Typed Norms for Typed Logic Programs

As typed logic programming becomes more mainstream, system building tools like partial deduction systems will need to be mapped from untyped languages to typed ones. It is important, however, when mapping techniques across that the new techniques should exploit the type system as much as possible. in this paper, we show how norms which play a crucial role in termination analysis, can be generated from the prescribed types of a logic program. Interestingly, the types highlight restrictions of earlier norms and suggest how these norms can be extended to obtain some very general and powerful notions of norm which can be used to measure any term in an almost arbitrary way. We see our work on norm derivation as a contribution to the termination analysis of typed logic programs which, in particular, forms an essential part of offline partial deduction systems

Supplier relationship management best practices applied to the manufacture of a helicopter airframe in China

Thesis (M.B.A.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management; and, (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering; in conjunction with the Leaders for Manufacturing Program at MIT, 2009.Page 67 blank.Includes bibliographical references (p. 65-66).Sikorsky's recently begun program to manufacture the S-76 helicopter airframe at a supplier in China is examined as a case study of supplier relationship management. Best practices and key principles from the literature and other industry case studies are identified. Key concepts covered include: importance of product architecture and supplier strategic role on the appropriate type of supplier relationship to develop; the different stages of relationship management; the concept of making investments in a supplier relationship as a way of achieving desired relationship closeness; the importance of geography and culture on foreign supplier relationships. The best practices and principles are then used to analyze Sikorsky's performance in the China S- 76 airframe program to date. It is found that while Sikorsky is engaged in several key supplier relationship management activities, significant improvement could be made by more carefully considering how to overcome geographic and cultural distance and by making decisions about relationship investments in a more analytical way, with a focus on bottom-line financial impact. Finally, a generalized process for managing supplier relationships is developed. The six steps are: * Determine the appropriate relationship to develop with the supplier * Determine current supply chain proximity with the supplier * Determine stage of supplier relationship management and appropriate type of investments * Develop menu of relationship investment options * Determine the attractiveness of investment options * Select, prioritize and make investments.R. Jon King.S.M.M.B.A

Ignition and burn in perturbed inertial confinement fusion hotspots

This work explores how perturbations affect the performance of inertial confinement fusion hotspots through the inhibition of ignition and the effect on burn propagation post-ignition. To model this, a 3D Monte-Carlo charged particle transport module has been developed for the radiation-magnetohydrodynamics code Chimera. The behaviour of the hotspot and the hotspot power balance in three alpha-heating regimes - self-heating, robust ignition and propagating burn - are explored in 1D through hydrodynamic scaling with capsule size and laser energy, demonstrating strong alpha-heating effects on the hydrodynamic evolution. The hotspot’s definition affects calculated hotspot parameters, particularly in weak alpha-heating regimes where the boundary between the hotspot and the shell is less well-defined. The impact of perturbations on the hotspot was explored using idealised spike and bubble perturbations. Less efficient PdV heating of the hotspot reduces the strength of the alpha-heating bootstrap. The spike significantly increased heat flow out of the hotspot from thermal conduction and alpha-heating; due to larger temperature gradients and surface area around the spike, and the closer proximity of cold, dense material to the primary fusion regions respectively. The bubble’s effect on the hotspot power losses was minimal, but re-expansion into the bubble reduced confinement and truncated burn. 3D implosions based on National Ignition Facility Highfoot and High-Density Carbon (HDC) designs were perturbed using short-wavelength multi-mode and long-wavelength radiation asymmetry perturbations and scaled with capsule size and laser energy. The multi-mode yield increased faster with scale factor due to more synchronous P dV compression producing higher temperatures, and therefore stronger alpha-heating bootstrapping. Significant yield degradation for the Highfoot design resulted in only modest improvements in yield from scaling, whereas the less degraded HDC design demonstrated non-linear yield scaling. Perturbed implosions in the propagating burn regime exhibited fire-polishing due to thermal conduction and alpha-heating, in addition to "aneurysm"-like loss of confinement.Open Acces

Using Informal Conversations in Qualitative Research

The aim of this paper is to promote a greater use of informal conversations in qualitative research. Although not a new innovation, we posit that they are a neglected innovation and a method that should become more widely employed. We argue that these conversations create a greater ease of communication and often produce more naturalistic data. While many researchers have written about the use of informal conversations in ethnography, as part of participant observation, we are advocating that these conversations have an application beyond ethnography and can be used in more general qualitative exploration that occurs in everyday settings where talking is involved. They can be used as the main method but also to complement and add to more formal types of data created through interview. Sometimes informal conversations are not only the best way, they are the only way to generate data. We use examples to show how we have used informal conversations in our research, which we interrogate and use to raise a number of, mainly ethical and methodological, issues. We discuss the main advantages and disadvantages of using this method, including the status and validity of data produced

