19,458 research outputs found
Experimental archeology and serious games: challenges of inhabiting virtual heritage
Experimental archaeology has long yielded valuable insights into the tools and techniques that featured in past peoplesâ relationship with the material world around them. However, experimental archaeology has, hitherto, confined itself to rigid, empirical and quantitative questions. This paper applies principles of experimental archaeology and serious gaming tools in the reconstructions of a British Iron Age Roundhouse. The paper explains a number of experiments conducted to look for quantitative differences in movement in virtual vs material environments using both âvirtualâ studio reconstruction as well as material reconstruction. The data from these experiments was then analysed to look for differences in movement which could be attributed to artefacts and/or environments. The paper explains the structure of the experiments, how the data was generated, what theories may make sense of the data, what conclusions have been drawn and how serious gaming tools can support the creation of new experimental heritage environments
On the Use of Group Theoretical and Graphical Techniques toward the Solution of the General N-body Problem
Group theoretic and graphical techniques are used to derive the N-body wave
function for a system of identical bosons with general interactions through
first-order in a perturbation approach. This method is based on the maximal
symmetry present at lowest order in a perturbation series in inverse spatial
dimensions. The symmetric structure at lowest order has a point group
isomorphic with the S_N group, the symmetric group of N particles, and the
resulting perturbation expansion of the Hamiltonian is order-by-order invariant
under the permutations of the S_N group. This invariance under S_N imposes
severe symmetry requirements on the tensor blocks needed at each order in the
perturbation series. We show here that these blocks can be decomposed into a
basis of binary tensors invariant under S_N. This basis is small (25 terms at
first order in the wave function), independent of N, and is derived using
graphical techniques. This checks the N^6 scaling of these terms at first order
by effectively separating the N scaling problem away from the rest of the
physics. The transformation of each binary tensor to the final normal
coordinate basis requires the derivation of Clebsch-Gordon coefficients of S_N
for arbitrary N. This has been accomplished using the group theory of the
symmetric group. This achievement results in an analytic solution for the wave
function, exact through first order, that scales as N^0, effectively
circumventing intensive numerical work. This solution can be systematically
improved with further analytic work by going to yet higher orders in the
perturbation series.Comment: This paper was submitted to the Journal of Mathematical physics, and
is under revie
Experimental Wear Modelling of Lifeboat Slipway Launches
It is necessary to use an inclined slipway to launch lifeboats in locations where there is no natural harbour. Slipway stations consist of an initial roller section followed by an inclined keelway, the lifeboat is released from the top of the slipway and proceeds under its own weight into the water. Contact is between the lifeboat keel and a lined, greased keelway and this that determines the friction along the slipway. This paper describes a bench test methodology to investigate this contact. The selection of a modified TE57 reciprocating tribometer and design of a modified pin on plate arrangement is discussed. A test schedule for both the original nickel/chromium coated steel lining and the new low-friction jute fibre/phenolic resin composite lining is developed to accurately reflect real world conditions including environmental contamination such as seawater or wind-blown sand. Environmentally conscious lubricants including water and bio-greases are investigated and compared for their effects in reducing slipway panel friction and wear. Experimental data is collected to establish wear mechanisms, wear volumes and friction characteristics for a range of lubricants and environmental contaminants for the two most common lifeboat keelway lining materials. Implications of this research for future lifeboat slipway design are discussed
Observational manifestations of solar magneto-convection -- center-to-limb variation
We present the first center-to-limb G-band images synthesized from high
resolution simulations of solar magneto-convection. Towards the limb the
simulations show "hilly" granulation with dark bands on the far side, bright
granulation walls and striated faculae, similar to observations. At disk center
G-band bright points are flanked by dark lanes. The increased brightness in
magnetic elements is due to their lower density compared with the surrounding
intergranular medium. One thus sees deeper layers where the temperature is
higher. At a given geometric height, the magnetic elements are cooler than the
surrounding medium. In the G-band, the contrast is further increased by the
destruction of CH in the low density magnetic elements. The optical depth unity
surface is very corrugated. Bright granules have their continuum optical depth
unity 80 km above the mean surface, the magnetic elements 200-300 km below. The
horizontal temperature gradient is especially large next to flux
concentrations. When viewed at an angle, the deep magnetic elements optical
surface is hidden by the granules and the bright points are no longer visible,
except where the "magnetic valleys" are aligned with the line of sight. Towards
the limb, the low density in the strong magnetic elements causes unit
line-of-sight optical depth to occur deeper in the granule walls behind than
for rays not going through magnetic elements and variations in the field
strength produce a striated appearance in the bright granule walls.Comment: To appear in ApJL. 6 pages 4 figure
Evaluating the Applicability of the Fokker-Planck Equation in Polymer Translocation: A Brownian Dynamics Study
Brownian dynamics (BD) simulations are used to study the translocation
dynamics of a coarse-grained polymer through a cylindrical nanopore. We
consider the case of short polymers, with a polymer length, N, in the range
N=21-61. The rate of translocation is controlled by a tunable friction
coefficient, gamma_{0p}, for monomers inside the nanopore. In the case of
unforced translocation, the mean translocation time scales with polymer length
N as ~ (N-N_p)^alpha, where N_p is the average number of monomers in the
nanopore. The exponent approaches the value alpha=2 when the pore friction is
sufficiently high, in accord with the prediction for the case of the
quasi-static regime where pore friction dominates. In the case of forced
translocation, the polymer chain is stretched and compressed on the cis and
trans sides, respectively, for low gamma_{0p}. However, the chain approaches
conformational quasi-equilibrium for sufficiently large gamma_{0p}. In this
limit the observed scaling of with driving force and chain length
supports the FP prediction that is proportional to N/f_d for sufficiently
strong driving force. Monte Carlo simulations are used to calculate
translocation free energy functions for the system. The free energies are used
with the Fokker-Planck equation to calculate translocation time distributions.
