Wenglish, the dialect of the south Wales valleys, as a medium for narrative and performance

This study examines the characteristics of a range of narrative and performance texts featuring Wenglish, the dialect of the South Wales Valleys, in terms of their linguistic and thematic content and their relation to the community. Part One comprises an introduction to Wenglish and an overview of research on English in South Wales and approaches to language in use. In Part Two the results of textual and discourse analysis of twenty-five texts (nine literary and seven formal performance excerpts and nine personal narratives) are presented. In Part Three insights arising from analysis are applied in three pieces of new creative work in dialect. A reference list of texts containing Wenglish is appended. Cultural outputs mirror and express the community which produces them and thus the formal and informal literary output of the South Wales Valleys both reflects and expresses some of the shared characteristics, values, beliefs and preoccupations of those communities. Analysis revealed recurrent thematic clusters (e.g. community, personal identity, world of work, sport) across the range of texts, suggesting the centrality of these themes and a close link between the texts and the community. From analysis of linguistic content, a ‘Wenglish index’ was calculated for each text. The literary texts generally had lower indices than the formal performance texts. The personal narratives, though informal, all had lower indices than the formal performance material, suggesting that in this latter category, dialect features are consciously exaggerated. Discourse analytical methods generated rich interpretive material at the level of individual texts. Insights from analysis proved useful at the initial and editing phases of new creative work. The possible practical application of Wenglish material in community and interpretive projects is also discussed

Practical aspects of variable reduction formulations and reduced basis algorithms in multidisciplinary design optimization

This paper discusses certain connections between nonlinear programming algorithms and the formulation of optimization problems for systems governed by state constraints. The major points of this paper are the detailed calculation of the sensitivities associated with different formulations of optimization problems and the identification of some useful relationships between different formulations. These relationships have practical consequences; if one uses a reduced basis nonlinear programming algorithm, then the implementations for the different formulations need only differ in a single step

A piloted simulation of helicopter air combat to investigate effects of variations in selected performance and control response characteristics

A piloted simulation study investigating handling qualities and flight characteristics required for helicopter air to air combat is presented. The Helicopter Air Combat system was used to investigate this role for Army rotorcraft. Experimental variables were the maneuver envelope size (load factor and sideslip), directional axis handling qualities, and pitch and roll control-response type. Over 450 simulated, low altitude, one-on-one engagements were conducted. Results from the experiment indicate that a well damped directional response, low sideforce caused by sideslip, and some effective dihedral are all desirable for weapon system performance, good handling qualities, and low pilot workload. An angular rate command system was favored over the attitude type pitch and roll response for most applications, and an enhanced maneuver envelope size over that of current generation aircraft was found to be advantageous. Pilot technique, background, and experience are additional factors which had a significant effect on performance in the air combat tasks investigated. The implication of these results on design requirements for future helicopters is presented

Miniature rotating transmissive optical drum scanner

A miniature rotating transmissive optical scanner system employs a drum of small size having an interior defined by a circumferential wall rotatable on a drum axis, an optical element positioned within the interior of the drum, and a light-transmissive lens aperture provided at an angular position in the circumferential wall of the drum for scanning a light beam to or from the optical element in the drum along a beam azimuth angle as the drum is rotated. The miniature optical drum scanner configuration obtains a wide scanning field-of-view (FOV) and large effective aperture is achieved within a physically small size

Phospholipid environment alters hormone-sensitivity of the purified insulin receptor kinase

Insulin receptor kinase, affinity-purified by adsorption and elution from immobilized insulin, is stimulated 2-3-fold by insulin in detergent solution. Reconstitution of the receptor kinase into leaky vesicles containing phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylethanolamine (1:1, w/w) by detergent removal on Sephadex G-50 results in the complete loss of receptor kinase sensitivity to activation by insulin. Insulin receptors in these vesicles also exhibit an increase in their apparent affinity for 125I-insulin (Kd = 0.12 nM versus 0.76 nM). Inclusion of 8.3-16.7% phosphatidylserine into the reconstituted vesicles restores 40-50% of the insulin-sensitivity to the receptor kinase. An elevated apparent affinity for 125I-insulin of insulin receptors in vesicles containing phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylethanolamine is also restored to the value observed in detergent solution by the inclusion of phosphatidylserine in the reconstituted system. The effect of phosphatidylserine on insulin receptor kinase appears specific, because cholesterol, phosphatidylinositol and phosphatidic acid are all unable to restore insulin-sensitivity to the receptor kinase. Autophosphorylation sites on the insulin receptor as analysed by h.p.l.c. of tryptic 32P-labelled receptor phosphopeptides are not different for insulin receptors autophosphorylated in detergent solution or for the reconstituted vesicles in the presence or absence of phosphatidylserine. These data indicate that the phospholipid environment of insulin receptors can modulate its binding and kinase activity, and phosphatidylserine acts to restore insulin-sensitivity to the receptor kinase incorporated into phosphatidylcholine/phosphatidylethanolamine vesicles

