A study on the co- and adjacent channel protection requirements for mobile satellite ACSSB modulation

Samples of speech modulated by narrowband frequency modulation (NBFM) (cellular) and amplitude companded single sideband (ACSSB) radios were subjected to simulated co- and adjacent channel interference environments typical of proposed frequency division multiple access (FDMA) mobile satellite systems. These samples were then listened to by a group of evaluators whose subjective responses to the samples were used to produce a series of graphs showing the relationship between subjective acceptability, carrier to noise density (C/No), carrier to interference ratio (C/I), and frequency offset. The results show that in a mobile satellite environment, ACSSB deteriorates more slowly than NBFM. The co- and adjacent channel protection ratios for both modulation techniques were roughly the same, even though the mechanism for signal deterioration is different

Recent technical advances in general purpose mobile Satcom aviation terminals

A second general aviation amplitude companded single sideband (ACSSB) aeronautical terminal was developed for use with the Ontario Air Ambulance Service (OAAS). This terminal is designed to have automatic call set up and take down and to interface with the Public Service Telephone Network (PSTN) through a ground earth station hub controller. The terminal has integrated RF and microprocessor hardware which allows such functions as beam steering and automatic frequency control to be software controlled. The terminal uses a conformal patch array system to provide almost full azimuthal coverage. Antenna beam steering is executed without relying on aircraft supplied orientation information

The lived experiences of young men addressing their sexual health and negotiating their masculinities

This thesis examines the lived experiences of young men, addressing their sexual health using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). It is known that young men do not access sexual health services in the same numbers as young women (Pearson, 2003a) and their masculinities are posited as a contributory factor to this. IPA was used to analyse data, collected using semi-structured interviews. Participants were young men, aged 16-20 years (n=7), recruited through local authority leisure centres; convenience sampling was used. Six semi-structured interviews were used as two participants were interviewed jointly. Interviews were conducted exclusively by the researcher, a young woman. The study aimed: • To discover young men’s lived experiences of addressing, or failing to address, their sexual health. • To discover young men’s experiences of negotiating masculinities, relating to their sexual health. Young men were found to have little knowledge of sexual health and sexually transmitted infections and asserted their wishes about sex over their partners. Women were characterised as the source of sexually transmitted infections and the young men sought to ‘protect’ themselves from their partners. However, contraception was seen as the preserve of women, despite unplanned pregnancy being a great concern for the young men. Young men’s ideals of masculinities often did not correspond to their personal ideals; in order to preserve their masculinities, the young men explained the compromises they made. In this way, they negotiated their masculinities with themselves and society. The study has contributed new knowledge and understanding about young men’s negotiation of their masculinities when considering their sexual health. A contribution to knowledge about methodology of interviewing young men has also been made, as the researcher was a young woman who was successful in eliciting rich data about a sensitive subject from young men

Актуалізація культурних традицій українців через призму ландшафтної культової скульптури Галичини кінця ХХ – початку ХХІ століть (The actualization of Ukrainian cultural tradition through the prism of Halychyna landscape religious sculpture of the end of XX – early XXI centuries)

У статті окреслено стан вивченості досліджуваної проблеми в царині мистецтвознавчої науки, розкрито загальну сутність та локально-видові характеристики ландшафтної культової скульптури, популяризованої на галицьких теренах у межах досліджуваного періоду, визначено та проаналізовано місце і значення таких об’єктів, їх духовної дієвості у збереженні й популяризації сучасниками культурних традицій українського народу. (The article outlines the state of the scrutiny of the investigated problem in the field of art studies; it reveals general essence and locally specific characteristics of the landscape religious sculpture popularized on the territory of Halychyna within the investigated period. It is identified and analyzed the place and importance of these objects, their spiritual effectiveness in the preservation and popularization of the cultural traditions of Ukrainian people by contemporaries.

The application of adaptive step-size control in the numerical simulation of calcium release in vascular smooth muscle

An algorithm for the adaptive control of numerical integration step-size is developed and implemented for the simulation of a three compartment model for Vascular Smooth Muscle. The three compartment model accounts for the simultaneous diffusion of Ca, 45Ca, EGTA, Ca-EGTA, and 45Ca-EGTA, and is an extension of a two compartment model by Diecke for the simultaneous diffusion of Ca, EGTA, and Ca-EGTA. The addition of the third compartment is to account for the presence of the Sarcoplasmic Reticulum which stores the calcium needed for contraction and is the primary regulator of calcium in the VSM cell. The SR has been implicated as the slow component in calcium release, as measured by Stout and Diecke in saponin skinned VSM. The compartmental model is developed from mass-balance equations and is solved numerically with a Runge-Kutta-Gill algorithm. Step-size is controlled with an adaptive algorithm which adjusts the integration interval (step-size) for the transient and steady-state phases of the simulation. The implementation of the various programs is designed to accommodate automated execution and analysis of a high volume of simulation runs. Some introduction into the methodology of modeling and simulation, as well as the complex physiology of the SR is discussed and the complete process of modeling, simulation, and analysis is illustrated for a simple model of a two-compartment leaky tank. A more comprehensive introduction into numerical integration is included to provide sufficient background for the development of the adaptive algorithm. The adaptive algorithm allows a complex simulation to be executed in one-fifth the time required for constant step (non-adaptive) numerical integration without incurring significant error. This reduction in the amount of computer time required permits more aggressive protocols for the determination of parameters and model responses by allowing more simulation runs to be processed in the course of a study. The simulation of calcium release from VSM revealed that the response of the system is not a multiple of the increase in rate but is instead related via a linear function representative of the buffering capacity of the model. Results from a similar two-compartment model suggest that the EGTA buffer system has a significant impact of the perceived rates of release