Concrete Reference Research Articles

Punching shear performance of reinforced flat slabs considering in-plane restraints under and after a fire

Two full-scale test specimens, a reinforced concrete reference slab (denoted as S1) and a polypropylene fibre (PPF) concrete slab (S2), with a PPF length of 3 mm and PPF dosage of 1.0 kg/m3, were designed to investigate the effects of the in-plane restraints and PPF admixture on the punching shear response of flat slabs under and after a fire. The results indicated that both S1 and S2 showed a clear trend toward punching shear failure at approximately 210 min after ignition, but S2 had smaller crack widths and a greater limit displacement owing to the PPF admixture. Because of the restrained thermal expansion, many radial cracks first appeared around the punching shear cones on the top surfaces of S1 and S2 and then gradually extended across nearly the entire top surfaces of both test slabs, including their four corners. Meanwhile, both test slabs experienced cracks, which expanded and then retracted under a fire owing to in-plane restraints. In the residual load-carrying capacity tests, both S1 and S2 experienced larger ultimate destructive loads than the unrestrained slabs; thus, the in-plane restraints significantly improved their residual bearing capacities. In addition, S2 experienced a lower residual load and larger plastic deformation owing to the PPF admixture, which exhibited certain ductile failure characteristics.

Reduced on-line speech gesture integration during multimodal language processing in adults with moderate-severe traumatic brain injury: Evidence from eye-tracking

BackgroundLanguage is multimodal and situated in rich visual contexts. Language is also incremental, unfolding moment-to-moment in real time, yet few studies have examined how spoken language interacts with gesture and visual context during multimodal language processing. Gesture is a rich communication cue that is integrally related to speech and often depicts concrete referents from the visual world. Using eye-tracking in an adapted visual world paradigm, we examined how participants with and without moderate-severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) use gesture to resolve temporary referential ambiguity. MethodsParticipants viewed a screen with four objects and one video. The speaker in the video produced sentences (e.g., “The girl will eat the very good sandwich”), paired with either a meaningful gesture (e.g., sandwich-holding gesture) or a meaningless grooming movement (e.g., arm scratch) at the verb “will eat.” We measured participants’ gaze to the target object (e.g., sandwich), a semantic competitor (e.g., apple), and two unrelated distractors (e.g., piano, guitar) during the critical window between movement onset in the gesture modality and onset of the spoken referent in speech. ResultsBoth participants with and without TBI were more likely to fixate the target when the speaker produced a gesture compared to a grooming movement; however, relative to non-injured participants, the effect was significantly attenuated in the TBI group. DiscussionWe demonstrated evidence of reduced speech-gesture integration in participants with TBI relative to non-injured peers. This study advances our understanding of the communicative abilities of adults with TBI and could lead to a more mechanistic account of the communication difficulties adults with TBI experience in rich communication contexts that require the processing and integration of multiple co-occurring cues. This work has the potential to increase the ecological validity of language assessment and provide insights into the cognitive and neural mechanisms that support multimodal language processing.

Preparation of neutron activated concrete reference material for gamma-ray spectrometry measurement

Preparation of neutron activated concrete reference material for gamma-ray spectrometry measurement

The TECo Database: Ecological and Technological Concepts at the Interface Between Abstractness and Concreteness

