Showing papers by "Stevens Institute of Technology published in 1999"

Enablers and inhibitors of business-IT alignment

Abstract: This paper provides insight into identifying areas that help or hinder business-IT alignment. Alignment focuses on the activities that management performs to achieve cohesive goals across the organization. The aim of this paper is to determine the most important enablers and inhibitors to alignment. The paper presents and analyzes the results of a multi-year study of strategic alignment. Data were obtained from business and information technology executives from over 500 firms representing 15 industries who attended classes addressing alignment at IBM’s Advanced Business Institute. The executives were asked to describe those activities that assist in achieving alignment and those which seem to hinder it. These enablers and inhibitors to alignment were then analyzed with respect to industry, to time, and executive position. The results indicate that certain activities can assist in the achievement of this state of alignment while others are clearly barriers. Achieving alignment is evolutionary and dynamic. It requires strong support from senior management, good working relationships, strong leadership, appropriate prioritization, trust, and effective communication, as well as a thorough understanding of the

A core calculus of dependency

Abstract: Notions of program dependency arise in many settings: security, partial evaluation, program slicing, and call-tracking. We argue that there is a central notion of dependency common to these settings that can be captured within a single calculus, the Dependency Core Calculus (DCC), a small extension of Moggi's computational lambda calculus. To establish this thesis, we translate typed calculi for secure information flow, binding-time analysis, slicing, and call-tracking into DCC. The translations help clarify aspects of the source calculi. We also define a semantic model for DCC and use it to give simple proofs of noninterference results for each case.

Microwave-assisted rapid and simplified hydrogenation

Abstract: Catalytic transfer hydrogenation has been conducted under microwave irradiation in open vessels using high-boiling solvents such as ethylene glycol (bp 198 °C) as the microwave energy transfer agent Reduction of double bonds and hydrogenolysis of several functional groups were carried out safely and rapidly (3−5 min) at about 110−130 °C with 10% Pd/C as an efficient catalyst and ammonium formate as the hydrogen donor Diverse types of β-lactam synthons were prepared by the reduction of ring substituents containing alkene and alkylidene groups or conjugated unsaturated esters Cleavage of the β-lactam ring by hydrogenolysis of the N−C4 bond of 4-aryl-2-azetidinones was a facile reaction with 10% Pd/C as the catalyst; but no ring scission occurred when Raney nickel catalyst was employed Dehalogenation of aromatic compounds was also successful with ammonium formate and Pd/C catalyst Hydrogenolysis of phenylhydrazone of methyl benzoylformate gave the methyl ester of phenylglycine in excellent yield The te

Synthesis and cyclic oxidation behavior of a (Ni, Pt) Al coating on a desulfurized Ni-base superalloy

Abstract: The influences of sulfur impurities and Pt incorporation on the scale adhesion behavior of aluminide coatings were studied and compared. Low-sulfur NiAl coatings were prepared on a desulfurized, yttrium-free, single-crystal Ni-based superalloy by a modified version of a conventional aluminizing procedure based on chemical vapor deposition. The sulfur level in the resulting NiAl coatings was measured to be less than ∼0.5 ppmw by glow-discharge mass spectroscopy. Platinum-modified aluminide coatings were synthesized by first electroplating a thin layer of Pt (∼7 µm) on the superalloy, followed by the same low-sulfur aluminizing procedure. The measured sulfur content in the (Ni, Pt)Al coating was substantially higher than that of the low-sulfur NiAl coating due to contamination during the Pt electroplating process. A very adherent α-Al2O3 scale formed on the grain surfaces of the low-sulfur NiAl coating during cyclic oxidation testing at 1150 °C, but scale spallation eventually occurred over many of the NiAl grain boundaries. In contrast, despite the higher level of sulfur in the (Ni Pt)Al coating, a very adherent scale was formed over both the coating grain surfaces and grain boundaries during thermal cycling. These results suggest that Pt additions can mitigate the detrimental influence of sulfur on scale adhesion.

