An overwinter protocol for detecting wolverines and other carnivores at camera traps paired with automated scent dispensers.

Camera traps deployed with olfactory attractants are used to survey rare and elusive carnivores. Study areas with deep snowpack and rugged terrain present challenges and risks to field personnel, who traditionally must revisit camera stations regularly to refresh attractants. In such locations, alternative overwinter survey protocols that include a persistent attractant would improve both the safety and efficiency of camera-trap surveys.

Rendering Perceived Terrain Stiffness in VR Via Preload Variation Against Body-Weight.

PreloadStep is a novel platform that creates the illusion of walking on different types of terrain in Virtual Reality without requiring users to wear any special instrumentation. PreloadStep works by compressing a set of springs between two plates, with the amount of compression determining the perceived stiffness of the virtual terrain. The platform can render perception of stiffness by applying preload forces up to 824 N in different portions of the terrain, capable of changing stiffness illusion even while a user is standing on it.

A mechatronic shape display based on auxetic materials.

Shape displays enable people to touch simulated surfaces. A common architecture of such devices uses a mechatronic pin-matrix. Besides their complexity and high cost, these matrix displays suffer from sharp edges due to the discreet representation which reduces their ability to render a large continuous surface when sliding the hand.

Epsilon-near-zero strong coupling in metamaterial-semiconductor hybrid structures.

We present a new type of electrically tunable strong coupling between planar metamaterials and epsilon-near-zero modes that exist in a doped semiconductor nanolayer. The use of doped semiconductors makes this strong coupling tunable over a wide range of wavelengths through the use of different doping densities. We also modulate this coupling by depleting the doped semiconductor layer electrically.