Using discrete event simulation for scheduling and long range capacity planning of a high volume press shop

The thesis expresses the essential requirement for and the use of Discrete Event Simulation (DES) in a high volume press shop. The press shop produces blanks and panels for the body shop, which manufactures three car models. DES is used to combat the battle between shop efficiency and low inventory. The process used to choose the most appropriate software package is described and then current situation in the press shop is discussed. The procedures involved in model creation follow set model construction guidelines. There are several assumptions made, which together with the constraints of the system, provide the limitations of the inputs facing the system. There is a trade off between model complexity and accuracy, so the setting of the constraints and assumptions often provided difficult decisions. Validation of the model is very important, so this was a lengthy process, involving using a series of dummy buffers to check inputs such as cycle times and batch quantities. The validated model is used to monitor the methods used to reduce inventory on the shop floor over a period of eight weeks and then used for 'What If? Scenarios, to ascertain the systems capacity and inventory levels underdifferent conditions. The scenarios include using volumes that are 100% higher on some models than the current situation and 20% less than currently. The findings are examined and proposals made for the introduction of the proposed volumes where possible. Findings of the scenarios highlight bottlenecks in the shop and areas for improvement. Using the model, the schedules can be changed quickly and easily to try and eliminate the bottlenecks and improve capacity. Conclusions discuss the problems encountered during the modelling process as well as the benefits. The integration of DES into the current scheduling processes in the shop poses no problems and the model will be used as an aid for capacity planning in the future

Who taught Adam to speak?1

It is taken for granted that the first man, being half-ape, 'spoke’ by copying them. Research shows that such grunts and cries cannot ‘evolve' into cultured speech because the speech organs and brain structure required for human language are entirety different from those needed for of animal communication. The difference in animal and human thinking processes is not merely one of degree but rather of kind. This difference is seen in the use of signs vs. symbols, of emotional and situational language v.v. conceptual, objective language. No animal communication system can account for the human one. Perhaps, then, speech is instinctive? No, for people, however primitive, have been found without a language. Yet unless spoken to, one does not learn to speak as demonstrated by feral (wild) children and deaf-mutes(like Helen Keller). So the question is - who spoke to the first human being - Adam to teach him? About all that scientific investigation can do is to demonstrate what cannot be the origin of this extraordinary trait of human nature. The only light we have is from revelation. The first two chapters of Genesis not only tell us Who spoke first but also how the process of language was acquired. But the implications of the necessity of this unique faculty in terms of his humanity and the purpose of his very creation are profound

The building stones and slates of Killin : an investigation of stone for the built heritage

The village of Killin lies in an area of dramatic landscape and mountain scenery. The use of local stone in the buildings gives a direct connection to this landscape and reflects the local geology, comprising mostly metamorphic rocks of Precambrian age –dominantly limestone, meta-sandstone, mica schist and meta-igneous rocks. All of these (with the exception of the Loch Tay Limestone which was used for soil improvement) were used in buildings and structures within the Killin Conservation Area. The stone masonry in the village is classified into five categories; (1) cottages (mostly harled) built of random rubble from field and river boulders and surface rock outcrops, (2) two storey buildings with irregular coursed rubble walls of meta-sandstone and mica schist with large dressings of silver-grey slabs of actinolite schist, (3) and (4) larger late 19th century buildings with dressings of Central Belt sandstone used in combination with squared rubble walling of local actinolite schist and metasandstone. The 5th masonry category represents relatively late buildings constructed using distinctive imported stone types (e.g. whinstone, granite, red sandstone). These categories are broadly chronological in order and reflect the development of architectural form along with improving transportation of materials over time

Social learning and imitation in human and nonhuman primates

Most people assume that monkeys and apes can imitate, but recently, several researchers have suggested there is little convincing evidence of imitation in any nonhuman species. The purpose of the present thesis is to compare the imitative abilities of human and non-human primates. Some of the most convincing evidence for imitation comes from anecdotal reports of imitative behaviour in great apes. A survey of the literature was performed and a database of imitative episodes in chimpanzees, gorillas and orangutans was compiled (using a similar approach to Whiten & Byrne's 1988a tactical deception database). Each report was subjected to a strict evaluation, and it was deemed that 23 reports from chimpanzees, 3 from gorillas and 4 from orangutans provided relatively convincing evidence of imitation. An experiment was conducted to test if chimpanzees can imitate as the anecdotal data suggests. Two chimpanzees were taught to reproduce 15 arbitrary gestures on the command "Do this". Next they were presented with 48 novel items. They imitated 13 and 20 novel gestures respectively. Using a rigorous coding system, two independent observers correctly identified a significant number of the chimpanzees' imitations (P< 0.0001). These results show that chimpanzees are capable of the complex intermodal visual-motor co-ordination and control necessary for imitation. The second experimental chapter explores whether monkeys, apes, and/or humans imitate in the context of a functional task. Six capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella), eight chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and 24 children were presented with an analogue of a natural food processing task. The subjects were divided into two groups and each saw a different method for opening an artificial fruit. The children showed quite extensive imitation; the capuchin monkeys showed little to none; while the chimpanzees showed marginal imitative abilities. This constitutes the first experimental evidence of functional object imitation in a nonhuman specie

