Multi-Stage Pedestrian Crossings and Two-Stage Bicycle Turns: Delay Estimation and Signal Timing Techniques for Limiting Pedestrian and Bicycle Delay

Signalized intersections sometimes involve multistage pedestrian crossings, in which pedestrians cross to one or more islands and then wait there for a signal to continue. When signals are timed without attention to pedestrian progression, pedestrian delay at multistage crossings can be very long. This paper addresses two issues. First, pedestrian delay at multistage crossings is rarely evaluated because there are no tools in the industry for that purpose except microsimulation. We present a numerical method for determining crossing delay with any number of stages and with the possibility of multiple WALK intervals per cycle. The same method can be applied to single stage crossings, to diagonal two-stage crossings where pedestrians may have path choice, and bicycle two-stage turns. This method has been implemented in a freely available online tool. Second, we describe several signal timing techniques for improving pedestrian and bicyclist progression, and thus reducing their delay, through multistage crossings. They include reservice for selected crossing phases, left turn overlaps, having pedestrian phases overlap each other, and bidirectional bicycle crossings which create path options for two-stage turns. Examples show the potential for large reductions in pedestrian delay, often with little or no increase in vehicular delay. In one example, the addition of a short pedestrian overlap phase reduced average pedestrian delay at a 3-stage crossing by 82 s while average vehicular delay increased by only 0.5 s.

On the ratio of expectation crossings of random-excited dielectric elastomer balloon

The ratio of expectation crossings of dielectric elastomer balloon excited by random pressure is analytically evaluated in this letter. The Mooney-Rivlin model is adopted to describe the constitutive relation while the random pressure is described by Gaussian white noise. Through a specific transformation, the stochastic differential equations for the total energy and phase are derived. With the application of the stochastic averaging, the system total energy is then approximated by a one-dimensional diffusion pro-cess. Solving the associated Fokker-Planck-Kolmogorov （FPK） equation yields the stationary probability density of the system total energy. The ratio of expectation crossings is then derived based on the joint stationary probability density of stretch ratio and its ratio of change. The efficacy and accuracy of the proposed procedure are verified by comparing with the results from Monte Carlo simulation （MCS）.

Key factors contributing to crash severity at highway-rail grade crossings

The purpose of this paper is to develop and com- pare the preferred multinomial logit （MNL） and ordered logit （ORL） model in identifying factors that are important in making an injury severity difference and exploring the impact of such explanatory variables on three different severity levels of vehicle-related crashes at highway-rail grade crossings （HRGCs） in the United States. Vehicle-rail crash data on USDOT highway-rail crossing inventory and public crossing sites from 2005 to 2012 are used in this study. Preferred MNL and ORL models are developed and marginal effects are also calculated and compared. A majority of the variables have shown similar effects on the probability of the three different severity levels in both models. In addition, based on the Akaike information criterion, it is found that the MNL model is better than the ORL model in predicting the vehicle crash severity levels on HRGCs in this study. Therefore, the researchers recommend the use of MNL model in predicting severity levels of vehicle-rail crashes on HRGCs.

Accident and hazard prediction models for highway–rail grade crossings:a state-of-the-practice review for the USA

Highway–rail grade crossings(HRGCs)are one of the most dangerous segments of the transportation network.Every year numerous accidents are recorded at HRGCs between highway users and trains,between highway users and traffic control devices,and solely between highway users.These accidents cause fatalities,severe injuries,property damage,and release of hazardous materials.Researchers and state Departments of Transportation(DOTs)have addressed safety concerns at HRGCs in the USA by investigating the factors that may cause accidents at HRGCs and developed certain accident and hazard prediction models to forecast the occurrence of accidents and crossing vulnerability.The accident and hazard prediction models are used to identify the most hazardous HRGCs that require safety improvements.This study provides an extensive review of the state-of-the-practice to identify the existing accident and hazard prediction formulae that have been used over the years by different state DOTs.Furthermore,this study analyzes the common factors that have been considered in the existing accident and hazard prediction formulae.The reported performance and implementation challenges of the identified accident and hazard prediction formulae are discussed in this study as well.Based on the review results,the US DOT Accident Prediction Formula was found to be the most commonly used formula due to its accuracy in predicting the number of accidents at HRGCs.However,certain states still prefer customized models due to some practical considerations.Data availability and data accuracy were identified as some of the key model implementation challenges in many states across the country.

