<p>This report is product of a degree project accomplishment at Linnaeus University in Växjö, Sweden. It is about designing a testing rig for impact loading of beams for laboratory use.</p><p>The specimens to be used were 1 meter long 8 standard profiles given in the project assignment. The first step in this project was to design and dimension a testing rig which is suitable for laboratory use. The height and the maximum mass were chosen according to laboratory use conditions and safety issues. The second step was designing the fixation for the test sample to the testing rig without any dislocation by the impact load. The third step was to measure the falling height of the mass onto the test sample and measure the deflection of the beam. In this case, the precision of falling height was not very important but measuring the deflection of the beam with the highest possible precision was most important. A measurement system is used considering this factor.</p><p>The project started with the idea of affecting the impact loads on the standard steel construction beams. The aim of this project is to design an impact loading testing rig which can be used for the purpose of laboratory experiments and compare the real results from the experiments with the theoretical results from the calculations.</p><p>In the project, Solid Works and AutoCAD software are often used both in the drawings and strength and stress analyses.</p>

Wave heights and periods of surface waves in the Baltic Sea have been modelled for a two-year period (1999-2000) with the wave model Hypas on an 11x11-km grid scale. There is a clear seasonal variation with higher waves during winter and lower during summer. This is mainly a reflection of the wind climate in the area where the winters are windier than the summers. The largest waves are found in the Skagerrak and over the deeper, eastern areas in the Baltic Proper. In the Baltic Sea, the surface waves influence the bottom sediment by initiating resuspension down to 80 m depths. This process is dependent not only on the waves but also on the varying grain size diameters. Fine and medium sand resuspend more often than other sediment types, and these sediments cover together about 25% of the Baltic Proper area. On average sediment is here resuspended 4-5 times per month with a duration for each event of 22 hours. The highest resuspension frequencies are found on the eastern and southern side of the Baltic Proper. During resuspension sediment grains are lifted up into the water mass and matters earlier bound in the sediment can be released. This may stimulate both production and degradation of organic matter.

Šiame magistro darbe eksperimentiškai nustatomas biomechaniškai patikimesnis ir stipresnis raktikaulio ir mentės fiksavimas. Yra taikomi 3 skirtingi raktikaulio ir snapinės ataugos sujungimo būdai. Teorinėje dalyje išanalizuota petinio raktikaulio sąnario anatomija, traumos mechanizmas, traumų paplitimas. Apžvelgti raktikaulio ir mentės fiksavimo būdai, išanalizuoti labiausiai cituojami literatūroje biomechaniniai tyrimai, kuriuose tarpusavyje lyginami skirtingi gydymo būdai statinės ir dinaminės apkrovos aspektais. Eksperimentinėje dalyje suprojektuotas ir pagamintas stendas, kad būtų galima nustatyti biomechaniškai stipresnį ir patikimesnį raktikaulio ir snapinės ataugos sujungimą. Atlikti eksperimentiniai matavimai taikant 3 skirtingas fiksavimo metodikas. Atlikta rezultatų analizė ir apdorojimas, taikant statistikos metodus. Atlikus sistemos eksperimentinį tyrimą, pateiktos baigiamojo darbo išvados ir pasiūlymai. Darbo apimtis – 74 p. teksto be priedų, 46 pav., 4 lent., 69 bibliografiniai šaltiniai. / This Master degree thesis experimentally determined biomechanical more reliable and stronger clavicle and scapula fixation. There are 3 applicable different clavicle and coracoid process fixation techniques. Theoretical part is an analysis of acromioclavicular joint anatomy, injury mechanism, injury incidence. The clavicle and scapula fixation methods are reviewed, the analysis of the most cited literature in biomechanical studies is completed, in which different treatment methods are compared on the aspects of the static and dynamic load. On the experimental part the stand is designed and produced for the purpose of the establishment of a stronger and more reliable biomechanical clavicle and coracoid process fixation. Experimental measurements are performed using three different fixation techniques. The results are analyzed and treatment, using statistical methods. The conclusions and recommendations are given at the end of this work. The thesis consists of 74 p. text without appendixes, 46 pictures, 4 tables, 69 bibliographical entries.

