MONITORING OF INDUSTRIAL PROCESS USING INTELLIGENT TOMOGRAPHY SYSTEM

The objective of this project is to come up with a monitoring system in a pipeline or vessel of an industrial process without intrusion of the pipeline/vessel by sensor equipment. This is done by taking a set of measurements using sensors that are distributed around the periphery of the vessel/pipeline. The information obtained is then used to reconstruct the cross sectional image inside the vessel/pipeline. In an industrial process, numerous data can be collected from materials ( eg gas, liquid or solids) inside the pipeline/vessel such as flow regime, solids fraction profile, volumetric flow rate etc. Traditional monitoring systems required the sensing elements to be placed inside the vessel/pipeline thus making it intrusive. This intrusion will cause disturbance to the flow thus creating measurement errors. This project will utilize Electrical Capacitance Tomography (ECT) as its sensing method. The tomography system itself is divided into two parts namely data acquisition and data processing

What Happened to Praxis? Toward a Public Sociology Considering the Occupation of the West Bank

This article is a call to praxis in speaking the truth concerning the conditions of the Occupation in the West Bank. It examines the inequalities of Israeli-Arab casualties in recent conflicts, including the Lebanon War (2006) and Gaza (ongoing), and the bias in media reports. It also examines the legacy of Orientalism by discussing religion, “terrorism,” sociological notions of objectivity and American political objectives

Bioenergetics of Hawaiian Honeycreepers: the Amakihi (Loxops virens) and the Anianiau (L. parva)

Reports were scanned in black and white at a resolution of 300 dots per inch and were converted to text using Adobe Paper Capture Plug-in. Color plates were scanned separately at 400 dpi.Insular biotas have attracted considerable biological attention, and have been very important in the formulation of evolutionary thought and theory. Since Charles Darwin's visit to the Galapagos Islands and his description of the Galapagos Finches, insular land birds have played very prominent roles in evolutionary biology, largely based upon detailed morphological and taxonomic analyses. Yet virtually no attention has been paid to assessments of the functional attributes of terrestrial birds inhabiting oceanic islands. Ideal candidates for studies of adaptive physiology of an island avifauna are the endemic Hawaiian Honeycreepers (Passeriformes: Drepanididae) which exhibit among their…. "numerous species the most striking example of adaptive radiation from an assumed single ancestral species of any bird family in the world" (Berger, 1970). This study undertakes to examine certain bioenergetic characteristics of two congeneric species of Hawaiian Honeycreepers, the Amakihi (Loxops virens) and the Anianiau (L. parva), with the view of providing data for comparisons with those derived from continental land birds. Such data, hopefully, will reveal the magnitudes of physiological divergence and/or convergence of these island birds. Included in this study are assessments of oxygen consumption, thermoregulation, and evaporative water loss.Department of Population and Environmental Biology University of California Irvine, California 9266

From the Center in the Middle: Working Tambura Bands and the Construction of the In Between in Croatia and its Intimates

In November 2009, Croatian pop singer Miroslav Škoro performed in front of some twenty thousand fans at Arena Zagreb, the capital city's much lauded new sports hall. This was the second largest audience drawn by a Croatian act since the hall's opening the previous December, I a testament to Škoro's continuing status as one of Croatia's most popular patriotic performers (as well as television star and, in recent years, politician and record mogul). Aside from the notably large attendance, the concert in Zagreb was of particular significance to Škoro for its timing: held on the twentieth day of November, his performance celebrated twenty years' work in the music industry as a professional singer and songwriter. Accompanied by his band (on backup vocals, tenor saxophone, acoustic and electric guitars, keyboard, drums, and electric bass) and a number of guest musicians from past projects and from his family, Škoro performed repertoire from throughout his career and thereby commemorated his twenty years of hit songs and his many musical collaborations with these and other musicians. In this article, I examine recent economic strategies and difficulties of Croatia-based semiprofessional tambura bands in light of their relations with musical celebrities such as Skoro and with Croat fans in both domestic and international contexts. Drawing on fieldwork conducted with numerous bands at rehearsals and concerts between 2007 and 2011, I situate their present endeavors and concerns in a deeper historical context, focusing especially on musical trends and economic changes (and their continuing role in musicians' discourses on the state) since Croatia's secession from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in 1991.5 I argue that the circulation of tambura music and mobility of ensembles in foreign extensions of the Croatian tambura scene have become integral to the current social positioning of Croatia as both occupying an economically and culturally intermediary position (in relation to its more "Balkan" and "European" neighbors) and constituting a musical center (related constructs that I explicate below). I further analyze the commercial limitations that working tambura bands face in establishing their music within Croatian popular culture and examine the impact of these conditions on the construction of a Croatian tambura "sound:

