Wednesday, September 10, 2014

Java programming language

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Java programming language  
  • Java SE 8.0 - released Mar 2014
  • Just In Time compiler
    • only compiles a section of code when it is needed
    • does not recompile something if already in memory
    • has a warm up cycle so the first time of a compute is a little slower
  • speed
    • 25 times faster than scripting languages like Python, Ruby, Perl, R
    • within 20% of the speed of C, or C++
  • variables have to be declared first
  • Open source - but is controlled by Oracle Corp.
  • easy to distribute
  • runs on all kinds of platforms
  • tons of librarys to ease the coding burden
  • do not have to manage memory (garbage collection)
  • no pointers to complicate issues
  • comparable to C# which is the Microsoft equivalent to Java
  • Java on Wikipedia
  • Java Homepage

Netbeans Integrated Development Environment


  • NetBeans 8.0 IDE - released Mar 2014
  • eases the effort of program development
    • identifies unused variables
    • auto-completion of code
    • set debugging check points
    • output console to read output variables
    • facilitates projects that involve many source files all relating to the samp project
    • automatic compilation of executable .jar files
    • NetBeans on Wikipedia
    • NetBeans Homepage

      Tuesday, September 9, 2014

      air flow in steamlines

      .

      air flowing around objects in streamlines




      streamlined flow is also called laminar flow
      • laminar flow links
      • occurs when a fluid flows in parallel layers, with no disruption between the layers
      • the fluid (air in this case) is comprised of an immense numbers of molecules
      • the molecules are jittering back and forth colliding with themselves at 1100 miles per hour in very short distances (.000001 inches)
      • air velocity (or apparent wind in the case of an iceboat) is less than 10 percent of the molecular speed
      • you must consider the whole streaming flow in a realistic mathematical model of the corresponding lift and drag elements
      • examine the differences between the streamlines in the top diagram where the resistance goes from 100% down to 5%
        • the greater the resistance, the greater the spoiled streamlines at the rear of the wing
        • the roiled air is caused by flow separation of the streamline
        • flow separation happens when the flow streamline exceeds a large curvature within a short distance
      • the more you can reduce of eliminate the eddies (i.e. roiled or turbulent air flow), the better will be the performance

      Sunday, September 7, 2014

      laws of motion


      Issac Newton discovered the three laws of motion


      • 1st law of motion
        • if the net force (the vector sum of all forces acting on an object) is zero, then the velocity of the object is constant
          • thought experiment A
            • a stationary iceboat is resting on the ice angled at 70 degrees away from true north
            • there is no wind
            • in this situation there are no forces acting on the boat, thus the boat will remain at rest with a constant velocity of zero
          • thought experiment B
            • an iceboat is sailing angled at 70 degrees away from true north
            • wind is blowing at 12 mph from the true north
            • skipper has sheeted to a certain tension on the boom and placed the sheet line in the jam cleat
            • eventually on the 70 degree course the iceboat reaches steady state and is neither speeding up or slowing down
            • the boat is not hiking or side slipping on its runners
          • both experiments A and B are examples of the 1st law of motion
      • 2nd law of motion
        • force = mass * acceleration
      • 3rd law of motion

      Friday, September 5, 2014

      air properties


      physical properties of air


      air molecules

      • nitrogen (N2) - 78.1%
      • oxygen (O2)- 20.9%
      • argon (Ar)- .9%
      • carbon dioxide (CO2)- trace
      • water vapor (H2O) - approx 1%

      air pressure
      • force exerted on an object  at a certain elevation by its surrounding air molecules
      • air molecules at a certain level are compressed by the weight of the air molecules above itself
      • air molecules travel at an average speed of 1160 miles per hour
      • this speed directly correlates with the speed of sound
      • 1 cubic foot of air at sea level contains 7.6 x 10**23 molecules


      air pressure by altitude
      • sea level - 14.7 psi
      • 5,000 feet - 12.2 psi
      • 10,000 feet - 10.1 psi
      • 18,000 feet - 7.3 psi
      • Mount Everest - 
      • 50,000 feet - 1.6 psi

      mean free path
      • defined as the average distance any air molecule travels before colliding with another molecule
      • mean free path at sea level = .3 /(10**6) feet
      • this very short distance bounds how air molecules might react with moving objects

      wind
      • movement of air from a high pressure region to a low pressure region
      • at a microscopic level the air molecules are still jittering about as they collide with each other
      • differing pressure regions are primarily caused on earth by:
        • differential heating between the equator and the poles
          • causes air to move from the equator to the pole
        • Coriolis effect of the earth rotating on its axis
          • causes air to move from west to east
        • in northern hemisphere at the 45th parallel, the combination of the above two effects leads to wind on average to blow from the southwest
      • local effects
        • heating and cooling at shorelines of oceans and lakes
        • mountain valleys and large hills
      temperature
      • an increase in air temperature causes an increase in the average air molecule speed
      • as the molecular speed increases, the volume expands in the direction of decreasing pressure which is upwards
      • the expansion causes a corresponding wind vector towards the low pressure area

      Tuesday, September 2, 2014

      Why so fast? detail

      Aerodynamiclow runner friction; minimum drag wing 



      • low runner friction
        • long runner blade
        • extremely smooth and straight runner tip
        • minimum amount of rocker to only enable essential steering
        • runner tip sharpened to match ice and wind conditions
        • must less drag of the iceboat runner over the ice than a typical sailboat would have in sailing in and over the water

      • minimum drag wing
        • sail (ie. wing) is designed to provide maximum driving coefficient: which means the lowest drag possible for the apparent wind angle of the wing
        • low drag is achieved by:
          • small coef. of wing drag
            • camber of sail only matches typical apparent wind angle and no more - much flatter sail than a sailboat
            • rotating mast to align with apparent wind
            • jib or genoa is not used as would cause added drag
          • small induced drag of wing
            • tall rig with short boom
            • boom is very close to deck of fuselage
      • aerodynamic
        • components are streamlined with minimal frontal area
          • slender runner plank
          • tear shaped mast
          • body suits (some classes)
          • oval fully enclosed fuselage (some classes)
      • discussion
        • all of the above combine to produce a boat that travels at 4 to 5 times the speed of the wind
        • such speed multiples means the iceboat operates at apparent wind angles of less than 11 degrees (class dependent)

      Monday, September 1, 2014

      Runner comparison by type



      activities with runners or other materials sliding on ice/snow
      • iceboat
        • 85 degree to 105 degree face
        • tip stoned to sharp point
        • usually hardened to 47 to 57 Rockwell
        • very low rocker or crown
      • skates
        • hockey skate
        • goalie skate
          • squared off bottom
        • squared off bottom
          • sharp stones edges
        • speed skating
        • figure skating
          • hollow ground
          • large rocker
          • very sharp
      • ice track on closed course downhill 
      • downhill ski
      • cross country ski
      • dog sled
      • radio flier sled
      • horse drawn sleigh
      • curling stone