How Nationality, Weather, Wind, and Distance Affect Consumer Willingness to Fly in Autonomous Airplanes

Several studies have examined passengers’ trust in human-operated systems versus autonomous systems. Prior studies have also reported cultural differences among individuals from India and the United States. The purpose of this study was to investigate how nationality, weather, wind, and distance affect passengers’ willingness to fly in autonomous aircraft. Participants included 161 volunteers from the United States and 137 volunteers from India. In 12 different conditions, participants were asked to rate their willingness to fly in an autonomous aircraft, given information about the weather (sunny, raining, or snowing), the wind level (no wind versus strong wind), and the flight distance (short flight versus long flight). These conditions were presented randomly to each participant. Subsequently, participants were asked qualitative, open-ended questions. The results indicated that Indian participants were generally positive about autonomous commercial flights, except in the most extreme conditions. American participants were generally negative about autonomous commercial flights, except in perfect conditions. Participants were also asked their opinions on advantages of automation, disadvantages of automation, and specific weather concerns. Implications for the findings are discussed

Dynamic strain propagation in nanoparticulate zirconia refractory

Residual and intrinsic strains in granular materials have been studied extensively. However, understanding the dynamic strains that cause these resultant residual strains is key to developing better strain-resistant materials. This investigation demonstrates a method for characterizing dynamic strain propagation in granular materials. The specimen is a zirconia-based refractory composed of sol–gel-derived zirconia nanoparticles in a potassium silicate glass binder.In situsynchrotron X-ray powder diffraction in flat-plate geometry is used to characterize the sample structure on timescales of the order of 1 ms. A 125 W CO2laser is used to strain the sample with a 25 ms pulse length. To compensate for the poor flux on this timescale, a pump–probe method is repeated 1000 times and the resulting data are subsequently re-binned to improve statistics. A Gaussian weighting function is also used to introduce better contrast between strained and unstrained frames.TOPAS Academicis used for fitting with a Le Bail model in `batch mode'. Lattice parameters and sample height are refined during fitting, along with a Lorentzian line width for extracting microstrain broadening. Microstrains, ∊, in the range of 1.01 &lt; ∊ &lt; 1.46% are reported on a 1 ms timescale.</jats:p

What Type of Person Would Be Willing to Fly with Children? A Multi-Model Analysis

The purpose of this study was to assess the type of person who would be willing to fly with children in various scenarios. A quantitative methodology and a non-experimental research approach were used in this study. A two-stage approach created a regression equation then assessed model fit. Six hundred and twenty participants were recruited for the study. The dataset was split randomly into two groups to facilitate the two-stage approach, resulting in 310 participants per stage. The study used 14 possible predictors to determine willingness to fly in five different scenarios. Five models were created and found between two and four predictors of passengers who were willing to fly with children in various scenarios. We were able to explain between 14.3% and 18.6% of the variance. All five equations were assessed for model fit and found to support a good model fit. Many aviation studies have examined willingness to fly in various scenarios; however, no research specific to the type of person who would be willing to fly with children has been explored. This study aims to fill that gap by exploring the type of person who would fly with children in five different scenarios

Personal Safety Culture: A New Measure for General Aviation Pilots

Safety culture has been a subject of research for over three decades and is now widely accepted as a critical component of organizational safety programs both domestically and internationally. Through the development of a healthy safety culture, aviation organizations can improve safety processes, reduce mishaps, and mitigate risk more effectively. This is done through the holistic team efforts of an organization’s members and the organization’s leadership. How about aviators who are not part of an organization? Is it possible to identify a personal safety culture defined outside of the traditional organization? And, is it possible to create an instrument allowing pilots to conduct a self-assessment of their personal safety culture? The current research seeks to address these questions by developing such an instrument to measure personal safety culture in General Aviation pilots. The first version of the instrument was developed using resources from prior research studies and a literature review of over 160 publications. It was initially sent to experts in civilian aviation, academia and military sectors who conducted face validity assessments. Once revised, the instrument was tested using a sample drawn from a large southeastern university in the United States. All pilots were required to hold at least a private pilot certificate. A factor analysis conducted on the results of the preliminary study indicate factors that account for a significant amount of the variance in the model. These results are presented with recommendations for application of the self-assessment and thoughts on future research

