3,826 research outputs found
Designing with Ada for satellite simulation: A case study
A FORTRAN oriented and an Ada oriented design for the same system are compared to learn whether an essentially different design was produced using Ada. The designs were produced by an experiment that involves the parallel development of software for a spacecraft dynamics simulator. Design differences are identified in the use of abstractions, system structure, and simulator operations. Although the designs were vastly different, this result may be influenced by some special characteristics discussed
Designing with Ada for satellite simulation: A case study
A FORTRAN-operated and an Ada-oriented design for the same system are compared to learn whether an essentially different design was produced using Ada. The designs were produced by an experiment that involves the parallel development of software for a spacecraft dynamics simulator. Design differences are identified in the use of abstractions, system structure, and simulator operations. Although the designs were significantly different, this result may be influenced by some special characteristics discussed
The 1996 Soft State Transitions of Cygnus X-1
We report continuous monitoring of Cygnus X-1 in the 1.3 to 200 keV band
using ASM/RXTE and BATSE/CGRO for about 200 days from 1996 February 21 to 1996
early September. During this period Cygnus X-1 experienced a hard-to-soft and
then a soft-to-hard state transition. The low-energy X-ray (1.3-12 keV) and
high-energy X-ray (20-200 keV) fluxes are strongly anti-correlated during this
period. During the state transitions flux variations of about a factor of 5 and
15 were seen in the 1.3-3.0 keV and 100-200 keV bands, respectively, while the
average 4.8-12 keV flux remains almost unchanged. The net effect of this
pivoting is that the total 1.3-200 keV luminosity remained unchanged to within
about 15%. The bolometric luminosity in the soft state may be as high as 50-70%
above the hard state luminosity, after color corrections for the luminosity
below 1.3 keV. The blackbody component flux and temperature increase in the
soft state is probably caused by a combination of the optically thick disk mass
accretion rate increase and a decrease of the inner disk radius.Comment: 18 pages, 1 PostScript figure. Accepted for ApJ
Limits on the Peculiar Velocities of Two Distant Clusters Using the Kinematic Sunyaev-Zel'dovich Effect
We report millimeter-wavelength observations of the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (S-Z)
effect in two distant galaxy clusters. A relativistically correct analysis of
the S-Z data is combined with the results of X-ray observations to determine
the radial peculiar velocities v_r of the clusters. We observed Abell 2163
(z=.201) in three mm-wavelength bands centered at 2.1, 1.4, and 1.1 mm. We
report a significant detection of the thermal component of the S-Z effect seen
as both a decrement in the brightness of the CMB at 2.1 mm, and as an increment
at 1.1 mm. Including uncertainties due to the calibration of the instrument,
distribution and temperature of the IC gas, and astrophysical confusion, a
simultaneous fit to the data in all three bands gives v_r=+490 +1370/-880 km/s
at 68% confidence. We observed Abell 1689 (z=.181) in the 2.1 and 1.4 mm bands.
Including the same detailed accounting of uncertainty, a simultaneous fit to
the data in both bands gives v_r=+170 +815/-630 km/s. The limits on the
peculiar velocities of A2163 and A1689 correspond to deviations from the
uniform Hubble flow of <= 2-3%.Comment: 21 pages, 13 postscript figures, LaTeX(aaspptwo.sty), ApJ(in press
Surfaces roughness effects on the transmission of Gaussian beams by anisotropic parallel plates
Influence of the plate surfaces roughness in precise ellipsometry experiments
is studied. The realistic case of a Gaussian laser beam crossing a uniaxial
platelet is considered. Expression for the transmittance is determined using
the first order perturbation theory. In this frame, it is shown that
interference takes place between the specular transmitted beam and the
scattered field. This effect is due to the angular distribution of the Gaussian
beam and is of first order in the roughness over wavelength ratio. As an
application, a numerical simulation of the effects of quartz roughness surfaces
at normal incidence is provided. The interference term is found to be strongly
connected to the random nature of the surface roughness.Comment: 18 pages, Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics, volume 36, issue 21,
pages 2697 - 270
The Electron Energy Distribution in the Hotspots of Cygnus A: Filling the Gap with the Spitzer Space Telescope
Here we present Spitzer Space Telescope imaging of Cyg A with the Infrared
Array Camera, resulting in the detection of the high-energy tails or cut-offs
in the synchrotron spectra for all four hotspots of this archetype radio
galaxy. When combined with the other data collected from the literature, our
observations allow for detailed modeling of the broad-band emission for the
