For efficient use of metal oxides, such as MnO2 and RuO2, in pseudocapacitors and other electrochemical applications, the poor conductivity of the metal oxide is a major problem. To tackle the ...problem, we have designed a ternary nanocomposite film composed of metal oxide (MnO2), carbon nanotube (CNT), and conducting polymer (CP). Each component in the MnO2/CNT/CP film provides unique and critical function to achieve optimized electrochemical properties. The electrochemical performance of the film is evaluated by cyclic voltammetry, and constant-current charge/discharge cycling techniques. Specific capacitance (SC) of the ternary composite electrode can reach 427 F/g. Even at high mass loading and high concentration of MnO2 (60%), the film still showed SC value as high as 200 F/g. The electrode also exhibited excellent charge/discharge rate and good cycling stability, retaining over 99% of its initial charge after 1000 cycles. The results demonstrated that MnO2 is effectively utilized with assistance of other components (fFWNTs and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)−poly(styrenesulfonate) in the electrode. Such ternary composite is very promising for the next generation high performance electrochemical supercapacitors.
We present practical, experimental results for a system, driven by a particle filter, that dynamically steers a space surveillance sensor to track and search for resident space objects. In contrast ...to traditional Kalman-filter-based trackers, this system can exploit scheduled observations where the target is not found within the field of view. Furthermore, real-time observation-evaluation enables the system to immediately respond to these events by conducting a limited search. We describe the system and report the results of a recent field trial using a computer-controlled Raven-class electro-optical sensor to track objects using two-line element sets (TLEs) of various ages. Even for quite old TLEs - in some cases over six months old - the system demonstrates successful, automatic reacquisition.
In certain tracking applications, it is not sufficient to assume that the measurement of a target's state can be made whenever a sensor is tasked to do so. For example, the target's position may lie ...outside the sensor's limited field of view. Nevertheless, failure of this sort still yields some information. It tells us where the target is not. This information is difficult to capture in conventional filtering. In the context of catalogue maintenance of resident space objects, a central task in Space Situational Awareness, we demonstrate how the particle filter may be adapted to account for occasional failed observations and to guide the process of target reacquisition while maintaining a high quality track at other times. The results of a numerical simulation show that while an Unscented Kalman Filter can lose track of objects in more challenging circumstances, the proposed particle method consistently reacquires and tracks all objects.
While this Code section only states that it applies to the obligation of federal income tax withholding, case law (see Otte, 419 U.S. 43 (1974); In re Armadillo Corp., 561 F.2d 1362 (10th Cir. 1977); ...The Lane Processing Trust, 25 F.3d 662 (8th Cir. 1994)) has applied this section to other employment taxes, including Federal Insurance Contributions Act and Federal Unemployment Tax Act taxes. Every week, Earthmovers would send timesheet information and the amount owed for payroll and taxes to Sunshine, and it also retained the right to hire and fire workers. ...the court held that Earthmovers and not Sunshine was in control of the payment of wages as defined in Sec. 3401(d)(1). If the taxpayer failed to send funds to the PEO, the security deposit or line of credit would cover the amounts due. ...the taxpayer was responsible and liable for making sure that all employment taxes were paid.
In a recent Tax Court case {Caselli, T.C. Memo. 2018-81), Ronald Caselli, a shareholder of a restaurant organized as an S corporation, attempted to take the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) ...tip credit on his Form 1040X, A mended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return, although the S corporation had claimed a deduction in place of the credit. The court did note that, while Sec. 45B(d) uses the word "taxpayer," and S corporations are generally not considered taxpayers since they are flowthrough entities, the S corporation in its capacity as the employer was liable for the FICA tax payments and was the taxpayer for the purposes of those payments. ...the section would stih apply to AGI. The Tax Court sided with the IRS, stating that it would not set a precedent that allowed individual shareholders to unilaterally change an election, since it could potentially affect other shareholders who may not have agreed with such a change. ...the court held that Casehi was not allowed to claim the FICA tip credit for either year.
In this paper, we investigate a method for simultaneously scheduling multiple space surveillance sensors that has the potential to exploit measurement level sensor fusion to improve orbital state ...estimation accuracy. State error covariance information is used to predict the influence independent and combined measurements will have on estimation accuracy during a prescribed scheduling period. The resulting information provides a means of determining the best sensor combination to observe each object of a population at the most beneficial time. We present a comparative study of multi-sensor scheduling over independent sensor scheduling by means of numerical simulation. We find that there is a delicate balance to be maintained between the higher statistical effectiveness of simultaneous observations and the total number of objects that can be observed during a scheduling period.
