Development of a prototype automatic controller for liquid cooling garment inlet temperature

The development of a computer control of a liquid cooled garment (LCG) inlet temperature is descirbed. An adaptive model of the LCG is used to predict the heat-removal rates for various inlet temperatures. An experimental system that contains a microcomputer was constructed. The LCG inlet and outlet temperatures and the heat exchanger outlet temperature form the inputs to the computer. The adaptive model prediction method of control is successful during tests where the inlet temperature is automatically chosen by the computer. It is concluded that the program can be implemented in a microprocessor of a size that is practical for a life support back-pack

Role of oxygen in the electron-doped superconducting cuprates

We report on resistivity and Hall measurements in thin films of the electron-doped superconducting cuprate Pr$_{2-x}$Ce$_{x}$CuO$_{4\pm\delta}$. Comparisons between x = 0.17 samples subjected to either ion-irradiation or oxygenation demonstrate that changing the oxygen content has two separable effects: 1) a doping effect similar to that of cerium, and 2) a disorder effect. These results are consistent with prior speculations that apical oxygen removal is necessary to achieve superconductivity in this compound.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figure

Are the Nuclei of Seyfert 2 Galaxies Viewed Face-On?

We show from modeling the Fe Kalpha line in the ASCA spectra of four X-ray bright narrow emission line galaxies (Seyfert types 1.9 and 2) that two equally viable physical models can describe the observed line profile. The first is discussed by Turner et al. (1998) and consists of emission from a nearly pole-on accretion disk. The second, which is statistically preferred, is a superposition of emission from an accretion disk viewed at an intermediate inclination of about 48 degrees and a distinct, unresolved feature that presumably originates some distance from the galaxy nucleus. The intermediate inclination is entirely consistent with unified schemes and our findings challenge recent assertions that Seyfert 2 galaxies are preferentially viewed with their inner regions face-on. We derive mean equivalent widths for the narrow and disk lines of =60 eV and = 213 eV, respectively. The X-ray data are well described by a geometry in which our view of the active nucleus intersects and is blocked by the outer edges of the obscuring torus, and therefore do not require severe misalignments between the accretion disk and the torus.Comment: 19 pages, 3 postscript figures. Accepted for publication in ApJ

How to Find More Supernovae with Less Work: Object Classification Techniques for Difference Imaging

We present the results of applying new object classification techniques to difference images in the context of the Nearby Supernova Factory supernova search. Most current supernova searches subtract reference images from new images, identify objects in these difference images, and apply simple threshold cuts on parameters such as statistical significance, shape, and motion to reject objects such as cosmic rays, asteroids, and subtraction artifacts. Although most static objects subtract cleanly, even a very low false positive detection rate can lead to hundreds of non-supernova candidates which must be vetted by human inspection before triggering additional followup. In comparison to simple threshold cuts, more sophisticated methods such as Boosted Decision Trees, Random Forests, and Support Vector Machines provide dramatically better object discrimination. At the Nearby Supernova Factory, we reduced the number of non-supernova candidates by a factor of 10 while increasing our supernova identification efficiency. Methods such as these will be crucial for maintaining a reasonable false positive rate in the automated transient alert pipelines of upcoming projects such as PanSTARRS and LSST.Comment: 25 pages; 6 figures; submitted to Ap

Evolution of Feeding and Case-Making Behavior in Trichoptera

A phylogeny of the families of Trichoptera is reviewed to provide a basis for understanding the probable evolution of feeding tactics and case or retreat constructions by larvae. At lease 48 hierarchically inclusive homologues are known, mostly from larval, pupal, and adult morphology. Their resulting phylogeny indicates that Rhyacophilidae, Hydrobiosidae, Glossosomatidae, and Hydroptilidae are more closely related to Philopotamidae, Hydropsychidae, and their allies than to Limnephilidae, Leptoceridae, and their allies. This phylogeny implies that the ancestral caddisfly larva was probably a tube-dwelling detritivore, inhabiting humus and detrial mats near the shores of lentic or lotic-depositional habitats. This ancestor evolved into a tube-casemaking detritivore and scraper in the ancestor of Integripalpia and into a retreat-making collector-gatherer in the ancestor of Annulipalpia. All other larval feeding and case-making tactics evolved from these ancestral habits

