Using data visualization in creativity workshops: a new tool in the designer's kit

Creativity workshops have proved effective in drawing out unexpected requirements and giving form to participants' novel ideas. Here, we introduce a new addition to the workshop designer's toolkit: interactive data visualization, used as stimuli to prompt insight and inspire creativity. We first describe a pilot study in which we compare the effectiveness of two different styles of data visualization. Here we found that a less ambiguous style was more effective in supporting idea generation. Following this, we report a case study in which we employ data visualization within a service design workshop, where participants gain insights that are later realized in design ideas

Regolith behavior under asteroid-level gravity conditions: low-velocity impact experiments

The dusty regolith covering the surfaces of asteroids and planetary satellites differs in size, shape, and composition from terrestrial soil particles and is subject to very different environmental conditions. Experimental studies of the response of planetary regolith in the relevant environmental conditions are thus necessary to facilitate future Solar System exploration activities. We combined the results and provided new data analysis elements for a series of impact experiments into simulated planetary regolith in low-gravity conditions using two experimental setups: the Physics of Regolith Impacts in Microgravity Experiment (PRIME) and the COLLisions Into Dust Experiment (COLLIDE). Results of these experimental campaigns found that there is a significant change in the regolith behavior with the gravity environment. In a 10-2g environment (Lunar g levels), only embedding of the impactor was observed and ejecta production was produced for most impacts at > 20 cm/s. Once at microgravity levels (<10-4g), the lowest impact energies also produced impactor rebound. In these microgravity conditions, ejecta started to be produced for impacts at > 10 cm/s. The measured ejecta speeds were lower than the ones measured at reduced-gravity levels, but the ejected masses were higher. The mean ejecta velocity shows a power-law dependence on the impact energy with an index of ~0.7. When projectile rebound occurred, we observed that its coefficients of restitution on the bed of regolith simulant decrease by a factor of 10 with increasing impact speeds from ~5 cm/s up to 100 cm/s. We could also observe an increased cohesion between the JSC-1 grains compared to the quartz sand targets

Solid-state diffusion in amorphous zirconolite

his research utilised Queen Mary's MidPlus computational facilities, supported by QMUL Research-IT and funded by EPSRC grant EP/K000128/1. We are grateful to E. Maddrell for discussions and to CSC for support

Structural Biology: Parkin’s Serpentine Shape Revealed in the Year of the Snake

SummaryParkin is an E3 ubiquitin ligase, mutations in which are responsible for autosomal recessive juvenile parkinsonism. Recently, several structures of Parkin have been solved, revealing its serpentine shape and modes of auto-inhibition

Pair distribution functions calculated from interatomic potential models using the General Utility Lattice Program.

A new module has been developed for the widely used General Utility Lattice\ud Program (GULP). The phonon-based theory developed by Chung & Thorpe\ud [Phys. Rev. B (1999), 59, 4807–4812] to calculate pair distribution function\ud (PDF) peak widths has been utilized to give a selection of commonly used\ud correlation functions. A numerical library of neutron scattering information is\ud now available within GULP, and is used to produce results that can be\ud compared with neutron scattering experimental data. The influence of different\ud phonon modes on the PDF can be assessed by excluding modes above or below\ud a cut-off frequency. Results are presented for sample crystallographic systems,\ud MgO, SrTiO3 and -cristobalite, as well as CaxSr1xTiO3 at x = 0.5, which makes\ud use of the capability to handle partial occupancies to compare different Ca/Sr\ud ordering arrangements with a disordered model in which every Ca/Sr site has\ud 50% occupancy of both species

Estimating Pasture Intake by Cattle Using Alkanes and a Known Amount of Supplement

The alkane ratio method for estimating pasture intake involves calculating the fecal ratio of plant (endogenous) and exogenous alkanes. This method is effective for sheep, although the delivery mechanism for the exogenous alkanes has presented challenges in cattle (Charmley et al. 2003). Dove et al. (2003) have shown that the relative concentration of components in a mixed diet can be estimated from fecal alkane concentrations using least squares methods. Further, if the amount of one dietary component is known, then the amount of all components, and hence intake, can be determined. In this trial beeswax was added to barley (BWB) giving the mixture a unique alkane composition. Known amounts of this mixture were then fed to cattle grazing three sward types

The changing face of retail: Wal-Mart's effect on retail sector employment in Mexico

This study is designed to isolate Wal-Mart’s effects on the retail sector employment index in Mexico at the federal entity level. As Wal-Mart is the largest supermarket chain in Mexico and the largest private employer, the case will be made that the findings are indicative of the greater effects of the modern retail sector on the traditional retail sector. On a broader level, this paper will argue that the retailer justly serves as a representative of the Latin American Supermarket Trend, a phenomenon that has been propelled by the trade and investment liberalizations institutionalized by the ratification of NAFTA. The statistical analysis consists of various regressions using two weighted Wal-Mart store variables; as the dataset is time-series and cross-sectional, panel corrected standard errors and autocorrelation corrections are used. Controlling for economic, political, geographic, and time trends, the results indicate that Wal-Mart’s presence has a negative effect on the retail sector employment index. Furthermore, the retailer is not creating retail sales but is rather acquiring a larger piece of the retail sector pie. The entrance of one multinational corporation resulted in negative externalities in both the retail and agricultural sectors. Policy makers must consider the externalities associated with the pursuit of international economic integration and take appropriate measures for those unable to compete. Advisor: Marcus Kurtz, Ph.D. Advisor: Irfan Nooruddin, Ph.D.The Ohio State University College of Social and Behavioral Science

Phonon Band Structure and Thermal Transport Correlation in a Layered Diatomic Crystal

To elucidate the relationship between a crystal's structure, its thermal conductivity, and its phonon dispersion characteristics, an analysis is conducted on layered diatomic Lennard-Jones crystals with various mass ratios. Lattice dynamics theory and molecular dynamics simulations are used to predict the phonon dispersion curves and the thermal conductivity. The layered structure generates directionally dependent thermal conductivities lower than those predicted by density trends alone. The dispersion characteristics are quantified using a set of novel band diagram metrics, which are used to assess the contributions of acoustic phonons and optical phonons to the thermal conductivity. The thermal conductivity increases as the extent of the acoustic modes increases, and decreases as the extent of the stop bands increases. The sensitivity of the thermal conductivity to the band diagram metrics is highest at low temperatures, where there is less anharmonic scattering, indicating that dispersion plays a more prominent role in thermal transport in that regime. We propose that the dispersion metrics (i) provide an indirect measure of the relative contributions of dispersion and anharmonic scattering to the thermal transport, and (ii) uncouple the standard thermal conductivity structure-property relation to that of structure-dispersion and dispersion-property relations, providing opportunities for better understanding of the underlying physical mechanisms and a potential tool for material design.Comment: 30 pages, 10 figure