Self-Identity in Post-Colonial Discourse in Chuang Hua’s Crossings

Chuang Hua’s Crossings is considered as“Chinamerican gem”.In the protagonist Jane’s quest for her self-identity in post-colonial discourse,she encounters cultural“displacement”and“homelessness”,as a result of her constant geographical moves,ordinal and sexual position in her family and the differences of the two cultures.To settle such cultural anxiety,Jane shares common views with Homi Bhabha’s insights—denying the binary logic way of viewing identity as essential Self to Other,but constructing the Third Space.

INTRASPECIFIC CROSSINGS OF UNDARIA PINNATIFIDA (HARV.) SUR.-A POSSIBLE TIME-SAVING WAY OF STRAIN SELECTION

Unicellular gametophytes of Undaria pinnatifida (Harv.) Sur. were isolated in Qingdao, P. R. China in April 1993 and in Tokushima, southem Japan in March 1995. Diferent intraspecific crossings by using unicellular male and female gametophytes were successfully undertaken in Sept. of 1995 in Qingdao.Sporophytes were transplanted to two different locations for open an cultivation. One was at Zhanqiao (ZQ) Bay where the water current was slower than that of another location - Taipingjiao(TPJ). A total of218 adult sporophytes were harvested on January 12 and 18 from TPJ and ZQ repectively. For eacncombination, 10 sporophytes un cultivated. Analysis of the mprpholgical characteristics of adult spprophytes indicated that the longest length between two bases of the serration of pinnate bldes (W2) is a morphological characteristic that can be transferred from the parent plant to the next generations regardless of environmental variations. There was evidence that W2 was apparently determined by sex-linked factors, i.e, by male parental grametophyte.. Sporophytes from certain crossing combinations showed more vigorous growth than those from other crossing combinations. It is therrfore possible to select grametophyte strains which can be used as parental gametophytes for the seeding production of sporophytes with more vigorous growth within shorter cultivation period. The morphology of hybrids from a Qingdao strain and a Tokushima cultivated strain resembled that of both parental plants in frond feaures (wrinkled or smooth) and W2. Sporophyll formation also varied with strains. The fact that adult sporophytes resulting from the same crossing combinations have identical morphological characteristics under the same environmental conditions indicates the possibility of a new way to select strains which are expected to be ideal for commerical production by purposely selecting, propagating, and seeding unicellular gametophytes for sporeing production through freeliving techniques of gametophytes.

Regular-Singular Crossings on Nonlinear Systems with Turning Point

We consider in this paper the boundary value problems of nonlinear systems the form εY″=F(t,Y,Y′,ε), -1<t<1, Y(-1,ε)=A(ε), Y(1,ε)=B(ε). Supoosing some or all of the components of F , that is, f i satisfy 2 f y′ 2 i t =0 =0, we say that F possesses a generalized turning point at t =0. Our goal is to give sufficient conditions for the existence of solution of the problems and to study the asymptotic behavior of the solution when F possesses a generalized turning point at t =0. We mainly discuss regular singular crossings.

Modeling Crash Risk at Rail-Highway Grade Crossings by Track Class

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA)’s Web Based Accident Prediction System (WBAPS) is used by federal, state and local agencies to get a preliminary idea on safety at a rail-highway grade crossing. It is an interactive and user-friendly tool used to make funding decisions. WBAPS is almost three decades old and involves a three-step approach making it difficult to interpret the contribution of the variables included in the model. It also does not directly account for regional/local developments and technological advancements pertaining to signals and signs implemented at rail-highway grade crossings. Further, characteristics of a rail-highway grade crossing vary by track class which is not explicitly considered by WBAPS. This research, therefore, examines and develops a method and models to estimate crashes at rail-highway grade crossings by track class using regional/local level data. The method and models developed for each track class as well as considering all track classes together are based on data for the state of North Carolina. Linear, as well as count models based on Poisson and Negative Binomial (NB) distributions, was tested for applicability. Negative binomial models were found to be the best fit for the data used in this research. Models for each track class have better goodness of fit statistics compared to the model considering data for all track classes together. This is primarily because traffic, design, and operational characteristics at rail-highway grade crossings are different for each track class. The findings from statistical models in this research are supported by model validation.

