Technique for experimental determination of radiation interchange factors in solar wavelengths

Process obtains solar heating data which support analytical design. Process yields quantitative information on local solar exposure of models which are geometrically and reflectively similar to prototypes under study. Models are tested in a shirtsleeve environment

Pioneer Venus probe design

The summary provides descriptions for a set of probes designed to explore an inner rather than an outer planet, and designed to survive to 100 bars rather than 10 bars. The probes carry a variety of scientific instruments and their supporting integrated subsystems are adjusted to Venus environmental conditions

BLACK BEAR DAMAGE MANAGEMENT IN WASHINGTON STATE

Black bears (Ursus americanus) foraging on trees can be extremely detrimental to the health and economic value of a timber stand. A supplemental feeding program to reduce bear damage is coordinated by the Washington Forest Protection Association\u27s Animal Damage Control Program (ADCP). A brief overview of the ADCP is provided along with a description of bear damage and the supplemental feeding program. Success of the feeding program is demonstrated by an increasing participation and its general acceptance by the public. Timber producers placed over 400 thousand pounds of pellets in 700 feeding stations this past year

BLACK BEAR DAMAGE MANAGEMENT IN WASHINGTON STATE

Black bears (Ursus americanus) foraging on trees can be extremely detrimental to the health and economic value of a timber stand. A supplemental feeding program to reduce bear damage is coordinated by the Washington Forest Protection Association\u27s Animal Damage Control Program (ADCP). A brief overview of the ADCP is provided along with a description of bear damage and the supplemental feeding program. Success of the feeding program is demonstrated by an increasing participation and its general acceptance by the public. Timber producers placed over 400 thousand pounds of pellets in 700 feeding stations this past year

Validation of a statistical shape model-based 2D/3D reconstruction method for determination of cup orientation after THA

Purpose: The aim of this study was to validate the accuracy and reproducibility of a statistical shape model-based 2D/3D reconstruction method for determining cup orientation after total hip arthroplasty. With a statistical shape model, this method allows reconstructing a patient-specific 3D-model of the pelvis from a standard AP X-ray radiograph. Cup orientation (inclination and anteversion) is then calculated with respect to the anterior pelvic plane that is derived from the reconstructed model. Materials and methods: The validation study was conducted retrospectively on datasets of 29 patients (31 hips). Among them, there were 15 men (15 hips) and 14 women (16 hips). The average age of the patients was 69.4±8.5(49−82) years. Each dataset has one postoperative X-ray radiograph and one postoperative CT scan. The postoperative CT scan for each patient was used to establish the ground truth for the cup orientation. The cup anteversion and inclination that were calculated from the 2D/3D reconstruction method were compared to the associated ground truth. To validate reproducibility and reliability, two observers performed measurements for each dataset twice in order to measure the reproducibility and the reliability of the 2D/3D reconstruction method. Results: Our validation study demonstrated a mean accuracy of 0.4 ± 1.8°(−2.6° to 3.3°) for inclination and a mean accuracy of 0.6±1.5°(−2.0° to 3.9°) for anteversion. Through the Bland-Altman analysis, no systematic errors in accuracy were detected. The method showed very good consistency for both parameters. Conclusions: Our validation results demonstrate that the statistical shape model-based 2D/3D reconstruction-based method is an accurate, consistent, and reproducible technique to measure cup orientation from postoperative X-ray radiographs. The best results were achieved with radiographs including the bilateral anterior superior iliac spines and the cranial part of non-fractured pelvise

Nondegenerate Fermions in the Background of the Sphaleron Barrier

We consider level crossing in the background of the sphaleron barrier for nondegenerate fermions. The mass splitting within the fermion doublets allows only for an axially symmetric ansatz for the fermion fields. In the background of the sphaleron we solve the partial differential equations for the fermion functions. We find little angular dependence for our choice of ansatz. We therefore propose a good approximate ansatz with radial functions only. We generalize this approximate ansatz with radial functions only to fermions in the background of the sphaleron barrier and argue, that it is a good approximation there, too.Comment: LATEX, 20 pages, 11 figure

