New Bounds for the Maximum Size of Ternary Constant Weight Codes

This work was partially supported by the Bulgarian National Science Fund under Grant I–618/96.

PSD modifications of FHRV due to interpolation and CTG storage rate

Cardiotocographic data provide physicians information about foetal development and permit to assess conditions such as foetal distress. An incorrect evaluation of the foetal status can be of course very dangerous. To improve interpretation of cardiotocographic recordings, great interest has been dedicated to foetal heart rate variability spectral analysis. It is worth reminding, however, that foetal heart rate is intrinsically an uneven series, so in order to produce an evenly sampled series a zero-order, linear or cubic spline interpolation can be employed. This is not suitable for frequency analyses because interpolation introduces alterations in the foetal heart rate power spectrum. In particular, interpolation process can produce alterations of the power spectral density that, for example, affects the estimation of the sympatho-vagal balance (computed as low-frequency/high-frequency ratio), which represents an important clinical parameter. In order to estimate the frequency spectrum alterations of the foetal heart rate variability signal due to interpolation and cardiotocographic storage rates, in this work, we simulated uneven foetal heart rate series with set characteristics, their evenly spaced versions (with different orders of interpolation and storage rates) and computed the sympatho-vagal balance values by power spectral density. For power spectral density estimation, we chose the Lomb method, as suggested by other authors to study the uneven heart rate series in adults. Summarising, the obtained results show that the evaluation of SVB values on the evenly spaced FHR series provides its overestimation due to the interpolation process and to the storage rate. However, cubic spline interpolation produces more robust and accurate results. © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

PSD modifications of FHRV due to CTG storage rate

Cardiotocographic data provide physicians information about foetal development and, through assessment of specific parameters (like accelerations, uterine contractions, ...), permit to assess conditions such as foetal distress. An incorrect evaluation of foetal status can be of course very dangerous. In the last decades, to improve interpretation of cardiotocographic recordings, great interest has been dedicated to FHRV spectral analysis. It is worth reminding that FHR is intrinsically an uneven series and that to obtain evenly sampled series, many commercial cardiotocographs use a zero-order interpolation (storage rate of CTG data equal to 4 Hz). This is not suitable for frequency analyses because interpolation introduces alterations in the FHR power spectrum. In particular, this interpolation process can produce artifacts and an attenuation of the high-frequency components of the PSD that, for example, affects the estimation of the sympatho-vagal balance (SVB - computed as low-frequency/high-frequency ratio), which represents an important clinical parameter. In order to estimate the frequency spectrum alterations due to zero-order interpolation and other CTG storage rates, in this work, we simulated uneven FHR series with set characteristics, their evenly spaced versions (with different storage rates) and computed SVB values by PSD. For PSD estimation, we chose the Lomb method, as suggested by other authors in application to uneven HR series. ©2009 IEEE.

Adaptive sending rate over wireless mesh networks using SNR

Wireless Mesh Networks (WMNs) have emerged as a key technology for the next generation of wireless networking. Instead of being another type of ad-hoc networking, WMNs diversify the capabilities of ad-hoc networks. Several protocols that work over WMNs include IEEE 802.11a/b/g, 802.15, 802.16 and LTE-Advanced. To bring about a high throughput under varying conditions, these protocols have to adapt their transmission rate. This paper proposes a scheme to improve channel conditions by performing rate adaptation along with multiple packet transmission using packet loss and physical layer condition. Dynamic monitoring, multiple packet transmission and adaptation to changes in channel quality by adjusting the packet transmission rates according to certain optimization criteria provided greater throughput. The key feature of the proposed method is the combination of the following two factors: 1) detection of intrinsic channel conditions by measuring the fluctuation of noise to signal ratio via the standard deviation, and 2) the detection of packet loss induced through congestion. The authors show that the use of such techniques in a WMN can significantly improve performance in terms of the packet sending rate. The effectiveness of the proposed method was demonstrated in a simulated wireless network testbed via packet-level simulation.

Element characteristic tolerance for semi-batch fixed bed biomass pyrolysis

Biomass pyrolysis to bio-oil is one of the promising sustainable fuels. In this work, relation between biomass feedstock element characteristic and crude bio-oil production yield and lower heating value was explored. The element characteristics considered in this study include moisture, ash, fix carbon, volatile matter, C, H, N, O, S, cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin content. A semi-batch fixed bed reactor was used for biomass pyrolysis with heating rate of 30 °C/min from room temperature to 600 °C and the reactor was held at 600 °C for 1 h before cooling down. Constant nitrogen flow (1bar) was provided for anaerobic condition. Sago and Napier glass were used in the study to create different element characteristic of feedstock by altering mixing ratio. Comparison between each element characteristic to crude bio-oil yield and low heating value was conducted. The result suggested potential key element characteristic for pyrolysis and provide a platform to access the feedstock element acceptance range.

