A sensitivity analysis on tidal stream turbine loads caused by operational, geometric design and inflow parameters

This paper presents a sensitivity analysis on a numerical tidal stream turbine model where a multitude of input parameters' effect on the load output were determined. The statistical procedure used, known as the Morris method, provided insight into the interactions between the parameters as well as showing their comparative influence on the turbine loading. The investigation covered parameters from the operational, geometric design and inflow variable domains where the rotor radius, current shear, blade root pitch, surface velocity and wave height were identified as most influential. The blade pitch was regarded as a surprisingly prominent influence on the loads. The turbine's operating depth and the blade geometry were also found to be of limited influence in the ranges investigated. In terms of load transmission into the internal components of a turbine's drive train, the rotor out-of-plane bending moment, or eccentric bending moment, was found to be a considerable contribution to the off-axis loads on the shaft. Therefore, special attention was paid to the input parameters' relationship to the eccentric load component by performing a detailed study on the load variations caused by the identified primary input parameters. It is concluded that performing a sensitivity analysis on a tidal stream turbine in a specific operating climate can yield insight to the expected load range and that the eccentric loading transmitted to the shaft is significant for most input cases

Scaled limit and rate of convergence for the largest eigenvalue from the generalized Cauchy random matrix ensemble

In this paper, we are interested in the asymptotic properties for the largest eigenvalue of the Hermitian random matrix ensemble, called the Generalized Cauchy ensemble $GCy$, whose eigenvalues PDF is given by $$\textrm{const}\cdot\prod_{1\leq j<k\leq N}(x_j-x_k)^2\prod_{j=1}^N (1+ix_j)^{-s-N}(1-ix_j)^{-\bar{s}-N}dx_j,$$where $s$ is a complex number such that $\Re(s)>-1/2$ and where $N$ is the size of the matrix ensemble. Using results by Borodin and Olshanski \cite{Borodin-Olshanski}, we first prove that for this ensemble, the largest eigenvalue divided by $N$ converges in law to some probability distribution for all $s$ such that $\Re(s)>-1/2$. Using results by Forrester and Witte \cite{Forrester-Witte2} on the distribution of the largest eigenvalue for fixed $N$, we also express the limiting probability distribution in terms of some non-linear second order differential equation. Eventually, we show that the convergence of the probability distribution function of the re-scaled largest eigenvalue to the limiting one is at least of order $(1/N)$.Comment: Minor changes in this version. Added references. To appear in Journal of Statistical Physic

'Education, education, education' : legal, moral and clinical

This article brings together Professor Donald Nicolson's intellectual interest in professional legal ethics and his long-standing involvement with law clinics both as an advisor at the University of Cape Town and Director of the University of Bristol Law Clinic and the University of Strathclyde Law Clinic. In this article he looks at how legal education may help start this process of character development, arguing that the best means is through student involvement in voluntary law clinics. And here he builds upon his recent article which argues for voluntary, community service oriented law clinics over those which emphasise the education of students

Cold Gas in Cluster Cores

I review the literature's census of the cold gas in clusters of galaxies. Cold gas here is defined as the gas that is cooler than X-ray emitting temperatures (~10^7 K) and is not in stars. I present new Spitzer IRAC and MIPS observations of Abell 2597 (PI: Sparks) that reveal significant amounts of warm dust and star formation at the level of 5 solar masses per year. This rate is inconsistent with the mass cooling rate of 20 +/- 5 solar masses per year inferred from a FUSE [OVI] detection.Comment: 10 pages, conference proceeding

Duty to God/my Dharma/Allah/Waheguru: diverse youthful religiosities and the politics and performance of informal worship

This article was published in the journal, Social and Cultural Geography [© Taylor & Francis] and the definitive version is available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14649365.2012.698749This paper draws on a case study of the Scout Movement in the UK to explore the everyday, informal expressions of ‘worship’ by young people that occur outside of ‘designated’ religious spaces and the politics of these performances over time. In analysing the explicit geographies of how young people in UK scouting perform their ‘duty to God’ (or Dharma and so forth), it is argued that a more expanded concept of everyday and embodied worship is needed. This paper also attends to recent calls for more critical historical geographies of religion, drawing on archival data to examine the organisation's relationship with religion over time and in doing so contributes new insights into the production of youthful religiosities and re-thinking their designated domains

Complete remission in the nephrotic syndrome study network

Background and objectives This analysis from the Nephrotic Syndrome Study Network (NEPTUNE) assessed the phenotypic and pathology characteristics of proteinuric patients undergoing kidney biopsy and defined the frequency and factors associated with complete proteinuria remission (CRever). Design, setting, participants, &amp; measurements We enrolled adults and children with proteinuria ≥0.5 g/d at the time of first clinically indicated renal biopsy at 21 sites in North America from April 2010 to June 2014 into a prospective cohort study. NEPTUNE central pathologists assigned participants to minimal-change disease (MCD), FSGS, membranous nephropathy, or other glomerulopathy cohorts. Outcome measures for this analysis were (1) CRever with urine protein-to-creatinine ratio (UPC)&lt;0.3 g/g with preserved native kidney function and (2) ESRD. Continuous variables are reported as median and interquartile range (IQR; 25th, 75th percentile). Cox proportional hazards modeling was used to assess factors associated with CRever. Results We enrolled 441 patients: 116 (27%) had MCD, 142 (32%) had FSGS, 66 (15%) had membranous nephropathy, and 117 (27%) had other glomerulopathy. The baseline UPC was 4.1 g/g (IQR, 1.9, 7.7) and the eGFR was 81 ml/min per 1.73 m2 (IQR, 50, 105). Median duration of observation was 19 months (IQR, 11, 30). CRever occurred in 46% of patients, and 4.6% progressed to ESRD. Multivariate analysis demonstrated that higher prebiopsy proteinuria (hazard ratio, 0.3; 95% confidence interval, 0.2 to 0.5) and pathology diagnosis (FSGS versus MCD; hazard ratio, 0.2; 95% confidence interval, 0.1 to 0.5) were inversely associated with CRever. The effect of immunosuppressive therapy on remission varied by pathology diagnosis. Conclusions In NEPTUNE, the high frequency of other pathology in proteinuric patients affirms the value of the diagnostic kidney biopsy. Clinical factors, including level of proteinuria before biopsy, pathology diagnosis, and immunosuppression, are associated with complete remission