Effects of Wind-Hardened Snow on Foraging by Reindeer (Rangifer Tarandus)

Various methods were investigated for assessing the relationship between wind-hardened snow (upsik) and forage availability to reindeer. Mean bottom area of individual craters was not a function of depth, hardness or integrated hardness. Individual crater area was partially dependent on specific cratering time (r2 = .60). Cratering time per active period increased with integrated snow hardness (r2 = .88). Number of craters and total area cratered increased with decreasing site hardness. Reindeer always cratered microsites of lesser depth and hardness than found in the general feeding site. A threefold decrease in snow hardness resulted in a fourfold increase in forage availability.Key words: Rangifer, snow hardness, snow depth, forage availabilityMots clés: Rangifer, dureté de la neige, profondeur de la neige, accessibilité aux plantes fourragère

Are Causality Violations Undesirable?

Causality violations are typically seen as unrealistic and undesirable features of a physical model. The following points out three reasons why causality violations, which Bonnor and Steadman identified even in solutions to the Einstein equation referring to ordinary laboratory situations, are not necessarily undesirable. First, a space-time in which every causal curve can be extended into a closed causal curve is singularity free--a necessary property of a globally applicable physical theory. Second, a causality-violating space-time exhibits a nontrivial topology--no closed timelike curve (CTC) can be homotopic among CTCs to a point, or that point would not be causally well behaved--and nontrivial topology has been explored as a model of particles. Finally, if every causal curve in a given space-time passes through an event horizon, a property which can be called "causal censorship", then that space-time with event horizons excised would still be causally well behaved.Comment: Accepted in October 2008 by Foundations of Physics. Latex2e, 6 pages, no figures. Presented at a seminar at the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico. Version 2 was co-winner of the QMUL CTC Essay Priz

Agent-based performance assessment tool for general aviation operations under free flight

The objective of this research is to design and demonstrate an agent-based modeling and analysis tool for evaluating General Aviation (GA) pilot situation awareness under free flight air traffic management (ATM). A computational tool is developed to assess free flight's potential effect on GA operators, by combining an agent-based representation of the overall pilot/vehicle/ATM system with quantitative modelbased metrics of pilot SA. The model's performance is demonstrated in a set of simulation trials designed to measure the pilot agent's ability to recognize and correctly assess protected zone conflicts in free flight ATM, using information available from a hypothetical cockpit display of traffic information. A set of simulations is presented to examine the effect of sensor accuracy and attention allocation on pilot awareness of protected zone conflict hazards posed by intruder aircraft. The results show that reducing sensor accuracy leads to an increase in overall SA error, and that the pilot agent divides its attention over multiple traffic hazards in proportion to each intruder's hazard potential. This attention-sharing varies dynamically as the conflict situation changes, in a manner that is consistent with intuitive expectations

Phylogenetics of Archerfishes (Toxotidae) and Evolution of the Toxotid Shooting Apparatus

A grant from the One-University Open Access Fund at the University of Kansas was used to defray the author's publication fees in this Open Access journal. The Open Access Fund, administered by librarians from the KU, KU Law, and KUMC libraries, is made possible by contributions from the offices of KU Provost, KU Vice Chancellor for Research & Graduate Studies, and KUMC Vice Chancellor for Research. For more information about the Open Access Fund, please see http://library.kumc.edu/authors-fund.xml.Archerfishes (Toxotidae) are variously found in the fresh- and brackish-water environments of Asia Pacific and are well known for their ability to shoot water at terrestrial prey. These shots of water are intended to strike their prey and cause it to fall into the water for capture and consumption. While this behavior is well known, there are competing hypotheses (blowpipe vs. pressure tank hypothesis) of how archerfishes shoot and which oral structures are involved. Current understanding of archerfish shooting structures is largely based on two species, Toxotes chatareus and T. jaculatrix. We do not know if all archerfishes possess the same oral structures to shoot water, if anatomical variation is present within these oral structures, or how these features have evolved. Additionally, there is little information on the evolution of the Toxotidae as a whole, with all previous systematic works focusing on the interrelationships of the family. We first investigate the limits of archerfish species using new and previously published genetic data. Our analyses highlight that the current taxonomy of archerfishes does not conform to the relationships we recover. Toxotes mekongensis and T. siamensis are placed in the synonymy of T. chatareus, Toxotes carpentariensis is recognized as a species and removed from the synonymy of T. chatareus, and the genus Protoxotes is recognized for T. lorentzi based on the results of our analyses. We then take an integrative approach, using a combined analysis of discrete hard- and soft-tissue morphological characters with genetic data, to construct a phylogeny of the Toxotidae. Using the resulting phylogenetic hypothesis, we then characterize the evolutionary history and anatomical variation within the archerfishes. We discuss variation in the oral structures and the evolution of the mechanism with respect to the interrelationships of archerfishes, and find that the oral structures of archerfishes support the blowpipe hypothesis but soft-tissue oral structures may also play a role in shooting. Finally, by comparing the morphology of archerfishes to their sister group, we find that the Leptobramidae has relevant shooting features in the oral cavity, suggesting that some components of the archerfish shooting mechanism are examples of co-opted or exapted traits

Standstill Electric Charge Generates Magnetostatic Field Under Born-Infeld Electrodynamics

The Abelian Born-Infeld classical non-linear electrodynamic has been used to investigate the electric and magnetostatic fields generated by a point-like electrical charge at rest in an inertial frame. The results show a rich internal structure for the charge. Analytical solutions have also been found. Such findings have been interpreted in terms of vacuum polarization and magnetic-like charges produced by the very high strengths of the electric field considered. Apparently non-linearity is to be accounted for the emergence of an anomalous magnetostatic field suggesting a possible connection to that created by a magnetic dipole composed of two mognetic charges with opposite signals. Consistently in situations where the Born-Infeld field strength parameter is free to become infinite, Maxwell`s regime takes over, the magnetic sector vanishes and the electric field assumes a Coulomb behavior with no trace of a magnetic component. The connection to other monopole solutions, like Dirac`s, t' Hooft`s or Poliakov`s types, are also discussed. Finally some speculative remarks are presented in an attempt to explain such fields.Comment: 11 pages, 3 figures. In this version is update a permanent address of the author L.P.G. De Assis and information on submission publication. Submetted to International Journal of Theoretical Physic

The use of an e-learning constructivist solution in workplace learning

We wished to investigate whether an e-learning approach which uses constructivist principles can be successfully applied to train employees in a highly specialised skill thought to require expert individuals and extensive prolonged training. The approach involved the development of an e-learning package which included simulations and interactivity, then experimental testing in a case study workplace environment with the collection of both quantitative and qualitative data to assess the effectiveness of the package. Our study shows that this e-learning strategy improved the skills of the inexperienced operator significantly. We therefore propose that such programmes could be used as a work based training aid and used as a model system for the training of employees in complex skilled tasks in the workplace. This research demonstrates that the e-learning can be applied outside the traditional learning environment to train unskilled employees to undertake complex practical tasks which traditionally would involve prohibitively expensive instruction. This work also illustrates that simulations and interactivity are powerful tools in the design of successful e-learning packages in preparing learners for real world practical situations. Finally this study shows that workplace learners can be better served by elearning environments rather than conventional training as they allow asynchronous learning and private study which are valued by employees who have other demands on their time and are more comfortable receiving tuition privately Relevance to industry: E-learning using constructivist principles, and incorporating simulations and interactivity can be used successfully in the training of highly specialised and skilled tasks required in the modern workplace