On the Strichartz estimates for the kinetic transport equation

We show that the endpoint Strichartz estimate for the kinetic transport equation is false in all dimensions. We also present a new approach to proving the non-endpoint cases using multilinear analysis.Comment: 5 page

Estimates for the kinetic transport equation in hyperbolic Sobolev spaces

We establish smoothing estimates in the framework of hyperbolic Sobolev spaces for the velocity averaging operator $\rho$ of the solution of the kinetic transport equation. If the velocity domain is either the unit sphere or the unit ball, then, for any exponents $q$ and $r$, we find a characterisation of the exponents $\beta_+$ and $\beta_-$, except possibly for an endpoint case, for which $D_+^{\beta_+}D_-^{\beta_-} \rho$ is bounded from space-velocity $L^2_{x,v}$ to space-time $L^q_tL^r_x$. Here, $D_+$ and $D_-$ are the classical and hyperbolic derivative operators, respectively. In fact, we shall provide an argument which unifies these velocity domains and the velocity averaging estimates in either case are shown to be equivalent to mixed-norm bounds on the cone multiplier operator acting on $L^2$. We develop our ideas further in several ways, including estimates for initial data lying in certain Besov spaces, for which a key tool in the proof is the sharp $\ell^p$ decoupling theorem recently established by Bourgain and Demeter. We also show that the level of permissible smoothness increases significantly if we restrict attention to initial data which are radially symmetric in the spatial variable.Comment: 23 pages; some additional arguments added to the proof of Theorem 1.3 in the case d=3; to appear in Journal de Math\'ematiques Pures et Appliqu\'ee

Investigating eLearning Continuance Through Expectation Disconfirmation Theory

This study set out to investigate the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) eLearning participation and completion phenomenon of learners and to explore motivation of CPD eLearning intentions and completions. This study focused on why learners choose CPD eLearning and why they continue in CPD eLearning. Based on the Expectations Disconfirmation theory (EDT) and the DeLone and McLean Information Systems Success Model (1992), a survey was developed and then sent to a cross-section of registered CPD eLearners from the first responder community. After the data was collected 217 responses were analyzed with SPSS correlational techniques and through PROCESS which is a modeling tool. The study found that overall information, service, system, and learning expectations and perceptions of quality are positively related to each other as well as disconfirmation and satisfaction. Furthermore, disconfirmation was found to be positively correlated to satisfaction. Continuance intention and continuance behavior were positively related to each other as well as to satisfaction, respectively. Intrinsic motivation did have a moderation effect on satisfaction as it related to continuance intention and continuance behavior. Although generalization of the results should be exercised with caution, this study offers implications to CPD eLearning research and theory building with relation to disconfirmation, satisfaction, motivation, continuance intention, and continuance behavior. Many variables, ultimately, positively affect CPD eLearning continuance. Learners that are more satisfied tend to continue in CPD eLearning, but also have the motivation to continue in other types of eLearning. CPD eLearning quality and the learner’s motivation should not be forgotten if learner continuance is the goal. Continuance behavior is related to the learner’s satisfaction. All parties involved in the development and delivery of the CPD eLearning should be mindful. The study fills a gap in the CPD eLearning literature. This study had a mix of first responders that had and had not completed the CPD eLearning. This provides a different perspective than most studies tend to gather

Determination of the influence of specific building regulations in smart buildings

The automation of domestic services began to be implemented in buildings since the late nineteenth century, and today we are used to terms like ‘intelligent buildings’, ‘digital home’ or ‘domotic buildings’. These concepts tell us about constructions which integrate new technologies in order to improve comfort, optimize energy consumption or enhance the security of users. In conjunction, building regulations have been updated to suit the needs of society and to regulate these new facilities in such structures. However, we are not always sure about how far, from the quantitative or qualitative point of view, legislation should regulate certain aspects of the building activity. Consequently, content analysis is adopted in this research to determine the influence of building regulations in the implementation of new technologies in the construction process. This study includes the analysis of different European regulations, the collection and documentation of such guidelines that have been established and a study of the impact that all of these have had in the way we start thinking an architectural project. The achievements of the research could be explained in terms of the regulatory requirements that must be taken into account in order to achieve a successful implementation of a home automation system, and the key finding has been the confirmation of how the design of smart buildings may be promoted through specific regulatory requirements while other factors, such as the global economic situation, do not seem to affect directly the rate of penetration of home automation in construction

