Cost an Arm and a Leg

Whatever is said to cost an arm and a leg is very expensive. "It cost me an arm and a leg to get my car repaired." "George flew to Austria to go skiing. He said that the trip cost him an arm and a leg."Cost an Arm and a Leg@张良     

Optimal design of Stewart platforms based on expanding the control bandwidth while considering the hydraulic system design

We proposed an optimal design method to expand the bandwidth for the control of large hydraulic Stewart platform. The method is based on generalized natural frequency and takes hydraulic oil into consideration. A Lagrangian formulation which considers the whole leg inertia is presented to obtain the accurate equivalent mass matrix. Using the model, the effect of leg inertia and the influence of design parameters on the generalized natural frequency are investigated. Finally, numerical examples are presented to validate and confirm the efficiency of the mathematical model. The results show that the leg inertia, especially the piston part plays an important role in the dynamics. The optimum diameter ratio of the base to the moving platform is between 2 and 3, and the optimum joint angle ratio of the base to the moving platform is about 1. The smaller joint angles and a longer leg stroke are favorable for raising system frequencies. The system oil should be preprocessed for large platforms with a requirement for good dynamic performance.     

Lower extremity injuries in vehicle-pedestrian collisions using a legform impactor model

Though the bumper of a vehicle plays a major role in protecting the vehicle body against damage in low speed impacts, many bumpers, particularly in large vehicles, are too stiff for pedestrian protection. In designing a bumper for an automobile, pedestrian protection is as important as bumper energy absorption in low speed collisions. To prevent lower extremity injuries in car-pedestrian collisions, it is important to determine the loadings that car front structures impart on the lower extremities and the mechanisms by which injury is caused by these loadings. The present work was focused on gaining more insight into the injury mechanisms leading to both ligament damage and bone fracture during bumper-pedestrian collisions. The European Enhanced Vehicle-safety Committee （EEVC） legform impactor model was introduced and validated against EEVCAVG17 criteria. The collision mechanism between a bumper and this legform impactor was investigated numerically using LS-DYNA software. To identify the effect of the bumper beam material on leg injuries, four analyses were performed on bumpers that had the same assembly but were made from different materials.     

Scheduling of household power consumption for Step and Time-of-Use tariff system

This paper proposes a hybrid optimization to solve the scheduling of household power consumption for Step and Time-of-Use (TOU) tariff system. The target function is the cost of electricity, and the optimization object is total instantaneous power within a billing period. The control variables are starting moments of each household appliance. The optimization procedure is divided into two stages. Firstly, the prerequisite for minimal cost is calculated through mathematical analysis and generalized function theory. Secondly, the solution is obtained by using a heuristic algorithm in which the result of the first stage is considered to reduce the searching space. And an evaluation methodology is deduced to evaluate the optimization. The computer simulation demonstrates that the proposed approach can reduce the cost of electricity evidently in the sense of probability. The approach shows great value for embedded applications.     

有趣的重叠式词组

1.all in all 总之2.again and again 反复地,一再地3.arm in arm 臂挽着臂4.back and back 背靠背5.bit by bit 一点一点地6.by and by 以后,不久,后7.day by day 每天8.end to end 两端相接9.an eye for an eye 以眼还眼10.face to face 面对面地11.foot to foot 短兵相接12.from cover to cover 从头到尾13.hand to hand 逼近地14.hand in hand 手挽手15.hand over hand 双手相互交换16.head to head 交头接耳17.heart to heart 推心置腹地18.leg and leg …     

Ultrafast Carbonized Wood of Electrode-Scaled Aligned-Porous Structure for High-Performance Lithium Batteries

The use of carbonized wood in various functional devices is attracting considerable attention due to its low cost,vertical channels,and high electrical conduction.However,the conventional carbonization method requires a long processing time and an inert atmosphere.Here,a microwave-assisted ultrafast carbonization technique was developed that carbonizes natural wood in seconds without the need for an inert atmosphere,and the obtained aligned-porous carbonized wood provided an excellent electroche...     

New design of sense amplifier for EEPROM memory

We present a new sense amplifier circuit for EEPROM memory. The topology of the sense amplifier uses a voltage sensing method, having low cost and low power consumption as well as high reliability. The sense amplifier was implemented in an EEPROM realized with an SMIC 0.35-μm 2P3M CMOS embedded EEPROM process. Under the condition that the power supply is 3.3 V, simulation results showed that the charge time is 35 ns in the proposed sense amplifier, and that the maximum average current consumption during the read period is 40 μA. The novel topology allows the circuit to function with power supplies as low as 1.4 V. The sense amplifier has been implemented in 2-kb EEPROM memory for RFID tag IC applications, and has a silicon area of only 240 μm^2.     

