Exploring the complexity of social experience, as a communication design practitioner, through collaborative projects

This study investigates complexity in relation to social, cultural and political experience. Central to this study is a belief in the cultural importance of discussion and critique of social, cultural and political constructs. It is an aim of this research to investigate how contemporary communication design can utilise complexity to generate discursive, complex and engaging projects that provoke debate and allow a plurality of positions to emerge. In reaction to the predominantly reductionist practice of graphic design, and in particular to the ready simplification of Adbusters and predominant notions of culture-jamming, this research positions complexity as a necessary virtue for fostering pluralist discussion. As project-based research, complex communication projects are approached through collaborative methodologies to investigate the initiation and design of emergent social, cultural and political dialogue. The projects that have either emerged from or been part of this research include Is Not Magazine (a hybrid literary magazine/broadside street poster/zine) and Dear John (a web-based, viral political campaign intended to contribute to the defeat of John Howard, Prime Minister of Australia, in the 2004 federal election

Novel Dynamical Resonances in Finite-Temperature Bose-Einstein Condensates

We describe a variety of intriguing mode-coupling effects which can occur in a confined Bose-Einstein condensed system at finite temperature. These arise from strong interactions between a condensate fluctuation and resonances of the thermal cloud yielding strongly non-linear behaviour. We show how these processes can be affected by altering the aspect ratio of the trap, thereby changing the relevant mode-matching conditions. We illustrate how direct driving of the thermal cloud can lead to significant shifts in the excitation spectrum for a number of modes and provide further experimental scenarios in which the dramatic behaviour observed for the $m=0$ mode at JILA (Jin {\it et al.} 1997) can be repeated. Our theoretical description is based on a successful second-order finite-temperature quantum field theory which includes the full coupled dynamics of the condensate and thermal cloud and all relevant finite-size effects

Compositional nanodomain formation in hybrid formate perovskites

We report the synthesis and structural characterisation of three mixed-metal formate perovskite families [C(NH$_2$)$_3$]M$_{1-x}$Cu$_x$(HCOO)$_3$ (M = Mn, Zn, Mg). Using a combination of infrared spectroscopy, non-negative matrix factorization, and reverse Monte Carlo refinement, we show that the Mn- and Zn-containing compounds support compositional nanodomains resembling the polar nanoregions of conventional relaxor ferroelectrics. The M = Mg family exhibits a miscibility gap that we suggest reflects the limiting behaviour of nanodomain formation.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

A PVC Detection Program

journal articleBiomedical Informatic

The ozonolysis of primary aliphatic amines in fine particles

International audienceThe oxidative processing by ozone of the particulate amines octadecylamine (ODA) and hexadecylamine (HDA) is reported. Ozonolysis of these amines resulted in strong NO2? and NO3? ion signals that increased with ozone exposure as monitored by photoelectron resonance capture ionization aerosol mass spectrometry. These products suggest a mechanism of progressive oxidation of the particulate amines to nitroalkanes. Additionally, a strong ion signal at 125 m/z is assigned to the ion NO3? (HNO3). For ozonized mixed particles containing ODA or HDA + oleic acid (OL), with pO3?3×10?7 atm, imine, secondary amide, and tertiary amide products were measured. These products most likely arise from reactions of amines with aldehydes (for imines) and stabilized Criegee intermediates (SCI) or secondary ozonides (for amides) from the fatty acid. The routes to amides via SCI and/or secondary ozonides were shown to be more important than comparable amide forming reactions between amines and organic acids, using azelaic acid as a test compound. Finally, direct evidence is provided for the formation of a surface barrier in the ODA + OL reaction system that resulted in the retention of OL at high ozone exposures (up to 10?3 atm for 17 s). This effect was not observed in HDA + OL or single component OL particles, suggesting that it may be a species-specific surfactant effect from an in situ generated amide or imine. Implications to tropospheric chemistry, including particle bound amines as sources of oxidized gas phase nitrogen species (e.g.~NO2, NO3), formation of nitrogen enriched HULIS via ozonolysis of amines and source apportionment are discussed

The ozonolysis of primary aliphatic amines in single and multicomponent fine particles

International audienceThe oxidative processing by ozone of the particulate amines octadecylamine (ODA) and hexadecylamine (HDA) is reported. Ozonolysis of these amines resulted in strong NO2? and NO3? ion signals that increased with ozone exposure as monitored by photoelectron resonance capture ionization aerosol mass spectrometry. These products suggest a mechanism of progressive oxidation of the particulate amines to nitro alkanes. Additionally, a strong ion signal at 125 m/z is assigned to the ion NO3?(HNO3). For ozonized mixed particles containing ODA or HDA + oleic acid (OL), with pO3?3×10?7 atm, imine, secondary amide, and tertiary amide products were measured. These products most likely arise from reactions of amines with aldehydes (for imines) and stabilized Criegee intermediates (SCI) or secondary ozonides (for amides) from the fatty acid. The routes to amides via SCI and/or secondary ozonides was shown to be more important than comparable amide forming reactions between amines and organic acids, using azelaic acid as a test compound. Finally, direct evidence is provided for the formation of a surface barrier in the ODA + OL reaction system that resulted in the retention of OL at high ozone exposures (up to 10?3 atm for 17 s). This effect was not observed in HDA + OL or single component OL particles, suggesting that it may be a species-specific surfactant effect from an in situ generated amide or imine. Implications to tropospheric chemistry, including particle bound amines as sources of oxidized gas phase nitrogen species (e.g. NO2, NO3), formation of nitrogen enriched HULIS via ozonolysis of amines and source apportionment are discussed

Effects of Hyperbolic Rotation in Minkowski Space on the Modeling of Plasma Accelerators in a Lorentz Boosted Frame

Laser driven plasma accelerators promise much shorter particle accelerators but their development requires detailed simulations that challenge or exceed current capabilities. We report the first direct simulations of stages up to 1 TeV from simulations using a Lorentz boosted calculation frame resulting in a million times speedup, thanks to a frame boost as high as gamma=1300. Effects of the hyperbolic rotation in Minkowski space resulting from the frame boost on the laser propagation in the plasma is shown to be key in the mitigation of a numerical instability that was limiting previous attempts

Laser-heater assisted plasma channel formation in capillary discharge waveguides

A method of creating plasma channels with controllable depth and transverse profile for the guiding of short, high power laser pulses for efficient electron acceleration is proposed. The plasma channel produced by the hydrogen-filled capillary discharge waveguide is modified by a ns-scale laser pulse, which heats the electrons near the capillary axis. This interaction creates a deeper plasma channel within the capillary discharge that evolves on a ns-time scale, allowing laser beams with smaller spot sizes than would otherwise be possible in the unmodified capillary discharge.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure