Interaction Dynamics in AEC Global Teamwork

Architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) global project teamwork is communication intensive and relies heavily on synchronous and asynchronous information and collaboration technologies (ICT). We explore in this paper how an asynchronous ICT, called ThinkTank, reshaped the work practice of design-construction global teams, and how the interaction with this ICT reshaped the purpose and benefits of its use. ThinkTank is a web-based asynchronous collaboration and discussion forum. We introduce the influence diffusion model (IDM) that formalizes the process of identifying the influence of people, messages, and terms mathematically. Discovering who the influence leaders in project teams are can be beneficial and critical from a corporate management perspective, since they can guide or motivate the team towards successful actions and outcomes. We present the ThinkTank-IDM integrated system and its validation with a testbed of 53 AEC global team project archived in ThinkTank over 8 years.     

Characterization of a 4-miktoarm star copolymer of the (PS-b-PI)3 PS type by temperature gradient interaction chromatography

Temperature gradient interaction chromatography (TGIC) was applied for the separation of a complex miktoarm star copolymer which has one polystyrene (PS) arm and three polystyrene-b-polyisoprene (PS-b-PI) diblock copolymer arms. Such miktoarm star polymers are much more difficult to characterize than branched homopolymers since the byproduct, typically polymers with missing arm(s) or coupled products, have not only different molecular weights but also different compositions. TGIC was able to fully separate the byproducts, and the composition of the molecular species corresponding to the different separated elution peaks was determined by two methods, fractionation/NMR and multiple detection (UV and RI). A reasonable agreement between the results of the two methods was obtained. By using the composition found, the corresponding molecular weights were determined by multi-angle light scattering detection. Based on the composition and the molecular weight we were able to identify the structure of the different molecular species.     

Finding finer functions for partially characterized proteins by protein-protein interaction networks

Based on high-throughput data, numerous algorithms have been designed to find functions of novel proteins. However, the effectiveness of such algorithms is currently limited by some fundamental factors, including (1) the low a-priori probability of novel proteins participating in a detailed function; (2) the huge false data present in high-throughput datasets; (3) the incomplete data coverage of functional classes; (4) the abundant but heterogeneous negative samples for training the algorithms; and (5) the lack of detailed functional knowledge for training algorithms. Here, for partially characterized proteins, we suggest an approach to finding their finer functions based on protein interaction sub-networks or gene expression patterns, defined in function-specific subspaces. The proposed approach can lessen the above-mentioned problems by properly defining the prediction range and functionally filtering the noisy data, and thus can efficiently find proteins’ novel functions. For thousands of yeast and human proteins partially characterized, it is able to reliably find their finer functions (e.g., the translational functions) with more than 90% precision. The predicted finer functions are highly valuable both for guiding the follow-up wet-lab validation and for providing the necessary data for training algorithms to learn other proteins.     

Effect of short glass fiber on structure and viscoelastic behavior of olefinic polymers synthesized with metallocene catalyst

Several composites were prepared on the basis of an ethylene homopolymer and different copolymers of ethylene and 1‐hexene, synthesized with a metallocene catalyst, as matrices and a content of a 5 wt % of short glass fiber. The effect of the fiber incorporation on the structure and mechanical and viscoelastic behaviors was analyzed for the different samples. The glass fibers induced a slightly higher crystallinity, and the crystallite morphology significantly changed (long spacings and crystal orientation). The incorporation of fibers did not reinforce the different matrices under study at this low content; consequently, the mechanical parameters, such as Young's modulus, yielding stress, and microhardness, were lower in the composites as compared with those values found in the neat polyolefins. The location and apparent activation energies of distinct relaxation processes are also discussed. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 41: 1244–1255, 2003     

Au(111)上烷烃硫醇SAMs表面应力的理论研究

应用已建立的关于金属表面吸附层中表面应力的统计热力学理论 ,计算了Au(111)上烷烃硫醇SAMs的表面应力及其与烷烃硫醇链长、吸附覆盖度的定量关系 .计算结果与实验相符 ,较好地解释了Berger等人的实验结果 ,特别是解决了在表面应力符号性质上理论与实验的矛盾 .在表面吸附层应力的多种物理起源中 ,通过底物的分子间作用力有着决定性的贡献 ,揭示了分子的吸附能间接地起着重要作用 .这与阴离子化学吸附体系Cl-/Au(111)的有关研究结果相同 .     

The study of the influence of uniaxial stress on impurity complexes in silicon

The influence of external uniaxial stress on the different indium-donor complexes in silicon has been studied using the perturbed γ –γ angular correlation (PAC) method. Such effect of an applied stress is detected by means of the probe atoms situated at different complexes in the sample. The current results showed that the responses of the probes in an extrinsic silicon samples are found to be dissimilar for the same value of stress. Such change in the local environments of the probe atoms could be associated with the various strain field created by the implantations of varied size of impurities. The phosphorous implantation in silicon has even lead to the complete absence of observable effect of the applied stress suggesting significant lose of the elasticity of the sample.     

