Data adaptor unit for an electronic exchange: system design and simulation study

The development of pulse code modulation systems and electronic exchanges, together with the increase in volume of data traffic, have made it desirable to establish a means for handling both voice and data trarfic in the telephone network. A technique is required whereby integrated voice and data switching may be accomplished in an electronic exchange. It is proposed that a data adaptor unit be incorporated in electronic exchanges for the ourpose of concentrating data traffic onto PCM highways. A conceptual design for the architecture of such a unit is presented and its performance evaluated. The protocols for connecting data adaptors into a network, and the use of flow control procedures for regulating data traffic within the network, are described. The hardware implementation of the unit is not considered. The proposed data adaptor operates on the packet switching principle. It is comprised of three types of modules each dedicated to carrying out a particular communication function. The modules are the interface processor that interacts with data transmitting devices, the network processor for sending data over PCM channels between adaptors, and the supervisory processor for regulating activities within the adaptor unit

Origin, character, application and correlation of tephra partings in tertiary coal beds of the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska

Thesis (Ph.D.) University of Alaska Fairbanks, 1989Volcanic and non-volcanic partings occur in coal beds of the Neogene Beluga and Sterling Formations along the shores of the Kenai lowland, Alaska. The partings were systematically characterized to determine their potential geological applications: Two-thirds of the partings originated as air-fall tephra. Of these, partly altered, Pliocene tephra typically contain volcanic glass + feldspar $\pm$ montmorillonite $\pm$ quartz $\pm$ kaolinite $\pm$ opal-CT. Highly altered Miocene partings are characterized by feldspar $\pm$ kaolinite $\pm$ montmorillonite $\pm$ quartz $\pm$ crandallite $\pm$ altered volcanic glass, where crandallite appears to have formed by replacement of volcanic glass prior to clay formation. About one-third of the partings are of detrital origin and contain detrital chlorite + illite + smectite + quartz $\pm$ feldspar $\pm$ siderite $\pm$ kaolinite. A Pliocene pumice parting near the top of the Sterling Formation was correlated from the northwestern to the southeastern Kenai lowland on the basis of similar glass morphologies, an absence of opaque minerals, and geochemical similarities. A crystal-tuff near the middle of the section could be traced across the Kenai lowland as one or two ash-falls, based on inertinite contents of adjacent coal, mineralogy, and geochemistry. Some other prominent tephras could not be correlated. The tephra partings are time-equivalent to DSDP cores from the Gulf of Alaska and along the Aleutian Island chain. Tephras occur every 125-500 yr in the lower part of the Beluga Formation, and their deposition probably coincides with a volcanic pulse 10.5 m.y. ago. This pulse is not well recorded in nearby DSDP cores. In the upper part of the Beluga Formation, during volcanic quiescence, tephras are recorded at an average rate of one every 9,000 yr. Time equivalent DSDP cores show a near absence of tephras. A volcanic pulse occurred during the deposition of the lower Sterling Formation, about 7.5 m.y. ago, with intervals between volcanism which averages 11,000 yr or longer. Volcanic sources appear to have been distant, which is consistent with an absence of tephra layers in a Gulf of Alaska core. About 5 m.y. ago, concurrent with the deposition of the upper Sterling Formation, the thicknesses of the tephra layers dramatically increase and the frequency increases to an average of one tephra every 2,000 years. This increase is recorded in DSDP cores as well

Grace for the interim: a Sacraments-based curriculum of transition for PC(USA) congregations

Mission studies are checkpoints in the lifecycle of many Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) congregations yet these curricula of transition need an overhaul to ensure their efficacy and to identify potential improvements. By evaluating several behavioral models (including Quinn’s Advanced Change Theory, and leadership models by Fluker and Olsen), the author constructs a curriculum centered around a congregational study of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper that fulfills the function of a mission study. In so doing, he provides an alternative for churches seeking to achieve the requirements of such a study while equipping them to discern God’s call in the ever-changing world

Providing theoretical insight into the role of symmetry in the photoisomerization mechanism of a non-symmetric dithienylethene photoswitch

Dithienylethene (DTE) molecular photoswitches have shown to be excellent candidates in the design of efficient optoelectronic devices, due to their high photoisomerization quantum yield (QY), for which symmetry is suggested to play a crucial role. Here, we present a theoretical study on the photochemistry of a non-symmetric dithienylethene photoswitch, with a special emphasis on the effect of asymmetric substitution on the photocyclization and photoreversion mechanisms. We used the Spin-Flip Time Dependent Density Functional Theory (SF-TDDFT) method to locate and characterize the main structures (conical intersections and minima) of the ground state and the first two excited states, S1 and S2, along the ring-opening/closure reaction coordinate of the photocyclization and photoreversion processes, and to identify the important coordinates governing the radiationless decay pathways. Our results suggest that while the main features that characterize the photoisomerization of symmetric DTEs are also present for the photoisomerization of the non-symmetric DTE, the lower energy barrier on S1 along the cycloreversion reaction speaks in favor of a more efficient and therefore a higher cycloreversion QY for the non-symmetric DTEs, making them a better candidate for molecular optoelectronic devices than their symmetric counterparts

Providing theoretical insight into the role of symmetry in the photoisomerization mechanism of a non-symmetric dithienylethene photoswitch

Dithienylethene (DTE) molecular photoswitches have shown to be excellent candidates in the design of efficient optoelectronic devices, due to their high photoisomerization quantum yield (QY), for which symmetry is suggested to play a crucial role. Here, we present a theoretical study on the photochemistry of a non-symmetric dithienylethene photoswitch, with a special emphasis on the effect of asymmetric substitution on the photocyclization and photoreversion mechanisms. We used the Spin-Flip Time Dependent Density Functional Theory (SF-TDDFT) method to locate and characterize the main structures (conical intersections and minima) of the ground state and the first two excited states, S1 and S2, along the ring-opening/closure reaction coordinate of the photocyclization and photoreversion processes, and to identify the important coordinates governing the radiationless decay pathways. Our results suggest that while the main features that characterize the photoisomerization of symmetric DTEs are also present for the photoisomerization of the non-symmetric DTE, the lower energy barrier on S1 along the cycloreversion reaction speaks in favor of a more efficient and therefore a higher cycloreversion QY for the non-symmetric DTEs, making them a better candidate for molecular optoelectronic devices than their symmetric counterparts.</p

Towards an effective energy labelling programme for commercial buildings : A comparative evaluation of the Green Buildings for Africa programme in relation to international experience

International experience indicates that energy labelling programmes are rapidly evolving as a valuable tool for energy efficiency awareness and practice in the built environment. Four years after the launch of the South African labelling programme, Green Buildings for Africa (GBfA), it became evident that implementation was not successful. This study evaluates the contribution of a range of factors towards the sustained implementation and uptake of energy labelling programmes for commercial buildings based on a comparative appraisal of relevant international case studies and the GBfA. The analytical process is based on three types of energy labelling categories (mandatory energy audit, voluntary energy audit and voluntary benchmarking scheme) and two categories of factors (contextual and programme-specific). The key finding is that government involvement and support is critical, if not a prerequisite, for successful roll-out of an energy labelling programme. Key recommendation is that a local programme be initially based on a voluntary benchmark programme approach