53 research outputs found
Robust H-infinity filtering for 2-D systems with intermittent measurements
This paper is concerned with the problem of robust Hâ filtering for uncertain two-dimensional (2-D) systems with intermittent measurements. The parameter uncertainty is assumed to be of polytopic type, and the measurements transmission is assumed to be imperfect, which is modeled by a stochastic variable satisfying the Bernoulli random binary distribution. Our attention is focused on the design of an Hâ filter such that the filtering error system is stochastically stable and preserves a guaranteed Hâ performance. This problem is solved in the parameter-dependent framework, which is much less conservative than the quadratic approach. By introducing some slack matrix variables, the coupling between the positive definite matrices and the system matrices is eliminated, which greatly facilitates the filter design procedure. The corresponding results are established in terms of linear matrix inequalities, which can be easily tested by using standard numerical software. An example is provided to show the effectiveness of the proposed approac
Yet Another Extension of the Standard Model: Oases in the Desert?
We have searched for conceptually simple extensions of the standard model,
and describe here a candidate model which we find attractive. Our starting
point is the assumption that off-diagonal CKM mixing matrix elements are
directly related by lowest order perturbation theory to the quark mass
matrices. This appears to be most easily and naturally implemented by assuming
that all off-diagonal elements reside in the down-quark mass matrix. This
assumption is in turn naturally realized by introducing three generations of
heavy, electroweak-singlet down quarks which couple to the Higgs sector
diagonally in flavor, while mass-mixing off-diagonally with the light
down-quarks. Anomaly cancellation then naturally leads to inclusion of
electroweak vector-doublet leptons. It is then only a short step to completing
the extension to three generations of fundamental representations of E(6).
Assuming only that the third generation B couples to the Higgs sector at least
as strongly as does the top quark, the mass of the B is roughly estimated to
lie between 1.7 TeV and 10 TeV, with lower-generation quarks no heavier. The
corresponding guess for the new leptons is a factor two lower. Within the
validity of the model, flavor and CP violation are ``infrared'' in nature,
induced by semi-soft mass mixing terms, not Yukawa couplings. If the Higgs
couplings of the new quarks are flavor symmetric, then there necessarily must
be at least one ``oasis'' in the desert, induced by new radiative corrections
to the top quark and Higgs coupling constants, and roughly at 1000 TeV.Comment: LaTex, 40 page
Social and cultural origins of motivations to volunteer a comparison of university students in six countries
Although participation in volunteering and motivations to volunteer (MTV) have received substantial attention on the national level, particularly in the US, few studies have compared and explained these issues across cultural and political contexts. This study compares how two theoretical perspectives, social origins theory and signalling theory, explain variations in MTV across different countries. The study analyses responses from a sample of 5794 students from six countries representing distinct institutional contexts. The findings provide strong support for signalling theory but less so for social origins theory. The article concludes that volunteering is a personal decision and thus is influenced more at the individual level but is also impacted to some degree by macro-level societal forces
Schuldig landschap. Over de toeristische aantrekkingskracht van Baantjer, Wallander en Inspector Morse
De opnamelokaties van tv-detectives genieten een toenemende populariteit onder toeristen. In dit artikel wordt, op basis van een tekstuele analyse van âBaantjerâ, âInspector Morseâ en âWallanderâ, onderzocht welke inhoudelijke kenmerken van deze tv-detectives mogelijk als âtriggerâ fungeren. Uit de analyse blijkt dat plaats en beweging een centrale rol vervullen binnen de narratieve structuur van dit genre. Door zelf de lokaties te bezoeken, kunnen toeristen het spoor nalopen van hun geliefde detective om aldaar, vanuit een veilige positie, tijdelijk op te gaan in het schemergebied tussen fictie en werkelijkheid
Effects and acceptability of implementing improved cookstoves and heaters to reduce household air pollution: a FRESH AIR study
The objective was to evaluate the effectiveness and acceptability of locally tailored implementation of improved cookstoves/heaters in low- and middle-income countries. This interventional implementation study among 649 adults and children living in rural communities in Uganda, Vietnam and Kyrgyzstan, was performed after situational analyses and awareness programmes. Outcomes included household air pollution (PM2.5 and CO), self-reported respiratory symptoms (with CCQ and MRC-breathlessness scale), chest infections, school absence and intervention acceptability. Measurements were conducted at baseline, 2 and 6-12 months after implementing improved cookstoves/heaters. Mean PM2.5 values decrease by 31% (to 95.1â”g/m3) in Uganda (95%CI 71.5-126.6), by 32% (to 31.1â”g/m3) in Vietnam (95%CI 24.5-39.5) and by 65% (to 32.4â”g/m3) in Kyrgyzstan (95%CI 25.7-40.8), but all remain above the WHO guidelines. CO-levels remain below the WHO guidelines. After intervention, symptoms and infections diminish significantly in Uganda and Kyrgyzstan, and to a smaller extent in Vietnam. Quantitative assessment indicates high acceptance of the new cookstoves/heaters. In conclusion, locally tailored implementation of improved cookstoves/heaters is acceptable and has considerable effects on respiratory symptoms and indoor pollution, yet mean PM2.5 levels remain above WHO recommendations.European Unionâs Horizon 2020 programme under grant agreement no. 680997, TRIAL ID NTR5759, http://www.trialregister.nl/trialreg/admin/rctsearch.asp?Term=23332. The devices, measuring the personal HAP, were funded by Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO
COPDâs early origins in low-and-middle income countries: what are the implications of a false start?
