An Analysis of 1994 Air Force Toxic Release Inventory Reporting

The purpose of this research is to analyze the Air Force\u27s 1994 Toxic Release Inventory data. Statistical tests were used to meet the following research objectives: (1) review the CY 94 data to determine which chemicals were most often reported and which bases and major commands had the most releases in terms of the number of chemicals reported and the amount of chemicals reported and (2) investigate factors which could influence the reporting status of a facility. An analysis of the TRI data showed that dichloromethane was the chemical released in the largest amount while methyl ethyl ketone was the most often released chemical. The five Air Logistic Centers owned by Air Force Material Command, Tinker AFB, Kelly AFB, McClellan AFB, Hill AFB and Robins AFB, were responsible for the most TRI chemicals both in terms of numbers and pounds released. An analysis of a survey of Air Force facilities indicated that two factors had an influence on the reporting status of Air Force facilities: (1) whether the TRI point of contact had confidence in the completeness of the data used for threshold computations and (2) whether the primary database used for threshold computations was the Standard Base Supply System. jg p

A Regional Solid Waste Task Force: Making It Work

North Carolina faces a growing shortage of landfill space. To address this problem, Orange and Durham Counties have recently joined together to create a regional solid waste task force. This article describes the genesis, structure, and function of this multi-jurisdictional body

Reducing patient delay with symptoms of acute coronary syndrome:a research protocol for a systematic review of previous interventions to investigate which behaviour change techniques are associated with effective interventions

Introduction: Delay to presentation with symptoms of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) is common meaning many fail to achieve optimal benefit from treatments. Interventions have had variable success in reducing delay. Evidence suggests inclusion of behaviour change techniques (BCTs) may improve effectiveness of interventions but this has not yet been systematically evaluated. Data from other time-critical conditions may be relevant.Methods and analysis: A systematic review will be undertaken to identify which BCTs are associated with effective interventions to reduce patient delay (or prompt rapid help-seeking) among people with time-critical conditions (eg, chest pain, ACS, lumps, stroke, cancer and meningitis). A systematic search of a wide range of databases (including Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsycInfo) and grey literature will be undertaken to identify all relevant intervention studies (randomised controlled trials, controlled clinical trials and cohort studies). Two independent reviewers will screen abstracts to identify relevant studies, apply inclusion criteria to full papers, assess methodological quality and extract data.Primary outcome measure: Change in patient decision time BCTs reported in each of the included studies will be categorised and presented according to the latest reliable taxonomy. Results of included studies will be synthesised, exploring relationships between inclusion of each BCT and effectiveness of the overall intervention. Where possible, means and SDs for differences in delay time will be calculated and combined within meta-analyses to derive a standardised mean difference and 95% CI. Analysis of (1) all time-critical and (2) ACS-only interventions will be undertaken

Governing Yield Modes for Common Bolted and Nailed Wood Connections

Connections in wood structures are important when designing for ductility. The 1997 Uniform Building Code has taken this into consideration when designating wind and earthquake load duration factors for connections. Factors of 1.6 or 1.33 may be applied to the connection strength, depending on the type of yield mode exhibited by the connection, which may be determined from the yield limit equations supplied in the National Design Specification for Wood Construction (NDS). The NDS provides the designer with multiple tables containing capacities for various common connections. Unfortunately, yield modes are not published along with tabulated capacities. Therefore, the designer must carry out potentially cumbersome calculations using the NDS yield limit equations simply to determine the governing yield mode before an appropriate Uniform Building Code load duration factor can be applied. In this paper, several NDS tables are extended to include capacity and yield mode, smaller side member thickness configurations are added to the existing nail/spike tables, and a useful toe-nail table is provided. The overall purpose of these tables is to accelerate the design process by eliminating time-consuming calculations

Development of quantum perspectives in modern physics

Introductory undergraduate courses in classical physics stress a perspective that can be characterized as realist; from this perspective, all physical properties of a classical system can be simultaneously specified and thus determined at all future times. Such a perspective can be problematic for introductory quantum physics students, who must develop new perspectives in order to properly interpret what it means to have knowledge of quantum systems. We document this evolution in student thinking in part through pre- and post-instruction evaluations using the Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey. We further characterize variations in student epistemic and ontological commitments by examining responses to two essay questions, coupled with responses to supplemental quantum attitude statements. We find that, after instruction in modern physics, many students are still exhibiting a realist perspective in contexts where a quantum-mechanical perspective is needed. We further find that this effect can be significantly influenced by instruction, where we observe variations for courses with differing learning goals. We also note that students generally do not employ either a realist or a quantum perspective in a consistent manner.Comment: 18 pages, plus references; 3 figures; 9 tables. PACS: 01.40.Fk, 03.65._

