Science.gov (United States)

... personal computers low-cost information management capabilities to television's uncanny ability to motivate and communicate. ...

Science.gov (United States)

... is temporarily interrupted but quickly restored, called a transient ischemic attack. In these circumstances, language abilities may return in ...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The ability to adapt to adverse environmental conditions encountered in food and during host infection is a sine qua non for a successful Listeria monocytogenes infection. This ability...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Endogenous immune complexes present in sera from 10 different patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in an active phase were allowed to bind to Raji cells; the ability of intact complement...Full Text Available

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BackgroundVisual acuity, the ability of the visual system to distinguish two separate objects at a given angular distance, is influenced by the optical and neuronal properties of...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Conditions were found in which Chlamydomonas reinhardi exhibits a circadian alteration of its cell surface, measured as ability to stick to glass. Under these same conditions the cells...Full Text Available

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Spatial ability is a powerful systematic source of individual differences that has been neglected in complex learning and work settings; it has also been neglected in modeling the development of expertise and creative accomplishments. Nevertheless, over 50years of longitudinal research documents the important role that spatial ability plays in educational and occupational settings wherein sophisticated reasoning with figures, patterns, and shapes is essential. Given the contemporary push for developing STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) talent in the information age, an opportunity is available to highlight the psychological significance of spatial ability. Doing so is likely to inform research on aptitude-by-treatment interactions and Underwood's (1975) idea to utili...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Individual strains of the plant pathogenic bacterium Pseudomonas syringae vary in their ability to produce toxins, nucleate ice, and resist antimicrobial compounds. These phenotypes...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Network generators that capture the Internet's large-scale topology are crucial for the development of efficient routing protocols and modeling Internet traffic. Our ability to design realistic generators...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Rotifers of class Bdelloidea are common invertebrate animals with highly unusual characteristics, including apparently obligate asexuality, the ability to resume reproduction after desiccation at any...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

During instrumentation of the root canal, it is important to develop a continuously tapered form and to maintain the original shape and position of the apical foramen. However, the presence of curvatures...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Background"Nubiotics" are synthetic oligonucleotides and nucleotides with nuclease-resistant backbones, and are fully protonated for enhanced ability to be taken up by bacterial...Full Text Available

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Russian (Dec 1973). USSR Chmovzh, VE Lipshtejn, RA Zalkind, I.Ya. Dik,

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A competitive repopulation assay utilizing chromosome markers was used to assay the reconstituting potential of hematopoietic populations. The test populations consisted of tibial murine marrow locally irradiated with doses ranging from 1.5 Gy to 8.5 Gy and of marrow generated from either murine splenic or marrow stem cells. The purpose of this assay was to assess the innate proliferative potential and microenvironmental influences on the ability to repopulate. Regardless of origin, spleen repopulating ability consistently agreed with spleen colony-forming unit (CFU-s) content. Doses of radiation from 5 Gy to 8.5 Gy diminished, by a factor of 2, the ability to repopulate marrow despite maintenance of CFU-s levels. Marrow generated from splenic stem cells had one-fifth the repopulating ability of marrow derived from marrow stem cells, even though CFU-s levels were equivalent. The results imply that the ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Hornification is the loss of fiber wall swelling which is detrimental to subsequent recycling resulting from drying. It is known that dried fibers lose their conformability and swelling capacity. The effect of recycling treatment on the swelling ability of hardwood bleached kraft pulp fibers was determined. Modelling paper recycling, sheets were recycled using heat treatment (23?C, 60?C, 100?C). The results were compared with those for natural fibers from bleached kraft pulp. Swelling kinetics of sheets was measured by a modified method monitoring interactions of pulp with water. Swelling ability decreased during the recycling in comparison with never-recycled pulp at all temperatures. Recycling of sheets caused only small changes in the cupri-ethylene-diamine viscosity, however, the water...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Mathematics education reform emphasises the need to move away from transmission models of teaching to discursive classroom practices in which students negotiate and justify solutions to problems. This shift has potential, but not inevitable, implications for students' mathematical identities with respect to their sense of ownership and participation in mathematics as a creative activity, and is particularly pertinent in the UK context where ability grouping is prevalent. This paper presents an analysis of 13-15-year-old British pupils' accounts of learning and doing mathematics, and shows that the pedagogic practices of ability grouping do indeed play a major part in the development of participatory identities for some pupils but not for others. The data also show that learning is more tha...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

One of the requirements for a federated information system is interoperability, the ability of one computer system to access and use the resources of another system. This feature is particularly...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Genetic studies of nicotine addiction in mice have utilized the oral self-administration model. However, it is unclear if strain differences in nicotine consumption are influenced by variation in bitter...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The effect of Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide (LPS) on the expression of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II molecules by bovine mammary macrophages was examined. The ability of LPS-treated...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The ability to respond to stress is at the core of an organism's survival. The hormones epinephrine and norepinephrine play a central role in stress responses in mammals, which require the synchronized...Full Text Available

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BackgroundXenotropic Murine Leukemia Virus-related (XMRV) virus is a recently identified mouse gammaretrovirus that has the ability to infect certain human cells. In this study,...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Oxidative stress contributes to the pathophysiology of exposure to heavy metals/metalloid. Beneficial renal effects of some medications, such as chelation therapy depend at least partially on the ability...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The objectives of this study were to select and initially characterize mutants of soybean (Glycine max L. Merr. cv Williams) with decreased ability to reduce nitrate. Selection involved...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Hibernators are unique among mammals in their ability to survive extended periods of time with core body temperatures near freezing and with dramatically reduced heart, respiratory, and metabolic rates...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The phagocytic and killing abilities of heifer mammary gland macrophages (M phi) and neutrophils were evaluated after exposure to recombinant bovine interferon-gamma (rBoIFN-gamma) stimulation in vitro....Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

BackgroundEfficient and safe transection of biological tissue in liver surgery is strongly dependent on the ability to address both parenchymal division and hemostasis simultaneously....Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

1. The structural requirements of an allosteric barbiturate binding site on acetylcholine receptor-rich membranes isolated from Torpedo electroplaques have been characterized by the ability of fourteen...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The widespread use of tobacco and alcohol among adolescents might be related to the ability of nicotine and ethanol to facilitate social interactions. To investigate the neurobehavioral mechanisms...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Toxicogenomics provides the ability to examine in greater detail the underlying molecular events that precede and accompany toxicity, thus allowing prediction of adverse events at much earlier...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The brain’s ability to bind incoming auditory and visual stimuli depends critically on the temporal structure of this information. Specifically, there exists a temporal window of audiovisual...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The ability to achieve tumor selective expression of therapeutic genes is an area that needs improvement for cancer gene therapy to be successful. One approach to address this is through the...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

IntroductionKluyvera ascorbata has become increasingly significant due to its potential to cause a wide range of infections, as well as its ability to transfer gene...Full Text Available

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The overall objective of this project was to use molecular genetics to develop strains of bacteria with enhanced ability to remove sulfur from coal, and to obtain data that will allow the performance and economics of a coal biodesulfurization process to be predicted. (VC)

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Many lifespan-modulating genes are involved in either generation of oxidative substrates and end-products, or their detoxification and removal. Among such metabolites, only lipoperoxides have the ability...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Introduction: Selective dissemination of information (SDI) services regularly alert users to new information on their chosen topics. This type of service can increase a user's ability to...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The natural biotic capacity of soils to degrade gamma-hexachlorocyclohexane (gamma-HCH, lindane) was estimated using an enrichment technique based on the ability of soil bacteria to develop on synthetic...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Recent technological advances have lead to the ability to generate large amounts of data for model and non-model organisms. Whereas, in the past, there have been a relatively small number of central...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The compromised abilities to localize sounds and to understand speech are two hallmark deficits in aged individuals. The auditory cortex is necessary for these processes, yet we know little...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Bacteria have the ability to adapt to different growth conditions and to survive in various environments. They have also the capacity to enter into dormant states and some bacteria form spores when...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The genetic systems of bacteria that have the ability to use organic pollutants as carbon and energy sources can be adapted to create bacterial biosensors for the detection of industrial pollution....Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

BackgroundThere has been increasing interest in the ability of the internet to produce behaviour change. The focus of this study was to describe program exposure across three intervention...Full Text Available

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This article reports of the nickel-metal-hydride battery and its ability to compete with the lead-acid battery in electric-powered vehicles. The topics of the article include development of the battery, the impetus for development in California environmental law, battery performance, packaging for the battery's hazardous materials, and the solid electrolyte battery.

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

OBJECTIVES: The ability to maximally generate active muscle tension during resistance training has been established to be a primary determinant for strength development. The influence of intrasession...Full Text Available

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The dispersion mechanism of highly loaded coal-water mixture (CWM) in the presence of a polyelectrolyte additive was investigated. Two important factors have been found: the ability of the additive to apply a sufficient electric repulsive force to the coal particles, and an appropriate affinity of the additive to the coal surface.

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Spatial abilities have been associated with many ecologically-relevant behaviors such as territoriality, mate choice, navigation and acquisition of food resources. Differential demands on spatial...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

In recent years, the National Toxicology Program (NTP) has selected numerous glycol ethers for testing in routine laboratory mammals to ascertain the magnitude of their ability to injure the conceptus....Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The most characteristic features of the Lyme disease pathogens, the Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato (s.l.) group, are their ability to invade tissues and to circumvent the immune defenses...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The goal of community-based services for frail older patients is to help them achieve the greatest degree of functional ability and independence. The services available include case management, geriatric...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The Marcy Wedge-Pro (MWP), a device used in training by tennis players, was employed in the assessment of tennis elbow. The MWP was used to measure the ability of patients to perform wrist extension...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

We investigated the ability of N-benzyl-N-ethyl-2-(7,8-dihydro-7-methyl-8-oxo-2-phenyl-9H-purin-9-yl)acetamide...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

BackgroundA fundamental requirement for the exploitation of embryonic stem (ES) cells in regenerative medicine is the ability to reproducibly derive sufficient numbers of cells of...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

A comparative study has been carried out of the growth of two lines of Datura innoxia (Mill.) cells, designated DI-6 and NR1, their resistance to chlorate, and their ability to assimilate...Full Text Available

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A car-borne NaI(Tl) spectrometric system was used together with a {sup 137}Cs source to obtain realistic data in the search for unshielded and semi-shielded orphan sources. The potassium-stripped counts (PSC) method was used to estimate the influence by the shielding on the detection ability. A reduction of about 5% in the critical distance was obtained for the semi-shielded source. A curve fitting method was also developed and evaluated. Results from the curve fitting method showed inferior ability to find the source compared to the PSC method. However, it can be a useful complementary tool, for characterisation of the source shielding, and estimation of the distance from the road.

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The evaluation of radon concentration measurements in newly developing geothermal reservoirs with the objective of determining the ability of measured changes in noncondensible gas components, such as radon, to predict changes in the thermodynamic properties of the reservoir is described. This ability would be especially useful in liquid-dominated resources, where changes in steam fraction are sensitive to changes in reservoir temperature and fluid enthalpy. Radon measurements were made in samples separated by phase at the outlets of a prototype rotary separator turbine. The data were examined in relation to the thermodynamic properties of the geofluids supplied by the test well.

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Over the past decade, the energy {open_quotes}paper{close_quotes} market has grown into one of the largest traded markets in the world providing hedging instruments for the producer as well as the enduser of energy products. Because banks, stockholders, and other financial providers rely on a borrower`s ability to generate cash flow to repay their investment, borrowers are increasingly turning to the derivatives markets to provide security against one of the most volatile markets in he world. The existence of this market has enhanced the ability of financial institutions to lend with confidence and appropriate aggressiveness to the oil and gas industry.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

A novel Ni and Cu-free Zr-based bulk metallic glass (BMG) system with enhancement of glass-forming ability (GFA) and bio-corrosion resistance was prepared by copper mold casting by the addition of Ag. It was found that the addition of Ag can considerably enhance the glass-forming ability, as indicated by the increase of the critical glass dimension from 3 mm diameter of the ternary system to over 10 mm in the alloy of Zr_5_3Co_1_8_._5Al_2_3_._5Ag_5. The bio-corrosion behaviors of the Zr-based BMGs in phosphate buffered solution (PBS) were investigated by electrochemical polarization at 310 K. It was found that the addition of appropriate amount of Ag can enhance the corrosion resistance of the BMGs. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) indicated that the formation of an Al_2O_3-enriched passive film is mainly responsible for the high corrosion resistance of Ag-bearing alloy in phosphate buffered solution.

