4,054 research outputs found
Invariant submanifold for series arrays of Josephson junctions
We study the nonlinear dynamics of series arrays of Josephson junctions in
the large-N limit, where N is the number of junctions in the array. The
junctions are assumed to be identical, overdamped, driven by a constant bias
current and globally coupled through a common load. Previous simulations of
such arrays revealed that their dynamics are remarkably simple, hinting at the
presence of some hidden symmetry or other structure. These observations were
later explained by the discovery of (N - 3) constants of motion, each choice of
which confines the resulting flow in phase space to a low-dimensional invariant
manifold. Here we show that the dimensionality can be reduced further by
restricting attention to a special family of states recently identified by Ott
and Antonsen. In geometric terms, the Ott-Antonsen ansatz corresponds to an
invariant submanifold of dimension one less than that found earlier. We derive
and analyze the flow on this submanifold for two special cases: an array with
purely resistive loading and another with resistive-inductive-capacitive
loading. Our results recover (and in some instances improve) earlier findings
based on linearization arguments.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figure
Contextual planning for NASA - A second workbook of alternative future environments for mission analysis, volume 1 Interim report
Contextural planning for selecting alternate NASA program
Reclaiming human machine nature
Extending and modifying his domain of life by artifact production is one of
the main characteristics of humankind. From the first hominid, who used a wood
stick or a stone for extending his upper limbs and augmenting his gesture
strength, to current systems engineers who used technologies for augmenting
human cognition, perception and action, extending human body capabilities
remains a big issue. From more than fifty years cybernetics, computer and
cognitive sciences have imposed only one reductionist model of human machine
systems: cognitive systems. Inspired by philosophy, behaviorist psychology and
the information treatment metaphor, the cognitive system paradigm requires a
function view and a functional analysis in human systems design process.
According that design approach, human have been reduced to his metaphysical and
functional properties in a new dualism. Human body requirements have been left
to physical ergonomics or "physiology". With multidisciplinary convergence, the
issues of "human-machine" systems and "human artifacts" evolve. The loss of
biological and social boundaries between human organisms and interactive and
informational physical artifact questions the current engineering methods and
ergonomic design of cognitive systems. New developpment of human machine
systems for intensive care, human space activities or bio-engineering sytems
requires grounding human systems design on a renewed epistemological framework
for future human systems model and evidence based "bio-engineering". In that
context, reclaiming human factors, augmented human and human machine nature is
a necessityComment: Published in HCI International 2014, Heraklion : Greece (2014
Cross-Modal Health State Estimation
Individuals create and consume more diverse data about themselves today than
any time in history. Sources of this data include wearable devices, images,
social media, geospatial information and more. A tremendous opportunity rests
within cross-modal data analysis that leverages existing domain knowledge
methods to understand and guide human health. Especially in chronic diseases,
current medical practice uses a combination of sparse hospital based biological
metrics (blood tests, expensive imaging, etc.) to understand the evolving
health status of an individual. Future health systems must integrate data
created at the individual level to better understand health status perpetually,
especially in a cybernetic framework. In this work we fuse multiple user
created and open source data streams along with established biomedical domain
knowledge to give two types of quantitative state estimates of cardiovascular
health. First, we use wearable devices to calculate cardiorespiratory fitness
(CRF), a known quantitative leading predictor of heart disease which is not
routinely collected in clinical settings. Second, we estimate inherent genetic
traits, living environmental risks, circadian rhythm, and biological metrics
from a diverse dataset. Our experimental results on 24 subjects demonstrate how
multi-modal data can provide personalized health insight. Understanding the
dynamic nature of health status will pave the way for better health based
recommendation engines, better clinical decision making and positive lifestyle
changes.Comment: Accepted to ACM Multimedia 2018 Conference - Brave New Ideas, Seoul,
Korea, ACM ISBN 978-1-4503-5665-7/18/1
The assessment of water use and reuse through reported data: A US case study
