Network cohesion

OpenAIRE

Cavalcanti, Tiago Vanderlei; Giannitsarou, Chrysi; Johnson, CR

2017-01-01

We define a measure of network cohesion and show how it arises naturally in a broad class of dynamic models of endogenous perpetual growth with network externalities. Via a standard growth model, we show why network cohesion is crucial for conditional convergence and explain that as cohesion increases, convergence is faster. We prove properties of network cohesion and define a network aggregator that preserves network cohesion.

Assessing Software Quality Through Visualised Cohesion Metrics

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Timothy Shih

2001-05-01

Full Text Available Cohesion is one of the most important factors for software quality as well as maintainability, reliability and reusability. Module cohesion is defined as a quality attribute that seeks for measuring the singleness of the purpose of a module. The module of poor quality can be a serious obstacle to the system quality. In order to design a good software quality, software managers and engineers need to introduce cohesion metrics to measure and produce desirable software. A highly cohesion software is thought to be a desirable constructing. In this paper, we propose a function-oriented cohesion metrics based on the analysis of live variables, live span and the visualization of processing element dependency graph. We give six typical cohesion examples to be measured as our experiments and justification. Therefore, a well-defined, well-normalized, well-visualized and well-experimented cohesion metrics is proposed to indicate and thus enhance software cohesion strength. Furthermore, this cohesion metrics can be easily incorporated with software CASE tool to help software engineers to improve software quality.

Force Transmission Modes of Non-Cohesive and Cohesive Materials at the Critical State.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Ji-Peng

2017-08-31

This paper investigates the force transmission modes, mainly described by probability density distributions, in non-cohesive dry and cohesive wet granular materials by discrete element modeling. The critical state force transmission patterns are focused on with the contact model effect being analyzed. By shearing relatively dense and loose dry specimens to the critical state in the conventional triaxial loading path, it is observed that there is a unique critical state force transmission mode. There is a universe critical state force distribution pattern for both the normal contact forces and tangential contact forces. Furthermore, it is found that using either the linear Hooke or the non-linear Hertz model does not affect the universe force transmission mode, and it is only related to the grain size distribution. Wet granular materials are also simulated by incorporating a water bridge model. Dense and loose wet granular materials are tested, and the critical state behavior for the wet material is also observed. The critical state strength and void ratio of wet granular materials are higher than those of a non-cohesive material. The critical state inter-particle distribution is altered from that of a non-cohesive material with higher probability in relatively weak forces. Grains in non-cohesive materials are under compressive stresses, and their principal directions are mainly in the axial loading direction. However, for cohesive wet granular materials, some particles are in tension, and the tensile stresses are in the horizontal direction on which the confinement is applied. The additional confinement by the tensile stress explains the macro strength and dilatancy increase in wet samples.

Comprehension of scientific texts in English as a foreign language: the role of cohesion

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Neemias Silva de Souza Filho

2012-12-01

Full Text Available The reading of scientific texts is a challenge for students of all academic fields and levels. Whether it is a textbook in elementary education or a scientific paper in higher education, students are faced with a type of text which requires the reader's ability to generate inferences and the ability to fill informational gaps (BEST et al., 2005. This notion is in line with empirical evidence obtained by previous studies (e.g. OZURU et al., 2009. All of these works, however, were performed with native English speakers. In this sense, adopting the model of reading comprehension proposed by Kintsch (1998, we aimed to investigate if the results obtained by the previous studies, carried out with native speakers of English are also valid in a context of English as a foreign language. In addition, we pursue a methodological question, investigating whether the evaluation of reading comprehension through objective and subjective questions leads to convergent or divergent results. To investigate these questions, we analyze subjects’ answers to an objective questionnaire and in the production of a written summary. The results show that high-cohesion texts generate better results and point to possible research avenues.

Transfer and Cohesion in Interdisciplinary Education

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Søren Harnow Klausen

2014-06-01

Full Text Available One of the great challenges of interdisciplinary education is to create sufficient cohesion between disciplines. It is suggested that cohesion depends on the transfer of knowledge (in a broad sense, which includes skill and competences among the disciplines involved. Some of the most characteristic types of such transfer are identified and analyzed: Transfer of factual knowledge, theories, methods, models, skills, modes of collaboration and organization, meta-competences, disciplinary self-consciousness, problem selection, framework construction and motivation. Though some of these types of transfer may have a greater or smaller potential for creating cohesion, different kinds of cohesion may serve different interests, and there is no reason to assume that e.g. joint problem solving or theoretical integration should be more conducive to cohesion than e.g. contributions to motivation or disciplinary self-consciousness.

Experimental Investigation of Effects of Vibration upon Elastic and Cohesive Properties of Beds of Wet Sand

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S. Alsop

1995-01-01

Full Text Available The transmission of sinusoidal vibrations through beds of cohesive particulate solids was measured. Results were interpreted in terms of a critical state model to predict the elastic swelling constant k, and the cohesive stress C. Factorial experimental design was used to identify significant parameters. Factors that affect k include percent moisture, bulk density, sample size, sample shape, the presence of a supporting membrane, and loading order. Factors that affect C include percent moisture and particle size distribution. Factors affecting k were interpreted in terms of their effects upon bed structure and factors affecting C in terms of an equivalent pore water pressure due to capillary and liquid bridge effects. The critical state model was modified to incorporate general relationships between axial and radial strains.

Brownfield regeneration: Towards strengthening social cohesion?

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Minić Marta

2016-01-01

Full Text Available In broader terms, the paper refers to the topic of brownfield regeneration, as one of the most complex mechanisms for sustainable spatial development. In addition to the fact that brownfield regeneration demands a variety of instruments, such as: tax subsidies, the change of land use ownership, soil remediation, planning regulative amendments, etc., the complexity of brownfield regeneration is primarily seen in a number of stakeholders participating in such a process. Thus, the paper focuses on the social aspect of brownfield regeneration - precisely, on researching the community role and reviewing the possibilities for achieving the 'local' interests in complex developmental processes. The main research hypothesis is that brownfield regeneration positively affects the creation of and strengthening the social cohesion in the areas close to the brownfield site. More precisley, the paper presents the ways towards strenghtening social cohesion in the initial phase of the brownfield regeneration process, as well as the effects of such a process in its operationalisation phase on social cohesion. The thesis is examined by two main parameters: 1 participation of local community, and 2 social costs and benefits of brownfield regeneration versus greenfield investment. The research results are presented in the form of argumentative essay. In fact, the critical overview of arguments for and against the main research hypothesis is provided based on the review of interdisciplinary literature in the domain of brownfield regeneration. Such research organisation ensures the identification and description of the measures needed for strengthening social cohesion, as an utmost goal of this research. The final research contribution is about offering the guidelines for similar methodological approach in urban research.

Neighborhood cohesion, neighborhood disorder, and cardiometabolic risk.

Science.gov (United States)

Robinette, Jennifer W; Charles, Susan T; Gruenewald, Tara L

2018-02-01

Perceptions of neighborhood disorder (trash, vandalism) and cohesion (neighbors trust one another) are related to residents' health. Affective and behavioral factors have been identified, but often in studies using geographically select samples. We use a nationally representative sample (n = 9032) of United States older adults from the Health and Retirement Study to examine cardiometabolic risk in relation to perceptions of neighborhood cohesion and disorder. Lower cohesion is significantly related to greater cardiometabolic risk in 2006/2008 and predicts greater risk four years later (2010/2012). The longitudinal relation is partially accounted for by anxiety and physical activity. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Packing and Cohesive Properties of Some Locally Extracted Starches

African Journals Online (AJOL)

... properties of the particles affect the packing and cohesive properties of the starches, and are important in predicting the behaviour of the starches during handling and use in pharmaceutical preparations. These properties need to be closely controlled in pre-formulation studies. Keywords: Packing and cohesive properties, ...

Network cohesion

OpenAIRE

Cavalcanti, Tiago V. V.; Giannitsarou, Chryssi; Johnson, Charles R.

2016-01-01

This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00199-016-0992-1 We define a measure of network cohesion and show how it arises naturally in a broad class of dynamic models of endogenous perpetual growth with network externalities. Via a standard growth model, we show why network cohesion is crucial for conditional convergence and explain that as cohesion increases, convergence is faster. We prove properties of network cohesion and d...

Group cohesion in sports teams of different professional level

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Vazha M. Devishvili

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Background. Team sports are not only the most exciting sporting events. but also complex activities that make serious demands on players. The effectiveness of the team depends not only on the high level of gaming interaction. but also on the relationship between the players. The work is based on the material of sports teams and is devoted to the study of the phenomenon of group cohesion. As a basic model. the authors choose a 4-factor model that describes cohesion in sports teams. The paper also considered the phenomenon of the emergence of the aggregate subject in the process of joint activity. when the participants feel themselves as a whole and experience feelings of satisfaction and a surge of energy. Objective. The main objective of the work is to investigate the relationship between the level of team cohesion and subjective feelings of unity of its players. As additional variables in the study there is a sport (football and volleyball and team level (amateur and professional. To test the assumptions. two methods were used (the Sport Team Cohesion Questionnaire and the Subject Unity Index. which allow not only to determine the overall level of cohesion and unity. but also to reveal the structure of both phenomena. The study involved two men’s volleyball and two men’s football teams of different ages: 8-9 years (39 athletes; 12-14 years (24 athletes and 18-25 years (41 athletes. Design. For amateur groups represented by children’s and teenage sports teams. significant correlations between unity and unity were obtained (r = 0.618. p <0.01; r = 0.477. p <0.05. For professional teams. no significant correlations were found. Influence of the sport on cohesion is also different for amateur and professional teams. In the first case. the cohesion is higher for football players (U = 118. p <0.05. and in the second case for volleyball players (U = 124. p <0.05. Results. The findings indicate that the professional level of players affects group

Molecular Intercalation and Cohesion of Organic Bulk Heterojunction Photovoltaic Devices

KAUST Repository

Bruner, Christopher; Miller, Nichole C.; McGehee, Michael D.; Dauskardt, Reinhold H.

2013-01-01

The phase separated bulk heterojunction (BHJ) layer in BHJ polymer:fullerene organic photovoltaic devices (OPV) are mechanically weak with low values of cohesion. Improved cohesion is important for OPV device thermomechanical reliability. BHJ devices are investigated and how fullerene intercalation within the active layer affects cohesive properties in the BHJ is shown. The intercalation of fullerenes between the side chains of the polymers poly(3,3″′-didocecyl quaterthiophene) (PQT-12) and poly(2,5-bis(3-hexadecylthiophen-2-yl)thieno[3,2-b]thiophene (pBTTT) is shown to enhance BHJ layer cohesion. Cohesion values range from ≈1 to 5 J m -2, depending on the polymer:fullerene blend, processing conditions, and composition. Devices with non-intercalated BHJ layers are found to have significantly reduced values of cohesion. The resulting device power conversion efficiencies (PCE) are also investigated and correlated with the device cohesion. Copyright © 2013 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Molecular Intercalation and Cohesion of Organic Bulk Heterojunction Photovoltaic Devices

KAUST Repository

Bruner, Christopher

2013-01-17

The phase separated bulk heterojunction (BHJ) layer in BHJ polymer:fullerene organic photovoltaic devices (OPV) are mechanically weak with low values of cohesion. Improved cohesion is important for OPV device thermomechanical reliability. BHJ devices are investigated and how fullerene intercalation within the active layer affects cohesive properties in the BHJ is shown. The intercalation of fullerenes between the side chains of the polymers poly(3,3″′-didocecyl quaterthiophene) (PQT-12) and poly(2,5-bis(3-hexadecylthiophen-2-yl)thieno[3,2-b]thiophene (pBTTT) is shown to enhance BHJ layer cohesion. Cohesion values range from ≈1 to 5 J m -2, depending on the polymer:fullerene blend, processing conditions, and composition. Devices with non-intercalated BHJ layers are found to have significantly reduced values of cohesion. The resulting device power conversion efficiencies (PCE) are also investigated and correlated with the device cohesion. Copyright © 2013 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Evaluating Lexical Cohesion in Nigerian Newspaper Genres: Focus on the Editorials

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Zubairu Malah

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Applied linguists paying scholarly attention to newspaper genres have often argued that findings emerging from such studies would be of pedagogical significance because most of the newspaper genres share certain conventional features with school genres. Similarly, this study explored lexical cohesion in newspaper editorials, and it is understood that the findings could help learners in handling persuasive writings. The study sought to identify the dominant sources of lexical cohesion in the editorials, and also to examine how lexical cohesion is utilized to achieve coherence in the editorials. Drawing on Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL, the study applied Eggins’ (2004 model of lexical cohesion and analyzed 30 editorial texts of 20, 354 words drawn from three major Nigerian newspapers: The Guardian, The Nation, and Vanguard. The analysis revealed 2, 685 ties across 849 sentences. The data demonstrated that the major types of lexical cohesion in the editorials include: repetition (49.5%, expectancy relations (15. 8%, class/sub-class (11%, and synonymy (10.8%. It was further revealed that lexical cohesion devices, which formed into chains (586 and isolated ties (837, were utilized in building coherence in the editorial texts. It was finally shown how findings of the study could be beneficial in ESP, EAP, and EGP learning, especially in persuasive writings.

Emerging technologies, innovative teachers and moral cohesion

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Batchelor, J

2012-05-01

Full Text Available efficacy when they engage with emerging technologies. The concept of moral cohesion is further expanded and forms the main focus of this article. Keywords: emerging technologies, innovative teachers, moral cohesion, pedagogies, ethics, teacher.... African Renaissance and teacher disposition is identified as the strongest drivers. Teacher training forms the link between the strong drivers and the outcomes manifest as Stewardship and ethical considerations. 3.2 Professional Burden The theme...

Cohesion and Hierarchy in Physically Abusive Families

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Clarissa De Antoni

2009-06-01

Full Text Available This paper investigates cohesion (emotional bonding and hierarchy (powerstructure in families with abuse against their children. Twenty low-incomefamilies participated. Father, mother and child’s perspective of family relations(cohesion and hierarchy were evaluated by the Family System Test(FAST. The relationship between father-child, mother-child, couple, andamong siblings were evaluated at typical and conflictive situations. Resultsshow a significance regarding to cohesion in typical and conflictive situationfor father-child and mother-child dyads in all perspectives (by father, mother,and child. There is no significant differences regarding to hierarchy. Theseresults suggest that the families see the intrafamilial violence as a constant,since they cannot differentiate between both situations.

Cohesion: An Overview for the Teacher of Reading. Revised.

Science.gov (United States)

Chapman, L. John

Pronouns, substitutes, elipses, conjunctions, synonyms, antonyms, superordinates and subordinates, and part-whole relations all provide cohesive ties that help a reader understand text. A study at Britain's Open University (England) has revealed the way in which the perception of cohesive ties is achieved as children's reading ability grows.…

INTERACTIVE EFFECTS OF TEAM COHESION ON PERCEIVED EFFICACY IN SEMI-PROFESSIONAL SPORT

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Francisco Miguel Leo Marcos

2010-06-01

Full Text Available The present study examined the relationships among cohesion, self-efficacy, coaches' perceptions of their players' efficacy at the individual level and athletes' perceptions of their teammates' efficacy. Participants (n = 76 recruited from four semi- professional soccer and basketball teams completed cohesiveness and efficacy questionnaires who. Data were analyzed through a correlational methodology. Results indicated significant correlations between self-efficacy and task cohesion and social cohesion. Regression analysis results suggest task cohesion positively related to coaches and teammate´s perception of efficacy. These results have implications for practitioners in terms of the importance of team building to enhance team cohesion and feelings of efficacy

INTANGIBLE ASSETS THROUGH THE COHESION POLICY

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Popescu (Stingaciu Ana-Maria

2012-07-01

Full Text Available INTANGIBLE ASSETS THROUGH THE COHESION POLICY Roth Anne-Marie-Monika West University of Timisoara Faculty of Economics and Business Administration Popescu (Stingaciu Ana-Maria West University of Timisoara Faculty of Economics and Business Administration Intangible assets in general and intellectual capital in particular are important to both society and organizations. It can be a source of competitive advantage for business and stimulate innovation that leads to wealth generation. Technological revolutions, the rise of the knowledge-based economy and the networked society have all led to the same conclusion that intangibles and how they contribute to value creation have to be appreciated so that the appropriate decisions can be made to protect and enhance them. The Cohesion Policy represents the main EU measure to ensure a balanced and sustainable growth in Europe by promoting harmonious development and reducing the regional disparities. The general objective of the paper is to highlight the important role of the Cohesion Policy in the development of intangible assets. The objectives and the instruments of the Cohesion Policy are designed to support programs on regional development, economic change, enhanced competitiveness and territorial cooperation through the European Union, to develop human resources and employability. Keywords: intangible assets, intellectual capital, Cohesion policy, development; JEL Classification: O43, G32, D24, O34

Roles of the sister chromatid cohesion apparatus in gene expression, development, and human syndromes

Science.gov (United States)

Dorsett, Dale

2006-01-01

The sister chromatid cohesion apparatus mediates physical pairing of duplicated chromosomes. This pairing is essential for appropriate distribution of chromosomes into the daughter cells upon cell division. Recent evidence shows that the cohesion apparatus, which is a significant structural component of chromosomes during interphase, also affects gene expression and development. The Cornelia de Lange (CdLS) and Roberts/SC phocomelia (RBS/SC) genetic syndromes in humans are caused by mutations affecting components of the cohesion apparatus. Studies in Drosophila suggest that effects on gene expression are most likely responsible for developmental alterations in CdLS. Effects on chromatid cohesion are apparent in RBS/SC syndrome, but data from yeast and Drosophila point to the likelihood that changes in expression of genes located in heterochromatin could contribute to the developmental deficits. PMID:16819604

The Structure of Group Cohesion.

Science.gov (United States)

Cota, Albert A.; And Others

1995-01-01

Reviews the literature on unidimensional and multidimensional models of cohesion and describes cohesion as a multidimensional construct with primary and secondary dimensions. Found that primary dimensions described the cohesiveness of all or most types of groups, whereas secondary dimensions only described the cohesiveness of specific types of…

Cohesion, Flexibility, and the Mediating Effects of Shared Visionand Compassionon Engagement Army Acquisition Teams

Science.gov (United States)

2015-04-01

issues such as social desirability, negative affect, and acquiescence (Spector, 2006) in the analysis of final model. To test for multicollinearity ...emotional cohesion, cognitive cohesion, and flexibility) are independent with no multicollinearity issues. Development and test of structural

Text Mining.

Science.gov (United States)

Trybula, Walter J.

1999-01-01

Reviews the state of research in text mining, focusing on newer developments. The intent is to describe the disparate investigations currently included under the term text mining and provide a cohesive structure for these efforts. A summary of research identifies key organizations responsible for pushing the development of text mining. A section…

Moralized Health-Related Persuasion Undermines Social Cohesion

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Susanne Täuber

2018-06-01

Full Text Available Integrating theory and research on persuasion, moralization, and intergroup relations, the present research aims to highlight the far-reaching impact of health-related persuasion on society. I propose that governments’ health-related persuasion leads to the emergence of new social norms, and in particular moral norms. Importantly, moral norms provide strong behavioral imperatives and are seen as binding for group members. This suggests that moralized persuasion has a strong potential to divide society along the lines of citizens who conform to and citizens who deviate from health-related moral norms. Thus, departing from the traditional focus on targets of persuasion, the present research focuses on those holding a moralized view on health and lifestyle. Key aspects of social cohesion as defined by the OECD (2011 have been tested across four studies. The main hypothesis tested is that those conforming to the norm (e.g., non-smokers, normal weight people, people with healthy lifestyles will stigmatize those deviating from the norm (e.g., smokers, overweight people, people with unhealthy lifestyles. Flowing from stigmatization, less inclusion, lower solidarity with and greater endorsement of unequal treatment of those deviating from the moral norm are predicted. Four survey studies (total N = 1568 examining the proposed associations among non-smokers, normal weight people, and employees with healthy lifestyles are presented. The studies provide unanimous support for the hypothesis, with meta-analysis providing further support for the reliability of the findings. Consistent across studies, social cohesion indicators were negatively affected by health moralization through stigmatization of those deviating from health-related moral norms. Findings highlight an under-acknowledged potential of moralized health-related persuasion to divide society, thereby undermining cohesion and the achievement of important societal goals. In the discussion

Cohesion and device reliability in organic bulk heterojunction photovoltaic cells

KAUST Repository

Brand, Vitali

2012-04-01

The fracture resistance of P3HT:PC 60BM-based photovoltaic devices are characterized using quantitative adhesion and cohesion metrologies that allow identification of the weakest layer or interface in the device structure. We demonstrate that the phase separated bulk heterojunction layer is the weakest layer and report quantitative cohesion values which ranged from ∼1 to 20 J m -2. The effects of layer thickness, composition, and annealing treatments on layer cohesion are investigated. Using depth profiling and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy on the resulting fracture surfaces, we examine the gradient of molecular components through the thickness of the bulk heterojunction layer. Finally, using atomic force microscopy we show how the topography of the failure path is related to buckling of the metal electrode and how it develops with annealing. The research provides new insights on how the molecular design, structure and composition affect the cohesive properties of organic photovoltaics. © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Transport and deposition of cohesive pharmaceutical powders in human airway

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Yuan; Chu, Kaiwei; Yu, Aibing

2017-06-01

Pharmaceutical powders used in inhalation therapy are in the size range of 1-5 microns and are usually cohesive. Understanding the cohesive behaviour of pharmaceutical powders during their transportation in human airway is significant in optimising aerosol drug delivery and targeting. In this study, the transport and deposition of cohesive pharmaceutical powders in a human airway model is simulated by a well-established numerical model which combines computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and discrete element method (DEM). The van der Waals force, as the dominant cohesive force, is simulated and its influence on particle transport and deposition behaviour is discussed. It is observed that even for dilute particle flow, the local particle concentration in the oral to trachea region can be high and particle aggregation happens due to the van der Waals force of attraction. It is concluded that the deposition mechanism for cohesive pharmaceutical powders, on one hand, is dominated by particle inertial impaction, as proven by previous studies; on the other hand, is significantly affected by particle aggregation induced by van der Waals force. To maximum respiratory drug delivery efficiency, efforts should be made to avoid pharmaceutical powder aggregation in human oral-to-trachea airway.

Altruistic behavior in cohesive social groups: The role of target identifiability.

Science.gov (United States)

Ritov, Ilana; Kogut, Tehila

2017-01-01

People's tendency to be more generous toward identifiable victims than toward unidentifiable or statistical victims is known as the Identifiable Victim Effect. Recent research has called the generality of this effect into question, showing that in cross-national contexts, identifiability mostly affects willingness to help victims of one's own "in-group." Furthermore, in inter-group conflict situations, identifiability increased generosity toward a member of the adversary group, but decreased generosity toward a member of one's own group. In the present research we examine the role of group-cohesiveness as an underlying factor accounting for these divergent findings. In particular, we examined novel groups generated in the lab, using the minimal group paradigm, as well as natural groups of students in regular exercise sections. Allocation decisions in dictator games revealed that a group's cohesiveness affects generosity toward in-group and out-group recipients differently, depending on their identifiability. In particular, in cohesive groups the identification of an in-group recipient decreased, rather than increased generosity.

Group Cohesiveness in the Black Panther Party

Science.gov (United States)

Calloway, Carolyn R.

1977-01-01

This study selects for study the following propositions: 1) similarity among members increased the degree of cohesiveness within the party, 2) group devotion heightened interest in accomplishing group goals and 3) the threat of an external enemy led to interdependence among members and affected both activities and leadership styles. (Author/AM)

SeLeCT: a lexical cohesion based news story segmentation system

OpenAIRE

Stokes, Nicola; Carthy, Joe; Smeaton, Alan F.

2004-01-01

In this paper we compare the performance of three distinct approaches to lexical cohesion based text segmentation. Most work in this area has focused on the discovery of textual units that discuss subtopic structure within documents. In contrast our segmentation task requires the discovery of topical units of text i.e., distinct news stories from broadcast news programmes. Our approach to news story segmentation (the SeLeCT system) is based on an analysis of lexical cohesive strength between ...

A Computer Text Analysis of Four Cohesion Devices in English Discourse by Native and Nonnative Writers.

Science.gov (United States)

Reid, Joy

1992-01-01

In a contrastive rhetoric study of nonnative English speakers, 768 essays written in English by native speakers of Arabic, Chinese, Spanish, and English were examined using the Writer's Workbench program to determine whether distinctive, quantifiable differences in the use of 4 cohesion devices existed among the 4 language backgrounds. (Author/LB)

Microzonation Analysis of Cohesionless and Cohesive Soil

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Tan Choy Soon

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Urban seismic risk is a continuous worldwide issue, numerous researchers are putting great effort in dealing with how to minimise the level of the threat. The only way to minimise the social and economic consequences caused but the seismic risk is through comprehensive earthquake scenario analysis such as ground response analysis. This paper intends to examine the characteristic of shear wave velocity and peak ground acceleration on cohesionless and cohesiveness soil. In order to examine the characteristic of shear wave velocity and peak ground acceleration on cohesionless and cohesiveness soil, ground response analysis was performed using Nonlinear Earthquake Site Response Analysis (NERA and Equivalent-linear Earthquake Site Response Analysis (EERA. The value of ground acceleration was initially high at bedrock and vanishes during the propagation process. It is thus, the measured acceleration at surface is therefore much lower as compare to at bedrock. Result shows that seismic waves can travel faster in harder soil as compared to softer soil. Cohesive soil contributes more to the shaking amplification than cohesionless soil such as sand and harder soil. This is known as local site effect. The typical example is the Mexico Earthquake that happened in 1985. As conclusion, peak ground acceleration for cohesive soil is higher than in cohesionless soil.

A Study on the Effect of Cohesive Laws on Finite Element Analysis of Crack Propagation Using Cohesive Elements

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Seo, Hyeongseok; Baek, Hyungchan; Kim, Hyungyu [Seoul Nat' l Univ. of Sci. and Tech., Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2014-04-15

In this paper, the effect of cohesive laws on the finite element analysis of crack propagation using cohesive elements is investigated through three-point bending and double cantilever beam problems. The cohesive elements are implemented into ABAQUS/Standard user subroutines(UEL), and the shape of cohesive law is varied by changing parameters in polynomial functions of cohesive traction-separation relations. In particular, crack propagation behaviors are studied by comparing load-displacement curves of the analysis models which have different shapes of cohesive laws with the same values of fracture energy and cohesive strength. Furthermore, the influence of the element size on crack propagation is discussed in this study.

Effect of cohesion on local compaction and granulation of sheared soft granular materials

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Roy Sudeshna

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This paper results from an ongoing investigation of the effect of cohesion on the compaction of sheared soft wet granular materials. We compare dry non-cohesive and wet moderately-to-strongly cohesive soft almost frictionless granular materials and report the effect of cohesion between the grains on the local volume fraction. We study this in a three dimensional, unconfined, slowly sheared split-bottom ring shear cell, where materials while sheared are subject to compression under the confining weight of the material above. Our results show that inter-particle cohesion has a considerable impact on the compaction of soft materials. Cohesion causes additional stresses, due to capillary forces between particles, leading to an increase in volume fraction due to higher compaction. This effect is not visible in a system of infinitely stiff particles. In addition, acting oppositely, we observe a general decrease in volume fraction due to increased cohesion for frictional particle, which we attribute to the role of contact friction that enhances dilation.

Impacts on the Social Cohesion of Mainland Spain’s Future Motorway and High-Speed Rail Networks

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José Manuel Naranjo Gómez

2016-07-01

Full Text Available A great expansion of the road and rail network is contemplated in the Infrastructure, Transport and Housing Plan (PITVI in Spanish, in order to achieve greater social cohesion in 2024 in Spain. For this reason, the aim of this study is to classify and to identify those municipalities that are going to improve or worsen their social cohesion. To achieve this goal, the municipalities were classified according to the degree of socioeconomic development, and their accessibility levels were determined before and after the construction of these infrastructures. Firstly, the socioeconomic classification demonstrates that there is predominance in the northern half of the peninsula in the most developed municipalities. Secondly, the accessibility levels show that the same center-peripheral models are going to be kept in the future. Finally, poorly-defined territorial patterns are obtained with respect to the positive or negative effects of new infrastructures on social cohesion. Therefore, it is possible to state that the construction plan is going to partially fulfill its aim, since a quarter of the population is going to be affected by a negative impact on socioeconomic development. As a consequence, people who live here are going to have major problems in achieving social cohesion.

Britishness and Community Cohesion in Muslim News Online

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Hassen ZRIBA

2013-12-01

Full Text Available The issues of British national identity and social cohesion have become pressing concerns within the multicultural fabric of contemporary British society. The increasing number of immigrants and their offspring, along with the maintenance of their cultural roots, seem to represent a serious defiance to social cohesion and the alleged “purity” of Britishness. A number of race related reports were produced by the official authorities to churn out the necessary steps to be followed by the British (immigrants and host community in order to keep social stability and community cohesion. Thus, the politics of community cohesion came to the fore as the neologism of contemporary British political discourse. Such new discourse of governance has been digested and processed differently by different mass media. It has been decoded, for instance, preferably by mainstream news agencies like BBC News Online. However, arguably, it is read appositionally or at best negotiatedly by ethnicity-related news agencies such as Muslim News Online. In this article, attempt has been made to adopt media discourse analysis tools to decipher the ways Muslim News Online decoded and then encoded the hegemonic official discourses of Britishness and community cohesion. A critical and interpretative approach is used to accomplish such study. The corpus of this study is primarily extracted from the website of the Muslim News Online.

Substitution as a Device of Grammatical Cohesion in English Contexts

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Mohammad Reza Hasannejad

2012-05-01

Full Text Available The present study set out to investigate the effect of teaching substitution as a kind of grammatical cohesion on the true identification of confusing substitution elements with cohesive or non-cohesive roles in different contexts and also the production of modal, reporting and conditional contexts through clausal substitution acquaintance. To this end, the following procedures were taken. First 120 male and female EFL students were selected from Iranshahr Azad University. Having administered the language proficiency test, researchers selected 80 students as intermediate subjects according to their TOEFL band scores. First, pretests of cohesion identification (substitution and production of modal, reporting and conditional environments were administered to both control and experimental groups. Then, the experimental group was exposed to the teaching of the above-said above-mentioned cohesive device. Finally, post-tests of substitution elements’ identification and modal, reporting and conditional contexts’ production through clausal substitution familiarity were administered. The results showed that cohesive device treatment helped students on the true identification of substitution elements. Another finding proved that EFL students might have no difficulty in learning certain rules or classification of rules and application of their clausal substitution knowledge in creating modal, reporting and conditional contexts. Our findings can have implications for the field of language learning and teaching.

The Role of Lexical Cohesion in Writing Quality

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Hmoud Alotaibi

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The idea of whether repetition has any relation with the writing quality of the text has remained an issue that intrigues a number of scholars in linguistics and in writing studies. Michael Hoey (1991, Halliday and Hasan (1976 are two prominent works in presenting detailed and thoughtful analysis of repetition occurrences in the text. This study uses a model of lexical cohesion proposed by Witte and Faigley (1981 which itself is based on the taxonomies of cohesive ties presented by Halliday and Hasan (1976.  The model deals with lexical cohesion and its subclasses, namely, repetition (same type, synonym, near-synonym, super-ordinate item, and general item and collocation. The corpus includes five argumentative essays written by students in the field of English language literature. Five teaching assistants were asked to rank the papers on a five-point scale based on their perception of the papers’ writing quality. The results showed that the paper that received the lowest rating in terms of the writing quality was the one that included the largest number of repetition occurrences of the same type. The study concludes by arguing that repetition may not be considered as monolithic, and suggests that every type of repetition needs to be examined individually in order to determine what enhances and what deteriorates the writing quality.

The effect of coarse gravel on cohesive sediment entrapment in an annular flume

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K. Glasbergen

2015-03-01

Full Text Available While cohesive sediment generally represents a small fraction (16 Pa, cohesive materials trapped within the gravel bed will be entrained and transported into the Glenmore Reservoir, where sediment-associated nutrients may pose treatment challenges to the drinking water supply.

TEXT DEIXIS IN NARRATIVE SEQUENCES

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Josep Rivera

2007-06-01

Full Text Available This study looks at demonstrative descriptions, regarding them as text-deictic procedures which contribute to weave discourse reference. Text deixis is thought of as a metaphorical referential device which maps the ground of utterance onto the text itself. Demonstrative expressions with textual antecedent-triggers, considered as the most important text-deictic units, are identified in a narrative corpus consisting of J. M. Barrie’s Peter Pan and its translation into Catalan. Some linguistic and discourse variables related to DemNPs are analysed to characterise adequately text deixis. It is shown that this referential device is usually combined with abstract nouns, thus categorising and encapsulating (non-nominal complex discourse entities as nouns, while performing a referential cohesive function by means of the text deixis + general noun type of lexical cohesion.

Development of low energy electron beam irradiation technology. Application to cohesive and adhesive agents

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ito, Hisashi; Enomoto, Ichiro; Tsuchiya, Mitsuaki

1996-01-01

The hightening of the cohesive and adhesive performances of rubber cohesive and adhesive agents, of which the main component is electron beam-cross-linked styrene-isoprene block copolymer (SIS), was tried. Cohesive and adhesive agents are cohesive agents at the time of use, but change to adhesive property by the lapse of time or the means using heat, light or radiation, and further, partially to separating property. This time, as a cohesion-giving agent, ARKON P-100 system was examined, and the heightening of adhesive performance including the improvement of the heat resistance and solvent endurance, which are the demerits of rubber, was investigated. Also the difference of the cohesive and adhesive performances due to the kinds of cohesion-giving agents was examined. The samples were prepared by irradiating the films on which the SIS was applied. The measurement of gel proportion, the holding force test at elevated temperature, the measurement of DSC and 180deg separation test were carried out. Respective testing methods and the results are reported. By electron beam irradiation, the heat resistance and solvent endurance were improved without affecting the separation force. (K.I.)

Leader evaluation and team cohesiveness in the process of team development: A matter of gender?

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Núria Rovira-Asenjo

Full Text Available Leadership positions are still stereotyped as masculine, especially in male-dominated fields (e.g., engineering. So how do gender stereotypes affect the evaluation of leaders and team cohesiveness in the process of team development? In our study participants worked in 45 small teams (4-5 members. Each team was headed by either a female or male leader, so that 45 leaders (33% women supervised 258 team members (39% women. Over a period of nine months, the teams developed specific engineering projects as part of their professional undergraduate training. We examined leaders' self-evaluation, their evaluation by team members, and team cohesiveness at two points of time (month three and month nine, the final month of the collaboration. While we did not find any gender differences in leaders' self-evaluation at the beginning, female leaders evaluated themselves more favorably than men at the end of the projects. Moreover, female leaders were evaluated more favorably than male leaders at the beginning of the project, but the evaluation by team members did not differ at the end of the projects. Finally, we found a tendency for female leaders to build more cohesive teams than male leaders.

The territorial approach to EU cohesion policy: Current issues and evidence from Greece

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Thoidou Elisavet

2011-01-01

Full Text Available The importance attributed to the territorial dimension of the European Union cohesion policy steadily influences its successive reforms and adaptations, while in recent years there has been an evolution in the way this particular dimension of cohesion policy is perceived. Important evidence for this is the way in which the Community Strategic Guidelines on cohesion 2007-13 take account of the territorial dimension of cohesion policy. This paper discusses the territorial approach to cohesion policy in relation to both policy and practice. Specifically, it examines the territorial dimension of regional development planning in Greece as it has emerged in the relevant official documents, namely the successive three Community Support Frameworks since 1989 and the National Strategic Reference Framework for the current 2007-13 period. The territorial dimension of the organization of the planning system is also considered in an effort to understand limitations and prospects, in light of the importance of the territorial approach to cohesion policy post-2013.

Scour in cohesive soils

Science.gov (United States)

2015-05-01

This study of scour in cohesive soils had two objectives. The first was to introduce and demonstrate a new ex situ erosion testing device (ESTD) that can mimic the near-bed flow of open channels to erode cohesive soils within a specified range of she...

Dynamics of Cohesive Sediments

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Johansen, Claus

The present thesis considers the transport processes of cohesive sediments. The cohesive sediment used in the laboratory experiments was kaolinite, a clay mineral, in order to be able to reproduce the individual experiments. In the first part of the thesis, the theoretical considerations regarding...

Place-based innovation in Cohesion Policy: meeting and measuring the challenges

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Alys Solly

2016-01-01

Full Text Available This paper, prepared in conjunction with the European Union’s Open Days 2015, examines current Cohesion Policy in terms of its place-based logic, a key aspect of the new Smart Specialisation strategy platform. After discussing changing notions of urbanization and governance, which seem to be shifting Cohesion Policy towards a more performance-oriented analysis of its outcomes, the paper focuses on the question of identifying an appropriate set of indicators and measuring framework. It suggests that measurements of Cohesion Policy performance should analyse the outcomes and indicators, as well as the European and national data sources and statistics, through the lens of effectiveness and well-being.

Psychological characteristics of group cohesion athletes.

OpenAIRE

Sheriff Sarhan

2011-01-01

The basic components of group cohesion in sport teams. An analysis of publications on cohesion within the groups where an interconnection of individual goals of each participant group with common goals and the end result of teamwork. The concept of harmony in the team sports, where the rate of group cohesion is dependent on such integrative index as psychological climate. It is established that a number of athletes to achieve high results require high cohesion, unity, value-normative orientat...

The absorption of UE funds in the current context of the cohesion policy

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Dumitrescu, A.

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Romania continues to be affected by the global recession. It has suffered a significant reduction in foreign investment since the start of the recession, as investors have moved away from emerging markets in search for security. Developing an appropriate, focused strategy for the allocation of EU funds is only the first, though perhaps the most important step in implementing the EU cohesion policy. The successful implementation of EU co-funded projects is contingent not only upon the effectiveness of these countries’ administrative systems, but also on the activity of the potential beneficiaries.

Elongational rheology and cohesive fracture of photo-oxidated LDPE

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rolón-Garrido, Víctor H., E-mail: victor.h.rolongarrido@tu-berlin.de; Wagner, Manfred H. [Chair of Polymer Engineering/Polymer Physics, Berlin Institute of Technology (TU Berlin), Fasanenstrasse 90, D-10623 Berlin (Germany)

2014-01-15

It was found recently that low-density polyethylene (LDPE) samples with different degrees of photo-oxidation represent an interesting system to study the transition from ductile to cohesive fracture and the aspects of the cohesive rupture in elongational flow. Sheets of LDPE were subjected to photo-oxidation in the presence of air using a xenon lamp to irradiate the samples for times between 1 day and 6 weeks. Characterisation methods included Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, solvent extraction method, and rheology in shear and uniaxial extensional flows. Linear viscoelasticity was increasingly affected by increasing photo-oxidation due to crosslinking of LDPE, as corroborated by the carbonyl index, acid and aldehydes groups, and gel fraction. The molecular stress function model was used to quantify the experimental data, and the nonlinear model parameter β was found to be correlated with the gel content. The uniaxial data showed that the transition from ductile to cohesive fracture was shifted to lower elongational rates, the higher the gel content was. From 2 weeks photo-oxidation onwards, cohesive rupture occurred at every strain rate investigated. The true strain and true stress at cohesive fracture as well as the energy density applied to the sample up to fracture were analyzed. At low gel content, rupture was mainly determined by the melt fraction while at high gel content, rupture occurred predominantly in the gel structure. The strain at break was found to be independent of strain rate, contrary to the stress at break and the energy density. Thus, the true strain and not the stress at break or the energy density was found to be the relevant physical quantity to describe cohesive fracture behavior of photo-oxidated LDPE. The equilibrium modulus of the gel structures was correlated with the true strain at rupture. The stiffer the gel structure, the lower was the deformation tolerated before the sample breaks.

Family Cohesion and Level of Communication Between Parents and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This study investigated the level of communication between parents and their adolescent children and how such communication affects family cohesion. A sample of 200 subjects made up of adolescents and parents were selected through cluster, stratified and random sampling techniques from ten Local Government Areas ...

A prospective study of group cohesiveness in therapeutic horticulture for clinical depression.

Science.gov (United States)

Gonzalez, Marianne Thorsen; Hartig, Terry; Patil, Grete Grindal; Martinsen, Egil W; Kirkevold, Marit

2011-04-01

This study aimed to assess changes in psychological distress and social participation in adults diagnosed with clinical depression during and after participating in a therapeutic horticulture programme, and to investigate if the changes covaried with levels of group cohesiveness during the intervention. An intervention with a single-group design was repeated with different samples in successive years (pooled n = 46). In each year, five groups of 3-7 participants went through the intervention. Data were collected before, twice during, and immediately after a 12-week therapeutic horticulture programme, as well as at 3-months' follow up. Mental health assessments included the Beck Depression Inventory, the State Subscale of Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, the Positive Affect Scale from the Positive and Negative Affect Scale, the Perceived Stress Scale, and the Therapeutic Factors Inventory-Cohesiveness Scale. The analysis of the pooled data confirmed significant beneficial change in all mental health variables during the intervention. Change from baseline in depression severity persisted at 3-months' follow up. Increased social activity after the intervention was reported for 38% of the participants. The groups quickly established strong cohesiveness, and this continued to increase during the intervention. The average level of group cohesiveness correlated positively, but not significantly, with change in all mental health outcome variables. © 2011 The Authors. International Journal of Mental Health Nursing © 2011 Australian College of Mental Health Nurses Inc.

Team cohesion and team success in sport.

Science.gov (United States)

Carron, Albert V; Bray, Steven R; Eys, Mark A

2002-02-01

The main aim of this study was to examine the relationship between task cohesiveness and team success in elite teams using composite team estimates of cohesion. A secondary aim was to determine statistically the consistency (i.e. 'groupness') present in team members' perceptions of cohesion. Elite university basketball teams (n = 18) and club soccer teams (n = 9) were assessed for cohesiveness and winning percentages. Measures were recorded towards the end of each team's competitive season. Our results indicate that cohesiveness is a shared perception, thereby providing statistical support for the use of composite team scores. Further analyses indicated a strong relationship between cohesion and success (r = 0.55-0.67). Further research using multi-level statistical techniques is recommended.

Perceived Social Cohesion, Frequency of Going Out, and Depressive Symptoms in Older Adults

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Namkee G. Choi PhD

2015-11-01

Full Text Available Objective: To examine both cross-sectional and longitudinal relationships between older adults’ perceptions of social cohesion in their community and depressive symptoms and the potential mediating effect of the frequency of going outside one’s home/building. Method: Using two waves (T1 and T2 of the National Health and Aging Trend Study ( n = 5,326, gender-stratified structural equation models were estimated to determine direct and indirect effects of perceived social cohesion on depressive symptoms. Results: At T1, both perceived cohesion and frequency of going out were directly associated with depressive symptoms; however, perceived cohesion predicted frequency of going out only for women. At T2, only frequency of going out was directly associated with depressive symptoms, although perceived cohesion predicted frequency of going out for both genders. T1 perceived cohesion did not predict T2 depressive symptoms. T1 depressive symptoms were the strongest predictor of T2 depressive symptoms. Conclusion: The findings underscore the importance of enhancing the social environment in promoting mental health in late life through active aging.

Developing Indicators of Territorial Cohesion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gallina, Andrea; Farrugia, Nadia

setting. The concept of territorial cohesion attaches importance to the diversity of the European territory which is seen as a key competitive advantage, the preservation of the European social model, and the ability of the citizens of Europe's nations and regions to be able to continue to live within...... (EU). The objective of territorial cohesion, which builds on the European Spatial Development Perspective (ESDP), is to help achieve a more balanced development by reducing existing disparities, avoiding territorial imbalances and by making sectoral policies, which have a spatial impact and regional...... policy more coherent. It also aims to improve territorial integration and encourage cooperation between regions. Territorial cohesion complements the notions of economic and social cohesion by translating the fundamental EU goal of a balanced competitiveness and sustainable development into a territorial...

Social cohesion and social capital: Possible implications for the common good

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Anita Cloete

2014-08-01

Full Text Available The main objective of the article is to identify the possible implications of social cohesion and social capital for the common good. In order to reach this overarching aim the following structure will be utilised. The first part explores the conceptual understanding of socialcohesion and social capital in order to establish how these concepts are related and how they could possibly inform each other. The contextual nature of social cohesion and social capital is briefly reflected upon, with specific reference to the South African context. The contribution of religious capital in the formation of social capital is explored in the last section of the article. The article could be viewed as mainly conceptual and explorative in nature in order to draw some conclusions about the common good of social capital and social cohesion.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: This article contributes to the interdisciplinary discourse on social cohesion with specific reference to the role of congregations. It provides a critical reflection on the role of congregations with regard to bonding and bridging social capital. The contextual nature of social cohesion is also addressed with specific reference to South Africa.

Competition and social cohesion

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Mario Libertini

2014-03-01

Full Text Available "Competition" and "social cohesion" are both protected by E.U. and Italian laws. The author moves from the analysis of the meaning of these two concepts, in order to reflect on their compatibility and the way to conciliate them. The central problem - in the opinion of the Author - is to abandon the myth of spontaneous markets' order and to rebuild a political order able to maintain and support, as far as possible, the competitive market economy, but also to govern economic processes in critical moments and situations.

The Impact of Cooperative Video Games on Team Cohesion

Science.gov (United States)

Anderson, Greg

2010-01-01

In today's economy, productivity and efficiency require collaboration between employees. In order to improve collaboration the factors affecting teamwork must be examined to identify where changes can be made in order to increase performance. One factor contributing to teamwork is team cohesion and represents a process whereby members are joined…

Cohesion, Cracking, Dilation, and Flow -- Rheological Behavior of Cohesive Pharmaceutical Powders

Science.gov (United States)

Muzzio, Fernando

2007-03-01

Cohesive powders can be loosely defined as systems where the attractive forced between particles exceed the average particle weight. Cohesive powder flow is interesting from a wide range of reasons. Their main characteristic, intermittence, is evidenced both in the interruption of flow out of hoppers (a mundane issue causing great annoyance to industrial practitioners) and in the sudden avalanching of snow and dirt that has terrified and terrified mankind since the dawn of time. At the present time, our ability to predict either of these phenomena (and many more involving cohesive powders) is very limited, primarily due to an incomplete understanding of their constitutive behavior. To wit, consider just a simple fact: a flowing powder never has constant density. Equations describing the relationship between velocity, shear, stress, and density are rudimentary at best. Computational and experimental approaches for characterizing flow behavior are in their infancy. In this talk, I will describe some recent progress achieved at Rutgers by our group. New instruments have been developed to determine simultaneously powder density and cohesive flow effects. Extensive measurements have been carried out focusing on pharmaceutical blends. These results have been used to fine-tune computational models that accurately predict dilation, flow in drums, and flow in hoppers. Impact of these observations for pharmaceutical manufacturing applications will be discussed in some detail.

Improving decision speed, accuracy and group cohesion through early information gathering in house-hunting ants.

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Nathalie Stroeymeyt

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Successful collective decision-making depends on groups of animals being able to make accurate choices while maintaining group cohesion. However, increasing accuracy and/or cohesion usually decreases decision speed and vice-versa. Such trade-offs are widespread in animal decision-making and result in various decision-making strategies that emphasize either speed or accuracy, depending on the context. Speed-accuracy trade-offs have been the object of many theoretical investigations, but these studies did not consider the possible effects of previous experience and/or knowledge of individuals on such trade-offs. In this study, we investigated how previous knowledge of their environment may affect emigration speed, nest choice and colony cohesion in emigrations of the house-hunting ant Temnothorax albipennis, a collective decision-making process subject to a classical speed-accuracy trade-off. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Colonies allowed to explore a high quality nest site for one week before they were forced to emigrate found that nest and accepted it faster than emigrating naïve colonies. This resulted in increased speed in single choice emigrations and higher colony cohesion in binary choice emigrations. Additionally, colonies allowed to explore both high and low quality nest sites for one week prior to emigration remained more cohesive, made more accurate decisions and emigrated faster than emigrating naïve colonies. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: These results show that colonies gather and store information about available nest sites while their nest is still intact, and later retrieve and use this information when they need to emigrate. This improves colony performance. Early gathering of information for later use is therefore an effective strategy allowing T. albipennis colonies to improve simultaneously all aspects of the decision-making process--i.e. speed, accuracy and cohesion--and partly circumvent the speed-accuracy trade

Numerical insight into the micromechanics of jet erosion of a cohesive granular material

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Cuéllar Pablo

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Here we investigate the physical mechanisms behind the surface erosion of a cohesive granular soil induced by an impinging jet by means of numerical simulations coupling fluid and grains at the microscale. The 2D numerical model combines the Discrete Element and Lattice Boltzmann methods (DEM-LBM and accounts for the granular cohesion with a contact model featuring a paraboloidal yield surface. Here we review first the hydrodynamical conditions imposed by the fluid jet on a solid granular packing, turning then the attention to the impact of cohesion on the erosion kinetics. Finally, the use of an additional subcritical debonding damage model based on the work of Silvani and co-workers provides a novel insight into the internal solicitation of the cohesive granular sample by the impinging jet.

Sustaining exercise participation through group cohesion.

Science.gov (United States)

Estabrooks, P A

2000-04-01

The general hypothesis to be examined by this article is that increased group cohesion leads to an increase in adherence to an exercise program over time. Although preliminary research is promising, there is a need for further research aimed at examining the model of group development in exercise classes, the impact of group cohesion on both group and individual exercise behavior, and the measurement of group cohesion.

Differences in neighborhood social cohesion and aerobic physical activity by Latino subgroup

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Rosenda Murillo

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Previous research has examined the role of neighborhood social cohesion in physical activity outcomes; however, less is known about this relationship across Latino subgroups. The purpose of our study was to examine the association between neighborhood social cohesion and aerobic leisure-time physical activity (LTPA among Latino adults and to determine whether these associations differ by Latino subgroup. We used cross-sectional 2013–2014 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS data on Latinos originating from 5 countries/regions (i.e., Latinos of Puerto Rican, Mexican/Mexican-American, Cuban/Cuban-American, Dominican and Central or South American origin aged ≥18 years (n=11,126. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to estimate associations between self-reported neighborhood social cohesion and meeting aerobic LTPA guidelines. Models were adjusted for age, sex, education, and acculturation. We also investigated whether associations varied by Latino subgroup. In adjusted models for all Latino adults, compared with those reporting low social cohesion, individuals who reported high social cohesion (Odds Ratio [OR]: 1.33; 95% Confidence Interval [CI]: 1.17–1.52 were significantly more likely to meet the aerobic physical activity guideline. When stratified by Latino subgroups, among Mexican/Mexicans-Americans (OR: 1.39; 95% CI: 1.16, 1.66 and Cuban/Cuban Americans (OR: 1.73; 95% CI: 1.00, 2.97 high social cohesion was associated with meeting the aerobic activity guideline. Among Dominicans, those who reported medium social cohesion (OR: 0.52, 95% CI: 0.29, 0.93 were less likely to meet the aerobic activity guideline. When examining aerobic physical activity outcomes in the Latino population, the role of neighborhood social cohesion and the variability among Latino subgroups should be considered. Keywords: Neighborhood social cohesion, Physical activity, Latinos, subgroups

Genre-dependent interaction of coherence and lexical cohesion in written discourse

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Berzlánovich, I.; Redeker, G.

2012-01-01

We investigate the interaction between coherence and lexical cohesion in expository and persuasive texts using seven encyclopedia texts and seven fundraising letters. We describe genre structure in terms of genre-specific moves and coherence structure with Rhetorical Structure Theory. For lexical

Inferring Group Processes from Computer-Mediated Affective Text Analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schryver, Jack C [ORNL; Begoli, Edmon [ORNL; Jose, Ajith [Missouri University of Science and Technology; Griffin, Christopher [Pennsylvania State University

2011-02-01

Political communications in the form of unstructured text convey rich connotative meaning that can reveal underlying group social processes. Previous research has focused on sentiment analysis at the document level, but we extend this analysis to sub-document levels through a detailed analysis of affective relationships between entities extracted from a document. Instead of pure sentiment analysis, which is just positive or negative, we explore nuances of affective meaning in 22 affect categories. Our affect propagation algorithm automatically calculates and displays extracted affective relationships among entities in graphical form in our prototype (TEAMSTER), starting with seed lists of affect terms. Several useful metrics are defined to infer underlying group processes by aggregating affective relationships discovered in a text. Our approach has been validated with annotated documents from the MPQA corpus, achieving a performance gain of 74% over comparable random guessers.

Influence of magnetic cohesion on the stability of granular slopes.

Science.gov (United States)

Taylor, K; King, P J; Swift, Michael R

2008-09-01

We use a molecular dynamics model to simulate the formation and evolution of a granular pile in two dimensions in order to gain a better understanding of the role of magnetic interactions in avalanche dynamics. We find that the angle of repose increases only slowly with magnetic field; the increase in angle is small even for intergrain cohesive forces many times stronger than gravity. The magnetic forces within the bulk of the pile partially cancel as a result of the anisotropic nature of the dipole-dipole interaction between grains. However, we show that this cancellation effect is not sufficiently strong to explain the discrepancy between the angle of repose in wet systems and magnetically cohesive systems. In our simulations we observe shearing deep within the pile, and we argue that it is this motion that prevents the angle of repose from increasing dramatically. We also investigate different implementations of friction with the front and back walls of the container, and conclude that the nature of the friction dramatically affects the influence of magnetic cohesion on the angle of repose.

An Investigation into the Use of Cohesive Devises in Iranian High School EFL Textbooks

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Mansour Shabani

2015-07-01

Full Text Available The present study aimed at probing into the use of grammatical and lexical cohesive subdevices in Iranian high school EFL textbooks. To this end, the reading sections of three high school EFL textbooks and one pre-university EFL textbook were analyzed in terms of the distribution of grammatical and lexical cohesive subdevices. The results of One-way ANOVA illustrated that: athere are no significant differences among the frequencies of grammatical cohesive subdevices across grade 1 high school EFL textbook and the pre-university EFL textbook, bthere are significant differences among the frequencies of grammatical cohesive subdevices across grades 2 and 3 high school EFL textbooks. Moreover, the results of Chi-Square test showed that the significant values of all of the lexical cohesive subdevices were higher than .05 across each of the Iranian EFL high school textbooks. These findings can be beneficial for textbook writers, materials developers and EFL teachers.

Structural quality of polyacrylamide-treated cohesive soils in the coastal tablelands of Pernambuco

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Diego Vandeval Maranhão de Melo

2014-04-01

Full Text Available Water-soluble polymers are characterized as effective flocculating agents due to their molecular features. Their application to soils with horizons with structural problems, e.g, a cohesive character, contributes to improvements in the physical quality and thus to the agricultural suitability of such soils. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the structural quality of soils with cohesive horizons of coastal tablelands in the State of Pernambuco treated with polyacrylamide (PAM as chemical soil conditioner. To this end, three horizons (one cohesive and two non-cohesive of a Yellow Argisol (Ultisol were evaluated and to compare cohesive horizons, the horizon of a Yellow Latosol (Oxisol was selected. The treatments consisted of aqueous PAM solutions (12.5; 50.0; 100.0 mg kg-1 and distilled water (control. The structural aspects of the horizons were evaluated by the stability (soil mass retained in five diameter classes, aggregate distribution per size class (mean weight diameter- MWD, geometric mean diameter - GMD and the magnitude of the changes introduced by PAM by measuring the sensitivity index (Si. Aqueous PAM solutions increased aggregate stability in the largest evaluated diameter class of the cohesive and non-cohesive horizons, resulting in higher MWD and GMD, with highest efficiency of the 100 mg kg-1 solution. The cohesive horizon Bt1 in the Ultisol was most sensitive to the action of PAM, where highest Si values were found, but the structural quality of the BA horizon of the Oxisol was better in terms of stability and aggregate size distribution.

