Force measurements on hypersonic waveriders in the IISc hypersonic shock tunnel HST2

The drag and lift coefficients for a viscous optimized Mach 6 conical waverider has been measured using an accelerometer force balance system in the IISc hypersonic shock tunnel. A rubber bush placed in between the waverider model and the steel sting ensures unrestrained motion to the model during shock tunnel testing (500 mu s). Two accelerometers mounted on the model are used to measure the model accelerations in the axial and normal directions. The measured value of lift to drag ratio at zero angle of incidence for the IISc conical waverider with viscous optimized leading edge is 2.149, which compares well with the value reported in the open literature (Anderson et al 1991) for similar class of waveriders designed for a flight Mach number of 6. The details of the experimental study along with illustrative numerical results are discussed in this paper.

RRI-GBT MULTI-BAND RECEIVER: MOTIVATION, DESIGN, AND DEVELOPMENT

We report the design and development of a self-contained multi-band receiver (MBR) system, intended for use with a single large aperture to facilitate sensitive and high time-resolution observations simultaneously in 10 discrete frequency bands sampling a wide spectral span (100-1500 MHz) in a nearly log-periodic fashion. The development of this system was primarily motivated by need for tomographic studies of pulsar polar emission regions. Although the system design is optimized for the primary goal, it is also suited for several other interesting astronomical investigations. The system consists of a dual-polarization multi-band feed (with discrete responses corresponding to the 10 bands pre-selected as relatively radio frequency interference free), a common wide-band radio frequency front-end, and independent back-end receiver chains for the 10 individual sub-bands. The raw voltage time sequences corresponding to 16 MHz bandwidth each for the two linear polarization channels and the 10 bands are recorded at the Nyquist rate simultaneously. We present the preliminary results from the tests and pulsar observations carried out with the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope using this receiver. The system performance implied by these results and possible improvements are also briefly discussed.

Nanoparticle agglomeration in an evaporating levitated droplet for different acoustic amplitudes

Radiatively heated levitated functional droplets with nanosilica suspensions exhibit three distinct stages namely pure evaporation, agglomeration, and finally structure formation. The temporal history of the droplet surface temperature shows two inflection points. One inflection point corresponds to a local maximum and demarcates the end of transient heating of the droplet and domination of vaporization. The second inflection point is a local minimum and indicates slowing down of the evaporation rate due to surface accumulation of nanoparticles. Morphology and final precipitation structures of levitated droplets are due to competing mechanisms of particle agglomeration, evaporation, and shape deformation. In this work, we provide a detailed analysis for each process and propose two important timescales for evaporation and agglomeration that determine the final diameter of the structure formed. It is seen that both agglomeration and evaporation timescales are similar functions of acoustic amplitude (sound pressure level), droplet size, viscosity, and density. However, we show that while the agglomeration timescale decreases with initial particle concentration, the evaporation timescale shows the opposite trend. The final normalized diameter can be shown to be dependent solely on the ratio of agglomeration to evaporation timescales for all concentrations and acoustic amplitudes. The structures also exhibit various aspect ratios (bowls, rings, spheroids) which depend on the ratio of the deformation timescale (t(def)) and the agglomeration timescale (t(g)). For t(def) < t(g), a sharp peak in aspect ratio is seen at low concentrations of nanosilica which separates high aspect ratio structures like rings from the low aspect ratio structures like bowls and spheroids. (C) 2013 American Institute of Physics. http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4775791]

Insight into morphology changes of nanoparticle laden droplets in acoustic field

Hollow structures with unique morphologies form due to particle agglomeration in acoustically levitated nanofluid functional droplets when subjected to external heating. The final diameter of the structure depends only on the ratio of agglomeration to evaporation time scales for various nanoparticle laden droplets, and not on the type of the suspended particles. These time scales depend only on nanoparticle concentration. This valuable information may be exploited to form microstructures with desired properties from ceramic compounds. Phase diagrams for alumina and silica droplets indicate the transition from a bowl to ring structure depending on concentration.

