Remote Monitoring of Barowell Pumps Using a Radio Link

Barowell pumps are notorious for having problems and failures, which sometimes occur at the most inopportune times during aeropropulson testing. These failures could be better predicted with proper health monitoring. Continuous monitoring of changes in the health of the pump would allow timely preventive and corrective maintenance to be performed as necessary to reduce failures and reduce plant downtime. This thesis addresses a wireless method to monitor these pumps remotely by a user located in the control room. The operator can note the ultrasonic amplitude of the bearings on the pumps and make a decision to schedule preventive maintenance. An UE Ultra-Trak 750 ultrasonic microphone was used to produce the analog data. Its output was put through an anti-alias filter and then digitized. An Analog Devices ADuC 7024 microcontroller was used to sample and digitize the data. Digital data was then sent out over the UART to a MaxStream 9XTend RF Module. This module sent the data over a radio link where it was received and processed using the Computer Assisted Dynamic Data Monitoring and Analysis System (CADDMAS) at AEDC. The design and development of this system is described in detail herein. The system was designed with a two-channel capacity. The system used a 4 kHz multiplexed A/D to obtain a 2 kHz sample rate per channel and the data was sent out at baud rate of 115200 via a 900 MHz serial RF modem. After development, the system performed the desired function of transmitting the ultrasonic vibration data to the user for evaluation. Data was reliably transmitted at 10mW over the air to a host computer located approximately 120 ft where it was successfully processed

Residential Properties Taken Under Eminent Domain: Do Government Appraisers Track Market Values?

Local governments often use powers of eminent domain to take residential properties for public use. In such cases the local government will use their appraisers (in-house or independent) to calculate an offer on the property. If the goal of the government is to avoid costly (use of administrative resources) litigation it may have an incentive to over-appraise the residential properties. Such over-valuation would transfer the cost to taxpayers. We compare the appraised value of sixty properties taken through eminent domain in Clark County, Nevada to comparable properties sold in free market transactions. We find evidence of over-appraisal of the properties taken by eminent domain. By valuing individual property characteristics differently from the market, the government over-appraised properties by approximately seventeen percent. We also provide evidence that the government may use simple rules for appraising the properties, whereas the market employs more complex rules.

Economic Trends and Forecasts for Nevada

With the exception of some difficulties following the events of September 11, 2001 , the economy of the state of Nevada has been doing very well since the mid-1980’s. Employment has increased dramatically, outpacing job growth anywhere else in the country. This has drawn workers to Nevada, leading to record in-migration, especially recently. With robust growth in both employment and population, spending as measured by GSP is healthy. The economic forecast for Nevada predicts continued positive growth in the short run, after which growth will decline to a more normal rate

Dosimetric Analysis of Neural and Vascular Structures in Skull Base Tumors Treated with Stereotactic Radiosurgery.

Objective To examine the relationship between the prescribed target dose and the dose to healthy neurovascular structures in patients with vestibular schwannomas treated with stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS). Study Design Case series with chart review. Setting SRS center from 2011 to 2013. Subjects Twenty patients with vestibular schwannomas treated at the center from 2011 to 2013. Methods Twenty patients with vestibular schwannomas were included. The average radiation dose delivered to healthy neurovascular structures (eg, carotid artery, basilar artery, facial nerve, trigeminal nerve, and cochlea) was analyzed. Results Twenty patients with vestibular schwannomas who were treated with fused computed tomography/magnetic resonance imaging-guided SRS were included in the study. The prescribed dose ranged from 10.58 to 17.40 Gy over 1 to 3 hypofractions to cover 95% of the target tumor volume. The mean dose to the carotid artery was 5.66 Gy (95% confidence interval [CI], 4.53-6.80 Gy), anterior inferior cerebellar artery was 8.70 Gy (95% CI, 4.54-12.86 Gy), intratemporal facial nerve was 3.76 Gy (95% CI, 3.04-4.08 Gy), trigeminal nerve was 5.21 Gy (95% CI, 3.31-7.11 Gy), and the cochlea was 8.70 Gy (95% CI, 7.81-9.59 Gy). Conclusions SRS for certain vestibular schwannomas can expose the anterior inferior cerebellar artery (AICA) and carotid artery to radiation doses that can potentially initiate atherosclerotic processes. The higher doses to the AICA and carotid artery correlated with increasing tumor volume. The dose delivered to other structures such as the cochlea and intratemporal facial nerve appears to be lower and much less likely to cause immediate complications when shielded

Quelques exemples d'utilisation des S_langages pour le traitement de la temporalité en linguistique

National audienceCet article illustre sur plusieurs exemples l'intérêt des S-langages dans le traitement de la temporalit

The Impact of a water-imposed interruption of growth in the Las Vegas region

This study is prompted by the expectation that water supplies for the Las Vegas Valley, both those used currently and those additional quantities available from existing sources, cannot sustain significant further economic growth of the region beyond the year 2006. There are five parts to this study. Part I uses a regional econometric (REMI) model to project the growth of the Las Vegas region to natural maturity, essentially unconstrained by an overriding water shortage. Part II is a reinforcing cross-section analysis of metropolitan areas in the United States to learn the most common natural growth patterns and those that have produced a good quality of life with a minimum of major local disturbances. This analysis gives attention to employment, population, income, and other key economic and social indicators. We give special attention to events in cities that are nearer to or at levels of maturity still many years away for Las Vegas. Part III of this study looks at the performance of sectors of the Las Vegas economy between 1970 and 1989. In particular, we identify those sectors of the Las Vegas economy that are sensitive to variations in growth, particularly during the 1979 to 1983 recession period. Part IV examines the impact of an unrelieved water shortage after 2006 on the Las Vegas socioeconomic future, giving special attention to the fraction of employment that depends on historically high growth rates to predict the impact of rapid decline of that employment. In Part IV, we employ the depth and power of the REMI model to portray the consequences for Las Vegas of a sharp drop in growth after 2006. In this part, we simulate a sixty percent reduction in construction employment, based on the experience of other cities investigated in Part II. We trace this disruption of growth through reduced employment, population, output, and income. We measure the effect of the water shortage by comparing the values of economic variables with a water shortage with a control forecast produced under the assumption of adequate water supplies. Part IV also includes a partial analysis of a Las Vegas water shortage on rural Nevada and on the state of Nevada as a whole. Part V investigates the impact on rural areas of construction and operation of a system bringing water from outlying areas to the Las Vegas region. We are aware that final planning for such a system is not yet completed. We have used a reasonable set of expenditures, locations, and periods that can be expected to occur. These simulations provide a plausible estimate of the effects of both the construction and operation of a water-delivery system on employment and income in those rural areas. As more definite information emerges, appropriate changes can readily be made and new analysis of impacts can be quickly provided

Training Psychologists to Work With Religious Organizations: The Center for Church-Psychology Collaboration

Church-psychology collaboration is gaining attention among professional psychologists, but few training or practical research opportunities are available for those interested in collaborating with religious leaders and organizations. The authors introduce the Center for Church-Psychology Collaboration (CCPC), with its mission to make sustained and relevant contributions to the research literature in psychology, train doctoral students in effective means of collaborating with religious organizations, and provide service to religious communities throughout the world. Domestic and global implications are discussed