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Sphere-forming abilities in culture condition are considered a hallmark of cancer stem-like cells, which represents tumor cell invasiveness and stem-like characteristics. We aimed to show that the sphere-forming subpopulation of human malignant melanoma cell line WM-266-4 acts differently to zebrafish embryo extracts compared with their bulk counterpart. Spheres were maintained in neural stem cell culture conditions. The embryos of zebrafish at specific developmental stages were collected and the extracts were purified under 100 kDa. Spheres were treated with embyo extracts and proliferation assay and immunocytochemistry were conducted. Spheroid cells expressed nestin and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) but not melanoma antigen recognized by T-cells (MART)1, indicating their stem-l...

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Abstract Aim- To explore whether the subspecific genetic entities of Acacia saligna occupy different bioclimatic niches in their native and introduced ranges and whether these niches are predictable using species distribution models (SDMs). Location- Australia, South Africa and the Mediterranean Basin. Methods- Species distribution models were developed in MAXENT using six climatic variables to calculate the climatic suitability of the ranges of A.saligna. We assessed (1) the subspecific niche differences identified by SDMs using measures of niche overlap and model performance; (2) the ability of SDMs to predict the most likely subspecific genetic entities present in South Africa based on comparisons to genetic data; and (3) the ability of SDMs to predict the most likely subspecific geneti...

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Abstract: The ability of melatonin as a potent antioxidant was used as a rationale for testing its antiapoptotic ability in normal cells. Recently, melatonin was shown to possess proapoptotic action by increasing reactive oxygen species in certain cancer cells. The modification of radiation-induced apoptosis by melatonin and the expression of apoptosis-associated upstream regulators were studied in normal mice splenocytes and Jurkat T leukemia cells. C57BL/6 mice were exposed to a single whole body X-ray radiation dose of 2 Gy with or without 250 mg/kg melatonin pretreatment. The Jurkat cells were divided into four groups of control, 1 mm melatonin alone, 4 Gy irradiation-only and melatonin pretreatment before irradiation. The highest level of apoptosis in the normal splenic white pulp was...

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Ability to predict mechanical response of rock in three dimensions over the spatial and time scales of geologic interest would give the oil and gas industry the ability to reduce risk on prospects, improve pre-project initial reserve estimates, and lower operating costs. A program has recently been initiated, under the auspices of the Advanced Computational Technology Initiative (ACTI), to achieve such a computational technology breakthrough by adapting the unique advanced quasistatic finite element technology developed by Sandia to the mechanics applications important to exploration and production activities within the oil and gas industry. As a precursor to that program, in an effort to evaluate the feasibility of the approach, several complex geologic structures of interest were analyzed with the existing two-dimensional quasistatic finite element code, SANTOS, developed at Sandia. Examples are presented and discussed.

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Old World Bluestems (OWB), introduced from Europe and Asia in the 1920s, recently have begun to raise concerns in the Great Plains. Despite suggestion in the late 1950s that OWB were weedy and negatively impacted biological diversity, they were widely introduced throughout the Great Plains for agricultural purposes. Anecdotal evidence suggests that OWB exhibit invasive characteristics that promote competitive exclusion of native species. The objective of our study was to quantify the competitive abilities of two OWB species (Caucasian bluestem; Bothriochloa bladhii (Retz.) S.T. Blake (=?Bothriochloa caucasica (Trin.) C.E. Hubb.) and yellow bluestem; Bothriochloa ischaemum (L.) Keng) with three native grass species (big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii Vitman), little bluestem (Schizachyrium s...

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Poplar breeding in Europe is in a more advanced state than breeding programmes of other species. In Europe, poplars are part of the scenery and are integrated in the economy. Traditionally poplar stands are established in lowland areas. But an increasing interest in their use moved them to upland sites. Poplar uses are multiple: lumber, industrial wood, wind-breaks and landscape plantations, etc. Selection characteristics are classified in different groups: vegetative propagation ability, vigor, adaptation to sites and climate, resistance to diseases and insect pests, wood quality, and coppicing ability. Strategies have improved with time. The most efficient strategies for the long term involve constitution of base populations, selection of parents for intra- and interspecific hybridizations, selection within the progenies, and vegetative propagation. Short term strategies are also applied simultaneously. Advanced breeding techniques with ...

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Red mud has been activated by dissolution in hydrochloric acid and reprecipitation with ammonia. The activated material has been evaluated as a catalyst for the hydrogenation of naphthalene, phenanthrene and pyrene and in the hydroliquefaction of both a high and low rank coal utilizing solvents of high and low hydrogen donating ability. Activation led to a substantial increase in the ability to hydrogenate the model compounds and a significant increase in oil yield was obtained in the hydroliquefaction of a low rank coal in the presence of a poor donor solvent. However, activation did not lead to significant increases in overall yields of liquids in other cases and the activated red mud was significantly less active than a commercial nickel-molybdenum-sulphur catalyst. 27 refs., 1 fig., 5 tabs.

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This project is concerned with a basic scientific question concerning the properties of coal--to what extent is the ability of coal to hold moisture a manifestation of the well-known ability of coal to swell, when exposed to good solvents The question implies that the long-held belief that coal holds a significant portion of its moisture by classical capillary condensation processes, is possibly in error. It is likely that a sound approach to permanent drying would involve highly crosslinking the coal at mild drying conditions. The crosslinked coal could not swell sufficiently to hold much water. It is identifying processes to achieve this goal, that constitute the objective of the second phase of this work. 25 refs., 4 figs., 1 tab.

Science.gov (United States)

Efficient and economical utilization of wind power will require the ability to measure and ultimately predict the effects fluctuations in the incident wind will have on a wind turbine. In order to quantitatively assesss these effects, experimental techniques have been developed which allow analysis of full-scale performance of wind turbines with particular emphasis on the effects caused by turbulence in the incident wind. Examples of these techniques are presented using data from the DOE/Sandia Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT) program.

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Small-scale methods for determining the reaction rates of explosives that make it possible to predict safe temperatures for using them, and methods for testing the accuracy of these predictions were developed. Each different size and shape of each different explosive has its own critical temperature. The ability to predict these critical temperatures is required before high-energy materials can be used safely.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Synthesis of the azido substituted non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug 2-(2,6-dichloroanilino)phenylacetic acid and isotope labeling of this compound have been performed and are described. Initial evaluation of the binding ability and photoreactivity indicates that this compound has potential for photoaffinity labeling as well as enzyme selectivity studies. (author).

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A semiquantitative assay was developed and used to measure the effects of immune responses against 16 independent non-H-2 antigenic loci on erythropoietic stem cells. The assay compares repopulation in genetically anemic WBB6F1-W/Wv recipients that have normal immune responses, and in lethally irradiated WBB6F1 +/+ mice whose immune responses are suppressed by the irradiation. The differences in repopulating ability between these two types of recipients measure how immune responses affect erythropoietic stem cells. Stem cell repopulating abilities for the cells with antigens specified by the Thy-1, H-1, H-24, Ly-1, H-37, and H-17 loci were affected slightly, if at all. Repopulating abilities were moderately reduced by responses against antigens specified by H-15, 16, Ea-2, and Ly-2, 3 loci, and against the differences between the B6 and B10 genotypes, although marrow of these types cured W/Wv recipients. A surprising result ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The purpose of the work reported in this paper was to measure the radionuclide buildup in primary heat transport system cell No. 3 at the Fast Flux Test Facility (FFTF) and to compare the results with predicted values from a model based on experimental studies and experience at similar reactors. The information obtained is used for maintenance planning and to enhance ability to assess radionuclide buildup in the future at FFTF and in other reactors.

Science.gov (United States)

We introduce a discrete multiplicative process as a generic model of competition. Players with different abilities successively join the game and compete for finite resources. Emergence of dominant players and evolutionary development occur as a phase transition. The competitive dynamics underlying this transition is understood from a formal analogy to statistical mechanics. The theory is applicable to bacterial competition, predicting novel population dynamics near criticality.

Science.gov (United States)

Overloaded transmission lines are only part of the problem. The ability of the network to carry power is also limited by the supply of reactive power and by frequency stability. Reactive power problems must be corrected in minutes, frequency stability problems in seconds. There is no way that market forces can handle these problems. Reactive power must be supplied to all long transmission and distribution lines to compensate for the loss of reactive volt-amperes - and resulting voltage drop - in the reactance along the line`s length. 7 figs.

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A discussion is presented of the 750-KeV chopper experience with both proton and negative ion beams and the ability of these systems to tailor the Linac beam to the diverse requirements of its users; normal accelerator injection, neutron therapy beam, and electron cooling experiments. This flexibility plus a cleaner beam pulse, improved thyratron operation, and mechanical modularity are the results of recent improvements. Additional benefits have been increased reliability and ease of service to the 750-KeV chopper. 3 refs.

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The workshop focused on strategies for promoting and developing engineering level transonic flutter prediction techniques. The technology of transonic aerodynamics is currently undergoing rapid development. Significant progress is being made to solve the inherently nonlinear equations describing unsteady motions of wings in transonic flow, while the availability of reliable and efficient computational methods will greatly enhance the ability to predict the aeroelastic behavior of modern aircraft operating under transonic flow conditions.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The purpose of this experiment was to evaluate the diagnostic ability of a CCD-based digital system (CDX-2000HQ) in the detection of incipient dental caries. 93 extracted human teeth with sound proximal surfaces and interproximal artificial cavities were radiographed using 4 imaging methods. Automatically processed No.2 Insight film (Eastman Kodak Co., U.S.A.) was used for conventional radiography, scanned images of conventional radiograms for indirect digital radiography were used. For the direct digital radiography, the CDX-2000HQ CCD system (Biomedisys Co. Korea) was used. The subtraction images were made from two direct digital images by Sunny program in the CDX-2000HQ system. Two radiologists and three endodontists examined the presence of lesions using a five-point confidence scale and compared the diagnostic ability by ROC (Receiver Operating Characteristic) analysis and one way ANOVA test. The mean ROC areas of conventional radiography, ...

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We investigated the descriminative ability of total body bone-mineral expressed as the total body bone-density (TBBD) measured by dual photon absorptiometry (DPA) in 79 healthy premenopausal women, 27 healthy postmenopausal women, and 120 female osteoporotic fracture patients presenting with either Colles' fracture, vertebral fracture or femoral neck-fracture. TBBD was compared to the bone-mineral density of the lumbar spine (BMD{sub spine}) also measured by DPA, and to the bone-mineral content of the forearms (BMC{sub forearm}) measured by single photon absorptiometry (SPA). TBBD, BMD{sub spine} and BMC{sub forearm} showed that all the fracture patient groups had significantly reduced bone-mass. Using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis, we found that TBBD had a tendency towards better discriminative ability than BMD{sub spine} or BMC{sub forearm} with regard to the discrimination between healthy premenopausal women and ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

A new software for neutron activation analysis was designed, built and implemented on a desktop computer using Visual Basic 6.0 program. The construction of this data analyzer computer program is described. The new software deals with peak reports resulting from Gammaplus software with minimum interference from the user in order to save time, manpower and minimize human errors. Its ability to find the concentrations of chemical elements within samples is proven to be fast, reliable and user friendly. (author)

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The NucliSens easyMAG and BioRot 9604 automated nucleic acid extraction systems were evaluated and compared with the manual QIAamp (Qiagen) extraction method for their abilities to extract nucleic acid...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The CNS is a unique organ due to its limited capacity for immune surveillance. As macrophages of the CNS, microglia represent a population originally known for the ability to assist neuronal stability,...Full Text Available

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Biosorption means the storage of substances at the cell envelope. Different microbial biomasses were tested for the separation of radionuclides from mining waters. Results of a pilot plant demonstrate the ability of these techniques for water cleaning processes. An effluent concentration of lower than 1 mg/l (in most cases 0.1 mg/1) could be realized in a pilot plant by using pure cells of a methylotrophic strain of bacteria as well as using of a fungal mycelia.

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Aluminum hydroxide coating thicknesses were measured on fuel elements stored in aluminum canisters in K West Basin using specially developed eddy current probes . The results were used to estimate coating inventories for MCO fuel,loading. Brushing tests successfully demonstrated the ability to remove the coating if deemed necessary prior to MCO loading.

