WorldWideScience

Sample records for hemi-wicking states depended

  1. Deposition of sol-gel sensor spots by nanoimprint lithography and hemi-wicking

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mikkelsen, Morten Bo Lindholm; Marie, Rodolphe; Hansen, Jan H.

    2011-01-01

    We present a method for homogeneous deposition of sol-gel sensor materials, which enable fabrication of sensor spots for optical pH and oxygen measurements inside plastic containers. A periodic pattern of posts is imprinted into a polycarbonate substrate and, using the principle of hemi-wicking, ......We present a method for homogeneous deposition of sol-gel sensor materials, which enable fabrication of sensor spots for optical pH and oxygen measurements inside plastic containers. A periodic pattern of posts is imprinted into a polycarbonate substrate and, using the principle of hemi...

  2. Effect of wick configuration of the heat pipe performance

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, Seong Won; Kang, Shin Hyung; Lee, Jin Ho

    1990-01-01

    Experimental investigation is made to study the dependence of performance characteristics of heat pipe on the types of wick shapes. Types of wick shapes adoped are open groove wick, screen wick, closed groove wick and no wick.(thermo-syphone). The dependence of heat pipe performance on the wick shape is turned out in the following order ; open groove wick, closed groove wick, screen wick and no wick. This shows that the heat transfer efficiency of heat pipe depends more upon the returning capacity of liquid from condenser to evaporator, implying that the wick which has low capillary pressure but good permeability is better than those which has higher capillary pressure. (Author)

  3. Solar heat-pipe wick modeling

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Andraka, C.E.

    1999-07-01

    Stirling-cycle engines have been identified as a promising technology for the conversion of concentrated solar energy into usable electrical power. In previous experimental work, the author has demonstrated that a heat pipe receiver can significantly improve system performance over a directly-illuminated heater head. The design and operating conditions of a heat pipe receiver differ significantly from typical laboratory heat pipes. New wick structures have been developed to exploit the characteristics of the solar generation system. Typically, these wick structures allow vapor generation within the wick. Conventional heat pipe models do not handle this enhancement, yet it can more than double the performance of the wick. In this study, the author developed a steady-state model of a boiling-enhanced wick for a solar heat pipe receiver. The model is used for design-point calculations and is written in FORTRAN90. Some limited comparisons have been made with actual test data.

  4. Constraints on the Lee-Wick Higgs sector

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Carone, Christopher D.; Primulando, Reinard

    2009-01-01

    Lee-Wick partners to the standard model Higgs doublet may appear at a mass scale that is significantly lower than that of the remaining Lee-Wick partner states. The relevant effective theory is a two-Higgs doublet model in which one doublet has wrong-sign kinetic and mass terms. We determine bounds on this effective theory, including those from neutral B-meson mixing, b→X s γ, and Z→bb. The results differ from those of conventional two-Higgs doublet models and lead to meaningful constraints on the Lee-Wick Higgs sector.

  5. Wicked problems and a 'wicked' solution.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walls, Helen L

    2018-04-13

    'Wicked' is the term used to describe some of the most challenging and complex issues of our time, many of which threaten human health. Climate change, biodiversity loss, persisting poverty, the advancing obesity epidemic, and food insecurity are all examples of such wicked problems. However there is a strong body of evidence describing the solutions for addressing many of these problems. Given that much is known about how many of these problems could be addressed - and given the risks of not acting - what will it take to create the 'tipping point' needed for effective action? A recent (2015) court ruling in The Hague held that the Dutch government's stance on climate change was illegal, ordering them to cut greenhouse gas emissions by at least 25% within 5 years (by 2020), relative to 1990 levels. The case was filed on behalf of 886 Dutch citizens, suing the government for violating human rights and climate changes treaties by failing to take adequate action to prevent the harmful impacts of climate change. This judicial ruling has the potential to provide a way forward, inspiring other civil movements and creating a template from which to address other wicked problems. This judicial strategy to address the need to lower greenhouse gas emissions in the Netherlands is not a magic bullet, and requires a particular legal and institutional setting. However it has the potential to be a game-changer - providing an example of a strategy for achieving domestic regulatory change that is likely to be replicable in some countries elsewhere, and providing an example of a particularly 'wicked' (in the positive, street-slang sense of the word) strategy to address seemingly intractable and wicked problems.

  6. Hemi-central retinal artery occlusion in young adults

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rishi Pukhraj

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available Amongst the clinical presentations of retinal artery occlusion, hemi-central retinal artery occlusion (Hemi-CRAO is rarely described. This case series of four adults aged between 22 and 36 years attempts to describe the clinical profile, etiology and management of Hemi-CRAO. Case 1 had an artificial mitral valve implant. Polycythemia and malignant hypertension were noted in Case 2. The third patient had Leiden mutation while the fourth patient had Eisenmenger′s syndrome. Clinical examination and fundus fluorescein angiography revealed a bifurcated central retinal artery at emergence from the optic nerve head, in all cases. Color Doppler examination of the central retinal artery confirmed branching of the artery behind the lamina cribrosa. It is hypothesized that bifurcation of central retinal artery behind the lamina cribrosa may predispose these hemi-trunks to develop an acute occlusion if associated with underlying risk factors. The prognosis depends upon arterial recanalisation and etiology of the thromboembolic event.

  7. Hemi-fused structure mediates and controls fusion and fission in live cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhao, Wei-Dong; Hamid, Edaeni; Shin, Wonchul; Wen, Peter J; Krystofiak, Evan S; Villarreal, Seth A; Chiang, Hsueh-Cheng; Kachar, Bechara; Wu, Ling-Gang

    2016-06-23

    Membrane fusion and fission are vital for eukaryotic life. For three decades, it has been proposed that fusion is mediated by fusion between the proximal leaflets of two bilayers (hemi-fusion) to produce a hemi-fused structure, followed by fusion between the distal leaflets, whereas fission is via hemi-fission, which also produces a hemi-fused structure, followed by full fission. This hypothesis remained unsupported owing to the lack of observation of hemi-fusion or hemi-fission in live cells. A competing fusion hypothesis involving protein-lined pore formation has also been proposed. Here we report the observation of a hemi-fused Ω-shaped structure in live neuroendocrine chromaffin cells and pancreatic β-cells, visualized using confocal and super-resolution stimulated emission depletion microscopy. This structure is generated from fusion pore opening or closure (fission) at the plasma membrane. Unexpectedly, the transition to full fusion or fission is determined by competition between fusion and calcium/dynamin-dependent fission mechanisms, and is notably slow (seconds to tens of seconds) in a substantial fraction of the events. These results provide key missing evidence in support of the hemi-fusion and hemi-fission hypothesis in live cells, and reveal the hemi-fused intermediate as a key structure controlling fusion and fission, as fusion and fission mechanisms compete to determine the transition to fusion or fission.

  8. E2F-dependent accumulation of hEmi1 regulates S phase entry by inhibiting APC(Cdh1)

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hsu, Jerry Y; Reimann, Julie D R; Sørensen, Claus S

    2002-01-01

    . At the G1-S transition, hEmi1 is transcriptionally induced by the E2F transcription factor, much like cyclin A. hEmi1 overexpression accelerates S phase entry and can override a G1 block caused by overexpression of Cdh1 or the E2F-inhibitor p105 retinoblastoma protein (pRb). Depleting cells of hEmi1...

  9. The semi-classical limit of the time dependent Hartree-Fock equation. II. The Wick symbol of the solution

    OpenAIRE

    Amour, Laurent; Khodja, Mohamed; Nourrigat, Jean

    2011-01-01

    We study the Wick symbol of a solution of the time dependent Hartree Fock equation, under weaker hypotheses than those needed for the Weyl symbol in the first paper with thesame title. With similar, we prove some kind of Ehrenfest theorem for observables that are not pseudo-differential operators.

  10. Mixing in wicking structures and the use of enhanced mixing within wicks in microchannel devices

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stenkamp, Victoria S [Richland, WA; TeGrotenhuis, Ward E [Kennewick, WA; Wegeng, Robert S [Alexandria, VA

    2009-06-02

    Advanced wicking structures and methods utilizing these structures are described. The use of advanced wicking structures can promote rapid mass transfer while maintaining high capillary pressure through the use of small pores. Particularly improved results in fluid contacting processes can be achieved by enhanced mixing within a wicking layer within a microchannel.

  11. Hemi-Intravascular Stenting for Supermicrosurgical Anastomosis

    OpenAIRE

    Kensuke Tashiro, MD; Shuji Yamashita, MD; Mitsunaga Narushima, MD; Isao Koshima, MD; Shimpei Miyamoto, MD

    2017-01-01

    Background:. Although supermicrosurgical anastomosis is a widely known reconstructive microsurgical technique, it is difficult to perform. To expand the clinical use of supermicrosurgery, we used hemi-intravascular stenting (hemi-IVaS), which is performed by inserting an intravascular stent into one side of the vessel. We conducted lymphaticovenular anastomosis, free perforator flap transfer, and fingertip replantation with supermicrosurgical anastomosis using hemi-IVaS technique and examined...

  12. Laparoscopic hemi-hysterectomy in treatment of a didelphic uterus with a hypoplastic cervix and obstructed hemi-vagina.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boudhraa, K; Barbarino, A; Gara, Mohamed Faouzi

    2008-11-01

    Maldevelopment of the Müllerian duct system may result in various urogenital anomalies including didelphic uterus with a hypoplastic cervix and obstructed hemi-vagina. We report a patient with this anomaly who was treated by laparoscopic hemi-hysterectomy and hysteroscopic resection of hemi-vagina. A 16-year-old patient who had complained of vaginal pus-like discharge on and off for 1 year was diagnosed by MRI to have a double uterus with obstructed right hemi-vagina and ipsilateral renal agenesis. After hysteroscopic identification of hypoplasia of the right uterine cervix, laparoscopic resection of the right uterus and right fallopian tube and hysteroscopic assisted resection of the vaginal septa were performed successfully. We think that combined laparoscopy and hysteroscopy may be an effective alternative in the management and diagnosis of Mullerian anomalies.

  13. Hemi-Intravascular Stenting for Supermicrosurgical Anastomosis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yamashita, Shuji; Narushima, Mitsunaga; Koshima, Isao; Miyamoto, Shimpei

    2017-01-01

    Background: Although supermicrosurgical anastomosis is a widely known reconstructive microsurgical technique, it is difficult to perform. To expand the clinical use of supermicrosurgery, we used hemi-intravascular stenting (hemi-IVaS), which is performed by inserting an intravascular stent into one side of the vessel. We conducted lymphaticovenular anastomosis, free perforator flap transfer, and fingertip replantation with supermicrosurgical anastomosis using hemi-IVaS technique and examined its usefulness. Methods: Between January 2013 and February 2015, 11 anastomoses in 11 cases of lymphaticovenular anastomosis for lymphedema patients, 14 anastomoses in 7 cases of free perforator flap transfer with supermicrosurgical perforator-to-perforator anastomosis, and 9 anastomoses in 5 cases of fingertip replantation were performed using hemi-IVaS. Time required for anastomosis and complications were examined. Flap survival rate was also examined in free perforator flap transfer cases and fingertip replantation cases. Results: In all cases, anastomoses were performed without complications such as inadvertent catching of the back wall of the vessel during the procedure or the need for reanastomoses. The average time required to complete the anastomosis was 16.4 ± 3.20 minutes using the hemi IVaS technique. All flaps survived in the supermicrosurgical perforator-to-perforator anastomosis as well as fingertip replantation cases. Conclusions: Hemi-IVaS could be a useful alternative to conventional intravascular stenting techniques and is also effective for supermicrosurgical perforator-to-perforator anastomosis. Further studies are needed to improve the success rate and to explore its other possible utilizations in supermicrosurgery. PMID:29263952

  14. Heat and Mass Transport in Heat Pipe Wick Structures

    OpenAIRE

    Iverson, B. D.; Davis, T. W.; Garimella, S V; North, M. T.; Kang, S.

    2007-01-01

    Anovel experimental approach is developed for characterizing the performance of heat pipe wick structures. This approach simulates the actual operation of wick structures in a heat pipe. Open, partially submerged, sintered copper wicks of varying pore size are studied under the partially saturated conditions found in normal heat pipe operation. A vertical wick orientation, where the capillary lift is in opposition to gravity, is selected to test the wicks under the most demanding conditions. ...

  15. Vantage point - A 'wicked' problem.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Naish, Jane

    2015-10-01

    SENIOR NURSES everywhere are facing a 'wicked' problem, wicked in the sense that it seems to defy resolution. The problem is this: the national shortage of nurses, particularly of those at band 5, is forcing us to use agency nurses so that we have enough staff to provide patient care safely.

  16. Fractal Loop Heat Pipe Performance Comparisons of a Soda Lime Glass and Compressed Carbon Foam Wick

    Science.gov (United States)

    Myre, David; Silk, Eric A.

    2014-01-01

    This study compares heat flux performance of a Loop Heat Pipe (LHP) wick structure fabricated from compressed carbon foam with that of a wick structure fabricated from sintered soda lime glass. Each wick was used in an LHP containing a fractal based evaporator. The Fractal Loop Heat Pipe (FLHP) was designed and manufactured by Mikros Manufacturing Inc. The compressed carbon foam wick structure was manufactured by ERG Aerospace Inc., and machined to specifications comparable to that of the initial soda lime glass wick structure. Machining of the compressed foam as well as performance testing was conducted at the United States Naval Academy. Performance testing with the sintered soda lime glass wick structures was conducted at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. Heat input for both wick structures was supplied via cartridge heaters mounted in a copper block. The copper heater block was placed in contact with the FLHP evaporator which had a circular cross-sectional area of 0.88 cm(sup 2). Twice distilled, deionized water was used as the working fluid in both sets of experiments. Thermal performance data was obtained for three different Condenser/Subcooler temperatures under degassed conditions. Both wicks demonstrated comparable heat flux performance with a maximum of 75 W/cm observed for the soda lime glass wick and 70 W /cm(sup 2) for the compressed carbon foam wick.

  17. Emulsion preparation for novel micro-porous polymeric hemi-shells

    CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

    Naidoo, Kersch

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available -dichloromethane (DCM) oil phase , micro-porous hemi-shells formed as solvent evaporated. CO2 gas ) 252–254 www.elsevier.com/locate/matlet Polycaprolactone hemi-shells were prepared by using an O/W technique. PCL (15% w/v) was fully dissolved in 10ml DCM (oil 253K...-averaged particle size and hemi-shell yield with solvent evaporation time. (ImageJ, NIH), the number-average particle size and yield of hemi-shells were obtained with increasing time intervals (n=200). Scanning electron microscopy (LEO 1525 field emis- sion SEM...

  18. Early hemi-diaphragmatic plication through a video assisted mini-thoracotomy in postcardiotomy phrenic nerve paresis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tsakiridis, Kosmas; Visouli, Aikaterini N.; Machairiotis, Nikolaos; Christofis, Christos; Stylianaki, Aikaterini; Katsikogiannis, Nikolaos; Mpakas, Andreas; Courcoutsakis, Nicolaos; Zarogoulidis, Konstantinos

    2012-01-01

    New symptom onset of respiratory distress without other cause, and new hemi-diaphragmatic elevation on chest radiography postcardiotomy, are usually adequate for the diagnosis of phrenic nerve paresis. The symptom severity varies (asymptomatic state to severe respiratory failure) depending on the degree of the lesion (paresis vs. paralysis), the laterality (unilateral or bilateral), the age, and the co-morbidity (respiratory, cardiac disease, morbid obesity, etc). Surgical treatment (hemi-diaphragmatic plication) is indicated only in the presence of symptoms. The established surgical treatment is plication of the affected hemidiaphragm which is generally considered safe and effective. Several techniques and approaches are employed for diaphragmatic plication (thoracotomy, video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery, video-assisted mini-thoracotomy, laparoscopic surgery). The timing of surgery depends on the severity and the progression of symptoms. In infants and young children with postcardiotomy phrenic nerve paresis the clinical status is usually severe (failure to wean from mechanical ventilation), and early plication is indicated. Adults with postcardiotomy phrenic nerve paresis usually suffer from chronic dyspnoea, and, in the absence of respiratory distress, conservative treatment is recommended for 6 months -2 years, since improvement is often observed. Nevertheless, earlier surgical treatment may be indicated in non-resolving respiratory failure. We present early (25th day postcardiotomy) right hemi-diaphragm plication, through a video assisted mini-thoracotomy in a high risk patient with postcardiotomy phrenic nerve paresis and respiratory distress. Early surgery with minimal surgical trauma, short operative time, minimal blood loss and postoperative pain, led to fast rehabilitation and avoidance of prolonged hospitalization complications. The relevant literature is discussed. PMID:23304442

  19. Study of PTFE wick structure applied to loop heat pipe

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wu, Shen-Chun; Gu, Tzu-Wei; Wang, Dawn; Chen, Yau-Ming

    2015-01-01

    This study investigated the use of sintered PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) particles as the wick material of loop heat pipe (LHP), taking advantage of PTFE's low thermal conductivity to reduce the heat leakage problem during LHP's operation. Different PTFE particle sizes were tried to find the one that resulted in the best wick; LHP performance tests were then conducted, and PTFE's potential for application to LHP was examined. Using PTFE particles ranging from 300–500 μm in size, the best wick properties were effective pore radius of 1.7 μm, porosity of 50%, and permeability of 6.2 × 10 −12  m 2 . LHP performance tests showed that, under typical electronic devices' operating temperature of 85 °C, the heat load reached 450 W, the thermal resistance was 0.145 °C/W, and the critical heat load (dryout heat load) reached 600 W. Compared to LHP with a nickel wick, LHP with a PTFE wick had a significantly lower operating temperature, indicating reduced heat leakage during operation, while having comparable performance; also, during the manufacturing process, a PTFE wick required lower sintering temperature, needed shorter sintering time, and had no need for hydrogen gas during sintering. The results of this study showed that, for high heat transfer capacity cooling devices, PTFE wicks possess great potential for applications to LHPs. - Highlights: • The performances of PTFE and nickel wicks in LHP are comparable for the first time. • PTFE wick allows for lower operating temperature and thus pressure in LHP system. • A wick requiring lower temperature and manufacturing cost and less time was made. • PTFE wick has potential to replace metal wick and enhance performance of LHP

  20. Higher-derivative Lee-Wick unification

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Carone, Christopher D.

    2009-01-01

    We consider gauge coupling unification in Lee-Wick extensions of the Standard Model that include higher-derivative quadratic terms beyond the minimally required set. We determine how the beta functions are modified when some Standard Model particles have two Lee-Wick partners. We show that gauge coupling unification can be achieved in such models without requiring the introduction of additional fields in the higher-derivative theory and we comment on possible ultraviolet completions.

  1. Production of bovine hand-made cloned embryos by zygote-oocyte cytoplasmic hemi-complementation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mezzalira, Joana Claudia; Ohlweiler, Lain Uriel; da Costa Gerger, Renato Pereira; Casali, Renata; Vieira, Fabiano Koerich; Ambrósio, Carlos Eduardo; Miglino, Maria Angélica; Rodrigues, José Luiz; Mezzalira, Alceu; Bertolini, Marcelo

    2011-02-01

    The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the cytoplast type and activation process on development of cloned embryos. Bovine oocytes (MII) or zygotes at the one-cell stage (IVF) were manually bisected and segregated in MII or IVF hemi-cytoplasts or hemi-karyoplasts. Adult skin cells from a bovine female were used as nucleus donors (SC). Experimental groups were composed of IVF embryos; parthenogenetic embryos; hand-made cloned (HMC) embryos; and reconstructed HMC embryos using IVF hemi-cytoplast + MII hemi-cytoplast + SC (G-I); IVF hemi-cytoplast + IVF hemi-cytoplast + SC (G-II); MII hemi-cytoplast + IVF hemi-karyoplast (G-III); and IVF hemi-cytoplast + IVF hemi-karyoplast (G-IV). Embryos from G-I to G-IV were allocated to subgroups as sperm-activated (SA) or were further chemically activated (SA + CA). Embryos from all groups and subgroups were in vitro cultured in the WOW system. Blastocyst development in subgroup G-I SA (28.2%) was similar to IVF (27.0%) and HMC (31.4%) controls, perhaps due to a to a more suitable activation process and/or better complementation of cytoplasmic reprogramming factors, with the other groups and subgroups having lower levels of development. No blastocyst development was observed when using IVF hemi-karyoplasts (G-III and G-IV), possibly due to the manipulation process during a sensitive biological period. In summary, the presence of cytoplasmic factors from MII hemi-oocytes and the sperm activation process from hemi-zygotes appear to be necessary for adequate in vitro development, as only the zygote-oocyte hemi-complementation was as efficient as controls for the generation of bovine cloned blastocysts.

  2. Analytic Model for Predicting the Permeability of Foam-type Wick

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ngo, Ich-Long; Byon, Chan [Yeungnam Univ., Gyeongsan (Korea, Republic of)

    2016-06-15

    Wicks play an important role in determining the thermal performance of heat pipes. Foam-type wicks are known to have good potential for enhancing the capillary performance of conventional types of wicks, and this is because of their high porosity and permeability. In this study, we develop an analytic expression for predicting the permeability of a foam-type wick based on extensive numerical work. The proposed correlation is based on the modified Kozeny-Carman’s equation, where the Kozeny-Carman coefficient is given as an exponential function of porosity. The proposed correlations are shown to predict the previous experimental results well for an extensive parametric range. The permeability of the foam-type wick is shown to be significantly higher than that of conventional wicks because of their high porosity.

  3. Hemi-transseptal Approach for Pituitary Surgery: A Follow-Up Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fnais, Naif; Maio, Salvatore Di; Edionwe, Susan; Zeitouni, Anthony; Sirhan, Denis; Valdes, Constanza J.; Tewfik, Marc A.

    2016-01-01

    Objectives The hemi-transseptal (Hemi-T) approach was developed to overcome the potential drawbacks of the nasoseptal flap (NSF) in endoscopic endonasal transsphenoidal skull base surgery. In this study, we describe further refinements on the Hemi-T approach, and report long-term outcomes as compared with traditional methods of skull base reconstruction. Design A retrospective case-control study. Setting Montreal Neurological Institute and Jewish General Hospital, Montreal, Canada. Participants Patients who underwent endoscopic endonasal transsphenoidal approach to skull base pathology. Main Outcome Measures Operative time, CSF rhinorrhea, and postoperative nasal morbidity. Results A total of 105 patients underwent the Hemi-T approach versus 40 controls. Operative time was shorter using the Hemi-T technique (180.51 ± 56.9 vs. 202.9 ± 62 minutes; p = 0.048). The rates of nasal morbidity (septal perforation [5/102 vs. 6/37; p = 0.029] and mucosal adhesion [11/102 vs. 10/39 p = 0.027]), fascia lata harvest (21/100 vs. 18/39; p = 0.0028), and postoperative CSF leak rates (7/100 vs. 9/38; p = 0.006) were lower in the Hemi-T group. Conclusion Advantages of the Hemi-T approach over traditional exposure techniques include preservation of the nasal vascular pedicle, shorter operative time, reduced fascia lata harvest rates, and decreased nasal morbidity. PMID:28321378

  4. Additive Manufacturing of Heat Pipe Wicks, Phase I

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Wick properties are often the limiting factor in a heat pipe design. Current technology uses conventional sintering of metal powders, screen wick, or grooves to...

  5. 21 CFR 888.3170 - Elbow joint radial (hemi-elbow) polymer prosthesis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Elbow joint radial (hemi-elbow) polymer prosthesis. 888.3170 Section 888.3170 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN... (hemi-elbow) polymer prosthesis. (a) Identification. An elbow joint radial (hemi-elbow) polymer...

  6. Radiation bounce from the Lee-Wick construction?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Karouby, Johanna; Brandenberger, Robert

    2010-01-01

    It was recently realized that matter modeled by the scalar field sector of the Lee-Wick standard model yields, in the context of a homogeneous and isotropic cosmological background, a bouncing cosmology. However, bouncing cosmologies induced by pressureless matter are in general unstable to the addition of relativistic matter (i.e. radiation). Here we study the possibility of obtaining a bouncing cosmology if we add not only radiation, but also its Lee-Wick partner, to the matter sector. We find that, in general, no bounce occurs. The only way to obtain a bounce is to choose initial conditions with very special phases of the radiation field and its Lee-Wick partner.

  7. 21 CFR 888.3810 - Wrist joint ulnar (hemi-wrist) polymer prosthesis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Wrist joint ulnar (hemi-wrist) polymer prosthesis. 888.3810 Section 888.3810 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN... (hemi-wrist) polymer prosthesis. (a) Identification. A wrist joint ulnar (hemi-wrist) polymer prosthesis...

  8. 21 CFR 888.3730 - Toe joint phalangeal (hemi-toe) polymer prosthesis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Toe joint phalangeal (hemi-toe) polymer prosthesis. 888.3730 Section 888.3730 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN... (hemi-toe) polymer prosthesis. (a) Identification. A toe joint phalangeal (hemi-toe) polymer prosthesis...

  9. Wicked Problems in Special and Inclusive Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Armstrong, David

    2017-01-01

    This special paper provides a critical overview of wicked problems in special and inclusive education. Practically, this paper provides a strategic framework for future special issues in the "Journal of Special Educational Needs". Critical attention is also given to the concept of a wicked problem when applied to research in special and…

  10. Governance capabilities for dealing wisely with wicked problems

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Termeer, C.J.A.M.; Dewulf, A.; Breeman, G.E.; Stiller, S.J.

    2015-01-01

    This article explores an integrative approach for dealing with wicked problems. Wicked problems not only require alternative action strategies but also alternative ways of observing and enabling. Four governance capabilities are essential: (a) reflexivity, or the capability to deal with multiple

  11. One-loop renormalization of Lee-Wick gauge theory

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Grinstein, Benjamin; O'Connell, Donal

    2008-01-01

    We examine the renormalization of Lee-Wick gauge theory to one-loop order. We show that only knowledge of the wave function renormalization is necessary to determine the running couplings, anomalous dimensions, and vector boson masses. In particular, the logarithmic running of the Lee-Wick vector boson mass is exactly related to the running of the coupling. In the case of an asymptotically free theory, the vector boson mass runs to infinity in the ultraviolet. Thus, the UV fixed point of the pure gauge theory is an ordinary quantum field theory. We find that the coupling runs more quickly in Lee-Wick gauge theory than in ordinary gauge theory, so the Lee-Wick standard model does not naturally unify at any scale. Finally, we present results on the beta function of more general theories containing dimension six operators which differ from previous results in the literature.

  12. 21 CFR 888.3400 - Hip joint femoral (hemi-hip) metallic resurfacing prosthesis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Hip joint femoral (hemi-hip) metallic resurfacing... HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) MEDICAL DEVICES ORTHOPEDIC DEVICES Prosthetic Devices § 888.3400 Hip joint femoral (hemi-hip) metallic resurfacing prosthesis. (a) Identification. A hip joint femoral (hemi-hip...

  13. 21 CFR 888.3370 - Hip joint (hemi-hip) acetabular metal cemented prosthesis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Hip joint (hemi-hip) acetabular metal cemented... HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) MEDICAL DEVICES ORTHOPEDIC DEVICES Prosthetic Devices § 888.3370 Hip joint (hemi-hip) acetabular metal cemented prosthesis. (a) Identification. A hip joint (hemi-hip) acetabular...

  14. 21 CFR 888.3570 - Knee joint femoral (hemi-knee) metallic uncemented prosthesis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Knee joint femoral (hemi-knee) metallic uncemented... HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) MEDICAL DEVICES ORTHOPEDIC DEVICES Prosthetic Devices § 888.3570 Knee joint femoral (hemi-knee) metallic uncemented prosthesis. (a) Identification. A knee joint femoral (hemi-knee...

  15. Wrong vertex displacements due to Lee-Wick resonances at LHC

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Alvarez, E.; Schat, C.; Rold, L. da; Szynkman, A.

    2009-01-01

    We show how a resonance from the recently proposed Lee-Wick Standard Model could lead to wrong vertex displacements at LHCb. We study which could be the possible 'longest lived' Lee-Wick particle that could be created at LHC, and we study its possible decays and detections. We conclude that there is a region in the parameter space which would give wrong vertex displacements as a unique signature of the Lee-Wick Standard Model at LHCb. Further numerical simulation shows that LHC era could explore these wrong vertex displacements through Lee-Wick leptons below 500 GeV. (author)

  16. Periodic solutions ofWick-type stochastic Korteweg–de Vries ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Periodic solutions ofWick-type stochastic Korteweg–de Vries equations ... Finding exact solutions of the Wick-type stochastic equation will be helpful in the theories and numerical studies of such ... Pramana – Journal of Physics | News.

  17. Sampling silica and ferrihydrite colloids with fiberglass wicks under unsaturated conditions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shira, Jason M; Williams, Barbara C; Flury, Markus; Czigány, Szabolcs; Tuller, Markus

    2006-01-01

    The suitability of passive capillary samplers (PCAPS) for collection of representative colloid samples under partially saturated conditions was evaluated by investigating the transport of negatively and positively charged colloids in fiberglass wicks. A synthetic pore water solution was used to suspend silica microspheres (330 nm in diameter) and ferrihydrite (172 nm in diameter) for transport experiments on fiberglass wicks. Breakthrough curves were collected for three unsaturated flow rates with silica microspheres and one unsaturated flow rate with ferrihydrite colloids. A moisture characteristic curve, relating tensiometer measurements of matric potential to moisture content, was developed for the fiberglass wick. Results indicate that retention of the silica and the ferrihydrite on the wick occurred; that is, the wicks did not facilitate quantitative sampling of the colloids. For silica microspheres, 90% of the colloids were transmitted through the wicks. For ferrihydrite, 80 to 90% of the colloids were transmitted. The mechanisms responsible for the retention of the colloids on the fiberglass wicks appeared to be physicochemical attachment and not thin-film, triple-phase entrapment, or mechanical straining. Visualization of pathways by iron staining indicates that flow is preferential at the center of twisted bundles of filaments. Although axial preferential flow in PCAPS may enhance their hydraulic suitability for sampling mobile colloids, we conclude that without specific preparation to reduce attachment or retention, fiberglass wicks should only be used for qualitative sampling of pore water colloids.

  18. Anthropocene Age Wicked Challenges

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Edgeman, Rick; Wu, Zhaohui

    2015-01-01

    weather events, drought, and desertification; threatened food supplies; water pollution, air pollution, and soil contamination; and the connection of these to disease, violence, and terrorism. Wicked challenges are discussed in relation to enterprise excellence, sustainability, resilience and robustness...

  19. 21 CFR 888.3590 - Knee joint tibial (hemi-knee) metallic resurfacing uncemented prosthesis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Knee joint tibial (hemi-knee) metallic resurfacing... Knee joint tibial (hemi-knee) metallic resurfacing uncemented prosthesis. (a) Identification. A knee joint tibial (hemi-knee) metallic resurfacing uncemented prosthesis is a device intended to be implanted...

  20. 21 CFR 888.3580 - Knee joint patellar (hemi-knee) metallic resurfacing uncemented prosthesis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Knee joint patellar (hemi-knee) metallic... § 888.3580 Knee joint patellar (hemi-knee) metallic resurfacing uncemented prosthesis. (a) Identification. A knee joint patellar (hemi-knee) metallic resurfacing uncemented prosthesis is a device made of...

  1. Deviations from Wick's theorem in the canonical ensemble

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schönhammer, K.

    2017-07-01

    Wick's theorem for the expectation values of products of field operators for a system of noninteracting fermions or bosons plays an important role in the perturbative approach to the quantum many-body problem. A finite-temperature version holds in the framework of the grand canonical ensemble, but not for the canonical ensemble appropriate for systems with fixed particle number such as ultracold quantum gases in optical lattices. Here we present formulas for expectation values of products of field operators in the canonical ensemble using a method in the spirit of Gaudin's proof of Wick's theorem for the grand canonical case. The deviations from Wick's theorem are examined quantitatively for two simple models of noninteracting fermions.

  2. The Wick-Concept for Thermal Insulation of Cold Piping

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Koverdynsky, Vit; Korsgaard, Vagn; Rode, Carsten

    2006-01-01

    the wick-concept in either of two variations: the self-drying or the self-sealing system. Experiments have been carried out using different variations of the two systems to investigate the conditions for exploiting the drying capabilities of the systems, and the results are presented. The results show......The wick-concept for thermal insulation of cold piping is based on capillary suction of a fiber fabric to remove excess water from the pipe surface by transporting it to the outer surface of the insulation. From the surface of the insulation jacket, the water will evaporate to the ambient air....... This will prevent long-term accumulation of moisture in the insulation material. The wick keeps the hydrophobic insulation dry, allowing it to maintain its thermal performance. The liquid moisture is kept only in the wick fabric. This article presents the principle of operation of cold pipe insulation using...

  3. Banking a hemi-abdominal DIEP flap: a pilot report of indications, technique, and utility.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shridharani, Sachin M; Singh, Navin K; Taylor, Jesse A; Rosson, Gedge D

    2009-01-01

    We present a pilot report of "banking" the contralateral hemi-abdominal deep inferior epigastric perforator (DIEP) flap under the abdominal closure in patients undergoing unilateral autologous breast reconstruction when a hemi-abdominal flap suffices. Four patients undergoing unilateral autologous breast reconstruction with a hemi-abdominal DIEP or superficial inferior epigastric artery flap had their contralateral hemi-abdominal flap left in position, or "banked," under their abdominal closure to be used in case of failure. This novel method may be of assistance when a free microvascular hemi-abdominal flap is felt to be threatened or suspect. It provides a life-boat for the younger and experienced surgeon alike, and most importantly, for the breast cancer survivor. Economic analysis of the technique reveals that the contralateral hemi-abdominal flap should be banked more often than intuition alone would suggest. (c) 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

  4. Role of sequential hemi-body irradiation in multiple myeloma: preliminary observations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kumar, H.S.; Chaudhary, R.K.; Kumar, Vanita

    1993-01-01

    Ten patients with multiple myeloma presenting in a highly painful condition were included in the study. They were treated by sequential hemi-body irradiation. A dose of 600 cGy was delivered to the upper hemi-body and 800 c Gy to the lower hemi-body. All patients has appreciable relief from pain. The maximum effect was achieved within 24 to 48 hours of treatment. 9 out of the 10 patients has an improvement in the performance status. All these patients were later subjected to combination chemotherapy. (author). 9 refs., 3 tabs

  5. 21 CFR 888.3360 - Hip joint femoral (hemi-hip) metallic cemented or uncemented prosthesis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Hip joint femoral (hemi-hip) metallic cemented or... Hip joint femoral (hemi-hip) metallic cemented or uncemented prosthesis. (a) Identification. A hip joint femoral (hemi-hip) metallic cemented or uncemented prosthesis is a device intended to be implanted...

  6. Experimental and numerical studies on liquid wicking into filter papers for paper-based diagnostics

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liu, Zhi; Hu, Jie; Zhao, Yimeng; Qu, Zhiguo; Xu, Feng

    2015-01-01

    Paper-based diagnostics have shown promising potential applications in human disease surveillance and food safety analysis at the point-of-care (POC). The liquid wicking behavior in diagnostic fibrous paper plays an important role in development of paper-based diagnostics. In the current study, we performed experimental and numerical research on the liquid wicking height and mass with three width strips into filter paper. The effective porosity could be conveniently measured in the light of the linear correlation between wicking height and mass by the experimental system. A modified model with considering evaporation effect was proposed to predict wicking height and mass. The predicted wicking height and mass using the evaporation model was much closer to the experimental data compared with the model without evaporation. The wicking speed initially decreased significantly and then maintained at a constant value at lower level. The evaporation effect tends to reduce the wicking flow speed. More wicking mass could be obtained at larger strip width but the corresponding reagent loss became significant. The proposed model with evaporation paved a way to understanding the fundamental of fluid flow in diagnostic paper and was essential to provide meaningful and useful reference for the research and development of paper-based diagnostics devices. - Highlights: • A model with considering evaporation was proposed to predict wicking height and mass. • Flow characteristics of filter paper were experimentally and theoretically studied. • Effective porosity could be conveniently measured by the experimental platform. • The evaporation effect tended to reduce the wicking flow speed

  7. Assessing a novel polymer-wick based electrode for EEG neurophysiological research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pasion, Rita; Paiva, Tiago O; Pedrosa, Paulo; Gaspar, Hugo; Vasconcelos, Beatriz; Martins, Ana C; Amaral, Maria H; Nóbrega, João M; Páscoa, Ricardo; Fonseca, Carlos; Barbosa, Fernando

    2016-07-15

    The EEG technique has decades of valid applications in clinical and experimental neurophysiology. EEG equipment and data analysis methods have been characterized by remarkable developments, but the skin-to-electrode signal transfer remains a challenge for EEG recording. A novel quasi-dry system - the polymer wick-based electrode - was developed to overcome the limitations of conventional dry and wet silver/silver-chloride (Ag/AgCl) electrodes for EEG recording. Nine participants completed an auditory oddball protocol with simultaneous EEG acquisition using both the conventional Ag/AgCl and the wick electrodes. Wick system successfully recorded the expected P300 modulation. Standard ERP analysis, residual random noise analysis, and single-trial analysis of the P300 wave were performed in order to compare signal acquired by both electrodes. It was found that the novel wick electrode performed similarly to the conventional Ag/AgCl electrodes. The developed wick electrode appears to be a reliable alternative for EEG research, representing a promising halfway alternative between wet and dry electrodes. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  8. Conformal generally covariant quantum field theory. The scalar field and its Wick products

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Pinamonti, N. [Hamburg Univ. (Germany). 2. Inst. fuer Theoretische Physik

    2008-06-15

    In this paper we generalize the construction of generally covariant quantum theories given in [R. Brunetti, K. Fredenhagen, R. Verch, Commun. Math. Phys. 237, 31 (2003)] to encompass the conformal covariant case. After introducing the abstract framework, we discuss the massless conformally coupled Klein Gordon field theory, showing that its quantization corresponds to a functor between two certain categories. At the abstract level, the ordinary fields, could be thought as natural transformations in the sense of category theory. We show that, the Wick monomials without derivatives (Wick powers), can be interpreted as fields in this generalized sense, provided a non trivial choice of the renormalization constants is given. A careful analysis shows that the transformation law of Wick powers is characterized by a weight, and it turns out that the sum of fields with different weights breaks the conformal covariance. At this point there is a difference between the previously given picture due to the presence of a bigger group of covariance. It is furthermore shown that the construction does not depend upon the scale {mu} appearing in the Hadamard parametrix, used to regularize the fields. Finally, we briefly discuss some further examples of more involved fields. (orig.)

  9. Conformal generally covariant quantum field theory. The scalar field and its Wick products

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pinamonti, N.

    2008-06-01

    In this paper we generalize the construction of generally covariant quantum theories given in [R. Brunetti, K. Fredenhagen, R. Verch, Commun. Math. Phys. 237, 31 (2003)] to encompass the conformal covariant case. After introducing the abstract framework, we discuss the massless conformally coupled Klein Gordon field theory, showing that its quantization corresponds to a functor between two certain categories. At the abstract level, the ordinary fields, could be thought as natural transformations in the sense of category theory. We show that, the Wick monomials without derivatives (Wick powers), can be interpreted as fields in this generalized sense, provided a non trivial choice of the renormalization constants is given. A careful analysis shows that the transformation law of Wick powers is characterized by a weight, and it turns out that the sum of fields with different weights breaks the conformal covariance. At this point there is a difference between the previously given picture due to the presence of a bigger group of covariance. It is furthermore shown that the construction does not depend upon the scale μ appearing in the Hadamard parametrix, used to regularize the fields. Finally, we briefly discuss some further examples of more involved fields. (orig.)

  10. Fixed point iterations for strictly hemi-contractive maps in uniformly smooth Banach spaces

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chidume, C.E.; Osilike, M.O.

    1993-05-01

    It is proved that the Mann iteration process converges strongly to the fixed point of a strictly hemi-contractive map in real uniformly smooth Banach spaces. The class of strictly hemi-contractive maps includes all strictly pseudo-contractive maps with nonempty fixed point sets. A related result deals with the Ishikawa iteration scheme when the mapping is Lipschitzian and strictly hemi-contractive. Our theorems generalize important known results. (author). 29 refs

  11. Convergence theorems for strictly hemi-contractive maps

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chidume, C.E.; Osilike, M.O.

    1992-04-01

    It is proved that each of two well-known fixed point iteration methods (the Mann and the Ishikawa iteration methods) converges strongly to the fixed point of strictly hemi-contractive map in real Banach spaces with property (U, λ, m+1,m), λ is an element of R, m is an element of IN. The class of strictly hemi-contractive maps includes all strictly pseudo-contractive maps with nonempty fixed point sets; and Banach spaces with property (U, λ, m+1, m), λ is an element of R, m is an element of IN include the L p (or l p ) spaces, p≥2. Our theorems generalize important known results. (author). 22 refs

  12. A novel approach of manufacturing Nickel Wicks for loop heat pipes ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    are manufactured with a basic purpose of generating capillary pumping ... The procedures for the production and characterization of the wick are presented here. ..... Huang X and Franchi G 2008 Design and fabrication of hybrid bi-modal wick ...

  13. Antiseptic wick: does it reduce the incidence of wound infection following appendectomy?

    LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

    McGreal, Gerald T

    2012-02-03

    The role of prophylactic antibiotics is well established for contaminated wounds, but the use of antiseptic wound wicks is controversial. The aim of this work was to study the potential use of wound wicks to reduce the rate of infection following appendectomy. This prospective randomized controlled clinical trial was conducted at a university hospital in the department of surgery. The subjects were patients undergoing appendectomy for definite acute appendicitis. They were randomized by computer to primary subcuticular wound closure or use of an antiseptic wound wick. For the latter, ribbon gauze soaked in povidone-iodine was placed between interrupted nylon skin sutures. Wicks were soaked daily and removed on the fourth postoperative day. All patients received antibiotic prophylaxis. They were reviewed while in hospital and 4 weeks following operation for evidence of wound infection. The main outcome measures were wound infection, wound discomfort, and cosmetic result. The overall wound infection rate was 8.6% (15\\/174). In patients with wound wicks it was 11.6% (10\\/86) compared to 5.6% (5\\/88) in those whose wounds were closed by subcuticular sutures (p = NS). We concluded that the use of wound wicks was not associated with decreased wound infection rates following appendectomy. Subcuticular closure is therefore appropriate in view of its greater convenience and safety.

  14. 21 CFR 888.3390 - Hip joint femoral (hemi-hip) metal/polymer cemented or uncemented prosthesis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Hip joint femoral (hemi-hip) metal/polymer... § 888.3390 Hip joint femoral (hemi-hip) metal/polymer cemented or uncemented prosthesis. (a) Identification. A hip joint femoral (hemi-hip) metal/polymer cemented or uncemented prosthesis is a two-part...

  15. 21 CFR 888.3380 - Hip joint femoral (hemi-hip) trunnion-bearing metal/polyacetal cemented prosthesis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Hip joint femoral (hemi-hip) trunnion-bearing... Devices § 888.3380 Hip joint femoral (hemi-hip) trunnion-bearing metal/polyacetal cemented prosthesis. (a) Identification. A hip joint femoral (hemi-hip) trunnion-bearing metal/polyacetal cemented prosthesis is a two...

  16. The Wundt-Jastrow illusion in the study of spatial hemi-inattention.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Massironi, M; Antonucci, G; Pizzamiglio, L; Vitale, M V; Zoccolotti, P

    1988-01-01

    A new test to detect unilateral neglect was devised using a modified version of the Wundt-Jastrow area illusion. The test was given to three groups of subjects: left brain damaged (LBD), right brain damaged (RBD) patients and controls. Of RBD patients, 40.4% but no LBD patient or control, showed responses inconsistent with the visual illusion when the determinant features of the illusion pointed to the left visual field. These unexpected responses were highly related to a clinical evaluation of the severity of the hemi-inattention disorder. The sensitivity of this test and of other standard measures of hemi-neglect were compared. The possibility of identifying qualitatively different forms of hemi-neglect was also discussed.

  17. Lee–Wick black holes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cosimo Bambi

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available We derive and study an approximate static vacuum solution generated by a point-like source in a higher derivative gravitational theory with a pair of complex conjugate ghosts. The gravitational theory is local and characterized by a high derivative operator compatible with Lee–Wick unitarity. In particular, the tree-level two-point function only shows a pair of complex conjugate poles besides the massless spin two graviton. We show that singularity-free black holes exist when the mass of the source M exceeds a critical value Mcrit. For M>Mcrit the spacetime structure is characterized by an outer event horizon and an inner Cauchy horizon, while for M=Mcrit we have an extremal black hole with vanishing Hawking temperature. The evaporation process leads to a remnant that approaches the zero-temperature extremal black hole state in an infinite amount of time.

  18. Hemi-Intravascular Stenting for Supermicrosurgical Anastomosis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kensuke Tashiro, MD

    2017-11-01

    Conclusions:. Hemi-IVaS could be a useful alternative to conventional intravascular stenting techniques and is also effective for supermicrosurgical perforator-to-perforator anastomosis. Further studies are needed to improve the success rate and to explore its other possible utilizations in supermicrosurgery.

  19. Monoporous micropillar wick structures, I-Mass transport characteristics

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ravi, Saitej; Horner, David; Moghaddam, Saeed

    2014-01-01

    This paper is the first of a two-part study concerning the relation between the geometry of micropillar array wicks and their thermohydraulic performance. In this paper, a parametric study of pillar array geometries is conducted, and the efficacies of existing capillary pressure and permeability models in predicting the experimental results are examined. A new method is utilized to independently measure the permeability and capillary pressure of a wick structure. A permeability model based on creeping flow past infinitely long cylinders, corrected to account for the effect of meniscus curvature on mass flow rate through pillar arrays with a limited height, closely predicts the experimental data. Also, a model that relates the capillary pressure to the wick geometry using a thermodynamic approach better predicts the experimental results. The approach adopted by this model involves using a surface energy minimization algorithm to determine the shape of the meniscus within the pillars. These permeability and capillary pressure models were coupled with Darcy's law for fluid flow to obtain an overall expression for flow through micropillar arrays. The overall model is utilized in the second part of this study to determine optimized micropillar wick geometries and the theoretical limits of their performance. - Highlights: • New method for independent measurement of capillary pressure and permeability. • Validated various capillary pressure and permeability models from literature. • Overall model to characterize mass transport capacity of micropillar arrays

  20. Influence of wick properties in a vertical LHP on remove waste heat from electronic equipment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Smitka, Martin; Nemec, Patrik; Malcho, Milan

    2014-01-01

    The loop heat pipe is a vapour-liquid phase-change device that transfers heat from evaporator to condenser. One of the most important parts of the LHP is the porous wick structure. The wick structure provides capillary force to circulate the working fluid. To achieve good thermal performance of LHP, capillary wicks with high permeability and porosity and fine pore radius are expected. The aim of this work is to develop porous wick of sintered nickel powder with different grain sizes. These porous wicks were used in LHP and there were performed a series of measurements to remove waste heat from the insulated gate bipolar transistor (IGBT)

  1. Influence of wick properties in a vertical LHP on remove waste heat from electronic equipment

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Smitka, Martin, E-mail: martin.smitka@fstroj.uniza.sk, E-mail: patrik.nemec@fstroj.uniza.sk, E-mail: milan.malcho@fstroj.uniza.sk; Nemec, Patrik, E-mail: martin.smitka@fstroj.uniza.sk, E-mail: patrik.nemec@fstroj.uniza.sk, E-mail: milan.malcho@fstroj.uniza.sk; Malcho, Milan, E-mail: martin.smitka@fstroj.uniza.sk, E-mail: patrik.nemec@fstroj.uniza.sk, E-mail: milan.malcho@fstroj.uniza.sk [University of Žilina, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Department of Power Engeneering, Univerzitna 1, 010 26 Žilina (Slovakia)

    2014-08-06

    The loop heat pipe is a vapour-liquid phase-change device that transfers heat from evaporator to condenser. One of the most important parts of the LHP is the porous wick structure. The wick structure provides capillary force to circulate the working fluid. To achieve good thermal performance of LHP, capillary wicks with high permeability and porosity and fine pore radius are expected. The aim of this work is to develop porous wick of sintered nickel powder with different grain sizes. These porous wicks were used in LHP and there were performed a series of measurements to remove waste heat from the insulated gate bipolar transistor (IGBT)

  2. Tackling wicked problems: how theories of agency can provide new insights.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Varpio, Lara; Aschenbrener, Carol; Bates, Joanna

    2017-04-01

    This paper reviews why and how theories of agency can be used as analytical lenses to help health professions education (HPE) scholars address our community's wicked problems. Wicked problems are those that resist clear problem statements, defy traditional analysis approaches, and refuse definitive resolution (e.g. student remediation, assessments of professionalism, etc.). We illustrate how theories of agency can provide new insights into such challenges by examining the application of these theories to one particular wicked problem in HPE: interprofessional education (IPE). After searching the HPE literature and finding that theories of agency had received little attention, we borrowed techniques from narrative literature reviews to search databases indexing a broad scope of disciplines (i.e. ERIC, Web of Science, Scopus, MEDLINE and PubMed) for publications (1994-2014) that: (i) examined agency, or (ii) incorporated an agency-informed analytical perspective. The lead author identified the theories of agency used in these articles, and reviewed the texts on agency cited therein and the original sources of each theory. We identified 10 theories of agency that we considered to be applicable to HPE's wicked problems. To select a subset of theories for presentation in this paper, we discussed each theory in relation to some of HPE's wicked problems. Through debate and reflection, we unanimously agreed on the applicability of a subset of theories for illuminating HPE's wicked problems. This subset is described in this paper. We present four theories of agency: Butler's post-structural formulation; Giddens' sociological formulation; cultural historical activity theory's formulation, and Bandura's social cognitive psychology formulation. We introduce each theory and apply each to the challenges of engaging in IPE. Theories of agency can inform HPE scholarship in novel and generative ways. Each theory offers new insights into the roots of wicked problems and means for

  3. Hyperbolic white noise functional solutions of Wick-type stochastic compound KdV-Burgers equations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Han Xiu; Xie Yingchao

    2009-01-01

    Variable coefficient and Wick-type stochastic compound KdV-Burgers equations are investigated. By using white noise analysis, Hermite transform and the hyperbolic function method, we obtain a number of Wick versions of hyperbolic white noise functional solutions and hyperbolic function solutions for Wick-type stochastic and variable coefficient compound KdV-Burgers equations, respectively.

  4. A Large Hemi-Anechoic Enclosure for Community-Compatible Aeroacoustic Testing of Aircraft Propulsion Systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cooper, Beth A.

    1993-01-01

    A large hemi-anechoic (absorptive walls and acoustically hard floor) noise control enclosure has been erected around a complex of test stands at the NASA Lewis Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio. This new state-of-the-art Aeroacoustic Propulsion Laboratory (APL) provides an all-weather, semisecure test environment while limiting noise to acceptable levels in surrounding residential neighborhoods. The 39.6 m (130 ft) diameter geodesic dome structure houses the new Nozzle Aeroacoustic Test Rig (NATR), an ejector-powered M = 0.3 free jet facility for acoustic testing of supersonic aircraft exhaust nozzles and turbomachinery. A multi-axis, force-measuring Powered Lift Facility (PLF) stand for testing of Short Takeoff Vertical Landing (STOVL) vehicles is also located within the dome. The design of the Aeroacoustic Propulsion Laboratory efficiently accomodates the research functions of two separate test rigs, one of which (NATR) requires a specialized environment for taking acoustic measurements. Absorptive fiberglass wedge treatment on the interior surface of the dome provides a hemi-anechoic interior environment for obtaining the accurate acoustic measurements required to meet research program goals. The APL is the first known geodesic dome structure to incorporate transmission-loss properties as well as interior absorption into a free-standing, community-compatible, hemi-anechoic test facility.

  5. Partially acetylated sugarcane bagasse for wicking oil from contaminated wetlands

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Chung, S. [Samsung Engineering Co. Ltd., R and D Center, Suwon, Gyeonggi (Korea, Republic of); Suidan, M.T. [University of Cincinnati, School of Energy, Environmental, Biological and Medical Engineering, Cincinnati, OH (United States); Venosa, A.D. [NRMRL, U.S. EPA, Cincinnati, OH (United States)

    2011-12-15

    Sugarcane bagasse was partially acetylated to enhance its oil-wicking ability in saturated environments while holding moisture for hydrocarbon biodegradation. The water sorption capacity of raw bagasse was reduced fourfold after treatment, which indicated considerably increased hydrophobicity but not a limited capability to hold moisture for hydrocarbon biodegradation. Characterization results by Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and surface area analyzer suggested that treated bagasse exhibited enhanced hydrophobicity and surface area. Oil wicking test results indicate that treated bagasse is more effective in wicking oil from highly saturated environments than raw bagasse and suggest that application of this material in remediation of oil spills in highly saturated wetlands is promising. (Copyright copyright 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

  6. Performance of solar still with a concave wick evaporation surface

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kabeel, A.E.

    2009-01-01

    Surfaces used for evaporation and condensation phenomenon play important roles in the performance of basin type solar still. In the present study, a concave wick surface was used for evaporation, whereas four sides of a pyramid shaped still were used for condensation. Use of jute wick increased the amount of absorbed solar radiation and enhanced the evaporation surface area. A concave shaped wick surface increases the evaporation area due to the capillary effect. Results show that average distillate productivity in day time was 4.1 l/m 2 and a maximum instantaneous system efficiency of 45% and average daily efficiency of 30% were recorded. The maximum hourly yield was 0.5 l/h. m 2 after solar noon. An estimated cost of 1 l of distillate was 0.065 $ for the presented solar still.

  7. Intersection local times, loop soups and permanental Wick powers

    CERN Document Server

    Jan, Yves Le; Rosen, Jay

    2017-01-01

    Several stochastic processes related to transient Lévy processes with potential densities u(x,y)=u(y-x), that need not be symmetric nor bounded on the diagonal, are defined and studied. They are real valued processes on a space of measures \\mathcal{V} endowed with a metric d. Sufficient conditions are obtained for the continuity of these processes on (\\mathcal{V},d). The processes include n-fold self-intersection local times of transient Lévy processes and permanental chaoses, which are `loop soup n-fold self-intersection local times' constructed from the loop soup of the Lévy process. Loop soups are also used to define permanental Wick powers, which generalizes standard Wick powers, a class of n-th order Gaussian chaoses. Dynkin type isomorphism theorems are obtained that relate the various processes. Poisson chaos processes are defined and permanental Wick powers are shown to have a Poisson chaos decomposition. Additional properties of Poisson chaos processes are studied and a martingale extension is obt...

  8. A monolayer of hierarchical silver hemi-mesoparticles with tunable surface topographies for highly sensitive surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhu, Shuangmei; Fan, Chunzhen; Mao, Yanchao; Wang, Junqiao; He, Jinna; Liang, Erjun; Chao, Mingju

    2016-02-01

    We proposed a facile green synthesis system to synthesize large-scale Ag hemi-mesoparticles monolayer on Cu foil. Ag hemi-mesoparticles have different surface morphologies on their surfaces, including ridge-like, meatball-like, and fluffy-like shapes. In the reaction, silver nitrate was reduced by copper at room temperature in dimethyl sulfoxide via the galvanic displacement reaction. The different surface morphologies of the Ag hemi-mesoparticles were adjusted by changing the reaction time, and the hemi-mesoparticle surface formed fluffy-spherical nanoprotrusions at longer reaction time. At the same time, we explored the growth mechanism of silver hemi-mesoparticles with different surface morphologies. With 4-mercaptobenzoic acid as Raman probe molecules, the fluffy-like silver hemi-mesoparticles monolayer with the best activity of surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS), the enhancement factor is up to 7.33 × 107 and the detection limit can reach 10-10M. SERS measurements demonstrate that these Ag hemi-mesoparticles can serve as sensitive SERS substrates. At the same time, using finite element method, the distribution of the localized electromagnetic field near the particle surface was simulated to verify the enhanced mechanism. This study helps us to understand the relationship between morphology Ag hemi-mesoparicles and the properties of SERS.

  9. Wicked ID: Conceptual Framework for Considering Instructional Design as a Wicked Problem

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Katrin Becker

    2007-02-01

    Full Text Available The process of instructional design has parallels in other design disciplines. Software design is one that has experienced intense attention in the last 30 or so years, and many lessons learned there can be applied to ID. Using software design as a springboard, this concept paper seeks to propose a new approach to ID. It suggests that instructional design is almost always a Wicked Problem. The connection is formed between Wicked Problems as first described by Rittel and Webber in 1973, and the models in and processes of instructional design. The areas of social planning, organizational management and software design all posses some accepted and tested approaches to the solution of Wicked Problems. These will be described, and how they can be applied to ID will be explained. Finally, this paper will propose a meta-model for ID and explain how it can be used in the current context. Résumé : Le processus de conception pédagogique a des similitudes avec d’autres disciplines. La conception de logiciels a fait l’objet d’une grande attention dans les trente dernières années et de nombreuses leçons tirées peuvent s’appliquer à la conception pédagogique. En se basant sur la conception de logiciels, cet article cherche à proposer une nouvelle méthode à la conception pédagogique. Il laisse entendre que la conception pédagogique constitue presque toujours un problème épineux. Le lien est formé entre les problèmes épineux tels que décrits par Rittel et Webber en 1973 et les modèles et processus de la conception pédagogique. Les secteurs de l’organisation sociale, de la gestion des organisations et de la conception de logiciels comptent des méthodes acceptées et validées à la résolution de problèmes épineux. Nous les décrirons et expliquerons comment ils peuvent servir à la conception pédagogique. Enfin, l’article proposera un meta-modèle de la conception pédagogique et expliquera comment il peut servir dans le

  10. Nanocoatings for Wicking of Low-Viscosity Cryogens

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The goal of this project is to investigate and develop smart, switchable materials systems for use in thermal management systems, including the evaluation of wicking...