Increasing demands for freshwater make it necessary to find innovative ways to extend the life of our water resources, and to manage them in a sustainable way. Indirect water reuse plays a role in meeting freshwater demands but there is limited documentation of it. There is a need to analyze its current status for water resources planning and conservation, and for understanding how it potentially impacts human health. However, the fact that data are archived in discrete uncoordinated databases by different state and federal entities, limits the capacity to complete holistic analysis of critical resources at large watershed scales. Humans alter the water cycle for food production, manufacturing, energy production, provision of potable water and recreation. Ecosystems services are affected at watershed scales but there are also global scale impacts from greenhouse gas emissions enabled by access to cooling, processing and irrigation water. To better document these issues and to demonstrate the utility of such an analysis, we studied the Wabash River Watershed located in the U.S. Midwest. Data for water extraction, use, discharge, and river flow were collected, curated and reorganized in order to characterize the water use and reuse within the basin. Indirect water reuse was estimated by comparing treated wastewater discharges with stream flows at selected points within the watershed. Results show that during the low flow months of July–October, wastewater discharges into the Wabash River basin contributed 82 to 121% of the stream flow, demonstrating that the level of water use and unplanned reuse is significant. These results suggest that intentional water reuse for consumptive purposes such as landscape or agricultural irrigation could have substantial ecological impacts by diminishing stream flow during vulnerable low flow periods
Localized transverse bursts in inclined layer convection
We investigate a novel bursting state in inclined layer thermal convection in
which convection rolls exhibit intermittent, localized, transverse bursts. With
increasing temperature difference, the bursts increase in duration and number
while exhibiting a characteristic wavenumber, magnitude, and size. We propose a
mechanism which describes the duration of the observed bursting intervals and
compare our results to bursting processes in other systems.Comment: 4 pages, 8 figure
Shot-noise limited monitoring and phase locking of the motion of a single trapped ion
We perform high-resolution real-time read-out of the motion of a single
trapped and laser-cooled Ba ion. By using an interferometric setup we
demonstrate shot-noise limited measurement of thermal oscillations with
resolution of 4 times the standard quantum limit. We apply the real-time
monitoring for phase control of the ion motion through a feedback loop,
suppressing the photon recoil-induced phase diffusion. Due to the spectral
narrowing in phase-locked mode, the coherent ion oscillation is measured with
resolution of about 0.3 times the standard quantum limit
Time series analysis of water use and indirect reusewithin a HUC-4 basin (Wabash) over a nine year period
Anthropogenic water use and reuse represent major components of the water cycle. In the context of climate change, water reuse and recycling are considered necessary components for an integrated water management approach. Unplanned, or de facto, indirect water reuse occurs in most of the U.S. river systems, however, there is little real-time documentation of it. Despite the fact that there are national and state agencies that systematically collect data on water withdrawals and wastewater discharges, their databases are organized and managed in a way that makes it challenging to use them for water resource management analysis. The ability to combine reported water data to perform large scale analysis about water use and reuse is severely limited. In this paper, we apply a simple but effective methodology to complete a time series watershed-scale analysis of water use and unplanned indirect reuse for the Wabash River Watershed. Results document the occurrence of indirect water reuse, ranging from 3% to 134%, in a water-rich area of the U.S. The time series analysis shows that reported data effectively describe the water use trends through nine years, from 2009 to 2017, clearly reflecting both anthropogenic and natural events in the watershed, such as the retirement of thermoelectric power plants, and the occurrence of an extreme drought in 2012. We demonstrate the feasibility and significance of using available water datasets to perform large scale water use analysis, describe limitations encountered in the process, and highlight areas for improvement in water data management
Ageing- and dementia-friendly design: theory and evidence from cognitive psychology, neuropsychology and environmental psychology can contribute to design guidelines that minimise spatial disorientation.
Many older people, both with and without dementia, eventually move from their familiar home environments into unfamiliar surroundings, such as sheltered housing or care homes. Age-related declines in wayfinding skills can make it difficult to learn to navigate in these new, unfamiliar environments. To facilitate the transition to their new accommodation, it is therefore important to develop retirement complexes and care homes specifically designed to reduce the wayfinding difficulties of older people and those with Alzheimer's disease (AD). Residential complexes that are designed to support spatial orientation and that compensate for impaired navigation abilities would make it easier for people with dementia to adapt to their new living environment. This would improve the independence, quality of life and well-being of residents, and reduce the caregivers' workload. Based on these premises, this opinion paper considers how evidence from cognitive psychology, neuropsychology and environmental psychology can contribute to ageing- and dementia-friendly design with a view to minimising spatial disorientation. After an introduction of the cognitive mechanisms and processes involved in spatial navigation, and the changes that occur in typical and atypical ageing, research from the field of environmental psychology is considered, highlighting design factors likely to facilitate (or impair) indoor wayfinding in complex buildings. Finally, psychological theories and design knowledge are combined to suggest ageing- and dementia-friendly design guidelines that aim to minimise spatial disorientation by focusing on residual navigation skills
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