Investigating Some Technical Issues on Cohesive Zone Modeling of Fracture

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, John T.

2011-01-01

This study investigates some technical issues related to the use of cohesive zone models (CZMs) in modeling fracture processes. These issues include: why cohesive laws of different shapes can produce similar fracture predictions; under what conditions CZM predictions have a high degree of agreement with linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM) analysis results; when the shape of cohesive laws becomes important in the fracture predictions; and why the opening profile along the cohesive zone length needs to be accurately predicted. Two cohesive models were used in this study to address these technical issues. They are the linear softening cohesive model and the Dugdale perfectly plastic cohesive model. Each cohesive model constitutes five cohesive laws of different maximum tractions. All cohesive laws have the same cohesive work rate (CWR) which is defined by the area under the traction-separation curve. The effects of the maximum traction on the cohesive zone length and the critical remote applied stress are investigated for both models. For a CZM to predict a fracture load similar to that obtained by an LEFM analysis, the cohesive zone length needs to be much smaller than the crack length, which reflects the small scale yielding condition requirement for LEFM analysis to be valid. For large-scale cohesive zone cases, the predicted critical remote applied stresses depend on the shape of cohesive models used and can significantly deviate from LEFM results. Furthermore, this study also reveals the importance of accurately predicting the cohesive zone profile in determining the critical remote applied load.

Auto consolidated cohesive sediments erosion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ternat, F.

2007-02-01

Pollutants and suspended matters of a river can accumulate into the sedimentary column. Once deposited, they are submitted to self-weight consolidation processes, ageing and burying, leading to an increase of their erosion resistance. Pollutant fluxes can be related to sedimentary fluxes, determined by threshold laws. In this work, an erosion threshold model is suggested by introducing a cohesion force into the usual force balance. A model of cohesion is developed on the basis of interactions between argillaceous cohesive particles (clays), particularly the Van der Waals force, whose parameterization is ensured by means of granulometry and porosity. Artificial erosion experiments were performed in a recirculating erosion flume with natural cored sediments where critical shear stress measurements were performed. Other analyses provided granulometry and porosity. The results obtained constitute a good database for the literature. The model is then applied to the experimental conditions and gives good agreement with measurements. An example of the accounting for self-weight consolidation processes is finally suggested, before finishing on a Mohr like diagram dedicated to soft cohesive sediment erosion. (author)

Group cohesion, task performance, and the experimenter expectancy effect.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hoogstraten, J.; Vorst, H.C.M.

1978-01-01

Studied the effects of cohesion on task fulfillment and explored the influence of task fulfillment on the initial level of cohesion. Within 4-person groups of undergraduates, cohesion was manipulated successfully by a triple procedure. The level of cohesion was ascertained directly after the

Coaches' Perceptions of Team Cohesion in Paralympic Sports.

Science.gov (United States)

Falcão, William R; Bloom, Gordon A; Loughead, Todd M

2015-07-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate Paralympic coaches' perceptions of team cohesion. Seven head coaches of summer and winter Canadian Paralympic sport teams participated in the study. Four participants coached individual sports and 3 coached team sports. Data were collected using semistructured interviews and analyzed using thematic analysis. The results addressed the coaches' perceptions of cohesion in the Paralympic sport setting and strategies used to foster cohesion with their teams. Participants described using techniques and strategies for enhancing cohesion that were similar to those in nondisability sport, such as task-related activities, goal setting, and regularly communicating with their athletes. They also listed how cohesion was distinct to the Paralympic setting, such as the importance of interpersonal activities to build social cohesion. The implications of these results for coaching athletes with a disability are also presented.

Text-Picture Relations in Cooking Instructions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van der Sluis, Ielka; Leito, Shadira; Redeker, Gisela; Bunt, Harry

2016-01-01

Like many other instructions, recipes on packages with ready-to-use ingredients for a dish combine a series of pictures with short text paragraphs. The information presentation in such multimodal instructions can be compact (either text or picture) and/or cohesive (text and picture). In an

The Role of Preceptorship and Group Cohesion on Newly Licensed Registered Nurses' Satisfaction and Intent to Stay.

Science.gov (United States)

Bontrager, Sarah; Hart, Patricia L; Mareno, Nicole

2016-03-01

Thirteen percent of newly licensed registered nurses (NLRNs) vacate their first job after 1 year, and 37% report that they feel ready to change jobs. Turnover can lead to consistent and detrimental nursing shortages in nursing units, as well as increased costs for health care systems. A descriptive, prospective, cross-sectional design was used to understand how preceptor role effectiveness and group cohesion affect NLRNs' satisfaction and intent to stay. NLRNs reported high levels of perceived preceptor role effectiveness, group cohesion, and job satisfaction, with only moderate levels of intent to stay. Statistically significant relationships were found among preceptor role effectiveness, job satisfaction, and intent to stay, as well as among group cohesion, job satisfaction, and intent to stay. Preceptor role effectiveness and group cohesion are predictors of NLRNs' level of job satisfaction. Job satisfaction is a predictor of NLRNs' intent to stay. Effective preceptors and positive group cohesion are factors that are important to NLRNs' job satisfaction and intent to stay. Copyright 2016, SLACK Incorporated.

Multiculturalism and Community Cohesion in Britain: The Case of Arab Minority

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Mohamed Benitto

2015-11-01

Full Text Available This article falls within the scope of debate about 'Community Cohesion' in Britain. Community cohesion is at the centre of public policy initiated in response to the urban disturbances in northern towns. Many official reports pointed out that lack of community cohesion is an element jeopardizing security and safe coexistence. In this sense, this article explores hindrances to intergroup coexistence, given that this issue is the main concern in this pluralist society since the attacks in London in July, 7, 2005, through the study of intercultural relations between Arab minority of London and mainstream society in Britain. This research adopts an approach which aims to contribute to the understanding of the reasons hampering community cohesion through juxtaposition of viewpoints of both the minority and majority group. The originality of this approach lies in the fact that it tackles the issue of integration from two sided points of view: the point of the majority group and the point of view of the minority group; unlike most literature on intergroup relations which basically focus on the integration of the minority and its daptation to the dominant culture.

Micromechanical modeling and inverse identification of damage using cohesive approaches

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Blal, Nawfal

2013-01-01

In this study a micromechanical model is proposed for a collection of cohesive zone models embedded between two each elements of a standard cohesive-volumetric finite element method. An equivalent 'matrix-inclusions' composite is proposed as a representation of the cohesive-volumetric discretization. The overall behaviour is obtained using homogenization approaches (Hashin Shtrikman scheme and the P. Ponte Castaneda approach). The derived model deals with elastic, brittle and ductile materials. It is available whatever the triaxiality loading rate and the shape of the cohesive law, and leads to direct relationships between the overall material properties and the local cohesive parameters and the mesh density. First, rigorous bounds on the normal and tangential cohesive stiffnesses are obtained leading to a suitable control of the inherent artificial elastic loss induced by intrinsic cohesive models. Second, theoretical criteria on damageable and ductile cohesive parameters are established (cohesive peak stress, critical separation, cohesive failure energy,... ). These criteria allow a practical calibration of the cohesive zone parameters as function of the overall material properties and the mesh length. The main interest of such calibration is its promising capacity to lead to a mesh-insensitive overall response in surface damage. (author) [fr

Wave-current induced erosion of cohesive riverbanks in northern Manitoba, Canada

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N. Kimiaghalam

2015-03-01

Full Text Available The field of cohesive soil erosion is still not fully understood, in large part due to the many soil parameters that affect cohesive soil erodibility. This study is focused on two channels, 2-Mile and 8-Mile channels in northern Manitoba, Canada, that were built to connect Lake Winnipeg with Playgreen Lake and Playgreen Lake with Kiskikittogisu Lake, respectively. The banks of the channels consist of clay rich soils and alluvial deposits of layered clay, silts and sands. The study of erosion at the sites is further complicated because the flow-induced erosion is combined with the effects of significant wave action due to the large fetch length on the adjacent lakes, particularly Lake Winnipeg that is the seventh largest lake in North America. The study included three main components: field measurements, laboratory experiments and numerical modelling. Field measurements consisted of soil sampling from the banks and bed of the channels, current measurements and water sampling. Grab soil samples were used to measure the essential physical and electrochemical properties of the riverbanks, and standard ASTM Shelby tube samples were used to estimate the critical shear stress and erodibility of the soil samples using an erosion measurement device (EMD. Water samples were taken to estimate the sediment concentration profile and also to monitor changes in sediment concentration along the channels over time. An Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP was used to collect bathymetry and current data, and two water level gauges have been installed to record water levels at the entrance and outlet of the channels. The MIKE 21 NSW model was used to simulate waves using historical winds and measured bathymetry of the channels and lakes. Finally, results from the wave numerical model, laboratory tests and current measurement were used to estimate the effect of each component on erodibility of the cohesive banks.

The MCM-binding protein ETG1 aids sister chromatid cohesion required for postreplicative homologous recombination repair.

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Naoki Takahashi

2010-01-01

Full Text Available The DNA replication process represents a source of DNA stress that causes potentially spontaneous genome damage. This effect might be strengthened by mutations in crucial replication factors, requiring the activation of DNA damage checkpoints to enable DNA repair before anaphase onset. Here, we demonstrate that depletion of the evolutionarily conserved minichromosome maintenance helicase-binding protein ETG1 of Arabidopsis thaliana resulted in a stringent late G2 cell cycle arrest. This arrest correlated with a partial loss of sister chromatid cohesion. The lack-of-cohesion phenotype was intensified in plants without functional CTF18, a replication fork factor needed for cohesion establishment. The synergistic effect of the etg1 and ctf18 mutants on sister chromatid cohesion strengthened the impact on plant growth of the replication stress caused by ETG1 deficiency because of inefficient DNA repair. We conclude that the ETG1 replication factor is required for efficient cohesion and that cohesion establishment is essential for proper development of plants suffering from endogenous DNA stress. Cohesion defects observed upon knockdown of its human counterpart suggest an equally important developmental role for the orthologous mammalian ETG1 protein.

Relationship between group cohesion and anxiety in soccer.

Science.gov (United States)

Borrego, Carla Chicau; Cid, Luis; Silva, Carlos

2012-10-01

Group cohesion in sport is a widely spread theme today. Research has found cohesion to be influenced by several individual and group components. Among the cognitive variables that relate to cohesion we found competitive anxiety. The purpose of this study was to examine the relation between task cohesion (ATG-T, and GI-T) and competitive state anxiety (A-state), and also if there would be a relation between cohesion and self-confidence. Participants were 366 football players of both genders male and female, aged between 15 to 23 years old, from Portugal's championships. Cohesion was measured using the Portuguese version of the Group Environment Questionnaire, and to assess competitive anxiety, we used the Portuguese version of the Competition State Anxiety Inventory 2. Our results show that female athletes report experiencing more cognitive anxiety and less self-confidence than male athletes. Only cognitive anxiety relates in a significantly negative way with the perception of cohesion (GI-T e ATG-T) in the total number of participants and in male athletes. Relatively to the somatic anxiety, it only relates negatively with the perception of the integration of the group in the total number of participants and in the male gender.

Environmental cohesion across the Hungarian-Croatian border

OpenAIRE

Varjú Viktor

2016-01-01

Environmental cohesion (as a new EU paradigm for a place-based interpretation of environmental justice) has a clear connection to territorial cohesion. Based on this idea, advantages for people can include an equitable distribution of environmental protection and access to environmental services. In non-EU countries regional environmental cohesion is used as an instrument to accelerate accession to the EU and it may be manifested as a declaration of environ...

Relating Cohesive Zone Model to Linear Elastic Fracture Mechanics

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, John T.

2010-01-01

The conditions required for a cohesive zone model (CZM) to predict a failure load of a cracked structure similar to that obtained by a linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM) analysis are investigated in this paper. This study clarifies why many different phenomenological cohesive laws can produce similar fracture predictions. Analytical results for five cohesive zone models are obtained, using five different cohesive laws that have the same cohesive work rate (CWR-area under the traction-separation curve) but different maximum tractions. The effect of the maximum traction on the predicted cohesive zone length and the remote applied load at fracture is presented. Similar to the small scale yielding condition for an LEFM analysis to be valid. the cohesive zone length also needs to be much smaller than the crack length. This is a necessary condition for a CZM to obtain a fracture prediction equivalent to an LEFM result.

FUNDING COHESION POLICY IN THE EUROPEAN UNION AND ROMANIA DURING 2014 – 2020

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MARIA VASILESCU

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Cohesion policy is one of the most important and complex policy of the European Union, a position clearly derived from the assumed objective of "harmonious development by reducing disparities between the levels of development of the various regions and the backwardness of the least favoured regions or islands". Its unique role in shaping and implementing integrated development strategies, which involve activities in various fields such as education, research and innovation, employment, business environment, infrastructure, environmental protection, climate change and energy efficiency is undeniable. To accomplish these goals cohesion policy is benefiting from its own budget for each Member State in relation to the national objectives of economic and social development and to integration into the Single Internal Market and achieving territorial cohesion

Family cohesion, acculturation, maternal cortisol, and preterm birth in Mexican-American women

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Ruiz RJ

2013-05-01

Full Text Available R Jeanne Ruiz,1 Rita H Pickler,2 C Nathan Marti,3 Nancy Jallo41College of Nursing, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA; 2Department of Patient Services, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA; 3Abacist Analytics, Austin, TX, USA; 4School of Nursing, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USAObjective: To examine the potential moderating effects of family cohesion and acculturation on the physiological stress response (cortisol as a predictor of preterm birth (PTB in pregnant Mexican-American women.Methods: The sample included 470 participants; 33 had preterm births. All participants were self-identified as Mexican-American. In this cross-sectional study, family cohesion was measured by a self-report questionnaire. Acculturation was measured by self-report questionnaire as well as by years in the United States and country of birth. Stress was measured by serum cortisol. All measures were obtained at 22—24 weeks gestation. Additional data including history of PTB were obtained from the health record. Data analysis was primarily conducted using logistic regression.Results: The relationship between stress and PTB was predicted by family cohesion (estimate/standard error [E/SE] = —2.46, P = 0.014 and acculturation (E/SE = 2.56, P = 0.011. In addition, there was an interaction between family cohesion and history of previous PTB (E/SE = —2.12, P = 0.035.Conclusion: Results indicate that the impact of cortisol on PTB is predicted by acculturation and family cohesion such that higher levels of cortisol in conjunction with higher levels of acculturation and lower levels of family cohesion are associated with increased risk of PTB. In addition, low family cohesion in combination with a history of PTB was associated with higher levels of PTB. Assessment of family cohesion, including problem solving, adherence to family decisions, family shared space, and activity, should be included as part of prenatal

Cohesive zone model for direct silicon wafer bonding

Science.gov (United States)

Kubair, D. V.; Spearing, S. M.

2007-05-01

Direct silicon wafer bonding and decohesion are simulated using a spectral scheme in conjunction with a rate-dependent cohesive model. The cohesive model is derived assuming the presence of a thin continuum liquid layer at the interface. Cohesive tractions due to the presence of a liquid meniscus always tend to reduce the separation distance between the wafers, thereby opposing debonding, while assisting the bonding process. In the absence of the rate-dependence effects the energy needed to bond a pair of wafers is equal to that needed to separate them. When rate-dependence is considered in the cohesive law, the experimentally observed asymmetry in the energetics can be explained. The derived cohesive model has the potential to form a bridge between experiments and a multiscale-modelling approach to understand the mechanics of wafer bonding.

Regions and the Territorial Cohesion

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Ioan Ianos

2013-08-01

Full Text Available Territorial cohesion is an important target of European Union, constantly promoted by its institutions and their representatives. In the context of the Europe 2020 strategy, one of the most important support documents, the region represents a very important issue, being considered to be the key to its successfulness. The region is seen as a support for the smart growth and all the operational policy concepts try to make use of the spatial potential, by taking better account of the territorial specificities. Two main questions play attention: the need to transform the present-day developmental regions into administrative ones is a priority? What kind of regionalization it must to be promoted? Correlating these issues with already defined territorial cohesion, the administrative region is a real tool for the future territorial development. The experience of the last 14 years asks urgently the building of a new territorial administrative reform, giving competences to regions. For instant, each development region is a construction resulted from a free association of the counties. Their role in the regional development is much reduced one, because their regional councils are not elected; decisions taken at this level are consultative for the social, economical, cultural or political actors.

TERRITORIAL COHESION AND LOCAL DEVELOPMENT USING EUROPEAN STRUCTURAL AND COHESION FUNDS AT THE LEVEL OF GROWTH POLES – CASE STUDY GROWTH POLE BRASOV

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Aida Petronela CATANA

2015-08-01

Full Text Available The growth poles were established in Romania in 2008 as centers for urban development in compliance with European and national policies and they include an urban nucleus and its rural surroundings.  According to the legal framework, for each of the growth poles an Integrated Development Plan should be adopted as basis for European Structural and Cohesion Funds investments. This is a new document in addition to local development plans/strategies of the local communities or counties and regional development plans. From another point of view, the growth poles are representing teritorial units which have to assure territorial cohesion for its urban and rural administrative units. Into this respect, there are different spatial planning documents which have to be followed by the territorial and administrative units, according to the Romanian legislation. Beyond these, there are rules and compulsory criterias for accessing European Structural and Cohesion funds the problems being faced by the associations established by local communities in order to manage the growth poles’s areas. Taking into account all these, we may say that growth poles are the crossing points for different policies translated into plans and operational programmes’s criterias for getting ESC Funds.

Validating Experimental Bedform Dynamics on Cohesive Sand-Mud Beds in the Dee Estuary

Science.gov (United States)

Baas, Jaco H.; Baker, Megan; Hope, Julie; Malarkey, Jonathan; Rocha, Renata

2014-05-01

Recent laboratory experiments and field measurements have shown that small quantities of cohesive clay, and in particular 'sticky' biological polymers, within a sandy substrate dramatically reduce the development rate of sedimentary bedforms, with major implications for sediment transport rate calculations and process interpretations from the sedimentary record. FURTHER INFORMATION Flow and sediment transport predictions from sedimentary structures found in modern estuaries and within estuarine geological systems are impeded by an almost complete lack of process-based knowledge of the behaviour of natural sediments that consist of mixtures of cohesionless sand and biologically-active cohesive mud. Indeed, existing predictive models are largely based on non-organic cohesionless sands, despite the fact that mud, in pure form or mixed with sand, is the most common sediment on Earth and also the most biologically active interface across a range of Earth-surface environments, including rivers and shallow seas. The multidisciplinary COHBED project uses state-of-the-art laboratory and field technologies to measure the erosional properties of mixed cohesive sediment beds and the formation and stability of sedimentary bedforms on these beds, integrating the key physical and biological processes that govern bed evolution. The development of current ripples on cohesive mixed sediment beds was investigated as a function of physical control on bed cohesion versus biological control on bed cohesion. These investigations included laboratory flume experiments in the Hydrodynamics Laboratory (Bangor University) and field experiments in the Dee estuary (at West Kirby near Liverpool). The flume experiments showed that winnowing of fine-grained cohesive sediment, including biological stabilisers, is an important process affecting the development rate, size and shape of the cohesive bedforms. The ripples developed progressively slower as the kaolin clay fraction in the sandy substrate

Education and Social Cohesion: Higher Education

Science.gov (United States)

Moiseyenko, Olena

2005-01-01

Social cohesion is understood as the social networks and the norms of reciprocity and trustworthiness that arise from connections among individuals. When students attend higher education institutions, they go through a process of socialization, and it is vital to ensure that they acquire the core values that underpin the social cohesion. This…

Leadership, cohesion and groupthink

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Iurchevici Iulia

2016-09-01

Full Text Available The Groupthink Phenomenon refers to the tendency of the members of a group to reach solidarity and cohesion, the trend that makes to bypass any questions which would lead to disputes. In such cases, if the members expect counter-arguments regarding a certain issue, they avoid to raise the matter. If it is believed that a question cannot be answered – it isn’t asked. Originally, Janis the author of the term, explains this process through the environment that has been established within groups that are in the leading position, but later, puts a strong emphasis towards the tendency to maintain the unanimity of the decision of the group. As preceding conditions of this decision-making process are listed the following: the high cohesion of the group, its isolation from other external sources of information, the lack of an impartial leadership, lack of appropriate legal framework and procedures in the decision - making process, and also “homogeneity of members, background and their ideology”. The Groupthink is manifested by: Illusion of Invulnerability, Collective Rationalization, Illusion of morality, Out – Group Stereotypes, Strong pressures towards conformism, Self – Censorship, Illusions of unanimity, and the presence of “Mind Guards”. In order to understand the decisions of a group, it is important that some analysis of Groupthink to be done, because in this way, can be controlled or eliminated the communicational distortion that occurs at a time among members forming these groups.

Emotional ties that bind: the roles of valence and consistency of group emotion in inferences of cohesiveness and common fate.

Science.gov (United States)

Magee, Joe C; Tiedens, Larissa Z

2006-12-01

In three studies, observers based inferences about the cohesiveness and common fate of groups on the emotions expressed by group members. The valence of expressions affected cohesiveness inferences, whereas the consistency of expressions affected inferences of whether members have common fate. These emotion composition effects were stronger than those due to the race or sex composition of the group. Furthermore, the authors show that emotion valence and consistency are differentially involved in judgments about the degree to which the group as a whole was responsible for group performance. Finally, it is demonstrated that valence-cohesiveness effects are mediated by inferences of interpersonal liking and that consistency-common fate effects are mediated by inferences of psychological similarity. These findings have implications for the literature on entitativity and regarding the function of emotions in social contexts.

The Process Architecture of EU Territorial Cohesion Policy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andreas Faludi

2010-08-01

Full Text Available When preparing the European Spatial Development Perspective (ESDP, Member States were supported by the European Commission but denied the EU a competence in the matter. Currently, the Treaty of Lisbon identifies territorial cohesion as a competence shared between the Union and the Member States. This paper is about the process architecture of territorial cohesion policy. In the past, this architecture resembled the Open Method of Coordination (OMC which the White Paper on European Governance praised, but only in areas where there was no EU competence. This reflected zero-sum thinking which may continue even under the Lisbon Treaty. After all, for as long as territorial cohesion was not a competence, voluntary cooperation as practiced in the ESDP process was pursued in this way. However, the practice of EU policies, even in areas where there is an EU competence, often exhibits features of the OMC. Surprisingly effective innovations hold the promise of rendering institutions of decision making comprehensible and democratically accountable. In the EU as a functioning polity decision making is thus at least part deliberative so that actors’ preferences are transformed by the force of the better argument. This brings into focus the socialisation of the deliberators into epistemic communities. Largely an informal process, this is reminiscent of European spatial planning having been characterised as a learning process.

Psychobiological Assessment and Enhancement of Team Cohesion and Psychological Resilience in ROTC Cadets Using a Virtual-Reality Team Cohesion Test

Science.gov (United States)

2016-06-01

Using a Virtual - Reality Team Cohesion Test PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Josh Woolley MD/PhD CONTRACTING ORGANIZATION: NORTHERN CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE SAN...Team Cohesion and Psychological Resilience in ROTC Cadets Using a Virtual - Reality Team Cohesion Test 5b. GRANT NUMBER W81XWH-15-1-0042 5c. PROGRAM...targets while flying a virtual air vehicle. No individual has access to all the necessary information or controls, so operating as a team is crucial

Natural disasters and indicators of social cohesion.

Science.gov (United States)

Calo-Blanco, Aitor; Kovářík, Jaromír; Mengel, Friederike; Romero, José Gabriel

2017-01-01

Do adversarial environmental conditions create social cohesion? We provide new answers to this question by exploiting spatial and temporal variation in exposure to earthquakes across Chile. Using a variety of methods and controlling for a number of socio-economic variables, we find that exposure to earthquakes has a positive effect on several indicators of social cohesion. Social cohesion increases after a big earthquake and slowly erodes in periods where environmental conditions are less adverse. Our results contribute to the current debate on whether and how environmental conditions shape formal and informal institutions.

Cohesion energetics of carbon allotropes: Quantum Monte Carlo study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shin, Hyeondeok; Kang, Sinabro; Koo, Jahyun; Lee, Hoonkyung; Kwon, Yongkyung, E-mail: ykwon@konkuk.ac.kr [Division of Quantum Phases and Devices, School of Physics, Konkuk University, Seoul 143-701 (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Jeongnim, E-mail: jnkim@ornl.gov [Materials Science and Technology Division and Computer Science and Mathematics Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831 (United States)

2014-03-21

We have performed quantum Monte Carlo calculations to study the cohesion energetics of carbon allotropes, including sp{sup 3}-bonded diamond, sp{sup 2}-bonded graphene, sp–sp{sup 2} hybridized graphynes, and sp-bonded carbyne. The computed cohesive energies of diamond and graphene are found to be in excellent agreement with the corresponding values determined experimentally for diamond and graphite, respectively, when the zero-point energies, along with the interlayer binding in the case of graphite, are included. We have also found that the cohesive energy of graphyne decreases systematically as the ratio of sp-bonded carbon atoms increases. The cohesive energy of γ-graphyne, the most energetically stable graphyne, turns out to be 6.766(6) eV/atom, which is smaller than that of graphene by 0.698(12) eV/atom. Experimental difficulty in synthesizing graphynes could be explained by their significantly smaller cohesive energies. Finally, we conclude that the cohesive energy of a newly proposed graphyne can be accurately estimated with the carbon–carbon bond energies determined from the cohesive energies of graphene and three different graphynes considered here.

Cohesion Energetics of Carbon Allotropes: Quantum Monte Carlo Study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shin, Hyeondeok [Konkuk University, South Korea; Kang, Sinabro [Konkuk University, South Korea; Koo, Jahyun [Konkuk University, South Korea; Lee, Hoonkyung [Konkuk University, South Korea; Kim, Jeongnim [ORNL; Kwon, Yongkyung [Konkuk University, South Korea

2014-01-01

We have performed quantum Monte Carlo calculations to study the cohesion energetics of carbon allotropes, including sp3-bonded diamond, sp2-bonded graphene, sp-sp2 hybridized graphynes, and sp-bonded carbyne. The comput- ed cohesive energies of diamond and graphene are found to be in excellent agreement with the corresponding values de- termined experimentally for diamond and graphite, respectively, when the zero-point energies, along with the interlayer binding in the case of graphite, are included. We have also found that the cohesive energy of graphyne decreases system- atically as the ratio of sp-bonded carbon atoms increases. The cohesive energy of -graphyne, the most energetically- stable graphyne, turns out to be 6.766(6) eV/atom, which is smaller than that of graphene by 0.698(12) eV/atom. Experi- mental difficulty in synthesizing graphynes could be explained by their significantly smaller cohesive energies. Finally we conclude that the cohesive energy of a newly-proposed two-dimensional carbon network can be accurately estimated with the carbon-carbon bond energies determined from the cohesive energies of graphene and three different graphynes.

Territorial cohesion post - 2013 : To whomsoever it may concern

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Faludi, A.K.F.

2010-01-01

Conceived as a motion for resolution, the paper considers territorial cohesion now being on the statute book, the Green Paper on Territorial Cohesion, Barca making the case for integrated, place-based strategies, the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region and the future of Cohesion policy. The

Written cohesion in children with and without language learning disabilities.

Science.gov (United States)

Koutsoftas, Anthony D; Petersen, Victoria

2017-09-01

Cohesion refers to the linguistic elements of discourse that contribute to its continuity and is an important element to consider as part of written language intervention, especially in children with language learning disabilities (LLD). There is substantial evidence that children with LLD perform more poorly than typically developing (TD) peers on measures of cohesion in spoken language and on written transcription measures; however, there is far less research comparing groups on cohesion as a measure of written language across genres. The current study addresses this gap through the following two aims. First, to describe and compare cohesion in narrative and expository writing samples of children with and without language learning disabilities. Second, to relate measures of cohesion to written transcription and translation measures, oral language, and writing quality. Fifty intermediate-grade children produced one narrative and one expository writing sample from which measures of written cohesion were obtained. These included the frequency, adequacy and complexity of referential and conjunctive ties. Expository samples resulted in more complex cohesive ties and children with TD used more complex ties than peers with LLD. Different relationships among cohesion measures and writing were observed for narrative verse expository samples. Findings from this study demonstrate cohesion as a discourse-level measure of written transcription and how the use of cohesion can vary by genre and group (LLD, TD). Clinical implications for assessment, intervention, and future research are provided. © 2016 Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists.

The association between status and cohesion in sport teams.

Science.gov (United States)

Jacob, C S; Carron, A V

1998-02-01

The main objective of this study was to establish the relationship between perceptions of status attributes and cohesion and status ranking and cohesion. A secondary aim was to determine whether age (operationalized by scholastic levels) or culture serves as a moderator in the relationship between either status attributes or status ranking and cohesion. Another secondary aim was to determine if differences are present in the importance attached by athletes to status attributes. Canadian and Indian athletes were tested. Although perceptions of the importance of status attributes and cohesiveness were related, the effect size was small (Green, 1991); perceptions of status ranking and cohesiveness were not related. Neither scholastic level nor culture served as a moderator in the association between either status attributes or status rank and cohesion. The importance that athletes attach to status attributes is similar between scholastic levels and across cultures. The results are discussed in terms of the role of status in sport teams.

Why are Rich Countries more Politically Cohesive?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dalgaard, Carl-Johan Lars; Olsson, Ola

of other groups in society. If the gains from specialization become sufficiently large, however, a market economy will emerge. From being essentially non-cohesive under self-sufficiency, the political decision making process becomes cohesive in the market economy, as the welfare of individuals...

Justice and Social Cohesion: Some conservative perspectives

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pedersen, Søren Hviid

2011-01-01

In the wake of recent debates on multiculturalism and value-pluralism, the pressing questions now focuses on whether social cohesion and the notion of justice are sustainable and can be upheld, at least from a European perspective. There are many theoretical and academic responses, mainly from...... liberals, on how to accommodate the different demands of various ethnic and religious groups and at the same time sustain a minimum of social cohesion and justice. One voice is missing and that is a conservative perspective. The purpose of this paper is to formulate a modern conservative analysis...... of this problem. The argument presented in this paper will, first, take its point of departure from David Hume’s notion of sympathy and how this makes social cohesion possible. Second, it will be argued that social cohesion is a prerequisite for the existence of justice, and therefore justice is a derivative...

Prefabricated Images in Young Children’s Text-Making at School

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Charlotte Engblom

2016-08-01

Full Text Available In classrooms where computers are used as tools for text-making, images and photographs from e.g. Google, here called “prefabricated images”, can be selected and copied into texts and combined with writing. In this article children’s use of prefabricated images as resources for personal texts is investigated with specific focus on cohesion between the modes of image and writing. When prefabricated images occur in combination with writing about a personal experience the specific motifs shown in the image are unrelated to the text-maker, but the results of this study show that cohesion may still be obtained, for example via colour, naturalistic modality or decontextualization of the motif in the image via a close-up or a distant perspective. Copying and recontextualization of photographs are common not only in schools but also in professional settings as image banks supply images to, for example, news editors and journalists, and contemporary text creation is often characterized by “representation-as-selection” (Adami and Kress, 2010. The ability to obtain cohesion across modes can be regarded as a defining feature of success in multimodal text-making (Wyatt-Smith and Kimber, 2009, and also for the interpretation of contemporary texts.

A discourse model of affect for text-to-speech synthesis

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Schlunz, GI

2013-12-01

Full Text Available This paper introduces a model of affect to improve prosody in text-to-speech synthesis. It operates on the discourse level of text to predict the underlying linguistic factors that contribute towards emotional appraisal, rather than any particular...

Experiences of street harassment and associations with perceptions of social cohesion among women in Mexico City

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Paola A Campos

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Objective. To document the frequency and forms of street harassment and examine the association between street harassment experiences and perceptions of social cohesion. Materials and methods. Baseline survey data collected among women seeking care in public health clinics in Mexico City were used for analysis. Results. Nearly two-thirds (62.8% of women reported experiencing some form of street harassment in the prior month; women with street harassment experiences reported significantly lower perceived social cohesion (b=-0.46; 95%CI:0.69,-0.22. Conclusions. Findings indicate reducing street harassment may have important implications for improving women’s perceived social cohesion and their safety in Mexico City.

The Impact of African American Parents’ Racial Discrimination Experiences and Perceived Neighborhood Cohesion on their Racial Socialization Practices

Science.gov (United States)

English, Devin; Busby, Danielle R.; Lambert, Sharon F.; Harrison, Aubrey; Stock, Michelle L.; Gibbons, Frederick X.

2016-01-01

Parental racial socialization is a parenting tool used to prepare African American adolescents for managing racial stressors. While it is known that parents’ racial discrimination experiences affect the racial socialization messages they provide, little is known about the influence of factors that promote supportive and communal parenting, such as perceived neighborhood cohesion. In cohesive neighborhoods, neighbors may help parents address racial discrimination by monitoring youth and conveying racial socialization messages; additionally, the effect of neighborhood cohesion on parents’ racial socialization may differ for boys and girls because parents socialize adolescents about race differently based on expected encounters with racial discrimination. Therefore, the current study examines how parents’ perception of neighborhood cohesion and adolescents’ gender moderate associations between parents’ racial discrimination experiences and the racial socialization messages they deliver to their adolescents. Participants were a community sample of 608 African American adolescents (54 % girls; mean age = 15.5) and their primary caregivers (86 % biological mothers; mean age = 42.0). Structural equation modeling indicated that parental racial discrimination was associated with more promotion of mistrust messages for boys and girls in communities with low neighborhood cohesion. In addition, parental racial discrimination was associated with more cultural socialization messages about racial pride and history for boys in neighborhoods with low neighborhood cohesion. The findings suggest that parents’ racial socialization messages are influenced by their own racial discrimination experiences and the cohesiveness of the neighborhood; furthermore, the content of parental messages delivered varies based on adolescents’ gender. PMID:27189721

Estimating cohesion in small groups using audio-visual nonverbal behavior

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hung, H.; Gatica-Perez, D.

2010-01-01

Cohesiveness in teams is an essential part of ensuring the smooth running of task-oriented groups. Research in social psychology and management has shown that good cohesion in groups can be correlated with team effectiveness or productivity, so automatically estimating group cohesion for team

[Family cohesion associated with oral health, socioeconomic factors and health behavior].

Science.gov (United States)

Ferreira, Luale Leão; Brandão, Gustavo Antônio Martins; Garcia, Gustavo; Batista, Marília Jesus; Costa, Ludmila da Silva Tavares; Ambrosano, Gláucia Maria Bovi; Possobon, Rosana de Fátima

2013-08-01

Overall health surveys have related family cohesion to socio-economic status and behavioral factors. The scope of this study was to investigate the association between family cohesion and socio-economic, behavioral and oral health factors. This was a, cross-sectional study with two-stage cluster sampling. The random sample consisted of 524 adolescents attending public schools in the city of Piracicaba-SP. Variables were evaluated by self-applied questionnaires and caries and periodontal disease were assessed by DMF-T and CPI indices. The adolescent's perception of family cohesion was assessed using the family adaptability and cohesion scale. Univariate and multinomial logistic regression shows that adolescents with low family cohesion were more likely than those with medium family cohesion to have low income (OR 2,28 95% CI 1,14- 4,55), presence of caries (OR 2,23 95% CI 1,21-4,09), less than two daily brushings (OR 1,91 95% CI 1,03-3,54). Adolescents with high family cohesion were more likely than those with medium family cohesion to have high income and protective behavior against the habit of smoking. Thus, the data shows that adolescent perception of family cohesion was associated with behavioral, socio-economic and oral health variables, indicating the importance of an integral approach to patient health.

Sense of belonging and social cohesion in a desegregated former House of Delegates school

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Ramodungoane Tabane

2010-01-01

Full Text Available The ideal of creating a non-racial and equitable school environment is embedded in the South African Constitution. This ideal is informed by a desire to overcome the divisions of the apartheid past by pursuing policies and strategies that will promote the achievement of social cohesion, without denying space for various identities. Schools are seen as important vehicles for driving social cohesion amongst learners and it is therefore important that all learners, irrespective of their race, experience a sense of belonging in the school. Using a case study and an interactive qualitative analysis research methodology, we explored the experiences of black and Indian learners in a desegregated former House of Delegates school to determine the successes and possible challenges of ensuring racial integration at the school level and therefore its contribution to social cohesion. The study demonstrates the importance of eight concepts (namely, the school as a welcoming space; belonging; respect; security; equality in the way we socialise; tender loving care; motivation; and freedom to the study of racial integration and social cohesion. This article focuses on the contribution that sense of belonging has on creating a school environment that is enabling, contributing to learner achievement and concludes that sense of belonging, integration, and social cohesion are intertwined and important in creating an environment that is welcoming and a "home" to diverse learners and educators.

An examination of the cohesion-performance relationship in university hockey teams.

Science.gov (United States)

Slater, M R; Sewell, D F

1994-10-01

The objective of this study was to assess, using the Group Environment Questionnaire, whether team cohesion in university-level field hockey was a cause for, or an effect of, successful performance. A quasi-experimental longitudinal design with cross-lagged correlational analysis was adopted and measures of cohesion and performance were taken midway and later in the season. The results of the synchronous correlations showed a positive relationship (with good stationarity) between team cohesion and performance outcome. Although non-significant cross-lagged differentials indicated a circular relationship, the magnitudes of both the cross-lagged correlations and the partial correlations, together with multiple-regression analyses, revealed that the stronger flow was from cohesion to performance. The socially oriented aspects of cohesion, in particular, had significant associations with performance. The results imply that cohesion-performance relationships should be examined within a circular model, in which cohesion and performance are interdependent.

The effect of biological cohesion on current ripple development

Science.gov (United States)

Malarkey, Jonathan; Baas, Jaco H.; Hope, Julie

2014-05-01

Results are presented from laboratory experiments examining the role of biological cohesion, associated with Extra Polymeric Substances, on the development of current ripples. The results demonstrate the importance of biological cohesion compared to the effect of physical cohesion associated with clays in an otherwise sandy bed. FURTHER INFORMATION In fluvial and marine environments sediment transport is mainly dependent on the nature of the bed surface (rippled or flat) and the nature of cohesion in the bed. Cohesion can be either physical, as a result of the presence of clays, or biological as a result of the presence of organisms. In the case of the latter, biological cohesion occurs as a result of the presence of Extra Polymeric Substances (EPS) secreted by microorganisms. While it is known that EPS can dramatically increase the threshold of motion (Grant and Gust, 1987), comparatively little is known about the effect of EPS on ripple formation and development. The experiments described here seek to fill this gap. They also allow the effect of biological cohesion to be compared with that of physical cohesion from previous experiments (Baas et al., 2013). The experiments, which were conducted in a 10m flume at Bangor University, involved a current over a bed made of fine sand, with a median diameter of 0.148mm, and various amounts of xanthan gum, a proxy for naturally occurring EPS (Vardy et al., 2007). The hydrodynamic experimental conditions were matched very closely to those of Baas et al. (2013). The ripple dimensions were recorded through the glass side wall of the tank using time lapse photography. In the physical cohesion experiments of Baas et al. (2013) for clay contents up to 12%, the clay was very quickly winnowed out of the bed, leaving essentially clay-free ripples that developed at more or less the same rate as clean sand ripples. The resulting equilibrium ripples were essentially the same length as the clean sand ripples but reduced in height. By

Determination of mode-I cohesive strength for interfaces

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jørgensen, J. B.; Thouless, M. D.; Sørensen, Bent F.

2016-01-01

The cohesive strength is one of the governing parameters controlling crack deflection at interfaces, but measuring its magnitude is challenging. In this paper, we demonstrate a novel approach to determine the mode-I cohesive strength of an interface by using a 4-point single-edge-notch beam...... in response to this stress, before the main crack starts to grow. Observations using 2D digital-image correlation showed that an ''apparent" strain across the interface initially increases linearly with the applied load, but becomes nonlinear upon the initiation of the interface crack. The cohesive strength...

Implementation Of Management Strategic To Team Learning Cohesion In Study Program Of Nursing

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Dr. Susila Sumartiningsih

2015-06-01

Full Text Available ABSTRACT The purpose of this research is to analyze the empiric of management strategic Driving Factor DF and Pull Factor PF to team learning cohesion among nursing program in Banten Provinsion. The study was designed in the quantitative descriptive correlational study and the method was a cross sectional. The total sampling n192 were manager n3 lecturers n45 and students n144 at nursing program study among Banten provice in Indonesia. The data were analyzed by using the Chi-Square.Theresults were showngood category 83.33 in DF and PF of Management Stratgict Implementataion and high category 59.72 in Team Learning Cohesion. There was not a statistically significant relationship p 0.543 p amp8805 0.05 between the DF and PF of team learning cohesion in implementation of Management Stratgic. In view of this it can be concluded that the nursing lecturer should be able to be a good motivator in order to encourage the student academic achievement.

Barossa Night: cohesion in the British Army officer corps.

Science.gov (United States)

Bury, Patrick

2017-06-01

Contrasting the classical explanation of military group cohesion as sustained by interpersonal bonds, recent scholars have highlighted the importance of ritualized communication, training and drills in explaining effective military performance in professional armies. While this has offered a welcome addition to the cohesion literature and a novel micro-sociological method of examining cohesion, its primary evidential base has been combat groups. Indeed, despite their prominent role in directing operations over the past decade, the British Army's officer corps has received relatively little attention from sociologists during this period. No attempt has been made to explain cohesion in the officer corps. Using a similar method to recent cohesion scholars, this paper seeks to address this imbalance by undertaking a micro-sociology of one ritual in particular: 'Barossa Night' in the Royal Irish Regiment. Firstly, it draws on the work of Durkheim to examine how cohesion amongst the officer corps is created and sustained through a dense array of practises during formal social rituals. It provides evidence that the use of rituals highlights that social solidarity is central to understanding officer cohesion. Secondly, following Hockey's work on how private soldiers negotiate order, the paper shows how this solidarity in the officer corps is based on a degree of negotiated order and the need to release organizational tensions inherent in a strictly hierarchical rank structure. It highlights how the awarding of gallantry medals can threaten this negotiated order and fuel deviancy. In examining this behaviour, the paper shows that even amongst an officer class traditionally viewed as the elite upholders of organizational discipline, the negotiation of rank and hierarchy can be fluid. How deviant behaviour is later accepted and normalized by senior officers indicates that negotiated order is as important to understanding cohesion in the British Army's officer corps as it is

The Importance of Structural and Cohesion Funds on Regional Development in Romania

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Manuela Panaitescu

2013-05-01

Full Text Available Objectives: the financing of regional policy and, in general terms, of the economic and social cohesion from structural and cohesion funds is important due to its results, with regard to costs and net benefits on the development of Romania; Prior Work: this work continues prior research carried out for the “European Programs and Projects Management” MA thesis; Approach: the primary methods used were the analysis of the legal framework and other official European documents and the observation of their influence on Romania; Results: While during the pre-accession period the financial instruments created by the EU for Romania had been made after the model of structural and cohesion funds, precisely in order to get the national authorities ready for the reality implied by its membership, the EU common position on regional policy and coordination of structural instruments and documents further stated that the Romanian authorities do not yet have the adequate capacity to manage the structural instruments, which obviously has implications in terms of costs.

Cohesion assessment of student groups from the faculty of dentistry at Burdenko Voronezh State Medical University

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Pashkov A. N.

2017-10-01

Full Text Available the article presents data on the study of the cohesion of 115 students from the faculty of dentistry at Burdenko Voronezh State Medical University. The study revealed that students have high and medium favorable psychological climate. 99 of them have the average level of group cohesion, and 16 revealed a low level of this indicator. To improve the educational process and interpersonal relations, these results must be taken into account when forming groups.

The Impact of African American Parents' Racial Discrimination Experiences and Perceived Neighborhood Cohesion on their Racial Socialization Practices.

Science.gov (United States)

Saleem, Farzana T; English, Devin; Busby, Danielle R; Lambert, Sharon F; Harrison, Aubrey; Stock, Michelle L; Gibbons, Frederick X

2016-07-01

Parental racial socialization is a parenting tool used to prepare African American adolescents for managing racial stressors. While it is known that parents' racial discrimination experiences affect the racial socialization messages they provide, little is known about the influence of factors that promote supportive and communal parenting, such as perceived neighborhood cohesion. In cohesive neighborhoods, neighbors may help parents address racial discrimination by monitoring youth and conveying racial socialization messages; additionally, the effect of neighborhood cohesion on parents' racial socialization may differ for boys and girls because parents socialize adolescents about race differently based on expected encounters with racial discrimination. Therefore, the current study examines how parents' perception of neighborhood cohesion and adolescents' gender moderate associations between parents' racial discrimination experiences and the racial socialization messages they deliver to their adolescents. Participants were a community sample of 608 African American adolescents (54 % girls; mean age = 15.5) and their primary caregivers (86 % biological mothers; mean age = 42.0). Structural equation modeling indicated that parental racial discrimination was associated with more promotion of mistrust messages for boys and girls in communities with low neighborhood cohesion. In addition, parental racial discrimination was associated with more cultural socialization messages about racial pride and history for boys in neighborhoods with low neighborhood cohesion. The findings suggest that parents' racial socialization messages are influenced by their own racial discrimination experiences and the cohesiveness of the neighborhood; furthermore, the content of parental messages delivered varies based on adolescents' gender.

Moisture Content Impact on Mechanical Properties of Selected Cohesive Soils from the Wielkopolskie Voivodeship Southern Part

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Pezowicz Piotr

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Results of investigations of shearing resistance and compressibility of fine-grained cohesive soil from the southern part of the wielkopolskie voivodeship in relation to the increasing moisture content are presented. The analysis of two series of samples, using soil paste for the consistency index of 0.9 and 0.4–0.3 was carried out. The results imply that the increasing moisture content causes a decrease in the angle of shearing resistance and cohesion and is also reflected in the higher compressibility of the soil. It was observed that regardless of the soil consistency, the angle of shearing resistance decreases and the cohesion value and the oedometric modulus of primary (consolidation and secondary compressibility grows with the increase in the clay fraction.

Erosion of cohesive soil layers above underground conduits

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Luu Li-Hua

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Using a recently developed 2D numerical modelling that combines Discrete Element (DEM and Lattice Boltzmann methods (LBM, we simulate the destabilisation by an hydraulic gradient of a cohesive granular soil clogging the top of an underground conduit. We aim to perform a multi-scale study that relates the grain scale behavior to the macroscopic erosion process. In particular, we study the influence of the flow conditions and the inter-particle contact forces intensity on the erosion kinetic.

DEVELOPMENT OF REGIONS AND MUNICIPALITIES OF THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC BY APPLICATION OF EUROPEAN COHESION POLICY

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Katarina Rentkova

2017-03-01

Full Text Available The Slovak republic, entering the European Union on the 1st May 2004, got the impulse on the improvement and growth also via the application of the Cohesion policy. For the programming period 2007-2013, the amount of 11.3 milliards Euros for the application of the Cohesion policy have been provided to the Slovak republic. In the present time, the programming period is finished and the Slovak republic meets the critical reviews in the area of the effective use and maintenance of projects and application of the Cohesion policy on its territory. Many specialists, economists and analysts try to reveal the errors, identify the subjects that enter into the project cycle wrongly or to identify the bodies that have the most important influence on the low level of the financial instruments use and they also try to deal with the criticism of the European Commission as to the project realization. From this point of view, the theme of the research is very actual and imperative because the research tries to enlighten and to analyze the application of the cohesion policy within the territory of the Slovak republic and so, to state recommendations for more effective application for the following programming period. The article is created by analyzing the application of the European cohesion policy in the programming period 2007 - 2013 in the Slovak Republic. The main objective of the article is to analyze and define the cohesion policy of the European Union and one of the partial objectives is to execute the analysis on the implementation state of the Cohesion policy on the level of the chosen regions in the Slovak republic and then, to propose and to create recommendations and techniques for its effective functioning.

Improving decision speed, accuracy and group cohesion through early information gathering in house-hunting ants.

Science.gov (United States)

Stroeymeyt, Nathalie; Giurfa, Martin; Franks, Nigel R

2010-09-29

Successful collective decision-making depends on groups of animals being able to make accurate choices while maintaining group cohesion. However, increasing accuracy and/or cohesion usually decreases decision speed and vice-versa. Such trade-offs are widespread in animal decision-making and result in various decision-making strategies that emphasize either speed or accuracy, depending on the context. Speed-accuracy trade-offs have been the object of many theoretical investigations, but these studies did not consider the possible effects of previous experience and/or knowledge of individuals on such trade-offs. In this study, we investigated how previous knowledge of their environment may affect emigration speed, nest choice and colony cohesion in emigrations of the house-hunting ant Temnothorax albipennis, a collective decision-making process subject to a classical speed-accuracy trade-off. Colonies allowed to explore a high quality nest site for one week before they were forced to emigrate found that nest and accepted it faster than emigrating naïve colonies. This resulted in increased speed in single choice emigrations and higher colony cohesion in binary choice emigrations. Additionally, colonies allowed to explore both high and low quality nest sites for one week prior to emigration remained more cohesive, made more accurate decisions and emigrated faster than emigrating naïve colonies. These results show that colonies gather and store information about available nest sites while their nest is still intact, and later retrieve and use this information when they need to emigrate. This improves colony performance. Early gathering of information for later use is therefore an effective strategy allowing T. albipennis colonies to improve simultaneously all aspects of the decision-making process--i.e. speed, accuracy and cohesion--and partly circumvent the speed-accuracy trade-off classically observed during emigrations. These findings should be taken into account

Grain-resolving simulations of settling cohesive sediment

Science.gov (United States)

Vowinckel, Bernhard; Whithers, Jade; Meiburg, Eckart; Luzzatto-Fegiz, Paolo

2017-11-01

Cohesive sediment is ubiquitous in natural environments such as rivers, lakes and coastal ecosystems. For this type of sediment, we can no longer ignore the short-range attractive forces that result in flocculation of aggregates much larger than the individual grain size. Hence, understanding the complex dynamics of the interplay between flocculated sediment and the ambient fluid is of prime interest for managing aquatic environments, although a comprehensive understanding of these phenomena is still lacking. In the present study, we address this issue by carrying out grain-resolved simulations of cohesive particles settling under gravity using the Immersed Boundary Method. We present a computational model formulation to accurately resolve the process of flocculation. The cohesive model is then applied to a complex test case. A randomly distributed ensemble of 1261 polydisperse particles is released in a tank of quiescent fluid. Subsequently, particles start to settle, thereby replacing fluid at the bottom of the tank, which induces a counter flow opposing the settling direction. This mechanism will be compared to experimental studies from the literature, as well as to the non-cohesive counterpart to assessthe impact of flocculation on sedimentation.

The Types of Cohesion Used in the ‘Issues of the Day’ Strip in the Jakarta Post

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Wulan Agustina

2015-06-01

Full Text Available This study is aimed at describing discourse studies especially at cohesion from reader’s opinion strip. This is literary research, so the writer uses descriptive qualitative approach. In this research, documentation and note taking technique are used to collect the data. There are two objectives of the research: 1 to carry out the types of grammatical cohesion used in the “Issues of the Day” strip in The Jakarta Post on March 2012 edition and 2 to find out the types of lexical cohesion used in the “Issues of The Day” strip in The Jakarta Post on March 2012 edition. After investigating the English sentences used in the “Issues of the Day” strip in The Jakarta Post on March 2012 edition, the writer found several findings as follows: 1 based on the analysis of grammatical cohesion, the writer found there are references, substitutions, ellipsis, and conjunctions; 2 based on the analysis of lexical cohesion, the writer found repetitions, synonyms, hyponyms, meronyms, antonyms, and collocations. The writer expects that it is able to contribute the science of linguistic and able to be guidance for all readers.

Cohesion in Online Student Teams versus Traditional Teams

Science.gov (United States)

Hansen, David E.

2016-01-01

Researchers have found that the electronic methods in use for online team communication today increase communication quality in project-based work situations. Because communication quality is known to influence group cohesion, the present research examined whether online student project teams are more cohesive than traditional teams. We tested…

Calculation of passive earth pressure of cohesive soil based on Culmann's method

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Hai-feng Lu

2011-03-01

Full Text Available Based on the sliding plane hypothesis of Coulumb earth pressure theory, a new method for calculation of the passive earth pressure of cohesive soil was constructed with Culmann's graphical construction. The influences of the cohesive force, adhesive force, and the fill surface form were considered in this method. In order to obtain the passive earth pressure and sliding plane angle, a program based on the sliding surface assumption was developed with the VB.NET programming language. The calculated results from this method were basically the same as those from the Rankine theory and Coulumb theory formulas. This method is conceptually clear, and the corresponding formulas given in this paper are simple and convenient for application when the fill surface form is complex.

Advantages and controversy of common agricultural and cohesion policy in the EU

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Kostić Vladimir

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The authors explore deals and payments that have a positive effect on the development of Common agricultural and cohesion policy. They particularly emphasize the ways of protecting the European Union from cheap imported products from non-EU countries. They also deal with the mechanisms that are built into the process, with the structural policy regarding 'Agenda 2000', as well as the reforms of Common agricultural and cohesion policy from its beginnings until now. The paper presents problems of guaranteed prices, ecology, quotas, agricultural levies and customs duties. The authors also investigated the Common Agricultural and Rural Policy of the European Union 2014-2020, the ways to accelerate the transfer of technology and strengthen the cooperation between agriculture and research sectors in the future.

