Development of a Virtual Reality Structural Analysis System

This paper discusses the development of virtual structural analysis program (VSAP). This is a virtual environment (VE) based structural analysis system developed through a collaborative effort between the School of Architecture + Design and the Department of Computer Science at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State Univ. (Virginia Tech). The VSAP was developed by linking a visualization routine using the simple VE library and a structural analysis software, the PC-SAP4. Details of the design of four user interfaces for the VSAP are presented. These user interfaces are: the immersive pen and tablet interface, the desktop interface, the portable immersive interface, and the cave automatic VE immersive interface. Usability studies for each interface were conducted. Results of these studies indicated that the users of VSAP were highly satisfied with the experience. In addition, all the developed interfaces were found to be successful for their specific application.     

Assessing Positive and Negative Changes in the Aftermath of Adversity: Psychometric Evaluation of the Changes in Outlook Questionnaire.

The Changes in Outlook Questionnaire (CiOQ; S. Joseph, R. Williams, & W. Yule, 1993) is a 26-item self-report measure that was designed to assess positive and negative changes in the aftermath of adversity. This article had 3 aims: 1st, to investigate the factor structure of the CiOQ; 2nd, to test for internal consistency reliability and convergent and discriminant validity; and, 3rd, to investigate the association between positive and negative changes in outlook, posttraumatic stress, and psychological distress. Three studies are reported. Study 1 provides evidence that positive and negative changes are statistically separable and that the 2-factor model is a better fit than the 1-factor model. Studies 2 and 3 provide evidence for internal consistency reliability, convergent and discriminant validity of the CiOQ, and its associations with posttraumatic stress and psychological distress. In conclusion, the CiOQ has much promise for research on responses to stressful and traumatic events. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Microwave remote sensing of physically buried objects in the Negev Desert: implications for environmental research

We report remote detections of physically buried specularly reflecting objects using microwave radar at two sites: Ashalim and Tseelim in the northern region of the Negev Desert, Israel. These detections provide confirmation that microwave subsurface remote sensing is a genuine phenomenon. At Ashalim, a scatterometer operating in the P-band (441 MHz, 68 cm) was mounted on a cherry picker truck at a height of 8 m and used to detect two triangular aluminum mesh reflectors (forming a 1-m square area reflector) buried down to a depth of 8 cm in dry sand. At Tseelim, the same scatterometer was mounted on an airplane flying at an altitude of 70 m and used to detect 1-m square aluminum reflectors (each one submerged at a different location along the airplane flight path) buried down to a depth of 20 cm. The experimental results compare favorably with a theoretical model that incorporates radar absorption effects arising in the sandy subsurface layer and radar interference effects arising from phase differences between reflections from the surface and buried reflector. The theoretical modeling also predicts the detection of a subsurface reflector down to a depth of about 4.4 m. This experiment and the associated modeling approach is the first of a series of planned experiments, which we outline for the detection and the theoretical evaluation of buried reflectors using remote microwave and VHF radar. We identify potential subject areas for environmental research.     

Applying Plan Recognition Algorithms To Program Understanding

Program understanding is often viewed as the task of extracting plans and design goals from program source. As such, it is natural to try to apply standard AI plan recognition techniques to the program understanding problem. Yet program understanding researchers have quietly, but consistently, avoided the use of these plan recognition algorithms. This paper shows that treating program understanding as plan recognition is too simplistic and that traditional AI search algorithms for plan recognition are not suitable, as is, for program understanding. In particular, we show (1) that the program understanding task differs significantly from the typical general plan recognition task along several key dimensions, (2) that the program understanding task has particular properties that make it particularly amenable to constraint satisfaction techniques, and (3) that augmenting AI plan recognition algorithms with these techniques can lead to effective solutions for the program understanding problem.     

