Levels Of Scaling Research Articles

Scaling up policy entrepreneurship strategies from the local to the national level: the unlikely rise of basic income from agenda universe to decision agenda

ABSTRACT Introducing Universal Basic Income (UBI) at the official agenda-setting is rare, although not a completely unlikely occurrence. Although policy entrepreneurs can strongly push this agenda, whether their efforts are successful depends on their specific strategies as well as the contextual institutional features where their actions take place. This study aims to investigate why UBI proposals have risen to the point of becoming a national-level presidential pledge in South Korea during the 2022 elections. Using the theoretical frame of Multiple Streams Approach (MSA) in agenda-setting, we identify three levels of scaling up in agenda-setting relevance, ranging from the ‘agenda universe’ to the ‘decision agenda’. We argue that policy entrepreneurs at the local policy level have an advantage in navigating the institutional settings with innovative, change-triggering ideas, but that on a larger, national-level scale, and with higher complexity of the policy field, their initially successful strategies might suffer setbacks. Our analysis shows that a progressive presidential candidate made shrewd use of the institutional bureaucratic settings offered by local governments in policy innovation. However, as the political arena shifts from the local to the national stage, the personal initiative of the policy entrepreneur might not suffice in scaling up policy innovations.

Comparative Laboratory Study of the Geochemical Reactivity of the Marcellus Shale: Rock–Fluid Interaction of Drilled Core Samples vs. Outcrop Specimens

The Marcellus shale is an unconventional reservoir of significant economic potential with Total Organic Carbon (TOC) ranging from 1 to 20%. Hydraulic fracturing is used to extract the shale’s resources, which requires large amounts of water and can result in mineral-rich flowback waters containing hazardous contaminants. This study focuses on a geochemical analysis of the flowback waters and an evaluation of the potential environmental impacts on water and soil quality. Drilled core samples from different depths were treated with lab-prepared hydraulic fracturing fluids. Rock samples were analyzed using Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS), while effluents’ chemical compositions were obtained using Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES). A comparison of results from drilled core samples treated with additives for hydraulic fracturing to those treated with deionized (DI) water confirms that, as expected, the major elements present in the effluent were Ca, Ba, and Cl in concentrations greater than 100 µg/L. The most concerning elements in the effluent samples include As, Ca, Cd, Pb, Se, S, K, Na, B, Mo, and Mn, with Cd and Cr values averaging 380 and 320 µg/L, respectively, which are above safe limits. Se concentrations and high levels of Ca pose major safety and scaling concerns, respectively. We also compared Marcellus shale drilled core samples’ geochemical reactivity to samples collected from an outcrop.

Normalizing and classifying shape indexes of cities by ideas from fractals

A standard scientific study comprises two processes: one is to describe how a system works, and the other is to understand why the system works in this way. In order to understand the principle of urban growth, a number of shape indexes are proposed to describe the size and shape of cities. However, the comparability of a shape index is often influenced by the resolution of remote sensing images or digital maps because the calculated values depend on spatial measurement scales. This paper is devoted to exploring the scaling property in classical shape indexes with mathematical methods. Two typical regular fractals, Koch's island and Vicsek's figure, are employed to illustrate the property of scale dependence of many shape indexes. A set of formula are derived from the geometric measure relation to associate the fractal dimension for boundary lines with shape indexes. Based on the ideas of fractals, two main problems are solved in this work. First, several different correlated shape indexes such as circularity ratios and compactness ratios are normalized and unified by substituting Feret's diameter for the major axis of urban figure. Second, three levels of scaling in shape indexes are revealed, and shape indexes are classified into three groups. The significance of this study lies in two aspects. One is helpful for realizing the deep structure of urban form, and the other is useful for clarifying the spheres of application of different types of shape indexes.

