This Master thesis deals with symbolic objects appearing in the Bronze Age Aegean art in the 3rd and especially the 2nd millennium BCE. Recurrent types of scenes and motifs speak for the fact that there must have existed a complex iconographic system of Minoan and Mycenaean art. An analytical method aiming at single elements of composite scenes may bring us closer to better understanding of this system and to its more objective interpretation. The study, therefore, focuses on the iconography of each individual symbol and also discusses its possible parallels in art of the neighbouring Bronze Age cultures. Nonetheless, the Aegean iconographic system was not strictly codified throughout the entire Bronze Age and some of the themes evolved or were specific only for certain eras. For that reason, the studied material is treated in a diachronic approach so as to stress the iconographic evolution of the symbols' use. The aim is to provide a profound analysis of the rules applied to the symbols in Minoan and Mycenaean art, to investigate their possible origins, and finally to examine their mutual interconnections.

No description available.

Die-bleibende Stadt : Quintet für fünf Bläser Nr. 1, op. 27 -- La nuit et l'extra-terrestre : Deuxième Poéme Symphonique pour Orchestra à vents, op. 28 -- Requiem no. 1 for solo soprano, mezzo-soprano, alto, tenor, bass, off-stage instruments, organ, double mixed chorus and orchestra, op. 30 -- 3 duets of strings, "Information Engineering", op. 31. / Lam, Wang Kong. / Durations: 8 min.; 8 min.; 70 min.; 8 min. / Thesis (M.Mus.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves ). / Lyrics of 3rd work in Latin; abstract also in Chinese. / Abstract --- p.ii / Acknowledgements --- p.iii / Die bleibende Stadt: Quintet fur funf Blaser Nr. 1，Op.27 --- p.1 / Programme notes --- p.2 / Score --- p.3 / "La nuit et I'extra-terrestre : Deuxieme Poeme Symphonique pour Orchestre a vents, Op.28" --- p.9 / Programme notes --- p.10 / Score --- p.11 / "Requiem no. 1 for solo soprano, mezzo-soprano, alto, tenor, bass, off-stage instruments, organ, double mixed chorus and orchestra, Op.30" --- p.39 / Programme notes --- p.40 / Score: / Chapter I. --- Introit --- p.44 / Chapter II. --- Offertorio --- p.72 / Chapter III. --- Sanctus --- p.102 / Chapter IV. --- Pie Jesu --- p.121 / Chapter V. --- Agnus Dei --- p.126 / Chapter VI. --- Lux aetema --- p.137 / Chapter VII. --- Libera me --- p.141 / Chapter VIII. --- In paradisum --- p.171 / "3 Duets for strings, ""Information Engineering´ح, Op.31" --- p.184 / Programme notes --- p.185 / Score: / Chapter I. --- Fourier Transform --- p.186 / Chapter II. --- Cryptography --- p.188 / Chapter III. --- Information Theory --- p.190

<p>Det svenska kulturlandskapet har förändrats radikalt under de senaste 200 åren från ett varierat och heterogent landskap till ett mer monotont, homogeniserat landskap som följd av att olika former av mänskligt resursutnyttjande har effektiviserats. Detta har lett till en fragmentering av livsmiljöerna för flera av kulturlandskapets arter. Kraftledningsgator kan tänkas hysa naturtyper som påminner om vissa av de nu försvunna eller fragmenterade livsmiljöerna (t ex betad skogsmark och vissa typer av ängsmarker) och skulle kunna ha en viktig betydelse som reträttplats och/eller spridningskorridor för dessa arter.</p><p>I en fallfällsinventering i Köpings och Strängnäs kommun i Mälardalen undersöktes förekomst och abundans av marklevande evertebrater i kraftledningsgator, skog och betesmark. Jämförelser i förekomst och abundans gjordes mellan dessa marktyper (d v s kraftledningsgator, skog och betesmark), samt mellan positioner inom kraftledningsgator (centrala och distala delar) och närliggande skogsmark. Jämförelserna innefattade dels analyser av artantal (eller snarare antal taxa) och flera olika biodiversitetsindex och dels analyser av likhet i artförekomst och individantal med "likhetsindex" (similarity index). Separata analyser gjordes inom olika taxonomiska grupper (t ex alla taxa, endast inom insekter, endast inom spindeldjur). Antalet replikat tillät statistisk testning av eventuella mönster i antal taxa och biodiversitetsindex.</p><p>Inga signifikanta skillnader dokumenterades, varken mellan de olika marktyperna eller mellan positioner inom kraftledningsgator och närliggande skog. Vi tolkar dessa resultat som att kraftledningsgator med avseende på antal taxa respektive biodiversitet <em>inte är (signifikant) sämre</em> än skogs- eller betesmark. Det kan betonas att det inte heller fanns något konsekvent (icke-signifikant) mönster som pekade på att så skulle vara fallet. Antal taxa och biodiversitetsindex tar ingen hänsyn till <em>vilka</em> arter eller taxa som ingår i analyserna. En naturtyp som hyser en individ- och artrik fauna bestående av oönskade arter (introducerade arter, "skadedjur" etc.) registrerar t ex ett högre biodiversitetsindex än en naturtyp med fåtaligt förekommande rödlistade, skyddsvärda arter. Likhetsindex belyser bättre vilka arter som är inblandade. Visserligen tas inte heller här hänsyn till exakt vilka arter som ingår (eller deras eventuella önskvärdhet eller skyddsvärde), men ett högt index indikerar att <em>samma</em> arter förekommer i de jämförda naturtyperna. I denna studie indikerar ett högt likhetsindex dessutom att antalet individer av de inblandade arterna är likartat, eftersom ett index som tar hänsyn till abundans användes.