Aberrations affect image quality of the eye away from the line of sight as well as along it. High amounts of lower order aberrations are found in the peripheral visual field and higher order aberrations change away from the centre of the visual field. Peripheral resolution is poorer than that in central vision, but peripheral vision is important for movement and detection tasks (for example driving) which are adversely affected by poor peripheral image quality. Any physiological process or intervention that affects axial image quality will affect peripheral image quality as well. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of accommodation, myopia, age, and refractive interventions of orthokeratology, laser in situ keratomileusis and intraocular lens implantation on the peripheral aberrations of the eye. This is the first systematic investigation of peripheral aberrations in a variety of subject groups. Peripheral aberrations can be measured either by rotating a measuring instrument relative to the eye or rotating the eye relative to the instrument. I used the latter as it is much easier to do. To rule out effects of eye rotation on peripheral aberrations, I investigated the effects of eye rotation on axial and peripheral cycloplegic refraction using an open field autorefractor. For axial refraction, the subjects fixated at a target straight ahead, while their heads were rotated by ±30º with a compensatory eye rotation to view the target. For peripheral refraction, the subjects rotated their eyes to fixate on targets out to ±34° along the horizontal visual field, followed by measurements in which they rotated their heads such that the eyes stayed in the primary position relative to the head while fixating at the peripheral targets. Oblique viewing did not affect axial or peripheral refraction. Therefore it is not critical, within the range of viewing angles studied, if axial and peripheral refractions are measured with rotation of the eye relative to the instrument or rotation of the instrument relative to the eye. Peripheral aberrations were measured using a commercial Hartmann-Shack aberrometer. A number of hardware and software changes were made. The 1.4 mm range limiting aperture was replaced by a larger aperture (2.5 mm) to ensure all the light from peripheral parts of the pupil reached the instrument detector even when aberrations were high such as those occur in peripheral vision. The power of the super luminescent diode source was increased to improve detection of spots passing through the peripheral pupil. A beam splitter was placed between the subjects and the aberrometer, through which they viewed an array of targets on a wall or projected on a screen in a 6 row x 7 column matrix of points covering a visual field of 42 x 32. In peripheral vision, the pupil of the eye appears elliptical rather than circular; data were analysed off-line using custom software to determine peripheral aberrations. All analyses in the study were conducted for 5.0 mm pupils. Influence of accommodation on peripheral aberrations was investigated in young emmetropic subjects by presenting fixation targets at 25 cm and 3 m (4.0 D and 0.3 D accommodative demands, respectively). Increase in accommodation did not affect the patterns of any aberrations across the field, but there was overall negative shift in spherical aberration across the visual field of 0.10 ± 0.01m. Subsequent studies were conducted with the targets at a 1.2 m distance. Young emmetropes, young myopes and older emmetropes exhibited similar patterns of astigmatism and coma across the visual field. However, the rate of change of coma across the field was higher in young myopes than young emmetropes and was highest in older emmetropes amongst the three groups. Spherical aberration showed an overall decrease in myopes and increase in older emmetropes across the field, as compared to young emmetropes. Orthokeratology, spherical IOL implantation and LASIK altered peripheral higher order aberrations considerably, especially spherical aberration. Spherical IOL implantation resulted in an overall increase in spherical aberration across the field. Orthokeratology and LASIK reversed the direction of change in coma across the field. Orthokeratology corrected peripheral relative hypermetropia through correcting myopia in the central visual field. Theoretical ray tracing demonstrated that changes in aberrations due to orthokeratology and LASIK can be explained by the induced changes in radius of curvature and asphericity of the cornea. This investigation has shown that peripheral aberrations can be measured with reasonable accuracy with eye rotation relative to the instrument. Peripheral aberrations are affected by accommodation, myopia, age, orthokeratology, spherical intraocular lens implantation and laser in situ keratomileusis. These factors affect the magnitudes and patterns of most aberrations considerably (especially coma and spherical aberration) across the studied visual field. The changes in aberrations across the field may influence peripheral detection and motion perception. However, further research is required to investigate how the changes in aberrations influence peripheral detection and motion perception and consequently peripheral vision task performance.

