Knowledge exchange between agents in real-time environments

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Frisvad, Jeppe Revall; Falster, Peter; Møller, Gert Lykke

2005-01-01

To obtain unpredictable social interaction between autonomous agents in real-time environments, we present a simple method for logic-based knowledge exchange. A method which is able to form new knowledge rather than do simple exchange of particular rules found in predetermined rule sets. The appl......To obtain unpredictable social interaction between autonomous agents in real-time environments, we present a simple method for logic-based knowledge exchange. A method which is able to form new knowledge rather than do simple exchange of particular rules found in predetermined rule sets...

Investigating Time and Spectral Dependence in Neutron Radiation Environments for Semiconductor Damage Studies

Science.gov (United States)

2014-09-18

approach, a Bateman -like [16] equation can be developed that describes the time rate of change of the number of defects in the device, Nd, as dNd dt...16. H. Bateman , “Solution of a system of differential equations occurring in the theory of radioactive transformations,” Proc. Cambridge Philos. Soc...environment. The mathematical model proceeded through a num- ber of steps in development, starting out with Bateman -like equations of the accu- mulation

Time utilization and perceived psychosocial work environment among staff in Swedish primary care settings.

Science.gov (United States)

Anskär, Eva; Lindberg, Malou; Falk, Magnus; Andersson, Agneta

2018-03-07

Over the past decades, reorganizations and structural changes in Swedish primary care have affected time utilization among health care professionals. Consequently, increases in administrative tasks have substantially reduced the time available for face-to-face consultations. This study examined how work-time was utilized and the association between work time utilization and the perceived psychosocial work environment in Swedish primary care settings. This descriptive, multicentre, cross-sectional study was performed in 2014-2015. Data collection began with questionnaire. In the first section, respondents were asked to estimate how their workload was distributed between patients (direct and indirect patient work) and other work tasks. The questionnaire also comprised the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire, which assessed the psychosocial work environment. Next a time study was conducted where the participants reported their work-time based on three main categories: direct patient-related work, indirect patient-related work, and other work tasks. Each main category had a number of subcategories. The participants recorded the time spent (minutes) on each work task per hour, every day, for two separate weeks. Eleven primary care centres located in southeast Sweden participated. All professionals were asked to participate (n = 441), including registered nurses, primary care physicians, care administrators, nurse assistants, and allied professionals. Response rates were 75% and 79% for the questionnaires and the time study, respectively. All health professionals allocated between 30.9% - 37.2% of their work-time to each main category: direct patient work, indirect patient work, and other work. All professionals estimated a higher proportion of time spent in direct patient work than they reported in the time study. Physicians scored highest on the psychosocial scales of quantitative demands, stress, and role conflicts. Among allied professionals, the proportion of

WinGraphics: An optimized windowing environment for interactive real-time simulations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Verboncoeur, J.P.; Vahedi, V.

1989-01-01

We have developed a customized windowing environment, Win Graphics, which provides particle simulation codes with an interactive user interface. The environment supports real-time animation of the simulation, displaying multiple diagnostics as they evolve in time. In addition, keyboard and printer (PostScript and dot matrix) support is provided. This paper describes this environment

The mediating role of the home environment in relation to parental educational level and preschool children's screen time: a cross-sectional study.

Science.gov (United States)

Määttä, Suvi; Kaukonen, Riikka; Vepsäläinen, Henna; Lehto, Elviira; Ylönen, Anna; Ray, Carola; Erkkola, Maijaliisa; Roos, Eva

2017-09-02

Previous studies suggest that preschoolers from low socioeconomic backgrounds engage in more screen time. Still, the factors in the social and physical home environment driving these differences in preschool children's screen time are poorly understood. This study examines potential home environment mediators in the associations between parental educational level and preschoolers' screen time. A total of 864 children aged 3-6 years and their parents participated in a cross-sectional DAGIS study in 2015-2016. Parents recorded their children's screen time in a diary (N = 823). For the analyses, the daily average screen time at home was calculated. Parental questionnaires (N = 808) assessed educational level and eight social and physical environment factors in the home (i.e., descriptive norm for children's screen time, parental screen use in front of children, parental importance for limiting children's screen time, parental attitude toward societal pressures for children's screen time, access to screens at home, parental self-efficacy for limiting children's screen time, satisfaction of children's screen time, and rules for limiting children's screen time). Parental education was grouped into low, middle, and high education. The associations were tested by conducting mediation analyses adjusted by season and children's sex and age. The significant mediators in the single-mediator models were included in the final multiple-mediator models. Of the potential eight mediators, the following four had a significant indirect association: descriptive norm for children's screen time, parental screen use in front of children, parental importance for limiting children's screen time, and parental attitude toward societal pressures for children's screen time. Parents with high education had lower descriptive norm and used fewer screens in front of children compared to parents with middle or low education, and in turn, these factors were associated with less screen time among

Understanding significant processes during work environment interventions to alleviate time pressure and associated sick leave of home care workers--a case study.

Science.gov (United States)

Andersen, Gunn Robstad; Westgaard, Rolf H

2013-11-15

Ergonomic and work stress interventions rarely show long-term positive effect. The municipality participating in this study received orders from the Norwegian Labour Inspectorate due to an identified unhealthy level of time pressure, and responded by effectuating several work environment interventions. The study aim is to identify critical factors in the interaction between work environment interventions and independent rationalization measures in order to understand a potential negative interfering effect from concurrent rationalizations on a comprehensive work environment intervention. The study, using a historic prospective mixed-method design, comprised 6 home care units in a municipality in Norway (138 respondents, response rate 76.2%; 17 informants). The study included quantitative estimations, register data of sick leave, a time line of significant events and changes, and qualitative descriptions of employee appraisals of their work situation gathered through semi-structured interviews and open survey responses. The work environment interventions were in general regarded as positive by the home care workers. However, all units were simultaneously subjected to substantial contextual instability, involving new work programs, new technology, restructurings, unit mergers, and management replacements, perceived by the home care workers to be major sources of stress. Findings suggest that concurrent changes induced through rationalization resulted in negative exposure effects that negated positive work environment intervention effects, causing an overall deteriorated work situation for the home care workers. Establishment and active utilization of communication channels from workers to managers are recommended in order to increase awareness of putative harmful and interruptive effects of rationalization measures.

Parenting Style, the Home Environment, and Screen Time of 5-Year-Old Children; The ‘Be Active, Eat Right’ Study

Science.gov (United States)

Veldhuis, Lydian; van Grieken, Amy; Renders, Carry M.; HiraSing, Remy A.; Raat, Hein

2014-01-01

Introduction The global increase in childhood overweight and obesity has been ascribed partly to increases in children's screen time. Parents have a large influence on their children's screen time. Studies investigating parenting and early childhood screen time are limited. In this study, we investigated associations of parenting style and the social and physical home environment on watching TV and using computers or game consoles among 5-year-old children. Methods This study uses baseline data concerning 5-year-old children (n = 3067) collected for the ‘Be active, eat right’ study. Results Children of parents with a higher score on the parenting style dimension involvement, were more likely to spend >30 min/day on computers or game consoles. Overall, families with an authoritative or authoritarian parenting style had lower percentages of children's screen time compared to families with an indulgent or neglectful style, but no significant difference in OR was found. In families with rules about screen time, children were less likely to watch TV>2 hrs/day and more likely to spend >30 min/day on computers or game consoles. The number of TVs and computers or game consoles in the household was positively associated with screen time, and children with a TV or computer or game console in their bedroom were more likely to watch TV>2 hrs/day or spend >30 min/day on computers or game consoles. Conclusion The magnitude of the association between parenting style and screen time of 5-year-olds was found to be relatively modest. The associations found between the social and physical environment and children's screen time are independent of parenting style. Interventions to reduce children's screen time might be most effective when they support parents specifically with introducing family rules related to screen time and prevent the presence of a TV or computer or game console in the child's room. PMID:24533092

Does spending time outdoors reduce stress? A review of real-time stress response to outdoor environments

Science.gov (United States)

Michelle C. Kondo; Sara F. Jacoby; Eugenia C. South

2018-01-01

Everyday environmental conditions impact human health. One mechanism underlying this relationship is the experience of stress. Through systematic review of published literature, we explore how stress has been measured in real-time non-laboratory studies of stress responses to deliberate exposure to outdoor environments. The types of exposures evaluated in this review...

Associations between home environment and after-school physical activity and sedentary time among 6th grade children

Science.gov (United States)

Lau, Erica Y; Barr-Anderson, Daheia J; Dowda, Marsha; Forthofer, Melinda; Saunders, Ruth P; Pate, Russell R

2015-01-01

This study examined associations of various elements of the home environment with after-school physical activity and sedentary time in 671 sixth-grade children (Mage = 11.49 ± 0.5 years). Children’s after-school total physical activity (TPA), moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and sedentary time were measured by accelerometry. Parents completed surveys assessing elements of the home social and physical environment. Mixed-model regression analyses were used to examine the associations between each element of the home environment and children’s after-school physical activity and sedentary time. Availability of home physical activity resources was associated positively with after-school TPA and negatively with after-school sedentary time in boys. Parental support was associated positively with after-school TPA and MVPA and negatively with after-school sedentary time in girls. The home physical environment was associated with boys’ after-school physical activity and sedentary time, whereas the home social environment was associated with girls’ after-school physical activity and sedentary time. PMID:25386734

Ada Run Time Support Environments and a common APSE Interface Set. [Ada Programming Support Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Mckay, C. W.; Bown, R. L.

1985-01-01

The paper discusses the importance of linking Ada Run Time Support Environments to the Common Ada Programming Support Environment (APSE) Interface Set (CAIS). A non-stop network operating systems scenario is presented to serve as a forum for identifying the important issues. The network operating system exemplifies the issues involved in the NASA Space Station data management system.

Time in a Timeless Environment

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

scientific study as you will read in this article. ... isolation facilities provide such timeless environments where human beings ... All these interesting questions can be answered if we indeed have an .... temperature in a computer chip. There is a ...

Real time programming environment for Windows

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

LaBelle, D.R. [LaBelle (Dennis R.), Clifton Park, NY (United States)

1998-04-01

This document provides a description of the Real Time Programming Environment (RTProE). RTProE tools allow a programmer to create soft real time projects under general, multi-purpose operating systems. The basic features necessary for real time applications are provided by RTProE, leaving the programmer free to concentrate efforts on his specific project. The current version supports Microsoft Windows{trademark} 95 and NT. The tasks of real time synchronization and communication with other programs are handled by RTProE. RTProE includes a generic method for connecting a graphical user interface (GUI) to allow real time control and interaction with the programmer`s product. Topics covered in this paper include real time performance issues, portability, details of shared memory management, code scheduling, application control, Operating System specific concerns and the use of Computer Aided Software Engineering (CASE) tools. The development of RTProE is an important step in the expansion of the real time programming community. The financial costs associated with using the system are minimal. All source code for RTProE has been made publicly available. Any person with access to a personal computer, Windows 95 or NT, and C or FORTRAN compilers can quickly enter the world of real time modeling and simulation.

Real-time continuous glucose monitoring systems in the classroom/school environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Benassi, Kari; Drobny, Jessica; Aye, Tandy

2013-05-01

Children with type 1 diabetes (T1D) spend 4-7 h/day in school with very little supervision of their diabetes management. Therefore, families have become more dependent on technology, such as use of real-time continuous glucose monitoring (RT-CGM), to provide increased supervision of their diabetes management. We sought to assess the impact of RT-CGM use in the classroom/school environment. Children with T1D using RT-CGM, their parents, and teachers completed a questionnaire about RT-CGM in the classroom/school environment. The RT-CGM was tolerated well in the classroom/school environment. Seventy percent of parents, 75% of students, and 51% of teachers found RT-CGM useful in the classroom/school environment. The students found the device to be more disruptive than did their parents and teachers. However, all three groups agreed that RT-CGM increased their comfort with diabetes management at school. Our study suggests that RT-CGM is useful and not disruptive in the classroom/school environment. The development of education materials for teachers could further increase its acceptance in the classroom/school environment.

Run-Time and Compiler Support for Programming in Adaptive Parallel Environments

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Guy Edjlali

1997-01-01

Full Text Available For better utilization of computing resources, it is important to consider parallel programming environments in which the number of available processors varies at run-time. In this article, we discuss run-time support for data-parallel programming in such an adaptive environment. Executing programs in an adaptive environment requires redistributing data when the number of processors changes, and also requires determining new loop bounds and communication patterns for the new set of processors. We have developed a run-time library to provide this support. We discuss how the run-time library can be used by compilers of high-performance Fortran (HPF-like languages to generate code for an adaptive environment. We present performance results for a Navier-Stokes solver and a multigrid template run on a network of workstations and an IBM SP-2. Our experiments show that if the number of processors is not varied frequently, the cost of data redistribution is not significant compared to the time required for the actual computation. Overall, our work establishes the feasibility of compiling HPF for a network of nondedicated workstations, which are likely to be an important resource for parallel programming in the future.

Time-dependent dynamical behavior of surface tension on rotating fluids under microgravity environment

Science.gov (United States)

Hung, R. J.; Tsao, Y. D.; Hong, B. B.; Leslie, F. W.

1988-01-01

Time dependent evolutions of the profile of free surface (bubble shapes) for a cylindrical container partially filled with a Newtonian fluid of constant density, rotating about its axis of symmetry, have been studied. Numerical computations of the dynamics of bubble shapes have been carried out with the following situations: (1) linear functions of spin-up and spin-down in low and microgravity environments, (2) step functions of spin-up and spin-down in a low gravity environment, and (3) sinusoidal function oscillation of gravity environment in high and low rotating cylinder speeds.

The mediating role of the home environment in relation to parental educational level and preschool children’s screen time: a cross-sectional study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Suvi Määttä

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Previous studies suggest that preschoolers from low socioeconomic backgrounds engage in more screen time. Still, the factors in the social and physical home environment driving these differences in preschool children’s screen time are poorly understood. This study examines potential home environment mediators in the associations between parental educational level and preschoolers’ screen time. Methods A total of 864 children aged 3–6 years and their parents participated in a cross-sectional DAGIS study in 2015–2016. Parents recorded their children’s screen time in a diary (N = 823. For the analyses, the daily average screen time at home was calculated. Parental questionnaires (N = 808 assessed educational level and eight social and physical environment factors in the home (i.e., descriptive norm for children’s screen time, parental screen use in front of children, parental importance for limiting children’s screen time, parental attitude toward societal pressures for children’s screen time, access to screens at home, parental self-efficacy for limiting children’s screen time, satisfaction of children’s screen time, and rules for limiting children’s screen time. Parental education was grouped into low, middle, and high education. The associations were tested by conducting mediation analyses adjusted by season and children’s sex and age. The significant mediators in the single-mediator models were included in the final multiple-mediator models. Results Of the potential eight mediators, the following four had a significant indirect association: descriptive norm for children’s screen time, parental screen use in front of children, parental importance for limiting children’s screen time, and parental attitude toward societal pressures for children’s screen time. Parents with high education had lower descriptive norm and used fewer screens in front of children compared to parents with middle or

The impact of closed-loop electronic medication management on time to first dose: a comparative study between paper and digital hospital environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Austin, Jodie A; Smith, Ian R; Tariq, Amina

2018-01-22

Closed-loop electronic medication management systems (EMMS) are recognised as an effective intervention to improve medication safety, yet evidence of their effectiveness in hospitals is limited. Few studies have compared medication turnaround time for a closed-loop electronic versus paper-based medication management environment. To compare medication turnaround times in a paper-based hospital environment with a digital hospital equipped with a closed-loop EMMS, consisting of computerised physician order entry, profiled automated dispensing cabinets packaged with unit dose medications and barcode medication administration. Data were collected during 2 weeks at three private hospital sites (one with closed-loop EMMS) within the same organisation network in Queensland, Australia. Time between scheduled and actual administration times was analysed for first dose of time-critical and non-critical medications located on the ward or sourced via pharmacy. Medication turnaround times at the EMMS site were less compared to the paper-based sites (median, IQR: 35 min, 8-57 min versus 120 min, 30-180 min, P medications, 77% were administered within 60 min of scheduled time at the EMMS site versus 38% for the paper-based sites. Similar difference was observed for non-critical medications, 80% were administered within 60 min of their scheduled time at the EMMS site versus 41% at the paper-based facilities. The study indicates medication turnaround times utilising a closed-loop EMMS are less compared to paper-based systems. This improvement may be attributable to increased accessibility of medications using automated dispensing cabinets and electronic medication administration records flagging tasks to nurses in real time. © 2018 Royal Pharmaceutical Society.

Environment perception and leisure-time physical activity in Portuguese high school students

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rita Pereira

2018-06-01

Full Text Available This study aims to analyze the association between perceived environmental factors and leisure-time physical activity (PA among adolescents of both genders. Data were collected in autumn of 2011 from 866 adolescents (412 girls and 454 boys 12- to 18-years-old, from four Portuguese cities. Perception of environmental factors was assessed by Assessing Levels of Physical Activity and Fitness (ALPHA questionnaire (Spittaels et al., 2010, IJBNPA. PA was assessed by a questionnaire that evaluated PA during leisure-time and participants were assigned into the following categories: sedentary; low active; moderate active; and very active. Boys presented higher levels of structured PA, frequency and intensity of PA, and level of sport competition than girls (p<0.001. Distance to local facilities (p=0.001 for girls; p<0.001 for boys and home environment (p=0.004 for girls; p=0.015 for boys were negatively associated with PA. Total, cycling and walking infrastructures (p<0.001, as well as cycling and walking network (p=0.049 and connectivity (p=0.034 showed a positive association with PA in boys. Analysis of variance showed significant differences between girls' PA regarding aesthetics (p=0.013, study environment (p=0.023, home environment (p=0.014 and whether it is pleasant or not (p=0.023. Differences between boys' PA were observed for distance to local facilities (p=0.003, total, cycling and walking infrastructures (p<0.001 and home environment (p=0.002. This study results support that some environmental factors are associated with adolescents' PA levels, with relevant differences between genders. Therefore, these gender differences must be taken into account, in order to increase levels of PA in Portuguese youth, especially in girls. Keywords: Environment perception, Physical activity, Adolescents, ALPHA questionnaire

Open environments to support systems engineering tool integration: A study using the Portable Common Tool Environment (PCTE)

Science.gov (United States)

Eckhardt, Dave E., Jr.; Jipping, Michael J.; Wild, Chris J.; Zeil, Steven J.; Roberts, Cathy C.

1993-01-01

A study of computer engineering tool integration using the Portable Common Tool Environment (PCTE) Public Interface Standard is presented. Over a 10-week time frame, three existing software products were encapsulated to work in the Emeraude environment, an implementation of the PCTE version 1.5 standard. The software products used were a computer-aided software engineering (CASE) design tool, a software reuse tool, and a computer architecture design and analysis tool. The tool set was then demonstrated to work in a coordinated design process in the Emeraude environment. The project and the features of PCTE used are described, experience with the use of Emeraude environment over the project time frame is summarized, and several related areas for future research are summarized.

Making Time for Nature: Visual Exposure to Natural Environments Lengthens Subjective Time Perception and Reduces Impulsivity.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Meredith S Berry

Full Text Available Impulsivity in delay discounting is associated with maladaptive behaviors such as overeating and drug and alcohol abuse. Researchers have recently noted that delay discounting, even when measured by a brief laboratory task, may be the best predictor of human health related behaviors (e.g., exercise currently available. Identifying techniques to decrease impulsivity in delay discounting, therefore, could help improve decision-making on a global scale. Visual exposure to natural environments is one recent approach shown to decrease impulsive decision-making in a delay discounting task, although the mechanism driving this result is currently unknown. The present experiment was thus designed to evaluate not only whether visual exposure to natural (mountains, lakes relative to built (buildings, cities environments resulted in less impulsivity, but also whether this exposure influenced time perception. Participants were randomly assigned to either a natural environment condition or a built environment condition. Participants viewed photographs of either natural scenes or built scenes before and during a delay discounting task in which they made choices about receiving immediate or delayed hypothetical monetary outcomes. Participants also completed an interval bisection task in which natural or built stimuli were judged as relatively longer or shorter presentation durations. Following the delay discounting and interval bisection tasks, additional measures of time perception were administered, including how many minutes participants thought had passed during the session and a scale measurement of whether time "flew" or "dragged" during the session. Participants exposed to natural as opposed to built scenes were less impulsive and also reported longer subjective session times, although no differences across groups were revealed with the interval bisection task. These results are the first to suggest that decreased impulsivity from exposure to natural as

Social network analysis of study environment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Blaženka Divjak

2010-06-01

Full Text Available Student working environment influences student learning and achievement level. In this respect social aspects of students’ formal and non-formal learning play special role in learning environment. The main research problem of this paper is to find out if students' academic performance influences their position in different students' social networks. Further, there is a need to identify other predictors of this position. In the process of problem solving we use the Social Network Analysis (SNA that is based on the data we collected from the students at the Faculty of Organization and Informatics, University of Zagreb. There are two data samples: in the basic sample N=27 and in the extended sample N=52. We collected data on social-demographic position, academic performance, learning and motivation styles, student status (full-time/part-time, attitudes towards individual and teamwork as well as informal cooperation. Afterwards five different networks (exchange of learning materials, teamwork, informal communication, basic and aggregated social network were constructed. These networks were analyzed with different metrics and the most important were betweenness, closeness and degree centrality. The main result is, firstly, that the position in a social network cannot be forecast only by academic success and, secondly, that part-time students tend to form separate groups that are poorly connected with full-time students. In general, position of a student in social networks in study environment can influence student learning as well as her/his future employability and therefore it is worthwhile to be investigated.

U.S. Geological Survey Rewarding Environment Culture Study, 2002

Science.gov (United States)

Nash, Janis C.; Paradise-Tornow, Carol A.; Gray, Vicki K.; Griffin-Bemis, Sarah P.; Agnew, Pamela R.; Bouchet, Nicole M.

2010-01-01

In its 2001 review of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the National Research Council (NRC, p. 126) cautioned that ?high-quality personnel are essential for developing high-quality science information? and urged the USGS to ?devote substantial efforts to recruiting and retaining excellent staff.? Recognizing the importance of the NRC recommendation, the USGS has committed time and resources to create a rewarding work environment with the goal of achieving the following valued outcomes: ? USGS science vitality ? Customer satisfaction with USGS products and services ? Employee perceptions of the USGS as a rewarding place to work ? Heightened employee morale and commitment ? The ability to recruit and retain employees with critical skills To determine whether this investment of time and resources was proving to be successful, the USGS Human Resources Office conducted a Rewarding Environment Culture Study to answer the following four questions. ? Question 1: Does a rewarding work environment lead to the valued outcomes (identified above) that the USGS is seeking? ? Question 2: Which management, supervisory, and leadership behaviors contribute most to creating a rewarding work environment and to achieving the valued outcomes that the USGS is seeking? ? Question 3: Do USGS employees perceive that the USGS is a rewarding place to work? ? Question 4: What actions can and should be taken to enhance the USGS work environment? To begin the study, a conceptual model of a rewarding USGS environment was developed to test assumptions about a rewarding work environment. The Rewarding Environment model identifies the key components that are thought to contribute to a rewarding work environment and the valued outcomes that are thought to result from having a rewarding work environment. The 2002 Organizational Assessment Survey (OAS) was used as the primary data source for the study because it provided the most readily available data. Additional survey data were included as they

Bilateral teleoperation control to improve transparency in stiff environment with time delay

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Azadegan

2014-09-01

Full Text Available This paper proposes a new bilateral control scheme to ensure both transparency and robust stability under unknown constant time delay in stiff environment. Furthermore, this method guaranties suitable performance and robust stability when transition occurs between soft and stiff environments. This framework is composed of an adaptive sliding mode controller and an adaptive impedance controller, where online estimation of the environment impedance is performed, and then used as the desired impedance at the master side. Numerical simulations are provided to verify the theoretical results under different conditions, such as constant and time-varying delay, obstructed environment and transitioning between soft and stiff environment. Afterwards, comparison with a recent work is addressed.

Devising a Structural Equation Model of Relationships between Preservice Teachers' Time and Study Environment Management, Effort Regulation, Self-Efficacy, Control of Learning Beliefs, and Metacognitive Self-Regulation

Science.gov (United States)

Sen, Senol; Yilmaz, Ayhan

2016-01-01

The objective of this study is to analyze the relationship between preservice teachers' time and study environment management, effort regulation, self-efficacy beliefs, control of learning beliefs and metacognitive self-regulation. This study also investigates the direct and indirect effects of metacognitive self-regulation on time and study…

Optimal critic learning for robot control in time-varying environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Chen; Li, Yanan; Ge, Shuzhi Sam; Lee, Tong Heng

2015-10-01

In this paper, optimal critic learning is developed for robot control in a time-varying environment. The unknown environment is described as a linear system with time-varying parameters, and impedance control is employed for the interaction control. Desired impedance parameters are obtained in the sense of an optimal realization of the composite of trajectory tracking and force regulation. Q -function-based critic learning is developed to determine the optimal impedance parameters without the knowledge of the system dynamics. The simulation results are presented and compared with existing methods, and the efficacy of the proposed method is verified.

Real-time control environment for the RFX experiment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barana, O.; Cavinato, M.; Luchetta, A.; Manduchi, G.; Taliercio, C.

2005-01-01

A comprehensive set of control schemes can be presently implemented on RFX due to the enhanced load assembly and renewed power supply system. The schemes include: plasma equilibrium control and resistive wall mode stabilization, aiming at controlling actively the discharge when the passive action of the shell vanishes; the rotation of the localised helical deformation to minimize the enhanced plasma-wall interaction; the MHD mode control and the 'intelligent shell', aiming at achieving a better comprehension of the underlying physics. To the purpose, an integrated, distributed, digital system has been developed consisting of a set of computing nodes. Each node can act either as pre-processing or control station, the former acquiring raw data and computing intermediate control parameters, the latter executing control algorithms and driving the power amplifiers. An overview of the system architecture is presented in the paper with reference to the software real-time environment providing both basic functions, such as data read-out and real-time communication, and useful tools to program control algorithms, to perform simulations and to commission the system. To simulate the control schemes, the real-time environment is extended to include a so called 'simulation mode', in which the real-time nodes exchange their input/output signals with one station running a suitable model of the experiment, for instance the two dimensional FEM code MAXFEA in the case of the equilibrium control. In this way the control system can be tested offline and the time needed for the commissioning of algorithms reduced

Built environment interventions to stimulate leisure-time physical activity

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pawlowski, Charlotte Skau; Troelsen, Jens

Introduction This mixed-method study aimed to examine whether a built environment intervention in eight Danish municipalities (the EGO project) led to increased physical activity and on the basis of the findings to identify factors affecting use of the implemented facilities. The knowledge gained...... will help understand how to optimize development of physical interventions to promote physical activity. Methods Data were collected through multiple methods, including a questionnaire survey, where a representative sample of residents (≥ 16 years) living in the eight areas of intervention received...... %) and they found the opportunities to meet, play and be physical active were better after the implementation of the intervention (+ 10 %). Despite the satisfaction only 21 % stated that they used the implemented facilities (18 % 1-3 times per month, 3 % 1-7 times per week) and the respondents´ physical active...

Time of flight imaging through scattering environments (Conference Presentation)

Science.gov (United States)

Le, Toan H.; Breitbach, Eric C.; Jackson, Jonathan A.; Velten, Andreas

2017-02-01

Light scattering is a primary obstacle to imaging in many environments. On small scales in biomedical microscopy and diffuse tomography scenarios scattering is caused by tissue. On larger scales scattering from dust and fog provide challenges to vision systems for self driving cars and naval remote imaging systems. We are developing scale models for scattering environments and investigation methods for improved imaging particularly using time of flight transient information. With the emergence of Single Photon Avalanche Diode detectors and fast semiconductor lasers, illumination and capture on picosecond timescales are becoming possible in inexpensive, compact, and robust devices. This opens up opportunities for new computational imaging techniques that make use of photon time of flight. Time of flight or range information is used in remote imaging scenarios in gated viewing and in biomedical imaging in time resolved diffuse tomography. In addition spatial filtering is popular in biomedical scenarios with structured illumination and confocal microscopy. We are presenting a combination analytical, computational, and experimental models that allow us develop and test imaging methods across scattering scenarios and scales. This framework will be used for proof of concept experiments to evaluate new computational imaging methods.

Coupled continuous time-random walks in quenched random environment

Science.gov (United States)

Magdziarz, M.; Szczotka, W.

2018-02-01

We introduce a coupled continuous-time random walk with coupling which is characteristic for Lévy walks. Additionally we assume that the walker moves in a quenched random environment, i.e. the site disorder at each lattice point is fixed in time. We analyze the scaling limit of such a random walk. We show that for large times the behaviour of the analyzed process is exactly the same as in the case of uncoupled quenched trap model for Lévy flights.

Cooperative use of MHEG and HyTime in Hypermedia Environments

NARCIS (Netherlands)

L. Rutledge (Lloyd); J.R. van Ossenbruggen (Jacco); L. Hardman (Lynda); D.C.A. Bulterman (Dick); J.-P. Balbe; A. Lelu; M. Nanard; I. Saleh

1997-01-01

textabstractThe standards MHEG-5 and HyTime are interchange formats for hypermedia information. While they may seem to compete, they actually play separate and complementary roles in a complete and open hypermedia environment. MHEG-5 is used for portable final-form hypermedia presentations. HyTime

Gene-Environment Interplay in the Association between Pubertal Timing and Delinquency in Adolescent Girls

Science.gov (United States)

Harden, K. Paige; Mendle, Jane

2014-01-01

Early pubertal timing places girls at elevated risk for a breadth of negative outcomes, including involvement in delinquent behavior. While previous developmental research has emphasized the unique social challenges faced by early maturing girls, this relation is complicated by genetic influences for both delinquent behavior and pubertal timing, which are seldom controlled for in existing research. The current study uses genetically informed data on 924 female-female twin and sibling pairs drawn from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health to (1) disentangle biological versus environmental mechanisms for the effects of early pubertal timing and (2) test for gene-environment interactions. Results indicate that early pubertal timing influences girls’ delinquency through a complex interplay between biological risk and environmental experiences. Genes related to earlier age at menarche and higher perceived development significantly predict increased involvement in both non-violent and violent delinquency. Moreover, after accounting for this genetic association between pubertal timing and delinquency, the impact of non-shared environmental influences on delinquency are significantly moderated by pubertal timing, such that the non-shared environment is most important among early maturing girls. This interaction effect is particularly evident for non-violent delinquency. Overall, results suggest early maturing girls are vulnerable to an interaction between genetic and environmental risks for delinquent behavior. PMID:21668078

The Solar Wind Environment in Time

Science.gov (United States)

Pognan, Quentin; Garraffo, Cecilia; Cohen, Ofer; Drake, Jeremy J.

2018-03-01

We use magnetograms of eight solar analogs of ages 30 Myr–3.6 Gyr obtained from Zeeman Doppler Imaging and taken from the literature, together with two solar magnetograms, to drive magnetohydrodynamical wind simulations and construct an evolutionary scenario of the solar wind environment and its angular momentum loss rate. With observed magnetograms of the radial field strength as the only variant in the wind model, we find that a power-law model fitted to the derived angular momentum loss rate against time, t, results in a spin-down relation Ω ∝ t ‑0.51, for angular speed Ω, which is remarkably consistent with the well-established Skumanich law Ω ∝ t ‑0.5. We use the model wind conditions to estimate the magnetospheric standoff distances for an Earth-like test planet situated at 1 au for each of the stellar cases, and to obtain trends of minimum and maximum wind ram pressure and average ram pressure in the solar system through time. The wind ram pressure declines with time as \\overline{{P}ram}}\\propto {t}2/3, amounting to a factor of 50 or so over the present lifetime of the solar system.

Ethnographic analysis: a study of classroom environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Griswold, L A

1994-05-01

Occupational therapists assess and adapt an environment to enhance clients' abilities to function. Therapists working in schools may assess several classroom environments in a week. Identifying relevant information in an efficient manner is essential yet presents a challenge for school therapists. In this study, ethnographic research methodology was used to analyze the plethora of data gained from observations in eight classrooms. Three major categories were identified to structure observations: activities, people, and communication. These categories were used to compile a Classroom Observation Guide that gives therapists relevant questions to ask in each category. Using the Classroom Observation Guide, occupational therapists can recommend classroom activities that suit a particular teacher's style. For example, working with a teacher who prefers structural activities with clear time and space boundaries for one specific purpose, a therapist might suggest organized sensorimotor games with a distinct purpose to be carried out for a given time period.

A Matlab based framework for the real-time environment at FTU

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vitale, V.; Iannone, F.; Centioli, C.; Pangione, L.; Zaccarian, L.

2006-01-01

The Feedback Control System running at FTU has been recently ported from a commercial platform (O.S. LynxOS) to an open-source GNU/Linux-RTAI platform, obtaining significant performance and cost improvements. Thanks to the new platform, more user friendly tools can be developed in order to help the designer with new control laws. A relevant goal within this new framework is to provide a high level environment where new control algorithms can be created then simulated and finally released without minding the code implementation issues. The ideal situation would be to have a dedicated framework which provides all the necessary phases from the design to the commissioning of the new software. This framework should simulate the real-time context and make transparent to the user on the one hand all the issues related to the simulation (e.g. experimental data retrieving) and on the other hand all the aspects (platform, operating system, programming language, network, hardware...) related to the actual environment where the new algorithm will be run. In this paper we report on recent developments, based on The MathWorks' Simulink and Real Time Workshop (RTW) packages, aimed at obtaining the above mentioned environment where a new control law can be easily modelled, simulated with the real time constraints and then translated in the appropriate executable format. Using this tool, the control designer only needs to specify the control law in the Simulink graphical environment. The arising model is then automatically translated in C code, integrated with control system code and simulated in real-time using the data from the FTU data base archive. All the necessary steps to adapt the RTW scripts and the control system code to the new simulation/validation environment will be illustrated in this paper. Moreover we will report on some experimental tests where the actual experiment is compared with the simulations provided by the proposed environment. (author)

The association between leisure-time physical activities and asthma symptoms among 10- to 12-year-old children: the effect of living environment in the PANACEA study.

Science.gov (United States)

Kosti, Rena I; Priftis, Kostas N; Anthracopoulos, Michael B; Papadimitriou, Anastasios; Grigoropoulou, Dimitra; Lentzas, Yiannis; Yfanti, Konstantina; Panagiotakos, Demosthenes B

2012-05-01

This study evaluated the interrelationships of living environment, physical activity, lifestyle/dietary habits, and nutritional status on the prevalence of childhood asthma. In a cross-sectional survey 1125 children (529 boys), 10 to 12 years old, were selected from 18 schools located in an urban environment (Athens, n = 700) and from 10 schools located in rural areas (n = 425) in Greece. Children living in Athens had higher likelihood of "ever had" asthma compared with children living in rural areas (odds ratio (OR) = 1.78, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.25-2.54), after adjusting for age and sex. After adjusting for age, sex, body mass index, and adherence to the Mediterranean diet (KIDMED score), leisure-time physical activity was inversely associated with "ever had" asthma. When stratifying by county of residence, a trend toward reduced asthma symptoms among children engaged in outdoor physical activities during their leisure time who reside in rural (but not urban) environment was observed (OR = 0.88, 95% CI = 0.77-1.01). The inverse relationship between asthma symptoms and leisure-time physical activity in the rural environment and the lack of an association between asthma symptoms and organized sports-related activities should draw the attention of public healthcare authorities. Their efforts should focus on the planning of a sustainable natural environment, which will promote the physical health of children and reduce the burden of childhood asthma.

Is a perceived supportive physical environment important for self-reported leisure time physical activity among socioeconomically disadvantaged women with poor psychosocial characteristics? An observational study.

Science.gov (United States)

Cleland, Verity J; Ball, Kylie; Crawford, David

2013-03-27

Over the past decade, studies and public health interventions that target the physical environment as an avenue for promoting physical activity have increased in number. While it appears that a supportive physical environment has a role to play in promoting physical activity, social-ecological models emphasise the importance of considering other multiple levels of influence on behaviour, including individual (e.g. self-efficacy, intentions, enjoyment) and social (e.g. social support, access to childcare) factors (psychosocial factors). However, not everyone has these physical activity-promoting psychosocial characteristics; it remains unclear what contribution the environment makes to physical activity among these groups. This study aimed to examine the association between the perceived physical environment and self-reported leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) among women living in socioeconomically disadvantaged areas demonstrating different psychosocial characteristics. In 2007-8, 3765 women (18-45 years) randomly selected from low socioeconomic areas in Victoria, Australia, self-reported LTPA, and individual, social and physical environmental factors hypothesised within a social-ecological framework to influence LTPA. Psychosocial and environment scores were created. Associations between environment scores and categories of LTPA (overall and stratified by thirds of perceived environment scores) were examined using generalised ordered logistic regression. Women with medium and high perceived environment scores had 20-38% and 44-70% greater odds respectively of achieving higher levels of LTPA than women with low environment scores. When stratified by thirds of psychosocial factor scores, these associations were largely attenuated and mostly became non-significant. However, women with the lowest psychosocial scores but medium or high environment scores had 76% and 58% higher odds respectively of achieving ≥120 minutes/week (vs. <120 minutes/week) LTPA

Subcritical crack growth and other time- and environment-dependent behavior in crustal rocks

Science.gov (United States)

Swanson, P. L.

1984-01-01

Stable crack growth strongly influences both the fracture strength of brittle rocks and some of the phenomena precursory to catastrophic failure. Quantification of the time and environment dependence of fracture propagation is attempted with the use of a fracture mechanics technique. Some of the difficulties encountered when applying techniques originally developed for simple synthetic materials to complex materials like rocks are examined. A picture of subcritical fracture propagation is developed that embraces the essential ingredients of the microstructure, a microcrack process zone, and the different roles that the environment plays. To do this, the results of (1) fracture mechanics experiments on five rock types, (2) optical and scanning electron microscopy, (3) studies of microstructural aspects of fracture in ceramics, and (4) exploratory tests examining the time-dependent response of rock to the application of water are examined.

Distributed Scheduling in Time Dependent Environments: Algorithms and Analysis

OpenAIRE

Shmuel, Ori; Cohen, Asaf; Gurewitz, Omer

2017-01-01

Consider the problem of a multiple access channel in a time dependent environment with a large number of users. In such a system, mostly due to practical constraints (e.g., decoding complexity), not all users can be scheduled together, and usually only one user may transmit at any given time. Assuming a distributed, opportunistic scheduling algorithm, we analyse the system's properties, such as delay, QoS and capacity scaling laws. Specifically, we start with analyzing the performance while \\...

Development of real-time software environments for NASA's modern telemetry systems

Science.gov (United States)

Horner, Ward; Sabia, Steve

1989-01-01

An effort has been made to maintain maximum performance and flexibility for NASA-Goddard's VLSI telemetry system elements through the development of two real-time systems: (1) the Base System Environment, which supports generic system integration and furnishes the basic porting of various manufacturers' cards, and (2) the Modular Environment for Data Systems, which supports application-specific developments and furnishes designers with a set of tested generic library functions that can be employed to speed up the development of such application-specific real-time codes. The performance goals and design rationale for these two systems are discussed.

Parent and child screen-viewing time and home media environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Jago, Russell; Stamatakis, Emmanuel; Gama, Augusta; Carvalhal, Isabel Mourão; Nogueira, Helena; Rosado, Vítor; Padez, Cristina

2012-08-01

Screen-viewing time has been associated with adverse health outcomes. Data on the predictors of youth screen-viewing time is predominately from older children in North America. Parental and home media environment factors that are associated with screen-viewing time could be targeted in interventions. Examine if parental screen-viewing time and electronic media (access to game equipment, TVs, PCs, and laptops) environment factors were associated with Portuguese children's screen-viewing time and if associations differed by child age (families with children aged 3-10 years. Data were collected in 2009-2010 and analyzed in 2011. Outcomes were child spending ≥2 hours watching TV and ≥1 hour per day playing with combined other media. Exposures were mothers and fathers watching ≥2 hours of TV and electronic media variables. Parental TV-viewing time was strongly associated with child weekday and weekend TV-viewing time across all four gender and age subgroups. Maternal TV-viewing time was a stronger predictor of child TV-viewing time than paternal TV-viewing time. There was very limited evidence that parental TV-viewing time was associated with combined other media time among boys or girls. Access to electronic game equipment increased the likelihood that children spent >1 hour using combined other media on weekdays and weekend days. Parental TV-viewing time was associated with Portuguese children's TV-viewing time. The numbers of TVs in the household and electronic games equipment access were also associated with TV- and combined other media-viewing/usage time. Copyright © 2012 American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The hold-time effects on the low cycle fatigue behaviors of 316 SS in PWR primary environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Junho; Hong, Jong-Dae; Seo, Myung-Gyu; Jang, Changheui

2015-01-01

The effects of the environments on fatigue life of the structural materials used in nuclear power plants (NPPs) were known to be significant according to the extensive test results. Accordingly, the fatigue analysis procedures and the design fatigue curves were proposed in the ASME Code. However, the implication that the existing ASME design fatigue curves did not sufficiently reflect the effect of the operation conditions of nuclear power plants emerged as an issue to be resolved. One of possible reasons to explain the discrepancy is that the laboratory test conditions do not represent the actual plant transients. Therefore, it is necessary to clarify the effects of light water environments on fatigue life while considering more plant-relevant transient conditions such as hold-time. For this reason, this study will focus on the fatigue life of type 316 stainless steel (SS) in the pressurized water reactor (PWR) environments while incorporating the hold-time during the low cycle fatigue (LCF) test in simulated PWR environments. The objective of this study is to characterize the effects of hold-time on the fatigue life of austenitic stainless steels in PWR environments in comparison with the existing fixed strain rate results. Low cycle fatigue life tests were conducted for the type 316 SS in 310 .deg. C air and simulated PWR environments. To simulate the heat-up and cool-down transient, sub-peak strain holding during the down-hill of strain amplitude was chosen. Currently, LCF tests with 60 seconds holding are in progress. The 0.4, 0.04%/s strain rate condition test results are presented in this study, which shows somewhat longer fatigue life

The hold-time effects on the low cycle fatigue behaviors of 316 SS in PWR primary environment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Junho; Hong, Jong-Dae; Seo, Myung-Gyu; Jang, Changheui [KAIST, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2015-05-15

The effects of the environments on fatigue life of the structural materials used in nuclear power plants (NPPs) were known to be significant according to the extensive test results. Accordingly, the fatigue analysis procedures and the design fatigue curves were proposed in the ASME Code. However, the implication that the existing ASME design fatigue curves did not sufficiently reflect the effect of the operation conditions of nuclear power plants emerged as an issue to be resolved. One of possible reasons to explain the discrepancy is that the laboratory test conditions do not represent the actual plant transients. Therefore, it is necessary to clarify the effects of light water environments on fatigue life while considering more plant-relevant transient conditions such as hold-time. For this reason, this study will focus on the fatigue life of type 316 stainless steel (SS) in the pressurized water reactor (PWR) environments while incorporating the hold-time during the low cycle fatigue (LCF) test in simulated PWR environments. The objective of this study is to characterize the effects of hold-time on the fatigue life of austenitic stainless steels in PWR environments in comparison with the existing fixed strain rate results. Low cycle fatigue life tests were conducted for the type 316 SS in 310 .deg. C air and simulated PWR environments. To simulate the heat-up and cool-down transient, sub-peak strain holding during the down-hill of strain amplitude was chosen. Currently, LCF tests with 60 seconds holding are in progress. The 0.4, 0.04%/s strain rate condition test results are presented in this study, which shows somewhat longer fatigue life.

Cooperative use of MHEG and HyTime in Hypermedia Environments

OpenAIRE

Rutledge, Lloyd; Ossenbruggen, Jacco; Hardman, Lynda; Bulterman, Dick; Balbe, J.-P.; Lelu, A.; Nanard, M.; Saleh, I.

1997-01-01

textabstractThe standards MHEG-5 and HyTime are interchange formats for hypermedia information. While they may seem to compete, they actually play separate and complementary roles in a complete and open hypermedia environment. MHEG-5 is used for portable final-form hypermedia presentations. HyTime is used for the long-term, presentation-independent storage of hypermedia documents. Given these tasks, MHEG-5 can be used to encode presentations of HyTime documents. This paper explores these two ...

Time evolution of tunneling in a thermal medium: Environment-driven excited tunneling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matsumoto, Sh.; Yoshimura, M.

2004-01-01

Time evolution of tunneling phenomena proceeding in a thermal medium is studied using a standard model of environmental interaction. A semiclassical probability formula for the particle motion in a metastable state of a one-dimensional system put in a thermal medium is combined with the formula of the quantum penetration factor through a potential barrier to derive the tunneling rate in the medium. The effect of environment, its influence on time evolution in particular, is clarified in our real-time formalism. A nonlinear resonance effect is shown to enhance the tunneling rate at finite times of order 2/η, with η the friction coefficient unless η is too small. In the linear approximation this effect has relevance to the parametric resonance. This effect enhances the possibility of early termination of the cosmological phase transition much prior to the typical Hubble time

Study on environment-sensitive cracking time for 316Ti stainless steel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Pingzhu; Liu Xinghua; Hu Shilin; Zhang Weiguo

1999-01-01

The time of environmentally assisted cracking of 316Ti stainless steel is studied by slow strain rate test (SSRT) and constant load test (CLT) methods. The experimental results under the simulating water chemical conditions of PWR primary side show that the initial fracture time τ desponds on the concentration of Cl - ion w(Cl - ) and the load σ. The relationships between lgτ and lgw (Cl - ), Δlgτ and Δσ are all linear. The threshold of stress corrosion cracking (SCC) is decreased with the increasing of w(Cl - ) and σ

RAMSES - Rapid Measurement and Special Environment time-of-flight Spectrometer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schober, H.; Koza, M.; Mutka, H.; Zbiri, M.; Andersen, K.

2011-01-01

Time-of-flight spectrometers are ideally suited to study the dynamics of complex materials as encountered in all domains of current scientific interest ranging from health care, biology, earth and environmental sciences, cultural heritage to energy storage and preservation. Complex materials are often available in samples of small amount, or the scientific questions to study require environments limiting the sample size (e.g., Paris-Edinburgh cells and levitation furnaces). The proposed instrument would be optimized for these conditions offering a very high neutron flux over a small beam cross-section in combination with good resolution and extended dynamical range. The later asks for a wavelength band extending slightly into the thermal region. This is achieved on a cold guide with super-mirror coating. (authors)

MAI-free performance of PMU-OFDM transceiver in time-variant environment

Science.gov (United States)

Tadjpour, Layla; Tsai, Shang-Ho; Kuo, C.-C. J.

2005-06-01

An approximately multi-user OFDM transceiver was introduced to reduce the multi-access interference (MAI ) due to the carrier frequency offset (CFO) to a negligible amount via precoding by Tsai, Lin and Kuo. In this work, we investigate the performance of this precoded multi-user (PMU) OFDM system in a time-variant channel environment. We analyze and compare the MAI effect caused by time-variant channels in the PMU-OFDM and the OFDMA systems. Generally speaking, the MAI effect consists of two parts. The first part is due to the loss of orthogonality among subchannels for all users while the second part is due to the CFO effect caused by the Doppler shift. Simulation results show that, although OFDMA outperforms the PMU-OFDM transceiver in a fast time-variant environment without CFO, PMU-OFDM outperforms OFDMA in a slow time-variant channel via the use of M/2 symmetric or anti-symmetric codewords of M Hadamard-Walsh codes.

Study on the behaviour of technetium-99 in soil environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morita, S.; Katagiri, H.; Watanabe, H.; Akatsu, Y.; Ishiguro, H.

1996-01-01

Technetium-99 (Tc-99) is an important radionuclide for environmental assessment around nuclear fuel cycle facilities, because it has a long half-life and relatively high mobility in the environment. Its determination method, distribution and behaviour in the environment have been studied. While the method using an anti-coincidence type low background gas flow counter has been principally utilized as the conventional determination method for Tc-99, in recent years other determination methods such as neutron activation analysis and liquid scintillation counting method have also been considered. However, these methods are not effective to determine Tc-99 in environmental samples. because their detection limits are not low enough and measuring times are needed. Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometer (ICP-MS) is a quantitative and qualitative analysis apparatus having superior characteristics such as extremely low detection limit, high resolution, high precision short measurement time and capability for simultaneous multi-elements analysis. This study developed an analysis technique to acquire field data. As the results, several information regarding the distribution and behaviour of Tc-99 in the surface soil environment was obtained. (author)

The applicability of the Centeno, Chaudhary and Lopez repair time standard methodology in a rail maintenance environment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rommelspacher, Karl Otto

2015-11-01

Full Text Available The establishment of labour standards within a production environment has become common practice, and is receiving growing recognition in the maintenance environment. However, the application of labour standards in a transit maintenance organisation has received limited attention. Centeno, Chaudhary and Lopez have developed a repair time standard methodology that has been applied in the transit bus maintenance facilities of three agencies in central Florida in the USA. An investigation into the applicability of this methodology in a rail maintenance environment in South Africa forms the basis for this study.

A study on environment public spending

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wellington Bueno

2013-12-01

Full Text Available This text deals with the importance of studying environment public spending. Initially, we discuss the concept of environment public spending and how it became a public accounting function. Later, an analysis of several studies on the theme was carried out to promote a discussion on the environment public funds allocated by governments. Next, a discussion on the relevance of the theme and the need for further studies is presented, since investments on environment management still need to be better allocated and duly dimensioned. Currently, transparence in public spending has promoted the realization of more studies, leading to a more careful observation of environmental issues by the society, showing that these issues still need more attention from the goverment.

