin and divisional tournaments involved decomposing the problem into easier subproblems. This approach, used to schedule the top Swedish handball league Elitserien, reduces the problem complexity but can result in suboptimal schedules. This paper presents an integrated constraint programming model that allows to perform the scheduling in a single step. Particular attention is given to identifying implied and symmetry-breaking constraints that reduce the computational complexity significantly. The experimental evaluation of the integrated approach takes considerably less computational effort than the previous approach.

Understanding implementation of comprehensive geriatric care programs: a multiple perspective approach is preferred

NARCIS (Netherlands)

J.B.M. Vos; J.M. Cramm (Jane); J.D.H. van Wijngaarden (Jeroen); T.J.E.M. Bakker (Ton); J.P. Mackenbach (Johan); A.P. Nieboer (Anna)

2017-01-01

textabstractBackground: The Prevention and Reactivation Care Program (PReCaP) provides a novel approach targeting hospital-related functional decline among elderly patients. Despite the high expectations, the PReCaP was not effective in preventing functional decline (ADL and iADL) among older

The Integration of a Family Systems Approach for Understanding Youth Obesity, Physical Activity, and Dietary Programs

Science.gov (United States)

Kitzman-Ulrich, Heather; Wilson, Dawn K.; St. George, Sara M.; Lawman, Hannah; Segal, Michelle; Fairchild, Amanda

2010-01-01

Rates of overweight in youth have reached epidemic proportions and are associated with adverse health outcomes. Family-based programs have been widely used to treat overweight in youth. However, few programs incorporate a theoretical framework for studying a family systems approach in relation to youth health behavior change. Therefore, this…

Value drivers: an approach for estimating health and disease management program savings.

Science.gov (United States)

Phillips, V L; Becker, Edmund R; Howard, David H

2013-12-01

Health and disease management (HDM) programs have faced challenges in documenting savings related to their implementation. The objective of this eliminate study was to describe OptumHealth's (Optum) methods for estimating anticipated savings from HDM programs using Value Drivers. Optum's general methodology was reviewed, along with details of 5 high-use Value Drivers. The results showed that the Value Driver approach offers an innovative method for estimating savings associated with HDM programs. The authors demonstrated how real-time savings can be estimated for 5 Value Drivers commonly used in HDM programs: (1) use of beta-blockers in treatment of heart disease, (2) discharge planning for high-risk patients, (3) decision support related to chronic low back pain, (4) obesity management, and (5) securing transportation for primary care. The validity of savings estimates is dependent on the type of evidence used to gauge the intervention effect, generating changes in utilization and, ultimately, costs. The savings estimates derived from the Value Driver method are generally reasonable to conservative and provide a valuable framework for estimating financial impacts from evidence-based interventions.

Learning-Based Adaptive Optimal Tracking Control of Strict-Feedback Nonlinear Systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Gao, Weinan; Jiang, Zhong-Ping; Weinan Gao; Zhong-Ping Jiang; Gao, Weinan; Jiang, Zhong-Ping

2018-06-01

This paper proposes a novel data-driven control approach to address the problem of adaptive optimal tracking for a class of nonlinear systems taking the strict-feedback form. Adaptive dynamic programming (ADP) and nonlinear output regulation theories are integrated for the first time to compute an adaptive near-optimal tracker without any a priori knowledge of the system dynamics. Fundamentally different from adaptive optimal stabilization problems, the solution to a Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman (HJB) equation, not necessarily a positive definite function, cannot be approximated through the existing iterative methods. This paper proposes a novel policy iteration technique for solving positive semidefinite HJB equations with rigorous convergence analysis. A two-phase data-driven learning method is developed and implemented online by ADP. The efficacy of the proposed adaptive optimal tracking control methodology is demonstrated via a Van der Pol oscillator with time-varying exogenous signals.

Cognitive agent programming : A semantic approach

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Riemsdijk, M.B. van

2006-01-01

In this thesis we are concerned with the design and investigation of dedicated programming languages for programming agents. We focus in particular on programming languages for rational agents, i.e., flexibly behaving computing entities that are able to make "good" decisions about what to do. An

Image subsampling and point scoring approaches for large-scale marine benthic monitoring programs

Science.gov (United States)

Perkins, Nicholas R.; Foster, Scott D.; Hill, Nicole A.; Barrett, Neville S.

2016-07-01

Benthic imagery is an effective tool for quantitative description of ecologically and economically important benthic habitats and biota. The recent development of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) allows surveying of spatial scales that were previously unfeasible. However, an AUV collects a large number of images, the scoring of which is time and labour intensive. There is a need to optimise the way that subsamples of imagery are chosen and scored to gain meaningful inferences for ecological monitoring studies. We examine the trade-off between the number of images selected within transects and the number of random points scored within images on the percent cover of target biota, the typical output of such monitoring programs. We also investigate the efficacy of various image selection approaches, such as systematic or random, on the bias and precision of cover estimates. We use simulated biotas that have varying size, abundance and distributional patterns. We find that a relatively small sampling effort is required to minimise bias. An increased precision for groups that are likely to be the focus of monitoring programs is best gained through increasing the number of images sampled rather than the number of points scored within images. For rare species, sampling using point count approaches is unlikely to provide sufficient precision, and alternative sampling approaches may need to be employed. The approach by which images are selected (simple random sampling, regularly spaced etc.) had no discernible effect on mean and variance estimates, regardless of the distributional pattern of biota. Field validation of our findings is provided through Monte Carlo resampling analysis of a previously scored benthic survey from temperate waters. We show that point count sampling approaches are capable of providing relatively precise cover estimates for candidate groups that are not overly rare. The amount of sampling required, in terms of both the number of images and

Broadening of nuclear engineering programs: An engineering physics approach at Rensselaer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Malaviya, B.K.

1990-01-01

With the maturing of nuclear engineering as an academic discipline and the uncertainty surrounding the nuclear industry, attention is being increasingly turned to ways in which the base of traditional nuclear engineering programs in universities can be broadened to make them more attractively useful to a wider class of potential students and employers while maintaining the strengths in mainstream areas of nuclear technology. An approach that seems to provide a natural evolution combining the existing programmatic strengths, infrastructure, and resources with the trending needs of a broad segment of diversified industries is the development and initiation of an engineering physics degree program as an adjunct to an established nuclear engineering curriculum. In line with these developments, a new comprehensive academic program offering baccalaureate, master's, and doctoral degrees in engineering physics has been developed and formally instituted at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI). It provides a valuable opportunity for students to pursue education and research that cuts across traditional disciplinary lines, leading to a wide variety of career opportunities in industry, government, national research and defense laboratories, and academia

A penalization approach to linear programming duality with application to capacity constrained transport

OpenAIRE

Korman, Jonathan; McCann, Robert J.; Seis, Christian

2013-01-01

A new approach to linear programming duality is proposed which relies on quadratic penalization, so that the relation between solutions to the penalized primal and dual problems becomes affine. This yields a new proof of Levin's duality theorem for capacity-constrained optimal transport as an infinite-dimensional application.

An Integer Programming Approach to Solving Tantrix on Fixed Boards

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yushi Uno

2012-03-01

Full Text Available Tantrix (Tantrix R ⃝ is a registered trademark of Colour of Strategy Ltd. in New Zealand, and of TANTRIX JAPAN in Japan, respectively, under the license of M. McManaway, the inventor. is a puzzle to make a loop by connecting lines drawn on hexagonal tiles, and the objective of this research is to solve it by a computer. For this purpose, we first give a problem setting of solving Tantrix as making a loop on a given fixed board. We then formulate it as an integer program by describing the rules of Tantrix as its constraints, and solve it by a mathematical programming solver to have a solution. As a result, we establish a formulation that can solve Tantrix of moderate size, and even when the solutions are invalid only by elementary constraints, we achieved it by introducing additional constraints and re-solve it. By this approach we succeeded to solve Tantrix of size up to 60.

On the Dynamic Programming Approach for the 3D Navier-Stokes Equations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Manca, Luigi

2008-01-01

The dynamic programming approach for the control of a 3D flow governed by the stochastic Navier-Stokes equations for incompressible fluid in a bounded domain is studied. By a compactness argument, existence of solutions for the associated Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman equation is proved. Finally, existence of an optimal control through the feedback formula and of an optimal state is discussed

The effectiveness of web-programming module based on scientific approach to train logical thinking ability for students in vocational high school

Science.gov (United States)

Nashiroh, Putri Khoirin; Kamdi, Waras; Elmunsyah, Hakkun

2017-09-01

Web programming is a basic subject in Computer and Informatics Engineering, a program study in a vocational high school. It requires logical thinking ability in its learning activities. The purposes of this research were (1) to develop a web programming module that implement scientific approach that can improve logical thinking ability for students in vocational high school; and (2) to test the effectiveness of web programming module based on scientific approach to train students' logical thinking ability. The results of this research was a web-programming module that apply scientific approach for learning activities to improve logical thinking ability of students in the vocational high school. The results of the effectiveness test of web-programming module give conclusion that it was very effective to train logical thinking ability and to improve learning result, this conclusion was supported by: (1) the average of posttest result of students exceeds the minimum criterion value, it was 79.91; (2) the average percentage of students' logical thinking score is 82,98; and (3) the average percentage of students' responses to the web programming module was 81.86%.

Proposing an Aggregate Production Planning Model by Goal Programming Approach, a Case Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mansoureh Farzam Rad

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Production planning is one of the most important functions in the process of production management. Production planning in the intermediate range of time is termed as aggregate production planning (APP. Aggregate production planning is an important upper level planning activity in a production management system. The present study tries to suggest an aggregate production planning model for products of Hafez tile factory during one year. Due to this fact that the director of the company seeks 3 main objectives to determine the optimal production rate, the linear goal planning method was employed. After solving the problem, in order to examine the efficiency and the distinctiveness of this method in compare to linear programming, the problem was modeled just by considering one objective then was solved by linear programming approach. The findings revealed the goal programming with multi objectives resulted more appropriate solution rather than linear programming with just one objective.

An integrated approach to validation of safeguards and security program performance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Altman, W.D.; Hunt, J.S.; Hockert, J.W.

1988-01-01

Department of Energy (DOE) requirements for safeguards and security programs are becoming increasingly performance oriented. Master Safeguards and Security Agreemtns specify performance levels for systems protecting DOE security interests. In order to measure and validate security system performance, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) has developed cost effective validation tools and a comprehensive validation approach that synthesizes information gained from different activities such as force on force exercises, limited scope performance tests, equipment testing, vulnerability analyses, and computer modeling; into an overall assessment of the performance of the protection system. The analytic approach employs logic diagrams adapted from the fault and event trees used in probabilistic risk assessment. The synthesis of the results from the various validation activities is accomplished using a method developed by LLNL, based upon Bayes' theorem

An Alternative Approach for MBA Mentor Programs: Empower the Protégé

Science.gov (United States)

Artis, Andrew B.

2013-01-01

A new approach is proposed to maximize the benefits of mentor relationships between master of business administration (MBA) students and executives by empowering students to select and recruit their own mentors, and then be responsible for managing those relationships. This mentor program is designed to be short but intensive. First-year MBA…

Practices and Approaches of Out-of-School Time Programs Serving Immigrant and Refugee Youth

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Georgia Hall

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Opportunity to participate in an out-of-school time program may be a meaningful support mechanism towards school success and healthy development for immigrant and refugee children. This study extends existing research on best practices by examining the on-the-ground experiences of supporting immigrant and refugee youth in out-of-school time programs. Findings from semi-structured interviews with program directors in 17 Massachusetts and New Hampshire programs suggest a number of program strategies that were responsive to the needs of immigrant and refugee students, including support for the use of native language as well as English, knowing about and celebrating the heritage of the students’ homeland, including on staff or in leadership individuals with shared immigrant background, and giving consideration to the academic priorities of parents. The development of such intentional approaches to working with immigrant and refugee youth during the out-of-school time hours will encourage enrollment of, and enhance effectiveness with, this vulnerable population.

Approaches to Education and Training for Kenya's Nuclear Power Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kalambuka, H.A.

2014-01-01

1. Review of status and development of E and T for the nuclear power program in Kenya; 2. Review of challenges in nuclear E and T, and the initiatives being undertaken to mitigate them: • Recommendations for strategic action; 3. State of nuclear skills in the context of key drivers of the global revival in nuclear energy; 4. Point of view: Education in Applied Nuclear and Radiation physics at Nairobi: • Its growth has helped identify the gaps, and relevant practical approaches for realizing the broad spectrum of technical capacity to conduct a national NPP; 5. Proposed approach to support the E and T infrastructure necessary to allow the country to plan, construct, operate, regulate, and safely and securely handle nuclear facilities sustainably; 6. Specified E and T initiatives in the context of the national industrial development strategy and nuclear energy policy and funding for the complete life cycle and technology localization. (author)

A general framework for unambiguous detection of quantum states

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eldar, Y.

2004-01-01

Full Text:The problem of detecting information stored in the state of a quantum system is a fundamental problem in quantum information theory. Several approaches have emerged to distinguishing between a collection of non-orthogonal quantum states. We consider the problem of unambiguous detection where we seek a measurement that with a certain probability returns an inconclusive result, but such that if the measurement returns an answer, then the answer is correct with probability 1. We begin by considering unambiguous discrimination between a set of linearly independent pure quantum states. We show that the design of the optimal measurement that minimizes the probability of an inconclusive result can be formulated as a semidefinite programming problem. Based on this formulation, we develop a set of necessary and sufficient conditions for an optimal quantum measurement. We show that the optimal measurement can be computed very efficiently in polynomial time by exploiting the many well-known algorithms for solving semidefinite programs, which are guaranteed to converge to the global optimum. Using the general conditions for optimality, we derive necessary and sufficient conditions so that the measurement that results in an equal probability of an inconclusive result for each one of the quantum states is optimal. We refer to this measurement as the equal-probability measurement (EPM). We then show that for any state set, the prior probabilities of the states can be chosen such that the EPM is optimal. Finally, we consider state sets with strong symmetry properties and equal prior probabilities for which the EPM is optimal. We next develop a general framework for unambiguous state discrimination between a collection of mixed quantum states, which can be applied to any number of states with arbitrary prior probabilities. In particular, we derive a set of necessary and sufficient conditions for an optimal measurement that minimizes the probability of an inconclusive

A predictive modeling approach to increasing the economic effectiveness of disease management programs.

Science.gov (United States)

Bayerstadler, Andreas; Benstetter, Franz; Heumann, Christian; Winter, Fabian

2014-09-01

Predictive Modeling (PM) techniques are gaining importance in the worldwide health insurance business. Modern PM methods are used for customer relationship management, risk evaluation or medical management. This article illustrates a PM approach that enables the economic potential of (cost-) effective disease management programs (DMPs) to be fully exploited by optimized candidate selection as an example of successful data-driven business management. The approach is based on a Generalized Linear Model (GLM) that is easy to apply for health insurance companies. By means of a small portfolio from an emerging country, we show that our GLM approach is stable compared to more sophisticated regression techniques in spite of the difficult data environment. Additionally, we demonstrate for this example of a setting that our model can compete with the expensive solutions offered by professional PM vendors and outperforms non-predictive standard approaches for DMP selection commonly used in the market.

An Environmental Management Maturity Model of Construction Programs Using the AHP-Entropy Approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Libiao Bai

2018-06-01

Full Text Available The accelerating process of urbanization in China has led to considerable opportunities for the development of construction projects, however, environmental issues have become an important constraint on the implementation of these projects. To quantitatively describe the environmental management capabilities of such projects, this paper proposes a 2-dimensional Environmental Management Maturity Model of Construction Program (EMMMCP based on an analysis of existing projects, group management theory and a management maturity model. In this model, a synergetic process was included to compensate for the lack of consideration of synergies in previous studies, and it was involved in the construction of the first dimension, i.e., the environmental management index system. The second dimension, i.e., the maturity level of environment management, was then constructed by redefining the hierarchical characteristics of construction program (CP environmental management maturity. Additionally, a mathematical solution to this proposed model was derived via the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP-entropy approach. To verify the effectiveness and feasibility of this proposed model, a computational experiment was conducted, and the results show that this approach could not only measure the individual levels of different processes, but also achieve the most important objective of providing a reference for stakeholders when making decisions on the environmental management of construction program, which reflects this model is reasonable for evaluating the level of environmental management maturity in CP. To our knowledge, this paper is the first study to evaluate the environmental management maturity levels of CP, which would fill the gap between project program management and environmental management and provide a reference for relevant management personnel to enhance their environmental management capabilities.

A blended learning approach for teaching computer programming: design for large classes in Sub-Saharan Africa

Science.gov (United States)

Bayu Bati, Tesfaye; Gelderblom, Helene; van Biljon, Judy

2014-01-01

The challenge of teaching programming in higher education is complicated by problems associated with large class teaching, a prevalent situation in many developing countries. This paper reports on an investigation into the use of a blended learning approach to teaching and learning of programming in a class of more than 200 students. A course and learning environment was designed by integrating constructivist learning models of Constructive Alignment, Conversational Framework and the Three-Stage Learning Model. Design science research is used for the course redesign and development of the learning environment, and action research is integrated to undertake participatory evaluation of the intervention. The action research involved the Students' Approach to Learning survey, a comparative analysis of students' performance, and qualitative data analysis of data gathered from various sources. The paper makes a theoretical contribution in presenting a design of a blended learning solution for large class teaching of programming grounded in constructivist learning theory and use of free and open source technologies.

Mass Optimization of Battery/Supercapacitors Hybrid Systems Based on a Linear Programming Approach

Science.gov (United States)

Fleury, Benoit; Labbe, Julien

2014-08-01

The objective of this paper is to show that, on a specific launcher-type mission profile, a 40% gain of mass is expected using a battery/supercapacitors active hybridization instead of a single battery solution. This result is based on the use of a linear programming optimization approach to perform the mass optimization of the hybrid power supply solution.

"Evaluation as Illumination: A New Approach to the Study of Innovatory Programs". Occasional Paper.

Science.gov (United States)

Parlett, Malcolm; Hamilton, David

Conventional approaches to program evaluation have followed the experimental and psychometric traditions dominant in educational research. Their aim (unfulfilled) of achieving fully objective methods had led to studies that are artificial and restricted in scope. Illuminative evaluation is introduced as a total re-appraisal of the rationale and…

A Comparison of Student Academic Performance with Traditional, Online, and Flipped Instructional Approaches in a C# Programming Course

Science.gov (United States)

Sharp, Jason H.; Sharp, Laurie A.

2017-01-01

Aim/Purpose: Compared student academic performance on specific course requirements in a C# programming course across three instructional approaches: traditional, online, and flipped. Background: Addressed the following research question--When compared to the online and traditional instructional approaches, does the flipped instructional approach…

Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy of supercapacitors: A novel analysis approach using evolutionary programming

Science.gov (United States)

Oz, Alon; Hershkovitz, Shany; Tsur, Yoed

2014-11-01

In this contribution we present a novel approach to analyze impedance spectroscopy measurements of supercapacitors. Transforming the impedance data into frequency-dependent capacitance allows us to use Impedance Spectroscopy Genetic Programming (ISGP) in order to find the distribution function of relaxation times (DFRT) of the processes taking place in the tested device. Synthetic data was generated in order to demonstrate this technique and a model for supercapacitor ageing process has been obtained.

Empirical valence bond models for reactive potential energy surfaces: a parallel multilevel genetic program approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Bellucci, Michael A; Coker, David F

2011-07-28

We describe a new method for constructing empirical valence bond potential energy surfaces using a parallel multilevel genetic program (PMLGP). Genetic programs can be used to perform an efficient search through function space and parameter space to find the best functions and sets of parameters that fit energies obtained by ab initio electronic structure calculations. Building on the traditional genetic program approach, the PMLGP utilizes a hierarchy of genetic programming on two different levels. The lower level genetic programs are used to optimize coevolving populations in parallel while the higher level genetic program (HLGP) is used to optimize the genetic operator probabilities of the lower level genetic programs. The HLGP allows the algorithm to dynamically learn the mutation or combination of mutations that most effectively increase the fitness of the populations, causing a significant increase in the algorithm's accuracy and efficiency. The algorithm's accuracy and efficiency is tested against a standard parallel genetic program with a variety of one-dimensional test cases. Subsequently, the PMLGP is utilized to obtain an accurate empirical valence bond model for proton transfer in 3-hydroxy-gamma-pyrone in gas phase and protic solvent. © 2011 American Institute of Physics

An obesity/cardiometabolic risk reduction disease management program: a population-based approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Villagra, Victor G

2009-04-01

Obesity is a critical health concern that has captured the attention of public and private healthcare payers who are interested in controlling costs and mitigating the long-term economic consequences of the obesity epidemic. Population-based approaches to obesity management have been proposed that take advantage of a chronic care model (CCM), including patient self-care, the use of community-based resources, and the realization of care continuity through ongoing communications with patients, information technology, and public policy changes. Payer-sponsored disease management programs represent an important conduit to delivering population-based care founded on similar CCM concepts. Disease management is founded on population-based disease identification, evidence-based care protocols, and collaborative practices between clinicians. While substantial clinician training, technology infrastructure commitments, and financial support at the payer level will be needed for the success of disease management programs in obesity and cardiometabolic risk reduction, these barriers can be overcome with the proper commitment. Disease management programs represent an important tool to combat the growing societal risks of overweight and obesity.

Fellowship Program in Health System Improvement: A novel approach integrating leadership development and patient-centred health system transformation.

Science.gov (United States)

Philippon, Donald J; Montesanti, Stephanie; Stafinski, Tania

2018-03-01

This article highlights a novel approach to professional development, integrating leadership, development and patient-centred health system transformation in the new Fellowship Program in Health System Improvement offered by the School of Public Health at the University of Alberta. Early assessment of the program is also provided.

On robust signal reconstruction in noisy filter banks

CERN Document Server

Vikalo, H; Hassibi, B; Kailath, T; 10.1016/j.sigpro.2004.08.011

2005-01-01

We study the design of synthesis filters in noisy filter bank systems using an H/sup infinity / estimation point of view. The H/sup infinity / approach is most promising in situations where the statistical properties of the disturbances (arising from quantization, compression, etc.) in each subband of the filter bank is unknown, or is too difficult to model and analyze. For the important special case of unitary analysis polyphase matrices we obtain an explicit expression for the minimum achievable disturbance attenuation. For arbitrary analysis polyphase matrices, standard state-space H/sup infinity / techniques can be employed to obtain numerical solutions. When the synthesis filters are restricted to being FIR, as is often the case in practice, the design can be cast as a finite-dimensional semi-definite program. In this case, we can effectively exploit the inherent non-uniqueness of the H/sup infinity / solution to optimize for an additional criteria. By optimizing for average performance in addition to th...

Closed-form Solution to Directly Design FACE Waveforms for Beampatterns Using Planar Array

KAUST Repository

Bouchoucha, Taha

2015-04-19

In multiple-input multiple-output radar systems, it is usually desirable to steer transmitted power in the region-of-interest. To do this, conventional methods optimize the waveform covariance matrix, R, for the desired beampattern, which is then used to generate actual transmitted waveforms. Both steps require constrained optimization, therefore, use iterative algorithms. The main challenges encountered in the existing approaches are the computational complexity and the design of waveforms to use in practice. In this paper, we provide a closed-form solution to design covariance matrix for the given beampattern using the planar array, which is then used to derive a novel closed-form algorithm to directly design the finite-alphabet constant-envelope (FACE) waveforms. The proposed algorithm exploits the two-dimensional fast-Fourier-transform. The performance of our proposed algorithm is compared with existing methods that are based on semi-definite quadratic programming with the advantage of a considerably reduced complexity.

Closed-form Solution to Directly Design FACE Waveforms for Beampatterns Using Planar Array

KAUST Repository

Bouchoucha, Taha; Ahmed, Sajid; Al-Naffouri, Tareq Y.; Alouini, Mohamed-Slim

2015-01-01

In multiple-input multiple-output radar systems, it is usually desirable to steer transmitted power in the region-of-interest. To do this, conventional methods optimize the waveform covariance matrix, R, for the desired beampattern, which is then used to generate actual transmitted waveforms. Both steps require constrained optimization, therefore, use iterative algorithms. The main challenges encountered in the existing approaches are the computational complexity and the design of waveforms to use in practice. In this paper, we provide a closed-form solution to design covariance matrix for the given beampattern using the planar array, which is then used to derive a novel closed-form algorithm to directly design the finite-alphabet constant-envelope (FACE) waveforms. The proposed algorithm exploits the two-dimensional fast-Fourier-transform. The performance of our proposed algorithm is compared with existing methods that are based on semi-definite quadratic programming with the advantage of a considerably reduced complexity.

A genetic programming approach for Burkholderia Pseudomallei diagnostic pattern discovery

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Zheng Rong; Lertmemongkolchai, Ganjana; Tan, Gladys; Felgner, Philip L.; Titball, Richard

2009-01-01

Motivation: Finding diagnostic patterns for fighting diseases like Burkholderia pseudomallei using biomarkers involves two key issues. First, exhausting all subsets of testable biomarkers (antigens in this context) to find a best one is computationally infeasible. Therefore, a proper optimization approach like evolutionary computation should be investigated. Second, a properly selected function of the antigens as the diagnostic pattern which is commonly unknown is a key to the diagnostic accuracy and the diagnostic effectiveness in clinical use. Results: A conversion function is proposed to convert serum tests of antigens on patients to binary values based on which Boolean functions as the diagnostic patterns are developed. A genetic programming approach is designed for optimizing the diagnostic patterns in terms of their accuracy and effectiveness. During optimization, it is aimed to maximize the coverage (the rate of positive response to antigens) in the infected patients and minimize the coverage in the non-infected patients while maintaining the fewest number of testable antigens used in the Boolean functions as possible. The final coverage in the infected patients is 96.55% using 17 of 215 (7.4%) antigens with zero coverage in the non-infected patients. Among these 17 antigens, BPSL2697 is the most frequently selected one for the diagnosis of Burkholderia Pseudomallei. The approach has been evaluated using both the cross-validation and the Jack–knife simulation methods with the prediction accuracy as 93% and 92%, respectively. A novel approach is also proposed in this study to evaluate a model with binary data using ROC analysis. Contact: z.r.yang@ex.ac.uk PMID:19561021

A systematic grounded approach to the development of complex interventions: the Australian WorkHealth Program--arthritis as a case study.

Science.gov (United States)

Reavley, Nicola; Livingston, Jenni; Buchbinder, Rachelle; Bennell, Kim; Stecki, Chris; Osborne, Richard Harry

2010-02-01

Despite demands for evidence-based research and practice, little attention has been given to systematic approaches to the development of complex interventions to tackle workplace health problems. This paper outlines an approach to the initial stages of a workplace program development which integrates health promotion and disease management. The approach commences with systematic and genuine processes of obtaining information from key stakeholders with broad experience of these interventions. This information is constructed into a program framework in which practice-based and research-informed elements are both valued. We used this approach to develop a workplace education program to reduce the onset and impact of a common chronic disease - osteoarthritis. To gain information systematically at a national level, a structured concept mapping workshop with 47 participants from across Australia was undertaken. Participants were selected to maximise the whole-of-workplace perspective and included health education providers, academics, clinicians and policymakers. Participants generated statements in response to a seeding statement: Thinking as broadly as possible, what changes in education and support should occur in the workplace to help in the prevention and management of arthritis? Participants grouped the resulting statements into conceptually coherent groups and a computer program was used to generate a 'cluster map' along with a list of statements sorted according to cluster membership. In combination with research-based evidence, the concept map informed the development of a program logic model incorporating the program's guiding principles, possible service providers, services, training modes, program elements and the causal processes by which participants might benefit. The program logic model components were further validated through research findings from diverse fields, including health education, coaching, organisational learning, workplace interventions

Demand side management scheme in smart grid with cloud computing approach using stochastic dynamic programming

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. Sofana Reka

2016-09-01

Full Text Available This paper proposes a cloud computing framework in smart grid environment by creating small integrated energy hub supporting real time computing for handling huge storage of data. A stochastic programming approach model is developed with cloud computing scheme for effective demand side management (DSM in smart grid. Simulation results are obtained using GUI interface and Gurobi optimizer in Matlab in order to reduce the electricity demand by creating energy networks in a smart hub approach.

