Realtime 3D graphics programming using the Quake3 engine

We present a lab assignment that accompanies a complete module called Real-time Graphics . The students task is to get familiar with content creation and programming a (previously) commercial 3D engine. In a first task, students have to create 3D content, which is integrated into the Quake3 engine. In a second task, the students have to implement a simple animation and finally add an impressive 3D graphics effect to the Quake3 engine. The lecture has been taught four times from 2004 to 2007. We present the assignment and report on experiences that we have gained

Energy and Economic Trade Offs for Advanced Technology Subsonic Aircraft

Changes in future aircraft technology which conserve energy are studied, along with the effect of these changes on economic performance. Among the new technologies considered are laminar-flow control, composite materials with and without laminar-flow control, and advanced airfoils. Aircraft design features studied include high-aspect-ratio wings, thickness ratio, and range. Engine technology is held constant at the JT9D level. It is concluded that wing aspect ratios of future aircraft are likely to significantly increase as a result of new technology and the push of higher fuel prices. Composite materials may raise aspect radio to about 11 to 12 and practical laminar flow-control systems may further increase aspect ratio to 14 or more. Advanced technology provides significant reductions in aircraft take-off gross weight, energy consumption, and direct operating cost

Case Studies in Industry: What We Have Learnt

Case study research has become an important research methodology for exploring phenomena in their natural contexts. Case studies have earned a distinct role in the empirical analysis of software engineering phenomena which are difficult to capture in isolation. Such phenomena often appear in the context of methods and development processes for which it is difficult to run large, controlled experiments as they usually have to reduce the scale in several respects and, hence, are detached from the reality of industrial software development. The other side of the medal is that the realistic socio-economic environments where we conduct case studies -- with real-life cases and realistic conditions -- also pose a plethora of practical challenges to planning and conducting case studies. In this experience report, we discuss such practical challenges and the lessons we learnt in conducting case studies in industry. Our goal is to help especially inexperienced researchers facing their first case studies in industry by increasing their awareness for typical obstacles they might face and practical ways to deal with those obstacles.Comment: Proceedings of the 4th International Workshop on Conducting Empirical Studies in Industry, co-located with ICSE, 201

Classes of confining gauge field configurations

We present a numerical method to compute path integrals in effective SU(2) Yang-Mills theories. The basic idea is to approximate the Yang-Mills path integral by summing over all gauge field configurations, which can be represented as a linear superposition of a small number of localized building blocks. With a suitable choice of building blocks many essential features of SU(2) Yang-Mills theory can be reproduced, particularly confinement. The analysis of our results leads to the conclusion that topological charge as well as extended structures are essential elements of confining gauge field configurations.Comment: 18 pages, 16 figures, several sections adde

Naming the Pain in Requirements Engineering: A Design for a Global Family of Surveys and First Results from Germany

For many years, we have observed industry struggling in defining a high quality requirements engineering (RE) and researchers trying to understand industrial expectations and problems. Although we are investigating the discipline with a plethora of empirical studies, they still do not allow for empirical generalisations. To lay an empirical and externally valid foundation about the state of the practice in RE, we aim at a series of open and reproducible surveys that allow us to steer future research in a problem-driven manner. We designed a globally distributed family of surveys in joint collaborations with different researchers and completed the first run in Germany. The instrument is based on a theory in the form of a set of hypotheses inferred from our experiences and available studies. We test each hypothesis in our theory and identify further candidates to extend the theory by correlation and Grounded Theory analysis. In this article, we report on the design of the family of surveys, its underlying theory, and the full results obtained from Germany with participants from 58 companies. The results reveal, for example, a tendency to improve RE via internally defined qualitative methods rather than relying on normative approaches like CMMI. We also discovered various RE problems that are statistically significant in practice. For instance, we could corroborate communication flaws or moving targets as problems in practice. Our results are not yet fully representative but already give first insights into current practices and problems in RE, and they allow us to draw lessons learnt for future replications. Our results obtained from this first run in Germany make us confident that the survey design and instrument are well-suited to be replicated and, thereby, to create a generalisable empirical basis of RE in practice

Time and space integrating acousto-optic folded spectrum processing for SETI

Time and space integrating folded spectrum techniques utilizing acousto-optic devices (AOD) as 1-D input transducers are investigated for a potential application as wideband, high resolution, large processing gain spectrum analyzers in the search for extra-terrestrial intelligence (SETI) program. The space integrating Fourier transform performed by a lens channels the coarse spectral components diffracted from an AOD onto an array of time integrating narrowband fine resolution spectrum analyzers. The pulsing action of a laser diode samples the interferometrically detected output, aliasing the fine resolution components to baseband, as required for the subsequent charge coupled devices (CCD) processing. The raster scan mechanism incorporated into the readout of the CCD detector array is used to unfold the 2-D transform, reproducing the desired high resolution Fourier transform of the input signal

The ‘Sticky Elastica’: Delamination blisters beyond small\ud deformations

We consider the form of an elastic loop adhered to a rigid substrate: the ‘sticky Elastica’. In contrast to previous studies of the shape of delamination ‘blisters’, the theory developed accounts for deflections with large slope (i.e. geometrically nonlinear). Starting from the classical Euler Elastica we provide numerical results for the dimensions of such blisters for a variety of end-end confinements and develop asymptotic expressions that reproduce these results well up to the point of self-contact. Interestingly, we find that the width of such blisters does not grow monotonically with increased confinement. Our theoretical predictions are confirmed by simple desktop experiments and suggest a new method for the measurement of the elastocapillary length for deformations that cannot be considered small

Three-dimensional pantograph for use in hazardous environments

Material measurement device is used with radioactive probes which can be approached only to distance of 3 feet. Tracer-following unit is capable of precisely controlled movement in X-Y-Z planes. Pantograph is usable in industrial processes involving chemical corrosives, poisons, and bacteriological hazards, as well as nuclear applications

Switch on, switch off: stiction in nanoelectromechanical switches

We present a theoretical investigation of stiction in nanoscale electromechanical contact switches. We develop a mathematical model to describe the deflection of a cantilever beam in response to both electrostatic and van der Waals forces. Particular focus is given to the question of whether adhesive van der Waals forces cause the cantilever to remain in the ‘ON’ state even when the electrostatic forces are removed. In contrast to previous studies, our theory accounts for deflections with large slopes (i.e. geometrically nonlinear). We solve the resulting equations numerically to study how a cantilever beam adheres to a rigid electrode: transitions between free, ‘pinned’ and ‘clamped’ states are shown to be discontinuous and to exhibit significant hysteresis. Our findings are compared to previous results from linearized models and the implications for nanoelectromechanical cantilever switch design are discussed