湖泊生态系统铁同位素与硫同位素地球化学研究--以红枫湖、阿哈湖为例

湖泊生态系统是陆地水体生态系统的重要组成部分。随着社会经济的不断发展，各种人为因素对湖泊生态系统的影响日益突出，打破了其自然演变规律，诸如 “二次污染”、水体富营养化、重金属污染等环境问题接踵而来。而铁是水生生态系统初级生产力所必需的重要微量营养元素之一，在一定的条件下可以控制和影响浮游藻类的生长速度和种类；而且，铁的氧化还原敏感性很强，其价态的改变往往会影响其它相关重金属的迁移和转化。因此，湖泊生态系统中铁的生物地球化学循环研究具有非常重要的意义。近年来的研究显示，铁同位素分析技术可以用于各种生物作用和非生物作用过程的研究，在海洋和河流生态系统中已有广泛的应用，而对湖泊生态系统的研究则鲜见报导。乌江流域中等富营养化的湖泊――红枫湖和贵阳西南郊矿化程度较高的湖泊――阿哈湖是研究湖泊生态系统中铁生物地球化学循环的理想场所。本文选取这两个性质不同的湖泊为研究对象，运用硫同位素、铁同位素及重金属和营养盐等地球化学方法手段，对两湖流域内硫酸盐的来源、硫同位素的季节和剖面变化特征、铁的来源及铁同位素组成的季节和剖面变化特征及其控制和影响因素等进行了研究和探讨，进一步完善了铁同位素分馏机理，为深化理解和研究湖泊生态系统中铁和硫的生物地球化学循环提供一定的科学依据。论文所获的主要认识总结如下： 两湖流域内湖水与河水的硫酸盐硫同位素地球化学 （1）阿哈湖流域和红枫湖流域水体的硫酸盐浓度和δ34S值均有较宽的分布范围。各入湖支流中，受煤矿废水或煤矸石淋溶液污染的河水的δ34S值相对较低（-8.10‰～-14.92‰），而受生活污水影响严重的河水则具有相对较高的δ34S值（-5.68‰～+0.88‰）。相比而言，阿哈湖流域水体纳入了大量的煤矿废水和煤矸石淋溶液，硫污染程度较红枫湖流域更为严重。因此，阿哈湖湖水具有相对较高的硫酸根浓度（平均为2.30 mmol.L-1）和相对较低的δ34S值（平均为-8.10‰），而红枫湖则具有相对较低的硫酸根浓度（平均为0.96 mmol.L-1）和相对较高的δ34S值（平均为-6.80‰）。 （2）阿哈湖湖水中的硫酸盐主要受煤矿废水、煤矸石淋溶液以及雨水等的控制；红枫湖湖水的硫酸盐主要来源于煤中黄铁矿的氧化和雨水输入，土壤硫化物的氧化和蒸发岩的溶解对湖水硫酸盐硫同位素组成的贡献较小。相比之下，雨水对红枫湖湖水硫同位素的影响更为明显。 （3）红枫湖和阿哈湖湖水的硫酸盐的δ34S值均具有明显的剖面变化特征，而且两湖的变化趋势相似，总体表现为，夏秋季节表层湖水和底层湖水的δ34S值相对较高，而冬春季节湖水剖面上下几乎没有变化。湖水硫酸盐浓度也呈现类似的变化特征，这主要与季节性厌氧湖泊夏季分层冬季混和的典型特点有关。夏季湖水分层期间，大量降雨在湖泊表层的滞留使得δ34S值升高而硫酸盐浓度降低，湖泊底部水层中硫酸盐细菌的还原作用使得底层湖水的硫酸盐浓度降低，而δ34S值升高。 