Convergence characteristics of nonlinear vortex-lattice methods for configuration aerodynamics

Nonlinear panel methods have no proof for the existence and uniqueness of their solutions. The convergence characteristics of an iterative, nonlinear vortex-lattice method are, therefore, carefully investigated. The effects of several parameters, including (1) the surface-paneling method, (2) an integration method of the trajectories of the wake vortices, (3) vortex-grid refinement, and (4) the initial conditions for the first iteration on the computed aerodynamic coefficients and on the flow-field details are presented. The convergence of the iterative-solution procedure is usually rapid. The solution converges with grid refinement to a constant value, but the final value is not unique and varies with the wing surface-paneling and wake-discretization methods within some range in the vicinity of the experimental result

Experimental synchronization of circuit oscillations induced by common telegraph noise

Experimental realization and quantitative investigation of common-noise-induced synchronization of limit-cycle oscillations subject to random telegraph signals are performed using an electronic oscillator circuit. Based on our previous formulation [K. Nagai et al., Phys. Rev. E 71, 036217 (2005)], dynamics of the circuit is described as random-phase mappings between two limit cycles. Lyapunov exponents characterizing the degree of synchronization are estimated from experimentally determined phase maps and compared with linear damping rates of phase differences measured directly. Noisy on-off intermittency of the phase difference as predicted by the theory is also confirmed experimentally

Acute Sleep Restriction Has Differential Effects on Components of Attention

Inadequate nightly sleep duration can impair daytime functioning, including interfering with attentional and other cognitive processes. Current models posit that attention is a complex function regulated by several separate, but interacting, neural systems responsible for vigilance, orienting, and executive control. However, it is not clear to what extent each of these underlying component processes is affected by sleep loss. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of acute sleep restriction on these attentional components using the Dalhousie Computerized Attention Battery (DalCAB). DalCAB tasks were administered to healthy women (aged 19–25 years) on two consecutive mornings: once after a night with 9 h time in bed (TIB), and once again after either another night with 9 h TIB (control condition, n = 19) or after a night with 3 h TIB (sleep restriction condition, n = 20). Self-ratings of sleepiness and mood were also obtained following each sleep condition. Participants showed increases in self-reported sleepiness and fatigue after the second night only in the sleep restriction group. Sleep restriction primarily affected processing speed on tasks measuring vigilance; however, performance deficits were also observed on some measures of executive function (e.g., go/no-go task, flanker task, working memory). Tasks assessing orienting of attention were largely unaffected. These results indicate that acute sleep restriction has differential effects on distinct components of attention, which should be considered in modeling the impacts of sleep loss on the underlying attentional networks

Монте-Карло моделирование фазового перехода адроны-КГП в столкновениях тяжелых ионов с помощью партонной модели

Quark gluon plasma (QGP) is a special state of nuclear matter where quarks and gluons behave like free particles. Recently, a number of investigations of this state with high temperature and/or density have been conducted using collisions of relativistic and ultra-relativistic heavy nuclei. It is accepted that depending on the temperature and density, 1st or the 2nd order phase transitions take place in hadron matter during the formation of QGP. Herein, we have modeled heavy ion collisions using a HIJING Monte-Carlo generator, taking into account the description of the 1st order phase transition as a probabilistic process. We analyzed the behavior of the fluctuations of the total (N = N+ – N–) and resultant (Q = N+ – N–) electric charges of the system. Different phases were introduced using the BDMPS (Baier – Dokshitzer – Mueller – Piegne – Schiff) model of parton energy loss during crossing through a dense nuclear medium.Кварк-глюонная плазма (КГП) является особым состоянием ядерной материи, при котором кварки и глюоны ведут себя как свободные частицы. В настоящее время проводятся исследования этого состояния вещества с высокими температурой и/или плотностью с помощью столкновений релятивистских и ультрарелятивистских тяжелых ядер. Считается, что адронная материя испытывает (в зависимости от температуры и плотности) фазовый переход первого или второго рода при образовании КГП. В данной статье были промоделированы столкновения тяжелых ионов с помощью Монте-Карло генератора HIJING с учетом описания фазового перехода первого рода как вероятностного процесса и проанализировано поведение флуктуаций полного (N = N+ – N–) и результирующего (Q = N+ – N–) электрических зарядов системы. Разные фазы были заданы с помощью BDMPS (Baier – Dokshitzer – Mueller – Piegne – Schiff) модели потери партонной энергии при прохождении через плотное ядерное вещество

Determining the probability of cyanobacterial blooms: the application of Bayesian networks in multiple lake systems

A Bayesian network model was developed to assess the combined influence of nutrient conditions and climate on the occurrence of cyanobacterial blooms within lakes of diverse hydrology and nutrient supply. Physicochemical, biological, and meteorological observations were collated from 20 lakes located at different latitudes and characterized by a range of sizes and trophic states. Using these data, we built a Bayesian network to (1) analyze the sensitivity of cyanobacterial bloom development to different environmental factors and (2) determine the probability that cyanobacterial blooms would occur. Blooms were classified in three categories of hazard (low, moderate, and high) based on cell abundances. The most important factors determining cyanobacterial bloom occurrence were water temperature, nutrient availability, and the ratio of mixing depth to euphotic depth. The probability of cyanobacterial blooms was evaluated under different combinations of total phosphorus and water temperature. The Bayesian network was then applied to quantify the probability of blooms under a future climate warming scenario. The probability of the "high hazardous" category of cyanobacterial blooms increased 5% in response to either an increase in water temperature of 0.8°C (initial water temperature above 24°C) or an increase in total phosphorus from 0.01 mg/L to 0.02 mg/L. Mesotrophic lakes were particularly vulnerable to warming. Reducing nutrient concentrations counteracts the increased cyanobacterial risk associated with higher temperatures

