The CONTEXT: a high-level structuring concept for GKS input

All human beings interact in some context or other. The concept of context has been explored by researchers in many different fields. A survey of some of this work is presented here. Using conceptual graph notation as a knowledge representation language, an introductory analysis of the concept of context and related notions is carried out and the results applied to GKS input. The outline of a possible implementation in Ada, with the (generic) package as the principal structuring unit and the task as the (low-level) implementation unit, is illustrated with a simple example.     

Gastric volvulus in the newborn

A review of the world literature has revealed only 11 cases of gastric volvulus symptomatic in the first month of life. To those 11, this report adds two cases of intrathoracic organoaxial gastric volvulus that were observed in the first week of life and were managed operatively. Gastric volvulus should be considered in the differential diagnosis of newborn infants initially observed to have persisting regurgitation, vomiting, and respiratory distress. The diagnosis can be made with plain thoracoabdominal roentgenograms and confirmed by upper gastrointestinal contrast studies. Prompt surgical management is indicated and should include reduction and fixation of the stomach and repair of associated anomalies. The results of early surgery are excellent.     

Response Surface Optimization of Hydrogen-Rich Syngas Production by Greenhouse Gases Reforming

The effect of process interaction and response surface optimization of hydrogen-rich syngas production by catalytic carbon dioxide (CO₂) reforming of methane (CH₄) was evaluated. The Box-Behnken design was applied to investigate the influence of CH₄ partial pressure, CO₂ partial pressure, and temperature on the hydrogen yield. The analysis of variance indicated that temperature and CH₄ partial pressure had the most significant impact on the hydrogen yield. Under optimum conditions a maximum hydrogen yield of 71.38 % was achieved. Model validation with the ideal conditions confirmed close agreement of the predicted hydrogen yields with experimental values.     

Automatic object tracking in optimized UAV video

The Journal of Supercomputing - Target detection and tracking in unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) surveillance enhance the monitoring capacity. In surveillance, the collection of data for long...     

Prediction of structural response to blast –induced vibration in Kopek Construction Quarry,Ikere – Ekiti,Ekiti State,Nigeria

The responses of adjoining structures to blast induced ground vibrations emanating from Kopek Construction Quarry, Ikere – Ekiti in Ekiti State were evaluated and predicted. Five off site receptors at predetermined distances from the blast source were chosen and the Peak Particle Velocity (PPV) at each receptor during blasting was estimated using the squared root scaled distance equation. The estimated PPVs were compared with the USBM – RI 8705 reference. The results showed that the blast induced vibrations from the quarry site were within the recommended limits and were insignificant to warrant concerns of causing structural damages to buildings in proximity to the quarry site with the given blast design parameters.     

An information supply chain system view for managing rare infectious diseases: The need to improve timeliness

Timely reporting of rare infectious disease cases to the public health system, especially after identification at laboratories, is essential to initiate quick and effective public health response. To ensure that the public health reporting system is appropriately monitoring the rare infectious diseases under surveillance, it is recommended to have a regular assessment of timeliness, especially after the rare infectious case is confirmed. This study aimed to evaluate the timeliness of data reported to the Ohio Disease Reporting System (ODRS), a public health reporting system in Ohio, for managing rare infectious diseases. In a cross-sectional analysis of rare infectious disease reporting data in four local health jurisdictions (LHJs) in the state of Ohio, wide delays were found between various reporting steps, particularly when the laboratories were not using the electronic method of reporting, and the delay observed was mainly at the hospital level and at the LHJ level. This study highlights the supply chain nature of information transfer and calculates the delay at various interacting points of the information supply chain system. The results establish that a centralized approach with an electronic disease reporting system conveys information faster than traditional reporting channels (decentralized approach). Delays of the decentralized approach are isolated at various stakeholder levels and with respect to various types of rare infectious diseases for better understanding of the information supply chain system for managing rare infectious diseases.     

The effect of bed age and shear stress on the particle morphology of eroded cohesive river sediment in an annular flume

Erosion experiments were conducted in an annular flume to determine the effect of bed age and shear stress on the particle morphology (fractal dimensions D, D(1), and D(k)) of eroded cohesive river sediment. Sediment beds were deposited under low shear and left to consolidate for one, two and seven days. Fractal data and photomicrographs show particle morphology changed with shear stress and bed age. During the one-day experiment, flocs were highly branched and particle geometry became more complex with increasing shear. Microflocs present in suspension at low shear, formed larger more loosely bound flocs at moderate shear due to flocculation. At higher shear, larger flocs were less prevalent due to particle breakup. As bed age increased, less sediment was eroded and particles appeared less porous and more angular in shape for a given shear stress. Changes in floc morphology and eroded sediment mass at various shear stresses may be related to bed age-associated biostabilization of bed deposits.     

Numerical Simulation Software for Oil Sand Slurry Flow in Flexible Pipelines

In order to optimize the hydraulic transportation system efficiency and cost in the surface extraction of Athabasca oil sand deposits in Canada, there is a desire to extend the hydraulic transport system to production faces in oil sands mines using mobile train of Flex-Rite-based flexible pipelines. Hydraulic transportation system based on flexible-pipe arrangement has been shown to be more competitive than the dump-truck transportation system. This flexible arrangement introduces a unique set of hydraulic transport problems which needs rigorous modeling, experimentation, and analysis to understand the system production capacities and efficiency. Part of the work presented here is an attempt to provide multiphase oil sand slurry simulation and modeling by developing a slurry flow simulator, a graphical user interface-based software, for Flex-Rite flexible-pipe train, a form of hydraulic transportation system. Such software provides a tool/platform for rigorous experimentation and analysis of flow and production capacities.