</p><p>Resultaten visade överlag höga likhetsindex, speciellt verkade kraftledningsgator och skogsmark hysa likartad evertebratfauna medan likheten mellan kraftledningsgator och betesmark var mindre uttalad. Sammanfattningsvis indikerar studien att kraftledningsgator inte verkar vara lågvärdiga livsmiljöer för de marklevande evertebrat-taxa som ingått i studien. Vi föreslår att kraftledningsgator med väl avvägda rutiner för röjning och skötsel skulle kunna spela en viktig roll i skapandet av artrika kantzoner eller marker som liknar ängs- eller betesmarker med svag hävd.</p> / <p>As a consequence of the intensification of various forms of human resource utilization rural Sweden has changed radically over the past 200 years from offering a varied and diverse landscape to a more monotonous, homogenised type of environment. This has led to fragmentation of habitats for many of the species occurring. Power line corridors might harbour habitats that resemble some of the now lost or fragmented habitats (e.g. grazed forest land and certain types of meadow), and could have important functions as refuge habitats and / or distribution corridors for these species.</p><p>In a pitfall trap study in Köping and Strängnäs municipalities in Mälardalen, the occurrence and abundance of ground-living invertebrates were investigated in power line corridors, adjoining forest and pastures. Comparisons were made between these habitat types, and between positions within the power line corridor (central and distal parts) and the nearby forested area. The comparisons included analysis of number of species (or rather the number of taxa) and several biodiversity indexes, as well as analysis of the similarity of the occurrence of certain species and individual numbers by use of "similarity index". Separate tests were made in different taxonomic groups (e.g. all taxa, only within insects, only within spiders). The number of replicates allowed statistical testing of patterns in the number of taxa and biodiversity index.</p><p>No significant differences were documented, neither between the different habitat types, nor between positions in the power line corridors and nearby forest. There was also no consistent (non-significant) pattern indicating that this would be the case. We suggest these results to indicate that power line corridors at least are not (significantly) poorer quality habitats than are forest or pasture land with regard to number of taxa and biodiversity. Number of taxa and biodiversity indices take no account of the species or taxa included in the analysis. Thus the same weight is assigned to an unwanted species (e.g. an invasive pest species or parasite) as to a red-listed, highly valued species. Similarity index takes more heed to the species involved. Although similarity indices do not consider the exact identity of involved species (or their possible value or desirability), a high index value indicates that the same species occur in the compared habitats. In this study, where an index that takes into account the abundance of species was used, a high similarity index value also indicates that the numbers of individuals are similar.</p><p>Overall, the results showed high similarity between habitat types. This would suggest that, to a large extent, power lines, forest and pasture land had the same composition of taxa, and that the taxa had similar abundances. Power lines and forest seemed to exhibit particularly high similarities, whereas the similarity between power lines and pasture land was less pronounced. Thus, this study indicates, in contrast to several previous suggestions, that power line corridors do not seem to be low quality habitats. We also suggest that power line corridors with well designed management routines could play an important role creating edges and habitats resembling meadow or low intensity grazed pasture land.</p>

Det svenska kulturlandskapet har förändrats radikalt under de senaste 200 åren från ett varierat och heterogent landskap till ett mer monotont, homogeniserat landskap som följd av att olika former av mänskligt resursutnyttjande har effektiviserats. Detta har lett till en fragmentering av livsmiljöerna för flera av kulturlandskapets arter. Kraftledningsgator kan tänkas hysa naturtyper som påminner om vissa av de nu försvunna eller fragmenterade livsmiljöerna (t ex betad skogsmark och vissa typer av ängsmarker) och skulle kunna ha en viktig betydelse som reträttplats och/eller spridningskorridor för dessa arter. I en fallfällsinventering i Köpings och Strängnäs kommun i Mälardalen undersöktes förekomst och abundans av marklevande evertebrater i kraftledningsgator, skog och betesmark. Jämförelser i förekomst och abundans gjordes mellan dessa marktyper (d v s kraftledningsgator, skog och betesmark), samt mellan positioner inom kraftledningsgator (centrala och distala delar) och närliggande skogsmark. Jämförelserna innefattade dels analyser av artantal (eller snarare antal taxa) och flera olika biodiversitetsindex och dels analyser av likhet i artförekomst och individantal med "likhetsindex" (similarity index). Separata analyser