Size-related performance variation in the wood frog (Rana sylvatica) tadpole tactile-stimulated startle response

2005 ◽  
Vol 83 (8) ◽  
pp. 1117-1127 ◽  
Author(s):  
L Eidietis
Keyword(s):  
Startle Response ◽  
High Speed ◽  
Rana Sylvatica ◽  
Initial Response ◽  
Differential Survival ◽  
Maximum Acceleration ◽  
Spatial And Temporal Scales ◽  
Cumulative Distance ◽  
Performance Variation ◽  
Predator Cue

I described the initial response of the Rana sylvatica LeConte, 1825 tadpole to predator contact, that is, the tactile-stimulated startle response (TSR). Because tadpole survival from predation increases with tadpole size and with exposure to chemical predator cues during development, I anticipated that TSR performance would vary accordingly among tadpoles. Startle responses were stimulated in a laboratory setting and filmed using high-speed video. This method allowed analysis of performance at fine spatial and temporal scales. Maximum acceleration performance increased with tadpole length, as did cumulative distance covered after the first 0.016 s of the response. In contrast, the cumulative distance covered during the initial instants of the response did not depend on tadpole size. Exposure to a predator cue (odor of the dragonfly naiad Anax junius (Drury, 1773)) during development had no effect on tadpole morphology. Predator-cue exposure negatively affected cumulative distance traveled after the first 0.072 s of the startle response. I concluded that size-dependent variation in performance of the TSR may partially explain differential survival of tadpoles, but there was no evidence that exposure to this predator cue increased TSR performance.

Kinematics of Tongue Projection in Chamaeleo Oustaleti

1991 ◽  
Vol 159 (1) ◽  
pp. 109-133 ◽  
Author(s):  
PETER C. WAINWRIGHT ◽  
DAVID M. KRAKLAU ◽  
ALBERT F. BENNETT
Keyword(s):  
High Speed ◽  
Prey Capture ◽  
Maximum Velocity ◽  
Head Movements ◽  
Florida State University ◽  
State University ◽  
Maximum Acceleration ◽  
Related Family ◽  
High Speed Cinematography ◽  
Tongue Movements

The kinematics of prey capture by the chamaeleonid lizard Chamaeleo oustaleti were studied using high-speed cinematography. Three feeding sequences from each of two individuals were analyzed for strike distances of 20 and 35 cm, at 30°C. Ten distances and angles were measured from sequential frames beginning approximately 0.5 s prior to tongue projection and continuing for about 1.0 s. Sixteen additional variables, documenting maximum excursions and the timing of events, were calculated from the kinematic profiles. Quantified descriptions of head, hyoid and tongue movements are presented. Previously unrecognized rapid protraction of the hyobranchial skeleton simultaneously with the onset of tongue projection was documented and it is proposed that this assists the accelerator muscle in powering tongue projection. Acceleration of the tongue occurred in about 20ms, reaching a maximum acceleration of 486 m s−2 and maximum velocity of 5.8m s−1 in 35 cm strikes. Deceleration of the tongue usually began within 5 ms before prey contract and the direction of tongue movement was reversed within 10 ms of prey contact. Retraction of the tongue, caused by shortening of the retractor muscles, reached a maximum velocity of 2.99 ms−1 and was complete 330 ms after prey contact. Projection distance influences many aspects of prey capture kinematics, particularly projection time, tongue retraction time and the extent of gape and head movements during tongue retraction, all of which are smaller in shorter feedings. Though several features of the chameleon strike have apparently been retained from lizards not capable of ballistic tongue projection, key differences are documented. Unlike members of a related family, the Agamidae, C. oustaleti uses no body lunge during prey capture, exhibits gape reduction during tongue projection and strongly depresses the head and jaws during tongue retraction. Note: Present address: Department of Biological Sciences, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306, USA.

Comparison of the fast-start performances of closely related, morphologically distinct threespine sticklebacks (Gasterosteus spp.)

1996 ◽  
Vol 199 (12) ◽  
pp. 2595-2604 ◽  
Author(s):  
T Law ◽  
R Blake
Keyword(s):  
Angular Velocity ◽  
High Speed ◽  
High Performance ◽  
Gasterosteus Aculeatus ◽  
Morphological Characteristics ◽  
Maximum Velocity ◽  
Threespine Stickleback ◽  
Biomechanical Study ◽  
Maximum Acceleration ◽  
Fast Start

