169,325 research outputs found
Approximation of quadratic irrationals and their pierce expansions
No full textIn this article two aims are pursued: on the one hand, to present a rapidly converging algorithm for the approximation of square roots; on the other hand and based on the previous algorithm, to find the Pierce expansions of a certain class of quadratic irrationals as an alternative way to the method presented in 1984 by J.O. Shallit; we extend the method to find also the Pierce expansions of quadratic irrationals of the form which are not covered in Shallit's work.Quadratic irrationals, Pierce series
Interview with John Robinson Pierce
No full textAn interview in three sessions in April 1979 with John R. Pierce, often referred to as the father of the communications satellite. A leading applied physicist, Pierce went to work for Bell Telephone Laboratories in 1936 after receiving his PhD in electrical engineering from Caltech. He spent the next thirty-five years there, where he made important contributions to the development of the traveling-wave tube and the reflex klystron, rising to become executive director of Bell's Research-Communications Principles Division. Pierce was also a pioneer in communications satellites, playing a key role in the development of two of the earliest, Echo and Telstar. In this interview he recalls his undergraduate education at Caltech in the late twenties and early thirties, the early years at Bell, radar work during the war, and the beginnings of America's satellite program.
Pierce was also a prolific author of science fiction, sometimes under the pen name J. J. Coupling. In the mid-1960s, he served on the President's Science Advisory Committee (PSAC). He retired from Bell Labs in 1971 and returned to Caltech as a professor in the Division of Engineering and Applied Science, and he comments on the changes (and the similarities) he found in undergraduate education at Caltech. While at Bell, Pierce developed a lifelong interest in computer-generated music and psychoacoustics, the science of consonance and dissonance; in the latter part of the interview, he discusses his work with Max Mathews on music synthesis. A year after this interview was conducted, he became professor emeritus at Caltech, and in 1983 he joined Stanford's Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics (CCRMA) as a visiting professor. Pierce died on April 2, 2002, in Mountain View, California
Oral History Interview with R V Pierce
No full textA recorded interview with R V Pierce, in English. A document which lists the topics covered and their time stamps is also included in English.Memories of Terrebonne is an Oral History Project conducted and produced by the Terrebonne Parish Police Jury and Cote Blanche Productions. The interviews were conducted over the span of two years, 1983-1984, and cover subjects such as the folklore and cultural traditions of the Parish as remembered by its long-time residents
Ritratti. La dimensione individuale nella storia (XV - XX). Studi in onore di Anne Jacobson Schutte
No full textDisturbance is a principal alpha-scale filter determining niche differentiation, coexistence and biodiversity in an alpine community
No full text1. Many current biodiversity theories assume that resource competition determines niche segregation and thus coexistence within communities (i.e. at the alpha-scale). However, the action of disturbance, creating heterogeneous environments and suppressing potential dominants, may also be important for biodiversity maintenance.
2. Hypothesis: subordinate species exhibit primarily opportunistic (ruderal) survival strategies, with increasing disturbance intensity constraining dominant species - favouring opportunistic strategies and thus functional and species diversity.
3. The diversity, character and frequency of strategies in an alpine sedge-dominated vascular plant community were quantified in situ using CSR (competitor, stress-tolerator, ruderal) classification, and compared with a pasture in the same alpine vegetation belt (i.e. with additional disturbance). Adaptive trends were confirmed by independent multivariate analysis [detrended correspondence analysis (DCA) and non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMDS)].
4. The extremely stress-tolerant sedge Carex curvula (C : S : R = 17.2 : 72.9 : 9.9%) dominated the relatively undisturbed community (frequency = 52%), with 32 subordinates (typically < 5%) exhibiting a functional spectrum encompassing stress tolerance to ruderalism, but not competitive strategies. With grazing, the community exhibited weaker co-dominance by five species, greater biodiversity (76 species) and greater functional diversity, characterized by larger numbers of ruderals and some competitive-ruderals. The principal variation in both DCA1 and NMDS1 for both communities directly reflected CSR strategy spectra, confirmed by Spearman's correlation.
5. Dominance by stress-tolerators and restricted functional diversity demonstrates habitat-level (beta-scale) functional convergence in response to stress. A spectrum of S to R strategies demonstrates alpha-scale functional divergence in response to differential stress and disturbance. Grazing suppresses potentially dominant species and favours diversity, with the additional presence of competitive-ruderals suggestive of a more intricate niche topology including more relaxed abiotic opportunities.
6. Natural communities are not necessarily structured according to the rules of resource competition models, as these fail to account for disturbance and facilitation processes
Texas Disaster Information System Living Plan
No full textThis version is the first complete plan for the Texas Disaster Information System (TDIS). It summarizes key elements of the TDIS vision, approach, and priorities. It also defines an initial direction for the system’s proposed design, services, and technical environment.
Cite as: Pierce, S.A., Mobley, W., Dabrowski, A., Highfield, W.E., Blessing, R., Teleki, K., Je’aime, P., Porter, B., Reichman, J., Barr, B., Brody, S.D. (2021). Texas Disaster Information System Living Plan. Institute for a Disaster Resilient Texas. Texas A&M University, Galveston Campus
Engineering enterprise through intellectual property education - pedagogic approaches
No full textEngineering faculties, despite shrinking resources, are delivering to new enterprise
agendas that must take account of the fuzzying of disciplinary boundaries. Learning and
teaching, curriculum design and research strategies reflect these changes. Driven by changing
expectations of how future graduates will contribute to the economy, academics in
engineering and other innovative disciplines are finding it necessary to re-think undergraduate
curricula to enhance students’ entrepreneurial skills, which includes their awareness and
competence in respect of intellectual property rights [IPRs]. There is no well established
pedagogy for educating engineers, scientists and innovators about intellectual property. This
paper reviews some different approaches to facilitating non-law students’ learning about IP.
Motivated by well designed ‘intended learning outcomes’ and assessment tasks, students can
be encouraged to manage their learning... The skills involved in learning about intellectual
property rights in this way can be applied to learning other key, but not core, subjects. At the
same time, students develop the ability to acquire knowledge, rather than rely on receiving it,
which is an essential competence for a ‘knowledge’ based worker
Tribute in memoriam, Delaware House of Representatives
No full textThis document is a tribute in memoriam of Grace W. Pierce-Beck to be presented to her family. Main tribute signed by Terry R. Spence, Speaker of the House; JoAnn M. Hedrick, Chief Clerk of the House; and Representative Nancy H. Wagner, Sponsor -- an additional sheet is included with the signature of all 41 house member
Tribute, Delaware House of Representatives
No full textThis document is a tribute from the Delaware House of Representatives recognizing Grace W. Pierce-Beck for being inducted into the Hall of Fame of Delaware Women. It is signed by Terry R. Spence, Speaker of the House; JoAnn M. Hedrick, Chief Clerk of the House; and Representative Nancy H. Wagner, Sponsor
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