The dynamics between forward citations and price of singleton patents

In recent years, business practitioners are seen valuing patents on the basis of the market price that the patent can attract. Researchers have also looked into various patent latent variables and firm variables that influence the price of a patent. Forward citations of a patent are shown to play a role in determining price. Using patent auction price data (of Ocean Tomo now ICAP patent brokerage), we delve deeper into of the role of forward citations. The successfully sold 167 singleton patents form the sample of our study. We found that, it is mainly the right tail of the citation distribution that explains the high prices of the patents falling on the right tail of the price distribution. There is consistency in the literature on the positive correlation between patent prices and forward citations. In this paper, we go deeper to understand this linear relationship through case studies. Case studies of patents with high and low citations are described in this paper to understand why some patents attracted high prices. We look into the role of additional patent latent variables like age, technology discipline, class and breadth of the patent in influencing citations that a patent receives.

Comparison of North American universities with and without medical schools and their technology transfer initiatives

Empirical research available on technology transfer initiatives is either North American or European. Literature over the last two decades shows various research objectives such as identifying the variables to be measured and statistical methods to be used in the context of studying university based technology transfer initiatives. AUTM survey data from years 1996 to 2008 provides insightful patterns about the North American technology transfer initiatives, we use this data in our paper. This paper has three sections namely, a comparison of North American Universities with (n=1129) and without Medical Schools (n=786), an analysis of the top 75th percentile of these samples and a DEA analysis of these samples. We use 20 variables. Researchers have attempted to classify university based technology transfer initiative variables into multi-stages, namely, disclosures, patents and license agreements. Using the same approach, however with minor variations, three stages are defined in this paper. The first stage is to do with inputs from R&D expenditure and outputs namely, invention disclosures. The second stage is to do with invention disclosures being the input and patents issued being the output. The third stage is to do with patents issued as an input and technology transfers as outcomes.

Photoelectron spectromicroscopy study of metal-insulator transition in NaxWO3

We have investigated the validity of percolation model, which is quite often invoked to explain the metal-insulator transition in sodium tungsten bronzes, NaxWO(3) by photoelectron spectromicroscopy. The spatially resolved direct spectromicroscopic probing on both the insulating and metallic phases of high quality single crystals of NaxWO(3) reveals the absence of any microscopic inhomogeneities embedded in the system within the experimental limit. Neither any metallic domains in the insulating host nor any insulating domains in the metallic host have been found to support the validity of percolation model to explain the metal-insulator transition in NaxWO(3). The possible origin of insulating phase in NaxWO(3) is due to the Anderson localization of all the states near E-F. The localization occurs because of the strong disorder arising from random distribution of Na+ ions in the WO3 lattice.

Majorana fermions in superconducting wires: Effects of long-range hopping, broken time-reversal symmetry, and potential landscapes

We present a comprehensive study of two of the most experimentally relevant extensions of Kitaev's spinless model of a one-dimensional p-wave superconductor: those involving (i) longer-range hopping and superconductivity and (ii) inhomogeneous potentials. We commence with a pedagogical review of the spinless model and, as a means of characterizing topological phases exhibited by the systems studied here, we introduce bulk topological invariants as well as those derived from an explicit consideration of boundary modes. In time-reversal symmetric systems, we find that the longer range hopping leads to topological phases characterized by multiple Majorana modes. In particular, we investigate a spin model that respects a duality and maps to a fermionic model with multiple Majorana modes; we highlight the connection between these topological phases and the broken symmetry phases in the original spin model. In the presence of time-reversal symmetry breaking terms, we show that the topological phase diagram is characterized by an extended gapless regime. For the case of inhomogeneous potentials, we explore phase diagrams of periodic, quasiperiodic, and disordered systems. We present a detailed mapping between normal state localization properties of such systems and the topological phases of the corresponding superconducting systems. This powerful tool allows us to leverage the analyses of Hofstadter's butterfly and the vast literature on Anderson localization to the question of Majorana modes in superconducting quasiperiodic and disordered systems, respectively. We briefly touch upon the synergistic effects that can be expected in cases where long-range hopping and disorder are both present.