Darpariaeth Gymraeg a dwyieithog yn y sector twristiaeth yng Nghymru

Amcanion a chwmpas yr astudiaeth Mewn ymateb i strategaeth iaith y Llywodraeth Iaith fyw: iaith byw (Llywodraeth Cymru, 2012a) ac wrth weithredu strategaeth dwristiaeth Partneriaeth ar gyfer twf (Llywodraeth Cymru, 2013a), datblyga Croeso Cymru (1) (cyfeiria’r rhifau mewn cromfachau at y Nodiadau, tud. 98-99) ystod o bolisïau a gweithgareddau i hyrwyddo a hybu defnydd y Gymraeg a dwyieithrwydd ym maes twristiaeth. Gellir ystyried y mentrau hyn yn rhan o broses normaleiddio defnydd y Gymraeg: mae twristiaeth ar flaen y gad o ran ymestyn defnydd y Gymraeg a gwrthsefyll dyfudiad iaith (gweler tud. 13-22 isod). Yn Rhan 1 gosodir y cyd-destun o safbwynt polisi, cynllunio iaith, marchnata, twristiaeth ddiwylliannol a chanfyddiadau defnyddwyr a busnesau. Ffocws Rhan 2 yw’r ymchwil gwreiddiol. Amcanion yr astudiaeth oedd: 1. Taflu goleuni ar y newidynnau pwysicaf sy’n effeithio ar ddarpariaeth Gymraeg a dwyieithog ym maes twristiaeth 2. Cyrraedd dealltwriaeth well o agweddau at yr iaith Gymraeg a dwyieithrwydd ymhlith busnesau twristiaeth (yr ochr gyflenwad yn nhermau economeg) ac ymhlith defnyddwyr (yr ochr alwad) 3. Dangos y prif fylchau gwybodaeth ac awgrymu pynciau ar gyfer ymchwil pellach Ni chynhaliwyd yr astudiaeth hon at ddibenion academaidd yn unig ond hefyd gyda’r bwriad o gymhwyso’r deilliannau mewn cyd-destun ymarferol, sef llunio darpariaeth Croeso Cymru o ran defnydd yr iaith Gymraeg a dwyieithrwydd yn y sector twristiaeth. O’r cychwyn cyntaf, felly, roedd gan y prosiect berthnasedd ymarferol uniongyrchol ac fe’i cynhaliwyd gyda chaniatâd a chefnogaeth gyflawn Croeso Cymru. Yn 2015 bu hysbysebion teledu Croeso Cymru Does unman tebyg i Gymru/Have you packed for Wales? (2), hysbysebion radio, deunydd argraffedig, darpariaeth ar gyfer y wefan, cyfryngau cymdeithasol a stondinau arddangosfeydd, yn Gymraeg a Saesneg (3), yn unol â Safonau arfaethedig mewn perthynas â’r Gymraeg (Llywodraeth Cymru, 2014). Yn ogystal, mae’r Gymraeg a Chymreictod yn ganolog i’r brand a lansiwyd yn swyddogol yn Ionawr 2016 (gweler tud. 8-9) ac yn 2016 eto, cyflawnir pob elfen farchnata yn Gymraeg a Saesneg. Yng Ngorffennaf 2014, mewn papur byr i’r Bwrdd Cynghori Twristiaeth, amlinellwyd pum blaenoriaeth o ran hyrwyddo defnydd y Gymraeg mewn busnesau twristiaeth, sef: 1. Graddio: Defnyddio cynllun sicrhau ansawdd i annog busnesau i gyflwyno’r iaith Gymraeg. Ystyried modd cydnabod iaith a diwylliant o fewn y cynllun graddio. 2. Cyllido: Defnyddio cynlluniau grantiau i annog darpariaeth Gymraeg a dwyieithog. 3. Ymgysylltu rhanbarthol: Gyda strwythur rhanbarthol newydd o fewn Croeso Cymru, mae cyfle i weithio gyda busnesau unigol a dangos enghreifftiau arfer da yn ogystal â chynnwys ystyriaethau ynghylch yr iaith Gymraeg yn y cysylltiadau arferol â’r diwydiant. 4. Sgiliau: Ystyried anghenion ieithyddol busnesau twristiaeth ac annog Cymry Cymraeg i ddilyn gyrfaoedd yn y diwydiant. 5. Cadwyni / Cwmnïau Mawr: Annog naws lle mewn gwestai sy’n rhan o gadwyn Brydeinig neu ryngwladol. Mae cydweithredu â Swyddfa’r Comisiynydd yn ganolog i’r cynllun. Ystyrir y Gymraeg a Chymreictod yn adnodd (gweler Ruiz, 1984) i wahaniaethu Cymru fel cyrchfan ond ar lefel busnesau unigol mae darpariaeth Gymraeg a dwyieithog yn hollol wirfoddol. O ganlyniad, ceir ystod o ymatebion: rhai busnesau lle mae’r iaith Gymraeg yn hollol ganolog, rhai lle mae’r iaith yn elfen i feithrin naws lle, ac eraill lle ystyrir darpariaeth ddwyieithog yn ymylol neu’n amherthnasol. Yn aml gwelir darpariaeth Gymraeg a dwyieithog yn gost ychwanegol. Dibynna’r dewis ynghylch rôl y Gymraeg a dwyieithrwydd mewn busnes ar nifer o ffactorau, gan gynnwys proffil y cwsmeriaid, cyfansoddiad ieithyddol yr ardal, agwedd y perchnogion at yr iaith a blaenoriaethau marchnata. Dyma ffocws yr ymchwil gwreiddiol a gynhaliwyd fel rhan o’r astudiaeth hon. Bwriedir i ganlyniadau’r astudiaeth hon ddarparu sail tystiolaeth a fydd yn helpu i gyfeirio gwaith Croeso Cymru. Ar yr un pryd, rhaid pwysleisio mai gwaith academaidd annibynnol a gynhaliwyd o safbwynt ieithyddol (yn hytrach nag o safbwynt Astudiaethau Busnes neu Farchnata) yw’r prosiect hwn. Y farn a fynegir yw barn yr awdur ac ni adlewyrcha o anghenraid farn y Llywodraeth. Yn ogystal, cymer yr awdur gyfrifoldeb llawn am unrhyw wallau neu ddiffygion yn yr ymchwil. Natur yr astudiaeth Ceir manylion technegol yr ymchwil gwreiddiol yn yr adran ar Fethodoleg ond, er mwyn sefydlu’r cefndir, roedd dwy gydran gyfategol i’r ymchwil: elfen ansoddol ac elfen feintiol. Rhoddwyd y pwyslais ar yr ymchwil ansoddol ymhlith busnesau ond roedd yr ymchwil meintiol yn gyflenwol ac ychwanegodd ddimensiwn diddorol arall i’r astudiaeth. Cynhaliwyd yr ymchwil ansoddol ar ffurf cyfweliadau dwfn, sef sgyrsiau strwythuredig â pherchnogion/rheolwyr sbectrwm o fusnesau twristiaeth. Diben y cyfweliadau oedd ymchwilio i’r ffactorau sydd yn effeithio ar ddarpariaeth ddwyieithog ac hefyd i agweddau’r busnesau at ddarpariaeth ddwyieithog. Yn fras, cyfetyb darpariaeth i gyflenwad ond cynhwysa hefyd agweddau ar farchnata a chyflwyno’r cynnyrch, boed ar lefel busnes unigol neu wlad gyfan. Cynhaliwyd yr ymchwil meintiol ar ffurf dau gwestiwn parthed natur cyfraniad ieithoedd lleol yn gyffredinol, a’r iaith Gymraeg yn benodol, i’r profiad gwyliau. Cynhwyswyd y cwestiynau ar Arolwg Poblogaeth Prydain Fawr, sef panel ar-lein sy’n rhan o Brosiect Gwerthuso Marchnata Croeso Cymru. Yn fras, cyfetyb canfyddiadau’r ymwelwyr i alwad, ond mae canfyddiadau’r cyhoedd hefyd yn adlewyrchu agweddau’r defnyddwyr, sydd â pherthnasedd i segmenteiddio a thargedu gwaith marchnata

