72 research outputs found
Demeter Demystified
No full textMy understanding of what Karl's stuff is about, what it's good for, and what its limitations are. For the past eight years or so, Karl has been working on projects aimed at making object-oriented programming less onerous. In the process, he has developed a programming model and vocabulary that newcomers often find difficult. In this document, I will give my understanding of these projects and their significance. This is not a scholarly survey with proper citations. It is instead impressionistic and critical. I will try throughout to be as accurate as I can, but errors in fact or interpretation are of course mine, and not Karl's. When in doubt, consult Karl's book [1]. Karl's work seems to divide into four parts: ffl The Demeter system ffl The Law of Demeter ffl Propagation Patterns ffl Adaptive Programming 1 The Demeter System The Demeter system is a program framework for implementing the hierarchical data model in an object-oriented system. It starts with the notion of a class gr..
Physics demystified
No full textNow anyone with an interest in the physical sciences can master physics -- without formal training or drowning in a sea of complicated formulas and equations. In Physics Demystified best-selling author Stan Gibilisco offers a fun, effective, and totally painless way to learn the fundamentals and general concepts of physics. With Physics Demystified you master the subject one simple step at a time -- at your own speed. Unlike most books on physics, general principles are presented first -- and the details follow. In order to make the learning process as clear and simple as possible, heavy-duty math, formulas, and equations are kept to a minimum. This unique self-teaching guide offers questions at the end of each chapter and section to pinpoint weaknesses, and a 100-question final exam to reinforce the entire book
Architectural authorship in generative design
No full textThe emergence of evolutionary digital design methods, relying on the creative generation of novel forms, has transformed the design process altogether and consequently the role of the architect. These methods are more than the means to aid and enhance the design process or to perfect the representation of finite architectural projects. The architectural design philosophy is gradually transcending to a hybrid of art, engineering, computer programming and biology. Within this framework, the emergence of designs relies on the architect- machine interaction and the authorship that each of the two shares.
This work aims to explore the changes within the
design process and to define the authorial control of a
new breed of architects- programmers and architects-users on architecture and its design representation. For the investigation of these problems, this thesis is to be based on an experiment conducted by the author in order to test the interaction of architects with different digital design methods and their authorial control over the final product. Eventually, the results will be compared and evaluated in relation to the theoretic views. Ultimately, the architect will establish his authorial role
The trade response to global downturns : historical evidence
No full textThe author examines the impact of historical global downturns on trade flows. The results provide insight into why trade has dropped so dramatically in the current crisis, what is likely to happen in the coming years, how global imbalances are affected, and which regions and industries suffer most heavily. The author finds that the elasticity of global trade volumes to real world GDP has increased gradually from around 2 in the 1960s to above 3 now. The author also finds that trade is more responsive to GDP during global downturns than in tranquil times. The results suggest that the overall drop in real trade this year is likely to exceed 15 percent. There is significant variation across industries, with food and beverages the least affected and crude materials and fuels the most affected. On the positive side, trade tends to rebound very rapidly when the outlook brightens. The author also finds evidence that global downturns often lead to persistent improvements in the ratio of the trade balance to GDP in borrower countries.Economic Theory&Research,Emerging Markets,Free Trade,Trade Policy,Currencies and Exchange Rates
Biocomposites for bone tissue engineering : innovation report
No full textHistorically, bone defects resulting from trauma, disease or infection are treated with
autograft or allograft. Autograft is bone transplanted from a non-critical area of the skeleton
and allograft is bone donated from another member of the same species. The drawbacks
with these treatments such as limited availability, donor site morbidity, high cost and disease
transmission have driven increasing use of bone graft substitute (BGS) materials. These
represent 15% of the £1.6 billion global orthobiologics market. BGS materials available to
date are not suitable for use in grafts that are intrinsic to the stability of the skeleton. Thus,
the aim for this project was to fabricate an off the shelf and economically viable BGS that
will support the skeletal structure whilst healing occurs.
This project employed an empirical approach utilising both rapid prototyping (RP) and
conventional manufacturing processes to produce novel BGSs. A range of RP techniques
were attempted and discovered to be unsuitable as a result of their long build and postprocessing
times, poor availability of suitable materials, and undesirable surface finish.
