Search results for "Ash"
showing 10 items of 1718 documents
Control of matrix interferences by multiple linear regression models in the determination of arsenic and lead concentrations in fly ashes by inductiv…
2010
A multiple linear regression technique was used to evaluate and correct the matrix interferences in the determination of As and Pb concentrations in fly ashes by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry. The direct determination of As and Pb in SRM 1633b by ICP-OES failed to obtain the certified concentrations, except in a couple of cases. However, it proved possible to use the multiple linear regression (MLR) technique to correct the determined concentrations to a satisfactory level. This method of correction is based on the multiple regression line obtained from the analysis of 19 synthetic mixtures of matrix and analyte elements (Al, As, Ca, Fe, Pb, and Si) at five concen…
The Washington consensus and multinational banking in Latin America
2004
International audience; The dramatic increase in multinational banks in the late 1990s is a direct result of Washington Consensus-type policies that emphasize the removal of barriers to the free flow of financial capital. In Latin America, foreign banks now control almost half of the total banking activity. Inevitably, the direct implication of such circumstances is a fall in the profits of domestic banks. In response to this, domestic banks react by curtailing their overall lending in the short run, thereby preventing small borrowers from accession to credit, and eventually increasing their lending to riskier projects and borrowers in the medium run. Either way, the multinationalization of…
Protection of Trees against Lightning Strikes as a Measure to Prevent Fires and Loss of Human Life
2021
Lighting strikes have been the catalyst of massive uncontrolled fires in areas of combustible vegetation. In some regions, lightning strikes may be a relatively unusual occurrence (e.g., California), but instead they seem to have become a major contributor to the propagation of wildfires, as a byproduct of climate change. Given such unusual weather, wildfires originating from lightning are an increasing threat. In this paper, the authors discuss the withstand capability of trees against lightning and introduce a proactive approach to prevent wildfires by the deployment of tree lighting protection systems (TLPS) to protect forested areas, where deemed necessary by the tree risk assessment.
Socially Responsible Sector: B Lab Certification of For-Benefit Organizations
2019
Master's thesis Innovative governance and public management ME523 - University of Agder 2019 This is a study of the motivations of organizations to become certified B Corps through thenon-profit B Lab. The Abilities, Motivations and Opportunities framework, rooted in behavioraland organizational management literature is applied to the certified B Corp model, andtheoretically compared to corporate social responsibility. Empirical data collected comparescommon language used to describe 3,508 organizations and self reported motivations to becomecertified through survey responses of 279 active certified B Corps. The results of the study showthe difference between corporate social responsibility…
NASH EVOLUTIONARY ALGORITHMS: TESTING PROBLEM SIZE IN RECONSTRUCTION PROBLEMS IN FRAME STRUCTURES
2016
The use of evolutionary algorithms has been enhanced in recent years for solving real engineering problems, where the requirements of intense computational calculations are needed, especially when computational engineering simulations are involved (use of finite element method, boundary element method, etc). The coupling of game-theory concepts in evolutionary algorithms has been a recent line of research which could enhance the efficiency of the optimum design procedure and the quality of the design solutions achieved. They have been applied in several fields of engineering and sciences, mainly, in aeronautical and structural engineering (e.g: in computational fluid dynamics and solid mech…
Micropropagation from inflorescence stems of the Spanish endemic plant Centaurea paui Loscos ex Willk. (Compositae)
1999
Tissue culture techniques have been established as a useful approach for ex situ conservation of rare, endemic or threatened plant species. This report describes the micropropagation of Centaurea paui Loscos ex Willk (Compositae), an extremely endangered plant species endemic to the Valencia Community (eastern Spain), as a conservation measure which does not cause damage to the wild plants used as explant source. Inflorescence nodal segments of C. paui were selected as explants for in vitro establishment. The best rate of shoot proliferation was obtained on Murashige and Skoog (MS) mineral medium supplemented with 0.5 mg/l 6-benzyladenine or with 2 mg/l kinetin. Maximum shoot elongation was…
Influence of Cognettia sphagnetorum (Enchytraeidae) on birch growth and microbial activity, composition and biomass in soil with or without wood ash
2001
In this laboratory study using microcosms with seedlings of silver birch (Betula pendula), we explored whether Cognettia sphagnetorum (Enchytraeidae) can retain its important role of accelerating decomposition processes in soils and stimulating primary production under disturbance. We established systems with or without wood ash amendment (first-order disturbance) in the soil, either in the presence or absence of C. sphagnetorum. To test whether the systems treated with wood ash are more sensitive to an additional disturbance than the ash-free systems, the microcosms were later on disturbed by drought. To determine the influence of two disturbances on the enchytraeids and populations of oth…
Theoretical Game Approach for Mobile Users Resource Management in a Vehicular Fog Computing Environment
2018
Vehicular Cloud Computing (VCC) is envisioned as a promising approach to increase computation capabilities of vehicle devices for emerging resource-hungry mobile applications. In this paper, we introduce the new concept of Vehicular Fog Computing (VFC). The Fog Computing (FC) paradigm evolved and is employed to enhance the quality of cloud computing services by extending it to the edge of the network using one or more collaborative end-user clients or near-user edge devices. The VFC is similar to the VCC concept but uses vehicles resources located at the edge of the network in order to serve only local on-demand mobile applications. The aim of this paper is to resolve the problem of admissi…
Cathodal occipital tDCS is unable to modulate the sound induced flash illusion in migraine
2019
Migraine is a highly disabling disease characterized by recurrent pain. Despite an intensive effort, mechanisms of migraine pathophysiology still represent an unsolved issue. Evidence from both animal and human studies suggests that migraine is characterized by hyperresponsivity or hyperexcitability of sensory cortices, especially the visual cortex. This phenomenon, in turn, may affect multisensory processing. Indeed, migraineurs present with an abnormal, reduced, perception of the Sound-induced Flash Illusion (SiFI), a crossmodal illusion that relies on optimal integration of visual and auditory stimuli by the occipital visual cortex. Decreasing visual cortical excitability with transcrani…
Object Localization Does Not Imply Awareness of Object Category at the Break of Continuous Flash Suppression
2017
In continuous flash suppression (CFS), a dynamic noise masker, presented to one eye, suppresses conscious perception of a test stimulus, presented to the other eye, until the suppressed stimulus comes to awareness after few seconds. But what do we see breaking the dominance of the masker in the transition period? We addressed this question with a dual-task in which observers indicated (i) whether the test object was left or right of the fixation mark (localization) and (ii) whether it was a face or a house (categorization). As done recently Stein et al. (2011a), we used two experimental varieties to rule out confounds with decisional strategy. In the terminated mode, stimulus and masker wer…