3-D scattering of obliquely incident Rayleigh waves by a saturated alluvial valley in a layered half-space

In this paper, three-dimensional (3-D) scattering of obliquely incident Rayleigh waves by a saturated alluvial valley embedded in a layered half-space is studied in the frequency domain by using the indirect boundary element method. The total responses are assumed as the sum of the free-field responses and scattered-field responses. The free-field responses are calculated using the direct stiffness method and the scatter-field responses outside and inside of the valley are simulated by applying two sets of fictitious moving distributed loads and pore pressures on the interface of the valley. The amplitudes of the fictitious distributed loads and pore pressures are determined from the boundary conditions. The method is validated by comparing the results with the results published in the literature, and numerical results are obtained for a saturated valley embedded in a uniform saturated half-space and in a single elastic layer overlying elastic half-space. The effects of incident frequency, incident angle, porosity, drainage condition, and soil layers on the dynamic responses are discussed. It is found that 3-D scattering is different from the 2-D case. As the porosity decreased, the pore pressures around the valley became smaller but their oscillations became violent. The wave fields in a layered site are determined by the “dynamic interaction between valley and the layered half-space” and the dispersion characteristics of Rayleigh waves for the given layered-half-space

Use of Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition for Damage Location of Water Delivery Systems

Urban water delivery systems can be damaged by earthquakes or severely cold weather. In either case, the damage cannot easily be detected and located, especially immediately after the event. In recent years, real-time damage estimation and diagnosis of buried pipelines attracted much attention of researchers focusing on establishing the relationship between damage ratio (breaks per unit length of pipe) and ground motion, taking the soil condition into consideration. Due to the uncertainty and complexity of the parameters that affect the pipe damage mechanism, it is not easy to estimate the degree of physical damage only with a few numbers of parameters. As an alternative, this paper develops a methodology to detect and locate the damage in a water delivery system by monitoring water pressure on-line at some selected positions in the water delivery systems. For the purpose of on-line monitoring, emerging supervisory control and data acquisition technology can be well used. A neural network-based inverse analysis method is constructed for detecting the extent and location of damage based on the variation of water pressure. The neural network is trained by using analytically simulated data from the water delivery system with one location of damage, and validated by using a set of data that have never been used in the training. It is found that the method provides a quick, effective, and practical way in which the damage sustained by a water delivery system can be detected and located

HSD-001 Real DGPS Ocean Survey Location System

The HSD-001 high precision Real DGPS Ocean Survey Location System, validated by the Departmental Level Assessment in August 1992, is the first system to be used in China which incorporates GPS for dynamic positioning at sea. Characterized by a coordinate differential deviation of ±4 m, and a pseudo-range deviation of ±2-3 m, the system has filled an existing gap in China in this respect. A wide range of application in fields such as Ocean Survey, Marine Engineering Prospecting, Ocean Oil and Mineral Exploration, can be expected from it

Reduction of train-induced vibrations by using a trench in a layered half-space

A coupled model of a track-layered ground-in-filled trench system is developed to investigate the isolation effects of an in-filled trench on reducing vibrations generated by moving train loads. By using the substructure method, the whole model is decomposed into two parts: the layered ground containing the in-filled trench and the track. Firstly, the flexibility coefficient for moving uniformly distributed loads applied on the layered ground containing the trench is obtained by using the 2.5D indirect boundary element method. Then, the dynamic equilibrium equation of the track under the moving train loads and uniformly distributed loads are established. Finally, the layered ground and the track are coupled according to the equivalence between the deformation of the track and the vertical displacement of the layered ground. The validity of the method is confirmed by comparing its results with the published ones. Numerical calculations are performed by embedding an in-filled trench in a homogenous ground, in a single layered ground and also in the real site at Ledsgard as examples. The results show that the isolation effects are different for different ground conditions and for different geometric parameters such as the depth, width and location of the in-filled trench

The Internet-of-Things Meets Business Process Management: Mutual Benefits and Challenges