Science.gov (United States)

A description is given of an automatic liquid nitrogen pumping system. Pamping of liquid nitrogen iato cooling traps up to a predetermined level is achieved by an automatically controlled compressed air system. An impontant feature of the equipment is the ability to switch automatically from an empty liquid nitrogen reservoir to a full one. This allows for a much more flexible operation than in conventional systems where the reservoir has to be replaced manually when empty. (auth)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Geographic information system (GIS) technology is now being used by wind energy developers who are required to consider and accommodate a wide variety of environmental and social considerations. This poster presentation discussed some of the new features available in current GIS technologies. High resolution imagery from satellites is being used to verify the accuracy of collected spatial data, as well as to investigate potential locations for meteorological towers, turbine sites, and roads. Slopes are easily calculated using GIS software tools, and digital elevation data can be used with high resolution aerial photography to determine routes for new roads and to establish available sites for crane pads. The GIS tools allow developers to consider protected ecological areas, wetlands and forests, and gives them the ability to better report project development considerations at public consultations. Wind resource grid outputs can also be projected using GIS software. ...

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The synchronous orbit performance of Hughes Aircraft Company solar arrays is presented and compared with the results of ground based predictions for orbital durations of almost 11 years. Performances of the Intelsat IV*, IVA*, and Telesat (Anik) solar arrays are detailed. This paper is an update of the in-orbit performances previously reported in 1976 (1). The in-space performance data indicate solar array power degradation of 16.7 percent for Intelsat IV F-2 after 130 months in orbit, and 13.0 percent for Telesat F-1 after 85 months in orbit. The predicted output of each of these solar arrays is within 2 percent of the actual in-orbit performance of these systems. The Intelsat IV F-2 experienced the 4 August 1972 solar flare. The ability to accurately predict the performance of solar arrays within telemetry accuracy is demonstrated. This ability combines the electrical measurements of a solar array in the ''as ...

Science.gov (United States)

The ability of Yersinia pestis to forestall the mammalian innate immune response is a fundamental aspect of plague pathogenesis. In this study, we examined the effect of Ail, a 17-kDa outer membrane protein that protects Y. pestis against complement-mediated lysis, on bubonic plague pathogenesis in mice and rats. The Y. pestis ail mutant was attenuated for virulence in both rodent models. The attenuation was greater in rats than in mice, which correlates with the ability of normal rat serum, but not mouse serum, to kill ail-negative Y. pestis in vitro. Intradermal infection with the ail mutant resulted in an atypical, subacute form of bubonic plague associated with extensive recruitment of polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMN or neutrophils) to the site of infection in the draining lymph node and the formation of large purulent abscesses that contained the bacteria. Systemic spread and mortality were greatly attenuated, however, and a productive ...

Science.gov (United States)

Probiotic agents, live microorganisms with beneficial effects for the host, may offer an alternative to conventional antimicrobials in the treatment and prevention of enteric infections. The probiotic agents Lactobacillus plantarum 299v and Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG quantitatively inhibited the adherence of an attaching and effacing pathogenic Escherichia coli to HT-29 intestinal epithelial cells but did not inhibit adherence to nonintestinal HEp-2 cells. HT-29 cells were grown under conditions that induced high levels of either MUC2 or MUC3 mRNA, but HEp-2 cells expressed only minimal levels of MUC2 and no MUC3 mRNA. Media enriched for MUC2 and MUC3 mucin were added exogenously to binding assays and were shown to be capable of inhibiting enteropathogen adherence to HEp-2 cells. Incubation of L. plantarum 299v with HT-29 cells increased MUC2 and MUC3 mRNA expression levels. From these in vitro studies, we propose the hypothesis that the ability of probiotic agents ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

This report briefly describes the studies on the mechanism of in vivo DNA repairing by the author in Research Reactor Institute, Kyoto Univ. for the past 30 years. First, the ability of UV radiation to induce transformation was investigated with viral DNA. The formation of thymine-thymine dimer was found harmful to organisms and such dimers were removable by UV-radiation at a low frequency. The mutability was determined in three different E.coli strains with mutator gene, mutT, mutS or mutL. The ability to excise 8-oxoguanin developed in primer DNA was deficient in mutT and miss-pairing left after DNA replication could not be recovered in mutL and mutS strains. Further, DNA repairing mechanism was investigated in other microorganisms; single-strand cleavage caused by exposure to BNCB radiation (boron-neutron-captured beam) could not be repaired in E. coli. Whereas for Deinococcus radiodurans, of which survival rate was not decreased by ...

Science.gov (United States)

This article contains the argument that the human ability to travel mentally in time constitutes a discontinuity between ourselves and other animals. Mental time travel comprises the mental reconstruction of personal events from the past (episodic memory) and the mental construction of possible events in the future. It is not an isolated module, but depends on the sophistication of other cognitive capacities, including self-awareness, meta-representation, mental attribution, understanding the perception-knowledge relationship, and the ability to dissociate imagined mental states from one's present mental state. These capacities are also important aspects of so-called theory of mind, and they appear to mature in children at around age 4. Furthermore, mental time travel is generative, involving the combination and recombination of familiar elements, and in this respect may have been a precursor to language. Current evidence, although indirect or ...

CERN Document Server

We study the impact of very light sterile neutrinos (Delta m^2_new around 1 to 10 times 10^(-2) eV^2, sin^2 2theta_new<10^(-1)) on upcoming theta_13-driven reactor antineutrino experiments like Double-CHOOZ and Daya Bay. Oscillations driven by these vales of Delta m^2_new affect data in the near and far detectors differently and hence potentially modify the capability of these experimental setups to constrain and measure sin^2 2theta_13. We find that the hypothesis theta_new different from zero negatively impacts one's ability to either place an upper bound on sin^2 2theta_13 in the advent of no oscillation signal or measure sin^2 2theta_13 if a theta_13-driven signal is observed. The impact of sterile neutrino effects, however, depends significantly on one's ability to measure the recoil positron energy spectrum. If sin^2 2theta_new is larger than 10^(-2), upcoming theta_13-driven reactor antineutrino experiments should be able to measure ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

In recent years it has become evident from epidemiological and experimental data that a large number of environmental factors, including diet, play a role in modifying the incidence of cancer. Cell culture systems in which oncogenic transformation serves as an end point are powerful tools for evaluating these questions. Using such systems it has been shown recently that pyrolysis products from charred surfaces of broiled meat and fish can transform hamster embryo cells in vitro as well as produce tumors in the animal. Our studies in vitro have demonstrated the oncogenic potential of ionizing radiation in both hamster and human cells and have established in hamster cells the dose response relationship at doses ranging from 1 to 600 rad for x-rays and 0.1 to 150 rad for neutrons. The present work was aimed at evaluating whether there exists a cocarcinogenic interaction between a pyrolysis product and x-rays in their ability to transform hamster embryo cells in vitro. ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

adult males and females, less than 24 hours old, of the spiny bollworm, Earias Insulana boisd. were irradiated with sub sterilizing doses of 50,80,100 and 150 gray (Gy). treated moths were out crossed with normal adults and observed for their ability to reproduce. inherited deleterious effects resulting from irradiation of p_1 moths were recorded for several generations. the reduction in both fecundity and egg viability increased by increasing the dose applied to p_1 adult moths .at all tested doses, the females were more radiosensitive than males, as for reduction in fecundity and egg viability. the progeny from irradiated parental females are not as sterile as the progeny from irradiated parental males. the reduction of egg hatching continued in the progeny of irradiated males through F_1 and to lesser extent through F_2 .on the other hand , irradiation of P_1 females reduced the rate of egg hatching among parental generation and to lesser extent among the first ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Effects of ethanol in vitro on membrane vesicles were evaluated by monitoring "3"6Cl"- influx. Different assay parameters were tested to determine increased or decreased action of ethanol on GABA-activated chloride channels. The ability of 30 mM ethanol to augment "3"6Cl"- flux was seen at 0 degree C, in the absence of GABA, and at 34 degree C in the presence of GABA, using two different assay procedures. Picrotoxin blocked the direct effects of ethanol suggesting GABA_a involvement. Endogenous GABA in the medium surrounding the microsacs was assayed at different temperatures both in the presence and absence of GABA and ethanol. The direct effect of ethanol did not appear to involve the action of endogenous GABA. In addition to temperature effects on the assay, time of membrane storage also influenced ethanol action. Microsacs stored on ice for 2 hours or more lost their ability to respond to ethanol but not to GABA, pentobarbital or ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The constitutive model used to describe the deformation of crushed salt is presented in this report. Two mechanisms -- dislocation creep and grain boundary diffusional pressure solution -- are combined to form the basis for the constitutive model governing the deformation of crushed salt. The constitutive model is generalized to represent three-dimensional states of stress. Upon complete consolidation, the crushed-salt model reproduces the Multimechanism Deformation (M-D) model typically used for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) host geological formation salt. New shear consolidation tests are combined with an existing database that includes hydrostatic consolidation and shear consolidation tests conducted on WIPP and southeastern New Mexico salt. Nonlinear least-squares model fitting to the database produced two sets of material parameter values for the model -- one for the shear consolidation tests and one for a combination of the shear and hydrostatic consolidation tests. ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

In an effort to evaluate the feasibility of introducing computed radiography (FCR) into mass screening for lung cancer, the ability of FCR to detect nodules one cm in diameter was examined using a humanoid chest phantom. Based on the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis, the detectability of FCR was compared with that of conventional radiography and photofluorography. The values of area under ROC curves were higher for FCR (0.963 for image similar to that with conventional film-intensifying screen system, image A; and 0.952 for processed image, image B) than the other two methods (0.774 for radiography and 0.789 for photofluorography). Degradation of image quality in FCR could be avoided by a wide latitude even if proper exposure techniques might not be employed. Images A and B in FCR yielded excellent delineation for nodules in the lung field and in the retrocardiac and subdiaphragmatic regions, respectively. This may have implications for the value of ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Isobaric contaminants are often problematical in accelerated negative ion beams for research at certain radioactive ion beam (RIB) and accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) facilities since their presence in low-intensity rare isotopic beams seriously compromise experimental results. This article describes a non-resonant, laser-based photo-detachment apparatus for use at these facilities, which, according to calculations efficiently removes isobaric contaminants from these beams. The advantage of the system for isobaric contaminant removal over other systems proposed to date lies in its ability to efficiently capture easily transportable energetic negative ion beams with low, intermediate or high energy spreads by a superconducting solenoid magnetic field. The ability to change the diameter of captured beams by adjusting the magnetic field strength permits optimum control of the radial overlap of the laser/negative ion beam profiles over an ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Unmanned systems are often used to augment the ability of humans to perform challenging tasks. While the value of individual unmanned vehicles have been proven for a variety of tasks, it is less understood how multiple unmanned systems should be used together to accomplish larger missions such as site security. The purpose of this paper is to discuss efforts by researchers at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) to explore the utility and practicality of operating multiple unmanned systems for a site security mission. This paper reviews the technology developed for a multi-agent mission and summarizes the lessons-learned from a technology demonstration.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The effect of UV radiation in the wavelength region 230 nm to 302 nm on the ability of an irradiated mammalian cell to reactivate UV-irradiated mammalian virus was tested. An action spectrum for radiation enhanced reactivation (RER) is presented. The shape of the action spectrum points to a combined nucleic acid-protein target for UV radiation effects on this cellular parameter. An analysis of the results of others involving the biochemical and photobiological events involved in RER does not allow us to distinguish which macromolecule is the major contributor to this effect. Studies involving an analogous phenomenon in bacteris (Weigle reactivation) imply that RER and WR amy involve similar mechanisms. (author).

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

According to Schumpeter, the creative process of economic development can be divided into the stages of invention, innovation (commercialization) and imitation. Each stage is associated with specific skills. This paper examines whether Schumpeter?s assertion was correct, i.e. whether the invention and innovation stages should be undertaken by different agents. In addition, we examine whether there is a rationale for the Schumpeterian entrepreneur to include the inventor in the commercialization process. Combining the abilities of the entrepreneur and the inventor may serve to facilitate customer adaptation, strengthen knowledge transfers and reduce uncertainty, thereby expanding market opportunities. Based on a unique database covering Swedish patents granted to individuals and small firms...

Science.gov (United States)

The report gives results of an analysis of the effect of the availability of a flue gas desulfurization system on the ability of an individual power plant to generate electricity at its rated capacity. (The availability of anything is the fraction of time it is capable of service, whether or not it is actually in service.) Also analyzed are its effects on a power generating system (a group of several coal-, oil-, and gas- fired power plants plus nuclear and hydroelectric plants).

