Cross-Cultural Adjustment and Coping:U.S.Students in Taiwan Residents Higher Education

The aim of this study was to investigate the adjustment problems of students from the United States enrolled in universities in the East,specifically in Taiwan,their problems related to cultural adaptation,and the process of adjustment to student life in Taiwan.Under investigation were cultural adjustment and coping skills as these students transitioned from West to East.Qualitative data were collected from interviews with participants and faculty members as well as participant observations.Results indicated that U.S.students found their own ways to acclimate to their new academic setting as well as to social relations,cross-cultural issues,and the linguistic environment in Taiwan to achieve effective adaptation.They made changes in themselves to cope with all situations they encountered.This study provides suggestions for international students abroad in Taiwan,for the Taiwan Residents government,and for universities or colleges in terms of what they should offer to current and future international students.

An extended state observer with adjustable bandwidth for measurement noise

In this paper,a bandwidth-adjustable extended state observer(ABESO)is proposed for the systems with measurement noise.It is known that increasing the bandwidth of the observer improves the tracking speed but tolerates noise,which conflicts with observation accuracy.Therefore,we introduce a bandwidth scaling factor such that ABESO is formulated to a 2-degree-of-freedom system.The observer gain is determined and the bandwidth scaling factor adjusts the bandwidth according to the tracking error.When the tracking error decreases,the bandwidth decreases to suppress the noise,otherwise the bandwidth does not change.It is proven that the error dynamics are bounded and converge in finite time.The relationship between the upper bound of the estimation error and the scaling factor is given.When the scaling factor is less than 1,the ABESO has higher estimation accuracy than the linear extended state observer(LESO).Simulations of an uncertain nonlinear system with compound disturbances show that the proposed ABESO can successfully estimate the total disturbance in noisy environments.The mean error of total disturbance of ABESO is 15.28% lower than that of LESO.

Research on Demand Response Potential of Adjustable Loads in Demand Response Scenarios

To address the issues of limited demand response data,low generalization of demand response potential evaluation,and poor demand response effect,the article proposes a demand response potential feature extraction and prediction model based on data mining and a demand response potential assessment model for adjustable loads in demand response scenarios based on subjective and objective weight analysis.Firstly,based on the demand response process and demand response behavior,obtain demand response characteristics that characterize the process and behavior.Secondly,establish a feature extraction and prediction model based on data mining,including similar day clustering,time series decomposition,redundancy processing,and data prediction.The predicted values of each demand response feature on the response day are obtained.Thirdly,the predicted data of various characteristics on the response day are used as demand response potential evaluation indicators to represent different demand response scenarios and adjustable loads,and a demand response potential evaluation model based on subjective and objective weight allocation is established to calculate the demand response potential of different adjustable loads in different demand response scenarios.Finally,the effectiveness of the method proposed in the article is verified through examples,providing a reference for load aggregators to formulate demand response schemes.

Optimized CUDA Implementation to Improve the Performance of Bundle Adjustment Algorithm on GPUs

The 3D reconstruction pipeline uses the Bundle Adjustment algorithm to refine the camera and point parameters. The Bundle Adjustment algorithm is a compute-intensive algorithm, and many researchers have improved its performance by implementing the algorithm on GPUs. In the previous research work, “Improving Accuracy and Computational Burden of Bundle Adjustment Algorithm using GPUs,” the authors demonstrated first the Bundle Adjustment algorithmic performance improvement by reducing the mean square error using an additional radial distorting parameter and explicitly computed analytical derivatives and reducing the computational burden of the Bundle Adjustment algorithm using GPUs. The naïve implementation of the CUDA code, a speedup of 10× for the largest dataset of 13,678 cameras, 4,455,747 points, and 28,975,571 projections was achieved. In this paper, we present the optimization of the Bundle Adjustment algorithm CUDA code on GPUs to achieve higher speedup. We propose a new data memory layout for the parameters in the Bundle Adjustment algorithm, resulting in contiguous memory access. We demonstrate that it improves the memory throughput on the GPUs, thereby improving the overall performance. We also demonstrate an increase in the computational throughput of the algorithm by optimizing the CUDA kernels to utilize the GPU resources effectively. A comparative performance study of explicitly computing an algorithm parameter versus using the Jacobians instead is presented. In the previous work, the Bundle Adjustment algorithm failed to converge for certain datasets due to several block matrices of the cameras in the augmented normal equation, resulting in rank-deficient matrices. In this work, we identify the cameras that cause rank-deficient matrices and preprocess the datasets to ensure the convergence of the BA algorithm. Our optimized CUDA implementation achieves convergence of the Bundle Adjustment algorithm in around 22 seconds for the largest dataset compared to 654 seconds for the sequential implementation, resulting in a speedup of 30×. Our optimized CUDA implementation presented in this paper has achieved a 3× speedup for the largest dataset compared to the previous naïve CUDA implementation.

