Bullerförekomst vid sönderdelning av skogsbränsle

Syftet med denna studie är att öka kunskapen om bullerexponering för omgivning och förare vid sönderdelning av skogsbränsle till flis. Sammanlagt har sex fallstudier genomförts, tre skotare, två lastbilar och en mobil anläggning. Fallen har valts med syftet att representera olika typer av sönderdelningsekipage och teknik. Studierna har genomförts i Dalarnas, Stockholms och Gävleborgs län. Bullerexponering för omgivning och förare i samband med sönderdelning till flis har undersökts med föreskrivna metoder. Det är stora skillnader på bullerexponering för förarna av de olika ekipagen. En skotarförare har daglig bullerexponering under såväl insats- som gränsvärde. Två förare (en skotarförare och en lastbilsförare) överskred insatsvärde, men var under gränsvärdet. Övriga förares bullerexponering överskred gränsvärdet. Alla maskiner har bullernivåer över 40/45 dB(A) på 200 meters avstånd, vilket överstiger acceptabla nivåer dagtid för områden med fritidsbebyggelse och fritidsområden. Endast ett av ekipagen (en skotare) hade bullernivåer på 200 meters avstånd i nivå med riktlinjer för områden med bostäder för permanent boende.  Övriga ekipage hade högre värden. De slutsatser som kan göras från denna studie är: Merparten av förare vid sönderdelning av skogsbränsle till flis exponeras för dagliga bullernivåer som kräver åtgärder. Bullernivåerna varierar mellan olika typer av ekipage för sönderdelning av skogsbränsle till flis. Studerade ekipage har högre värden för buller på 200 meters avstånd till bostäder, arbetslokaler och friluftsområden än vad som rekommenderas.

Damm- och mögelförekomst vid hantering av skogsbränsle

Tidigare studier har indikerat att exponering för trädamm och mögeldamm vid hantering av GROT (grenar och toppar) kan vara en hälsorisk. Syftet med denna studie är att ytterligare öka kunskapen om dammförhållanden inom skogsenergibranschen. Mer specifikt är målet att genom fallstudier studera dammförekomst vid hantering av GROT samt stubbar. Enstaka fallstudier av mögelförekomst i förarmiljön inkluderas. Sammanlagt har 19 fallstudier genomförts hos tio olika företag i Dalarna, Västmanland, ödermanland, Uppland, och Närke. Totaldamm har mätts med filterprovtagning inne i hytten och utanför hytten. Mögel har mätts med filterprovtagning inne i hytten. Sammanfattningsvis kan konstateras att vid samtliga fall av skotning uppmättes förhöjda dammnivåer utomhus. Högst dammnivåer uppmättes vid sönderdelning av GROT vid olika årstider. Förare som utförde arbete utanför hytten exponerades för högre dammnivåer än de som enbart arbetade inifrån hytten. De enstaka fallstudierna av mögel visade på relativt låga värden av mögelsporer. Arbetsmomentet såsom byte av knivar indikerade ökade mögelhalter. Slutsatser från denna studie är: Inga höga damm och mögelhalter har uppmätts i dessa fallstudier. Då väderförhållandena innebar mer nederbörd än i genomsnitt är resultaten inte generaliserbara. Förhöjda dammhalter uppmättes då förare utfört service och underhållsarbete utanför hytten. I studerade fall där dammängden utanför hytten var förhöjd har inga dammhalter mätts upp inne i hytterna, vilket tyder på bra luftfilter. Rekommendationer till förare är att: Regelbundet byta hyttens luftfilter och att hålla fönster och dörrar stängda för att förhindra dammexponering inne i hytten. Vid service- och underhållsarbete ska föraren i möjligaste mån undvika att använda tryckluft. Andningsskydd bör användas under de korta moment som tryckluft används.

Toward a scalable and consistent manufacturing process for the production of human MSCs

The development of novel, affordable and efficacious therapeutics will be necessary to ensure the continued progression in the standard of global healthcare. With the potential to address previously unmet patient needs as well as tackling the social and economic effects of chronic and age-related conditions, cell therapies will lead the new generation of healthcare products set to improve health and wealth across the globe. However, if many of the small to medium enterprises (SMEs) engaged in much of the commercialization efforts are to successfully traverse the ‘Valley of Death’ as they progress through clinical trials, there are a number of challenges that must be overcome. No longer do the challenges remain biological but rather a series of engineering and manufacturing issues must also be considered and addressed.