Zugl.: Berlin, Humboldt-Univ., Diss.

Zugl.: Passau, Univ., Diss., 2009

This dissertation explores Early Modern cosmographical imagining and historical writing in the Andean region of the Americas. Following the European invasion of the Americas in the sixteenth century, prominent Western cosmographical and historical treatises like Sacro Bosco's de Sphera Mundi and the Nuremberg Liber Chronicarum became outdated regional works that lacked any information about American landmasses and indigenous people. The voids shown by these previously authoritative sources create a need for new ideas.In this dissertation, analyzing written and visual sources, I investigate how Indigenous, mestizo, and European scholars in the Early Modern Andes from the 1550s to the 1650s reinvented cosmographical and antiquarian practices to envision the world as an integrated entity in time and space. They combined non-written pre-Columbian structures, ruins, fossils, monoliths, megaliths, mythical landscapes, and indigenous narratives with ancient Biblical and Classical knowledge. By doing so, they established a new archive that became the foundation for further antiquarian and cosmographical knowledge, and revealing the that the so-called New World was full of history. I examine how innovative imaginings of historical time and cosmographical spaces were created in the Early Modern Andes. Authors demonstrated how the world was one since the very beginning of time by tracing connected world landscapes (worldscapes) to explain the geographical unity of the different continents and entangled chronological architectures (chronotectures) that linked the ancient ages of various societies, including places and people previously unthought of as part of the same world history.

No description available.

