Strain-gage bridge calibration and flight loads measurements on a low-aspect-ratio thin wing

Strain-gage bridges were used to make in-flight measurements of bending moment, shear, and torque loads on a low-aspect-ratio, thin, swept wing having a full depth honeycomb sandwich type structure. Standard regression analysis techniques were employed in the calibration of the strain bridges. Comparison of the measured loads with theoretical loads are included

Flight assessment of a large supersonic drone aircraft for research use

An assessment is made of the capabilities of the BQM-34E supersonic drone aircraft as a test bed research vehicle. This assessment is made based on a flight conducted for the purpose of obtaining flight test measurements of wing loads at various maneuver flight conditions. Flight plan preparation, flight simulation, and conduct of the flight test are discussed along with a presentation of the test data obtained and an evaluation of how closely the flight test followed the test plan

Statins and Physical Activity in Older Men: The Osteoporotic Fractures in Men Study

IMPORTANCE: Muscle pain, fatigue, and weakness are common adverse effects of statin medications and may decrease physical activity in older men. OBJECTIVE: Determine whether statin use is associated with physical activity, longitudinally and cross-sectionally. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Men participating in the Osteoporotic Fractures in Men Study, a multicenter prospective cohort study of community-living men age 65+, enrolled between March 2000-April 2002. EXPOSURE: Statin use as determined by an inventory of medications (taken within last 30 days). In cross-sectional analyses, statin use categories were: users and nonusers. In longitudinal analyses, categories were: prevalent users (baseline use and throughout study), new users (initiated use during the study) and nonusers (never used). MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURE: Self-reported physical activity at baseline and 2 follow-up visits using the Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly (PASE). At the third visit, an accelerometer measured metabolic equivalents (METs; kcal/kg/hr) and minutes of moderate activity (METs ≥3.0), vigorous activity (METs ≥6.0), and sedentary behavior (METs ≤1.5). RESULTS: At baseline, 989 men (24%) were users and 3,148 (76%) were nonusers. The adjusted difference in baseline PASE between users and nonusers was -5.8 points (95% CI, -10.9 to -0.7). A total of 3,039 men met the inclusion criteria for longitudinal analysis: 727 (24%) prevalent users, 845 (28%) new users, 1,467 (48%) nonusers. PASE declined by an average of 2.5 points/year (2.0-3.0) for nonusers and 2.8 points/year (2.1, 3.5) for prevalent users, a nonstatistical difference (0.3 point, -0.5-1). For new users, annual PASE score declined at a faster rate than nonusers (0.9 point difference; 0.1-1.7). 3,071 men had adequate accelerometry data, 1,542 (50%) were statin users. Statin users expended less METS (0.03 kcal/kg/hr less; 0.02-0.04); engaged in less moderate physical activity (5.4 fewer minutes/day; 1.9-8.8), less vigorous activity (0.6 fewer minutes/day; 0.1-1.1), and more sedentary behavior (7.6 greater minutes/day; 2.6-12.4). CONCLUSION AND RELEVANCE: Statin use was associated with modestly lower physical activity among community-living men, even after accounting for medical history and other potentially confounding factors. The clinical significance of these findings deserves further investigation

Microscopic simulation of xenon-based optical TPCs in the presence of molecular additives

[EN] We introduce a simulation framework for the transport of high and low energy electrons in xenon-based optical time projection chambers (OTPCs). The simulation relies on elementary cross sections (electron-atom and electron-molecule) and incorporates, in order to compute the gas scintillation, the reaction/quenching rates (atom-atom and atom-molecule) of the first 41 excited states of xenon and the relevant associated excimers, together with their radiative cascade. The results compare positively with observations made in pure xenon and its mixtures with CO2 and CF4 in a range of pressures from 0.1 to 10 bar. This work sheds some light on the elementary processes responsible for the primary and secondary xenon-scintillation mechanisms in the presence of additives, that are of interest to the OTPC technology.DGD is supported by the Ramon y Cajal program (Spain) under contract number RYC-2015-18820. The authors want to acknowledge the RD51 collaboration for encouragement and support during the elaboration of this work, and in particular discussions with F. Resnati, A. Milov, V. Peskov, M. Suzuki and A. F. Borghesani. The NEXT Collaboration acknowledges support from the following agencies and institutions: the European Research Council (ERC) under the Advanced Grant 339787-NEXT; the Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad of Spain under grants FIS2014-53371-C04 and the Severo Ochoa Program SEV-2014-0398; the GVA of Spain under grant PROM-ETEO/2016/120; the Portuguese FCT and FEDER through the program COMPETE, project PTDC/FIS-NUC/2525/2014 and UID/FIS/04559/2013; the U.S. Department of Energy under contracts number DE-AC02-07CH11359 (Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory) and DE-FG02-13ER42020 (Texas A& and the University of Texas at Arlington.Azevedo, C.; Gonzalez-Diaz, D.; Biagi, SF.; Oliveira, CAB.; Henriques, CAO.; Escada, J.; Monrabal, F.... (2018). Microscopic simulation of xenon-based optical TPCs in the presence of molecular additives. Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A Accelerators Spectrometers Detectors and Associated Equipment. 877:157-172. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nima.2017.08.049S15717287