Multi-level analysis of localisation problems

Localisation processes, such as shear banding and necking, have been investigated following a macroscopic and a microscopic approach. Both approaches have been formulated within a finite deformation plasticity framework. Additional terms have been used to regularise the problem and solve mesh dependency. In the macroscopic model viscosity is introduced as a means to control the thickness of the shear band, while in the microscopic model the nonlocal interaction of dislocations acts as a stabiliser. The micro-mechanical model is formulated in a crystal plasticity framework. A diffusion term that represents cross-slip of dislocations is included in the evolution equations for dislocation densities. The effect of the viscous term (macro-model) and the diffusion-like term (micro-model) in the constitutive relation on the resulting formation of localised shear modes is studied. An analysis of a strip in tension oriented for multiple slip is presented for both models

Multi-level Semantic Analysis for Sports Video

There has been a huge increase in the utilization of video as one of the most preferred type of media due to its content richness for many significant applications including sports. To sustain an ongoing rapid growth of sports video, there is an emerging demand for a sophisticated content-based indexing system. Users recall video contents in a high-level abstraction while video is generally stored as an arbitrary sequence of audio-visual tracks. To bridge this gap, this paper will demonstrate the use of domain knowledge and characteristics to design the extraction of high-level concepts directly from audio-visual features. In particular, we propose a multi-level semantic analysis framework to optimize the sharing of domain characteristics

Change Of Routines: A Multi-Level Analysis

This paper analyses how organizational routines change. It focuses on the level of learning groups within organizations. The paper starts with a summary of the 'activity theory' of knowledge used. Next, the notion of scripts is used, to analyse organizational groups as 'systems of distributed cognition', and to identify different levels of routines and their change. Finally, the paper looks at communication routines or rules needed for different levels of change, in the formation of new 'shared beliefs'.organizational change;organizational learning;evolution;routines;scripts

Union Leadership and Member Attitudes: A Multi-Level Analysis

[Excerpt] Analyses of union leadership roles show that union presidents should have both a within-union focus and an external focus. The authors combined multi-level survey data from 3,871 union members in 248 local teachers’ unions with archival and field staff data to examine relationships between leadership and members’ perceptions of union instrumentality and justice, union commitment, and participation. The results showed significant union-level effects on members’ beliefs about, and attitudes toward, their unions, attributable to the presidents’ internal and external leadership, wage outcomes, and union characteristics. Relationships between internally focused leadership and members’ loyalty and willingness to work for the union were partially mediated by perceptions of union instrumentality and justice. These perceptions fully mediated the relationship between externally focused leadership and union loyalty

A Multi-Level Analysis of World Scientific Output in Pharmacology

The purpose of this chapter is to analyse international research in “pharmacology, toxicology and pharmaceutics” (hereafter pharmacology) on the basis of the scientific papers listed in the Scopus multidisciplinary database. This primary objective is reached by answering the following questions (in the section on results). What weight does the subject area “pharmacology, toxicology and pharmaceutics” carry in world-wide science? What is the percentage contribution made by the various regions of the world to the subject area “pharmacology, toxicology and pharmaceutics”? Can certain regions be identified as leaders on that basis, as in other scientific contexts? Are emerging countries present in the field? Do the most productive countries also publish the largest number of journals? What features characterise the scientific output of companies that publish pharmacological papers

An adaptive multi-level model for multi-scale ductile fracture analysis in heterogeneous aluminum alloys

This paper addresses the multi-scale modeling of ductile fracture in microstructures characterized by a dispersion of hard and brittle heterogeneities in a softer ductile matrix. An adaptive multi-level model is developed with different inter-scale transfer operators and interfaces. Micro-mechanical analysis in regions of dominant damage is performed to capture the important micro-mechanical damage modes that are responsible for deterring the overall failure properties of these alloys. Regions of macroscopic homogeneity are otherwise modeled with constitutive relations derived from homogenization of evolving variables in representative volume elements. These two length scales of analysis, in conjunction with an intermediate swing level, form a three-level coupled multi-scale model to capture ductile crack propagation. The capabilities of the proposed model are demonstrated for a cast aluminum alloy