Cognitive and affective correlates of temperament in Parkinson's Disease

Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients display low novelty seeking scores on the Tridimensional Personality Questionnaire (TPQ), which may reflect the low dopamine function that characterises the disease. People with PD also display raised harm avoidance scores. Due to these and other observations, a “parkinsonian personality” has been suggested. However, little is known about how these features relate to cognitive and affective disorders, which are also common in PD. We examined links between TPQ scores and performance on an attentional orienting task in a sample of 20 people with PD. In addition, associations between TPQ and depression and anxiety scores were explored. It was found that novelty seeking scores were significantly correlated with a reaction time measure of attentional orienting to visual novelty. Harm avoidance scores were significantly correlated with anxiety, but not depression scores. These findings extend our understanding of how temperament interacts with cognitive and affective features of the disorder

Galois theory and a new homotopy double groupoid of a map of spaces

The authors have used generalised Galois Theory to construct a homotopy double groupoid of a surjective fibration of Kan simplicial sets. Here we apply this to construct a new homotopy double groupoid of a map of spaces, which includes constructions by others of a 2-groupoid, cat^1-group or crossed module. An advantage of our construction is that the double groupoid can give an algebraic model of a foliated bundle.Comment: 16 A4 pages, xypi

Kalman filter modeling

The formulation of appropriate state-space models for Kalman filtering applications is studied. The so-called model is completely specified by four matrix parameters and the initial conditions of the recursive equations. Once these are determined, the die is cast, and the way in which the measurements are weighted is determined foreverafter. Thus, finding a model that fits the physical situation at hand is all important. Also, it is often the most difficult aspect of designing a Kalman filter. Formulation of discrete state models from the spectral density and ARMA random process descriptions is discussed. Finally, it is pointed out that many common processes encountered in applied work (such as band-limited white noise) simply do not lend themselves very well to Kalman filter modeling

Orbiter cargo bay thermal environment data

The orbiter cargo bay thermal environment data is presented. Measurements include: insulation surface temperatures, wire tray surface temperatures, sill longeron temperatures, gas temperatures, radiator temperatures, and gas pressure

Low pressure gas flow analysis through an effusive inlet using mass spectrometry

A mass spectrometric method for analyzing flow past and through an effusive inlet designed for use on the tethered satellite and other entering vehicles is discussed. Source stream concentrations of species in a gaseous mixture are determined using a calibration of measured mass spectral intensities versus source stream pressure for standard gas mixtures and pure gases. Concentrations are shown to be accurate within experimental error. Theoretical explanations for observed mass discrimination effects as they relate to the various flow situations in the effusive inlet and the experimental apparatus are discussed

Why special relativity should not be a template for a fundamental reformulation of quantum mechanics

In a comparison of the principles of special relativity and of quantum mechanics, the former theory is marked by its relative economy and apparent explanatory simplicity. A number of theorists have thus been led to search for a small number of postulates - essentially information theoretic in nature - that would play the role in quantum mechanics that the relativity principle and the light postulate jointly play in Einstein's 1905 special relativity theory. The purpose of the present paper is to resist this idea, at least in so far as it is supposed to reveal the fundamental form of the theory. It is argued that the methodology of Einstein's 1905 theory represents a victory of pragmatism over explanatory depth; and that its adoption only made sense in the context of the chaotic state state of physics at the start of the 20th century - as Einstein well knew

The 26^{26}Al Gamma-ray Line from Massive-Star Regions

The measurement of gamma rays from the diffuse afterglow of radioactivity originating in massive-star nucleosynthesis is considered a laboratory for testing models, when specific stellar groups are investigated, at known distance and with well-constrained stellar population. Regions which have been exploited for such studies include Cygnus, Carina, Orion, and Scorpius-Centaurus. The Orion region hosts the Orion OB1 association and its subgroups at about 450~pc distance. We report the detection of $^{26}$Al gamma rays from this region with INTEGRAL/SPI.Comment: Contribution to Symposium "Nuclei in the Cosmos XIV", Niigata, Japan, Jun 2016; 3 pages, 2 figures; accepted for publication in JPS (Japan Physical Society) Conference Proceedings http://jpscp.jps.jp

Remotely piloted LTA vehicle for surveillance

Various aspects of a remotely piloted mini-LTA vehicle for surveillance, monitoring and measurement for civilian and military applications are considered. Applications, operations and economics are discussed