Solitary waves and their stability in colloidal media: semi-analytical solutions

Spatial solitary waves in colloidal suspensions of spherical dielectric nanoparticles are considered. The interaction of the nanoparticles is modelled as a hard-sphere gas, with the Carnahan-Starling formula used for the gas compressibility. Semi-analytical solutions, for both one and two spatial dimensions, are derived using an averaged Lagrangian and suitable trial functions for the solitary waves. Power versus propagation constant curves and neutral stability curves are obtained for both cases, which illustrate that multiple solution branches occur for both the one and two dimensional geometries. For the one-dimensional case it is found that three solution branches (with a bistable regime) occur, while for the two-dimensional case two solution branches (with a single stable branch) occur in the limit of low background packing fractions. For high background packing fractions the power versus propagation constant curves are monotonic and the solitary waves stable for all parameter values. Comparisons are made between the semi-analytical and numerical solutions, with excellent comparison obtained.Comment: Paper to appear in Dynamics of Continuous, Discrete and Impulsive Systems, Series

THE GLOBAL COMPETITIVENESS OF THE U.S. FOOD-PROCESSING INDUSTRY

Agribusiness,

Preliminary compressor design study for an advanced multistage axial flow compressor

An optimum, axial flow, high pressure ratio compressor for a turbofan engine was defined for commercial subsonic transport service starting in the late 1980's. Projected 1985 technologies were used and applied to compressors with an 18:1 pressure ratio having 6 to 12 stages. A matrix of 49 compressors was developed by statistical techniques. The compressors were evaluated by means of computer programs in terms of various airline economic figures of merit such as return on investment and direct-operating cost. The optimum configuration was determined to be a high speed, 8-stage compressor with an average blading aspect ratio of 1.15

New England: a source book of instructional materials

Thesis (M.A.)--Boston University, 1948. This item was digitized by the Internet Archive

Competitive Analysis and Market Power of China’s Soybean Import Market

This research conducts a competitive structure analysis of the Chinese soybean import market which leads to the hypothesis that China’s soybean importers may have stronger market power in China’s soybean import market. Then, this research develops and simultaneously estimates a two-country partial equilibrium trade model to test U.S.-China market power of soybean trade. The empirical result supports our hypothesis that Chinese soybean importers have stronger market power relative to U.S. soybean exporters. This Chinese market power can be countered by U.S. and South American companies through developing new and expanding existing markets for soybeans throughout the world and investing in Chinese soybean storage and crushing capacity.Chinese soybean import market, competitive structure analysis, market power, two-country partial equilibrium trade model, International Relations/Trade, Marketing, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods, Q10, Q12, Q17,

Climate change perception, awareness and adaptation decision among forest communities in Nigeria

In recent time the perception of climate change is beginning to gain recognition in policy circles, due to the need to understand how individuals’ experiences and attributes influence their understanding of climate change and their adaptation  processes.This is important to development well-targeted policies and interventions among the forest poor. The perception of climate change and adaptation decision of forest communities in Nigeria were analyzed using the logit model. Results show that over88% of the respondents have perceived climate change in one form or the other in all the ecological regions except in the montane forest where only 33% has.Over 84 % are aware of changes in forest resource use over time except in the montane forest where only 24% did. Ability to notice climate change was positively associated with spring rainfall, but negatively associated with education, net income, summer and fall precipitation. Decision to take up innovation was positively associated with access to electricity, number of years of forest use, winter rainfall and temperature, and negatively associated with summer rainfall. Spring rainfall has a 2.4% likelihood of positively influencing the chance of noticing climate change, while it is negative with summer and fall rainfall; 0.4 and 1.7% respectively.Access to electricity, number of years of forest use and winter rainfall likely increase innovation adoption by 18.6, 0.5 and 1.5% respectively, while summer precipitation reduces the likelihood of adoption by 0.4%.It is therefore important for stakeholders to synchronizetheseinformation in order to help build the adaptive capacity of forest communities not only in Nigeria but across the developing world.Keywords: Adaptive capacity, Adoption, Forest resources, Innovation, Policy

Modelling the electrical conductivity of soil in the Yangtze delta in three dimensions

Numerous processes, past and present, have given rise to lateral and vertical variation in the soil and to its individual properties such as its salinity and electrical conductivity. The resulting patterns of variation are complex and appear to comprise both random and deterministic components. The latter dominates vertically as trends in most soil profiles, and in the situation we describe it is prominent in the horizontal plane, too. Describing this variation requires flexible choice of covariance function. The processes of model estimation and prediction by kriging in three dimensions are similar to those in two dimensions. The extra complexity of the three-dimensional variation requires practitioners to appreciate fully the assumptions that their choices of model imply and to establish ways of testing the validity of these assumptions. We have examined several covariance functions more commonly used to describe simultaneously variation in space and time and adapted them to model three-dimensional variation in soil. We have applied these covariance functions to model the variation in salinity in reclaimed land in the Yangtze delta of China where the apparent electrical conductivity (ECa) has been measured at numerous points down to 1.1 m. The models take into account random and deterministic components in both the horizontal and vertical dimensions. The most suitable mixed model was then used to krige the ECa on a fine grid from which three-dimensional diagrams of the salinity are displayed

Plant specimens for identification

PLANT names and the naming of plant specimens are of fundamental importance in the science of botany. In applied botany as well, proper identification is of the utmost importance. In agriculture for instance, accuracy in naming poisonous plants and weeds, as well as fodder and pasture species, can save farmers considerable sums of money, and may be responsible for avoiding heavy stock losses