两湖流域内铁同位素地球化学 （1）阿哈湖流域各类样品的δ56Fe值分布在-2.03‰～+0.12‰之间，分布范围较宽。其中湖水悬浮颗粒物的δ56Fe值在-1.36‰～-0.03‰之间，整体相对偏负。湖周各支流河水悬浮颗粒物的δ56Fe值在-0.88‰～+0.07‰之间，也相对富集轻的铁同位素；湖底沉积物和孔隙水的δ56Fe值的分布范围分别为-1.75‰～-0.59‰和-2.03‰～+0.12‰；大气颗粒物和浮游藻类的δ56Fe值分别为+0.06±0.02‰和+0.08‰。与阿哈湖相比，红枫湖流域各类样品的δ56Fe值的分布范围相对较窄，在-0.92‰～+0.36‰之间。湖水悬浮颗粒物的δ56Fe值在-0.85‰～+0.14‰之间，河水悬浮颗粒物的铁同位素组成变化范围为-0.89‰～+0.10‰，二者的变化范围相似。红枫湖沉积物的δ56Fe值在-0.18‰～+0.08‰之间，明显比阿哈湖沉积物的铁同位素组成偏正；而对应孔隙水的铁同位素组成的变化范围为-0.59‰～-0.24‰，均要比对应沉积物的铁同位素值要低。藻类和鲫鱼鱼肉的δ56Fe值分别为+0.36‰和-0.92‰。 （2）通过对两湖研究区湖水悬浮颗粒物与各输入端员环境样品的铁同位素值的研究表明，湖水悬浮颗粒物的δ56Fe值不仅受各输入端员的控制和影响，湖泊内部相关的生物地球化学过程也对湖水悬浮颗粒物的铁同位素组成变化产生了重要影响。两湖研究区内湖水悬浮颗粒物的铁同位素组成均存在季节变化特征，但受湖泊自身特点的影响，主要控制因素方面存在一定差异。夏季阿哈湖湖水悬浮颗粒物的铁同位素值变幅较大，其变化主要表现在表层和底层。表层因受陆源输入的有机结合态铁的影响而具有较负的δ56Fe值，而大气沉降颗粒物和湖泊表层的浮游藻类的影响并不显著。夏季湖水分层期间，“Ferrous Wheel”铁循环对于界面附近铁同位素的重分配起到了主要的控制和影响作用，湖水悬浮颗粒物的铁同位素值在氧化－还原界面附近达到了极负值。水－沉积物界面附近滞水层中亚铁类硫化物的生成可能也是水－沉积物界面附近水层内颗粒物的δ56Fe值偏负的原因之一。而冬季湖水混和时期，阿哈湖湖水剖面悬浮颗粒物的δ56Fe值的变幅明显减小。与阿哈湖不同，藻类的吸附作用可能在夏季红枫湖上层水体中占有主导地位，其湖水悬浮颗粒物的铁同位素组成随叶绿素水平的降低而逐渐降低。下层湖水悬浮颗粒物的铁同位素组成变化也受“Ferrous Wheel”铁循环的影响，在红枫湖后五剖面 20m 处达到-0.18‰，大坝剖面底层约为-0.46‰，其变幅没有阿哈湖悬浮颗粒物的δ56Fe值大，可能是受到了湖水中大量有机物质的影响。冬季红枫湖后五剖面的变化趋势与夏季相似，上层和下层水体悬浮颗粒物分别受不同影响因素的控制。上层水体悬浮颗粒物的铁同位素变化不明显，与Fe、Al、Mn、Zn、Co等元素的含量呈现良好的正相关关系；而底层水体悬浮颗粒物的δ56Fe值变幅比夏季要大，HW采样点20m处可达-0.85‰，与Fe、Al、Zn、Co等呈现良好的负相关关系，具体影响因素还有待于进一步研究。

