Dual‐Use Technology In the Context of the Non‐Proliferation Regime

Many technologies have both vital legitimate uses and potent military applications. An international regulatory regime has been devised for the purpose of monitoring the use of the most dangerous of these technologies, namely chemical, biological and nuclear weapons. Multiple examples of the use of chemical and biological weapons against members of the public, and evidence of prohibited state weapons development programs, demonstrate the vital need for a more effective enforcement regime. The authors discuss the concept and threat of dual‐use technology, the existing regulatory regime and its shortcomings, and propose enhancing this regime with powerful international judicial authorities to enable the prosecution of any state, group or individual who attempts to misuse dual‐use technology.     

Predicting Probabilistic-Based Strong Ground Motion Time Series for Citadel of Arg-E-Bam (South-East of Iran)

The main objective of this article is to present a probabilistic-based strong motion compatible with the source-path and site soil condition given the probability of exceedence for citadel of Arg-e-Bam site bed rock (South-East of Iran). A Fourier amplitude spectral attenuation relation for bed rock beneath the site is proposed which permits the estimation of time-histories through a probabilistic seismic hazard analysis procedure. Due to lack of data, the two well-known simulation techniques, point source and finite fault models have been used for generating hundreds of strong motion as input data. Tens of model parameter values such as stress-drop nucleation points were used, in each specified magnitude-distance, to reduce the uncertainty effects inherently existing in seismological/geological parameters. The proposed attenuation relation is validated by comparing the estimated strong motion, in the form of Fourier amplitude spectral, using the proposed attenuation relation with those of recorded ground motion data at three stations far away from the assumed source so that the results would not be influenced by the near source problems such as directivity and fling step. The results of proposed technique is assessed by comparing the estimated response spectra, with 10% probability of exceedence and 5% damping ratio, with those of traditional uniform hazard spectra. The proposed technique is supposed to be used in retrofitting procedure of international historical adobe structures in Arg-e-Bam site, which have been damaged during the destructive Bam earthquake 2003, Iran     

Estimation of Strong Ground Motions in Southwest Western Australia with a Combined Green's Function and Stochastic Approach

As only a very limited number of earthquake strong ground motion records are available in southwest Western Australia (SWWA), it is difficult to derive a reliable and unbiased strong ground motion attenuation model based on these data. To overcome this, in this study a combined approach is used to simulate ground motions. First, the stochastic approach is used to simulate ground motion time histories at various epicentral distances from small earthquake events. Then, the Green's function method, with the stochastically simulated time histories as input, is used to generate large event ground motion time histories. Comparing the Fourier spectra of the simulated motions with the recorded motions of a ML6.2 event in Cadoux in June 1979 and a ML5.5 event in Meckering in January 1990, provides good evidence in support of this method. This approach is then used to simulate a series of ground motion time histories from earthquakes of varying magnitudes and distances. From the regression analyses of these simulated data, the attenuation relations of peak ground acceleration (PGA), peak ground velocity (PGV), and response spectrum of ground motions on rock site in SWWA are derived.     

Development of Neural Network Based Hysteretic Models for Steel Beam-Column Connections Through Self-Learning Simulation

Beam-column connections are zones of highly complex actions and deformations interaction that often lead to failure under the effect of earthquake ground motion. Modeling of the beam-column connections is important both in understanding the behavior and in design. In this article, a framework for developing a neural network (NN) based steel beam-column connection model through structural testing is proposed. Neural network based inelastic hysteretic model for beam-column connections is combined with a new component based model under self-learning simulation framework. Self-learning simulation has the unique advantage in that it can use structural response to extract material models. Self-learning simulation is based on auto-progressive algorithm that employs the principles of equilibrium and compatibility, and the self-organizing nature of artificial neural network material models. The component based model is an assemblage of rigid body elements and spring elements which represent smeared constitutive behaviors of components; either nonlinear elastic or nonlinear inelastic behavior of components. The component based model is verified by a 3-D finite element analysis. The proposed methodology is illustrated through a self-learning simulation for a welded steel beam-column connection. In addition to presenting the first application of self-learning simulation to steel beam-column connections, a framework is outlined for applying the proposed methodology to other types of connections.     

