A generic event control framework is presented for a class of modular ̄exible manufacturing systems (FMSs). A modular FMS is characterized as a set of ̄exible workstations inter-connected by a material handling system consisting of a transporter and a stocker. Many of the existing FMS implementations in industry fall into this class. Furthermore, the modularity also allows the capability to e€e...

A series of charge compensation investigations on SrS:Cu grown by physical vapor phase are reported. In this study, the trivalent ion, Y, was codoped during SrS growth to substitute on the Sr-site. Although similar EL performance to high temperature annealed sputtered samples was obtained using an annealing temperature of 6508C, our results indicated that the thermal quenching in this material ...

— Coffee is a truly global commodity and a major foreign exchange earner in many developing countries. The global coffee chain has changed dramatically as a result of deregulation, new consumption patterns, and evolving corporate strategies. From a balanced contest between producing and consuming countries within the politics of international coffee agreements, power relations shifted to the ad...

Recent studies have uncovered several systematic patterns that increase the probability that individual investors can select stock portfolios with excess returns. This study tests the feasibility of using a commercially available computerized stock screening program for investors to take advantage of these patterns. The screening program searches the three major exchanges and selects stocks on ...

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 691 1. Durability and fragility. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 691 1.1. Sources of fragility . . . . . . . . . . . . ...

The neuron-MOS (neu-MOS) transistor, recently discovered by Shibata and Ohmi in 1991 [T. Shibata, T. Ohmi, International Electron Devices Meeting, Technical Digest, 1991] uses capacitively coupled inputs onto a floating gate. Neu-MOS enables the design of conventional analog and digital integrated circuits with a significant reduction in transistor count [L.S.Y. Wong, C.Y. Kwok, G.A. Rigby, in:...

-ln this paper we present a genetic algorithm (GA)-based heuristic for solving the generalised assignment problem. The generalised assignment problem is the problem of finding the minimum cost assignment of n jobs to m agents such that each job is assigned to exactly one agent, subject to an agent's capacity. In addition to the standard GA procedures, our GA heuristic incorporates a problem-spe...

The resistance of gastro-intestinal nematodes of small ruminants (sheep and goat) to benzimidazole anthelmintic drugs seems to be linked primarily to a single mutation in the isotype 1 b-tubulin gene. This study was carried out to investigate the origin and diversity of benzimidazole-resistance alleles in trichostrongylid nematodes. We sequenced a 550 bp fragment of the isotype 1 b-tubulin gene...

In just under 20 years the kynurenine family of compounds has developed from a group of obscure metabolites of the essential amino acid tryptophan into a source of intensive research, with postulated roles for quinolinic acid in neurodegenerative disorders, most especially the AIDS-dementia complex and Huntington’s disease. One of the kynurenines, kynurenic acid, has become a standard tool for ...

This paper presents an overview of the synthesis, chemical and electrochemical properties, and polymer electrolyte fuel cell applications of new proton-conducting polymer electrolyte membranes based on hydrocarbon polymers. Due to their chemical stability, high degree of proton conductivity, and remarkable mechanical properties, per ̄uorinated polymer electrolytes such as Na®on, Aciplex, Flemion...