The practical implementation of fatigue requirements to military aircraft and helicopters in the United Kingdom

The methods adopted in the United Kingdom to ensure the structural integrity of military aeroplanes and helicopters from the fatigue point of view are described. The procedure adopted from the writing of the specification to the monitoring of fatigue life in service are presented along with the requirements to be met and the way in which they are satisfied. Some of the outstanding problems that remain to be solved are indicated

A model problem for conformal parameterizations of the Einstein constraint equations

We investigate the possibility that the conformal and conformal thin sandwich (CTS) methods can be used to parameterize the set of solutions of the vacuum Einstein constraint equations. To this end we develop a model problem obtained by taking the quotient of certain symmetric data on conformally flat tori. Specializing the model problem to a three-parameter family of conformal data we observe a number of new phenomena for the conformal and CTS methods. Within this family, we obtain a general existence theorem so long as the mean curvature does not change sign. When the mean curvature changes sign, we find that for certain data solutions exist if and only if the transverse-traceless tensor is sufficiently small. When such solutions exist, there are generically more than one. Moreover, the theory for mean curvatures changing sign is shown to be extremely sensitive with respect to the value of a coupling constant in the Einstein constraint equations.Comment: 40 pages, 4 figure

High-flux beam source for cold, slow atoms or molecules

We demonstrate and characterize a high-flux beam source for cold, slow atoms or molecules. The desired species is vaporized using laser ablation, then cooled by thermalization in a cryogenic cell of buffer gas. The beam is formed by particles exiting a hole in the buffer gas cell. We characterize the properties of the beam (flux, forward velocity, temperature) for both an atom (Na) and a molecule (PbO) under varying buffer gas density, and discuss conditions for optimizing these beam parameters. Our source compares favorably to existing techniques of beam formation, for a variety of applications.Comment: 5 Pages, 4 figure

Perfect imaging with positive refraction in three dimensions

Maxwell's fish eye has been known to be a perfect lens within the validity range of ray optics since 1854. Solving Maxwell's equations we show that the fish-eye lens in three dimensions has unlimited resolution for electromagnetic waves

Far-from-constant mean curvature solutions of Einstein's constraint equations with positive Yamabe metrics

In this article we develop some new existence results for the Einstein constraint equations using the Lichnerowicz-York conformal rescaling method. The mean extrinsic curvature is taken to be an arbitrary smooth function without restrictions on the size of its spatial derivatives, so that it can be arbitrarily far from constant. The rescaled background metric belongs to the positive Yamabe class, and the freely specifiable part of the data given by the traceless-transverse part of the rescaled extrinsic curvature and the matter fields are taken to be sufficiently small, with the matter energy density not identically zero. Using topological fixed-point arguments and global barrier constructions, we then establish existence of solutions to the constraints. Two recent advances in the analysis of the Einstein constraint equations make this result possible: A new type of topological fixed-point argument without smallness conditions on spatial derivatives of the mean extrinsic curvature, and a new construction of global super-solutions for the Hamiltonian constraint that is similarly free of such conditions on the mean extrinsic curvature. For clarity, we present our results only for strong solutions on closed manifolds. However, our results also hold for weak solutions and for other cases such as compact manifolds with boundary; these generalizations will appear elsewhere. The existence results presented here for the Einstein constraints are apparently the first such results that do not require smallness conditions on spatial derivatives of the mean extrinsic curvature.Comment: 4 pages, no figures, accepted for publication in Physical Review Letters. (Abstract shortenned and other minor changes reflecting v4 version of arXiv:0712.0798

