Construction and Evaluation of Submerged Vanes for Stream Control, HR-274, 1988

The objective of this study was to determine the practicality and effectiveness of using submerged vanes ("Iowa Vanes") to control bank erosion in a bend of East Nishnabotna River, Iowa. The vane system was constructed during the summer of 1985. It functions by eliminating, or reducing, the centrifugally induced helical motion of the flow in the bend, which is the root cause of bank undermining. The system was monitored over a 2-year period, from September 1985 to October 1987. Two surveys were conducted in the spring of 1986 in which data were taken of depths and velocities throughout the bend and of water-surface slope. The movement of the bank was determined from aerial photos and from repeated measurements of the vane-to-bank distance. The bankfull scour depths and velocities along the bank have been reduced significantly; and the movement of the bank has been stopped or considerably reduced. The improvements were obtained without changing the energy slope of the channel. Areas of design improvements were identified.

Choisir une carrière, faire carrière: les femmes médecins en France et en Grande-Bretagne

Cet article propose d'analyser les processus de construction de la ségrégation sexuée des professions dans une perspective comparative. Une étude comparative des carrières professionnelles et familiales des femmes médecins en France et en Grande-Bretagne permet de démontrer que, bien que la distribution des hommes et des femmes au sein de la profession médicale paraisse, à première vue, assez divergente, les processus de répartition sexuée entre les différentes positions au sein de la profession sont globalement identiques dans les deux pays. Ainsi, les résultats de cette recherche laissent penser que la structure sexuée de la profession médicale reste relativement peu changée par l'augmentation récente des taux de féminisation. Cette conclusion nous amène à inscrire notre travail dans le cadre des débats sociologiques récents sur l'analyse théorique des processus de reproduction de la division sexuelle du travail et de la ségrégation sexuée des emplois en Europe. This article proposes to analyse the process of the development of gendered segregation in a comparative perspective. A comparative study of the professional and family careers of women doctors in France and Britain makes it possible to show that, although at first sight the distribution of women and men in the medical profession seems rather different, the processes of gendered allocation between the different positions within the profession is generally the same in the two countries. The results of this research lead us to think that the gendered structure of the medical profession has been changed relatively little by the recent increase in the rate of feminisation. These conclusion leads us to situate our work within the framework of the recent sociological discussion of the theoretical analysis of the process of reproduction of the sexual division of labour and the gendered segregation of employment in Europe.

Interactive readings of children's literature in day care: Microgenetic analysis of the semiopictorial construction.

In line with educational issues involved in emergent literacy practices in preschool, in particular those concerning comprehension processes, this paper focuses on picture-based narrative comprehension during an interactive reading session of a wordless picture book, involving a group of children aged three and their teacher. Children are asked to make inferences about the meaning and outcome of the story, a procedure which gradually elicits their responses on how events link together, thus enhancing their capacity to use prior and implicit knowledge to build the story meaning. Moreover, this study highlights the importance of interaction for developing comprehension. Data collected was analysed following didactic microgenesis, an analytical approach showing that knowledge built during interaction depends on the joint construction of a zone of common meaning by which teacher and children try to adjust to each other. In order to help the process of merging different meanings of the story built online, a text written by researchers, following the narrative structure of the story, was read by the teacher after the picture-based reading. This led us to examine through interactional analysis which semiotic cues were used during recall on the following day, as an additional measure of knowledge construction.

Construction Automation Using Pen-Based Computers, HR-368, 1996

The Iowa Department of Transportation is committed to improved management systems, which in turn has led to increased automation to record and manage construction data. A possible improvement to the current data management system can be found with pen-based computers. Pen-based computers coupled with user friendly software are now to the point where an individual's handwriting can be captured and converted to typed text to be used for data collection. It would appear pen-based computers are sufficiently advanced to be used by construction inspectors to record daily project data. The objective of this research was to determine: (1) if pen-based computers are durable enough to allow maintenance-free operation for field work during Iowa's construction season; and (2) if pen-based computers can be used effectively by inspectors with little computer experience. The pen-based computer's handwriting recognition was not fast or accurate enough to be successfully utilized. The IBM Thinkpad with the pen pointing device did prove useful for working in Windows' graphical environment. The pen was used for pointing, selecting and scrolling in the Windows applications because of its intuitive nature.