Lagrangian Motion and Fluid Exchange in a Barotropic Meandering Jet

Abstract: Kinematic models predict that a coherent structure, such as a jet or an eddy, in an unsteady flow can exchange fluid with its surroundings. The authors consider the significance of this effect for a fully nonlinear, dynamically consistent, barotropic model of a meandering jet. The calculated volume transport associated with this fluid exchange is comparable to that of fluid crossing the Gulf Stream through the detachment of rings. Although the model is barotropic and idealized in other ways, the transport calculations suggest that this exchange mechanism may be important in lateral transport or potential vorticity budget analyses for the Gulf Stream and other oceanic jets. The numerically simulated meandering jet is obtained by allowing a small-amplitude unstable meander to grow until a saturated state occurs. The resulting flow is characterized by finite-amplitude meanders propagating with nearly constant speed, and the results clearly illustrate the stretching and stirring of fluid particles along the edges of the recirculation regions south of the meander crests and north of the troughs. The fluid exchange and resulting transport across boundaries separating regions of predominantly prograde, retrograde, and recirculating motion is quantified using a dynamical systems analysis. The geometrical structures that result from the analysis are shown to be closely correlated with regions of the flow that are susceptible to high potential vorticity dissipation. Moreover, in a related study this analysis has been used to effectively predict the entrainment and detrainment of particles to and from the jet.

Capillary electrode discharge plasma display panel device and method of fabricating the same

Abstract: The present invention provides a capillary electrode discharge plasma display panel device and method of fabricating the same including first and second substrates a first electrode on the first substrate, a second electrode on the second substrate, a pair of barrier ribs connecting the first and second substrates, a discharge charge chamber between the first and second substrates defined by the barrier ribs, and a dielectric layer on the first substrate including the first electrode, the dielectric layer having a capillary to provide a steady state UV emission in the discharge chamber.

Mathematical Modeling and Experimental Studies of Twin-Screw Extrusion of Filled Polymers

Abstract: Extrusion of filled polymers is commonly employed in diverse industries including compounding operations. The analysis of extrusion of filled polymers is complicated especially by the ubiquitous viscoplasticity and wall slip of the filled polymers. Furthermore, the role played by entrainment of air in the processor, the continuously evolving microstructure, and hence the rheological behavior of the filled polymer in the mixing volume of the extruder and the flow instabilities associated with the converging flows involving the filtration of the binder polymer present additional challenges to the analysis. Specialized techniques are also necessary to quantitatively describe the dispersive and the distributive degree of mixing of the compound. The principal tasks of this study included the collection of experimental data from twin-screw extrusion using an instrumented and industrial-scale corotating extruder in conjunction with a well-characterized filled polymer, which exhibits viscoplasticity and wall slip. The process allowed the adequate mixing of the ingredients and the removal of its air content. Next, the processing data were compared with the results of numerical simulation using the Finite Element Method. The predictions compared favorably with the experimental temperature and pressure distributions obtained under different sets of operating conditions. The distributive degree of mixing (spatial homogeneity) of the filled polymer upon exit from the die was also characterized employing a wide angle X-ray diffraction technique in spite of the amorphous nature of both the filler and the binder polymer, i.e., hollow glass spheres and poly(dimethyl siloxane) polymer.

Pharmacological applications of inorganic complexes.

Abstract: Inorganic complexes have long been utilized for many therapeutic purposes. They were used or tried, perhaps because of the general notion that inorganic compounds (e.g., metal complexes) are toxic and a controlled use of such a compound may suppress some biological process. In this review, we briefly outline the properties of several selected groups of inorganic complexes and how they can affect biological systems and contribute to human pathologies.

Hydrogen Lyman-alpha and Lyman-beta emissions from high-pressure microhollow cathode discharges in Ne-H2 mixtures

Abstract: We observed intense emission of the atomic hydrogen Lyman- (1216 nm) and Lyman- (1025 nm) lines from microhollow cathode discharges in high-pressure Ne (740 Torr) with a small admixture of H2 (up to 3 Torr) The atomic emission lines are spectrally clean with essentially no background of molecular emissions from the H2 Lyman and Werner bands We attribute these atomic emissions to near-resonant energy transfer processes in the high-pressure discharge In one case, near-resonant energy transfer between the Ne2* excimer and H2 leads to the formation of H(n = 2) atoms, a process similar to what was observed recently by Wieser et al (1998 J Phys B: At Mol Opt Phys 31 4589) in a high-pressure Ne/H2 mixture excited by energetic ion and electron impact In the other case, near-resonant energy transfer between excited N* atoms (or vibrationally excited neon excimer molecules) and H2 leads to the formation of H(n = 3) atoms The ratio of Lyman- to Lyman- emission intensity depends on the operating parameters of the discharge (gas pressure, gas mixture, discharge current) which supports the notion that different processes are involved in the formation of the H(n = 2) and H(n = 3) atoms, respectively