At sufficiently high gamma_{0p}, the predicted distributions are in excellent
agreement with those calculated from the BD simulations. Thus, the FP equation
provides a valid description of translocation dynamics for sufficiently high
pore friction for the range of polymer lengths considered here. Increasing N
will require a corresponding increase in pore friction to maintain the validity
of the FP approach. Outside the regime of low N and high pore friction, the
polymer is out of equilibrium, and the FP approach is not valid.Comment: 13 pages, 11 figure
Inverse opal ceriaâzirconia: architectural engineering for heterogeneous catalysis
The application of inverse opal structured materials is extended to the ceriaâzirconia (Ce_(0.5)Zr_(0.5)O_2) system and the significance of material architecture on heterogeneous catalysis, specifically, chemical oxidation, is examined
Synthesis and Properties of Dipyridylcyclopentenes
A short and general route to the substituted dipyridylcyclopentenes was explored and several new compounds belonging to this new group of diarylethenes were synthesized. The study of their photochromic and thermochromic properties shows that the rate of the thermal ring opening is strongly dependent on the polarity of the solvent.
Analytic, Group-Theoretic Density Profiles for Confined, Correlated N-Body Systems
Confined quantum systems involving identical interacting particles are to
be found in many areas of physics, including condensed matter, atomic and
chemical physics. A beyond-mean-field perturbation method that is applicable,
in principle, to weakly, intermediate, and strongly-interacting systems has
been set forth by the authors in a previous series of papers. Dimensional
perturbation theory was used, and in conjunction with group theory, an analytic
beyond-mean-field correlated wave function at lowest order for a system under
spherical confinement with a general two-body interaction was derived. In the
present paper, we use this analytic wave function to derive the corresponding
lowest-order, analytic density profile and apply it to the example of a
Bose-Einstein condensate.Comment: 15 pages, 2 figures, accepted by Physics Review A. This document was
submitted after responding to a reviewer's comment
The Kinematics and Physical Conditions pf the Ionized Gas in Markarian 509. II. STIS Echelle Observations
We present observations of the UV absorption lines in the luminous Seyfert 1
galaxy Mrk 509, obtained with the medium resolution (lambda/Delta-lambda ~
40,000) echelle gratings of the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph on the
Hubble Space Telescope. The spectra reveal the presence of eight kinematic
components of absorption in Ly-alpha, C IV, and N V, at radial velocities of
-422, -328, -259, -62, -22, +34, +124, and +210 km s^-1 with respect to an
emission-line redshift of z = 0.03440, seven of which were detected in an
earlier Far Ultraviolet Spectrographic Explorer (FUSE) spectrum. The component
at -22 km s^-1 also shows absorption by Si IV. The covering factor and velocity
width of the Si IV lines were lower than those of the higher ionization lines
for this component, which is evidence for two separate absorbers at this
velocity. We have calculated photoionization models to match the UV column
densities in each of these components. Using the predicted O VI column
densities, we were able to match the O VI profiles observed in the FUSE
spectrum. Based on our results, none of the UV absorbers can produce the X-ray
absorption seen in simultaneous Chandra observations; therefore, there must be
more highly ionized gas in the radial velocity ranges covered by the UV
absorbers.Comment: 30 pages, three figures (Figure 1 is in color). Accepted for
publication in the Astrophysical Journa
- âŠ