Les préoccupations actuelles concernant l'exploitation sécuritaire des centrales nucléaires existantes et la conception d’architectures spéciales envisagées pour la quatrième génération de réacteurs nucléaires se combinent avec l’intérêt plus prononcé pour l'efficacité et la fiabilité de l'équipement d'un système énergétique. Cela fait que dans un souci de meilleure compréhension et optimisation basée sur des moyens modernes de conception assistée par l’ordinateur, l'étude de différentes parties de ces systèmes fait de plus en plus l’objet de recherches approfondies. . Parmi les types proposés pour la quatrième génération de réacteurs nucléaires font partie ceux ayant comme agent de refroidissement les sels fondus, respectivement le sodium fondu. En raison de leurs propriétés physiques, les sels fondus et le sodium liquide ont le potentiel d'être déplacés par les pompes électromagnétiques. Cet ouvrage est à la fois une étude approfondie des phénomènes qui se produisent en raison de l'écoulement du fluide dans le champ électromagnétique d’une pompe électromagnétique - interaction magnétohydrodynamique - et un rapport sur les capacités et les avantages des outils informatiques modernes pour faciliter la conception et l'optimisation des pompes électromagnétiques. Afin d’atteindre l'objectif principal de la thèse, notamment une meilleure compréhension des phénomènes interdépendants spécifique à l’opération des pompes électromagnétiques, deux objectifs secondaires ont été considérés. Le premier objectif concerne la pleine exploitation des modèles électromagnétiques numériques en éléments finis afin d'obtenir autant d'informations que possible sur le comportement des pompes électromagnétiques, dans l’hypothèse où on ne tient pas compte de l'écoulement des fluides. Le deuxième objectif était la construction des modèles numériques qui réunissent l’électromagnétisme et la dynamique des fluides, respectivement des modèles numériques qui regroupent les deux phénomènes caractérisant l’écoulement magnétohydrodynamique dans les canaux des pompes électromagnétiques. Dans l'étude dédiée au pompage électromagnétique de sels fondus, la thèse met en évidence des problèmes spécifiques liés à la génération de forces électromagnétiques dans les fluides faibles conducteurs d'électricité et fournit des résultats sur les applications où le pompage électromagnétique de sels fondus peut être efficace. À l’aide des modèles électromagnétiques nous avons obtenu des informations importantes sur l'influence du nombre de pôles électromagnétiques et de la fréquence d’alimentation sur la caractéristique Pression - Vitesse des pompes annulaires à induction. Ils ont été analysés le phénomène de blindage créé par les parois métalliques - avec des répercussions négatives sur les performances de la pompe, les effets de freinage exercés à l'entrée et à la sortie du canal de la pompe et la relation entre la capacité de surcharge hydrodynamique et la caractéristique Pression - Vitesse des pompes à induction. Une section spéciale a été consacrée à l'analyse de la dépendance de la force électromagnétique du temps et de l’espace et à l’étude de non-uniformitées des quantités de nature électromagnétique en direction azimutale dans les pompes annulaires à induction.Dans le chapitre qui traite de l'interaction magnétohydrodynamique à base de modèles couplés, ils sont proposés deux modèles qui couplent l'électromagnétisme et l’écoulement. Ils sont présentés les avantages des modèles couplés, en matière de la précision des résultats, par rapport aux modèles électromagnétiques. Il est également présenté l'évolution des profils de vitesse, de densité de force et de courant sous l'influence du champ électromagnétique et de l’écoulement de sodium à vitesses différentes. Les contributions de la thèse sont complétées par des observations importantes sur les méthodes de travail et les logiciels utilisés tout au long de l'étude. / The actual concerns with respect to safe operation of existing nuclear plants and to designing special architectures envisaged for the fourth generation of nuclear reactors, corroborated with the increasing interest for efficiency and reliability of any equipment belonging to an energetic system, make that more and more research endeavors to be devoted to the study of various parts of these systems for a better understanding and optimization based on modern techniques of computer aided design. Among the types proposed for the fourth generation of nuclear reactors belong those that have as cooling agent molten salts, respectively liquid sodium. Many reactors of previous generations use mechanical pumps of special design for driving the coolants. Molten salts and liquid sodium, thanks to their physical properties, have the potential to be driven using electromagnetic pumps. Although the technology of electromagnetic pumping of electroconductive fluids was developed since the first half of the last century, currently it undergoes a revival due to the reconsideration of its multiple technological and security advantages. This work is both an intimate study of the phenomena that occur as a result of the electroconductive fluids flow in the electromagnetic field of an electromagnetic pump – magnetohydrodynamic interaction - and a report on the capabilities and advantages of modern computational tools to facilitate design and optimization of electromagnetic pumps.To achieve the principal goal of deeper understanding of the interdependent phenomena specific to electromagnetic pumps operation, two auxiliary objectives were considered. The first is related to the full exploitation of electromagnetic finite element models in order to retrieve as much information as possible about electromagnetic pumps behavior in a simplifying hypothesis that does not take into account the fluid dynamics. The second auxiliary objective is to build numerical models that couple the electromagnetism and the fluid dynamics, namely the two interdependent physics that govern the magnetohydrodynamic flow through channels of electromagnetic pumps.In the section dealing with the study of electromagnetic pumping of molten salts, the thesis highlights specific problems related the generation of electromagnetic forces in fluids with low electrical conductivity and provides results with respect to applications where electromagnetic pumping of molten salts can be effective. With the electromagnetic numerical models were obtained important data about the influence of the number of electromagnetic poles and supply frequency on the Pressure – Velocity characteristic of annular linear induction pumps. Were analyzed the shielding effect generated by the metallic walls - with negative repercussions on pumps performances, braking effects exerted at pump inlet and pump outlet and the connection between the overload capacity and Pressure – Velocity characteristic of induction pumps. A special portion was devoted to the analysis of the time and space dependence of the electromagnetic force and to the study of the non-uniformities of electromagnetic quantities in azimuth direction of annular linear induction pumps.In the chapter devoted to the magnetohydrodynamic interaction through coupled models, the thesis proposes two models that couple the electromagnetism and the fluid flow, one realized using multiphysic software and the second by coupling two different softwares. There are presented the advantages of the coupled models with respect to the results accuracy in comparison with electromagnetic models. It is presented the evolution of velocity, force and current densities profiles under the influence of the electromagnetic field and of different sodium mean velocities.The contributions of the thesis are completed with significant observations related to the study methods and software tools used along the study process. / Preocupările actuale în legătură cu exploatarea în siguranță a centralelor nucleare existente și în legătură cu proiectarea arhitecturilor speciale de reactoare nucleare pentru generația a patra,coroborate cu interesul tot mai pronunțat pentru eficiența și fiabilitatea oricărui echipament dintr-un sistem energetic, fac ca tot mai multe demersuri de cercetare să se îndrepte spre studiul diverselor subansamble ale acestor sisteme pentru o mai buna înțelegere și optimizare pe baza mijloacelor moderne de proiectare asistată de calculator. Din rândul tipurilor propuse pentru generația a patra de reactoare nucleare fac parte și cele care au ca agent de răcire săruri topite, respectiv sodiu topit. Multe reactoare nucleare de generație anterioară folosesc ca mijloc de antrenare a fluidelor de răcire pompe mecanice de construcție specială. Sărurile topite ăi sodiul lichid, datorită proprietăților fizice,au potențialul de a fi recirculate cu ajutorul pompelor electromagnetice. Deși tehnologia pompării electromagnetice a fluidelor electroconductoare a fost dezvoltată încă din prima parte a secolului trecut, în prezent cunoaște o renaștere datorită reconsiderării multiplelor avantaje tehnologice și de securitate în exploatare. Lucrarea de față este atât un studiu al fenomenelor intime ce au loc ca urmare a curgerii fluidelor electroconductoare în câmpul electromagnetic al pompelor electromagnetice – interacțiune magnetohidrodinamică - cât și un raport despre capabilitățile și avantajele uneltelor moderne de calcul de a înlesni proiectarea și optimizarea pompelor electromagnetice. Pentru a atinge scopul principal al tezei, și anume o înțelegere mai adâncă a fenomenelor interdependente specifice funcționării pompelor electromagnetice, au fost considerate două obiective secundare. Primul obiectiv se referă la exploatarea la maximum a modelelor electromagnetice numerice în element finit cu scopul de a obține cât mai multe informații cu putință despre comportamentul pompelor electromagnetice în ipoteza care nu ia în considerare curgerea fluidelor. Al doilea obiectiv a fost construirea unor modele numerice care cuplează electromagnetismul și curgerea, respectiv, cuplează modelele numerice ale celor două fenomene ce caracterizează curgerea magnetohidrodinamică din canalele pompelor electromagnetice. În partea dedicată studiului pompării electromagnetice a sărurilor topite, teza evidențiază problemele specifice legate de generarea forțelor electromagnetice în fluide slab conductoare electric și oferă rezultate cu privire la aplicațiile unde pomparea electromagnetică a sărurilor topite poate fi eficientă. Cu ajutorul modelelor electromagnetice s-au obținut date importante despre influența numărului de poli electromagnetici și frecvența de alimentare asupra caracteristicii Presiune – Viteză a pompelor electromagnetice inelare de inducție. Au fost analizate fenomenul de ecranare creat de peretii metalici – cu repercursiuni negative asupra performanțelor pompelor, efectele de frânare exercitate la intrarea și la ieșirea din canalul de pompare și legătura dintre capacitatea de suprasarcină hidrodinamică și caracteristica Presiune – Viteză a pompelor de inducție. O secțiune specială a fost consacrată analizei dependenței de timp și a variației de la punct la punct a forței electromagnetice, precum și studiului neuniformităților mărimilor de natură electromagnetic în direcție azimutală în pompele inelare de inducție. În capitolul despre interacțiunea magnetohidrodinamică pe baza modelelor cuplate, se propun două modele ce cuplează electromagnetismul și curgerea fluidelor, unul realizat cu ajutorul unui singur software și al doilea realizat prin cuplarea a două software-uri diferite. Sunt prezentate avantajele modelelor cuplate din punctul de vedere al acurateței rezultatelor în comparație cu modelele electromagnetice …

