Improved Methods for Determining Wind Loads on Highway Sign and Traffic-Signal Structures, TR-559, 2007

The main objective of the proposed study is to use Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) tools to determine the wind loads by accurate numerical simulations of air flow characteristics around large highway sign structures under severe wind speeds conditions. Fully three-dimensional Reynolds- Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) simulations are used to estimate the total force on different panels, as well as the actual pressure distribution on the front and back faces of the panels. In particular, the present study investigates the effects of aspect ratio and sign spacing for regular panels, the effect of sign depth for the dynamic message signs that are now being used on Iowa highways, the effect induced by the presence of back-to-back signs, the effect of the presence of add-on exit signs, and the effect of the presence of trucks underneath the signs potentially creating “wind tunnel” effect.

Insights into the Design and Characteristics of the Sedimentation Process at Multi-Barrel Culverts in Iowa, TR-596, 2010

The present study is an integral part of a broader study focused on the design and implementation of self-cleaning culverts, i.e., configurations that prevent the formation of sediment deposits after culvert construction or cleaning. Sediment deposition at culverts is influenced by many factors, including the size and characteristics of material of which the channel is composed, the hydraulic characteristics generated under different hydrology events, the culvert geometry design, channel transition design, and the vegetation around the channel. The multitude of combinations produced by this set of variables makes the investigation of practical situations a complex undertaking. In addition to the considerations above, the field and analytical observations have revealed flow complexities affecting the flow and sediment transport through culverts that further increase the dimensions of the investigation. The flow complexities investigated in this study entail: flow non-uniformity in the areas of transition to and from the culvert, flow unsteadiness due to the flood wave propagation through the channel, and the asynchronous correlation between the flow and sediment hydrographs resulting from storm events. To date, the literature contains no systematic studies on sediment transport through multi-box culverts or investigations on the adverse effects of sediment deposition at culverts. Moreover, there is limited knowledge about the non-uniform, unsteady sediment transport in channels of variable geometry. Furthermore, there are few readily useable (inexpensive and practical) numerical models that can reliably simulate flow and sediment transport in such complex situations. Given the current state of knowledge, the main goal of the present study is to investigate the above flow complexities in order to provide the needed insights for a series of ongoing culvert studies. The research was phased so that field observations were conducted first to understand the culvert behavior in Iowa landscape. Modeling through complementary hydraulic model and numerical experiments was subsequently carried out to gain the practical knowledge for the development of the self-cleaning culvert designs.

Simulation of surface waves in porous media

We present a novel numerical algorithm for the simulation of seismic wave propagation in porous media, which is particularly suitable for the accurate modelling of surface wave-type phenomena. The differential equations of motion are based on Biot's theory of poro-elasticity and solved with a pseudospectral approach using Fourier and Chebyshev methods to compute the spatial derivatives along the horizontal and vertical directions, respectively. The time solver is a splitting algorithm that accounts for the stiffness of the differential equations. Due to the Chebyshev operator the grid spacing in the vertical direction is non-uniform and characterized by a denser spatial sampling in the vicinity of interfaces, which allows for a numerically stable and accurate evaluation of higher order surface wave modes. We stretch the grid in the vertical direction to increase the minimum grid spacing and reduce the computational cost. The free-surface boundary conditions are implemented with a characteristics approach, where the characteristic variables are evaluated at zero viscosity. The same procedure is used to model seismic wave propagation at the interface between a fluid and porous medium. In this case, each medium is represented by a different grid and the two grids are combined through a domain-decomposition method. This wavefield decomposition method accounts for the discontinuity of variables and is crucial for an accurate interface treatment. We simulate seismic wave propagation with open-pore and sealed-pore boundary conditions and verify the validity and accuracy of the algorithm by comparing the numerical simulations to analytical solutions based on zero viscosity obtained with the Cagniard-de Hoop method. Finally, we illustrate the suitability of our algorithm for more complex models of porous media involving viscous pore fluids and strongly heterogeneous distributions of the elastic and hydraulic material properties.

