Weekly rhythms in task and time allocation of households

Analysis of household activity scheduling has to date been limited to one-day periods. This paper extends the study of household task allocation to a one-week period. Using a one-week time use survey held under couples in The Netherlands in 2003, the paper proposes indicators for measuring task allocation on a daily and weekly scale and investigates to what extent role expectations, work status and indicators of time pressure influence task allocation patterns. The outcomes suggest that egalitarian role expectations and higher female work status lead to a more balanced allocation of work and households tasks between spouses. More traditional role views and increased time pressure lead to more specialisation and inequality between spouses. Interestingly, households under time pressure apply day-to-day specialisation to arrive at balanced weekly allocation totals.

The influence of fluid structure interaction modelling on the dynamic response of ships subject to collision and grounding

Analysis of the dynamic response of ships in accident scenarios requires a realistic idealisation of environmental and operational conditions by multi-physics models. This paper presents a procedure that simulates the influence of strongly coupled FSI effects on the dynamic response of ships involved in typical collision and grounding events. Our method couples an explicit 6-DoF structural dynamic finite element scheme with a hydrodynamic method accounting for (a) 6-DoF potential flow hydrodynamic actions; (b) the influence of evasive ship speed in the way of contact and (c) the effects of hydrodynamic resistance based on a RANS CFD model. Multi-physics simulations for typical accident scenarios involving passenger ships confirm that suitable FSI modelling may be critical for either collision or grounding events primarily because of the influence of hydrodynamic restoring forces.     

Study of the seasonal cycle of the biogeochemical processes in the Ligurian Sea using a 1D interdisciplinary model

A one-dimensional coupled physical–biogeochemical model has been built to study the pelagic food web of the Ligurian Sea (NW Mediterranean Sea). The physical model is the turbulent closure model (version 1D) developed at the GeoHydrodynamics and Environmental Laboratory (GHER) of the University of Liège. The ecosystem model contains 19 state variables describing the carbon and nitrogen cycles of the pelagic food web. Phytoplankton and zooplankton are both divided in three size-based compartments and the model includes an explicit representation of the microbial loop including bacteria, dissolved organic matter, nano-, and microzooplankton. The internal carbon/nitrogen ratio is assumed variable for phytoplankton and detritus, and constant for zooplankton and bacteria. Silicate is considered as a potential limiting nutrient of phytoplankton's growth. The aggregation model described by Kriest and Evans in (Proc. Ind. Acad. Sci., Earth Planet. Sci. 109 (4) (2000) 453) is used to evaluate the sinking rate of particulate detritus. The model is forced at the air–sea interface by meteorological data coming from the “Côte d'Azur” Meteorological Buoy. The dynamics of atmospheric fluxes in the Mediterranean Sea (DYFAMED) time-series data obtained during the year 2000 are used to calibrate and validate the biological model. The comparison of model results within in situ DYFAMED data shows that although some processes are not represented by the model, such as horizontal and vertical advections, model results are overall in agreement with observations and differences observed can be explained with environmental conditions.     

Probabilistic assessment of railway vehicle-curved track systems considering track random irregularities

The randomness of track irregularities directly leads to the random vibration of the vehicle–track systems. To assess the dynamic performance of a railway system in more comprehensive and practical ways, a framework for probabilistic assessment of vehicle-curved track systems is developed by effectively integrating a vehicle–track coupled model (VTCM), a track irregularity probabilistic model (TIPM) with a probability density evolution method (PDEM). In VTCM, the railway vehicle and the curved track are coupled by the nonlinear wheel–rail interaction forces, and through TIPM, the ergodic properties of random track irregularities on amplitudes, wavelengths and probabilities can be properly considered in the dynamic calculations. Lastly, PDEM, a newly developed method for solving probabilistic transmissions between stochastic excitations and deterministic dynamic responses, is introduced to this probabilistic assessment model. Numerical examples validate the correctness and practicability of the proposed models. In this paper, the results of probabilistic assessment are presented to illustrate the dynamic behaviours of a high-speed railway vehicle subject to curved tracks with various radii, and to demonstrate the importance of considering the actual status of wheel–rail contacts and curve negotiation effects in vehicle-curved track interactions.     

Container Terminal Development in Mainland China and Its Impact on the Competitiveness of the Port of Hong Kong

In recent years, China's container ports have experienced a significant expansion in throughput and capacity. This paper provides a review of the sector and analyses the recent development of container ports and terminals within Mainland China. It then focuses in more depth on the competition between the ports of Shenzhen and Hong Kong. In particular, the port of Shenzhen is analysed in the context of Robinson's criteria for hub port development to try to discern whether it will become the dominant regional hub. The discussion concludes that despite Shenzhen's current competitive advantages, Hong Kong will, in all probability, retain its dominant role.     