Ecology and Technology are two keywords of the era we inhabit. Knowing how people represent these domains is essential to inform adequate interventions aimed at promoting conscious behaviors. Here we investigated this aspect by taking insights from the literature on conceptual organization. Specifically, we hypothesized Ecological and Technological concepts might have a “hybrid” nature, at the edge between Abstract and Concrete concepts. We asked a sample of Italian participants to rate 200 concepts pertaining to Ecological (e.g., deforestation), Technological (e.g., Internet), Natural (e.g., water), and Geographical/Geopolitical domains (e.g., mountain, city) on 39 semantic dimensions, some of which traditionally investigated (e.g., Context Availability), and others completely new (e.g., Political Relevance). Results indicate that Ecological and Technological concepts, despite having concrete referents, were more similar to Abstract than Concrete concepts in Concreteness~Abstractness and other semantic dimensions (e.g., Interoception, Social Valence). Interestingly, for some dimensions, they displayed a “more abstract” pattern than that of more typical Abstract concepts—e.g., later and more linguistic acquisition, higher need of others to be understood. Moreover, a Principal Component Analysis revealed three major components that explained overall the conceptual organization of our set of concepts. The first component complements the rating results, with the opposition between concreteness~abstractness, where Ecological and Technological concepts lie in the most abstract extreme. A further Hierarchical Cluster Analysis supported this distinction. Overall, our results have a twofold relevance. On a theoretical side, they contribute to enrich theories on concepts, suggesting Ecological and Technological concepts are special conceptual domains questioning the concrete-abstract dichotomy; on a more pragmatic side, they might inform societal politics on these timely themes.

Enhancing thermal comfort in buildings through the integration of phase change material on the building envelope: a simulation study

Abstract According to the report published by the International Energy Agency (IEA), active space cooling and air conditioning systems consume approximately 16% of the building sector’s final electricity consumption and contribute 3.94% of global greenhouse gas emissions. In this regard, the use of low-cost but effective passive solutions, such as organic phase change materials (PCM) on the building envelope, can provide high thermal mass and thus can lower the temperature fluctuation inside the building. In the current study, the potential of PCM-enhanced building envelopes to enhance thermal comfort has been studied. The study has been performed using the conduction finite difference (ConFD) algorithm in EnergyPlus software. A comparative study has been done for a traditional reinforced cement concrete (RCC) reference test room of size (5m x 6m x 3m) and another room of the same size with PCM-enhanced walls for the hot and humid climate zone of Guwahati (latitude 26.1, longitude 91.7), in India. A PCM thickness of 20 mm is used at the external surface of the wall between the red clay burnt brick (120 mm in thickness) and the cement plaster (25mm thick). The PCM used for the study is a biocomposite PCM, named WH-PCM, with a melting point of 31.5°C and thermal conductivity of 0.27 W/mK. The simulation results reveal that the R-value of the external wall of the room with PCM walls has been increased by 84.90% compared to the reference room with the incorporation of WH-PCM, resulting in a mean zone temperature difference of 0.3°C throughout the year. Also, the indoor thermal discomfort hours have been annually reduced by 15.82% with the use of WH-PCM when compared with the reference room. A similar temperature difference trend, which is 1.93°C, is also observed in the single PCM brick experimental result under identical testing conditions as a regular brick of the same size.

Lifecycle of Accident Pathogens: Common Systemic Factors in Construction System Accidents

AbstractConstruction system accidents are accidents due to defects embedded in the constructed systems (e.g., buildings, bridges, and other infrastructures) originating from failures in construction systems, which we can consider as organic and ephemeral temporary multi‐organizations (TMOs). Understanding the mechanisms of such accidents in transient and multi‐organizational systems requires a system‐wide perspective and consideration of the temporary aspect. This paper examines six accident cases using the framed‐and‐layered accident pathogen propagation (FLAPP) model—‐an accident model we specifically developed to capture system‐wide factors and the time dimension—‐and identifies five types of pathogen threads and eight types of thread elements that contribute to the propagation of latent failures and defects, i.e., accident pathogens. With concrete reference to the processes and products found in accident cases, the concept of pathogen thread provides an explicit structure to the classic metaphor of pathogens that the safety literature has been using to describe latent failures. This paper further proposes the concepts of pathogen susceptibility and transmissibility to explain the mechanisms and dynamics that drive the generation and propagation of accident pathogens. Acknowledging the limitations of the modeling framework, this paper concludes with a discussion of lessons for systems engineering practices and directions for future work to ensure system safety in the construction of systems in various domains.

