High-speed civil transport flight- and propulsion-control technological issues

Technology advances required in the flight and propulsion control system disciplines to develop a high speed civil transport (HSCT) are identified. The mission and requirements of the transport and major flight and propulsion control technology issues are discussed. Each issue is ranked and, for each issue, a plan for technology readiness is given. Certain features are unique and dominate control system design. These features include the high temperature environment, large flexible aircraft, control-configured empennage, minimizing control margins, and high availability and excellent maintainability. The failure to resolve most high-priority issues can prevent the transport from achieving its goals. The flow-time for hardware may require stimulus, since market forces may be insufficient to ensure timely production. Flight and propulsion control technology will contribute to takeoff gross weight reduction. Similar technology advances are necessary also to ensure flight safety for the transport. The certification basis of the HSCT must be negotiated between airplane manufacturers and government regulators. Efficient, quality design of the transport will require an integrated set of design tools that support the entire engineering design team

Recrystallization of epitaxial GaN under indentation

We report recrystallization of epitaxial (epi-) GaN(0001) film under indentation.Hardness value is measured close to 10 GPa, using a Berkovich indenter. Pop-in burst in the loading line indicates nucleation of dislocations setting in plastic motion of lattice atoms under stress field for the recrystallization process. Micro-Raman studies are used to identify the recrystallization process. Raman area mapping indicates the crystallized region. Phonon mode corresponding to E2(high) close to 570 cm-1 in the as-grown epi-GaN is redshifted to stress free value close to 567 cm-1 in the indented region. Evolution of A1(TO) and E1(TO) phonon modes are also reported to signify the recrystallization process.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figures

Can altering the structure of financial support payments aid work retention amongst lone parents? Qualitative evaluation of the In Work Retention Pilot

Wage supplementations in the form of temporary ‘in-work credits’ have been introduced in recent years for a number of claimant groups entering work, to encourage enhanced work entry and retention rates. For lone parents, the In Work Credit was piloted from April 2004 and then rolled out nationally in April 2008. It is a wage supplement paid at £40 a week (£60 in London) for 12 months to eligible lone parents moving in to work. From July 2008 to June 2010, a variant on this, the In Work Retention Pilot (IWRP), was trialled in two Jobcentre Plus districts. The IWRP was intended to test the effectiveness of using In Work Credit payments as an aid to job retention and progression, by changing the payment structure of the credits and offering additional advisory support on retention and advancement. This report presents findings from a qualitative evaluation of the IWRP, examining the delivery of the pilot and the views of lone parents and Jobcentre Plus staff on: the distinctive IWRP payment structure; the retention and progression challenges facing lone parents and the support received; and whether and how the IWRP made a difference to work behaviour and decisions. The study is based on interviews, focus groups and observations with Jobcentre Plus delivery staff and participating lone parents

Jobseekers Regime and Flexible New Deal, the Six Month Offer and Support for the Newly Unemployed evaluations: An early process study

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The SONYC survey: Towards a complete census of brown dwarfs in star forming regions

SONYC, short for "Substellar Objects in Nearby Young Clusters", is a survey program to provide a census of the substellar population in nearby star forming regions. We have conducted deep optical and near-infrared photometry in five young regions (NGC1333, rho Ophiuchi, Chamaeleon-I, Upper Sco, and Lupus-3), combined with proper motions, and followed by extensive spectroscopic campaigns with Subaru and VLT, in which we have obtained more than 700 spectra of candidate low-mass objects. We have identified and characterized more than 60 new substellar objects, among them a handful of objects with masses close to, or below the Deuterium burning limit. Through SONYC and surveys by other groups, the substellar IMF is now well characterized down to ~ 5 - 10 MJup, and we find that the ratio of the number of stars with respect to brown dwarfs lies between 2 and 6. A comprehensive survey of NGC 1333 reveals that, down to ~5MJup, free-floating objects with planetary masses are 20-50 times less numerous than stars, i.e. their total contribution to the mass budget of the clusters can be neglected.Comment: to appear in the proceedings of the conference 'Brown dwarfs come of age', May 20-24 2013, Memorie della Societa Astronomica Italian