Model studies of vacuum sintering treated as a creep process

Ph.D.W. R. Clough and J. M. Bradfor

Direct Numerical Simulation of Turbulent Katabatic Slope Flows with an Immersed-Boundary Method

We investigate a Cartesian-mesh immersed-boundary formulation within an incompressible flow solver to simulate laminar and turbulent katabatic slope flows. As a proof-of-concept study, we consider four different immersed-boundary reconstruction schemes for imposing a Neumann-type boundary condition on the buoyancy field. Prandtl’s laminar solution is used to demonstrate the second-order accuracy of the numerical solutions globally. Direct numerical simulation of a turbulent katabatic flow is then performed to investigate the applicability of the proposed schemes in the turbulent regime by analyzing both first- and second-order statistics of turbulence. First-order statistics show that turbulent katabatic flow simulations are noticeably sensitive to the specifics of the immersed-boundary formulation. We find that reconstruction schemes that work well in the laminar regime may not perform as well when applied to a turbulent regime. Our proposed immersed-boundary reconstruction scheme agrees closely with the terrain-fitted reference solutions in both flow regimes

The relationship of hope to self-compassion, relational social skill, communication apprehension, and life satisfaction

Hope is a habitual way of thinking about goals, the potential pathways of achieving them and the motivated agency for their accomplishment. Past research shows the beneficial behavioral outcomes of having hope, but little research investigates the relationship of hope to indicators of psychological, relational, communicative, or subjective wellbeing. The present study takes an interdisciplinary approach to test a model of the relationship between hope and wellbeing, as expressed through self-compassion, relational social skill, communication apprehension, and life satisfaction. Results show a pattern of relationships that suggest intervention programs designed to change thinking habits can encourage not only more hopeful thought but also enhanced self-compassion, greater skill in personal relationships, less communication apprehension, and heightened life satisfaction

A Stratified Turbulence Formulation and a Turbulent Inflow Boundary Condition for Large-Eddy Simulation of Complex Terrain Winds

There has been an increased interest to forecast winds over complex terrain under realistic stability conditions using spatial resolutions that are much finer than the current practice. This goal is realizable thanks to the computational power of graphics processing units (GPUs). This thesis investigates an immersed boundary (IB) formulation and a turbulent inflow boundary condition within a multi-GPU parallel incompressible wind solver. Katabatic flows over a sloped complex terrain surface under stable stratification remain to be one of the least understood subjects in atmospheric turbulence. Prandtl’s analytical solution for laminar katabatic flow is used to develop an IB formulation to impose heat flux boundary conditions, and to assess the formal accuracy of the proposed IB schemes. Direct numerical simulation of turbulent katabatic flow is then performed to investigate the applicability of proposed schemes in the turbulent regime. Additionally, a turbulent inflow boundary condition formulation based on perturbations to the buoyancy field is also developed and studied for a channel flow. Results show that a statistically neutral buoyancy field can serve as a practical method to generate turbulent inflow conditions, and turbulent katabatic flow simulations are sensitive to the specifics of the IB formulation. With these two contributions, the current flow solver is closer to simulating winds over thermally active complex terrain

From Screen to Page: Japanese Film as a Historical Document, 1931-1959

This thesis explores to what degree Japanese film accurately reflects the scholarly accounts of Japanese culture and history. It analyzes how four elements of Japanese culture, loyalty, gender roles, foreigners, and the environment, are depicted on screen in films from the 1930s to the 1950s. While there are overt examples and messages regarding loyalty and gender in film, instances of foreigners and the environment are less evident, and in some cases even absent. However, just as much information can be gleaned from their absence. By measuring the scholarly accounts against the films, a conclusion can be drawn regarding the accuracy of historical accounts. This thesis argues that facts historians and other scholars present are consistent with the images on screen. It also makes the case for the increased use of film as a historical document, demonstrating that films are rich resources for analyzing societies and cultures