Experiments with injection moulding and laser drilling of polylactic acid (PLA) successfully
produced 10 mm blocks with a compressive strength of 67 – 80 MPa and compressive
modulus of 1.5 – 2.2 GPa. This line of research led to the hypothesis that ceramic extrusion,
a process hitherto untested for use in bone tissue engineering (BTE), may be feasible for
production of a novel and high strength BGS.
In collaboration with an international expert in the manufacture of ceramic monoliths it was
possible, for the first time, to manufacture hydroxyapatite (HA) monoliths by adapting the
process used for manufacture of automotive exhaust catalysts. These HA monoliths
exhibited a compressive strength of 142 – 265 MPa and compressive modulus of 3.2 – 4.4
GPa. The exceptional strength of these monoliths match the properties of cortical bone
whilst retaining the high levels of porosity (> 60 %) found in cancellous bone. This
combination of strength and porosity will enable treatment of large structural bone defects
where the high strength will withstand typical skeletal forces whilst the high porosity allows
blood vessels to infiltrate the monolith and begin the healing process. Furthermore, these
HA monoliths support the proliferation and differentiation of human osteoblast-like MG63
cells and compare very favourably with a market leading BGS material in terms of their
biological performance.
It is suggested that this work will result in the development of a new family of high strength
and high porosity BGSs for use in challenging clinical situations. The International
Preliminary Examination Report for the patent issued to the author (WO 2007/125323)
decreed that all 45 claims contained novelty and an inventive step. Two successful
applications for research funding have raised nearly £50,000 that helped fund this research
effort. Warwick ventures are currently involved in negotiating with medical partners to
licence this technology for clinical use
The Role of PIDS and Its Contribution to Research and Policymaking in the Philippines
No full textEstablished in 1977, the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) has been an important research resource in the country. It has served to bring together an unprecedented concentration of intellectual minds from institutions and organizations all over the country and abroad--to engage in an independent agenda that has generated a prolific body of work with a strong orientation and focus on policy. But how effective has this been? The author gives a brisk overview of why the wealth of insights and recommendations have not translated into enhanced developmental outcomes and laments that Philippine governments since at least Macapagal and Marcos have never built on each other--they "just selectively chose what they liked, not what the country needed."policy research, Philippine development
The Role of PIDS and Its Contribution to Research and Policymaking in the Philippines
No full textEstablished in 1977, the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) has been an important research resource in the country. It has served to bring together an unprecedented concentration of intellectual minds from institutions and organizations all over the country and abroad--to engage in an independent agenda that has generated a prolific body of work with a strong orientation and focus on policy. But how effective has this been? The author gives a brisk overview of why the wealth of insights and recommendations have not translated into enhanced developmental outcomes and laments that Philippine governments since at least Macapagal and Marcos have never built on each other--they "just selectively chose what they liked, not what the country needed."policy research, Philippine development
Prime numbers demystified
No full textThe paper is the ultimate prime numbers algorithm that gets rid of the unneccessary mystery about prime numbers. All the numerous arithmetic series patterns observed between various prime numbers are clearly explained with an elegant "pattern of remainders". With this algorithm we prove that odd numbers too can make an Ulam spiral contrary to current ""proofs". At the end of the paper this author proves the relationship between a simple arithmetic series pattern and the Riehmann\u27s prime numbers distribution equation. This paper would be important for encryption too. As an example, prime integer 1979 is expressed as 1.2.4.5.10.3.7.3.1.7.26.18.11.1. This makes even smaller primes useful for encryption as well
The financial crisis of 2008 in fixed income markets
No full textWe explore how a relatively small amount of heterogeneous securities created turmoil in financial markets in much of the world in 2007 and 2008. The drivers of the financial turmoil and the financial crisis of 2008 were heterogeneous securities that were hard to value. These securities created concerns about counterparty risk and ultimately created substantial uncertainty. The problems spread in ways that were hard to see in advance. The run on prime money market funds in September 2008 and the effects on commercial paper were an important aspect of the crisis itself and are discussed in some detail.
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