Improved control system power unit for large parachutes

Improved control system power unit drives the control surfaces of very large controllable parachutes. The design features subassemblies for determining control surface position and cable loading, and protection of the load sensor against the possibility of damage during manipulation

Adherence of Prime-Time Television Advertising Disclosures to the “Clear and Conspicuous Standard: 1990 vs. 2002

In 1990, one-fourth of all national television commercials contained disclosures, yet none of the disclosures adhered to all of the Federal Trade Commission\u27s clear and conspicuous standard (CCS). As a result of marketplace changes and a 2001 Federal Trade Commission and National Advertising Division joint workshop, the authors anticipate an increase in the number of disclosures and greater adherence to the CCS. The authors find a significant increase in disclosure incidence; however, adherence declines or remains unchanged for most individual guidelines. Finally, the authors provide public policy implications and offer suggestions to increase adherence to the CCS

Line cutter Patent

Piston in bore cutter for severing parachute control lines and sealing cable hole to prevent water leakage into loa

Winch having cable position and load indicators Patent

Design and characteristics of device for showing amount of cable payed out from winch and load impose

Discrete local altitude sensing device Patent

Device for use in descending spacecraft as altitude sensor for actuating deceleration retrorocket

Cyclic Ruthenium-Alkylidene Catalysts for Ring-Expansion Metathesis Polymerization

A series of cyclic Ru-alkylidene catalysts have been prepared and evaluated for their efficiency in ring-expansion metathesis polymerization (REMP). The catalyst structures feature chelating tethers extending from one N-atom of an N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) ligand to the Ru metal center. The catalyst design is modular in nature, which provided access to Ru complexes having varying tether lengths, as well as electronically different NHC ligands. Structural impacts of the tether length were unveiled through 1H NMR spectroscopy as well as single-crystal X-ray analyses. Catalyst activities were evaluated via polymerization of cyclooctene, and key data are provided regarding propagation rates, intramolecular chain transfer, and catalyst stabilities, three areas necessary for the efficient synthesis of cyclic poly(olefin)s via REMP. From these studies, it was determined that while increasing the tether length of the catalyst leads to enhanced rates of polymerization, shorter tethers were found to facilitate intramolecular chain transfer and release of catalyst from the polymer. Electronic modification of the NHC via backbone saturation was found to enhance polymerization rates to a greater extent than did homologation of the tether. Overall, cyclic Ru complexes bearing 5- or 6-carbon tethers and saturated NHC ligands were found to be readily synthesized, bench-stable, and highly active catalysts for REMP

Entertainment Industry Ratings Disclosures and the Clear and Conspicuous Standard

This study examined entertainment ratings disclosures against the Federal Trade Commission\u27s (FTC’s) Clear and Conspicuous Standard (CCS). In their investigation of marketing of violent entertainment to youth, the FTC advocated that the motion picture, music recording, and electronic games industries focus on “ensuring that the rating … and the reasons for the rating … are effectively and clearly communicated to parents” (p. 31). An investigation of a week of prime-time television commercials across six networks revealed that with the exception of dual modality presentation of the letter rating, ratings disclosure information is often incomplete and falls far short of meeting the FTC\u27s CCS. We offer recommendations to the entertainment industry to address these shortcomings

Factors Dictating Carbene Formation at (PNP)Ir

The mechanistic subtleties involved with the interaction of an amido/bis(phosphine)-supported (PNP)Ir fragment with a series of linear and cyclic ethers have been investigated using density functional theory. Our analysis has revealed the factors dictating reaction direction toward either an iridium-supported carbene or a vinyl ether adduct. The (PNP)Ir structure will allow carbene formation only from accessible carbons α to the ethereal oxygen, such that d electron back-donation from the metal to the carbene ligand is possible. Should these conditions be unavailable, the main competing pathway to form vinyl ether can occur, but only if the (PNP)Ir framework does not sterically interfere with the reacting ether. In situations where steric hindrance prevents unimpeded access to both pathways, the reaction may progress to the initial C−H activation but no further. Our mechanistic analysis is density functional independent and whenever possible confirmed experimentally by trapping intermediate species experimentally. We have also highlighted an interesting systematic error present in the DFT analysis of reactions where steric environment alters considerably within a reaction