1,845 research outputs found
Dynamical energy analysis on mesh grids: a new tool for describing the vibro-acoustic response of complex mechanical structures
We present a new approach for modelling noise and vibration in complex mechanical structures in the mid-to-high frequency regime. It is based on a dynamical energy analysis (DEA) formulation which extends standard techniques such as statistical energy analysis (SEA) towards non-diffusive wave fields. DEA takes into account the full directionality of the wave field and makes sub-structuring obsolete. It can thus be implemented on mesh grids commonly used, for example, in the finite element method (FEM). The resulting mesh based formulation of DEA can be implemented very efficiently using discrete flow mapping (DFM) as detailed in [1] and described here for applications in vibro-acoustics
A Study on Quantity and Quality of Mathematics Teachers in Central Plateau State, Nigeria: Implications for National Development in Nigeria
This study examined and provided insight into the quality and quantity of mathematics teachers in secondary schools in central Plateau state, Nigeria, using descriptive survey research design.The sample consisted of 83 mathematics teachers and 19,323 students from 58 secondary schools located in three geographical areas of Mangu, Pankshin and Kanam. The sample was selected using simple random and purposive sampling techniques. For this reason, all the mathematics teachers and students from the 58 secondary schools in the three areas were selected. The instrument for data collection was a questionnaire tagged QQMT. This was developed based on the quantity of mathematics teachers, qualifications, teaching experience, gender and enrollment of students in secondary schools in the three areas. The QQMT was validated by experts. Observer agreement method was used to find the reliability. The inter-rater reliability coefficient was 85%. The data collected was analyzed using descriptive statistics. The findings from the study revealed that mathematics teachers from the study areas possess different qualifications ranging from NCE, B.Ed., B.Sc.(Ed.), B.Sc. to M.Ed. degrees. Some schools have no mathematics teachers, many have one each and a few have between 2-4 teachers. Majority of the teachers have NCE certificates while only one has M.Ed. degree in mathematics. Also, out of the 83 teachers, 24 have less than 5 years teaching experience, 27 have between 5-10 years and 32 have more than 10 years teaching experience. The average teacher/student ratio was 1:233. The implications of the study for national development in Nigeria were discussed. Among other things, it was recommended that the government should employ more qualified mathematics teachers and those serving but are not qualified should go for further studies to acquire higher teaching qualifications. Keywords: Mathematics Education, Performance, Secondary School, Teachers, Quality, Quantit
Inter-relationships between composition, physicochemical properties and functionality of lecithin ingredients
Background: Lecithin is widely used as an ingredient in the food industry due to its diverse functionality, mainly attributed to phospholipids (PL), the principal constituents. However, a systematic understanding of the functional properties of lecithin ingredients is missing in the literature. Scope and approach: This review outlines recent developments in lecithin from botanical origin and reviews the complex inter-relationships between physicochemical properties of PL in lecithin and selected techno-functional properties in micelles, liposomes and oil-in-water emulsions. Key findings and conclusions: Attributed to their polar phosphatide group and non-polar fatty acids, PL have specific molecular geometries, dissociation constants and charge, which strongly influence their functional properties in micelles, liposomes and oil-in-water emulsions. The PL profile and extrinsic factors (e.g., water, oil, hexane) influence the formation of micelles during separation of lecithin from oil using membrane filtration. In liposomes, PL profile and the presence of surface modifiers (i.e., sterols) affect the particle size and encapsulation efficiency. In emulsion systems, PL and their interaction with minerals and other functional ingredients (e.g., proteins), influence the particle size and physical stability of the oil droplets. This work provides an integrated review of the links between the composition and physicochemical properties of PL, and in turn, scientifically underpins the links between physicochemical and functional properties of lecithin
FLASC: A Flare-Sensitive Clustering Algorithm: Extending HDBSCAN* for Detecting Branches in Clusters
We present FLASC, an algorithm for flare-sensitive clustering. Our algorithm
builds upon HDBSCAN* -- which provides high-quality density-based clustering
performance -- through a post-processing step that differentiates branches
within the detected clusters' manifold, adding a type of pattern that can be
discovered. Two variants of the algorithm are presented, which trade
computational cost for noise robustness. We show that both variants scale
similarly to HDBSCAN* in terms of computational cost and provide stable outputs
using synthetic data sets, resulting in an efficient flare-sensitive clustering
algorithm. In addition, we demonstrate the algorithm's benefit in data
exploration over HDBSCAN* clustering on two real-world data sets.Comment: 20 pages, 11 figures, submitted to ACM TKD
Modeling and predicting the shape of the far-infrared to submillimeter emission in ultra-compact HII regions and cold clumps
Dust properties are very likely affected by the environment in which dust
grains evolve. For instance, some analyses of cold clumps (7 K- 17 K) indicate
