A CASE STUDY OF LUNTIAN MULTI-PURPOSE COOPERATIVE IN BARANGAY LALAIG, TIAONG, QUEZON, PHILIPPINES: A VERTICAL INTEGRATION APPROACH

The Luntian Multi-Purpose Cooperative located in Tiaong, Quezon, Philippines. The Luntian Multi-Purpose cooperative focuses more on feed production as well as hog fattening. The LMC applied the vertical integration to develop the cooperative. They have their members as their primary costumers of their feeds. The cooperative’s business activity includes also meat shop, granting of production loan, micro-finance, mobilization of saving deposits, aside from feed milling and hog fattening. Different agencies, industry organizations and private institutions provide trainings, seminars, assistance, as well as credit for the cooperative.The aims of the study was to determine the present and discuss a noteworthy business issue (s) of Luntian Multipurpose Cooperative, evaluate the business environment prevailing at a particular time of this case , assess the cooperative’s performance in terms of the four business functions , define the problem relevant to the business issue(s) being studied. The study used primary and secondary data. Primary data were gathered through interviews with the key personnel, managers, and other informants of the Luntian Multipurpose Cooperative in order to obtain responses regarding the overall status of the cooperative including its problem and plans. Secondary data were taken from files and documents, especially the history, background information and financial statements. Other data were taken through research materials such as book, unpublished special problems and from some government institutions. The recommendation of this research showed that Luntian MPC should engage in establishing a communal farm as to become the primary source of hybrid piglets that their members would raised. The alternatives solution was establishing a breeding farm that would ask for initial investment. Keywords: cooperative, vertical integration, case study, por

Influence of Hyperparameters of Neural Ordinary Differential Equations in Their Ability to Model Dynamic Systems Governed by ODEs

In this thesis the Neural Ordinary Differential Equations (NODEs) are studied in their ability to model dynamic systems governed by ODEs. NODEs are a new type of artificial neural network that uses a feed-forward artificial neural network as the source of gradient to construct a continuous trajectory. Although there are several investigations showing NODEs extraordinary ability to model time series, no comprehensive study of the influence of its hyperparameters on its performance has been conducted. In this investigation the objective was to evaluate the influence of some of the NODEs' hyperparameters on the NODEs capabilities of modeling. Special focus was set on the evaluation of the influence of the gradient computation algorithm used, because it determines to a great extent the speed of the training session. Three gradient computation algorithms were analyzed, including a novel method proposed in this thesis; this new approach is based on a modification of the adjoint sensitivity method. In order to reach these aims, an implementation of NODEs was created using object-oriented programming in the Matlab suite. Then, a group of ODE systems was used to generate several trajectories that were used to train a collection of NODEs that had a different set of hyperparameters. The trained NODEs were used to approximate a set of new trajectories generated by the same systems of ODEs, and the error in the trajectories was used to quantify the influence of the hyperparameters. The results indicated that the hyperparameters have a big impact on the performance of the NODEs in modeling dynamic systems. Some characteristics of the data to model can give a hint in potential initial hyperparameters, but the evidence showed that many tests need to be done in order to get the optimal hyperparameters. In this regard, the new method proposed for gradient calculation showed potential, because it was ten times faster than the other methods analyzed; that in effect could allow a broader set of hyperparameters to be tested when facing a modeling problem

Nonconventional Ca(OH) ₂ treatment of bamboo for the reinforcement of cement composites

This study compares the structural and morphological changes in Guadua angustifolia Kunth (GAK) fiber prepared in three different ways (chips, barkless and crushed) when non-conventional alkaline treatment is applied. Moreover, it shows the improvement of mechanical properties of cement composites reinforced with these treated fibers. The three different preparations of Guadua were treated with a saturated solution of calcium hydroxide (5%) at 125 °C and 1.25 kPa for 3 h to remove non-cellulosic compounds. Then, their chemical, morphological, and structural properties were examined. The fibers exhibiting the higher delignification rate were selected to prepare cement composite boards, whose mechanical properties were successively compared with those of composites reinforced with untreated G. angustifolia fibers. The water/cement ratios of the cement mixed with the Ca(OH)2-treated and the untreated fibers were, respectively, around 0.3 and 0.25. The flexural strength and toughness of the two composites were evaluated after 7, 28, and 90 days of curing. The calcium hydroxide treatment showed higher efficiency in removing non-cellulosic materials when performed on crushed bamboo; moreover, the mechanical properties of the composites reinforced with the treated fibers were higher than those mixed with the untreated ones. After 90 days of curing, the flexural strength increased by around 40% and the toughness became three times higher (p < 0.05). The mechanical improvement by the Ca(OH)2 treatment of G. angustifolia fibers demonstrates its potential for the fabrication of cement composites

¿Colombia es competitiva en la industria del vidrio?

