We give a hierarchy of semidefinite upper bounds for the maximum size A(n,d) of a binary code of word length n and minimum distance at least d. At any fixed stage in the hierarchy, the bound can be computed (to an arbitrary precision) in time polynomial in n; this is based on a result of de Klerk et al. (Math Program, 2006) about the regular ∗-representation for matrix ∗-algebras. The Delsarte ...

Cryptographic hash functions are an important tool in cryptography for applications such as digital fingerprinting of messages, message authentication, and key derivation. During the last five years, several fast software hash functions have been proposed; most of them are based on the design principles of Ron Rivest’s MD4. One such proposal was RIPEMD, which was developed in the framework of t...

Strengthening of un-reinforced masonry (URM) structures to improve its seismic performance is not only well recognized among the research community but also getting attention of practicing engineers around the globe. The estimation of lateral capacity and performance of masonry becomes complex because of heterogeneous nature of its constituent materials and other associated problems. Heterogene...

Recent research has focused on rehabilhation and strengthening of steel structures and bridges using fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) materials. The bond behavior of FRP materials to steel structures is quite different from lhat of concrete structures. Preliminary test results showed the occurrence of very high bond stresses for most strengthening applications due to the amount of strengthening r...

We explore aspects of essay writing requiring high-level organizational capacity and executive function. The literature supports the approach that specific and focused writing-skill mastery leads to reduced anxiety and increased self-efficacy which correlates with improved writing skills. Although essay writing is a complex multi-dimensional task, two particular strategies, tree-diagram and ref...

We present some identities related to the Cauchy-Schwarz inequality in complex inner product spaces. A new proof of the basic result on the subject of strengthened CauchySchwarz inequalities is derived using these identities. Also, an analogous version of this result is given for strengthened Hölder inequalities.

In this paper, nonlinear behavior of strengthened steel plate shear walls (SPSWs) by FRP laminates theoretically and numerically has been investigated. In the first part, a new method, “the composite-plate frame Interaction (C-PFI) method”, has been introduced to predict the shear behavior of the composite steel plate shear wall systems (CSPSWs). In the second part, several models of one-story ...

The use of unbounded tendons is common in prestressed concrete structures and evaluation of the stress increase in unbonded tendons at ultimate flexural strength of such structure has posed a great challenge over the years. Based on the bending experiment for two-span continuous post-tension beams with unbounded tendons and externally applied CFRP sheets, the monitoring of the stress increment ...

Strengthening of reinforced concrete beams using externally bonded CFRP laminate is the most popular choice. However, premature end peeling of CFRP laminate has been shown to be the main weakness of this method. Development of high shear and normal stresses at the end of strengthening laminate is the key reason to cause end peeling which is not preventable by conventional anchoring system. This...

Based on the bending experiment for two-span continuous post-tension beams with unbounded tendons and externally applied CFRP sheets, the analysis of the stress increment of unbonded tendons is monitored in the loading process. Since self-compacting concrete (SCC) is a suitable innovation,, understanding the implementation of this type of concrete on the ultimate unbonded tendon stress is criti...