Measurement of model aeroelastic deformations in the wind tunnel at transonic speeds using stereophotogrammetry

A stereophotographic method of determining the aeroelastic deformations of an airplane model under aerodynamic load in the wind tunnel was evaluated. Wind tunnel tests were conducted in the Langley 8 foot transonic pressure tunnel on the wing of a 0.0625 scale model of the TF-8A supercritical wing research airplane to obtain simultaneously the aerodynamic forces and moments, pressure distributions, and stereophotographs. Tests were conducted at Mach numbers of 0.80, 0.95, and 1.20, and at free stream dynamic pressures of 20,349 Pa and 40,698 Pa. Accuracy of the stereophotographic technique in determining wing deflections was within 0.013 cm under static conditions. This value translates to an error in wing twist of 0.10 deg inboard and increases to 0.20 deg outboard. When the model was under aerodynamic load in the wind tunnel, the accuracy of the stereophotographic technique of determining wind deflections increased to 0.052 cm when compared with static wing loadings because of the dynamic motion of the model in the tunnel

Wind tunnel investigation of an oblique wing transport model at mach numbers between 0.6 and 1.4

Models of three practical oblique-wing transport configurations were tested in the NASA Ames 11 foot wind tunnel. The three configurations used a common forward fuselage, wing, and support system but employed different aft fuselage sections simulating alternate propulsion system installations. These included an integrated propulsion system, pylon-mounted nacelles, and clean (no propulsion system) configuration. The tests were conducted over a Mach number range from 0.6 to 1.4 and at sweep angles from 0 to 60 degrees. The nominal unit Reynolds number was 1.83 million per meter and the angle of attack range was -3 to +6 degrees. The models were mounted in the tunnel by means of a lower blade support system. The interference effects of this lower blade and the flow inclination were determined by using an image blade system and testing the configuration in both the upright and inverted positions

An increase in immature β-cells lacking Glut2 precedes the expansion of β-cell mass in the pregnant mouse

A compensatory increase in β-cell mass occurs during pregnancy to counter the associated insulin resistance, and a failure in adaptation is thought to contribute to gestational diabetes. Insulin-expressing but glucose-transporter-2-low (Ins+Glut2LO) progenitor cells are present in mouse and human pancreas, being predominantly located in extra-islet β-cell clusters, and contribute to the regeneration of the endocrine pancreas following induced ablation. We therefore sought to investigate the contribution of Ins+Glut2LO cells to β-cell mass expansion during pregnancy. Female C57Bl/6 mice were time mated and pancreata were collected at gestational days (GD) 6, 9, 12, 15, and 18, and postpartum D7 (n = 4/time-point) and compared to control (non-pregnant) animals. Beta cell mass, location, proliferation (Ki67+), and proportion of Ins+Glut2LO cells were measured using immunohistochemistry and bright field or confocal microscopy. Beta cell mass tripled by GD18 and β-cell proliferation peaked at GD12 in islets (6 β-cells) and small β-cell clusters (1–5 β-cells). The proportion and fraction of Ins+Glut2LO cells undergoing proliferation increased significantly at GD9 in both islets and clusters, preceding the increase in β-cell mass and proliferation, and their proliferation within clusters persisted until GD15. The overall number of clusters increased significantly at GD9. Quantitative PCR showed a significant increase in Pdx1 presence at GD9 vs. GD18 or control pancreas, and Pdx1 was visualized by immunohistochemistry within both Ins+Glut2LO and Ins+Glut2HI cells within clusters. These results indicate that Ins+Glut2LO cells are likely to contribute to β-cell mass expansion during pregnancy

Hot stamping of AA6082 tailor welded blanks for automotive applications

Friction stir welded (FSWed) AA6082 tailor welded blanks (TWBs), with gauge combinations of 2.0-2.5 and 3.0-5.0 mm, have been prepared and successfully formed into automotive panel components. Experimental results indicated that the post-form strength, in terms of hardness, varied from location to location on the final parts. The strength is highly dependent on the blank gauges, with the average hardness values being HV 110 and HV 98 for the 2.0-2.5 and 3.0-5.0 mm TWB parts, respectively. Conventional FE simulation was built in PAM-STAMP and the prediction results were validated from experimental data in terms of strain distribution and temperature evolution. A typical continuous cooling precipitation (CCP) diagram for AA6082 was implemented into the verified simulation data to explain the strength variations. It is deemed that the temperature history during the stamping and quenching stages has played a major role on the post-form strength of the final parts