La performance d'un système d'optique adaptative (AO) est intrinsèquement liée à sa capacité à mesurer les déformations subies par le front d'onde incident lors de sa traversée de l'atmosphère. Or un certain nombre de limitations restreignent l'efficacité de cette analyse de front d'onde. Les plus importantes sont le bruit de mesure et l'anisoplanétisme. Le premier limite la magnitude des objets astronomiques pouvant servir de guides aux systèmes d'AO, tandis que le second restreint leur champ corrigé à quelques dizaines de secondes d'arc, du fait de la distribution volumique de la turbulence atmosphérique. A elles deux, ces limitations réduisent à quelques pourcents la couverture de ciel des instruments assistés par AO. Pour cette raison, les nouvelles générations d'optiques adaptatives ont pour objectif soit la très haute performance, impliquant entre autres une bonne robustesse au bruit de mesure, soit l'élargissement du champ corrigé, impliquant la connaissance de la répartition 3D de la turbulence atmosphérique. Pour ces systèmes d'AO à large champ, il est indispensable d'utiliser plusieurs directions d'analyse. La problématique de l'analyse de front d'onde s'articule alors autour de trois pôles : les étoiles guides dont on dispose pour effectuer la multi-analyse, le concept d'analyse de front d'onde considéré pour mesurer le volume de turbulence et la capacité des senseurs de front d'onde à fournir des mesures de qualité. L'objectif de cette thèse est d'étudier chacun de ces trois aspects. Ainsi, une redéfinition de la notion de couverture de ciel est proposée pour les AO à large champ, permettant de prendre en compte le nombre d'étoiles guides et leur magnitude, mais également la fraction du champ scientifique qu'elles permettent de couvrir, le concept d'analyse de front d'onde considéré et l'objectif de performance de l'instrument. Par ailleurs une étude comparative des concepts d'analyse de front d'onde Star Oriented et Layer Oriented est présentée, sur laquelle on s'appuie pour proposer une optimisation de chaque concept. On montre ainsi qu'une fois optimisés ils présentent tous deux des performances très proches. Enfin, on propose dans un troisième temps une étude comparative de plusieurs estimateurs de pente pour l'analyseur Shack-Hartmann. On étudie en particulier l'estimateur centre de gravité pondéré, qui offre à la fois une bonne robustesse au bruit et de bonnes propriétés de linéarité. Cette dernière étude est utile aussi bien pour l'AO à large champ que pour l'AO à très haute performance.

