Revisiting the effect of foundation embedment on elastic settlement: A new approach

The effect of foundation embedment on settlement calculation is a widely researched topic in which there is no scientific consensus regarding the magnitude of settlement reduction. In this paper, a non-linear three dimensional Finite Element analysis has been performed with the aim of evaluating the aforementioned effect. For this purpose, 1800 models were run considering different variables, such as the depth and dimensions of the foundation and the Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio of the soil. The settlements from models with foundations at surface level and at depth were then compared and the relationship between them established. The statistical analysis of this data allowed two new expressions, with a mean maximum error of 1.80%, for the embedment influence factor of a foundation to be proposed and these to be compared with commonly used corrections. The proposed equations were validated by comparing the settlements calculated with the proposed influence factors and the true settlements measured in several real foundations. From the comprehensive study of all modelled cases, an improved approach, when compared to those proposed by other authors, for the calculation of the true elastic settlements of an embedded foundation is proposed.

The classification of technical equipment states, using a neural nets approach

The Maser thesis is devoted to developing a model to technical state of gas turbine engine estimation. The approaches to preparation data, especially to handle unbalanced data were presented in the thesis. In order to efficient estimation of model performance, the special metric was chosen. Goal of the master thesis is analyzing of monitoring parameters data and developing a model of technical state of GTE estimation based on the data.

The development of hard real-time systems using a formal approach

Hard real-time systems are a class of computer control systems that must react to demands of their environment by providing `correct' and timely responses. Since these systems are increasingly being used in systems with safety implications, it is crucial that they are designed and developed to operate in a correct manner. This thesis is concerned with developing formal techniques that allow the specification, verification and design of hard real-time systems. Formal techniques for hard real-time systems must be capable of capturing the system's functional and performance requirements, and previous work has proposed a number of techniques which range from the mathematically intensive to those with some mathematical content. This thesis develops formal techniques that contain both an informal and a formal component because it is considered that the informality provides ease of understanding and the formality allows precise specification and verification. Specifically, the combination of Petri nets and temporal logic is considered for the specification and verification of hard real-time systems. Approaches that combine Petri nets and temporal logic by allowing a consistent translation between each formalism are examined. Previously, such techniques have been applied to the formal analysis of concurrent systems. This thesis adapts these techniques for use in the modelling, design and formal analysis of hard real-time systems. The techniques are applied to the problem of specifying a controller for a high-speed manufacturing system. It is shown that they can be used to prove liveness and safety properties, including qualitative aspects of system performance. The problem of verifying quantitative real-time properties is addressed by developing a further technique which combines the formalisms of timed Petri nets and real-time temporal logic. A unifying feature of these techniques is the common temporal description of the Petri net. A common problem with Petri net based techniques is the complexity problems associated with generating the reachability graph. This thesis addresses this problem by using concurrency sets to generate a partial reachability graph pertaining to a particular state. These sets also allows each state to be checked for the presence of inconsistencies and hazards. The problem of designing a controller for the high-speed manufacturing system is also considered. The approach adopted mvolves the use of a model-based controller: This type of controller uses the Petri net models developed, thus preservIng the properties already proven of the controller. It. also contains a model of the physical system which is synchronised to the real application to provide timely responses. The various way of forming the synchronization between these processes is considered and the resulting nets are analysed using concurrency sets.

The Concept of Transparency in International Relations: towards a critical approach

Transparency is an important concept in International Relations. The possibility of realizing transparency in practice operates as a central analytical axis defining distinct positions on core theoretical problems within the field, from the security dilemma to the function of international institutions and beyond. As a political practice the pursuit of transparent governance is a dominant feature of global politics, promoted by a wide range of actors across a vast range of issue areas, from nuclear proliferation to Internet governance to the politics of foreign aid. Yet, despite its importance, precisely what transparency means or how the concept is understood is frequently ill-defined by academics and policy-makers alike. As a result, the epistemological and ontological underpinnings of approaches to transparency in IR often sit in tension with their wider theoretical commitments. This article will examine the three primary understandings of transparency used in IR in order to unpack these commitments. It finds that while transparency is often explicitly conceptualized as a property of information, particularly within rationalist scholarship, this understanding rests upon an unarticulated set of sociological assumptions. This analysis suggests that conceptualizing ‘transparency-as-information’ without a wider sociology of knowledge production is highly problematic, potentially obscuring our ability to recognize transparent practices in global governance. Understanding transparency as dialogue, as a social practice rooted in shared cognitive capacities and epistemic frameworks, provides a firmer analytical ground from which to examine transparency in International Relations.

The standardisation of Scottish Gaelic orthography 1750-2007: a corpus approach

This thesis investigates the standardisation of Modern Scottish Gaelic orthography from the mid-eighteenth century to the twenty-first. It presents the results of the first corpus-based analysis of Modern Scottish Gaelic orthographic development combined with an analytic approach that places orthographic choices in their sociolinguistic context. The theoretical framework behind the analysis centres on discussion of how the language ideologies of the phonographic ideal, historicism, autonomy, vernacularism and the ideology of the standard itself have shaped orthographic conventions and debates. It argues that current spelling norms reflect an orthography that is the result of compromise, historical factors and pragmatic function. The research uses a digital corpus to examine how three particular features have been used over time: the dialect variation between <eu> and <ia>; variation in s + stop consonant clusters (sd/st, sg/sc, sb/sp); and the use of the grave and acute accents. Evidence is drawn from the Corpas na Gàidhlig electronic corpus created at the University of Glasgow: the sub-corpus used in this study includes 117 published texts representing a period of over 250 years from 1750 to 2007, and a total size of over four and a quarter million words. The results confirm a key period of reform between 1750 and the early nineteenth century, and thereafter a settled norm being established in the early nineteenth century. Since then, some variation has been acceptable although changes and reform of some features have centred on increasing uniformity and regularisation.