Investigating the settling dynamics of cohesive silt particles with particle-resolving simulations

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Rui; Xiao, Heng; Sun, Honglei

2018-01-01

The settling of cohesive sediment is ubiquitous in aquatic environments, and the study of the settling process is important for both engineering and environmental reasons. In the settling process, the silt particles show behaviors that are different from non-cohesive particles due to the influence of inter-particle cohesive force. For instance, the flocs formed in the settling process of cohesive silt can loosen the packing, and thus the structural densities of cohesive silt beds are much smaller than that of non-cohesive sand beds. While there is a consensus that cohesive behaviors depend on the characteristics of sediment particles (e.g., Bond number, particle size distribution), little is known about the exact influence of these characteristics on the cohesive behaviors. In addition, since the cohesive behaviors of the silt are caused by the inter-particle cohesive forces, the motions of and the contacts among silt particles should be resolved to study these cohesive behaviors in the settling process. However, studies of the cohesive behaviors of silt particles in the settling process based on particle-resolving approach are still lacking. In the present work, three-dimensional settling process is investigated numerically by using CFD-DEM (Computational Fluid Dynamics-Discrete Element Method). The inter-particle collision force, the van der Waals force, and the fluid-particle interaction forces are considered. The numerical model is used to simulate the hindered settling process of silt based on the experimental setup in the literature. The results obtained in the simulations, including the structural densities of the beds, the characteristic lines, and the particle terminal velocity, are in good agreement with the experimental observations in the literature. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first time that the influences of non-dimensional Bond number and particle polydispersity on the structural densities of silt beds have been investigated separately

A Reappraisal of Lexical Cohesion in Conversational Discourse

Science.gov (United States)

Gomez Gonzalez, Maria De Los Angeles

2013-01-01

Cohesion, or the connectedness of discourse, has been recognized as playing a crucial role in both language production and comprehension processes. Researchers have debated about the "right" number and classification of cohesive devices, as well as about their interaction with coherence and/or genre. The present study proposes an integrative model…

Anisotropy in cohesive, frictional granular media

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Luding, Stefan

2005-01-01

The modelling of cohesive, frictional granular materials with a discrete particle molecular dynamics is reviewed. From the structure of the quasi-static granular solid, the fabric, stress, and stiffness tensors are determined, including both normal and tangential forces. The influence of the material properties on the flow behaviour is also reported, including relations between the microscopic attractive force and the macroscopic cohesion as well as the dependence of the macroscopic friction on the microscopic contact friction coefficient. Related to the dynamics, the anisotropy of both structure and stress are exponentially approaching the maximum

Family Change and Implications for Family Solidarity and Social Cohesion

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Ravanera, Zenaida

2008-01-01

Full Text Available EnglishSocial cohesion can be viewed in terms of common projects and networks of social relations that characterize families, communities and society. In the past decades, the basis for family cohesion has shifted from organic to mechanical or from breadwinner to collaborative model. As in many Western countries, data on family change in Canada point to a greater flexibility in the entry and exit from relationships, a delay in the timing of family events, and a diversity of family forms. After looking at changes in families and in the family setting of individuals, the paper considers both intra-family cohesion and families as basis for social cohesion. Implications are raised for adults, children and publicp olicy.FrenchLa cohésion sociale peut se voir à travers les projets communs et les réseaux desrelations sociales qui caractérisent les familles, les communautés et les sociétés.La base de cohésion familiale est passée d’organique à mécanique, pour utiliserles termes de Durkheim, ou vers un modèle de collaboration plutôt qu’unepartage asymétrique de tâches. Comme dans d’autres sociétés orientales, lafamille au Canada est devenue plus flexible par rapport aux entrées et sortiesd’unions, il y a un délais dans les événements familiaux, et une variété deformes de familles. Après un regard sur les changements dans les familles etdans la situation familiale des individus, nous considérons la cohésion intrafamilialeet la famille comme base de cohésion sociale. Nous discutons desimpacts sur les adultes, les enfants et la politique publique.

Marital conflict typology and children's appraisals: the moderating role of family cohesion.

Science.gov (United States)

Lindahl, Kristin M; Malik, Neena M

2011-04-01

Intense and frequent marital conflict is associated with greater appraisals of threat and self-blame in children, but little else is known about contextual factors that might affect appraisals. Systemic family theories propose that to understand child adaptation, it is necessary to understand the interconnected nature of family subsystem relationships. In a sample of 257 families with 8- to 12-year-old children, this study examined whether a four-level typology of marital conflict management was related to children's perceptions of marital conflict and their appraisals of perceived threat and self-blame. In addition, family cohesion was tested as a moderator of the relationship between marital conflict style and children's appraisals. Observational coding was used to group couples into Harmonious, Disengaged, Conflictual-Expressive, and Conflictual-Hostile groups. Children's report of the intensity, frequency, and degree of resolution of interparental discord corresponded well with observers' ratings. The relationship between marital conflict style and appraisals of threat and self-blame was moderated by family cohesiveness. At high levels of family cohesiveness, no group differences were found for either perceived threat or self-blame, whereas when family cohesiveness was low, threat was higher for the Harmonious and Conflictual-Hostile groups, as compared to the Conflictual-Expressive group, and self-blame was higher for both conflict groups (expressive and hostile), as compared to the Disengaged group. The results provide further evidence of interconnected nature of family subsystem relationships and the importance of distinguishing among different approaches to marital conflict management for understanding the complex and perhaps subtle but meaningful effects different family system factors have on child adaptation.

Cohesive Zone Model Based Numerical Analysis of Steel-Concrete Composite Structure Push-Out Tests

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J. P. Lin

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Push-out tests were widely used to determine the shear bearing capacity and shear stiffness of shear connectors in steel-concrete composite structures. The finite element method was one efficient alternative to push-out testing. This paper focused on a simulation analysis of the interface between concrete slabs and steel girder flanges as well as the interface of the shear connectors and the surrounding concrete. A cohesive zone model was used to simulate the tangential sliding and normal separation of the interfaces. Then, a zero-thickness cohesive element was implemented via the user-defined element subroutine UEL in the software ABAQUS, and a multiple broken line mode was used to define the constitutive relations of the cohesive zone. A three-dimensional numerical analysis model was established for push-out testing to analyze the load-displacement curves of the push-out test process, interface relative displacement, and interface stress distribution. This method was found to accurately calculate the shear capacity and shear stiffness of shear connectors. The numerical results showed that the multiple broken lines mode cohesive zone model could describe the nonlinear mechanical behavior of the interface between steel and concrete and that a discontinuous deformation numerical simulation could be implemented.

Bothered by abstractness or engaged by cohesion? Experts' explanations enhance novices' deep-learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Lachner, Andreas; Nückles, Matthias

2015-03-01

Experts' explanations have been shown to better enhance novices' transfer as compared with advanced students' explanations. Based on research on expertise and text comprehension, we investigated whether the abstractness or the cohesion of experts' and intermediates' explanations accounted for novices' learning. In Study 1, we showed that the superior cohesion of experts' explanations accounted for most of novices' transfer, whereas the degree of abstractness did not impact novices' transfer performance. In Study 2, we investigated novices' processing while learning with experts' and intermediates' explanations. We found that novices studying experts' explanations actively self-regulated their processing of the explanations, as they showed mainly deep-processing activities, whereas novices learning with intermediates' explanations were mainly engaged in shallow-processing activities by paraphrasing the explanations. Thus, we concluded that subject-matter expertise is a crucial prerequisite for instructors. Despite the abstract character of experts' explanations, their subject-matter expertise enables them to generate highly cohesive explanations that serve as a valuable scaffold for students' construction of flexible knowledge by engaging them in deep-level processing. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved.

Rotational Failure of Rubble-pile Bodies: Influences of Shear and Cohesive Strengths

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Yun; Richardson, Derek C.; Barnouin, Olivier S.; Michel, Patrick; Schwartz, Stephen R.; Ballouz, Ronald-Louis

2018-04-01

The shear and cohesive strengths of a rubble-pile asteroid could influence the critical spin at which the body fails and its subsequent evolution. We present results using a soft-sphere discrete element method to explore the mechanical properties and dynamical behaviors of self-gravitating rubble piles experiencing increasing rotational centrifugal forces. A comprehensive contact model incorporating translational and rotational friction and van der Waals cohesive interactions is developed to simulate rubble-pile asteroids. It is observed that the critical spin depends strongly on both the frictional and cohesive forces between particles in contact; however, the failure behaviors only show dependence on the cohesive force. As cohesion increases, the deformation of the simulated body prior to disruption is diminished, the disruption process is more abrupt, and the component size of the fissioned material is increased. When the cohesive strength is high enough, the body can disaggregate into similar-size fragments, which could be a plausible mechanism to form asteroid pairs or active asteroids. The size distribution and velocity dispersion of the fragments in high-cohesion simulations show similarities to the disintegrating asteroid P/2013 R3, indicating that this asteroid may possess comparable cohesion in its structure and experience rotational fission in a similar manner. Additionally, we propose a method for estimating a rubble pile’s friction angle and bulk cohesion from spin-up numerical experiments, which provides the opportunity for making quantitative comparisons with continuum theory. The results show that the present technique has great potential for predicting the behaviors and estimating the material strengths of cohesive rubble-pile asteroids.

Long Fibre Composite Modelling Using Cohesive User's Element

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kozak, Vladislav; Chlup, Zdenek

2010-01-01

The development glass matrix composites reinforced by unidirectional long ceramic fibre has resulted in a family of very perspective structural materials. The only disadvantage of such materials is relatively high brittleness at room temperature. The main micromechanisms acting as toughening mechanism are the pull out, crack bridging, matrix cracking. There are other mechanisms as crack deflection etc. but the primer mechanism is mentioned pull out which is governed by interface between fibre and matrix. The contribution shows a way how to predict and/or optimise mechanical behaviour of composite by application of cohesive zone method and write user's cohesive element into the FEM numerical package Abaqus. The presented results from numerical calculations are compared with experimental data. Crack extension is simulated by means of element extinction algorithms. The principal effort is concentrated on the application of the cohesive zone model with the special traction separation (bridging) law and on the cohesive zone modelling. Determination of micro-mechanical parameters is based on the combination of static tests, microscopic observations and numerical calibration procedures.

Interactive effects of team cohesion on perceived efficacy in semi-professional sport.

Science.gov (United States)

Marcos, Francisco Miguel Leo; Miguel, Pedro Antonio Sánchez; Oliva, David Sánchez; Calvo, Tomás García

2010-01-01

The present study examined the relationships among cohesion, self-efficacy, coaches' perceptions of their players' efficacy at the individual level and athletes' perceptions of their teammates' efficacy. Participants (n = 76) recruited from four semi- professional soccer and basketball teams completed cohesiveness and efficacy questionnaires who. Data were analyzed through a correlational methodology. Results indicated significant correlations between self-efficacy and task cohesion and social cohesion. Regression analysis results suggest task cohesion positively related to coaches and teammate's perception of efficacy. These results have implications for practitioners in terms of the importance of team building to enhance team cohesion and feelings of efficacy. Key pointsThis paper increases the knowledge about soccer and basketball match analysis.Give normative values to establish practice and match objectives.Give applications ideas to connect research with coaches' practice.

Understanding Social Cohesion Differences in Common Interest Housing Developments

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dam, van R.I.; Eshuis, J.; Twist, van M.J.W.; Anquetil, V.

2014-01-01

The worldwide upsurge of common interest housing developments (CIDs) has stirred up debates regarding community development and social cohesion. Critics have argued that CIDs lack social cohesion because people regulate the community via rules and contracts rather than through social relationships

Anaphoric Referencing: A Cohesive Device in Written and Spoken ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

unique firstlady

cohesive function "if and when they can be interpreted through their relation to some other (explicit) encoding device in the same passage". ... is Anaphoric but when the implicit term precedes its linguistic referent, the cohesive tie is known as ...

Design of Normal Concrete Mixtures Using Workability-Dispersion-Cohesion Method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hisham Qasrawi

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The workability-dispersion-cohesion method is a new proposed method for the design of normal concrete mixes. The method uses special coefficients called workability-dispersion and workability-cohesion factors. These coefficients relate workability to mobility and stability of the concrete mix. The coefficients are obtained from special charts depending on mix requirements and aggregate properties. The method is practical because it covers various types of aggregates that may not be within standard specifications, different water to cement ratios, and various degrees of workability. Simple linear relationships were developed for variables encountered in the mix design and were presented in graphical forms. The method can be used in countries where the grading or fineness of the available materials is different from the common international specifications (such as ASTM or BS. Results were compared to the ACI and British methods of mix design. The method can be extended to cover all types of concrete.

DNA Packaging Specificity of Bacteriophage N15 with an Excursion into the Genetics of a Cohesive End Mismatch.

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Michael Feiss

Full Text Available During DNA replication by the λ-like bacteriophages, immature concatemeric DNA is produced by rolling circle replication. The concatemers are processed into mature chromosomes with cohesive ends, and packaged into prohead shells, during virion assembly. Cohesive ends are generated by the viral enzyme terminase, which introduces staggered nicks at cos, an approx. 200 bp-long sequence containing subsites cosQ, cosN and cosB. Interactions of cos subsites of immature concatemeric DNA with terminase orchestrate DNA processing and packaging. To initiate DNA packaging, terminase interacts with cosB and nicks cosN. The cohesive ends of N15 DNA differ from those of λ at 2/12 positions. Genetic experiments show that phages with chromosomes containing mismatched cohesive ends are functional. In at least some infections, the cohesive end mismatch persists through cyclization and replication, so that progeny phages of both allelic types are produced in the infected cell. N15 possesses an asymmetric packaging specificity: N15 DNA is not packaged by phages λ or 21, but surprisingly, N15-specific terminase packages λ DNA. Implications for genetic interactions among λ-like bacteriophages are discussed.

Improving the geotechnical behavior of sand through cohesive admixtures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohie eldin Mohamed Afify Elmashad

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Irrigation projects in Egypt have been facing tremendous challenges, mostly is the scarcity of irrigation water. The current research presents the effect of different cohesive admixture on the conductivity of siliceous sand in general and its other geotechnical properties. Two different types of conventional swelling clay from (Toshka, 6th of October as well as bentonite were used to construct the irrigation canals and embankment. The results indicated that increase in the plasticity properties of the treated soil also decrease the permeability and infiltration. Moreover, the dry density of 2.08 t/m3 was obtained from sand and 20% 6th of October mixture, also the CBR of 31.20% were obtained from sand and 8% 6th of October mixture. Increasing the bentonite ratio increases the cohesion and decreasing the permeability. The swelling ratios of sand 6th of October Clay mixture is equal to 0.28%, and the fictitious stress at which the swelling ratio is nil, is equal to 16 kPa. Keywords: Sand, Swelling clay, Bentonite, Compaction test, Consolidation test, Triaxial test

Identification of parameters of cohesive elements for modeling of adhesively bonded joints of epoxy composites

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kottner R.

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Adhesively bonded joints can be numerically simulated using the cohesive crack model. The critical strain energy release rate and the critical opening displacement are the parameters which must be known when cohesive elements in MSC.Marc software are used. In this work, the parameters of two industrial adhesives Hunstman Araldite 2021 and Gurit Spabond 345 for bonding of epoxy composites are identified. Double Cantilever Beam (DCB and End Notched Flexure (ENF test data were used for the identification. The critical opening displacements were identified using an optimization algorithm where the tests and their numerical simulations were compared.

Determining mode I cohesive law of Pinus pinaster by coupling double cantilever beam test with digital image correlation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. Xavier

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The direct identification of the cohesive law in pure mode I of Pinus pinaster is addressed. The approach couples the double cantilever beam (DCB test with digital image correlation (DIC. Wooden beam specimens loaded in the radial-longitudinal (RL fracture propagation system are used. The strain energy release rate in mode I ( is uniquely determined from the load-displacement ( curve by means of the compliance-based beam method (CBBM. This method relies on the concept of equivalent elastic crack length ( and therefore does not require the monitoring of crack propagation during test. The crack tip opening displacement in mode I is determined from the displacement field at the initial crack tip. The cohesive law in mode I is then identified by numerical differentiation of the relationship. Moreover, the proposed procedure is validated by finite element analyses including cohesive zone modelling. It is concluded that the proposed data reduction scheme is adequate for assessing the cohesive law in pure mode I of P. pinaster

Adsorption induced losses in interfacial cohesion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Asaro, R.J.

1977-07-01

A model for interfacial cohesion is developed which describes the loss in the strength of an interface due to the segregation and adsorption of impurities on it. Distinctions are made between interface separations that occur too rapidly for any significant redistribution of adsorbing matter to take place and separations that are slow enough to allow full adsorption equilibrium. Expressions for the total work of complete decohesion are presented for both cases. The results are applied to well-known model adsorption isotherms and some experimental data for grain boundary adsorption of phosphorus in iron is analyzed with respect to the losses in intergranular cohesion

EXAMINATION OF HANDBALL PLAYERS’ TEAM COHESION

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İlyas Görgüt

2017-04-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to determine team cohesion of handballplayers who were actively engaged in sport in various categories. The study group consisted of a total of 607 handball players, 317 female and 290 male, selected by random method and from 11 provinces of Turkey according to the some factors. When we examine the age distributions of the participants, 121 athletes appear to be 13 years and under, 309 athletes 14-18 years, 94 athletes 19-23 years, 54 athletes 24-28 years and 29 athletes 29 years and over. In addition, 186 of them expressed their education situation as middle school, 253 of them expressed their education situation as high school and 168 of them expressed their education situation as university. Personal information form and team cohesion scale, developed by Widmeyer et al. (1985 and adapted to Turkish by Moralı (1994, were used as a data collecting tools. The Kolmogorov Smirnov test was used to measure whether the obtained data showed normal distribution or not and nonparametric tests were used to determine the subscale scores because they didn’t show normal disturbance. For binary comparisons Mann Whitney U test, for multiple comparisons Kruskal Wallis variance and for the difference between significant groups Bonferroni Mann Whitney U test were used. As a result of the research, there were significant differences in scale subscale scores in terms of gender, age, educational status, sports experience, income and province variables of handball players.

Are diverse societies less cohesive? Testing contact and mediated contact theories.

Science.gov (United States)

McKenna, Sarah; Lee, Eunro; Klik, Kathleen A; Markus, Andrew; Hewstone, Miles; Reynolds, Katherine J

2018-01-01

Previous research has demonstrated that there is a negative relationship between ethnic diversity in a local community and social cohesion. Often the way social cohesion is assessed, though, varies across studies and only some aspects of the construct are included (e.g., trust). The current research explores the relationship between diversity and social cohesion across a number of indicators of social cohesion including neighbourhood social capital, safety, belonging, generalized trust, and volunteering. Furthermore, social psychological theories concerning the role of positive contact and its impact on feelings of threat are investigated. Using a sample of 1070 third generation 'majority' Australians and structural equation modelling (SEM), findings suggest ethnic diversity is related to positive intergroup contact, and that contact showed beneficial impacts for some indicators of social cohesion both directly and indirectly through reducing perceived threat. When interethnic contact and perceived threat are included in the model there is no direct negative effect between diversity and social cohesion. The theoretical implications of these findings are outlined including the importance of facilitating opportunities for positive contact in diverse communities.

Personality in teams: its relationship to social cohesion, task cohesion, and team performance

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Vianen, A.E.M.; de Dreu, C.K.W.

2001-01-01

This study continued past research on the relationship between personality composition in teams and social cohesion and team performance (Barrick, Stewart, Neubert, & Mount, 1998). Results from the Barrick et al. sample (N = 50) were compared with data from two new samples, one comprising drilling

Variations in dysfunction of sister chromatid cohesion in esco2 mutant zebrafish reflect the phenotypic diversity of Roberts syndrome

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Stefanie M. Percival

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Mutations in ESCO2, one of two establishment of cohesion factors necessary for proper sister chromatid cohesion (SCC, cause a spectrum of developmental defects in the autosomal-recessive disorder Roberts syndrome (RBS, warranting in vivo analysis of the consequence of cohesion dysfunction. Through a genetic screen in zebrafish targeting embryonic-lethal mutants that have increased genomic instability, we have identified an esco2 mutant zebrafish. Utilizing the natural transparency of zebrafish embryos, we have developed a novel technique to observe chromosome dynamics within a single cell during mitosis in a live vertebrate embryo. Within esco2 mutant embryos, we observed premature chromatid separation, a unique chromosome scattering, prolonged mitotic delay, and genomic instability in the form of anaphase bridges and micronuclei formation. Cytogenetic studies indicated complete chromatid separation and high levels of aneuploidy within mutant embryos. Amongst aneuploid spreads, we predominantly observed decreases in chromosome number, suggesting that either cells with micronuclei or micronuclei themselves are eliminated. We also demonstrated that the genomic instability leads to p53-dependent neural tube apoptosis. Surprisingly, although many cells required Esco2 to establish cohesion, 10-20% of cells had only weakened cohesion in the absence of Esco2, suggesting that compensatory cohesion mechanisms exist in these cells that undergo a normal mitotic division. These studies provide a unique in vivo vertebrate view of the mitotic defects and consequences of cohesion establishment loss, and they provide a compensation-based model to explain the RBS phenotypes.

Morphology and interdiffusion control to improve adhesion and cohesion properties in inverted polymer solar cells

KAUST Repository

Dupont, Stephanie R.

2015-01-01

© 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. The role of pre-electrode deposition annealing on the morphology and the fracture properties of polymer solar cells is discussed. We found an increase in adhesion at the weak P3HT:PCBM/PEDOT:PSS interface with annealing temperature, caused by increased interdiffusion between the organic layers. The formation of micrometer sized PCBM crystallites, which occurs with annealing above the crystallization temperature of PCBM, initially weakened the P3HT:PCBM layer itself. Further annealing improved the cohesion, due to a pull-out toughening mechanism of the growing PCBM clusters. Understanding how the morphology, tuned by annealing, affects the adhesive and cohesive properties in these organic films is essential for the mechanical integrity of OPV devices.

Derivation of Path Independent Coupled Mix Mode Cohesive Laws from Fracture Resistance Curves

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Goutianos, Stergios

2016-01-01

A generalised approach is presented to derive coupled mixed mode cohesive laws described with physical parameters such as peak traction, critical opening, fracture energy and cohesive shape. The approach is based on deriving mix mode fracture resistance curves from an effective mix mode cohesive...... law at different mode mixities. From the fracture resistance curves, the normal and shear stresses of the cohesive laws can be obtained by differentiation. Since, the mixed mode cohesive laws are obtained from a fracture resistance curve (potential function), path independence is automatically...

[Effects of family cohesion and adaptability on behavioral problems in preschool children].

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Yan-Ni; Xue, Hong-Li; Chen, Qian

2016-05-01

To investigate the effects of family cohesion and adaptability on behavioral problems in preschool children. The stratified cluster multistage sampling method was used to perform a questionnaire survey in the parents of 1 284 children aged 3-6 years in the urban area of Lanzhou, China. The general status questionnaire, Conners Child Behavior Checklist (Parent Symptom Question), and Family Adaptability and Cohesion Scale, Second edition, Chinese version (FACESII-CV) were used to investigate behavioral problems and family cohesion and adaptability. The overall detection rate of behavioral problems in preschool children was 17.13%. The children with different types of family cohesion had different detection rates of behavioral problems, and those with free-type family cohesion showed the highest detection rate of behavioral problems (40.2%). The children with different types of family adaptability also had different detection rates of behavioral problems, and those with stiffness type showed the highest detection rate of behavioral problems (25.1%). The behavioral problems in preschool children were negatively correlated with family cohesion and adaptability. During the growth of preschool children, family cohesion and adaptability have certain effects on the mental development of preschool children.

THE ROLE OF SOCIAL COHESION AS STRATEGY FOR REDUCING TOURISM SPATIAL CONFLICT

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

SARI Suzanna Ratih

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Borobudur as one of the international tourist’s destination in Indonesia which having compromised their sense of identity before, tourists have their own set of images about tourism destinations. In that destination tourists usually create some tourism activities which needed space to facilitate. Many times such condition caused many problems that lead conflict among the local people. People tried to provide some supporting tourist facilities in order to fulfil the needs of tourist’s activities. People will further utilize some spaces of their village to build tourist facilities. Rich people usually dominated this kind of business. This becomes the fact that many of the fears surrounding tourism are closely associated with a wide range of social problems, especially in terms of determining tourism spatial. Each people tried to collect dollar from tourist as much as possible to provide tourism spatial by ignoring “guyub” and “gotong royong” as traditional principle of their live. This may create disharmony among the society and some people will not get the benefit from tourism activities. Therefore, to learn more detail about the role of “guyub and gotong royong” as social cohesion among people in Borobudur, there is a need to do this research in order to give some recommended strategy to solve thr problem regarding social cohesion and tourism spatial. By using descriptive method, researcher would like to present a case study about that matter in one of tourism village in Borobudur. The output of this research is to give an overview how tourism activities give significant influence towards the power of social cohesion in reducing the appeared conflict. The developed strategy will be used to tighten the relationship among the people, through re-empowering the traditional social cohesion so called ”guyub” and “gotong-royong”. By doing so, it is expected that integrity and cohesiveness in a social structure could always be

An examination of the relationship between athlete leadership and cohesion using social network analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Loughead, Todd M; Fransen, Katrien; Van Puyenbroeck, Stef; Hoffmann, Matt D; De Cuyper, Bert; Vanbeselaere, Norbert; Boen, Filip

2016-11-01

Two studies investigated the structure of different athlete leadership networks and its relationship to cohesion using social network analysis. In Study 1, we examined the relationship between a general leadership quality network and task and social cohesion as measured by the Group Environment Questionnaire (GEQ). In Study 2, we investigated the leadership networks for four different athlete leadership roles (task, motivational, social and external) and their association with task and social cohesion networks. In Study 1, the results demonstrated that the general leadership quality network was positively related to task and social cohesion. The results from Study 2 indicated positive correlations between the four leadership networks and task and social cohesion networks. Further, the motivational leadership network emerged as the strongest predictor of the task cohesion network, while the social leadership network was the strongest predictor of the social cohesion network. The results complement a growing body of research indicating that athlete leadership has a positive association with cohesion.

Sister chromatid cohesion defects are associated with chromosome instability in Hodgkin lymphoma cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sajesh, Babu V; Lichtensztejn, Zelda; McManus, Kirk J

2013-01-01

Chromosome instability manifests as an abnormal chromosome complement and is a pathogenic event in cancer. Although a correlation between abnormal chromosome numbers and cancer exist, the underlying mechanisms that cause chromosome instability are poorly understood. Recent data suggests that aberrant sister chromatid cohesion causes chromosome instability and thus contributes to the development of cancer. Cohesion normally functions by tethering nascently synthesized chromatids together to prevent premature segregation and thus chromosome instability. Although the prevalence of aberrant cohesion has been reported for some solid tumors, its prevalence within liquid tumors is unknown. Consequently, the current study was undertaken to evaluate aberrant cohesion within Hodgkin lymphoma, a lymphoid malignancy that frequently exhibits chromosome instability. Using established cytogenetic techniques, the prevalence of chromosome instability and aberrant cohesion was examined within mitotic spreads generated from five commonly employed Hodgkin lymphoma cell lines (L-1236, KM-H2, L-428, L-540 and HDLM-2) and a lymphocyte control. Indirect immunofluorescence and Western blot analyses were performed to evaluate the localization and expression of six critical proteins involved in the regulation of sister chromatid cohesion. We first confirmed that all five Hodgkin lymphoma cell lines exhibited chromosome instability relative to the lymphocyte control. We then determined that each Hodgkin lymphoma cell line exhibited cohesion defects that were subsequently classified into mild, moderate or severe categories. Surprisingly, ~50% of the mitotic spreads generated from L-540 and HDLM-2 harbored cohesion defects. To gain mechanistic insight into the underlying cause of the aberrant cohesion we examined the localization and expression of six critical proteins involved in cohesion. Although all proteins produced the expected nuclear localization pattern, striking differences in RAD21

Relationships of family conflict, cohesion, and chaos in the home environment on maternal and child food-related behaviours.

Science.gov (United States)

Martin-Biggers, Jennifer; Quick, Virginia; Zhang, Man; Jin, Yanhong; Byrd-Bredbenner, Carol

2018-04-01

This study examined how food-related behaviours differed in mothers and their preschool children by levels of family functioning (cohesion and conflict) and household disorganization (chaos). A nationally representative sample of mothers of preschoolers completed an online survey assessing food-related behaviours of themselves and their children. Maternal and child diet, eating behaviours, and health status; household availability of fruits/vegetables, salty/fatty snacks, and sugar-sweetened beverages; family mealtime atmosphere; and family conflict, cohesion, and household chaos were assessed with valid, reliable scales. Cluster analyses assigned families into low, middle, and high conflict, cohesion, and chaos groups. Participants (n = 550) were 72% White, and 82% had some post-secondary education. Regression analysis examining the association of cluster grouping levels on diet-related behaviour measures revealed that positive home environments (i.e., low family conflict, high family cohesion, and low household chaos) were associated with healthier food-related behaviours (e.g., increased fruits/vegetables intake), whereas negative home environments (i.e., high family conflict, low family cohesion, and high household chaos) were associated with unhealthy food-related behaviours (e.g., greater % total calories from fat) even after controlling for sociodemographic and related behavioural factors. Findings suggest family functioning and household chaos are associated with food-related behaviours. This frequently overlooked component of family interaction may affect intervention outcomes and objectives of educational and interventional initiatives. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Leader evaluation and team cohesiveness in the process of team development: A matter of gender?

Science.gov (United States)

Sczesny, Sabine; Gumí, Tània; Guimerà, Roger; Sales-Pardo, Marta

2017-01-01

Leadership positions are still stereotyped as masculine, especially in male-dominated fields (e.g., engineering). So how do gender stereotypes affect the evaluation of leaders and team cohesiveness in the process of team development? In our study participants worked in 45 small teams (4–5 members). Each team was headed by either a female or male leader, so that 45 leaders (33% women) supervised 258 team members (39% women). Over a period of nine months, the teams developed specific engineering projects as part of their professional undergraduate training. We examined leaders’ self-evaluation, their evaluation by team members, and team cohesiveness at two points of time (month three and month nine, the final month of the collaboration). While we did not find any gender differences in leaders’ self-evaluation at the beginning, female leaders evaluated themselves more favorably than men at the end of the projects. Moreover, female leaders were evaluated more favorably than male leaders at the beginning of the project, but the evaluation by team members did not differ at the end of the projects. Finally, we found a tendency for female leaders to build more cohesive teams than male leaders. PMID:29059231

Relationship Among Team Collective Efficacy, Cohesion, and Coaching Competency in Sports

OpenAIRE

Manning, Clayton T.

2007-01-01

A team's performance in any sport can be predicted by many factors. Some of these factors include team collective efficacy, team cohesiveness, and coaching competency. Currently, there is little research investigating the relationships among teams' beliefs about their capabilities, their level of cohesion, and their perceptions of coaching competency on overall sport performance. The purpose of this study was to document the relationship among collective efficacy, cohesion, and coaching on sp...

Mixed Mode cohesive law with interface dilatation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sørensen, Bent F.; Goutianos, Stergios

2014-01-01

displacements. As the crack faces displace relatively to each other, the roughness asperities ride on top of each other and result in an opening (dilatation) in the normal direction. Furthermore, the interaction of the crack surfaces in the contact zone gives rise to compressive normal stresses and frictional...... shear stresses opposing the crack face displacements. A phenomenological Mixed Mode cohesive zone law, derived from a potential function, is developed to describe the above mentioned fracture behaviour under monotonic opening. The interface dilatation introduces two new lengths. The cohesive law...

Immigration, social cohesion, and naturalization

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lægaard, Sune

2010-01-01

social trust do not connect with issues of naturalization at all. Other conceptions of social cohesion are either politically controversial, problematic as part of the justification of stricter naturalization requirements, or in fact justify less demanding naturalization requirements....

Cohesion and device reliability in organic bulk heterojunction photovoltaic cells

KAUST Repository

Brand, Vitali; Bruner, Christopher; Dauskardt, Reinhold H.

2012-01-01

that the phase separated bulk heterojunction layer is the weakest layer and report quantitative cohesion values which ranged from ∼1 to 20 J m -2. The effects of layer thickness, composition, and annealing treatments on layer cohesion are investigated. Using

Differences by Sexual Orientation in Perceptions of Neighborhood Cohesion: Implications for Health.

Science.gov (United States)

Henning-Smith, Carrie; Gonzales, Gilbert

2018-06-01

A large body of research documents the relationship between health and place, including the positive association between neighborhood cohesion and health. However, very little research has examined neighborhood cohesion by sexual orientation. This paper addresses that gap by examining differences in perceived neighborhood cohesion by sexual orientation. We use data from the 2016 National Health Interview Survey (n = 28,164 respondents aged 18 years and older) to examine bivariate differences by sexual orientation in four measures of neighborhood cohesion. We then use ordered logistic regression models to assess the relationship between sexual orientation and a scaled measure of neighborhood cohesion, adjusting for socio-demographic characteristics, living arrangements, health status, region, and neighborhood tenure. We find that lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) adults are less likely to say that they live in a close-knit neighborhood (54.6 vs. 65.6%, p < 0.001), they can count on their neighbors (74.7 vs. 83.1%, p < 0.001), they trust their neighbors (75.5 vs. 83.7%, p < 0.001), or people in their neighborhood help each other out (72.9 vs. 83.1%, p < 0.001), compared to heterosexual adults. Even after controlling for socio-demographic factors, neighborhood cohesion scores are lower for LGB adults compared to heterosexual adults (odds ratio of better perceived neighborhood cohesion for sexual minorities: 0.70, p < 0.001). Overall, LGB adults report worse neighborhood cohesion across multiple measures, even after adjusting for individual characteristics and neighborhood tenure. Because living in a cohesive neighborhood is associated with better health outcomes, future research, community-level initiatives, and public policy efforts should focus on creating welcoming neighborhood environments for sexual minorities.

Authentic leadership, group cohesion and group identification in security and emergency teams.

Science.gov (United States)

García-Guiu López, Carlos; Molero Alonso, Fernando; Moya Morales, Miguel; Moriano León, Juan Antonio

2015-01-01

Authentic leadership (AL) is a kind of leadership that inspires and promotes positive psychological capacities, underlining the moral and ethical component of behavior. The proposed investigation studies the relations among AL, cohesion, and group identification in security and emergency teams. A cross-sectional research design was conducted in which participated 221 members from 26 fire departments and operative teams from the local police of three Spanish provinces. The following questionnaires were administered: Authentic Leadership (ALQ), Group Cohesion (GEQ), and Mael and Ashford's Group Identification Questionnaire. A direct and positive relation was found between AL, cohesion, and group identification. An indirect relation was also found between AL and group cohesion through group identification, indicating the existence of partial mediation. The utility of the proposed model based on AL is considered; this model can be employed by those in charge of the fire departments and operative groups in organizations to improve workteams' cohesion. Both AL and group identification help to explain group cohesion in organizations committed to security and emergencies.

Aspects of cohesion, tense and pronoun usage in the discourse of the older language-impaired child

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hilary Berger

1978-11-01

Full Text Available Aspects of the discourse of 5 language-impaired children and 5 children with no language impairment, aged approximately 9 years, were compared. A film and a story sequence were utilised to elicit narratives on which, measures of cohesion, tense and pronouns were appraised. Measures of cohesion refer  to the ability to indicate appropriately the relations of meaning with regard to situational context. Measures of tense include aspects of tense range and tense continuity. Measures of  pronouns refer  to the anaphoric use of  pronouns with non-ambiguous referents.  The group of language-impaired children was found  to be significantly poorer on measures of  cohesion and pronominal usage than the normal children, whereas a significant difference between the two groups was not revealed on measures of tense. Possible factors  accounting for  these findings  were discussed and implications for the diagnosis and therapy of the older language-impaired child were considered.

Development of an evaluation method for fracture mechanical tests on small samples based on a cohesive zone model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mahler, Michael

2016-01-01

The safety and reliability of nuclear power plants of the fourth generation is an important issue. It is based on a reliable interpretation of the components for which, among other fracture mechanical material properties are required. The existing irradiation in the power plants significantly affects the material properties which therefore need to be determined on irradiated material. Often only small amounts of irradiated material are available for characterization. In that case it is not possible to manufacture sufficiently large specimens, which are necessary for fracture mechanical testing in agreement with the standard. Small specimens must be used. From this follows the idea of this study, in which the fracture toughness can be predicted with the developed method based on tests of small specimens. For this purpose, the fracture process including the crack growth is described with a continuum mechanical approach using the finite element method and the cohesive zone model. The experiments on small specimens are used for parameter identification of the cohesive zone model. The two parameters of the cohesive zone model are determined by tensile tests on notched specimens (cohesive stress) and by parameter fitting to the fracture behavior of smalls specimens (cohesive energy). To account the different triaxialities of the specimens, the cohesive stress is used depending on the triaxiality. After parameter identification a large specimen can be simulated with the cohesive zone parameters derived from small specimens. The predicted fracture toughness of this big specimen fulfills the size requirements in the standard (ASTM E1820 or ASTM E399) in contrast to the small specimen. This method can be used for ductile and brittle material behavior and was validated in this work. In summary, this method offers the possibility to determine the fracture toughness indirectly based on small specimen testing. Main advantage is the low required specimen volume. Thereby massively

Music listening in families and peer groups: Benefits for young people's social cohesion and emotional well-being across four cultures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Diana eBoer

2014-05-01

Full Text Available Families are central to the social and emotional development of youth, and most families engage in musical activities together, such as listening to music or talking about their favorite songs. However, empirical evidence of the positive effects of musical family rituals on social cohesion and emotional well-being is scarce. Furthermore, the role of culture in the shaping of musical family rituals and their psychological benefits has been neglected entirely. This paper investigates musical rituals in families and in peer groups (as an important secondary socialization context in two traditional/collectivistic and two secular/individualistic cultures, and across two developmental stages (adolescence vs. young adulthood. Based on cross-sectional data from 760 young people in Kenya, the Philippines, New Zealand and Germany, our study revealed that across cultures music listening in families and in peer groups contributes to family and peer cohesion respectively. Furthermore, the direct contribution of music in peer groups on well-being appears across cultural contexts, whereas musical family rituals affect emotional well-being in more traditional/collectivistic contexts. Developmental analyses show that musical family rituals are consistently and strongly related to family cohesion across developmental stages, whereas musical rituals in peer groups appear more dependent on the developmental stage (in interaction with culture. Contributing to developmental as well as cross-cultural psychology, this research elucidated musical rituals and their positive effects on the emotional and social development of young people across cultures. The implications for future research and family interventions are discussed.

A new design equation for drained stability of conical slopes in cohesive-frictional soils

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Boonchai Ukritchon

2018-04-01

Full Text Available New plasticity solutions to the drained stability of conical slopes in homogeneous cohesive-frictional soils were investigated by axisymmetric finite element limit analysis. Three parameters were studied, i.e. excavated height ratios, slope inclination angles, and soil friction angles. The influences of these parameters on the stability factor and predicted failure mechanism of conical slopes were discussed. A new design equation developed from a nonlinear regression of the lower bound solution was proposed for drained stability analyses of a conical slope in practice. Numerical examples were given to demonstrate a practical application of the proposed equation to stability evaluations of conical slopes with both associated and non-associated flow rules. Keywords: Limit analysis, Slope stability, Conical slope, Unsupported excavation, Cohesive-frictional soils

Cohesion, Coherence, and the Construction of Discourse Objects: a Glimpse of a Sociocognitive and Interacional Perspective on Teaching of Writing

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Silvia Augusta Albert Bachur

2016-07-01

Full Text Available This article aims at presenting how current theoretical advances on Text Linguistics in its sociocognitive and interactional perspective, by approaching the concepts of cohesion, coherence, and referentiation, may contribute to the pedagogical practice regarding the teaching and learning of writing vis-à-vis the development of writing proficiency. Hence, cohesion and coherence are considered the criteria for textualization, and both their reciprocity and their mutual determination in the referentiation process are here acknowledged. From this point view, the construction of cohesion and coherence is a dynamic process that occurs via inferences and cognitive devices to which the linguistic marks, the speakers’ interaction, and the context contribute. Accordingly, a selection of nominal forms in the building of representations of discourse objects is to be highlighted and related to the project of saying enounced by the herald of college entrance essays. The hypothesis is thus that, by constructing representations of discourse objects, referentiation establishes a groundwork for text structuring and provides hints to produce meaning in writing. The main studies this article is grounded on are Koch (2006, Marcuschi (2006; 2007; 2008, Cavalcante et al. (2010, and Bentes (2012.

Family adaptability and cohesion in families consisting of Asian immigrant women living in South Korea: A 3-year longitudinal study.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Yeon-Pyo; Kim, Sun; Joh, Ju-Youn

2015-06-01

South Korea's low birth rate, aging society, and female migration to urban areas due to industrialization have caused an accelerated inflow of Asian female immigrants into Korea to marry Korean men, especially in rural areas. This study was performed to determine how family function of multicultural families changes over time and what factors affect the changes in family function of multicultural families. The study subjects were 62 Asian immigrant women married to South Korean men living in South Korea. In a 1st wave study in August 2008, the socioeconomic factors and Family Adaptability and Cohesion Scale III (FACES III) scores were measured. A 3-year follow-up study was then conducted in August 2011, and the results were compared with the 1st wave study results. The mean family adaptability score was 24.6 in the 1st wave study and 26.1 at the 3-year follow-up. The average family cohesion score was 31.0 in the 1st wave study and 36.7 at the 3-year follow-up. There was a statistically significant increase in family cohesion after 3 years (P adaptability did not change over time; however, conversely, family cohesion increased. The age difference between husband and wife and the subjective SES had a positive association with the changes in family cohesion. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Publishing Asia Pty Ltd.

Effects of spatial variation in cohesion over the concrete-rock interface on dam sliding stability

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Alexandra Krounis

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The limit equilibrium method (LEM is widely used for sliding stability evaluation of concrete gravity dams. Failure is then commonly assumed to occur along the entire sliding surface simultaneously. However, the brittle behaviour of bonded concrete-rock contacts, in combination with the varying stress over the interface, implies that the failure of bonded dam-foundation interfaces occurs progressively. In addition, the spatial variation in cohesion may introduce weak spots where failure can be initiated. Nonetheless, the combined effect of brittle failure and spatial variation in cohesion on the overall shear strength of the interface has not been studied previously. In this paper, numerical analyses are used to investigate the effect of brittle failure in combination with spatial variation in cohesion that is taken into account by random fields with different correlation lengths. The study concludes that a possible existence of weak spots along the interface has to be considered since it significantly reduces the overall shear strength of the interface, and implications for doing so are discussed.

ANAPHORIC ENCAPSULATION AND PRESUPPOSITION: PERSUASIVE AND STEREOTYPICAL USES OF A COHESIVE STRATEGY

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Filippo Pecorari

2014-12-01

Full Text Available This paper focuses on the presuppositional values of anaphoric encapsulation. We highlight that presupposition is a basic feature of argumentative and persuasive uses of this cohesive strategy, but may also apply to stereotypical instances, where evaluation does not coincide with persuasion. Finally, we analyse examples where a higher-order definite noun phrase does not presuppose the existence of a discourse referent.

Development of a Fatigue Model for Low Alloy Steels Using a Cycle-Dependent Cohesive Zone Law

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Kyungmok Kim

2014-03-01

Full Text Available A fatigue model for SAE 4130 steels is developed using a cycle-dependent cohesive zone law. Reduction of fracture energy and degradation of stiffness are considered to describe failure resistance after certain number of cycles. The reduction rate of fracture energy is determined with experimental stress (S- number of cycles to failure (N scatter found in the literature. Three-dimensional finite element models containing a cohesive zone are generated with commercial software (ABAQUS. Calculated fatigue lives at different stress ratios are in good agreement with experimental ones. In addition, fatigue behavior of hardened SAE 4130 steels is predicted with that of normalized material.

Group cohesion and starting status in successful and less successful elite volleyball teams.

Science.gov (United States)

Spink, K S

1992-08-01

The main purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between members' perceptions of group cohesion and starting status in elite volleyball teams. The results of the study revealed that the form of the cohesion-starting status relationship was moderated by the variable of success. The results for less successful teams revealed that differences did emerge between specific measures of cohesion endorsed by starters and non-starters. No such differences in cohesion emerged when the starters and non-starters on successful teams were compared. These results provide initial support for the suggestion that the most successful teams are the ones where the perceptions of cohesiveness by starters and non-starters are similar. A secondary purpose of the study was to determine whether those teams that were the most successful and similar in their members' perceptions of cohesiveness, were also the teams whose members have the most positive outcome expectancy. The results supported this prediction.

Effects of interface roughness on cohesive strength of self-assembled monolayers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang, Chen [Department of Aerospace Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL 61801 (United States); Awasthi, Amnaya P. [Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, 32611 (United States); Geubelle, Philippe H., E-mail: geubelle@illinois.edu [Department of Aerospace Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL 61801 (United States); Grady, Martha E.; Sottos, Nancy R. [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL 61801 (United States)

2017-03-01

Highlights: • Self-assembled monolayer/transfer-printed gold interface modeled using continuum-level simulation. • Initial deformed film profile analyzed and instability assessed. • Effective cohesive response of SAM-enhanced interface extracted from spallation model. • Reduction of up to 70% cohesive strength of the interface from incorporation of roughness demonstrated. - Abstract: Self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) are aggregates of small molecular chains that have the property to form highly ordered assemblies. The choice of terminal groups on the chains makes them excellent contenders of molecular-level tailoring. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations and experimental observations of spallation of two SAM-enhanced gold-film/silicon-substrate interfaces have shown that the cohesive strength of SAM-enriched transfer-printed interfaces is strongly dependent on the choice of terminal groups. Though the MD results of perfectly ordered atomistic surfaces show the same qualitative trend as the experiments, they over-predict the interfacial cohesive strengths by a factor of about 50. Results from AFM studies have revealed that the roughness of these interfaces is of the same order (∼1 nm) as the range of atomistic interactions. Hence, surface roughness is a key contributor in significantly reducing interfacial cohesive strength in these systems. In this manuscript, a continuum-level study is performed to investigate the influence of surface roughness on the cohesive strength of the interface between a Si/SAM substrate and a transfer-printed gold film. We approximate the film as a deformable continuum interacting with a rough substrate of SAMs represented by a harmonic function. Using a cohesive law derived from MD, spallation is simulated to evaluate the effective traction-separation characteristics for the rough SAM–gold interface. Our analysis shows that incorporating roughness may reduce the interfacial cohesive strength by an order of magnitude depending

Is Territorial Cohesion Necessary for the Sustainable Development of the European Regions?

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RADU C. BARNA

2011-01-01

Full Text Available The Regional policy of the EU is pursuing the harmonious development of the European territory; this is a necessary condition for the creation of an environment that is favourable to the convergence of the Union’s policies. But, for these policies to converge, it is necessary that there are common objectives and these can arise only from the existence of common needs. It is obvious that a very different level of development leads to different needs for people and territories and therefore, to the pursuit of different objectives. The introduction of the territorial cohesion as an objective of the European Union through the Treaty of Lisbon has concluded many years of debate over the essence and future of the EU. But is this a prerequisite for the sustainable development of the EU regions? To answer this question, in this paper we will try to show the importance of the territorial cohesion in the EU. In order to do this, we will place the evolution of this concept in parallel with that of development and also with the process of enlargement and of deepening of the EU. We will thus try to determine the influence that territorial cohesion has on regions and on the European construction so that in the end we should be able to explain the effects that it has on their sustainable development.

Flocculation Dynamics of cohesive sediment

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Maggi, F.

2005-01-01

Cohesive sediment suspended in natural waters is subject not only to transport and deposition processes but also to reactions of flocculation, \\textit{i.e.} aggregation of fine particles, and breakup of aggregates. Although aggregation and breakup occur at small and very small length scales compared

Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Biofilms and Their Influence on Bacterial Adhesion and Cohesion

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Khulood Hamid Dakheel

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Twenty-five methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA isolates were characterized by staphylococcal protein A gene typing and the ability to form biofilms. The presence of exopolysaccharides, proteins, and extracellular DNA and RNA in biofilms was assessed by a dispersal assay. In addition, cell adhesion to surfaces and cell cohesion were evaluated using the packed-bead method and mechanical disruption, respectively. The predominant genotype was spa type t127 (22 out of 25 isolates; the majority of isolates were categorized as moderate biofilm producers. Twelve isolates displayed PIA-independent biofilm formation, while the remaining 13 isolates were PIA-dependent. Both groups showed strong dispersal in response to RNase and DNase digestion followed by proteinase K treatment. PIA-dependent biofilms showed variable dispersal after sodium metaperiodate treatment, whereas PIA-independent biofilms showed enhanced biofilm formation. There was no correlation between the extent of biofilm formation or biofilm components and the adhesion or cohesion abilities of the bacteria, but the efficiency of adherence to glass beads increased after biofilm depletion. In conclusion, nucleic acids and proteins formed the main components of the MRSA clone t127 biofilm matrix, and there seems to be an association between adhesion and cohesion in the biofilms tested.

Teamwork Orientation, Group Cohesiveness, and Student Learning: A Study of the Use of Teams in Online Distance Education

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Williams, Ethlyn A.; Duray, Rebecca; Reddy, Venkateshwar

2006-01-01

This research examines computer-supported collaborative learning. Master's of business administration (MBA) students in an online program were surveyed to examine the extent to which an orientation toward teamwork and the development of group cohesiveness affect overall student learning and the learning that results specifically from team…

Interactive Effects of Team Cohesion on Perceived Efficacy in Semi-Professional Sport

OpenAIRE

Marcos, Francisco Miguel Leo; Miguel, Pedro Antonio Sánchez; Oliva, David Sánchez; Calvo, Tomás García

2010-01-01

The present study examined the relationships among cohesion, self-efficacy, coaches’ perceptions of their players’ efficacy at the individual level and athletes’ perceptions of their teammates’ efficacy. Participants (n = 76) recruited from four semi- professional soccer and basketball teams completed cohesiveness and efficacy questionnaires who. Data were analyzed through a correlational methodology. Results indicated significant correlations between self-efficacy and task cohesion and socia...

Characterizing delamination of fibre composites by mixed mode cohesive laws

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sørensen, Bent F.; Jacobsen, Torben K.

2009-01-01

A novel method is used for the determination of mixed mode cohesive laws and bridging laws for the characterisation of crack bridging in composites. The approach is based on an application of the J integral. The obtained cohesive laws were found to possess high peak stress values. Mixed mode...

Cohesion in a Multinational Coalition Center

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Schaab, Brooke

2007-01-01

.... All of the remaining nine items fell within the agree-to-strongly agree area. On interpersonal cohesion, highest agreement was found on items addressing the importance of liking and socializing with team members...

Mind the gap! Automated concept map feedback supports students in writing cohesive explanations.

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Lachner, Andreas; Burkhart, Christian; Nückles, Matthias

2017-03-01

Many students are challenged with the demand of writing cohesive explanations. To support students in writing cohesive explanations, we developed a computer-based feedback tool that visualizes cohesion deficits of students' explanations in a concept map. We conducted three studies to investigate the effectiveness of such feedback as well as the underlying cognitive processes. In Study 1, we found that the concept map helped students identify potential cohesion gaps in their drafts and plan remedial revisions. In Study 2, students with concept map feedback conducted revisions that resulted in more locally and globally cohesive, and also more comprehensible, explanations than the explanations of students who revised without concept map feedback. In Study 3, we replicated the findings of Study 2 by and large. More importantly, students who had received concept map feedback on a training explanation 1 week later wrote a transfer explanation without feedback that was more cohesive than the explanation of students who had received no feedback on their training explanation. The automated concept map feedback appears to particularly support the evaluation phase of the revision process. Furthermore, the feedback enabled novice writers to acquire sustainable skills in writing cohesive explanations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

Relationship between the cohesion of guest particles on the flow behaviour of interactive mixtures.

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Mangal, Sharad; Gengenbach, Thomas; Millington-Smith, Doug; Armstrong, Brian; Morton, David A V; Larson, Ian

2016-05-01

In this study, we aimed to investigate the effects cohesion of small surface-engineered guest binder particles on the flow behaviour of interactive mixtures. Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) - a model pharmaceutical binder - was spray-dried with varying l-leucine feed concentrations to create small surface-engineered binder particles with varying cohesion. These spray-dried formulations were characterised by their particle size distribution, morphology and cohesion. Interactive mixtures were produced by blending these spray-dried formulations with paracetamol. The resultant blends were visualised under scanning electron microscope to confirm formation of interactive mixtures. Surface coverage of paracetamol by guest particles as well as the flow behaviour of these mixtures were examined. The flow performance of interactive mixtures was evaluated using measurements of conditioned bulk density, basic flowability energy, aeration energy and compressibility. With higher feed l-leucine concentrations, the surface roughness of small binder particles increased, while their cohesion decreased. Visual inspection of the SEM images of the blends indicated that the guest particles adhered to the surface of paracetamol resulting in effective formation of interactive mixtures. These images also showed that the low-cohesion guest particles were better de-agglomerated that consequently formed a more homogeneous interactive mixture with paracetamol compared with high-cohesion formulations. The flow performance of interactive mixtures changed as a function of the cohesion of the guest particles. Interactive mixtures with low-cohesion guest binder particles showed notably improved bulk flow performance compared with those containing high-cohesion guest binder particles. Thus, our study suggests that the cohesion of guest particles dictates the flow performance of interactive mixtures. Crown Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

EmoHeart: Conveying Emotions in Second Life Based on Affect Sensing from Text

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Alena Neviarouskaya

2010-01-01

Full Text Available The 3D virtual world of “Second Life” imitates a form of real life by providing a space for rich interactions and social events. Second Life encourages people to establish or strengthen interpersonal relations, to share ideas, to gain new experiences, and to feel genuine emotions accompanying all adventures of virtual reality. Undoubtedly, emotions play a powerful role in communication. However, to trigger visual display of user's affective state in a virtual world, user has to manually assign appropriate facial expression or gesture to own avatar. Affect sensing from text, which enables automatic expression of emotions in the virtual environment, is a method to avoid manual control by the user and to enrich remote communications effortlessly. In this paper, we describe a lexical rule-based approach to recognition of emotions from text and an application of the developed Affect Analysis Model in Second Life. Based on the result of the Affect Analysis Model, the developed EmoHeart (“object” in Second Life triggers animations of avatar facial expressions and visualizes emotion by heart-shaped textures.

Food education: health and social cohesion

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Eva Zafra Aparici

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Using a theoretical-reflexive approach, this article connects the results of various qualitative studies in social conflict and medical anthropology, in order to investigate how food can be a tool for social transformation in terms of health but also in terms of the dialogue, respect and coexistence among people, groups and communities. In this sense the article presents a first approximation to a new theoretical and methodological approach to food education. In this approach, food adopts a political, sociocultural and participatory perspective that brings us closer to an innovative understanding of the phenomenon of food: not only as an analytic and diagnostic tool, but also as an instrument for health education interventions toward conflict resolution and the promotion of healthier societies overall – nutritionally, but also in terms of equality and social cohesion.

The holistic concepts of disaster management and social cohesion - statistics and method

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Gheorghe SĂVOIU

2011-09-01

Full Text Available The paper uses a multidisciplinary approach to underline the importance of some holistic concepts like social cohesion and human ecology, and also to assess environmental and economic specificity of these new ecological and social terms. The structure of the paper consists of an introduction describing the transition from mythological existence to the contemporary holistic view and four sections. While, the first section details the vital elements of the ecosphere in the new holistic sense, the second describes the holistic concept of human ecology, and the third details the significance, importance and impact of the contemporary management disasters and some global statistics. The last section summarize a statistical method known as the social cohesion evaluation, applied by the author in our country, during Romania’s admission period to EU, that in conjunction with holistic concept of human ecology represent new necessary analysis in this decade. Some final remarks underline the importance of a new approach in economics based on holistic principle and reciprocity.

Cucker-Smale Flocking with Bounded Cohesive and Repulsive Forces

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Qiang Song

2013-01-01

Full Text Available This paper proposes two Cucker-Smale-type flocking models by introducing both cohesive and repulsive forces to second-order multiagent systems. Under some mild conditions on the initial state of the flocking system, it is shown that the velocity consensus of the agents can be reached independent of the parameter which describes the decay of communication rates. In particular, the collision between any two agents can always be avoided by designing an appropriate bounded repulsive function based on the initial energy of the flock. Numerical examples are given to demonstrate the effectiveness of the theoretical analysis.

