Erratum to “Modeling of topographic wind speed effects in Hawaii” : [Journal of Wind Engineering & Industrial Aerodynamics: Volume 93, issue 8, August 2005, pp. 623-638]

Terrain or topographic amplification of wind speed has been a significant contributing factor in the past hurricane loss experiences of Hawaii and various islands in the Pacific region, such as Guam and American Samoa. In Hawaii, where the real terrain is very complex, the actual magnitude and extent of speedup can be quite different from current building code formulas. To address this issue pertinent to both loss estimation and structural design in Hawaii, regional scale models of selected developed portions of the Hawaiian Islands have been constructed and tested in a boundary-layer wind tunnel to determine wind velocity accelerations and decelerations due to topographic influence over a grid of data acquisition locations. Influences of terrain, directionality, channeling, and topographic features have been identified. Wind-tunnel test data were utilized to develop empirical models for peak, and mean wind speed-up based on spatially weighted parameters derived from a Digital Elevation Model (DEM) raster grid of terrain and relevant categorical landform variables. A geographic information system was then used to provide detailed contouring of the wind flow speed-ups. This provided a micro-zoned mapping of directional wind speed-up factors relative to the speed at a flat open coastal site.     

Review of What intelligence tests miss: The psychology of rational thought.

Reviews the book, What intelligence tests miss: The psychology of rational thought by Keith E. Stanovich (see record 2008-06992-000). Speed of processing seems to reign in the world of the mind. Although a person’s speed of processing may in part dictate who amongst us performs well on intelligence tests, this speed may not necessarily guarantee good decisions, personal contentment, and the meeting of goals in real life. Stanovich’s book is a scholarly, yet captivating, survey of research on rational thought and action, and what it means to be a truly industrious thinker. The book is divided into 13 chapters. Chapters 1 and 2 attempt to persuade the reader that measured intelligence is different from rationality—measured intelligence is essentially about raw speed of processing while rationality is about sophisticated problem solving. Chapter 3 elucidates the theoretical models, including the reflective, algorithmic, and autonomous minds, which help account for the distinction between measured intelligence and rationality. Chapters 4 and 5 flesh out the differences between intelligence and rationality. Chapters 6 through 9 expose the strategies the cognitive miser (a metaphor to guide and describe key ideas about human thinking) employs to cut corners in thinking. Chapters 10 and 11 focus on both the positive thinking strategies that should be taught in school and the contaminated forms of thinking that impede us from weighing and sifting through the information we encounter in the world and then evaluating it effectively. Chapters 12 and 13 provide a useful review of the forms of thinking that lead to irrational beliefs and actions, and conclude with the social benefits of better thinking. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

High-performance La-doped BCZT thin film capacitors on LaNiO3/Pt composite bottom electrodes with ultra-high efficiency and high thermal stability

Dielectric capacitors possessing large energy storage density, high efficiency and high thermal stability simultaneously are very attractive in modern electronic devices to be operated in harsh environment. Here, it is demonstrated that large energy storage density (W?～?15.5?J/cm³), ultra-high efficiency (η ～93.7%) and high thermal stability (the variation of both W from 20?°C to 260?°C and η from 20?°C to 140?°C is less than 5%) have been simultaneously achieved in the La-doped (Ba_0.904Ca_0.096)_0.9775+xLa_0.015(Zr_0.136Ti_0.864)O₃ (x?=?0.0075) lead-free relaxor ferroelectric thin film capacitors deposited on LaNiO₃/Pt composite bottom electrodes by using a sol-gel method. The good energy storage property of the thin film capacitors at x?=?0.0075 is mainly ascribed to the diversity of the structure of the nano-clusters around the three-phases coexisting component point (Ba_0.904Ca_0.096)(Zr_0.136Ti_0.864)O₃ where cubic, tetragonal and rhombohedral phases coexisted, as well as the ultra-high quality of thin film due to the utilization of the LaNiO₃/Pt composite bottom electrode, making it a promising candidate for dielectric capacitors working in harsh environments.     

