Visualization in environmental management: beyond the buzz word

Environmental management is a scientifically and procedurally complex task requiring the involvement of a range of disciplines. Increasingly this process is being rendered more tractable through the application of geographic information systems (GIS) technology. When such systems are effectively integrated with biophysical modelling software a spatial decision support system can be achieved. The outputs of such a system are often in the form of visualizations, i.e. a sequence of graphics (perhaps of unit length and possibly including text), designed to meet specific communication objectives. This paper describes general requirements for the design of visualizations.     

Assessment of grouting efficiency in a rock mass in terms of seismic velocities

Grouting is a geotechnical process involving, for example, injection of a cement sand and water mixture or chemical resins into the ground to improve the strength and to decrease the permeability of rocks and soils. The efficiency of grouting operations is generally assessed by carrying out permeability and loading tests. Additionally, the comparison of the seismic field velocities of a rock mass obtained before and after the grout infection operation can give a qualitative indication of the effectiveness of grouting. However, for a quantitative assessment of grouting efficiency, more complex analysis of the rock mass seismic velocity is required. Analysis of field seismic velocity data from different dam sites in the U. K. (Knill, 1970), according to the time average equation has given a relation between the field seismic fracture index and the field P wave velocity of the rock mass that is best repressented by a curve. The relation between the fracture index and the seismic P wave velocity is extended by assuming a P wave velocity of 1.46 km/s for groundwater, 2.40 km/s for grout and taking the intacts rock P wave velocity value from the analysis of data given by Knill. The results are presented as a diagram which can be used for grout efficiency assessment of the rock mass. Comparison of the published results from various dam sites with the diagram indicates that the diagram gives an upper bound curve. Additionally, a dimensionless version of the diagram is also presented for practical application.     

Physical health 25 years later: The predictive ability of neuroticism.

Objective: Neuroticism, a personality trait related to distress and emotional stability, is often correlated with physical symptoms and disease presence. Theorists have posited that chronic emotional instability creates physiological changes detrimental to health, yet most findings are based on cross-sectional analyses. The objective of the current study was to examine neuroticism assessed in 1973 and the likelihood of reporting physical conditions 25 years later. Design: Participants included 21676 adult twins (n = 8143 intact twin pairs) ranging from 15 to 47 years old in 1973 who were assessed again between 1998 and 2002. Main Outcome Measures: Thirteen physical conditions, including chronic fatigue syndrome, ulcers, and coronary heart disease, were selected based on their prior theoretical and empirical links to personality traits. Results: Results indicate that the likelihood of having a physical condition is related to higher levels of prior neuroticism, with some associations attenuated when controlling for familial similarity. Conclusion: Familial influences are most pronounced for conditions most related to systemic pain, suggesting genetic pathways between neuroticism and these pain experiences. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Analysis of reinforced concrete coupled shear wall structures

The ultimate strength analysis of reinforced concrete coupled shear walls with one or two bands of openings requires a two‐stage approach. In the first stage, the analysis of the coupling beams is carried out. This is followed by the analysis of the complete wall in the second stage. A simple approach based on the ‘total moment concept’ for the analysis of coupled shear walls with one or two bands of openings is presented. Experimental results supporting the predictions of the mode of failure and ultimate strength is also presented. This study updates previous research and enhances further understanding of the behaviour of reinforced concrete shear wall structures at ultimate limit states of loading. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Carcass fatty acid mapping

We hypothesized that subcutaneous (s.c.) adipose tissue would differ in monounsaturated (MUFA) and saturated fatty acid (SFA) composition among different depots throughout a beef carcass. To test this, 50 carcasses from a variety of breed types and backgrounds were sampled. External fat samples were collected from eight different carcass locations: round, sirloin, loin, rib, chuck, brisket, plate and flank. The brisket was significantly lower (P = 0.001) in palmitic (16:0) and stearic (18:0) acid than the other seven sampling sites. The brisket contained the highest concentration of MUFA (P = 0.001) and the lowest concentration of trans-vaccenic acid (P = 0.002) and SFA (P  0.002). There was a high, negative correlation between palmitoleic and stearic acid (R² = 0.76). The flank had the highest slip point (39 °C; a measure of melting point), whereas the brisket had the lowest slip point (25 °C) (P  0.001). We conclude that substantial differences exist in fatty acid composition across fat depots, which may be useful in formulating value-added processed beef products.     