Fast-start escape performances for two species of threespine stickleback, Gasterosteus spp., were investigated using high-speed cinematography (400 Hz). The two fishes (not yet formally described, referred to here as benthic and limnetic) inhabit different niches within Paxton Lake, British Columbia, Canada, and are recent, morphologically distinct species. All escape responses observed for both species were double-bend C-type fast-starts. There were no significant differences between the species for any linear or angular parameter (pooled averages, both species: duration 0.048 s, distance 0.033 m, maximum velocity 1.10 m s-1, maximum acceleration 137 m s-2, maximum horizontal angular velocity 473.6 rad s-1 and maximum overall angular velocity 511.1 rad s-1). Benthics and limnetics have the greatest added mass (Ma) at 0.3 and 0.6 body lengths, respectively. The maximum Ma does not include the fins for benthics, but for limnetics the dorsal and anal fins contribute greatly to the maximum Ma. The deep, posteriorly placed fins of limnetics enable them to have a fast-start performance equivalent to that of the deeper-bodied benthics. Both the limnetic and benthic fishes have significantly higher escape fast-start velocities than their ancestral form, the anadromous threespine stickleback Gasterosteus aculeatus, suggesting that the high performance of the Paxton Lake sticklebacks is an evolutionarily derived trait. In this biomechanical study of functional morphology, we demonstrate that similar high fast-start performance can be achieved by different suites of morphological characteristics and suggest that predation might be the selective force for the high escape performance in these two fishes.

Nonlinear Vibration and Comfort Analysis of High-Speed Trains Moving Over Railway Bridges

Volume 2 ◽  
2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. H. Kargarnovin ◽  
D. Younesian ◽  
D. J. Thompson ◽  
C. J. C. Jones
Keyword(s):  
High Speed ◽  
Ride Comfort ◽  
Beam Theory ◽  
Maximum Acceleration ◽  
Railway Bridges ◽  
Comfort Index ◽  
Power Spectral ◽  
High Speed Trains ◽  
Train Speed ◽  
Track Bridge

The ride comfort of high-speed trains passing over railway bridges is studied in this paper. The effects of some nonlinear parameters in a carriage-track-bridge system are investigated such as the load-stiffening characteristics of the rail-pad and the ballast, rubber elements in the primary and secondary suspensions systems. The influence of the track irregularity and train speed on two comfort indicators, namely Sperling’s comfort index and the maximum acceleration level, are also studied. Timoshenko beam theory is used for modelling the rail and bridge and two layers of parallel damped springs in conjunction with a layer of mass are used to model the rail-pads, sleepers and ballast. A randomly irregular vertical track profile is modelled, characterised by a power spectral density (PSD). The ‘roughness’ is generated for three classes of tracks. Nonlinear Hertz theory is used for modelling the wheel-rail contact.

The kinematics and performance of escape responses of the knifefish Xenomystus nigri

1993 ◽  
Vol 71 (1) ◽  
pp. 189-195 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. A. Kasapi ◽  
P. Domenici ◽  
R. W. Blake ◽  
D. Harper
Keyword(s):  
High Speed ◽  
Longitudinal Axis ◽  
The Body ◽  
Maximum Acceleration ◽  
Low Speed ◽  
Average Maximum ◽  
Morphological Specialization ◽  
Escape Responses ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Stage 1

The kinematics and performance of the escape responses of the knifefish Xenomystus nigri, a fish specialized for low-speed, undulatory median-fin propulsion, were recorded by means of high-speed cinematography. Two types of escape were observed, one involving the formation of a C-shape along the longitudinal axis of the fish (stage 1), followed by a slow recoil of the body (single bend); the other (double bend) involved stage 1 followed by a contralateral bend (stage 2). The pectoral fins were extended throughout escapes of both types. The average maximum acceleration for double bend escapes was 127.98 m∙s−2; acceleration was usually greatest in stage 1. In double bend escapes, turning angles for stages 1 and 2 were not correlated. Pitch and roll orientations change during escapes. In stage 1, the average roll and average pitch were linearly correlated, suggesting that roll was partly responsible for establishing pitch. Knifefish achieved high maximum acceleration relative to other fish. Therefore, performance was not compromised by morphological specialization for low-speed swimming; however, a negative correlation of pitch with acceleration in stage 1 suggested that escapes involve a trade-off between acceleration and confusing a predator by changing planar orientation.

Friction and Wear Results From Sputter-Deposited Chrome Oxide With and Without Nichrome Metallic Binders and Interlayers

1981 ◽  
Vol 103 (2) ◽  
pp. 218-227 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bharat Bhushan
Keyword(s):  
High Temperature ◽  
High Speed ◽  
Friction And Wear ◽  
Room Temperature ◽  
Test Sequence ◽  
Interface Temperature ◽  
Maximum Acceleration ◽  
The Coefficient Of Friction ◽  
Sputter Deposited ◽  
Friction And Wear Tests

Friction and wear tests were conducted on optimized sputtered Cr2O3 and Cr2O3 with metallic binder coatings. The coatings were applied on the bearing surface of journal foil air bearings and were tested against chrome-carbide-coated journal surfaces. The objective of the study was to develop a coating system which would withstand 9000 start-stops and high-speed rubs (maximum acceleration, 100 gs) in temperatures ranging from room temperature to 650° C. The Cr2O3 coating completed the test sequence and the coating consisting of Cr2O3 with metallic binders completed 3000 start-stops. The coefficient of friction of the coatings at 650° C was found to be about half that at room temperature. It was concluded, therefore, that the coatings should perform much better in a high temperature environment alone. The decrease in friction at high temperature is attributed to oxidation and interactions of the coatings and substrates at the interface temperature.

