An evaluation of organic matter dispersed in the Menilite Formation in Silesian Nappe (Polish Outer Carpathians): an optical microscopic approach

In this study, optical microscopic analyses were applied to evaluate the thermal maturity, characteristics of solid bitumen, and other organic matter finely dispersed in Oligocene shales of the Menilite Formation in the Iwonicz-Zdrój–Rudawka Rymanowska Fold (IRF) and Bóbrka–Rogi Fold (BRF) of the Central Carpathian Synclinorium of the Silesian Nappe, Outer Carpathians, Poland. The investigation was carried out at two-unit depths of the shallow and deeper D-1 sections (430 m – IRF and 4,300 m – BRF) and outcrop samples (BRF). The mean random huminite reflectance values indicate immature conditions with respect to hydrocarbon generation in samples from the D-1 shallow section (VRo≈0.40%) and in the outcrop samples (VRo=0.36%). The degree of thermal maturity of the organic matter from a depth of about 4,300 m – BRF based on random vitrinite (VRo≈0.80%) and solid bitumen (BRo≈0.65%) reflectance measurements is associated with the “oil window” for petroleum generation. The organic components dispersed in the examined Menilite Formation samples are typical for hydrocarbon-prone organic matter, suggesting the dominant kerogen type II. The potential precursor maceral for solid bitumen occurring in the examined samples from the deeper D-1 sections is largely the alginite maceral

Application of Fuzzy State Aggregation and Policy Hill Climbing to Multi-Agent Systems in Stochastic Environments

Reinforcement learning is one of the more attractive machine learning technologies, due to its unsupervised learning structure and ability to continually even as the operating environment changes. Applying this learning to multiple cooperative software agents (a multi-agent system) not only allows each individual agent to learn from its own experience, but also opens up the opportunity for the individual agents to learn from the other agents in the system, thus accelerating the rate of learning. This research presents the novel use of fuzzy state aggregation, as the means of function approximation, combined with the policy hill climbing methods of Win or Lose Fast (WoLF) and policy-dynamics based WoLF (PD-WoLF). The combination of fast policy hill climbing (PHC) and fuzzy state aggregation (FSA) function approximation is tested in two stochastic environments; Tileworld and the robot soccer domain, RoboCup. The Tileworld results demonstrate that a single agent using the combination of FSA and PHC learns quicker and performs better than combined fuzzy state aggregation and Q-learning lone. Results from the RoboCup domain again illustrate that the policy hill climbing algorithms perform better than Q-learning alone in a multi-agent environment. The learning is further enhanced by allowing the agents to share their experience through a weighted strategy sharing

PENGARUH PENGGUNAAN METODE PENEMUAN TERBIMBING TERHADAP KEMAMPUAN BERPIKIR KREATIF SISWA (STUDY EKSPERIMEN PADA POKOK BAHASAN GEOMETRI BIDANG DATAR DI KELAS VIII SMPN 12 CIREBON)

Pengaruh Penggunaan Metode Penemuan Terbimbing Terhadap Kemampuan Berpikir Kreatif Siswa Pada Pokok Bahasan Geometri Bidang Datar (Study Eksperimen di Kelas VIII SMPN 12 Cirebon). Metode penemuan terbimbing (guided discovery) adalah metode yang mengutamakan belajar mencari dan menemukan sendiri. Dalam sistem belajar mengajar ini guru menyajikan bahan pelajaran tidak dalam bentuk yang final, tetapi siswa diberi peluang untuk mencari dan menemukannya sendiri dengan bimbingan guru. Dengan tujuan untuk mengetahui respon siswa terhadap penggunaan metode penemuan terbimbing pada pokok bahasan geometri bidang datar, menelaah kemampuan berpikir kreatif siswa yang menggunakan dan yang tidak menggunakan metode pembelajaran penemuan terbimbing, serta untuk mengetahui pengaruh penggunaan metode penemuan terbimbing terhadap kemampuan berpikir kreatif siswa. Penelitian ini merupakan penelitian yang bersifat kuantitatif dengan teknik pengumpulan data melalui angket dan tes. Teknik analisis data yang digunakan penulis setelah data terkumpul yaitu: analisis deskripsi, uji normalitas, uji homogenitas, uji hipotesis berupa uji-F kemudian uji-T. Berdasarkan hasil penelitian dapat disimpulkan bahwa: 1) Respon siswa ter-hadap penggunaan metode penemuan terbimbing secara umum sangat positif, ka-rena berdasarkan interpretasi didapatkan nilai rata-rata 71,25% yang berkategori kuat. Hal ini menunjukkan bahwa siswa merespon baik terhadap penggunaan metode penemuan terbimbing. 2) Rata-rata nilai N-Gain kelas eksperimen yaitu 0,53, dengan rincian rata-rata nilai pretest 47,08 dan rata-rata nilai posttest 74,58, sedangkan rata-rata nilai N-Gain kelas kontrol yaitu 0,39, dengan rincian rata-rata nilai pretest 45,11 dan rata-rata nilai posttest 68,13. 3) diperoleh nilai probabilitas uji-F sebesar 0,151080216 yang artinya lebih besar dari nilai alpha yaitu sebesar 0,05 sehingga nilai P(F) > 0,05 yang artinya data tersebut memiliki variansi yang sama (homogen). Dengan t-Test Two Sample Assuming Equel Variance diperoleh probabilitas = 0,018111441, lebih kecil dari 0,05. Menolak H0: dan menerima H1

Implementation pathway report: Uttar Pradesh Technical Support Unit, India, June 2015

The Implementation Pathway of the Technical Support Unit for Uttar Pradesh state (UP-TSU) was conducted with the aim of examining how the UP-TSU is being implemented in the broader contexts of maternal and newborn health programmes, health systems and the socio-cultural background in Uttar Pradesh state. Methodologically, it follows a standardised structure and format to describe the mechanisms of action and implementation details of the UP-TSU

Designer as integrator: reality or rhetoric?

