Annual Rainfall Forecasting Using Hybrid Artificial Intelligence Model: Integration of Multilayer Perceptron with Whale Optimization Algorithm

Water Resources Management - Rainfall, as one of the key components of hydrological cycle, plays an undeniable role for accurate modelling of other hydrological components. Therefore, a precise...     

Modular abstractions for verifying real-time distributed systems

In this work we present a verification methodology for real-time distributed systems, based on their modular decomposition into processes. Given a distributed system, each of its components is reduced by abstracting away from details that are irrelevant for the required specification. The abstract components are then composed to form an abstract system to which a model checking procedure is applied. The abstraction relation and the specification language guarantee that if the abstract system satisfies a specification, then the original system satisfies it as well.The specification languageRTL is a branching-time version of the real-time temporal logicTPTL presented in Alur and Henzinger [1]. Its model checking is linear in the size of the system and exponential in the size of the formula. Two notions of abstraction for real-time systems are introduced, each preserving a sublanguage ofRTL.     

Photocatalytic degradation of model organic pollutants on an immobilized particulate TiO2 layer: Roles of adsorption processes and mechanistic complexity

The kinetics of photocatalytic degradation of four different model organic compounds, formic acid (FA), oxalic acid (OA), 4-chlorophenol (4-CP) and the herbicide monuron (3-(4-chlorophenyl)-1,1-dimethylurea) in a self-constructed batch-mode plate photoreactor with a thin flow of contaminated aqueous solution circulating over an illuminated particulate layer of TiO₂ P25 (Degussa) was compared. Both OA and FA were adsorbed on TiO₂ surface; their mineralization, induced by direct transfer of photogenerated holes, proceeded in a single step, without observable intermediates, following approximately zero order kinetics. Numerical simulations were performed using a newly proposed kinetic model based on the photostationary state assumption. The model allowed an explanation of the observed reaction order as well as the comparison of independent with competitive adsorption of organic compound and oxygen on the photocatalyst surface, yielding a better fit for the case of competition. 4-CP and monuron, which were not adsorbed under the conditions used, were degraded through the action of photogenerated hydroxyl radicals. Their degradation proceeded with lower photoefficiency than for the adsorbed compounds (FA and OA). While the mineralization of both 4-CP and monuron followed zero order kinetics, their degradation was close to first order. The different reaction orders were consistently explained using the photostationary state approach.     

Coverage metrics for formal verification

In formal verification, we verify that a system is correct with respect to a specification. Even when the system is proven to be correct, there is still a question of how complete the specification is and whether it really covers all the behaviors of the system. The challenge of making the verification process as exhaustive as possible is even more crucial in simulation-based verification, where the infeasible task of checking all input sequences is replaced by checking a test suite consisting of a finite subset of them. It is very important to measure the exhaustiveness of the test suite, and indeed there has been extensive research in the simulation-based verification community on coverage metrics, which provide such a measure. It turns out that no single measure can be absolute, leading to the development of numerous coverage metrics whose usage is determined by industrial verification methodologies. On the other hand, prior research of coverage in formal verification has focused solely on state-based coverage. In this paper we adapt the work done on coverage in simulation-based verification to the formal-verification setting in order to obtain new coverage metrics. Thus, for each of the metrics used in simulation-based verification, we present a corresponding metric that is suitable for the setting of formal verification and describe an algorithmic way to check it.     

Spectrophotometric method for determination of ozone in aqueous solutions

A sensitive spectrophotometric method for determination of ozone in small volumes of water is presented. It was performed in order to meet the requirements of a kinetic study of virus and bacteria inactivation by ozone.The proposed method involves oxidation of a buffered iodine solution and spectrophotometric measurement of the triiodide ion liberated by ozone. Two procedures are used: one for low ozone concentration (0·01–0·30 ppm) and another for higher concentrations (0·30–2·0 ppm). The reproducibility of results is very high when the procedure used corresponds with the ozone level for which it is intended.This spectrophotometric method is compared with the standard volumetric method and the differences are presented and discussed.Some applications of the method for a kinetic study of virus inactivation by ozone are presented.     

Automated simultaneous monitoring of nitrate and nitrite in surface water by sequential injection analysis

A fully automated procedure based on Sequential Injection Analysis (SIA) methodology for simultaneous monitoring of nitrate and nitrite in surface water samples is described. Nitrite was determined directly using the Griess diazo-coupling reaction and the formed azo dye was measured at 540 nm in the flow cell of the fibre-optic spectrophotometer. Nitrate zone was passed through a reducing mini-column containing copperised-cadmium. After the reduction of nitrate into nitrite the sample was aspirated by flow reversal to the holding coil, treated with the reagent and finally passed through the flow cell. The calibration curve was linear over the range 0.05-1.00 mg N l(-1) of nitrite and 0.50-50.00 mg N l(-1) of nitrate; correlation coefficients were 0.9993 and 0.9988 for nitrite and nitrate, respectively. Detection limits were 0.015 and 0.10 mg N l(-1) for nitrite and nitrate, respectively. The relative standard deviation (RSD) values (n = 3) were 1.10% and 1.32% for nitrite and nitrate, respectively. The total time of one measuring cycle was 250 s, thus the sample throughput was about 14 h(-1). Nitrate and nitrite were determined in the real samples of surface water, and the results have been compared with those obtained by two other flow methods; flow injection analysis based on the same reactions and isotachophoretic determination used in a routine environmental control laboratory.     

