Schedule variance analysis and Earned Values in a construction project

Unpredictable events are typical for construction projects, and therefore the use of knowledge and skills applicable to project control is essential for improved consequent larger chance of achieving planned scope. The thesis presents theoretical background of construction project time and cost management, and the basics of Earned Value Method (EVM). A method is used for integrating project scope, schedule and cost (resources), and for objectively measuring project performance and progress. Performance is measured by determining the budgeted cost of work performed (i.e., earned value) and comparing it to the actual cost of work performed (i.e., actual cost). Progress is measured by comparing the earned value to the budgeted cost of work scheduled (i.e., planned value). The second part of the thesis presents the application of the theoretical background to a case study. It can be concluded that several advantages are introduced in the control system when using EVM; it enables comprehensive project follow-up and provides more realistic view on a state of a project than any other schedule or cost information itself. However, it is also important to determine the cause of a variance in schedule and cost varience determination and to decide, if corrective action is required

Permeability measurements of the essential oil constituents through porcine ear skin in vitro

Koža je naš največji in najtežji organ, njena najpomembnejša naloga je barierna funkcija, ki jo zagotavlja rožena plast. Če je barierna funkcija oslabljena, sta absorpcija tujih snovi in izguba lastnih (predvsem vode) skozi kožo povečani, kar ni zaželeno. Permeabilnost spojin skozi kožo določamo in vitro ali in vivo. Najpogostejša je metoda in vitro z uporabo Franzovih difuzijskih celic, ki ni etično sporna v primerjavi z nekaterimi metodami in vivo. Namen diplomske naloge je bil določiti permeabilnost petih pogostih sestavin eteričnih olj (kafre, linaloola, mentola, linalilacetata in 1,8-cineola). Poskus smo izvedli v Franzovih celicah na koži prašičjega uhlja, vzorčili pa smo v okviru 24-ur. Za analizo vzorcev smo si izbrali plinsko kromatografijo, pri čemer smo sprva uporabili detektor FID. Po izvedbi predposkusa se je izkazalo, da detektor FID ni dovolj občutljiv, da bi po poskusu in vitro zaznali prisotnost izbranih spojin v akceptorskem mediju. Zato smo nadaljnje meritve opravljali z bolj občutljivo sklopljeno metodo plinske kromatografije z masno spektrometrijo. Ker je akceptorska raztopina na osnovi fosfatnega pufra s primesmi, zaradi katerih niso mogoče direktne meritve s plinsko kromatografijo, smo morali razviti ustrezen postopek ekstrakcije, ki je moral imeti čim boljši in ponovljiv izkoristek. Da smo lahko preverili, ali oleinska kislina izboljša permeabilnost izbranim sestavinam eteričnih olj, smo uporabili tudi dva različna donorska medija. Ugotovili smo, da s plinsko kromatografijo z detektorjem FID ni bilo mogoče zaznati nobene izbrane spojine, medtem ko smo s sklopljeno metodo plinske kromatografije z masno spektrometrijo nekatere zaznali. Vse testirane spojine so zelo slabo permeabilne. Največjo permeabilnost ima kafra, sledila sta 1,8-cineol in linalool ter nazadnje mentol. Linalilacetata nismo uspeli zaznati v nobeni akceptorski raztopini, zato predvidevamo, da ni prehajal kožne bariere oziroma njegovo prehajanje ni bilo biološko relevantno. Pri celicah s prisotno oleinsko kislino smo videli majhno povečanje permeabilnosti pri vseh spojinah, vendar te razlike niso bile statistično značilne.The skin is human’s largest and heaviest organ. Its most important function is as a barrier towards the external environment, which is made possible by the stratum corneum. If the barrier function is weakened, the absorption of foreign compounds and the loss of water through the skin are increased, which is not desired. Permeability of compounds through the skin is determined in vitro or in vivo. Most frequently an in vitro method utilizing the Franz diffusion chambers is used, since it is not ethically controversial in comparison to some other in vivo methods. The aim of this thesis is to determine the permeability of five common essential oil constituents (camphor, linalool, menthol, linalyl acetate and 1,8-cineole). The experiment was conducted in Franz diffusion chambers with porcine ear skin. The sampling was done in a 24-hour window. For sample analysis our first choice was gas chromatography with FID detector. The pilot experiment showed that a more sensitive detection of the selected compounds in the extracts of the acceptor medium will be necessary. We therefore continued with a gas chromatography coupled with a mass spectrometer. An additional step of extraction was needed, since a hydrophilic medium a phosphate buffered saline with an additive for enhancing the sink conditions was necessary in acceptor fluid, in which the direct gas chromatography measurements are not possible. A high and repeatable recovery of the sample extraction process was necessary. We also tested if oleic acid improves permeability of the selected compounds, so we performed the tests with two different donor media. In conclusion, gas chromatography with FID detector was not able to detect any of the selected compounds in acceptor solutions, while gas chromatography coupled with a mass spectrometer did, but not all of them were permeable enough for quantification. All tested compounds exhibited very low permeability. Among them the highest permeability belonged to camphor, followed by 1,8-cineole, linalool and menthol. We were not able to determine linalyl acetate in any of the acceptor medium samples, leading us to a conclusion, that it does not cross the skin barrier in a significant amount. We noticed a slight but statistically insignificant increase in permeability when oleic acid was present in the donor medium

