Plan-based proactive computing

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 2003.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 81-88).This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections.As the field of ubiquitous computing (ubicomp) has matured, the issue of how ubicomp applications should make use of all the devices available to them has not received much attention. We address this issue by presenting a plan-based execution model for creating proactive ubiquitous computing applications. Three applications, each from different domains, were built using this paradigm. These applications demonstrate how knowledge of a person's plan can be used to proactively assist that person. This thesis also discusses the benefits this paradigm provides application developers.by Gary Wail Keung Look.S.M

Remediated Sites and Brownfields. Success Stories in Europe

From the 80's until today Europe has developed numerous laws to reduce and restore the adverse effects of emitting hazardous pollutants to soil and the environment. Every country has gathered very valuable information and published their work in the national language (normally not accessible and not known by other countries in Europe), on how to manage contaminated sites originated by industrial settlements or by accidents. With the aim of sharing best practices of soil restoration and management of contaminated sites among European countries and to raise awareness of the enormous efforts made to succeed in such difficult commitment, the experts of the EIONET Soil working group on contaminated sites and brownfields on March 2015 agreed to gather their country's interesting cases and successful stories of recovery of contaminated areas; Thirteen countries comprising 21 European Regions have presented a total of 28 cases that illustrate the recovery of polluted sites or brownfields into recreational areas; cases of sustainable remediation, polluters who present projects to remediate the subsoil, development of innovative technologies, innovative funding mechanisms etc. These stories have been compiled in the present report as contribution of this group to the International Year of Soils.JRC.H.5-Land Resources Managemen

PRELIMINARY FINDINGS OF A POTENZIATED PIEZOSURGERGICAL DEVICE AT THE RABBIT SKULL

The number of available ultrasonic osteotomes has remarkably increased. In vitro and in vivo studies have revealed differences between conventional osteotomes, such as rotating or sawing devices, and ultrasound-supported osteotomes (Piezosurgery®) regarding the micromorphology and roughness values of osteotomized bone surfaces. Objective: the present study compares the micro-morphologies and roughness values of osteotomized bone surfaces after the application of rotating and sawing devices, Piezosurgery Medical® and Piezosurgery Medical New Generation Powerful Handpiece. Methods: Fresh, standard-sized bony samples were taken from a rabbit skull using the following osteotomes: rotating and sawing devices, Piezosurgery Medical® and a Piezosurgery Medical New Generation Powerful Handpiece. The required duration of time for each osteotomy was recorded. Micromorphologies and roughness values to characterize the bone surfaces following the different osteotomy methods were described. The prepared surfaces were examined via light microscopy, environmental surface electron microscopy (ESEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) and atomic force microscopy. The selective cutting of mineralized tissues while preserving adjacent soft tissue (dura mater and nervous tissue) was studied. Bone necrosis of the osteotomy sites and the vitality of the osteocytes near the sectional plane were investigated, as well as the proportion of apoptosis or cell degeneration. Results and Conclusions: The potential positive effects on bone healing and reossification associated with different devices were evaluated and the comparative analysis among the different devices used was performed, in order to determine the best osteotomes to be employed during cranio-facial surgery

Synthesis of new pyrazolium based tunable aryl alkyl ionic liquids and their use in removal of methylene blue from aqueous solution

In this study, two new pyrazolium based tunable aryl alkyl ionic liquids, 2-ethyl-1-(4-methylphenyl)-3,5- dimethylpyrazolium tetrafluoroborate (3a) and 1-(4-methylphenyl)-2-pentyl-3,5-dimethylpyrazolium tetrafluoroborate (3b), were synthesized via three-step reaction and characterized. The removal of methylene blue (MB) from aqueous solution has been investigated using the synthesized salts as an extractant and methylene chloride as a solvent. The obtained results show that MB was extracted from aqueous solution with high extraction efficiency up to 87 % at room temperature at the natural pH of MB solution. The influence of the alkyl chain length on the properties of the salts and their extraction efficiency of MB was investigated