Uma análise da coesão textual e da estrutura narrativa em textos escritos por adolescentes surdos Textual cohesion and narrative structure in written texts produced by deaf adolescents

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Viviany Meirelles

2004-04-01

Full Text Available Considerando que os surdos utilizam diferentes formas de comunicação, investigou-se se tal fator influenciaria a produção escrita de textos. Quarenta adolescentes surdos com perda auditiva profunda, alunos de 5ª à 7ª série do ensino fundamental foram igualmente divididos em dois grupos: usuários da LIBRAS e surdos oralizados. A partir de uma seqüência de gravuras, cada participante produziu uma história escrita que foi analisada quanto à qualidade da estrutura narrativa e quanto ao estabelecimento de cadeias coesivas. Os resultados mostraram que a coesão textual é um problema para os surdos, não havendo diferenças entre os grupos. Embora as produções apresentassem limitações quanto à estrutura narrativa, verificou-se que um maior número de surdos oralizados produzia histórias mais elaboradas do que os usuários da LIBRAS. As diferenças entre grupos e dificuldades encontradas são interpretadas a partir do pouco contato que os surdos têm com textos em seu cotidiano. Implicações educacionais são discutidas.Deaf individuals use different forms of communication: oral language and sign language. This study investigated whether these forms of communication would have an effect on text production. Forty deaf adolescents were equally divided into two groups: those who used sign language (LIBRAS and those who used Portuguese in its oral form. Each participant was asked to write a story from a sequence of pictures. The stories were analyzed according to their cohesiveness and to their narrative structure. It was found that both groups had difficulties in establishing textual cohesion in their stories. Although both groups produced stories with an elementary structure, deaf adolescents who used oral language produced stories more elaborated than those who used sign language. Differences between groups and the difficulties the participants had are interpreted as a function of their limited contact with written texts in their

Family cohesion and the loneliness of adolescents from temporarily disconnected families due to economic migration

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Dołęga Zofia

2015-03-01

Full Text Available The paper reports the results of a comparative analysis of the two groups students coming from temporarily disconnected families due to foreign work parents (TDF, n = 68; male = 30, female = 38 and teenagers with the same social environment (NDF, n = 179, male = 89, female = 90, but without the experience of separation time (N= 247. The subject of the analysis was: the cohesion of a family from the perspective of the evaluated adolescent and three factors of psychological loneliness: social loneliness (sense of social marginalization and isolation, emotional loneliness (solitude and existential loneliness (sense of self-alienation. The Loneliness Scale (SBS was used based on an original concept of multidimensional sense of loneliness. The questionnaire for the survey of family cohesion (KSR were used too. The age (12-14 and 15-17, gender, family structure and the family lifestyle were controlled. Obtained results revealed significantly lower cohesion and significantly higher existential loneliness in group of teenagers from temporarily disconnected families (TDF. Not confirmed the supposition that made in earlier studies of temporarily disconnected families due to economic migration, that these teenagers suffer from a sense of emotional loneliness There has also confirmed the belief that the level of family cohesion and a sense of loneliness in adolescents is associated with atypical organization of family life associated with the duration of migration of parent/parents, frequency of contact with family members working abroad: mothers, fathers or broth parents, the duration of stays at home

Structure and Cohesion of English Narratives by Nordic and Chinese Students

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Miranda Lee

2004-01-01

Full Text Available As one of the most notable studies in discourse level of English as second/foreign language (ESL/EFL in Nordic countries, NORDWRITE project (1985 succeeds in identifying important problems and suggesting solutions for students’ writing in terms of discourse-level properties such as cohesion and superstructures. Findings from NORDWRITE project were reported in several papers, such as Enkvist (1990, Evesen (1990, Lindeberg (1988, Linnarud (1986, Wikborg (1990. However, a comparative study of Nordic and other EFL/ESL writing has not been dealt with yet. In order to identify similarities and differences between English writing of two distinct first language (L1 groups, in this study, a number of Chinese ESL texts were collected and compared with the results obtained from NORDWRITE project. In this study, narrative was elicited by giving subjects a series of pictures which allows reliable comparison across texts produced by different subjects. A group of Hong Kong Chinese tertiary students was asked to write narratives in both English and Chinese. Meanwhile, a group of English students with similar age and education background wrote the narratives in English, and their texts serve as a reference for comparison. The areas for analysis cover narrative structure and cohesion. By examining the similarities and differences in Chinese ESL students’ and Nordic EFL students’ texts, we find that certain similarities between the two groups are due to the fact that English is their second/foreign language. On the other hand, differences may be attributed to the influence of their L1, as the two groups belong to two distinct language groups. The study also shows that certain writing problems of ESL/EFL students are originated from inadequate understanding of English discourse. The implications of L1 influences on discourse level for ESL/EFL writing were drawn as well.

Examination of group cohesiveness levels and goal orientations of basketball players

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Ötkan Can Çavin

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This research intends to examine goal orientation and group cohesiveness levels of basketball players. 243 mature players who play in the leagues of Turkish Basketball Federation in 2016- 2017 season participated the study. “Task and Ego Orientation in Sports” and “Group Cohesiveness” questionnaires are used in study. While frequency, arithmetic mean and standard deviation is used for the analysis of data, T-Test, One-Way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA and Post-Hoc test statistics (Tukey HSD are used for independent samples. Depending on the variables of gender and educational background of players, a significant difference is identified in sub-dimension of Task Attraction of Group and a low-level negatively significant difference is identified between Ego Orientation in terms of age and sportive age. Significant differences are identified between the Perception of Team Success and sub-dimensions of Social Integration of Group and Social Attraction of Group. No statistically significant difference can be found for the variable of time spent in team in terms of group cohesiveness and goal orientation.

Level of athlete satisfaction and group cohesion in adult indoor soccer teams. DOI: 10.5007/1980-0037.2011v13n2p138

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José Roberto Andrade do Nascimento Junior

2011-03-01

Full Text Available This descriptive study investigated the levels of athlete satisfaction and group cohesion in adult indoor soccer teams. Fifty-eight male athletes of the Parana indoor soccer. Championship participated in the study. The Athlete Satisfaction Questionnaire and the Group Environment Questionnaire were used for assessment. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, Cronbach’s alpha, Spearman’s correlation coefficient, Manova, and the post hoc Scheffe test were used for data analysis (p < 0.05. The results showed that teams with higher levels of athlete satisfaction had higher perception of group cohesion. Teams with low levels of personal satisfaction had lower perception of group cohesion. Comparison of the teams showed differences in three dimensions of satisfaction (training-education, team performance, and strategy and in all dimensions of cohesion. The more satisfied the athletes were with the instruction of the coach, personal treatment and strategies, the more cohesive were the teams for the task. It was concluded that the level of athlete satisfaction plays a key role in the perception of cohesion in sport teams, with a predominance of aspects related to the group-task dimensions over social-group dimensions.

Level of athlete satisfaction and group cohesion in adult indoor soccer teams. DOI: 10.5007/1980-0037.2011v13n2p138

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

José Roberto Andrade do Nascimento Junior

2011-02-01

Full Text Available This descriptive study investigated the levels of athlete satisfaction and group cohesion in adult indoor soccer teams. Fifty-eight male athletes of the Parana indoor soccer. Championship participated in the study. The Athlete Satisfaction Questionnaire and the Group Environment Questionnaire were used for assessment. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, Cronbach’s alpha, Spearman’s correlation coefficient, Manova, and the post hoc Scheffe test were used for data analysis (p < 0.05. The results showed that teams with higher levels of athlete satisfaction had higher perception of group cohesion. Teams with low levels of personal satisfaction had lower perception of group cohesion. Comparison of the teams showed differences in three dimensions of satisfaction (training-education, team performance, and strategy and in all dimensions of cohesion. The more satisfied the athletes were with the instruction of the coach, personal treatment and strategies, the more cohesive were the teams for the task. It was concluded that the level of athlete satisfaction plays a key role in the perception of cohesion in sport teams, with a predominance of aspects related to the group-task dimensions over social-group dimensions.

Predictive Power of Family Cohesion and Flexibility on Children’s’ Self - Esteem and Happiness in Female High School Students in Shiraz, Iran

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S Jahedi

2014-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract ‌Background & aim: The role of family in shaping affective and cognitive characteristics of children, especially girls, who the future health of community depends on their mental health, is evident. The purpose of this study was to determine the predictive power of family cohesion and flexibility on self-esteem and happiness of children in high school girl students in Shiraz. Methods: In the present correlational study design, 303 cases of Shiraz secondary girl students who lived with their parents were chosen through the multistage random cluster sampling method. They responded to questionnaires for consistency of family, positives flexibility, Cooper Smith Self-esteem and Oxford Happiness scale. The data were analyzed by Pearson correlation and multiple regressions. Results Family consistency had significant positive power predictive for criterion variables self-esteem and happiness (p <0.05, whereas the flexibility had no such significance. Conclusion: Quality of operation of parents, communication and interaction in family life is one of the best determinants of behavior, health and well-being of children, including their self-esteem and happiness. Key words: Family cohesion, Family flexibility, Self-esteem, Happiness, Child

Influence of Sport Education on Group Cohesion in University Physical Education

Science.gov (United States)

Jenkins, Jayne M.; Alderman, Brandon L.

2011-01-01

The Sport Education ("SE") curricular model incorporated within university physical education Basic Instruction Program (BIP) may increase group cohesion. This study's purpose was to identify student perceptions of a BIP course taught within "SE," and investigate group cohesion in differing activity content. Participants…

The cohesion protein SOLO associates with SMC1 and is required for synapsis, recombination, homolog bias and cohesion and pairing of centromeres in Drosophila Meiosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Yan, Rihui; McKee, Bruce D

2013-01-01

Cohesion between sister chromatids is mediated by cohesin and is essential for proper meiotic segregation of both sister chromatids and homologs. solo encodes a Drosophila meiosis-specific cohesion protein with no apparent sequence homology to cohesins that is required in male meiosis for centromere cohesion, proper orientation of sister centromeres and centromere enrichment of the cohesin subunit SMC1. In this study, we show that solo is involved in multiple aspects of meiosis in female Drosophila. Null mutations in solo caused the following phenotypes: 1) high frequencies of homolog and sister chromatid nondisjunction (NDJ) and sharply reduced frequencies of homolog exchange; 2) reduced transmission of a ring-X chromosome, an indicator of elevated frequencies of sister chromatid exchange (SCE); 3) premature loss of centromere pairing and cohesion during prophase I, as indicated by elevated foci counts of the centromere protein CID; 4) instability of the lateral elements (LE)s and central regions of synaptonemal complexes (SCs), as indicated by fragmented and spotty staining of the chromosome core/LE component SMC1 and the transverse filament protein C(3)G, respectively, at all stages of pachytene. SOLO and SMC1 are both enriched on centromeres throughout prophase I, co-align along the lateral elements of SCs and reciprocally co-immunoprecipitate from ovarian protein extracts. Our studies demonstrate that SOLO is closely associated with meiotic cohesin and required both for enrichment of cohesin on centromeres and stable assembly of cohesin into chromosome cores. These events underlie and are required for stable cohesion of centromeres, synapsis of homologous chromosomes, and a recombination mechanism that suppresses SCE to preferentially generate homolog crossovers (homolog bias). We propose that SOLO is a subunit of a specialized meiotic cohesin complex that mediates both centromeric and axial arm cohesion and promotes homolog bias as a component of chromosome

The influence of family adaptability and cohesion on anxiety and depression of terminally ill cancer patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Young-Yoon; Jeong, Young-Jin; Lee, Junyong; Moon, Nayun; Bang, Inho; Kim, Hyunju; Yun, Kyung-Sook; Kim, Yong-I; Jeon, Tae-Hee

2018-01-01

This study investigated the effect of family members on terminally ill cancer patients by measuring the relationship of the presence of the family caregivers, visiting time by family and friends, and family adaptability and cohesion with patient's anxiety and depression. From June, 2016 to March, 2017, 100 terminally ill cancer patients who were admitted to a palliative care unit in Seoul, South Korea, were surveyed, and their medical records were reviewed. The Korean version of the Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scales III and Hospital Anxiety-Depression Scale was used. Chi-square and multiple logistic regression analyses were used. The results of the chi-square analysis showed that the presence of family caregivers and family visit times did not have statistically significant effects on anxiety and depression in terminally ill cancer patients. In multiple logistic regression, when adjusted for age, sex, ECOG PS, and the monthly average income, the odds ratios (ORs) of the low family adaptability to anxiety and depression were 2.4 (1.03-5.83) and 5.4 (1.10-26.87), respectively. The OR of low family cohesion for depression was 5.4 (1.10-27.20) when adjusted for age, sex, ECOG PS, and monthly average household income. A higher family adaptability resulted in a lower degree of anxiety and depression in terminally ill cancer patients. The higher the family cohesion, the lower the degree of depression in the patient. The presence of the family caregiver and the visiting time by family and friends did not affect the patient's anxiety and depression.

TEACHER GOVERNANCE REFORMS AND SOCIAL COHESION IN SOUTH AFRICA: FROM INTENTION TO REALITY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thomas Salmon

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The governance of teachers during apartheid in South Africa was characterised by high levels of disparity in teacher distribution and in conditions of labour. In the post-apartheid context policies and interventions that govern teachers are critical, and teachers can be seen to be placed in a central role as actors whose distribution, employment, recruitment and deployment can serve to redress the past, promote equity and build trust for social cohesion. In this context, this paper examines several teacher governance mechanisms and interventions, namely the post provisioning norm and standards (PPNs, the Funza Lushaka Bursary Programme (FLBP, and the South African Council of Educators. The analysis suggests that undifferentiated policy frameworks for teacher governance result in measures that weakly account for differing contextual realities and persistent inequality. Additionally, the emphasis on technocratic measures of accountability in teacher governance interventions constrains teachers’ agency to promote peace and social cohesion.

Group cohesion in foraging meerkats: follow the moving 'vocal hot spot'.

Science.gov (United States)

Gall, Gabriella E C; Manser, Marta B

2017-04-01

Group coordination, when 'on the move' or when visibility is low, is a challenge faced by many social living animals. While some animals manage to maintain cohesion solely through visual contact, the mechanism of group cohesion through other modes of communication, a necessity when visual contact is reduced, is not yet understood. Meerkats ( Suricata suricatta ), a small, social carnivore, forage as a cohesive group while moving continuously. While foraging, they frequently emit 'close calls', soft close-range contact calls. Variations in their call rates based on their local environment, coupled with individual movement, produce a dynamic acoustic landscape with a moving 'vocal hotspot' of the highest calling activity. We investigated whether meerkats follow such a vocal hotspot by playing back close calls of multiple individuals to foraging meerkats from the front and back edge of the group simultaneously. These two artificially induced vocal hotspots caused the group to spatially elongate and split into two subgroups. We conclude that meerkats use the emergent dynamic call pattern of the group to adjust their movement direction and maintain cohesion. Our study describes a highly flexible mechanism for the maintenance of group cohesion through vocal communication, for mobile species in habitats with low visibility and where movement decisions need to be adjusted continuously to changing environmental conditions.

Analysis of cohesion and collective efficacy profiles for the performance of soccer players.

Science.gov (United States)

Leo, Francisco M; Sánchez-Miguel, Pedro A; Sánchez-Oliva, David; Amado, Diana; García-Calvo, Tomás

2013-12-18

The principal aims of the study were to define different profiles of cohesion and perceived efficacy in soccer players and to measure their differences in performance. The subjects were 235 soccer players in the under-18 category who played in the National League in Spain and 15 coaches whose ages ranged from 29 to 45 years. Diverse instruments to assess cohesion, perceived efficacy, and expectations of success were used in the study. Moreover, we measured playing time and performance. The results of the study proved the existence of four cohesion and efficacy profiles that presented significant differences in expectations of success, playing time, and performance. Furthermore, significant differences were found in the distribution of players in the teams as a function of performance. The main conclusion of this study is that soccer players with higher cohesion and collective efficacy levels belonged to teams that completed the season at the top-level classification. In contrast, athletes with low cohesion and collective efficacy usually played in unsuccessful teams. Coaches and sports psychologists are encouraged to promote both social and task cohesion and collective efficacy to enhance team performance.

Mode I Cohesive Law Characterization of Through-Crack Propagation in a Multidirectional Laminate

Science.gov (United States)

Bergan, Andrew C.; Davila, Carlos G.; Leone, Frank A.; Awerbuch, Jonathan; Tan, Tein-Min

2014-01-01

A method is proposed and assessed for the experimental characterization of through-the-thickness crack propagation in multidirectional composite laminates with a cohesive law. The fracture toughness and crack opening displacement are measured and used to determine a cohesive law. Two methods of computing fracture toughness are assessed and compared. While previously proposed cohesive characterizations based on the R-curve exhibit size effects, the proposed approach results in a cohesive law that is a material property. The compact tension specimen configuration is used to propagate damage while load and full-field displacements are recorded. These measurements are used to compute the fracture toughness and crack opening displacement from which the cohesive law is characterized. The experimental results show that a steady-state fracture toughness is not reached. However, the proposed method extrapolates to steady-state and is demonstrated capable of predicting the structural behavior of geometrically-scaled specimens.

Wave-current induced erosion of cohesive riverbanks in northern Manitoba, Canada

Science.gov (United States)

Kimiaghalam, N.; Clark, S.; Ahmari, H.; Hunt, J.

2015-03-01

The field of cohesive soil erosion is still not fully understood, in large part due to the many soil parameters that affect cohesive soil erodibility. This study is focused on two channels, 2-Mile and 8-Mile channels in northern Manitoba, Canada, that were built to connect Lake Winnipeg with Playgreen Lake and Playgreen Lake with Kiskikittogisu Lake, respectively. The banks of the channels consist of clay rich soils and alluvial deposits of layered clay, silts and sands. The study of erosion at the sites is further complicated because the flow-induced erosion is combined with the effects of significant wave action due to the large fetch length on the adjacent lakes, particularly Lake Winnipeg that is the seventh largest lake in North America. The study included three main components: field measurements, laboratory experiments and numerical modelling. Field measurements consisted of soil sampling from the banks and bed of the channels, current measurements and water sampling. Grab soil samples were used to measure the essential physical and electrochemical properties of the riverbanks, and standard ASTM Shelby tube samples were used to estimate the critical shear stress and erodibility of the soil samples using an erosion measurement device (EMD). Water samples were taken to estimate the sediment concentration profile and also to monitor changes in sediment concentration along the channels over time. An Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) was used to collect bathymetry and current data, and two water level gauges have been installed to record water levels at the entrance and outlet of the channels. The MIKE 21 NSW model was used to simulate waves using historical winds and measured bathymetry of the channels and lakes. Finally, results from the wave numerical model, laboratory tests and current measurement were used to estimate the effect of each component on erodibility of the cohesive banks.

Cohesive zone modeling of intergranular cracking in polycrystalline aggregates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Simonovski, Igor; Cizelj, Leon

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Alternative approach to cohesive elements is proposed: cohesive-zone contact. • Applicability to measured and simulated grain structures is demonstrated. • Normal and normal/shear separation as a damage initialization is explored. • Normal/shear damage initialization significantly reduces ductility. • Little difference in Voronoi aggregate size on macroscopic response. - Abstract: Understanding and controlling early damage initiation and evolution are amongst the most important challenges in nuclear power plants, occurring in ferritic, austenitic steels and nickel based alloys. In this work a meso-scale approach to modeling initiation and evolution of early intergranular cracking is presented. This damage mechanism is present in a number of nuclear power plant components and depends on the material (e.g. composition, heat treatment, microstructure), environment and load. Finite element modeling is used to explicitly model the microstructure – both the grains and the grain boundaries. Spatial Voronoi tessellation is used to obtain the grain topology. In addition, measured topology of a 0.4 mm stainless steel wire is used. Anisotropic elasticity and crystal plasticity are used as constitutive laws for the grains. Grain boundaries are modeled using the cohesive zone approach. Different modeling assumptions/parameters are evaluated against the numerical stability criteria. The biggest positive contribution to numerical stability is the use of cohesive-type contact instead of cohesive elements. A small amount of viscous regularization should be also used along with the addition of a small amount of viscous forces to the global equilibrium equations. Two cases of grain boundary damage initiation are explored: (1) initiation due to normal separation and (2) initiation due to a combination of normal and shear separation. The second criterion significantly decreases the ductility of an aggregate and slightly improves the numerical stability

The Effects Of Physical And Biological Cohesion On Bedforms

Science.gov (United States)

Parsons, D. R.; Schindler, R.; Baas, J.; Hope, J. A.; Malarkey, J.; Paterson, D. M.; Peakall, J.; Manning, A. J.; Ye, L.; Aspden, R.; Alan, D.; Bass, S. J.

2014-12-01

Most coastal sediments consist of complex mixtures of cohesionless sands, physically-cohesive clays and extra cellular polymeric substances (EPS) that impart biological cohesion. Yet, our ability to predict bedform dimensions in these substrates is reliant on predictions based exclusively on cohesionless sand. We present findings from the COHBED project - which explicitly examines how bedform dynamics are modified by natural cohesion. Our experimental results show that for ripples, height and length are inversely proportional to initial clay content and bedforms take longer to appear, with no ripples when clay content exceeds 18%. When clay is replaced by EPS the development time and time of first appearance of ripples both increase by two orders of magnitude, with no bedforms above 0.125% EPS. For dunes, height and length are also inversely proportional to initial substrate clay content, resulting in a transition from dunes to ripples normally associated with velocity decreases. Addition of low EPS concentrations into the substrate results in yet smaller bedforms at the same clay contents and at high EPS concentrations, biological cohesion supersedes all electrostatic bonding, and bedform size is no longer related to mud content. The contrast in physical and biological cohesion effects on bedform development result from the disparity between inter-particle electrostatic bonding of clay particles and EPS grain coating and strands that physically link sediments together, which effects winnowing rates as bedforms evolve. These findings have wide ranging implications for bedform predictions in both modern and ancient environments. Coupling of biological and morphological processes not only requires an understanding of how bedform dimensions influence biota and habitat, but also how benthic species can modify bedform dimensions. Consideration of both aspects provides a means in which fluid dynamics, sediment transport and ecosystem energetics can be linked to yield

Cohesion Features in ESL Reading: Comparing Beginning, Intermediate and Advanced Textbooks

Science.gov (United States)

Plakans, Lia; Bilki, Zeynep

2016-01-01

This study of English as a second language (ESL) reading textbooks investigates cohesion in reading passages from 27 textbooks. The guiding research questions were whether and how cohesion differs across textbooks written for beginning, intermediate, and advanced second language readers. Using a computational tool called Coh-Metrix, textual…

Fatigue damage modeling in solder interconnects using a cohesive zone approach

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Abdul-Baqi, A.J.J.; Schreurs, P.J.G.; Geers, M.G.D.

2005-01-01

The objective of this work is to model the fatigue damage process in a solder bump subjected to cyclic loading conditions. Fatigue damage is simulated using the cohesive zone methodology. Damage is assumed to occur at interfaces modeled through cohesive zones in the material, while the bulk material

Cohesion, leadership, mental health stigmatisation and perceived barriers to care in UK military personnel.

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Norman; Campion, Ben; Keeling, Mary; Greenberg, Neil

2018-02-01

Military research suggests a significant association between leadership, cohesion, mental health stigmatisation and perceived barriers to care (stigma/BTC). Most studies are cross sectional, therefore longitudinal data were used to examine the association of leadership and cohesion with stigma/BTC. Military personnel provided measures of leadership, cohesion, stigma/BTC, mental health awareness and willingness to discuss mental health following deployment (n = 2510) and 4-6 months later (n = 1636). At follow-up, baseline leadership and cohesion were significantly associated with stigma/BTC; baseline cohesion alone was significantly associated with awareness of and willingness to discuss mental health at follow-up. Over time, changes in perceived leadership and cohesion were significantly associated with corresponding changes in stigma/BTC levels. Stigma/BTC content was similar in both surveys; fear of being viewed as weak and being treated differently by leaders was most frequently endorsed while thinking less of a help-seeking team member and unawareness of potential help sources were least common. Effective leadership and cohesion building may help to reduce stigma/BTC in military personnel. Mental health awareness and promoting the discussion of mental health matters may represent core elements of supportive leader behaviour. Perceptions of weakness and fears of being treated differently represent a focus for stigma/BTC reduction.

Social cohesion and the smoking behaviors of adults living with children.

Science.gov (United States)

Alcalá, Héctor E; Sharif, Mienah Z; Albert, Stephanie L

2016-02-01

The smoking behavior of adults can negatively impact children through exposure to environmental tobacco smoke and by modeling this unhealthy behavior. Little research has examined the role of the social environment in smoking behaviors of adults living with children. The present study specifically analyzed the relationship between social cohesion and smoking behaviors of adults living with children. Data from the 2009 California Health Interview Survey, a random-digit dial cross-sectional survey of California Adults, were used. Adults living with children reported their levels of social cohesion and smoking behaviors (N=13,978). Logistic regression models were used to predict odds of being a current smoker or living in a household in which smoking was allowed, from social cohesion. Overall, 13% of the sample was current smokers and 3.74% lived in households in which smoking was allowed. Logistic regression models showed that each one-unit increase in social cohesion is associated with reduced odds of being a current smoker (AOR=0.92; 95% CI=0.85-0.99) and reduced odds of living in a household in which smoking is allowed (AOR=0.84; 95% CI=0.75-0.93), after controlling for sociodemographic characteristics. Among adults living with children, higher social cohesion is associated with a lower likelihood of both being and smoker and living in a home where smoking is allowed. Thus, future research is needed to better understand mechanisms that explain the relationship between social cohesion and smoking-related behavior in order to prevent smoking-related health consequences and smoking initiation among children and adults. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cohesive and mixed sediment in the Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS v3.6 implemented in the Coupled Ocean–Atmosphere–Wave–Sediment Transport Modeling System (COAWST r1234

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

C. R. Sherwood

2018-05-01

Full Text Available We describe and demonstrate algorithms for treating cohesive and mixed sediment that have been added to the Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS version 3.6, as implemented in the Coupled Ocean–Atmosphere–Wave–Sediment Transport Modeling System (COAWST Subversion repository revision 1234. These include the following: floc dynamics (aggregation and disaggregation in the water column; changes in floc characteristics in the seabed; erosion and deposition of cohesive and mixed (combination of cohesive and non-cohesive sediment; and biodiffusive mixing of bed sediment. These routines supplement existing non-cohesive sediment modules, thereby increasing our ability to model fine-grained and mixed-sediment environments. Additionally, we describe changes to the sediment bed layering scheme that improve the fidelity of the modeled stratigraphic record. Finally, we provide examples of these modules implemented in idealized test cases and a realistic application.

[Optimism, family cohesion and treatment as predictors of quality of life in blood cancer diseases].

Science.gov (United States)

Lavielle-Sotomayor, Pilar; Rozen-Fuller, Etta; Bustamante-Rojano, Juan; Martínez-Murillo, Carlos

2017-01-01

Quality of life must be a part of the goals of care given to blood cancer patients and it must be used to assess the effectiveness of their treatment. The objective was to evaluate the quality of life of patients with leukemia and its relationship with psychological, familial and disease-related aspects. An analytic cross-sectional study was carried out in patients with acute leukemia at different stages of treatment. We used SF-36, Optimism and Family Cohesion scales. Quality of life was affected physically and mentally in the treatment phases aimed to mitigate the active, and the advanced stage of this disease (50.6 ± 25.6, 62 ± 14.3; 46 ± 23.2, 53.8 ± 23.4, respectively), regardless of gender, age, level of optimism and family cohesion. Patients could carry out basic functions of self-care (bathing, feeding, etcetera), but not activities of daily living (shopping, household chores, etcetera), which require a greater effort. Although the patients perceived having been affected in the emotional health area-by the presence of anxiety and depression-they did not consider that these alterations limited their ability to carry out work and everyday activities. Quality of life was most affected at mental dimension and physical dimension, mainly in patients at induction and palliative treatment. The results showed that the objectives of care aimed to reduce symptoms and maintain patient comfort are not achieved.

Cohesion and Trauma: An Examination of a Collegiate Women's Volleyball Team

Science.gov (United States)

Fletcher, Teresa B.; Meyer, Barbara B.

2009-01-01

This study examined the effects of Adventure Based Counseling (i.e., a low-element challenge program) on the cohesion of a collegiate women's volleyball team. Results suggest postintervention improvements in team cohesion. The support created in the challenge experience also transferred to the players helping one another to grieve the untimely…

Development of a cohesion questionnaire for youth: the Youth Sport Environment Questionnaire.

Science.gov (United States)

Eys, Mark; Loughead, Todd; Bray, Steven R; Carron, Albert V

2009-06-01

The purpose of the current study was to initiate the development of a psychometrically sound measure of cohesion for youth sport groups. A series of projects were undertaken in a four-phase research program. The initial phase was designed to garner an understanding of how youth sport group members perceived the concept of cohesion through focus groups (n = 56), open-ended questionnaires (n = 280), and a literature review. In Phase 2, information from the initial projects was used in the development of 142 potential items and content validity was assessed. In Phase 3, 227 participants completed a revised 87-item questionnaire. Principal components analyses further reduced the number of items to 17 and suggested a two-factor structure (i.e., task and social cohesion dimensions). Finally, support for the factorial validity of the resultant questionnaire was provided through confirmatory factor analyses with an independent sample (n = 352) in Phase 4. The final version of the questionnaire contains 16 items that assess task and social cohesion in addition to 2 negatively worded spurious items. Specific issues related to assessing youth perceptions of cohesion are discussed and future research directions are suggested.

Investigating the relationship between leader behaviours and group cohesion within women's walking groups.

Science.gov (United States)

Caperchione, Cristina; Mummery, W Kerry; Duncan, Mitch

2011-07-01

Early research has shown that leadership behaviour is viewed as a crucial factor in successfully developing team cohesion, effectively resulting in greater team satisfaction and more positive team outcomes. However, little is understood if these same factors have an impact on physical activity groups. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between leader behaviours and group cohesiveness within women's physical activity groups. Participants (N = 95) included a sub-sample of adult women who were previously involved in a women's physical activity/walking program. Participants assessed their groups' leader behaviour using items pertaining to enthusiasm, motivation, instruction and availability, and their groups' cohesiveness using the Physical Activity Group Environment Questionnaire (PAGEQ). Canonical correlation analysis was used to determine the strength of association between the four concepts of group cohesion (ATG-T, ATG-S, GI-T and GI-S) and the four items pertaining to leadership behaviour. A significant multivariate relationship was revealed between group cohesion and leadership behaviour, Wilks' lambda = 0.43, F(16,170) = 5.16, p cohesion. Although a cause-effect relationship cannot be determined, the current study can serve as a valuable template in guiding future research in examining potential mechanisms that may assist with physical activity sustainability. Crown Copyright © 2011. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Group cohesion in sports teams of different professional level

OpenAIRE

Vazha M. Devishvili; Marina O. Mdivani; Daria S. Elgina

2017-01-01

Background. Team sports are not only the most exciting sporting events. but also complex activities that make serious demands on players. The effectiveness of the team depends not only on the high level of gaming interaction. but also on the relationship between the players. The work is based on the material of sports teams and is devoted to the study of the phenomenon of group cohesion. As a basic model. the authors choose a 4-factor model that describes cohesion in sports teams. The pape...

Flow Function of Pharmaceutical Powders Is Predominantly Governed by Cohesion, Not by Friction Coefficients.

Science.gov (United States)

Leung, Lap Yin; Mao, Chen; Srivastava, Ishan; Du, Ping; Yang, Chia-Yi

2017-07-01

The purpose of this study was to demonstrate that the flow function (FFc) of pharmaceutical powders, as measured by rotational shear cell, is predominantly governed by cohesion but not friction coefficients. Driven by an earlier report showing an inverse correlation between FFc and the cohesion divided by the corresponding pre-consolidation stress (Wang et al. 2016. Powder Tech. 294:105-112), we performed analysis on a large data set containing 1130 measurements from a ring shear tester and identified a near-perfect inverse correlation between the FFc and cohesion. Conversely, no correlation was found between FFc and friction angles. We also conducted theoretical analysis and estimated such correlations based on Mohr-Coulomb failure model. We discovered that the correlation between FFc and cohesion can sustain as long as the angle of internal friction at incipient flow is not significantly larger than the angle of internal friction at steady-state flow, a condition covering almost all pharmaceutical powders. The outcome of this study bears significance in pharmaceutical development. Because the cohesion value is strongly influenced by the interparticle cohesive forces, this study effectively shows that it is more efficient to improve the pharmaceutical powder flow by lowering the interparticle cohesive forces than by lowering the interparticle frictions. Copyright © 2017 American Pharmacists Association®. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Winnowing and Flocculation in Bio-physical Cohesive Substrate: A Flume Experimental and Estuarine Study

Science.gov (United States)

Ye, L.; Parsons, D. R.; Manning, A. J.

2016-12-01

Cohesive sediment, or mud, is ubiquitously found in most aqueous environments, such as coasts and estuaries. The study of cohesive sediment behaviors requires the synchronous description of mutual interactions of grains (e.g., winnowing and flocculation), their physical properties (e.g., grain size) and also the ambient water. Herein, a series of flume experiments (14 runs) with different substrate mixtures of sand-clay-EPS (Extracellular Polymeric Substrates: secreted by aquatic microorganisms) are combined with an estuarine field survey (Dee estuary, NW England) to investigate the behavior of suspensions over bio-physical cohesive substrates. The experimental results indicate that winnowing and flocculation occur pervasively in bio-physical cohesive flow systems. Importantly however, the evolution of the bed and bedform dynamics and hence turbulence production can be lower when cohesivity is high. The estuarine survey also revealed that the bio-physical cohesion provided by both the clay and microorganism fractions in the bed, that pervasively exists in many natural estuarine systems, plays a significant role in controlling the interactions between bed substrate and sediment suspension and deposition, including controlling processes such as sediment winnowing, flocculation and re-deposition. Full understanding of these processes are essential in advancing sediment transport modelling and prediction studies across natural estuarine systems and the work will report on an improved conceptual model for sediment sorting deposition in bio-physical cohesive substrates.

The Importance of Neighborhood Social Cohesion and Social Capital for the Well Being of Older Adults in the Community

Science.gov (United States)

Cramm, Jane M.; van Dijk, Hanna M.; Nieboer, Anna P.

2013-01-01

Purpose of the Study: We aimed to investigate whether social capital (obtaining support through indirect ties such as from neighbors) and social cohesion (interdependencies among neighbors) within neighborhoods positively affect the well being of older adults. Design and Methods: This cross-sectional study included 945 of 1,440 (66% response rate)…

3D Bearing Capacity of Structured Cells Supported on Cohesive Soil: Simplified Analysis Method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martínez-Galván Sergio Antonio

2013-06-01

Full Text Available In this paper a simplified analysis method to compute the bearing capacity of structured cell foundations subjected to vertical loading and supported in soft cohesive soil is proposed. A structured cell is comprised by a top concrete slab structurally connected to concrete external walls that enclose the natural soil. Contrary to a box foundation it does not include a bottom slab and hence, the soil within the walls becomes an important component of the structured cell. This simplified method considers the three-dimensional geometry of the cell, the undrained shear strength of cohesive soils and the existence of structural continuity between the top concrete slab and the surrounding walls, along the walls themselves and the walls structural joints. The method was developed from results of numerical-parametric analyses, from which it was found that structured cells fail according to a punching-type mechanism.

Auto consolidated cohesive sediments erosion; Erosion des sediments cohesifs en autoconsolidation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ternat, F

2007-02-15

Pollutants and suspended matters of a river can accumulate into the sedimentary column. Once deposited, they are submitted to self-weight consolidation processes, ageing and burying, leading to an increase of their erosion resistance. Pollutant fluxes can be related to sedimentary fluxes, determined by threshold laws. In this work, an erosion threshold model is suggested by introducing a cohesion force into the usual force balance. A model of cohesion is developed on the basis of interactions between argillaceous cohesive particles (clays), particularly the Van der Waals force, whose parameterization is ensured by means of granulometry and porosity. Artificial erosion experiments were performed in a recirculating erosion flume with natural cored sediments where critical shear stress measurements were performed. Other analyses provided granulometry and porosity. The results obtained constitute a good database for the literature. The model is then applied to the experimental conditions and gives good agreement with measurements. An example of the accounting for self-weight consolidation processes is finally suggested, before finishing on a Mohr like diagram dedicated to soft cohesive sediment erosion. (author)

Transformational leadership and task cohesion in sport: the mediating role of inside sacrifice.

Science.gov (United States)

Cronin, Lorcan Donal; Arthur, Calum Alexander; Hardy, James; Callow, Nichola

2015-02-01

In this cross-sectional study, we examined a mediational model whereby transformational leadership is related to task cohesion via sacrifice. Participants were 381 American (Mage = 19.87 years, SD = 1.41) Division I university athletes (188 males, 193 females) who competed in a variety of sports. Participants completed measures of coach transformational leadership, personal and teammate inside sacrifice, and task cohesion. After conducting multilevel mediation analysis, we found that both personal and teammate inside sacrifice significantly mediated the relationships between transformational leadership behaviors and task cohesion. However, there were differential patterns of these relationships for male and female athletes. Interpretation of the results highlights that coaches should endeavor to display transformational leadership behaviors as they are related to personal and teammate inside sacrifices and task cohesion.

Bedform development in mixed sand-mud: The contrasting role of cohesive forces in flow and bed

Science.gov (United States)

Baas, Jaco H.; Davies, Alan G.; Malarkey, Jonathan

2013-01-01

The majority of subaqueous sediment on Earth consists of mixtures of cohesive clay and cohesionless sand and silt, but the role of cohesion on the development and stability of sedimentary bedforms is poorly understood. The results of new laboratory flume experiments on bedform development in cohesive, mixed sand-mud beds are compared with the results of previous experiments in which cohesive forces in high concentration clay flows dominated bedform development. Even though both series of mixed sand-mud experiments were conducted at similar flow velocities, the textural and structural properties of the bedforms were sufficiently different to permit the designation of key criteria for identifying bedform generation under cohesive flows against bedform generation on cohesive substrates. These criteria are essential for improving bedform size predictions in sediment transport modelling in modern sedimentary environments and for the reconstruction of depositional processes in the geological record. The current ripples developing on the cohesive, mixed sand-mud beds, with bed mud fractions of up to 18%, were significantly smaller than equivalent bedforms in noncohesive sand. Moreover, the bedform height showed a stronger inversely proportional relationship with initial bed mud fraction than the bedform wavelength. This is in contrast with the bedforms developing under the cohesive clay flows, which tend to increase in size with increasing suspended clay concentration until the flow turbulence is fully suppressed. Selective removal of clay from the mixed beds, i.e., clay winnowing, was found to be an important process, with 82-100% clay entrained into suspension after 2 h of bedform development. This winnowing process led to the development of a sand-rich armouring layer. This armouring layer is inferred to have protected the underlying mixed sand-mud from prolonged erosion, and in conjunction with strong cohesive forces in the bed may have caused the smaller size of the

Cohesion and coordination effects on transition metal surface energies

Science.gov (United States)

Ruvireta, Judit; Vega, Lorena; Viñes, Francesc

2017-10-01

Here we explore the accuracy of Stefan equation and broken-bond model semiempirical approaches to obtain surface energies on transition metals. Cohesive factors are accounted for either via the vaporization enthalpies, as proposed in Stefan equation, or via cohesive energies, as employed in the broken-bond model. Coordination effects are considered including the saturation degree, as suggested in Stefan equation, employing Coordination Numbers (CN), or as the ratio of broken bonds, according to the bond-cutting model, considering as well the square root dependency of the bond strength on CN. Further, generalized coordination numbers CN bar are contemplated as well, exploring a total number of 12 semiempirical formulations on the three most densely packed surfaces of 3d, 4d, and 5d Transition Metals (TMs) displaying face-centered cubic (fcc), body-centered cubic (bcc), or hexagonal close-packed (hcp) crystallographic structures. Estimates are compared to available experimental surface energies obtained extrapolated to zero temperature. Results reveal that Stefan formula cohesive and coordination dependencies are only qualitative suited, but unadvised for quantitative discussion, as surface energies are highly overestimated, favoring in addition the stability of under-coordinated surfaces. Broken-bond cohesion and coordination dependencies are a suited basis for quantitative comparison, where square-root dependencies on CN to account for bond weakening are sensibly worse. An analysis using Wulff shaped averaged surface energies suggests the employment of broken-bond model using CN to gain surface energies for TMs, likely applicable to other metals.

Relationship between Family Adaptability, Cohesion and Adolescent Problem Behaviors: Curvilinearity of Circumplex Model

Science.gov (United States)

Joh, Ju Youn; Kim, Sun; Park, Jun Li

2013-01-01

Background The Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scale (FACES) III using the circumplex model has been widely used in investigating family function. However, the criticism of the curvilinear hypothesis of the circumplex model has always been from an empirical point of view. This study examined the relationship between adolescent adaptability, cohesion, and adolescent problem behaviors, and especially testing the consistency of the curvilinear hypotheses with FACES III. Methods We used the data from 398 adolescent participants who were in middle school. A self-reported questionnaire was used to evaluate the FACES III and Youth Self Report. Results According to the level of family adaptability, significant differences were evident in internalizing problems (P = 0.014). But, in externalizing problems, the results were not significant (P = 0.305). Also, according to the level of family cohesion, significant differences were in internalizing problems (P = 0.002) and externalizing problems (P = 0.004). Conclusion The relationship between the dimensions of adaptability, cohesion and adolescent problem behaviors was not curvilinear. In other words, adolescents with high adaptability and high cohesion showed low problem behaviors. PMID:23730484

Relationship between Family Adaptability, Cohesion and Adolescent Problem Behaviors: Curvilinearity of Circumplex Model.

Science.gov (United States)

Joh, Ju Youn; Kim, Sun; Park, Jun Li; Kim, Yeon Pyo

2013-05-01

The Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scale (FACES) III using the circumplex model has been widely used in investigating family function. However, the criticism of the curvilinear hypothesis of the circumplex model has always been from an empirical point of view. This study examined the relationship between adolescent adaptability, cohesion, and adolescent problem behaviors, and especially testing the consistency of the curvilinear hypotheses with FACES III. We used the data from 398 adolescent participants who were in middle school. A self-reported questionnaire was used to evaluate the FACES III and Youth Self Report. According to the level of family adaptability, significant differences were evident in internalizing problems (P = 0.014). But, in externalizing problems, the results were not significant (P = 0.305). Also, according to the level of family cohesion, significant differences were in internalizing problems (P = 0.002) and externalizing problems (P = 0.004). The relationship between the dimensions of adaptability, cohesion and adolescent problem behaviors was not curvilinear. In other words, adolescents with high adaptability and high cohesion showed low problem behaviors.

Corporal Punishment and Child Aggression: Ethnic-Level Family Cohesion as a Moderator.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Yoona; Watson, Malcolm W

2017-04-01

Ethnicity has been examined as a putative moderator between parents' use of corporal punishment and children's externalizing behaviors. Yet, the reasons for this potential ethnic-level moderator have not been fully examined. The primary objective of this study was to examine whether the effect of corporal punishment on aggression is ethnic-specific using major racial groups inside and outside the U.S. samples and how the mean levels of cohesion in family relationships as found in different ethnic groups moderate the association between mothers' use of corporal punishment and children's aggression. A total of 729 mothers who had children aged 7 to 13 years were sampled from five ethnic groups (i.e., European American, African American, Hispanic American, Korean, and Chinese). Several hypotheses were tested to examine the moderating effect of ethnic-level, family cohesion on the relation of corporal punishment to children's aggression. As expected, the mean level of family cohesion was significantly different across ethnicities. Consistent results across parallel multilevel and fixed effect models showed that high corporal punishment was associated with more aggression in all ethnicities, but there was a significant variation in the association across ethnicities, and the variation was explained by ethnic-level family cohesion. There were weaker associations between corporal punishment and child aggression among ethnic groups with high family cohesion and stronger associations among ethnic groups with low family cohesion. Ethnic/cultural variation in this study emphasizes the importance of understanding family environment of diverse ethnic groups when evaluating the influence of corporal punishment on child behavior in different ethnic/cultural contexts.

Social Capital or Social Cohesion: What Matters for Subjective Well-Being?

Science.gov (United States)

Klein, Carlo

2013-01-01

The theoretical analysis of the concepts of social capital and of social cohesion shows that social capital should be considered as a micro concept whereas social cohesion, being a broader concept than social capital, is a more appropriate concept for macro analysis. Therefore, we suggest that data on the individual level should only be used to…

Symptom fluctuations, self-esteem, and cohesion during group cognitive behaviour therapy for early psychosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Lecomte, Tania; Leclerc, Claude; Wykes, Til

2018-03-01

Group cohesion has been linked to positive changes in self-esteem and in symptoms during group psychotherapy in people with psychosis. These changes may be linked to changes in symptoms as fluctuations in self-esteem have been linked to symptom fluctuations. We aimed to determine the relationship between these three factors - group cohesion, self-esteem, and symptoms - during group cognitive behaviour therapy for psychosis (GCBTp). We hypothesized that group cohesion would precede changes in symptoms and self-esteem and that improvements in self-esteem would precede improvements in symptoms. This is an uncontrolled longitudinal study recruiting from a convenience sample within two early psychosis clinics. Sixty-six individuals from first episode of psychosis treatment programmes participated in this study and received 24 sessions of a validated GCBTp protocol. Participants answered a brief questionnaire at the end of each session, measuring their group cohesion, self-esteem, and perception of their symptoms as worse, same, or better than usual. Orthogonal polynomial contrasts for time effects were estimated with a mixed model for repeated measures with a random cluster effect and revealed a quartic trend regarding changes in symptoms over the 24 sessions. Self-esteem, symptoms, and group cohesion were strongly linked during a given session. Also, self-esteem changes predicted changes in symptoms up to two sessions later, and symptoms changes predicted self-esteem changes at the next session. Group cohesion preceded improvements in both self-esteem and symptoms; self-esteem also predicted improvements in group cohesion. These results suggest that self-esteem and symptoms influence each other during therapy, with improvements in one leading to improvements in the other. Group cohesion also appears to be an essential prerequisite to positive changes in self-esteem and symptoms during GCBTp. This study emphasizes the interrelation between self-esteem improvements and

Pile-Reinforcement Behavior of Cohesive Soil Slopes: Numerical Modeling and Centrifuge Testing

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Liping Wang

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Centrifuge model tests were conducted on pile-reinforced and unreinforced cohesive soil slopes to investigate the fundamental behavior and reinforcement mechanism. A finite element analysis model was established and confirmed to be effective in capturing the primary behavior of pile-reinforced slopes by comparing its predictions with experimental results. Thus, a comprehensive understanding of the stress-deformation response was obtained by combining the numerical and physical simulations. The response of pile-reinforced slope was indicated to be significantly affected by pile spacing, pile location, restriction style of pile end, and inclination of slope. The piles have a significant effect on the behavior of reinforced slope, and the influencing area was described using a continuous surface, denoted as W-surface. The reinforcement mechanism was described using two basic concepts, compression effect and shear effect, respectively, referring to the piles increasing the compression strain and decreasing the shear strain of the slope in comparison with the unreinforced slope. The pile-soil interaction induces significant compression effect in the inner zone near the piles; this effect is transferred to the upper part of the slope, with the shear effect becoming prominent to prevent possible sliding of unreinforced slope.

Sex differences in the development of perceived family cohesion and depressive symptoms in Taiwanese adolescents.

Science.gov (United States)

Sze, Tat-Ming; Hsieh, Pei-Jung; Lin, Sieh-Hwa; Chen, I-Jung

2013-08-01

This study investigates the progression of family cohesion perceptions and depressive symptoms during the character development stage in adolescents. Data were used from the Taiwan Youth Project. The final sample comprised 2,690 adolescents with 1,312 girls (48.8%; M age = 13.0 yr., SD = 0.5). Latent curve growth analysis was employed to explore these developments. Seventh-grade girls reported greater family cohesion and more depressive symptoms than boys, and boys reported greater growth in family cohesion than girls. However, progression of depressive symptoms was not associated with the child's sex. Higher perceived family cohesion in Grade 7 correlated with less increase of depressive symptoms from Grades 9 to 11. The long-term positive influence of family cohesion on depressive symptoms is discussed.

Cohesiveness in financial news and its relation to market volatility.

Science.gov (United States)

Piškorec, Matija; Antulov-Fantulin, Nino; Novak, Petra Kralj; Mozetič, Igor; Grčar, Miha; Vodenska, Irena; Smuc, Tomislav

2014-05-22

Motivated by recent financial crises, significant research efforts have been put into studying contagion effects and herding behaviour in financial markets. Much less has been said regarding the influence of financial news on financial markets. We propose a novel measure of collective behaviour based on financial news on the Web, the News Cohesiveness Index (NCI), and we demonstrate that the index can be used as a financial market volatility indicator. We evaluate the NCI using financial documents from large Web news sources on a daily basis from October 2011 to July 2013 and analyse the interplay between financial markets and finance-related news. We hypothesise that strong cohesion in financial news reflects movements in the financial markets. Our results indicate that cohesiveness in financial news is highly correlated with and driven by volatility in financial markets.

Cohesiveness in Financial News and its Relation to Market Volatility

Science.gov (United States)

Piškorec, Matija; Antulov-Fantulin, Nino; Novak, Petra Kralj; Mozetič, Igor; Grčar, Miha; Vodenska, Irena; Šmuc, Tomislav

2014-01-01

Motivated by recent financial crises, significant research efforts have been put into studying contagion effects and herding behaviour in financial markets. Much less has been said regarding the influence of financial news on financial markets. We propose a novel measure of collective behaviour based on financial news on the Web, the News Cohesiveness Index (NCI), and we demonstrate that the index can be used as a financial market volatility indicator. We evaluate the NCI using financial documents from large Web news sources on a daily basis from October 2011 to July 2013 and analyse the interplay between financial markets and finance-related news. We hypothesise that strong cohesion in financial news reflects movements in the financial markets. Our results indicate that cohesiveness in financial news is highly correlated with and driven by volatility in financial markets. PMID:24849598

The role of bio-physical cohesive substrates on sediment winnowing and bedform development

Science.gov (United States)

Ye, Leiping; Parsons, Daniel; Manning, Andrew

2017-04-01

Existing sediment transport and bedform size predictions for natural open-channel flows in many environments are seriously impeded by a lack of process-based knowledge concerning the dynamics of complex bed sediment mixtures comprising cohesionless sand and biologically-active cohesive muds. A series of flume experiments (14 experimental runs) with different substrate mixtures of sand-clay-EPS (Extracellular Polymeric Substance) are combined with a detailed estuarine field survey (Dee estuary, NW England) to investigate the development of bedform morphologies and characteristics of suspended sediment over bio-physical cohesive substrates. The experimental results indicate that winnowing and sediment sorting can occur pervasively in bio-physical cohesive sediment - flow systems. Importantly however, the evolution of the bed and bedform dynamics, and hence turbulence production, is significantly reduced as bed substrate cohesivity increases. The estuarine subtidal zone survey also revealed that the bio-physical cohesion provided by both the clay and microorganism fractions in the bed plays a significant role in controlling the interactions between bed substrate and sediment suspension, deposition and bedform generation. The work will be presented here concludes by outlining the need to extend and revisit the effects of cohesivity in morphodynamic systems and the sets of parameters presently used in numerical modelling, particularly in the context of the impact of climate change on estuarine and coastal systems.

Social cohesion, social participation, and HIV related risk among female sex workers in Swaziland.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Virginia A Fonner

Full Text Available Social capital is important to disadvantaged groups, such as sex workers, as a means of facilitating internal group-related mutual aid and support as well as access to broader social and material resources. Studies among sex workers have linked higher social capital with protective HIV-related behaviors; however, few studies have examined social capital among sex workers in sub-Saharan Africa. This cross-sectional study examined relationships between two key social capital constructs, social cohesion among sex workers and social participation of sex workers in the larger community, and HIV-related risk in Swaziland using respondent-driven sampling. Relationships between social cohesion, social participation, and HIV-related risk factors were assessed using logistic regression. HIV prevalence among the sample was 70.4% (223/317. Social cohesion was associated with consistent condom use in the past week (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 2.25, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.30-3.90 and was associated with fewer reports of social discrimination, including denial of police protection. Social participation was associated with HIV testing (AOR = 2.39, 95% CI: 1.36-4.03 and using condoms with non-paying partners (AOR = 1.99, 95% CI: 1.13-3.51, and was inversely associated with reported verbal or physical harassment as a result of selling sex (AOR = 0.55, 95% CI: 0.33-0.91. Both social capital constructs were significantly associated with collective action, which involved participating in meetings to promote sex worker rights or attending HIV-related meetings/ talks with other sex workers. Social- and structural-level interventions focused on building social cohesion and social participation among sex workers could provide significant protection from HIV infection for female sex workers in Swaziland.

Design of Normal Concrete Mixtures Using Workability-Dispersion-Cohesion Method

OpenAIRE

Qasrawi, Hisham

2016-01-01

The workability-dispersion-cohesion method is a new proposed method for the design of normal concrete mixes. The method uses special coefficients called workability-dispersion and workability-cohesion factors. These coefficients relate workability to mobility and stability of the concrete mix. The coefficients are obtained from special charts depending on mix requirements and aggregate properties. The method is practical because it covers various types of aggregates that may not be within sta...

The Corporate Stake in Social Cohesion

Science.gov (United States)

Oketch, Moses O.

2005-01-01

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a function that transcends, but includes, making profits, creating jobs, and producing goods and services. The effectiveness with which corporations perform this function determines their contribution (or lack of contribution) to social cohesion. This article therefore presents a discussion of some of the…

Numerical insight into the micromechanics of jet erosion of a cohesive granular material

Science.gov (United States)

Cuéllar, Pablo; Benseghier, Zeyd; Luu, Li-Hua; Bonelli, Stéphane; Delenne, Jean-Yves; Radjaï, Farhang; Philippe, Pierre

2017-06-01

Here we investigate the physical mechanisms behind the surface erosion of a cohesive granular soil induced by an impinging jet by means of numerical simulations coupling fluid and grains at the microscale. The 2D numerical model combines the Discrete Element and Lattice Boltzmann methods (DEM-LBM) and accounts for the granular cohesion with a contact model featuring a paraboloidal yield surface. Here we review first the hydrodynamical conditions imposed by the fluid jet on a solid granular packing, turning then the attention to the impact of cohesion on the erosion kinetics. Finally, the use of an additional subcritical debonding damage model based on the work of Silvani and co-workers provides a novel insight into the internal solicitation of the cohesive granular sample by the impinging jet.

Family Cohesion in the Lives of Mexican American and European American Parents

Science.gov (United States)

Behnke, Andrew O.; MacDermid, Shelley M.; Coltrane, Scott L.; Parke, Ross D.; Duffy, Sharon; Widaman, Keith F.

2008-01-01

This study investigated similarities and differences in relations between stress and parenting behaviors for 509 Mexican American and European American fathers and mothers in Southern California. Our model posited that family cohesion mediates the relation between stressors and parenting behavior, and we found that family cohesion strongly…

Bedform development and morphodynamics in mixed cohesive sediment substrates: the importance of winnowing and flocculation

Science.gov (United States)

Ye, Leiping; Parsons, Daniel; Manning, Andrew

2016-04-01

There remains a lack of process-based knowledge of sediment dynamics within flows over bedforms generated in complex mixtures of cohesionless sand and biologically-active cohesive muds in natural estuarine flow systems. The work to be presented forms a part of the UK NERC "COHesive BEDforms (COHBED)" project which aims to fill this gap in knowledge. Herein results from a field survey in sub-tidal zone of Dee estuary (NW, England) and a set of large-scale laboratory experiments, conducted using mixtures of non-cohesive sands, cohesive muds and Xanthan gum (as a proxy for the biological stickiness of Extracellular Polymeric Substances (EPS)) will be presented. The results indicate the significance of biological-active cohesive sediments in controlling winnowing rates and flocculation dynamics, which contributes significantly to rates of bedform evolution.

