DETERMINANTS OF ENERGY CONSUMPTION & FUEL BASE SAFETY

On the base of studying the current situation in the world mining and fuel consumption author make the prognosis of the country’s economic development and involving new conception of mine operation

Coal industry in the context of Ukraine economic security

Purpose. To rate the main factors and indicators of the national economic security, in particular the degree of the country’s provision with primary natural resources which determine the global energy consumption trends. Methods. Analysis of components comprising the fuel and energy complex of Ukraine in view of survivability and heuristic algorithm for finding economically feasible reserves. The problem of finding the optimal flow distribution is solved by graphs. Findings. Emergencies are ranked in the descending order of optimal flows in the normal mode, the sorting sequence is defined, which results in the optimal solution via a minimum number of the algorithm computational steps. Originality. A universal algorithm for the development of fuel and energy complex of Ukraine has been designed. Practical implications. It was found that the vitality of integrated energy systems can be defined as the property to resist a large scale external disturbance, maintaining the ability to operate with acceptable performance and backup indicators. When considering large energy systems, the levels of the industry reserve can be reduced due to interchangeability of energy resources.Мета. Оцінити головні чинники та індикатори національної економічної безпеки, зокрема ступеня забезпеченості країни основними природними ресурсами, які зумовлюють тенденції світового енергоспоживання. Методика. Проведено аналіз елементів паливно-енергетичного комплексу України з урахуванням живучості та евристичний алгоритм знаходження економічно обґрунтованого резерву. Завдання знаходження оптимального потокорозподілення вирішене методом графів. Результати. Проранжовані аварійні ситуації у порядку зменшення величини оптимальних потоків у нормальному режимі, визначено послідовність перебору, що призводить за мінімальне число кроків обчислювального алгоритму до оптимального рішення. Наукова новизна. Розроблено універсальний алгоритм розвитку паливно-енергетичного комплексу України. Практична значимість. Встановлено, що живучість інтегрованих систем енергетики можна визначити як властивість протистояти великомасштабним зовнішнім обуренням, зберігаючи здатність функціонувати із допустимими показниками ефективності та резервування. При розгляді суттєвих енергетичних систем рівні галузевого резерву можуть знижуватися за рахунок взаємозамінності енергетичних ресурсів.Цель. Оценить главные факторы и индикаторы национальной экономической безопасности, в частности степени обеспеченности страны основными природными ресурсами, обуславливающими тенденции мирового энергопотребления. Методика. Произведен анализ элементов топливно-энергетического комплекса Украины с учетом живучести и эвристический алгоритм нахождения экономически обоснованного резерва. Задача нахождения оптимального потокораспределения решена методом графов. Результаты. Проранжированы аварийные ситуации в порядке убывания величины оптимальных потоков в нормальном режиме, определена последовательность перебора, что приводит за минимальное число шагов вычислительного алгоритма к оптимальному решению. Научная новизна. Разработан универсальный алгоритм развития топливно-энергетического комплекса Украины. Практическая значимость. Установлено, что живучесть интегрированных систем энергетики можно определить как свойство противостоять крупномасштабным внешним возмущением, сохраняя способность функционировать с допустимыми показателями эффективности и резервирования. При рассмотрении крупных энергетических систем уровни отраслевого резерва могут снижаться за счет взаимозаменяемости энергетических ресурсов.The authors express their gratitude to Laureate of National Prize of Ukraine, Doctor of Technical Sciences, Professor, Head of the Underground Mining Department, Volodymyr Bondarenko for his guidance while performing work on this topic

Motivation for incest: Clothru and the battle of Druim Criaich.

The topic of this article is an episode found in early Irish literature in which Clothru, Medb’s sister and Eochaid Feidlech’s daughter, mates with her three brothers Bres, Nár, and Lothar[1] before the battle of Druim Criaich, resulting in the conception of Lugaid of the red stripes.[2] Previous work has focused mainly on mythological and political connotations of the episode, particularly Clothru’s presumed connection to sovereignty. Whereas I do agree that the episodes concerning Clothru’s incest can be read as replete with liminality, and that issues of kingship are central to all extant examples of in these episodes, here I would like to explore a reading of the texts in which I see Clothru as less bound to sovereignty and more acting within a literary motif of mediating violence and preventing strife. I will focus on the immediate textual context and subtle differences in the motivation and narrative function of the incest and the conception of a child as found in these sources. Whereas the surface motivation shifts from text to text, the underlying motivation-to keep her brothers from killing their father, remains throughout. This motivation is also comparable to other episodes in which violence is negotiated and mediated by women or men in early Irish literature. Although several scholars have noted this shift in motivation, it has not been discussed in full and merits a fuller treatment

An appreciative inquiry into leadership sense-making and possibilities: a story of values in action

A thesis submitted to the University of Bedfordshire, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Professional Doctorate in Systemic PracticeThe first question you might ask yourself when you start reading this thesis could possibly be: what is it that makes this research important, interesting, and worth reading? The answer could only be found in the eyes of the beholder and when you join in on the journey you will discover your own meaning. My wish is to contribute with views and a space for reflection that can inspire leaders to look at and act on possibilities within leadership. In many ways this research might challenge traditional ways of thinking and doing research with its aim to contribute with the uniqueness of how sense-making can be developed through the perspective of systemic practice research. In systemic practice research my own practice and development becomes very important. This includes how I understand and interpret issues related to the research question and how my understanding emerges during the research process. Ways to develop systemic practice in general for the future also becomes important. The thesis explores stories leaders tell about how they make sense of leadership and possibilities they see. This also includes me and how I have made sense. Systemic practice could be described as a reflexive and reflecting practice. This means that I will share my own reflections through the whole thesis. My learnings from this research journey could also be seen as emerging through the reflections I have made during the process. The method is inspired by systemic and social constructionist perspectives related to practice research and also grounded theory. The sense I have made and express in this thesis is inevitably intertwined with experiences from past and present but also with hopes for the future, issues I would like to address for the future. The learning is partly influenced by interviews with leaders from different fields. Their sense-making has been summarised in themes that are explored and connected with and complemented with theoretical perspectives. The thesis highlights leaders’ personal and professional development as intertwined in an infinite process. The research also casts light on exploring aspects connected to values and ethics. From this journey a conceptualising of a leadership relational ethical compass and an organisational relational ethical compass has been developed. It shows that if we are grounded in values we also can be guided by these values in our leadership. But our values also need to be transformed in a meaningful and useful way to our employees and in relation to the mission we have. Leadership possibilities that arise could be seen as the aesthetics of leadership and how leadership is noticed and experienced. Often, small actions make a huge difference; how we think, communicate, and the words we use all create worlds and invite people into different patterns and meaning making conversations that are more or less helpful. The thesis highlights the importance of being comfortable with oneself and the mission as a leader. The thesis pays interest to how leaders’ self-development is intertwined with the potential of the organisation. Leaders can always increase their ability to interact with others in a meaningful and constructive way. This also shows that the mind-set we have as leaders plays an important role in how we experience our mission and the possibilities we see. The thesis is built on the idea of different domains. The introduction and methodology part represents what we can call the production domain. After this you will be invited to my personal domain and stories from my life that has influenced my sense-making. The next part will show some of the results and reflections that have arisen from interviews and will from this view take part of the production domain combined with reflections. The last chapter could be seen as my reflexive domain; how I have interwoven learning from the whole and come to certain hypotheses. The aesthetical domain could be seen as the overall how; how I have put it all together, the language and approach I have used, and how I have lived my values. This thesis and the research could also be seen as built on four parts: My professional development which is my systemic leadership practice. Developing systemic leadership practice in general. Focus on conducting systemic practice research which could be seen as in its birth. Interviews with leaders and connection to their understanding to increase aspects of leadership, sense-making and possibilities

The influence of rigidity of the collapsed roof rocks in the mined-out space on the state of the preparatory mine workings

