Flare observation during Max 1991 balloon campaigns

A brief overview is presented for some of the large flare properties as observed during the prime SMM flare observation interval, 1980 to 1984. Two of these properties, namely their tendency to occur in groups and the strong effects of the 154 day periodicity, can be used to increase the probability of detecting large flares during the limited observing duration of Max 1991 balloon campaigns provided the solar flare characteristics of the 1991 solar cycle follows that observed in 1980 to 1984

The 16-39 micron spectroscopy of oxygen-rich stars

Airborne observations of the 16-39 microns spectra of ten oxygen-rich stars with excess emission in the infrared was obtained. The stars show excess emission attributed to circumstellar dust grains in the 16-39 microns region in the form of a broad hump peaking near 18 microns and falling smoothly to longer wavelengths. The emission is similar in character to the emission from the Trapezium region of the Orion nebula indicating the grain materials are quite similar in these objects. The existence of a feature in the 20 microns region is consistent with the 0-Si-0 bending resonance expected for silicate material. The lack of any sharp structure in the spectra indicates the silicate is in an amorphous, disordered form. A simple model of small grains of carbonaceous chondrite silicate material in a diffuse circumstellar envelope is shown to give a good qualitative fit to the observed 8-39 microns circumstellar spectra. Comparison of the observed spectra with the model spectra indicates the grain emissivity falls as 1/lambda squared from 20 microns to 40 microns

Abundances from solar-flare gamma-ray line spectroscopy

Elemental abundances of the ambient gas at the site of gamma ray line production inthe solar atmosphere are deduced using gamma ray line observations from a solar flare. The resultant abundances are different from local galactic abundances which are thought to be similar to photospheric abundances

Testing positive for human papillomavirus in routine cervical screening: examination of psychosocial impact

Objective To examine the psychosocial impact of testing positive for high risk human papillomavirus (HPV) among women attending primary cervical screening.Design Cross sectional survey.Measures were taken at baseline and one week after the receipt of HPV and cytology screening results.Setting Well women's clinic in London, UK.Population or Sample Four hundred and twenty-eight women aged 20-64 years.Methods Postal questionnaire survey.Main outcome measures Psychosocial and psychosexual outcomes were anxiety, distress and feelings about current, past and future sexual relationships.Results Women with normal cytology who tested positive for HPV (HPVdivided by) were significantly more anxious and distressed than women who were negative (HPV-) using both a state anxiety measure [F(1,267)=29, P<0.0001] and a screening specific measure of psychological distress [F(1,267)=69, P<0.0001]. Women with an abnormal or unsatisfactory smear result, who tested HPV,. were significantly more distressed than HPV- women with the same smear result [F(1,267)=8.8, P=0.002], but there was no significant difference in state anxiety. Irrespective of cytology result, HPV women reported feeling significantly worse about their sexual relationships. Approximately one-third of women who tested positive reported feeling worse about past and future sexual relationships compared with less than 2% of HPV- women.Conclusion The findings suggest that testing positive for HPV may have an adverse psychosocial impact, with increased anxiety., distress and concern about sexual relationships. Psychosocial outcomes of HPV testing need further investigation and must be considered alongside clinical and economic decisions to include HPV testing in routine cervical screening

Solar flare gamma-ray line spectroscopy

The techniques and the results of solar elemental abundance determinations using observations of gamma ray lines from the April 27 1981 olar flare were outlined. The techniques are elaborated on and observed and the best-fitting theoretical spectra are presented. Numerical values for the photon fluences and the total number of protons involved in the thick-target production of these gamma rays are derived

A piloted simulator investigation of stability and control, display and crew-loading requirements for helicopter instrument approach. Part 1: Technical discussion and results

A ground-simulation experiment was conducted to investigate the influence and interaction of flight-control system, fight-director display, and crew-loading situation on helicopter flying qualities during terminal area operations in instrument conditions. The experiment was conducted on the Flight Simulator for Advanced Aircraft at Ames Research Center. Six levels of control complexity, ranging from angular rate damping to velocity augmented longitudinal and vertical axes, were implemented on a representative helicopter model. The six levels of augmentation were examined with display variations consisting of raw elevation and azimuth data only, and of raw data plus one-, two-, and three-cue flight directors. Crew-loading situations simulated for the control-display combinations were dual-pilot operation (representative auxiliary tasks of navigation, communications, and decision-making). Four pilots performed a total of 150 evaluations of combinations of these parameters for a representative microwave landing system (MLS) approach task