gjordes inom olika taxonomiska grupper (t ex alla taxa, endast inom insekter, endast inom spindeldjur). Antalet replikat tillät statistisk testning av eventuella mönster i antal taxa och biodiversitetsindex. Inga signifikanta skillnader dokumenterades, varken mellan de olika marktyperna eller mellan positioner inom kraftledningsgator och närliggande skog. Vi tolkar dessa resultat som att kraftledningsgator med avseende på antal taxa respektive biodiversitet inte är (signifikant) sämre än skogs- eller betesmark. Det kan betonas att det inte heller fanns något konsekvent (icke-signifikant) mönster som pekade på att så skulle vara fallet. Antal taxa och biodiversitetsindex tar ingen hänsyn till vilka arter eller taxa som ingår i analyserna. En naturtyp som hyser en individ- och artrik fauna bestående av oönskade arter (introducerade arter, "skadedjur" etc.) registrerar t ex ett högre biodiversitetsindex än en naturtyp med fåtaligt förekommande rödlistade, skyddsvärda arter. Likhetsindex belyser bättre vilka arter som är inblandade. Visserligen tas inte heller här hänsyn till exakt vilka arter som ingår (eller deras eventuella önskvärdhet eller skyddsvärde), men ett högt index indikerar att samma arter förekommer i de jämförda naturtyperna. I denna studie indikerar ett högt likhetsindex dessutom att antalet individer av de inblandade arterna är likartat, eftersom ett index som tar hänsyn till abundans användes. Resultaten visade överlag höga likhetsindex, speciellt verkade kraftledningsgator och skogsmark hysa likartad evertebratfauna medan likheten mellan kraftledningsgator och betesmark var mindre uttalad. Sammanfattningsvis indikerar studien att kraftledningsgator inte verkar vara lågvärdiga livsmiljöer för de marklevande evertebrat-taxa som ingått i studien. Vi föreslår att kraftledningsgator med väl avvägda rutiner för röjning och skötsel skulle kunna spela en viktig roll i skapandet av artrika kantzoner eller marker som liknar ängs- eller betesmarker med svag hävd. / As a consequence of the intensification of various forms of human resource utilization rural Sweden has changed radically over the past 200 years from offering a varied and diverse landscape to a more monotonous, homogenised type of environment. This has led to fragmentation of habitats for many of the species occurring. Power line corridors might harbour habitats that resemble some of the now lost or fragmented habitats (e.g. grazed forest land and certain types of meadow), and could have important functions as refuge habitats and / or distribution corridors for these species. In a pitfall trap study in Köping and Strängnäs municipalities in Mälardalen, the occurrence and abundance of ground-living invertebrates were investigated in power line corridors, adjoining forest and pastures. Comparisons were made between these habitat types, and between positions within the power line corridor (central and distal parts) and the nearby forested area. The comparisons included analysis of number of species (or rather the number of taxa) and several biodiversity indexes, as well as analysis of the similarity of the occurrence of certain species and individual numbers by use of "similarity index". Separate tests were made in different taxonomic groups (e.g. all taxa, only within insects, only within spiders). The number of replicates allowed statistical testing of patterns in the number of taxa and biodiversity index. No significant differences were documented, neither between the different habitat types, nor between positions in the power line corridors and nearby forest. There was also no consistent (non-significant) pattern indicating that this would be the case. We suggest these results to indicate that power line corridors at least are not (significantly) poorer quality habitats than are forest or pasture land with regard to number of taxa and biodiversity. Number of taxa and biodiversity indices take no account of the species or taxa included in the analysis. Thus the same weight is assigned to an unwanted species (e.g. an invasive pest species or parasite) as to a red-listed, highly valued species. Similarity index takes more heed to the species involved. Although similarity indices do not consider the exact identity of involved species (or their possible value or desirability), a high index value indicates that the same species occur in the compared habitats. In this study, where an index that takes into account the abundance of species was used, a high similarity index value also indicates that the numbers of individuals are similar. Overall, the results showed high similarity between habitat types. This would suggest that, to a large extent, power lines, forest and pasture land had the same composition of taxa, and that the taxa had similar abundances. Power lines and forest seemed to exhibit particularly high similarities, whereas the similarity between power lines and pasture land was less pronounced. Thus, this study indicates, in contrast to several previous suggestions, that power line corridors do not seem to be low quality habitats. We also suggest that power line corridors with well designed management routines could play an important role creating edges and habitats resembling meadow or low intensity grazed pasture land.

