Quiet propulsive lift for commuter airlines

The performance of STOL or RTOL aircraft and NASA's research program to provide options for future design and certification of quiet propulsive-life transports is described

An overview of the quiet short-haul research aircraft program

An overview of the Quiet Short Haul Research Aircraft (QSRA) Program is presented, with special emphasis on its propulsion and acoustic aspects. A description of the NASA technical participation in the program including wind tunnel testing, engine ground tests, and advanced aircraft simulation is given. The aircraft and its systems are described and, measured performance, where available, is compared to program goals. Preliminary data indicate that additional research and development are needed in some areas of which acoustics is an example. Some of these additional research areas and potential experiments using the QSRA to develop the technology are discussed. The concept of the QSRA as a national flight research facility is explained

Data management system study Final technical report, 15 May 1967 - 31 Mar. 1968

Systems design of prototype coherent system to meet data processing requirements of post-Apollo mission

Reflection of tsunamis

Waves are reflected whenever they move into a region where their speed of propagation changes. It has generally been found that for appreciable reflection a large change in speed of propagation must occur over a distance which is small compared to a wave length...

Using ultra-thin parylene films as an organic gate insulator in nanowire field-effect transistors

We report the development of nanowire field-effect transistors featuring an ultra-thin parylene film as a polymer gate insulator. The room temperature, gas-phase deposition of parylene is an attractive alternative to oxide insulators prepared at high temperatures using atomic layer deposition. We discuss our custom-built parylene deposition system, which is designed for reliable and controlled deposition of <100 nm thick parylene films on III-V nanowires standing vertically on a growth substrate or horizontally on a device substrate. The former case gives conformally-coated nanowires, which we used to produce functional $\Omega$-gate and gate-all-around structures. These give sub-threshold swings as low as 140 mV/dec and on/off ratios exceeding $10^3$ at room temperature. For the gate-all-around structure, we developed a novel fabrication strategy that overcomes some of the limitations with previous lateral wrap-gate nanowire transistors. Finally, we show that parylene can be deposited over chemically-treated nanowire surfaces; a feature generally not possible with oxides produced by atomic layer deposition due to the surface `self-cleaning' effect. Our results highlight the potential for parylene as an alternative ultra-thin insulator in nanoscale electronic devices more broadly, with potential applications extending into nanobioelectronics due to parylene's well-established biocompatible properties

'Appreciating' Drainage Assets in New Zealand Cities: Rain Garden Treatment and Hydraulic Performance

Despite recognising rain gardens as a best management practice (BMP) to mitigate urban stormwater runoff, there is a dearth of knowledge about their treatment and infiltration performance. It is believed that organic substrates may enhance some contaminant removal but hinder hydraulic throughput although data showing this is sparse. In order to evaluate the influence of substrate composition on bioinfiltrative system effectiveness, mesocosm-scale (180 L, 0.17 m2) laboratory rain gardens were established. Saturated (constant head) hydraulic conductivity was determined before and after the experimental treatment tests that employed stormwater collected from a neighbouring catchment to investigate contaminant removal efficiencies. The principal contaminant (Zn, Cu, Pb and nutrients) removal efficiencies were investigated for three substrates comprising various proportions of organic topsoil. All total metal concentrations in the effluent were <50% of influent concentrations, with the exception of copper in the topsoil-only system that had negligible reduction due to a high dissolved fraction. The system comprising topsoil only had the lowest saturated hydraulic conductivity of 162 mm/hr and demonstrated the poorest metal (Cu, Zn) removal efficiencies. Interestingly, the system with a combination of sand and topsoil demonstrated most promising metal removal of Cu (53%), Zn (81.2%) and Pb (89.1%) with adequate hydraulic performance (296 mm/hr) required for a stormwater infiltrative system. Overall, metal removal was greater at an effluent pH of 7.38 compared to the 6.24 pH provided in the raw stormwater. Some pH buffering was provided by the calcareous sand in two of the systems, whereas the topsoil-only system lacked such buffering potential to facilitate adequate metal removal. These data highlight the influence of organic topsoil on pH that clearly governs metal speciation and hence removal efficacy in bioinfiltrative systems. Nitrate was net exported from all the systems, especially topsoil contrary to what is believed to be easily removed

A multicentre integration of a computer-led follow-up of prostate cancer is valid and safe

Background Prostate cancer (CaP) has a rising number of patients requiring routine follow up. In this study, we aimed to test a computer led follow up service for prostate cancer in two UK hospitals. The testing aimed to validate the computer Expert system in making clinical decisions according to the individual patient’s clinical need. The valid model should accurately identify patients with disease recurrence or treatment failure based on their blood test and clinical picture. Methods A clinical decision support system (CDSS) was developed from European (EAU) and national (NICE) guidelines along with knowledge acquired from Urologists. This model was then applied in two UK hospitals to review patients post CaP treatment. These patients’ data (n= 200) were then reviewed by two independent Urology consultants (blinded from the CDSS and other consultant’s rating) and the agreement was calculated by kappa statistics for validation. The second objective aimed to verify the system by estimating the system reliability. Results The two individual urology consultants identified 12 % & 15% of the patients to have potential disease progression and recommended their referral to the Urology care. The kappa coefficient for the agreement between the CDSS and the 2 consultants was 0.81 (p < 0.001) and 0.84 (p < 0.001). The agreement among both specialist was also high with k = 0.83 (p < 0.001). The system reliability was estimated on all cases and this demonstrated 100% repeatability of the decisions. Conclusion The computer led follow up is a valid model for providing safe follow up for prostate cancer

Conditional quantum-state transformation at a beam splitter

Using conditional measurement on a beam splitter, we study the transformation of the quantum state of the signal mode within the concept of two-port non-unitary transformation. Allowing for arbitrary quantum states of both the input reference mode and the output reference mode on which the measurement is performed, we show that the non-unitary transformation operator can be given as an $s$-ordered operator product, where the value of $s$ is entirely determined by the absolute value of the beam splitter reflectance (or transmittance). The formalism generalizes previously obtained results that can be recovered by simple specification of the non-unitary transformation operator. As an application, we consider the generation of Schr\"odinger-cat-like states. An extension to mixed states and imperfect detection is outlined.Comment: 7 Postscript figures, using Late