Determination of a non-perturbed reference for a new version of the disturbance ionosphere index

In the present work, we propose and evaluate a new method for the determination of a non-perturbed Total Electron Content (TEC) reference to apply it on a new version of the disturbance ionosphere index (DIX). This method is based on the calculation of a 3-hour moving average over the TEC obtained during a given reference day (named 3hMAQd method). In this context, the reference day is supposed to represent a quiet pattern considering geomagnetic and ionospheric features. To evaluate its performance, we compared the proposed method with TEC values obtained from monthly medians and the International Reference Ionosphere (IRI) model. The results are presented and discussed in terms of a dispersion coefficient between each method and the averaged TEC from the five quietest days of each month of 2015, over three Brazilian sites. Finally, we calculated the new DIX based on our proposed method and compared it with the original DIX values obtained during the extreme space weather event of St. Patrick’s Day magnetic storm (17–18 March 2015). Differences between the two DIX approaches are discussed to show the improvements in new DIX due to the application of the proposed non-perturbed reference. Moreover, results showed that the quality of the DIX calculation can be highly influenced by the non-perturbed reference determination. In this regard, the 3-hour moving average (3hMAQd) method showed to be a quite appropriate technique for the new DIX calculation, besides the 3-hour window matches with ordinary magnetic indices resolution (e.g. Kp and Ksa).

Getting a Moral Thing into a Thought

Non-naturalism is the view that normative properties are response-independent, irreducible to natural properties, and causally inefficacious. An underexplored question for non-naturalism concerns the metasemantics of normative terms. Ideally, the non-naturalist could remain ecumenical, but it appears they cannot. Call this challenge the metasemantic challenge. This chapter suggests that non-naturalists endorse an epistemic account of reference determination of the sort recently defended by Imogen Dickie, with some modifications. An important implication of this account is that, if correct, a fully fleshed out moral epistemology will simultaneously rebut metasemantic objections to non-naturalism. Thus, both the metasemantic and the more widely discussed epistemological challenges in effect amount to one. Before setting out the positive view, the chapter considers why all of the traditional metasemantic theories cause trouble for the non-naturalist. This includes discussions of teleosemantics, conceptual role semantics, as well as Schroeter and Schroeter’s “connectedness” model.

Reference Magnets: How Do They Work?

Reference magnetism is a promising and easily motivated thesis in meta-semantics. It has a metaphysical component: that some properties are elite, or metaphysically privileged. And it has a linguistic component: that elite properties are easier to refer to than non-elite properties. This chapter clarifies the notions of “use” and “eliteness” that characterize the elements of reference-determination, according to reference magnetism. Reference is determined, on this view, not only by our linguistic dispositions, but also by metaphysical facts, which concern the significant parts of reality. The chapter closes with a development and defense of the thesis in light of recent criticisms. This sets the stage for explaining some central features of practical language which were outlined in Chapters 1 and 2.

Reasons and Justifiability

This chapter sketches a metasemantic model that promises to vindicate a broadly rationalist version of normative realism. It introduces a metasemantic principle that ties reference determination to what is justifiable from the perspective of the conceptually competent subject. The chapter explains how this metasemantic principle can help vindicate something close to the traditional rationalist claim that normative truths can be known a priori. It then shows how an anti-individualist version of this metasemantic principle can handle the problem of radical disagreement among competent speakers. The last part of the paper explains how our metasemantic model can help vindicate the traditional rationalist thesis that moral requirements entail valid reasons for action.

Rationalist Metaphysics, Semantics, and Metasemantics

Rationalism offers an account of moral properties as a subset of the properties which serve to rationalize right actions, and these properties are fit to be the referents of our moral terms. That fitness can be exploited in constructing an externalist theory of reference determination for these terms. The resulting externalist theory draws support from standard responses to Moral Twin-Earth scenarios. The relevance of these responses to moral semantics has recently been vigorously challenged by Dowell and by Schroeter and Schroeter. The social character of meaning relations, which can explain the openness of questions about an analysis, may thereby also make Twin-Earth judgements beside the point. But the resources available to translators go beyond semantic competence and it is these resources that nonetheless make the Moral Twin-Earth responses relevant.

Effects of discourse on control

This study examined discourse effects on obligatory and non-obligatory control interpretations. Seventy participants undertook three online forced-choice surveys, which monitored preferred interpretations in complement control, verbal gerund subject control, long-distance control and sentence-final temporal adjunct control. Survey 1 ascertained their baseline interpretations of the empty category in these constructions. Survey 2 primed the critical sentences used in survey 1 with a weakly established topic of discourse and survey 3 primed them with a strongly established one. Reference assignment in complement control remained consistent across all three conditions, illustrating that pragmatics does not infiltrate this structurally regulated and syntactically unambiguous construction. Changes in interpretation were found in the remaining three constructions. An accessibility-motivated scale of influence, combining three independent discourse factors (topichood, competition and linear distance) was created to model reference determination in verbal gerund subject control and long-distance control. The results for temporal adjunct control are novel. They revealed a much stronger susceptibility to pragmatic interference than that reported in the literature yet the construction behaved differently from non-obligatory control under discourse pressure. We propose a structural account for sentence-final temporal adjunct control, which permits the evident interpretation shift while still excluding arbitrary and sentence-external interpretations.

Tribo-electrochemical behavior of a ferritic stainless steel under applied potentials

A tribo-electrochemical characterization of a ferritic stainless steel has been carried out under reciprocating sliding against a corundum alumina pin in 0.02 M H2SO4 medium at room temperature. Theaim of this study is to present a refinement of the usually employed method to determine the synergismeffect occurring in a tribo system where the sample is made of passive metal and the counter body made ofinert material. The effects of mechanical, corrosion and synergistical contributions to tribocorrosion at eachinvestigated potential are discriminated. So as to further study the synergy, it is divided into two parts,electrochemistry-accelerated wear (EAW) and wear-accelerated electrochemistry (WAE), respectively.Focus is first addressed on the mechanical wear reference determination under cathodic polarization. It has been shown that depending on the selected cathodic potential a hydrogen effect or even a dissolutioncontribution could result in EAW contribution of about 60% of the overall degradation. These effects are avoided when polarization is made at a potential where the double layer thickness is maximum and couldserve as lubricant agent under friction. The wear volume found under these conditions could therefore be used as mechanical wear reference. In the anodic domain, with the employed set-up, it is possible to set anidle time long enough for the film to reform between each sliding. Charges released during pin motions periods are thus related to depassivation process only and are converted into WAE wear volumes using the Faraday’s law. Wear volumes are quite constant over the investigated range in the passive plateau. They are more important than what is observed at lower potentials because of great EAW wear volumes.However, the proportions of wear contributions to the overall material degradation are changing. Even if the mechanical contribution is quite constant over the considered passive range around 23%, a transfer isoccurring from the EAW contribution to the WAE one as the anodic potential is increased.