Model reduction for multi-scale transport problems using model-form preserving least-squares projections with variable transformation

A projection-based formulation is presented for non-linear model reduction of problems with extreme scale disparity. The approach allows for the selection of an arbitrary, but complete, set of solution variables while preserving the structure of the governing equations. Least-squares-based minimization is leveraged to guarantee symmetrization and discrete consistency with the full-order model (FOM). Two levels of scaling are used to achieve the conditioning required to effectively handle problems with extremely disparate physical phenomena, characterized by extreme stiffness in the system of equations. The formulation – referred to as model-form preserving least-squares with variable transformation (MP-LSVT) – provides global stabilization for both implicit and explicit time integration schemes. To achieve computational efficiency, a pivoted QR decomposition is used with oversampling, and adapted to the MP-LSVT method. The framework is demonstrated in representative two- and three-dimensional reacting flow problems, and the MP-LSVT is shown to exhibit improved stability and accuracy over standard projection-based ROM techniques. Physical realizability and local stability are promoted by enforcing limiters in both temperature and species mass fractions. These limiters are demonstrated to be important in eliminating regions of spurious burning, thus enabling the ROMs to provide accurate representations of the heat release rate and flame propagation speed. In the 3D application, it is shown that more than two orders of magnitude acceleration in computational efficiency can be achieved, while also providing reasonable future-state predictions. A key contribution of this work is the development and demonstration of a comprehensive ROM formulation that targets highly challenging multi-scale transport-dominated problems.

Estimation of Number of Levels of Scaling the Principal Components in Denoising EEG Signals

Electroencephalogram (EEG) is basically a standard method for investigating the brain’s electrical action in diverse psychological and pathological states. Investigation of Electroencephalogram (EEG) signal is a tough task due to the occurrence of different artifacts such as Ocular Artifacts (OA) and Electromyogram. By and large EEG signals falls in the range of DC to 60 Hz and amplitude of 1-5 µv. Ocular artifacts do have the similar statistical properties of EEG signals, often interfere with EEG signal, thereby making the analysis of EEG signals more complex[1]. In this research paper, Principal Component Analysis is employed in denoising the EEG signals. This paper explains up to what level the scaling of principal components have to be done. This paper explains the number of levels of scaling the principal components to get the high quality EEG signal. The work has been carried out on different data sets and later estimated the SNR.

Historija isprepletanja danas: teorijska polazišta i istraživačke perspektive

Considering the increasingly potent process of globalization, entangled history today functions as an appropriate research framework for scrutinizing the various phenomena of entanglements. This paper examines the epistemological underpinnings of entangled history, which are based on different theories of transculturalism, the theoretical legacy of “spatial turn” and postcoloniality, as well as the recognition of different interconnectedness processes. The paper also explains the development of entangled history, which grew out of a critique of comparative history, and the achievements of related paradigms: transnational history, histoire croisée, borderland history and global history. It recommends two examples of research practices from German historiography within entangled history: the current project EGO (Europäische Geschichte Online) and a multiperspective study that examines the complexity of the process of entanglements (Verflechtung) at three levels (network, texture, rhizome). Given the openness of entangled history to different qualitative and quantitative analytical approaches, the paper examines its epistemological compatibility with historical network analysis. In addition to describing the basic concepts and parameters used in the application of this approach, the paper explains the development of historical network analysis within social network analysis, and since the mid-1990s within the revival of quantitative history in digital humanities. The authors question the research potential of historical network analysis and its applicability in the future of entangled history, emphasizing the broad possibilities for research at different levels of spatial, social, and temporal scaling. Finally, the paper highlights two examples of research practice in the application of historical network analysis inside entangled history: the project “Seshat: Global History Databank” and the substantial research done by Austrian historian Johannes Preiser-Kapeller.