Krill behaviour as recorded by acoustic doppler current profilers in the Gullmarsfjord

Vertical distribution of sound scattering layers were observed using bottom deployed acoustic doppler current profilers (ADCP) during early spring of 1996 and autumn of 1997 in the Gullmarsfjord on the Swedish west coast. Variations in relative backscatter were interpreted in relation to horizontal water velocities, oxygen saturation as well as differences in the light, salinity and temperature regimes. Net catches revealed that much of the backscatter below 20-m depth was associated with the presence of krill, principally Meganyctiphanes norvegica.Horizontal currents seemed to influence the migration and distribution of krill, which showed weak vertical migration patterns with low abundance during periods of strong intermediate in- and outflows, while during periods with weaker currents, a more regular diel migration occurred. Horizontal water velocities >5 cm s⁻¹ seemed to have the potential to decrease the peak in the backscatter profile. Mean vertical migration rates of krill was 1 cm s⁻¹, while maximum vertical migration rates were estimated to be 2.5–3 cm s⁻¹. The range of the vertical migration was different in 1997 due to severe oxygen deficiency in the bottom water, which prevented the krill from descending >80 m. The commencement of vertical migration correlated closely to the seasonal light conditions. The descent was immediately triggered by sunrise, while ascent occurred with a delay of about 1 h at sunset.     

Travel demand model system for the information era

The emergence of new information technologies and recent advances in existing technologies have provided new dimensions for travel demand decisions. In this paper we propose a comprehensive travel demand modeling framework to identify and model the urban development decisions of firms and developers and the mobility, activity and travel decisions of individuals and households, and to develop a system of models that can be used by decision makers and planners to evaluate the effects of changes in the transportation system and development of information technologies (e.g. various tele-commuting, tele-services and Intelligent Transportation Systems).The implementation of an operational model system based on this framework is envisioned as an incremental process starting with the current best practice of disaggregate travel demand model systems. To this end, we present an activity-based model system as the first stage in the development of an operational model system.     

Modeling household activity–travel interactions as parallel constrained choices

The daily activity-travel patterns of individuals often include interactions with other household members, which we observe in the form of joint activity participation and shared rides. Explicit representation of joint activity patterns is a widespread deficiency in extant travel forecasting models and remains a relatively under-developed area of travel behavior research. In this paper, we identify several spatially defined tour patterns found in weekday household survey data that describe this form of interpersonal decision-making. Using pairs of household decision makers as our subjects, we develop a structural discrete choice model that predicts the separate, parallel choices of full-day tour patterns by both persons, subject to the higher level constraint imposed by their joint selection of one of several spatial interaction patterns, one of which may be no interaction. We apply this model to the household survey data, drawing inferences from the household and person attributes that prove to be significant predictors of pattern choices, such as commitment to work schedules, auto availability, commuting distance and the presence of children in the household. Parameterization of an importance function in the models shows that in making joint activity-travel decisions significantly greater emphasis is placed on the individual utilities of workers relative to non-workers and on the utilities of women in households with very young children. The model and methods are prototypes for tour-based travel forecasting systems that seek to represent the complex interaction between household members in an integrated model structure.     

A GA-based household scheduler

One way of making activity-based travel analysis operational for transport planning is multi-agent micro-simulation. Modelling activity and trip generation based on individual and social characteristics are central steps in this method. The model presented here generates complete daily activity schedules based on the structure of a household and its members’ activity calendars. The model assumes that the household is another basic decision-making unit for travel demand aside from individual mobility needs. Results of the model are schedules containing complete information about activity type and sequence, locations, and means of transportation, as well as activity start times and durations. The generated schedules are the outcome of a probabilistic optimisation using genetic algorithms. This iterative method improves solutions found in a random search according to the specification of a fitness criterion, which equals utility here. It contains behavioural assumptions about individuals as well as the household level. Individual utility is derived from the number of activities and their respective durations. It is reduced by costs of travelling and penalties for late, respectively early arrival. The household level is represented directly by the utility of joint activities, and indirectly by allocation of activities and means of transportation to household members. The paper presents initial tests with a three-person household, detailing resulting schedules, and discussing run-time experiences. A sensitivity analysis of the joint utility parameter impact is also included.     

交通流中临界车间作用的研究

利用摄像采集交通数据的方法,通过在河北省境内不同公路结构几何断面获得的大量交通数据,对交通流中车间相互作用机制和分布规律进行了分析研究,并运用这些实验数据建立了车间相互作用的微观模型,得出了具有我国混合交通特性的临界车间作用结果。