Polyacrylamides (PAMs) are water-soluble, long-chain synthetic organic polymers that, when applied as a soil amendment, purportedly improves infiltration, decreases sediment and agrochemical transport, and improves crop yield. There is a paucity of data, however, on the effect of PAM applied through laylat polyethylene tubing on infiltration, erosion, agrochemical transport, and crop yield for Mid-South soils in furrow irrigated environments. The objective of this thesis was to compile and analyze PAM use in agricultural settings in the United States, and to conduct a 2 year field experiment to assess PAM effects on infiltration, erosion, N and P transport, and corn grain yield on a Dundee silt loam and a Forestdale silty clay loam soil located in Stoneville and Tribbett, Mississippi, respectively. Results indicate PAM has utility to improve infiltration and crop yield in Mid-South production systems, but effects on sediment and N and P transport will be variable and site specific.

International Telemetering Conference Proceedings / October 30-November 02, 1989 / Town & Country Hotel & Convention Center, San Diego, California / Verifying the quality of a PCM (or PAM) telemetry system is an important concern before any launch. A frame simulator generated test is definitely inchoate to exercise the link’s real world disturbances response behavior. It should be completed with tests involving some disturbances measurements.

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Aging is accompanied by a deterioration of physical abilities. For some this limits their mobility and thus their quality of life. Exoskeletons are a class of walking assist device that help reduce the effort required to walk. Currently, powered exoskeletons suffer from short battery life and thus limited usefulness. This thesis presents the design, fabrication, and testing of a novel unpowered ankle exoskeleton to assist normal walking over long distances. The design incorporates a Pneumatic Artificial Muscle (PAM) inflated and used as a passive air spring. To predict the behaviour of the PAM in this distinct application, a distinct dynamic model was developed to include the biaxial stress in the bladder as well as a polytropic gas assumption. Experimental testing was used to validate the model and indicated that the addition of the bladder stress enhanced the performance of the force prediction at low pressure but had negligible impact on the model at higher pressures. The experimental testing also showed that the temperature of the gas inside the PAM varies very slightly during passive elongation cycles, thus, validating an isothermal assumption. Once fabricated, the exoskeleton was tested in human walking trials. Electromyography results showed that the exoskeleton was able to reduced the muscular activation activation of the Soleus muscle, however the results also included a significant reduction in the angular range of motion of the ankle. This is thought to be attributed to an insufficient acclimatization period during the human testing. Furthermore, due to an improper fit of the exoskeleton, the clutch mechanism did not operate as designed, leading to a reduced range of motion of the ankle. The device demonstrated its ability to reduce the effort of the calf muscles during walking, however, further refinements of the device fitting and clutch mechanism are required.

Three students work in a team in this research. With the impact of cross-strait direct flights on Penghu as the theme, they start their discussions from the sub-themes which include the economy, the society and the government. The team carries out cross-domain analysis in these different fields, using research methods stretching from regional science, management science and policy science, among others. The team applies the different methods to different fields of study. Regardless of the limitation of the locations and the departments, PAM and the output of cross-domain analysis (analysis of the economic fundamentals, time series analysis, horizontal analysis, and gravity model) are used as the input of judgment analysis (Social Judgment Theory, or SJT). The output of regional analysis and judgment analysis are used as the input of policy analysis (Interactive Management, or IM). The above is combined with Penghu¡¦s existing historical information to yield independent, objective, and credible data for cross-domain analysis. Combining resources including the people, the time, the place and the event, the method encompasses different levels and the participants¡¦ cognitive psychology so that the various powers can come together before they are optimized; a consensus is reached and the maximum value shared by the public is created. This study can be very close related to the livelihood of the citizenry of Penghu. The Interactive Management, or IM, of the policy analysis is applied, combined with Nominal Group Technique, or NGT, and Interpretive Structural Modeling, or ISM, as the methods of analysis. Approximately 26 representatives from various fields are invited to participate. The NGT procedure, from the identification, clarification to voting on the issues, to the comparison among different issues are all assisted with the ISM software to generate an enhanced structural diagram that is more clearly structured and easy to read. After the participants¡¦ deliberation and revision, twelve strategies regarding ¡§the Impact of Cross-strait Direct Flights on Penghu¡Xfrom an Economic Point of View¡¨ were proposed. To clarify the enhanced connections among policies, to bring about an enhanced structural relationship, and to set forth the priorities, goals and directions for each policy, the participants believe that the first task is to establish an effective and integrated platform between the central and local governments, which will help the planning and enforcement of cross-strait policies, as well as improve other policies. Considering the above, government agencies should always bear in mind what the public wants. They should take the public¡¦s needs into consideration and care for the people to widely promote dialogue platforms as public forum so as to realize a ¡§bottom up¡¨ approach and to listen to the opinions from the root of the society. Efforts should be made by all parties to respond to the need of globalization. The public should pay attention to and examine public affairs in both the private and the public arenas. We should have our eyes on the whole and deal with the details. Public opinions should be fully developed, the society should be given more wealth, and the social conditions should be cultivated so that the civil spirits can take root, the power of the civil society can emerge, and a civil-governed democracy can be realized.