In aquatic environments the availability of nitrogen (N) generally limits primary production. N2-fixing prokaryotes (diazotrophs) can convert N2 gas into ammonium and provide significant input of N into the oceans. Cyanobacteria are thought to be the main N2-fixers but diazotrophs also include a wide range of heterotrophic bacteria. However, their activity and regulation in the water column is largely unknown. In this thesis the distribution, diversity, abundance, and activity of marine and estuarine heterotrophic diazotrophs was investigated. With molecular methods targeting the nifH gene, encoding the nitrogenase enzyme for N2 fixation, it was shown that diverse nifH genes affiliating with heterotrophic bacteria were ubiquitous in surface waters from ten marine locations world-wide and the estuarine Baltic Sea. Through enrichment cultures of Baltic Sea surface water in anaerobic N-free medium, heterotrophic N2 fixation was induced showing that there was a functional N2-fixing community present and isolates of heterotrophic diazotrophs were obtained. In Sargasso Sea surface waters, transcripts of nifH related to heterotrophic bacteria were detected indicating heterotrophic N2-fixing activity. Nitrogenase expression is thought to be highly regulated by the availability of inorganic N and the presence of oxygen. Low oxygen zones within the water column can be found in association with plankton. The presence of diazotrophs as symbionts of heterotrophic dinoflagellates was investigated and nifH genes related to heterotrophic diazotrophs rather than the cyanobacterial symbionts were found, suggesting that a symbiotic co-existence prevailed. Oxic-anoxic interfaces could also be potential sites for heterotrophic N2 fixation. The Baltic Sea contains large areas of anoxic bottom water. At the chemocline and in anoxic deep water heterotrophic diazotrophs were diverse, abundant and active. These findings extend the currently known regime of N2 fixation to also include ammonium-rich anaerobic waters. The results of this thesis suggest that heterotrophic diazotrophs are diverse and widely distributed in marine and estuarine waters and that they can also be active. However, limits in the knowledge on their physiology and factors which regulate their N2 fixation activity currently prevent an evaluation of their importance in the global marine N budget.

Visual acuity is reduced when optotypes are viewed in the presence of surrounding contours. This reduction in acuity is known as the crowding effect and is thought to be caused by a varying combination of contour interaction, gaze instability and attention. Traditional studies have used single optotypes surrounded by flanking bars to investigate crowding. Such targets may not realistically replicate the crowding effect inherent in clinical vision charts. The aim of this thesis was to systematically investigate the effect of crowding on visual thresholds in subjects with normal vision and in subjects with amblyopia, using specially designed charts. In the 1st and 2nd experiment, contour interaction was assessed using a high (80 %) and low contrast (5.8%) Sheridan Gardiner repeat letter (SGRL) chart in subjects with normal vision. The effect of contour interaction was investigated by varying the inter-letter separation in the SGRL chart. Significant contour interaction was obtained at the abutting condition for both the contrast conditions. In the 3rd experiment the same protocol was repeated but in amblyopes. Significant contour interaction was obtained at 0.2 letter separation and the abutting condition for both the contrast conditions. The effect of contour interaction appears to be less for low contrast than for high contrast letters in normal, non-amblyopic and amblyopic eyes. Finally, in the 4th experiment a Sheridan Gardiner Complex Interaction (SGCI) chart that requires imposed gaze fixations was constructed to measure visual acuity in normal’s and amblyopes. The effect of any gaze instability on crowding was investigated by comparing SGRL thresholds to SGCI thresholds. The SGCI thresholds were higher than the SGRL thresholds at all the separations measured, suggesting an important effect of gaze instability on crowding. In conclusion, this research has shown that gaze instability is an important component of the crowding effect for letter chart acuity measurements. Visual acuity especially when screening for amblyopia should be measured using a whole optotype chart that requires optotype to optotype fixation.