Stochastic Fractional Programming Approach to a Mean and Variance Model of a Transportation Problem

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V. Charles

2011-01-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we propose a stochastic programming model, which considers a ratio of two nonlinear functions and probabilistic constraints. In the former, only expected model has been proposed without caring variability in the model. On the other hand, in the variance model, the variability played a vital role without concerning its counterpart, namely, the expected model. Further, the expected model optimizes the ratio of two linear cost functions where as variance model optimize the ratio of two non-linear functions, that is, the stochastic nature in the denominator and numerator and considering expectation and variability as well leads to a non-linear fractional program. In this paper, a transportation model with stochastic fractional programming (SFP problem approach is proposed, which strikes the balance between previous models available in the literature.

Evaluation Policy Alternatives for the Reengineering of the Department of Defense Personal Property Shipment and Storage Program - A Stakeholder Approach

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Lepson, Michael

1999-01-01

...) to evaluate the personal property pilot programs as part of Management Reform Memorandum # 6. This thesis evaluates the policy alternatives for reengineering the DOD personal property program using a stakeholder approach...

Approaching the new reality. [changes in NASA space programs due to US economy

Science.gov (United States)

Diaz, Al V.

1993-01-01

The focus on more frequent access to space through smaller, less costly missions, and on NASA's role as a source of technological advance within the U.S. economy is discussed. The Pluto fast flyby mission is examined as an illustration of this approach. Testbeds are to be developed to survive individual programs, becoming permanent facilities, to allow for technological upgrades on an ongoing basis.

An MDE Approach for Modular Program Analyses

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Yildiz, Bugra Mehmet; Bockisch, Christoph; Aksit, Mehmet; Rensink, Arend

Program analyses are an important tool to check if a system fulfills its specification. A typical implementation strategy for program analyses is to use an imperative, general-purpose language like Java, and access the program to be analyzed through libraries that offer an API for reading, writing

Impacts of the proposed program approach on waste stream characteristics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

King, J.F.; Fleming, M.E.

1995-01-01

The evolution of the U.S. Department of Energy's Civilian Radioactive Waste Management System (CRWMS) over the past few years has led to significant changes in key system scenario assumption. This paper describes the effects of two recent changes on waste stream characteristics focusing primarily on repository impacts. First, the multi-purpose canister (MPC) concept has been included in the Program baseline. The change from a bare fuel system to one including an MPC-based system forces the fuel assemblies initially loaded together in MPCs to remain together throughout the system. Second, current system analyses also assume a system without a monitored retrievable storage (MRS), with the understanding that an MRS would be reincorporated if a site becomes available. Together these two changes have significant impacts on waste stream characteristics. Those two changes create a class of scenarios referred to generally as Program Approach (PA) scenarios. Scenarios based on the previously assumed system, bare fuel with an MRS, are referred to here as the Previous Reference (PR) system scenarios. The analysis compares scenarios with otherwise consistent assumptions and presents summary comparisons. The number of disposal containers and the waste heat output are determined for eight PA and PR scenarios

Safety approach and R and D program for future french sodium-cooled fast reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beils, Stephane; Carluec, Bernard; Devictor, Nicolas; Fiorini, Gian Luigi; Sauvage, Jean Francois

2011-01-01

This paper presents briefly the safety approach as well as the R and D program that is underway to support the deployment of future French Sodium-Cooled fast Reactors (SFRs): A) Safety objectives and principles for future reactors. The content of the first section reflects the works of AREVA, CEA, and EDF concerning the safety orientations for the future reactors. The availability of such orientations and requirements for the SFRs has to allow introducing and managing the process that will lead to the detailed definition of the safety approach, to the selection of the corresponding safety options, and to the identification and motivation of the supporting R and D. B) Strategy and roadmap in support of the R and D for future SFRs. This section describes the R and D program led jointly by CEA, EDF, and AREVA, which has been developed with the objectives to be able to preliminarily define, by 2012, the safety orientations for the future SFRs, and to deduce from them the characteristics of the ASTRID prototype. (author)

A type-driven approach to concrete meta programming.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

J.J. Vinju (Jurgen)

2005-01-01

textabstractApplications that manipulate programs as data are called meta programs. Examples of meta programs are compilers, source-to-source translators and code generators. Meta programming can be supported by the ability to represent program fragments in concrete syntax instead of abstract

A program wide framework for evaluating data driven teaching and learning - earth analytics approaches, results and lessons learned

Science.gov (United States)

Wasser, L. A.; Gold, A. U.

2017-12-01

There is a deluge of earth systems data available to address cutting edge science problems yet specific skills are required to work with these data. The Earth analytics education program, a core component of Earth Lab at the University of Colorado - Boulder - is building a data intensive program that provides training in realms including 1) interdisciplinary communication and collaboration 2) earth science domain knowledge including geospatial science and remote sensing and 3) reproducible, open science workflows ("earth analytics"). The earth analytics program includes an undergraduate internship, undergraduate and graduate level courses and a professional certificate / degree program. All programs share the goals of preparing a STEM workforce for successful earth analytics driven careers. We are developing an program-wide evaluation framework that assesses the effectiveness of data intensive instruction combined with domain science learning to better understand and improve data-intensive teaching approaches using blends of online, in situ, asynchronous and synchronous learning. We are using targeted online search engine optimization (SEO) to increase visibility and in turn program reach. Finally our design targets longitudinal program impacts on participant career tracts over time.. Here we present results from evaluation of both an interdisciplinary undergrad / graduate level earth analytics course and and undergraduate internship. Early results suggest that a blended approach to learning and teaching that includes both synchronous in-person teaching and active classroom hands-on learning combined with asynchronous learning in the form of online materials lead to student success. Further we will present our model for longitudinal tracking of participant's career focus overtime to better understand long-term program impacts. We also demonstrate the impact of SEO optimization on online content reach and program visibility.

Unambiguous discrimination of mixed states: A description based on system-ancilla coupling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhou, Xiang-Fa; Zhang, Yong-Sheng; Guo, Guang-Can

2007-01-01

We propose a general description for the unambiguous discrimination of mixed states according to the system-environment coupling, and present a procedure to reduce this to a standard semidefinite programming problem. In the two-state case, we introduce the canonical vectors and partly simplify the problem to the case of discrimination between pairs of canonical vectors. By considering the positivity of the 2x2 matrices, we obtain a series of new upper bounds for the total success probability, which depends on both the prior probabilities and specific state structures

Approaches used by employee assistance programs to address perpetration of intimate partner violence.

Science.gov (United States)

Walters, Jennifer L Hardison; Pollack, Keshia M; Clinton-Sherrod, Monique; Lindquist, Christine H; McKay, Tasseli; Lasater, Beth M

2012-01-01

Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) are workplace resources available to employees with problems impacting work performance. EAPs are well-positioned to address intimate partner violence (IPV), a major public health problem with workplace impacts. A purposeful sample of 28 EAPs across the United States was surveyed to identify policies and programs to address IPV, including perpetration. Most EAPs did not report having standardized approaches for addressing IPV perpetration. EAPs also described significant barriers to identifying IPV perpetrators, with the majority relying on self-disclosure on the part of the perpetrator when contacting the EAP. These results suggest that many EAPs--even when interacting with employees who present with issues known to correlate with IPV--are missing a potential opportunity to assess and intervene with IPV perpetrators.

Seismic safety margins research program. Phase I. Project VII: systems analysis specifications of computational approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Collins, J.D.; Hudson, J.M.; Chrostowski, J.D.

1979-02-01

A computational methodology is presented for the prediction of core melt probabilities in a nuclear power plant due to earthquake events. The proposed model has four modules: seismic hazard, structural dynamic (including soil-structure interaction), component failure and core melt sequence. The proposed modules would operate in series and would not have to be operated at the same time. The basic statistical approach uses a Monte Carlo simulation to treat random and systematic error but alternate statistical approaches are permitted by the program design

Uncertainty Modeling and Robust Output Feedback Control of Nonlinear Discrete Systems: A Mathematical Programming Approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Olav Slupphaug

2001-01-01

Full Text Available We present a mathematical programming approach to robust control of nonlinear systems with uncertain, possibly time-varying, parameters. The uncertain system is given by different local affine parameter dependent models in different parts of the state space. It is shown how this representation can be obtained from a nonlinear uncertain system by solving a set of continuous linear semi-infinite programming problems, and how each of these problems can be solved as a (finite series of ordinary linear programs. Additionally, the system representation includes control- and state constraints. The controller design method is derived from Lyapunov stability arguments and utilizes an affine parameter dependent quadratic Lyapunov function. The controller has a piecewise affine output feedback structure, and the design amounts to finding a feasible solution to a set of linear matrix inequalities combined with one spectral radius constraint on the product of two positive definite matrices. A local solution approach to this nonconvex feasibility problem is proposed. Complexity of the design method and some special cases such as state- feedback are discussed. Finally, an application of the results is given by proposing an on-line computationally feasible algorithm for constrained nonlinear state- feedback model predictive control with robust stability.

ANALYSIS OF FUZZY QUEUES: PARAMETRIC PROGRAMMING APPROACH BASED ON RANDOMNESS - FUZZINESS CONSISTENCY PRINCIPLE

OpenAIRE

Dhruba Das; Hemanta K. Baruah

2015-01-01

In this article, based on Zadeh’s extension principle we have apply the parametric programming approach to construct the membership functions of the performance measures when the interarrival time and the service time are fuzzy numbers based on the Baruah’s Randomness- Fuzziness Consistency Principle. The Randomness-Fuzziness Consistency Principle leads to defining a normal law of fuzziness using two different laws of randomness. In this article, two fuzzy queues FM...

New approaches to energy efficiency programs in the Brazilian industry; Novas abordagens para programas de eficiencia energetica na industria brasileira

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sant' ana, Paulo Henrique de Mello [Universidade Federal do ABC (UFABC), Santo Andre, SP (Brazil). Centro de Engenharia e Ciencias Sociais Aplicadas. Nucleo Interdisciplinar de Planejamento Energetico; Bajay, Sergio Valdir [Universidade Estadual de Campinas (NIPE/UNICAMP), SP (Brazil). Fac. de Engenharia Mecanica. Nucleo Interdisciplinar de Planejamento Energetico

2010-07-01

A modern approach often used in international literature says that the government has the role to create favorable conditions for improving energy efficiency in industry, either through policies, programs or actions. This article's main objective is to describe the main programs for promoting energy efficiency in industry in Brazil and in other countries, for later to propose a new approach for the management and development of energy efficiency programs for the Brazilian industry. The creation of an executive agency, connected to the MME and with strong ties to ELETROBRAS and PETROBRAS, could manage effectively the enormous resources that are needed to mobilize the energy efficiency programs as real alternatives to programs for additional expansion in energy supply. The creation of energy assessment centers, along with an energy efficiency program for energy-intensive industry, would help in promoting energy efficiency in industry. These actions would likely bounce in other industries, and would assist in achieving optimal management standards in the energy industry, consistent with ISO 9000 and ISO 14000, used in countries like the USA and Sweden. (author)

TRAIL-induced programmed necrosis as a novel approach to eliminate tumor cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Voigt, Susann; Kalthoff, Holger; Adam, Dieter; Philipp, Stephan; Davarnia, Parvin; Winoto-Morbach, Supandi; Röder, Christian; Arenz, Christoph; Trauzold, Anna; Kabelitz, Dieter; Schütze, Stefan

2014-01-01

The cytokine TRAIL represents one of the most promising candidates for the apoptotic elimination of tumor cells, either alone or in combination therapies. However, its efficacy is often limited by intrinsic or acquired resistance of tumor cells to apoptosis. Programmed necrosis is an alternative, molecularly distinct mode of programmed cell death that is elicited by TRAIL under conditions when the classical apoptosis machinery fails or is actively inhibited. The potential of TRAIL-induced programmed necrosis in tumor therapy is, however, almost completely uncharacterized. We therefore investigated its impact on a panel of tumor cell lines of wide-ranging origin. Cell death/viability was measured by flow cytometry/determination of intracellular ATP levels/crystal violet staining. Cell surface expression of TRAIL receptors was detected by flow cytometry, expression of proteins by Western blot. Ceramide levels were quantified by high-performance thin layer chromatography and densitometric analysis, clonogenic survival of cells was determined by crystal violet staining or by soft agarose cloning. TRAIL-induced programmed necrosis killed eight out of 14 tumor cell lines. Clonogenic survival was reduced in all sensitive and even one resistant cell lines tested. TRAIL synergized with chemotherapeutics in killing tumor cell lines by programmed necrosis, enhancing their effect in eight out of 10 tested tumor cell lines and in 41 out of 80 chemotherapeutic/TRAIL combinations. Susceptibility/resistance of the investigated tumor cell lines to programmed necrosis seems to primarily depend on expression of the pro-necrotic kinase RIPK3 rather than the related kinase RIPK1 or cell surface expression of TRAIL receptors. Furthermore, interference with production of the lipid ceramide protected all tested tumor cell lines. Our study provides evidence that TRAIL-induced programmed necrosis represents a feasible approach for the elimination of tumor cells, and that this treatment may

Effects of an explicit problem-solving skills training program using a metacomponential approach for outpatients with acquired brain injury.

Science.gov (United States)

Fong, Kenneth N K; Howie, Dorothy R

2009-01-01

We investigated the effects of an explicit problem-solving skills training program using a metacomponential approach with 33 outpatients with moderate acquired brain injury, in the Hong Kong context. We compared an experimental training intervention with this explicit problem-solving approach, which taught metacomponential strategies, with a conventional cognitive training approach that did not have this explicit metacognitive training. We found significant advantages for the experimental group on the Metacomponential Interview measure in association with the explicit metacomponential training, but transfer to the real-life problem-solving measures was not evidenced in statistically significant findings. Small sample size, limited time of intervention, and some limitations with these tools may have been contributing factors to these results. The training program was demonstrated to have a significantly greater effect than the conventional training approach on metacomponential functioning and the component of problem representation. However, these benefits were not transferable to real-life situations.

A novel approach based on preference-based index for interval bilevel linear programming problem.

Science.gov (United States)

Ren, Aihong; Wang, Yuping; Xue, Xingsi

2017-01-01

This paper proposes a new methodology for solving the interval bilevel linear programming problem in which all coefficients of both objective functions and constraints are considered as interval numbers. In order to keep as much uncertainty of the original constraint region as possible, the original problem is first converted into an interval bilevel programming problem with interval coefficients in both objective functions only through normal variation of interval number and chance-constrained programming. With the consideration of different preferences of different decision makers, the concept of the preference level that the interval objective function is preferred to a target interval is defined based on the preference-based index. Then a preference-based deterministic bilevel programming problem is constructed in terms of the preference level and the order relation [Formula: see text]. Furthermore, the concept of a preference δ -optimal solution is given. Subsequently, the constructed deterministic nonlinear bilevel problem is solved with the help of estimation of distribution algorithm. Finally, several numerical examples are provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.

A novel approach based on preference-based index for interval bilevel linear programming problem

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aihong Ren

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract This paper proposes a new methodology for solving the interval bilevel linear programming problem in which all coefficients of both objective functions and constraints are considered as interval numbers. In order to keep as much uncertainty of the original constraint region as possible, the original problem is first converted into an interval bilevel programming problem with interval coefficients in both objective functions only through normal variation of interval number and chance-constrained programming. With the consideration of different preferences of different decision makers, the concept of the preference level that the interval objective function is preferred to a target interval is defined based on the preference-based index. Then a preference-based deterministic bilevel programming problem is constructed in terms of the preference level and the order relation ⪯ m w $\\preceq_{mw}$ . Furthermore, the concept of a preference δ-optimal solution is given. Subsequently, the constructed deterministic nonlinear bilevel problem is solved with the help of estimation of distribution algorithm. Finally, several numerical examples are provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.

A novel linear programming approach to fluence map optimization for intensity modulated radiation therapy treatment planning

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Romeijn, H Edwin; Ahuja, Ravindra K; Dempsey, James F; Kumar, Arvind; Li, Jonathan G

2003-01-01

We present a novel linear programming (LP) based approach for efficiently solving the intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) fluence-map optimization (FMO) problem to global optimality. Our model overcomes the apparent limitations of a linear-programming approach by approximating any convex objective function by a piecewise linear convex function. This approach allows us to retain the flexibility offered by general convex objective functions, while allowing us to formulate the FMO problem as a LP problem. In addition, a novel type of partial-volume constraint that bounds the tail averages of the differential dose-volume histograms of structures is imposed while retaining linearity as an alternative approach to improve dose homogeneity in the target volumes, and to attempt to spare as many critical structures as possible. The goal of this work is to develop a very rapid global optimization approach that finds high quality dose distributions. Implementation of this model has demonstrated excellent results. We found globally optimal solutions for eight 7-beam head-and-neck cases in less than 3 min of computational time on a single processor personal computer without the use of partial-volume constraints. Adding such constraints increased the running times by a factor of 2-3, but improved the sparing of critical structures. All cases demonstrated excellent target coverage (>95%), target homogeneity (<10% overdosing and <7% underdosing) and organ sparing using at least one of the two models

"Just Say It Like It Is!" Use of a Community-Based Participatory Approach to Develop a Technology-Driven Food Literacy Program for Adolescents.

Science.gov (United States)

Wickham, Catherine A; Carbone, Elena T

2018-01-01

FuelUp&Go! is a technology-driven food literacy program consisting of six in-person skill building sessions as well as fitness trackers, text messages, and a companion website. A community-based participatory research approach was used with adolescents who were recruited to participate in a Kid Council. Qualitative data were collected about the use of surveys, program activities, recipes, technology and text messages, and music and incentives. Changes suggested by Kid Councilmembers informed the design and development of a pilot program. Participants were recruited for the pilot program and completed pre- and postintervention surveys. The results indicated food-related knowledge remained low but increased from baseline to follow-up. Attitudes toward vegetables and physical activity increased slightly. Self-reported participation in physical activity and consumption of sugar-added beverages moved in positive directions. These findings suggest that community-based participatory research approach is an effective approach to engage adolescents in the development of a technology-driven food literacy program.

Economic-environmental energy and reserve scheduling of smart distribution systems: A multiobjective mathematical programming approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zakariazadeh, Alireza; Jadid, Shahram; Siano, Pierluigi

2014-01-01

Highlights: • Environmental/economical scheduling of energy and reserve. • Simultaneous participation of loads in both energy and reserve scheduling. • Aggregate wind generation and demand uncertainties in a stochastic model. • Stochastic scheduling of energy and reserve in a distribution system. • Demand response providers’ participation in energy and reserve scheduling. - Abstract: In this paper a stochastic multi-objective economical/environmental operational scheduling method is proposed to schedule energy and reserve in a smart distribution system with high penetration of wind generation. The proposed multi-objective framework, based on augmented ε-constraint method, is used to minimize the total operational costs and emissions and to generate Pareto-optimal solutions for the energy and reserve scheduling problem. Moreover, fuzzy decision making process is employed to extract one of the Pareto-optimal solutions as the best compromise non-dominated solution. The wind power and demand forecast errors are considered in this approach and the reserve can be furnished by the main grid as well as distributed generators and responsive loads. The consumers participate in both energy and reserve markets using various demand response programs. In order to facilitate small and medium loads participation in demand response programs, a Demand Response Provider (DRP) aggregates offers for load reduction. In order to solve the proposed optimization model, the Benders decomposition technique is used to convert the large scale mixed integer non-linear problem into mixed-integer linear programming and non-linear programming problems. The effectiveness of the proposed scheduling approach is verified on a 41-bus distribution test system over a 24-h period

Optimization of the representativeness and transposition approach, for the neutronic design of experimental programs in critical mock-up

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dos-Santos, N.

2013-01-01

The work performed during this thesis focused on uncertainty propagation (nuclear data, technological uncertainties, calculation biases,...) on integral parameters, and the development of a novel approach enabling to reduce this uncertainty a priori directly from the design phase of a new experimental program. This approach is based on a multi-parameter multi-criteria extension of representativeness and transposition theories. The first part of this PhD work covers an optimization study of sensitivity and uncertainty calculation schemes to different modeling scales (cell, assembly and whole core) for LWRs and FBRs. A degraded scheme, based on standard and generalized perturbation theories, has been validated for the calculation of uncertainty propagation to various integral quantities of interest. It demonstrated the good a posteriori representativeness of the EPICURE experiment for the validation of mixed UOX-MOX loadings, as the importance of some nuclear data in the power tilt phenomenon in large LWR cores. The second part of this work was devoted to methods and tools development for the optimized design of experimental programs in ZPRs. Those methods are based on multi-parameters representativeness using simultaneously various quantities of interest. Finally, an original study has been conducted on the rigorous estimation of correlations between experimental programs in the transposition process. The coupling of experimental correlations and multi-parametric representativeness approach enables to efficiently design new programs, able to answer additional qualification requirements on calculation tools. (author) [fr

A quantitative experimental paradigm to optimize construction of rank order lists in the National Resident Matching Program: the ROSS-MOORE approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Ross, David A; Moore, Edward Z

2013-09-01

As part of the National Resident Matching Program, programs must submit a rank order list of desired applicants. Despite the importance of this process and the numerous manifest limitations with traditional approaches, minimal research has been conducted to examine the accuracy of different ranking strategies. The authors developed the Moore Optimized Ordinal Rank Estimator (MOORE), a novel algorithm for ranking applicants that is based on college sports ranking systems. Because it is not possible to study the Match in vivo, the authors then designed the Recruitment Outcomes Simulation System (ROSS). This program was used to simulate a series of interview seasons and to compare MOORE and traditional approaches under different conditions. The accuracy of traditional ranking and the MOORE approach are equally and adversely affected with higher levels of intrarater variability. However, compared with traditional ranking methods, MOORE produces a more accurate rank order list as interrater variability increases. The present data demonstrate three key findings. First, they provide proof of concept that it is possible to scientifically test the accuracy of different rank methods used in the Match. Second, they show that small amounts of variability can have a significant adverse impact on the accuracy of rank order lists. Finally, they demonstrate that an ordinal approach may lead to a more accurate rank order list in the presence of interviewer bias. The ROSS-MOORE approach offers programs a novel way to optimize the recruitment process and, potentially, to construct a more accurate rank order list.

Dynamic programming approach for partial decision rule optimization

KAUST Repository

Amin, Talha

2012-10-04

This paper is devoted to the study of an extension of dynamic programming approach which allows optimization of partial decision rules relative to the length or coverage. We introduce an uncertainty measure J(T) which is the difference between number of rows in a decision table T and number of rows with the most common decision for T. For a nonnegative real number γ, we consider γ-decision rules (partial decision rules) that localize rows in subtables of T with uncertainty at most γ. Presented algorithm constructs a directed acyclic graph Δ γ(T) which nodes are subtables of the decision table T given by systems of equations of the kind "attribute = value". This algorithm finishes the partitioning of a subtable when its uncertainty is at most γ. The graph Δ γ(T) allows us to describe the whole set of so-called irredundant γ-decision rules. We can optimize such set of rules according to length or coverage. This paper contains also results of experiments with decision tables from UCI Machine Learning Repository.

Dynamic programming approach for partial decision rule optimization

KAUST Repository

Amin, Talha M.; Chikalov, Igor; Moshkov, Mikhail; Zielosko, Beata

2012-01-01

This paper is devoted to the study of an extension of dynamic programming approach which allows optimization of partial decision rules relative to the length or coverage. We introduce an uncertainty measure J(T) which is the difference between number of rows in a decision table T and number of rows with the most common decision for T. For a nonnegative real number γ, we consider γ-decision rules (partial decision rules) that localize rows in subtables of T with uncertainty at most γ. Presented algorithm constructs a directed acyclic graph Δ γ(T) which nodes are subtables of the decision table T given by systems of equations of the kind "attribute = value". This algorithm finishes the partitioning of a subtable when its uncertainty is at most γ. The graph Δ γ(T) allows us to describe the whole set of so-called irredundant γ-decision rules. We can optimize such set of rules according to length or coverage. This paper contains also results of experiments with decision tables from UCI Machine Learning Repository.

Understanding implementation of comprehensive geriatric care programs: a multiple perspective approach is preferred

OpenAIRE

Vos, J.B.M.; Cramm, Jane; Wijngaarden, Jeroen; Bakker, Ton; Mackenbach, Johan; Nieboer, Anna

2017-01-01

Summary Background The Prevention and Reactivation Care Program (PReCaP) provides a novel approach targeting hospital‐related functional decline among elderly patients. Despite the high expectations, the PReCaP was not effective in preventing functional decline (ADL and iADL) among older patients. Although elderly PReCaP patients demonstrated slightly better cognitive functioning (Mini Mental State Examination; 0.4 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.2–0.6]), lower depression (Geriatric Depressio...

Training programs for the systems approach to nuclear security

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ellis, D.

2005-01-01

Full text: In support of United States Government (USG) and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) nuclear security programs, Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) has advocated and practiced a risk-based, systematic approach to nuclear security. The risk equation has been developed and implemented as the basis for a performance-based methodology for the design and evaluation of physical protection systems against a design basis threat (DBT) for theft and sabotage of nuclear and/or radiological materials. Integrated systems must include technology, people, and the man-machine interface. A critical aspect of the human element is training on the systems-approach for all the stakeholders in nuclear security. Current training courses and workshops have been very beneficial but are still rather limited in scope. SNL has developed two primary international classes - the international training course on the physical protection of nuclear facilities and materials, and the design basis threat methodology workshop. SNL is also completing the development of three new courses that will be offered and presented in the near term. They are vital area identification methodology focused on nuclear power plants to aid in their protection against radiological sabotage, insider threat analysis methodology and protection schemes, and security foundations for competent authority and facility operator stakeholders who are not security professionals. In the long term, we envision a comprehensive nuclear security curriculum that spans policy and technology, regulators and operators, introductory and expert levels, classroom and laboratory/field, and local and offsite training options. This training curriculum will be developed in concert with a nuclear security series of guidance documents that is expected to be forthcoming from the IAEA. It is important to note that while appropriate implementation of systems based on such training and documentation can improve the risk reduction, such a

A Mixed-Integer Linear Programming approach to wind farm layout and inter-array cable routing

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fischetti, Martina; Leth, John-Josef; Borchersen, Anders Bech

2015-01-01

A Mixed-Integer Linear Programming (MILP) approach is proposed to optimize the turbine allocation and inter-array offshore cable routing. The two problems are considered with a two steps strategy, solving the layout problem first and then the cable problem. We give an introduction to both problems...... and present the MILP models we developed to solve them. To deal with interference in the onshore cases, we propose an adaptation of the standard Jensen’s model, suitable for 3D cases. A simple Stochastic Programming variant of our model allows us to consider different wind scenarios in the optimization...

Pilot program (proof of concept) to mitigate Phytophthora ramorum at an infested nursery based on a systems approach

Science.gov (United States)

Gary Chastagner; Marianne Elliott

2017-01-01

The primary purpose of this program was to demonstrate proof of concept of certain mitigation approaches at a repeat P. ramorum-positive nursery site in Washington. Approaches included steam treatment of infested soil areas; creating a gravel “sandwich” above steam-treated and potentially infested soil surfaces; improving drainage systems; required...

