Americans’ Aging Autos

[Excerpt] From 2008 to 2012, the average age of U.S. households’ vehicles increased as owners held on to their cars, trucks, and vans longer. The trend in aging autos coincides with declines in average household income in 2008; however, subsequent recovery in households’ incomes and a return to previous levels of expenditures on vehicles in 2012 do not appear to have reversed the pattern of aging. (See chart 1.) Analysis of data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey suggests that households continued to own the same number of vehicles over the last 10 years, but are owning their vehicles longer

Adding nonlinearity to an electromagnetic-magnonic quantum hybrid device

In this book, hybrid systems based on yttrium-iron-garnet (YIG), three dimensional microwave cavity resonators, and superconducting transmon qubits, are investigated by continuous wave and pulsed microwave spectroscopy. Limitations to the magnetic linewidth in the quantum regime are identified and coherent exchange between a magnon and a superconducting qubit are demonstrated. Finally, a first step towards a strongly coupled hybrid system containing all three components is demonstrated

Adding nonlinearity to an electromagnetic-magnonic quantum hybrid device

In this book, hybrid systems based on yttrium-iron-garnet (YIG), three dimensional microwave cavity resonators, and superconducting transmon qubits, are investigated by continuous wave and pulsed microwave spectroscopy. Limitations to the magnetic linewidth in the quantum regime are identified and coherent exchange between a magnon and a superconducting qubit are demonstrated. Finally, a first step towards a strongly coupled hybrid system containing all three components is demonstrated

Ecosystem Services of Restored Oyster Reefs in a Chesapeake Bay Tributary: Abundance and Foraging of Estuarine Fishes

Oyster reef restoration may enhance the production of ecologically or economically important fish species, an ecosystem service, by providing refuge and foraging habitat. Predicting the effects of oyster habitat restoration on fisheries production in Chesapeake Bay requires a better understanding of fish habitat use, trophic dynamics, and the processes leading to production on a habitat-scale. The objective of this thesis was to evaluate the influence of restored subtidal oyster reefs on the abundance and foraging patterns of mobile estuarine fishes. Specifically, I compared the 1) abundance, 2) stomach fullness, 3) diet composition, and 4) daily consumption rate of fishes collected from restored oyster reef habitat and from unstructured (control) habitat in the Lynnhaven River System (LRS), Virginia, a tributary of Chesapeake Bay. I sampled fishes from April – October 2016 to assess seasonal abundance and diet trends using multi-panel gill nets, and conducted 24-hour sampling events in July and September 2016 to assess daily foraging patterns and estimate habitat-specific consumption rates. The most abundant non-filter feeding fishes collected all came from the Sciaenid (drum) family: spot (Leiostomus xanthurus), silver perch (Bairdiella chrysoura), and Atlantic croaker (Micropogonias undulatus). Overall catch in oyster reef habitat was reduced relative to unstructured bottom, but species-level responses to habitat type varied. Stomach fullness trends varied by species but were associated with habitat type. Benthic prey dominated the diet of all three species, and evidence of habitat-related shifts in diet composition were apparent. Reef-affiliated prey contributed most prominently to silver perch, comprising nearly 30 – 50 % by weight. The daily consumption rate and total daily caloric intake of silver perch foraging in oyster reef habitat were nearly double the estimates from control habitat. The results suggest restored oyster reefs influence habitat use and foraging behavior in species-specific manners, likely a result of differences in functional morphology and prey preference. Restored oyster reefs in the LRS likely act as valuable forage habitat for silver perch, an important trophic link in coastal and estuarine systems. Developing realistic estimates of fisheries production on a habitat-scale requires studying species-specific trophic dynamics. Empirical estimates of the processes contributing to production are necessary to better understand the functional role of restored oyster reefs in shallow estuarine and coastal systems, and the ecosystem services these reefs may provide

Counting Blue Crabs in the Bay! Subjects: Life Science / Biology, Environmental Science, Marine / Ocean Science Grade Level: 6-8

This lesson plan invites students and teachers to ponder the question: How many blue crabs are in the Chesapeake Bay, and where do we find them? Through hands-on activities and the use of real data, students will discover the excitement and grapple with the challenges faced by marine scientists as they try to quantify the use of different habitats by marine animals and estimate the size of marine animal populations

Complex temperature dependence of coupling and dissipation of cavity-magnon polaritons from milliKelvin to room temperature