Characterization of concrete reference material for analysis of artificial radionuclides in nuclear power plant decommissioning waste

The decommissioning of nuclear power plants has led to a surge in the production of radioactive waste, necessitating the development of accurate and reliable measurement methods for safe waste disposal. This study presents the development of a new concrete reference material (RM) containing beta, and gamma nuclides for quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC) in concrete measurements. The newly developed RM manufacturing method was used to ensure sample homogeneity; rigorous processes were followed according to ISO guidelines. The RM, designed to mimic real waste matrices, targeted six radionuclides: 60Co, 134Cs, 137Cs, 152Eu, 154Eu, and 90Sr. Homogeneity and stability tests, conducted according to ISO guidelines, confirmed the suitability of the concrete RM for QA/QC purposes. Reference values for the six radionuclides in RM ranged from 66.0 to 172.6 Bq kg−1. The expanded uncertainties of the reference values, at a 95 % confidence level (k = 2), ranged from approximately 7.1 %–17.2 %. The developed RM holds potential as proficiency test material and for validating and verifying analytical methods in radioactive waste analysis. Additionally, the manufacturing method introduced here opens doors for diverse applications, enabling the production of accurate and reliable reference materials for various waste matrices.

Humanity at the Crossroads. to “Uninstall” Artificial Intelligence or to Invest More in Artificial Intelligence

Abstract The answer to the dilemma in the title is evident: artificial intelligence cannot be decommissioned, just as states or multinational corporations will continue to invest in artificial intelligence. This paper, far from having a technical approach due to considerations related to the competence of the authors, actually aims to highlight the now immutable character of artificial intelligence through the spectrum of the indisputable benefits it generates in the most varied fields of activity, excluding, however, the thaumaturgic character promoted by the apostles of technology. It is an analysis of democracy marked by the intervention, if not sometimes the intrusion, of artificial intelligence, but also a review of the attempts to regulate artificial intelligence precisely so as not to cancel the progress made by the democratic evolution of society, with concrete reference to human rights.

Simulation-Based Inference: Random Sampling vs. Random Assignment? What Instructors Should Know

“Simulation-based inference” is often considered a pedagogical strategy for helping students develop inferential reasoning, for example, giving them a visual and concrete reference for deciding whether the observed statistic is unlikely to happen by chance alone when the null hypothesis is true. In this article, we highlight for teachers some implications of different simulation strategies when analyzing two variables. In particular, does it matter whether the simulation models random sampling or random assignment? We present examples from comparing two means and simple linear regression, highlighting the impact on the standard deviation of the null distribution. We also highlight some possible extensions that simulation-based inference easily allows. Supplementary materials for this article are available online.

Penataan Ruang Kawasan Nagari dalam Rangka Mengoptimalkan Pariwisata di Propinsi Sumatera Barat

Regional development is an effort to utilize all regional potential to support development activities. Regional potential is the basic capital for the development of a community in improving its welfare. The existence of regional potential is a means that supports various development activities, both in terms of infrastructure potential, natural potential, population potential and business potential of the population as well as the potential of integrated cultural areas that can be exploited and used to improve development results in the context of justice and equity. area. A developed and developing regional area is strongly supported by regional potential. Regional territory is a geographical condition of an area that provides various opportunities for a region to manage regional potentials within a region. Community business activities also include the potential of productive areas in contributing to development activities and their results. The existence of sources of livelihood and employment owned by a community in a region will make a major contribution to development activities, especially in economic sectors that have the potential to increase a region's ability to become independent. Based on the description above, it becomes a concrete reference that every spatial planning activity carried out by the West Sumatra Regional Government, both in the Pariangan district of Tanah Datar Regency, the Harau district of Lima Puluh Kota District and the South Tiku District of Agam Regency have prepared spatial planning in order to increase tourism but not working as it should. This is due to the lack of clear coordination between nagari, tourism and spatial planning offices in order to increase tourism.

