2,109 research outputs found
2-(Ammoniomethyl)pyridinium sulfate monohydrate
In the crystal of the title hydrated molecular salt, C6H10N2
2+·SO4
2−·H2O, N—H⋯O and O—H⋯O hydrogen bonds link the molecules into layers parallel to the ab plane. C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds are observed both within these layers and between molecules and ions in adjacent layers
SALT Spectropolarimetry and Self-Consistent SED and Polarization Modeling of Blazars
We report on recent results from a target-of-opportunity program to obtain
spectropolarimetry observations with the Southern African Large Telescope
(SALT) on flaring gamma-ray blazars. SALT spectropolarimetry and
contemporaneous multi-wavelength spectral energy distribution (SED) data are
being modelled self-consistently with a leptonic single-zone model. Such
modeling provides an accurate estimate of the degree of order of the magnetic
field in the emission region and the thermal contributions (from the host
galaxy and the accretion disk) to the SED, thus putting strong constraints on
the physical parameters of the gamma-ray emitting region. For the specific case
of the -ray blazar 4C+01.02, we demonstrate that the combined SED and
spectropolarimetry modeling constrains the mass of the central black hole in
this blazar to .Comment: Submitted to Galaxies - Proceedings of "Polarized Emission from
Astrophysical Jets", Ierapetra, Crete, June 12 - 16, 201
A Variational Approach to Bound States in Quantum Field Theory
We consider here in a toy model an approach to bound state problem in a
nonperturbative manner using equal time algebra for the interacting field
operators. Potential is replaced by offshell bosonic quanta inside the bound
state of nonrelativistic particles. The bosonic dressing is determined through
energy minimisation, and mass renormalisation is carried out in a
nonperturbative manner. Since the interaction is through a scalar field, it
does not include spin effects. The model however nicely incorporates an
intuitive picture of hadronic bound states in which the gluon fields dress the
quarks providing the binding between them and also simulate the gluonic content
of hadrons in deep inelastic collisions.Comment: latex, revtex, 22 page
Haptic-Multimodal Flight Control System Update
The rapidly advancing capabilities of autonomous aircraft suggest a future where many of the responsibilities of today s pilot transition to the vehicle, transforming the pilot s job into something akin to driving a car or simply being a passenger. Notionally, this transition will reduce the specialized skills, training, and attention required of the human user while improving safety and performance. However, our experience with highly automated aircraft highlights many challenges to this transition including: lack of automation resilience; adverse human-automation interaction under stress; and the difficulty of developing certification standards and methods of compliance for complex systems performing critical functions traditionally performed by the pilot (e.g., sense and avoid vs. see and avoid). Recognizing these opportunities and realities, researchers at NASA Langley are developing a haptic-multimodal flight control (HFC) system concept that can serve as a bridge between today s state of the art aircraft that are highly automated but have little autonomy and can only be operated safely by highly trained experts (i.e., pilots) to a future in which non-experts (e.g., drivers) can safely and reliably use autonomous aircraft to perform a variety of missions. This paper reviews the motivation and theoretical basis of the HFC system, describes its current state of development, and presents results from two pilot-in-the-loop simulation studies. These preliminary studies suggest the HFC reshapes human-automation interaction in a way well-suited to revolutionary ease-of-use
Piloted Evaluation of the H-Mode, a Variable Autonomy Control System, in Motion-Based Simulation
As aircraft become able to autonomously respond to a range of situations with performance surpassing human operators, we are compelled to look for new methods that help understand their use and guide the design of new, more effective forms of automation and interaction. The "H-mode" is one such method and is based on the metaphor of a well-trained horse. The concept allows the pilot to manage a broad range of control automation functionality, from augmented manual control to FMS-like coupling and automation initiated actions, using a common interface system and easily learned set of interaction skills. The interface leverages familiar manual control interfaces (e.g., the control stick) and flight displays through the addition of contextually dependent haptic-multimodal elements. The concept is relevant to manned and remotely piloted vehicles. This paper provides an overview of the H-mode concept followed by a presentation of the results from a recent evaluation conducted in a motion-based simulator. The evaluation focused on assessing the overall usability and flying qualities of the concept with an emphasis on the effects of turbulence and cockpit motion. Because the H-mode results in interactions between traditional flying qualities and management of higher-level flight path automation, these effects are of particular interest. The results indicate that the concept may provide a useful complement or replacement to conventional interfaces, and retains the usefulness in the presence of turbulence and motion