Effects of zinc-substituted nano-hydroxyapatite coatings on bone integration with implant surfaces

Objective:The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of a zinc-substituted nano-hydroxyapatite(Zn-HA) coating,applied by an electrochemical process,on implant osseointegraton in a rabbit model.Methods:A Zn-HA coating or an HA coating was deposited using an electrochemical process.Surface morphology was examined using field-emission scanning electron microscopy.The crystal structure and chemical composition of the coatings were examined using an X-ray diffractometer(XRD) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy(FTIR).A total of 78 implants were inserted into femurs and tibias of rabbits.After two,four,and eight weeks,femurs and tibias were retrieved and prepared for histomorphometric evaluation and removal torque(RTQ) tests.Results:Rod-like HA crystals appeared on both implant surfaces.The dimensions of the Zn-HA crystals seemed to be smaller than those of HA.XRD patterns showed that the peaks of both coatings matched well with standard HA patterns.FTIR spectra showed that both coatings consisted of HA crystals.The Zn-HA coating significantly improved the bone area within all threads after four and eight weeks(P<0.05),the bone to implant contact(BIC) at four weeks(P<0.05),and RTQ values after four and eight weeks(P<0.05).Conclusions:The study showed that an electrochemically deposited Zn-HA coating has potential for improving bone integration with an implant surface.     

A social distance study of American participants in a China study abroad program

As the world becomes increasingly interdependent, mutual understanding becomes increasingly important. Therefore, it is essential that people strive for reductions in social distance on an international level. Study abroad is one of the ways to approach internationalization and promote understanding among different peoples and cultures. The research reported in this paper empirically explored the efficacy of a China study abroad program for reducing the degree of social distance between a group of American undergraduate students and the Chinese people in China.     

Does Regional Difference Account for the Formation of Prototype?

The study of categorization and prototype has been an interesting subject for the scholars in psycholinguistics. They have done different studies to investigate the reasons for the formation of the prototype in people‘s mind. Some scholars believe that cultural factors play an important role in the formation of prototype. This paper is intended to look into the categorization of the fruits in China, and the researcher hopes to get the factors which may to some extent influence their idea of typicality. The researcher believes that the regions where a person grows up in may have a subtle effect on his or her idea of typicality of certain items.     

Automaticity Theory and Its Implications for ELT in China

The paper presents an overview of automaticity research,particularly the influential theories concerned.It highlights four automatic learning models:rule-based approach,item/instance-based approach,exemplar-based random walk model,and restructuring model.Model 1 underlines that automatic processing is proceduralization of declarative knowledge with repeated practice being the prerequisite;model 2 stresses that automaticity is the direct memory retrieval and instance amount together with quality affects retrieval speed;model 3 emphasizes that memory retrieval is similarity-based,and responses are determined by the relative similarity of exemplars;the last argues that it is restructuring other than simply practice that increases the possibility of automaticity.Finally,respective implications of the learning models for ELT(English language teaching) in China are discussed.     

Cost control for real estate development projects in China - Part 1: Literature review

The background and purpose, and the current situation of the cost control theory of real estate development project are disscussed in the paper. Problems of cost control for real estate development projects in China are analyzed and summarized. According to the real estate development project cost control problems and related factors, a cost control index system of real estate development enterprise, and a cost control factors index system of real estate projects are constructed respectively. Cost control in the five stages of a real estate development project is introduced and summarized respectively. The five stages include： the investment decision-making, planning and design stage, the bidding phase, project implementation stage, and rental or sale.     

一个改进的多播路由算法

Multicasting is a communication service that allows an application to efficiently transmit copies of data packets to a set of destination nodes. The problem of finding a minimum cost multicast tree can be formulated as a minimum Steiner tree problem in networks, which is NP-completeness. MPH (minimum path cost heuristic) algorithm is a famous solution to this problem. In this paper,we present a novel solution TPMPH (two phase minimum path cost heuristic) to improve the MPH by generating the nodes and the edges of multicast tree separately. The cost of multicast tree generated by the proposed algorithm with the same time as MPH is no more than that of MPH in the worst case. Extensive simulation results show that TPMPH can effectively improve the performance on MPH, and performs better in large-scale networks and wireless networks.     

The Symbolic Characters in The Discus Thrower

The Discus Thrower by Richard Seizer is symbolic in characterization．The nameless patient in“Rom542”stands for an everyman in his society．His blindness shows that he is a man in darkness．And darkness is upon the face of the modem society．His leg1ess condition shows that he has lost his freedom of action in the so-called land of liberty．His ironic words imply his indignation at his adverse fortune．The crack of the broken plate symbol-izes a hope for the span-new life．The doctor-narrator represents a common toiler who supports the society．The head nurse represents a ruler in the modem westem world．The symbolic meanings reflect the author’s careful obser-vation and meditation on the existent society．     

IT Project Evaluation and Investment Decision

There are many kinds of real options, which are valuable, in each phase of the lifetime of an information technology(IT) project. However, in the current IT investment decision theory, real options that embedded in IT projects are not considered. In this paper, the process of IT project decision and implementation is fully analyzed, the real options that may be embedded in an IT project are identified, and a real option analysis (ROA) method is proposed for evaluation of an IT project under uncertain business environment. ROA employs BlackScholes expansion model and cancels the assumption that the cost of project is certain. The numerical example manifests that the ROA can better evaluate IT project and select the IT investment alternative. Finally, a road map is provided to help selecting the suitable evaluation method to make IT investment decision.     