Non-equilibrium and information: the role of cross-correlations

We discuss the relevance of information contained in cross-correlations among different degrees of freedom, which is crucial in non-equilibrium systems. In particular we consider a stochastic system where two degrees of freedom $X_1$ and $X_2$ - in contact with two different thermostats - are coupled together. The production of entropy and the violation of equilibrium fluctuation-dissipation theorem (FDT) are both related to the cross-correlation between $X_1$ and $X_2$. Information about such cross-correlation may be lost when single-variable reduced models, for $X_1$, are considered. Two different procedures are typically applied: (a) one totally ignores the coupling with $X_2$; (b) one models the effect of $X_2$ as an average memory effect, obtaining a generalized Langevin equation. In case (a) discrepancies between the system and the model appear both in entropy production and linear response; the latter can be exploited to define effective temperatures, but those are meaningful only when time-scales are well separated. In case (b) linear response of the model well reproduces that of the system; however the loss of information is reflected in a loss of entropy production. When only linear forces are present, such a reduction is dramatic and makes the average entropy production vanish, posing problems in interpreting FDT violations.Comment: 30 pages, 4 figures, 4 appendixe

Dynamics of grain ejection by sphere impact on a granular bed

The dynamics of grain ejection consecutive to a sphere impacting a granular material is investigated experimentally and the variations of the characteristics of grain ejection with the control parameters are quantitatively studied. The time evolution of the corona formed by the ejected grains is reported, mainly in terms of its diameter and height, and favourably compared with a simple ballistic model. A key characteristic of the granular corona is that the angle formed by its edge with the horizontal granular surface remains constant during the ejection process, which again can be reproduced by the ballistic model. The number and the kinetic energy of the ejected grains is evaluated and allows for the calculation of an effective restitution coefficient characterizing the complex collision process between the impacting sphere and the fine granular target. The effective restitution coefficient is found to be constant when varying the control parameters.Comment: 9 page

Detection of Multi-drug Resistant \u3cem\u3eEscherichia coli\u3c/em\u3e in the Urban Waterways of Milwaukee, WI

Urban waterways represent a natural reservoir of antibiotic resistance which may provide a source of transferable genetic elements to human commensal bacteria and pathogens. The objective of this study was to evaluate antibiotic resistance of Escherichia coli isolated from the urban waterways of Milwaukee, WI compared to those from Milwaukee sewage and a clinical setting in Milwaukee. Antibiotics covering 10 different families were utilized to determine the phenotypic antibiotic resistance for all 259 E. coli isolates. All obtained isolates were determined to be multi-drug resistant. The E. coli isolates were also screened for the presence of the genetic determinants of resistance including ermB (macrolide resistance), tet(M) (tetracycline resistance), and β-lactamases (blaOXA, blaSHV, and blaPSE). E. coli from urban waterways showed a greater incidence of antibiotic resistance to 8 of 17 antibiotics tested compared to human derived sources. These E. coli isolates also demonstrated a greater incidence of resistance to higher numbers of antibiotics compared to the human derived isolates. The urban waterways demonstrated a greater abundance of isolates with co-occurrence of antibiotic resistance than human derived sources. When screened for five different antibiotic resistance genes conferring macrolide, tetracycline, and β-lactam resistance, clinical E. coli isolates were more likely to harbor ermB and blaOXA than isolates from urban waterway. These results indicate that Milwaukee’s urban waterways may select or allow for a greater incidence of multiple antibiotic resistance organisms and likely harbor a different antibiotic resistance gene pool than clinical sources. The implications of this study are significant to understanding the presence of resistance in urban freshwater environments by supporting the idea that sediment from urban waterways serves as a reservoir of antibiotic resistance

Entanglement and the Thermodynamic Arrow of Time

We discuss quantum entanglement in the context of the thermodynamic arrow of time. We review the role of correlations in entropy-decreasing events and prove that the occurrence of a transformation between two thermodynamic states constitutes a new type of entanglement witness, one not defined as a separating plane in state space between separable and entangled states, but as a physical process dependent on the local initial properties of the states. Extending work by Partovi, we consider a general entangled multipartite system that allows large reversals of the thermodynamic arrow of time. We describe a hierarchy of arrows that arises from the different correlations allowed in a quantum state and examine these features in the context of Maxwell's Demon. We examine in detail the case of three qubits, and also propose some simple experimental demonstrations possible with small numbers of qubits.Comment: 10 pages with 9 figure