Measuring the conformity of non‐simplicial elements to an anisotropic metric field

This paper extends an approach for measuring the element conformity of simplices to non‐simplicial elements of any type, in spaces of arbitrary dimension. Element non‐conformity is defined as the difference between a given size specification map, in the form of a Riemannian metric tensor, and the actual metric tensor of the element. An approach to the measurement of non‐conformity coefficients of non‐simplicial elements based on sub‐simplex division is proposed. An analysis of the measure's behaviour presented for quadrilaterals, hexahedra, prisms and pyramids shows that the measure is sensitive to size, stretching and orientation variations, as well as to other types of element shape degeneration. Finally, numerical applications show that the metric conformity measure can be used as a quality measure to quantify the discrepancy between a whole non‐simplicial mesh and a complex anisotropic size specification map. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Psychometric Evaluation of the Behavioral Inhibition/Behavioral Activation Scales in a Large Sample of Outpatients With Anxiety and Mood Disorders.

The latent structure, reliability, and validity of the Behavioral Inhibition/Behavioral Activation Scales (BIS/BAS; C. L. Carver & T. L. White, 1994) were examined in a large sample of outpatients (N = 1,825) with anxiety and mood disorders. Four subsamples were used for exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. In addition to generally upholding a latent structure found previously in nonclinical samples, results indicated measurement invariance of the BIS/BAS between genders and a higher order structure of the BAS scales. Convergent and discriminant validity of the BIS/BAS were supported by findings that the subscales correlated most strongly with measures of neighboring personality constructs (e.g., BIS with neuroticism, BAS with positive affect) than with measures of current anxiety and depression symptoms. Overall, the results support the psychometric properties of the BIS/BAS in this clinical sample. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

如何选择你的CRM解决方案?

在中国建立客户关系真可以说得上是一种挑战.你会遇到许多的障碍而且每一个都可能拖慢你的策略.主要障碍之一是寻找能够管理客户关系的工具.无论你的客户是终端用户还是企业用户,CRM成功的关键都始于客户信息的妥善管理.     

如何选择你的CRM解决方案?

在中国建立客户关系真可以说得上是一种挑战.你会遇到许多的障碍而且每一个都可能拖慢你的策略.主要障碍之一是寻找能够管理客户关系的工具.无论你的客户是终端用户还是企业用户,CRM成功的关键都始于客户信息的妥善管理.     

Building Water-Efficient Cities

Problem, research strategy, and findings: Cities across the United States must have reliable and consistent water supplies to support public health, promote economic growth, and protect the environment. The way we build and design cities influences water consumption patterns; however, the most significant factors of the built environment and their associations with water use are not well explored. In this study we seek to reveal the ways in which characteristics of the built environment influence urban water use. We analyze spatially detailed data sets of water use and the built environment in four different cities in the western United States. Our findings indicate the built environment in these cities has a substantial influence on single-family residential water use. Specifically, we find that vegetated land cover, housing density, and lot size are influential determinants of water use. However, we did find variation in the strength and significance of these variables between the cities, and there remains a need for city-specific analyses.

Takeaway for practice: The results indicate even small changes to design and permitting for single-family residential properties can produce substantial cumulative water savings for cities. Based on our findings, we propose planning and design strategies such as form-based codes, zoning, and municipal ordinances to help growing cities reduce their water use. We present estimates of the water conservation impacts these strategies might achieve and provide specific examples of planning documents, municipal ordinances, and land use plans some cities are already using to reduce their water use. Overall, our study provides empirical evidence to further support integrating land use planning and water management.     

From Proposal to Production: Lessons Learned Developing the Computational Chemistry Grid Cyberinfrastructure

The Computational Chemistry Grid (CCG) is a three-year, National Middleware Initiative program to develop cyberinfrastructure for the chemistry community. CCG is led by the University of Kentucky and involves collaborating sites at Louisiana State University, Ohio Supercomputing Center, Texas Advanced Computing Center, and the National Center for Supercomputing Applications. This paper discusses experiences developing the CCG cyberinfrastructure in the first year of the project. Special attention is paid to technological issues faced as well as issues raised running the CCG in production. The final section of the paper looks forward to challenges foreseen in the remaining two years.September 1, 2005.     

Influence of Spray Angle on the Pore and Crack Microstructure of Plasma-Sprayed Deposits

To understand the influence of processing parameters on the microstructure of plasma-sprayed deposits, smallangle neutron scattering measurements were made of the processing-parameter-dependent specific surface area of the voids in gray alumina deposits. These studies indicate that the voids are in the form of pores between the splats and around inclusions or unmelted particles, and are also in the form of cracks within the splats which may develop during cooling. The porous volume increases as the angle between the spray gun and the substrate (the "spray angle") decreases. This study also indicates that the cracks are preferentially oriented, and that the crack orientation also depends on the spray angle. The interlamellar pores, however, are preferentially oriented parallel to the substrate surface, and the orientation of the pore is independent of the spray angle.     

The Potential of Multi-Media for Foreign Language Learning: A Critical Evaluation

Multi-Media does not, just by itself, guarantee accelerated learning and enhanced motivation unless there is a clear pedagogical progression and learning strategy. The authors describe and analyze the didactic dimensions to be considered when designing a multi-media tool, based on their own experience as software authors and language trainers. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Bacterially mediated mineralisation processes lead to biodeterioration of artworks in Maltese catacombs

Mineral structures formed by bacterial and microalgal biofilms growing on the archaeological surface in Maltese hypogea were studied using Energy Dispersive X-Ray Spectroscopy (EDS) coupled to Environmental Scanning Electron Microscopy (ESEM), X-ray micro-diffraction (XRD) and X-ray fluorescence (XRF). These techniques have shown that mineral structures having different morphologies and chemical composition were associated with the microorganisms in the subaerophytic biofilm. Salt efflorescences and mineral deposits on the archaeological surface were often formed from gypsum (CaSO₄? 2H₂O), halite (NaCl) and calcite (CaCO₃). Biogenic carbonates produced by microbial activities were a common occurrence. These assumed different forms, such as the production of mineral coats around cyanobacterial sheaths and the occurrence of calcite fibres with different morphologies on the surface of the biofilms. Moreover, vaterite (CaCO₃) spherulites which appeared hollow in cross-section were observed. The presence of struvite was recorded from one catacomb site. These investigations have facilitated the study of the neoformation of metastable minerals by microbially mediated processes, which potentially contribute to a better understanding of the biodeterioration of artworks in Maltese palaeo-Christian catacombs.     

Towards a model for the study of written procedure following in dynamic environments

Flight safety relies on a large number of automatisms and on strict written procedure following. This article presents a psycho-cognitive analysis of the procedure following task. Consequently, we have proposed a model called SPEED (Suivi de Procédures Ecrites dans les Environnements Dynamiques: Written Procedure Following in Dynamic Environments). SPEED enables the understanding of the use of written procedure in dynamic environments. It describes the reasons why pilots do not follow procedures as the manufacturers and airlines require. SPEED breaks down the activities involved in the use of procedures into nine stages: (1) detecting triggering conditions, (2) elaborating a diagnosis, (3) determining whether a procedure is needed, (4) accessing and searching for the appropriate written procedure, (5) reading and understanding the items of the procedure, (6) assessing the relevance of the procedure, (7) planning actions, (8) executing the planned actions and (9) evaluating the outcome of actions. SPEED is not as a sequential model. It is an iterative model, where some steps may be optional.