Implementation of digital pheromones in PSO accelerated by commodity Graphics Hardware
In this paper, a model for Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) implementation of Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) using digital pheromones to coordinate swarms within ndimensional design spaces is presented. Previous work by the authors demonstrated the capability of digital pheromones within PSO for searching n-dimensional design spaces with improved accuracy, efficiency and reliability in both serial and parallel computing environments using traditional CPUs. Modern GPUs have proven to outperform the number of floating point operations when compared to CPUs through inherent data parallel architecture and higher bandwidth capabilities. The advent of programmable graphics hardware in the recent times further provided a suitable platform for scientific computing particularly in the field of design optimization. However, the data parallel architecture of GPUs requires a specialized formulation for leveraging its computational capabilities. When the objective function computations are appropriately formulated for GPUs, it is theorized that the solution efficiency (speed) can be significantly increased while maintaining solution accuracy. The development of this method together with a number of multi-modal unconstrained test problems are tested and presented in this paper
Application of the H-Mode, a Design and Interaction Concept for Highly Automated Vehicles, to Aircraft
Driven by increased safety, efficiency, and airspace capacity, automation is playing an increasing role in aircraft operations. As aircraft become increasingly able to autonomously respond to a range of situations with performance surpassing human operators, we are compelled to look for new methods that help us understand their use and guide their design using new forms of automation and interaction. We propose a novel design metaphor to aid the conceptualization, design, and operation of highly-automated aircraft. Design metaphors transfer meaning from common experiences to less familiar applications or functions. A notable example is the "Desktop metaphor" for manipulating files on a computer. This paper describes a metaphor for highly automated vehicles known as the H-metaphor and a specific embodiment of the metaphor known as the H-mode as applied to aircraft. The fundamentals of the H-metaphor are reviewed followed by an overview of an exploratory usability study investigating human-automation interaction issues for a simple H-mode implementation. The envisioned application of the H-mode concept to aircraft is then described as are two planned evaluations
Infrared spectroscopy of HCOOH in interstellar ice analogues
Context: HCOOH is one of the more common species in interstellar ices with
abundances of 1-5% with respect to solid H2O. Aims: This study aims at
characterizing the HCOOH spectral features in astrophysically relevant ice
mixtures in order to interpret astronomical data. Methods: The ices are grown
under high vacuum conditions and spectra are recorded in transmission using a
Fourier transform infrared spectrometer. Pure HCOOH ices deposited at 15 K and
145 K are studied, as well as binary and tertiary mixtures containing H2O, CO,
CO2 and CH3OH. The mixture concentrations are varied from 50:50% to ~10:90% for
HCOOH:H2O. Binary mixtures of HCOOH:X and tertiary mixtures of HCOOH:H2O:X with
X = CO, CO2, and CH3OH, are studied for concentrations of ~10:90% and
~7:67:26%, respectively. Results: Pure HCOOH ice spectra show broad bands which
split around 120 K due to the conversion of a dimer to a chain-structure. Broad
single component bands are found for mixtures with H2O. Additional spectral
components are present in mixtures with CO, CO2 and CH3OH. The resulting peak
position, full width at half maximum and band strength depend strongly on ice
structure, temperature, matrix constituents and the HCOOH concentration.
Comparison of the solid HCOOH 5.9, 7.2, and 8.1 micron features with
astronomical data toward the low mass source HH 46 and high mass source W 33A
shows that spectra of binary mixtures do not reproduce the observed ice
features. However, our tertiary mixtures especially with CH3OH match the
astronomical data very well. Thus interstellar HCOOH is most likely present in
tertiary or more complex mixtures with H2O, CH3OH and potentially also CO or
CO2, providing constraints on its formation.Comment: 11 pages, 10 figures, accepted by A&
Dutch Dialogues with Afrikaners: The Netherlands and the Cultural Boycott Against the Apartheid Regime in the 1980s
The peculiar new state of the blazar PKS 1510-089
Contemporaneous multiwavelength observations with H.E.S.S., SALT, Fermi-LAT,
Swift, and ATOM show that the blazar PKS 1510-089 suffered a significant
decrease in its optical flux, degree of optical polarization and high-energy
gamma-ray (E > 100 MeV) flux since July 2021. Meanwhile, the X-ray and
very-high-energy gamma-ray (E > 100 GeV) fluxes remained steady throughout 2021
and 2022. The degree of optical polarization decreased to about zero in 2022,
indicating an unpolarized dominating accretion disk component in the optical-UV
domain that is completely diluting the polarized electron synchrotron
component. In this proceeding we will discuss, via theoretical SED modeling,
possible reasons for this dramatic change in the appearance of this blazar.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figures, ICRC conferenc
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