En este trabajo de Tesis Doctoral se presenta una contribución al estudio de las modificaciones sufridas en los patrones de radiación ultrasónicos mediante el uso de elementos mecánicos acoplados al sensor, de tipo bocinas, y de distintas características físicas y geométricas, con el fin de conseguir que el nuevo patrón de radiación sea más adecuado para una determinada aplicación, y teniendo en cuenta las condiciones ambientales en las que se desarrolla la misma. / This Doctoral Thesis presents a contribution in the study of the modifications suffer by the radiation patterns due to the use of mechanical elements with different dimensions and characteristics, in order to obtain a new radiation pattern more suitable for a given application, which is developed in a determinated environmental conditions and they must be taken into account.

The aim of this work was to study the effect of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) released by cattle of different breeds on the behavior of the horn fly (Haematobia irritans). This ectoparasite is of great economic importance because it causes damage to various livestock worldwide. The study began with the implementation of a breeding place for horn flies in the laboratory at the Federal University of Alagoas in order to perform advanced studies with this parasite, as well as to follow the development of the egg to adult. Three breedings methods were used in order to obtain the greater emergency index of H. irritans fly in laboratory. Afterwards, odors released by cattle breeds Gyr, Holstein, Brown Swiss, Nellore and Gyr (both sexes) were taken followed by the extraction of the material collected with the aid of bidestiled hexane and analysis by Gas Chromatography (GC), Gas Chromatography coupled to Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS) in all breeds; Eletroantenography Gas Chromatography (GC/EAG) performed with the chromatogram with the highest number of peaks and behavioral bioassays. The behavioral bioassays with the horn fly were performed with extracts from animal and synthetic standards identified in GC/EAD, using an olfactometer type Y. In addition, we investigated whether there are differences on VOCs released from the different genetic groups. With regard to the breeding place, in the first creation, horn flies after emergence were counted and the result was 18.61% of emergency. In the second creation, the percentage of emerged flies was 55.56% and in the third was 78.22%, considered, thus, the most appropriate method for rearing H. irritans in laboratory, when the development was within a cooling chamber. Analysis of the GC chromatograms of the Brown Swiss breed showed that the collection of VOCs in animals was efficient since most of the compounds was shown to be present in all samples. The qualitative GC analysis of all races had shown that there was not a large variation with respect to VOCs. The analysis of GC/MS confirmed the difference on compounds between the races, and nine of them were common in all races. Among them, camphene, 2-ethylhexanal, 2-heptenal, 1-octen-3-one, 1-octen-3-ol, octan-3-one, octanal, 2,2,8-trimethyldecane and 2-phenylethyl butyrate. All VOCs obtained in the analyses mentioned above were identified by their Kovats indices indexes (KI). The results of the extracts’ aeration bioassays have shown that insects are attracted by volatiles from both sexes of the European breeds and mixed Girolando. In the bioassays performed with synthetic standards, only butyl acetate showed significant responses at concentrations of 10-7, 10-6 and 10-5 mg/mL. VOCs obtained by GC/MS were similar between breeds and mixed European and otherwise distinct from the Indian races. / Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / O objetivo deste trabalho foi estudar o efeito dos Compostos Orgânicos Voláteis (COVs) liberados por bovinos de diferentes raças sobre o comportamento da mosca-dos-chifres (Haematobia irritans). Esse ectoparasita é de grande importância econômica, por causar diversos danos à pecuária mundial. O estudo teve início com a implantação de um criatório de moscasdos-chifres em laboratório, na Universidade Federal de Alagoas, visando à realização de estudos avançados com esse parasita, assim como acompanhar o desenvolvimento ovo-adulto. Três criações foram utilizadas para obtenção de um maior número de emergência da mosca H. irritans em laboratório. Posteriormente, foram realizadas coletas de odores exalados por bovinos das raças Girolando, Holandesa, Pardo-Suíça, Nelore e Gir (de ambos os sexos), seguindo-se extração, por hexano bidestilado, do material coletado e análises por Cromatografia Gasosa (CG); Cromatografia Gasosa acoplada à Espectrometria de Massas (CG/EM) em todas as raças estudadas; Cromatografia Gasosa acoplada a Eletroantenografia (CG/EAG) com o cromatograma que