Impact of high microwave power on hydrogen impurity trapping in nanocrystalline diamond films grown with simultaneous nitrogen and oxygen addition into methane/hydrogen plasma

In this work, we study for the first time the influence of microwave power higher than 2.0 kW on bonded hydrogen impurity incorporation (form and content) in nanocrystalline diamond (NCD) films grown in a 5 kW MPCVD reactor. The NCD samples of different thickness ranging from 25 to 205 μm were obtained through a small amount of simultaneous nitrogen and oxygen addition into conventional about 4% methane in hydrogen reactants by keeping the other operating parameters in the same range as that typically used for the growth of large-grained polycrystalline diamond films. Specific hydrogen point defect in the NCD films is analyzed by using Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. When the other operating parameters are kept constant (mainly the input gases), with increasing of microwave power from 2.0 to 3.2 kW (the pressure was increased slightly in order to stabilize the plasma ball of the same size), which simultaneously resulting in the rise of substrate temperature more than 100 °C, the growth rate of the NCD films increases one order of magnitude from 0.3 to 3.0 μm/h, while the content of hydrogen impurity trapped in the NCD films during the growth process decreases with power. It has also been found that a new H related infrared absorption peak appears at 2834 cm-1 in the NCD films grown with a small amount of nitrogen and oxygen addition at power higher than 2.0 kW and increases with power higher than 3.0 kW. According to these new experimental results, the role of high microwave power on diamond growth and hydrogen impurity incorporation is discussed based on the standard growth mechanism of CVD diamonds using CH4/H2 gas mixtures. Our current experimental findings shed light into the incorporation mechanism of hydrogen impurity in NCD films grown with a small amount of nitrogen and oxygen addition into methane/hydrogen plasma.

A new regime for high rate growth of nanocrystalline diamond films using high power and CH4/H2/N2/O2 plasma

In this work, we report high growth rate of nanocrystalline diamond (NCD) films on silicon wafers of 2 inches in diameter using a new growth regime, which employs high power and CH4/H2/N2/O2 plasma using a 5 kW MPCVD system. This is distinct from the commonly used hydrogen-poor Ar/CH4 chemistries for NCD growth. Upon rising microwave power from 2000 W to 3200 W, the growth rate of the NCD films increases from 0.3 to 3.4 μm/h, namely one order of magnitude enhancement on the growth rate was achieved at high microwave power. The morphology, grain size, microstructure, orientation or texture, and crystalline quality of the NCD samples were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray diffraction, and micro-Raman spectroscopy. The combined effect of nitrogen addition, microwave power, and temperature on NCD growth is discussed from the point view of gas phase chemistry and surface reactions. © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Novel input-output prediction approach for biomass pyrolysis

Biomass pyrolysis to bio-oil is one of the promising sustainable fuels. In this work, relation between biomass feedstock element characteristic and pyrolysis process outputs was explored. The element characteristics considered in this study include moisture, ash, fix carbon, volatile matter, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, and sulphur. A semi-batch fixed bed reactor was used for biomass pyrolysis with heating rate of 30 °C/min from room temperature to 600 °C and the reactor was held at 600 °C for 1 h before cooling down. Constant nitrogen flow rate of 5 L/min was provided for anaerobic condition. Rice husk, Sago biomass and Napier grass were used in the study to form different element characteristic of feedstock by altering mixing ratio. Comparison between each element characteristic to total produced bio-oil yield, aqueous phase bio-oil yield, organic phase bio-oil yield, higher heating value of organic phase bio-oil, and organic bio-oil compounds was conducted. The results demonstrate that process performance is associated with feedstock properties, which can be used as a platform to access the process feedstock element acceptance range to estimate the process outputs. Ultimately, this work evaluated the element acceptance range for proposed biomass pyrolysis technology to integrate alternative biomass species feedstock based on element characteristic to enhance the flexibility of feedstock selection.