Maximum likelihood blind channel estimation in the presence of Doppler shifts

Abstract: Transmitter/receiver motion in mobile radio channels may cause frequency shifts in each received path due to Doppler effects. Most blind equalization methods, however, assume time-invariant channels and may not be applicable to fading channels with severe Doppler spread. We address the problem of simultaneously estimating the Doppler shift and channel parameters in a blind setup. Both deterministic and stochastic maximum likelihood methods are developed and iterative solutions proposed. The stochastic maximum likelihood solution is based on the modified version of the Baum-Welch (1970) algorithm, which originated in the study of hidden Markov models. The proposed methods are well suited for short data records appearing in TDMA systems. Identifiability and performance analysis issues are discussed, and Cramer-Rao bounds are derived. In addition, some illustrative simulations are presented.

AC glow plasma discharge device having an electrode covered with apertured dielectric

Abstract: A method and apparatus for stabilizing glow plasma discharges by suppressing the transition from glow-to-arc includes a perforated or apertured dielectric plate having an upper surface and a lower surface and one or more holes extending therethrough. The perforated dielectric plate (130) is positioned over the cathode (120). Each of the holes acts as a separate active current limiting microchannel that prevents the overall current density from increasing above the threshold for the glow-to-arc transition. This allows for a stable glow discharge to be maintained for a wide range of operating pressures and in a wide range of electric fields include DC and RF fields of varying strength. In another embodiment, the device comprises an AC glow plasma discharge device wherein an apertured dielectric is placed over an electrode. The apertured dielectric may have one or more apertures or capillaries extending therethrough.

Detection and identification of a methanol-water complex by factor analysis of infrared spectra.

Abstract: Fourier transform infrared absorption spectra, between 1850 and 2700 cm(-)(1), were used to study the intermolecular interactions between methanol and water. Digitized spectra obtained from methanol-water mixtures, with methanol mole fraction varying from 0 to 1.00, were subjected to factor analysis. Principal factor analysis indicated that three chemical factors were responsible for the data. Window factor analysis, a model-free method, was used to extract the concentration profiles of three species, which were identified as water, methanol, and a methanol-water complex. The profiles were used to deduce the stoichiometry of the complex, which was found to consist of one molecule of methanol and two molecules of water. The dissociation constant of the complex was determined to be 306 ± 33 M(2). These results differ from those reported by other investigators.

Calculated cross sections for the electron-impact ionization of metastable atoms

Abstract: The semiclassical Deutsch-Mark (DM) formalism was used to calculate absolute cross sections for the electron-impact ionization of metastable atoms such as metastable rare-gas atoms and metastable mercury and cadmium atoms from threshold to 200 eV. Systematic trends in the calculated cross section data are discussed and a comparison is made with available experimental data and with other calculations. Specifically, we calculated separately the contributions to the ionization cross sections arising from the removal of the single excited electron in the outermost subshell and the removal of the lower-lying inner-shell electrons.

Method and apparatus for acoustic detection and location of defects in structures or ice on structures

Abstract: The invention relates to a method and apparatus for nondestructive testing and evaluation of materials and mechanical structures to determine their integrity reducing contact-type flaws and presence of ice on a structure. The invention employs an ultrasonic probing signal (30) and a low frequency vibration (20) applied to a structure (8) tested. In a structure without flaws or ice, these signals propagate independently without any interaction. If the structure contains a defect or ice thereon, the vibration varies the contact area of the defect or ice/structure interface, modulating the phase and amplitude of the higher frequency ultrasonic probing signal passing through the structure (8). In the frequency domain the result of this modulation manifests itself as sideband spectral components with respect to frequency of the probe wave. This can be considered as a new signal generated by a defect, so that the defect can be detected more easily when such a signal is observed.