Integrating an ecological approach into an Aboriginal community-based chronic disease prevention program: a longitudinal process evaluation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maypilama Elaine

2011-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Public health promotes an ecological approach to chronic disease prevention, however, little research has been conducted to assess the integration of an ecological approach in community-based prevention programs. This study sought to contribute to the evidence base by assessing the extent to which an ecological approach was integrated into an Aboriginal community-based cardiovascular disease (CVD and type 2 diabetes prevention program, across three-intervention years. Methods Activity implementation forms were completed by interview with implementers and participant observation across three intervention years. A standardised ecological coding procedure was applied to assess participant recruitment settings, intervention targets, intervention strategy types, extent of ecologicalness and organisational partnering. Inter-rater reliability for two coders was assessed at Kappa = 0.76 (p Results 215 activities were implemented across three intervention years by the health program (HP with some activities implemented in multiple years. Participants were recruited most frequently through organisational settings in years 1 and 2, and organisational and community settings in year 3. The most commonly utilised intervention targets were the individual (IND as a direct target, and interpersonal (INT and organisational (ORG environments as indirect targets; policy (POL, and community (COM were targeted least. Direct (HP→ IND and indirect intervention strategies (i.e., HP→ INT→ IND, HP→ POL → IND were used most often; networking strategies, which link at least two targets (i.e., HP→[ORG-ORG]→IND, were used the least. The program did not become more ecological over time. Conclusions The quantity of activities with IND, INT and ORG targets and the proportion of participants recruited through informal cultural networking demonstrate community commitment to prevention. Integration of an ecological approach would have been

Interference MAC: Impact of improper Gaussian signaling on the rate region Pareto boundary

KAUST Repository

Kariminezhad, Ali

2017-11-02

Meeting the challenges of 5G demands better exploitation of the available spectrum by allowing multiple parties to share resources. For instance, a secondary unlicensed system can share resources with the cellular uplink of a primary licensed system for an improved spectral efficiency. This induces interference which has to be taken into account when designing such a system. A simple yet robust strategy is treating interference as noise (TIN), which is widely adapted in practice. It is thus important to study the capabilities and limitations of TIN in such scenarios. In this paper, we study this scenario modelled as multiple access channel (MAC) interfered by a Point-to-Point (P2P) channel, where we focus on the characterization of the rate region. We use improper Gaussian signaling (instead of proper) at the transmitters to increase the design flexibility, which offers the freedom of optimizing the transmit signal pseudo-variance in addition to its variance. We formulate the weighted max-min problem as a semidefinite program, and use semidefinite relaxation (SDR) to obtain a near-optimal solution. Numerical optimizations show that, by improper Gaussian signaling the achievable rates can be improved upto three times when compared to proper Gaussian signaling.

Using Baldrige Performance Excellence Program Approaches in the Pursuit of Radiation Oncology Quality Care, Patient Satisfaction, and Workforce Commitment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sternick, Edward S., E-mail: esternick@lifespan.org [Department of Radiation Oncology, Rhode Island Hospital/Brown Alpert Medical School, Providence, RI (United States)

2011-06-20

The Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Improvement Act was signed into law in 1987 to advance US business competitiveness and economic growth. Administered by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the Act created the Baldrige National Quality Program, recently renamed the Baldrige Performance Excellence Program. The comprehensive analytical approaches referred to as the Baldrige Healthcare Criteria, are very well-suited for the evaluation and sustainable improvement of radiation oncology management and operations. A multidisciplinary self-assessment approach is used for radiotherapy program evaluation and development in order to generate a fact-based, knowledge-driven system for improving quality of care, increasing patient satisfaction, enhancing leadership effectiveness, building employee engagement, and boosting organizational innovation. This methodology also provides a valuable framework for benchmarking an individual radiation oncology practice's operations and results against guidelines defined by accreditation and professional organizations and regulatory agencies.

Using Baldrige Performance Excellence Program Approaches in the Pursuit of Radiation Oncology Quality Care, Patient Satisfaction, and Workforce Commitment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sternick, Edward S.

2011-01-01

The Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Improvement Act was signed into law in 1987 to advance US business competitiveness and economic growth. Administered by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the Act created the Baldrige National Quality Program, recently renamed the Baldrige Performance Excellence Program. The comprehensive analytical approaches referred to as the Baldrige Healthcare Criteria, are very well-suited for the evaluation and sustainable improvement of radiation oncology management and operations. A multidisciplinary self-assessment approach is used for radiotherapy program evaluation and development in order to generate a fact-based, knowledge-driven system for improving quality of care, increasing patient satisfaction, enhancing leadership effectiveness, building employee engagement, and boosting organizational innovation. This methodology also provides a valuable framework for benchmarking an individual radiation oncology practice's operations and results against guidelines defined by accreditation and professional organizations and regulatory agencies.

Using baldrige performance excellence program approaches in the pursuit of radiation oncology quality care, patient satisfaction, and workforce commitment.

Science.gov (United States)

Sternick, Edward S

2011-01-01

The Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Improvement Act was signed into law in 1987 to advance US business competitiveness and economic growth. Administered by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the Act created the Baldrige National Quality Program, recently renamed the Baldrige Performance Excellence Program. The comprehensive analytical approaches referred to as the Baldrige Healthcare Criteria, are very well-suited for the evaluation and sustainable improvement of radiation oncology management and operations. A multidisciplinary self-assessment approach is used for radiotherapy program evaluation and development in order to generate a fact-based, knowledge-driven system for improving quality of care, increasing patient satisfaction, enhancing leadership effectiveness, building employee engagement, and boosting organizational innovation. This methodology also provides a valuable framework for benchmarking an individual radiation oncology practice's operations and results against guidelines defined by accreditation and professional organizations and regulatory agencies.

A museum-based urban teacher residency program's approach to strengthening the STEM pipeline: Channeling highly qualified Earth Science teachers into high needs schools

Science.gov (United States)

Ustunisik, G. K.; Zirakparvar, N. A.

2015-12-01

Channeling better prepared Earth Science teachers into secondary schools with low achievement rates in STEM subjects is essential to ensuring that the students attending these schools are ultimately afforded the opportunity to take advantage of projected growth in the global geoscience workforce. Here, a museum-based urban teacher residency (UTR) program's approach to building subject specific content knowledge and research experience in Earth Science teacher candidates is described. In the museum-based program, graduate-level science courses and research experiences are designed and implemented specifically for the UTR by active Earth and Space research scientists that account for almost half of the program's faculty. Because these courses and research experiences are designed specifically for the teacher candidates, they are different than many science courses and research experiences available to pre-service teachers in a university setting. At the same time, the museum-based program is the only UTR to incorporate such a rigorous science curriculum, and some possible advantages and disadvantages of the program's approach are also considered here. While the impact of the program's approach on student achievement rates has yet to be evaluated, there is promise in the well documented links between a teacher's own experience with the practice of science and that teacher's ability to leverage effective pedagogical content knowledge in the teaching of science. Because the museum-based program's science curriculum is balanced against the educational coursework and teaching residencies that necessarily form the program's backbone, the museum's approach to strengthening the teacher candidate's science background may also inform the faculty and administration of other UTRs in cases where one of their program goals is to further expand their teacher candidate's content knowledge and practical subject matter experience.

Where to go from here? An exploratory meta-analysis of the most promising approaches to depression prevention programs for children and adolescents.

Science.gov (United States)

Hetrick, Sarah E; Cox, Georgina R; Merry, Sally N

2015-04-30

To examine the overall effect of individual depression prevention programs on future likelihood of depressive disorder and reduction in depressive symptoms. In addition, we have investigated whether Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Interpersonal Therapy (IPT) and other therapeutic techniques may modify this effectiveness. This study is based on and includes the trial data from meta-analyses conducted in the Cochrane systematic review of depression prevention programs for children and adolescents by Merry et al. (2011). All trials were published or unpublished English language randomized controlled trials (RCTs) or cluster RCTs of any psychological or educational intervention compared to no intervention to prevent depression in children and adolescents aged 5-19 years. There is some evidence that the therapeutic approach used in prevention programs modifies the overall effect. CBT is the most studied type of intervention for depression prevention, and there is some evidence of its effectiveness in reducing the risk of developing a depressive disorder, particularly in targeted populations. Fewer studies employed IPT, however this approach appears promising. To our knowledge, this is the first study to have explored how differences in the approach taken in the prevention programs modify the overall treatment effects of prevention programs for children and adolescents. More research is needed to identify the specific components of CBT that are most effective or indeed if there are other approaches that are more effective in reducing the risk of future depressive episodes. It is imperative that prevention programs are suitable for large scale roll-out, and that emerging popular modes of delivery, such as online dissemination continue to be rigorously tested.

An approach for evaluating the market effects of energy efficiency programs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vine, E.; Prahl, R.; Meyers, S.; Turiel, I.

2010-01-01

This paper presents work currently being carried out in California on evaluating market effects. We first outline an approach for conducting market effect studies that includes the six key steps that were developed in study plans: (1) a scoping study that characterizes a particular market, reviews relevant market effects studies, develops integrated market and program theories, and identifies market indicators; (2) analysis of market evolution, using existing data sources; (3) analysis of market effects, based on sales data and interviews with key market actors; (4) analysis of attribution; (5) estimation of energy savings; and (6) assessment of sustainability (i.e., the extent to which any observed market effects are likely to persist in the absence or reduction of public intervention, and thus has helped to transform the market). We describe the challenges in conducting this type of analysis (1) selecting a comparison state(s) to California for a baseline, (2) availability and quality of data (limiting analyses), (3) inconsistent patterns of results, and (4) conducting market effects evaluations at one point in time, without the benefit of years of accumulated research findings, and then provide some suggestions for future research on the evaluation of market effects. With the promulgation of market transformation programs, the evaluation of market effects will be critical. We envision that these market effects studies will help lay the foundation for the refinement of techniques for measuring the impacts of programs that seek to transform markets for energy efficiency products and practices.

Creating the computer player: an engaging and collaborative approach to introduce computational thinking by combining ‘unplugged’ activities with visual programming

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anna Gardeli

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Ongoing research is being conducted on appropriate course design, practices and teacher interventions for improving the efficiency of computer science and programming courses in K-12 education. The trend is towards a more constructivist problem-based learning approach. Computational thinking, which refers to formulating and solving problems in a form that can be efficiently processed by a computer, raises an important educational challenge. Our research aims to explore possible ways of enriching computer science teaching with a focus on development of computational thinking. We have prepared and evaluated a learning intervention for introducing computer programming to children between 10 and 14 years old; this involves students working in groups to program the behavior of the computer player of a well-known game. The programming process is split into two parts. First, students design a high-level version of their algorithm during an ‘unplugged’ pen & paper phase, and then they encode their solution as an executable program in a visual programming environment. Encouraging evaluation results have been achieved regarding the educational and motivational value of the proposed approach.

Optimization of decision rules based on dynamic programming approach

KAUST Repository

Zielosko, Beata

2014-01-14

This chapter is devoted to the study of an extension of dynamic programming approach which allows optimization of approximate decision rules relative to the length and coverage. We introduce an uncertainty measure that is the difference between number of rows in a given decision table and the number of rows labeled with the most common decision for this table divided by the number of rows in the decision table. We fix a threshold γ, such that 0 ≤ γ < 1, and study so-called γ-decision rules (approximate decision rules) that localize rows in subtables which uncertainty is at most γ. Presented algorithm constructs a directed acyclic graph Δ γ T which nodes are subtables of the decision table T given by pairs "attribute = value". The algorithm finishes the partitioning of a subtable when its uncertainty is at most γ. The chapter contains also results of experiments with decision tables from UCI Machine Learning Repository. © 2014 Springer International Publishing Switzerland.

Replacement model of city bus: A dynamic programming approach

Science.gov (United States)

Arifin, Dadang; Yusuf, Edhi

2017-06-01

This paper aims to develop a replacement model of city bus vehicles operated in Bandung City. This study is driven from real cases encountered by the Damri Company in the efforts to improve services to the public. The replacement model propounds two policy alternatives: First, to maintain or keep the vehicles, and second is to replace them with new ones taking into account operating costs, revenue, salvage value, and acquisition cost of a new vehicle. A deterministic dynamic programming approach is used to solve the model. The optimization process was heuristically executed using empirical data of Perum Damri. The output of the model is to determine the replacement schedule and the best policy if the vehicle has passed the economic life. Based on the results, the technical life of the bus is approximately 20 years old, while the economic life is an average of 9 (nine) years. It means that after the bus is operated for 9 (nine) years, managers should consider the policy of rejuvenation.

Occupational Therapy Students in Norway: Do Their Approaches to Studying Vary by Year In the Program?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tore Bonsaksen

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Approaches to studying may be influenced by students’ age, maturity, and experience in higher education. Students’ approaches to studying may develop toward deep and/or strategic approaches and away from a surface approach as they move through the curriculum, which is generally considered a positive development. This study aimed to identify differences in approaches to studying among first-, second-, and third-year students enrolled in an occupational therapy program. Three cohorts of students (n = 160 from one university college completed the Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST along with sociodemographic information. One-way analyses of variance were used to identify differences in approaches to studying among the student cohorts. The scores on the ASSIST were largely similar between the cohorts. However, first-year students had higher scores on the surface approach and on syllabus-boundness, compared to third-year students. There was a linear trend of decreasing scores on these two scales: from highest among first-year students to lowest among third-year students. With few exceptions, students in three cohorts showed similar levels of deep, strategic, and surface approaches to studying. More efforts should be placed on assisting students to adopt a deep and/or strategic approach to studying and to reduce a surface approach.

Development of a Reliability Program approach to assuring operational nuclear safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mueller, C.J.; Bezella, W.A.

1985-01-01

A Reliability Program (RP) model based on proven reliability techniques used in other high technology industries is being formulated for potential application in the nuclear power industry. Research findings are discussed. The reliability methods employed under NASA and military direction, commercial airline and related FAA programs were surveyed with several reliability concepts (e.g., quantitative reliability goals, reliability centered maintenance) appearing to be directly transferable. Other tasks in the RP development effort involved the benchmarking and evaluation of the existing nuclear regulations and practices relevant to safety/reliability integration. A review of current risk-dominant issues was also conducted using results from existing probabilistic risk assessment studies. The ongoing RP development tasks have concentrated on defining a RP for the operating phase of a nuclear plant's lifecycle. The RP approach incorporates safety systems risk/reliability analysis and performance monitoring activities with dedicated tasks that integrate these activities with operating, surveillance, and maintenance of the plant. The detection, root-cause evaluation and before-the-fact correction of incipient or actual systems failures as a mechanism for maintaining plant safety is a major objective of the RP

Using Baldrige Performance Excellence Program Approaches in the Pursuit of Radiation Oncology Quality Care, Patient Satisfaction and Workforce Commitment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Edward eSternick

2011-06-01

Full Text Available The Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Improvement Act was signed into law in 1987 to advance U.S. business competitiveness and economic growth. Administered by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST, the Act created the Baldrige National Quality Program, recently renamed the Baldrige Performance Excellence Program. The comprehensive analytical approaches referred to as the Baldrige Healthcare Criteria, are very well-suited for the evaluation and sustainable improvement of radiation oncology management and operations. A multidisciplinary self-assessment approach is used for radiotherapy program evaluation and development in order to generate a fact-based, knowledge-driven system for improving quality of care, increasing patient satisfaction, enhancing leadership effectiveness, building employee engagement and boosting organizational innovation. This methodology also provides a valuable framework for benchmarking an individual radiation oncology practice’s operations and results against guidelines defined by accreditation and professional organizations and regulatory agencies.

Maintenance procedure upgrade programs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Campbell, J.J.; Zimmerman, C.M.

1988-01-01

This paper describes a systematic approach to upgrading nuclear power plant maintenance procedures. The approach consists of four phases: diagnosis, program planning, program implementation, and program evaluation. Each phase is explained as a series of steps to ensure that all factors in a procedure upgrade program are considered

Distributionally robust hydro-thermal-wind economic dispatch

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, Yue; Wei, Wei; Liu, Feng; Mei, Shengwei

2016-01-01

Highlights: • A two-stage distributionally robust hydro-thermal-wind model is proposed. • A semi-definite programing equivalent and its algorithm are developed. • Cases that demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed model are included. - Abstract: With the penetration of wind energy increasing, uncertainty has become a major challenge in power system dispatch. Hydro power can change rapidly and is regarded as one promising complementary energy resource to mitigate wind power fluctuation. Joint scheduling of hydro, thermal, and wind energy is attracting more and more attention nowadays. This paper proposes a distributionally robust hydro-thermal-wind economic dispatch (DR-HTW-ED) method to enhance the flexibility and reliability of power system operation. In contrast to the traditional stochastic optimization (SO) and adjustable robust optimization (ARO) method, distributionally robust optimization (DRO) method describes the uncertain wind power output by all possible probability distribution functions (PDFs) with the same mean and variance recovered from the forecast data, and optimizes the expected operation cost in the worst distribution. Traditional DRO optimized the random parameter in entire space, which is sometimes contradict to the actual situation. In this paper, we restrict the wind power uncertainty in a bounded set, and derive an equivalent semi-definite programming (SDP) for the DR-HTW-ED using S-lemma. A delayed constraint generation algorithm is suggested to solve it in a tractable manner. The proposed DR-HTW-ED is compared with the existing ARO based hydro-thermal-wind economic dispatch (AR-HTW-ED). Their respective features are shown from the perspective of computational efficiency and conservativeness of dispatch strategies.

Erlang Programming A Concurrent Approach to Software Development

CERN Document Server

Cesarini, Francesco

2009-01-01

This book offers you an in-depth explanation of Erlang, a programming language ideal for any situation where concurrency, fault-tolerance, and fast response is essential. You'll learn how to write complex concurrent programs in this language, regardless of your programming background or experience. Erlang Programming focuses on the language's syntax and semantics, and explains pattern matching, proper lists, recursion, debugging, networking, and concurrency, with exercises at the end of each chapter.

Design and approach of the Living Organ Video Educated Donors (LOVED) program to promote living kidney donation in African Americans.

Science.gov (United States)

Sieverdes, John C; Price, Matthew; Ruggiero, Kenneth J; Baliga, Prabhakar K; Chavin, Kenneth D; Brunner-Jackson, Brenda; Patel, Sachin; Treiber, Frank A

2017-10-01

To describe the rationale, methodology, design, and interventional approach of a mobile health education program designed for African Americans with end stage renal disease (ESRD) to increase knowledge and self-efficacy to approach others about their need for a living donor kidney transplant (LDKT). The Living Organ Video Educated Donors (LOVED) program is a theory-guided iterative designed, mixed methods study incorporating three phases: 1) a formative evaluation using focus groups to develop program content and approach; 2) a 2-month proof of concept trial (n=27) to primarily investigate acceptability, tolerability and investigate increases of LDKT knowledge and self-efficacy; and 3) a 6-month, 2-arm, 60-person feasibility randomized control trial (RCT) to primarily investigate increases in LDKT knowledge and self-efficacy, and secondarily, to increase the number of living donor inquiries, medical evaluations, and LDKTs. The 8-week LOVED program includes an interactive web-based app delivered on 10″ tablet computer incorporating weekly interactive video education modules, weekly group video chat sessions with an African American navigator who has had LDKT and other group interactions for support and improve strategies to promote their need for a kidney. Phase 1 and 2 have been completed and the program is currently enrolling for the feasibility RCT. Phase 2 experienced 100% retention rates with 91% adherence completing the video modules and 88% minimum adherence to the video chat sessions. We are in the early stages of an RCT to evaluate the LOVED program; to date, we have found high tolerability reported from Phase 2. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Where to Go from Here? An Exploratory Meta-Analysis of the Most Promising Approaches to Depression Prevention Programs for Children and Adolescents

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sarah E. Hetrick

2015-04-01

Full Text Available Objective: To examine the overall effect of individual depression prevention programs on future likelihood of depressive disorder and reduction in depressive symptoms. In addition, we have investigated whether Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT, Interpersonal Therapy (IPT and other therapeutic techniques may modify this effectiveness. Methods: This study is based on and includes the trial data from meta-analyses conducted in the Cochrane systematic review of depression prevention programs for children and adolescents by Merry et al. (2011. All trials were published or unpublished English language randomized controlled trials (RCTs or cluster RCTs of any psychological or educational intervention compared to no intervention to prevent depression in children and adolescents aged 5–19 years. Results: There is some evidence that the therapeutic approach used in prevention programs modifies the overall effect. CBT is the most studied type of intervention for depression prevention, and there is some evidence of its effectiveness in reducing the risk of developing a depressive disorder, particularly in targeted populations. Fewer studies employed IPT, however this approach appears promising. To our knowledge, this is the first study to have explored how differences in the approach taken in the prevention programs modify the overall treatment effects of prevention programs for children and adolescents. Conclusions: More research is needed to identify the specific components of CBT that are most effective or indeed if there are other approaches that are more effective in reducing the risk of future depressive episodes. It is imperative that prevention programs are suitable for large scale roll-out, and that emerging popular modes of delivery, such as online dissemination continue to be rigorously tested.

Racing Sampling Based Microimmune Optimization Approach Solving Constrained Expected Value Programming

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kai Yang

2016-01-01

Full Text Available This work investigates a bioinspired microimmune optimization algorithm to solve a general kind of single-objective nonlinear constrained expected value programming without any prior distribution. In the study of algorithm, two lower bound sample estimates of random variables are theoretically developed to estimate the empirical values of individuals. Two adaptive racing sampling schemes are designed to identify those competitive individuals in a given population, by which high-quality individuals can obtain large sampling size. An immune evolutionary mechanism, along with a local search approach, is constructed to evolve the current population. The comparative experiments have showed that the proposed algorithm can effectively solve higher-dimensional benchmark problems and is of potential for further applications.

Analyzing Array Manipulating Programs by Program Transformation

Science.gov (United States)

Cornish, J. Robert M.; Gange, Graeme; Navas, Jorge A.; Schachte, Peter; Sondergaard, Harald; Stuckey, Peter J.

2014-01-01

We explore a transformational approach to the problem of verifying simple array-manipulating programs. Traditionally, verification of such programs requires intricate analysis machinery to reason with universally quantified statements about symbolic array segments, such as "every data item stored in the segment A[i] to A[j] is equal to the corresponding item stored in the segment B[i] to B[j]." We define a simple abstract machine which allows for set-valued variables and we show how to translate programs with array operations to array-free code for this machine. For the purpose of program analysis, the translated program remains faithful to the semantics of array manipulation. Based on our implementation in LLVM, we evaluate the approach with respect to its ability to extract useful invariants and the cost in terms of code size.

Nitrogen Approach Program. In line with the European law?; Aanpak van stikstof. Europeesrechtelijk in de pas?

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schrijnemaekers, J.; Van der Sluis, C. [Ploum Lodder Princen, Rotterdam (Netherlands)

2011-02-15

Nitrogen deposition is causing problems in protected areas designated by the Natural 2000 program with a view to protect biodiversity . To deal with these problems the Dutch government developed the Programmatic Approach to Nitrogen (Programmatische Aanpak Stikstof - PAS). This approach is discussed in this article. [Dutch] De depositie van stikstof in gebieden waarvoor het zogenaamde Natura 2000 programma de biodiversiteit moet beschermen zorgt voor problemen. Om de problemen het hoofd te bieden heeft de Nederlandse overheid de Programmatische Aanpak Stikstof (PAS) ontwikkeld. In dit artikel wordt aandacht besteed aan PAS.

Validation of a fracture mechanics approach to nuclear transportation cask design through a drop test program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sorenson, K.B.

1986-01-01

Sandia National Laboratories (SNL), under contract to the Department of Energy, is conducting a research program to develop and validate a fracture mechanics approach to cask design. A series of drop tests of a transportation cask is planned for the summer of 1986 as the method for benchmarking and, thereby, validating the fracture mechanics approach. This paper presents the drop test plan and background leading to the development of the test plan including structural analyses, material characterization, and non-destructive evaluation (NDE) techniques necessary for defining the test plan properly

Development of a residency program in radiation oncology physics: an inverse planning approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Khan, Rao F H; Dunscombe, Peter B

2016-03-08

Over the last two decades, there has been a concerted effort in North America to organize medical physicists' clinical training programs along more structured and formal lines. This effort has been prompted by the Commission on Accreditation of Medical Physics Education Programs (CAMPEP) which has now accredited about 90 residency programs. Initially the accreditation focused on standardized and higher quality clinical physics training; the development of rounded professionals who can function at a high level in a multidisciplinary environment was recognized as a priority of a radiation oncology physics residency only lately. In this report, we identify and discuss the implementation of, and the essential components of, a radiation oncology physics residency designed to produce knowledgeable and effective clinical physicists for today's safety-conscious and collaborative work environment. Our approach is that of inverse planning, by now familiar to all radiation oncology physicists, in which objectives and constraints are identified prior to the design of the program. Our inverse planning objectives not only include those associated with traditional residencies (i.e., clinical physics knowledge and critical clinical skills), but also encompass those other attributes essential for success in a modern radiation therapy clinic. These attributes include formal training in management skills and leadership, teaching and communication skills, and knowledge of error management techniques and patient safety. The constraints in our optimization exercise are associated with the limited duration of a residency and the training resources available. Without compromising the knowledge and skills needed for clinical tasks, we have successfully applied the model to the University of Calgary's two-year residency program. The program requires 3840 hours of overall commitment from the trainee, of which 7%-10% is spent in obtaining formal training in nontechnical "soft skills".

Modular Implementation of Programming Languages and a Partial-Order Approach to Infinitary Rewriting

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bahr, Patrick

2012-01-01

In this dissertation we investigate two independent areas of research. In the first part, we develop techniques for implementing programming languages in a modular fashion. Within this problem domain, we focus on operations on typed abstract syntax trees with the goal of developing a framework...... that facilitates the definition, manipulation and composition of such operations. The result of our work is a comprehensive combinator library that provides these facilities. What sets our approach apart is the use of recursion schemes derived from tree automata in order to implement operations on abstract syntax...... trees. The second part is concerned with infinitary rewriting, a field that studies transfinite rewrite sequences. We extend the established theory of infinitary rewriting in two ways: (1) a novel approach to convergence in infinitary rewriting that replaces convergence in a metric space with the limit...

A fixed recourse integer programming approach towards a ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Regardless of the success that linear programming and integer linear programming has had in applications in engineering, business and economics, one has to challenge the assumed reality that these optimization models represent. In this paper the certainty assumptions of an integer linear program application is ...

Programming massively parallel processors a hands-on approach

CERN Document Server

Kirk, David B

2010-01-01

Programming Massively Parallel Processors discusses basic concepts about parallel programming and GPU architecture. ""Massively parallel"" refers to the use of a large number of processors to perform a set of computations in a coordinated parallel way. The book details various techniques for constructing parallel programs. It also discusses the development process, performance level, floating-point format, parallel patterns, and dynamic parallelism. The book serves as a teaching guide where parallel programming is the main topic of the course. It builds on the basics of C programming for CUDA, a parallel programming environment that is supported on NVI- DIA GPUs. Composed of 12 chapters, the book begins with basic information about the GPU as a parallel computer source. It also explains the main concepts of CUDA, data parallelism, and the importance of memory access efficiency using CUDA. The target audience of the book is graduate and undergraduate students from all science and engineering disciplines who ...