Olympic Robot Building Manual

The 1989 AI Lab Winter Olympics will take a slightly different twist from previous Olympiads. Although there will still be a dozen or so athletic competitions, the annual talent show finale will now be a display not of human talent, but of robot talent. Spurred on by the question, "Why aren't there more robots running around the AI Lab?", Olympic Robot Building is an attempt to teach everyone how to build a robot and get them started. Robot kits will be given out the last week of classes before the Christmas break and teams have until the Robot Talent Show, January 27th, to build a machine that intelligently connects perception to action. There is no constraint on what can be built; participants are free to pick their own problems and solution implementations. As Olympic Robot Building is purposefully a talent show, there is no particular obstacle course to be traversed or specific feat to be demonstrated. The hope is that this format will promote creativity, freedom and imagination. This manual provides a guide to overcoming all the practical problems in building things. What follows are tutorials on the components supplied in the kits: a microprocessor circuit "brain", a variety of sensors and motors, a mechanical building block system, a complete software development environment, some example robots and a few tips on debugging and prototyping. Parts given out in the kits can be used, ignored or supplemented, as the kits are designed primarily to overcome the intertia of getting started. If all goes well, then come February, there should be all kinds of new members running around the AI Lab!

A comprehensive comparison of fuel options for fuel cell vehicles in China

Fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) offer the potential of ultra-low emissions combined with high efficiency. Proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells being developed for vehicles require hydrogen as a fuel. Due to the various pathways of hydrogen generation, both onboard and off-board, the question about which fuel option is the most competitive for fuel cell vehicles is of great current interest. In this paper, a life-cycle assessment (LCA) model was made to conduct a comprehensive study of the energy, environmental, and economic (3E) impacts of FCVs from well to wheel (WTW). In view of the special energy structure of China and the timeframe, 10 vehicle/fuel systems are chosen as the study projects. The results show that methanol is the most suitable fuel to serve as the ideal hydrogen source for fuel cell vehicles in the timeframe and geographic regions of this study. On the other hand, gasoline and pure hydrogen can also play a role in short-term and regional applications, especially for local demonstrations of FCV fleets. (c) 2004 Elsevier B.V All rights reserved.

An Autonomous Sailing Robot for Ocean Observation

Sauze, C. and Neal, M. 'An Autonomous Sailing Robot for Ocean Observation', in proceedings of TAROS 2006, Guildford, UK, Sept 4-6th 2006, pages 190-197.

Foundational Theory for Understanding Policy Routing Dynamics

In this paper we introduce a theory of policy routing dynamics based on fundamental axioms of routing update mechanisms. We develop a dynamic policy routing model (DPR) that extends the static formalism of the stable paths problem (introduced by Griffin et al.) with discrete synchronous time. DPR captures the propagation of path changes in any dynamic network irrespective of its time-varying topology. We introduce several novel structures such as causation chains, dispute fences and policy digraphs that model different aspects of routing dynamics and provide insight into how these dynamics manifest in a network. We exercise the practicality of the theoretical foundation provided by DPR with two fundamental problems: routing dynamics minimization and policy conflict detection. The dynamics minimization problem utilizes policy digraphs, that capture the dependencies in routing policies irrespective of underlying topology dynamics, to solve a graph optimization problem. This optimization problem explicitly minimizes the number of routing update messages in a dynamic network by optimally changing the path preferences of a minimal subset of nodes. The conflict detection problem, on the other hand, utilizes a theoretical result of DPR where the root cause of a causation cycle (i.e., cycle of routing update messages) can be precisely inferred as either a transient route flap or a dispute wheel (i.e., policy conflict). Using this result we develop SafetyPulse, a token-based distributed algorithm to detect policy conflicts in a dynamic network. SafetyPulse is privacy preserving, computationally efficient, and provably correct.

Unsupervised Neural Network for the Control of a Mobile Robot

This article introduces an unsupervised neural architecture for the control of a mobile robot. The system allows incremental learning of the plant during robot operation, with robust performance despite unexpected changes of robot parameters such as wheel radius and inter-wheel distance. The model combines Vector associative Map (VAM) learning and associate learning, enabling the robot to reach targets at arbitrary distances without knowledge of the robot kinematics and without trajectory recording, but relating wheel velocities with robot movements.