Combating Varroa destructor in Honeybee Colonies Using Flumethrin or Fluvalinate

Mite mortality in two apiaries, one with 32 and the other with 15 honeybee (Apis mellifera carnica) colonies, was recorded prior to and after flumethrin or fluvalinate treatments and after a control, oxalic-acid application. During the 42- and 51-day pre-treatment periods, the average daily natural mite drop was 0.04 (± 0.04) and 2.82 (± 2.19), respectively, which represents 1.09% (± 1.06) and 3.84% (± 3.04) of the total number of mites found during the experiment. The flumethrin or fluvalinate applications resulted in an average mite mortality at the two apiaries of 214.46 (± 260.02) and 4,098.64 (± 2,508.31). The treatments resulted in a 19.11% (± 14.62) and a 39.28% (± 10.47) reduction in the number of mites in slightly infested colonies and 94.30% (± 4.26) and 96.24% (± 3.14) in highly infested colonies. The difference in treatment efficacy between both apiaries was significant (P < 0.001) and indicates that fluvalinate and flumethrin are highly efficacious in dealing with highly infested honeybee colonies with sealed brood. The importance of effective mite control in colonies with a high level of natural mite mortality is discussed in this study

Reshaping Authorial Presence in Translations of Research Article Abstracts

In multilingual settings, the abstract is the only part of the research article that is regularly translated. Although very brief, abstracts play an important role in academic communication, as they provide immediate access to research findings. Contrastive research has revealed considerable cross-linguistic differences in the rhetorical patterns of abstracts. The present paper focuses on how this variation is bridged in translation, by addressing an important rhetorical dimension of academic discourse, authorial presence. Specifically, it examines how authorial presence is reshaped in translated abstracts. An analysis of a small corpus of 150 Slovene research article abstracts from five disciplines and their English translations reveals several interesting types of recurring translators’ interventions, most notably the tendency to replace personal authorial references with impersonal structures. Data collected in interviews with four experienced translators of academic texts is used to shed light on potential reasons for interventions with authorial presence in translation

Physiological and immunological status of adult honeybees (Apis mellifera) fed sugar syrup supplemented with Pentadecapeptide BPC 157

Various factors contribute to a decline in diversity and number of bees. Here, an integrated approach in experimental BPC 157 therapy was implemented, combining laboratory-controlled and field study results. The aim of a study was to assess the effects of BPC 157 additional feeding of newly emerged worker honeybees on few biochemical and immunological parameters in hemolymph (glucose, trehalose, lipids, proteins, vitellogenin, glucose-oxidase (GOX)), and hypopharyngeal gland (HPG), in laboratory-controlled conditions. Additionally, to examine the physiological status of protein digestion, the enzymatic activity of leucine aminopeptidase (LAP) in the mid-guts of worker honeybees was analyzed. It was found that individual honeybees, in hoarding cages, following BPC 157 administration through carbohydrate food, showed positive physiological changes when compared to the control groups. Those results were complemented by strong and visible LAP activity, particularly noticeable in the apical parts of the epithelial cells in the mid-guts of young worker honeybees originated from treated hives, suggesting a link between alternative oral therapy with BPC 157 and honeybees’ immunity