LVC Interaction within a Mixed Reality Training System

The United States military is increasingly pursuing advanced live, virtual, and constructive (LVC) training systems for reduced cost, greater training flexibility, and decreased training times. Combining the advantages of realistic training environments and virtual worlds, mixed reality LVC training systems can enable live and virtual trainee interaction as if co-located. However, LVC interaction in these systems often requires constructing immersive environments, developing hardware for live-virtual interaction, tracking in occluded environments, and an architecture that supports real-time transfer of entity information across many systems. This paper discusses a system that overcomes these challenges to empower LVC interaction in a reconfigurable, mixed reality environment. This system was developed and tested in an immersive, reconfigurable, and mixed reality LVC training system for the dismounted warfighter at ISU, known as the Veldt, to overcome LVC interaction challenges and as a test bed for cuttingedge technology to meet future U.S. Army battlefield requirements. Trainees interact physically in the Veldt and virtually through commercial and developed game engines. Evaluation involving military trained personnel found this system to be effective, immersive, and useful for developing the critical decision-making skills necessary for the battlefield. Procedural terrain modeling, model-matching database techniques, and a central communication server process all live and virtual entity data from system components to create a cohesive virtual world across all distributed simulators and game engines in real-time. This system achieves rare LVC interaction within multiple physical and virtual immersive environments for training in real-time across many distributed systems

Clarinet Ensemble Recital

Program listing performers and works performe

Ultrasonic Plate Wave Evaluation of Natural Fiber Composite Panels

Two key shortcomings of current ultrasonic nondestructive evaluation (NDE) techniques for plywood, medium density fiberboard (MDF), and oriented strandboard are the reliance on empirical correlations and the neglect of valuable waveform information. The research reported herein examined the feasibility of using fundamental mechanics, wave propagation, and laminated, shear deformable plate theories to nondestructively evaluate material properties in natural fiber-based composite panels. Dispersion curves were constructed exhibiting the variation of flexural plate wave phase velocity with frequency. Based on shear deformable laminated plate wave theory, flexural and transverse shear rigidity values for solid transversely isotropic, laminated transversely isotropic, and solid orthotropic natural fiber-based composite panels were obtained from the dispersion curves. Axial rigidity values were obtained directly from extensional plate wave phase velocity. Excellent agreement (within 3%) of flexural rigidity values was obtained between NDE and mechanical testing for most panels. Transverse shear modulus values obtained from plate wave tests were within 4% of values obtained from through-thickness ultrasonic shear wave speed. Tensile and compressive axial rigidity values obtained from NDE were 22% to 41% higher than mechanical tension and compression test results. These differences between NDE and axial mechanical testing results are likely due to load-rate effects; however, these large differences were not apparent in the flexural and transverse shear comparisons. This fundamental research advances the state-of-the-art of NDE of wood-based composites by replacing empirical approaches with a technique based on fundamental mechanics, shear deformation laminated plate theory, and plate wave propagation theory

Supervillin Is a Component of the Hair Cell\u27s Cuticular Plate and the Head Plates of Organ of Corti Supporting Cells

The organ of Corti has evolved a panoply of cells with extraordinary morphological specializations to harness, direct, and transduce mechanical energy into electrical signals. Among the cells with prominent apical specializations are hair cells and nearby supporting cells. At the apical surface of each hair cell is a mechanosensitive hair bundle of filamentous actin (F-actin)-based stereocilia, which insert rootlets into the F-actin meshwork of the underlying cuticular plate, a rigid organelle considered to hold the stereocilia in place. Little is known about the protein composition and development of the cuticular plate or the apicolateral specializations of organ of Corti supporting cells. We show that supervillin, an F-actin cross-linking protein, localizes to cuticular plates in hair cells of the mouse cochlea and vestibule and zebrafish sensory epithelia. Moreover, supervillin localizes near the apicolateral margins within the head plates of Deiters\u27 cells and outer pillar cells, and proximal to the apicolateral margins of inner phalangeal cells, adjacent to the junctions with neighboring hair cells. Overall, supervillin localization suggests this protein may shape the surface structure of the organ of Corti