A Self-calibration Bundle Adjustment Algorithm Based on Block Matrix Cholesky Decomposition Technology

In this study,the problem of bundle adjustment was revisited,and a novel algorithm based on block matrix Cholesky decomposition was proposed to solve the thorny problem of self-calibration bundle adjustment.The innovation points are reflected in the following aspects:①The proposed algorithm is not dependent on the Schur complement,and the calculation process is simple and clear;②The complexities of time and space tend to O(n)in the context of world point number is far greater than that of images and cameras,so the calculation magnitude and memory consumption can be reduced significantly;③The proposed algorithm can carry out self-calibration bundle adjustment in single-camera,multi-camera,and variable-camera modes;④Some measures are employed to improve the optimization effects.Experimental tests showed that the proposed algorithm has the ability to achieve state-of-the-art performance in accuracy and robustness,and it has a strong adaptability as well,because the optimized results are accurate and robust even if the initial values have large deviations from the truth.This study could provide theoretical guidance and technical support for the image-based positioning and 3D reconstruction in the fields of photogrammetry,computer vision and robotics.

Vertical deformation analysis based on combined adjustment for GNSS and leveling data

A method is proposed to fuse the velocity data of the global navigation satellite system(GNSS) and leveling height via combined adjustment with constraints. First, stable GNSS-leveling points are uniformly selected, and the constraints of the geodetic height change velocity and normal height change velocity are given. Then, the GNSS vertical velocities and leveling height difference are used as observations of combined adjustment, and robust least-squares estimation are used to estimate the velocities of the unknown points. Finally, a vertical movement model is established with the GNSS vertical velocities and leveling vertical velocities obtained via combined adjustment. Data from the second-order leveling network and GNSS control points in Shandong Province are taken as test data, and eight calculation schemes are used for discussion. One of the schemes, the bifactor robust combined adjustment method based on variance component estimation with two kinds of vertical velocity constraints achieves the optimal results. The method applied in the scheme can be recommended for data fusion of GNSS and leveling, further improving the reliability of vertical crustal movement in Shandong Province.

Reconfigurable source illusion device for airborne sound using an enclosed adjustable piezoelectric metasurface

Source illusion is an important issue in acoustic fields that has significant applications in various practical scenarios.Recent progress in acoustic metasurfaces has broken the limitation of manipulating large-scale waves at subwavelength scales and enables a better illusion capability,while there is still a problem that most previous studies are hampered by a lack of tuning capability.Here we propose a reconfigurable source illusion device capable of providing azimuthallydependent phase delay in real-time via changing the static voltage distribution.The resulting device is implemented by employing an adjustable piezoelectric metasurface with a subwavelength thickness that can achieve a full 2π-phase shift while maintaining efficient transmittance.The effectiveness of our mechanism is demonstrated via two distinctive source illusion phenomena of shifting and transforming a simple point source without changing the device geometry.We anticipate that our methodology,which does not require a large device size or a complicated phased array,will open up new avenues for the miniaturization and integration of source illusion devices and may promote their on-chip applications in a variety of fields,such as acoustic camouflage and manipulation precision.

Novel Radiation-Adjustable Heating Terminal Based on Flat Heat Pipe Combined with Air Source Heat Pump

The electrification of building heating is an effective way to meet the global carbon target. As a clean and sustainable electrified heating technology, air-source heat pumps (ASHPs) are widely used in areas lacking central heating. However, as a major component of space heating, heating terminals might not fit well with ASHP in order to achieve both intermittency and comfort. Therefore, this study proposes a novel radiation-adjustable heating terminal combined with an ASHP to achieve electrification, intermittency, and better thermal comfort. Radiant terminals currently suffer from three major problems: limited maximum heating capacity, inability to freely adapt, and difficulty with combining them with ASHPs. These problems were solved by improving the structural design of the novel terminal (Improvement A–E). Results showed that the maximum heating capacity increased by 23.6% and radiation heat transfer ratio from 10.1% to 30.9% was provided for users with the novel terminal. Further, new flat heat pipe (FHP) design improved stability (compressor oil return), intermittency (refrigerant thermal inertia), and safety (refrigerant leakage risk) by reducing the length of exposed refrigerant pipes. Furthermore, a new phased operation strategy was proposed for the novel terminal, and the adjustability of the terminal was improved. The results can be used as reference information for decarbonizing buildings by electrifying heating terminals.

