8,858 research outputs found
Statistical modelling for prediction of axis-switching in rectangular jets
Rectangular nozzles are increasingly used for modern military aircraft propulsion installations, including the roll nozzles on the F-35B vertical/short take-off and landing strike fighter. A peculiar phenomenon known as axis-switching is generally observed in such non-axisymmetric nozzle flows during which the jet spreads faster along the minor axis compared to the major axis. This might affect the under-wing stores and aircraft structure. A computational fluid dynamics study was performed to understand the effects of changing the upstream nozzle geometry on a rectangular free jet. A method is proposed, involving the formulation of an equation based upon a statistical model for a rectangular nozzle with an exit aspect ratio (ARe) of 4; the variables under consideration (for a constant nozzle pressure ratio (NPR)) being inlet aspect ratio (ARi) and length of the contraction section. The jet development was characterised using two parameters: location of the cross-over point (Xc) and the difference in the jet half-velocity widths along the major and minor axes (ΔB30). Based on the observed results, two statistical models were formulated for the prediction of axis-switching; the first model gives the location of the cross-over point, while the second model indicates the occurrence of axis-switching for the given configuration
The Sources of b-Quarks at the Tevatron and their Correlations
The leading-log order QCD hard scattering Monte-Carlo models of HERWIG,
ISAJET, and PYTHIA are used to study the sources of b-quarks at the Tevatron.
The reactions responsible for producing b and bbar quarks are separated into
three categories; flavor creation, flavor excitation, and
parton-shower/fragmentation. Flavor creation corresponds to the production of a
b-bbar pair by gluon fusion or by annihilation of light quarks, while flavor
excitation corresponds to a b or bbar quark being knocked out of the
initial-state by a gluon or a light quark or antiquark. The third source occurs
when a b-bbar pair is produced within a parton shower or during the
fragmentation process of a gluon or a light quark or antiquark (includes gluon
splitting). The QCD Monte-Carlo models indicate that all three sources of
b-quarks are important at the Tevatron and when combined they qualitatively
describe the inclusive cross-section data. Correlations between the b and bbar
quark are very different for the three sources and can be used to isolate the
individual contributions.Comment: RevTex4, 14 pages, 20 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
Dry-mass sensing for microfluidics
We present an approach for interfacing an electromechanical sensor with a microfluidic device for the accurate quantification of the dry mass of analytes within microchannels. We show that depositing solutes onto the active surface of a quartz crystal microbalance by means of an on-chip microfluidic spray nozzle and subsequent solvent removal provides the basis for the real-time determination of dry solute mass. Moreover, this detection scheme does not suffer from the decrease in the sensor’s quality factor and the viscous drag present if the measurement is performed in a liquid environment, yet allows solutions to be analysed. We demonstrate the sensitivity and reliability of our approach by controlled deposition of nanogram levels of salt and protein from a micrometer-sized channel.We thank Alexander K. Buell, Igor Efimov, and Victor Ostanin for valuable discussions on QCM sensors and gratefully acknowledge financial support from the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNF), the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), the European Research Council (ERC), as well as the Frances and Augustus Newman Foundation.Permission is granted to quote from an AIP publication with the customary acknowledgment of the source. Republication of an article or portions thereof (e.g., excerpts of greater than 400 words, figures, tables, etc.) in original form or in translation, as well as other types of reuse (such as use in course packs or electronic reserves) require formal permission from AIP and may be subject to fees. Although it is not a legal requirement for permission, as a courtesy, an author of the original article should be informed of any request for republication/reuse
A New Technique for Finding Needles in Haystacks: A Geometric Approach to Distinguishing Between a New Source and Random Fluctuations
We propose a new test statistic based on a score process for determining the
statistical significance of a putative signal that may be a small perturbation
to a noisy experimental background. We derive the reference distribution for
this score test statistic; it has an elegant geometrical interpretation as well
as broad applicability. We illustrate the technique in the context of a model
problem from high-energy particle physics. Monte Carlo experimental results
confirm that the score test results in a significantly improved rate of signal
detection.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure
Approximating Mexican highways with slime mould
Plasmodium of Physarum polycephalum is a single cell visible by unaided eye.
During its foraging behavior the cell spans spatially distributed sources of
nutrients with a protoplasmic network. Geometrical structure of the
protoplasmic networks allows the plasmodium to optimize transport of nutrients
between remote parts of its body. Assuming major Mexican cities are sources of
nutrients how much structure of Physarum protoplasmic network correspond to
structure of Mexican Federal highway network? To find an answer undertook a
series of laboratory experiments with living Physarum polycephalum. We
represent geographical locations of major cities by oat flakes, place a piece
of plasmodium in Mexico city area, record the plasmodium's foraging behavior
and extract topology of nutrient transport networks. Results of our experiments
show that the protoplasmic network formed by Physarum is isomorphic, subject to
limitations imposed, to a network of principle highways. Ideas and results of
the paper may contribute towards future developments in bio-inspired road
planning
Desertification
IPCC SPECIAL REPORT ON CLIMATE CHANGE AND LAND (SRCCL)
Chapter 3: Climate Change and Land: An IPCC special report on climate change, desertification, land degradation, sustainable land management, food security, and greenhouse gas fluxes in terrestrial ecosystem
The difference that tenure makes
This paper argues that housing tenures cannot be reduced to either production relations or consumption relations. Instead, they need to be understood as modes of housing distribution, and as having complex and dynamic relations with social classes. Building on a critique of both the productionist and the consumptionist literature, as well as of formalist accounts of the relations between tenure and class, the paper attempts to lay the foundations for a new theory of housing tenure. In order to do this, a new theory of class is articulated, which is then used to throw new light on the nature of class-tenure relations
A large sample study of spin relaxation and magnetometric sensitivity of paraffin-coated Cs vapor cells
We have manufactured more than 250 nominally identical paraffin-coated Cs
vapor cells (30 mm diameter bulbs) for multi-channel atomic magnetometer
applications. We describe our dedicated cell characterization apparatus. For
each cell we have determined the intrinsic longitudinal, \sGamma{01}, and
transverse, \sGamma{02}, relaxation rates. Our best cell shows
\sGamma{01}/2\pi\approx 0.5 Hz, and \sGamma{02}/2\pi\approx 2 Hz. We find a
strong correlation of both relaxation rates which we explain in terms of
reservoir and spin exchange relaxation. For each cell we have determined the
optimal combination of rf and laser powers which yield the highest sensitivity
to magnetic field changes. Out of all produced cells, 90% are found to have
magnetometric sensitivities in the range of 9 to 30 fTHz. Noise analysis shows
that the magnetometers operated with such cells have a sensitivity close to the
fundamental photon shot noise limit
Correlation effects in MgO and CaO: Cohesive energies and lattice constants
A recently proposed computational scheme based on local increments has been
applied to the calculation of correlation contributions to the cohesive energy
of the CaO crystal. Using ab-initio quantum chemical methods for evaluating
individual increments, we obtain 80% of the difference between the experimental
and Hartree-Fock cohesive energies. Lattice constants corrected for correlation
effects deviate by less than 1% from experimental values, in the case of MgO
and CaO.Comment: LaTeX, 4 figure
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