Zugl.: Santiago, Univ., Diss., 2005

No description available.

Mit Thomas Manns Mittelalterroman Der Erwählte , erschienen 1951, liegt ein literarisches Werk vor, in dem ein Stück der älteren deutschen Dichtung, nämlich Hartmann von Aues mittelhochdeutscher Gregorius , in der Gegenwartsliteratur seine schöpferische Weiterbildung erfahren hat. Um seine Mittelalterfiktion möglichst vielschichtig zu gestalten, griff Thomas Mann neben der stofflichen Rezeption der mittelalterlichen Gregorius -Legende auch sprachlich in der Zeit zurück. Der an sich neuhochdeutsch zu lesende, überwiegend in Prosa abgefasste Text ist mit einer Vielzahl fremder Wörter, Sätze und Dialoge durchsetzt, die älteren und jüngeren europäischen Sprach(ständ)en entnommen sind. Im Mittelpunkt vorliegender Arbeit steht die Rekonstruktion der Mann schen Sprach-, Zitat- und Wortbildungsarbeit anhand der Originalnotizen, -materialien und der im Thomas Mann-Archiv / Zürich aufgestellten Handbibliothek des Dichters. Entstanden ist ein umfangreicher Stellenkommentar mit Sachinformationen, Worterklärungen, Übersetzungen, Quellennachweisen bis hin zu Lesebemerkungen Thomas Manns ein Instrument, das unabhängig vom Rest der Arbeit als Lese- und Interpretationshilfe genutzt werden kann. Im Rahmen dieser Arbeit ist besagter Stellenkommentar die unerlässliche Voraussetzung zur Beantwortung der Leitfrage nach der poetischen Funktion von Sprache, Zitat und Wortbildung im Rahmen der mittelalterlichen Gesamtfiktion.