Hall effect encoding of brushless dc motors

Encoding mechanism integral to the motor and using the permanent magnets embedded in the rotor eliminates the need for external devices to encode information relating the position and velocity of the rotating member

Spatiotemporal Two-Dimensional Solitons in the Complex Ginzburg-Landau Equation

We introduce spatiotemporal solitons of the two-dimensional complex Ginzburg-Landau equation (2D CCQGLE) with cubic and quintic nonlinearities in which asymmetry between space-time variables is included. The 2D CCQGLE is solved by a powerful Fourier spectral method, i.e., a Fourier spatial discretization and an explicit scheme for time differencing. Varying the system\u27s parameters, and using different initial conditions, numerical simulations reveal 2D solitons in the form of stationary, pulsating and exploding solitons which possess very distinctive properties. For certain regions of parameters, we have also found stable coherent structures in the form of spinning (vortex) solitons which exist as a result of a competition between focusing nonlinearities and spreading while propagating through medium

Spectral geometry, homogeneous spaces, and differential forms with finite Fourier series

Let G be a compact Lie group acting transitively on Riemannian manifolds M and N. Let p be a G equivariant Riemannian submersion from M to N. We show that a smooth differential form on N has finite Fourier series if and only if the pull back has finite Fourier series on

Instability of misoprostol tablets stored outside the blister: a potential serious concern for clinical outcome in medical abortion

Misoprostol (Cytotec) is recognised to be effective for many gynaecological indications including termination of pregnancy, management of miscarriage and postpartum haemorrhage. Although not licensed for such indications, it has been used for these purposes by millions of women throughout the world. Misoprostol tablets are most often packaged as multiple tablets within an aluminium strip, each within an individual alveolus. When an alveolus is opened, tablets will be exposed to atmospheric conditions

Isospectrality in Chaotic Billiards

We consider a modification of isospectral cavities whereby the classical dynamics changes from pseudointegrable to chaotic. We construct an example where we can prove that isospectrality is retained. We then demonstrate this explicitly in microwave resonators.Comment: 5 pages, 7 figure

Choosy Grazers and Plant Communities – Interactions between Cattle Breeds and Vegetation in Semi-Natural Pastures

It is well recognized that domesticated and wild ruminant grazers have an important impact on the composition of grassland vegetation, mainly by forage selection, trampling and defaecation. However, little is known on the effects of genetic diversity, for example differences among breeds of cattle. Cattle breeds differ in terms of robustness, growth rate, weight and probably also in movement and forage selection behaviour, which all could impact vegetation composition. Our study therefore aimed at identifying breed-specific differences in forage selection and behaviour and its consequences for vegetation. In a controlled experiment on semi-natural pastures in the Swiss Alps, suckler cows of three cattle breeds (high-yielding Angus×Holstein crossbreeds, dual-purpose Original Braunvieh and slow-growing Highland cattle) grazed a series of adjacent paddocks. Plant species selection of the cattle was quantified by assessing biomass proportions of all plant species in vegetation subplots before and after pasturing. Movement behaviour was monitored using GPS sensors and pedometers. To assess long-term effects of cattle breeds on vegetation, we recorded vegetation composition in 50 paired pastures in mountain areas of Switzerland and in southern Germany, which were either grazed by Highland cattle or a production-oriented cattle breed. Low-productive Highland cattle selected plant species less strictly than the two higher-yielding breeds. They also exerted less physical pressure on the vegetation, because they were substantially lighter, but had relatively large claws. Highland cattle moved less actively, likely because of less selective foraging. These differences showed a strong correlation with differences in pasture vegetation, namely a smaller number of indicator plants for grazing and trampling tolerance on pastures of Highland cattle. Moreover, plant species richness was significantly increased by pasturing with Highland cattle, suggesting a high potential of robust breeds for sustaining or even increasing the diversity of species-rich pastures

Berry Curvature in Graphene: A New Approach

In the present paper we have directly computed the Berry curvature terms relevant for Graphene in the presence of an \textit{inhomogeneous} lattice distortion. We have employed the generalized Foldy Wouthuysen framework, developed by some of us \cite{ber0,ber1,ber2}. We show that a non-constant lattice distortion leads to a valley-orbit coupling which is responsible to a valley-Hall effect. This is similar to the valley-Hall effect induced by an electric field proposed in \cite{niu2} and is the analogue of the spin-Hall effect in semiconductors \cite{MURAKAMI, SINOVA}. Our general expressions for Berry curvature, for the special case of homogeneous distortion, reduce to the previously obtained results \cite{niu2}. We also discuss the Berry phase in the quantization of cyclotron motion.Comment: Slightly modified version, to appear in EPJ

Counteracting Green Alder Shrub Expansion by Low-Input Grazing

In the past decades, the decline of traditional agriculture has caused an abandonment of marginal pastures in many mountain areas of Europe. In the Swiss Alps, green alder (Alnus viridis) is the most abundant successional shrub. A survey of 24 pasture-shrub gradients showed that the encroachment by green alder, in contrast to other shrubs, is associated with a substantial decline in plant species richness. The understorey of alder is primarily populated by very few, broad-leaved herbaceous species benefitting from the atmospheric nitrogen fixed by actinomycetes in symbiosis with green alder. However, the understory vegetation also provides an underestimated forage, rich in protein and comparable in productivity and digestibility to nearby open pastures. A two-year grazing experiment with cattle (Dexter), sheep (local Engadine sheep) and mixed-breed goats in the Eastern Swiss Alps demonstrated that robust breeds were able to exploit these resources as they readily penetrated the thickets. The Engadine sheep and the goats consumed green alder bark and thus actively counteracted shrub encroachment. Dexter cattle did not forage on alder bark but on leaves and opened the thickets by their movement through them. Since goats preferred other woody species to green alder and depleted them before the alder, they may impair the regeneration of late-successional forest. Dexter heifers and Engadine lambs performed equally well on pastures with high shrub cover and on open pastures in terms of average daily weight gain, carcass and meat quality. This was facilitated by the comparatively low productivity of these breeds. In this way, low-input grazing systems utilizing adapted breeds, especially sheep, can add to conservation goals and sustain a viable meat production in marginal areas