  11. Performance of solar still with a concave wick evaporation surface

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kabeel, A.E. [Mechanical Power Department, Faculty of Engineering, Tanta University (Egypt)

    2009-10-15

    Surfaces used for evaporation and condensation phenomenon play important roles in the performance of basin type solar still. In the present study, a concave wick surface was used for evaporation, whereas four sides of a pyramid shaped still were used for condensation. Use of jute wick increased the amount of absorbed solar radiation and enhanced the evaporation surface area. A concave shaped wick surface increases the evaporation area due to the capillary effect. Results show that average distillate productivity in day time was 4.1 l/m{sup 2} and a maximum instantaneous system efficiency of 45% and average daily efficiency of 30% were recorded. The maximum hourly yield was 0.5 l/h. m{sup 2} after solar noon. An estimated cost of 1l of distillate was 0.065 $ for the presented solar still. (author)

  12. Comparative studies of D2 receptors and brain perfusion in hemi-parkinsonism rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lin Yansong; Lin Xiangtong

    2000-01-01

    The relationship between dopamine D 2 receptors and brain perfusion in hemi-parkinsonism rats was studied. Hemi-parkinsonism rats were made by stereotaxic 6-hydroxy dopamine (6-OH-DA) lesions in substantia nigra (SN) and ventral tegmental area (VTA), apomorphine (Apo) which could induced the successful model rat rotates toward the intact side was used to select the rats, 125 I-IBZM ex-vivo autoradiography analysis and 99m Tc-HM-PAO regional cerebral biodistribution were used to evaluate D 2 receptors and cerebral blood flow. The HPLC-ECD were used to measure striatum DA and its metabolites content. The lesioned side striatum DA and its metabolites HVA DOPAC reduced significantly than that of the intact side and pseudo-operated group, striatum/cerebellum 125 I-IBZM uptake ratio was 8.04 +- 0.71 in lesioned side of hemi-parkinsonism rats, significantly increased compared with the intact side and the pseudo-operated group (p 0.05). These results indicated that in the 6-OH-DA lesioned side DA content decreased significantly and an up-regulation of striatum D 2 receptor binding sites was induced in hemi-parkinsonism rats, which showed good correlation with rotation behavior induced by Apo. Comparing with cerebral blood flow, D 2 receptor reflected by IBZM seems to be more specific and earlier to detect the cerebral functional impairment in experimental hemi-parkinsonism

  13. New Exact Solutions for the Wick-Type Stochastic Kudryashov–Sinelshchikov Equation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ray, S. Saha; Singh, S.

    2017-01-01

    In this article, exact solutions of Wick-type stochastic Kudryashov–Sinelshchikov equation have been obtained by using improved Sub-equation method. We have used Hermite transform for transforming the Wick-type stochastic Kudryashov–Sinelshchikov equation to deterministic partial differential equation. Also we have applied inverse Hermite transform for obtaining a set of stochastic solutions in the white noise space. (paper)

  14. Manufacturing and microstructural characterization of sintered nickel wicks for capillary pumps

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eduardo Gonçalves Reimbrecht

    1999-07-01

    Full Text Available Sintered nickel powder is proposed to be used as porous wicks in heat pipes and capillary pumps. In this work the manufacturing procedure for tubular wicks for capillary pump application is discussed. The porosity, mechanical resistance and roundness of tubular wicks made of carbonila powder, atomized powder and a powder mixture of both are analyzed. A powder mixture was selected as the best raw material. In this case, pore size in the range of 2 to 24 mm and porosity about 50% were measured. First tests carried out in the laboratory, using acetone as the working fluid, show capillary pumping pressures up to 4 kPa and heat fluxes of about 1 W/cm2 in a two-phase heat transfer loop.

  15. The rebuilding imperative in fisheries: Clumsy solutions for a wicked problem?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khan, Ahmed S.; Neis, Barb

    2010-10-01

    There is mounting evidence that global fisheries are in crisis and about 25-30% of fish stocks are over exploited, depleted or recovering. Fish landings are increasingly coming from fully-exploited and over-exploited fisheries, and from intensive aquaculture that often relies indirectly on reduction fisheries. This poses severe challenges for marine ecosystems as well as food security and the livelihoods of resource-dependent coastal communities. Growing awareness of these social, economic and ecological consequences of overfishing is reflected in an expanding literature which shows that reducing fishing effort to allow fish stocks to recover has been the main focus of management efforts, but successful examples of stock recovery are few. An alternative, less explored social-ecological approach focuses on rebuilding entire ‘fish chains’ from oceans to plate. This paper supports this alternative approach. A review and synthesis of stock rebuilding initiatives worldwide suggests effective governance is central to rebuilding, and fisheries governance is a wicked problem. Wicked problems are complex, persistent or reoccurring and hard to fix because they are linked to broader social, economic and policy issues. This review and analysis implies that, due to socioeconomic and sociopolitical concerns, fisheries governance challenges are particularly wicked when dealing with collapsed fisheries and rebuilding efforts. The paper concludes that rebuilding might benefit from experimenting with clumsy solutions. Clumsy solutions are exploratory, include inputs from a broad range of stakeholders along the fish chain, and require information sharing, knowledge synthesis, and trust building. Moreover, clumsy solutions that address power relations, collective action dilemmas, and the fundamental question of ‘rebuilding for whom’ are essential for stewardship, equity and long-term resource sustainability.

  16. Instability of the Lee-Wick bounce

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Karouby, Johanna; Brandenberger, Robert; Qiu, Taotao

    2011-01-01

    It was recently realized [Y. F. Cai, T. t. Qiu, R. Brandenberger, and X. m. Zhang, Phys. Rev. D 80, 023511 (2009).] that a model constructed from a Lee-Wick type scalar field theory yields, at the level of homogeneous and isotropic background cosmology, a bouncing cosmology. However, bouncing cosmologies induced by pressureless matter are in general unstable to the addition of relativistic matter (i.e. radiation). Here we study the possibility of obtaining a bouncing cosmology if we add radiation coupled to the Lee-Wick scalar field. This coupling in principle would allow the energy to flow from radiation to matter, thus providing a drain for the radiation energy. However, we find that it takes an extremely unlikely fine-tuning of the initial phases of the field configurations for a sufficient amount of radiative energy to flow into matter. For general initial conditions, the evolution leads to a singularity rather than a smooth bounce.

  17. Improving ecosystem service frameworks to address wicked problems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kathryn K. Davies

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available Complex problems often result from the multiple interactions between human activities and ecosystems. The interconnected nature of ecological and social systems should be considered if these "wicked problems" are to be addressed. Ecosystem service approaches provide an opportunity to link ecosystem function with social values, but in practice the essential role that social dynamics play in the delivery of outcomes remains largely unexplored. Social factors such as management regimes, power relationships, skills, and values, can dramatically affect the definition and delivery of ecosystem services. Input from a diverse group of stakeholders improves the capacity of ecosystem service approaches to address wicked problems by acknowledging diverse sets of values and accounting for conflicting world views. Participatory modeling can incorporate both social and ecological dynamics into decision making that involves stakeholders, but is itself a complex social undertaking that may not yield precise or predictable outcomes. We explore the efficacy of different types of participatory modeling in relation to the integration of social values into ecosystem services frameworks and the generation of four important elements of social capital needed to address wicked problems: enhancing social learning and capacity building; increasing transparency; mediating power; and building trust. Our findings indicate that mediated modeling, group mapping, and mental/conceptual modeling are likely to generate elements of social capital that can improve ecosystem service frameworks. Participatory simulation, system dynamic modeling, and Bayesian belief networks, if utilized in isolation, were found to have a low likelihood of generating the social capital needed to improve ecosystem services frameworks. Scenario planning, companion modeling, group model building, and participatory mapping all generate a moderate to high level of social capital elements that improve the

  18. Nuclear waste disposal. A wicked and highly conflict bearing societal problem; Nukleare Entsorgung. Ein ''wicked'' und hoechst konfliktbehaftetes Gesellschaftsproblem

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Brunnengraeber, Achim; Mez, Lutz [Freie Univ. Berlin (Germany). Forschungszentrum fuer Umweltpolitik; Di Nucci, Maria Rosaria; Schreuers, Miranda [Freie Univ. Berlin (Germany)

    2012-12-15

    The final disposal of nuclear wastes is called ''messy'' or ''wicked'' in the political science literature. The highly complicated problems are characterized by a number of features such as intra- and inter-generational aspects and ethical questions. In the case of stakeholders the differences concern ideologies, interests, merits and preferences that cause conflicts. The search for solutions is complicated due to interacting political, social, ecologic, economic and technical aspects. The concepts ''wicked problems'' and ''multi-level-governance'' are promising approaches to solve the complicated situation.

  19. Effect of clearance on cartilage tribology in hip hemi-arthroplasty.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lizhang, Jia; Taylor, Simon D; Jin, Zhongmin; Fisher, John; Williams, Sophie

    2013-12-01

    Hemi-arthroplasty of the hip (an artificial femoral head articulating against the natural acetabulum) is used to treat fractured necks of femur; however, there is evidence that articulation causes erosion of the cartilage, resulting in pain for the patient. Parameters that may influence this cartilage erosion include head material and roughness, clearance between the head and acetabulum and activity levels of the patient. This study has assessed the effect of clearance of hemi-arthroplasty articulations on the contact stress, friction and cartilage deformation in an in vitro tribological simulation of the hemi-arthroplasty joint that applied dynamic loads and motion. It has been demonstrated that peak contact stress increased from 5.6 to 10.6 MPa as radial clearance increased from small (1.8 mm). In all samples, friction factor increased with time and was significantly less with extra-large clearances compared to small (<0.6 mm), medium (0.6-1.2 mm) and large (1.2-1.8 mm) clearances. The cartilage deformation observed was significantly greater in acetabulum samples paired to give small or extra-large clearances compared to those with medium or large clearances.

  20. Gravitationally Driven Wicking for Enhanced Condensation Heat Transfer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Preston, Daniel J; Wilke, Kyle L; Lu, Zhengmao; Cruz, Samuel S; Zhao, Yajing; Becerra, Laura L; Wang, Evelyn N

    2018-04-17

    Vapor condensation is routinely used as an effective means of transferring heat or separating fluids. Filmwise condensation is prevalent in typical industrial-scale systems, where the condensed fluid forms a thin liquid film due to the high surface energy associated with many industrial materials. Conversely, dropwise condensation, where the condensate forms discrete liquid droplets which grow, coalesce, and shed, results in an improvement in heat transfer performance of an order of magnitude compared to filmwise condensation. However, current state-of-the-art dropwise technology relies on functional hydrophobic coatings, for example, long chain fatty acids or polymers, which are often not robust and therefore undesirable in industrial conditions. In addition, low surface tension fluid condensates, such as hydrocarbons, pose a unique challenge because common hydrophobic condenser coatings used to shed water (with a surface tension of 73 mN/m) often do not repel fluids with lower surface tensions (condensation heat transfer using gravitationally driven flow through a porous metal wick, which takes advantage of the condensate's affinity to wet the surface and also eliminates the need for condensate-phobic coatings. The condensate-filled wick has a lower thermal resistance than the fluid film observed during filmwise condensation, resulting in an improved heat transfer coefficient of up to an order of magnitude and comparable to that observed during dropwise condensation. The improved heat transfer realized by this design presents the opportunity for significant energy savings in natural gas processing, thermal management, heating and cooling, and power generation.

  1. Early results of patellofemoral inlay resurfacing arthroplasty using the HemiCap Wave prosthesis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Patel, Akash; Haider, Zakir; Anand, Amarjit; Spicer, Dominic

    2017-01-01

    Common surgical treatment options for isolated patellofemoral osteoarthritis include arthroscopic procedures, total knee replacement and patellofemoral replacement. The HemiCap Wave patellofemoral resurfacing prosthesis is a novel inlay design introduced in 2009 with scarce published data on its functional outcomes. We aim to prospectively evaluate early functional outcomes and complications, for patients undergoing a novel inlay resurfacing arthroplasty for isolated patellofemoral arthrosis in an independent centre. From 2010 to 2013, 16 consecutive patients underwent patellofemoral resurfacing procedures using HemiCap Wave (Arthrosurface Inc., Franklin, Massachusetts, USA) for anterior knee pain with confirmed radiologically and/or arthroscopically isolated severe patellofemoral arthrosis. Standardized surgical technique, as recommended by the implant manufacturer, was followed. Outcome measures included range of movement, functional knee scores (Oxford Knee Score (OKS), Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS) and Short Form-36 (SF-36)), radiographic disease progression, revision rates and complications. Eight men and eight women underwent patellofemoral HemiCap Wave resurfacing, with an average age of 63 years (range: 46-83). Average follow-up was 24.1 months (6-34). Overall, post-operative scores were excellent. There was a statistically significant improvement in the post-operative OKS, KOOS and SF-36 scores ( p patellofemoral resurfacing prosthesis has excellent early results in terms of functional outcomes, radiological outcomes and low complication rates. At the very least, early results show that the HemiCap Wave is comparable to more established onlay prostheses. The HemiCap Wave thus provides a safe and effective surgical option in the treatment of isolated patellofemoral osteoarthritis in selected patients.

  2. DFR Perturbative Quantum Field Theory on Quantum Space Time, and Wick Reduction

    Science.gov (United States)

    Piacitelli, Gherardo

    We discuss the perturbative approach à la Dyson to a quantum field theory with nonlocal self-interaction :φ⋆···⋆φ, according to Doplicher, Fredenhagen and Roberts (DFR). In particular, we show that the Wick reduction of nonlocally time-ordered products of Wick monomials can be performed as usual, and we discuss a very simple Dyson diagram.

  3. Growth Decline Linked to Warming-Induced Water Limitation in Hemi-Boreal Forests

    OpenAIRE

    Wu, Xiuchen; Liu, Hongyan; Guo, Dali; Anenkhonov, Oleg A.; Badmaeva, Natalya K.; Sandanov, Denis V.

    2012-01-01

    Hemi-boreal forests, which make up the transition from temperate deciduous forests to boreal forests in southern Siberia, have experienced significant warming without any accompanying increase in precipitation during the last 80 years. This climatic change could have a profound impact on tree growth and on the stability of forest ecosystems in this region, but at present evidence for these impacts is lacking. In this study, we report a recent dramatic decline in the growth of hemi-boreal fore...

  4. Strong deflection lensing by a Lee–Wick black hole

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shan-Shan Zhao

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available We study strong deflection gravitational lensing by a Lee–Wick black hole, which is a non-singular black hole generated by a high derivative modification of Einstein–Hilbert action. The strong deflection lensing is expected to produce a set of relativistic images very closed to the event horizon of the black hole. We estimate its observables for the supermassive black hole in our Galactic center. It is found that the Lee–Wick black hole can be distinguished from the Schwarzschild black hole via such lensing effects when the UV scale is not very large, but the requiring resolution is much higher than current capability.

  5. Comparative studies of D2 receptors and cerebral blood flow in hemi-Parkinsonism rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lin Yansong; Lin Xiangtong

    2000-01-01

    Objective: To study the relationship between dopamine D 2 receptors and cerebral blood flow in hemi-Parkinsonism rats. Methods: Hemi-Parkinsonism rats were made by stereotaxic 6-hydroxy dopamine (6-OH-DA) lesions in substantia nigra and ventral tegmental area, apomorphine (Apo) which could induce the successful model rat to rotate toward the intact side was used to select the rat models, 125 I-IBZM in vivo autoradiography and 99 Tc m -HMPAO regional cerebral biodistribution analysis were used to study D 2 receptors and cerebral blood flow. The HPLC-ECD was used to measure striatum DA and its metabolite content . Results: the lesioned side striatum DA and its metabolites homovanillic acid (HVA) 3,4-dihyroxy-phenylacetic acid (DOPAC) reduced significantly than that of the intact side and pseudo-operated group, striatum/cerebellum 125 I-IBZM uptake ratio was 8.04 +- 0.71 in lesioned side of hemi-Parkinsonism rats, significantly increased compared with the intact side and the pseudo-operated group (P 0.05). Conclusions: the 6-OH-DA lesioned side DA content decreased significantly and thus induced a compensative up-regulation of striatum D 2 receptor binding sites in hemi-Parkinsonism rats, which show good correlation with rotation behavior induced by Apo. Comparing with cerebral blood flow, D 2 receptor reflected by IBZM seems to be more specific and earlier to detect the cerebral functional impairment in experimental hemi-Parkinsonism

  6. Solving Wicked Problems through Action Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Crul, Liselore

    2014-01-01

    This account of practice outlines the Oxyme Action Learning Program which was conducted as part of the Management Challenge in my final year of the MSc in Coaching and Behavioral Change at Henley Business School. The central research questions were: (1) how action learning can help to solve wicked problems and (2) what the effect of an action…

  7. The wicked problems of supplier-driven innovation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Christensen, Poul Rind; Munksgaard, Kristin Balslev; Bang, Anne Louise

    2017-01-01

    Suppliers stand in the wake of a new diversified strategic momentum in the global production network, where innovation is growing in importance. The term “supplier-driven innovation” is coined in contrast to the current hype on user-driven innovation; this paper aims to discuss the wicked problems...

  8. Super-renormalizable or finite Lee–Wick quantum gravity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Leonardo Modesto

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available We propose a class of multidimensional higher derivative theories of gravity without extra real degrees of freedom besides the graviton field. The propagator shows up the usual real graviton pole in k2=0 and extra complex conjugates poles that do not contribute to the absorptive part of the physical scattering amplitudes. Indeed, they may consistently be excluded from the asymptotic observable states of the theory making use of the Lee–Wick and Cutkosky, Landshoff, Olive and Polkinghorne prescription for the construction of a unitary S-matrix. Therefore, the spectrum consists of the graviton and short lived elementary unstable particles that we named “anti-gravitons” because of their repulsive contribution to the gravitational potential at short distance. However, another interpretation of the complex conjugate pairs is proposed based on the Calmet's suggestion, i.e. they could be understood as black hole precursors long established in the classical theory. Since the theory is CPT invariant, the conjugate complex of the micro black hole precursor can be interpreted as a white hole precursor consistently with the 't Hooft complementarity principle. It is proved that the quantum theory is super-renormalizable in even dimension, i.e. only a finite number of divergent diagrams survive, and finite in odd dimension. Furthermore, turning on a local potential of the Riemann tensor we can make the theory finite in any dimension. The singularity-free Newtonian gravitational potential is explicitly computed for a range of higher derivative theories. Finally, we propose a new super-renormalizable or finite Lee–Wick standard model of particle physics.

  9. First application of hemi-body electron beam irradiation for Kaposi sarcoma at the lower extremities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Platoni, Kalliopi; Diamantopoulos, Stefanos; Dilvoi, Maria; Delinikolas, Panagiotis; Kypraiou, Efrosyni; Efstathopoulos, Efstathios; Kouloulias, Vassilis

    2018-01-01

    Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) is a systemic neoplastic disease that can present cutaneous symptoms and is usually treated with a systematic approach due to its extent. Due to its radiosensitivity, radiotherapy is considered one of its main treatments, for palliation and local control of the skin and mucosal lesions. The aim of this paper was to report the first case of KS treated by hemi-body electron irradiation protocol in Greece. A fractionated 40 Gy hemi-body electron irradiation was prescribed to a 60-year-old male patient with KS at his legs. Dose uniformity was verified on a daily basis by thermoluminescence dosimetry (TLD). The treatment resulted to complete clinical response. Limited irradiation-derived side effects appeared. This is the first case ever to be treated with hemi-body electron irradiation protocol in Greece. To the best of our knowledge, this is also the first time that a single field hemi-body electron beam irradiation at a total skin electron beam (TSEB)-like configuration is reported to be used for KS.

  10. Evaporation effect on two-dimensional wicking in porous media.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Benner, Eric M; Petsev, Dimiter N

    2018-03-15

    We analyze the effect of evaporation on expanding capillary flow for losses normal to the plane of a two-dimensional porous medium using the potential flow theory formulation of the Lucas-Washburn method. Evaporation induces a finite steady state liquid flux on capillary flows into fan-shaped domains which is significantly greater than the flux into media of constant cross section. We introduce the evaporation-capillary number, a new dimensionless quantity, which governs the frontal motion when multiplied by the scaled time. This governing product divides the wicking behavior into simple regimes of capillary dominated flow and evaporative steady state, as well as the intermediate regime of evaporation influenced capillary driven motion. We also show flow dimensionality and evaporation reduce the propagation rate of the wet front relative to the Lucas-Washburn law. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  11. Transient theory of double slope floating cum tilted - wick type solar still

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Balan, R.; Chandrasekaran, J.; Janarthanan, B.; Kumar, S.

    2011-01-01

    A double slope floating cum tilted-wick solar still has been fabricated and transient theory of floating cum tilted-wick type solar still has been proposed. Analytical expressions have been derived for the different temperatures components of the proposed system. For elocution of the analytical results, numerical calculations have been carried out using the meteorological parameters for a typical summer day in Coimbatore. Analytical expression results are found to be in the close agreement with the experimental results. (authors)

  12. Comparison of leaf smearing and wick feeding techniques for root distribution studies of tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nagaraj, G.; Hanumantha Rao, A.; Gopalachari, N.C.

    1976-01-01

    Wick feeding and leaf smearing methods have been compared for their relative efficiencies for root distribution studies with tobacco plant. The applied radioactivity gets equilibrated within 3 days in the tobacco plant. Root sections of the plants fed through the wick contained higher quantity for the radioactivity over those of the leaf smeared ones. Because of the case of application and better translocation of applied radioactivity the wick-feeding method appears to have good utility for root distribution studies with hard stemmed plants. (author)

  13. PET studie4s of dopamine D2 receptors in subclinical and clinical hemi-parkinsonism monkeys with 11C-Raclopride

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bian Yanzhu; Zhang Jinming; Tian Jiahe; Yao Shulin; Liu Huaijun

    2005-01-01

    Objective: To explore the characters of dopamine D 2 receptors (D 2 R) of subclinical and clinical hemi-parkinsonism monkeys. Methods: Four subclinical hemi-pakinsonism monkeys were developed by given one dose of 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropridine (MPTP) 0.3 mg/kg through fight internal carotid artery. Two clinical hemi-pakinsonism monkeys were developed by given 2 doses of MPTP 0.7 mg/kg through right internal carotid artery and the 2 doses were 4 weeks apart. 11 C-Raclopride was synthesized as an imaging agent of D 2 R. Four normal, 4 subclinical and 2 clinical hemi-parkinsonism monkeys underwent 11 C-Raclopride D 2 R PET, and the striatum D 2 R function was evaluated by region of interest (ROI) technique. Results: Symmetric striatal uptake was observed in normal and subclinical hemi-parkinsonism monkeys, the radioactivity ratios of striatum/cerebellum were 5.00±0.74, 5.04±0.72, respectively (t=1.016, P>0.05). There was a significant increase in 11 C-Raclopride binding in the fight striatum (lesioned side) of the two clinical hemi-pakinsonism monkeys; up-regulation of leisoned side striatum D 2 R was found; compared to the left sides, the radioactivity ratios of striatum cerebellum of right sides (lesioned sides) of the two monkeys were increased by 19.69%, 22.68%, respectively. Conclusions: 11 C-Raclopride was successfully synthesized as a D 2 R PET agent. The striatum D 2 R function was of no evident changes in subclinical hemi-parkinsonism monkeys. The striatum 132 R function was upregulated in lesioned side in clinical hemi-parkinsonism monkeys. (authors)

  14. Friction of ceramic and metal hip hemi-endoprostheses against cadaveric acetabula.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Müller, L P; Degreif, J; Rudig, L; Mehler, D; Hely, H; Rommens, P M

    2004-12-01

    Studies of hip arthroplasty have dealt mainly with total endoprosthesis, while tribology measurement values of hemi-endoprosthetic implants are rare. The small amount of experimental tribological data concerning materials of hemi-endoprosthetic implants in the form of pendulum trials, animal experiments, in vivo measurements on human hip joints and pin on disc studies report friction coefficients between 0.014 and 0.57; the friction coefficients measured in fresh human cadaver hip joints were determined between 0.001 and 0.08. The HEPFlEx-hip simulator was constructed to test the friction coefficients of unipolar femur head hemi-endoprostheses made of metal or ceramic against fresh cadaveric acetabula. Its plane of movement is uniaxial with a flexion-extension movement of +30/-18 degrees . The force is produced pneumatically dynamic with amounts of 2.5 kN. Newborn calf serum serves as a lubricant. We mounted 20 fresh porcine acetabula and 10 fresh human cadaver acetabula in the HEPFlEx-hip simulator and compared the two unipolar femur head hemi-endoprostheses (metal vs. ceramic). The mean friction coefficients against porcine acetabula were micro=0.017-0.082 for ceramic and micro=0.020-0.101 for metal; against human cadaver acetabula micro=0.017-0.083 for ceramic and micro=0.019-0.118 for metal. The frictional coefficient deltas (metal-ceramic) values of all measurements were Deltamicro=0.004 for porcine acetabula and Deltamicro=0.001 for cadaver acetabula. Box-plots graphics document significantly lower frictional coefficients of the ceramics. The lower frictional coefficients of ceramic compared to metal against fresh cadaveric acetabula may have a clinical impact on the process of the protrusion of the corresponding femoral head through the acetabulum.

  15. Two-ply channels for faster wicking in paper-based microfluidic devices.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Camplisson, Conor K; Schilling, Kevin M; Pedrotti, William L; Stone, Howard A; Martinez, Andres W

    2015-12-07

    This article describes the development of porous two-ply channels for paper-based microfluidic devices that wick fluids significantly faster than conventional, porous, single-ply channels. The two-ply channels were made by stacking two single-ply channels on top of each other and were fabricated entirely out of paper, wax and toner using two commercially available printers, a convection oven and a thermal laminator. The wicking in paper-based channels was studied and modeled using a modified Lucas-Washburn equation to account for the effect of evaporation, and a paper-based titration device incorporating two-ply channels was demonstrated.

  16. Nuclear waste disposal. A wicked and highly conflict bearing societal problem

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brunnengraeber, Achim; Mez, Lutz

    2012-01-01

    The final disposal of nuclear wastes is called ''messy'' or ''wicked'' in the political science literature. The highly complicated problems are characterized by a number of features such as intra- and inter-generational aspects and ethical questions. In the case of stakeholders the differences concern ideologies, interests, merits and preferences that cause conflicts. The search for solutions is complicated due to interacting political, social, ecologic, economic and technical aspects. The concepts ''wicked problems'' and ''multi-level-governance'' are promising approaches to solve the complicated situation.

  17. Relation between the Lee-Wick and Nambu-Jona-Lasinio models of chiral symmetry breaking

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Klevansky, S.P.; Lemmer, R.H.

    1990-01-01

    The connection between the sigma model of Lee and Wick and the Nambu-Jona-Lasinio (NJL) model is discussed. It is shown that the sigma field potential of the linear Lee-Wick model is identical in form with the variation of the vacuum energy of the NJL system with the baryonic scalar density n s . The sigma field is proportional to n s . Furthermore, the coupling constant and mass of this σ field are fully determined by the NJL model version of the Goldberger-Treiman relation. It is shown further that the restoration of chiral symmetry with increasing baryonic density always occurs via a second order transition in the NJL model, while it is necessarily of first order in the associated linear Lee-Wick model. (orig.)

  18. Parametric performance of circumferentially grooved heat pipes with homogeneous and graded-porosity slab wicks at cryogenic temperatures. [methane and ethane working fluids

    Science.gov (United States)

    Groll, M.; Pittman, R. B.; Eninger, J. E.

    1976-01-01

    A recently developed, potentially high-performance nonarterial wick was extensively tested. This slab wick has an axially varying porosity which can be tailored to match the local stress imposed on the wick. The purpose of the tests was to establish the usefulness of the graded-porosity slab wick at cryogenic temperatures between 110 and 260 K, with methane and ethane as working fluids. For comparison, a homogeneous (i.e., uniform porosity) slab wick was also tested. The tests included: maximum heat pipe performance as a function of fluid inventory, maximum performance as a function of operating temperature, maximum performance as a function of evaporator elevation, and influence of slab wick orientation on performance. The experimental data were compared with theoretical predictions obtained with the GRADE computer program.

  19. Effect of topical anaesthetics on interstitial colloid osmotic pressure in human subcutaneous tissue sampled by wick technique.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hans Jørgen Timm Guthe

    Full Text Available To measure colloid osmotic pressure in interstitial fluid (COP(i from human subcutaneous tissue with the modified wick technique in order to determine influence of topical application of anaesthetics, dry vs. wet wick and implantation time on COP(i.In 50 healthy volunteers interstitial fluid (IF was collected by subcutaneous implantation of multi-filamentous nylon wicks. Study subjects were allocated to two groups; one for comparing COP(i obtained from dry and saline soaked wicks, and one for comparing COP(i from unanaesthetized skin, and skin after application of a eutectic mixture of local anaesthetic (EMLA®, Astra Zeneca cream. IF was sampled from the skin of the shoulders, and implantation time was 30, 60, 75, 90 and 120 min. Colloid osmotic pressure was measured with a colloid osmometer. Pain assessment during the procedure was compared for EMLA cream and no topical anaesthesia using a visual analogue scale (VAS in a subgroup of 10 subjects.There were no significant differences between COP(i obtained from dry compared to wet wicks, except that the values after 75 and 90 min. were somewhat higher for the dry wicks. Topical anaesthesia with EMLA cream did not affect COP(i values. COP(i decreased from 30 to 75 min. of implantation (23.2 ± 4.4 mmHg to 19.6 ± 2.9 mmHg, p = 0.008 and subsequently tended to increase until 120 min. EMLA cream resulted in significant lower VAS score for the procedure.COP(i from subcutaneous tissue was easily obtained and fluid harvesting was well tolerated when topical anaesthetic was used. The difference in COP(i assessed by dry and wet wicks between 75 min. and 90 min. of implantation was in accordance with previous reports. The use of topical analgesia did not influence COP(i and topical analgesia may make the wick technique more acceptable for subjects who dislike technical procedures, including children.ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01044979.

  20. Green function of a three-dimensional Wick problem

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Matveev, V.A.

    1988-01-01

    An exact solution of a three-dimensional Coulomb Wick-Cutkovsky problem has been obtained which possesses the hidden 0(4)-symmetry. Here we shell give the derivation of the corresponding Green function and consider its connection with the asymptoric behaviour of the scattering amplitude. 9 refs

  1. An Alternative View of the Thirties: The Industrial Photographs of Lewis Wickes Hine and Margaret Bourke-White.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smith, C. Zoe

    The photographs of Margaret Bourke-White and Lewis Wickes Hine are graphic accounts of the urban industrial United States during the Depression of the 1930s. Hine was a sociologist who initially used his camera to promote social reform and is best remembered for his photographs of immigrants at Ellis Island, New York, and of children laboring in…

  2. Police Self-Deployment at Critical Incidents: A Wicked Problem or a Part of the Solution

    Science.gov (United States)

    2017-09-01

    System ,” California Office of Emergency Services, accessed August 31, 2017, http://www.caloes.ca.gov/cal-oes-divisions/law- enforcement /mutual-aid... system . 50 Remarkably, the two documents that manage law enforcement mutual aid for the state of California do not mention self-deployment at all.147...2017. http://www.caloes.ca.gov/cal-oes-divisions/law- enforcement /mutual-aid- system . Camillus, John. Wicked Strategies: How Companies Conquer

  3. Multiphonon theory: generalized Wick's theorem and recursion formulas

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Silvestre-Brac, B.; Piepenbring, R.

    1982-04-01

    Overlaps and matrix elements of one and two-body operators are calculated in a space spanned by multiphonons of different types taking properly the Pauli principle into account. Two methods are developped: a generalized Wick's theorem dealing with new contractions and recursion formulas well suited for numerical applications

  4. Wicked problems in space technology development at NASA

    Science.gov (United States)

    Balint, Tibor S.; Stevens, John

    2016-01-01

    Technological innovation is key to enable future space exploration missions at NASA. Technology development, however, is not only driven by performance and resource considerations, but also by a broad range of directly or loosely interconnected factors. These include, among others, strategy, policy and politics at various levels, tactics and programmatics, interactions between stakeholders, resource requirements, performance goals from component to system level, mission infusion targets, portfolio execution and tracking, and technology push or mission pull. Furthermore, at NASA, these influences occur on varying timescales and at diverse geographic locations. Such a complex and interconnected system could impede space technology innovation in this examined segment of the government environment. Hence, understanding the process through NASA's Planning, Programming, Budget and Execution cycle could benefit strategic thinking, planning and execution. Insights could be gained through suitable models, for example assessing the key drivers against the framework of Wicked Problems. This paper discusses NASA specific space technology innovation and innovation barriers in the government environment through the characteristics of Wicked Problems; that is, they do not have right or wrong solutions, only improved outcomes that can be reached through authoritative, competitive, or collaborative means. We will also augment the Wicked Problems model to account for the temporally and spatially coupled, and cyclical nature of this NASA specific case, and propose how appropriate models could improve understanding of the key influencing factors. In turn, such understanding may subsequently lead to reducing innovation barriers, and stimulating technology innovation at NASA. Furthermore, our approach can be adopted for other government-directed environments to gain insights into their structures, hierarchies, operational flow, and interconnections to facilitate circular dialogs towards

  5. Towards a Theory of Managing Wicked Problems through Multi-Stakeholder Engagements: Evidence from the Agribusiness Sector

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Dentoni, D.; Ross, R.

    2013-01-01

    Part Two of our Special Issue on wicked problems in agribusiness, “Towards a Theory of Managing Wicked Problems through Multi-Stakeholder Engagements: Evidence from the Agribusiness Sector,” will contribute to four open questions in the broader fields of management and policy: why, when, which and

  6. Tackling wicked problems in infection prevention and control: a guideline for co-creation with stakeholders.

    Science.gov (United States)

    van Woezik, Anne F G; Braakman-Jansen, Louise M A; Kulyk, Olga; Siemons, Liseth; van Gemert-Pijnen, Julia E W C

    2016-01-01

    Infection prevention and control can be seen as a wicked public health problem as there is no consensus regarding problem definition and solution, multiple stakeholders with different needs and values are involved, and there is no clear end-point of the problem-solving process. Co-creation with stakeholders has been proposed as a suitable strategy to tackle wicked problems, yet little information and no clear step-by-step guide exist on how to do this. The objectives of this study were to develop a guideline to assist developers in tackling wicked problems using co-creation with stakeholders, and to apply this guideline to practice with an example case in the field of infection prevention and control. A mixed-method approach consisting of the integration of both quantitative and qualitative research was used. Relevant stakeholders from the veterinary, human health, and public health sectors were identified using a literature scan, expert recommendations, and snowball sampling. The stakeholder salience approach was used to select key stakeholders based on 3 attributes: power, legitimacy, and urgency. Key values of stakeholders (N = 20) were derived by qualitative semi-structured interviews and quantitatively weighted and prioritized using an online survey. Our method showed that stakeholder identification and analysis are prerequisites for understanding the complex stakeholder network that characterizes wicked problems. A total of 73 stakeholders were identified of which 36 were selected as potential key stakeholders, and only one was seen as a definite stakeholder. In addition, deriving key stakeholder values is a necessity to gain insights into different problem definitions, solutions and needs stakeholders have regarding the wicked problem. Based on the methods used, we developed a step-by-step guideline for co-creation with stakeholders when tackling wicked problems. The mixed-methods guideline presented here provides a systematic, transparent method to

  7. Tackling wicked problems in infection prevention and control: a guideline for co-creation with stakeholders

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Anne F. G. van Woezik

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Infection prevention and control can be seen as a wicked public health problem as there is no consensus regarding problem definition and solution, multiple stakeholders with different needs and values are involved, and there is no clear end-point of the problem-solving process. Co-creation with stakeholders has been proposed as a suitable strategy to tackle wicked problems, yet little information and no clear step-by-step guide exist on how to do this. The objectives of this study were to develop a guideline to assist developers in tackling wicked problems using co-creation with stakeholders, and to apply this guideline to practice with an example case in the field of infection prevention and control. Methods A mixed-method approach consisting of the integration of both quantitative and qualitative research was used. Relevant stakeholders from the veterinary, human health, and public health sectors were identified using a literature scan, expert recommendations, and snowball sampling. The stakeholder salience approach was used to select key stakeholders based on 3 attributes: power, legitimacy, and urgency. Key values of stakeholders (N = 20 were derived by qualitative semi-structured interviews and quantitatively weighted and prioritized using an online survey. Results Our method showed that stakeholder identification and analysis are prerequisites for understanding the complex stakeholder network that characterizes wicked problems. A total of 73 stakeholders were identified of which 36 were selected as potential key stakeholders, and only one was seen as a definite stakeholder. In addition, deriving key stakeholder values is a necessity to gain insights into different problem definitions, solutions and needs stakeholders have regarding the wicked problem. Based on the methods used, we developed a step-by-step guideline for co-creation with stakeholders when tackling wicked problems. Conclusions The mixed

  8. Wicked Problems in Natural Hazard Assessment and Mitigation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stein, S.; Steckler, M. S.; Rundle, J. B.; Dixon, T. H.

    2017-12-01

    Social scientists have defined "wicked" problems that are "messy, ill-defined, more complex than we fully grasp, and open to multiple interpretations based on one's point of view... No solution to a wicked problem is permanent or wholly satisfying, which leaves every solution open to easy polemical attack." These contrast with "tame" problems in which necessary information is available and solutions - even if difficult and expensive - are straightforward to identify and execute. Updating the U.S.'s aging infrastructure is a tame problem, because what is wrong and how to fix it are clear. In contrast, addressing climate change is a wicked problem because its effects are uncertain and the best strategies to address them are unclear. An analogous approach can be taken to natural hazard problems. In tame problems, we have a good model of the process, good information about past events, and data implying that the model should predict future events. In such cases, we can make a reasonable assessment of the hazard that can be used to develop mitigation strategies. Earthquake hazard mitigation for San Francisco is a relatively tame problem. We understand how the earthquakes result from known plate motions, have information about past earthquakes, and have geodetic data implying that future similar earthquakes will occur. As a result, it is straightforward to develop and implement mitigation strategies. However, in many cases, hazard assessment and mitigation is a wicked problem. How should we prepare for a great earthquake on plate boundaries where tectonics favor such events but we have no evidence that they have occurred and hence how large they may be or how often to expect them? How should we assess the hazard within plates, for example in the New Madrid seismic zone, where large earthquakes have occurred but we do not understand their causes and geodetic data show no strain accumulating? How can we assess the hazard and make sensible policy when the recurrence of

  9. HEMI-TEMPORAL INTERNAL LIMITING MEMBRANE PEELING IS AS EFFECTIVE AND SAFE AS CONVENTIONAL FULL PEELING FOR MACULAR HOLE SURGERY.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shiono, Akira; Kogo, Jiro; Sasaki, Hiroki; Yomoda, Ryo; Jujo, Tatsuya; Tokuda, Naoto; Kitaoka, Yasushi; Takagi, Hitoshi

    2018-05-09

    To investigate the efficacy of hemi-temporal internal limiting membrane (ILM) peeling for idiopathic macular hole. The medical records of patients with macular holes who had undergone vitrectomy with ILM peeling were studied. Forty-two eyes with macular hole were divided into 2 groups based on surgical procedure (hemi-temporal ILM peeling [hemi group]: 15 eyes; 360° ILM peeling [360° group]: 27 eyes). The closure rates and distances between the optic disc and the intersection of two retinal vessels most closely located nasally or temporally to the macular hole were compared. The primary closure rates were not significantly different between the two groups (hemi group: 93.3%; 360° group: 92.5%, P = 0.92). The temporal retinal vessels in the hemi group were displaced 120.5 ± 102.0 µm toward the optic disc at 1 week postoperatively, which did not differ significantly from the 360° group (136.1 ± 106.1 µm) (P = 0.107). However, the nasal retinal vessels in the hemi group were displaced by 42.4 ± 42.9 µm at 1 week postoperatively, which was significantly less than the 90.1 ± 77.3 µm displacement seen in the 360° group (P = 0.040). Hemi-temporal ILM peeling may be preferable to 360° ILM peeling because of less displacement of the retina and greater safety.This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives License 4.0 (CCBY-NC-ND), where it is permissible to download and share the work provided it is properly cited. The work cannot be changed in any way or used commercially without permission from the journal.

  10. Nasoseptal flap for palatal reconstruction after hemi-maxillectomy: case report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alwashahi, M K; Battaglia, P; Turri-Zanoni, M; Castelnuovo, P

    2018-01-01

    Palatal reconstruction following maxillectomy is a surgical challenge, and a nasoseptal flap is a feasible approach. This paper reports the first known successful clinical case of a nasoseptal pedicle flap applied for the reconstruction of maxillary bone following hemi-maxillectomy. This report describes hemi-maxillectomy in a 60-year-old Italian male diagnosed with stage IV squamous cell carcinoma of the left maxilla. Endoscopic transnasal extended medial maxillectomy was performed, followed by a transoral modified midfacial degloving technique for removal of the maxillary bone. The contralateral nasoseptal pedicle flap was used to reconstruct the defect. The case was followed up prospectively for the assessment of flap reception and healing. The locally accessible nasoseptal flap is a viable alternative for palatal reconstruction; therefore, a second surgical procedure with its associated donor site morbidity can be avoided. Large-scale studies may help in establishing the cosmetic and functional outcomes.

  11. The Hyper-Envelope Modeling Interface (HEMI): A Novel Approach Illustrated Through Predicting Tamarisk (Tamarix spp.) Habitat in the Western USA

    Science.gov (United States)

    Graham, Jim; Young, Nick; Jarnevich, Catherine S.; Newman, Greg; Evangelista, Paul; Stohlgren, Thomas J.

    2013-01-01

    Habitat suitability maps are commonly created by modeling a species’ environmental niche from occurrences and environmental characteristics. Here, we introduce the hyper-envelope modeling interface (HEMI), providing a new method for creating habitat suitability models using Bezier surfaces to model a species niche in environmental space. HEMI allows modeled surfaces to be visualized and edited in environmental space based on expert knowledge and does not require absence points for model development. The modeled surfaces require relatively few parameters compared to similar modeling approaches and may produce models that better match ecological niche theory. As a case study, we modeled the invasive species tamarisk (Tamarix spp.) in the western USA. We compare results from HEMI with those from existing similar modeling approaches (including BioClim, BioMapper, and Maxent). We used synthetic surfaces to create visualizations of the various models in environmental space and used modified area under the curve (AUC) statistic and akaike information criterion (AIC) as measures of model performance. We show that HEMI produced slightly better AUC values, except for Maxent and better AIC values overall. HEMI created a model with only ten parameters while Maxent produced a model with over 100 and BioClim used only eight. Additionally, HEMI allowed visualization and editing of the model in environmental space to develop alternative potential habitat scenarios. The use of Bezier surfaces can provide simple models that match our expectations of biological niche models and, at least in some cases, out-perform more complex approaches.

  12. The Hyper-Envelope Modeling Interface (HEMI): A Novel Approach Illustrated Through Predicting Tamarisk ( Tamarix spp.) Habitat in the Western USA

    Science.gov (United States)

    Graham, Jim; Young, Nick; Jarnevich, Catherine S.; Newman, Greg; Evangelista, Paul; Stohlgren, Thomas J.

    2013-10-01

    Habitat suitability maps are commonly created by modeling a species' environmental niche from occurrences and environmental characteristics. Here, we introduce the hyper-envelope modeling interface (HEMI), providing a new method for creating habitat suitability models using Bezier surfaces to model a species niche in environmental space. HEMI allows modeled surfaces to be visualized and edited in environmental space based on expert knowledge and does not require absence points for model development. The modeled surfaces require relatively few parameters compared to similar modeling approaches and may produce models that better match ecological niche theory. As a case study, we modeled the invasive species tamarisk ( Tamarix spp.) in the western USA. We compare results from HEMI with those from existing similar modeling approaches (including BioClim, BioMapper, and Maxent). We used synthetic surfaces to create visualizations of the various models in environmental space and used modified area under the curve (AUC) statistic and akaike information criterion (AIC) as measures of model performance. We show that HEMI produced slightly better AUC values, except for Maxent and better AIC values overall. HEMI created a model with only ten parameters while Maxent produced a model with over 100 and BioClim used only eight. Additionally, HEMI allowed visualization and editing of the model in environmental space to develop alternative potential habitat scenarios. The use of Bezier surfaces can provide simple models that match our expectations of biological niche models and, at least in some cases, out-perform more complex approaches.

  13. A CERN physicist receives the Gian Carlo Wick Medal

    CERN Multimedia

    2007-01-01

    T.D. Lee, Chairman of the Gian Carlo Wick Medal selection committee, André Martin, the 2007 recipient, and Antonino Zichichi, President of the World Federation of Scientists (WFS)(Copyright : WFS) The 2007 Gian Carlo Wick Gold Medal was presented to the CERN theoretical physicist André Martin in Erice (Italy) on 20 August. The prize is awarded each year by the WFS (World Federation of Scientists), whose president is Professor Antonino Zichichi, to a theoretical physicist for his outstanding contributions to particle physics. The selection committee is composed of eminent physicists and is chaired by the Nobel Physics Prize Laureate, T.D. Lee. André Martin was awarded the Medal in recognition of his work on the total cross-section for interactions between two particles and his contributions to the understanding of heavy quark-antiquark (or quarkonium) systems. In 1965, André Martin established a theoretical basis for the so-call...

  14. Hemi chorea hemiballism syndrome: the first presentation of type 2 diabetes mellitus as a rare cause of chorea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mittal, P.

    2011-01-01

    Hemi chorea-hemiballism syndrome, which is most commonly related to non-ketotic hyperglycemia, is a rare type of chorea. Here, we present an unusual case of Hemi chorea-hemiballism syndrome who was not a known case of diabetes. This case highlights the importance of recognising underlying non-ketotic hyperglycemia, as control of hyperglycemia is helpful in the quick relief of symptoms.

  15. A human hemi-cornea model for eye irritation testing: quality control of production, reliability and predictive capacity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Engelke, M; Zorn-Kruppa, M; Gabel, D; Reisinger, K; Rusche, B; Mewes, K R

    2013-02-01

    We have developed a 3-dimensional human hemi-cornea which comprises an immortalized epithelial cell line and keratocytes embedded in a collagen stroma. In the present study, we have used MTT reduction of the whole tissue to clarify whether the production of this complex 3-D-model is transferable into other laboratories and whether these tissues can be constructed reproducibly. Our results demonstrate the reproducible production of the hemi-cornea model according to standard operation procedures using 15 independent batches of reconstructed hemi-cornea models in two independent laboratories each. Furthermore, the hemi-cornea tissues have been treated with 20 chemicals of different eye-irritating potential under blind conditions to assess the performance and limitations of our test system comparing three different prediction models. The most suitable prediction model revealed an overall in vitro-in vivo concordance of 80% and 70% in the participating laboratories, respectively, and an inter-laboratory concordance of 80%. Sensitivity of the test was 77% and specificity was between 57% and 86% to discriminate classified from non-classified chemicals. We conclude that additional physiologically relevant endpoints in both epithelium and stroma have to be developed for the reliable prediction of all GHS classes of eye irritation in one stand alone test system. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. Porous Foam Based Wick Structures for Loop Heat Pipes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Silk, Eric A.

    2012-01-01

    As part of an effort to identify cost efficient fabrication techniques for Loop Heat Pipe (LHP) construction, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center's Cryogenics and Fluids Branch collaborated with the U.S. Naval Academy s Aerospace Engineering Department in Spring 2012 to investigate the viability of carbon foam as a wick material within LHPs. The carbon foam was manufactured by ERG Aerospace and machined to geometric specifications at the U.S. Naval Academy s Materials, Mechanics and Structures Machine Shop. NASA GSFC s Fractal Loop Heat Pipe (developed under SBIR contract #NAS5-02112) was used as the validation LHP platform. In a horizontal orientation, the FLHP system demonstrated a heat flux of 75 Watts per square centimeter with deionized water as the working fluid. Also, no failed start-ups occurred during the 6 week performance testing period. The success of this study validated that foam can be used as a wick structure. Furthermore, given the COTS status of foam materials this study is one more step towards development of a low cost LHP.

  17. Translating a wicked problem

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Tietjen, Anne; Jørgensen, Gertrud

    2016-01-01

    , place-based and project-oriented process directed at concrete physical outcomes. We frame strategic planning as a translation process where the interaction between human and non-human actors translates a unique, complex and contested situation into an innovated situation. We find that local physical...... on the case of a Danish planning process which was carried out in collaboration with a charitable trust, this paper discusses an emerging strategic planning approach at the municipal level. We use the concept of wicked problems, strategic planning theory and Actor-Network-Theory to study a collaborative...... projects played a major role in this process. First, they acted as a vehicle that assembled planners, politicians and stakeholders to work towards strategic visions across multiple scales. Second and consequently, they stimulated considerable second and third order effects in the form of shared problem...

  18. 'Wicked' ethics: Compliance work and the practice of ethics in HIV research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heimer, Carol A

    2013-12-01

    Using ethnographic material collected between 2003 and 2007 in five HIV clinics in the US, South Africa, Uganda, and Thailand, this article examines "official ethics" and "ethics on the ground." It compares the ethical conundrums clinic staff and researchers confront in their daily work as HIV researchers with the dilemmas officially identified as ethical issues by bioethicists and people responsible for ethics reviews and compliance with ethics regulations. The tangled relation between ethical problems and solutions invites a comparison to Rittel and Webber's "wicked problems." Official ethics' attempts to produce universal solutions often make ethics problems even more wickedly intractable. Ethics on the ground is in part a reaction to this intractability. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. Comparative studies of D2 receptors and cerebral blood flow in hemi-parkinsonism rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lin, Y.; Lin, X.

    2000-01-01

    To study the relationship between dopamine (DA) D 2 receptors and cerebral blood flow in hemiparkinsonism rats. Hemi-parkinsonism rats were made by stereotaxic 6-hydroxy dopamine (6-OH-DA) lesions in substantia nigra and ventral tegmental area, apomorphine (Apo) which could induce the successful model rat rotates toward the intact side was used to screen that rats, 125 I-IBZM in vivo autoradiography and 99m Tc-HM-PAO regional brain biodistribution were used to study D 2 receptors and cerebral blood flow. The HPLC-ECD were used to measure the concentration of DA and it metabolites homovanillic acid (HVA), 3,4-dehydroxyphenyl acetic acid (DOPAC) in bilateral striatum (ST). The lesioned side ST DA and its metabolites HVA DOPAC reduced significantly than that of the intact side and pseudo-operated control group, ST/cerebellum (CB) 125 I-IBZM uptake ratio was 8.04 ±0.71 in lesioned side of hemi-parkinsonism rats, significantly increased compared with the intact side and the pseudo-operated group (p 99m Tc 30.1±4.53% enhancement as compared to the intact side, and also show good correlation with 30 min Apo induced rotation numbers (r=0.98), the regional cerebral blood flow study didn't show significant difference between bilateral brain cortex area (p>0.05). The DA content decreased significantly and induced an up-regulation of ST D 2 receptor binding sites in 6-OH-DA lesioned side in hemi-parkinsonism rats, the increased percentage of lesioned-intact side ST/CB 125 I-IBZM uptake ratio showed good correlation with rotation behavior induced by Apo. Compare with cerebral blood flow, D 2 receptor reflected by IBZM seems to be more specific and earlier to detect the cerebral functional impairment in experimental hemi-parkinsonism

  20. (Re)Constructing the Wicked Problem Through the Visual and the Verbal

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Holm Jacobsen, Peter; Harty, Chris; Tryggestad, Kjell

    2016-01-01

    Wicked problems are open ended and complex societal problems. There is a lack of empirical research into the dynamics and mechanisms that (re) construct problems to become wicked. This paper builds on an ethnographic study of a dialogue-based architect competition to do just that. The competition...... processes creates new knowledge and insights, but at the same time present new problems related to the ongoing verbal feedback. The design problem being (re) constructed appears as Heracles' fight with Hydra: Every time Heracles cut of a head, two new heads grow back. The paper contributes to understanding...... the relationship between the visual and the verbal (dialogue) in complex design processes in the early phases of large construction projects, and how the dynamic interplay between the design visualization and verbal dialogue develops before the competition produces, or negotiates, “a "winning design”....

  1. Activation, Permeability, and Inhibition of Astrocytic and Neuronal Large Pore (Hemi)channels

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hansen, Daniel Bloch; Ye, Zu-Cheng; Calloe, Kirstine

    2014-01-01

    overlapping sensitivity to the inhibitors Brilliant Blue, gadolinium, and carbenoxolone. These results demonstrated isoform-specific characteristics among the large pore membrane channels; an open (hemi)channel is not a nonselective channel. With these isoform-specific properties in mind, we characterized...

  2. [Treatment of bilateral vocal cord paralysis by hemi-phrenic nerve transfer].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Song, W; Li, M; Zheng, H L; Sun, L; Chen, S C; Chen, D H; Liu, F; Zhu, M H; Zhang, C Y; Wang, W

    2017-04-07

    Objective: To investigate the surgical effect of reinnervation of bilateral posterior cricoarytenoid muscles(PCA) with left hemi-phrenic nerve and endoscopic laser arytenoid resection in bilateral vocal cord fold paralysis(BVFP) and to analyze the pros and cons of the two methods. Methods: One hundred and seventeen BVFP patients who underwent reinnervation of bilateral PCA using the left hemi-phrenic nerve approach (nerve group, n =52) or laser arytenoidectomy(laser group, n =65) were enrolled in this study from Jan.2009 to Dec.2015.Vocal perception evaluation, video stroboscopy, pulmonary function test and laryngeal electromyography were preformed in all patients both preoperatively and postoperative1y.Extubution rate was calculated postoperative1y. Results: Most of the vocal function parameters in nerve group were improved postoperatively compared with preoperative parameters, albeit without a significant difference( P >0.05), while laser group showed a significant deterioration in voice quality postoperative1y( P nerve group was larger than that in laser group ( P nerve group were inhale physiological vocal cord abductions. Postoperative glottal closure showed no significant difference in nerve group ( P >0.05), while showed various increment in laser group( P nerve group and laser group respectively. In both groups, patients presented aspiration symptoms postoperatively, and rdieved soon, except 2 patients in laser group suffered repeated aspiration. Conclusions: Reinnervation of bilateral PCA muscles using left hemi-phrenic nerve can restore inspiratory vocal fold abduction to a satisfactory extent while preserving phonatory function at the preoperative level without evident morbidity, and do not affect swallowing function, greatly improving the quality of life of the patients.

  3. Experimental study on the thermal performance of a small-scale loop heat pipe with polypropylene wick

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Boo, Joon Hong; Chung, Won Bok

    2005-01-01

    A small-scale Loop Heat Pipe (LHP) with polypropylene wick was fabricated and tested for investigation of its thermal performance. The container and tubing of the system were made of stainless steel and several working fluids were tested including methanol, ethanol, and acetone. The heating area was 35 mm x 35 mm and nine axial grooves were provided in the evaporator to provide vapor passages. The pore size of the polypropylene wick inside the evaporator was varied from 0.5 μm to 25 μm. The inner diameter of liquid and vapor transport lines were 2.0 mm and 4.0 mm, respectively and the length of which were 0.5 mm. The size of condenser was 40 mm (W) x 50 mm (L) in which ten coolant paths were provided. Start-up characteristics as well as steady-state performance was analyzed and discussed. The minimum thermal load of 10 W (0.8W/cam 2 ) and maximum thermal load of 80 W (6.5 W/cm 2 ) were achieved using methanol as working fluid with the condenser temperature of 20 deg. C with horizontal position

  4. The Wicked Character of Psychosocial Risks: Implications for Regulation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Anne Helbo Jespersen

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available Psychosocial risks constitute a significant problem in most workplaces, and they are generally considered more difficult to regulate than many other occupational health and safety risks. This article investigates the challenges of regulating psychosocial risks in the workplace. The difficulties lie in the particular nature of psychosocial risks: their complexity, uncertainty, value, and power divergences. Psychosocial risks therefore resemble ‘wicked problems’, typically characterized by unclear cause-effect relationships and uncertain solutions. We use the ‘wicked problems’ concept to show how workplace regulation, and particularly the enforcement in the form of inspection and audits of certified occupational health and safety management systems, face challenges in assessing psychosocial risks and the strategies used by regulators to overcome these challenges. While regulation has become more effective in several countries, a better understanding of the nature of the challenges is still needed. It is necessary to accept the uncertain nature of psychosocial risks in the search for more efficient regulation. Achieving more effective regulation should involve stakeholders in the workplace who deal with the prerogatives of management, and should help develop the competencies of the inspectors and auditors in the field.

  5. The mechanisms of edge wicking in retortable paperboard

    OpenAIRE

    Tufvesson, Helena

    2006-01-01

    This thesis reports on an investigation of the mechanisms of edge wicking in retortable paperboard. Retortable board is used for packaging preserved food, a process which requires that the package and its contents be sterilised by exposure to high temperature steam for up to three hours. The board used must thus have higher water repellence than traditional liquid packaging. Water vapour that condenses on the cut edges on the outside of the board causes particular concern. The paperboards stu...

  6. Sequential hemi-body radiotherapy in advanced multiple myeloma

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jaffe, J.P.; Bosch, A.; Raich, P.C.

    1979-01-01

    Eleven patients with advanced multiple myeloma refractory to standard chemotherapy were treated with a regimen of sequential hemi-body radiotherapy consisting of 800 rad midplane in a single dose to each half. 9/10 patients experienced significant relief of skeletal pain and there were 5/11 objective tumor responses with one complete remission. Treatment-related morbidity was significant and consisted primarily of nausea and emesis, bone marrow suppression, and pneumonitis. This therapy is helpful in the management of advanced myeloma, and should be studied earlier in the course of the disease

  7. Virtuous Mess and Wicked Clarity: Struggle in Higher Education Research

    Science.gov (United States)

    McArthur, Jan

    2012-01-01

    This article considers the value of clarity--of theory, method and purposes--in educational research. It draws upon the work of early critical theorist, Theodor Adorno, and particularly his notion of negative dialectics and his challenge to the traditional dichotomy of theory and practice. Using the notions of virtuous mess and wicked clarity, I…

  8. Embracing Wicked Problems: The Turn to Design in Composition Studies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marback, Richard

    2009-01-01

    Recent appeal to the concept of design in composition studies benefits teaching writing in digital media. Yet the concept of design has not been developed enough to fully benefit composition instruction. This article develops an understanding of design as a matter of resolving wicked problems and makes a case for the advantages of this…

  9. Quadriplegia recovery after hemi-section and transplant model of spinal cord at the level of C5 and C6.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bitar-Alatorre, W E; Segura-Torres, J E; Rosales-Corral, S A; Jiménez-Avila, J M; Huerta-Viera, M

    2011-03-10

    A spinal cord hemi-section with a homologous transplant of medullar tissue at the level of C5-C6 and preservation of the anterior spinal artery was used to evaluate the histological characteristics such as quantity and quality of axons, myelin index and blood vessels after quadriplegia recovery. Vascular changes after spinal injury results in severe endothelial damage, axonal edema, neuronal necrosis and demyelinization as well as cysts and infarction. Preservation of the anterior spinal artery has demonstrated clinical recuperation; therefore, in addition to the lesion we included a homologous transplant to visualize changes at a cellular level. Two groups of dogs (hemi-section and transplant) went through a traumatic spinal cord hemi-section of 50% at the level of C5-C6. The transplant group formed by animals which simultaneously had 4 mm of spinal cord removed and the equal amount substituted from a donor animal at the level of C5-C6 corresponding to the half right side; both preserving the anterior spinal artery. Histological evaluation of all groups took place at days 3 (acute) and 28 (chronic) post-operation. Changes of degeneration and axonal regeneration were found in the hemi-section and transplant groups at acute and chronic time, as well as same quadriplegia recovery at chronic time in the hemi-section and transplant groups which closely related to mechanisms which participate in regeneration and functional recuperation due to the preservation of the anterior spinal artery and presence of new blood vessels. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. A relation between deformed superspace and Lee-Wick higher-derivative theories

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dias, M.; Ferrari, A. F.; Palechor, C. A.; Senise, C. R., Jr.

