A regional approach to cultural preservation: A central american example
The transition to democratic governments in Central America over the past decade, and the subsequent emergence of institutional mechanisms for regional cooperation have greatly increased the frequency and productivity of efforts for preservation of cultural patrimony. Both the archaeological and colonial data bases overlap modern political boundaries and regional collaboration in training, pubic education, curation and research is essential. Natural forces continually impact, and human economic forces (especially international tourism) increasingly impact cultural resources. Regional cooperation in the utilization of human resources is necessary to confront the management and salvage demands of major economic development projects, and rescue efforts following natural disasters. The development of policies and programs will be effective only if matched by the growth of cultural preservation professionals in each of the Central American republics. Finally, other art consuming nations in addition to the United States must begin to respect the cultural heritage of the Central American countries and develop policies to deter abuses by diplomatic staff and employees of NGO’s (nongovernment organizations)
Obsidian Sources and Elemental Analyses of Artifacts in Southern Mesoamerica and the Northern Intermediate Area
Obsidian sources, and the proportions of those sources represented in site collections, are known poorly in the southeast mesoamerican periphery. The Honduran sources of La Esperanza and Güinope are described and “fingerprinted” chemically, and their utilization is explored in selected sites in Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. Although prehistoric Nicaraguans and Costa Ricans used obsidian from sources as far away as Honduras and Guatemala, most of their cutting tools were made from local materials, using informal manufacturing techniques. The analytical results indicate two sources of new types of obsidian have yet to be found; they may lie in western Nicaragua.
Heat Transfer Analysis in Cooling System of Hydropower’s Generator
Cooling process of power plant generator is handled via air-cooled radiators in which the cooling water is supplied from lake with its water temperature varies from season to season. In this study, the effect of temperature fluctuations of cooling water entering the cooling system has been examined via analysis of energy (NTU method) and exergy. The exergy analysis has been done by definition of efficiency coefficient for exergy of cooling media (water) and heating media (air). Besides, the effect of changing the cooling water temperature and flow rate entering the radiators on the cooling system performance has been studied. The results revealed the generator cooling system performance level held sufficient till the temperature of inlet water was kept under 293 k (20°C). On one hand, when the temperature of cooling water at the inlet rises to 12°C, the rate of heat exchange at radiators falls up to 34.3%. On the other hand, by water temperature passing the 12°C limit, the efficiency of cooling media exergy falls to 78% leading to efficiency rise in radiators’ heating media exergy level to 61%. According to the results of this study, changing flow rate of cooling media up to 40% gives rise to the efficiency coefficient of radiators’ cooling media exergy level to about 18.7%. While it does not affect the efficiency level of energy at radiators, the flow rate rise of cooling media may not be considered as a way to give rise to efficiency level of radiators.