A Generalization of Band Joins and the Merge-Purge Problem

The problem of merging multiple databases of information about common entities is frequently encountered in large commercial and government organizations. The problem we study is often called the Merge/Purge problem and is difficult to solve both in scale and accuracy. Large repositories of data always have numerous duplicate information entries about the same entities that are difficult to cull together without an intelligent "equational theory" that identifies equivalent items by a complex, domain dependent matching process. We have developed a system for accomplishing this task for lists of names of potential customers in a direct marketing-type application. Our results for statistically generated data are shown to be accurate and effective when processing the data multiple times using different keys for sorting. The system provides a rule programming module that is easy to program and quite good at finding duplicates especially in an environment with massive amounts of data

The Providence Island Formation in the northern Appalachian Region - a Lower-lower Middle Ordovician analogue to recent arid-semiarid tidal-flat carbonates of the Persian Gulf Trucial Coast

The Providence Island Formation of Early-early Middle Ordovician age occurs in the Champlain Valley and adjacent areas in eastern New York, western Vermont, and southern Quebec. The unit forms part of a carbonate shelf sequence which occupied the eastern margin of the North American continent from Newfoundland to Alabama, and its lithology is representative of the dolostone lithofacies that characterizes the uppermost Beekmantown Group in this region. This is the first study documenting depositional environments, diagenesis, and stratigraphic correlations of the Providence Island Formation. This formation consists, in decreasing abundance, of dolostones, limestones, shales, and dedolostones. The dominantly fine grain size of the rocks as well as the presence of sedimentary and diagenetic features such as homogeneous and mottled structures (biogenic), stromatolites, mudcracks, herringbone cross-bedding, fenestral cavities, evaporites or their pseudomorphs, diapiric structures, and solution-collapse breccias indicate that these sediments record tidal flat paleoenvironments. These are low tidal flat, high tidal flat and, to a lesser extent, subtidal and supratidal settings similar to those existing in modern arid, restricted marine tidal flats of the Persian Gulf Trucial Coast. The lithofacies and their inferred setting include: (1) Homogeneous dolostone: subtidal to lower intertidal or, occasionally, supratidal (sabkha). (2) Homogeneous limestone: lower intertidal. (3),(4) Mottled dolostone/limestone: lower intertidal. (5),(6) Laminated dolostone/limestone: upper intertidal. (7) Skeletal limestone: mostly upper intertidal. (8) Dedolostone: mostly upper intertidal to supratidal. (9) Shale: subtidal-lower intertidal to supratidal. Most laminated dolostones and limestones represent stromatolites. On the basis of composition and texture, the alternating laminae are grouped into two types: - Dolomitic facies: (I) FM-CPA: (F-fine, M-matrix – C-coarse, P-pyritic, A-allochemical-terrigenous) and (II) F-CA. - Calcareous facies: (I) Mc-SPA: (Mc-micrite - S-sparite, P-pyrite, A-allochemical-terrigenous) and (II) Mc-SA. Some laminae are transitional types between these end members. Storms appear to have been the most important factor controlling the type of alternating laminae. The dolostone portion of the formation displays features that are characteristic of selective, sabkha diagenesis. These include the fine-grained size of the dolomite crystals, the preservation of primary structures (burrows, mudcracks, etc.), and the presence of gypsum and anhydrite crystals as well as their nodular pseudomorphs. Textural evidence suggests a diagenetic sequence of (1) synsedimentary cementation (or cohesiveness (?)), (2) precipitation of evaporites, dolomitization, and pyritization, (3) precipitation of calcite, (4) dissolution of evaporites and void infill by chert or carbonates, (5) dedolomitization, and (6) compaction and stylolitization. The most important mechanism for the precipitation of evaporites and subsequent dolomitization appears to have been flooding - reflux in a highly evaporative environment. Here, downward percolating brines with a high Mg/Ca ratio induced the dolomitization of the sediment in contact with this fluid. The conditions favoring the alternation of dolostones and limestones are unknown. The upper part of the formation may be divided into four members: the lowest one is about 2 - 3 m thick and is made up of limestones and is followed by a dolostone - dominated sequence (15 m, or more, thick). The overlying calcareous member is similar to, but 0.5- 1 m thicker than, the lower one. It is overlain by a second dolomitic member which could be considered as two units: the lower one (2.5 m) is characterized by laminated facies whereas the upper one (4.5 m or more) consists mainly of homogeneous and mottled facies. The formation seems to be more than 100 m thick in the central portion of the outcrop belt and reaches approximately 160 m in the area of Shoreham, Vermont. Extensive erosion after the time of deposition of the formation appears to be the cause of lateral differences in thickness, particularly to the south where the formation pinches out and disappears. The post-Beekmantown unconformity probably reflects such an erosive event. The tidal flats are thought to have developed on a tectonically stable area. Also, it seems that the flats were adjacent to both a very shallow lagoon which possibly was separated from the open (Iapetus) ocean by a physical barrier to the east and the shoreline to the west