    2015-07-01

    We propose a non-anticommutative superspace that relates to the Lee-Wick type of higher-derivative theories, which are known for their interesting properties and have led to proposals of phenomenologically viable higher-derivative extensions of the Standard Model. The deformation of superspace we consider does not preserve supersymmetry or associativity in general, but, we show that a non-anticommutative version of the Wess-Zumino model can be properly defined. In fact, the definition of chiral and antichiral superfields turns out to be simpler in our case than in the well known N=1/2 supersymmetric case. We show that when the theory is truncated at the first nontrivial order in the deformation parameter, supersymmetry is restored, and we end up with a well-known Lee-Wick type of higher-derivative extension of the Wess-Zumino model. Thus, we show how non-anticommutativity could provide an alternative mechanism for generating these higher-derivative theories.

  11. Thermodynamical and Green function many-body Wick theorems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Westwanski, B.

    1987-01-01

    The thermodynamical and Green function many-body reduction theorems of Wick type are proved for the arbitrary mixtures of the fermion, boson and spin systems. ''Many-body'' means that the operators used are the products of the arbitrary number of one-body standard basis operators [of the fermion or (and) spin types] with different site (wave vector) indices, but having the same ''time'' (in the interaction representation). The method of proving is based on'' 1) the first-order differential equation of Schwinger type for: 1a) anti T-product of operators; 1b) its average value; 2) KMS boundary conditions for this average. It is shown that the fermion, boson and spin systems can be unified in the many-body formulation (bosonification of the fermion systems). It is impossible in the one-body approach. Both of the many-body versions of the Wick theorem have the recurrent feature: nth order moment diagrams for the free energy or Green functions can be expressed by the (n-1)th order ones. This property corresponds to the automatic realization of: (i) summations over Bose-Einstein or (and) Fermi-Dirac frequencies; (ii) elimination of Bose-Einstein or (and) Fermi-Dirac distributions. The procedures (i) and (ii), being the results of using the Green function one-body reduction theorem, have constituted the significant difficulty up to now in the treatment of quantum systems. (orig.)

  12. Definition and use of Solution-focused Sustainability Assessment: A novel approach to generate, explore and decide on sustainable solutions for wicked problems

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Zijp, M.C.; Posthuma, L.; Wintersen, A.; Devilee, J.; Swartjes, F.A.

    2016-01-01

    This paper introduces Solution-focused Sustainability Assessment (SfSA), provides practical guidance formatted as a versatile process framework, and illustrates its utility for solving a wicked environmental management problem. Society faces complex and increasingly wicked environmental problems for

  13. Women, Leadership, and Power Revisiting the Wicked Witch of the West

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kruse, Sharon D.; Prettyman, Sandra Spickard

    2008-01-01

    By examining the cultural images present in the popular musical "Wicked", cultural norms and biases toward women in leadership and women's leadership practices are explored. The discussion rests on conceptions of male and female leadership "styles", how power is obtained and utilised within organisational settings and how resistance and…

  14. User requirements for the Harmonization of Environmental Measurement Information System HEMIS

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Crain, I.K.

    1992-03-01

    The purpose of this study was to define as much as possible, the functional requirements of the potential main users of the Harmonization of Environmental Measurement Information System, HEMIS. The resulting report is to be used as a basis for a rapid decision on technical approaches to system development, planning of schedule and costs, and to guide the system development and implementation process

  15. A phase I trial of tocoferol monoglucoside in patients undergoing hemi-body radiation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Huilgol N

    2005-01-01

    Full Text Available Purpose: To evaluate Tocoferol monoglucoside (TMG, a water soluble vit. E. in a phase I trial, as a radiation protector in those undergoing hemi-body radiation for disseminated disease. Materials and Methods: Patients scheduled to receive modified hemi-body radiation were accrued for the study. Patients not only had disseminated skeletal disease but, were heavily pretreated Seven patients were accrued for the study. Patients received 1 and 2 gms of TMG. 30-40 minutes before hemibody radiation. A dose of 600 cGy was delivered on telecobalt equipment at mid plane. Immediate Toxicities were evaluated as well as response to pain. Results: All the seven patients underwent radiation uneventfully. There was no drug related toxicity. Pain relief was adequate. Conclusion: Tocoferol monoglucoside an effective antioxidant with no significant acute toxicity, when administered in a dose of 1 or 2 gms per oral route. TMG being water-soluble can have global antioxidant and radio protective effects. This needs further clinical evaluation.

  16. Practical formulation of the extended Wick's theorem and the Onishi formula

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Robledo, L.M.

    1994-01-01

    The extended Wick's theorem for fermion operators, which is used to compute matrix elements of an arbitrary operator between two different quasiparticle vacuums, is reformulated to deal with quasiparticle vacuums expanded in a finite single particle basis not closed under the canonical transformation relating them. A new expression for the overlap of those quasiparticle vacuums is also given

  17. Wicked Challenges in the Anthropocene Age: Supply Chain Implications of Sustainable Enterprise Excellence

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Edgeman, Rick; Wu, Zhaohui

    , and desertification; food availability and distribution; water pollution, air pollution, and soil contamination; and the connection of these to disease, violence, and terrorism. Wicked challenge traits are discussed in relation to enterprise excellence, sustainability, resilience and robustness (SEER2). The value...

  18. Wicking and flooding of liquids on vertical porous sheets

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Seong Jin; Choi, Jin Woo; Moon, Myoung-Woon; Lee, Kwang-Ryeol; Chang, Young Soo; Lee, Dae-Young; Kim, Ho-Young

    2015-03-01

    When one brings a wet paintbrush into contact with a vertical watercolor paper, the paint may wick into the porous sheet completely or run down to ruin the art. We study a simple model of this spreading dynamics of liquids on hydrophilic porous sheets under the effects of gravity, using a capillary as a liquid source and thin fabrics of non-woven polyethylene terephthalate. Upon finding the maximum flow rate, Qw, that can be absorbed into the fabric, we show that the model can be used to obtain an estimate of the in-plane permeability of fabrics in a simpler manner than the conventional schemes. The shape of a wetting area that grows when the flow rate exceeds Qw to lead to rivulet formation is also theoretically given. The nose shape of the wetting front is shown to be time-invariant, while its profile depends on the properties of the liquid and the fabric. This study can be applied to understand and improve the liquid absorption behavior of hygiene items, heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning equipments, and fuel cell membranes in addition to elucidating the mundane painting activity.

  19. Inequality--"Wicked Problems", Labour Market Outcomes and the Search for Silver Bullets

    Science.gov (United States)

    Keep, Ewart; Mayhew, Ken

    2014-01-01

    In recent years concerns about inequality have been growing in prominence within UK policy debates. The many causes of inequality of earnings and income are complex in their interactions and their tendency to reinforce one another. This makes inequality an intractable or "wicked" policy problem, particularly within a contemporary context…

  20. SPECT studies of the dopamine transporters in subclinical and clinical hemi-parkinsonism monkeys with 99Tcm-TRODAT-1

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bian Yanzhu; Liu Huaijun; Feng Jue; Wei Qiang; Li Jinfu; Liu Guozhang

    2004-01-01

    Objective: To investigate the values of 99 Tc m -2β-((N,N'-bis (2-mercap-toethyl) ethylene diamino) methyl), 3β-(4-chlorophenyl)tropane, ( 99 Tc m -TRODAT-1) dopamine transporter (DAT) SPECT in diagnosis of subclinical Parkinson's disease. Methods: 4 healthy monkeys without auto-rotation were recruited and were marked as M1, M2, M3, M4 respectively. The whole body scan was done on M1 and M2 after 99 Tc m -TRODAT-1 555 MBq injection of vein. The radioactivity distribution ratio of each organ at various time points was calculated by region of interest (ROI) technique. 99 Tc m -TRODAT-1 SPECT imaging were obtained on M1 and M2 at various time point after 99 Tc m -TRODAT-1 555-740 MBq injection of vein. Striatum/cerebellum radioactivity ratios were calculated by ROI technique on 4 transverse imaging. Striatum/cerebellum radioactivity ratio represents striatum DAT function. Subclinical hemi-parkinsonism monkeys were founded on Ml-M4 by given MPTP 0.3 mg/Kg through right internal carotid artery, Clinical hemi-pakinsonism monkeys were founded on M2-M4 by given MPTP 0.7 mg/Kg through right internal carotid artery for second time. Subclinical and clinical hemi-parkinsonism monkeys were accepted 99 Tc m -TRODAT-1 DAT SPECT, striatum DAT functions were evaluated by ROI technique respectively. Results: The major radioactivity was excreted by the hepatobiliary system. The optimal imaging time for 99m Tc-TRODAT-1 SPECT was 3 hours post injection. In subclinical hemi-parkinsonism monkeys, right striatum DAT function was lower than left (1.33+0.08,1.59+0.07,P 99 Tc m -TRODAT-1 DAT SPECT can explore the subclinical DAT function changes in hemi- parkinsonism monkeys. 99 Tc m -TRODAT-1 DAT SPECT is a useful method for early diagnosis of subclinical PD. Conclusions: 11 C-Raclopride was first synthesised in our country as a D2R PET agent. The striatum D2R functions had no changes in subclinial PD. The striatum D2R functions upregulated in clinial PD. (authors)

  1. SU-F-T-82: Dosimetric Evaluation of a Shield Used for Hemi-Body Skin Electron Irradiation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rivers, C; Singh, A [Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Buffalo, NY (United States); AlDahlawi, I; Wang, I; Podgorsak, M [Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Buffalo, NY (United States); State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY (United States)

    2016-06-15

    Purpose: We had several mycosis fungoides patients with a limited disease to about half of the skin surface. A custom-made plywood shield was used to protect the non-targeted skin region with our total skin electron irradiation (TSEI) technique. We report a dosimetric evaluation for our “hemi-body” skin electron irradiation technique. Methods: The technique is similar to our clinical total skin electron irradiation (TSEI), performed with a six-pair dual field (Stanford technique) at an extended source-to-skin distance (SSD) of 377 cm, with the addition of a plywood shield placed 50 cm from the patient. The shield is made of three layers of standard 5/8″ thick plywood (total thickness of 4.75 cm) that are clamped securely on an adjustable-height stand. Gafchromic EBT3 films were used in assessing the shield’s transmission factor and the extend of the dose penumbra region. To verify the dose delivered for hemi-body skin radiation in a real patient treatment, in-vivo dosimetry using Gafchromic EBT3 films were performed. Film pieces were taped on the patient skin to measure the dose received during the first two fractions, placed on the forehead and upper body (shielded region); and also at the level of pelvic area, left thigh, and left ankle. Results: The shield transmission factor was found to be 10%, and the width of the penumbra (80-to-20% dose fall-off) was about 12 cm. In-vivo dosimetry of a real case confirmed the expected shielded area dose. Conclusion: Hemi-Body skin electron irradiation at an extended SSD is feasible with the addition of a plywood shield at a distance from patient skin. The penumbra dose region and the shield’s transmission factor should be evaluated prior to clinical use. We have treated several hemi-body skin patients with our custom-made plywood shield, the current patient measurements are representative of these for other patients as well.

  2. Comparative imaging study on monkeys with hemi-parkinsonism

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang Wei; Yu Xiaoping; Mao Jun; Liu Sheng; Wang Xiaoyi; Peng Guangchun; Wang Ruiwen

    2003-01-01

    Objective: To study the imaging appearance of experimental Parkinson's disease (PD) and to evaluate the different medical imaging exams on PD. Methods: CT, MRI, SPECT (dopamine transporter imaging and regional cerebral blood flow imaging, DAT imaging and rCBF imaging), and PET (glucose metabolism imaging) were performed on 8 monkeys before and after the infusion of MPTP into unilateral internal carotid artery to develop hemi-Parkinsonism models. Results: Hemi-Parkinsonism models were successfully induced on all 8 monkeys. On DAT imaging, the uptake values of the lesioned striatums decreased obviously after the MPTP treatment and were lower than that of the contralateral ones. The glucose metabolic rates of the lesioned striatums and thalamus in PD models were lower, compared to that of the healthy monkeys and that of the contralateral sides of themselves. Neither DAT nor glucose metabolism abnormalities was found on both the contralateral sides of the healthy and PD monkeys. On MRI images before MPTP treatment, only 4 of 8 PD models showed hypointense in bilateral globus pallidus. No abnormal MRI findings occurred in the first 2 months after injection of MPTP. At tile third month, hypointense appeared in globus pallidus of three monkeys. Enlarged hyposignal region in globus pallidus were found in three models. Of the above 6 monkeys, two appeared hypointense in putamina. Substantia nigra demonstrated no abnormalities before and after MPTP treatment. All rCBF and CT images were normal. Conclusion: The decreased density of DAT and decreased glucose metabolism on experimental PD can be showed early by DAT imaging and glucose metabolism imaging, MRI can show abnormal signal in the basal ganglia of PD but it is later than DAT and glucose metabolism imaging. CT and rCBF find no abnormality on PD

  3. Hemi-bucket-handle tears of the meniscus: appearance on MRI and potential surgical implications

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Engstrom, Bjorn I.; Vinson, Emily N.; Helms, Clyde A. [Duke University Medical Center, Department of Radiology, Box 3808, Durham, NC (United States); Taylor, Dean C.; Garrett, William E. [Duke University Medical Center, Department of Orthopaedics, Box 3810, Durham, NC (United States)

    2012-08-15

    To describe a type of meniscus flap tear resembling a bucket-handle tear, named a ''hemi-bucket-handle'' tear; to compare its imaging features with those of a typical bucket-handle tear; and to discuss the potential therapeutic implications of distinguishing these two types of tears. Five knee MR examinations were encountered with a type of meniscus tear consisting of a flap of tissue from the undersurface of the meniscus displaced toward the intercondylar notch. A retrospective analysis of 100 MR examinations prospectively interpreted as having bucket-handle type tears yielded 10 additional cases with this type of tear. Cases of hemi-bucket-handle tears were reviewed for tear location and orientation, appearance of the superior articular surface of the meniscus, presence and location of displaced meniscal tissue, and presence of several classic signs of bucket-handle tears. A total of 15/15 tears involved the medial meniscus, had tissue displaced toward the notch, and were mainly horizontal in orientation. The superior surface was intact in 11/15 (73.3%). In 1/15 (6.7%) there was an absent-bow-tie sign; 6/15 (40%) had a double-PCL sign; 14/15 (93.3%) had a double-anterior horn sign. We describe a type of undersurface flap tear, named a hemi-bucket-handle tear, which resembles a bucket-handle tear. Surgeons at our institution feel this tear would likely not heal if repaired given its predominantly horizontal orientation, and additionally speculate the tear could be overlooked at arthroscopy. Thus, we feel it is important to distinguish this type of tear from the typical bucket-handle tear. (orig.)

  4. Hemi-bucket-handle tears of the meniscus: appearance on MRI and potential surgical implications

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Engstrom, Bjorn I.; Vinson, Emily N.; Helms, Clyde A.; Taylor, Dean C.; Garrett, William E.

    2012-01-01

    To describe a type of meniscus flap tear resembling a bucket-handle tear, named a ''hemi-bucket-handle'' tear; to compare its imaging features with those of a typical bucket-handle tear; and to discuss the potential therapeutic implications of distinguishing these two types of tears. Five knee MR examinations were encountered with a type of meniscus tear consisting of a flap of tissue from the undersurface of the meniscus displaced toward the intercondylar notch. A retrospective analysis of 100 MR examinations prospectively interpreted as having bucket-handle type tears yielded 10 additional cases with this type of tear. Cases of hemi-bucket-handle tears were reviewed for tear location and orientation, appearance of the superior articular surface of the meniscus, presence and location of displaced meniscal tissue, and presence of several classic signs of bucket-handle tears. A total of 15/15 tears involved the medial meniscus, had tissue displaced toward the notch, and were mainly horizontal in orientation. The superior surface was intact in 11/15 (73.3%). In 1/15 (6.7%) there was an absent-bow-tie sign; 6/15 (40%) had a double-PCL sign; 14/15 (93.3%) had a double-anterior horn sign. We describe a type of undersurface flap tear, named a hemi-bucket-handle tear, which resembles a bucket-handle tear. Surgeons at our institution feel this tear would likely not heal if repaired given its predominantly horizontal orientation, and additionally speculate the tear could be overlooked at arthroscopy. Thus, we feel it is important to distinguish this type of tear from the typical bucket-handle tear. (orig.)

  5. Writing, Performing, Gendering the Wicked Witch of the West

    OpenAIRE

    Frohreich, Kimberly

    2009-01-01

    While the fairy take The Wizard of Oz depicts women in positions of power, I argue that the dichotomy between the good witch(es) and the Wicked Witch, in both L. Frank Baum’s 1900 novel and MGM’s 1939 film, validates one kind of femininity and stigmatizes as masculine, monstrous, and “other” the woman who strays from her gender role. Second-wave feminism as well as postmodernism have re-evaluated the figure of the witch as “other,” leading to the two contemporary texts, Gregory Maguire’s 1995...

  6. Avoid, Control, Succumb, or Balance: Engineering Students' Approaches to a Wicked Sustainability Problem

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lönngren, Johanna; Ingerman, Åke; Svanström, Magdalena

    2017-01-01

    Wicked sustainability problems (WSPs) are an important and particularly challenging type of problem. Science and engineering education can play an important role in preparing students to deal with such problems, but current educational practice may not adequately prepare students to do so. We address this gap by providing insights related to…

  7. Stochastic Effects for the Reaction-Duffing Equation with Wick-Type Product

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jin Hyuk Choi

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available We construct new explicit solutions of the Wick-type stochastic reaction-Duffing equation arising from mathematical physics with the help of the white noise theory and the system technique. Based on these exact solutions, we also discuss the influences of stochastic effects for dynamical behaviors according to functions h1(t, h2(t, and Brownian motion B(t which are the solitary wave group velocities.

  8. Investigating the Wicked Problems of (Un)sustainability Through Three Case Studies Around the Water-Energy-Food Nexus

    Science.gov (United States)

    Metzger, E. P.; Curren, R. R.

    2016-12-01

    Effective engagement with the problems of sustainability begins with an understanding of the nature of the challenges. The entanglement of interacting human and Earth systems produces solution-resistant dilemmas that are often portrayed as wicked problems. As introduced by urban planners Rittel and Webber (1973), wicked problems are "dynamically complex, ill-structured, public problems" arising from complexity in both biophysical and socio-economic systems. The wicked problem construct is still in wide use across diverse contexts, disciplines, and sectors. Discourse about wicked problems as related to sustainability is often connected to discussion of complexity or complex systems. In preparation for life and work in an uncertain, dynamic and hyperconnected world, students need opportunities to investigate real problems that cross social, political and disciplinary divides. They need to grapple with diverse perspectives and values, and collaborate with others to devise potential solutions. Such problems are typically multi-casual and so intertangled with other problems that they cannot be resolved using the expertise and analytical tools of any single discipline, individual, or organization. We have developed a trio of illustrative case studies that focus on energy, water and food, because these resources are foundational, interacting, and causally connected in a variety of ways with climate destabilization. The three interrelated case studies progress in scale from the local and regional, to the national and international and include: 1) the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill with examination of the multiple immediate and root causes of the disaster, its ecological, social, and economic impacts, and the increasing risk and declining energy return on investment associated with the relentless quest for fossil fuels; 2) development of Australia's innovative National Water Management System; and 3) changing patterns of food production and the intertwined challenge of

  9. Addressing the Wicked Problem of Quality in Higher Education: Theoretical Approaches and Implications

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krause, Kerri-Lee

    2012-01-01

    This article explores the wicked problem of quality in higher education, arguing for a more robust theorising of the subject at national, institutional and local department level. The focus of the discussion rests on principles for theorising in more rigorous ways about the multidimensional issue of quality. Quality in higher education is proposed…

  10. Competitive Benchmarking: An IS Research Approach to Address Wicked Problems with Big Data and Analytics

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    W. Ketter (Wolfgang); M. Peters (Markus); J. Collins (John); A. Gupta (Alok)

    2015-01-01

    textabstractWicked problems like sustainable energy and financial market stability are societal challenges that arise from complex socio-technical systems in which numerous social, economic, political, and technical factors interact. Understanding and mitigating them requires research methods that

  11. Conical evaporator and liquid-return wick model for vapor anode, multi-tube AMTEC cells

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tournier, Jean-Michel; El-Genk, Mohamed S.

    2000-01-01

    A detailed, 2-D thermal-hydraulic model for conical and flat evaporators and the liquid sodium return artery in PX-type AMTEC cells was developed, which predicts incipient dryout at the evaporator wick surface. Results obtained at fixed hot and cold side temperatures showed that the flat evaporator provided a slightly lower vapor pressure, but reached the capillary limit at higher temperature. The loss of performance due to partial recondensation over up to 20% of the wick surface of the deep conical evaporators was offset by the larger surface area available for evaporation, providing a slightly higher vapor pressure. Model results matched the PX-3A cell's experimental data of electrical power output, but the predicted temperature of the cell's conical evaporator was consistently ~50 K above measurements. A preliminary analysis indicated that sodium vapor leakage in the cell (through microcracks in the BASE tubes' walls or brazes) may explain the difference between predicted and measured evaporator temperatures in PX-3A. .

  12. Phytophthora capsici-tomato interaction features dramatic shifts in gene expression associated with a hemi-biotrophic lifestyle

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-01-01

    Background Plant-microbe interactions feature complex signal interplay between pathogens and their hosts. Phytophthora species comprise a destructive group of fungus-like plant pathogens, collectively affecting a wide range of plants important to agriculture and natural ecosystems. Despite the availability of genome sequences of both hosts and microbes, little is known about the signal interplay between them during infection. In particular, accurate descriptions of coordinate relationships between host and microbe transcriptional programs are lacking. Results Here, we explore the molecular interaction between the hemi-biotrophic broad host range pathogen Phytophthora capsici and tomato. Infection assays and use of a composite microarray allowed us to unveil distinct changes in both P. capsici and tomato transcriptomes, associated with biotrophy and the subsequent switch to necrotrophy. These included two distinct transcriptional changes associated with early infection and the biotrophy to necrotrophy transition that may contribute to infection and completion of the P. capsici lifecycle Conclusions Our results suggest dynamic but highly regulated transcriptional programming in both host and pathogen that underpin P. capsici disease and hemi-biotrophy. Dynamic expression changes of both effector-coding genes and host factors involved in immunity, suggests modulation of host immune signaling by both host and pathogen. With new unprecedented detail on transcriptional reprogramming, we can now explore the coordinate relationships that drive host-microbe interactions and the basic processes that underpin pathogen lifestyles. Deliberate alteration of lifestyle-associated transcriptional changes may allow prevention or perhaps disruption of hemi-biotrophic disease cycles and limit damage caused by epidemics. PMID:23799990

  13. Leadership Development in Governments of the United Arab Emirates: Re-Framing a Wicked Problem

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mathias, Megan

    2017-01-01

    Developing the next generation of leaders in government is seen as a strategic challenge of national importance in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). This article examines the wicked nature of the UAE's leadership development challenge, identifying patterns of complexity, uncertainty, and divergence in the strategic intentions underlying current…

  14. Clinical studies of 18F-FDG and 18F-FP-β-CIT PET imaging in hemi-Parkinson's disease

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhao Jun; Lin Xiangtong; Guan Yihui; Zuo Chuantao; Zhang Zhengwei; Wang Jian; Sun Bomin; Chen Zhengping

    2003-01-01

    Objective: To study the characteristics of 18 F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) and 18 F-N-3-fluoro-propyl-2β-carbomethoxy-3β-(4-iodophenyl) nortropane ( 18 F-FP-β-CIT) PET imaging in patients with hemi-Parkinson's disease (hemi-PD) and to assess their value in early diagnosis. Methods: 34 cases of hemi-PD (Hoehn and Yahr stage I-II) and 16 normal control subjects were selected for this study. 16 patients were performed with 18 F-FDG PET imaging, 18 patients with 18 F-FP-β-CIF, while 6 patients of them both 18 F-FDG and 18 F-FP-β-CIT. 30 min after injection of 185-259 MBq 18 F-FDG, 3D brain scans were acquired. Region of interest (ROI) analysis and statistical parametric mapping (SPM) were applied. 18 F-FP-β-CIT PET imaging was carried out 2-3 h post injection, and (ROI-cerebellum)/cerebellum ratio was calculated. Results: In right hemi-PD, reductions in 18 F-FDG metabolism were observed in the left basal ganglia compared with control group, but with no significant difference (P>0.05). The results of SPM analysis showed that a significant reduction in FDG uptake in the left superior frontal gyrus, middle frontal gyrus, inferior frontal gyrus and left middle temporal gyrus, whereas a significant increase in the bilateral precentral gyrus , superior parietal lobule, left middle occipital gyrus and left thalamus as compared with the control group. There was a significant reduction in 18 F-FP-β-CIT uptake in putamen, its reduction was found not only in the contralateral putamen, but also in the ipsilateral ones, and more pronounced in the contralateral posterior putamen. Conclusions: 18 F-FDG PET imaging is non-specific for the early diagnosis of PD. 18 F-FP-β-CIT PET imaging could find the changes of striatum dopamine transporter at early stage, therefore it was helpful for early diagnosis and differential diagnosis of PD. Combined with 18 F-FDG PET imaging, the changes of local cerebral glucose metabolism in PD could also be evaluated

  15. Growth decline linked to warming-induced water limitation in hemi-boreal forests.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Xiuchen; Liu, Hongyan; Guo, Dali; Anenkhonov, Oleg A; Badmaeva, Natalya K; Sandanov, Denis V

    2012-01-01

    Hemi-boreal forests, which make up the transition from temperate deciduous forests to boreal forests in southern Siberia, have experienced significant warming without any accompanying increase in precipitation during the last 80 years. This climatic change could have a profound impact on tree growth and on the stability of forest ecosystems in this region, but at present evidence for these impacts is lacking. In this study, we report a recent dramatic decline in the growth of hemi-boreal forests, based on ring width measurements from three dominant tree-species (Pinus sylvestris, Larix sibirica and Larix gmelinii), sampled from eight sites in the region. We found that regional tree growth has become increasingly limited by low soil water content in the pre- and early-growing season (from October of the previous year to July of the current year) over the past 80 years. A warming-induced reduction in soil water content has also increased the climate sensitivity of these three tree species. Beginning in the mid-1980s, a clear decline in growth is evident for both the pine forests and the larch forests, although there are increasing trends in the proxy of soil water use efficiencies. Our findings are consistent with those from other parts of the world and provide valuable insights into the regional carbon cycle and vegetation dynamics, and should be useful for devising adaptive forest management strategies.

  16. Tackling wicked problems in infection prevention and control : a guideline for co-creation with stakeholders

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van Woezik, Anne F. G.; Braakman-Jansen, Louise M. A.; Kulyk, Olga; Siemons, Liseth; van Gemert-Pijnen, Julia E. W. C.

    2016-01-01

    Background: Infection prevention and control can be seen as a wicked public health problem as there is no consensus regarding problem definition and solution, multiple stakeholders with different needs and values are involved, and there is no clear end-point of the problem-solving process.

  17. Tackling wicked problems in infection prevention and control: a guideline for co-creation with stakeholders

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van Woezik, Anne; Braakman-Jansen, Louise Marie Antoinette; Kulyk, Olga Anatoliyivna; Tjin-Kam-Jet-Siemons, Liseth; van Gemert-Pijnen, Julia E.W.C.

    2016-01-01

    Background Infection prevention and control can be seen as a wicked public health problem as there is no consensus regarding problem definition and solution, multiple stakeholders with different needs and values are involved, and there is no clear end-point of the problem-solving process.

  18. Synthesis of hydrosoluble cryptophanes, designed to encapsulate xenon, and of hemi-cryptophanes functionalized to complex lanthanide (III) ions, with the intention to apply them in medical imaging

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Godart, Estelle

    2017-01-01

    This book details all the research work that has been done during three years of Ph-D. After a chapter dedicated to the general principles of supramolecular chemistry, and some of its applications, we focalize on the use of cage-shapes molecules (cryptophanes and hemi-cryptophanes) in order to build probes for biological imaging. We successively mention the way toward the synthesis of a hemi-cryptophane able to complex Gadolinium(III), to use it it as a proton-MRI contrast agent, then toward the elaboration of hydrosoluble cryptophanes adapted to 129 Xe NMR and MRI. This PhD manuscript ends with the synthesis of a new hemi-cryptophane functionalized to form complexes with Terbium(III) and Europium(III), whose fluorescence properties are promising. (author)

  19. Design of Experiments to Determine Causes of Flex Cable Solder Wicking, Discoloration and Hole Location Defects

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wolfe, Larry

    2009-04-22

    Design of Experiments (DoE) were developed and performed in an effort to discover and resolve the causes of three different manufacturing issues; large panel voids after Hot Air Solder Leveling (HASL), cable hole locations out of tolerance after lamination and delamination/solder wicking around flat flex cable circuit lands after HASL. Results from a first DoE indicated large panel voids could be eliminated by removing the pre-HASL cleaning. It also revealed eliminating the pre-HASL bake would not be detrimental when using a hard press pad lamination stackup. A second DoE indicated a reduction in hard press pad stackup lamination pressure reduced panel stretch in the y axis approximately 70%. A third DoE illustrated increasing the pre-HASL bake temperature could reduce delamination/solder wicking when using a soft press pad lamination stackup.

  20. Elective hemi transurethral resection of prostate: a safe and effective method of treating huge benign prostatic hyperplasia

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Abidi, S.S.; Feroz, I.; Aslam, M.; Fawad, A.

    2012-01-01

    To evaluate the safety and efficacy of elective hemi-resection of prostate in patients with huge gland, weighing more than 120 grams. Study Design: Multi centric, analytical comparative study. Place and Duration of Study: Department of Urology, Karachi Medical and Dental College, Abbasi Shaheed Hospital and Dr. Ziauddin Hospital, Karachi, from August 2006 to July 2009. Methodology: All benign cases were included in this study and divided into two groups. In group A, patients having huge prostate (> 120 grams) were placed and hemi TURP was performed. In group B, patients having 60 to 100 grams prostate were placed and conventional Blandy's TURP was performed. Results of both groups were compared in terms of duration of surgery, amount of tissue resected, operative bleeding, postoperative complications, duration of postoperative catheterization, re-admission and re-operations. Effectiveness of procedure was assessed by a simple questionnaire filled by the patients at first month, first year and second year. Patients satisfaction in terms of their ability to void, control urination, frequency, urgency, urge incontinence, haematuria, recurrent UTI, re-admission and re-operations were also assessed. Fisher exact test was applied to compare the safety and efficacy of variables. Results: In group A and B, average age range was 72 and 69 years, average weight of prostate was 148 and 70 grams, average duration of surgery was 102 and 50 minutes respectively. Average weight of resected tissue was 84 and 54 grams and haemoglobin loss was two grams and one gram respectively. Total hospital stay was 5 and 4 days. Total duration of indwelling Foley's catheter (postoperative) was 5 days and 2 days. Patient satisfaction in term of urine flow, urinary control, improvement in frequency and nocturia were comparable in both groups. UTI and re-admission was more in hemi resection group. At the end of 2 years follow-up, there is no statistical difference between the safety and efficacy

  1. A study on heat transfer through the fin-wick structure mounted in the evaporator for a plate loop heat pipe system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nguyen, Xuan Hung; Sung, Byung Ho; Choi, Jee Hoon; Kim, Chul Ju; Yoo, Jung Hyung; Seo, Min Whan

    2008-01-01

    This paper investigates the plate loop heat pipe system with an evaporator mounted with fin-wick structure to dissipate effectively the heat generated by the electronic components. The heat transfer formulation is modeled and predicted through thermal resistance analysis of the fin-wick structure in the evaporator. The experimental approach measures the thermal resistances and the operating characteristics. These results gathered in this investigation have been used to the objective of the information to improve the LHP system design so as to apply as the future cooling devices of the electronic components

  2. Understanding wicked problems and organized irresponsibility: challenges for governing the sustainable intensification of chicken meat production

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bueren, E.M.; Lammerts Van Bueren, E.; Zijpp, van der A.J.

    2014-01-01

    Framing sustainable intensification as a wicked problem reveals how inherent trade-offs and resulting uncertainty and ambiguity block integrated problem solving as promoted by sustainable chain management approaches to production and consumption. The fragmented institutional set-up of the chains

  3. Hemi-ordered nanoporous carbon electrode material for highly selective determination of nitrite in physiological and environmental systems

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zhou, Shenghai; Wu, Hongmin; Wu, Ying; Shi, Hongyan; Feng, Xun; Jiang, Shang; Chen, Jian; Song, Wenbo, E-mail: wbsong@jlu.edu.cn

    2014-08-01

    Hemi-ordered nanoporous carbon (HONC) was obtained from a mesoporous silica template through a nano-replication method using furfuryl alcohol as the carbon source. The structure and morphology of HONC were characterized and analyzed in detail by X-ray diffraction, N{sub 2}-sorption, Raman spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy. HONC was then demonstrated as active electrode material for selective determination of nitrite in either physiological or environmental system. Well separated oxidation peaks of ascorbic acid, dopamine, uric acid and nitrite were observed in physiological system, and simultaneous discrimination of catechol, hydroquinone, resorcinol and nitrite in environmental system was also accomplished. Distinctly improved performances for selective determination of nitrite (such as significantly fast and sensitive current response with especially high selectivity) coexisted with ascorbic acid, dopamine and uric acid in the physiological system, as well as with catechol, hydroquinone and resorcinol in the environmental system were achieved at HONC electrode material. The excellent discriminating ability and high selectivity for NO{sub 2}{sup −} determination were ascribed to the good electronic conductivity, unique hemi-ordered porous structure, large surface area and large number of edge plane defect sites contained on the surface of nanopore walls of HONC. Results in this work demonstrated that HONC is one of the promising catalytic electrode materials for nitrite sensor fabrication. - Highlights: • Hemi-ordered nanoporous carbon as an active electrode material • Good discriminating ability towards NO{sub 2}{sup −} from physiological or environmental system • Highly selective determination of nitrite with fast and sensitive current response.

  4. Nonsingular cosmology with a scale-invariant spectrum of cosmological perturbations from Lee-Wick theory

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cai Yifu; Qiu Taotao; Brandenberger, Robert; Zhang Xinmin

    2009-01-01

    We study the cosmology of a Lee-Wick type scalar field theory. First, we consider homogeneous and isotropic background solutions and find that they are nonsingular, leading to cosmological bounces. Next, we analyze the spectrum of cosmological perturbations which result from this model. Unless either the potential of the Lee-Wick theory or the initial conditions are finely tuned, it is impossible to obtain background solutions which have a sufficiently long period of inflation after the bounce. More interestingly, however, we find that in the generic noninflationary bouncing cosmology, perturbations created from quantum vacuum fluctuations in the contracting phase have the correct form to lead to a scale-invariant spectrum of metric inhomogeneities in the expanding phase. Since the background is nonsingular, the evolution of the fluctuations is defined unambiguously through the bounce. We also analyze the evolution of fluctuations which emerge from thermal initial conditions in the contracting phase. The spectrum of gravitational waves stemming from quantum vacuum fluctuations in the contracting phase is also scale-invariant, and the tensor to scalar ratio is not suppressed.

  5. Managing wicked problems in agribusiness: the role of multi-stakeholder engagements in value creation: Editor's Introduction

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Dentoni, D.; Hospes, O.; Ross, R.B.

    2012-01-01

    Environmental degradation and biodiversity loss, persisting poverty, a mounting obesity epidemic, food insecurity and the use of biotechnology are all examples of wicked problems faced by agricultural and food organizations. Yet, managers and policy-makers often do not recognize that these problems

  6. Growth decline linked to warming-induced water limitation in hemi-boreal forests.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xiuchen Wu

    Full Text Available Hemi-boreal forests, which make up the transition from temperate deciduous forests to boreal forests in southern Siberia, have experienced significant warming without any accompanying increase in precipitation during the last 80 years. This climatic change could have a profound impact on tree growth and on the stability of forest ecosystems in this region, but at present evidence for these impacts is lacking. In this study, we report a recent dramatic decline in the growth of hemi-boreal forests, based on ring width measurements from three dominant tree-species (Pinus sylvestris, Larix sibirica and Larix gmelinii, sampled from eight sites in the region. We found that regional tree growth has become increasingly limited by low soil water content in the pre- and early-growing season (from October of the previous year to July of the current year over the past 80 years. A warming-induced reduction in soil water content has also increased the climate sensitivity of these three tree species. Beginning in the mid-1980s, a clear decline in growth is evident for both the pine forests and the larch forests, although there are increasing trends in the proxy of soil water use efficiencies. Our findings are consistent with those from other parts of the world and provide valuable insights into the regional carbon cycle and vegetation dynamics, and should be useful for devising adaptive forest management strategies.

  7. Enhanced pool boiling critical heat flux induced by capillary wicking effect of a Cr-sputtered superhydrophilic surfaces

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Son, Hong Hyun; Seo, Gwang Hyeok; Kim, Sung Joong [Hanyang University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

    2016-10-15

    In light of boiling heat transfer, the smooth surface potentially reduces active nucleation of bubbles and rewetting of dry spots near the critical heat flux (CHF). This kind of process is highly likely to deteriorate the CHF. Thus, it is essential to produce appropriate microstructures on the surface for the enhancement of the CHF. In this study, to investigate the microstructural effect of thin film-fabricated surfaces on the pool boiling CHF, we controlled the surface roughness in a narrow range of 0.1-0.25 μm and its morphologies, in the form of micro-scratches using PVD sputtering technique. Specifically for DC magnetron sputtering, pure chromium (Cr) was selected as a target material owing to its high oxidation resistance. In order to analyze the CHF trend with changes in roughness, we introduced existing capillary wicking-based models because superhydrophilic characteristics of microstructures are highly related to the capillary wicking behaviors in micro-flow channels. After Cr sputtering under given conditions, the Cr-sputtered surfaces showed superhydrophilic characteristics and its capability became more enhanced with an increase of surface roughness. Judging from spreading behavior of a liquid droplet, the presence of micro-wicking channels, coupled with Cr nanostructures, effectively enhanced the advancing rate of drop base diameter. The CHF exhibited an increasing trend with increasing surface roughness. However, the enhancement ratio agreed poorly with the predictions of the roughness factor-based models, all of which originated from a conventional static force balance.

  8. Training Interdisciplinary "Wicked Problem" Solvers: Applying Lessons from HERO in Community-Based Research Experiences for Undergraduates

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cantor, Alida; DeLauer, Verna; Martin, Deborah; Rogan, John

    2015-01-01

    Management of "wicked problems", messy real-world problems that defy resolution, requires thinkers who can transcend disciplinary boundaries, work collaboratively, and handle complexity and obstacles. This paper explores how educators can train undergraduates in these skills through applied community-based research, using the example of…

  9. 21-Methylpyrenyl-cholesterol stably and specifically associates with lipoprotein peripheral hemi-membrane: A new labelling tool

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gaibelet, Gérald [INSERM U563, CHU Purpan, Toulouse (France); CEA, SB2SM and UMR8221 CNRS, IBiTec-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette (France); Tercé, François [Université Toulouse III, UMR 1048, Toulouse (France); INSERM U1048, Toulouse (France); Bertrand-Michel, Justine [Université Toulouse III, UMR 1048, Toulouse (France); INSERM U1048, Lipidomic Platform Metatoul, Toulouse (France); Allart, Sophie [Plateau Technique d’Imagerie Cellulaire, INSERM U1043, Toulouse (France); Azalbert, Vincent [Université Toulouse III, UMR 1048, Toulouse (France); INSERM U1048, Toulouse (France); Lecompte, Marie-France [INSERM U563, Faculté de Médecine de Rangueil, Toulouse (France); Collet, Xavier [Université Toulouse III, UMR 1048, Toulouse (France); INSERM U1048, Toulouse (France); Orlowski, Stéphane, E-mail: stephane.orlowski@cea.fr [INSERM U563, CHU Purpan, Toulouse (France); CEA, SB2SM and UMR8221 CNRS, IBiTec-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette (France)

    2013-11-01

    Highlights: •21-Methylpyrenyl-cholesterol specifically and stably associates to lipoproteins. •It is not esterified by LCAT, and thus reliably labels their peripheral hemi-membrane. •HDL vs. LDL are well distinguishable by various fluorescent labelling characteristics. •LDL peripheral hemi-membrane harbors cholesterol-rich ordered lipid (micro)domains. •Cultured cells can be stained by such labelled lipoproteins-mediated delivery. -- Abstract: Lipoproteins are important biological components. However, they have few convenient fluorescent labelling probes currently reported, and their physiological reliability can be questioned. We compared the association of two fluorescent cholesterol derivatives, 22-nitrobenzoxadiazole-cholesterol (NBD-Chol) and 21-methylpyrenyl-cholesterol (Pyr-met-Chol), to serum lipoproteins and to purified HDL and LDL. Both lipoproteins could be stably labelled by Pyr-met-Chol, but virtually not by NBD-Chol. At variance with NBD-Chol, LCAT did not esterify Pyr-met-Chol. The labelling characteristics of lipoproteins by Pyr-met-Chol were well distinguishable between HDL and LDL, regarding dializability, associated probe amount and labelling kinetics. We took benefit of the pyrene labelling to approach the structural organization of LDL peripheral hemi-membrane, since Pyr-met-Chol-labelled LDL, but not HDL, presented a fluorescence emission of pyrene excimers, indicating that the probe was present in an ordered lipid micro-environment. Since the peripheral membrane of LDL contains more sphingomyelin (SM) than HDL, this excimer formation was consistent with the existence of cholesterol- and SM-enriched lipid microdomains in LDL, as already suggested in model membranes of similar composition and reminiscent to the well-described “lipid rafts” in bilayer membranes. Finally, we showed that Pyr-met-Chol could stain cultured PC-3 cells via lipoprotein-mediated delivery, with a staining pattern well different to that observed with NBD

  10. 21-Methylpyrenyl-cholesterol stably and specifically associates with lipoprotein peripheral hemi-membrane: A new labelling tool

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gaibelet, Gérald; Tercé, François; Bertrand-Michel, Justine; Allart, Sophie; Azalbert, Vincent; Lecompte, Marie-France; Collet, Xavier; Orlowski, Stéphane

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: •21-Methylpyrenyl-cholesterol specifically and stably associates to lipoproteins. •It is not esterified by LCAT, and thus reliably labels their peripheral hemi-membrane. •HDL vs. LDL are well distinguishable by various fluorescent labelling characteristics. •LDL peripheral hemi-membrane harbors cholesterol-rich ordered lipid (micro)domains. •Cultured cells can be stained by such labelled lipoproteins-mediated delivery. -- Abstract: Lipoproteins are important biological components. However, they have few convenient fluorescent labelling probes currently reported, and their physiological reliability can be questioned. We compared the association of two fluorescent cholesterol derivatives, 22-nitrobenzoxadiazole-cholesterol (NBD-Chol) and 21-methylpyrenyl-cholesterol (Pyr-met-Chol), to serum lipoproteins and to purified HDL and LDL. Both lipoproteins could be stably labelled by Pyr-met-Chol, but virtually not by NBD-Chol. At variance with NBD-Chol, LCAT did not esterify Pyr-met-Chol. The labelling characteristics of lipoproteins by Pyr-met-Chol were well distinguishable between HDL and LDL, regarding dializability, associated probe amount and labelling kinetics. We took benefit of the pyrene labelling to approach the structural organization of LDL peripheral hemi-membrane, since Pyr-met-Chol-labelled LDL, but not HDL, presented a fluorescence emission of pyrene excimers, indicating that the probe was present in an ordered lipid micro-environment. Since the peripheral membrane of LDL contains more sphingomyelin (SM) than HDL, this excimer formation was consistent with the existence of cholesterol- and SM-enriched lipid microdomains in LDL, as already suggested in model membranes of similar composition and reminiscent to the well-described “lipid rafts” in bilayer membranes. Finally, we showed that Pyr-met-Chol could stain cultured PC-3 cells via lipoprotein-mediated delivery, with a staining pattern well different to that observed with NBD

  11. Direct uranium extraction from dihydrate and hemi-dihydrate wet process phosphoric acids by liquid emulsion membrane

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    El-Hazek, N.T.; El Sayed, M.S.

    2003-01-01

    A new liquid emulsion membrane (LEM) process for uranium extraction from either dihydrate 28-30% P 2 O 5 (DH) or hemi-dihydrate 42-45% P 2 O 5 (HDH) wet process phosphoric acid is proposed. In this process, the organic component of the LEM is composed of a synergistic mixture of 0.1M di-2-ethyl hexyl phosphoric acid (DEHPA) and 0.025M trioctyl phosphine oxide (TOPO) with 4% Span 80. The internal or the strip acid phase is composed of 0.5M citric acid. The prepared LEM was proved to be stable in 42-45% P 2 O 5 acid concentration range and can, therefore, be applied to the phosphoric acid produced by the hemi-dihydrate process. After breakdown of the loaded emulsion, the uranyl citrate in the internal strip phase is separated by adding methanol followed by its calcination to the orange oxide. Most of the reagents used are recycled. The proposed process is characterized by simplicity, practically closed operation cycle in addition to lower capital and operating costs. (author)

  12. Properties of pattern standard deviation in open-angle glaucoma patients with hemi-optic neuropathy and bi-optic neuropathy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heo, Dong Won; Kim, Kyoung Nam; Lee, Min Woo; Lee, Sung Bok; Kim, Chang-Sik

    2017-01-01

    To evaluate the properties of pattern standard deviation (PSD) according to localization of the glaucomatous optic neuropathy. We enrolled 242 eyes of 242 patients with primary open-angle glaucoma, with a best-corrected visual acuity ≥ 20/25, and no media opacity. Patients were examined via dilated fundus photography, spectral-domain optical coherence tomography, and Humphrey visual field examination, and divided into those with hemi-optic neuropathy (superior or inferior) and bi-optic neuropathy (both superior and inferior). We assessed the relationship between mean deviation (MD) and PSD. Using broken stick regression analysis, the tipping point was identified, i.e., the point at which MD became significantly associated with a paradoxical reversal of PSD. In 91 patients with hemi-optic neuropathy, PSD showed a strong correlation with MD (r = -0.973, β = -0.965, p < 0.001). The difference between MD and PSD ("-MD-PSD") was constant (mean, -0.32 dB; 95% confidence interval, -2.48~1.84 dB) regardless of visual field defect severity. However, in 151 patients with bi-optic neuropathy, a negative correlation was evident between "-MD-PSD" and MD (r2 = 0.907, p < 0.001). Overall, the MD tipping point was -14.0 dB, which was close to approximately 50% damage of the entire visual field (p < 0.001). Although a false decrease of PSD usually begins at approximately 50% visual field damage, in patients with hemi-optic neuropathy, the PSD shows no paradoxical decrease and shows a linear correlation with MD.

  13. Active and Healthy Ageing as a Wicked Problem: The Contribution of a Multidisciplinary Research University.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Riva, Giuseppe; Graffigna, Guendalina; Baitieri, Maddalena; Amato, Alessandra; Bonanomi, Maria Grazia; Valentini, Paolo; Castelli, Guido

    2014-01-01

    The quest for an active and healthy ageing can be considered a "wicked problem." It is a social and cultural problem, which is difficult to solve because of incomplete, changing, and contradictory requirements. These problems are tough to manage because of their social complexity. They are a group of linked problems embedded in the structure of the communities in which they occur. First, they require the knowledge of the social and cultural context in which they occur. They can be solved only by understanding of what people do and why they do it. Second, they require a multidisciplinary approach. Wicked problems can have different solutions, so it is critical to capture the full range of possibilities and interpretations. Thus, we suggest that Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore (UCSC) is well suited for accepting and managing this challenge because of its applied research orientation, multidisciplinary approach, and integrated vision. After presenting the research activity of UCSC, we describe a possible "systems thinking" strategy to consider the complexity and interdependence of active ageing and healthy living.

  14. Passive cooling of standalone flat PV module with cotton wick structures

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chandrasekar, M.; Suresh, S.; Senthilkumar, T.; Ganesh karthikeyan, M.

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: • A simple passive cooling system is developed for standalone flat PV modules. • 30% Reduction in module temperature is observed with developed cooling system. • 15.61% Increase in output power of PV module is found with developed cooling system. • Module efficiency is increased by 1.4% with cooling arrangement. • Lower thermal degradation due to narrow range of temperature characteristics. - Abstract: In common, PV module converts only 4–17% of the incoming solar radiation into electricity. Thus more than 50% of the incident solar energy is converted as heat and the temperature of PV module is increased. The increase in module temperature in turn decreases the electrical yield and efficiency of the module with a permanent structural damage of the module due to prolonged period of thermal stress (also known as thermal degradation of the module). An effective way of improving efficiency and reducing the rate of thermal degradation of a PV module is to reduce the operating temperature of PV module. This can be achieved by cooling the PV module during operation. Hence in the present work, a simple passive cooling system with cotton wick structures is developed for standalone flat PV modules. The thermal and electrical performance of flat PV module with cooling system consisting of cotton wick structures in combination with water, Al 2 O 3 /water nanofluid and CuO/water nanofluid are investigated experimentally. The experimental results are also compared with the thermal and electrical performance of flat PV module without cooling system

  15. SU-E-T-457: Design and Characterization of An Economical 192Ir Hemi-Brain Small Animal Irradiator

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Grams, M; Wilson, Z; Sio, T; Beltran, C; Tryggestad, E; Gupta, S; Blackwell, C; McCollough, K; Sarkaria, J; Furutani, K

    2014-01-01

    Purpose: To describe the design and dosimetric characterization of a simple and economical small animal irradiator. Methods: A high dose rate 192Ir brachytherapy source from a commercially available afterloader was used with a 1.3 centimeter thick tungsten collimator to provide sharp beam penumbra suitable for hemi-brain irradiation of mice. The unit is equipped with continuous gas anesthesia to allow robust animal immobilization. Dosimetric characterization of the device was performed with Gafchromic film. The penumbra from the small animal irradiator was compared under similar collimating conditions to the penumbra from 6 MV photons, 6 MeV electrons, and 20 MeV electrons from a linear accelerator as well as 300 kVp photons from an orthovoltage unit and Monte Carlo simulated 90 MeV protons. Results: The tungsten collimator provides a sharp penumbra suitable for hemi-brain irradiation, and dose rates on the order of 200 cGy/minute were achieved. The sharpness of the penumbra attainable with this device compares favorably to those measured experimentally for 6 MV photons, and 6 and 20 MeV electron beams from a linear accelerator. Additionally, the penumbra was comparable to those measured for a 300 kVp orthovoltage beam and a Monte Carlo simulated 90 MeV proton beam. Conclusions: The small animal irradiator described here can be built for under $1,000 and used in conjunction with any commercial brachytherapy afterloader to provide a convenient and cost-effective option for small animal irradiation experiments. The unit offers high dose rate delivery and sharp penumbra, which is ideal for hemi-brain irradiation of mice. With slight modifications to the design, irradiation of sites other than the brain could be accomplished easily. Due to its simplicity and low cost, the apparatus described is an attractive alternative for small animal irradiation experiments requiring a sharp penumbra

  16. Time-Homogeneous Parabolic Wick-Anderson Model in One Space Dimension: Regularity of Solution

    OpenAIRE

    Kim, Hyun-Jung; Lototsky, Sergey V

    2017-01-01

    Even though the heat equation with random potential is a well-studied object, the particular case of time-independent Gaussian white noise in one space dimension has yet to receive the attention it deserves. The paper investigates the stochastic heat equation with space-only Gaussian white noise on a bounded interval. The main result is that the space-time regularity of the solution is the same for additive noise and for multiplicative noise in the Wick-It\\^o-Skorokhod interpretation.

  17. Understanding enabling capacities for managing the 'wicked problem' of nonpoint source water pollution in catchments: a conceptual framework.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Patterson, James J; Smith, Carl; Bellamy, Jennifer

    2013-10-15

    Nonpoint source (NPS) water pollution in catchments is a 'wicked' problem that threatens water quality, water security, ecosystem health and biodiversity, and thus the provision of ecosystem services that support human livelihoods and wellbeing from local to global scales. However, it is a difficult problem to manage because water catchments are linked human and natural systems that are complex, dynamic, multi-actor, and multi-scalar in nature. This in turn raises questions about understanding and influencing change across multiple levels of planning, decision-making and action. A key challenge in practice is enabling implementation of local management action, which can be influenced by a range of factors across multiple levels. This paper reviews and synthesises important 'enabling' capacities that can influence implementation of local management action, and develops a conceptual framework for understanding and analysing these in practice. Important enabling capacities identified include: history and contingency; institutional arrangements; collaboration; engagement; vision and strategy; knowledge building and brokerage; resourcing; entrepreneurship and leadership; and reflection and adaptation. Furthermore, local action is embedded within multi-scalar contexts and therefore, is highly contextual. The findings highlight the need for: (1) a systemic and integrative perspective for understanding and influencing change for managing the wicked problem of NPS water pollution; and (2) 'enabling' social and institutional arenas that support emergent and adaptive management structures, processes and innovations for addressing NPS water pollution in practice. These findings also have wider relevance to other 'wicked' natural resource management issues facing similar implementation challenges. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  18. Definition and use of Solution-focused Sustainability Assessment: A novel approach to generate, explore and decide on sustainable solutions for wicked problems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zijp, Michiel C; Posthuma, Leo; Wintersen, Arjen; Devilee, Jeroen; Swartjes, Frank A

    2016-05-01

    This paper introduces Solution-focused Sustainability Assessment (SfSA), provides practical guidance formatted as a versatile process framework, and illustrates its utility for solving a wicked environmental management problem. Society faces complex and increasingly wicked environmental problems for which sustainable solutions are sought. Wicked problems are multi-faceted, and deriving of a management solution requires an approach that is participative, iterative, innovative, and transparent in its definition of sustainability and translation to sustainability metrics. We suggest to add the use of a solution-focused approach. The SfSA framework is collated from elements from risk assessment, risk governance, adaptive management and sustainability assessment frameworks, expanded with the 'solution-focused' paradigm as recently proposed in the context of risk assessment. The main innovation of this approach is the broad exploration of solutions upfront in assessment projects. The case study concerns the sustainable management of slightly contaminated sediments continuously formed in ditches in rural, agricultural areas. This problem is wicked, as disposal of contaminated sediment on adjacent land is potentially hazardous to humans, ecosystems and agricultural products. Non-removal would however reduce drainage capacity followed by increased risks of flooding, while contaminated sediment removal followed by offsite treatment implies high budget costs and soil subsidence. Application of the steps in the SfSA-framework served in solving this problem. Important elements were early exploration of a wide 'solution-space', stakeholder involvement from the onset of the assessment, clear agreements on the risk and sustainability metrics of the problem and on the interpretation and decision procedures, and adaptive management. Application of the key elements of the SfSA approach eventually resulted in adoption of a novel sediment management policy. The stakeholder

  19. Jaws calibration method to get a homogeneous distribution of dose in the junction of hemi fields

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cenizo de Castro, E.; Garcia Pareja, S.; Moreno Saiz, C.; Hernandez Rodriguez, R.; Bodineau Gil, C.; Martin-Viera Cueto, J. A.

    2011-01-01

    Hemi fields treatments are widely used in radiotherapy. Because the tolerance established for the positioning of each jaw is 1 mm, may be cases of overlap or separation of up to 2 mm. This implies heterogeneity of doses up to 40% in the joint area. This paper presents an accurate method of calibration of the jaws so as to obtain homogeneous dose distributions when using this type of treatment. (Author)

  20. In vitro glucose uptake by isolated rat hemi-diaphragm study of Aegle marmelos Correa root

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Subban Ravi

    2009-03-01

    Full Text Available The methanol extract of the root of Aegle marmelos, a medicinal plant, was fractionated into eight fractions using column chromatography. The anti-diabetic activity of all the fractions was studied using the glucose uptake by isolated rat hemi-diaphragm in vitro model. Using the bioassay-guided fractionation, two compounds 1 and 2 were isolated by column chromatography and identified as 6-methyl-4-chromanone and skimmianine respectively by NMR and mass spectral methods.

  1. Managing Wicked Problems in Agribusiness: The Role of Multi-Stakeholder Engagements in Value Creation: Introduction to the Special Issue

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Dentoni, D.; Hospes, O.; Ross, R.

    2013-01-01

    Environmental degradation and biodiversity loss, persisting poverty, a mounting obesity epidemic, food insecurity and the use of biotechnology are all examples of wicked problems faced by agricultural and food organizations. Yet, managers and policy-makers often do not recognize that these problems

  2. Computer Supported Argument Visualisation: Modelling in Consultative Democracy Around Wicked Problems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ohl, Ricky

    In this case study, computer supported argument visualisation has been applied to the analysis and representation of the draft South East Queensland Regional Plan Consultation discourse, demonstrating how argument mapping can help deliver the transparency and accountability required in participatory democracy. Consultative democracy for regional planning falls into a category of problems known as “wicked problems”. Inherent in this environment is heterogeneous viewpoints, agendas and voices, built on disparate and often contradictory logic. An argument ontology and notation that was designed specifically to deal with consultative urban planning around wicked problems is the Issue Based Information System (IBIS) and IBIS notation (Rittel & Webber, 1984). The software used for argument visualisation in this case was Compendium, a derivative of IBIS. The high volume of stakeholders and discourse heterogeneity in this environment calls for a unique approach to argument mapping. The map design model developed from this research has been titled a “Consultation Map”. The design incorporates the IBIS ontology within a hybrid of mapping approaches, amalgamating elements from concept, dialogue, argument, debate, thematic and tree-mapping. The consultation maps developed from the draft South East Queensland Regional Plan Consultation provide a transparent visual record to give evidence of the themes of citizen issues within the consultation discourse. The consultation maps also link the elicited discourse themes to related policies from the SEQ Regional Plan providing explicit evidence of SEQ Regional Plan policy-decisions matching citizen concerns. The final consultation map in the series provides explicit links between SEQ Regional Plan policy items and monitoring activities reporting on the ongoing implementation of the SEQ Regional Plan. This map provides updatable evidence of and accountability for SEQ Regional Plan policy implementation and developments.