Integrated magnetic components for high-power high-current dc-dc converters

This thesis is focused on the design and development of an integrated magnetic (IM) structure for use in high-power high-current power converters employed in renewable energy applications. These applications require low-cost, high efficiency and high-power density magnetic components and the use of IM structures can help achieve this goal. A novel CCTT-core split-winding integrated magnetic (CCTT IM) is presented in this thesis. This IM is optimized for use in high-power dc-dc converters. The CCTT IM design is an evolution of the traditional EE-core integrated magnetic (EE IM). The CCTT IM structure uses a split-winding configuration allowing for the reduction of external leakage inductance, which is a problem for many traditional IM designs, such as the EE IM. Magnetic poles are incorporated to help shape and contain the leakage flux within the core window. These magnetic poles have the added benefit of minimizing the winding power loss due to the airgap fringing flux as they shape the fringing flux away from the split-windings. A CCTT IM reluctance model is developed which uses fringing equations to accurately predict the most probable regions of fringing flux around the pole and winding sections of the device. This helps in the development of a more accurate model as it predicts the dc and ac inductance of the component. A CCTT IM design algorithm is developed which relies heavily on the reluctance model of the CCTT IM. The design algorithm is implemented using the mathematical software tool Mathematica. This algorithm is modular in structure and allows for the quick and easy design and prototyping of the CCTT IM. The algorithm allows for the investigation of the CCTT IM boxed volume with the variation of input current ripple, for different power ranges, magnetic materials and frequencies. A high-power 72 kW CCTT IM prototype is designed and developed for use in an automotive fuelcell-based drivetrain. The CCTT IM design algorithm is initially used to design the component while 3D and 2D finite element analysis (FEA) software is used to optimize the design. Low-cost and low-power loss ferrite 3C92 is used for its construction, and when combined with a low number of turns results in a very efficient design. A paper analysis is undertaken which compares the performance of the high-power CCTT IM design with that of two discrete inductors used in a two-phase (2L) interleaved converter. The 2L option consists of two discrete inductors constructed from high dc-bias material. Both topologies are designed for the same worst-case phase current ripple conditions and this ensures a like-for-like comparison. The comparison indicates that the total magnetic component boxed volume of both converters is similar while the CCTT IM has significantly lower power loss. Experimental results for the 72 kW, (155 V dc, 465 A dc input, 420 V dc output) prototype validate the CCTT IM concept where the component is shown to be 99.7 % efficient. The high-power experimental testing was conducted at General Motors advanced technology center in Torrence, Los Angeles. Calorific testing was used to determine the power loss in the CCTT IM component. Experimental 3.8 kW results and a 3.8 kW prototype compare and contrast the ferrite CCTT IM and high dc-bias 2L concepts over the typical operating range of a fuelcell under like-for-like conditions. The CCTT IM is shown to perform better than the 2L option over the entire power range. An 8 kW ferrite CCTT IM prototype is developed for use in photovoltaic (PV) applications. The CCTT IM is used in a boost pre-regulator as part of the PV power stage. The CCTT IM is compared with an industry standard 2L converter consisting of two discrete ferrite toroidal inductors. The magnetic components are compared for the same worst-case phase current ripple and the experimental testing is conducted over the operation of a PV panel. The prototype CCTT IM allows for a 50 % reduction in total boxed volume and mass in comparison to the baseline 2L option, while showing increased efficiency.

Resonant power conversion topologies for inductive charging of electrical vehicle batteries

This thesis is concerned with inductive charging of electric vehicle batteries. Rectified power form the 50/60 Hz utility feeds a dc-ac converter which delivers high-frequency ac power to the electric vehicle inductive coupling inlet. The inlet configuration has been defined by the Society of Automotive Engineers in Recommended Practice J-1773. This thesis studies converter topologies related to the series resonant converter. When coupled to the vehicle inlet, the frequency-controlled series-resonant converter results in a capacitively-filtered series-parallel LCLC (SP-LCLC) resonant converter topology with zero voltage switching and many other desirable features. A novel time-domain transformation analysis, termed Modal Analysis, is developed, using a state variable transformation, to analyze and characterize this multi-resonant fourth-orderconverter. Next, Fundamental Mode Approximation (FMA) Analysis, based on a voltage-source model of the load, and its novel extension, Rectifier-Compensated FMA (RCFMA) Analysis, are developed and applied to the SP-LCLC converter. The RCFMA Analysis is a simpler and more intuitive analysis than the Modal Analysis, and provides a relatively accurate closed-form solution for the converter behavior. Phase control of the SP-LCLC converter is investigated as a control option. FMA and RCFMA Analyses are used for detailed characterization. The analyses identify areas of operation, which are also validated experimentally, where it is advantageous to phase control the converter. A novel hybrid control scheme is proposed which integrates frequency and phase control and achieves reduced operating frequency range and improved partial-load efficiency. The phase-controlled SP-LCLC converter can also be configured with a parallel load and is an excellent option for the application. The resulting topology implements soft-switching over the entire load range and has high full-load and partial-load efficiencies. RCFMA Analysis is used to analyze and characterize the new converter topology, and good correlation is shown with experimental results. Finally, a novel single-stage power-factor-corrected ac-dc converter is introduced, which uses the current-source characteristic of the SP-LCLC topology to provide power factor correction over a wide output power range from zero to full load. This converter exhibits all the advantageous characteristics of its dc-dc counterpart, with a reduced parts count and cost. Simulation and experimental results verify the operation of the new converter.