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is committed to providing high quality products that satisfy customer needs and are the associated with this goal, DOE personnel must possess the knowledge, skills, and abilities to ensure successful job performance. In addition, there must be recognition that the greatest obstacle to proper project performance is inadequate project definition. Without strong project definition, DOE environmental management efforts are vulnerable to fragmented solutions, duplication of effort, and wastes resources. The primary means of ensuring environmental management projects meet cost and schedule milestones is through a structured and graded approach to project definition, which is the focus of this handbook.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A subsurface imaging system is utilized to test the ability of the spectral polarization difference imaging technique for deep subsurface imaging in tissues. The illumination of the system is derived from compact class III lasers in the red and NIR spectral region and, alternatively, from a white light source and selection of the appropriate illumination wavelength using band-pass optical filters. The experimental results demonstrate detection and imaging of a high-scattering object located up to 1.5 cm underneath the surface of a host chicken tissue.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Phase transformations occuring during cold deformation in hardened #alpha#+#beta# titanium alloy of the Ti-Al-Mo-Zr-Sn-Si system with 10% summary content of alloying elements are studied by X-ray diffraction analysis. Two stages of trapsformation of metastable #alpha#''-phase are found. A conclusiop is made that ability of the alloy containing #alpha#''-phase to cold deformation is determined by the presence of favourable texture, by high degree of metastability and by volume portion of #alpha#''-phase in the alloy structure.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Laser Doppler velocimetry and other photometric techniques are evaluated for measuring the average particle velocity in an ensemble of free-falling particles. The ability to obtain measurements in the presence of a radiant flux as high as 0.6 MW/m/sup 2/ was part of the evaluation. Optically dissimilar particles with diameters ranging from 0.1 mm to 1 mm were used in the study. Experimental results indicate that ensembles of particles do not behave as single isolated particles. The particle motion is dependent on particle volume fraction, and is quite unstable for falls greater than one meter.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This report details an investigation into the efficacy of two approaches to solving the radiation diffusion equation within a radiation hydrodynamic simulation. Because leading-edge scientific computing platforms have evolved from large single-node vector processors to parallel aggregates containing tens to thousands of individual CPU's, the ability of an algorithm to maintain high compute efficiency when distributed over a large array of nodes is critically important. The viability of an algorithm thus hinges upon the tripartite question of numerical accuracy, total time to solution, and parallel efficiency.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Projects have become a way of getting things done, and have moved increasingly toward achieving qualitative goals. In this article on video game development, the opportunity is taken to relate some particular observations on creative projects and their management. The essential aspects of this approach are its incorporation of individual and group creativity into its foundation, a Lindblomian process of decision making, and a substitution of a time of regular introspection for milestones. Application depends upon the ability to have interim developments available for group examination and fixing a suitable time interval to make such assessments. The approach would seem applicable to a range of possibilities, including film making, script writing, architectural rendering, and equipment desi...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Micropropagation methods are described for the production of clonal lines from Eucalyptus marginata (jarrah) seedlings. Nodal explants from mature trees can also yield shoot cultures, but a high frequency of contamination occurs among such explants. Uncontaminated callus cultures can be produced from mature trees by culturing stamen filaments and shoots can subsequently be regenerated from this callus. The rooting percentage of shoot cultures from either nodes or stamen callus of mature trees is low compared with that from seedling explants. Considerable variation was observed between trees in the ability of stamen callus to regenerate shoots and in the frequency of rooting. (Refs. 27)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The Outreach Program was designed to solicit creative ideas from academia, research institutions, private enterprises, and the general public and is intended to be helpful in defining promising technical areas and program paths for more detailed study. To the Outreach Program, a number of power system concepts were proposed. In conclusion, there are a number of advanced concepts for space power and propulsion sources that deserve study if we want to expand our ability to not only explore space, but to utilize it. Advanced nuclear concepts and power beaming concepts are two areas worthy of detailed assessments.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The integrity of helium circulation loop flanged joints has been attracting recent attention as a design problem, in the development of high-temperature facilities incorporating helium loops (e.g., the VRG-50 pilot nuclear facility). Elevated temperatures and pressures, and the radiation environment, impose additional requirements on sealant materials. This applies first and foremost to rubber seals, which have found widespread favor on account of its excellent elasticity, its ability to spontaneously conform to possible changes in the clearance in the seal assembly, and the low compressive stresses developed in the flange joint assembly.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A variational principle is proposed for defining that canonical transformation, continuously connected with the identity transformation, which minimizes the residual, coordinate-dependent part of the new Hamiltonian. The principle is based on minimization of the mean-square generalized force. The transformation reduces to the action-angle transformation in that part of the phase space of an integrable system where the orbit topology is that of the unperturbed system, or on primary KAM surfaces. General arguments in favor of this definition are given, based on Galilean invariance, decay of the Fourier spectrum, and its ability to include external fields or inhomogeneous systems. The optimal oscillation-center transformation for the physical pendulum, or particle in a sinusoidal potential, is constructed.

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nonlinear distortion added by the loudspeaker in a hearing aid lowers the signal-to-noise ratio and may degrade the hearing aid user's ability to understand speech. The balancedarmature- type loudspeakers, predominantly used in hearing aids, are inherently nonlinear devices, as any displacement of the loudspeaker diaphragm inevitably changes the magnetic and electrical characteristics of the loudspeaker. A numerical time-domain model capable of describing these nonlinearities is presented. By simulation it is demonstrated how the output distortion could potentially be reduced significantly through careful design of the mechanical properties of the armature.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

An acute fish toxicity model was constructed on the basis of a wide series of experimental data for guppy. The Multiple Computer-Automated structure Evaluation program was used to construct the model. The created model possesses very good predictive ability. It can correctly predict acute toxicity for guppy for 80% of compounds with an average error of only 0.63 log unit per median lethal concentration. The importance of the narcosis effect was demonstrated. The main toxicophores, corresponding to polar narcosis and to the reactive chemicals, were identified.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Magnetic separation of several classes of antibiotics was investigated using electrochemical magnetic seeding. Electrocoagulation with a sacrificial anode followed by addition of magnetite particles was applied for the magnetic seeding of antibiotics. With electrochemical magnetic seeding using an iron anode, tetracycline antibiotics (oxytetracycline, chlortetracycline, doxycycline and tetracycline) and cephalosporin antibiotic (cefdinir) were rapidly removed from synthetic wastewater by magnetic separation using a neodymium magnet. Iron and aluminium anodes were suitable for magnetic seeding of the antibiotics. The results indicated that the ability of antibiotics to form strong complex with iron and aluminium allowed the higher removal by magnetic separation. This method would be appropriate for rapid treatment of antibiotics in wastewater.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The marine ram-type blowout preventer deployed from an offshore drilling rig has one serious disadvantage, its inaccessibility. A development to promote reliability of the subsea ram-type preventer and reduce the excess running and pulling to charge out rams, is the variable bare ram (VBR). Unlike the standard ram, the VBR has the ability to pack off a range of pipe sizes. Interest in VBR's has been revived and research and development in this equipment goes on at each of three manufacturer's facilities in Houston.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This paper summarizes the investigation of horizontal direction drilling and the subsequent experimental installation of a natural gas network in a suburb of Paris, France. Three aspects of drilling were studied prior to implementation: (1) reliability of the technique and quality of pipelaying to ensure long-term supply main operation; (2) ability to assess the successfulness of the work by assessing preliminary conditions; and (3) economonic viability. Measurement of tensile stress on polyethylene pipe during pulling and comparative accelerated aging tests on scratched pipe were performed. In the implementation phase, 300 meters of pipe were laid daily, by using three machines simultaneously, at a cost comparable to that of conventional techniques.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The ability to control the flow of water around the body dictates the performance of marine mammals in the aquatic environment. Morphological specializations of marine mammals afford mechanisms for passive flow control. Aside from the design of the body, which minimizes drag, the morphology of the appendages provides hydrodynamic advantages with respect to drag, lift, thrust, and stall. The flukes of cetaceans and sirenians and flippers of pinnipeds possess geometries with flexibility, which enhance thrust production for high efficiency swimming. The pectoral flippers provide hydrodynamic lift for maneuvering. The design of the flippers is constrained by performance associated with stall. Delay of stall can be accomplished passively by modification of the flipper leading edge. Such a desig...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The high temperature gas-cooled test reactor HTR-10 achieved the first criticality in last December in Institute of Nuclear Energy Technology of Tsinghua University in Beijing. Fuji Electric and Nissho Iwai have a cooperative information exchange agreement on the commercialization of the HTGRs with INET, and held an information exchange meeting in last March in INET. INET has started a study on the modification of the HTR-10 to couple with gas turbine system and a pre-feasibility study on the commercial HTGR under the cooperation with China State Power Company. The experiences and abilities of INET in the field of the HTGR and the aggressive plan for commercialization of the HTGR in China are summarized and discussed. (author)

Science.gov (United States)

We have designed a new nucleobase, benzodeazaadenine (BDA) that has a stronger charge transport ability than guanine and is not destroyed during charge transport process. By incorporating this new nucleobase into DNA, we demonstrated a protocol for real DNA nano-wire that is far superior to natural DNA. We also demonstrated that the selectivity for the interaction of Mn(II) ion with guanine N7 in G runs is a HOMO-controlled process, and as a consequence, the selectivity for G-metal ion interactions obtained by 15N-NMR studies would directly reflect the HOMO distribution of G-containing sequences in B-DNA. PMID:12903077

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Isotopic analyses of radioactive materials such as irradiated nuclear fuel are of major importance for the optimization of the nuclear fuel cycle and for safeguard aspects. Among the mass-spectrometric techniques available, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and thermal ionization mass spectrometry are the most frequently applied methods for nuclear applications. Because of the low detection limits, the ability to analyze the isotopic composition of the elements and the applicability of the techniques for measuring stable as well as radioactive nuclides with similar sensitivity, both mass-spectrometric techniques are an excellent amendment to classical radioactivity counting methods. The paper describes selected applications of multicollector ICP-MS in combination with c...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A beam position monitoring system has been implemented in the first third of the SLC linac which provides a complete scan of the trajectory on a single beam pulse. The data is collected from the local micro-computers and viewed with an updating display at a console or passed on to application programs. The system must operate with interlaced beams so the scans are also interlaced, providing each user with the ability to select the beam, the update rate, and the attenuation level in the digitizing hardware. In addition each user calibrates the hardware for his beam. A description of the system architecture will be presented. 6 refs., 4 figs.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Energy and angular double-differential cross-section (DDX) data of fragment production reactions by neutrons or protons are very scarce due to experimental difficulties of fragment detection. We adopted a Bragg curve spectrometer (BCS), which is a gridded-ionization chamber that can identify fragments on the basis of the Bragg peak value. We have been developing the BCS for neutron and proton-induced reactions applying the digital waveform analysis technique to obtain better ability of particle discrimination than the analog electronic circuit. (T. Tanaka)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

An analytical model is presented which enables the estimation of convective losses from cavity receivers. Evidence from solar experiments is used to test the hypothesized mechanisms. The analytical results and experimental evidence indicate that the convective loss from cavity receivers is appreciable. The model indicates that the influences of the wind on the convective loss at normal operating conditions are minimal. It also shows that the internal thermal resistance, i.e. the ability to heat the air inside the cavity, are of importance. Buoyancy induced flows are, on the other hand, effective in transferring energy across the aperture. 8 refs.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The autoradiographic appearance of the gastric mucosa, 5 hours after administration of indomethacin, was investigated in 29 adult rats. Indomethacin induced superficial gastric erosions. Autoradiography demonstrated the presence of viable gastric cells (as deduced by their ability to incorporate 3H-cytidin, an RNA precursor) not only in the mucosa without erosions, but also in the mucosa underneath the superficial erosions. The results indicate that indomethacin induced gastric erosions are not the superficial expression of a necrotic process taking place in the full thickness of the gastric mucosa at a particular site. A lumen-borne mechanism appears to be responsible for the formation of erosive areas in the mucosa.

