Event-triggered variable horizon Supervisory Predictive control of hybrid power plants

The supervision of a hybrid power plant, including solar panels, a gas microturbine and a storage unit operating under varying solar power profiles is considered. The Economic Supervisory Predictive controller assigns the power references to the controlled subsystems of the hybrid cell using a financial criterion. A prediction of the renewable sources power is embedded into the supervisor. Results deteriorate when the solar power is unsteady, owing to the inaccuracy of the predictions for a long-range horizon of 10 s. The receding horizon is switched between an upper and a lower value according to the amplitude of the solar power trend. Theoretical results show the relevance of horizon switching, according to a tradeoff between performance and prediction accuracy. Experimental results, obtained in a Hardware In the Loop (HIL) framework, show the relevance of the variable horizon approach. Power amplifiers allow us to simulate virtual components, such as a gas microturbine, and to blend their powers with that of real devices (storage unit, real solar panels). In this case, fuel savings, reaching 15%, obtained under unsteady operating conditions lead to a better overall performance of the hybrid cell. The overall savings obtained in the experiments amount to 12%.     

An experiential account of phantom vibration syndrome

A small handful of recent studies have addressed a phenomenon known as “phantom vibration syndrome”. This refers to when phone users perceive their device to vibrate, indicating that a call or text is incoming, when in fact the phone did not vibrate at all. Though these studies show that most users do not find phantom vibration hallucinations to be very bothersome, they also find that a large majority of users experience this phenomenon. This paper explores what the striking prevalence of phantom vibration syndrome means for our contemporary relationships with technology. I begin with a review of the theories purporting to explain these data, which largely rely on particular understandings of the brain. Next I develop an alternative theory of phantom vibration syndrome based on insights from the philosophical tradition of phenomenology. This account considers the ways users develop bodily and perceptual habits regarding how the phone is understood and used. By critically contrasting these different theories, we can refine our questions about what the high prevalence of phantom vibration syndrome implies about our contemporary technological situation.     

Entry into force of the UN Watercourses Convention: why should it matter?

The United Nations Watercourses Convention entered into force on 17 August 2014, following a long and complex journey that dates back to 1970 when the UN referred the matter to its legal arm, the International Law Commission. This article follows the Convention through that long and turbulent road, examines its main provisions and analyses the reasons for the delay of its entry into force. It concludes by answering the question of why entry into force of the Convention should indeed matter.     

探讨加强质量监督管理提高电网安全水平

电网的安全水平主要取决于其使用产品的质量是否过关。如果产品的质量较好，则能建造出优质的电网，电网的安全水平便会随之提高。因此，应加强对产品质量的监督管理，从而提高电网的安全水平。我们可建立质量监督管理系统，及时抽检出质量不过关的产品，从而消除电网运行过程中潜在的安全隐患。     

气管上段腺样囊性癌的临床病理

目的　探讨气管上段腺样囊性癌的临床病理特征及诊断和鉴别诊断要点。方法　收集2000年1月至2014年2月在北京协和医院确诊的4例气管上段腺样囊性癌病例，通过光镜、免疫组织化学及组织化学染色分析其临床病理特征、免疫组织化学特点、诊断及鉴别诊断要点。结果　4例气管上段腺样囊性癌患者中，男1例，女3例，平均年龄47岁(38~57岁）；既往均无腺样囊性癌病史，1例患者既往有结节性甲状腺肿手术史。镜下检查4例均为筛状/管状型腺样囊性癌，3例累及甲状腺组织，3例累及神经组织，未见淋巴结受累。免疫组织化学染色示4例P16、CD117、BCL2、P63、SMA均阳性，Ki67指数平均8%，TTF1和P53均阴性；4例中基底膜样物胶原Ⅳ阳性；组织化学染色示AB/PAS阳性。术后均接受总剂量为48~56 Gy的放疗，随访6~120个月，平均72.5个月，1例术后96个月复发，3例随访期间无复发及转移。结论　气管上段腺样囊性癌是罕见的原发于气管的低度恶性肿瘤，肿瘤生长缓慢，就诊时多数已侵及甲状腺组织，需要与原发于甲状腺的恶性肿瘤相鉴别，特别是在甲状腺穿刺及术中冰冻检查时。结合电子喉气管镜下表现、典型的形态学及免疫组织化学和组织化学染色有助于准确诊断。手术难以切除干净，术后放疗对延缓疾病复发有一定帮助。     

Nonuniform linear array DOA estimation using EM criterion

In this letter, we address the problem of Direction of Arrival (DOA) estimation with nonuniform linear array in the context of sparse Bayesian learning (SBL) framework. The nonuniform array output is deemed as an incomplete-data observation, and a hypothetical uniform linear array output is treated as an unavailable complete-data observation. Then the Expectation-Maximization (EM) criterion is directly utilized to iteratively maximize the expected value of the complete-data log likelihood under the posterior distribution of the latent variable. The novelties of the proposed method lie in its capability of interpolating the actual received data to a virtual uniform linear array, therefore extending the achievable array aperture. Simulation results manifests the superiority of the proposed method over off-the-shelf algorithms, specially on circumstances such as low SNR, insufficient snapshots, and spatially adjacent sources.