Land Grant Application- Watkins, Zachius (Douglas)

Land grant application submitted to the Maine Land Office on behalf of Zachius Watkins for service in the Revolutionary War, by their widow Sarah.https://digitalmaine.com/revolutionary_war_mass/1375/thumbnail.jp

Software Defined Radio for CubeSat Communication

Cube satellites, more commonly referred to as CubeSats, are small satellites that have become increasingly popular for academic, amateur, commercial, and scientific applications over the past five to ten years. These satellites provide a fairly inexpensive and compact platform for deploying many different types of equipment. While CubeSats do not allow for housing large, complex instruments, some organizations have begun to explore the possibility of deploying networks, or clusters, of CubeSats. Satellites in these clusters could theoretically be tied together via radio frequency communications to accomplish more than a single CubeSat could alone. This report summarizes the preliminary design and development of a CubeSat software defined radio system for Harris Corporation. This system aims to facilitate communication between cube satellites using a compact, yet dynamic architecture. It is anticipated that the preliminary design of this project, described in this report, will be continued by future student design teams. The preliminary design of this system has focused on two main components of the radio design. The first component is the electronic and programming design of the actual radio software and components. The second is the mechanical packaging that will encase the radio chip-set and mount within the satellite. The design and development of these components was performed concurrently. Design of the electronic and software components included the design of two main subsystems: a transmitter and a receiver. The transmitter subsystem deals with receiving, modulating, and then transmitting incoming data. The receiver system involves demodulation, phase recovery, timing recovery, and error detection to then properly receive transmitted information. For this preliminary design, an image was captured using a camera and was then transmitted and received by the developed software defined radio system to demonstrate functionality. Mechanical components for the radio packaging were developed to meet physical and thermal loading requirements. The mechanical packaging was designed to meet random vibration, shock, and equivalent dynamic loads. The thermal load requirements of the electrical components were taken into account to determine the thermal design needs of the packaging. Expenses for this preliminary design fall well within the sponsor\u27s provided budget of $10,000. Conceptual designs for the electrical and mechanical components of this preliminary design were completed during the first semester. Machining, programming, and testing took place during the second semester of the project

Between Worlds & A Conversation on Fantasy, Portals, and Escape

The primary content of this creative thesis is a portion of a manuscript—the first four chapters of a novel to be called, Between Worlds. This could be considered a work of fantasy and science fiction. Additionally, this thesis contains a critical essay entitled, “A Conversation on Fantasy, Portals, and Escape,” which explores the idea of multiple genres within fantasy and the question of escape versus escapism in fiction. This essay elucidates on the creative work herein, as Between Worlds ventures into both multiple genres and the argument surrounding escapism

Transition Detection at Cryogenic Temperatures Using a Carbon-Based Resistive Heating Layer Coupled with Temperature Sensitive Paint

This paper will highlight the development and application of a carbon-based resistive heating layer for use in transition detection at cryogenic temperatures at the National Transonic Facility (NTF) for full-flight Reynolds number testing. This study builds upon previous work that was successfully demonstrated at the 0.3-m Transonic Cryogenic Tunnel on a smaller-scale airfoil shape of regular geometry. However, the test performed at the NTF involved a semispan wing with complex geometry and significantly larger than previous tests. This required the development of new coatings to provide suitable resistances to provide adequate heating rates for transition detection. Successful implementation of this technology has the ability to greatly enhance transition detection experiments at cryogenic temperatures as well as reducing perturbation in the tunnel caused by more traditional transition detection methods

Legacies of Kanjogera: women political elites and the transgression of gender norms in Rwanda

Kanjogera looms large in Rwandan history as a Queen Mother (1895–1931) – a position equal to that of the king – who wielded extraordinary political power. While she was not the first Rwandan woman to exercise this kind of power, she is arguably the most widely remembered in Rwandan popular culture largely due to the brutalities she allegedly inflicted upon her perceived enemies. But why do Kanjogera’s violent excesses stand out when other monarchical figures also occasionally used violence to maintain or expand their power? What might the way her name is invoked in the present tell us about modern Rwandan gender norms and people’s attitudes toward women who exercise significant political power? We respond to these questions by examining the permissible behaviours of Rwandan women political elites in historical perspective. Following an overview of Kanjogera’s political legacy, we turn our attention to two First Ladies, Agathe Kanziga (1973–1994) and Jeannette Kagame (2000-present) who, for different reasons, are occasionally referred to as modern incarnations of Kanjogera. In these two cases, we argue Kanjogera’s name serves as a rhetorical device that reveals ongoing anxieties about women exercising significant political power, while simultaneously undermining the politically prominent men with whom they are associated