Addressing population declines of migratory insects requires linking populations across different portions of the annual cycle and understanding the effects of variation in weather and climate on ...productivity, recruitment, and patterns of long‐distance movement. We used stable H and C isotopes and geospatial modeling to estimate the natal origin of monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) in eastern North America using over 1000 monarchs collected over almost four decades at Mexican overwintering colonies. Multinomial regression was used to ascertain which climate‐related factors best‐predicted temporal variation in natal origin across six breeding regions. The region producing the largest proportion of overwintering monarchs was the US Midwest (mean annual proportion = 0.38; 95% CI: 0.36–0.41) followed by the north‐central (0.17; 0.14–0.18), northeast (0.15; 0.11–0.16), northwest (0.12; 0.12–0.16), southwest (0.11; 0.08–0.12), and southeast (0.08; 0.07–0.11) regions. There was no evidence of directional shifts in the relative contributions of different natal regions over time, which suggests these regions are comprising the same relative proportion of the overwintering population in recent years as in the mid‐1970s. Instead, interannual variation in the proportion of monarchs from each region covaried with climate, as measured by the Southern Oscillation Index and regional‐specific daily maximum temperature and precipitation, which together likely dictate larval development rates and food plant condition. Our results provide the first robust long‐term analysis of predictors of the natal origins of monarchs overwintering in Mexico. Conservation efforts on the breeding grounds focused on the Midwest region will likely have the greatest benefit to eastern North American migratory monarchs, but the population will likely remain sensitive to regional and stochastic weather patterns.
The conservation of monarch butterflies requires linking populations across different portions of the annual cycle and understanding how variation in weather and climate influences productivity, recruitment, and patterns of long‐distance movement. Tyler Flockhart et al. associate the natal origin of monarch butterflies overwintering in Mexico collected over almost four decades with global oscillation patterns and region‐specific temperature and precipitation. The results suggest that ongoing conservation efforts on the breeding grounds should focus on the US Midwest region, but the population will likely remain sensitive to regional and stochastic weather patterns.
Environmental change induces some wildlife populations to shift from migratory to resident behaviours. Newly formed resident populations could influence the health and behaviour of remaining ...migrants. We investigated migrant–resident interactions among monarch butterflies and consequences for life history and parasitism. Eastern North American monarchs migrate annually to Mexico, but some now breed year‐round on exotic milkweed in the southern US and experience high infection prevalence of protozoan parasites. Using stable isotopes (δ2H, δ13C) and cardenolide profiles to estimate natal origins, we show that migrant and resident monarchs overlap during fall and spring migration. Migrants at sites with residents were 13 times more likely to have infections and three times more likely to be reproductive (outside normal breeding season) compared to other migrants. Exotic milkweed might either attract migrants that are already infected or reproductive, or alternatively, induce these states. Increased migrant–resident interactions could affect monarch parasitism, migratory success and long‐term conservation.
Insect migration may involve movements over multiple breeding generations at continental scales, resulting in formidable challenges to their conservation and management. Using distribution models ...generated from citizen scientist occurrence data and stable-carbon and -hydrogen isotope measurements, we tracked multi-generational colonization of the breeding grounds of monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) in eastern North America. We found that monarch breeding occurrence was best modelled with geographical and climatic variables resulting in an annual breeding distribution of greater than 12 million km2 that encompassed 99% occurrence probability. Combining occurrence models with stable isotope measurements to estimate natal origin, we show that butterflies which overwintered in Mexico came from a wide breeding distribution, including southern portions of the range. There was a clear northward progression of monarchs over successive generations from May until August when reproductive butterflies began to change direction and moved south. Fifth-generation individuals breeding in Texas in the late summer/autumn tended to originate from northern breeding areas rather than regions further south. Although the Midwest was the most productive area during the breeding season, monarchs that re-colonized the Midwest were produced largely in Texas, suggesting that conserving breeding habitat in the Midwest alone is insufficient to ensure long-term persistence of the monarch butterfly population in eastern North America.
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