A parallel implementation of Flat Concurrent Prolog

Flat Concurrent Prolog is a simple, practical, concurrent programming language which has an efficient uniprocessor implementation. This paper describes an initial parallel implementation of the language; it consists of an interpreter implemented on an Intel iPSC Hypercube. The parallel execution of concurrent logic programming languages involves many nontrivial implementation problems. Some of these problems are well known and have been treated extensively in the literature. The most difficult task is to integrate problem solutions in a coherent and efficient manner. The algorithm presented has been useful in providing insights into the major problems and includes a number of novel ideas to simplify implementation. It does not attempt to solve all the problems involved but rather provides a workable basis for current and future research. The algorithm is under ongoing refinement, simplification and improvement.     

Multiway merge with constant delay in Concurrent Prolog

Multiway dynamic mergers with constant delay are an essential component of a parallel logic programming language. Previous attempts to defined efficient mergers have required complex optimising compilers and run-time support. This paper proposes a simple technique to implement mergers efficiently. The technique requires an additional data type and the definition of an operation on it. The operation allows multiple processes to access a stream without incurring the cost of searching for the end of stream. It is specified in Concurrent Prolog and is used to define multiple assignment variables using a monitor. The technique forms the basis for stream merging in Logix, a practical programming environment written in Flat Concurrent Prolog.     

Innovations in the ENHS reactor design and fuel cycle

A number of approaches were explored for improving characteristics of the encapsulated nuclear heat source (ENHS) reactor and its fuel cycle, including: increasing the ENHS module power, power density and the specific power, making the core design insensitive to the actinides composition variation with number of fuel recycling and reducing the positive void coefficient of reactivity. Design innovations examined for power increase include intermediate heat exchanger (IHX) design optimization, riser diameter optimization, introducing a flow partition inside the riser, increasing the cooling time of the LWR discharged TRU, increasing the minor actinides' concentration in the loaded fuel and split-enrichment for power flattening. Another design innovation described utilizes a unique synergism between the use of MA and the design of reduced power ENHS cores.

Also described is a radically different ENHS reactor concept that has a solid core from which heat pipes transport the fission power to a coolant circulating around the reflector. Promising features of this design concept include enhanced decay heat removal capability; no positive void reactivity coefficient; no direct contact between the fuel clad and the coolant; a core that is more robust for transportation; higher coolant temperature potentially offering higher energy conversion efficiency and hydrogen production capability.     

The effect of polyethylene crystallinity and polarity on thermal stability and controlled release of essential oils in antimicrobial films

Antimicrobial packaging can preserve and increase shelf life of free preservatives food products. Active materials present in the packaging material can migrate, in a controlled manner, to the food surface, avoiding bacterial and fungal proliferation and keeping the food product edible for longer periods of time. Essential oils (EO) are natural antimicrobial agents that can be released to the headspace with no direct contact between the package and the food. To minimize loses of EO during high heat melt processing, a three stages process was implemented and tested. Antimicrobial films were prepared by melt mixing a variety of polyethylene copolymers in the presence of organo‐modified montmorillonite nano clay (NC) and thymol, an EO present in oregano and thyme. A controlled EO desorption from films can be achieved by changing the polymer crystallinity and polarity. As the crystallinity increased, the thermal stability of the EO during the extrusion process improved. The addition of NC affects the structure and homogeneity of the crystals. The combination of high polymer crystallinity and chemical affinity between EO and NC increased the thermal stability of the EO during film processing, enabling to control the desorption rate. The effect of multilayer structure based on varied densities and polarities was also studied. Increasing the polarity of the outer layers in multilayered film reduced the EO desorption rate as a result of chemical interactions between the polymer and the EO. The final antimicrobial activity of the films was also found to be dependent on the EO partitioning. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014 , 131, 40309.     

A reevaluation of the relationship between psychotherapeutic orientation and perceived personality characteristics.

Evaluated the relationship between psychotherapeutic orientation and perceived personality characteristics in 64 Israeli psychotherapists who were psychoanalytic, eclectic, or behavioristic in approach. Ss rated themselves, a "typical" therapist of their orientation, and a typical therapist of the other 2 orientations on action-oriented (AOCs), insight-oriented, and authoritarian personality characteristics. Self-ratings differed significantly only on AOCs, with behaviorists rating themselves higher than psychoanalysts and eclectics. Differences between self- and typical therapist perceptions suggest a stereotypic acceptance of a connection between therapist's orientation and personality. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Selection of graduate students in clinical psychology: Use of cutoff scores and interviews.

The use of cutoff scores and interviews in the selection of graduate students in clinical psychology has been debated extensively, but researchers in only a few empirical studies have looked at these issues. We examined the selection process for clinical psychology students at Boston University, in which an interview was used and a quantitative cutoff score was not used. We analyzed scores of 357 applicants on Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) and Miller Analogy Tests (MAT), grade point averages (GPA), and interview ratings. We found that the major criteria for invitation to an interview were GREs and GPA, though no quantitative cutoff had been used. The use of such a cutoff would result in no difference in selection of applicants. Reliability of interview ratings was moderately high, contrary to results of previous studies. Replications of this study would add to its generalizability and argue for the use of the cutoff and further consideration of the interview. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Visual positioning of previously defined ROIs on microscopic slides.

In microscopy, regions of interest are usually much smaller than the whole slide area. Various microscopy related medical applications, such as telepathology and computer aided diagnosis, are liable to benefit greatly from microscope auto positioning on previously defined regions of interest. In this paper, we present a method for image-based auto positioning on a microscope slide. The method is based on localization of a microscopic query image using a previously acquired slide map. It uses geometric hashing, a highly efficient technique drawn from the object recognition field. The algorithm exhibits high tolerance to possible variations in visual appearance due to slide rotations, scaling and illumination changes. Experimental results indicate high reliability of the algorithm.     

Quantitative evaluation of product disassembly for recycling

This paper presents a method for evaluating the ease-of-disassembly of products. Its primary use is in designing products for recycling, but it also facilitates consideration of servicing and maintenance, and making environmentally-related decisions. The method is developed and discussed in the context of relatively small products that can be disassembled by a seated person using hand-held tools. The evaluation procedure is centered around a spreadsheet-like chart and uses a catalog of task difficulty scores. The scores were derived from work-measurement analyses of standard disassembly tasks, and provide a means of identifying weaknesses in the design and comparing alternatives quantitatively. The structure of the evaluation chart and the derivation of difficulty scores are explained, followed by a demonstration of analyzing a computer central processing unit. The limitations of the method and future extensions are outlined.     

Wavelet-based dynamic and privacy-preserving similitude data models for edge computing

Wireless Networks - The privacy-preserving data release is an increasingly important problem in today’s computing. As the end devices collect more and more data, reducing the amount of...