视觉模拟的新途径

视觉模拟,特别是飞机起飞和着陆的关键动作的模拟,长期以来就存在要求逼真度的问题,而且随着在低能见度的极端条件下操作的新要求而极大地增长。在实际飞机上进行训练以适应这些条件不仅困难而危险,而且训练问题还受这样情况的影响,即飞机的飞行任务必须等待既出现所希望的气候条件,同时空域又正好是可用的那种综合情况。飞机训练中人员的危险和钱财的耗费随着更复杂的兵器设备,新一代的大型喷气运输机,以及不久将来采用的超音速运输机的出现也极大地增加。模拟工业许多年来一直在为视觉问题而奋斗,同时由于大型数字计算机的应用,地面模拟器的其它方面已达到惊人的逼真性。实际结果是感觉信号模拟逼真度显著地落后于仪表飞行模拟。本文叙述模拟工业所采取的用以解决这个问题,并提供必要的训练价值的各种途径,。由于理想的系统并不存在,文中叙述了各种途径的限制,并详细地叙述了必须采取的折衷办法。这个问题的一个新途径是利用有限空中走廊模拟的基本特点,实行有限自由度飞行动作的折衷办法,提供优良的图象质量。这种方法应用电影胶片作为数据库,仔细地避免了现代电视质量较低的问题,这样做法,看来为供给训练中最关键的飞行动作部分的一切必需的感觉信号提供唯一的可能性。     

计及盘与叶片的变形时涡轮机轴临界转速的计算

高速转轴临界转速的理论研究以及涡轮机轴的实陈计算,都以下面两个假设之一作为基础的:或者以点质量来代替盘,或者将盘与固定于盘上的叶片认为是绝对刚体,而其直径惯性矩则等于静止状态下的惯性矩。 无论是第一种假设还是第二种假设,一般都不是精确的,当轴作正协调进动的转动     

Evaluation of theories of complex movement planning in different levels of gravity

Due to high redundancy of degrees of freedom in the human body, we can perform any movement, from the simplest to the most complex, in many different ways. Several studies are still trying to identify the motor strategies that master this redundancy and generate the movements whose characteristics are highly stereotyped. The aim of this work is to build a simulator that is able to evaluate different motor planning hypotheses. The most interesting applications of this tool occur in studies of the motor strategy in microgravity conditions. The comparison between simulated movements and kinematics data recorded both on Earth, and during a 5-month mission on board the Mir station shows that for a complex whole-body movement (such as trunk bending) a single planning criterion cannot explain all movement aspects. However, the simulator allows an understanding of the motor planning adaptation of astronauts. In space, the lack of equilibrium constraint (which on Earth brings about the center of mass control) leads to a new motor strategy that minimizes dynamic interactions with the floor.     

The origin and early evolution of membrane channels

The origin and early evolution of ion channels are considered from the point of view that the transmembrane segments of membrane proteins are structurally quite simple and do not require specific sequences to fold. We argue that the transport of solute species, especially ions, required an early evolution of efficient transport mechanisms, and that the emergence of simple ion channels was protobiologically plausible. We also argue that, despite their simple structure, such channels could possess properties that, at the first sight, appear to require markedly greater complexity. These properties can be subtly modulated by local modifications to the sequence rather than global changes in molecular architecture. In order to address the evolution and development of ion channels, we focus on identifying those protein domains that are commonly associated with ion channel proteins and are conserved throughout the three main domains of life (Eukarya, Bacteria, and Archaea). We discuss the potassium-sodium-calcium superfamily of voltage-gated ion channels, mechanosensitive channels, porins, and ABC-transporters and argue that these families of membrane channels have sufficiently universal architectures that they can readily adapt to the diverse functional demands arising during evolution.     

VISIOMETRICS OF 2D SHOCK-PLANAR S/F/S CURTAIN INTERACTIONS: VORTEX DOUBLE LAYERS, VORTEX PROJECTILES AND DECAYING STRATIFIED TURBULENCE

INTRODUCTIONVarious geometrical configurations havebeen used to obtain an understanding of phenom-ena in accelerated inhomogeneous flows( aifs) ,e.g. Richtmyer- Meshkov ( RM) and Rayleigh-Taylor( RT) flows,where visiometrics are beingemphasized more and more by the community[1] .The classical configuration,an acceleration orimpulse directed perpendicular to a planar inter-face between fluids of different density perturbedby a small- amplitude sinusoid has attracted muchattention for evo…     

Carbonaceous cherts in the Barberton greenstone belt and their significance for the study of early life in the Archean record

The 3.5-3.2 Ga old volcano-sedimentary succession of the Barberton greenstone belt (South Africa) is characterized by lithological units that are repeated in a regular manner. Komatiitic, basaltic, and dacitic volcanic and volcaniclastic sequences are capped by zones of silica enrichment, followed by bedded carbonaceous cherts. Stratiform and crosscutting carbonaceous chert veins are common in silica alteration zones and bedded cherts. A detailed field study of several chert horizons and chert veins that range in age from 3.47 to 3.30 Ga revealed the importance of syndepositional hydrothermal activity for their origin. Bedded cherts consist of silicified detrital and tuffaceous sediments that were deposited on the seafloor. Silicification took place at the sediment-water interface as a result of diffuse upflow of low-temperature hydrothermal fluids, which gave rise to the formation of impermeable chert caps. Fluid overpressure resulted in the breaching of the cap rocks at times. Chert veins contain angular host rock fragments, replace wall rocks, and show evidence of multiple vein fillings and in situ brecciation of earlier generations of vein fillings. They represent hydraulic fractures that were initiated by overpressuring of the hydrothermal system. The vein networks were infilled, partly by hydrothermal chert precipitates, and partly by still unconsolidated (not yet silicified) sedimentary material derived from overlying sedimentary horizons. Field, petrographic, isotopic, and trace element evidence indicate that most carbonaceous matter represents sedimentary material that originated by biogenic processes in the Archean oceans and not by hydrothermal processes in the subsurface.     