Effects on Some Therapeutical, Biochemical, and Immunological Parameters of Honey Bee (Apis mellifera) Exposed to Probiotic Treatments, in Field and Laboratory Conditions

Several negative factors contribute to a decline in the number of insect pollinators. As a novel approach in therapy, we hypothesize that the EM® for bees could potentially have an important therapeutic and immunomodulatory e ect on honey bee colonies. The aim of our study was to evaluate its impact on honey bees at the individual and colony level. This is the first appliance of the commercial probiotic mix EM® PROBIOTIC FOR BEES in honey bees as economically important social insects. The sugar syrup with 10% of probiotic was administered by spraying or feeding the honey bee colonies in the field conditions, in order to evaluate the infection levels with spores of Nosema spp. and colonies’ strength. Moreover, in laboratory-controlled conditions, in the hoarding cages, adult workers have been fed with sugar syrup supplemented with 2.5, 5, and 10% of EM® for bees for biochemical and immunological analyses of hemolymph, and with 5 and 10% for measuring the size of hypopharyngeal glands. It was found that following the EM® for bees administration the Nosema spp. spore counts in colonies were significantly reduced, and colonies’ strength was increased. The results at the individual level showed significant positive physiological changes in treated groups of adult bees, revealing at the same time a higher mortality rate when feeding sugar syrup supplemented with the probiotic

Dose modelling comparison for terrestrial biota: IAEA EMRAS II Biota Working Group's Little Forest Burial Ground scenario

Radiological doses to terrestrial biota have been examined in a model inter-comparison study that emphasised the identification of factors causing variability in dose estimation. Radiological dose rates were modelled for ten species representing a diverse range of terrestrial plant and animals with varying behavioural and physical attributes. Dose to these organisms may occur from a range of gamma (Co-60, Cs-137), beta (Sr-90) and alpha (Th-232, U-234 and U-238, Pu-238, Pu-239/240 and Am-241) emitting radionuclides. Whilst the study was based on a specific site - the Little Forest Burial Ground, New South Wales, and Australia - it was intended to be representative of conditions at sites throughout the world where low levels of radionuclides exist in soil due to waste disposal or similar activities

Next-Generation Global Biomonitoring: Large-scale, Automated Reconstruction of Ecological Networks

We foresee a new global-scale, ecological approach to biomonitoring emerging within the next decade that can detect ecosystem change accurately, cheaply, and generically. Next-generation sequencing of DNA sampled from the Earth's environments would provide data for the relative abundance of operational taxonomic units or ecological functions. Machine-learning methods would then be used to reconstruct the ecological networks of interactions implicit in the raw NGS data. Ultimately, we envision the development of autonomous samplers that would sample nucleic acids and upload NGS sequence data to the cloud for network reconstruction. Large numbers of these samplers, in a global array, would allow sensitive automated biomonitoring of the Earth's major ecosystems at high spatial and temporal resolution, revolutionising our understanding of ecosystem change

Use of Lichen and Moss in Assessment of Forest Contamination with Heavy Metals in Praded and Glacensis Euroregions (Poland and Czech Republic)

The concentrations of selected metals—Cr, Ni, Cu, Zn, Cd, and Pb—were determined in the samples of Hypogymnia physodes lichen and Pleurozium schreberi moss collected in Polish and Czech Euroregions Praded and Glacensis. More specifically, the samples were collected in Bory Stobrawskie, Bory Niemodlińskie, and Kotlina Kłodzka (Poland) and in Jeseniki (Czech Republic). The concentration of metals in the samples was measured using the atomic absorption spectrometry (flame AAS technique and electrothermal atomization AAS technique). The results were used to calculate the comparison factor (CF) that quantifies the difference in concentration of a given bioavailable analyte × accumulated in lichens and mosses: CF = 2 (cx,lichen − cx,moss) (cx,lichen + cx,moss)−1. The values of CF greater than 0.62 indicate the most probable location of heavy metals deposited in the considered area. In this work, the method was used to show a significant contribution of urban emissions to the deposition of heavy metals in the area of Bory Stobrawskie and in the vicinity of Kłodzko City