Introductory workshops on remote sensing as related to geological problems in Georgia

There are no author-identified significant results in this report

Application of pushbroom altimetry from space using large space antennas

The capabilities of multibeam altimetry are discussed and an interferometric multibeam technique for doing precision altimetry is described. The antenna feed horn arrangement and the resulting footprint lube pattern are illustrated. Plans for a shuttle multibeam altimetry mission are also discussed

Modeling 3-D objects with planar surfaces for prediction of electromagnetic scattering

Electromagnetic scattering analysis of objects at resonance is difficult because low frequency techniques are slow and computer intensive, and high frequency techniques may not be reliable. A new technique for predicting the electromagnetic backscatter from electrically conducting objects at resonance is studied. This technique is based on modeling three dimensional objects as a combination of flat plates where some of the plates are blocking the scattering from others. A cube is analyzed as a simple example. The preliminary results compare well with the Geometrical Theory of Diffraction and with measured data

Horn antenna with v-shaped corrugated surface

Corrugated shape is easily machined for millimeter wave application and is better suited for folding antenna designs. Measured performance showed ""V'' corrugations and rectangular corrugations have nearly the same pattern beamwidth, gain, and impedance. Also, ""V'' corrugations have higher relative power loss

Who Gets the Credit? And Does it Matter? Household vs Firm Lending Across Countries

While theory predicts different effects of household credit and enterprise credit on the economy, the empirical literature has mainly used aggregate measures of overall bank lending to the private sector. We construct a new dataset from 45 developed and developing countries, decomposing bank lending into lending to enterprises and lending to households and assess the different effects of these two components on real sector outcomes. We find that: 1) enterprise credit raises economic growth whereas household credit has no effect; 2) enterprise credit reduces income inequality whereas household credit has no effect; and 3) household credit is negatively associated with excess consumption sensitivity, while there is no relationship between enterprise credit and excess consumption sensitivity.Financial Intermediation;Household Credit;Firm Credit

Transverse electric scattering widths for strips-Fourier transform technique

A technique which is based on Fourier transformations is introduced for predicting scattering widths. For a strip it is shown that explicit determination of the linear current density is not necessary for bistatic or monostatic scattering width calculations. Comparisons of the predictions of the technique are made with the integral equation technique predictions, which do not require explicit evaluations of linear current densities

Polarization and Charge Transfer in the Hydration of Chloride Ions

A theoretical study of the structural and electronic properties of the chloride ion and water molecules in the first hydration shell is presented. The calculations are performed on an ensemble of configurations obtained from molecular dynamics simulations of a single chloride ion in bulk water. The simulations utilize the polarizable AMOEBA force field for trajectory generation, and MP2-level calculations are performed to examine the electronic structure properties of the ions and surrounding waters in the external field of more distant waters. The ChelpG method is employed to explore the effective charges and dipoles on the chloride ions and first-shell waters. The Quantum Theory of Atoms in Molecules (QTAIM) is further utilized to examine charge transfer from the anion to surrounding water molecules. From the QTAIM analysis, 0.2 elementary charges are transferred from the ion to the first-shell water molecules. The default AMOEBA model overestimates the average dipole moment magnitude of the ion compared with the estimated quantum mechanical value. The average magnitude of the dipole moment of the water molecules in the first shell treated at the MP2 level, with the more distant waters handled with an AMOEBA effective charge model, is 2.67 D. This value is close to the AMOEBA result for first-shell waters (2.72 D) and is slightly reduced from the bulk AMOEBA value (2.78 D). The magnitude of the dipole moment of the water molecules in the first solvation shell is most strongly affected by the local water-water interactions and hydrogen bonds with the second solvation shell, rather than by interactions with the ion.Comment: Slight revision, in press at J. Chem. Phy

Prevalent morphometric vertebral fractures in professional male rugby players

There is an ongoing concern about the risk of injury to the spine in professional rugby players. The objective of this study was to investigate the prevalence of vertebral fracture using vertebral fracture assessment (VFA) dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) imaging in professional male rugby players. Ninety five professional rugby league (n = 52) and union (n = 43) players (n = 95; age 25.9 (SD 4.3) years; BMI: 29.5 (SD 2.9) kg.m2) participated in the research. Each participant received one VFA, and one total body and lumbar spine DXA scan (GE Lunar iDXA). One hundred and twenty vertebral fractures were identified in over half of the sample by VFA. Seventy four were graded mild (grade 1), 40 moderate (grade 2) and 6 severe (grade 3). Multiple vertebral fractures (≥2) were found in 37 players (39%). There were no differences in prevalence between codes, or between forwards and backs (both 1.2 v 1.4; p>0.05). The most common sites of fracture were T8 (n = 23), T9 (n = 18) and T10 (n = 21). The mean (SD) lumbar spine bone mineral density Z-score was 2.7 (1.3) indicating high player bone mass in comparison with age- and sex-matched norms. We observed a high number of vertebral fractures using DXA VFA in professional rugby players of both codes. The incidence, aetiology and consequences of vertebral fractures in professional rugby players are unclear, and warrant timely, prospective investigation

Technologische Alternativen zum herkömmlichen Einsatz von Pökelstoffen in Öko-Fleischwaren

On the basis of literature research and opinions of meat processors and other experts, this paper discusses alternatives to the currently permitted use of curing agents in the processing of organic meat. These alternatives include (i) the reduction of addition of nitrite to levels sufficient for the desired sensory properties, (ii) the in situ bacterial formation of nitrite from nitrate naturally present in added vegetable preparations, and (iii) not making use of the beneficial effects of nitrite on the colour and aroma of the product at all. Measures to be taken to compensate for the effects of nitrite, as well as problems in implementation of technological alternatives are discussed

Anomalous diffusion and Tsallis statistics in an optical lattice

We point out a connection between anomalous quantum transport in an optical lattice and Tsallis' generalized thermostatistics. Specifically, we show that the momentum equation for the semiclassical Wigner function that describes atomic motion in the optical potential, belongs to a class of transport equations recently studied by Borland [PLA 245, 67 (1998)]. The important property of these ordinary linear Fokker--Planck equations is that their stationary solutions are exactly given by Tsallis distributions. Dissipative optical lattices are therefore new systems in which Tsallis statistics can be experimentally studied.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figur