Observer matrix gain optimization for stochastic continuous time nonlinear systems

It is shown that for a class of stationary stochastic nonlinear systems (satisfying a global Lipschitz condition) the high-gain observer with a constant gain matrix may guarantee an upper bound for the averaged quadratic error of state estimation. The nonlinearity is assumed to be a priory known. The main contribution of this paper consists in designing of a numerical procedure for the optimal gain matrix minimizing this upper bound. The convergence analysis of this procedure is presented as well as an example illustrating its finite steps workability: it is shown that within a neighborhood of the optimal matrix gain the others provide lower estimation performance.     

Quality Improvement of Granular Wastes-The Effective Way to Recycle Secondary Raw Building Materials

1　IntroductionTherearefourmaintypesofgranularwastematerialslistedinTable 1.Constructionanddemolitionwaste(CDW )arefromtheconstruction ,remodelling ,repairinganddemolishingofbuildingsandotherstructures .Ashesaretheresiduesfromburningofwood ,coal ,andother…     

A fully Bayesian approach for combining multilevel failure information in fault tree quantification and optimal follow-on resource allocation

This paper presents a fully Bayesian approach that simultaneously combines non-overlapping (in time) basic event and higher-level event failure data in fault tree quantification. Such higher-level data often correspond to train, subsystem or system failure events. The fully Bayesian approach also automatically propagates the highest-level data to lower levels in the fault tree. A simple example illustrates our approach. The optimal allocation of resources for collecting additional data from a choice of different level events is also presented. The optimization is achieved using a genetic algorithm.     

Interactions of sperm perinuclear theca with the oocyte: implications for oocyte activation,anti-polyspermy defense,and assisted reproduction

Perinuclear theca (PT) is the cytoskeletal coat of mammalian sperm nucleus that is removed from the sperm head at fertilization. PT harbors the sperm borne, oocyte-activating factor (SOAF), a yet-to-be-characterized substance responsible for triggering the signaling cascade of oocyte activation, thought to be dependent on intra-oocyte calcium release. The present article reviews the current knowledge on the biogenesis and molecular composition of sperm PT. Possible functions of sperm PT during natural and assisted fertilization, and in the initiation of embryonic development are discussed. Furthermore, evidence is provided that SOAF is transferred from the sperm PT to oocyte cytoplasm through the internalization and rapid solubilization of the post-acrosomal PT. It is shown that during natural fertilization the sperm PT dissolves in the oocyte cytoplasm concomitantly with sperm nuclear decondensation and the initiation of pronuclear development. SOAF activity is preserved in the differentially extracted sperm heads only if the integrity of PT is maintained. After intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), activation occurs only in those oocytes in which the injected spermatozoon displays complete or partial dissolution of PT. In the latter case, the residual PT of the sub-acrosomal and/or post-acrosomal sperm region may persist on the apical surface of the sperm nucleus/male pronucleus and may cause a delay or arrest of zygotic development. We propose that the sperm PT harbors SOAF in the post-acrosomal sheath, as this is the first part of the sperm cytosol to enter the oocyte cytoplasm and its disassembly appears sufficient to initiate the early events of oocyte activation. Dissolution of the sub-acrosomal part of the PT, on the other hand, appears necessary to insure complete DNA decondensation in the internalized sperm nucleus and initiate DNA synthesis of both pronuclei. The release of the SOAF from the sperm head into oocyte cytoplasm at fertilization ultimately leads to the activation of oocyte mechanism including the completion of the meiotic cell cycle, pronuclear development and anti-polyspermy defense.     

Optical diagnostics of mercury jet for an intense proton target

An optical diagnostic system is designed and constructed for imaging a free mercury jet interacting with a high intensity proton beam in a pulsed high-field solenoid magnet. The optical imaging system employs a backilluminated, laser shadow photography technique. Object illumination and image capture are transmitted through radiation-hard multimode optical fibers and flexible coherent imaging fibers. A retroreflected illumination design allows the entire passive imaging system to fit inside the bore of the solenoid magnet. A sequence of synchronized short laser light pulses are used to freeze the transient events, and the images are recorded by several high speed charge coupled devices. Quantitative and qualitative data analysis using image processing based on probability approach is described. The characteristics of free mercury jet as a high power target for beam-jet interaction at various levels of the magnetic induction field is reported in this paper.