Delayed pull-in transitions in overdamped MEMS devices

We consider the dynamics of overdamped MEMS devices undergoing the pull-in instability. Numerous previous experiments and numerical simulations have shown a significant increase in the pull-in time under DC voltages close to the pull-in voltage. Here the transient dynamics slow down as the device passes through a meta-stable or bottleneck phase, but this slowing down is not well understood quantitatively. Using a lumped parallel-plate model, we perform a detailed analysis of the pull-in dynamics in this regime. We show that the bottleneck phenomenon is a type of critical slowing down arising from the pull-in transition. This allows us to show that the pull-in time obeys an inverse square-root scaling law as the transition is approached; moreover we determine an analytical expression for this pull-in time. We then compare our prediction to a wide range of pull-in time data reported in the literature, showing that the observed slowing down is well captured by our scaling law, which appears to be generic for overdamped pull-in under DC loads. This realization provides a useful design rule with which to tune dynamic response in applications, including state-of-the-art accelerometers and pressure sensors that use pull-in time as a sensing mechanism. We also propose a method to estimate the pull-in voltage based only on data of the pull-in times.Comment: 17 page

Nudge: Accelerating Overdue Pull Requests Towards Completion

Pull requests are a key part of the collaborative software development and code review process today. However, pull requests can also slow down the software development process when the reviewer(s) or the author do not actively engage with the pull request. In this work, we design an end-to-end service, Nudge, for accelerating overdue pull requests towards completion by reminding the author or the reviewer(s) to engage with their overdue pull requests. First, we use models based on effort estimation and machine learning to predict the completion time for a given pull request. Second, we use activity detection to reduce false positives. Lastly, we use dependency determination to understand the blocker of the pull request and nudge the appropriate actor(author or reviewer(s)). We also do a correlation analysis to understand the statistical relationship between the pull request completion times and various pull request and developer related attributes. Nudge has been deployed on 147 repositories at Microsoft since 2019. We do a large scale evaluation based on the implicit and explicit feedback we received from sending the Nudge notifications on 8,500 pull requests. We observe significant reduction in completion time, by over 60%, for pull requests which were nudged thus increasing the efficiency of the code review process and accelerating the pull request progression

Russian small businesses: entrepreneurship in transition. Exploratory investigation of the factors that pushed and pulled individuals to open their own business in the Krasnodar region of Russia

The purpose of this research was to identify the factors that pushed and pulled individuals to become self-employed in Russia during the post-Soviet Union period. The research methodology adopted in this study was qualitative. The longitudinal multiple case study approach was comprised of in-depth interviews with the founders and co-founders of 26 family businesses in the Krasnodar region of Russia. To summarise particular findings of the present research one push factor and four pull factors have been identified as being the most influential: 1. ‗Unemployment / Restructuring‘ during the transitional period push factor; 2. ‗The Demand for Local Services‘ pull factor; 3. ‗The Development of Entrepreneurial Skills‘ pull factor; 4. The ‗Cultural Changes‘ pull factor; and 5. The ‗Family Relatedness‘ pull factor. This thesis postulates that a contribution to the understanding of the push-pull debate theory can be made through an interpretation of the factors that influence individuals‘ decisions to become self-employed. A significant body of worldwide research currently exists that deals with the concept of the self-employment push-pull debate. There is however no one agreed view on which factors push or pull individuals to become self-employed. An analysis of various literature sources has at times revealed contradictions and inconsistencies within this debate. This observation can be partly explained by the fact that this body of research exists across a diverse range of countries and through time. This thesis highlights the fact that a clear dichotomy of the self-employment push and pull factors may not always be adequate. This analysis highlights that what really matters when identifying the factors that push or pull individuals to become self-employed is how the individuals themselves interpret these factors. Therefore any factor potentially could be considered as being both push and pull depending upon the individual‘s personal interpretation

Exogenous characteristics of short-term capital flows: can they be under control? evidence from Turkey

In our paper, we give an essay trying to explore whether short-term capital flows can affect and/or be affected by some main domestic macroeconomic indicators called ‘pull’ factors such as real effective exchange rate, trade balance, real income growth process, domestic inflation and real interest structure for the case of Turkish economy. Our estimation results employing some contemporaneous estimation techniques of unrestricted dynamic vector autoregression (VAR) models reveal that short-term capital flows have in fact an important role on the ‘pull’ factors in the sense that inflows appreciate the real effective exchange rate and in turn deteriorate the trade balance, encourage the real income growth, and decrease the real interest rates. But we could not find any significant effects of the ‘pull’ factors on the capital flows.Capital Flows ; VAR Modelling ; Turkish Economy ;

Explaining the difference in the self-esteem of students with learning disabilities who receive pull-out services and those who do not receive pull-out services in a private school setting.