Hybridized magnonic-photonic systems are key components for future information processing technologies such as storage, manipulation or conversion of data both in the classical (mostly at room temperature) and quantum (cryogenic) regime. In this work, we investigate a YIG sphere coupled strongly to a microwave cavity over the full temperature range from $290\,\mathrm{K}$ down to $30\,\mathrm{mK}$. The cavity-magnon polaritons are studied from the classical to the quantum regime where the thermal energy is less than one resonant microwave quanta, i.e. at temperatures below $1\,\mathrm{K}$. We compare the temperature dependence of the coupling strength $g_{\rm{eff}}(T)$, describing the strength of coherent energy exchange between spin ensemble and cavity photon, to the temperature behavior of the saturation magnetization evolution $M_{\rm{s}}(T)$ and find strong deviations at low temperatures. The temperature dependence of magnonic disspation is governed at intermediate temperatures by rare earth impurity scattering leading to a strong peak at $40\,$K. The linewidth $\kappa_{\rm{m}}$ decreases to $1.2\,$MHz at $30\,$mK, making this system suitable as a building block for quantum electrodynamics experiments. We achieve an electromagnonic cooperativity in excess of $20$ over the entire temperature range, with values beyond $100$ in the milliKelvin regime as well as at room temperature. With our measurements, spectroscopy on strongly coupled magnon-photon systems is demonstrated as versatile tool for spin material studies over large temperature ranges. Key parameters are provided in a single measurement, thus simplifying investigations significantly.Comment: 10 pages , 9 figures in tota

Fallstricke in der Magnetresonanztomographie des Kniegelenks

Zusammenfassung: Die Magnetresonanztomographie (MRT) des Kniegelenks ist eine robuste Methode zur Beurteilung von Binnenläsionen. Bei Kenntnis der technischen und anatomischen Fallstricke lassen sich pathologische Veränderungen meistens sicher abgrenzen. Problematisch bleibt die Differenzierung meniskokapsulärer Läsionen von normalen anatomischen Strukturen. Die hohe Prävalenz asymptomatischer Befunde, z.B. Meniskusrisse bis zu 63% auf der asymptomatischen Gegenseite, stellt auf der anderen Seite ein Management-Problem für die behandelnden Ärzte da

Ecosystem services of restored oyster reefs in a Chesapeake Bay tributary: abundance and foraging of estuarine fishes

Restoration of oyster reefs in coastal ecosystems may enhance fish and fisheries by providing valuable refuge and foraging habitat, but understanding the effects of restoration requires an improved understanding of fish habitat use and trophic dynamics, coupled with long-term (\u3e5 yr) monitoring of restored habitats. We evaluated the relationship between large (3-5 ha) restored subtidal oyster reefs and mobile estuarine fishes in the Lynnhaven River System (LRS), Virginia, more than 8 yr following reef construction. We compared the (1) diversity, (2) abundance, (3) size, (4) stomach fullness, (5) diet composition, and (6) daily consumption rate of fishes collected from restored oyster reefs with those from an area of unstructured, unrestored bottom, via experimental gill nets. We sampled monthly from April to October 2016 and conducted 24 h sampling in July and September 2016. Community composition was similar between habitats, dominated by spot Leiostomus xanthurus, Atlantic menhaden Brevoortia tyrannus, silver perch Bairdiella chrysoura, and Atlantic croaker Micropogonias undulatus. Abundance in reef habitat was significantly reduced relative to unstructured bottom, but the mean length of fishes collected from reefs was significantly greater than that of unstructured bottom. In addition, the estimated consumption rate of silver perch foraging in reef habitat significantly exceeded that of silver perch foraging in unstructured bottom. Nearly a decade post-restoration, restored reefs in the LRS are used by a similar assemblage as unrestored areas, but the manner of use differs by species and size. Considering a broad range of responses is necessary to evaluate the impacts of oyster restoration on mobile fishes

Transmon Qubit in a Magnetic Field: Evolution of Coherence and Transition Frequency

We report on spectroscopic and time-domain measurements on a fixed-frequency concentric transmon qubit in an applied in-plane magnetic field to explore its limits of magnetic field compatibility. We demonstrate quantum coherence of the qubit up to field values of $B={40}\,\mathrm{mT}$, even without an optimized chip design or material combination of the qubit. The dephasing rate $\Gamma_\varphi$ is shown to be not affected by the magnetic field in a broad range of the qubit transition frequency. For the evolution of the qubit transition frequency, we find the unintended second junction created in the shadow angle evaporation process to be non-negligible and deduce an analytic formula for the field-dependent qubit energies. We discuss the relevant field-dependent loss channels, which can not be distinguished by our measurements, inviting further theoretical and experimental investigation. Using well-known and well-studied standard components of the superconducting quantum architecture, we are able to reach a field regime relevant for quantum sensing and hybrid applications of magnetic spins and spin systems.Comment: 9 pages, 8 figure