  3. Anti-Gravity Loop-shaped heat pipe with graded pore-size wick

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tang Yong; Zhou Rui; Lu Longsheng; Xie Zichun

    2012-01-01

    An Anti-Gravity Loop-Shaped Heat Pipe (AGLSHP) with a Continuous Graded Pore-Size Wick (CGPSW) was developed for the cooling of electronic devices at the anti-gravity orientation on the ground. At this orientation, heat is transferred toward the direction of the gravitational field. The AGLSHP consists of an evaporator, a condenser, a vapor line and a liquid line. The CGPSW is formed by sintered copper powders and it is filled inside the evaporator and the liquid line. The corresponding test system was developed to investigate the start-up characteristics and heat transfer performance of the AGLSHP at the anti-gravity orientation. The experimental result shows that, the AGLSHP has the capability to start-up reliably without any temperature overshoot or oscillation at the test heat loads. And the AGLSHP is able to keep the temperature of the evaporator below 105 °C and the overall thermal resistance below 0.24 °C/W at the heat load of 100 W. It is also found that the ideal heat load range of the AGLSHP at the anti-gravity orientation is from 30 W to 90 W. In this power range the overall thermal resistance stabilizes at about 0.15 °C/W, and the maximum temperature of the evaporator is lower than 84 °C at the heat load of 90 W. - Highlights: ► We present a loop-shaped heat pipe for the anti-gravity application on the ground. ► We present the continuous graded pore-size wick and its fabrication process. ► We test the start-up and heat transfer performance of this loop-shaped heat pipe. ► This loop-shaped heat pipe starts up reliably and has satisfying heat transfer capability.

  4. Location in the right hemi-colon is an independent risk factor for delayed post-polypectomy hemorrhage: a multi-center case-control study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Buddingh, K Tim; Herngreen, Thomas; Haringsma, Jelle; van der Zwet, Wil C; Vleggaar, Frank P; Breumelhof, Ronald; Ter Borg, Frank

    2011-06-01

    Delayed hemorrhage is an infrequent, but serious complication of colonoscopic polypectomy. Large size is the only polyp-related factor that has been unequivocally proven to increase the risk of delayed bleeding. It has been suggested that location in the right hemi-colon is also a risk factor. The objective of this study was to determine whether polyp location is an independent risk factor for delayed post-polypectomy hemorrhage. A retrospective case-control study was conducted in two university hospitals and two community hospitals. Thirty-nine cases and 117 controls were identified. In multivariate analysis, size and location were found to be independent polyp-related risk factors for delayed type hemorrhage. The risk increased by 13% for every 1 mm increase in polyp diameter (odds ratio (OR) 1.13, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.05-1.20, Plocated in the right hemi-colon had an OR of 4.67 (1.88-11.61, P=0.001) for delayed hemorrhage. Polyps in the cecum seemed to be especially at high risk in univariate analysis (OR 13.82, 95% CI 2.66-71.73), but this could not be assessed in multivariate analysis as the number of cases was too small. Polyp type (sessile or pedunculated) was not a risk factor. Polyp location in the right hemi-colon seems to be an independent and substantial risk factor for delayed post-polypectomy hemorrhage. A low threshold for preventive hemostatic measures is advised when removing polyps from this region.

  5. HPTAM, a two-dimensional Heat Pipe Transient Analysis Model, including the startup from a frozen state

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tournier, Jean-Michel; El-Genk, Mohamed S.

    1995-01-01

    A two-dimensional Heat Pipe Transient Analysis Model, 'HPTAM,' was developed to simulate the transient operation of fully-thawed heat pipes and the startup of heat pipes from a frozen state. The model incorporates: (a) sublimation and resolidification of working fluid; (b) melting and freezing of the working fluid in the porous wick; (c) evaporation of thawed working fluid and condensation as a thin liquid film on a frozen substrate; (d) free-molecule, transition, and continuum vapor flow regimes, using the Dusty Gas Model; (e) liquid flow and heat transfer in the porous wick; and (f) thermal and hydrodynamic couplings of phases at their respective interfaces. HPTAM predicts the radius of curvature of the liquid meniscus at the liquid-vapor interface and the radial location of the working fluid level (liquid or solid) in the wick. It also includes the transverse momentum jump condition (capillary relationship of Pascal) at the liquid-vapor interface and geometrically relates the radius of curvature of the liquid meniscus to the volume fraction of vapor in the wick. The present model predicts the capillary limit and partial liquid recess (dryout) in the evaporator wick, and incorporates a liquid pooling submodel, which simulates accumulation of the excess liquid in the vapor core at the condenser end.

  6. The wicked problem of China's disappearing coral reefs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hughes, Terry P; Huang, Hui; Young, Matthew A L

    2013-04-01

    We examined the development of coral reef science and the policies, institutions, and governance frameworks for management of coral reefs in China in order to highlight the wicked problem of preserving reefs while simultaneously promoting human development and nation building. China and other sovereign states in the region are experiencing unprecedented economic expansion, rapid population growth, mass migration, widespread coastal development, and loss of habitat. We analyzed a large, fragmented literature on the condition of coral reefs in China and the disputed territories of the South China Sea. We found that coral abundance has declined by at least 80% over the past 30 years on coastal fringing reefs along the Chinese mainland and adjoining Hainan Island. On offshore atolls and archipelagos claimed by 6 countries in the South China Sea, coral cover has declined from an average of >60% to around 20% within the past 10-15 years. Climate change has affected these reefs far less than coastal development, pollution, overfishing, and destructive fishing practices. Ironically, these widespread declines in the condition of reefs are unfolding as China's research and reef-management capacity are rapidly expanding. Before the loss of corals becomes irreversible, governance of China's coastal reefs could be improved by increasing public awareness of declining ecosystem services, by providing financial support for training of reef scientists and managers, by improving monitoring of coral reef dynamics and condition to better inform policy development, and by enforcing existing regulations that could protect coral reefs. In the South China Sea, changes in policy and legal frameworks, refinement of governance structures, and cooperation among neighboring countries are urgently needed to develop cooperative management of contested offshore reefs. © 2012 Society for Conservation Biology.

  7. Mechanism of disintegrant action of polacrilin potassium: Swelling or wicking?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mrudula Hemant Bele

    2012-02-01

    Full Text Available The effect of particle size, pH of medium, and presence of lubricant on the swelling behaviour, water uptake properties and disintegrant performance of polacrilin potassium was examined. Particle size did not affect the bulk swelling of disintegrant particles when measured as settling volume, but increased the water uptake and decreased the disintegration time of tablets containing this disintegrant. An increase in the pH of the medium from acidic to neutral increased the bulk swelling of the particles, whereas it decreased water uptake and disintegrant performance. Addition of lubricant had no effect on settling volume, but decreased the water uptake rate and the disintegrant performance significantly. It is concluded that wicking, i.e. capillary action, rather than swelling, is the major factor that contributes to the disintegration behaviour of polacrilin potassium.

  8. Potensi Pengembangan Bahan Ajar: Handout Pada Pembelajaran IPA SMP Berbasis Penelitian Pengaruh Konsentrasi Nutrisi Ab Mix Pada Pertumbuhan Tanaman Bayam (Amaranthus Tricolor L.) Dengan Teknik Hidroponik Sistem Wick

    OpenAIRE

    Putra, Rayshatico Perdana; Wulandari, Sri; Fauziah, Yuslim

    2017-01-01

    This study was conducted to determine the effect of nutrient concentrations on plant growth AB Mix the spinach with hydroponic techniques wick system as well as the design for the development of learning handout on SMP IPA in March-May 2016. The study was carried out by two phases: an experiment: the effect of nutrient concentrations AB Mix the spinach plant growth (Amaranthus tricolor L.) with hydroponic techniques and the wick system design stage handout science teaching junior high school....

  9. Dissociative disorder manifesting for underlying adolescent hemi-parkinsonism: New chronology for old mummies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jha, Shailesh; Garg, Amit; Khanna, Amit

    2015-08-01

    Dissociative symptoms can be induced by a variety of conditions that can either coexist or mimic each other in clinical presentation. In coexisting dissociative disorder with medical illness, the causality remains uncertain, but sometime its role as nidus for dissociative symptoms just cannot be ruled out. The origin of "organic dissociative disorder" is undoubtedly found by various authors who demonstrated that a high percentage of patients with dissociative symptoms present with some form of neurological insult before developing the symptom. Herein we report on a case of adolescent onset hemi-parkinsonism with coexisting dissociative disorder. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  10. Modeling and experimental study of a corrugated wick type solar still: Comparative study with a simple basin type

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Matrawy, K.K.; Alosaimy, A.S.; Mahrous, A.-F.

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • Performance of corrugated wick type solar still is compared with simple type. • Corrugated porous surface contributes by about 75% of the total productivity. • Productivity of corrugated solar still was 34% more than that for simple type. - Abstract: In the present work, the productivity of a solar still is modified by forming the evaporative surface as a corrugated shape as well as by decreasing the heat capacity with the use of a porous material. This target has been achieved by using black clothes in a corrugated shape that are immersed in water where the clothes absorbs water and get saturated by capillary effect. Along with the proposed corrugated wick type solar still, a simple basin still type was fabricated and tested to compare the enhancement accomplished by the developed solar still. Inclined reflectors were used to augment the solar radiation incident on the plane of the developed solar stills. The energy balance in the developed mathematical models takes into consideration the glass covers, the porous material, along with the portion of water exposed to the transmitted solar radiation as well as the portion of water shaded by the corrugated surface. The developed mathematical model was validated by fabricating and testing two models for the proposed and simple basin solar stills under the same conditions. Good agreement between the simulated and experimental results has been detected. It has been found that an improvement of about 34% in the productivity for the proposed wick type solar still is gained as compared to the simple basin case. Also, the best tilt angle for the inclined reflector has been found to be about 30° with respect to the vertical direction of the setup under consideration.

  11. Sequential hemi-body radiotherapy in advanced multiple myeloma. [Side effects of indicated x-ray therapy

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jaffe, J.P.; Bosch, A.; Raich, P.C.

    1979-01-01

    Eleven patients with advanced multiple myeloma refractory to standard chemotherapy were treated with a regimen of sequential hemi-body radiotherapy consisting of 800 rad midplane in a single dose to each half. 9/10 patients experienced significant relief of skeletal pain and there were 5/11 objective tumor responses with one complete remission. Treatment-related morbidity was significant and consisted primarily of nausea and emesis, bone marrow suppression, and pneumonitis. This therapy is helpful in the management of advanced myeloma, and should be studied earlier in the course of the disease.

  12. Coherent states for certain time-dependent systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pedrosa, I.A.

    1989-01-01

    Hartley and Ray have constructed and studied coherent states for the time-dependent oscillator. Here we show how to construct states for more general time-dependent systems. We also show that these states are equivalent to the well-known squeezed states. (author) [pt

  13. Uranium recovery from the concentrated phosphoric acid prepared by the hemi-hydrate process

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fouad, E A; Mahdy, M A; Bakr, M Y [Nuclear materials authority, Cairo, (Egypt); Zatout, A A [Faculty of engineering, Alex. university, Alex, (Egypt)

    1995-10-01

    It has been proved that the uranium dissolution from El-sebaiya phosphate ore was possible by using 10 Kg of K Cl O{sub 4}/ ton rock during the preparation of high strength phosphoric acid using the hemi hydrate process. In the present work, effective extraction of uranium (about 90%) from the high strength phosphoric acid using a new synergistic solvent mixture of 0.75 M D 2 EHPA/0.1 M TOHPO had been a success. Stripping of uranium from the organic phase was possible by 10 M phosphoric acid while the direct precipitation of uranium concentrate from the later was feasible by using N H{sub 4} F in presence of acetone. 8 figs.

  14. Uranium recovery from the concentrated phosphoric acid prepared by the hemi-hydrate process

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fouad, E.A.; Mahdy, M.A.; Bakr, M.Y.; Zatout, A.A.

    1995-01-01

    It has been proved that the uranium dissolution from El-sebaiya phosphate ore was possible by using 10 Kg of K Cl O 4 / ton rock during the preparation of high strength phosphoric acid using the hemi hydrate process. In the present work, effective extraction of uranium (about 90%) from the high strength phosphoric acid using a new synergistic solvent mixture of 0.75 M D 2 EHPA/0.1 M TOHPO had been a success. Stripping of uranium from the organic phase was possible by 10 M phosphoric acid while the direct precipitation of uranium concentrate from the later was feasible by using N H 4 F in presence of acetone. 8 figs

  15. Strategies for state-dependent quantum deleting

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Song Wei; Yang Ming; Cao Zhuoliang

    2004-01-01

    A quantum state-dependent quantum deleting machine is constructed. We obtain a upper bound of the global fidelity on N-to-M quantum deleting from a set of K non-orthogonal states. Quantum networks are constructed for the above state-dependent quantum deleting machine when K=2. Our deleting protocol only involves a unitary interaction among the initial copies, with no ancilla. We also present some analogies between quantum cloning and deleting

  16. Siim Nestor soovitab : Wicked Beat. President of Funk. Muuseumiööl. Springz Bashmendil / Siim Nestor

    Index Scriptorium Estoniae

    Nestor, Siim, 1974-

    2002-01-01

    16. mail toimub Emajõe äärses klubis Atlantis Eesti esimene nu-skool breaks õhtu Wicked Beat, kus peaesinejaks on DJ ja produtsent Databass (plaadifirma Freakaboom "juhatuse esimees" Justin Owen). 18. mail house-muusika pidu Tartus muusikagaleriis Damtan Dance. 17. mai ööl Rotermanni soolalaos triod: 1. Riho Sibul, Jaak Sooäär ja Raul Saaremets ning 2. Tõnis Leemets, Robert Jürjendal ja Aivar Tõnso. 17. mail Von Krahlis Dj Dr. Koit

  17. Wicked problems: a value chain approach from Vietnam's dairy product.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khoi, Nguyen Viet

    2013-12-01

    In the past few years, dairy industry has become one of the fastest growing sectors in the packaged food industry of Vietnam. However, the value-added creation among different activities in the value chain of Vietnam dairy sector is distributed unequally. In the production activities, the dairy farmers gain low value-added rate due to high input cost. Whereas the processing activities, which managed by big companies, generates high profitability and Vietnamese consumers seem to have few choices due to the lack of dairy companies in the market. These wicked problems caused an unsustainable development to the dairy value chain of Vietnam. This paper, therefore, will map and analyze the value chain of the dairy industry in Vietnam. It will also assess the value created in each activity in order to imply solutions for a sustainable development of Vietnam's dairy industry. M10, M11.

  18. Hydrothermal Formation Of Hemi-hydrate Calcium Sulfate Whiskers In The Presence Of Additives

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Luo, K. B.; Li, C. M.; Li, H. P.; Ning, P.; Xiang, L.

    2010-01-01

    The influence of addictives on the hydrothermal formation of hemi-hydrate calcium sulfate (CaSO 4 ·0.5H 2 O) whiskers were discussed in this paper, using CaCl 2 and Na 2 SO 4 as the reactants. The presence of NaCl, CaCl 2 or Na 2 SO 4 increased the concentrations of Ca 2+ and SO 4 2- , leading to the formation of CaSO 4 ·0.5H 2 O whiskers with aspect ratio lower than 50. The one dimensional growth of CaSO 4 ·0.5H 2 O whiskers was enhanced in water with no additives owing to the low super-saturation, leading to the formation of uniform whiskers with a length of 200-2000 μm and an aspect ratio higher than 100.

  19. Total medical costs of treating femoral neck fracture patients with hemi- or total hip arthroplasty: a cost analysis of a multicenter prospective study

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    P.T.P.W. Burgers (Paul); M. Hoogendoorn (Martine); E.A.C. Van Woensel; R.W. Poolman (Rudolf); M. Bhandari (Mohit); P. Patka (Peter); E.M.M. van Lieshout (Esther)

    2016-01-01

    textabstractSummary: The aim of this study was to determine the total medical costs for treating displaced femoral neck fractures with hemi- or total hip arthroplasty in fit elderly patients. The mean total costs per patient at 2 years of follow-up were €26,399. These results contribute to cost

  20. State Dependence in Unemployment

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ahmad, Nisar

    2014-01-01

    This study examines the extent state dependence among unemployed immigrants in a dynamic discrete choice framework. Three alternative methodologies are employed to control for the problem of the initial condition. The empirical findings show that there is a considerable correlation between the un...

  1. State-dependent classical potentials

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    D'Amico, M.

    2001-01-01

    As alternative treatment to the potential operators of standard quantum mechanics is presented. The method is derived from Bohm's mechanics. The operator scalar (V) and vector (A) potential functions are replaced by a quantum potential. It is argued that the classical potential is a special limiting case of a more general quantum potential. The theory is illustrated by deriving an equivalent single-particle equation for the i-th particle of an n-body Bohmian system. The resulting effective state-dependent potential holds the interaction between the single-particle self-wave ψ s and the environment wave ψ e of the n - 1 remaining particles. The effective state-dependent potential is offered as a resolution to the Aharonov-Bohm effect where the phase difference is shown to result from the presence of ψ e . Finally, the interaction between ψ s and ψ e is illustrated graphically

  2. On calculations of the ground state energy in quantum mechanics

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Efimov, G.V.

    1991-02-01

    In nonrelativistic quantum mechanics the Wick-ordering method called the oscillator representation suggested to calculate the ground-state energy for a wide class of potentials allowing the existence of a bound state. The following examples are considered: the orbital excitations of the ground-state in the Coulomb plus linear potential, the Schroedinger equation with a ''relativistic'' kinetic energy √p 2 +m 2 , the Coulomb three-body problem. (author). 22 refs, 2 tabs

  3. Arginine induces GH gene expression by activating NOS/NO signaling in rat isolated hemi-pituitaries

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S.C.F. Olinto

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available The amino acid arginine (Arg is a recognized secretagogue of growth hormone (GH, and has been shown to induce GH gene expression. Arg is the natural precursor of nitric oxide (NO, which is known to mediate many of the effects of Arg, such as GH secretion. Arg was also shown to increase calcium influx in pituitary cells, which might contribute to its effects on GH secretion. Although the mechanisms involved in the effects of Arg on GH secretion are well established, little is known about them regarding the control of GH gene expression. We investigated whether the NO pathway and/or calcium are involved in the effects of Arg on GH gene expression in rat isolated pituitaries. To this end, pituitaries from approximately 170 male Wistar rats (~250 g were removed, divided into two halves, pooled (three hemi-pituitaries and incubated or not with Arg, as well as with different pharmacological agents. Arg (71 mM, the NO donor sodium nitroprusside (SNP, 1 and 0.1 mM and a cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP analogue (8-Br-cGMP, 1 mM increased GH mRNA expression 60 min later. The NO acceptor hemoglobin (0.3 µM blunted the effect of SNP, and the combined treatment with Arg and L-NAME (a NO synthase (NOS inhibitor, 55 mM abolished the stimulatory effect of Arg on GH gene expression. The calcium channel inhibitor nifedipine (3 µM also abolished Arg-induced GH gene expression. The present study shows that Arg directly induces GH gene expression in hemi-pituitaries isolated from rats, excluding interference from somatostatinergic neurons, which are supposed to be inhibited by Arg. Moreover, the data demonstrate that the NOS/NO signaling pathway and calcium mediate the Arg effects on GH gene expression.

  4. Arginine induces GH gene expression by activating NOS/NO signaling in rat isolated hemi-pituitaries

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Olinto, S.C.F. [Faculdade de Ciências Integradas do Pontal, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia, Ituiutaba, MG (Brazil); Adrião, M.G. [Departamento de Morfologia e Fisiologia, Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco, Recife, PE (Brazil); Castro-Barbosa, T.; Goulart-Silva, F.; Nunes, M.T. [Departamento de Fisiologia e Biofísica, Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP (Brazil)

    2012-06-01

    The amino acid arginine (Arg) is a recognized secretagogue of growth hormone (GH), and has been shown to induce GH gene expression. Arg is the natural precursor of nitric oxide (NO), which is known to mediate many of the effects of Arg, such as GH secretion. Arg was also shown to increase calcium influx in pituitary cells, which might contribute to its effects on GH secretion. Although the mechanisms involved in the effects of Arg on GH secretion are well established, little is known about them regarding the control of GH gene expression. We investigated whether the NO pathway and/or calcium are involved in the effects of Arg on GH gene expression in rat isolated pituitaries. To this end, pituitaries from approximately 170 male Wistar rats (∼250 g) were removed, divided into two halves, pooled (three hemi-pituitaries) and incubated or not with Arg, as well as with different pharmacological agents. Arg (71 mM), the NO donor sodium nitroprusside (SNP, 1 and 0.1 mM) and a cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) analogue (8-Br-cGMP, 1 mM) increased GH mRNA expression 60 min later. The NO acceptor hemoglobin (0.3 µM) blunted the effect of SNP, and the combined treatment with Arg and L-NAME (an NO synthase (NOS) inhibitor, 55 mM) abolished the stimulatory effect of Arg on GH gene expression. The calcium channel inhibitor nifedipine (3 µM) also abolished Arg-induced GH gene expression. The present study shows that Arg directly induces GH gene expression in hemi-pituitaries isolated from rats, excluding interference from somatostatinergic neurons, which are supposed to be inhibited by Arg. Moreover, the data demonstrate that the NOS/NO signaling pathway and calcium mediate the Arg effects on GH gene expression.

  5. Arginine induces GH gene expression by activating NOS/NO signaling in rat isolated hemi-pituitaries

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Olinto, S.C.F.; Adrião, M.G.; Castro-Barbosa, T.; Goulart-Silva, F.; Nunes, M.T.

    2012-01-01

    The amino acid arginine (Arg) is a recognized secretagogue of growth hormone (GH), and has been shown to induce GH gene expression. Arg is the natural precursor of nitric oxide (NO), which is known to mediate many of the effects of Arg, such as GH secretion. Arg was also shown to increase calcium influx in pituitary cells, which might contribute to its effects on GH secretion. Although the mechanisms involved in the effects of Arg on GH secretion are well established, little is known about them regarding the control of GH gene expression. We investigated whether the NO pathway and/or calcium are involved in the effects of Arg on GH gene expression in rat isolated pituitaries. To this end, pituitaries from approximately 170 male Wistar rats (∼250 g) were removed, divided into two halves, pooled (three hemi-pituitaries) and incubated or not with Arg, as well as with different pharmacological agents. Arg (71 mM), the NO donor sodium nitroprusside (SNP, 1 and 0.1 mM) and a cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) analogue (8-Br-cGMP, 1 mM) increased GH mRNA expression 60 min later. The NO acceptor hemoglobin (0.3 µM) blunted the effect of SNP, and the combined treatment with Arg and L-NAME (an NO synthase (NOS) inhibitor, 55 mM) abolished the stimulatory effect of Arg on GH gene expression. The calcium channel inhibitor nifedipine (3 µM) also abolished Arg-induced GH gene expression. The present study shows that Arg directly induces GH gene expression in hemi-pituitaries isolated from rats, excluding interference from somatostatinergic neurons, which are supposed to be inhibited by Arg. Moreover, the data demonstrate that the NOS/NO signaling pathway and calcium mediate the Arg effects on GH gene expression

  6. Generalized Lee-Wick formulation from higher derivative field theories

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cho, Inyong; Kwon, O-Kab

    2010-01-01

    We study a higher derivative (HD) field theory with an arbitrary order of derivative for a real scalar field. The degree of freedom for the HD field can be converted to multiple fields with canonical kinetic terms up to the overall sign. The Lagrangian describing the dynamics of the multiple fields is known as the Lee-Wick (LW) form. The first step to obtain the LW form for a given HD Lagrangian is to find an auxiliary field (AF) Lagrangian which is equivalent to the original HD Lagrangian up to the quantum level. Until now, the AF Lagrangian has been studied only for N=2 and 3 cases, where N is the number of poles of the two-point function of the HD scalar field. We construct the AF Lagrangian for arbitrary N. By the linear combinations of AF fields, we also obtain the corresponding LW form. We find the explicit mapping matrices among the HD fields, the AF fields, and the LW fields. As an exercise of our construction, we calculate the relations among parameters and mapping matrices for N=2, 3, and 4 cases.

  7. Percutaneous medial hemi-epiphysiodesis using a transphyseal screw for caput valgum associated with developmental dysplasia of the hip.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shin, Chang Ho; Hong, Wan Kee; Lee, Doo Jae; Yoo, Won Joon; Choi, In Ho; Cho, Tae-Joon

    2017-11-14

    The purpose of this study was to evaluate the radiologic outcome of percutaneous medial hemi-epiphysiodesis using a transphyseal screw for the management of caput valgum associated with developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH). Eighteen hips (18 patients) having caput valgum treated with screw hemi-epiphysiodesis were followed for more than 2 years, and were included in this study. The mean age at the time of the index operation was 8.3 years (range, 4.3 to 10.7 years) and age at the latest follow-up was 12.2 years (range, 9.4 to 16.4 years). The screw in 5 hips was changed into a longer one at postoperative 21.8 months (range, 14 to 29 months) because the proximal femur outgrew the screw. The screws in 11 hips were removed at the mean age of 10.9 years (range, 8.0 to 14.5 years). We retrospectively analyzed the change in various radiologic parameters over time. The mean Hilgenreiner-epiphyseal angle (HEA) of the operated side was 5.1 ± 11.3° preoperatively, and increased to 20.6 ± 11.3° at the latest follow-up (p = 0.001). The mean difference of the HEA between the operated and contralateral sides was 16.9 ± 15.1° preoperatively, which decreased to 2.4 ± 12.4° at the latest follow-up (p = 0.008). The mean articulo-trochanteric distance of the operated side, which was 3.2 ± 5.5 mm longer than that of the contralateral side preoperatively, became 5.6 ± 9.1 mm shorter at the latest follow-up (p = 0.001). The ratio of femoral neck length of the operated side to that of the contralateral side decreased over the follow-up period. Acetabular shape as measured by the Sharp angle and acetabular roof angle and femoral head coverage as measured by lateral center-edge angle did not change significantly by the index operation. The ratio of medial joint space width of the operated side to that of the contralateral side did not change significantly. Screw medial hemi-epiphysiodesis can effectively correct caput valgum

  8. Effect of gamma Irradiation on the acidic hydrolysis of free-hemi cellulose thistle

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Suarez, C.; Paz, M. D.; Diaz, A.

    1983-01-01

    The effect of gamma-irradiation on the subsequent acidic hydrolysis of free-hemi cellulose Onopordum Nervosum Boiss thistle Ls determined. Its shown the influence of gamma-irradiation on the yield of sugar obtained flora the batch wise hydrol isis of the call ulose (1% H 2 SO 4 and 180 degree centigree at increasing doses. At all irradiation levels studied, the rate of hydrolysis of thistle samples was higher than the rate of hydrolysis of the cellulose from paper treated similarly. The maximum over-all yield of sugar in the irradiated lignocellulose material was about 66o at 100 MRad, less than two times the yield obtainable from the control. The corresponding yield from papel was 53%, 2'3 times that of the control. Irradiation under 1% H 2 SO 4 doesn't enhance the yield anyway. (Author) 21 refs

  9. Does labelling frequency affect N rhizodeposition assessment using the cotton-wick method?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mahieu, S.; Fustec, J.; Jensen, Erik Steen

    2009-01-01

    The aim of the present study was to test and improve the reliability of the 15N cotton-wick method for measuring soil N derived from plant rhizodeposition, a critical value for assessing belowground nitrogen input in field-grown legumes. The effects of the concentration of the 15N labelling...... solution and the feeding frequency on assessment of nitrogen rhizodeposition were studied in two greenhouse experiments using the field pea (Pisum sativum L.). Neither the method nor the feeding frequency altered plant biomass and N partitioning, and the method appeared well adapted for assessing...... the belowground contribution of field-grown legumes to the soil N pool. However, nitrogen rhizodeposition assessment was strongly influenced by the feeding frequency and the concentration of labelling solution. At pod-filling and maturity, despite similar root 15N enrichment, the fraction of plants' belowground...

  10. State-dependent impulses boundary value problems on compact interval

    CERN Document Server

    Rachůnková, Irena

    2015-01-01

    This book offers the reader a new approach to the solvability of boundary value problems with state-dependent impulses and provides recently obtained existence results for state dependent impulsive problems with general linear boundary conditions. It covers fixed-time impulsive boundary value problems both regular and singular and deals with higher order differential equations or with systems that are subject to general linear boundary conditions. We treat state-dependent impulsive boundary value problems, including a new approach giving effective conditions for the solvability of the Dirichlet problem with one state-dependent impulse condition and we show that the depicted approach can be extended to problems with a finite number of state-dependent impulses. We investigate the Sturm–Liouville boundary value problem for a more general right-hand side of a differential equation. Finally, we offer generalizations to higher order differential equations or differential systems subject to general linear boundary...

  11. State-dependent choice and ecological rationality.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nevai, Andrew L; Waite, Thomas A; Passino, Kevin M

    2007-08-07

    Decision makers who minimize costly errors should flexibly adjust the way they trade off competing demands, depending on their current state. We explore how state (amount of hoarded food) affects willingness to take extra predation risk to obtain larger food rewards, particularly in animals that may overemphasize safety. Assuming a sigmoid fitness function, we explore how a supplement in state influences this willingness trade danger for food energy. Above a threshold, the model predicts the supplement will weaken this willingness. Incremental increases in state in the deceleratory phase yield smaller fitness gains, so it pays to increase emphasis on safety after receiving a supplement. Below this threshold, the model makes the opposite prediction because incremental increases in state yield bigger fitness gains and so it pays to decrease emphasis on safety. We use the model to explain why hoarding gray jays (Perisoreus canadensis) were induced by an experimental subsidy to accept greater danger. This formerly puzzling finding makes sense if the jays' effective hoard was relatively small, due to theft and decomposition. We discuss adaptive state-dependent choice as a general explanation for apparently irrational behavior.

  12. Extended Hemi-Hepatectomy with Portal Vein Reconstruction in a Patient with Situs Ambiguous

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Keishi Sugimachi

    2008-03-01

    Full Text Available We report a case of far-advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC with situs ambiguous, complex visceral and vascular anomalies, who was successfully managed by extended hemi-hepatectomy. A 67-year-old man was referred to our hospital with a large liver mass. Abdominal ultrasonography, computed tomography and angiography revealed HCC with a diameter of 10 cm, with tumor thrombus in the main and first branch of the portal vein. Multiple complex anomalies in the abdomen were determined preoperatively. He had right-sided spleens-stomach-duodenum, liver at midline, inferior vena cava interruption with azygous continuation, and hepatic arterial anomaly. Extended left lobectomy of the liver with reconstruction of the portal vein was performed. Postoperatively, the patient recovered without major complications, and he was discharged on postoperative day 21. We report the first successful extended hepatectomy with portal vein reconstruction for HCC in a patient with rare situs anomalies.

  13. Construction of Anterior Hemi-Corneal Equivalents Using Nontransfected Human Corneal Cells and Transplantation in Dog Models.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xu, Bin; Song, Zhan; Fan, Tingjun

    2017-11-01

    Tissue-engineered human anterior hemi-cornea (TE-aHC) is a promising equivalent for treating anterior lamellar keratopathy to surmount the severe shortage of donated corneas. This study was intended to construct a functional TE-aHC with nontransfected human corneal stromal (ntHCS) and epithelial (ntHCEP) cells using acellular porcine corneal stromata (aPCS) as a carrier scaffold, and evaluate its biological functions in a dog model. To construct a TE-aHC, ntHCS cells were injected into an aPCS scaffold and cultured for 3 days; then, ntHCEP cells were inoculated onto the Bowman's membrane of the scaffold and cultured for 5 days under air-liquid interface condition. After its morphology and histological structure were characterized, the constructed TE-aHC was transplanted into dog eyes via lamellar keratoplasty. The corneal transparency, thickness, intraocular pressure, epithelial integrity, and corneal regeneration were monitored in vivo, and the histological structure and histochemical property were examined ex vivo 360 days after surgery, respectively. The results showed that the constructed TE-aHC was highly transparent and composed of a corneal epithelium of 7-8 layer ntHCEP cells and a corneal stroma of regularly aligned collagen fibers and well-preserved glycosaminoglycans with sparsely distributed ntHCS cells, mimicking a normal anterior hemi-cornea (aHC). Moreover, both ntHCEP and ntHCS cells maintained positive expression of their marker and functional proteins. After transplantation into dog eyes, the constructed TE-aHC acted naturally in terms of morphology, structure and inherent property, and functioned well in maintaining corneal clarity, thickness, normal histological structure, and composition in dog models by reconstructing a normal aHC, which could be used as a promising aHC equivalent in corneal regenerative medicine and aHC disorder therapy. © 2017 International Center for Artificial Organs and Transplantation and Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  14. Web 2.0 Solutions to Wicked Climate Change Problems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alanah Kazlauskas

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available One of the most pressing ‘wicked problems’ facing humankind is climate change together with its many interrelated environmental concerns. The complexity of this set of problems can be overwhelming as there is such diversity among both the interpretations of the scientific evidence and the viability of possible solutions. Among the social technologies associated with the second generation of the Internet known as Web 2.0, there are tools that allow people to communicate, coordinate and collaborate in ways that reduce their carbon footprint and a potential to become part of the climate change solution. However the way forward is not obvious or easy as Web 2.0, while readily accepted in the chaotic social world, is often treated with suspicion in the more ordered world of business and government. This paper applies a holistic theoretical sense-making framework to research and practice on potential Web 2.0 solutions to climate change problems. The suite of issues, activities and tools involved are viewed as an ecosystem where all elements are dynamic and inter-related. Through such innovative thinking the Information Systems community can make a valuable contribution to a critical global problem and hence find a new relevance as part of the solution.

  15. The State of Humanities in Post-Apartheid South Africa--A Quantitative Story

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pillay, V.; Yu, K.

    2010-01-01

    This article depicts the state of Humanities in post-apartheid South Africa by examining HEMIS enrolment and graduation data from 1999 to 2007. It demonstrates that although the decline in student enrolment and graduation in Humanities has not been severe; read in the context of substantial growth of all other disciplines, Humanities is in a…

  16. Elevated Hemi-diaphragms as a Cause of ST-segment Elevation: A case report and review of literature.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Singh, Manmohan; Sood, Aditya; Rehman, Mobeen Ur; Othman, Mahmoud; Afonso, Luis

    While ST-segment elevation (STE) on ECG is widely recognized as representing myocardial infarction or injury such as coronary occlusion or pericarditis, STE may occasionally ensue from non-cardiac etiologies. Indeed, gastrointestinal disorders causing STE are not well documented in the literature. We present a case wherein extreme abdominal distension and hemi-diaphragm elevation resulted in extrinsic cardiac and epicardial coronary compression manifesting as STE. Subsequent relief of the abdominal distension resulted in resolution of STE representing a noncoronary cause of STE. A brief literature review, illustrating the importance of considering abdominal etiologies as a cause of STE is provided. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  17. Galvanic Vestibular Stimulation in Hemi-Spatial Neglect

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    David eWilkinson

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Hemi-spatial neglect is an attentional disorder in which the sufferer fails to acknowledge or respond to stimuli appearing in contralesional space. In recent years, it has become clear that a measurable reduction in contralesional neglect can occur during galvanic vestibular stimulation, a technique by which transmastoid, small amplitude current induces lateral, attentional shifts via asymmetric modulation of the left and right vestibular nerves. However, it remains unclear whether this reduction persists after stimulation is stopped. To estimate longevity of effect, we therefore conducted a double-blind, randomized, dose-response trial involving a group of stroke patients suffering from left-sided neglect (n=52, mean age=66 years. To determine whether repeated sessions of galvanic vestibular stimulation more effectively induce lasting relief than a single session, participants received 1, 5, or 10 sessions, each lasting 25mins, of sub-sensory, left-anodal right-cathodal noisy direct current (mean amplitude=1mA. Ninety five percent confidence intervals indicated that all three treatment arms showed a statistically significant improvement between the pre-stimulation baseline and the final day of stimulation on the primary outcome measure, the conventional tests of the Behavioural Inattention Test. More remarkably, this change (mean change=28%, SD=18 was still evident 1month later. Secondary analyses indicated an allied increase of 20% in median Barthel Index score, a measure of functional capacity, in the absence of any adverse events or instances of participant non-compliance. Together these data suggest that galvanic vestibular stimulation, a simple, cheap technique suitable for home-based administration, may produce lasting reductions in neglect that are clinically important. Further protocol optimization is now needed ahead of a larger effectiveness study.

  18. Intertime jump statistics of state-dependent Poisson processes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Daly, Edoardo; Porporato, Amilcare

    2007-01-01

    A method to obtain the probability distribution of the interarrival times of jump occurrences in systems driven by state-dependent Poisson noise is proposed. Such a method uses the survivor function obtained by a modified version of the master equation associated to the stochastic process under analysis. A model for the timing of human activities shows the capability of state-dependent Poisson noise to generate power-law distributions. The application of the method to a model for neuron dynamics and to a hydrological model accounting for land-atmosphere interaction elucidates the origin of characteristic recurrence intervals and possible persistence in state-dependent Poisson models.

  19. NASA Lewis Steady-State Heat Pipe Code Architecture

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mi, Ye; Tower, Leonard K.

    2013-01-01

    NASA Glenn Research Center (GRC) has developed the LERCHP code. The PC-based LERCHP code can be used to predict the steady-state performance of heat pipes, including the determination of operating temperature and operating limits which might be encountered under specified conditions. The code contains a vapor flow algorithm which incorporates vapor compressibility and axially varying heat input. For the liquid flow in the wick, Darcy s formula is employed. Thermal boundary conditions and geometric structures can be defined through an interactive input interface. A variety of fluid and material options as well as user defined options can be chosen for the working fluid, wick, and pipe materials. This report documents the current effort at GRC to update the LERCHP code for operating in a Microsoft Windows (Microsoft Corporation) environment. A detailed analysis of the model is presented. The programming architecture for the numerical calculations is explained and flowcharts of the key subroutines are given

  20. Bone scintigraphy as a process control with hemi-alloarthroplasty of the hip joint

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shaltout, E.E.D.

    1983-01-01

    For the diagnostic of prosthesis complications in the treatment of femur fractures near the hip joint ('intermediate prostheses') 216 skeletal scintigrams with 99mTc MDP were made of 143 patients from 1977 to 1982, partially retrospective and partially prospective. The evaluation of the photoscan was achieved visually and photodensitometrically and divided into 10 intensity levels with the following results: 1. Increased activity concentration in the acetabulum is pathological (activated arthrosis); 2. Increased activity concentration-temporary or also continuous - in the trochanter region is pathological (loosening process); 3. Non-pathological metabolic activity as a result of the bone healing process may last longer than 1 year postoperatively; 4. Heterotopic ossification, non-fixed bone fragments and pseudoarthrosis cause continuous or newly appearing concentrations; 5. Skeletal scintigraphy is an important supplement to radiological diagnostic and a sensitive method for the recognition of metabolic activities in bone. It is recommended for progress control after hemi-alloarthrosculpture of the hip joint. (orig./TRV) [de

  1. Wick calculus on spaces of generalized functions of compound poisson white noise

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lytvynov, Eugene W.; Rebenko, Alexei L.; Shchepan'ur, Gennadi V.

    1997-04-01

    We derive white noise calculus for a compound Poisson process. Namely, we consider, on the Schwartz space of tempered distributions, S', a measure of compound Poisson white noise, μcp, and construct a whole scale of standard nuclear triples ( Scp) - x ⊃ L2cp) ≡ L2( S', dμcp) ⊃( Scpx, x≥ 0, which are obtained as images under some isomorphism of the corresponding triples centred at a Fock space. It turns out that the most interesting case is x = 1, when our triple coincides with the triple that is constructed by using a system of Appell polynomials in the framework of non-Gaussian biorthogonal analysis. Our special attention is paid to the Wick calculus of the Poisson field, or the quantum compound Poisson white noise process in other terms, which is the family of operators acting from ( Scp) 1 into ( Scp) 1 as multiplication by the compound Poisson white noise ω( t).

  2. If All You Have Is a Hammer, Everything Begins to Look Like a Nail--How Wicked Is the Problem of Measuring Productivity in Higher Education?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Drengenberg, Nicholas; Bain, Alan

    2017-01-01

    This paper addresses the wicked problem of measuring the productivity of learning and teaching in higher education. We show how fundamental validity issues and difficulties identified in educational productivity research point to the need for a qualitatively different framework when considering the entire question. We describe the work that needs…

  3. Exploration of D2 receptors and content of DA of striatum in hemi-parkinsonism model rats before and after madopar treatment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lin Yansong; Lin Xiangtong

    1998-01-01

    125 I-IBZM autoradiographic analysis, HPLC-ECD were used to study the relationship between D 2 receptors and the content of DA, HVA, DOPAC in striatum of hemi-parkinsonism model rats before and after Madopar treatment. After Madopar treatment, the striatum/cerebellum 125 I-IBZM uptake ratio of lesioned side was 7.23 +- 0.67, showed 17.22 +- 3.94% increasing as compared to the contralateral side, the increasing were significantly declined compared with the pretreatment group and control group (P 2 receptors

  4. Subjective Probabilities for State-Dependent Continuous Utility

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    P.P. Wakker (Peter)

    1987-01-01

    textabstractFor the expected utility model with state dependent utilities, Karni, Schmeidler and Vind (1983) have shown how to recover uniquely the involved subjective probabilities if the preferences, contingent on a hypothetical probability distribution over the state space, are known. This they

  5. Aplicador de herbicidas com pavios de corda: primeiros resultados de controle Rope wick applicator for herbicides: 1. fistweed control results

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    R.M. Prudente

    1985-12-01

    experimental field was regular by covered with natural vegetation , average height of weeds about 55 cm, the majority of weeds in seed maturation state. Rope wick applicator was run at 2.7 km/h, consuming about 9.3 liters liquid per hectare. The dilution tested were 1:2, 1:4 and 1:6 (parts of commercial Roundup: parts of water and compared with conventional tractor boom sprayer applying 310 liters per hectare of solution containing 4 liters of commercial formulation, at the 4.2 km/h speed. Evaluations were carried out by assessing the top fresh weight of weeds at the application time and 15 and 33 days after. Score for weed control was attributed at 33 days after application. The results showed that the model of applicator tested has a good potentiality and it may be a valuable tool for the weed management.

  6. The Wicked Problem of the Intersection between Supervision and Evaluation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ian M. METTE

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of this research was to explore how principals in eight high-functioning elementary schools in one American school district balanced teacher supervision and evaluation in their role as an instructional leader. Using the theoretical framework of ‘wicked problems’, to unpack the circular used to problematize teacher supervision and evaluation, the findings analyse how elementary principals in these eight buildings acknowledge the tensions and conflicts between supervision and evaluation, specifically as they relate to improving teacher instruction. Specifically, the results of this study highlight not only the differences between supervision and evaluation, but also the intersection between the two functions, as well as how high-performing elementary school principals serve as an instructional coach rather than a manager of teachers. While the two functions of supervision and evaluation are inherently different, it is the acknowledgement of the intersection between the two functions that can allow building principals to progress as instructional coaches who can better develop human resources and create higher-functioning school systems. Overall, this study points toward the importance of elementary principals having the instructional leadership skills to differentiate supervision and professional development need for teachers, which in turn influences the evaluation of a teacher is in her/his respective career.

  7. The wicked problem of the intersection between supervision and evaluation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ian M. Mette

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of this research was to explore how principals in eight high-functioning elementary schools in one American school district balanced teacher supervision and evaluation in their role as an instructional leader. Using the theoretical framework of ‘wicked problems’, to unpack the circular used to problematize teacher supervision and evaluation, the findings analyse how elementary principals in these eight buildings acknowledge the tensions and conflicts between supervision and evaluation, specifically as they relate to improving teacher instruction. Specifically, the results of this study highlight not only the differences between supervision and evaluation, but also the intersection between the two functions, as well as how high-performing elementary school principals serve as an instructional coach rather than a manager of teachers. While the two functions of supervision and evaluation are inherently different, it is the acknowledgement of the intersection between the two functions that can allow building principals to progress as instructional coaches who can better develop human resources and create higher-functioning school systems. Overall, this study points toward the importance of elementary principals having the instructional leadership skills to differentiate supervision and professional development need for teachers, which in turn influences the evaluation of a teacher is in her/his respective career.

  8. Tackling racism as a "wicked" public health problem: Enabling allies in anti-racism praxis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Came, Heather; Griffith, Derek

    2018-02-01

    Racism is a "wicked" public health problem that fuels systemic health inequities between population groups in New Zealand, the United States and elsewhere. While literature has examined racism and its effects on health, the work describing how to intervene to address racism in public health is less developed. While the notion of raising awareness of racism through socio-political education is not new, given the way racism has morphed into new narratives in health institutional settings, it has become critical to support allies to make informing efforts to address racism as a fundamental cause of health inequities. In this paper, we make the case for anti-racism praxis as a tool to address inequities in public health, and focus on describing an anti-racism praxis framework to inform the training and support of allies. The limited work on anti-racism rarely articulates the unique challenges or needs of allies or targets of racism, but we seek to help fill that gap. Our anti-racism praxis for allies includes five core elements: reflexive relational praxis, structural power analysis, socio-political education, monitoring and evaluation and systems change approaches. We recognize that racism is a modifiable determinant of health and racial inequities can be eliminated with the necessary political will and a planned system change approach. Anti-racism praxis provides the tools to examine the interconnection and interdependence of cultural and institutional factors as a foundation for examining where and how to intervene to address racism. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. Dopaminergic-like neurons derived from oral mucosa stem cells by developmental cues improve symptoms in the hemi-parkinsonian rat model.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Javier Ganz

    Full Text Available Achieving safe and readily accessible sources for cell replacement therapy in Parkinson's disease (PD is still a challenging unresolved issue. Recently, a primitive neural crest stem cell population (hOMSC was isolated from the adult human oral mucosa and characterized in vitro and in vivo. In this study we assessed hOMSC ability to differentiate into dopamine-secreting cells with a neuronal-dopaminergic phenotype in vitro in response to dopaminergic developmental cues and tested their therapeutic potential in the hemi-Parkinsonian rat model. We found that hOMSC express constitutively a repertoire of neuronal and dopaminergic markers and pivotal transcription factors. Soluble developmental factors induced a reproducible neuronal-like morphology in the majority of hOMSC, downregulated stem cells markers, upregulated the expression of the neuronal and dopaminergic markers that resulted in dopamine release capabilities. Transplantation of these dopaminergic-induced hOMSC into the striatum of hemi-Parkinsonian rats improved their behavioral deficits as determined by amphetamine-induced rotational behavior, motor asymmetry and motor coordination tests. Human TH expressing cells and increased levels of dopamine in the transplanted hemispheres were observed 10 weeks after transplantation. These results demonstrate for the first time that soluble factors involved in the development of DA neurons, induced a DA phenotype in hOMSC in vitro that significantly improved the motor function of hemiparkinsonian rats. Based on their neural-related origin, their niche accessibility by minimal-invasive procedures and their propensity for DA differentiation, hOMSC emerge as an attractive tool for autologous cell replacement therapy in PD.

  10. Time-dependent problems in quantum-mechanical state reconstruction

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Leonhardt, U.; Bardroff, P. J.

    1997-01-01

    We study the state reconstruction of wave packets that travel in time-dependent potentials. We solve the problem for explicitly time-dependent potentials. We solve the problem for explicitly time-dependent harmonic oscillators and sketch a general adaptive technique for finding the wave function that matches and observed evolution. (authors)

  11. Time-Dependent-Asymmetric-Linear-Parsimonious Ancestral State Reconstruction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Didier, Gilles

    2017-10-01

    The time-dependent-asymmetric-linear parsimony is an ancestral state reconstruction method which extends the standard linear parsimony (a.k.a. Wagner parsimony) approach by taking into account both branch lengths and asymmetric evolutionary costs for reconstructing quantitative characters (asymmetric costs amount to assuming an evolutionary trend toward the direction with the lowest cost). A formal study of the influence of the asymmetry parameter shows that the time-dependent-asymmetric-linear parsimony infers states which are all taken among the known states, except for some degenerate cases corresponding to special values of the asymmetry parameter. This remarkable property holds in particular for the Wagner parsimony. This study leads to a polynomial algorithm which determines, and provides a compact representation of, the parametric reconstruction of a phylogenetic tree, that is for all the unknown nodes, the set of all the possible reconstructed states associated with the asymmetry parameters leading to them. The time-dependent-asymmetric-linear parsimony is finally illustrated with the parametric reconstruction of the body size of cetaceans.

  12. Fournier gangrene: a rare case of necrotizing fasciitis of the entire right hemi-pelvis in a diabetic female.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Taylor, Gregory M; Hess, David V

    2018-02-01

    Fournier's gangrene, a rare polymicrobial infection that affects the genitals and perineum, can present as an insidious onset to a rapid and fulminant course. Early recognition, diagnosis, initiation of broad-spectrum antibiotics and prompt surgical treatment remain the foundation of management. If treatment is not initiated aggressively, the patient will likely rapidly deteriorate, leading to organ failure and death. We present the case of a 58-year-old diabetic female presenting febrile, hypoxic, with severe respiratory distress and evidence of septic shock, found to have necrotizing fasciitis of the entire right hemi-pelvis. Despite rapid recognition, IV antibiotics and operative management, the patient went to the intensive-care unit on multiple pressors and died 24 h later.

  13. Disability and multi-state labour force choices with state dependence

    OpenAIRE

    Oguzoglu, Umut

    2010-01-01

    I use a dynamic mixed multinomial logit model with unobserved heterogeneity to study the impact of work limiting disabilities on disaggregated labour choices. The first seven waves of the Household Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia survey are used to investigate this relationship. Findings point out to strong state dependence in employment choices. Further, the impact of disability on employment outcomes is highly significant. Model simulations suggest that high cross and own state depe...

  14. State dependent pseudo-resonances and excess noise

    OpenAIRE

    Papoff, F.; D'Alessandro, G.; Oppo, G.Luca

    2008-01-01

    We show that strong response to nonresonant modulations and excess noise are state dependent in generic nonlinear systems; i.e., they affect some output states but are absent from others. This is demonstrated in complex Swift-Hohenberg models relevant to optics, where it is caused by the non-normality of the linearized stability operators around selected output states, even though the cavity modes are orthogonal. In particular, we find the effective parameters that control excess noise and th...

  15. Energy dependence of critical state of single-component systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Volchenkova, R.A.

    1985-01-01

    Equations of critical states of the single-component systems: Psub(cr)(/Psub(o)=(Tsub(cr)/Tsub(o))x0.73, Tsub(cr)=K(Tsub(boil))sup(1.116) and Hsub(cr)(/Hsub(B)=Tsub(sr)/Tsub(B))sup(1.48) where Tsub(B)=1K, Hsub(B)-2 kcal/g-at, K-dimension factor are presented. It is shown that the revealed dependence Hsub(cr)=H(Tsub(cr)) is an energy boundary of a liquid-vapour phase state of the single-component systems beyond limits of which difference between liquid and vapour phases vanishes in increasing the system energy content. The given equations of state are true for all the single-component systems and permit to consider physicomechanical properties of substances in dynamic state depending on external conditions. Critical temperatures and dependences for elements from the most fusible He to infusible W and Re have been calculated

  16. State-Dependent Implication and Equivalence in Quantum Logic

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fedor Herbut

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Ideal occurrence of an event (projector leads to the known change of a state (density operator into (the Lüders state. It is shown that two events and give the same Lüders state if and only if the equivalence relation is valid. This relation determines equivalence classes. The set of them and each class, are studied in detail. It is proved that the range projector of the Lüders state can be evaluated as , where denotes the greatest lower bound, and is the null projector of . State-dependent implication extends absolute implication (which, in turn, determines the entire structure of quantum logic. and are investigated in a closely related way to mutual benefit. Inherent in the preorder is the state-dependent equivalence , defining equivalence classes in a given Boolean subalgebra. The quotient set, in which the classes are the elements, has itself a partially ordered structure, and so has each class. In a complete Boolean subalgebra, both structures are complete lattices. Physical meanings are discussed.

  17. Lessons from a Pluralist Approach to a Wicked Policy Issue

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jake Chapman

    2010-03-01

    Full Text Available The most difficult policy issues are those where there are profound disagreements about what is wrong, what should be done, and how things work. This paper describes a pluralist approach, based on the soft systems methodology, to youth nuisance on deprived estates in Manchester, UK, where there were profound disagreements between the agencies involved. When there are disagreements about the nature of the problem, its causes, or about how the system of interest actually functioned, a pluralist approach is required, and this is provided by Checkland’s soft systems approach. When the disagreements involve conflicts of value, it is necessary to adopt an adaptive approach that fosters change in the values, beliefs or behaviour of those involved. In the spectrum of public sector agencies involved, five different perspectives of agencies were identified, their descriptions indicating the need for the pluralist approach taken. The project was an experiment in using systemic approaches in public policy and the paper describes the learning associated with impacting outcomes. Processes used in the project included a “soft systems” workshop, which is described along with some effects on both the project participants and overall outcomes. The overall aim is to share the experience of this project so that it may inform those working with systemic approaches and other pluralist methods on wicked problems in the public sector.

  18. NASA Lewis steady-state heat pipe code users manual

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tower, L.K.

    1992-06-01

    The NASA Lewis heat pipe code has been developed to predict the performance of heat pipes in the steady state. The code can be used as a design tool on a personal computer or, with a suitable calling routine, as a subroutine for a mainframe radiator code. A variety of wick structures, including a user input option, can be used. Heat pipes with multiple evaporators, condensers, and adiabatic sections in series and with wick structures that differ among sections can be modeled. Several working fluids can be chosen, including potassium, sodium, and lithium, for which the monomer-dimer equilibrium is considered. The code incorporates a vapor flow algorithm that treats compressibility and axially varying heat input. This code facilitates the determination of heat pipe operating temperatures and heat pipe limits that may be encountered at the specified heat input and environment temperature. Data are input to the computer through a user-interactive input subroutine. Output, such as liquid and vapor pressures and temperatures, is printed at equally spaced axial positions along the pipe as determined by the user

  19. Violations of the Born rule in cool state-dependent horizons

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marolf, Donald; Polchinski, Joseph

    2016-01-01

    The black hole information problem has motivated many proposals for new physics. One idea, known as state-dependence, is that quantum mechanics must be generalized to describe the physics of black holes, and that fixed linear operators do not provide the fundamental description of experiences for infalling observers. Instead, such experiences are to be described by operators with an extra dependence on the global quantum state. By generalizing a previous argument for firewalls in generic black holes, we show that any implementation of this idea strong enough to remove firewalls from generic states requires massive violations of the Born rule. We also demonstrate a sense in which such violations are visible to infalling observers involved in preparing the initial state of the black hole. We emphasize the generality of our results; no details of any specific proposal for state-dependence are required.

  20. Violations of the Born rule in cool state-dependent horizons

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Marolf, Donald [Department of Physics, University of California,Santa Barbara, CA 93106-9530 (United States); Polchinski, Joseph [Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics, University of California,Santa Barbara, CA 93106-4030 (United States)

    2016-01-04

    The black hole information problem has motivated many proposals for new physics. One idea, known as state-dependence, is that quantum mechanics must be generalized to describe the physics of black holes, and that fixed linear operators do not provide the fundamental description of experiences for infalling observers. Instead, such experiences are to be described by operators with an extra dependence on the global quantum state. By generalizing a previous argument for firewalls in generic black holes, we show that any implementation of this idea strong enough to remove firewalls from generic states requires massive violations of the Born rule. We also demonstrate a sense in which such violations are visible to infalling observers involved in preparing the initial state of the black hole. We emphasize the generality of our results; no details of any specific proposal for state-dependence are required.

  1. The Dependence of Chimera States on Initial Conditions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Feng Yue-E; Li Hai-Hong

    2015-01-01

    A chimera state consisting of both coherent and incoherent groups is a fascinating spatial pattern in non-locally coupled identical oscillators. It is thought that random initial conditions hardly evolve to chimera states. In this work, we study the dependence of chimera states on initial conditions. We show that random initial conditions may lead to chimera states and the chance of realizing chimera states becomes increasing when the model parameters are moving away from the boundary of their stable regime. (paper)

  2. State-dependent neutral delay equations from population dynamics.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barbarossa, M V; Hadeler, K P; Kuttler, C

    2014-10-01

    A novel class of state-dependent delay equations is derived from the balance laws of age-structured population dynamics, assuming that birth rates and death rates, as functions of age, are piece-wise constant and that the length of the juvenile phase depends on the total adult population size. The resulting class of equations includes also neutral delay equations. All these equations are very different from the standard delay equations with state-dependent delay since the balance laws require non-linear correction factors. These equations can be written as systems for two variables consisting of an ordinary differential equation (ODE) and a generalized shift, a form suitable for numerical calculations. It is shown that the neutral equation (and the corresponding ODE--shift system) is a limiting case of a system of two standard delay equations.

