Mapping TOEFL iBT ® Scores onto the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines

The purpose of this study was to establish a crosswalk between the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL iBT® ) and four ACTFL Assessments to help examinees and institutions of higher education (IHE) to better understand the correspondences between TOEFL iBT scores and examinees’ functional proficiency, i.e., their ability to use functional English in real-world academic and social situations

Untersuchungen zur Wirksamkeit und zum Nachweis des pflanzlichen Alkaloids Sanguinarin beim Schwein

Die Verwendung pflanzlicher Futterzusatzstoffe in der landwirtschaftlichen Praxis erlangt eine zunehmend größere Bedeutung. Allerdings ist die Effizienz dieser Zusatzstoffe in der Tierernährung unter In vivo-Bedingungen wissenschaftlich nur unzureichend geprüft. Daher war ein Ziel der vorliegenden Arbeit, die möglichen Effekte eines pflanzlichen Futterzusatzstoffes (Sangrovit®) auf die Futteraufnahme und Leistung laktierender Sauen sowie auf die N-Bilanz, Wachstumsleistung und Futteraufnahme wachsender Schweine zu untersuchen. Weiterhin sollten eine Methode zum Nachweis des im Sangrovit® dominierenden Alkaloids, Sanguinarin, im Futterzusatzstoff, in Alleinfuttermitteln und im Blut entwickelt und die systemische Verfügbarkeit dieses Alkaloids nach oraler Applikation von Sangrovit® untersucht werden. Es konnte gezeigt werden, dass die Supplementierung von 30 ppm Sangrovit® bei Sauen der zweiten Laktation zu einer tendenziellen Verbesserung des Wurfwachstums führte. Hingegen war der Futterverbrauch bei primiparen Sauen infolge der Sangrovit®-Supplementierung reduziert (p 0.05). Die im Rahmen dieser Studie erarbeitete HPLC-Methode ermöglicht mit geringem apparativem Aufwand eine schnelle Sanguinarin-Analyse im Futterzusatzstoff sowie in Alleinfuttermitteln. Darüber hinaus ist auch der Nachweis in Blut und Kot möglich. In den Untersuchungen zur Pharmakokinetik von Sanguinarin nach oraler Aufnahme von Sangrovit® konnte gezeigt werden, dass das Alkaloid in nur relativ geringem Umfang aus dem Gastrointestinaltrakt absorbiert und zum größten Teil wieder unverändert mit dem Kot ausgeschieden wird. Diese Daten deuten auf eine geringe systemische Verfügbarkeit des Alkaloids hin

Examining the Validity and Reliability of the ITT Vocabulary Size Tests

The Institute for Test Research and Test Development (ITT) has provided complimentary Vocabulary Size Tests (VST) in 15 languages to language learners and their teachers, measuring their own or their learners’ receptive and productive vocabulary sizes. This report examines in detail and on a large empirical basis the validity and reliability of these tests

Continuous Online Extrinsic Calibration of Fisheye Camera and LiDAR

Automated driving systems use multi-modal sensor suites to ensure the reliable, redundant and robust perception of the operating domain, for example camera and LiDAR. An accurate extrinsic calibration is required to fuse the camera and LiDAR data into a common spatial reference frame required by high-level perception functions. Over the life of the vehicle the value of the extrinsic calibration can change due physical disturbances, introducing an error into the high-level perception functions. Therefore there is a need for continuous online extrinsic calibration algorithms which can automatically update the value of the camera-LiDAR calibration during the life of the vehicle using only sensor data. We propose using mutual information between the camera image's depth estimate, provided by commonly available monocular depth estimation networks, and the LiDAR pointcloud's geometric distance as a optimization metric for extrinsic calibration. Our method requires no calibration target, no ground truth training data and no expensive offline optimization. We demonstrate our algorithm's accuracy, precision, speed and self-diagnosis capability on the KITTI-360 data set.Comment: 4 page

Prescriptive- and Performance-based Approaches of the Present and Previous German DIN 4108-2. Hourly Energy Simulation for Comparing the Effectiveness of the Methods

Abstract The study proposes a comparison between the thermal performances of a real building, built according to the German standard DIN 4108-2:2003, and a refurbished one (in a theoretical investigation), aimed at satisfying the more restrictive requirements of the new version (i.e., 2013) of the same standard. The analysed building, completed during the 2012, is located in Berlin. The building has good performances in terms of energy demand for heating. Diversely, during the first years of operations, some overheating problems have been verified in summer. Because of sustainability motivations, cooling devices are not installed. An energy-oriented retrofit is here proposed, aimed at verifying if the fulfillment of the new version of the DIN 4108-2:2013 will produce better microclimatic conditions in summer. The results show the necessity of an accurate approach to the topic of summer thermal protection

Yield Improvement and Energy Savings Uing Phosphonates as Additives in Kraft pulping

Project Objective: Develop a commercially viable modification to the Kraft process resulting in energy savings, increased yield and improved bleachability. Evaluate the feasibility of this technology across a spectrum of wood species used in North America. Develop detailed fundamental understanding of the mechanism by which phosphonates improve KAPPA number and yield. Evaluate the North American market potential for the use of phosphonates in the Kraft pulping process. Examine determinants of customer perceived value and explore organizational and operational factors influencing attitudes and behaviors. Provide an economic feasibility assessment for the supply chain, both suppliers (chemical supply companies) and buyers (Kraft mills). Provide background to most effectively transfer this new technology to commercial mills