Learning through projects in engineering education

[No abstract available

AUV location detection in an enclosed environment

Normally, experiments are done in a controlled environment so that different systems under test can be isolated. The added benefit is that the sensors used are a lot more accurate under controlled conditions. In the experiments perform on underwater robot localization, this was not the case. The sonar localization equipment use perform flawlessly in open water as it was designed to do, but poorly in an indoor pool. It is believed that the sonar had too much power causing too many reflections in the enclosed space. Unfortunately the experiments are better done in a pool so as to control the elements under test. This paper is the search to improve the equipment\u27s accuracy in an enclosed environment by attempting to reduce the power of the sonar via mechanical means

Relevance of the eastern African coastal forest for early hominin biogeography

The influence of climate change on hominin evolution is much debated. Two issues hamper our under- standing of this process: the limited hominin fossil record, and incomplete knowledge about hominin spatial occupation of Africa. Here, we analyze the presently known hominin fossil distribution pattern and explore the potential geographic distribution of hominins between ~4.5 and ~2.5 Ma. We focus on assessing the relevance of the Coastal Forest of Eastern Africa (CFEA) along the Indian Ocean as a core area for early hominin evolution. Based on biogeographic-phylogeographic data we propose the coastal refuge hypoth- esis: the CFEA provided a refugium for early hominins in periods of variable climate and strong seasonality during eccentricity maxima. From this refuge, evolved species could disperse inland (e.g. to rift basins) via vegetated humid corridors, whenever onset of stable climate periods with low seasonality during eccen- tricity minima allowed expansion out of the coastal enclave. We develop a conceptual model in time and space, comparing predictions with climatic and hominin fossil records. The results imply that: 1) between ~4.5 and 3 Ma, ongoing (mostly anagenetic) hominin evolution occurred in the CFEA, punctuated by inland dispersal events at ~4.4, 4.2, 3.8, 3.5, and 3.2 Ma; 2) before ~3 Ma, the Afar Basin was a (sub)core area often connected to and relatively similar to the CFEA, while other inland areas were more or less marginal for early hominin habitation; 3) after ~3 Ma, Northern Hemisphere Glaciation exerted strong influence by causing latitudinal contraction of the CFEA, leading to habitat fragmentation, isolation of hominin populations and possible cladogenetic evolution. A major challenge for the coastal refuge model is the fact that at present, no (hominin) fossils are known from the CFEA. We consider how this can be explained, and possibly overcome with targeted search efforts. Furthermore we discuss how the model can be tested, e.g. with molecular phylogeography approaches, and used to predict new hominin fossil locations. With this study, we hope to contribute a fresh perspective to the climate-evolution debate, emphasizing the role of climatic stability, length of dry season and vegetation cover to facilitate connectivity between hominin core and marginal habitats

Hominin homelands of East Java: revised stratigraphy and landscape reconstructions for Plio-Pleistocene Trinil

Bioarchaeolog

Controlled experiments in lithic technology and function

From the earliest manifestations of tool production, technologies have played a fundamental role in the acquisition of different resources and are representative of daily activities in the lives of ancient humans, such as hunting (stone-tipped spears) and meat processing (chipped stone tools) (Lombard 2005; McPherron et al. 2010; Lombard and Phillipson 2010; Brown et al. 2012; Wilkins et al. 2012; Sahle et al. 2013; Joordens et al. 2015; Ambrose 2001; Stout 2001). Yet many questions remain, such as how and why technological changes took place in earlier populations, and how technological traditions, innovations, and novelties enabled hominins to survive and disperse across the globe (Klein 2000; McBrearty and Brooks 2000; Henshilwood et al. 2001; Marean et al. 2007; Brown et al. 2012; Režek et al. 2018).Projekt DEALinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio