69,773 research outputs found
Multispectral data restoration study
A digital resampling technique for LANDSAT data is reported that incorporates a deconvolution concept to minimize spatial and radiometric degradation of data during resampling for geometric correction. A quantitative comparison of cubic convolution and digital restoration methods establishes the latter as the superior technique
Experimental and analytical study of nitric oxide formation during combustion of propane in a jet-stirred combustor
A jet-stirred combustor, constructed of castable zirconia and with an Inconel injector, was used to study nitric oxide formation in propane-air combustion with residence times in the range from 3.2 to 3.3 msec and equivalence ratios varying from 0.7 to 1.4. Measurements were made of combustor operating temperature and of nitric oxide concentration. Maximum nitric oxide concentrations of the order of 55 ppm were found in the range of equivalence ratio from 1.0 to 1.1. A finite-rate chemical kinetic mechanism for propane combustion and nitric oxide formation was assembled by coupling an existing propane oxidation mechanism with the Zeldovich reactions and reactions of molecular nitrogen with hydrocarbon fragments. Analytical studies using this mechanism in a computer simulation of the experimental conditions revealed that the hydrocarbon-fragment-nitrogen reactions play a significant role in nitric oxide formation during fuel-rich combustion
Granular discharge rate for submerged hoppers
The discharge of spherical grains from a hole in the bottom of a right
circular cylinder is measured with the entire system underwater. We find that
the discharge rate depends on filling height, in contrast to the well-known
case of dry non-cohesive grains. It is further surprising that the rate
increases up to about twenty five percent, as the hopper empties and the
granular pressure head decreases. For deep filling, where the discharge rate is
constant, we measure the behavior as a function of both grain and hole
diameters. The discharge rate scale is set by the product of hole area and the
terminal falling speed of isolated grains. But there is a small-hole cutoff of
about two and half grain diameters, which is larger than the analogous cutoff
in the Beverloo equation for dry grains
Oscillatory subglacial drainage in the absence of surface melt
The presence of strong diurnal cycling in basal water pressure records
obtained during the melt season is well established for many glaciers. The
behaviour of the drainage system outside the melt season is less well
understood. Here we present borehole observations from a surge-type valley
glacier in the St Elias Mountains, Yukon Territory, Canada. Our data indicate
the onset of strongly correlated multi-day oscillations in water pressure in
multiple boreholes straddling a main drainage axis, starting several weeks
after the disappearance of a dominant diurnal mode in August 2011 and
persisting until at least January 2012, when multiple data loggers suffered
power failure. Jökulhlaups provide a template for understanding spontaneous
water pressure oscillations not driven by external supply variability. Using
a subglacial drainage model, we show that water pressure oscillations can
also be driven on a much smaller scale by the interaction between conduit
growth and distributed water storage in smaller water pockets, basal
crevasses and moulins, and that oscillations can be triggered when water
supply drops below a critical value. We suggest this in combination with a
steady background supply of water from ground water or englacial drainage as a
possible explanation for the observed wintertime pressure oscillations
Proactive Algorithms for Job Shop Scheduling with Probabilistic Durations
Most classical scheduling formulations assume a fixed and known duration for
each activity. In this paper, we weaken this assumption, requiring instead that
each duration can be represented by an independent random variable with a known
mean and variance. The best solutions are ones which have a high probability of
achieving a good makespan. We first create a theoretical framework, formally
showing how Monte Carlo simulation can be combined with deterministic
scheduling algorithms to solve this problem. We propose an associated
deterministic scheduling problem whose solution is proved, under certain
conditions, to be a lower bound for the probabilistic problem. We then propose
and investigate a number of techniques for solving such problems based on
combinations of Monte Carlo simulation, solutions to the associated
deterministic problem, and either constraint programming or tabu search. Our
empirical results demonstrate that a combination of the use of the associated
deterministic problem and Monte Carlo simulation results in algorithms that
scale best both in terms of problem size and uncertainty. Further experiments
point to the correlation between the quality of the deterministic solution and
the quality of the probabilistic solution as a major factor responsible for
this success
Gigahertz-Peaked Spectrum Radio Sources in Nearby Galaxies
There is now strong evidence that many low-luminosity AGNs (LLAGNs) contain
accreting massive black holes and that the nuclear radio emission is dominated
by parsec-scale jets launched by these black holes. Here, we present
preliminary results on the 1.4 GHz to 667 GHz spectral shape of a well-defined
sample of 16 LLAGNs. The LLAGNs have a falling spectrum at high GHz
frequencies. Several also show a low-frequency turnover with a peak in the 1-20
GHz range. The results provide further support for jet dominance of the core
radio emission. The LLAGNs show intriguing similarities with gigahertz-peaked
spectrum (GPS) sources.Comment: 6 pages, to appear in ASP Conference series, 2002, Vol. 25
Sensitivity of an image plate system in the XUV (60 eV < E < 900 eV)
Phosphor imaging plates (IPs) have been calibrated and proven useful for
quantitative x-ray imaging in the 1 to over 1000 keV energy range. In this
paper we report on calibration measurements made at XUV energies in the 60 to
900 eV energy range using beamline 6.3.2 at the Advanced Light Source at
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. We measured a sensitivity of ~25 plus or
minus 15 counts/pJ over the stated energy range which is compatible with the
sensitivity of Si photodiodes that are used for time-resolved measurements. Our
measurements at 900 eV are consistent with the measurements made by Meadowcroft
et al. at ~1 keV.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figure
Controlling the uncontrolled: Are there incidental experimenter effects on physiologic responding?
The degree to which experimenters shape participant behavior has long been of interest in experimental social science research. Here, we extend this question to the domain of peripheral psychophysiology, where experimenters often have direct, physical contact with participants, yet researchers do not consistently test for their influence. We describe analytic tools for examining experimenter effects in peripheral physiology. Using these tools, we investigate nine data sets totaling 1,341 participants and 160 experimenters across different roles (e.g., lead research assistants, evaluators, confederates) to demonstrate how researchers can test for experimenter effects in participant autonomic nervous system activity during baseline recordings and reactivity to study tasks. Our results showed (a) little to no significant variance in participants' physiological reactivity due to their experimenters, and (b) little to no evidence that three characteristics of experimenters that are well known to shape interpersonal interactions-status (using five studies with 682 total participants), gender (using two studies with 359 total participants), and race (in two studies with 554 total participants)-influenced participants' physiology. We highlight several reasons that experimenter effects in physiological data are still cause for concern, including the fact that experimenters in these studies were already restricted on a number of characteristics (e.g., age, education). We present recommendations for examining and reducing experimenter effects in physiological data and discuss implications for replication
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