MONITORING OF INDUSTRIAL PROCESS USING INTELLIGENT TOMOGRAPHY SYSTEM

The objective of this project is to come up with a monitoring system in a pipeline or vessel of an industrial process without intrusion of the pipeline/vessel by sensor equipment. This is done by taking a set of measurements using sensors that are distributed around the periphery of the vessel/pipeline. The information obtained is then used to reconstruct the cross sectional image inside the vessel/pipeline. In an industrial process, numerous data can be collected from materials ( eg gas, liquid or solids) inside the pipeline/vessel such as flow regime, solids fraction profile, volumetric flow rate etc. Traditional monitoring systems required the sensing elements to be placed inside the vessel/pipeline thus making it intrusive. This intrusion will cause disturbance to the flow thus creating measurement errors. This project will utilize Electrical Capacitance Tomography (ECT) as its sensing method. The tomography system itself is divided into two parts namely data acquisition and data processing

Metabolic, hygric and ventilatory physiology of a hypermetabolic marsupial, the honey possum (Tarsipes rostratus)

The honey possum is the only non-volant mammal to feed exclusively on a diet of nectar and pollen. Like other mammalian and avian nectarivores, previous studies indicated that the honey possum's basal metabolic rate was higher than predicted for a marsupial of equivalent body mass. However, these early measurements have been questioned. We re-examined the basal metabolic rate (2.52 +/- A 0.222 ml O(2) g(-1) h(-1)) of the honey possum and confirm that it is indeed higher (162%) than predicted for other marsupials both before and after accounting for phylogenetic history. This, together with its small body mass (5.4 +/- A 0.14 g; 1.3% of that predicted by phylogeny) may be attributed to its nectarivorous diet and mesic distribution. Its high-basal metabolic rate is associated with a high-standard body temperature (36.6 +/- A 0.48A degrees C) and oxygen extraction (19.4%), but interestingly the honey possum has a high point of relative water economy (17.0A degrees C) and its standard evaporative water loss (4.33 +/- A 0.394 mg H(2)O g(-1) h(-1)) is not elevated above that of other marsupials, despite its mesic habitat and high dietary water intake.Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP

Roles of metabolic level and temperature regulation in the adjustment of Western plumed pigeons (Lophophaps ferruginea) to desert conditions

1. 1. Standard metabolic rate of western plumed pigeons (Lophophaps ferruginea) averages 0[middle dot]88 ml O2 (g hr)-1 during summer. This rate and the rate of evaporative water loss by these birds at 25[deg]C are well below levels anticipated for birds of comparable size (81 g).2. 2. Summer and late fall birds did not have significantly different minimal thermal conductances, the means for both approximating 1[middle dot]8 kcal (m2 hr [deg]C)-1.3. 3. A relatively low level of metabolism and effortless evaporative cooling restrict the caloric burden for western plumed pigeons in the hot and arid regions of northwestern Australia where these birds live. Other pigeons closely associated with hot and arid environments also have relatively low metabolic rates.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/33957/1/0000227.pd

Comparative physiology of Australian quolls (Dasyurus; Marsupialia)