Science.gov (United States)

Swimming endurance of whiteleg shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei exposed to various temperatures (15, 20, and 25 degrees C) and salinities (15, 32, and 40 per thousand) was determined in a swimming channel against one of five flow velocities (5.41, 6.78, 8.21, 10.11, and 11.47 cm s(-1)) for up to 9000 s. No shrimp swam the full 9000 s throughout the experiment. The swimming endurance decreased as swimming speed was increased at any of the temperatures and salinities tested and was significantly affected by temperature and salinity (Ppower model (nu x t(b) = a) showed a better fit to the relationship between swimming endurance (t, in s) and swimming speed (nu, in cm s(-1)) at any of the temperatures and salinities tested. The swimming ability index (SAI), defined as SAI = integral(0)(9000) vdt x 10(-4) (cm), was found to be temperature- and salinity-dependent in L. vannamei. The optimum temperature and salinity and corresponding maximum SAI were Topt = 21.3 degrees C and ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Data produced by large scale scientific simulations, experiments, and observations can easily reach tera-bytes in size. The ability to examine data-sets of this magnitude, even in moderate detail, is problematic at best. Generally this scientific data consists of multivariate field quantities with complex inter-variable correlations and spatial-temporal structure. To provide scientists and engineers with the ability to explore and analyze such data sets we are using a twofold approach. First, we model the data with the objective of creating a compressed yet manageable representation. Second, with that compressed representation, we provide the user with the ability to query the resulting approximation to obtain approximate yet sufficient answers; a process called adhoc querying. This paper is concerned with a wavelet modeling technique that seeks to capture the important physical characteristics of the target scientific ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The herbicide atrazine is a known immunotoxicant and an inhibitor of human natural killer (NK) cell lytic function. The precise changes in NK cell lytic function following atrazine exposure have not been fully elucidated. The current study identifies the point at which atrazine exerts its affect on the stepwise process of human NK cell-mediated lyses of the K562 target cell line. Using intracellular staining of human peripheral blood lymphocytes, it was determined that a 24-h in vitro exposure to atrazine did not decrease the level of NK cell lytic proteins granzyme A, granzyme B or perforin. Thus, it was hypothesized that atrazine exposure was inhibiting the ability of the NK cells to bind to the target cell and subsequently inhibit the release of lytic protein from the NK cell. To test this hypothesis, flow cytometry and fluorescent microscopy were employed to analyze NK cell-target cell co-cultures following atrazine exposure. These assays demonstrated no ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

In relation to coal gasification and combustion under high pressure as highly efficient coal utilization, the effect of total pressure and sintering on the SO2 capture ability of Ca-ion exchanged coal and other desulfurizing agents were studied. In experiment, specimens were filled into a small pressurized reactor to heat them under high-pressure N2 atmosphere. After the completion of combustion reaction of char at 850{degree}C, SO2, CO2 and CO gases were measured at an outlet while flowing SO2/N2. As the experimental result, all of the S content in Ca-ion exchanged coal was not absorbed by Ca content in coal during pyrolysis and combustion, resulting in discharge of 36% of the S content. Since Ca-ion exchanged coal is fast in combustion reaction, most of the S content was desulfurized by coal ash. The ash content yielded from Ca-ion exchanged coal was more excellent in SO2 capture ability than limestone even under higher pressure. In the case ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

(Cu_4_7Zr_1_1Ti_3_4Ni_8)_1_0_0_-_xMo _x bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) with x = 0, 1 and 2 at.% and a bulk metallic glass matrix composite with x = 5 at.% were successfully prepared by water-cooled copper mold casting. The effect of the addition of a small amount of Mo on the glass forming ability (GFA), thermal properties of the base alloy (i.e. x = 0) were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and differential thermal analyzer (DTA). It is found that the addition of appropriate amount of Mo can enhance the GFA of the Cu-based BMG, as indicated by the increase in the reduced glass transition temperature T _r_g (=T _g/T _l) and the parameter #gamma# (=T _x/(T _g + T _l)) with the increase of Mo. On the other hand, the corrosion resistance of the Cu-based BMGs with different Mo contents was examined by electrochemical polarization and weight loss measurement in 1 mol/L H_2SO_4 and 1 mol/L NaOH solutions, respectively. It is ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The `Procurement Quality Function` is an element of the Body of Knowledge of Quality Engineering, as defined by the American Society for Quality Control (ASQC). This paper describes the Procurement Quality function which has been installed as an integral part of the Quality Engineering group of the Technical and Management Support Services (T&MSS) contractor to the United States Department of Energy (DOE) Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project. Each of the elements of the T&MSS Procurement Quality Engineering (PQE) system is discussed along with the measurements obtained. With the installation and development of the PQE system we have attained more meaningful evaluation of supplier capability, reduction of procurement document review reject ratios from 31% to less than 2% per quarter, more effective measurement and control of supplier performance, and the ability to enter into a meaningful teaming effort with T&MSS suppliers.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Randomly oriented ZnO microsheets were successfully self-assembled on TiO2 nanoparticle (TN) film to act as the scattering layer via a cathodic electrodeposition process. The light scattering properties of ZnO microsheets were studied by UV-Vis spectrometer in the 400?800 nm wavelength range. It was found that ZnO microsheets exhibited excellent ability to scatter the incident light for ZnO microsheet-TiO2 nanoparticle (ZT) composite films. The results showed that dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) fabricated with ZT composite films showed higher short-circuit density (J sc) and conversion efficiency than TN-based DSSCs, due to the light scattering properties of ZnO microsheets.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Phenolic resins have made a major breakthrough in the field of high technology in 80's. These are now active participants of "high tech' areas ranging from electronics, computers, communication, outer space, aerospace, advanced materials, bio materials and technology. A phenol - formaldehyde (1:1.5) resin having resin content of 70% synthesized in the laboratory has been applied for wood coating and reinforcing glass fiber. The weatherability and solvent resistance of these items have been studied and results discussed keeping in view the envisaged application for structural materials and chemical equipment. The toxic materials released during contact with solvents for chemical applications and during degradation general have been monitored. The results are discussed with reference to environmental pollution due to these resins and their composites under different conditions. (authors)

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The gravitational torque applied on the Earth by the other celestial bodies generates periodic variations in the orientation of the Earth's rotation axis in space which are called nutations. Observations of Earth's nutations allow for insights into the physical properties of the inner core because of the presence of a normal mode, the Free Inner Core Nutation (FICN), which is characterized by a tilt of the inner core figure and rotation axes with respect to the mantle and outer core. The frequency of the FICN is controlled by the strength of the mechanical coupling acting at the inner core boundary (ICB) and by the ability of the inner core to deform under the action of centrifugal and gravitational forces. Attenuation of the FICN reflects energy dissipated by electromagnetic (EM) and visc...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Bacillus licheniformis ?-glutamyltranspeptidase (BlGGT) undergoes an autocatalytic process to generate 44.9 and 21.7?kDa subunits; however, a mutant protein (T399A) loses completely the processing ability and mainly exists as a precursor. For a comprehensive understanding of their structural features, the biophysical properties of these two proteins were investigated by circular dichroism and fluorescence spectroscopy. Tryptophan fluorescence and circular dichroism spectra were nearly identical for BlGGT and T399A, but unfolding analyses revealed that these two proteins had a different sensitivity towards temperature- and guanidine hydrochloride (GdnHCl)-induced denaturation. BlGGT and the unprocessed T399A displayed T m values of 61.4?C and 68.1?C, respectively, and thermal unfolding of b...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The future use of single-molecule magnets in applications will require the ability to control and manipulate the spin state and magnetization of the magnets by external means. There are different approaches to this control, one being the modification of the magnets by adsorption of small ligand molecules. In this paper we use iron phthalocyanine supported by an Au(111) surface as a model compound and demonstrate, using x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and density functional theory, that the spin state of the molecule can be tuned to different values (S #approx# 0, 1/2, 1) by adsorption of ammonia, pyridine, carbon monoxide or nitric oxide on the iron ion. The interaction also leads to electronic decoupling of the iron phthalocyanine from the Au(111) support. (fast track communication)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The purpose of this project was to compile a bibliography of references containing environmental transuranic radionuclide data. The authors intent was to identify those parameters affecting transuranic radionuclide transport that may be generic and those that may be dependent on chemical form and/or environmental conditions. An understanding of the unique characteristics and similarities between source terms and environmental conditions relative to transuranic radionuclide transport and cycling will provide the ability to assess and predict the long term impact on man and the environment. An additional goal of the literature review, was to extract the ranges of environmental transuranic radionuclide data from the identified references for inclusion in a data base. Related to source term, these ranges of data can be used to calculate the dose to man from the radionuclides, and to perform uncertainty analyses on these dose assessments.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The extracts from kinnow peel, kinnow seeds, litchi pericarp, litchi seeds, grape seeds, and banana peel were screened for total phenolic content (TPC), trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC), 1,1 diphenyl-2-picryl hydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity, as well as reducing power. Kinnow peel extract exhibited the highest reducing power, TEAC, and DPPH free radical scavenging activity, whereas, the phenolic content of 37.4 mg GAE/g-dw was highest for grape seed extract. Banana peel extract with a low TPC showed the lowest reducing power, TEAC as well as DPPH free radical scavenging activity among the fruit residue extracts examined in the present study. Correlation analysis between the reducing power and DPPH radical scavenging ability; reducing power and ABTS radical scavengin...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Thyroid cancer is the most frequently diagnosed endocrine cancer and causes more deaths than all other endocrine cancers combined. Research findings support the concept that a subpopulation of thyroid cancer cells displays properties characteristic of stem cells. These putative cancer-forming entities drive tumorigenesis as a result of their dual ability to undergo self-renewal and to differentiate into various types of cancer cells; they also mediate metastasis and are resistant to the effects of chemotherapy and radiation therapy. This Review discusses the cellular origin of thyroid cancer and the properties of the thyroid cancer stem cell niche. The article critically evaluates the methods used to identify molecular markers expressed by thyroid-cancer-initiating cells and outlines prosp...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The fatigue life variability of the #alpha#+#beta# titanium alloy, Ti-6Al-2Sn-4Zr-6Mo increased with decreasing stress level. The variability in life was found to be due to segregation of lives due to two failure mechanisms. A bimodal cumulative distribution model was shown to accurately describe the combined failure modes. The nominal failure processes for the two regimes were similar, with crack nucleation occurring in equiaxed #alpha#p particles, irrespective of life or stress level. However the variability in life was not controlled by the size of the crack-nucleating #alpha#p, but rather by the ability of the material to distribute deformation and avoid early crack nucleation.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Radiation protection in medicine has unique aspects and is an essential element of medical practice. Medical uses of radiation occur throughout the world, from large cities to rural clinics. It has been estimated that the number of medical procedures using radiation grew from about 1.7 billion in 1980 to almost 4 billion in 2007. In spite of these large numbers, there are many parts of the world without adequate equipment, where the ability to perform additional medical procedures would likely result in a net benefit. Medicine accounts for more than 99.9% of the per caput effective dose from man-made sources. The goal in medical exposure is not to give the lowest dose, but to provide the correct dose to enable the practitioner to make the diagnosis or cure a tumour. Too little or too much ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Parthenogenesis-inducing (PI) Wolbachia belong to a class of intracellular symbionts that distort the offspring sex ratio of their hosts toward a female bias. In many PI Wolbachia-infected species sex ratio distortion has reached its ultimate expression-fixation of infection and all-female populations. This is only possible with thelytokous PI symbionts as they provide an alternative form of reproduction and remove the requirement for males and sexual reproduction. Many populations fixed for PI Wolbachia infection have lost the ability to reproduce sexually, even when cured of the infection. We examine one such population in the species Trichogramma pretiosum. Through a series of backcrossing experiments with an uninfected Trichogramma pretiosum population we were able to show that the gen...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The analysis of complex fluids such as crude oils, fuels, vegetable oils and mixed waste streams poses significant challenges arising primarily from the multiplicity of components, the different properties of the components (polarity, polarizability, etc.) and matrix properties. We have recently introduced an analytical strategy that simplifies many of these analyses, and provides the added potential of linking compositional information with physical property information. This aspect can be used to facilitate equation of state development for the complex fluids. In addition to chemical characterization, the approach provides the ability to calculate thermodynamic properties for such complex heterogeneous streams. The technique is based on the advanced distillation curve (ADC) metrology, wh...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

How do people understand questions about cause and prevent? Some theories propose that people affirm that A causes B if A's occurrence makes a difference to B's occurrence in one way or another. Other theories propose that A causes B if some quantity or symbol gets passed in some way from A to B. The aim of our studies is to compare these theories' ability to explain judgements of causation and prevention. We describe six experiments that compare judgements for causal paths that involve a mechanism, i.e. a continuous process of transmission or exchange from cause to effect, against paths that involve no mechanism yet a change in the cause nevertheless brings about a change in the effect. Our results show that people prefer to attribute cause when a mechanism links cause to effect. In contr...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Although past research has reported the benefits of intuition in new product decision-making (i.e., higher quality product; enhanced customer satisfaction), intuition has largely been studied as an individual phenomenon and little work has examined the role of intuition on new product development (NPD) project teams. Furthermore, in a turbulent environment, NPD project teams may rely more on intuitive judgments, and other factors such as experience and stress may also influence the relationship between team intuition and team decision making. Drawing from the organizational design literature on creativity in decision making, this study builds a conceptual model of NPD team intuition and its effect on the team's ability to generate creative new products. We then derive hypotheses regarding ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

