Data Assimilation for hyperbolic conservation laws. A Luenberger observer approach based on a kinetic description

Developing robust data assimilation methods for hyperbolic conservation laws is a challenging subject. Those PDEs indeed show no dissipation effects and the input of additional information in the model equations may introduce errors that propagate and create shocks. We propose a new approach based on the kinetic description of the conservation law. A kinetic equation is a first order partial differential equation in which the advection velocity is a free variable. In certain cases, it is possible to prove that the nonlinear conservation law is equivalent to a linear kinetic equation. Hence, data assimilation is carried out at the kinetic level, using a Luenberger observer also known as the nudging strategy in data assimilation. Assimilation then resumes to the handling of a BGK type equation. The advantage of this framework is that we deal with a single "linear" equation instead of a nonlinear system and it is easy to recover the macroscopic variables. The study is divided into several steps and essentially based on functional analysis techniques. First we prove the convergence of the model towards the data in case of complete observations in space and time. Second, we analyze the case of partial and noisy observations. To conclude, we validate our method with numerical results on Burgers equation and emphasize the advantages of this method with the more complex Saint-Venant system

Innovation Intensity: From IT Use and Innovative Culture to Organizational Performance

Drawing from past research on information technology (IT) use, organizational culture, and innovation, the present study tests a model exploring the effects of collaborative and experiential culture as well as internally and externally-focused use of IT on innovation intensity and organizational performance. As the innovation process is complex and uncertain, we try to open the black box of innovation intensity by exploring the roles played by the use of IT and the innovation culture. The research model was tested via a structural equation model using PLS with data collected from 395 top executives. Results indicate that intense use of internally and externally- focused IT positively affect innovation intensity. The results also show that collaborative culture increases innovation intensity. In turn, innovation intensity increases both operational and financial performance

Electrophoretic impregnation of porous anodic aluminum oxide film by silica nanoparticles

In this paper, it is proposed to study the deposition of nanoparticles by electrophoretic deposition (EPD) inside a porous anodic aluminum oxide film. Despite the presence of a highly resistive barrier layer at the metal-anodic film interface, porous anodic films on AA 1050A were successfully filled by 16-nm, surface modified silica particles. During this study it was shown that both the colloidal suspension conductivity and the applied electric field drive the penetration into the porous film. FEG-SEM observations showed that large (130-nm diameter), linear pores of 10 μm in length can be completely filled in 1 min. These results attest that porous anodic films can be efficiently filled with nanoparticles by EPD despite the presence of the barrier layer

“I’m just British – normal British”: Exploring Teachers’ and Pupils’ Conceptualisations of Religion(s) and Religious Belonging

This article seeks to foreground the voices of primary school teachers and children—often silenced in research—and explore how they understand religion(s) and religious belonging. The findings draw on qualitative data investigating the narratives of teachers and pupils from five primary community schools in the West Midlands (England). The research shows that religious traditions in contemporary Religious Education classes still tend to be constructed as un-diverse, impermeable, monolithic wholes as teachers rely on the dominant World Religions Paradigm. As religions as lived tend to be ignored, children find it difficult to situate themselves within debates and conversations pertaining to religion(s) and religious diversity and consequently tend to speak about ‘others’ and imagined ‘them’. As a result, most children believe that RE is learning about the ‘Other’ and tend to construct ‘world religions’ as un-British. The article concludes that, overall, RE fails to challenge static representations of religion(s) and rigid categorisations and that the subject ought to offer alternative representations of religious beliefs and practices by foregrounding the lived realities of children and religious communities

Terres excavées : benchmark européen et élaboration d'une méthodologie française de gestion

National audienceLes différents acteurs français de l'aménagement du territoire et du renouvellement urbain, qu'ils soient institutionnels ou privés, sont confrontés à la difficulté de gestion des terres excavées. Il est ainsi nécessaire de définir des règles et des méthodes visant à encadrer la réutilisation durable des terres dans des conditions garantissant la protection de la santé humaine et de l'environnement. Pour préciser ces règles et fournir aux différents acteurs un cadre commun et directement applicable, le Ministère du développement durable a missionné le BRGM et l'INERIS pour construire un guide méthodologique pour la valorisation des terres excavées en techniques routières et sur des projets d'aménagement. La réalisation de ce guide méthodologique s'appuie sur différents groupes de travail constitués d'un large panel d'acteurs du domaine (associations professionnelles, association de protection de l'environnement, aménageurs, avocats...). Les travaux associés à l'élaboration du guide porte sur la définition de valeurs seuils issues de la prise en compte du risque d'exposition des personnes et de la préservation de la qualité des eaux souterraines. L'élaboration du guide intègre un bench-marking avec les travaux similaires dans les autres pays européens et notamment aux Pays-Bas (ce bench-marking est présenté dans le résumé : " retour d'expérience de la gestion des terres excavées dans les pays de l'Union européenne et notamment aux Pays-Bas et en Angleterre "). L'intervention portera sur : - La présentation du guide en l'état - La présentation des premiers résultats

An Exploration of Pupils’ and Teachers’ Discursive Constructions of Religion(s): The Case of Alexander Parkes Primary School

