New Multi-1,2,3-Selenadiazole Aromatic Derivatives

The aromatic polyketones 3a-d are versatile compounds for the synthesis of the multi-1,2,3-selenadiazole aromatic derivatives 1a-d. The preparation starts with the reaction between the multi-bromomethylene benzene derivatives 2a-d and 4-hydroxy- acetophenone to give compounds 3a-d which are transformed through the reaction with semicarbazide hydrochloride or ethyl hydrazine carboxylate into the corresponding semicarbazones derivatives 4a-d or hydrazones 5a-d. The reaction with selenium dioxide leads to regiospecific ring closure of semicarbazones or hydrazones to give the multi- 1,2,3-selenadiazole aromatic derivatives in high yield

VALIDATION AND IMPROVEMENT OF A REAR-END CONFLICT PREDICTION MODEL

Traffic conflict is an important parameter for the safety evaluation of signalized intersections. A major drawback of traffic conflict is that it is complex, and highly trained personnel are needed to collect the relevant data. In a previous work, a one-variable regression model was reported for predicting rear-end conflict: conflicts/hour = 0.0115 (number of stops/hour). This model was limited to four-legged signalized intersections with left-turn bays in Al-Khobar, Saudi Arabia. The model was successfully validated via this study. It was also shown that the predictive power of the model can be dramatically improved by adding the mean speed to the number of stops. Specifically, the best model with which to predict conflict was found to be conflict = -6.64 + 0.0066 (number of stops) + 0.1737 (mean speed). It was also shown that TRANSYT-7F is a promising tool for facilitating the prediction of conflict. In a small-scale experiment, the simulated stops obtained through the TRANSYT-7F software were successfully used in lieu of the observed stops for predicting rear-end conflict

Hybrid Multi-agent Architecture (HMAA) for Meeting Scheduling

This paper presents a novel multi-agent architecture for meeting scheduling. The proposed architecture is a new Hybrid Multi-Agent Architecture (HMAA) that generates new heuristics for solving NP-hard problems. Moreover, the paper investigates the feasibility of running computationally intensive algorithms on multi-agent architectures while preserving the ability of small agents to run on small devices, including mobile devices. Three experimental groups are conducted in order to test the feasibility of the proposed architecture. The results show that the performance of the proposed architecture is better than those of many existing meeting scheduling frameworks. Moreover, it has been proved that HMAA preserves small agents' mobility (i.e. the ability to run on small devices) while implementing evolutionary algorithms

Conformity of Physical Characteristics of Imported Tires with Government Standards: A Case Study

The Saudi Arabian Standards Organization, SASO, has established a set of tests that all passenger car tires have to pass in order to be allowed into the Country. These tests are: visual inspection, dimension measurement, bead unseating, tensile strength and elongation, aging, endurance, and high speed performance tests. This paper describes the application of the first five tests on eight different brands of tires that are taken to represent the categories of “frequently failed” and “infrequently failed” tires in the country. The results showed that the dimensions of almost all the tested tires were somewhat different from those documented in the SASO standards. On the other hand, all the tested tires passed the bead unseating and strength tests. All tires in the “frequently failed” category failed the tensile strength test. In contrast, all tires from the “infrequently failed” category passed this test. The average values of the test for these two tire categories were statistically different at a 95% confidence level

The Moderator Role of Passion for Work in the Association between Work Stressors and Secondary Traumatic Stress: A Cross‐Level Diary Study among Health Professionals of Intensive Care Units

Background Secondary traumatic stress (STS), a construct formed by compassion fatigue, shattered assumptions, and symptomatology, has been scarcely studied in intensive care units (ICU). In these units, healthcare workers encounter daily work stressors which impact on their health and well-being. Also, previous literature revealed a passion for caring among these workers, finding two types: harmonious passion, which may protect them against negative outcomes, and obsessive passion, which may boost negative consequences. We aim to study whether both types of passion could moderate the relationships between daily work stressors and STS. Methods In all, 265 assessments were collected at ICUs from different hospitals in Spain through a diary approach (53 health workers × 5 days at two time points per day). Results First, daily work stressors were positive predictors of symptomatology; secondly, dispositional harmonious passion was a negative predictor of both compassion fatigue and shattered assumptions, also presenting a buffering effect between daily work stressors and daily shattered assumptions. Finally, dispositional obsessive passion showed positive relationships with both shattered assumptions and symptomatology, also presenting a boosting effect between daily work stressors and daily symptomatology. Conclusions This study allows us to deepen our understanding of STS in ICUs and to boost preventive proposals. Practical implications are discussed.pre-print389 K