An Overview on Base Real-Time Hard Shadow Techniques in Virtual Environments

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohd Shahrizal Sunar

2012-03-01

Full Text Available Shadows are elegant to create a realistic scene in virtual environments variety type of shadow techniques encourage us to prepare an overview on all base shadow techniques. Non real-time and real-time techniques are big subdivision of shadow generation. In non real-time techniques ray tracing, ray casting and radiosity are well known and are described deeply. Radiosity is implemented to create very realistic shadow on non real-time scene. Although traditional radiosity algorithm is difficult to implement, we have proposed a simple one. The proposed pseudo code is easier to understand and implement. Ray tracing is used to prevent of collision of movement objects. Projection shadow, shadow volume and shadow mapping are used to create real-time shadow in virtual environments. We have used projection shadow for some objects are static and have shadow on flat surface. Shadow volume is used to create accurate shadow with sharp outline. Shadow mapping that is the base of most recently techniques is reconstructed. The reconstruct algorithm gives some new idea to propose another algorithm based on shadow mapping.

Reclaiming Spare Capacity and Improving Aperiodic Response Times in Real-Time Environments

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Liu Xue

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Scheduling recurring task sets that allow some instances of the tasks to be skipped produces holes in the schedule which are nonuniformly distributed. Similarly, when the recurring tasks are not strictly periodic but are sporadic, there is extra processor bandwidth arising because of irregular job arrivals. The additional computation capacity that results from skips or sporadic tasks can be reclaimed to service aperiodic task requests efficiently and quickly. We present techniques for improving the response times of aperiodic tasks by identifying nonuniformly distributed spare capacity—because of skips or sporadic tasks—in the schedule and adding such extra capacity to the capacity queue of a BASH server. These gaps can account for a significant portion of aperiodic capacity, and their reclamation results in considerable improvement to aperiodic response times. We present two schemes: NCLB-CBS, which performs well in periodic real-time environments with firm tasks, and NCLB-CUS, which can be deployed when the basic task set to schedule is sporadic. Evaluation via simulations and implementation suggests that performance improvements for aperiodic tasks can be obtained with limited additional overhead.

Bound on quantum computation time: Quantum error correction in a critical environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Novais, E.; Mucciolo, Eduardo R.; Baranger, Harold U.

2010-01-01

We obtain an upper bound on the time available for quantum computation for a given quantum computer and decohering environment with quantum error correction implemented. First, we derive an explicit quantum evolution operator for the logical qubits and show that it has the same form as that for the physical qubits but with a reduced coupling strength to the environment. Using this evolution operator, we find the trace distance between the real and ideal states of the logical qubits in two cases. For a super-Ohmic bath, the trace distance saturates, while for Ohmic or sub-Ohmic baths, there is a finite time before the trace distance exceeds a value set by the user.

CHIMERA II - A real-time multiprocessing environment for sensor-based robot control

Science.gov (United States)

Stewart, David B.; Schmitz, Donald E.; Khosla, Pradeep K.

1989-01-01

A multiprocessing environment for a wide variety of sensor-based robot system, providing the flexibility, performance, and UNIX-compatible interface needed for fast development of real-time code is addressed. The requirements imposed on the design of a programming environment for sensor-based robotic control is outlined. The details of the current hardware configuration are presented, along with the details of the CHIMERA II software. Emphasis is placed on the kernel, low-level interboard communication, user interface, extended file system, user-definable and dynamically selectable real-time schedulers, remote process synchronization, and generalized interprocess communication. A possible implementation of a hierarchical control model, the NASA/NBS standard reference model for telerobot control system is demonstrated.

Transplant Nurses' Work Environment: A Cross-Sectional Multi-Center Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Kugler, Christiane; Akca, Selda; Einhorn, Ina; Rebafka, Anne; Russell, Cynthia L

2016-09-01

BACKGROUND Numerically, nurses represent the largest healthcare profession, thus setting norms for the quality and safety of direct patient care. Evidence of a global shortage of nurses in all clinical practice settings across different healthcare systems and countries has been documented. The aims of the present study were: (1) to assess work environments in a sample of German transplant nurses, and (2) to compare their statements with a US-based sample. MATERIAL AND METHODS In a cross-sectional study, 181 transplant nurses from 16 German transplant centers provided information on their work environments. The translated version of the Job Design (JD) and Job Satisfaction (JS) survey showed satisfactory internal consistency for the JD (0.78) and JS (0.93) subscales. German nurses' work environments were compared with 331 transplant nurses from the US. RESULTS The majority of transplant nurses were female (81.8%), 55.4% were age 21-40 years, and 78.1% were employed full-time. German (versus US) transplant nurses reported their job design to be best for 'skill varieties' (p≤0.0002), and worst for 'autonomy' (p≤0.01). Job satisfaction was best with 'opportunities for autonomy and growth' (p≤0.0001), and 'pay and benefits' (p≤0.0001) was lowest. A higher professional degree (OR 1.57; p≤0.03; 95% CI 1.19-2.86), and longer time in transplant (OR 1.24; p≤0.001; 95% CI 1.11-1.38) showed a positive impact on German transplant nurses' perceptions of 'job satisfaction'. Nurses with time-dependent working contracts perceived more stress negatively affecting job satisfaction (OR 1.13; p≤0.009; 95% CI 1.02-12.82). CONCLUSIONS German specialty nurses working in the field of solid organ transplantation rate their work environments with respect to job design and job satisfaction as satisfactory. Institutions' investment into satisfactory nurse work environments and specializing nurses might increase the quality of care, thus improving patient outcomes.

Area deprivation and the food environment over time: A repeated cross-sectional study on takeaway outlet density and supermarket presence in Norfolk, UK, 1990-2008.

Science.gov (United States)

Maguire, Eva R; Burgoine, Thomas; Monsivais, Pablo

2015-05-01

Socioeconomic disparities in the food environment are known to exist but with little understanding of change over time. This study investigated the density of takeaway food outlets and presence of supermarkets in Norfolk, UK between 1990 and 2008. Data on food retail outlet locations were collected from telephone directories and aggregated within electoral wards. Supermarket presence was not associated with area deprivation over time. Takeaway food outlet density increased overall, and was significantly higher in more deprived areas at all time points; furthermore, socioeconomic disparities in takeaway food outlet density increased across the study period. These findings add to existing evidence and help assess the need for environmental interventions to reduce disparities in the prevalence of unhealthy food outlets. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Quality Improvement, Inventory Management, Lead Time Reduction and Production Scheduling in High-Mix Manufacturing Environments

Science.gov (United States)

2017-01-13

Quality Improvement , Inventory Management, Lead Time Reduction and Production Scheduling in High-mix Manufacturing Environments by Sean Daigle B.S...Mechanical Engineering Chairman, Department Committee on Graduate Theses 2 Quality Improvement , Inventory Management, Lead Time Reduction and... Production Scheduling in High-mix Manufacturing Environments by Sean Daigle Submitted to the Department of Mechanical Engineering on January 13, 2017, in

Time in a Timeless Environment My Life in a Bunker

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Home; Journals; Resonance – Journal of Science Education; Volume 1; Issue 3. Time in a Timeless Environment My Life in a Bunker. L Geetha. General Article Volume 1 Issue 3 March 1996 pp 66-77. Fulltext. Click here to view fulltext PDF. Permanent link: https://www.ias.ac.in/article/fulltext/reso/001/03/0066-0077 ...

Real-time recording and classification of eye movements in an immersive virtual environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Diaz, Gabriel; Cooper, Joseph; Kit, Dmitry; Hayhoe, Mary

2013-10-10

Despite the growing popularity of virtual reality environments, few laboratories are equipped to investigate eye movements within these environments. This primer is intended to reduce the time and effort required to incorporate eye-tracking equipment into a virtual reality environment. We discuss issues related to the initial startup and provide algorithms necessary for basic analysis. Algorithms are provided for the calculation of gaze angle within a virtual world using a monocular eye-tracker in a three-dimensional environment. In addition, we provide algorithms for the calculation of the angular distance between the gaze and a relevant virtual object and for the identification of fixations, saccades, and pursuit eye movements. Finally, we provide tools that temporally synchronize gaze data and the visual stimulus and enable real-time assembly of a video-based record of the experiment using the Quicktime MOV format, available at http://sourceforge.net/p/utdvrlibraries/. This record contains the visual stimulus, the gaze cursor, and associated numerical data and can be used for data exportation, visual inspection, and validation of calculated gaze movements.

Children's GPS-determined versus self-reported transport in leisure time and associations with parental perceptions of the neighborhood environment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Vanwolleghem, Griet; Schipperijn, Jasper; Gheysen, Freja

2016-01-01

measured transport in leisure time and filled out a diary to assess self-reported transport in leisure time. Parents completed a questionnaire to assess parental perceptions of the neighborhood environment. Pearson correlations and t-tests were used to test for concurrent validity and differences between...... GPS-determined and self-reported transport in leisure time. Generalized linear models were used to determine the associations between the parental perceptions of the neighborhood environment and GPS-determined transport in leisure time. RESULTS: Overall, children under-reported their walking......BACKGROUND: This study aimed to examine both GPS-determined and self-reported walking, cycling and passive transport in leisure time during week- and weekend-days among 10 to 12-year old children. Comparisons between GPS-determined and self-reported transport in leisure time were investigated...

Energy-based method for near-real time modeling of sound field in complex urban environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Pasareanu, Stephanie M; Remillieux, Marcel C; Burdisso, Ricardo A

2012-12-01

Prediction of the sound field in large urban environments has been limited thus far by the heavy computational requirements of conventional numerical methods such as boundary element (BE) or finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) methods. Recently, a considerable amount of work has been devoted to developing energy-based methods for this application, and results have shown the potential to compete with conventional methods. However, these developments have been limited to two-dimensional (2-D) studies (along street axes), and no real description of the phenomena at issue has been exposed. Here the mathematical theory of diffusion is used to predict the sound field in 3-D complex urban environments. A 3-D diffusion equation is implemented by means of a simple finite-difference scheme and applied to two different types of urban configurations. This modeling approach is validated against FDTD and geometrical acoustic (GA) solutions, showing a good overall agreement. The role played by diffraction near buildings edges close to the source is discussed, and suggestions are made on the possibility to predict accurately the sound field in complex urban environments, in near real time simulations.

Relationship between children's physical activity, sedentary behavior, and childcare environments: A cross sectional study

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Michele E. Peden

2017-06-01

This study extends previous research by identifying differences between toddlers and preschooler's physical activity and sedentary behaviors in relation to childcare environments. A greater understanding of how the childcare environment relates to sitting time for both toddlers and preschool aged children is needed.

An Analysis of a Hard Real-Time Execution Environment Extension for FreeRTOS

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STANGACIU, C.

2015-08-01

Full Text Available FreeRTOS is a popular real-time operating system, which has been under a significant attention in the last years due to its main advantages: it is open source, portable, well documented and implemented on more than 30 architectures. FreeRTOS execution environment is dynamic, preemptive and priority based, but it is not suitable for hard real-time tasks, because it provides task execution determinism only to a certain degree and cannot guarantee the absence of task execution jitter. As a solution to this problem, we propose a hard real time execution extension to FreeRTOS in order to support a particular model of HRT tasks, called ModXs, which are executed with no jitter. This article presents a detailed analysis, in terms of scheduling, task execution and memory usage of this hard real time execution environment extension. The article is concluding with the advantages this extension brings to the system compared to the small memory and timing overhead introduced.

Influence of time dependent effects on the disposal environments of low and intermediate level radioactive wastes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1984-12-01

Reviews are presented firstly of potential events and processes which may affect the evolution of the disposal environments of low and intermediate level radioactive wastes in Britain and secondly of previous studies carried out worldwide in the field of time dependent effects. From the latter review available methodologies for incorporating time dependence into radiological assessments are identified. Finally, proposals are presented for the design and development of a time dependent effects model, based on the existing far field state model (FFSM) developed for ONWI in USA. (author)

Design of TIME2 code: time dependent effects on Land 2 type repositories for Department of the Environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1985-07-01

Design details for the proposed TIME2 computer code are presented for the purposes of information, planning and to serve as a guideline during code development. The TIME2 code will describe the long-term evolution of the environments of Land 2 type radioactive waste disposal sites (also known as 'time dependent effects'). Outlines are presented of code purpose and utilisation, specification and structure, input and output design, verification and validation, quality assurance and documentation. (author)

Area deprivation and the food environment over time: A repeated cross-sectional study on takeaway outlet density and supermarket presence in Norfolk, UK, 1990–2008

Science.gov (United States)

Maguire, Eva R.; Burgoine, Thomas; Monsivais, Pablo

2015-01-01

Socioeconomic disparities in the food environment are known to exist but with little understanding of change over time. This study investigated the density of takeaway food outlets and presence of supermarkets in Norfolk, UK between 1990 and 2008. Data on food retail outlet locations were collected from telephone directories and aggregated within electoral wards. Supermarket presence was not associated with area deprivation over time. Takeaway food outlet density increased overall, and was significantly higher in more deprived areas at all time points; furthermore, socioeconomic disparities in takeaway food outlet density increased across the study period. These findings add to existing evidence and help assess the need for environmental interventions to reduce disparities in the prevalence of unhealthy food outlets. PMID:25841285

Study Progress of Physiological Responses in High Temperature Environment

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Li, K.; Zheng, G. Z.; Bu, W. T.; Wang, Y. J.; Lu, Y. Z.

2017-10-01

Certain workers are exposed to high temperatures for a long time. Heat stress will result in a series of physiological responses, and cause adverse effects on the health and safety of workers. This paper summarizes the physiological changes of cardiovascular system, core temperature, skin temperature, water-electrolyte metabolism, alimentary system, neuroendocrine system, reaction time and thermal fatigue in high temperature environments. It can provide a theoretical guidance for labor safety in high temperature environment.

A Modular Environment for Geophysical Inversion and Run-time Autotuning using Heterogeneous Computing Systems

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Myre, Joseph M.

Heterogeneous computing systems have recently come to the forefront of the High-Performance Computing (HPC) community's interest. HPC computer systems that incorporate special purpose accelerators, such as Graphics Processing Units (GPUs), are said to be heterogeneous. Large scale heterogeneous computing systems have consistently ranked highly on the Top500 list since the beginning of the heterogeneous computing trend. By using heterogeneous computing systems that consist of both general purpose processors and special- purpose accelerators, the speed and problem size of many simulations could be dramatically increased. Ultimately this results in enhanced simulation capabilities that allows, in some cases for the first time, the execution of parameter space and uncertainty analyses, model optimizations, and other inverse modeling techniques that are critical for scientific discovery and engineering analysis. However, simplifying the usage and optimization of codes for heterogeneous computing systems remains a challenge. This is particularly true for scientists and engineers for whom understanding HPC architectures and undertaking performance analysis may not be primary research objectives. To enable scientists and engineers to remain focused on their primary research objectives, a modular environment for geophysical inversion and run-time autotuning on heterogeneous computing systems is presented. This environment is composed of three major components: 1) CUSH---a framework for reducing the complexity of programming heterogeneous computer systems, 2) geophysical inversion routines which can be used to characterize physical systems, and 3) run-time autotuning routines designed to determine configurations of heterogeneous computing systems in an attempt to maximize the performance of scientific and engineering codes. Using three case studies, a lattice-Boltzmann method, a non-negative least squares inversion, and a finite-difference fluid flow method, it is shown that

Real-time multimodal sensing in nano/bio environment

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Song, Bo

As a sensing device in nano-scale, scanning probe microscopy (SPM) is a powerful tool for exploring nano world. Nevertheless two fundamental problems tackle the development and application of SPM based imaging and measurement: slow imaging/measurement speed and inaccuracy of motion or position control. Usually, SPM imaging/properties measuring speed is too slow to capture a dynamic observation on sample surface. In addition, Both SPM imaging and properties measurement always experience positioning inaccuracy problems caused by hysteresis and creep of the piezo scanner. This dissertation will try to solve these issues and proposed a SPM based real-time multimodal sensing system which can be used in nano/bio environment. First, a compressive sensing based video rate fast SPM imaging system is shown as an efficient method to dynamically capture the sample surface change with the imaging speed 1.5 frame/s with the scan size of 500 nm * 500 nm. Besides topography imaging, a new additional modal of SPM: vibration mode, will be introduced, and it is developed by us to investigate the subsurface mechanical properties of the elastic sample such as cells and bacteria. A followed up study of enzymatic hydrolysis will demonstrate the ability of in situ observation of single molecule event using video rate SPM. After that we will introduce another modal of this SPM sensing system: accurate electrical properties measurement. In this electrical properties measurement mode, a compressive feedbacks based non-vector space control approach is proposed in order to improve the accuracy of SPM based nanomanipulations. Instead of sensors, the local images are used as both the input and feedback of a non-vector space closed-loop controller. A followed up study will also be introduced to shown the important role of non-vector space control in the study of conductivity distribution of multi-wall carbon nanotubes. At the end of this dissertation, some future work will be also proposed to

Performance analysis of an acoustic time reversal system in dynamic and random oceanic environments

Science.gov (United States)

Khosla, Sunny Rajendra

This dissertation provides a theoretical framework along with specific performance predictions for an acoustic time reversal system in shallow oceanic environments. Acoustic time-reversal is a robust means of retrofocusing acoustic energy, in both time and space, to the original sound-source location without any information about the acoustic environment in which it is deployed. The effect of three performance limiting oceanic complexities addressed, include (i)ambient noise field, (ii)reflection and volume scattering from a deterministic soliton internal wave traveling on the thermocline between two water masses, and (iii)volume scattering from a random superposition of linear internal waves convecting a gradient in the sound speed profile. The performance analysis establishes acoustic time reversal to be a promising technology for a two-way communication system in an oceanic medium. For an omni-directional noisy environment a general formulation for the probability of retrofocusing is developed that includes the effect of the medium, accounts for the system hardware and the acoustic parameters. Monte-Carlo simulations in both, a free-space environment and a shallow-ocean sound-channel environment compare well with theory. A 41 element TRA spanning a shallow water depth of 60 m is predicted to return a 70% focal probability at -15 dB SNR for a source to array range of 6 km. Preliminary research with broadband signals suggest that they should outperform narrowband response in both free space and sound channel environments. The impact of the nonlinear solitary waves is addressed using a two-path Green's function to treat the presence of a flat thermocline, and the single scattering Born approximation to address scattering from the soliton internal wave. It is predicted that a stationary soliton located along ray turning paths between the source and the TRA can lead to both enhanced and degraded focal performance. Based on extension of previous research in wave

Study of Development for RFID System to Hospital Environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Hong, Seung Kwon; Sung, Myung-Whun

2015-01-01

RFID/USN develops information systems for anytime, anywhere to anybody access Electronic Medical Records (EMR). The goal of the present study is to develop a RFID/USN-based information system for the hospital environment. First, unable to recognize, second, able to recognize as a pursuit of place and suppose the time of medical examination. A retrospective analysis of 235 RFID monitoring results, from four ENT ambulatory clinics of Seoul National University Hospital were extracted by a reader program and monitoring of RFID tag (2006.11.16~2006.12.16). RFID detection for sensing reader of this study has been put into representing "place" and "spending time" of patients for medical history taking and examination. Through the RFID of detection for specific place and spending time of medical examination, RFID/USN develops information system progressing in the EMR of hospital system.

Time-Dependent Effects of Acute Exercise on University Students’ Cognitive Performance in Temperate and Cold Environments

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Ling-Yu Ji

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Background: Few studies have examined the acute exercise-induced changes in cognitive performance in different thermal environments and the time course effects.Objective: Investigate the time-dependent effects of acute exercise on university students’ processing speed, working memory and cognitive flexibility in temperate and cold environments.Method: Twenty male university students (age 23.5 ± 2.0 years with moderate physical activity level participated in a repeated-measures within-subjects design. Processing speed, working memory and cognitive flexibility were assessed using CogState test battery at baseline (BASE, followed by a 45-min rest (REST, immediately after (EX and 30 min after (POST-EX 30-min moderate-intensity treadmill running in both temperate (TEMP; 25°C and cold (COLD; 10°C environments. Mean skin temperature (MST and thermal sensation (TS were also recorded. Two-way repeated measures ANOVA was performed to analyze each variable. Spearman’s rho was used to identify the correlations between MST, TS and cognitive performance.Results: Reaction time (RT of processing speed and working memory decreased immediately after exercise in both conditions (processing speed: p = 0.003; working memory: p = 0.007. The facilitating effects on processing speed disappeared within 30 min after exercise in TEMP (p = 0.163 and COLD (p = 0.667, while improvements on working memory remained 30 min after exercise in TEMP (p = 0.047, but not in COLD (p = 0.663. Though RT of cognitive flexibility reduced in both conditions (p = 0.003, no significance was found between EX and REST (p = 0.135. Increased MST and TS were significantly associated with reductions in processing speed RT (MST: r = -0.341, p < 0.001; TS: r = -0.262, p = 0.001 and working memory RT (MST: r = -0.282, p < 0.001; TS: r = -0.2229, p = 0.005, and improvements in working memory accuracy (MST: r = 0.249, p = 0.002; TS: r = 0.255, p = 0.001.Conclusion: The results demonstrate

Time Delay Estimation in Room Acoustic Environments: An Overview

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Benesty Jacob

2006-01-01

Full Text Available Time delay estimation has been a research topic of significant practical importance in many fields (radar, sonar, seismology, geophysics, ultrasonics, hands-free communications, etc.. It is a first stage that feeds into subsequent processing blocks for identifying, localizing, and tracking radiating sources. This area has made remarkable advances in the past few decades, and is continuing to progress, with an aim to create processors that are tolerant to both noise and reverberation. This paper presents a systematic overview of the state-of-the-art of time-delay-estimation algorithms ranging from the simple cross-correlation method to the advanced blind channel identification based techniques. We discuss the pros and cons of each individual algorithm, and outline their inherent relationships. We also provide experimental results to illustrate their performance differences in room acoustic environments where reverberation and noise are commonly encountered.

Final Report: 03-LW-005 Space-Time Secure Communications for Hostile Environments

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Candy, J V; Poggio, A J; Chambers, D H; Guidry, B L; Robbins, C L; Hertzog, C A; Dowla, F; Burke, G; Kane, R

2005-10-31

The development of communications for highly reverberative environments is a major concern for both the private and military sectors whether the application is aimed at the securing a stock order or stalking hostile in a tunnel or cave. Other such environments can range from a hostile urban setting populated with a multitude of buildings and vehicles to the simple complexity of a large number of sound sources that are common in the stock exchange, or military operations in an environment with a topographic features hills, valleys, mountains or even a maze of buried water pipes attempting to transmit information about any chemical anomalies in the water system servicing a city or town. These inherent obstructions cause transmitted signals to reflect, refract and disperse in a multitude of directions distorting both their shape and arrival times at network receiver locations. Imagine troops attempting to communicate on missions in underground caves consisting of a maze of chambers causing multiple echoes with the platoon leader trying to issue timely commands to neutralize terrorists. This is the problem with transmitting information in a complex environment. Waves are susceptible to multiple paths and distortions created by a variety of possible obstructions, which may exist in the particular propagation medium. This is precisely the communications problem we solve using the physics of wave propagation to not only mitigate the noxious effects created by the hostile medium, but also to utilize it in a constructive manner enabling a huge benefit in communications. We employ time-reversal (T/R) communications to accomplish this task. This project is concerned with the development of secure communications techniques that can operate even in the most extreme conditions while maintaining a secure link between host and client stations. We developed an approach based on the concept of time-reversal (T/R) signal processing. In fact, the development of T/R communication

Nurses' Work Environment and Spirituality: A Descriptive Study

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Zastrow Patricia

2009-01-01

Full Text Available Quality of care is a major health concern in the hospital setting. A work environment thatsupports professional nursing as well as the spirituality of nurses, or the meaning/purpose nurses find intheir work may contribute to quality of patient care. Yet, little is known about the nursing workenvironment and even less about the spirituality of nurses. Thus, the aims of this study were to measuremedical-surgical nurses’ perceived professional work environment score and perceived spiritual well-beingscore and determine if the two instruments are related. This cross-sectional survey consisted of aconvenience sample of 68 nurses who completed the Professional Practice Environment Scale (PPE andSpiritual Well-Being Scale (SWB on the hospital website during working hours. Several PPE subscalescores differed significantly among the various clinical units. As the nurse’s age, and years of clinicalexperience increased, specific PPE subscale scores also increased. The nurses’ mean SWB scores were allwithin the moderate range and did not differ significantly among the clinical units. The overall PPE andSWB scores were not significantly correlated. Nursing administrators can use the PPE scores from thisstudy to address the specific needs of individual clinical units. Older and more experienced nurses mayserve as resources for younger, less experienced nurses. Both instruments can be administered repeatedlyover time to monitor trends. Based on the SWB data, nurses in this study reported average levels ofspiritual well-being. However, there is a need to learn more about the specific spiritual needs of nurses.Spirituality of nurses as well as the nurse’s work environment are separate concepts that each merit furtherinvestigation and may add to the knowledge base for increased quality patient care.

Real-time modeling of primitive environments through wavelet sensors and Hebbian learning

Science.gov (United States)

Vaccaro, James M.; Yaworsky, Paul S.

1999-06-01

Modeling the world through sensory input necessarily provides a unique perspective for the observer. Given a limited perspective, objects and events cannot always be encoded precisely but must involve crude, quick approximations to deal with sensory information in a real- time manner. As an example, when avoiding an oncoming car, a pedestrian needs to identify the fact that a car is approaching before ascertaining the model or color of the vehicle. In our methodology, we use wavelet-based sensors with self-organized learning to encode basic sensory information in real-time. The wavelet-based sensors provide necessary transformations while a rank-based Hebbian learning scheme encodes a self-organized environment through translation, scale and orientation invariant sensors. Such a self-organized environment is made possible by combining wavelet sets which are orthonormal, log-scale with linear orientation and have automatically generated membership functions. In earlier work we used Gabor wavelet filters, rank-based Hebbian learning and an exponential modulation function to encode textural information from images. Many different types of modulation are possible, but based on biological findings the exponential modulation function provided a good approximation of first spike coding of `integrate and fire' neurons. These types of Hebbian encoding schemes (e.g., exponential modulation, etc.) are useful for quick response and learning, provide several advantages over contemporary neural network learning approaches, and have been found to quantize data nonlinearly. By combining wavelets with Hebbian learning we can provide a real-time front-end for modeling an intelligent process, such as the autonomous control of agents in a simulated environment.

Cycle time reduction using lean six sigma in make-to-order (MTO) environment: Conceptual framework

Science.gov (United States)

Man, Siti Mariam; Zain, Zakiyah; Nawawi, Mohd Kamal Mohd

2015-12-01

This paper outlines the framework for application of lean six sigma (LSS) methodology to improve semiconductor assembly cycle time in a make-to-order (MTO) business environment. The cycle time reduction is the prime objective in the context of an overall productivity improvement particularly in the MTO environment. The interaction of the production rate and cycle time is described, while the emphasis is on Define-Measure-Analyze-Improve-Control (DMAIC) and Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) activities. A framework for the conceptual understanding is provided along with practical implementation issues. A relevant measure for the degree of flexibility (DOF) in the context of quick setup is also discussed.

Real-Time Observation of Apathy in Long-Term Care Residents With Dementia: Reliability of the Person-Environment Apathy Rating Scale.

Science.gov (United States)

Jao, Ying-Ling; Mogle, Jacqueline; Williams, Kristine; McDermott, Caroline; Behrens, Liza

2018-04-01

Apathy is prevalent in individuals with dementia. Lack of responsiveness to environmental stimulation is a key characteristic of apathy. The Person-Environment Apathy Rating (PEAR) scale consists of environment and apathy subscales, which allow for examination of environmental impact on apathy. The interrater reliability of the PEAR scale was examined via real-time observation. The current study included 45 observations of 15 long-term care residents with dementia. Each participant was observed at three time points for 10 minutes each. Two raters observed the participant and surrounding environment and independently rated the participant's apathy and environmental stimulation using the PEAR scale. Weighted Kappa was 0.5 to 0.82 for the PEAR-Environment subscale and 0.5 to 0.8 for the PEAR-Apathy subscale. Overall, with the exception of three items with relatively weak reliability (0.50 to 0.56), the PEAR scale showed moderate to strong interrater reliability (0.63 to 0.82). The results support the use of the PEAR scale to measure environmental stimulation and apathy via real-time observation in long-term care residents with dementia. [Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 44(4), 23-28.]. Copyright 2018, SLACK Incorporated.

Population extinction under bursty reproduction in a time-modulated environment

Science.gov (United States)

Vilk, Ohad; Assaf, Michael

2018-06-01

In recent years nondemographic variability has been shown to greatly affect dynamics of stochastic populations. For example, nondemographic noise in the form of a bursty reproduction process with an a priori unknown burst size, or environmental variability in the form of time-varying reaction rates, have been separately found to dramatically impact the extinction risk of isolated populations. In this work we investigate the extinction risk of an isolated population under the combined influence of these two types of nondemographic variation. Using the so-called momentum-space Wentzel-Kramers-Brillouin (WKB) approach and accounting for the explicit time dependence in the reaction rates, we arrive at a set of time-dependent Hamilton equations. To this end, we evaluate the population's extinction risk by finding the instanton of the time-perturbed Hamiltonian numerically, whereas analytical expressions are presented in particular limits using various perturbation techniques. We focus on two classes of time-varying environments: periodically varying rates corresponding to seasonal effects and a sudden decrease in the birth rate corresponding to a catastrophe. All our theoretical results are tested against numerical Monte Carlo simulations with time-dependent rates and also against a numerical solution of the corresponding time-dependent Hamilton equations.

Environmental confounding in gene-environment interaction studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Vanderweele, Tyler J; Ko, Yi-An; Mukherjee, Bhramar

2013-07-01

We show that, in the presence of uncontrolled environmental confounding, joint tests for the presence of a main genetic effect and gene-environment interaction will be biased if the genetic and environmental factors are correlated, even if there is no effect of either the genetic factor or the environmental factor on the disease. When environmental confounding is ignored, such tests will in fact reject the joint null of no genetic effect with a probability that tends to 1 as the sample size increases. This problem with the joint test vanishes under gene-environment independence, but it still persists if estimating the gene-environment interaction parameter itself is of interest. Uncontrolled environmental confounding will bias estimates of gene-environment interaction parameters even under gene-environment independence, but it will not do so if the unmeasured confounding variable itself does not interact with the genetic factor. Under gene-environment independence, if the interaction parameter without controlling for the environmental confounder is nonzero, then there is gene-environment interaction either between the genetic factor and the environmental factor of interest or between the genetic factor and the unmeasured environmental confounder. We evaluate several recently proposed joint tests in a simulation study and discuss the implications of these results for the conduct of gene-environment interaction studies.

An Integrated Real-Time Beamforming and Postfiltering System for Nonstationary Noise Environments

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Gannot Sharon

2003-01-01

Full Text Available We present a novel approach for real-time multichannel speech enhancement in environments of nonstationary noise and time-varying acoustical transfer functions (ATFs. The proposed system integrates adaptive beamforming, ATF identification, soft signal detection, and multichannel postfiltering. The noise canceller branch of the beamformer and the ATF identification are adaptively updated online, based on hypothesis test results. The noise canceller is updated only during stationary noise frames, and the ATF identification is carried out only when desired source components have been detected. The hypothesis testing is based on the nonstationarity of the signals and the transient power ratio between the beamformer primary output and its reference noise signals. Following the beamforming and the hypothesis testing, estimates for the signal presence probability and for the noise power spectral density are derived. Subsequently, an optimal spectral gain function that minimizes the mean square error of the log-spectral amplitude (LSA is applied. Experimental results demonstrate the usefulness of the proposed system in nonstationary noise environments.

Real-time threat evaluation in a ground based air defence environment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

JN Roux

2008-06-01

Full Text Available In a military environment a ground based air defence operator is required to evaluate the tactical situation in real-time and protect Defended Assets (DAs on the ground against aerial threats by assigning available Weapon Systems (WSs to engage enemy aircraft. Since this aerial environment requires rapid operational planning and decision making in stress situations, the associated responsibilities are typically divided between a number of operators and computerized systems that aid these operators during the decision making processes. One such a Decision Support System (DSS, a threat evaluation and weapon assignment system, assigns threat values to aircraft (with respect to DAs in real-time and uses these values to propose possible engagements of observed enemy aircraft by anti-aircraft WSs. In this paper a design of the threat evaluation part of such a DSS is put forward. The design follows the structured approach suggested in [Roux JN & van Vuuren JH, 2007, Threat evaluation and weapon assignment decision support: A review of the state of the art, ORiON, 23(2, pp. 151-187], phasing in a suite of increasingly complex qualitative and quantitative model components as more (reliable data become available.

Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) Instantiation within a Hard Real-Time, Deterministic Combat System Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Moreland, James D., Jr

2013-01-01

This research investigates the instantiation of a Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) within a hard real-time (stringent time constraints), deterministic (maximum predictability) combat system (CS) environment. There are numerous stakeholders across the U.S. Department of the Navy who are affected by this development, and therefore the system…

Towards use of Dijkstra Algorithm for Optimal Navigation of an Unmanned Surface Vehicle in a Real-Time Marine Environment with results from Artificial Potential Field

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yogang Singh

2018-03-01

Full Text Available The growing need of ocean surveying and exploration for scientific and industrial application has led to the requirement of routing strategies for ocean vehicles which are optimal in nature. Most of the op-timal path planning for marine vehicles had been conducted offline in a self-made environment. This paper takes into account a practical marine environment, i.e. Portsmouth Harbour, for finding an optimal path in terms of computational time between source and end points on a real time map for an USV. The current study makes use of a grid map generated from original and uses a Dijkstra algorithm to find the shortest path for a single USV. In order to benchmark the study, a path planning study using a well-known local path planning method artificial path planning (APF has been conducted in a real time marine environment and effectiveness is measured in terms of path length and computational time.

Tests over time: Evaluating the currency of normative data in a complex multilingual environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Brebner, Chris; Chandler Yeo, Helen; Goh, Magdeline Meilin; Kam, Karryn Wanlin; Yeo, Wendy Su Fen

2015-04-23

Assessment of oral language skills is challenging in multilingual environments. With language policies promoting increased use of English and reduction of dialectal varieties of languages, rapid changes in language further confound assessment. This study explores the currency of normative data on an expressive language screening tool in English for English-Mandarin bilingual Singaporean children. Spoken language samples in English from 101 pre-school children were compared with those from 481 children in the original data collection in 2002. Scores for expressive vocabulary and morphosyntax were compared for the two main language groups. Results indicate that the normative data for English-dominant children are still current. The data for younger Mandarin-dominant children showed improved test scores, indicating improvement in expressive morphosyntax in English. English language competency has changed over time for Mandarin-dominant children in Singapore, likely due to the influence of language policy on language use. This is a particular challenge in multilingual environments. Current literature emphasizes the need to develop language assessments specific to populations and language groups for standardized assessments to be valid and reliable. These results demonstrate the need to monitor normative data and characteristics of language over time and to update standardized language assessments accordingly.

Integrated model for pricing, delivery time setting, and scheduling in make-to-order environments

Science.gov (United States)

Garmdare, Hamid Sattari; Lotfi, M. M.; Honarvar, Mahboobeh

2018-03-01

Usually, in make-to-order environments which work only in response to the customer's orders, manufacturers for maximizing the profits should offer the best price and delivery time for an order considering the existing capacity and the customer's sensitivity to both the factors. In this paper, an integrated approach for pricing, delivery time setting and scheduling of new arrival orders are proposed based on the existing capacity and accepted orders in system. In the problem, the acquired market demands dependent on the price and delivery time of both the manufacturer and its competitors. A mixed-integer non-linear programming model is presented for the problem. After converting to a pure non-linear model, it is validated through a case study. The efficiency of proposed model is confirmed by comparing it to both the literature and the current practice. Finally, sensitivity analysis for the key parameters is carried out.

Dependence of Rn adsorption rate and effective half-life time on diffusion barrier type and moving air environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arafa, Wafaa; Badran, Heba

2005-01-01

The variation of the adsorbed radon rate during the exposure time using charcoal canister was studied applying moving air environment inside the radon chamber and compared to the static air measurements. The air movement increases the accumulation time leading to more accurate results. Different types of membrane have been tested as diffusion barrier for activated charcoal canisters. The Makrofol and aluminized polycarbonate improve the adsorption/desorption rate more than the polyehylene membrane. The measured effective half-life time showed a remarkable correlation with the previously measured permeability constant for corresponding membranes. Different types of commercially available charcoal were investigated to develop a local version of charcoal canister for radon measurements. Applying static and moving air environments, the break point and radon collection efficiency were determined at different temperatures. Both of the temperature and air movement accelerate the appearance of the break point. Th efficiency of the locally developed charcoal is 87% and 84.5% of that Calgon PCB charcoal used by EPA. (author)

Time-dependent bridging and life prediction of SiC/SiC in a hypothetical fusion environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Henager, C.H. Jr.; Lewinsohn, C.A.; Windisch, C.F. Jr.; Jones, R.H.

1996-01-01

Growth of subcritical cracks in SiC/SiC composites of CG-Nicalon fibers with a ∼1 μm C-interphase has been measured on a related Basic Energy Sciences program using environments of purified argon and mixtures of argon and oxygen at 1073K to 1373K. Companion thermo-gravimetric (TGA) testing measured mass loss in identical environments. The TGA mass loss was from C-interphase oxidation to CO and CO 2 , which was undetectable in argon and linear with oxygen concentration in argon-oxygen mixtures, and was converted into an interphase linear recession rate. Crack growth in pure argon indicated that fiber creep was causing time-dependent crack bridging to occur, while crack growth in argon-oxygen mixtures indicated that time-dependent C-interphase recession was also causing time-dependent bridging with different kinetics. A model of time-dependent bridging was used to compute crack growth rates in argon and in argon-oxygen mixtures and gave an estimate of useable life of about 230 days at 1073K in a He + 1.01 Pa O 2 (10 ppm) environment

Characterizing the Severe Turbulence Environments Associated With Commercial Aviation Accidents: A Real-Time Turbulence Model (RTTM) Designed for the Operational Prediction of Hazardous Aviation Turbulence Environments

Science.gov (United States)

Kaplan, Michael L.; Lux, Kevin M.; Cetola, Jeffrey D.; Huffman, Allan W.; Riordan, Allen J.; Slusser, Sarah W.; Lin, Yuh-Lang; Charney, Joseph J.; Waight, Kenneth T.

2004-01-01

Real-time prediction of environments predisposed to producing moderate-severe aviation turbulence is studied. We describe the numerical model and its postprocessing system designed for said prediction of environments predisposed to severe aviation turbulence as well as presenting numerous examples of its utility. The numerical model is MASS version 5.13, which is integrated over three different grid matrices in real time on a university work station in support of NASA Langley Research Center s B-757 turbulence research flight missions. The postprocessing system includes several turbulence-related products, including four turbulence forecasting indices, winds, streamlines, turbulence kinetic energy, and Richardson numbers. Additionally, there are convective products including precipitation, cloud height, cloud mass fluxes, lifted index, and K-index. Furthermore, soundings, sounding parameters, and Froude number plots are also provided. The horizontal cross-section plot products are provided from 16 000 to 46 000 ft in 2000-ft intervals. Products are available every 3 hours at the 60- and 30-km grid interval and every 1.5 hours at the 15-km grid interval. The model is initialized from the NWS ETA analyses and integrated two times a day.

Part-Time and Full-Time Faculty Conceptualizations of Academic Community: A Case Study

Science.gov (United States)

Sam, Cecile H.

2012-01-01

The poor work environment for part-time faculty in higher education is a topic that has been receiving more attention as the professoriate moves away from full-time tenure-track positions. In community colleges, the use of part-time faculty is even more prevalent. However, there are institutions that have been trying to create better work…

Supporting Multiprocessors in the Icecap Safety-Critical Java Run-Time Environment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Zhao, Shuai; Wellings, Andy; Korsholm, Stephan Erbs

The current version of the Safety Critical Java (SCJ) specification defines three compliance levels. Level 0 targets single processor programs while Level 1 and 2 can support multiprocessor platforms. Level 1 programs must be fully partitioned but Level 2 programs can also be more globally...... scheduled. As of yet, there is no official Reference Implementation for SCJ. However, the icecap project has produced a Safety-Critical Java Run-time Environment based on the Hardware-near Virtual Machine (HVM). This supports SCJ at all compliance levels and provides an implementation of the safety......-critical Java (javax.safetycritical) package. This is still work-in-progress and lacks certain key features. Among these is the ability to support multiprocessor platforms. In this paper, we explore two possible options to adding multiprocessor support to this environment: the “green thread” and the “native...

Influence of Working Environment on Fatigue Life Time Duration for Runner Blades of Kaplan Turbines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ana-Maria Budai

2010-10-01

Full Text Available The paper present an analytical analyzes refer to influence of working environment on life time duration in service of runner blades of Kaplan turbines. The study are made using only analytical method, the entry dates being obtained from measurements made in situ for a Kaplan turbine. To calculate the maximum number of stress cycles whereupon the runner blades work without any damage it was used an analytical relation known in specialized literatures under the name of Morrow’s relation. To estimate fatigue life time duration will be used a formula obtained from one of most common cumulative damage methodology taking in consideration the real exploitation conditions of a specified Kaplan turbine.

Collective Odor Source Estimation and Search in Time-Variant Airflow Environments Using Mobile Robots

Science.gov (United States)

Meng, Qing-Hao; Yang, Wei-Xing; Wang, Yang; Zeng, Ming

2011-01-01

This paper addresses the collective odor source localization (OSL) problem in a time-varying airflow environment using mobile robots. A novel OSL methodology which combines odor-source probability estimation and multiple robots’ search is proposed. The estimation phase consists of two steps: firstly, the separate probability-distribution map of odor source is estimated via Bayesian rules and fuzzy inference based on a single robot’s detection events; secondly, the separate maps estimated by different robots at different times are fused into a combined map by way of distance based superposition. The multi-robot search behaviors are coordinated via a particle swarm optimization algorithm, where the estimated odor-source probability distribution is used to express the fitness functions. In the process of OSL, the estimation phase provides the prior knowledge for the searching while the searching verifies the estimation results, and both phases are implemented iteratively. The results of simulations for large-scale advection–diffusion plume environments and experiments using real robots in an indoor airflow environment validate the feasibility and robustness of the proposed OSL method. PMID:22346650

Secure environment for real-time tele-collaboration on virtual simulation of radiation treatment planning.

Science.gov (United States)

Ntasis, Efthymios; Maniatis, Theofanis A; Nikita, Konstantina S

2003-01-01

A secure framework is described for real-time tele-collaboration on Virtual Simulation procedure of Radiation Treatment Planning. An integrated approach is followed clustering the security issues faced by the system into organizational issues, security issues over the LAN and security issues over the LAN-to-LAN connection. The design and the implementation of the security services are performed according to the identified security requirements, along with the need for real time communication between the collaborating health care professionals. A detailed description of the implementation is given, presenting a solution, which can directly be tailored to other tele-collaboration services in the field of health care. The pilot study of the proposed security components proves the feasibility of the secure environment, and the consistency with the high performance demands of the application.

Faulting and groundwater in a desert environment: constraining hydrogeology using time-domain electromagnetic data

Science.gov (United States)

Bedrosian, Paul A.; Burgess, Matthew K.; Nishikawa, Tracy

2013-01-01

Within the south-western Mojave Desert, the Joshua Basin Water District is considering applying imported water into infiltration ponds in the Joshua Tree groundwater sub-basin in an attempt to artificially recharge the underlying aquifer. Scarce subsurface hydrogeological data are available near the proposed recharge site; therefore, time-domain electromagnetic (TDEM) data were collected and analysed to characterize the subsurface. TDEM soundings were acquired to estimate the depth to water on either side of the Pinto Mountain Fault, a major east-west trending strike-slip fault that transects the proposed recharge site. While TDEM is a standard technique for groundwater investigations, special care must be taken when acquiring and interpreting TDEM data in a twodimensional (2D) faulted environment. A subset of the TDEM data consistent with a layered-earth interpretation was identified through a combination of three-dimensional (3D) forward modelling and diffusion time-distance estimates. Inverse modelling indicates an offset in water table elevation of nearly 40 m across the fault. These findings imply that the fault acts as a low-permeability barrier to groundwater flow in the vicinity of the proposed recharge site. Existing production wells on the south side of the fault, together with a thick unsaturated zone and permeable near-surface deposits, suggest the southern half of the study area is suitable for artificial recharge. These results illustrate the effectiveness of targeted TDEM in support of hydrological studies in a heavily faulted desert environment where data are scarce and the cost of obtaining these data by conventional drilling techniques is prohibitive.

Associations between the Objectively Measured Office Environment and Workplace Step Count and Sitting Time: Cross-Sectional Analyses from the Active Buildings Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Fisher, Abi; Ucci, Marcella; Smith, Lee; Sawyer, Alexia; Spinney, Richard; Konstantatou, Marina; Marmot, Alexi

2018-06-01

Office-based workers spend a large proportion of the day sitting and tend to have low overall activity levels. Despite some evidence that features of the external physical environment are associated with physical activity, little is known about the influence of the spatial layout of the internal environment on movement, and the majority of data use self-report. This study investigated associations between objectively-measured sitting time and activity levels and the spatial layout of office floors in a sample of UK office-based workers. Participants wore activPAL accelerometers for at least three consecutive workdays. Primary outcomes were steps and proportion of sitting time per working hour. Primary exposures were office spatial layout, which was objectively-measured by deriving key spatial variables: 'distance from each workstation to key office destinations', 'distance from participant's workstation to all other workstations', 'visibility of co-workers', and workstation 'closeness'. 131 participants from 10 organisations were included. Fifty-four per cent were female, 81% were white, and the majority had a managerial or professional role (72%) in their organisation. The average proportion of the working hour spent sitting was 0.7 (SD 0.15); participants took on average 444 (SD 210) steps per working hour. Models adjusted for confounders revealed significant negative associations between step count and distance from each workstation to all other office destinations (e.g., B = -4.66, 95% CI: -8.12, -1.12, p office destinations (e.g., B = -6.45, 95% CI: -11.88, -0.41, p office destinations the less they walked, suggesting that changing the relative distance between workstations and other destinations on the same floor may not be the most fruitful target for promoting walking and reducing sitting in the workplace. However, reported effect sizes were very small and based on cross-sectional analyses. The approaches developed in this study could be applied to other

Understanding Children's Sedentary Behaviour: A Qualitative Study of the Family Home Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Granich, Joanna; Rosenberg, Michael; Knuiman, Matthew; Timperio, Anna

2010-01-01

Electronic media (EM) (television, electronic games and computer) use has been associated with overweight and obesity among children. Little is known about the time spent in sedentary behaviour (SB) among children within the family context. The aim of this study was to explore how the family home environment may influence children's…

Time-dependent bridging and life prediction of SiC/SiC in a hypothetical fusion environment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Henager, C.H. Jr.; Lewinsohn, C.A.; Windisch, C.F. Jr.; Jones, R.H. [Pacific Northwest National Lab., Richland, WA (United States)

1996-10-01

Growth of subcritical cracks in SiC/SiC composites of CG-Nicalon fibers with a {approximately}1 {mu}m C-interphase has been measured on a related Basic Energy Sciences program using environments of purified argon and mixtures of argon and oxygen at 1073K to 1373K. Companion thermo-gravimetric (TGA) testing measured mass loss in identical environments. The TGA mass loss was from C-interphase oxidation to CO and CO{sub 2}, which was undetectable in argon and linear with oxygen concentration in argon-oxygen mixtures, and was converted into an interphase linear recession rate. Crack growth in pure argon indicated that fiber creep was causing time-dependent crack bridging to occur, while crack growth in argon-oxygen mixtures indicated that time-dependent C-interphase recession was also causing time-dependent bridging with different kinetics. A model of time-dependent bridging was used to compute crack growth rates in argon and in argon-oxygen mixtures and gave an estimate of useable life of about 230 days at 1073K in a He + 1.01 Pa O{sub 2} (10 ppm) environment.

Studying time of flight imaging through scattering media across multiple size scales (Conference Presentation)

Science.gov (United States)

Velten, Andreas

2017-05-01

Light scattering is a primary obstacle to optical imaging in a variety of different environments and across many size and time scales. Scattering complicates imaging on large scales when imaging through the atmosphere when imaging from airborne or space borne platforms, through marine fog, or through fog and dust in vehicle navigation, for example in self driving cars. On smaller scales, scattering is the major obstacle when imaging through human tissue in biomedical applications. Despite the large variety of participating materials and size scales, light transport in all these environments is usually described with very similar scattering models that are defined by the same small set of parameters, including scattering and absorption length and phase function. We attempt a study of scattering and methods of imaging through scattering across different scales and media, particularly with respect to the use of time of flight information. We can show that using time of flight, in addition to spatial information, provides distinct advantages in scattering environments. By performing a comparative study of scattering across scales and media, we are able to suggest scale models for scattering environments to aid lab research. We also can transfer knowledge and methodology between different fields.

How successful are mutants in multiplayer games with fluctuating environments? Sojourn times, fixation and optimal switching

Science.gov (United States)

Baron, Joseph W.; Galla, Tobias

2018-03-01

Using a stochastic model, we investigate the probability of fixation, and the average time taken to achieve fixation, of a mutant in a population of wild-types. We do this in a context where the environment in which the competition takes place is subject to stochastic change. Our model takes into account interactions which can involve multiple participants. That is, the participants take part in multiplayer games. We find that under certain circumstances, there are environmental switching dynamics which minimize the time that it takes for the mutants to fixate. To analyse the dynamics more closely, we develop a method by which to calculate the sojourn times for general birth-death processes in fluctuating environments.

