Westinghouse programs in pulsed homopolar power supplies

This document details Westinghouse's ongoing study of homopolar machines since 1929 with the major effort occurring in the early 1970's to the present. The effort has enabled Westinghouse to develop expertise in the technology required for the design, fabrication and testing of such machines. This includes electrical design, electromagnetic analysis, current collection, mechanical design, advanced cooling, stress analysis, transient rotor performance, bearing analysis and seal technology. Westinghouse is using this capability to explore the use of homopolar machines as pulsed power supplies for future systems in both military and commercial applications

Barriers to skills development in India's informal economy

India’s informal economy accounts for more than half the country’s GDP but is characterised by low levels of skills, and considerable barriers to skills development for workers. The Government of India has implemented ambitious policy initiatives for upskilling, designed to catalyse ‘formalisation’ of the economy, and improve productivity. However, evidence on skills development remains weak. Drawing on systematic review methodologies, this article reviews and synthesises the literature on the practical barriers to upskilling. It finds that access to, and quality of, training (especially for women) are serious limitations, while skills are often under-utilised in the absence of supportive labour market and wider business environment conditions. Training is often insufficiently linked to labour market and learner needs, and the capacity of the training system is limited. Government should increase investment in training for the informal sector, and consider strengthening incentives for training providers to focus on improving training quality and relevance

Classroom Projects as Embodied and Embedded Outcomes Assessment

Although educators already recognize the value in engaging student learning through classroom projects and service-learning, assessment of student learning through classroom projects may be accompanied by a shift of attention from mastery of ideas to embodied knowledge. We argue that embodiment is the basic semiotic condition of being human—of being both an expressive and perceptive (communicative) being among others. Linking this philosophy of communication principle to the topic of assessment, the article offers assessment research a focus of attention on learning settings: from embodiment as learning context, to the built environment of classrooms, as well as to group interaction. We describe assessment of student understanding, demonstrated by way of professional comportment, of communication as a reflexive and reversible relation. Attention to embodied learning encourages habits of being-before and being-with others in the shared world in a reflexive and co-creative manner

Observations of the Ca II K line in Hel0830A dark points on August 3, 1985

Spectroheliograms taken in the light of He I 10830 A at the National Solar Observatory Vacuum Telescope on Kitt Peak were used to identify coronal holes and bright points (BPs). Target points were identified, coordinates calculated, and spectra recorded. For each spectrum, the difference in wavelength between the Ca II K minimum and the FeI reference line was calculated. It was noteworthy that the overall effect is a blueshift. It should be noted that if material of chromospheric density moves outward at this velocity, it could supply the mass flux of the solar wind if this chromospheric flow was concentrated in a few dozen sources, each of a diameter of a few arc seconds

Predicting breakfast consumption: A comparison of the theory of planned behaviour and the health action process approach

Purpose: Breakfast consumption is associated with a range of beneficial health outcomes including improved overall diet quality, lower BMI, decreased risk of chronic disease, and improved cognitive function. Although there are many models of health and social behaviour, there is a paucity of research utilising these in breakfast consumption and very few studies that directly compare these models. This study aims to compare the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) and the health action process approach (HAPA) in predicting breakfast consumption. Design/methodology/approach: University students (N=102; M=19.5 years) completed a questionnaire measuring demographics, TPB and HAPA motivational variables, and intentions. Behaviour and HAPA volitional variables were measured four weeks later. Findings: Using structural equation modelling, it was found that the TPB model was a superior fit to the data across a range of model indices compared to the HAPA. Both models significantly predicted both intentions and behaviour at follow up; however, the TPB predicted a higher proportion of the variance in breakfast consumption (47.6 per cent) than the HAPA (44.8 per cent). Further, the volitional variables did not mediate the intention-behaviour gap, and the data were not an adequate statistical fit to the model compared to the TPB.Research limitations/implications: The results support the use of the TPB and show that some aspects of the HAPA are useful in predicting breakfast consumption, suggesting that risk perception and self-efficacy be targeted in interventions to increase behaviour. The volitional variables did not appear to mediate breakfast consumption indicating that intention is still the strongest predictor, at least in this behaviour. Originality/value: The current study is the first to compare the TPB and HAPA in predicting breakfast consumption

Skeleton Cave, Leigh Woods, Bristol

An account is given of the discovery and excavation of this small cave in the 1960s. It is recorded that archaeological finds were made, but of these, only a single human mandible can now be traced. Radiocarbon dating shows the specimen to be early Neolithic in age; a metrical analysis was less conclusive.http://www.ubss.org.uk/resources/proceedings/vol27/UBSS_Proc_27_2_197-209.pd

Efficacy of alternative seating on attention, in-seat behavior, and occupational performance in children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Currently, there is one systematic review conducted by Gochenour and Poskey7 that synthesize current research evidence regarding alternative seating for students with attention difficulties. A limitation of this review, as noted by the authors, is a lack of a consistent definition of attention difficulty in the studies they included. A systematic review focused on a specific, well-defined diagnosis will better contribute to practice recommendations since these recommendations will be tailored to a clear and comprehensive understanding of the child’s attentional and occupational challenges. The review also included studies of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).7 While those with ASD may also have difficulties with attention, in-seat behavior and occupational performance, the underlying mechanism yielding these symptoms may be different than in children with ADHD. Thus, alternative seating may not work in the same way for children with ASD as it would for children with ADHD.7 Thus, a systematic review is needed to examine the evidence from all current studies regarding alternative seating on improving attention, in-seat behavior and occupational performance in students with ADHD to increase evidence-based practice in the field of occupational therapy

Detection of Coronal Mass Ejections in V471 Tauri with the Hubble Space Telescope

V471 Tauri, an eclipsing system consisting of a hot DA white dwarf (WD) and a dK2 companion in a 12.5-hour orbit, is the prototype of the pre-cataclysmic binaries. The late-type component is magnetically active, due to its being constrained to rotate synchronously with the short orbital period. During a program of UV spectroscopy of V471 Tau, carried out with the Goddard High Resolution Spectrograph (GHRS) onboard the Hubble Space Telescope, we serendipitously detected two episodes in which transient absorptions in the Si III 1206 A resonance line appeared suddenly, on a timescale of <2 min. The observations were taken in a narrow spectral region around Ly-alpha, and were all obtained near the two quadratures of the binary orbit, i.e., at maximum projected separation (~3.3 Rsun) of the WD and K star. We suggest that these transient features arise when coronal mass ejections (CME's) from the K2 dwarf pass across the line of sight to the WD. Estimates of the velocities, densities, and masses of the events in V471 Tau are generally consistent with the properties of solar CME's. Given our detection of 2 events during 6.8 hr of GHRS observing, along with a consideration of the restricted range of latitudes and longitudes on the K star's surface that can give rise to trajectories passing in front of the WD as seen from Earth, we estimate that the active V471 Tau dK star emits some 100-500 CME's per day, as compared to 1-3 per day for the Sun. The K dwarf's mass-loss rate associated with CME's is at least (5-25) x 10^{-14} Msun/yr, but it may well be orders of magnitude higher if most of the silicon is in ionization states other than Si III.Comment: 24 pages AASTeX, 4 figures. Accepted by Astrophysical Journa