3,249 research outputs found
Rotorcraft handling-qualities design criteria development
Joint NASA/Army efforts at the Ames Research Center to develop rotorcraft handling-qualities design criteria began in earnest in 1975. Notable results were the UH-1H VSTOLAND variable stability helicopter, the VFA-2 camera-and-terrain-board simulator visual system, and the generic helicopter real-time mathematical model, ARMCOP. An initial series of handling-qualities studies was conducted to assess the effects of rotor design parameters, interaxis coupling, and various levels of stability and control augmentation. The ability to conduct in-flight handling-qualities research was enhanced by the development of the NASA/Army CH-47 variable-stability helicopter. Research programs conducted using this vehicle include vertical-response investigations, hover augmentation systems, and the effects of control-force characteristics. The handling-qualities data base was judged to be sufficient to allow an update of the military helicopter handling-qualities specification, MIL-H-8501. These efforts, including not only the in-house experimental work but also contracted research and collaborative programs performed under the auspices of various international agreements. The report concludes by reviewing the topics that are currently most in need of work, and the plans for addressing these topics
Diet and risk of diverticular disease in Oxford cohort of European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC): prospective study of British vegetarians and non-vegetarians
Objective To examine the associations of a vegetarian diet and dietary fibre intake with risk of diverticular disease
Bosons in cigar-shape traps: Thomas-Fermi regime, Tonks-Girardeau regime, and between
We present a quantitative analysis of the experimental accessibility of the
Tonks-Girardeau gas in the current day experiments with cigar-trapped alkalis.
For this purpose we derive, using a Bethe anzats generated local equation of
state, a set of hydrostatic equations describing one-dimensional
delta-interacting Bose gases trapped in a harmonic potential. The resulting
solutions cover the_entire range_ of atomic densities.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Propagation of Bose-Einstein condensates in a magnetic waveguide
Gaseous Bose-Einstein condensates of 2-3 million atoms were loaded into a
microfabricated magnetic trap using optical tweezers. Subsequently, the
condensates were released into a magnetic waveguide and propagated 12 mm.
Single-mode propagation was observed along homogeneous segments of the
waveguide. Inhomogeneities in the guiding potential arose from geometric
deformations of the microfabricated wires and caused strong transverse
excitations. Such deformations may restrict the waveguide physics that can be
explored with propagating condensates.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure
Quantum Logic for Trapped Atoms via Molecular Hyperfine Interactions
We study the deterministic entanglement of a pair of neutral atoms trapped in
an optical lattice by coupling to excited-state molecular hyperfine potentials.
Information can be encoded in the ground-state hyperfine levels and processed
by bringing atoms together pair-wise to perform quantum logical operations
through induced electric dipole-dipole interactions. The possibility of
executing both diagonal and exchange type entangling gates is demonstrated for
two three-level atoms and a figure of merit is derived for the fidelity of
entanglement. The fidelity for executing a CPHASE gate is calculated for two
87Rb atoms, including hyperfine structure and finite atomic localization. The
main source of decoherence is spontaneous emission, which can be minimized for
interaction times fast compared to the scattering rate and for sufficiently
separated atomic wavepackets. Additionally, coherent couplings to states
outside the logical basis can be constrained by the state dependent trapping
potential.Comment: Submitted to Physical Review
Stability of stationary states in the cubic nonlinear Schroedinger equation: applications to the Bose-Einstein condensate
The stability properties and perturbation-induced dynamics of the full set of
stationary states of the nonlinear Schroedinger equation are investigated
numerically in two physical contexts: periodic solutions on a ring and
confinement by a harmonic potential. Our comprehensive studies emphasize
physical interpretations useful to experimentalists. Perturbation by stochastic
white noise, phase engineering, and higher order nonlinearity are considered.
We treat both attractive and repulsive nonlinearity and illustrate the
soliton-train nature of the stationary states.Comment: 9 pages, 11 figure
Regimes of quantum degeneracy in trapped 1D gases
We discuss the regimes of quantum degeneracy in a trapped 1D gas and obtain
the diagram of states. Three regimes have been identified: the BEC regimes of a
true condensate and quasicondensate, and the regime of a trapped gas of Tonks
(gas of impenetrable bosons). The presence of a sharp cross-over to the BEC
regime requires extremely small interaction between particles. We discuss how
to distinguish between true and quasicondensates in phase coherence
experiments.Comment: 4 pages, 1 eps figur
A Storage Ring for Neutral Atoms
We have demonstrated a storage ring for ultra-cold neutral atoms. Atoms with
mean velocities of 1 m/s corresponding to kinetic energies of ~100 neV are
confined to a 2 cm diameter ring by magnetic forces produced by two
current-carrying wires. Up to 10^6 atoms are loaded at a time in the ring, and
7 revolutions are clearly observed. Additionally, we have demonstrated multiple
loading of the ring and deterministic manipulation of the longitudinal velocity
distribution of the atoms using applied laser pulses. Applications of this ring
include large area atom interferometers and cw monochromatic atomic beam
generation.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figure
Extracellular ATP released by osteoblasts is a key local inhibitor of bone mineralisation
Previous studies have shown that exogenous ATP (>1µM) prevents bone formation in vitro by blocking mineralisation of the collagenous matrix. This effect is thought to be mediated via both P2 receptor-dependent pathways and a receptor-independent mechanism (hydrolysis of ATP to produce the mineralisation inhibitor pyrophosphate, PPi). Osteoblasts are also known to release ATP constitutively. To determine whether this endogenous ATP might exert significant biological effects, bone-forming primary rat osteoblasts were cultured with 0.5-2.5U/ml apyrase (which sequentially hydrolyses ATP to ADP to AMP + 2Pi). Addition of 0.5U/ml apyrase to osteoblast culture medium degraded extracellular ATP to <1% of control levels within 2 minutes; continuous exposure to apyrase maintained this inhibition for up to 14 days. Apyrase treatment for the first 72 hours of culture caused small decreases (≤25%) in osteoblast number, suggesting a role for endogenous ATP in stimulating cell proliferation. Continuous apyrase treatment for 14 days (≥0.5U/ml) increased mineralisation of bone nodules by up to 3-fold. Increases in bone mineralisation were also seen when osteoblasts were cultured with the ATP release inhibitors, NEM and brefeldin A, as well as with P2X1 and P2X7 receptor antagonists. Apyrase decreased alkaline phosphatase (TNAP) activity by up to 60%, whilst increasing the activity of the PPi-generating ecto-nucleotide pyrophosphatase/phosphodiesterases (NPPs) up to 2.7-fold. Both collagen production and adipocyte formation were unaffected. These data suggest that nucleotides released by osteoblasts in bone could act locally, via multiple mechanisms, to limit mineralisation
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