In previous studies we have demonstrated that prion protein (PrP) interacts with tubulin and disrupts microtubular cytoskeleton by inducing tubulin oligomerization. These observations may explain the molecular mechanism of toxicity of cytoplasmic PrP in transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs). Here, we check whether microtubule associated proteins (MAPs) that regulate microtubule stability, influence the PrP-induced oligomerization of tubulin. We show that tubulin preparations depleted of MAPs are more prone to oligomerization by PrP than those containing traces of MAPs. Tau protein, a major neuronal member of the MAPs family, reduces the effect of PrP. Importantly, phosphorylation of Tau abolishes its ability to affect the PrP-induced oligomerization of tubulin. We propose that t...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

A new low molecular mass organogelator 1 containing 2-(2prime-hydroxyphenyl)benzoxazole (HPB) group with long alkyl chain was synthesized by the reaction with 5-amino-2-(2prime-hydroxy-4prime-methylphenyl)benzoxazole and dodecyl isocyanate in THF at room temperature. The reversible gelation ability of 1 was investigated using a heating-cooling method in various organic solvents. The stable organogel was formed from carbon tetrachloride or from cyclohexane at the concentration as low as 0.9%. The self-assembled supramolecular gel structure formed by non-covalent bonding was confirmed with field emission-scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) exhibiting fibril- or ribbon-shaped structure depending on the solvent used. Regarding the aggregation-induced emission enhancement (AIEE) phenomenon, t...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Glass ceramics are commonly used as sealing materials for planar solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs). The major requirements of stack and module builders for these materials are the stability of the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE), excellent bonding (sticking) behaviour and the absence of volatile ingredients, which can lead to changes of the material properties and the sealing ability. SCHOTT Electronic Packaging has developed special glasses and glass-ceramics for various solid oxide fuel cell designs and operating temperatures. The glass compositions are based on the system MgO-Al2O3-BaO-SiO2-B2O3. In this study the evaluation of the developed materials was done by high temperature aging tests for up to 1000h, high temperature XRD-studies and Rietveld calculations, combined with scann...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The rationale for hybrid fusion-fission reactors is the production of fissile fuel for fission reactors. A new class of reactor, the fission-suppressed hybrid promises unusually good safety features as well as the ability to support 25 light-water reactors of the same nuclear power rating, or even more high-conversion-ratio reactors such as the heavy-water type. One 4000-MW nuclear hybrid can produce 7200 kg of /sup 233/U per year. To obtain good economics, injector efficiency times plasma gain (eta/sub i/Q) should be greater than 2, the wall load should be greater than 1 MW m/sup -2/, and the hybrid should cost less than 6 times the cost of a light-water reactor. Introduction rates for the fission-suppressed hybrid are unusually rapid.

Science.gov (United States)

The Morris water maze is widely used to evaluate to evaluate the spatial learning ability of rodents under laboratory settings. The present study demonstrates that reproductive male meadow voles, Microtus pennsylvanicus, are able to acquire and retain a spatial water maze task using celestial cues. Voles were able to acquire a modified outdoor Morris water maze task over 4 trials per day, whereby they had to learn and remember the location of a submerged hidden platform, using the position of the sun and associated celestial cues. Their proficiency on this task was related to the availability of the celestial cues, with voles displaying significantly poorer spatial navigation on overcast than clear days and when the testing time (and position of the sun and associated celestial cues) was shifted from morning to afternoon. These findings with meadow voles support the ecological relevance of the water maze task. PMID:8031502

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The dependence of the efficiency of a coaxial IGC-30 Ge detector on the direction of gamma quanta entry, their energy and the distance from the source is examined. A set of point sources QCR-2 (Amersham, UK) has been used which is arranged consecutively in two perpendicular planes passing through the detector axis, at a distance of 0.1 - 1.3 m (pace 0.1) from its geometric centre for 16 different angles in every plane. Dependence curves of the efficiency on the angle of gamma-quanta hits are obtained for energies 60, 81, 122, 356, 662, 834, 1173 and 1332 keV. Changes in efficiency connected with spatial dividing ability are found out. Using the least squares' method the expected spatial distribution of efficiency is examined with a level of authenticity P > 0.9. The possible causes for the efficiency change and its possible effect on the measurements' precision are discussed. (author).

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

In the world of pipeline maintenance, there are pigs and there are intelligent pigs. Intelligent pigs, when launched into a pipeline, carry instrumentation onboard which enables them to gather and record information about problems such as denting, corrosion, and cracking. More basic pigs, on the other hand, look after the routine internal maintenance chores such as cleaning and swabbing, or else perform operational duties such as batching different types of product along the line. The harsh environment in which pigs often operate is described. Aside from the mechanical shocks they undergo when passing welds, bends, and other fittings, they may have to contend with hostile conditions such as hydrogen sulfide environments. High pressure is another factor to consider. In crude oil lines, significant paraffin deposits also can cause problems if they affect the sensors ability to maintain good contact with the pipe wall. In spite of these considerations, increasing ...

Science.gov (United States)

A method for simplifying finite element models of structures having a beam-like global dynamical behaviour is presented. This method is based on the use of a general uniform beam finite element formulation. It takes into account both transverse shear effects and dynamical coupling between bending and torsion due to the fact that mass centres and shear centres do not always coincide. For that purpose, we develop a condensation method for reducing any shell model into an equivalent beam, as well as a technique for automatically identifying the corresponding set of beam parameters. The method is applied to several illustrate examples that demonstrate its ability to simplify finite element models for many kinds of sophisticated structures having a beam-like predominant behaviour.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

In this article, the ability of artificial neural networks in prediction of separation in steady two dimensional boundary layer flows is studied. Data for network training is extracted from numerical solution of an ODE obtained from Von Karman integral equation with approximate one parameter Pohlhousen velocity profile. As an appropriate neural network, a two layer radial basis generalized regression artificial neural network is used. The results shows good agreements between the overall behavior of the flow fields predicted by the artificial neural network and the actual flow fields for some cases. The method easily can be extended to unsteady separation and turbulent as well as compressible boundary layer flows. (author)

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BC Hydro has been assessing and upgrading its facilities and implementing response alternatives to potential damage resulting from a major earthquake. This paper reviews the utility`s seismic evaluation of its overhead transmission system, focusing on the Lower Mainland area where most of the tall critical river-crossing towers are located. The paper gives an overview of the geologic environment of the Lower Mainland and outlines the criteria used for assessing existing structures for their ability to withstand design seismic loads. It then describes the investigation and analysis methods used in the assessment, including geotechnical field tests, ground response analysis, determination of soil liquefaction potential, and dynamic analysis of structures and piles. Options for seismic upgrades are discussed and illustrated by the case of the Pitt River crossing, where tower foundations were reinforced with steel pipe piles.

CERN Document Server

This is a thought piece on data-intensive science requirements for databases and science centers. It argues that peta-scale datasets will be housed by science centers that provide substantial storage and processing for scientists who access the data via smart notebooks. Next-generation science instruments and simulations will generate these peta-scale datasets. The need to publish and share data and the need for generic analysis and visualization tools will finally create a convergence on common metadata standards. Database systems will be judged by their support of these metadata standards and by their ability to manage and access peta-scale datasets. The procedural stream-of-bytes-file-centric approach to data analysis is both too cumbersome and too serial for such large datasets. Non-procedural query and analysis of schematized self-describing data is both easier to use and allows much more parallelism.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wall thickness measurement of pipe is very important of the structural integrity of the industrial plant. However, the radiography method has an advantage because the ability of penetrating the insulated pipe. This will have economic benefit for industry. Moreover, the era of digital radiography has more advantages because the speed of radiographic work, less exposure time and no chemical used for film development. Either the conventional radiography or digital radiology, the wall thickness measurement is using the tangential radiography technique (TRT). In case, of a large diameter, pipe (more than inches) the determination maximum penetration wall thickness must be taken into the consideration. This paper is revisited the mathematical derivation of the determination of wall thickness measurement based on tangential radiography technique (TRT). The mathematical approach used in this derivation is the Pythagoras theorem and geometrical principles. In order to ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Bark beetles that colonize living conifers and their microbial associates encounter constitutive and induced chemical defenses of their host. Monoterpene hydrocarbons comprise a major component of these allelochemicals, and many are antibiotic to insects, fungi, and bacteria. Some bark beetle species exhaust these defenses by killing their host through mass attacks mediated by aggregation pheromones. Others lack adult aggregation pheromones and do not engage in pheromone-mediated mass attacks, but rather have the ability to complete development within live hosts. In the former species, the larvae develop in tissue largely depleted of host terpenes, whereas in the latter exposure to these compounds persists throughout development. A substantial literature exists on how monoterpenes affect b...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

A large body of evidence indicates clear relationships between number and space processing in healthy and brain-damaged adults, as well as in children. The present paper addressed this issue regarding atypical math development. Adults with a diagnosis of dyscalculia (DYS) during childhood were compared to adults with average or high abilities in mathematics across two bisection tasks. Participants were presented with Arabic number triplets and had to judge either the number magnitude or the spatial location of the middle number relative to the two outer numbers. For the numerical judgment, adults with DYS were slower than both groups of control peers. They were also more strongly affected by the factors related to number magnitude such as the range of the triplets or the distance between t...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Real-time neutron radiography (RTNR) is now proving to be a valuable research tool in the study of hydrogenous fluid flow. One of the most significant advantages of neutron radiography is the ability to image hydrogenous substances (such as lubricants, coolants, and fuels) inside metallic materials such as aluminum and titanium engines. By using RTNR, one can then study dynamic events such as the movement of liquids inside these solids. The Phoenix Memorial Laboratory (PML) at the University of Michigan has recently developed and installed a facility dedicated to RTNR. The work at PML has shown that RTNR of dynamic events can provide information enabling the researcher to follow dynamic events that were previously impossible or impractical. This paper will show the variety of uses of RTNR presently being pursued at PML.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Results of experiments performed utilizing high-power microwave sources for laser-discharge switching and preionization are reported. These results are not definitive, but are promising. Significant preionization using microwaves is possible. Some ability to switch the discharge and operate a laser have been demonstrated. More work needs to be performed to perfect the microwave coupling to the laser mixture. In particular, experiments with the microwaves better concentrated between the electrodes should be performed. The best way to accomplish this appears to be using the side-feed geometry; however, a large expansion of the microwaves should occur (to well below the power able to break down the window), and then a cylindrical lens should be used to focus the microwaves between the electrodes. 2 references.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The desire to study negative ion structure and negative ion-photon interactions has spurred the development of ion sources for use in research and industry. The many different types of negative ion sources available today differ in their characteristics and abilities to produce anions of various species. Thus the importance of choosing the correct type of negative ion source for a particular research or industrial application is clear. In this study, the results of an investigation on the production of beams composed of negatively-charged rare-earth ions from a cylindrical-cathode-geometry, cesium-sputter-type negative ion source are presented. Beams of atomic anions have been observed for most of the first-row rare-earth elements, with typical currents ranging from hundreds of picoamps to several nanoamps.

