Waterproofed Photomultiplier Tube Assemblies for the Daya Bay Reactor Neutrino Experiment

In the Daya Bay Reactor Neutrino Experiment 960 20-cm-diameter waterproof photomultiplier tubes are used to instrument three water pools as Cherenkov detectors for detecting cosmic-ray muons. Of these 960 photomultiplier tubes, 341 are recycled from the MACRO experiment. A systematic program was undertaken to refurbish them as waterproof assemblies. In the context of passing the water leakage check, a success rate better than 97% was achieved. Details of the design, fabrication, testing, operation, and performance of these waterproofed photomultiplier-tube assemblies are presented.Comment: 16 pages, 11 figures. Submitted to Nucl. Instr. Met

Proposal for the development of 3D Vertically Integrated Pattern Recognition Associative Memory (VIPRAM)

Future particle physics experiments looking for rare processes will have no choice but to address the demanding challenges of fast pattern recognition in triggering as detector hit density becomes significantly higher due to the high luminosity required to produce the rare process. The authors propose to develop a 3D Vertically Integrated Pattern Recognition Associative Memory (VIPRAM) chip for HEP applications, to advance the state-of-the-art for pattern recognition and track reconstruction for fast triggering

Challenges and Opportunities for Remote Sensing of Air Quality: Insights from DISCOVER-AQ

No abstract availabl

Polypharmacy among anabolic-androgenic steroid users: A descriptive metasynthesis

Background: As far as we are aware, no previous systematic review and synthesis of the qualitative/descriptive literature on polypharmacy in anabolic-androgenic steroid(s) (AAS) users has been published. Method: We systematically reviewed and synthesized qualitative/descriptive literature gathered from searches in electronic databases and by inspecting reference lists of relevant literature to investigate AAS users' polypharmacy. We adhered to the recommendations of the UK Economic and Social Research Council's qualitative research synthesis manual and the PRISMA guidelines. Results: A total of 50 studies published between 1985 and 2014 were included in the analysis. Studies originated from 10 countries although most originated from United States (n = 22), followed by Sweden (n = 7), England only (n = 5), and the United Kingdom (n = 4). It was evident that prior to their debut, AAS users often used other licit and illicit substances. The main ancillary/supplementary substances used were alcohol, and cannabis/cannabinoids followed by cocaine, growth hormone, and human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), amphetamine/meth, clenbuterol, ephedra/ephedrine, insulin, and thyroxine. Other popular substance classes were analgesics/opioids, dietary/nutritional supplements, and diuretics. Our classification of the various substances used by AAS users resulted in 13 main groups. These non-AAS substances were used mainly to enhance the effects of AAS, combat the side effects of AAS, and for recreational or relaxation purposes, as well as sexual enhancement. Conclusions: Our findings corroborate previous suggestions of associations between AAS use and the use of other licit and illicit substances. Efforts must be intensified to combat the debilitating effects of AAS-associated polypharmacy

Dimensions of effectiveness and efficiency: a case study on industry-school partnerships

Internationally, the delivery of vocational education and training is being challenged by increasing skills shortages in certain industries and/or rapidly changing skill requirements. To respond to this challenge, rigid and centralised state bureaucracies are increasingly adopting partnerships between schools and industry as a strategy to encourage school-to-work transition programmes to address the local labour market demand. Drawing on experiences in Australia, this paper reports on a case study of government led partnerships between schools and industry. The Queensland Gateway to industry schools initiative currently involves over 120 schools. The study investigated how two commonly used partnership principles were understood by the Gateway to industry partners. Twelve school–industry partnerships from four industry sectors were analysed in terms of the principles of ‘efficiency’ and ‘effectiveness’ derived from the public–private partnership literature. The study found that some evidence of partnership activities associated with efficiency and effectiveness may be assigned to Gateway schools projects. However, little evidence was found that the above underlying principles were addressed systematically. Some of these partnerships were tenuously facilitated by individuals who had limited infrastructure or strategic support. Implications are that industry–school partnership stakeholders would benefit from applying partnership principles regarding implementation and management to ensure the sustainability of partnerships