Quolls (Dasyurus) are medium-sized carnivorous dasyurid marsupials. Tiger (3,840 g) and eastern quolls (780 g) are mesic zone species, northern quolls (516 g) are tropical zone, and chuditch (1,385 g) were once widespread through the Australian arid zone. We found that standard physiological variables of these quolls are consistent with allometric expectations for marsupials. Nevertheless, inter-specific patterns amongst the quolls are consistent with their different environments. The lower T ^sub b^ of northern quolls (34°C) may provide scope for adaptive hyperthermia in the tropics, and they use torpor for energy/water conservation, whereas the larger mesic species (eastern and tiger quolls) do not appear to. Thermolability varied from little in eastern (0.035°C °C^sup -1^) and tiger quolls (0.051°C ºC^sup -1^) to substantial in northern quolls (0.100°C ºC^sup -1^) and chuditch (0.146°C ºC^sup -1^), reflecting body mass and environment. Basal metabolic rate was higher for eastern quolls (0.662 ± 0.033 ml O^sub 2^ g^sup -1^ h^sup -1^), presumably reflecting their naturally cool environment. Respiratory ventilation closely matched metabolic demand, except at high ambient temperatures where quolls hyperventilated to facilitate evaporative heat loss; tiger and eastern quolls also salivated. A higher evaporative water loss for eastern quolls (1.43 ± 0.212 mg H^sub 2^O g^sup -1^ h^sup -1^) presumably reflects their more mesic distribution. The point of relative water economy was low for tiger (-1.3°C), eastern (-12.5°C) and northern (+3.3) quolls, and highest for the chuditch (+22.6°C). We suggest that these differences in water economy reflect lower expired air temperatures and hence lower respiratory evaporative water loss for the arid-zone chuditch relative to tropical and mesic quolls

Geographical variation in the standard physiology of brushtail possums (Trichosurus): Implications for conservation translocations

Identifying spatial patterns in the variation of physiological traits that occur within and between species is a fundamental goal of comparative physiology. There has been a focus on identifying and explaining this variation at broad taxonomic scales, but more recently attention has shifted to examining patterns of intra-specific physiological variation. Here we examine geographic variation in the physiology of brushtail possums (Trichosurus), widely distributed Australian marsupials, and discuss how pertinent intra-specific variation may be to conservation physiology. We found significant geographical patterns in metabolism, body temperature, evaporative water loss and relative water economy. These patterns suggest that possums from warmer, drier habitats have more frugal energy and water use and increased capacity for heat loss at high ambient temperatures. Our results are consistent with environmental correlates for broad-scale macro-physiological studies, and most intra-generic and intra-specific studies of marsupials and other mammals. Most translocations of brushtail possums occur into Australia's arid zone, where the distribution and abundance of possums and other native mammals have declined since European settlement, leading to reintroduction programmes aiming to re-establish functional mammal communities. We suggest that the sub-species T. vulpecula hypoleucus from Western Australia would be the most physiologically appropriate for translocation to these arid habitats, having physiological traits most favourable for the extreme Ta, low and variable water availability and low productivity that characterize arid environments. Our findings demonstrate that geographically widespread populations can differ physiologically, and as a consequence some populations are more suitable for translocation to particular habitats than others. Consideration of these differences will likely improve the success and welfare outcomes of translocation, reintroduction and management programmes

Visions for a walking and cycling focussed urban transport system

Walking and cycling can make a considerable contribution to sustainable transport goals, building healthier and more sustainable communities and contributing to traffic and pollution reduction. There have been many national and local initiatives to promote walking and cycling, but without a long term vision and consistent strategy it is difficult to see how a significant change may be achieved. This paper presents three alternative visions for the role of walking and cycling in urban areas for the year 2030: each vision illustrates a ‘desirable’ walking- and cycling-oriented transport system against a different ‘exogenous social background’. These visions have been developed through a process of expert discussion and review and are intended to provide a stimulus for debate on the potential for and desirability of such alternative futures. Each is based on the UK and represents a substantial change to the current situation: in particular, each of the visions presents a view of a society where walking and cycling are considerably more important than is currently the case and where these modes cater for a much higher proportion of urban transport needs than at present. The visions show pictures of urban environments where dependence on motor vehicles has been reduced, in two of the visions to very low levels. The methodological approach for devising visions is informed by work on ‘utopian thinking’: a key concept underlying this approach is one of viewing the future in social constructivist terms (i.e. the future is what ‘we’, as a society, make it) rather than considering the future as something that can be ‘scientifically’ predicted by the extrapolation of current trends