Rayleigh wave interaction with inhomogeneities—Part II: The buried cavity and inclusion

The elastodynamic interaction between an explosively generated Rayleigh pulse and a buried imperfection such as a cavity or an inclusion in a half plane is investigated. Dynamic photoelasticity was employed to obtain full field information for data analysis. Measurements of the stress distribution along the free boundary of the half plane and the cavity and along the cavity/inclusion interface have been made. Results show that fractures occur for shallow as well as for deeper burial depths initiating from the cavity boundary.     

The role of design in product and process change

Innovation in engineering design and manufacture is discussed with reference to the competitiveness of the UK industry. It is suggested that successful design is a dynamic process that must be adjusted and redefined continually to meet changing demands.     

The left-right problem in psychology.

The first half of the paper makes some general observations on the difficulty of telling left from right. In particular, it is suggested that the problem of discriminating mirror-image stimuli, such as b and d, is not a problem of perception, but is rather one of remembering which label applies to which stimulus. The paper then discusses three different theories of left-right confusion, which share the common idea that coding is left-right reversed between the two halves of the brain. The theories proposed by Orton and by Noble are rejected in favour of a compromise theory which states that there is veridical exchange of perceptual information between the cerebral hemispheres, but that there is a left-right reversal in the transfer of memory traces from one hemisphere to the other. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The possibility of realizing a noncompensation method of measuring the radar characteristics of targets

The effect of electrodynamic interaction between the transmitting and receiving exciters of the collimator of a coherent radar measuring system on the accuracy of measurements of the radar characteristics of targets is estimated. The possibility of improving the decoupling between the exciterss by using radio-absorbing materials is investigated.Translated from Izmeritelnaya Tekhnika, No. 10, pp. 43–46, October, 2004.     

Integrating context-free and context-dependent attentional mechanisms for gestural object reference

We present a vision system for human-machine interaction based on a small wearable camera mounted on glasses. The camera views the area in front of the user, especially the hands. To evaluate hand movements for pointing gestures and to recognise object references, an approach to integrating bottom-up generated feature maps and top-down propagated recognition results is introduced. Modules for context-free focus of attention work in parallel with the hand gesture recognition. In contrast to other approaches, the fusion of the two branches is on the sub-symbolic level. This method facilitates both the integration of different modalities and the generation of auditory feedback.Published online: 5 October 2004Robert Rae: Now at PerFact Innovation, Lampingstr. 8, 33615 Bielefeld, Germany     

Caramba—A Process-Aware Collaboration System Supporting Ad hoc and Collaborative Processes in Virtual Teams

Organizations increasingly define many business processes as projects executed by virtual (project) teams, where team members from within an organization cooperate with outside experts. Virtual teams require and enable people to collaborate across geographical distance and professional (organizational) boundaries and have a somewhat stable team configuration with roles and responsibilities assigned to team members. Different people, coming from different organizations will have their own preferences and experiences and cannot be expected to undergo a long learning cycle before participating in team activities. Thus, efficient communication, coordination, and process-aware collaboration remain a fundamental challenge. In this paper we discuss the current shortcomings of approaches in the light of virtual teamwork (mainly Workflow, Groupware, and Project Management) based on models and underlying metaphors. Furthermore, we present a novel approach for virtual teamwork by tightly integrating all associations between processes, artifacts, and resources. In this paper we analyze (a) the relevant criteria for process-aware collaboration system metaphors, (b) coordination models and constructs for organizational structures of virtual teams as well as for ad hoc and collaborative processes composed out of tasks, and (c) architectural considerations as well as design and implementation issues for an integrated process-aware collaboration system for virtual teams on the Internet.     

Finite element analysis of vortex shedding oscillations from cylinders in the straight channel

In this paper a GCL (Geometry Conservation Law) – preserving finite element model is developed to simulate the fluid-structure interaction phenomena. The boundary locations are part of the solution procedures. Within the moving grid framework, the employed numerical method involves the operator splitting technique, balance tensor diffusivity (BTD), Runge-Kutta time-stepping method, and an element-by-element conjugate gradient iterative solver. Flows around a self-vibrating cylinder and elastically supported cylinders are investigated to validate the present method. The simulated results agree well with available data in the literature. The lock-in phenomenon that may cause the unstable motion of cylinders is also revealed. It is significant from the simulated 2×2 four cylinders result that the rear two cylinders approach to each other at a time earlier than the front two ones.     

From devices to tasks: automatic task prediction for personalized appliance control

One of the driving applications of ubiquitous computing is universal appliance interaction: the ability to use arbitrary mobile devices to interact with arbitrary appliances, such as TVs, printers, and lights. Because of limited screen real estate and the plethora of devices and commands available to the user, a central problem in achieving this vision is predicting which appliances and devices the user wishes to use next in order to make interfaces for those devices available. We believe that universal appliance interaction is best supported through the deployment of appliance user interfaces (UIs) that are personalized to a users habits and information needs. In this paper, we suggest that, in a truly ubiquitous computing environment, the user will not necessarily think of devices as separate entities; therefore, rather than focus on which device the user may want to use next, we present a method for automatically discovering the users common tasks (e.g., watching a movie, or surfing TV channels), predicting the task that the user wishes to engage in, and generating an appropriate interface that spans multiple devices. We have several results. We show that it is possible to discover and cluster collections of commands that represent tasks and to use history to predict the next task reliably. In fact, we show that moving from devices to tasks is not only a useful way of representing our core problem, but that it is, in fact, an easier problem to solve. Finally, we show that tasks can vary from user to user.     

Range of action and interaction of pheromone traps for the summerfruit tortrix moth,Adoxophyes orana (F.v.R.)

In a spindle-tree apple orchard, sex pheromone traps for the summerfruit tortrix moth were distributed at different spacings. From the captures, information was derived about influence of prevailing wind direction and of trap spacing on interactions between traps. Prevailing wind direction in the experimental area had no appreciable influence on trap interaction, perhaps because of eddying within the planting. The relationship between density and capture of traps was first considered theoretically and interaction by overlap of active-space areas was distinguished from that by overlap of mere capturing areas, which depend also on distance of dispersal. The actual results were in accordance with these considerations and indicated that the diameter of the active-space areas averaged 15 m. The variation in the captures of the wider-spaced traps was too large to be conclusive about the average width of the capturing areas, but the diameter of these seemed to be more than about 45 m. These data have been related to adequate trap distances for monitoring and mass trapping.Lepidoptera: Tortricidae.