Machinery and production engineering.

Latest issue consulted: Vol. 160, no. 4059 (20 Sept. 2002).

Research training and national innovation systems in Australia, Finland and the United States : a policy and systems study supported by 30 case studies of research students in the fields of geospatial science, wireless communication, biosciences, and materials science and engineering

Reforms to the national research and research training system by the Commonwealth Government of Australia sought to effectively connect research conducted in universities to Australia's national innovation system. Research training has a key role in ensuring an adequate supply of highly skilled people for the national innovation system. During their studies, research students produce and disseminate a massive amount of new knowledge. Prior to this study, there was no research that examined the contribution of research training to Australia's national innovation system despite the existence of policy initiatives aiming to enhance this contribution. Given Australia's below average (but improving) innovation performance compared to other OECD countries, the inclusion of Finland and the United States provided further insights into the key research question. This study examined three obvious ways that research training contributes to the national innovation systems in the three countries: the international mobility and migration of research students and graduates, knowledge production and distribution by research students, and the impact of research training as advanced human capital formation on economic growth. Findings have informed the concept of a research training culture of innovation that aims to enhance the contribution of research training to Australia's national innovation system. Key features include internationally competitive research and research training environments; research training programs that equip students with economically-relevant knowledge and the capabilities required by employers operating in knowledge-based economies; attractive research careers in different sectors; a national commitment to R&D as indicated by high levels of gross and business R&D expenditure; high private and social rates of return from research training; and the horizontal coordination of key organisations that create policy for, and/or invest in research training.

Human genetic engineering [microform] : hearings before the Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight of the Committee on Science and Technology, U.S. House of Representatives, Ninety-seventh Congress, second session, November 16, 17, 18, 1982.

"No. 170."

Expansion and chondrogenic potential of human articular chondrocytes on macroporous microcarriers

Regenerative medicine techniques are currently being investigated to replace damaged cartilage. Critical to the success of these techniques is the ability to expand the initial population of cells while minimising de-differentiation to allow for hyaline cartilage to form. Three-dimensional culture systems have been shown to enhance the differentiation of chondrocytes in comparison to two-dimensional culture systems. Additionally, bioreactor expansion on microcarriers can provide mechanical stimulation and reduce the amount of cellular manipulation during expansion. The aim of this study was to characterise the expansion of human chondrocytes on microcarriers and to determine their potential to form cartilaginous tissue in vitro. High-grade human articular cartilage was obtained from leg amputations with ethics approval. Chondrocytes were isolated by collagenase digestion and expanded in either monolayers (104 cells/cm2) or on CultiSpher-G microcarriers (104 cells/mg) for three weeks. Following expansion, monolayer cells were passaged and cells on microcarriers were either left intact or the cells were released with trypsin/EDTA. Pellets from these three groups were formed and cultured for three weeks to establish the chondrogenic differentiation potential of monolayer-expanded and microcarrier-expanded chondrocytes. Cell viability, proliferation, glycosaminoglycan (GAG) accumulation, and collagen synthesis were assessed. Histology and immunohistochemistry were also performed. Human chondrocytes remained viable and expanded on microcarriers 10.2±2.6 fold in three weeks. GAG content significantly increased with time, with the majority of GAG found in the medium. Collagen production per nanogram DNA increased marginally during expansion. Histology revealed that chondrocytes were randomly distributed on microcarrier surfaces yet most pores remained cell free. Critically, human chondrocytes expanded on microcarriers maintained their ability to redifferentiate in pellet culture, as demonstrated by Safranin-O and collagen II staining. These data confirm the feasibility of microcarriers for passage-free cultivation of human articular chondrocytes. However, cell expansion needs to be improved, perhaps through growth factor supplementation, for clinical utility. Recent data indicate that cell-laden microcarriers can be used to seed fresh microcarriers, thereby increasing the expansion factor while minimising enzymatic passage.

