1,391 research outputs found
A basic protocol for the acoustic characterization of small and medium-sized classrooms
To promote a fast and effective characterization of the sound environment in small and medium-sized classrooms, a basic measurement protocol, based on a minimum number of parameters and positions, is provided. Measurements were taken in 29 occupied classrooms belonging to 13 primary schools in Turin, Italy, that differ in location and typology. The background noise level was acquired during silent and group activities, and the reverberation time, speech clarity, useful-to-detrimental ratio and speech level, were acquired along the main axis of each classroom and in one or two offset positions. To reduce the number of measured parameters that can be used to fully characterize classroom acoustics, data were divided into two groups on the basis of a cutoff value of maximum occupied reverberation time in the case of moderate and severe requirements. Given the strong correlation among the quantities, thresholds were identified for the other acoustical parameters, and their accuracy and precision were tested to assess their ability to classify the acoustic quality as compliant or non-compliant. Results suggest that more convenient parameters, like clarity in the central position of the classroom, can be used instead of reverberation time to classify classroom acoustics
Triggering mechanisms of static stress on Mount Etna volcano. An application of the boundary element method
In the last thirty years, numerous eruptions and associated deformation episodes have occurred at Mt. Etna volcano. Datasets recorded by continuous monitoring of these episodes provide a unique opportunity to study the relationships between volcanism, flank instability and faulting activity. We have investigated the stress triggering mechanism between magmatic reservoir inflation, intrusive episodes and flank dynamics. Using three-dimensional numerical Boundary Elements Models we simulated volcano-tectonic events and calculated Coulomb stress changes. Using this modeling approach, we analyzed four realistic scenarios that are representative of recent kinematics occurring at Mt. Etna. The main results obtained highlight how (1) the inflation of a deep spherical magma source transfers elastic stress to a sliding plane and faults (2) the opening of the NE Rift and S Rift
(to a less efficient extent) favor movements of the instable sector and may encourage seismicity on the eastern flank faults, and (3) flank instability may trigger the uprising of magma. Defining the effects of the elastic stress transfer and relationships among the main forces acting on volcano, may help to forecast possible eruption scenarios during future episodes of unrest at Mount Etna and provide an important tool for decision makers during volcanic emergencies involving the highly populated areas of the volcano
Effect of competitive acoustic environments on speech intelligibility
Excessive noise and reverberation times degrade listening abilities in everyday life
environments. This is particularly true for school settings. Most classrooms in Italy are settled in
historical buildings that generate competitive acoustic environments. So far, few studies
investigated the effect of real acoustics on speech intelligibility and on the spatial release from
masking, focusing more on laboratory conditions. Also, the effect of noise on speech
intelligibility was widely investigated considering its energetic rather than its informational
content. Therefore, a study involving normal hearing adults was performed presenting listening
tests via headphone and considering the competitive real acoustics of two primary-school
classrooms with reverberation time of 0.4 s and 3.1 s, respectively. The main objective was the
investigation of the effect of reverberation and noise on the spatial release from masking to help
the design of learning environments. Binaural room impulse responses were acquired, with noise
sources at different azimuths from the listener’s head. The spatial release from masking was
significantly affected by noise type and reverberation. Longer reverberation times brought to
worst speech intelligibility, with speech recognition thresholds higher by 6 dB on average. Noise
with an informational content was detrimental by 7 dB with respect to an energetic noise
Fluctuation relation for a L\'evy particle
We study the work fluctuations of a particle subjected to a deterministic
drag force plus a random forcing whose statistics is of the L\'evy type. In the
stationary regime, the probability density of the work is found to have ``fat''
power-law tails which assign a relatively high probability to large
fluctuations compared with the case where the random forcing is Gaussian. These
tails lead to a strong violation of existing fluctuation theorems, as the ratio
of the probabilities of positive and negative work fluctuations of equal
magnitude behaves in a non-monotonic way. Possible experiments that could probe
these features are proposed.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures, RevTeX4; v2: minor corrections and references
added; v3: typos corrected, new conclusion, close to published versio
Greenhouse localized heating powered by a polygeneration system