"Mémoire présenté à la Faculté des études supérieures en vue de l'obtention du grade de Maître en droit (LL.M.)" / En prenant pour acquis qu'il existe bel et bien une relation entre droit d'auteur et évolution médiatique, nous avons tenté d'expliciter cette relation en nous penchant sur le cas des artistes interprètes et exécutants. Ainsi, en mettant à contribution l'une des théories de la communication, la médiologie, nous avons, d'une part, identifié ce que l'on appelle, en jargon médiatique, un média dominant; d'autre part, nous avons caractérisé la mentalité médiatique qui en découle. Enfin, nous avons examiné le droit d'auteur à la lumière de ces caractéristiques afin de déterminer quelle place revenait à l'artiste interprète et exécutant dans un contexte médiatique précis. Plus spécifiquement et conformément à la démarche que nous venons de décrire, la première partie de ce mémoire a donc porté sur l'influence d'un premier média dominant, l'imprimerie. Le statisme et la fixité exigés par la prédominance de ce média a naturellement orienté notre analyse vers l'importance de la fixation en droit d'auteur. Comme la fixation revêt une place de choix en droit d'auteur, la prestation artistique, qui ne répond pas à ce critère, est reléguée au régime des droits voisins. Puis, avec l'avènement d'un second média dominant, le média de réseaux, c'est une toute autre ère qui s'ouvre, celle de la dématérialisation. La fixation devient alors un critère en pleine perte de vitesse. Malgré tout, la communauté internationale continue de croire que la prestation artistique relève du régime des droits voisins Cependant, le Traité de l'OMPI octroie aux artistes interprètes et exécutants plus de droits. Serait-ce le premier signe d'une éventuelle accession des artistes interprètes et exécutants au régime de droits d'auteur? / If we assume that copyright laws and the evolution of media are linked, our analysis of performance artists attempts to clarify this relationship. Using mediology as a tool for communication theory, we first identified a dominant media, or what is referred as a «mediasphere» in mediology. Next, we qualified its resultant mentality. Finally, we used these characteristics to examine copyright laws in an effort to determine the position of performers in a given mediasphere context. More specifically, the first part of this thesis focuses on the influence of the print as a dominant medium. The prevalence of this medium demands a level of statism and fixity which prompts us to analyze the importance of fixation in copyright laws. Considering the predominance of fixation in copyright laws and the transitory nature of the artistic performance, performers are only granted neighboring rights, not copyrights. Nowadays, the emergence of the electronic medium seems to give way to a new mediasphere in which dematerialisation is the key. Therefore, fixation as a criterion for determining whether or not to copyright a work of art is slowly losing its significance. Despite this fact, the international copyright community continues to believe that performers should be protected by neighboring rights. However, the WIPO Treaty of 1996 grants performers greater rights. Is this the first sign ofperformers gaining potential access to authorship?

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a progressive, neurological movement disorder. The stability of eye movements in PD is not well understood but many patients report difficulty doing tasks that require stabilized fixation and gaze. The ability to stabilize an image on the retina is critical is acquiring visual information. The purpose of this study was to compare the stability of fixational eye movements of PD patients to those of age-matched controls. Eye movements during simple fixation tasks were recorded from 66 subjects (ages 52 to 84), and 36 age-matched controls (ages 58-85). The absolute velocity of the fixational eye movements were recorded and correlated to a clinical measure of disease progression as measured by the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS). Unstable, non-rhythmic eye movements were seen in the PD patients. There were significant differences in the absolute velocity and standard deviation between the control group and the PD group in both the horizontal and vertical directions. The correlation of the absolute velocity to the UPDRS was not significant. Parkinson's disease does appear to affect the stability of eye movements. The instabilities in the eye movements appear to precede body tremor. This could lead to an early method for diagnosis and analysis of the disease.