Assessing the Efficacy of Chlorophacinone for Mountain Beaver (\u3ci\u3eAplodontia rufa\u3c/i\u3e) Control

The mountain beaver is a fossorial rodent species endemic to the Pacific Northwest and portions of California. This herbivore is managed as a pest species because of the impact it has on newly planted Douglas-fir seedlings. Currently, managers are limited to trapping for population control; however, in Washington trapping has been further curtailed by anti-trapping legislation. Presently there are no registered underground toxicants for mountain beaver control. We have documented the efficacy of chlorophacinone, presented in daily doses, as a possible alternative for mountain beaver control. Daily baiting would be unreasonable and costly alternative for timber managers, so we conducted a series of tests to determine if a single or double baiting was efficacious. In addition, we tested the caching behavior of the mountain beaver when offered bags of oats. This behavior may help reduce impacts to non-target species as well reduce environmental exposure and degradation. Mountain beaver readily cached bags of chlorophacinone within their artificial burrows, and efficacy of a one-lime and two-time dose was 100%. We determined that even with the highest chlorophacinone residuals (0.354 ppm) that the risk quotient for mink and red-tailed hawk was exactly at the level of concern that EPA recognizes for endangered and threatened species

Assessing the Efficacy of Chlorophacinone for Mountain Beaver (\u3ci\u3eAplodontia rufa\u3c/i\u3e) Control

The mountain beaver is a fossorial rodent species endemic to the Pacific Northwest and portions of California. This herbivore is managed as a pest species because of the impact it has on newly planted Douglas-fir seedlings. Currently, managers are limited to trapping for population control; however, in Washington trapping has been further curtailed by anti-trapping legislation. Presently there are no registered underground toxicants for mountain beaver control. We have documented the efficacy of chlorophacinone, presented in daily doses, as a possible alternative for mountain beaver control. Daily baiting would be unreasonable and costly alternative for timber managers, so we conducted a series of tests to determine if a single or double baiting was efficacious. In addition, we tested the caching behavior of the mountain beaver when offered bags of oats. This behavior may help reduce impacts to non-target species as well reduce environmental exposure and degradation. Mountain beaver readily cached bags of chlorophacinone within their artificial burrows, and efficacy of a one-lime and two-time dose was 100%. We determined that even with the highest chlorophacinone residuals (0.354 ppm) that the risk quotient for mink and red-tailed hawk was exactly at the level of concern that EPA recognizes for endangered and threatened species

IMPACTS OF SUPPLEMENTAL FEEDING ON THE NUTRITIONAL ECOLOGY OF BLACK BEARS

Black bear (Ursus americanus) damage to managed conifer stands during the spring in the U.S. Pacific Northwest is a continuing management concern. Because bear damage to managed conifers may reflect the limited availability of nutritious foods, supplemental feeding has been used to decrease damage. Highly palatable, pelleted feed is provided ad libitum from April until late June when berries ripen and such damage stops. We examined black bear use of supplemental feed during the spring and summer of 1998 and 1999 in western Washington. Bears were captured in areas where supplemental feed was provided and in control areas where no effort to reduce conifer damage occurred. Mass gains for bears captured twice were 153 ± 119 g/day (x̅± SD) in the fed areas and 12 ± 104 g/day in non-fed areas. Fat gain for bears in the fed areas was 42 ± 50 g/day and 4 ± 59 g/day in the non-fed areas. However, because age-specific body masses and fat content did not differ between the 2 areas, short-term pellet feeding probably has no long-lasting effect on bear condition or productivity. The diet of bears in the fed areas was 55 ± 22% pelleted feed, 7 ± 7% animal matter, and 38 ± 18% vegetation. The diet of bears in the non-fed areas was 13 ± 17% animal matter and 87 ± 17% vegetation. Grass and sedge composed the majority of vegetation consumed in both areas. The energy content of Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) and western hemlock ( Tsuga heterophylla) sapwood was more digestible (60-67%) than grasses and forbs (18-47%). Smaller bears (adult females and subadult males and females) may do most of the damage because sapwood harvesting rates minimize nutritional gain to larger adult males