“Chinese table screen” from the collection of the National Art Museum of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia): on the question of determining the plot

Статья посвящена изучению музейного памятника декоративно-прикладного искусства XIX века «Китайский настольный экран», раскрытию его сюжета, уточнению времени создания. Экран, как и большие ширмы, использовался в интерьере зданий, исполняя утилитарную и эстетическую функции, применялся для защиты пламени свечи от движения воздуха. Особенность традиционного китайского экрана — это его мобильность, декоративность и привлекательность используемых в декоре материалов. Как элемент традиционной культуры он отражал идею корреляции вещей в мире, нес в себе понятия красоты и совершенства в художественно-эстетическом оформлении интерьера. Всякая вещь — это уникальный кодовый знак этнокультуры, указывающий на своеобразие национального характера, представления об окружающем мире. Несмотря на то что со сменой эпох менялся стиль, декор, вводились новые материалы, отшлифованная веками традиционная вещь оставалась удобной и эстетичной, отличалась безукоризненной отделкой и высокой практичностью. На основе анализа художественного произведения и изучения специальной литературы автор интерпретирует сюжет, изображенный на настольном экране. В ходе исследования предмета на изображении были выявлены такие мифологические персонажи, как популярная даосская «восьмерка бессмертных», представителей которой часто изображали на произведениях изобразительного и декоративно-прикладного искусства, легендарный Лао-цзы, древнекитайский философ VI–V веков до н. э., один из основателей философского учения Дао. На панно с даосскими святыми узнаются: древнее божество Си-ван-му — хозяйка персиков долголетия, покровительница домашнего очага Хэ Сянь-гу, Шоу-син — божество долголетия, красавица и чадоподательница Би-ся юань-цзюнь и божественный земледелец Шэнь-нун. Все они прибыли на пир к царице Запада Си-ван-му. This article is devoted to the study of the museum monument of decorative and applied art of the 19th century “Chinese table screen”, understanding its plot, clarifying the time of creation. The screen, like large screens, was used in the interior of buildings, performing utilitarian and aesthetic functions. Moreover, it was used to protect the candle flame from air movement. The peculiarity of the traditional Chinese screen is its mobility, decorativeness and attractiveness of the materials used in the decor. As an element of traditional culture, it reflected the idea of the correlation of things in the world, carried the concepts of beauty and perfection in the artistic and aesthetic interior design. Every object is a distinctive code sign of ethnoculture, which indicates the uniqueness of the national character and perceptions of the surrounding world. Despite the fact that with the change of epochs, the style, decor changed and new materials were introduced, the traditional objects polished for centuries remained comfortable and aesthetic, distinguished by impeccable finish and high practicality. Based on the analysis of the artwork and the study of special literature, the author interprets the plot depicted on the table screen. During the study of the object and its image, author identified such mythological characters as the popular Taoist «eight immortals», whose representatives were often depicted in paintings, prints and decorative arts, the legendary Lao Tzu, an ancient Chinese philosopher of the 6-5th centuries BC, one of the founders of the Dao teaching, sitting on a bull. On the panels with Taoist saints, the ancient deity Xi wangmu — the mistress of longevity peaches, the patroness of the hearth He Xiangu, Shouxing — the deity of longevity, the beauty and child-giver Bixia Yuanjun, and the divine farmer Shennong are also recognized. They all came to the feast of the Queen of the West Xi Wangmu.

Polychromatic Hilbert diagnostics of phase and temperature disturbances, induced by candle flame in air

The work is motivated by the scientific and practical significance of the problem of non-disturbing diagnostics of phase and temperature fields induced in a gas medium by a flame of a torch (candle). The spatial conditions in which the fields are studied satisfy the model of axial symmetry of the torch associated with the vertical orientation of the candle. A method adequate to the problem to be solved has been developed, based on polychromatic Hilbert visualization of phase optical density fields, measurement of the temperature profile in selected sections of the medium under study, registration and selection of RAW images recorded by the photomatrix in RGB channels. The visualized Hilbert structures contain information on the phase optical density perturbations induced by the temperature field. The reliability of the results is confirmed by comparing the experimentally obtained hilbertograms and those reconstructed from phase structures using the Abel transform.

Specifics of fire damage to cotton clothing while shooting point-blank at a human torso simulator from a Fort-12RM pistol

This Article Purpose is to determine specifics of damage to cotton jer-sey, arising from a point-blank shot from a nickel-plated “Fort-12RM” pistol, equipped with .45 Rubber cartridges into dressed simulator of a human torso made of ballistic gel. For achieving this goal, 12 human torso simulators were made, dressed in cotton T-shirts, with the subsequent firing of shots using a nick-el-plated “Fort-12RM” pistol equipped with .45 Rubber cartridges. The shots were fired from a distance, closely followed by examination of damage to cloth-ing using photographic and microscopic research methods. Obtained data and their comparison with the previously obtained research results when the shots were fired at the clothing samples, fixed in the frame made it possible to identify important differences and for the first time describe the phenomenon of internal muzzle imprint mark and volumetric muzzle imprint mark; while describing the internal muzzle imprint mark, specific deposition of additional factors of the shot (namely, soot), reminiscent of a candle flame was found. In addition, a double marker phenomenon was observed around the input gunshot injury on the inves-tigated human torso simulator. Most of additional factors of the shot (in form of soot and dust particles of unburned gunpowder) were determined in wound channel. While carrying out the contact-diffusion method of research, small particles of nickel were determined around input fire damage to the simulator. The revealed differences require revision of the classical method of experimental shooting, while test samples of clothing are fixed in a frame or fixed in a similar way. An important stage in research formulation is to recreate the conditions as close as possible to real ones. The search for the most appropriate, efficient and simple method for carrying out such experiments is promising for ballistics

Why Are Candle Flames Yellow?

Candle flames have a warm, yellow color that is prized as nostalgic and romantic. But why is this the color of a standard candle flame? The usual explanation given is that the color is due to minute particles of soot that result from combustion of the candle wax, heated to incandescence, and emitting blackbody radiation. But this explanation cannot be correct. The shape of the emission spectrum is not that of a blackbody spectrum, and the peak occurs at much too short a wavelength, given the flame’s temperature. So what physical phenomenon does dictate the properties of the light from a candle?

Method of Polychromatic Hilbert Diagnostics of Phase and Temperature Perturbations of Axisymmetric Flames

The work is aimed at solving the scientific and practical problem of non-disturbing diagnostics of the phase and temperature fields of reacting jets and flames. On the example of an axisymmetric hydrogen-diffusion flame and a hot air flow from a candle flame, a method was developed that is adequate to the problem being solved, based on Hilbert polychromatic visualization of phase optical density fields, measuring the temperature profile in selected areas of the medium under study, pixel-by-pixel processing of RAW images recorded by a photographic matrix in RGB channels. The visualized Hilbert structures carry information about the phase optical density perturbations induced by the temperature field. The phase structure of the probing light field in the axial symmetry approximation of the flame under investigation is analyzed using the Abel transform. Iterative selection of radial temperature profiles, adapted Bezier curves, is performed with the subsequent calculation of the spatial structure of the refractive index and phase function. The reconstruction of the temperature field by the example of the study of a hydrogen-air flame is carried out taking into account the diversity of the partial optical properties of the gas mixture in a model consistent with the Gladstone-Dale dispersion formula. The influence of disturbances in the air surrounding the flame on its axial symmetry is discussed. The criterion for the reliability of the research results is a comparison of the hilbertograms obtained in the experiment and the hilbertograms reconstructed from phase structures induced by temperature fields.