Rotorcraft Blade Angle Calibration Methods

The most vital system of a rotorcraft is the rotor system due to its effects on the overall flight quality of the vehicle. Therefore, it is of importance to be able to accurately determine blade position during flight so that fine adjustments can be made to ensure a safe and efficient flight. In this study, a current calibration method focusing on the pitch, flap, and lead-lag blade angles is analyzed and found to have larger than acceptable error associated with the sensor calibrations. A literature review is conducted which reveals four novel methods that can potentially increase the accuracy of the sensor calibrations. An uncertainty analysis is conducted aiding in the decision of which of the four methods would best improve the calibration accuracy. The results conclude that a simpler method can be applied and calibration times can greatly be reduced while increasing the accuracy of the calibration. Finally, a new calibration method is proposed utilizing the newly chosen sensor that can be later implemented into the system

The impact of Covid-19 restrictions on economic activity: evidence from the Italian regional system

Non-pharmaceutical interventions adopted by governments to halt the spread of Sars-Cov2 are thought to have non-trivial consequences for the economy. The purpose of this paper is to estimate the economic impact of non-pharmaceutical interventions in Italy, by taking advantage of timing differences in their implementation across regions and employing mobility data to proxy activity. To achieve this, we estimate one-way and two-way fixed effects models on a large sample of Italian provinces. We also isolate a set of well-defined quasi-natural experiments in which one region goes from a lower to a higher tier of restrictions, while a neighbouring region remains in the lower tier, for which we can estimate difference-in-differences and continuous treatment models. Moreover, in order to observe whether the impact of restrictions has changed over time, we split the sample around December 2020 and replicate the analysis in each subsample. Our case studies indicate that an Italian province moving from tier 2 to tier 3 in the system of restrictions can expect a fall in mobility of between 12 and 18 percentage points. Thus, we provide evidence of the negative effects of non-pharmaceutical interventions on economic activity. Finally, we provide some evidence that the effectiveness of NPIs in reducing mobility is likely to reduce over time, which has important policy implications. Our estimations are robust to a number of checks

Ar-Ar age constraints on the timing of Havre Trough opening and magmatism

The age and style of opening of the Havre Trough back-arc system is uncertain due to a lack of geochronologic constraints for the region. 40Ar/39Ar dating of 19 volcanic rocks from across the southern Havre Trough and Kermadec Arc was conducted in three laboratories to provide age constraints on the system. The results are integrated and interpreted as suggesting that this subduction system is young (<2 Ma) and coeval with opening of the continental Taupo Volcanic Zone of New Zealand. Arc magmatism was broadly concurrent across the breadth of the Havre Trough

Vertebrate Host Susceptibility to Heartland Virus

Heartland virus (HRTV) is a recently described phlebovirus initially isolated in 2009 from 2 humans who had leukopenia and thrombocytopenia. Serologic assessment of domestic and wild animal populations near the residence of 1 of these persons showed high exposure rates to raccoons, white-tailed deer, and horses. To our knowledge, no laboratory-based assessments of viremic potential of animals infected with HRTV have been performed. We experimentally inoculated several vertebrates (raccoons, goats, chickens, rabbits, hamsters, C57BL/6 mice, and interferon-α/β/γ receptor–deficient [Ag129]) mice with this virus. All animals showed immune responses against HRTV after primary or secondary exposure. However, neutralizing antibody responses were limited. Only Ag129 mice showed detectable viremia and associated illness and death, which were dose dependent. Ag129 mice also showed development of mean peak viral antibody titers \u3e8 log10 PFU/mL, hemorrhagic hepatic lesions, splenomegaly, and large amounts of HRTV antigen in mononuclear cells and hematopoietic cells in the spleen

Adenovirus Type 7 causing severe lower respiratory tract infection in immunocompetent adults: a comparison of two contrasting cases from an intensive care unit in North West England

