Design of Glass for High, Short Duration Wind Loads

This paper describes a case study for the design of structural glazed IGUs for theNew Concert Hall in Reykjavik, Iceland, which is subjected to high local windloads of approximately 10kN/m2, with a load duration of approximately 0.1s. Thepaper focuses on how to interpret the current available codes and research to obtaina glass thickness with adequate resistance for the high short duration loads. Thepaper also focuses on the wind loads to be applied when calculating the fixingsystem, the structural silicone, the embedded aluminium profiles and the toggleswhich fix the glass to the aluminium mullions. For short duration wind loads, thencurrently available codes and guidelines only provide the equivalent glass stress fora 3s load duration, equivalent to a kmod = 1. The paper explains how wind load fromwind tunnel tests should be used when sizing glass, and concludes how the IGUsfor the Reykjavik New Concert Hall were sized

Patients' experience of choosing an outpatient clinic in one county in Denmark: results of a patient survey

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Research on patients' choice of hospital has focused on inpatients' rather than outpatients' choice of provider. We have investigated Danish outpatients' awareness and utilisation of freedom of choice of provider; which factors influence outpatients' choice of hospital, and how socio-demographic variables influence these factors in a single uptake area, where patients were free to choose any public hospital, where care was provided free at the point of delivery, and where distance to the closest hospitals were short by international standards.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Retrospective questionnaire study of 4,232 outpatients referred to examination, treatment, or follow-up at one of nine somatic outpatient clinics in Roskilde County in two months of 2002, who had not been hospitalised within the latest 12 months. The patients were asked, whether they were aware of and utilised freedom of choice of hospital.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Fifty-four percent (2,272 patients) filled in and returned the questionnaire. Forty-one percent of respondents were aware of their right to choose, and 53% of those patients utilised their right to choose. Awareness of freedom of choice of provider was reported to be especially high in female outpatients, patients with longer education, salaried employees in the public sector, and in patients referred to surgical specialties. Female outpatients and students were especially likely to report that they utilised their right to choose the provider. Short distance was the most important reason for outpatients' choice, followed by the GP's recommendations, short waiting time, and the patient's previous experience with the hospital.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Outpatients' awareness and utilisation of free choice of health care provider was low. Awareness of freedom of choice of provider differed significantly by specialty and patient's gender, education and employment. Female patients and students were especially likely to choose the clinic by themselves. Most outpatients chose the clinic closest to their home, the GP's recommendation and short waiting time being the second and third most important factors behind choice.</p

Rollespill og Teaching Thinking som redskaper for aktiv læring i naturfag – erfaringer fra allmennlærerutdanninga

Teaching Thinking (teaching strategies developed by Thinking Skills Research Group, University of Newcastle) and role play were used in a science course at a teacher's college and evaluated by the students. The experiences are discussed with reference to democratic participation as the most important aim for compulsory science education. It is argued that role play and Teaching Thinking-strategies give students and pupils in science classes motivation and opportunities to communicate on science issues at their own skill level. This kind of communication has several merits: i) It reveals some of the students' alternative conceptions; ii) it enforces content learning; and iii) it supports the development of skills needed for democratic participation

Interestingness of traces in declarative process mining: The janus LTLPf Approach

Declarative process mining is the set of techniques aimed at extracting behavioural constraints from event logs. These constraints are inherently of a reactive nature, in that their activation restricts the occurrence of other activities. In this way, they are prone to the principle of ex falso quod libet: they can be satisfied even when not activated. As a consequence, constraints can be mined that are hardly interesting to users or even potentially misleading. In this paper, we build on the observation that users typically read and write temporal constraints as if-statements with an explicit indication of the activation condition. Our approach is called Janus, because it permits the specification and verification of reactive constraints that, upon activation, look forward into the future and backwards into the past of a trace. Reactive constraints are expressed using Linear-time Temporal Logic with Past on Finite Traces (LTLp f). To mine them out of event logs, we devise a time bi-directional valuation technique based on triplets of automata operating in an on-line fashion. Our solution proves efficient, being at most quadratic w.r.t. trace length, and effective in recognising interestingness of discovered constraints

Is There a Relationship Between the Concentration of Same-Sex Couples and Tobacco Retailer Density?

Tobacco use is markedly higher among lesbian, gay, and bisexual populations than heterosexuals. Higher density of tobacco retailers is found in neighborhoods with lower income and more racial/ethnic minorities. Same-sex couples tend to live in similar neighborhoods, but the association of this demographic with tobacco retailer density has not been examined