Solar sail capture trajectories at Mercury

Mercury is an ideal environment for future planetary exploration by solar sail since it has proved difficult to reach with conventional propulsion and hence remains largely unexplored. In addition, its proximity to the Sun provides a solar sail acceleration of order ten times the sail characteristic acceleration at 1 AU. Conventional capture techniques are shown to be unsuitable for solar sails and a new method is presented. It is shown that capture is bound by upper and lower limits on the orbital elements of the approach orbit and that failure to be within limits results in a catastrophic collision with the planet. These limits are presented for a range of capture inclinations and sail characteristic accelerations. It is found that sail hyperbolic excess velocity is a critical parameter during capture at Mercury, with only a narrow allowed band in order to avoid collision with the planet. The new capture methodis demonstrated for a Mercury sample return mission

Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Genetic Associations: Mostly False? A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Objective/BackgroundMany associations between abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) and genetic polymorphisms have been reported. It is unclear which are genuine and which may be caused by type 1 errors, biases, and flexible study design. The objectives of the study were to identify associations supported by current evidence and to investigate the effect of study design on reporting associations.MethodsData sources were MEDLINE, Embase, and Web of Science. Reports were dual-reviewed for relevance and inclusion against predefined criteria (studies of genetic polymorphisms and AAA risk). Study characteristics and data were extracted using an agreed tool and reports assessed for quality. Heterogeneity was assessed using I2 and fixed- and random-effects meta-analyses were conducted for variants that were reported at least twice, if any had reported an association. Strength of evidence was assessed using a standard guideline.ResultsSearches identified 467 unique articles, of which 97 were included. Of 97 studies, 63 reported at least one association. Of 92 studies that conducted multiple tests, only 27% corrected their analyses. In total, 263 genes were investigated, and associations were reported in polymorphisms in 87 genes. Associations in CDKN2BAS, SORT1, LRP1, IL6R, MMP3, AGTR1, ACE, and APOA1 were supported by meta-analyses.ConclusionUncorrected multiple testing and flexible study design (particularly testing many inheritance models and subgroups, and failure to check for Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium) contributed to apparently false associations being reported. Heterogeneity, possibly due to the case mix, geographical, temporal, and environmental variation between different studies, was evident. Polymorphisms in nine genes had strong or moderate support on the basis of the literature at this time. Suggestions are made for improving AAA genetics study design and conduct

Observations and Empirical Scalings of the High-Confinement Mode Pedestal on Alcator C-Mod

and disposal, in whole or in part, by or for the United States government is permitted. Observations and empirical scalings of the high-confinement mode pedestal on Alcator C-Mod J.W. Hughes, D.A. Mossessian, A.E. Hubbard, B. LaBombard, E.S. Marmar On the Alcator C-Mod tokamak [Phys. Plasmas 1, 1511, (1994)], radial pro-files of electron temperature (Te) and density (ne) are measured at the plasma edge with millimeter resolution Thomson scattering [Rev. Sci. Instrum. 72, 1107 (2001)]. Edge transport barriers in the high confinement regime (H-mode) exhibit Te, ne pedestals with typical widths of 2–6 mm, with the Te pedestal on average slightly wider than and inside the ne pedestal. Measure-ments at both the top and the base of the pedestal are consistent with profiles obtained using other diagnostics. The two primary H-mode regimes on C-Mod, enhanced Dα (EDA) and edge-localized mode free (ELM-free), have been ex-amined for differences in pedestals. EDA operation is favored by high edge collisionality ν, in addition to high edge safety factor q95. Scaling studies at fixed shape yield little systematic variation of pedestal widths with plasma parameters, though higher triangularity is seen to increase the ne pedestal width dramatically. Pedestal heights and gradients show the clearest depen-dencies on plasma control parameters. Pedestal ne and Te both scale linearly with plasma current IP, while pedestal Te depends strongly on power flowing from the core plasma into the scrape-off layer PSOL. The electron pressure (pe) pedestal and pe gradient both scale with I 2 P

Planning for coopetition to mitigate risks: Findings from three studies

In an economic environment characterized by competitive intensity and uncertainty, many companies are turning to inter-organizational cooperation to acquire key resources and capabilities, and to share risk. Increasingly, some of these collaborations are undertaken with competitors (and labelled coopetition). Coopetition therefore is emerging as an attractive strategy to achieve economies of scale, obtain complementary resources, advance knowledge, and reduce distribution risks. However, coopetition can also be characterized by opportunistic behaviors and lack of trust between partners, which can hinder any positive effects that coopetition may have on organizational performance. The current study explores the decision-making process employed when establishing coopetition, while addressing the potential impact on both risks mitigation, and long term strategy. Our findings reveal two approaches to coopetition planning, namely formal and personal. Each approach bears a different impact on risks and future strategy