The PilE protein is the major component of the Neisseria meningitidis pilus, which is encoded by the pilE/pilS locus that includes an expressed gene and eight homologous silent fragments. The silent gene fragments have been shown to recombine through gene conversion with the expressed gene and thereby provide a means by which novel antigenic variants of the PilE protein can be generated. We hav...

For the last decades, the design floods of numerous embankment reservoirs were re-evaluated, and the revised spillway outflows are typically larger than those used in the original designs. As a result, a number of overtopping protection systems were developed for embankments and earthfill dams, with applications encompassing river dykes, coastal barriers for storm surge and tsunami protections....

The paper presents results from three large scale experiments on seven reinforced concrete panels obtained during an extensive experimental program. This was aimed at possible application of cement reduced (fly ash replaced) concrete in the production of precast segmental linings for tunnels created by a tunnel boring machine (TBM). In particular, this paper is focused on the comparison of fire...

Water is a very precious natural resource. When this precious resource moves through the canals certain part of the water is lost by seepage, evaporation etc. This loss is known as conveyance loss. The conveyance loss was calculated experimentally by different researcher on different canals around the world. In this paper author have tried to review some of the research work and recommend an av...

Abstract: Shear deformation is the most principal deformation in the lateral deformation of shear wall built with precast hollow slab which is designed to be strong shearing and weak bending. The special mechanical characteristic of the shear wall is the relative deformation of the concrete on both sides of vertical and inner joint respectively. The study introduces the measuring scheme of shea...

The relationship between production and reef pile size was analysed using standing stocks of fishes surveyed at three established artificial reef (AR) habitats in the subtropical waters off the northern coast of Taiwan during April–August 1999. For a closer look, the fish assemblage was further divided into visitors and residents, and biomass was used as a parameter to represent production. Vis...

During the construction of a concrete structure, strength monitoring is important to ensure the safety of both personnel and the structure. Furthermore, to increase the efficiency of in situ casting or precast of concrete, determining the optimal time of demolding is important for concrete suppliers. Surface bonded lead zirconate titanate (PZT) transducers have been used for damage detection an...

The objective of this study was to conduct a kinetic analysis of manual wheelchair propulsion during start-up on select indoor and outdoor surfaces. Eleven manual wheelchairs were fitted with a SMART(Wheel) and their users were asked to push on a course consisting of high- and low-pile carpet, indoor tile, interlocking concrete pavers, smooth level concrete, grass, hardwood flooring, and a side...