Productive Parallel Programming: The PCN Approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ian Foster

1992-01-01

Full Text Available We describe the PCN programming system, focusing on those features designed to improve the productivity of scientists and engineers using parallel supercomputers. These features include a simple notation for the concise specification of concurrent algorithms, the ability to incorporate existing Fortran and C code into parallel applications, facilities for reusing parallel program components, a portable toolkit that allows applications to be developed on a workstation or small parallel computer and run unchanged on supercomputers, and integrated debugging and performance analysis tools. We survey representative scientific applications and identify problem classes for which PCN has proved particularly useful.

A logic programming and statistical systems approach for tissue characterization in magnetic resonance imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Levy, G.C.; Dudewicz, E.J.; Harner, T.J.

1989-01-01

The main research goal has been to evalute significant factors affecting the in vivo magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) parameters R 1 , T 2 , and 1 H density. This approach differs significantly from other such projects in that the experimental data analysis is being performed while concurrently developing automated, computer-aided analysis software for such MRI tissue parameters. In the experimental portion of the project, statistical analyses, and a heuristic minimum/maximum discriminant analysis algorithm have been explored. Both methods have been used to classify tissue types from 1.5 Tesla transaxial MR images of the human brain. The developing program, written in the logic programming language Prolog, similar in a number of ways to many existing expert systems now in use for other medical applications; inclusion of the underlying statistical data base and advanced statistical analyses is the main differentiating feature of the current approach. First results indicate promising classification accuracy of various brain tissues such as gray and white matter, as well as differentiation of different types of gray matter and white matter (e.g.: caudate-nucleus vs. thalamus, both representatives of gray matter; and, cortical white matter vs. internal capsule as representative of white matter). Taking all four tissue types together, the percentage of correct classifications ranges from 73 to 87%. (author)

Identifying and understanding the concerns of business: a systematic approach to the development of the Australian WorkHealth Program - Arthritis.

Science.gov (United States)

Reavley, Nicola; Livingston, Jenni; Buchbinder, Rachelle; Osborne, Richard

2012-07-01

The aim of the Australian WorkHealth Program - Arthritis was to develop and test an education program designed to minimise risk of arthritis and prevent or reduce absenteeism and presenteeism. The objective of the current study was to use a wide-ranging, multifaceted and interactive approach to engage with stakeholders in order to inform the content and delivery of the intervention. Methods used to inform program design included a concept mapping workshop, interviews, surveys, a steering committee and an industry advisory group. Engaging with a wide range of stakeholders in multiple ways early in program development allowed for the comparison and verification of data to obtain a better overall picture of the needs of participants. It also offered the opportunity to share 'ownership' of the program with stakeholders by generating a program that was tailored to their ethos and needs. The stakeholder engagement process was instrumental in building commitment to the program and establishing an overarching model of action. Interview and survey data indicated that awareness of arthritis was low and musculoskeletal disorders more generally were of greater concern. It was agreed that programs should be relevant, evidence-based, involve senior management education, incorporate a business case, and involve tailored implementation and marketing strategies. The qualitative preparatory phase as well as all the engagement work was key to informing program design. The approach taken in this study has the potential to inform a wide range of workplace interventions. Engaging with a wide range of stakeholders in multiple ways from program inception allowed for the comparison and verification of information to permit the generation of a model of intervention that had the highest possible chance of success. It offered the opportunity to not only define program content and implementation processes, but to build genuine 'ownership' of the program.

(2,2) superconformal bootstrap in two dimensions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lin, Ying-Hsuan [Jefferson Physical Laboratory, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States); Walter Burke Institute for Theoretical Physics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States); Shao, Shu-Heng [Jefferson Physical Laboratory, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States); School of Natural Sciences, Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton, NJ 08540 (United States); Wang, Yifan [Center for Theoretical Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139 (United States); Joseph Henry Laboratories, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544 (United States); Yin, Xi [Jefferson Physical Laboratory, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States)

2017-05-19

We find a simple relation between two-dimensional BPS N=2 superconformal blocks and bosonic Virasoro conformal blocks, which allows us to analyze the crossing equations for BPS 4-point functions in unitary (2,2) superconformal theories numerically with semidefinite programming. We constrain gaps in the non-BPS spectrum through the operator product expansion of BPS operators, in ways that depend on the moduli of exactly marginal deformations through chiral ring coefficients. In some cases, our bounds on the spectral gaps are observed to be saturated by free theories, by N=2 Liouville theory, and by certain Landau-Ginzburg models.

Optimal Control for a Class of Chaotic Systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jianxiong Zhang

2012-01-01

Full Text Available This paper proposes the optimal control methods for a class of chaotic systems via state feedback. By converting the chaotic systems to the form of uncertain piecewise linear systems, we can obtain the optimal controller minimizing the upper bound on cost function by virtue of the robust optimal control method of piecewise linear systems, which is cast as an optimization problem under constraints of bilinear matrix inequalities (BMIs. In addition, the lower bound on cost function can be achieved by solving a semidefinite programming (SDP. Finally, numerical examples are given to illustrate the results.

Stable Blind Deconvolution over the Reals from Additional Autocorrelations

KAUST Repository

Walk, Philipp

2017-10-22

Recently the one-dimensional time-discrete blind deconvolution problem was shown to be solvable uniquely, up to a global phase, by a semi-definite program for almost any signal, provided its autocorrelation is known. We will show in this work that under a sufficient zero separation of the corresponding signal in the $z-$domain, a stable reconstruction against additive noise is possible. Moreover, the stability constant depends on the signal dimension and on the signals magnitude of the first and last coefficients. We give an analytical expression for this constant by using spectral bounds of Vandermonde matrices.

Optimization of polynomials in non-commuting variables

CERN Document Server

Burgdorf, Sabine; Povh, Janez

2016-01-01

This book presents recent results on positivity and optimization of polynomials in non-commuting variables. Researchers in non-commutative algebraic geometry, control theory, system engineering, optimization, quantum physics and information science will find the unified notation and mixture of algebraic geometry and mathematical programming useful. Theoretical results are matched with algorithmic considerations; several examples and information on how to use NCSOStools open source package to obtain the results provided. Results are presented on detecting the eigenvalue and trace positivity of polynomials in non-commuting variables using Newton chip method and Newton cyclic chip method, relaxations for constrained and unconstrained optimization problems, semidefinite programming formulations of the relaxations and finite convergence of the hierarchies of these relaxations, and the practical efficiency of algorithms.

Training Physicians toward a Dignifying Approach in Adolescents' Health Care: A Promising Simulation-Based Medical Education Program.

Science.gov (United States)

Hardoff, Daniel; Gefen, Assaf; Sagi, Doron; Ziv, Amitai

2016-08-01

Human dignity has a pivotal role within the health care system. There is little experience using simulation-based medical education (SBME) programs that focus on human dignity issues in doctor-patient relationships. To describe and assess a SBME program aimed at improving physicians' competence in a dignifying approach when encountering adolescents and their parents. A total of 97 physicians participated in 8 one-day SMBE workshops that included 7 scenarios of typical adolescent health care dilemmas. These issues could be resolved if the physician used an appropriate dignifying approach toward the patient and the parents. Debriefing discussions were based on video recordings of the scenarios. The effect of the workshops on participants' approach to adolescent health care was assessed by a feedback questionnaire and on 5-point Likert score questionnaires administered before the workshop and 3 months after. All participants completed both the pre-workshop and the feedback questionnaires and 41 (42%) completed the post-workshop questionnaire 3 months later. Practice and competence topics received significantly higher scores in post-workshop questionnaires (P simulation-based workshop may improve physicians' communication skills and sense of competence in addressing adolescents' health care issues which require a dignifying approach toward both the adolescent patients and their parents. This dignity-focused methodology may be expanded to improve communication skills of physicians from various disciplines.

Using a Systematic Approach and Theoretical Framework to Design a Curriculum for the Shaping Healthy Choices Program.

Science.gov (United States)

Linnell, Jessica D; Zidenberg-Cherr, Sheri; Briggs, Marilyn; Scherr, Rachel E; Brian, Kelley M; Hillhouse, Carol; Smith, Martin H

2016-01-01

To examine the use of a systematic approach and theoretical framework to develop an inquiry-based, garden-enhanced nutrition curriculum for the Shaping Healthy Choices Program. Curriculum development occurred in 3 steps: identification of learning objectives, determination of evidence of learning, and activity development. Curriculum activities were further refined through pilot-testing, which was conducted in 2 phases. Formative data collected during pilot-testing resulted in improvements to activities. Using a systematic, iterative process resulted in a curriculum called Discovering Healthy Choices, which has a strong foundation in Social Cognitive Theory and constructivist learning theory. Furthermore, the Backward Design method provided the design team with a systematic approach to ensure activities addressed targeted learning objectives and overall Shaping Healthy Choices Program goals. The process by which a nutrition curriculum is developed may have a direct effect on student outcomes. Processes by which nutrition curricula are designed and learning objectives are selected, and how theory and pedagogy are applied should be further investigated so that effective approaches to developing garden-enhanced nutrition interventions can be determined and replicated. Copyright © 2016 Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A Novel Approach for Collaborative Pair Programming

Science.gov (United States)

Goel, Sanjay; Kathuria, Vanshi

2010-01-01

The majority of an engineer's time in the software industry is spent working with other programmers. Agile methods of software development like eXtreme Programming strongly rely upon practices like daily meetings and pair programming. Hence, the need to learn the skill of working collaboratively is of primary importance for software developers.…

An interdisciplinary approach to teaching tehcnology entrepreneurship. A case study of the SDU Health Tech Innovator program

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Søren; Danbjørg, Dorthe Boe; Tanev, Stoyan

in shaping new technological products for the benefit of the health care sector. METHODS: The methodology is based on a constructive approach to the development and implementation of the Health Tech Innovator program, together with a parallel critical analytical process focusing on generating valuable...... insights through questionnaires and interviews with participants. These could help the refinement and the adjustment of the initial design of the program. The methodology has also adopted an effectuation-based ecosystem perspective focusing on engaging all relevant stakeholders, tools and resources...

Adopting De Novo Programming Approach on IC Design Service Firms Resources Integration

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

James K. C. Chen

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The semiconductor industry has very important position in computer industry, ICT field, and new electronic technology developing. The IC design service is one of key factor of semiconductor industry development. There are more than 365 IC design service firms have been established around Hsinchu Science Park in Taiwan. Building an efficient planning model for IC design service firm resources integrating is very interest issue. This study aims to construct a planning model for IC design service firm implementation resources integration. This study uses the De Novo programming as an approach of criteria alternative to achieve optimal resource allocation on IC design firm. Results show the IC design service firm should conduct open innovation concept and utilizes design outsourcing obtains cost down and enhance IC design service business performance. This plan model of De Novo programming is not only for IC design service firm and also can apply to the other industrial implementation strategic alliance/integrating resource. This plan model is a universal model for the others industries field.

Object Oriented Programming Systems (OOPS) and frame representations: An investigation of programming paradigms

Science.gov (United States)

Auty, David

1988-01-01

The project was initiated to research Object Oriented Programming Systems (OOPS) and frame representation systems, their significance and applicability, and their implementation in or relationship to Ada. Object orientated is currently a very popular conceptual adjective. Object oriented programming, in particular, is promoted as a particularly productive approach to programming; an approach which maximizes opportunities for code reuse and lends itself to the definition of convenient and well-developed units. Such units are thus expected to be usable in a variety of situations, beyond the typical highly specific unit development of other approaches. Frame represenation systems share a common heritage and similar conceptual foundations. Together they represent a quickly emerging alternative approach to programming. The approach is to first define the terms, starting with relevant concepts and using these to put bounds on what is meant by OOPS and Frames. From this the possibilities were pursued to merge OOPS with Ada which will further elucidate the significant characteristics which make up this programming approach. Finally, some of the merits and demerits of OOPS were briefly considered as a way of addressing the applicability of OOPS to various programming tasks.

Sparse PCA with Oracle Property.

Science.gov (United States)

Gu, Quanquan; Wang, Zhaoran; Liu, Han

In this paper, we study the estimation of the k -dimensional sparse principal subspace of covariance matrix Σ in the high-dimensional setting. We aim to recover the oracle principal subspace solution, i.e., the principal subspace estimator obtained assuming the true support is known a priori. To this end, we propose a family of estimators based on the semidefinite relaxation of sparse PCA with novel regularizations. In particular, under a weak assumption on the magnitude of the population projection matrix, one estimator within this family exactly recovers the true support with high probability, has exact rank- k , and attains a [Formula: see text] statistical rate of convergence with s being the subspace sparsity level and n the sample size. Compared to existing support recovery results for sparse PCA, our approach does not hinge on the spiked covariance model or the limited correlation condition. As a complement to the first estimator that enjoys the oracle property, we prove that, another estimator within the family achieves a sharper statistical rate of convergence than the standard semidefinite relaxation of sparse PCA, even when the previous assumption on the magnitude of the projection matrix is violated. We validate the theoretical results by numerical experiments on synthetic datasets.

Quadratic programming with fuzzy parameters: A membership function approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, S.-T.

2009-01-01

Quadratic programming has been widely applied to solving real world problems. The conventional quadratic programming model requires the parameters to be known constants. In the real world, however, the parameters are seldom known exactly and have to be estimated. This paper discusses the fuzzy quadratic programming problems where the cost coefficients, constraint coefficients, and right-hand sides are represented by convex fuzzy numbers. Since the parameters in the program are fuzzy numbers, the derived objective value is a fuzzy number as well. Using Zadeh's extension principle, a pair of two-level mathematical programs is formulated to calculate the upper bound and lower bound of the objective values of the fuzzy quadratic program. Based on the duality theorem and by applying the variable transformation technique, the pair of two-level mathematical programs is transformed into a family of conventional one-level quadratic programs. Solving the pair of quadratic programs produces the fuzzy objective values of the problem. An example illustrates method proposed in this paper.

Hybrid Approximate Dynamic Programming Approach for Dynamic Optimal Energy Flow in the Integrated Gas and Power Systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Shuai, Hang; Ai, Xiaomeng; Wen, Jinyu

2017-01-01

This paper proposes a hybrid approximate dynamic programming (ADP) approach for the multiple time-period optimal power flow in integrated gas and power systems. ADP successively solves Bellman's equation to make decisions according to the current state of the system. So, the updated near future...

Evaluation of training programs and entry-level qualifications for nuclear-power-plant control-room personnel based on the systems approach to training

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haas, P.M.; Selby, D.L.; Hanley, M.J.; Mercer, R.T.

1983-09-01

This report summarizes results of research sponsored by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research to initiate the use of the Systems Approach to Training in the evaluation of training programs and entry level qualifications for nuclear power plant (NPP) personnel. Variables (performance shaping factors) of potential importance to personnel selection and training are identified, and research to more rigorously define an operationally useful taxonomy of those variables is recommended. A high-level model of the Systems Approach to Training for use in the nuclear industry, which could serve as a model for NRC evaluation of industry programs, is presented. The model is consistent with current publically stated NRC policy, with the approach being followed by the Institute for Nuclear Power Operations, and with current training technology. Checklists to be used by NRC evaluators to assess training programs for NPP control-room personnel are proposed which are based on this model

Evaluation of training programs and entry-level qualifications for nuclear-power-plant control-room personnel based on the systems approach to training

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Haas, P M; Selby, D L; Hanley, M J; Mercer, R T

1983-09-01

This report summarizes results of research sponsored by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research to initiate the use of the Systems Approach to Training in the evaluation of training programs and entry level qualifications for nuclear power plant (NPP) personnel. Variables (performance shaping factors) of potential importance to personnel selection and training are identified, and research to more rigorously define an operationally useful taxonomy of those variables is recommended. A high-level model of the Systems Approach to Training for use in the nuclear industry, which could serve as a model for NRC evaluation of industry programs, is presented. The model is consistent with current publically stated NRC policy, with the approach being followed by the Institute for Nuclear Power Operations, and with current training technology. Checklists to be used by NRC evaluators to assess training programs for NPP control-room personnel are proposed which are based on this model.

Enhanced index tracking modeling in portfolio optimization with mixed-integer programming z approach

Science.gov (United States)

Siew, Lam Weng; Jaaman, Saiful Hafizah Hj.; Ismail, Hamizun bin

2014-09-01

Enhanced index tracking is a popular form of portfolio management in stock market investment. Enhanced index tracking aims to construct an optimal portfolio to generate excess return over the return achieved by the stock market index without purchasing all of the stocks that make up the index. The objective of this paper is to construct an optimal portfolio using mixed-integer programming model which adopts regression approach in order to generate higher portfolio mean return than stock market index return. In this study, the data consists of 24 component stocks in Malaysia market index which is FTSE Bursa Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Composite Index from January 2010 until December 2012. The results of this study show that the optimal portfolio of mixed-integer programming model is able to generate higher mean return than FTSE Bursa Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Composite Index return with only selecting 30% out of the total stock market index components.

Adding Robustness to Support Vector Machines Against Adversarial Reverse Engineering

KAUST Repository

Alabdulmohsin, Ibrahim

2014-01-01

Many classification algorithms have been successfully deployed in security-sensitive applications including spam filters and intrusion detection systems. Under such adversarial environments, adversaries can generate exploratory attacks against the defender such as evasion and reverse engineering. In this paper, we discuss why reverse engineering attacks can be carried out quite efficiently against fixed classifiers, and investigate the use of randomization as a suitable strategy for mitigating their risk. In particular, we derive a semidefinite programming (SDP) formulation for learning a distribution of classifiers subject to the constraint that any single classifier picked at random from such distribution provides reliable predictions with a high probability. We analyze the tradeoff between variance of the distribution and its predictive accuracy, and establish that one can almost always incorporate randomization with large variance without incurring a loss in accuracy. In other words, the conventional approach of using a fixed classifier in adversarial environments is generally Pareto suboptimal. Finally, we validate such conclusions on both synthetic and real-world classification problems. Copyright 2014 ACM.

A mathematical programming approach for sequential clustering of dynamic networks

Science.gov (United States)

Silva, Jonathan C.; Bennett, Laura; Papageorgiou, Lazaros G.; Tsoka, Sophia

2016-02-01

A common analysis performed on dynamic networks is community structure detection, a challenging problem that aims to track the temporal evolution of network modules. An emerging area in this field is evolutionary clustering, where the community structure of a network snapshot is identified by taking into account both its current state as well as previous time points. Based on this concept, we have developed a mixed integer non-linear programming (MINLP) model, SeqMod, that sequentially clusters each snapshot of a dynamic network. The modularity metric is used to determine the quality of community structure of the current snapshot and the historical cost is accounted for by optimising the number of node pairs co-clustered at the previous time point that remain so in the current snapshot partition. Our method is tested on social networks of interactions among high school students, college students and members of the Brazilian Congress. We show that, for an adequate parameter setting, our algorithm detects the classes that these students belong more accurately than partitioning each time step individually or by partitioning the aggregated snapshots. Our method also detects drastic discontinuities in interaction patterns across network snapshots. Finally, we present comparative results with similar community detection methods for time-dependent networks from the literature. Overall, we illustrate the applicability of mathematical programming as a flexible, adaptable and systematic approach for these community detection problems. Contribution to the Topical Issue "Temporal Network Theory and Applications", edited by Petter Holme.

Appropriating Public Private Partnership in Senior High School Program: A Socio-Cultural Approach to Policy Making

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peter G. Romerosa

2018-05-01

Full Text Available The implementation of the Senior High School program in the Philippines illuminates the State’s response to the changing landscape of the global market economy. Its salient features focus on the additional two year-senior high school program which highlights the development of middle level skills for national development and global competitiveness. In order to concretize the implementation of the program, the State entered into collaboration with the private schools which is commonly known as Public Private Partnership (PPP. In this collaboration, the government provides the guidelines and financing while the private educational institutions provide the academic service. Framed from a socio-cultural approach to policy making in education, this study aimed to unpack a particular implementation of PPP of a private institution in an urban area, examine the institutional policies that were created in response to PPP, and interrogate the impacts of these policies on micro social processes. Using interviews and focus group discussions for methodology, the researcher drew narratives and insights from on-the-ground actors. Further, the investigation looked into how authorized policy actors (school administrators and nonauthorized policy actors (teachers, parents, and students are appropriating policies within the operational framework of the PPP in the implementation of the senior high school program. The results demonstrated that multi- layered appropriation and exercise of the agency were explicitly and implicitly deployed in diverse social spaces by actors as a pragmatic and creative response to the new educational arrangement. The paper provides a lens to further develop under-standing on how policy appropriation and production from the local context can inform institutional approaches in facilitating relevant student experience within the realm of PPP in education.

New challenges of Japanese energy efficiency program by Top Runner approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Murakoshi, Chiharu; Nakagami, Hidetoshi; Tsuruda, Masanori; Edamura, Nobuhisa

2005-01-01

The Top Runner standards are the key energy efficiency program in Japan. Last year, TVs and VCRs reached the target year for improvement in efficiency, and have improved their efficiencies far more than the original energy savings targets. In order to accelerate energy savings by the Top Runner approach, the Government of Japan is now planning to add new items, and moreover to strengthen the standards for TVs and VCRs. On the other hand, high prices of efficient appliances are considered by many to be the main factor preventing wider diffusion. In order to increase diffusion of efficient appliances by promoting sales, in 2003 the e-Shop Commendation System for retail stores was started, for 'stores that are excellent in promoting diffusion of energy-efficient appliances.' Until then it was quite rare to see products with their e-Mark energy-efficiency labels attached. Moreover, no incentive was given to retail stores to recommend efficient appliances to customers. Under the e-Shop Commendation System, we evaluated comprehensive measures for retail stores, such as the sales ratio of products achieving the standards, percentage of products with e-Mark labels attached, employee education programs, and creation of original posters. As a result of starting the e-Shop Commendation System, e-Mark labels have come to be posted on almost all appliances, original posters have been produced, and sales staffs are receiving instruction in selling points and how to talk with customers. We describe new challenges of the Top Runner program and the contents, evaluation method, and the considerable effect of the e-Shop Commendation System for retail stores

Finite element historical deformation analysis in piecewise linear plasticity by mathematical programming

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

De Donato, O.; Parisi, M.A.

1977-01-01

When loads increase proportionally beyond the elastic limit in the presence of elastic-plastic piecewise-linear constitutive laws, the problem of finding the whole evolution of the plastic strain and displacements of structures was recently shown to be amenable to a parametric linear complementary problem (PLCP) in which the parameter is represented by the load factor, the matrix is symmetric positive definite or at least semi-definite (for perfect plasticity) and the variables with a direct mechanical meaning are the plastic multipliers. With reference to plane trusses and frames with elastic-plastic linear work-hardening material behaviour numerical solutions were also fairly efficiently obtained using a recent mathematical programming algorithm (due to R.W. Cottle) which is able to provide the whole deformation history of the structure and, at the same time to rule out local unloadings along the given proportional loading process by means of 'a priori' checks carried out before each pivotal step of the procedure. Hence it becomes possible to use the holonomic (reversible, path-independent) constitutive laws in finite terms and to benefit by all the relevant numerical and computational advantages despite the non-holonomic nature of plastic behaviour. In the present paper the method of solution is re-examined in view to overcome an important drawback of the algorithm deriving from the size of PLCP fully populated matrix when structural problems with large number of variables are considered and, consequently, the updating, the storing or, generally, the handling of the current tableau may become prohibitive. (Auth.)

Using Baldrige Performance Excellence Program Approaches in the Pursuit of Radiation Oncology Quality Care, Patient Satisfaction, and Workforce Commitment

OpenAIRE

Sternick, Edward S.

2011-01-01

The Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Improvement Act was signed into law in 1987 to advance U.S. business competitiveness and economic growth. Administered by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the Act created the Baldrige National Quality Program, recently renamed the Baldrige Performance Excellence Program. The comprehensive analytical approaches referred to as the Baldrige Healthcare Criteria, are very well-suited for the evaluation and sustainable improvement of r...

A System of Systems Approach to Integrating Global Sea Level Change Application Programs

Science.gov (United States)

Bambachus, M. J.; Foster, R. S.; Powell, C.; Cole, M.

2005-12-01

The global sea level change application community has numerous disparate models used to make predications over various regional and temporal scales. These models have typically been focused on limited sets of data and optimized for specific areas or questions of interest. Increasingly, decision makers at the national, international, and local/regional levels require access to these application data models and want to be able to integrate large disparate data sets, with new ubiquitous sensor data, and use these data across models from multiple sources. These requirements will force the Global Sea Level Change application community to take a new system-of-systems approach to their programs. We present a new technical architecture approach to the global sea level change program that provides external access to the vast stores of global sea level change data, provides a collaboration forum for the discussion and visualization of data, and provides a simulation environment to evaluate decisions. This architectural approach will provide the tools to support multi-disciplinary decision making. A conceptual system of systems approach is needed to address questions around the multiple approaches to tracking and predicting Sea Level Change. A systems of systems approach would include (1) a forum of data providers, modelers, and users, (2) a service oriented architecture including interoperable web services with a backbone of Grid computing capability, and (3) discovery and access functionality to the information developed through this structure. Each of these three areas would be clearly designed to maximize communication, data use for decision making and flexibility and extensibility for evolution of technology and requirements. In contemplating a system-of-systems approach, it is important to highlight common understanding and coordination as foundational to success across the multiple systems. The workflow of science in different applications is often conceptually similar

LifeSteps: An Evidence-based Health Promotion Program for Underserved Populations – A Community Service Learning Approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Melanie Austin-McCain

2015-04-01

Full Text Available Chronic diseases are the most common, costly, and preventable of all health problems in the United States. Chronic diseases represent the leading causes of death and are experienced at higher rates by minority populations (CDC, 2012. Innovative community-based health promotion programs are recommended that meet the diverse needs of underserved populations (Yeary, et al., 2011. LifeSteps is being developed as an evidence-based health promotion program focusing on health and wellness, a domain area defined within the Occupational Therapy Practice Framework (OTPF, 2008. LifeSteps will utilize a client-centered approach to coach individuals in making health behavior changes. Fieldwork and service-learning components are incorporated integrating clinical practice, academic study, and collaboration with community providers. Program evaluation measures based on the Transtheoretical Model (TTM have been identified to address all phases of program planning. The LifeSteps health promotion program aligns with local, national, and international objectives and addresses the need for programs that meet the diverse needs of underserved populations. Occupational therapists are in a unique position for implementing community-based interventions that promote health and contribute to a healthier society.

Integrating Faith-based and Community-based Participatory Research Approaches to Adapt the Korean Parent Training Program.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Eunjung; Boutain, Doris; Kim, Sangho; Chun, Jin-Joo; Im, Hyesang

Faith and community based inquiry approaches are rarely used to develop research interventions. The purpose of this article is to present how a research team worked with six Korean American Christian churches to revise the prototype Korean Parent Training Program (KPTP), based upon the Bright Futures Parenting Program. The collaboration was sought to better integrate and align the KPTP with Korean culture and faith. The KPTP was developed to promote positive parenting practices and decrease mental health disparities of Korean American children. Sixteen church participants completed a Delphi survey, a workshop series, Community Theaters, and focus groups. The participants suggested adding Korean traditional parenting virtues, Christian parenting principles, and revising the standardized parent training and program philosophy. Revisions made KPTP sensitive to Korean culture and faith, and promoted program acceptability. The process demonstrated the importance of working with church volunteers to develop faith-based and community-based health promotion interventions targeting Korean American faith communities. This research presents significant and meaningful implications for working with other faith communities from minority backgrounds. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A coupled factorial-analysis-based interval programming approach and its application to air quality management.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, S; Huang, G H

2013-02-01

In this study, a coupled factorial-analysis-based interval programming (CFA-IP) approach is developed through incorporating factorial analysis within an interval-parameter linear programming framework. CFA-IP can tackle uncertainties presented as intervals that exist in the objective function and the left- and right-hand sides of constraints, as well as robustly reflect interval information in the solutions for the objective-function value and decision variables. Moreover CFA-IP has the advantage of investigating the potential interactions among input parameters and their influences on lower- and upper-bound solutions, which is meaningful for supporting an in-depth analysis of uncertainty. A regional air quality management problem is studied to demonstrate applicability of the proposed CFA-IP approach. The results indicate that useful solutions have been generated for planning the air quality management practices. They can help decision makers identify desired pollution mitigation strategies with minimized total cost and maximized environmental efficiency, as well as screen out dominant parameters and explore the valuable information that may be veiled beneath their interrelationships. The CFA-IP approach can not only tackle uncertainties presented as intervals that exist in the objective function and the left- and right-hand sides of constraints, but also investigate their interactive effects on model outputs, which is meaningful for supporting an in-depth analysis of uncertainty. Thus CFA-IP would be applicable to air quality management problems under uncertainty. The results obtained from CFA-IP can help decision makers identify desired pollution mitigation strategies, as well as investigate the potential interactions among factors and analyze their consequent effects on modeling results.

lpNet: a linear programming approach to reconstruct signal transduction networks.