Evaluation of the performance of a ground-source heat-pump system with series GHE (ground heat exchanger) in the cold climate region

Ground-source heat-pump systems provide a new and clean way of heating buildings in the world. They make use of renewable energy stored in the ground, providing one of the most energy-efficient ways of heating buildings. Consumption costs are lowered through the use of free energy from the environment, and the dependence on fossil fuels simultaneously reduces. The aim of this study is to evaluate the performance of vertical ground-source heat-pump system for climatic condition of Erzurum having cold climate in Turkey. For this purpose, an experimental set-up was constructed. The experimental apparatus consisted of a series GHE (ground heat exchanger), a liquid-to-liquid vapor compression heat pump, water circulating pumps and other measurement equipments. In this study, the performance of the system was experimentally investigated. The experimental results were obtained from October to May for the months of heating season of 2008–2009. The experimental results indicate that the average heat-pump COP and overall system’s COPS values are approximately 3.0 and 2.6 in the coldest months of heating season. This study also shows that this system could be used for residential heating in the province of Erzurum being a cold climate region of Turkey.     

Lie symmetry analysis and numerical solutions for thermosolutal chemically reacting radiative micropolar flow from an inclined porous surface

Steady, laminar, incompressible thermosolutal natural convection flow of micropolar fluid from an inclined perforated surface with convective boundary conditions is studied. Thermal radiative flux and chemical reaction effects are included to represent phenomena encountered in high-temperature materials synthesis operations. Rosseland's diffusion approximation is used to describe the radiative heat flux in the energy equation. A Lie scaling group transformation is implemented to derive a self-similar form of the partial differential conservation equations. The resulting coupled nonlinear boundary value problem is solved with Runge-Kutta fourth order numerical quadrature (shooting technique). Validation of solutions with an optimized Adomian decomposition method algorithm is included. Verification of the accuracy of shooting is also conducted as a particular case of nonreactive micropolar flow from a vertical permeable surface. The evolution of velocity, angular velocity (microrotation component), temperature, and concentration are examined for a variety of parameters including coupling number, plate inclination angle, suction/injection parameter, radiation-conduction parameter, Biot number, and reaction parameter. Numerical results for steady-state skin friction coefficient, couple stress coefficient, Nusselt number, and Sherwood number are tabulated and discussed. Interesting features of the hydrodynamic, heat and mass transfer characteristics are examined.     

The evaluation of a direct injection diesel engine operating with waste cooking oil biodiesel in point of the environmental and enviroeconomic aspects

In this study, the environmental and enviroeconomic analyzes were implemented to the single-cylinder, four-stroke, direct-injection diesel engine operating with diesel fuel, waste cooking oil biodiesel and their blends (B5, B10, B20, and B30) under different fuel injection pressures (170–220 bars) and engine speeds (1000–3200 rpm) and at full load conditions. The environmental and enviroeconomic analyzes results showed that B20 was the worst fuel at the other fuel injection pressures, while diesel fuel was the worst fuel at the original fuel injection pressure. It was determined that B100 gave the best results among the other fuels the entire engine operating conditions.     

基于超混沌Lorenz系统的自适应异步抗噪声保密通信方案

针对非实时通信对安全性要求高且信道中存在噪声的问题,提出了基于超混沌掩盖调制的自适应异步抗噪声保密通信方案。通信原理是由超混沌Lorenz系统生成四个状态变量的伪随机向量,并通过信号增益将它们调整到同一区间;再由分段线性混沌映射（PWLCM）生成两个向量,用于在四个状态变量之间随机切换选取和确定动态时滞步长,以生成载体信号;然后将预编码后的二进制信息成对掩盖到载体信号中,添加高斯噪声后发送出去。实验结果分析发现最小信号增益和噪声系数的比值稳定在一个小区间[0.08,0.11]内,如果把该比值设置成某个大于该区间上限的值,则比特误码率可达到零,因此接收端可在噪声信道中接收并完美恢复出被掩盖信号。该方案利用超混沌系统的非线性动力学特性,能够在噪声信道中自适应实现异步保密通信,数值仿真验证了其有效性。