Non-Steroidal Topical Therapy for Facial Seborrheic Dermatitis

Seborrheic dermatitis (SD) is a chronic, recurrent, inflammatory skin disorder occurring in areas rich in sebaceous glands. It manifests clinically as erythematous macules or plaques with varying levels of scaling and associated pruritus. Although the pathogenesis of SD has yet to be fully understood, Malassezia yeasts, hormones, sebum levels, and immune response are known to play important roles. Additional factors including drugs, winter temperatures, and stress may exacerbate SD. Current available treatments include antifungal agents, topical low-potency steroids, and calcineurin inhibitors. We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a topical non-steroidal cream in treating facial seborrheic dermatitis (FSD). We performed a case series of 11 patients with mild or moderate FSD and a history of several previous treatments without improvement. The patients were treated for 8 weeks with a topical non-steroidal facial cream (NSFC) containing zinc PCA, piroctone olamine, hydroxyphenyl propamidobenzoic acid, biosaccharide gum-2, and stearyl glycyrrhetinate. Signs and symptoms and tolerance were assessed before, during, and at the end of treatment. All of the patients had improved symptoms of FSD (desquamation, pruritus, erythema, and stinging sensation); 81.8% showed an excellent response and 18.1% showed a good response. None of the patients had adverse effects. J Drugs Dermatol. 2020;19(6): doi:10.36849/JDD.2020.5121

Role of integration in scaling of an e-Government project

PurposeScaling is an important concern in the management of information systems projects. E-Government projects are no exception to the challenges of scaling. The problem is more severe because of a large and diverse population of target users and more crucial because of the vulnerability of the target population in case of failure of such initiatives (in projects, such as public distribution system of food). In spite of a significant awareness of its importance among implementers, scaling still remains a challenge. This paper aims to examine this important issue.Design/methodology/approachThe case study method has been used to demonstrate the relationship between integration and scaling of e-Government projects. This study uses analytic generalization from field case as a method to theorize a broad framework for the integration of information and communications technology projects. The context of this study is an e-Government project in West Bengal, India. The selection of the case involved theoretical sampling apart from considerations for the possibility of access to the project and its appropriateness with respect to the topic under study.FindingsFive different levels of integration in e-Government projects, namely, interface, data, electronic communication, application, and knowledge, have been identified. Further, it has been demonstrated that each of these integration mechanisms impacts scaling of e-Government projects. Also, the nature of the impact has been identified.Originality/valueThis paper demonstrates the impact of integration on the scaling of e-Government projects. It analyzes the phenomenon of integration in terms of five different levels. All the levels of integration impact scaling of e-Government projects in different ways.

The morphology of the deformation relief and the grain boundary role in the bicrystals of AISI 316 steel

The morphology of the deformation relief bicrystals of AISI 316 steel was described in terms of statistical parameters and using nonparametric roughness criteria. The presence of two large-scale levels of plastic deformation self-organization and scaling was established. Coordinated shear in bundles of parallel shear planes was the key mechanism at the mesolevel. The processes of self-organization in the dislocation substructure was the key mechanism at the microlevel. The deformation relief close to the grain boundary was investigated. Several shear systems in two grains was active at the grain boundaries. Due to this fact, it was waited inconsistency of deformation and more rough relief at the grain boundaries then into grains. However, there was not the high values of root mean square surface roughness at the grain boundaries. In addition, the scratch testing experiment showed that the grain boundary did not have a dramatic effect in this case. The connection between the statistical parameters of the surface morphology and the stages of the stress strain curve was established.

Integration and Scaling in an E-Government Project

Purpose: Scaling is an important concern in the management of Information Systems projects. E-Government projects are no exception to the challenges of scaling. The problem is more severe because of a large and diverse population of target users and more crucial because of vulnerability of the target population in case of failure of such initiatives (in projects like public distribution system of food). In spite of a significant awareness of its importance among implementers, scaling still remains a challenge. This paper examines this important issue. Design/Methodology/Approach: The case study method has been used to demonstrate the relationship between integration and scaling of e-Government projects. This study employs analytic generalization from field case as a method to theorize a broad framework for integration of ICT projects. The context of this study is an e-Government project in West Bengal, India. The selection of the case involved theoretical sampling apart from considerations for possibility of access to the project and its appropriateness with respect to the topic under study. Findings: Five different levels of integration in e-Government projects viz., Interface, Data, Electronic communication, Application and Knowledge have been identified. Further it has been demonstrated that each of these integration mechanisms impacts scaling of e-Government projects. Also the nature of impact has been identified. Originality/Value: This paper demonstrates the impact of integration on scaling of e-Government projects. It analyses the phenomenon of integration in terms of five different levels. All the levels of integration impact scaling of e-Government projects in different ways.

