A Noise-Robust Method with Smoothed \ell_1/\ell_2 Regularization for Sparse Moving-Source Mapping

The method described here performs blind deconvolution of the beamforming output in the frequency domain. To provide accurate blind deconvolution, sparsity priors are introduced with a smooth \ell_1/\ell_2 regularization term. As the mean of the noise in the power spectrum domain is dependent on its variance in the time domain, the proposed method includes a variance estimation step, which allows more robust blind deconvolution. Validation of the method on both simulated and real data, and of its performance, are compared with two well-known methods from the literature: the deconvolution approach for the mapping of acoustic sources, and sound density modeling

Introducing a Writing Skills Intervention into an Undergraduate Financial Accounting Course

This paper describes how integrating a research project into an undergraduate business school core accounting course provides opportunities to develop critical writing skills while reinforcing ethics as part of the business school curriculum. The paper discusses an end-to-end process from the overall goals and details of the assignment to assess student skills. After researching an ethical topic in business, students are challenged to complete a research paper examining the issue and stating and supporting their opinion and views of the issue. While writing courses or assignments are not unusual in business program, the unique approach described in this paper includes an intervention early in the student’s academic career and a summary of the measurable learning outcomes and criteria for meeting performance expectations. The program addresses the both the instructional tools used for the assignment and assurance of learning for faculty interested in implementing a similar program

Gluing characteristics of Papua New Guinea timber species for various non-structural applications

Papua New Guinea (PNG) has abundant natural forest resources but there are many constraints which need to be addressed to support the development of competitive value-added wood industries. There is a need to develop knowledge and capacity in wood science and processing technologies which support successful domestic value-adding wood processing enterprises. A comprehensive testing program has been developed to assess the glue‐bond strength and performance of selected commercial PNG timber species in various climatic conditions to simulate service conditions in potential market destinations. Two criteria namely shear strength and wood failure have been used to determine if a species can meet the minimum requirements for either dry use or wet use applications. The performance of 24 different PNG commercial timber species has been assessed using a one-component cross-linking polyvinyl acetate emulsion adhesive. The bondability of the selected species has been carefully estimated considering the wood density and wood moisture content for the strength and durability in dry- and wet-use conditions. The testing results show that as the wood density as a wood property factor and moisture content as a service condition factor increase, high shear strength with high wood failure become more difficult to achieve consistently. The highest shear strength and wood failure results were achieved by softwood plantation species and low-density hardwood species. Based on the testing results, the selected species have been classified into bondability classes (bond very well, bond well, bond with difficulty, very difficult to bond). &nbsp

Financially Distressed Consumers: Their Financial Practices, Financial Well-being, and Health

This study examined relationships among the financial practices, financial well-being, and health of a sample of 3,121 financial distressed consumers who were new clients participating in the debt management program of a large national non-profit credit counseling organization. Respondents who reported having improved health since participating in credit counseling were more likely than others to engage in positive financial behaviors. For six out of ten financial behaviors, respondents who reported improved health were more likely to report that their finances improved. Implications are provided for financial counselors and educators

Modélisation temporelle des sources acoustiques d'un bâtiment marin ou sous-marin en mouvement dans le champ lointain

National audienceLes sources acoustiques sous-marines de bâtiment marin sont actuellement étudiées de façon individuelle au moyen de modèles numériques pour caractériser finement leur comportement. Cette approche ne répond pas aux problématiques des études acoustiques de champ lointain d'un bâtiment marin entier mobile qui nécessiteraient une modélisation numérique complète. Une démarche de modélisation analytique est proposée dans ce papier pour traiter ces problématiques. Des sources de nature spectrale différente sont modélisées analytiquement pour prédire le champ lointain de pression acoustique d'un bâtiment marin. À partir de ces données, les sources mobiles sont propagées par la théorie des rayons. Enfin, des simulations permettent de valider ces modèles

Universal conductance fluctuations in epitaxial GaMnAs ferromagnets: structural and spin disorder

Mesoscopic transport measurements reveal a large effective phase coherence length in epitaxial GaMnAs ferromagnets, contrary to usual 3d-metal ferromagnets. Universal conductance fluctuations of single nanowires are compared for epilayers with a tailored anisotropy. At large magnetic fields, quantum interferences are due to structural disorder only, and an unusual behavior related to hole-induced ferromagnetism is evidenced, for both quantum interferences and decoherence. At small fields, phase coherence is shown to persist down to zero field, even in presence of magnons, and an additional spin disorder contribution to quantum interferences is observed under domain walls nucleation.Comment: 15 pages, 4 figure

Wood planing properties of Australian plantation-grown Eucalypts

Planing properties of seven Australian plantation-grown eucalypts were evaluated to provide recommendations on how these species should be machined and considered for the manufacture of high quality furniture and furnishings. The surface quality produced for each species was evaluated using eight planing conditions. All species performed well producing equivalent or better results than mature traditional furniture species, and could be used for high value furniture manufacturing. Tungsten carbide cutters produced better results than high-speed steel for most eucalypts and the grinding of a small chip-breaker usually produced improving results as the size of the chip-breaker was reduced. Grain orientation did not affect the planed surfaces for some species but planing with the grain usually produced better surface. Recovery and presence of torn grain could not be related to the wood density