CTFS-ForestGEO: a worldwide network monitoring forests in an era of global change

Global change is impacting forests worldwide, threatening biodiversity and ecosystem services including climate regulation. Understanding how forests respond is critical to forest conservation and climate protection. This review describes an international network of 59 long-term forest dynamics research sites (CTFS-ForestGEO) useful for characterizing forest responses to global change. Within very large plots (median size 25ha), all stems 1cm diameter are identified to species, mapped, and regularly recensused according to standardized protocols. CTFS-ForestGEO spans 25 degrees S-61 degrees N latitude, is generally representative of the range of bioclimatic, edaphic, and topographic conditions experienced by forests worldwide, and is the only forest monitoring network that applies a standardized protocol to each of the world's major forest biomes. Supplementary standardized measurements at subsets of the sites provide additional information on plants, animals, and ecosystem and environmental variables. CTFS-ForestGEO sites are experiencing multifaceted anthropogenic global change pressures including warming (average 0.61 degrees C), changes in precipitation (up to +/- 30% change), atmospheric deposition of nitrogen and sulfur compounds (up to 3.8g Nm(-2)yr(-1) and 3.1g Sm(-2)yr(-1)), and forest fragmentation in the surrounding landscape (up to 88% reduced tree cover within 5km). The broad suite of measurements made at CTFS-ForestGEO sites makes it possible to investigate the complex ways in which global change is impacting forest dynamics. Ongoing research across the CTFS-ForestGEO network is yielding insights into how and why the forests are changing, and continued monitoring will provide vital contributions to understanding worldwide forest diversity and dynamics in an era of global change.

Flexible implementation of power system corrective topology control

This paper proposes a novel decision making framework for optimal transmission switching satisfying the AC feasibility, stability and circuit breaker (CB) reliability requirements needed for practical implementation. The proposed framework can be employed as a corrective tool in day to day operation planning scenarios in response to potential contingencies. The switching options are determined using an efficient heuristic algorithm based on DC optimal power flow, and are presented in a multi-branch tree structure. Then, the AC feasibility and stability checks are conducted and the CB condition monitoring data are employed to perform a CB reliability and line availability assessment. Ultimately, the operator will be offered multiple AC feasible and stable switching options with associated benefits. The operator can use this information, other operating conditions not explicitly considered in the optimization, and his/her own experience to implement the best and most reliable switching action(s). The effectiveness of the proposed approach is validated on the IEEE-118 bus test system. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Evaluación del uso de desperdicio de cocina y residuos de galletas en diferentes niveles de inclusión en la alimentación de cerdos de engorde

El presente estudio se llevó a cabo en la granja porcina de la Universidad Nacional Agraria (U.N.A), ubicada en el km. 13 a los 86° 09' 36" longitud oeste y los 12° 08' 15" latitud norte de la comunidad de Sabana Grande, municipio de Managua. La fase experimental se realizó de julio a octubre de 1999, el objetivo principal fue evaluar la utilización de diferentes dietas compuestas por residuos de galletas y desperdicios de cocina sobre el comportamiento productivo como: Ganancia Media Diaria GMD y Conversión Alimenticia CA en cerdos en la etapa de engorde. Se utilizaron 18 cerdos de ambos sexos (9 machos castrados y 9 hembras), híbridos de las razas Landrace, Yorkshire y Duroc, se conformaron tres tratamientos: (TI) desperdicio de galleta, (T2) desperdicio de galleta 25% más desperdicio de cocina 75% y (T3) desperdicio de cocina, cada tratamiento estuvo conformado por 3 hembras y 3 machos. Los cerdos se pesaron al inicio del ensayo y luego cada 21 días hasta el final del experimento. Las variables evaluadas fueron: Ganancia Media Diaria GMD y Conversión Alimenticia CA. Los datos registrados fueron sometidos y evaluados a través del análisis de varianza (ANDEVA), utilizándose un diseño completo al azar (DCA). Las medias se analizaron mediante la prueba de Tukey. El ANDEVA para la GMD encontró diferencias altamente significativas (P< 0.01) para los tratamientos; significativo para el efecto de sexo y peso inicial, y no significativo para la interacción tratamiento x sexo. El T2 fue el que presentó la mejor ganancia de peso con 0.83 kg no existiendo diferencias estadísticas con el T3 0.76 kg; el TI fue el que manifestó la menor ganancia de peso con 0.17 kg. Respecto al efecto de sexo los machos castrados manifestaron una mejor ganancia de: peso con respecto a las hembras 0.62 kg y 0.55 kg respectivamente. Para la conversión alimenticia, se encontró un efecto significativo (P <0.05) para tratamientos, sexo y peso inicial, y no significativo para la interacción tratamiento x sexo; El T2 obtuvo la mejor Conversión Alimenticia con 8.55, no existiendo diferencias estadísticas con TI el cual fue de 9.65, el que a su vez fue similar al T3 10.95. Los machos castrados presentaron una Conversión Alimenticia de 8.8 y las hembras I0.5. Al comparar las utilidades se observó que el T3 resultó con la mejor utilidad bruta 8,491.16, no existiendo diferencia con T2 que fue de 8,204.90; sin embargo, el tratamiento T2 tiene una mejor composición nutritiva que el T3