Science.gov (United States)

Matos, Marta R A; Knapp, Bettina; Kaderali, Lars

2015-10-01

With the widespread availability of high-throughput experimental technologies it has become possible to study hundreds to thousands of cellular factors simultaneously, such as coding- or non-coding mRNA or protein concentrations. Still, extracting information about the underlying regulatory or signaling interactions from these data remains a difficult challenge. We present a flexible approach towards network inference based on linear programming. Our method reconstructs the interactions of factors from a combination of perturbation/non-perturbation and steady-state/time-series data. We show both on simulated and real data that our methods are able to reconstruct the underlying networks fast and efficiently, thus shedding new light on biological processes and, in particular, into disease's mechanisms of action. We have implemented the approach as an R package available through bioconductor. This R package is freely available under the Gnu Public License (GPL-3) from bioconductor.org (http://bioconductor.org/packages/release/bioc/html/lpNet.html) and is compatible with most operating systems (Windows, Linux, Mac OS) and hardware architectures. bettina.knapp@helmholtz-muenchen.de Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Teaching Scientific Computing: A Model-Centered Approach to Pipeline and Parallel Programming with C

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vladimiras Dolgopolovas

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study is to present an approach to the introduction into pipeline and parallel computing, using a model of the multiphase queueing system. Pipeline computing, including software pipelines, is among the key concepts in modern computing and electronics engineering. The modern computer science and engineering education requires a comprehensive curriculum, so the introduction to pipeline and parallel computing is the essential topic to be included in the curriculum. At the same time, the topic is among the most motivating tasks due to the comprehensive multidisciplinary and technical requirements. To enhance the educational process, the paper proposes a novel model-centered framework and develops the relevant learning objects. It allows implementing an educational platform of constructivist learning process, thus enabling learners’ experimentation with the provided programming models, obtaining learners’ competences of the modern scientific research and computational thinking, and capturing the relevant technical knowledge. It also provides an integral platform that allows a simultaneous and comparative introduction to pipelining and parallel computing. The programming language C for developing programming models and message passing interface (MPI and OpenMP parallelization tools have been chosen for implementation.

A stochastic security approach to energy and spinning reserve scheduling considering demand response program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Partovi, Farzad; Nikzad, Mehdi; Mozafari, Babak; Ranjbar, Ali Mohamad

2011-01-01

In this paper a new algorithm for allocating energy and determining the optimum amount of network active power reserve capacity and the share of generating units and demand side contribution in providing reserve capacity requirements for day-ahead market is presented. In the proposed method, the optimum amount of reserve requirement is determined based on network security set by operator. In this regard, Expected Load Not Supplied (ELNS) is used to evaluate system security in each hour. The proposed method has been implemented over the IEEE 24-bus test system and the results are compared with a deterministic security approach, which considers certain and fixed amount of reserve capacity in each hour. This comparison is done from economic and technical points of view. The promising results show the effectiveness of the proposed model which is formulated as mixed integer linear programming (MILP) and solved by GAMS software. -- Highlights: → Determination of optimal spinning reserve capacity requirement in order to satisfy desired security level set by system operator based on stochastic approach. → Scheduling energy and spinning reserve markets simultaneously. → Comparing the stochastic approach with deterministic approach to determine the advantages and disadvantages of each. → Examine the effect of demand response participation in reserve market to provide spinning reserve.

Approaches to dog health education programs in Australian rural and remote Indigenous communities: four case studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Constable, S E; Dixon, R M; Dixon, R J; Toribio, J-A

2013-09-01

Dog health in rural and remote Australian Indigenous communities is below urban averages in numerous respects. Many Indigenous communities have called for knowledge sharing in this area. However, dog health education programs are in their infancy, and lack data on effective practices. Without this core knowledge, health promotion efforts cannot progress effectively. This paper discusses a strategy that draws from successful approaches in human health and indigenous education, such as dadirri, and culturally respectful community engagement and development. Negotiating an appropriate education program is explored in its practical application through four case studies. Though each case was unique, the comparison of the four illustrated the importance of listening (community consultation), developing and maintaining relationships, community involvement and employment. The most successful case studies were those that could fully implement all four areas. Outcomes included improved local dog health capacity, local employment and engagement with the program and significantly improved dog health.

Islam - Science Integration Approach in Developing Chemistry Individualized Education Program (IEP for Students with Disabilities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jamil Suprihatiningrum

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The paper is based on a research which tries to explore, explain and describe Islam - science integration approach to develop an Individualized Education Program (IEP for students with disabilities in chemistry lesson. As a qualitative case study, this paper is aimed at investigating how Islam - science integration approach can be underpinned for developing the IEP for Chemistry. Participants were recruited purposively and data were collected by interviews; documents’ analysis; and experts’ assessment (i.e. material experts, inclusive education experts, media experts, chemistry teachers and support teachers, then analyzed using content-analysis. The result shows Islam - science integration approach can be a foundation to develop the chemistry IEP by seeking support for the verses of the Qur'an and corresponding hadiths. Even although almost all the subject matter in chemistry can be integrated with Islamic values, this study only developed two contents, namely Periodic System of Elements and Reaction Rate.

A linear programming approach to max-sum problem: a review.

Science.gov (United States)

Werner, Tomás

2007-07-01

The max-sum labeling problem, defined as maximizing a sum of binary (i.e., pairwise) functions of discrete variables, is a general NP-hard optimization problem with many applications, such as computing the MAP configuration of a Markov random field. We review a not widely known approach to the problem, developed by Ukrainian researchers Schlesinger et al. in 1976, and show how it contributes to recent results, most importantly, those on the convex combination of trees and tree-reweighted max-product. In particular, we review Schlesinger et al.'s upper bound on the max-sum criterion, its minimization by equivalent transformations, its relation to the constraint satisfaction problem, the fact that this minimization is dual to a linear programming relaxation of the original problem, and the three kinds of consistency necessary for optimality of the upper bound. We revisit problems with Boolean variables and supermodular problems. We describe two algorithms for decreasing the upper bound. We present an example application for structural image analysis.

Analytical approaches used in stream benthic macroinvertebrate biomonitoring programs of State agencies in the United States

Science.gov (United States)

Carter, James L.; Resh, Vincent H.

2013-01-01

Biomonitoring programs based on benthic macroinvertebrates are well-established worldwide. Their value, however, depends on the appropriateness of the analytical techniques used. All United States State, benthic macroinvertebrate biomonitoring programs were surveyed regarding the purposes of their programs, quality-assurance and quality-control procedures used, habitat and water-chemistry data collected, treatment of macroinvertebrate data prior to analysis, statistical methods used, and data-storage considerations. State regulatory mandates (59 percent of programs), biotic index development (17 percent), and Federal requirements (15 percent) were the most frequently reported purposes of State programs, with the specific tasks of satisfying the requirements for 305b/303d reports (89 percent), establishment and monitoring of total maximum daily loads, and developing biocriteria being the purposes most often mentioned. Most states establish reference sites (81 percent), but classify them using State-specific methods. The most often used technique for determining the appropriateness of a reference site was Best Professional Judgment (86 percent of these states). Macroinvertebrate samples are almost always collected by using a D-frame net, and duplicate samples are collected from approximately 10 percent of sites for quality assurance and quality control purposes. Most programs have macroinvertebrate samples processed by contractors (53 percent) and have identifications confirmed by a second taxonomist (85 percent). All States collect habitat data, with most using the Rapid Bioassessment Protocol visual-assessment approach, which requires ~1 h/site. Dissolved oxygen, pH, and conductivity are measured in more than 90 percent of programs. Wide variation exists in which taxa are excluded from analyses and the level of taxonomic resolution used. Species traits, such as functional feeding groups, are commonly used (96 percent), as are tolerance values for organic pollution

Mujeres Fuertes y Corazones Saludables: adaptation of the StrongWomen -healthy hearts program for rural Latinas using an intervention mapping approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Perry, Cynthia K; McCalmont, Jean C; Ward, Judy P; Menelas, Hannah-Dulya K; Jackson, Christie; De Witz, Jazmyne R; Solanki, Emma; Seguin, Rebecca A

2017-12-28

To describe our use of intervention mapping as a systematic method to adapt an evidence-based physical activity and nutrition program to reflect the needs of rural Latinas. An intervention mapping process involving six steps guided the adaptation of an evidence based physical activity and nutrition program, using a community-based participatory research approach. We partnered with a community advisory board of rural Latinas throughout the adaptation process. A needs assessment and logic models were used to ascertain which program was the best fit for adaptation. Once identified, we collaborated with one of the developers of the original program (StrongWomen - Healthy Hearts) during the adaptation process. First, essential theoretical methods and program elements were identified, and additional elements were added or adapted. Next, we reviewed and made changes to reflect the community and cultural context of the practical applications, intervention strategies, program curriculum, materials, and participant information. Finally, we planned for the implementation and evaluation of the adapted program, Mujeres Fuertes y Corazones Saludables, within the context of the rural community. A pilot study will be conducted with overweight, sedentary, middle-aged, Spanish-speaking Latinas. Outcome measures will assess change in weight, physical fitness, physical activity, and nutrition behavior. The intervention mapping process was feasible and provided a systematic approach to balance fit and fidelity in the adaptation of an evidence-based program. Collaboration with community members ensured that the components of the curriculum that were adapted were culturally appropriate and relevant within the local community context.

School Food Environment Promotion Program: Applying the Socio-ecological Approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fatemeh Bakhtari Aghdam

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Background Despite of healthy nutrition recommendations have been offered in recent decades, researches show an increasing rate of unhealthy junk food consumption among primary school children. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of health promotion intervention on the school food buffets and the changes in nutritional behaviors of the students. Materials and Methods In this Quasi-interventional study, eight schools agreed to participate in Tabriz city, Iran. The schools were randomly selected and divided into an intervention and a control group, and a pretest was given to both groups. A four weeks interventional program was conducted in eight randomly selected schools of the city based on the socio-ecological model. A check list was designed for the assessment of food items available at the schools’ buffets, a 60-item semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire (FFQ was used to assess the rate of food consumption and energy intake. Results evaluation and practice were analyzed using the Wilcoxon, Mann Whitney-U and Chi-square tests. Results The findings revealed reduction in the intervention group between before and after intervention with regard the range of junk food consumption, except for the sweets consumption. The number of junk foods provided in the schools buffets reduced in the intervention group. After the intervention on the intervention group significant decreases were found in the intake of energy, fat and saturated fatty acids compared to the control group (p = 0.00.   Conclusion In order to design effective school food environment promotion programs, school healthcare providers should consider multifaceted approaches.

Gap Analysis Approach for Construction Safety Program Improvement

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Thanet Aksorn

2007-06-01

Full Text Available To improve construction site safety, emphasis has been placed on the implementation of safety programs. In order to successfully gain from safety programs, factors that affect their improvement need to be studied. Sixteen critical success factors of safety programs were identified from safety literature, and these were validated by safety experts. This study was undertaken by surveying 70 respondents from medium- and large-scale construction projects. It explored the importance and the actual status of critical success factors (CSFs. Gap analysis was used to examine the differences between the importance of these CSFs and their actual status. This study found that the most critical problems characterized by the largest gaps were management support, appropriate supervision, sufficient resource allocation, teamwork, and effective enforcement. Raising these priority factors to satisfactory levels would lead to successful safety programs, thereby minimizing accidents.

New approaches in the USA for high-temperature gas-cooled reactors. Gas-Cooled Reactor Programs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kasten, P.R.; Neylan, A.J.; Penfield, S.R. Jr.

1985-08-01

Several concepts are being evaluated in the US HTR Program to explore designs which might improve the commercial viability of nuclear power. The general approach is to reduce the reactor power and increase the ability to use inherent features for removing heat following extreme accidents. The unit size and design of these concepts are constrained so that extreme accidents do not result in significant release of radioactivity from the reactor plant. Through the greater reliance on inherent safety features in small HTRs, it should be possible to minimize the amount of nuclear grade components required in the balance-of-plant, which could lead to an economic system. Four HTR concepts are presently being evaluated within the US Program, and these concepts are briefly summarized. A modular HTR using a steel pressure vessel, which is very similar to one of the four HTR concepts being evaluated within the US National program, is presented as an example of a specific concept to illustrate the features and performance of HTRs having a high degree of inherent safety

Re-Imagining Program Development and Re-Engineering Program Design.

Science.gov (United States)

Currie, Geoffrey M; Thomas, Catherine J

2018-05-03

Program development and review is a central part of institutional and industry quality assurance. Traditional approaches, while well established, present a number of barriers that could undermine process integrity and quality outcomes. Here a new approach to program development and design is explored with the goal of enhancing outcomes for students and institutions. Copyright © 2018 by the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Inc.

Turtle Graphics implementation using a graphical dataflow programming approach

OpenAIRE

Lovejoy, Robert Steven

1992-01-01

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited This thesis expands the concepts of object-oriented programming to implement a visual dataflow programming language. The main thrust of this research is to develop a functional prototype language, based upon the Turtle Graphics tool provided by LOGO programming language, for children to develop both their problem solving skills as well as their general programming skills. The language developed for this thesis was implemented in the...

Energy supply planning in Iran by using fuzzy linear programming approach (regarding uncertainties of investment costs)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sadeghi, Mehdi; Mirshojaeian Hosseini, Hossein

2006-01-01

For many years, energy models have been used in developed or developing countries to satisfy different needs in energy planning. One of major problems against energy planning and consequently energy models is uncertainty, spread in different economic, political and legal dimensions of energy planning. Confronting uncertainty, energy planners have often used two well-known strategies. The first strategy is stochastic programming, in which energy system planners define different scenarios and apply an explicit probability of occurrence to each scenario. The second strategy is Minimax Regret strategy that minimizes regrets of different decisions made in energy planning. Although these strategies have been used extensively, they could not flexibly and effectively deal with the uncertainties caused by fuzziness. 'Fuzzy Linear Programming (FLP)' is a strategy that can take fuzziness into account. This paper tries to demonstrate the method of application of FLP for optimization of supply energy system in Iran, as a case study. The used FLP model comprises fuzzy coefficients for investment costs. Following the mentioned purpose, it is realized that FLP is an easy and flexible approach that can be a serious competitor for other confronting uncertainties approaches, i.e. stochastic and Minimax Regret strategies. (author)

A Fuzzy Linear Programming Approach for Aggregate Production Planning

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Iris, Cagatay; Cevikcan, Emre

2014-01-01

a mathematical programming framework for aggregate production planning problem under imprecise data environment. After providing background information about APP problem, together with fuzzy linear programming, the fuzzy linear programming model of APP is solved on an illustrative example for different a...

Airline loyalty (programs) across borders : A geographic discontinuity approach

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Jong, Gerben; Behrens, Christiaan; van Ommeren, Jos

2018-01-01

We analyze brand loyalty advantages of national airlines in their domestic countries using geocoded data from a major international frequent flier program. We employ a geographic discontinuity design that estimates discontinuities in program activity at the national borders of the program's

Individual capacity-building approaches in a global pharmaceutical systems strengthening program: a selected review.

Science.gov (United States)

Konduri, Niranjan; Rauscher, Megan; Wang, Shiou-Chu Judy; Malpica-Llanos, Tanya

2017-01-01

Medicines use related challenges such as inadequate adherence, high levels of antimicrobial resistance and preventable adverse drug reactions have underscored the need to incorporate pharmaceutical services to help achieve desired treatment outcomes, and protect patients from inappropriate use of medicines. This situation is further constrained by insufficient numbers of pharmaceutical personnel and inappropriate skill mix. Studies have addressed individual capacity building approaches of logistics, supply chain or disease specific interventions but few have documented those involving such pharmacy assistants/professionals, or health workers/professionals charged with improving access and provision of pharmaceutical services. We examined how different training modalities have been employed and adapted to meet country-specific context and needs by a global pharmaceutical systems strengthening program in collaboration with a country's Ministry of Health and local stakeholders. Structured, content analysis of training approaches from twelve selected countries and a survey among conveniently selected trainees in Bangladesh and Ethiopia. Case-based learning, practice and feedback, and repetitive interventions such as post-training action plan, supportive supervision and mentoring approaches are effective, evidence-based training techniques. In Ethiopia and Bangladesh, over 94% of respondents indicated that they have improved or developed skills or competencies as a result of the program's training activities. Supportive supervision structures and mentorship have been institutionalized with appropriate management structures. National authorities have been sensitized to secure funding from domestic resources or from the global fund grants for post-training follow-up initiatives. The Pharmaceutical Leadership Development Program is an effective, case-based training modality that motivates staff to develop quality-improvement interventions and solve specific challenges

Design of Robust Pulses to Insufficient Synchronization for OFDM/OQAM Systems in Doubly Dispersive Channels

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yu Zhao

2015-01-01

Full Text Available This paper presents a pulse shaping method robust to insufficient synchronization in orthogonal frequency division multiplexing with offset quadrature amplitude modulation (OFDM/OQAM systems over doubly dispersive (DD channels. The proposed pulse is designed as a linear combination of several well localized Hermite functions. The coefficients optimization problem is modeled as a nonconvex constrained fractional programming problem based on the signal-to-interference ratio (SIR maximization criterion. An efficient iterative algorithm is applied to simplify the problem to a series of quadratically constrained quadratic program (QCQP problems which can be solved by semidefinite relaxation (SDR method. Simulation results show that the proposed pulse is superior to traditional pulses with respect to SIR performance over DD channels in the presence of carrier frequency offset (CFO and timing offset (TO.

Playing by Programming: Making Gameplay a Programming Activity

Science.gov (United States)

Weintrop, David; Wilensky, Uri

2016-01-01

Video games are an oft-cited reason for young learners getting interested in programming and computer science. As such, many learning opportunities build on this interest by having kids program their own video games. This approach, while sometimes successful, has its drawbacks stemming from the fact that the challenge of programming and game…

A Strategic Approach to Implementation of Medical Mentorship Programs.

Science.gov (United States)

Caruso, Thomas J; Steinberg, Diane H; Piro, Nancy; Walker, Kimberly; Blankenburg, Rebecca; Rassbach, Caroline; Marquez, Juan L; Katznelson, Laurence; Dohn, Ann

2016-02-01

Mentors influence medical trainees' experiences through career enhancement and psychosocial support, yet some trainees never receive benefits from involved mentors. Our goals were to examine the effectiveness of 2 interventions aimed at increasing the number of mentors in training programs, and to assess group differences in mentor effectiveness, the relationship between trainees' satisfaction with their programs given the presence of mentors, and the relationship between the number of trainees with mentors and postgraduate year (PGY). In group 1, a physician adviser funded by the graduate medical education department implemented mentorships in 6 residency programs, while group 2 involved a training program with funded physician mentoring time. The remaining 89 training programs served as controls. Chi-square tests were used to determine differences. Survey responses from group 1, group 2, and controls were 47 of 84 (56%), 34 of 78 (44%), and 471 of 981 (48%, P = .38), respectively. The percentages of trainees reporting a mentor in group 1, group 2, and the control group were 89%, 97%, and 79%, respectively (P = .01). There were no differences in mentor effectiveness between groups. Mentored trainees were more likely to be satisfied with their programs (P = .01) and to report that faculty supported their professional aspirations (P = .001). Across all programs, fewer first-year trainees (59%) identified a mentor compared to PGY-2 through PGY-8 trainees (84%, P program is an effective way to create an educational environment that maximizes trainees' perceptions of mentorship and satisfaction with their training programs.

Designing a workplace return-to-work program for occupational low back pain: an intervention mapping approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ammendolia Carlo

2009-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Despite over 2 decades of research, the ability to prevent work-related low back pain (LBP and disability remains elusive. Recent research suggests that interventions that are focused at the workplace and incorporate the principals of participatory ergonomics and return-to-work (RTW coordination can improve RTW and reduce disability following a work-related back injury. Workplace interventions or programs to improve RTW are difficult to design and implement given the various individuals and environments involved, each with their own unique circumstances. Intervention mapping provides a framework for designing and implementing complex interventions or programs. The objective of this study is to design a best evidence RTW program for occupational LBP tailored to the Ontario setting using an intervention mapping approach. Methods We used a qualitative synthesis based on the intervention mapping methodology. Best evidence from systematic reviews, practice guidelines and key articles on the prognosis and management of LBP and improving RTW was combined with theoretical models for managing LBP and changing behaviour. This was then systematically operationalized into a RTW program using consensus among experts and stakeholders. The RTW Program was further refined following feedback from nine focus groups with various stakeholders. Results A detailed five step RTW program was developed. The key features of the program include; having trained personnel coordinate the RTW process, identifying and ranking barriers and solutions to RTW from the perspective of all important stakeholders, mediating practical solutions at the workplace and, empowering the injured worker in RTW decision-making. Conclusion Intervention mapping provided a useful framework to develop a comprehensive RTW program tailored to the Ontario setting.

Designing a workplace return-to-work program for occupational low back pain: an intervention mapping approach

Science.gov (United States)

Ammendolia, Carlo; Cassidy, David; Steensta, Ivan; Soklaridis, Sophie; Boyle, Eleanor; Eng, Stephanie; Howard, Hamer; Bhupinder, Bains; Côté, Pierre

2009-01-01

Background Despite over 2 decades of research, the ability to prevent work-related low back pain (LBP) and disability remains elusive. Recent research suggests that interventions that are focused at the workplace and incorporate the principals of participatory ergonomics and return-to-work (RTW) coordination can improve RTW and reduce disability following a work-related back injury. Workplace interventions or programs to improve RTW are difficult to design and implement given the various individuals and environments involved, each with their own unique circumstances. Intervention mapping provides a framework for designing and implementing complex interventions or programs. The objective of this study is to design a best evidence RTW program for occupational LBP tailored to the Ontario setting using an intervention mapping approach. Methods We used a qualitative synthesis based on the intervention mapping methodology. Best evidence from systematic reviews, practice guidelines and key articles on the prognosis and management of LBP and improving RTW was combined with theoretical models for managing LBP and changing behaviour. This was then systematically operationalized into a RTW program using consensus among experts and stakeholders. The RTW Program was further refined following feedback from nine focus groups with various stakeholders. Results A detailed five step RTW program was developed. The key features of the program include; having trained personnel coordinate the RTW process, identifying and ranking barriers and solutions to RTW from the perspective of all important stakeholders, mediating practical solutions at the workplace and, empowering the injured worker in RTW decision-making. Conclusion Intervention mapping provided a useful framework to develop a comprehensive RTW program tailored to the Ontario setting. PMID:19508728

Design of CIAO, a research program to support the development of an integrated approach to prevent overweight and obesity in the Netherlands.

Science.gov (United States)

van Koperen, Marije Tm; van der Kleij, Rianne Mjj; Renders, Carry Cm; Crone, Matty Mr; Hendriks, Anna-Marie Am; Jansen, Maria M; van de Gaar, Vivian Vm; Raat, Hein Jh; Ruiter, Emilie Elm; Molleman, Gerard Grm; Schuit, Jantine Aj; Seidell, Jacob Jc

2014-01-01

The aim of this paper is to describe the research aims, concepts and methods of the research Consortium Integrated Approach of Overweight (CIAO). CIAO is a concerted action of five Academic Collaborative Centres, local collaborations between academic institutions, regional public health services, local authorities and other relevant sectors in the Netherlands. Prior research revealed lacunas in knowledge of and skills related to five elements of the integrated approach of overweight prevention in children (based upon the French EPODE approach), namely political support, parental education, implementation, social marketing and evaluation. CIAO aims to gain theoretical and practical insight of these elements through five sub-studies and to develop, based on these data, a framework for monitoring and evaluation. For this research program, mixed methods are used in all the five sub-studies. First, problem specification through literature research and consultation of stakeholders, experts, health promotion specialists, parents and policy makers will be carried out. Based on this information, models, theoretical frameworks and practical instruments will be developed, tested and evaluated in the communities that implement the integrated approach to prevent overweight in children. Knowledge obtained from these studies and insights from experts and stakeholders will be combined to create an evaluation framework to evaluate the integrated approach at central, local and individual levels that will be applicable to daily practice. This innovative research program stimulates sub-studies to collaborate with local stakeholders and to share and integrate their knowledge, methodology and results. Therefore, the output of this program (both knowledge and practical tools) will be matched and form building blocks of a blueprint for a local evidence- and practice-based integrated approach towards prevention of overweight in children. The output will then support various communities to

Approaches for building community participation: A qualitative case study of Canadian food security programs.

Science.gov (United States)

Hyett, Nerida; Kenny, Amanda; Dickson-Swift, Virginia

2017-10-01

There is increasing opportunity and support for occupational therapists to expand their scope of practice in community settings. However, evidence is needed to increase occupational therapists' knowledge, confidence, and capacity with building community participation and adopting community-centered practice roles. The purpose of this study is to improve occupational therapists' understanding of an approach to building community participation, through case study of a network of Canadian food security programs. Qualitative case study was utilized. Data were semistructured interviews, field observations, documents, and online social media. Thematic analysis was used to identify and describe four themes that relate to processes used to build community participation. The four themes were use of multiple methods, good leaders are fundamental, growing participation via social media, and leveraging outcomes. Occupational therapists can utilize an approach for building community participation that incorporates resource mobilization. Challenges of sustainability and social exclusion must be addressed.

Fast entanglement detection for unknown states of two spatial qutrits

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lima, G.; Gomez, E. S.; Saavedra, C.; Vargas, A.; Vianna, R. O.

2010-01-01

We investigate the practicality of the method proposed by Maciel et al. [Phys. Rev. A. 80, 032325 (2009).] for detecting the entanglement of two spatial qutrits (three-dimensional quantum systems), which are encoded in the discrete transverse momentum of single photons transmitted through a multislit aperture. The method is based on the acquisition of partial information of the quantum state through projective measurements, and a data processing analysis done with semidefinite programs. This analysis relies on generating gradually an optimal entanglement witness operator, and numerical investigations have shown that it allows for the entanglement detection of unknown states with a cost much lower than full state tomography.

A Practical Approach to Program Evaluation.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Linda J.; Sampson, John F.