A versenyképesség aktuális kérdései a pénzügyekben - Összefoglaló a pénzügyi kutatócsoport munkájáról = Current issues of competitiveness - Summary on the work of the Finance research team

A pénzügy kutatócsoport a TÁMOP-4.2.1.B-09/1/KMR-2010-0005 azonosítójú projektjében igen szerteágazó elemzési munkát végzett. Rámutattunk, hogy a különböző szintű gazdasági szereplők megnövekedett tőkeáttétele egyértelműen a rendszerkockázat növekedéséhez vezet, hiszen nő az egyes szereplők csődjének valószínűsége. Ha a tőkeáttételt eltérő mértékben és ütemben korlátozzák az egyes szektorokban, országokban akkor a korlátozást később bevezető szereplők egyértelműen versenyelőnyhöz jutnak. Az egyes pénzügyi intézmények tőkeallokációját vizsgálva kimutattuk, hogy a különféle divíziók közt mindig lehetséges a működés fedezetésül szolgáló tőkét (kockázatot) úgy felosztani, hogy a megállapodás felmondás egyik érintettnek se álljon érdekében. Ezt azonban nem lehet minden szempontból igazságosan megtenni, így egyes üzletágak versenyhátrányba kerülhetnek, ha a konkurens piaci szereplők az adott tevékenységet kevésbé igazságtalanul terhelték meg. Kimutattunk, hogy az egyes nyugdíjpénztárak befektetési tevékenységének eredményességére nagy hatással van a magánnyugdíjpénztárak tevékenységének szabályozása. Ezek a jogszabályok a társadalom hosszú távú versenyképességére vannak hatással. Rámutattunk arra is, hogy a gazdasági válság előtt a hazai bankok sem voltak képesek ügyfeleik kockázatviselő képességét helyesen megítélni, ráadásul jutalékrendszerük nem is tette ebben érdekelté azokat. Számos vizsgálatunk foglalkozott a magyar vállalatok versenyképességének alakulásával is. Megvizsgáltuk a különféle adónemek, árfolyamkockázatok és finanszírozási politikák versenyképességet befolyásoló hatását. Külön kutatás vizsgálta a kamatlábak ingadozásának és az hitelekhez kapcsolódó eszközfedezet meglétének vállalati értékre gyakorolt hatásait. Rámutattunk a nemfizetés növekvő kockázatára, és áttekintettük a lehetséges és a ténylegesen alkalmazott kezelési stratégiákat is. Megvizsgáltuk azt is, hogy a tőzsdei cégek tulajdonosai miként használják ki az osztalékfizetéshez kapcsolódó adóoptimalizálási lehetőségeket. Gyakorlati piaci tapasztalataik alapján az adóelkerülő kereskedést a befektetők a részvények egy jelentős részénél végrehajtják. Külön kutatás foglakozott a szellemi tőke hazai vállalatoknál játszott szerepéről. Ez alapján a cégek a problémát 2009-ben lényegesen magasabb szakértelemmel kezelték, mint öt esztendővel korábban. Rámutattunk arra is, hogy a tulajdonosi háttér lényeges hatást gyakorolhat arra, ahogyan a cégek célrendszerüket felépítik, illetve ahogy az intellektuális javakra tekintenek. _____ The Finance research team has covered a wide range of research fields while taking part at project TÁMOP-4.2.1.B-09/1/KMR-2010-0005. It has been shown that the increasing financial gearing at the different economic actors clearly leads to growth in systematic risk as the probability of bankruptcy climbs upwards. Once the leverage is limited at different levels and at different points in time for the different sectors, countries introducing the limitations later gain clearly a competitive advantage. When investigating the leverage at financial institutions we found that the capital requirement of the operation can always be divided among divisions so that none of them would be better of with cancelling the cooperation. But this cannot be always done fairly from all point of view meaning some of the divisions may face a competitive disadvantage if competitors charge their similar division less unfairly. Research has also shown that the regulation of private pension funds has vital effect on the profitability of the investment activity of the funds. These laws and regulations do not only affect the funds themselves but also the competitiveness of the whole society. We have also fund that Hungarian banks were unable to estimate correctly the risk taking ability of their clients before the economic crisis. On the top of that the bank were not even interested in that due to their commission based income model. We also carried out several research on the competitiveness of the Hungarian firms. The effect of taxes, currency rate risks, and financing policies on competitiveness has been analysed in detail. A separate research project was dedicated to the effect of the interest rate volatility and asset collaterals linked to debts on the value of the firm. The increasing risk of non-payment has been underlined and we also reviewed the adequate management strategies potentially available and used in real life. We also investigated how the shareholders of listed companies use the tax optimising possibilities linked to dividend payments. Based on our findings on the Hungarian markets the owners perform the tax evading trades in case of the most shares. A separate research has been carried out on the role played by intellectual capital. After that the Hungarian companies dealt with the problem in 2009 with far higher proficiency than five years earlier. We also pointed out that the ownership structure has a considerable influence on how firms structure their aims and view their intangible assets.

