Air cycle machine

An air cycle machine (ACM) is the refrigeration unit of the environmental control system (ECS) used in pressurized gas turbine-powered aircraft. Normally an aircraft has two or three of these ACM. Each ACM and its components are often referred as an air conditioning pack. The air cycle cooling process uses air instead of a phase changing material such as Freon in the gas cycle. No condensation or evaporation of a refrigerant is involved, and the cooled air output from the process is used directly for cabin ventilation or for cooling electronic equipment.

History

Air cycle machines were first developed in the 19th century for providing chilling on ships. The technique is a reverse Brayton cycle (the thermodynamic cycle of a gas turbine engine) and is also known as a Bell Coleman cycle or "Air-Standard Refrigeration Cycle".

Technical details

The usual compression, cooling and expansion seen in any refrigeration cycle is accomplished in the ACM by a centrifugal compressor, two air-to-air heat exchangers and an expansion turbine.

Playing card

A playing card is a piece of specially prepared heavy paper, thin cardboard, plastic-coated paper, cotton-paper blend, or thin plastic, marked with distinguishing motifs and used as one of a set for playing card games. Playing cards are typically palm-sized for convenient handling.

A complete set of cards is called a pack (UK English), deck (US English), or set (Universal), and the subset of cards held at one time by a player during a game is commonly called a hand. A pack of cards may be used for playing a variety of card games, with varying elements of skill and chance, some of which are played for money (e.g., poker and blackjack games at a casino). Playing cards are also used for illusions, cardistry, building card structures, cartomancy and memory sport.

The front (or "face") of each card carries markings that distinguish it from the other cards in the pack and determine its use under the rules of the game being played. The back of each card is identical for all cards in any particular pack to create an imperfect information scenario. Usually every card will be smooth; however, some packs have braille to allow blind people to read the card number and suit.

List of Gargoyles characters

In the animated television series Gargoyles and the spinoff comic books Gargoyles (SLG comic) and Gargoyles: Bad Guys, Gargoyles are a species of winged humanoid creatures that are the focus of the show.

Gargoyles

Several clans of gargoyles exist worldwide (although until recently, they were unaware of each other's existence), and each clan has distinct cultural and morphological characteristics. All gargoyle clans are alike in that each has a particular item, area, or concept that they strive to protect. They are fierce warriors and are incredibly powerful and resilient; their appearance and ferocity (along with the fact that they are nocturnal creatures) often means that humans vilify them as demons and monsters. Most of the world's gargoyle clans do not peacefully co-exist with humans.

Gargoyles are particularly notable for entering a sort of stone hibernation, called "stone sleep", during the day, during which they resemble Gothic statues. During daylight, they can quickly heal from injury and illness, and are protected from most natural threats. However, this state makes them easy targets for destruction by their enemies and humans who hate them. The character Anton Sevarius postulated that, in this hibernation, they absorb solar radiation that allows them to store energy; otherwise, he concluded, the strenuous activity of gliding would require a nutritional intake equivalent to eating three cows a day. Damage during stone sleep can be fatal to a gargoyle. If a gargoyle dies during its hibernation, its body will remain stone.

Almost Human (TV series)

Almost Human is an American science fiction/crime drama that aired from November 17, 2013, through March 3, 2014, on Fox. The series was created by J. H. Wyman for Frequency Films, Bad Robot Productions and Warner Bros. Television. Wyman, Bryan Burk and J. J. Abrams are executive producers. After one season, Fox canceled the series on April 29, 2014.

Premise

In 2048, the uncontrollable evolution of science and technology has caused crime rates to rise an astounding 400%. To combat this, the overwhelmed police force has implemented a new policy: every human police officer is paired with a lifelike combat-model android.

John Kennex (Karl Urban), a troubled detective, has a reason to hate these new robot partners. Almost two years previously, Kennex and his squad were raiding the hideout of a violent gang known as InSyndicate, but ended up being ambushed and outgunned. Kennex tried to save his badly injured partner, but the accompanying logic-based android officer abandoned them both because the wounded man's chances of survival were low and it wouldn't have been "logical" to save him. An explosion then took off Kennex's leg and killed his partner.

Skin (Rihanna song)

"Skin" is a song by Barbadian recording artist Rihanna from her fifth studio album, Loud (2010). The song was written by Kenneth Coby and Ursula Yancy, with production helmed by Soundz. Musically, "Skin" is influenced by pop, dance-pop and dubstep genres, whilst lyrically, the song is about being in a relationship with someone and only wanting to feel their skin close to the protagonists. "Skin" received generally positive reviews from critics, as part of their overall review of Loud, praising "Skin"'s compositions as well as Rihanna's sensual vocal performance. The song was included on the set list of the Loud Tour (2011), where Rihanna retrieves a man or woman from the audience near the end of the song, and performs a lap-dance whilst on an elevated platform. "Skin" was also used in Rihanna's advertisement campaign for Armani Jeans.

Background and composition

Skin (16 Volt album)

Skin was 16Volt's second album, which was released in 1994 under the Re-Constriction label.

Track listing

Additional information

Coming soon...

External links