The Portrayal of Environmental Concerns: An Ecolinguistic Analysis of Media Discourse

The global focus on environmental/climatic concerns and sustainability has intensified in recent years due to the growing recognition of the urgent need for action to mitigate and adapt to climate change. As one of the key goals of Saudi Vision 2030, the Saudi Green Initiative strives to mitigate the effects of climate change and improve biodiversity through multiple measures including promulgating awareness and responsibility in the general public. With this respect, undoubtedly media plays a crucial role in shaping public opinion and influencing policy decisions. Therefore, it is essential to investigate how environmental issues and sustainability are portrayed in media discourse in the Saudi context. This research intends to analyze media representations of environmental concerns specifically in English newspaper discourse using an eco-linguistic framework. For the said purpose, the corpus developed was based on content published in Arab News an English newspaper, and analyzed through Sketch Engine and LancsBox6.0 software. The key frames that emerged were evaluated and interpreted both statistically and qualitatively to ascertain the role of media in imparting and creating collective consciousness regarding the need for sustainable environmental actions. The study demonstrated that the newspaper discourse portrayed the climate concerns effectively by framing the climate as a change, crisis, fight, and collective social responsibility through discursive strategies such as frequent repetition of concepts, specific lexical choices like negative, strong expressive words as well as techniques of naming and making concrete references. Additionally, the writers suggested practical solutions and measures people and nations must need to take collectively to address the ever-growing climate challenges.

Optimizing Warehousing Strategies for Retail Food Live Streaming on Supply Chain Cost: A Case Study of TikTok

The outbreak has indeed left a significant impact on the traditional offline sales model. However, it has simultaneously catalyzed the flourishing growth of the e-commerce live-streaming industry. Consumers have progressively adapted to this novel online shopping mode, signifying a paradigm shift in retail dynamics. Therefore, this paper studies the cost problem under different strategic choices of logistics and warehousing for retail food from the perspective of a platform system and analyzes the after-sale cost of a two-level retail food supply chain consisting of a manufacturer and an e-commerce platform by combining data and theory. This study further analyzes the optimal decision problem for e-commerce cloud warehousing, traditional warehousing systems and a combination of e-commerce cloud warehousing and traditional warehousing systems. This study not only enhances our understanding of the profound shifts in the retail food sector but also equips e-commerce platforms with concrete theoretical insights and practical references to bolster their supply chain cost management strategies in a post-outbreak era characterized by evolving consumer preferences and dynamic market conditions.

A case study on the relationship between risk assessment of scientific research projects and related factors under the Naive Bayesian algorithm

This paper delves into the nuanced dynamics influencing the outcomes of risk assessment (RA) in scientific research projects (SRPs), employing the Naive Bayes algorithm. The methodology involves the selection of diverse SRPs cases, gathering data encompassing project scale, budget investment, team experience, and other pertinent factors. The paper advances the application of the Naive Bayes algorithm by introducing enhancements, specifically integrating the Tree-augmented Naive Bayes (TANB) model. This augmentation serves to estimate risk probabilities for different research projects, shedding light on the intricate interplay and contributions of various factors to the RA process. The findings underscore the efficacy of the TANB algorithm, demonstrating commendable accuracy (average accuracy 89.2%) in RA for SRPs. Notably, budget investment (regression coefficient: 0.68, P < 0.05) and team experience (regression coefficient: 0.51, P < 0.05) emerge as significant determinants obviously influencing RA outcomes. Conversely, the impact of project size (regression coefficient: 0.31, P < 0.05) is relatively modest. This paper furnishes a concrete reference framework for project managers, facilitating informed decision-making in SRPs. By comprehensively analyzing the influence of various factors on RA, the paper not only contributes empirical insights to project decision-making but also elucidates the intricate relationships between different factors. The research advocates for heightened attention to budget investment and team experience when formulating risk management strategies. This strategic focus is posited to enhance the precision of RAs and the scientific foundation of decision-making processes.