Image Guider Subsystem Analysis for the GHAPS Project

The Gondola for High-Altitude Planetary Science (GHAPS) project is a balloon-borne astronomical observatory designed operate in the UV, Visible, and near-mid IR spectral region. The GHAPS Optical Telescope Assembly (OTA) is designed around a one meter aperture narrow field-of-view telescope with near diffraction limited performance. GHAPS will utilize Wallops Arc-Second Pointing System (WASP) for pointing the OTA with an accuracy of 1 arc second or better. WASP relies heavily on a self-contained star tracker assembly to determine the OTA line of sight. Preliminary structural analysis indicated that potential misalignments could be present between the OTA line of sight and the star tracker FOV center during the expected flight conditions that could compromise GHAPS pointing accuracy. An analysis is presented that estimates the worst case long-term (or bias) pointing misalignments for the GHAPS opto-mechanical configuration, examines the need for additional hardware to correct pointing errors, and determines the best hardware and software implementation to do so. The analysis includes the development of a photometric model to predict the limiting magnitude of a GHAPS Facility Guide System (FGS) for a variety of image sensor technologies from visible to mid IR. FGS system performance is estimated using star magnitude and spectral data from actual star catalogs for more realistic predictions. Based on expected performance and other factors, such as size, weight, power, and cost, a final recommendation is made for the GHAPS configuration

Space Power Facility Reverberation Chamber Calibration Report

This document describes the process and results of calibrating the Space Environmental Test EMI Test facility at NASA Plum Brook Space Power Facility according to the specifications of IEC61000-4-21 for susceptibility testing from 100 MHz to 40 GHz. The chamber passed the field uniformity test, in both the empty and loaded conditions, making it the world's largest Reverberation Chamber