Spice and time evolution of bio indicators and issues on pure environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Loktionov, A.A.; Polyakov, A.I.

1999-01-01

The pure environment and high-quality sound goods of all kinds of productive activity is an issue of a big concern for the developed countries at present time. Using the soft processes and sound products is a global ecological goal, since they contaminate the environment less and provide for excellent living conditions and high economic efficiency. Analysis of biological indicators evolution in a certain process, in terms of modern physics of nonequilibrium systems [1], reveals for new methods to settle urgent issues on pure environment and sound products.When analyzing evolution of a certain indicator, in terms of molecular ecology [2], it is necessary to take into account the fact that there are two types of variability - modification and genotype. For the modification variability (MV), a genetic material is homogeneous, and all changes are explained by variations of the environmental conditions, which may possesses an adaptive nature. For the genotype variability, the nature or attribute of an organism possesses a stick-slip changing because of its cell genetic nature transformation - mutation - and is inherited along the generations

Space environment studies for the SZ-4 spacecraft

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ye Zonghai

2004-01-01

The space environment, especially the solar-terrestrial space environment, has close bearings on mankind's astronautical activities. An overview is presented of the space environment and safeguard services on the 'SZ' series of spacecraft, with special reference to the SZ-4 spacecraft. These include monitoring of the space environment on SZ-4, studies on its distribution, variation and effects on astronautical performance, as well as space environment forecasts for safe launching, normal operation and safe return of SZ-4. Current progress both in China and overseas is covered

Time evolution of artificial plasma cloud in atmospheric environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lu Qiming; Yang Weihong; Liu Wandong

2004-01-01

By analyzing the time evolution of artificial plasma cloud in the high altitude of atmospheric environment, the authors found that there are two zones, an exponential attenuation zone and a linearly attenuating zone, existing in the spatial distribution of electron density of the artificial plasma clouds. The plasma generator's particle flux density only contributes to the exponential attenuation zone, and has no effect on the linear attenuation zone. The average electron density in the linear attenuation zone is about 10 -5 of neutral particle density, and can diffuse over a wider area. The conclusion will supply some valuable references to the research of electromagnetic wave and artificial plasma interaction, the plasma invisibleness research of missile and special aerocraft, and the design of artificial plasma source. (authors)

Clinical Digital Libraries Project: design approach and exploratory assessment of timely use in clinical environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Maccall, Steven L

2006-04-01

The paper describes and evaluates the use of Clinical Digital Libraries Project (CDLP) digital library collections in terms of their facilitation of timely clinical information seeking. A convenience sample of CDLP Web server log activity over a twelve-month period (7/2002 to 6/2003) was analyzed for evidence of timely information seeking after users were referred to digital library clinical topic pages from Web search engines. Sample searches were limited to those originating from medical schools (26% North American and 19% non-North American) and from hospitals or clinics (51% North American and 4% non-North American). Timeliness was determined based on a calculation of the difference between the timestamps of the first and last Web server log "hit" during each search in the sample. The calculated differences were mapped into one of three ranges: less than one minute, one to three minutes, and three to five minutes. Of the 864 searches analyzed, 48% were less than 1 minute, 41% were 1 to 3 minutes, and 11% were 3 to 5 minutes. These results were further analyzed by environment (medical schools versus hospitals or clinics) and by geographic location (North America versus non-North American). Searches reflected a consistent pattern of less than 1 minute in these environments. Though the results were not consistent on a month-by-month basis over the entire time period, data for 8 of 12 months showed that searches shorter than 1 minute predominated and data for 1 month showed an equal number of less than 1 minute and 1 to 3 minute searches. The CDLP digital library collections provided timely access to high-quality Web clinical resources when used for information seeking in medical education and hospital or clinic environments from North American and non-North American locations and consistently provided access to the sought information within the documented two-minute standard. The limitations of the use of Web server data warrant an exploratory assessment. This

Nursing students' perceptions of factors influencing their learning environment in a clinical skills laboratory: A qualitative study.

Science.gov (United States)

Haraldseid, Cecilie; Friberg, Febe; Aase, Karina

2015-09-01

The mastery of clinical skills learning is required to become a trained nurse. Due to limited opportunities for clinical skills training in clinical practice, undergraduate training at clinical skills laboratories (CSLs) is an essential part of nursing education. In a sociocultural learning perspective learning is situated in an environment. Growing student cohorts, rapid introduction of technology-based teaching methods and a shift from a teaching- to a learning-centered education all influence the environment of the students. These changes also affect CSLs and therefore compel nursing faculties to adapt to the changing learning environment. This study aimed to explore students' perceptions of their learning environment in a clinical skills laboratory, and to increase the knowledge base for improving CSL learning conditions identifying the most important environmental factors according to the students. An exploratory qualitative methodology was used. Nineteen second-year students enrolled in an undergraduate nursing program in Norway participated in the study. They took the same clinical skills course. Eight were part-time students (group A) and 11 were full-time students (group B). Focus group interviews and content analysis were conducted to capture the students' perception of the CSL learning environment. The study documents students' experience of the physical (facilities, material equipment, learning tools, standard procedures), psychosocial (expectations, feedback, relations) and organizational (faculty resources, course structure) factors that affect the CSL learning environment. Creating an authentic environment, facilitating motivation, and providing resources for multiple methods and repetitions within clinical skills training are all important for improving CSL learning environments from the student perspective. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Children's food store, restaurant, and home food environments and their relationship with body mass index: a pilot study.

Science.gov (United States)

Holsten, Joanna E; Compher, Charlene W

2012-01-01

This pilot research assessed the feasibility and utility of a study designed to examine the relationship between children's BMI and food store, restaurant, and home food environments. Home visits were conducted with sixth-grade children (N = 12). BMI z-scores were calculated with weight and height measurements. Nutrition Environment Measures Surveys evaluated children's food environments. The study protocol involved a feasible time duration, minimal missing data for primary variables, and participant satisfaction. Potential design problems included the homogeneous store environments and low restaurant exposure of the sample recruited from one school, and the adequacy of a single cross-sectional measure of the home environment.

Real-time tracking for virtual environments using scaat kalman filtering and unsynchronised cameras

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rasmussen, Niels Tjørnly; Störring, Morritz; Moeslund, Thomas B.

2006-01-01

This paper presents a real-time outside-in camera-based tracking system for wireless 3D pose tracking of a user’s head and hand in a virtual environment. The system uses four unsynchronised cameras as sensors and passive retroreflective markers arranged in rigid bodies as targets. In order to ach...

Real-time on-line space research laboratory environment monitoring with off-line trend and prediction analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Jules, Kenol; Lin, Paul P.

2007-06-01

With the International Space Station currently operational, a significant amount of acceleration data is being down-linked, processed and analyzed daily on the ground on a continuous basis for the space station reduced gravity environment characterization, the vehicle design requirements verification and science data collection. To help understand the impact of the unique spacecraft environment on the science data, an artificial intelligence monitoring system was developed, which detects in near real time any change in the reduced gravity environment susceptible to affect the on-going experiments. Using a dynamic graphical display, the monitoring system allows science teams, at any time and any location, to see the active vibration disturbances, such as pumps, fans, compressor, crew exercise, re-boost and extra-vehicular activities that might impact the reduced gravity environment the experiments are exposed to. The monitoring system can detect both known and unknown vibratory disturbance activities. It can also perform trend analysis and prediction by analyzing past data over many increments (an increment usually lasts 6 months) collected onboard the station for selected disturbances. This feature can be used to monitor the health of onboard mechanical systems to detect and prevent potential systems failures. The monitoring system has two operating modes: online and offline. Both near real-time on-line vibratory disturbance detection and off-line detection and trend analysis are discussed in this paper.

Timing of plant phenophases since 1752 in the boreal forest environment

Science.gov (United States)

Kubin, Eero; Tolvanen, Anne; Karhu, Jouni; Valkama, Jari

2016-04-01

Global warming and climate change will significantly affect on forest environment in northern latitudes. There is the strong evidence that increase of early spring and late autumn temperatures will have impacts on growth and growth cycles. In Finland the Finnish Forest Research Institute (Luke since 2015) established in 1996 National Phenological Network to study changes of phenophases all over the country representing southern, middle and northern boreal forest zones. Continuous detailed scientific monitoring includes eleven forest plant species and it forms an excellent basis to evaluate responses of forest vegetation in respect to climate change. Monitoring is done together with Universities and other Institutes. Prior to the establishment of the Finnish National Phenological Network observations has been made solely based on volunteers since 1752. This citizen-science data is very important to analyze phenophases together with the results of the National Network. The long-term data since 1752 shows e.g. an advancement in the onset of Prunus padus flowering by five days per 100 years and correspondingly three days in the rowan (Sorbus aucuparia). The latest results of the Finnish National Network (1996 - 2014) fits well to this long term trend. In the Finnish National Phenological Network we have monitored phenophases of forest spieces throughout the growth period, focusing on nine forest tree species and two dwarf shrubs. The results can be followed in real time at: http://www.metla.fi/metinfo/fenologia/index-en.htm. We have observed big differences in phenophases between southern and northern boreal zone. Onset of downy birch leafing happens one month later in the north compared with southern boreal zone. Coming into leaf has clearly occurred earlier during the research period since 1996 in the northern boreal zone compared with southern boreal zone. This indicates the response of climate change. The timing of leaf colouring and leaf fall was observed remained

Comparison of control systems for the optimisation of ice storage in a dynamic real time electricity pricing environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Murphy, M.D.; O’Mahony, M.J.; Upton, J.

2015-01-01

Highlights: • A cold thermal energy storage system model was created and validated. • Pseudo real time electricity pricing was derived to represent the smart grid. • A demand side management optimisation algorithm was developed. • Demand side management algorithm performance was compared to a standard controller. • Overall the demand side management algorithm produced modest cost savings. - Abstract: The objective of this study was to assess the benefits of introducing a demand side management optimisation controller to a cold thermal storage ice bank. This controller consisted of an ice bank model, an air temperature forecast model and an optimisation algorithm. The financial and grid utilisation benefits produced by implementation of this controller over the current state of the art in ice bank load shifting control was tested in a day ahead real time electricity pricing forecast environment. This hypothetical real time electricity price was based on the cost of electricity in the Irish wholesale market. Multiple ice bank charge levels were simulated in order to quantify the performance of two control methods for varying operating conditions. First, the “standard controller” was based on the current modus operandi for ice bank systems where ice was generated for food cooling at night when the off-peak electricity tariff is available (00:00–08:00 h). Second, the “upgraded controller” was developed as a bespoke Demand Side Management control system for food refrigeration in a future electricity pricing environment. It consisted of a dual function load shifting optimisation algorithm, an ice bank model, and a predictive air temperature model. A preliminary study was also carried out to test the robustness of the controller’s performance in an uncertain real time electricity pricing forecast scenario. Both economic and grid management benefits were found by simulating the operation of the cold thermal storage load shifting controller in a

The neighborhood energy balance equation: does neighborhood food retail environment + physical activity environment = obesity? The CARDIA study.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Janne Boone-Heinonen

Full Text Available Recent obesity prevention initiatives focus on healthy neighborhood design, but most research examines neighborhood food retail and physical activity (PA environments in isolation. We estimated joint, interactive, and cumulative impacts of neighborhood food retail and PA environment characteristics on body mass index (BMI throughout early adulthood.We used cohort data from the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA Study [n=4,092; Year 7 (24-42 years, 1992-1993 followed over 5 exams through Year 25 (2010-2011; 12,921 person-exam observations], with linked time-varying geographic information system-derived neighborhood environment measures. Using regression with fixed effects for individuals, we modeled time-lagged BMI as a function of food and PA resource density (counts per population and neighborhood development intensity (a composite density score. We controlled for neighborhood poverty, individual-level sociodemographics, and BMI in the prior exam; and included significant interactions between neighborhood measures and by sex. Using model coefficients, we simulated BMI reductions in response to single and combined neighborhood improvements. Simulated increase in supermarket density (from 25(th to 75(th percentile predicted inter-exam reduction in BMI of 0.09 kg/m(2 [estimate (95% CI: -0.09 (-0.16, -0.02]. Increasing commercial PA facility density predicted BMI reductions up to 0.22 kg/m(2 in men, with variation across other neighborhood features [estimate (95% CI range: -0.14 (-0.29, 0.01 to -0.22 (-0.37, -0.08]. Simultaneous increases in supermarket and commercial PA facility density predicted inter-exam BMI reductions up to 0.31 kg/m(2 in men [estimate (95% CI range: -0.23 (-0.39, -0.06 to -0.31 (-0.47, -0.15] but not women. Reduced fast food restaurant and convenience store density and increased public PA facility density and neighborhood development intensity did not predict reductions in BMI.Findings suggest that

Climate change impacts on crop yields, land use and environment in response to crop sowing dates and thermal time requirements

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Zimmermann, Andrea; Webber, Heidi; Zhao, Gang; Ewert, Frank; Kros, Hans; Wolf, Joost; Britz, Wolfgang; Vries, de Wim

2017-01-01

Impacts of climate change on European agricultural production, land use and the environment depend on its impact on crop yields. However, many impact studies assume that crop management remains unchanged in future scenarios, while farmers may adapt their sowing dates and cultivar thermal time

Human Activity Recognition in Real-Times Environments using Skeleton Joints

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ajay Kumar

2016-06-01

Full Text Available In this research work, we proposed a most effective noble approach for Human activity recognition in real-time environments. We recognize several distinct dynamic human activity actions using kinect. A 3D skeleton data is processed from real-time video gesture to sequence of frames and getter skeleton joints (Energy Joints, orientation, rotations of joint angles from selected setof frames. We are using joint angle and orientations, rotations information from Kinect therefore less computation required. However, after extracting the set of frames we implemented several classification techniques Principal Component Analysis (PCA with several distance based classifiers and Artificial Neural Network (ANN respectively with some variants for classify our all different gesture models. However, we conclude that use very less number of frame (10-15% for train our system efficiently from the entire set of gesture frames. Moreover, after successfully completion of our classification methods we clinch an excellent overall accuracy 94%, 96% and 98% respectively. We finally observe that our proposed system is more useful than comparing to other existing system, therefore our model is best suitable for real-time application such as in video games for player action/gesture recognition.

Analyzing the Online Environment: How Are More Effective Teachers Spending Their Time?

Science.gov (United States)

Barrentine, Scott Davis

Teaching at an online school is so different from classroom teaching that traditional training includes few of the skills necessary to be a successful online teacher. New teachers to an online environment face a steep learning curve in how they'll use the instructional technology, prioritize their time, and establish relationships with their students. The literature has advice for these teachers about effective online practices, but there has been little research to establish which strategies are most effective in motivating students. This pre-experimental study, conducted at an online 6th-12th grade hybrid school, investigated the practices used more often by the most effective teachers. Teacher effectiveness was measured by the number of assignments their students had not completed on time. Recognizing that the effectiveness of different practices will vary from student to student, the research analysis included two covariates, measured by surveys: the academic identity and motivational resilience of the students, and the students' self-reported preferences for motivational strategies. More effective teachers were found to make videos more frequently, both of the teacher for motivational purposes and recorded by the teacher to help students move through the curriculum. Quick grading turnaround and updating a blog were also more common with all effective teachers. Distinct differences between middle and high school students came out during data analysis, which then became a major point of study: according to the data, more effective middle school teachers emphasized individual contact with students, but the less effective high school teachers spent more time on individualized contact. The surveys used in this study could be modified and implemented at any online school to help teachers discover and then prioritize the most effective strategies for keeping students engaged.

Radiocarbon dating uncertainty and the reliability of the PEWMA method of time-series analysis for research on long-term human-environment interaction.

Science.gov (United States)

Carleton, W Christopher; Campbell, David; Collard, Mark

2018-01-01

Statistical time-series analysis has the potential to improve our understanding of human-environment interaction in deep time. However, radiocarbon dating-the most common chronometric technique in archaeological and palaeoenvironmental research-creates challenges for established statistical methods. The methods assume that observations in a time-series are precisely dated, but this assumption is often violated when calibrated radiocarbon dates are used because they usually have highly irregular uncertainties. As a result, it is unclear whether the methods can be reliably used on radiocarbon-dated time-series. With this in mind, we conducted a large simulation study to investigate the impact of chronological uncertainty on a potentially useful time-series method. The method is a type of regression involving a prediction algorithm called the Poisson Exponentially Weighted Moving Average (PEMWA). It is designed for use with count time-series data, which makes it applicable to a wide range of questions about human-environment interaction in deep time. Our simulations suggest that the PEWMA method can often correctly identify relationships between time-series despite chronological uncertainty. When two time-series are correlated with a coefficient of 0.25, the method is able to identify that relationship correctly 20-30% of the time, providing the time-series contain low noise levels. With correlations of around 0.5, it is capable of correctly identifying correlations despite chronological uncertainty more than 90% of the time. While further testing is desirable, these findings indicate that the method can be used to test hypotheses about long-term human-environment interaction with a reasonable degree of confidence.

Broadcast Scheduling Strategy Based on the Priority of Real.Time Data in a Mobile Environment

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

YangJin-cait; LiuYun-sheng

2003-01-01

Data broadcast is an important data dissemination approach in mobile environment. On broadcast channel,scalability and efficiency of data transmission are satisfied. In a mobile environment, there exists a kind of real-time database application in which both the transactions and data can have their timing constraints and priorities of different levels.In order to meet the requirement of real-time data disseminaring and retrieving, a broadcast scheduling strategy HPF-ED F (Highest Priority First with Earlier Deadline and Frequency) is proposed under the BoD (Broadcast on Demand) model. Using the strategy, data items are scheduled according to their priority the transaction imposed on them or system set for them. The strategy also considers other characteristics of data items such as deadline and popularity of data. The extensive simulation experiments have been conducted to evaluate the performance of the proposed algorithm. Results show that it can achieve excellent performance compared with existing strategies.

Broadcast Scheduling Strategy Based on the Priority of Real- Time Data in a Mobile Environment

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Yang Jin-cai; Liu Yun-sheng

2003-01-01

Data broadcast is an important data dissemina-tion approach in mobile environment. On broadcast channel,scalability and efficiency of data transmission are satisfied. In a mobile environment, there exists a kind of real-time data-base application in which both the transactions and data can have their timing constraints and priorities of different levels.In order to meet the requirement of real-time data dissemina-ting and retrieving, a broadcast scheduling strategy HPF-ED F(Highest Priority First with Earlier Deadline and Frequen-cy) is proposed under the BoD (Broadcast on Demand) mod-el. Using the strategy, data items are scheduled according to their priority the transaction imposed on them or system set for them. The strategy also considers other characteristics ofdata items such as deadline and popularity of data. The exten-sive simulation experiments have been conducted to evaluate the performance of the proposed algorithm. Results show that it can achieve excellent performance compared with existing strategies.

Effects of emergence time and early social rearing environment on behaviour of Atlantic salmon: consequences for juvenile fitness and smolt migration.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martin H Larsen

Full Text Available Consistent individual differences in behaviour have been well documented in a variety of animal taxa, but surprisingly little is known about the fitness and life-history consequences of such individual variation. In wild salmonids, the timing of fry emergence from gravel spawning nests has been suggested to be coupled with individual behavioural traits. Here, we further investigate the link between timing of spawning nest emergence and behaviour of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar, test effects of social rearing environment on behavioural traits in fish with different emergence times, and assess whether behavioural traits measured in the laboratory predict growth, survival, and migration status in the wild. Atlantic salmon fry were sorted with respect to emergence time from artificial spawning nest into three groups: early, intermediate, and late. These emergence groups were hatchery-reared separately or in co-culture for four months to test effects of social rearing environment on behavioural traits. Twenty fish from each of the six treatment groups were then subjected to three individual-based behavioural tests: basal locomotor activity, boldness, and escape response. Following behavioural characterization, the fish were released into a near-natural experimental stream. Results showed differences in escape behaviour between emergence groups in a net restraining test, but the social rearing environment did not affect individual behavioural expression. Emergence time and social environment had no significant effects on survival, growth, and migration status in the stream, although migration propensity was 1.4 to 1.9 times higher for early emerging individuals that were reared separately. In addition, despite individuals showing considerable variation in behaviour across treatment groups, this was not translated into differences in growth, survival, and migration status. Hence, our study adds to the view that fitness (i.e., growth and survival and

Effects of emergence time and early social rearing environment on behaviour of Atlantic salmon: consequences for juvenile fitness and smolt migration.

Science.gov (United States)

Larsen, Martin H; Johnsson, Jörgen I; Winberg, Svante; Wilson, Alexander D M; Hammenstig, David; Thörnqvist, Per-Ove; Midwood, Jonathan D; Aarestrup, Kim; Höglund, Erik

2015-01-01

Consistent individual differences in behaviour have been well documented in a variety of animal taxa, but surprisingly little is known about the fitness and life-history consequences of such individual variation. In wild salmonids, the timing of fry emergence from gravel spawning nests has been suggested to be coupled with individual behavioural traits. Here, we further investigate the link between timing of spawning nest emergence and behaviour of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar), test effects of social rearing environment on behavioural traits in fish with different emergence times, and assess whether behavioural traits measured in the laboratory predict growth, survival, and migration status in the wild. Atlantic salmon fry were sorted with respect to emergence time from artificial spawning nest into three groups: early, intermediate, and late. These emergence groups were hatchery-reared separately or in co-culture for four months to test effects of social rearing environment on behavioural traits. Twenty fish from each of the six treatment groups were then subjected to three individual-based behavioural tests: basal locomotor activity, boldness, and escape response. Following behavioural characterization, the fish were released into a near-natural experimental stream. Results showed differences in escape behaviour between emergence groups in a net restraining test, but the social rearing environment did not affect individual behavioural expression. Emergence time and social environment had no significant effects on survival, growth, and migration status in the stream, although migration propensity was 1.4 to 1.9 times higher for early emerging individuals that were reared separately. In addition, despite individuals showing considerable variation in behaviour across treatment groups, this was not translated into differences in growth, survival, and migration status. Hence, our study adds to the view that fitness (i.e., growth and survival) and life

Time Spent, Workload, and Student and Faculty Perceptions in a Blended Learning Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Schumacher, Christie; Arif, Sally

2016-01-01

Objective. To evaluate student perception and time spent on asynchronous online lectures in a blended learning environment (BLE) and to assess faculty workload and perception. Methods. Students (n=427) time spent viewing online lectures was measured in three courses. Students and faculty members completed a survey to assess perceptions of a BLE. Faculty members recorded time spent creating BLEs. Results. Total time spent in the BLE was less than the allocated time for two of the three courses by 3-15%. Students preferred online lectures for their flexibility, students’ ability to apply information learned, and congruence with their learning styles. Faculty members reported the BLE facilitated higher levels of learning during class sessions but noted an increase in workload. Conclusion. A BLE increased faculty workload but was well received by students. Time spent viewing online lectures was less than what was allocated in two of the three courses. PMID:27667839

Peroxy Radicals Observed in a Forested Environment with Time of Flight Mass Spectrometry

Science.gov (United States)

Cantrell, C. A.; Mauldin, L.; Nowak, J. B.

2017-12-01

Observations of peroxy radicals were made using time-of-flight chemical ionization mass spectrometry (ToF-CIMS) during the PROPHET-AMOS (Program for Research on Oxidants, Photochemistry, Emissions and Transport - Atmospheric Measurements of Oxidants in Summer) campaign in summer 2016 at the University of Michigan Biological Station (UMBS) in the northern lower peninsula of Michigan. The environment is one of high isoprene productivity and generally low NOx, depending on the origin of air masses that are sampled, and has been the subject of several comprehensive atmospheric observational studies. The ToF-CIMS was configured to measure OH, HO2+RO2, and extremely oxygenated volatile organic compounds (ELVOCs) in a cycle of about 5 minutes for each. This presentation examines the time- and chemical coordinate-dependent behavior of the peroxy radicals, and compares the observations with models that are constrained by observations of the controlling variables. The results are used to estimate factors such as the photochemical production rate of ozone and other atmospheric oxidation parameters for this remote forest site.

The psychosocial work environment among physicians employed at Danish oncology departments in 2009. A nationwide cross-sectional study

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andreassen, Christian Nicolaj; Eriksen, Jesper Grau

2013-01-01

Working as a physician at an oncology department has some distinctive characteristics that may lead to a stressful work environment. The present study was conducted to provide a nationwide description of the work conditions of all oncologists in Denmark. By comparing the results of the present...... study with those of a similar study carried out in 2006, the aim was furthermore to elucidate changes in the psychosocial work environment over time....

Research status and some results of numerical system to study regional environment: SPEEDI-MP

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chino, Masamichi

2004-01-01

Research status and some results of 'Numerical system to study regional environment: SPEEDI-MP', which reproduces circulations of materials in the atmospheric, oceanic and terrestrial environments, are introduced. The purpose of this system are the development of various environmental models, the connection of atmospheric, oceanic and terrestrial models and the construction of research bases for numerical environmental studies. In addition to the accurate prediction of environmental behavior of radionuclides, the system has been applied to the non-nuclear fields, e.g., numerical analysis of environmental effects to volcanic gases from Miyake Jima, real-time prediction of the migration of rice planthoppers from Eastern Asia. (author)

ArtifactVis2: Managing real-time archaeological data in immersive 3D environments

KAUST Repository

Smith, Neil

2013-10-01

In this paper, we present a stereoscopic research and training environment for archaeologists called ArtifactVis2. This application enables the management and visualization of diverse types of cultural datasets within a collaborative virtual 3D system. The archaeologist is fully immersed in a large-scale visualization of on-going excavations. Massive 3D datasets are seamlessly rendered in real-time with field recorded GIS data, 3D artifact scans and digital photography. Dynamic content can be visualized and cultural analytics can be performed on archaeological datasets collected through a rigorous digital archaeological methodology. The virtual collaborative environment provides a menu driven query system and the ability to annotate, markup, measure, and manipulate any of the datasets. These features enable researchers to re-experience and analyze the minute details of an archaeological site\\'s excavation. It enhances their visual capacity to recognize deep patterns and structures and perceive changes and reoccurrences. As a complement and development from previous work in the field of 3D immersive archaeological environments, ArtifactVis2 provides a GIS based immersive environment that taps directly into archaeological datasets to investigate cultural and historical issues of ancient societies and cultural heritage in ways not possible before. © 2013 IEEE.

Clinical Digital Libraries Project: design approach and exploratory assessment of timely use in clinical environments*

Science.gov (United States)

MacCall, Steven L.

2006-01-01

Objective: The paper describes and evaluates the use of Clinical Digital Libraries Project (CDLP) digital library collections in terms of their facilitation of timely clinical information seeking. Design: A convenience sample of CDLP Web server log activity over a twelve-month period (7/2002 to 6/2003) was analyzed for evidence of timely information seeking after users were referred to digital library clinical topic pages from Web search engines. Sample searches were limited to those originating from medical schools (26% North American and 19% non-North American) and from hospitals or clinics (51% North American and 4% non-North American). Measurement: Timeliness was determined based on a calculation of the difference between the timestamps of the first and last Web server log “hit” during each search in the sample. The calculated differences were mapped into one of three ranges: less than one minute, one to three minutes, and three to five minutes. Results: Of the 864 searches analyzed, 48% were less than 1 minute, 41% were 1 to 3 minutes, and 11% were 3 to 5 minutes. These results were further analyzed by environment (medical schools versus hospitals or clinics) and by geographic location (North America versus non-North American). Searches reflected a consistent pattern of less than 1 minute in these environments. Though the results were not consistent on a month-by-month basis over the entire time period, data for 8 of 12 months showed that searches shorter than 1 minute predominated and data for 1 month showed an equal number of less than 1 minute and 1 to 3 minute searches. Conclusions: The CDLP digital library collections provided timely access to high-quality Web clinical resources when used for information seeking in medical education and hospital or clinic environments from North American and non–North American locations and consistently provided access to the sought information within the documented two-minute standard. The limitations of the use of

A case study: Integrated work environment and organizational change

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Heubach, J.G.; Montgomery, J.C.; Weimer, W.C. [Pacific Northwest Lab., Richland, WA (United States); Heerwagen, J.H. [Battelle Seattle Research Center, WA (United States)

1995-02-01

The failure to integrate environmental and organizational interventions may help explain the lack of success of many change efforts. The high rate of failure for change efforts (50% to 90% failure rates) has been noted by many writers. While specific causes of failure are diverse, a common theme has been failure to consider the organization as a system. That is, either significant aspects of the organization were ignored during the intervention or potential impacts of changes on the elements were overlooked or underestimated. Our own training, technical literature, and professional culture lead us to limited understandings of complex organizations. Change agents must consider all relevant components of organizational performance if interventions are to be meaningful and successful. This study demonstrated the value of an integrated organizational intervention involving redesign of the physical environment, introduction of a new information system, work process improvement, and extended organizational development intervention. The outcomes were extremely positive. The cost of improvement efforts was found to be recaptured within a short time, easily justifying the expenditures. One conclusion from the study is that integrated interventions are very powerful. Integrating improvement of the physical environment with organizational development and technological innovation greatly enhances the likelihood of achieving a successful intervention.

Electron dynamics in complex environments with real-time time dependent density functional theory in a QM-MM framework

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morzan, Uriel N.; Ramírez, Francisco F.; Scherlis, Damián A.; Oviedo, M. Belén; Sánchez, Cristián G.; Lebrero, Mariano C. González

2014-01-01

This article presents a time dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) implementation to propagate the Kohn-Sham equations in real time, including the effects of a molecular environment through a Quantum-Mechanics Molecular-Mechanics (QM-MM) hamiltonian. The code delivers an all-electron description employing Gaussian basis functions, and incorporates the Amber force-field in the QM-MM treatment. The most expensive parts of the computation, comprising the commutators between the hamiltonian and the density matrix—required to propagate the electron dynamics—, and the evaluation of the exchange-correlation energy, were migrated to the CUDA platform to run on graphics processing units, which remarkably accelerates the performance of the code. The method was validated by reproducing linear-response TDDFT results for the absorption spectra of several molecular species. Two different schemes were tested to propagate the quantum dynamics: (i) a leap-frog Verlet algorithm, and (ii) the Magnus expansion to first-order. These two approaches were confronted, to find that the Magnus scheme is more efficient by a factor of six in small molecules. Interestingly, the presence of iron was found to seriously limitate the length of the integration time step, due to the high frequencies associated with the core-electrons. This highlights the importance of pseudopotentials to alleviate the cost of the propagation of the inner states when heavy nuclei are present. Finally, the methodology was applied to investigate the shifts induced by the chemical environment on the most intense UV absorption bands of two model systems of general relevance: the formamide molecule in water solution, and the carboxy-heme group in Flavohemoglobin. In both cases, shifts of several nanometers are observed, consistently with the available experimental data

Stress responsiveness and anxiety-like behavior: The early social environment differentially shapes stability over time in a small rodent.

Science.gov (United States)

Sangenstedt, Susanne; Jaljuli, Iman; Sachser, Norbert; Kaiser, Sylvia

2017-04-01

The early social environment can profoundly affect behavioral and physiological phenotypes. We investigated how male wild cavy offspring, whose mothers had either lived in a stable (SE) or an unstable social environment (UE) during pregnancy and lactation, differed in their anxiety-like behavior and stress responsiveness. At two different time points in life, we tested the offspring's anxiety-like behavior in a dark-light test and their endocrine reaction to challenge in a cortisol reactivity test. Furthermore, we analyzed whether individual traits remained stable over time. There was no effect of the early social environment on anxiety-like behavior and stress responsiveness. However, at an individual level, anxiety-like behavior was stable over time in UE- but not in SE-sons. Stress responsiveness, in turn, was rather inconsistent in UE-sons and temporally stable in SE-sons. Conclusively, we showed for the first time that the early social environment differentially shapes the stability of behavioral and endocrine traits. At first glance, these results may be surprising, but they can be explained by the different functions anxiety-like behavior and stress responsiveness have. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Recognition of Faces in Unconstrained Environments: A Comparative Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Javier Ruiz-del-Solar

2009-01-01

Full Text Available The aim of this work is to carry out a comparative study of face recognition methods that are suitable to work in unconstrained environments. The analyzed methods are selected by considering their performance in former comparative studies, in addition to be real-time, to require just one image per person, and to be fully online. In the study two local-matching methods, histograms of LBP features and Gabor Jet descriptors, one holistic method, generalized PCA, and two image-matching methods, SIFT-based and ERCF-based, are analyzed. The methods are compared using the FERET, LFW, UCHFaceHRI, and FRGC databases, which allows evaluating them in real-world conditions that include variations in scale, pose, lighting, focus, resolution, facial expression, accessories, makeup, occlusions, background and photographic quality. Main conclusions of this study are: there is a large dependence of the methods on the amount of face and background information that is included in the face's images, and the performance of all methods decreases largely with outdoor-illumination. The analyzed methods are robust to inaccurate alignment, face occlusions, and variations in expressions, to a large degree. LBP-based methods are an excellent election if we need real-time operation as well as high recognition rates.

Epidemiologic studies of radioactively contaminated environments and cancer clusters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boice, J.D. Jr.

1991-01-01

This paper reports on epidemiologic studies which address the distribution and determinants of disease in human populations. Investigations of the possible adverse effects of living in radioactively contaminated environments are difficult to conduct, however, because human populations tend to be fairly mobile, cumulative exposures to individuals from environmental conditions are difficult to estimate, and the risks associated with such exposures tend to be small relative to background levels of disease. Such studies can be arbitrarily classified as geographic correlation surveys, analytic studies, and cluster evaluations. Geographic correlation studies (ecological surveys) relate disease in populations to area characteristics. Although exposure to individuals is unknown, these exploratory or hypothesis-generating studies can identify areas to target for further in-depth evaluation. Analytic investigations relate individual exposure information to disease occurrence. Unusual occurrences of disease in time and place (clusters) occasionally point to a common environmental factor; cluster evaluations have been most successful in identifying the source of infectious disease outbreaks

Time Deployment Study for Annulus Pumping

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

REBERGER, D.W.

2000-01-01

Radioactive wastes from processing irradiated uranium fuels have been stored as alkaline slurries in underground tanks at the Hanford Site. Single-shell tanks (SST) and double-shell tanks (DST) of various sizes were used for waste storage. Of the total 177 tanks, there are 28 DSTs. DSTs are located in AN, AP, AW, AY, AZ, and SY tank farms in the 200 East (200E) and 200-West (200W) Areas. The storage capacities of the DSTs vary from 980,000 to 1,140,000 gal. DSTs are designed and constructed as an integral steel structure, i.e., an inner shell within an outer shell, so that any leak from the inner shell is confined within the annulus without impacting the environment. The inner shell provides primary containment for the wastes and the outer shell provides secondary containment in the form of an annulus. The annulus of a DST is equipped with a pump pit, leak detection probes, and other accessories. The existing annulus pumps in the DSTs need to be revamped with a new system to reduce operating costs and reduce the time to deploy a pumping system. The new pumping system will minimize the likelihood of a release of waste into the environment; improve capability of waste removal to the maximum extent possible to comply with Washington Administrative Code (WAC) 173-303-640 and Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 40 CFR 265.193. This study addresses the time required to deploy an annulus pumping system designed to fit any DST after detection of a leak in the inner shell of the DST

Effect of phase change materials on indoor thermal environment under different weather conditions and over a long time

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ling, Haoshu; Chen, Chao; Wei, Shen; Guan, Yong; Ma, Caiwen; Xie, Guangya; Li, Na; Chen, Ziguang

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Indicators evaluating the performance of PCMs in greenhouses are introduced. • Real equivalent specific heat capacity of PCMs is embedded in a numerical model. • Real behaviour of PCMs has been monitored over a long time. • Efficiency of PCMs walls are compared for sunny and cloudy days. • Heat storage and release amounts of PCMs walls have been calculated. - Abstract: To evaluate the effect of phase change materials (PCMs) on the indoor thermal environment of greenhouses under different weather conditions and over a long time in the heating season, a study was carried out using both experimental method and numerical method. The study was conducted in a typical greenhouse located in Beijing, China, and important parameters have been monitored continuously for 61 days, including indoor air temperature, outdoor air temperature, solar radiation, surface temperature of greenhouse envelopes and soil temperature. Based on these parameters, a number of indicators, namely, operative temperature, daily effective accumulative temperature, irradiated surface temperature of the north wall, average temperature of PCMs, and daily heat storage and release, have been used to evaluate the performance of PCMs in greenhouses. All indicators have provided consistent results that confirm the positive effect of PCMs on improving the indoor thermal environment of greenhouses over a long time. Additionally, the paper has demonstrated that a sunny weather could help to promote the efficiency of PCMs, comparing to a cloudy weather

A high-fidelity virtual environment for the study of paranoia.

Science.gov (United States)

Broome, Matthew R; Zányi, Eva; Hamborg, Thomas; Selmanovic, Elmedin; Czanner, Silvester; Birchwood, Max; Chalmers, Alan; Singh, Swaran P

2013-01-01

Psychotic disorders carry social and economic costs for sufferers and society. Recent evidence highlights the risk posed by urban upbringing and social deprivation in the genesis of paranoia and psychosis. Evidence based psychological interventions are often not offered because of a lack of therapists. Virtual reality (VR) environments have been used to treat mental health problems. VR may be a way of understanding the aetiological processes in psychosis and increasing psychotherapeutic resources for its treatment. We developed a high-fidelity virtual reality scenario of an urban street scene to test the hypothesis that virtual urban exposure is able to generate paranoia to a comparable or greater extent than scenarios using indoor scenes. Participants (n = 32) entered the VR scenario for four minutes, after which time their degree of paranoid ideation was assessed. We demonstrated that the virtual reality scenario was able to elicit paranoia in a nonclinical, healthy group and that an urban scene was more likely to lead to higher levels of paranoia than a virtual indoor environment. We suggest that this study offers evidence to support the role of exposure to factors in the urban environment in the genesis and maintenance of psychotic experiences and symptoms. The realistic high-fidelity street scene scenario may offer a useful tool for therapists.

A High-Fidelity Virtual Environment for the Study of Paranoia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matthew R. Broome

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Psychotic disorders carry social and economic costs for sufferers and society. Recent evidence highlights the risk posed by urban upbringing and social deprivation in the genesis of paranoia and psychosis. Evidence based psychological interventions are often not offered because of a lack of therapists. Virtual reality (VR environments have been used to treat mental health problems. VR may be a way of understanding the aetiological processes in psychosis and increasing psychotherapeutic resources for its treatment. We developed a high-fidelity virtual reality scenario of an urban street scene to test the hypothesis that virtual urban exposure is able to generate paranoia to a comparable or greater extent than scenarios using indoor scenes. Participants (n=32 entered the VR scenario for four minutes, after which time their degree of paranoid ideation was assessed. We demonstrated that the virtual reality scenario was able to elicit paranoia in a nonclinical, healthy group and that an urban scene was more likely to lead to higher levels of paranoia than a virtual indoor environment. We suggest that this study offers evidence to support the role of exposure to factors in the urban environment in the genesis and maintenance of psychotic experiences and symptoms. The realistic high-fidelity street scene scenario may offer a useful tool for therapists.

Understanding children's sedentary behaviour: a qualitative study of the family home environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Granich, Joanna; Rosenberg, Michael; Knuiman, Matthew; Timperio, Anna

2010-04-01

Electronic media (EM) (television, electronic games and computer) use has been associated with overweight and obesity among children. Little is known about the time spent in sedentary behaviour (SB) among children within the family context. The aim of this study was to explore how the family home environment may influence children's electronic-based SB. Focus groups and family interviews were conducted with 11- to 12-year old children (n = 54) and their parents (n = 38) using a semi-structured discussion guide. Transcripts were analysed using a thematic content approach. A brief self-completed questionnaire was also used to measure leisure behaviour and electronic devices at home. Children incorporated both sedentary and physical activities into their weekly routine. Factors influencing children's EM use included parent and sibling modelling and reinforcement, personal cognitions, the physical home environment and household EM use rules and restrictions. Participants were not concerned about the excessive time children spent with EM. This under-recognition emerged as a personal influencing factor and was viewed as a major barrier to modifying children's electronic-based SB. Efforts to reduce SB in children should focus on the influencing factors that reciprocally interact within the family home. An emphasis on increasing awareness about the risks associated with spending excessive time in screen-based activities should be a priority when developing intervention strategies aimed at modifying the time children spend in SB.

X11---A graphic interface in the OS-9 real-time environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pastore, A.

1990-01-01

X11 is a graphic window manager developed as a joint project of the Masschusetts Institute of Technology and Digital Equipment Corporation. It represents a widely available platform to develop distributed graphic applications using TCP/IP and DECNET. Microware's OS-9 is a real-time operating system widely used inside the physics community. The marriage between OS-9 and X11 should be seen as an attempt to stabilize a wise, open and accepted platform in the physics world to do real-time programming as well as line graphic output. Choosing X11 as our graphic environment should allow applications to run virtually without changes for several years but still be able to use the latest and fastest CPUs/architectures

Effects of emergence time and early social rearing environment on behaviour of Atlantic salmon: Consequences for juvenile fitness and smolt migration

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Larsen, Martin Hage; Johnsson, Jörgen I.; Winberg, Svante

2015-01-01

-reared separately or in co-culture for four months to test effects of social rearing environment on behavioural traits. Twenty fish from each of the six treatment groups were then subjected to three individual-based behavioural tests: basal locomotor activity, boldness, and escape response. Following behavioural...... suggested to be coupled with individual behavioural traits. Here, we further investigate the link between timing of spawning nest emergence and behaviour of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar), test effects of social rearing environment on behavioural traits in fish with different emergence times, and assess...... characterization, the fish were released into a near-natural experimental stream. Results showed differences in escape behaviour between emergence groups in a net restraining test, but the social rearing environment did not affect individual behavioural expression. Emergence time and social environment had...

Gene–obesogenic environment interactions in the UK Biobank study

Science.gov (United States)

Tyrrell, Jessica; Wood, Andrew R; Ames, Ryan M; Yaghootkar, Hanieh; Beaumont, Robin N; Jones, Samuel E; Tuke, Marcus A; Ruth, Katherine S; Freathy, Rachel M; Davey Smith, George; Joost, Stéphane; Guessous, Idris; Murray, Anna; Strachan, David P; Kutalik, Zoltán; Weedon, Michael N; Frayling, Timothy M

2017-01-01

Abstract Background: Previous studies have suggested that modern obesogenic environments accentuate the genetic risk of obesity. However, these studies have proven controversial as to which, if any, measures of the environment accentuate genetic susceptibility to high body mass index (BMI). Methods: We used up to 120 000 adults from the UK Biobank study to test the hypothesis that high-risk obesogenic environments and behaviours accentuate genetic susceptibility to obesity. We used BMI as the outcome and a 69-variant genetic risk score (GRS) for obesity and 12 measures of the obesogenic environment as exposures. These measures included Townsend deprivation index (TDI) as a measure of socio-economic position, TV watching, a ‘Westernized’ diet and physical activity. We performed several negative control tests, including randomly selecting groups of different average BMIs, using a simulated environment and including sun-protection use as an environment. Results: We found gene–environment interactions with TDI (Pinteraction = 3 × 10–10), self-reported TV watching (Pinteraction = 7 × 10–5) and self-reported physical activity (Pinteraction = 5 × 10–6). Within the group of 50% living in the most relatively deprived situations, carrying 10 additional BMI-raising alleles was associated with approximately 3.8 kg extra weight in someone 1.73 m tall. In contrast, within the group of 50% living in the least deprivation, carrying 10 additional BMI-raising alleles was associated with approximately 2.9 kg extra weight. The interactions were weaker, but present, with the negative controls, including sun-protection use, indicating that residual confounding is likely. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that the obesogenic environment accentuates the risk of obesity in genetically susceptible adults. Of the factors we tested, relative social deprivation best captures the aspects of the obesogenic environment responsible. PMID:28073954

Paramedics' experiences of financial medicine practices in the pre-hospital environment. A pilot study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Craig Vincent-Lambert

2016-10-01

Objectives: This qualitative pilot study explored and described the experiences of South African Paramedics with regard to the practicing of financial medicine in the local pre-hospital emergency care environment. Method: A sample of South African Paramedics were interviewed either face-to-face or telephonically. The interviews were audio recorded and transcripts produced. Content analysis was conducted to explore, document and describe the participants' experiences with regard to financial medicine practices in the local pre-hospital environment. Results: It emerged that all of the participants had experienced a number of financial medicine practices and associated unethical conduct. Examples included Over-servicing, Selective Patient Treatment, Fraudulent Billing Practices, Eliciting of kickbacks, incentives or benefits and Deliberate Time Wasting. Conclusion: The results of this study are concerning as the actions of service providers described by the participants constitute gross violations of the ethical and professional guidelines for health care professionals. The authors recommend additional studies be conducted to further explore these findings and to establish the reasons for, and ways of, limiting financial medicine practices in the South African emergency care environment.

In-air and pressurized water reactor environment fatigue experiments of 316 stainless steel to study the effect of environment on cyclic hardening

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mohanty, Subhasish, E-mail: smohanty@anl.gov; Soppet, William K., E-mail: soppet@anl.gov; Majumdar, Saurindranath, E-mail: majumdar@anl.gov; Natesan, Krishnamurti, E-mail: natesan@anl.gov

2016-05-15

Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), under the sponsorship of Department of Energy's Light Water Reactor Sustainability (LWRS) program, is trying to develop a mechanistic approach for more accurate life estimation of LWR components. In this context, ANL has conducted many fatigue experiments under different test and environment conditions on type 316 stainless steel (316 SS) material which is widely used in the US reactors. Contrary to the conventional S ∼ N curve based empirical fatigue life estimation approach, the aim of the present DOE sponsored work is to develop an understanding of the material ageing issues more mechanistically (e.g. time dependent hardening and softening) under different test and environmental conditions. Better mechanistic understanding will help develop computer-based advanced modeling tools to better extrapolate stress-strain evolution of reactor components under multi-axial stress states and hence help predict their fatigue life more accurately. Mechanics-based modeling of fatigue such as by using finite element (FE) tools requires the time/cycle dependent material hardening properties. Presently such time-dependent material hardening properties are hardly available in fatigue modeling literature even under in-air conditions. Getting those material properties under PWR environment, are even harder. Through this work we made preliminary attempt to generate time/cycle dependent stress-strain data both under in-air and PWR water conditions for further study such as for possible development of material models and constitutive relations for FE model implementation. Although, there are open-ended possibility to further improve the discussed test methods and related material estimation techniques we anticipate that the data presented in this paper will help the metal fatigue research community particularly, the researchers who are dealing with mechanistic modeling of metal fatigue such as using FE tools. In this paper the fatigue

Ecologia: The Assumptions, Expectations, and Strategies of Modern Language Students Working in a Self-Access Learning Environment for the First Time.

Science.gov (United States)

Piper, Alison

1994-01-01

This study examined 29 second-year undergraduate students of Spanish using a self-access learning environment for the first time, focusing on their language attitudes and learning strategies. The results show that, even as modern languages majors, the students possessed a model of language and strategies for learning that were significantly…

The role of environment design in an educational Multi-User Virtual Environment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Papachristos, Nikiforos; Vrellis, Ioannis; Natsis, Antonios

2014-01-01

This paper presents empirical results from an exploratory study conducted in an authentic educational situation with preservice education students enrolled in an undergraduate course, which was partially taught in Second Life. The study investigated the effect of environment design on presence, l...... necessary for all students to become familiar with the virtual environment and possible time losses due to technical issues. This study could act as support to construct and test hypotheses regarding the role of educational setting design in teaching and learning in MUVEs....

Environment-friendly cycle time optimization and quality improvisation using Six Sigma.

Science.gov (United States)

Deshpande, V S; Mungle, N P

2008-07-01

Healthy environment in any organization can make a difference in improving productivity and quality with low defect, lack of concentration, willingness to work, minimum accidental problems etc. Six Sigma is one of the more recent quality improvement initiatives to gain popularity and acceptance in many industries across the globe. It is an alternative to TQM to obtain minimum manufacturing defect, cycle time reduction, cost reduction, inventory reduction etc. Its use is increasingly widespread in many industries, in both manufacturing and service industries with many proponents of the approach claiming that it has developed beyond a quality control approach into a broader process improvement concept.

A molecular study of microbe transfer between distant environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Hooper, Sean D; Raes, Jeroen; Foerstner, Konrad U; Harrington, Eoghan D; Dalevi, Daniel; Bork, Peer

2008-07-09

Environments and their organic content are generally not static and isolated, but in a constant state of exchange and interaction with each other. Through physical or biological processes, organisms, especially microbes, may be transferred between environments whose characteristics may be quite different. The transferred microbes may not survive in their new environment, but their DNA will be deposited. In this study, we compare two environmental sequencing projects to find molecular evidence of transfer of microbes over vast geographical distances. By studying synonymous nucleotide composition, oligomer frequency and orthology between predicted genes in metagenomics data from two environments, terrestrial and aquatic, and by correlating with phylogenetic mappings, we find that both environments are likely to contain trace amounts of microbes which have been far removed from their original habitat. We also suggest a bias in direction from soil to sea, which is consistent with the cycles of planetary wind and water. Our findings support the Baas-Becking hypothesis formulated in 1934, which states that due to dispersion and population sizes, microbes are likely to be found in widely disparate environments. Furthermore, the availability of genetic material from distant environments is a possible font of novel gene functions for lateral gene transfer.

