We show that the one-dimensional Oslo rice-pile model is a special case of the abelian distributed processors model. The exact steady state of the model is determined. We show that the time evolution operator W for the system satisfies the equation Wn+1 = Wn where n = L(L + 1)/2 for a pile with L sites. This is used to prove that W has only one eigenvalue 1 corresponding to the steady state, an...

The research on damages of structures that are supported by deep foundations has been quite intensive in the past decade. Kinematic interaction in soil-pile interaction is evaluated based on the p-y curve approach. Existing p-y curves have considered the effects of relative density on soil-pile interaction in sandy soil. The roughness influence of the surface wall pile on p-y curves has not bee...

Pile foundations have been the subject of interest for earthquake engineers since last several decades. The devastations caused in major earthquakes of the world can be the reason enough to carry out the research on the topic of seismic behavior of piles. One definite concern is liquefaction induced ground movement after the shaking in an earthquake, causing extra lateral loads acting on piles....

An open ended pipe pile can become plugged when sufficient frictional resistance is developed by the inner soil cylinder within the pile (soil plug), thereby preventing further intrusion of the soil into the pile. When plugging occurs in an impact driven pipe pile, a complex interaction between the pile and soil plug takes place, causing the propagating stress wave to undergo an abrupt change. ...

Vibratory installation of piles and casings can be extremely economical and therefore the contractors’ preferred method of pile driving. Compared to impact pile driving it also has the advantage of reduced noise pollution. Unfortunately, this installation method is still fraught with uncertainties. The foremost question is driveability and equally important is the question of bearing capacity o...

Six buildings were overturned in the town of Onagawa during the 2011 Great East Japan tsunami. This study investigates the possible failure mechanisms of building overturning during tsunami flow. The tsunami inundation depth and flow velocity at each overturned building were recalculated by using a tsunami numerical simulation and verified using a recorded video. The overturning moment is a res...

What’s a question to your answer? We will not settle this puzzle here, yet we’ll taste it. But let’s begin at the beginning, namely in 1907, when Willem Abraham Wythoff [7], a Dutch mathematician, invented the game we analyze here, explained vividly by Martin Gardner in [5]. The game is played with two piles of tokens, each pile containing an arbitrary number of tokens. A move consists of eithe...

The present aim of this study is to investigate the effect of different parameters influencing pounding in highway bridges. Pounding is the result of a collision between two parts of the deck and/or the deck and abutments at the separation distance during the earthquake.  In the present study, the period ratio of the adjacent frames, ground motion spatial variation, and soil-structure interacti...

Multivision is played by two players who move alternately on a finite number of piles of finitely many tokens. A move consists of selecting a nonempty pile and changing the number of tokens in it. If the change is just any reduction in the number of tokens, we have the well-known game of Nim [1], [2]. In the present case, however, it is also permissible, normally, to increase the size of a pile...

Article history: Received 11 November 2015 Received in revised form 2 December 2015 Accepted 3 December 2015 Available online xxxx Development of more accurate descriptions of dislocation motion requires understanding the actual effective stress driving it. Back stresses from dislocation pile-ups can work against the applied stress resulting in lower stresses acting on moving dislocations. This...