Challenges in the Better, Faster, Cheaper Era of Aeronautical Design, Engineering and Manufacturing

“Better, Faster, Cheaper” (BFC) emerged in the 1990s as a new paradigm for aerospace products. In this paper, we examine some of the underlying reasons for BFC and offer some thoughts to help frame the thinking and action of aerospace industry professionals in this new era. Examination of literature on industrial innovation indicates that aeronautical products have evolved to a “dominant design” and entered the “specific phase” of their product life cycle. Innovation in this phase centers on: incremental product improvement, especially for productivity and quality; process technology; technological innovations that offer superior substitutes. The first two of these are aligned with BFC objectives

Cardiogenic shock complicating acute myocardial infarction: The use of coronary angioplasty and the integration of the new support devices into patient management

Conventional therapy for cardiogenic shock complicating acute myocardial infarction continues to be associated with a high in-hospital mortality rate. Hemodynamic support with new mechanical devices and emergency coronary revascularization may alter the long-term prognosis for patients with this complication. Between July 1985 and March 1990, 68 patients presented to the University of Michigan with acute myocardial infarction and cardiogenic shock. Interventions performed included thrombolytic therapy (46%), intraaortic balloon pump counterpulsation (70%), cardiac catheterization (86%), coronary angioplasty (73%), emergency coronary artery bypass grafting/ventricular septal defect repair (15%), Hemopump insertion (11%), percutaneous cardiopulmonary support (4%) and ventricular assist device (3%).The 30-day survival rate was significantly better in patients who had successful angioplasty of the infarct-related artery than in patients with failed angioplasty (61% vs. 7%, p = 0.002) or no attempt at angioplasty (61% vs. 14%, p = 0.003). This difference was maintained over the 1-year follow-up period. The only clinical variable that predicted survival was age <65 years.The early use of the new support devices in 10 patients was associated with death in 8 (80%), but this poor outcome may reflect a selection bias for an especially high risk population. Collectively, these recent data continue to suggest that emergency revascularization with angioplasty may reduce the mortality rate, but further study is required to define optimal utilization and integration of new support devices

Reconsidering "the love of art" : evaluating the potential of art museum outreach

Art museums have long been identified as bastions of social and cultural exclusion. This conclusion was best evidenced by the large-scale 1967 French study by Bourdieu and Darbel demonstrating the exclusionary nature of “The Love of Art.” However, in recent years there have been increasing efforts to reach out to a broader range of visitors beyond conventional audiences. The present study investigates the impacts of an outreach program at a UK art museum, which sought to engage socially excluded young mothers. This study employs ethnographic research methods on a longitudinal basis to develop qualitative insights about the program seeking to mitigate cultural exclusion. While the study’s findings uphold many longstanding critiques of art museums’ conventional approaches, the study also indicates that carefully designed outreach activities can overcome such limitations and enhance cultural engagement. Thus, art museums’ limited appeal is tied to problematic public engagement practices that can be changed

A magnetic field diagnostic for sonoluminescence

This study is motivated by the extraordinary process of single bubble sonoluminescence (SBSL), where an acoustically driven spherical shock is thought to power the emitted radiation. We propose new experiments using an external magnetic field which can induce anisotropies in both the shock propagation and radiation pattern. The effects will depend on the temperature, conductivity, and size of the radiating region. Our predictions suggest that such a laboratory experiment could serve as an important diagnostic in placing bounds on these parameters and understanding the physics of sonoluminescence.Comment: Latex File, Two .eps files, 5 pages, submitted to PR

Axonemal structures reveal mechanoregulatory and disease mechanisms

Motile cilia and flagella beat rhythmically on the surface of cells to power the flow of fluid and to enable spermatozoa and unicellular eukaryotes to swim. In humans, defective ciliary motility can lead to male infertility and a congenital disorder called primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD), in which impaired clearance of mucus by the cilia causes chronic respiratory infections1. Ciliary movement is generated by the axoneme, a molecular machine consisting of microtubules, ATP-powered dynein motors and regulatory complexes2. The size and complexity of the axoneme has so far prevented the development of an atomic model, hindering efforts to understand how it functions. Here we capitalize on recent developments in artificial intelligence-enabled structure prediction and cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) to determine the structure of the 96-nm modular repeats of axonemes from the flagella of the alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii and human respiratory cilia. Our atomic models provide insights into the conservation and specialization of axonemes, the interconnectivity between dyneins and their regulators, and the mechanisms that maintain axonemal periodicity. Correlated conformational changes in mechanoregulatory complexes with their associated axonemal dynein motors provide a mechanism for the long-hypothesized mechanotransduction pathway to regulate ciliary motility. Structures of respiratory-cilia doublet microtubules from four individuals with PCD reveal how the loss of individual docking factors can selectively eradicate periodically repeating structures