A molecular study of microbe transfer between distant environments.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sean D Hooper

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Environments and their organic content are generally not static and isolated, but in a constant state of exchange and interaction with each other. Through physical or biological processes, organisms, especially microbes, may be transferred between environments whose characteristics may be quite different. The transferred microbes may not survive in their new environment, but their DNA will be deposited. In this study, we compare two environmental sequencing projects to find molecular evidence of transfer of microbes over vast geographical distances. METHODOLOGY: By studying synonymous nucleotide composition, oligomer frequency and orthology between predicted genes in metagenomics data from two environments, terrestrial and aquatic, and by correlating with phylogenetic mappings, we find that both environments are likely to contain trace amounts of microbes which have been far removed from their original habitat. We also suggest a bias in direction from soil to sea, which is consistent with the cycles of planetary wind and water. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings support the Baas-Becking hypothesis formulated in 1934, which states that due to dispersion and population sizes, microbes are likely to be found in widely disparate environments. Furthermore, the availability of genetic material from distant environments is a possible font of novel gene functions for lateral gene transfer.

Parenting Style, the Home Environment, and Screen Time of 5-Year-Old Children; The 'Be Active, Eat Right' Study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Veldhuis, L.; van Grieken, A.; Renders, C.M.; Hira Sing, R.A.; Raat, H.

2014-01-01

Introduction: The global increase in childhood overweight and obesity has been ascribed partly to increases in children's screen time. Parents have a large influence on their children's screen time. Studies investigating parenting and early childhood screen time are limited. In this study, we

Short time window for transmissibility of African swine fever virus from a contaminated environment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Olesen, A S; Lohse, L; Boklund, A.

2018-01-01

pens after 3, 5 or 7 days did not develop any signs of ASFV infection and no viral DNA was detected in blood samples obtained from these pigs within the following 3 weeks. Thus, it was shown that exposure of pigs to an environment contaminated with ASFV can result in infection. However, the time window...

Real-time surveillance system for marine environment based on HLIF LiDAR

Science.gov (United States)

Babichenko, Sergey; Sobolev, Innokenti; Aleksejev, Valeri; Sõro, Oliver

2017-10-01

The operational monitoring of the risk areas of marine environment requires cost-effective solutions. One of the options is the use of sensor networks based on fixed installations and moving platforms (coastal boats, supply-, cargo-, and passenger vessels). Such network allows to gather environmental data in time and space with direct links to operational activities in the controlled area for further environmental risk assessment. Among many remote sensing techniques the LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) based on Light Induced Fluorescence (LIF) is the tool of direct assessment of water quality variations caused by chemical pollution, colored dissolved organic matter, and phytoplankton composition. The Hyperspectral LIF (HLIF) LiDAR acquires comprehensive LIF spectra and analyses them by spectral pattern recognition technique to detect and classify the substances in water remotely. Combined use of HLIF LiDARs with Real-Time Data Management System (RTDMS) provides the economically effective solution for the regular monitoring in the controlled area. OCEAN VISUALS in cooperation with LDI INNOVATION has developed Oil in Water Locator (OWL™) with RTDMS (OWL MAP™) based on HLIF LiDAR technique. This is a novel technical solution for monitoring of marine environment providing continuous unattended operations. OWL™ has been extensively tested on board of various vessels in the North Sea, Norwegian Sea, Barents Sea, Baltic Sea and Caribbean Sea. This paper describes the technology features, the results of its operational use in 2014-2017, and outlook for the technology development.

Engineering aspects and time effects of rapid deterioration of sandstone in the tropical environment of Sabah, Malaysia

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Tating, F.F.; Hack, H.R.G.K.; Jetten, V.G.

2013-01-01

Cut slopes in rock masses start to deteriorate directly after excavation due to stress relief and weathering. The deterioration is a time dependent process that depends on the local climate and the rock mass including its history, and the environment. The amount of deterioration per time unit (‘the

Just-in-time coding of the problem list in a clinical environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Warren, J. J.; Collins, J.; Sorrentino, C.; Campbell, J. R.

1998-01-01

Clinically useful problem lists are essential to the CPR. Providing a terminology that is standardized and understood by all clinicians is a major challenge. UNMC has developed a lexicon to support their problem list. Using a just-in-time coding strategy, the lexicon is maintained and extended prospectively in a dynamic clinical environment. The terms in the lexicon are mapped to ICD-9-CM, NANDA, and SNOMED International classification schemes. Currently, the lexicon contains 12,000 terms. This process of development and maintenance of the lexicon is described. PMID:9929226

The Space-Time Cube as part of a GeoVisual Analytics Environment to support the understanding of movement data

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kveladze, Irma; Kraak, M. J.; van Elzakker, C. P. J. M.

2015-01-01

This paper reports the results of an empirical usability experiment on the performance of the space-time cube in a GeoVisual analytics environment. It was developed to explore movement data based on the requirements of human geographers. The interactive environment consists of multiple coordinated...

Effects of time pressure and communication environment on team processes and outcomes in dyadic planning

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kleij, R van der; Lijkwan, J.T.E..; Dreu, C.K.W. de

2009-01-01

An experiment compared dyadic performance in a radio communication and a more sophisticated communication environment to face-to-face (FtF) meetings. Thirty-six dyads, working under low or high time-pressure conditions, needed to combine information and to produce a written plan. Teams working in

Robust Tests for Additive Gene-Environment Interaction in Case-Control Studies Using Gene-Environment Independence

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Liu, Gang; Lee, Seunggeun; Lee, Alice W

2018-01-01

test with case-control data. Our simulation studies suggest that the EB approach uses the gene-environment independence assumption in a data-adaptive way and provides power gain compared to the standard logistic regression analysis and better control of Type I error when compared to the analysis......There have been recent proposals advocating the use of additive gene-environment interaction instead of the widely used multiplicative scale, as a more relevant public health measure. Using gene-environment independence enhances the power for testing multiplicative interaction in case......-control studies. However, under departure from this assumption, substantial bias in the estimates and inflated Type I error in the corresponding tests can occur. This paper extends the empirical Bayes (EB) approach previously developed for multiplicative interaction that trades off between bias and efficiency...

Automatic determination of L/H transition times in DIII-D through a collaborative distributed environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Farias, G.; Vega, J.; González, S.; Pereira, A.; Lee, X.; Schissel, D.; Gohil, P.

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► An automatic predictor of L/H transition times has been implemented for the DIII-D tokamak. ► The system predicts the transition combining two techniques: a morphological pattern recognition algorithm and a support vector machines multi-layer model. ► The predictor is employed within a collaborative distributed computing environment. The system is trained remotely in the Ciemat computer cluster and operated on the DIII-D site. - Abstract: An automatic predictor of L/H transition times has been implemented for the DIII-D tokamak. The system predicts the transition combining two techniques: A morphological pattern recognition algorithm, which estimates the transition based on the waveform of a Dα emission signal, and a support vector machines multi-layer model, which predicts the L/H transition using a non-parametric model. The predictor is employed within a collaborative distributed computing environment. The system is trained remotely in the Ciemat computer cluster and operated on the DIII-D site.

Procrastinating Behavior in Computer-Based Learning Environments to Predict Performance: A Case Study in Moodle.

Science.gov (United States)

Cerezo, Rebeca; Esteban, María; Sánchez-Santillán, Miguel; Núñez, José C

2017-01-01

Introduction: Research about student performance has traditionally considered academic procrastination as a behavior that has negative effects on academic achievement. Although there is much evidence for this in class-based environments, there is a lack of research on Computer-Based Learning Environments (CBLEs) . Therefore, the purpose of this study is to evaluate student behavior in a blended learning program and specifically procrastination behavior in relation to performance through Data Mining techniques. Materials and Methods: A sample of 140 undergraduate students participated in a blended learning experience implemented in a Moodle (Modular Object Oriented Developmental Learning Environment) Management System. Relevant interaction variables were selected for the study, taking into account student achievement and analyzing data by means of association rules, a mining technique. The association rules were arrived at and filtered through two selection criteria: 1, rules must have an accuracy over 0.8 and 2, they must be present in both sub-samples. Results: The findings of our study highlight the influence of time management in online learning environments, particularly on academic achievement, as there is an association between procrastination variables and student performance. Conclusion: Negative impact of procrastination in learning outcomes has been observed again but in virtual learning environments where practical implications, prevention of, and intervention in, are different from class-based learning. These aspects are discussed to help resolve student difficulties at various ages.

Procrastinating Behavior in Computer-Based Learning Environments to Predict Performance: A Case Study in Moodle

Science.gov (United States)

Cerezo, Rebeca; Esteban, María; Sánchez-Santillán, Miguel; Núñez, José C.

2017-01-01

Introduction: Research about student performance has traditionally considered academic procrastination as a behavior that has negative effects on academic achievement. Although there is much evidence for this in class-based environments, there is a lack of research on Computer-Based Learning Environments (CBLEs). Therefore, the purpose of this study is to evaluate student behavior in a blended learning program and specifically procrastination behavior in relation to performance through Data Mining techniques. Materials and Methods: A sample of 140 undergraduate students participated in a blended learning experience implemented in a Moodle (Modular Object Oriented Developmental Learning Environment) Management System. Relevant interaction variables were selected for the study, taking into account student achievement and analyzing data by means of association rules, a mining technique. The association rules were arrived at and filtered through two selection criteria: 1, rules must have an accuracy over 0.8 and 2, they must be present in both sub-samples. Results: The findings of our study highlight the influence of time management in online learning environments, particularly on academic achievement, as there is an association between procrastination variables and student performance. Conclusion: Negative impact of procrastination in learning outcomes has been observed again but in virtual learning environments where practical implications, prevention of, and intervention in, are different from class-based learning. These aspects are discussed to help resolve student difficulties at various ages. PMID:28883801

Procrastinating Behavior in Computer-Based Learning Environments to Predict Performance: A Case Study in Moodle

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rebeca Cerezo

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Research about student performance has traditionally considered academic procrastination as a behavior that has negative effects on academic achievement. Although there is much evidence for this in class-based environments, there is a lack of research on Computer-Based Learning Environments (CBLEs. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to evaluate student behavior in a blended learning program and specifically procrastination behavior in relation to performance through Data Mining techniques.Materials and Methods: A sample of 140 undergraduate students participated in a blended learning experience implemented in a Moodle (Modular Object Oriented Developmental Learning Environment Management System. Relevant interaction variables were selected for the study, taking into account student achievement and analyzing data by means of association rules, a mining technique. The association rules were arrived at and filtered through two selection criteria: 1, rules must have an accuracy over 0.8 and 2, they must be present in both sub-samples.Results: The findings of our study highlight the influence of time management in online learning environments, particularly on academic achievement, as there is an association between procrastination variables and student performance.Conclusion: Negative impact of procrastination in learning outcomes has been observed again but in virtual learning environments where practical implications, prevention of, and intervention in, are different from class-based learning. These aspects are discussed to help resolve student difficulties at various ages.

Health care aides use of time in a residential long-term care unit: a time and motion study.

Science.gov (United States)

Mallidou, Anastasia A; Cummings, Greta G; Schalm, Corinne; Estabrooks, Carole A

2013-09-01

Organizational resources such as caregiver time use with older adults in residential long-term care facilities (nursing homes) have not been extensively studied, while levels of nurse staffing and staffing-mix are the focus of many publications on all types of healthcare organizations. Evidence shows that front-line caregivers' sufficient working time with residents is associated with performance, excellence, comprehensive care, quality of outcomes (e.g., reductions in pressure ulcers, urinary tract infections, and falls), quality of life, cost savings, and may be affiliated with transformation of organizational culture. To explore organizational resources in a long-term care unit within a multilevel residential facility, to measure healthcare aides' use of time with residents, and to describe working environment and unit culture. An observational pilot study was conducted in a Canadian urban 52-bed long-term care unit within a faith-based residential multilevel care facility. A convenience sample of seven healthcare aides consented to participate. To collect the data, we used an observational sheet (to monitor caregiver time use on certain activities such as personal care, assisting with eating, socializing, helping residents to be involved in therapeutic activities, paperwork, networking, personal time, and others), semi-structured interview (to assess caregiver perceptions of their working environment), and field notes (to illustrate the unit culture). Three hundred and eighty seven hours of observation were completed. The findings indicate that healthcare aides spent most of their working time (on an eight-hour day-shift) in "personal care" (52%) and in "other" activities (23%). One-to-three minute activities consumed about 35% of the time spent in personal care and 20% of time spent in assisting with eating. Overall, caregivers' time spent socializing was less than 1%, about 6% in networking, and less than 4% in paperwork. Re-organizing healthcare aides

Making time for family meals: Parental influences, home eating environments, barriers and protective factors.

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Blake L

2018-04-06

Frequent family mealtimes have been associated with numerous positive dietary, health, and behavioral outcomes for children and families. This review article summarizes some of the beneficial outcomes associated with having frequent family dinners. Current trends in family dinner frequency are discussed in the context of barriers that influence how often families eat dinner together, including time issues, work issues, and distractions in the home environment. Next, several parental influences and home environment factors that promote healthy and consistent family dinners are outlined. Finally, limitations are discussed and a few practical suggestions are mentioned to help encourage families, employers, and policy-makers to make family mealtimes a regular practice for as many families as possible. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Near Real Time Structural Health Monitoring with Multiple Sensors in a Cloud Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Bock, Y.; Todd, M.; Kuester, F.; Goldberg, D.; Lo, E.; Maher, R.

2017-12-01

A repeated near real time 3-D digital surrogate representation of critical engineered structures can be used to provide actionable data on subtle time-varying displacements in support of disaster resiliency. We describe a damage monitoring system of optimally-integrated complementary sensors, including Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS), Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) accelerometers coupled with the GNSS (seismogeodesy), light multi-rotor Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) equipped with high-resolution digital cameras and GNSS/IMU, and ground-based Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR). The seismogeodetic system provides point measurements of static and dynamic displacements and seismic velocities of the structure. The GNSS ties the UAV and LIDAR imagery to an absolute reference frame with respect to survey stations in the vicinity of the structure to isolate the building response to ground motions. The GNSS/IMU can also estimate the trajectory of the UAV with respect to the absolute reference frame. With these constraints, multiple UAVs and LIDAR images can provide 4-D displacements of thousands of points on the structure. The UAV systematically circumnavigates the target structure, collecting high-resolution image data, while the ground LIDAR scans the structure from different perspectives to create a detailed baseline 3-D reference model. UAV- and LIDAR-based imaging can subsequently be repeated after extreme events, or after long time intervals, to assess before and after conditions. The unique challenge is that disaster environments are often highly dynamic, resulting in rapidly evolving, spatio-temporal data assets with the need for near real time access to the available data and the tools to translate these data into decisions. The seismogeodetic analysis has already been demonstrated in the NASA AIST Managed Cloud Environment (AMCE) designed to manage large NASA Earth Observation data projects on Amazon Web Services (AWS). The Cloud provides

A Molecular Study of Microbe Transfer between Distant Environments

OpenAIRE

Hooper, Sean D.; Raes, Jeroen; Foerstner, Konrad U.; Harrington, Eoghan D.; Dalevi, Daniel; Bork, Peer

2008-01-01

BACKGROUND: Environments and their organic content are generally not static and isolated, but in a constant state of exchange and interaction with each other. Through physical or biological processes, organisms, especially microbes, may be transferred between environments whose characteristics may be quite different. The transferred microbes may not survive in their new environment, but their DNA will be deposited. In this study, we compare two environmental sequencing projects to find molecu...

Clinical learning environment and supervision of international nursing students: A cross-sectional study.

Science.gov (United States)

Mikkonen, Kristina; Elo, Satu; Miettunen, Jouko; Saarikoski, Mikko; Kääriäinen, Maria

2017-05-01

Previously, it has been shown that the clinical learning environment causes challenges for international nursing students, but there is a lack of empirical evidence relating to the background factors explaining and influencing the outcomes. To describe international and national students' perceptions of their clinical learning environment and supervision, and explain the related background factors. An explorative cross-sectional design was used in a study conducted in eight universities of applied sciences in Finland during September 2015-May 2016. All nursing students studying English language degree programs were invited to answer a self-administered questionnaire based on both the clinical learning environment, supervision and nurse teacher scale and Cultural and Linguistic Diversity scale with additional background questions. Participants (n=329) included international (n=231) and Finnish (n=98) nursing students. Binary logistic regression was used to identify background factors relating to the clinical learning environment and supervision. International students at a beginner level in Finnish perceived the pedagogical atmosphere as worse than native speakers. In comparison to native speakers, these international students generally needed greater support from the nurse teacher at their university. Students at an intermediate level in Finnish reported two times fewer negative encounters in cultural diversity at their clinical placement than the beginners. To facilitate a successful learning experience, international nursing students require a sufficient level of competence in the native language when conducting clinical placements. Educational interventions in language education are required to test causal effects on students' success in the clinical learning environment. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Enhanced Predictions of Time to Critical Dielectric Breakdown of Materials Under Prolonged Exposure to Space Plasma Environments

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The leading cause of spacecraft failures and malfunctions due to interactions with the space plasma environment is electrostatic discharge (ESD). The enhanced time...

Porter's generic strategies, discontinuous environments, and performance: a longitudinal study of changing strategies in the hospital industry.

Science.gov (United States)

Lamont, B T; Marlin, D; Hoffman, J J

1993-12-01

Changes in generic strategies in response to discontinuous environments have been relatively ignored in the management literature. This study reports an examination of the relationships between Porter's (1980) generic strategies, discontinuous environments, and performance. Archival data for 1984 and 1988 were collected for 172 acute care hospitals in Florida in order to test these relationships. To examine fully the performance impact of changes in strategy in a discontinuous environment, a longitudinal research design that identified a firm's strategy at two points in time, 1984 and 1988, was used. Results indicate that firms with a proper strategy environment fit performed the highest, firms that did not change their strategy had no change in performance, and firms that changed their strategy toward a proper strategy environment showed an increase in performance. Findings support the notion that hospitals with appropriate strategy-environment combinations will exhibit higher performance.

Influence of the Perspectives on the Movement of One-Leg Lifting in an Interactive-Visual Virtual Environment: A Pilot Study.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chien-Hua Huang

Full Text Available Numerous studies have confirmed the feasibility of active video games for clinical rehabilitation. To maximize training effectiveness, a personal program is necessary; however, little evidence is available to guide individualized game design for rehabilitation. This study assessed the perspectives and kinematic and temporal parameters of a participant's postural control in an interactive-visual virtual environment.Twenty-four healthy participants performed one-leg standing by leg lifting when a posture frame appeared either in a first- or third-person perspective of a virtual environment. A foot force plate was used to detect the displacement of the center of pressure. A three-way mixed factor design was applied, where the perspective was the between-participant factor, and the leg-lifting times (0.7 and 2.7 seconds and leg-lifting angles (30°and 90° were the within-participant factors. The reaction time, accuracy of the movement, and ability to shift weight were the dependent variables.Regarding the reaction time and accuracy of the movement, there were no significant main effects of the perspective, leg-lifting time, or angle. For the ability to shift weight, however, both the perspective and time exerted significant main effects, F(1,22 = 6.429 and F(1,22 = 13.978, respectively.Participants could shift their weight more effectively in the third-person perspective of the virtual environment. The results can serve as a reference for future designs of interactive-visual virtual environment as applied to rehabilitation.

Leisure activities, time and environment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Røpke, Inge; Godskesen, Mirjam Irene

2007-01-01

. The paper thus investigates the leisure literature in order to identify some of the environmentally interesting trends in the development of leisure activities. As leisure is usually conceived in terms of a specific segment of time or in terms of a certain selection of activities, the paper focuses on time...

Comparing the accuracy of ABC and time-driven ABC in complex and dynamic environments: a simulation analysis

OpenAIRE

S. HOOZÉE; M. VANHOUCKE; W. BRUGGEMAN; -

2010-01-01

This paper compares the accuracy of traditional ABC and time-driven ABC in complex and dynamic environments through simulation analysis. First, when unit times in time-driven ABC are known or can be flawlessly estimated, time-driven ABC coincides with the benchmark system and in this case our results show that the overall accuracy of traditional ABC depends on (1) existing capacity utilization, (2) diversity in the actual mix of productive work, and (3) error in the estimated percentage mix. ...

Sampling-based real-time motion planning under state uncertainty for autonomous micro-aerial vehicles in GPS-denied environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Dachuan; Li, Qing; Cheng, Nong; Song, Jingyan

2014-11-18

This paper presents a real-time motion planning approach for autonomous vehicles with complex dynamics and state uncertainty. The approach is motivated by the motion planning problem for autonomous vehicles navigating in GPS-denied dynamic environments, which involves non-linear and/or non-holonomic vehicle dynamics, incomplete state estimates, and constraints imposed by uncertain and cluttered environments. To address the above motion planning problem, we propose an extension of the closed-loop rapid belief trees, the closed-loop random belief trees (CL-RBT), which incorporates predictions of the position estimation uncertainty, using a factored form of the covariance provided by the Kalman filter-based estimator. The proposed motion planner operates by incrementally constructing a tree of dynamically feasible trajectories using the closed-loop prediction, while selecting candidate paths with low uncertainty using efficient covariance update and propagation. The algorithm can operate in real-time, continuously providing the controller with feasible paths for execution, enabling the vehicle to account for dynamic and uncertain environments. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed approach can generate feasible trajectories that reduce the state estimation uncertainty, while handling complex vehicle dynamics and environment constraints.

DMA Modern Programming Environment Study.

Science.gov (United States)

1980-01-01

capabilities. The centers are becoming increasingly dependent upon the computer and digital data in the fulfillment of MC&G goals. Successful application...ftticrcsrccessors C140 by Herbert AlteroDigital Citmmuncaticns C141 0 Structuredl Design ’-:orkshocr by Ned Chapin KC 156o Digital Systems En17lrceriirg CC 139 o3...on a programming environment. The study, which resulted in production of a paper entitled An EXEC 8 Programming Support Libary , contends that most of

Study on distribution and behavior of long-lived radionuclides in surface soil environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morita, Shigemitsu; Watanabe, Hitoshi; Katagiri, Hiromi; Akatsu, Yasuo; Ishiguro, Hideharu

1996-01-01

Technetium-99 ( 99 Tc) and Neptunium-237 ( 237 Np) are important radionuclides for environmental assessment around nuclear fuel cycle facilities, because these have long-lives and relatively high mobility in the environment. Therefore, we have been studied the determination, distribution and behavior of such long-lived radionuclides in surface soil environment. A new analytical technique using Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) was applied to the determination of long-lived radionuclides in environmental samples. The determination method consists of dry ashing, anion exchange and solvent extraction to eliminate the interfering elements and ICP-MS measurement. The sensitivity of this method was 10 to 100,000 times higher, and the counting time was 300 to 100,000 times shorter than the conventional radioanalytical methods. The soil samples were collected at nine points and core soil sample was collected by an electric core sampler at one point. The core soil sample was divided into eight layers. The depth profiles showed that more than 90% of 99 Tc and 237 Np were retained in the surface layer up to 10cm in depth which contained much amount of organic materials. The results suggest that content of organic materials in soil is related to adsorption of 99 Tc and 237 Np onto soil. (author)

Channel Characteristics and Performance of MIMO E-SDM Systems in an Indoor Time-Varying Fading Environment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Huu Phu Bui

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO systems employ advanced signal processing techniques. However, the performance is affected by propagation environments and antenna characteristics. The main contributions of the paper are to investigate Doppler spectrum based on measured data in a typical meeting room and to evaluate the performance of MIMO systems based on an eigenbeam-space division multiplexing (E-SDM technique in an indoor time-varying fading environment, which has various distributions of scatterers, line-of-sight wave existence, and mutual coupling effect among antennas. We confirm that due to the mutual coupling among antennas, patterns of antenna elements are changed and different from an omnidirectional one of a single antenna. Results based on the measured channel data in our measurement campaigns show that received power, channel autocorrelation, and Doppler spectrum are dependent not only on the direction of terminal motion but also on the antenna configuration. Even in the obstructed-line-of-sight environment, observed Doppler spectrum is quite different from the theoretical U-shaped Jakes one. In addition, it has been also shown that a channel change during the time interval between the transmit weight matrix determination and the actual data transmission can degrade the performance of MIMO E-SDM systems.

Connectivity, prison environment and mental health among first-time male inmates in Mexico City.

Science.gov (United States)

Albertie, Ariel; Bourey, Christine; Stephenson, Rob; Bautista-Arredondo, Sergio

2017-02-01

Research from high-income countries suggests that prison populations are affected disproportionately by mental illness. However, little research has examined mental health among prisoners in low- and middle-income countries or associations between mental health and contextual factors surrounding the prison experience among susceptible first-time inmates in these settings. The current study examines associations between connectivity, prison environment and mental health (major depression and substance use) among novice male inmates (n = 593) in three Mexico City prisons. Severe depression (46.2%), any substance use (53.8%) and heavy substance use (45.7%) were prevalent. Among key co-variates, recent visitors were protective for severe depression, conjugal visits for any substance use and prison employment for heavy substance use. Physical attacks were associated with increased prevalence of depression, sentence time served with both any and heavy substance use and overcrowding with any substance use. These findings suggest the need for routine health assessments to improve identification and treatment programmes to minimise mental health burden. Addressing demographic risk factors as well as contextual determinants, by decreasing physical violence and overcrowding and supporting outside connections for prisoners, may help improve inmate mental health.

Evaluating the Physical Environment of Design Studios: A Case study in Malaysian Private Architecture Schools

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shanthi Muniandy

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Understanding the notion of learner’s experiences in the design of physical environment of an architecture design studio is a necessity as it contains certain values of influence. It is due to the unique learning experiences which are accrued particularly in design studio that is continued during professional practice as well. Most architectural campuses in Malaysian Private Higher Education Institutions (MPHEI are devoid of certain important elements and this issue needs to be looked into seriously. Apparently, most architectural design studios today have different physical settings, and have developed their own learning culture based on the typical space that they have. Reviewing the physical environment and how it contributes to the social environ-ment in MPHEI’s architectural context requires certain understanding on the learner’s psycho-logical needs, expectations and in the same time to meet the educational objective which is never an easy task. Hence, this paper reviewed the studies of the possible physical environment approaches in connecting the learner’s connections in architecture studio learning environ-ment. A questionnaire survey with Likert-scale components, and semi-structured interview on learners of five distinguished Private Architectural schools in Malaysia unveiled several signifi-cant findings that can lead entrepreneurs to upgrade the physical environment of these MPHEIs in order to cope with the demands of the stakeholders.

Business list vs ground observation for measuring a food environment: saving time or waste of time (or worse)?

Science.gov (United States)

Lucan, Sean C; Maroko, Andrew R; Bumol, Joel; Torrens, Luis; Varona, Monica; Berke, Ethan M

2013-10-01

In food-environment research, an alternative to resource-intensive direct observation on the ground has been the use of commercial business lists. We sought to determine how well a frequently used commercial business list measures a dense urban food environment like the Bronx, NY. On 155 Bronx street segments, investigators compared two different levels for matches between the business list and direct ground observation: lenient (by business type) and strict (by business name). For each level of matching, researchers calculated sensitivities and positive predictive values (PPVs) for the business list overall and by broad business categories: General Grocers (eg, supermarkets), Specialty Food Stores (eg, produce markets), Restaurants, and Businesses Not Primarily Selling Food (eg, newsstands). Even after cleaning the business list (eg, for cases of multiple listings at a single location), and allowing for inexactness in listed street addresses and spellings of business names, the overall performance of the business list was poor. For strict matches, the business list had an overall sensitivity of 39.3% and PPV of 45.5%. Sensitivities and PPVs by broad business categories were not meaningfully different from overall values, although sensitivity for General Grocers and PPV for Specialty Food Stores were particularly low: 26.2% and 32%, respectively. For lenient matches, sensitivities and PPVs were somewhat higher but still poor: 52.4% to 60% and 60% to 75%, respectively. The business list is inadequate to measure the actual food environment in the Bronx. If results represent performance in other settings, findings from prior studies linking food environments to diet and diet-related health outcomes using such business lists are in question, and future studies of this type should avoid relying solely on such business lists. Copyright © 2013 Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Business list vs. ground observation for measuring a food environment: saving time or waste of time (or worse)?

Science.gov (United States)

Lucan, Sean C.; Maroko, Andrew R.; Bumol, Joel; Torrens, Luis; Varona, Monica; Berke, Ethan M.

2013-01-01

In food-environment research, an alternative to resource-intensive direct observation on the ground has been the use of commercial business lists. We sought to determine how well a frequently-used commercial business list measures a dense urban food environment like the Bronx. On 155 Bronx street segments, investigators compared two different levels for “matches” between the business list and direct ground observation: lenient (by business type) and strict (by business name). For each level of matching, researchers calculated sensitivities and positive predictive values (PPVs) for the business list overall and by broad business categories: General grocers (e.g., supermarkets), Specialty-food stores (e.g., produce markets), Restaurants, and Businesses not primarily selling food (e.g., newsstands). Even after cleaning the business list (e.g., for cases of multiple listings at a single location), and allowing for inexactness in listed street addresses and spellings of business names, the overall performance of the business list was poor. For strict “matches”, the business list had an overall sensitivity of 39.3% and PPV of 45.5%. Sensitivities and PPVs by broad business categories were not meaningfully different from overall values, although sensitivity for General grocers and PPV for Specialty-food stores were particularly low: 26.2% and 32.0% respectively. For lenient “matches”, sensitivities and PPVs were somewhat higher but still poor: 52.4–60.0% and 60.0–75.0% respectively. The business list is inadequate to measures the actual food environment in the Bronx. If results represent performance in other settings, findings from prior studies linking food environments to diet and diet-related health outcomes using such business lists are in question, and future studies of this type should avoid relying solely on such business lists. PMID:23871107

Integration of domain and resource-based reasoning for real-time control in dynamic environments

Science.gov (United States)

Morgan, Keith; Whitebread, Kenneth R.; Kendus, Michael; Cromarty, Andrew S.

1993-01-01

A real-time software controller that successfully integrates domain-based and resource-based control reasoning to perform task execution in a dynamically changing environment is described. The design of the controller is based on the concept of partitioning the process to be controlled into a set of tasks, each of which achieves some process goal. It is assumed that, in general, there are multiple ways (tasks) to achieve a goal. The controller dynamically determines current goals and their current criticality, choosing and scheduling tasks to achieve those goals in the time available. It incorporates rule-based goal reasoning, a TMS-based criticality propagation mechanism, and a real-time scheduler. The controller has been used to build a knowledge-based situation assessment system that formed a major component of a real-time, distributed, cooperative problem solving system built under DARPA contract. It is also being employed in other applications now in progress.

Neighborhood Environments and Physical Activity: A Longitudinal Study of Adolescents in a Natural Experiment.

Science.gov (United States)

Nicosia, Nancy; Datar, Ashlesha

2018-05-01

Experimental and quasi-experimental evidence on the relationship between adolescents' physical activity and their physical activity environments is scarce. This study provides natural experimental evidence using within-person longitudinal variation in physical activity environments resulting from the compulsory re-assignment of military families to new installations, termed permanent changes of station. Adolescents in Army families (N=749) reported usual weekly minutes of moderate and vigorous physical activity in 2013-2015. Objective measures of the physical activity environment, including the number of fitness and recreation facilities within 2 miles, were constructed for adolescents' neighborhoods using GIS methods. In 2017, individual-level fixed-effects models with and without a comparison group estimated the relationship between usual weekly minutes of physical activity and physical activity environments among permanent changes of station movers using within-person variation. Increases in opportunities for physical activity were significantly and positively associated with increases in total (p<0.05) and vigorous physical activity (p<0.05) among adolescents who experienced permanent changes of station moves. The relationships were statistically significant for permanent changes of station movers living off-installation (p<0.05) and hence subject to greater variation in physical activity environments and those with more time to adjust to their new environments (p<0.05). Significant findings persisted when broader measures of physical activity environments were utilized. The decline in physical activity and alarming obesity levels during adolescence suggest that this age may represent an important opportunity to address the obesity epidemic. This study provides evidence that increasing opportunities for physical activity may be an important pathway to improving their levels of physical activity and, consequently, obesity. Copyright © 2018 American Journal of

Study of the bullwhip effect in Chinese coal supply chain under fuzzy environment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yun Xiao Hong

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Supply chain management is important for coal companies and organizations to improve their business and enhance competitiveness in the Chinese marketplace. The bullwhip effect problem of coal supply chain systems with all demands, lead times, and ordering quantities in an uncertain environment is addressed in this paper. To simulate the bullwhip effect, the Hong Fuzzy Time Series approach and Genetic Algorithm module are preferred as a superior forecasting model. And then a back propagation Neural Network module is added to defuzzify the output of the proposed model. So the bullwhip effect is calculated and analyzed here. The effectiveness and flexibility of proposed method is verified through simulation study.

Visualization Design Environment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pomplun, A.R.; Templet, G.J.; Jortner, J.N.; Friesen, J.A.; Schwegel, J.; Hughes, K.R.

1999-02-01

Improvements in the performance and capabilities of computer software and hardware system, combined with advances in Internet technologies, have spurred innovative developments in the area of modeling, simulation and visualization. These developments combine to make it possible to create an environment where engineers can design, prototype, analyze, and visualize components in virtual space, saving the time and expenses incurred during numerous design and prototyping iterations. The Visualization Design Centers located at Sandia National Laboratories are facilities built specifically to promote the ''design by team'' concept. This report focuses on designing, developing and deploying this environment by detailing the design of the facility, software infrastructure and hardware systems that comprise this new visualization design environment and describes case studies that document successful application of this environment.

Real Time Implementation of PID and Fuzzy PD Controllers for DC-Servo Motor Based on Lab View Environment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Safaa M. Z. Al-Ubaidi

2012-06-01

Full Text Available This paper presents an implementation of conventional PID (CPID controller using Ziegler-Nichols rules and fuzzy PD (FPD controller for position servo motor control based on Lab View (Laboratory Virtual Instrument Engineering Workbench Environment through Data Acquisition (DAQ Device PCI- 6521 of National Instrument's and Data Acquisition Accessory Board Model (CB-68LP.CPID controller is perhaps the most well-known and most widely used in industrial applications. However, it has been known that CPID controller generally don’t work well for non-linear systems, higher order and time-delayed linear system and particularly complex and vague system. To overcome these difficulties, this paper proposes to use the FPD controller for a servo motor system instead of CPID. The parameters of servo motor used are completely unknown. The FPD structure has two-input single-output and fairly similar characteristic to its conventional counterpart and provides good performance. Simple rules base are used for FPD (nine rules only. Performance evaluation was carried out via a comparison study for the proposed control scheme and other existing control scheme, such as CPID controller. The critical point for this experiment on position system is a steady state error and settling time.  The performance showing that the FPD has less settling time and zero steady state error over its CPID. The algorithms of FPD and CPID controllers are implemented using PID, Fuzzy Logic and simulation toolkits of the Lab View environment.

Study of silica coatings degradation under laser irradiation and in controlled environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Becker, S.

2006-11-01

Performances of optical components submitted to high laser intensities are usually determined by their laser-induced damage threshold. This value represents the highest density of energy (fluence) sustainable by the component before its damage. When submitted to laser fluences far below this threshold, optical performances may also decrease with time. The degradation processes depend on laser characteristics, optical materials, and environment around the component. Silica being the most used material in optics, the aim of this study was to describe and analyse the physical-chemical mechanisms responsible for laser-induced degradation of silica coatings in controlled environment. Experimental results show that degradation is due to the growth of a carbon deposit in the irradiated zone. From these results, a phenomenological model has been proposed and validated with numerical simulations. Then, several technological solutions have been tested in order to reduce the laser-induced contamination of silica coatings. (author)

An Empirical Study Analyzing Job Productivity in Toxic Workplace Environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Anjum, Amna; Ming, Xu; Siddiqi, Ahmed Faisal; Rasool, Samma Faiz

2018-05-21

Purpose: This empirical study aims to determine the effects of a toxic workplace environment, which can negatively impact the job productivity of an employee. Methodology: Three hundred questionnaires were randomly distributed among the staff members of seven private universities in Pakistan with a final response rate of 89%. For analysis purposes, AMOS 22 was used to study the direct and indirect effects of the toxic workplace environment on job productivity. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) was conducted to ensure the convergent and discriminant validity of the factors, while the Hayes mediation approach was used to verify the mediating role of job burnout between the four dimensions of toxic workplace environment and job productivity. A toxic workplace with multiple dimensions, such as workplace ostracism, workplace incivility, workplace harassment, and workplace bullying, was used in this study. Findings: By using the multiple statistical tools and techniques, it has been proven that ostracism, incivility, harassment, and bullying have direct negative significant effects on job productivity, while job burnout was shown to be a statistical significant mediator between the dimensions of a toxic workplace environment and job productivity. Finally, we concluded that organizations need to eradicate the factors of toxic workplace environments to ensure their prosperity and success. Practical Implications: This study encourages managers, leaders, and top management to adopt appropriate policies for enhancing employees’ productivity. Limitations: This study was conducted by using a cross-sectional research design. Future research aims to expand the study by using a longitudinal research design.

A Multistage Decision-Feedback Receiver Design for LTE Uplink in Mobile Time-Variant Environments

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Juinn-Horng Deng

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Single-carrier-frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA has recently become the preferred uplink transmission scheme in long-term evolution (LTE systems. Similar to orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA, SC-FDMA is highly sensitive to frequency offsets caused by oscillator inaccuracies and Doppler spread, which lead to intercarrier interference (ICI. This work proposes a multistage decision-feedback structure to mitigate the ICI effect and enhance system performance in time-variant environments. Based on the block-type pilot arrangement of the LTE uplink type 1 frame structure, the time-domain least squares (TDLS method and polynomial-based curve-fitting algorithm are employed for channel estimation. Instead of using a conventional equalizer, this work uses a group frequency-domain equalizer (GFDE to reduce computational complexity. Furthermore, this work utilizes a dual iterative structure of group parallel interference cancellation (GPIC and frequency-domain group parallel interference cancellation (FPIC to mitigate the ICI effect. Finally, to optimize system performance, this work applies a novel error-correction scheme. Simulation results demonstrate the bit error rate (BER performance is markedly superior to that of the conventional full-size receiver based on minimum mean square error (MMSE. This structure performs well and is a flexible choice in mobile environments using the SC-FDMA scheme.

Women and environment. A socio-ecological study for women on the reformation of the environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kappel, I.

2000-05-01

This study addresses the following issues: contributions to improve our environment; the impact of pollutants on our health; the pollution of food and water; water quality regulations. Protection of the environment is defined as the sum total of measures that safeguard woman's natural environment and maintain a biological equilibrium. The efficiency of technological solutions to protect the environment is strictly limited by ecological factors. The goal of environmental protection is to ensure the survival of womankind. Just like plants and animals, the human race is part of an ecosystem. Once this system is destroyed, there is nothing technical measures of environmental protection can do to reverse the process. Life on earth depends on the equilibrium between the oxygen produced by chlorophyllous plants and the oxygen consumed by human beings, animals and technological processes. My interviews with young women and children show that women could contribute very much to the melioration of the environment. The majority of women is trying to switch to non-chemically engineered products, which improves the quality of our water. Biological gardening is preferred by a small minority of women only, but many women take the separation of waste very seriously. However, individual actions can do little to solve the problem of pollution caused by road and air traffic. Life in the fast lane condemns us to the use of cars and airplanes. In the foreseeable future, this means more rather than less pollution. With genetic engineering developing at a breathtaking rate, it seems impossible to avoid a large-scale modification of our food and agricultural produce. So far, many Austrian women fail to appreciate the trend towards genetic manipulation. Neither on the farm nor in the food products themselves is it possible to distinguish genetically engineered innovations. However, behind the consumer's back, this revolution of the food industry is pushed through at an ever greater speed

Parenting style, the home environment, and screen time of 5-year-old children; the 'be active, eat right' study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

L. Veldhuis (Lydian); A. van Grieken (Amy); C.M. Renders (Carry); R.A. Hirasing (Remy); H. Raat (Hein)

2014-01-01

textabstractIntroduction: The global increase in childhood overweight and obesity has been ascribed partly to increases in children's screen time. Parents have a large influence on their children's screen time. Studies investigating parenting and early childhood screen time are limited. In this

Comprehensive Evaluation of Urban Sprawl on Ecological Environment Using Multi-Source Data: a Case Study of Beijing

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Hao; Ning, Xiaogang; Zhu, Weiwei; Li, Fei

2016-06-01

With urban population growing and urban sprawling, urban ecological environment problems appear. Study on spatiotemporal characteristics of urban sprawl and its impact on ecological environment is useful for ecological civilization construction. Although a lot of work has been conducted on urban sprawl and its impact on ecological environment, resolution of images to extract urban boundary was relatively coarse and most studies only focused on certain indicators of ecological environment, rather than comprehensive evaluation of urban ecological environmental impact. In this study, high-resolution remote sensing images of Beijing from aerial photography in 2002 and 2013 respectively are employed to extract urban boundary with manual interpretation. Fractional Vegetation Coverage (FVC), Water Density (WD), Impervious Surfaces Coverage (ISC), Net Primary Production (NPP), and Land Surface Temperature (LST) are adopted to represent ecological environment. The ecological environment indicators are measured with some general algorithms by combining Landsat images, GIS data and metrological data of 243 day, 2001 and 244 day, 2013. In order to evaluate the impact of urban sprawl on ecological environment, pseudo changes due to metrological variation and other noise in this time period are removed after images calibration. The impact of urban sprawl on ecological environment is evaluated at different scales of urban extent, Beijing ring road and watershed. Results show that Beijing had been undergoing a rapid urbanization from 2002 to 2013, with urban area increase from 600 square kilometres to 987 square kilometres. All ecological environment indicators except LST became terrible in urban sprawl region, with carbon reduction of approximate 40508 tons. The Beiyun River watershed of Beijing degraded seriously since ISC increased to 0.59. Gratifyingly, ecological environment indicators including NDVI, NPP, and LST inside of 4th Ring Road became well.

COMPREHENSIVE EVALUATION OF URBAN SPRAWL ON ECOLOGICAL ENVIRONMENT USING MULTI-SOURCE DATA: A CASE STUDY OF BEIJING

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

H. Wang

2016-06-01

Full Text Available With urban population growing and urban sprawling, urban ecological environment problems appear. Study on spatiotemporal characteristics of urban sprawl and its impact on ecological environment is useful for ecological civilization construction. Although a lot of work has been conducted on urban sprawl and its impact on ecological environment, resolution of images to extract urban boundary was relatively coarse and most studies only focused on certain indicators of ecological environment, rather than comprehensive evaluation of urban ecological environmental impact. In this study, high-resolution remote sensing images of Beijing from aerial photography in 2002 and 2013 respectively are employed to extract urban boundary with manual interpretation. Fractional Vegetation Coverage (FVC, Water Density (WD, Impervious Surfaces Coverage (ISC, Net Primary Production (NPP, and Land Surface Temperature (LST are adopted to represent ecological environment. The ecological environment indicators are measured with some general algorithms by combining Landsat images, GIS data and metrological data of 243 day, 2001 and 244 day, 2013. In order to evaluate the impact of urban sprawl on ecological environment, pseudo changes due to metrological variation and other noise in this time period are removed after images calibration. The impact of urban sprawl on ecological environment is evaluated at different scales of urban extent, Beijing ring road and watershed. Results show that Beijing had been undergoing a rapid urbanization from 2002 to 2013, with urban area increase from 600 square kilometres to 987 square kilometres. All ecological environment indicators except LST became terrible in urban sprawl region, with carbon reduction of approximate 40508 tons. The Beiyun River watershed of Beijing degraded seriously since ISC increased to 0.59. Gratifyingly, ecological environment indicators including NDVI, NPP, and LST inside of 4th Ring Road became well.

Persistent Factors Facilitating Excellence in Research Environments

Science.gov (United States)

Kalpazidou Schmidt, Evanthia; Graversen, Ebbe Krogh

2018-01-01

The study presented here identifies robust and time-invariant features that characterise dynamic and innovative research environments. It takes as its point of departure the results of an empirical study conducted in 2002 which identified the common characteristics of 15 dynamic and innovative public research environments, and focusses on their…

GDEVS/HLA Environment: A Time Management Improvement

OpenAIRE

Zacharewicz , Gregory; Giambiasi , Norbert; Frydman , Claudia

2005-01-01

International audience; This paper presents a distributed discrete event simulation environment based on GDEVS and HLA concepts. The chosen local simulation structure is “flatten” to reduce the exchange of messages between simulation components regarding with classical structure of DEVS simulators. Moreover, we present an integration method to create GDEVS models HLA-compliant; for that purpose, we introduce an effective algorithm of conservative synchronization using the HLA lookahead and so...

Time-dependent density functional theory for open systems with a positivity-preserving decomposition scheme for environment spectral functions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, RuLin; Zheng, Xiao; Kwok, YanHo; Xie, Hang; Chen, GuanHua; Yam, ChiYung

2015-01-01

Understanding electronic dynamics on material surfaces is fundamentally important for applications including nanoelectronics, inhomogeneous catalysis, and photovoltaics. Practical approaches based on time-dependent density functional theory for open systems have been developed to characterize the dissipative dynamics of electrons in bulk materials. The accuracy and reliability of such approaches depend critically on how the electronic structure and memory effects of surrounding material environment are accounted for. In this work, we develop a novel squared-Lorentzian decomposition scheme, which preserves the positive semi-definiteness of the environment spectral matrix. The resulting electronic dynamics is guaranteed to be both accurate and convergent even in the long-time limit. The long-time stability of electronic dynamics simulation is thus greatly improved within the current decomposition scheme. The validity and usefulness of our new approach are exemplified via two prototypical model systems: quasi-one-dimensional atomic chains and two-dimensional bilayer graphene

Time-dependent density functional theory for open systems with a positivity-preserving decomposition scheme for environment spectral functions.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, RuLin; Zheng, Xiao; Kwok, YanHo; Xie, Hang; Chen, GuanHua; Yam, ChiYung

2015-04-14

Understanding electronic dynamics on material surfaces is fundamentally important for applications including nanoelectronics, inhomogeneous catalysis, and photovoltaics. Practical approaches based on time-dependent density functional theory for open systems have been developed to characterize the dissipative dynamics of electrons in bulk materials. The accuracy and reliability of such approaches depend critically on how the electronic structure and memory effects of surrounding material environment are accounted for. In this work, we develop a novel squared-Lorentzian decomposition scheme, which preserves the positive semi-definiteness of the environment spectral matrix. The resulting electronic dynamics is guaranteed to be both accurate and convergent even in the long-time limit. The long-time stability of electronic dynamics simulation is thus greatly improved within the current decomposition scheme. The validity and usefulness of our new approach are exemplified via two prototypical model systems: quasi-one-dimensional atomic chains and two-dimensional bilayer graphene.

The quality of the outdoor environment influences childrens health -- a cross-sectional study of preschools.

Science.gov (United States)

Söderström, M; Boldemann, C; Sahlin, U; Mårtensson, F; Raustorp, A; Blennow, M

2013-01-01

To test how the quality of the outdoor environment of child day care centres (DCCs) influences children's health. The environment was assessed using the Outdoor Play Environmental Categories (OPEC) tool, time spent outdoors and physical activity as measured by pedometer. 172/253 (68%) of children aged 3.0-5.9 from nine DCCs participated in Southern Sweden. Health data collected were body mass index, waist circumference, saliva cortisol, length of night sleep during study, and symptoms and well-being which were scored (1-week diary - 121 parent responders). Also, parent-rated well-being and health of their child were scored (questionnaire, 132 parent responders). MANOVA, ANOVA and principal component analyses were performed to identify impacts of the outdoor environment on health. High-quality outdoor environment at DCCs is associated with several health aspects in children such as leaner body, longer night sleep, better well-being and higher mid-morning saliva cortisol levels. The quality of the outdoor environment at DCCs influenced the health and well-being of preschool children and should be given more attention among health care professionals and community planners. ©2012 The Author(s)/Acta Paediatrica ©2012 Foundation Acta Paediatrica.

Magnetic studies of dusts in the urban environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xie, S.

2000-12-01

Dusts are one of the major public health concerns in the urban environment. This study investigates the application of magnetic techniques in the studies of urban dust pollution. Measurements of magnetic properties, element concentrations, and the organic matter content were carried out on Liverpool (UK) street dust and/or Bootle (UK) deposited dust. Mixed dominant ferrimagnetic phases are found in Liverpool street dust although magnetite is probably a major one. The partial susceptibility technique is able to model the contributions of main magnetic components satisfactorily in Liverpool street dust. There are similar spatial distributions for some measurements, such as χLF and Pb, whilst there are different patterns for some measurements, such as χLF and the organic matter content. There are good linear correlations between the organic matter content and some magnetic mineral concentration-related parameters for < 1mm (bulk) samples. Among them, frequency dependent susceptibility (χFD) shows the highest correlation coefficient value. χFD percentage demonstrates a significant correlation with the organic matter content for size fraction and bulk samples. This suggests that re-entrainment of soil is probably a major source of the organic material present in street dust. The ratio χARM /SIRM shows a highly significant correlation with the organic matter content for <150μm fraction samples. The study demonstrates that the simple, rapid, and non-destructive magnetic measurements may be used as proxies for the organic matter content in street dust. Associations between magnetic properties and element concentrations are investigated by using correlation analysis and factor analysis, which may be a potential approach for source identification of magnetic material in the environment. The study suggests that ferrimagnetic minerals are the dominant magnetic component in Bootle dust samples. Both studied sites show similar magnetic properties, but they can be

Real-time tracking of visually attended objects in virtual environments and its application to LOD.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Sungkil; Kim, Gerard Jounghyun; Choi, Seungmoon

2009-01-01

This paper presents a real-time framework for computationally tracking objects visually attended by the user while navigating in interactive virtual environments. In addition to the conventional bottom-up (stimulus-driven) saliency map, the proposed framework uses top-down (goal-directed) contexts inferred from the user's spatial and temporal behaviors, and identifies the most plausibly attended objects among candidates in the object saliency map. The computational framework was implemented using GPU, exhibiting high computational performance adequate for interactive virtual environments. A user experiment was also conducted to evaluate the prediction accuracy of the tracking framework by comparing objects regarded as visually attended by the framework to actual human gaze collected with an eye tracker. The results indicated that the accuracy was in the level well supported by the theory of human cognition for visually identifying single and multiple attentive targets, especially owing to the addition of top-down contextual information. Finally, we demonstrate how the visual attention tracking framework can be applied to managing the level of details in virtual environments, without any hardware for head or eye tracking.