‘Distorting the history’: Padmaavat and the performative production of history in Indian popular culture

ABSTRACT Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Padmaavat, a Bollywood period drama, engendered a variety of conversations about identity, history, etc. in India. This article examines the ways in which the reception of the film performatively produced a genre of history in the Indian public sphere. Such performative productions of history as a genre runs counter to the prevalent notion of history as pre-given with concrete referents and past incidents. The allegation of “distortion” (of “history”) is mobilized as a psychoanalytic resource to demonstrate this point. In the process, I note how the existing approaches to Hindu nationalism are inadequate in their critical clarity.

Functional Fitness Norms of Community-Dwelling Older Adults in Southern Rural Taiwan: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Physical activity (PA) and functional fitness (FF) are crucial for promoting independent living and healthy aging in older adults. However, there is a lack of normative values for the Senior Fitness Test (SFT) among older adults (aged 55-90) living in southern rural Taiwan, particularly in the Chiayi region, which has been relatively underserved in terms of health-related resources compared to northern Taiwan. This study aimed to determine the age- and gender-specific normative fitness scores for a large representative population of community-dwelling older adults in southern rural Taiwan. A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted to obtain normative FF scores for 3332 community-dwelling elderly people (1057 men and 2275 women) in Chiayi, through the implementation of functional fitness tests across 72 Chiayi communities. The developed normative data served as a reference for exercise prescription for the elderly in southern Taiwan. The study showed that the average normative values of all functional fitness tests declined significantly with increasing age (p < 0.05). Sex differences were also found in all measures of FF tests, with elderly women scoring significantly better than men on flexibility (scratch back: -1.34 ± 9.03 vs. -6.54 ± 11.07; chair sit and reach: 6.56 ± 9.44 vs. 0.56 ± 10.40) (p < 0.05), while men scored significantly higher than women on strength (grip strength: 30.83 ± 8.06 vs. 21.82 ± 5.32; bicep curl: 19.25 ± 5.44 vs. 17.64 ± 4.98) (p < 0.05). Furthermore, four FF normative scores in southern rural Taiwan were found to be significantly higher than their counterparts living in northern Taiwan. These findings contribute positively to the evaluation of fitness levels among older adults in southern rural Taiwan and provide a concrete reference for developing sound PA programs for this population. The results suggest that strategies aimed at promoting increased participation in PA among older adults need to consider age-, sex-, and region-specific factors.

Manhole cover design based on eco-community

By conducting a thorough review of manhole cover development in more advanced regions, conducting extensive field research, and utilizing comparative analysis of typical cases, we have successfully formulated innovative and culturally-rooted manhole cover design schemes. These designs are not solely focused on functionality, but also strive to enhance the overall landscape atmosphere and amplify the exhibition of unique eco-community cultural elements. Our primary objective is to provide a concrete and invaluable reference for future landscape design projects, encouraging the seamless integration of cultural aesthetics into practical eco-community infrastructure. By doing so, we aim to foster a more harmonious and culturally vibrant urban environment that not only meets the functional needs of its inhabitants but also reflects and celebrates the rich tapestry of eco-community culture. Ultimately, our goal is to contribute to the creation of cities that are not only functional and efficient but also visually stunning and deeply connected to their cultural heritage.

Flexural Characterization of Concrete Beams Reinforced with 3D-Printed Formworks

3D printing has been on the rise in recent times and the civil engineering industry has adopted this technology due to its various advantages. However, printing is largely restricted to concrete members while the reinforcement is introduced manually. The current work looks at the possibility of using 3D printed thermoplastics as formwork and reinforcement for concrete beams. Three different polymeric materials, namely PETG, PLA, and TPU were utilized in this research to fabricate formwork-like reinforcement for 150×150×500 mm concrete beams. The reinforcements were 3D-printed using a fused deposition modelling (FDM) printer in the shape of a formwork to serve as moulds and external reinforcement. The reinforcing formwork geometry was designed with trapezoidal corrugations to ensure strong bonding with the concrete. The beams were tested in four-point bending configuration, and their flexural behaviour was characterized and compared with plain and steel reinforced concrete (RC) reference beams. Results indicate that all 3D printed beams reached a load capacity of around 30 kN. The post-peak behaviour of these beams was dependent on the type of polymer used. The PLA and TPU reinforced beams exhibit large post-peak deflection however their load carrying capacity was compromised, while the PETG exhibited a strain hardening behaviour but with much lower deflections. Overall, the results indicate that 3D-printed thermoplastics are a promising economical alternative to the conventional steel reinforcement.