Verification of Depth Adjustment Factor in Eurocode 5 for Tropical Hardwood Timbers

The depth adjustment factor for bending strength stated in Eurocode 5(EC5)is only applicable to timbers having a characteristic density below 700 kg/m^(3).However,most Malaysian timbers are hardwood,some with a characteristic density reaching above 700 kg/m^(3).Therefore,the objective of this study was to examine whether the depth adjustment factor stipulated in EC5 is valid for Malaysian hardwood timbers.Six timber species were selected for this study,namely Kapur(Dryobalanops C.F.Gaertn.),Kempas(Koompassia Maingay ex Benth.),Keruing(Dipterocarpus C.F.Gaertn.),Light red meranti(Shorea Roxb.ex C.F.Gaertn.),Geronggang(Cratoxylum Blume)and Balau(Shorea Roxb.ex C.F.Gaertn.).The determination of bending strength and characteristic density was conducted according to BS EN 408:2010 and BS EN 384:2016,respectively.A graph for mean bending strength vs.(150/h)was plotted for each timber species.The power function was selected to analyze the relationship between the two variables.The power of the regression equations varied depending on the characteristic density of the timber species.For species with a characteristic density below 700 kg/m^(3),such as Kapur,Keruing,and Light red meranti,the power was between 0.16 to 0.17.In contrast,for species having a characteristic density above 700 kg/m^(3),namely Kempas and Balau,the power was higher at 0.23 and 0.24,respectively.Geronggang was an exception to this pattern.These values are close to the depth adjustment factor given in EC5,which is 0.2.Based on the results,it can be suggested that the adjustment factor of 0.2 is also applicable to Malaysian hardwood timbers with a characteristic density above 700 kg/m^(3).

Construction of Psychological Adjustment Function Model of Music Education Based on Emotional Tendency Analysis

In the face offierce competition in the social environment,mental health problems gradually get the attention of the public,in order to achieve accurate mental health data analysis,the construction of music education is based on emotional tendency analysis of psychological adjustment function model.Design emotional tendency analysis of music education psychological adjustment function architecture,music teaching goal as psychological adjust-ment function architecture building orientation,music teaching content as a foundation for psychological adjust-ment function architecture and music teaching process as a psychological adjustment function architecture building,music teaching evaluation as the key of building key regulating function architecture,Establish a core literacy oriented evaluation system.Different evaluation methods were used to obtain the evaluation results.Four levels of psychological adjustment function model of music education are designed,and the psychological adjust-ment function of music education is put forward,thus completing the construction of psychological adjustment function model of music education.The experimental results show that the absolute value of the data acquisition error of the designed model is minimum,which is not more than 0.2.It is less affected by a bad coefficient and has good performance.It can quickly converge to the best state in the actual prediction process and has a strong con-vergence ability.

Experimental Analysis of the Flow Characteristics of an Adjustable Critical-Flow Venturi Nozzle

The response of an adjustable critical-flow Venturi nozzle is investigated through a set indoor experiments aimed to determine the related critical flow rate,critical pressure ratio,and discharge coefficient.The effect of a variation in the cone displacement and liquid content on the critical flow characteristics is examined in detail and it is shown that the former can be used to effectively adjust the critical flow rate.The critical pressure ratio of the considered nozzle is above 0.85,and the critical flow control deviation of the gas flow is within±3%.Liquid flow can reduce the gas critical mass flow rate accordingly,especially for the cases with larger liquid volume and lower inlet pressure.The set of results and conclusions provided are intended to support the optimization of steam injection techniques in the context of heavy oil recovery processes.

Proposing Adjustments to the Dry Season Inter-Reservoir Operation Rules of the Red River System to Improve Water Use Efficiency of the Reservoirs

The Red-Thai Binh River system is an important water resource to the Northern Delta, serving the development of agriculture, people’s livelihood and other economic sectors through its upstream reservoirs and a system of water abstraction works along the rivers. However, due to the impact of climate change and pressure from socio-economic development, the operation of the reservoir system according to Decision No. 740/QD-TTg was issued on June 17, 2019 by the Prime Minister of Government promulgating the Red-Thai Binh River system inter-reservoir operation rules (Operation rules 740) has some shortcomings that need adjustments for higher water use efficiency, meeting downstream water demand and power generation benefits. Through the results of water balance calculation and analysis of economic benefits from water use scenarios, this research proposed adjustment to the inter-reservoir operation during dry season in the Red River system. The result showed that an average water level of 1.0 - 1.7 m should be maintained at Hanoi during the increased release period.