Piezoelectric PZT films for MEMS and their characterization by interferometry

Piezoelectric films can be used in micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) devices because the piezoelectric effect can provide high forces with relatively low energy losses. The energy output by a piezoelectric film per unit area is proportional to the film thickness, so it is desirable to have relatively thick films. Chemical solution deposition (CSD) techniques were used to prepare lead zirconate titanate (PZT) thin films with Zr/Ti ratios of 30/70 and 52/48. Usually CSD processing is restricted to making crack-free single layer films of ca 70 nm thick, but modifications to the sol-gel process have permitted the fabrication of dense, crack-free single layers up to 200–300 nm thick, which can be built-up into layers up to 3 μm thick. Thicker PZT films (> 2 μm single layer) can be produced by using a composite sol-gel/ceramic process. Knowledge of the electro-active properties of these materials is essential for modeling and design of novel MEMS devices and accurate measurement of these properties is by no means straightforward. A novel double beam common path laser interferometer has been developed to measure the piezoelectric coefficient in films and the results were compared with the values obtained by Berlincourt method. A laser scanning vibrometer was also used to measuring the longitudinal (d ₃₃) and transverse (d ₃₁) piezoelectric coefficients for PZT films and ceramics and the results were compared to those obtained by the other methods. It was found that for thin film samples, the d _33,f values obtained from the Belincourt method is usually larger than those obtained from the interferometer method but smaller than those from the vibrometer method and the reasons for this are discussed.     

A Switchboard Torque Indicator for AC Motors

The technique of calculating the air gap torque of an induction motor utilizing only the terminal voltages and currents has been known for some time; however implementation of this technique in a commercial instrument that must compete in accuracy with electromechanical instruments raises a number of issues that must be resolved. Because the derivation of the theorem relies on assumptions of symmetry in the motor, questions have been raised as to its accuracy in real machines. Also, the effects of saturation and core losses usually are ignored but are always present, especially in '' commodity''-type motors. There also are issues associated with the way data are processed, especially in the presence of strong harmonics. Finally, there is the question of how the system can be put into the field using only the information available to the user on the motor name plate. To clarify these issues, an experiment was set up using a PC equipped with standard A/D boards and a common 3/4 HP induction motor. The algorithm was implemented in C code on the PC. Upon the conclusion of these tests, the code was ported to a switchboard instrument and tested using a 15 HP motor. Results in both platforms were good, and the switchboard implementation has been adopted into the standard motor protection relay product.     

Localization and function of five glutamate transporters cloned from the salamander retina

Glutamate is the major excitatory neurotransmitter in the vertebrate retina. Native glutamate transporters have been well characterized in several retinal neurons, particularly from the salamander retina. We have cloned five distinct glutamate transporters from the salamander retina and examined their localization and functional properties: sEAAT1, sEEAAT2A, sEAAT2B, sEAAT5A and sEAAT5B. sEAAT1 is a homologue of the glutamate transporter EAAT1 (GLAST), sEAAT2A and sEAAT2B are homologues of EAAT2 (GLT-1) and sEAAT5A and sEAAT5B are homologues of the recently cloned human retinal glutamate transporter EAAT5. Localization was determined by immunocytochemical techniques using antibodies directed at portions of the highly divergent carboxy terminal. Glutamate transporters were found in glial, photoreceptor, bipolar, amacrine and ganglion cells. The pharmacology and ionic dependence were determined by two-electrode voltage clamp recordings from Xenopus laevis oocytes which had previously been injected with one of the glutamate transporter mRNAs. Each of the transporters behaved in a manner consistent with a glutamate transporter and there were some distinguishing characteristics which make it possible to link the function in native cells with the behavior of the cloned transporters in this study.     

Imaging and 3D elemental characterization of intact bacterial spores by high-resolution secondary ion mass spectrometry

We present a quantitative, imaging technique based on nanometer-scale secondary ion mass spectrometry for mapping the 3D elemental distribution present in an individual micrometer-sized Bacillus spore. We use depth profile analysis to access the 3D compositional information of an intact spore without the additional sample preparation steps (fixation, embedding, and sectioning) typically used to access substructural information in biological samples. The method is designed to ensure sample integrity for forensic characterization of Bacillus spores. The minimal sample preparation/alteration required in this methodology helps to preserve sample integrity. Furthermore, the technique affords elemental distribution information at the individual spore level with nanometer-scale spatial resolution and high (microg/g) analytical sensitivity. We use the technique to map the 3D elemental distribution present within Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis spores.