apresentou o maior número de picos e bioensaios comportamentais. Os bioensaios comportamentais com a mosca-dos-chifres foram realizados com os extratos oriundos dos animais e com padrões sintéticos identificados no CG/EAG usando olfatômetro tipo Y. Além disso, foi investigado se existe diferença dos COVs liberados entre os diferentes grupos genéticos. Com relação ao criatório de mosca-dos-chifres, após emergência, as moscas foram contadas e o resultado foi de 18,61 % de emergência, na primeira criação. Na segunda criação, a porcentagem de moscas emergidas foi de 55,56 % e na terceira criação a emergência foi de 78,22 %, sendo considerado, o método mais adequado para criação de H. irritans em laboratório, quando a criação foi desenvolvida dentro de uma câmara de refrigeração. A análise dos resultados de CG da raça Pardo-Suíça revelou que a coleta dos COVs em animais foi eficiente já que a maior parte dos compostos repetiu-se em todas as amostras analisadas. A análise em CG de todas as raças mostra que não houve uma grande variação qualitativa com relação aos COVs das amostras analisadas. A análise do CG/EM, confirmou a diferença dos compostos entre as raças, sendo que, nove foram comuns em todas as raças. Entre eles, canfeno, 2-etil-hexanal, 2-heptenal, 1-octen-3-ona, 1-octen-3-ol, octan-3-ona, octanal, 2,2,8-trimetildecano e butirato de 2-feniletila. Todos os COVs obtidos nas análises citadas acima foram identificados através do Índice de Kóvats (KI). Os resultados obtidos com os bioensaios dos extratos da aeração mostraram que os insetos foram atraídos pelos voláteis de ambos os sexos das raças europeias e da mestiça Girolando. Os bioensaios realizados com os padrões sintéticos mostraram que apenas o acetato de butila apresentou respostas significativas nas concentrações de 10-7,10-6 e 10-5 mg/mL. Os COVs obtidos por CG/EM foram similares entre as raças europeias e a mestiça e por outro lado distintos das raças indianas.

This Bachelor thesis has been written at the Blekinge Institute of Technology. This thesis concentrates on the wind power and their components, also the large wind farm is studied. The electrical power is generated by using the power in wind to drive a wind turbine to produce mechanical power. This mechanical power can be converted into electrical power by using electrical induction generators. There are two types of the wind turbines, the horizontal axis and vertical axis wind turbine, where the horizontal axis wind turbine is mostly used and was studied in this thesis. The rotor can be placed in two directions: an upwind rotor where the blade of turbine faces to the wind, so it operates more smoothly and transmit more power. The other type is a downwind rotor which orients itself with respect for the wind direction. Moreover, the tower shadow makes the blade to flex, consequently resulting in fatigue, noise, and reduces output of the power. The modern wind turbine has been built with an odd number of blades which is important for the stability of the turbine. The rotor with an odd number of blades can be considered to be similar to a disc when calculating the dynamic properties of the machine. The main idea of this thesis is to study the wind power in general and large wind parks specifically. The Horns Rev wind park was taken as an example of a wind park in Denmark and the Gotland wind park as an example of a wind park in Sweden too. Into account, the distance between wind turbine in the wind direction cannot be too small. If the wind turbines are located to close to each other, the wind will be more and more turbulent after it passes through each single wind turbine. This would lead to that wind turbines downstream in the wind park, and it might even have to shut down due to that mechanical loading gets to high during strong conditions. This is due to the fact that when wind passes through the rotor of the wind turbine it gets very turbulent and the wind speed is decreased. The minimum length of the rotor should be approximately 5-7 rotor diameters to avoid that issue. Gotland Energy AB (GEAB) considered, that high voltage direct current light would be the only realistic way to solve the technical problems for the high amount of wind power in-feed. One result is that The stability of voltage during transient events, has become much better by using the high voltage direct current light so that the output current stability from the asynchronous generators have been improved, which reduces the stresses on the AC grid and on the mechanical construction of the windmills. / In general the wind turbines with three blades accommodated a thicker root are used. It is obvious that, the less number of blades on the wind turbine, the cost of material and manufacturing will be lower. It is worthy to mentioned that, the modern wind turbine has been built with an odd number of blades. When the length of the blade increases the deflection of blade tip due to axial wind force also increase as well. So without consider the increase in length of blade may lead to dangerous situation of collision of tower and blade. Moreover, by increasing the number of blades cost of the system would increased as well. The limit of transfer for the AC transmission system depends on the distance from shore and is therefore physically limited by this. AC large wind parks that are placed at a long distance from the shore, which means AC long transmission line, and more drop voltage A solution to AC long transmission line, it could be to decrease the offshore frequency and use a low frequency AC networks. There is a suggestion by for instance (Schütte, Gustavsson and Ström 2011). The usages of a low frequency system are in electrified railway systems, where the frequency ranges from 16.67 Hz to 25 Hz. However, the network of a low frequency would allow a simpler design of the offshore WTs and The aerodynamic rotor of a large WT operates at maximum revolutions at 15-20 rpm. The lower frequency would then allow a smaller gear ratio for turbines with a gearbox, or decrease the poles number for WTs with direct driven generators. This would lead to lighter and cheaper turbines. One of the disadvantages by using a low frequency system is the size of transformer would be increased, and hence, the costs of transformer will increased too. The operator of the grid, Gotland Energy AB (GEAB) considered, that HVDC light would be the only realistic way to solve the technical problems for the high amount of wind power in-feed. The experiences have supported expected improvements in the characteristics for example: - Stability in the system arose. - Reactive demands, power flows, as well as voltage level in the harmonic and system were reduced. - Flicker problems were eliminated with the installation of HVDC light and transient phenomena disappeared. Moreover, Overall experiences of Gotland Energy AB (GEAB) are that the control of power flow from the converters makes the AC grid easier to observe than a conventional AC network and the power variations do not stress the AC grid as much as in normal network. Voltage quality has been better with the increased wind power production. A topic to study in the future is the consequences of blackouts in power supply with many wind power farm. / 004676396018

A recently emerging engineering design approach entails studying the brilliant design solutions found in nature with an aim to develop design strategies that mimic the remarkable efficiency found in biological systems. This novel engineering approach is referred to as bio-inspired design. In this context, the present study quantifies the structure-property relations in bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) horn keratin, qualitatively characterizes the effects of a tapered spiral geometry (the same form as in a ram’s horn) on pressure wave and impulse mitigation, describes the stress attenuation capabilities and features of a ram’s head, and compares the structures and mechanical properties of some energy absorbent natural materials. The results and ideas presented herein can be used in the development of lightweight, energy absorbent, bio-inspired material designs. Among the most notable conclusions garnered from this research include: Horn keratin behaves in an anisotropic manner similar to a long fiber composite. Moisture content dominates the material behavior of horn keratin more than anisotropy, age, and stress-state. This makes moisture content the most influential parameter on the mechanical behavior of horn keratin. Tapered geometries mitigate the impulse generated by a stress wave due to the convergent boundary and a continually decreasing cross sectional area such that greater uniaxial stresses and subsequent axial deformation arises. Furthermore, the tapered geometry introduces small shear stresses that further decrease the impulse. Spiral geometries attenuate the impulse generated by a stress wave by the introduction of shear stresses along the length of the spiral. These shear stresses introduce transverse displacements that function to lessen the impulse. When both a taper and spiral geometry are used in a design, their synergistic effects multiplicatively reduce the impulse Tough natural materials have a high porosity, which makes them light-weight, while increasing their compressive energy absorption ability. Biomaterials whose functions include protection and energy absorption feature a multiscale, hierarchical, composite structure. The constituent materials are arranged in such ways to achieve a synergistic effect, where the properties of the composite exceed the properties of its constituents. Biological materials are therefore not confined to the law of mixtures.