Perceptions of Athletes and Executives in the Elite Sport in Colombia

학위논문(석사)--서울대학교 대학원 :사범대학 체육교육과,글로벌스포츠매니지먼트전공,2019. 8. 이충근.스포츠에서 좋은 거버넌스는 국제 스포츠 매니지먼트의 큰 화제이다. 이와 관련한 문제들을 해결하기 위한 제도적 노력에도 불구하고, 스포츠 행정의 스캔들은 여전히 일어나고 있다. 스포츠에서 좋은 거버넌스의 개념은 민주적 가치와 협력 관리에 의해 다루어진다. 이 연구의 목적은 콜롬비아 엘리트 스포츠에 있어 올림픽 및 스포츠 무브번트에 대한 선수들과 이사회의 행정가들의 좋은 거버넌스의 기본 원칙들의 효과성에 대한 인식을 비교하는 것이다. 표본은 62명의 선수들과 30명의 임원들로 구성되었다. 응답자들은 경영, 민주주의, 통합, 투명성, 결속, 선수들의 참여와 자치의 일곱 가지 원칙들을 포함한 온라인 설문조사를 완료하였다. 참여자들 간 좋은 거버넌스의 원칙에 대한 실행과 인식을 비교하기 위해 독립 표본 T 검정을 수행하였다. 전반적으로, 대부분의 참여자들은 좋은 거버넌스의 원칙에 대해 알지 못하였다(N=54, 83%). 임원 집단에서는 대부분이 좋은 거버넌스의 원칙에 대해 알고 있었던 반면(N=25 out of 29), 선수 집단에서는 대부분이 좋은 거버넌스의 원칙을 알지 못하였다(N=50 out of 62). 7가지 원칙들에 대한 차이는 모두 유의하게 나타났다. 콜롬비아 엘리트 스포츠의 좋은 거버넌스의 원칙의 실행에 대한 인식은 선수들과 임원들 간에 통계적 차이가 있었다. 선수들은 그들의 대표성(M= 0.028)과 자치성(M= 0.188) 원칙을 제외한 모든 영역에서 음의 평균을 나타냈다. 임원들은 좋은 거버넌스 원칙의 적용에 대한 인식에서 전반적으로 선수들보다 나은 인식을 가지고 있었으며, 모든 영역에서 정의 평균값을 나타냈다. 좋은 거버넌스와 같은 정책의 실현은 다양한 접근방식을 요구한다. 만약 국가올림픽위원회(NOC)가 그들 스스로 국가 연맹과 함께 좋은 거버넌스 원칙의 실행을 원한다면 이에 관한 교육을 시작해야 할 것이다.Good governance in sport is a big issue in international sport management. Despite institutional efforts to solve these problems, scandals in sport administration are still happening. The concept of good governance in sport is addressed by democratic values and corporate management. The purpose of this study was to compare athletes' and executive board members' perception of the effectiveness of the Basic Universal Principles of Good Governance in the Olympic and Sport Movement (PGG) in elite sport in Colombia. This study examined knowledge, implementation and perception of the (PGG). The sample consisted of 62 elite athletes and 30 executives. Respondents completed an online questionnaire that included seven principles such as management, democracy, integrity, transparency, solidarity, athletes participation and autonomy. An independent-samples t-test was conducted to compare the knowledge, implementation and perception of the PGG among participants. Overall, most of the participants do not know the PGG (N=54, 83%). Into the athletes group, most of them do not know the PGG (N=50 out of 62); while into the executives group, most of them know the PGG (N=25 out of 29). There was a significant difference in the scores for each one of the seven principles (p<.0001). The perception of the implementation of PGG in elite sport in Colombia are statistically different between athletes and executives. All categories had negative means from athletes perspective, with the exemption of athletes representation (M= 0.028) and autonomys principles (M= 0.188). The executives had overall better perception of the application of PGG than athletes, all their means were positives. Implementing policies such as good governance requires diverse approaches. If the NOC wants to implement the PGG with themselves and national federations, it should start providing education.Chapter 1. Introduction 10 1.1. Background 10 1.2. Objective 11 1.3. Significance 13 Chapter 2. Review of Literature 16 2.1. Effectiveness 16 2.2. Governance 20 2.3. Governance Theories 22 2.4. Sport Governance 24 2.5. Basic Universal Principles of Good Governance 31 2.6. Limitations of Basic Universal Principles of Good Governance in Sport 34 2.7. Elite sport context 36 2.8. Characteristics, Pressures and Challenges for Elite Sports Organizations 38 2.9. The role of State 41 2.10. Colombian Context 43 2.11. Colombian Sports Sector Context 45 2.12. National Sport System 46 2.13. The National Sports Plan 47 2.14. Previous research 48 Chapter 3. Methodology 51 3.2. Sampling 51 3.3. Strategy of Inquiry 52 3.3. Instrument 52 3.4. Data Analysis 54 3.5. Ethical Considerations 54 Chapter 4. Results 55 4.1. T-test results 55 4.1.1. Knowledge of PGG 55 4.1.2 Application of PGG 55 4.1.3. Perceptions of PGG 56 Chapter 5. Discussion 60 5.1. Comparison between athletes and executives 62 5.1.2. Athlete´s perspective 63 5.1.3. Executives perspective 65 5.1.4. Limitations 67 5.1.5. Proposals 69 5.1.6. Recommendations 70 Chapter 6. Conclusions 71 References 73 Appendix 83Maste

