Video registration of physicochemical processes in BOF cavity at bath top blowing at application oxygen lances of various designs. Report 3. The picture of bath blowing at application two-level oxygen lances

Further increase of resources- and energy-saving efficiency of BOF processes is unthinkable without development of new methods of blowing and designs of blowing devices. It requires information on the real physicochemical phenomena in the converter cavity accompanying the blowing of the converter bath using new designs of oxygen lances in order to assess the possible risks in the mastering of the proposed developments in industrial conditions. The paper presents the results of video filming of the top blowing of a 80-kg converter bath by groups of multi-pulse supersonic and sonic oxygen jets formed, respectively, by Laval and cylindrical two-level nozzles of two designs equipped with double-row tips with a circular arrangement of Laval nozzles and cylindrical ones and upper block with cylindrical nozzles. Previously unknown information was obtained on the picture of the bath blowing with the formation of a reaction zone of interaction of supersonic and sonic oxygen jets with a metal melt with a flow of carbon monoxide going out the bath and afterburning of CO to CO2 under conditions of a counter-directed double curtain of sonic oxygen jets at different levels of location of the foamed slag-metal emulsions. It was established that in the initial period of blowing during slag formation most of the thermal energy of CO to CO2 combustion flares is transferred to the surface of the bath with lumps of added lime, and the rest is transferred by forced convection to the converter walls and gases escaping from the bath to the neck. In the case of the location of the foamed slag level at the upper tier of the cylindrical nozzles of the lance, heat transfer from high-temperature flares of localized afterburning of CO to CO2 within a limited in size near-lance flow of exhaust gases from the reaction zone is carried out according to the laws of submerged combustion and is completed completely in foamed slag-metal emulsion with the prevention of aggressive action of afterburning flares and volumes of overheated slag on the converter lining. Revealed and recorded by video recording modes of blowing the converter bath, contributing to the development of such undesirable phenomena during smelting as the appearance of intense emissions of slag-metal suspension from the facility, coagulation of the slag with the cessation of dephosphorization of the metal melt, the development of intense dust formation and the removal of small metal particles and slag with the formation of crust on the lance barrel. A variant of the final stage of blowing with a transition to supplying nitrogen instead of oxygen through cylindrical nozzles of two-level lances was experimentally tested, which provides an effective reduction in the level of foamed slag-metal emulsion before the converter turning down. The data obtained were used in the development of an industrial design of a two-level lance with a double-row tip, blowing and slag modes of blowing a converter bath with its use.

The Role of Heterogeneous Catalytic Processes in the Green Hydrogen Economy

In a recent United Nations draft report (August 2021), a large number of scientists from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change described the climate change over the past century as “unprecedented” and warned that the world will warm at an increasing rate, with unpredictable results, unless aggressive action to cut emissions of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases is taken [...]

Quick on the Draw: American Negativity Bias and Costly Signals in International Relations

States signal their intentions to domestic and foreign audiences but are not always believed. Why do people believe some state signals but not others? Using a survey experiment on a representative sample of the US public, this study finds that individuals have a negativity bias when assessing the credibility of state signals. They take other states’ aggressive actions as evidence of deep hostility but are skeptical of the credibility of conciliatory gestures. The experimental result shows that the mobilization of a small proportion of an army is perceived credible enough as an aggressive action, while the removal of even a large proportion is not perceived as conciliatory. The psychological mechanism found here is a strong foundation for theorizing about how individuals process information embedded in state signals and can improve our understanding of signaling.

Blacklist or Short List: Do Employers Discriminate against Union Supporter Job Applicants?

Starting in the 1980s, US employers revived aggressive action against unions. Employers’ public opposition to unions yielded a scholarly consensus that US employers actively and consistently discriminate against union supporters. However, evidence for widespread employer anti-union discrimination is based mainly on employer reactions to rare union organizing campaigns. To measure baseline or preventive anti-union discrimination, the authors field the first ever US-based résumé correspondence study of employer responses to union supporter applicants. Focus is on entry-level, non-college degree jobs and findings show no difference in employer callback rates for union supporter applicants relative to non-union applicants. Drawing on interviews and survey data, the authors suggest that union weakness itself may have hollowed preventive employer discrimination against union supporters.

