Experimental load tests of reinforced concrete slab

Foundation structures, their testing and modelling their behavior is a wide area to research. Analysis of interaction between the subsoil and the foundation structures has been developed for many years. For the determination of stress in foundation structure is needed to determine the influence of the stiffness respectively pliability of subsoil to structural internal forces, and vice versa, how the stiffness of the foundation structure affects the resulting subsidence. A lot of different elements are tested or modeled in the world. Previous researches on loading of reinforced slabs have shown a number of phenomena significantly influencing their strength and behaviour. However, no general agreement is yet found on a physical theory (either in codes of practice or in design models) suitably describing the interaction between the subsoil and the foundation structures.Web of Science785-5979

Principled Versus Statistical Thinking in Diagnosis and Treatment of Stroke

Medical science is now synonymous with probability-based statistics. Statistics deals with a group; it does not need probability theory. Probability theory is consistent with the worldview that the universe is infinite, bounded, random, and governed by chance. Its logic is binary, its geometry is Cartesian, its rules offer a scientific method by which hypotheses may be tested. Clinical trials and even hypothesis testing at the bedside have nestled into the probability foundation. As a result, scientific “evidence” now appears only through the lens of probability theory. Because there is no definitive truth in the worldview of probability theory, the truth of evidence lies in probabilities only. The probabilistic view of science has a firm impact on the practice of medicine and implications for medical–legal decisions

Evaluation of a standard provision versus an autonomy promotive exercise referral programme: rationale and study design

Background The National Institute of Clinical Excellence in the UK has recommended that the effectiveness of ongoing exercise referral schemes to promote physical activity should be examined in research trials. Recent empirical evidence in health care and physical activity promotion contexts provides a foundation for testing the utility of a Self Determination Theory (SDT) -based exercise referral consultation. Methods/Design Design: An exploratory cluster randomised controlled trial comparing standard provision exercise on prescription with a Self Determination Theory-based (SDT) exercise on prescription intervention. Participants: 347 people referred to the Birmingham Exercise on Prescription scheme between November 2007 and July 2008. The 13 exercise on prescription sites in Birmingham were randomised to current practice (n=7) or to the SDT-based intervention (n=6). Outcomes measured at 3 and 6-months: Minutes of moderate or vigorous physical activity per week assessed using the 7-day Physical Activity Recall; physical health: blood pressure and weight; health status measured using the Dartmouth CO-OP charts; anxiety and depression measured by the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale and vitality measured by the subjective vitality score; motivation and processes of change: perceptions of autonomy support from the advisor, satisfaction of the needs for competence, autonomy, and relatedness via physical activity, and motivational regulations for exercise. Discussion This trial will determine whether an exercise referral programme based on Self Determination Theory increases physical activity and other health outcomes compared to a standard programme and will test the underlying SDT-based process model (perceived autonomy support, need satisfaction, motivation regulations, outcomes) via structural equation modelling. Trial registration The trial is registered as Current Controlled trials ISRCTN07682833

Mechanics of side-slipping in alpine skiing. Braking and skidded traversing

A recently proposed simple approximate theory of snow machining is applied to modelling of several basic manoeuvres of alpine skiing: fall-line side-slipping, traversing, and hockey stop. The results agree with the skiing practice and explain the abnormally high friction reported in previous field studies. They also prepare foundation for future rigorous testing of the theory, which will determine its accuracy and limits of applicability

Exploring the influence of high-stakes testing and accountability on teachers' professional identities through the factors of instructional practice, work environment, and teacher efficacy

The purpose of this study was to explore the impact of high-stakes testing and accountability on teachers' perceptions of their professional identities. Teachers' instructional practice, work environments, and personal factors are now immersed in the context of high-stakes testing and accountability. This context colors the decisions teachers make about instructional practice, the degree to which they collaborate with colleagues, and their emotions. Through a symbolic interactionist lens, this study explored how teachers give meaning to the influence of high-stakes testing. This qualitative study employed a semi-structured interview format to gather data from 11 Algebra I teachers in North Carolina on their perceptions of their professional identities. A conceptual framework based upon Bandura's social cognitive theory provided the foundation for exploring how teachers' instructional practice, work environment and teacher efficacy interacted and how these factors shaped teachers' professional identities. Context and demographic data were gathered through a questionnaire and the North Carolina School report cards. Based on interview data, researcher logs, and analytic memos, a vignette was developed about each teacher to explore the interactions of the teacher's instructional practice, work environment, and teacher efficacy. This study found most teachers relied heavily on direct instruction for reasons they attributed to high-stakes testing and accountability pressures, even when they believed other methods were better for their students. Related to this finding is the potential narrowing of teachers' role and purpose in their work as the influence of high-stakes testing and accountability interacts with their professional identities through their instructional practice, work environment, and teacher efficacy. Teachers expressed their professional identities in ways that positioned their identities in a student focus, or a teacher focus, whether peer or self. There appeared to be a relationship between whether teachers taught prior to the implementation of the NC ABCs and NCLB and the influence of this context on their professional identities. The teachers who expressed their professional identities in a student focus exhibited high perceptions of their teacher efficacy. Also, teachers' professional identities themselves mediated the way teachers experienced the influence of high-stakes testing and accountability. Principals and their actions influenced the way teachers constructed their professional identities. Of the teachers who reported principals as the primary source of the high EOC emphasis in their schools, four of the five teachers positioned their professional identities in a strong teacher focus. Principals played a primary role in the ways that teachers experienced and interacted with the context of high-stakes testing and accountability within their schools. The actions of the principals, both explicit and implicit, were a cogent influence in the construction of teachers' professional identitie