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The potential use of uranium in the field of catalysis is presented in the first part of this paper. Numerous applications of uranium binary oxides, as well as mixed oxides, are reviewed with a special emphasis on the role of U-Sb-O catalysts in selective oxidation (and ammoxidation) processes. Attempts are made to correlate the electronic structure of uranium, and especially the role that 5f electrons play in bonding, with its promising catalytic properties. In the second part, new data are given for uranium-bismuth mixed oxides in the catalytic oxidation of CO by O/sub 2/. Kinetic tests performed in a flow microreactor allow a mechanism to be proposed that involves the direct participation of lattice oxygen of the catalyst in the chemical process (redox mechanism). The high activity can be related to the ability of uranium to change reversibly its oxidation state.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The pore structure of volcanic clasts is examined using measurements of porosity, permeability, and electrical properties. Permeability varies by several orders of magnitude among volcanic clasts and does not depend solely upon porosity. Electrical property measurements of saturated volcanic samples illustrate the influence of pathway tortuosity and pore shape on permeability. For equivalent eruption conditions, silicic samples show higher tortuosities, smaller vesicle sizes, and lower permeabilities than mafic samples. These differences are largely due to variations in vesiculation and crystallization history. Differences between explosive and effusive samples reflect the relative ability of bubbles to form and maintain connected pathways during bubble expansion and collapse. Isotropic sa...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

A photoacoustic (PA) imaging system based on an ultrasonic Fresnel zone plate (FZP) transducer is developed for the purpose of imaging biological tissue. This FZP transducer has a two-zone negative zone plate piezoelectric material pattern, and an optical fibre is integrated with the transducer on the symmetric axis of the zone plates to deliver laser pulses to the sample. The focal characteristic of the FZP transducer is analysed by theoretical prediction and experimental measurement, and the measured results are in good agreement with the predicted results. The limited-field back-projection deconvolution algorithm combined with the coherence-factor weighting technique is used to reconstruct the optical absorption distribution. The experiments were performed with phantoms and the blood vessels of chicken embryo chorioallantoic membrane. The results demonstrate that PA imaging using the FZP transducer has the ability to image biological tissue and has potential ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Abstract Objectives- Cyclodextrins are useful solubilizing excipients that have gained currency in the formulator's armamentarium based on their ability to temporarily camouflage undesirable physicochemical properties. In this context cyclodextrins can increase oral bioavailability, stabilize compounds to chemical and enzymatic degradation and can affect permeability through biological membranes under certain circumstances. This latter property is examined herein as a function of the published literature as well as work completed in our laboratories. Key findings- Cyclodextrins can increase the uptake of drugs through biological barriers if the limiting barrier component is the unstirred water layer (UWL) that exists between the membrane and bulk water. This means that cyclodextrins are mo...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

To determine whether PKH26 labeling affects the morphologies, phenotypes, proliferation, and secretion abilities of human umbilical mesenchymal stromal cells (HUMSCs) were investigated. Isolated HUMSCs were labeled with PKH26, and cell morphology was observed under microscope. Cell cycle, apoptotic cell death, expression of PKH26, and the proliferation rate were evaluated. Additionally, fluorescence intensity of PKH26 labeling at different passage times was quantified. There were no detectable differences in cell morphology, cell growth, and proliferation rate after PKH26 labeling. In addition, fluorescence intensity of PKH26 labeling was gradually reduced with increase of the passage times. The PKH26 labeling disappeared after passage six times. In summary, PKH26 labeling is a safe and ef...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The goal of this study is to determine whether physicists at the Russian Nuclear Weapons Institute can profitably service the need for computer aided drug design (CADD) programs. The Russian physicists` primary competitive advantage is their ability to write particularly efficient code able to work with limited computing power; a history of working with very large, complex modeling systems; an extensive knowledge of physics and mathematics, and price competitiveness. Their primary competitive disadvantage is their lack of biology, and cultural and geographic issues. The first phase of the study focused on defining the competitive landscape, primarily through interviews with and literature searches on the key providers of CADD software. The second phase focused on users of CADD technology to determine deficiencies in the current product offerings, to understand what product they most desired, and to define the potential demand for such a product.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Olfactory memory dysfunctions were investigated in the triple-transgenic murine model of Alzheimer's disease (3x Tg-AD). In the social transmission of food preference test, 3x Tg-AD mice presented severe deficits in odor-based memory, without gross changes in general odor-ability. Ab and tau immunoreactivity was not observed in the primary processing regions for odor, the olfactory bulbs (OBs), whereas marked immunostaining was present in the piriform, entorhinal, and orbitofrontal cortex, as well as in the hippocampus. Our results suggest that the impairment in olfactory-based information processing might arise from degenerative mechanisms mostly affecting higher cortical regions and limbic areas, such as the hippocampus.

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Real-time neutron radiography was demonstrated to be a viable and useful tool in studying water flow in unsaturated media. The experiment was designed to test the method for following water flow. The wetting front advance, water-flow patterns, and neutron attenuation density were observed in a 7.7-cm diameter sand column. The advance was fit with a simple i = A t/sup B/ equation yielding an excellent correlation. Theoretical calculations presented estimate the minimum and maximum detectable water content in various sizes of columns. The ability of real-time neutron radiography to allow both qualitative and quantitative spatial and time measurements to be made in an nonintrusive manner was demonstrated.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ogden Environmental Services has announced that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued a nation-wide federal permit allowing OES to use its circulating bed combustion (CBC) system for remediation of PCB contaminated soils. The landmark permit confirms the effectiveness of OES' CBC system and its ability to destroy PCBs without releasing harmful quantities of PCBs or other chemicals into the air. EPA headquarters issued the permit following their audit of trial burn operations of OES' CBC unit during September 1988 at the Arco Swanson River oil fields in the Kenai Wildlife Refuge, Kenai Peninsula, Alaska. The Arco project represents the world's first major remediation program using CBC technology and the largest PCB/soil cleanup to date.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

In order to build the safety culture for nuclear power industry, it is important to evaluate the safety culture scientifically. Considering the traits of safety culture in the nuclear power industry, 24 safety culture assessment indexes are established from 4 aspects such as Safety consciousness, Safety attitude, Safety action and Safety actuality by using the SMART criteria. Safety culture star-class assessment criterion is presented and safety culture star-class assessment system is developed by using Visual Basic 6.0 and BP neural network. The system has a better generalization ability, and it can show exactly which phase the safety culture is in. Experimental results show that safety culture star-class assessment is practical and easy to perform. (authors)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The peanut plant (Arachis hypogaea L.), unlike other known legumes, can sustain nitrogen fixation when prolonged periods of darkness or detopping curtail the supply of photosynthate to the nodule. This ability to withstand photosynthate stress is attributed to the presence of lipid bodies in infected nodule cells. In both dark-treated and detopped plants, the lipid bodies show a gradual decrease in numbers, suggesting their utilization as a source of energy and carbon for nitrogen fixation. Lipolytic activity can be localized in the lipid bodies, and the existence of #beta#-oxidation pathway and glyoxylate cycle is shown by the release of "1"4CO_2 from "1"4C lineoleoyl coenzyme A by the nodule homogenate.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The new developments in cost engineering revolve around the ability to capture information that in the past could not be automated. The purpose of automation is not to eliminate the expert cost engineer. The goal is to use available technology to have more information available to the professionals in the cost engineering field. In that sense, the demand for expertise increases in order to produce the highest quality estimate and project possible from all levels of cost engineers. We cannot overemphasize the importance of using a good source of expert information in building these types of programs. ''Garbage in, garbage out'' still applies in this form of programming. Expert systems technology will become commonplace in many vertical markets; it is important to undersand what can and cannot be accomplished in our field, and where this technology will lead us in the future.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The tremendous growth of wireless technologies has introduced the potential of continuous service adaptation to the users' needs by giving them the ability to be able to select and access the proper network based on different criteria. Moreover, next generation wireless networks have been designed to provide support for multimedia services, with different traffic characteristics and different Quality of Service (QoS) guarantees. However, the expansion of Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs) and Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) networks poses new research era in the decision of the access network selection. In this paper, the existing access network selection schemes are classified into three categories: the network-centric, the user-centric and the collaborative sche...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Coyle, D.R., and J.W. Amrine, Jr. 2004. New collection records and host range of the cottonwood leafcurl mite, Tetra lobulifera (Keifer) (Acari: Eriophyidae), in the USA. Internat. J. Acarol. 30(1):3-8. The cottonwood leafcurl mite, Aculops lobuliferus Keifer, 1961, is renamed as Tetra lobulifera (Keifer). This eriophyid mite is capable of inflicting substantial damage on plantation- and native-grown cottonwoods (Populus spp.). We report new State and County collection records from the eastern and northwestern U.S.A. as well as new host records, including Populus grandidentata Michx. (big-tooth aspen), for this pest. This updates the established geographic range of T. lobulzjera, and demonstrates its ability to utilize other host plants in the genus Populus for development.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Given the important role of parent-youth communication in adolescent well-being and quality of life, we sought to examine the relationship between specific communication variables and youth perceived quality of life in general and as a deaf or hard-of-hearing (DHH) individual. A convenience sample of 230 youth (mean age = 14.1, standard deviation = 2.2; 24% used sign only, 40% speech only, and 36% sign + speech) was surveyed on communication-related issues, generic and DHH-specific quality of life, and depression symptoms. Higher youth perception of their ability to understand parents' communication was significantly correlated with perceived quality of life as well as lower reported depressive symptoms and lower perceived stigma. Youth who use speech as their single mode of communication ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anthracene-bis-resorcinol is an interesting molecule as it forms a hydrogen-bonded network when guest molecules with weak polarity are included. Focused ion beam (FIB) was irradiated on a part of its amorphous film with low dose, and the film was exposed to the vapor of guest molecules. From fluorescence and AFM analyses of this film, it was found that no inclusion compound was formed in FIB irradiated area, i.e. FIB irradiation suppresses the ability to form the inclusion compounds. By utilizing this phenomenon, we succeeded in a microfabrication of relief structures consisting of inclusion compounds which has different fluorescence from its surrounding. Morphology, fluorescence, and IR absorption analyses indicated that hydroxyl or resorcin groups are damaged by ion beams, and consequently a formation of hydrogen-bonded networks, which play a role of a lattice caging guest molecules, becomes impossible.

CERN Document Server

The Nystrom method is an efficient technique to speed up large-scale learning applications by generating low-rank approximations. Crucial to the performance of this technique is the assumption that a matrix can be well approximated by working exclusively with a subset of its columns. In this work we relate this assumption to the concept of matrix coherence and connect matrix coherence to the performance of the Nystrom method. Making use of related work in the compressed sensing and the matrix completion literature, we derive novel coherence-based bounds for the Nystrom method in the low-rank setting. We then present empirical results that corroborate these theoretical bounds. Finally, we present more general empirical results for the full-rank setting that convincingly demonstrate the ability of matrix coherence to measure the degree to which information can be extracted from a subset of columns.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Evaporation of "9"9"mTc-pertechnetate at about 2500"0C on a carbon surface generates an ultrafine aerosol of labelled carbon clusters. Its particle size of about 2-5 nm enables the aerosol to behave similarly to a gas regarding the ability of penetration. After inhalation, the radioactive particles adhere to the walls of the respiratory bronchioli and alveoli. The high concentration of the radioactivity in the argon carrier gas makes it possible to record a scintigram after a single deep breath. We studied four healthy volunteers and 79 patients including 34 with a tentative diagnosis of pulmonary embolism, 20 with bronchus carcinoma, and 15 with various other lung diseases. Ten of these patients were infants, the youngest being nine months old. All patients also had a perfusion scintigraphy. (orig.).

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The concentrations of iron, chromium, zinc, and aluminum were measured by atomic absorption spectroscopy in the lipid-soluble fractions of tar from the process stream of an experimental coal gasifier as part of large study on the health risks of coal gasification. Lipid solubility was inferred from octanol/water-partitioning and benzene-solubility tests. The properties of the lipid-soluble metals were compared to reference compounds by Sephadex LH-20 chromatography. The ability of the lipid-soluble metals to remain lipid soluble after treatment with acid and base was also tested. Lipid-soluble iron, chromium, zinc, and aluminum were present at 360, 12, 3, and 1 ppM, respectively, in the gasifier coal tar. The presence of these metals in lipid-soluble form may have important consequences relative to the potential toxicity of the tar if persons are exposed to it.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

As the world's largest creditor nation, with some of the world's largest banks and leading industries, Japan is often portrayed as an economic and financial superpower. With long-established 'Western-style' financial institutions to represent it in all the world's major financial capitals and markets, a technologically savvy Japan is often said to be positioning itself to lead Asia, the Asia/Pacific region, or even the entire world, into the marvels of the twenty-first century. Against this continuing rhetorical backdrop, however, fundamental questions arise as to Japan's ability to internationalize in today's increasingly globalized world economy. Domestically, only a very limited presence is permitted to the foreigner in the Japanese economy, especially in the commanding heights of finan...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The human erythrocyte (RBC) Rh blood group system consists of a complex of distinct integral membrane polypeptides with physical properties common to the aminophospholipid transporter responsible for the transbilayer movement of phosphatidylserine (PS) in RBC. To assess the involvement of Rh polypeptides in PS translocation, the aminophospholipid translocase was labeled with a photoactivatable PS analogue, "1"2"5I-azido-PS, and with an inhibitor of PS transport, "1"2"5I-labeled 2-(2-pyridyldithio)ethylamine. The ability of monoclonal Rh antibodies to immunoprecipitate the labeled transporter was determined. Immunoprecipitated Rh polypeptides were found to be labeled with the aminophospholipid translocase markers, suggesting that Rh proteins are involved in the transbilayer movement of PS.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Causal paradoxes arising in the tachyon theory have been systematically solved by using the reinterpretation principle as a consequence of which cause and effect no longer retain an absolute meaning. However, even in the tachyon theory, a cause is always seen to chronologically precede its effect, but this is obtained at the price of allowing cause and effect to be interchanged when required. A recent result has shown that this interchange-ability of cause and effect must not be unlimited if heavy paradoxes are to be avoided. This partial recovery of the classical concept of causality has been expressed by the conjecture that transcendent tachyons cannot be absorbed by a tachyon detector. In this paper the directional properties of the flow of information between two observers in relative motion and its consequences on the logical self-consistency of the theory of superluminal particles are analyzed. It is shown that the above conjecture does not provide a ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The herbicide atrazine is a known immunotoxicant and an inhibitor of human natural killer (NK) cell lytic function. The precise changes in NK cell lytic function following atrazine exposure have not been fully elucidated. The current study identifies the point at which atrazine exerts its affect on the stepwise process of human NK cell-mediated lyses of the K562 target cell line. Using intracellular staining of human peripheral blood lymphocytes, it was determined that a 24-h in vitro exposure to atrazine did not decrease the level of NK cell lytic proteins granzyme A, granzyme B or perforin. Thus, it was hypothesized that atrazine exposure was inhibiting the ability of the NK cells to bind to the target cell and subsequently inhibit the release of lytic protein from the NK cell. To test t...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