An Empirical Study Analyzing Job Productivity in Toxic Workplace Environments

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Amna Anjum

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Purpose: This empirical study aims to determine the effects of a toxic workplace environment, which can negatively impact the job productivity of an employee. Methodology: Three hundred questionnaires were randomly distributed among the staff members of seven private universities in Pakistan with a final response rate of 89%. For analysis purposes, AMOS 22 was used to study the direct and indirect effects of the toxic workplace environment on job productivity. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA was conducted to ensure the convergent and discriminant validity of the factors, while the Hayes mediation approach was used to verify the mediating role of job burnout between the four dimensions of toxic workplace environment and job productivity. A toxic workplace with multiple dimensions, such as workplace ostracism, workplace incivility, workplace harassment, and workplace bullying, was used in this study. Findings: By using the multiple statistical tools and techniques, it has been proven that ostracism, incivility, harassment, and bullying have direct negative significant effects on job productivity, while job burnout was shown to be a statistical significant mediator between the dimensions of a toxic workplace environment and job productivity. Finally, we concluded that organizations need to eradicate the factors of toxic workplace environments to ensure their prosperity and success. Practical Implications: This study encourages managers, leaders, and top management to adopt appropriate policies for enhancing employees’ productivity. Limitations: This study was conducted by using a cross-sectional research design. Future research aims to expand the study by using a longitudinal research design.

The relationship between the built environment and habitual levels of physical activity in South African older adults: a pilot study.

Science.gov (United States)

Kolbe-Alexander, Tracy L; Pacheco, Kyla; Tomaz, Simone A; Karpul, David; Lambert, Estelle V

2015-05-30

Previous research has shown that the built environment plays a role in habitual levels of physical activity (PA), however much of this research has been conducted in adults and higher income countries. The aim of this pilot study was to examine the strength of association between the built environment and PA in South African older adults. Participants were recruited (n = 44, mean age 65 ± 8.5 years) from two suburbs, representing either a high socioeconomic (HSA) or low socioeconomic area (LSA). Self-reported PA, and subjective assessments of neighborhood walkability (Neighborhood Environment Walkability Scale, NEWS) was measured. Participants wore Actigraph GT3x accelerometers to objectively quantify PA. HSA participants reported significantly more leisure-time and less transport PA. Objectively measured and self-reported MVPA was significantly higher in HSA participants. NEWS 'Land-use Mix' was negatively associated with leisure-time MVPA, (r(2) = 0.20; p leisure-time physical activity (r(2) = 0.33; p = 0.02). 'Safety from traffic' was inversely associated with travel-related PA (r(2) = 0.14, p = 0.01). None of the other NEWS scores were associated with PA for the total group. Leisure-time and transport-related PA was influenced by socio-economic status. Attributes of the perceived built environment associated with leisure-time and total MVPA in older South Africa adults were different in low- and high- income settings.

A methodology to establish a database to study gene environment interactions for childhood asthma

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

McCormick Jonathan

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Gene-environment interactions are likely to explain some of the heterogeneity in childhood asthma. Here, we describe the methodology and experiences in establishing a database for childhood asthma designed to study gene-environment interactions (PAGES - Paediatric Asthma Gene Environment Study. Methods Children with asthma and under the care of a respiratory paediatrician are being recruited from 15 hospitals between 2008 and 2011. An asthma questionnaire is completed and returned by post. At a routine clinic visit saliva is collected for DNA extraction. Detailed phenotyping in a proportion of children includes spirometry, bronchodilator response (BDR, skin prick reactivity, exhaled nitric oxide and salivary cotinine. Dietary and quality of life questionnaires are completed. Data are entered onto a purpose-built database. Results To date 1045 children have been invited to participate and data collected in 501 (48%. The mean age (SD of participants is 8.6 (3.9 years, 57% male. DNA has been collected in 436 children. Spirometry has been obtained in 172 children, mean % predicted (SD FEV1 97% (15 and median (IQR BDR is 5% (2, 9. There were differences in age, socioeconomic status, severity and %FEV1 between the different centres (p≤0.024. Reasons for non-participation included parents not having time to take part, children not attending clinics and, in a small proportion, refusal to take part. Conclusions It is feasible to establish a national database to study gene-environment interactions within an asthmatic paediatric population; there are barriers to participation and some different characteristics in individuals recruited from different centres. Recruitment to our study continues and is anticipated to extend current understanding of asthma heterogeneity.

Time delay estimation in a reverberant environment by low rate sampling of impulsive acoustic sources

KAUST Repository

Omer, Muhammad

2012-07-01

This paper presents a new method of time delay estimation (TDE) using low sample rates of an impulsive acoustic source in a room environment. The proposed method finds the time delay from the room impulse response (RIR) which makes it robust against room reverberations. The RIR is considered a sparse phenomenon and a recently proposed sparse signal reconstruction technique called orthogonal clustering (OC) is utilized for its estimation from the low rate sampled received signal. The arrival time of the direct path signal at a pair of microphones is identified from the estimated RIR and their difference yields the desired time delay. Low sampling rates reduce the hardware and computational complexity and decrease the communication between the microphones and the centralized location. The performance of the proposed technique is demonstrated by numerical simulations and experimental results. © 2012 IEEE.

A study of dynamical behavior of space environment

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, S. T.

1974-01-01

Studies have covered a wide range of problems in the space environment, such as the problems of the dynamical behavior of the thermosphere, hydromagnetic wave propagation in the ionosphere, and interplanetary space environment. The theories used to analyze these problems range from a continuum theory of magnetohydrodynamics to the kinetic theory of free molecular flow. This is because the problems encountered covered the entire range of the Knudsen number (i.e., the ratio of mean free path to the characteristic length). Significant results are summarized.

A Study on Efficient Robust Speech Recognition with Stochastic Dynamic Time Warping

OpenAIRE

孫, 喜浩

2014-01-01

In recent years, great progress has been made in automatic speech recognition (ASR) system. The hidden Markov model (HMM) and dynamic time warping (DTW) are the two main algorithms which have been widely applied to ASR system. Although, HMM technique achieves higher recognition accuracy in clear speech environment and noisy environment. It needs large-set of words and realizes the algorithm more complexly.Thus, more and more researchers have focused on DTW-based ASR system.Dynamic time warpin...

The Classroom Environment Study: Teaching for Learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Anderson, Lorin W.

1987-01-01

The IEA's Classroom Environment Study, implemented in grades 5-9 in 9 countries, examined effects on student outcomes of home, community, school, teacher, and student characteristics and classroom practices. Across countries, course content varied widely, but teachers relied on relatively few classroom behaviors. Student learning was affected by…

Study on the Advertising Management of Fashion Magazines Under the Media Environment. A Case Study of＂ViVi＂

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Linghu Kerui

2015-01-01

Magazine advertising as a major source of income, the quality of its operations is critical to the development and survival of the magazine. However, under the new media environment, traditional advertising management is no longer adapted to the times, media operators must find their own inadequacies of advertising business, through business innovation to gain a firm foothold in the competition torrent. This paper as the research object of ＂ViVi＇＂ , analyzes the advertising management and the problem under the new media environment. Finally, offer the suggestion for fashion magazines to better development advertising under the new media environment.

Person-Environment Fit Theory and Organizations: Commensurate Dimensions, Time Perspectives, and Mechanisms.

Science.gov (United States)

Caplan, Robert D.

1987-01-01

Describes person-environment (PE) theory, pertinent studies and experiments in improving PE fit, advocating research on role of past, present, and anticipated PE fit on well-being and employee behavior; outcomes when PE fit is changed by altering P, E, or some combination; and considering the agent of change. Emphasizes systemic properties of…

Rationale and study design of the Japan environment and children's study (JECS).

Science.gov (United States)

Kawamoto, Toshihiro; Nitta, Hiroshi; Murata, Katsuyuki; Toda, Eisaku; Tsukamoto, Naoya; Hasegawa, Manabu; Yamagata, Zentaro; Kayama, Fujio; Kishi, Reiko; Ohya, Yukihiro; Saito, Hirohisa; Sago, Haruhiko; Okuyama, Makiko; Ogata, Tsutomu; Yokoya, Susumu; Koresawa, Yuji; Shibata, Yasuyuki; Nakayama, Shoji; Michikawa, Takehiro; Takeuchi, Ayano; Satoh, Hiroshi

2014-01-10

There is global concern over significant threats from a wide variety of environmental hazards to which children face. Large-scale and long-term birth cohort studies are needed for better environmental management based on sound science. The primary objective of the Japan Environment and Children's Study (JECS), a nation-wide birth cohort study that started its recruitment in January 2011, is to elucidate environmental factors that affect children's health and development. Approximately 100,000 expecting mothers who live in designated study areas will be recruited over a 3-year period from January 2011. Participating children will be followed until they reach 13 years of age. Exposure to environmental factors will be assessed by chemical analyses of bio-specimens (blood, cord blood, urine, breast milk, and hair), household environment measurements, and computational simulations using monitoring data (e.g. ambient air quality monitoring) as well as questionnaires. JECS' priority outcomes include reproduction/pregnancy complications, congenital anomalies, neuropsychiatric disorders, immune system disorders, and metabolic/endocrine system disorders. Genetic factors, socioeconomic status, and lifestyle factors will also be examined as covariates and potential confounders. To maximize representativeness, we adopted provider-mediated community-based recruitment. Through JECS, chemical substances to which children are exposed during the fetal stage or early childhood will be identified. The JECS results will be translated to better risk assessment and management to provide healthy environment for next generations.

The world's largest study of the indoor environment in commercial kitchens

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Olesen, Bjarne W.; Simone, Angela

2013-01-01

The International Centre for Indoor Environment and Energy (ICIEE) at DTU Civil Engineering has conducted a study on the thermal conditions of the working environment in more than 100 commercial kitchens in the USA during summer and winter. The study shows that employees generally feel the working...

Optimal Release Time and Sensitivity Analysis Using a New NHPP Software Reliability Model with Probability of Fault Removal Subject to Operating Environments

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kwang Yoon Song

2018-05-01

Full Text Available With the latest technological developments, the software industry is at the center of the fourth industrial revolution. In today’s complex and rapidly changing environment, where software applications must be developed quickly and easily, software must be focused on rapidly changing information technology. The basic goal of software engineering is to produce high-quality software at low cost. However, because of the complexity of software systems, software development can be time consuming and expensive. Software reliability models (SRMs are used to estimate and predict the reliability, number of remaining faults, failure intensity, total and development cost, etc., of software. Additionally, it is very important to decide when, how, and at what cost to release the software to users. In this study, we propose a new nonhomogeneous Poisson process (NHPP SRM with a fault detection rate function affected by the probability of fault removal on failure subject to operating environments and discuss the optimal release time and software reliability with the new NHPP SRM. The example results show a good fit to the proposed model, and we propose an optimal release time for a given change in the proposed model.

Quantification of the effects of VRN1 and Ppd-D1 to predict spring wheat (Triticum aestivum) heading time across diverse environments

OpenAIRE

Zheng, Bangyou; Biddulph, Ben; Li, Dora; Kuchel, Haydn; Chapman, Scott

2013-01-01

Heading time is a major determinant of the adaptation of wheat to different environments, and is critical in minimizing risks of frost, heat, and drought on reproductive development. Given that major developmental genes are known in wheat, a process-based model, APSIM, was modified to incorporate gene effects into estimation of heading time, while minimizing degradation in the predictive capability of the model. Model parameters describing environment responses were replaced with functions of...

Family environment and emotional and behavioural symptoms in adolescent Cambodian Refugees: influence of time, gender, and acculturation.

Science.gov (United States)

Rousseau, Cécile; Drapeau, Aline; Platt, Robert

2004-01-01

For young refugees, the turmoil of adolescence is exacerbated by the acculturation process that sometimes places them at odds with the traditional culture of their ethnic group. The family environment can affect how adolescents cross that pivotal period. This paper focuses on the influence of family environment, gender and acculturation on the mental health of young refugees from early to mid-adolescence. Sixty-seven Cambodian adolescents were followed up from early to mid-adolescence. The effects of the youths' acculturation level, gender, and family environment and structure on internalising and externalising symptoms were analysed through linear regression analyses. Family conflict tends to increase from early to mid-adolescence. The association between family environment and mental health changes over time and, overall, family environment is associated with externalisation whereas gender, acculturation level, and family structure influence internalisation. Cambodian girls and boys cope differently with the challenges of adolescence in the host country, adopting traditional strategies and borrowing new ones from the host culture. Family therapy may help the parents and their adolescents address this process of change, which is both a source of vulnerability and of fulfilment, and enhances the ability of the family to negotiate between the cultural worlds of the home and of the host countries.

The relationship between individualized care and the practice environment: an international study.

Science.gov (United States)

Papastavrou, Evridiki; Acaroglu, Rengin; Sendir, Merdiye; Berg, Agneta; Efstathiou, Georgios; Idvall, Ewa; Kalafati, Maria; Katajisto, Jouko; Leino-Kilpi, Helena; Lemonidou, Chryssoula; da Luz, Maria Deolinda Antunes; Suhonen, Riitta

2015-01-01

Previous research studies have found that the better the quality of practice environments in hospitals, the better the outcomes for nurses and patients. Practice environment may influence nurses' ability to individualize care but the detailed relationship between individualized care and the professional practice environment has not been investigated widely. Some evidence exists about the association of practice environments with the level of individualization of nursing care, but this evidence is based on single national studies. The aim of this study was to determine whether nurses' views of their professional practice environment associate with their views of the level of care individualization in seven countries. This study had an international, multisite, prospective, cross-sectional, exploratory survey design. The study involved acute orthopedic and trauma surgical inpatient wards (n=91) in acute care hospitals (n=34) in seven countries, Cyprus, Finland, Greece, the State of Kansas, USA, Portugal, Sweden, and Turkey. Nurses (n=1163), registered or licensed practical, working in direct patient care, in orthopedic and trauma inpatient units in acute care hospitals in seven countries participated in the study. Self-administered questionnaires, including two instruments, the Revised Professional Practice Environment and the Individualized Care Scale-Nurse (Individualized Care Scale-Nurse A and B) were used for data collection. Data were analyzed statistically using descriptive statistics, simultaneous multiple regression analysis, and generalized linear model. Two regression models were applied to assess the predictive validity of the Revised Professional Practice Environment on the Individualized Care Scale-Nurse-A and B. The results showed that elements of the professional practice environment were associated with care individualization. Internal work motivation, cultural sensitivity, control over practice, teamwork, and staff relationship with physicians were

Dynamics of a physiologically structured population in a time-varying environment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Heilmann, Irene Louise Torpe; Starke, Jens; Andersen, Ken Haste

2016-01-01

Physiologically structured population models have become a valuable tool to model the dynamics of populations. In a stationary environment such models can exhibit equilibrium solutions as well as periodic solutions. However, for many organisms the environment is not stationary, but varies more...... or less regularly. In order to understand the interaction between an external environmental forcing and the internal dynamics in a population, we examine the response of a physiologically structured population model to a periodic variation in the food resource. We explore the addition of forcing in two...... cases: (A) where the population dynamics is in equilibrium in a stationary environment, and (B) where the population dynamics exhibits a periodic solution in a stationary environment. When forcing is applied in case A, the solutions are mainly periodic. In case B the forcing signal interacts...

Virtual Learning Environment in Continuing Education for Nursing in Oncology: an Experimental Study.

Science.gov (United States)

das Graças Silva Matsubara, Maria; De Domenico, Edvane Birelo Lopes

2016-12-01

Nurses working in oncology require continuing education and nowadays distance education is a possibility. To compare learning outcomes of the professionals participating in classroom learning versus distance learning; describing the sociodemographic characteristics and digital fluency of participants; comparing learning outcomes with independent variables; assessing the adequacy of educational practices in Virtual Environment Moodle Learning through the constructivist online learning environment survey. An experimental, randomized controlled study; conducted at the A C Camargo Cancer Center, located in São Paulo, SP, Brazil. The study included 97 nurses, with average training of 1 to 2 years. A control group (n = 44) had face to face training and the experiment group (n = 53) had training by distance learning, both with identical program content. The dependent variable was the result of learning, measured by applying a pre-assessment questionnaire and post-intervention for both groups. The sociodemographic and digital fluency data were uniform among the groups. The performance of both groups was statistically significant (p 0.005), and the control group had a greater advantage (40.4 %). Distance education has proven to be an effective alternative for training nurses, especially when they have more complex knowledge, more experience in the area and institutional time. Distance Education may be a possibility for the training of nurses for work in oncology. The association of age, training time and the institution, and the experience in Oncology interfered in the performance of both groups.

Constraints on the Dynamical Environments of Supermassive Black-Hole Binaries Using Pulsar-Timing Arrays.

Science.gov (United States)

Taylor, Stephen R; Simon, Joseph; Sampson, Laura

2017-05-05

We introduce a technique for gravitational-wave analysis, where Gaussian process regression is used to emulate the strain spectrum of a stochastic background by training on population-synthesis simulations. This leads to direct Bayesian inference on astrophysical parameters. For pulsar timing arrays specifically, we interpolate over the parameter space of supermassive black-hole binary environments, including three-body stellar scattering, and evolving orbital eccentricity. We illustrate our approach on mock data, and assess the prospects for inference with data similar to the NANOGrav 9-yr data release.

The Stress’ Management and Time Budget

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Maria Constantinescu

2007-05-01

Full Text Available The present study has as central objective the introduction of a succession of concrete findings, more precisely the spotlight of the relation between the time budget, stress and behavior (A or B in a military organization. The study's premise lays on the assertion that military environment, a petitioner environment takes to the growth of stress because of the negative disparity between the weight of time destined discharging job tasks and the weight of time earmarked relaxation and other needs.

Critical operations capabilities in a high cost environment: a multiple case study

Science.gov (United States)

Sansone, C.; Hilletofth, P.; Eriksson, D.

2018-04-01

Operations capabilities have been a popular research area for many years and several frameworks have been proposed in the literature. The current frameworks do not take specific contexts into consideration, for instance a high cost environment. This research gap is of particular interest since a manufacturing relocation process has been ongoing the last decades, leading to a huge amount of manufacturing being moved from high to low cost environments. The purpose of this study is to identify critical operations capabilities in a high cost environment. The two research questions were: What are the critical operations capabilities dimensions in a high cost environment? What are the critical operations capabilities in a high cost environment? A multiple case study was conducted and three Swedish manufacturing firms were selected. The study was based on the investigation of an existing framework of operations capabilities. The main dimensions of operations capabilities included in the framework were: cost, quality, delivery, flexibility, service, innovation and environment. Each of the dimensions included two or more operations capabilities. The findings confirmed the validity of the framework and its usefulness in a high cost environment and a new operations capability was revealed (employee flexibility).

Reconstructing the prevailing meteorological and optical environment during the time of the Titanic disaster

Science.gov (United States)

Basu, Sukanta; Nunalee, Christopher G.; He, Ping; Fiorino, Steven T.; Vorontsov, Mikhail A.

2014-10-01

In this paper, we reconstruct the meteorological and optical environment during the time of Titanic's disaster utilizing a state-of-the-art meteorological model, a ray-tracing code, and a unique public-domain dataset called the Twentieth Century Global Reanalysis. With high fidelity, our simulation captured the occurrence of an unusually high Arctic pressure system over the disaster site with calm wind. It also reproduced the movement of a polar cold front through the region bringing a rapid drop in air temperature. The simulated results also suggest that unusual meteorological conditions persisted several hours prior to the Titanic disaster which contributed to super-refraction and intermittent optical turbulence. However, according to the simulations, such anomalous conditions were not present at the time of the collision of Titanic with an iceberg.

Predictors for Chinese Students' Management of Study Environment in Online Groupwork

Science.gov (United States)

Du, Jianxia

2016-01-01

Management of the study environment is crucial to the learning process, and this management in an online class setting is even more challenging. This study investigates models of environmental structuring in online groupwork in China, as reported by 307 graduate students in 80 groups. At the group level, environment management was positively…

Personal Learning Environment – a Conceptual Study

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Herbert Mühlburger

2010-01-01

Full Text Available The influence of digital technologies as well as the World Wide Web on education rises dramatically. In former years Learning Management Systems (LMS were introduced on educational institutes to address the needs both their institutions and their lecturers. Nowadays a shift from an institution-centered approach to a learner-centered one becomes necessary to allow individuality through the learning process and to think about learning strategies in general. In this paper a first approach of a Personal Learning Environment (PLE is described. The technological concept is pointed out as well as a study about the graphical user-interface done at Graz University of Technology (TU Graz. It can be concluded that PLEs are the next generation environments, which help to improve the learning and teaching behavior

Capital Structure and Diversification Strategies - A Study of Swedish Real Estate Companies Over Time

OpenAIRE

Hertéus, Robin; Hilmgård, Simon

2016-01-01

This thesis’ aim is to study four Swedish real estate companies between the years 2006-2015 to see whether their capital structure and investment strategies have changed over the years. The data upon which the thesis is based, is gathered from the four companies’ annual reports. These years are of interest due to the changing economic environment, both in Sweden and the world, during this time period. The time period includes one financial crisis and a never before experienced interest rate e...

Medical symptoms among pilots associated with work and home environments: a 3-year cohort study.

Science.gov (United States)

Fu, Xi; Lindgren, Torsten; Norbäck, Dan

2015-05-01

To study associations between the cockpit environment, psychosocial work environment, home environment, and medical symptoms in a cohort of commercial pilots followed over 3 yr. A standardized questionnaire was mailed in February-March 1997 to all Stockholm-based pilots on duty in a Scandinavian flight company (N = 622); 577 (93%) participated. During this time smoking was allowed on long haul flights, but not on shorter flights. Smoking was prohibited on all flights after September 1997. The same questionnaire was sent to the cohort of 577 pilots in February-March 2000; 436 participated (76%). The questionnaire contained questions on symptoms, the psychosocial work environment, and the home environment. Associations were investigated using multiple logistic and ordinal regression. Symptoms were common, especially eye symptoms (38.5%), nose symptoms (39.9%), and tiredness (29.9%). Pilots exposed to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) on long haul flights had more eye symptoms (odds ratio = 1.91) and tiredness (odds ratio = 2.73). These symptoms were reduced when no longer exposed to ETS. Those who started working on long haul flights developed more nose symptoms. Pilots reporting increased work demands developed more nose and dermal symptoms and tiredness and those with decreased work control developed more eye symptoms. Pilots living in new houses, multifamily houses, and in recently painted homes reported more symptoms. Eliminating ETS exposure on board reduced medical symptoms. Further work to reduce ETS exposure globally is needed. Psychosocial aspects of the work environment for commercial pilots should be considered, as well as the home environment.

The Sun in Time: Activity and Environment

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Güdel Manuel

2007-12-01

Full Text Available The Sun's magnetic activity has steadily declined during its main-sequence life. While the solar photospheric luminosity was about 30% lower 4.6 Gyr ago when the Sun arrived on the main sequence compared to present-day levels, its faster rotation generated enhanced magnetic activity; magnetic heating processes in the chromosphere, the transition region, and the corona induced ultraviolet, extreme-ultraviolet, and X-ray emission about 10, 100, and 1000 times, respectively, the present-day levels, as inferred from young solar-analog stars. Also, the production rate of accelerated, high-energy particles was orders of magnitude higher than in present-day solar flares, and a much stronger wind escaped from the Sun, permeating the entire solar system. The consequences of the enhanced radiation and particle fluxes from the young Sun were potentially severe for the evolution of solar-system planets and moons. Interactions of high-energy radiation and the solar wind with upper planetary atmospheres may have led to the escape of important amounts of atmospheric constituents. The present dry atmosphere of Venus and the thin atmosphere of Mars may be a product of early irradiation and heating by solar high-energy radiation. High levels of magnetic activity are also inferred for the pre-main sequence Sun. At those stages, interactions of high-energy radiation and particles with the circumsolar disk in which planets eventually formed were important. Traces left in meteorites by energetic particles and anomalous isotopic abundance ratios in meteoritic inclusions may provide evidence for a highly active pre-main sequence Sun. The present article reviews these various issues related to the magnetic activity of the young Sun and the consequent interactions with its environment. The emphasis is on the phenomenology related to the production of high-energy photons and particles. Apart from the activity on the young Sun, systematic trends applicable to the entire

Constraining the timing of palaeosol development in Iranian arid environments using OSL dating

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rashidi, Zakieh; Sohbati, Reza; Karimi, Alireza

2018-01-01

are compared to investigate the degree of bleaching of quartz OSL in individual samples at the time of deposition. A comparison between the quartz OSL and K-feldspar IR50 ages shows that 12 out of 15 samples were probably well-bleached prior to deposition. The 17 OSL ages constrain at least four broad phases......The ages of palaeosols in arid environments in Iran are constrained using the optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) signal from quartz. The luminescence properties of quartz OSL and K-feldspar infrared stimulated luminescence (IRSL) at 50 °C (IR50) and post-IR IRSL at 290 °C (pIRIR290) signals...

Corrosion Mechanism and Bond-Strength Study on Galvanized Steel in Concrete Environment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kouril, M.; Pokorny, P.; Stoulil, J. [University of Chemistry and Technology, Prague (Czech Republic)

2017-04-15

Zinc coating on carbon steels give the higher corrosion resistance in chloride containing environments and in carbonated concrete. However, hydrogen evolution accompanies the corrosion of zinc in the initial activity in fresh concrete, which can lead to the formation of a porous structure at the reinforcement -concrete interface, which can potentially reduce the bond-strength of the reinforcement with concrete. The present study examines the mechanism of the corrosion of hot-dip galvanized steel in detail, as in the model pore solutions and real concrete. Calcium ion plays an important role in the corrosion mechanism, as it prevents the formation of passive layers on zinc at an elevated alkalinity. The corrosion rate of galvanized steel decreases in accordance with the exposure time; however, the reason for this is not the zinc transition into passivity, but the consumption of the less corrosion-resistant phases of hot-dip galvanizing in the concrete environment. The results on the electrochemical tests have been confirmed by the bond-strength test for the reinforcement of concrete and by evaluating the porosity of the cement adjacent to the reinforcement.

A Pilot Study: The UNC Passive Aerosol Sampler in a Working Environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Shirdel, Mariam; Wingfors, Håkan; Andersson, Britt M; Sommar, Johan N; Bergdahl, Ingvar A; Liljelind, Ingrid E

2017-10-01

Dust is generally sampled on a filter using air pumps, but passive sampling could be a cost-effective alternative. One promising passive sampler is the University of North Carolina passive aerosol sampler (UNC sampler). The aim of this study is to characterize and compare the UNC sampler's performance with PM10 and PM2.5 impactors in a working environment. Area sampling was carried out at different mining locations using UNC samplers in parallel with PM2.5 and PM10 impactors. Two different collection surfaces, polycarbonate (PC) and carbon tabs (CT), were employed for the UNC sampling. Sampling was carried out for 4-25 hours. The UNC samplers underestimated the concentrations compared to PM10 and PM2.5 impactor data. At the location with the highest aerosol concentration, the time-averaged mean of PC showed 24% and CT 35% of the impactor result for PM2.5. For PM10, it was 39% with PC and 58% with CT. Sample blank values differed between PC and CT. For PM2.5, PC blank values were ~7 times higher than those of CT, but only 1.8 times higher for PM10. The blank variations were larger for PC than for CT. Particle mass concentrations appear to be underestimated by the UNC sampler compared to impactors, more so for PM2.5 than for PM10. CT may be preferred as a collection surface because the blank values were lower and less variable than for PC. Future validations in the working environment should include respirable dust sampling. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Occupational Hygiene Society.

A Study on Students’ Views On Blended Learning Environment

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Meryem YILMAZ SOYLU

2006-07-01

Full Text Available In the 21st century, information and communication technologies (ICT have developed rapidly and influenced most of the fields and education as well. Then, ICT have offered a favorable environment for the development and use of various methods and tools. With the developments in technology, blended learning has gained considerable popularity in recent years. Together with the developments it brought along the description of particular forms of teaching with technology. Blended learning is defined simply as a learning environment that combines technology with face-to-face learning. In other words blended learning means using a variety of delivery methods to best meet the course objectives by combining face-to-face teaching in a traditional classroom with teaching online. This article examines students’ views on blended learning environment. The study was conducted on 64 students from Department of Computer Education and Instructional Technologies in 2005–2006 fall semester in Instructional Design and Authoring Languages in PC Environment at Hacettepe University. The results showed that the students enjoyed taking part in the blended learning environment. Students’ achievement levels and their frequency of participation to forum affected their views about blended learning environment. Face-to-face interaction in blended learning application had the highest score. This result demonstrated the importance of interaction and communication for the success of on-line learning.

The Effects of Metabolic Work Rate and Ambient Environment on Physiological Tolerance Times While Wearing Explosive and Chemical Personal Protective Equipment

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Joseph T. Costello

2015-01-01

Full Text Available This study evaluated the physiological tolerance times when wearing explosive and chemical (>35 kg personal protective equipment (PPE in simulated environmental extremes across a range of differing work intensities. Twelve healthy males undertook nine trials which involved walking on a treadmill at 2.5, 4, and 5.5 km·h−1 in the following environmental conditions, 21, 30, and 37°C wet bulb globe temperature (WBGT. Participants exercised for 60 min or until volitional fatigue, core temperature reached 39°C, or heart rate exceeded 90% of maximum. Tolerance time, core temperature, skin temperature, mean body temperature, heart rate, and body mass loss were measured. Exercise time was reduced in the higher WBGT environments (WBGT37 < WBGT30 < WBGT21; P < 0.05 and work intensities (5.5 < 4 < 2.5 km·h−1; P < 0.001. The majority of trials (85/108; 78.7% were terminated due to participant’s heart rate exceeding 90% of their maximum. A total of eight trials (7.4% lasted the full duration. Only nine (8.3% trials were terminated due to volitional fatigue and six (5.6% due to core temperatures in excess of 39°C. These results demonstrate that physiological tolerance times are influenced by the external environment and workload and that cardiovascular strain is the limiting factor to work tolerance when wearing this heavy multilayered PPE.

Investigating Factors That Influence Students' Management of Study Environment in Online Collaborative Groupwork

Science.gov (United States)

Du, Jianxia; Xu, Jianzhong; Fan, Xitao

2015-01-01

The present study examines empirical models of students' management of the learning environment in the context of online collaborative groupwork. Such environment management is an important component of students' overall self-regulated learning strategy for effective learning. Student- and group-level predictors for study environment management in…

Opinions of Pre-service Social Studies Teachers about Using Historical Environment

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Aslı AVCI AKÇALI

2016-09-01

Full Text Available This research aimed to identify the knowledge, attitude and skill levels of pre-service social studies teachers about using historical environment in teaching. Based on this aim it can be included in the scope of the survey research. Participants of the research which was realized in 2015-2016 academic year were 75 senior grade pre-service teachers in the department of social studies teaching of a university from the north of Turkey. In the research, qualitative approach was followed in data collection. A questionnaire including open-ended questions and semi-structured interview technique were used. The data were analyzed according to the content analysis method. As the result of the study, it was identified that pre-service social studies teachers had knowledge to a certain extent about the definition of the historical environment, elements of it, educational attainments it might provide and the method and techniques which can be applied to use it. Moreover, they did not have enough knowledge about the nearby historical environment. Furthermore, it was propounded that attitude levels of the participants about using historical environment in social studies teaching were high whereas the skill levels were low.

International study of objectively measured physical activity and sedentary time with body mass index and obesity

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dyck, D Van; Cerin, E; De Bourdeaudhuij, I

2015-01-01

Background:Physical activity (PA) has been consistently implicated in the etiology of obesity, whereas recent evidence on the importance of sedentary time remains inconsistent. Understanding of dose-response associations of PA and sedentary time with overweight and obesity in adults can be improved...... effects of study site and gender.Methods:Data from the International Physical activity and the Environment Network (IPEN) Adult study were used. IPEN Adult is an observational multi-country cross-sectional study, and 12 sites in 10 countries are included. Participants wore an accelerometer for seven...

The impacts of fracking on the environment: A total environmental study paradigm.

Science.gov (United States)

Meng, Qingmin

2017-02-15

Fracking has become a hot topic in the media and public discourse not only because of its economic benefit but also its environmental impacts. Recently, scientists have investigated the environmental impacts of fracking, and most studies focus on its air and ground water pollution. A systematic research structure and an overall evaluation of fracking's impacts on the environment are needed, because fracking does not only influence ground water but most environmental elements including but not limited to air, water, soil, rock, vegetation, wildlife, human, and many other ecosystem components. From the standpoint of the total environment, this communication assesses the overall impacts of fracking on the environment and then designs a total environmental study paradigm that effectively examines the complicated relationship among the total environment. Fracking dramatically changes the anthroposphere, which in turn significantly impacts the atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere, and biosphere through the significant input or output of water, air, liquid or solid waste disposals, and the complex chemical components in fracking fluids. The proposed total environment study paradigm of fracking can be applied to other significant human activities that have dramatic impacts on the environment, such as mountain top coal mining or oil sands for environmental studies. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Efficient Time-Domain Ray-Tracing Technique for the Analysis of Ultra-Wideband Indoor Environments including Lossy Materials and Multiple Effects

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F. Saez de Adana

2009-01-01

Full Text Available This paper presents an efficient application of the Time-Domain Uniform Theory of Diffraction (TD-UTD for the analysis of Ultra-Wideband (UWB mobile communications for indoor environments. The classical TD-UTD formulation is modified to include the contribution of lossy materials and multiple-ray interactions with the environment. The electromagnetic analysis is combined with a ray-tracing acceleration technique to treat realistic and complex environments. The validity of this method is tested with measurements performed inside the Polytechnic building of the University of Alcala and shows good performance of the model for the analysis of UWB propagation.

Rotating Arc Jet Test Model: Time-Accurate Trajectory Heat Flux Replication in a Ground Test Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Laub, Bernard; Grinstead, Jay; Dyakonov, Artem; Venkatapathy, Ethiraj

2011-01-01

Though arc jet testing has been the proven method employed for development testing and certification of TPS and TPS instrumentation, the operational aspects of arc jets limit testing to selected, but constant, conditions. Flight, on the other hand, produces timevarying entry conditions in which the heat flux increases, peaks, and recedes as a vehicle descends through an atmosphere. As a result, we are unable to "test as we fly." Attempts to replicate the time-dependent aerothermal environment of atmospheric entry by varying the arc jet facility operating conditions during a test have proven to be difficult, expensive, and only partially successful. A promising alternative is to rotate the test model exposed to a constant-condition arc jet flow to yield a time-varying test condition at a point on a test article (Fig. 1). The model shape and rotation rate can be engineered so that the heat flux at a point on the model replicates the predicted profile for a particular point on a flight vehicle. This simple concept will enable, for example, calibration of the TPS sensors on the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) aeroshell for anticipated flight environments.

Sociodemographic Moderators of Environment-Physical Activity Associations: Results From the International Prevalence Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Perez, Lilian G; Conway, Terry L; Bauman, Adrian; Kerr, Jacqueline; Elder, John P; Arredondo, Elva M; Sallis, James F

2018-01-01

Associations between the built environment and physical activity (PA) may vary by sociodemographic factors. However, such evidence from international studies is limited. This study tested the moderating effects of sociodemographic factors on associations between perceived environment and self-reported total PA among adults from the International Prevalence Study. Between 2002 and 2003, adults from 9 countries (N = 10,258) completed surveys assessing total PA (International Physical Activity Questionnaire-short), perceived environment, and sociodemographics (age, gender, and education). Total PA was dichotomized as meeting/not meeting (a) high PA levels and (b) minimum PA guidelines. Logistic models tested environment by sociodemographic interactions (24 total). Education and gender moderated the association between safety from crime and meeting high PA levels (interaction P environment-PA associations. International efforts to improve built environments are needed to promote health-enhancing PA and maintain environmental sustainability.

A User-Centric View of Intelligent Environments: User Expectations, User Experience and User Role in Building Intelligent Environments

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Eija Kaasinen

2012-12-01

Full Text Available Our everyday environments are gradually becoming intelligent, facilitated both by technological development and user activities. Although large-scale intelligent environments are still rare in actual everyday use, they have been studied for quite a long time, and several user studies have been carried out. In this paper, we present a user-centric view of intelligent environments based on published research results and our own experiences from user studies with concepts and prototypes. We analyze user acceptance and users’ expectations that affect users’ willingness to start using intelligent environments and to continue using them. We discuss user experience of interacting with intelligent environments where physical and virtual elements are intertwined. Finally, we touch on the role of users in shaping their own intelligent environments instead of just using ready-made environments. People are not merely “using” the intelligent environments but they live in them, and they experience the environments via embedded services and new interaction tools as well as the physical and social environment. Intelligent environments should provide emotional as well as instrumental value to the people who live in them, and the environments should be trustworthy and controllable both by regular users and occasional visitors. Understanding user expectations and user experience in intelligent environments, and providing users with tools to influence the environments can help to shape the vision of intelligent environments into meaningful, acceptable and appealing service entities for all those who live and act in them.

Augmented Virtuality: A Real-time Process for Presenting Real-world Visual Sensory Information in an Immersive Virtual Environment for Planetary Exploration

Science.gov (United States)

McFadden, D.; Tavakkoli, A.; Regenbrecht, J.; Wilson, B.

2017-12-01

Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) applications have recently seen an impressive growth, thanks to the advent of commercial Head Mounted Displays (HMDs). This new visualization era has opened the possibility of presenting researchers from multiple disciplines with data visualization techniques not possible via traditional 2D screens. In a purely VR environment researchers are presented with the visual data in a virtual environment, whereas in a purely AR application, a piece of virtual object is projected into the real world with which researchers could interact. There are several limitations to the purely VR or AR application when taken within the context of remote planetary exploration. For example, in a purely VR environment, contents of the planet surface (e.g. rocks, terrain, or other features) should be created off-line from a multitude of images using image processing techniques to generate 3D mesh data that will populate the virtual surface of the planet. This process usually takes a tremendous amount of computational resources and cannot be delivered in real-time. As an alternative, video frames may be superimposed on the virtual environment to save processing time. However, such rendered video frames will lack 3D visual information -i.e. depth information. In this paper, we present a technique to utilize a remotely situated robot's stereoscopic cameras to provide a live visual feed from the real world into the virtual environment in which planetary scientists are immersed. Moreover, the proposed technique will blend the virtual environment with the real world in such a way as to preserve both the depth and visual information from the real world while allowing for the sensation of immersion when the entire sequence is viewed via an HMD such as Oculus Rift. The figure shows the virtual environment with an overlay of the real-world stereoscopic video being presented in real-time into the virtual environment. Notice the preservation of the object

Psychosocial work environment and antidepressant medication: a prospective cohort study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Westergaard-Nielsen Niels

2009-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Adverse psychosocial work environments may lead to impaired mental health, but it is still a matter of conjecture if demonstrated associations are causal or biased. We aimed at verifying whether poor psychosocial working climate is related to increase of redeemed subscription of antidepressant medication. Methods Information on all antidepressant drugs (AD purchased at pharmacies from 1995 through 2006 was obtained for a cohort of 21,129 Danish public service workers that participated in work climate surveys carried out during the period 2002–2005. Individual self-reports of psychosocial factors at work including satisfaction with the work climate and dimensions of the job strain model were obtained by self-administered questionnaires (response rate 77,2%. Each employee was assigned the average score value for all employees at his/her managerial work unit [1094 units with an average of 18 employees (range 3–120]. The risk of first-time AD prescription during follow-up was examined according to level of satisfaction and psychosocial strain by Cox regression with adjustment for gender, age, marital status, occupational status and calendar year of the survey. Results The proportion of employees that received at least one prescription of ADs from 1995 through 2006 was 11.9% and prescriptions rose steadily from 1.50% in 1996 to the highest level 6.47% in 2006. ADs were prescribed more frequent among women, middle aged, employees with low occupational status and those living alone. None of the measured psychosocial work environment factors were consistently related to prescription of antidepressant drugs during the follow-up period. Conclusion The study does not indicate that a poor psychosocial work environment among public service employees is related to prescription of antidepressant pharmaceuticals. These findings need cautious interpretation because of lacking individual exposure assessments.

Accurate and Integrated Localization System for Indoor Environments Based on IEEE 802.11 Round-Trip Time Measurements

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alfonso Bahillo

2010-01-01

Full Text Available The presence of (Non line of Sight NLOS propagation paths has been considered the main drawback for localization schemes to estimate the position of a (Mobile User MU in an indoor environment. This paper presents a comprehensive wireless localization system based on (Round-Trip Time RTT measurements in an unmodified IEEE 802.11 wireless network. It overcomes the NLOS impairment by implementing the (Prior NLOS Measurements Correction PNMC technique. At first, the RTT measurements are performed with a novel electronic circuit avoiding the need for time synchronization between wireless nodes. At second, the distance between the MU and each reference device is estimated by using a simple linear regression function that best relates the RTT to the distance in (Line of Sight LOS. Assuming that LOS in an indoor environment is a simplification of reality hence, the PNMC technique is applied to correct the NLOS effect. At third, assuming known the position of the reference devices, a multilateration technique is implemented to obtain the MU position. Finally, the localization system coupled with measurements demonstrates that the system outperforms the conventional time-based indoor localization schemes without using any tracking technique such as Kalman filters or Bayesian methods.

Chandra X-ray Time-Domain Study of Alpha Centauri AB, Procyon, and their Environs

Science.gov (United States)

Ayres, Thomas R.

2018-06-01

For more than a decade, Chandra X-ray Observatory has been monitoring the central AB binary (G2V+K1V) of the α Centauri triple system with semi-annual pointings, using the High-Resolution Camera. This study has been extended in recent years to the mid-F subgiant, Procyon. The main objective is to follow the coronal (T~1MK) activity variations of the three stars, analogous to the Sun's 11-year sunspot cycle. Tentative periods of 20 yr and 8 yr have been deduced for α Cen A and B, respectively; but so far Procyon has shown only a slow, very modest decline in count rate, which could well reflect a slight instrumental degradation rather than intrinsic behavior. The negligible high-energy variability of Procyon sits in stark contrast to the dramatic factor of several to ten changes in the X-ray luminosities of α Cen AB and the Sun over their respective cycles. Further, although sunlike α Cen A has been observed by successive generations of X-ray observatories for nearly four decades, albeit sporadically, there are key gaps in the coverage that affect the determination of the cycle period. In fact, the most recent pointings suggest a downturn in A's count rate that might be signaling a shorter, more solar-like cycle following a delayed minimum in the 2005--2010 time frame (perhaps an exaggerated version of the extended solar minimum between recent Cycles 23 and 24). Beyond the coronal cycles of the three stars, the sequence of periodic X-ray images represents a unique time-domain history concerning steady as well as variable sources in the two 30'x30' fields. The most conspicuous of the variable objects -- in the α Cen field -- will be described here.

An Innovative Real-time Environment for Unified Deterministic and Stochastic Groundwater Modeling

Science.gov (United States)

Li, S.; Liu, Q.

2003-12-01

Despite an exponential growth of computational capability over the last two decades-one that has allowed computational science and engineering to become a unique, powerful tool for scientific discovery-the extreme cost of groundwater modeling continues to limit its use. This occurs primarily because the modeling paradigm that has been employed for decades limits our ability to take full advantage of recent developments in computer, communication, graphic, and visualization technologies. In this presentation we introduce an innovative and sophisticated computational environment for groundwater modeling that promises to eliminate the current bottleneck and greatly expand the utility of computational tools for scientific discovery related to groundwater. Based on a set of efficient and robust computational algorithms, the new software system, called Interactive Groundwater (IGW), allows simulating complex flow and transport in aquifers subject to both systematic and "randomly" varying stresses and geological and chemical heterogeneity. Adopting a new paradigm, IGW eliminates a major bottleneck inherent in the traditional fragmented modeling technologies and enables real-time modeling, real-time visualization, real-time analysis, and real-time presentation. IGW functions as a "numerical laboratory" in which a researcher can freely explore in real-time: creating visually an aquifer of desired configurations, interactively imposing desired stresses, and then immediately investigating and visualizing the geology and the processes of flow and contaminant transport and transformation. A modeler can pause to edit at any time and interact on-line with any aspects (e.g., conceptual and numerical representation, boundary conditions, model solvers, and ways of visualization and analysis) of the integrated modeling process; he/she can initiate or stop, whenever needed, particle tracking, plume modeling, subscale modeling, cross-sectional modeling, stochastic modeling, monitoring

RESIDENCE TIMES OF PARTICLES IN DIFFUSIVE PROTOPLANETARY DISK ENVIRONMENTS. I. VERTICAL MOTIONS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ciesla, F. J.

2010-01-01

The chemical and physical evolution of primitive materials in protoplanetary disks are determined by the types of environments they are exposed to and their residence times within each environment. Here, a method for calculating representative paths of materials in diffusive protoplanetary disks is developed and applied to understanding how the vertical trajectories that particles take impact their overall evolution. The methods are general enough to be applied to disks with uniform diffusivity, the so-called constant-α cases, and disks with a spatially varying diffusivity, such as expected in 'layered-disks'. The average long-term dynamical evolution of small particles and gaseous molecules is independent of the specific form of the diffusivity in that they spend comparable fractions of their lifetimes at different heights in the disk. However, the paths that individual particles and molecules take depend strongly on the form of the diffusivity leading to a different range of behavior of particles in terms of deviations from the mean. As temperatures, gas densities, chemical abundances, and photon fluxes will vary with height in protoplanetary disks, the different paths taken by primitive materials will lead to differences in their chemical and physical evolution. Examples of differences in gas phase chemistry and photochemistry are explored here. The methods outlined here provide a powerful tool that can be integrated with chemical models to understand the formation and evolution of primitive materials in protoplanetary disks on timescales of 10 5 -10 6 years.

Environment studies in the Olkiluoto area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ikonen, A.T.K.; Kaapu, J.; Lehtonen, K.; Mattila, J.; Raeisaenen, R.; Turkki, H.; Sauvonsaari, J.

2003-04-01

In the report, different aspects of environmental status of the Olkiluoto area, an island with the near-sea in the Finnish coast of the Baltic Sea, are described by five topical papers. Regarding animal-life, Olkiluoto represents a typical seashore area of southwestern Finland dominated by rocky hills and commercial forests. In the literature and interview study of local hunters, locally dominant mammal and bird species are identified. No threatened or endangered mammals species were found on the island, and only few bird species in Olkiluoto have a high conservation value. The sea area off Olkiluoto is rather shallow and the water mixing conditions are favourable. The quality and biological production of the water are affected by the general state of the Bothian Sea, the loading brought by the Eurajoki and Lapinjoki Rivers and local wastewaters. Also the cooling waters from the local nuclear power plant impact the sea environment. The bottom vegetation varies from an algae-dominant to a vascular-plantdominant community. Amount of benthic fauna and its species composition has varied considerably, due to both variations of the quality of the bottom and eutrophication. The Eurajoki River represents the second largest river system in southwestern Finland. At its upper reaches, the river is classified as clean and suitable for recreational use. Intermittently, additional waters rich in nutrients flow into the river from ditches and tributaries. Diffuse pollution and the wastewaters of riverside municipalities and industry affect on the water of the lower course, where it is only mildly contaminated, hygienically fairly good and satisfactory for recreational use. The benthic fauna of the river is composed of oligochaetes, clams, leeches and larvae. The fish reserve is versatile in places due to stocking. The Eurajoensalmi Strait, the inlet of the river, is a transitional zone between the river and further sea environments. In the offshore area facing Olkiluoto, there

Individual protection equipments in nuclear environment: irradiation time influence

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schieber, C.

1994-09-01

This study allowed to show that influence evaluation of diverse protection suits on the intervention times was undissociable of ergonomical characteristics of the tasks to be done. 15 tabs., 3 figs., 9 appendixes

IGEMS: The Consortium on Interplay of Genes and Environment Across Multiple Studies

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pedersen, Nancy L; Christensen, Kaare; Dahl, Anna K

2013-01-01

The Interplay of Genes and Environment across Multiple Studies (IGEMS) group is a consortium of eight longitudinal twin studies established to explore the nature of social context effects and gene-environment interplay in late-life functioning. The resulting analysis of the combined data from ove...

Therapeutic Assessment of Complex Trauma: A Single-Case Time-Series Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Tarocchi, Anna; Aschieri, Filippo; Fantini, Francesca; Smith, Justin D

2013-06-01

The cumulative effect of repeated traumatic experiences in early childhood incrementally increases the risk of adjustment problems later in life. Surviving traumatic environments can lead to the development of an interrelated constellation of emotional and interpersonal symptoms termed complex posttraumatic stress disorder (CPTSD). Effective treatment of trauma begins with a multimethod psychological assessment and requires the use of several evidence-based therapeutic processes, including establishing a safe therapeutic environment, reprocessing the trauma, constructing a new narrative, and managing emotional dysregulation. Therapeutic Assessment (TA) is a semistructured, brief intervention that uses psychological testing to promote positive change. The case study of Kelly, a middle-aged woman with a history of repeated interpersonal trauma, illustrates delivery of the TA model for CPTSD. Results of this single-case time-series experiment indicate statistically significant symptom improvement as a result of participating in TA. We discuss the implications of these findings for assessing and treating trauma-related concerns, such as CPTSD.