Theory construction in high-energy particle physics

Science is a process, through which theoretical frameworks are developed, new phenomena defined and discovered, and properties of entities tested. The goal of this dissertation is to illustrate how high-energy physics exemplified the process of theory construction from the 1950s to 1970s, and the promising ways in which it can continue to do so today. The lessons learned from the case studies examined here can inform future physics, and may provide methodological clues as to the best way forward today. I examine the discovery of parity nonconservation in weak interactions, the emergence of Yang-Mills theories as the foundation of the standard model, and contemporary precision testing of quantum electrodynamics. In each of these cases, I examine the details of the physicists’ practice to draw conclusions regarding the epistemology behind successful episodes of theory construction. I reconstruct the methodology of each episode in order to find generalizable lessons to apply to contemporary issues at the frontiers of the search for a theory of quantum gravity. In order to understand the many moving parts in each case study, I introduce a new terminology to distinguish the “parts” of a scientific discipline, inspired by the literature on scientific modelling. These terms—theoretical framework, dynamical model, phenomenological model, experiment, and mathematical tools—are meant to aid in investigating other quantitative scientific disciplines beyond high-energy physics. Ultimately, high-energy physics is at its best when various avenues of theoretical ideas are being pursued, spurring the development of new mathematical techniques to use as tools, and new ideas are quickly and vigorously tested experimentally. Proliferation of new ideas in response to theoretical developments is characteristic of the era of construction of the standard model, and is still ongoing in precision testing of quantum electrodynamics today

Meta-Analysis of Insulated Concrete Wall Panel Design Methods for Shear and Flexure Behavior

Insulated Concrete wall panels have been designed and constructed since the early 1950s with various shear ties, dimensions, and methods; nonetheless, thermal bridging and rational design are still a concern. Many companies have recently developed plastic connectors that have gradually replaced solid concrete sections and steel connectors due to their superior thermal efficiency and strength. However, there is no generally accepted method for predicting the behavior of sandwich wall panels in structural engineering practice or codes, but many methods have been used since the early 1920. This study aims to evaluate the accuracy of current methods for predicting the flexural performance of concrete sandwich wall panels under out-of-plane loading. The analysis is conducted within the elastic range using eight different methods found in the literature. Over ninety full-scale specimens are reviewed and analyzed using these methods, which include commercially available connectors and various concrete properties and panel dimensions, for prestress, mild reinforced concrete. The results show that the Beam Spring Model (BSM), Mechanics-based modeling (MBM), Iterative and Simplified Sandwich Beam Theory (ISBT) for Partially Composite Concrete Wall Panels, and Simplified Sandwich Beam Theory (SSBT) methods produce similar results for cracking load and deflections with low variability, while the Timoshenko-Ehrenfest Bea, Beam on elastic foundation approach (Holmberg and Plem), Allen\u27s method, and the Simplified Model for Partially Composite Insulated Panels (SMPCIP) methods produce inconsistent results compared to reference testing. Furthermore, this study included a shear flow analysis using data from literature for 102 panels to examine the shear flow performance for both average and discrete methods. In which both methods did not have agreement compared to reference testing. Advisor: Marc Maguir

Self-Selection Policing: Theory, Research and Practice

Self-Selection Policing introduces and explores an approach for crime control which seeks to identify active, serious offenders by attending to the minor offences they commit. A foundation of theory and evidence is first supplied for the assertion that ‘those who do big bad things also do little bad things’. Original research presented in the book includes a study of offending by visitors to a prison, and the concurrent criminality of those committing common driving offences and failure to produce driving documents as required. It illustrates how self-selection can complement other police methods of identifying active, serious criminals by focusing on what offenders do rather than who they are and what they have done in the past. Concentrating on the ‘usual suspects’ in the conventional way is often criticised as harassment and self-selection policing largely bypasses the issue of fairness this raises. The book concludes with a call for the consideration, development and wider adoption of the self-selection approach, and particularly the identification of other common minor offences which flag concurrent active criminality. The authors make important suggestions for the progression of SSP research and practice, including the identification of barriers to the implementation of the approach in wider police thinking, practice and policy. Practical guidance is also provided for those thinking of developing, testing and implementing the approach. In doing so, the book will be of particular interest for policing practitioners, as well as students and scholars of policing and crime control

Exposure databases and exposure surveillance : promise and practice

Based on recent developments in occupational health and a review of industry practices, it is argued that integrated exposure database and surveillance systems hold considerable promise for improving workplace health and safety. A foundation from which to build practical and effective exposure surveillance systems is proposed based on the integration of recent developments in electronic exposure databases, the codification of exposure assessment practice, and the theory and practice of public health surveillance. The merging of parallel, but until now largely separate, efforts in these areas into exposure surveillance systems combines unique strengths from each subdiscipline. The promise of exposure database and surveillance systems, however, is yet to be realized. Exposure surveillance practices in general industry are reviewed based on the published literature as well as an Internet survey of three prominent industrial hygiene e-mail lists. Although the benefits of exposure surveillance are many, relatively few organizations use electronic exposure databases, and even fewer have active exposure surveillance systems. Implementation of exposure databases and surveillance systems can likely be improved by the development of systems that are more responsive to workplace or organizational-level needs. An overview of exposure database software packages provides guidance to readers considering the implementation of commercially available systems. Strategies for improving the implementation of exposure database and surveillance systems are outlined. A companion report in this issue on the development and pilot testing of a workplace-level exposure surveillance system concretely illustrates the application of the conceptual framework proposed