Exact Refined Buckling Solutions for Laminated Plates Under Uniaxial and Biaxial Loads

This paper presents a unified Lévy-type solution procedure for the buckling analysis of both thin and thick composite plates under biaxial loads. The plates are simply-supported at two opposite edges, while the two remaining sides are subjected to any combination of simply-supported, clamped and free conditions. The problem is formulated in the context of a variable-kinematic approach, offering the advantage of automatically handling theories of various order. Both layerwise and equivalent single layer theories are considered. The governing equilibrium equations are derived analytically from the Principle of Virtual Displacements (PVD), and are solved exactly referring to the Lévy-type procedure. The accuracy of the predictions is demonstrated by comparison with results available in literature, including exact 3D solutions. A comprehensive set of benchmark results is provided for plates subjected to different loading and boundary conditions and characterized by various width-to-thickness ratios

Prediction of Natural Frequencies of Laminated Curved Panels Using Refined 2-D Theories in the Spectral Collocation Method

This paper presents a versatile and efficientmodeling and solution framework for free vibration analysis of composite laminated cylindrical and spherical panels modeled according to two-dimensional equivalent singlelayer and layerwise theories of variable order.Aunified formulation of the equations of motion is adopted which can be used for both thin and thick structures. The discretization procedure is based on the spectral collocation method and is presented in a compact matrix form which can be directly and easily implemented. The convergence and accuracy of the proposed approach is evaluated for panels having different boundary conditions, thickness and shallowness ratios, and lamination layups

The Ritz – Sublaminate Generalized Unified Formulation approach for piezoelectric composite plates

This paper extends to composite plates including piezoelectric plies the variable kinematics plate modeling approach called Sublaminate Generalized Unified Formulation (SGUF). Two-dimensional plate equations are obtained upon defining a priori the through-thickness distribution of the displacement field and electric potential. According to SGUF, independent approximations can be adopted for the four components of these generalized displacements: an Equivalent Single Layer (ESL) or Layer-Wise (LW) description over an arbitrary group of plies constituting the composite plate (the sublaminate) and the polynomial order employed in each sublaminate. The solution of the two-dimensional equations is sought in weak form by means of a Ritz method. In this work, boundary functions are used in conjunction with the domain approximation expressed by an orthogonal basis spanned by Legendre polynomials. The proposed computational tool is capable to represent electroded surfaces with equipotentiality conditions. Free-vibration problems as well as static problems involving actuator and sensor configurations are addressed. Two case studies are presented, which demonstrate the high accuracy of the proposed Ritz-SGUF approach. A model assessment is proposed for showcasing to which extent the SGUF approach allows a reduction of the number of unknowns with a controlled impact on the accuracy of the result

The Video as a Canonization Channel for Contemporary Arabic Fiction

With the media transition from the paper to the digital, Arab writers’ interaction on the social media and book-related videos have become a central strategy of promotion. Besides book trailers produced by the publishers and the readers, the international literary prizes produce their own videos. One of the most important examples is the International Prize for Arabic Fiction (IPAF) which releases videos with English subtitles for the shortlisted authors every year. Moreover, some writers and journalists have started TV programs or YouTube channels recommending books and interviewing their fellow authors. Engaging with literary history, politics of translation, and media studies, this paper discusses the contribution of videos to the contemporary Arabic novel’s canonization: how do the videos make the canon and its mechanisms visible? Which image of the intellectual do they shape globally and locally? Which linguistic varieties do they adopt? This paper compares two kinds of videos to encompass the global and local scale, with their respective canonizing institutions and mechanisms. On the one hand, it examines how IPAF videos (2012-2019) promote a very recent canon of novels on the global scale through the representation of space, language, and the Arab intellectual. On the other hand, it looks at two book-related TV programs by the Egyptian writers Bilāl Faḍl and ʿUmar Ṭāhir, selecting three episodes (FAḌL 2011, FAḌL 2018, and ṬĀHIR 2018) featuring or devoted to Aḥmad Khālid Tawfīq (1962-2018), a successful author of science-fiction and thrillers. Debating non-canonical writings, these TV programs contribute to redefine the national canon focusing on the reading practices and literary criticism

Il Cairo: luoghi semi-ufficiali e personaggi eccentrici nei romanzi di Shalabī e Abū Julayyil

Cairo is a constantly expanding and changing megalopolis, whose residents negotiate the binary oppositions of centre/periphery, development/poverty, and local/global. This paper investigates the literary representation of the Egyptian capital in four novels by Shalabi and Abu Julayyil published between 1981 and 2008. Firstly, it overviews recent scholarship about the literary geography of Cairo. Then, it examines the narrative techniques employed by Shalabi and Abu Julayyil to portray semi-official spaces, such as historical palaces now in decline, hash dens, shantytowns, and buildings on the verge of collapse. I argue that these spaces interact with the rest of the city, while developing a highly local culture, embodied by eccentric humorous characters

Predicting Mispredictions: A Model of Human Misjudgment About Vulnerable Road Users’ Trajectories

This paper presents a cognitive model designed to reproduce human drivers’ errors in predicting the motion of nearby vulnerable road users. We aim to define a computational model that, given both the trajectory of the eye gaze of a human driver and the trajectory of a bicycle, can compute the probability distribution of where the human driver believes the bicycle will be in the near future. For the design and validation of the proposed cognitive model, we tested 51 subjects in immersive virtual reality scenarios. The results indicate that the proposed model can generate probability distributions of the human drivers’ beliefs about the future bicycle position that are very similar, though not statistically equivalent, to those obtained experimentally. Such models could easily be generalized to describe how drivers misjudge the motion of other road users. This may enable ADAS to evaluate and improve drivers’ situational awareness. In the future, these models could also be used by autonomous cars to evaluate situational awareness of nearby humans, enabling a safer coexistence of autonomous vehicles and vulnerable road users

Design of a sensor network for the quantitative analysis of sport climbing

We describe the design of a modular sensorized climbing wall for motion analysis in a naturalistic environment. The wall is equipped with force sensors to measure interaction forces between the athlete and the wall, which can be used by experienced instructors, athletes, or therapists, to gain insights into the quality of motion. A specifically designed triaxial load cell is integrated into each hold placement, invisible to the climber, and compatible with standard climbing holds. Data collected through the sensors is sent to an app running on a portable device. The wall can be adapted to different uses. To validate our design, we recorded a repeated climbing activity of eleven climbers with varying degrees of expertise. Analysis of the interaction forces during the exercise demonstrates that the sensor network design can provide valuable information to track and analyze exercise performance changes over time. Here we report the design process as well as the validation and testing of the sensorized climbing wall

Countertransference in Trauma Clinic: A Transitional Breach in the Therapists’ Identity

In line with the theoretical elaboration of countertransference in the trauma clinic, this article addresses the therapist’s relationship to the strangeness of the trauma, as well as his/her interaction with the cultural difference of the other, who is in this case, the traumatized patient. Thirty-one therapists were interviewed about their subjective experiences, using the methodology of interpretative phenomenological analysis. This article shows interesting subtleties in countertransference reactions to trauma narratives and sheds light on processes indicative of trauma transmission. Therapists interviewed could express experiencing moments of strangeness and inner disquiet; resonance in the defense mechanisms deployed by therapists and by patients at certain moments of the therapy; resorting to disregarding cultural interpretations/generalizations to make sense of an utterly painful situation and put a protective distance with the patients’ culture of origin