This research was developed from Bohemia’s doctoral study: Lean Manufacturing and its impact on the role of Industrial Designers in Australia (University of New South Wales, Sydney, 2002). The broader research aim was to investigate the impact of lean manufacturing on the role of the industrial designer in Australian manufacturing organisations. Thomas Walton, a former editor of the Design Management Review stated that: ‘Leadership is significant, especially as design becomes a more prominent component of management. It is perhaps for this reason that Borja de Mozota and her colleagues chose to include an analysis by Erik Bohemia that probes ‘the emergence of design as a source of new product ideas and as a potential partner for managing a product development group’, Professor Cooper, editorial chair for The Design Journal, summed up the significance of Bohemia’s research in this area, by stating ‘This study found that, contrary to existing thought, manufacturers reported that designers are not perceived as playing integrative roles. Lean manufacturers view designers as providing competitive advantage in areas such as perceived product value, increased market share and reduced product cost, more when they are employed rather than acting as consultants to an organisation. This is counter to current theory, especially in the US and UK, where most research indicates that designers add intangible value through their interactive and interpretive skills’. Additional research findings related to the research have been presented at several international conferences: Bohemia, E., ‘The difference between in-house and contracted industrial designers: an Australian perspective’, the Futureground, Melbourne, November 2004. Bohemia, E., ‘Designer as integrator’, and ‘Performance of Industrial Designers’, (two papers) at the 11th International Forum on Design Management Research & Education, Massachusetts, USA, June 2002

Identifying bottlenecks in the iron and folic acid supply chain in Bihar, India: a mixed-methods study

Background: Maternal anaemia prevalence in Bihar, India remains high despite government mandated iron supplementation targeting pregnant women. Inadequate supply has been identified as a potential barrier to iron and folic acid (IFA) receipt. Our study objective was to examine the government health system’s IFA supply and distribution system and identify bottlenecks contributing to insufficient IFA supply. Methods: Primary data collection was conducted in November 2011 and July 2012 across 8 districts in Bihar, India. A cross-sectional, observational, mixed methods approach was utilized. Auxiliary Nurse Midwives were surveyed on current IFA supply and practices. In-depth interviews (n = 59) were conducted with health workers at state, district, block, health sub-centre, and village levels. Results: Overall, 44% of Auxiliary Nurse Midwives were out of IFA stock. Stock levels and supply chain practices varied greatly across districts. Qualitative data revealed specific bottlenecks impacting IFA forecasting, procurement, storage, disposal, lack of personnel, and few training opportunities for key players in the supply chain. Conclusions: Inadequate IFA supply is a major constraint to the IFA supplementation program, the extent of which varies widely across districts. Improvements at all levels of infrastructure, practices, and effective monitoring will be critical to strengthen the IFA supply chain in Bihar

A modelling and simulation framework for health care systems.

International audienceIn this paper, we propose a new modeling methodology named MedPRO for addressing organization problems of health care systems. It is based on a metamodel with three different views: process view (care pathways of patients), resource view (activities of relevant resources), and organization view (dependence and organization of resources). The resulting metamodel can be instantiated for a specific health care system and be converted into an executable model for simulation by means of a special class of Petri nets (PNs), called Health Care Petri Nets (HCPNs). HCPN models also serve as a basis for short-term planning and scheduling of health care activities. As a result, the MedPRO methodology leads to a fast-prototyping tool for easy and rigorous modeling and simulation of health care systems. A case study is presented to show the benefits of the MedPRO methodology

Tryst with Integrated System of Medicine Synergy, Synthesis and Symbiosis

In 1991, as a member of the Planning Commission, Government of India, I was provided a unique opportunity of being involved in the project of interdisciplinary study of the History of Indian Science, Philosophy and Culture (1) from the earliest times to the present day which was included in the 8th Five-Year Plan (1992-97).  Indian Council of Philosophical Research was the nodal agency for the project under the chairmanship of Prof. D.P. Chattopadhyaya.  It was during deliberations and discussions that a view was emerging regarding traditional systems of medicine as a part of scientific thought of ancient history of science in India. Â

Religijne motywy w reklamie – na marginesie pewnego projektu.

This paper refers to the team research led by the author, financed by the German Research Foundation, conducted at the Institute of Slavic Studies at the Humboldt University. In the years 2009–2015 an online dictionary was created under the title Religiöse Lexik in der Allgemeinsprache (Deutsch, Polnisch, Slowakisch, Tschechisch), available online under www2.hu-berlin.de/sacrumprofanum. It is an intensive type dictionary, its purpose is to provide a deep description and not the big number of output token. In a typical lexicographic system based on a grid of dictionary entries taken from the four languages compared here, there is also a column “cultural contexts”, which includes examples of the use of religious words in advertising.Artykuł nawiązuje do kierowanych przez autorkę badań zespołowych, finansowanych przez Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, prowadzonych w Instytucie Slawistyki berlińskiego Uniwersytetu Humboldtów. W latach 2009–2015 powstał słownik online pod tytułem Religiöse Lexik in der Allgemeinsprache (Deutsch, Polnisch, Slowakisch, Tschechisch), dostępny w Internecie pod www2.hu-berlin. de/sacrumprofanum. Jest to słownik typu intensywnego, jego celem jest bowiem objętość i głębia opisu, a nie liczebność haseł. W typowym układzie leksykograficznym wychodzącym od siatki haseł słownikowych zaczerpniętych z czterech porównywanych tu języków znalazła się także rubryka „konteksty kulturowe” obejmująca także przykłady użyć leksyki religijnej w świecie reklamy