1990-01-01

The Research and Evaluation Support Services Unit of the New South Wales (Australia) Department of Education conducts program evaluations to provide information to senior management for decision making. The 10-step system used is described, which provides for planning, evaluation, and staff development. (TJH)

Relaxations to Sparse Optimization Problems and Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Skau, Erik West

Parsimony is a fundamental property that is applied to many characteristics in a variety of fields. Of particular interest are optimization problems that apply rank, dimensionality, or support in a parsimonious manner. In this thesis we study some optimization problems and their relaxations, and focus on properties and qualities of the solutions of these problems. The Gramian tensor decomposition problem attempts to decompose a symmetric tensor as a sum of rank one tensors.We approach the Gramian tensor decomposition problem with a relaxation to a semidefinite program. We study conditions which ensure that the solution of the relaxed semidefinite problem gives the minimal Gramian rank decomposition. Sparse representations with learned dictionaries are one of the leading image modeling techniques for image restoration. When learning these dictionaries from a set of training images, the sparsity parameter of the dictionary learning algorithm strongly influences the content of the dictionary atoms.We describe geometrically the content of trained dictionaries and how it changes with the sparsity parameter.We use statistical analysis to characterize how the different content is used in sparse representations. Finally, a method to control the structure of the dictionaries is demonstrated, allowing us to learn a dictionary which can later be tailored for specific applications. Variations of dictionary learning can be broadly applied to a variety of applications.We explore a pansharpening problem with a triple factorization variant of coupled dictionary learning. Another application of dictionary learning is computer vision. Computer vision relies heavily on object detection, which we explore with a hierarchical convolutional dictionary learning model. Data fusion of disparate modalities is a growing topic of interest.We do a case study to demonstrate the benefit of using social media data with satellite imagery to estimate hazard extents. In this case study analysis we

Recombinant Programming

OpenAIRE

Pawlak , Renaud; Cuesta , Carlos; Younessi , Houman

2004-01-01

This research report presents a promising new approach to computation called Recombinant Programming. The novelty of our approach is that it separates the program into two layers of computation: the recombination and the interpretation layer. The recombination layer takes sequences as inputs and allows the programmer to recombine these sequences through the definition of cohesive code units called extensions. The output of such recombination is a mesh that can be used by the interpretation la...

A Cultural Approach to Understanding Professional Experiences of Foreign-Born Faculty in U.S. Educational Leadership Preparation Programs

Science.gov (United States)

Khrabrova, Iryna; Sanzo, Karen L.

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the professional experiences of foreign-born faculty members serving in U.S. educational leadership preparation programs, utilizing a cultural approach to discern their lived experiences related to professional life. Cultural values were explored as reflected in professional life experiences. The…

Innovative Approaches to Remote Sensing in NASA's Earth System Science Pathfinder (ESSP) Program

Science.gov (United States)

Peri, Frank; Volz, Stephen

2013-01-01

NASA's Earth Venture class (EV) of mission are competitively selected, Principal Investigator (PI) led, relatively low cost and narrowly focused in scientific scope. Investigations address a full spectrum of earth science objectives, including studies of the atmosphere, oceans, land surface, polar ice regions, and solid Earth. EV has three program elements: EV-Suborbital (EVS) are suborbital/airborne investigations; EV-Mission (EVM) element comprises small complete spaceborne missions; and EV-Instrument (EVI) element develops spaceborne instruments for flight as missions-of-opportunity (MoO). To ensure the success of EV, the management approach of each element is tailored according to the specific needs of the element.

An integrated approach to fire penetration seal program management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rispoli, R.D.

1996-01-01

This paper discusses the utilization of a P.C. based program to facilitate the management of Entergy Operations Arkansas Nuclear One (ANO) fire barrier penetration seal program. The computer program was developed as part of a streamlining process to consolidate all aspects of the ANO Penetration Seal Program under one system. The program tracks historical information related to each seal such as maintenance activities, design modifications and evaluations. The program is integrated with approved penetration seal design details which have been substantiated by full scale fire tests. This control feature is intended to prevent the inadvertent utilization of an unacceptable penetration detail in a field application which may exceed the parameters tested. The system is also capable of controlling the scope of the periodic surveillance of penetration seals by randomly selecting the inspection population and generating associated inspection forms. Inputs to the data base are required throughout the modification and maintenance process to ensure configuration control and maintain accurate data base information. These inputs are verified and procedurally controlled by Fire Protection Engineering (FPE) personnel. The implementation of this system has resulted in significant cost savings and has minimized the allocation of resources necessary to ensure long term program viability

On Construction and Verification of PLC-Programs

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

E. V. Kuzmin

2012-01-01

Full Text Available We review some methods and approaches to programming discrete problems for Programmable Logic Controllers on the example of constructing PLC-programs for controling a code lock. For these approaches we evaluate the usability of the model checking method for the analysis of program correctness with respect to the automatic verification tool Cadence SMV. Some possible PLC-program vulnerabilities arising at a number approaches to programming of PLC are revealed.

Behavioral program synthesis with genetic programming

CERN Document Server

Krawiec, Krzysztof

2016-01-01

Genetic programming (GP) is a popular heuristic methodology of program synthesis with origins in evolutionary computation. In this generate-and-test approach, candidate programs are iteratively produced and evaluated. The latter involves running programs on tests, where they exhibit complex behaviors reflected in changes of variables, registers, or memory. That behavior not only ultimately determines program output, but may also reveal its `hidden qualities' and important characteristics of the considered synthesis problem. However, the conventional GP is oblivious to most of that information and usually cares only about the number of tests passed by a program. This `evaluation bottleneck' leaves search algorithm underinformed about the actual and potential qualities of candidate programs. This book proposes behavioral program synthesis, a conceptual framework that opens GP to detailed information on program behavior in order to make program synthesis more efficient. Several existing and novel mechanisms subs...

An Approach to Effortless Construction of Program Animations

Science.gov (United States)

Velazquez-Iturbide, J. Angel; Pareja-Flores, Cristobal; Urquiza-Fuentes, Jaime

2008-01-01

Program animation systems have not been as widely adopted by computer science educators as we might expect from the firm belief that they can help in enhancing computer science education. One of the most notable obstacles to their adoption is the considerable effort that the production of program animations represents for the instructor. We…

Computer-Assisted Program Reasoning Based on a Relational Semantics of Programs

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wolfgang Schreiner

2012-02-01

Full Text Available We present an approach to program reasoning which inserts between a program and its verification conditions an additional layer, the denotation of the program expressed in a declarative form. The program is first translated into its denotation from which subsequently the verification conditions are generated. However, even before (and independently of any verification attempt, one may investigate the denotation itself to get insight into the "semantic essence" of the program, in particular to see whether the denotation indeed gives reason to believe that the program has the expected behavior. Errors in the program and in the meta-information may thus be detected and fixed prior to actually performing the formal verification. More concretely, following the relational approach to program semantics, we model the effect of a program as a binary relation on program states. A formal calculus is devised to derive from a program a logic formula that describes this relation and is subject for inspection and manipulation. We have implemented this idea in a comprehensive form in the RISC ProgramExplorer, a new program reasoning environment for educational purposes which encompasses the previously developed RISC ProofNavigator as an interactive proving assistant.

A novel and cost-effective monitoring approach for outcomes in an Australian biodiversity conservation incentive program.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

David B Lindenmayer

Full Text Available We report on the design and implementation of ecological monitoring for an Australian biodiversity conservation incentive scheme - the Environmental Stewardship Program. The Program uses competitive auctions to contract individual land managers for up to 15 years to conserve matters of National Environmental Significance (with an initial priority on nationally threatened ecological communities. The ecological monitoring was explicitly aligned with the Program's policy objective and desired outcomes and was applied to the Program's initial Project which targeted the critically endangered White Box-Yellow Box-Blakely's Red Gum Grassy Woodland and Derived Native Grassland ecological community in south eastern Australia. These woodlands have been reduced to <3% of their original extent and persist mostly as small remnants of variable condition on private farmland. We established monitoring sites on 153 farms located over 172,232 sq km. On each farm we established a monitoring site within the woodland patch funded for management and, wherever possible, a matched control site. The monitoring has entailed gathering data on vegetation condition, reptiles and birds. We also gathered data on the costs of experimental design, site establishment, field survey, and data analysis. The costs of monitoring are approximately 8.5% of the Program's investment in the first four years and hence are in broad accord with the general rule of thumb that 5-10% of a program's funding should be invested in monitoring. Once initial monitoring and site benchmarking are completed we propose to implement a novel rotating sampling approach that will maintain scientific integrity while achieving an annual cost-efficiency of up to 23%. We discuss useful lessons relevant to other monitoring programs where there is a need to provide managers with reliable early evidence of program effectiveness and to demonstrate opportunities for cost-efficiencies.

Automatic Construction of Java Programs from Functional Program Specifications

OpenAIRE

Md. Humayun Kabir

2015-01-01

This paper presents a novel approach to construct Java programs automatically from the input functional program specifications on natural numbers from the constructive proofs of the input specifications using an inductive theorem prover called Poiti'n. The construction of a Java program from the input functional program specification involves two phases. The theorem prover is used to construct a higher order functional (HOF) program from the input specification expressed as an existential the...

Short rotation woody crops program: 1982 program summary

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ranney, J.W.; Cushman, J.H.; Trimble, J.L.

1982-09-01

The general objective and overall approach of the program are discussed, and the status, specific goals, and recent results of the three major research areas are presented. The report concludes with brief summaries of the individual research projects in the program.

Reflections on the Teaching of Programming

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

-line tutorials, object-oriented programming and Java, the BlueJ environment to introduce programming, model-driven programming as opposed to the prevailing language-driven approach, teaching software engineering, testing, extreme programming, frameworks, feedback and assessment, active learning, technology.......  Part II consists of four chapters that specifically address issues related to  introductory courses on object-oriented programming ⎯the currently most prevailing  approach to introductory programming. The primary issues covered are transitioning  to object-oriented programming and Java, the use...... general challenge of  teaching software engineering. The primary issues covered in this part are testing,  extreme programming, and frameworks. These are all issues that are typically covered  in later courses.  Part IV, the last part of the book, consists of two chapters addressing innovative  approaches...

Vehicle Technologies Program Overview

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

none,

2006-09-05

Overview of the Vehicle Technologies Program including external assessment and market view; internal assessment, program history and progress; program justification and federal role; program vision, mission, approach, strategic goals, outputs, and outcomes; and performance goals.

Development of a Portfolio Management Approach with Case Study of the NASA Airspace Systems Program

Science.gov (United States)

Neitzke, Kurt W.; Hartman, Christopher L.

2012-01-01

A portfolio management approach was developed for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration s (NASA s) Airspace Systems Program (ASP). The purpose was to help inform ASP leadership regarding future investment decisions related to its existing portfolio of advanced technology concepts and capabilities (C/Cs) currently under development and to potentially identify new opportunities. The portfolio management approach is general in form and is extensible to other advanced technology development programs. It focuses on individual C/Cs and consists of three parts: 1) concept of operations (con-ops) development, 2) safety impact assessment, and 3) benefit-cost-risk (B-C-R) assessment. The first two parts are recommendations to ASP leaders and will be discussed only briefly, while the B-C-R part relates to the development of an assessment capability and will be discussed in greater detail. The B-C-R assessment capability enables estimation of the relative value of each C/C as compared with all other C/Cs in the ASP portfolio. Value is expressed in terms of a composite weighted utility function (WUF) rating, based on estimated benefits, costs, and risks. Benefit utility is estimated relative to achieving key NAS performance objectives, which are outlined in the ASP Strategic Plan.1 Risk utility focuses on C/C development and implementation risk, while cost utility focuses on the development and implementation portions of overall C/C life-cycle costs. Initial composite ratings of the ASP C/Cs were successfully generated; however, the limited availability of B-C-R information, which is used as inputs to the WUF model, reduced the meaningfulness of these initial investment ratings. Development of this approach, however, defined specific information-generation requirements for ASP C/C developers that will increase the meaningfulness of future B-C-R ratings.

A conceptual approach to the estimation of societal willingness-to-pay for nuclear safety programs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pandey, M.D.; Nathwani, J.S.

2003-01-01

The design, refurbishment and future decommissioning of nuclear reactors are crucially concerned with reducing the risk of radiation exposure that can result in adverse health effects and potential loss of life. To address this concern, large financial investments have been made to ensure safety of operating nuclear power plants worldwide. The efficacy of the expenditures incurred to provide safety must be judged against the safety benefit to be gained from such investments. We have developed an approach that provides a defendable basis for making that judgement. If the costs of risk reduction are disproportionate to the safety benefits derived, then the expenditures are not optimal; in essence the societal resources are being diverted away from other critical areas such as health care, education and social services that also enhance the quality of life. Thus, the allocation of society's resources devoted to nuclear safety must be continually appraised in light of competing needs, because there is a limit on the resources that any society can devote to extend life. The purpose of the paper is to present a simple and methodical approach to assessing the benefits of nuclear safety programs and regulations. The paper presents the Life-Quality Index (LQI) as a tool for the assessment of risk reduction initiatives that would support the public interest and enhance both safety and the quality of life. The LQI is formulated as a utility function consistent with the principles of rational decision analysis. The LQI is applied to quantify the societal willingness-to-pay (SWTP) for safety measures enacted to reduce of the risk of potential exposures to ionising radiation. The proposed approach provides essential support to help improve the cost-benefit analysis of engineering safety programs and safety regulations.

Consensus statement understanding health and malnutrition through a systems approach: the ENOUGH program for early life.

Science.gov (United States)

Kaput, Jim; van Ommen, Ben; Kremer, Bas; Priami, Corrado; Monteiro, Jacqueline Pontes; Morine, Melissa; Pepping, Fre; Diaz, Zoey; Fenech, Michael; He, Yiwu; Albers, Ruud; Drevon, Christian A; Evelo, Chris T; Hancock, Robert E W; Ijsselmuiden, Carel; Lumey, L H; Minihane, Anne-Marie; Muller, Michael; Murgia, Chiara; Radonjic, Marijana; Sobral, Bruno; West, Keith P

2014-01-01

Nutrition research, like most biomedical disciplines, adopted and often uses experimental approaches based on Beadle and Tatum's one gene-one polypeptide hypothesis, thereby reducing biological processes to single reactions or pathways. Systems thinking is needed to understand the complexity of health and disease processes requiring measurements of physiological processes, as well as environmental and social factors, which may alter the expression of genetic information. Analysis of physiological processes with omics technologies to assess systems' responses has only become available over the past decade and remains costly. Studies of environmental and social conditions known to alter health are often not connected to biomedical research. While these facts are widely accepted, developing and conducting comprehensive research programs for health are often beyond financial and human resources of single research groups. We propose a new research program on essential nutrients for optimal underpinning of growth and health (ENOUGH) that will use systems approaches with more comprehensive measurements and biostatistical analysis of the many biological and environmental factors that influence undernutrition. Creating a knowledge base for nutrition and health is a necessary first step toward developing solutions targeted to different populations in diverse social and physical environments for the two billion undernourished people in developed and developing economies.

New Approaches for Very Large-Scale Integer Programming

Science.gov (United States)

2016-06-24

DISTRIBUTION/ AVAILABILITY STATEMENT Approved for Public Release 13. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES 14. ABSTRACT The focus of this project is new computational... heuristics for integer programs in order to rapidly improve dual bounds. 2. Choosing good branching variables in branch-and-bound algorithms for MIP. 3...programming, algorithms, parallel processing, machine learning, heuristics 16. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION OF: 17. LIMITATION OF ABSTRACT UU 18. NUMBER OF

Dynamic programming approach to optimization of approximate decision rules

KAUST Repository

Amin, Talha

2013-02-01

This paper is devoted to the study of an extension of dynamic programming approach which allows sequential optimization of approximate decision rules relative to the length and coverage. We introduce an uncertainty measure R(T) which is the number of unordered pairs of rows with different decisions in the decision table T. For a nonnegative real number β, we consider β-decision rules that localize rows in subtables of T with uncertainty at most β. Our algorithm constructs a directed acyclic graph Δβ(T) which nodes are subtables of the decision table T given by systems of equations of the kind "attribute = value". This algorithm finishes the partitioning of a subtable when its uncertainty is at most β. The graph Δβ(T) allows us to describe the whole set of so-called irredundant β-decision rules. We can describe all irredundant β-decision rules with minimum length, and after that among these rules describe all rules with maximum coverage. We can also change the order of optimization. The consideration of irredundant rules only does not change the results of optimization. This paper contains also results of experiments with decision tables from UCI Machine Learning Repository. © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A Dynamic Programming Approach for Pricing Weather Derivatives under Issuer Default Risk

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wolfgang Karl Härdle

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Weather derivatives are contingent claims with payoff based on a pre-specified weather index. Firms exposed to weather risk can transfer it to financial markets via weather derivatives. We develop a utility-based model for pricing baskets of weather derivatives under default risk on the issuer side in over-the-counter markets. In our model, agents maximise the expected utility of their terminal wealth, while they dynamically rebalance their weather portfolios over a finite investment horizon. Using dynamic programming approach, we obtain semi-closed forms for the equilibrium prices of weather derivatives and for the optimal strategies of the agents. We give an example on how to price rainfall derivatives on selected stations in China in the universe of a financial investor and a weather exposed crop insurer.

Comparing Hybrid Learning with Traditional Approaches on Learning the Microsoft Office Power Point 2003 Program in Tertiary Education

Science.gov (United States)

Vernadakis, Nikolaos; Antoniou, Panagiotis; Giannousi, Maria; Zetou, Eleni; Kioumourtzoglou, Efthimis

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of a hybrid learning approach to deliver a computer science course concerning the Microsoft office PowerPoint 2003 program in comparison to delivering the same course content in the form of traditional lectures. A hundred and seventy-two first year university students were randomly…

Python for teaching introductory programming: A quantitative evaluation

OpenAIRE

Jayal, A; Lauria, S; Tucker, A; Swift, S

2011-01-01

This paper compares two different approaches of teaching introductory programming by quantitatively analysing the student assessments in a real classroom. The first approach is to emphasise the principles of object-oriented programming and design using Java from the very beginning. The second approach is to first teach the basic programming concepts (loops, branch, and use of libraries) using Python and then move on to oriented programming using Java. Each approach was adopted for one academi...

Joint shape segmentation with linear programming

KAUST Repository

Huang, Qixing

2011-01-01

We present an approach to segmenting shapes in a heterogenous shape database. Our approach segments the shapes jointly, utilizing features from multiple shapes to improve the segmentation of each. The approach is entirely unsupervised and is based on an integer quadratic programming formulation of the joint segmentation problem. The program optimizes over possible segmentations of individual shapes as well as over possible correspondences between segments from multiple shapes. The integer quadratic program is solved via a linear programming relaxation, using a block coordinate descent procedure that makes the optimization feasible for large databases. We evaluate the presented approach on the Princeton segmentation benchmark and show that joint shape segmentation significantly outperforms single-shape segmentation techniques. © 2011 ACM.

Social Return on Investment (SROI): An Innovative Approach to Sustainable Development Goals for Sexual and Reproductive Health Programming in sub-Saharan Africa.

Science.gov (United States)

Kumar, Shubha R; Banke-Thomas, Aduragbemi

2016-09-01

Despite efforts, sub-Saharan Africa did not achieve many key Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) targets under the Millennium Development Goals. In the post 2015 era, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will frame decisions on donor priorities and resource allocations. Successfully addressing SRH challenges in sub-Saharan Africa have been blunted due to fragmentation of SRH interventions in planning and implementation, lack of coherence between policies and program implementation, resulting in poor program performance and lack of accountability. We suggest the Social Return on Investment (SROI) framework offers a strategic approach for sub-Saharan Africa in support of the implementation, monitoring and evaluation of SRH programs given its capacity to capture social and economic impacts, stakeholder participation, and sensitivity towards key human rights concerns relevant to SRH. SROI disrupts a -business as usual‖ approach for one that is systematic, participatory, and supportive of economic and human rights needs for success in the SDG era.

An Instructional Note on Linear Programming--A Pedagogically Sound Approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Mitchell, Richard

1998-01-01

Discusses the place of linear programming in college curricula and the advantages of using linear-programming software. Lists important characteristics of computer software used in linear programming for more effective teaching and learning. (ASK)

Graphical programming at Sandia National Laboratories

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McDonald, M.J.; Palmquist, R.D.; Desjarlais, L.

1993-09-01

Sandia has developed an advanced operational control system approach, called Graphical Programming, to design, program, and operate robotic systems. The Graphical Programming approach produces robot systems that are faster to develop and use, safer in operation, and cheaper overall than altemative teleoperation or autonomous robot control systems. Graphical Programming also provides an efficient and easy-to-use interface to traditional robot systems for use in setup and programming tasks. This paper provides an overview of the Graphical Programming approach and lists key features of Graphical Programming systems. Graphical Programming uses 3-D visualization and simulation software with intuitive operator interfaces for the programming and control of complex robotic systems. Graphical Programming Supervisor software modules allow an operator to command and simulate complex tasks in a graphic preview mode and, when acceptable, command the actual robots and monitor their motions with the graphic system. Graphical Programming Supervisors maintain registration with the real world and allow the robot to perform tasks that cannot be accurately represented with models alone by using a combination of model and sensor-based control

Programming in Context

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bennedsen, J.; Caspersen, M.E.

2004-01-01

The recommendations of the Joint Task Force on Computing Curricula 2001 encompass suggestions for an object-first introductory programming course. We have identified conceptual modeling as a lacking perspective in the suggestions for CS1. Conceptual modeling is the defining characteristic of object...... approach to programming; both of these are a big help to newcomers. The approach has a very positive impact on the number of students passing the course....

Attractive electron-electron interactions within robust local fitting approximations.

Science.gov (United States)

Merlot, Patrick; Kjærgaard, Thomas; Helgaker, Trygve; Lindh, Roland; Aquilante, Francesco; Reine, Simen; Pedersen, Thomas Bondo

2013-06-30

An analysis of Dunlap's robust fitting approach reveals that the resulting two-electron integral matrix is not manifestly positive semidefinite when local fitting domains or non-Coulomb fitting metrics are used. We present a highly local approximate method for evaluating four-center two-electron integrals based on the resolution-of-the-identity (RI) approximation and apply it to the construction of the Coulomb and exchange contributions to the Fock matrix. In this pair-atomic resolution-of-the-identity (PARI) approach, atomic-orbital (AO) products are expanded in auxiliary functions centered on the two atoms associated with each product. Numerical tests indicate that in 1% or less of all Hartree-Fock and Kohn-Sham calculations, the indefinite integral matrix causes nonconvergence in the self-consistent-field iterations. In these cases, the two-electron contribution to the total energy becomes negative, meaning that the electronic interaction is effectively attractive, and the total energy is dramatically lower than that obtained with exact integrals. In the vast majority of our test cases, however, the indefiniteness does not interfere with convergence. The total energy accuracy is comparable to that of the standard Coulomb-metric RI method. The speed-up compared with conventional algorithms is similar to the RI method for Coulomb contributions; exchange contributions are accelerated by a factor of up to eight with a triple-zeta quality basis set. A positive semidefinite integral matrix is recovered within PARI by introducing local auxiliary basis functions spanning the full AO product space, as may be achieved by using Cholesky-decomposition techniques. Local completion, however, slows down the algorithm to a level comparable with or below conventional calculations. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Lifeline electric rates and alternative approaches to the problems of low-income ratepayers. Ten case studies of implemented programs

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1980-07-01

Program summaries, issue developments, governmental processes, and impacts are discussed for 10 case studies dealing with lifeline electric rates and alternative approaches to the problems of low-income ratepayers, namely; the Boston Edison rate freeze; the California lifeline; Florida Power and Light conservation rate; the Iowa-Illinois Gas and Electric small-use rate; the Maine demonstration lifeline program; the Massachusetts Electric Company A-65 rate; the Michigan optional senior citizen rate; the Narragansett Electric Company A-65 SSI rate; the Northern States Power Company conservation rate break; and the Potomac Electric Power Company rate freeze. (MCW)

Disease management 360 degrees: a scorecard approach to evaluating TRICARE's programs for asthma, congestive heart failure, and diabetes.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Wenya; Dall, Timothy M; Zhang, Yiduo; Hogan, Paul F; Arday, David R; Gantt, Cynthia J

2010-08-01

To assess the effect of TRICARE's asthma, congestive heart failure, and diabetes disease management programs using a scorecard approach. EVALUATION MEASURES: Patient healthcare utilization, financial, clinical, and humanistic outcomes. Absolute measures were translated into effect size and incorporated into a scorecard. Actual outcomes for program participants were compared with outcomes predicted in the absence of disease management. The predictive equations were established from regression models based on historical control groups (n = 39,217). Z scores were calculated for the humanistic measures obtained through a mailed survey. Administrative records containing medical claims, patient demographics and characteristics, and program participation status were linked using an encrypted patient identifier (n = 57,489). The study time frame is 1 year prior to program inception through 2 years afterward (October 2005-September 2008). A historical control group was identified with the baseline year starting October 2003 and a 1-year follow-up period starting October 2004. A survey was administered to a subset of participants 6 months after baseline assessment (39% response rate). Within the observation window--24 months for asthma and congestive heart failure, and 15 months for the diabetes program--we observed modest reductions in hospital days and healthcare cost for all 3 programs and reductions in emergency visits for 2 programs. Most clinical outcomes moved in the direction anticipated. The scorecard provided a useful tool to track performance of 3 regional contractors for each of 3 diseases and over time.

An innovative approach for testing bioinformatics programs using metamorphic testing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Liu Huai

2009-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Recent advances in experimental and computational technologies have fueled the development of many sophisticated bioinformatics programs. The correctness of such programs is crucial as incorrectly computed results may lead to wrong biological conclusion or misguide downstream experimentation. Common software testing procedures involve executing the target program with a set of test inputs and then verifying the correctness of the test outputs. However, due to the complexity of many bioinformatics programs, it is often difficult to verify the correctness of the test outputs. Therefore our ability to perform systematic software testing is greatly hindered. Results We propose to use a novel software testing technique, metamorphic testing (MT, to test a range of bioinformatics programs. Instead of requiring a mechanism to verify whether an individual test output is correct, the MT technique verifies whether a pair of test outputs conform to a set of domain specific properties, called metamorphic relations (MRs, thus greatly increases the number and variety of test cases that can be applied. To demonstrate how MT is used in practice, we applied MT to test two open-source bioinformatics programs, namely GNLab and SeqMap. In particular we show that MT is simple to implement, and is effective in detecting faults in a real-life program and some artificially fault-seeded programs. Further, we discuss how MT can be applied to test programs from various domains of bioinformatics. Conclusion This paper describes the application of a simple, effective and automated technique to systematically test a range of bioinformatics programs. We show how MT can be implemented in practice through two real-life case studies. Since many bioinformatics programs, particularly those for large scale simulation and data analysis, are hard to test systematically, their developers may benefit from using MT as part of the testing strategy. Therefore our work

Discovery of Boolean metabolic networks: integer linear programming based approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Qiu, Yushan; Jiang, Hao; Ching, Wai-Ki; Cheng, Xiaoqing

2018-04-11

Traditional drug discovery methods focused on the efficacy of drugs rather than their toxicity. However, toxicity and/or lack of efficacy are produced when unintended targets are affected in metabolic networks. Thus, identification of biological targets which can be manipulated to produce the desired effect with minimum side-effects has become an important and challenging topic. Efficient computational methods are required to identify the drug targets while incurring minimal side-effects. In this paper, we propose a graph-based computational damage model that summarizes the impact of enzymes on compounds in metabolic networks. An efficient method based on Integer Linear Programming formalism is then developed to identify the optimal enzyme-combination so as to minimize the side-effects. The identified target enzymes for known successful drugs are then verified by comparing the results with those in the existing literature. Side-effects reduction plays a crucial role in the study of drug development. A graph-based computational damage model is proposed and the theoretical analysis states the captured problem is NP-completeness. The proposed approaches can therefore contribute to the discovery of drug targets. Our developed software is available at " http://hkumath.hku.hk/~wkc/APBC2018-metabolic-network.zip ".

