On M. Kunz's article “A case study against Haitun's conjectures”

M.Kunz's criticism of the concept of non-Gaussian nature of scientific activities is discussed. The following points of the concept are analyzed: transformations of closed scales into open scales, the dependence of moments of non-Gaussian distributions on the samples size, the non-Gaussian nature of Man-dwelt upon byKunz. Arguments based on statistical analysis of Kunz's article are put forward againstKunz.     

Integrated DNC: A case study

With the development of CNC, communication and CIM technology, the connotation and functions of DNC have been greatly enlarged. In order to describe the features and development of contemporary DNC, a new concept, integrated DNC, is presented in this paper. The connotation of integrated DNC and other relative concepts are discussed. Four control architectures of integrated DNC are proposed, including bi-hierarchies, tri-hierarchies, quadri-hierarchies and acrossshops architectures. A case study of integrated DNC is introduced.     

A case study in action research

This case study demonstrates in practice some of the principles discussed in Roberts' paper. The work is based on the ‘Art and the built environment’ project, which is aimed at encouraging and developing the study of buildings and environments as part of the art curriculum in secondary schools. The project has raised questions about the appropriate media for conducting such study, the development of design awareness in children, and the social relevance of expressing and communicating ideas about the built environment.     

A case study of the Rajasthan canal

The study deals with the policy issues relevant to agriculture development in arid regions where water has a very high economic value. The experience gained in irrigation planning under such conditions in different parts of the world is described. The issues relevant for such a study are the level of technology, the cropping pattern, the area under cultivation and the size of the holdings. For the study of these issues a linear programming model maximizing returns, subject to land and water constraints, has been developed and is applied in the Rajasthan canal command area. The study concludes that agriculture and irrigation technology of a high level should be used to maximize benefits and production, which would also generate more employment.     

Guayule:A case study in civilian technology

This case study documents the difficulty of initiating civilian technology programs in government. Earlier work has focused on the political actions of supporting and opposing constituencies. This paper deals with institutional factors in the process of resource allocation, which are designed to create obstacles to the initiation of new programs. The paper also outlines managerial tactics available to government executives, which may mitigate the obstacles when coupled with responsible analysis of public needs and values. It concludes that civilian technology programs are difficult but feasible undertakings and that, despite their scanty record of success, they can be deserving of public resources and support.     

Substitution analysis: A case study of solvents

This paper presents an example of a substitution analysis, an approach often required in dealing with issues of exposure to toxic substances. CFC-113, a chlorofluorocarbon-based solvent is suspected of depleting the ozone layer. This study examines potential alternatives to pure CFC-113, specifically in defluxing applications. The results suggest that none of the potential substitutes is ideal in terms of cleaning capability. Certain CFC-113/alcohol blends or the CFC-113/methylene chloride azeotrope could be substituted in some applications but, because they still contain CFC-113, the threat of ozone depletion would only be reduced, not eliminated. Water is probably the safest possible substitute, but it poses regulatory and technical problems.     

Ranking Taiwanese management journals: A case study

To improve the quality of journals in Taiwan, the National Science Council (NSC) of the Republic of China evaluates journals in the fields of humanities and social sciences periodically. This paper describes the evaluation of 46 management journals conducted by the authors, as authorized by the NSC. Both a subjective approach, with judgments solicited from 345 experts, and an objective approach, with data collected on four indicators: journal cross citation, dissertation citation, authors’ scholastic reputation, and author diversity, were used to make a comprehensive evaluation. Performance in the four indicators were aggregated using weights which were most favourable to all journals, in a compromise sense, to produce the composite indices. The subjective evaluation reflects the general image, or reputation, of journals while the objective evaluation discloses blind spots which have been overlooked by experts. The results show that using either approach alone would have produced results which are misleading, which suggests that both approaches should be used. All of the editors of the journals being evaluated agreed that the evaluation was appropriate and the results are reasonable.     

