Modelling the Flying Bird

Modelling the Flying Bird PDF Author: C.J. Pennycuick
Publisher: Elsevier
ISBN: 9780080557816
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 496

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Book Description
This book outlines the principles of flight, of birds in particular. It describes a way of simplifying the mechanics of flight into a practical computer program, which will predict in some detail what any bird, real or hypothetical, can and cannot do. The Flight program, presented on the companion website, generates performance curves for flapping and gliding flight, and simulations of long-distance migration and accounts successfully for the consumption of muscles and other tissues during migratory flights. The program is effectively a working model of a flying bird (or bat or pterosaur) and is the skeleton around which the book is built. The book provides a wider background and then explains how Flight works and shows how to set up and test hypotheses generated by the program. The book and the program are based on adapting the conventional (and well-tested) thinking of aeronautical engineers to the biological problems of bird flight. Their primary aim is to convince biologists that this is the appropriate way to handle problems that involve flight, to make the engineering background accessible to biologists, and to provide a tool kit in the shape of the Flight program, which they can use to solve practical problems involving bird flight and migration. In addition, the book will be readily accessible to engineers who want to know how birds work, and should be of interest to the ever-growing community working on flapping "micro air vehicles" (MAVs). The program can be used to predict the flight performance and capabilities of reconstructed fossil birds and pterosaurs, flying in ancient atmospheres that differ from present conditions, and also, of course, to predict and account for the results of experiments and observations on living birds and bats. * An up to date work by the world's leading expert on bird flight * Examines the biology and biomechanics of bird flight with added reference to the flight of bats and pterosaurs. * Uses proven aeronautical principles to help solve biological issues in understanding and predicting the flight capabilities of birds and other vertebrates. * Provides insights into the evolution of flight and the likely capabilities of extinct birds and reptiles. * Gives a detailed explanation of the science behind, and use of, the author's predictive bird flight simulation program - Flight - which is available on a companion website. * Presents often difficult concepts in easily understood language.

Modelling the Flying Bird

Modelling the Flying Bird PDF Author: C.J. Pennycuick
Publisher: Elsevier
ISBN: 9780080557816
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 496

Get Book

Book Description
This book outlines the principles of flight, of birds in particular. It describes a way of simplifying the mechanics of flight into a practical computer program, which will predict in some detail what any bird, real or hypothetical, can and cannot do. The Flight program, presented on the companion website, generates performance curves for flapping and gliding flight, and simulations of long-distance migration and accounts successfully for the consumption of muscles and other tissues during migratory flights. The program is effectively a working model of a flying bird (or bat or pterosaur) and is the skeleton around which the book is built. The book provides a wider background and then explains how Flight works and shows how to set up and test hypotheses generated by the program. The book and the program are based on adapting the conventional (and well-tested) thinking of aeronautical engineers to the biological problems of bird flight. Their primary aim is to convince biologists that this is the appropriate way to handle problems that involve flight, to make the engineering background accessible to biologists, and to provide a tool kit in the shape of the Flight program, which they can use to solve practical problems involving bird flight and migration. In addition, the book will be readily accessible to engineers who want to know how birds work, and should be of interest to the ever-growing community working on flapping "micro air vehicles" (MAVs). The program can be used to predict the flight performance and capabilities of reconstructed fossil birds and pterosaurs, flying in ancient atmospheres that differ from present conditions, and also, of course, to predict and account for the results of experiments and observations on living birds and bats. * An up to date work by the world's leading expert on bird flight * Examines the biology and biomechanics of bird flight with added reference to the flight of bats and pterosaurs. * Uses proven aeronautical principles to help solve biological issues in understanding and predicting the flight capabilities of birds and other vertebrates. * Provides insights into the evolution of flight and the likely capabilities of extinct birds and reptiles. * Gives a detailed explanation of the science behind, and use of, the author's predictive bird flight simulation program - Flight - which is available on a companion website. * Presents often difficult concepts in easily understood language.

Fantastic Press-Out Flying Birds

Fantastic Press-Out Flying Birds PDF Author: Richard Merrill
Publisher: Courier Dover Publications
ISBN: 0486808440
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 52

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Book Description
Twenty-four realistic, full-color paper bird models couldn't be easier to make, and they really fly! Simply press along perforations, fold, and add a penny for weight. Includes Eastern Meadowlark, Baltimore Oriole, Western Tanager, many others.

Birds in Flight

Birds in Flight PDF Author: Carrol L. Henderson
Publisher: Voyageur Press
ISBN: 9780760333921
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 168

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Book Description
Describes adaptations for avian aerodynamics, and offers tips on spotting and identifying airborne birds.

