Investigation of the Hammerstein hypothesis in the modeling of electrically stimulated muscle

To restore functional use of paralyzed muscles by automatically controlled stimulation, an accurate quantitative model of the stimulated muscles is desirable. The most commonly used model for isometric muscle has had a Hammerstein structure, in which a linear dynamic block is preceded by a static nonlinear function, To investigate the accuracy of the Hammerstein model, the responses to a pseudo-random binary sequence (PRBS) excitation of normal human plantarflexors, stimulated with surface electrodes, were used to identify a Hammerstein model but also four local models which describe the responses to small signals at different mean levels of activation. Comparison of the local models with the Linearized Hammerstein model showed that the Hammerstein model concealed a fivefold variation in the speed of response. Also, the small-signal gain of the Hammerstein model was in error by factors up to three. We conclude that, despite the past widespread use of the Hammerstein model, it is not an accurate representation of isometric muscle. On the other hand, local models, which are more accurate predictors, can be identified from the responses to short PRBS sequences. The utility of local models for controller design is discussed

Bluetooth familiarity: methods of calculation, applications and limitations

We present an approach for utilising a mobile device’s Bluetooth sensor to automatically identify social interactions and relationships between individuals in the real world. We show that a high degree of accuracy is achievable in the automatic identification of mobile devices of familiar individuals. This has implications for mobile device security, social networking and in context aware information access on a mobile device

Promoting Big Book and Reading Corner to Support Gerakan Literasi Sekolah (GLS) in Primary School

This study aims to describe the implementation of literacy socialization and training to some of the primary school teachers to support the government action in response to the Indonesian students’ low reading habit, called Gerakan Literasi Sekolah (GLS). This program focused on the English language literacy through promoting suitable material in media, namely Big Book and encouraging the school to provide reading corner to accommodate the literacy source storage and comfortable area to enjoy literacy activity. This is considered crucial since the comfortable area and neat arrangement of book play significant role to attract the students’ motivation in reading, later it is expected that they share about what they have read by listening to others, communicating with others, and writing their idea about what they found. The trainees agree that this kind of event is supposed to be conducted continuously to facilitate the teachers in enriching their updated information as well as creativity for producing appropriate media as a literacy source for the students to develop their literacy skill

Change management and implementation of total productive maintenance: an exploratory study of Malaysian manufacturing companies

This study examines the effects of change management towards the implementation of productivity and quality improvement programs through the concept of Total Productive Maintenance (TPM), in manufacturing firms in Malaysia. The factors measured are management commitment, training and education, employee empowerment, team culture and company policies and goals for change management. Autonomous maintenance and planned maintenance factors were used to measure TPM. The findings of the study provide empirical evidence that change management factors significantly enhances the extent of TPM implementatio

Description of the hydrochemical regime of the Dnister river (by basic ions)

In this part of the Dniester, water mineralization increases: Dniester - medium (379-428 mg/L); Dniester - lower (425-526 mg/L). Mineralization of the Dniester River water decreases during the spring flood (305-425 mg/L) and increases during the winter low-water period (399-526 mg/L). The average annual ion runoff (Σi) of the Dniester River is 4374.103 tons. For ionic runoff, the same proportion remains for seasons as for water runoff. The ion runoff in the Dniester basin is 60.8 t/km2 per year, which is 2.3 times higher than the ion runoff in the Dnipro basin (26.8 t/km2), but 1.6 times less than in the Danube basin (95.2 t/km2). In general, this is a high indicator of chemical erosion in the river basin

Crystalline polyimides

Aromatic crystalline polyimides are disclosed that are synthesized from polyamide-acid and when heated to 200 C to 300 C become cyclized to afford an opaque polymer. X-ray diffraction of the unoriented film exhibited 47 percent crystallinity. Differential scanning calorimetry reveals a melt at 425 C with no glass transition in these crystalline polyimides

Stabilization of metal ensembles at room temperature. Palladium clusters in zeolites

Palladium clusters of low nuclearity have been prepared in the cavities of X zeolites via ion exchange with Pd(NH,),Cl,, oxidative dehydration, and subsequent reduction of the dry Pd(I1) zeolites with hydrogen at 295 and 425 K. Detailed EXAFS analysis of Pd K-edge data shows that the average first-shell Pd-Pd coordination number of the reduced system is only about N = 1.5 at a distance of 2.78 A. A long, relatively disordered coordination of the reduced Pd to framework oxygen and silicon indicates the stabilizing, templating function of the zeolite matrix. Geometric models based upon the EXAFS results show that intrazeolite Pdz, Pd,, and Pd4 clusters are formed by partial occupation of SI and SII positions of the sodalite subunits of the zeolite. This study presents evidence for the formation of molecular metal ensembles stabilized in an open-framework matrix to at least 425 K

SUMMARY OF CONDITIONAL LAND TRANSFER AGREEMENTS

Brief history of P.A. 425 of 1984, discussion of contract provisions, tabular summaries of agreements filed since 1985 and analysis of emerging issues.Land Economics/Use,

Structural and electrical properties of CuAlMo thin films prepared by magnetron sputtering

The structural and electrical properties of a low resistivity CuAlMo thin film resistor material were investigated. The thin films were grown on Al2O3 and glass substrates by direct current (dc) magnetron sputtering. The key electrical properties of sheet resistance, temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR) and resistance stability were investigated as a function of sputtering pressure and post-deposition heat treatment time and temperature. A low sputtering pressure range of 0.13 to 0.40 Pa produced CuAlMo films with sheet resistance in the range 0.1 to 0.2 Ω/□ and resistance stability of 0.45 to 0.65% with a TCR of − 90 ppm/°C which could be shifted to zero following annealing in air at 425 °C. Films grown at higher sputtering pressures of 0.53 to 0.80 Pa had increased sheet resistance in the range 0.4 to 0.6 Ω/□ and inferior stability of 0.8 to 1.7% with a more negative TCR of − 110 to − 180 ppm/°C which could not be shifted to zero following annealing. The stability of the films grown at 0.13 and 0.40 Pa could be further improved to < 0.25% with heat treatment, due to the formation of a protective aluminium oxide layer. A minimum dwell time of 3 h at 425 °C was required to stabilise the films and set the electrical properties