Study on the Key Indexes of Carambola Quality Safety under Logistics Environment of Different Temperature

OpenAIRE

Lei Wang; Ruhe Xie; Yifeng Zou

2015-01-01

By using layered factor analysis method, the key indexes of quality safety of Carambola are determined. The whole logistics process from picking, storing, transportation to selling is simulated in the experiment. At the same time, the key indexes are detected and analyzed under different temperature in logistics environment. The results indicate that both temperature and package have certain effect on the quality of Carambola. As shown in the study, the following conclusions are made. The tem...

Learning Environment, Preparedness and Satisfaction in Osteopathy in Europe: The PreSS Study.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Emanuele Luciani

Full Text Available 1 to assess the preparedness to practice and satisfaction in learning environment amongst new graduates from European osteopathic institutions; 2 to compare the results of preparedness to practice and satisfaction in learning environment between and within countries where osteopathy is regulated and where regulation is still to be achieved; 3 to identify possible correlations between learning environment and preparedness to practice.Osteopathic education providers of full-time education located in Europe were enrolled, and their final year students were contacted to complete a survey. Measures used were: Dundee Ready Educational Environment Measure (DREEM, the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC and a demographic questionnaire. Scores were compared across institutions using one-way ANOVA and generalised linear model.Nine European osteopathic education institutions participated in the study (4 located in Italy, 2 in the UK, 1 in France, 1 in Belgium and 1 in the Netherlands and 243 (77% of their final-year students completed the survey. The DREEM total score mean was 121.4 (SEM: 1.66 whilst the AAMC was 17.58 (SEM:0.35. A generalised linear model found a significant association between not-regulated countries and total score as well as subscales DREEM scores (p<0.001. Learning environment and preparedness to practice were significantly positively correlated (r=0.76; p<0.01.A perceived higher level of preparedness and satisfaction was found amongst students from osteopathic institutions located in countries without regulation compared to those located in countries where osteopathy is regulated; however, all institutions obtained a 'more positive than negative' result. Moreover, in general, cohorts with fewer than 20 students scored significantly higher compared to larger student cohorts. Finally, an overall positive correlation between students' preparedness and satisfaction were found across all institutions recruited.

Understanding time use, stress and recovery practices among early career physicians: an exploratory study.

Science.gov (United States)

Cranley, Nicole M; Cunningham, Christopher J L; Panda, Mukta

2016-01-01

Early career physicians (ECPs) work an average of 80 h per week, and at times may approach 24 continuous hours working. These hours, combined with a stressful work environment, and an inability to physically and psychologically detach from work make ECPs likely to experience burnout and other negative health-related consequences. This study provides insight into the stress and recovery challenges faced by ECPs in a typical hospital environment. Rich qualitative and quantitative data were gathered from participants regarding daily time usage, and recovery practices and needs. ECPs report longer working hours, less leisure time and shorter amounts of sleep than average working adults. ECPs do not participate in many resource-replenishing activities while at work, and when out of work, they tend to participate in more passive than active forms of recovery. Resource-draining activities were identified as requiring much of ECP's nonwork time, further limiting recovery. The prevention of burnout and other negative health consequences among ECPs requires the building of a workplace and educational culture that supports regular resource replenishment. This includes the need for a curriculum of medical education that teaches ECPs to identify the signs of stress and recovery needs, and how to effectively address these needs.

Learning Environment, Preparedness and Satisfaction in Osteopathy in Europe: The PreSS Study

Science.gov (United States)

Luciani, Emanuele; van Dun, Patrick L. S.; Esteves, Jorge Eduardo; Lunghi, Christian; Petracca, Marco; Papa, Liria; Merdy, Olivier; Jäkel, Anne; Cerritelli, Francesco

2015-01-01

Objective 1) to assess the preparedness to practice and satisfaction in learning environment amongst new graduates from European osteopathic institutions; 2) to compare the results of preparedness to practice and satisfaction in learning environment between and within countries where osteopathy is regulated and where regulation is still to be achieved; 3) to identify possible correlations between learning environment and preparedness to practice. Method Osteopathic education providers of full-time education located in Europe were enrolled, and their final year students were contacted to complete a survey. Measures used were: Dundee Ready Educational Environment Measure (DREEM), the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) and a demographic questionnaire. Scores were compared across institutions using one-way ANOVA and generalised linear model. Results Nine European osteopathic education institutions participated in the study (4 located in Italy, 2 in the UK, 1 in France, 1 in Belgium and 1 in the Netherlands) and 243 (77%) of their final-year students completed the survey. The DREEM total score mean was 121.4 (SEM: 1.66) whilst the AAMC was 17.58 (SEM:0.35). A generalised linear model found a significant association between not-regulated countries and total score as well as subscales DREEM scores (posteopathy is regulated; however, all institutions obtained a ‘more positive than negative’ result. Moreover, in general, cohorts with fewer than 20 students scored significantly higher compared to larger student cohorts. Finally, an overall positive correlation between students’ preparedness and satisfaction were found across all institutions recruited. PMID:26103514

Food Environment and Weight Change: Does Residential Mobility Matter?: The Diabetes Study of Northern California (DISTANCE).

Science.gov (United States)

Laraia, Barbara A; Downing, Janelle M; Zhang, Y Tara; Dow, William H; Kelly, Maggi; Blanchard, Samuel D; Adler, Nancy; Schillinger, Dean; Moffet, Howard; Warton, E Margaret; Karter, Andrew J

2017-05-01

Associations between neighborhood food environment and adult body mass index (BMI; weight (kg)/height (m)2) derived using cross-sectional or longitudinal random-effects models may be biased due to unmeasured confounding and measurement and methodological limitations. In this study, we assessed the within-individual association between change in food environment from 2006 to 2011 and change in BMI among adults with type 2 diabetes using clinical data from the Kaiser Permanente Diabetes Registry collected from 2007 to 2011. Healthy food environment was measured using the kernel density of healthful food venues. Fixed-effects models with a 1-year-lagged BMI were estimated. Separate models were fitted for persons who moved and those who did not. Sensitivity analysis using different lag times and kernel density bandwidths were tested to establish the consistency of findings. On average, patients lost 1 pound (0.45 kg) for each standard-deviation improvement in their food environment. This relationship held for persons who remained in the same location throughout the 5-year study period but not among persons who moved. Proximity to food venues that promote nutritious foods alone may not translate into clinically meaningful diet-related health changes. Community-level policies for improving the food environment need multifaceted strategies to invoke clinically meaningful change in BMI among adult patients with diabetes. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Understanding and Visualizing Multitasking and Task Switching Activities: A Time Motion Study to Capture Nursing Workflow.

Science.gov (United States)

Yen, Po-Yin; Kelley, Marjorie; Lopetegui, Marcelo; Rosado, Amber L; Migliore, Elaina M; Chipps, Esther M; Buck, Jacalyn

2016-01-01

A fundamental understanding of multitasking within nursing workflow is important in today's dynamic and complex healthcare environment. We conducted a time motion study to understand nursing workflow, specifically multitasking and task switching activities. We used TimeCaT, a comprehensive electronic time capture tool, to capture observational data. We established inter-observer reliability prior to data collection. We completed 56 hours of observation of 10 registered nurses. We found, on average, nurses had 124 communications and 208 hands-on tasks per 4-hour block of time. They multitasked (having communication and hands-on tasks simultaneously) 131 times, representing 39.48% of all times; the total multitasking duration ranges from 14.6 minutes to 109 minutes, 44.98 minutes (18.63%) on average. We also reviewed workflow visualization to uncover the multitasking events. Our study design and methods provide a practical and reliable approach to conducting and analyzing time motion studies from both quantitative and qualitative perspectives.

Benefitting from virtual customer environments: An empirical study of customer engagement

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Verhagen, T.; Swen, E; Feldberg, J.F.M.; Merikivi, J.

2015-01-01

Customer engagement has been labeled as a prerequisite for the success of virtual customer environments. A key challenge for organizations serving their customers via these environments is how to stimulate customer engagement. This study is among the first to shed light on this issue by examining

CASE STUDY: Chile — Health, environment, and indigenous culture ...

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

2011-01-06

Jan 6, 2011 ... CASE STUDY: Chile — Health, environment, and indigenous culture .... For example, the National Corporation for Indigenous Development (CONADI) ... Institute for Agriculture Development (INDAP), and applied research on ...

An ageing study of resistive micromegas for the HL-LHC environment

CERN Document Server

Galan, J.; Ferrer-Ribas, E.; Giganon, A.; Giomataris, I.; Herlant, S.; Jeanneau, F.; Peyaud, A.; Schune, Ph; Alexopoulos, T.; Byszewski, M.; Iakovidis, G.; Iengo, P.; Ntekas, K.; Leontsinis, S.; de Oliveira, R.; Tsipolitis, Y.; Wotschack, J.

2013-01-01

Resistive-anode micromegas detectors are in development since several years, in an effort to solve the problem of sparks when working at high flux and high ionizing radiation like in the HL-LHC (up to ten times the luminosity of the LHC). They have been chosen as one of the technologies that will be part of the ATLAS New Small Wheel project (forward muon system). An ageing study is mandatory to assess their capabilities to handle the HL-LHC environment on a long-term period. A prototype has been exposed to several types of irradiation (X-rays, cold neutrons, $^{60}$Co gammas and alphas) above the equivalent charge produced at the detector in five HL-LHC running years without showing any degradation of the performances in terms of gain and energy resolution. This study has been completed with the characterization of the tracking performances in terms of efficiency and spatial resolution, verifying the compatibility of results obtained with both resistive micromegas detectors, irradiated and non-irradiated one.

Rationale and study design of the Japan environment and children’s study (JECS)

Science.gov (United States)

2014-01-01

Background There is global concern over significant threats from a wide variety of environmental hazards to which children face. Large-scale and long-term birth cohort studies are needed for better environmental management based on sound science. The primary objective of the Japan Environment and Children’s Study (JECS), a nation-wide birth cohort study that started its recruitment in January 2011, is to elucidate environmental factors that affect children’s health and development. Methods/Design Approximately 100,000 expecting mothers who live in designated study areas will be recruited over a 3-year period from January 2011. Participating children will be followed until they reach 13 years of age. Exposure to environmental factors will be assessed by chemical analyses of bio-specimens (blood, cord blood, urine, breast milk, and hair), household environment measurements, and computational simulations using monitoring data (e.g. ambient air quality monitoring) as well as questionnaires. JECS’ priority outcomes include reproduction/pregnancy complications, congenital anomalies, neuropsychiatric disorders, immune system disorders, and metabolic/endocrine system disorders. Genetic factors, socioeconomic status, and lifestyle factors will also be examined as covariates and potential confounders. To maximize representativeness, we adopted provider-mediated community-based recruitment. Discussion Through JECS, chemical substances to which children are exposed during the fetal stage or early childhood will be identified. The JECS results will be translated to better risk assessment and management to provide healthy environment for next generations. PMID:24410977

Real-Time fusion of visual images and laser data images for safe navigation in outdoor environments

OpenAIRE

García-Alegre Sánchez, María C.; Martín, David; Guinea García-Alegre, Domingo M.; Guinea Díaz, Domingo

2011-01-01

[EN]In recent years, two dimensional laser range finders mounted on vehicles is becoming a fruitful solution to achieve safety and environment recognition requirements (Keicher & Seufert, 2000), (Stentz et al., 2002), (DARPA, 2007). They provide real-time accurate range measurements in large angular fields at a fixed height above the ground plane, and enable robots and vehicles to perform more confidently a variety of tasks by fusing images from visual cameras with range data (...

The Effects of Exercising in Different Natural Environments on Psycho-Physiological Outcomes in Post-Menopausal Women: A Simulation Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mathew P. White

2015-09-01

Full Text Available The current study examined potential psycho-physiological benefits from exercising in simulated natural environments among a sample of post-menopausal women using a laboratory based protocol. Participants cycled on a stationary exercise bike for 15 min while facing either a blank wall (Control or while watching one of three videos: Urban (Grey, Countryside (Green, Coast (Blue. Blood pressure, heart rate and affective responses were measured pre-post. Heart rate, affect, perceived exertion and time perception were also measured at 5, 10 and 15 min during exercise. Experience evaluation was measured at the end. Replicating most earlier findings, affective, but not physiological, outcomes were more positive for exercise in the simulated Green and, for the first time, Blue environment, compared to Control. Moreover, only the simulated Blue environment was associated with shorter perceived exercise duration than Control and participants were most willing to repeat exercise in the Blue setting. The current research extended earlier work by exploring the effects of “blue exercise” and by using a demographic with relatively low average levels of physical activity. That this sample of postmenopausal women were most willing to repeat a bout of exercise in a simulated Blue environment may be important for physical activity promotion in this cohort.

The Effects of Exercising in Different Natural Environments on Psycho-Physiological Outcomes in Post-Menopausal Women: A Simulation Study

Science.gov (United States)

White, Mathew P.; Pahl, Sabine; Ashbullby, Katherine J.; Burton, Francesca; Depledge, Michael H.

2015-01-01

The current study examined potential psycho-physiological benefits from exercising in simulated natural environments among a sample of post-menopausal women using a laboratory based protocol. Participants cycled on a stationary exercise bike for 15 min while facing either a blank wall (Control) or while watching one of three videos: Urban (Grey), Countryside (Green), Coast (Blue). Blood pressure, heart rate and affective responses were measured pre-post. Heart rate, affect, perceived exertion and time perception were also measured at 5, 10 and 15 min during exercise. Experience evaluation was measured at the end. Replicating most earlier findings, affective, but not physiological, outcomes were more positive for exercise in the simulated Green and, for the first time, Blue environment, compared to Control. Moreover, only the simulated Blue environment was associated with shorter perceived exercise duration than Control and participants were most willing to repeat exercise in the Blue setting. The current research extended earlier work by exploring the effects of “blue exercise” and by using a demographic with relatively low average levels of physical activity. That this sample of postmenopausal women were most willing to repeat a bout of exercise in a simulated Blue environment may be important for physical activity promotion in this cohort. PMID:26404351

Parental employment and work-family stress: Associations with family food environments

Science.gov (United States)

Bauer, Katherine W.; Hearst, Mary O.; Escoto, Kamisha; Berge, Jerica M.; Neumark-Sztainer, Dianne

2013-01-01

Parental employment provides many benefits to children's health. However, an increasing number of studies have observed associations between mothers' full-time employment and less healthful family food environments. Few studies have examined other ways in which parental employment may be associated with the family food environment, including the role of fathers' employment and parents' stress balancing work and home obligations. This study utilized data from Project F-EAT, a population-based study of a socio-demographically diverse sample of 3709 parents of adolescents living in a metropolitan area in the Midwestern United States, to examine cross-sectional associations between mothers' and fathers' employment status and parents' work-life stress with multiple aspects of the family food environment. Among parents participating in Project F-EAT, 64% of fathers and 46% of mothers were full-time employed, while 25% of fathers and 37% of mothers were not employed. Results showed that full-time employed mothers reported fewer family meals, less frequent encouragement of their adolescents' healthful eating, lower fruit and vegetable intake, and less time spent on food preparation, compared to part-time and not-employed mothers, after adjusting for socio-demographics. Full-time employed fathers reported significantly fewer hours of food preparation; no other associations were seen between fathers' employment status and characteristics of the family food environment. In contrast, higher work-life stress among both parents was associated with less healthful family food environment characteristics including less frequent family meals and more frequent sugar-sweetened beverage and fast food consumption by parents. Among dual-parent families, taking into account the employment characteristics of the other parent did not substantially alter the relationships between work-life stress and family food environment characteristics. While parental employment is beneficial for many

Parental employment and work-family stress: associations with family food environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Bauer, Katherine W; Hearst, Mary O; Escoto, Kamisha; Berge, Jerica M; Neumark-Sztainer, Dianne

2012-08-01

Parental employment provides many benefits to children's health. However, an increasing number of studies have observed associations between mothers' full-time employment and less healthful family food environments. Few studies have examined other ways in which parental employment may be associated with the family food environment, including the role of fathers' employment and parents' stress balancing work and home obligations. This study utilized data from Project F-EAT, a population-based study of a socio-demographically diverse sample of 3709 parents of adolescents living in a metropolitan area in the Midwestern United States, to examine cross-sectional associations between mothers' and fathers' employment status and parents' work-life stress with multiple aspects of the family food environment. Among parents participating in Project F-EAT, 64% of fathers and 46% of mothers were full-time employed, while 25% of fathers and 37% of mothers were not employed. Results showed that full-time employed mothers reported fewer family meals, less frequent encouragement of their adolescents' healthful eating, lower fruit and vegetable intake, and less time spent on food preparation, compared to part-time and not-employed mothers, after adjusting for socio-demographics. Full-time employed fathers reported significantly fewer hours of food preparation; no other associations were seen between fathers' employment status and characteristics of the family food environment. In contrast, higher work-life stress among both parents was associated with less healthful family food environment characteristics including less frequent family meals and more frequent sugar-sweetened beverage and fast food consumption by parents. Among dual-parent families, taking into account the employment characteristics of the other parent did not substantially alter the relationships between work-life stress and family food environment characteristics. While parental employment is beneficial for many

Controlled environment experiments in pollution studies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zeitzschel, B

1978-12-01

In the last decade society has become aware of the increasing negative effects of human waste products introduced to the oceans. There is proof evidence, at least for some areas of the world ocean, that the marine environment is seriously in danger. The scientific community is very concerned, arguing that there is an urgent need for basic research in this field because too little is known on the harzardous effects of man-made pollutants on the structure and functioning of marine ecosystems. There are two wanys to perform experiments under conrolled environment conditions: (1) in the laboratory; (2) in in-situ experiments with enclosures. Most laboratory experiments are designed to study the influence and the tolerance spectrum of specific pollutants, e.g. copper or DDT, on any specific organism, e.g. a mussel or a fish. In these experiments it is fairly difficult to simulate natural conditions. The concentrations of the pollutants are generally fairly high, often several orders of magnitude higher than in the ocean. It is questionable if the results from these experiments can be extrapolated to nature. In the second approach (enclosures of various sizes in-situ or in landbased facilities), fibre-glass containers and plastic bags have been used successfully in the last years, e.g. in the UK, USA, Canada, France, and W. Germany. The main goal of these experiments is to study the long-term effect of low-level perturbations on natural populations of the pelagic or benthic ecosystem. Examples of recent results are discussed in detail. 33 references.

Nurses' perceptions of their professional practice environment: a cross-sectional study.

Science.gov (United States)

Cao, Yingjuan; DiGiacomo, Michelle; Salamonson, Yenna; Li, Ye; Huai, Baosha; Davidson, Patricia M

2015-12-01

To describe nurses' perceptions concerning their professional practice environment in mainland China and identify factors associated with these views. Globally, the environments in which nurses work influence the quality of nursing practice and health care. A cross-sectional descriptive survey using both paper- and online-based delivery modes was used. A convenience sampling method was used. The survey questionnaire was composed of sociodemographic items and the 38-item Chinese version of Professional Practice Environment survey. The content of the paper-based questionnaire was identical to the online survey. Pearson's chi-square test was conducted to compare the demographic characteristics of these two data sets. Descriptive statistics analysis included frequency, percentage, mean and standard deviation. Multiple linear regression analysis using the Backwards method was applied to identify independent predictors of each subscale of the 38-item Chinese version of Professional Practice Environment. A total of 573 questionnaires were analysed. The mean score of each subscale of the 38-item Chinese version of Professional Practice Environment in this study ranged from 2·66-3·05. All subscales except work motivation (3·05, standard deviation: 0·44) scored less than 3·0. Areas rated as most in need of improvement included control over practice, interpersonal interaction, supportive leadership and handling conflict, and staff relationships with physicians and autonomy. This study has identified nurses' perspectives regarding their workplaces in contemporary China. These data have provided an important baseline for developing and implementing culturally appropriate strategies to improve the working environment of Chinese nurses. A supportive and enabling work environment promotes professional development and the safety and quality of health care. Addressing these factors is important in optimising work place environments. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

A longitudinal study on time perspectives: relations with academic delay of gratification and learning environment

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Peetsma, T.; Schuitema, J.; van der Veen, I.

2012-01-01

After they start secondary school (at age 12 in the Netherlands), students' time perspectives on school and professional career and self-regulated learning decrease, while their perspectives on leisure increase. We aimed to investigate relations in the developments in time perspectives and delay of

Exploring Environment-Intervention Fit: A Study of a Work Environment Intervention Program for the Care Sector

Science.gov (United States)

Aust, Birgit; Flyvholm, Mari-Ann

2015-01-01

Targeting occupational health and safety interventions to different groups of employees and sectors is important. The aim of this study was to explore the environment-intervention fit of a Danish psychosocial work environment intervention program for the residential and home care sector. Focus group interviews with employees and interviews with mangers were conducted at 12 selected workplaces and a questionnaire survey was conducted with managers at all 115 workplaces. The interventions enhanced the probability of employees experiencing more “good” work days, where they could make a difference to the lives of clients. The interventions may therefore be characterized as culturally compelling and having a good fit with the immediate work environment of employees. The interventions furthermore seemed to fit well with the wider organizational environment and with recent changes in the societal and economic context of workplaces. However, some workplaces had difficulties with involving all employees and adapting the interventions to the organization of work. The findings suggest that flexibility and a variety of strategies to involve all employees are important aspects, if interventions are to fit well with the care sector. The focus on employees' conceptualization of a “good” work day may be useful for intervention research in other sectors. PMID:26380356

Exploring Environment-Intervention Fit: A Study of a Work Environment Intervention Program for the Care Sector

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Louise Hardman Smith

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Targeting occupational health and safety interventions to different groups of employees and sectors is important. The aim of this study was to explore the environment-intervention fit of a Danish psychosocial work environment intervention program for the residential and home care sector. Focus group interviews with employees and interviews with mangers were conducted at 12 selected workplaces and a questionnaire survey was conducted with managers at all 115 workplaces. The interventions enhanced the probability of employees experiencing more “good” work days, where they could make a difference to the lives of clients. The interventions may therefore be characterized as culturally compelling and having a good fit with the immediate work environment of employees. The interventions furthermore seemed to fit well with the wider organizational environment and with recent changes in the societal and economic context of workplaces. However, some workplaces had difficulties with involving all employees and adapting the interventions to the organization of work. The findings suggest that flexibility and a variety of strategies to involve all employees are important aspects, if interventions are to fit well with the care sector. The focus on employees’ conceptualization of a “good” work day may be useful for intervention research in other sectors.

Noise disturbance in open-plan study environments: a field study on noise sources, student tasks and room acoustic parameters.

Science.gov (United States)

Braat-Eggen, P Ella; van Heijst, Anne; Hornikx, Maarten; Kohlrausch, Armin

2017-09-01

The aim of this study is to gain more insight in the assessment of noise in open-plan study environments and to reveal correlations between noise disturbance experienced by students and the noise sources they perceive, the tasks they perform and the acoustic parameters of the open-plan study environment they work in. Data were collected in five open-plan study environments at universities in the Netherlands. A questionnaire was used to investigate student tasks, perceived sound sources and their perceived disturbance, and sound measurements were performed to determine the room acoustic parameters. This study shows that 38% of the surveyed students are disturbed by background noise in an open-plan study environment. Students are mostly disturbed by speech when performing complex cognitive tasks like studying for an exam, reading and writing. Significant but weak correlations were found between the room acoustic parameters and noise disturbance of students. Practitioner Summary: A field study was conducted to gain more insight in the assessment of noise in open-plan study environments at universities in the Netherlands. More than one third of the students was disturbed by noise. An interaction effect was found for task type, source type and room acoustic parameters.

Nursing students' satisfaction of the clinical learning environment: a research study.

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Papastavrou, Evridiki; Dimitriadou, Maria; Tsangari, Haritini; Andreou, Christos

2016-01-01

The acquisition of quality clinical experience within a supportive and pedagogically adjusted clinical learning environment is a significant concern for educational institutions. The quality of clinical learning usually reflects the quality of the curriculum structure. The assessment of the clinical settings as learning environment is a significant concern within the contemporary nursing education. The nursing students' satisfaction is considered as an important factor of such assessment, contributing to any potential reforms in order to optimize the learning activities and achievements within clinical settings. The aim of the study was to investigate nursing students' satisfaction of the clinical settings as learning environments. A quantitative descriptive, correlational design was used. A sample of 463 undergraduate nursing students from the three universities in Cyprus were participated. Data were collected using the Clinical Learning Environment, Supervision and Nurse Teacher (CLES + T). Nursing students were highly satisfied with the clinical learning environment and their satisfaction has been positively related to all clinical learning environment constructs namely the pedagogical atmosphere, the Ward Manager's leadership style, the premises of Nursing in the ward, the supervisory relationship (mentor) and the role of the Nurse Teacher (p relationship. The frequency of meetings among the students and the mentors increased the students' satisfaction with the clinical learning environment. It was also revealed that 1st year students were found to be more satisfied than the students in other years. The supervisory relationship was evaluated by the students as the most influential factor in their satisfaction with the clinical learning environment. Student's acceptance within the nursing team and a well-documented individual nursing care is also related with students' satisfaction. The pedagogical atmosphere is considered pivotal, with reference to

Miscellany of Students' Satisfaction in an Asynchronous Learning Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Larbi-Siaw, Otu; Owusu-Agyeman, Yaw

2017-01-01

This study investigates the determinants of students' satisfaction in an asynchronous learning environment using seven key considerations: the e-learning environment, student-content interaction, student and student interaction, student-teacher interaction, group cohesion and timely participation, knowledge of Internet usage, and satisfaction. The…

A study on haptic collaborative game in shared virtual environment

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Keke; Liu, Guanyang; Liu, Lingzhi

2013-03-01

A study on collaborative game in shared virtual environment with haptic feedback over computer networks is introduced in this paper. A collaborative task was used where the players located at remote sites and played the game together. The player can feel visual and haptic feedback in virtual environment compared to traditional networked multiplayer games. The experiment was desired in two conditions: visual feedback only and visual-haptic feedback. The goal of the experiment is to assess the impact of force feedback on collaborative task performance. Results indicate that haptic feedback is beneficial for performance enhancement for collaborative game in shared virtual environment. The outcomes of this research can have a powerful impact on the networked computer games.

The Future of the Global Environment: A Model-based Analysis Supporting UNEP's First Global Environment Outlook

OpenAIRE

Bakkes JA; Woerden JW van; Alcamo J; Berk MM; Bol P; Born GJ van den; Brink BJE ten; Hettelingh JP; Langeweg F; Niessen LW; Swart RJ; United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), Nairobi, Kenia; MNV

1997-01-01

This report documents the scenario analysis in UNEP's first Global Environment Outlook, published at the same time as the scenario analysis. This Outlook provides a pilot assessment of developments in the environment, both global and regional, between now and 2015, with a further projection to 2050. The study was carried out in support of the Agenda 21 interim evaluation, five years after 'Rio' and ten years after 'Brundtland'. The scenario analysis is based on only one scenario, Conventional...

Communication technologies in the study environment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thorhauge, Anne Mette

2012-01-01

will argue that the ways in which these technologies are used reflects two different perspectives on the interplay between communication technology and organisational structure: organisational structure as an anticipation of communication patterns implied in course management system’s design......In this article, I will analyse and discuss two qualitative case studies concerning ICT in the study environment at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark. I will place special focus on the way in which organisational perspectives as well as technological affordances shape how communication...... technologies are integrated into organisational structures and practices on campus. This involves a comparison between course management systems on the one hand and students’ personal media (mobile phones, e-mails) on the other hand, with regard to how these are used on campus. On the basis of this analysis, I...

Associations between the neighbourhood food environment, neighbourhood socioeconomic status, and diet quality: An observational study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria McInerney

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The neighbourhood environment may play an important role in diet quality. Most previous research has examined the associations between neighbourhood food environment and diet quality, and neighbourhood socioeconomic status and diet quality separately. This study investigated the independent and joint effects of neighbourhood food environment and neighbourhood socioeconomic status in relation to diet quality in Canadian adults. Methods We undertook a cross-sectional study with n = 446 adults in Calgary, Alberta (Canada. Individual-level data on diet and socio-demographic and health-related characteristics were captured from two self-report internet-based questionnaires, the Canadian Diet History Questionnaire II (C-DHQ II and the Past Year Physical Activity Questionnaire (PAQ. Neighbourhood environment data were derived from dissemination area level Canadian Census data, and Geographical Information Systems (GIS databases. Neighbourhood was defined as a 400 m network-based ‘walkshed’ around each participant’s household. Using GIS we objectively-assessed the density, diversity, and presence of specific food destination types within the participant’s walkshed. A seven variable socioeconomic deprivation index was derived from Canadian Census variables and estimated for each walkshed. The Canadian adapted Healthy Eating Index (C-HEI, used to assess diet quality was estimated from food intakes reported on C-DHQ II. Multivariable linear regression was used to test for associations between walkshed food environment variables, walkshed socioeconomic status, and diet quality (C-HEI, adjusting for individual level socio-demographic and health-related covariates. Interaction effects between walkshed socioeconomic status and walkshed food environment variables on diet quality (C-HEI were also tested. Results After adjustment for covariates, food destination density was positively associated with the C-HEI (β 0.06, 95 % CI 0

Associations between the neighbourhood food environment, neighbourhood socioeconomic status, and diet quality: An observational study.

Science.gov (United States)

McInerney, Maria; Csizmadi, Ilona; Friedenreich, Christine M; Uribe, Francisco Alaniz; Nettel-Aguirre, Alberto; McLaren, Lindsay; Potestio, Melissa; Sandalack, Beverly; McCormack, Gavin R

2016-09-15

The neighbourhood environment may play an important role in diet quality. Most previous research has examined the associations between neighbourhood food environment and diet quality, and neighbourhood socioeconomic status and diet quality separately. This study investigated the independent and joint effects of neighbourhood food environment and neighbourhood socioeconomic status in relation to diet quality in Canadian adults. We undertook a cross-sectional study with n = 446 adults in Calgary, Alberta (Canada). Individual-level data on diet and socio-demographic and health-related characteristics were captured from two self-report internet-based questionnaires, the Canadian Diet History Questionnaire II (C-DHQ II) and the Past Year Physical Activity Questionnaire (PAQ). Neighbourhood environment data were derived from dissemination area level Canadian Census data, and Geographical Information Systems (GIS) databases. Neighbourhood was defined as a 400 m network-based 'walkshed' around each participant's household. Using GIS we objectively-assessed the density, diversity, and presence of specific food destination types within the participant's walkshed. A seven variable socioeconomic deprivation index was derived from Canadian Census variables and estimated for each walkshed. The Canadian adapted Healthy Eating Index (C-HEI), used to assess diet quality was estimated from food intakes reported on C-DHQ II. Multivariable linear regression was used to test for associations between walkshed food environment variables, walkshed socioeconomic status, and diet quality (C-HEI), adjusting for individual level socio-demographic and health-related covariates. Interaction effects between walkshed socioeconomic status and walkshed food environment variables on diet quality (C-HEI) were also tested. After adjustment for covariates, food destination density was positively associated with the C-HEI (β 0.06, 95 % CI 0.01-0.12, p = 0.04) though the magnitude of the

An explorative qualitative study to determine the footwear needs of workers in standing environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Anderson, Jennifer; Williams, Anita E; Nester, Christopher

2017-01-01

Many work places require standing for prolonged periods of time and are potentially damaging to health, with links to musculoskeletal disorders and acute trauma from workplace accidents. Footwear provides the only interaction between the body and the ground and therefore a potential means to impact musculoskeletal disorders. However, there is very limited research into the necessary design and development of footwear based on both the physical environmental constraints and the personal preference of the workers. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore workers needs for footwear in the 'standing' workplace in relation to MSD, symptoms, comfort and design. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with participants from demanding work environments that require standing for high proportions of the working day. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the results and gain an exploratory understanding into the footwear needs of these workers. Interviews revealed the environmental demands and a very high percentage of musculoskeletal disorders, including day to day discomfort and chronic problems. It was identified that when designing work footwear for standing environments, the functionality of the shoe for the environment must be addressed, the sensations and symptoms of the workers taken into account to encourage adherence and the decision influencers should be met to encourage initial footwear choice. Meeting all these criteria could encourage the use of footwear with the correct safety features and comfort. Development of the correct footwear and increased education regarding foot health and footwear choice could help to reduce or improve the effect of the high number of musculoskeletal disorders repeatedly recorded in jobs that require prolonged periods of standing. This study provides a unique insight into the footwear needs of some workers in environments that require prolonged standing. This user based enquiry has provided information which is important

Local environment of zirconium in nuclear gels studied by XAS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pelegrin, E.; Ildefonse, Ph.; Calas, G.; Ricol, St.; Flank, A.M.

1997-01-01

During lixiviation experiments, nuclear gels are formed and heavy metals are retained. In order to understand this retardation mechanisms, we performed an analysis of the local environment of Zr in parent glasses and derived alteration gels both at the Zr-L II,III , and Zr-K edges. Calibration of the method was conducted through the analysis of model compounds with known coordination number (CN): catapleite Na 2 ZrSi 3 O 9 ,2H 2 O (CN=6), baddeleyite ZrO 2 (CN=7) and zircon SiZrO 4 (CN=8). Nuclear glasses (R7T7, and a simplified nuclear glass V 1) and gels obtained at 90 deg C, with leaching times from 7 to 12 months and with solution renewal. were also investigated (GR7T7R and GV1). Zr-L II,III XANES spectra evidenced that zirconium is 6-fold coordinated in R7T7 and V1 nuclear glasses. For GR7T7R and GV1 gels, Zr local environment is significantly changed, and a mixture of CN (6 and 7J has been evidenced. Quantitative structural results were derived from EXAFS analysis at Zr-K edge. In parent glasses, derived Zr-O distance is 2.10±0.01 10 -10 m, and is in the range Zr-O distances for octahedral coordination in model compounds. In both gels studied, Zr-O distances increase significantly up to 2.15 ±0.01 10 -10 m. This distance is close to that known in baddeleyite (2,158 10 -10 m). A better understanding of the Zr retention mechanism has to be made by studying the second neighbors contributions. (authors)

Skylab task and work performance /Experiment M-151 - Time and motion study/

Science.gov (United States)

Kubis, J. F.; Mclaughlin, E. J.

1975-01-01

The primary objective of Experiment M151 was to study the inflight adaptation of Skylab crewmen to a variety of task situations involving different types of activity. A parallel objective was to examine astronaut inflight performance for any behavioral stress effects associated with the working and living conditions of the Skylab environment. Training data provided the basis for comparison of preflight and inflight performance. Efficiency was evaluated through the adaptation function, namely, the relation of performance time over task trials. The results indicate that the initial changeover from preflight to inflight was accompanied by a substantial increase in performance time for most work and task activities. Equally important was the finding that crewmen adjusted rapidly to the weightless environment and became proficient in developing techniques with which to optimize task performance. By the end of the second inflight trial, most of the activities were performed almost as efficiently as on the last preflight trial. The analysis demonstrated the sensitivity of the adaptation function to differences in task and hardware configurations. The function was found to be more regular and less variable inflight than preflight. Translation and control of masses were accomplished easily and efficiently through the rapid development of the arms and legs as subtle guidance and restraint systems.

Assessing associations between socio-economic environment and self-reported health in Amsterdam using bespoke environments.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eleonore M Veldhuizen

Full Text Available The study of the relationship between residential environment and health at micro area level has a long time been hampered by a lack of micro-scale data. Nowadays data is registered at a much more detailed scale. In combination with Geographic Information System (GIS-techniques this creates opportunities to look at the relationship at different scales, including very local ones. The study illustrates the use of a 'bespoke environment' approach to assess the relationship between health and socio-economic environment.We created these environments by buffer-operations and used micro-scale data on 6-digit postcode level to describe these individually tailored areas around survey respondents in an accurate way. To capture the full extent of area effects we maximized variation in socio-economic characteristics between areas. The area effect was assessed using logistic regression analysis.Although the contribution of the socio-economic environment in the explanation of health was not strong it tended to be stronger at a very local level. A positive association was observed only when these factors were measured in buffers smaller than 200 meters. Stronger associations were observed when restricting the analysis to socioeconomically homogeneous buffers. Scale effects proved to be highly important but potential boundary effects seemed not to play an important role. Administrative areas and buffers of comparable sizes came up with comparable area effects.This study shows that socio-economic area effects reveal only on a very micro-scale. It underlines the importance of the availability of micro-scale data. Through scaling, bespoke environments add a new dimension to study environment and health.

The design of a study environment for acquiring academic and professional competence

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kirschner, P.A.; Vilsteren, P. van

Proposes a framework for the design of a learning environment which encourages the acquisition of academic and professional competence. Definition of knowledge, cognitive skill and competence; Acquisition of competence; Designing an environment for competence acquisition; Implementation of study

Neighborhood built environment and physical activity of Japanese older adults: results from the Aichi Gerontological Evaluation Study (AGES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hirai Hiroshi

2011-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Although many studies have reported the association between neighborhood built environment (BE and physical activity (PA, less is known about the associations for older populations or in countries besides the US and Australia. The aim of this paper is to examine the associations for older adult populations in Japan. Methods Our analyses were based on cross-sectional data from the Aichi Gerontological Evaluation Study (AGES, conducted in 2003. The respondents were older adults, aged 65 years or over (n = 9,414, from 8 municipalities across urban, suburban, and rural areas. The frequency of leisure time sports activity and total walking time were used as the outcome variables. Using geographic information systems (GIS, we measured residential density, street connectivity, number of local destinations, access to recreational spaces, and land slope of the respondents' neighborhoods, based on network distances with multiple radii (250 m, 500 m, 1,000 m. An ordinal logistic regression model was used to analyze the association between PA and BE measures. Results Population density and presence of parks or green spaces had positive associations with the frequency of sports activity, regardless of the selected buffer zone. The analysis of total walking time, however, showed only a few associations. Conclusions Our findings provide mixed support for the association between PA and the characteristics of BE measures, previously used in Western settings. Some characteristics of the neighborhood built environment may facilitate leisure time sports activity, but not increase the total walking time for Japanese older adults.

KYPO: A Tool for Collaborative Study of Cyberattacks in Safe Cloud Environment

OpenAIRE

Eichler Zdenek; Ošlejšek Radek; Toth Dalibor

2015-01-01

This paper introduces the KYPO -- a cloud-based virtual environment faithfully simulating real networks and enabling users to study cyber attacks as well as to train users in isolated and controlled environment. Particularly, the paper focuses on the user environment and visualizations, providing views and interactions improving the understanding of processes emerged during experiments. Web user interface of the KYPO system supports several collaboration modes enabling the participants to exp...

Facilitated variation: how evolution learns from past environments to generalize to new environments.

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Merav Parter

2008-11-01

Full Text Available One of the striking features of evolution is the appearance of novel structures in organisms. Recently, Kirschner and Gerhart have integrated discoveries in evolution, genetics, and developmental biology to form a theory of facilitated variation (FV. The key observation is that organisms are designed such that random genetic changes are channeled in phenotypic directions that are potentially useful. An open question is how FV spontaneously emerges during evolution. Here, we address this by means of computer simulations of two well-studied model systems, logic circuits and RNA secondary structure. We find that evolution of FV is enhanced in environments that change from time to time in a systematic way: the varying environments are made of the same set of subgoals but in different combinations. We find that organisms that evolve under such varying goals not only remember their history but also generalize to future environments, exhibiting high adaptability to novel goals. Rapid adaptation is seen to goals composed of the same subgoals in novel combinations, and to goals where one of the subgoals was never seen in the history of the organism. The mechanisms for such enhanced generation of novelty (generalization are analyzed, as is the way that organisms store information in their genomes about their past environments. Elements of facilitated variation theory, such as weak regulatory linkage, modularity, and reduced pleiotropy of mutations, evolve spontaneously under these conditions. Thus, environments that change in a systematic, modular fashion seem to promote facilitated variation and allow evolution to generalize to novel conditions.

Assessing associations between socio-economic environment and self-reported health in Amsterdam using bespoke environments

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Veldhuizen, Eleonore M.; Stronks, Karien; Kunst, Anton E.

2013-01-01

The study of the relationship between residential environment and health at micro area level has a long time been hampered by a lack of micro-scale data. Nowadays data is registered at a much more detailed scale. In combination with Geographic Information System (GIS)-techniques this creates

Impact man and environment for a durable development, the challenge of the time

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kerboua, Bachir; Kotbi; Bedia, E. Adda

2006-01-01

The problems to the environment are complex and, are the object of a lot of research to the world level, while trying to pull profit to the maximum on use and the exploitation of the facilities during their operational life. It is essentially owed to the pollution hydrique and to the broadcasts of carbon oxide. In the cities and the regions to strong density of population, it is important to reduce the broadcasts of oxide nitrogen, carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons,because they produce ominous effects at a time on the human health and on the environment. It is important to keep in memory makes it that a human being gives out annually about 1.5 ton of carbon equivalent. The goal of the originality of this work is to face these questions that reveal a stake double-entendre: to invent an economy and, beyond, a civilization that doesn't run to its disappearance while ruining the conditions of its own existence, such is the consensus of the sense of the lasting development to the largest sense. One imagines tensions very well when one knows that the ultimate reserves will be concentrated between the hands of a number limited of country, what destabilizes the balance and the world peace, by a noon balanced use of the resources hydriques and energizing. The actuality confers to this problem a very immediate acuteness. How to decorate this inconvenience? Will the diversification of the sources of provision be sufficient it? How to preserve these sources qualitatively and quantitatively? the statistical results give a number of 40.000 deaths per year due to the atmospheric pollution, 85.000 children reached of the illnesses hydriques and the other sanitary curses as tobacco and the alcohol, and the lake of water to the level of the homes is responsible each of 50.000 to 60.000 cancers per year. To the total a number of more than ten (10) millions of deaths every year by a sick environment.(Author)

Monitoring the degradation of physical properties and fire hazards of high-impact polystyrene composite with different ageing time in natural environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Bibo; Zhang, Yan; Tao, Youji; Zhou, Xia; Song, Lei; Jie, Ganxin; Hu, Yuan

2018-06-15

The current study aims at monitoring the role of the different natural environments on the physical properties and fire hazards of HIPS composites ageing in Turpan and Qionghai. The results indicated that the chromatic aberration and degradation of surface appearance intensified with the increasing ageing time. More flame retardants migrated and were eroded for HIPS composites ageing in Qionghai than those ageing in Turpan, which was caused by the combination of sunlight, high temperature and rainwater in Qionghai. After degradation in the natural environments, the HIPS composites possessed the lower thermal stability and char residues, more toxic gases release, higher peak heat release rate and fire hazard. For example, the peak heat release rate in Qionghai increased by 88.9%, which is much higher than that of in Turpan (55.6%). Moreover, the tensile strength and elongation at break decreased by 46% and 59% for HIPS composites ageing in Turpan and reduced by 53% and 67% for HIPS composites aged in Qionghai, respectively. The results demonstrate that more serious degradation of physical properties and higher fire hazard for HIPS composites ageing in Qionghai than those in Turpan due to the different natural ageing environments. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Andean rural children's views of the environment: A qualitative study

Science.gov (United States)

Maurial, Mahia

Andean rural children's drawings and narratives about their crops and the immediate biological environment are rich tools to understand local views of the environment. Children's drawings and narratives were collected and linked to interviews as well as participant observation gathered from parents, leaders and teachers. The research sites are the community of Willca and the school of Mayu. Fieldwork was completed in 1998. In the conceptual framework I distinguish between two dissimilar knowledges, school knowledge and local knowledge. These knowledges produce two dissimilar views of the environment. I further analyze relationships of knowledge and power and argue that school knowledge overpowers local knowledge. Concomitantly, I studied set of ideas associated with two knowledges aforementioned: superacion (surpass) and regeneration (Apffel-Marglin 1995). Although these ideas coexist in peoples' minds they are not linked or effectively connected. In order to link local knowledge and school knowledge together, I propose the integration of environmental studies and art education to enhance a local sense of place (Blandy et. al 1993) in Andean and other schools. This will contribute to grassroots educational policy.

Swedish female hairdressers' views on their work environment--a qualitative study.

Science.gov (United States)

Diab, Kerstin Kronholm; Nielsen, Jörn; Andersson, Edith

2014-01-01

Hairdressers have several work-related health hazards. Little is known of their strategies for the work environment. The aim of this study was to explore female hairdressers' own views on their physical, social and psychological work environment and possibilities of influencing it, implementation of their knowledge, financial impacts and how work-related symptoms affect their views. Fourteen hairdressers working for four years were subjected to open-ended interviews covering aspects of the physical, social and psychological work environment. Content analysis was applied. An awareness of the impact of the work environment and the possibilities of influencing it emerged, but also an inability to achieve preventive improvements. This included reflections concerning ventilation, health issues, job strain, hair products, financial issues, knowledge from school and concern for having to leave the profession. The organization and acceptance of the work environment were important issues. Making the work environment an active part of their business was not common. Female hairdressers had an awareness of their work environment but lacked the means and strategies to make it an active part of their business. The main focus was on the customers and the work techniques. Having various symptoms did not alter this. Organizational and financial issues could put limitations on the work environment. Teachers were crucial in making the work environment interesting. Hairdressing was seen with advantages and disadvantages, and its future was seen as being insecure in terms of the occupational health risks. The hairdressers expressed a great pride in their profession providing possibilities for development.

Food store owners' and managers' perspectives on the food environment: an exploratory mixed-methods study.

Science.gov (United States)

Gravlee, Clarence C; Boston, P Qasimah; Mitchell, M Miaisha; Schultz, Alan F; Betterley, Connie

2014-10-03

Neighborhood characteristics such as poverty and racial composition are associated with inequalities in access to food stores and in the risk of obesity, but the pathways between food environments and health are not well understood. This article extends research on consumer food environments by examining the perspectives of food-store owners and managers. We conducted semistructured, open-ended interviews with managers and owners of 20 food stores in low-income, predominantly African American neighborhoods in Tallahassee, Florida (USA). The interviews were designed to elicit store managers' and owners' views about healthy foods, the local food environment, and the challenges and opportunities they face in creating access to healthy foods. We elicited perceptions of what constitutes "healthy foods" using two free-list questions. The study was designed and implemented in accord with principles of community-based participatory research. Store owners' and managers' conceptions of "healthy foods" overlapped with public health messages, but (a) agreement about which foods are healthy was not widespread and (b) some retailers perceived processed foods such as snack bars and sugar-sweetened juice drinks as healthy. In semistructured interviews, store owners and managers linked the consumer food environment to factors across multiple levels of analysis, including: business practices such as the priority of making sales and the delocalization of decision-making, macroeconomic factors such as poverty and the cost of healthier foods, individual and family-level factors related to parenting and time constraints, and community-level factors such as crime and decline of social cohesion. Our results link food stores to multilevel, ecological models of the food environment. Efforts to reshape the consumer food environment require attention to factors across multiple levels of analysis, including local conceptions of "healthy foods", the business priority of making sales, and

Influence of horse stable environment on human airways

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pringle John

2009-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Many people spend considerable amount of time each day in equine stable environments either as employees in the care and training of horses or in leisure activity. However, there are few studies available on how the stable environment affects human airways. This study examined in one horse stable qualitative differences in indoor air during winter and late summer conditions and assessed whether air quality was associated with clinically detectable respiratory signs or alterations to selected biomarkers of inflammation and lung function in stable personnel. Methods The horse stable environment and stable-workers (n = 13 in one stable were investigated three times; first in the winter, second in the interjacent late summer and the third time in the following winter stabling period. The stable measurements included levels of ammonia, hydrogen sulphide, total and respirable dust, airborne horse allergen, microorganisms, endotoxin and glucan. The stable-workers completed a questionnaire on respiratory symptoms, underwent nasal lavage with subsequent analysis of inflammation markers, and performed repeated measurements of pulmonary function. Results Measurements in the horse stable showed low organic dust levels and high horse allergen levels. Increased viable level of fungi in the air indicated a growing source in the stable. Air particle load as well as 1,3-β-glucan was higher at the two winter time-points, whereas endotoxin levels were higher at the summer time-point. Two stable-workers showed signs of bronchial obstruction with increased PEF-variability, increased inflammation biomarkers relating to reported allergy, cold or smoking and reported partly work-related symptoms. Furthermore, two other stable-workers reported work-related airway symptoms, of which one had doctor's diagnosed asthma which was well treated. Conclusion Biomarkers involved in the development of airway diseases have been studied in relation to

Influence of horse stable environment on human airways.