Numerical simulations of a filament in a flowing soap film

Experiments concerning the properties of soap films have recently been carried out and these systems have been proposed as experimental versions of theoretical two‐dimensional liquids. A silk filament introduced into a flowing soap film, was seen to demonstrate various stable modes, and these were, namely, a mode in which the filament oscillates and one in which the filament is stationary and aligns with the flow of the liquid. The system could be forced from the oscillatory mode into the non‐ oscillatory mode by varying the length of the filament. In this article we use numerical and computational techniques in order to simulate the strongly coupled behaviour of the filament and the fluid. Preliminary results are presented for the specific case in which the filament is seen to oscillate continuously for the duration of our simulation. We also find that the filament oscillations are strongly suppressed when we reduce the effective length of the filament. We believe that these results are reminiscent of the different oscillatory and non‐oscillatory modes observed in experiment. The numerical solutions show that, in contrast to experiment, vortices are created at the leading edge of the filament and are preferentially grown in the curvature of the filament and are eventually released from the trailing edge of the filament. In a similar manner to oscillating hydrofoils, it seems that the oscillating filaments are in a minimal energy state, extracting sufficient energy from the fluid to oscillate. In comparing numerical and experimental results it is possible that the soap film does have an effect on the fluid flow especially in the boundary layer where surface tension forces are large. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Completely biodegradable composites of poly(propylene carbonate) and short,lignocellulose fiber Hildegardia populifolia

The composites of biodegradable poly(propylene carbonate) (PPC) reinforced with short Hildegardia populifolia natural fiber were prepared by melt mixing followed by compression molding. The mechanical properties, thermal properties, and morphologies of the composites were studied via static and dynamic mechanical measurements, thermogravimetric analysis, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) techniques, respectively. Static tensile tests showed that the stiffness and tensile strength of the composites increased with an increasing fiber content. However, the elongation at break and the energy to break decreased dramatically with the addition of short fiber. The relationship between the experimental results and the compatibility or interaction between the PPC matrix and fiber was correlated. SEM observations indicated good interfacial contact between the short fiber and PPC matrix. Thermogravimetric analysis revealed that the introduction of short Hildegardia populifolia fiber led to a slightly improved thermooxidative stability of PPC. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 42: 666–675, 2004     

Physical properties of glycosaminoglycan hydrogels

The chemical composition of glycosaminoglycan (GAG) hydrogels was found to have a profound effect on the physical properties of gels. Hyaluronan (HA) and chondroitin sulfate (CS) were each modified with adipic dihydrazide (ADH) with carbodiimide chemistry. The resulting polymer was crosslinked with various concentrations of poly(ethylene glycol) dialdehyde (PEG‐diald) to produce a series of hydrogels. The physical properties of these GAG hydrogels varied in a concentration‐dependent fashion. Maximal crosslinking was observed at a theoretical crosslinking of 50% for the HA‐ADH‐PEG‐diald hydrogels and 75% for the CS‐ADH‐PEG‐diald hydrogels. Adding PEG‐diald beyond the optimum for crosslinking prolonged the in vitro enzymatic degradation time of the hydrogels. The swelling of the crosslinked GAG hydrogels was correlated with the amount of PEG‐diald used rather than with the crosslinking density. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 42: 4344–4356, 2004     

Wide‐angle X‐ray diffraction and differential scanning calorimetry study of the crystallization of poly(ethylene naphthalate), poly(butylene naphthalate), and their copolymers

The crystallization behavior of a series of poly(ethylene‐co‐butylene naphthalate) (PEBN) random copolymers was studied. Wide‐angle X‐ray diffraction (WAXD) patterns showed that the crystallization of these copolymers could occur over the entire range of compositions. This resulted in the formation of poly(ethylene naphthalate) or poly(butylene naphthalate) crystals, depending on the composition of the copolymers. Sharp diffraction peaks were observed, except for 50/50 PEBN. Eutectic behavior was also observed. This showed isodimorphic cocrystallization of the PEBN copolymers. The variation of the enthalpy of fusion of the copolymers with the composition was estimated. The isothermal and nonisothermal crystallization kinetics were studied. The crystallization rates were found to decrease as the comonomer unit content increased. The tensile properties were also measured and were found to decrease as the butylene naphthalate content of the copolymers increased. For initially amorphous specimens, orientation was proved by WAXD patterns after drawing, but no crystalline reflections were observed. However, the fast crystallization of drawn specimens occurred when they were heated above the glass‐transition temperature. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 42: 843–860, 2004