Adaptive control for backward quadrupedal walking. III. Stumbling corrective reactions and cutaneous reflex sensitivity

1993 ◽  
Vol 70 (3) ◽  
pp. 1102-1114 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. A. Buford ◽  
J. L. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Knee Flexion ◽  
High Speed ◽  
Vastus Lateralis ◽  
Biceps Femoris ◽  
Initial Response ◽  
Swing Phase ◽  
Kinematic Effect ◽  
Cutaneous Reflex ◽  
Electrical Pulses ◽  
High Speed Film

1. Four cats were trained to walk backward (BWD) and forward (FWD) on a motorized treadmill. Mechanical (taps) or electrical (pulses) stimuli were applied to the dorsal or ventral aspect of the hind paw during swing or stance. Hindlimb kinematic data, obtained by digitizing 16-mm high-speed film, were synchronized with computer-analyzed electromyograms (EMG) recorded from anterior biceps femoris (ABF), vastus lateralis (VL), lateral gastrocnemius (LG), tibialis anterior (TA), and semitendinosus (ST). Responses to taps and pulses, as well as the modulation in cutaneous reflex sensitivity to pulses, were described for both walking directions and stimulus locations. 2. After dorsal taps that obstructed FWD swing, the hindlimb initially drew back away from the obstacle with knee flexion and ST activation, ankle extension with TA suppression and LG activation, and hip extension with ABF facilitation. Next, the limb was raised over the obstacle with resumed TA activity and enhanced knee and ankle flexion, and then compensatory knee and ankle extension positioned the limb for the ensuing stance phase. 3. For ventral taps that obstructed BWD swing, the initial response also tended to draw the limb away from the obstacle with hip and ankle flexion and TA facilitation and reduced knee flexion with weak VL facilitation and suppression of ST activity. Next, ST activity resumed as knee and ankle flexion raised the limb over the obstacle, and then compensatory extension completed the swing phase for BWD walking. Thus the initial kinematic and EMG responses to obstacles were opposite for BWD versus FWD swing, and these responses were consistent with active avoidance of the obstacles. Responses during BWD walking were subtle, however, compared with those for FWD. 4. After nonobstructing taps (ventral FWD, dorsal BWD), ST and TA activation and knee and ankle flexion were coincident, demonstrating that the aforementioned differences in responses to obstructing obstacles were not simply location dependent. Regardless of the direction of walking or the location of stimulation, taps applied during stance had little immediate kinematic effect, but the subsequent swing phase was usually exaggerated, as if the response was programmed to avoid any lingering obstacle. 5. Electrical pulses did not elicit the full-blown responses typically evoked by taps. The sequencing in activation of ST and TA characteristic after laps was absent after pulses, and there were rarely dramatic kinematic responses to pulses like those easily elicited by taps. There were, in fact, few differences in responses to electrical stimulation for BWD versus FWD walking.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

scholarly journals Plastic proteans: reduced predictability in the face of predation risk in hermit crabs

2013 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 20130592 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Briffa
Keyword(s):  
Individual Variation ◽  
Startle Response ◽  
Response Duration ◽  
Hermit Crabs ◽  
Residual Variance ◽  
Predation Threat ◽  
Mean Response Time ◽  
The Face ◽  
Predator Cue ◽  
Multiple Levels

Variation in behaviour occurs at multiple levels, including between individuals (personality) and between situations (plasticity). Behaviour also varies within individuals, and intra-individual variation (IIV) in behaviour describes within-individual residual variance in behaviour that remains after the effects of obvious external and internal influences on behaviour have been accounted for. IIV thus describes how predictable an individual's behaviour is. Differences in predictability, between individuals and between situations, might be biologically significant. For example, behaving unpredictably under predation threat might reduce the chance of capture. Here, we investigated the duration of startle responses in hermit crabs, in the presence and absence of a predator cue. Individuals differed in startle response duration (personality) and while individuals also varied in their sensitivity to risk, mean response time was greater in the presence of a predator (plasticity). Moreover, IIV was greater in the presence of a predator, providing some of the first evidence that the facultative injection of unpredictability into behaviour might represent a strategy for dealing with risk.