Social cohesion through football: a quasi-experimental mixed methods design to evaluate a complex health promotion program

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Kemp Lynn

2010-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Social isolation and disengagement fragments local communities. Evidence indicates that refugee families are highly vulnerable to social isolation in their countries of resettlement. Research to identify approaches to best address this is needed. Football United is a program that aims to foster social inclusion and cohesion in areas with high refugee settlement in New South Wales, Australia, through skills and leadership development, mentoring, and the creation of links with local community and corporate leaders and organisations. The Social Cohesion through Football study's broad goal is to examine the implementation of a complex health promotion program, and to analyse the processes involved in program implementation. The study will consider program impact on individual health and wellbeing, social inclusion and cohesion, as well as analyse how the program by necessity interacts and adapts to context during implementation, a concept we refer to as plasticity. The proposed study will be the first prospective cohort impact study to our knowledge to assess the impact of a comprehensive integrated program using football as a vehicle for fostering social inclusion and cohesion in communities with high refugee settlement. Methods/design A quasi-experimental cohort study design with treatment partitioning involving four study sites. The study employs a 'dose response' model, comparing those with no involvement in the Football United program with those with lower or higher levels of participation. A range of qualitative and quantitative measures will be used in the study. Study participants' emotional well being, resilience, ethnic identity and other group orientation, feelings of social inclusion and belonging will be measured using a survey instrument complemented by relevant data drawn from in-depth interviews, self reporting measures and participant observation. The views of key informants from the program and the wider community will

English Metafunction Analysis in Chemistry Text: Characterization of Scientific Text

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Ahmad Amin Dalimunte, M.Hum

2013-09-01

Full Text Available The objectives of this research are to identify what Metafunctions are applied in chemistry text and how they characterize a scientific text. It was conducted by applying content analysis. The data for this research was a twelve-paragraph chemistry text. The data were collected by applying a documentary technique. The document was read and analyzed to find out the Metafunction. The data were analyzed by some procedures: identifying the types of process, counting up the number of the processes, categorizing and counting up the cohesion devices, classifying the types of modulation and determining modality value, finally counting up the number of sentences and clauses, then scoring the grammatical intricacy index. The findings of the research show that Material process (71of 100 is mostly used, circumstance of spatial location (26 of 56 is more dominant than the others. Modality (5 is less used in order to avoid from subjectivity. Impersonality is implied through less use of reference either pronouns (7 or demonstrative (7, conjunctions (60 are applied to develop ideas, and the total number of the clauses are found much more dominant (109 than the total number of the sentences (40 which results high grammatical intricacy index. The Metafunction found indicate that the chemistry text has fulfilled the characteristics of scientific or academic text which truly reflects it as a natural science.

A Molecular-Scale Understanding of Cohesion and Fracture in P3HT:Fullerene Blends

KAUST Repository

Tummala, Naga Rajesh

2015-04-21

Quantifying cohesion and understanding fracture phenomena in thin-film electronic devices are necessary for improved materials design and processing criteria. For organic photovoltaics (OPVs), the cohesion of the photoactive layer portends its mechanical flexibility, reliability, and lifetime. Here, the molecular mechanism for the initiation of cohesive failure in bulk heterojunction (BHJ) OPV active layers derived from the semiconducting polymer poly-(3-hexylthiophene) [P3HT] and two mono-substituted fullerenes is examined experimentally and through molecular-dynamics simulations. The results detail how, under identical conditions, cohesion significantly changes due to minor variations in the fullerene adduct functionality, an important materials consideration that needs to be taken into account across fields where soluble fullerene derivatives are used.

Social cohesion and integration: Learning active citizenship

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Jansen, T.J.M.; Chioncel, N.E.; Dekkers, H.P.J.M.

2006-01-01

This article starts from a conceptual clarification of the notions social integration and social cohesion as a prerequisite for the reorientation of citizenship education. Turning away from uncritically reproduced assumptions represented in mainstream `deficiency discourse', the article first

The production of coherent narrative texts by older language impaired children

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Sharon Tuch

1977-11-01

Full Text Available A group of  4 language-impaired children, 9 years old, and a group of 4 control children with no language problems were compared on an aspect of  'communicative competence' - their ability to produce coherent narrative texts (sequences of  sentences which were semantically coherent and appropriate to the situational context. A test was devised by the writer, comprising stories presented to the children through a number of sensory modalities. The narrative texts elicited from  the 2 groups were compared on a number of  measures of  semantic cohesion and measures of  general semantic content (or appropriateness to the situational context. The performance of the language-impaired children appeared to be inferior  to the control group on all the measures of semantic cohesion and general semantic content , supporting the hypothesis that the language-impaired group would perform  inferiorly  to the control group on an aspect of 'communicative competence'. The implications of  the study's findings for the diagnosis and treatment of  expressive language problems in the older child were discussed.

Alcohol Use Severity Among Adult Hispanic Immigrants: Examining the Roles of Family Cohesion, Social Support, and Gender.

Science.gov (United States)

Cano, Miguel Ángel; Sánchez, Mariana; Rojas, Patria; Ramírez-Ortiz, Daisy; Polo, Katherine L; Romano, Eduardo; De La Rosa, Mario

2018-03-21

This study examined (a) the direct association of family cohesion on alcohol use severity among adult Hispanic immigrants; (b) the indirect association of family cohesion on alcohol use severity via social support; and (c) if gender moderates the direct and indirect associations between family cohesion and alcohol use severity. Mediation and moderation analyses were conducted on a cross-sectional sample of 411 (men = 222, women = 189) participants from Miami-Dade, Florida. Findings indicate that higher family cohesion was directly associated with higher social support and lower alcohol use severity. Higher social support was also directly associated with lower alcohol use severity. Additionally, family cohesion had an indirect association with alcohol use severity via social support. Moderation analyses indicated that gender moderated the direct association between family cohesion and alcohol use severity, but did not moderate the indirect association. Some potential clinical implications may be that strengthening family cohesion may enhance levels of social support, and in turn, lower alcohol use severity among adult Hispanic immigrants. Furthermore, strengthening family cohesion may be especially beneficial to men in efforts to lower levels of alcohol use severity.

An acoustic method for predicting relative strengths of cohesive sediment deposits

Science.gov (United States)

Reed, A. H.; Sanders, W. M.

2017-12-01

Cohesive sediment dynamics are fundamentally determined by sediment mineralogy, organic matter composition, ionic strength of water, and currents. These factors work to bind the cohesive sediments and to determine depositional rates. Once deposited the sediments exhibit a nonlinear response to stress and they develop increases in shear strength. Shear strength is critically important in resuspension, transport, creep, and failure predictions. Typically, shear strength is determined by point measurements, both indirectly from free-fall penetrometers or directly on cores with a shear vane. These values are then used to interpolate over larger areas. However, the remote determination of these properties would provide continuos coverage, yet it has proven difficult with sonar systems. Recently, findings from an acoustic study on cohesive sediments in a laboratory setting suggests that cohesive sediments may be differentiated using parametric acoustics; this method pulses two primary frequencies into the sediment and the resultant difference frequency is used to determine the degree of acoustic nonlinearity within the sediment. In this study, two marine clay species, kaolinite and montmorillonite, and two biopolymers, guar gum and xanthan gum were mixed to make nine different samples. The samples were evaluated in a parametric acoustic measurement tank. From the parametric acoustic measurements, the quadratic nonlinearity coefficient (beta) was determined. beta was correlated with the cation exchange capacity (CEC), an indicator of shear strength. The results indicate that increased acoustic nonlinearity correlates with increased CEC. From this work, laboratory measurements indicate that this correlation may be used evaluate geotechnical properties of cohesive sediments and may provide a means to predict sediment weakness in subaqueous environments.

Topographic Signatures of Meandering Rivers with Differences in Outer Bank Cohesion

Science.gov (United States)

Kelly, S. A.; Belmont, P.

2014-12-01

Within a given valley setting, interactions between river hydraulics, sediment, topography, and vegetation determine attributes of channel morphology, including planform, width and depth, slope, and bed and bank properties. These feedbacks also govern river behavior, including migration and avulsion. Bank cohesion, from the addition of fine sediment and/or vegetation has been recognized in flume experiments as a necessary component to create and maintain a meandering channel planform. Greater bank cohesion slows bank erosion, limiting the rate at which a river can adjust laterally and preventing so-called "runaway widening" to a braided state. Feedbacks of bank cohesion on channel hydraulics and sediment transport may thus produce distinct topographic signatures, or patterns in channel width, depth, and point bar transverse slope. We expect that in bends of greater outer bank cohesion the channel will be narrower, deeper, and bars will have greater transverse slopes. Only recently have we recognized that biotic processes may imprint distinct topographic signatures on the landscape. This study explores topographic signatures of three US rivers: the lower Minnesota River, near Mankato, MN, the Le Sueur River, south central MN, and the Fall River, Rocky Mountain National Park, CO. Each of these rivers has variability in outer bank cohesion, quantified based on geotechnical and vegetation properties, and in-channel topography, which was derived from rtkGPS and acoustic bathymetry surveys. We present methods for incorporating biophysical feedbacks into geomorphic transport laws so that models can better simulate the spatial patterns and variability of topographic signatures.

Automated Behavior and Cohesion Assessment Tools, Phase II

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — An important consideration of long duration space flight operations is interpersonal dynamics that effect crew cohesion and performance. Flight surgeons have stated...

Leader Behaviors, Group Cohesion, and Participation in a Walking Group Program.

Science.gov (United States)

Izumi, Betty T; Schulz, Amy J; Mentz, Graciela; Israel, Barbara A; Sand, Sharon L; Reyes, Angela G; Hoston, Bernadine; Richardson, Dawn; Gamboa, Cindy; Rowe, Zachary; Diaz, Goya

2015-07-01

Less than half of all U.S. adults meet the 2008 Physical Activity Guidelines. Leader behaviors and group cohesion have been associated with increased participation or adherence in sports team and exercise class settings. Physical activity interventions in community settings that encompass these factors may enhance intervention adherence. The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of Community Health Promoter leader behaviors and group cohesion on participation in a walking group intervention among racially/ethnically diverse adults in low to moderate-income communities in Detroit, Michigan. Data for the current study were drawn from the Walk Your Heart to Health (WYHH) data set. WYHH was a multisite cluster RCT with a lagged intervention and outcome measurements at baseline and 4, 8, and 32 weeks. Pooled survey data from both intervention arms were used for the current study. Data were analyzed between August 2013 and October 2014. A total of 603 non-Hispanic black, non-Hispanic white, and Hispanic adults across five cohorts that began the 32-week WYHH intervention between March 2009 and October 2011. The intervention was a 32-week walking group program hosted by community- and faith-based organizations and facilitated by Community Health Promoters. Walking groups met three times per week for 90 minutes per session. To promote participation in or adherence to WYHH, Community Health Promoters used evidence-based strategies to facilitate group cohesion. Group members assumed increasing leadership responsibility for facilitating sessions over time. Participation in WYHH as measured by consistency of attendance. Community Health Promoter leader behaviors were positively associated with participation in WYHH. Social but not task cohesion was significantly associated with consistent participation. Social cohesion may mediate the relationship between leader behaviors and walking group participation. Providing leaders with training to build socially cohesive groups

Family cohesion and posttraumatic intrusion and avoidance among war veterans: a 20-year longitudinal study.

Science.gov (United States)

Zerach, Gadi; Solomon, Zahava; Horesh, Danny; Ein-Dor, Tsachi

2013-02-01

The bi-directional relationships between combat-induced posttraumatic symptoms and family relations are yet to be understood. The present study assesses the longitudinal interrelationship of posttraumatic intrusion and avoidance and family cohesion among 208 Israeli combat veterans from the 1982 Lebanon War. Two groups of veterans were assessed with self-report questionnaires 1, 3 and 20 years after the war: a combat stress reaction (CSR) group and a matched non-CSR control group. Latent Trajectories Modeling showed that veterans of the CSR group reported higher intrusion and avoidance than non-CSR veterans at all three points of time. With time, there was a decline in these symptoms in both groups, but the decline was more salient among the CSR group. The latter also reported lower levels of family cohesion. Furthermore, an incline in family cohesion levels was found in both groups over the years. Most importantly, Autoregressive Cross-Lagged Modeling among CSR and non-CSR veterans revealed that CSR veterans' posttraumatic symptoms in 1983 predicted lower family cohesion in 1985, and lower family cohesion, in turn, predicted posttraumatic symptoms in 2002. The findings suggest that psychological breakdown on the battlefield is a marker for future family cohesion difficulties. Our results lend further support for the bi-directional mutual effects of posttraumatic symptoms and family cohesion over time.

Applications of Text Messaging, and Bibliotherapy for Treatment of Patients Affected by Depressive Symptoms.

Science.gov (United States)

Taleban, Roya; Zamani, Ahmadreza; Moafi, Mohammad; Jiryaee, Nasrin; Khadivi, Reza

2016-01-01

Intensity of depressive symptoms could be exacerbated due to the paucity of appropriate treatments. We assessed the effectiveness of bibliotherapy and text messaging, which aimed at amelioration of patient's behavior and consciousness, which could lead to suicide prevention. This was a randomized clinical trial implemented in rural health centers of Isfahan district (Iran). Health centers were assigned in three trials consisting of the booklet, text messaging, and control groups. Each group consisted of 70 patients. Inclusion criteria were being affected by depressive symptom, text messaging. Out of 210 individuals, 198 patients finished this study. The intensity of depressive symptom was significantly affected through time and group factors as well as time-group interaction (F = 12.30, P text messaging group achieved neither durable nor significant success; thus, bibliotherapy could be utilized as a complementary methodology aiming depression treatment.

From Cascade to Bottom-Up Ecosystem Services Model: How Does Social Cohesion Emerge from Urban Agriculture?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anna Petit-Boix

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Given the expansion of urban agriculture (UA, we need to understand how this system provides ecosystem services, including foundational societal needs such as social cohesion, i.e., people’s willingness to cooperate with one another. Although social cohesion in UA has been documented, there is no framework for its emergence and how it can be modeled within a sustainability framework. In this study, we address this literature gap by showing how the popular cascade ecosystem services model can be modified to include social structures. We then transform the cascade model into a bottom-up causal framework for UA. In this bottom-up framework, basic biophysical (e.g., land availability and social (e.g., leadership ecosystem structures and processes lead to human activities (e.g., learning that can foster specific human attitudes and feelings (e.g., trust. These attitudes and feelings, when aggregated (e.g., social network, generate an ecosystem value of social cohesion. These cause-effect relationships can support the development of causality pathways in social life cycle assessment (S-LCA and further our understanding of the mechanisms behind social impacts and benefits. The framework also supports UA studies by showing the sustainability of UA as an emergent food supplier in cities.

Noncontact Cohesive Swimming of Bacteria in Two-Dimensional Liquid Films.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Ye; Zhai, He; Sanchez, Sandra; Kearns, Daniel B; Wu, Yilin

2017-07-07

Bacterial swimming in confined two-dimensional environments is ubiquitous in nature and in clinical settings. Characterizing individual interactions between swimming bacteria in 2D confinement will help to understand diverse microbial processes, such as bacterial swarming and biofilm formation. Here we report a novel motion pattern displayed by flagellated bacteria in 2D confinement: When two nearby cells align their moving directions, they tend to engage in cohesive swimming without direct cell body contact, as a result of hydrodynamic interaction but not flagellar intertwining. We further found that cells in cohesive swimming move with higher directional persistence, which can increase the effective diffusivity of cells by ∼3 times as predicted by computational modeling. As a conserved behavior for peritrichously flagellated bacteria, cohesive swimming in 2D confinement may be key to collective motion and self-organization in bacterial swarms; it may also promote bacterial dispersal in unsaturated soils and in interstitial space during infections.

Characteristics of Non-Cohesive Embankment Failure

Science.gov (United States)

Yusof, Z. M.; Wahab, A. K. A.; Ismail, Z.; Amerudin, S.

2018-04-01

Embankments are important infrastructure built to provide flood control. They also present risks to property and life due to their potential to fail and cause catastrophic flooding. To mitigate these risks, authorities and regulators need to carefully analyse and inspect dams to identify potential failure modes and protect against them. This paper presents morphology of an embankment study and its sediment behaviour of different grain sizes after the embankment fails. A few experiments were carried out for the embankment size of 1V:3H with different sediment grain sizes; medium and coarser sand. The embankment material used is non-cohesive soil with the embankment height of 0.1 m. The embankment is tested with inflows rate of Q = 0.8 L/s. Experimental results showed the peak discharge for the same inflow rate is affected by the shape of embankment breached. The peak discharge of medium grain size of the embankment is highest, which gave 3.63 L/s in comparison with a coarser embankment. This concludes that the embankment morphology patterns are dissimilar to each other. The flow and dimension of embankment are shown to influence the characteristics of embankment failure.

Simulation of debonding in Al/epoxy T-peel joints using a potential-based cohesive zone model

KAUST Repository

Alfano, Marco

2011-06-10

In this work, a cohesive zone model of fracture is employed to study debonding in plastically deforming Al/epoxy T-peel joints. In order to model the adhesion between the bonded metal strips, the Park-Paulino-Roesler (PPR) potential based cohesive model (J Mech Phys Solids, 2009;57:891-908) is employed, and interface elements are implemented in a finite element com-mercial code. A study on the influence of the cohesive properties (i.e. cohesive strength, fracture energy, shape parameter and slope indicator) on the predicted peel-force versus displacement plots reveals that the numerical results are mostly sensitive to cohesive strength and fracture energy. In turn, these parameters are tuned until a match between experimental and simulated load displacement curves is achieved.

Simulation of debonding in Al/epoxy T-peel joints using a potential-based cohesive zone model

KAUST Repository

Alfano, Marco; Furgiuele, Franco; Lubineau, Gilles; Paulino, Glaucio H.

2011-01-01

In this work, a cohesive zone model of fracture is employed to study debonding in plastically deforming Al/epoxy T-peel joints. In order to model the adhesion between the bonded metal strips, the Park-Paulino-Roesler (PPR) potential based cohesive model (J Mech Phys Solids, 2009;57:891-908) is employed, and interface elements are implemented in a finite element com-mercial code. A study on the influence of the cohesive properties (i.e. cohesive strength, fracture energy, shape parameter and slope indicator) on the predicted peel-force versus displacement plots reveals that the numerical results are mostly sensitive to cohesive strength and fracture energy. In turn, these parameters are tuned until a match between experimental and simulated load displacement curves is achieved.

Cohesive delamination and frictional contact on joining surface via XFEM

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Francesco Parrinello

2018-02-01

Full Text Available In the present paper, the complex mechanical behaviour of the surfaces joining two differentbodies is analysed by a cohesive-frictional interface constitutive model. The kinematical behaviouris characterized by the presence of discontinuous displacement fields, that take place at the internalconnecting surfaces, both in the fully cohesive phase and in the delamination one. Generally, in order tocatch discontinuous displacement fields, internal connecting surfaces (adhesive layers are modelled bymeans of interface elements, which connect, node by node, the meshes of the joined bodies, requiringthe mesh to be conforming to the geometry of the single bodies and to the relevant connecting surface.In the present paper, the Extended Finite Element Method (XFEM is employed to model, both fromthe geometrical and from the kinematical point of view, the whole domain, including the connectedbodies and the joining surface. The joining surface is not discretized by specific finite elements, butit is defined as an internal discontinuity surface, whose spatial position inside the mesh is analyticallydefined. The proposed approach is developed for two-dimensional composite domains, formed by twoor more material portions joined together by means of a zero thickness adhesive layer. The numericalresults obtained with the proposed approach are compared with the results of the classical interfacefinite element approach. Some examples of delamination and frictional contact are proposed withlinear, circular and curvilinear adhesive layer.

Numerical model of glulam beam delamination in dependence on cohesive strength

Science.gov (United States)

Kawecki, Bartosz; Podgórski, Jerzy

2018-01-01

This paper presents an attempt of using a finite element method for predicting delamination of a glue laminated timber beam through a cohesive layer. There were used cohesive finite elements, quadratic stress damage initiation criterion and mixed mode energy release rate failure model. Finite element damage was equal to its complete stiffness degradation. Timber material was considered to be an orthotropic with plastic behaviour after reaching bending limit.

Community empowerment and community cohesion: parallel agendas for community building in England?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marjorie Mayo

2009-02-01

Full Text Available Community empowerment and community capacity building have been central to government agendas in Britain over the past decade. Agendas for tackling the so-called ‘War on Terrorism’ and promoting community cohesion have become increasingly significant in addition, especially since the bombings in London in 2005. This article focuses upon the current gap between these differing agendas. This is particularly relevant in an era of increasing globalisation, with considerable debate on the impact of migration, and anxieties about previous approaches to multiculturalism that have been the subject of growing criticism. Having set out these gaps in public policy and research in this field, the article examines the evidence from research, including 100 interviews together with focus groups conducted in three localities in England, identifying the problems, in terms of the lack of engagement of ‘new communities’ and in terms of the potential tensions within and between communities. There was, however, encouraging evidence that strategies were being developed to develop more inclusive, more democratically accountable and more effective forms of community engagement. The article concludes by summarising potential implications for building community cohesion and social solidarity.

Lysophosphatidic Acid Disrupts Junctional Integrity and Epithelial Cohesion in Ovarian Cancer Cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yueying Liu

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Ovarian cancer metastasizes via exfoliation of free-floating cells and multicellular aggregates from the primary tumor to the peritoneal cavity. A key event in EOC metastasis is disruption of cell-cell contacts via modulation of intercellular junctional components including cadherins. Ascites is rich in lysophosphatidic acid (LPA, a bioactive lipid that may promote early events in ovarian cancer dissemination. The objective of this paper was to assess the effect of LPA on E-cadherin junctional integrity. We report a loss of junctional E-cadherin in OVCAR3, OVCA429, and OVCA433 cells exposed to LPA. LPA-induced loss of E-cadherin was concentration and time dependent. LPA increased MMP-9 expression and promoted MMP-9-catalyzed E-cadherin ectodomain shedding. Blocking LPA receptor signaling inhibited MMP-9 expression and restored junctional E-cadherin staining. LPA-treated cells demonstrated a significant decrease in epithelial cohesion. Together these data support a model wherein LPA induces MMP-9 expression and MMP-9-catalyzed E-cadherin ectodomain shedding, resulting in loss of E-cadherin junctional integrity and epithelial cohesion, facilitating metastatic dissemination of ovarian cancer cells.

A cohesive zone framework for environmentally assisted fatigue

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

del Busto, Susana; Betegón, Covadonga; Martínez Pañeda, Emilio

2017-01-01

We present a compelling finite element framework to model hydrogen assisted fatigue by means of a hydrogen- and cycle-dependent cohesive zone formulation. The model builds upon: (i) appropriate environmental boundary conditions, (ii) a coupled mechanical and hydrogen diffusion response, driven...... by chemical potential gradients, (iii) a mechanical behavior characterized by finite deformation J2 plasticity, (iv) a phenomenological trapping model, (v) an irreversible cohesive zone formulation for fatigue, grounded on continuum damage mechanics, and (vi) a traction-separation law dependent on hydrogen...... coverage calculated from first principles. The computations show that the present scheme appropriately captures the main experimental trends; namely, the sensitivity of fatigue crack growth rates to the loading frequency and the environment. The role of yield strength, work hardening, and constraint...

A cohesive zone model to simulate the hydrogen embrittlement effect on a high-strength steel

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

G. Gobbi

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The present work aims to model the fracture mechanical behavior of a high-strength low carbon steel, AISI 4130 operating in hydrogen contaminated environment. The study deals with the development of 2D finite element cohesive zone model (CZM reproducing a toughness test. Along the symmetry plane over the crack path of a C(T specimen a zero thickness layer of cohesive elements are implemented in order to simulate the crack propagation. The main feature of this kind of model is the definition of a traction-separation law (TSL that reproduces the constitutive response of the material inside to the cohesive elements. Starting from a TSL calibrated on hydrogen non-contaminated material, the embrittlement effect is simulated by reducing the cohesive energy according to the total hydrogen content including the lattice sites (NILS and the trapped amount. In this perspective, the proposed model consists of three steps of simulations. First step evaluates the hydrostatic pressure. It drives the initial hydrogen concentration assigned in the second step, a mass diffusion analysis, defining in this way the contribution of hydrogen moving across the interstitial lattice sites. The final stress analysis, allows getting the total hydrogen content, including the trapped amount, and evaluating the new crack initiation and propagation due to the hydrogen presence. The model is implemented in both plane strain and plane stress configurations; results are compared in the discussion. From the analyses, it resulted that hydrogen is located only into lattice sites and not in traps, and that the considered steel experiences a high hydrogen susceptibility. By the proposed procedure, the developed numerical model seems a reliable and quick tool able to estimate the mechanical behavior of steels in presence of hydrogen.

THE THREATS TO EU INTERREGIONAL COHESION IN THE POST-LISBON AGENDA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adrian-Gabriel CORPADEAN

2014-10-01

Full Text Available The intricate context of the economic crisis and the ever more obvious failures of the Lisbon Treaty appear to have amplified a phenomenon which threatens the cohesion at regional and national level in several states across the EU. It is a reaffirmation of regional or subnational identities, prompted by an increase in Eurosceptical attitudes and the feeling of Euro-fatigue, not only at the core of European construction, but also in "The New Europe", namely East-Central member states. The mistrust in the latest reconfiguration of the EU's institutions, engendered by the Treaty of Lisbon, has once again triggered accusations of democratic deficit throughout EU-28. If one adds to this the chronic lack of confidence in national administrations expressed by several more or less autonomous regions, a pertinent scenario arises, entailing such perilous concepts as separatism, disintegration and unrest. The classic right to self-determination has yet to play its part in an increasingly tense European geopolitical context. This article mentions the hot spots across the EU which endanger its regional cohesion, as well as the current institutional and political background fostering the sinuous course of events in places such as Scotland, Catalunya or Venice, as prompted by the post-Lisbon state of affairs.

Team cohesion and ethnic-cultural identity in adolescent migrant athletes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Morela, Eleftheria; Hatzigeorgiadis, Antonis; Kouli, Olga

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the role of sport participation in the social integration of adolescents with non-dominant ethnic and cultural backgrounds. In particular, this study investigated the relationship between team cohesion and ethnic-cultural identity. Participants were 83 young...... migrant athletes (mean age 15.60 years). Participants completed the Ethnic/Cultural Identity Salience Questionnaire and the Youth Sport Environment Questionnaire. Regression analyses showed that cohesion negatively predicted feelings of fringe and lack of interaction. Our findings suggest that sport...

Spilling over: Partner parenting stress as a predictor of family cohesion in parents of adolescents with developmental disabilities.

Science.gov (United States)

Mitchell, Darcy B; Szczerepa, Alexandra; Hauser-Cram, Penny

2016-01-01

Family cohesion relates to positive outcomes for both parents and children. Maintaining cohesion may be especially challenging for families of adolescents with developmental disabilities, yet this has been studied infrequently in this group. We investigated cohesion in these families, particularly with respect to partner stress, using the notion of the 'spillover effect' as a model. Adolescents with disabilities and their parents participated. Parents reported on teen adaptive and problem behaviours and on marital satisfaction, parenting stress, and family cohesion. The stress of one partner was tested as a predictor of the quality of family cohesion reported by the other. Adolescent behaviour problems were negative predictors of family cohesion in mothers, and marital satisfaction positively predicted cohesion for both parents. Above other factors, greater partner stress predicted poorer family cohesion for both fathers and mothers. Marital satisfaction acted as a suppressor of this relation. To improve the overall climate of families, care providers should take into consideration individual relationships, including the marital relationship. In addition, the possibility of spillover from one individual to another should be recognized as a factor in family functioning. Family-centred practices are likely to lead to greater feelings of cohesion and overall better individual and family well-being. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Outdoor activities and depressive symptoms in displaced older adults following natural disaster: community cohesion as mediator and moderator.

Science.gov (United States)

Chao, Shiau-Fang

2016-09-01

This investigation examined whether community cohesion mediates or moderates the relationship between outdoor activities and depressive symptoms in older adults displaced by Typhoon Morakot in Taiwan. This cross-sectional study included 292 adults aged 65 years or older who were relocated to permanent houses after Typhoon Morakot damaged their homes on 8th August 2009. Multiple regression analysis was applied to test the role of community cohesion on the association between outdoor activities and depressive symptoms. The sample of displaced older adults displayed higher prevalence of depressive symptoms than the average for community dwelling older people in Taiwan. Community cohesion fully mediated the relationship between outdoor activities and depressive symptoms. Community cohesion also moderated the relationship between outdoor activities and depressive symptoms. Community cohesion occupies a key role on the link between outdoor activities and depressive symptoms. Participation in outdoor activities was associated positively with community cohesion, while high community cohesion was related negatively to depressive symptoms. Additionally, the benefit of outdoor activities to fewer depressive symptoms only manifested in older adults with high community cohesion. Programs and services should be designed to enhance community cohesion in order to maximize the benefit of outdoor activities to the mental health of displaced older adults after natural disasters.

Towards re-reforming the EU cohesion policy: Key issues in the debate and some thoughts on peripheral regions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Foutakis Dimitris

2009-01-01

Full Text Available Two years after the inception of the fourth programming period, the debate on post-2013 cohesion policy has already been launched. In fact, public consultation was launched in 2007 and considerable steps have followed since then, while others are about to start. At the same time, the new strategic guidelines and rules that guide cohesion policy have only been in place for a short period and as yet their impacts are not clear. Critical events and major political issues that concern the whole EU structure are the main factors behind this evolution. In particular, the economic recession in addition to the prospects for the new EU Treaty could be considered decisive elements in the launch of the debate on future cohesion policy. More specifically, among the issues highlighted in this context are the distinction between efficiency and equity objectives, the need for a place-based strategy, high growth sectors and their contribution to cohesion, and the potential for creativity and innovation. Overall, it seems like old dilemmas of spatial development recur, while contemporary ones also gain ground. The outcome of this debate is of significant importance for all EU regions not only in budgetary terms, but also in terms of strategic policy goals. This paper examines the above future policy issues with an emphasis on regions faced with particular difficulties such as less favored regions as well as those in the EU periphery.

The effect of coarse gravel on cohesive sediment entrapment in an annular flume

Science.gov (United States)

Glasbergen, K.; Stone, M.; Krishnappan, B.; Dixon, J.; Silins, U.

2015-03-01

While cohesive sediment generally represents a small fraction (armour layer of the gravel bed (>16 Pa), cohesive materials trapped within the gravel bed will be entrained and transported into the Glenmore Reservoir, where sediment-associated nutrients may pose treatment challenges to the drinking water supply.

How to deal with legal uncertainty: Managing and Audit Authorities in Cohesion Policy

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Meuleman, Lysette; Brenninkmeijer, A.F.M.

2017-01-01

Cohesion policy (ERDF, ESF and CF) is implemented in a system of shared management. Signals received from some EU countries indicate that legal uncertainty is created for beneficiaries of cohesion policy funds due to differences in interpretation of, mostly national, regulation. This is a problem

Group Cohesion in Experiential Growth Groups

Science.gov (United States)

Steen, Sam; Vasserman-Stokes, Elaina; Vannatta, Rachel

2014-01-01

This article explores the effect of web-based journaling on changes in group cohesion within experiential growth groups. Master's students were divided into 2 groups. Both used a web-based platform to journal after each session; however, only 1 of the groups was able to read each other's journals. Quantitative data collected before and…

[Team cohesiveness: opinions of a group of primary health care professionals from Salamanca].

Science.gov (United States)

González, F J; de Cabo, A; Morán, M J; Manzano, J M

1993-04-01

To assess the view of a group of Primary care professionals on their level of perception of group cohesiveness in their teams' work dynamic. A descriptive and sectional study. Four urban health centres in Salamanca with a recognised teaching activity. Both health professionals and those outside the Health Service, working in Primary Care, who had been members of their teams for more than a year (N = 90). Descriptive statistics and "Chi squared" tests were employed. 72%. A high level of agreement on the need for team work (95.23%). They perceived their group cohesiveness as being very low (84.21% affirmed that they encounter problems of cohesiveness). The main statements concerning this lack of cohesiveness were: "lack of common objectives" (25.5%), "intolerance between workers" (20.13%), "work not shared" (19.46%) and "the taking of decisions individually" (19.44%). The main causes given were: lack of support from Management (23.74%) and too little training for team work (21.58%). There is a high degree of conviction that the team work model is the most efficacious way of developing Primary Care. However in three of the four teams questioned, there were serious problems preventing the teams' reaching an adequate level of group cohesiveness.

Searching for plant root traits to improve soil cohesion and resist soil erosion

Science.gov (United States)

De Baets, Sarah; Smyth, Kevin; Denbigh, Tom; Weldon, Laura; Higgins, Ben; Matyjaszkiewicz, Antoni; Meersmans, Jeroen; Chenchiah, Isaac; Liverpool, Tannie; Quine, Tim; Grierson, Claire

2017-04-01

Soil erosion poses a serious threat to future food and environmental security. Soil erosion protection measures are therefore of great importance for soil conservation and food security. Plant roots have proven to be very effective in stabilizing the soil and protecting the soil against erosion. However, no clear insights are yet obtained into the root traits that are responsible for root-soil cohesion. This is important in order to better select the best species for soil protection. Research using Arabidopsis mutants has made great progress towards explaining how root systems are generated by growth, branching, and responses to gravity, producing mutants that affect root traits. In this study, the performance of selected Arabidopsis mutants is analyzed in three root-soil cohesion assays. Measurements of detachment, uprooting force and soil detachment are here combined with the microscopic analysis of root properties, such as the presence, length and density of root hairs in this case. We found that Arabidopsis seedlings with root hairs (wild type, wer myb23, rsl4) were more difficult to detach from gel media than hairless (cpc try) or short haired (rsl4, rhd2) roots. Hairy roots (wild type, wer myb23) on mature, non-reproductive rosettes were more difficult to uproot from compost or clay soil than hairless roots (cpc try). At high root densities, erosion rates from soils with hairless roots (cpc try) were as much as 10 times those seen from soils occupied by roots with hairs (wer myb23, wild type). We find therefore root hairs play a significant role in root-soil cohesion and in minimizing erosion. This framework and associated suite of experimental assays demonstrates its ability to measure the effect of any root phenotype on the effectiveness of plant roots in binding substrates and reducing erosion.

Slow stress relaxation behavior of cohesive powders

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Imole, Olukayode Isaiah; Paulick, Maria; Magnanimo, Vanessa; Morgenmeyer, Martin; Ramaioli, Marco; Chavez Montes, Bruno E.; Kwade, Arno; Luding, Stefan

2016-01-01

We present uniaxial (oedometric) compression tests on two cohesive industrially relevant granular materials (cocoa and limestone powder). A comprehensive set of experiments is performed using two devices – the FT4 Powder Rheometer and the custom made lambdameter – in order to investigate the

Effect of clay type on the velocity and run-out distance of cohesive sediment gravity flows

Science.gov (United States)

Baker, Megan; Baas, Jaco H.; Malarkey, Jonathan; Kane, Ian

2016-04-01

Novel laboratory experiments in a lock-exchange flume filled with natural seawater revealed that sediment gravity flows (SGFs) laden with kaolinite clay (weakly cohesive), bentonite clay (strongly cohesive) and silica flour (non-cohesive) have strongly contrasting flow properties. Knowledge of cohesive clay-laden sediment gravity flows is limited, despite clay being one of the most abundant sediment types on earth and subaqueous SGFs transporting the greatest volumes of sediment on our planet. Cohesive SGFs are particularly complex owing to the dynamic interplay between turbulent and cohesive forces. Cohesive forces allow the formation of clay flocs and gels, which increase the viscosity and shear strength of the flow, and attenuate shear-induced turbulence. The experimental SGFs ranged from dilute turbidity currents to dense debris flows. For each experiment, the run-out distance, head velocity and thickness distribution of the deposit were measured, and the flow properties were recorded using high-resolution video. Increasing the volume concentration of kaolinite and bentonite above 22% and 17%, respectively, reduced both the maximum head velocity and the run-out distances of the SGFs. We infer that increasing the concentration of clay particles enhances the opportunity for the particles to collide and flocculate, thus increasing the viscosity and shear strength of the flows at the expense of turbulence, and reducing their forward momentum. Increasing the volume concentration in the silica-flour laden flows from 1% to 46% increased the maximum head velocity, owing to the gradual increase in excess density. Thereafter, however, intergranular friction is inferred to have attenuated the turbulence, causing a rapid reduction in the maximum head velocity and run-out distance as suspended sediment concentration was increased. Moving from flows carrying bentonite via kaolinite to silica flour, a progressively larger volumetric suspended sediment concentration was needed

Determination of diffusion coefficients in cohesive and sandy sediment from the area of Gorleben

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Klotz, D.

1989-01-01

The cohesive and sandy sediments stem from shaft driving at the Gorleben salt done. For the cohesive materials, HTD was used as a tracer substance, while I-131 - was used for the sandy materials. Diffusion coefficients of HTD in cohesive materials in their natural texture are in the range of 2x10 -6 to 5x10 -6 cm 2 /s, those of I-131 - in the investigated uniform fine and middle sands are approximately 3x10 -6 cm 2 /s. (DG) [de

Supporting students' learning in the domain of computer science

Science.gov (United States)

Gasparinatou, Alexandra; Grigoriadou, Maria

2011-03-01

Previous studies have shown that students with low knowledge understand and learn better from more cohesive texts, whereas high-knowledge students have been shown to learn better from texts of lower cohesion. This study examines whether high-knowledge readers in computer science benefit from a text of low cohesion. Undergraduate students (n = 65) read one of four versions of a text concerning Local Network Topologies, orthogonally varying local and global cohesion. Participants' comprehension was examined through free-recall measure, text-based, bridging-inference, elaborative-inference, problem-solving questions and a sorting task. The results indicated that high-knowledge readers benefited from the low-cohesion text. The interaction of text cohesion and knowledge was reliable for the sorting activity, for elaborative-inference and for problem-solving questions. Although high-knowledge readers performed better in text-based and in bridging-inference questions with the low-cohesion text, the interaction of text cohesion and knowledge was not reliable. The results suggest a more complex view of when and for whom textual cohesion affects comprehension and consequently learning in computer science.

Neighborhood Social Cohesion and Sleep Outcomes in the Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander National Health Interview Survey.

Science.gov (United States)

Young, Marielle C; Gerber, Monica W; Ash, Tayla; Horan, Christine M; Taveras, Elsie M

2018-05-16

Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders (NHPIs) have the lowest attainment of healthy sleep duration among all racial and ethnic groups in the United States. We examined associations of neighborhood social cohesion with sleep duration and quality. Cross-sectional analysis of 2,464 adults in the NHPI National Health Interview Survey (2014). Neighborhood social cohesion was categorized as a continuous and categorical variable into low (15) according to tertiles of the distribution of responses. We used multinomial logistic regression to examine the adjusted odds ratio of short and long sleep duration relative to intermediate sleep duration. We used binary logistic regression for dichotomous sleep quality outcomes. Sleep outcomes were modeled as categorical variables. 40% of the cohort reported short (9 hours) duration. Mean (SE, range) social cohesion score was 12.4 units (0.11, 4-16) and 23% reported low social cohesion. In multivariable models, each 1 SD decrease in neighborhood social cohesion score was associated with higher odds of short sleep duration (OR: 1.14, 95% CI: 1.02, 1.29). Additionally, low social cohesion was associated with increased odds of short sleep duration (OR: 1.53, 95% CI: 1.10, 2.13). No associations between neighborhood social cohesion and having trouble falling or staying asleep and feeling well rested were found. Low neighborhood social cohesion is associated with short sleep duration in NHPIs.

An Examination of Text Complexity as Characterized by Readability and Cohesion

Science.gov (United States)

Reed, Deborah K.; Kershaw-Herrera, Sarah

2016-01-01

To better understand dimensions of text complexity and their effect on the comprehension of adolescents, 103 high school seniors were randomly assigned to 4 groups. Each group read versions of the same 2 informational passages and answered comprehension test items targeting factual recall and inferences of causal content. Group A passages had a…

Social cohesion: solution or driver of urban violence?

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

to the state intervention, eroding existing civil society organization. The presence of the police ... creating its own parallel structures to existing representative bodies, ... When designing interventions take into account that social cohesion may ...

Solidarity and Social Cohesion in Late Modernity

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Juul, Søren

2010-01-01

social cohesion. The central theme is that contemporary solidarity is about recognition and a fair distribution of chances for recognition. This ideal may function as a normative standard for critical research and as a guideline for people in their moral struggles. What ultimately needs to be done...

Biofunctional Understanding and Conceptual Control: Searching for Systematic Consensus in Systemic Cohesion

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Asghar Iran-Nejad

2017-10-01

Full Text Available For first generation scientists after the cognitive revolution, knowers were in active control over all (stages of information processing. Then, following a decade of transition shaped by intense controversy, embodied cognition emerged and suggested sources of control other than those implied by metaphysical information processing. With a thematic focus on embodiment science and an eye toward systematic consensus in systemic cohesion, the present study explores the roles of biofunctional and conceptual control processes in the wholetheme spiral of biofunctional understanding (see Iran-Nejad and Irannejad, 2017b, Figure 1. According to this spiral, each of the two kinds of understanding has its own unique set of knower control processes. For conceptual understanding (CU, knowers have deliberate attention-allocation control over their first-person “knowthat” and “knowhow” content combined as mutually coherent corequisites. For biofunctional understanding (BU, knowers have attention-allocation control only over their knowthat content but knowhow control content is ordinarily conspicuously absent. To test the hypothesis of differences in the manner of control between CU and BU, participants in two experiments read identical-format statements for internal consistency, as response time was recorded. The results of Experiment 1 supported the hypothesis of differences in the manner of control between the two types of control processes; and Experiment 2 confirmed the results of Experiment 1. These findings are discussed in terms of the predicted differences between BU and CU control processes, their roles in regulating the physically unobservable flow of systemic cohesion in the wholetheme spiral, and a proposal for systematic consensus in systemic cohesion to serve as the second guiding principle in biofunctional embodiment science next to physical science’s first guiding principle of systematic observation.

A cohesive plastic/damage-zone model for ductile crack analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, C.; Gross, D.

1995-01-01

A cohesive plastic/damage-zone model of the Dugdale-Barenblatt type (G.I. Barenblatt, Adv. Appl. Mech. 7 (1962) 55-129; D.S. Dugdale, J. Mech. Phys. Solids 8 (1960) 100-104) is presented for analyzing crack growth in ductile materials with damage evolution. A semi-infinite Mode I crack in plane stress or plane stress is considered. The damage is assumed to be present in form of dispersed microvoids which are localized into a narrow strip ahead of the crack-tip. A simple damage model of the Gurson model type (A.L. Gurson, J. Eng. Mater. Technol. 99 (1977) 2-15; V. Tvergaard, Advances in Applied Mechanics, Vol. 27, Academic Press, 1990, pp. 83-151) is developed for uniaxial tension to describe the macroscopic properties of the cohesive plastic/damage-zone. Under small-scale yielding and small-scale damage conditions, a system of nonlinear integral equations for the plastic strain and the length of the cohesive plastic/damage-zone is derived. Numerical results are presented and discussed to reveal the effect of damage evolution on the ductile crack growth. (orig.)

Factors affecting the recreation of a story from a text : A cross-cultural experiment

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Stokmans, Mia; el Aissati, Abder; Boogaard, Marianne; van den Bogaerde, Beppie; Bacchini, Sylvia; Curcic, Maja; de Jong, Nivja; le Pichon, Emanuelle; Rasier, Laurent

In this research, we regard a text as a written expression about an extraordinary experience in which the socio-economic, cultural and historical background of an author affects the way this experience is translated into a text that tells the story. From this perspective, the task of a reader is to

Bridge pier scour in cohesive soil: a review

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Y Sonia Devi

process and mechanism at bridge pier in cohesive and noncohesive soil are presented. The effects ... examples: one under laboratory condition and another under field condition. ..... not take part in scouring as these sediments are swept over.

Development and Application of a Cohesive Sediment Transport Model in Coastal Louisiana

Science.gov (United States)

Sorourian, S.; Nistor, I.

2017-12-01

The Louisiana coast has suffered from rapid land loss due to the combined effects of increasing the rate of eustatic sea level rise, insufficient riverine sediment input and subsidence. The sediment in this region is dominated by cohesive sediments (up to 80% of clay). This study presents a new model for calculating suspended sediment concentration (SSC) of cohesive sediments. Several new concepts are incorporated into the proposed model, which is capable of estimating the spatial and temporal variation in the concentration of cohesive sediment. First, the model incorporates the effect of electrochemical forces between cohesive sediment particles. Second, the wave friction factor is expressed in terms of the median particle size diameter in order to enhance the accuracy of the estimation of bed shear stress. Third, the erosion rate of cohesive sediments is also expressed in time-dependent form. Simulated SSC profiles are compared with field data collected from Vermilion Bay, Louisiana. The results of the proposed model agree well with the experimental data, as soon as steady state condition is achieved. The results of the new numerical models provide a better estimation of the suspended sediment concentration profile compared to the initial model developed by Mehta and Li, 2003. Among the proposed developments, the formulation of a time-dependent erosion rate shows the most accurate results. Coupling of present model with the Finite-Volume, primitive equation Community Ocean Model (FVCOM) would shed light on the fate of fine-grained sediments in order to increase overall retention and restoration of the Louisiana coastal plain.

Finite element analysis of an atomistically derived cohesive model for brittle fracture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lloyd, J T; McDowell, D L; Zimmerman, J A; Jones, R E; Zhou, X W

2011-01-01

In order to apply information from molecular dynamics (MD) simulations in problems governed by engineering length and time scales, a coarse graining methodology must be used. In previous work by Zhou et al (2009 Acta Mater. 57 4671–86), a traction-separation cohesive model was developed using results from MD simulations with atomistic-to-continuum measures of stress and displacement. Here, we implement this cohesive model within a combined finite element/cohesive surface element framework (referred to as a finite element approach or FEA), and examine the ability for the atomistically informed FEA to directly reproduce results from MD. We find that FEA shows close agreement of both stress and crack opening displacement profiles at the cohesive interface, although some differences do exist that can be attributed to the stochastic nature of finite temperature MD. The FEA methodology is then used to study slower loading rates that are computationally expensive for MD. We find that the crack growth process initially exhibits a rate-independent relationship between crack length and boundary displacement, followed by a rate-dependent regime where, at a given amount of boundary displacement, a lower applied strain rate produces a longer crack length. Our method is also extended to larger length scales by simulating a compact tension fracture-mechanics specimen with sub-micrometer dimensions. Such a simulation shows a computational speedup of approximately four orders of magnitude over conventional atomistic simulation, while exhibiting the expected fracture-mechanics response. Finally, differences between FEA and MD are explored with respect to ensemble and temperature effects in MD, and their impact on the cohesive model and crack growth behavior. These results enable us to make several recommendations to improve the methodology used to derive cohesive laws from MD simulations. In light of this work, which has critical implications for efforts to derive continuum laws

[Effects of Korean proficiency and parent-child cohesion on self-esteem and acculturation among children from multicultural families].

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Mi Ye; Lim, Ji Young; Chung, Grace H

2012-12-01

There is evidence that parent-child cohesion is a potentially influential factor in children's self-esteem and acculturation. However, no research to date has examined cohesion with parents as a potential pathway between Korean proficiency and self-esteem or acculturation among children from multicultural families. This study was done to address these limitations by examining whether and to what extent cohesion with parents mediated the effect of Korean proficiency on self-esteem and acculturation among children from multicultural families. Data were collected from a sample of 138 mothers and their children living in Seoul, Daegu, Kyungi province, and Kyungpook province. Multiple regression analysis was used to examine the relationships between the variables of interest. Mediation effects of cohesion with parents were tested by following the procedure recommended by Baron and Kenny (1986). Cohesion with parents partially mediated the relationship between Korean proficiency and self-esteem. For children's acculturation, the effect of Korean proficiency was partially mediated through father-child cohesion. Mother-child cohesion completely mediated the relationship between Korean proficiency and acculturation. These findings suggest that to help children from multicultural families experiencing difficulties with self-esteem or acculturation, it might be useful to develop programs that are aimed at strengthen cohesion with parents.

Strengthening the Regional Integration in Central and Eastern Europe through Cohesion Policy Instruments and Cooperation among Stock Exchanges

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

JULIA STEFANOVA

2014-05-01

Full Text Available The research paper is focused on the analysis of two ways of strengthening the regional integration in the Central and Eastern Europe – through the Cohesion policy instruments and cooperation among stock exchanges. Substantial benefits from the regional integration through cohesion policy include economic and social prosperity, political understanding. It should be further intensified, as it contributes to reduce regional disparities, exchange knowledge and best practices, ensure economic development. On the other hand, the deepening intra-regional cooperation among CEE stock exchanges leads to quantitative and qualitative changes in the course of their consolidation. Some assumptions are reached regarding expected changes on the Bulgarian capital market in the course of intensifying its intra-regional integrational links to CEE capital markets in conformity with set strategic priorities.

Influence of dry cohesion on the micro- and macro-mechanical properties of dense polydisperse powders & grains

Science.gov (United States)

Kievitsbosch, Robert; Smit, Hendrik; Magnanimo, Vanessa; Luding, Stefan; Taghizadeh, Kianoosh

2017-06-01

Understanding how cohesive granular materials behave is of interest for many industrial applications, such as pharmaceutical or food and civil engineering. Models of the behaviour of granular materials on the microscopic scale can be used to obtain macroscopic continuum relations by a micro-macro transition approach. The Discrete Element Method (DEM) is used to inspect the influence of cohesion on the micro and macro behaviour of granular assemblies by using an elasto-plastic cohesive contact model. Interestingly, we observe that frictional samples prepared with different cohesion values show a significant difference in pressure and coordination number in the jammed regime; the differences become more pronounced when packings are closer to the jamming density, i.e. the lowest density where the system is mechanically stable. Furthermore, we observe that cohesion has an influence on the jamming density for frictional samples, but there is no influence on the jamming density for frictionless samples.

A season-long team-building intervention: examining the effect of team goal setting on cohesion.

Science.gov (United States)

Senécal, Julie; Loughead, Todd M; Bloom, Gordon A

2008-04-01

The purpose of the current study was to determine whether the implementation of a season-long team-building intervention program using team goal setting increased perceptions of cohesion. The participants were 86 female high school basketball players from 8 teams. The teams were randomly assigned to either an experimental team goal-setting or control condition. Each participant completed the Group Environment Questionnaire (GEQ; Carron, Brawley, & Widmeyer, 2002; Carron, Widmeyer, & Brawley, 1985), which assessed cohesion at both the beginning and end of the season. Overall, the results revealed a significant multivariate effect, Pillai's trace F(12, 438) = 2.68, p = .002. Post hoc analyses showed that at the beginning of the season, athletes from both conditions did not differ in their perceptions of cohesion. However, at the end of the season, athletes in the team goal-setting condition held higher perceptions of cohesion than athletes in the control condition. Overall, the results indicated that team goal setting was an effective team-building tool for influencing cohesiveness in sport teams.

Social cohesiveness and absenteeism: The relationship between characteristics of employees and short-term absenteeism

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sanders, Karin; Nauta, Aukje

2004-01-01

This study tries to explain the relationship between characteristics of the employees (e.g., gender and working hours) and short-term absenteeism by examining the social cohesiveness of a team. Hypotheses are formulated concerning gender and working hours of employees, social cohesiveness, and

EDUCATION FOR SOCIAL COHESION ATTEMPTS IN LEBANON: REFLECTIONS ON THE 1994 AND 2010 EDUCATION REFORMS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maha Shuayb

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Following the end of the Lebanese civil war, education was put forward as a major means for rebuilding Lebanon and promoting social cohesion and unity. A huge education development plan was launched in 1994 culminating in a new national curriculum in 1997 and the production of new textbooks.  Although the quality of education improved in public schools, dropout rates continued to be high, particularly amongst the most disadvantaged groups. As education inequality soared, a new education reform strategy was launched in 2010. This paper investigates how social cohesion has been tackled in the two reforms (1994 and 2010. In defining social cohesion, the study adopts Nancy Fraser’s framework of social justice which includes redistribution, recognition, and participation. In addition, Novelli, Lopes Cardozo and Smith’s (2014 fourth component of social justice ‘reconciliation’ is added to the analytical framework. Findings revealed an emphasis on distributive justice by widening access to education including during early years and tackling causes of dropout, specifically in the 2010 reform. Reconciliation, in particular nationalism and promoting one narrative of the past, is given a major priority. Conflict is reduced to religious intolerance while structured barriers to social justice, including the use of languages that are considered foreign as mediums of instruction, the marginalisation of disadvantaged groups, a lack of participation, and sectarian nepotism, were downplayed. Critical reflections on the past has been suppressed in favour of building a national memory.  

Great Expectations: How Role Expectations and Role Experiences Relate to Perceptions of Group Cohesion.

Science.gov (United States)

Benson, Alex J; Eys, Mark A; Irving, P Gregory

2016-04-01

Many athletes experience a discrepancy between the roles they expect to fulfill and the roles they eventually occupy. Drawing from met expectations theory, we applied response surface methodology to examine how role expectations, in relation to role experiences, influence perceptions of group cohesion among Canadian Interuniversity Sport athletes (N = 153). On the basis of data from two time points, as athletes approached and exceeded their role contribution expectations, they reported higher perceptions of task cohesion. Furthermore, as athletes approached and exceeded their social involvement expectations, they reported higher perceptions of social cohesion. These response surface patterns-pertaining to task and social cohesion-were driven by the positive influence of role experiences. On the basis of the interplay between athletes' role experiences and their perception of the group environment, efforts to improve team dynamics may benefit from focusing on improving the quality of role experiences, in conjunction with developing realistic role expectations.

On the application of cohesive crack modeling in cementitious materials

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Stang, Henrik; Olesen, John Forbes; Poulsen, Peter Noe

2007-01-01

typically for multi scale problems such as crack propagation in fiber reinforced composites. Mortar and concrete, however, are multi-scale materials and the question naturally arises, if bridged crack models in fact are more suitable for concrete and mortar as well? In trying to answer this question a model......Cohesive crack models-in particular the Fictitious Crack Model - are applied routinely in the analysis of crack propagation in concrete and mortar. Bridged crack models-where cohesive stresses are assumed to exist together with a stress singularity at the crack tip-on the other hand, are used...

Shared Features of L2 Writing: Intergroup Homogeneity and Text Classification

Science.gov (United States)

Crossley, Scott A.; McNamara, Danielle S.

2011-01-01

This study investigates intergroup homogeneity within high intermediate and advanced L2 writers of English from Czech, Finnish, German, and Spanish first language backgrounds. A variety of linguistic features related to lexical sophistication, syntactic complexity, and cohesion were used to compare texts written by L1 speakers of English to L2…

ReaderBench: An Integrated Cohesion-Centered Framework

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dascalu, Mihai; Stavarache, Lucia Larise; Dessus, Philippe; Trausan-Matu, Stefan; McNamara, Danielle S.; Bianco, Maryse

2015-01-01

Dascalu, M., Stavarache, L.L., Dessus, P., Trausan-Matu, S., McNamara, D.S., & Bianco, M. (2015). ReaderBench: An Integrated Cohesion-Centered Framework. In G. Conole, T. Klobucar, C. Rensing, J. Konert & É. Lavoué (Eds.), 10th European Conf. on Technology Enhanced Learning (pp. 505–508). Toledo,

EU COHESION POLICY NEEDS DIFFERENTIATED POLICY MIX ADEQUATE TO SPECIFICS OF ECONOMIC REGIONS

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Gheorghe ZAMAN

2008-06-01

Full Text Available The 2007-2013 programming period of the EU focuses on economic and social cohesion via three fundamental objectives: convergence – competitiveness and employment – European territorial co-operation. The horizontal dimension of cohesion policy refers to diminishing the regional disparities and solidarity with the lagging regions’ population. Considering the big regional disparities in the New Member States (NMS as well as the gap between their GDP per capita at national level and the EU average, these countries are the main beneficiary of the EU financial allocations, especially via convergence objective. However, two interrelated questions are entailed by this issue. One of them refers to the capacity of these countries to absorb effectively the EU funds. The other one concentrates on the impact of the absorbed EU funds, in other words to the qualitative aspects of the absorption capacity. Our paper discusses these aspects mainly from the viewpoint of regional disparities in the NMS, proposing a typology of their regions based on the main regional growth characteristics. The implications of the structural assistance on regional disparities are also addressed, taking into consideration economic and social criteria and requirements at EU, national, regional and local levels.