  3. Immunomodulatory effects of bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells in a swine hemi-facial allotransplantation model.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yur-Ren Kuo

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: In this study, we investigated whether the infusion of bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs, combined with transient immunosuppressant treatment, could suppress allograft rejection and modulate T-cell regulation in a swine orthotopic hemi-facial composite tissue allotransplantation (CTA model. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Outbred miniature swine underwent hemi-facial allotransplantation (day 0. Group-I (n = 5 consisted of untreated control animals. Group-II (n = 3 animals received MSCs alone (given on days -1, +1, +3, +7, +14, and +21. Group-III (n = 3 animals received CsA (days 0 to +28. Group-IV (n = 5 animals received CsA (days 0 to +28 and MSCs (days -1, +1, +3, +7, +14, and +21. The transplanted face tissue was observed daily for signs of rejection. Biopsies of donor tissues and recipient blood sample were obtained at specified predetermined times (per 2 weeks post-transplant or at the time of clinically evident rejection. Our results indicated that the MSC-CsA group had significantly prolonged allograft survival compared to the other groups (P<0.001. Histological examination of the MSC-CsA group displayed the lowest degree of rejection in alloskin and lymphoid gland tissues. TNF-α expression in circulating blood revealed significant suppression in the MSC and MSC-CsA treatment groups, as compared to that in controls. IHC staining showed CD45 and IL-6 expression were significantly decreased in MSC-CsA treatment groups compared to controls. The number of CD4+/CD25+ regulatory T-cells and IL-10 expressions in the circulating blood significantly increased in the MSC-CsA group compared to the other groups. IHC staining of alloskin tissue biopsies revealed a significant increase in the numbers of foxp3(+T-cells and TGF-β1 positive cells in the MSC-CsA group compared to the other groups. CONCLUSIONS: These results demonstrate that MSCs significantly prolong hemifacial CTA survival. Our data indicate the MSCs did not

  4. Decay of hollow states in time-dependent density functional theory

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kapoor, Varun; Bauer, Dieter [Institut fuer Physik, Wismarsche Str. 43-45, Universitaet Rostock, Rostock-18051 (Germany)

    2012-07-01

    Hollow or multiply excited states are inaccessible in time dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) using adiabatic Kohn-Sham potentials. We determine the exact Kohn Sham (KS) potential for doubly excited states in an exactly solvable model Helium atom. The exact single-particle density corresponds to the energetically lowest quasi-stationary state in the exact KS potential. We describe how this exact potential controls the decay by a barrier whose origin is traced back to phase of the exact KS orbital. The potential controls the barrier height and width in order for the density to tunnel out and decay with the same rate as the doubly excited state in the ab initio time-dependent Schroedinger calculation. Instead, adiabatic KS potentials only show direct photoionization but no autoionization. A frequency-dependent linear response kernel would be necessary in order to capture the decay of autoionizing states.

  5. Leadership in Sustainability: Creating an Interface between Creativity and Leadership Theory in Dealing with “Wicked Problems”

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Renee Newman-Storen

    2014-09-01

    Full Text Available Fundamental to Leadership in Sustainability, a course in the Masters in Sustainability and Climate Policy (coursework offered through Curtin University Sustainability Policy (CUSP Institute, is that the complexity, flexibility and vitality of sustainability are precisely why sustainability practitioners commit themselves to finding new and innovative solutions to complex problems. The course asks the student to “think differently” and to engage in debate that inspires and encourages creative thinking strategies for the planning and development of our cities and communities. This paper details what the course is about, how it is structured and what the connections are between creativity, sustainability and theories of leadership, arguing that strong and resilient leadership requires thinking differently in order to deal with “wicked problems” associated with sustainability.

  6. Probabilistic quantum cloning of a subset of linearly dependent states

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rui, Pinshu; Zhang, Wen; Liao, Yanlin; Zhang, Ziyun

    2018-02-01

    It is well known that a quantum state, secretly chosen from a certain set, can be probabilistically cloned with positive cloning efficiencies if and only if all the states in the set are linearly independent. In this paper, we focus on probabilistic quantum cloning of a subset of linearly dependent states. We show that a linearly-independent subset of linearly-dependent quantum states {| Ψ 1⟩,| Ψ 2⟩,…,| Ψ n ⟩} can be probabilistically cloned if and only if any state in the subset cannot be expressed as a linear superposition of the other states in the set {| Ψ 1⟩,| Ψ 2⟩,…,| Ψ n ⟩}. The optimal cloning efficiencies are also investigated.

  7. State-dependent fluorescence of neutral atoms in optical potentials

    Science.gov (United States)

    Martinez-Dorantes, M.; Alt, W.; Gallego, J.; Ghosh, S.; Ratschbacher, L.; Meschede, D.

    2018-02-01

    Recently we have demonstrated scalable, nondestructive, and high-fidelity detection of the internal state of 87Rb neutral atoms in optical dipole traps using state-dependent fluorescence imaging [M. Martinez-Dorantes, W. Alt, J. Gallego, S. Ghosh, L. Ratschbacher, Y. Völzke, and D. Meschede, Phys. Rev. Lett. 119, 180503 (2017), 10.1103/PhysRevLett.119.180503]. In this paper we provide experimental procedures and interpretations to overcome the detrimental effects of heating-induced trap losses and state leakage. We present models for the dynamics of optically trapped atoms during state-dependent fluorescence imaging and verify our results by comparing Monte Carlo simulations with experimental data. Our systematic study of dipole force fluctuations heating in optical traps during near-resonant illumination shows that off-resonant light is preferable for state detection in tightly confining optical potentials.

  8. The ecological rationality of state-dependent valuation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McNamara, J M; Trimmer, P C; Houston, A I

    2012-01-01

    Laboratory studies on a range of animals have identified a bias that seems to violate basic principles of rational behavior: a preference is shown for feeding options that previously provided food when reserves were low, even though another option had been found to give the same reward with less delay. The bias presents a challenge to normative models of decision making (which only take account of expected rewards and the state of the animal at the decision time). To understand the behavior, we take a broad ecological perspective and consider how valuation mechanisms evolve when the best action depends upon the environment being faced. We show that in a changing and uncertain environment, state-dependent valuation can be favored by natural selection: Individuals should allow their hunger to affect learning for future decisions. The valuation mechanism that typically evolves produces the kind of behavior seen in standard laboratory tests. By providing an insight into why learning should be affected by the state of an individual, we provide a basis for understanding psychological principles in terms of an animal's ecology.

  9. Parameter dependence and outcome dependence in dynamical models for state vector reduction

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ghirardi, G.C.; Grassi, R.; Butterfield, J.; Fleming, G.N.

    1993-01-01

    The authors apply the distinction between parameter independence and outcome independence to the linear and nonlinear models of a recent nonrelativistic theory of continuous state vector reduction. It is shown that in the nonlinear model there is a set of realizations of the stochastic process that drives the state vector reduction for which parameter independence is violated for parallel spin components in the EPR-Bohm setup. Such a set has an appreciable probability of occurrence (∼ 1/2). On the other hand, the linear model exhibits only extremely small parameter dependence effects. Some specific features of the models are investigated and it is recalled that, as has been pointed out recently, to be able to speak of definite outcomes (or equivalently of possessed objective elements of reality) at finite times, the criteria for their attribution to physical systems must be slightly changed. The concluding section is devoted to a detailed discussion of the difficulties met when attempting to take, as a starting point for the formulation of a relativistic theory, a nonrelativistic scheme which exhibits parameter dependence. Here the authors derive a theorem which identifies the precise sense in which the occurrence of parameter dependence forbids a genuinely relativistic generalization. Finally, the authors show how the appreciable parameter dependence of the nonlinear model gives rise to problems with relativity, while the extremely weak parameter dependence of the linear model does not give rise to any difficulty, provided the appropriate criteria for the attribution of definite outcomes are taken into account. 19 refs

  10. Maitra-Burke example of initial-state dependence in time-dependent density-functional theory

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Holas, A.; Balawender, R.

    2002-01-01

    In a recent paper, Maitra and Burke [Phys. Rev. A 63, 042501 (2001); 64, 039901(E) (2001)] have given an interesting and instructive example that illustrates a specific feature of the time-dependent density-functional theory--the dependence of the reconstructed time-dependent potential not only on the electron density, but also on the initial state of the system. However, a concise form of its presentation by these authors is insufficient to reveal all its peculiarities. Our paper represents a very detailed study of this valuable example, intended to facilitate a better understanding and appreciation

  11. Dependency in State Transitions of Wind Turbines

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Herp, Jürgen; Ramezani, Mohammad Hossein; S. Nadimi, Esmaeil

    2017-01-01

    © 2017 IEEE. Turbine states and predicting the transition into failure states ahead of time is important in operation and maintenance of wind turbines. This study presents a method to monitor state transitions of a wind turbine based on the online inference on residuals. In a Bayesian framework...... be abstracted from generated data. Two models are presented: 1) assuming independence and 2) assuming dependence between states. In order to select the right models, machine learning is utilized to update hyperparameters on the conditional probabilities. Comparing fixed to learned hyperparameters points out...... the impact machine learning concepts have on the predictive performance of the presented models. In conclusion, a study on model residuals is performed to highlight the contribution to wind turbine monitoring. The presented algorithm can consistently detect the state transition under various configurations...

  12. Re-visioning Negative Archetypes of Disability and Deformity in Fantasy: Wicked, Maleficent, and Game of Thrones

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Colleen Elaine Donnelly

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available Fantasy and horror often exploit disabled people, presenting them as embodiments of terror and evil.  In contemporary fantasy, we sometimes see archetypically evil characters redefined primarily by the telling of their backstories to provide rationale for their behavior and to evoke sympathy or pity from the audience. Pity often places the viewer in the position to seem benevolent while masking the ways that disabled people are often treated as inferior, different, and are isolated from the rest of society.  In Wicked, Maleficent, and Game of Thrones, we are asked to confront the judgments and behaviors in which spectators and society engage.  Instead of reaffirming the views and values of society, these works question and denounce our consumption of the stereotypes we have learned and our often unexamined behaviors towards those who are often treated as "others."

  13. Coherent states of general time-dependent harmonic oscillator

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Abstract. By introducing an invariant operator, we obtain exact wave functions for a general time-dependent quadratic harmonic oscillator. The coherent states, both in x- and p-spaces, are calculated. We confirm that the uncertainty product in coherent state is always larger than Η/2 and is equal to the minimum of the ...

  14. State Dependence in Unemployment among Danish Immigrants

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ahmad, Nisar

    This study examines the extent state dependence among unemployed Danish immigrants in a dynamic discrete choice framework. Three alternative methodologies are employed to control for the problem of the initial condition. The empirical findings show that there is a considerable correlation between...

  15. State-Dependence of the Climate Sensitivity in Earth System Models of Intermediate Complexity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pfister, Patrik L.; Stocker, Thomas F.

    2017-10-01

    Growing evidence from general circulation models (GCMs) indicates that the equilibrium climate sensitivity (ECS) depends on the magnitude of forcing, which is commonly referred to as state-dependence. We present a comprehensive assessment of ECS state-dependence in Earth system models of intermediate complexity (EMICs) by analyzing millennial simulations with sustained 2×CO2 and 4×CO2 forcings. We compare different extrapolation methods and show that ECS is smaller in the higher-forcing scenario in 12 out of 15 EMICs, in contrast to the opposite behavior reported from GCMs. In one such EMIC, the Bern3D-LPX model, this state-dependence is mainly due to the weakening sea ice-albedo feedback in the Southern Ocean, which depends on model configuration. Due to ocean-mixing adjustments, state-dependence is only detected hundreds of years after the abrupt forcing, highlighting the need for long model integrations. Adjustments to feedback parametrizations of EMICs may be necessary if GCM intercomparisons confirm an opposite state-dependence.

  16. Selective maintenance of multi-state systems with structural dependence

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dao, Cuong D.; Zuo, Ming J.

    2017-01-01

    This paper studies the selective maintenance problem for multi-state systems with structural dependence. Each component can be in one of multiple working levels and several maintenance actions are possible to a component in a maintenance break. The components structurally form multiple hierarchical levels and dependence groups. A directed graph is used to represent the precedence relations of components in the system. A selective maintenance optimization model is developed to maximize the system reliability in the next mission under time and cost constraints. A backward search algorithm is used to determine the assembly sequence for a selective maintenance scenario. The maintenance model helps maintenance managers in determining the best combination of maintenance activities to maximize the probability of successfully completing the next mission. Examples showing the use of the proposed method are presented. - Highlights: • A selective maintenance model for multi-state systems is proposed considering both economic and structural dependence. • Structural dependence is modeled as precedence relationship when disassembling components for maintenance. • Resources for disassembly and maintenance are evaluated using a backward search algorithm. • Maintenance strategies with and without structural dependence are analyzed. • Ignoring structural dependence may lead to over-estimation of system reliability.

  17. State-Dependent Impulsive Control Strategies for a Tumor-Immune Model

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kwang Su Kim

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Controlling the number of tumor cells leads us to expect more efficient strategies for treatment of tumor. Towards this goal, a tumor-immune model with state-dependent impulsive treatments is established. This model may give an efficient treatment schedule to control tumor’s abnormal growth. By using the Poincaré map and analogue of Poincaré criterion, some conditions for the existence and stability of a positive order-1 periodic solution of this model are obtained. Moreover, we carry out numerical simulations to illustrate the feasibility of our main results and compare fixed-time impulsive treatment effects with state-dependent impulsive treatment effects. The results of our simulations say that, in determining optimal treatment timing, the model with state-dependent impulsive control is more efficient than that with fixed-time impulsive control.

  18. Effect of state-dependent delay on a weakly damped nonlinear oscillator.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mitchell, Jonathan L; Carr, Thomas W

    2011-04-01

    We consider a weakly damped nonlinear oscillator with state-dependent delay, which has applications in models for lasers, epidemics, and microparasites. More generally, the delay-differential equations considered are a predator-prey system where the delayed term is linear and represents the proliferation of the predator. We determine the critical value of the delay that causes the steady state to become unstable to periodic oscillations via a Hopf bifurcation. Using asymptotic averaging, we determine how the system's behavior is influenced by the functional form of the state-dependent delay. Specifically, we determine whether the branch of periodic solutions will be either sub- or supercritical as well as an accurate estimation of the amplitude. Finally, we choose a few examples of state-dependent delay to test our analytical results by comparing them to numerical continuation.

  19. Cocaine induces state-dependent learning of sexual conditioning in male Japanese quail.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gill, Karin E; Rice, Beth Ann; Akins, Chana K

    2015-01-01

    State dependent learning effects have been widely studied in a variety of drugs of abuse. However, they have yet to be studied in relation to sexual motivation. The current study investigated state-dependent learning effects of cocaine in male Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica) using a sexual conditioning paradigm. Cocaine-induced state-dependent learning effects were investigated using a 2×2 factorial design with training state as one factor and test state as the other factor. During a 14-day training phase, male quail were injected once daily with 10mg/kg cocaine or saline and then placed in a test chamber after 15min. In the test chamber, sexual conditioning trials consisted of presentation of a light conditioned stimulus (CS) followed by sexual reinforcement. During the state dependent test, half of the birds received a shift in drug state from training to testing (Coc→Sal or Sal→Coc) while the other half remained in the same drug state (Coc→Coc or Sal→Sal). Results showed that male quail that were trained and tested in the same state (Coc→Coc or Sal→Sal) showed greater sexual conditioning than male quail that were trained and tested in different states (Sal→Coc) except when cocaine was administered chronically prior to the test (Coc→Sal). For the latter condition, sexual conditioning persisted from cocaine training to the saline test. The findings suggest that state dependent effects may alter sexual motivation and that repeated exposure to cocaine during sexual activity may increase sexual motivation which, in turn, may lead to high risk sexual activities. An alternative explanation for the findings is also discussed. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  20. Geospatial and machine learning techniques for wicked social science problems: analysis of crash severity on a regional highway corridor

    Science.gov (United States)

    Effati, Meysam; Thill, Jean-Claude; Shabani, Shahin

    2015-04-01

    The contention of this paper is that many social science research problems are too "wicked" to be suitably studied using conventional statistical and regression-based methods of data analysis. This paper argues that an integrated geospatial approach based on methods of machine learning is well suited to this purpose. Recognizing the intrinsic wickedness of traffic safety issues, such approach is used to unravel the complexity of traffic crash severity on highway corridors as an example of such problems. The support vector machine (SVM) and coactive neuro-fuzzy inference system (CANFIS) algorithms are tested as inferential engines to predict crash severity and uncover spatial and non-spatial factors that systematically relate to crash severity, while a sensitivity analysis is conducted to determine the relative influence of crash severity factors. Different specifications of the two methods are implemented, trained, and evaluated against crash events recorded over a 4-year period on a regional highway corridor in Northern Iran. Overall, the SVM model outperforms CANFIS by a notable margin. The combined use of spatial analysis and artificial intelligence is effective at identifying leading factors of crash severity, while explicitly accounting for spatial dependence and spatial heterogeneity effects. Thanks to the demonstrated effectiveness of a sensitivity analysis, this approach produces comprehensive results that are consistent with existing traffic safety theories and supports the prioritization of effective safety measures that are geographically targeted and behaviorally sound on regional highway corridors.

  1. Volume dependence of N-body bound states

    Science.gov (United States)

    König, Sebastian; Lee, Dean

    2018-04-01

    We derive the finite-volume correction to the binding energy of an N-particle quantum bound state in a cubic periodic volume. Our results are applicable to bound states with arbitrary composition and total angular momentum, and in any number of spatial dimensions. The only assumptions are that the interactions have finite range. The finite-volume correction is a sum of contributions from all possible breakup channels. In the case where the separation is into two bound clusters, our result gives the leading volume dependence up to exponentially small corrections. If the separation is into three or more clusters, there is a power-law factor that is beyond the scope of this work, however our result again determines the leading exponential dependence. We also present two independent methods that use finite-volume data to determine asymptotic normalization coefficients. The coefficients are useful to determine low-energy capture reactions into weakly bound states relevant for nuclear astrophysics. Using the techniques introduced here, one can even extract the infinite-volume energy limit using data from a single-volume calculation. The derived relations are tested using several exactly solvable systems and numerical examples. We anticipate immediate applications to lattice calculations of hadronic, nuclear, and cold atomic systems.

  2. Pure quasifree states of the Dirac field from the fermionic projector

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fewster, Christopher J; Lang, Benjamin

    2015-01-01

    We consider the quantized free massive Dirac field on oriented and globally hyperbolic ultrastatic slab spacetimes with compact spatial section and demonstrate how a gauge invariant, pure and quasifree state on the C*-completion of the self-dual CAR-algebra can be extracted from the fermionic projector construction of Finster and Reintjes. This state is analogous to the ‘SJ-state’ of the free scalar field recently discussed in the literature. We prove that this state generically fails to be Hadamard. However, we also show how a modified version of the construction, inspired by the work of Brum and Fredenhagen, yields states that are Hadamard. We also relate the Hadamard condition to the finiteness of fluctuations of Wick polynomials. (paper)

  3. l-dependent potential barriers and superdeformed states

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gherghescu, R.A.; Royer, G.

    1999-01-01

    The macroscopic-microscopic energy of rotating nuclei moving in the fusion-like deformation valley has been determined within a generalized liquid drop model including the nuclear proximity energy, the two-center shell model and the Strutinsky method. The l-dependent potential barriers of the 84 Zr, 132 Ce, 152 Dy and 192 Hg nuclei have been determined. A first minimum having a pure microscopic origin and lodging the normally deformed states, progressively disappears with increasing angular momenta. The microscopic and macroscopic energies contribute to generate a second minimum where superdeformed states may survive. It becomes progressively the lowest one at intermediate spins. At still higher angular momenta, the minimum moves towards the foot of the external fission barrier leading to macroscopic hyper-deformed quasi-molecular states. (authors)

  4. The impact of new evidence on state-of-knowledge dependence

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Haim, M.; Apostolakis, G.

    1987-01-01

    When modeling a SOK (state-of-knowledge) dependence it is sometimes essential to apply a multivariate SOK distribution, e.g. when a new evidence is used to update a current assessment. As shown a SOK dependence may arise due to updating a prior distribution by dependent test-results. In two specific extreme cases SOK dependence (independence) cannot be influenced by updating the prior by new evidence: the case of identical units (a complete dependence), the case of independence (i.e., no SOK dependence) and evidence consists of conditionally independent test-results. (orig./HP)

  5. State-dependent intrinsic predictability of cortical network dynamics.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Leila Fakhraei

    Full Text Available The information encoded in cortical circuit dynamics is fleeting, changing from moment to moment as new input arrives and ongoing intracortical interactions progress. A combination of deterministic and stochastic biophysical mechanisms governs how cortical dynamics at one moment evolve from cortical dynamics in recently preceding moments. Such temporal continuity of cortical dynamics is fundamental to many aspects of cortex function but is not well understood. Here we study temporal continuity by attempting to predict cortical population dynamics (multisite local field potential based on its own recent history in somatosensory cortex of anesthetized rats and in a computational network-level model. We found that the intrinsic predictability of cortical dynamics was dependent on multiple factors including cortical state, synaptic inhibition, and how far into the future the prediction extends. By pharmacologically tuning synaptic inhibition, we obtained a continuum of cortical states with asynchronous population activity at one extreme and stronger, spatially extended synchrony at the other extreme. Intermediate between these extremes we observed evidence for a special regime of population dynamics called criticality. Predictability of the near future (10-100 ms increased as the cortical state was tuned from asynchronous to synchronous. Predictability of the more distant future (>1 s was generally poor, but, surprisingly, was higher for asynchronous states compared to synchronous states. These experimental results were confirmed in a computational network model of spiking excitatory and inhibitory neurons. Our findings demonstrate that determinism and predictability of network dynamics depend on cortical state and the time-scale of the dynamics.

  6. Delay-distribution-dependent H∞ state estimation for delayed neural networks with (x,v)-dependent noises and fading channels.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sheng, Li; Wang, Zidong; Tian, Engang; Alsaadi, Fuad E

    2016-12-01

    This paper deals with the H ∞ state estimation problem for a class of discrete-time neural networks with stochastic delays subject to state- and disturbance-dependent noises (also called (x,v)-dependent noises) and fading channels. The time-varying stochastic delay takes values on certain intervals with known probability distributions. The system measurement is transmitted through fading channels described by the Rice fading model. The aim of the addressed problem is to design a state estimator such that the estimation performance is guaranteed in the mean-square sense against admissible stochastic time-delays, stochastic noises as well as stochastic fading signals. By employing the stochastic analysis approach combined with the Kronecker product, several delay-distribution-dependent conditions are derived to ensure that the error dynamics of the neuron states is stochastically stable with prescribed H ∞ performance. Finally, a numerical example is provided to illustrate the effectiveness of the obtained results. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. State-age-dependent maintenance policies for deteriorating systems with Erlang sojourn time distributions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yeh, R.H.

    1997-01-01

    This paper investigates state-age-dependent maintenance policies for multistate deteriorating systems with Erlang sojourn time distributions. Since Erlang distributions are serial combinations of exponential phases, the deteriorating process can be modeled by a multi-phase Markovian model and hence easily analyzed. Based on the Markovian model, the optimal phase-dependent inspection and replacement policy can be obtained by using a policy improvement algorithm. However, since phases are fictitious and can not be identified by inspections, two procedures are developed to construct state-age-dependent policies based on the optimal phase-dependent policy. The properties of the constructed state-age-dependent policies are further investigated and the performance of the policy is evaluated through a numerical example

  8. Improved variational description of the Wick-Cutkosky model with the most general quadratic trial action

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rosenfelder, R.; Schreiber, A.W.

    2002-01-01

    We generalize the worldline variational approach to field theory by introducing a trial action which allows for anisotropic terms to be induced by external 4-momenta of Green's functions. By solving the ensuing variational equations numerically we demonstrate that within the (quenched) scalar Wick-Cutkosky model considerable improvement can be achieved over results obtained previously with isotropic actions. In particular, the critical coupling associated with the instability of the model is lowered, in accordance with expectations from Baym's proof of the instability in the unquenched theory. The physical picture associated with a different quantum mechanical motion of the dressed particle along and perpendicular to its classical momentum is discussed. Indeed, we find that for large couplings the dressed particle is strongly distorted in the direction of its four-momentum. In addition, we obtain an exact relation between the renormalized coupling of the theory and the propagator. Along the way we introduce new and efficient methods to evaluate the averages needed in the variational approach and apply them to the calculation of the 2-point function. (orig.)

  9. Self-Employment Dynamics, State Dependence and Cross-Mobility Patterns

    OpenAIRE

    Caliendo, Marco; Uhlendorff, Arne

    2008-01-01

    This paper analyzes the mobility between self-employment, wage employment and non-employment. Using data for men in West Germany, we find strong true state dependence in all three states. Moreover, compared to wage employment, non-employment increases the probability of self-employment significantly, and self-employment goes along with a higher risk of future non-employment.

  10. Charge states of fast heavy ions in solids; target atomic number dependence

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shima, Kunihiro

    1985-01-01

    Discussions were carried out on the origin of Z 2 (atomic number) dependent charge states with respect to projectile electron loss and capture process, and on relationship between the Z 2 dependence and that of mean charge states for heavy ions of 1 MeV/u energy region. Present and previously reported results were examined on the equilibrium charge distributions, 9-bar, of 120 MeV 63 Cu, 25 and 40 MeV 35 Cl, 109 MeV Si and 59 MeV F ions. It was clarified that 9-bar became generally higher for lower Z 2 depending on increasing energy, and osillatory behavior with energy-depending amplitude was seen in 9-bar vs Z 2 . Discussions were carrid out on these phenomena and related matters. Z 2 oscillations of 9-bar of fast heavy ions might be due to those of electron capture cross section into projectile K and L vacancies for high and intermediate charge states, respectively. A quantitative interpretation of the Z 2 -dependent 9-bar values is in progress based on collision process and observation of projectile x-ray. The 9-bar value dependency on Z 2 in ion passing foils and decrease of Z 2 oscillation amplitude with increasing collision energy were quite similar to the Z 2 dependence in stopping powers or in effective charge states estimated from stopping powers. But there was some discrepancies in the Z 2 oscillation of 9-bar and that of stopping powers. (Takagi, S.)

  11. Wicked Social-Ecological Problems Forcing Unprecedented Change on the Latitudinal Margins of Coral Reefs: the Case of Southwest Madagascar

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J. Henrich. Bruggemann

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available High-latitude coral reefs may be a refuge and area of reef expansion under climate change. As these locations are expected to become dryer and as livestock and agricultural yields decline, coastal populations may become increasingly dependent on marine resources. To evaluate this social-ecological conundrum, we examined the Grand Récif of Toliara (GRT, southwest Madagascar, which was intensively studied in the 1960s and has been highly degraded since the 1980s. We analyzed the social and ecological published and unpublished literature on this region and provide new data to assess the magnitude of the changes and evaluate the causes of reef degradation. Top-down controls were identified as the major drivers: human population growth and migrations, overfishing, and climate change, specifically decreased rainfall and rising temperature. Water quality has not changed since originally studied, and bottom-up control was ruled out. The identified network of social-ecological processes acting at different scales implies that decision makers will face complex problems that are linked to broader social, economic, and policy issues. This characterizes wicked problems, which are often dealt with by partial solutions that are exploratory and include inputs from various stakeholders along with information sharing, knowledge synthesis, and trust building. A hybrid approach based on classical fishery management options and preferences, along with monitoring, feedback and forums for searching solutions, could move the process of adaptation forward once an adaptive and appropriately scaled governance system is functioning. This approach has broad implications for resources management given the emerging climate change and multiple social and environmental stresses.

  12. Brain state-dependence of electrically evoked potentials monitored with head-mounted electronics.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Richardson, Andrew G; Fetz, Eberhard E

    2012-11-01

    Inferring changes in brain connectivity is critical to studies of learning-related plasticity and stimulus-induced conditioning of neural circuits. In addition, monitoring spontaneous fluctuations in connectivity can provide insight into information processing during different brain states. Here, we quantified state-dependent connectivity changes throughout the 24-h sleep-wake cycle in freely behaving monkeys. A novel, head-mounted electronic device was used to electrically stimulate at one site and record evoked potentials at other sites. Electrically evoked potentials (EEPs) revealed the connectivity pattern between several cortical sites and the basal forebrain. We quantified state-dependent changes in the EEPs. Cortico-cortical EEP amplitude increased during slow-wave sleep, compared to wakefulness, while basal-cortical EEP amplitude decreased. The results demonstrate the utility of using portable electronics to document state-dependent connectivity changes in freely behaving primates.

  13. True versus spurious state dependence in firm performance

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kaiser, Ulrich; Kongsted, Hans Christian

    2008-01-01

    This paper analyzes the persistence of firms' exporting behavior in a panel of German manufacturing firms using dynamic binary choice models. We distinguish between true and spurious state dependence in exports and apply fixed effects methods that allow us to verify the robustness of our results ...... determinants. Our results, which are consistent with the findings of previous studies on firms in developing countries and in the United States, show the presence of important sunk costs in export market entry and a depreciation of knowledge and experience in export markets....

  14. True Versus Spurious State Dependence in Firm Performance

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kaiser, Ulrich; Kongsted, Hans Christian

    This paper analyzes the persistence of firms' exporting behavior in a panel of German manufacturing firms using dynamic binary choice models. We distinguish between true and spurious state dependence in exports and apply fixed effects methods that allow us to verify the robustness of our results ...... determinants. Our results, which are consistent with the findings of previous studies on firms in developing countries and in the United States, show the presence of important sunk costs in export market entry and a depreciation of knowledge and experience in export markets...

  15. Selective maintenance for multi-state series–parallel systems under economic dependence

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dao, Cuong D.; Zuo, Ming J.; Pandey, Mayank

    2014-01-01

    This paper presents a study on selective maintenance for multi-state series–parallel systems with economically dependent components. In the selective maintenance problem, the maintenance manager has to decide which components should receive maintenance activities within a finite break between missions. All the system reliabilities in the next operating mission, the available budget and the maintenance time for each component from its current state to a higher state are taken into account in the optimization models. In addition, the components in series–parallel systems are considered to be economically dependent. Time and cost savings will be achieved when several components are simultaneously repaired in a selective maintenance strategy. As the number of repaired components increases, the saved time and cost will also increase due to the share of setting up between components and another additional reduction amount resulting from the repair of multiple identical components. Different optimization models are derived to find the best maintenance strategy for multi-state series–parallel systems. A genetic algorithm is used to solve the optimization models. The decision makers may select different components to be repaired to different working states based on the maintenance objective, resource availabilities and how dependent the repair time and cost of each component are

  16. Hemi-methylated DNA regulates DNA methylation inheritance through allosteric activation of H3 ubiquitylation by UHRF1.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harrison, Joseph S; Cornett, Evan M; Goldfarb, Dennis; DaRosa, Paul A; Li, Zimeng M; Yan, Feng; Dickson, Bradley M; Guo, Angela H; Cantu, Daniel V; Kaustov, Lilia; Brown, Peter J; Arrowsmith, Cheryl H; Erie, Dorothy A; Major, Michael B; Klevit, Rachel E; Krajewski, Krzysztof; Kuhlman, Brian; Strahl, Brian D; Rothbart, Scott B

    2016-09-06

    The epigenetic inheritance of DNA methylation requires UHRF1, a histone- and DNA-binding RING E3 ubiquitin ligase that recruits DNMT1 to sites of newly replicated DNA through ubiquitylation of histone H3. UHRF1 binds DNA with selectivity towards hemi-methylated CpGs (HeDNA); however, the contribution of HeDNA sensing to UHRF1 function remains elusive. Here, we reveal that the interaction of UHRF1 with HeDNA is required for DNA methylation but is dispensable for chromatin interaction, which is governed by reciprocal positive cooperativity between the UHRF1 histone- and DNA-binding domains. HeDNA recognition activates UHRF1 ubiquitylation towards multiple lysines on the H3 tail adjacent to the UHRF1 histone-binding site. Collectively, our studies are the first demonstrations of a DNA-protein interaction and an epigenetic modification directly regulating E3 ubiquitin ligase activity. They also define an orchestrated epigenetic control mechanism involving modifications both to histones and DNA that facilitate UHRF1 chromatin targeting, H3 ubiquitylation, and DNA methylation inheritance.

  17. State Dependence in Unemployment among Danish Immigrants

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ahmad, Nisar

    2009-01-01

    This study examines the extent state dependence among unemployed Danish immigrants in a dynamic discrete choice framework. Three alternative methodologies are employed to control for the problem of the initial condition. The empirical findings show that there is a considerable correlation between...... compared to an individual who was employed at period “t-1”. This average partial effect is the same for western compared to non-western immigrants and women compared to men....

  18. The United States facing their petroleum dependence

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Noel, P.

    2002-06-01

    In the framework of ''the energy crisis of 2000-2001'', the Cheney report and the petroleum dependence, this study presents a critical examination of the United States petroleum situation, its perception in the american political milieu and the public policies implementing during the last ten years. The first section is devoted to the petroleum supply. In the second section, the american petroleum policy and the energy safety are studied. (A.L.B.)

  19. Exotic Paired States with Anisotropic Spin-Dependent Fermi Surfaces

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Feiguin, Adrian E.; Fisher, Matthew P. A.

    2009-01-01

    We propose a model for realizing exotic paired states in cold Fermi gases by using a spin-dependent optical lattice to engineer mismatched Fermi surfaces for each hyperfine species. The BCS phase diagram shows a stable paired superfluid state with coexisting pockets of momentum space with gapless unpaired carriers, similar to the Sarma state in polarized mixtures, but in our case the system is unpolarized. We propose the possible existence of an exotic 'Cooper-pair Bose-metal' phase, which has a gap for single fermion excitations but gapless and uncondensed 'Cooper-pair' excitations residing on a 'Bose surface' in momentum space.

  20. An analysis of the vapor flow and the heat conduction through the liquid-wick and pipe wall in a heat pipe with single or multiple heat sources

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Ming-Ming; Faghri, Amir

    1990-01-01

    A numerical analysis is presented for the overall performance of heat pipes with single or multiple heat sources. The analysis includes the heat conduction in the wall and liquid-wick regions as well as the compressibility effect of the vapor inside the heat pipe. The two-dimensional elliptic governing equations in conjunction with the thermodynamic equilibrium relation and appropriate boundary conditions are solved numerically. The solutions are in agreement with existing experimental data for the vapor and wall temperatures at both low and high operating temperatures.

  1. State-dependent sensorimotor processing: gaze and posture stability during simulated flight in birds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McArthur, Kimberly L; Dickman, J David

    2011-04-01

    Vestibular responses play an important role in maintaining gaze and posture stability during rotational motion. Previous studies suggest that these responses are state dependent, their expression varying with the environmental and locomotor conditions of the animal. In this study, we simulated an ethologically relevant state in the laboratory to study state-dependent vestibular responses in birds. We used frontal airflow to simulate gliding flight and measured pigeons' eye, head, and tail responses to rotational motion in darkness, under both head-fixed and head-free conditions. We show that both eye and head response gains are significantly higher during flight, thus enhancing gaze and head-in-space stability. We also characterize state-specific tail responses to pitch and roll rotation that would help to maintain body-in-space orientation during flight. These results demonstrate that vestibular sensorimotor processing is not fixed but depends instead on the animal's behavioral state.

  2. High-Frequency Stimulation of the Subthalamic Nucleus Activates Motor Cortex Pyramidal Tract Neurons by a Process Involving Local Glutamate, GABA and Dopamine Receptors in Hemi-Parkinsonian Rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chuang, Chi-Fen; Wu, Chen-Wei; Weng, Ying; Hu, Pei-San; Yeh, Shin-Rung; Chang, Yen-Chung

    2018-04-30

    Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is widely used to treat advanced Parkinson’s disease (PD). Here, we investigated how DBS applied on the subthalamic nucleus (STN) influenced the neural activity in the motor cortex. Rats, which had the midbrain dopaminergic neurons partially depleted unilaterally, called the hemi-Parkinsonian rats, were used as a study model. c-Fos expression in the neurons was used as an indicator of neural activity. Application of high-frequency stimulation (HFS) upon the STN was used to mimic the DBS treatment. The motor cortices in the two hemispheres of hemi-Parkinsonian rats were found to contain unequal densities of c-Fos-positive (Fos+) cells, and STN-HFS rectified this bilateral imbalance. In addition, STN-HFS led to the intense c-Fos expression in a group of motor cortical neurons which exhibited biochemical and anatomical characteristics resembling those of the pyramidal tract (PT) neurons sending efferent projections to the STN. The number of PT neurons expressing high levels of c-Fos was significantly reduced by local application of the antagonists of non-N-methyl-D-aspartate (non-NMDA) glutamate receptors, gammaaminobutyric acid A (GABAA) receptors and dopamine receptors in the upper layers of the motor cortex. The results indicate that the coincident activations of synapses and dopamine receptors in the motor cortex during STN-HFS trigger the intense expression of c-Fos of the PT neurons. The implications of the results on the cellular mechanism underlying the therapeutic effects of STN-DBS on the movement disorders of PD are also discussed.

  3. Medical marijuana laws in 50 states: investigating the relationship between state legalization of medical marijuana and marijuana use, abuse and dependence.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cerdá, Magdalena; Wall, Melanie; Keyes, Katherine M; Galea, Sandro; Hasin, Deborah

    2012-01-01

    Marijuana is the most frequently used illicit substance in the United States. Little is known of the role that macro-level factors, including community norms and laws related to substance use, play in determining marijuana use, abuse and dependence. We tested the relationship between state-level legalization of medical marijuana and marijuana use, abuse, and dependence. We used the second wave of the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC), a national survey of adults aged 18+ (n=34,653). Selected analyses were replicated using the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), a yearly survey of ∼68,000 individuals aged 12+. We measured past-year cannabis use and DSM-IV abuse/dependence. In NESARC, residents of states with medical marijuana laws had higher odds of marijuana use (OR: 1.92; 95% CI: 1.49-2.47) and marijuana abuse/dependence (OR: 1.81; 95% CI: 1.22-2.67) than residents of states without such laws. Marijuana abuse/dependence was not more prevalent among marijuana users in these states (OR: 1.03; 95% CI: 0.67-1.60), suggesting that the higher risk for marijuana abuse/dependence in these states was accounted for by higher rates of use. In NSDUH, states that legalized medical marijuana also had higher rates of marijuana use. States that legalized medical marijuana had higher rates of marijuana use. Future research needs to examine whether the association is causal, or is due to an underlying common cause, such as community norms supportive of the legalization of medical marijuana and of marijuana use. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. Verification of Large State/Event Systems using Compositionality and Dependency Analysis

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lind-Nielsen, Jørn; Andersen, Henrik Reif; Hulgaard, Henrik

    2001-01-01

    A state/event model is a concurrent version of Mealy machines used for describing embedded reactive systems. This paper introduces a technique that uses compositionality and dependency analysis to significantly improve the efficiency of symbolic model checking of state/event models. It makes...

  5. Verification of Large State/Event Systems using Compositionality and Dependency Analysis

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lind-Nielsen, Jørn; Andersen, Henrik Reif; Behrmann, Gerd

    1999-01-01

    A state/event model is a concurrent version of Mealy machines used for describing embedded reactive systems. This paper introduces a technique that uses \\emph{compositionality} and \\emph{dependency analysis} to significantly improve the efficiency of symbolic model checking of state/event models...

  6. Mixed Hemi/Ad-Micelle Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate-Coated Magnetic Iron Oxide Nanoparticles for the Efficient Removal and Trace Determination of Rhodamine-B and Rhodamine-6G.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ranjbari, Elias; Hadjmohammadi, Mohammad Reza; Kiekens, Filip; De Wael, Karolien

    2015-08-04

    Mixed hemi/ad-micelle sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)-coated magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (MHAMS-MIONPs) were used as an efficient adsorbent for both removal and preconcentration of two important carcinogenic xanthine dyes named rhodamine-B (RB) and rhodamine-6G (RG). To gain insight in the configuration of SDS molecules on the surface of MIONPs, zeta potential measurements were performed in different [SDS]/[MIONP] ratios. Zeta potential data indicated that mixed hemi/ad-micelle MHAM was formed in [SDS]/[MIONP] ratios over the range of 1.1 to 7.3. Parameters affecting the adsorption of dyes were optimized as removal efficiency by one variable at-a-time and response surface methodology; the obtained removal efficiencies were ∼100%. Adsorption kinetic and equilibrium studies, under the optimum condition (pH = 2; amount of MIONPs = 87.15 mg; [SDS]/[MIONP] ratio = 2.9), showed that adsorption of both dyes are based on the pseudo-second-order and the Langmuir isotherm models, respectively. The maximum adsorption capacities for RB and RG were 385 and 323 mg g(-1), respectively. MHAMS-MIONPs were also applied for extraction of RB and RG. Under optimum conditions (pH = 2; amount of damped MHAMS-MIONPs = 90 mg; eluent solvent volume = 2.6 mL of 3% acetic acid in acetonitrile), extraction recoveries for 0.5 mg L(-1) of RB and RG were 98% and 99%, with preconcentration factors of 327 and 330, respectively. Limit of detection obtained for rhodamine dyes were <0.7 ng mL(-1). Finally, MHAMS-MIONPs were successfully applied for both removal and trace determination of RB and RG in environmental and wastewater samples.

  7. The tongue and its control by sleep state-dependent modulators.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Horner, R L

    2011-12-01

    The neural networks controlling vital functions such as breathing are embedded in the brain, the neural and chemical environment of which changes with state, i.e., wakefulness, non-rapid eye movement (non-REM) sleep and REM sleep, and with commonly administered drugs such as anaesthetics, sedatives and ethanol. One particular output from the state-dependent chemical brain is the focus of attention in this paper; the motor output to the muscles of the tongue, specifically the actions of state-dependent modulators acting at the hypoglossal motor pool. Determining the mechanisms underlying the modulation of the hypoglossal motor output during sleep is relevant to understanding the spectrum of increased upper airway resistance, airflow limitation, hypoventilation and airway obstructions that occur during natural and drug-influenced sleep in humans. Understanding the mechanisms underlying upper airway dysfunction in sleep-disordered breathing is also important given the large and growing prevalence of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome which constitutes a major public health problem with serious clinical, social and economic consequences.

  8. A Class of Stochastic Hybrid Systems with State-Dependent Switching Noise

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Leth, John-Josef; Rasmussen, Jakob Gulddahl; Schiøler, Henrik

    2012-01-01

    In this paper, we develop theoretical results based on a proposed method for modeling switching noise for a class of hybrid systems with piecewise linear partitioned state space, and state-depending switching. We devise a stochastic model of such systems, whose global dynamics is governed...

  9. Event-Based $H_\\infty $ State Estimation for Time-Varying Stochastic Dynamical Networks With State- and Disturbance-Dependent Noises.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sheng, Li; Wang, Zidong; Zou, Lei; Alsaadi, Fuad E

    2017-10-01

    In this paper, the event-based finite-horizon H ∞ state estimation problem is investigated for a class of discrete time-varying stochastic dynamical networks with state- and disturbance-dependent noises [also called (x,v) -dependent noises]. An event-triggered scheme is proposed to decrease the frequency of the data transmission between the sensors and the estimator, where the signal is transmitted only when certain conditions are satisfied. The purpose of the problem addressed is to design a time-varying state estimator in order to estimate the network states through available output measurements. By employing the completing-the-square technique and the stochastic analysis approach, sufficient conditions are established to ensure that the error dynamics of the state estimation satisfies a prescribed H ∞ performance constraint over a finite horizon. The desired estimator parameters can be designed via solving coupled backward recursive Riccati difference equations. Finally, a numerical example is exploited to demonstrate the effectiveness of the developed state estimation scheme.

  10. Integrated vehicle dynamics control using State Dependent Riccati Equations

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bonsen, B.; Mansvelders, R.; Vermeer, E.

    2010-01-01

    In this paper we discuss a State Dependent Riccati Equations (SDRE) solution for Integrated Vehicle Dynamics Control (IVDC). The SDRE approach is a nonlinear variant of the well known Linear Quadratic Regulator (LQR) and implements a quadratic cost function optimization. A modified version of this

  11. Asymptotic inference for jump diffusions with state-dependent intensity

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Becheri, Gaia; Drost, Feico; Werker, Bas

    2016-01-01

    We establish the local asymptotic normality property for a class of ergodic parametric jump-diffusion processes with state-dependent intensity and known volatility function sampled at high frequency. We prove that the inference problem about the drift and jump parameters is adaptive with respect to

  12. State-dependent factors and attention in Whiplash Associated Disorder

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Blokhorst, Mariëtte G.B.G.

    2005-01-01

    The main aim of this thesis is to investigate the relationship between state- dependent factors (headache, neck pain, fatigue, distress) and attention in WAD patients. Furthermore, the focus is on ‘noise-distractibility’ and ‘noise- intolerance’, which are symptoms related to attention and often

  13. Our wicked addiction

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bocking, Stephen

    2011-09-15

    The author states that tar sands operations in Canada are causing damage: they consume enormous amounts of energy and water, pollute the groundwater, cause cancer among local inhabitants, generate acid air, and discharge greenhouse gas emissions. In addition to the environmental cost, they are giving rise to social concerns. Dialogue and debate around this topic should be encouraged and everyone should participate, including industry, government, environmental organizations.

  14. The effect of time-dependent coupling on non-equilibrium steady states

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Cornean, Horia; Neidhardt, Hagen; Zagrebnov, Valentin

    Consider (for simplicity) two one-dimensional semi-infinite leads coupled to a quantum well via time dependent point interactions. In the remote past the system is decoupled, and each of its components is at thermal equilibrium. In the remote future the system is fully coupled. We define...... and compute the non equilibrium steady state (NESS) generated by this evolution. We show that when restricted to the subspace of absolute continuity of the fully coupled system, the state does not depend at all on the switching. Moreover, we show that the stationary charge current has the same invariant...

  15. The effect of time-dependent coupling on non-equilibrium steady states

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Cornean, Horia; Neidhardt, Hagen; Zagrebnov, Valentin A.

    2009-01-01

    Consider (for simplicity) two one-dimensional semi-infinite leads coupled to a quantum well via time dependent point interactions. In the remote past the system is decoupled, and each of its components is at thermal equilibrium. In the remote future the system is fully coupled. We define...... and compute the non equilibrium steady state (NESS) generated by this evolution. We show that when restricted to the subspace of absolute continuity of the fully coupled system, the state does not depend at all on the switching. Moreover, we show that the stationary charge current has the same invariant...

  16. Subgeometric Ergodicity Analysis of Continuous-Time Markov Chains under Random-Time State-Dependent Lyapunov Drift Conditions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mokaedi V. Lekgari

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available We investigate random-time state-dependent Foster-Lyapunov analysis on subgeometric rate ergodicity of continuous-time Markov chains (CTMCs. We are mainly concerned with making use of the available results on deterministic state-dependent drift conditions for CTMCs and on random-time state-dependent drift conditions for discrete-time Markov chains and transferring them to CTMCs.

  17. Jaws calibration method to get a homogeneous distribution of dose in the junction of hemi fields; Metodo de calibracion de mandibulas para conseguir una distribucion homogenea de dosis en la zona de union de hemicampos

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cenizo de Castro, E.; Garcia Pareja, S.; Moreno Saiz, C.; Hernandez Rodriguez, R.; Bodineau Gil, C.; Martin-Viera Cueto, J. A.

    2011-07-01

    Hemi fields treatments are widely used in radiotherapy. Because the tolerance established for the positioning of each jaw is 1 mm, may be cases of overlap or separation of up to 2 mm. This implies heterogeneity of doses up to 40% in the joint area. This paper presents an accurate method of calibration of the jaws so as to obtain homogeneous dose distributions when using this type of treatment. (Author)

  18. Covariant equations for the three-body bound state

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Stadler, A.; Gross, F.; Frank, M.

    1997-01-01

    The covariant spectator (or Gross) equations for the bound state of three identical spin 1/2 particles, in which two of the three interacting particles are always on shell, are developed and reduced to a form suitable for numerical solution. The equations are first written in operator form and compared to the Bethe-Salpeter equation, then expanded into plane wave momentum states, and finally expanded into partial waves using the three-body helicity formalism first introduced by Wick. In order to solve the equations, the two-body scattering amplitudes must be boosted from the overall three-body rest frame to their individual two-body rest frames, and all effects which arise from these boosts, including Wigner rotations and p-spin decomposition of the shell-particle, are treated exactly. In their final form, the equations reduce to a coupled set of Faddeev-like double integral equations with additional channels arising from the negative p-spin states of the off-shell particle

  19. Avoid, Control, Succumb, or Balance: Engineering Students' Approaches to a Wicked Sustainability Problem

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lönngren, Johanna; Ingerman, Åke; Svanström, Magdalena

    2017-08-01

    Wicked sustainability problems (WSPs) are an important and particularly challenging type of problem. Science and engineering education can play an important role in preparing students to deal with such problems, but current educational practice may not adequately prepare students to do so. We address this gap by providing insights related to students' abilities to address WSPs. Specifically, we aim to (I) describe key constituents of engineering students' approaches to a WSP, (II) evaluate these approaches in relation to the normative context of education for sustainable development (ESD), and (III) identify relevant aspects of learning related to WSPs. Aim I is addressed through a phenomenographic study, while aims II and III are addressed by relating the results to research literature about human problem solving, sustainable development, and ESD. We describe four qualitatively different ways of approaching a specific WSP, as the outcome of the phenomenographic study: A. Simplify and avoid, B. Divide and control, C. Isolate and succumb, and D. Integrate and balance. We identify approach D as the most appropriate approach in the context of ESD, while A and C are not. On this basis, we identify three learning objectives related to students' abilities to address WSPs: learn to use a fully integrative approach, distinguish WSPs from tame and well-structured problems, and understand and consider the normative context of SD. Finally, we provide recommendations for how these learning objectives can be used to guide the design of science and engineering educational activities.

  20. Exactly solvable quantum state reduction models with time-dependent coupling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brody, Dorje C; Constantinou, Irene C; Dear, James D C; Hughston, Lane P

    2006-01-01

    A closed-form solution to the energy-based stochastic Schroedinger equation with a time-dependent coupling is obtained. The solution is algebraic in character, and is expressed directly in terms of independent random data. The data consist of (i) a random variable H which has the distribution P(H=E i ) = π i , where π i is the transition probability vertical bar (ψ 0 vertical bar Φ i ) vertical bar 2 from the initial state vertical bar ψ 0 ) to the Lueders state vertical bar Φ i ) with energy E i , and (ii) an independent P-Brownian motion, where P is the physical probability measure associated with the dynamics of the reduction process. When the coupling is time independent, it is known that state reduction occurs asymptotically-that is to say, over an infinite time horizon. In the case of a time-dependent coupling, we show that if the magnitude of the coupling decreases sufficiently rapidly, then the energy variance will be reduced under the dynamics, but the state need not reach an energy eigenstate. This situation corresponds to the case of a 'partial' or 'incomplete' measurement of the energy. We also construct an example of a model where the opposite situation prevails, in which complete state reduction is achieved after the passage of a finite period of time

  1. Detection-dependent six-photon Holland-Burnett state interference

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jin, Rui-Bo; Fujiwara, Mikio; Shimizu, Ryosuke; Collins, Robert J.; Buller, Gerald S.; Yamashita, Taro; Miki, Shigehito; Terai, Hirotaka; Takeoka, Masahiro; Sasaki, Masahide

    2016-11-01

    The NOON state, and its experimental approximation the Holland-Burnett state, have important applications in phase sensing measurement with enhanced sensitivity. However, most of the previous Holland-Burnett state interference (HBSI) experiments only investigated the area of the interference pattern in the region immediately around zero optical path length difference, while the full HBSI pattern over a wide range of optical path length differences has not yet been well explored. In this work, we experimentally and theoretically demonstrate up to six-photon HBSI and study the properties of the interference patterns over a wide range of optical path length differences. It was found that the shape, the coherence time and the visibility of the interference patterns were strongly dependent on the detection schemes. This work paves the way for applications which are based on the envelope of the HBSI pattern, such as quantum spectroscopy and quantum metrology.

  2. Local Properties of Solutions to Non-Autonomous Parabolic PDEs with State-Dependent Delays

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Rezunenko, Oleksandr

    2012-01-01

    Roč. 2, č. 2 (2012), s. 56-71 ISSN 2158-611X R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GAP103/12/2431 Institutional support: RVO:67985556 Keywords : partial differential equations * state-dependent delay * invariance principle Subject RIV: BC - Control Systems Theory http://library.utia.cas.cz/separaty/2012/AS/rezunenko- local properties of solutions to non-autonomous parabolic PDEs with state-dependent delay s.pdf

  3. Biomechanical analysis of the fixation systems for anterior column and posterior hemi-transverse acetabular fractures.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lei, Jianyin; Dong, Pengfei; Li, Zhiqiang; Zhu, Feng; Wang, Zhihua; Cai, Xianhua

    2017-05-01

    The aim of this study was to evaluate the biomechanical properties of common fixation systems for complex acetabular fractures. A finite element (FE) pelvic model with anterior column and posterior hemi-transverse acetabular fractures was created. Three common fixation systems were used to fix the posterior wall acetabular fractures: 1. Anterior column plate combined with posterior column screws (group I), 2. Anterior column plate combined with quadrilateral area screws (group II) and 3. Double-column plates (group III). And 600 N, representing the body weight, was loaded on the upper surface of the sacrum to simulate the double-limb stance. The amounts of total and relative displacements were compared between the groups. The total amount of displacement was 2.76 mm in group II, 2.81 mm in group III, and 2.83 mm in group I. The amount of relative displacement was 0.0078 mm in group II, 0.0093 mm in group III and 0.014 mm in group I. Our results suggested that all fixation systems enhance biomechanical stability significantly. Anterior column plate combined with quadrilateral area screws has quite comparable results to double column plates, they were superior to anterior column plate combined with posterior screws. Copyright © 2017 Turkish Association of Orthopaedics and Traumatology. Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  4. Effects of self-esteem on state and trait components of interpersonal dependency and depression in the workplace.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Takagishi, Yukihiro; Sakata, Masatsugu; Kitamura, Toshinori

    2011-09-01

    This longitudinal study was undertaken to clarify the relationships among self-esteem, interpersonal dependency, and depression, focusing on a trait and state component of interpersonal dependency and depression. In a sample of 466 working people, self-esteem, interpersonal dependency, job stressor, and depression were assessed at 2 points of time. A structural equation model (SEM) was created to differentiate the trait component of interpersonal dependency, depression and the state component of interpersonal dependency, depression. The model revealed that self-esteem influenced trait interpersonal dependency and trait depression but not state interpersonal dependency or depression. Setting a latent variable as a trait component to differentiate trait and state in interpersonal dependency and depression in SEM was found to be effective both statistically and clinically. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  5. The role of age, gender, mood states and exercise frequency on exercise dependence.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Costa, Sebastiano; Hausenblas, Heather A; Oliva, Patrizia; Cuzzocrea, Francesca; Larcan, Rosalba

    2013-12-01

    The purpose of our study was to explore the prevalence, and the role of mood, exercise frequency, age, and gender differences of exercise dependence. Regular exercisers (N = 409) completed a socio-demographic questionnaire, the Exercise Dependence Scale, and the Profile of Mood States. For data analyses, the participants were stratified for sex and age (age ranges = young adults: 18-24 years, adults: 25-44 years, and middle-aged adults: 45-64 years). We found that: (a) 4.4% of the participants were classified as at-risk for exercise dependence; (b) the men and the two younger groups (i.e., young adults and adults) had higher exercise dependence scores; and (c) age, gender, exercise frequency, and mood state were related to exercise dependence. Our results support previous research on the prevalence of exercise dependence and reveal that adulthood may be the critical age for developing exercise dependence. These findings have practical implication for identifying individuals at-risk for exercise dependence symptoms, and may aid in targeting and guiding the implementation of prevention program for adults.

  6. Role of state-dependent learning in the cognitive effects of caffeine in mice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sanday, Leandro; Zanin, Karina A; Patti, Camilla L; Fernandes-Santos, Luciano; Oliveira, Larissa C; Longo, Beatriz M; Andersen, Monica L; Tufik, Sergio; Frussa-Filho, Roberto

    2013-08-01

    Caffeine is the most widely used psychoactive substance in the world and it is generally believed that it promotes beneficial effects on cognitive performance. However, there is also evidence suggesting that caffeine has inhibitory effects on learning and memory. Considering that caffeine may have anxiogenic effects, thus changing the emotional state of the subjects, state-dependent learning may play a role in caffeine-induced cognitive alterations. Mice were administered 20 mg/kg caffeine before training and/or before testing both in the plus-maze discriminative avoidance task (an animal model that concomitantly evaluates learning, memory, anxiety-like behaviour and general activity) and in the inhibitory avoidance task, a classic paradigm for evaluating memory in rodents. Pre-training caffeine administration did not modify learning, but produced an anxiogenic effect and impaired memory retention. While pre-test administration of caffeine did not modify retrieval on its own, the pre-test administration counteracted the memory deficit induced by the pre-training caffeine injection in both the plus-maze discriminative and inhibitory avoidance tasks. Our data demonstrate that caffeine-induced memory deficits are critically related to state-dependent learning, reinforcing the importance of considering the participation of state-dependency on the interpretation of the cognitive effects of caffeine. The possible participation of caffeine-induced anxiety alterations in state-dependent memory deficits is discussed.

  7. Thermal state of the general time-dependent harmonic oscillator

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Taking advantage of dynamical invariant operator, we derived quantum mechanical solution of general time-dependent harmonic oscillator. The uncertainty relation of the system is always larger than ħ=2 not only in number but also in the thermal state as expected. We used the diagonal elements of density operator ...

  8. State-Dependent Decoding Algorithms Improve the Performance of a Bidirectional BMI in Anesthetized Rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vito De Feo

    2017-05-01

    Full Text Available Brain-machine interfaces (BMIs promise to improve the quality of life of patients suffering from sensory and motor disabilities by creating a direct communication channel between the brain and the external world. Yet, their performance is currently limited by the relatively small amount of information that can be decoded from neural activity recorded form the brain. We have recently proposed that such decoding performance may be improved when using state-dependent decoding algorithms that predict and discount the large component of the trial-to-trial variability of neural activity which is due to the dependence of neural responses on the network's current internal state. Here we tested this idea by using a bidirectional BMI to investigate the gain in performance arising from using a state-dependent decoding algorithm. This BMI, implemented in anesthetized rats, controlled the movement of a dynamical system using neural activity decoded from motor cortex and fed back to the brain the dynamical system's position by electrically microstimulating somatosensory cortex. We found that using state-dependent algorithms that tracked the dynamics of ongoing activity led to an increase in the amount of information extracted form neural activity by 22%, with a consequently increase in all of the indices measuring the BMI's performance in controlling the dynamical system. This suggests that state-dependent decoding algorithms may be used to enhance BMIs at moderate computational cost.

