Perception and control of rotorcraft flight

Three topics which can be applied to rotorcraft flight are examined: (1) the nature of visual information; (2) what visual information is informative about; and (3) the control of visual information. The anchorage of visual perception is defined as the distribution of structure in the surrounding optical array or the distribution of optical structure over the retinal surface. A debate was provoked about whether the referent of visual event perception, and in turn control, is optical motion, kinetics, or dynamics. The interface of control theory and visual perception is also considered. The relationships among these problems is the basis of this article

Douglas Stuart Moore (1893-1969) as Organist and Composer of Organ Music

The early twentieth-century American composer Douglas Stuart Moore (1893-1969) is best know for his works for the lyric opera stage. However, before achieving notice in the opera world, Moore, in his first professional position, had the responsibility to give organ recitals. The purpose of this document is to present information about the organ study and performance activities of Douglas Stuart Moore by exploring his studies with Charles Tournemire and Nadia Boulanger. A complete repertory list of Moore\u27s recitals at the Cleveland Museum of Art is included. Moore also composed for the organ. This document establishes a definitive list of his works for the organ. There are nine unpublished pieces (Gavotte; Fugue; Prelude; Four Museum Pieces: Fifteenth Century Armor, A Madonna of Botticini, Chinese Lion and Unhappy Flutist, Statue of Rodin; Scherzo; A March for Tamburlaine) and one published piece (Dirge – Passacaglia). Each composition is given careful examination. Its origins in the context of Moore\u27s professional life are explored and each piece analyzed. Thus Moore\u27s compositional techniques and his development as an organist are explored, contributing to a more complete view of this composer and his contributions to American organ music in the period

Discriminating faunal assemblages and their palaeoecology based on museum collections : the Carboniferous Hurlet and Index limestones of western Scotland

Historical collections of Scottish Carboniferous macrofossils stored at the British Geological Survey (BGS), Edinburgh include the sole remaining sources of palaeontological data from numerous localities. Exploratory numerical analyses of such collections from the Hurlet and Index limestones of Ayrshire compare favourably with published qualitative assessments of faunal assemblages and palaeoenvironments; demonstrating that old collections can still be used in modern palaeoecological investigations. Macrofaunas from these formations comprise mainly brachiopods and molluscs and were collected from 67 localities that yielded 20 and 94 samples from the Hurlet and Index limestones respectively. Limitations of the presence/absence data were partly overcome by consolidation and restriction of aspects of the data set. Seriation indicates the lithological and environmental gradients of taxa. Cluster analysis reveals groups of samples linked to lithofacies. Principal Components Analysis (PCA) of diversity data derived from the data set in terms of numbers of genera in higher taxa highlights differences in gross taxonomic composition in terms of trophic structure, lithology and environment. Supplementary material: lists of localities taxa and sample lithologies used in this study are available at http://www.geolsoc.org.uk/SUP1840

Low temperature storage container for transporting perishables to space station

Two storage containers are disclosed within which food or biological samples may be stored for transfer in a module by the space shuttle to a space station while maintaining the food or samples at very low temperatures. The container is formed in two parts, each part having an inner shell and an outer shell disposed about the inner shell. The space between the shells is filled with a continuous wrap multi-layer insulation and a getter material. The two parts of the container have interlocking members and when connected together are sealed for preventing leakage from the space between the shells. After the two parts are filled with frozen food or samples they are connected together and a vacuum is drawn in the space between the shells and the container is stored in the module. For the extremely low temperature requirements of biological samples, an internal liner having a phase change material charged by a refrigerant coil is disposed in the space between the shells, and the container is formed from glass fiber material including honeycomb structural elements. All surfaces of the glass fiber which face the vacuum space are lined with a metal foil

A collaborator's reputation can bias decisions and anxiety under uncertainty

Informational social influence theory posits that under conditions of uncertainty, we are inclined to look to others for advice. This leaves us remarkably vulnerable to being influenced by other's opinions or advice. Rational agents, however, do not blindly seek and act on arbitrary information, but often consider the quality of its source before committing to a course of action. Here, we ask the question of whether a collaborator's reputation can increase their social influence and, in turn bias perception and anxiety under changing levels of uncertainty. Human male and female participants were asked to provide estimations of dot direction using the random dot motion (RDM) perceptual discrimination task and paired with transient collaborators of high or low reputation whom provided their own estimations. The RDM varied in degrees of uncertainty and joint performance accuracy was linked to risk of an electric shock. Despite providing identical information, we show that collaborating with a high reputation compared to a low reputation partner, led to significantly more conformity during the RDM task for uncertain perceptual decisions. Consequently, high reputation partners decreased the subjects' anxiety during the anticipatory shock periods. fMRI data showed that parametric changes in conformity resulted in increased activity in the ventromedial PFC, while dissent was associated with increased in activity the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC). Furthermore, the dACC and insula, regions involved in anticipatory pain were significantly more active when collaborating with a low reputation partner. These results suggest that information about reputation can influence both cognitive and affective processes and in turn alter the neural circuits that underlie decision-making and emotion