Magnetic materials and soft-switched topologies for high-current DC-DC converters

The thesis is focused on the magnetic materials comparison and selection for high-power non-isolated dc-dc converters for industrial applications or electric, hybrid and fuel cell vehicles. The application of high-frequency bi-directional soft-switched dc-dc converters is also investigated. The thesis initially outlines the motivation for an energy-efficient transportation system with minimum environmental impact and reduced dependence on exhaustible resources. This is followed by a general overview of the power system architectures for electric, hybrid and fuel cell vehicles. The vehicle power sources and general dc-dc converter topologies are discussed. The dc-dc converter components are discussed with emphasis on recent semiconductor advances. A novel bi-directional soft-switched dc-dc converter with an auxiliary cell is introduced in this thesis. The soft-switching cell allows for the MOSFET's intrinsic body diode to operate in a half-bridge without reduced efficiency. The converter's mode-by-mode operation is analysed and closed-form expressions are presented for the average current gain of the converter. The design issues are presented and circuit limitations are discussed. Magnetic materials for the main dc-dc converter inductor are compared and contrasted. Novel magnetic material comparisons are introduced, which include the material dc bias capability and thermal conductivity. An inductor design algorithm is developed and used to compare the various magnetic materials for the application. The area-product analysis is presented for the minimum inductor size and highlights the optimum magnetic materials. Finally, the high-flux magnetic materials are experimentally compared. The practical effects of frequency, dc-bias, and converters duty-cycle effect for arbitrary shapes of flux density, air gap effects on core and winding, the winding shielding effect, and thermal configuration are investigated. The thesis results have been documented at IEEE EPE conference in 2007 and 2008, IEEE APEC in 2009 and 2010, and IEEE VPPC in 2010. A 2011 journal has been approved by IEEE Transactions on Power Electronics.

High-current inductors for high-power automotive DC-DC converters

This thesis is focused on the investigation of magnetic materials for high-power dcdc converters in hybrid and fuel cell vehicles and the development of an optimized high-power inductor for a multi-phase converter. The thesis introduces the power system architectures for hybrid and fuel cell vehicles. The requirements for power electronic converters are established and the dc-dc converter topologies of interest are introduced. A compact and efficient inductor is critical to reduce the overall cost, weight and volume of the dc-dc converter and optimize vehicle driving range and traction power. Firstly, materials suitable for a gapped CC-core inductor are analyzed and investigated. A novel inductor-design algorithm is developed and automated in order to compare and contrast the various magnetic materials over a range of frequencies and ripple ratios. The algorithm is developed for foil-wound inductors with gapped CC-cores in the low (10 kHz) to medium (30 kHz) frequency range and investigates the materials in a natural-convection-cooled environment. The practical effects of frequency, ripple, air-gap fringing, and thermal configuration are investigated next for the iron-based amorphous metal and 6.5 % silicon steel materials. A 2.5 kW converter is built to verify the optimum material selection and thermal configuration over the frequency range and ripple ratios of interest. Inductor size can increase in both of these laminated materials due to increased airgap fringing losses. Distributing the airgap is demonstrated to reduce the inductor losses and size but has practical limitations for iron-based amorphous metal cores. The effects of the manufacturing process are shown to degrade the iron-based amorphous metal multi-cut core loss. The experimental results also suggest that gap loss is not a significant consideration in these experiments. The predicted losses by the equation developed by Reuben Lee and cited by Colonel McLyman are significantly higher than the experimental results suggest. Iron-based amorphous metal has better preformance than 6.5 % silicon steel when a single cut core and natural-convection-cooling are used. Conduction cooling, rather than natural convection, can result in the highest power density inductor. The cooling for these laminated materials is very dependent on the direction of the lamination and the component mounting. Experimental results are produced showing the effects of lamination direction on the cooling path. A significant temperature reduction is demonstrated for conduction cooling versus natural-convection cooling. Iron-based amorphous metal and 6.5% silicon steel are competitive materials when conduction cooled. A novel inductor design algorithm is developed for foil-wound inductors with gapped CC-cores for conduction cooling of core and copper. Again, conduction cooling, rather than natural convection, is shown to reduce the size and weight of the inductor. The weight of the 6.5 % silicon steel inductor is reduced by around a factor of ten compared to natural-convection cooling due to the high thermal conductivity of the material. The conduction cooling algorithm is used to develop high-power custom inductors for use in a high power multi-phase boost converter. Finally, a high power digitally-controlled multi-phase boost converter system is designed and constructed to test the high-power inductors. The performance of the inductors is compared to the predictions used in the design process and very good correlation is achieved. The thesis results have been documented at IEEE APEC, PESC and IAS conferences in 2007 and at the IEEE EPE conference in 2008.