Science.gov (United States)

Elfman, Lena; Riihimäki, Miia; Pringle, John; Wålinder, Robert

2009-05-25

Many people spend considerable amount of time each day in equine stable environments either as employees in the care and training of horses or in leisure activity. However, there are few studies available on how the stable environment affects human airways. This study examined in one horse stable qualitative differences in indoor air during winter and late summer conditions and assessed whether air quality was associated with clinically detectable respiratory signs or alterations to selected biomarkers of inflammation and lung function in stable personnel. The horse stable environment and stable-workers (n = 13) in one stable were investigated three times; first in the winter, second in the interjacent late summer and the third time in the following winter stabling period. The stable measurements included levels of ammonia, hydrogen sulphide, total and respirable dust, airborne horse allergen, microorganisms, endotoxin and glucan. The stable-workers completed a questionnaire on respiratory symptoms, underwent nasal lavage with subsequent analysis of inflammation markers, and performed repeated measurements of pulmonary function. Measurements in the horse stable showed low organic dust levels and high horse allergen levels. Increased viable level of fungi in the air indicated a growing source in the stable. Air particle load as well as 1,3-beta-glucan was higher at the two winter time-points, whereas endotoxin levels were higher at the summer time-point. Two stable-workers showed signs of bronchial obstruction with increased PEF-variability, increased inflammation biomarkers relating to reported allergy, cold or smoking and reported partly work-related symptoms. Furthermore, two other stable-workers reported work-related airway symptoms, of which one had doctor's diagnosed asthma which was well treated. Biomarkers involved in the development of airway diseases have been studied in relation to environmental exposure levels in equine stables. Respirable dust and 1

Study on synthesis of geological environment at Horonobe area. A technical review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Toida, Masaru; Suyama, Yasuhiro; Shiogama, Yukihiro; Atsumi, Hiroyuki; Abe, Yasunori; Furuichi, Mitsuaki

2003-03-01

The objective of the Horonobe Under Ground Research Project includes enhancing reliability of disposal techniques and safety assessment methods which are based on data on deep underground geological environment obtained by surface explorations and models for geological environment developed using those data. In this study, through development of conceptual models of geological environment based on those data, the flows from data collection to modeling, which have been conducted independently for each geological environment of geology/geological structure, hydrogeology, geochemistry of groundwater and rock mechanics, were synthesized, and a systematic approach including processes from investigation of geological environment to its modeling was established, which is expected to ensure objectivity and traceability of the design and safety assessment of a disposal system. This study is also a part of a program that includes an iterative process in which geological models would be developed and revised repeatedly through the Horonobe Under Ground Research Project and development of geological environment investigation techniques. The results of the study are summarized as follows: (1) Models based on current knowledge were developed; conceptual geology/geological structural model, conceptual hydrogeological model, conceptual geochemical model of groundwater, and conceptual rock mechanical model, (2) Information of data flow and interpretation in the modeling process were synthesized into an data flow which includes knowledge on historical geology and palaeogeology in addition to four models shown above in terms of safety assessment, and (3) Based on modeling processes and syntheses of data flow shown above, tasks that should be considered were organized and suggestions of investigation program were provided for the next phase. (author)

Psychosocial work environment and antidepressant medication: a prospective cohort study

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bonde, Jens Peter; Munch-Hansen, T.; Wieclaw, J.

2009-01-01

BACKGROUND: Adverse psychosocial work environments may lead to impaired mental health, but it is still a matter of conjecture if demonstrated associations are causal or biased. We aimed at verifying whether poor psychosocial working climate is related to increase of redeemed subscription...... alone. None of the measured psychosocial work environment factors were consistently related to prescription of antidepressant drugs during the follow-up period. CONCLUSION: The study does not indicate that a poor psychosocial work environment among public service employees is related to prescription...... of antidepressant medication. METHODS: Information on all antidepressant drugs (AD) purchased at pharmacies from 1995 through 2006 was obtained for a cohort of 21,129 Danish public service workers that participated in work climate surveys carried out during the period 2002-2005. Individual self...

Environment noise reduction study. The effect of acoustical ceramics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nakayasu, Fumio

2007-01-01

Asbestos was used to improve acoustical and thermal conditions in the working environment. The purpose of this study is to investigate ceramics properties as the alternative material for asbestos. The acoustical properties of ceramics designed to absorb sound were investigated in this study. The properties of the concerned ceramics show the characteristics of an excellent sound absorber. Concrete is a good sound barrier but reflect more than 90% of the incident sound striking it. The thickness of conventional acoustical materials, like fibers, has a great impact on the material sound absorbing qualities. However, the acoustical effect of the thickness of the concerned ceramics was found to be reasonably small. A acoustical analysis of a working environment was done to determine the level of reverberation influenced by the different materials used to construct the space. It was found that the concerned ceramics has a potential to be good thermal shield material. (author)

Does home equipment contribute to socioeconomic gradients in Australian children's physical activity, sedentary time and screen time?

Science.gov (United States)

Dumuid, Dot; Olds, Timothy S; Lewis, Lucy K; Maher, Carol

2016-08-05

Activity behaviours (physical activity, sedentary time and screen time) have been linked to health outcomes in childhood. Furthermore, socioeconomic disparities have been observed in both children's activity behaviours and health outcomes. Children's physical home environments may play a role in these relationships. This study aimed to examine the associations and interactions between children's physical home environment, socioeconomic status and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, sedentary time and screen time. Australian children (n = 528) aged 9-11 years from randomly selected schools participated in the cross-sectional International Study of Childhood Obesity, Lifestyle and the Environment. Children's physical home environment (access to equipment), socioeconomic status (household income and parental education) and demographic variables (gender and family structure) were determined by parental questionnaire. Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity and sedentary time were measured objectively by 7-day 24-h accelerometry. Screen time was obtained from child survey. The associations between the physical home environment, socioeconomic status and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, sedentary time and screen time were examined for 427 children, using analysis of covariance, and linear and logistic regression, with adjustment for gender and family structure. The presence of TVs (p music devices (p = 0.04) was significantly and positively associated with screen time. Ownership of these devices (with the exception of music devices) was inversely related to socioeconomic status (parental education). Children's moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity (p = 0.04) and possession of active play equipment (p = 0.04) were both positively associated with socioeconomic status (household income), but were not related to each other (with the exception of bicycle ownership). Children with less electronic devices, particularly in their bedrooms

2001 Industry Studies: Environment

Science.gov (United States)

2001-01-01

Internet . 8 March 2001. xliii Henry Kelly, “ Information Technology and the Environment: Choices and Opportunities,” CISP.org (October 1999) pp 8...development. Despite only a small percentage of U.S. environmental businesses participating in the world market , the U.S. industry has the best technology ...businesses participating in the world market , the U.S. industry has the best technology in the world and already generates a trade surplus. With the world

INFLUENCE OF MARKETING ENVIRONMENT ON THE TOY MARKET

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Violeta A. ANDREIANA (Mihaescu

2014-04-01

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

Narrative environments and the capacity of disability narratives to motivate leisure-time physical activity among individuals with spinal cord injury.

Science.gov (United States)

Perrier, Marie-Josée; Smith, Brett M; Latimer-Cheung, Amy E

2013-01-01

Few individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) engage in the recommended amount of leisure time physical activity (LTPA). Yet little is known about how, and why, active individuals engage in specific types of LTPA. This study explored how a unique narrative environment and disability narratives motivated individuals with SCI to engage in LTPA. Fourteen individuals with SCI from a physical activity program participated in approximately hour-long interviews. Interviews were then subjected to a narrative analysis. Individuals who used a restitution narrative (n = 6) were motivated to engage in functional LTPA because of the desire to maintain the body and restore the past self. The individual who used the chaos narrative (n = 1) preferred solitary LTPA as exposure to others with SCI was a constant reminder of the lost, pre-injury self. Individuals who used a quest narrative (n = 7) explored LTPA options that fit with their interests; these individuals were open to new types of LTPA, such as sport and outdoor recreation. The plot of three disability narratives can all motivate the pursuit of LTPA; however, not all types of LTPA are seen as equal. LTPA interventions can be enhanced through the lessons learned from this unique type of environment. Despite individuals' views about their disability, they can still be motivated to engage in routine LTPA. Different theoretical determinants, such as health or social benefits, hold different relevance for LTPA among individuals with differing disability narratives. The environment provided by practitioners can therefore elicit some stories of SCI while stifling others. Open narrative environment will attract individuals to listen and maintain involvement in LTPA.

Studies on environment safety and application of advanced reactor for inland nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wei, L.; Jie, L.

2014-01-01

To study environment safety assessment of inland nuclear power plants (NPPs), the impact of environment safety under the normal operation was researched and the environment risk of serious accidents was analyzed. Moreover, the requirements and relevant provisions of site selection between international nuclear power plant and China's are comparatively studied. The conclusion was that the environment safety assessment of inland and coastal nuclear power plant have no essential difference; the advanced reactor can meet with high criteria of environment safety of inland nuclear power plants. In this way, China is safe and feasible to develop inland nuclear power plant. China's inland nuclear power plants will be as big market for advanced reactor. (author)

Quantum Darwinism for mixed-state environment

Science.gov (United States)

Quan, Haitao; Zwolak, Michael; Zurek, Wojciech

2009-03-01

We exam quantum darwinism when a system is in the presence of a mixed environment, and we find a general relation between the mutual information for the mixed-state environment and the change of the entropy of the fraction of the environment. We then look at a particular solvable model, and we numerically exam the time evolution of the ``mutual information" for large environment. Finally we discuss about the exact expressions for all entropies and the mutual information at special time.

Path planning in changeable environments

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nieuwenhuisen, D.

2007-01-01

This thesis addresses path planning in changeable environments. In contrast to traditional path planning that deals with static environments, in changeable environments objects are allowed to change their configurations over time. In many cases, path planning algorithms must facilitate quick

A SIMULTANEOUS MOBILE E-LEARNING ENVIRONMENT AND APPLICATION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hasan KARAL

2010-04-01

Full Text Available The purpose of the present study was to design a mobile learning environment that enables the use of a teleconference application used in simultaneous e-learning with mobile devices and to evaluate this mobile learning environment based on students’ views. With the mobile learning environment developed in the study, the students are able to follow a teleconference application realized by using appropriate mobile devices. The study was carried out with 8 post-graduate students enrolled in Karadeniz Technical University (KTU, Department of Computer Education and Instructional Technologies (CEIT, Graduate School of Natural and Applied Science. The students utilized this teleconference application using mobile devices supporting internet access and Adobe Flash technology. Of the 8 students, 4 accessed the system using EDGE technology and 4 used wireless internet technology. At the end of the application, the audio and display were delayed by 4-5 seconds with EDGE technology, and were delayed by 7-8 seconds with wireless internet technology. Based on the students’ views, it was concluded that the environment had some deficiencies in terms of quality, especially in terms of the screen resolution. Despite this, the students reported that this environment could provide more flexibility in terms of space and time when compared to other simultaneous distance education applications. Although the environment enables interaction, in particular, the problem of resolution caused by screen size is a disadvantage for the system. When this mobile learning application is compared to conventional education environments, it was found that mobile learning does have a role in helping the students overcome the problems of participating in learning activities caused by time and space constraints.

The corrosion of depleted uranium in terrestrial and marine environments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Toque, C.; Milodowski, A.E.; Baker, A.C.

2014-01-01

Depleted Uranium alloyed with titanium is used in armour penetrating munitions that have been fired in a number of conflict zones and testing ranges including the UK ranges at Kirkcudbright and Eskmeals. The study presented here evaluates the corrosion of DU alloy cylinders in soil on these two UK ranges and in the adjacent marine environment of the Solway Firth. The estimated mean initial corrosion rates and times for complete corrosion range from 0.13 to 1.9 g cm −2 y −1 and 2.5–48 years respectively depending on the particular physical and geochemical environment. The marine environment at the experimental site was very turbulent. This may have caused the scouring of corrosion products and given rise to a different geochemical environment from that which could be easily duplicated in laboratory experiments. The rate of mass loss was found to vary through time in one soil environment and this is hypothesised to be due to pitting increasing the surface area, followed by a build up of corrosion products inhibiting further corrosion. This indicates that early time measurements of mass loss or corrosion rate may be poor indicators of late time corrosion behaviour, potentially giving rise to incorrect estimates of time to complete corrosion. The DU alloy placed in apparently the same geochemical environment, for the same period of time, can experience very different amounts of corrosion and mass loss, indicating that even small variations in the corrosion environment can have a significant effect. These effects are more significant than other experimental errors and variations in initial surface area. -- Highlights: ► In-situ experiments were conducted to evaluate corrosion rates of depleted uranium. ► Samples were corroded in marine sediments, open sea water and two terrestrial soils. ► The depleted uranium titanium alloy corroded fastest in the marine environments. ► Rates of mass loss can vary through time if corrosion products are not removed. �

Precision in harsh environments

OpenAIRE

French, P.; Krijnen, G.; Roozeboom, F.

2016-01-01

Microsystems are increasingly being applied in harsh and/or inaccessible environments, but many markets expect the same level of functionality for long periods of time. Harsh environments cover areas that can be subjected to high temperature, (bio)-chemical and mechanical disturbances, electromagnetic noise, radiation, or high vacuum. In the field of actuators, the devices must maintain stringent accuracy specifications for displacement, force, and response times, among others. These new requ...

Physical Activity, Study Sitting Time, Leisure Sitting Time, and Sleep Time Are Differently Associated With Obesity in Korean Adolescents: A Population-Based Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Kong, Il Gyu; Lee, Hyo-Jeong; Kim, So Young; Sim, Songyong; Choi, Hyo Geun

2015-11-01

Low physical activity, long leisure sitting time, and short sleep time are risk factors for obesity, but the association with study sitting time is unknown. The objective of this study was to evaluate the association between these factors and obesity.We analyzed the association between physical activity, study sitting time, leisure sitting time, and sleep time and subject weight (underweight, healthy weight, overweight, and obese), using data from a large population-based survey, the 2013 Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey. Data from 53,769 participants were analyzed using multinomial logistic regression analyses with complex sampling. Age, sex, region of residence, economic level, smoking, stress level, physical activity, sitting time for study, sitting time for leisure, and sleep time were adjusted as the confounders.Low physical activity (adjusted odds ratios [AORs] = 1.03, 1.12) and long leisure sitting time (AORs = 1.15, 1.32) were positively associated with overweight and obese. Low physical activity (AOR = 1.33) and long leisure sitting time (AOR = 1.12) were also associated with underweight. Study sitting time was negatively associated with underweight (AOR = 0.86) but was unrelated to overweight (AOR = 0.97, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.91-1.03) and obese (AOR = 0.94, 95% CI = 0.84-1.04). Sleep time (physical activity, decreasing leisure sitting time, and obtaining sufficient sleep would be beneficial in maintaining a healthy weight. However, study sitting time was not associated with overweight or obese.

The psychosocial work environment among physicians employed at Danish oncology departments in 2009. A nationwide cross-sectional study.

Science.gov (United States)

Andreassen, Christian Nicolaj; Eriksen, Jesper Grau

2013-01-01

Working as a physician at an oncology department has some distinctive characteristics that may lead to a stressful work environment. The present study was conducted to provide a nationwide description of the work conditions of all oncologists in Denmark. By comparing the results of the present study with those of a similar study carried out in 2006, the aim was furthermore to elucidate changes in the psychosocial work environment over time. From May to September 2009, 330 physicians employed at six oncology centres and seven community based oncology departments were invited to participate in a survey based on the short version of the COPSOQ II questionnaire. The results were compared with data from a representative section of Danish employees and with data from the 2006 survey. Two hundred and twenty of the 330 invited physicians returned the questionnaire (response rate 67%). Concerning the aspects quantitative demands, work pace, emotional demands, influence, burnout and stress, the oncologists reported worse work conditions than the average Danish employee. However, with regard to possibilities for development, meaning of work and commitment to workplace, the oncologists reported better work conditions. Between 2006 and 2009, substantial improvement was seen concerning several of the assessed work environment aspects within the group of young physicians at the oncology centres. Though substantial improvement of the work conditions has been achieved between 2006 and 2009, certain aspects of the psychosocial work environment at Danish oncology departments still require attention.

The physical environment, activity and interaction in residential care facilities for older people: a comparative case study.

Science.gov (United States)

Nordin, Susanna; McKee, Kevin; Wallinder, Maria; von Koch, Lena; Wijk, Helle; Elf, Marie

2017-12-01

The physical environment is of particular importance for supporting activities and interactions among older people living in residential care facilities (RCFs) who spend most of their time inside the facility. More knowledge is needed regarding the complex relationships between older people and environmental aspects in long-term care. The present study aimed to explore how the physical environment influences resident activities and interactions at two RCFs by using a mixed-method approach. Environmental assessments were conducted via the Swedish version of the Sheffield Care Environment Assessment Matrix (S-SCEAM), and resident activities, interactions and locations were assessed through an adapted version of the Dementia Care Mapping (DCM). The Observed Emotion Rating Scale (OERS) was used to assess residents' affective states. Field notes and walk-along interviews were also used. Findings indicate that the design of the physical environment influenced the residents' activities and interactions. Private apartments and dining areas showed high environmental quality at both RCFs, whereas the overall layout had lower quality. Safety was highly supported. Despite high environmental quality in general, several factors restricted resident activities. To optimise care for older people, the design process must clearly focus on accessible environments that provide options for residents to use the facility independently. © 2016 The Authors. Scandinavian Journal of Caring Sciences published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Nordic College of Caring Science.

Time-resolved studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mills, D.M.

1992-01-01

When new or more powerful probes become available that offer both shorter data-collection times and the opportunity to apply innovative approaches to established techniques, it is natural that investigators consider the feasibility of exploring the kinetics of time-evolving systems. This stimulating area of research not only can lead to insights into the metastable or excited states that a system may populate on its way to a ground state, but can also lead to a better understanding of that final state. Synchrotron radiation, with its unique properties, offers just such a tool to extend X-ray measurements from the static to the time-resolved regime. The most straight-forward application of synchrotron radiation to the study of transient phenomena is directly through the possibility of decreased data-collection times via the enormous increase in flux over that of a laboratory X-ray system. Even further increases in intensity can be obtained through the use of novel X-ray optical devices. Widebandpass monochromators, e.g., that utilize the continuous spectral distribution of synchrotron radiation, can increase flux on the sample several orders of magnitude over conventional X-ray optical systems thereby allowing a further shortening of the data-collection time. Another approach that uses the continuous spectral nature of synchrotron radiation to decrease data-collection times is the open-quote parallel data collectionclose quotes method. Using this technique, intensities as a function of X-ray energy are recorded simultaneously for all energies rather than sequentially recording data at each energy, allowing for a dramatic decrease in the data-collection time

Application of nuclear quadrupole resonance relaxometry to study the influence of the environment on the surface of the crystallites of powder

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sinyavsky, Nikolay Ya. [Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal Univ., Kaliningrad (Russian Federation); Kaliningrad State Technical Univ. (Russian Federation); Mershiev, Ivan G.; Kupriyanova, Galina S. [Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal Univ., Kaliningrad (Russian Federation)

2015-10-01

The results of the experimental study of the influence of the environment surrounding the surface of the crystallites of a KClO{sub 3} powder on the distribution of the spin-spin and spin-lattice relaxation times for {sup 35}Cl nuclear quadrupole resonance are described. It was found that the distributions of the spin-lattice relaxation times are unimodal and distributions of the spin-spin relaxation times are bimodal for all samples we studied. T{sub 1} - T{sub 2} and T{sub 1ρ} - T{sub 2} correlations by means of the two-dimensional (2D) inverse Laplace transform are obtained. The efficiency of the method for the study of surface phenomena in solids is demonstrated.

Application of nuclear quadrupole resonance relaxometry to study the influence of the environment on the surface of the crystallites of powder

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sinyavsky, Nikolay Ya.; Mershiev, Ivan G.; Kupriyanova, Galina S.

2015-01-01

The results of the experimental study of the influence of the environment surrounding the surface of the crystallites of a KClO 3 powder on the distribution of the spin-spin and spin-lattice relaxation times for 35 Cl nuclear quadrupole resonance are described. It was found that the distributions of the spin-lattice relaxation times are unimodal and distributions of the spin-spin relaxation times are bimodal for all samples we studied. T 1 - T 2 and T 1ρ - T 2 correlations by means of the two-dimensional (2D) inverse Laplace transform are obtained. The efficiency of the method for the study of surface phenomena in solids is demonstrated.

Radioecological studies of activation products released from a nuclear power plant into the marine environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mattsson, S.; Nilsson, M.; Holm, E.

1980-01-01

Since 1967 samples of Fucus serratus and Fucus vesi--culosus from the Swedish west-coast were collected for analysis of the concentration of fallout products, natural actinides and products released by the nuclear industry. During this time two nuclear power stations were built and began operation in this area, ''Ringhals'' in 1974 and ''Barseback'' in 1975. When detectable concentrations of Co-60 and other activation products were found in Fucus, the sampling program was intensified, both in the vicinity of ''Barseback'' and at localities up to 150 km north. Our studies have shown that measurements on Fucus can be used to map the distribution of various radionuclides from a nuclear power station in the marine environment. Knowledge of this distribution and of factors affecting it are needed to construct a radioecological model for the estimation of individual and collective dose equivalent commitment arising from intake of food and water from the marine environment of the south-west of Sweden. (H.K.)

Changes in Children's Perception-Action Tuning over Short Time Scales: Bicycling across Traffic-Filled Intersections in a Virtual Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Plumert, Jodie M.; Kearney, Joseph K.; Cremer, James F.; Recker, Kara M.; Strutt, Jonathan

2011-01-01

This investigation examined short-term changes in child and adult cyclists' gap decisions and movement timing in response to general and specific road-crossing experiences. Children (10- and 12-year-olds) and adults rode a bicycle through a virtual environment with 12 intersections. Participants faced continuous cross traffic and waited for gaps…

Determinants and Temporal Trends of Perfluoroalkyl Substances in Pregnant Women: The Hokkaido Study on Environment and Children’s Health

OpenAIRE

Meng-Shan Tsai; Chihiro Miyashita; Atsuko Araki; Sachiko Itoh; Yu Ait Bamai; Houman Goudarzi; Emiko Okada; Ikuko Kashino; Hideyuki Matsuura; Reiko Kishi

2018-01-01

Perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are persistent bio-accumulative chemicals that impact the health of pregnant women and their children. PFAS derive from environmental and consumer products, which depend on human lifestyle, socioeconomic characteristics, and time variation. Here, we aimed to explore the temporal trends of PFAS in pregnant women and the characteristics related to maternal PFAS concentration. Our study is part of the Hokkaido Study on Environment and Children’s Health, the Hokka...

The corrosion of depleted uranium in terrestrial and marine environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Toque, C; Milodowski, A E; Baker, A C

2014-02-01

Depleted Uranium alloyed with titanium is used in armour penetrating munitions that have been fired in a number of conflict zones and testing ranges including the UK ranges at Kirkcudbright and Eskmeals. The study presented here evaluates the corrosion of DU alloy cylinders in soil on these two UK ranges and in the adjacent marine environment of the Solway Firth. The estimated mean initial corrosion rates and times for complete corrosion range from 0.13 to 1.9 g cm(-2) y(-1) and 2.5-48 years respectively depending on the particular physical and geochemical environment. The marine environment at the experimental site was very turbulent. This may have caused the scouring of corrosion products and given rise to a different geochemical environment from that which could be easily duplicated in laboratory experiments. The rate of mass loss was found to vary through time in one soil environment and this is hypothesised to be due to pitting increasing the surface area, followed by a build up of corrosion products inhibiting further corrosion. This indicates that early time measurements of mass loss or corrosion rate may be poor indicators of late time corrosion behaviour, potentially giving rise to incorrect estimates of time to complete corrosion. The DU alloy placed in apparently the same geochemical environment, for the same period of time, can experience very different amounts of corrosion and mass loss, indicating that even small variations in the corrosion environment can have a significant effect. These effects are more significant than other experimental errors and variations in initial surface area. Copyright © 2013. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Analysis, fate studies and monitoring of the antifungal agent clotrimazole in the aquatic environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Peschka, Manuela; Roberts, Paul H; Knepper, Thomas P

2007-10-01

The analysis and presence of clotrimazole, an antifungal agent with logK(OW) > 4, was thoroughly studied in the aquatic environment. For that reason analytical methods based on gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry were developed and validated to quantify clotrimazole with limits of quantification down to 5 and 1 ng/L, respectively. Both methods were compared in an intercalibration exercise. The complete mass-spectrometric fragmentation pattern could be elucidated with the aid of quadrupole time of flight mass spectrometry. Since clotrimazole tends to adsorb to laboratory glassware, studies on its adsorption behaviour were made to ensure the appropriate handling of water samples, e.g. pH, storage time, pretreatment of sampling vessels or material of the vials used for final extracts. The phenomena of adsorption to suspended matter were investigated while analysing different waste-water samples. Application of the methods in various investigated wastewater and surface water samples demonstrated that clotrimazole could only be detected in the low nanogram per litre range of anthropogenic influenced unfiltered water samples after acidification to pH 2.

Comparative study of the blinking time between young adult and adult video display terminal users in indoor environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Schaefer, Tânia Mara Cunha; Schaefer, Arthur Rubens Cunha; Abib, Fernando Cesar; José, Newton Kara

2009-01-01

Investigate the average blinking time in conversation and in Video Display Terminal use of young adults and adults in the presbyopic age group. A transversal analytical study in a readily accessible sample consisting of Volkswagen do Brasil - Curitiba, Paraná employees was performed. The cohort group consisted of 108 subjects divided into two age groups: Group 1, the young adult group (age range 20-39): 77 employees, mean age of 30.09 +/- 5.09; Group 2, the presbyopic adult group, (age range 40-53): 31 employees, mean age of 44.17 +/- 3. Subjects under 18 years of age, with a history of ocular disorders, contact lens wearers and computer non-users were excluded. The subjects had their faces filmed for 10 minutes in conversation and VDT reading. Student's t-test was used and the statistical significance level was 95%. The average time between blinks in Group 1 for conversation and VDT reading was 5.16 +/- 1.83 and 10.42 +/- 7.78 seconds, respectively; in Group 2. 4,9 +/- 1.49 and 10.46 +/- 5.54 seconds. In both age groups, the time between blinks in VDT reading situations was higher (pgroups were compared (p>0.05). There was an increase in the blinking time between young adults and the presbyopic group in VDT use situations when compared with reading situations. The difference in the blinking frequency between young adults and the presbyopic group in VDT use and reading situations was not statistically significant.

The Role Of Environment In Stellar Mass Growth

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas, Daniel

2017-06-01

In this talk I give a brief summary of methods to measure galaxy environment. I then discuss the dependence of stellar population properties on environmental density: it turns out that the latter are driven by galaxy mass, and galaxy environment only plays a secondary role, mostly at late times in low-mass galaxies. I show that this evidence has now been extended to stellar population gradients using the IFU survey SDSS/MaNGA that again turn out to be independent of environment, including central-satellite classification. Finally I present results from the DES, where the dependence of the stellar mass function with redshift and environmental density is explored. It is found that the fraction of massive galaxies is larger in high density environments than in low density environments. The low density and high density components converge with increasing redshift up to z 1.0 where the shapes of the mass function components are indistinguishable. This study shows how high density structures build up around massive galaxies through cosmic time, which sets new valuable constraints on galaxy formation models.

An ecological approach to prospective and retrospective timing of long durations: a study involving gamers.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Simon Tobin

Full Text Available To date, most studies comparing prospective and retrospective timing have failed to use long durations and tasks with a certain degree of ecological validity. The present study assessed the effect of the timing paradigm on playing video games in a "naturalistic environment" (gaming centers. In addition, as it involved gamers, it provided an opportunity to examine the effect of gaming profile on time estimation. A total of 116 participants were asked to estimate prospectively or retrospectively a video game session lasting 12, 35 or 58 minutes. The results indicate that time is perceived as longer in the prospective paradigm than in the retrospective one, although the variability of estimates is the same. Moreover, the 12-minute session was perceived as longer, proportionally, than the 35- and 58-minute sessions. The study also revealed that the number of hours participants spent playing video games per week was a significant predictor of time estimates. To account for the main findings, the differences between prospective and retrospective timing are discussed in quantitative terms using a proposed theoretical framework, which states that both paradigms use the same cognitive processes, but in different proportions. Finally, the hypothesis that gamers play more because they underestimate time is also discussed.

Occupational health hazards in the interventional laboratory: Time for a safer environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Klein, Lloyd W; Miller, Donald L; Balter, Stephen; Laskey, Warren; Naito, Neil; Haines, David; Ross, Allan; Mauro, Matthew A; Goldstein, James A

2018-01-04

Over the past 30 years, the advent of fluoroscopically guided interventional procedures has resulted in dramatic increments in both X-ray exposure and physical demands that predispose interventionists to distinct occupational health hazards. The hazards of accumulated radiation exposure have been known for years, but until recently the other potential risks have been ill-defined and under-appreciated. The physical stresses inherent in this career choice appear to be associated with a predilection to orthopedic injuries, attributable in great part to the cumulative adverse effects of bearing the weight and design of personal protective apparel worn to reduce radiation risk and to the poor ergonomic design of interventional suites. These occupational health concerns pertain to cardiologists, radiologists and surgeons working with fluoroscopy, pain management specialists performing nonvascular fluoroscopic procedures, and the many support personnel working in these environments. This position paper is the work of representatives of the major societies of physicians who work in the interventional laboratory environment, and has been formally endorsed by all. In this paper, the available data delineating the prevalence of these occupational health risks is reviewed and ongoing epidemiological studies designed to further elucidate these risks are summarized. The main purpose is to publicly state speaking with a single voice that the interventional laboratory poses workplace hazards that must be acknowledged, better understood and mitigated to the greatest extent possible, and to advocate vigorously on behalf of efforts to reduce these hazards. Interventional physicians and their professional societies, working together with industry, should strive toward the ultimate zero radiation exposure work environment that would eliminate the need for personal protective apparel and prevent its orthopedic and ergonomic consequences. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. Copyright © 2008 Wiley�

Real time nanogravimetric monitoring of corrosion in radioactive environments

OpenAIRE

Tzagkaroulakis, Ioannis; Boxall, Colin

2017-01-01

Monitoring and understanding the mechanism of metal corrosion throughout the nuclear fuel cycle play a key role in the safe asset management of facilities. They also provide information essential for making an informed choice regarding the selection of decontamination methods for steel plant and equipment scheduled for decommissioning. Recent advances in Quartz Crystal Nanobalance (QCN) technology offer the means of monitoring corrosion in-situ, in radiologically harsh environments, in real t...

The survival time of chocolates on hospital wards: covert observational study.

Science.gov (United States)

Gajendragadkar, Parag R; Moualed, Daniel J; Nicolson, Phillip L R; Adjei, Felicia D; Cakebread, Holly E; Duehmke, Rudolf M; Martin, Claire A

2013-12-14

To quantify the consumption of chocolates in a hospital ward environment. Multicentre, prospective, covert observational study. Four wards at three hospitals (where the authors worked) within the United Kingdom. Boxes of Quality Street (Nestlé) and Roses (Cadbury) on the ward and anyone eating these chocolates. Observers covertly placed two 350 g boxes of Quality Street and Roses chocolates on each ward (eight boxes were used in the study containing a total of 258 individual chocolates). These boxes were kept under continuous covert surveillance, with the time recorded when each chocolate was eaten. Median survival time of a chocolate. 191 out of 258 (74%) chocolates were observed being eaten. The mean total observation period was 254 minutes (95% confidence interval 179 to 329). The median survival time of a chocolate was 51 minutes (39 to 63). The model of chocolate consumption was non-linear, with an initial rapid rate of consumption that slowed with time. An exponential decay model best fitted these findings (model R(2)=0.844, P<0.001), with a survival half life (time taken for 50% of the chocolates to be eaten) of 99 minutes. The mean time taken to open a box of chocolates from first appearance on the ward was 12 minutes (95% confidence interval 0 to 24). Quality Street chocolates survived longer than Roses chocolates (hazard ratio for survival of Roses v Quality Street 0.70, 95% confidence interval 0.53 to 0.93, P=0.014). The highest percentages of chocolates were consumed by healthcare assistants (28%) and nurses (28%), followed by doctors (15%). From our observational study, chocolate survival in a hospital ward was relatively short, and was modelled well by an exponential decay model. Roses chocolates were preferentially consumed to Quality Street chocolates in a ward setting. Chocolates were consumed primarily by healthcare assistants and nurses, followed by doctors. Further practical studies are needed.

ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION AND ENVIRONMENT MONITORING ISSUES IN THE PROJECTS OF SUBGLACIAL LAKES STUDIES IN ANTARCTICA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

I. A. Alekhina

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Antarctic subglacial lakes can represent extreme natural habitats for microorganisms from the position of their evolution and adaptation, as well as they can contain the information on Antarctic ice sheet history and climatic changes in their sediments. Now only direct measurements and sampling from these habitats can answer on many fundamental questions. Special precaution should be complied at penetration into these unique relic environments without unfavorable impacts and contamination. A number of recommendations were developed on levels of cleanliness and sterility during direct exploration and research of subglacial environments. Documents considered in the article are the first and necessary steps for appropriate and long-term ecological management of subglacial Antarctic environments. Today there are three projects of subglacial aquatic environment research which are in preparation and realization – the Russian project of Lake Vostok, the similar British project of Lake Ellsworth and the American project on Whillans Ice Stream. The programs of ecological stewardship for direct exploration of these lakes are discussed. All these subglacial aquatic objects of further exploration and research are so various on their structure, age and regime, that only results of all programs as a whole can help to draw us a uniform picture of a subglacial ecological system. Ecological stewardship of these should provide the minimal ecological impact with maximal scientific results. On the basis of existing documents and recommendations the general approaches and the program of ecological stewardship for Lake Vostok research are discussed. Study of drilling fluid, drilling chips, Vostok ice core and the fresh frozen water will allow to make an assessment of biological and chemical contamination as a result of the first penetration and to modify the further stewardship program for the second penetration and direct exploration of lake water.

A Study on the Improvement of the Living Environment in Depopulated Area −A Case Study in Ikeda−town, Fukui−

OpenAIRE

LEE, Taiyoung; ONO, Megumi; KAWAMOTO, Yoshimi

2007-01-01

This study aims to improve a living environment base on the resident consciousness in a depopulated area. Firstly, we clear the evaluation to the living environment, the settlement intension and the importance of the living environment improvement by the consciousness survey. And then, we analyze the relativity both the evaluation to the living environment and the measures for the improvement to the living environment as public traffic, shopping and welfare, which to enhance the settlement ...

Time evolution of distribution functions in dissipative environments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hu Li-Yun; Chen Fei; Wang Zi-Sheng; Fan Hong-Yi

2011-01-01

By introducing the thermal entangled state representation, we investigate the time evolution of distribution functions in the dissipative channels by bridging the relation between the initial distribution function and the any time distribution function. We find that most of them are expressed as such integrations over the Laguerre—Gaussian function. Furthermore, as applications, we derive the time evolution of photon-counting distribution by bridging the relation between the initial distribution function and the any time photon-counting distribution, and the time evolution of R-function characteristic of nonclassicality depth. (electromagnetism, optics, acoustics, heat transfer, classical mechanics, and fluid dynamics)

Precision in harsh environments

NARCIS (Netherlands)

French, P.; Krijnen, G.; Roozeboom, F.

2016-01-01

Microsystems are increasingly being applied in harsh and/or inaccessible environments, but many markets expect the same level of functionality for long periods of time. Harsh environments cover areas that can be subjected to high temperature, (bio)-chemical and mechanical disturbances,

Refuse Dumps And The Environment: A Case Study Of Some ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Refuse Dumps And The Environment: A Case Study Of Some Selected Cities In Nigeria. ... International Journal of Emotional Psychology and Sport Ethics ... This study assessed the level of environmental pollution in the nation by focusing on the degree of accumulation of house – hold wastes, industrial scraps or wastes, ...

The uncertain first-time voter: Effects of political media exposure on young citizens’ formation of vote choice in a digital media environment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ohme, Jakob; de Vreese, Claes Holger; Albæk, Erik

2018-01-01

The digital media environment changes the way citizens receive political information, also during an election campaign. Particularly first-time voters increasingly use social media platforms as news sources. Yet, it is less clear how accessing political information in such a unique social setting...... exposure and certainty can be mediated by active campaign participation. An 11-wave national panel study was conducted, using a smartphone-based assessment of citizens’ (n = 1108) media exposure and vote choice certainty across the campaign period. Results suggest that first-time voters’ social media...... affects these cohorts’ decision-making processes during an election campaign, compared to experienced voters. We compare effects of these two groups’ political information exposure on their vote choice certainty during the 2015 Danish national election. We furthermore test how the relation between...

Anthropogenic radionuclides in the marine environment: Case studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carpenter, R.

1997-01-01

This chapter discusses three case studies of greatly different types of discharges of anthropogenic radionuclides to the marine environment. The SNAP 9A satellite burnup dispersed almost pure 238 Pu into the atmosphere over the Mozambique channel at about 25 deg. S latitude in 1964. A much more heterogeneous mixture of liquids and solids containing a variety of radionuclides of low activity levels were packaged in steel drums and sunk to the sea floor near the Farallon Islands off San Francisco, California, USA between 1994 and 1964. An extensive series of tests of nuclear and thermonuclear devices with a total yield of many megatons was conducted by the U.S. at the remote coral atolls of the Marshall Islands at 110 deg. N and 160-165 deg. E, making them the most radioactively contaminated parts of the marine environment. The chapter briefly summarizes each of these cases, and stresses the major points learned about radionuclide cycling and about environmental processes from each of them. (author)

A system of UAV application in indoor environment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Khosiawan, Yohanes; Nielsen, Izabela Ewa

2016-01-01

In recent years, there has been an increased demand in the use of multiple unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in indoor environments such as material handling task in a manufacturing environment and plant/environment monitoring task in a greenhouse. However, there is a lack of work reported on this ......In recent years, there has been an increased demand in the use of multiple unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in indoor environments such as material handling task in a manufacturing environment and plant/environment monitoring task in a greenhouse. However, there is a lack of work reported...... on this topic. This paper presents a detailed study on several UAV systems and UAV scheduling systems. It is followed by a proposed system of UAV application in indoor environment, which comprises components of UAV system addressed in detail; focused on scheduler as the heart of operations. Consequently, system...... architecture of UAV scheduling system is presented and the framework of scheduler component is included. Scheduler component works in a phased manner to provide a systematic abstraction and achieve an efficient computation time. This study serves as a reference guide for UAV application in indoor environment....

an empirical study of poverty in calabar and its environs.

African Journals Online (AJOL)

DJFLEX

2009-06-17

Jun 17, 2009 ... AN EMPIRICAL STUDY OF POVERTY IN CALABAR AND ITS. ENVIRONS. ... one of the poorest nations in the world (CBN, 2001). Specifically, these .... rural development in poor regions, inadequate access to education ...

Elastic Spatial Query Processing in OpenStack Cloud Computing Environment for Time-Constraint Data Analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wei Huang

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Geospatial big data analysis (GBDA is extremely significant for time-constraint applications such as disaster response. However, the time-constraint analysis is not yet a trivial task in the cloud computing environment. Spatial query processing (SQP is typical computation-intensive and indispensable for GBDA, and the spatial range query, join query, and the nearest neighbor query algorithms are not scalable without using MapReduce-liked frameworks. Parallel SQP algorithms (PSQPAs are trapped in screw-processing, which is a known issue in Geoscience. To satisfy time-constrained GBDA, we propose an elastic SQP approach in this paper. First, Spark is used to implement PSQPAs. Second, Kubernetes-managed Core Operation System (CoreOS clusters provide self-healing Docker containers for running Spark clusters in the cloud. Spark-based PSQPAs are submitted to Docker containers, where Spark master instances reside. Finally, the horizontal pod auto-scaler (HPA would scale-out and scale-in Docker containers for supporting on-demand computing resources. Combined with an auto-scaling group of virtual instances, HPA helps to find each of the five nearest neighbors for 46,139,532 query objects from 834,158 spatial data objects in less than 300 s. The experiments conducted on an OpenStack cloud demonstrate that auto-scaling containers can satisfy time-constraint GBDA in clouds.

Fostering Self-Efficacy through Time Management in an Online Learning Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Terry, Krista P.; Doolittle, Peter E.

2008-01-01

In this study, we investigated the use of a web-based tool designed to influence levels of student self-efficacy by engaging participants in a time management strategy. On a daily basis for 16 days, a total of 64 undergraduate and graduate students engaged in the web-based time management tool in which students set goals regarding how they planned…

Elliot Lake study: factors affecting the uranium mine working environment prior to the introduction of current ventilation practices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1985-03-01

A study was carried out to assist in the retrospective assessment of the underground environment that existed in the Elliot Lake uranium mines in the late 1950's and early 1960's. The environmental conditions and work practices of the late 1950's were established by a combination of literature review and interviews with veteran miners. The practices of the 1950's were imitated in a pilot raise, and extensive measurements of the radiation environment were made. Realistic values of radon and thoron daughter production and removal rates were obtained. The computer model demonstrated that it could reproduce all the observed features of the radiation environment given realistic input parameters. A realistic time and space dependent computer model was used to calculate and compare the average expsoure of the miner in the 1950's with the exposure that would be expected from contemporary measurements, and with that of the miner today. The calculated exposure is about half of that expected from contemporary measurements, which gives assurance that previous exposures for pilot raise miners were not underestimated. Relative to today's miner, the average exposure of the typical raise miner of the 1950's is estimated as three times higher for radon daughters, equal for thoron daughters, equal for exposure to gamma radiation, but much higher for uranium and quartz dust

Universal real-time control framework and Internet of Things for fast-paced research and development based production environments

KAUST Repository

Chaoui, Hicham

2017-05-13

This paper introduces a universal real-time control platform for complex research and development (R&D) based products design. The inherent complexity in R&D projects makes products development a difficult task to undertake. The use of state of the art development tools for modeling, simulation, and hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) validation contributes to a complexity reduction. However, R&D projects still require significant development time since many design iterations are usually necessary before final solution, which increases the cost. In most R&D processes, these tools are not used beyond rapid prototyping since development for mass production is usually performed in another environment, using different tools. This paper presents a fast and cost effective way of R&D-based products development, speeding-up time to market.

Universal real-time control framework and Internet of Things for fast-paced research and development based production environments

KAUST Repository

Chaoui, Hicham; Aljarboua, Abdullah Abdulaziz; Miah, Suruz

2017-01-01

This paper introduces a universal real-time control platform for complex research and development (R&D) based products design. The inherent complexity in R&D projects makes products development a difficult task to undertake. The use of state of the art development tools for modeling, simulation, and hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) validation contributes to a complexity reduction. However, R&D projects still require significant development time since many design iterations are usually necessary before final solution, which increases the cost. In most R&D processes, these tools are not used beyond rapid prototyping since development for mass production is usually performed in another environment, using different tools. This paper presents a fast and cost effective way of R&D-based products development, speeding-up time to market.

Temperature Response in Hardened Concrete Subjected to Tropical Rainforest Environment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

E. I. Egba

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The objective of this paper is to characterize concrete micro-environment temperature response to the natural climate of the tropical rainforest. The peculiar warmth, high humidity, and low pressure nature of the tropical rainforest necessitated the present study. Temperature probes were inserted into concrete specimens subjected to the sheltered and unsheltered environment to measure the micro-environment temperature of the concrete, and study the hysteresis characteristics in relation to the climate temperature. Some mathematical relationships for forecasting the internal temperature of concrete in the tropical rainforest environment were proposed and tested. The proposed relationships were found reliable. It was observed that the micro-environment temperature was lower at the crest, and higher at the trough than the climate environment temperature with a temperature difference of 1-3 oC. Also, temperature response in concrete for the unsheltered micro-environment was 1.85 times faster than the response in the sheltered micro-environment. The findings of the study may be used to assist the durability assessment of concrete.

Making a good group decision (low risk) in Singapore under an environment that has time and cost constraints

OpenAIRE

Loo, Sok Hiang Candy

2014-01-01

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited Organizations in Singapore operate in a highly competitive and fast-paced work environment that presents decision-making challenges at the individual, group, and organization levels. A key problem is achieving good decision fitness within time and cost constraints. While many decision-making theories and processes address the fundamental decision-making process, there is limited research on improving the group decision-making framework...

Gait Event Detection in Real-World Environment for Long-Term Applications: Incorporating Domain Knowledge Into Time-Frequency Analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Khandelwal, Siddhartha; Wickstrom, Nicholas

2016-12-01

Detecting gait events is the key to many gait analysis applications that would benefit from continuous monitoring or long-term analysis. Most gait event detection algorithms using wearable sensors that offer a potential for use in daily living have been developed from data collected in controlled indoor experiments. However, for real-word applications, it is essential that the analysis is carried out in humans' natural environment; that involves different gait speeds, changing walking terrains, varying surface inclinations and regular turns among other factors. Existing domain knowledge in the form of principles or underlying fundamental gait relationships can be utilized to drive and support the data analysis in order to develop robust algorithms that can tackle real-world challenges in gait analysis. This paper presents a novel approach that exhibits how domain knowledge about human gait can be incorporated into time-frequency analysis to detect gait events from long-term accelerometer signals. The accuracy and robustness of the proposed algorithm are validated by experiments done in indoor and outdoor environments with approximately 93 600 gait events in total. The proposed algorithm exhibits consistently high performance scores across all datasets in both, indoor and outdoor environments.

Can a motivational intervention overcome an unsupportive environment for walking--findings from the Step-by-Step Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Merom, Dafna; Bauman, Adrian; Phongsavan, Philayrath; Cerin, Ester; Kassis, Mazen; Brown, Wendy; Smith, Ben J; Rissel, Chris

2009-10-01

Interventions to promote walking have rarely examined how their effects varied by the attributes of the physical environment. The purpose of this study is to examine whether perceptions of environmental walkability predicted change in walking behavior following an individual-based intervention to promote walking and whether the intervention buffered the effects of unsupportive environment for walking. Inactive adults (aged 30-65 years, 85% women) who completed a 3-month randomized control trial comparing the effect of a single mail-out of a theoretically based self-help walking program (WP, n = 102); the same program plus a pedometer (WPP, n = 105); and a "no-treatment" control group (C, n = 107). Measures included change in self-reported walking time for all purposes and in the proportion of people reporting regular walking (i.e., > or =150 min/week and > or =5 sessions/wk). Perceptions of environmental esthetics, safety from crime, proximity to destinations, access to walking facilities, traffic, streetlights, connectivity, and hilliness were assessed at baseline and dichotomized into "low" or "high" by the median score. Covariates were social support, self-efficacy, intention to change behavior, and sociodemographic characteristics. Adjusting for baseline walking, significant covariates, and study groups, walking time at follow-up was lower if streetlights or esthetics were perceived to be "low" (-24% and -22%, respectively) compared with "high" (p environmental barriers for walking can be overcome by motivational aids.

Correlates of Total Sedentary Time and Screen Time in 9-11 Year-Old Children around the World: The International Study of Childhood Obesity, Lifestyle and the Environment.

Science.gov (United States)

LeBlanc, Allana G; Katzmarzyk, Peter T; Barreira, Tiago V; Broyles, Stephanie T; Chaput, Jean-Philippe; Church, Timothy S; Fogelholm, Mikael; Harrington, Deirdre M; Hu, Gang; Kuriyan, Rebecca; Kurpad, Anura; Lambert, Estelle V; Maher, Carol; Maia, José; Matsudo, Victor; Olds, Timothy; Onywera, Vincent; Sarmiento, Olga L; Standage, Martyn; Tudor-Locke, Catrine; Zhao, Pei; Tremblay, Mark S

2015-01-01

Previously, studies examining correlates of sedentary behavior have been limited by small sample size, restricted geographic area, and little socio-cultural variability. Further, few studies have examined correlates of total sedentary time (SED) and screen time (ST) in the same population. This study aimed to investigate correlates of SED and ST in children around the world. The sample included 5,844 children (45.6% boys, mean age = 10.4 years) from study sites in Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, Finland, India, Kenya, Portugal, South Africa, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Child- and parent-reported behavioral, household, and neighborhood characteristics and directly measured anthropometric and accelerometer data were obtained. Twenty-one potential correlates of SED and ST were examined using multilevel models, adjusting for sex, age, and highest parental education, with school and study site as random effects. Variables that were moderately associated with SED and/or ST in univariate analyses (pcomputer in the bedroom. In this global sample many common correlates of SED and ST were identified, some of which are easily modifiable (e.g., removing TV from the bedroom), and others that may require more intense behavioral interventions (e.g., increasing physical activity). Future work should incorporate these findings into the development of culturally meaningful public health messages.

LDPC concatenated space-time block coded system in multipath fading environment: Analysis and evaluation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Surbhi Sharma

2011-06-01

Full Text Available Irregular low-density parity-check (LDPC codes have been found to show exceptionally good performance for single antenna systems over a wide class of channels. In this paper, the performance of LDPC codes with multiple antenna systems is investigated in flat Rayleigh and Rician fading channels for different modulation schemes. The focus of attention is mainly on the concatenation of irregular LDPC codes with complex orthogonal space-time codes. Iterative decoding is carried out with a density evolution method that sets a threshold above which the code performs well. For the proposed concatenated system, the simulation results show that the QAM technique achieves a higher coding gain of 8.8 dB and 3.2 dB over the QPSK technique in Rician (LOS and Rayleigh (NLOS faded environments respectively.

A Real-Time Reaction Obstacle Avoidance Algorithm for Autonomous Underwater Vehicles in Unknown Environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Yan, Zheping; Li, Jiyun; Zhang, Gengshi; Wu, Yi

2018-02-02

A novel real-time reaction obstacle avoidance algorithm (RRA) is proposed for autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) that must adapt to unknown complex terrains, based on forward looking sonar (FLS). To accomplish this algorithm, obstacle avoidance rules are planned, and the RRA processes are split into five steps Introduction only lists 4 so AUVs can rapidly respond to various environment obstacles. The largest polar angle algorithm (LPAA) is designed to change detected obstacle's irregular outline into a convex polygon, which simplifies the obstacle avoidance process. A solution is designed to solve the trapping problem existing in U-shape obstacle avoidance by an outline memory algorithm. Finally, simulations in three unknown obstacle scenes are carried out to demonstrate the performance of this algorithm, where the obtained obstacle avoidance trajectories are safety, smooth and near-optimal.

Revolutionary interdisciplinary cooperation. Effects of short- term regulation studied in a river environment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Saimakallio, H.; Virsu, R.

