1,154 research outputs found
Refocusing generalised normalisation
When defined with general elimination/application rules, natural
deduction and -calculus become closer to sequent
calculus. In order to get real isomorphism, normalisation has to
be defined in a ``multiary'' variant, in which reduction rules are
necessarily non-local (reason: nomalisation, like cut-elimination,
acts at the \emph{head} of applicative terms, but natural
deduction focuses at the \emph{tail} of such terms). Non-local
rules are bad, for instance, for the mechanization of the system.
A solution is to extend natural deduction even further to a
\emph{unified calculus} based on the unification of cut and
general elimination. In the unified calculus, a sequent term
behaves like in the sequent calculus, whereas the reduction steps
of a natural deduction term are interleaved with explicit steps
for bringing heads to focus. A variant of the calculus has the
symmetric role of improving sequent calculus in dealing with
tail-active permutative conversions
When Microquasar Jets and Supernova Collide: Hydrodynamically Simulating the SS433-W50 Interaction
We present investigations of the interaction between the relativistic,
precessing jets of the microquasar SS433 with the surrounding, expanding
Supernova Remnant (SNR) shell W50, and the consequent evolution in the
inhomogeneous Interstellar Medium (ISM). We model their evolution using the
hydrodynamic FLASH code, which uses adaptive mesh refinement. We show that the
peculiar morphology of the entire nebula can be reproduced to a good
approximation, due to the combined effects of: (i) the evolution of the SNR
shell from the free-expansion phase through the Sedov blast wave in an
exponential density profile from the Milky Way disc, and (ii) the subsequent
interaction of the relativistic, precessing jets of SS 433. Our simulations
reveal: (1) Independent measurement of the Galaxy scale-height and density
local to SS433 (as n_0 = 0.2 cm^{-3}, Z_d = 40 pc), with this scale-height
being in excellent agreement with the work of Dehnen & Binney. (2) A new
mechanism for hydrodynamic refocusing of conical jets. (3) The current jet
precession characteristics do not simply extrapolate back to produce the lobes
of W50 but a history of episodic jet activity having at least 3 different
outbursts with different precession characteristics would be sufficient to
produce the W50 nebula. A history of intermittent episodes of jet activity from
SS433 is also suggested in a kinematic study of W50 detailed in a companion
paper (Goodall et al, MNRAS submitted). (4) An estimate of the age of W50, and
equivalently the age of SS433's black hole created during the supernova
explosion, in the range of 17,000 - 21,000 years.Comment: Accepted to MNRAS for publication. 23 pages, 11 figures, 5 Tables.
Website associated with manuscript:
http://www-astro.physics.ox.ac.uk/~ptg/RESEARCH/research.htm
Are schools panoptic?
Schools are often understood by social researchers as panoptic spaces, where power is exercised through constant surveillance and monitoring. In this paper, I use Foucaultâs notorious account of the Panopticon as a point of departure for a detailed empirical investigation of the specificities of surveillance in schools. Drawing on ethnographic data from fieldwork in a primary school, I argue that how surveillance actually operated in this context diverged from the panoptic programme in two crucial ways: surveillance was (i) discontinuous rather than total, and therefore open to resistance and evasion, and (ii) exercised through sound and hearing as much as through vision
Gaia in-orbit realignment. Overview and data analysis
The ESA Gaia spacecraft has two Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensors (WFS) on its
focal plane. They are required to refocus the telescope in-orbit due to launch
settings and gravity release. They require bright stars to provide good signal
to noise patterns. The centroiding precision achievable poses a limit on the
minimum stellar brightness required and, ultimately, on the observing time
required to reconstruct the wavefront. Maximum likelihood algorithms have been
developed at the Gaia SOC. They provide optimum performance according to the
Cr\'amer-Rao lower bound. Detailed wavefront reconstruction procedures, dealing
with partial telescope pupil sampling and partial microlens illumination have
also been developed. In this work, a brief overview of the WFS and an in depth
description of the centroiding and wavefront reconstruction algorithms is
provided.Comment: 14 pages, 6 figures, 2 tables, proceedings of SPIE Astronomical
Telescopes + Instrumentation 2012 Conference 8442 (1-6 July 2012
French mega-suppliersâ trajectories during the modular era: some evidences on Faurecia, Valeo and Plastic Omnium
The purpose of this paper is to present factual elements concerning the rise (decline) of French mega-suppliers. The study will focus on Franceâs three main mega-suppliers, all actors that have had a stake in carmakersâ modularisation strategies: Faurecia, Plastic Omnium and Valeo. Section 1 returns to the late 1980s and shows that the emergence of todayâs mega-suppliers is rooted in this era and was piloted by French carmakers. Section 2 positions French mega-suppliers in a global hierarchy and distinguishes between two varieties: suppliers of simple parts; and module suppliers, with the latter constituting the focus for the rest of this text. Section 3 shows how module suppliersâ rise is rooted in their aggressive mergers and acquisitions (M&A) strategies. It also demonstrates differences between suppliers in terms of the two leading acquisition strategies that were observed. Section 4 explains why these companiesâ profitability continues to disappoint, developing the idea that modular strategies imply a big rise in fixed costs, something that suppliers cannot knock onto sales prices. Finally, section 5 returns to companiesâ internationalisation strategies and offers a typology for the different entities that mega-suppliers consolidatemodularity, supply chain, industrial architecture, automobile.
The standard plenoptic camera: applications of a geometrical light field model
A thesis submitted to the University of Bedfordshire, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of PhilosophyThe plenoptic camera is an emerging technology in computer vision able to capture
a light field image from a single exposure which allows a computational change of
the perspective view just as the optical focus, known as refocusing. Until now there was
no general method to pinpoint object planes that have been brought to focus or stereo
baselines of perspective views posed by a plenoptic camera.
Previous research has presented simplified ray models to prove the concept of refocusing
and to enhance image and depth map qualities, but lacked promising distance
estimates and an efficient refocusing hardware implementation. In this thesis, a pair of
light rays is treated as a system of linear functions whose solution yields ray intersections
indicating distances to refocused object planes or positions of virtual cameras that project
perspective views. A refocusing image synthesis is derived from the proposed ray model
and further developed to an array of switch-controlled semi-systolic FIR convolution
filters. Their real-time performance is verified through simulation and implementation by
means of an FPGA using VHDL programming.
A series of experiments is carried out with different lenses and focus settings, where
prediction results are compared with those of a real ray simulation tool and processed
light field photographs for which a blur metric has been considered. Predictions accurately
match measurements in light field photographs and signify deviations of less than 0.35 %
in real ray simulation. A benchmark assessment of the proposed refocusing hardware
implementation suggests a computation time speed-up of 99.91 % in comparison with a
state-of-the-art technique.
It is expected that this research supports in the prototyping stage of plenoptic cameras
and microscopes as it helps specifying depth sampling planes, thus localising objects and
provides a power-efficient refocusing hardware design for full-video applications as in
broadcasting or motion picture arts
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