Cohesive granular media modelization with non-convex particles shape: Application to UO2 powder compaction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saint-Cyr, B.

2011-01-01

We model in this work granular materials composed of non-convex and cohesive aggregates, in view of application to the rheology of UO 2 powders. The effect of non convexity is analyzed in terms of bulk quantities (Coulomb internal friction and cohesion) and micromechanical parameters such as texture anisotropy and force transmission. In particular, we find that the packing fraction evolves in a complex manner with the shape non convexity and the shear strength increases but saturates due to interlocking between the aggregates. We introduce simple models to describe these features in terms of micro-mechanical parameters. Furthermore, a systematic investigation of shearing, uniaxial compaction and simple compression of cohesive packings show that bulk cohesion increases with non-convexity but is strongly influenced by the boundary conditions and shear bands or stress concentration. (author) [fr

Validation of the Child Sport Cohesion Questionnaire

Science.gov (United States)

Martin, Luc J.; Carron, Albert V.; Eys, Mark A.; Loughead, Todd

2013-01-01

The purpose of the present study was to test the validity evidence of the Child Sport Cohesion Questionnaire (CSCQ). To accomplish this task, convergent, discriminant, and known-group difference validity were examined, along with factorial validity via confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Child athletes (N = 290, M[subscript age] = 10.73 plus or…

Parent-child cohesion, friend companionship and left-behind children's emotional adaptation in rural China.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Jingxin; Liu, Xia; Wang, Meifang

2015-10-01

Using cross-sectional data from rural left-behind children aged 10-17 years in the Henan Province of China, the present study examined the roles of father-child cohesion, mother-child cohesion, and friend companionship in emotional adaptation (loneliness, depression, and life satisfaction) among children left behind by both of their rural-to-urban migrant parents compared to those with only a migrating father. The results indicated that the children with two migrating parents were disadvantaged according to their demonstration of depression but not in loneliness or life satisfaction. Both parent-child cohesion and friend companionship were directly associated with, to varying extents, the left-behind children's emotional outcomes. Moreover, friend companionship moderated the association between father-child cohesion and emotional outcomes among children with two migrating parents, but the moderating effects of friend companionship did not exist among children with only a migrating father. The implications of these findings for interventions directed at left-behind children are discussed. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Mapping the Paths from Styles of Anger Experience and Expression to Obsessive–Compulsive Symptoms: The Moderating Roles of Family Cohesion and Adaptability

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Liang Liu

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Previous research has shown strong connections of anger experience and expression with obsessive–compulsive (OC symptoms. Additionally, studies have demonstrated links between family environment variables and obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD. Our study aims to integrate the perspectives from these two literatures by exploring the moderating roles of family cohesion and family adaptability in the relationship between anger proneness and suppression and OCD symptoms. A total of 2008 college students were recruited from a comprehensive university in Shanghai, China between February and May 2016. The subjects completed self-report inventories, including the Symptom Check List-90, State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory 2 (Chinese version, and Family Adaptability and Cohesion Scale, second edition (Chinese Version. Controlling for age, one-child family status, ethnicity, family income, current depression, and anxiety, our analyses showed that the association between anger proneness and OC symptoms was moderated by family cohesion among men and that family adaptability moderated the connection between anger suppression and OC complaints among women. The findings imply that a more cohesive and empathic family environment may protect male students with high levels of anger proneness from developing OC behaviors or thoughts. The results suggest that for female subjects who are accustomed to suppressing angry feelings, flexible family coping strategies and communication atmospheres would reduce their vulnerability to OC symptoms. The findings are somewhat consistent with those of previous studies on psychotherapy outcomes that showed that OCD patients benefitted from psychotherapeutic interventions that cultivated the clients’ family cohesion and adaptability.

Signaling Elaboration: Combining French Gerund Clauses with Lexical Cohesion Cues

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Marianne Vergez-Couret

2012-07-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we focus on the Elaboration relation and on its automatic identification in French, using the theoretical framework of Segmented Discourse Representation Theory (SDRT. One of the information sources identified by the SDRT framework to infer the Elaboration relation is based on the existence of a potential subsumption link between the eventualities at stake, depending on lexical semantics and world knowledge. We investigate this claim by combining a weak syntactic marker of the Elaboration relation, namely the gerund clause, with lexical cohesion cues. We aim at automatically identifying gerund clauses which are Elaborations by finding cohesive links between the host main clause and the gerund clause. This approach makes it possible to accurately detect few cases of intra-sentential Elaborations in our corpus, confirming the fact that lexical cohesion cues are relevant for this task.Dans cet article, nous nous focalisons sur la relation d’Élaboration en français, telle qu’elle est décrite dans le modèle théorique de la SDRT (Segmented Discourse Representation Theory, et sur son identification automatique. Selon la SDRT, une des sources d’information permettant d’inférer la relation d’Élaboration est basée sur l’existence d’un lien de subsomption entre les types des éventualités des segments à relier, indiquant que le type de la seconde éventualité est un sous-type de celui de la première dans la sémantique lexicale des éventualités ou grâce à des connaissances du monde. Nous proposons de contribuer à cette question en combinant un indice de la relation d’Élaboration, i. e. la construction syntaxique du gérondif, et des indices de cohésion lexicale. Notre objectif est d’identifier automatiquement des propositions gérondives qui sont des Élaborations en repérant des indices de cohésion lexicale entre la proposition principale et la proposition gérondive. Cette approche permet de d

Application of a Cohesive Zone Model for Simulating Fatigue Crack Growth from Moderate to High ΔK Levels of Inconel 718

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Huan Li

2018-01-01

Full Text Available A cyclic cohesive zone model is applied to characterize the fatigue crack growth behavior of a IN718 superalloy which is frequently used in aerospace components. In order to improve the limitation of fracture mechanics-based models, besides the predictions of the moderate fatigue crack growth rates at the Paris’ regime and the high fatigue crack growth rates at the high stress intensity factor ΔK levels, the present work is also aimed at simulating the material damage uniformly and examining the influence of the cohesive model parameters on fatigue crack growth systematically. The gradual loss of the stress-bearing ability of the material is considered through the degradation of a novel cohesive envelope. The experimental data of cracked specimens are used to validate the simulation result. Based on the reasonable estimation for the model parameters, the fatigue crack growth from moderate to high ΔK levels can be reproduced under the small-scale yielding condition, which is in fair agreement with the experimental results.

COHESIVE STRENGTH OF DENTIN RESISTÊNCIA COESIVA DA DENTINA

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Flávio Fernando DEMARCO

1997-07-01

Full Text Available The bond strength of dentin adhesives to dentin has increased after each generation. Although dentin substratum is part of the bonding process, little importance has been given to measure dentin cohesive strength. The aim of this study was to evaluate the cohesive strength of dentin in human canines. Seventeen non carious canines were selected. All of them had been extracted for more than one year. The teeth were ground until dentin square samples with approximately 2 X 2 mm were obtained. They were embedded in acrylic resin and subjected to shear stress, in a Wolpert Machine, at a crosshead speed of 0.5 mm/min. The mean cohesive strength of dentin in shear mode was 33.95 (+-9.72 MPa. The fracture surfaces were observed under a X40 magnification. A finite element analysis was performed to observe the stress distribution as related to the shear test. The failure pattern was compatible with the shear test and also with the stress distribution in the finite element analysisA resistência de união dos adesivos dentinários tem sido aumentada com o desenvolvimento de cada nova geração. Pouca importância tem sido dada à resistência coesiva da dentina. A proposta deste estudo foi avaliar a resistência coesiva da dentina. Dezessete caninos humanos hígidos, os quais tinham sido extraídos há mais de um ano, foram usados. Os dentes foram desgastados até a obtenção de corpos-de-prova em dentina, de formato quadrangular, com tamanho aproximado de 2 X 2 mm. Os dentes foram incluídos em resina acrílica e, então, submetidos ao teste de cisalhamento em uma máquina de ensaios universais Wolpert, com uma velocidade de 0,5 mm/min. A resistência coesiva média da dentina no teste de cisalhamento foi de 33,95 (+- 9,72 MPa. O tipo de fratura foi analisado com um aumento de 40X. Foi realizada uma análise com elemento finito, para observar a distribuição do estresse relacionada com o teste de cisalhamento. O padrão de fratura encontrado foi compat

Territorial cohesion through cross-border landscape policy? The European case of the Three Countries Park (BE-NL-DE

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Brüll Anja

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Landscapes can be understood as socialecological systems under constant change. In Europe various territorial dynamics pose persistent challenges to maintaining diverse landscapes both as European heritage and in their capacity to provide vital functions and services. Concurrently, under the competence of cohesion policy, the EU is attempting to improve policy making by better policy coordination and respecting regional specifics. This paper explores the question how a policy dedicated to landscape can help to handle territorial change and support territorial cohesion. It presents results and performances of the ESPON applied research study LP3LP: (1 a common landscape policy for the Three Countries Park, across the Dutch, German and Belgium borders, including a spatial landscape vision, a governance proposal of adaptive landscape management, and thematic strategies dealing with green infrastructure, cultural heritage, complementary biomass and quality production; (2 recommendations at the EU level. In discussing the significance of a landscape approach for EU policy,three dimensions of landscape are linked withimportant aspects of territorial cohesion: ‘landscape as asset’ addressing natural-cultural territorial capital as an indigenous base forsmart, sustainable, and inclusivedevelopment;‘landscape as place’ stressing the relevance of landscape for place-based policies; and ‘landscape as common ground’ highlighting its potential for horizontal, vertical, and territorial integration.

Transformational leadership and group potency in small military units: The mediating role of group identification and cohesion

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Carlos García-Guiu

2016-12-01

Full Text Available In the present study, we examined an exploratory model to assess the relationship between transformational leadership and group potency and analyze the mediating role of group identification and cohesion. The research was conducted with squads of the Spanish Army. The sample was composed of 243 members of 51 squads of operational units. Our findings highlighted the importance of the transformational leadership style of command of non-commissioned officers (NCOs due to its positive relationship with the group potency of the squad. We also analyzed the indirect relationships between transformational leadership and group identification and group cohesion and found that the latter variables played a mediating role between transformational leadership and group potency. The conclusions of this study are relevant due to the growing importance of transformational leadership and actions implemented at lower levels of the command chain for the success of missions of security organizations and defense.

Working with Group-Tasks and Group Cohesiveness

Science.gov (United States)

Anwar, Khoirul

2016-01-01

This study aimed at exploring the connection between the use of group task and group cohesiveness. This study is very important because the nature of the learner's success is largely determined by the values of cooperation, interaction, and understanding of the learning objectives together. Subjects of this study are 28 students on the course…

New Territorial Development Tools in the Cohesion Policy 2014-2020

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Györgyi Nyikos

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Nowadays an important question is how to use the limited resources available in the most efficient and sustainable way. The assessment of development policy interventions and the question of successful absorption of development funds shifted clearly towards stronger enforcement of the aspects efficiency and effectiveness. There is clearly a need for an integrated approach to deliver an effective and sustainable response. The question is how the new territorial development tools – established by the new cohesion policy regulation for the coming programming period - can fit in these conditions, how can they help to achieve the common goals and response to the integrated approach. Cooperation and in-depth knowledge is required for stakeholders to make use of the new tools in an integrated manner.

Grain boundary embrittlement and cohesion enhancement in copper

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Paxton, Anthony; Lozovoi, Alexander [Atomistic Simulation Centre, Queen' s University Belfast, BT7 1NN (United Kingdom); Schweinfest, Rainer [Science+Computing ag, Hagellocher Weg 71-5, 720270 T ubingen (Germany); Finnis, Michael [Imperial College London, Exhibition Road, London SW7 2AZ (United Kingdom)

2008-07-01

There has been a long standing debate surrounding the mechanism of grain boundary embrittlement and cohesion enhancement in metals. Embrittlement can lead to catastrophic failure such as happened in the Hinkley Point disaster, or indeed in the case of the Titanic. This kind of embrittlement is caused by segregation of low solubility impurities to grain boundaries. While the accepted wisdom is that this is a phenomenon driven by electronic or chemical factors, using language such as charge transfer and electronegativity difference; we believe that in copper, at least, both cohesion enhancement and reduction are caused by a simple size effect. We have developed a theory that allows us to separate unambiguously, if not uniquely, chemical and structural factors. We have studied a large number of solutes in copper using first principles atomistic simulation to support this argument, and the results of these calculations are presented here.

"Sticking Together": The Adolescent Experience of the Cohesion Process in Rural School Counseling Groups

Science.gov (United States)

Gray, Tara M.; Rubel, Deborah

2018-01-01

The purpose of this study was to develop a grounded theory of how adolescents experience the cohesion process in rural school counseling groups. A total of 20 individual interviews with 7 participants were conducted. Data analysis generated the central category of the cohesion process as "sticking together," which describes a "tight…

Natural disasters and indicators of social cohesion

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Calo-Blanco, A.; Kovářík, Jaromír; Mengel, F.; Romero, J. G.

2017-01-01

Roč. 12, č. 6 (2017), s. 1-13, č. článku e0176885. E-ISSN 1932-6203 R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GA14-22044S Institutional support: RVO:67985998 Keywords : social cohesion * trust * climate Subject RIV: AH - Economic s OBOR OECD: Applied Economic s, Econometrics Impact factor: 2.806, year: 2016

Toward a Cohesive Theory of Visual Literacy

Science.gov (United States)

Avgerinou, Maria D.; Pettersson, Rune

2011-01-01

Despite the fact that to date Visual Literacy (VL) scholars have not arrived at a general consensus for a theoretical organization of the VL field, important conceptual investigations have emerged over the past four decades. In this paper we discuss and synthesize those studies. We then present a first attempt toward a cohesive theory of VL. The…

Effect of softening function on the cohesive crack fracture ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

The cohesive crack model with linear softening yields the fracture process zones lower by ..... ignored during numerical simulation. In the crack band ..... performed with developed computer program using MATLAB for the following numerical.

Group cohesion and social support of the nurses in a special unit and a general unit in Korea.

Science.gov (United States)

Ko, Yu Kyung

2011-07-01

To identify the degree of group cohesion and social support of nurses in special and general units in hospitals in Korea, and to compare group cohesion and social support between the two groups. The level of commitment nurses have to their organizations has been shown to correlate with work group cohesion and social support. The participants were 1751 nurses who were working in Korean hospitals. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire and were analysed using SAS. The statistical methods included: descriptive statistics, t-test, anova and Pearson's correlation coefficients. Group cohesion of nurses on special wards was significantly higher than for nurses on general wards. No significant difference was found between types of units in terms of social support. The degree of group cohesion was significantly different in terms of the respondents' clinical experience, position, religion, job satisfaction, number of supportive superiors and number of supportive peers. A statistically significant correlation was found between group cohesion scores and degree of social support. Hospital management can accomplish their goals more effectively through knowledge of the level of group cohesion, superior support and peer support for nursing staff in accordance with unit specialty. © 2011 The Author. Journal compilation © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Molecular-dynamics Simulation-based Cohesive Zone Representation of Intergranular Fracture Processes in Aluminum

Science.gov (United States)

Yamakov, Vesselin I.; Saether, Erik; Phillips, Dawn R.; Glaessgen, Edward H.

2006-01-01

A traction-displacement relationship that may be embedded into a cohesive zone model for microscale problems of intergranular fracture is extracted from atomistic molecular-dynamics simulations. A molecular-dynamics model for crack propagation under steady-state conditions is developed to analyze intergranular fracture along a flat 99 [1 1 0] symmetric tilt grain boundary in aluminum. Under hydrostatic tensile load, the simulation reveals asymmetric crack propagation in the two opposite directions along the grain boundary. In one direction, the crack propagates in a brittle manner by cleavage with very little or no dislocation emission, and in the other direction, the propagation is ductile through the mechanism of deformation twinning. This behavior is consistent with the Rice criterion for cleavage vs. dislocation blunting transition at the crack tip. The preference for twinning to dislocation slip is in agreement with the predictions of the Tadmor and Hai criterion. A comparison with finite element calculations shows that while the stress field around the brittle crack tip follows the expected elastic solution for the given boundary conditions of the model, the stress field around the twinning crack tip has a strong plastic contribution. Through the definition of a Cohesive-Zone-Volume-Element an atomistic analog to a continuum cohesive zone model element - the results from the molecular-dynamics simulation are recast to obtain an average continuum traction-displacement relationship to represent cohesive zone interaction along a characteristic length of the grain boundary interface for the cases of ductile and brittle decohesion. Keywords: Crack-tip plasticity; Cohesive zone model; Grain boundary decohesion; Intergranular fracture; Molecular-dynamics simulation

Measuring the impact of spatial network layout on community social cohesion: a cross-sectional study.

Science.gov (United States)

Cooper, Crispin H V; Fone, David L; Chiaradia, Alain J F

2014-04-11

There is now a substantial body of research suggesting that social cohesion, a collective characteristic measured by the levels of trust, reciprocity and formation of strong social bonds within communities, is an important factor in determining health. Of particular interest is the extent to which factors in the built environment facilitate, or impede, the development of social bonds. Severance is a characteristic of physical environments which is hypothesized to inhibit cohesion. In the current study we test a number of characteristics of spatial networks which could be hypothesized to relate either to severance, or directly to community cohesion. Particular focus is given to our most promising variable for further analysis (Convex Hull Maximum Radius 600 m). In the current study we analysed social cohesion as measured at Enumeration District level, aggregated from a survey of 10,892 individuals aged 18 to 74 years in the Caerphilly Health and Social Needs Cohort Study, 2001. In a data mining process we test 16 network variables on multiple scales. The variable showing the most promise is validated in a test on an independent data set. We then conduct a multivariate regression also including Townsend deprivation scores and urban/rural status as predictor variables for social cohesion. We find convex hull maximum radius at a 600 m scale to have a small but highly significant correlation with social cohesion on both data sets. Deprivation has a stronger effect. Splitting the analysis by tertile of deprivation, we find that the effect of severance as measured by this variable is strongest in the most deprived areas. A range of spatial scales are tested, with the strongest effects being observed at scales that match typical walking distances. We conclude that physical connectivity as measured in this paper has a significant effect on social cohesion, and that our measure is unlikely to proxy either deprivation or the urban/rural status of communities. Possible

Appraisal in a Team Context: Perceptions of Cohesion Predict Competition Importance and Prospects for Coping.

Science.gov (United States)

Wolf, Svenja A; Eys, Mark A; Sadler, Pamela; Kleinert, Jens

2015-10-01

Athletes' precompetitive appraisal is important because it determines emotions, which may impact performance. When part of a team, athletes make their appraisal within a social context, and in this study we examined whether perceived team cohesion, as a characteristic of this context, related to appraisal. We asked 386 male and female intercollegiate team-sport athletes to respond to measures of cohesion and precompetitive appraisal before an in-season game. For males and females, across all teams, (a) an appraisal of increased competition importance was predicted by perceptions of higher task cohesion (individual level), better previous team performance, and a weaker opponent (team level) and (b) an appraisal of more positive prospects for coping with competitive demands was predicted by higher individual attractions to the group (individual level). Consequently, athletes who perceive their team as more cohesive likely appraise the pending competition as a challenge, which would benefit both emotions and performance.

The variability of root cohesion as an influence on shallow landslide susceptibility in the Oregon Coast Range

Science.gov (United States)

Schmidt, K.M.; Roering, J.J.; Stock, J.D.; Dietrich, W.E.; Montgomery, D.R.; Schaub, T.

2001-01-01

Decades of quantitative measurement indicate that roots can mechanically reinforce shallow soils in forested landscapes. Forests, however, have variations in vegetation species and age which can dominate the local stability of landslide-initiation sites. To assess the influence of this variability on root cohesion we examined scarps of landslides triggered during large storms in February and November of 1996 in the Oregon Coast Range and hand-dug soil pits on stable ground. At 41 sites we estimated the cohesive reinforcement to soil due to roots by determining the tensile strength, species, depth, orientation, relative health, and the density of roots ???1 mm in diameter within a measured soil area. We found that median lateral root cohesion ranges from 6.8-23.2 kPa in industrial forests with significant understory and deciduous vegetation to 25.6-94.3 kPa in natural forests dominated by coniferous vegetation. Lateral root cohesion in clearcuts is uniformly ???10 kPa. Some 100-year-old industrial forests have species compositions, lateral root cohesion, and root diameters that more closely resemble 10-year-old clearcuts than natural forests. As such, the influence of root cohesion variability on landslide susceptibility cannot be determined solely from broad age classifications or extrapolated from the presence of one species of vegetation. Furthermore, the anthropogenic disturbance legacy modifies root cohesion for at least a century and should be considered when comparing contemporary landslide rates from industrial forests with geologic background rates.

Estimation method of the cohesion degree for the users’ profiles of social network based on open data

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Valentina A. Kataeva

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The purpose of research was to study the existing methods of determining the degree of cohesion of two users of social network, identifying their shortcomings and developing a new method. The research identified shortcomings of existing methods and proposed a new method for assessing the degree of cohesion of social network profiles based on open data from a social network. Under the degree of cohesion of users’ profiles is understood the probability of communication (interaction of profile owners in real life, it is calculated for two users of the social network and expressed in percent. The work of the method is demonstrated on the example of the social network “In contact”. This method includes the sequence of the following stages: the first stage is data collection about users of the social network with API and the formation of tuples of users’ profile characteristics. A tuple of characteristics of social network profiles is the data, collected for each user, stored in a structured form.The next step is the analysis of the collected information. For each characteristic of the tuple of profiles, i.e. the possible element of interaction of users in the social network, the coefficient of cohesion by the characteristic is calculated. In addition, for each feature, its informativeness is calculated, i.e. how important is this or that feature in this social network. At the final stage, the results are generated, using the formula for the probability of communication between two users, derived during the investigation. Obtained as a result of the application of the method, the probability of communication between two users can be used to optimize the activities of the operative-search services and special bodies.In addition, the received degree of cohesion of two users can be interpreted as the probability of a channel of information leakage between them. The role of the user of the method can be any private or state organization that cares

Investigation on the cohesive silt/clay-particle sediment via the coupled CFD-DEM simulations

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, S.; Sun, H.; Sun, R.

2017-12-01

Sedimentation of silt/clay particles happens ubiquitously in nature and engineering field. There have been abundant studies focusing on the settling velocity of the cohesive particles, while studies on the sediment deposited from silt/clay irregular particles, including the vertical concentration profile of sediment and the various forces among the deposited particles are still lacking. This paper aims to investigate the above topics by employing the CFD-DEM (Computational Fluid Dynamics-Discrete Element Method) simulations. In this work, we simulate the settling of the mono- and poly- dispersed silt/clay particles and mainly study the characteristics of the deposited cohesive sediment. We use the bonded particles to simulate the irregular silt/clay aggregates at the initial state and utilize the van der Waals force for all micro-particles to consider the cohesive force among silt/clay particles. The interparticle collision force and the fluid-particle interaction forces are also considered in our numerical model. The value of the mean structural density of cohesive sediment obtained from simulations is in good agreement with the previous research, and it is obviously smaller than no-cohesive sediment because of the existence of the silt/clay flocs. Moreover, the solid concentration of sediment increases with the growth of the depth. It is because the silt/clay flocs are more easily to break up due to the gradually increased submerged gravity of the deposited particles along the depth. We also obtain the noncontacted cohesive force and contact force profiles during the sedimentation and the self-weight consolidation process. The study of the concentration profile and the forces among silt/clay sediment will help to give an accurate initial condition for calculating the speed of the reconsolidation process by employing the artificial loads, which is necessary for practical designs of the land reclamation projects.

Factors associated with low neighborhood cohesion among women living with HIV impacted by social-structural inequities in British Columbia.

Science.gov (United States)

Closson, Kalysha; Palmer, Alexis K; Collins, Alexandra B; Salters, Kate; Zhang, Wendy; Montaner, Julio S G; Hogg, Robert S; Parashar, Surita

2018-03-01

Built and social environments, including one's perception of their environment, are important determinants of health. The intersection of gender and HIV status may complicate the role of neighborhood cohesion in safety, personal well-being, and health outcomes for populations impacted by social and structural inequities. Among women in particular, social cohesion within the neighborhood they reside in may have a greater influence on health outcomes compared to their male counterparts. We sought to examine perception of neighborhood cohesion (validated scale with a range 0-100, with higher scores indicating higher perceived neighborhood cohesion) among women living with HIV, impacted by social-structural inequities, receiving combination antiretroviral therapy, and enrolled in the Longitudinal Investigations into Supportive Ancillary health services (LISA) study in British Columbia, Canada. Cross-sectional data on neighborhood cohesion and socio-demographic data were collected in an interviewer-administered survey. Of the 1,000 LISA participants interviewed, 908 (including 249 women and 659 men) had complete data for the variables of interest. At the bivariate level, women had worse perceived neighborhood cohesion scores compared to men (median: 56 [95% CI: 44-66] vs. 60 [95% CI: 47-71]). Multivariable model results indicated that for women living with HIV in our sample, greater neighborhood cohesion scores were positively associated with stable housing (β coefficient = 7.85; 95% CI: 3.61, 12.10, p perceptions of neighborhood cohesion.

Team cohesion in intensive care nursing: at the interface of nurse self-concept and unit structure

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Paunova, Minna; Li-Ying, Jason

2017-01-01

Team cohesion is a critical factor in the provision of high-quality care, yet its antecedents remain understudied, particularly in the context of some healthcare professional groups where structural and individual constraints coexist, and demand for high quality performance is prevailing. In this......Team cohesion is a critical factor in the provision of high-quality care, yet its antecedents remain understudied, particularly in the context of some healthcare professional groups where structural and individual constraints coexist, and demand for high quality performance is prevailing...... their teams as cohesive. A multi-source and multi-level study of approximately 140 nurses employed in 20 ICUs across Denmark demonstrates the critical role of self-concept in easing and enhancing the constraints workplaces impose on team cohesion. Furthermore, the study confirms the positive relationship...

Perceptions of communication, family adaptability and cohesion: a comparison of adolescents newly diagnosed with cancer and their parents.

Science.gov (United States)

Phillips-Salimi, Celeste R; Robb, Sheri L; Monahan, Patrick O; Dossey, Amy; Haase, Joan E

2014-01-01

To describe and compare adolescent and parent perspectives on communication, family adaptability and cohesion, as well as relationships among these variables, during the first month of an adolescent's cancer diagnosis. Seventy adolescent-parent dyads were enrolled as part of a larger multi-site study. The adolescents ranged in age from 11 to 19, and 61% were males. Parents were predominately mothers (83%). Dyads were predominately non-Hispanic Caucasian (63%). Measures included the Parent-Adolescent Communication Scale and the Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scale (FACES II). Paired t-tests, Pearson correlations, intra-class correlation coefficients and multiple linear regression analyses were completed. Adolescent scores on communication, family adaptability and cohesion were significantly lower than parent scores. The inter-dyadic agreement between adolescents and parents was low. Communication, family adaptability and cohesion were examined separately for adolescents and for parents, and significant relationships were found. Both adolescent- and parent-perceived communication was significantly associated with family adaptability and cohesion outcomes. Differences were found in adolescent and parent perceptions of communication, family adaptability and cohesion. When both adolescents and parents had better perceived communication, this was associated with better perceived family adaptability and cohesion. Results suggest that the development of interventions to enhance adolescent-parent communication could help foster better family adaptability and cohesion, which may ultimately impact their psychological adjustment. In addition, understanding the degree to which adolescents and parents disagree on their perceptions, including the results that parents generally have more favorable perceptions, may be a useful starting point when developing interventions.

Interdependence and organizational citizenship behavior: exploring the mediating effect of group cohesion in multilevel analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Chun-Hsi Vivian; Tang, Ya-Yun; Wang, Shih-Jon

2009-12-01

The authors investigated the mechanism of group cohesion in the relationship between (a) task interdependence and goal interdependence and (b) individuals' organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). The authors adopted a multilevel perspective to facilitate understanding of the complex relations among variables. They collected data from 53 supervisors and 270 employees from R&D departments in Taiwan. The authors found that group cohesion fully mediated the effects of task interdependence and goal interdependence on employees' OCB. In addition, task interdependence had a greater effect on group cohesion than did goal interdependence. The authors discuss implications and suggestions for future research.

Social cohesion: solution or driver of urban violence? | IDRC ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

2016-09-28

Sep 28, 2016 ... Social cohesion can play an important role in building and maintaining ... Analysis of Violence demonstrates how social bonds and stark inequalities can also play ... Conflict and development in the hill settlements of Guwahati.

Cohesive traction-separation relations for plate tearing under mixed mode loading

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersen, R. G.; Woelke, P. B.; Nielsen, K. L.

2018-01-01

The present study investigates a sequence of failure events related to steady-state tearing of large-scale ductile plates by employing the micro-mechanics based Gurson-Tvergaard-Needleman (GTN) model. The fracture process in front of an advancing crack is approximated by a series of 2D plane strain...... finite element models to facilitate a comprehensive study of mixed mode fracture behavior as well as a parameter study of the cohesive energy and tractions involved in the process. The results from the conducted GTN model simulations are used to define cohesive zone models suitable for plate tearing...

Physical scale modeling of single free head piles under lateral loading in cohesive soils

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Edgar Leonardo Salamanca-Medina

2017-06-01

Full Text Available This paper presents the results of the small scale modeling of free head wood piles under horizontal loading in cohesive soils, tested in order to compare the results with analytical models proposed by various authors. Characteristic Load (CLM and P-Y Curves methods were used for the prediction of lateral deflections at the head of the piles and the method proposed by Broms for estimating the ultimate lateral load. These predictions were compared with the results of the physical modeling, obtaining a good approximation between them.

Relationship between Family Adaptability, Cohesion and Adolescent Problem Behaviors: Curvilinearity of Circumplex Model

OpenAIRE

Joh, Ju Youn; Kim, Sun; Park, Jun Li; Kim, Yeon Pyo

2013-01-01

Background The Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scale (FACES) III using the circumplex model has been widely used in investigating family function. However, the criticism of the curvilinear hypothesis of the circumplex model has always been from an empirical point of view. This study examined the relationship between adolescent adaptability, cohesion, and adolescent problem behaviors, and especially testing the consistency of the curvilinear hypotheses with FACES III. Methods We us...

Examining the relationship between family meal frequency and individual dietary intake: does family cohesion play a role?

Science.gov (United States)

Welsh, Ericka M; French, Simone A; Wall, Melanie

2011-01-01

To confirm previously reported associations between family meal frequency and dietary intake, and to examine family cohesion as a potential mediator of this relationship. Cross-sectional observational study. Data collected at baseline via questionnaire. Randomized, controlled household weight gain prevention trial. Participants were 152 adults and 75 adolescents from 90 community households. Family meal frequency assessed with a single question. Perceived family cohesion measured by the Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scale-III. Usual intake of targeted food items assessed with modified food frequency questionnaire. Hierarchical linear regression with mediation analysis. Statistical significance set at α-level .05. Family meal frequency was associated with intake of fruits and vegetables in adults, and sweets and sugar-sweetened beverages in adolescents. Family meal frequency was positively correlated with perceived family cohesion (r = 0.41, P family cohesion was observed for family meal frequency and sweets intake in adolescents. Results suggest that family cohesion is not a consistent mediator of relationship between family meal frequency and individual dietary intake. Future studies should assess additional plausible mediators of this relationship in order to better understand the effect of family meals on dietary intake. Copyright © 2011 Society for Nutrition Education. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

System size effects on the mechanical response of cohesive-frictional granular ensembles

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Singh Saurabh

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Shear resistance in granular ensembles is a result of interparticle interaction and friction. However, even the presence of small amounts of cohesion between the particles changes the landscape of the mechanical response considerably. Very often such cohesive frictional (c-ϕ granular ensembles are encountered in nature as well as while handling and storage of granular materials in the pharmaceutical, construction and mining industries. Modeling of these c-ϕ materials, especially in engineering applications have relied on the oft-made assumption of a “continua” and have utilized the popular tenets of continuum plasticity theory. We present an experimental investigation on the fundamental mechanics of c-ϕ materials specifically; we investigate if there exists a system size effect and any additional length scales beyond the continuum length scale on their mechanical response. For this purpose, we conduct a series of 1-D compression (UC tests on cylindrical specimens reconstituted in the laboratory with a range of model particle–binder combinations such as sandcement, sand-epoxy, and glass ballotini-epoxy mixtures. Specimens are reconstituted to various diameters ranging from 10 mm to 150 mm (with an aspect ratio of 2 to a predefined packing fraction. In addition to the effect of the type of binder (cement, epoxy and system size, the mean particle size is also varied from 0.5 to 2.5 mm. The peak strength of these materials is significant as it signals the initiation of the cohesive-bond breaking and onset of mobilization of the inter particle frictional resistance. For these model systems, the peak strength is a strong function of the system size of the ensemble as well as the mean particle size. This intriguing observation is counter to the traditional notion of a continuum plastic typical granular ensemble. Microstructure studies in a computed-tomograph have revealed the existence of a web patterned ‘entangled-chain’ like structure

Cohesive subgroup formation : enabling and constraining effects of social capital in strategic technology alliance networks

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Duysters, G.M.; Lemmens, C.E.A.V.

2002-01-01

In this paper we will examine the role of embeddedness and social capital in the process of cohesive subgroup formation in strategic technology alliance networks. More in particular, we will investigate the social mechanisms that enable and enforce cohesive subgroup formation. We will argue that the

Utilization of Large Cohesive Interface Elements for Delamination Simulation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bak, Brian Lau Verndal; Lund, Erik

2012-01-01

This paper describes the difficulties of utilizing large interface elements in delamination simulation. Solutions to increase the size of applicable interface elements are described and cover numerical integration of the element and modifications of the cohesive law....

Social cohesion: The missing link in overcoming violence and ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

Researchers will test the hypothesis that social cohesion is a critical factor in ... to community members, and ethnographic social network analysis, to help map ... to identify the most effective strategies for addressing these challenges in Latin ...

Drinking water biofilm cohesiveness changes under chlorination or hydrodynamic stress.

Science.gov (United States)

Mathieu, L; Bertrand, I; Abe, Y; Angel, E; Block, J C; Skali-Lami, S; Francius, G

2014-05-15

Attempts at removal of drinking water biofilms rely on various preventive and curative strategies such as nutrient reduction in drinking water, disinfection or water flushing, which have demonstrated limited efficiency. The main reason for these failures is the cohesiveness of the biofilm driven by the physico-chemical properties of its exopolymeric matrix (EPS). Effective cleaning procedures should break up the matrix and/or change the elastic properties of bacterial biofilms. The aim of this study was to evaluate the change in the cohesive strength of two-month-old drinking water biofilms under increasing hydrodynamic shear stress τw (from ∼0.2 to ∼10 Pa) and shock chlorination (applied concentration at T0: 10 mg Cl2/L; 60 min contact time). Biofilm erosion (cell loss per unit surface area) and cohesiveness (changes in the detachment shear stress and cluster volumes measured by atomic force microscopy (AFM)) were studied. When rapidly increasing the hydrodynamic constraint, biofilm removal was found to be dependent on a dual process of erosion and coalescence of the biofilm clusters. Indeed, 56% of the biofilm cells were removed with, concomitantly, a decrease in the number of the 50-300 μm(3) clusters and an increase in the number of the smaller (i.e., 600 μm(3)) ones. Moreover, AFM evidenced the strengthening of the biofilm structure along with the doubling of the number of contact points, NC, per cluster volume unit following the hydrodynamic disturbance. This suggests that the compactness of the biofilm exopolymers increases with hydrodynamic stress. Shock chlorination removed cells (-75%) from the biofilm while reducing the volume of biofilm clusters. Oxidation stress resulted in a decrease in the cohesive strength profile of the remaining drinking water biofilms linked to a reduction in the number of contact points within the biofilm network structure in particular for the largest biofilm cluster volumes (>200 μm(3)). Changes in the cohesive

Isotropic compression of cohesive-frictional particles with rolling resistance

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Luding, Stefan; Benz, Thomas; Nordal, Steinar

2010-01-01

Cohesive-frictional and rough powders are the subject of this study. The behavior under isotropic compression is examined for different material properties involving Coulomb friction, rolling-resistance and contact-adhesion. Under isotropic compression, the density continuously increases according

Performance auditing in EU cohesion policy: what do we know and what should we know?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Damen, M.; Groenendijk, Nico

2012-01-01

Recently, the European Commission has put forward proposals for the next program period of EU Cohesion Policy (EUCP). Part of these proposals is an increased emphasis on performance management. This paper analyses what we know so far on performance management of EU cohesion funds. It will be argued

How do typographical factors affect reading text and comprehension performance in Arabic?

Science.gov (United States)

Ganayim, Deia; Ibrahim, Raphiq

2013-04-01

The objective of this study was to establish basic reading performance that could lead to useful design recommendations for print display text formats and layouts for the improvement of reading and comprehension performance of print text, such as academic writings, books, and newspapers, of Arabic language. Readability of English print text has been shown to be influenced by a number of typographical variables, including interline spacing, column setting and line length, and so on.Therefore, it is very important to improve the reading efficiency and satisfaction of print text reading and comprehension by following simple design guidelines. Most existing research on readability of print text is oriented to build guidelines for designing English texts rather than Arabic. However, guidelines built for English script cannot be simply applied for Arabic script because of orthographic differences. In the current study, manipulating interline spacing and column setting and line length generated nine text layouts. The reading and comprehension performance of 210 native Arab students assigned randomly to the different text layouts was compared. Results showed that the use of multicolumn setting (with medium or short line length) affected comprehension achievement but not reading and comprehension speed. Participants' comprehension scores were better for the single-column (with long line length) than for the multicolumn setting. However, no effect was found for interline spacing. The recommendations for appropriate print text format and layout in Arabic language based on the results of objective measures facilitating reading and comprehension performance is a single-column (with long line length) layout with no relevance of the interline spacing.

Sonority constraints on onset-rime cohesion: evidence from native and bilingual Filipino readers of English.

Science.gov (United States)

Alonzo, Angelo; Taft, Marcus

2002-01-01

Research in English suggests that syllables can be analyzed in terms of two subunits-the onset (defined as the initial consonant or consonant cluster) and the rime (the unit formed by the vowel and following consonant/s). This study investigated whether nonnative readers of English, which in the case of the present study were native Filipino speakers, also make use of onset-rime units, particularly when some features of their native language (namely infixation and reduplication) appear to foster no awareness of such units. In two lexical decision experiments, monosyllabic English words were presented, divided in between their first and second consonants (e.g., B LIND), at their onset-rime boundary (e.g., BL IND), or at their antibody boundary (e.g., BLI ND). Results indicated that the processes of infixation and reduplication did not affect the English word processing of native Filipino speakers. Rather, results for both native Filipino and native English speakers suggest that onsets composed of an "s + consonant" sequence (e.g., STAMP) are less cohesive than onsets comprised of a stop-liquid sequence (e.g., BLIND). It was concluded that not only may sonority constraints underlie onset cohesiveness, but that such phonetic properties may also be involved in visual word recognition. Copyright 2002 Elsevier Science (USA).

Writing Cohesion Using Content Lexical Ties in ESOL.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Dilin

2000-01-01

Describes a series of exercises that have proved useful in helping students learning English to enhance their writing skills, particularly cohesion in their writing. Exercises enabled students to learn words in context or in relation to one another as synonyms, antonyms, superordinates, or hyponyms, and a better understanding of these words…

Modeling grain boundaries in polycrystals using cohesive elements: Qualitative and quantitative analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

El Shawish, Samir, E-mail: Samir.ElShawish@ijs.si [Jožef Stefan Institute, Jamova cesta 39, SI-1000 Ljubljana (Slovenia); Cizelj, Leon [Jožef Stefan Institute, Jamova cesta 39, SI-1000 Ljubljana (Slovenia); Simonovski, Igor [European Commission, DG-JRC, Institute for Energy and Transport, P.O. Box 2, NL-1755 ZG Petten (Netherlands)

2013-08-15

Highlights: ► We estimate the performance of cohesive elements for modeling grain boundaries. ► We compare the computed stresses in ABAQUS finite element solver. ► Tests are performed in analytical and realistic models of polycrystals. ► Most severe issue is found within the plastic grain response. ► Other identified issues are related to topological constraints in modeling space. -- Abstract: We propose and demonstrate several tests to estimate the performance of the cohesive elements in ABAQUS for modeling grain boundaries in complex spatial structures such as polycrystalline aggregates. The performance of the cohesive elements is checked by comparing the computed stresses with the theoretically predicted values for a homogeneous material under uniaxial tensile loading. Statistical analyses are performed under different loading conditions for two elasto-plastic models of the grains: isotropic elasticity with isotropic hardening plasticity and anisotropic elasticity with crystal plasticity. Tests are conducted on an analytical finite element model generated from Voronoi tessellation as well as on a realistic finite element model of a stainless steel wire. The results of the analyses highlight several issues related to the computation of normal and shear stresses. The most severe issue is found within the plastic grain response where the computed normal stresses on a particularly oriented cohesive elements are significantly underestimated. Other issues are found to be related to topological constraints in the modeling space and result in the increased scatter of the computed stresses.

Whither Elite Cohesion in Mexico: A Comment

Science.gov (United States)

1988-11-01

the problem of elite cohesion, including the mechanisms-- especially the camarilla system--whereby balance and equilibrium, control and cooptation...Generacicnes: Los Protagonistas de Ia Reforma y la Revoluci(n Mexicana, Secretaria de Educacion Pblica, Consejo Nacional de Fomento Educat ivo, Mexico City...loyalty and discipline toward the system as a whole, and especially its apex, the president, and its key institution, the PRI. All this looks different

Visibility and anonymity effects on attraction and group cohesiveness

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lea, Martin; Spears, Russell; Watt, Susan E.

2007-01-01

This study investigated attraction and group cohesiveness under different visibility and anonymity conditions for social categories that differed in their capacity to be visually cued. Using computer-mediated communication in 36 mixed gender (visually cued category) and nationality (non-visually

Social cohesion, sexuality, homophobia and women's sport in South ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

... secondly, that the success of national teams and athletes promotes national pride and unity. ... We explore these issues by drawing on media reports of cases in which ... To realise the potential of sport as a tool for building social cohesion, ...

Student leadership and advocacy for social cohesion: A South ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

at how social cohesion could benefit economic development, hoped thereby ... institutions pledged to reverse 'outsourcing' to 'insourcing' of cleaning services, there is .... It is not so much the scale of these ills as it is the perceived failure of the.

The limits of social capital: Durkheim, suicide, and social cohesion.

Science.gov (United States)

Kushner, Howard I; Sterk, Claire E

2005-07-01

Recent applications of social capital theories to population health often draw on classic sociological theories for validation of the protective features of social cohesion and social integration. Durkheim's work on suicide has been cited as evidence that modern life disrupts social cohesion and results in a greater risk of morbidity and mortality-including self-destructive behaviors and suicide. We argue that a close reading of Durkheim's evidence supports the opposite conclusion and that the incidence of self-destructive behaviors such as suicide is often greatest among those with high levels of social integration. A reexamination of Durkheim's data on female suicide and suicide in the military suggests that we should be skeptical about recent studies connecting improved population health to social capital.

Effects of Cohesive Sediment on Estuarine Morphology in Laboratory Scale Experiments

Science.gov (United States)

Braat, L.; Leuven, J.; Lokhorst, I.; Kleinhans, M. G.

2017-12-01

Mud plays a major role in forming and filling of river estuaries. River estuaries are typically build of sand and flanked by mudflats, which affect channel-shoal dynamics on time scales of centuries to millennia. In our research we aim to study the effects of mud on the shape and evolution of estuaries and where the largest effects occur. Recently a 20 m by 3 m flume (the Metronome) was developed at Utrecht University for tidal experiments. Complete estuaries are simulated in the Metronome by driving tidal flow by periodically tilting of the flume to counteract scaling problems. To simulate the effects of cohesive mud we supply nutshell grains to the system together with the river discharge. Three scenarios were tested, one with only sand, one with a low supply concentration of nutshell and one with a high concentration (left to right in figure).Estuaries that developed from an initial convergent shape are self-formed through bank erosion, continuous channel-shoal migration and bar and mud flat sedimentation (figure shows development over 15000 tilting cycles). The cohesive sediment deposits occur mainly on bars, but also on the flanks of the estuary and in abandoned channels. Due to its different erosional and depositional characteristics, the nutshell increases the elevation of the bars, which reduces storage and ebb-dominance and causes reduction of bar mobility and short cuts. These results agree with numerical model results. The large-scale effect is less widening of the estuary in the presence of mud and a decrease in channel-shoal migration, suggesting that mud confines estuary width in a similar manner as river floodplains.

Diversity and social cohesion : the case of Jane-Finch, a highly diverse lower-income Toronto neighbourhood

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ahmadi, D.

2017-01-01

Diversity has increasingly emerged as the core focus of many studies concerning factors impacting on social cohesion. Various scholars have concluded that diversity is detrimental to cohesion. Most of this research, however, draws generalisations based upon quantitative data and fails to account

Defects in the Fanconi Anemia Pathway and Chromatid Cohesion in Head and Neck Cancer.

Science.gov (United States)

Stoepker, Chantal; Ameziane, Najim; van der Lelij, Petra; Kooi, Irsan E; Oostra, Anneke B; Rooimans, Martin A; van Mil, Saskia E; Brink, Arjen; Dietrich, Ralf; Balk, Jesper A; Ylstra, Bauke; Joenje, Hans; Feller, Stephan M; Brakenhoff, Ruud H

2015-09-01

Failure to repair DNA damage or defective sister chromatid cohesion, a process essential for correct chromosome segregation, can be causative of chromosomal instability (CIN), which is a hallmark of many types of cancers. We investigated how frequent this occurs in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) and whether specific mechanisms or genes could be linked to these phenotypes. The genomic instability syndrome Fanconi anemia is caused by mutations in any of at least 16 genes regulating DNA interstrand crosslink (ICL) repair. Since patients with Fanconi anemia have a high risk to develop HNSCC, we investigated whether and to which extent Fanconi anemia pathway inactivation underlies CIN in HNSCC of non-Fanconi anemia individuals. We observed ICL-induced chromosomal breakage in 9 of 17 (53%) HNSCC cell lines derived from patients without Fanconi anemia. In addition, defective sister chromatid cohesion was observed in five HNSCC cell lines. Inactivation of FANCM was responsible for chromosomal breakage in one cell line, whereas in two other cell lines, somatic mutations in PDS5A or STAG2 resulted in inadequate sister chromatid cohesion. In addition, FANCF methylation was found in one cell line by screening an additional panel of 39 HNSCC cell lines. Our data demonstrate that CIN in terms of ICL-induced chromosomal breakage and defective chromatid cohesion is frequently observed in HNSCC. Inactivation of known Fanconi anemia and chromatid cohesion genes does explain CIN in the minority of cases. These findings point to phenotypes that may be highly relevant in treatment response of HNSCC. ©2015 American Association for Cancer Research.

Cohesion and Coalition Formation in the European Parliament: Roll-Call Votes and Twitter Activities.

Science.gov (United States)

Cherepnalkoski, Darko; Karpf, Andreas; Mozetič, Igor; Grčar, Miha

2016-01-01

We study the cohesion within and the coalitions between political groups in the Eighth European Parliament (2014-2019) by analyzing two entirely different aspects of the behavior of the Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) in the policy-making processes. On one hand, we analyze their co-voting patterns and, on the other, their retweeting behavior. We make use of two diverse datasets in the analysis. The first one is the roll-call vote dataset, where cohesion is regarded as the tendency to co-vote within a group, and a coalition is formed when the members of several groups exhibit a high degree of co-voting agreement on a subject. The second dataset comes from Twitter; it captures the retweeting (i.e., endorsing) behavior of the MEPs and implies cohesion (retweets within the same group) and coalitions (retweets between groups) from a completely different perspective. We employ two different methodologies to analyze the cohesion and coalitions. The first one is based on Krippendorff's Alpha reliability, used to measure the agreement between raters in data-analysis scenarios, and the second one is based on Exponential Random Graph Models, often used in social-network analysis. We give general insights into the cohesion of political groups in the European Parliament, explore whether coalitions are formed in the same way for different policy areas, and examine to what degree the retweeting behavior of MEPs corresponds to their co-voting patterns. A novel and interesting aspect of our work is the relationship between the co-voting and retweeting patterns.

Linking Anger Trait with Somatization in Low-Grade College Students: Moderating Roles of Family Cohesion and Adaptability.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Liang; Liu, Cuilian; Zhao, Xudong

2017-02-25

Between 22% and 58% of patients in primary care settings complain of somatic symptoms. Previous research has found that somatization was associated with anger traits and family functions. However, studies that specifically assess the moderating effect of family function in how anger traits become somatic complaints are lacking. This study was designed to examine whether the variances in family cohesion and family adaptability moderated the strength of the relationship between anger traits and somatization. A cross-section design was conducted and 2008 college students were recruited from a comprehensive university in Shanghai. All participants finished questionnaires including Symptom Check List- 90 (SCL-90), State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory 2 (STAXI-2, Chinese version) and Family Adaptability and Cohesion Scale, second edition (FACES II, Chinese Version) to assess their degree of current somatization, anger trait and family function. Hierarchical linear regression analysis (Enter) was conducted respectively for men and women to examine the moderation effect of family cohesion and family adaptability in the association between anger and somatization. Somatic symptoms were significantly linked in the expected directions with depression and anger trait for both genders. Family cohesion and family adaptability were negatively associated with somatic symptoms. For female college students family cohesion was found to moderate the link between anger trait and somatization, but for male college students the moderation effect of family cohesion was marginally significant. The moderating role of family adaptability was significant for neither male nor female after current depressive symptoms were accounted for. Proneness to anger is an independent predictor of somatization. For women, a high level of family cohesion was a protective factor which could reduce the influence of anger trait on somatic symptoms. Without comorbidity of current depression, family

The impact of neighborhood violence and social cohesion on smoking behaviors among a cohort of smokers in Mexico

Science.gov (United States)

Fleischer, Nancy L.; Lozano, Paula; Santillán, Edna Arillo; Shigematsu, Luz Myriam Reynales; Thrasher, James F.

2016-01-01

Background Recent increases in violent crime may impact a variety of health outcomes in Mexico. We examined relationships between neighborhood-level violence and smoking behaviors in a cohort of Mexican smokers from 2011–2012, and whether neighborhood-level social cohesion modified these relationships. Methods Data were analyzed from adult smokers and recent ex-smokers who participated in Waves 5–6 of the International Tobacco Control Mexico Survey. Self-reported neighborhood violence and social cohesion were asked of Wave 6 survey participants (n=2129 current and former smokers, n=150 neighborhoods). Neighborhood-level averages for violence and social cohesion (range 4–14 and 10–25, respectively) were assigned to individuals. We used generalized estimating equations to determine associations between neighborhood indicators and individual-level smoking intensity, quit behaviors, and relapse. Results Higher neighborhood violence was associated with higher smoking intensity (Risk Ratio (RR)=1.17, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) 1.02–1.33), and fewer quit attempts (RR=0.72, 95% CI 0.61–0.85). Neighborhood violence was not associated with successful quitting or relapse. Higher neighborhood social cohesion was associated with more quit attempts and more successful quitting. Neighborhood social cohesion modified the association between neighborhood violence and smoking intensity: in neighborhoods with higher social cohesion, as violence increased, smoking intensity decreased and in neighborhoods with lower social cohesion, as violence increased, so did smoking intensity. Conclusion In the context of recent increased violence in Mexico, smokers living in neighborhoods with more violence may smoke more cigarettes per day and make fewer quit attempts than their counterparts in less violent neighborhoods. Neighborhood social cohesion may buffer the impact of violence on smoking intensity. PMID:26043898

Self-Esteem among Vietnamese American Adolescents: The Role of Self-Construal, Family Cohesion, and Social Support

Science.gov (United States)

Lam, Brian Trung

2005-01-01

This prospective study examined whether interdependent self-construal (collectivism), independent self-construal (individualism), family cohesion, and social support would predict levels of self-esteem among Vietnamese American adolescents. Standardized self-report measures of family cohesion, social support, and self-esteem, as well as a measure…

Cohesive fracture model for functionally graded fiber reinforced concrete

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Kyoungsoo; Paulino, Glaucio H.; Roesler, Jeffery

2010-01-01

A simple, effective, and practical constitutive model for cohesive fracture of fiber reinforced concrete is proposed by differentiating the aggregate bridging zone and the fiber bridging zone. The aggregate bridging zone is related to the total fracture energy of plain concrete, while the fiber bridging zone is associated with the difference between the total fracture energy of fiber reinforced concrete and the total fracture energy of plain concrete. The cohesive fracture model is defined by experimental fracture parameters, which are obtained through three-point bending and split tensile tests. As expected, the model describes fracture behavior of plain concrete beams. In addition, it predicts the fracture behavior of either fiber reinforced concrete beams or a combination of plain and fiber reinforced concrete functionally layered in a single beam specimen. The validated model is also applied to investigate continuously, functionally graded fiber reinforced concrete composites.

Group cohesion and social support in exercise classes: results from a danish intervention study

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christensen, Ulla; Schmidt, Lone; Budtz-Jørgensen, Esben

2006-01-01

This study examines the formation of group cohesion and social support in exercise classes among former sedentary adults, participating in a Danish community-based intervention. Furthermore, the aim is to analyze the impact of this process on exercise activity among the participants. A multimethod...... approach was used, analyzing both survey data and 18 personal interviews collected among 87 participants who completed the intervention project. Analysis was performed according to the grounded theory method. The formation of group cohesion was conditioned by the social composition of the group......, the teaching ability by the instructors, and the activity by itself. The cohesive group was characterized by an attitude of mutual support toward exercise activities. This mutual support facilitated development of self-efficacy beliefs among the participants improving their mastery expectation regarding...

Stress of home life and gender role socializations, family cohesion, and symptoms of anxiety and depression.

Science.gov (United States)

Anyan, Frederick; Hjemdal, Odin

2017-04-05

This cross-sectional study investigated the relation of sociocultural prescriptions of gender role socializations to differences in stress at home and to anxiety and depressive symptoms for adolescent girls and boys, with family cohesion as a mediator. A total of 244 boys and 285 girls aged 13-17 years recruited from Accra, Ghana completed the Short Mood Feeling Questionnaire, Spielberger State Anxiety Inventory, Stress of Home Life and Family Cohesion self-report scales in April 2015. In each sample, two mediation analyses were conducted using Structural Equation Modelling. Exposure to stress at home that was perceived to result from sociocultural prescriptions of gender role norms largely accounted for anxiety and depressive symptoms among girls, whereas this relation was non-significant among boys. Significant indirect relations through low family cohesion to anxiety symptoms were observed for girls and boys but not to depressive symptoms for boys. These findings suggest that differences in gender role socializations at home may account for individual differences in associations between exposure to stress at home and anxiety and depressive symptoms as well as explain the differential indirect relations through low family cohesion. Improving family cohesion while reducing stress at home may contribute to reducing stress and thus anxiety and depressive symptoms.