Air Formed Arch Culvert Construction - Washington County, HR-313, 1994

Iowa's secondary roads contain nearly 15,000 bridges which are less than 40 ft (12.2 m) in length. Many of these bridges were built several decades ago and need to be replaced. Box culvert construction has proven to be an adequate bridge replacement technique. Recently a new bridge replacement alternative, called the Air-O-Form method, has emerged which has several potential advantages over box culvert construction. This new technique uses inflated balloons as the interior form in the construction of an arch culvert. Concrete was then shotcreted onto the balloon form. The objective of research project HR-313 was to construct an air formed arch culvert to determine the applicability of the Air-O-Form technique as a county bridge replacement alternative. The project had the following results: The Air-O-Form method can be used to construct a structurally sound arch culvert; and the method must become more economical if it is to compete with box culverts. Continued monitoring should be conducted in order to evaluate the long-term performance of the Air-O-Form method.

Air Formed Arch Culvert Construction - Crawford County, HR-314, 1995

Iowa's secondary road network contains nearly 15,000 bridges which are less than 12 m (40 ft) long. Many of these bridges were built several decades ago and need to be replaced. Box culvert construction has proven to be an adequate bridge replacement technique. An alternative to box culverts is the Air-O-Form method of arch culvert construction. The Air-O-Form method has several potential advantages over box culvert construction. The new technique uses inflated balloons as the interior form in the construction of an arch culvert. Concrete is then shotcreted onto the balloon form to complete the arch culvert. The objective of the research project was to construct an air formed arch culvert to determine its applicability as an alternative county bridge replacement technique. The project had the following results: (1) The Air-O-Form method can be used to construct a structurally sound arch culvert; and (2) The method must become more economical if it is to compete with box culverts.

De quelques représentations féminines en transaction avec des dieux : exercice d'exploration thématique différentielle en histoire comparée des religions

Cette thèse présente les résultats d'une démarche comparatiste en histoire des religions. Elle poursuit un double but, à la fois thématique et méthodologique, en explorant une variété de représentations des transactions entre des figures féminines et des dieux. Elle en fait ressortir la diversité à partir d'un certain nombre de dossiers tirés de corpus de sources sélectionnés et constitués dans ce but. L'un de ces corpus est formé du Padavali (traduit sur la base de l'édition de P. Caturvedï), une collection de chants-poèmes dévotionnels krishnaïtes attribués à Mïràbàï (composés principalement entre le 16e et le 18e siècle en Inde du nord). L'autre corpus consiste en une sélection d'extraits de la littérature grecque d'auteurs et de styles différents. Au sein de cette sélection, la tragédie attique (5ème siècle avant l'ère commune), en particulier celle d'Euripide, et plusieurs traités de Plutarque (1er siècle de l'ère commune) figurent parmi les sources les plus importantes. La catégorie de « figure féminine » permet de prendre en considération des figures de statuts différents (mythologique, hagiographique ou historique) et de se focaliser sur les représentations des transactions avec des dieux, sans se restreindre à l'étude des pratiques historiquement attestées ou à leur reconstitution. Mirabai, en tant que figure hagiographique et emblématique du mouvement dévotionnel de la bhakti, les gopis et d'autres figures de la mythologie ou de l'hagiographie hindoue comptent parmi les figures féminines considérées sur la base du corpus indien de cette recherche ; les dossiers grecs incluent des sources variées mettant en scène les bacchantes, Ariane, la pythie, Cassandre, Créouse et d'autres figures féminines dans leur rapports avec des dieux, principalement Dionysos, Apollon et Hadès. Pensée comme une traversée des différences plutôt que comme une construction d'universaux, l'exploration thématique met en relief la grande variété des modalités des transactions de figures féminines avec des dieux et la mise en jeu du corps avant, pendant ou après celles-ci. Cinq axes thématiques transversaux, compris comme des faisceaux de questions, forment les comparables de cette recherche. Ils portent principalement sur (1) l'ajout au corps (ou le corps marqué, paré et équipé), (2) le retrait au corps (ou le corps dépouillé et dénudé), (3) la mise à disposition du corps féminin pour le dieu et ses conséquences, notamment en termes d'emprise attribuée au dieu, (4) la violence contre la figure féminine dans le cadre de sa relation au dieu et (5) les dissolutions, transformations, disparitions et dispersions du corps féminin. En plus du travail préalable de traduction et de contextualisation des sources, la mise en regard comparatiste de certains éléments des dossiers permet de dégager des axes de questionnement qui se veulent valables à plus large échelle pour une histoire des religions s'intéressant à la question des représentations du corps en intégrant une perspective de genre. La démonstration méthodologique consiste en une évaluation sur la base d'un exercice concret des limites et des apports d'une démarche de comparaison différentielle. Celle-ci comporte certes quelques défis dans sa mise en oeuvre et sa restitution, mais elle rend possible un processus de recherche souple et créatif qui permet d'envisager des dossiers connus sous de nouveaux angles ainsi qu'une redéfinition ou une création de catégories de recherche dynamiques et flexibles en histoire des religions.

