Problems of teaching bookkeeping in the high school

Thesis (M.A.)--Boston University, 1932. This item was digitized by the Internet Archive

Stainless steel plate girders subjected to shear buckling at normal and elevated temperatures

The final publication is available at Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10694-016-0602-6Numerical simulations have been widely applied, for the determination of the resistance of steel structural elements, when experimental analysis are not possible (due to cost or size limitations) or when parametric studies with high number of variables are needed. However, the numerical models must be properly validated with experimental tests in order to deliver reliable studies. With the purpose of studying the behaviour of stainless steel plate girders in fire situation, a total of 34 experimental tests from the literature have been numerically modelled. The tested girders had different configurations: rigid and non-rigid end posts, 2 and 4 panels, and transversal and longitudinal stiffeners were considered. Comparative analyses between those experimental and numerical results have been done. Good approximations to the experimental results at normal temperatures have been achieved with differences on average lower than 5%. Afterwards, the developed numerical model has been used to perform a sensitivity analysis on the influence of the initial geometric imperfections at both normal and elevated temperatures, considering different values for its maximum amplitudes, concluding that 10% of the web thickness is an appropriate value for the maximum amplitude of the geometric imperfections when modelling experimental tests. The effect of the residual stresses has also been analysed, being obtained differences lower than 2%. Finally, comparisons between the numerical results and the Eurocode 3 design procedures have been performed considering different uniform elevated temperatures.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Modeling Longevity Risk using Extreme Value Theory: An Empirical Investigation using Portuguese and Spanish Population Data

Extreme value theory (EVT) provides a framework to formalize the study of behaviour in the tails of a distribution. In this paper we use EVT to model the statistical behaviour of mortality rates over a given high threshold age and to estimate the significance of rare longevity risk in a given population. We adopt a piecewise approach in estimating the optimal threshold age using an iterative algorithm of maximum likelihood estimation.that statistically determines the cut-off between the central (Gompertz) part of the distribution and the upper tail modelled using the generalized Pareto distribution. The model is empirically tested using the most recent period mortality data for the total, male and female populations of Portugal and Spain. We use some classical results from EVT to estimate the evolution of the theoretical maximum life span over time and to derive confidence intervals for the central estimates. We then use time series methods to forecast the highest attained age. We observe a good fit of the model in all populations and subperiods analysed and on the whole life span considered. We estimate an increase in the theoretical maximum life span over time for all populations, more significant in the male subpopulations

Innovation in Plant-Greenhouse Interactions and Crop Management

(Semi)-closed greenhouses allow for better control of climate conditions compared to conventional greenhouses. To make the high investments for such greenhouses economically feasible, substantial yield increases are necessary. In north-Europe supplementary assimilation light in greenhouse horticulture is increasingly used to improve yield and product quality to meet market demands for year-round production and to obtain a more regular labor demand throughout the year. Using inter-lighting instead of lights only on top of the crop, and Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs), could increase substantially light and energy efficiency. As soon as LEDs will reach high enough efficiency and feasible price, they are expected to replace high pressure sodium lamps in greenhouse horticulture. Another important issue is the choice of the greenhouse cover which should be optimized from the crop point of view. A cover with high transmission of light, but low transmission of NIR, results in a better climate during the warm season (reduced temperatures, less crop transpiration, higher CO2-concentration possible because of reduced ventilation demand). Increasing the diffusive power of the cover material could result in a better distribution of the radiation over the crop canopy, therefore leading to substantial increase in absorbed radiation (up to 20% for highly diffusive covers) and improving radiation use efficiency and yield. Under these new conditions (high CO2 and high light levels) other genotypes than the present cultivars may be superior. However, the possible effect of breeding especially for these new conditions is still little investigated. Under improved crop management, maintaining leaf area index high enough and controlling source-sink balance is discussed. In conclusion, there are a lot of possibilities to further improve yield and quality of greenhouse produce, and meanwhile reduce the input of fossil fuel energy