6,189 research outputs found
Epitaxial Frustration in Deposited Packings of Rigid Disks and Spheres
We use numerical simulation to investigate and analyze the way that rigid
disks and spheres arrange themselves when compressed next to incommensurate
substrates. For disks, a movable set is pressed into a jammed state against an
ordered fixed line of larger disks, where the diameter ratio of movable to
fixed disks is 0.8. The corresponding diameter ratio for the sphere simulations
is 0.7, where the fixed substrate has the structure of a (001) plane of a
face-centered cubic array. Results obtained for both disks and spheres exhibit
various forms of density-reducing packing frustration next to the
incommensurate substrate, including some cases displaying disorder that extends
far from the substrate. The disk system calculations strongly suggest that the
most efficient (highest density) packings involve configurations that are
periodic in the lateral direction parallel to the substrate, with substantial
geometric disruption only occurring near the substrate. Some evidence has also
emerged suggesting that for the sphere systems a corresponding structure doubly
periodic in the lateral directions would yield the highest packing density;
however all of the sphere simulations completed thus far produced some residual
"bulk" disorder not obviously resulting from substrate mismatch. In view of the
fact that the cases studied here represent only a small subset of all that
eventually deserve attention, we end with discussion of the directions in which
first extensions of the present simulations might profitably be pursued.Comment: 28 pages, 14 figures; typos fixed; a sentence added to 4th paragraph
of sect 5 in responce to a referee's comment
Rigidity and volume preserving deformation on degenerate simplices
Given a degenerate -simplex in a -dimensional space
(Euclidean, spherical or hyperbolic space, and ), for each , , Radon's theorem induces a partition of the set of -faces into two
subsets. We prove that if the vertices of the simplex vary smoothly in
for , and the volumes of -faces in one subset are constrained only to
decrease while in the other subset only to increase, then any sufficiently
small motion must preserve the volumes of all -faces; and this property
still holds in for if an invariant of
the degenerate simplex has the desired sign. This answers a question posed by
the author, and the proof relies on an invariant we discovered
for any -stress on a cell complex in . We introduce a
characteristic polynomial of the degenerate simplex by defining
, and prove that the roots
of are real for the Euclidean case. Some evidence suggests the same
conjecture for the hyperbolic case.Comment: 27 pages, 2 figures. To appear in Discrete & Computational Geometr
Locked and Unlocked Chains of Planar Shapes
We extend linkage unfolding results from the well-studied case of polygonal
linkages to the more general case of linkages of polygons. More precisely, we
consider chains of nonoverlapping rigid planar shapes (Jordan regions) that are
hinged together sequentially at rotatable joints. Our goal is to characterize
the families of planar shapes that admit locked chains, where some
configurations cannot be reached by continuous reconfiguration without
self-intersection, and which families of planar shapes guarantee universal
foldability, where every chain is guaranteed to have a connected configuration
space. Previously, only obtuse triangles were known to admit locked shapes, and
only line segments were known to guarantee universal foldability. We show that
a surprisingly general family of planar shapes, called slender adornments,
guarantees universal foldability: roughly, the distance from each edge along
the path along the boundary of the slender adornment to each hinge should be
monotone. In contrast, we show that isosceles triangles with any desired apex
angle less than 90 degrees admit locked chains, which is precisely the
threshold beyond which the inward-normal property no longer holds.Comment: 23 pages, 25 figures, Latex; full journal version with all proof
details. (Fixed crash-induced bugs in the abstract.
A software development environment utilizing PAMELA
Hardware capability and efficiency has increased dramatically since the invention of the computer, while software programmer productivity and efficiency has remained at a relatively low level. A user-friendly, adaptable, integrated software development environment is needed to alleviate this problem. The environment should be designed around the Ada language and a design methodology which takes advantage of the features of the Ada language as the Process Abstraction Method for Embedded Large Applications (PAMELA)
Improving Breastfeeding Education Among Hospital Nurses
Breastfeeding is well-documented as the most beneficial method of infant feeding worldwide. There are numerous national initiatives present to improve breastfeeding outcomes. Despite knowledge and health care organization efforts, the recommendations of exclusive breastfeeding through six months of life with continued breastfeeding through one year of age are not being met. The purpose of this DNP project is to determine if a structured self-study educational program on breastfeeding recommendations, the 4th Edition of the Lactation Management Self-Study Modules created by Wellstart Internationalâ˘, provided to hospital nurses on a maternity unit in Central, New York with a Level One nursery, will improve nursing knowledge of appropriate breastfeeding practices, decrease variations in breastfeeding education provided to patients, and improve breastfeeding outcomes for the facility. The research study used a quasi-experimental design to determine how an educational program provided to hospital nurses impacts both their knowledge of breastfeeding as well as the breastfeeding outcomes for the hospital. This DNP project, along with the growing body of literature, supports the need for continued provision of education related to breastfeeding among nurses in direct care of breastfeeding mothers, and expresses a need for further research on this topic to optimize breastfeeding outcomes worldwide
The Ideal Learner: Does Sharing Constructs Elicited from Children at Risk of Exclusion Alter the Perceptions of Teachers Working with Them?
This research explores the constructs that teachers have of students at risk of exclusion from school. To date, little research has explored whether a Personal Construct Psychology (PCP) task to elicit constructs from the students about themselves has the power to alter the teachersâ constructs of said students. Five secondary students in Year 7 or 8, at risk of exclusion, completed a PCP task, Drawing the Ideal Learner (DIL). For each of the students, one teacher who knew the student well was interviewed on two separate occasions using semi-structured interviews. This qualitative social constructionist research utilises a PCP theoretical framework to ascertain whether these teachers believed DIL could provide information to inform them about how best to support the student by developing a shared understanding.
In the first interview, teachers were asked about their constructs of the students before the research began and the teacherâs assumptions of their studentâs aspirations. At the end of this interview they were shown the studentâs DIL. In their second interview, exactly one week later, with varying opportunities for interaction with the students, teachers were asked whether any of their previous constructs about the student had altered in light of new information, including those regarding the student's aspirations. Finally, teachers were asked their views of DIL to elicit previously unknown information from students at risk of exclusion. The outcome of this research highlights the importance of providing students at risk of exclusion with an appropriate tool to elicit their voices about their academic present and future journey, and the importance of sharing this information with school staff who can be instrumental in supporting the students
Algebra versus analysis in the theory of flexible polyhedra
Two basic theorems of the theory of flexible polyhedra were proven by
completely different methods: R. Alexander used analysis, namely, the Stokes
theorem, to prove that the total mean curvature remains constant during the
flex, while I.Kh. Sabitov used algebra, namely, the theory of resultants, to
prove that the oriented volume remains constant during the flex. We show that
none of these methods can be used to prove the both theorems. As a by-product,
we prove that the total mean curvature of any polyhedron in the Euclidean
3-space is not an algebraic function of its edge lengths.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures; condition (iii) in Theorem 5 is correcte
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