The adaptive value of size changes in different organ and muscle groups was studied in red knots (Calidris canutus islandica) in relation to their migration. Birds were sampled on five occasions: at arrival in Iceland in May 1994, two times during subsequent refueling, at departure toward, and on return from, the high arctic breeding grounds. During their 24-d stopover in May, body mass increas...

Flightless animals have evolved diverse mechanisms to control their movements in air, whether falling with gravity or propelling against it. Many insects jump as a primary mode of locomotion and must therefore precisely control the large torques generated during takeoff. For example, to minimize spin (angular momentum of the body) at takeoff, plant-sucking bugs apply large equal and opposite to...

This study used a subject-specific model with eight segments driven by joint torques for forward dynamics simulation to investigate the effects of initial conditions and takeoff technique on the performance of running jumps for height and distance. The torque activation profiles were varied in order to obtain matching simulations for two jumping performances (one for height and one for distance...

Epidemiological studies of injuries at ski resorts have found that terrain parks, and jumps especially, pose a significantly greater head/neck injury risk to resort patrons than normal skiing activities [1–4]. One especially hazardous situation is when the jumper lands in an inverted position which can lead to catastrophic injury or death from spinal cord trauma. While jumpers can execute inver...

The ability of birds to perform effective jumps may play an important role in predator avoidance and flight initiation. Jumping can provide the vertical acceleration necessary for a rapid takeoff, which may be particularly important for ground-dwelling birds such as phasianids. We hypothesized that by making use of elastic energy storage and release, the leg muscles could provide the large powe...

A procedure for estimating fuel burned based on actual flight track data, and drag and fuel-flow models is described. The procedure consists of estimating aircraft and wind states, lift, drag and thrust. Fuel-flow for jet aircraft is determined in terms of thrust, true airspeed and altitude as prescribed by the Base of Aircraft Data fuel-flow model. This paper provides a theoretical foundation ...

Numerical simulations were generated to investigate the response of a floating airport airplane movement using nonlinear shallow water equations velocity potential for waves interacting with thin plate. First, in 1D calculations, airplanes B747 and B737. At touch-and-go, when speed is closer wave speed, even B737 produced large based on resonance. The impacts due both touchdown leaving other fo...