Objectives: Severe lower respiratory tract infection caused by adenovirus is well described in immunocompromised hosts and can cause significant morbidity and mortality. We compare and contrast the clinical presentation, radiological, and virological features of two rare cases in immunocompetent adults admitted to an intensive care unit in a large, teaching hospital in North West England. We then provide a concise, comprehensive literature review. Methods: The first casewas a 35-year old female asthmaticwho presentedwith respiratory distress and pneumonitis during peak influenza season, and recovered after a prolonged hospital stay. The second case was a 73-year old male who presented with diarrhoea, vomiting, and general malaise outside of influenza season, developed respiratory compromise, and died. Adenovirus type 7 was identified in bronchoalveolar lavages and plasma samples of both patients, each of whom received cidofovir. No other infectious aetiology was identified. Results: Clinical and radiological features of severe lower respiratory tract adenoviral infection are similar to other infectious causes of pneumonia and ARDS, including severe influenza. This can create diagnostic uncertainty, especially during influenza season. Positive adenovirus polymerase chain reaction results can support a diagnosis of severe lower respiratory tract adenovirus infection in patients with a clinically compatible syndrome and no other identified aetiology, with higher viral loads being associated with worse prognosis. Although treatment is predominantly supportive, early use of cidofovir may improve outcomes. Conclusions: These rare cases highlight that severe lower respiratory tract adenoviral infection should be considered in the differential diagnoses of immunocompetent patients presenting with pneumonia and ARDS

Heterogeneous seismic velocity structure of the upper lithosphere at Kane oceanic core complex, Mid-Atlantic Ridge

Author Posting. © American Geophysical Union, 2009. This article is posted here by permission of American Geophysical Union for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Geochemistry Geophysics Geosystems 10 (2009): Q10001, doi:10.1029/2009GC002586.The Kane oceanic core complex (OCC) is a large, corrugated megamullion that was formed by a long-lived detachment fault at the axis of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge adjacent to Kane Fracture Zone between 2.1 and 3.3 Ma. We use refracted arrivals recorded along a 6-km-long hydrophone streamer during a multichannel seismic survey to constrain the shallow seismic velocity structure of the OCC. Results are presented in high-resolution traveltime seismic tomographic models along six lines that cover all of the main morphological features of the megamullion. The models show large lateral variability in P wave velocity within the upper ∼0.5–2.0 km of the lithosphere, and these variations correlate to first order with observed variations in lithology, documented by in situ basement samples and seafloor morphology. Lithological interpretation of the velocity models indicates that there is marked lateral variability in distribution of gabbroic intrusions, serpentinized peridotites, and basalts at scales of a few kilometers to ∼10 km. Serpentinized peridotites appear to dominate the central and older parts of the OCC. High-velocity gabbros are consistently (but not exclusively) present closer to the termination of the Kane detachment fault and toward the ends of the OCC. The structure of the lithosphere exhumed by the Kane detachment fault is far from the standard ophiolite-based Penrose model, and it does not show segment-centered magmatism that is commonly interpreted at slow spreading ridges. If the gabbros exhumed toward the termination of the OCC were emplaced deep (∼10 km) beneath the spreading axis, they may have constituted a weak zone that focused initiation of the Kane detachment fault. Alternately, as the OCC footwall was being exhumed the gabbros may have been emplaced because of dynamic changes in melt supply, changes in mantle fertility, or decompression melting. Late stage volcanism is clearly associated with a major high-angle normal fault that cuts the detachment surface; this volcanism may have been stimulated or enhanced by bending stresses in the bending footwall. The shape of the large-scale corrugated morphology of the OCC is nearly invariant in the dip direction across major changes in basement lithology, indicating that once established, the form of the Kane detachment fault was highly resistant to modification.This research was supported by NSF grants OCE-9987004 and OCE-0621660

The Last Glacial Maximum in the central North Island, New Zealand: palaeoclimate inferences from glacier modelling