Transforming public spaces in Mexico :the case of colonias populares in Xalapa

PhD ThesisThe importance of public spaces in contemporary cities has been acknowledged and studied from different points of view and approaches by researchers of urbanism. However, most studies have focused on public spaces designed and produced by professionals for elite and affluent populations. In contrast, very little attention has been paid to the development of public spaces in those self-made urban environments "the popular habitat" of the developing world. In Mexican cities, the popular habitat is known as Colonias Populares (people's neighbourhoods) in which the urban environment consolidates and integrates to the city by gradual improvement processes at different levels of the urban environment from household up to neighbourhood level and mainly through the initiatives and participation of inhabitants. Within these processes, public spaces also play a very important role within the processes of consolidation and integration into the formal urban fabric. Within this context, the purpose of this thesis is to examine the dynamics of public space transformation within the urban consolidation process of colonias populares. The research examines various public spaces presenting different stages of consolidation in the colonias populares of the city of Xalapa-Veracruz in southeast Mexico. The research focuses on (1)the social relations and interactions of popular dwellers and other actors within the production process of public spaces; (2) the spatial actions and activities that give place to the physical configuration of public spaces as well as paying attention to the physical nature of the public space produced; (3) the different strategies and activities that residents and different actors carry out to protect, maintain and control public spaces; (4) finally, it studies the use, the possible conflicts over usage, appropriation and the role of the actors' culture and activities developing the life of public spaces in the popular habitat. To achieve a holistic understanding, the research examines the dynamics of public space transformation following a socio-spatial-symbolic framework of analysis, in which the urban environment is examined through its social and physical processes of development and materialization as well as its social and spatial process of everyday usage. Moreover this approach includes a symbolic dimension taking into account that these processes take place because of the meanings and representations that popular dwellers construct about their surrounding environment which in turn influences processes of urban production and consumption. The research is carried out using a qualitative methodology with an ethnographical approach based on a multi-method strategy. In this way, the thesis builds up its different arguments from informal conversations, semi-structured interviews, participant observation, photographs, personal documents, newspaper articles and drawings. This data was collected through extensive fieldwork carried out in five different colonias populares. It focused on specific public spaces in each neighbourhood. Through these cases the research seeks to demonstrate that public space transformation is important for popular dwellers in their agenda of urban consolidation. Finally, it aims to develop a greater understanding of the development and spatial construction of public spaces in the context of Mexican cities from which decision makers can learn in order to configure better public spaces and enhance the physical and social conditions of the urban environment, particularly in the context of the low-income population.The National Council of Science and Technology (Mexico)

Experimental and computational evaluation of thermal performance and overheating in double skin facades

Double Skin Facades (DSFs) have been developed as an alternative technology to improve the thermal performance of conventional fully glazed buildings. Nevertheless, there is little test information on the behaviour and real performance of DSFs. This is specifically the case when the facade has to perform under extreme or moderate summer conditions. The characteristics of thermal overheating of a specific type of DSF with various configurations and its practical control have not been subjected to systematic experimental and computational investigations. This research which is based on an existent load of knowledge, carried out experiments of a full-scale one-storey laboratory chamber of a selected type of Double Skin Facade in which a comparative analysis of the thermal performance is assessed, CFD simulations of the experimental model and a Field Case Study of an existing building in the United Kingdom is also monitored. The basic thermal behaviour in the facade cavity and adjacent room is investigated by a series of parametric studies and basic flow field investigations. Section models of the DSF chamber and the case building were made and modelled using CFD in order to visualise the thermal and airflow behaviour inside the DSF complementing the experimental and field work. The modelling work has demonstrated the feasibility and versatility of the technique for probing the flow and thermal behaviour of double skin facades. It was found that natural ventilation through the cavity by a series of controlled opening shafts on the upper and lower facade are effective means to reduce DSF overheating. It was also observed that the optical properties of cavity elements, cavity depth size, solar control and the basic operation of the facade are key issues to address in order to prevent overheating and additional heat loads from the facade