A New Accident Prediction Model for Highway-Rail Grade Crossings Using the USDOT Formula Variables

This paper presents the ZINDOT model,a methodology utilizing a zero-inflated negative binomial model with the variables used in the United States Department of Transportation(USDOT)accident prediction formula,to determine the expected accident count at a highway-rail grade crossing.The model developed contains separate formulas to estimate the crash prediction value depending on the warning device type installed at the crossing:crossings with gates,crossings with flashing lights and no gates,and crossings with crossbucks.The proposed methodology also accounts for the observed accident count at a crossing using the Empirical Bayes method.The ZINDOT model estimates were compared to the USDOT model estimates to rank the crossings based on the expected accident frequency.It is observed that the new model can identify crossings with a greater number of accidents with Gates and Flashing Lights and Crossbucks in both Illinois(data which were used to develop the model)and Texas(data which were used to validate the model).A practitioner already using the USDOT formulae to estimate expected accident count at a crossing could easily use the ZINDOT model as it employs the same variables used in the USDOT formula.This methodology could be used to rank highway-rail grade crossings for resource allocation and safety improvement.

Normal Crossings Singularities for Symplectic Topology:Structures

Our previous papers introduce topological notions of normal crossings symplectic divisor and variety,show that they are equivalent,in a suitable sense,to the corresponding geometric notions,and establish a topological smoothability criterion for normal crossings symplectic varieties.The present paper constructs a blowup,a complex line bundle,and a logarithmic tangent bundle naturally associated with a normal crossings symplectic divisor and determines the Chern class of the last bundle.These structures have applications in constructions and analysis of various moduli spaces.As a corollary of the Chern class formula for the logarithmic tangent bundle,we refine Aluffi’s formula for the Chern class of the tangent bundle of the blowup at a complete intersection to account for the torsion and extend it to the blowup at the deepest stratum of an arbitrary normal crossings divisor.

Strong Edge Coloring of Outerplane Graphs with Independent Crossings

The strong chromatic index of a graph is the minimum number of colors needed in a proper edge coloring so that no edge is adjacent to two edges of the same color.An outerplane graph with independent crossings is a graph embedded in the plane in such a way that all vertices are on the outer face and two pairs of crossing edges share no common end vertex.It is proved that every outerplane graph with independent crossings and maximum degreeΔhas strong chromatic index at most 4Δ-6 if Δ≥4,and at most 8 ifΔ≤3.Both bounds are sharp.

Development of combined transitional pavement structure for urban tram track-road grade crossings

The grade crossings and adjacent pavements of urban trams are generally subjected to complex load conditions and are susceptible to damage.Therefore,in this study,a novel pavement structure between tram tracks and roads constructed using polyurethane(PU)elastic concrete and ultra-high-performance concrete(UHPC),referred to as a track-road transitional pavement(TRTP),is proposed.Subsequently,its performance and feasibility are evaluated using experimental and numerical methods.First,the mechanical properties of the PU elastic concrete are evaluated.The performance of the proposed structure is investigated using a three-dimensional finite element model,where vehicleinduced dynamic and static loads are considered.The results show that PU elastic concrete and the proposed combined TRTP are applicable and functioned as intended.Additionally,the PU elastic concrete achieved sufficient performance.The recommended width of the TRTP is approximately 50 mm.Meanwhile,the application of UHPC under a PU elastic concrete layer significantly reduces vertical deformation.Results of numerical calculations confirmed the high structural performance and feasibility of the proposed TRTP.Finally,material performance standards are recommended to provide guidance for pavement design and the construction of tram-grade crossings in the future.