Inventory Control Analysis Using Economic Order Quantity (EOQ) in the Pekalongan Batik Industry

One of the economic sectors that is able to provide a significant increase in Indonesia's economic growth is MSMEs, which operate in the creative industry sector. On the other hand, MSMEs are a business sector that is often faced with uncertainty. One of the batik MSMEs in Pekalongan was forced to face post-disruption effects such as a pandemic, which had an impact on decreasing demand and increasing supply. Therefore, strategies are needed to remain competitive in the market, one of which is inventory management. The EOQ model is used in this research to minimize raw material inventory costs by determining the economical order quantity (Q) in one of the Pekalongan batik industries. The results of this research provide a concrete reference for MSMEs to plan their supply of fabric raw materials, starting from determining order frequency, reorder points, and safety stock. The optimal order quantity for MSME raw materials is 10,189 meters, with an order frequency of 35 times in the planning horizon. The safety stock level that must be prepared is 3,988 meters, and the reorder point is 6,362 meters to meet demand during lead time. Through the proposed inventory planning, MSMEs can save inventory costs and allocate resources for other purposes.

On the water resources tax standard and tax administration mode for urban residents in China

Abstract Levying water resources tax represents the exploration and innovation of paid use system of water resources in China. Due to the actual situation in China, the formulation of the water resources tax standard should fully reflect the value of water resources. Therefore, we use the fuzzy comprehensive evaluation model to evaluate the water resources value in China, explore the spatial distribution of water resources value, and calculate the tax standard for urban residents. The results show that China's spatial distribution of water resources value demonstrates a pattern of ‘high in the north and low in the south’. There is a significant gap between the calculated results and the existing water resources tax standard, which fails to reflect the water resources value. This gap makes it a challenging task to generate a water-saving incentive effect. In addition, we also discuss the collection and management mode of water resources tax for urban residents and the dynamic adjustment basis for the formulation of water resources tax standards with people's livelihood issues taken into consideration. These research results will provide concrete theoretical support and policy reference for policy-makers seeking to improve water resources tax reform policies.

In the periphery of an indefinite pronoun. Forms and functions of conceptual agreement with jemand

Abstract In German, the social gender of the human referent matches the grammatical gender of the noun and pronoun in many cases. Nevertheless, those categories can also differ from each other. The indefinite pronoun jemand ‘someone’ prototypically exhibits masculine grammatical gender irrespective of its concrete referents. This paper addresses a special phenomenon that can occur with jemand, namely, the conceptual agreement of relative pronouns, i.e., the occurrence of feminine target forms that refer to the masculine indefinite pronoun jemand (Sie ist jemand, die gerne Kaffee trinkt ‘She is someone m , who f likes to drink coffee’). Based on two empirical analyses that examine the phenomenon from different methodological perspectives, this article will demonstrate that the marked phenomenon is comparatively rare, but does occur nevertheless. The phenomenon cannot be fully explained by the loss of the genericity of indefinite pronouns. In fact, either semantic or pragmatic explanations can be applied. This phenomenon can especially be observed in specific types of contexts (or constructions) that lack the prototypical feature of indefinite pronouns: indefinite reference. Jemand increasingly seems to be emerging in non-prototypical contexts for indefinite pronouns, which to some extent override the morphosyntactic features of the (relevant) part of speech. This occurrence is a semantic explanation for conceptual agreement forms. Pragmatic explanations for variation in agreement forms can be applied in prototypical contexts of indefinite pronouns, for example when an effort to use gender-sensitive language is made. Based on the phenomenon of conceptual agreement, this article thus explores the functions and properties in the periphery of indefinite pronouns as a part of speech.