Gender, Work and Employment in Ten Candidate Countries of Central and Eastern Europe. Final Report. Country: Hungary

The Hungarian media shows very contradictory pictures of women today: Successful career women enjoying material well-being is one picture, while the careful mother not working outside the home, keeping together the family is another one. Between these two contradictory poles there are almost no other female actors in the media. Life produces something different. In spite of the fact that there was a big loss of jobs in 1990s, and women’s activity rate decreased while the unemployment rate increased compared to before the 1990s, woman with duel roles are still accepted and common. The first female task is looking after the family and the second one is working outside the home and earning money. In many cases there is a third role: studying in distant or evening courses. In the next chapters we go deeper into this topic. We analyse the different aspects of female labour market positions, and show some relevant characteristics of governmental parental benefits and childcare support, and examine how the new pension system effects women. We also have a quick look at trade unions and show their lack of activity around gender issues. In the labour market analysis of the position of women we use labour force surveys, institution-based labour statistics, and unemployment registers. The Appendix 1 contains short descriptions of these data sources.

"It's so little money you could make as much at home" - options for work in an impoverished rural region of high unemployment.

Hungary has a higher unemployment rate than the member states of the European Union and even most former socialist countries. This rate for 15-64 year-olds has been around 56% since 1999, as against 66% in the European Union (OECD Employment Database). There is also a high degree of regional unevenness within the country. The situation is worst in North Hungary, an area of multiple economic and social deprivations. Several pieces of research have analysed the causes of long-term unemployment and have highlighted the main social, geographical and institutional factors behind it. People of low educational attainment who live in small villages and members of the Roma minority are particularly likely to have been without jobs for a long time.

An analysis of the on-time graduation rate in the two-year program at National Taipei Institute of Technology in Taiwan

Taiwan's technical vocational educational system includes three levels: (1) institutes of technology (two and four year programs), (2) junior colleges (two, three and five year programs), and (3) senior vocational schools. Two-year junior colleges enroll their students through two channels: (1) based on results of the Particular Screening Entrance Examination (PSEE), (2) based on the Joint College Entrance Examination (JCEE). The PSEE has two categories: Category I includes on-time graduates with excellent performance, which means that they are within the top ten of their classes; Category II students include award-winning students in talent contests who have achieved a minimum grade point average of 75%. The JCEE is a regular entrance examination given to any senior vocation school graduate.^ Basic courses have a great impact on the students' academic performance. The purpose of the study was to focus on the effectiveness of teaching mathematics in two-year junior colleges and to analyze and correlate the results of two-year junior college students' performance in calculus and on-time graduation. The target group consisted of 521 students enrolled at National Taipei Institute of Technology in 1993.^ Calculus is a very important course for engineering majors in two-year junior colleges and has a great impact on the students' academic performance. This retrospective study showed that there was a correlation between students' performance in calculus and on-time graduation after two years of study.^ The conclusions of the study urge the Ministry of Education to reform two-year junior college curriculum standards to emphasize basic rudimentary courses. It is recommended that engineering majors receive three hours of calculus per week as the current requirement of only two hours per week is inadequate. The future job market will require a technologically advanced labor force that can be trained in a higher education system. More channels of higher education for two-year junior college graduates should be made available for those wishing to pursue bachelor degrees. Additional work in calculus will not only enhance the opportunities for two-year junior college graduates to continue their pursuit of an advanced academic degree, but also serve them well as they seek career advancement. ^

On arterial contractility, energetic requirements of the cardiovascular system, and the formation of arterial sclerosis