El vidrio se ha convertido en uso diario de las personas debido que el vidrio es utilizado en la industria automotriz, construcción, usos para muebles y nuevas propuestas que hoy se puede disfrutar con un amplio portafolio, poco a poco gana terreno a ciertos materiales que se consideraban superiores como la madera o los plásticos. En términos generales de comercio exterior Colombia ha sido más importador que exportador en el sector vidriero debido que la fabricación del vidrio representa grandes problemas medioambientales en la producción ya que en el proceso de la fusión del vidrio consume más energía que en el resto de producción por sus altas temperatura haciendo que Colombia pierda competitividad por tecnología antigua. Adicional Colombia ha emprendido una agresiva política de integración, buscando tratados de libre comercio en el sector vidriero, el propósito del ensayo es saber la competitividad de la industria del vidrio Colombiano a los diferentes países, conociendo la innovación y tecnología de los otros países, Sin embargo existen países como Estados Unidos, Europa y China que son muy competitivos en el sector tanto en la demanda como la oferta en este sector debido al nivel de industrialización que tienen y sus aplicaciones.The glass has become everyday people because glass is used in the automotive, construction, furniture and new uses for proposals that today you can enjoy a wide portfolio, gradually gaining ground for certain materials as superior as wood or plastics. Overall foreign trade has been Colombia importer exporter in the glass sector due to the manufacture of glass represents major environmental problems in production and in the process of glass melting consumes more energy than the rest of production its high temperature making Colombia lose competitiveness by old technology. Additional Colombia has undertaken an aggressive policy of integration, free trade looking in the glass sector, the purpose of the test is to know the competitiveness of Colombian glass industry to different countries, learning innovation and technology from other countries, without But there are countries like the U.S., Europe and China that are very competitive in the industry, both in the demand and supply in this sector due to the level of industrialization they have and their applications

Relationship between the 3075 Decree of 1997 and ISO 22000 standard for quality assurance in food safety

En este artículo se pretende mostrar una síntesis del Decreto 3075 de 1997 y la NTC ISO 22000 así como su correlación en cuanto a requisitos establecidos para todas aquellas organizaciones que se pertenezcan a la cadena de suministro de los alimentos. Para facilitar la lectura de este artículo en cada uno de los puntos mencionados se realiza una breve explicación de los mismos y como estos contribuyen desde la fabricación hasta la distribución de los alimentos a mantener su inocuidad, pues este es un tema que día a día está recibiendo mayor énfasis desde los consumidores hasta los gobiernos nacionales.This article aims to show a synthesis of Decree 3075 of 1997 and ISO 22000 Standard and their correlation in terms of requirements for all organizations that belong to the supply chain of food. To facilitate the reading of this article on each of the points mentioned a brief explanation thereof is made and how they contribute from manufacturing to the distribution of food to maintain their safety, because this is an issue that every day is receive greater emphasis from consumers to national governments

El individuo en el cambio: la transformación de las relaciones bilaterales entre la República de Corea y la República Popular Democrática de Corea, bajo la figura del presidente surcoreano Kim Dae-Jung

