Preliminary analysis of a downsized advanced gas-turbine engine in a subcompact car

Relative fuel economy advantages exist for a ceramic turbine engine when it is downsized for a small car were investigated. A 75 kW (100 hp) single shaft engine under development was analytically downsized to 37 kW (50 hp) and analyzed with a metal belt continuously variable transmission in a synthesized car. With gasoline, a 25% advantage was calculated over that of a current spark ignition engine, scaled to the same power, using the same transmission and car. With diesel fuel, a 21% advantage was calculated over that of a similar diesel engine vehicle

A class of well-posed parabolic final value problems

This paper focuses on parabolic final value problems, and well-posedness is proved for a large class of these. The clarification is obtained from Hilbert spaces that characterise data that give existence, uniqueness and stability of the solutions. The data space is the graph normed domain of an unbounded operator that maps final states to the corresponding initial states. It induces a new compatibility condition, depending crucially on the fact that analytic semigroups always are invertible in the class of closed operators. Lax--Milgram operators in vector distribution spaces constitute the main framework. The final value heat conduction problem on a smooth open set is also proved to be well posed, and non-zero Dirichlet data are shown to require an extended compatibility condition obtained by adding an improper Bochner integral.Comment: 16 pages. To appear in "Applied and numerical harmonic analysis"; a reference update. Conference contribution, based on arXiv:1707.02136, with some further development

Recombination of H3+ Ions in the Afterglow of a He-Ar-H2 Plasma

Recombination of H3+ with electrons was studied in a low temperature plasma in helium. The plasma recombination rate is driven by two body, H3+ + e, and three-body, H3+ + e + He, processes with the rate coefficients 7.5x10^{-8}cm3/s and 2.8x10^{-25}cm6/s correspondingly at 260K. The two-body rate coefficient is in excellent agreement with results from storage ring experiments and theoretical calculations. We suggest that the three-body recombination involves formation of highly excited Rydberg neutral H3 followed by an l- or m- changing collision with He. Plasma electron spectroscopy indicates the presence of H3.Comment: 4 figure

Socio-economic and lifestyle factors associated with the risk of prostate cancer

International and interethnic differences in prostate cancer incidence suggest an environmental aetiology, and lifestyle and socio-economic factors have been studied, but with divergent results. Information on a cohort of 22 895 Norwegian men aged 40 years and more was obtained from a health examination and two self-administered questionnaires. Information on incident cases of prostate cancer was made available from the Cancer Registry. We used the Cox proportional hazards model to calculate incidence rate ratios as estimates of the relative risk (RR) with 95% confidence interval (CI). Reported P -values are two-sided. During a mean follow-up of 9.3 years, 644 cases were diagnosed. Risk was elevated among men in occupations of high compared to low socio-economic status (RR = 1.30; 95% CI 1.05–1.61), and among men with high education compared to the least educated (RR = 1.56; 95% CI 1.11–2.19). A RR of 1.56 (95% CI 0.97–2.44) suggests a higher risk among divorced or separated men, compared with married men. We also found indications of a weak negative association with leisure-time physical activity (RR = 0.80; 95% CI 0.62–1.03 for high vs low activity), a weak positive association with increasing number of cigarettes (P = 0.046), while alcohol consumption was not related to the risk of prostate cancer. These results show that high socio-economic status is associated with increased risk of prostate cancer, and that divorced or separated men might be at higher risk than married men. Data from this study also indicate that high levels of physical activity may reduce prostate cancer risk. © 2000 Cancer Research Campaig

Effect of screen-induced total-pressure distortion on axial-flow compressor stability

An experimental investigation was made to determine the effects of screen-induced total-pressure distortions on two J85-GE-13 turbojet engines. Results were compared to those from a previous program run with a third engine. All compressors were found to be sensitive to a critical angle of circumferential distortion equal to 60 deg., and they all adhered closely to the parallel compressor model. The sensitivity of compressor exit pressure to virtually any type of distortion pattern can be determined by defining stall lines for undistorted, hub radial distorted, and tip radial distorted inflows. The effect of multiple sectors of circumferential distortion is defined