Psychometric evaluation of a new questionnaire measuring treatment satisfaction in hypothyroidism: The ThyTSQ

Objective: To demonstrate the application of a Bayesian mixed treatment comparison (MTC) model to synthesize data from clinical trials to inform decisions based on all relevant evidence. Methods: The value of an MTC model is demonstrated using a probabilistic decision-analytic model developed to assess the cost-effectiveness of second-line chemotherapy in ovarian cancer. Three clinical trials were found that each made a different pair-wise comparison of three treatments of interest in the overall patient population. As no common comparator existed between the three trials, an MTC model was used to assess the combined weight of evidence on survival from all three trials simultaneously. This analysis was compared to an alternative approach that combined two of the trials to make the same comparison of all three treatments using a common comparator, and an informal approach that did not synthesize the available evidence. Results: By including all three trials using an MTC model, the credible intervals around estimated overall survival were reduced compared with making the same comparison using only two trials and a common comparator. Nevertheless, the survival estimates from the MTC model result in greater uncertainty around the optimal treatment strategy at a cost-effectiveness threshold of £30,000 per quality-adjusted life-year. Conclusions: MTC models can be used to combine more data than would typically be included in a traditional meta-analysis that relies on a common comparator. They can formally quantify the combined uncertainty from all available evidence, and can be conducted using the same analytical approaches as standard meta-analyses

Pulsed Doppler lidar for the detection of turbulence in clear air

A pulsed C02 Doppler lidar system is described and demonstration tests in ground-based and airborne flight operations are discussed. As a ground-based system, it can detect wind shears in thunderstorm gust fronts to a range of 6 km. When in the airborne configuration, the lidar can detect clear air turbulence in advance of the aircraft encountering clear air turbulence. The data provided by the lidar included turbulence location and intensity with intensity being indicated by the measured spectral width which is proportional to the wind gust velocity

Automated Determination of Stellar Parameters from Simulated Dispersed Images for DIVA

We have assessed how well stellar parameters (T_eff, logg and [Fe/H]) can be retrieved from low-resolution dispersed images to be obtained by the DIVA satellite. Although DIVA is primarily an all-sky astrometric mission, it will also obtain spectrophotometric information for about 13 million stars (operational limiting magnitude V ~ 13.5 mag). Constructional studies foresee a grating system yielding a dispersion of ~200nm/mm on the focal plane (first spectral order). For astrometric reasons there will be no cross dispersion which results in the overlapping of the first to third diffraction orders. The one-dimensional, position related intensity function is called a DISPI (DISPersed Intensity). We simulated DISPIS from synthetic spectra (...) for a limited range of metallicites i.e. our results are for [Fe/H] in the range -0.3 to 1 dex. We show that there is no need to deconvolve these low resolution signals in order to obtain basic stellar parameters. Using neural network methods and by including simulated data of DIVA's UV telescope, we can determine T_eff to an average accuracy of about 2% for DISPIS from stars with 2000 K < T_eff < 20000 K and visual magnitudes of V=13 mag (end of mission data). logg can be determined for all temperatures with an accuracy better than 0.25 dex for magnitudes brighter than V=12 mag. For low temperature stars with 2000 K < T_eff < 5000 K and for metallicities in the range -0.3 to +1 dex a determination of [Fe/H] is possible (to better than 0.2 dex) for these magnitudes. Additionally we examined the effects of extinction E(B-V) on DISPIS and found that it can be determined to better than 0.07 mag for magnitudes brighter than V=14 mag if the UV information is included.Comment: 12 pages, 8 figures, Accepted for publication in A&