Bayesian Networks and the Value of the Evidence for the Forensic Two-Trace Transfer Problem

Forensic scientists face increasingly complex inference problems for evaluating likelihood ratios (LRs) for an appropriate pair of propositions. Up to now, scientists and statisticians have derived LR formulae using an algebraic approach. However, this approach reaches its limits when addressing cases with an increasing number of variables and dependence relationships between these variables. In this study, we suggest using a graphical approach, based on the construction of Bayesian networks (BNs). We first construct a BN that captures the problem, and then deduce the expression for calculating the LR from this model to compare it with existing LR formulae. We illustrate this idea by applying it to the evaluation of an activity level LR in the context of the two-trace transfer problem. Our approach allows us to relax assumptions made in previous LR developments, produce a new LR formula for the two-trace transfer problem and generalize this scenario to n traces.

Accelerated digestion for high-throughput proteomics analysis of whole bacterial proteomes.

In bottom-up proteomics, rapid and efficient protein digestion is crucial for data reliability. However, sample preparation remains one of the rate-limiting steps in proteomics workflows. In this study, we compared the conventional trypsin digestion procedure with two accelerated digestion protocols based on shorter reaction times and microwave-assisted digestion for the preparation of membrane-enriched protein fractions of the human pathogenic bacterium Staphylococcus aureus. Produced peptides were analyzed by Shotgun IPG-IEF, a methodology relying on separation of peptides by IPG-IEF before the conventional LC-MS/MS steps of shotgun proteomics. Data obtained on two LC-MS/MS platforms showed that accelerated digestion protocols, especially the one relying on microwave irradiation, enhanced the cleavage specificity of trypsin and thus improved the digestion efficiency especially for hydrophobic and membrane proteins. The combination of high-throughput proteomics with accelerated and efficient sample preparation should enhance the practicability of proteomics by reducing the time from sample collection to obtaining the results.

Geochemical compositions of Neogene phosphatic brachiopods: Implications for ancient environmental and marine conditions

Isotopic and trace element compositions of Miocene and Pliocene phosphatic brachiopods (Lingulidae and Discinidae) from southern North Sea, the Central Paratethys and the Atlantic coast of Europe were investigated in order to trace past environmental conditions and marine connections between the northern boreal and the southern subtropical-tropical marine basins. The North Sea genus Glottidia yielded low epsilon(Nd) and high delta O-18(PO4) values through the Mio-Pliocene indicating cold habitat temperature where the local seawater was dominated by the Atlantic Ocean. In contrast, the Middle Miocene Lingulidae and Discinidae of the Paratethys inhabited warm subtropical seawater with the possible influence of the Indian Ocean via the Mediterranean, as supported by their average epsilon(Nd) value of -8.3. The combined geochemical data support a thermal and marine separation of the Paratethys from the North Sea with no direct connection or major exchange of water from the Miocene onwards. The temperature in the Paratethys was very similar to that inferred from brachiopods from the Middle Miocene of western France, but the seawater epsilon(Nd) value here is identical to that of contemporaneous Atlantic Ocean. A Late Miocene lingulid brachiopod from southern Portugal has a high delta O-18(PO4), similar to the specimens investigated from the North Sea, reflecting either a deep water habitat or formation after the onset of major global cooling that resulted in an increased delta O-18 value of seawater. The epsilon(Nd) value of -8.4 for this site is compatible with an influence of Mediterranean outflow. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Análisis de la eficacia de los saques de esquina en la copa del mundo de fútbol 2010. Un intento de identificación de variables explicativas

In soccer, dead-ball moves are those in which the ball is returned to play from a stationary position following an interruption of play. The aim of this study was to analyse the effectiveness of one such dead-ball move, namely corner kicks, and to identify the key variables that determine the success of a shot or header following a corner, thereby enabling a model of successful corner kicks to be proposed. We recorded 554 corner kicks performed during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa and carried out a univariate, bivariate and multivariate analysis of the data. The results indicated that corners were of limited effectiveness in terms of the success of subsequent shots or headers. The analysis also revealed a series of variables that were significantly related to one another, and this enabled us to propose an explanatory model. Although this model had limited explanatory power, it nonetheless helps to understand the execution of corner kicks in practical terms.

The phylogeography of an alpine leaf beetle: divergence within Oreina elongata spans several ice ages.