A low-cost, portable, and quantitative spectral imaging system for application to biological tissues.

The ability of diffuse reflectance spectroscopy to extract quantitative biological composition of tissues has been used to discern tissue types in both pre-clinical and clinical cancer studies. Typically, diffuse reflectance spectroscopy systems are designed for single-point measurements. Clinically, an imaging system would provide valuable spatial information on tissue composition. While it is feasible to build a multiplexed fiber-optic probe based spectral imaging system, these systems suffer from drawbacks with respect to cost and size. To address these we developed a compact and low cost system using a broadband light source with an 8-slot filter wheel for illumination and silicon photodiodes for detection. The spectral imaging system was tested on a set of tissue mimicking liquid phantoms which yielded an optical property extraction accuracy of 6.40 +/- 7.78% for the absorption coefficient (micro(a)) and 11.37 +/- 19.62% for the wavelength-averaged reduced scattering coefficient (micro(s)').

A kinesin motor in a force-producing conformation.

BACKGROUND: Kinesin motors hydrolyze ATP to produce force and move along microtubules, converting chemical energy into work by a mechanism that is only poorly understood. Key transitions and intermediate states in the process are still structurally uncharacterized, and remain outstanding questions in the field. Perturbing the motor by introducing point mutations could stabilize transitional or unstable states, providing critical information about these rarer states. RESULTS: Here we show that mutation of a single residue in the kinesin-14 Ncd causes the motor to release ADP and hydrolyze ATP faster than wild type, but move more slowly along microtubules in gliding assays, uncoupling nucleotide hydrolysis from force generation. A crystal structure of the motor shows a large rotation of the stalk, a conformation representing a force-producing stroke of Ncd. Three C-terminal residues of Ncd, visible for the first time, interact with the central beta-sheet and dock onto the motor core, forming a structure resembling the kinesin-1 neck linker, which has been proposed to be the primary force-generating mechanical element of kinesin-1. CONCLUSIONS: Force generation by minus-end Ncd involves docking of the C-terminus, which forms a structure resembling the kinesin-1 neck linker. The mechanism by which the plus- and minus-end motors produce force to move to opposite ends of the microtubule appears to involve the same conformational changes, but distinct structural linkers. Unstable ADP binding may destabilize the motor-ADP state, triggering Ncd stalk rotation and C-terminus docking, producing a working stroke of the motor.

Electron tomography of cryofixed, isometrically contracting insect flight muscle reveals novel actin-myosin interactions.

