Dynamic Analysis of Interaction of Gravity Dam and Reservoir in Time Domain

Source: ICHE Conference Archive - https://mdi-de.baw.de/icheArchiv

The Investigation of the Relationship between Financial Leverage and Return on Supply Chain Management

Abstract—The objective of the present study was to investigate the relationship between financial leverage and return on supply chain management and assest of the rural cooperatives. In this study, five ratios have been selected as financial leverage including total debt to total assets, total debt to total shareholders' equity, total long-term debt to total assets, total short-term debt to total assets and total debt to total capital. The return on asset is also calculated from the total debt to annual profit ratio. According to the objective of the research, this work is an applied research and according to the data collection method, it is a descriptive correlational study. The population included all rural cooperatives in the eastern part of the country in which 153 cooperatives were selected using the elimination method. Data analysis and the hypothesis testing were performed by simple linear regression test and using SPSS software. The results showed that three financial leverages have significantly affected the return on assets of the cooperatives which are the total debt to total assets, total long-term debt to total assets, and total short-term debt to total assets ratios. Of these three ratios, the total debt to total assets (-0.304) has the greatest effect on the return in assets of the cooperatives. The two other financial leverage ratios, i.e., the total debt to total shareholders' equity and the total debt to total capital did not have a significant effect on the return on assets of the rural cooperatives in the eastern part of the country. Thus, it is recommended to the cooperatives' Chief Executive Officer to focus more on three ratios of total debt to assets, total long-term debt to total assets, and total short-term debt to total assets in order to increase the return on equity of the cooperative and plan on the financial focus of the cooperative to reduce these ratios based on the efficient supply chain system

Developing a Mathematical Model for Scheduling and Determining Success Probability of Research Projects Considering Complex-Fuzzy Networks

In project management context, time management is one of the most important factors affecting project success. This paper proposes a new method to solve research project scheduling problems (RPSP) containing Fuzzy Graphical Evaluation and Review Technique (FGERT) networks. Through the deliverables of this method, a proper estimation of project completion time (PCT) and success probability can be achieved. So algorithms were developed to cover all features of the problem based on three main parameters “duration, occurrence probability, and success probability.” These developed algorithms were known as PR-FGERT (Parallel and Reversible-Fuzzy GERT networks). The main provided framework includes simplifying the network of project and taking regular steps to determine PCT and success probability. Simplifications include (1) equivalent making of parallel and series branches in fuzzy network considering the concepts of probabilistic nodes, (2) equivalent making of delay or reversible-to-itself branches and impact of changing the parameters of time and probability based on removing related branches, (3) equivalent making of simple and complex loops, and (4) an algorithm that was provided to resolve no-loop fuzzy network, after equivalent making. Finally, the performance of models was compared with existing methods. The results showed proper and real performance of models in comparison with existing methods

4 Kuwait Chapter

Abstrac

Comparison of Three Methods for NG Tube Placement in Intubated Patients in the Emergency Department

Introduction: Tubular feeding is used, in patients who cannot take food through their mouths, but their digestive system is able to digest food. This method is safe and affordable for the patient and results in maintaining the function of the digestive system and reducing the risk of infection and sepsis. Objective: The purpose of this study was to compare the three methods of the NG tube placement in intubated patients in the emergency department. Methods: This study is a randomized, prospective clinical trial conducted between 2016 and 2018. 75 patients who had been referred to the emergency department were enrolled in the study and divided into three groups, to have their NG tube insertion using either the conventional method (Group C), or using brake cable (Group B) or applying Rusch intubation stylet (Group S) for highwayman's hitch or draw hitch. Results: The mean duration of NG tube insertion was not significant between three groups (p=0.459), but the mean duration of NG tube insertion in group B was 18.43 ± 2.71 seconds and less than the other groups. NG tube insertion by first attempt in the group B was associated with the highest success rate. There was no significant difference, however, in the success rate in NG tube insertion on first and second attempts (p=0.376, p=0.353). Conclusions: The use of brake cable as a guide wire during insertion of a nasogastric tube increases the success rate on first attempt. No meaningful difference, however, was noted in the overall success rate in NG tube insertion on first and second attempts

On the inverse eigenvalue problem for a special kind of acyclic matrices

summary:We study an inverse eigenvalue problem (IEP) of reconstructing a special kind of symmetric acyclic matrices whose graph is a generalized star graph. The problem involves the reconstruction of a matrix by the minimum and maximum eigenvalues of each of its leading principal submatrices. To solve the problem, we use the recurrence relation of characteristic polynomials among leading principal minors. The necessary and sufficient conditions for the solvability of the problem are derived. Finally, a numerical algorithm and some examples are given

Comparison of Three Methods for NG Tube Placement in Intubated Patients in the Emergency Department

Introduction: Tubular feeding is used, in patients who cannot take food through their mouths, but their digestive system is able to digest food. This method is safe and affordable for the patient and results in maintaining the function of the digestive system and reducing the risk of infection and sepsis. Objective: The purpose of this study was to compare the three methods of the NG tube placement in intubated patients in the emergency department. Methods: This study is a randomized, prospective clinical trial conducted between 2016 and 2018. 75 patients who had been referred to the emergency department were enrolled in the study and divided into three groups, to have their NG tube insertion using either the conventional method (Group C), or using brake cable (Group B) or applying Rusch intubation stylet (Group S) for highwayman's hitch or draw hitch. Results: The mean duration of NG tube insertion was not significant between three groups (p=0.459), but the mean duration of NG tube insertion in group B was 18.43 ± 2.71 seconds and less than the other groups. NG tube insertion by first attempt in the group B was associated with the highest success rate. There was no significant difference, however, in the success rate in NG tube insertion on first and second attempts (p=0.376, p=0.353). Conclusions: The use of brake cable as a guide wire during insertion of a nasogastric tube increases the success rate on first attempt. No meaningful difference, however, was noted in the overall success rate in NG tube insertion on first and second attempts

Model-free neural network-based predictive control for robust operation of power converters

An accurate definition of a system model significantly affects the performance of model-based control strategies, for example, model predictive control (MPC). In this paper, a model-free predictive control strategy is presented to mitigate all ramifications of the model’s uncertainties and parameter mismatch between the plant and controller for the control of power electronic converters in applications such as microgrids. A specific recurrent neural network structure called state-space neural network (ssNN) is proposed as a model-free current predictive control for a three-phase power converter. In this approach, NN weights are updated through particle swarm optimization (PSO) for faster convergence. After the training process, the proposed ssNN-PSO combined with the predictive controller using a performance criterion overcomes parameter variations in the physical system. A comparison has been carried out between the conventional MPC and the proposed model-free predictive control in different scenarios. The simulation results of the proposed control scheme exhibit more robustness compared to the conventional finite-control-set MPC