Dynamic Analysis of HSDB System and Evaluation of Boundary Non-linearity through Experiments

2016 ◽  
Vol 66 (3) ◽  
pp. 210
Author(s):  
K. Chandrakar ◽  
P.L. Venkateshwara Rao ◽  
P. Rajendran ◽  
C. Satyanarayana
Keyword(s):  
Finite Element ◽  
Natural Frequency ◽  
High Speed ◽  
Printed Circuit Board ◽  
Structural Integrity ◽  
Mechanical Design ◽  
Circuit Board ◽  
Element Analysis ◽  
Maximum Acceleration ◽  
Vibration Tests

<p class="FAIMTextBody">This paper deals with mechanical design and development of high speed digital board (HSDB) system which consists of printed circuit board (PCB) with all electronic components packaged inside the cavity for military application. The military environment poses a variety of extreme dynamic loading conditions, namely, quasi static, vibration, shock and acoustic loads that can seriously degrade or even cause failure of electronics. The vibrational requirement for the HSDB system is that the natural frequency should be more than 200 Hz and sustain power spectrum density of 14.8 Grms in the overall spectrum. Structural integrity of HSDB is studied in detail using finite element analysis (FEA) tool against the dynamic loads and configured the system. Experimental vibration tests are conducted on HSDB with the help of vibration shaker and validated the FE results. The natural frequency and maximum acceleration response computed from vibration tests for the configured design were found. The finite element results show a good correlation with the experiment results for the same boundary conditions. In case of fitment scenario of HSDB system, it is observed that the influence of boundary non-linearity during experiments. This influence of boundary non-linearity is evaluated to obtain the closeout of random vibration simulation results.</p>

Research on Motion Profile Smooth Control Algorithm Based on Continuous Jerk

2010 ◽  
Vol 29-32 ◽  
pp. 2002-2007 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guo Yong Zhao ◽  
Yu Gang Zhao ◽  
Rong Guo Hou
Keyword(s):  
Machine Tool ◽  
High Speed ◽  
Control Algorithm ◽  
Linear Acceleration ◽  
High Accuracy ◽  
Cnc Machining ◽  
Cnc Machine ◽  
Maximum Acceleration ◽  
Smooth Control ◽  
Motion Profile

Motion profile smooth control is significant to reduce the obvious impact on machine tool in high speed and high accuracy CNC machining. However, the jerk is discontinuous and brings about flexible impact on machine tool in the linear Acceleration/Deceleration (ab. Acc/Dec), exponent Acc/Dec and S curve Acc/Dec approach. In the paper, the CNC machine tool dynamic model is built up to analyze the cause of machine impact, to describe the mathematics and physics meanings of jerk. Then a new Acc/Dec approach in which the jerk is continuous is put forward. And the motion profile smooth control algorithm based on continuous jerk is developed in details according to the permissible maximum acceleration, the permissible maximum jerk, the machining program segment displacement and the instruction feedrate. The motion profile smooth control algorithm can achieve continuous jerk, reduce impact on machine tool effectively, and be important to high speed and high accuracy CNC machining.

INTERACTION RESPONSE OF TRAIN LOADS MOVING OVER A TWO-SPAN CONTINUOUS BEAM

2013 ◽  
Vol 13 (01) ◽  
pp. 1350002 ◽  
Author(s):  
Y. J. WANG ◽  
Q. C. WEI ◽  
J. D. YAU
Keyword(s):  
High Speed ◽  
Degrees Of Freedom ◽  
Superposition Method ◽  
Continuous Beam ◽  
Euler Beam ◽  
Maximum Acceleration ◽  
High Speed Trains ◽  
Mass Spring ◽  
Moving Train ◽  
Bridge System

The objective of this study is to investigate the resonance and sub-resonance acceleration response of a two-span continuous railway bridge under the passage of moving train loadings. The continuous bridge is modeled as a Bernoulli–Euler beam with uniform span length and the moving train is simulated as a series of equidistant two degrees-of-freedom (2-DOF) mass–spring–damper units. The modal superposition method is adopted to compute the interaction dynamics of the train–bridge system. The numerical analyses indicate that (1) the train-induced resonance of the two-span continuous beam may result in significant amplification of the dynamic response of the train/bridge system; (2) for a two-span continuous beam, the first two resonant speeds may fall in the range of operating speeds of high-speed trains, which can lead to highly amplified vehicle responses; (3) due to the presence of sub-resonant peaks, the maximum acceleration of the two-span continuous beam need not occur at the midpoint of the beam; (4) inclusion of damping of a beam is helpful for reducing the train-induced resonant response on the beam, but the first two resonant peaks of the coupling system remain unchanged.

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