Morphing Wing Aircraft Using Piezoelectric Actuators

Using macro-fiber composites as aircraft control surfaces, rather than the hinged flaps of current aircraft, decreases energy and fuel consumption, and can increase wing versatility along with the aircraft\u27s range and endurance. The purpose of this project is to design and fabricate these morphing-wing aircraft control surfaces using piezoelectric actuators. In the first phase of our project, we are fabricating the horizontal stabilizer control surfaces of our aircraft, and testing them under unloaded and loaded conditions. By this process, we will calibrate the control of the actuators, so that the pilot experiences the same reaction from the morphing wing as he would from a normal, hinged-flap wing. This, along with hysteresis analysis of the actuators, will remedy many of the problems experienced by other morphing-wing aircraft, which caused them to be almost impossible to control. By the conclusion of the project, we will have constructed and conducted flight tests with a fully morphing-wing aircraft

Atypical Learning in Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study of Transitive Inference

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the neural mechanisms underlying impairments in generalizing learning shown by adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). METHOD: Twenty-one high-functioning individuals with ASD aged 12–18 years, and 23 gender, IQ, and age-matched adolescents with typical development (TYP) completed a transitive inference (TI) task implemented using rapid event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). They were trained on overlapping pairs in a stimulus hierarchy of colored ovals where A>B>C>D>E>F and then tested on generalizing this training to new stimulus pairings (AF, BD, BE) in a “Big Game.” Whole-brain univariate, region of interest, and functional connectivity analyses were used. RESULTS: During training, TYP exhibited increased recruitment of the prefrontal cortex (PFC), while the group with ASD showed greater functional connectivity between the PFC and the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC). Both groups recruited the hippocampus and caudate comparably; however, functional connectivity between these regions was positively associated with TI performance for only the group with ASD. During the Big Game, TYP showed greater recruitment of the PFC, parietal cortex, and the ACC. Recruitment of these regions increased with age in the group with ASD. CONCLUSION: During TI, TYP recruited cognitive control-related brain regions implicated in mature problem solving/reasoning including the PFC, parietal cortex, and ACC, while the group with ASD showed functional connectivity of the hippocampus and the caudate that was associated with task performance. Failure to reliably engage cognitive control-related brain regions may produce less integrated flexible learning in those with ASD unless they are provided with task support that in essence provides them with cognitive control, but this pattern may normalize with age