8,379 research outputs found
The evolution of a release-engage mechanism for use on the orbiter
The Release-Engage Mechanism (REM) is designed to secure a deployable payload in the orbiter during launch and to enable the payload to be released, deployed, and reattached for re-entry. This paper presents the following: (1) the initial design concepts of the Release-Engage Mechanism; (2) the problems encountered during assembly, (3) the abnormalities that occurred during vibration testing, (4) the incompatibility of the Remote Manipulator System and REM operation, and (5) the resulting modifications to the REM that assured its successful performance on two Shuttle flights
Redundant motor drive system
A drive system characterized by a base supporting a pair of pillars arranged in spaced parallelism, a shaft extended between and supported by the pillars for rotation about the longitudinal axis thereof, a worm gear affixed to the shaft and supported in coaxial relation therewith is described. A bearing housing of a sleeve like configuration is concentrically related to the shaft and is supported thereby for free rotation. A first and a second quiescent drive train, alternatively activatable, is provided for imparting rotation into said bearing housing. Each of the drive trains is characterized by a selectively energizable motor connected to a spur gear
A polarimeter for the high resolution ultraviolet spectrometer/polarimeter
The design requirements of the polarimeter were established by the scientific optical objectives of the experiment to be launched aboard the Solar Max Mission which will study active solar regions. The polarization of the light is accomplished by a rotating magnesium fluoride quarter wave plate. The quarter wave plates are rotated in 22 1/2 degree steps about an axis coincidental with the light beam. As the light beam passes through the wave plate, the transformation that occurs can be expressed by mathematical equations. By having the wave plates calibrated, the data obtained from solar flares can be analyzed and meaningful information provided to the investigators. The polarimeter has two wave plates with different optical characteristics to provide both redundancy and versatility. A four mirror polarizer was added behind one wave plate to provide additional polarization. The mechanical design, testing, and operation of the polarimeter for the high resolution ultraviolet spectrometer/polarimeter are described
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Science and Technology Studies in Policy: the UK Synthetic Biology Roadmap
In this paper, we reflect on our experience as Science and Technology Studies (STS) researchers who were members of the working group that produced A Synthetic Biology Roadmap for the UK in 2012. We explore how this initiative sought to govern an uncertain future, and describe how it was successfully used to mobilize public funds for synthetic biology from the UK government. We discuss our attempts to incorporate the insights and sensibilities of STS into the policy process, and why we chose to use the concept of Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) to do so. We analyze how the roadmapping process, and the final report, narrowed and transformed our contributions to the Roadmap. We show how difficult it is for STS researchers to influence policy when our ideas challenge deeply entrenched pervasive assumptions, framings and narratives about how technological innovation necessarily leads to economic progress, about public reticence as a roadblock to that progress, and about the supposed separation between science and society. We end by reflecting on the constraints under which we were operating from the outset, and on the challenges for STS in policy
Ionic Sound Waves in Plasmas Final Report
Acoustic apparatus for study of acoustic wave pressure-disturbance propagation in plasm
Forensic flavour
Databases often receive an uninspired and uninterested response. The curriculum content of a database module generally involves the design of entity-relationship models, SQL programming, application development and advanced database applications such as data warehousing and data mining. These are often taught within the tired and relatively worn case studies of purchase order systems, retail or health care systems. However the current trend for crime scene investigation drama and the frequent stories in the news of personal tragedies involving incorrect data, missing data or data mix-up capture the attention of many. The truth is that crimes require data investigation and expert database witnesses to provide evidence and this requires database knowledge and skill. This project involved the introduction of a ‘forensic flavour’ to the teaching of databases as part of an undergraduate Computing Degree to students. The ‘forensic flavour’ involved introducing investigative and enquiry based learning techniques as well as selecting case studies based around real-life crimes and crime data. The learning objectives remained unchanged for the modules as did the curriculum content. The initial findings are that the students engaged on average 40% better and enjoyed the experience more
Modification and improvements to cooled blades Patent
Modification and improvement of turbine blades for maximum cooling efficienc
Stability and dynamics of rotating dielectrophoretic equilibria
Design of dielectrophoretic liquid orientation and expulsion systems for zero gravity environments with maximum electromechanical effects of imposed electric fiel
Reclaiming Our Voices: Regaining Power Over Documentaries About Mental Health Issues
There have been many documentaries about mental health issues since the 1960’s. Topics have ranged from systemic issues in mental health institutions to individual stories about people who deal with a variety of conditions including schizophrenia and depression. This paper will document the different ways that mental health has been portrayed in documentary film, how that affects the mental health community and how that relates to my documentary, A Million Directions, a film about living with Adult ADD
Increasing vertical mixing to reduce Southern Ocean deep convection in NEMO3.4
Most CMIP5 (Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5) models unrealistically form Antarctic Bottom Water by open ocean deep convection in the Weddell and Ross seas. To identify the mechanisms triggering Southern Ocean deep convection in models, we perform sensitivity experiments on the ocean model NEMO3.4 forced by prescribed atmospheric fluxes. We vary the vertical velocity scale of the Langmuir turbulence, the fraction of turbulent kinetic energy transferred below the mixed layer, and the background diffusivity and run short simulations from 1980. All experiments exhibit deep convection in the Riiser-Larsen Sea in 1987; the origin is a positive sea ice anomaly in 1985, causing a shallow anomaly in mixed layer depth, hence anomalously warm surface waters and subsequent polynya opening. Modifying the vertical mixing impacts both the climatological state and the associated surface anomalies. The experiments with enhanced mixing exhibit colder surface waters and reduced deep convection. The experiments with decreased mixing give warmer surface waters, open larger polynyas causing more saline surface waters and have deep convection across the Weddell Sea until the simulations end. Extended experiments reveal an increase in the Drake Passage transport of 4 Sv each year deep convection occurs, leading to an unrealistically large transport at the end of the simulation. North Atlantic deep convection is not significantly affected by the changes in mixing parameters. As new climate model overflow parameterisations are developed to form Antarctic Bottom Water more realistically, we argue that models would benefit from stopping Southern Ocean deep convection, for example by increasing their vertical mixing
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