Search for supersolidity in 4He in low-frequency sound experiments

We present results of the search for supersolid 4He using low-frequency, low-level mechanical excitation of a solid sample grown and cooled at fixed volume. We have observed low frequency non-linear resonances that constitute anomalous features. These features, which appear below about 0.8 K, are absent in 3He. The frequency, the amplitude at which the nonlinearity sets in, and the upper temperature limit of existence of these resonances depend markedly on the sample history.Comment: Submitted to the Quantum Fluids and Solids Conf. Aug. 2006 Kyot

The holy blood and the holy grail: Myths of scientific racism and the pursuit of excellence in sport

Despite the continuing publication of research that suggests there is no scientific basis to 'race' as a biological category, theories of racial difference continue to be invoked within sport to explain the perceived dominance of black athletes. In the case of John Entine's controversial 'Taboo: why black athletes dominate sports and why we are afraid to talk about it' or undergraduate textbooks that suggest 'racial differences' in physique may significantly affect athletic performance, scientific racism is normalised in sport. In this article, the relationship between scientific racism and sport will be examined. Qualitative research with current sport scientists is used to investigate the socio-ethical tensions within the subject field of sport science between professionalism, scientism and the demand from external interests to produce results that help people in sport win medals. It will be shown that these tensions, combined with the history of race as a category in sport science, combine to create the discourse of scientific knowledge that reflects, rather than challenges, folk genetics of black athletic physicality

Local mean-field study of capillary condensation in silica aerogels

We apply local mean-field (i.e. density functional) theory to a lattice model of a fluid in contact with a dilute, disordered gel network. The gel structure is described by a diffusion-limited cluster aggregation model. We focus on the influence of porosity on both the hysteretic and the equilibrium behavior of the fluid as one varies the chemical potential at low temperature. We show that the shape of the hysteresis loop changes from smooth to rectangular as the porosity increases and that this change is associated to disorder-induced out-of-equilibrium phase transitions that differ on adsorption and on desorption. Our results provide insight in the behavior of $^4$He in silica aerogels.Comment: 19 figure

Melting of a 2D Quantum Electron Solid in High Magnetic Field

The melting temperature ($T_m$) of a solid is generally determined by the pressure applied to it, or indirectly by its density ($n$) through the equation of state. This remains true even for helium solids\cite{wilk:67}, where quantum effects often lead to unusual properties\cite{ekim:04}. In this letter we present experimental evidence to show that for a two dimensional (2D) solid formed by electrons in a semiconductor sample under a strong perpendicular magnetic field\cite{shay:97} ($B$), the $T_m$ is not controlled by $n$, but effectively by the \textit{quantum correlation} between the electrons through the Landau level filling factor $\nu$=$nh/eB$. Such melting behavior, different from that of all other known solids (including a classical 2D electron solid at zero magnetic field\cite{grim:79}), attests to the quantum nature of the magnetic field induced electron solid. Moreover, we found the $T_m$ to increase with the strength of the sample-dependent disorder that pins the electron solid.Comment: Some typos corrected and 2 references added. Final version with minor editoriol revisions published in Nature Physic

Suppression of Superfluidity of 4^4He in a Nanoporous Glass by Preplating a Kr Layer

Helium in nanoporous media has attracted much interest as a model Bose system with disorder and confinement. Here we have examined how a change in porous structure by preplating a monolayer of krypton affects the superfluid properties of $^4$He adsorbed or confined in a nanoporous Gelsil glass, which has a three-dimensional interconnected network of nanopores of 5.8 nm in diameter. Isotherms of adsorption and desorption of nitrogen show that monolayer preplating of Kr decreases the effective pore diameter to 4.7 nm and broadens the pore size distribution by about eight times from the sharp distribution of the bare Gelsil sample. The superfluid properties were studied by a torsional oscillator for adsorbed film states and pressurized liquid states, both before and after the monolayer Kr preplating. In the film states, both the superfluid transition temperature $T_{\mathrm c}$ and the superfluid density decrease about 10 percent by Kr preplating. The suppression of film superfluidity is attributed to the quantum localization of $^4$He atoms by the randomness in the substrate potential, which is caused by the preplating--induced broadening of the pore size distribution. In the pressurized liquid states, the superfluid density $\rho_{\mathrm s}$ is found to increase by 10 percent by Kr preplating, whereas $T_{\mathrm c}$ is decreased by 2 percent at all pressures. The unexpected enhancement of $\rho_{\mathrm s}$ might indicate the existence of an unknown disorder effect for confined $^4$He.Comment: 27 pages, 8 figures, submitted to J. Phys. Soc. Jp