Economic Impact of Plan Colombia's Alternative Development Program

Overall, the investment projects of Plan Colombia in its program Alternative Development as evaluated in this work, which are equivalent to a foreign capital inflow of US$ 1164.5 million (for about 4 years) may increase GDP by about 1.2 percentage points, and lead to an increase in employment of 0.9 percentage points. The effect is reflected in the increase in both rural and urban incomes and a small improvement in income distribution. However, there are appreciation pressures on the exchange change that may affect exports especially those coming from the agricultural and industrial unskilled labor intensive sectors.Plan Colombia, Migration, Computable General Equilibrium Models, Harris-Todaro model

EJS-Based Laboratory for Learning the Function of the Cardiovascular System

One of the career areas included in the field of Biomedical Engineering is the application of engineering system analysis: physiological modelling, simulation and control. This paper describes a Virtual Laboratory for the analysis and the study of Human circulatory system. The Virtual Laboratory is based on the compilation of several mathematical models described in the literature. Presented application has been build using MATLAB/Simulink and EJS, so it combines good computation capabilities and it is completely interactive. The Virtual Laboratory is designed in order to understand the operation of the circulatory system under normal conditions, and to predict circulatory variables at different levels of stimuli and conditions.Postprint (published version

Evaluación del sistema integral de información para la planeación del distrito capital – Siipd a nivel rural

En los procesos gerenciales, es de vital importancia contar con información confiable y oportuna, para desarrollar procesos de gestión y administración de la información, que a su vez permitan desarrollar herramientas y modelos que nutran las dinámicas de toma de decisiones, en el marco de una estrategia de planificación de los objetivos propuestos. En el caso del gerente ambiental, esta dinámica se puede dar desde el ámbito de la administración pública o la empresa privada. En el contexto de la administración pública las afectaciones que puedan generar las acciones de un individuo o una comunidad sobre el medio ambiente, tienen que ver en gran medida con la forma como la administración pública planea el territorio, definiendo normas y estrategias de uso del suelo. En ocasiones el desconocimiento de las normas y restricciones de uso del suelo por parte la población o la ausencia de estas normas, permite que se den actuaciones que en el corto, mediano o largo plazo generan impactos ambientales irreversibles, deteriorando la calidad de vida de la comunidad. La presente indagación hace una revisión del Sistema Integral de Información para la Planeación del Distrito Capital SIIPD, desde el punto de vista de la eficiencia de su componente rural. Dicho sistema se constituye en una herramienta de administración de la información base en los procesos de planeación del territorio de la ciudad de Bogotá D.C. Como primera medida se hace una revisión de cada uno de los componentes del sistema, sus objetivos, estructura y responsables, con el fin de reconocer las formas de adquisición y administración de la información. Posteriormente se determina la eficiencia del sistema respecto a la generación y administración de la información relacionada con el área rural del Distrito Capital. Una vez determinada la eficiencia del sistema se identifican los puntos críticos que inciden directamente en la administración de la información del uso del suelo del sector rural del Distrito Capital y su disposición a los usuarios. Finalmente, se proponen estrategias de consolidación del componente rural del Sistema Integral de Información para la Planeación del Distrito Capital SIIPD, basadas en el diagnóstico de eficiencia del sistema y la identificación de sus puntos críticos

Propuesta de buenas prácticas con Business intelligence, para la compañía Financial Healthy

Presentar una propuesta de buenas prácticas con Business Intelligence (BI) para la empresa Financial Healthy (Finanhealthy), representa justificar los aportes que, desde las perspectivas del BI puedan contribuir con el problema de ingresos, de tal manera que, sea claro la pertinencia de los conceptos, teorías, hipótesis y muestras empíricas de los casos reales seleccionadas para el cumplimiento de los objetivos de este trabajo de investigación. En este sentido, encontrar la relación entre el problema de investigación y la literatura seleccionada, exige tener mucha claridad entre el problema real que aqueja a la empresa y los conceptos de la literatura. Teniendo en cuenta los cambios que a nivel de tecnologías, métodos, conceptos, herramientas y estrategias se han venido dando por parte de las empresas, con respecto a sus clientes, es posible observar una tendencia importante que no pasa desapercibida en nuestros tiempos, por su gran alcance. Esta tendencia está mostrando nuevos horizontes que cada vez más, aportan de manera significativa a la innovación en los productos y servicios que, dan como resultado, una nueva era de los negocios conocido como el BI. De tal manera que, este trabajo está enfocado hacia contribuir a dar solución a un problema real de la compañía Finanhealthy, por medio de una propuesta de buenas prácticas con BI, describiendo de manera detallada su implementación y desarrollo, a partir de identificar las causas que están generando el problema de ingresos principalmente.Incluye lista de tablas y figura