An Investigation of Purely Azimuthal Passive Localization and Position Adjustment in Attempted UAV Formation Flights

When a cluster of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) is flying in formation, it is crucial to maintain the formation and not to be interfered by external electromagnetic wave signals. In order to maintain the formation, this paper proposes to use pure azimuth passive positioning to adjust the position of UAVs, i.e., certain UAVs in the formation transmit signals, the rest of the UAVs receive the signals passively, and extract the orientation information from them to adjust the position of the UAVs [1] [2] [3]. In this paper, the position adjustment problem of UAVs in “circular” formation flight under three models is investigated. To address the problem of “how to obtain the position of the receiving UAV when there are two UAVs with known numbers and evenly distributed on the circumference in addition to the UAV transmitting at the known center of the circle, and the rest of the UAVs with slight deviations in their positions are receiving the signals”, two purely mathematical geometric methods, namely, triangular localization method and polar co-ordinate method, are proposed respectively. We have determined the position of the receiving UAV;we have used the exhaustive method and the construction and disproof method to solve the problem of “how many UAVs are needed to transmit signals in order to realize the effective positioning of the UAVs when it is known that a certain UAV with a slight deviation in its position receives the signals emitted by two UAVs at the same time”, and the results show that: in addition to the known signals emitted by two UAVs, it is also necessary to transmit the signals emitted by two UAVs. The results show that in addition to the known two UAVs transmitting signals, two additional UAVs are required to transmit signals for precise po-sitioning. When the position of UAVs has deviation at the initial moment, the ideal approximation method and the target delimitation method are pro-posed, and the target of nine UAVs uniformly distributed on a circle of a spe-cific radius is achieved through several adjustments, after which the ad-vantages and disadvantages of each model are analyzed, and suggestions for improvement are put forward. The purely azimuthal passive localization method and the constructed model approach proposed in this paper can be extended to other fields, such as spacecraft formations in space and battle-ship formations at sea, as well as other formation flight position adjustment problems.

Improving Accuracy and Computational Burden of Bundle Adjustment Algorithm Using GPUs

Bundle adjustment is a camera and point refinement technique in a 3D scene reconstruction pipeline. The camera parameters and the 3D points are refined by minimizing the difference between computed projection and observed projection of the image points formulated as a non-linear least-square problem. Levenberg-Marquardt method is used to solve the non-linear least-square problem. Solving the non-linear least-square problem is computationally expensive, proportional to the number of cameras, points, and projections. In this paper, we implement the Bundle Adjustment (BA) algorithm and analyze techniques to improve algorithmic performance by reducing the mean square error. We investigate using an additional radial distortion camera parameter in the BA algorithm and demonstrate better convergence of the mean square error. We also demonstrate the use of explicitly computed analytical derivatives. In addition, we implement the BA algorithm on GPUs using the CUDA parallel programming model to reduce the computational time burden of the BA algorithm. CUDA Streams, atomic operations, and cuBLAS library in the CUDA programming model are proposed, implemented, and demonstrated to improve the performance of the BA algorithm. Our implementation has demonstrated better convergence of the BA algorithm and achieved a speedup of up to 16× on the use of the BA algorithm on various datasets.

Impacts of automated passenger cars on the capacity of a freeway basic section: applicability in the determination of vehicle adjustment factors in mixed traffic

The highway capacity manual(HCM)provides a formula to calculate the heavy vehicle adjustment factor(fHV)as a function of passenger car equivalent factors for the heavy vehicle(ET).However,a significant drawback is that the methodology was established solely based on human-driven passenger cars(HDPC)and human-driven heavy vehicles(HDHV).Due to automated passenger cars(APCs),a new adjustment factor(fAV)might be expected.This study simulated traffic flows at different percentages of HDHVs and APCs to investigate the impacts of HDHVs and APCs on freeway capacity by analyzing their influence on fHV and fAV values.The simulation determined observed adjustment factors at different percentages of HDHVs and APCs(fobserved).The HCM formula was used to calculate(fHCM).Modifications to the HCM formula are proposed,and vehicle adjustment factors due to HDHVs and APCs were calculated(fproposed).Results showed that,in the presence of APCs,while fobserved and fHCM were statistically significantly different,fobserved and fproposed were statistically equal.Hence,this study recommends using the proposed formula when determining vehicle adjustment factors(fproposed)due to HDHVs and APCs in the traffic stream.