Photoelectron spectra of alkali metal–ammonia microjets: From blue electrolyte to bronze metal

Experimental studies of the electronic structure of excess electrons in liquids—archetypal quantum solutes—have been largely restricted to very dilute electron concentrations. We overcame this limitation by applying soft x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy to characterize excess electrons originating from steadily increasing amounts of alkali metals dissolved in refrigerated liquid ammonia microjets. As concentration rises, a narrow peak at ~2 electron volts, corresponding to vertical photodetachment of localized solvated electrons and dielectrons, transforms continuously into a band with a sharp Fermi edge accompanied by a plasmon peak, characteristic of delocalized metallic electrons. Through our experimental approach combined with ab initio calculations of localized electrons and dielectrons, we obtain a clear picture of the energetics and density of states of the ammoniated electrons over the gradual transition from dilute blue electrolytes to concentrated bronze metallic solutions

Combining the quantitative faecal immunochemical test and full blood count reliably rules out colorectal cancer in a symptomatic patient referral pathway

Purpose: Faecal Immunochemical Test (FIT) has proven utility for Colorectal Cancer (CRC) detection in symptomatic patients. Most studies have examined FIT in symptomatic patients subsequently referred from primary care. We investigated associations between CRC and FIT in both referred and non-referred symptomatic patients. Methods: A retrospective, observational study of all patients with a FIT submitted Aug 2018 to Jan 2019 in NHS GG&amp;C was performed. Referral to colorectal/gastroenterology and decision to perform colonoscopy were recorded. FIT results were grouped as f-Hb &lt; 10/10–149/150–399/ ≥ 400 μg/g. The MCN cancer registry identified new cases of CRC. Covariables were compared using the χ2 test. Multivariate binary logistic regression identified independent predictors of CRC. Results: A total of 4968 patients were included. Raised FIT correlated with decision to refer (p &lt; 0.001) and scope (p &lt; 0.001). With 23-month median follow-up, 61 patients were diagnosed with CRC. These patients were older (median 69 vs 59 years, cancer and no cancer respectively, p = 0.001), more likely to be male (55.7% vs 42.1%, p = 0.033), and to report rectal bleeding (51.7% vs 36.1%, p = 0.013). FIT (&lt; 10 µg/g 8.2% vs 76.7% and ≥ 400 µg/g 55.7% vs 3.8%, p &lt; 0.001) and anaemia (45.9% vs 19.7%, p &lt; 0.001) were associated with CRC. On multivariate analysis, age (p = 0.023), male sex (p = 0.04), FIT (≥ 400 OR 54.256 (95% CI:20.683–142.325; p &lt; 0.001)), and anaemia (OR 1.956 (1.071–3.574; p = 0.029)) independently predicted CRC. One patient (0.04%) with a negative FIT and normal haemoglobin had CRC. Conclusion: GP referral and secondary care investigation patterns were influenced by FIT. The combination of normal Hb and f-Hb excluded CRC in 99.96% of cases, providing excellent reassurance to those prioritising access to endoscopy services

Magnetic anisotropy reversal driven by structural symmetry-breaking in monolayer {\alpha}-RuCl3

Layered {\alpha}-RuCl3 is a promising material to potentially realize the long-sought Kitaev quantum spin liquid with fractionalized excitations. While evidence of this exotic state has been reported under a modest in-plane magnetic field, such behavior is largely inconsistent with theoretical expectations of Kitaev phases emerging only in out-of-plane fields. These predicted field-induced states have been mostly out of reach due to the strong easy-plane anisotropy of bulk crystals, however. We use a combination of tunneling spectroscopy, magnetotransport, electron diffraction, and ab initio calculations to study the layer-dependent magnons, anisotropy, structure, and exchange coupling in atomically thin samples. Due to structural distortions, the sign of the average off-diagonal exchange changes in monolayer {\alpha}-RuCl3, leading to a reversal of magnetic anisotropy to easy-axis. Our work provides a new avenue to tune the magnetic interactions in {\alpha}-RuCl3 and allows theoretically predicted quantum spin liquid phases for out-of-plane fields to be more experimentally accessible