A case study of BiSn-induced embrittlement

This paper represents the characteristics and causes of the fatigue failure of a turbine blade, which was made of a K405 Ni-base superalloy. The results show that the blade fatigue failure is due to embrittlement, which is induced by the contamination of a Bi---Sn low melting point alloy on the blade surface during the manufacturing process of the blades, under the effects of service temperature and stress.     

Microstructure of fire-damaged concrete. A case study

Concrete is a poor conductor of heat, but can suffer considerable damage when exposed to fire. Unraveling the heating history of concrete is important to forensic research or to determine whether a fire-exposed concrete structure and its components are still structurally sound. Assessment of fire-damage concrete structures usually starts with visual observation of color change, cracking and spalling. On heating, a change in color from normal to pink is often observed and this is useful since it coincides with the onset of significant loss of concrete strength. This paper presents results of cores strength, as well as, optical microscopy investigations of fire-damaged concrete. Samples were taken from concrete that had been exposed to fire. Optical microscopy has focused on microstructure of cement paste, aggregates, microvoids and cracks, as well as, on quantification the crack patterns found in heated concrete samples. The physical condition of concrete sample in combination with the microscopic examination, enable a petrographer to make a reasonable estimation of the minimum exposure temperature and its relative impact to the depth of damage in concrete.     

A numerical case study of a non-Newtonian flow problem

This paper addresses some of the theoretical aspects involved in the numerical study of non-Newtonian flow problems. We consider the second-order Rivlin–Erickson constitutive model due to the simple differential form that emerges for the system of equations that govern the flow when expressed in stream function–vorticity variables. This model describes slightly elastic fluids that exhibit a constant viscosity behaviour. A steady two-dimensional flow is studied through a planar contraction geometry. An auxiliary variable is introduced into the problem formulation producing a non-linear system of differential equations comprising two elliptic equations and one hyperbolic equation. This system is discretized by finite difference methods and the resulting system of non-linear algebraic equations is solved iteratively by successive substitutions. The simple structure of this iteration permits a convergence analysis which is presented in Section 2. This analysis is performed prior to the spatial discretization and establishes the dependence of the iteration upon the material parameters. At the discrete linearized equation level a combination of inner iterations for elliptic equations and direct marching for the hyperbolic equation is used. The stability of the marching scheme is considered in Section 4.3 and a discussion on the results is given in Section 5.     

A case study for quantifying system reliability and uncertainty

The ability to estimate system reliability with an appropriate measure of associated uncertainty is important for understanding its expected performance over time. Frequently, obtaining full-system data is prohibitively expensive, impractical, or not permissible. Hence, methodology which allows for the combination of different types of data at the component or subsystem levels can allow for improved estimation at the system level. We apply methodologies for aggregating uncertainty from component-level data to estimate system reliability and quantify its overall uncertainty. This paper provides a proof-of-concept that uncertainty quantification methods using Bayesian methodology can be constructed and applied to system reliability problems for a system with both series and parallel structures.     

Behavior-based safety on construction sites: A case study

This work presents the results of a case study and describes an important area within the field of construction safety management, namely behavior-based safety (BBS). This paper adopts and develops a management approach for safety improvements in construction site environments. A rigorous behavioral safety system and its intervention program was implemented and deployed on target construction sites. After taking a few weeks of safety behavior measurements, the project management team implemented the designed intervention and measurements were taken. Goal-setting sessions were arranged on-site with workers’ participation to set realistic and attainable targets of performance. Safety performance measurements continued and the levels of performance and the targets were presented on feedback charts. Supervisors were asked to give workers recognition and praise when they acted safely or improved critical behaviors. Observers were requested to have discussions with workers, visit the site, distribute training materials to workers, and provide feedback to crews and display charts. They were required to talk to operatives in the presence of line managers. It was necessary to develop awareness and understanding of what was being measured. In the process, operatives learned how to act safely when conducting site tasks using the designed checklists. Current weekly scores were discussed in the weekly safety meetings and other operational site meetings with emphasis on how to achieve set targets. The reliability of the safety performance measures taken by the company's observers was monitored. A clear increase in safety performance level was achieved across all categories: personal protective equipment; housekeeping; access to heights; plant and equipment, and scaffolding. The research reveals that scores of safety performance at one project improved from 86% (at the end of 3rd week) to 92.9% during the 9th week. The results of intervention demonstrated large decreases in unsafe behaviors and significant increases in safe behaviors. The results of this case study showed that an approach based on goal setting, feedback, and an effective measure of safety behavior if properly applied by committed management, can improve safety performance significantly in construction site environments. The results proved that the BBS management technique can be applied to any country's culture, showing that it would be a good approach for improving the safety of front-line workers and that it has industry wide application for ongoing construction projects.     

