896 research outputs found

    Fibre-reinforced Soil Based Construction Materials

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    Soil based construction materials (SBCMs) are formed of a mixture of gravel, sand and clay which, when mixed with water, may be used for construction. They can be an environmentally-friendly alternative to more traditional construction materials such as concrete and fired brick. SBCMs commonly incorporate foreign material into the soil to enhance the material properties. Many guides on SBCM construction advocate the use of cement as a stabiliser to strengthen the material, which detracts from the environmental credentials that earthen construction materials possess. Alternatives methods to strengthen SBCMs are therefore needed. In this thesis, waste wool fibres from a carpet manufacture are investigated as a potential alternative fibrous reinforcement in rammed earth (RE), and its effect on the behaviour of stabilised and unstabilised RE is assessed. Compressive tests, shear tests and splitting tests are performed to study the effect of fibrous (wool) and chemical (cement) stabilisation on RE, and recommendations on further use of these materials are made. Tests are also performed to investigate the shrinkage of different clays (bentonite and kaolinite) used in RE when mixed with sand or wool, in order to determine the effects of these materials on shrinkage behaviour. Finally, advice is provided regarding the use of fibrous reinforcement in SBCMs, which is applicable to both the SBCM industry and research, and new and pre-existing research areas are identified to prompt further study

    RIVPACS pressure data analysis. Final report

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    RIVPACS database documentation. Final report

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    With the advent of the EU Water Framework Directive the concept of the 'reference condition' has become explicit within the legislative framework of the European Union. Reference condition has been established as a quality standard against which assessments of biological degradation must be compared. It is therefore essential that Member States can demonstrate that the biological datasets used to define their reference conditions meet the criteria of the WFD. The RIVPACS reference site dataset is therefore central to the definition of reference conditions for macroinvertebrates in streams and rivers in the United Kingdom. Objectives of research: • To establish the ownership of the RIVPACS reference site dataset • To liaise with all stakeholders of the dataset to establish unhindered access to the RIVPACS reference site dataset for the UK agencies (in perpetuity) • To deliver the RIVPACS reference site dataset to the UK agencies and to the public domain in a readily accessible database together will its accompanying physicochemical variables (both existing and newly collated as part of this project), historical and current anthropogenic stress data, and a range of calculated biotic indices. Key findings and recommendations: Ownership of the RIVPACS dataset resides with no single organization and several different organizations consider that they own different portions of the dataset. Formal permissions to release the dataset into the public domain have been obtained from all twelve extant organizations that have been identified as having funded various phases of RIVPACS research. In addition, CEH/NERC has also agreed to release the RIVPACS dataset to the public domain. Terms and conditions relating to the end use of the RIVPACS dataset have now been established. The RIVPACS database has been assembled in Microsoft® Access and can now be downloaded from the CEH web site. This report details the terms and conditions that apply to all end users of the database and it documents the tables given in the database, their structure and the origin of their data. A separate Pressure Data Analysis report describes the screening of the RIVPACS sites in terms of the current and emerging definitions of reference condition

    Healing the Hurt: Trauma-Informed Approaches to the Health of Boys and Young Men of Color

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    From discrimination and poverty to alcoholism and assault, trauma in its varied forms plays a major part in the lives of Latino and African-American boys and young men. This paper outlines the ways in which violence prevention, family support, health care, foster care, and juvenile justice can incorporate a trauma-informed approach to improve the physical and mental health of young men and boys

    Using inactivating mutations to provide insight into drug action

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    The role of ezetimibe in lowering plasma cholesterol has been established; however, controversy remains about its clinical benefit. A recent study utilizes naturally occurring genetic variation within the NPC1-like 1 gene (NPC1L1) to demonstrate the potential for pharmacologic inhibition of the protein to reduce the risk of coronary heart disease. This research demonstrates the application of the concept of genocopy to a population-based validation of NPC1L1 as a therapeutic target

    Geometry of fully augmented links in doubled 3-manifolds

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    Classical fully augmented links have explicit hyperbolic geometry, and have diagrams on the 2-sphere in the 3-sphere. We generalise to construct fully augmented links projected to the reflection surface of any 3-manifold obtained by doubling a compact 3-manifold. When the resulting manifolds are hyperbolic, we find bounds on their cusp shapes and volumes. Note these links include virtual fully augmented links, and thus our bounds apply to such links when they are hyperbolic.Comment: 15 pages, 6 figure

    Competencies for Electronic Information Services

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    Defines electronic information services and the competencies required for librarians providing them. Highlights include personal characteristics; basic skills, including computer use, navigation, and word processing; general knowledge, including information storage and retrieval, copyright, and ethics; and education, including formal education, on-the-job training, self-education, apprenticeship, and continuing education

    A methodology for evaluating alternative technical services systems in libraries /

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