A Rapid and Efficient Method for Purifying High Quality Total RNA from Peaches (Prunus persica) for Functional Genomics Analyses

http://www.scielo.cl/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0716-97602005000100010&lng=es&nrm=isoPrunus persica has been proposed as a genomic model for deciduous trees and the Rosaceae family. Optimized protocols for RNA isolation are necessary to further advance studies in this model species such that functional genomics analyses may be performed. Here we present an optimized protocol to rapidly and efficiently purify high quality total RNA from peach fruits (Prunus persica). Isolating high-quality RNA from fruit tissue is often difficult due to large quantities of polysaccharides and polyphenolic compounds that accumulate in this tissue and co-purify with the RNA. Here we demonstrate that a modified version of the method used to isolate RNA from pine trees and the woody plant Cinnamomun tenuipilum is ideal for isolating high quality RNA from the fruits of Prunus persica. This RNA may be used for many functional genomic based experiments such as RT-PCR and the construction of large-insert cDNA libraries

A Case Study Examination Of Form-Based Code Use In North Carolina

Form-based codes (FBC) are a regulatory instrument that emerged from the New Urbanism movement in the 1990s as an alternative to conventional zoning. In contrast to conventional zoning, which regulates the ways land is used and to what intensity, FBC put the primary regulation on the types of allowed buildings, rather than on the uses contained within the structures. Proponents suggest that FBC can be used to shape the built environment according to human-scale patterns, rather than the car-oriented patterns that dominated the latter half of the 20th Century. While FBC initially were used for new developments, municipalities across the nation have adopted them for existing urban areas. Some of these codes apply to specific districts within a traditional zoning scheme; others have completely replaced the conventional zoning systems. In North Carolina, at least nine municipalities have adopted form-based land use regulations. The first of these codes was adopted by the City of Belmont (1993), located west of Charlotte in Gaston County. Three towns along the Interstate 77 corridor in northern Mecklenburg County followed: Davidson (1995), Cornelius (1996), and Huntersville (1996). Other municipalities with FBC are scattered across the state: Catawba (2003) and Conover (1999) in Catawba County, Mooresville in Iredale County (2005), Waynesville in Haywood County (2005), and Knightdale in Wake County (2005). Given the longevity of FBCs in the state and the number of municipalities that have adopted them in some capacity, an analysis of their application could be useful to planning professionals, elected officials and other interested parties. Therefore, the purpose of this project is to: a) Explain the rationale for FBC. b) Compare the approaches to their use in North Carolina. c) Evaluate the effectiveness of the codes in reaching their intended results.Master of City and Regional Plannin

The good, the bad and the ugly: perceptions of wildlife in Tombali (Guinea-Bissau, West Africa)