  9. State-Dependent Decoding Algorithms Improve the Performance of a Bidirectional BMI in Anesthetized Rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    De Feo, Vito; Boi, Fabio; Safaai, Houman; Onken, Arno; Panzeri, Stefano; Vato, Alessandro

    2017-01-01

    Brain-machine interfaces (BMIs) promise to improve the quality of life of patients suffering from sensory and motor disabilities by creating a direct communication channel between the brain and the external world. Yet, their performance is currently limited by the relatively small amount of information that can be decoded from neural activity recorded form the brain. We have recently proposed that such decoding performance may be improved when using state-dependent decoding algorithms that predict and discount the large component of the trial-to-trial variability of neural activity which is due to the dependence of neural responses on the network's current internal state. Here we tested this idea by using a bidirectional BMI to investigate the gain in performance arising from using a state-dependent decoding algorithm. This BMI, implemented in anesthetized rats, controlled the movement of a dynamical system using neural activity decoded from motor cortex and fed back to the brain the dynamical system's position by electrically microstimulating somatosensory cortex. We found that using state-dependent algorithms that tracked the dynamics of ongoing activity led to an increase in the amount of information extracted form neural activity by 22%, with a consequently increase in all of the indices measuring the BMI's performance in controlling the dynamical system. This suggests that state-dependent decoding algorithms may be used to enhance BMIs at moderate computational cost.

  10. State-dependent bulk-boundary maps and black hole complementarity

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Papadodimas, Kyriakos; Raju, Suvrat

    2014-01-01

    We provide a simple and explicit construction of local bulk operators that describe the interior of a black hole in the AdS/CFT correspondence. The existence of these operators is predicated on the assumption that the mapping of CFT operators to local bulk operators depends on the state of the CFT.

  11. Hemi replacement arthroplasty for unstable inter-trochanteric fractures of femur.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Singh, Sudhir; Shrivastava, Chetan; Kumar, Sanjiv

    2014-10-01

    Unstable inter-trochanteric fracture in the geriatric population is a common injury and is associated with poor bone quality, excessive collapse, loss of fixation, and cut-out of the lag screw, are the common problems of attempts to fix these fractures. Present study is an attempt to evaluate the functional outcome of primary cemented bipolar hemiarthroplasty in unstable inter-trochanteric fractures in elderly patients. This prospective study included 25 cases with unstable inter-trochanteric fracture of femur between 60 -75 y of age in whom primary Cemented Bipolar hemi - arthroplasty was performed. The patients were followed up at six week, three month, six month and one year postoperatively and assessed using Harris Hip Score (HHS), Lower Extremity Functional Scale (LEFS), Visual analogue scale (VAS) for evaluation of outcome. The mean HHS score was 78.86+8.13 by the end of one year. Similarly mean LEFS score was 34.36+7.01 by the end of one year, whereas the mean pain score on VAS Scale by the year end was 1.04+1.02. The changes in HHS, LEFS and VAS up to six months periods are much greater which starts showing a stable trend thereafter. Fair to good scores were observed in all the patients. We compared our results with those reported by other authors and our study gave quite comparable results. We also used lower extremity function status score (LEFS) for assessment of functional ability. The purpose of its use was that while Harris Hip Score (HHS) provides information on a multitude of factors, LEFS is more patient oriented and provides the correct information about the level of activities a patient can resume post-operatively and can be offered as a self assessment tool. No significant complication except for grade I pressure sores in four patients were seen in postoperative period but they all resolved with proper nursing care by six week follow up. No patient required revision surgery. The authors believe that primary cemented bipolar hemiarthroplasty for

  12. Hemi-convulsion-hemiplegia syndrome revisited: longitudinal MRI findings in 10 children

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Barcia; Giulia; Chemaly, Nicole; Dulac, Olivier; Nabbout, Rima; Desguerre, Isabelle; Carmona, Orietta; Barnerias, Christine; Gitiaux, Cyril; Brunelle, Francis; Boddaert, Nathalie

    2013-01-01

    Hemi-convulsion-hemiplegia syndrome (HHS) is a rare severe epilepsy of infancy consisting of unilateral convulsive status epilepticus immediately followed by transient or lasting ipsilateral hemiplegia. HHS may occur either in patients with previous brain pathology or without any identified cause, so-called 'idiopathic HHS'. We retrospectively analysed clinical and MRI longitudinal findings of a series of 10 patients (six females, four males) presenting with HHS. Age at the study inclusion ranged from 2 years 6 months to 15 years (mean of 5 y 10 mo, median 4 y 2 mo). After defining magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) features as 'typical', i.e. strictly unilateral involvement, and 'atypical', i.e. bilateral, we compared clinical data from both groups. Cognitive level was assessed using Brunet-Lezine or Wechsler scales. HHS occurred at a mean age of 20.5 months (range 8-48 mo). In all cases, status epilepticus lasted for more than 1 hour and was characterised by unilateral clonic seizures followed by ipsilateral hemiplegia (persistent in five patients). Two patients in this series died: the first from multi-organ failure 2 weeks after the status epilepticus and the other from a second episode of ipsilateral intractable febrile status epilepticus 3 years after the first episode. Early MRI (days 1-7 from status epilepticus) showed hemispheric cytotoxic oedema in all, extending to the contralateral side for one. T2 hyperintensity in the basal ganglia was disclosed in 70% of patients and in the hippocampus in 60%. After 1 month (in intermediate and chronic phases), all surviving patients but one showed hemispheric cortical atrophy corresponding to the regions involved during the early stage. Comparing clinical features of patients presenting with 'typical' features, to those with 'atypical' findings, the second group presented psychomotor delay before status epilepticus. This series underlines the major value of early MRI

  13. Hemi-convulsion-hemiplegia syndrome revisited: longitudinal MRI findings in 10 children

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Barcia,; Giulia,; Chemaly, Nicole; Dulac, Olivier; Nabbout, Rima [Reference Centre for Rare Epilepsies, Department of Paediatric Neurology, Hopital Necker-Enfants malades, APHP, Paris (France); Inserm U663, Paris [France; University Paris Descartes, CEA, Gif sur Yvette (France); Desguerre, Isabelle; Carmona, Orietta; Barnerias, Christine; Gitiaux, Cyril [Reference Centre for Rare Epilepsies, Department of Paediatric Neurology, Hopital Necker-Enfants malades, APHP, Paris (France); Brunelle, Francis; Boddaert, Nathalie [Paediatric Radiology Department, Hopital Necker-Enfants malades, APHP, Paris, (France)

    2013-07-01

    Hemi-convulsion-hemiplegia syndrome (HHS) is a rare severe epilepsy of infancy consisting of unilateral convulsive status epilepticus immediately followed by transient or lasting ipsilateral hemiplegia. HHS may occur either in patients with previous brain pathology or without any identified cause, so-called 'idiopathic HHS'. We retrospectively analysed clinical and MRI longitudinal findings of a series of 10 patients (six females, four males) presenting with HHS. Age at the study inclusion ranged from 2 years 6 months to 15 years (mean of 5 y 10 mo, median 4 y 2 mo). After defining magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) features as 'typical', i.e. strictly unilateral involvement, and 'atypical', i.e. bilateral, we compared clinical data from both groups. Cognitive level was assessed using Brunet-Lezine or Wechsler scales. HHS occurred at a mean age of 20.5 months (range 8-48 mo). In all cases, status epilepticus lasted for more than 1 hour and was characterised by unilateral clonic seizures followed by ipsilateral hemiplegia (persistent in five patients). Two patients in this series died: the first from multi-organ failure 2 weeks after the status epilepticus and the other from a second episode of ipsilateral intractable febrile status epilepticus 3 years after the first episode. Early MRI (days 1-7 from status epilepticus) showed hemispheric cytotoxic oedema in all, extending to the contralateral side for one. T2 hyperintensity in the basal ganglia was disclosed in 70% of patients and in the hippocampus in 60%. After 1 month (in intermediate and chronic phases), all surviving patients but one showed hemispheric cortical atrophy corresponding to the regions involved during the early stage. Comparing clinical features of patients presenting with 'typical' features, to those with 'atypical' findings, the second group presented psychomotor delay before status epilepticus. This series underlines the major value of early MRI for the prompt diagnosis of HHS, and shows that

  14. Control of Thermodynamical System with Input-Dependent State Delays

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bendtsen, Jan Dimon; Krstic, Miroslav

    2013-01-01

    We consider control of a cooling system with several consumers that require cooling from a common source. The flow feeding coolant to the consumers can be controlled, but due to significant physical distances between the common source and the consumers, the coolant flow takes a non......-negligible amount of time to travel to the consumers, giving rise to input-dependent state delays. We first present a simple bilinear model of the system, followed by a state feedback control design that is able to stabilize the system at a chosen equilibrium in spite of the delays. We also present a heuristic...

  15. Existence results for impulsive evolution differential equations with state-dependent delay

    OpenAIRE

    Eduardo Hernandez M.; Rathinasamy Sakthivel; Sueli Tanaka Aki

    2008-01-01

    We study the existence of mild solution for impulsive evolution abstract differential equations with state-dependent delay. A concrete application to partial delayed differential equations is considered.

  16. Dependence of extinction cross-section on incident polarization state and particle orientation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yang Ping; Wendisch, Manfred; Bi Lei; Kattawar, George; Mishchenko, Michael; Hu, Yongxiang

    2011-01-01

    This note reports on the effects of the polarization state of an incident quasi-monochromatic parallel beam of radiation and the orientation of a hexagonal ice particle with respect to the incident direction on the extinction process. When the incident beam is aligned with the six-fold rotational symmetry axis, the extinction is independent of the polarization state of the incident light. For other orientations, the extinction cross-section for linearly polarized light can be either larger or smaller than its counterpart for an unpolarized incident beam. Therefore, the attenuation of a quasi-monochromatic radiation beam by an ice cloud depends on the polarization state of the beam if ice crystals within the cloud are not randomly oriented. Furthermore, a case study of the extinction of light by a quartz particle is also presented to illustrate the dependence of the extinction cross-section on the polarization state of the incident light.

  17. Energy dependency and sustainable regional development in the Baltic states: A review

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Štreimikienė Dalia

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Energy security is one of the most important indicators of sustainable regional development and 'green' growth in implementation of EU strategy Europe 2020. It can provide the harmonized development and cohesion of 'old' and 'new' EU member states. Our paper conducts a comparative study of energy dependency and energy security indicators in the Baltic States. The Baltic countries achieved enormous progress in the use of renewable energy sources and energy efficiency since their EU accession in 2004. The increase of renewable energy capacities in Baltic States also contributed to the reduction of energy intensity and carbon intensity of economy and energy import dependency. Our results show that amongst all three states, it was Estonia that had achieved the best results in increased use of renewables and energy efficiency improvements and had distinguished itself with the best indicators and economic and regional policy outcomes.

  18. Understanding of thermo-gravimetric analysis to calculate number of addends in multifunctional hemi-ortho ester derivatives of fullerenol

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Singh, Rachana; Goswami, Thakohari

    2011-01-01

    Test results for the applicability of existing thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA) technique to ascertain average number of exohedral chemical attachment in a new class of fullerene dyads consisting of multiple hemi-ortho esters onto fullerenol is presented. Although the method is nicely applicable for higher fullerenol, but homogeneous phase products calculate lower number of addends, whereas, the hetero phase products indicate higher value. Lower value is attributed to either overlapping of thermal events or substituents effects and higher value is the contribution of tetra butyl ammonium hydroxide (TBAH) impurity used as phase transfer catalyst (PTC) in heterogeneous phase reactions. Presence of TBAH impurity is recognized through thermo-gravimetry mass spectrometry (TG-MS) measurement. Appropriate modification of test method to arrive at accurate and precise values of x (total mass contribution due to addends only) and y (total mass contribution due to fullerene plus char yield) are also reported. Successful use of two more different techniques, viz., electron-spray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), supplement above results. Influences of fullerene and different substituents on thermal behavior of dyads are assessed.

  19. Robotic splenectomy with ex vivo bench surgery and hemi-spleen autotransplant: the first report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Giulianotti, Pier Cristoforo; Daskalaki, Despoina; Gonzalez-Ciccarelli, Luis F; Bianco, Francesco M

    2017-06-01

    We describe our experience with what is, to our knowledge, the first case of robotic assisted ex vivo partial splenectomy with auto-transplantation for a benign non parasitic cyst. The patient is a 32 year-old female with a giant, benign splenic cyst causing persistent abdominal pain. Preoperative imaging showed a cystic lesion measuring 8.3 × 7.6 cm, in the middle portion of the spleen. Due to the central location of the bulky lesion a partial splenectomy was not feasible. As an alternative to a total splenectomy, a possible reimplantation of hemi-spleen after bench surgery was offered. We proceeded with a robotic total splenectomy and bench hemisplenectomy, preserving the lower pole and a portion of the middle segment of the organ. A robotic reconstruction of the splenic vessels was then performed intra-abdominally. The reperfusion was optimal. The total operative time was 305 min, with 78 min of robotic time. Postoperative ultrasound confirmed a patent arterial and venous flow. The postoperative course was uneventful and the patient was discharged on postoperative day 4. The pathology report was consistent with epithelial cyst of the spleen. The patient is doing well at 6-month follow-up. The optimized vision and dexterity provided by the robotic system allowed a safe and precise reconstruction of the splenic vessels, even in a deep and narrow operative field. Partial splenectomy with autotransplantation of the organ was thus achieved, avoiding a total splenectomy in a young patient.

  20. Mixed hemi/ad-micelles coated magnetic nanoparticles for the entrapment of hemoglobin at the surface of a screen-printed carbon electrode and its direct electrochemistry and electrocatalysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Amiri-Aref, Mohaddeseh; Raoof, Jahan Bakhsh; Kiekens, Filip; De Wael, Karolien

    2015-12-15

    An efficient procedure for the physical entrapment of proteins within a biocompatible matrix and their immobilization on electrode surfaces is of utmost importance in the fabrication of biosensors. In this work, the magnetic entrapment of hemoglobin (Hb) at the surface of a screen-printed carbon electrode (SPCE), through mixed hemi/ad-micelles (MHAM) array of positively charged surfactant supported iron oxide magnetic nanoparticles (Mag-NPs), is reported. The Hb/MHAM@Mag-NPs biocomposite is captured at SPCE by a super magnet (Hb/MHAM@Mag-NPs/SPCE). To gain insight in the configuration of the mixed hemi/ad-micelles of CTAB at Mag-NPs, zeta-potential measurements were performed. The entrapment of Hb at MHAM@Mag-NPs was confirmed by cyclic voltammetry (CV), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). Direct electron transfer of the Hb intercalated into the composite film showed a pair of well-defined quasi-reversible redox peak at formal potential of -0.255 V vs. Ag/AgCl corresponding to heme Fe(III)/Fe(II) redox couple. It shows that the MHAM@Mag-NPs composite could increase the adsorption ability for Hb, thus provides a facile direct electron transfer between the Hb and the substrate. The proposed biosensor showed excellent electrocatalytic activity to the H2O2 reduction in the wide concentration range from 5.0 to 300.0 µM obtained by amperometric measurement. The Michaelis-Menten constant (Km) value of Hb at the modified electrode is 55.4 µM, showing its high affinity. Magnetic entrapment offers a promising design for fast, convenient and effective immobilization of protein within a few minutes for determination of the target molecule in low sample volume at disposable cost-effective SPCE. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  1. The angular dependence of spin-state energy splittings in the ? core

    Science.gov (United States)

    Groß, Lynn; Steenbock, Torben; Herrmann, Carmen

    2013-07-01

    Spin-state energy splittings are highly relevant for catalysis, molecular magnetism, and materials science, yet continue to pose a challenge for electronic structure methods. For a Fe2O2+ 2 core, we evaluate the bridging angle dependence of energy splittings between ferromagnetically and antiferromagnetically coupled states for different exchange-correlation functionals, and compare with complete active space self-consistent field (CASSCF) values, also including second-order perturbative corrections (CASPT2). CASSCF and CASPT2 yield strong antiferromagnetic coupling, with the smallest coupling at 100°, and a smooth dependence on the angle for Fe-O-Fe angles of 70° to 120°. Interestingly, this is qualitatively the same behaviour as often found for stable dinuclear transition metal complexes. While all functionals show the same angular dependence as CASPT2, they favour the antiferromagnetic state less strongly. Pure functionals such as BP86, BLYP, SSB-D, and TPSS come closer to the CASPT2 results (with energy splittings by about 60 kJ/mol smaller than the CASPT2 ones) than hybrid functionals. The hybrid functionals B3LYP, B3LYP⋆, and PBE0 favour the antiferromagnetic state even less strongly, resulting in ferromagnetic coupling for angles around 100°. The good qualitative agreement between CASPT2 and CASSCF on the one hand and CASPT2 and density functional theory on the other hand for angles between 70° and 110° suggests that the chosen active space of 18 electrons in 14 orbitals may be adequate for spin-state energy splitting of Fe2O2+ 2 in that region (possibly due to error cancellation), while angles of 60° or 120° may require larger active spaces. This study is complemented by an analysis of local spins, local charges, and CASSCF natural orbitals.

  2. Direct Yaw Control of Vehicle using State Dependent Riccati Equation with Integral Terms

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    SANDHU, F.

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available Direct yaw control of four-wheel vehicles using optimal controllers such as the linear quadratic regulator (LQR and the sliding mode controller (SMC either considers only certain parameters constant in the nonlinear equations of vehicle model or totally neglect their effects to obtain simplified models, resulting in loss of states for the system. In this paper, a modified state-dependent Ricatti equation method obtained by the simplification of the vehicle model is proposed. This method overcomes the problem of the lost states by including state integrals. The results of the proposed system are compared with the sliding mode slip controller and state-dependent Ricatti equation method using high fidelity vehicle model in the vehicle simulation software package, Carsim. Results show 38% reduction in the lateral velocity, 34% reduction in roll and 16% reduction in excessive yaw by only increasing the fuel consumption by 6.07%.

  3. Evidence for forcing-dependent steady states in a turbulent swirling flow.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saint-Michel, B; Dubrulle, B; Marié, L; Ravelet, F; Daviaud, F

    2013-12-06

    We study the influence on steady turbulent states of the forcing in a von Karman flow, at constant impeller speed, or at constant torque. We find that the different forcing conditions change the nature of the stability of the steady states and reveal dynamical regimes that bear similarities to low-dimensional systems. We suggest that this forcing dependence may be applicable to other turbulent systems.

  4. Capacity region of the 3 receiver state dependent multilevel BC with noncausal state information

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Viswanathan Ramachandran

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available We consider a three receiver state dependent multilevel broadcast channel (BC, where the state information is known non-causally at the encoder as well as all the decoders. This is an extension of Nair and El Gamal’s three receiver multilevel BC (Nair and El Gamal, 2009, wherein two of the receivers decode only a common message while a third receiver decodes a private message as well. The objective is to characterize the rate tuples that are simultaneously achievable while ensuring negligible probability of error at each of the receivers. We characterize the capacity region of this setup in the paper.

  5. Biodiesel unsaturation degree effects on diesel engine NOx emissions and cotton wick flame temperature

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Abdullah Mohd Fareez Edzuan

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available As compared with conventional diesel fuel, biodiesel has better lubricity and lower particulate matter (PM emissions however nitrogen oxides (NOx emissions generally increase in biodiesel-fuelled diesel engine. Strict regulation on NOx emissions is being implemented in current Euro 6 standard and it is expected to be tighter in next standard, thus increase of NOx cannot be accepted. In this study, biodiesel unsaturation degree effects on NOx emissions are investigated. Canola, palm and coconut oils are selected as the feedstock based on their unsaturation degree. Biodiesel blends of B20 were used to fuel a single cylinder diesel engine and exhaust emissions were sampled directly at exhaust tailpipe with a flue gas analyser. Biodiesel flame temperature was measured from a cotton wick burned in simple atmospheric conditions using a thermocouple. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR spectrometer was also used to identify the functional groups presence in the biodiesel blends. Oxygen content in biodiesel may promote complete combustion as the NOx emissions and flame temperatures were increased while the carbon monoxide (CO emissions were decreased for all biodiesel blends. It is interesting to note that the NOx emissions and flame temperatures were directly proportional with biodiesel unsaturation degree. It might be suggested that apart from excess oxygen and free radical formation, higher NOx emissions can also be caused by the elevated flame temperatures due to the presence of double bonds in unsaturated biodiesel.

  6. Remarks on the necessity and implications of state-dependence in the black hole interior

    Science.gov (United States)

    Papadodimas, Kyriakos; Raju, Suvrat

    2016-04-01

    We revisit the "state-dependence" of the map that we proposed recently between bulk operators in the interior of a large anti-de Sitter black hole and operators in the boundary CFT. By refining recent versions of the information paradox, we show that this feature is necessary for the CFT to successfully describe local physics behind the horizon—not only for single-sided black holes but even in the eternal black hole. We show that state-dependence is invisible to an infalling observer who cannot differentiate these operators from those of ordinary quantum effective field theory. Therefore the infalling observer does not observe any violations of quantum mechanics. We successfully resolve a large class of potential ambiguities in our construction. We analyze states where the CFT is entangled with another system and show that the ER =EPR conjecture emerges from our construction in a natural and precise form. We comment on the possible semiclassical origins of state-dependence.

  7. Remarks on the necessity and implications of state-dependence in the black hole interior

    CERN Document Server

    Papadodimas, Kyriakos

    2016-01-01

    We revisit the "state-dependence" of the map that we proposed recently between bulk operators in the interior of a large AdS black hole and operators in the boundary CFT. By refining recent versions of the information paradox, we show that this feature is necessary for the CFT to successfully describe local physics behind the horizon --- not only for single-sided black holes but even in the eternal black hole. We show that state-dependence is invisible to an infalling observer who cannot differentiate these operators from those of ordinary quantum effective field theory. Therefore the infalling observer does not observe any violations of quantum mechanics. We successfully resolve a large class of potential ambiguities in our construction. We analyze states where the CFT is entangled with another system and show that the ER=EPR conjecture emerges from our construction in a natural and precise form. We comment on the possible semi-classical origins of state-dependence.

  8. Glymphatic clearance controls state-dependent changes in brain lactate concentration

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lundgaard, Iben; Lu, Minh Lon; Yang, Ezra

    2017-01-01

    Brain lactate concentration is higher during wakefulness than in sleep. However, it is unknown why arousal is linked to an increase in brain lactate and why lactate declines within minutes of sleep. Here, we show that the glymphatic system is responsible for state-dependent changes in brain lacta......-lymphatic clearance. This analysis provides fundamental new insight into brain energy metabolism by demonstrating that glucose that is not fully oxidized can be exported as lactate via glymphatic-lymphatic fluid transport.......Brain lactate concentration is higher during wakefulness than in sleep. However, it is unknown why arousal is linked to an increase in brain lactate and why lactate declines within minutes of sleep. Here, we show that the glymphatic system is responsible for state-dependent changes in brain lactate...... concentration. Suppression of glymphatic function via acetazolamide treatment, cisterna magna puncture, aquaporin 4 deletion, or changes in body position reduced the decline in brain lactate normally observed when awake mice transition into sleep or anesthesia. Concurrently, the same manipulations diminished...

  9. Wicking of light hydrophobic liquid phase from water by pulverized rubber: Theoretical and experimental analyses.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boglaienko, Daria; Tansel, Berrin

    2017-03-05

    Pulverized rubber (PR) can be utilized for capturing floating oils to prevent spreading and volatilization of hydrocarbons. Experiments were conducted using PR with four different particle sizes (ranging from 0.075 to 0.600mm) and South Louisiana crude oil. The oil capture performance of the PR particles was compared with that of powdered activated carbon (AC). Oil-particle interactions were analyzed using capillary theories for lateral aggregation and wicking processes, as well as sorption capacity in relation to particle size. The sorption capacity (as oil to sorbent ratio) for PR with particle size 0.115mm (4.41g/g) was comparable to that of AC with particle size 0.187mm (5.00g/g). Sorption efficiency (oil:powder ratio, g/g) of the PR increased with decreasing particle size. Sorption of oil by PR occurred rapidly (in less than 10min) which indicated strong capillary action. No additional sorption occurred after 30min. For the PR sample with larger particle size (0.600-0.400mm), lateral aggregation was clearly noticeable. The PR-oil aggregates could be easily removed from the water surface without breaking. The cost, availability and recycling potential of PR make it a feasible alternative material for oil spill response and industrial applications which require removal of floating oils. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  10. The inverse Gamma process: A family of continuous stochastic models for describing state-dependent deterioration phenomena

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Guida, M.; Pulcini, G.

    2013-01-01

    This paper proposes the family of non-stationary inverse Gamma processes for modeling state-dependent deterioration processes with nonlinear trend. The proposed family of processes, which is based on the assumption that the “inverse” time process is Gamma, is mathematically more tractable than previously proposed state-dependent processes, because, unlike the previous models, the inverse Gamma process is a time-continuous and state-continuous model and does not require discretization of time and state. The conditional distribution of the deterioration growth over a generic time interval, the conditional distribution of the residual life and the residual reliability of the unit, given the current state, are provided. Point and interval estimation of the parameters which index the proposed process, as well as of several quantities of interest, are also discussed. Finally, the proposed model is applied to the wear process of the liners of some Diesel engines which was previously analyzed and proved to be a purely state-dependent process. The comparison of the inferential results obtained under the competitor models shows the ability of the Inverse Gamma process to adequately model the observed state-dependent wear process

  11. Witness memory and alcohol: The effects of state-dependent recall.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schreiber Compo, Nadja; Carol, Rolando N; Evans, Jacqueline R; Pimentel, Pamela; Holness, Howard; Nichols-Lopez, Kristin; Rose, Stefan; Furton, Kenneth G

    2017-04-01

    Many real-world eyewitnesses are under the influence of alcohol either at the time of the crime, the interview, or both. Only recently has empirical research begun to examine the effects of alcohol on witness memory, yielding mixed results. The present study tested the importance of state-dependent memory in the context of alcohol's effects on encoding versus retrieval of a witnessed event, while simultaneously informing real-world investigative practices: Should witnesses sober up before an interview? Participants (N = 249) were randomized to a control, placebo, or alcohol condition at encoding and to either an immediate retrieval condition (in the same state) or a 1-week delay control, placebo, or alcohol retrieval condition. They recalled a witnessed mock crime using open ended and cued recall formats. After a delay, witnesses intoxicated at both encoding and retrieval provided less accurate information than witnesses in sober or placebo groups at both times. There was no advantage of state-dependent memory but intoxicated witnesses were best when recalling immediately compared to 1 week later (sober, placebo, or reintoxicated). Findings have direct implications for the timing of intoxicated witnesses' interviews such that moderately intoxicated witnesses may not benefit from a sobering delay but rather, should be interviewed immediately. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

  12. Role of the pH in state-dependent blockade of hERG currents

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Yibo; Guo, Jiqing; Perissinotti, Laura L.; Lees-Miller, James; Teng, Guoqi; Durdagi, Serdar; Duff, Henry J.; Noskov, Sergei Yu.

    2016-10-01

    Mutations that reduce inactivation of the voltage-gated Kv11.1 potassium channel (hERG) reduce binding for a number of blockers. State specific block of the inactivated state of hERG block may increase risks of drug-induced Torsade de pointes. In this study, molecular simulations of dofetilide binding to the previously developed and experimentally validated models of the hERG channel in open and open-inactivated states were combined with voltage-clamp experiments to unravel the mechanism(s) of state-dependent blockade. The computations of the free energy profiles associated with the drug block to its binding pocket in the intra-cavitary site display startling differences in the open and open-inactivated states of the channel. It was also found that drug ionization may play a crucial role in preferential targeting to the open-inactivated state of the pore domain. pH-dependent hERG blockade by dofetilie was studied with patch-clamp recordings. The results show that low pH increases the extent and speed of drug-induced block. Both experimental and computational findings indicate that binding to the open-inactivated state is of key importance to our understanding of the dofetilide’s mode of action.

  13. A multiconfigurational time-dependent Hartree-Fock method for excited electronic states. I. General formalism and application to open-shell states.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miranda, R P; Fisher, A J; Stella, L; Horsfield, A P

    2011-06-28

    The solution of the time-dependent Schrödinger equation for systems of interacting electrons is generally a prohibitive task, for which approximate methods are necessary. Popular approaches, such as the time-dependent Hartree-Fock (TDHF) approximation and time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT), are essentially single-configurational schemes. TDHF is by construction incapable of fully accounting for the excited character of the electronic states involved in many physical processes of interest; TDDFT, although exact in principle, is limited by the currently available exchange-correlation functionals. On the other hand, multiconfigurational methods, such as the multiconfigurational time-dependent Hartree-Fock (MCTDHF) approach, provide an accurate description of the excited states and can be systematically improved. However, the computational cost becomes prohibitive as the number of degrees of freedom increases, and thus, at present, the MCTDHF method is only practical for few-electron systems. In this work, we propose an alternative approach which effectively establishes a compromise between efficiency and accuracy, by retaining the smallest possible number of configurations that catches the essential features of the electronic wavefunction. Based on a time-dependent variational principle, we derive the MCTDHF working equation for a multiconfigurational expansion with fixed coefficients and specialise to the case of general open-shell states, which are relevant for many physical processes of interest.

  14. [A Case with Metastatic Huge Ovarian Tumor from Transverse Colon Cancer, Who Underwent Systemic Chemotherapy after Bilateral Oophorectomy and Right Hemi Colectomy].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miyanari, Shun; Nagasaki, Toshiya; Minami, Hironori; Fukuoka, Hironori; Murahashi, Satoshi; Suzuki, Shinsuke; Ushigome, Hajime; Akiyoshi, Takashi; Konishi, Tsuyoshi; Fujimoto, Yoshiya; Nagayama, Satoshi; Fukunaga, Yosuke; Ueno, Masashi

    2017-11-01

    Metastatic ovarian tumors from colon cancer would be resistant to chemotherapy, and compromising quality of life(QOL) of these patients was caused by acute enlargement of the tumors. A 37-year-old woman with abdominal distension was diagnosed with transverse colon cancer, bilateral ovarian metastases, liver metastases, and peritoneal dissemination at prior hospital. Two courses of chemotherapy(FOLFOX)were administered, but metastaticovarian tumors enlarged. Chemotherapy was discontinued and she was referred to our institution. To achieve symptom relief, improving QOL, and to resume chemotherapy, we planned bilateral oophorectomy and primary tumor resection if other stenotic lesion was not present. As a result, we safely performed open bilateral oophorectomy and right hemi colectomy, and the patient discharged on postoperative day 11 without complications. Chemotherapy was resumed and continued for 7 months up to this time. Even though, curative resection could not be achieved, oophorectomy should be performed in patients with enlarged metastatic ovarian tumor from colon cancer, in spite of administration of chemotherapy.

  15. Decay of autoionizing states in time-dependent density functional and reduced density matrix functional theory

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kapoor, Varun; Brics, Martins; Bauer, Dieter [Institut fuer Physik, Universitaet Rostock, 18051 Rostock (Germany)

    2013-07-01

    Autoionizing states are inaccessible to time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) using known, adiabatic Kohn-Sham (KS) potentials. We determine the exact KS potential for a numerically exactly solvable model Helium atom interacting with a laser field that is populating an autoionizing state. The exact single-particle density of the population in the autoionizing state corresponds to that of the energetically lowest quasi-stationary state in the exact KS potential. We describe how this exact potential controls the decay by a barrier whose height and width allows for the density to tunnel out and decay with the same rate as in the ab initio time-dependent Schroedinger calculation. However, devising a useful exchange-correlation potential that is capable of governing such a scenario in general and in more complex systems is hopeless. As an improvement over TDDFT, time-dependent reduced density matrix functional theory has been proposed. We are able to obtain for the above described autoionization process the exact time-dependent natural orbitals (i.e., the eigenfunctions of the exact, time-dependent one-body reduced density matrix) and study the potentials that appear in the equations of motion for the natural orbitals and the structure of the two-body density matrix expanded in them.

  16. Cognitive Distortions in Depressed Women: Trait, or State Dependent?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sedat BATMAZ

    2015-12-01

    Conclusion: The results have revealed that self-criticism, helplessness, hopelessness and preoccupation with danger related distortions had trait-like features, whereas self-blame related distortions were state dependent. This has clinical implications for the psychotherapeutic treatment of cognitive distortions in depression. Specifically, self-criticism related distortions should be managed during cognitive therapy for depression since the other subscales seem rather problematic. [JCBPR 2015; 4(3.000: 147-152

  17. Isotope effect with energy-dependent density of states and impurities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Williams, P.J.; Carbotte, J.P.

    1992-01-01

    We have calculated the total isotope coefficient β in a model where there is energy-dependent structure in the electronic density of states. We model the structure with a simple Lorentzian. In our calculation, doping has the effect of shifting the Fermi level and broadening the structure in the density of states. We have treated the dopants both as normal and as magnetic impurities. The asymmetry observed in the experimental data is found in our results. However, the complete range of values observed is difficult to reproduce. We question also whether the shifts in Fermi level required in such models are reasonable

  18. Dependency of a therapy-resistant state of cancer cells on a lipid peroxidase pathway.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Viswanathan, Vasanthi S; Ryan, Matthew J; Dhruv, Harshil D; Gill, Shubhroz; Eichhoff, Ossia M; Seashore-Ludlow, Brinton; Kaffenberger, Samuel D; Eaton, John K; Shimada, Kenichi; Aguirre, Andrew J; Viswanathan, Srinivas R; Chattopadhyay, Shrikanta; Tamayo, Pablo; Yang, Wan Seok; Rees, Matthew G; Chen, Sixun; Boskovic, Zarko V; Javaid, Sarah; Huang, Cherrie; Wu, Xiaoyun; Tseng, Yuen-Yi; Roider, Elisabeth M; Gao, Dong; Cleary, James M; Wolpin, Brian M; Mesirov, Jill P; Haber, Daniel A; Engelman, Jeffrey A; Boehm, Jesse S; Kotz, Joanne D; Hon, Cindy S; Chen, Yu; Hahn, William C; Levesque, Mitchell P; Doench, John G; Berens, Michael E; Shamji, Alykhan F; Clemons, Paul A; Stockwell, Brent R; Schreiber, Stuart L

    2017-07-27

    Plasticity of the cell state has been proposed to drive resistance to multiple classes of cancer therapies, thereby limiting their effectiveness. A high-mesenchymal cell state observed in human tumours and cancer cell lines has been associated with resistance to multiple treatment modalities across diverse cancer lineages, but the mechanistic underpinning for this state has remained incompletely understood. Here we molecularly characterize this therapy-resistant high-mesenchymal cell state in human cancer cell lines and organoids and show that it depends on a druggable lipid-peroxidase pathway that protects against ferroptosis, a non-apoptotic form of cell death induced by the build-up of toxic lipid peroxides. We show that this cell state is characterized by activity of enzymes that promote the synthesis of polyunsaturated lipids. These lipids are the substrates for lipid peroxidation by lipoxygenase enzymes. This lipid metabolism creates a dependency on pathways converging on the phospholipid glutathione peroxidase (GPX4), a selenocysteine-containing enzyme that dissipates lipid peroxides and thereby prevents the iron-mediated reactions of peroxides that induce ferroptotic cell death. Dependency on GPX4 was found to exist across diverse therapy-resistant states characterized by high expression of ZEB1, including epithelial-mesenchymal transition in epithelial-derived carcinomas, TGFβ-mediated therapy-resistance in melanoma, treatment-induced neuroendocrine transdifferentiation in prostate cancer, and sarcomas, which are fixed in a mesenchymal state owing to their cells of origin. We identify vulnerability to ferroptic cell death induced by inhibition of a lipid peroxidase pathway as a feature of therapy-resistant cancer cells across diverse mesenchymal cell-state contexts.

  19. Properties of natural and synthetic hydroxyapatite and their surface free energy determined by the thin-layer wicking method

    Science.gov (United States)

    Szcześ, Aleksandra; Yan, Yingdi; Chibowski, Emil; Hołysz, Lucyna; Banach, Marcin

    2018-03-01

    Surface free energy is one of the parameters accompanying interfacial phenomena, occurring also in the biological systems. In this study the thin layer wicking method was used to determine surface free energy and its components for synthetic hydroxyapatite (HA) and natural one obtained from pig bones. The Raman, FTIR and X-Ray photoelectron spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction techniques and thermal analysis showed that both samples consist of carbonated hydroxyapatite without any organic components. Surface free energy and its apolar and polar components were found to be similar for both investigated samples and equalled γSTOT = 52.4 mJ/m2, γSLW = 40.2 mJ/m2 and γSAB = 12.3 mJ/m2 for the synthetic HA and γSTOT = 54.6 mJ/m2, γSLW = 40.3 mJ/m2 and γSAB = 14.3 mJ/m2 for the natural one. Both HA samples had different electron acceptor (γs+) and electron donor (γs-) parameters. The higher value of the electron acceptor was found for the natural HA whereas the electron donor one was higher for the synthetic HA

  20. Derivation of the RPA (Random Phase Approximation) Equation of ATDDFT (Adiabatic Time Dependent Density Functional Ground State Response Theory) from an Excited State Variational Approach Based on the Ground State Functional.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ziegler, Tom; Krykunov, Mykhaylo; Autschbach, Jochen

    2014-09-09

    The random phase approximation (RPA) equation of adiabatic time dependent density functional ground state response theory (ATDDFT) has been used extensively in studies of excited states. It extracts information about excited states from frequency dependent ground state response properties and avoids, thus, in an elegant way, direct Kohn-Sham calculations on excited states in accordance with the status of DFT as a ground state theory. Thus, excitation energies can be found as resonance poles of frequency dependent ground state polarizability from the eigenvalues of the RPA equation. ATDDFT is approximate in that it makes use of a frequency independent energy kernel derived from the ground state functional. It is shown in this study that one can derive the RPA equation of ATDDFT from a purely variational approach in which stationary states above the ground state are located using our constricted variational DFT (CV-DFT) method and the ground state functional. Thus, locating stationary states above the ground state due to one-electron excitations with a ground state functional is completely equivalent to solving the RPA equation of TDDFT employing the same functional. The present study is an extension of a previous work in which we demonstrated the equivalence between ATDDFT and CV-DFT within the Tamm-Dancoff approximation.

  1. On time transformations for differential equations with state-dependent delay

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Rezunenko, Oleksandr

    2014-01-01

    Roč. 12, č. 2 (2014), s. 298-307 ISSN 1895-1074 R&D Projects: GA ČR GAP103/12/2431 Institutional support: RVO:67985556 Keywords : differential equations * state-dependent delay * time transformations Subject RIV: BD - Theory of Information Impact factor: 0.578, year: 2014 http://library.utia.cas.cz/separaty/2014/AS/rezunenko-0429130.pdf

  2. The United States facing their petroleum dependence; Les Etats-Unis face a leur dependance petroliere

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Noel, P. [Institut francais des Relations Internationals, 75 - Paris (France); Universite Pierre Mendes-France-IEPE-CNRS, 38 - Grenoble (France)

    2002-06-01

    In the framework of ''the energy crisis of 2000-2001'', the Cheney report and the petroleum dependence, this study presents a critical examination of the United States petroleum situation, its perception in the american political milieu and the public policies implementing during the last ten years. The first section is devoted to the petroleum supply. In the second section, the american petroleum policy and the energy safety are studied. (A.L.B.)

  3. The effect of state dependent mandate laws on the labor supply decisions of young adults.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Depew, Briggs

    2015-01-01

    Prior to the Affordable Care Act, the majority of states in the U.S. had already implemented state laws that extended the age that young adults could enroll as dependents on their parent's employer-based health insurance plans. Because of the fundamental link between health insurance and employment in the U.S., such policies may effect the labor supply decisions of young adults. Although the interaction between labor supply and health insurance has been extensively studied for other subpopulations, little is known about the role of health insurance in the labor supply decisions of young adults. I use the variation from the implementation and changes in state policies that expanded dependent health insurance coverage to examine how young adults adjusted their labor supply when they were able to be covered as a dependent on their parent's plan. I find that these state mandates led to a decrease in labor supply on the intensive margin. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  4. Adaptive camouflage: what can be learned from the wetting behaviour of the tropical flat bugs Dysodius lunatus and Dysodius magnus

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Florian Hischen

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available The neotropical flat bug species Dysodius lunatus and Dysodius magnus show a fascinating camouflage principle, as their appearance renders the animal hardly visible on the bark of trees. However, when getting wet due to rain, bark changes its colour and gets darker. In order to keep the camouflage effect, it seems that some Dysodius species benefit from their ability to hold a water film on their cuticle and therefore change their optical properties when also wetted by water. This camouflage behaviour requires the insect to have a hydrophilic surface and passive surface structures which facilitate the liquid spreading. Here we show morphological and chemical characterisations of the surface, especially the cuticular waxes of D. magnus. Scanning electron microscopy revealed that the animal is covered with pillar-like microstructures which, in combination with a surprising chemical hydrophilicity of the cuticle waxes, render the bug almost superhydrophilic: water spreads immediately across the surface. We could theoretically model this behaviour assuming the effect of hemi-wicking (a state in which a droplet sits on a rough surface, partwise imbibing the structure around.  Additionally the principle was abstracted and a laser-patterned polymer surface, mimicking the structure and contact angle of Dysodius wax, shows exactly the behaviour of the natural role model – immediate spreading of water and the formation of a thin continuous water film changing optical properties of the surface.

  5. Adaptive camouflage: what can be learned from the wetting behaviour of the tropical flat bugs Dysodius lunatus and Dysodiusmagnus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hischen, Florian; Reiswich, Vladislav; Kupsch, Desirée; De Mecquenem, Ninon; Riedel, Michael; Himmelsbach, Markus; Weth, Agnes; Heiss, Ernst; Armbruster, Oskar; Heitz, Johannes; Baumgartner, Werner

    2017-08-15

    The neotropical flat bug species Dysodius lunatus and Dysodius magnus show a fascinating camouflage principle, as their appearance renders the animal hardly visible on the bark of trees. However, when getting wet due to rain, bark changes its colour and gets darker. In order to keep the camouflage effect, it seems that some Dysodius species benefit from their ability to hold a water film on their cuticle and therefore change their optical properties when also wetted by water. This camouflage behaviour requires the insect to have a hydrophilic surface and passive surface structures which facilitate the liquid spreading. Here we show morphological and chemical characterisations of the surface, especially the cuticular waxes of D. magnus Scanning electron microscopy revealed that the animal is covered with pillar-like microstructures which, in combination with a surprising chemical hydrophilicity of the cuticle waxes, render the bug almost superhydrophilic: water spreads immediately across the surface. We could theoretically model this behaviour assuming the effect of hemi-wicking (a state in which a droplet sits on a rough surface, partwise imbibing the structure around).  Additionally the principle was abstracted and a laser-patterned polymer surface, mimicking the structure and contact angle of Dysodius wax, shows exactly the behaviour of the natural role model - immediate spreading of water and the formation of a thin continuous water film changing optical properties of the surface. © 2017. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

  6. Triplet state photochemistry and the three-state crossing of acetophenone within time-dependent density-functional theory

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Huix-Rotllant, Miquel, E-mail: miquel.huix@gmail.com; Ferré, Nicolas, E-mail: nicolas.ferre@univ-amu.fr [Institut de Chimie Radicalaire (UMR-7273), Aix-Marseille Université, CNRS, 13397 Marseille Cedex 20 (France)

    2014-04-07

    Even though time-dependent density-functional theory (TDDFT) works generally well for describing excited states energies and properties in the Franck-Condon region, it can dramatically fail in predicting photochemistry, notably when electronic state crossings occur. Here, we assess the ability of TDDFT to describe the photochemistry of an important class of triplet sensitizers, namely, aromatic ketones. We take acetophenone as a test molecule, for which accurate ab initio results exist in the literature. Triplet acetophenone is generated thanks to an exotic three-state crossing involving one singlet and two triplets states (i.e., a simultaneous intersystem crossing and triplet conical intersection), thus being a stringent test for approximate TDDFT. We show that most exchange-correlation functionals can only give a semi-qualitative picture of the overall photochemistry, in which the three-state crossing is rather represented as a triplet conical intersection separated from the intersystem crossing. The best result overall is given by the double hybrid functional mPW2PLYP, which is even able to reproduce quantitatively the three-state crossing region. We rationalize this results by noting that double hybrid functionals include a larger portion of double excitation character to the excited states.

  7. Existence of periodic solutions for Rayleigh equations with state-dependent delay

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jehad O. Alzabut

    2012-05-01

    Full Text Available We establish sufficient conditions for the existence of periodic solutions for a Rayleigh-type equation with state-dependent delay. Our approach is based on the continuation theorem in degree theory, and some analysis techniques. An example illustrates that our approach to this problem is new.

  8. Uncovering state-dependent relationships in shallow lakes using Bayesian latent variable regression.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vitense, Kelsey; Hanson, Mark A; Herwig, Brian R; Zimmer, Kyle D; Fieberg, John

    2018-03-01

    Ecosystems sometimes undergo dramatic shifts between contrasting regimes. Shallow lakes, for instance, can transition between two alternative stable states: a clear state dominated by submerged aquatic vegetation and a turbid state dominated by phytoplankton. Theoretical models suggest that critical nutrient thresholds differentiate three lake types: highly resilient clear lakes, lakes that may switch between clear and turbid states following perturbations, and highly resilient turbid lakes. For effective and efficient management of shallow lakes and other systems, managers need tools to identify critical thresholds and state-dependent relationships between driving variables and key system features. Using shallow lakes as a model system for which alternative stable states have been demonstrated, we developed an integrated framework using Bayesian latent variable regression (BLR) to classify lake states, identify critical total phosphorus (TP) thresholds, and estimate steady state relationships between TP and chlorophyll a (chl a) using cross-sectional data. We evaluated the method using data simulated from a stochastic differential equation model and compared its performance to k-means clustering with regression (KMR). We also applied the framework to data comprising 130 shallow lakes. For simulated data sets, BLR had high state classification rates (median/mean accuracy >97%) and accurately estimated TP thresholds and state-dependent TP-chl a relationships. Classification and estimation improved with increasing sample size and decreasing noise levels. Compared to KMR, BLR had higher classification rates and better approximated the TP-chl a steady state relationships and TP thresholds. We fit the BLR model to three different years of empirical shallow lake data, and managers can use the estimated bifurcation diagrams to prioritize lakes for management according to their proximity to thresholds and chance of successful rehabilitation. Our model improves upon

  9. Importance of GluA1 subunit-containing AMPA glutamate receptors for morphine state-dependency.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Teemu Aitta-aho

    Full Text Available In state-dependency, information retrieval is most efficient when the animal is in the same state as it was during the information acquisition. State-dependency has been implicated in a variety of learning and memory processes, but its mechanisms remain to be resolved. Here, mice deficient in AMPA-type glutamate receptor GluA1 subunits were first conditioned to morphine (10 or 20 mg/kg s.c. during eight sessions over four days using an unbiased procedure, followed by testing for conditioned place preference at morphine states that were the same as or different from the one the mice were conditioned to. In GluA1 wildtype littermate mice the same-state morphine dose produced the greatest expression of place preference, while in the knockout mice no place preference was then detected. Both wildtype and knockout mice expressed moderate morphine-induced place preference when not at the morphine state (saline treatment at the test; in this case, place preference was weaker than that in the same-state test in wildtype mice. No correlation between place preference scores and locomotor activity during testing was found. Additionally, as compared to the controls, the knockout mice showed unchanged sensitization to morphine, morphine drug discrimination and brain regional μ-opioid receptor signal transduction at the G-protein level. However, the knockout mice failed to show increased AMPA/NMDA receptor current ratios in the ventral tegmental area dopamine neurons of midbrain slices after a single injection of morphine (10 mg/kg, s.c., sliced prepared 24 h afterwards, in contrast to the wildtype mice. The results indicate impaired drug-induced state-dependency in GluA1 knockout mice, correlating with impaired opioid-induced glutamate receptor neuroplasticity.

  10. The necessity of the Hadamard condition

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fewster, Christopher J; Verch, Rainer

    2013-01-01

    Hadamard states are generally considered as the physical states for linear quantized fields on curved spacetimes, for several good reasons. Here, we provide a new motivation for the Hadamard condition: for ‘ultrastatic slab spacetimes’ with compact Cauchy-surface, we show that the Wick squares of all time-derivatives of the quantized Klein–Gordon field have finite fluctuations only if the Wick-ordering is defined with respect to a Hadamard state. This provides a converse to an important result of Brunetti and Fredenhagen. The recently proposed ‘S-J (Sorkin–Johnston) states’ are shown, generically, to give infinite fluctuations for the Wick square of the time-derivative of the field, further limiting their utility as reasonable states. Motivated by the S-J construction, we also study the general question of extending states that are pure (or given by density matrices relative to a pure state) on a double-cone region of Minkowski space. We prove a result for general quantum field theories showing that such states cannot be extended to any larger double cone without encountering singular behaviour at the spacelike boundary of the inner region. In the context of the Klein–Gordon field this shows that even if an S-J state is Hadamard within the double cone, this must fail at the boundary. (paper)

  11. State-dependent differential Riccati equation to track control of time-varying systems with state and control nonlinearities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Korayem, M H; Nekoo, S R

    2015-07-01

    This work studies an optimal control problem using the state-dependent Riccati equation (SDRE) in differential form to track for time-varying systems with state and control nonlinearities. The trajectory tracking structure provides two nonlinear differential equations: the state-dependent differential Riccati equation (SDDRE) and the feed-forward differential equation. The independence of the governing equations and stability of the controller are proven along the trajectory using the Lyapunov approach. Backward integration (BI) is capable of solving the equations as a numerical solution; however, the forward solution methods require the closed-form solution to fulfill the task. A closed-form solution is introduced for SDDRE, but the feed-forward differential equation has not yet been obtained. Different ways of solving the problem are expressed and analyzed. These include BI, closed-form solution with corrective assumption, approximate solution, and forward integration. Application of the tracking problem is investigated to control robotic manipulators possessing rigid or flexible joints. The intention is to release a general program for automatic implementation of an SDDRE controller for any manipulator that obeys the Denavit-Hartenberg (D-H) principle when only D-H parameters are received as input data. Copyright © 2015 ISA. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. Periodic solution for state-dependent impulsive shunting inhibitory CNNs with time-varying delays.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Şaylı, Mustafa; Yılmaz, Enes

    2015-08-01

    In this paper, we consider existence and global exponential stability of periodic solution for state-dependent impulsive shunting inhibitory cellular neural networks with time-varying delays. By means of B-equivalence method, we reduce these state-dependent impulsive neural networks system to an equivalent fix time impulsive neural networks system. Further, by using Mawhin's continuation theorem of coincide degree theory and employing a suitable Lyapunov function some new sufficient conditions for existence and global exponential stability of periodic solution are obtained. Previous results are improved and extended. Finally, we give an illustrative example with numerical simulations to demonstrate the effectiveness of our theoretical results. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. A multi-substrate approach for functional metagenomics-based screening for (hemi)cellulases in two wheat straw-degrading microbial consortia unveils novel thermoalkaliphilic enzymes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maruthamuthu, Mukil; Jiménez, Diego Javier; Stevens, Patricia; van Elsas, Jan Dirk

    2016-01-28

    Functional metagenomics is a promising strategy for the exploration of the biocatalytic potential of microbiomes in order to uncover novel enzymes for industrial processes (e.g. biorefining or bleaching pulp). Most current methodologies used to screen for enzymes involved in plant biomass degradation are based on the use of single substrates. Moreover, highly diverse environments are used as metagenomic sources. However, such methods suffer from low hit rates of positive clones and hence the discovery of novel enzymatic activities from metagenomes has been hampered. Here, we constructed fosmid libraries from two wheat straw-degrading microbial consortia, denoted RWS (bred on untreated wheat straw) and TWS (bred on heat-treated wheat straw). Approximately 22,000 clones from each library were screened for (hemi)cellulose-degrading enzymes using a multi-chromogenic substrate approach. The screens yielded 71 positive clones for both libraries, giving hit rates of 1:440 and 1:1,047 for RWS and TWS, respectively. Seven clones (NT2-2, T5-5, NT18-17, T4-1, 10BT, NT18-21 and T17-2) were selected for sequence analyses. Their inserts revealed the presence of 18 genes encoding enzymes belonging to twelve different glycosyl hydrolase families (GH2, GH3, GH13, GH17, GH20, GH27, GH32, GH39, GH53, GH58, GH65 and GH109). These encompassed several carbohydrate-active gene clusters traceable mainly to Klebsiella related species. Detailed functional analyses showed that clone NT2-2 (containing a beta-galactosidase of ~116 kDa) had highest enzymatic activity at 55 °C and pH 9.0. Additionally, clone T5-5 (containing a beta-xylosidase of ~86 kDa) showed > 90% of enzymatic activity at 55 °C and pH 10.0. This study employed a high-throughput method for rapid screening of fosmid metagenomic libraries for (hemi)cellulose-degrading enzymes. The approach, consisting of screens on multi-substrates coupled to further analyses, revealed high hit rates, as compared with recent other studies. Two

  14. Effects Of Solid State Fermentation By Aspergillus niger and ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    fermentation and incubated for O (control), 4,8 and 10 days to evaluate the changes in crude protein (CP), crude fibre (CF), neutral detergent fibre (NDF), acid detergent fibre (ADF) and hemicellulose (HEMI). Ten days after inoculation of Cassava peel meal (CPM) with Aspergillus niger, the crude protein increased from ...

  15. Andreev Bound States Formation and Quasiparticle Trapping in Quench Dynamics Revealed by Time-Dependent Counting Statistics.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Souto, R Seoane; Martín-Rodero, A; Yeyati, A Levy

    2016-12-23

    We analyze the quantum quench dynamics in the formation of a phase-biased superconducting nanojunction. We find that in the absence of an external relaxation mechanism and for very general conditions the system gets trapped in a metastable state, corresponding to a nonequilibrium population of the Andreev bound states. The use of the time-dependent full counting statistics analysis allows us to extract information on the asymptotic population of even and odd many-body states, demonstrating that a universal behavior, dependent only on the Andreev state energy, is reached in the quantum point contact limit. These results shed light on recent experimental observations on quasiparticle trapping in superconducting atomic contacts.

  16. On the construction of coherent states of position dependent mass Schroedinger equation endowed with effective potential

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chithiika Ruby, V.; Senthilvelan, M.

    2010-01-01

    In this paper, we propose an algorithm to construct coherent states for an exactly solvable position dependent mass Schroedinger equation. We use point canonical transformation method and obtain ground state eigenfunction of the position dependent mass Schroedinger equation. We fix the ladder operators in the deformed form and obtain explicit expression of the deformed superpotential in terms of mass distribution and its derivative. We also prove that these deformed operators lead to minimum uncertainty relations. Further, we illustrate our algorithm with two examples, in which the coherent states given for the second example are new.

  17. Performance of a domestic cooking wick stove using fatty acid methyl esters (FAME) from oil plants in Kenya

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wagutu, Agatha W.; Chhabra, Sumesh C.; Lang' at-Thoruwa, Caroline C. [Department of Chemistry, Kenyatta University, P.O. Box 43844-0100, Nairobi (Kenya); Thoruwa, Thomas F.N. [Department of Energy Engineering, Kenyatta University, P.O. Box 43844, Nairobi (Kenya); Mahunnah, R.L.A. [University of Dar-es Salaam, Muhimbili College of Medicine, P.O. Box 53486, Dar-es Salaam (Tanzania)

    2010-08-15

    With depletion of solid biomass fuels and their rising costs in recent years, there has been a shift towards using kerosene and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) for domestic cooking in Kenya. However, the use of kerosene is associated with health and safety problems. Therefore, it is necessary to develop a clean, safe and sustainable liquid bio-fuel. Plant oil derivatives fatty acid methyl esters (FAME) present such a promising solution. This paper presents the performance of a wick stove using FAME fuels derived from oil plants: Jatropha curcus L. (Physic nut), Croton megalocarpus Hutch, Calodendrum capense (L.f.) Thunb., Cocos nucifera L. (coconut), soyabeans and sunflower. The FAME performance tests were based on the standard water-boiling tests (WBT) and compared with kerosene. Unlike kerosene all FAME fuels burned with odorless and non-pungent smell generating an average firepower of 1095 W with specific fuel consumption of 44.6 g L{sup -1} (55% higher than kerosene). The flash points of the FAME fuels obtained were typically much higher (2.3-3.3 times) than kerosene implying that they are much safer to use than kerosene. From the results obtained, it was concluded that the FAME fuels have potential to provide safe and sustainable cooking liquid fuel in developing countries. (author)

  18. Performance of a domestic cooking wick stove using fatty acid methyl esters (FAME) from oil plants in Kenya

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wagutu, Agatha W.; Thoruwa, Thomas F.N.; Chhabra, Sumesh C.; Lang'at-Thoruwa, Caroline C.; Mahunnah, R.L.A.

    2010-01-01

    With depletion of solid biomass fuels and their rising costs in recent years, there has been a shift towards using kerosene and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) for domestic cooking in Kenya. However, the use of kerosene is associated with health and safety problems. Therefore, it is necessary to develop a clean, safe and sustainable liquid bio-fuel. Plant oil derivatives fatty acid methyl esters (FAME) present such a promising solution. This paper presents the performance of a wick stove using FAME fuels derived from oil plants: Jatropha curcus L. (Physic nut), Croton megalocarpus Hutch, Calodendrum capense (L.f.) Thunb., Cocos nucifera L. (coconut), soyabeans and sunflower. The FAME performance tests were based on the standard water-boiling tests (WBT) and compared with kerosene. Unlike kerosene all FAME fuels burned with odorless and non-pungent smell generating an average firepower of 1095 W with specific fuel consumption of 44.6 g L -1 (55% higher than kerosene). The flash points of the FAME fuels obtained were typically much higher (2.3-3.3 times) than kerosene implying that they are much safer to use than kerosene. From the results obtained, it was concluded that the FAME fuels have potential to provide safe and sustainable cooking liquid fuel in developing countries.

  19. Consolidation in older adults depends upon competition between resting-state networks

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Heidi IL Jacobs

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Memory encoding and retrieval problems are inherent to aging. To date, however, the effect of aging upon the neural correlates of forming memory traces remains poorly understood. Resting-state fMRI connectivity can be used to investigate initial consolidation. We compared within and between network connectivity differences between healthy young and older participants before encoding, after encoding and before retrieval by means of resting-state fMRI. Alterations over time in the between-network connectivity analyses correlated with retrieval performance, whereas within-network connectivity did not: a higher level of negative coupling or competition between the default mode and the executive networks during the after encoding condition was associated with increased retrieval performance in the older adults, but not in the young group. Data suggest that the effective formation of memory traces depends on an age-dependent, dynamic reorganization of the interaction between multiple, large-scale functional networks. Our findings demonstrate that a cross-network based approach can further the understanding of the neural underpinnings of aging- associated memory decline.