The relation between work motivation and project management success : an empirical investigation

The content and context of work significantly influences an employees’ satisfaction. While managers see work motivation as a tool to engage the employees so that they perform better, academicians value work motivation for its contribution to human behaviour. Though the relationship between employee motivation and project success has been extensively covered in the literature, more research focusing on the nature of job design on project success may have been wanting. We address this gap through this study. The present study contributes to the extant literature by suggesting an operational framework of work motivation for project—based organizations. We are also advancing the conceptual understanding of this variable by understanding how the different facets of work motivation have a differing impact of the various parameters of project performance. A survey instrument using standardized scales of work motivation and project success was used. 199 project workers from various industries completed the survey. We first ‘operationalized’ the definition of work motivation for the purpose of our study through a principal component analysis of work motivation items. We obtained a five factor structure that had items pertaining to employee development, work climate, goal clarity, and job security. We then performed a Pearson’s correlation analysis which revealed moderate to significant relationship between project outcomes ad work climate; project outcomes & employee development. In order to establish a causality between work motivation and project management success, we employed linear regression analysis. The results show that work climate is a significant predictor of client satisfaction, while it moderately influences the project quality. Further, bringing in objectivity to project work is important for a successful implementation.

The Relation between work motivation and project management success in case of temporary organizations : theoretical lenses

The purpose of this paper is to present theoretical lenses that explain the relation between work motivation and project management success in case of temporary organizations such as projects. This paper is a part of the larger research study that first empirically identifies the constructs of work motivation in case of temporary organizations, and then empirically determines the relation between work motivation, and project management success. In the current paper, we have briefly reviewed the theories of work motivation from the work design school. These theories are predominantly drawn from the industrial/ organizational psychology literature. Then, we have considered the recent research on Nine Schools of Project Management as a point of departure to review theory on project management success. These theoretical perspectives are drawn from project management literature. We then illustrate the points of overlap for the theories drawn from these two disciplines. This review helps us to position our research study within the industrial/ organizational psychology, and project management literature as a cross-discipline study.

Building the science and innovation base: work, skills and employment issues

This Special Issue of New Technology, Work and Employment has been prompted by the increasing awareness in many countries of the need to maintain and grow their science and innovation base. The development of science, engineering, technology and mathematics (STEM) skills and capacity is seen as vital for economic development and prosperity through its impact on national and regional research and development (R&D), technological advancement, and innovation potential.

Teleoperation of a 7 DOF humanoid robot arm using human arm accelerations and EMG signals

We present our work on tele-operating a complex humanoid robot with the help of bio-signals collected from the operator. The frameworks (for robot vision, collision avoidance and machine learning), developed in our lab, allow for a safe interaction with the environment, when combined. This even works with noisy control signals, such as, the operator’s hand acceleration and their electromyography (EMG) signals. These bio-signals are used to execute equivalent actions (such as, reaching and grasping of objects) on the 7 DOF arm.

basic research in computer science and software engineering at sklcs

The State Key Laboratory of Computer Science (SKLCS) is committed to basic research in computer science and software engineering. The research topics of the laboratory include: concurrency theory, theory and algorithms for real-time systems, formal specifications based on context-free grammars, semantics of programming languages, model checking, automated reasoning, logic programming, software testing, software process improvement, middleware technology, parallel algorithms and parallel software, computer graphics and human-computer interaction. This paper describes these topics in some detail and summarizes some results obtained in recent years.

Introduction to engineering : a case study of an interdisciplinary course in Mathematics, Science and Technology

This thesis research was a qualitative case study of a single class of Interdisciplinary Studies: Introduction to Engineering taught in a secondary school. The study endeavoured to explore students' experiences in and perceptions of the course, and to investigate the viability of engineering as an interdisciplinary theme at the secondary school level. Data were collected in the form of student questionnaires, the researcher's observations and reflections, and artefacts representative of students' work. Data analysis was performed by coding textual data and classifying text segments into common themes. The themes that emerged from the data were aligned with facets of interdisciplinary study, including making connections, project-based learning, and student engagement and affective outcomes. The findings of the study showed that students were positive about their experiences in the course, and enjoyed its project-driven nature. Content from mathematics, physics, and technological design was easily integrated under the umbrella of engineering. Students felt that the opportunity to develop problem solving and teamwork skills were two of the most important aspects of the course and could be relevant not only for engineering, but for other disciplines or their day-to-day lives after secondary school. The study concluded that engineering education in secondary school can be a worthwhile experience for a variety of students and not just those intending postsecondary study in engineering. This has implications for the inclusion of engineering in the secondary school curriculum and can inform the practice of curriculum planners at the school, school board, and provincial levels. Suggested directions for further research include classroom-based action research in the areas of technological education, engineering education in secondary school, and interdisciplinary education.