A Water Quality Investigation of Kimages Creek

Analysis of continuous monitoring water quality data (temperature, specific conductivity, depth, pH, dissolved oxygen, and turbidity) at two locations in a tidal freshwater creek (Kimages Creek) characterized seasonal variation and responses to short-term events. Supplemental water quality measurements were collected to describe longitudinal variations in the creek. There were significant differences in water quality between the two continuous monitoring stations (one tidal and unforested, the other non-tidal and forested) over varying time scales. Rain events showed increases in turbidity, depth and dissolved oxygen, and reductions in temperature, conductivity, and pH at both stations. Tides influenced the water quality at the downstream monitoring station, but there were also influences at the upstream site despite the presence of beaver impoundments. At the downstream station, changes in conductivity and pH were linked to the tidal cycle while temperature and dissolved oxygen were linked to a diel cycle but also responded to tidal influence

Flow-pressure analysis of loop gas networks

This paper proposes a mathematical model underlying a computer program for flow-pressure analysis of loop gas pipe networks. The method is used on a test case with four nodes. The HAPN application for flow-pressure analyses of low pressure gas pipe networks is completely designed in object-oriented programming technology. The equations, which describe the physical flow-pressure conditions through every cross point are assumed to be continuous and the energy of every closed loop of analyzed network conserved. The system of non-linear equations was linearized by LTM (Linear Theory Method). The algorithm for numerical module LTM and the method for solution of sparse matrix are developed at the Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, University of Maribor, Slovenia

Spinoza and the Genesis of the Aesthetic

This paper identifies an aesthetics implicit in Spinoza’s philosophy through the concept of a genesis of the aesthetic. A genesis of the aesthetic indicates that a philosophy of art is not yet fully formed in his work, but can emerge as a consequence or effect of his thought. This theory would evaluate the work of art primarily in its relationship to truth. Following the architectonics of Spinoza’s own thought, this paper constructs a progression – from the imagination, to reason, to intuition – toward a concept of aesthetic practices that aligns itself ever more closely with the freedom, perfection, and affirmation of infinite substance itself. The specific forms of aesthetic reception and production flowing from Spinoza’s ideal of wisdom unite two seemingly disparate paradigms: the aesthetic as essentially affirmative, as a joy in the individual power of every individuated thing, on the one hand; and the cultivation of a critical, ethically informed aesthetics of liberation, one capable of occupying different positions (obedience, autonomy, resistance) with respect to state or sovereign power, on the other hand

Modal Revolutions: Friedrich Hölderlin and the Task of Poetry

One of the many pathways of modernity travels along an intellectual trajectory that is increasingly skeptical of and hostile toward the concept of necessity, a concept that once played a dominant role in metaphysical and ontological thought from the Middle Ages to the late eighteenth century. By the early twentieth century, the narrator of Musil’s Der Mann ohne Eigenschaften would have us believe that the human being is endowed with two fundamental modes of access to the world: the sense for reality (Wirklichkeitssinn) and the sense for possibility (Möglichkeitssinn). There is no mention of a sense for necessity, or what would otherwise be called a Notwendigkeitssinn. The erosion of the force of necessity over the mind opens a space of counter-attraction, releasing a gravitational pull toward contingency, or the sense that there is nothing necessary as such about the world of the given: all that exists could just as well be otherwise. Necessity can reappear from time to time as a second-order logical category, albeit channeled back into contingency, in which its central (and seemingly paradoxical) formula becomes: the necessity of contingency. Necessity as such, however, as an integral part of the thickness of experience itself, withdraws into the unthinkable. Musil’s text functions as a barometer of this shift. So absurd, irrelevant, archaic and patently metaphysical is the modality of necessity to this particular self-understanding of the modern subject that it cannot even be labeled a conspicuous absence. Necessity has simply vanished from the horizon of thought

Latin American Films Need Our Attention

The Askwith Media Library houses numerous wonderful, entertaining, and informative international DVDs. A lot of this material does not have favorable circulation numbers. Through this project, students created Omeka digital exhibits and engaging “Buzzfeed” type quizzes to promote our Latin American and Asian film collections.University Library's Michigan Library Scholars internship programhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/163526/4/Capstone_Project.pdf20f8e5f0-5334-42f8-bf12-11110e8dd295SEL