ITAP

Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) are widely used as the accelerator of choice for applications with massively data-parallel tasks. However, recent studies show that GPUs suffer heavily from resource underutilization, which, combined with their large static power consumption, imposes a significant power overhead. One of the most power-hungry components of a GPU—the execution units—frequently experience idleness when (1) an underutilized warp is issued to the execution units, leading to partial lane idleness, and (2) there is no active warp to be issued for the execution due to warp stalls (e.g., waiting for memory access and synchronization). Although large in total, the idle time of execution units actually comes from short but frequent stalls, leaving little potential for common power saving techniques, such as power-gating. In this article, we propose ITAP , a novel idle-time-aware power management technique, which aims to effectively reduce the static energy consumption of GPU execution units. By taking advantage of different power management techniques (i.e., power-gating and different levels of voltage scaling), ITAP employs three static power reduction modes with different overheads and capabilities of static power reduction. ITAP estimates the idle period length of execution units using prediction and peek-ahead techniques in a synergistic way and then applies the most appropriate static power reduction mode based on the estimated idle period length. We design ITAP to be power-aggressive or performance-aggressive, not both at the same time. Our experimental results on several workloads show that the power-aggressive design of ITAP outperforms the state-of-the-art solution by an average of 27.6% in terms of static energy savings, with less than 2.1% performance overhead. However, the performance-aggressive design of ITAP improves the static energy savings by an average of 16.9%, while keeping the GPU performance almost unaffected (i.e., up to 0.4% performance overhead) compared to the state-of-the-art static energy savings mechanism.

Mathematical Model of Information Processing in Electronic Document Management System

The article is devoted to the development of a mathematical model for information processing in electronic document management systems. The model is used to formalize the structure of documents and their life cycle, and to optimize the processing, the interaction and the flow of documents, taking into account the factors of adaptation EDMS to the structure of user activity when working with documents and allowing carrying out set-theoretic analysis of information processing methods and their implementation in algorithmic support and software. Within this article the model of multilevel information processing graphs, used to formalize information flows in the workflow system, is also presented for the first time. The conducted researches can be applied for the description of the processes of work with documents and problem formulation of optimization of document movement flows and processing at various levels of scaling.

A Novel System for Water Disinfection with UV Radiation

We present a novel system for water disinfection with ultra-violet (UV) radiation. In this system, the UV lamps do not come into contact with the water and hence remain free of fouling. The system incorporates a diffusor and a nozzle, with stationary guide vanes built into each. Their combined purpose is to reduce the hydraulic losses while imparting a strong swirl component to the flow. The swirl significantly enhances turbulent mixing processes and provides a self-cleansing mechanism that renders the system tolerant to high levels of turbidity and scaling. The hydrodynamic performance of the system was optimized using Computational Fluid Dynamics, while the manufacture of its key components was accomplished using advanced mechanical design software and three-dimensional (3D) printing. Biodosimetry testing with the bacteriophage MS2 indicated the delivery of a UV dose of 215.6 mJ/cm2. This produced a 6.9 log10 reduction of E. coli and 7.12 log10 reduction of MS2. Assessment of the system with hard water containing high Ca, Mg, and Fe concentrations, and with water with turbidity of 18 NTU indicated that the log10 removal of E. coli remained above 5.

