Audiovisual quality of live music streaming over mobile networks using MPEG-DASH

Multimedia Tools and Applications - The MPEG-DASH protocol has been rapidly adopted by most major network content providers and enables clients to make informed decisions in the context of HTTP...     

Ozonation of swine manure wastes to control odors and reduce the concentrations of pathogens and toxic fermentation metabolites

The use of ozone for the remediation of nuisance odorous chemicals in liquid swine manure slurry was investigated. Gaseous ozone was bubbled directly into stored swine manure slurry in a continuously stirred batch reactor. One‐liter samples of swine slurry were ozonated to achieve ozone dosages of 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0 g ozone/liter of waste. Olfactometric determinations demonstrated a significant reduction in odors in ozonated samples as compared to raw and oxygenated samples. Volatile fatty acids, nitrate, phosphate and ammonia concentrations were unchanged by ozonation. The biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and the chemical oxygen demand (COD) were essentially unaffected by ozonation. The concentrations of odorous phenolic microbial metabolites (e.g., phenol, p‐cresol and p‐ethylphenol) and odorous indolic microbial metabolites (e.g., 3‐methylindole and indole) were reduced to non‐detectable levels by ozonation. Hydrogen sulfide concentrations were reduced slightly by the process, with a concurrent increase in the sulfate concentration. E. coli counts were reduced by a factor of three log units and total coliforms showed a one log decrease in concentration after treatment with ozone at 1.0 g/L.

The results of this study demonstrate clearly that at the pH values studied (ca. 7), ozonation is effective for the elimination of the malodors associated with stored swine slurry and for killing potentially pathogenic bacteria, without increasing the concentrations of major pollutants of current concern, (i.e., nitrate and phosphate) and without oxidizing ammonia, which is a major plant nutrient.     

Oxidation Characteristics of MoS2 and Other Solid Lubricants

Thermogravimetric oxidation data are presented for fifteen refractory metal dichalcogenides. Interpretation of these data is supported by oxidation thermograms of the chalcogens and the refractory metals and by X-ray diffraction analysis of the oxidized products. The effects of humidity, heating rate, and particle size on oxidation of the dichalcogenides are presented. Thermogravimetric analysis is shown to be helpful in detecting impurities, such as unreacted elements, in commercial samples. Some dichalcogenides are shown to retain the same relative oxidation stability, when bonded in thin films with a ceramic, as for pure powder samples. A table is presented summarizing these oxidation characteristics together with information from the literature on crystal structures, electrical resistivities, and densities.     

Regional Planning,Clearances and Evaluation: A Look at The A-95 Process

Rapid growth of regional councils (COGs) has provided the potential for regional governance in almost all metropolitan areas. However, most of these councils are without authority, except for the review process for federal grant applications established under OMB Circular A-95. The operation of this review process is examined and its basic failure is found in its current inability to distinguish between good and bad applications from a regional point of view. It is recommended that COGs continue to be guided by their federal supporters toward the development of a regional capacity to plan, and to evaluate and seek implementation on the basis of those plans.     

Properties of a Batch Training Algorithm for Feedforward Networks

We examine properties for a batch training algorithm known as the output weight optimization–hidden weight optimization (OWO–HWO). Using the concept of equivalent networks, we analyze the effect of input transformation on BP. We introduce new theory of affine invariance and partial affine invariance for neural networks and prove this property for OWO–HWO. Finally, we relate HWO to BP and show that every iteration of HWO is equivalent to BP applied to whitening transformed data. Experimental results validate the connection between OWO–HWO and OWO–BP.     

Influence of Cooking Rate, Endpoint Temperature, Post-cook Hold Time, and Myoglobin Redox State on Internal Color Development of Cooked Ground Beef Patties

ABSTRACT: Three experiments investigated cooking rate, endpoint temperature, post-cook holding time, and raw myoglobin redox-state effects on ground beef internal cooked color. In Experiment 1, patties were cooked to endpoint temperatures of 65.6°C, 71.1°C, 76.7°C, 82.2°C, or 87.8°C rapidly (1°C/s), slowly (0.2°C/s), or rapidly with 6-min post-cook holding time at 104°C. Patties cooked slowly to less than 76.7°C were more well done ( P < 0.05) in appearance than those cooked rapidly. Rapidly-cooked patties cooked to less than 82.2°C and held for 6 min after cooking had less pinkness, more myoglobin denaturation, and a more well-done appearance than did rapidly cooked patties with no holding time ( P < 0.05). In Experiment 2, increasing post-cook holding time (1, 3, 6, or 12 min) after rapid cooking to 71.1°C, 76.7°C, or 82.2°C decreased pinkness and increased myoglobin denaturation ( P < 0.05), with no benefit beyond 6 min ( P > 0.05). In Experiment 3, patties cooked rapidly to 71.1°C, 76.7°C, or 82.2°C from a predominantly raw oxymyoglobin state were less pink and had more denatured myoglobin than did those cooked from a predominantly deoxymyoglobin state ( P < 0.05). Prediction equations determined that 80% of myoglobin must be denatured to create a well-done appearance. Using a slow cooking rate, post-cook holding time, or cooking from a highly oxygenated state will increase myoglobin denaturation and foster a well-done appearance.     

Solar access of residential rooftops in four California cities

Shadows cast by trees and buildings can limit the solar access of rooftop solar-energy systems, including photovoltaic panels and thermal collectors. This study characterizes residential rooftop shading in Sacramento, San Jose, Los Angeles and San Diego, CA. Our analysis can be used to better estimate power production and/or thermal collection by rooftop solar-energy equipment. It can also be considered when designing programs to plant shade trees.High-resolution orthophotos and LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) measurements of surface height were used to create a digital elevation model of all trees and buildings in a well-treed 2.5–4 km² residential neighborhood. On-hour shading of roofing planes (the flat elements of roofs) was computed geometrically from the digital elevation model. Values in future years were determined by repeating these calculations after simulating tree growth. Parcel boundaries were used to determine the extent to which roofing planes were shaded by trees and buildings in neighboring parcels.For the subset of S + SW + W-facing planes on which solar equipment is commonly installed for maximum solar access, absolute light loss in spring, summer and fall peaked about 2 to 4 h after sunrise and about 2 to 4 h before sunset. The fraction of annual insolation lost to shading increased from 0.07–0.08 in the year of surface-height measurement to 0.11–0.14 after 30 years of tree growth. Only about 10% of this loss resulted from shading by trees and buildings in neighboring parcels.     

Identifying interlayer surface adhesion failure mechanisms in tinplate packaging steels

Tinplate surface morphology and chemistry is adjusted during the manufacturing process in order to meet the demands of its subsequent product use, the commonest being visual appearance and food packaging stability. A comprehensive experimental study on an industrial tinning line varied the surface roughness and the tin coating weight with the characterization through X‐ray diffraction (XRD), X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), white light interferometer (WLI), optical imaging, and lacquer adhesion measurement. Increasing tin weight lowers the adhesion through the production of a thicker disorganized tin oxide layer which has a greater tendency to fracture under shearing forces. There is no evidence that the substrate roughness improves the adhesion of the lacquer. Analysis of the failure location identifies fracture in the tin oxide layer below the passivation layer. The findings have impacts on the next generation of passivation materials for tinplate as it has been clearly demonstrated that growth in tin oxide thickness, particularly when unstructured, has a detrimental impact on lacquer adhesion.