Alternative nuclear power plants concepts

Jedrska energetika, kakršna je uveljavljena danes, je v veliki meri plod razmeroma starih tehnoloških rešitev. Kot takšna se je tekom zgodovine delovanja kljub nenehnim izboljšavam že večkrat soočala z različnimi težavami, ki zadevajo varnost in zanesljivost obratovanja. Te so segale od pogostejših ter nedolžnih, pa vse do redkih, a bistveno bolj nevarnih dogodkov, ki so precej zaznamovali zaupanje javnosti do pridobivanja jedrske energije. Slednje je najbolj očitno v Nemčiji, kjer so se odločili v bližnji prihodnosti zaustaviti vse jedrske objekte. K zmanjšani naklonjenosti tovrstnemu načinu pridobivanja energije prispeva seveda tudi dejstvo, da so s trenutno tehnologijo proizvedeni odpadki radioaktivni zelo dolgo časa. Dolgoročne strategije, ki naj bi zagotavljale varno sanacijo, so omejene na odlaganje v opuščene rudnike ali druge podzemne lokacije. Omenjene pomanjkljivosti bi lahko reševali z reaktorji 4. generacije, ki sodijo med najnovejše koncepte s področja jedrske tehnologije. V pričujočem diplomskem delu so predstavljene tehnične osnove šestih izbranih tipov reaktorjev, njihove prednosti ter izzivi, s katerimi se trenutno soočajo raziskovalci številnih sodelujočih držav.The nuclear power industry as we know it today, is largely based on relatively old technological solutions. As such, it has encountered many different operational problems regarding safety and reliability throughout its history, even though it has been subjected to many tehnical improvements. The problematic events were ranging from frequent and innocent, up to rare, but much more dangerous ones. It is those that have negatively influenced the public opinion and caused distrust towards nuclear energy. The most obvious example is Germany, which has decided to phase out all of its nuclear power plants in the near term. The fact that the waste produced with current technology is radioactive for a very long time does not help in getting more public support. Long-term waste management strategies are currently limited to disposal in deep geological repositories, such as abandoned mines or other underground locations. These shortcomings could be dealt with by developing and employing the 4th generation of reactors, which brings forth the newest concepts of nuclear technology. This thesis presents the basic technical properties of the six chosen reactor types, along with the benefits and challanges that present themselves to researchers of the many cooperating countries

Assessing Ground Penetrating Radar\u27s Ability to Image Subsurface Characteristics of Icy Debris Fans in Alaska and New Zealand

Icy debris fans have recently been described as fan shaped depositional landforms associated with (or formed during) deglaciation, however, the subsurface characteristics remain essentially undocumented. We used ground penetrating radar (GPR) to non-invasively investigate the subsurface characteristics of icy debris fans (IDFs) at McCarthy Glacier, Alaska, USA and at La Perouse Glacier, South Island of New Zealand. IDFs are largely unexplored paraglacial landforms in deglaciating alpine regions at the mouths of bedrock catchments between valley glaciers and icecaps. IDFs receive deposits of mainly ice and minor lithic material through different mass-flow processes, chiefly ice avalanche and to a lesser extent debris flow, slushflow, and rockfall. We report here on the GPR signal velocity observed from 15 different wide-angle reflection/refraction (WARR) soundings on the IDFs and on the McCarthy Glacier; the effect of GPR antenna orientation relative to subsurface reflections; the effect of spreading direction of the WARR soundings relative to topographic contour; observed differences between transverse electric (TE) and transverse magnetic (TM) antenna polarization; and a GPR profile extending from the McCarthy Glacier onto an IDF. Evaluation of the WARR soundings indicates that the IDF deposits have a GPR signal velocity that is similar to the underlying glacier, and that the antenna polarization and orientation did not prevent identification of GPR reflections. The GPR profile on the McCarthy Glacier indicates that the shallowest material is layered, decreases in thickness down fan, and has evidence of brittle failure planes (crevasses). The GPR profile and WARR soundings collected in 2013 indicate that the thickness of the McCarthy Glacier is 82 m in the approximate middle of the cirque and that the IDF deposits transition with depth into flowing glacial ice

Geomorphology of icy debris fans: Delivery of ice and sediment to valley glaciers decoupled from icecaps