1996-11-01

A three-year study on how short-term regulation affects the river environment provides power plant builders with new capabilities to meet the needs of the riverside population, recreational users and power plants. The study also opens up new perspectives to researchers. Interdisciplinary cooperation between experts on the living environment, vegetation, fish, recreational use and energy has been revolutionary even on the international scale. (orig.)

The concordance of directly and indirectly measured built environment attributes and physical activity adoption

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

O'Connor Daniel P

2011-07-01

Full Text Available Background Physical activity (PA adoption is essential for obesity prevention and control, yet ethnic minority women report lower levels of PA and are at higher risk for obesity and its comorbidities compared to Caucasians. Epidemiological studies and ecologic models of health behavior suggest that built environmental factors are associated with health behaviors like PA, but few studies have examined the association between built environment attribute concordance and PA, and no known studies have examined attribute concordance and PA adoption. Purpose The purpose of this study was to associate the degree of concordance between directly and indirectly measured built environment attributes with changes in PA over time among African American and Hispanic Latina women participating in a PA intervention. Method Women (N = 410 completed measures of PA at Time 1 (T1 and Time 2 (T2; environmental data collected at T1 were used to compute concordance between directly and indirectly measured built environment attributes. The association between changes in PA and the degree of concordance between each directly and indirectly measured environmental attribute was assessed using repeated measures analyses. Results There were no significant associations between built environment attribute concordance values and change in self-reported or objectively measured PA. Self-reported PA significantly increased over time (F(1,184 = 7.82, p = .006, but this increase did not vary by ethnicity or any built environment attribute concordance variable. Conclusions Built environment attribute concordance may not be associated with PA changes over time among minority women. In an effort to promote PA, investigators should clarify specific built environment attributes that are important for PA adoption and whether accurate perceptions of these attributes are necessary, particularly among the vulnerable population of minority women.

Heat transfer studies in pool fire environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nitsche, F.

1993-01-01

A Type B package has to withstand severe thermal accident conditions. To calculate the temperature behaviour of such a package in a real fire environment, heat transfer parameters simulating the effect of the fire are needed. For studying such heat transfer parameters, a systematic programme of experimental and theoretical investigations was performed which was part of the IAEA Coordinated Research Programme (Nitsche and Weib 1990). The studies were done by means of small, unfinned and finned, steel model containers of simplified design in hydrocarbon fuel open fire tests. By using various methods, flame and container temperatures were measured and also container surface absorptivity before and after the test to study the effect of sooting and surface painting on heat transfer. Based on all these experimental data and comparative calculations, simplified, effective heat transfer parameters could be derived, simulating the effect of the real fire on the model containers. (J.P.N.)

Potential time savings to radiology department personnel in a PACS-based environment

Science.gov (United States)

Saarinen, Allan O.; Wilson, M. C.; Iverson, Scott C.; Loop, John W.

1990-08-01

A purported benefit of digital imaging and archiving of radiographic procedures is the presumption of time savings to radiologists, radiology technologists, and radiology departmentpersonnel involved with processingfilms and managing theflimfile room. As part of the University of Washington's evaluation of Picture Archiving and Communication Systems (PACS)for the U.S. Army Medical Research and Development Command, a study was performed which evaluated the current operationalpractices of the film-based radiology department at the University of Washington Medical Center (UWMC). Industrial engineering time and motion studies were conducted to document the length of time requiredforfilm processing in various modalities, the proportion of the total exam time usedforfilm processing, the amount of time radiologists spent searchingfor and looking at images, and the amount of time file room personnel spent collating reports, making loans, updatingfilm jacket information, and purging files. This evaluation showed that better than one-half of the tasks in the file room may be eliminated with PACS and radiologists may save easily 10 percent of the time they spend reading films by no longer having to searchforfilms. Radiology technologists may also save as much as 10 percent of their time with PACS, although this estimate is subject to significant patient mix aberrations and measurement error. Given that the UWMC radiology department operates efficiently, similar improvements are forecast for other radiology departments and larger improvements areforecastfor less efficient departments.

The learning environment and medical student burnout: a multicentre study.

Science.gov (United States)

Dyrbye, Liselotte N; Thomas, Matthew R; Harper, William; Massie, F Stanford; Power, David V; Eacker, Anne; Szydlo, Daniel W; Novotny, Paul J; Sloan, Jeff A; Shanafelt, Tait D

2009-03-01

Little is known about specific personal and professional factors influencing student distress. The authors conducted a comprehensive assessment of how learning environment, clinical rotation factors, workload, demographics and personal life events relate to student burnout. All medical students (n = 3080) at five medical schools were surveyed in the spring of 2006 using a validated instrument to assess burnout. Students were also asked about the aforementioned factors. A total of 1701 medical students (response rate 55%) completed the survey. Learning climate factors were associated with student burnout on univariate analysis (odds ratio [OR] 1.36-2.07; all P burnout (ORs 1.69 and 1.48, respectively; both P student burnout. Students who experienced a positive personal life event had a lower frequency of burnout (OR 0.70; P burnout than students who did not experience a negative personal life event. On multivariate analysis personal characteristics, learning environment and personal life events were all independently related to student burnout. Although a complex array of personal and professional factors influence student well-being, student satisfaction with specific characteristics of the learning environment appears to be a critical factor. Studies determining how to create a learning environment that cultivates student well-being are needed.

The farrier's work environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Löfqvist, Lotta; Pinzke, Stefan

2012-01-01

The horse industry in Sweden has rapidly expanded in recent years. This increasing number of horses implies a greater need for more farriers. Shoeing a horse is hard physical work, and includes awkward work postures and repetitive movements. It is well known that hard physical work increases the risk of injuries and musculoskeletal problems. The risk is especially high for musculoskeletal disorders when certain movements are constantly repeated. Heavy or repeated unilateral loads lead to considerable stress on the muscles, which can lead to rupture and fatigue that can cause long term problems. A case study showed that farriers worked 75% of their work time with their backs in bent positions (often more than 70 degrees). Farriers are also exposed to risk factors in their physical environment like dust, noise and poor lighting. Risk of kicks and bites, eye injuries and burns are other factors that make their work environment hazardous. There are only a few studies available that have documented the farriers' working environment and these are not of recent date. A US study from 1984 described kicks and bites from horses, metal splinters in the eyes, heat exhaustion and problematic postures to be perceived as the greatest risks in their work. The back, knees and wrists were the most exposed body regions. There is a need for more current and in-depth studies investigating the farriers' working conditions in order to gain more knowledge of their health and work environment. The aim of the present study is to investigate the physical health and work environment of farriers. The investigation will use questionnaires, work load measurements and workplace analysis. The results will serve as a base for improvements concerning the design of the workplace, equipment, tools and aids as well as supplying recommendations about physical exercise and the correct work technique, etc. The results are planned to be incorporated in the education of farriers.

Study on APD real time compensation methods of laser Detection system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Feng Ying; Zhang He; Zhang Xiangjin; Liu Kun

2011-01-01

their operating principles. The constant false alarm rate compensation can't detect the pulse signal which comes randomly. Therefore real-time performance can't be realized. The noise compensation can meet the request of real-time performance. If it is used in the environment where background light is intense or changes acutely, there is a better effect. The temperature compensation can also achieve the real-time performance request. If it is used in the environment where temperature changes acutely, there is also a better effect. Aim at such problems, this paper presents that different APD real-time compensations should be adopt to adapt to different environments. The exiting temperature compensation adjusts output voltage by using variable resistance to regulate input voltage. Its structure is complex; the real-time performance is worse. In order to remedy these defects, a real-time temperature compensation which is based on switch on-off time of switching power supply is designed. Its feasibility and operating stability are confirmed by plate making and experiment. At last, the comparison experiments between the real-time noise compensation and the real-time temperature compensation is carried out in the environments where temperature is almost invariant and background light acutely changes from5lux to150lux . The result shows that the operating effect of the real-time noise compensation is better here, the noise minifies to a sixth of original noise. The comparison experiments between the real-time noise compensation and the real-time temperature compensation is carried out in darkroom where background light is 5lux and temperature almost rapidly changes from -20 deg. C to 80 deg. C. The result shows that the operating effect of the real-time temperature compensation is better here, the noise minifies to a seventh of original noise. Moreover, these methods can be applied to other type detection systems of weak photoelectric signal; they have high actual application

Study on APD real time compensation methods of laser Detection system

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Feng Ying; Zhang He; Zhang Xiangjin; Liu Kun, E-mail: fy_caimi@163.com [ZNDY of Ministerial Key Laboratory, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing 210094 (China)

2011-02-01

by analyzing their operating principles. The constant false alarm rate compensation can't detect the pulse signal which comes randomly. Therefore real-time performance can't be realized. The noise compensation can meet the request of real-time performance. If it is used in the environment where background light is intense or changes acutely, there is a better effect. The temperature compensation can also achieve the real-time performance request. If it is used in the environment where temperature changes acutely, there is also a better effect. Aim at such problems, this paper presents that different APD real-time compensations should be adopt to adapt to different environments. The exiting temperature compensation adjusts output voltage by using variable resistance to regulate input voltage. Its structure is complex; the real-time performance is worse. In order to remedy these defects, a real-time temperature compensation which is based on switch on-off time of switching power supply is designed. Its feasibility and operating stability are confirmed by plate making and experiment. At last, the comparison experiments between the real-time noise compensation and the real-time temperature compensation is carried out in the environments where temperature is almost invariant and background light acutely changes from5lux to150lux . The result shows that the operating effect of the real-time noise compensation is better here, the noise minifies to a sixth of original noise. The comparison experiments between the real-time noise compensation and the real-time temperature compensation is carried out in darkroom where background light is 5lux and temperature almost rapidly changes from -20 deg. C to 80 deg. C. The result shows that the operating effect of the real-time temperature compensation is better here, the noise minifies to a seventh of original noise. Moreover, these methods can be applied to other type detection systems of weak photoelectric signal; they

Study on APD real time compensation methods of laser Detection system

Science.gov (United States)

Ying, Feng; He, Zhang; Xiangjin, Zhang; Kun, Liu

2011-02-01

their operating principles. The constant false alarm rate compensation can't detect the pulse signal which comes randomly. Therefore real-time performance can't be realized. The noise compensation can meet the request of real-time performance. If it is used in the environment where background light is intense or changes acutely, there is a better effect. The temperature compensation can also achieve the real-time performance request. If it is used in the environment where temperature changes acutely, there is also a better effect. Aim at such problems, this paper presents that different APD real-time compensations should be adopt to adapt to different environments. The exiting temperature compensation adjusts output voltage by using variable resistance to regulate input voltage. Its structure is complex; the real-time performance is worse. In order to remedy these defects, a real-time temperature compensation which is based on switch on-off time of switching power supply is designed. Its feasibility and operating stability are confirmed by plate making and experiment. At last, the comparison experiments between the real-time noise compensation and the real-time temperature compensation is carried out in the environments where temperature is almost invariant and background light acutely changes from5lux to150lux . The result shows that the operating effect of the real-time noise compensation is better here, the noise minifies to a sixth of original noise. The comparison experiments between the real-time noise compensation and the real-time temperature compensation is carried out in darkroom where background light is 5lux and temperature almost rapidly changes from -20°C to 80°C. The result shows that the operating effect of the real-time temperature compensation is better here, the noise minifies to a seventh of original noise. Moreover, these methods can be applied to other type detection systems of weak photoelectric signal; they have high actual application value.

A Study of the Characteristics of Consumers Behavior under the Web Environment

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

无

2001-01-01

The development of Internet has made shopping online possible.But while we are focusing ourselves on the environment design, plan for the information structures and items or business scales, another important factor has been ignored, that is, the changes of the characteristics of consumers behavior under the web environment. Because we are not able to make the exact online marketing strategy according to the changes of consumers behavior, and although many online shops have been opened, we are not able to get big sales. This article emphasises the analysis of the environment for on-line transactions, attampts to investigate the basic modes for information movement and on-line shopping of those consumers under the web environment, study the influence on consumers brought by Internet, the shopping styles and their characteristics.

Physical environment and life expectancy at birth in Mexico: an eco-epidemiological study.

Science.gov (United States)

Idrovo, Alvaro J

2011-06-01

The objective of this ecological study was to ascertain the effects of physical environment on life expectancy at birth, using data from all 32 Mexican states. 50 environmental indicators with information about demography, housing, poverty, water, soils, biodiversity, forestry resources, and residues were included in exploratory factor analysis. Four factors were extracted: population vulnerability/susceptibility, and biodiversity (FC1), urbanization, industrialization, and environmental sustainability (FC2), ecological resilience (FC3), and free-plague environments (FC4). Using OLS regressions, FC2, FC3, and FC4 were found to be positively associated with life expectancy at birth, while FC1 was negatively associated. This study suggests that physical environment is an important macro-determinant of the health of the Mexican population, and highlights the usefulness of ecological concepts in epidemiological studies.

Physical environment and life expectancy at birth in Mexico: an eco-epidemiological study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alvaro J. Idrovo

2011-06-01

Full Text Available The objective of this ecological study was to ascertain the effects of physical environment on life expectancy at birth, using data from all 32 Mexican states. 50 environmental indicators with information about demography, housing, poverty, water, soils, biodiversity, forestry resources, and residues were included in exploratory factor analysis. Four factors were extracted: population vulnerability/susceptibility, and biodiversity (FC1, urbanization, industrialization, and environmental sustainability (FC2, ecological resilience (FC3, and free-plague environments (FC4. Using OLS regressions, FC2, FC3, and FC4 were found to be positively associated with life expectancy at birth, while FC1 was negatively associated. This study suggests that physical environment is an important macro-determinant of the health of the Mexican population, and highlights the usefulness of ecological concepts in epidemiological studies.

Quantification of the effects of VRN1 and Ppd-D1 to predict spring wheat (Triticum aestivum) heading time across diverse environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Zheng, Bangyou; Biddulph, Ben; Li, Dora; Kuchel, Haydn; Chapman, Scott

2013-09-01

Heading time is a major determinant of the adaptation of wheat to different environments, and is critical in minimizing risks of frost, heat, and drought on reproductive development. Given that major developmental genes are known in wheat, a process-based model, APSIM, was modified to incorporate gene effects into estimation of heading time, while minimizing degradation in the predictive capability of the model. Model parameters describing environment responses were replaced with functions of the number of winter and photoperiod (PPD)-sensitive alleles at the three VRN1 loci and the Ppd-D1 locus, respectively. Two years of vernalization and PPD trials of 210 lines (spring wheats) at a single location were used to estimate the effects of the VRN1 and Ppd-D1 alleles, with validation against 190 trials (~4400 observations) across the Australian wheatbelt. Compared with spring genotypes, winter genotypes for Vrn-A1 (i.e. with two winter alleles) had a delay of 76.8 degree days (°Cd) in time to heading, which was double the effect of the Vrn-B1 or Vrn-D1 winter genotypes. Of the three VRN1 loci, winter alleles at Vrn-B1 had the strongest interaction with PPD, delaying heading time by 99.0 °Cd under long days. The gene-based model had root mean square error of 3.2 and 4.3 d for calibration and validation datasets, respectively. Virtual genotypes were created to examine heading time in comparison with frost and heat events and showed that new longer-season varieties could be heading later (with potential increased yield) when sown early in season. This gene-based model allows breeders to consider how to target gene combinations to current and future production environments using parameters determined from a small set of phenotyping treatments.

Conquest and Care for the Preservation of Nature and Environment in the Novel Amba by Laksmi Pamuntjak: Study Ecocriticism

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wiyatmi Wiyatmi

2017-02-01

Full Text Available This study aims to analyse (1 how the characters in the novel Amba by Laksmi Pamuntjak conquest and care for the preservation of nature and environment, and (2 the depiction of nature and the environment in relation to the overall story of Amba using ecocriticism  perspective. The results are as follows. First, the nature and the environment of Buru are described as an arena to be conquered by the main character (Bhishma, who was a political prisoner in the New Order era. In addition, the preservation of nature and environment of Buru Island also should be protected from exploitation, especially by outsiders who came to the island of Buru. Second, the depiction of nature and the environment in Amba is related to the creation of the setting of story (place and time,  i.e. Buru Island as political prisoners’ detention place in the New Order era, between 1969–2006. From the perspective of ecocriticism  these findings demonstrate how an island that was secluded so used to dispose of political prisoners have experienced the dynamics of an arena which was originally a natural and fierce, eventually turned into an island that invites entrants to explore and exploit natural wealth, so must be preserved.

ANALYSIS OF VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENT BENEFIT IN E-LEARNING

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

NOVÁK, Martin

2013-06-01

Full Text Available The analysis of the virtual environment assets towards the e-learning process improvements is mentioned in this article. The virtual environment was created within the solution of the project ‘Virtualization’ at the Faculty of Economics and Administration, University of Pardubice. The aim of this project was to eliminate the disproportion of free access to licensed software between groups of part-time and full-time students. The research was realized within selected subjects of the study program System Engineering and Informatics. The subjects were connected to the informatics, applied informatics, control and decision making. Student subject results, student feedback based on electronic questionnaire and data from log file of virtual server usage were compared and analysed. Based on analysis of virtualization possibilities the solution of virtual environment was implemented through Microsoft Terminal Server.

Recess Physical Activity and Perceived School Environment among Elementary School Children

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kaori Ishii

2014-07-01

Full Text Available Differences in recess physical activity (PA according to perceived school environment among elementary school children were examined. Participants were 103 children from two schools in Japan. PA was measured using accelerometry for seven consecutive days. Time spent in sedentary or PA (light, moderate, or vigorous during their morning recess (25 min and lunch recess (15 min was determined. The School Physical Activity Environment Scale (three factors: equipment, facility, and safety was used to investigate perceived school environment. Environmental factor scores were assigned to low or high groups for each factor by median. An analysis of covariance, with grade as the covariate, was conducted separately by gender to examine differences in PA between two groups. During lunch recess, boys in the high-equipment group spent significantly more time in moderate PA (high: 1.5; low: 0.8 min whereas girls in this group spent less time in light PA (9.3, 11.0. Boys in the high-facility group spent significantly less time in sedentary (2.3, 3.9 and more time in vigorous PA (2.4, 1.4 during lunch recess, and girls spent more time in moderate (2.1, 1.2 and vigorous PA (1.9, 1.3 during morning recess. Differences were observed in recess PA according to school environment perceptions. The present study may be useful for further intervention studies for the promotion of PA during recess.

The IAA Cosmic Study 'Protecting the Environment of Celestial Bodies'

Science.gov (United States)

Rettberg, Petra; Hofmann, Mahulena; Williamson, Mark

The study group tasked with producing this International Academy of Astronautics (IAA) `Cosmic Study' on Protecting the Environment of Celestial Bodies was formed under the aus-pices of IAA Commission V (Space Policy, Law Economy). The members of the international, multidisciplinary team assembled to undertake the Study accept, as a premise, the Planetary Protection Policy guidelines developed by COSPAR, which differentiate the degree of protec-tion according to the type of space activity and the celestial body under investigation (such that fly-by missions have less stringent requirements than lander missions, while Mars is `better protected' than the Moon). However, this Study goes deliberately beyond the interpretation of `Planetary Protection' as a set of methods for protecting the planets from biological con-tamination and extends consideration to the geophysical, industrial and cultural realms. The Study concludes that, from the perspective of current and future activities in outer space, present measures aimed at protecting the space environment are insufficient. Deficiencies in-clude a lack of suitable in-situ methods of chemical and biological detection and the absence of a systematic record of radioactive contaminants. Other issues identified by the Study include an insufficient legal framework, a shortage of effective economic tools and a lack of political will to address these concerns. It is expected that new detection methods under development, and the resultant increase in microbiological knowledge of the planetary surfaces, will lead to changes in the COSPAR planetary protection guidelines and bioburden limits. It is important, however, that any new approaches should not hamper future exploration and exploitation of celestial bodies more than absolutely necessary. The Study addresses the need to find a balance between protection and freedom of action. From a legal perspective, the Study concludes that a general consensus on protection of the

Real-Time and High-Fidelity Simulation Environment for Autonomous Ground Vehicle Dynamics

Science.gov (United States)

Cameron, Jonathan; Myint, Steven; Kuo, Calvin; Jain, Abhi; Grip, Havard; Jayakumar, Paramsothy; Overholt, Jim

2013-01-01

This paper reports on a collaborative project between U.S. Army TARDEC and Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) to develop a unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) simulation model using the ROAMS vehicle modeling framework. Besides modeling the physical suspension of the vehicle, the sensing and navigation of the HMMWV vehicle are simulated. Using models of urban and off-road environments, the HMMWV simulation was tested in several ways, including navigation in an urban environment with obstacle avoidance and the performance of a lane change maneuver.

Study on Collaborative Object Manipulation in Virtual Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Mayangsari, Maria Niken; Yong-Moo, Kwon

This paper presents comparative study on network collaboration performance in different immersion. Especially, the relationship between user collaboration performance and degree of immersion provided by the system is addressed and compared based on several experiments. The user tests on our system include several cases: 1) Comparison between non-haptics and haptics collaborative interaction over LAN, 2) Comparison between non-haptics and haptics collaborative interaction over Internet, and 3) Analysis of collaborative interaction between non-immersive and immersive display environments.

Directional Networking in GPS Denied Environments - Time Synchronization

Science.gov (United States)

2016-03-14

RF-based measurements to synchronize time and measure node range.  Satellite Doppler: Using Doppler measurements from multiple satellites along...with satellite catalog data to determine time and position.  LTE : Use existing LTE base-stations for time and position.  Differential GPS: A...Opportunistic Signals: Opportunistically take advantage of existing RF signals (i.e., FM radio, DTV, LTE , etc.) transmitted from known locations

Forensic nursing in secure environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Shelton, Deborah

2009-01-01

There are few well-designed studies of corrections or prison nursing roles. This study seeks to describe the corrections or prison role of forensic nurses in the United States who provide care in secure environments. National data detailing the scope of practice in secure environments are limited. This pencil and paper survey describes the roles of 180 forensic nurses from 14 states who work in secure environments. Descriptive statistics are utilized. A repeated measures ANOVA with post hoc analyses was implemented. These nurses were older than average in age, but had 10 years or less experience in forensic nursing practice. Two significant roles emerged to "promote and implement principles that underpin effective quality and practice" and to "assess, develop, implement, and improve programs of care for individuals." Significant roles varied based upon the security classification of the unit or institution in which the nurses were employed. Access to information about these nurses and their nursing practice was difficult in these closed systems. Minimal data are available nationally, indicating a need for collection of additional data over time to examine changes in role. It is through such developments that forensic nursing provided in secure environments will define its specialization and attract the attention it deserves.

Straight from the Mouths of Horses and Tapirs: Using Fossil Teeth to Clarify How Ancient Environments Have Changed over Time

Science.gov (United States)

DeSantis, Larisa

2009-01-01

Clarifying ancient environments millions of years ago is necessary to better understand how ecosystems change over time, providing insight as to the potential impacts of current global warming. This module engages middle school students in the scientific process, asking them to use tooth measurement to test the null hypothesis that horse and tapir…

A Monte Carlo study of time-aggregation in continuous-time and discrete-time parametric hazard models.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hofstede, ter F.; Wedel, M.

1998-01-01

This study investigates the effects of time aggregation in discrete and continuous-time hazard models. A Monte Carlo study is conducted in which data are generated according to various continuous and discrete-time processes, and aggregated into daily, weekly and monthly intervals. These data are

Study benefit value of utilization water resources for energy and sustainable environment

Science.gov (United States)

Juniah, Restu; Sastradinata, Marwan

2017-11-01

Referring to the concept of sustainable development, the environment is said to be sustainable if the fulfillment of three pillars of development that is economic, social and ecological or the environment itself. The environment can sustained in the principle of ecology or basic principles of environmental science, when the three environmental components, namely the natural environment, the artificial environment (the built environment) and the social environment can be aligned for sustainability. The natural environment in this study is the water resources, the artificial environment is micro hydroelectric power generation (MHPG), and the social environment is the community living around the MHPG. The existence of MHPG is intended for the sustainability of special electrical energy for areas not yet reached by electricity derived from the state electricity company (SEC). The utilization of MHPG Singalaga in South Ogan Komering Ulu (OKUS) district is not only intended for economic, ecological, and social sustainability in Southern OKU district especially those who live in Singalaga Village, Kisam Tinggi District. This paper discusses the economic, ecological and social benefits of water resources utilization in Southern OKU District for MHPG Singalaga. The direct economic benefits that arise for people living around MHPG Singalaga is the cost incurred by the community for the use of electricity is less than if the community uses electricity coming from outside the MHPG. The cost to society in the form of dues amounting to IDR 15,000 a month / household. Social benefits with the absorption of manpower to manage the MHPG is chairman, secretary and 3 members, while the ecological benefits of water resources and sustainable energy as well as the community while maintaining the natural vegetation that is located around the MHPG for the continuity of water resources.

Predicting multiprocessing efficiency on the Cray multiprocessors in a (CTSS) time-sharing environment/application to a 3-D magnetohydrodynamics code

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mirin, A.A.

1988-01-01

A formula is derived for predicting multiprocessing efficiency on Cray supercomputers equipped with the Cray Time-Sharing System (CTSS). The model is applicable to an intensive time-sharing environment. The actual efficiency estimate depends on three factors: the code size, task length, and job mix. The implementation of multitasking in a three-dimensional plasma magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) code, TEMCO, is discussed. TEMCO solves the primitive one-fluid compressible MHD equations and includes resistive and Hall effects in Ohm's law. Virtually all segments of the main time-integration loop are multitasked. The multiprocessing efficiency model is applied to TEMCO. Excellent agreement is obtained between the actual multiprocessing efficiency and the theoretical prediction

A study on the life extension of polymer materials under radiation environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, K. J; Park, S. W.; Jung, K. S.; Cho, S. H.; Seo, H. S.

2001-12-01

The object of this project is to improve the stability and the economics by reducing the radiation-induced oxidation as a factor of degradation of polymer materials used under the radiation environment. In order to attain the objective of this study and to check the effect of diamond-like carbon(DLC) coating on the anti-oxidation reaction, polymer specimens such as ABS, Acryl, Polycarbonate, Polyethylene, Polypropylene, PVC coating DLC thin layer were exposed to high-level gamma radiation, and their irradiation effects were investigated. A plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition method was adopted in fabricating a DLC thin film on the polymer specimens, which were irradiated with the non-DLC film deposited specimens under the gamma radiation emitted from Co-60 source from 1x10 5 to 1x10 8 rads exposure. According to the characterization of irradiated specimens from the elapsed time of minimum 4 hours to a maximum of 105 days after the irradiation, the DLC deposition on the polymer surface was revealed to contribute to the improvement on the resistance of the radiation-induced oxidation in this study

Study of cache performance in distributed environment for data processing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Makatun, Dzmitry; Lauret, Jérôme; Šumbera, Michal

2014-01-01

Processing data in distributed environment has found its application in many fields of science (Nuclear and Particle Physics (NPP), astronomy, biology to name only those). Efficiently transferring data between sites is an essential part of such processing. The implementation of caching strategies in data transfer software and tools, such as the Reasoner for Intelligent File Transfer (RIFT) being developed in the STAR collaboration, can significantly decrease network load and waiting time by reusing the knowledge of data provenance as well as data placed in transfer cache to further expand on the availability of sources for files and data-sets. Though, a great variety of caching algorithms is known, a study is needed to evaluate which one can deliver the best performance in data access considering the realistic demand patterns. Records of access to the complete data-sets of NPP experiments were analyzed and used as input for computer simulations. Series of simulations were done in order to estimate the possible cache hits and cache hits per byte for known caching algorithms. The simulations were done for cache of different sizes within interval 0.001 – 90% of complete data-set and low-watermark within 0-90%. Records of data access were taken from several experiments and within different time intervals in order to validate the results. In this paper, we will discuss the different data caching strategies from canonical algorithms to hybrid cache strategies, present the results of our simulations for the diverse algorithms, debate and identify the choice for the best algorithm in the context of Physics Data analysis in NPP. While the results of those studies have been implemented in RIFT, they can also be used when setting up cache in any other computational work-flow (Cloud processing for example) or managing data storages with partial replicas of the entire data-set

The redefined environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hermelin, Michel

1992-01-01

Although it seems an audacity to try to redefine the environment, the current interpretation of the concept of natural environment in Colombia makes necessary that task, with the purpose of arriving at the same time to a focus but realist and useful for those who should keep it in mind in the planning and in the taking of decisions. The definition of effective environment for most of the Colombians and diffused by entities like the Inderena it corresponds to a partial vision of the national reality. It is necessary to show to the country that that version is no-alone incomplete but dangerous, just as they have checked it the catastrophes of the last years that caused many kill and lost, fortunately the tendency of the last years on the part of some planners has been the one of conferring to the threats and the mineral resources the importance that it deserve. God willing that tendency be returns the denominator common of the whole studies dedicated to the ordination of the territory, so much urban as rural. This work recaptures and wide concepts that were presented previously by the author in several conferences and publications. The work understands a revision of the evolution of the environment concept in the first place in Colombia. They are made some observations next about the necessity of keeping in mind the geosciences in the use of the natural environment and are it finishes with the way to integrate those in the process of physical planning that it receives the name of environmental planning universally

Real-time maneuver optimization of space-based robots in a dynamic environment: Theory and on-orbit experiments

Science.gov (United States)

Chamitoff, Gregory E.; Saenz-Otero, Alvar; Katz, Jacob G.; Ulrich, Steve; Morrell, Benjamin J.; Gibbens, Peter W.

2018-01-01

This paper presents the development of a real-time path-planning optimization approach to controlling the motion of space-based robots. The algorithm is capable of planning three dimensional trajectories for a robot to navigate within complex surroundings that include numerous static and dynamic obstacles, path constraints and performance limitations. The methodology employs a unique transformation that enables rapid generation of feasible solutions for complex geometries, making it suitable for application to real-time operations and dynamic environments. This strategy was implemented on the Synchronized Position Hold Engage Reorient Experimental Satellite (SPHERES) test-bed on the International Space Station (ISS), and experimental testing was conducted onboard the ISS during Expedition 17 by the first author. Lessons learned from the on-orbit tests were used to further refine the algorithm for future implementations.

Designing, implementing and evaluating an online problem-based learning (PBL) environment--a pilot study.

Science.gov (United States)

Ng, Manwa L; Bridges, Susan; Law, Sam Po; Whitehill, Tara

2014-01-01

Problem-based learning (PBL) has been shown to be effective for promoting student competencies in self-directed and collaborative learning, critical thinking, self-reflection and tackling novel situations. However, the need for face-to-face interactions at the same place and time severely limits the potential of traditional PBL. The requirements of space and for meeting at a specific location at the same time create timetabling difficulties. Such limitations need to be tackled before all potentials of PBL learning can be realized. The present study aimed at designing and implementing an online PBL environment for undergraduate speech/language pathology students, and assessing the associated pedagogical effectiveness. A group of eight PBL students were randomly selected to participate in the study. They underwent 4 weeks of online PBL using Adobe Connect. Upon completion of the experiment, they were assessed via a self-reported questionnaire and quantitative comparison with traditional PBL students based on the same written assignment. The questionnaire revealed that all participating students enjoyed online PBL, without any perceived negative effects on learning. Online PBL unanimously saved the students travel time to and from school. Statistical analysis indicated no significant difference in assignment grades between the online and traditional PBL groups, indicating that online PBL learning appears to be similarly effective as traditional face-to-face PBL learning.

Bayesian Genomic Prediction with Genotype × Environment Interaction Kernel Models

Science.gov (United States)

Cuevas, Jaime; Crossa, José; Montesinos-López, Osval A.; Burgueño, Juan; Pérez-Rodríguez, Paulino; de los Campos, Gustavo

2016-01-01

The phenomenon of genotype × environment (G × E) interaction in plant breeding decreases selection accuracy, thereby negatively affecting genetic gains. Several genomic prediction models incorporating G × E have been recently developed and used in genomic selection of plant breeding programs. Genomic prediction models for assessing multi-environment G × E interaction are extensions of a single-environment model, and have advantages and limitations. In this study, we propose two multi-environment Bayesian genomic models: the first model considers genetic effects (u) that can be assessed by the Kronecker product of variance–covariance matrices of genetic correlations between environments and genomic kernels through markers under two linear kernel methods, linear (genomic best linear unbiased predictors, GBLUP) and Gaussian (Gaussian kernel, GK). The other model has the same genetic component as the first model (u) plus an extra component, f, that captures random effects between environments that were not captured by the random effects u. We used five CIMMYT data sets (one maize and four wheat) that were previously used in different studies. Results show that models with G × E always have superior prediction ability than single-environment models, and the higher prediction ability of multi-environment models with u and f over the multi-environment model with only u occurred 85% of the time with GBLUP and 45% of the time with GK across the five data sets. The latter result indicated that including the random effect f is still beneficial for increasing prediction ability after adjusting by the random effect u. PMID:27793970

Bayesian Genomic Prediction with Genotype × Environment Interaction Kernel Models

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jaime Cuevas

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The phenomenon of genotype × environment (G × E interaction in plant breeding decreases selection accuracy, thereby negatively affecting genetic gains. Several genomic prediction models incorporating G × E have been recently developed and used in genomic selection of plant breeding programs. Genomic prediction models for assessing multi-environment G × E interaction are extensions of a single-environment model, and have advantages and limitations. In this study, we propose two multi-environment Bayesian genomic models: the first model considers genetic effects ( u that can be assessed by the Kronecker product of variance–covariance matrices of genetic correlations between environments and genomic kernels through markers under two linear kernel methods, linear (genomic best linear unbiased predictors, GBLUP and Gaussian (Gaussian kernel, GK. The other model has the same genetic component as the first model ( u plus an extra component, f, that captures random effects between environments that were not captured by the random effects u . We used five CIMMYT data sets (one maize and four wheat that were previously used in different studies. Results show that models with G × E always have superior prediction ability than single-environment models, and the higher prediction ability of multi-environment models with u   and   f over the multi-environment model with only u occurred 85% of the time with GBLUP and 45% of the time with GK across the five data sets. The latter result indicated that including the random effect f is still beneficial for increasing prediction ability after adjusting by the random effect u .

Study of the interaction of multiply charged ions and complex systems of biological interest: effects of the molecular environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Capron, Michael

2011-01-01

This PhD thesis describes the experimental study of the interaction between slow multiply charged ions (tens of keV) and molecular systems of biological interest (amino acids and nucleobases). It is the aim to identify and to better understand the effect of a molecular environment on different collision induced phenomena. To do so, the time of flight spectra of cationic products emerging from collisions with isolated molecules as well as clusters are compared. It is shown that the molecular environment protects the molecule as it allows to distribute the transferred energies and charges over the whole system (global decrease of the fragmentation and quenching of some fragmentation channels). Furthermore, in the case of adenine clusters, the molecular environment weakens some intramolecular bonds. Moreover, products of chemical reactions are observed concerning proton transfer processes in hydrated cluster of adenine and the formation of peptides bonds between beta-alanine molecules in a cluster. The latter finding is studied as a function of the cluster size and type of the projectile. Some criteria for peptide bond formation, such as flexibility and geometry of the molecule, are investigated for different amino acids. (author)

Timing coincidence studies with fast photomultipliers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Raoof, M.A.; Raoof, S.A.

1981-01-01

The time response of RCA C70045D photomultipliers was studied using a subnanosecond light flasher. The tubes, which have an output rise time of approximately 0.5 ns, were used in coincidence to study the variations in the fwhm of the time spectrum over a certain dynamic range of pulse amplitudes for both leading edge and constant fraction discrimination. A comparison has also been made for the measured time resolutions with some of the other fast photomultipliers. (orig.)

Configuration Management and Infrastructure Monitoring Using CFEngine and Icinga for Real-time Heterogeneous Data Taking Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Poat, M. D.; Lauret, J.; Betts, W.

2015-12-01

The STAR online computing environment is an intensive ever-growing system used for real-time data collection and analysis. Composed of heterogeneous and sometimes groups of custom-tuned machines, the computing infrastructure was previously managed by manual configurations and inconsistently monitored by a combination of tools. This situation led to configuration inconsistency and an overload of repetitive tasks along with lackluster communication between personnel and machines. Globally securing this heterogeneous cyberinfrastructure was tedious at best and an agile, policy-driven system ensuring consistency, was pursued. Three configuration management tools, Chef, Puppet, and CFEngine have been compared in reliability, versatility and performance along with a comparison of infrastructure monitoring tools Nagios and Icinga. STAR has selected the CFEngine configuration management tool and the Icinga infrastructure monitoring system leading to a versatile and sustainable solution. By leveraging these two tools STAR can now swiftly upgrade and modify the environment to its needs with ease as well as promptly react to cyber-security requests. By creating a sustainable long term monitoring solution, the detection of failures was reduced from days to minutes, allowing rapid actions before the issues become dire problems, potentially causing loss of precious experimental data or uptime.

Virtual reality experiments linking social environment and psychosis: A pilot study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Veling, W.; Brinkman, W.P.; Dorrestijn, E.; van der Gaag, M.

2014-01-01

Initial studies with healthy subjects and individuals with high risk for psychosis have suggested that virtual reality (VR) environments may be used to investigate social and psychological mechanisms of psychosis. One small study reported that VR can safely be used in individuals with current

Context-aware Cloud Computing for Personal Learning Environment

OpenAIRE

Chen, Feng; Al-Bayatti, Ali Hilal; Siewe, Francois

2016-01-01

Virtual learning means to learn from social interactions in a virtual platform that enables people to study anywhere and at any time. Current Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs) are a range of integrated web based applications to support and enhance the education. Normally, VLEs are institution centric; are owned by the institutions and are designed to support formal learning, which do not support lifelong learning. These limitations led to the research of Personal Learning Environments (PLE...

Emotional and Motivational Engagement at School Transition: A Qualitative Stage-Environment Fit Study

Science.gov (United States)

Symonds, Jennifer; Hargreaves, Linda

2016-01-01

Adolescents typically like school less after making age-graded school transitions. Stage-environment fit theory (Eccles & Midgley, 1989) attributes this to a mismatch between developmental needs and new school environments. Our in vivo study provides a basis for future quantitative designs by uncovering the most prevalent stage-environment…

Neighbourhood Environment Correlates of Physical Activity: A Study of Eight Czech Regional Towns

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dagmar Sigmundová

2011-01-01

Full Text Available An adequate amount of physical activity (PA is a key factor that is associated with good health. This study assessed socio-environmental factors associated with meeting the health recommendations for PA (achieving 10,000 steps per day. In total, 1,653 respondents randomly selected from across eight regional towns (each >90,000 inhabitants in the Czech Republic participated in the study. The ANEWS questionnaire assessed the environment in neighbourhoods, and participants’ weekly PA was objectively monitored (Yamax Digiwalker SW-700 pedometer. About 24% of participants were sufficiently active, 27% were highly active; 28% participants were overweight and 5% were obese. Although BMI was significantly inversely associated with the daily step counts achieved only in females, for both genders, BMI was generally not significantly associated with the criterion of achieving 10,000 steps per day during the week. Increased BMI in both genders was accompanied with a decline in participation in organized PA and with increasing age. As regards to the demographic/lifestyle factors, for females, more participation in organized PA was significantly positively correlated with the achieved daily step counts. In contrast, older age and higher BMI (for females and smoking (for males were significantly negatively correlated with the achieved daily step counts. In terms of the environmental aspects, pleasant environments were significantly positively correlated to daily step counts for both genders. Additionally, for males, better residencies (more family homes rather than apartment blocks in the neighbourhood were significantly positively correlated with their daily step counts. For females, less accessibility of shops and non-sport facilities (depending on walking distance in minutes were significantly negatively correlated to the achieved daily step counts. Individuals who lived in pleasant neighbourhoods, with better access to shops and who participated in

Remote real time x-ray examination of fuel elements in a hot cell environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yapuncich, F.L.

1993-01-01

This report discusses the Remote Real Time X-ray System which will allow for detailed examination of fuel elements. This task will be accomplished in a highly radioactive hot cell environment. Two remote handling systems win be utilized at the examination station. One handling system will transfer the fuel element to and from the shielded x-ray system. A second handling system will allow for vertical and rotational inspection of the fuel elements. The process win include removing a single nuclear fuel element from a element fabrication magazine(EFM), positioning the fuel element within the shielding envelope of the x-ray system and transferring the fuel element from the station manipulator to the x-ray system manipulator, performing the x-ray inspection, and then transferring the fuel element to either the element storage magazine(ESM) or a reject bin

Parenting environment and scholastic archievement: A restrospective study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Taris, T.W.; Bok, I. A.

1996-01-01

The current paper examines how two parenting styles (the degree to which parents provided an overly protective environment, and a warm and loving environment) relate to educational achievement. We expected that a warm and loving upbringing and an upbringing that is not overly protective would

Time-resolved studies. Ch. 9

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mills, Dennis M.; Argonne National Lab., IL

1991-01-01

Synchrotron radiation, with its unique properties, offers a tool to extend X-ray measurements from the static to the time-resolved regime. The most straight-forward application of synchrotron radiation to the study of transient phenomena is directly through the possibility of decreased data-collection times via the enormous increase in flux over that of a laboratory X-ray system. Even further increases in intensity can be obtained through the use of novel X-ray optical devices. Wide-bandpass monochromators, e.g., that utilize the continuous spectral distribution of synchrotron radiation, can increase flux on the sample several orders of magnitude over conventional X-ray optical systems thereby allowing a further shortening of the data-collection time. Another approach that uses the continuous spectral nature of synchrotron radiation to decrease data-collection times is the 'parallel data collection' method. Using this technique, intensities as a function of X-ray energy are recorded simultaneously for all energies rather than sequentially recording data at each energy, allowing for a dramatic decrease in data-collection time. Perhaps the most exciting advances in time-resolved X-ray studies will be made by those methods that exploit the pulsed nature of the radiation emitted from storage rings. Pulsed techniques have had an enormous impact in the study of the temporal evolution of transient phenomena. The extension from continuous to modulated sources for use in time-resolved work has been carried over in a host of fields that use both pulsed particle and pulsed electro-magnetic beams. In this chapter the new experimental techniques are reviewed and illustrated with some experiments. (author). 98 refs.; 20 figs.; 5 tabs

Culturally and linguistically diverse healthcare students' experiences of learning in a clinical environment: A systematic review of qualitative studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Mikkonen, Kristina; Elo, Satu; Kuivila, Heli-Maria; Tuomikoski, Anna-Maria; Kääriäinen, Maria

2016-02-01

Learning in the clinical environment of healthcare students plays a significant part in higher education. The greatest challenges for culturally and linguistically diverse healthcare students were found in clinical placements, where differences in language and culture have been shown to cause learning obstacles for students. There has been no systematic review conducted to examine culturally and linguistically diverse healthcare students' experiences of their learning in the clinical environment. This systematic review aims to identify culturally and linguistically diverse healthcare students' experiences of learning in a clinical environment. The search strategy followed the guidelines of the Centre of Reviews and Dissemination. The original studies were identified from seven databases (CINAHL, Medline Ovid, Scopus, Web of Science, Academic Search Premiere, Eric and Cochrane Library) for the period 2000-2014. Two researchers selected studies based on titles, abstracts and full texts using inclusion criteria and assessed the quality of studies independently. Twelve original studies were chosen for the review. The culturally and linguistically diverse healthcare students' learning experiences were divided into three influential aspects of learning in a clinical environment: experiences with implementation processes and provision; experiences with peers and mentors; and experiences with university support and instructions. The main findings indicate that culturally and linguistically diverse healthcare students embarking on clinical placements initially find integration stressful. Implementing the process of learning in a clinical environment requires additional time, well prepared pedagogical orientation, prior cultural and language education, and support for students and clinical staff. Barriers to learning by culturally and linguistically diverse healthcare students were not being recognized and individuals were not considered motivated; learners experienced the

Isotherm, kinetic and thermodynamics study of humic acid removal process from aquatic environment by chitosan nano particle

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maryam Ghafoori

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Background and Aim: Humic substances include natural organic polyelectrolyte materials that formed most of the dissolved organic carbon in aquatic environments. Reaction between humic substances and chlorine leading to formation of disinfection byproducts (DBPs those are toxic, carcinogenic and mutagenic. The aim of this study was investigation of isotherms, kinetics and thermodynamics of humic acid removal process by nano chitosan from aquatic environment. Materials and Methods: This practical research was an experimental study that performed in a batch system. The effect of various parameters such as pH, humic acid concentration, contact time, adsorbent dosage, isotherms, thermodynamics and Kinetics of humic acid adsorption process were investigated. Humic acid concentration measured using spectrophotometer at wave length of 254 nm. Results: The results of this research showed that maximum adsorption capacity of nanochitosan that fall out in concentration of 50 mg/l and contact time of 90 minutes was 52.34 mg/g. Also, the maximum adsorption was observed in pH = 4 and adsorbent dosage 0.02 g. Laboratory data show that adsorption of humic acid by nanochitosan follow the Langmuir isotherm model. According to result of thermodynamic study, entropy changes (ΔS was equal to 2.24 J/mol°k, enthalpy changes (ΔH was equal to 870 kJ/mol and Gibbs free energy (ΔG was negative that represent the adsorption process is spontaneous and endothermic. The kinetics of adsorption has a good compliant with pseudo second order model. Conclusion: Regarding to results of this study, nano chitosan can be suggested as a good adsorbent for the removal of humic acids from aqueous solutions.

Formative peer assessment in a CSCL environment: A case study.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Prins, Frans; Sluijsmans, Dominique; Kirschner, Paul A.; Strijbos, Jan Willem

2007-01-01

In this case study our aim was to gain more insight in the possibilities of qualitative formative peer assessment in a computer supported collaborative learning (CSCL) environment. An approach was chosen in which peer assessment was operationalized in assessment assignments and assessment tools that

The evolution of dwarf shrubs in alpine environments: a case study of Alchemilla in Africa.

Science.gov (United States)

Gehrke, Berit; Kandziora, Martha; Pirie, Michael D

2016-01-01

Alpine and arctic environments worldwide, including high mountains, are dominated by short-stature woody plants (dwarf shrubs). This conspicuous life form asserts considerable influence on local environmental conditions above the treeline, creating its own microhabitat. This study reconstructs the evolution of dwarf shrubs in Alchemilla in the African tropical alpine environment, where they represent one of the largest clades and are among the most common and abundant plants. Different phylogenetic inference methods were used with plastid and nuclear DNA sequence markers, molecular dating (BEAST and RelTime), analyses of diversification rate shifts (MEDUSA and BAMM) and ancestral character and area reconstructions (Mesquite). It is inferred that African Alchemilla species originated following long-distance dispersal to tropical East Africa, but that the evolution of dwarf shrubs occurred in Ethiopia and in tropical East Africa independently. Establishing a timeframe is challenging given inconsistencies in age estimates, but it seems likely that they originated in the Pleistocene, or at the earliest in the late Miocene. The adaptation to alpine-like environments in the form of dwarf shrubs has apparently not led to enhanced diversification rates. Ancestral reconstructions indicate reversals in Alchemilla from plants with a woody base to entirely herbaceous forms, a transition that is rarely reported in angiosperms. Alchemilla is a clear example of in situ tropical alpine speciation. The dwarf shrub life form typical of African Alchemilla has evolved twice independently, further indicating its selective advantage in these harsh environments. However, it has not influenced diversification, which, although recent, was not rapid. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Annals of Botany Company. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Study on indoor thermal environment in winter for rural residences in Yulin region

Science.gov (United States)

Yanjun, Li; Weixiao, Han

2018-02-01

Yulin region is located in the northern part of Shaanxi Province, China. The winter here is very cold and it has a long duration. In this paper, a rural residence which was located in Yulin region was taken as a study object. Indoor thermal environment of the rural residence were tested, including indoor air temperature and air relative humidity. Then, test data were analyzed. It was summarized that indoor thermal environment of test room can not fully meet human thermal comfort needs, and some tactics of regulation building thermal environment were proposed. This research contributes to improvement of indoor thermal environment for local rural residences and it provides reference for rural residences in other cold regions.

Stabilizing and destabilizing forces in the nursing work environment: a qualitative study on turnover intention.

Science.gov (United States)

Choi, Sandy Pin-Pin; Pang, Samantha Mei-Che; Cheung, Kin; Wong, Thomas Kwok-Shing

2011-10-01

The nursing work environment, which provides the context of care delivery, has been gaining increasing attention in recent years. A growing body of evidence points to an inseparable link between attributes of the nursing work environment and nurse and patient outcomes. While most studies have adopted a survey design to examine the workforce and work environment issues, this study employed a phenomenological approach to provide empirical evidence regarding nurses' perceptions of their work and work environment. The aim of this study was to advance our understanding of the phenomenon of increasing nurse turnover through exploring frontline registered nurses' lived experiences of working in Hong Kong public hospitals. A modified version of Van Kaam's controlled explication method was adopted. Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted with 26 frontline nurses recruited from ten acute regional, district and non-acute public hospitals in Hong Kong. Their perspectives in regard to their work and work environment, such as workload, manpower demand and professional values, were extensively examined, and a hypothetical description relating the nursing work environment with nurses' turnover intention was posited. Contemplation of nurses' experiences revealed the vulnerable aspects of nursing work and six essential constituents of the nursing work environment, namely staffing level, work responsibility, management, co-worker relationships, job, and professional incentives. These essential constituents have contributed to two sets of forces, stabilizing and destabilizing forces, which originate from the attributes of the nursing work environment. Nurses viewed harmonious co-worker relationships, recognition and professional development as the crucial retaining factors. However, nurses working in an unfavorable environment were overwhelmed by destabilizing forces; they expressed frustration and demonstrated an intention to leave their work environment. The nursing