Cohesion, team mental models, and collective efficacy: towards an integrated framework of team dynamics in sport.

Science.gov (United States)

Filho, Edson; Tenenbaum, Gershon; Yang, Yanyun

2015-01-01

A nomological network on team dynamics in sports consisting of a multiframework perspective is introduced and tested. The aim was to explore the interrelationship among cohesion, team mental models (TMMs), collective efficacy (CE) and perceived performance potential (PPP). Three hundred and forty college-aged soccer players representing 17 different teams (8 female and 9 male) participated in the study. They responded to surveys on team cohesion, TMMs, CE and PPP. Results are congruent with the theoretical conceptualisation of a parsimonious view of team dynamics in sports. Specifically, cohesion was found to be an exogenous variable predicting both TMMs and CE beliefs. TMMs and CE were correlated and predicted PPP, which in turn accounted for 59% of the variance of objective performance scores as measured by teams' season record. From a theoretical standpoint, findings resulted in a parsimonious view of team dynamics, which may represent an initial step towards clarifying the epistemological roots and nomological network of various team-level properties. From an applied standpoint, results suggest that team expertise starts with the establishment of team cohesion. Following the establishment of cohesiveness, teammates are able to advance team-related schemas and a collective sense of confidence. Limitations and key directions for future research are outlined.

Balancing act: the influence of adaptability and cohesion on satisfaction and communication in families facing TBI in Mexico.

Science.gov (United States)

Lehan, Tara J; Stevens, Lillian Flores; Arango-Lasprilla, Juan Carlos; Díaz Sosa, Dulce María; Espinosa Jove, Irma Guadalupe

2012-01-01

Much of what is known about family functioning in the face of traumatic brain injury (TBI) is based on research conducted in the United States. The purpose of this study was to (1) describe the levels of family adaptability, cohesion, communication, and satisfaction as reported by Mexican TBI survivors and their family caregivers, (2) test the hypothesis of the Circumplex Model that balanced families would exhibit better communication and greater satisfaction, and (3) explore how TBI survivors' and their family caregivers' perceptions of family adaptability and cohesion influenced their own and the other's perceptions of family communication and satisfaction. In the majority of dyads, both the TBI survivor and the family caregiver endorsed balanced family adaptability and cohesion. Both TBI survivors and their family caregivers reported a relatively high level of family communication and satisfaction. TBI survivors and family caregivers who reported greater levels of family adaptability and cohesion also endorsed better family communication and greater family satisfaction. In addition, individuals with TBI whose family caregiver endorsed balanced family adaptability and cohesion reported better family communication. Further, family caregivers of TBI survivors who reported balanced family adaptability and cohesion reported better family communication. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

Groupthink: one peril of group cohesiveness.

Science.gov (United States)

Rosenblum, E H

1982-04-01

A group's aim is to make well-conceived, well-understood, well-accepted and realistic decisions to reach their agreed-upon goals. This aim applies equally to their own goals and those occasionally imposed by outsiders such as hospital administration, accreditation committees and the federal government. Effective groupwork requires group cohesion with its components of trust, risk taking, mutual support, and group esteem. With constant vigilance the group can maintain its positive dynamics, so that the unhealthy state of groupthink does not undermine its existence.

A consistency assessment of coupled cohesive zone models for mixed-mode debonding problems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R. Dimitri

2014-07-01

Full Text Available Due to their simplicity, cohesive zone models (CZMs are very attractive to describe mixed-mode failure and debonding processes of materials and interfaces. Although a large number of coupled CZMs have been proposed, and despite the extensive related literature, little attention has been devoted to ensuring the consistency of these models for mixed-mode conditions, primarily in a thermodynamical sense. A lack of consistency may affect the local or global response of a mechanical system. This contribution deals with the consistency check for some widely used exponential and bilinear mixed-mode CZMs. The coupling effect on stresses and energy dissipation is first investigated and the path-dependance of the mixed-mode debonding work of separation is analitically evaluated. Analytical predictions are also compared with results from numerical implementations, where the interface is described with zero-thickness contact elements. A node-to-segment strategy is here adopted, which incorporates decohesion and contact within a unified framework. A new thermodynamically consistent mixed-mode CZ model based on a reformulation of the Xu-Needleman model as modified by van den Bosch et al. is finally proposed and derived by applying the Coleman and Noll procedure in accordance with the second law of thermodynamics. The model holds monolithically for loading and unloading processes, as well as for decohesion and contact, and its performance is demonstrated through suitable examples.

A cohesive finite element formulation for modelling fracture and ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

cohesive elements experience material softening and lose their stress carrying capacity. A few simple ..... In the present work, a Lagrangian finite element procedure is employed. In this formu clation ...... o, is related to 'c o by,. 't o='c o ¼ 1 ہ. 1.

The Affective Norms for Polish Short Texts (ANPST) Database Properties and Impact of Participants’ Population and Sex on Affective Ratings

Science.gov (United States)

Imbir, Kamil K.

2017-01-01

The Affective Norms for Polish Short Texts (ANPST) dataset (Imbir, 2016d) is a list of 718 affective sentence stimuli with known affective properties with respect to subjectively perceived valence, arousal, dominance, origin, subjective significance, and source. This article examines the reliability of the ANPST and the impact of population type and sex on affective ratings. The ANPST dataset was introduced to provide a recognized method of eliciting affective states with linguistic stimuli more complex than single words and that included contextual information and thus are less ambiguous in interpretation than single word. Analysis of the properties of the ANPST dataset showed that norms collected are reliable in terms of split-half estimation and that the distributions of ratings are similar to those obtained in other affective norms studies. The pattern of correlations was the same as that found in analysis of an affective norms dataset for words based on the same six variables. Female psychology students’ valence ratings were also more polarized than those of their female student peers studying other subjects, but arousal ratings were only higher for negative words. Differences also appeared for all other measured dimensions. Women’s valence ratings were found to be more polarized and arousal ratings were higher than those made by men, and differences were also present for dominance, origin, and subjective significance. The ANPST is the first Polish language list of sentence stimuli and could easily be adapted for other languages and cultures. PMID:28611707

A social network analysis of social cohesion in a constructed pride: implications for ex situ reintroduction of the African lion (Panthera leo.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jackie Abell

Full Text Available Animal conservation practices include the grouping of captive related and unrelated individuals to form a social structure which is characteristic of that species in the wild. In response to the rapid decline of wild African lion (Panthera leo populations, an array of conservational strategies have been adopted. Ex situ reintroduction of the African lion requires the construction of socially cohesive pride structures prior to wild release. This pilot study adopted a social network theory approach to quantitatively assess a captive pride's social structure and the relationships between individuals within them. Group composition (who is present in a group and social interaction data (social licking, greeting, play was observed and recorded to assess social cohesion within a released semi-wild pride. UCINET and SOCPROG software was utilised to represent and analyse these social networks. Results indicate that the pride is socially cohesive, does not exhibit random associations, and the role of socially influential keystone individuals is important for maintaining social bondedness within a lion pride. These results are potentially informative for the structure of lion prides, in captivity and in the wild, and could have implications for captive and wild-founder reintroductions.

A community based intervention program to enhance neighborhood cohesion: The Learning Families Project in Hong Kong.

Science.gov (United States)

Shen, Chen; Wan, Alice; Kwok, Lit Tung; Pang, Sally; Wang, Xin; Stewart, Sunita M; Lam, Tai Hing; Chan, Sophia S

2017-01-01

Neighborhood cohesion, which refers to the extent of the connectedness and solidarity among residents in a community or neighborhood, is an important determinant of human health. To enhance neighborhood cohesion, the "Learning Families Project" was developed with a series of intervention programs in Kwun Tong in Hong Kong, a district with low neighborhood cohesion. This project, based on the social ecological model, provided a platform for neighbors to learn, communicate and interact with each other. This quasi-experimental study included two nearby government subsidized low rent housing estates separated by busy main roads. One served as the intervention (Tsui Ping (South) Estate) and one as the control (Shun Tin Estate) estate. The intervention included promotion, resident training and learning programs, embodied by a series of community activities such as talks, day camp, thematic activities and horticulture class. Baseline (before the programs) and follow-up (one year after the programs) surveys were conducted both in the intervention and control estate to assess the impact of the programs on neighborhood cohesion. The number of residents who completed both the baseline and follow-up surveys was 502 in the intervention estate and 476 in the control estate. Neighborhood cohesion significantly improved in the intervention group after the programs (Cohen effect size d: 0.15). Compared with the control group, the improvements in closeness of the neighborhood and trust in neighbors were significantly greater in the intervention group (Cohen effect size d: 0.13 and 0.14, respectively). This brief intervention program using a quasi-experimental study design increased neighborhood cohesion in a low rent housing estate. ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02851667.

Examining the Relationship between Emotional Intelligence and Group Cohesion

Science.gov (United States)

Moore, Amanda; Mamiseishvili, Ketevan

2012-01-01

Collaborative learning experiences increase student learning, but what happens when students fail to collaborate? The authors investigated the relationship between emotional intelligence and group cohesion by studying 44 undergraduate teams who were completing semester-long projects in their business classes at a small private university in the…

Interfacial stresses in strengthened beam with shear cohesive zone ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

The results of parametric study are compared with those of Smith and Teng. They confirm the accuracy of the proposed approach in predicting both interfacial shear and normal stresses. Keywords. Strengthened beam; interfacial stresses; cohesive zone; shear deformation. 1. Introduction. The FRP plates can be either ...

Leadership, Cohesion, and Team Norms Regarding Cheating and Aggression.

Science.gov (United States)

Shields, David Lyle Light; And Others

1995-01-01

Study explored leadership, cohesion, and demographic variables in relation to team norms about cheating and aggression. Surveys of high school and college ball players indicated that older age, higher year in school, and more years playing ball correlated positively with expectations of peer cheating and aggression. (SM)

Music listening in families and peer groups: benefits for young people's social cohesion and emotional well-being across four cultures.

Science.gov (United States)

Boer, Diana; Abubakar, Amina

2014-01-01

Families are central to the social and emotional development of youth, and most families engage in musical activities together, such as listening to music or talking about their favorite songs. However, empirical evidence of the positive effects of musical family rituals on social cohesion and emotional well-being is scarce. Furthermore, the role of culture in the shaping of musical family rituals and their psychological benefits has been neglected entirely. This paper investigates musical rituals in families and in peer groups (as an important secondary socialization context) in two traditional/collectivistic and two secular/individualistic cultures, and across two developmental stages (adolescence vs. young adulthood). Based on cross-sectional data from 760 young people in Kenya, the Philippines, New Zealand, and Germany, our study revealed that across cultures music listening in families and in peer groups contributes to family and peer cohesion, respectively. Furthermore, the direct contribution of music in peer groups on well-being appears across cultural contexts, whereas musical family rituals affect emotional well-being in more traditional/collectivistic contexts. Developmental analyses show that musical family rituals are consistently and strongly related to family cohesion across developmental stages, whereas musical rituals in peer groups appear more dependent on the developmental stage (in interaction with culture). Contributing to developmental as well as cross-cultural psychology, this research elucidated musical rituals and their positive effects on the emotional and social development of young people across cultures. The implications for future research and family interventions are discussed.

Numerical simulation of particle settling and cohesion in liquid

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Johno, Y; Nakashima, K; Shigematsu, T; Ono, B [SASEBO National College of Technology, 1-1 Okishin, Sasebo, Nagasaki, 857-1193 (Japan); Satomi, M, E-mail: yjohno@post.cc.sasebo.ac.j [Sony Semiconductor Kyushu Corporation, Kikuchigun, Kumamoto (Japan)

2009-02-01

In this study, the motions of particles and particle clusters in liquid were numerically simulated. The particles of two sizes (Dp=40mum and 20mum) settle while repeating cohesion and dispersion, and finally the sediment of particles are formed at the bottom of a hexahedron container which is filled up with pure water. The flow field was solved with the Navier-Stokes equations and the particle motions were solved with the Lagrangian-type motion equations, where the interaction between fluid and particles due to drag forces were taken into account. The collision among particles was calculated using Distinct Element Method (DEM), and the effects of cohesive forces by van der Waals force acting on particle contact points were taken into account. Numerical simulations were performed under conditions in still flow and in shear flow. It was found that the simulation results enable us to know the state of the particle settling and the particle condensation.

Social cohesion and interpersonal conflicts in projects

OpenAIRE

Ojiako, Udechukwu; Manville, Graham; Zouk, Nadine; Chipulu, Maxwell

2016-01-01

One particular area of project management literature that has continued to gain momentum in literature is its social dimension; with a number of scholars emphasising the fact that there is a considerable social dimension to every project activity. Within this context, the authors examine parameters that drive social facets of projects with a particular focus on social cohesion, interpersonal conflicts and national culture. Data from 167 project managers working in Kuwait were collected utilis...

Interparental Conflict and Family Cohesion: Predictors of Loneliness, Social Anxiety, and Social Avoidance in Late Adolescence.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, H. Durell; LaVoie, Joseph C.; Mahoney, Molly

2001-01-01

Examined relationship of family cohesion and interparental conflict with loneliness in 124 late adolescents. Found that feelings of loneliness were related to perceived levels of interparental conflict for males and females, and to decreased family cohesion for females. Feelings of social anxiety and social avoidance were related to feelings of…

Social cohesiveness and absenteeism - The relationship between characteristics of employees and short-term absenteeism within an organization

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sanders, K; Nauta, A

2004-01-01

This study tries to explain the relationship between characteristics of the employees (e.g., gender and working hours) and short-term absenteeism by examining the social cohesiveness of a team. Hypotheses are formulated concerning gender and working hours of employees, social cohesiveness, and

Social cohesiveness and absenteeism : the relationship between characteristics of employees and short-term absenteeism within an organization

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sanders, K.; Nauta, A.

2004-01-01

This article tries to explain the relationship between characteristics of the employees as gender and working hours, and short-term absenteeism by examining the social cohesiveness of a team. Hypotheses are formulated concerning gender and working hours of employees, social cohesiveness, and

Teacher Governance Factors and Social Cohesion: Insights from Pakistan

Science.gov (United States)

Halai, Anjum; Durrani, Naureen

2016-01-01

This paper explores teacher governance factors, particularly recruitment and deployment of teachers, in relation to inequalities and social cohesion. Pakistan introduced major reforms in education in the post 9/11 context of escalating conflict. These include a merit and needs-based policy on teacher recruitment to eliminate corruption in…

Explaining Couple Cohesion in Different Types of Gay Families

Science.gov (United States)

van Eeden-Moorefield, Brad; Pasley, Kay; Crosbie-Burnett, Margaret; King, Erin

2012-01-01

This Internet-based study used data from a convenience sample of 176 gay men in current partnerships to examine differences in outness, cohesion, and relationship quality between three types of gay male couples: first cohabiting partnerships, repartnerships, and gay stepfamilies. Also, we tested whether relationship quality mediated the link…

Botswana team sport players' perception of cohesion and imagery ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Perception of cohesion and imagery use among 45 elite team sport players in Botswana were assessed with the Group Environment Questionnaire (Carron et al., 1985) and the Sport Imagery Questionnaire (Hall et al., 1998) to determine whether a relationship exists between the variables, and whether imagery use will ...

Competitiveness, Emu and Cohesion Experiences in the Past (2000–2013; Assessment of the Present (2014–2020 and Lessons for the Future (2020 and Beyond

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Molle Willem

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The European Union has adopted several strategies to cope with a set of inter-related problems. The best known is the Europe 2020 strategy with its focus on smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. Another is fostering balanced macro growth via a strengthening of the EMU. Finally the cohesion policy has to cope with spatial unbalances. The objective of this paper is to highlight the main issues in three policy fields: competitiveness, EMU and cohesion.1 Two scenarios for post 2020 development are described, which show the need for further strengthening of EU policies and of the quality of government at all levels.

Does decentralisation enhance a school's role of promoting social cohesion? Bosnian school leaders' perceptions of school governance

Science.gov (United States)

Komatsu, Taro

2014-05-01

This study seeks to understand whether and how decentralised school governance in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) enhances the schools' role of promoting social cohesion. This includes increasing "horizontal" trust among different ethnic groups and "vertical" trust between civilians and public institutes. The study examined secondary school leaders' perceptions regarding school board influence on social cohesion policies and practices, their interactions with school board members, and their accountability to the school-based governing body. The results show that school leaders and school boards, supposedly representing the interests of local stakeholders, did not appear to be actively engaged in the deliberate process of promoting social cohesion. While school directors tended to view themselves as being independent from the school boards, ethnically diverse school boards provided important support to proactive school leaders for their inter-group activities. Given that the central level is not providing initiatives to promote social cohesion and that BiH citizens appear to generally support social cohesion, decentralised school governance has the potential to improve social trust from the bottom up. To promote participatory school governance, the study recommends that BiH school leaders should be provided with opportunities to re-examine and redefine their professional accountability and to assist local stakeholders to improve their involvement in school governance.

Spatializing Open Data for the Assessment and the Improvement of Territorial and Social Cohesion

Science.gov (United States)

Scorza, F.; Las Casas, G. B.; Murgante, B.

2016-09-01

An integrated place-based approach for the improvement of territorial and social cohesion is the new instance for planning disciplines, coming from EU New Cohesion Policies. This paper considers the territorial impact assessment of regional development policies as a precondition in order to develop balanced and effective operative programs at national and regional levels. The contribution of `open data' appears to be mature in order to support this application and in this paper we present a spatial analysis technique for the evaluation of EU funds effects at territorial level, starting from open data by Open Cohesion. The application is focused on internal areas of Basilicata Region: Agri river Valley. A complex contest, where environmental and agricultural traditional vocations conflict with a recent development of oil extraction industries. Conclusions concern further applications and perspectives to improve and support regional development planning considering the exploitation of open data sources and spatial analysis.

SOLO: a meiotic protein required for centromere cohesion, coorientation, and SMC1 localization in Drosophila melanogaster.

Science.gov (United States)

Yan, Rihui; Thomas, Sharon E; Tsai, Jui-He; Yamada, Yukihiro; McKee, Bruce D

2010-02-08

Sister chromatid cohesion is essential to maintain stable connections between homologues and sister chromatids during meiosis and to establish correct centromere orientation patterns on the meiosis I and II spindles. However, the meiotic cohesion apparatus in Drosophila melanogaster remains largely uncharacterized. We describe a novel protein, sisters on the loose (SOLO), which is essential for meiotic cohesion in Drosophila. In solo mutants, sister centromeres separate before prometaphase I, disrupting meiosis I centromere orientation and causing nondisjunction of both homologous and sister chromatids. Centromeric foci of the cohesin protein SMC1 are absent in solo mutants at all meiotic stages. SOLO and SMC1 colocalize to meiotic centromeres from early prophase I until anaphase II in wild-type males, but both proteins disappear prematurely at anaphase I in mutants for mei-S332, which encodes the Drosophila homologue of the cohesin protector protein shugoshin. The solo mutant phenotypes and the localization patterns of SOLO and SMC1 indicate that they function together to maintain sister chromatid cohesion in Drosophila meiosis.

Neighborhoods and Mental Health: Exploring Ethnic Density, Poverty, and Social Cohesion among Asian Americans and Latinos

Science.gov (United States)

Hong, Seunghye; Zhang, Wei; Walton, Emily

2014-01-01

This study examines the associations of neighborhood ethnic density and poverty with social cohesion and self-rated mental health among Asian Americans and Latinos. Path analysis is employed to analyze data from the 2002–2003 National Latino and Asian American Study (NLAAS) and the 2000 U.S. Census (N=2095 Asian Americans living in N=259 neighborhoods; N=2554 Latinos living in N=317 neighborhoods). Findings reveal that neighborhood ethnic density relates to poor mental health in both groups. Social cohesion partially mediates that structural relationship, but is positively related to ethnic density among Latinos and negatively related to ethnic density among Asian Americans. Although higher neighborhood poverty is negatively associated with mental health for both groups, the relationship does not hold in the path models after accounting for social cohesion and covariates. Furthermore, social cohesion fully mediates the association between neighborhood poverty and mental health among Latinos. This study highlights the necessity of reconceptualizing existing theories of social relationships to reflect complex and nuanced mechanisms linking neighborhood structure and mental health for diverse racial and ethnic groups. PMID:24769491

Simulation study of the discharge characteristics of silos with cohesive particles

Science.gov (United States)

Hund, David; Weis, Dominik; Hesse, Robert; Antonyuk, Sergiy

2017-06-01

In many industrial applications the silo for bulk materials is an important part of an overall process. Silos are used for instance to buffer intermediate products to ensure a continuous supply for the next process step. This study deals with the discharging behaviour of silos containing cohesive bulk solids with particle sizes in the range of 100-500 μm. In this contribution the TOMAS [1,2] model developed for stationary and non-stationary discharging of a convergent hopper is verified with experiments and simulations using the Discrete Element Method. Moreover the influence of the cohesion of the bulk solids on the discharge behaviour is analysed by the simulation. The simulation results showed a qualitative agreement with the analytical model of TOMAS.

The Relationship between Task Cohesion and Competitive State Anxiety.

Science.gov (United States)

Eys, Mark A.; Hardy, James; Carron, Albert V.; Beauchamp, Mark R.

2003-01-01

Examined the association between athlete perceptions of task cohesiveness (Individual Attractions to the Group-Task and Group Integration-Task) and the degree to which they viewed their perceptions of the presence of pre-competition anxiety symptoms as facilitative or debilitative. Survey data indicated that the more positive their perceptions of…

Active cell-matrix coupling regulates cellular force landscapes of cohesive epithelial monolayers

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Tiankai; Zhang, Yao; Wei, Qiong; Shi, Xuechen; Zhao, Peng; Chen, Long-Qing; Zhang, Sulin

2018-03-01

Epithelial cells can assemble into cohesive monolayers with rich morphologies on substrates due to competition between elastic, edge, and interfacial effects. Here we present a molecularly based thermodynamic model, integrating monolayer and substrate elasticity, and force-mediated focal adhesion formation, to elucidate the active biochemical regulation over the cellular force landscapes in cohesive epithelial monolayers, corroborated by microscopy and immunofluorescence studies. The predicted extracellular traction and intercellular tension are both monolayer size and substrate stiffness dependent, suggestive of cross-talks between intercellular and extracellular activities. Our model sets a firm ground toward a versatile computational framework to uncover the molecular origins of morphogenesis and disease in multicellular epithelia.

Analysis of group cohesion levels and pre-competitive psychological stress in volleyball athletes.. http://dx.doi.org/10.5007/1980-0037.2012v14n6p704

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Guilherme Moraes Balbim

2012-11-01

Full Text Available This descriptive study was designed to analyze the level of group cohesion and pre-competitive psychological stress of adult volleyball athletes. The subjects consisted of 155 male and female athletes from the state of Parana who played in the JAPS/ 1st division (A, and 2nd division (B. The assessment instruments used were the Group Environment Questionnaire (GEQ and the Volleyball Psychic Stress Test (V-PST. For data analysis, the following tools were used: Cronbach’s alpha, Kolmogorov-Smirnov, Mann-Whitney, one-way Anova, and Tukey’s post hoc (p<0.05. The results revealed that athletes of division A were more negatively influenced by stress factors than the athletes of division B; in terms of individual attraction to the social group (p=0.014 and tasks (p=0016 athletes of division B had higher levels of group cohesion than athletes from division A; athletes with low social cohesion were negatively impacted by factors of "inappropriate physical conditioning" and "excessive nervousness;" athletes with low levels of cohesion for the task were negatively influenced by the factors of "Pressure from other people to win" and positively by the factor "Behavior of the fans in the game outside." It was concluded that group cohesion is demonstrated to be an intervening factor in pre-competitive stress thereby demonstrating that the higher the dispute level, the higher the negative influence of stress.

Environmental Factors Affecting Where People Geocache

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Jennifer Golbeck

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Outdoor leisure activities are important for public health as well as family cohesiveness, yet environmental factors may easily affect someone’s ability to participate in such activities. We explored this with a focus on the social web-based treasure hunt game called Geocaching. We collected data on all US and Canadian geocaches from OpenCaching.com and conducted an online survey with twenty geocachers as a follow-up to our data analysis. Data analysis showed that geocaches were more often found in areas that were wealthier, better educated, younger, and more urban, and had higher population density and better weather. Survey results showed similar trends: Most people actively thought about where they would cache and tried to minimize risks, despite cache hiders thinking less about these concerns. These results further emphasize the importance of environmental factors when it comes to participation in outdoor activities and leads to Human–Computer Interaction design implications for location-based online social activities.

DISCOURSES OF ROUTINE AND AFFECTS IN THE TEXT OF REGIONAL SPACE (on the example of Volgograd region

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J. A. Drozdova

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The article discusses social space, which is the region of the text that is defined by a set of messages sent to settlements, streets, squares, monuments, buildings, and a system of signs that reflect possible interpretations of the actors, due to the peculiarities of the subjective state, language and experience. Using the methods of discursive and semiotic interpretation, we can distinguish two components of a heterogeneous, multi-code text — space of routine and space of affects. Space of routine presupposes a rational perception of space, rational response, it is a formation of traditions, attitudes, norms of conduct governing the behavior of social actors in a specific spatio-temporal locality. Changes in the perception of the usual attributes of the regional landscape can in a certain sense and individual context trigger affective reactions. The followihg factors form the space of the affects: sensual perception of space, emotional stimulation and intrapsychic representation, the sense of injury/cure, dangers/safety, negativity/ pleasure, shame/pride, or a combination of them. Dualism in the perception of space, its dialectical nature, congruence, flexibility, variability, the conflict of local and individual meanings, existing practices, patterns, mentalities and cultures, situations, the media are a condition of existence, and labeling of the regional text, updating its discursiveness and research. 

Psychobiological Assessment and Enhancement of Team Cohesion and Psychological Resilience in ROTC Cadets Using a Virtual-Reality Team Cohesion Test

Science.gov (United States)

2017-06-01

processing and transcribing of audio recordings. This audio data will provide measures of group cohesion, group roles , communication efficiency, etc. 4...or other products from the project made an impact or are likely to make an impact on the base of knowledge, theory , and research in the principal...Recruitment and Retention: Thus far, recruitment has consisted of civilians. We are recruiting both male and female same- sex triads. Recruitment

Cohesion-Induced Stabilization in Stick-Slip Dynamics of Weakly Wet, Sheared Granular Fault Gouge

Science.gov (United States)

Dorostkar, Omid; Guyer, Robert A.; Johnson, Paul A.; Marone, Chris; Carmeliet, Jan

2018-03-01

We use three-dimensional discrete element calculations to study stick-slip dynamics in a weakly wet granular layer designed to simulate fault gouge. The granular gouge is constituted by 8,000 spherical particles with a polydisperse size distribution. At very low liquid content, liquids impose cohesive and viscous forces on particles. Our simulations show that by increasing the liquid content, friction increases and granular layer shows higher recurrence time between slip events. We also observe that slip events exhibit larger friction drop and layer compaction in wet system compared to dry. We demonstrate that a small volume of liquid induces cohesive forces between wet particles that are responsible for an increase in coordination number leading to a more stable arrangement of particles. This stabilization is evidenced with 2 orders of magnitude lower particle kinetic energy in wet system during stick phase. Similar to previous experimental studies, we observe enhanced frictional strength for wet granular layers. In experiments, the physicochemical processes are believed to be the main reason for such behavior; we show, however, that at low confining stresses, the hydromechanical effects of induced cohesion are sufficient for observed behavior. Our simulations illuminate the role of particle interactions and demonstrate the conditions under which induced cohesion plays a significant role in fault zone processes, including slip initiation, weakening, and failure.

Coordinates of the Absorption Capacity of Structural and Cohesion Funds at EU Level

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Anca Simina POPESCU

2015-09-01

Full Text Available The structural and cohesion funds are considered an attractive instrument for the funding of investments opportunities especially in times of crisis when the private investments are reduced. Nevertheless, they have not been factually highlighted in order to empirically document the role of European funds in supporting the short-term economic growth, at macroeconomic level. The target of absorbing as much European financial non-refundable aid requires constant efforts made by the member states and administration authorities, the involvement of regional and local public administrations in each stage of the process, as well as an appropriate capacity of institutional structures and management and control systems, they being basic premises of this objective achievement.

Evidence for contact calls in fish: conspecific vocalisations and ambient soundscape influence group cohesion in a nocturnal species

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van Oosterom, L.; Montgomery, J. C.; Jeffs, A. G.; Radford, C. A.

2016-01-01

Soundscapes provide a new tool for the study of fish communities. Bigeyes (Pempheris adspersa) are nocturnal planktivorous reef fish, feed in loose shoals and are soniferous. These vocalisations have been suggested to be contact calls to maintain group cohesion, however direct evidence for this is absent, despite the fact that contact calls are well documented for many other vertebrates, including marine mammals. For fish, direct evidence for group cohesion signals is restricted to the use of visual and hydrodynamic cues. In support of adding vocalisation as a contributing cue, our laboratory experiments show that bigeyes significantly increased group cohesion when exposed to recordings of ambient reef sound at higher sound levels while also decreasing vocalisations. These patterns of behaviour are consistent with acoustic masking. When exposed to playback of conspecific vocalisations, the group cohesion and vocalisation rates of bigeyes both significantly increased. These results provide the first direct experimental support for the hypotheses that vocalisations are used as contact calls to maintain group cohesion in fishes, making fish the evolutionarily oldest vertebrate group in which this phenomenon has been observed, and adding a new dimension to the interpretation of nocturnal reef soundscapes.

Coach-Initiated Motivational Climate and Cohesion in Youth Sport

Science.gov (United States)

Eys, Mark A.; Jewitt, Eryn; Evans, M. Blair; Wolf, Svenja; Bruner, Mark W.; Loughead, Todd M.

2013-01-01

Purpose: The general purpose of the present study was to examine the link between cohesion and motivational climate in youth sport. The first specific objective was to determine if relationships demonstrated in previous research with adult basketball and handball participants would be replicated in a younger sample and with a more heterogeneous…

Cohesive Errors in Writing among ESL Pre-Service Teachers

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Kwan, Lisa S. L.; Yunus, Melor Md

2014-01-01

Writing is a complex skill and one of the most difficult to master. A teacher's weak writing skills may negatively influence their students. Therefore, reinforcing teacher education by first determining pre-service teachers' writing weaknesses is imperative. This mixed-methods error analysis study aims to examine the cohesive errors in the writing…

Investigation into process-induced de-aggregation of cohesive micronised API particles.

Science.gov (United States)

Hoffmann, Magnus; Wray, Patrick S; Gamble, John F; Tobyn, Mike

2015-09-30

The aim of this study was to assess the impact of unit processes on the de-aggregation of a cohesive micronised API within a pharmaceutical formulation using near-infrared chemical imaging. The impact on the primary API particles was also investigated using an image-based particle characterization system with integrated Raman analysis. The blended material was shown to contain large, API rich domains which were distributed in-homogeneously across the sample, suggesting that the blending process was not aggressive enough to disperse aggregates of micronised drug particles. Cone milling, routinely used to improve the homogeneity of such cohesive formulations, was observed to substantially reduce the number and size of API rich domains; however, several smaller API domains survived the milling process. Conveyance of the cone milled formulation through the Alexanderwerk WP120 powder feed system completely dispersed all remaining aggregates. Importantly, powder feed transmission of the un-milled formulation was observed to produce an equally homogeneous API distribution. The size of the micronised primary drug particles remained unchanged during powder feed transmission. These findings provide further evidence that this powder feed system does induce shear, and is in fact better able to disperse aggregates of a cohesive micronised API within a blend than the blend-mill-blend step. Crown Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Income Inequality, Cohesiveness and Commonality in the Euro Area: A Semi-Parametric Boundary-Free Analysis

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Gordon Anderson

2018-03-01

Full Text Available The cohesiveness of constituent nations in a confederation such as the Eurozone depends on their equally shared experiences. In terms of household incomes, commonality of distribution across those constituent nations with that of the Eurozone as an entity in itself is of the essence. Generally, income classification has proceeded by employing “hard”, somewhat arbitrary and contentious boundaries. Here, in an analysis of Eurozone household income distributions over the period 2006–2015, mixture distribution techniques are used to determine the number and size of groups or classes endogenously without resort to such hard boundaries. In so doing, some new indices of polarization, segmentation and commonality of distribution are developed in the context of a decomposition of the Gini coefficient and the roles of, and relationships between, these groups in societal income inequality, poverty, polarization and societal segmentation are examined. What emerges for the Eurozone as an entity is a four-class, increasingly unequal polarizing structure with income growth in all four classes. With regard to individual constituent nation class membership, some advanced, some fell back, with most exhibiting significant polarizing behaviour. However, in the face of increasing overall Eurozone inequality, constituent nations were becoming increasingly similar in distribution, which can be construed as characteristic of a more cohesive society.

A consistent partly cracked XFEM element for cohesive crack growth

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Asferg, Jesper L.; Poulsen, Peter Noe; Nielsen, Leif Otto

2007-01-01

Present extended finite element method (XFEM) elements for cohesive crack growth may often not be able to model equal stresses on both sides of the discontinuity when acting as a crack-tip element. The authors have developed a new partly cracked XFEM element for cohesive crack growth with extra...... enrichments to the cracked elements. The extra enrichments are element side local and were developed by superposition of the standard nodal shape functions for the element and standard nodal shape functions for a sub-triangle of the cracked element. With the extra enrichments, the crack-tip element becomes...... capable of modelling variations in the discontinuous displacement field on both sides of the crack and hence also capable of modelling the case where equal stresses are present on each side of the crack. The enrichment was implemented for the 3-node constant strain triangle (CST) and a standard algorithm...

A Case Study of Inter-sentence Conjunctions in Chinese_English Legal Parallel Texts

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Yan Xi

2009-10-01

Full Text Available The present study is a contrastive study of inter-sentence conjunctions in Chinese/English legal parallel texts. Conjunction is one of the five cohesive devices put forward by Halliday and Hasan (1976. Many scholars have applied their model of cohesion to the study of English and Chinese languages. As for the use of conjunction in Chinese and English, most scholars believe that there are more cases of conjunction in the English legal texts than in the Chinese ones because it is generally considered that Chinese is predominantly paratactic and English mainly hypotactic. Besides, up to now little detailed contrastive study has been done on conjunctions in Chinese/English non-literary texts. Legal language is a specialized language whose distinctive feature is the pursuit of precision. As a result of the importance attached to the letter of law and the pursuit of precision in legal texts, most studies on legal language are devoted to the characteristic features of legal language at the word and sentence level, to the exclusion of textual and pragmatic considerations. The present study will mainly look at the features of legal texts from the perspective of conjunction at the textual level and find out whether Chinese uses fewer cases of conjunction than English in legal texts. The Chinese and English legal parallel texts about arbitration rules will be used for this contrastive analysis. It is hoped that the findings of this research will test the explanatory force of hypotaxis and parataxis in the use of conjunction in legal texts and give a clearer picture of conjunction at the textual level in Chinese and English legal parallel texts, and therefore reconstruct the discourse on the Chinese language.

Group cohesion and coach leadership based on the competitive level of teams in the context of Paraná’s indoor soccer

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José Roberto Andrade do Nascimento Junior

2013-01-01

Full Text Available DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5007/1980-0037.2013v15n1p89 The objective of the present study was to analyze the level of group cohesion and coach leadership style of five-a-side soccer teams from the state of Paraná. Participants consisted of 122 athletes of four teams competing at the National League and four teams competing at the Paraná State Championship in 2011, as well as eight coaches. The following instruments were used: the Group Environment Questionnaire, the Leadership Scale for Sports, and a semi-structured interview. Data analysis was performed using the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, Cronbach’s alpha, Mann-Whitney “U” test (p < 0.05, and categorical analysis. The results demonstrated that the State Championship teams showed higher levels of group cohesion when compared to the National League teams; the coaches of the State Championship teams provided more instructions, reinforcement, and social support to athletes, in addition to showing a more democratic style when compared to the National League coaches – these characteristics were also found in the qualitative analysis. We concluded that the performance level (state/national of the five-a-side soccer teams had an influence on the cohesion level and coaches’ leadership style.

TEACHERS AS AGENTS OF CHANGE: PROMOTING PEACEBUILDING AND SOCIAL COHESION IN SCHOOLS IN RWANDA

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Jolly Rubagiza

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Education is seen to play a crucial role in the reconstruction of post-conflict countries, particularly in transforming people’s mindsets and rebuilding social relations. In this regard, teachers are often perceived as key agents to bring about this transformative change through their role as agents of peace. This paper seeks to understand how teachers are positioned to promote peacebuilding and social cohesion in Rwandan schools in the aftermath of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi. The paper draws on data collected for an on-going broader study researching the role of teachers in peacebuilding in post-conflict contexts of Rwanda and South Africa. The methods used for data collection were semi-structured interviews, focus-group discussions, questionnaires and classroom observations. Theoretically the paper is informed by the broader research framework on sustainable peacebuilding in post-conflict situations, using the four dimensions of recognition, redistribution, representation and reconciliation (4Rs. The findings show that the policy environment is conducive to peacebuilding and recognises the important role of teachers and education in general, in the social, political and economic reconstruction of post-genocide Rwanda. However, there are a number of inter-related factors that pertain to teachers’ professional development, teacher management and the school environment that pose challenges to sustainable peacebuilding and social cohesion.

Social cohesion, social support, and health among Latinos in the United States.

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Mulvaney-Day, Norah E; Alegría, Margarita; Sribney, William

2007-01-01

The role of individual versus community level social connections in promoting health is an important factor to consider when addressing Latino health. This analysis examines the relationships between social support, social cohesion, and health in a sample of Latinos in the United States. Using data from the National Latino and Asian American Study, the analysis uses ordered logistic regression to explore the relationships of family support, friend support, family cultural conflict, and neighborhood social cohesion with self-rated physical and mental health, taking into account language proficiency and use, nativity, and sociodemographic variables. Family support, friend support, and neighborhood social cohesion were positively related to self-rated physical and mental health, and family cultural conflict was negatively related when controlled only for sex and age. After controlling for education, income, and other demographic measures, only family support was found to have a weak association with self-rated physical health; however, the relationship seemed to be mediated by language. In contrast, family support and family cultural conflict were strongly associated with self-rated mental health, after controlling for language, education, income, and other demographic measures. The study did not find neighborhood social cohesion to be significantly related to either self-rated physical or mental health, after accounting for the effects of the other social connection variables. Language of interview did not explain the highly significant effects of language proficiency and use. Social connections are important for health and mental health, but language and other sociodemographic factors seem to be related to how Latinos establish these social linkages. Further investigation into the role of language in the development and maintenance of social connections may help unravel the mechanisms by which they promote or decrease health.

Towards an integrated approach to cohesion and coherence in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The notions of cohesion and coherence have a long tradition in the linguistic literature. They date back to ancient .... syntax, and operates in short-term or working memory. Coherence is related to the ..... account of all the elements that occur in the film, namely, words, gestures, images, music and sound effects. In other ...

LRRC45 Is a Centrosome Linker Component Required for Centrosome Cohesion

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Runsheng He

2013-09-01

Full Text Available During interphase, centrosomes are connected by a proteinaceous linker between the proximal ends of the centrioles, which is important for the centrosomes to function as a single microtubule-organizing center. However, the composition and regulation of centrosomal linker remain largely unknown. Here, we show that LRRC45 is a centrosome linker that localizes at the proximal ends of the centrioles and forms fiber-like structures between them. Depletion of LRRC45 results in centrosome splitting during interphase. Moreover, LRRC45 interacts with both C-Nap1 and rootletin and is phosphorylated by Nek2A at S661 during mitosis. After phosphorylation, both LRRC45 centrosomal localization and fiber-like structures are significantly reduced, which subsequently leads to centrosome separation. Thus, LRRC45 is a critical component of the proteinaceous linker between two centrioles and is required for centrosome cohesion.

The application of J integral to measure cohesive laws in materials undergoing large scale yielding

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sørensen, Bent F.; Goutianos, Stergios

2015-01-01

We explore the possibility of determining cohesive laws by the J-integral approach for materials having non-linear stress-strain behaviour (e.g. polymers and composites) by the use of a DCB sandwich specimen, consisting of stiff elastic beams bonded to the non-linear test material, loaded with pure...... bending moments. For a wide range of parameters of the non-linear material, the plastic unloading during crack extension is small, resulting in J integral values (fracture resistance) that deviate maximum 15% from the work of the cohesive traction. Thus the method can be used to extract the cohesive laws...... directly from experiments without any presumption about their shape. Finally, the DCB sandwich specimen was also analysed using the I integral to quantify the overestimation of the steady-state fracture resistance obtained using the J integral based method....

Music listening in families and peer groups: benefits for young people's social cohesion and emotional well-being across four cultures

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Boer, Diana; Abubakar, Amina

2014-01-01

Families are central to the social and emotional development of youth, and most families engage in musical activities together, such as listening to music or talking about their favorite songs. However, empirical evidence of the positive effects of musical family rituals on social cohesion and emotional well-being is scarce. Furthermore, the role of culture in the shaping of musical family rituals and their psychological benefits has been neglected entirely. This paper investigates musical rituals in families and in peer groups (as an important secondary socialization context) in two traditional/collectivistic and two secular/individualistic cultures, and across two developmental stages (adolescence vs. young adulthood). Based on cross-sectional data from 760 young people in Kenya, the Philippines, New Zealand, and Germany, our study revealed that across cultures music listening in families and in peer groups contributes to family and peer cohesion, respectively. Furthermore, the direct contribution of music in peer groups on well-being appears across cultural contexts, whereas musical family rituals affect emotional well-being in more traditional/collectivistic contexts. Developmental analyses show that musical family rituals are consistently and strongly related to family cohesion across developmental stages, whereas musical rituals in peer groups appear more dependent on the developmental stage (in interaction with culture). Contributing to developmental as well as cross-cultural psychology, this research elucidated musical rituals and their positive effects on the emotional and social development of young people across cultures. The implications for future research and family interventions are discussed. PMID:24847296

Making myself understood: perceived factors affecting the intelligibility of sung text.

Science.gov (United States)

Fine, Philip A; Ginsborg, Jane

2014-01-01

Singing is universal, and understanding sung words is thought to be important for many listeners' enjoyment of vocal and choral music. However, this is not a trivial task, and sung text intelligibility is probably affected by many factors. A survey of musicians was undertaken to identify the factors believed to have most impact on intelligibility, and to assess the importance of understanding sung words in familiar and unfamiliar languages. A total of 143 professional and amateur musicians, including singers, singing teachers, and regular listeners to vocal music, provided 394 statements yielding 851 references to one or more of 43 discrete factors in four categories: performer-related, listener-related, environment-related and words/music-related. The factors mentioned most frequently in each of the four categories were, respectively: diction; hearing ability; acoustic; and genre. In more than a third of references, the extent to which sung text is intelligible was attributed to the performer. Over 60% of respondents rated the ability to understand words in familiar languages as "very important," but only 17% when the text was in an unfamiliar language. Professional musicians (47% of the sample) rated the importance of understanding in both familiar and unfamiliar languages significantly higher than amateurs but listed fewer factors overall and fewer listener-related factors. The more important the respondents rated understanding, the more performer-related and environment-related factors they tended to list. There were no significant differences between the responses of those who teach singing and those who do not. Enhancing sung text intelligibility is thus perceived to be within the singer's control, at least to some extent, but there are also many factors outside their control. Empirical research is needed to explore some of these factors in greater depth, and has the potential to inform pedagogy for singers, composers, and choral directors.

An enriched cohesive zone model for delamination in brittle interfaces

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Samimi, M.; Dommelen, van J.A.W.; Geers, M.G.D.

2009-01-01

Application of standard cohesive zone models in a finite element framework to simulate delamination in brittle interfaces may trigger non-smooth load-displacement responses that lead to the failure of iterative solution procedures. This non-smoothness is an artifact of the discretization; and hence

Team cohesion and ethnic-cultural identity in adolescent migrant athletes

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Morela, Eleftheria; Hatzigeorgiadis, Antonis; Kouli, Olga; Elbe, Anne-Marie; Sanchez, Xavier

The purpose of this study was to examine the role of sport participation in the social integration of adolescents with non-dominant ethnic and cultural backgrounds. In particular, this study investigated the relationship between team cohesion and ethnic-cultural identity. Participants were 83 young

Meiotic sister chromatid cohesion and recombination in two filamentous fungi

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Heemst, van D.

2000-01-01

Homologous recombination and sister chromatid cohesion play important roles in the maintenance of genome integrity and the fidelity of chromosome segregation in mitosis and meiosis. Within the living cell, the integrity of the DNA is threatened by various factors that cause DNA-lesions, of

Evolution of Perceived Cohesion and Efficacy over the Season and their Relation to Success Expectations in Soccer Teams.

Science.gov (United States)

Marcos, Francisco Miguel Leo; Sánchez-Miguel, Pedro Antonio; Sánchez-Oliva, David; Alonso, Diana Amado; García-Calvo, Tomás

2012-10-01

The main goal of the study is to examine the evolution of players' perception of cohesion and efficacy over the season and their relation with success expectations. The research sample comprised 146 male soccer players, aged between 15 and 19 years (M = 16.96, SD = .76). Diverse instruments were used to measure cohesion, perceived efficacy, and success expectations. The most noteworthy results show that players whose expectations do not match the team's final performance will experience a negative evolution of their levels of perceived cohesion and efficacy, whereas players whose expectations at the start of the season match the team's final performance in the classification will maintain their degree of perceived cohesion and efficacy. The main conclusion of the study is that coaches and sport psychologists should attempt to clarify the players' basic goals of the season to create expectations that match what is expected from the team.

The relationship between oral and written narratives: A three-year longitudinal study of narrative cohesion, coherence, and structure.

Science.gov (United States)

Pinto, Giuliana; Tarchi, Christian; Bigozzi, Lucia

2015-12-01

The relationship between oral language and the writing process at early acquisition stages and the ways the former can enhance or limit the latter has not been researched extensively. The predictive relationship between kindergarten oral narrative competence and the first- and second-grade written narrative competence was explored in a 3-year longitudinal study. Among the first and second graders, the relationship between orthographic competence and narrative competence in written productions was also analysed. One hundred and nine Italian children participated in this study. Kindergarteners produced an oral narrative, whereas the first and second graders produced a written narrative. The oral and written narratives were analysed in terms of cohesion, coherence, and structure. The first-grade orthographic competence was assessed via a dictation task. Multiple linear regression and mediational analyses were performed. Kindergarten oral narrative competence affected the first- and second-grade written narrative competence via a mediational effect of orthographic competence. The results suggest the importance of practicing oral narrative competence in kindergarten and first grade and the value of composition quality independent of orthographic text accuracy. © 2015 The British Psychological Society.

Facilitating or hindering social cohesion? The impact of the ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

However, we show in this article that that the impact of the CWP is not always positive and that the CWP may in some cases result in tensions and contradictions that hinder social cohesion and even cause violence. If not implemented in a consultative participatory manner, the CWP may be a source of conflict rather than of ...

Development of an evaluation method for fracture mechanical tests on small samples based on a cohesive zone model; Entwicklung einer Auswertemethode fuer bruchmechanische Versuche an kleinen Proben auf der Basis eines Kohaesivzonenmodells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mahler, Michael

2016-07-01

The safety and reliability of nuclear power plants of the fourth generation is an important issue. It is based on a reliable interpretation of the components for which, among other fracture mechanical material properties are required. The existing irradiation in the power plants significantly affects the material properties which therefore need to be determined on irradiated material. Often only small amounts of irradiated material are available for characterization. In that case it is not possible to manufacture sufficiently large specimens, which are necessary for fracture mechanical testing in agreement with the standard. Small specimens must be used. From this follows the idea of this study, in which the fracture toughness can be predicted with the developed method based on tests of small specimens. For this purpose, the fracture process including the crack growth is described with a continuum mechanical approach using the finite element method and the cohesive zone model. The experiments on small specimens are used for parameter identification of the cohesive zone model. The two parameters of the cohesive zone model are determined by tensile tests on notched specimens (cohesive stress) and by parameter fitting to the fracture behavior of smalls specimens (cohesive energy). To account the different triaxialities of the specimens, the cohesive stress is used depending on the triaxiality. After parameter identification a large specimen can be simulated with the cohesive zone parameters derived from small specimens. The predicted fracture toughness of this big specimen fulfills the size requirements in the standard (ASTM E1820 or ASTM E399) in contrast to the small specimen. This method can be used for ductile and brittle material behavior and was validated in this work. In summary, this method offers the possibility to determine the fracture toughness indirectly based on small specimen testing. Main advantage is the low required specimen volume. Thereby massively

Behavioural ecology and group cohesion of juvenile western lowland gorillas (Gorilla g. gorilla during rehabilitation in the Batéké Plateaux National Park, Gabon.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Guillaume Le Flohic

Full Text Available Rehabilitation of animals followed by reintroduction into the wild can benefit conservation by supplementing depleted wild populations or reintroducing a species in an area where it has been extirpated or become extinct. The western lowland gorilla (WLG, Gorilla g. gorilla is persistently poached; infants are often illegally traded and used as pets. Some are confiscated and rehabilitated, then kept in sanctuaries or reintroduced into the wild. Prior to reintroduction, the ability of the orphans to survive independently in their environment needs to be assessed. Here, we performed a multivariate analysis, including diet composition, activity-budget, and pattern of strata using of a group of five juvenile WLG in the process of rehabilitation and distinguished three sub-periods of ecological significance: the high furgivory period, the Dialium fruits consumption period, and the high folivory period. The consequences of these variations on their well-being (play behaviour and the group cohesion (spatial proximity and social interactions were examined. Like wild WLGs, diets shifted seasonally from frugivorous to folivorous, while the same staple foods were consumed and large amounts of Dialium fruits were seasonally gathered high in trees. When succulent fruit intake was the highest, thus providing high energy from sugar, juveniles spent less time feeding, more time playing and group cohesion was the highest. Conversely, the cohesion decreased with increasing folivory, individuals spent more time feeding and less time playing together. Nonetheless, the group cohesion also decreased after the death of one highly social, wild-born orphan. This may underscore the importance of skilled individuals in the cohesion and well-being of the entire group and, ultimately, to rehabilitation success. This study evaluates the rehabilitation success with regards to the methods used and highlights the need to consider a set of individual and environmental factors for

NON-COHESIVE SOILS’ COMPRESSIBILITY AND UNEVEN GRAIN-SIZE DISTRIBUTION RELATION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anatoliy Mirnyy

2016-03-01

Full Text Available This paper presents the results of laboratory investigation of soil compression phases with consideration of various granulometric composition. Materials and Methods Experimental soil box with microscale video recording for compression phases studies is described. Photo and video materials showing the differences of microscale particle movements were obtained for non-cohesive soils with different grain-size distribution. Results The analysis of the compression tests results and elastic and plastic deformations separation allows identifying each compression phase. It is shown, that soil density is correlating with deformability parameters only for the same grain-size distribution. Basing on the test results the authors suggest that compaction ratio is not sufficient for deformability estimating without grain-size distribution taken into account. Discussion and Conclusions Considering grain-size distribution allows refining technological requirements for artificial soil structures, backfills, and sand beds. Further studies could be used for developing standard documents, SP45.13330.2012 in particular.

Contribution of the EU Budget to the Implementation of the Social Cohesion Policy of the European Union

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Katarzyna Stabryła-Chudzio

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Objective: The aim of the present study is to examine whether the European Union budget comprises significant resources for financing measures relating to social cohesion. The analysis is based on the contents of the Europe 2020 Strategy. Given the constraints of space and for the sake of clarity of the argument, the author focuses on the role of the EU budget rather than all measures aimed at social cohesion undertaken by EU institutions or targeted by policies of individual Member States.Methodology: Documents, studies and reports published by the European Commission constitute the main source of information. In addition, the author has taken into account macroeconomic data demonstrating the deterioration of the social situation since 2009, as well as the instruments that the European Commission has deployed since 2013 in order to respond to post-crisis challenges.Conclusions: It can be roughly estimated that more than 40 percent of total resources within the Multiannual Financial Framework 2014–2020 shall be allocated to the social cohesion policy. Opportunities afforded by the implementation of the Europe 2020 Strategy include primarily the definition of objectives whose priority is indisputable and the introduction of the hitherto neglected analysis of certain socio-economic indicators, classified by country or region and, in certain cases, examined in more detail than required by the European Commission. The monitoring of objectives is conducive to the introduction of new solutions and implementation tools, as exemplified by the new instruments within the Multiannual Financial Framework 2014–2020, as well as the adjustment of available funds in light of the most pressing challenges. The European Semester has facilitated the task of comparing progress in strategy implementation by individual Member States, as well as the provision of recommendations for each of them and an individualized approach.Research implications: This article

Resuspension and settling of helminth eggs in water: Interactions with cohesive sediments.

Science.gov (United States)

Sengupta, Mita E; Andersen, Thorbjørn J; Dalsgaard, Anders; Olsen, Annette; Thamsborg, Stig M

2012-08-01

Helminth parasite eggs in low quality water represent main food safety and health hazards and are therefore important indicators used to determine whether such water can be used for irrigation. Through sedimentation helminth eggs accumulate in the sediment, however resuspension of deposited helminth eggs will lead to increased concentration of suspended eggs in the water. Our study aimed to determine the erodibility (erosion rate and erosion threshold) and settling velocity of Ascaris and Trichuris eggs as well as cohesive sediment at different time points after incorporation into the sediment. Cohesive sediment collected from a freshwater stream was used to prepare a sediment bed onto which helminth eggs were allowed to settle. The erodibility of both sediment and helminth eggs was found to decrease over time indicating that the eggs were incorporated into the surface material of the bed and that this material was stabilized through time. This interaction between eggs and bulk sediment was further manifested in an increased settling velocity of suspended eggs when sediment was present in the suspension as compared to a situation with settling in clean water. The incorporation into the sediment bed and the aggregation with sediment particles decrease the mobility of both helminth egg types. Our findings document that helminth eggs should not be viewed as single entities in water systems when modelling the distribution of eggs since both erodibility and settling velocity of eggs are determined by mobility of the sediment present in the water stream. Recalculation of the erosion threshold for helminth eggs and sediment showed that even at relatively low current velocities i.e. 0.07-0.12ms(-1) newly deposited eggs will be mobile in open irrigation channels. These environmental factors affecting resuspension must be taken into account when developing models for sedimentation of helminth eggs in different water systems. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights

Guidelines for Applying Cohesive Models to the Damage Behaviour of Engineering Materials and Structures

CERN Document Server

Schwalbe, Karl-Heinz; Cornec, Alfred

2013-01-01

This brief provides guidance for the application of cohesive models to determine damage and fracture in materials and structural components. This can be done for configurations with or without a pre-existing crack. Although the brief addresses structural behaviour, the methods described herein may also be applied to any deformation induced material damage and failure, e.g. those occurring during manufacturing processes. The methods described are applicable to the behaviour of ductile metallic materials and structural components made thereof. Hints are also given for applying the cohesive model to other materials.

Method and apparatus for blending fine and cohesive powders in a fluidized bed with gas injection through ball valves

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1981-01-01

A fluidized bed blender is described, suitable for blending powders including a mixture of fine and cohesive powders and in particular for converting a heterogeneous mixture of fine and cohesive UO 2 into a homogeneous mixture. (U.K.)

Increased alcohol use after Hurricane Ike: The roles of perceived social cohesion and social control.