Students with learning disabilities are a minority group in the private school setting. In order to accommodate students with learning disabilities, private schools provide pull-out services. Pull-out services involve students being pulled from the classroom to work with the resource teacher to receive various accommodations. Students who are eligible for accommodations are those who have been formally diagnosed with a learning disability or students who are in the process of being tested for a learning disability. While the special education setting has been the topic of a great deal of research, the research is lacking, nonetheless (Terman, Larner, Stevenson, & Behrman, 1996). Students must be placed in the environment where they will experience the most success. Although success is often measured according to academics, it is of equal importance to consider the emotional needs of students. In order to create a sense of value and well-being, there is a critical need for counselors and educators to foster students’ self-esteem and confidence (Goleniowska, 2014). Moreover, self-esteem and confidence are vital to the prevention of depression and isolation (Baumeister, Storch, & Geffken, 2008). The purpose of this study was to explain the difference in the self-esteem of students with learning disabilities who receive pull-out services and those who do not receive pull-out services in a private school setting. Students with learning disabilities who receive pull-out services were postulated to have a lower self-esteem than students with learning disabilities who do not receive pull-out services. Self-esteem was measured with Brown and Alexander’s (1991) Self-Esteem Index. A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was utilized to determine the difference in self-esteem among students with learning disabilities that do and do not receive pull-out accommodations. Qualitative analysis was employed to gather information pertaining to the feelings of participants relative to receiving pull-out services. Study results revealed no statistical significance in the difference in self-esteem among students with learning disabilities that do and do not receive pull-out accommodations. However, qualitative analysis uncovered themes surrounding negative feelings regarding pull-out services and self-esteem. Study limitations as well as recommendations for future research were discussed. Recommendations for future research serve as a reminder of the gaps in the existence of qualitative data inclusive of input from students with disabilities. The exclusion of student voice surrounding pull-out services negates counselors’ ability to tend to the needs of their students. Hopefully, the current study will propel further research on the relationship between pull-out services and self-esteem

The Effect of Pulling Out Cochlear Implant Electrodes on Inner Ear Microstructures: A Temporal Bone Study

The exchange of an cochlear implant or the re-positioning of an electrode have become more frequently required than a decade ago. The consequences of such procedures at a microstructural level within the cochlea are not known. It was the aim of the present study to further investigate the effects of an CI electrode pull-out. Therefore 10 freshly harvested temporal bones (TB) were histologically evaluated after a cochlear implant electrode pull-out of a perimodiolar electrode. In additional 9 TB the intrascalar movements of the CI electrode while being pulled-out were digitally analysed by video- capturing. Histologically, a disruption of the modiolar wall or the spiral osseous lamina were not observed. In one TB, a basilar membrane lifting up was found, but it could not be undoubtedly attributed to the pull-out of the electrode. When analyzing the temporal sequence of the electrode movement during the pull-out, the electrode turned in one case so that the tip elevates the basilar membrane. The pull- out of perimodiolarly placed CI electrodes does not damage the modiolar wall at a microstructural level and should be guided (e.g., forceps) to prevent a 90 o turning of the electrode tip into the direction of the basilar membrane

Conceptualisation of the potential renewables pull effect : a result of topic area 3 "scenarios and transformation pathways" of the research project SCI4climate.NRW

This report was prepared by the Wuppertal Institute in cooperation with the German Economic Institute as part of the SCI4climate.NRW project. The report aims to shed light on the possible phenomenon that the availability and costs of "green" energy sources may become a relevant location factor for basic materials produced in a climate-neutral manner in the future. For this purpose, we introduce the term "Renewables Pull". We define Renewables Pull as the initially hypothetical phenomenon of a shift of industrial production from one region to another as a result of different marginal costs of renewable energies (or of secondary energy sources or feedstocks based on renewable energies). Shifts in industrial production in the sense of Renewables Pull can in principle be caused by differences in the stringency of climate policies in different countries, as in the case of Carbon Leakage. Unlike Carbon Leakage, however, Renewables Pull can also occur if similarly ambitious climate policies are implemented in different countries. This is because Renewables Pull is primarily determined by differences in the costs and availability of renewable energies. In addition, Renewables Pull can also be triggered by cost reductions of renewable energies and by changing preferences on the demand side towards climate-friendly products. Another important difference to Carbon Leakage is that the Renewables Pull effect does not necessarily counteract climate policy. Similar to Carbon Leakage, it is to be expected that Renewables Pull could become relevant primarily for very energy-intensive products in basic materials industries. In these sectors (e.g. in the steel or chemical industry), there is also the possibility that relocations of specific energy-intensive parts of the production process could trigger domino effects. As a result, large parts of the value chains previously existing in a country or region could also be subjected to an (indirect) Renewables Pull effect. For the federal state of NRW, in which the basic materials industry plays an important role, the possible emergence of Renewables Pull is associated with significant challenges as climate policy in Germany, the EU and also worldwide is expected to become more ambitious in the future. This report aims to enable and initiate a deeper analysis of the potential future developments and challenges associated with the Renewables Pull effect. Thus, in the final chapter of the report, several research questions are formulated that can be answered in the further course of the SCI4climate.NRW project as well as in other research projects