Lake surface temperature [in “State of the Climate in 2017”]

Observed lake surface water temperature anomalies in 2017 are placed in the context of the recent warming observed in global surface air temperature by collating long-term in situ lake surface temperature observations from some of the world’s best-studied lakes and a satellite-derived global lake surface water temperature dataset. The period 1996–2015, 20 years for which satellite-derived lake temperatures are available, is used as the base period for all lake temperature anomaly calculations

Evidence for a general species time arearelationship

The species-area relationship (SAR) plays a central role in biodiversity research, and recent work has increased awareness of its temporal analog, the species-time relationship (STR). Here we provide evidence for a general species-time-area-relationship (STAR), in which species number is a function of the area and time span of sampling, as well as their interaction. For eight assemblages ranging from lake zooplankton to desert rodents, this model outperformed a sampling-based model and two simpler models in which area and time had independent effects. In every case the interaction term was negative, meaning that rates of species accumulation in space decreased with the time span of sampling, while species accumulation rates in time decreased with area sampled. Although questions remain about its precise functional form, the STAR provides a tool for scaling species richness across time and space, for comparing the relative rates of species turnover in space and time at different scales of sampling, and for rigorous testing of mechanisms proposed to drive community dynamics. Our results show that the SAR and STR are not separate relationships but two dimensions of one unified pattern. Keywords: community dynamics, spatiotemporal scaling, species diversity, turnover, speciesarea relationship, species-time relationshi

Promjene lipidnog profila krvi steriliziranih pretilih mačaka s dijabetesom

The aim of the present study was to examine the lipid profile, lipid fractions and the lipid peroxidation state in the blood of neutered cats with obesity and diabetes. Three groups of neutered cats (males and females) were formed for the study. We compared cats with obesity (7-9 points on a 9-point BCS scale), with obesity complicated by diabetes, and clinically healthy animals with normal body condition scores (4-5 BCS points). Lipidogram parameters, fractions of high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL), chylomicrons (CM), lipid peroxidation products (POL) - lipid hydroperoxides (GPL) and malondialdehyde (MDA) were analysed. In obese cats, a decrease in HDL and phospholipids was observed, and an increase in LDL, VLDL, CM, triglycerides, and cholesterol. No significant differences in lipid and lipoprotein metabolism between neutered females and males were found. A tendency towards increasing concentrations of lipoproteins, triglycerides and cholesterol in males, as well as an increase in phospholipids in females was found. In cats with obesity and associated diabetes, the ratio of phospholipids: cholesterol was less than one, while in healthy cats - more than one. Obesity and diabetes initiate POL and increased concentrations of GPL and MDA, which were the highest in the blood of females with associated pathology.Cilj ovog rada bio je istražiti lipidni profil, lipidne frakcije i lipidnu peroksidaciju u krvi ster-iliziranih pretilih mačaka s dijabetesom. Za istraživanje formirane su tri skupine steriliziranih mačaka (mužjaka i ženki). Uspoređene su pretile mačke (7 – 9 bodova na BCS ljestvici od 9 bodova) s onima u kojih je pretilost komplicirana dijabetesom te klinički zdravim životinjama s normalnim tjelesnim pokazateljima (4 – 5 BCS bodova). Analiziran je lipidogram, frakcije lipopro-teina visoke gustoće (HDL), lipoproteina niske gustoće (LDL) i lipoproteina vrlo niske gustoće (VLDL), kilomikroni (CM), produkti lipidne peroksidacije (POL) – lipidna hidroperoksidaza (GPL) i malondialdehid (MDA). U pretilih je mačaka uočen snižen HDL i fosfolipidi te povišen LDL, VLDL, CM, trigliceridi i kolesterol. Nije bilo znakovite razlike u metabolizmu lipida i lipo-proteina između kastriranih ženki i mužjaka. Uočena je sklonost porastu koncentracije lipopro-teina, triglicerida i kolesterola u mužjaka kao i porast fosfolipida u ženki. U pretilih mačaka s dija-betesom omjer fosfolipida i kolesterola bio je manji od jedan, dok je u zdravih mačaka bio veći od jedan. Pretilost i dijabetes potiču lipidnu peroksidaciju i povećavaju koncentraciju GPL-a i MDA-a, koja je najveća u krvi ženki s tom patologijom

Себестоимость продукции, ее факторы и пути снижения

В данной работе рассматривается понятие себестоимости, факторы, которые влияют на себестоимость, а также пути выявления резервов по снижению себестоимости

Hybrid nanoantennas for directional emission enhancement

Plasmonic and dielectric nanoparticles offer complementary strengths regarding their use as optical antenna elements. While plasmonic nanoparticles are well-known to provide strong decay rate enhancement for localized emitters, all-dielectric nanoparticles can enable high directivity combined with low losses. Here, we suggest a hybrid metal-dielectric nanoantenna consisting of a gold nanorod and a silicon nanodisk, which combines all these advantages. Our numerical analysis reveals a giant enhancement of directional emission together with simultaneously high radiation efficiency (exceeding 70%). The suggested hybrid nanoantenna has a subwavelength footprint, and all parameters and materials are chosen to be compatible with fabrication by two-step electron-beam lithography.The authors acknowledge a support from the Australian Research Council