Detection and Model of Thermal Traces Left after Aggressive Behavior of Laboratory Rodents

Automation of complex social behavior analysis of experimental animals would allow for faster, more accurate and reliable research results in many biological, pharmacological, and medical fields. However, there are behaviors that are not only difficult to detect for the computer, but also for the human observer. Here, we present an analysis of the method for identifying aggressive behavior in thermal images by detecting traces of saliva left on the animals’ fur after a bite, nape attack, or grooming. We have checked the detection capabilities using simulations of social test conditions inspired by real observations and measurements. Detection of simulated traces different in size and temperature on single original frame revealed the dependence of the parameters of commonly used corner detectors (R score, ranking) on the parameters of the traces. We have also simulated temperature of saliva changes in time and proved that the detection time does not affect the correctness of the approximation of the observed process. Furthermore, tracking the dynamics of temperature changes of these traces allows to conclude about the exact moment of the aggressive action. In conclusion, the proposed algorithm together with thermal imaging provides additional data necessary to automate the analysis of social behavior in rodents.

Public Sentiment on Chinese Social Media during the Emergence of COVID19

When COVID-19 first emerged in China, there was speculation that the outbreak would trigger public anger and weaken the Chinese regime. By analyzing millions of social media posts from Sina Weibo made between December 2019 and February 2020, we describe the contours of public, online discussions pertaining to COVID-19 in China. We find that discussions of COVID-19 became widespread on January 20, 2020, consisting primarily of personal reflections, opinions, updates, and appeals. We find that the largest bursts of discussion, which contain simultaneous spikes of criticism and support targeting the Chinese government, coincide with the January 23 lockdown of Wuhan and the February 7 death of Dr. Li Wenliang. Criticisms are directed at the government for perceived lack of action, incompetence, and wrongdoing—in particular, censoring information relevant to public welfare. Support is directed at the government for aggressive action and positive outcomes. As the crisis unfolds, the same events are interpreted differently by different people, with those who criticize focusing on the government’s shortcomings and those who praise focusing on the government’s actions.

Nature-Inspired-Based Approach for Automated Cyberbullying Classification on Multimedia Social Networking

In the modern era, the cyberbullying (CB) is an intentional and aggressive action of an individual or a group against a victim via electronic media. The consequence of CB is increasing alarmingly, affecting the victim either physically or psychologically. This allows the use of automated detection tools, but research on such automated tools is limited due to poor datasets or elimination of wide features during the CB detection. In this paper, an integrated model is proposed that combines both the feature extraction engine and classification engine from the input raw text datasets from a social media engine. The feature extraction engine extracts the psychological features, user comments, and the context into consideration for CB detection. The classification engine using artificial neural network (ANN) classifies the results, and it is provided with an evaluation system that either rewards or penalizes the classified output. The evaluation is carried out using Deep Reinforcement Learning (DRL) that improves the performance of classification. The simulation is carried out to validate the efficacy of the ANN-DRL model against various metrics that include accuracy, precision, recall, and f-measure. The results of the simulation show that the ANN-DRL has higher classification results than conventional machine learning classifiers.

Market Power, War, and Strategic Delay

This chapter develops a theory to explain how market power competition can lead to violence and strategic delay in international relations. When states have opportunities to change market structures to provide their firms with price-setting abilities, a competitive environment can emerge. Given the economic rents and political leverage that can accompany the ability to set prices in hard commodity markets, states may be motivated to take aggressive action to expand their territorial reach. This market power motivation can sometimes lead to war. However, when states are economically interdependent, they may be constrained from turning to violence. This can open up an opportunity for institutional settlements. However, in some cases, institutional rules and procedures can preclude states from reaching a settlement in line with their market power goals. When this happens, states may turn to strategic delay and attempt to gradually accumulate market power over time through salami tactics.

Coronavirus vaccines will save 2021? “Light at the end of the tunnel”

On 11 March, the WHO confirmed coronavirus disease 2019 as a pandemic. The Director-General of the WHO called on governments to change its course by taking "urgent and aggressive action" (1). In terms of the number of deaths COVID-19 has caused 1.919.126 deaths, reported to WHO as of January 10, 2021. (https://covid19.who.int). The COVID-19 pandemic has posed unprecedent challenges to healthcare worldwide, including neurosurgical units. Medical workers, pediatric neurosurgeons included, should be aware of safety measures and follow the recommendations of local healthcare organizations to prevent and control the disease (2). During the year 2020 the scientific community worked tirelessly in search of a solution to stop the COVID-19. Several scientific studies have been published analyzing the effects of different drugs on the stages of COVID-19. However, in an unprecedented way in history independent groups have produced different options for vaccines against coronavirus (3). The vaccination rollout comes with a mixed bag of emotions and hope. We cannot celebrate yet, but it is certainly a relief to start the year 2021 with the hope of COVID-19 control. A terrible disease that has been producing lethal effects and sequelae in different peoples around the world. COVID-19 has exposed vulnerabilities, magnified weaknesses, and exacerbated long-festering issues. We will continue to believe in science and overcome this terrible obstacle in our lives. It’s the light at the end of the tunnel. We’re not there yet, but it’s a big relief to know there can be an end to this pandemic.