Time Taken as a Determinant of Advancement in Shotokan Karate Black-Belt Tekki Kata Performance
18 experienced black-belt subjects were individually timed on the kata Tekki Shodan. A significant relationship was found between years training and increased performance time and also between increased performance time and grade, both independent of age.
Relationship between Years Training and Performance Time on the Three Taikyoku Kata for Shotokan Karate Black-Belts
27 experienced black-belt subjects were individually timed on each of the three Taikyoku kata and correlations calculated between performance time and years training. Correlations were nonsignificant, more clearly clarifying the reasons why performance time increases as years of training increases in more complex forms.
On the use of the Hardening Soil Small Strain model in geotechnical practice
This article highlights the importance of using advanced constitutive soil models in numerical modelling as daily geotechnical practice. In this context, the Hardening Soil (HS) model is presented as the most advanced soil model implemented in the ZSoil finite element code. The article recalls the basic features of the HS model and it explains their role in numerical simulations. The role of pre-failure non-linear behaviour of soils is also discussed. An application of the HS model is illustrated on typical geotechnical problems such as retaining wall excavation, tunnel excavation and undrained loading followed by consolidation.