The Simple Science of Flight, revised and expanded edition

The Simple Science of Flight, revised and expanded edition PDF Author: Henk Tennekes
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262513137
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 217

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Book Description
An investigation into how machines and living creatures fly, and of the similarities between butterflies and Boeings, paper airplanes and plovers. From the smallest gnat to the largest aircraft, all things that fly obey the same aerodynamic principles. In The Simple Science of Flight, Henk Tennekes investigates just how machines and creatures fly: what size wings they need, how much energy is required for their journeys, how they cross deserts and oceans, how they take off, climb, and soar. Fascinated by the similarities between nature and technology, Tennekes offers an introduction to flight that teaches by association. Swans and Boeings differ in numerous ways, but they follow the same aerodynamic principles. Biological evolution and its technical counterpart exhibit exciting parallels. What makes some airplanes successful and others misfits? Why does the Boeing 747 endure but the Concorde now seem a fluke? Tennekes explains the science of flight through comparisons, examples, equations, and anecdotes. The new edition of this popular book has been thoroughly revised and much expanded. Highlights of the new material include a description of the incredible performance of bar-tailed godwits (7,000 miles nonstop from Alaska to New Zealand), an analysis of the convergence of modern jetliners (from both Boeing and Airbus), a discussion of the metabolization of energy featuring Lance Armstrong, a novel treatment of the aerodynamics of drag and trailing vortices, and an emphasis throughout on evolution, in nature and in engineering. Tennekes draws on new evidence on bird migration, new wind-tunnel studies, and data on new airliners. And his analysis of the relative efficiency of planes, trains, and automobiles is newly relevant. (On a cost-per-seat scale, a 747 is more efficient than a passenger car.)

Lecturing Birds on Flying

Lecturing Birds on Flying PDF Author: Pablo Triana
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 0470406755
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 405

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Book Description
LECTURING BIRDS ON FLYING For the past few decades, the financial world has often displayed an unreasonable willingness to believe that "the model is right, the market is wrong," in spite of the fact that these theoretical machinations were largely responsible for the stock market crash of 1987, the LTCM crisis of 1998, the credit crisis of 2008, and many other blow-ups, large and small. Why have both financial insiders (traders, risk managers, executives) and outsiders (academics, journalists, regulators, the public) consistently demonstrated a willingness to treat quantifications as gospel? Nassim Taleb first addressed the conflicts between theoretical and real finance in his technical treatise on options, Dynamic Hedging. Now, in Lecturing Birds on Flying, Pablo Triana offers a powerful indictment on the trustworthiness of financial theory, explaining—in jargon-free plain English—how malfunctions in these quantitative machines have wreaked havoc in our real world. Triana first analyzes the fundamental question of whether financial markets can in principle really be solved mathematically. He shows that the markets indeed cannot be tamed with equations, presenting a long and powerful list of obstacles to prove his point: maverick unlawful human actions rule the markets, unexpected and unimaginable events shape the markets, and historical data is not necessarily a trustworthy guide to the future of the markets. The author then examines the sources of origin of many prevalent theories and mathematical dictums. He details how the field of financial economics evolved from a descriptive discipline to an abstract one dedicated to technically concocting professors' own versions of how such a world should work. He goes on to explain how Wall Street and other financial centers became eager employers of scientists, and how scientists became eager employees of financial firms. Triana concludes with an in-depth discussion of the most significant historical episodes of theory-caused real-life market malaise, with a strong emphasis on the current credit crisis. In the end, Lecturing Birds on Flying calls for the radical substitution of good old-fashioned common sense in place of mathematical decision-making and the restoration to financial power of those who are completely unchained to the iron ball of classroom-obtained qualifications.

Modelling the Bird Flight (Scientific Report 2007-2010)

Modelling the Bird Flight (Scientific Report 2007-2010) PDF Author: Herbert Oertel
Publisher: KIT Scientific Publishing
ISBN: 3866447612
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 54

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Book Description
The aerodynamics of flying birds and insects plays a crucial role in the domain of aeronautical engineering. The energy-efficient construction of winglets for airplanes, the formation flight of tactical aircraft or the drone engineering or military applications are inspired by birds. This holds also for flow and structure simulation of flapping wing motion, taking the unsteady aerodynamics and corresponding wing deformations into account at high flow velocities and flapping frequencies.