No alignment of cattle along geomagnetic field lines found

This paper presents a study of the body orientation of domestic cattle on free pastures in several European states, based on Google satellite photographs. In sum, 232 herds with 3412 individuals were evaluated. Two independent groups participated in our study and came to the same conclusion that, in contradiction to the recent findings of other researchers, no alignment of the animals and of their herds along geomagnetic field lines could be found. Several possible reasons for this discrepancy should be taken into account: poor quality of Google satellite photographs, difficulties in determining the body axis, selection of herds or animals within herds, lack of blinding in the evaluation, possible subconscious bias, and, most importantly, high sensitivity of the calculated main directions of the Rayleigh vectors to some kind of bias or to some overlooked or ignored confounder. This factor could easily have led to an unsubstantiated positive conclusion about the existence of magnetoreception.Comment: Added electronic supplement with source dat

Temperature dependence of binary and ternary recombination of H3+ ions with electron

We study binary and the recently discovered process of ternary He-assisted recombination of H3+ ions with electrons in a low temperature afterglow plasma. The experiments are carried out over a broad range of pressures and temperatures of an afterglow plasma in a helium buffer gas. Binary and He-assisted ternary recombination are observed and the corresponding recombination rate coefficients are extracted for temperatures from 77 K to 330 K. We describe the observed ternary recombination as a two-step mechanism: First, a rotationally-excited long-lived neutral molecule H3* is formed in electron-H3+ collisions. Second, the H3* molecule collides with a helium atom that leads to the formation of a very long-lived Rydberg state with high orbital momentum. We present calculations of the lifetimes of H3* and of the ternary recombination rate coefficients for para and ortho-H3+. The calculations show a large difference between the ternary recombination rate coefficients of ortho- and para-H3+ at temperatures below 300 K. The measured binary and ternary rate coefficients are in reasonable agreement with the calculated values.Comment: 15 page

Candidate genes mediating magnetoreception in rainbow trout ( Oncorhynchus mykiss )

Diverse animals use Earth's magnetic field in orientation and navigation, but little is known about the molecular mechanisms that underlie magnetoreception. Recent studies have focused on two possibilities: (i) magnetite-based receptors; and (ii) biochemical reactions involving radical pairs. We used RNA sequencing to examine gene expression in the brain of rainbow trout ( Oncorhynchus mykiss ) after exposure to a magnetic pulse known to disrupt magnetic orientation behaviour. We identified 181 differentially expressed genes, including increased expression of six copies of the frim gene, which encodes a subunit of the universal iron-binding and trafficking protein ferritin. Functions linked to the oxidative effects of free iron (e.g. oxidoreductase activity, transition metal ion binding, mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation) were also affected. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that a magnetic pulse alters or damages magnetite-based receptors and/or other iron-containing structures, which are subsequently repaired or replaced through processes involving ferritin. Additionally, some genes that function in the development and repair of photoreceptive structures (e.g. crggm3 , purp , prl , gcip , crabp1 and pax6 ) were also differentially expressed, raising the possibility that a magnetic pulse might affect structures and processes unrelated to magnetite-based magnetoreceptors

Understanding the evolution of native pinewoods in Scotland will benefit their future management and conservation

Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) is a foundation species in Scottish highland forests and a national icon. Due to heavy exploitation, the current native pinewood coverage represents a small fraction of the postglacial maximum. To reverse this decline, various schemes have been initiated to promote planting of new and expansion of old pinewoods. This includes the designation of seed zones for control of the remaining genetic resources. The zoning was based mainly on biochemical similarity among pinewoods but, by definition, neutral molecular markers do not reflect local phenotypic adaptation. Environmental variation within Scotland is substantial and it is not yet clear to what extent this has shaped patterns of adaptive differentiation among Scottish populations. Systematic, rangewide common-environment trials can provide insights into the evolution of the native pinewoods, indicating how environment has influenced phenotypic variation and how variation is maintained. Careful design of such experiments can also provide data on the history and connectivity among populations, by molecular marker analysis. Together, phenotypic and molecular datasets from such trials can provide a robust basis for refining seed transfer guidelines for Scots pine in Scotland and should form the scientific basis for conservation action on this nationally important habitat