Energy consumption in greenhouse heating could reach up to 90% of the total energy requirement depending on the type of greenhouse, environmental control equipment and location of the greenhouse. The use of climate conditioning technologies that exploit renewable energy and the application of passive systems to improve the energy efficiency and the sustainability of the greenhouse sector are recommended. During winter 2020-2021, an experimental test was carried out at the University of Bari in a Mediterranean greenhouse heated by a polygeneration system, composed of a solar system and an air-water heat pump. Three localized heating systems were tested to transfer thermal energy close to plants of Roman lettuce. Heating pipes were placed inside the cultivation substrate in the underground pipe system and on the cultivation substrate in the laid pipe system. The third system consists of metal plates heated by steel tubes and placed in the aerial area of plants. A weather climatic station and a sensor system interfaced with a data logger for continuous data acquisition and storage were used. The plate system was the best for air temperature rising, as it allowed an increase of 3.6% compared to the set-up without any localised heating system. The underground pipe system was the best for the soil heating, as it achieved a temperature increase of 92%. Localized soil heating systems contributed significantly to an earlier harvest by almost 2 weeks
Diffusing opinions in bounded confidence processes
We study the effects of diffusing opinions on the Deffuant et al. model for
continuous opinion dynamics. Individuals are given the opportunity to change
their opinion, with a given probability, to a randomly selected opinion inside
an interval centered around the present opinion. We show that diffusion induces
an order-disorder transition. In the disordered state the opinion distribution
tends to be uniform, while for the ordered state a set of well defined opinion
clusters are formed, although with some opinion spread inside them. If the
diffusion jumps are not large, clusters coalesce, so that weak diffusion favors
opinion consensus. A master equation for the process described above is
presented. We find that the master equation and the Monte-Carlo simulations do
not always agree due to finite-size induced fluctuations. Using a linear
stability analysis we can derive approximate conditions for the transition
between opinion clusters and the disordered state. The linear stability
analysis is compared with Monte Carlo simulations. Novel interesting phenomena
are analyzed
Towards a continuum theory of clustering in a freely cooling inelastic gas
We performed molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the clustering
instability of a freely cooling dilute gas of inelastically colliding disks in
a quasi-one-dimensional setting. We observe that, as the gas cools, the shear
stress becomes negligibly small, and the gas flows by inertia only. Finite-time
singularities, intrinsic in such a flow, are arrested only when close-packed
clusters are formed. We observe that the late-time dynamics of this system are
describable by the Burgers equation with vanishing viscosity, and predict the
long-time coarsening behavior.Comment: 7 pages, 5 eps figures, to appear in Europhys. Let
the combination of a smoking cessation programme with rehabilitation increases stop smoking rate
Objective and study design: A parallel group study to investigate the effectiveness of a smoking cessation programme performed during routine rehabilitation practice for outpatients. Patients and methods: The study participants comprised an intervention group of 102 consecutive smokers who underwent a smoking cessation programme in a rehabilitation centre and a control group of 101 consecutive smokers who were referred to a smoking cessation centre in a pulmonary hospital. All participants underwent physical examination, pulmonary function tests and received identical behavioural and/or pharmacological treatment. In addition, the intervention group underwent rehabilitation practice 3 times a week for 3 months. Results: The continuous abstinence rate at 12 months, which was validated by an expired air carbon monoxide concentration of 10 parts per million or less and a household interview, was 68% in the intervention group and 32% in the control group. Multivariable analysis showed that rehabilitation was significantly associated with smoking cessation after ad justing for years of smoking, number of cigarettes smoked, gender and treatment (odds ratio = 4.34, p < 0.001). Conclusion: This study suggests that smoking cessation programmes during routine rehabilitation may be highly effective in helping smoking withdrawal and should be a strongly recommended component of rehabilitation practice
Sand stirred by chaotic advection
We study the spatial structure of a granular material, N particles subject to
inelastic mutual collisions, when it is stirred by a bidimensional smooth
chaotic flow. A simple dynamical model is introduced where four different time
scales are explicitly considered: i) the Stokes time, accounting for the
inertia of the particles, ii) the mean collision time among the grains, iii)
the typical time scale of the flow, and iv) the inverse of the Lyapunov
exponent of the chaotic flow, which gives a typical time for the separation of
two initially close parcels of fluid. Depending on the relative values of these
different times a complex scenario appears for the long-time steady spatial
distribution of particles, where clusters of particles may or not appear.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
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