Reflectance measurements

The productivity of spectroreflectometer equipment and operating personnel and the accuracy and sensitivity of the measurements were investigated. Increased optical sensitivity and better design of the data collection and processing scheme to eliminate some of the unnecessary present operations were conducted. Two promising approaches to increased sensitivity were identified, conventional processing with error compensation and detection of random noise modulation

Fluid operated quick release mechanism

Gas operated release mechanism releases load by fluid pressure to provide positive action quick release. Method can be used with large loads and is useful in repetitive cycling functions where shear pins and similar devices would be cumbersome

Towards critical literacy : literature and teachers' reactions to reader-response theories : a thesis presented in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Second Language Teaching at Massey University

Much poststructuralist literary theory, in particular that derived from reader-response theories, points to the need for the development in readers of a more critical literacy. Earlier researchers and educators in the field of reader-response theories, indicated a move away from the New Critics' structuralist focus on the author's intention and a text-based meaning, to acknowledge the active role of the student/reader in the creation of meaning. Enlarging on the subjective role of the student/reader, later researchers, in particular the Social and Cultural theorists, introduced a more critical element by focusing on the importance of context itself. Further studies, under the influence of Foucault, developed this focus to include the idea that author, text and reader are constructed by discourses. A renewed awareness of how texts actually work and of the power inherent in all language, has led to the emergence of critical literacy. This research, working on the premise that practice often lags behind theory, examines constraints that may inhibit the development of critical literacy (through teaching with literature) in the New Zealand contexts of both secondary English (including classrooms with mainstreamed ESOL students) and ESOL (from a range of institutions). Two surveys, one for each teaching context, analyse teachers' reactions to concepts of reader-response theories with a view to determining the nature and prevalence of these constraints. The analysis reveals that in the mainstream context, contraints emerge in the areas of curriculum design (including examination and assessment procedures), teacher education, and students' receptivity while in the ESOL context, curriculum design and teacher development are significant. The ESOL context also reveals that there is a paucity of teaching with literature in language classrooms which means that the vehicle for the development of critical literacy, is denied students

The 26^{26}Al Gamma-ray Line from Massive-Star Regions

The measurement of gamma rays from the diffuse afterglow of radioactivity originating in massive-star nucleosynthesis is considered a laboratory for testing models, when specific stellar groups are investigated, at known distance and with well-constrained stellar population. Regions which have been exploited for such studies include Cygnus, Carina, Orion, and Scorpius-Centaurus. The Orion region hosts the Orion OB1 association and its subgroups at about 450~pc distance. We report the detection of $^{26}$Al gamma rays from this region with INTEGRAL/SPI.Comment: Contribution to Symposium "Nuclei in the Cosmos XIV", Niigata, Japan, Jun 2016; 3 pages, 2 figures; accepted for publication in JPS (Japan Physical Society) Conference Proceedings http://jpscp.jps.jp

Studies of planetary extended atmospheres

The light produced by the atoms and ions of Jupiter's luminous, heavy particle environment was studied. High resolution spectrophotometry is discussed

Heavy ions in Jupiter's environment

The extended atmosphere of the Jupiter system consists of atoms and ions of heavy elements. This material originates on the satellite Io. Energy is lost from the thermal plasma in collisionally excited optical and ultraviolet emission. The juxtaposition of Earth and spacecraft measurements provide insight concerning the underlying processes of particle transport and energy supply

Exploring Lifetime Effects in Femtoscopy

We investigate the role of lifetime effects from resonances and emission duration tails in femtoscopy at RHIC in two Blast-Wave models. We find the non-Gaussian components compare well with published source imaged data, but the value of R_out obtained from Gaussian fits is not insensitive to the non-Gaussian contributions when realistic acceptance cuts are applied to models.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figure

Spheromak Experiment Using Separate Guns For Formation And Sustainment

An experiment is described that incorporates the use of separate magnetized plasma guns for formation and sustainment of a spheromak. It is shown that energy coupling efficiency approaches unity if the gun and spheromak are of comparable size. A large gun should be able to operate at lower current and therefore lower voltage. In addition, it is expected that a gun matched to the size of the spheromak will cause less perturbation to the equilibrium. It is proposed to use a smaller gun for spheromak formation and a large, efficient gun for sustainment. The theoretical basis for the experiment is developed, and the details of the experiment are described. A prediction of the equilibrium magnetic flux surfaces using the EFIT code is presented

Temporal and spectral features of an intense auroral zone X-ray event in the 4-5 second period range

Temporal and spectral features of intense auroral zone X-ray event in 4 to 5 second period range - electron precipitatio