The genetic landscape of the European flora and fauna was shaped by the ebb and flow of populations with the shifting ice during Quaternary climate cycles. While this has been well demonstrated for lowland species, less is known about high altitude taxa. Here we analyze the phylogeography of the leaf beetle Oreina elongata from 20 populations across the Alps and Apennines. Three mitochondrial and one nuclear region were sequenced in 64 individuals. Within an mtDNA phylogeny, three of seven subspecies are monophyletic. The species is chemically defended and aposematic, with green and blue forms showing geographic variation and unexpected within-population polymorphism. These warning colors show pronounced east-west geographical structure in distribution, but the phylogeography suggests repeated origin and loss. Basal clades come from the central Alps. Ancestors of other clades probably survived across northern Italy and the northern Adriatic, before separation of eastern, southern and western populations and rapid spread through the western Alps. After reviewing calibrated gene-specific substitution rates in the literature, we use partitioned Bayesian coalescent analysis to date our phylogeography. The major clades diverged long before the last glacial maximum, suggesting that O. elongata persisted many glacial cycles within or at the edges of the Alps and Apennines. When analyzing additional barcoding pairwise distances, we find strong evidence to consider O. elongata as a species complex rather than a single species.

Joint physical-MAC layer design of the broadcast channel protocol in adhoc networks

Broadcast transmission mode in ad hoc networks is critical to manage multihop routing or providing medium accesscontrol (MAC)-layer fairness. In this paper, it is shown that ahigher capacity to exchange information among neighbors may beobtained through a physical-MAC cross-layer design of the broadcastprotocol exploiting signal separation principles. Coherentdetection and separation of contending nodes is possible throughtraining sequences which are selected at random from a reducedset. Guidelines for the design of this set are derived for a lowimpact on the network performance and the receiver complexity.

The genome of the recently domesticated crop plant sugar beet (Beta vulgaris)

Sugar beet (Beta vulgaris ssp. vulgaris) is an important crop of temperate climates which provides nearly 30% of the world's annual sugar production and is a source for bioethanol and animal feed. The species belongs to the order of Caryophylalles, is diploid with 2n = 18 chromosomes, has an estimated genome size of 714-758 megabases and shares an ancient genome triplication with other eudicot plants. Leafy beets have been cultivated since Roman times, but sugar beet is one of the most recently domesticated crops. It arose in the late eighteenth century when lines accumulating sugar in the storage root were selected from crosses made with chard and fodder beet. Here we present a reference genome sequence for sugar beet as the first non-rosid, non-asterid eudicot genome, advancing comparative genomics and phylogenetic reconstructions. The genome sequence comprises 567 megabases, of which 85% could be assigned to chromosomes. The assembly covers a large proportion of the repetitive sequence content that was estimated to be 63%. We predicted 27,421 protein-coding genes supported by transcript data and annotated them on the basis of sequence homology. Phylogenetic analyses provided evidence for the separation of Caryophyllales before the split of asterids and rosids, and revealed lineage-specific gene family expansions and losses. We sequenced spinach (Spinacia oleracea), another Caryophyllales species, and validated features that separate this clade from rosids and asterids. Intraspecific genomic variation was analysed based on the genome sequences of sea beet (Beta vulgaris ssp. maritima; progenitor of all beet crops) and four additional sugar beet accessions. We identified seven million variant positions in the reference genome, and also large regions of low variability, indicating artificial selection. The sugar beet genome sequence enables the identification of genes affecting agronomically relevant traits, supports molecular breeding and maximizes the plant's potential in energy biotechnology.

Characteristics of a good customer reference for a process equipment supplier

Työn tavoitteena oli tutkia hyvän asiakasreferenssin ominaisuuksia suodatinvalmistaja Laroxin myynnin ja huollon sekä yrityksen asiakkaiden näkökulmasta. Larox voi käyttää saatua tietoa referenssien tehokkaampaan valintaan ja hyödyntämiseen. Kaksi internet-kyselyä toteutettiin, välineenä Webropol. Alustava kysely sunnattiin Laroxin myynnille ja huollolle. Kysely koostui viidestä kategoriasta asiakasreferenssejä, joiden tärkeyttä arvioitiin, sekä vapaista vastauksista. Tunnistettuja hyvän asiakasreferenssin ominaisuuksia ovat hyvä suhde referenssiasiakkaaseen, positiiviset jarehelliset suosittelut asiakkaalta, referenssilaitteen hyvä toimintakyky ja asiakas joka ymmärtää huollon tärkeyden. Pääkysely suunnattiin Laroxin asiakkaille. Tilastollisilla analyyseilla tutkittiin koetun riskin mallinmuuttujien välisiä yhteyksiä. Analyysit eivät paljastaneet merkittäviä riippuvuuksia asiakasreferenssin ominaisuuksien tärkeydessä eritaustaisten vastaajien tai tilannetekijöiden välillä, mutta asiakasreferenssin ominaisuuksien faktorit tukevat mallia. Referenssilaitteiden toimintakyky vaikuttaa tärkeimmältä ja huollon tärkeys on myös merkittävä.