The Internet of Things (IoT) refers to a network of connected devices collecting and exchanging data over the Internet. These things can be artificial or natural, and interact as autonomous agents forming a complex system. In turn, Business Process Management (BPM) was established to analyze, discover, design, implement, execute, monitor and evolve collaborative business processes within and across organizations. While the IoT and BPM have been regarded as separate topics in research and practice, we strongly believe that the management of IoT applications will strongly benefit from BPM concepts, methods and technologies on the one hand; on the other one, the IoT poses challenges that will require enhancements and extensions of the current state-of-the-art in the BPM field. In this paper, we question to what extent these two paradigms can be combined and we discuss the emerging challenges

Exploring Parity Magnetic Effects through Experimental Simulation with Superconducting Qubits

We present the successful realization of four-dimensional (4D) semimetal bands featuring tensor monopoles, achieved using superconducting quantum circuits. Our experiment involves the creation of a highly tunable diamond energy diagram with four coupled transmons, and the parametric modulation of their tunable couplers, effectively mapping momentum space to parameter space. This approach enables us to establish a 4D Dirac-like Hamiltonian with fourfold degenerate points. Moreover, we manipulate the energy of tensor monopoles by introducing an additional pump microwave field, generating effective magnetic and pseudo-electric fields and simulating topological parity magnetic effects emerging from the parity anomaly. Utilizing non-adiabatic response methods, we measure the fractional second Chern number for a Dirac valley with a varying mass term, signifying a nontrivial topological phase transition connected to a 5D Yang monopole. Our work lays the foundation for further investigations into higher-dimensional topological states of matter and enriches our comprehension of topological phenomena

Analysis on status of milk beverage consumption among the population in nine provinces of China

Objective This study aimed to describe the status of milk beverage consumption and the influence factors. Methods This study selected 13 953 samples by stratified multistage cluster random sampling in 2013. The study samples consisted of aged 3 and above with completed three non-consecutive 24 h dietary recalls and food frequency data. A Logistic regression was used to analyze the influence factors. Results The prevalence of milk beverage was 9.7% (1 350/13 953). The drinking frequency was 1.6% (217/13 953), 0.7% (94/13 953) and 7.4% (1 039/13 953) for whom consumed 1 or more times per day, 4 to 6 times per week, and 1 to 3 times per week, respectively. The prevalence was 8.5% (592/6 934) and 10.8% (758/7 019) for male and female, respectively. Stratified by age groups, the prevalence was the highest among 3 to 6-year-olds (35.5%, 165/465) and the lowest among 60 years and above (4.5%, 123/2 740). Urban prevalence (7.7%, 534/6 954) was lower than rural (11.7%, 816/6 999). The per capita consumption of milk beverage was 6.2 mL/d among all the participants (134.4 mL/d among consumers), and was 5.6 mL/d and 6.9 mL/d for male and female, respectively. Stratified by age groups, the consumption was the highest among 3 to 6-year-olds (35.6 mL/d) and the lowest among 60 years and above (2.6 mL/d). The consumption was lower in urban residents (3.2 mL/d) than that of rural residents (9.2 mL/d). Factors associated with the consumption of milk beverage were gender, age, occupation, urban-rural difference and region. Conclusion The prevalence and per capita consumption of milk beverage were relatively low among 3 years or above residents in China. Children and adolescents (3 to 17-year-old) are the main consumers of milk beverage

CSN6 and Rab34 Are Involved in Androgen Receptor Trafficking in Mouse Testicular Sertoli Cells

Background/Aims: Androgen and its receptor (AR) play an important role in maintaining spermatogenesis and male fertility. Our previous studies showed that testosterone at a physiological concentration induces cytoplasmic AR translocation to the Sertoli cell plasma membrane of within 5 minutes. Methods: In this study, mass spectrometry (MS) and bioinformatic analyses were applied to identify candidate proteins mediating AR trafficking. The candidate proteins were knocked down by shRNA transfection. Results: Nine candidate proteins were identified by MS. The data was verified by co-immunoprecipitation and Western blot. Of the candidates, CSN6 regulated AR transport through the phosphorylation signaling pathway and Rab34 affected AR trafficking by regulating Ras activity. Conclusions: CSN6 and Rab34 are involved in AR trafficking by regulating the phosphorylation signaling pathway. These findings provide new insights into the testosterone signaling pathway in Sertoli cells that mediates spermatogenesis