New media in marketing redefine competitive advantage: a comparison of small and large firms

Abstract: Large firms have traditionally commanded a competitive advantage in the marketplace over small firms by being able to use their financial strength to perform large‐scale market research studies, to design and implement wide reaching advertising campaigns, and to establish computer and information systems to communicate with their staff and suppliers. This empirical study of 192 large and small companies indicates that small firms are using new media technologies to level the competitive playing field. Cost‐effective new media technologies are making it easier for small firms to enjoy some of the benefits that previously were only available to large companies. Contributes to the scholarship because little relevant research currently exists on the marketing uses of new media technologies for small firms and their potential for altering the competitive advantages long enjoyed by larger firms.

A Weakest Precondition Semantics for an Object-Oriented Language of Refinement

Abstract: We define a predicate-transformer semantics for an object-oriented language that includes specification constructs from refinement calculi. The language includes recursive classes, visibility control, dynamic binding, and recursive methods. Using the semantics, we formulate notions of refinement. Such results are a first step towards a refinement calculus.

Strategic project management: the new framework

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to suggest a framework for a new research agenda for project management in the coming years. The idea is to focus research on the competitive potential of project management and promote deeper conceptual understanding, integrative practices, and wider-based education. Based on ideas which emerged in our previous studies, the paper deals with some strategic, cultural, organizational, and operational issues which are often neglected in the current practice and education in project management. We believe these components are needed to make project management into a major competitive weapon for industrial organizations. The research framework is built around three major concepts-style, adaptation, and learning: (1) style: style involves the following components: strategy, attitude, organization, processes, and tools; (2) adaptation: since no two projects are the same, organizations need to adapt their style to the specific type of project; and (3) continuous learning: how to develop the learning environment in project management, both for self learning and for organized educational programs.

Remediation of Chromium-Contaminated Soils: Bench-Scale Investigation

Abstract: This paper describes the results from the pilot-scale demonstration study performed to remediate chromium-contaminated soil by Cold Top ex situ vitrification. Demonstration tests were performed on soils from two sites, containing residue from two types of chromite-ore processing. The sites were selected by NJDEP under an ongoing program to clean up over 150 hexavalent-chromium-contaminated sites. The primary objective of this demonstration was to determine if the waste processed by the Cold Top vitrification system meet the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) definition of a nonhazardous waste based on leachable chro- mium content in the waste. The toxicity characteristic leaching procedure (TCLP) was performed on both treated and untreated waste to evaluate if the Cold Top vitrified soils meet the above objective. Excavated soils from two sites were crushed, sieved, dried, and amended with carbon and sand and then shipped to a Cold Top vitrification plant. Cooled castings of the vitrified products were crushed and grounded for chemical analyses. The TCLP test results confirmed the effectiveness of the treatment. Analysis of operating costs indicated the Cold Top treatment cost of chromium-contaminated soil range from $80-207 depending on disposal costs and potential credit for sale of vitrified products.

Abstract factor analysis of data with multiple sources of error and a modified Faber-Kowalski F-test

Abstract: Chemical data gleaned from instrumental measurements, such as spectroscopy and chromatography, are often contaminated by multiple sources of error that vary during data collection. Abstract factor analysis (AFA) of such data invariably leads to an excessive number of factors. Various sources of experimental and instrumental artifacts that cause such errors are discussed. Model data, containing multiple sources of error, are created and factor analyzed. By appropriate truncation of the factor space, the number of chemical factors can be determined in these situations using the factor indicator function (IND), the Malinowski F-test and a modified Faber-Kowalski F-test. Infrared, ultraviolet and visible spectroscopic absorbance data are used to demonstrate the success of the method.

Constrained optimization methods for direct blind equalization

Abstract: Constrained optimization techniques are studied for direct design of linear multichannel equalizers. Novel blind algorithms are derived by minimizing the equalizer's output variance subject to appropriate constraints. The constraints are chosen to guarantee no desired signal cancellation, and their parameters are jointly optimized to maximize the signal component at the output. The resulting blind algorithm was observed to have near optimal performance at high signal-to-noise ratio, i.e., close to the performance of the trained minimum mean-square-error receiver. Also, the proposed method is not sensitive to the color of the transmitted sequence. Analytical expressions are derived to quantify the algorithm's performance.