Asphalt Emulsions for Highway Construction, HR-216, 1985

A 5.8 mile section of Dubuque County (Iowa) Road D-53 was selected for this project, the objective of which were to: 1. identify a cost effective asphalt emulsion bound macadam typical cross section; 2. determine the effectiveness of engineering fabric placed under macadam roadbeds; and 3. evalaute the use of emulsions in surface seal coats. A number of conclusions were reached: 1. The minus #200 sieve material for the macadam stone should be held to a minimum. For the emulsion used on this project, the minus #200 material had less than 4 percent to achieve satisfactory coating of the macadam stone. 2. The placement of the emulsion treated macadam required no additional equipment or time than the plain macadam placement. 3. Emulsion treating the macadam stone for the shoulder base appears unnecessary. 4. The emulsion treated macadam base beneath an asphaltic concrete wearing surface yielded a higher structural rating than the plain macadam beneath a comparable ashaltic concrete surface. 5. The performance of the fabric between the subgrade and the macadam base to prevent soil intrusion into the base could not be determined by the non-destructive testing conducted. 6. When no choke stone is used over the macadam base, allowance for ac mix overrun should be made. 7. Use of an emulsion instead of a cutback asphalt saved money and energy. However, the poor performance of the seal coat negated any real savings.

Construction and Maintenance Practices to Minimize the Potential Liability of Counties for Roads in Rural Subdivisions, HR-221, 1981

In an earlier research project, HR-204, the magnitude and nature of highway related tort claims against counties in Iowa were investigated. However, virtually all of the claims identified in that research resulted from incidents that occurred in areas with predominantly agricultural land use. With recent increases in the rural non-farm population, many traditionally urban problems are also appearing in built-up areas under county jurisdiction. This trend is expected to continue so that counties must anticipate a change in the nature of the tort claims they will encounter. Problems that heretofore have been unique to cities may become commonplace in areas for which counties are responsible. The research reported here has been directed toward an investigation of those problems in rural subdivisions that lead to claims growing out of the provision of highway services by counties. Lacking a sufficient database among counties for the types of tort claims of interest in this research, a survey was sent to 259 cities in Iowa in order to identify highway related problems leading to those claims. The survey covered claims during a five year period from 1975 to 1980. Over one-third of the claims reported were based on alleged street defects. Another 34 percent of the claims contained allegations of damages due to backup of sanitary sewers or defects in sidewalks. By expanding the sample from the 164 cities that responded to the survey, it was estimated that a total of $49,000,000 in claims had been submitted to all 259 cities. Over 34% of this amount resulted from alleged defects in the use of traffic signs, signals, and markings. Another 42% arose from claims of defects in streets and sidewalks. Payments in settlement of claims were about 13.4% of the amount asked for those claims closed during the period covered by the survey. About $9,000,000 in claims was pending on June 30, 1980 according to the information furnished. Officials from 23 cities were interviewed to provide information on measures to overcome the problems leading to tort claims. On the basis of this information, actions have been proposed that can be undertaken by counties to reduce the potential for highway-related claims resulting from their responsibilities in rural subdivisions and unincorporated communities. Suggested actions include the eight recommendations contained in the final report for the previous research under HR-204. In addition, six recommendations resulted from this research, as follows: 1. Counties should adopt county subdivision ordinances. 2. A reasonable policy concerning sidewalks should be adopted. 3. Counties should establish and implement a system for setting road maintenance priorities. 4. Counties should establish and implement a procedure for controlling construction or maintenance activities within the highway right of way. 5. Counties should establish and implement a system to record complaints that are received relating to highway maintenance and to assure timely correction of defective conditions leading to such complaints. 6. Counties should establish and implement a procedure to ensure timely advice of highway defects for which notice is not otherwise received.

Ammonium Phosphate/Fly Ash Road Base Construction, HR-294, 1993

The objective of this research project was to evaluate the construction and service performance of ammonium phosphate/fly ash (APFA) treated base courses of crushed fines and/or unprocessed sand. Specific test results related to construction of the test sections were included in the 1987 construction report by Iowa State University. The performance of the experimental sections is dealt with in this final report. This 1986 project demonstrated that in all cases the control sections utilizing a Type B base experienced dramatically less cracking in the surface than the APFA treated base sections. The cost per mix and subsequent surface maintenance costs for the APFA base sections, especially those having a substantial amount of limestone, were higher than the Type B base control sections. This type of construction may prove to be economical only when petroleum product costs escalate.