25,125 research outputs found
Aerodynamic characteristics of a hypersonic parachute
Newtonian theory, both in the form of the Modified-Newtonian and the Newton-
Busemann pressure laws, is used to find the shape, cloth area and drag of the
axisymmetric canopy of a hypersonic parachute, whose only load-carrying fibres
are longitudinal ones. As an example, an estimate is made of the size of canopy
needed to give a drag of 20,000 lb. in flight at a Mach number of 10 at 100,000 feet
altitude
Small and medium agility dogs alter their kinematics when the distance between hurdles differs
There is currently a lack of research examining the health and welfare implications for competitive agility dogs. The aim of this study was to examine if jump kinematics and apparent joint angles in medium (351 mm - 430 mm to the withers) and small (< 350 mm to the withers) agility dogs altered when distances between consecutive upright hurdles differ. Dogs ran a course of nine hurdles; three set at 3.6 m apart; three at 4 m apart and three at 5 m apart. Both medium (P=0.044) and small (P=0.006) dogs landed closer to the hurdle when consecutive hurdles were set at 3.6 m apart, with small dogs jumping slower at this distance (P=0.006). Results indicate that jump kinematics, but not apparent joint angles, alter when the spacing between hurdles differs. These findings may have implications for the health and welfare of agility dogs and should be used to inform future changes to rules and regulations
Variational analysis of self-focusing of intense ultrashort pulses in gases
By using perturbation theory we derive an expression for the electrical field
of a Gaussian laser pulse propagating in a gas medium. This expression is used
as a trial solution in a variational method to get quasianalytical solutions
for the width, intensity and self-focusing distance of ultrashort pulse. The
approximation gives an improved agreement with results of numerical simulations
for a broad range of values of the input power of the pulse than previous
analytical results available in the literature.Comment: 19 pages, 8 figure
Slender shapes offering minimum drag in free-molecular flow
Analytical expressions are obtained for the optimum
shapes which minimise the drag of a slender axisymmetric
body in free-molecular flow, provided the drag expression is
simplified using the slenderness assumption. The problem is
formulated as one of Mayer type in the calculus of variations
and solved by using the Buler-Lagrange equations together with
the transversality condition. The shapes derived are optimum
subject to constraints on thickness, length, wetted area and
volume. In the particular cases solved any two of these four
quantities are fixed while the remaining two are free. The
expression for the shape of the body when thickness is free
is obtained in closed form
Metrics that matter for assessing the ocean biological carbon pump
© The Author(s), 2020. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Buesseler, K. O., Boyd, P. W., Black, E. E., & Siegel, D. A. Metrics that matter for assessing the ocean biological carbon pump. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, (2020): 201918114, doi: 10.1073/pnas.1918114117.The biological carbon pump (BCP) comprises wide-ranging processes that set carbon supply, consumption, and storage in the oceans’ interior. It is becoming increasingly evident that small changes in the efficiency of the BCP can significantly alter ocean carbon sequestration and, thus, atmospheric CO2 and climate, as well as the functioning of midwater ecosystems. Earth system models, including those used by the United Nation’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, most often assess POC (particulate organic carbon) flux into the ocean interior at a fixed reference depth. The extrapolation of these fluxes to other depths, which defines the BCP efficiencies, is often executed using an idealized and empirically based flux-vs.-depth relationship, often referred to as the “Martin curve.” We use a new compilation of POC fluxes in the upper ocean to reveal very different patterns in BCP efficiencies depending upon whether the fluxes are assessed at a fixed reference depth or relative to the depth of the sunlit euphotic zone (Ez). We find that the fixed-depth approach underestimates BCP efficiencies when the Ez is shallow, and vice versa. This adjustment alters regional assessments of BCP efficiencies as well as global carbon budgets and the interpretation of prior BCP studies. With several international studies recently underway to study the ocean BCP, there are new and unique opportunities to improve our understanding of the mechanistic controls on BCP efficiencies. However, we will only be able to compare results between studies if we use a common set of Ez-based metrics.We thank the many scientists whose ideas and contributions over the years are the foundation of this paper. This includes A. Martin, who led the organization of the BIARRITZ group (now JETZON) workshop in July 2019, discussions at which helped to motivate this article. We thank D. Karl for pointing us in the right direction for this paper format at PNAS and two thoughtful reviewers who through their comments helped to improve this manuscript. Support for writing this piece is acknowledged from several sources, including the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution’s Ocean Twilight Zone project (K.O.B.); NASA as part of the EXport Processes in the global Ocean from RemoTe Sensing (EXPORTS) program (K.O.B. and D.A.S.). E.E.B. was supported by a postdoctoral fellowship through the Ocean Frontier Institute at Dalhousie University. P.W.B. was supported by the Australian Research Council through a Laureate (FL160100131)
Two-peaked and flat-top perfect bright solitons in epsilon-near-zero nonlinear metamaterials: novel Kerr self-trapping mechanisms
We analytically investigate transverse magnetic (TM) spatial bright solitons,
as exact solutions of Maxwell's equations, propagating through nonlinear
metamaterials whose linear dielectric permittivity is very close to zero and
whose effective nonlinear Kerr parameters can be tailored to achieve values not
available in standard materials. Exploiting the fact that, in the considered
medium, linear and nonlinear polarization can be comparable at feasible and
realistic optical intensities, we identify two novel self-trapping mechanisms
able to support two-peaked and flat-top solitons, respectively. Specifically,
these two novel mechanisms are based on the occurrence of critical points at
which the effective nonlinear permittivity vanishes, the two mechanisms
differing in the way the compensation between linear and nonlinear polarization
is achieved through the non-standard values of the nonlinear parameters.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figure
The Action of Certain Organic Silver Compounds on the Potato Root Eelworm, Heterodera schachtii, Schmidt, With Notes on the Biology of the Parasite, and Additional Papers
Abstract Not Provided
Model-Independent Semileptonic Form Factors Using Dispersion Relations
We present a method for parametrizing heavy meson semileptonic form factors
using dispersion relations, and from it produce a two-parameter description of
the B -> B elastic form factor. We use heavy quark symmetry to relate this
function to B -> D* l nu form factors, and extract
|V_cb|=0.0355^{+0.0029}_{-0.0025} from experimental data with a least squares
fit. Our method eliminates model-dependent uncertainties inherent in choosing a
parametrization for the extrapolation of the differential decay rate to
threshold.Comment: uses lanlmac(harvmac) and epsf, 12 pages, 1 eps figure included (Talk
by BG at the 6-th International Symposium on Heavy Flavour Physics, Pisa,
Italy, 6--10 June, 1995
QCD Thermodynamics with Improved Actions
The thermodynamics of the SU(3) gauge theory has been analyzed with tree
level and tadpole improved Symanzik actions. A comparison with the continuum
extrapolated results for the standard Wilson action shows that improved actions
lead to a drastic reduction of finite cut-off effects already on lattices with
temporal extent . Results for the pressure, the critical temperature,
surface tension and latent heat are presented. First results for the
thermodynamics of four-flavour QCD with an improved staggered action are also
presented. They indicate similarly large improvement factors for bulk
thermodynamics.Comment: Talk presented at LATTICE96(finite temperature) 4 pages, LaTeX2e
file, 6 eps-file
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