Dynamic typing for distributed programming in polymorphic languages

Abstract: While static typing is widely accepted as being necessary for secure program execution, dynamic typing is also viewed as being essential in some applications, particularly for distributed programming environments. Dynamics have been proposed as a language construct for dynamic typing, based on experience with languages such as CLU, Cedar/Mesa, and Modula-3. However proposals for incorporating dynamic typing into languages with parametric polymorphism have serious shortcomings. A new approach is presented to extending polymorphic lnanguages with dynamic typing. At the heart of the approach is the use of dynamic type dispatch, where polymorphic functions may analyze the structure of their type arguments. This approach solves several open problems with the traditional approach to adding dynamic typing to polymorphic languages. An explicity typed language XMLdyn is presented; this language uses refinement kinds to ensure that dynamic type dispatch does not fail at run-time. Safe dynamics are a new form of dynamics that use refinement kinds to statically check the use of run-time dynamic typing. Run-time errors are isolated to a separate construct for performing run-time type checks

Determination of the Hydration of Methylene Blue Aggregates and Their Dissociation Constants Using Visible Spectroscopy

Abstract: The visible spectra of methylene blue (MB) in aqueous-methanol solutions were used to determine the extent of hydration of MB aggregates. The investigation was carried out at MB concentrations of 1.000 X 10-4 M and 1.000 X 10-3 M. Abstract factor analysis (AFA) was used to determine the number of chemical species responsible for the spectral data. The species were identified as aqueous MB monomer, dimer, and trimer, and a methanoic MB monomer. The absorptivity spectra of the aqueous MB species obtained from the previous studies were used to extract their concentration profiles in methanol-water mixtures. With the addition of methanol to the aqueous solvent, the concentration of water could be varied from 0% to 100%. This variation was used to determine the extent of hydration and solvation of each of the four MB species, as well as their mutual equilibria. The species were identified as (1) MB+CH3OH, MB monomer monomethanol; (2) MB+H2O, MB monomer monohydrate; (3) (MB)2++6H2O, MB dimer hexahydrate; and (4) (MB)3Cl++(H2O)13, MB trimer monochloro tridecahydrate. The dissociation constants for the hydrated monomer, dimer, and trimer were determined to be 0.48, 1.29 X 103 M5 and 7.2 X 106 M13, respectively.

Mortgage Default Rates and Borrower Race

Abstract: We estimate a mortgage default model with national data on conventional mortgages that were current from 1986 to 1992. Our analysis confirms the results of previous analyses of Federal Housing Authority mortgages: Black households have higher marginal default rates, controlling for differences in borrower and property characteristics. Further, we do not find that black borrowers have significantly more home equity. These results do not provide evidence of racial discrimination in mortgage lending and suggest that differences in default costs or transaction costs may explain differences in default rates.

Extending complex ad-hoc OLAP

Abstract: Large scale data analysis and mining activities require sophisticated information extraction queries. Many queries require complex aggregation, and many of these aggregates are non-distributive. Conventional solutions to this problem involve defining User Defined Aggregate Functions (UDAFs). However, the use of UDAFs entails several problems. Defining a new UDAF can be a significant burden for the user, and optimizing queries involving UDAFs is difficult because of the “black box” nature of the UDAF.In this paper, we present a method for expressing nested aggregates in a declarative way. A nested aggregate, which is a rollup of another aggregated value, expresses a wide range of useful non-distributive aggregation. For example, most frequent type aggregation can be naturally expressed using nested aggregation, e.g. “For each product, report its total sales during the month with the largest total sales of the product”. By expressing compex aggregates declaratively, we relieve the user of the burden of defining UDAFs, and allow the evalution of the complex aggregates to be optimized.We use the Extended Multi-Feature (EMF) syntax as the basis for expressing nested aggregation. An advantage of this approach is that EMF SQL can already express a wide range of complex aggregation in a succinct way, and EMF SQL is easily optimized into efficient query plans. We show that nested aggregation queries can be evaluated efficiently by using a small extension to the EMF SQL query evaluation algorithm. A side effect of this extension is to extend EMF SQL to permit complex aggregation of data from multiple sources.

Modular type-based reverse engineering of parameterized types in Java code

Abstract: An analysis is provided for Java programs that reverse engineers parameterized types into existing Java code. This analysis propagates precise type information about the contents of container objects. As an application, the analysis can be used to justify the safe removal of downcasts that are guaranteed to succeed. Another application is in automatically reverse engineering parameterized types into existing Java libraries, so that they can be used in Java dialects with parameterized types.