Virtauslaskennankäyttö keskipakopumpun eroosiokulumisen mallintamisessa

Diplomityössä kehitetään malli tiheän kaksifaasivirtauksen aiheuttaman eroosiokulumi-sen mallintamiseksi, ratkaistaan virtauskenttä kahdessa erilaisessa keskipakopumpussa, sovelletaan kehitettyä mallia, sekävertaillaan mallin antamia tuloksia käytännön kokeissa saavutettuihin tuloksiin. Työssä on erityisenä mielenkiinnon kohteena savukaasupesurin pumppu. Työn alkuosa sisältää tarkemman kuvauksen savukaasupesurin toi-minnasta. Numeerinen ratkaisu ja laskentahilan generointi suoritetaan ANSYS CFX- ja Turbo-Grid-ohjelmistoilla. Laskennassa virtauksen Navier-Stokesin yhtälöt on aikakeskiarvo-tettu ja ratkaistu käyttäen kontrollitilavuusmenetelmää. Tiheiden kaksifaasivirtausten eroosiokulumista on mallinnettu tekijän kehittämällä mallilla, jonka käytännön toteutus-ta ei kuitenkaan saateta julkiseksi, koodin kehittämisessä käytetty teoria on kuitenkin esitetty työssä. Työn piirissä tehtiin myös kulumiskokeita Sulzer Pumps Finlandin Karhulan tehtailla, sekä vertailtiin simuloinnin tuloksia aikaisemmissa kokeissa saavutettuihin. Koejärjestelyt kuvataan työssä.

On Modelling, System Identification and Control of Servo-Systems with a Flexible Load

The present study was done with two different servo-systems. In the first system, a servo-hydraulic system was identified and then controlled by a fuzzy gainscheduling controller. The second servo-system, an electro-magnetic linear motor in suppressing the mechanical vibration and position tracking of a reference model are studied by using a neural network and an adaptive backstepping controller respectively. Followings are some descriptions of research methods. Electro Hydraulic Servo Systems (EHSS) are commonly used in industry. These kinds of systems are nonlinearin nature and their dynamic equations have several unknown parameters.System identification is a prerequisite to analysis of a dynamic system. One of the most promising novel evolutionary algorithms is the Differential Evolution (DE) for solving global optimization problems. In the study, the DE algorithm is proposed for handling nonlinear constraint functionswith boundary limits of variables to find the best parameters of a servo-hydraulic system with flexible load. The DE guarantees fast speed convergence and accurate solutions regardless the initial conditions of parameters. The control of hydraulic servo-systems has been the focus ofintense research over the past decades. These kinds of systems are nonlinear in nature and generally difficult to control. Since changing system parameters using the same gains will cause overshoot or even loss of system stability. The highly non-linear behaviour of these devices makes them ideal subjects for applying different types of sophisticated controllers. The study is concerned with a second order model reference to positioning control of a flexible load servo-hydraulic system using fuzzy gainscheduling. In the present research, to compensate the lack of dampingin a hydraulic system, an acceleration feedback was used. To compare the results, a pcontroller with feed-forward acceleration and different gains in extension and retraction is used. The design procedure for the controller and experimental results are discussed. The results suggest that using the fuzzy gain-scheduling controller decrease the error of position reference tracking. The second part of research was done on a PermanentMagnet Linear Synchronous Motor (PMLSM). In this study, a recurrent neural network compensator for suppressing mechanical vibration in PMLSM with a flexible load is studied. The linear motor is controlled by a conventional PI velocity controller, and the vibration of the flexible mechanism is suppressed by using a hybrid recurrent neural network. The differential evolution strategy and Kalman filter method are used to avoid the local minimum problem, and estimate the states of system respectively. The proposed control method is firstly designed by using non-linear simulation model built in Matlab Simulink and then implemented in practical test rig. The proposed method works satisfactorily and suppresses the vibration successfully. In the last part of research, a nonlinear load control method is developed and implemented for a PMLSM with a flexible load. The purpose of the controller is to track a flexible load to the desired position reference as fast as possible and without awkward oscillation. The control method is based on an adaptive backstepping algorithm whose stability is ensured by the Lyapunov stability theorem. The states of the system needed in the controller are estimated by using the Kalman filter. The proposed controller is implemented and tested in a linear motor test drive and responses are presented.

