Wide-angle sun sensors

Two sensors have been developed: one, single-axis device, is cylindrical; the other, two-axis device, is spherical. Multiple surface deposits of photosensitive material, such as cadmium sulfide, serve as redundancy, ensuring high reliability

Remote object configuration/orientation determination

This invention relates to object detection and location systems and, more particularly, to a method for determining the configuration and location of an object with respect to an X, Y, X coordinate frame. In space applications in particular, there is a need to be able to passively determine the orientation of an object at a distance, for example, in the control of large, flexible space structures. At present, there is no available method or apparatus which will allow the operator to make such a determination. A similar problem and need exists in robotic application. It is the primary object of this invention to provide a system for remotely defining an object's configuration in a manner compatible with a computer's analytical capability

Antenna pointing compensation based on precision optical measurement techniques

The pointing control loops of the Deep Space Network 70 meter antennas extend only to the Intermediate Reference Structure (IRS). Thus, distortion of the structure forward of the IRS due to unpredictable environmental loads can result in uncompensated boresight shifts which degrade blind pointing accuracy. A system is described which can provide real time bias commands to the pointing control system to compensate for environmental effects on blind pointing performance. The bias commands are computed in real time based on optical ranging measurements of the structure from the IRS to a number of selected points on the primary and secondary reflectors

ECONOMIES OF SCALE IN THE GREENHOUSE FLORICULTURE INDUSTRY

Crop Production/Industries,

Sometimes a Colonnade is Just a Porch

The history of modern architecture in the twentieth century, and into the twenty-first, is periodically concerned with the questions: who is Modern, what is Modern, what is Modern enough, and what does Modern mean in social and political terms? In a practical sense, the ideological battles between the “Moderns” and the “Ancients” over the past century have resembled the politics of a banana republic

Analysis and Simulation of the Mariner Mars 1971 Scan Platform: Spacecraft Dynamic Interaction

The equations of motion are developed which describe the dynamic interaction between the spacecraft bus and the movable appendages about a single axis. The effect is evaluated of the dynamic interaction on the attitude control subsystem with computer simulations, and design recommendations to reduce the impact of this interaction on future attitude control subsystems are presented

Ruffed Grouse Habitat Use in Western North Carolina

Ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus) historically have been considered a bird of early successional habitats. Over the past 60 years, forests of the southern Appalachians have matured, as a result of reduced timber harvest. Because of pressure from special interest groups, the U. S. Forest Service no longer uses the clearcutting method of regeneration. Use of forest stands created by alternative silvicultural techniques by grouse is unknown. The primary objective of this study was to determine grouse use of various forest types and stand ages, including stands regenerated by shelterwood, 2-aged shelterwood, and group selection early after harvest. Eighty-five grouse were captured in Fall 1999 and Spring 2000 with interception and mirror traps with a trap success rate of 1.2 birds/100 trap nights. Mesic pole stands (11– 39 years old) were preferred over mature stands (≥40 years old) and sapling stands (≤10 years old) for year-round habitat use. Males had an average annual home range of 43 ha (106 ac), a fall-winter range of 51 ha (126 ac), and a spring-summer range of 32 ha (79 ac). Females had an average annual home range 66 ha (163 ac), a fall-winter range of 64 ha (158 ac), and a spring-summer range of 46 ha (114 ac). Male grouse had an average day-use area of 1.5 ha (4 ac), while females typically stayed within 0.8 ha (2 ac). A spring drumming census suggested there were 2 birds/100 ha in 1999 and 4 birds/100 ha in 2000. Drumming logs were most often located on ridge tops in mature stands with a dense mid-story of mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia) or flame azalea (Rhododendron calendulaceum). Vegetation and topographic sampling suggested micro-site selection did not affect trap success, however, traps located in edge habitat were more successful than traps in mature stands. The annual mortality rate was 62%. Ten mortalities were believed to be caused by avian predators, 18 by mammalian predators, 6 grouse were killed by hunters, and 9 by other causes. Management recommendations should prescribe timber harvests in mesic forest stands to benefit ruffed grouse. Cuts should be separated both in time and space and be positioned near mature oak-hickory and/or northern hardwood stands when possible. Cuts should be located on mid- to lower slopes to provide early successional habitat, while leaving selected ridge tops uncut to provide suitable drumming log habitat. Logging roads and openings should be planted in a clover and annual grass mixture to establish quality herbaceous openings used by grouse for winter feeding and spring/summer brood rearing

Trends in US Crop Yields & Water Use

Over half the land in the US is dedicated to agriculture, with the vast majority of all cropland cultivated in corn, wheat, or soybean. Despite continuing advances in agricultural technologies, and consistent yield growth over the twentieth century, research suggests that environmental change is already impacting agricultural yield and future changes are sure to exacerbate challenges to agricultural production. It follows that the future of US agriculture depends on the evolution of the changing climate, the relationship between crop yields and the environment, on-farm management and adaptations, the ecosystems that support agriculture, the political and economic incentives that shape what farmers grow and how they grow it, and the technology developed to improve yields. This study will focus on two pieces of the aforementioned agricultural puzzle—the relationship between crop yields and the environment, and water use management in irrigated agriculture. This study contributes to current literature by exploring trends in irrigated agriculture at the county-scale, and by examining the efficacy of Random Forest (RF) regression in predicting agricultural yield. Results from the second chapter, where we utilize exploratory mapping and data mining techniques to understand trends in irrigated agriculture in the Western US, are pending approval from the USDA-NASS and are not reported here. Alternatively, we build a practical guide to working with operator-level irrigation survey data. Results from the third chapter suggest that RF predicts US corn yields well and point to the importance of space and time in corn yield prediction, and the highly nonlinear response of corn yield to irrigation, climate, and agricultural diversity covariates. These results demonstrate the predictive capacity of RF regression to model complex corn yield responses to biophysical and landscape conditions and point to the power of building an ensemble of different models, each with their own strengths and weaknesses, to characterize and predict agricultural yield

Lessons from Libya: A Situational Approach to the Generic Criticism of President Obama\u27s March 28, 2011 Address to the Nation on Libya

Many scholars have called the utility of the generic method of rhetorical criticism into question. Adopting a situational approach to generic rhetorical criticism increases the value of the method considerably. By analyzing situational constituents (scene, purpose, agent, act, agency, and audience) surrounding a discourse, a critic gains a holistic understanding of that text. When coupled with generic comparisons - whether the critic proceeds inductively or deductively - he or she can then trace the recurrent rhetorical strategies across time and place and, simultaneously, highlight the elements unique to the particular rhetor and discourse. I demonstrate this approach through an analysis of President Barack Obama\u27s March 28, 2011 Address to the Nation on Libya, in which he explained the U.S. military intervention in the Libyan Revolution that unfolded during the Arab Spring uprisings