Purpose. The substantiation of accounting the deformation-strength characteristics of the collapsed rocks and the rocks consolidating near the reusable preparatory mine working of the mined-out space to optimize the loading parameters of its fastening and security systems. Improving the research adequacy and recommendations reliability. Methods. By means of computational experiments based on the finite-element method, the influence has been studied of rigidity of the collapsed rocks and consolidating rocks in the mined-out space on the level of intensity of the load-bearing elements of the fastening and security systems of mine working. The analysis has been performed of the stress-strain state of the geomechanical system load-bearing elements, as well as comparative mine research. Findings. The research results and analysis are represented of the stress-strain state of the fastening and security systems elements in the preparatory mine workings with different degree of rigidity of the collapsed and consolidated rocks of the mined-out space. The patterns of the rigidity influence of the collapsed roof rocks on the stable state of preparatory mine workings have been assessed. Originality. A different-valued relation has been established between the deformation-strength characteristics of the collapsed rocks in the mined-out space and the elements of fastening and security systems of mine working, which should be considered when optimizing the modes of their operation. It has been revealed that the increased loading on the combined roof-bolting system elements protects the frame support from the increased rock pressure, which contributes to reducing the section losses of mine working. Practical implications. The research performed is the basis for the parameters optimization when maintaining the preparatory mine workings for their repeated use and also for the rational parameters search of the combined roof-bolting system in order to develop a method for choosing its parameters depending on mining and geological conditions.Мета. Обґрунтування урахування деформаційно-силової характеристики обвалених і ущільнюючих порід виробленого простору поблизу підготовчої виробки, що повторно використовується, для оптимізації параметрів навантаження її кріпильної й охоронної систем. Підвищення адекватності досліджень та достовірності рекомендацій. Методика. Обчислювальними експериментами на основі методу скінченних елементів досліджувався вплив жорсткості обвалених і ущільнюючих порід виробленого простору на рівень напруженості вантажонесучих елементів кріпильної й охоронної систем виробки. Проведено аналіз напружено-деформованого стану вантажонесучих елементів геомеханічної системи та порівняльні шахтні дослідження. Результати. Наведено результати досліджень та аналіз напружено-деформованого стану елементів кріпильної й охоронної систем підготовчих виробок при різному ступені жорсткості обвалених і ущільнених порід виробленого простору. Оцінено закономірності впливу жорсткості обвалених порід покрівлі на стійкий стан підготовчих виробок. Наукова новизна. Встановлено різновеликий зв’язок деформаційно-силових характеристик обвалених порід у виробленому просторі з елементами кріпильної й охоронної систем виробки, який необхідно враховувати при оптимізації режимів їх роботи. Виявлено, що підвищена завантаженість елементів комбінованої анкерної системи захищає рамне кріплення від підвищеного гірського тиску, що сприяє зниженню втрат перерізу виробки. Практична значимість. Виконані дослідження є базою для оптимізації параметрів підтримання підготовчих виробок при їх повторному використанні, а також є основою для пошуку раціональних параметрів комбінованої анкерної системи з метою розробки методики вибору її параметрів залежно від гірничо-геологічних умов.Цель. Обоснование учета деформационно-силовой характеристики обрушенных и уплотняющихся вблизи повторно используемой подготовительной выработки пород выработанного пространства для оптимизации параметров нагружения ее крепежной и охранной систем. Повышение адекватности исследований и достоверности рекомендаций. Методика. Вычислительными экспериментами на основе метода конечных элементов исследовалось влияние жесткости обрушенных и уплотняющихся пород выработанного пространства на уровень напряженности грузонесущих элементов крепежной и охранной систем выработки. Проведен анализ напряженно-деформированного состояния грузонесущих элементов геомеханической системы и сравнительные шахтные исследования. Результаты. Приведены результаты исследований и анализ напряженно-деформированного состояния элементов крепежной и охранной систем подготовительных выработок при разной степени жесткости обрушенных и уплотненных пород выработанного пространства. Оценены закономерности влияния жесткости обрушенных пород кровли на устойчивое состояние подготовительных выработок. Научная новизна. Установлена разновеликая связь деформационно-силовых характеристик обрушенных пород в выработанном пространстве с элементами крепежной и охранной систем выработки, что необходимо учитывать при оптимизации режимов их работы. Выявлено, что повышенная загруженность элементов комбинированной анкерной системы защищает рамную крепь от повышенного горного давления, что способствует снижению потерь сечения выработки. Практическая значимость. Выполненные исследования являются базой для оптимизации параметров поддержания подготовительных выработок при их повторном использовании, а также являются основой для поиска рациональных параметров комбинированной анкерной системы с целью разработки методики выбора ее параметров в зависимости от горно-геологических условий.The authors express their gratitude to the management of DTEK Coal Unit for their assistance in organizing the experimental research

Entaglements of circles, phi and strings

This study focuses on the entanglements of material discursive agents in a mathematical explorative activity, where learners systematically investigate the properties of the circle. A diffractive methodology is used to explore the emerging intra-activity in-between the teacher, the learners, different teaching materials, the mathematical concepts and formulas, as abstract and concrete aspects of mathematics education are set in motion. The results show that concrete material-discursive agents, such as strings, rulers and bodies are entangled with abstract mathematical concepts such as circumference, formulas and phi.This paper reports on research conducted in the project “Tracing mathematics teacher education in practice” (TRACE), with funding from the Swedish National Research Council, project 2017-03614

Learning Quasi-Static 3D Models of Markerless Deformable Linear Objects for Bimanual Robotic Manipulation

The robotic manipulation of Deformable Linear Objects (DLOs) is a vital and challenging task that is important in many practical applications. Classical model-based approaches to this problem require an accurate model to capture how robot motions affect the deformation of the DLO. Nowadays, data-driven models offer the best tradeoff between quality and computation time. This paper analyzes several learning-based 3D models of the DLO and proposes a new one based on the Transformer architecture that achieves superior accuracy, even on the DLOs of different lengths, thanks to the proposed scaling method. Moreover, we introduce a data augmentation technique, which improves the prediction performance of almost all considered DLO data-driven models. Thanks to this technique, even a simple Multilayer Perceptron (MLP) achieves close to state-of-the-art performance while being significantly faster to evaluate. In the experiments, we compare the performance of the learning-based 3D models of the DLO on several challenging datasets quantitatively and demonstrate their applicability in the task of shaping a DLO.Comment: Under review for IEEE Robotics and Automation Letter