The aorta has been viewed as a passive distribution manifold for blood whose elasticity allows it to store blood during cardiac ejection (systole), and release it during relaxation (diastole). This capacitance, or compliance, lowers peak cardiac work input and maintains peripheral sanguine irrigation throughout the cardiac cycle. The compliance of the human and canine circulatory systems have been described either as constant throughout the cycle (Toy et al. 1985) or as some inverse function of pressure (Li et al. 1990, Cappelo et al. 1995). This work shows that a compliance value that is higher during systole than diastole (equivalent to a direct function of pressure) leads to a reduction in the energetic input to the cardiovascular system (CV), even when accounting for the energy required to change compliance. This conclusion is obtained numerically, based on a 3-element lumped-parameter model of the CV, then demonstrated in a physical model built for the purpose. It is then shown, based on the numerical and physical models, on analytical considerations of elastic tubes, and on the analysis of arterial volume as a function of pressure measured in vivo (Armentano et al. 1995), that the mechanical effects of a presupposed arterial contraction are consistent with those of energetically beneficial changes in compliance during the cardiac cycle. Although the amount of energy potentially saved with rhythmically contracting arteries is small (mean 0.55% for the cases studied) the importance of the phenomenon lies in its possible relation to another function of the arterial smooth muscle (ASM): synthesis of wall matrix macromolecules. It is speculated that a reduction in the rate of collagen synthesis by the ASM is implicated in the formation of arteriosclerosis. ^

Exchange rate overvaluation under hyperinflation: The case of Peru

This dissertation examines the behavior of the exchange rate under two different scenarios. The first one is characterized by, relatively, low inflation or a situation where prices adjust sluggishly. The second is a high inflation economy where prices respond very rapidly even to unanticipated shocks. In the first one, following a monetary expansion, the exchange rate overshoots, i.e. the nominal exchange rate depreciates at a faster pace than the price level. Under high levels of inflation, prices change faster than the exchange rate so the exchange rate undershoots its long run equilibrium value.^ The standard work in this area, Dornbusch (1976), explains the overshooting process in the context of perfect capital mobility and sluggish adjustment in the goods market. A monetary expansion will make the exchange rate increase beyond its long run equilibrium value. This dissertation expands on Dornbusch's model and provides an analysis of the exchange rate under conditions of currency substitution and price flexibility, characteristics of the Peruvian economy during the hyper inflation process that took place at the end of the 1980's. The results of the modified Dornbusch model reveal that, given a monetary expansion, the change in the price level will be larger than the change in the exchange rate if prices react more than proportionally to the monetary shock.^ We will expect this over-reaction in circumstances of high inflation when the velocity of money is increasing very rapidly. Increasing velocity of money, gives rise to a higher relative price variability which in turn contributes to the appearance of new financial (and also non-financial) instruments that report a higher return than the exchange rate, causing people to switch their demand for foreign exchange to this new assets. In the context of currency substitution, economic agents hoard and use foreign exchange as a store of value. The big decline in output originated by hyper inflation induces people to sell this hoarded money to finance current expenses, increasing the supply of foreign exchange in the market. Both, the decrease in demand and the increase in supply reduce the price of foreign exchange i.e. the real exchange rate. The findings mentioned above are tested using Peruvian data for the period January 1985-July 1990, the results of the econometric estimation confirm our findings in the theoretical model. ^

Eden in the age of the fifth sun: The narrative work of Homero Aridjis

Homero Aridjis (b. 1940) is a major Mexican poet, novelist, essayist and ecological activist whose prolific body of work, ranging over forty years and including more than eleven volumes of poetry and thirteen novels, has yet to be studied as a coherent literary corpus in the context of recent Latin American fiction. The purpose of this dissertation was to analyze the narrative works of this author as both illustrative of the changes that have occurred in Latin American fiction since the 1960s when it first burst onto the world scene, as well as to study the uniqueness of this particular author's view of literature as it relates to historical discourse, apocalypticism. and social commitment. ^ Research showed that in the case of the narrative style of Aridjis, major trends in the contemporary Latin American novel were present in such a profuse and model manner as to confirm this author's importance as a prime example of what is commonly known as “Post-Boom” fiction. However, beyond the mere presence of literary elements, this study showed that the author's unique approach to narrative style has altered and expanded the aesthetic and thematic possibilities of the contemporary novel. The area where this is most clearly seen is in his experimentation with the historical genre. By manipulating the referential techniques of what has lately come to be known as the “new historical novel,” Aridjis has written both a cycle of purely historical novels and a cycle of futuristic ones that attempt to transcend the temporal limits traditionally imposed by these narrative forms, fusing them into one constant questioning of the nature of love, hate and identity. In this manner, he has developed a “simultaneist” narrative approach where distinct historical and imagined periods, places, people, things, and texts coexist and interact, widening almost to delirium the interpretative possibilities of the work. ^ This unique view of time and narrative, together with the author's political activism and millenarian view of history, make the novels of Homero Aridjis an important element in understanding the continuing development and evolution of Latin American fiction at the turn of the century. ^