Adjustment Disorder in Female Breast Cancer Patients:Prevalence and Its Accessory Symptoms

Women diagnosed with breast cancer may have serious psychological problems and will suffer from adjustment disorder(AjD).We investigated the prevalence of AjD in female breast cancer patients who were diagnosed within 1 year and examined the severe life events they experienced,and the most common symptoms of AjD.342 newly diagnosed(<1 year)female breast cancer patients were recruited from Tongji Hospital and Hubei Cancer Hospital in Hubei,China,from July 2018 to May 2019.The patients completed the self-report questionnaire including demographic characteristics and the scale ADNM-20 for the diagnosis of AjD.SPSS20.0 was used for data analysis.As a result,the prevalence of AjD in breast cancer patients was 38.6%.Patients from rural areas and lacking of exercise were more likely to suffer from AjD(P<0.05).The prevalence of AjD in patients who did not regard breast cancer as the most severe life event was higher than that in patients who took breast cancer as the most severe life event(44.4%vs.33.9%,P<0.05;OR=1.728,95%CI=1.072-2.787).The symptom that scored highest was preoccupation(3.15).We found that the prevalence of AjD in women with breast cancer in this study is very high and warrants more attention.Patients from rural areas,lacking of exercise and subject to multiple stressors are more likely to suffer from AjD.The commonest and severe symptom is preoccupation.

Study on financial loss and its adjustment in earthquake insurance

In the paper, we briefly introduce the development and present situation of earthquake insurance in China and foreign countries, and the evaluation of earthquake losses on the basis of seismic risk and structural vulnerability analyses. The emphasis is given to the probabilistic density function of earthquake loss adjustment for a single building under the given insurance policy and the overall variance of estimated earthquake losses aggregated from various locations with keen interest in the insurance industries. The correlation coefficient for the damages among single structures in the United States is also introduced to interpret the risk of loss concentration in the earthquake insurance. The paper provides a scientific basis for adjusting earthquake loss and premium rate, and it also provides a useful reference for the application and expansion of earthquake insurance in China.

A Numerical Study of Geostrophic Adjustment and Frontogenesis

Using the PSU/NCAR Mesoscale Model version four(MM4), the frontogenesis and geostrophic adjustment problem in atmosphere with imbalance initial ideal data and conditions are studied. Based on results of experiments, it is found that the objective analysis and initialization procedure of the Model are not sensitive to the initial conditions used in this study. The final state of atmosphere, through process of adjustment, depends on the temperature gradient intensity of initial imbalance conditions. The front can be formed with appropriate condition. The processes of the frontogenesis are studied. It is also found that the response of the model to the ideal initial data used in this investigation is sensitive to the selected lateral boundary condition. The time-dependent inflow/outflow lateral boundary condition is the best implemented option for this numerical study. Energetic study of the experiments shows that the front is formed after the initial transient stage when there is no exchange of energy between the kinetic and potential energy. The time needed for the formation of the front is longer than that predicted theoretically. The ratio of kinetic energy to the released potential energy is considered. This ratio varies with the temperature gradient intensity and the type of used wind for computing kinetic energy (geostrophic or geostrophic plus ageostrophic wind). The larger temperature gradient, the larger magnitude of this ratio. A maximum value of energy in either type of computed kinetic energies (geostrophic wind kinetic energy and actual wind kinetic energy) for cases that the fronts are observed whereby, and its magnitude and occurrence time depend on initial data distribution. The variation of the computed kinetic energies with time, after transition time, is reasonable and no significant conversion of the energy between kinetic and potential energy goes on, however, stability within variables is not achieved.

Adjustment time of the first baroclinic Rossby wave in the global oceans

According to the freely linear Rossby wave theory, global 1°×1°climatology of Rossby deformation radius and phase speed are studied under the fiat bottom fluid approximation. Geographical variations in the contours of the phase speed are very similar to those of the Rossby radius of formation, which are mainly affected by stratification, rotation, water depth, topography, etc. The basin-crossing time of the first baroclinic Rossby wave is obtained and analyzed in the global ocean basins. The results are useful to learn the importance of Rosaby wave and the adiabatic adjustment of large-scale ocean circulation.

IN 1997 SOME IMPORT AND EXPORT TARIFF RATES ADJUSTED

The General Customs Administration issued a circular statingthat,based upon a decision of the State Council,in 1997 someimport and export tariff rates would be adjusted.The major con-tents of the circular are the adjustment of the import tariff rates of 4tariff lines of commodities and items under 124 tariff lines;theelimination of the export tariffs for 14 tariff lines of commodities,addition of export tariff rates for 2 kinds of precious metals andimposition of provisional export tariff rates for 4 kinds of corn-