Observations from a 4-year contamination study of a sample depth profile through Martian meteorite Nakhla

Morphological, compositional, and biological evidence indicates the presence of numerous well-developed microbial hyphae structures distributed within four different sample splits of the Nakhla meteorite obtained from the British Museum (allocation BM1913,25). By examining depth profiles of the sample splits over time, morphological changes displayed by the structures were documented, as well as changes in their distribution on the samples, observations that indicate growth, decay, and reproduction of individual microorganisms. Biological staining with DNA-specific molecular dyes followed by epifluorescence microscopy showed that the hyphae structures contain DNA. Our observations demonstrate the potential of microbial interaction with extraterrestrial materials, emphasize the need for rapid investigation of Mars return samples as well as any other returned or impactor-delivered extraterrestrial materials, and suggest the identification of appropriate storage conditions that should be followed immediately after samples retrieved from the field are received by a handling/curation facility. The observations are further relevant in planetary protection considerations as they demonstrate that microorganisms may endure and reproduce in extraterrestrial materials over long (at least 4 years) time spans. The combination of microscopy images coupled with compositional and molecular staining techniques is proposed as a valid method for detection of life forms in martian materials as a first-order assessment. Time-resolved in situ observations further allow observation of possible (bio)dynamics within the system.     

Lichens survive in space: results from the 2005 LICHENS experiment

This experiment was aimed at establishing, for the first time, the survival capability of lichens exposed to space conditions. In particular, the damaging effect of various wavelengths of extraterrestrial solar UV radiation was studied. The lichens used were the bipolar species Rhizocarpon geographicum and Xanthoria elegans, which were collected above 2000 m in the mountains of central Spain and as endolithic communities inhabiting granites in the Antarctic Dry Valleys. Lichens were exposed to space in the BIOPAN-5 facility of the European Space Agency; BIOPAN-5 is located on the outer shell of the Earth-orbiting FOTON-M2 Russian satellite. The lichen samples were launched from Baikonur by a Soyuz rocket on May 31, 2005, and were returned to Earth after 16 days in space, at which time they were tested for survival. Chlorophyll fluorescence was used for the measurement of photosynthetic parameters. Scanning electron microscopy in back-scattered mode, low temperature scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy were used to study the organization and composition of both symbionts. Confocal laser scanning microscopy, in combination with the use of specific fluorescent probes, allowed for the assessment of the physiological state of the cells. All exposed lichens, regardless of the optical filters used, showed nearly the same photosynthetic activity after the flight as measured before the flight. Likewise, the multimicroscopy approach revealed no detectable ultrastructural changes in most of the algal and fungal cells of the lichen thalli, though a greater proportion of cells in the flight samples had compromised membranes, as revealed by the LIVE/DEAD BacLight Bacterial Viability Kit. These findings indicate that most lichenized fungal and algal cells can survive in space after full exposure to massive UV and cosmic radiation, conditions proven to be lethal to bacteria and other microorganisms. The lichen upper cortex seems to provide adequate protection against solar radiation. Moreover, after extreme dehydration induced by high vacuum, the lichens proved to be able to recover, in full, their metabolic activity within 24 hours.     

An examination of the carbon isotope effects associated with amino acid biosynthesis

Stable carbon isotope ratios (delta(13)C) were determined for alanine, proline, phenylalanine, valine, leucine, isoleucine, aspartate (aspartic acid and asparagine), glutamate (glutamic acid and glutamine), lysine, serine, glycine, and threonine from metabolically diverse microorganisms. The microorganisms examined included fermenting bacteria, organotrophic, chemolithotrophic, phototrophic, methylotrophic, methanogenic, acetogenic, acetotrophic, and naturally occurring cryptoendolithic communities from the Dry Valleys of Antarctica. Here we demonstrated that reactions involved in amino acid biosynthesis can be used to distinguish amino acids formed by life from those formed by nonbiological processes. The unique patterns of delta(13)C imprinted by life on amino acids produced a biological bias. We also showed that, by applying discriminant function analysis to the delta(13)C value of a pool of amino acids formed by biological activity, it was possible to identify key aspects of intermediary carbon metabolism in the microbial world. In fact, microorganisms examined in this study could be placed within one of three metabolic groups: (1) heterotrophs that grow by oxidizing compounds containing three or more carbon-to-carbon bonds (fermenters and organotrophs), (2) autotrophs that grow by taking up carbon dioxide (chemolitotrophs and phototrophs), and (3) acetoclastic microbes that grow by assimilation of formaldehyde or acetate (methylotrophs, methanogens, acetogens, and acetotrophs). Furthermore, we demonstrated that cryptoendolithic communities from Antarctica grouped most closely with the autotrophs, which indicates that the dominant metabolic pathways in these communities are likely those utilized for CO(2 )fixation. We propose that this technique can be used to determine the dominant metabolic types in a community and reveal the overall flow of carbon in a complex ecosystem.