电渗析器免拆清洗实例

用静态溶垢试验和静态模拟试验选出的清洗剂清洗电渗析器，结果表明：用质量分数为2％ HCl，5％多聚磷酸盐，2％HCl 2％CaCO3，0.1mol／L NaOH依次循环清洗电渗析器可清洗掉常见电渗析器垢物和污染物．     

Flexibility analysis: A methodology and a case study

A methodology for analysing manufacturing flexibility is proposed. A real-life case is discussed to demonstrate the proposed methodology. The case involves the grinding operations of an engine manufacturer. As an integral part of the methodology, statistical analyses using response surface methodology are carried out. Potential applications of the proposed methodology are discussed. Planning models and flexibility measure used are outlined in the appendices.     

A case study of cracks in aeroengine compressor discs

Cracks were found in four aeroengine compressor discs. These cracks initiated from holes in the discs and propagated in a radial direction. An analysis of one disc is presented in this paper. The cracks are fatigue cracks from high alternating stress. The reason why cracks initiated at holes is that there were coarse machining marks and a resonance stress at the edge of the hole.     

Motorcycle safety device investigation: A case study on airbags

The present standard for assessing the effectiveness of safety measures for motorcycle riders defined in ISO 13232 is unique and it incorporates evaluation by computer simulation supplemented by full-scale crash tests. This report describes the process of using FE (Finite Element) simulations to investigate safety options for motorcycle riders. The experience of developing finite element models acceptable as per ISO 13232 standards has been described. The variation in dummy head accelerations on impact with inflating airbags has been studied in an environment acceptable as per ISO 13232 standards. Based on the simulations, it may be concluded that inflating airbags in motorcycles do not pose a significant injury threat.     

Proportional hazards modelling versus two-sample tests: A case study

The aim of this paper is to illustrate primarily the suitability and secondly the ability of both PHM and ‘two-sample’ tests in answering problems in the reliability field. The findings stress the fact that ‘two-sample’ tests should be preferred for comparison purposes and PHM for modelling the behaviour of the equipment in the presence of various factors.     

Marine main engine crankshaft failure analysis: A case study

A case study of a catastrophic failure of a web marine crankshaft and a failure analysis under bending and torsion applied to crankshafts are presented. A microscopy (eye seen) observation showed that the crack initiation started on the fillet of the crankpin by rotary bending and the propagation was a combination of cyclic bending and steady torsion. The crack front profile approximately adopts a semi-elliptical shape with some distortion due to torsion and this study is supported by a previous research work already published by the authors. The number of cycles from crack initiation to final failure of this crankshaft was achieved by recording of the main engine operation on board, taking into account the beachmarks left on the fatigue crack surface. The cycles calculated by the linear elastic fracture mechanics approaches showed that the propagation was fast which means that the level of bending stress was relatively high when compared with total cycles of main engine in service. Microstructure defects or inclusion were not observed which can conclude that the failure was probably originated by an external cause and not due to an intrinsic latent defect. Possible effects of added torsional vibrations which induce stresses are also discussed. Some causes are analyzed and reported here but the origin of the fatigue fracture was not clearly determined.