Abstract. Quantitative palaeoclimate reconstructions provide data for evaluating the mechanisms of past, natural climate variability. Geometries of former mountain glaciers constrained by moraine mapping afford the opportunity to reconstruct palaeoclimate, due to the close relationship between ice extent and local climate. In this study, we present results from a series of experiments using a 2D coupled energy-balance/ice-flow model that investigate the palaeoclimate significance of Last Glacial Maximum moraines within nine catchments in central North Island, New Zealand. We find that the former ice limits can be simulated when present day temperatures are reduced by between 4 °C and 7 °C, when precipitation remains unchanged from present. The spread in the results between the nine catchments is likely to represent the combination of chronological and model uncertainties. The temperature decrease required to simulate the former glaciers falls in the range of 5.1 °C and 6.3 °C for the majority of catchments targeted, which represents our best estimate of the peak temperature anomaly in central North Island, New Zealand during the Last Glacial Maximum. A decrease in precipitation, as suggested by proxy evidence and climate models, of up to 25 % from present, increases the magnitude of the required temperature changes by up to 0.8 °C. Glacier model experiments using reconstructed topographies that exclude the volume of post-glacial (&lt;15 ka) volcanism, generally increased the magnitude of cooling required to simulate the former ice limits by up to 0.5 °C. Our palaeotemperature estimates expand the spatial coverage of proxy-based quantitative palaeoclimate reconstructions in New Zealand, and are consistent with independent, proximal temperature reconstructions from fossil pollen assemblages, as well as similar glacier modelling reconstructions from central Southern Alps. </jats:p

Comparison of programmatic data from antenatal clinics with population-based HIV prevalence estimates in the era of universal test and treat in western Kenya.

OBJECTIVE: To compare HIV prevalence estimates from routine programme data in antenatal care (ANC) clinics in western Kenya with HIV prevalence estimates in a general population sample in the era of universal test and treat (UTT). METHODS: The study was conducted in the area covered by the Siaya Health Demographic Surveillance System (Siaya HDSS) in western Kenya and used data from ANC clinics and the general population. ANC data (n = 1,724) were collected in 2018 from 13 clinics located within the HDSS. The general population was a random sample of women of reproductive age (15-49) who reside in the Siaya HDSS and participated in an HIV sero-prevalence survey in 2018 (n = 2,019). Total and age-specific HIV prevalence estimates were produced from both datasets and demographic decomposition methods were used to quantify the contribution of the differences in age distributions and age-specific HIV prevalence to the total HIV prevalence estimates. RESULTS: Total HIV prevalence was 18.0% (95% CI 16.3-19.9%) in the ANC population compared with 18.4% (95% CI 16.8-20.2%) in the general population sample. At most ages, HIV prevalence was higher in the ANC population than in the general population. The age distribution of the ANC population was younger than that of the general population, and because HIV prevalence increases with age, this reduced the total HIV prevalence among ANC attendees relative to prevalence standardised to the general population age distribution. CONCLUSION: In the era of UTT, total HIV prevalence among ANC attendees and the general population were comparable, but age-specific HIV prevalence was higher in the ANC population in most age groups. The expansion of treatment may have led to changes in both the fertility of women living with HIV and their use of ANC services, and our results lend support to the assertion that the relationship between ANC and general population HIV prevalence estimates are highly dynamic

Scapegoat: John Dewey and the character education crisis

Many conservatives, including some conservative scholars, blame the ideas and influence of John Dewey for what has frequently been called a crisis of character, a catastrophic decline in moral behavior in the schools and society of North America. Dewey’s critics claim that he is responsible for the undermining of the kinds of instruction that could lead to the development of character and the strengthening of the will, and that his educational philosophy and example exert a ubiquitous and disastrous influence on students’ conceptions of moral behavior. This article sets forth the views of some of these critics and juxtaposes them with what Dewey actually believed and wrote regarding character education. The juxtaposition demonstrates that Dewey neither called for nor exemplified the kinds of character-eroding pedagogy his critics accuse him of championing; in addition, this paper highlights the ways in which Dewey argued consistently and convincingly that the pedagogical approaches advocated by his critics are the real culprits in the decline of character and moral education