BACKGROUND: Isometric muscle contraction, where force is generated without muscle shortening, is a molecular traffic jam in which the number of actin-attached motors is maximized and all states of motor action are trapped with consequently high heterogeneity. This heterogeneity is a major limitation to deciphering myosin conformational changes in situ. METHODOLOGY: We used multivariate data analysis to group repeat segments in electron tomograms of isometrically contracting insect flight muscle, mechanically monitored, rapidly frozen, freeze substituted, and thin sectioned. Improved resolution reveals the helical arrangement of F-actin subunits in the thin filament enabling an atomic model to be built into the thin filament density independent of the myosin. Actin-myosin attachments can now be assigned as weak or strong by their motor domain orientation relative to actin. Myosin attachments were quantified everywhere along the thin filament including troponin. Strong binding myosin attachments are found on only four F-actin subunits, the "target zone", situated exactly midway between successive troponin complexes. They show an axial lever arm range of 77°/12.9 nm. The lever arm azimuthal range of strong binding attachments has a highly skewed, 127° range compared with X-ray crystallographic structures. Two types of weak actin attachments are described. One type, found exclusively in the target zone, appears to represent pre-working-stroke intermediates. The other, which contacts tropomyosin rather than actin, is positioned M-ward of the target zone, i.e. the position toward which thin filaments slide during shortening. CONCLUSION: We present a model for the weak to strong transition in the myosin ATPase cycle that incorporates azimuthal movements of the motor domain on actin. Stress/strain in the S2 domain may explain azimuthal lever arm changes in the strong binding attachments. The results support previous conclusions that the weak attachments preceding force generation are very different from strong binding attachments.

THE LESSER-KNOWN PIANO CHAMBER MUSIC OF CAMILLE SAINT-SAENS: A RECORDING PROJECT

Throughout his long and industrious lifetime, Camille Saint-Saens (1835-1921) devoted himself unconditionally to music both as a composer and a performer. Saint-Saens was a self-described traditionalist and musical purist, yet his works are distinctly expressive and imaginative, and they reflect the composer's own unique musical language which incorporates recognizably modem traits such as chromaticism and frequent modulation. As a performer, Saint-Saens preferred to premiere his own works and often included his chamber music in his concert programs. Regarded primarily as a symphonic composer in the present day, however, his extensive and varied collection of chamber music works is sadly neglected. Six varied small-ensemble works with piano from his chamber music repertoire have been selected for study and recording for this project: Piano Trio No. 1 in F Major, Op. 18 (1864); Sonata for Cello and Piano No. 1 inC Minor, Op. 32 (1872); two pieces for two pianos, Le Rouet d'Omphale (The Spinning Wheel ofOmphale), Op. 31 (1871) and Phaeton, Op. 39 (1874); piano duet Konig Harald Haifagar (King Harald Haarfager), Op. 59 (1880); and a wind quartet, Caprice sur des airs Danois et Russes (Caprice on Danish and Russian Airs) for Flute, Oboe, Clarinet and Piano, Op. 79 (1887). Analyses of the forms and harmonic structures of these compositions will be included in this dissertation paper as well as studies from the viewpoint of Saint-Saens' compositional style, ensemble characteristics, and writing for the piano. The recordings for this project were made in four sessions in LeFrak Concert Hall at Queens College, the City University of New York. On September 24, 2003, Op. 31, Op. 39 and Op. 59 were recorded with Professor Morey Ritt, piano. On March 2, 2004, Op. 18 was recorded with Elena Rojas, violin, and Clare Liu, cello, and on March 15, 2004, Op. 32 was recorded, also with Ms. Liu. The Caprice, Op. 79 was recorded on June 27, 2008 with Laura Conwesser, flute; Randall Wolfgang, oboe; and Steve Hartman, clarinet. The recordings may be found on file in the library at the University of Maryland, College Park.

A Kinect Based Indoor Navigation System for the Blind

Team NAVIGATE aims to create a robust, portable navigational aid for the blind. Our prototype uses depth data from the Microsoft Kinect to perform realtime obstacle avoidance in unfamiliar indoor environments. The device augments the white cane by performing two signi cant functions: detecting overhanging objects and identifying stairs. Based on interviews with blind individuals, we found a combined audio and haptic feedback system best for communicating environmental information. Our prototype uses vibration motors to indicate the presence of an obstacle and an auditory command to alert the user to stairs ahead. Through multiple trials with sighted and blind participants, the device was successful in detecting overhanging objects and approaching stairs. The device increased user competency and adaptability across all trials.