Gas Concentration Measurements in Underground Waste Storage Tanks

Currently over 100 underground tanks at the Hanford facility in eastern Washington state are being used to store high-level radioactive waste. With plans for a long-term nuclear-waste repository in Nevada in place (though not yet approved), one promising use for these underground storage tanks is as a temporary waystation for waste destined for the Nevada repository. However, without a reasonable understanding of the chemical reactions going on within the tanks, transporting waste in and out of the tanks has been deemed to be unsafe. One hazard associated with such storage mechanisms is explosion of flammable gases produced within the tank. Within many of the storage tanks is a sludge layer. This layer, which is a mixture of liquid and solids, contains most of the radioactive material. Radioactive decay and its associated heat can produce several flammable materials within this layer. Two components of particular concern are hydrogen (H2) and nitrous oxide (N2O), since they are highly volatile in the gaseous phase. Though the tanks have either forced or natural convection systems to vent these gases, the possibility of an explosion still exists. Measurements of these gases are taken in several ways. Continuous measurements are taken in the headspace, which is the layer between the tank ceiling and the liquid (supernatant) or sludge layer below. In tanks where a supernatant layer sits atop the sludge layer, there are often rollovers or gas release events (GREs), where a large chunk of sludge, after attaining a certain void fraction, becomes buoyant, rising through the supernatant and releasing its associated gas composition to the headspace. Such changes trigger a sensor, and thus measurements are also taken at that time. Lastly, a retained gas sample (RGS) can be taken from either the supernatant or sludge layer. Such a core sample is quite expensive, but can yield crucial data about the way gases are being produced in the sludge and convected through the supernatant. Unfortunately, the measurements from these three populations do not seem to match. In particular, the ratio r = [N2O]/[H2] varies from population to population. r also varies from tank to tank, but this can more readily be explained in terms of the waste composition of each tank. Since H2 is more volatile than N2O (and since there are more sources of oxygen in the headspace), lower values of r correspond to more hazardous situations. This variance in r is troubling, since we need to be able to explain why certain values of r are lower (and hence more dangerous) in certain areas of the tank. In this report we examine the data from three tanks. We first verify that the differences in r among populations is significant. We then postulate several mechanisms which could explain such a difference