Large-Scale Experimental Investigation on Mustafa Pasha Mosque

To evaluate the seismic stability of Mustafa Pasha Mosque in Skopje strengthened by an advanced mixed technology, shaking table tests were carried out on a model in scale 1:6. The investigation was performed within the activities of the Sixth Framework Program PROHITECH – “Earthquake Protection of Historical Buildings by Reversible Mixed Technologies”. To define the effectiveness of the proposed strengthening the testing procedure consisted of two main phases: testing of the original model and testing of the strengthened model. The observed seismic behavior and damage during each phase of the testing program were analyzed on the basis of the obtained experimental results.     

Probabilistic Seismic Design of Pile Foundations in Non Liquefiable Soil by Response Spectrum Approach

The behavior of pile foundations in non liquefiable soil under seismic loading is considerably influenced by the variability in the soil and seismic design parameters. Hence, probabilistic models for the assessment of seismic pile design are necessary. Deformation of pile foundation in non liquefiable soil is dominated by inertial force from superstructure. The present study considers a pseudo-static approach based on code specified design response spectra. The response of the pile is determined by equivalent cantilever approach. The soil medium is modeled as a one-dimensional random field along the depth. The variability associated with undrained shear strength, design response spectrum ordinate, and superstructure mass is taken into consideration. Monte Carlo simulation technique is adopted to determine the probability of failure and reliability indices based on pile failure modes, namely exceedance of lateral displacement limit and moment capacity. A reliability-based design approach for the free head pile under seismic force is suggested that enables a rational choice of pile design parameters.     

Capacity Evaluation of Typical Stud-Track Screw Connections in Nonstructural Walls

A series of component-level experiments have been conducted aiming to evaluate the force and displacement capacities of typical stud-track screw connections (STCs) in steel-framed partition walls. The variables considered in these experiments included screw-edge distances, loading protocols (monotonic or cyclic), and stud and track thicknesses. The experimental data was then utilized to develop different capacity fragility curves for STCs in terms of displacements. A series of analytical STC hinge models were also proposed and validated using this data. The hinge models can be adopted in future studies to develop a comprehensive analytical model for a typical partition wall assembly.     

A Procedure for the Displacement-Based Seismic Assessment of Infilled RC Frames

The aim of this study was to propose an extension of the displacement-based assessment procedure for infilled reinforced concrete (RC) frames. Two fundamental steps of the displacement-based approach were studied: the determination of the equivalent viscous damping and the definition of the limit-state displacement profile. The proposed criteria were derived by examining the results of two different numerical investigations regarding the nonlinear seismic response of single- and multi-story infilled RC frames. Lastly, the effectiveness of the method was verified through comparisons, in terms of displacement demand, with the results of nonlinear dynamic analyses.     

‘Christ and the soul are like Pyramus and Thisbe’: An Ovidian Story in Fifteenth-Century Sermons

ABSTRACT

The sophisticated ways in which several fifteenth-century preachers used Ovidian stories and their allegorical interpretations prove that late medieval sermons represent a promising but neglected area for classical reception studies. Preachers – whose names are today almost forgotten by scholars but whose sermons circulated at large in early printed books – considered Ovidian allegories as powerful instruments for instructing, entertaining, and moving their audiences. This article begins with a review of the literature on the presence of Ovid in sermons, and discusses the methodology to study the transformation of classical myths in preaching. Then, it focuses on four sermons that incorporated the story of Pyramus and Thisbe, which appears in the sermon collections written by Conrad Grütsch, Johann Meder, and Jacobus de Lenda. The repeated use of this Ovidian myth allows us, therefore, to investigate how different preachers appropriated and re-elaborated this story, and the role that it played in diverse contexts. Finally, the analysis of these texts also sheds light on the use of the Ovidius moralizatus in fifteenth-century sermons.     

Ban Chiang and Northeast Thailand; the palaeoenvironment and economy

Beginning with a detailed presentation of the faunal spectra from Ban Chiang and related sites in Northeast Thailand, this essay reconstructs the palaeoenvironment during the period 3500 BC to the end of the prehistoric period. The evidence from the freshwater molluscs found in prehistoric layers suggests that the first occupants of Ban Chiang encountered a habitat with permanent lakes and clear, slow moving streams. Since the lakes contracted in the dry season, there were ideal conditions for practising wet swidden agriculture. From c. 1600 BC, the presence of water buffalo and associated changes in the faunal spectrum suggests the inception of wet rice cultivation. Such agricultural intensification, it is held, follows population pressure and accounts for subsequent settlement in the more arid plains of Thailand.