  20. Predicting behavioural responses to novel organisms: state-dependent detection theory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Trimmer, Pete C; Ehlman, Sean M; Sih, Andrew

    2017-01-25

    Human activity alters natural habitats for many species. Understanding variation in animals' behavioural responses to these changing environments is critical. We show how signal detection theory can be used within a wider framework of state-dependent modelling to predict behavioural responses to a major environmental change: novel, exotic species. We allow thresholds for action to be a function of reserves, and demonstrate how optimal thresholds can be calculated. We term this framework 'state-dependent detection theory' (SDDT). We focus on behavioural and fitness outcomes when animals continue to use formerly adaptive thresholds following environmental change. In a simple example, we show that exposure to novel animals which appear dangerous-but are actually safe-(e.g. ecotourists) can have catastrophic consequences for 'prey' (organisms that respond as if the new organisms are predators), significantly increasing mortality even when the novel species is not predatory. SDDT also reveals that the effect on reproduction can be greater than the effect on lifespan. We investigate factors that influence the effect of novel organisms, and address the potential for behavioural adjustments (via evolution or learning) to recover otherwise reduced fitness. Although effects of environmental change are often difficult to predict, we suggest that SDDT provides a useful route ahead. © 2017 The Author(s).

  1. Predicting behavioural responses to novel organisms: state-dependent detection theory

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sih, Andrew

    2017-01-01

    Human activity alters natural habitats for many species. Understanding variation in animals' behavioural responses to these changing environments is critical. We show how signal detection theory can be used within a wider framework of state-dependent modelling to predict behavioural responses to a major environmental change: novel, exotic species. We allow thresholds for action to be a function of reserves, and demonstrate how optimal thresholds can be calculated. We term this framework ‘state-dependent detection theory’ (SDDT). We focus on behavioural and fitness outcomes when animals continue to use formerly adaptive thresholds following environmental change. In a simple example, we show that exposure to novel animals which appear dangerous—but are actually safe—(e.g. ecotourists) can have catastrophic consequences for ‘prey’ (organisms that respond as if the new organisms are predators), significantly increasing mortality even when the novel species is not predatory. SDDT also reveals that the effect on reproduction can be greater than the effect on lifespan. We investigate factors that influence the effect of novel organisms, and address the potential for behavioural adjustments (via evolution or learning) to recover otherwise reduced fitness. Although effects of environmental change are often difficult to predict, we suggest that SDDT provides a useful route ahead. PMID:28100814

  2. Dealing with Multi-Level Governance and Wicked Problems in Urban Transportation Systems: The Case of Palermo Municipality

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Guido Noto

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available Italian New Public Management (NPM has been mainly characterized by a political orientation toward power decentralization to local governments and privatization of public companies. Nowadays, local utilities in Italy are often run by joint stock companies controlled by public agencies such as Regional and Municipal Administrations. Due to this transformation, these companies must comply with a set of diverse expectations coming from a wide range of stakeholders, related to their financial, competitive and social performance. Such fragmented governance increases the presence of “wicked” problems in the decision-making sphere of these entities. Given this multi-level governance structure, how do these agents influence public services performance? In recent years, coordination and inter-institutional joint action have been identified as possible approaches for dealing with governance fragmentation and wicked problems deriving from it. How can we adapt a performance management perspective in order to help us reform the system and so have a better collaboration between the stakeholders involved? In order to address and discuss these research questions, a case study will be developed. The case concerns AMAT, the local utility providing the public transportation service in the Municipality of Palermo (Italy. The result of this study is a dynamic model including a set of performance indicators that help us in understanding the impact of the governing structure on the system’s performance.

  3. Noise-intolerance and state-dependent factors in patients with whiplash associated disorder

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Blokhorst, M.G.B.G.; Meeldijk, S.J.; Luijtelaar, E.L.J.M. van; Toor, T. van; Lousberg, R.; Ganzevles, P.

    2005-01-01

    An experiment was carried out in which the level of noise-intolerance in patients with a Whiplash Associated Disorder (WAD) was compared to healthy matched control subjects. In addition, the relationship between state-dependent factors (as headache, neck pain, fatigue and tension) and

  4. A study of the bound states for square potential wells with position-dependent mass

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ganguly, A.; Kuru, S.; Negro, J.; Nieto, L.M.

    2006-01-01

    A potential well with position-dependent mass is studied for bound states. Applying appropriate matching conditions, a transcendental equation is derived for the energy eigenvalues. Numerical results are presented graphically and the variation of the energy of the bound states are calculated as a function of the well-width and mass

  5. State-dependent errors in a land surface model across biomes inferred from eddy covariance observations on multiple timescales

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Wang, T.; Brender, P.; Ciais, P.; Piao, S.; Mahecha, M.D.; Chevallier, F.; Reichstein, M.; Ottle, C.; Maignan, F.; Arain, A.; Bohrer, G.; Cescatti, A.; Kiely, G.; Law, B.E.; Lutz, M.; Montagnani, L.; Moors, E.J.

    2012-01-01

    Characterization of state-dependent model biases in land surface models can highlight model deficiencies, and provide new insights into model development. In this study, artificial neural networks (ANNs) are used to estimate the state-dependent biases of a land surface model (ORCHIDEE: ORganising

  6. Matrix-Geometric Method for Queueing Model with State-Dependent Arrival of an Unreliable Server and PH Service

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M.ReniSagaya Raj

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available In this paper, we consider a state-dependent queueing system in which the system is subject to random breakdowns. Customer arrive at the system randomly following a Poisson process with state-dependent rates. Service times follows PH distribution and repair times are exponentially distributed. The server may fail to service with probability depending on the number of customer completed since the last repair. The main result of this paper is the matrix-geometric solution of the steady-state queue length from which many performance measurements of this queueing system like the stationary queue length distribution, waiting time distribution and the distribution of regular busy period, system utilization are obtained. Numerical examples are presented for both cases.

  7. Breaking resilience for a sustainable future: Thoughts for the anthropocene

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Glaser, Marion; Plass-Johnson, Jeremiah Grahm; Ferse, Sebastian C. A.

    2018-01-01

    and degraded state of the coral reefs that fishers’ livelihoods depend on.We argue that,more often than not in the Anthropocene, breaking resilience has a central role in the pursuit of sustainable human-nature relations. Therefore, the link between the resilience and the transformation debates needs...... on reef fisheries in the Spermonde Island Archipelago in Indonesia, based on social and ecological studies between 2004 and 2016. We identify a number of interlocking wickedly resilient vicious cycles as predominant drivers of the impoverishment of fishing households and the overexploited, polluted...

  8. Estimation of time- and state-dependent delays and other parameters in functional differential equations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Murphy, K. A.

    1990-01-01

    A parameter estimation algorithm is developed which can be used to estimate unknown time- or state-dependent delays and other parameters (e.g., initial condition) appearing within a nonlinear nonautonomous functional differential equation. The original infinite dimensional differential equation is approximated using linear splines, which are allowed to move with the variable delay. The variable delays are approximated using linear splines as well. The approximation scheme produces a system of ordinary differential equations with nice computational properties. The unknown parameters are estimated within the approximating systems by minimizing a least-squares fit-to-data criterion. Convergence theorems are proved for time-dependent delays and state-dependent delays within two classes, which say essentially that fitting the data by using approximations will, in the limit, provide a fit to the data using the original system. Numerical test examples are presented which illustrate the method for all types of delay.

  9. Constitutive relations describing creep deformation for multi-axial time-dependent stress states

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCartney, L. N.

    1981-02-01

    A THEORY of primary and secondary creep deformation in metals is presented, which is based upon the concept of tensor internal state variables and the principles of continuum mechanics and thermodynamics. The theory is able to account for both multi-axial and time-dependent stress and strain states. The wellknown concepts of elastic, anelastic and plastic strains follow naturally from the theory. Homogeneous stress states are considered in detail and a simplified theory is derived by linearizing with respect to the internal state variables. It is demonstrated that the model can be developed in such a way that multi-axial constant-stress creep data can be presented as a single relationship between an equivalent stress and an equivalent strain. It is shown how the theory may be used to describe the multi-axial deformation of metals which are subjected to constant stress states. The multi-axial strain response to a general cyclic stress state is calculated. For uni-axial stress states, square-wave loading and a thermal fatigue stress cycle are analysed.

  10. State-Dependent Decisions Cause Apparent Violations of Rationality in Animal Choice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schuck-Paim, Cynthia; Pompilio, Lorena

    2004-01-01

    Normative models of choice in economics and biology usually expect preferences to be consistent across contexts, or “rational” in economic language. Following a large body of literature reporting economically irrational behaviour in humans, breaches of rationality by animals have also been recently described. If proven systematic, these findings would challenge long-standing biological approaches to behavioural theorising, and suggest that cognitive processes similar to those claimed to cause irrationality in humans can also hinder optimality approaches to modelling animal preferences. Critical differences between human and animal experiments have not, however, been sufficiently acknowledged. While humans can be instructed conceptually about the choice problem, animals need to be trained by repeated exposure to all contingencies. This exposure often leads to differences in state between treatments, hence changing choices while preserving rationality. We report experiments with European starlings demonstrating that apparent breaches of rationality can result from state-dependence. We show that adding an inferior alternative to a choice set (a “decoy”) affects choices, an effect previously interpreted as indicating irrationality. However, these effects appear and disappear depending on whether state differences between choice contexts are present or not. These results open the possibility that some expressions of maladaptive behaviour are due to oversights in the migration of ideas between economics and biology, and suggest that key differences between human and nonhuman research must be recognised if ideas are to safely travel between these fields. PMID:15550984

  11. State-dependent decisions cause apparent violations of rationality in animal choice.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cynthia Schuck-Paim

    2004-12-01

    Full Text Available Normative models of choice in economics and biology usually expect preferences to be consistent across contexts, or "rational" in economic language. Following a large body of literature reporting economically irrational behaviour in humans, breaches of rationality by animals have also been recently described. If proven systematic, these findings would challenge long-standing biological approaches to behavioural theorising, and suggest that cognitive processes similar to those claimed to cause irrationality in humans can also hinder optimality approaches to modelling animal preferences. Critical differences between human and animal experiments have not, however, been sufficiently acknowledged. While humans can be instructed conceptually about the choice problem, animals need to be trained by repeated exposure to all contingencies. This exposure often leads to differences in state between treatments, hence changing choices while preserving rationality. We report experiments with European starlings demonstrating that apparent breaches of rationality can result from state-dependence. We show that adding an inferior alternative to a choice set (a "decoy" affects choices, an effect previously interpreted as indicating irrationality. However, these effects appear and disappear depending on whether state differences between choice contexts are present or not. These results open the possibility that some expressions of maladaptive behaviour are due to oversights in the migration of ideas between economics and biology, and suggest that key differences between human and nonhuman research must be recognised if ideas are to safely travel between these fields.

  12. State-dependent decisions cause apparent violations of rationality in animal choice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schuck-Paim, Cynthia; Pompilio, Lorena; Kacelnik, Alex

    2004-12-01

    Normative models of choice in economics and biology usually expect preferences to be consistent across contexts, or "rational" in economic language. Following a large body of literature reporting economically irrational behaviour in humans, breaches of rationality by animals have also been recently described. If proven systematic, these findings would challenge long-standing biological approaches to behavioural theorising, and suggest that cognitive processes similar to those claimed to cause irrationality in humans can also hinder optimality approaches to modelling animal preferences. Critical differences between human and animal experiments have not, however, been sufficiently acknowledged. While humans can be instructed conceptually about the choice problem, animals need to be trained by repeated exposure to all contingencies. This exposure often leads to differences in state between treatments, hence changing choices while preserving rationality. We report experiments with European starlings demonstrating that apparent breaches of rationality can result from state-dependence. We show that adding an inferior alternative to a choice set (a "decoy") affects choices, an effect previously interpreted as indicating irrationality. However, these effects appear and disappear depending on whether state differences between choice contexts are present or not. These results open the possibility that some expressions of maladaptive behaviour are due to oversights in the migration of ideas between economics and biology, and suggest that key differences between human and nonhuman research must be recognised if ideas are to safely travel between these fields.

  13. A two-queue model with alternating limited service and state-dependent setups

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Winands, E.M.M.; Adan, I.J.B.F.; Houtum, van G.J.J.A.N.; Papadopoulos, C.T.

    2005-01-01

    We consider a two-queue model with state-dependent setups, in which a single server alternately serves the two queues. The high-priority queue is served exhaustively, whereas the low-priority queue is served according to the k-limited strategy. We obtain the transforms of the queue length and

  14. Existence results for impulsive neutral functional differential equations with state-dependent delay

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mani Mallika Arjunan

    2009-04-01

    Full Text Available In this article, we study the existence of mild solutions for a class of impulsive abstract partial neutral functional differential equations with state-dependent delay. The results are obtained by using Leray-Schauder Alternative fixed point theorem. Example is provided to illustrate the main result.

  15. Jump locations of jump-diffusion processes with state-dependent rates

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Miles, Christopher E; Keener, James P

    2017-01-01

    We propose a general framework for studying statistics of jump-diffusion systems driven by both Brownian noise (diffusion) and a jump process with state-dependent intensity. Of particular natural interest in many physical systems are the jump locations: the system evaluated at the jump times. As an example, this could be the voltage at which a neuron fires, or the so-called ‘threshold voltage’. However, the state-dependence of the jump rate provides direct coupling between the diffusion and jump components, making it difficult to disentangle the two to study individually. In this work, we provide an iterative map formulation of the sequence of distributions of jump locations. The distributions computed by this map can be used to elucidate other interesting quantities about the process, including statistics of the interjump times. Ultimately, the limit of the map reveals that knowledge of the stationary distribution of the full process is sufficient to recover (but not necessarily equal to) the distribution of jump locations. We propose two biophysical examples to illustrate the use of this framework to provide insight about a system. We find that a sharp threshold voltage emerges robustly in a simple stochastic integrate-and-fire neuronal model. The interplay between the two sources of noise is also investigated in a stepping model of molecular motor in intracellular transport pulling a diffusive cargo. (paper)

  16. Role of state-dependent learning in the cognitive effects of caffeine in mice

    OpenAIRE

    Sanday, Leandro [UNIFESP; Zanin, Karina Agustini [UNIFESP; Patti, Camilla de Lima [UNIFESP; Fernandes-Santos, Luciano [UNIFESP; Oliveira, Larissa C. [UNIFESP; Longo, Beatriz Monteiro [UNIFESP; Andersen, Monica Levy [UNIFESP; Tufik, Sergio [UNIFESP; Frussa-Filho, Roberto [UNIFESP

    2013-01-01

    Caffeine is the most widely used psychoactive substance in the world and it is generally believed that it promotes beneficial effects on cognitive performance. However, there is also evidence suggesting that caffeine has inhibitory effects on learning and memory. Considering that caffeine may have anxiogenic effects, thus changing the emotional state of the subjects, state-dependent learning may play a role in caffeine-induced cognitive alterations. Mice were administered 20 mg/kg caffeine be...

  17. On common noise-induced synchronization in complex networks with state-dependent noise diffusion processes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Russo, Giovanni; Shorten, Robert

    2018-04-01

    This paper is concerned with the study of common noise-induced synchronization phenomena in complex networks of diffusively coupled nonlinear systems. We consider the case where common noise propagation depends on the network state and, as a result, the noise diffusion process at the nodes depends on the state of the network. For such networks, we present an algebraic sufficient condition for the onset of synchronization, which depends on the network topology, the dynamics at the nodes, the coupling strength and the noise diffusion. Our result explicitly shows that certain noise diffusion processes can drive an unsynchronized network towards synchronization. In order to illustrate the effectiveness of our result, we consider two applications: collective decision processes and synchronization of chaotic systems. We explicitly show that, in the former application, a sufficiently large noise can drive a population towards a common decision, while, in the latter, we show how common noise can synchronize a network of Lorentz chaotic systems.

  18. Path dependent magnetic states and evidence of kinetically arrested states in Nd doped LaFe{sub 11.5}Al{sub 1.5}

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bag, Pallab; Nath, R., E-mail: rnath@iisertvm.ac.in

    2017-03-15

    First order antiferromagnetic to ferromagnetic transition and path dependent magnetic states in La{sub 1−x}Nd{sub x}Fe{sub 11.5}Al{sub 1.5} for x∼0.1 are studied at low temperatures via powder x-ray diffraction, magnetization, and specific heat measurements. X-ray diffraction measurements suggest that around 8% of high temperature antiferromagnetic phase is converted to ferromagnetic phase at low temperatures in zero field cooling. A systematic study of temperature and magnetic field dependent magnetization measurements show a non-monotonic variation of upper critical field and re-entrant antiferromagnetic-ferromagnetic-antiferromagnetic transition while warming at an applied magnetic field under zero-field-cooled condition. This has been interpreted in the framework of kinetic arrest model for first order magnetic transition. It is also found that the antiferromagnetic phase is in the non-equilibrium state and behaves as a glass-like magnetic state at low temperatures. The specific heat in field-temperature space is studied and found to have a lower electronic contribution for the non-equilibrium antiferromagnetic state, compared to the equilibrium ferromagnetic state in this compound. - Highlights: • Structural and magnetic properties of La{sub 0.9}Nd{sub 0.1}Fe{sub 11.5}Al{sub 1.5} are investigated. • It shows coexistence and path dependent AFM and FM phases at low temperatures. • The AFM and FM phase fractions were estimated from the x-ray diffraction pattern. • Re-entrant transition and a non-monotonic variation of upper critical field. • The glass like AFM state is explained by the kinetic arrest model.

  19. State-dependent alterations of lipid profiles in patients with bipolar disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, Yu-Jui; Tsai, Shang-Ying; Chung, Kuo-Hsuan; Chen, Pao-Huan; Huang, Shou-Hung; Kuo, Chian-Jue

    2018-07-01

    Objective Serum lipid levels may be associated with the affective severity of bipolar disorder, but data on lipid profiles in Asian patients with bipolar disorder and the lipid alterations in different states of opposite polarities are scant. We investigated the lipid profiles of patients in the acute affective, partial, and full remission state in bipolar mania and depression. Methods The physically healthy patients aged between 18 and 45 years with bipolar I disorder, as well as age-matched healthy normal controls were enrolled. We compared the fasting blood levels of glucose, cholesterol, triglyceride, low-density lipoprotein, and high-density lipoprotein of manic or depressed patients in the acute phase and subsequent partial and full remission with those of their normal controls. Results A total of 32 bipolar manic patients (12 women and 20 men), 32 bipolar depressed participants (18 women and 14 men), and 64 healthy control participants took part in this study. The mean cholesterol level in acute mania was significantly lower than that in acute depression (p bipolar mania. Conclusion Circulating lipid profiles may be easily affected by affective states. The acute manic state may be accompanied by state-dependent lower cholesterol and triglyceride levels relative to that in other mood states.

  20. Existence results for fractional integro-differential inclusions with state-dependent delay

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Siracusa Giovana

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available In this paper we are concerned with a class of abstract fractional integro-differential inclusions with infinite state-dependent delay. Our approach is based on the existence of a resolvent operator for the homogeneous equation.We establish the existence of mild solutions using both contractive maps and condensing maps. Finally, an application to the theory of heat conduction in materials with memory is given.

  1. Stress state dependence of transient irradiation creep in 20% cold worked 316 stainless steel

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Foster, J.P.; Gilbert, E.R.

    1998-01-01

    Irradiation creep tests were performed in fast reactors using the stress states of uniaxial tension, biaxial tension, bending and torsion. In order to compare the saturated transient strain irradiation creep component, the test data were converted to equivalent strain and equivalent stress. The saturated transient irradiation creep component was observed to depend on the stress state. The highest value was exhibited by the uniaxial tension stress state, and the lowest by the torsion stress state. The biaxial tension and bending stress state transient component values were intermediate. This behavior appears to be related to the dislocation or microscopic substructure resulting from fabrication processing and the applied stress direction. (orig.)

  2. Impurity-induced tuning of quantum-well States in spin-dependent resonant tunneling.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kalitsov, Alan; Coho, A; Kioussis, Nicholas; Vedyayev, Anatoly; Chshiev, M; Granovsky, A

    2004-07-23

    We report exact model calculations of the spin-dependent tunneling in double magnetic tunnel junctions in the presence of impurities in the well. We show that the impurity can tune selectively the spin channels giving rise to a wide variety of interesting and novel transport phenomena. The tunneling magnetoresistance, the spin polarization, and the local current can be dramatically enhanced or suppressed by impurities. The underlying mechanism is the impurity-induced shift of the quantum well states (QWSs), which depends on the impurity potential, impurity position, and the symmetry of the QWS. Copyright 2004 The American Physical Society

  3. Radio pulsar glitches as a state-dependent Poisson process

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fulgenzi, W.; Melatos, A.; Hughes, B. D.

    2017-10-01

    Gross-Pitaevskii simulations of vortex avalanches in a neutron star superfluid are limited computationally to ≲102 vortices and ≲102 avalanches, making it hard to study the long-term statistics of radio pulsar glitches in realistically sized systems. Here, an idealized, mean-field model of the observed Gross-Pitaevskii dynamics is presented, in which vortex unpinning is approximated as a state-dependent, compound Poisson process in a single random variable, the spatially averaged crust-superfluid lag. Both the lag-dependent Poisson rate and the conditional distribution of avalanche-driven lag decrements are inputs into the model, which is solved numerically (via Monte Carlo simulations) and analytically (via a master equation). The output statistics are controlled by two dimensionless free parameters: α, the glitch rate at a reference lag, multiplied by the critical lag for unpinning, divided by the spin-down rate; and β, the minimum fraction of the lag that can be restored by a glitch. The system evolves naturally to a self-regulated stationary state, whose properties are determined by α/αc(β), where αc(β) ≈ β-1/2 is a transition value. In the regime α ≳ αc(β), one recovers qualitatively the power-law size and exponential waiting-time distributions observed in many radio pulsars and Gross-Pitaevskii simulations. For α ≪ αc(β), the size and waiting-time distributions are both power-law-like, and a correlation emerges between size and waiting time until the next glitch, contrary to what is observed in most pulsars. Comparisons with astrophysical data are restricted by the small sample sizes available at present, with ≤35 events observed per pulsar.

  4. Mathematical modeling and analysis of heat pipe start-up from the frozen state

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jang, J.H.; Faghri, A.; Chang, W.S.; Mahefkey, E.T.

    1989-08-01

    The start-up process of a frozen heat pipe is described and a complete mathematical model for the start-up of the frozen heat pipe is developed based on the existing experimental data, which is simplified and solved numerically. The two-dimensional transient model for the wall and wick is coupled with the one-dimensional transient model for the vapor flow when vaporization and condensation occur at the interface. A parametric study is performed to examine the effect of the boundary specification at the surface of the outer wall on the successful start-up from the frozen state. For successful start-up, the boundary specification at the outer wall surface must melt the working substance in the condenser before dry-out takes place in the evaporator

  5. Effect of gamma Irradiation on the acidic hydrolysis of free-hemi cellulose thistle; Efecto de la irradiacion gamma en la hidrolisis acida de cardo exento de pentosas

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Suarez, C.; Paz, M. D.; Diaz, A.

    1983-07-01

    The effect of gamma-irradiation on the subsequent acidic hydrolysis of free-hemi cellulose Onopordum Nervosum Boiss thistle Ls determined. Its shown the influence of gamma-irradiation on the yield of sugar obtained flora the batch wise hydrol isis of the call ulose (1% H{sub 2}SO{sub 4} and 180 degree centigree at increasing doses). At all irradiation levels studied, the rate of hydrolysis of thistle samples was higher than the rate of hydrolysis of the cellulose from paper treated similarly. The maximum over-all yield of sugar in the irradiated lignocellulose material was about 66o at 100 MRad, less than two times the yield obtainable from the control. The corresponding yield from papel was 53%, 2'3 times that of the control. Irradiation under 1% H{sub 2}SO{sub 4} doesn't enhance the yield anyway. (Author) 21 refs.

  6. Effect of gamma Irradiation on the acidic hydrolysis of free-hemi cellulose thistle; Efecto de la irradiacion gamma en la hidrolisis acida de cardo exento de pentosas

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Suarez, C; Paz, M D; Diaz, A

    1983-07-01

    The effect of gamma-irradiation on the subsequent acidic hydrolysis of free-hemi cellulose Onopordum Nervosum Boiss thistle Ls determined. Its shown the influence of gamma-irradiation on the yield of sugar obtained flora the batch wise hydrol isis of the call ulose (1% H{sub 2}SO{sub 4} and 180 degree centigree at increasing doses). At all irradiation levels studied, the rate of hydrolysis of thistle samples was higher than the rate of hydrolysis of the cellulose from paper treated similarly. The maximum over-all yield of sugar in the irradiated lignocellulose material was about 66o at 100 MRad, less than two times the yield obtainable from the control. The corresponding yield from papel was 53%, 2'3 times that of the control. Irradiation under 1% H{sub 2}SO{sub 4} doesn't enhance the yield anyway. (Author) 21 refs.

  7. Allopregnanolone induces state-dependent fear via the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Acca, Gillian M; Mathew, Abel S; Jin, Jingji; Maren, Stephen; Nagaya, Naomi

    2017-03-01

    Gonadal steroids and their metabolites have been shown to be important modulators of emotional behavior. Allopregnanolone (ALLO), for example, is a metabolite of progesterone that has been linked to anxiety-related disorders such as posttraumatic stress disorder. In rodents, it has been shown to reduce anxiety in a number of behavioral paradigms including Pavlovian fear conditioning. We have recently found that expression of conditioned contextual (but not auditory) freezing in rats can be suppressed by infusion of ALLO into the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST). To further explore the nature of this effect, we infused ALLO into the BNST of male rats prior to both conditioning and testing. We found that suppression of contextual fear occurred when the hormone was present during either conditioning or testing but not during both procedures, suggesting that ALLO acts in a state-dependent manner within the BNST. A shift in interoceptive context during testing for animals conditioned under ALLO provided further support for this mechanism of hormonal action on contextual fear. Interestingly, infusions of ALLO into the basolateral amygdala produced a state-independent suppression of both conditioned contextual and auditory freezing. Altogether, these results suggest that ALLO can influence the acquisition and expression of fear memories by both state-dependent and state-independent mechanisms. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  8. Time-dependent theory of Raman scattering for systems with several excited electronic states: Application to a H+3 model system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Heather, R.; Metiu, H.

    1989-01-01

    The time-dependent formulation of Raman scattering theory is used to study how nonadiabatic interactions affect the Raman spectrum of a model H + 3 system, which has two excited electronic states. We start with a formula derived by Heller which gives the Raman scattering cross section as the Fourier transform (over time) of a time-dependent overlap integral. The latter is calculated with a method proposed by Fleck, Morris, and Feit, and extended to curve crossing by Alvarellos and Metiu. In performing these calculations we are especially interested in displaying effects typical of systems having more than one upper state. If the incident laser populates two electronic states there are several ways (i.e., excite to state one and emit from state two, excite to state one, and emit from state one, etc.) by which the Raman process can reach a given final state, and this leads to quantum interference. This interference is manifested in the Raman cross section as approximate selection rules controlling which final states can be reached through the Raman process. These selection rules depend on the relative orientation of the transition dipoles that radiatively couple the ground electronic state with the excited electronic states. The magnitude of the nonadiabatic contribution to the Raman emission, e.g., the contribution from absorbing to state one and emitting from state two, can be determined from the polarization dependence of the Raman emission if the transition dipoles have neither parallel nor antiparallel relative orientation

  9. Gender anomalies in stated preference surveys – are biases really gender dependent?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ladenburg, Jacob; Olsen, Søren Bøye

    2010-01-01

    The potential for a number of common but severe biases in stated preference method surveys being gender dependent has been largely overlooked in the literature. In this paper we summarize results from three Choice Experiment studies that find evidence in favor of gender differences in vulnerability...... set up a novel theoretical model, which provides an explanation for gender specific susceptibility to biases. We conclude that biases can indeed be gender dependent. Hence, researchers should not simply disregard potential gender differences, but rather take them into account and examine the extent...... of them when performing surveys. Finally, we give suggestions for future research in this area....

  10. Glucose-Dependent Insulinotropic Polypeptide Mitigates 6-OHDA-Induced Behavioral Impairments in Parkinsonian Rats

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yu, Yu-Wen; Hsueh, Shih-Chang; Lai, Jing-Huei; Chen, Yen-Hua; Kang, Shuo-Jhen; Hsieh, Tsung-Hsun; Hoffer, Barry J.; Li, Yazhou; Greig, Nigel H.; Chiang, Yung-Hsiao

    2018-01-01

    In the present study, the effectiveness of glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) was evaluated by behavioral tests in 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) hemi-parkinsonian (PD) rats. Pharmacokinetic measurements of GIP were carried out at the same dose studied behaviorally, as well as at a lower dose used previously. GIP was delivered by subcutaneous administration (s.c.) using implanted ALZET micro-osmotic pumps. After two days of pre-treatment, male Sprague Dawley rats received a single unilateral injection of 6-OHDA into the medial forebrain bundle (MFB). The neuroprotective effects of GIP were evaluated by apomorphine-induced contralateral rotations, as well as by locomotor and anxiety-like behaviors in open-field tests. Concentrations of human active and total GIP were measured in plasma during a five-day treatment period by ELISA and were found to be within a clinically translatable range. GIP pretreatment reduced behavioral abnormalities induced by the unilateral nigrostriatal dopamine (DA) lesion produced by 6-OHDA, and thus may be a novel target for PD therapeutic development. PMID:29641447

  11. Glucose-Dependent Insulinotropic Polypeptide Mitigates 6-OHDA-Induced Behavioral Impairments in Parkinsonian Rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yu-Wen Yu

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available In the present study, the effectiveness of glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP was evaluated by behavioral tests in 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA hemi-parkinsonian (PD rats. Pharmacokinetic measurements of GIP were carried out at the same dose studied behaviorally, as well as at a lower dose used previously. GIP was delivered by subcutaneous administration (s.c. using implanted ALZET micro-osmotic pumps. After two days of pre-treatment, male Sprague Dawley rats received a single unilateral injection of 6-OHDA into the medial forebrain bundle (MFB. The neuroprotective effects of GIP were evaluated by apomorphine-induced contralateral rotations, as well as by locomotor and anxiety-like behaviors in open-field tests. Concentrations of human active and total GIP were measured in plasma during a five-day treatment period by ELISA and were found to be within a clinically translatable range. GIP pretreatment reduced behavioral abnormalities induced by the unilateral nigrostriatal dopamine (DA lesion produced by 6-OHDA, and thus may be a novel target for PD therapeutic development.

  12. State estimation for discrete-time Markovian jumping neural networks with mixed mode-dependent delays

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liu Yurong; Wang Zidong; Liu Xiaohui

    2008-01-01

    In this Letter, we investigate the state estimation problem for a new class of discrete-time neural networks with Markovian jumping parameters as well as mode-dependent mixed time-delays. The parameters of the discrete-time neural networks are subject to the switching from one mode to another at different times according to a Markov chain, and the mixed time-delays consist of both discrete and distributed delays that are dependent on the Markovian jumping mode. New techniques are developed to deal with the mixed time-delays in the discrete-time setting, and a novel Lyapunov-Krasovskii functional is put forward to reflect the mode-dependent time-delays. Sufficient conditions are established in terms of linear matrix inequalities (LMIs) that guarantee the existence of the state estimators. We show that both the existence conditions and the explicit expression of the desired estimator can be characterized in terms of the solution to an LMI. A numerical example is exploited to show the usefulness of the derived LMI-based conditions

  13. Personality traits and mental health states of methamphetamine-dependent and methamphetamine non-using MSM.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Solomon, Todd M; Kiang, Mathew V; Halkitis, Perry N; Moeller, Robert W; Pappas, Molly K

    2010-02-01

    This analysis considers the relation between personality traits, mental health states and methamphetamine (MA) use in 60 men who have sex with men (MSM). Thirty MA-dependent and 30 MA non-using MSM were assessed on the Neo Five Factor Inventory, the Brief Symptom Inventory, the Perceived Stress Scale, and the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist-Civilian Version tests. Our results indicate differences between groups on a variety of measures of personality traits and mental states. Specifically, MA-dependent participants were found to be more Neurotic, less Open, less Agreeable, and less Conscientious. Further, MA-dependent participants were found to have higher levels of Paranoid Ideation and higher levels of Interpersonal Sensitivity. Given the high prevalence of MA use in the MSM community and the association between MA use and sexual risk taking, our findings provided a clearer understanding of how individual personality traits may be a factor in the continued use of this drug among MSM. Further research should seek to incorporate individual personality traits into the development of efficacious MA-specific treatment interventions.

  14. Force-free state in a superconducting single crystal and angle-dependent vortex helical instability

    Science.gov (United States)

    del Valle, J.; Gomez, A.; Gonzalez, E. M.; Manas-Valero, S.; Coronado, E.; Vicent, J. L.

    2017-06-01

    Superconducting 2 H -NbS e2 single crystals show intrinsic low pinning values. Therefore, they are ideal materials with which to explore fundamental properties of vortices. (V , I ) characteristics are the experimental data we have used to investigate the dissipation mechanisms in a rectangular-shaped 2 H -NbS e2 single crystal. Particularly, we have studied dissipation behavior with magnetic fields applied in the plane of the crystal and parallel to the injected currents, i.e., in the force-free state where the vortex helical instability governs the vortex dynamics. In this regime, the data follow the elliptic critical state model and the voltage dissipation shows an exponential dependence, V ∝eα (I -IC ∥ ) , IC ∥ being the critical current in the force-free configuration and α a linear temperature-dependent parameter. Moreover, this exponential dependence can be observed for in-plane applied magnetic fields up to 40° off the current direction, which implies that the vortex helical instability plays a role in dissipation even out of the force-free configuration.

  15. Investigation of solutions of state-dependent multi-impulsive boundary value problems

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Rontó, András; Rachůnková, I.; Rontó, M.; Rachůnek, L.

    2017-01-01

    Roč. 24, č. 2 (2017), s. 287-312 ISSN 1072-947X R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GA14-06958S Institutional support: RVO:67985840 Keywords : state-dependent multi-impulsive systems * non-linear boundary value problem * parametrization technique Subject RIV: BA - General Mathematics OBOR OECD: Applied mathematics Impact factor: 0.290, year: 2016 https://www.degruyter.com/view/j/gmj.2017.24.issue-2/gmj-2016-0084/gmj-2016-0084. xml

  16. Investigation of solutions of state-dependent multi-impulsive boundary value problems

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Rontó, András; Rachůnková, I.; Rontó, M.; Rachůnek, L.

    2017-01-01

    Roč. 24, č. 2 (2017), s. 287-312 ISSN 1072-947X R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GA14-06958S Institutional support: RVO:67985840 Keywords : state-dependent multi-impulsive systems * non-linear boundary value problem * parametrization technique Subject RIV: BA - General Mathematics OBOR OECD: Applied mathematics Impact factor: 0.290, year: 2016 https://www.degruyter.com/view/j/gmj.2017.24.issue-2/gmj-2016-0084/gmj-2016-0084.xml

  17. Molecular phylogeny and intricate evolutionary history of the three isofunctional enzymes involved in the oxidation of protoporphyrinogen IX.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kobayashi, Koichi; Masuda, Tatsuru; Tajima, Naoyuki; Wada, Hajime; Sato, Naoki

    2014-08-01

    Tetrapyrroles such as heme and chlorophyll are essential for biological processes, including oxygenation, respiration, and photosynthesis. In the tetrapyrrole biosynthesis pathway, protoporphyrinogen IX oxidase (Protox) catalyzes the formation of protoporphyrin IX, the last common intermediate for the biosynthesis of heme and chlorophyll. Three nonhomologous isofunctional enzymes, HemG, HemJ, and HemY, for Protox have been identified. To reveal the distribution and evolution of the three Protox enzymes, we identified homologs of each along with other heme biosynthetic enzymes by whole-genome clustering across three domains of life. Most organisms possess only one of the three Protox types, with some exceptions. Detailed phylogenetic analysis revealed that HemG is mostly limited to γ-Proteobacteria whereas HemJ may have originated within α-Proteobacteria and transferred to other Proteobacteria and Cyanobacteria. In contrast, HemY is ubiquitous in prokaryotes and is the only Protox in eukaryotes, so this type may be the ancestral Protox. Land plants have a unique HemY homolog that is also shared by Chloroflexus species, in addition to the main HemY homolog originating from Cyanobacteria. Meanwhile, organisms missing any Protox can be classified into two groups; those lacking most heme synthetic genes, which necessarily depend on external heme supply, and those lacking only genes involved in the conversion of uroporphyrinogen III into heme, which would use a precorrin2-dependent alternative pathway. However, hemN encoding coproporphyrinogen IX oxidase was frequently found in organisms lacking Protox enzyme, which suggests a unique role of this gene other than in heme biosynthesis. © The Author(s) 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution.

  18. Transient state-dependent fluctuations in anxiety measured using STAI, POMS, PANAS or VAS: a comparative review

    OpenAIRE

    Rossi, Valentina; Pourtois, Gilles

    2012-01-01

    Several psychometric instruments can be used to measure state-dependent variations in anxiety, including the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), the Profile of Mood States (POMS), the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) and the Visual Analog Scales (VAS). Each of these instruments rests on specific theoretical assumptions about the construct of state anxiety, and has been widely used for this purpose in different research domains. However, it remains difficult to determine what ma...

  19. Recovery of behavioral symptoms in hemi-parkinsonian rhesus monkeys through combined gene and stem cell therapy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhou, Yan; Sun, Maosheng; Li, Hongjun; Yan, Min; He, Zhanlong; Wang, Wenju; Wang, Wanpu; Lu, Shuaiyao

    2013-04-01

    The use of adipose mesenchymal stromal cells (ASCs) in cellular and genic therapy has attracted considerable attention as a possible treatment for neurodegenerative disorders, including Parkinson disease. However, the effects of gene therapy combined with intracerebral cell transplantation have not been well defined. Recent studies have demonstrated the respective roles of LIM homeobox transcription factor 1, alpha (LMX1A) and Neurturin (NTN) in the commitment of embryonic stem cells (ESCs) to a midbrain dopaminergic neuronal fate and the commitment of mesenchymal stromal cells to cells supporting the nutrition and protection of neurons. We investigated a novel in vitro neuronal differentiation strategy with the use of LMX1A and Neurturin. We were able to elicit a neural phenotype regarding cell morphology, specific gene/protein expression and physiological function. Neuronal-primed ASCs derived from rhesus monkey (rASCs) combined with adenovirus containing NTN and tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) (Ad-NTN-TH) were implanted into the striatum and substantia nigra of methyl-4-phenyl-1, 2, 3, 6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP)-lesioned hemi-parkinsonian rhesus monkeys. Monkeys were monitored with the use of behavioral tests and health measures until the fourth month after implantation. The differentiated cells transcribed and expressed a variety of dopaminergic neuron-specific genes involved in the SHH/LMX1A pathway. Single-photon emission computed tomography analysis and postmortem analysis revealed that the grafting of rASCs combined with Ad-NTN-TH had neuroprotective effects compared with Ad-NTN-TH or rASCs alone. Behavioral measures demonstrated autograft survival and symptom amelioration. These findings may lead to cellular sources for autologous transplantation of Parkinson disease. Combined transplantation of Ad-NTN-TH and induced rASCs expressing LMX1A and NTN may be a better therapy candidate for the treatment of Parkinson disease. Copyright © 2013 International Society

  20. Fractional amplitude analysis of low frequency fluctuation in alcohol dependent individuals: a resting state functional MRI study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yan Dingfang; Cheng Jun; Wu Hanbin; Xu Liangzhou; Liu Jinhuan; Zhao Yilin; Lin Xue; Liu Changsheng; Qiu Li

    2012-01-01

    Objective: To explore brain activity features during the resting state in alcohol dependent individuals, and study the relationship between the brain activity features and alcohol dependent individuals' clinical symptoms. Methods: Twenty-four alcohol dependent individuals and 22 healthy control subjects, well matched in gender, age, education and handedness, were enrolled as the alcohol dependent group and control group respectively. A GE 3.0 T MR scanner was used to acquire all the subjects' resting state data. DPARSF software was used to process resting functional MRI data, and then the whole brain fractional amplitudes of low frequency fluctuation (fALFF) data were acquired. Two-sample t test statistical analysis was made to access fALFF difference between the two groups. Results: In comparison with the control group, the alcohol dependent group showed reduced fALFF in bilateral medial prefrontal gyrus, right inferior occipital gyrus, left precuneus,left inferior temporal gyrus, and left posterior lobe of cerebellum (0.64-1.69 vs. 0.87-1.78, t=-4.23- -2.79, P<0.05). fALFF was increased in the alcohol dependent group at the anterior cingulate,bilateral inferior frontal gyrus,right middle frontal gyrus,bilateral insular lobe,bilateral dorsal thalamus (0.86-1.82 vs. 0.76-1.58, t=3.56-3.96, P<0.05). Conclusion: Alcohol dependent individuals had abnormal activity at the bilateral prefrontal lobe,anterior cingulate, bilateral dorsal thalamus, bilateral insular lobe, left posterior lobe of cerebellum et al, during the resting state, and these abnormal activities might be related with clinical manifestation and pathophysiology. (authors)

  1. Dynamics of second order in time evolution equations with state-dependent delay

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Chueshov, I.; Rezunenko, Oleksandr

    123-124, č. 1 (2015), s. 126-149 ISSN 0362-546X R&D Projects: GA ČR GAP103/12/2431 Institutional support: RVO:67985556 Keywords : Second order evolution equations * State dependent delay * Nonlinear plate * Finite-dimensional attractor Subject RIV: BD - Theory of Information Impact factor: 1.125, year: 2015 http://library.utia.cas.cz/separaty/2015/AS/rezunenko-0444708.pdf

  2. Finite-dimensional global attractors for parabolic nonlinear equations with state-dependent delay

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Chueshov, I.; Rezunenko, Oleksandr

    2015-01-01

    Roč. 14, č. 5 (2015), s. 1685-1704 ISSN 1534-0392 R&D Projects: GA ČR GAP103/12/2431 Institutional support: RVO:67985556 Keywords : Parabolic evolution equations * state-dependent delay * global attractor * finite-dimension * exponential attractor Subject RIV: BC - Control Systems Theory Impact factor: 0.926, year: 2015 http://library.utia.cas.cz/separaty/2015/AS/rezunenko-0444705.pdf

  3. Accurate Ground-State Energies of Solids and Molecules from Time-Dependent Density-Functional Theory

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Olsen, Thomas; Thygesen, Kristian Sommer

    2014-01-01

    We demonstrate that ground-state energies approaching chemical accuracy can be obtained by combining the adiabatic-connection fluctuation-dissipation theorem with time-dependent densityfunctional theory. The key ingredient is a renormalization scheme, which eliminates the divergence...

  4. Rotational state dependence of ion-polar molecule reactions at very low temperature

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dubernet, M.L.; McCarroll, R.

    1989-01-01

    The adiabatic rotational state method is used to investigate the rotational state dependence of the rate coefficients for ion-polar molecule reactions in the very low temperature regime characteristic of interstellar molecular clouds. Results obtained for the systems H 3 + +HCl and H 3 + +HCN indicate that all the methods based on the adiabatic separation of the rotational and radial motion of the collision complex - adiabatic capture centrifugal sudden approximation (ACCSA), statistical adiabatic channel model, classical adiabatic invariance method - agree very satisfactorily in the low temperature limit. Discrepancies observed between some of the published data would appear to arise from numerical inaccuracies rather than from any defect of the theory. (orig.)

  5. The Hemi-Castaing ligamentoplasty for chronic lateral ankle instability does not modify proprioceptive, muscular and posturographic parameters.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baray, Anne-Laure; Philippot, Rémi; Neri, Thomas; Farizon, Frédéric; Edouard, Pascal

    2016-04-01

    The Hemi-Castaing ligamentoplasty uses a powerful dynamic stabilizer of the ankle which is the peroneus brevis tendon. To our knowledge, there is no study available evaluating the effects of this type of surgery on proprioceptive, muscular and posturographic parameters. This case-control study included 39 subjects divided into two groups: the operated (n = 24) and the control group (n = 15). All subjects underwent a clinical, proprioceptive and isokinetic assessment using a CON-TREX dynamometer, and a postural evaluation using the Win-Posturo force platform. At a mean period of 23 (SD 5.4) post-operative months, the Karlsson ankle functional score was 84.2 (SD 23.8) and the AOFAS score was 88.1 (SD 16.2). The mean ankle joint position error for operated ankles was from 1.9° (SD 0.9) at 10° of inversion range of motion to 2.5° (SD 1.7) at 20°. It was similar to that achieved in the control group ranging from 2.2° (SD 1) at 10° to 2.3° (SD 1.3) at 20°. No significant loss of ankle eversion strength could be observed after ligamentoplasty. Ankle eversion/inversion ratio when tested under all velocities and contraction modes failed to reveal any statistical difference between the operated and healthy ankles in the patient group, neither between the patient and control groups. This surgical technique achieved excellent functional outcomes. It did not impair the agonist/antagonist balance of ankle muscles, and use of half the peroneus brevis tendon did not lessen the eversion strength. Case-control study, Level III.

  6. Temperature-dependent transformation thermotics for unsteady states: Switchable concentrator for transient heat flow

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Li, Ying, E-mail: 13110290008@fudan.edu.cn [Department of Mechanics and Engineering Science, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433 (China); Shen, Xiangying, E-mail: 13110190068@fudan.edu.cn [Department of Physics, State Key Laboratory of Surface Physics, and Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433 (China); Huang, Jiping, E-mail: jphuang@fudan.edu.cn [Department of Physics, State Key Laboratory of Surface Physics, and Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433 (China); Ni, Yushan, E-mail: niyushan@fudan.edu.cn [Department of Mechanics and Engineering Science, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433 (China)

    2016-04-22

    For manipulating heat flow efficiently, recently we established a theory of temperature-dependent transformation thermotics which holds for steady-state cases. Here, we develop the theory to unsteady-state cases by considering the generalized Fourier's law for transient thermal conduction. As a result, we are allowed to propose a new class of intelligent thermal metamaterial — switchable concentrator, which is made of inhomogeneous anisotropic materials. When environmental temperature is below or above a critical value, the concentrator is automatically switched on, namely, it helps to focus heat flux in a specific region. However, the focusing does not affect the distribution pattern of temperature outside the concentrator. We also perform finite-element simulations to confirm the switching effect according to the effective medium theory by assembling homogeneous isotropic materials, which bring more convenience for experimental fabrication than inhomogeneous anisotropic materials. This work may help to figure out new intelligent thermal devices, which provide more flexibility in controlling heat flow, and it may also be useful in other fields that are sensitive to temperature gradient, such as the Seebeck effect. - Highlights: • Established the unsteady-state temperature dependent transformation thermotics. • A thermal concentrator with switchable functionality. • An effective-medium design for experimental realization.

  7. Spleen hydatidosis treated by hemi-splenectomy: A low-morbidity, cost-effective management by a recently improved surgical technique.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Costi, Renato; Castro Ruiz, Carolina; Zarzavadjian le Bian, Alban; Scerrati, Daniele; Santi, Caterina; Violi, Vincenzo

    2015-08-01

    Splenic hydatidosis is a rare condition and is usually managed by total splenectomy, which is associated to various complications, including overwhelming post-splenectomy sepsis and thrombosis. Probably due to supposed technical difficulties, the partial splenectomy is rarely performed being often unknown to physicians, infectious disease specialists and surgeons. Demographic, clinical and surgical data were collected of four consecutive patients undergoing partial (or hemi-) splenectomy using an original, recently improved technique as a treatment for polar splenic hydatid cyst. The procedure implies a selective vascular ligation, a mechanical stapler-assisted section and haemostatic agents (Surgicel(®)) application on the cutting surface. Three patients were treated by laparotomy (including one affected by both liver and spleen localizations) whereas the last one was approached laparoscopically. Partial splenectomy operative time reached 74 min (range: 60-94 min) and blood loss was 8 ml (range: 5-10 ml). Hospital stay was 5.6 days (range: 5-7 days). At a mean follow-up of 20 months (range: 12-36 months), outcomes were uneventful. Partial splenectomy for hydatidosis is effective and safe. Physicians and surgeons should be aware of such an easy-to-catch option when dealing with benign splenic conditions, such as parasitic cysts. Cost-effectiveness, low morbidity and the possible prevention of splenectomy-related infectious complications should plead in favor of this technique in developing countries, where hydatidosis is endemic and post-splenectomy drugs and vaccines may be lacking. Copyright © 2015 IJS Publishing Group Limited. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  8. Levodopa-induced dyskinesia is associated with increased thyrotropin releasing hormone in the dorsal striatum of hemi-parkinsonian rats.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ippolita Cantuti-Castelvetri

    2010-11-01

    Full Text Available Dyskinesias associated with involuntary movements and painful muscle contractions are a common and severe complication of standard levodopa (L-DOPA, L-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine therapy for Parkinson's disease. Pathologic neuroplasticity leading to hyper-responsive dopamine receptor signaling in the sensorimotor striatum is thought to underlie this currently untreatable condition.Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR was employed to evaluate the molecular changes associated with L-DOPA-induced dyskinesias in Parkinson's disease. With this technique, we determined that thyrotropin releasing hormone (TRH was greatly increased in the dopamine-depleted striatum of hemi-parkinsonian rats that developed abnormal movements in response to L-DOPA therapy, relative to the levels measured in the contralateral non-dopamine-depleted striatum, and in the striatum of non-dyskinetic control rats. ProTRH immunostaining suggested that TRH peptide levels were almost absent in the dopamine-depleted striatum of control rats that did not develop dyskinesias, but in the dyskinetic rats, proTRH immunostaining was dramatically up-regulated in the striatum, particularly in the sensorimotor striatum. This up-regulation of TRH peptide affected striatal medium spiny neurons of both the direct and indirect pathways, as well as neurons in striosomes.TRH is not known to be a key striatal neuromodulator, but intrastriatal injection of TRH in experimental animals can induce abnormal movements, apparently through increasing dopamine release. Our finding of a dramatic and selective up-regulation of TRH expression in the sensorimotor striatum of dyskinetic rat models suggests a TRH-mediated regulatory mechanism that may underlie the pathologic neuroplasticity driving dopamine hyper-responsivity in Parkinson's disease.

  9. Chromatographic Separation and Visual Detection on Wicking Microfluidic Devices: Quantitation of Cu2+ in Surface, Ground, and Drinking Water.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bandara, Gayan C; Heist, Christopher A; Remcho, Vincent T

    2018-02-20

    Copper is widely applied in industrial and technological applications and is an essential micronutrient for humans and animals. However, exposure to high environmental levels of copper, especially through drinking water, can lead to copper toxicity, resulting in severe acute and chronic health effects. Therefore, regular monitoring of aqueous copper ions has become necessary as recent anthropogenic activities have led to elevated environmental concentrations of copper. On-site monitoring processes require an inexpensive, simple, and portable analytical approach capable of generating reliable qualitative and quantitative data efficiently. Membrane-based lateral flow microfluidic devices are ideal candidates as they facilitate rapid, inexpensive, and portable measurements. Here we present a simple, chromatographic separation approach in combination with a visual detection method for Cu 2+ quantitation, performed in a lateral flow microfluidic channel. This method appreciably minimizes interferences by incorporating a nonspecific polymer inclusion membrane (PIM) based assay with a "dot-counting" approach to quantification. In this study, hydrophobic polycaprolactone (PCL)-filled glass microfiber (GMF) membranes were used as the base substrate onto which the PIM was evenly dispensed as an array of dots. The devices thus prepared were then selectively exposed to oxygen radicals through a mask to generate a hydrophilic surface path along which the sample was wicked. Using this approach, copper concentrations from 1 to 20 ppm were quantified from 5 μL samples using only visual observation of the assay device.

  10. Magnetic history dependence of metastable states in thin films with dipolar interactions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Iglesias, Oscar; Labarta, Amilcar

    2000-01-01

    We present the results of a Monte Carlo simulation of the ground state and magnetic relaxation of a model of a thin film consisting of a two-dimensional square lattice of Heisenberg spins with perpendicular anisotropy K, exchange J and long-range dipolar interactions g. We have studied the ground state configurations of this system for a wide range of the interaction parameters J/g, K/g by means of the simulated annealing procedure, showing that the model is able to reproduce the different magnetic configurations found in real samples. We have found the existence of a certain range of K/g, J/g values for which in-plane and out-of-plane configurations are quasi-degenerated in energy. We show that when a system in this region of parameters is perturbed by an external force that is subsequently removed, different kinds of ordering may be induced depending on the followed procedure. In particular, simulations of relaxations from saturation under an AC demagnetizing field or in zero field are in qualitative agreement with recent experiments on epitaxial and granular alloy thin films, which show a wide variety of magnetic patterns depending on their magnetic history

  11. Pseudo-Hermitian coherent states under the generalized quantum condition with position-dependent mass

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yahiaoui, S A; Bentaiba, M

    2012-01-01

    In the context of the factorization method, we investigate the pseudo-Hermitian coherent states and their Hermitian counterpart coherent states under the generalized quantum condition in the framework of a position-dependent mass. By considering a specific modification in the superpotential, suitable annihilation and creation operators are constructed in order to reproduce the Hermitian counterpart Hamiltonian in the factorized form. We show that by means of these ladder operators, we can construct a wide range of exactly solvable potentials as well as their accompanying coherent states. Alternatively, we explore the relationship between the pseudo-Hermitian Hamiltonian and its Hermitian counterparts, obtained from a similarity transformation, to construct the associated pseudo-Hermitian coherent states. These latter preserve the structure of Perelomov’s states and minimize the generalized position–momentum uncertainty principle. This article is part of a special issue of Journal of Physics A: Mathematical and Theoretical devoted to ‘Quantum physics with non-Hermitian operators’. (paper)

  12. ON THE ANISOTROPIC NORM OF DISCRETE TIME STOCHASTIC SYSTEMS WITH STATE DEPENDENT NOISE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Isaac Yaesh

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of this paper is to determine conditions for the bound-edness of the anisotropic norm of discrete-time linear stochastic sys-tems with state dependent noise. It is proved that these conditions canbe expressed in terms of the feasibility of a specific system of matrixinequalities.

  13. Elections, Private Information, and State-Dependent Candidate Quality

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jensen, Thomas

    In this paper we contribute to the study of how democracy works when politicians are better informed than the electorate about conditions relevant for policy choice. We do so by setting up and analyzing a game theoretic model of electoral competition. An important feature of the model is that can......In this paper we contribute to the study of how democracy works when politicians are better informed than the electorate about conditions relevant for policy choice. We do so by setting up and analyzing a game theoretic model of electoral competition. An important feature of the model...... is that candidate quality is state-dependent. Our main insight is that if the electorate is sufficiently well informed then there exists an equilibrium where the candidates' policy positions reveal their information and the policy outcome is the same as it would be if voters were fully informed (the median policy...

  14. Singular Hopf bifurcation in a differential equation with large state-dependent delay.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kozyreff, G; Erneux, T

    2014-02-08

    We study the onset of sustained oscillations in a classical state-dependent delay (SDD) differential equation inspired by control theory. Owing to the large delays considered, the Hopf bifurcation is singular and the oscillations rapidly acquire a sawtooth profile past the instability threshold. Using asymptotic techniques, we explicitly capture the gradual change from nearly sinusoidal to sawtooth oscillations. The dependence of the delay on the solution can be either linear or nonlinear, with at least quadratic dependence. In the former case, an asymptotic connection is made with the Rayleigh oscillator. In the latter, van der Pol's equation is derived for the small-amplitude oscillations. SDD differential equations are currently the subject of intense research in order to establish or amend general theorems valid for constant-delay differential equation, but explicit analytical construction of solutions are rare. This paper illustrates the use of singular perturbation techniques and the unusual way in which solvability conditions can arise for SDD problems with large delays.

  15. Brain State-dependent Functional Hemispheric Specialization in Men but not in Women

    OpenAIRE

    Mohr, Christine; Michel, Christoph M.; Lantz, Goran; Ortigue, Stephanie; Viaud-Delmon, Isabelle; Landis, Theodor

    2017-01-01

    Hemispheric specialization is reliably demonstrated in patients with unilateral lesions or disconnected hemispheres, but is inconsistent in healthy populations. The reason for this paradox is unclear. We propose that functional hemispheric specialization in healthy participants depends upon functional brain states at stimulus arrival (FBS). Brain activity was recorded from 123 surface electrodes while 22 participants (11 women) performed lateralized lexical decisions (left hemisphere processi...

  16. SYNTH-C, Steady-State and Time-Dependent 3-D Neutron Diffusion with Thermohydraulic Feedback

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Brega, E [ENEL-CRTN, Bastioni di Porta Volta 10, Milan (Italy); Salina, E [A.R.S. Spa, Viale Maino 35, Milan (Italy)

    1980-04-01

    1 - Description of problem or function: SYNTH-C-STEADY and SYNTH-C- TRANS solve respectively the steady-state and time-dependent few- group neutron diffusion equations in three dimensions x,y,z in the presence of fuel temperature and thermal-hydraulic feedback. The neutron diffusion and delayed precursor equations are approximated by a space-time (z,t) synthesis method with axially discontinuous trial functions. Three thermal-hydraulic and fuel heat transfer models are available viz. COBRA-3C/MIT model, lumped parameter (WIGL) model and adiabatic fuel heat-up model. 2 - Method of solution: The steady-state and time-dependent synthesis equations are solved respectively by the Wielandt's power method and by the theta-difference method (in time), both coupled with a block factorization technique and double precision arithmetic. The thermal-hydraulic model equations are solved by fully implicit finite differences (WIGL) or explicit-implicit difference techniques with iterations (COBRA-EC/MIT). 3 - Restrictions on the complexity of the problem: Except for the few- group limitation, the programs have no other fixed limitation so the ability to run a problem depends only on the available computer storage.

  17. Stability properties of a heat equation with state-dependent parameters and asymmetric boundary conditions

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Backi, Christoph Josef; Bendtsen, Jan Dimon; Leth, John

    2015-01-01

    In this work the stability properties of a partial differential equation (PDE) with state-dependent parameters and asymmetric boundary conditions are investigated. The PDE describes the temperature distribution inside foodstuff, but can also hold for other applications and phenomena. We show...