Biochar systems: Developing a socio-technical system framework for biochar production in Norway

Biochar is charcoal produced from feedstock under pyrolysis. It has gained interests among researchers in recent years because of its agronomic and environmental benefits. It is considered to increase soil fertility and crop productivity, and biochar might play an important role as a climate mitigation tool that is able to capture carbon in the soil.However, although research has focused on the chemical, biological, and technical aspects of biochar, we seem to be far away from the implementation of a functioning biochar system. One key aspect needed for the actual use of biochar technologies is increased awareness and emphasis on the social and organizational aspects of its implementation. As there are no functional markets for the services and products needed to ‘produce’ a biochar system, political and market devices are needed. This paper contributes to this debate by introducing a socio-technical framework that investigates the implementation of different biochar technologies in Norway. Based on this socio-technical system framework, we discuss necessary components of a sustainable biochar socio-technical system, and we outline variations of this system based on different levels of biochar production scaling.

Early Detection of Sudden Pedestrian Crossing for Safe Driving During Summer Nights

Sudden pedestrian crossing (SPC) is the major reason for pedestrian-vehicle crashes. In this paper, we focus on detecting SPCs at night for supporting an advanced driver assistance system using a far-infrared (FIR) camera mounted on the front roof of a vehicle. Although the thermal temperature of the road is similar to or higher than that of the pedestrians during summer nights, many previous researches have focused on pedestrian detection during the winter, spring, or autumn seasons. However, our research concentrates on SPC during the hot summer season because the number of collisions between pedestrians and vehicles in Korea is higher at that time than during the other seasons. For real-time processing, we first decide the optimal levels of image scaling and search area. We then use our proposed method for detecting virtual reference lines that are associated with road segmentation without using color information and change these lines according to the turning direction of the vehicle. Pedestrian detection is conducted using a cascade random forest with low-dimensional Haar-like features and oriented center-symmetric local binary patterns. The SPC is predicted based on the likelihood and the spatiotemporal features of the pedestrians, such as their overlapping ratio with virtual reference lines, as well as the direction and magnitude of each pedestrian’s movement. The proposed algorithm was successfully applied to various pedestrian data sets captured by an FIR camera, and the results show that its SPC detection performance is better than those of other methods.

Assessing the perception of movements in subjects with chronic pain using altered virtual feedback

Chronic pain is often associated with body perception disturbances, but these have generally been assessed under static conditions. The objective of this study was to use a “virtual mirror” that scaled visual movement feedback to assess body perception during active movement. This study was performed in military subjects with chronic non-specific low back pain (CNSLBP, n = 15) and military healthy control subjects (n = 15). Subjects performed a trunk flexion task in front of a large screen displaying a full-body virtual mirror-image (avatar) in real-time. Avatar trunk movements were scaled to appear greater, identical, or smaller than the subjects’ actual movements. After each trial, subjects had to decide whether the avatar's movements were “greater” or “smaller” than their own movements. Based on this two-alternative forced choice paradigm, a psychophysical curve was fitted to the data for each subject, and several metrics were derived from this curve. Groups displayed a similar ability to discriminate between different levels of movement scaling. Still, subjects with CNSLBP showed an abnormal performance and tended to overestimate their own movements (shifted psychophysical curve). These results extend previous work in patients with CNSLBP, and denote an important relationship between body perception, movement and pain. As such, the method developed in this study can offer new avenues for understanding and managing body perception disturbances and abnormal movement patterns in patients with pain. A similar method is currently being implemented for the assessment of perception of upper limb movements in individuals with complex regional pain syndrome. It could also potentially be extended to therapeutic applications, to help patients with kinesiophobia to overcome their fear of moving.

Image Compression with Haar Wavelet Transform

transform is a mathematical tool for hierarchically decomposing functions. Wavelet transform has been proved to be a very useful tool for image processing in recent years. The most distinctive feature of Haar Transform lies in the fact that it lends itself easily to simple manual calculations. The aim of this paper is to describe the algorithm for image compression using Haar Transform. The quality analysis of this method has been checked for three different levels of HT scaling with varying quantization with threshold encoding scheme. In this paper, the image quality analysis is done using two sets of parameters, namely the popular peak signal to noise ratio and compression ratio.