A model to estimate the effect of DC bus voltage on HEV powertrain efficiency

The efficiency of the electric drive system in a Hybrid Electric Vehicle plays a significant role in overall hybrid propulsion system efficiency and influences design choices for other mechanical components in the system. Increasing the DC bus voltage is thought to improve overall powertrain efficiency. In this paper, models are developed to predict the effect of DC bus voltage on the power loss in a PWM inverter motor drive and a brushless DC electric machine. The models indicate that a higher bus voltage will improve powertrain efficiency in some, but not all, operating conditions

Critical attributes of public-private partnerships: A case study in vocational education

The term ‘partnership’ is increasingly used by governments, industry, community organisations and schools in supporting their daily businesses. Similar to the terms ‘ICT’ and ‘learning’, ‘partnerships’ are now ubiquitous in policy discourse. Yet, the term remains ill-defined and ambiguous. This study reviews and reflects on a government led industry-school partnership initiative in the state of Queensland, Australia, to understand how the term is used in this initiative. Given the frequent use of Public Private Partnership (PPP) language, PPP was used as a framework to review this initiative. The methodology of this qualitative case study involved consultations with stakeholders and an analysis of Gateway schools documents, policy documents, and literature. The review suggests that despite the use of terminology akin to PPP projects in Gateway school and policy documents, the implicit suggestion that this initiative is a public-private partnership is untenable. The majority of principles shaping a PPP have not been considered to a significant extent in the Gateway project. Although the review recognises the legitimate and sincere purpose of the Gateway schools initiative, the adoption of a PPP framework during the design, monitoring, or evaluation stages could have strengthened the initiative in terms of outcomes, benefits, and sustainability

Public-private partnership principles applied to industry-school partnership to support technical and vocational education

The term partnership is increasingly used by governments, industry, community organisations and schools in supporting their daily activities. Similar to the terms ICT and learning, partnerships are now ubiquitous in policy discourse. Yet, the term remains ill-defined and ambiguous. This chapter reviews and reflects on a government-led industry-school partnership initiative in the state of Queensland, Australia, to understand how the concept was applied and the consequences. PPP principles derived from the literature were used as a framework to review this initiative. The methodology of this qualitative case study involved consultations with stakeholders and an analysis of Gateway schools’ policy documents, and research literature. The review suggests that despite the use of terminology akin to PPP projects in Gateway school program and policy documents, the implicit suggestion that this initiative is a public-private partnership can be interpreted as partially tenable. The majority of principles shaping a PPP have not been considered in any significant manner in the Gateway schools program. Although the review recognizes the legitimate and sincere purpose of the Gateway schools program, a more explicit adoption of a PPP framework during the design, monitoring, and evaluation stages could have strengthened the initiative in terms of outcomes, benefits, and sustainability

A new concept of vertically integrated pattern recognition associative memory

Hardware-based pattern recognition for fast triggering on particle tracks has been successfully used in high-energy physics experiments for some time. The CDF Silicon Vertex Trigger (SVT) at the Fermilab Tevatron is an excellent example. The method used there, developed in the 1990's, is based on algorithms that use a massively parallel associative memory architecture to identify patterns efficiently at high speed. However, due to much higher occupancy and event rates at the LHC, and the fact that the LHC detectors have a much larger number of channels in their tracking detectors, there is an enormous challenge in implementing fast pattern recognition for a track trigger, requiring about three orders of magnitude more associative memory patterns than what was used in the original CDF SVT. Scaling of current technologies is unlikely to satisfy the scientific needs of the future, and investments in transformational new technologies need to be made. In this paper, we will discuss a new concept of using the emerging 3D vertical integration technology to significantly advance the state-of-the-art for fast pattern recognition within and outside HEP. A generic R and D proposal based on this new concept, with a few institutions involved, has recently been submitted to DOE with the goal to design and perform the ASIC engineering necessary to realize a prototype device. The progress of this R and D project will be reported in the future. Here we will only focus on the concept of this new approach