Possibilities for the synthesis of superheavy element Z=121 in fusion reactions

Based on the dinuclear system model,the calculated evaporation residue cross sections matched well with the current experimental results.The synthesis of superheavy elements Z=121 was systematically studied through combinations of stable projectiles with Z=21-30 and targets with half-lives exceeding 50 d.The influence of mass asymmetry and isotopic dependence on the projectile and target nuclei was investigated in detail.The reactions^(254)Es(^(46)Ti,3n)^(297)121 and^(252)Es(^(46)Ti,3n)^(295)121 were found to be experimentally feasible for synthesizing superheavy element Z=121,with maximal evaporation residue cross sections of 6.619 and 4.123 fb at 219.9 and 223.9 MeV,respectively.

Frequency Domain Fatigue Evaluation on SCR Girth-Weld Based on Structural Stress

The Steel Catenary Riser(SCR)is a vital component for transporting oil and gas from the seabed to the floating platform.The harsh environmental conditions and complex platform motion make the SCR’s girth-weld prone to fatigue failure.The structural stress fatigue theory and Master S-N curve method provide accurate predictions for the fatigue damage on the welded joints,which demonstrate significant potential and compatibility in multi-axial and random fatigue evaluation.Here,we propose a new frequency fatigue model subjected to welded joints of SCR under multiaxial stress,which fully integrates the mesh-insensitive structural stress and frequency domain random process and transforms the conventional welding fatigue technique of SCR into a spectrum analysis technique utilizing structural stress.Besides,a full-scale FE model of SCR with welds is established to obtain the modal structural stress of the girth weld and the frequency response function(FRF)of modal coordinate,and a biaxial fatigue evaluation about the girth weld of the SCR can be achieved by taking the effects of multi-load correlation and pipe-soil interaction into account.The research results indicate that the frequency-domain fatigue results are aligned with the time-domain results,meeting the fatigue evaluation requirements of the SCR.

Drawing Complete Multipartite Graphs on the Plane with Restrictions on Crossings

A graph is 1-planar if it can be drawn on a plane so that each edge is crossed by at most one other edge. A plane graph with near independent crossings （say NIC-planar graph） is a 1-planar graph with the restriction that for any two crossings the four crossed edges are incident with at most one common vertex. The full characterization of NIC-planar complete and complete multipartite graphs is given in this paper.

Cross section determination of^(27)Al(n,2n)^(26)Al reaction induced by 14-MeV neutrons uniting with D-T neutron activation and AMS techniques

Aluminum is the primary structural material in nuclear engineering,and its cross section induced by 14-MeV neutrons is of great significance.To address the issue of insufficient accuracy for the^(27)Al(n,2n)^(26)Al reaction cross section,the activation method and accelerator mass spectrometry(AMS)technique were used to determine the^(27)Al(n,2n)^(26)Al cross section,which could be used as a D-T plasma ion temperature monitor in fusion reactors.At the China Academy of Engineering Physics,neutron activation was performed using a K-400 neutron generator produced by the T(d,n)4He reaction.The^(26)Al∕^(27)Al isotope ratios were measured using the newly installed GYIG 1 MV AMS at the Institute of Geochemistry,Chinese Academy of Sciences.The neutron flux was monitored by measuring the activity of 92mNb produced by the 93Nb(n,2n)92mNb reaction.The measured results were compared with available data in the experimental nuclear reaction database,and the measured values showed a reasonable degree of consistency with partially available literature data.The newly acquired cross-sectional data at 12 neutron energy points through systematic measurements clarified the divergence,which has two different growth trends from the existing experimental values.The obtained results are also compared with the corresponding evaluated database,and the newly calculated excitation functions with TALYS−1.95 and EMPIRE−3.2 codes,the agreement with CENDL−3.2,TENDL-2021 and EMPIRE−3.2 results are generally acceptable.A substantial improvement in the knowledge of the^(27)Al(n,2n)^(26)Al reaction excitation function was obtained in the present work,which will lay the foundation for the diagnosis of the fusion ion temperature,testing of the nuclear physics model,evaluation of nuclear data,etc.