Birdflight as the Basis of Aviation

Birdflight as the Basis of Aviation PDF Author: Otto Lilienthal
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Aerodynamics
Languages : en
Pages : 202

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Book Description


Paper Birds that Fly

Paper Birds that Fly PDF Author: Norman Schmidt
Publisher: Sterling
ISBN: 9781895569117
Category : Birds
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Describes the use of the different parts of a bird's wings and tail and the maneuverability of its feathers. Includes patterns and instructions for fifteen paper birds.

Information Modelling and Knowledge Bases X

Information Modelling and Knowledge Bases X PDF Author: Hannu Jaakkola
Publisher: IOS Press
ISBN: 9789051994537
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 366

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Book Description
LISTENING TO MUSIC is designed to help develop and refine the listening skills of your students and inspire a lifelong appreciation of music. Author and award-winning scholar-teacher Craig Wright, who has taught Music Appreciation courses for more than 35 years, is consistently praised by reviewers and other professors for his unparalleled accuracy and his clear, direct, conversational style. Throughout the book, Wright connects with today's students by incorporating comparisons between pop and classical music and by using examples from popular artists to illustrate core concepts. This chronological text succinctly covers traditional Western music from medieval to modern, discussing examples from each historical period within their social contexts and the construction of each piece. Later chapters cover popular music, its impact on musical globalization, and comparisons between Western and non-Western music. LISTENING TO MUSIC is the only text that provides Craig Wright's own Listening Exercises, in the book and online, which help students focus on important musical elements and episodes. A free CD, packaged with each printed copy of the text, includes all of the musical examples for the Part 1 listening exercises. A full set of optional online student resources includes Active Listening Guides, streaming music, an interactive eBook, quizzing, and more--all to challenge your students. All of the music discussed in the text is also available on CD and on Sony Music download cards. Available with InfoTrac Student Collections http://gocengage.com/infotrac.

The Vertebrate Integument Volume 2

The Vertebrate Integument Volume 2 PDF Author: Theagarten Lingham-Soliar
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 366246005X
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 348

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Book Description
The emphasis in this volume is on the structure and functional design of the integument. The book starts with a brief introduction to some basic principles of physics (mechanics) including Newton’s Three Laws of Motion. These principles are subsequently used to interpret the problems animals encounter in motion. It is in only the last 40 or so years that we have begun to understand how important a role the integument plays in the locomotion of many marine vertebrates. This involves the crossed-fiber architecture, which was first discovered in a classic study on nemertean worms. As a design principle we see that the crossed-fiber architecture is ubiquitous in nature. Research on some of the most dynamic marine vertebrates of the oceans – tuna, dolphins and sharks, and the extinct Jurassic ichthyosaurs – shows precisely how the crossed-fiber architecture contributes to high-speed swimming and (in lamnid sharks) may even aid in energy conservation. However, this design principle is not restricted to animals in the marine biota but is also found as far afield as the dinosaurs and, most recently, has been revealed as a major part of the microstructure of the most complex derivative of the integument, the feather. We see that a variety of phylogenetically diverse vertebrates take to the air by using skin flaps to glide from tree to tree or to the ground, and present detailed descriptions of innovations developed in pursuit of improved gliding capabilities in both extinct and modern day gliders. But the vertebrate integument had even greater things in store, namely true or flapping flight. Pterosaurs were the first vertebrates to use the integument as a membrane in true flapping flight and these interesting extinct animals are discussed on the basis of past and cutting-edge research , most intriguingly with respect to the structure of the flight membrane. Bats, the only mammals that fly, also employ integumental flight membranes. Classic research on bat flight is reviewed and supplemented with the latest research, which shows the complexities of the wing beat cycle to be significantly different from that of birds, as revealed by particle image velocimetry. The book’s largest chapter is devoted to birds, given that they make up nearly half of the over 22,000 species of tetrapods. The flight apparatus of birds is unique in nature and is described in great detail, with innovative research highlighting the complexity of the flight structures, bird flight patterns, and behavior in a variety of species. This is complimented by new research on the brains of birds, which shows that they are more complex than previously thought. The feather made bird flight possible, and was itself made possible by β-keratin, contributing to what may be a unique biomechanical microstructure in nature, a topic discussed in some depth. A highly polarized subject concerns the origin of birds and of the feather. Alleged fossilized protofeathers (primal simple feathers) are considered on the basis of histological and taphonomic investigative studies in Chapter 6. Finally, in Chapter 7 we discuss the controversies associated with this field of research. Professor Theagarten Lingham-Soliar works at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, Port Elizabeth and is an Honorary Professor of Life Sciences at the University of KwaZulu-Natal.