brightest spots A and D. We confirm that the X-ray flux detected previously
from these features is consistent with the synchrotron self-Compton radiation
for the magnetic field intensity 170 muG in spot A, and 270 muG in spot D. We
also find that the energy density of the emitting electrons is most likely
larger by a factor of a few than the energy density of the hotspots' magnetic
field. We construct energy spectra of the radiating ultrarelativistic
electrons. We find that for both hotspots A and D these spectra are consistent
with a broken power-law extending from at least 100 MeV up to 100 GeV, and that
the spectral break corresponds almost exactly to the proton rest energy of 1
GeV. We argue that the shape of the electron continuum reflects two different
regimes of the electron acceleration process at mildly relativistic shocks,
rather than resulting from radiative cooling and/or absorption effects. In this
picture the protons' inertia defines the critical energy for the hotspot
electrons above which Fermi-type acceleration processes may play a major role,
but below which the operating acceleration mechanism has to be of a different
type. At energies >100 GeV, the electron spectra cut-off/steepen again, most
likely as a result of spectral aging due to radiative loss effects. We discuss
several implications of the presented analysis for the physics of extragalactic
jets.Comment: 29 pages, 8 figures and 2 tables included. Accepted for publication
in Ap
Kripke Semantics for Martin-L\"of's Extensional Type Theory
It is well-known that simple type theory is complete with respect to
non-standard set-valued models. Completeness for standard models only holds
with respect to certain extended classes of models, e.g., the class of
cartesian closed categories. Similarly, dependent type theory is complete for
locally cartesian closed categories. However, it is usually difficult to
establish the coherence of interpretations of dependent type theory, i.e., to
show that the interpretations of equal expressions are indeed equal. Several
classes of models have been used to remedy this problem. We contribute to this
investigation by giving a semantics that is standard, coherent, and
sufficiently general for completeness while remaining relatively easy to
compute with. Our models interpret types of Martin-L\"of's extensional
dependent type theory as sets indexed over posets or, equivalently, as
fibrations over posets. This semantics can be seen as a generalization to
dependent type theory of the interpretation of intuitionistic first-order logic
in Kripke models. This yields a simple coherent model theory, with respect to
which simple and dependent type theory are sound and complete
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MoonLITE – Technological feasibility of the penetrator concept
Introduction: While the surface missions to the Moon of the 1960s and 1970s achieved a great deal, scientifically a great deal was also left unresolved. The recent plethora of lunar missions (flown or proposed) reflects resurgence in interest in the Moon, not only in its own right, but also as a record of the formation of the Earth-Moon System and the interplanetary environment at 1 AU. Results from orbiter missions have indicated the possible presense of ice within permanently shaded craters at the lunar poles [1] – a situation that, if confirmed, will have profound impacts on lunar exploration
The play's the thing
For very understandable reasons phenomenological approaches predominate in the field of sensory urbanism. This paper does not seek to add to that particular discourse. Rather it takes Rorty’s postmodernized Pragmatism as its starting point and develops a position on the role of multi-modal design representation in the design process as a means of admitting many voices and managing multidisciplinary collaboration.
This paper will interrogate some of the concepts underpinning the Sensory Urbanism project to help define the scope of interest in multi-modal representations. It will then explore a range of techniques and approaches developed by artists and designers during the past fifty years or so and comment on how they might inform the question of multi-modal representation. In conclusion I will argue that we should develop a heterogeneous tool kit that adopts, adapts and re-invents existing methods because this will better serve our purposes during the exploratory phase(s) of any design project that deals with complexity
Gesture analysis for physics education researchers
Systematic observations of student gestures can not only fill in gaps in
students' verbal expressions, but can also offer valuable information about
student ideas, including their source, their novelty to the speaker, and their
construction in real time. This paper provides a review of the research in
gesture analysis that is most relevant to physics education researchers and
illustrates gesture analysis for the purpose of better understanding student
thinking about physics.Comment: 14 page
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