The application of terrain classification techniques to visible near infra-red and thermal infra-red imagery

The research presented in this thesis was sponsored by the Ministry of Technology and carried out in the Physics Department of Bedford College, University of London, under the supervision of Dr. E.S. Owen Jones. The work was concerned with the 'Physics' aspect of Remote Sensing of the terrain whilst parallel, co-ordinated research into the ground-related aspects of the project were investigated by a Research Student in the Geography Department and supervised by Professor M.M. Cole. Photographic emulsions were used to sense the visible and near infra-red radiation reflected by the terrain and an infra-red line-scanner detected the longer wave infra-red (3.5--5.5microm) radiation emitted from the ground. The research studied two particular aspects in detail; Data Acquisition and Data Analysis. The investigations into data acquisition required an examination into the factors affecting the various types of radiation as well as equipment calibration procedures. The analysis of the data obtained with cameras was treated quantitatively whilst the imagery derived from the line-scanner was of degraded quality and only visual interpretation techniques were applied. The research carried out has made contributions in two areas. Firstly it has provided greater understanding of the manner in which remote sensing exercises should be undertaken in order to reduce experimental errors. Secondly, the difficulties associated with the analysis of remotely sensed data were studied and several useful unsupervised cluster analysis strategies have been proposed and investigated.<p

Fear and Clothing: Dress in English Detective Fiction Between the First and Second World Wars

This thesis addresses the anxieties of an ostensibly male readership of detective fiction between the Great War and Word War Two, through analysing dress. Based on a close reading of 261 texts chosen both from established and popular writers of detective fiction and from writers established in other literary, political and academic fields, this thesis establishes how concerns about class, gender and race are revealed through dress. It tracks the different dress mechanisms employed at the time to counter fear of post-World War One social and cultural turmoil, and assesses how effective those mechanisms were. The findings show that the dress strategies of both men and women changed in response to the effect of the Great War on masculinity, the effect of war and suffrage on performing womanhood and the approach of World War Two. Detective fiction was a comforting consolation literature, and this research demonstrates that the dress references provided further comfort through subtly offering the readership a guide to the dress codes of, primarily, the upper middle classes. The texts themselves could act not just to reflect anxieties, but to allay those anxieties by providing a form of conduct book for a confused, readership, to guide them through the insecurities of dress codes. This thesis thus increases academic knowledge on the power, materiality and usefulness of dress in fiction

The Region and its Multiple Images

The growth or decline of a region depends on its power to “pull” and retain both business activities and the right blend of people to run them; this pulling power depends on what we call the Image of the region. Hence, it can be argued that, at each point in time, the region “sends out” its Image and, depending on its impact on the receivers (both employers and employees), the region may be considered attractive or non-attractive. The available evidence suggests that all the receivers groups or in other words the potential movers react similarly to a basic set of factors; more precisely, a set of minimum standards, largely common to all the potential movers, must be satisfied if the region is to be considered as a potential choice by any of them. On the other hand, the potential movers may belong to a number of different groups that have a different type of interaction with a region and as result each of these groups is likely to have a different image of the particular region. Hence, a region does not have a single image, but multiple ones. To reconcile these two views we refine the concept of a region's Image by introducing the following two concepts: the Basic Image and the Specific Image. The Basic Image of a given region measures the degree to which the region satisfies a set of basic criteria, common for all movers. A region satisfying those criteria is considered by all potential movers as worth a closer examination and as a potential final choice. On the other hand the Specific Image of a given region, as perceived by a particular group of potential movers, measures the degree to which movers belonging to that particular group consider the region as their best final choice. A detailed exposition of the concept of a region's Basic Image has been presented in some of the authors’ earlier papers. In the present paper emphasis will be placed on a region's Specific Image as perceived by the various groups of potential movers. More precisely: • The groups of potential movers will be determined. • The factors affecting each group will be identified and ways for their measurement will be suggested. • The form of each Specific Image function will be defined. The theoretical findings will be applied to a number of regions and their Basic and Specific Images will be calculated. The main results will be presented and discussed

Developing a Vocational Training Computer Game Workplace Simulator: The Vocational Game Project

Abstract This study presents the research and production processes for the development of a Vocational Training computer game workplace simulator that will be used to deliver competency-based The study focuses on the design and development of immersive educational environments and assesses the optimal level of interactivity and game play necessary to achieve identified learning outcomes. This application of games technologies and the development of immersive learning environments enables the targeted delivery of flexible, customised learning programs in the workplace ensuring participant engagement through active learning

Innovative Practice in Work-based Learning: fresh produce supply chain management development in the UK

The UK fresh produce industry is both complex and diverse. It can be characterised as a highly fragmented industry but nevertheless with some significant players. There is an overriding trend towards supply chain concentration in the industry and high levels of competition, with multiple retailers seeking to deal with a reduced number of suppliers. For many years the industry has experienced problems recruiting the number and quality of staff required, with vacancies available throughout the supply chain; this is possibly related to the poor image the industry holds, particularly among graduates. This situation provided the impetus for the development of a work-based postgraduate qualification developed by a partnership of Harper Adams University College and Management Development Services (MDS Ltd), a consortium of UK-based fresh produce companies