Labels attributed to different species - ‘good' or ‘bad' - can provide clues about the underlying attitudes that may determine values applied to nonhumans. Understanding such values can guide community conservation approaches, such as assessing which animals might act as flagship species (biophilic), which are thought to be of use (utilitarian), or which are viewed with hostility (authoritarian). This paper considers how people from Cantanhez National Park (Tombali, Guinea-Bissau) perceive nonhumans in order to assess whether sociozoologic scales can access people's perceptions of biodiversity. We focus on chimpanzees as a potential flagship species for promoting forest conservation. Three hypotheses were considered: (i) A correlation between positive attitudes and edibility was expected for most species, except for chimpanzees that hold attributes other than those of utility; (ii) Chimpanzees were expected to be perceived as ‘similar to humans', which should produce positive perceptions; (iii) Perceptions reflect gender and religious differences. Women who encounter chimpanzees as crop-raiders will dislike and fear chimpanzees more than men while religion was expected to influence the degree of anthropocentrism. A survey of 257 villagers was conducted between February and March 2007. Photos of Guinean animals and one of a non-Guinean control species (N=27) were shown to subjects who were asked to apply adjectives such as ‘good', ‘bad', ‘edible', ‘inedible', ‘pretty', ‘ugly', among others, and then to rank the top three animals that most strongly represented each adjective. Descriptive statistical and principal component analyses were applied to these rankings. With the exception of some religious beliefs that protect chimpanzees from bushmeat exploitation - contributing to their inedibility - people perceived them as ugly and bad. Chimpanzees human resemblance has protected them from hunting pressure, but their tendency to raid the farms makes them vulnerable to the villagers' hostility. Authorities need to consider if chimpanzees are a good flagship, since attitudes towards this species were ambivalent

Accretion Disks Around Young Objects. II. Tests of Well-Mixed Models with Ism Dust

We construct detailed vertical structure models of irradiated accretion disks around T Tauri stars with interstellar medium dust uniformly mixed with gas. The dependence of the structure and emission properties on mass accretion rate, viscosity parameter, and disk radius is explored using these models. The theoretical spectral energy distributions (SEDs) and images for all inclinations are compared with observations of the entire population of Classical T Tauri stars (CTTS) and Class I objects in Taurus. In particular, we find that the median near-infrared fluxes can be explained within the errors with the most recent values for the median accretion rates for CTTS. We further show that the majority of the Class I sources in Taurus cannot be Class II sources viewed edge-on because they are too luminous and their colors would be consistent with disks seen only in a narrow range of inclinations. Our models appear to be too geometrically thick at large radii, as suggested by: (a) larger far-infrared disk emission than in the typical SEDs of T Tauri stars; (b) wider dark dust lanes in the model images than in the images of HH30 and HK Tau/c; and (c) larger predicted number of stars extincted by edge-on disks than consistent with current surveys. The large thickness of the model is a consequence of the assumption that dust and gas are well-mixed, suggesting that some degree of dust settling may be required to explain the observations.Comment: 41 pages, 13 figures, accepted in Ap

Influence of plasticizer and biocide on the functional properties of gelatin-based adhesives used in painting consolidation

The study presented herein focuses on the influence of glycerol and citronella oil, added to gelatin dispersions as plasticizer and biocide, respectively, on the mechanical, water barrier and other functional properties of gelatin-based adhesives used in treatments of painting consolidation. For this purpose, ATR-FTIR spectroscopy, gas chromatography mass spectrometry, atomic force microscopy analyses combined with tensile, water vapour permeability, water content and water solubility tests were performed on gelatin films prepared by adding glycerol and citronella oil. These two products were chosen for their low toxicity and eco-friendly properties. The modification in the behaviour of gelatin-based adhesives as a result of addition of glycerol and citronella oil was evaluated on the basis of changes of the three-dimensional structure of the protein molecules due to their interaction with glycerol and citronella oil. All these data were provided by the analytical techniques. In a second step, stability of the proposed adhesive to light was assessed to establish its suitability for painting consolidation. The results suggest that citronella oil enhances the effectiveness of glycerol to improve mechanical behaviour and reversibility of the gelatine-based adhesive. Light ageing of the specimens containing the proposed additives produced no remarkable changes in structure, mechanical, water barrier and other functional properties of the adhesives.Financial support is gratefully acknowledged from the Spanish 'I+D+I MICINN' projects CTQ2011-28079-CO3-01 supported by ERDEF funds.Domenech Carbo, MT.; Lee, Y.; Osete Cortina, L.; Martín Rey, S. (2015). Influence of plasticizer and biocide on the functional properties of gelatin-based adhesives used in painting consolidation. Journal of Adhesion Science and Technology. 29(17):1774-1795. https://doi.org/10.1080/01694243.2014.975999S17741795291