that the aggregation process is favored in dense environments. However,
studying warm (30 K-40 K) dust emission at long wavelength (300
m) has been limited because it is difficult to combine far
infared-to-millimeter (FIR-to-mm) spectral coverage and high angular resolution
for observations of warm dust grains. Using Herschel data from 70 to 500
m, which are part of the Herschel infrared Galactic (Hi-GAL) survey
combined with 1.1 mm data from the Bolocam Galactic Plane Survey (BGPS), we
compared emission in two types of environments: ultra-compact HII (UCHII)
regions, and cold molecular clumps (denoted as cold clumps). With this
comparison we tested dust emission models in the FIR-to-mm domain that
reproduce emission in the diffuse medium, in these two environments (UCHII
regions and cold clumps). We also investigated their ability to predict the
dust emission in our Galaxy. We determined the emission spectra in twelve UCHII
regions and twelve cold clumps, and derived the dust temperature (T) using the
recent two-level system (TLS) model with three sets of parameters and the
so-called T- (temperature-dust emissvity index) phenomenological models,
with set to 1.5, 2 and 2.5. We tested the applicability of the TLS
model in warm regions for the first time. This analysis indicates distinct
trends in the dust emission between cold and warm environments that are visible
through changes in the dust emissivity index. However, with the use of standard
parameters, the TLS model is able to reproduce the spectral behavior observed
in cold and warm regions, from the change of the dust temperature alone,
whereas a T- model requires to be known.Comment: Accepted for publication in A&A. 19 pages, 8 figures, 7 table
Hierarchical progressive surveys. Multi-resolution HEALPix data structures for astronomical images, catalogues, and 3-dimensional data cubes
Scientific exploitation of the ever increasing volumes of astronomical data
requires efficient and practical methods for data access, visualisation, and
analysis. Hierarchical sky tessellation techniques enable a multi-resolution
approach to organising data on angular scales from the full sky down to the
individual image pixels. Aims. We aim to show that the Hierarchical progressive
survey (HiPS) scheme for describing astronomical images, source catalogues, and
three-dimensional data cubes is a practical solution to managing large volumes
of heterogeneous data and that it enables a new level of scientific
interoperability across large collections of data of these different data
types. Methods. HiPS uses the HEALPix tessellation of the sphere to define a
hierarchical tile and pixel structure to describe and organise astronomical
data. HiPS is designed to conserve the scientific properties of the data
alongside both visualisation considerations and emphasis on the ease of
implementation. We describe the development of HiPS to manage a large number of
diverse image surveys, as well as the extension of hierarchical image systems
to cube and catalogue data. We demonstrate the interoperability of HiPS and
Multi-Order Coverage (MOC) maps and highlight the HiPS mechanism to provide
links to the original data. Results. Hierarchical progressive surveys have been
generated by various data centres and groups for ~200 data collections
including many wide area sky surveys, and archives of pointed observations.
These can be accessed and visualised in Aladin, Aladin Lite, and other
applications. HiPS provides a basis for further innovations in the use of
hierarchical data structures to facilitate the description and statistical
analysis of large astronomical data sets.Comment: 21 pages, 6 figures. Accepted for publication in Astronomy &
Astrophysic
Submillimeter to centimeter excess emission from the Magellanic Clouds. II. On the nature of the excess
Dust emission at submm to cm wavelengths is often simply the Rayleigh-Jeans
tail of dust particles at thermal equilibrium and is used as a cold mass tracer
in various environments including nearby galaxies. However, well-sampled
spectral energy distributions of the nearby, star-forming Magellanic Clouds
have a pronounced (sub-)millimeter excess (Israel et al., 2010). This study
attempts to confirm the existence of such a millimeter excess above expected
dust, free-free and synchrotron emission and to explore different possibilities
for its origin. We model NIR to radio spectral energy distributions of the
Magellanic Clouds with dust, free-free and synchrotron emission. A millimeter
excess emission is confirmed above these components and its spectral shape and
intensity are analysed in light of different scenarios: very cold dust, Cosmic
Microwave Background (CMB) fluctuations, a change of the dust spectral index
and spinning dust emission. We show that very cold dust or CMB fluctuations are
very unlikely explanations for the observed excess in these two galaxies. The
excess in the LMC can be satisfactorily explained either by a change of the
spectral index due to intrinsic properties of amorphous grains, or by spinning
dust emission. In the SMC however, due to the importance of the excess, the
dust grain model including TLS/DCD effects cannot reproduce the observed
emission in a simple way. A possible solution was achieved with spinning dust
emission, but many assumptions on the physical state of the interstellar medium
had to be made. Further studies, using higher resolution data from Planck and
Herschel, are needed to probe the origin of this observed submm-cm excess more
definitely. Our study shows that the different possible origins will be best
distinguished where the excess is the highest, as is the case in the SMC.Comment: 7 pages, 6 figures; accepted in A&
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