Multi-year monitoring of paddy rice planting area in Northeast China using MODIS time series data

The objective of this study was to investigate the tempo-spatial distribution of paddy rice in Northeast China using moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer(MODIS) data.We developed an algorithm for detection and estimation of the transplanting and flooding periods of paddy rice with a combination of enhanced vegetation index(EVI) and land surface water index with a central wavelength at 2130 nm(LSWI2130).In two intensive sites in Northeast China,fine resolution satellite imagery was used to validate the performance of the algorithm at pixel and 3×3 pixel window levels,respectively.The commission and omission errors in both of the intensive sites were approximately less than 20%.Based on the algorithm,annual distribution of paddy rice in Northeast China from 2001 to 2009 was mapped and analyzed.The results demonstrated that the MODIS-derived area was highly correlated with published agricultural statistical data with a coefficient of determination(R2) value of 0.847.It also revealed a sharp decline in 2003,especially in the Sanjiang Plain located in the northeast of Heilongjiang Province,due to the oversupply and price decline of rice in 2002.These results suggest that the approaches are available for accurate and reliable monitoring of rice cultivated areas and variation on a large scale.     

Random walk models for top-N recommendation task

Recently there has been an increasing interest in applying random walk based methods to recommender systems. We employ a Gaussian random field to model the top-N recommendation task as a semi-supervised learning problem, taking into account the degree of each node on the user-item bipartite graph, and induce an effective absorbing random walk （ARW） algorithm for the top-N recommendation task. Our random walk approach directly generates the top-N recommendations for individuals, rather than predicting the ratings of the recommendations. Experimental results on the two real data sets show that our random walk algorithm significantly outperforms the state-of-the-art random walk based personalized ranking algorithm as well as the popular item-based collaborative filtering method.     

Study of Translation in Premier Wen Jiabao' s Speeches in Press Conferences

It is considerably well known that the Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao is a learned and refined man and use a lot quotes of ancient Chinese prose in his speech to enrich the meaning of his words.The same situation can also be applied to his speech in external news conferences during which words of wisdom sparkles.It is believed that those quotes of Premier Wen and his interpreter's concise translation contributes a lot to convey national Chinese culture as well as set up a significant international image of China,which plays a considerable part in enhancing the soft power of China.Since China has enjoyed a rapid and comprehensive development of economy and technology in recent decades and has had an increasing impact upon international affairs,the issue concerning setting a powerful and reasonable self image is getting more and more important \ urgent.To improve a country's soft power is certainly an aspect of national image which will lead China towards a powerful country that is helpful for the peace and development of the whole world.     

Optimum calibration of a parallel kinematic manipulator using digital indicators

This paper presents a calibration method for parallel manipulators using a measurement system specially installed on an external fixed frame. The external fixed frame is important as an error reference for calibration in certain operations, such as in the configuration of a parallel manip- ulator functioning as a machine tool where the workpiece is fixed to a worktable. The pose of the end-effector is mea- sured using three digital indicators installed on the external fixed frame. To enable measurement, the end-effector is assumed to be a plane large enough that all digital indicators could touch. The error is defined as the difference between the theoretical and actual readings of the digital indicators. The geometric parameters of the parallel manipulator are optimized to minimize this error. This calibration method is low cost and feasible for compensating geometric parameter errors for a parallel manipulator. Optimal pose selection for the calibration is achieved using a swarm intelligence search algorithm. The method is implemented on a prototype of a six degrees-of-freedom （DOFs） Gough-Stewart platform constructed to function as a machine tool.     

Abstracts of Major Papers in This Issue

On the new elucidation about socialism with Chinese characteristics （SCC） in the report to the Eighteenth National Congress of the Communist Party of China by YAN Guo-hua, YU Ye-jun p. 5 Abstract ： The report to the Eighteenth National Congress of the Communist Party of China has given a profound elucidation on the theory of socialism with Chinese characteristics （SCC） and eliminated some confusion. For ex- ample, the Party＇ s confidence in socialist path, its confidence in related theories and its confidence in systems lay a solid mass foundation for SCC; The report attaches great importance to developing legal system based on the ＂Five-in-One＂ principle ; The theory of core socialist values in such aspects as country, society and morality in the report is propitious to providing powerful intellectual impetus for SCC; The logical relation between the two theories of SCC shows clearly that the Party will neither implement the old and rigid closed-door policy nor take an erroneous path. Key words： the Communist Party of China; the Report to the Eighteenth National Congress of the Communist Party of China; socialism with Chinese characteristics; understanding