Pilot interaction with automated airborne decision making systems

The use of advanced software engineering methods (e.g., from artificial intelligence) to aid aircraft crews in procedure selection and execution is investigated. Human problem solving in dynamic environments as effected by the human's level of knowledge of system operations is examined. Progress on the development of full scale simulation facilities is also discussed

Phenology satellite experiment

There are no author-identified significant results in this report

Pilot interaction with automated airborne decision making systems

Two project areas were pursued: the intelligent cockpit and human problem solving. The first area involves an investigation of the use of advanced software engineering methods to aid aircraft crews in procedure selection and execution. The second area is focused on human problem solving in dynamic environments, particulary in terms of identification of rule-based models land alternative approaches to training and aiding. Progress in each area is discussed

Flux amplification using stochastic superconducting quantum interference devices

This is the published version, also available here: http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.114161.The flux change δ Φ through a bistable superconducting quantum interference device has been measured in the presence of thermally induced switching (with rate Γ) versus δ Φ x , the change in the applied flux. For small δ Φ x , δ Φ is proportional to δ Φ x with a measured flux gain g, depending on the temperature, barrier height, and frequency Ω, with a maximum of about 16. In agreement with theories of periodically driven stochastic bistable systems,g(Ω) is nearly frequency independent up to Γ and is proportional to Ω−1 for Ω≫Γ. For larger amplitude signals, harmonic generation has been measured in the adiabatic limit (Ω≪Γ) and found to be in good agreement with theory. Possible applications of this system for flux measurement are discussed

Applications of aerospace technology in biology and medicine

Utilization of National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) technology in medicine is discussed. The objective is best obtained by stimulation of the introduction of new or improved commercially available medical products incorporating aerospace technology. A bipolar donor/recipient model of medical technology transfer is presented to provide a basis for the team's methodology. That methodology is designed to: (1) identify medical problems and NASA technology that, in combination, constitute opportunities for successful medical products; (2) obtain the early participation of industry in the transfer process; and (3) obtain acceptance by the medical community of new medical products based on NASA technology. Two commercial transfers were completed: the Stowaway, a lightweight wheelchair that provides mobility for the disabled and elderly in the cabin of commercial aircraft, and Micromed, a portable medication infusion pump for the reliable, continuous infusion of medications such as heparin or insulin. The marketing and manufacturing factors critical to the commercialization of the lightweight walker incorporating composite materials were studied. Progress was made in the development and commercialization of each of the 18 currently active projects

The economic impact of workplace wellness programmes in Canada

Background The economic benefits of workplace wellness programmes (WWPs) are commonly cited as a reason for employers to implement such programmes; however, there is limited evidence outside of the US context exploring their economic impact. US evidence is less relevant in countries such as Canada with universal publicly funded health systems because of the lower potential employer savings from WWPs. Aims To conduct a systematic review of the Canadian literature investigating the economic impact of WWPs from an employer perspective. The quality of that evidence was also assessed. Methods We reviewed literature which included analyses of four economic outcomes: return on investment calculations; cost-effectiveness or cost-benefit analyses; valuations of productivity, turnover, absenteeism and/or presenteeism costs; and valuations of health care utilization costs. We applied the British Medical Journal (BMJ) Economic Evaluation Working Party Checklist to evaluate the quality of this evidence. Results Eight studies met the inclusion criteria. Although the studies showed that WWPs generated economic benefits from an employer perspective (largely from productivity changes), none of the reviewed studies were in the high-quality category (i.e. fulfilled at least 75% of the checklist criteria) and most had severe methodological issues. Conclusions Though the Canadian literature pertaining to the economic impact of WWPs spans over three decades, robust evidence on this topic remains sparse. Future research should include a comparable control group, a time horizon of over a year, both direct and indirect costs, and researchers should apply analytical techniques that account for potential selection bias

Exact Maximal Height Distribution of Fluctuating Interfaces

We present an exact solution for the distribution P(h_m,L) of the maximal height h_m (measured with respect to the average spatial height) in the steady state of a fluctuating Edwards-Wilkinson interface in a one dimensional system of size L with both periodic and free boundary conditions. For the periodic case, we show that P(h_m,L)=L^{-1/2}f(h_m L^{-1/2}) for all L where the function f(x) is the Airy distribution function that describes the probability density of the area under a Brownian excursion over a unit interval. For the free boundary case, the same scaling holds but the scaling function is different from that of the periodic case. Numerical simulations are in excellent agreement with our analytical results. Our results provide an exactly solvable case for the distribution of extremum of a set of strongly correlated random variables.Comment: 4 pages revtex (two-column), 1 .eps figure include

Individual Entanglements in a Simulated Polymer Melt

We examine entanglements using monomer contacts between pairs of chains in a Brownian-dynamics simulation of a polymer melt. A map of contact positions with respect to the contacting monomer numbers (i,j) shows clustering in small regions of (i,j) which persists in time, as expected for entanglements. Using the ``space''-time correlation function of the aforementioned contacts, we show that a pair of entangled chains exhibits a qualitatively different behavior than a pair of distant chains when brought together. Quantitatively, about 50% of the contacts between entangled chains are persistent contacts not present in independently moving chains. In addition, we account for several observed scaling properties of the contact correlation function.Comment: latex, 12 pages, 7 figures, postscript file available at http://arnold.uchicago.edu/~ebn