759 research outputs found
Wild seed, domestic seed : companion species and the emergence of agriculture
No full textVan Dooren, T. Wild seed, domestic seed : companion species and the emergence of agriculture. PAN : philosophy activism nature. 2012; 9, 22-28
Computational Methods for Periodic Systems - An Overview
No full textWe present an up-to-date survey of numerical methods for the analysis and design of linear discrete-time periodic systems. The basic tool is the periodic Schur form and its variants, for which a certain form of numerical stability can be ensured
Vulture
No full textSimply because they are large scavenging birds, vultures are often viewed as harbingers of death. But, as Thom van Dooren shows in this cultural and natural history, that dominant association leaves us with a very one-dimensional understanding of a group of actually rather fascinating and diverse creatures. Vulture offers an enlightening new history of this much-misunderstood bird. Vultures vary in type and size, and while some have a diet mainly of bone, others are actually almost completely vegetarian. Most interesting, despite its notorious association with death, the vulture very rarely, if ever, kills for itself. In different cultural mythologies, vultures play a role in disposing of the dead and officiating over human sacrifices, but they have often been viewed as courageous and noble creatures as wellbelieved to be indispensable in the containment of waste and disease and even to be world creators and divine mothers. Van Dooren explores these many histories, from some of the earliest-known Neolithic sites in which vultures are thought to have consumed the dead to contemporary efforts to reintroduce the bearded vulture into the Alps. Highlighting the rich diversity of vultures and the many ways in which people have understood and lived with them, Vulture invites a new appreciation and wonder for these incredible birds
Computational aspects of the Jordan canonical form
No full textIn this paper we discuss algorithmic aspects of the computation of the Jordan canonical form. Inspired by the Golub & Wilkinson paper [9] on the computation of the Jordan canonical form, an O(n 3 ) algorithm was developed by Beelen & Van Dooren [3] for computing the Kronecker structure of an arbitrary pencil B Gamma A. Here we show how the ideas of this algorithm lead to a special algorithm for reconstructing the Jordan structure of the standard eigenvalue problem I Gamma A
Arbitrary pole placement with the extended Kautsky–Nichols–van Dooren parametric form
Get PDFWe consider the classic problem of pole placement by state feedback. The well-known eigenstructure assignment algorithm of Kautsky, Nichols, and van Dooren is extended to obtain a parametric formula for the pole-placing feedback matrix that can deliver any desired closed-loop eigenvalues, with any desired multiplicities
Flight Ways: Life and Loss at the Edge of Extinction
No full textA leading figure in the emerging field of extinction studies, Thom van Dooren puts philosophy into conversation with the natural sciences and his own ethnographic encounters to vivify the cultural and ethical significance of modern-day extinctions. Unlike other meditations on the subject, Flight Ways incorporates the particularities of real animals and their worlds, drawing philosophers, natural scientists, and general readers into the experience of living among and losing biodiversity.
Each chapter of Flight Ways focuses on a different species or group of birds: North Pacific albatrosses, Indian vultures, an endangered colony of penguins in Australia, Hawaiian crows, and the iconic whooping cranes of North America. Written in eloquent and moving prose, the book takes stock of what is lost when a life form disappears from the world—the wide-ranging ramifications that ripple out to implicate a number of human and more-than-human others. Van Dooren intimately explores what life is like for those who must live on the edge of extinction, balanced between life and oblivion, taking care of their young and grieving their dead. He bolsters his studies with real-life accounts from scientists and local communities at the forefront of these developments. No longer abstract entities with Latin names, these species become fully realized characters enmeshed in complex and precarious ways of life, sparking our sense of curiosity, concern, and accountability toward others in a rapidly changing world
"Adaptables" - An Adapative Facade for the Future Faculty of Architecture at Delft University of Technology
No full textThe aim of this research is to study the possibilities of adaptation in a façade in order to be able to design an adaptive façade for the future faculty of Architecture at TU Delft. In general, an adaptive façade has the ability to change, responding to changing internal and/or external climatic conditions influencing room comfort. It was evident from the beginning of the research that an adaptive façade can have a positive effect on a building’s energy consumption and comfort. The idea that an adaptive façade can contribute to a flexible building and usage of space as well, is quite new; it assumes that this type of façade is necessary to fulfill the different requirements per room type placed on the internal climate. To verify this, three room typologies – a design studio, an office and a meeting room – have been researched on their user and climate requirements. An understanding of the difference in use of both the room and its façade (for instance practicability of the façade), and the related comfort requirements per room typology is necessary to comprehend the effects on the façade. The study on comfort shows that light and ventilation need to be adaptive because every room type has different comfort requirements. The usable floor area per person is different per room type and the reverberation time varies as well, but this difference is solved cleverly by using materials with different absorption qualities in the room itself. A difference in temperature, light, ventilation and sound all have influence on the design of the façade and the internal climate. The relevant internal factors influencing room comfort are people, electrical devices and lighting. Their effect on the internal climate differs per room typology since the amount of people and the surface area vary. The external conditions – solar radiation, outside air temperature, humidity, precipitation and wind – are dependent on location and orientation and cannot be influenced by design; however, an adaptable façade must make best use of these conditions. The amount of adaptation needed in a façade is analyzed in the adaptivity analysis. The analysis takes into account the different functions, day and night differences, the seasons and the façade’s orientation. Different profiles have been defined to study the effects of the different adaptive functions in relation to each other. Furthermore, different levels of adaptivity have been quantified to research what function needs what amount of adaptation, the levels being: minute-to-minute, day and night, season and years. These levels are necessary to limit down the choice for certain components even more. To be able to actually design a façade with adaptive components, one needs to know what is there and what is not. An overview has been made for façade components that can adapt manually, mechanically and on a material level – so-called ‘smart’ materials. Of course, this overview is not complete and probably never will be, but within the timeframe of this research, it does tell what the potential of the component is and its advantages and disadvantages. The components have been organized per function into a diagram. In combination with the defined profiles for designers it’s a useful tool to create new façade concepts. Three different concepts have been worked out with the help of the profiles and the diagram with adaptive components. These adaptive concepts show the possibilities, effects and restraints for the future façade with adaptive components. The last chapter shows the result for an adaptive façade design as a result of the graduation assignment in both architecture and building technology. In conclusion, adaptivity in a façade is dependent on a lot of different factors: the user profile and practicability of the façade; its effectiveness in time, meaning the different levels of adaptivity; its climate profile; its costs and architectural choices. It is also a direct outcome of what components are available at the time of making the concept and design. The future façade will potentially take in more and more functionality, with a better integration of building services and integration with a building’s structure.Design of ConstructionsBuilding TechnologyArchitectur
Arbitrary pole placement with the extended Kautsky-Nichols-van Dooren parametric form with minimum gain
Get PDFWe consider the classic problem of pole placement by state feedback. We revisit the well-known eigenstructure assignment algorithm of Kautsky, Nichols and van Dooren [1] and extend it to obtain a novel parametric form for the pole-placing feedback matrix that can deliver any set of desired closed-loop eigenvalues, with any desired multiplicities. This parametric formula is then employed to introduce an unconstrained nonlinear optimisation algorithm to obtain a feedback matrix that delivers the desired pole placement with minimum gain
- …