Determinación del manejo reproductivo y ciclo de puesta de las gallinas de patio en tres comunidades del municipio de El Sauce, León, Nicaragua

León, Nicaragua; con el objetivo de determinar las principales actividades de manejo reproductivo y comportamiento de postura de las gallinas criadas en libertad, se realizó el presente trabajo, el cual incluyó dos fases. La primera fase consistió en el levantamiento de encuestas en el entorno (3 comunidades del municipio de El Sauce, León) y la segunda fase comprendió el seguimiento en campo como fase principal del trabajo En la primera fase a través de la encuesta, se determinó el tipo de gallina que dedican las campesinas a la postura, el tamaño y forma del huevo para incubar, manejo de las gallinas en el período de clueques, criterios de selección de la vida útil de las aves. Encontrándose que el 76% de las productoras escogen las gallinas dependiendo del peso y su habilidad materna, y de la misma manera resultó que el 69% de las mismas realizan selección huevos normales o uniformes para incubar. En relación al manejo de la gallina en el período de clueques se encontró que el 85% de las productoras no les brindan ninguna atención especial, el 62% no realizan tratamiento anticlueques, el 70 % no preparan nidos y un 85% sólo realizan una de las actividades mencionadas. Con respecto a los criterios de selección de la vida útil de la gallina, el 70% de las productoras deciden que sus gallinas han llegado al final de su vida útil generalmente en el último período de mayor demanda de aves en el mercado. En la parte central de la investigación o segunda fase, la recolección de los datos se realizó diario, a través de papelones que se entregaron a las productoras mensualmente, en los cuales se marcaron los días de puesta de cada una de las aves evaluadas, los días que presentaron pausas o intervalos de puesta y los días que se encontraban traspuestas. Las demás actividades (clueca, echada, amarrada clueca, cuido de pollos, período libre o sin pollos) del ciclo biológico de las aves se anotaron en un cuaderno, registrando los pesos mensuales de los pollos, como también las fechas cuando se sometieron estos a la separación de sus madres y la fecha de separación natural. Las separaciones maternas que se establecieron permitieron registrar los días que transcurrieron desde el último día de puesta con el de la siguiente postura, para lo cual se realizó un análisis de varianza, considerando como factor el tiempo de separación de gallina - pollo y su efecto sobre la siguiente postura, el análisis no mostró diferencias significativas, de manera que la separación a mayor o menor tiempo gallina / pollo, no influyó en el más rápido reinicio de la producción de huevos. Los datos de puesta recolectados mensualmente con la ayuda de las productoras, permitió analizar los índices de puesta por mes y comarca, resultando que entre los meses de enero- junio fue cuando se dio la mayor producción de huevos y los meses de menor producción fueron septiembre – noviembre, por lo que es en la época de invierno cuando suceden las mayores posturas. En lo que respecta a las pautas de puesta, se determinó que están concatenadas con los meses de mayor producción de huevos, al igual de las interrupciones de postura por clueques. Lo contrario sucedió con las interrupciones por trasposición y cuido de los pollos, las cuales resultaron resultaron mayores en los meses de septiembre – noviembre, de igual manera, de la misma manera las interrupciones de postura por períodos libres se vio acentuada en los meses subsecuentes a las interrupciones del cuido de los pollos. Finalmente, en relación a los pollos, se logró obtener la ganancia media mensual y por consiguiente la ganancia media diaria por cada una de las edades evaluadas, las cuales se establecieron en rangos de 0 – 30 y 210 – 240 días de edad, resultando las mayores ganancias en los intervalos de edad de 150 – 180 días y de 180 – 210 días, con ganancia media diaria de 20 y g/día /pollo, respectivamente.