Narrow Results

Ferroelectric triglycine sulphate (TGS) single crystals were grown by slow evaporation technique over a period of 30–40 days. The Vickers microhardness studies have been carried out on (001), (010), (101), ($\bar{1}$$\bar{1}$1) and ($\bar{1}$11) faces of the TGS crystal. The as-grown (001) face and (010) face with the ferroelectric phase were used to study the temperature dependence of hardness. The indentation size effect (ISE) described using the five theoretical models viz., Meyer’s law, Hays–Kendall, elastic/plastic deformation (EPD), proportional specimen resistance (PSR) and modified PSR model has been investigated on all the crystal faces under study. The experimental results show that the modified PSR model is more accurate at generating load-independent hardness data and also for explaining the origin of ISE.

A set of theoretical models is deduced for computing suspended sediment concentration in coastal waters under the influence of suspension on the bottom boundary layer due to turbulent motion over full-scale sand ripples and sheet-flow, following on from the work of Jayaratne and Shibayama [2007]. Dimensional analysis and best-fit technique are the main methods for the formulation of reference concentrations and vertical distribution of diffusion coefficients of the models. Model parameters (e.g. calibration coefficients) are calibrated with the help of full-scale measured data. Time-averaged concentration profiles are derived from the steady diffusion equation. Two distinct suspension layers (i.e., lower and upper) were identified within the suspension over rippled bed, therefore predictive models were given separately for each layer. In the case of sheet-flow regime, predictive models were given for suspension and upper-sheet-flow layers. Published experimental data from 4 different data sources in the SANTOSS database (75 and 80 full-scale experiments for rippled bed and sheet-flow regimes respectively) from 1994 to 2007 [Van der Werf et al., 2009] are better explained by the proposed formulae, however different sets of calibration coefficients were assigned in each data set primarily due to the flow type (regular or irregular flows) and nature of the laboratory experiments (wave flume and wave tunnel).

Research on Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) use in schools is increasingly finding that the impact on learning outcomes is not directly causal but depends on how the technologies are used within learning environments. This paper presents one key dimension, the 'Learning Environment Attributes' dimension, of a complete literature-based framework — the 'New ICT Supporting Schooling' (NISS) framework — designed to provide systematic rich guidance for teachers and school leaders in deciding how to facilitate ICT use. A substantial trial showed that this theory-building stage has produced an effective rubric-based tool to facilitate the measurement of this dimension. Indications are that it is particularly useful for whole-school analysis.

We propose a backscattering dominated prompt emission model for gamma ray bursts (GRB) prompt phase in which the photons generated through pair annihilation at the centre of the burst are backscattered through Compton scattering by an outflowing stellar cork. We show that the obtained spectra are capable of explaining the low and high energy slopes as well as the distribution of spectral peak energies in their observed prompt spectra.

Any proposed endophysical models need to acknowledge a number of subjective correlates that have been well established in such objectively quantifiable experimental contexts as anomalous human/machine interactions and remote perception information acquisition. Most notable of these factors are conscious and unconscious intention; gender disparities; serial position effects; intrinsic uncertainties; elusive replicability; and emotional resonance between the participants and the devices, process, and tasks. Perhaps even more pertinent are the insensitivities of the anomalous effects to spatial and temporal separations of the participants from the physical targets. Inclusion of subjective coordinates in the models, and exclusion of physical distance and time, raise formidable issues of specification, quantification, and dynamical formulation from both the physical and psychological perspectives. A few primitive examples of possible approaches are presented.

Biomechanistic and theoretical models can be applied to investigate complex reproductive processes. The application of Laplace equation to follicle rupture helps in obtaining insight into the simultaneous effect of a number of factors pertaining to bursting of the follicle. Gamete transport dynamics via peristaltic analysis for cilia beat has been outlined for the oviduct. The metachronal wave generated in the wall of the vas deferens contradicts peristalsis to be the dominating factor in spermatozoa transport. Biomechanical characterization of the forces involved in the mechanics of sperm-egg interactions are outlined. Generalized Hooks law to obtain displacements for specific load conditions during fetal head moulding and formulation of a fertilization index based on Von Foerster's equation accounting for both epididymal spermatozoa reserves and spermatozoa numbers for a specific ejaculation frequency are described.