Conical beam monopole antenna design for Chinese area positioning system

This article describes the operational principle of the satellite-based Chinese Area Positioning System (CAPS) and proposes a monopole antenna for a large anchored buoy platform in harsh marine environment. The proposed antenna is highly omnidirectional with sufficiently wide half-power beamwidth (HPBW) greater than 40˚ (i.e., not less than ±20° swing) by using a conical ground plane, taking into account the geostationary satellite position, link budget, sea conditions, volume and cost. The impedance bandwidth defined by 10 dB return loss is 750 MHz (5.60-6.35 GHz), and the main lobe direction and the half-power beamwidth are about 46° and 43° at the operating frequency 5.885 GHz, respectively. The antenna prototype has been installed on-site to test its performance in sea. The results confirm that the proposed antenna is a suitable candidate for a variety of CAPS applications in China

A comprehensive study on the ecotoxicity of ivermectin to earthworms (Eisenia fetida)

Ivermectin (IVM) is a dewormer commonly utilized in animal farming. Nevertheless, there is a deficiency of research on the bioecotoxicity of IVM in soil. In this study, earthworms were utilized as test animals to investigate the ecotoxicological impacts of IVM. The experiment lasted 28 days and involved adding varied doses of IVM to a culture substrate of soil mixed with cow dung and feeding it to earthworms. The experiment entailed recording earthworm weight, number of earthworm cocoons, histological damage, oxidative stress indicators, and gene expression levels. The analysis results showed that earthworm growth and reproduction were hampered by IVM. Moreover, pathological damage to the earthworms increased with increasing IVM concentration, which caused increased oxidative damage to the earthworms. These findings offer a summary of the impact of IVM on earthworms and a reference point for future research examining the ecological implications of IVM

An Efficient T-S Assimilation Strategy Based on the Developed Argo-Extending Algorithm

Data assimilation is an efficient technique in the estimation of ocean state, by introducing the benefit of in situ measurements. Considering the insufficiency of the observations, the performance of assimilation with few temperature and salinity (T-S) profiles is not satisfied. To modify the situation, an extending algorithm based on the Argo temperature profile is developed and applied to present more reconstructed information. Meanwhile, when the reconstructed information is assimilated into the ocean model, the accuracy of the outcomes would obtain a notable enhancement. To validate it, an experiment including four cases is conducted based on Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS) and 4-dimensional variational method (4DVAR). The comparison with the EN4 dataset shows that the cases assimilated the Argo and the reconstructed temperature profiles are both promoted; the addition of reconstructed temperature profiles does enhance the accuracy; the impact of SST introduced in the extending algorithm process is negligible; the net enhancement of reconstructed temperature profiles is comparable with Argo T-S observations. Finally, the positive impact of the developed algorithm on data assimilation is validated

Dynamic neural processing of linguistic cues related to death.

Behavioral studies suggest that humans evolve the capacity to cope with anxiety induced by the awareness of death's inevitability. However, the neurocognitive processes that underlie online death-related thoughts remain unclear. Our recent functional MRI study found that the processing of linguistic cues related to death was characterized by decreased neural activity in human insular cortex. The current study further investigated the time course of neural processing of death-related linguistic cues. We recorded event-related potentials (ERP) to death-related, life-related, negative-valence, and neutral-valence words in a modified Stroop task that required color naming of words. We found that the amplitude of an early frontal/central negativity at 84-120 ms (N1) decreased to death-related words but increased to life-related words relative to neutral-valence words. The N1 effect associated with death-related and life-related words was correlated respectively with individuals' pessimistic and optimistic attitudes toward life. Death-related words also increased the amplitude of a frontal/central positivity at 124-300 ms (P2) and of a frontal/central positivity at 300-500 ms (P3). However, the P2 and P3 modulations were observed for both death-related and negative-valence words but not for life-related words. The ERP results suggest an early inverse coding of linguistic cues related to life and death, which is followed by negative emotional responses to death-related information

Finite Element Analysis and Design Improvement of Film Picking Forks Roller Tooth in Field Cleaning Machine

Part 1: Simulation, Optimization, Monitoring and Control TechnologyInternational audienceIn this paper the mechanical analysis of the film picking forks roller tooth in field -cleaning machine was done. A finite element analysis model was built and used by the non-linear finite element analysis method. It is obtained from the result of post-processing calculation and analysis that according to the Fourth Strength Theory, the maximum equivalent stress on the pole tooth root under the uniform load. Root strength should be strengthened to ensure the evenly stress overall the pole tooth, because pole tooth root department would be deformed easily. And the largest stress is at the end of pole tooth and decreases gradually from end to root, and deformation is also the same. Based on the analysis of strength and rigidity, the bearing forces and deformation of the film picking forks roller tooth in work were predicted and validated. It was found that the finite element analysis and the result of test were well coincided. The reliable tool was provided for the design of the film picking forks roller tooth by the finite element analysis. The Roller tooth was designed and improved according to the requirement of deformation and operation

Nonlinear terahertz effects of gold nanofilms

Nonlinear interaction between strong-field terahertz electromagnetic waves and matters will become one of the next hot research frontiers in nonlinear optics. However, the lack of strong terahertz radiation sources and appropriate nonlinear terahertz materials have impeded its progress. Here we systematically have investigated the strong-field terahertz nonlinear effects of gold (Au) nanofilms on different substrates, including SiO2, high-resistivity Si and SiO2-high-resistivity Si hybrid substrates. The strong-field terahertz waves are emitted from lithium niobate crystals via tilted pulse front technique, and obvious nonlinear transmission responses are observed along with varying the incident field strengths for all the Au samples on the three types of the substrates. The nonlinear behavior is enhanced when the gold nanofilm thickness increases, which can be qualitatively understood by introducing the quantum tunneling effect and carrier multiplication theory generated at the Au nano-slits under the illumination of the strong-field terahertz pulses. Our demonstrations not only open a new paradigm for nonlinear terahertz investigations and future high-speed terahertz devices, but also provide an effective platform for exploring extreme terahertz sciences

Optimal Design of Tuned Mass-Damper-Inerter for Structure with Uncertain-but-Bounded Parameter

International audienceIn this study we focus on the H∞ optimization of a tuned mass damper inerter (TMDI), which is implemented on an harmonically forced structure of a single degree of freedom in the presence of stiffness uncertainty. Posed as a min-max optimization problem, its closed-form solutions are analytically derived via an algebraic approach that was newly developed in this work, and ready-to-use formulae of tuning parameters are provided herein for the optimal TMDI (referred to as the TMD). The accuracy of the derived solutions are examined by comparing them with the existing literature and with numerically solved solutions in both deterministic and uncertain scenarios. Our numerical investigation suggested that compared to the classic design, the proposed tuning strategy could effectively reduce the peak vibration amplitude of the host structure in the worst-case scenario. Moreover, its peak vibration amplitude decreases monotonically as the total amount of the tuned mass and inertance increases. Therefore, the incorporation of a grounded inerter in a traditional TMD could render the deteriorated performance of vibration control less important, thereby protecting the primary system against the detuning effect more effectively. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed design under random excitation is also underlined