A PILOT STUDY ON INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES UTILIZATION AMONG TURKISH SCHOOL COUNSELORS

Bu araştırmada okul psikolojik danışmanlarının bilgi ve iletişim teknolojilerini (BİT) nasıl kullandıkları araştırmacılar tarafından geliştirilen bir anket aracılığıyla ortaya konmaya çalışılmıştır. Ulaşılan 208 katılımcının 132'i kadın, 76'i erkek; yaş ortalamaları 30.8'dir. Katılımcıların 161'i ilk ve orta öğretim okullarında, 47'si Rehberlik Araştırma Merkezinde çalışmaktadır. Verilerin analizinde kay kare, tek yönlü varyans analizi ve t testi kullanılmıştır. Psikolojik danışmanların çoğunun kurumlarında tüm BİT'nin olduğu, yaklaşık dörtte üçünün BİT ile ilgili ders aldıkları ancak üçte birinden azının BİT'nin PDR'de nasıl kullanabileceğine ilişkin bilgisi olduğu bulunmuştur. Elde edilen bulgulara göre psikolojik danışmanların çoğu BİT'nin temelinde yer alan bilgisayarı en fazla rapor yazmak, sunu hazırlamak, eposta aracılığı ile haberleşmek, web sayfası araştırmak amacıyla, en az velilerle bağ kurmak amacıyla kullanmaktadırlar. Yapılan kay kare testi sonucunda cinsiyet, yaş ve çalışılan eğitim kurumuna göre psikolojik danışmanlar arasında, son değişken hariç, bazı anlamlı farklar bulunmuştur. Sonuçlara göre genç psikolojik danışmanlar BİT'ni mesleki rehberlik ve web taraması için, erkek psikolojik danışmanlar test verme ve eğitimler için daha fazla kullanmaktadırlar. Ayrıca, psikolojik danışmanların BİT'ni kullanmada kendilerini rahat ve yeterli hissettikleri ve BİT'ni kullanmanın üretkenliklerini artırdığı biçiminde algıladıkları sonucu elde edilmişse de yapılan karşılaştırma testlerii sonucunda bu konuda cinsiyet, yaş ve çalışılan eğitim kurumuna göre anlamlı bir fark olmadığı sonucuna ulaşılmıştır. This study sought to investigate information and communication technologies (ICT) usage among Turkish school counselors utilizing a questionnaire developed by the authors. The participants were 208 school counselors (132 female, 76 male) with a mean age of 30.8 years. This sample contained 161 counselors employed in public elementary and secondary schools while the remaining 47 were employed in Guidance Resource Centers. The survey results were tabulated and examined for significant differences utilizing Chi-Square, t-test and one-way analysis of variance. Results of this survey revealed that virtually all participants had access to ICT at their worksite. Although 75% of the participants reported formal training in ICT only one third reported specific training in applying this knowledge in the field of Counseling. From among the applications of ICT to counseling, as identified by the Association for Counselor Education and Supervision and the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs, the most frequently identified were report writing, presentation preparation, emailing, and internet searches. The least frequently reported uses were for data base utilization and communication with parents. Chi-Square analysis revealed that younger counselors (<30 years of age) tend to use ICT for career counseling and web-site searches more frequently than older colleagues. This analysis further revealed that male counselors use ICT for testing/assessment purposes and for professional development more frequently than their female counterparts. The results revealed that although the participants reported high levels of self-reported competence, confidence or productivity related to ICT use, there were no significant differences by gender, age, or work setting

The only known cyclopygid–‘atheloptic’ trilobite fauna from North America: the upper Ordovician fauna of the Pyle Mountain Argillite and its palaeoenvironmental significance

The trilobite fauna of the upper Ordovician (middle Katian) Pyle Mountain Argillite comprises a mixture of abundant mesopelagic cyclopygids and other pelagic taxa and a benthic fauna dominated by trilobites lacking eyes. Such faunas were widespread in deep water environments around Gondwana and terranes derived from that continent throughout Ordovician time but this is the only known record of such a fauna from North America and thus from Laurentia. It probably reflects a major sea level rise (the ‘Linearis drowning events’) as does the development of coeval cyclopygid-dominated deep water trilobite faunas in terranes that were marginal to Laurentia and are now preserved in Ireland and Scotland. The Pyle Mountain Argillite trilobite fauna occurs with a deep water Foliomena brachiopod fauna and comprises 22 species. Pelagic trilobites (mostly cyclopygids) constitute 36% of the preserved sclerites, and 45% of the fauna is the remains of trilobites lacking eyes, including one new species, Dindymene whittingtoni sp. nov. Three species of cyclopygid are present, belonging in Cyclopyge, Symphysops and Microparia (Heterocyclopyge). Cyclopygids are widely thought to have been stratified in the water column in life and thus their taxonomic diversity reflects the relative depths of the sea-beds on which their remains accumulated. A tabulation of middle and upper Katian cyclopygid-bearing faunas from several palaeoplates and terranes arranged on the basis of increasing numbers of cyclopygid genera allows an assessment of the relative depth ranges of the associated benthic taxa. The Pyle Mountain Argillite fauna lies towards the deeper end of this depth spectrum