Non-invasive methodology for the identification of plastic pieces in museum environment – a novel approach

The preservation of modern and contemporary art and costume collections in museums requires a complete understanding of their constituent materials which are often synthetic or semi-synthetic polymers. An extraordinary amount of quality information can be gained from instrumental techniques, but some of them have the disadvantage of being destructive. This paper presents a new totally integrated non-invasive methodology, for the identification of polymers and their additives, on plastic artefacts in museums. NMR (nuclear magnetic resonance) and in-situ FTIR-ATR (attenuated total reflection infrared spectroscopy) combination allowed the full characterization of the structure of thesematerials and correct identification of each one. The NMR technique applied to leached surface exudates identified unequivocally a great number of additives, exceeding the Py–GC–MS analysis of micro-fragments in number and efficiency. Additionally, in-situ FTIR-ATR provided exactly the same information of the destructive μ-FTIR about the polymer structure and confirmed the presence of some additives. Eight costume pieces (cosmetic boxes and purses), dating to the beginning of the 20th century and belonging to the Portuguese National Museum of Costume and Fashion, were correctly identified with this new integrated methodology, as beingmade of plastics derived fromcellulose acetate or cellulose nitrate polymers, contradicting the initial information that these pieces were made of Bakelite. The identification of a surprisingly large number of different additives forms an added value of this methodology and opens a perspective of a quick and better characterization of plastic artefacts in museum environments.

What is the value of value-at-risk after all?: A conditional approach using quantile regressions

A Work Project, presented as part of the requirements for the Award of a Masters Degree in Finance from the NOVA – School of Business and Economics

The diagnosis of chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy: a Delphi-method approach.

The diagnosis of chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) is based on a set of clinical and neurophysiological parameters. However, in clinical practice, CIDP remains difficult to diagnose in atypical cases. In the present study, 32 experts from 22 centers (the French CIDP study group) were asked individually to score four typical, and seven atypical, CIDP observations (TOs and AOs, respectively) reported by other physicians, according to the Delphi method. The diagnoses of CIDP were confirmed by the group in 96.9 % of the TO and 60.1 % of the AO (p < 0.0001). There was a positive correlation between the consensus of CIDP diagnosis and the demyelinating features (r = 0.82, p < 0.004). The European CIDP classification was used in 28.3 % of the TOs and 18.2 % of the AOs (p < 0.002). The French CIDP study group diagnostic strategy was used in 90 % of the TOs and 61 % of the AOs (p < 0.0001). In 3 % of the TOs and 21.6 % of the AOs, the experts had difficulty determining a final diagnosis due to a lack of information. This study shows that a set of criteria and a diagnostic strategy are not sufficient to reach a consensus for the diagnosis of atypical CIDP in clinical practice.

The process of interruption in Spanish judicial contexts. A pragmalinguistic approach. 'El proceso de interrupción en los contextos judiciales españoles. Una aproximación pragmalingüística'.

Resumen basado en el de la publicación. Resumen en español

Subject-to-subject raising and the syntax of tense in L2 Spanish: a full access approach

This paper investigates the acquisition of syntax in L2 grammars. We tested adult L2 speakers of Spanish (English L1) on the feature specification of T(ense), which is different in English and Spanish in so-called subject-to-subject raising structures. We present experimental results with the verb parecer “to seem/to appear” in different tenses, with and without experiencers, and with Tense Phrase (TP), verb phrase (vP) and Adjectival Phrase (AP) complements. The results show that advanced L2 learners can perform just like native Spanish speakers regarding grammatical knowledge in this domain, although the subtle differences between both languages are not explicitly taught. We argue that these results support Full Access approaches to Universal Grammar (UG) in L2 acquisition, by providing evidence that uninterpretable syntactic features can be learned in adult L2, even when such features are not directly instantiated in the same grammatical domain in the L1 grammar.

The degree of polydispersity in micellar dispersions: A sum rule approach

Statistical properties of a two-dimensional ideal dispersion of polydisperse micelles are derived by analyzing the convergence properties of a sum rule set by mass conservation. Internal micellar degrees of freedom are accounted for by a microscopic model describing small displacements of the constituting amphiphiles with respect to their equilibrium positions. The transfer matrix (TM) method is employed to compute internal micelle partition function. We show that the conditions under which the sum rule is saturated by the largest eigenvalue of the TM determine the value of amphiphile concentration above which the dispersion becomes highly polydisperse and micelle sizes approach a Schultz distribution. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Exploring the effectiveness of development research with a monitoring and learning approach

There is a growing demand for better understanding of the link between research, policy and practice in development. This article provides findings from a study that aimed to gain insights into how researchers engage with their non-academic partners. It draws on experiences from the National Centre of Competence in Research North-South programme, a development research network of Swiss, African, Asian and Latin American institutions. Conceptually, this study is concerned with research effectiveness as a means to identify knowledge useful for society. Research can be improved and adapted when monitoring the effects of interactions between researchers and non-academic partners. Therefore, a monitoring and learning approach was chosen. This study reveals researchers' strategies in engaging with non-academic partners and points to framing conditions considered decisive for soccessful interactions. It concludes that reserachrs need to systematically analyse the socio-political context in which they intervene. By providing insights from the ground and reflecting on them in the light of the latest theoretical concepts, this article contributes to the emerging literature founded on practice-based experience.