Geothermal assessment of the deep aquifers of the northwestern part of the Bohemian Cretaceous basin, Czech Republic

Groundwater in the Benešov-Ústí aquifer system in the northwestern Bohemian Cretaceous basin has been intensely exploited since the twentieth century. Apart from providing drinking water, it contains the most extensive accumulation of thermal water in the country. However, excessive exploitation can result in temperature declines and changes in the quality of the groundwater in the future. More than a hundred in situ temperature measurements were used to assess the geothermal gradient and heat flux. However, intense groundwater vertical flow across the well significantly controls the heat flux distribution, resulting in a huge range of values—from less than 50 mW/m² within infiltration areas to more than 125 mW/m² in drainage areas. Certain simplifications and corrections considering the vertical flow between different permeable zones were developed, and the correction for topography as well as lithological variability have been applied to improve accuracy of the geothermal gradient assessment. Despite the fact that the Bohemian Cretaceous basin is tectonically very complex, it is concluded that tectonics [with the exception of the Eger (Oh?e) rift] has only a secondary effect on the thermal field. Two longitudinal W-E areas in the Benešov-Ústí aquifer system have elevated heat flux values. The calculated heat flux values are useful for heat transfer modelling and the assessment of the sustainable limits of thermal water exploitation.     

Poisson’s ratio of the MDF in respect to vertical density profile

The work deals with Poisson’s ratios (PR’s) of medium density fiberboard (MDF) measured using digital image correlation and correlated to vertical density profiles (VDP). MDFs of four different thicknesses were first scanned by X-ray to obtain VDPs and then subjected to compression while measuring by DIC. PR’s of MDF reveal low correlations with VDP (<0.08), but strong local behavior ranging from 0.025 to 0.06 for 12 mm thickness, from 0.018 to 0.105 for 18 mm, from 0.03 to 0.175 for 25 mm, and from 0 to 0.43 for 38 mm.     

Datenschutz im Web 2.0 am Beispiel des sozialen Tagging-Systems BibSonomy

Soziale Tagging-Systeme geh?ren zu den in den vergangenen Jahren entstandenen Web2.0-Systemen. Sie erm?glichen es Anwendern, beliebige Informationen in das Internet einzustellen und untereinander auszutauschen. Je nach Anbieter verlinken Nutzer Videos, Fotos oder Webseiten und beschreiben die eingestellten Medien mit entsprechenden Schlagw?rtern (Tags). Die damit einhergehende freiwillige Preisgabe oftmals pers?nlicher Informationen wirft Fragen im Bereich der informationellen Selbstbestimmung auf. Dieses Grundrecht gew?hrleistet dem Einzelnen, grunds?tzlich selbst über die Preisgabe und Verwendung seiner pers?nlichen Daten zu bestimmen. Für viele Funktionalit?ten, wie beispielsweise Empfehlungsdienste oder die Bereitstellung einer API, ist eine solche Kontrolle allerdings schwierig zu gestalten. Oftmals existieren keine Richtlinien, inwieweit Dienstanbieter und weitere Dritte diese ?ffentlichen Daten (und weitere Daten, die bei der Nutzung des Systems anfallen) nutzen dürfen. Dieser Artikel diskutiert anhand eines konkreten Systems typische, für den Datenschutz relevante Funktionalit?ten und gibt Handlungsanweisungen für eine datenschutzkonforme technische Gestaltung.     

The effect of calcium zirconate modifications on the microstructure and functional properties of sodium niobate thin films prepared by chemical solution deposition

Sodium niobate thin films doped with manganese (NN), and NN films modified with 5 or 10 mol % calcium zirconate (CZ) on platinized silicon substrates were prepared by chemical solution deposition. The 250-nm-thick films crystallize in a perovskite phase with fine, equiaxed grains. The NN films exhibit well-shaped ferroelectric loops with a remanent polarization and coercive field of ～10 μC/cm² and ～100 kV/cm, respectively. The modification with CZ strongly influences the ferroelectric response of the films: the remanent polarization progressively decreases to around 2.5 μC/cm². The absence of an anti-ferroelectric response, which has previously been confirmed in bulk NN-CZ ceramics, is attributed to the nanoscale microstructure and residual thermal stresses. All the studied films exhibit a piezoelectric response with the highest piezoelectric d₃₃ coefficient of 35 pm/V at 300 kV/cm bias field for the NN modified films with 5 mol % CZ, making them candidates for lead-free piezoelectric thin-film applications.