The pace and volume of mass flow processes contributing ice and sediment to icy debris fans (IDFs) were documented at sites in Alaska and New Zealand by integrating field observations, drone and time-lapse imagery, ground penetrating radar, and terrestrial laser scanning. Largely unstudied, IDFs are supraglacial landforms at the mouths of bedrock catchments between valley glaciers and icecaps. Time-lapse imagery recorded 300–2300 events reaching 15 fans during intervals from nine months to two years. Field observations noted hundreds of deposits trapped within catchments weekly that were later remobilized onto fans. Deposits were mapped on images taken three to four times per day. Most events were ice avalanches (58%–100%). Slush avalanches and/or flows were common in spring and fall (0%–65%). Icy debris flows were \u3c5% of the events, observed only at sites with geomorphically complex catchments. Rockfalls were common within catchments; few directly reached a fan. Site selection provided a spectrum of catchment relationships between icecaps and fans. The largest most active fans occur below hanging glaciers or short chutes between the icecap and glacier and were dominated by ice avalanches, slush avalanches, and slush flows. Larger, complex catchments allowed temporary storage of ice and sediment that were later remobilized into ice and slush avalanches and debris flows. Unlike alluvial settings where larger fans are associated with larger catchments, there are variable relationships between IDF area and catchment area. Exceptionally active and dynamic compared to alluvial fans, the studied IDFs exhibited annual resurfacing rates of 300%–\u3e4000%. Annual contributions by mass flows ranged from 133,200 to 5,200,000 m3, representing 3%–56% of fan volume. Although ablation occurred, mainly during summers, significant ice transfer occurred through fan subsurface areas to adjacent valley glaciers. Icy debris fans annually contributed \u3c1%–~24% of the mass of adjacent valley glaciers. Small glaciers (e.g., McCarthy Glacier, Alaska) showed minor thinning (\u3c1 m/yr) compared to larger glaciers (e.g., La Perouse, Douglas, and Mueller Glaciers, New Zealand) that lost \u3e5–10 m/yr over the hundreds of meters of valley glacier adjacent to the IDFs studied. Some IDFs lengthened in response to thinning of valley glaciers. Icy debris fans supplied significant ice and sediment to valley glaciers, slowing the rate of deglaciation. Results of this study have implications toward managing hazards and predicting glacial mass balance in alpine regions. For example, having quantitative information about the role of ice contribution from IDFs to valley glaciers may result in forecasting a lower rate of deglaciation than traditionally recognized for some glaciers decoupled from icecaps

Assessing Ground Penetrating Radar’s Ability to Image Subsurface Characteristics of Icy Debris Fans in Alaska and New Zealand

Icy debris fans have recently been described as fan shaped depositional landforms associated with (or formed during) deglaciation, however, the subsurface characteristics remain essentially undocumented. We used ground penetrating radar (GPR) to non-invasively investigate the subsurface characteristics of icy debris fans (IDFs) at McCarthy Glacier, Alaska, USA and at La Perouse Glacier, South Island of New Zealand. IDFs are largely unexplored paraglacial landforms in deglaciating alpine regions at the mouths of bedrock catchments between valley glaciers and icecaps. IDFs receive deposits of mainly ice and minor lithic material through different mass-flow processes, chiefly ice avalanche and to a lesser extent debris flow, slushflow, and rockfall. We report here on the GPR signal velocity observed from 15 different wide-angle reflection/refraction (WARR) soundings on the IDFs and on the McCarthy Glacier; the effect of GPR antenna orientation relative to subsurface reflections; the effect of spreading direction of the WARR soundings relative to topographic contour; observed differences between transverse electric (TE) and transverse magnetic (TM) antenna polarization; and a GPR profile extending from the McCarthy Glacier onto an IDF. Evaluation of the WARR soundings indicates that the IDF deposits have a GPR signal velocity that is similar to the underlying glacier, and that the antenna polarization and orientation did not prevent identification of GPR reflections. The GPR profile on the McCarthy Glacier indicates that the shallowest material is layered, decreases in thickness down fan, and has evidence of brittle failure planes (crevasses). The GPR profile and WARR soundings collected in 2013 indicate that the thickness of the McCarthy Glacier is 82 m in the approximate middle of the cirque and that the IDF deposits transition with depth into flowing glacial ice