Master of Science / Department of Agronomy / Michel D. Ransom / Factors governing potassium fixation and release are poorly understood. This study was conducted to investigate the effects of clay mineralogy and structural iron oxidation state on potassium fixation. Five reference clays and two soil clays were used to capture a range in mineralogical compositions and potassium behaviors. Reference clays used were illite (IMt-1), kaolinite (KGa-1b), montmorillonite (STx-1b), nontronite (NAu-2), and vermiculite (VTx-1). Soil clays used were from the upper 15 cm of a Belvue loam (BEL) and a Cherokee silt (CHE). Potassium fixation capacities were measured on unaltered as well as sodium dithionite reduced forms of each clay. Ferrous and total iron contents were determined photometrically using 1, 10-phenanthroline. Potassium fixation was measured by potassium saturating the clays and washing off exchangeable and solution potassium with solutions of magnesium chloride; samples were then acid digested and the amount fixed was calculated as the amount of potassium in the acid digestion minus the amount originally in the sample. BEL released potassium rather than fixed it while CHE tended to release potassium in the unaltered form and fix potassium in the reduced form. Structural iron reduction significantly impacted the amounts of potassium fixed by VTx-1 and NAu-2, which had the highest total iron contents of all the clays evaluated. NAu-2 and VTx-1 both on average fixed less than 1 mg K g clay[superscript]-1 in the unaltered form and an average of 6 and 11 mg K g clay[superscript]-1, respectively, in the reduced form. Regardless of being in the unaltered or reduced form, KGa-1b fixed essentially no potassium and IMt-1 and STx-1b fixed intermediate amounts of potassium—2 to 4 mg K g clay[superscript]-1 on average. The effects of clay mineralogy and structural iron oxidation state on potassium fixation can largely be explained through an understanding of layer type, layer charge, and charge distribution. In order for potassium fixation to occur, interlayer sites need to be accessible and available. Generally, the greater the negative layer charge the greater the amounts of fixation, with tetrahedral layer charge favoring fixation more than octahedral layer charge, and layer charge being a function of structural iron oxidation state.

Orientador: Marcelo Carvalho Minhoto Teixeira Filho / Resumo: A utilização de bactérias promotoras de crescimento de plantas (BPCPs) pode promover aumento na eficiência da fixação biológica de nitrogênio (FBN), com benefícios no desenvolvimento e produtividade de grãos de soja. Diante o exposto, objetivou-se avaliar os efeitos da coinoculação entre rizóbios e seis BPCPs (Azospirillum brasilense, Bacillus amyloliquefacens, B. licheniformis, B. pumilus, B. subtilis e Pseudomonas fluorescens), inoculadas via semente ou em jato dirigido na base da planta no estádio V3, sobre a nodulação, nutrição, acúmulo de nutrientes e produtividade de grãos de soja no Cerrado. Os experimentos foram conduzidos em sistema plantio direto na Fazenda Experimenal da Faculdade Unesp, Campus de Ilha Solteira, localizada no município de Selvíria – MS, Brasil. num Latossolo Vermelho Distrófico de textura argilosa, em cultivo irrigado. O delineamento experimental foi em blocos ao acaso com quatro repetições, dispostos em esquema fatorial 6x2+3, sendo coinoculação de rizóbios com seis BPCPs (Azospirillum brasilense, Bacillus amyloliquefacens, B. licheniformis, B. pumilus, B. subtilis e Pseudomonas fluorescens), inoculadas na semente ou em jato dirigido na base da planta no estádio V3 da soja; além da testemunha sem inoculação e N, inoculação de sementes apenas com rizóbios (Bradyrhizobium japonicum), e tratamento com adubação nitrogenada (ureia). A coinoculação da soja com as bactérias promotoras de crescimentos via semente ou em estádio V3 proporciona maior número ... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: The use of plant growth promoting communities may increase the biological nitrogen efficiency, with benefits in the development and productivity of soybean grains. Given the above, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of co-inoculation between rhizobia and six species of growth promoting bacteria (Azospirillum brasilense, Bacillus amyloliquefacens, B. licheniformis, B. pumilus, B. subtilis e Pseudomonas fluorescens), inoculated via seeds or directed jet at the base of the plant in V3 stage, on nodulation, nutrition, nutrient accumulation and yield of soybean grains at Cerrado. The experiments were conducted under no-tillage system at the Experimenal Farm belonging to Unesp-Ilha Solteira, located in Selvíria-MS, Brazil, in irrigated cultivation. The experimental design adopted was randomized blocks, with four replicates, arranged in 6x2+4 factorial outline, being co-inoculation of rhizobia with six species of growth promoting bacteria (Azospirillum brasilense, Bacillus amyloliquefacens, B. licheniformis, B. pumilus, B. subtilis e Pseudomonas fluorescens) inoculated in the seed or directed jet at the base of the plant in V3 stage in soybean, beyond the control without inoculation and nitrogen, seed inoculation only with rihzobia (Bradyrhizobium japonicum), and treatment with nitrogen fertilization (urea). The co-inoculation of soybean with growth promoting bacteria via seed or in the V3 stage provides greater numbers of nodules per plant relative to conventio... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre

Este estudo objetivou comparar, biomecanicamente, por meio dos ensaios de flexão destrutível e ciclagem, bem como a qualidade da redução óssea, após avaliação do molde da superfície articular de osteotomias centrais do acetábulo de cão fixadas com Clamp and Rod Internal Fixation (CRIF) 2,7 mm ou placa de reconstrução bloqueada 2,7 mm. Os implantes foram divididos em dois grupos, denominados grupo CRIF (GC) e grupo Placa (GP). Foram utilizadas nove pelves de cadáveres de cão com peso corporal entre 15 e 35 kg, posteriormente as pelves foram subdivididas em 18 hemipelves e distribuídas aleatoriamente para testar os dois implantes, um contralateral ao outro em uma mesma pelve. Para realização dos testes, foi simulado uma fratura central no acetábulo, por meio de osteotomia linear, realizada com auxílio de serra oscilatória e em seguida, fixadas segundo os padrões AO/SIF, sendo utilizados três parafusos craniais e dois caudais a osteotomia. Após comparação biomecânica de resistência máxima à flexão o GP (22,38&#177;8,44 N.m) demonstrou superioridade estatística em relação ao GC (15,60&#177;5,76 N.m), (p=0,02408). Na comparação do molde da superfície articular após 30 ciclos o GP (0,27 &#177; 0,24mm) demonstrou valores menores para lacuna da linha articular que o GC (0,49 &#177; 0,29mm), sendo o GP estatisticamente superior, (p=0,04784). Em conclusão, a aplicação da placa de reconstrução bloqueada é simples e deve ser considerada para redução de fraturas do acetábulo que necessitem de reconstrução anatômica. / The aim of this study was to compare the accuracy of reduction and biomechanical characteristics of acetabular osteotomies repaired with 2.7-mm Clamp and Rod Internal Fixation (CRIF) constructs or 2.7-mm locking reconstruction plates in cyclic and load to failure flexion tests. Nine dog cadavers with body weight between 15 and 35 kg were included in this study. All 18 hemipelves were randomly assigned into two groups named after the implants tested, group CRIF (GC) and group Plate (GP). All pelves were used to test both groups with each hemipelvis belonging to a different implant group. Acetabular osteotomies were created with an oscillatory saw and then fixed according to the AO/ASIF standards, using either 5-hole, 2.7-mm locking reconstruction plates with three locked screws cranial and two caudal to the osteotomy line, or CRIF constructs with 5 clamps, three located cranial and two caudal to the osteotomy line. Load to failure at GP (22.38 &#177; 8.44N.m) was significantly higher than GC (15.60 &#177; 5.76N.m), (p = 0.02408). Imprinted cast of acetabular reduction gap after 30 cycles was statistically smaller at GP (0.27 &#177; 0.24mm) than GC (0.49 &#177; 0.29mm) (p = 0.04784). We concluded that the appliance of locking reconstruction plates is simple and should be considered for acetabular fractures, that require perfect anatomical reconstruction.