This thesis considers questions pertaining to the discursive constructions of religion(s) as mediated through a primary school. It considers how pupils and teachers make sense of religion(s) in their institutional setting and beyond. The main research questions are: a) How is religion mediated through daily educational practices? b) How do pupils and teachers construct religion(s) at school? For this project, I adopted an ethnographic approach to a case study, and conducted fieldwork at Alexander Parkes Primary School,1 a state-funded non-faith-based primary school in Birmingham, UK. .While most research conducted in Birmingham tends to focus on faith-based schools and/or minority faith communities, this research pays attention to the “missing group”(Davie, 2012: 287), that is to say the ‘middle ground’ group in the religious life of England “who self-identify as Christians” (Davie, 2015: 169), but “whose way of being religious is captured by the term ‘vicarious’” (Davie, 2012: 287).This project considers the place of religion in the everyday lives of children andteachers, and how they encounter religion in mundane ways. The findings of this study shed new light on how pupils and teachers discursively construct religion in education(macro level). The concepts of religion as ‘chain of memory’ (Hervieu-Léger, 2000),‘Golden Rule’ Christianity (Ammerman, 1997), and ‘vicarious religion’ (Davie, 2015)provide the theoretical framework to explore the dialectic relationship between the‘religious’ and the ‘secular,’ and the (perceived) role and function of religion in contemporary society (meso level). In order to investigate which discourses were(re)reproduced at Alexander Parkes, I adopted Ipgrave’s analytical tools to the “differentapproaches to religion: doxological, sacramental, and instrumental, founded,respectively, on certain faith in God, on openness to the possibility of God, and on adefault scepticism” (2012a: 30). These tools were useful to explore how the school managed religion (micro level). Findings show that while children’s agency should notbe underplayed, the school as a structure plays an important role in shaping pupils’construction of religion in general, and of Christianity in particular

Who studies religion? Towards a better conversation between Theology, Religious Studies, and Religious Education

This paper calls for better integration between the fields of Theology and Religious Studies (TRS) and Religious Education (RE). Positive reform in RE requires integration between educational theory, policy, and practice, but we argue that the academic study of theology and religion is too often an overlooked partner in these conversations. The separation of TRS from RE is damaging at all levels of the curriculum, undermining the rigour and critical depth of school syllabi, cutting TRS and RE specialists of from valuable intellectual discussion, and leaving university departments unprepared to properly support student progression. This destructive divergence has long been observed (e.g. Cush, 1999), but this paper proposes that the emerging paradigm of Religion and Worldviews Education (RWE) has encouraged important progress. The advent of RWE has generated new interest among RE specialists in the theory and practice of multidisciplinary TRS. It has also created space for TRS academics from many felds to engage with teachers and policymakers in productive conversations. To illustrate this argument, we highlight some examples of good practice and suggest future work through which links might be strengthened

Response to Consultation on Curriculum for Wales - Religion, Values and Ethics (RVE) guidance

From a sociological perspective, Religious Education (RE) has often been criticised for presenting ‘world religions’ as “discrete, self-contained, clearly defined traditions” that could be studied in isolation from one another (Cooling, Bowie and Panjwani, 2020: 24). As a result, RE has regularly been accused of failing to reflect the lived experiences of religious (and non-religious) communities (Benoit,2020; CoRE, 2018). The interdisciplinary approach taken to the Humanities is welcomed, and the contribution of RVE to the Humanities Area is not only relevant but also important. However, the proposed RVE guidance fails to give pupils the opportunity to learn what religion really is, how it is understood in the modern world, or how it can be taught as a challenging, exciting and intellectually stimulating subject. We recommend that a sociological approach be also adopted in RVE to study the phenomenon of religion and non-religion. We are also concerned that the RVE guidance does not take the opportunity to explicitly adopt a decolonised and anti-racist curriculum

Religion and Worldviews: The Way Forward? Considerations from the study of religion, non-religion and classroom practice

This article builds on Worldview-A Multidisciplinary Report (Benoit, Hutchings and Shillitoe, 2020), a publication commissioned by the RE Council of England and Wales to outline the academic history of the study of worldviews. We focus on three particularly significant questions for the future of Religious Education (RE) / Religion and Worldviews (R&W) arising from our report. First, what is the relationship between worldview and religion? Second, does worldview present a valuable approach to the study of non-religion? And third, can worldview be deployed effectively in the classroom? We conclude with a call for greater attention to the voices of teachers and pupils in curriculum design in RE

Anxiolytic Activity and Brain Modulation Pattern of the α-Casozepine-Derived Pentapeptide YLGYL in Mice.

α-Casozepine (α-CZP) is an anxiolytic-like bioactive decapeptide derived from bovine αs1‑casein. The N-terminal peptide YLGYL was previously identified after proteolysis of the original peptide in an in vitro digestion model. Its putative anxiolytic-like properties were evaluated in a Swiss mice model using a light/dark box (LDB) after an intraperitoneal injection (0.5 mg/kg). The effect of YLGYL on c-Fos expression in brain regions linked to anxiety regulation was afterwards evaluated via immunofluorescence and compared to those of α-CZP and diazepam, a reference anxiolytic benzodiazepine. YLGYL elicited some anxiolytic-like properties in the LDB, similar to α‑CZP and diazepam. The two peptides displayed some strong differences compared with diazepam in terms of c-Fos expression modulation in the prefontal cortex, the amygdala, the nucleus of the tractus solitarius, the periaqueductal grey, and the raphe magnus nucleus, implying a potentially different mode of action. Additionally, YLGYL modulated c-Fos expression in the amygdala and in one of the raphe nuclei, displaying a somewhat similar pattern of activation as α-‑CZP. Nevertheless, some differences were also spotted between the two peptides, making it possible to formulate the hypothesis that these peptides could act differently on anxiety regulation. Taken together, these results showed that YLGYL could contribute to the in vivo overall action of α‑CZP