Este artículo busca interpretar el proceso mediante el cual las ideas y presupuestos políticos y sociales del expresidente surcoreano Kim Dae-Jung, permitieron una transformación significativa de las relaciones bilaterales entre Corea del Sur y Corea del Norte, durante su periodo presidencial entre los años 1998 y 2003. Inicialmente, dichas relaciones estuvieron caracterizadas por una incesante tensión militar como resultado de la Guerra de Corea, escenario dentro del cual apareció la figura del presidente Kim, quien aplicando ideas y principios forjados a partir de algunas de sus experiencias individuales, construyó el proyecto de la “Sunshine Policy”, con la intención de redirigir las relaciones bilaterales hacia un panorama donde predominaran los valores de cooperación, reciprocidad y entendimiento mutuo.This article wants to explain the process by which the social and political principles and ideas of South Korea’s former president Kim Dae-Jung, which enabled a significant transformation of the bilateral relations between South and North Korea, during his presidential term between the years of 1998 and 2003. Initially the relations between these States were led by an unstopping military tension, as a result of the Korean War. Amidst this scenario, the figure of Kim Dae-Jung emerged, and by executing ideas and principles forged by his own individual experiences, he developed the “Sunshine Policy” project, with the intention of redirecting the bilateral relations towards a scenario of cooperation, reciprocity and mutual understanding

Development of a Powerwall-based solution for the manual flagging of radio astronomy data from eMerlin

This project was created with the intention of establishing an optimisation method for the manual flagging of interferometric data of the eMerlin radio astronomy array, using a Powerwall as a visualisation tool. The complexity of this process which is due to the amount of variables and parameters demands a deep understanding of the data treatment. Once the data is achieved by the antennas the signals are correlated. This process generates undesired signals which mostly coming from radio frequency interference. Also when the calibration is performed some values can mislead the expected outcome. Although the flagging is supported with algorithms this method is not one hundred percent accurate. That is why visual inspection is still required. The possibility to use a Powerwall as a visualisation system allows different and new dynamics in terms of the interaction of the analyst with the information required to make the flagging

Qué y para qué de la modelación matemática: posibilidades y desafíos

En este taller pretendemos, a través de la reflexión y análisis de tres situaciones, estudiar posibilidades y desafíos de crear ambientes de modelación matemática en aulas bogotanas de educación básica y media. En la primera situación se conversará con los participantes del taller sobre los intereses sociales, culturales y políticos que se ponen en juego en un determinado modelo matemático. En el segundo momento, se buscará que los asistentes propongan un modelo para dar solución a una situación determinada, buscando que puedan dar cuenta de las consideraciones que tuvieron para construirlo. Finalmente se hará énfasis en la importancia de que los ambientes de modelación posibiliten a los estudiantes/ciudadanos tomar una distancia crítica soportados en las matemáticas, para así asumir una competencia ciudadana con una actitud reflexiva frente a los hechos sociales, culturales y político