Intensity measure selection for vulnerability studies of building classes

SummaryThe selection of a scalar Intensity Measure (IM) for performing analytical vulnerability (loss) assessment across a building class is addressed. We investigate the ability of several IM choices to downgrade the effect of seismological parameters (sufficiency) as well as reduce the record‐to‐record variability (efficiency) for both highrise and lowrise sets of ‘index’ buildings. These characteristics are explored in unprecedented detail, employing comparisons and statistical significance testing at given levels of local engineering demand parameters (story drift ratios and peak floor accelerations) that relate to losses, instead of global variables such as the maximum interstory drift. Thus, a detailed limit‐state‐specific view is offered for the suitability of different scalar IMs for loss assessment. As expected, typical single‐period spectral values are found to introduce unwanted bias at high levels of scaling, both for a single as well as a class of buildings. On the other hand, the geometric mean of the spectral acceleration values estimated at several periods between the class‐average second‐mode and an elongated class‐average first‐mode period offers a practical choice that significantly reduces the spectral‐shape bias without requiring the development of new ground motion prediction equations. Given that record selection remains a site‐ and building‐specific process, such an improved IM can help achieve reliable estimates for building portfolios, as well as single structures, at no additional cost. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Assessing the perception of trunk movements in military personnel with chronic non-specific low back pain using a virtual mirror.

Chronic pain, including chronic non-specific low back pain (CNSLBP), is often associated with body perception disturbances, but these have generally been assessed under static conditions. The objective of this study was to use a “virtual mirror” that scaled visual movement feedback to assess body perception during active movement in military personnel with CNSLBP (n = 15) as compared to military healthy control subjects (n = 15). Subjects performed a trunk flexion task while sitting and standing in front of a large screen displaying a full-body virtual mirror-image (avatar) in real-time. Avatar movements were scaled to appear greater, identical, or smaller than the subjects’ actual movements. A total of 126 trials with 11 different scaling factors were pseudo-randomized across 6 blocks. After each trial, subjects had to decide whether the avatar’s movements were “greater” or “smaller” than their own movements. Based on this two-alternative forced choice paradigm, a psychophysical curve was fitted to the data for each subject, and several metrics were derived from this curve. In addition, task adherence (kinematics) and virtual reality immersion were assessed. Groups displayed a similar ability to discriminate between different levels of movement scaling. Still, subjects with CNSLBP showed an abnormal performance and tended to overestimate their own movements (a right-shifted psychophysical curve). Subjects showed adequate task adherence, and on average virtual reality immersion was reported to be very good. In conclusion, these results extend previous work in patients with CNSLBP, and denote an important relationship between body perception, movement and pain. As such, the assessment of body perception during active movement can offer new avenues for understanding and managing body perception disturbances and abnormal movement patterns in patients with pain.

Videocapillaroscopic findings in the microcirculation of the psoriatic plaque during etanercept therapy

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is a pivotal cytokine in the pathogenesis of psoriasis, and upregulation of VEGF by tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-α and inflammatory factors causes marked alterations in the cutaneous microcirculation. Etanercept is a fully soluble TNF receptor fusion protein that primarily binds soluble TNF-α, thus blocking its pro-angiogenic function. To assess the modifications in the superficial capillary bed in psoriatic plaques during treatment with etanercept. The study enrolled 22 patients (13 men, 9 women; age range 31-74 years) with plaque psoriasis resistant to conventional therapy. The patients were stated on etanercept 50 mg/week, which was continued for 24 weeks. At the beginning of the study (baseline), and at weeks 6, 12, 18 and 24, in vivo videocapillaroscopy analysis of a selected plaque was performed. Levels of erythema, scaling and infiltration were assessed using a four-point plaque severity score, with an overall score obtained by the sum of these three scores. The Psoriasis Activity and Severity Index (PASI) was also determined. Etanercept produced a significant reduction in PASI, plaque severity score and diameter of the basket-weave area at every time point. Four patients had complete remission, although none of the patients regained a normal capillaroscopic pattern. Similar to other conventional therapies, etanercept is able to improve PASI, plaque severity score and basket-weave area diameter, but it is unable to induce normalization of the microcirculation in psoriatic plaques.