Theories of Willpower Affect Sustained Learning

Building cognitive abilities often requires sustained engagement with effortful tasks. We demonstrate that beliefs about willpower–whether willpower is viewed as a limited or non-limited resource–impact sustained learning on a strenuous mental task. As predicted, beliefs about willpower did not affect accuracy or improvement during the initial phases of learning; however, participants who were led to view willpower as non-limited showed greater sustained learning over the full duration of the task. These findings highlight the interactive nature of motivational and cognitive processes: motivational factors can substantially affect people’s ability to recruit their cognitive resources to sustain learning over time

The Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) High-energy X-Ray Mission

The Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) mission, launched on 2012 June 13, is the first focusing high-energy X-ray telescope in orbit. NuSTAR operates in the band from 3 to 79 keV, extending the sensitivity of focusing far beyond the ~10 keV high-energy cutoff achieved by all previous X-ray satellites. The inherently low background associated with concentrating the X-ray light enables NuSTAR to probe the hard X-ray sky with a more than 100-fold improvement in sensitivity over the collimated or coded mask instruments that have operated in this bandpass. Using its unprecedented combination of sensitivity and spatial and spectral resolution, NuSTAR will pursue five primary scientific objectives: (1) probe obscured active galactic nucleus (AGN) activity out to the peak epoch of galaxy assembly in the universe (at z ≾ 2) by surveying selected regions of the sky; (2) study the population of hard X-ray-emitting compact objects in the Galaxy by mapping the central regions of the Milky Way; (3) study the non-thermal radiation in young supernova remnants, both the hard X-ray continuum and the emission from the radioactive element ^(44)Ti; (4) observe blazars contemporaneously with ground-based radio, optical, and TeV telescopes, as well as with Fermi and Swift, to constrain the structure of AGN jets; and (5) observe line and continuum emission from core-collapse supernovae in the Local Group, and from nearby Type Ia events, to constrain explosion models. During its baseline two-year mission, NuSTAR will also undertake a broad program of targeted observations. The observatory consists of two co-aligned grazing-incidence X-ray telescopes pointed at celestial targets by a three-axis stabilized spacecraft. Deployed into a 600 km, near-circular, 6° inclination orbit, the observatory has now completed commissioning, and is performing consistent with pre-launch expectations. NuSTAR is now executing its primary science mission, and with an expected orbit lifetime of 10 yr, we anticipate proposing a guest investigator program, to begin in late 2014

Coronary revascularization after intravenous tissue plasminogen activator for unstable angina pectoris: Results of a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial

To determine the role of intravenous tissue plasminogen activator (t-PA) in unstable angina, it was compared with placebo in a randomized, double-blind trial. Forty patients with angina at rest and provocable ischemia (pacing induced) had baseline coronary angiography, study drug infusion and then repeat angiography at 20 +/- 9 hours. All patients received diltiazem, nitrates, [beta] blockers, aspirin and intravenous heparin. During study drug infusion (150 mg over 8 hours), refractory ischemia necessitating emergency bypass surgery (CABG) or coronary angioplasty (PTCA) occurred in 4 of 20 t-PA patients compared with 1 of 20 placebo patients (p = 0.21). Before discharge, revascularization for persistent, provocable ischemia and a residual stenosis &gt;= 60% was as follows: t-PA patients, 8 PTCA and 7 CABG; placebo patients, 11 PTCA and 8 CABG (p = 0.39). Quantitative angiographic percent diameter stenosis of the culprit artery at baseline and follow-up was: t-PA 71 +/- 17 and 63 +/- 22; placebo 70 +/- 19 and 67 +/- 22 (difference not significant). However, 3 t-PA patients compared with no placebo patients demonstrated an insignificant (&lt; 60% diameter) residual stenosis and averted PTCA (p = 0.14). There were no complications of PTCA in the 8 t-PA patients; in contrast, 3 of 11 placebo patients had abrupt closure, necessitating emergency CABG in 2 (p = 0.23). Thus, intravenous t-PA in unstable angina can eliminate the need for PTCA in a few patients, does not appear to decrease the overall or emergency rate of revascularization procedures and may facilitate the safety of PTCA.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/27162/1/0000157.pd

Festchrift: A Collection of Essays on Architectural History

A collection of essays on architectural history prepared by the Northern Pacific Coast Chapter Society of Architectural Historians dedicated to Professor Marion Dean Ross, chapter founder, on the occasion of his 65th birthday