ANALYSIS OF FUZZY QUEUES: PARAMETRIC PROGRAMMING APPROACH BASED ON RANDOMNESS - FUZZINESS CONSISTENCY PRINCIPLE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dhruba Das

2015-04-01

Full Text Available In this article, based on Zadeh’s extension principle we have apply the parametric programming approach to construct the membership functions of the performance measures when the interarrival time and the service time are fuzzy numbers based on the Baruah’s Randomness- Fuzziness Consistency Principle. The Randomness-Fuzziness Consistency Principle leads to defining a normal law of fuzziness using two different laws of randomness. In this article, two fuzzy queues FM/M/1 and M/FM/1 has been studied and constructed their membership functions of the system characteristics based on the aforesaid principle. The former represents a queue with fuzzy exponential arrivals and exponential service rate while the latter represents a queue with exponential arrival rate and fuzzy exponential service rate.

Concept of Draft International Standard for a Unified Approach to Space Program Quality Assurance

Science.gov (United States)

Stryzhak, Y.; Vasilina, V.; Kurbatov, V.

2002-01-01

For want of the unified approach to guaranteed space project and product quality assurance, implementation of many international space programs has become a challenge. Globalization of aerospace industry and participation of various international ventures with diverse quality assurance requirements in big international space programs requires for urgent generation of unified international standards related to this field. To ensure successful fulfillment of space missions, aerospace companies should design and process reliable and safe products with properties complying or bettering User's (or Customer's) requirements. Quality of the products designed or processed by subcontractors (or other suppliers) should also be in compliance with the main user (customer)'s requirements. Implementation of this involved set of unified requirements will be made possible by creating and approving a system (series) of international standards under a generic title Space Product Quality Assurance based on a system consensus principle. Conceptual features of the baseline standard in this system (series) should comprise: - Procedures for ISO 9000, CEN and ECSS requirements adaptation and introduction into space product creation, design, manufacture, testing and operation; - Procedures for quality assurance at initial (design) phases of space programs, with a decision on the end product made based on the principle of independence; - Procedures to arrange incoming inspection of products delivered by subcontractors (including testing, audit of supplier's procedures, review of supplier's documentation), and space product certification; - Procedures to identify materials and primary products applied; - Procedures for quality system audit at the component part, primary product and materials supplier facilities; - Unified procedures to form a list of basic performances to be under configuration management; - Unified procedures to form a list of critical space product components, and unified

Navigation and flight director guidance for the NASA/FAA helicopter MLS curved approach flight test program

Science.gov (United States)

Phatak, A. V.; Lee, M. G.

1985-01-01

The navigation and flight director guidance systems implemented in the NASA/FAA helicopter microwave landing system (MLS) curved approach flight test program is described. Flight test were conducted at the U.S. Navy's Crows Landing facility, using the NASA Ames UH-lH helicopter equipped with the V/STOLAND avionics system. The purpose of these tests was to investigate the feasibility of flying complex, curved and descending approaches to a landing using MLS flight director guidance. A description of the navigation aids used, the avionics system, cockpit instrumentation and on-board navigation equipment used for the flight test is provided. Three generic reference flight paths were developed and flown during the test. They were as follows: U-Turn, S-turn and Straight-In flight profiles. These profiles and their geometries are described in detail. A 3-cue flight director was implemented on the helicopter. A description of the formulation and implementation of the flight director laws is also presented. Performance data and analysis is presented for one pilot conducting the flight director approaches.

RIPE [robot independent programming environment]: A robot independent programming environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Miller, D.J.; Lennox, R.C.

1990-01-01

Remote manual operations in radiation environments are typically performed very slowly. Sensor-based computer-controlled robots hold great promise for increasing the speed and safety of remote operations; however, the programming of robotic systems has proven to be expensive and difficult. Generalized approaches to robot programming that reuse available software modules and employ programming languages which are independent of the specific robotic and sensory devices being used are needed to speed software development and increase overall system reliability. This paper discusses the robot independent programming environment (RIPE) developed at Sandia National Laboratories (SNL). The RIPE is an object-oriented approach to robot system architectures; it is a software environment that facilitates rapid design and implementation of complex robot systems for diverse applications. An architecture based on hierarchies of distributed multiprocessors provides the computing platform for a layered programming structure that models applications using software objects. These objects are designed to support model-based automated programming of robotic and machining devices, real-time sensor-based control, error handling, and robust communication

[Different approaches to the family in the context of the family health program/strategy].

Science.gov (United States)

Ribeiro, Edilza Maria

2004-01-01

This study presents the scenario that favored the inclusion of the family as a care focus in public policies. The strategies to interrupt the impoverishment and vulnerability of families in the XXth century occur in a different form, according to different "welfare states" in capitalist societies. However, in view of the welfare state crisis and the increasing costs of public and private services and privates, at least a partial family solution is required in terms of reducing its dependency. The Family Health Program (PSF) put the family on the Brazilian social policy agenda in 1994, reflecting interests from the neoliberal model as well as from solidary social forces. This inclusion generated different approaches, such as: family/individual; family/home; family/individual/home; family/community; family/social risk; family/family. These approaches, due to the lack of a mutual dialogue, end up composing an insufficiently identified picture, thus turning care more difficult. The conditions indicated here should be examined as a way of giving a true chance to the family

Technologies and Approaches to Elucidate and Model the Virulence Program of Salmonella.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

McDermott, Jason E.; Yoon, Hyunjin; Nakayasu, Ernesto S.; Metz, Thomas O.; Hyduke, Daniel R.; Kidwai, Afshan S.; Palsson, Bernhard O.; Adkins, Joshua N.; Heffron, Fred

2011-04-01

Salmonella is a primary cause of enteric diseases in a variety of animals. During its evolution into a pathogenic bacterium, Salmonella acquired an elaborate regulatory network that responds to multiple environmental stimuli within host animals and integrates them resulting in fine regulation of the virulence program. The coordinated action by this regulatory network involves numerous virulence regulators, necessitating genome-wide profiling analysis to assess and combine efforts from multiple regulons. In this review we discuss recent high-throughput analytic approaches to understand the regulatory network of Salmonella that controls virulence processes. Application of high-throughput analyses have generated a large amount of data and driven development of computational approaches required for data integration. Therefore, we also cover computer-aided network analyses to infer regulatory networks, and demonstrate how genome-scale data can be used to construct regulatory and metabolic systems models of Salmonella pathogenesis. Genes that are coordinately controlled by multiple virulence regulators under infectious conditions are more likely to be important for pathogenesis. Thus, reconstructing the global regulatory network during infection or, at the very least, under conditions that mimic the host cellular environment not only provides a bird’s eye view of Salmonella survival strategy in response to hostile host environments but also serves as an efficient means to identify novel virulence factors that are essential for Salmonella to accomplish systemic infection in the host.

Designing a Summer Transition Program for Incoming and Current College Students on the Autism Spectrum: A Participatory Approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Emily Hotez

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD face unique challenges transitioning from high school to college and receive insufficient support to help them navigate this transition. Through a participatory collaboration with incoming and current autistic college students, we developed, implemented, and evaluated two intensive week-long summer programs to help autistic students transition into and succeed in college. This process included: (1 developing an initial summer transition program curriculum guided by recommendations from autistic college students in our ongoing mentorship program, (2 conducting an initial feasibility assessment of the curriculum [Summer Transition Program 1 (STP1], (3 revising our initial curriculum, guided by feedback from autistic students, to develop a curriculum manual, and (4 pilot-testing the manualized curriculum through a quasi-experimental pre-test/post-test assessment of a second summer program [Summer Transition Program 2 (STP2]. In STP2, two autistic college students assumed a leadership role and acted as “mentors” and ten incoming and current autistic college students participated in the program as “mentees.” Results from the STP2 pilot-test suggested benefits of participatory transition programming for fostering self-advocacy and social skills among mentees. Autistic and non-autistic mentors (but not mentees described practicing advanced forms of self-advocacy, specifically leadership, through their mentorship roles. Autistic and non-autistic mentors also described shared (e.g., empathy and unique (an intuitive understanding of autism vs. an intuitive understanding of social interaction skills that they contributed to the program. This research provides preliminary support for the feasibility and utility of a participatory approach in which autistic college students are integral to the development and implementation of programming to help less experienced autistic students develop the self

Modern Approaches to the Pedagogical Designing of Modular Educational Programs of Higher Professional Education in the Republic of Kazakhstan

Science.gov (United States)

Gubaydullina, Gayan N.; Myrzagaliyeva, Anar B.; Nagymzhanova, Karakat M.; Aurenova, Madina D.

2016-01-01

Kazakhstan, having joined the Bologna Declaration in 2010, committed itself to modernize the higher education in general and make a fundamental change in the approach to the development of regulations, in particular, the educational programs. The article describes the basic concepts of the problem, provides an overview of the regulatory frame-work…

The Application of a Multiphase Triangulation Approach to Mixed Methods: The Research of an Aspiring School Principal Development Program

Science.gov (United States)

Youngs, Howard; Piggot-Irvine, Eileen

2012-01-01

Mixed methods research has emerged as a credible alternative to unitary research approaches. The authors show how a combination of a triangulation convergence model with a triangulation multilevel model was used to research an aspiring school principal development pilot program. The multilevel model is used to show the national and regional levels…

Optimal multicopy asymmetric Gaussian cloning of coherent states

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fiurasek, Jaromir; Cerf, Nicolas J.

2007-01-01

We investigate the asymmetric Gaussian cloning of coherent states which produces M copies from N input replicas in such a way that the fidelity of each copy may be different. We show that the optimal asymmetric Gaussian cloning can be performed with a single phase-insensitive amplifier and an array of beam splitters. We obtain a simple analytical expression characterizing the set of optimal asymmetric Gaussian cloning machines and prove the optimality of these cloners using the formalism of Gaussian completely positive maps and semidefinite programming techniques. We also present an alternative implementation of the asymmetric cloning machine where the phase-insensitive amplifier is replaced with a beam splitter, heterodyne detector, and feedforward

Optimal multicopy asymmetric Gaussian cloning of coherent states

Science.gov (United States)

Fiurášek, Jaromír; Cerf, Nicolas J.

2007-05-01

We investigate the asymmetric Gaussian cloning of coherent states which produces M copies from N input replicas in such a way that the fidelity of each copy may be different. We show that the optimal asymmetric Gaussian cloning can be performed with a single phase-insensitive amplifier and an array of beam splitters. We obtain a simple analytical expression characterizing the set of optimal asymmetric Gaussian cloning machines and prove the optimality of these cloners using the formalism of Gaussian completely positive maps and semidefinite programming techniques. We also present an alternative implementation of the asymmetric cloning machine where the phase-insensitive amplifier is replaced with a beam splitter, heterodyne detector, and feedforward.

One-way quantum key distribution: Simple upper bound on the secret key rate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moroder, Tobias; Luetkenhaus, Norbert; Curty, Marcos

2006-01-01

We present a simple method to obtain an upper bound on the achievable secret key rate in quantum key distribution (QKD) protocols that use only unidirectional classical communication during the public-discussion phase. This method is based on a necessary precondition for one-way secret key distillation; the legitimate users need to prove that there exists no quantum state having a symmetric extension that is compatible with the available measurements results. The main advantage of the obtained upper bound is that it can be formulated as a semidefinite program, which can be efficiently solved. We illustrate our results by analyzing two well-known qubit-based QKD protocols: the four-state protocol and the six-state protocol

Sediment Analysis Using a Structured Programming Approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniela Arias-Madrid

2012-12-01

Full Text Available This paper presents an algorithm designed for the analysis of a sedimentary sample of unconsolidated material and seeks to identify very quickly the main features that occur in a sediment and thus classify them fast and efficiently. For this purpose, it requires that the weight of each particle size to be entered in the program and using the method of Moments, which is based on four equations representing the mean, standard deviation, skewness and kurtosis, is found the attributes of the sample in few seconds. With the program these calculations are performed in an effective and more accurately way, obtaining also the explanations of the results of the features such as grain size, sorting, symmetry and origin, which helps to improve the study of sediments and in general the study of sedimentary rocks.

Hanford Tank Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) Waste Feed Qualification Program Development Approach - 13114

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Markillie, Jeffrey R.; Arakali, Aruna V.; Benson, Peter A.; Halverson, Thomas G. [Hanford Tank Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant Project, Richland, WA 99354 (United States); Adamson, Duane J.; Herman, Connie C.; Peeler, David K. [Savannah River National Laboratory, Aiken, SC 29808 (United States)

2013-07-01

The Hanford Tank Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) is a nuclear waste treatment facility being designed and constructed for the U.S. Department of Energy by Bechtel National, Inc. and subcontractor URS Corporation (under contract DE-AC27-01RV14136 [1]) to process and vitrify radioactive waste that is currently stored in underground tanks at the Hanford Site. A wide range of planning is in progress to prepare for safe start-up, commissioning, and operation. The waste feed qualification program is being developed to protect the WTP design, safety basis, and technical basis by assuring acceptance requirements can be met before the transfer of waste. The WTP Project has partnered with Savannah River National Laboratory to develop the waste feed qualification program. The results of waste feed qualification activities will be implemented using a batch processing methodology, and will establish an acceptable range of operator controllable parameters needed to treat the staged waste. Waste feed qualification program development is being implemented in three separate phases. Phase 1 required identification of analytical methods and gaps. This activity has been completed, and provides the foundation for a technically defensible approach for waste feed qualification. Phase 2 of the program development is in progress. The activities in this phase include the closure of analytical methodology gaps identified during Phase 1, design and fabrication of laboratory-scale test apparatus, and determination of the waste feed qualification sample volume. Phase 3 will demonstrate waste feed qualification testing in support of Cold Commissioning. (authors)

In-situ thermal testing program strategy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-06-01

In the past year the Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project has implemented a new Program Approach to the licensing process. The Program Approach suggests a step-wise approach to licensing in which the early phases will require less site information than previously planned and necessitate a lesser degree of confidence in the longer-term performance of the repository. Under the Program Approach, the thermal test program is divided into two principal phases: (1) short-term in situ tests (in the 1996 to 2000 time period) and laboratory thermal tests to obtain preclosure information, parameters, and data along with bounding information for postclosure performance; and (2) longer-term in situ tests to obtain additional data regarding postclosure performance. This effort necessitates a rethinking of the testing program because the amount of information needed for the initial licensing phase is less than previously planned. This document proposes a revised and consolidated in situ thermal test program (including supporting laboratory tests) that is structured to meet the needs of the Program Approach. A customer-supplier model is used to define the Project data needs. These data needs, along with other requirements, were then used to define a set of conceptual experiments that will provide the required data within the constraints of the Program Approach schedule. The conceptual thermal tests presented in this document represent a consolidation and update of previously defined tests that should result in a more efficient use of Project resources. This document focuses on defining the requirements and tests needed to satisfy the goal of a successful license application in 2001, should the site be found suitable

Creating a foundation for a synergistic approach to program management

Science.gov (United States)

Knoll, Karyn T.

1992-01-01

In order to accelerate the movement of humans into space within reasonable budgetary constraints, NASA must develop an organizational structure that will allow the agency to efficiently use all the resources it has available for the development of any program the nation decides to undertake. This work considers the entire set of tasks involved in the successful development of any program. Areas that hold the greatest promise of accelerating programmatic development and/or increasing the efficiency of the use of available resources by being dealt with in a centralized manner rather than being handled by each program individually are identified. Using this information, an agency organizational structure is developed that will allow NASA to promote interprogram synergisms. In order for NASA to efficiently manage its programs in a manner that will allow programs to benefit from one another and thereby accelerate the movement of humans into space, several steps must be taken. First, NASA must develop an organizational structure that will allow potential interprogram synergisms to be identified and promoted. Key features of the organizational structure are recommended in this paper. Second, NASA must begin to develop the requirements for a program in a manner that will promote overall space program goals rather than achieving only the goals that apply to the program for which the requirements are being developed. Finally, NASA must consider organizing the agency around the functions required to support NASA's goals and objectives rather than around geographic locations.

Novel Approaches to Cellular Transplantation from the US Space Program

Science.gov (United States)

Pellis, Neal R.; Homick, Jerry L. (Technical Monitor)

1999-01-01

Research in the treatment of type I diabetes is entering a new era that takes advantage of our knowledge in an ever increasing variety of scientific disciplines. Some may originate from very diverse sources, one of which is the Space Program at National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The Space Program contributes to diabetes-related research in several treatment modalities. As an ongoing effort for medical monitoring of personnel involved in space exploration activities NASA and the extramural scientific community investigate strategies for noninvasive estimation of blood glucose levels. Part of the effort in the space protein crystal growth program is high-resolution structural analysis insulin as a means to better understand the interaction with its receptor and with host immune components and as a basis for rational design of a "better" insulin molecule. The Space Program is also developing laser technology for potential early cataract detection as well as a noninvasive analyses for addressing preclinical diabetic retinopathy. Finally, NASA developed an exciting cell culture system that affords some unique advantages in the propagation and maintenance of mammalian cells in vitro. The cell culture system was originally designed to maintain cell suspensions with a minimum of hydrodynamic and mechanical sheer while awaiting launch into microgravity. Currently the commercially available NASA bioreactor (Synthecon, Inc., Houston, TX) is used as a research tool in basic and applied cell biology. In recent years there is continued strong interest in cellular transplantation as treatment for type I diabetes. The advantages are the potential for successful long-term amelioration and a minimum risk for morbidity in the event of rejection of the transplanted cells. The pathway to successful application of this strategy is accompanied by several substantial hurdles: (1) isolation and propagation of a suitable uniform donor cell population; (2) management of

An introduction to programming with specifications

CERN Document Server

1991-01-01

A feature of modern advanced computing is the functional approach to programming. In this book, the authors present an introduction to the mathematics which underline functional programming, emphasizing the understanding of definition and specification--a prerequisite of good programming and problem solving with a computer. The book is self-contained, requiring a low level of mathematical sophistication and may be used as an introduction to the mathematics of programming.Provides an introduction to the functional approach to programming**Emphasizes the problem to be solved, not the pro

Parent Education Programs as a Psychiatric Approach to Children with Conduct Disorder: An Evaluation through Two Samples

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Burcu Arkan

2009-08-01

Full Text Available Conduct disorder is a category to describe the behaviors which have an adverse affect on the individual, family or society, violate the basic rights of other people and ignore the age-appropriate social norms and rules. Parental behaviors should be shaped as well as those of the children in order for conduct disorder to be treated. The reason for this is that parental attitudes play a key role in emergence of anti-social behaviors among children. Therefore, parent programs have been undertaken for the last thirty years. It has been proved that parent programs are effective in children with conduct disorder who display highly disruptive behaviors. The two best parent programs implemented on the parents of children diagnosed with conduct disorder are Triple P and Incredible Years which cooperate with families and the society, reduce the risk factors, support the protective factors, have a multi-disciplinary approach (psychiatrist, psychologist, nurse, child development and educationalist, social service specialist, psychological consultant, teacher, etc., having high evidence standards, use randomized controlled studies and yield long-term results. For that reason, this literature review was conducted in order to evaluate the efficacy of these two programs, to determine the differences, what is known about the issue.

A novel approach for studying programmed cell death in living plant tissues

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mark, Christina

to traditional approaches. Future applications of this type of setup could be used for other types of plant tissues such as leaves or germinating embryos for studying the effects of e.g. biotic and abiotic stresses or for screening of compounds for biological effects. Due to the ease of use and many......Programmed cell death (PCD) is a highly regulated process in which cells are killed as part of developmental programmes or as defence mechanisms against pathogens, but the process is less well understood in plant cells compared to animal cells. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are involved in PCD...... in plants, but the relationship between and mechanisms behind ROS and PCDhas not yet been fully elucidated due to the involvement of complex signalling networks. Elucidation of these mechanisms and signalling pathways will allow manipulation of cell death in plants, which could help to improve yield...

Positive Mathematical Programming Approaches – Recent Developments in Literature and Applied Modelling

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thomas Heckelei

2012-05-01

Full Text Available This paper reviews and discusses the more recent literature and application of Positive Mathematical Programming in the context of agricultural supply models. Specifically, advances in the empirical foundation of parameter specifications as well as the economic rationalisation of PMP models – both criticized in earlier reviews – are investigated. Moreover, the paper provides an overview on a larger set of models with regular/repeated policy application that apply variants of PMP. Results show that most applications today avoid arbitrary parameter specifications and rely on exogenous information on supply responses to calibrate model parameters. However, only few approaches use multiple observations to estimate parameters, which is likely due to the still considerable technical challenges associated with it. Equally, we found only limited reflection on the behavioral or technological assumptions that could rationalise the PMP model structure while still keeping the model’s advantages.

Some useful structures for categorical approach for program behavior

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Viliam Slodičák

2011-06-01

Full Text Available Using of category theory in computer science has extremely grown in the last decade. Categories allow us to express mathematical structures in unified way. Algebras are used for constructing basic structures used in computer programs. A program can be considered as an element of the initial algebra arising from the used programming language. In our contribution we formulate two ways of expressing algebras in categories. We also construct the codomain functor from the arrow category of algebras into the base category of sets which objects are also the carrier-sets of the algebras. This functor expresses the relation between algebras and carrier-sets.

Winning One Program at a Time: A Systemic Approach

Science.gov (United States)

Schultz, Adam; Zimmerman, Kay

2016-01-01

Many Universities are missing an opportunity to focus student recruitment marketing efforts and budget at the program level, which can offer lower priced advertising opportunities with higher conversion rates than traditional University level marketing initiatives. At NC State University, we have begun to deploy a scalable, low-cost, program level…

Medium-term generation programming in competitive environments: a new optimisation approach for market equilibrium computing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barquin, J.; Centeno, E.; Reneses, J.

2004-01-01

The paper proposes a model to represent medium-term hydro-thermal operation of electrical power systems in deregulated frameworks. The model objective is to compute the oligopolistic market equilibrium point in which each utility maximises its profit, based on other firms' behaviour. This problem is not an optimisation one. The main contribution of the paper is to demonstrate that, nevertheless, under some reasonable assumptions, it can be formulated as an equivalent minimisation problem. A computer program has been coded by using the proposed approach. It is used to compute the market equilibrium of a real-size system. (author)

A grey-forecasting interval-parameter mixed-integer programming approach for integrated electric-environmental management–A case study of Beijing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Xingwei; Cai, Yanpeng; Chen, Jiajun; Dai, Chao

2013-01-01

In this study, a GFIPMIP (grey-forecasting interval-parameter mixed-integer programming) approach was developed for supporting IEEM (integrated electric-environmental management) in Beijing. It was an attempt to incorporate an energy-forecasting model within a general modeling framework at the municipal level. The developed GFIPMIP model can not only forecast electric demands, but also reflect dynamic, interactive, and uncertain characteristics of the IEEM system in Beijing. Moreover, it can address issues regarding power supply, and emission reduction of atmospheric pollutants and GHG (greenhouse gas). Optimal solutions were obtained related to power generation patterns and facility capacity expansion schemes under a series of system constraints. Two scenarios were analyzed based on multiple environmental policies. The results were useful for helping decision makers identify desired management strategies to guarantee the city's power supply and mitigate emissions of GHG and atmospheric pollutants. The results also suggested that the developed GFIPMIP model be applicable to similar engineering problems. - Highlights: • A grey-forecasting interval-parameter mixed integer programming (GFIPMIP) approach was developed. • It could reflect dynamic, interactive, and uncertain characteristics of an IEEM system. • The developed GFIPMIP approach was used for supporting IEEM system planning in Beijing. • Two scenarios were established based on different environmental policies and management targets. • Optimal schemes for power generation, energy supply, and environmental protection were identified

Automated termination proofs for logic programs by term rewriting

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Schneider-Kamp, P.; Giesl, J.; Serebrenik, A.; Thiemann, R.

2009-01-01

There are two kinds of approaches for termination analysis of logic programs: "transformational" and "direct" ones. Direct approaches prove termination directly on the basis of the logic program. Transformational approaches transform a logic program into a Term Rewrite System (TRS) and then analyze

Creating a test blueprint for a progress testing program: A paired-comparisons approach.

Science.gov (United States)

von Bergmann, HsingChi; Childs, Ruth A

2018-03-01

Creating a new testing program requires the development of a test blueprint that will determine how the items on each test form are distributed across possible content areas and practice domains. To achieve validity, categories of a blueprint are typically based on the judgments of content experts. How experts judgments are elicited and combined is important to the quality of resulting test blueprints. Content experts in dentistry participated in a day-long faculty-wide workshop to discuss, refine, and confirm the categories and their relative weights. After reaching agreement on categories and their definitions, experts judged the relative importance between category pairs, registering their judgments anonymously using iClicker, an audience response system. Judgments were combined in two ways: a simple calculation that could be performed during the workshop and a multidimensional scaling of the judgments performed later. Content experts were able to produce a set of relative weights using this approach. The multidimensional scaling yielded a three-dimensional model with the potential to provide deeper insights into the basis of the experts' judgments. The approach developed and demonstrated in this study can be applied across academic disciplines to elicit and combine content experts judgments for the development of test blueprints.

Time-dependent density functional theory for open systems with a positivity-preserving decomposition scheme for environment spectral functions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, RuLin; Zheng, Xiao; Kwok, YanHo; Xie, Hang; Chen, GuanHua; Yam, ChiYung

2015-01-01

Understanding electronic dynamics on material surfaces is fundamentally important for applications including nanoelectronics, inhomogeneous catalysis, and photovoltaics. Practical approaches based on time-dependent density functional theory for open systems have been developed to characterize the dissipative dynamics of electrons in bulk materials. The accuracy and reliability of such approaches depend critically on how the electronic structure and memory effects of surrounding material environment are accounted for. In this work, we develop a novel squared-Lorentzian decomposition scheme, which preserves the positive semi-definiteness of the environment spectral matrix. The resulting electronic dynamics is guaranteed to be both accurate and convergent even in the long-time limit. The long-time stability of electronic dynamics simulation is thus greatly improved within the current decomposition scheme. The validity and usefulness of our new approach are exemplified via two prototypical model systems: quasi-one-dimensional atomic chains and two-dimensional bilayer graphene

Time-dependent density functional theory for open systems with a positivity-preserving decomposition scheme for environment spectral functions.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, RuLin; Zheng, Xiao; Kwok, YanHo; Xie, Hang; Chen, GuanHua; Yam, ChiYung

2015-04-14

Understanding electronic dynamics on material surfaces is fundamentally important for applications including nanoelectronics, inhomogeneous catalysis, and photovoltaics. Practical approaches based on time-dependent density functional theory for open systems have been developed to characterize the dissipative dynamics of electrons in bulk materials. The accuracy and reliability of such approaches depend critically on how the electronic structure and memory effects of surrounding material environment are accounted for. In this work, we develop a novel squared-Lorentzian decomposition scheme, which preserves the positive semi-definiteness of the environment spectral matrix. The resulting electronic dynamics is guaranteed to be both accurate and convergent even in the long-time limit. The long-time stability of electronic dynamics simulation is thus greatly improved within the current decomposition scheme. The validity and usefulness of our new approach are exemplified via two prototypical model systems: quasi-one-dimensional atomic chains and two-dimensional bilayer graphene.

A Dynamic Programming Approach to Constrained Portfolios

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kraft, Holger; Steffensen, Mogens

2013-01-01

This paper studies constrained portfolio problems that may involve constraints on the probability or the expected size of a shortfall of wealth or consumption. Our first contribution is that we solve the problems by dynamic programming, which is in contrast to the existing literature that applies...

Technical Approach and Plan for Transitioning Spent Nuclear Fuel (SNF) Project Facilities to the Environmental Restoration Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

SKELLY, W.A.