This article describes the project for the installation of an additional emergency diesel generator in both Asco and Vandellos NPPs. The basic objectives of this project are to improve the availability of the emergency generation system, in order to provide greater ability to address potential contingencies, and also to increase the flexibility of the preventive periodic maintenance of the emergency diesel generators. This maintenance, that is currently a milestone of the critical path of the refueling outage, will be performed on-line. The new diesel generator will be sized to support all the loads considered in the safety case and also the consumption of its own auxiliary systems, and will be tested for operability assessment on the same periodical basis than the existing ones. The solution adopted will also permit that the N diesel generator may be connected to any bus bar class 1E in a station black-out scenario. (Author)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nuclear forensics can provide information about the history, intended use and potentially the origin of nuclear or radioactive material. For these reasons, it is an important tool for improving nuclear security and combating illicit trafficking of nuclear and other radioactive materials. The IAEA is currently working on enhancing knowledge, techniques, procedures and cooperation in the field of nuclear forensics. Some of the work currently being undertaken by the IAEA includes the development of a five day training workshop on basic methods for radiological crime scene activities, to ensure adequate control of evidence, including for nuclear forensics purposes, a coordinated research project on the application of nuclear forensics in illicit trafficking, and a proposal for international cooperation with nuclear forensics databases and the development of guidelines for establishing databases. Nuclear forensics will continue to be an important topic for nuclear security and we anticipate ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

An initial public offering (IPO) can often provide a powerful stimulus to private companies seeking to pursue an acquisition-driven growth strategy. Based on a comprehensive analysis of U.S. IPOs, the authors show that newly public companies are prolific acquirers. Over 30% of companies conducting an IPO make at least one acquisition in their IPO year, and the typical IPO firm makes about four acquisitions during its first five years as a public company. IPOs facilitate M&A not only by providing infusions of capital but also by creating ongoing access to equity and debt markets for cash-financed deals. In addition, IPOs create an acquisition currency that can prove valuable in stock-financed deals when the shares are attractively priced. The authors also argue that IPOs improve the ability...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The Heat Cycle Research Program, which is conducted for the Department of Energy, has as its objective the development of the technology for effecting the improved utilization of moderate temperature geothermal resources. The current testing involves the investigation of binary power cycle performance utilizing mixtures of non-adjacent hydrocarbons as the working fluids, with supercritical vaporization and in-tube condensation of the working fluid. The utilization of these concepts verified here will improve the net geofluid effectiveness (net watt hours plant output per pound of geofluid) about 20% over that of a conventional binary power plant. The major effect in this improvement is the ability to achieve integral, countercurrent condensation. Results are presented for the recent testing including those tests examining the performance of the countercurrent condenser at different tube inclinations and comparison with new design-base computer programs. 9 refs., 9 ...

CERN Document Server

The controlled growth of nanowires (NWs) with dimensions comparable to the Fermi wavelengths of the charge carriers allows fundamental investigations of quantum confinement phenomena. Here, we present studies of proximity-induced superconductivity in undoped Ge/Si core/shell NW heterostructures contacted by superconducting leads. By using a top gate electrode to modulate the carrier density in the NW, the critical supercurrent can be tuned from zero to greater than 100 nA. Furthermore, discrete sub-bands form in the NW due to confinement in the radial direction, which results in stepwise increases in the critical current as a function of gate voltage. Transport measurements on these superconductor-NW-superconductor devices reveal high-order (n = 25) resonant multiple Andreev reflections, indicating that the NW channel is smooth and the charge transport is highly coherent. The ability to create and control coherent superconducting ordered states in ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

In the present article, the study to examine the ability of free-living amoebae (FLA) to serve as vectors of cryptosporidia is presented. Ten strains of different free-living amoebae of the FLA collection of the Parasitology Lab at Koblenz were cultivated in the presence of Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts. After phagocytosis and ingestion, the oocysts could be found in food vacuoles within the cytoplasm of the trophozoites of two different FLA strains. The uptake and the transport of the oocysts within the trophozoites could be demonstrated in an Acanthamoeba sp. (group II) strain (maximum, three oocysts; average, one oocyst) as well as in a Thecamoeba quadrilineata strain (maximum, 15 oocysts; average, eight oocysts), with the help of light microscopy. We found that these free-living amoeb...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The Sulige gas field and the Yulin gas field are located in the north of the Ordos Basin. Reservoir pressure in the Sulige area is subnormal, whereas reservoirs in the Yulin area have normal hydrostatic pressure. This paper provides an explanation of this difference. The characteristics of reservoir sediment and formation water chemistry in the gas reservoirs of these two areas were analyzed. The results showed that both reservoirs have good sealing ability. Data of numerical simulation showed that tectonic uplift resulted in a great reduction in formation pressure in the northern Ordos Basin during the late Cretaceous period, and the decrease was greater in the Yulin gas field than in the Sulige gas field. However, because the total hydrocarbon-generating intensity of the Sulige area (<24...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

14 surgical patients with non-hepatobiliary diseases were studied with "9"9"mTc-EHIDA imaging to evaluate the effect of total parenteral nutrition (TPN) on the hepatobiliary function. Duration of TPN ranged from 6-56 days, 10 of the 14 patients Beijing within 10 days. The results showed that: (1) 11 of 14 patients had abnormal scintigraphic features. The most prominet findings were delayed liver excretion and prolonged blood clearance time. This fact suggests that not only the rate of excretion of the bile from the liver is decreased but the uptake ability of the hepatorcyte is also impaired. (2) The effect of TPN on liver function is reversible. It was concluded that in order to prevent irreversible damage of hepatobiliary function caused by TPN, the duration of TPN should not be too long and oral intake of nutrients should be resumed as soon as possible.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The ability to cope with environmental stress may be expensive in terms of energy and this cost of tolerance is suspected to have negative counterparts such as reduced growth and fecundity. To date, condition indices based on biometric measurements are currently used in bivalves or fish but do not exist in endobenthic worms, despite their interest as bioindicators for the sedimentary compartment in which the major part of pollutants is stored in aquatic environments. In the present work, several biometric variables (jaw and total body length, number of segments, the length of the first three segments L3, wet or dry weight) were measured in the ragworm Nereis diversicolor originating from clean (Authie) and polluted (Seine) estuaries (France) to study size-weight relationships. The producti...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ultrafine particles of Co-P were synthesized by direct ball milling of Co and P powders and also investigated as a reversible hydrogen storage electrode material. The electrochemical results demonstrated that the reversible charge-discharge capacity of the Co-P electrode can reach more than 300mAh/g. In addition, the cycling ability and high rate capability of the Co-P electrode are excellent with only 5% capacity decay after 100 cycles at a high rate of 300mA/g. The temperature-programmed desorption measurements (TPD) of the Co-P electrode revealed that the charge and discharge reactions of the Co-P electrode proceeds predominantly through electrochemical hydrogen storage mechanism and the electrooxidation of cobalt contributes only a negligible part to the reversible electrochemical capacity. (author)

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Often ecologists and natural resource managers can easily access data on invasive species occurrence across a region. Yet, collecting species abundance data over a large area is arguably more important for decision making, but inherently costly, so methods which can provide robust information at low-cost are particularly valuable. Studies of species distribution often use occurrence data to build models of the environmental niche. Environmental suitability derived from such models may be used to predict the potential distributions of species. The ability of such models to predict spatial patterns in abundance have recently been demonstrated. Here we tested the relationship of environmental suitability with local abundance of an aquatic invasive species, olive hymenachne (Hymenachne amplexi...

Science.gov (United States)

Sandia Laboratories, as part of its investigation of the Darrieus Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT), has been involved recently in an economic assessment of the concept. The class of VAWT's investigated use curved, fixed-pitch blades of constant section rigidly attached to a vertical rotating tower. Qualitatively, the main advantages of the VAWT over more conventional, propeller-type machines are the elimination of yaw controls, the placement of mechanical equipment at ground level, its amenability to simple, low-cost blade fabrication techniques, and aerodynamic stall characteristics which eliminate the need for active pitch control devices. The main disadvantages relative to modern propeller machines are a somewhat lower aerodynamic efficiency (about 10% lower), the limited ability of the rotor to self-start, and generally lower rotor operating RPM's, which leads to higher torque capacity requirements for the drive train.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The last decade has produced an explosion in neuroscience research examining young children's early processing of language that has implications for education. Noninvasive, safe functional brain measurements have now been proven feasible for use with children starting at birth. In the arena of language, the neural signatures of learning can be documented at a remarkably early point in development, and these early measures predict performance in children's language and pre-reading abilities in the second, third, and fifth year of life, a finding with theoretical and educational import. There is evidence that children's early mastery of language requires learning in a social context, and this finding also has important implications for education. Evidence relating socioeconomic status (SES) ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

This paper focuses on the development of explicit self-awareness in children. Mirror self-recognition has been the most popular paradigm used to assess this ability in children. Nevertheless, according to Rochat (2003), there are, at least, three different levels of explicit self-awareness. We therefore designed three different self-recognition tasks, each corresponding to one of these levels (a mirror self-recognition task, a picture self-recognition task and a masked self-recognition task). We observed a decrease in performance across the three tasks. This supports a developmental scale in self-awareness. Besides, the masked self-recognition performance makes it possible to assess the final and the most sophisticated level of self-awareness, i.e. the external self. To our best knowledge,...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The ability to cope with plant defense chemicals differs between specialist and generalist species. In this study, we examined the effects of the concentration of the two main iridoid glycosides (IGs) in Plantago lanceolata, aucubin and catalpol, on the performance of a specialist and two generalist herbivores and their respective endoparasitoids. Development of the specialist herbivore Melitaea cinxia was unaffected by the total leaf IG concentration in its host plant. By contrast, the generalist herbivores Spodoptera exigua and Chrysodeixis chalcites showed delayed larval and pupal development on plant genotypes with high leaf IG concentrations, respectively. This result is in line with the idea that specialist herbivores are better adapted to allelochemicals in host plants on which they...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The ability of a local strain of grape phylloxera to develop and reproduce on irradiated in vitro cultured rootstocks (Ru140, R99 and 3309C and one local variety 'Helwani' was determined. The results showed that there was great variation in developmental time and reproduction of phylloxera between irradiated and unirradiated in vitro cultured plants. Survival, number of eggs and mean developmental time were greatly reduced when phylloxera was reared on irradiated rootstocks. Based on the examined biological parameters of phylloxera, all tested rootstocks would be more resistant toward such destructive insect when they were irradiated. Thus, phylloxera resistance was enhanced when in vitro cultured plants were treated with low doses of gamma irradiation. (author)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thermoacoustics deals with the conversion of heat energy into sound energy and vice versa. It is a new and emerging technology which has a strong potential towards the development of sustainable and renewable energy systems by utilizing waste heat or solar energy. Although simple to fabricate, the designing of thermoacoustic devices is very challenging. In the present study, a comprehensive design and optimization algorithm is developed for designing thermoacoustic devices. The unique feature of the present algorithm is its ability to design thermoacoustically-driven thermoacoustic refrigerators that can serve as sustainable refrigeration systems. In addition, new features based on the energy balance are also included to design individual thermoacoustic engines and acoustically-driven thermoacoustic refrigerators. As a case study, a thermoacoustically-driven thermoacoustic refrigerator has been designed and optimized based on the developed algorithm. The results ...