Three students work in a team in this study. With the impact of cross-strait direct flights on Penghu as the theme, they start their discussions from the sub-themes which include the economy, the society and the government. The team applies other theoretical frameworks in earnest exploration of Penghu¡¦s potentials to underline Penghu¡¦s readiness for its future. The team applies different method to different fields of study. Regardless of the limitation of the locations and the departments, PAM and the output of cross-domain analysis (analysis of the economic fundamentals, time series analysis, horizontal analysis, and gravity model) are used as the input of judgment analysis (Social Judgment Theory, or SJT). The output of cross-domain analysis and judgment analysis are used as the input of policy analysis (Interactive Management, or IM). The above is combined with Penghu¡¦s existing historical information to yield independent, objective, and credible data for cross-domain analysis. Combining resources including the people, the time, the place and the event, the method encompasses all levels and the participants¡¦ cognitive psychology so that the various powers can come together before they are optimized; a consensus is reached and the maximum value shared by the public is created. The IM theoretical framework is applied to this study, where the livelihood of the Penghu people and how to improve the living standard of the people are discussed. The public forum acts as the platform for dialogue. Twenty-four representatives from various fields were invited to express their ideas in a sensible discussion, where they take in others¡¦ opinions and learn from one another in a forum that is both theoretical and practical. The Interactive Management, or IM, of the policy analysis is applied, combined with Nominal Group Technique, or NGT, and Interpretive Structural Modeling, or ISM, as the methods of analysis. The NGT procedure, from the identification, clarification to voting on the issues, to the comparison among different issues are all assisted with the ISM software to generate an enhanced structural diagram that is more clearly structured and easy to read. After the participants¡¦ deliberation and revision, twelve strategies regarding ¡§the Impact of Cross-strait Direct Flights on Penghu¡Xfrom an Economic Point of View¡¨ were proposed. To clarify the enhanced connections among policies, to bring about an enhanced structural relationship, and to set forth the priorities, goals and directions for each policy, the participants believe that the first task is to deal with the waste management of the county, to raise the public¡¦s environmental awareness, and to solve water-and-electricity-related issues, which will improve other policies. IV The leaders should always start from the people, listen to the people, speak out for the people and keep the people in mind. Just like Atem Ramsundersingh, a senior official in the Water Department at the World Bank, pointed out: in the development of Taiwan¡¦s sustainable policies, the leaders should listen to the voice from the root of the society by allowing the ¡§bottom up¡¨ approach as an effective method for people to voice their opinions in a deliberative democracy. Considering the above and in the hope of identifying an appropriate alternate solution that is comprehensive, sound and practical as a reference for upcoming researchers, it is suggested that the policymakers, when discussing cross-strait policies, should listen to the opinions of people in Penghu via various channels. Practices should complement the theoretical framework in a research for it to reap greater results, namely, the fostering of civil awareness, the improvement of the levels of a civil society, and the realization of civil governance.