1999-01-01

This document describes the approach and process in which the 100-K Area Facilities are to be deactivated and transitioned over to the Environmental Restoration Program after spent nuclear fuel has been removed from the K Basins. It describes the Transition Project's scope and objectives, work breakdown structure, activity planning, estimated cost, and schedule. This report will be utilized as a planning document for project management and control and to communicate details of project content and integration

The GEOTREF program, a new approach for geothermal investigation

Science.gov (United States)

Gérard, Frédéric; Viard, Simon; Garcia, Michel

2017-04-01

The GEOTREF is an R&D program supported by the ADEME, French environmental agency and by the «Investissement d'Avenir », a French government program to found innovative projects. The GEOTREF program aims to develop an integrated analysis of high temperature geothermal reservoir in volcanic context. It is a collaborative program between nine research laboratories and two industrial partners. This program is supported for four years and funds 12 PhDs and 5 post-doctoral grants in various fields: geology, petrography, petrophysics, geophysics, geochemistry, reservoir modelling. The first three years are dedicated to the exploration phases that will lead to the drilling implantation. The project has two main objectives. 1.- Developing innovative and interactive methods and workflows leading to develop prospection and exploration in per volcanic geothermal target. This objective implicates: Optimization of the targeting to mitigate financial risks Adapting oil and gas exploration methods to geothermal energy, especially in peri-volcanic context. 2.- Applying this concept to different prospects in the Caribbean and South America The first target zone is located in Guadeloupe, an island of the active arc of the subduction zone where the Atlantic plate subducts under the Caribbean one. The GEOTREF prospect zone is on the Basse Terre Island in its south part closed to the Soufriere volcano, the active volcanic system. On the same island a geothermal field is exploited in Bouillante, just northward from the GEOTREF targeting area.

A mixed-integer linear programming approach to the reduction of genome-scale metabolic networks.

Science.gov (United States)

Röhl, Annika; Bockmayr, Alexander

2017-01-03

Constraint-based analysis has become a widely used method to study metabolic networks. While some of the associated algorithms can be applied to genome-scale network reconstructions with several thousands of reactions, others are limited to small or medium-sized models. In 2015, Erdrich et al. introduced a method called NetworkReducer, which reduces large metabolic networks to smaller subnetworks, while preserving a set of biological requirements that can be specified by the user. Already in 2001, Burgard et al. developed a mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) approach for computing minimal reaction sets under a given growth requirement. Here we present an MILP approach for computing minimum subnetworks with the given properties. The minimality (with respect to the number of active reactions) is not guaranteed by NetworkReducer, while the method by Burgard et al. does not allow specifying the different biological requirements. Our procedure is about 5-10 times faster than NetworkReducer and can enumerate all minimum subnetworks in case there exist several ones. This allows identifying common reactions that are present in all subnetworks, and reactions appearing in alternative pathways. Applying complex analysis methods to genome-scale metabolic networks is often not possible in practice. Thus it may become necessary to reduce the size of the network while keeping important functionalities. We propose a MILP solution to this problem. Compared to previous work, our approach is more efficient and allows computing not only one, but even all minimum subnetworks satisfying the required properties.

Dynamic programming for QFD in PES optimization

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sorrentino, R. [Mediterranean Univ. of Reggio Calabria, Reggio Calabria (Italy). Dept. of Computer Science and Electrical Technology

2008-07-01

Quality function deployment (QFD) is a method for linking the needs of the customer with design, development, engineering, manufacturing, and service functions. In the electric power industry, QFD is used to help designers concentrate on the most important technical attributes to develop better electrical services. Most optimization approaches used in QFD analysis have been based on integer or linear programming. These approaches perform well in certain circumstances, but there are problems that hinder their practical use. This paper proposed an approach to optimize Power and Energy Systems (PES). A dynamic programming approach was used along with an extended House of Quality to gather information. Dynamic programming was used to allocate the limited resources to the technical attributes. The approach integrated dynamic programming into the electrical service design process. The dynamic programming approach did not require the full relationship curve between technical attributes and customer satisfaction, or the relationship between technical attributes and cost. It only used a group of discrete points containing information about customer satisfaction, technical attributes, and the cost to find the optimal product design. Therefore, it required less time and resources than other approaches. At the end of the optimization process, the value of each technical attribute, the related cost, and the overall customer satisfaction were obtained at the same time. It was concluded that compared with other optimization methods, the dynamic programming method requires less information and the optimal results are more relevant. 21 refs., 2 tabs., 2 figs.

The CHANGE program: comparing an interactive vs. prescriptive approach to self-management among university students with obesity.

Science.gov (United States)

Pearson, Erin S; Irwin, Jennifer D; Morrow, Don; Battram, Danielle S; Melling, C W James

2013-02-01

To assess the effectiveness of 2 self-management (SM) approaches on obesity via a 12-week telephone-based intervention. An interactive motivational interviewing administered via Co-Active Life Coaching (MI-via-CALC) and a structured lifestyle treatment following the LEARN Program for Weight Management were compared. A secondary purpose was to explore the experiences of participants qualitatively. University students 18-24 years of age with a body mass index ≥30 kg/m(2) (n = 45) were randomized to either the: 1) MI-via-CALC condition that involved working with a certified Co-Active coach to achieve personal goals through dialogue, or 2) LEARN Program that entailed learning from a trained specialist who provided scripted, education-based lessons pertaining to lifestyle, exercise, attitudes, relationships and nutrition. Food consumption patterns, anthropometric and lipid profiles were examined at baseline, mid- and immediately posttreatment, and 3 and 6 months after the program. A semistructured questionnaire was completed at all follow-ups. Analyses revealed a significant time effect for weight (p = 0.01) with the LEARN group decreasing more (M = -7.76 lb) than the MI-VIA-CALC group (M = -2.5 lb) between baseline and week 12. MI-via-CALC participants decreased caloric intake more (M = -662.76) than LEARN participants (M = -105.5) during this same period. The MI-via-CALC group focused on self-understanding, and self-responsibility as primary outcomes of their experience; the LEARN group stressed their appreciation of practical knowledge gained. Both conditions seem similarly effective and are warranted as SM treatments. The best fit and unique contributions of each approach should be considered when working with this population. Copyright © 2013 Canadian Diabetes Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Approaches and perioperative management in periacetabular osteotomy surgery

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Søballe, Kjeld; Troelsen, Anders

2012-01-01

.9 to 8.1 years) of 209 PAOs performed using this approach have shown Kaplan-Meier survivorship rates of 94.7% at 5 years and 88.6% at 8.1 years, with conversion to total hip arthroplasty as the end point. Perioperative management includes a patient education program, optimized pain treatment strategies...... (local infiltration analgesia), and a progressive mobilization and exercise program. The transsartorial approach coupled with a specific perioperative management program has proved successful for PAO surgery.......In the early days of periacetabular osteotomy (PAO), surgical approaches were characterized by extensive soft-tissue dissection. The Smith-Petersen approach (and iliofemoral modifications) and the ilioinguinal approach have traditionally been used for PAO. The optimal surgical approach for PAO...

A Nonlinear Programming and Artificial Neural Network Approach for Optimizing the Performance of a Job Dispatching Rule in a Wafer Fabrication Factory

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Toly Chen

2012-01-01

Full Text Available A nonlinear programming and artificial neural network approach is presented in this study to optimize the performance of a job dispatching rule in a wafer fabrication factory. The proposed methodology fuses two existing rules and constructs a nonlinear programming model to choose the best values of parameters in the two rules by dynamically maximizing the standard deviation of the slack, which has been shown to benefit scheduling performance by several studies. In addition, a more effective approach is also applied to estimate the remaining cycle time of a job, which is empirically shown to be conducive to the scheduling performance. The efficacy of the proposed methodology was validated with a simulated case; evidence was found to support its effectiveness. We also suggested several directions in which it can be exploited in the future.

Fuzzy linear programming approach for solving transportation

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Transportation problem (TP) is an important network structured linear programming problem that arises in several contexts and has deservedly received a great deal of attention in the literature. The central concept in this problem is to find the least total transportation cost of a commodity in order to satisfy demands at ...

Large margin classification with indefinite similarities

KAUST Repository

Alabdulmohsin, Ibrahim; Cisse, Moustapha; Gao, Xin; Zhang, Xiangliang

2016-01-01

Classification with indefinite similarities has attracted attention in the machine learning community. This is partly due to the fact that many similarity functions that arise in practice are not symmetric positive semidefinite, i.e. the Mercer

Non-commutative Hardy inequalities

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Frank

2009-01-01

We extend Hardy's inequality from sequences of non-negative numbers to sequences of positive semi-definite operators if the parameter p satisfies 1 1. Applications to trace functions are given. We introduce the tracial geometric mean...

Seismic Safety Margins Research Program (Phase I). Project VII. Systems analysis specification of computational approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wall, I.B.; Kaul, M.K.; Post, R.I.; Tagart, S.W. Jr.; Vinson, T.J.

1979-02-01

An initial specification is presented of a computation approach for a probabilistic risk assessment model for use in the Seismic Safety Margin Research Program. This model encompasses the whole seismic calculational chain from seismic input through soil-structure interaction, transfer functions to the probability of component failure, integration of these failures into a system model and thereby estimate the probability of a release of radioactive material to the environment. It is intended that the primary use of this model will be in sensitivity studies to assess the potential conservatism of different modeling elements in the chain and to provide guidance on priorities for research in seismic design of nuclear power plants

A Qualitative Program Evaluation of a Structured Leadership Mentoring Program at a Large Aerospace Corporation

Science.gov (United States)

Teller, Romney P.

2011-01-01

The researcher utilized a qualitative approach to conduct a program evaluation of the organization where he is employed. The study intended to serve as a program evaluation for the structured in-house mentoring program at a large aerospace corporation (A-Corp). This program evaluation clarified areas in which the current mentoring program is…

A logic programming approach to medical errors in imaging.

Science.gov (United States)

Rodrigues, Susana; Brandão, Paulo; Nelas, Luís; Neves, José; Alves, Victor

2011-09-01

In 2000, the Institute of Medicine reported disturbing numbers on the scope it covers and the impact of medical error in the process of health delivery. Nevertheless, a solution to this problem may lie on the adoption of adverse event reporting and learning systems that can help to identify hazards and risks. It is crucial to apply models to identify the adverse events root causes, enhance the sharing of knowledge and experience. The efficiency of the efforts to improve patient safety has been frustratingly slow. Some of this insufficiency of progress may be assigned to the lack of systems that take into account the characteristic of the information about the real world. In our daily lives, we formulate most of our decisions normally based on incomplete, uncertain and even forbidden or contradictory information. One's knowledge is less based on exact facts and more on hypothesis, perceptions or indications. From the data collected on our adverse event treatment and learning system on medical imaging, and through the use of Extended Logic Programming to knowledge representation and reasoning, and the exploitation of new methodologies for problem solving, namely those based on the perception of what is an agent and/or multi-agent systems, we intend to generate reports that identify the most relevant causes of error and define improvement strategies, concluding about the impact, place of occurrence, form or type of event recorded in the healthcare institutions. The Eindhoven Classification Model was extended and adapted to the medical imaging field and used to classify adverse events root causes. Extended Logic Programming was used for knowledge representation with defective information, allowing for the modelling of the universe of discourse in terms of data and knowledge default. A systematization of the evolution of the body of knowledge about Quality of Information embedded in the Root Cause Analysis was accomplished. An adverse event reporting and learning system

A Blended Approach to Learning in an Obstetrics and Gynecology Residency Program: Proof of Concept

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Funminiyi A. Taylor

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Problem Graduate medical education programs are expected to educate residents to be able to manage critically ill patients. Most obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN graduate medical education programs provide education primarily in a didactic format in a traditional face-to-face setting. Busy clinical responsibilities tend to limit resident engagement during these educational sessions. The revision of the training paradigm to a more learner-centered approach is suggested. Intervention A blended learning education program was designed and implemented to facilitate the teaching and learning of obstetric emergencies, specifically diabetic ketoacidosis and acute-onset severe hypertension in pregnancy. The program incorporated tools to foster a community of inquiry. Multimedia presentations were also utilized as the main modality to provide instruction. The blended learning course was designed in accordance with the cognitive theory of multimedia learning. Context This intervention was carried out in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Southern Illinois University. All 15 OB/GYN residents were enrolled in this course as part of their educational curriculum. First, face-to-face instructions were given in detail about the blended learning process, course content, and online website. The residents were then assigned tasks related to completing the online component of the course, including watching multimedia presentations, reading the resources placed online, and participating in online asynchronous discussions. The course culminated with a face-to-face session to clarify misconceptions. Pre- and postcourse quizzes were administered to the residents to assess their retention and understanding. Outcome Objective analysis demonstrated significant improvements in retention and understanding after participating in the course. The blended learning format was well received by the residents. Resident perception of social presence in the asynchronous

Independent Evaluators of Federal Programs: Approaches, Devices, and Examples

Science.gov (United States)

2010-08-16

rehabilitation of the disorder; the status of studies and clinical trials involving innovative treatments; a description of each treatment program and a...Transit Administration ( FTA ), a part of the Department of Transportation (DOT), oversees the safety and security of rail transit agencies which...an oversight body for each jurisdiction. The program is designed, according to a GAO summary, “as one in which FTA , other federal agencies, states

Lowering the Barriers to Programming: A Survey of Programming Environments and Languages for Novice Programmers

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Kelleher, Caitlin; Pausch, Randy

2003-01-01

.... The systems are organized by their primary goal, either to teach programming or to use programming to empower their users, and then by the authors' approach to making learning to program easier for novice programmers...

Icobj Programming

OpenAIRE

Boussinot , Frédéric

1996-01-01

A simple and fully graphical programming method is presented, using a powerful means to combine behaviors. This programming is based on the notion of an «icobj» which has a behavioral aspect («object» part), a graphical aspect («icon» part), with an «animation» aspect. Icobj programming provides parallelism, broadcast event communication and migration through the network. An experimental system based on this approach is described in details. Its implementation with reactive scripts is also pr...

Space Station Freedom - Configuration management approach to supporting concurrent engineering and total quality management. [for NASA Space Station Freedom Program

Science.gov (United States)

Gavert, Raymond B.

1990-01-01

Some experiences of NASA configuration management in providing concurrent engineering support to the Space Station Freedom program for the achievement of life cycle benefits and total quality are discussed. Three change decision experiences involving tracing requirements and automated information systems of the electrical power system are described. The potential benefits of concurrent engineering and total quality management include improved operational effectiveness, reduced logistics and support requirements, prevention of schedule slippages, and life cycle cost savings. It is shown how configuration management can influence the benefits attained through disciplined approaches and innovations that compel consideration of all the technical elements of engineering and quality factors that apply to the program development, transition to operations and in operations. Configuration management experiences involving the Space Station program's tiered management structure, the work package contractors, international partners, and the participating NASA centers are discussed.

Dijkstra's interpretation of the approach to solving a problem of program correctness

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Markoski Branko

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Proving the program correctness and designing the correct programs are two connected theoretical problems, which are of great practical importance. The first is solved within program analysis, and the second one in program synthesis, although intertwining of these two processes is often due to connection between the analysis and synthesis of programs. Nevertheless, having in mind the automated methods of proving correctness and methods of automatic program synthesis, the difference is easy to tell. This paper presents denotative interpretation of programming calculation explaining semantics by formulae φ and ψ, in such a way that they can be used for defining state sets for program P.

The two-body-problem in quantized, inertia-free mechanics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kreisel, E.

1984-01-01

There do not exist bound states of the two-particle-system in Riemann-Machian quantum mechanics. The spectrum of the energy is necessarily positively semidefinite and continuous, in analogy to the free particle of quantum mechanics. (author)

A systems approach to the commercialization of space communications technology - The NASA/JPL Mobile Satellite Program

Science.gov (United States)

Weber, William J., III; Gray, Valerie W.; Jackson, Byron; Steele, Laura C.

1991-10-01

This paper discusss the systems approach taken by NASA and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in the commercialization of land-mobile satellite services (LMSS) in the United States. As the lead center for NASA's Mobile Satellite Program, JPL was involved in identifying and addressing many of the key barriers to commercialization of mobile satellite communications, including technical, economic, regulatory and institutional risks, or uncertainties. The systems engineering approach described here was used to mitigate these risks. The result was the development and implementation of the JPL Mobile Satellite Experiment Project. This Project included not only technology development, but also studies to support NASA in the definition of the regulatory, market, and investment environments within which LMSS would evolve and eventually operate, as well as initiatives to mitigate their associated commercialization risks. The end result of these government-led endeavors was the acceleration of the introduction of commercial mobile satellite services, both nationally and internationally.

Implementasi Program-Program Pembelajaran TK Unggulan di Surakarta

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Junita Dwi Wardhani

2015-07-01

Full Text Available The aim of this research is to assess the learning program on TKIU Al Khoir Surakarta for academic year 2010-2011. The problem is how the Montessory learning method implemented at TKIU Al Khoir. The research methodology used is a qualitative approach in the form of the naturalistic and a purposive sampling. The data sources in this research include information about the program of instruction in kindergarten the flagship. The Data in the form of words were taken from three sources: events, informants and documents. Data collection techniques used in research are observations, interviews and document analysis. Results of investigation showed TKIU Al Khoir well using integrated curriculum including approaches such as a thematic approach, there is engineering a learning environment, learning objectives focussing on moral development, reading a written/material goods, the role of students as a learning object, a gaming device is limited, a library with classrooms, and a new limited role parents financially.

Safety program of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory: a different approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Burger, G.H.

1981-01-01

The uniqueness and therefore different approach to Oak Ridge National Laboratory's safety program is not a result of elimination of the usual industrial safety organization, but results from the three organizations which supplement it and the areas of safety concerns that they cover. While industrial safety is primarily concerned with day-to-day routine worker activities (wearing of safety glasses and hard hats, adherence to electrical safety work procedures, proper safety lockout and tagout of equipment for maintenance activities, etc.), the other organizations, the Office of Operational Safety, Division Safety Officers and Radiation Control Officers, and the Laboratory director's Review Committees, are concerned with themuch broader spectrum of the total work environment. These organizations are concerned not only with the day-to-day worker activities but the design and conduction of all operations from a process viewpoint. The emphasis of these groups is assuring first that operations, experiments, facilities, etc., are designed properly and then secondly operated properly to assure safety of the operators, Laboratory population, and the public. Responsibilities of the three safety organizations constituting operational or process safety are described and discussed

A non-linear programming approach to the computer-aided design of regulators using a linear-quadratic formulation

Science.gov (United States)

Fleming, P.

1985-01-01

A design technique is proposed for linear regulators in which a feedback controller of fixed structure is chosen to minimize an integral quadratic objective function subject to the satisfaction of integral quadratic constraint functions. Application of a non-linear programming algorithm to this mathematically tractable formulation results in an efficient and useful computer-aided design tool. Particular attention is paid to computational efficiency and various recommendations are made. Two design examples illustrate the flexibility of the approach and highlight the special insight afforded to the designer.

PERIODIC REVIEW SYSTEM FOR INVENTORY REPLENISHMENT CONTROL FOR A TWO-ECHELON LOGISTICS NETWORK UNDER DEMAND UNCERTAINTY: A TWO-STAGE STOCHASTIC PROGRAMING APPROACH

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

P.S.A. Cunha

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Here, we propose a novel methodology for replenishment and control systems for inventories of two-echelon logistics networks using a two-stage stochastic programming, considering periodic review and uncertain demands. In addition, to achieve better customer services, we introduce a variable rationing rule to address quantities of the item in short. The devised models are reformulated into their deterministic equivalent, resulting in nonlinear mixed-integer programming models, which are then approximately linearized. To deal with the uncertain nature of the item demand levels, we apply a Monte Carlo simulation-based method to generate finite and discrete sets of scenarios. Moreover, the proposed approach does not require restricted assumptions to the behavior of the probabilistic phenomena, as does several existing methods in the literature. Numerical experiments with the proposed approach for randomly generated instances of the problem show results with errors around 1%.

Site Support Program Plan Infrastructure Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-01-01

The Fiscal Year 1996 Infrastructure Program Site Support Program Plan addresses the mission objectives, workscope, work breakdown structures (WBS), management approach, and resource requirements for the Infrastructure Program. Attached to the plan are appendices that provide more detailed information associated with scope definition. The Hanford Site's infrastructure has served the Site for nearly 50 years during defense materials production. Now with the challenges of the new environmental cleanup mission, Hanford's infrastructure must meet current and future mission needs in a constrained budget environment, while complying with more stringent environmental, safety, and health regulations. The infrastructure requires upgrading, streamlining, and enhancement in order to successfully support the site mission of cleaning up the Site, research and development, and economic transition

MG SPROUTS: A Project-in-a-Box Approach to Educational Programming

Science.gov (United States)

Dorn,Sheri; Slagle, Krissy

2016-01-01

MG SPROUTS was developed as a "project-in-a-box" program, a self-contained educational programming tool for Extension agents working with master gardener Extension volunteers (MGEVs). The program design incorporates programmatic materials and project management materials and follows best management practices for volunteer management. MG…

The multivariate supOU stochastic volatility model

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Barndorff-Nielsen, Ole; Stelzer, Robert

Using positive semidefinite supOU (superposition of Ornstein-Uhlenbeck type) processes to describe the volatility, we introduce a multivariate stochastic volatility model for financial data which is capable of modelling long range dependence effects. The finiteness of moments and the second order...... structure of the volatility, the log returns, as well as their "squares" are discussed in detail. Moreover, we give several examples in which long memory effects occur and study how the model as well as the simple Ornstein-Uhlenbeck type stochastic volatility model behave under linear transformations....... In particular, the models are shown to be preserved under invertible linear transformations. Finally, we discuss how (sup)OU stochastic volatility models can be combined with a factor modelling approach....

Introduction to parallel programming

CERN Document Server

Brawer, Steven

1989-01-01

Introduction to Parallel Programming focuses on the techniques, processes, methodologies, and approaches involved in parallel programming. The book first offers information on Fortran, hardware and operating system models, and processes, shared memory, and simple parallel programs. Discussions focus on processes and processors, joining processes, shared memory, time-sharing with multiple processors, hardware, loops, passing arguments in function/subroutine calls, program structure, and arithmetic expressions. The text then elaborates on basic parallel programming techniques, barriers and race

A Theory Based Introductory Programming Course

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Michael Reichhardt; Kristensen, Jens Thyge; Rischel, Hans

1999-01-01

This paper presents an introductory programming course designed to teach programming as an intellectual activity. The course emphasizes understandable concepts which can be useful in designing programs, while the oddities of today's technology are considered of secondary importance. An important...... goal is to fight the trial-and-error approach to programming which is a result of the students battles with horribly designed and documented systems and languages prior to their studies at university. Instead, the authors strive for giving the students a good experience of programming as a systematic......, intellectual activity where the solution of a programming problem can be described in an understandable way. The approach is illustrated by an example which is a commented solution of a problem posed to the students in the course....

Multistate and multihypothesis discrimination with open quantum systems

Science.gov (United States)

Kiilerich, Alexander Holm; Mølmer, Klaus

2018-05-01

We show how an upper bound for the ability to discriminate any number N of candidates for the Hamiltonian governing the evolution of an open quantum system may be calculated by numerically efficient means. Our method applies an effective master-equation analysis to evaluate the pairwise overlaps between candidate full states of the system and its environment pertaining to the Hamiltonians. These overlaps are then used to construct an N -dimensional representation of the states. The optimal positive-operator valued measure (POVM) and the corresponding probability of assigning a false hypothesis may subsequently be evaluated by phrasing optimal discrimination of multiple nonorthogonal quantum states as a semidefinite programming problem. We provide three realistic examples of multihypothesis testing with open quantum systems.

A new necessary condition for Turing instabilities.

Science.gov (United States)

Elragig, Aiman; Townley, Stuart

2012-09-01

Reactivity (a.k.a initial growth) is necessary for diffusion driven instability (Turing instability). Using a notion of common Lyapunov function we show that this necessary condition is a special case of a more powerful (i.e. tighter) necessary condition. Specifically, we show that if the linearised reaction matrix and the diffusion matrix share a common Lyapunov function, then Turing instability is not possible. The existence of common Lyapunov functions is readily checked using semi-definite programming. We apply this result to the Gierer-Meinhardt system modelling regenerative properties of Hydra, the Oregonator, to a host-parasite-hyperparasite system with diffusion and to a reaction-diffusion-chemotaxis model for a multi-species host-parasitoid community. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Optimal bounds and extremal trajectories for time averages in nonlinear dynamical systems

Science.gov (United States)

Tobasco, Ian; Goluskin, David; Doering, Charles R.

2018-02-01

For any quantity of interest in a system governed by ordinary differential equations, it is natural to seek the largest (or smallest) long-time average among solution trajectories, as well as the extremal trajectories themselves. Upper bounds on time averages can be proved a priori using auxiliary functions, the optimal choice of which is a convex optimization problem. We prove that the problems of finding maximal trajectories and minimal auxiliary functions are strongly dual. Thus, auxiliary functions provide arbitrarily sharp upper bounds on time averages. Moreover, any nearly minimal auxiliary function provides phase space volumes in which all nearly maximal trajectories are guaranteed to lie. For polynomial equations, auxiliary functions can be constructed by semidefinite programming, which we illustrate using the Lorenz system.

Innovative strategies for nursing education program evaluation.

Science.gov (United States)

Story, Lachel; Butts, Janie B; Bishop, Sandra B; Green, Lisa; Johnson, Kathy; Mattison, Haley

2010-06-01

Nursing programs are mandated by accreditation bodies to report data significant to program quality and outcomes. The history at one school of nursing in the southern United States revealed the program evaluation committee experienced roadblocks in retrieving such information. Creative approaches were adopted to overcome some of the barriers to program evaluation, including the use of more technological-based approaches to engage alumni who embrace this technology as a way of life. Among the many advantages of these approaches were convenience, ease of administration and analysis, cost effectiveness, and more meaningful data. The advantages far outweighed the few disadvantages incurred, with the most prominent being potential sampling bias. Copyright 2010, SLACK Incorporated.

Sprego Programming

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria Csernoch

2015-02-01

Full Text Available Spreadsheet management is a border-land between office applications and programming, however, it is rather communicated that spreadsheet is nothing more than an easily handled fun piece. Consequently, the complexity of spreadsheet handling, the unprepared end-users, their problem solving abilities and approaches do not match. To overcome these problems we have developed and introduced Sprego (Spreadsheet Lego. Sprego is a simplified functional programming language in spreadsheet environment, and such as can be used both as introductory language and the language of end-user programmers. The essence of Sprego is that we use as few and simple functions as possible and based on these functions build multilevel formulas. With this approach, similar to high level programming, we are able solve advanced problems, developing algorithmic skills, computational thinking. The advantage of Sprego is the simplicity of the language, when the emphasis is not on the coding but on the problem. Beyond that spreadsheets would provide real life problems with authentic data and tables which students are more interested in than the artificial environment and semi-authentic problems of high level programming languages.

Employee assistance programs: history and program description.

Science.gov (United States)

Gilbert, B

1994-10-01

1. The history and development of Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) can be traced back to the 1800s. There are currently over 10,000 EAPs in the United States. 2. Standards for program accreditation and counselor certification have been established for EAPs. The "core technology of Employee Assistance Programs" includes identification of behavioural problems based on job performance issues, expert consultation with supervisors, appropriate use of constructive confrontation, microlinkages with treatment providers and resources, macrolinkages between providers, resources, and work organizations, focus on substance abuse, and evaluation of employee success based on job performance. 3. Some EAPs take a broad brush approach, and incorporate health promotion and managed care functions.

Mobility, strength, and fitness after a graded activity program for patients with subacute low back pain. A randomized prospective clinical study with a behavioral therapy approach.