Patent Landscape of Helminth Vaccines and Related Technologies

Executive Summary This report focuses on patent landscape analysis of technologies related to vaccines targeting parasitic worms, also known as helminths. These technologies include methods of formulating vaccines, methods of producing of subunits, the composition of complete vaccines, and other technologies that have the potential to aid in a global response to this pathogen. The purpose of this patent landscape study was to search, identify, and categorize patent documents that are relevant to the development of vaccines that can efficiently promote the development of protective immunity against helminths. The search strategy used keywords which the team felt would be general enough to capture (or “recall”) the majority of patent documents which were directed toward vaccines against helminths. After extensive searching of patent literature databases, approximately 2847 publications were identified and collapsed to about 446 INPADOC families. Relevant patent families, almost half of the total relevant families (210 being total number of relevant families), were then identified and sorted into the categories of trematodes, cestodes, nematodes or nonspecific helminth. The 210 patent families that were divided into these four major categories were then further divided into sub categories relating to common fields of technology (e.g. DNA vaccine, vaccine formulations, methods to produce subunits) This sorting process increased the precision of the result set. The four major categories (cestodes, nematodes, trematodes, and non specific applications) as well as the overall data set of the 210 relevant family members were subjected to a range of analytics in order to extract as much information as possible from the dataset. First, patent landscape maps were generated to assess the accuracy of the sorting procedure and to reveal the relationships between the various technologies that are involved in creating an effective vaccine. Then, filings trends are analyzed for the overall dataset of the 210 relevant families as well as by the categories of trematodes, cestodes, and nematodes. The country of origin each member of the 210 relevant families was determined, and the range of distribution to other jurisdictions was assessed. Filings were also analyzed by year, by assignee. Finally, the various patent classification systems were mapped to find which particular classes tend to hold helminth vaccine-related technologies. Besides the keywords developed during the searches and the landscape map generation, the classifications represent an alternate way for further researchers to identify emerging helminth vaccine technologies. The analysis included creation of a map of keywords describing the relationship of the various technologies involved in the development of helminth vaccines. The map has regions corresponding to plasmids and other gene based technologies used in DNA vaccines for Japonicum Schistosoma. Important technologies listed on the map include the use of reverse genetics to create reassorted viruses targeted for the use in veterinary applications. Additionally, the map suggests that numerous subunits exist for use in vaccines targeting cestodes, trematodes, and nematodes. Another major finding was that the number of patent documents related to helminths being published has been steadily increasing in the last decade, as shown in the figure below. Until the early-1990s, there were only a few helminth vaccine related patent documents being published each year. The number of publications increased noticeably when TRIPS took effect, resulting in publication of patent applications. However, since 2006 the number of vaccine publications has exploded. In the years 2011 and 2012, about 23 references disclosing parasitic worm vaccine technologies were published each year. Thus, interest in developing new and more efficacious helminth vaccines has been growing in recent years. The origin of the vaccine-related inventions was also analyzed. The team determined the country in which the priority application was filed, which was taken as an indication of the country where the invention was made or where the inventors intended to practice the invention. By far, most of the relevant families originated with patent applications filed in the United States and China. Other prominent priority countries were the United Kingdom, Japan, Brazil, Australia and France. Countries with the most filings were also analyzed. Countries that were heavily targeted for patent filings included the United States, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand. Top assignees for these families were mostly large pharmaceutical companies, with the majority of patent families coming from Heska, followed by Merck & Co., Institute Pasteur, AusBiotech Biotechnology, and Biological Sciences Research Council. Lastly, the jurisdictions were inventors have sought protection for their vaccine technologies were determined, and the number of patent families filing in a given country is plotted on the world map shown (Fig. 25). The United States, Canada, Australia, Japan, New Zealand and France have the highest level of filings, followed by Germany, Brazil, India, United Kingdom and Spain. However, although there are a significant number of filings in Brazil, the remainder of Central and South America has only sparse filings. Of concern, with the exception of South Africa, few other African nations have a significant number of filings. In summary, the goal of this report is to provide a knowledge resource for making informed policy decisions and for creating strategic plans concerning the assembly of vaccines targeting highly prevalent helminth infections. The ITTI team has defined the current state of the art of technologies involved in the manufacture of helminth vaccines, and the important assignees, inventors, and countries have been identified. This document should aid in evaluating the current state of vaccines technologies targeting helminths and the potential outgrows of these technological fields. Furthermore, as this report illustrates, the steady increase in helminth patenting, expanded diversity of assignees and greater global filings, indicates that intellectual property protection does not inhibit the development of crucial innovations for this class of neglected diseases, but, on the contrary, appears to be a driver of accelerated research and development

Contribució a l'estudi de les colònies de virot (Calonectris diomedea) i noneta (Hydrobates pelagicus) de l'arxipèlag de Cabrera

Se presenta el recompte nidificant de virot (Calonectris cliomedea) i noneta (Hydrobates pelagicus) a l'Arxipèlag de Cabrera (Balears) el 1992. Per als virots se calcula una estimació de 410-455 parelles nidificants. S'inclou un estudi sobre el tipus de nius que són emprats. S'han controlat dos adults anellats fa 17 anys, un quan era poll i l'altre, anellat ja com a adult, així que deu tenir alnanco 20 anys. S'analitzen i comparen les dades obtingudes sobre diferents paràmetres amb la informació disponible sobre altres recomptes a Cabrera. Per a la noneta s'estimen 10-20 parelles nidificants en un recompte parcial limitat a quatre illots. S'han realitzat dos controls per primera vegada, correspondents a la campanya de l'any anterior.Contribution to the research of the Cory's Sheawater (Calonectris diomedea) and Storm Petrel (Hydrobates pelagicus) coloides the Cabrera Archipelago. The breeding census made at Cabrera National Park during 1992 on the Cory's Sheawater (Calonectris diomedea) and the Storm Petrel (Hydrobates pelagicus) is presented. There is an estimation of 410- 455 breeding pairs for the Cory's Sheawater's population. It is included a research about the kinds of nests that are used. There were controlled two adults that had been ringed 17 years ago, one of them was ringed when it was a chick and the other one as an adult so it is about 20 years.The data that was got about differents parameters have been analysed and compared with the available information about other census made in Cabrera. There is an estimation of 10-20 breedeng pairs for the Storm Petrel's population considering the partial census that just was made in 4 islets. Two controls were made for the first time corresponding to the campaign of the last year