The n-resolved single-electron capture in slow O^(6+)-Ne collisions

A study of single-electron capture(SEC) in 18-240 keV O^(6+)-Ne collisions has been conducted employing a combination of experimental and theoretical methodologies.Utilizing a reaction microscope,state-selective SEC cross sections and projectile scattering angle distributions were obtained.The translational energy spectra for SEC reveal the prevailing capture into n=3 states of the projectile ion,with a minor contribution from n=4 states.Notably,as the projectile's energy increases,the relative contribution of SEC n=4 states increases while that of SEC n=3 states diminishes.Furthermore,we computed state-selective relative cross sections and angular differential cross sections employing the classical molecular Coulomb over-the-barrier model(MCBM) and the multichannel Landau-Zener(MCLZ) model.A discernible discrepancy between the state-selective cross sections from the two theoretical models is apparent for the considered impact energies.However,regarding the angular differential cross sections,an overall agreement was attained between the current experimental results and the theoretical results from the MCLZ model.

Cr-induced fusion reactions to synthesize superheavy elements

We investigated ^(50,52-54)Cr-induced fusion reactions for the synthesis of the superheavy element in the 104≤Z≤122 range.The cross sections produced in this investigation using ^(54)Cr projectiles were compared with those obtained in prior experiments.The estimated cross sections from this analysis are consistent with the findings of prior studies.From the current study,the predicted cross section was found to be 42fb at 236 MeV for ^(53)Cr+^(243)Am,23.2 fb at 236 MeV for ^(54)Cr+^(247)Cm,95.6 fb at 240 MeV for ^(53)Cr+248Bk,and 1.33 fb at 242 MeV for ^(53)Cr+250Cf.Consequently,these projected cross sections with excitation energy and beam energy will be useful in future Cr-induced fusion reaction investigations.

Asymmetric expression of CA2 and CA13 linked to calcification in the bilateral mandibular condyles cause crossed beaks in chickens

Crossed beak is a complex mode of inheritance with prevalence ranging from 0.2 to 7.4% in at least 12 chicken strains worldwide.To reveal the intrinsic factors causing crossed beaks,genes expression patterns in bilateral mandibular condyle between affected and normal birds were characterized by RNA sequencing analysis in the present studies.Crossed beak was induced by short length of unilateral mandibular ramus,and a total of 110differentially expressed genes were up-or down-regulated in the affected(short)mandibular condyle side as compared to the normal side.Carbonic anhydrase 2(CA2)and Carbonic anhydrase 13(CA13)were enriched in the carbonate dehydratase activity,and high-expressed in mandibular condyle and osteoblasts(P<0.05).However,both were low-expressed in short mandibular condyle side of affected birds(P<0.05).The carbonate dehydratase inhibitor experiments confirmed that there is positive association between the calcification and carbonic anhydrase isoenzymes.Quantitative analysis with cetylpyridinium chloride showed a decrease in calcification when the cells were transfected with an anti-CA13 shRNA.Our research suggested that CA2 and CA13 are down-calcified in shortside mandibular condyle,and caused mandibular ramus to grow slowly.CA2 and CA13 have the critical role in crossed beaks by regulating calcification of mandibular condyle.

Application of CFD and FEA Coupling to Predict Structural Dynamic Responses of A Trimaran in Uni-and Bi-Directional Waves

To predict the wave loads of a flexible trimaran in different wave fields,a one-way interaction numerical simulation method is proposed by integrating the fluid solver(Star-CCM+)and structural solver(Abaqus).Differing from the existing coupled CFD-FEA method for monohull ships in head waves,the presented method equates the mass and stiffness of the whole ship to the hull shell so that any transverse and longitudinal section stress of the hull in oblique waves can be obtained.Firstly,verification study and sensitivity analysis are carried out by comparing the trimaran motions using different mesh sizes and time step schemes.Discussion on the wave elevation of uni-and bi-directional waves is also carried out.Then a comprehensive analysis on the structural responses of the trimaran in different uni-directional regular wave and bi-directional cross sea conditions is carried out,respectively.Finally,the differences in structural response characteristics of trimaran in different wave fields are studied.The results show that the present method can reduce the computational burden of the two-way fluid-structure interaction simulations.