Noise model for a dual frequency comb beat

Cette thèse porte sur le raffinement d’un modèle du bruit utilisé pour des mesures spectroscopiques réalisées avec des peignes de fréquences optiques. La majorité des travaux antérieurs utilisaient des peignes de fréquences où le glissement (chirp) est minimisé, en supposant que tout glissement différentiel entre les peignes allait réduire le rapport signal sur bruit. L’hypothèse sous-jacente était que l’impact du bruit multiplicatif serait augmenté, le glissement lui permettant d’agir plus longtemps sur le signal d’interférence. Cependant, d’autres recherches indiquaient plutôt contraire : le chirp pourrait améliorer la mesure. Cette thèse cherche à augmenter la compréhension du comportement du bruit lorsque les peignes ont des glissements différentiels. De plus, celle-ci apporte de nouvelles évidences sur l’utilité du chirp dans ce type de mesure. À cet effet, nous avons fait une révision bibliographique des modèles du bruit dans les peignes de fréquences optiques. Ensuite, du point de vue théorique, nous avons analysé les effets du chirp sur les bruits additifs et multiplicatifs. Pour le bruit d’intensité, nous avons proposé un modèle phénoménologique décrivant le comportement de l’émission spontanée amplifiée (ASE) dans un laser à verrouillage de mode par rotation non linéaire de polarisation. Les spectres des peignes et leurs battements ont été caractérisés en portant une attention particulière à leur relation avec l’ASE. La thèse permet de conclure que le chirp différentiel n’affecte pas les niveaux des densités spectrales de bruit. Grâce au glissement différentiel de fréquence, il est possible d’envoyer plus puissance à l’échantillon et ainsi améliorer le rapport signal sur bruit des instruments à peignes de fréquence. D’un autre côté, la caractérisation de l’ASE a établi sa nature non-stationnaire. Elle a aussi expliqué des attributs spectraux qui sont observés régulièrement dans les signaux de battement des peignes. Finalement, en supposant que l’ASE circule largement dans une cavité opérée sous le seuil, sa caractérisation fournit une méthode pour estimer le déphasage non linéaire que subit le train d’impulsions femtosecondes.This thesis proposes a noise model refinement for spectroscopic measurements using dual optical frequency combs. Until now most studies centered their efforts on noise characterization using chirp free combs based on an unproved hypothesis: measurements would get worse with chirped combs since multiplicative noises would be present over a longer duration on the interference pattern thus leading to a greater impact. However, at least one experimental result hinted to the contrary: differential chirp would actually improve the signal to noise ratio. This thesis therefore aims at increasing the understanding of noise when a differential chirp is present in a dual comb measurement. The specific goal is to provide new insights about the usefulness of chirp in this kind of measurement. With this in mind, we conducted a literature review of noise models in optical frequency combs. We subsequently analyzed the chirp’s effect in the presence of both additive and multiplicative noise. The thesis also proposes a phenomenological model to describe the amplified spontaneous emission - ASE in short pulse lasers mode locked using non linear polarization rotation. Finally the comb spectra and their beat notes are characterized putting special attention to their relation with the ASE components. As conclusions, we can report that noise power spectral density levels do not change with a differential chirp. Chirping allows sending a greater optical power through the sample, such that the measurement signal to noise ratio can be improved. On the other hand, the ASE characterization established its non-stationary nature and explained very well characteristic features routinely observed in dual comb beat notes that were not fully understood. Finally, assuming the ASE experiences a sub threshold linear cavity allows using theses features to estimate the non linear phase shift experienced by the modelocked pulse train in the laser cavity

Habiting at the seventh and jiménez street in bogotá. corporeity, history and place

The document analyzes the habitat as a result from the interaction between the body and place in scopes of the corporality. The construction of the carpet approaches that constitutes living in a significant space of Bogotá, the crossing of the Jiménez Avenue with Carrera Séptima in the diverse historical periods from the birth of the city until now, integrating memory and the quotidianity like inherent aspects of the experiences of the place. It is as well the study assumes the body from its entailment with the environment, in terms of perception, where from the senses it takes shape the experience and the appropriation forming the meaning of the place. One second instance constitutes the corporeity and thus the projection towards the Other, in the public space, the street, contemplates “alteridad” and “proxemia” like edges of sociology that hit the study of the daily practices of living. Historical sources have been taken boarded, of narration, chronicle and literature in urban novel and new historical novel like support resource that allows to delineate in a vivid way the experience of living at every raised historical moment. The habitat thus constitutes the plot that, with the support of the resulting physical spaces of socio-cultural processes, forms the physical territories as much as symbolic and ideal which define and characterize the place.El documento presenta el hábitat como resultado de la interacción cuerpo y lugar en ámbitos de la corporeidad. Se aborda la construcción del tapiz que constituye el habitar en un espacio significativo de Bogotá, el cruce de la avenida Jiménez con la carrera séptima en los diversos períodos históricos desde el nacimiento de la ciudad hasta hoy, integrando la memoria y la cotidianidad como aspectos inherentes a las vivencias del lugar. Es así como el estudio asume el cuerpo desde su vinculación con el entorno que lo rodea, en terrenos de la percepción, donde, desde los sentidos, se concreta la experiencia y la apropiación configurando el significado del lugar. Una segunda instancia la constituye la corporeidad y así la proyección hacia el Otro, en el espacio público, la calle, contempla la alteridad y la proxemia como aristas de la sociología que impactan el estudio de las prácticas cotidianas del habitar. Se han abordado fuentes históricas, de narración, crónica y literatura en la novela urbana y nueva novela histórica como recurso de soporte que permite delinear, de manera vívida, la experiencia del habitar en cada momento histórico planteado. Así el hábitat constituye la trama que con el soporte de los espacios físicos resultantes de procesos socioculturales configura los territorios tanto físicos como simbólicos e ideales que definen y caracterizan el lugar