Abstract: A water tank including a frusto-conical support hat portion and a tub portion. The tub portion having a support mound that includes a first section and a second section extending from the first section. The first section has a width larger than a width of the second section such that a ledge is formed between the first and second sections. The second section has a rectangular aperture formed therein that permits the manufactured ice to pass therethrough. The support hat portion has a support mound that has a width no larger than the width of the first section. An integral support system includes the support hat nestingly engaging the tub portion from a bottom portion of the tub portion to provide a central support for an ice guide placed on the water tank.

Abstract: An axial flow or centrifugal flow compressor having arrays of blades (16) extending across a working medium flowpath (18) includes a casing treatment for enhancing the compressor's fluid dynamic stability. In one variant of the invention the casing treatment comprises one or more circumferentially extending grooves (40) that each receive indigenous fluid from the compressor flowpath at a fluid extraction site (56) and discharge indigenous fluid into the flowpath at a fluid injection site (58), circumferentially offset from the extraction site, where the migrated fluid is better able to advance against an adverse pressure gradient in the flowpath. Each groove is oriented so that the discharged fluid enters the flowpath with a streamwise directional component that promotes efficient and reliable integration of the introduced fluid into the flowpath fluid stream (20).

Abstract: In a communication system using quantum cryptography for the distribution of a key, two stations each independently modulate a single-photon signal. The single-photon signal is transmitted to the two stations from an external source, and passes through the stations in series. The signal subsequently passes onto a third station which detects the state of the signal, and compares it with the state of the signal as originally transmitted. This third station communicates the results of the comparison to the two stations, and the two stations establish a shared secret key for the subsequent encryption of traffic between the stations. Both the source of the single-photon signal and the single-photon detector may be combined in a transmitter station (Alice).

Abstract: Two identical plates somewhat in the shape of very large eyeglass frames sandwiching two rotable discs, one for each eye, form the front section of the device. Each disc has a series of magnifying lenses of increasing power which can be brought into the eye openings in the plate when the discs are rotated and allow the user to focus on a group of alphbetical characters of a predetermined size and at a predetermined distance from the lenses at the end of a view tunnel. The strength of the lenses required for focusing can then be read from the disc where it is clearly indicated next to each lens. These lens strengths correspond to the power of reading glasses sold non-prescription in most drug stores.