With Taiwan¡¦s economic development, and the wave of globalization as the impetus, after the government¡¦s ¡§No haste, be patient¡¨ policy and the mini-three links, on the first day of April, 2007, Penghu saw the launch of the conditional mini-three links. As the government gradually carries out cross-strait opening-up policies, the ¡§direct flight¡¨ is likely to arrive in the foreseeable future. As a response to the likelihood of the ¡§direct flight¡¨, what kind of impact and challenges will it bring to the Penghu economy? How should people in Penghu face up to them? What kind of opinions and suggestions should be made heard to the different levels in the government and the civil society? Dialogue mechanisms such as Denmark¡¦s Consensus Conference and the ¡§bottom up¡¨ method promoted by the World Bank of central Europe, as well as the US-borne ¡§Interactive Management¡¨, or IM, are approaches in which a small group of people gather in a small seminar to listen to one another¡¦s opinions and needs, and to negotiate in order to reach a consensus. These advanced and effective ways for people to come up with strategies all seeks wide participation from the people as their foundation, through a ¡§bottom up¡¨ dialogue, to generate practical and effective strategies. This research, based on the Public Affairs Management, or PAM, utilizes Nominal Group Technique, or NGT, and Interpretive Structural Modeling, or ISM, as a discussion method of interactive management. Three students work in a team. With the impact of cross-strait direct flights to Penghu as the theme, they start their discussions from the sub-themes which include the economy, the society and the government. The team carries out cross-domain analysis in these different fields, using research methods stretching from regional science, management science, and policy science, among others. The team applies different methods to different fields of study. Regardless of the limitation of the location and the departments, PAM and the output of regional analysis (analysis of the economic fundamentals, time series analysis, horizontal analysis, and gravity model) are used as the input of judgment analysis (Social Judgment Theory, or SJT). The output of regional analysis and judgment analysis are used as the input of policy analysis (Interactive Management, or IM). The above is combined with Penghu¡¦s existing historical information to yield independent, objective and credible data for cross-domain analysis, which is used by the discussion participants in sensible reasoning. The data are also internalized in the IM discussion platform to ensure the effectiveness of the participants, to distinguish among different groups, and to connect resources including the people, the time, the IV place and the event, so that the participants could engage in an effective dialogue on an equal footing provided by the discussion platform, where they study the impact of direct flights on Penghu¡¦s economy. After discussions and voting in two interactive seminars, the participants chose and proposed twelve strategies regarding ¡§the Impact of Direct Flights on Penghu¡Xfrom an Economic Point of View.¡¨ The cross-domain research method, encompassing different levels and the participants¡¦ cognitive psychology, engages the participants in sensible discussions so that the various powers can come together before they are optimized. This helps foster the formation of civil awareness and raise the levels of the civil society, contributing greatly to the goal of civil governance.

Photosynthetic activity of three seagrass species, Posidonia sinuosa Cambridge et Kuo, Posidonia australis Hook. f. and Halophila ovalis (R. Br.) Hook., growing in Cockburn Sound, Western Australia, was assessed using an underwater pulse amplitude modulated fluorometer (Diving-PAM). The study aimed to determine possible causes and the extent of stress to seagrasses during transplantation, so that rehabilitation efforts can be improved by reducing stress during the transplant process. Absorptance factors for each species were determined as 0.64 ± 0.04 for P. sinuosa, 0.59 ± 0.02 for P. australis and 0.55 ± 0.02 for H. ovalis, which were substantially lower than previously reported photosynthetic absorption factors. Transmittance, reflectance and non-photosynthetic absorptance of light diverted between 35-45% of irradiance from use in photosynthesis. An investigation of potential errors during measurement of rapid light curves (RLCs) reinforced the importance of ensuring that leaves remained stationary in the Universal Sample Holder. Any movement of seagrass leaves resulted in incorrect measurements of electron transport rates (ETR). A study on seasonal photosynthetic rates of each species found that maximum ETR (ETRmax) varied seasonally and among species. The highest ETRmax for each species occurred during summer, when ambient irradiances were at a maximum, and decreased during autumn. H. ovalis had the highest overall ETRmax in summer, followed by P. australis and P. sinuosa. Effective quantum yield(ΔF/Fm′)of each species varied seasonally, changing inversely with irradiance, which agrees with previously reported studies. ETRmax for each species also showed a diurnal pattern coincident with irradiance throughout the day. The ÄF/Fm for all species demonstrated a diurnal decrease in photosynthetic efficiency coincident with the midday irradiance maximum. Large natural variation in ETR was detected in all species, indicating that the effects of external stress on ETR may be difficult to detect. Two adjacent, physically separated seagrass meadows were examined to determine if apparent visual differences between the sites were reflected by measured physical and photosynthetic characteristics. ETR, leaf area index and sediment grain size differed between sites, but ΔF/Fm, canopy height, shoot density and epiphyte biomass did not, indicating a poor connection between physical and photosynthetic characteristics at these two meadows. Therefore caution should be used when attempting to visually assess the photosynthetic activity of a site based on physical characteristics. Changes in photosynthetic activity were monitored to determine seagrass stress during transplantation, and post-transplantation recovery. Two transplantation methods, sprigs and plugs, were examined, and photosynthetic activity was compared before, during and after transplantation. ETRmax of sprigs took one to two months to increase to the same level recorded at a control meadow, primarily due to desiccation stress suffered during transport. The ΔF/Fm′ decreased below 0.2 after transplantation, but fully recovered after three months. Survival of sprigs was reduced due to strong currents and heavy epiphytic fouling. The ETRmax of transplanted plugs (5, 10 and 15 cm diameter) took up to one week to recover to the same level recorded at a control meadow. Survival of plugs was reduced due to winter swells and storms. Since the leading human-controlled cause of transplant failure was desiccation stress, future transplanting efforts should endeavour to keep seagrasses submerged at all times during the transplanting process.