[Excerpt] The Global Initiative for chronic Obstructive Lung disease (GOLD)guideline of 2018 describes COPD asâthe result of a complexinterplay of long-term cumulative exposure to noxious gases andparticles, combined with a variety of host factors includinggenetics, airway hyper-responsiveness and poor lung growthduring childhoodâ.1Tobacco smoking is traditionally viewed as themain contributing factor to the development of COPD. However,COPD also occurs among non-smokers, especially in low-incomeand middle-income countries (LMICs).2,3Notably, more than 90%of COPD-related deaths occur in LMICs.4For these countries, otherrisk factors, such as ambient, occupational and household airpollution play a significant role in the development of COPD.1,2,5â7Does COPD in these settings have a different pathophysiologicaltrajectory compared to COPD in high-income countries, and if so:what does this imply?In normal lung development, airway branching is completed bythe 17th week of gestation, after which airways increase in volumeuntil young adulthood. Alveoli are present at birth and developfurther during childhood. Lung volume and airflow continue toincrease as the thorax grows, influenced by age, sex, and ethnicity,reaching a peak at young adulthood. Lung function then remainsconstant for about 10 years (the plateau phase), after which itgradually declines.8In theâclassicâCOPD patient, the decline inlung function is more rapid than in healthy individuals. However,in a considerable proportion of COPD patients, lung function doesnot decline rapidly, but reaches a lower plateau phase in earlyadulthood instead. For these patients, a completely differentpathophysiological trajectory seems to lead to the diagnosis ofCOPD: the decline in lung function follows a normal pattern, yetthey seem to have aâfalse startâby attaining a lower maximumlung function. [...
Fungal planet description sheets : 371â399
Novel species of fungi described in the present study include the following from Australia: Neoseptorioides
eucalypti gen. & sp. nov. from Eucalyptus radiata leaves, Phytophthora gondwanensis from soil, Diaporthe
tulliensis from rotted stem ends of Theobroma cacao fruit, Diaporthe vawdreyi from fruit rot of Psidium guajava,
Magnaporthiopsis agrostidis from rotted roots of Agrostis stolonifera and Semifissispora natalis from Eucalyptus
leaf litter. Furthermore, Neopestalotiopsis egyptiaca is described from Mangifera indica leaves (Egypt), Roussoella
mexicana from Coffea arabica leaves (Mexico), Calonectria monticola from soil (Thailand), Hygrocybe jackmanii
from littoral sand dunes (Canada), Lindgomyces madisonensis from submerged decorticated wood (USA), Neofabraea
brasiliensis from Malus domestica (Brazil), Geastrum diosiae from litter (Argentina), Ganoderma wiiroense
on angiosperms (Ghana), Arthrinium gutiae from the gut of a grasshopper (India), Pyrenochaeta telephoni from the
screen of a mobile phone (India) and Xenoleptographium phialoconidium gen. & sp. nov. on exposed xylem tissues
of Gmelina arborea (Indonesia). Several novelties are introduced from Spain, namely Psathyrella complutensis on
loamy soil, Chlorophyllum lusitanicum on nitrified grasslands (incl. Chlorophyllum arizonicum comb. nov.), Aspergillus
citocrescens from cave sediment and Lotinia verna gen. & sp. nov. from muddy soil. Novel foliicolous taxa from South
Africa include Phyllosticta carissicola from Carissa macrocarpa, Pseudopyricularia hagahagae from Cyperaceae
and Zeloasperisporium searsiae from Searsia chirindensis. Furthermore, Neophaeococcomyces is introduced as
a novel genus, with two new combinations, N. aloes and N. catenatus. Several foliicolous novelties are recorded
from La RĂ©union, France, namely Ochroconis pandanicola from Pandanus utilis, Neosulcatispora agaves gen. &
sp. nov. from Agave vera-cruz, Pilidium eucalyptorum from Eucalyptus robusta, Strelitziana syzygii from Syzygium
jambos (incl. Strelitzianaceae fam. nov.) and Pseudobeltrania ocoteae from Ocotea obtusata (Beltraniaceae emend.).
Morphological and culture characteristics along with ITS DNA barcodes are provided for all taxa.http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/nhn/pimjam2016Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI)Microbiology and Plant Patholog
EFFECT OF CR CONTENT ON THE ON-COOLING PHASE TRANSFORMATIONS AND INDUCED PRIOR-ZR MECHANICAL HARDENING AND FAILURE MODE (IN RELATION WITH LOCA BEHAVIOR OF CR COATED E-ATF ZR BASED CLADDINGS)
International audienc
Generation of Test Vectors with Low Power by Co-evolution Algorithm for Digital Circuits
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