Science.gov (United States)

Ma, Chenyi; Smith, Tony E

2017-10-01

Hurricane Ike, the third costliest hurricane in US history, made landfall in the Galveston Bay Area in September, 2008. Existing literature postulates that maladaptive behavior such as increased alcohol use is often exhibited by disaster survivors in coping with both disaster-related traumatic events and post-disaster stressful events. In addition, it has also been postulated that survivors' perceptions of social cohesion and social control can potentially serve to moderate such behavior. The purpose of this paper is to study such hypotheses for Hurricane Ike. In particular, we investigate the following four hypotheses: (H1) There is an increase of alcohol use by survivors of Hurricane Ike in the Galveston Bay Area; (H2) There are positive associations between both Ike-related trauma and post-Ike stress events and the increase in alcohol use; (H3) There are negative associations between both perceived social cohesion and social control and the increase in alcohol use following Ike; and finally that (H4) perceived social cohesion and social control serve to moderate the associations between both Ike-related trauma and post-Ike stress events and increased alcohol use after Ike. Using public use survey-weighted data from the Galveston Bay Recovery Study (GBRS) of Ike survivors (N = 658), we tested these hypotheses using logistic regressions controlling for other key socioeconomic variables. Our results confirm H1 and H2. Hypotheses H3 and H4 are partially confirmed with respect to social control, but show that (i) there is a positive association between perceived social cohesion and the increase in alcohol use following Ike, and that (ii) while perceived social cohesion and social control do moderate the association between post-Ike stress events and increased alcohol use, they have no effect on the association between Ike-related trauma and increased alcohol use. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effect of crystal habits on the surface energy and cohesion of crystalline powders.

Science.gov (United States)

Shah, Umang V; Olusanmi, Dolapo; Narang, Ajit S; Hussain, Munir A; Gamble, John F; Tobyn, Michael J; Heng, Jerry Y Y

2014-09-10

The role of surface properties, influenced by particle processing, in particle-particle interactions (powder cohesion) is investigated in this study. Wetting behaviour of mefenamic acid was found to be anisotropic by sessile drop contact angle measurements on macroscopic (>1cm) single crystals, with variations in contact angle of water from 56.3° to 92.0°. This is attributed to variations in surface chemical functionality at specific facets, and confirmed using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Using a finite dilution inverse gas chromatography (FD-IGC) approach, the surface energy heterogeneity of powders was determined. The surface energy profile of different mefenamic acid crystal habits was directly related to the relative exposure of different crystal facets. Cohesion, determined by a uniaxial compression test, was also found to relate to surface energy of the powders. By employing a surface modification (silanisation) approach, the contribution from crystal shape from surface area and surface energy was decoupled. By "normalising" contribution from surface energy and surface area, needle shaped crystals were found to be ∼2.5× more cohesive compared to elongated plates or hexagonal cuboid shapes crystals. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Cohesive motion in one-dimensional flocking

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dossetti, V

2012-01-01

A one-dimensional rule-based model for flocking, which combines velocity alignment and long-range centering interactions, is presented and studied. The induced cohesion in the collective motion of the self-propelled agents leads to unique group behavior that contrasts with previous studies. Our results show that the largest cluster of particles, in the condensed states, develops a mean velocity slower than the preferred one in the absence of noise. For strong noise, the system also develops a non-vanishing mean velocity, alternating its direction of motion stochastically. This allows us to address the directional switching phenomenon. The effects of different sources of stochasticity on the system are also discussed. (paper)

Cohesive zone modelling and the fracture process of structural tape

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Stigh, Ulf; Biel, Anders; Svensson, Daniel

2016-01-01

and the separation is measured experimentally using methods based on the path independence of the J-integral. Repeated experiments are performed at quasi-static loading. A mixed mode cohesive law is adapted to the experimental data. The law is implemented as a UMAT in Abaqus. Simulations show minor thermal...

Fear, crime, and social cohesion in urban South Africa | IDRC ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

2016-12-13

Dec 13, 2016 ... Social cohesion” broadly refers to the factors that hold a society ... published in March 2016, explores the role of social cohesion and ... Learn more about IDRC's research support to make cities safer through the Safe and Inclusive Cities partnership with the UK's Department for International Development.

Family Rituals and Quality of Life in Children With Cancer and Their Parents: The Role of Family Cohesion and Hope

Science.gov (United States)

Crespo, Carla; Canavarro, M. Cristina; Kazak, Anne E.

2015-01-01

Objective Family rituals are associated with adaptive functioning in pediatric illness, including quality of life (QoL). This article explores the role of family cohesion and hope as mediators of this association in children with cancer and their parents. Methods Portuguese children with cancer (N = 389), on- and off-treatment, and one of their parents completed self-report measures. Structural equation modeling was used to examine direct and indirect links between family rituals and QoL. Results When children and parents reported higher levels of family rituals, they also reported more family cohesion and hope, which were linked to better QoL. At the dyadic level, children’s QoL was related to parents’ family rituals through the child’s family cohesion. This model was valid across child’s age-group, treatment status, and socioeconomic status. Conclusions Family rituals are important in promoting QoL in pediatric cancer via family cohesion and hope individually and via family cohesion in terms of parent–child interactions. PMID:25775914

Optimisation Of Process Parameters In High Energy Mixing As A Method Of Cohesive Powder Flowability Improvement

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Leś Karolina

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Flowability of fine, highly cohesive calcium carbonate powder was improved using high energy mixing (dry coating method consisting in coating of CaCO3 particles with a small amount of Aerosil nanoparticles in a planetary ball mill. As measures of flowability the angle of repose and compressibility index were used. As process variables the mixing speed, mixing time, and the amount of Aerosil and amount of isopropanol were chosen. To obtain optimal values of the process variables, a Response Surface Methodology (RSM based on Central Composite Rotatable Design (CCRD was applied. To match the RSM requirements it was necessary to perform a total of 31 experimental tests needed to complete mathematical model equations. The equations that are second-order response functions representing the angle of repose and compressibility index were expressed as functions of all the process variables. Predicted values of the responses were found to be in a good agreement with experimental values. The models were presented as 3-D response surface plots from which the optimal values of the process variables could be correctly assigned. The proposed, mechanochemical method of powder treatment coupled with response surface methodology is a new, effective approach to flowability of cohesive powder improvement and powder processing optimisation.

From the individual isolate to the cohesive community Limits on freedom on Rawls and Aron

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ivan Garzón Vallejo

2010-12-01

Full Text Available The theoretical development of John Rawls and Raymond Aron highlights a liberalism that acknowledges as its starting point the individual being free and isolated, which, because of the influence of internal and external constraints on individual liberties, encourages the construction of a cohesive political community. With such a perspective challenges the modern version of liberty as an absence of coercion and, at the same time, highlights the validity of the discussion about the limits of liberty in contemporary societies. This phenomenon can be described as the transition from liberalism to social democracy, or as revision of the negative conception of individual liberties.

Family Cohesion, Adaptability and Composition in Adolescents from Callao, Peru

Science.gov (United States)

Villarreal-Zegarra, David; Paz-Jesús, Angel

2017-01-01

The objective of the study was to analyze if there are significant differences between family cohesion and adaptability according to the type of family composition (nuclear, extended, single parent and non-nuclear). This is a non-experimental and empirical research, in which a non-probabilistic, cross-sectional, selective and associative strategy…

Sense of Cohesion among Community Activists Engaging in Volunteer Activity

Science.gov (United States)

Levy, Drorit; Itzhaky, Haya; Zanbar, Lea; Schwartz, Chaya

2012-01-01

The present article attempts to shed light on the direct and indirect contribution of personal resources and community indices to Sense of Cohesion among activists engaging in community volunteer work. The sample comprised 481 activists. Based on social systems theory, three levels of variables were examined: (1) inputs, which included personal…

The European Cohesion Policy and Structural Funds in Sparsely Populated Areas: A Case Study of the University of Oulu

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eija-Riita Niinikoski

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The regional policy is one of the European Union’s main investment policies to support regional equality and convergence, cohesion policy being one of its key policy areas and aiming to support job creation, business competitiveness, economic growth, sustainable development and citizens’ quality of life. As education, research and innovation are amongst the main objectives of these policies, universities play an important role in regional development, research and education being their main tasks, while interaction with society the third one. The aim of this study is to examine how universities participate in cohesion policy and regional development by utilising structural funds in fulfilling their third task (RQ1 and how do the closest stakeholder groups view the regional role of the university (RQ2. A single case study was conducted having the Oulu Southern Institute (OSI of the University of Oulu as the case study unit. The data was collected using an adapted Delphi method in a workshop with OSI staff, from an online questionnaire to OSI’s closest stakeholders and from in-depth interviews to examine the themes that arose in the questionnaire answers. In the findings, the importance of the university unit for regional development is clearly evident. Structural funds are the main tools for universities to stimulate development, the university was seen as a crucial actor, knowledge creator, collaboration partner and regional developer, as well as a fundamental part of the regional innovation system.According to the findings, the university should participate in recommending development areas for cohesion policy guidelines for the next structural fund period.

The Role of Cohesive Particle Interactions on Solids Uniformity and Mobilization During Jet Mixing: Testing Recommendations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gauglitz, Phillip A.; Wells, Beric E.; Bamberger, Judith A.; Fort, James A.; Chun, Jaehun; Jenks, Jeromy WJ

2010-04-01

Radioactive waste that is currently stored in large underground tanks at the Hanford Site will be staged in selected double-shell tanks (DSTs) and then transferred to the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP). Before being transferred, the waste will be mixed, sampled, and characterized to determine if the waste composition and meets the waste feed specifications. Washington River Protection Solutions is conducting a Tank Mixing and Sampling Demonstration Program to determine the mixing effectiveness of the current baseline mixing system that uses two jet mixer pumps and the adequacy of the planned sampling method. The overall purpose of the demonstration program is to mitigate the technical risk associated with the mixing and sampling systems meeting the feed certification requirements for transferring waste to the WTP.The purpose of this report is to analyze existing data and evaluate whether scaled mixing tests with cohesive simulants are needed to meet the overall objectives of the small-scale mixing demonstration program. This evaluation will focus on estimating the role of cohesive particle interactions on various physical phenomena that occur in parts of the mixing process. A specific focus of the evaluation will be on the uniformity of suspended solids in the mixed region. Based on the evaluation presented in this report and the absence of definitive studies, the recommendation is to conduct scaled mixing tests with cohesive particles and augment the initial testing with non-cohesive particles. In addition, planning for the quantitative tests would benefit from having test results from some scoping experiments that would provide results on the general behavior when cohesive inter-particle forces are important.

Unit Cohesion and the Military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" Policy

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Rea, Theresa

1997-01-01

The Department of Defense policy of excluding known homosexuals from military service is partially based on the assumption that homosexual service members pose a threat to the cohesion of a military unit...

Global sensitivity analysis in the identification of cohesive models using full-field kinematic data

KAUST Repository

Alfano, Marco; Lubineau, Gilles; Paulino, Glá ucio Hermogenes

2015-01-01

Failure of adhesive bonded structures often occurs concurrent with the formation of a non-negligible fracture process zone in front of a macroscopic crack. For this reason, the analysis of damage and fracture is effectively carried out using the cohesive zone model (CZM). The crucial aspect of the CZM approach is the precise determination of the traction-separation relation. Yet it is usually determined empirically, by using calibration procedures combining experimental data, such as load-displacement or crack length data, with finite element simulation of fracture. Thanks to the recent progress in image processing, and the availability of low-cost CCD cameras, it is nowadays relatively easy to access surface displacements across the fracture process zone using for instance Digital Image Correlation (DIC). The rich information provided by correlation techniques prompted the development of versatile inverse parameter identification procedures combining finite element (FE) simulations and full field kinematic data. The focus of the present paper is to assess the effectiveness of these methods in the identification of cohesive zone models. In particular, the analysis is developed in the framework of the variance based global sensitivity analysis. The sensitivity of kinematic data to the sought cohesive properties is explored through the computation of the so-called Sobol sensitivity indexes. The results show that the global sensitivity analysis can help to ascertain the most influential cohesive parameters which need to be incorporated in the identification process. In addition, it is shown that suitable displacement sampling in time and space can lead to optimized measurements for identification purposes.

The preparation, physicochemical properties, and the cohesive energy of liquid sodium containing titanium nanoparticles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saito, Jun-ichi; Itami, Toshio; Ara, Kuniaki

2012-01-01

Liquid sodium containing titanium nanoparticles (LSnanop) of 10-nm diameter was prepared by dispersing titanium nanoparticles (2 at.% Ti) into liquid sodium with the addition of stirring and ultrasonic sound wave. The titanium nanoparticles themselves were prepared by the vapor deposition method. This new liquid metal, LSnanop, shows a remarkable stability due to the Brownian motion of nanoparticles in liquid sodium medium. In addition, the difference of measured heat of reaction to water between this LSnanop and liquid sodium indicates the existence of cohesive energy between the liquid sodium medium and dispersed titanium nanoparticles. The origin of the cohesive energy, which serves to stabilize this new liquid metal, was explained by the model of screened nanoparticles in liquid sodium. In this model, negatively charged nanoparticles with transferred electrons from liquid sodium are surrounded by the positively charged screening shell, which may inhibit the gathering of nanoparticles by the “Coulombic repulsion coating.” The atomic volume of LSnanop shows the shrinkage from the linear law, which also suggests the existence of cohesive energy. The viscosity of LSnanop is almost the same as that of liquid sodium. This behavior was explained by the Einstein equation. The surface tension of LSnanop is 17 % larger than that of liquid sodium. The cohesive energy and the negative adsorption may be responsible to this increase. Titanium nanoparticles in liquid sodium seem to be free from the Coulomb fission. This new liquid metal containing nanoparticles suggests the possibility to prepare various stable suspensions with new properties.

Global sensitivity analysis in the identification of cohesive models using full-field kinematic data

KAUST Repository

Alfano, Marco

2015-03-01

Failure of adhesive bonded structures often occurs concurrent with the formation of a non-negligible fracture process zone in front of a macroscopic crack. For this reason, the analysis of damage and fracture is effectively carried out using the cohesive zone model (CZM). The crucial aspect of the CZM approach is the precise determination of the traction-separation relation. Yet it is usually determined empirically, by using calibration procedures combining experimental data, such as load-displacement or crack length data, with finite element simulation of fracture. Thanks to the recent progress in image processing, and the availability of low-cost CCD cameras, it is nowadays relatively easy to access surface displacements across the fracture process zone using for instance Digital Image Correlation (DIC). The rich information provided by correlation techniques prompted the development of versatile inverse parameter identification procedures combining finite element (FE) simulations and full field kinematic data. The focus of the present paper is to assess the effectiveness of these methods in the identification of cohesive zone models. In particular, the analysis is developed in the framework of the variance based global sensitivity analysis. The sensitivity of kinematic data to the sought cohesive properties is explored through the computation of the so-called Sobol sensitivity indexes. The results show that the global sensitivity analysis can help to ascertain the most influential cohesive parameters which need to be incorporated in the identification process. In addition, it is shown that suitable displacement sampling in time and space can lead to optimized measurements for identification purposes.

A boundary integral method for a dynamic, transient mode I crack problem with viscoelastic cohesive zone

KAUST Repository

Leise, Tanya L.

2009-08-19

We consider the problem of the dynamic, transient propagation of a semi-infinite, mode I crack in an infinite elastic body with a nonlinear, viscoelastic cohesize zone. Our problem formulation includes boundary conditions that preclude crack face interpenetration, in contrast to the usual mode I boundary conditions that assume all unloaded crack faces are stress-free. The nonlinear viscoelastic cohesive zone behavior is motivated by dynamic fracture in brittle polymers in which crack propagation is preceeded by significant crazing in a thin region surrounding the crack tip. We present a combined analytical/numerical solution method that involves reducing the problem to a Dirichlet-to-Neumann map along the crack face plane, resulting in a differo-integral equation relating the displacement and stress along the crack faces and within the cohesive zone. © 2009 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.

The Dyadic Effects of Family Cohesion and Communication on Health-Related Quality of Life: The Moderating Role of Sex.

Science.gov (United States)

Lim, Jung-Won; Shon, En-Jung

Spouses' ability to care for survivors can be particularly challenging because patients and spouses are interdependent and mutually influence one another. Family functioning such as family cohesion and communication may play a primary role in improving the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of couples, given that cancer can influence family dynamics. The aims of this study were to investigate the mediating effect of family communication on the relationship between family cohesion and HRQOL and examine the moderating effect of sex on this relationship among cancer survivor-spouse dyads. A total of 91 cancer survivors with a diagnosis of breast, colorectal, or prostate cancer and their spouses were recruited from the University Hospital Registry in Cleveland, Ohio. The dyadic data were analyzed using structural equation modeling with the actor-partner interdependence mediation model. Findings demonstrated that the spouses' own perceived family communication mediated the associations between their own family cohesion and physical HRQOL and between the survivors' family cohesion and physical HRQOL. The spouse actor effects between family communication and HRQOL significantly differed by sex. Enhancing family cohesion and communication within the family can improve the spouses' HRQOL. Findings regarding sex differences serve as a rationale for gender-based approaches to improving HRQOL in survivorship care in the family context. Couple- and/or family-based interventions should be designed to enhance family cohesion and improve family communication skills for effective adjustments within couples and families. Supportive care within the family context can be promoted to address the diverse challenges of survivorship care.

Validation of French and German versions of a Perceived Neighborhood Social Cohesion Questionnaire among young Swiss males, and its relationship with substance use.

Science.gov (United States)

Dupuis, Marc; Studer, Joseph; Henchoz, Yves; Deline, Stéphane; Baggio, Stéphanie; N'Goran, Alexandra; Mohler-Kuo, Meichun; Gmel, Gerhard

2016-02-01

This study main purpose was the validation of both French and German versions of a Perceived Neighborhood Social Cohesion Questionnaire. The sample group comprised 5065 Swiss men from the "Cohort Study on Substance Use Risk Factors." Multigroup Confirmatory factor analysis showed that a three-factor model fits the data well, which substantiates the generalizability of Perceived Neighborhood Social Cohesion Questionnaire factor structure, regardless of the language. The Perceived Neighborhood Social Cohesion Questionnaire demonstrated excellent homogeneity (α = 95) and split-half reliability (r = .96). The Perceived Neighborhood Social Cohesion Questionnaire was sensitive to community size and participants' financial situation, confirming that it also measures real social conditions. Finally, weak but frequent correlations between Perceived Neighborhood Social Cohesion Questionnaire and alcohol, cigarette, and cannabis dependence were measured. © The Author(s) 2014.

Erosion of cohesive soil layers above underground conduits

Science.gov (United States)

Luu, Li-Hua; Philippe, Pierre; Noury, Gildas; Perrin, Jérôme; Brivois, Olivier

2017-06-01

Using a recently developed 2D numerical modelling that combines Discrete Element (DEM) and Lattice Boltzmann methods (LBM), we simulate the destabilisation by an hydraulic gradient of a cohesive granular soil clogging the top of an underground conduit. We aim to perform a multi-scale study that relates the grain scale behavior to the macroscopic erosion process. In particular, we study the influence of the flow conditions and the inter-particle contact forces intensity on the erosion kinetic.

Pier and contraction scour prediction in cohesive soils at selected bridges in Illinois

Science.gov (United States)

Straub, Timothy D.; Over, Thomas M.

2010-01-01

This report presents the results of testing the Scour Rate In Cohesive Soils-Erosion Function Apparatus (SRICOS-EFA) method for estimating scour depth of cohesive soils at 15 bridges in Illinois. The SRICOS-EFA method for complex pier and contraction scour in cohesive soils has two primary components. The first component includes the calculation of the maximum contraction and pier scour (Zmax). The second component is an integrated approach that considers a time factor, soil properties, and continued interaction between the contraction and pier scour (SRICOS runs). The SRICOS-EFA results were compared to scour prediction results for non-cohesive soils based on Hydraulic Engineering Circular No. 18 (HEC-18). On average, the HEC-18 method predicted higher scour depths than the SRICOS-EFA method. A reduction factor was determined for each HEC-18 result to make it match the maximum of three types of SRICOS run results. The unconfined compressive strength (Qu) for the soil was then matched with the reduction factor and the results were ranked in order of increasing Qu. Reduction factors were then grouped by Qu and applied to each bridge site and soil. These results, and comparison with the SRICOS Zmax calculation, show that less than half of the reduction-factor method values were the lowest estimate of scour; whereas, the Zmax method values were the lowest estimate for over half. A tiered approach to predicting pier and contraction scour was developed. There are four levels to this approach numbered in order of complexity, with the fourth level being a full SRICOS-EFA analysis. Levels 1 and 2 involve the reduction factors and Zmax calculation, and can be completed without EFA data. Level 3 requires some surrogate EFA data. Levels 3 and 4 require streamflow for input into SRICOS. Estimation techniques for both EFA surrogate data and streamflow data were developed.

Perceived Family Cohesion Moderates Environmental Influences on Prosocial Behavior in Nigerian Adolescent Twins.

Science.gov (United States)

Hur, Yoon-Mi; Taylor, Jeanette; Jeong, Hoe-Uk; Park, Min-Seo; Haberstick, Brett C

2017-06-01

Research shows that perceived family cohesion is positively related to prosocial behavior in adolescents. In this study, we investigated heritability of prosocial behavior (PB) and perceived family cohesion (FC) among Nigerian twins attending public schools in Lagos State, Nigeria (mean age = 14.7 years, SD = 1.7 years), and explored the issue of whether children's perception of cohesive family environment moderated genetic and environmental influences on (PB). The PB scale of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire and the FC scale of the Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scale III were completed by 2,376 twins (241 monozygotic (MZ) male, 354 MZ female, 440 dizygotic (DZ) male, 553 DZ female, and 788 opposite-sex DZ twins). A general sex-limitation and the bivariate genotype by environment interaction (G×E) models were applied to the data. The general sex-limitation model showed no significant sex differences, indicating that additive genetic and non-shared environmental influences were, 38% (95% CI = 31, 46) and 62% (95% CI = 54, 69) for PB and 33% (95% CI = 24, 40) and 67% (95% CI = 60, 76) for FC in both sexes. These estimates were similar to those found in Western and Asian twin studies to date. The correlation between PB and FC was 0.36. The best-fitting bivariate G×E model indicated that FC significantly moderated non-shared environmental influence unique to PB (E×E interaction). Specifically, non-shared environmental contributions to PB were highest when FC was lowest, and decreased as the levels of FC increased. However, genetic variances in PB were stable across all levels of FC. These findings suggest that FC reduces individual differences in PB by changing non-shared environmental experiences rather than genetic factors in PB.

Leadership, cohesion and satisfaction in sporting teams: a study with Portuguese football and futsal athletes / Liderança, coesão e satisfação em equipas desportivas: um estudo com atletas Portugueses de futebol e futsal

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. Rui Gomes

2008-01-01

Full Text Available This work was done with 200 athletes from 2 types of sports (soccer and futsal in several competitive levels and it analyzed coaches' leadership styles and athletes' cohesion and satisfaction levels. Evaluation instruments on leadership (Multidimensional Leadership Scale in Sports which assesses six different dimensions, cohesion (Group Environment Questionnaire which assesses four different dimensions and satisfaction (Satisfaction Scale which assesses three different dimensions were applied and received good validity and reliability levels. The results showed that men and women evaluated and preferred different coaches' behaviors, and female athletes assumed higher levels of social cohesion. Likewise, variations were found concerning athletes' age on the perceptions of coach leadership; the youngest group presented lower cohesion levels. Two main conclusions must be stated. On one hand, the significant impact of coaches' behaviors in athletes' sport experience and, on the other hand, the need of coaches' leadership adaptation concerning athletes' gender and age in order to enhance their efficacy while working with the teams.

Multiple intersecting cohesive discontinuities in 3D reservoir geomechanics

OpenAIRE

Das, K. C.; Sandha, S.S.; Carol, Ignacio; Vargas, P.E.; Gonzalez, Nubia Aurora; Rodrigues, E.; Segura Segarra, José María; Lakshmikantha, Ramasesha Mookanahallipatna; Mello,, U.

2013-01-01

Reservoir Geomechanics is playing an increasingly important role in developing and producing hydrocarbon reserves. One of the main challenges in reservoir modeling is accurate and efficient simulation of arbitrary intersecting faults. In this paper, we propose a new formulation to model multiple intersecting cohesive discontinuities (faults) in reservoirs using the XFEM framework. This formulation involves construction of enrichment functions and computation of stiffness sub-matrices for bulk...

Violência contra a mulher, coesão familiar e drogas Violence against women, family cohesion and drugs

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Patrícia Moreira Rabello

2007-12-01

Full Text Available OBJETIVO: Avaliar a associação entre coesão, adaptabilidade e risco mental familiar com violência física contra a mulher e uso de drogas. MÉTODOS: Estudo tipo caso-controle pareado realizado entre 2004 e 2005 na cidade de João Pessoa, Paraíba. A amostra foi constituída por 260 mulheres, divididas em 130 agredidas e 130 não agredidas. O grupo caso foi constituído de mulheres que prestaram queixa por agressão física doméstica na Delegacia Especializada da Mulher. O grupo controle foi pareado com mulheres vizinhas de bairro das vítimas queixosas na Delegacia. A coesão, a adaptabilidade e o risco mental foram avaliados pela escala Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scales. Na análise estatística, foram utilizados os testes qui-quadrado e Exato de Fisher, com nível de significância de 5%. RESULTADOS: Os dois grupos se comportaram de forma diferente em relação ao risco mental e coesão, mas semelhantes quanto à adaptabilidade familiar (p=0,0917. As mulheres agredidas apresentaram risco mental alto (43,1% e médio (39,2%, diferentemente das não agredidas (p=0,0016, que apresentaram médio risco (55,4%. Houve diferença significativa entre os dois grupos para o uso de drogas, com consumo maior nas famílias das mulheres agredidas (90,8% do que das não agredidas (56,9%. A droga mais utilizada foi o álcool, sendo o mais alto fator de risco para a agressão, quando consumido diariamente (OR=37,33 ou associado a outra droga (OR=29,56. CONCLUSÕES: O desequilíbrio pela falta de união entre a família e o uso de drogas altera decisivamente no funcionamento familiar, podendo gerar conflitos e agressões domésticas.OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the association between cohesion, adaptability and mental risk in families, physical violence against women and the use of drugs. METHODS: Data for this paired case-control study was collected in 2004 and 2005 in the city of Joao Pessoa, in Northeastern Brazil. The sample included 260 women

The Cohesiveness of Muslim Pangestu Members in Salatiga, Central Java

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S. Suciati

2015-04-01

Full Text Available The drying of spirituality and weakening of cohesiveness in the midst of materialistic hedonistic modern world become major challenge for the adherents of official religions in Indonesia. The practice of religions is considered too much focusing on ritual aspects. Therefore, those teachings cannot give the real meaningfulness of religious life. Consequently, some adherents of official religions begin to see other spiritual/mysticism sects. This study describes the social cohesiveness among muslims who become members of Pangestu, a spiritual-mysticism sect widely spreading among Javanese society in Indonesia. This research shows that the Pangestu in Salatiga, Central Java, can fulfill social, economic, and spiritual needs of its members. Among the underlying factors that make Pangestu succeed to meet its members’ needs and expectations are the capability of the members to intensely communicate with each other through meetings and bawaraos (Jv, informal gathering, the great concern between members, good-example of leadership, the defense of Pangestu’s good name, and the satisfaction in experiencing meaningfulness of religious practices.[Kekeringan spiritual dan lemahnya kebersamaan di tengah dunia modern yang serba hedonistik menjadi tantangan utama bagi para pemeluk agama di Indonesia. Praktik-praktik keagamaan terlalu banyak terfokus pada aspek ritual, sehingga ajaran agama tidak mampu menghadirkan praktek-praktek keagamaan yang benar-benar bermakna. Hal ini mendorong sebagian pemeluk agama untuk melirik aliran kepercayaan dan kebatinan. Artikel ini mendeskripsikan keguyuban sosial di antara orang-orang Islam yang menjadi anggota Pangestu, sebuah aliran kepercayaan di Indonesia yang banyak menyebar terutama di kalangan masyarakat Jawa. Penelitian ini menunjukkan bahwa Pangestu di Salatiga, Jawa Tegah, mampu memenuhi kebutuhan sosial, ekonomi, dan spiritual para anggotanya. Di antara faktor yang menentukan keberhasilan Pangestu dalam memenuhi

Family Rituals and Quality of Life in Children With Cancer and Their Parents: The Role of Family Cohesion and Hope.

Science.gov (United States)

Santos, Susana; Crespo, Carla; Canavarro, M Cristina; Kazak, Anne E

2015-08-01

Family rituals are associated with adaptive functioning in pediatric illness, including quality of life (QoL). This article explores the role of family cohesion and hope as mediators of this association in children with cancer and their parents. Portuguese children with cancer (N = 389), on- and off-treatment, and one of their parents completed self-report measures. Structural equation modeling was used to examine direct and indirect links between family rituals and QoL. When children and parents reported higher levels of family rituals, they also reported more family cohesion and hope, which were linked to better QoL. At the dyadic level, children's QoL was related to parents' family rituals through the child's family cohesion. This model was valid across child's age-group, treatment status, and socioeconomic status. Family rituals are important in promoting QoL in pediatric cancer via family cohesion and hope individually and via family cohesion in terms of parent-child interactions. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society of Pediatric Psychology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Time dependent fracture and cohesive zones

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Knauss, W. G.

1993-01-01

This presentation is concerned with the fracture response of materials which develop cohesive or bridging zones at crack tips. Of special interest are concerns regarding crack stability as a function of the law which governs the interrelation between the displacement(s) or strain across these zones and the corresponding holding tractions. It is found that for some materials unstable crack growth can occur, even before the crack tip has experienced a critical COD or strain across the crack, while for others a critical COD will guarantee the onset of fracture. Also shown are results for a rate dependent nonlinear material model for the region inside of a craze for exploring time dependent crack propagation of rate sensitive materials.

Liquid distribution and cohesion in wet granular assemblies beyond the capillary bridge regime

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Scheel, M; Seemann, R; Brinkmann, M; Herminghaus, S; Di Michiel, M; Sheppard, A

2008-01-01

Dry sand turns into a stiff and moldable material as soon as it is mixed with some liquid. This is a direct consequence of the internal liquid-air interfaces spanning between the grains which causes capillary cohesion by virtue of the surface tension of the liquid. As a model for wet granulates we investigated random packings of submillimeter spherical beads mixed with water. Measurements of the tensile strength and the fluidization threshold demonstrate that the mechanical stiffness is rather insensitive to the liquid content over a wide range. Only for a high liquid content, when more than half of the available pore space is filled with liquid, does the capillary cohesion weaken. In order to understand the interplay between the mechanical properties and the liquid content, we investigated the liquid distribution in random packings of glass spheres by means of x-ray microtomography. The three-dimensional images reveal that the liquid forms a network of capillary bridges fused at local triangular bead configurations. The spontaneous organization of the liquid into these ramified structures, which exhibit a large liquid-air interface, is responsible for the constancy of the cohesive forces in a wide range of liquid contents beyond the onset of capillary bridge coalescence.

Social cohesion through football: a quasi-experimental mixed methods design to evaluate a complex health promotion program.

Science.gov (United States)

Nathan, Sally; Bunde-Birouste, Anne; Evers, Clifton; Kemp, Lynn; MacKenzie, Julie; Henley, Robert

2010-10-05

Social isolation and disengagement fragments local communities. Evidence indicates that refugee families are highly vulnerable to social isolation in their countries of resettlement. Research to identify approaches to best address this is needed. Football United is a program that aims to foster social inclusion and cohesion in areas with high refugee settlement in New South Wales, Australia, through skills and leadership development, mentoring, and the creation of links with local community and corporate leaders and organisations. The Social Cohesion through Football study's broad goal is to examine the implementation of a complex health promotion program, and to analyse the processes involved in program implementation. The study will consider program impact on individual health and wellbeing, social inclusion and cohesion, as well as analyse how the program by necessity interacts and adapts to context during implementation, a concept we refer to as plasticity. The proposed study will be the first prospective cohort impact study to our knowledge to assess the impact of a comprehensive integrated program using football as a vehicle for fostering social inclusion and cohesion in communities with high refugee settlement. A quasi-experimental cohort study design with treatment partitioning involving four study sites. The study employs a 'dose response' model, comparing those with no involvement in the Football United program with those with lower or higher levels of participation. A range of qualitative and quantitative measures will be used in the study. Study participants' emotional well being, resilience, ethnic identity and other group orientation, feelings of social inclusion and belonging will be measured using a survey instrument complemented by relevant data drawn from in-depth interviews, self reporting measures and participant observation. The views of key informants from the program and the wider community will also be solicited. The complexity of the

Is social cohesion relevant to a city in the global South?

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

This article investigates the relevance of international framings of social cohesion and collective efficacy, which have largely ... an ethnographic study conducted in Khayelitsha township in the Western Cape, where a major internationally funded and conceptualised ... the global South? A case study of Khayelitsha township ...

Formation of a cohesive floodplain in a dynamic experimental meandering river

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dijk, W.M. van; Lageweg, W.I. van de; Kleinhans, M.G.

2013-01-01

Field studies suggest that a cohesive floodplain is a necessary condition for meandering in contrast to braided rivers. However, it is only partly understood how the balance between floodplain construction by overbank deposition and removal by bank erosion and chutes leads to meandering. This is

Responses to Forces Influencing Cohesion as a Function of Player Status and Level of Male Varsity Basketball Competition.

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Gruber, Joseph J.; Gray, Gary R.

1982-01-01

A study analyzed team cohesion perceptions of 515 male varsity basketball players (10 to 22 years of age) to determine if factors influencing team cohesion were a function of competitive intensity or of the importance of individual players to their team. Players with the most game playing time were more satisfied than those with less playing time.…

Discrimination and adjustment among Chinese American adolescents: family conflict and family cohesion as vulnerability and protective factors.

Science.gov (United States)

Juang, Linda P; Alvarez, Alvin A

2010-12-01

We examined racial/ethnic discrimination experiences of Chinese American adolescents to determine how discrimination is linked to poor adjustment (i.e., loneliness, anxiety, and somatization) and how the context of the family can buffer or exacerbate these links. We collected survey data from 181 Chinese American adolescents and their parents in Northern California. We conducted hierarchical regression analyses to examine main effects and 2-way interactions of perceived discrimination with family conflict and family cohesion. Discrimination was related to poorer adjustment in terms of loneliness, anxiety, and somatization, but family conflict and cohesion modified these relations. Greater family conflict exacerbated the negative effects of discrimination, and greater family cohesion buffered the negative effects of discrimination. Our findings highlight the importance of identifying family-level moderators to help adolescents and their families handle experiences of discrimination.

Disaggregation of small, cohesive rubble pile asteroids due to YORP

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Scheeres, D. J.

2018-04-01

The implication of small amounts of cohesion within relatively small rubble pile asteroids is investigated with regard to their evolution under the persistent presence of the YORP effect. We find that below a characteristic size, which is a function of cohesive strength, density and other properties, rubble pile asteroids can enter a "disaggregation phase" in which they are subject to repeated fissions after which the formation of a stabilizing binary system is not possible. Once this threshold is passed rubble pile asteroids may be disaggregated into their constituent components within a finite time span. These constituent components will have their own spin limits - albeit potentially at a much higher spin rate due to the greater strength of a monolithic body. The implications of this prediction are discussed and include modification of size distributions, prevalence of monolithic bodies among meteoroids and the lifetime of small rubble pile bodies in the solar system. The theory is then used to place constraints on the strength of binary asteroids characterized as a function of their type.

Modelling the double cantilever beam test with bending moments by using bilinear discontinuous cohesive laws

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Valvo, Paolo S.; Sørensen, Bent F.; Toftegaard, Helmuth Langmaack

2015-01-01

A theoretical model of the double cantilever beam tests with bending moments (DCB-UBM) is presented. The specimen is modelled as the assemblage of two laminated beams connected by a cohesive interface. It is assumed that the traction-separation laws – i.e. the relationships between the interfacial...... the cohesive law parameters from experiments. Experimental tests have been conducted on glass fibre reinforced specimens under pure mode I and II loading conditions. The predictions of the theoretical model turn out to be in very good agreement with the experimental results....

Texture, Textuality and Political Discourse: A Study of Lexical Cohesion in Nigeria's President Goodluck Jonathan's Inaugural Address, May, 2011

Science.gov (United States)

Enyi, Amaechi Uneke; Chitulu, Mark Ononiwu

2015-01-01

This study, entitled, "Texture and textuality in Political Discourse: A Study of Cohesive Devices in President Goodluck Jonathan's Inaugural Address-May, 2011" was an analysis of the lexical cohesive devices employed by Nigeria's President Goodluck Jonathan in crafting his May, 2011's Presidential Inaugural Address (PIA). Guided by the…

Relationships between cohesion, collective efficacy and performance in professional basketball teams: an examination of mediating effects.

Science.gov (United States)

Heuzé, Jean-Philippe; Raimbault, Nicolas; Fontayne, Paul

2006-01-01

The main aim of this study was to examine mediating effects in the relationships between cohesion, collective efficacy and performance in professional basketball teams. A secondary aim was to examine the correlates of collective efficacy in a professional sport. A total of 154 French and foreign professional players completed French or English versions of questionnaires about cohesion and collective efficacy. Two composite measures of individual performance were used (pre- and post-performance). Individual-level analyses were performed. Regression analyses supported two mediating relationships with collective efficacy as a mediator of the pre-performance - Group integration-task relationship, and Group integration-task as a mediator of the pre-performance - collective efficacy relationship. Statistical analyses indicated that neither Group integration-task nor collective efficacy was a better mediator in the relationship between pre-performance and the other group variables. Results also revealed positive relationships between three dimensions of cohesion (i.e. Individual attractions to the group-task, Group integration-task, Group integration-social) and collective efficacy. These findings suggest that in professional basketball teams, staff members should look after athletes who perform at a lower or below their usual level because their performances might lead them into a downward cohesion - collective efficacy spiral. Staff members should also develop a high quality of group functioning, both on and off the basketball court, given its relationship with collective efficacy.

[Adaptation of the MSCI for the measurement of cohesion in Spanish young soccer players].

Science.gov (United States)

García Quinteiro, Eva María; Rodríguez Casal, Mauro; Andrade, Elena M; Arce, Constantino

2006-08-01

This work describes the Spanish adaptation and studies the psychometric properties of Yukelson, Weinberg, and Jackson's Multidimensional Sport Cohesion Instrument (MSCI) with a sample of 173 soccer players. The Spanish version is composed of 22 items grouped in four factors: quality of teamwork (performance aspects), attraction to the group, valued roles and quality of teamwork (interpersonal relationships), that accounted for 53.30% of the total variance. Reliability coefficients (Cronbach's Alphas) for the factors ranged from .84 (factor 1) to .56 (factor 4). Suggestions are made for future research on the validity of the scale, mainly in terms of convergence with other multidimensional measures of sport cohesion.

[A measure of team cohesion in sport. Spanish adaptation of Group Environment Questionnaire (GEQ)].

Science.gov (United States)

Iturbide, Luis María; Elosua, Paula; Yanes, Félix

2010-08-01

The aim of this work was to adapt the Group Environment Questionnaire (GEQ) to Spanish. Judgmental procedures were used to assess the linguistic and cultural equivalence of the versions. Psychometric procedures were used in the operational phase of the study. The normative sample comprised 924 sportsmen/sportswomen from 75 teams. The GEQ scale showed suitable indexes of internal consistency and a bidimensional structure based on two factors of the cohesion model, the Task component and the Social component. In addition, a positive relation between team-performance and the Task component of team cohesion was observed. Overall, the results supported the Spanish version of the GEQ.

Simulating Dynamic Fracture in Oxide Fuel Pellets Using Cohesive Zone Models

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

R. L. Williamson

2009-08-01

It is well known that oxide fuels crack during the first rise to power, with continued fracture occurring during steady operation and especially during power ramps or accidental transients. Fractures have a very strong influence on the stress state in the fuel which, in turn, drives critical phenomena such as fission gas release, fuel creep, and eventual fuel/clad mechanical interaction. Recently, interest has been expressed in discrete fracture methods, such as the cohesive zone approach. Such models are attractive from a mechanistic and physical standpoint, since they reflect the localized nature of cracking. The precise locations where fractures initiate, as well as the crack evolution characteristics, are determined as part of the solution. This paper explores the use of finite element cohesive zone concepts to predict dynamic crack behavior in oxide fuel pellets during power-up, steady operation, and power ramping. The aim of this work is first to provide an assessment of cohesive zone models for application to fuel cracking and explore important numerical issues associated with this fracture approach. A further objective is to provide basic insight into where and when cracks form, how they interact, and how cracking effects the stress field in a fuel pellet. The ABAQUS commercial finite element code, which includes powerful cohesive zone capabilities, was used for this study. Fully-coupled thermo-mechanical behavior is employed, including the effects of thermal expansion, swelling due to solid and gaseous fission products, and thermal creep. Crack initiation is determined by a temperature-dependent maximum stress criterion, based on measured fracture strengths for UO2. Damage evolution is governed by a traction-separation relation, calibrated to data from temperature and burn-up dependent fracture toughness measurements. Numerical models are first developed in 2D based on both axisymmetric (to explore axial cracking) and plane strain (to explore radial

Parameter estimation for a cohesive sediment transport model by assimilating satellite observations in the Hangzhou Bay: Temporal variations and spatial distributions

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Daosheng; Zhang, Jicai; He, Xianqiang; Chu, Dongdong; Lv, Xianqing; Wang, Ya Ping; Yang, Yang; Fan, Daidu; Gao, Shu

2018-01-01

Model parameters in the suspended cohesive sediment transport models are critical for the accurate simulation of suspended sediment concentrations (SSCs). Difficulties in estimating the model parameters still prevent numerical modeling of the sediment transport from achieving a high level of predictability. Based on a three-dimensional cohesive sediment transport model and its adjoint model, the satellite remote sensing data of SSCs during both spring tide and neap tide, retrieved from Geostationary Ocean Color Imager (GOCI), are assimilated to synchronously estimate four spatially and temporally varying parameters in the Hangzhou Bay in China, including settling velocity, resuspension rate, inflow open boundary conditions and initial conditions. After data assimilation, the model performance is significantly improved. Through several sensitivity experiments, the spatial and temporal variation tendencies of the estimated model parameters are verified to be robust and not affected by model settings. The pattern for the variations of the estimated parameters is analyzed and summarized. The temporal variations and spatial distributions of the estimated settling velocity are negatively correlated with current speed, which can be explained using the combination of flocculation process and Stokes' law. The temporal variations and spatial distributions of the estimated resuspension rate are also negatively correlated with current speed, which are related to the grain size of the seabed sediments under different current velocities. Besides, the estimated inflow open boundary conditions reach the local maximum values near the low water slack conditions and the estimated initial conditions are negatively correlated with water depth, which is consistent with the general understanding. The relationships between the estimated parameters and the hydrodynamic fields can be suggestive for improving the parameterization in cohesive sediment transport models.

Numerical simulation of fatigue crack growth rate and crack retardation due to an overload using a cohesive zone model

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Silitonga, S.; Maljaars, J.; Soetens, F.; Snijder, H.H.

2014-01-01

In this work, a numerical method is pursued based on a cohesive zone model (CZM). The method is aimed at simulating fatigue crack growth as well as crack growth retardation due to an overload. In this cohesive zone model, the degradation of the material strength is represented by a variation of the

Questioning territorial cohesion: (Un)equal access to services of general interest

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Malý, Jiří

-, August 2016 (2016), s. 1-21 ISSN 1056-8190 Institutional support: RVO:68145535 Keywords : territorial cohesion * services of general interest * accessibility * spatial justice * Czech Republic Subject RIV: DE - Earth Magnetism, Geodesy, Geography Impact factor: 1.272, year: 2016 http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/pirs.12250/full

Too Many Friends: Social Integration, Network Cohesion and Adolescent Depressive Symptoms

Science.gov (United States)

Falci, Christina; McNeely, Clea

2009-01-01

Using a nationally representative sample of adolescents, we examine associations among social integration (network size), network cohesion (alter-density), perceptions of social relationships (e.g., social support) and adolescent depressive symptoms. We find that adolescents with either too large or too small a network have higher levels of…

Emotional Intelligence, Communication Competence, and Student Perceptions of Team Social Cohesion

Science.gov (United States)

Troth, Ashlea C.; Jordan, Peter J.; Lawrence, Sandra A.

2012-01-01

Students generally report poor experiences of group work in university settings. This study examines whether individual student perceptions of team social cohesion are determined by their level of emotional intelligence (EI) and whether this relationship is mediated by their communication skills. Business students (N = 273) completed the 16-item…

The place where streams seek ground. Towards a new territorial governmentality: the meaning and usage of the concept of territorial cohesion in the European Union

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hissink Muller, B.M.

2013-01-01

For laymen: In the European Union they use a concept called 'territorial cohesion' ... This book shows that experts do not know what it means either. For experts: In the Treaty of Lisbon 'territorial cohesion' is stated as a cohesion objective of the European Union, researchers in the 'planning

Influence of Meander Confinement on Hydro-Morphodynamics of a Cohesive Meandering Channel

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Parna Parsapour-Moghaddam

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Despite several decades of intensive study of the morphological changes in meandering rivers, less attention has been paid to confined meanders. This paper studies the hydro-morphodynamics of two adjacent sub-reaches of a meandering creek, located in the City of Ottawa, Canada. Both of these sub-reaches are meandering channels with cohesive bed and banks, but one is confined by a railway embankment. Field reconnaissance revealed distinct differences in the morphological characteristics of the sub-reaches. To further study this, channel migration and morphological changes of the channel banks along each of these sub-reaches were analyzed by comparing the historical aerial photography (2004, 2014, light detection and ranging (LIDAR data (2006, bathymetric data obtained from a total station survey (2014, and field examination. Moreover, two different spatially intensive acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP surveys were conducted in the study area to find the linkage between the hydrodynamics and morphological changes in the two different sub-reaches. The unconfined sub-reach is shown to have a typical channel migration pattern with deposition on the inner bank and erosion on the outer bank of the meander bend. The confined sub-reach, on the other hand, experienced greater bank instabilities than the unconfined sub-reach. The average rate of bank retreat was 0.2 m/year in the confined sub-reach whereas it was lower (0.08 m/year in the unconfined sampling reach. In the confined sub-reach, an irregular meandering pattern occurred by the evolution of a concave-bank bench, which was caused by reverse flow eddies. The sinuosity of the confined sub-reach decreased from 1.55 to 1.49 in the 10-year study period. The results of the present study demonstrate the physical mechanisms by which meander confinement can change the meandering pattern and morphological characteristics of a cohesive clay bed creek.

Perceptions as the crucial link? The mediating role of neighborhood perceptions in the relationship between the neighborhood context and neighborhood cohesion.

Science.gov (United States)

Laméris, Joran; Hipp, John R; Tolsma, Jochem

2018-05-01

This study examines the effects of neighborhood racial in-group size, economic deprivation and the prevalence of crime on neighborhood cohesion among U.S. whites. We explore to what extent residents' perceptions of their neighborhood mediate these macro-micro relationships. We use a recent individual-level data set, the American Social Fabric Study (2012/2013), enriched with contextual-level data from the U.S. Census Bureau (2010) and employ multi-level structural equation models. We show that the racial in-group size is positively related to neighborhood cohesion and that neighborhood cohesion is lower in communities with a high crime rate. Individuals' perceptions of the racial in-group size partly mediate the relationship between the objective racial in-group size and neighborhood cohesion. Residents' perceptions of unsafety from crime also appear to be a mediating factor, not only for the objective crime rate but also for the objective racial in-group size. This is in line with our idea that racial stereotypes link racial minorities to crime whereby neighborhoods with a large non-white population are perceived to be more unsafe. Residents of the same neighborhood differ in how they perceive the degree of economic decay of the neighborhood and this causes them to evaluate neighborhood cohesion differently, however perceptions of neighborhood economic decay do not explain the link between the objective neighborhood context and neighborhood cohesion. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

In situ erosion of cohesive sediment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Williamson, H.J.; Ockenden, M.C.

1993-01-01

There has been increasing interest in tidal power schemes and the effect of a tidal energy barrage on the environment. A large man-made environmental change, such as a barrage, would be expected to have significant effects on the sediment distribution and stability of an estuary and these effects need to be assessed when considering a tidal barrage project. This report describes the development of apparatus for in-situ measurements of cohesive sediment erosion on inter-tidal mudflats. Development of the prototype field erosion bell and field testing was commissioned on behalf of the Department of Trade and Industry by the Energy Technology Support Unit (ETSU). This later work commenced in August 1991 and was completed in September 1992. (Author)

Cohesion and the Social Construction of Meaning in the Essays of Filipino College Students Writing in L2 English

Science.gov (United States)

Castro, Carolyn D.

2004-01-01

This study compares the degree of cohesion and coherence in the essays written by thirty Filipino college freshmen and analyzes how the social construction of meaning was made evident in their writing. Results showed that low, mid and highly rated essays were comparable in grammatical cohesive device use. Lexical repetition and use of synonyms…

Regional Disparities and Social Cohesion Policies. The Case of the Metropolitan Area of Bari (Italy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

ROSALINA GRUMO

2015-06-01

Full Text Available The role of Regions appears reconfigured by the "reshaping" of national States. Besides, under a sub-regional scale, forms of governance have been launched, redefining a new territoriality. In Italy, the role of the Regions and Cities is more and more important in the decision-making processes of the territories and it is also characterized by the recent establishment of the metropolitan cities, but still not geo-politically defined. There is, in fact, a constitutional reform process through the region's reorganization legislative autonomy and strengthening of local governments. In this context, some areas are characterized by social unrest that includes new forms of poverty, urban malaise and marginalization, due also to the financial and economic crisis whose signs of recovery are still very weak. In the European Union, the programming decisions considered the policy of development and cohesion also at the local scale. The 2014-2020 EU programming cycle, in fact, has defined the main role of metropolitan cities, but also of cities and internal areas. The contribution will analyze Puglia, region of southern Italy, and the metropolitan area of Bari, the regional capital, in order to verify policies concerning the social field, both through "strategic planning" and launching the so-called "smart city" experience. In the metropolitan city, indeed, there is already an orientation towards the "social innovation" to address the issues of social cohesion and inclusion, consistent to sustainable development.

Shell Nouns as Cohesive Devices in Published and ESL Student Writing

Science.gov (United States)

Aktas, Rahime Nur; Cortes, Viviana

2008-01-01

This paper analyzes the use of a special type of unspecific noun, called "shell nouns" [Hunston, S., & Francis, G. (1999). "Pattern grammar". Amsterdam: Benjamins; Schmid, H. (2000). "English abstract nouns as conceptual shells: From corpus to cognition". Berlin: Walter de Gruyter], which are frequently used as cohesive devices, in the written…

Explaining Teacher Turnover: School Cohesion and Intrinsic Motivation in Los Angeles

Science.gov (United States)

Fuller, Bruce; Waite, Anisah; Irribarra, David Torres

2016-01-01

Lifting achievement in many schools depends on reducing the exit of effective teachers. We examine the extent to which teacher perceptions of school cohesion and intrinsic motivators stemming from two theoretical traditions contribute to the intent to leave one's school. We find that elementary teachers report higher levels of organizational…

The Study of Road Conditions that Affect Tilt-based Text Input for Mobile Devices

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Darius Miniotas

2017-07-01

Full Text Available With the rapid advances in technology of mobile devices, their application areas expand continuously as well. Given the growth of the market share for mobile devices, one of the main issues that arise is the need for new and convenient techniques for data input and output suitable for various settings. Tilt-based text input is one of the alternatives that attract attention of current researchers. This study investigates the potential of using tilt-based interaction to enter text while sitting as a passenger in a moving vehicle. In addition, the investigation focused on the characteristics of the road as well as driving conditions that affect tilt-based text input. The study manipulated the following factors: keyboard size 10×4 and road unevenness (small, moderate, and large. 14 participants, aged 25 to 50, took part in the user study. The best performance and the shortest task completion time equal to 24.5 seconds was observed when the vehicle was moving at a constant speed on a straight road with small unevenness. The task completion time increased by 15% in moderate unevenness road and by almost 20 % in large unevenness road. Error rate and movement efficiency were investigated additionally in order to find out the cause of such times.

Social Cohesion, Social Participation, and HIV Related Risk among Female Sex Workers in Swaziland

Science.gov (United States)

Fonner, Virginia A.; Kerrigan, Deanna; Mnisi, Zandile; Ketende, Sosthenes; Kennedy, Caitlin E.; Baral, Stefan

2014-01-01

Social capital is important to disadvantaged groups, such as sex workers, as a means of facilitating internal group-related mutual aid and support as well as access to broader social and material resources. Studies among sex workers have linked higher social capital with protective HIV-related behaviors; however, few studies have examined social capital among sex workers in sub-Saharan Africa. This cross-sectional study examined relationships between two key social capital constructs, social cohesion among sex workers and social participation of sex workers in the larger community, and HIV-related risk in Swaziland using respondent-driven sampling. Relationships between social cohesion, social participation, and HIV-related risk factors were assessed using logistic regression. HIV prevalence among the sample was 70.4% (223/317). Social cohesion was associated with consistent condom use in the past week (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]  = 2.25, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.30–3.90) and was associated with fewer reports of social discrimination, including denial of police protection. Social participation was associated with HIV testing (AOR = 2.39, 95% CI: 1.36–4.03) and using condoms with non-paying partners (AOR = 1.99, 95% CI: 1.13–3.51), and was inversely associated with reported verbal or physical harassment as a result of selling sex (AOR = 0.55, 95% CI: 0.33–0.91). Both social capital constructs were significantly associated with collective action, which involved participating in meetings to promote sex worker rights or attending HIV-related meetings/ talks with other sex workers. Social- and structural-level interventions focused on building social cohesion and social participation among sex workers could provide significant protection from HIV infection for female sex workers in Swaziland. PMID:24498125

Social cohesion, social participation, and HIV related risk among female sex workers in Swaziland.

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Fonner, Virginia A; Kerrigan, Deanna; Mnisi, Zandile; Ketende, Sosthenes; Kennedy, Caitlin E; Baral, Stefan

2014-01-01

Social capital is important to disadvantaged groups, such as sex workers, as a means of facilitating internal group-related mutual aid and support as well as access to broader social and material resources. Studies among sex workers have linked higher social capital with protective HIV-related behaviors; however, few studies have examined social capital among sex workers in sub-Saharan Africa. This cross-sectional study examined relationships between two key social capital constructs, social cohesion among sex workers and social participation of sex workers in the larger community, and HIV-related risk in Swaziland using respondent-driven sampling. Relationships between social cohesion, social participation, and HIV-related risk factors were assessed using logistic regression. HIV prevalence among the sample was 70.4% (223/317). Social cohesion was associated with consistent condom use in the past week (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 2.25, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.30-3.90) and was associated with fewer reports of social discrimination, including denial of police protection. Social participation was associated with HIV testing (AOR = 2.39, 95% CI: 1.36-4.03) and using condoms with non-paying partners (AOR = 1.99, 95% CI: 1.13-3.51), and was inversely associated with reported verbal or physical harassment as a result of selling sex (AOR = 0.55, 95% CI: 0.33-0.91). Both social capital constructs were significantly associated with collective action, which involved participating in meetings to promote sex worker rights or attending HIV-related meetings/ talks with other sex workers. Social- and structural-level interventions focused on building social cohesion and social participation among sex workers could provide significant protection from HIV infection for female sex workers in Swaziland.

Easy-to-read texts for students with intellectual disability: linguistic factors affecting comprehension.

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