Stratification of the severity of critically ill patients with classification trees

Background: Development of three classification trees (CT) based on the CART (Classification and Regression Trees), CHAID (Chi-Square Automatic Interaction Detection) and C4.5 methodologies for the calculation of probability of hospital mortality; the comparison of the results with the APACHE II, SAPS II and MPM II-24 scores, and with a model based on multiple logistic regression (LR). Methods: Retrospective study of 2864 patients. Random partition (70:30) into a Development Set (DS) n = 1808 and Validation Set (VS) n = 808. Their properties of discrimination are compared with the ROC curve (AUC CI 95%), Percent of correct classification (PCC CI 95%); and the calibration with the Calibration Curve and the Standardized Mortality Ratio (SMR CI 95%). Results: CTs are produced with a different selection of variables and decision rules: CART (5 variables and 8 decision rules), CHAID (7 variables and 15 rules) and C4.5 (6 variables and 10 rules). The common variables were: inotropic therapy, Glasgow, age, (A-a)O2 gradient and antecedent of chronic illness. In VS: all the models achieved acceptable discrimination with AUC above 0.7. CT: CART (0.75(0.71-0.81)), CHAID (0.76(0.72-0.79)) and C4.5 (0.76(0.73-0.80)). PCC: CART (72(69- 75)), CHAID (72(69-75)) and C4.5 (76(73-79)). Calibration (SMR) better in the CT: CART (1.04(0.95-1.31)), CHAID (1.06(0.97-1.15) and C4.5 (1.08(0.98-1.16)). Conclusion: With different methodologies of CTs, trees are generated with different selection of variables and decision rules. The CTs are easy to interpret, and they stratify the risk of hospital mortality. The CTs should be taken into account for the classification of the prognosis of critically ill patients.

Comparison between land suitability and actual crop distribution in an irrigation district of the Ebro valley (Spain)

El objetivo de la presente investigación fue analizar la correspondencia entre los resultados de una evaluación de tierras con la distribución real de los cultivos. Para ello la aptitud biofísica de las tierras se comparó con diferentes tipologías de frecuencia de ocurrencia de los cultivos y rotaciones derivadas de mapas de cultivos multitemporales. La investigación fue llevada a cabo en el distrito de riego de Flumen (33.000 ha), localizado en el valle del Ebro (NE España). La evaluación de tierras se basó en una cartografía de suelos 1:100.000, según el esquema FAO, para los principales cultivos presentes en el área de estudio (alfalfa, cereales de invierno, maíz, arroz y girasol). Se utilizaron tres mapas de frecuencia de cultivos y un mapa de rotaciones, derivado de una serie temporal de imágenes Landsat TM y ETM+ del periodo 1993-2000, y se compararon con los mapas de aptitud de tierras para los diferentes cultivos. Se analizó estadísticamente (Pearson χ2, Cramer V, Gamma y Somers D) la relación entre los dos tipos de variables. Los resultados muestran la existencia de una relación significativa (P=0,001) entre la localización de los cultivos y la idoneidad de las tierras, excepto de cultivos oportunistas como el girasol, muy influenciado por las subvenciones en el periodo estudiado. Las rotaciones basadas en la alfalfa muestran los mayores porcentajes (52%) de ocupación en las tierras más aptas para la agricultura en el área de estudio. El presente enfoque multitemporal de análisis de la información ofrece una visión más real que la comparación entre un mapa de evaluación de tierras y un mapa de cultivos de una fecha determinada, cuando se valora el grado de acuerdo entre las recomendaciones sobre la aptitud de las tierras y los cultivos realmente cultivados por los agricultores.