  18. Effects of design variables predicted by a steady - state thermal performance analysis model of a loop heat pipe

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jung, Eui Guk; Boo, Joon Hong

    2008-01-01

    This study deals with a mathematical modeling for the steady-state temperature characteristics of an entire loop heat pipe. The lumped layer model was applied to each node for temperature analysis. The flat type evaporator and condenser in the model had planar dimensions of 40 mm (W) x 50 mm (L). The wick material was a sintered metal and the working fluid was methanol. The molecular kinetic theory was employed to model the phase change phenomena in the evaporator and the condenser. Liquid-vapor interface configuration was expressed by the thin film theories available in the literature. Effects of design factors of loop heat pipe on the thermal performance were investigated by the modeling proposed in this study

  19. Amplitude-dependent topological edge states in nonlinear phononic lattices

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pal, Raj Kumar; Vila, Javier; Leamy, Michael; Ruzzene, Massimo

    2018-03-01

    This work investigates the effect of nonlinearities on topologically protected edge states in one- and two-dimensional phononic lattices. We first show that localized modes arise at the interface between two spring-mass chains that are inverted copies of each other. Explicit expressions derived for the frequencies of the localized modes guide the study of the effect of cubic nonlinearities on the resonant characteristics of the interface, which are shown to be described by a Duffing-like equation. Nonlinearities produce amplitude-dependent frequency shifts, which in the case of a softening nonlinearity cause the localized mode to migrate to the bulk spectrum. The case of a hexagonal lattice implementing a phononic analog of a crystal exhibiting the quantum spin Hall effect is also investigated in the presence of weakly nonlinear cubic springs. An asymptotic analysis provides estimates of the amplitude dependence of the localized modes, while numerical simulations illustrate how the lattice response transitions from bulk-to-edge mode-dominated by varying the excitation amplitude. In contrast with the interface mode of the first example studies, this occurs both for hardening and softening springs. The results of this study provide a theoretical framework for the investigation of nonlinear effects that induce and control topologically protected wave modes through nonlinear interactions and amplitude tuning.

  20. Tailoring of motional states in double-well potentials by time-dependent processes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Haerkoenen, Kari; Kaerki, Ollijuhani; Suominen, Kalle-Antti

    2006-01-01

    We show that the vibrational state tailoring method developed for molecular systems can be applied for cold atoms in optical lattices. The original method is based on a three-level model interacting with two strong laser pulses in a counterintuitive sequence [M. Rodriguez et al., Phys. Rev. A 62, 053413 (2000)]. Here we outline the conditions for achieving similar dynamics with single time-dependent potential surfaces. It is shown that guided switching between diabatic and adiabatic evolution has an essential role in this system. We also show that efficient and precise tailoring of motional states in optical lattices can be achieved, for instance, simply by superimposing two lattices and moving them with respect to each other

  1. The wicked problem of earthquake hazard in developing countries: the example of Bangladesh

    Science.gov (United States)

    Steckler, M. S.; Akhter, S. H.; Stein, S.; Seeber, L.

    2017-12-01

    Many developing nations in earthquake-prone areas confront a tough problem: how much of their limited resources to use mitigating earthquake hazards? This decision is difficult because it is unclear when an infrequent major earthquake may happen, how big it could be, and how much harm it may cause. This issue faces nations with profound immediate needs and ongoing rapid urbanization. Earthquake hazard mitigation in Bangladesh is a wicked problem. It is the world's most densely populated nation, with 160 million people in an area the size of Iowa. Complex geology and sparse data make assessing a possibly-large earthquake hazard difficult. Hence it is hard to decide how much of the limited resources available should be used for earthquake hazard mitigation, given other more immediate needs. Per capita GDP is $1200, so Bangladesh is committed to economic growth and resources are needed to address many critical challenges and hazards. In their subtropical environment, rural Bangladeshis traditionally relied on modest mud or bamboo homes. Their rapidly growing, crowded capital, Dhaka, is filled with multistory concrete buildings likely to be vulnerable to earthquakes. The risk is compounded by the potential collapse of services and accessibility after a major temblor. However, extensive construction as the population shifts from rural to urban provides opportunity for earthquake-risk reduction. While this situation seems daunting, it is not hopeless. Robust risk management is practical, even for developing nations. It involves recognizing uncertainties and developing policies that should give a reasonable outcome for a range of the possible hazard and loss scenarios. Over decades, Bangladesh has achieved a thousandfold reduction in risk from tropical cyclones by building shelters and setting up a warning system. Similar efforts are underway for earthquakes. Smart investments can be very effective, even if modest. Hence, we suggest strategies consistent with high

  2. Measurement of Capillary Radius and Contact Angle within Porous Media.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ravi, Saitej; Dharmarajan, Ramanathan; Moghaddam, Saeed

    2015-12-01

    The pore radius (i.e., capillary radius) and contact angle determine the capillary pressure generated in a porous medium. The most common method to determine these two parameters is through measurement of the capillary pressure generated by a reference liquid (i.e., a liquid with near-zero contact angle) and a test liquid. The rate of rise technique, commonly used to determine the capillary pressure, results in significant uncertainties. In this study, we utilize a recently developed technique for independently measuring the capillary pressure and permeability to determine the equivalent minimum capillary radii and contact angle of water within micropillar wick structures. In this method, the experimentally measured dryout threshold of a wick structure at different wicking lengths is fit to Darcy's law to extract the maximum capillary pressure generated by the test liquid. The equivalent minimum capillary radii of different wick geometries are determined by measuring the maximum capillary pressures generated using n-hexane as the working fluid. It is found that the equivalent minimum capillary radius is dependent on the diameter of pillars and the spacing between pillars. The equivalent capillary radii of micropillar wicks determined using the new method are found to be up to 7 times greater than the current geometry-based first-order estimates. The contact angle subtended by water at the walls of the micropillars is determined by measuring the capillary pressure generated by water within the arrays and the measured capillary radii for the different geometries. This mean contact angle of water is determined to be 54.7°.

  3. Moment ratios for heavy QQ- - states and their dependence on the quarkmass definition

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bertlmann, R.A.

    1982-01-01

    When analyzing heavy qq - states with help of exponential moments we argue that a ratio of moments should be expanded rather than the moments themselves. Within a nonrelativistic approximation we show that the expanded ratio is totally independent on the quark mass definition, whereas the nonexpanded ratio of moments strongly depends on it. (Author)

  4. State-dependent memory effects using caffeine and placebo do not extend to metamemory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kelemen, William L; Creeley, Catherine E

    2003-01-01

    The authors examined the impact of caffeine on human memory and predictions of memory (i.e., metamemory). On Day 1, 83 college students drank a sweetened beverage containing either caffeine (4 mg/kg body weight) or a placebo before they studied 40 pairs of words. While the participants studied, they predicted their future memory performance for each word pair. On Day 2, the participants again received caffeine or a placebo before the memory test. The participants who drank the same beverage on both days (either caffeine or a placebo) recalled more word pairs than did those who drank different beverages (caffeine on 1 day and a placebo on the other day). In contrast, memory predictions were more accurate when the beverages did not match on both days. These data provide evidence for state-dependent memory when caffeine is used, but not for state-dependent metamemory. People's memory and their predictions of memory can be influenced in different ways if they drink caffeine before they study or take a test.

  5. Resting-state Functional Connectivity is an Age-dependent Predictor of Motor Learning Abilities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mary, Alison; Wens, Vincent; Op de Beeck, Marc; Leproult, Rachel; De Tiège, Xavier; Peigneux, Philippe

    2017-10-01

    This magnetoencephalography study investigates how ageing modulates the relationship between pre-learning resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) and subsequent learning. Neuromagnetic resting-state activity was recorded 5 min before motor sequence learning in 14 young (19-30 years) and 14 old (66-70 years) participants. We used a seed-based beta-band power envelope correlation approach to estimate rsFC maps, with the seed located in the right primary sensorimotor cortex. In each age group, the relation between individual rsFC and learning performance was investigated using Pearson's correlation analyses. Our results show that rsFC is predictive of subsequent motor sequence learning but involves different cross-network interactions in the two age groups. In young adults, decreased coupling between the sensorimotor network and the cortico-striato-cerebellar network is associated with better motor learning, whereas a similar relation is found in old adults between the sensorimotor, the dorsal-attentional and the DMNs. Additionally, age-related correlational differences were found in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, known to subtend attentional and controlled processes. These findings suggest that motor skill learning depends-in an age-dependent manner-on subtle interactions between resting-state networks subtending motor activity on the one hand, and controlled and attentional processes on the other hand. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  6. Western Europe, state formation, and genetic pacification.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frost, Peter; Harpending, Henry C

    2015-03-06

    Through its monopoly on violence, the State tends to pacify social relations. Such pacification proceeded slowly in Western Europe between the 5th and 11th centuries, being hindered by the rudimentary nature of law enforcement, the belief in a man's right to settle personal disputes as he saw fit, and the Church's opposition to the death penalty. These hindrances began to dissolve in the 11th century with a consensus by Church and State that the wicked should be punished so that the good may live in peace. Courts imposed the death penalty more and more often and, by the late Middle Ages, were condemning to death between 0.5 and 1.0% of all men of each generation, with perhaps just as many offenders dying at the scene of the crime or in prison while awaiting trial. Meanwhile, the homicide rate plummeted from the 14th century to the 20th. The pool of violent men dried up until most murders occurred under conditions of jealousy, intoxication, or extreme stress. The decline in personal violence is usually attributed to harsher punishment and the longer-term effects of cultural conditioning. It may also be, however, that this new cultural environment selected against propensities for violence.

  7. Western Europe, State Formation, and Genetic Pacification

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Peter Frost

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Through its monopoly on violence, the State tends to pacify social relations. Such pacification proceeded slowly in Western Europe between the 5th and 11th centuries, being hindered by the rudimentary nature of law enforcement, the belief in a man's right to settle personal disputes as he saw fit, and the Church's opposition to the death penalty. These hindrances began to dissolve in the 11th century with a consensus by Church and State that the wicked should be punished so that the good may live in peace. Courts imposed the death penalty more and more often and, by the late Middle Ages, were condemning to death between 0.5 and 1.0% of all men of each generation, with perhaps just as many offenders dying at the scene of the crime or in prison while awaiting trial. Meanwhile, the homicide rate plummeted from the 14th century to the 20th. The pool of violent men dried up until most murders occurred under conditions of jealousy, intoxication, or extreme stress. The decline in personal violence is usually attributed to harsher punishment and the longer-term effects of cultural conditioning. It may also be, however, that this new cultural environment selected against propensities for violence.

  8. Using brain-computer interfaces and brain-state dependent stimulation as tools in cognitive neuroscience

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ole eJensen

    2011-05-01

    Full Text Available Large efforts are currently being made to develop and improve online analysis of brain activity which can be used e.g. for brain-computer interfacing (BCI. A BCI allows a subject to control a device by willfully changing his/her own brain activity. BCI therefore holds the promise as a tool for aiding the disabled and for augmenting human performance. While technical developments obviously are important, we will here argue that new insight gained from cognitive neuroscience can be used to identify signatures of neural activation which reliably can be modulated by the subject at will. This review will focus mainly on oscillatory activity in the alpha band which is strongly modulated by changes in covert attention. Besides developing BCIs for their traditional purpose, they might also be used as a research tool for cognitive neuroscience. There is currently a strong interest in how brain state fluctuations impact cognition. These state fluctuations are partly reflected by ongoing oscillatory activity. The functional role of the brain state can be investigated by introducing stimuli in real time to subjects depending on the actual state of the brain. This principle of brain-state dependent stimulation may also be used as a practical tool for augmenting human behavior. In conclusion, new approaches based on online analysis of ongoing brain activity are currently in rapid development. These approaches are amongst others informed by new insight gained from EEG/MEG studies in cognitive neuroscience and hold the promise of providing new ways for investigating the brain at work.

  9. Detection by hemi-nested reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction and genetic characterization of wild type strains of Canine distemper virus in suspected infected dogs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Di Francesco, Cristina E; Di Francesco, Daniela; Di Martino, Barbara; Speranza, Roberto; Santori, Domenico; Boari, Andrea; Marsilio, Fulvio

    2012-01-01

    A new highly sensitive and specific hemi-nested reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assay was applied to detect nucleoprotein (NP) gene of Canine distemper virus (CDV) in samples collected from dogs showing respiratory, gastrointestinal, and neurological signs. Thirty-eight out of 86 samples were positive suggesting that despite the vaccination, canine distemper may still represent a high risk to the canine population. The 968 base pair (bp) fragments from the hemagglutinin (H) gene of 10 viral strains detected in positive samples were amplified and analyzed by restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) using AluI and PsiI enzymes in order to differentiate among vaccine and wild-type CDV strains and to characterize the field viral strains. The products of the both enzymatic digestions allowed identification all viruses as wild strains of CDV. In addition, the RFLP analysis with AluI provided additional information about the identity level among the strains analyzed on the basis of the positions of the cleavage site in the nucleotide sequences of the H gene. The method could be a more useful and simpler method for molecular studies of CDV strains.

  10. Detection of rabies in camel, goat and cattle in Sudan using Fluorescent antibody test (FAT and hemi nested Polymerase Chain Reaction (hnRT-PCR

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Baraa Abdalaziz Ahmed

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available Objective: The objective of this study was to identify rabies virus in camels and other animals in Sudan. Materials and methods: Four camel samples were collected from Garraht Elzawia, Kab-kabia and North Darfur areas in Sudan. The samples were collected based on clinical signs. In addition, two camel samples were obtained from Khartoum and Tambool, one goat sample was collected from El-Fashir, and one cattle sample was obtained from Atbara. The samples were transported to the Veterinary Research Institute (VRI at Khartoum, Sudan for further studies. The samples were subjected for nested and hemi nested RT-PCR (hnRT-PCR along with the gold standard Fluorescent antibody test (FAT to diagnose rabies. Results: Out of eight samples, seven were found to be positive by both FAT and RT-PCR methods. The remaining one sample was positive by FAT but negative by hnRT-PCR indicating the suitablity of hnRT-PCR along with FAT for accurate diagnosis of rabies in animals. Conclusion: The study concluded that FAT and RT-PCR are useful tools for research and diagnosis of rabies. [J Adv Vet Anim Res 2016; 3(3.000: 274-277

  11. Dynamic Portfolio Optimization with Transaction Costs and State-Dependent Drift

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Palczewski, Jan; Poulsen, Rolf; Schenk-Hoppe, Klaus Reiner

    2015-01-01

    The problem of dynamic portfolio choice with transaction costs is often addressed by constructing a Markov Chain approximation of the continuous time price processes. Using this approximation, we present an efficient numerical method to determine optimal portfolio strategies under time- and state......-dependent drift and proportional transaction costs. This scenario arises when investors have behavioral biases or the actual drift is unknown and needs to be estimated. Our numerical method solves dynamic optimal portfolio problems with an exponential utility function for time-horizons of up to 40 years....... It is applied to measure the value of information and the loss from transaction costs using the indifference principle....

  12. Central Asia’s Ili River Ecosystem as a Wicked Problem: Unraveling Complex Interrelationships at the Interface of Water, Energy, and Food

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Steven G. Pueppke

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available The Ili River originates in the mountains of Xinjiang, China, and flows across an increasingly arid landscape before terminating in Kazakhstan’s Lake Balkhash, which has no outlet to the ocean. The river has been extensively impounded and diverted over the past half century to produce hydroelectric power and food on irrigated land. Water withdrawals are increasing to the extent that they are beginning to threaten the ecosystem, just as it is becoming stressed by altered inflows as glaciers retreat and disappear. If the Ili River ecosystem is to be preserved, it is crucial that we thoroughly understand the spatial and temporal nuances of the interrelationships between water, energy, and food—and the vulnerability of these components to climate change. The ecosystem has all of the characteristics of a classically-defined “wicked problem”, and so it warrants treatment as a complex and dynamic challenge subject to changing assumptions, unexpected consequences, and strong social and economic overtones. Research should thus focus not just on new knowledge about the water, energy, or food component, but on advancing our understanding of the ecosystem as a whole. This will require the participation of interdisciplinary teams of researchers with both tacit and specialized knowledge.

  13. A Busy period analysis for the state dependent M/M/1/K queue

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Al Hanbali, Ahmad; Boxma, Onno

    2010-01-01

    In this paper, we study the transient behavior of a state dependent M/M/1/K queue during the busy period. We derive in closed-form the joint transform of the length of the busy period, the number of customers served during the busy period, and the number of losses during the busy period. For two

  14. State-Dependent Resource Harvesting with Lagged Information about System States.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fred A Johnson

    Full Text Available Markov decision processes (MDPs, which involve a temporal sequence of actions conditioned on the state of the managed system, are increasingly being applied in natural resource management. This study focuses on the modification of a traditional MDP to account for those cases in which an action must be chosen after a significant time lag in observing system state, but just prior to a new observation. In order to calculate an optimal decision policy under these conditions, possible actions must be conditioned on the previous observed system state and action taken. We show how to solve these problems when the state transition structure is known and when it is uncertain. Our focus is on the latter case, and we show how actions must be conditioned not only on the previous system state and action, but on the probabilities associated with alternative models of system dynamics. To demonstrate this framework, we calculated and simulated optimal, adaptive policies for MDPs with lagged states for the problem of deciding annual harvest regulations for mallards (Anas platyrhynchos in the United States. In this particular example, changes in harvest policy induced by the use of lagged information about system state were sufficient to maintain expected management performance (e.g. population size, harvest even in the face of an uncertain system state at the time of a decision.

  15. State-dependent resource harvesting with lagged information about system states

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnson, Fred A.; Fackler, Paul L.; Boomer, G Scott; Zimmerman, Guthrie S.; Williams, Byron K.; Nichols, James D.; Dorazio, Robert

    2016-01-01

    Markov decision processes (MDPs), which involve a temporal sequence of actions conditioned on the state of the managed system, are increasingly being applied in natural resource management. This study focuses on the modification of a traditional MDP to account for those cases in which an action must be chosen after a significant time lag in observing system state, but just prior to a new observation. In order to calculate an optimal decision policy under these conditions, possible actions must be conditioned on the previous observed system state and action taken. We show how to solve these problems when the state transition structure is known and when it is uncertain. Our focus is on the latter case, and we show how actions must be conditioned not only on the previous system state and action, but on the probabilities associated with alternative models of system dynamics. To demonstrate this framework, we calculated and simulated optimal, adaptive policies for MDPs with lagged states for the problem of deciding annual harvest regulations for mallards (Anas platyrhynchos) in the United States. In this particular example, changes in harvest policy induced by the use of lagged information about system state were sufficient to maintain expected management performance (e.g. population size, harvest) even in the face of an uncertain system state at the time of a decision.

  16. Pressure dependence of excited-state charge-carrier dynamics in organolead tribromide perovskites

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, X. C.; Han, J. H.; Zhao, H. F.; Yan, H. C.; Shi, Y.; Jin, M. X.; Liu, C. L.; Ding, D. J.

    2018-05-01

    Excited-state charge-carrier dynamics governs the performance of organometal trihalide perovskites (OTPs) and is strongly influenced by the crystal structure. Characterizing the excited-state charge-carrier dynamics in OTPs under high pressure is imperative for providing crucial insights into structure-property relations. Here, we conduct in situ high-pressure femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy experiments to study the excited-state carrier dynamics of CH3NH3PbBr3 (MAPbBr3) under hydrostatic pressure. The results indicate that compression is an effective approach to modulate the carrier dynamics of MAPbBr3. Across each pressure-induced phase, carrier relaxation, phonon scattering, and Auger recombination present different pressure-dependent properties under compression. Responsiveness is attributed to the pressure-induced variation in the lattice structure, which also changes the electronic band structure. Specifically, simultaneous prolongation of carrier relaxation and Auger recombination is achieved in the ambient phase, which is very valuable for excess energy harvesting. Our discussion provides clues for optimizing the photovoltaic performance of OTPs.

  17. Frequency-dependent brain regional homogeneity alterations in patients with mild cognitive impairment during working memory state relative to resting state

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pengyun eWang

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available Several studies have reported working memory deficits in patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI. However, previous studies investigating the neural mechanisms of MCI have primarily focused on brain activity alterations during working memory tasks. No study to date has compared brain network alterations in the working memory state between MCI patients and normal control subjects. Therefore, using the index of regional homogeneity (ReHo, we explored brain network impairments in MCI patients during a working memory task relative to the resting state, and identified frequency-dependent effects in separate frequency bands.Our results indicate that, in MCI patients, ReHo is altered in the posterior cingulate cortex in the slow-3 band (0.073–0.198 Hz, and in the bottom of the right occipital lobe and part of the right cerebellum, the right thalamus, a diffusing region in the bilateral prefrontal cortex, the left and right parietal-occipital regions, and the right angular gyrus in the slow-5 band (0.01–0.027 Hz. Furthermore, in normal controls, the value of ReHo in clusters belonging to the default mode network decreased, while the value of ReHo in clusters belonging to the attentional network increased during the task state. However, this pattern was reversed in MCI patients, and was associated with decreased working memory performance. In addition, we identified altered functional connectivity of the abovementioned regions with other parts of the brain in MCI patients.This is the first study to compare frequency-dependent alterations of ReHo in MCI patients between resting and working memory states. The results provide a new perspective regarding the neural mechanisms of working memory deficits in MCI patients, and extend our knowledge of altered brain patterns in resting and task-evoked states.

  18. Deterministic integer multiple firing depending on initial state in Wang model

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Xie Yong [Institute of Nonlinear Dynamics, MSSV, Department of Engineering Mechanics, Xi' an Jiaotong University, Xi' an 710049 (China)]. E-mail: yxie@mail.xjtu.edu.cn; Xu Jianxue [Institute of Nonlinear Dynamics, MSSV, Department of Engineering Mechanics, Xi' an Jiaotong University, Xi' an 710049 (China); Jiang Jun [Institute of Nonlinear Dynamics, MSSV, Department of Engineering Mechanics, Xi' an Jiaotong University, Xi' an 710049 (China)

    2006-12-15

    We investigate numerically dynamical behaviour of the Wang model, which describes the rhythmic activities of thalamic relay neurons. The model neuron exhibits Type I excitability from a global view, but Type II excitability from a local view. There exists a narrow range of bistability, in which a subthreshold oscillation and a suprathreshold firing behaviour coexist. A special firing pattern, integer multiple firing can be found in the certain part of the bistable range. The characteristic feature of such firing pattern is that the histogram of interspike intervals has a multipeaked structure, and the peaks are located at about integer multiples of a basic interspike interval. Since the Wang model is noise-free, the integer multiple firing is a deterministic firing pattern. The existence of bistability leads to the deterministic integer multiple firing depending on the initial state of the model neuron, i.e., the initial values of the state variables.

  19. Deterministic integer multiple firing depending on initial state in Wang model

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xie Yong; Xu Jianxue; Jiang Jun

    2006-01-01

    We investigate numerically dynamical behaviour of the Wang model, which describes the rhythmic activities of thalamic relay neurons. The model neuron exhibits Type I excitability from a global view, but Type II excitability from a local view. There exists a narrow range of bistability, in which a subthreshold oscillation and a suprathreshold firing behaviour coexist. A special firing pattern, integer multiple firing can be found in the certain part of the bistable range. The characteristic feature of such firing pattern is that the histogram of interspike intervals has a multipeaked structure, and the peaks are located at about integer multiples of a basic interspike interval. Since the Wang model is noise-free, the integer multiple firing is a deterministic firing pattern. The existence of bistability leads to the deterministic integer multiple firing depending on the initial state of the model neuron, i.e., the initial values of the state variables

  20. Prefabricated Cervical Skin Flaps for Hemi-Facial Resurfacing: Elucidating the Natural History of Postoperative Edema Using Indocyanine Green.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Ke; Min, Peiru; Sadigh, Parviz; Grassetti, Luca; Lazzeri, Davide; Torresetti, Matteo; Marsili, Riccardo; Feng, Shaoqing; Liu, Ningfei; Zhang, Yi Xin

    2018-02-01

    The increases in capillary wall permeability and capillary hydrostatic pressure are considered to be the causes for the acute swelling seen in flaps; however, disruption of the circulating flap lymphatics could be another contributory factor. In this study we monitor the development of flap edema in a series of 18 prefabricated flaps and aim to delineate the natural history of this phenomenon by use of lymphography. Postoperative swelling was monitored in a series of 18 pre-expanded prefabricated cervical skin flaps used for hemi-facial burns-scar resurfacing. Time to spontaneous resolution, presence or absence of venous congestion, and clinical outcome were recorded. In two cases, indocyanine-green (ICG) lymphography was used to monitor the dermal backflow pattern until swelling had completely resolved. Average moving velocity of ICG after injection as well as flap thickness was also recorded over the follow-up period. The average moving velocity of ICG in the flap lymphatics improved from 0.48 cm/min to 1.5 cm/min in the first 12 days after flap transfer. The dermal backflow pattern was stardust in the first 12 days, indicating moderate lymphedema, transforming to splash from week three, and a robust collecting lymphatic vessel occurring from the fifth month, indicating mild lymphedema and lymphatic channel recovery, respectively. Transient swelling was observed in all prefabricated flaps in our series. We postulate that this is mostly secondary to lymphatic disruption that subsides as lymphangiogenesis takes place. ICG lymphography is an inexpensive, safe, and easy-to-use imaging technology that could be used in the monitoring of postoperative lymphedema seen in prefabricated flaps.

  1. Existence of Mild Solutions for Impulsive Fractional Integro-Differential Inclusions with State-Dependent Delay

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Selvaraj Suganya

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available In this manuscript, we implement Bohnenblust–Karlin’s fixed point theorem to demonstrate the existence of mild solutions for a class of impulsive fractional integro-differential inclusions (IFIDI with state-dependent delay (SDD in Banach spaces. An example is provided to illustrate the obtained abstract results.

  2. A transdisciplinary approach to understanding the causes of wicked problems such as the violent conflict in Rwanda

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andreas Velthuizen

    2012-07-01

    Full Text Available The paper is presented against a background of many wicked problems that confront us in the world today such as violent crime, conflict that emanates from political power seeking, contests for scarce resources, the increasing reaction all over the world to the deterioration of socio-economic conditions and the devastation caused by natural disasters. This article will argue that the challenge of violent conflict requires an innovative approach to research and problem solving and proposes a research methodology that follows a transdisciplinary approach. The argument is informed by field research during 2006 on the management of knowledge in the Great Lakes region of Africa, including research on how knowledge on the 1994 genocide in Rwanda is managed. The paper will make recommendations on how transdisciplinary research is required to determine the causes of violent conflict in an African context and how practitioners and academics should engage in transdisciplinarity. It was found that trans- disciplinary research is required to gain better insight into the causes of violent conflict in an African context. It requires from the researcher to recognise the many levels of reality that has to be integrated towards a synthesis to reveal new insights into the causes of violent conflict, including recognising the existence of a normative-spiritual realm that informs the epistemology of Africa. It furthermore requires a methodology that allows us to break out of the stifling constraints of systems thinking and linear processes into the inner space at the juncture where disciplines meet (the diversity of African communities. Keywords: Africa, conflict, Rwanda, crime, genocide, violence, transdisciplinary Disciplines: politics, education, law, epistemology, sociology, theology, management science

  3. Assessment of the eye irritation potential of chemicals: A comparison study between two test methods based on human 3D hemi-cornea models.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tandon, R; Bartok, M; Zorn-Kruppa, M; Brandner, J M; Gabel, D; Engelke, M

    2015-12-25

    We have recently developed two hemi-cornea models (Bartok et al., Toxicol in Vitro 29, 72, 2015; Zorn-Kruppa et al. PLoS One 9, e114181, 2014), which allow the correct prediction of eye irritation potential of chemicals according to the United Nations globally harmonized system of classification and labeling of chemicals (UN GHS). Both models comprise a multilayered epithelium and a stroma with embedded keratocytes in a collagenous matrix. These two models were compared, using a set of fourteen test chemicals. Their effects after 10 and 60 minutes (min) exposure were assessed from the quantification of cell viability using the MTT reduction assay. The first approach separately quantifies the damage inflicted to the epithelium and the stroma. The second approach quantifies the depth of injury by recording cell death as a function of depth. The classification obtained by the two models was compared to the Draize rabbit eye test and an ex vivo model using rabbit cornea (Jester et al. Toxicol in Vitro. 24, 597-604, 2010). With a 60 min exposure, both of our models are able to clearly differentiate UN GHS Category 1 and UN GHS Category 2 test chemicals. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. Remarks on the necessity and implications of state-dependence in the black hole interior

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Papadodimas, Kyriakos; Raju, Suvrat

    2016-01-01

    We revisit the "state-dependence" of the map that we proposed recently between bulk operators in the interior of a large anti-de Sitter black hole and operators in the boundary CFT. By refining recent versions of the information paradox, we show that this feature is necessary for the CFT to

  5. Comments on the Necessity and Implications of State-Dependence in the Black Hole Interior

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Papadodimas, Kyriakos; Raju, Suvrat

    2015-01-01

    We revisit the "state-dependence" of the map that we proposed recently between bulk operators in the interior of a large AdS black hole and operators in the boundary CFT. By refining recent versions of the information paradox, we show that this feature is necessary for the CFT to successfully

  6. Effect of LEO cycling on 125 Ah advanced design IPV nickel-hydrogen battery cells

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smithrick, John J.; Hall, Stephen W.

    1990-01-01

    An advanced 125 Ah individual pressure vessel (IPV) nickel-hydrogen cell was designed. The primary function of the advanced cell is to store and deliver energy for long-term, low earth-orbit (LEO) spacecraft missions. The new features of this design are: (1) use of 26 percent rather than 31 percent potassium hydroxide (KOH) electrolyte, (2) use of a patented catalyzed wall wick, (3) use of serrated-edge separators to facilitate gaseous oxygen and hydrogen flow within the cell, while still maintaining physical contact with the wall wick for electrolyte management, and (4) use of a floating rather than a fixed stack (state-of-the-art) to accommodate nickel electrode expansion. Six 125-Ah flight cells based on this design were fabricated by Eagle-Picher. Three of the cells contain all of the advanced features (test cells) and three are the same as the test cells except they don't have catalyst on the wall wick (control cells). All six cells are in the process of being evaluated in a LEO cycle life test. The cells have accumulated about 4700 LEO cycles (60 percent DOD 10 C). There have been no cell failures; the catalyzed wall wick cells, however, are performing better.

  7. Experimental evaluation of optimal Vehicle Dynamic Control based on the State Dependent Riccati Equation technique

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Alirezaei, M.; Kanarachos, S.A.; Scheepers, B.T.M.; Maurice, J.P.

    2013-01-01

    Development and experimentally evaluation of an optimal Vehicle Dynamic Control (VDC) strategy based on the State Dependent Riccati Equation (SDRE) control technique is presented. The proposed nonlinear controller is based on a nonlinear vehicle model with nonlinear tire characteristics. A novel

  8. Charge-state dependence of binary-encounter-electron cross sections and peak energies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hidmi, H.I.; Richard, P.; Sanders, J.M.; Schoene, H.; Giese, J.P.; Lee, D.H.; Zouros, T.J.M.; Varghese, S.L.

    1993-01-01

    The charge-state dependence of the binary-encounter-electron (BEE) double-differential cross section (DDCS) at 0 degree with respect to the beam direction resulting from collisions of 1 MeV/amu H + , C q+ , N q+ , O q+ , F q+ , Si q+ , and Cl q+ , and 0.5 MeV/amu Cu q+ with H 2 is reported. The data show an enhancement in the BEE DDCS as the charge state of the projectile is decreased, in agreement with the data reported by Richard et al. [J. Phys. B 23, L213 (1990)]. The DDCS enhancement ratios observed for the three-electron isoelectronic sequence C 3+ :C 6+ , N 4+ :N 7+ , O 5+ :O 8+ , and F 6+ :F 9+ are about 1.35, whereas a DDCS enhancement of 3.5 was observed for Cu 4+ . The BEE enhancement with increasing electrons on the projectile has been shown by several authors to be due to the non-Coulomb static potential of the projectile and additionally to the e-e exchange interaction. An impulse-approximation (IA) model fits the shape of the BEE DDCS and predicts a Z p 2 dependence for the bare-ion cross sections. The IA also predicts a binary peak energy that is independent of q and Z p and below the classical value of 4t, where t is the energy of electrons traveling with the projectile velocity. We observed a BEE energy shift ΔE (ΔE=4t-E peak , where E peak is the measured energy at the peak of the binary encounter electrons) that is approximately independent of q for the low-Z p ions, whereas the measured ΔE values for Si, Cl, and Cu were found to be q dependent

  9. The constrained discrete-time state-dependent Riccati equation technique for uncertain nonlinear systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chang, Insu

    The objective of the thesis is to introduce a relatively general nonlinear controller/estimator synthesis framework using a special type of the state-dependent Riccati equation technique. The continuous time state-dependent Riccati equation (SDRE) technique is extended to discrete-time under input and state constraints, yielding constrained (C) discrete-time (D) SDRE, referred to as CD-SDRE. For the latter, stability analysis and calculation of a region of attraction are carried out. The derivation of the D-SDRE under state-dependent weights is provided. Stability of the D-SDRE feedback system is established using Lyapunov stability approach. Receding horizon strategy is used to take into account the constraints on D-SDRE controller. Stability condition of the CD-SDRE controller is analyzed by using a switched system. The use of CD-SDRE scheme in the presence of constraints is then systematically demonstrated by applying this scheme to problems of spacecraft formation orbit reconfiguration under limited performance on thrusters. Simulation results demonstrate the efficacy and reliability of the proposed CD-SDRE. The CD-SDRE technique is further investigated in a case where there are uncertainties in nonlinear systems to be controlled. First, the system stability under each of the controllers in the robust CD-SDRE technique is separately established. The stability of the closed-loop system under the robust CD-SDRE controller is then proven based on the stability of each control system comprising switching configuration. A high fidelity dynamical model of spacecraft attitude motion in 3-dimensional space is derived with a partially filled fuel tank, assumed to have the first fuel slosh mode. The proposed robust CD-SDRE controller is then applied to the spacecraft attitude control system to stabilize its motion in the presence of uncertainties characterized by the first fuel slosh mode. The performance of the robust CD-SDRE technique is discussed. Subsequently

  10. pH dependent polymeric micelle adsorption

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    McLean, S C; Gee, M L [The University of Melbourne, VIC (Australia). School of Chemistry

    2003-07-01

    Full text: Poly(2-vinylpyridine)-poly(ethylene oxide) (P2VP-PEO) shows potential as a possible drug delivery system for anti-tumour drugs since it forms pH dependent polymeric micelles. Hence to better understand the adsorption behaviour of this polymer we have studied the interaction forces between layers of P2VP-PEO adsorbed onto silica as a function of solution pH using an Atomic Force Microscope (AFM). When P2VP-PEO is initially adsorbed above the pKa of the P2VP block, P2VP-PEO adsorbs from solution as micelles that exist as either partially collapsed- or a hemi-micelles at the silica surface. Below the pKa of P2VP, the P2VP-PEO adsorbs as unimers, forming a compact layer with little looping and tailing into solution. When initial adsorption of P2VP-PEO is in the form of unimers, any driving force to self-assembly of the now charge neutral polymer is kinetically hindered. Hence, after initial adsorption at pH 3.6, a subsequent increase in pH to 6.6 results in a slow surface restructuring towards self-assembly and equilibrium. When the pH is increased from pH 6.6 to 9.7 there is a continuation of the evolution of the system to its equilibrium position during which the adsorbed P2VP-PEO unimers continue to 'unravel' from the surface, extending away from it, towards eventual complete surface self-assembly.

  11. Are Health State Valuations from the General Public Biased? A Test of Health State Reference Dependency Using Self-assessed Health and an Efficient Discrete Choice Experiment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jonker, Marcel F; Attema, Arthur E; Donkers, Bas; Stolk, Elly A; Versteegh, Matthijs M

    2017-12-01

    Health state valuations of patients and non-patients are not the same, whereas health state values obtained from general population samples are a weighted average of both. The latter constitutes an often-overlooked source of bias. This study investigates the resulting bias and tests for the impact of reference dependency on health state valuations using an efficient discrete choice experiment administered to a Dutch nationally representative sample of 788 respondents. A Bayesian discrete choice experiment design consisting of eight sets of 24 (matched pairwise) choice tasks was developed, with each set providing full identification of the included parameters. Mixed logit models were used to estimate health state preferences with respondents' own health included as an additional predictor. Our results indicate that respondents with impaired health worse than or equal to the health state levels under evaluation have approximately 30% smaller health state decrements. This confirms that reference dependency can be observed in general population samples and affirms the relevance of prospect theory in health state valuations. At the same time, the limited number of respondents with severe health impairments does not appear to bias social tariffs as obtained from general population samples. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  12. Controllability Results For First Order Impulsive Stochastic Functional Differential Systems with State-Dependent Delay

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    C. Parthasarathy

    2013-03-01

    Full Text Available In this paper, we study the controllability results of first order impulsive stochastic differential and neutral differential systems with state-dependent delay by using semigroup theory. The controllability results are derived by the means of Leray-SchauderAlternative fixed point theorem. An example is provided to illustrate the theory.

  13. A New Attribute Control Chart using Multiple Dependent State Repetitive Sampling

    KAUST Repository

    Aldosari, Mansour Sattam; Aslam, Muhammad; Jun, Chi-Hyuck

    2017-01-01

    In this manuscript, a new attribute control chart using multiple dependent state repetitive sampling is designed. The operational procedure and structure of the proposed control chart is given. The required measures to determine the average run length (ARL) for in-control and out-of-control processes are given. Tables of ARLs are reported for various control chart parameters. The proposed control chart is more sensitive in detecting a small shift in the process as compared to the existing attribute control charts. The simulation study shows the efficiency of the proposed chart over the existing charts. An example is given for the illustration purpose.

  14. A New Attribute Control Chart using Multiple Dependent State Repetitive Sampling

    KAUST Repository

    Aldosari, Mansour Sattam

    2017-03-25

    In this manuscript, a new attribute control chart using multiple dependent state repetitive sampling is designed. The operational procedure and structure of the proposed control chart is given. The required measures to determine the average run length (ARL) for in-control and out-of-control processes are given. Tables of ARLs are reported for various control chart parameters. The proposed control chart is more sensitive in detecting a small shift in the process as compared to the existing attribute control charts. The simulation study shows the efficiency of the proposed chart over the existing charts. An example is given for the illustration purpose.

  15. Equilibrium and nonequilibrium many-body perturbation theory: a unified framework based on the Martin-Schwinger hierarchy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Van Leeuwen, Robert; Stefanucci, Gianluca

    2013-01-01

    We present a unified framework for equilibrium and nonequilibrium many-body perturbation theory. The most general nonequilibrium many-body theory valid for general initial states is based on a time-contour originally introduced by Konstantinov and Perel'. The various other well-known formalisms of Keldysh, Matsubara and the zero-temperature formalism are then derived as special cases that arise under different assumptions. We further present a single simple proof of Wick's theorem that is at the same time valid in all these flavors of many-body theory. It arises simply as a solution of the equations of the Martin-Schwinger hierarchy for the noninteracting many-particle Green's function with appropriate boundary conditions. We further discuss a generalized Wick theorem for general initial states on the Keldysh contour and derive how the formalisms based on the Keldysh and Konstantinov-Perel'-contours are related for the case of general initial states.

  16. Multi-response data treatment of dynamic and steady state permeation measurement on composite membrane

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Fíla, V.; Bernauer, B.; Hrabánek, Pavel

    2006-01-01

    Roč. 200, 1-3 (2006), s. 120-121 ISSN 0011-9164 R&D Projects: GA AV ČR(CZ) 1QS401250509 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z40400503 Keywords : composite membrane * physical chemistry * Wicke-Kalenbach permeation Subject RIV: CF - Physical ; Theoretical Chemistry Impact factor: 0.917, year: 2006

  17. Stable isotopes estimate the dependence of the parasitic angiosperm striga hermonthica on its maize host

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aflakpui, G.K.S.

    2004-01-01

    The dependence of the root hemi-parasitic angiosperm striga hermonthica on its host for carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) was estimated by labeling the leaves of maize (grown in sand culture at three rates of nitrogen) with 13 C and 15 N. The Striga x N interaction on the responses measured was not significant. The dependence of the parasite on host nitrogen varied from 75 to 83 percent in the leaf, and from 70 to 80 percent in the stem compared with a total dependence of between 74 and 82 per cent. The dependence of the parasite on its host for nitrogen was not affected by the rate of nitrogen fertilizer applied. The heterotrophic carbon derived by S. hermonthica from its maize host varied from 20 to 32 per cent in the leaf, 23 to 41 per cent in the stem, with a total dependence of 22 to 36 per cent. The heterotrophic carbon in the leaf increased as the rate of nitrogen fertilizer applied increased (P<0.05). The total dependence of the parasite on the host for carbon also increased (P<0.05). The total dependence of the parasite on the host for carbon also increased as the rate of nitrogen fertilizer applied increased (P<0.01). The presence of S. hermonthica reduced the shoot biomass of its maize host by about 40 percent (P<0.001), whilst the root biomass was unaffected. Infected plants also partitioned about 41 percent of their total biomass compared with 27 per cent for the uninfected (P<0.001). The application if nitrogen increased the shoot and root biomass (P<0.001) but did not affect the proportion of the total biomass partitioned to the root. The results show that (i) the dependence of striga on its maize host of C and N can be estimated with stable isotopes of C and N and (ii) Striga derives more nitrogen than carbon from the host. (author)

  18. Grey Box Modelling of Flow in Sewer Systems with State Dependent Diffusion

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Breinholt, Anders; Thordarson, Fannar Örn; Møller, Jan Kloppenborg

    2011-01-01

    . It is shown that an additive diffusion noise term description leads to a violation of the physical constraints of the system, whereas a state dependent diffusion noise avoids this problem and should be favoured. It is also shown that a logarithmic transformation of the flow measurements secures positive lower...... flow prediction limits, because the observation noise is proportionally scaled with the modelled output. Finally it is concluded that a state proportional diffusion term best and adequately describes the one-step flow prediction uncertainty, and a proper description of the system noise is important......Generating flow forecasts with uncertainty limits from rain gauge inputs in sewer systems require simple models with identifiable parameters that can adequately describe the stochastic phenomena of the system. In this paper, a simple grey-box model is proposed that is attractive for both...

  19. Coherence-enhanced phase-dependent dissipation in long SNS Josephson junctions: Revealing Andreev bound state dynamics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dassonneville, B.; Murani, A.; Ferrier, M.; Guéron, S.; Bouchiat, H.

    2018-05-01

    One of the best known causes of dissipation in ac-driven quantum systems stems from photon absorption causing transitions between levels. Dissipation can also be caused by the retarded response to the time-dependent excitation, and in general gives insight into the system's relaxation times and mechanisms. Here we address the dissipation in a mesoscopic normal wire with superconducting contacts, that sustains a dissipationless supercurrent at zero frequency and that may therefore naively be expected to remain dissipationless at a frequency lower than the superconducting gap. We probe the high-frequency linear response of such a normal metal/superconductor (NS) ring to a time-dependent flux by coupling it to a highly sensitive multimode microwave resonator. Far from being the simple, dissipationless derivative of the supercurrent-versus-phase relation, the ring's ac susceptibility also displays a dissipative component whose phase dependence is a signature of the dynamical processes occurring within the Andreev spectrum. We show how dissipation is driven by the competition between two mechanisms. The first is the relaxation of the Andreev level distribution function, while the second corresponds to microwave-induced transitions within the spectrum. Depending on the relative strength of those contributions, dissipation can be maximal at π , a phase at which the proximity-induced minigap closes, or can be maximal near π /2 , a phase at which the dc supercurrent is maximal. We also find that the dissipative response paradoxically increases at low temperature and can even exceed the normal-state conductance. The results are successfully confronted with theoretical predictions of the Kubo linear response and time-dependent Usadel equations, derived from the Bogoliubov-de Gennes Hamiltonian describing the SNS junction. These experiments thus demonstrate the power of the ac susceptibility measurement of individual hybrid mesoscopic systems in probing in a controlled way

  20. Parabolic partial differential equations with discrete state-dependent delay: Classical solutions and solution manifold

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Krisztin, T.; Rezunenko, Oleksandr

    2016-01-01

    Roč. 260, č. 5 (2016), s. 4454-4472 ISSN 0022-0396 R&D Projects: GA ČR GAP103/12/2431 Institutional support: RVO:67985556 Keywords : Parabolic partial differential equations * State dependent delay * Solution manifold Subject RIV: BC - Control Systems Theory Impact factor: 1.988, year: 2016 http://library.utia.cas.cz/separaty/2016/AS/rezunenko-0457879.pdf

  1. Integrating research and practice for optimal clinical outcomes: an interview with Tim Porter-O'Grady. Interview by Gail S Wick.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Porter-O'Grady, T

    1996-06-01

    Dr. Porter-O'Grady has written over 125 articles and book chapters and has published eight books and is completing a ninth. He has consulted with over 500 institutions and has spoken in 1300 settings in the U.S., Canada, Europe, and Asia and logs about 350,000 miles a year. Dr. Porter-O'Grady is listed in six different categories of Who's Who in America, serves on 7 editorial boards, and is a member of the New York Academy of Sciences and a Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing. He has served on a number of community boards and has been an elected officer in a variety of health related agencies and organizations. He is currently a health systems expert for the National Health Policy Council and is a member of the Georgia Health Care Reform Project. In this interview, which took place in Atlanta by ANNA Past President Gail Wick, Dr. Porter-O'Grady shares his wealth of knowledge and experience by challenging us to move beyond the old thinking of caring for a specific patient population to managing lives on a continuum of care in an interdependent relationship with other providers, to refine the term "patient care," letting go of the medical sickness model and returning to our life-centered, health-oriented nursing roots and to broaden our educational preparation to a systems perspective and a continuum of caring.

  2. Building the nodal nuclear data dependences in a many-dimensional state-variable space

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dufek, Jan

    2011-01-01

    Highlights: → The Abstract and Introduction are revised to reflect reviewers' comments. → Section is revised and simplified. → The third paragraph in Section is revised. → All typos are fixed. - Abstract: We present new methods for building the polynomial-regression based nodal nuclear data models. The data models can reflect dependences on a large number of state variables, and they can consider various history effects. Suitable multivariate polynomials that approximate the nodal data dependences are identified efficiently in an iterative manner. The history effects are analysed using a new sampling scheme for lattice calculations where the traditional base burnup and branch calculations are replaced by a large number of diverse burnup histories. The total number of lattice calculations is controlled so that the data models are built to a required accuracy.

  3. Local bifurcations in differential equations with state-dependent delay.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sieber, Jan

    2017-11-01

    A common task when analysing dynamical systems is the determination of normal forms near local bifurcations of equilibria. As most of these normal forms have been classified and analysed, finding which particular class of normal form one encounters in a numerical bifurcation study guides follow-up computations. This paper builds on normal form algorithms for equilibria of delay differential equations with constant delay that were developed and implemented in DDE-Biftool recently. We show how one can extend these methods to delay-differential equations with state-dependent delay (sd-DDEs). Since higher degrees of regularity of local center manifolds are still open for sd-DDEs, we give an independent (still only partial) argument which phenomena from the truncated normal must persist in the full sd-DDE. In particular, we show that all invariant manifolds with a sufficient degree of normal hyperbolicity predicted by the normal form exist also in the full sd-DDE.

  4. Local bifurcations in differential equations with state-dependent delay

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sieber, Jan

    2017-11-01

    A common task when analysing dynamical systems is the determination of normal forms near local bifurcations of equilibria. As most of these normal forms have been classified and analysed, finding which particular class of normal form one encounters in a numerical bifurcation study guides follow-up computations. This paper builds on normal form algorithms for equilibria of delay differential equations with constant delay that were developed and implemented in DDE-Biftool recently. We show how one can extend these methods to delay-differential equations with state-dependent delay (sd-DDEs). Since higher degrees of regularity of local center manifolds are still open for sd-DDEs, we give an independent (still only partial) argument which phenomena from the truncated normal must persist in the full sd-DDE. In particular, we show that all invariant manifolds with a sufficient degree of normal hyperbolicity predicted by the normal form exist also in the full sd-DDE.

  5. Widespread Dependence of Backup NHEJ on Growth State: Ramifications for the Use of DNA-PK Inhibitors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Singh, Satyendra K.; Wu Wenqi; Zhang Lihua; Klammer, Holger; Wang Minli; Iliakis, George

    2011-01-01

    Purpose: The backup pathway of nonhomologous end joining (B-NHEJ) enables cells to process DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) when the DNA-PK-dependent pathway of NHEJ (D-NHEJ) is compromised. Our previous results show marked reduction in the activity of B-NHEJ when LIG4 -/- mouse embryo fibroblasts (MEFs) cease to grow and enter a plateau phase. The dependence of B-NHEJ on growth state is substantially stronger than that of D-NHEJ and points to regulatory mechanisms or processing determinants that require elucidation. Because the different D-NHEJ mutants show phenotypes distinct in their details, it is necessary to characterize the dependence of their DSB repair capacity on growth state and to explore species-specific responses. Methods and Materials: DSB repair was measured in cells of different genetic background from various species using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, or the formation of γ-H2AX foci, at different stages of growth. Results: Using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, we report a marked reduction of B-NHEJ during the plateau phase of growth in KU and XRCC4, mouse or Chinese hamster, mutants. Notably, this reduction is only marginal in DNA-PKcs-deficient cells. However, reduced B-NHEJ is also observed in repair proficient, plateau-phase cells after treatment with DNA-PK inhibitors. The reduction of B-NHEJ activity in the plateau phase of growth does not derive from the reduced expression of participating proteins, is detectable by γ-H2AX foci analysis, and leads to enhanced cell killing. Conclusions: These results further document the marked dependence on growth state of an essential DSB repair pathway and show the general nature of the effect. Molecular characterization of the mechanism underlying this response will help to optimize the administration of DNA repair inhibitors as adjuvants in radiation therapy.

  6. Multi-temperature state-dependent equivalent circuit discharge model for lithium-sulfur batteries

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Propp, Karsten; Marinescu, Monica; Auger, Daniel J.

    2016-01-01

    Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries are described extensively in the literature, but existing computational models aimed at scientific understanding are too complex for use in applications such as battery management. Computationally simple models are vital for exploitation. This paper proposes a non......-linear state-of-charge dependent Li-S equivalent circuit network (ECN) model for a Li-S cell under discharge. Li-S batteries are fundamentally different to Li-ion batteries, and require chemistry-specific models. A new Li-S model is obtained using a ‘behavioural’ interpretation of the ECN model; as Li...... pulse profile at four temperatures from 10 °C to 50 °C, giving linearized ECN parameters for a range of states-of-charge, currents and temperatures. These are used to create a nonlinear polynomial-based battery model suitable for use in a battery management system. When the model is used to predict...

  7. REDOX IMAGING OF THE p53-DEPENDENT MITOCHONDRIAL REDOX STATE IN COLON CANCER EX VIVO

    Science.gov (United States)

    XU, HE N.; FENG, MIN; MOON, LILY; DOLLOFF, NATHAN; EL-DEIRY, WAFIK; LI, LIN Z.

    2015-01-01

    The mitochondrial redox state and its heterogeneity of colon cancer at tissue level have not been previously reported. Nor has how p53 regulates mitochondrial respiration been measured at (deep) tissue level, presumably due to the unavailability of the technology that has sufficient spatial resolution and tissue penetration depth. Our prior work demonstrated that the mitochondrial redox state and its intratumor heterogeneity is associated with cancer aggressiveness in human melanoma and breast cancer in mouse models, with the more metastatic tumors exhibiting localized regions of more oxidized redox state. Using the Chance redox scanner with an in-plane spatial resolution of 200 μm, we imaged the mitochondrial redox state of the wild-type p53 colon tumors (HCT116 p53 wt) and the p53-deleted colon tumors (HCT116 p53−/−) by collecting the fluorescence signals of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) and oxidized flavoproteins [Fp, including flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD)] from the mouse xenografts snap-frozen at low temperature. Our results show that: (1) both tumor lines have significant degree of intratumor heterogeneity of the redox state, typically exhibiting a distinct bi-modal distribution that either correlates with the spatial core–rim pattern or the “hot/cold” oxidation-reduction patches; (2) the p53−/− group is significantly more heterogeneous in the mitochondrial redox state and has a more oxidized tumor core compared to the p53 wt group when the tumor sizes of the two groups are matched; (3) the tumor size dependence of the redox indices (such as Fp and Fp redox ratio) is significant in the p53−/− group with the larger ones being more oxidized and more heterogeneous in their redox state, particularly more oxidized in the tumor central regions; (4) the H&E staining images of tumor sections grossly correlate with the redox images. The present work is the first to reveal at the submillimeter scale the intratumor heterogeneity pattern

  8. Stability and Linear Quadratic Differential Games of Discrete-Time Markovian Jump Linear Systems with State-Dependent Noise

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Huiying Sun

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available We mainly consider the stability of discrete-time Markovian jump linear systems with state-dependent noise as well as its linear quadratic (LQ differential games. A necessary and sufficient condition involved with the connection between stochastic Tn-stability of Markovian jump linear systems with state-dependent noise and Lyapunov equation is proposed. And using the theory of stochastic Tn-stability, we give the optimal strategies and the optimal cost values for infinite horizon LQ stochastic differential games. It is demonstrated that the solutions of infinite horizon LQ stochastic differential games are concerned with four coupled generalized algebraic Riccati equations (GAREs. Finally, an iterative algorithm is presented to solve the four coupled GAREs and a simulation example is given to illustrate the effectiveness of it.

  9. Case report

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    abp

    27 déc. 2017 ... bone marrow of thoracolumbar vertebrae in two hemi-cords without bone spur separating the two hemi-marrows, compatible with type 1 diastematomyelia. It was associated with low tethered spinal cord with syringomyelic cavity involving the left hemi-marrow and with biloculated fibrotic lesion at the level of ...

  10. Sexual orientation, substance use behaviors and substance dependence in the United States

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCabe, Sean Esteban; Hughes, Tonda L.; Bostwick, Wendy B.; West, Brady T.; Boyd, Carol J.

    2009-01-01

    Aims To assess past-year prevalence rates of substance use behaviors and substance dependence across three major dimensions of sexual orientation (identity, attraction, and behavior) in a large national sample of adult women and men in the United States. Design Data were collected from structured diagnostic face-to-face interviews using the Alcohol Use Disorder and Associated Disabilities Interview Schedule DSM-IV Version (AUDADIS-IV). Setting Prevalence estimates were based on data collected from the 2004–2005 (Wave 2) National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC). Participants A large national sample of 34,653 adults aged 20 years and older: 52% female, 71% White, 12% Hispanic, 11% African American, 4% Asian, and 2% Native American or other racial/ethnic categories. Findings Approximately 2% of the sample self-identified as lesbian, gay or bisexual; 4% reported at least one lifetime same-sex sexual partner, and 6% reported same-sex sexual attraction. Although non-heterosexual orientation was generally associated with a higher risk of substance use and substance dependence, the majority of sexual minority respondents did not report substance use or meet criteria for DSM-IV substance dependence. There was considerable variation in substance use outcomes across sexual orientation dimensions; these variations were more pronounced among women than among men. Conclusions Results support previous research findings of heightened risk of substance use and substance dependence among some sexual minority groups and point to the need for research that examines reasons for such differences. Results also highlight important gender differences and question previous findings indicating uniformly higher risk for substance dependence among sexual minorities. Risks appear to vary based on gender and how sexual orientation is defined. Findings have implications for prevention and intervention efforts that more effectively target subgroups at greatest

  11. Temperature dependence of hole mobility in Mott insulators: Normal-state resistivity of high-T/sub c/ superconductors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kumar, N.

    1989-01-01

    We consider the diffusion of a hole injected in a Mott insulator described by a one-band Hubbard Hamiltonian at half-filling and in the atomic limit. The diffusion coefficient turns out to be temperature independent exactly giving 1/T dependence for the drift mobility via the Einstein relation. This is in marked disagreement with the (1/T)/sup 1/2/ dependence obtaining in the self-retracing path approximation at low temperatures. We note the possible relevance of our result to the linear T dependence of the normal-state resistivity observed in the high-T/sub c/ oxide superconductors

  12. pH-Dependent spin state population and 19F NMR chemical shift via remote ligand protonation in an iron(ii) complex.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gaudette, Alexandra I; Thorarinsdottir, Agnes E; Harris, T David

    2017-11-30

    An Fe II complex that features a pH-dependent spin state population, by virtue of a variable ligand protonation state, is described. This behavior leads to a highly pH-dependent 19 F NMR chemical shift with a sensitivity of 13.9(5) ppm per pH unit at 37 °C, thereby demonstrating the potential utility of the complex as a 19 F chemical shift-based pH sensor.

  13. An M/M/c/K State-Dependent Model for Pedestrian Flow Control and Design of Facilities.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Khalidur Rahman

    Full Text Available Pedestrian overflow causes queuing delay and in turn, is controlled by the capacity of a facility. Flow control or blocking control takes action to avoid queues from building up to extreme values. Thus, in this paper, the problem of pedestrian flow control in open outdoor walking facilities in equilibrium condition is investigated using M/M/c/K queuing models. State dependent service rate based on speed and density relationship is utilized. The effective rate of the Poisson arrival process to the facility is determined so as there is no overflow of pedestrians. In addition, the use of the state dependent queuing models to the design of the facilities and the effect of pedestrian personal capacity on the design and the traffic congestion are discussed. The study does not validate the sustainability of adaptation of Western design codes for the pedestrian facilities in the countries like Bangladesh.

  14. Hippocampal Theta-Gamma Coupling Reflects State-Dependent Information Processing in Decision Making.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Amemiya, Seiichiro; Redish, A David

    2018-03-20

    During decision making, hippocampal activity encodes information sometimes about present and sometimes about potential future plans. The mechanisms underlying this transition remain unknown. Building on the evidence that gamma oscillations at different frequencies (low gamma [LG], 30-55 Hz; high gamma [HG], 60-90 Hz; and epsilon, 100-140 Hz) reflect inputs from different circuits, we identified how changes in those frequencies reflect different information-processing states. Using a unique noradrenergic manipulation by clonidine, which shifted both neural representations and gamma states, we found that future representations depended on gamma components. These changes were identifiable on each cycle of theta as asymmetries in the theta cycle, which arose from changes within the ratio of LG and HG power and the underlying phases of those gamma rhythms within the theta cycle. These changes in asymmetry of the theta cycle reflected changes in representations of present and future on each theta cycle. Copyright © 2018 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  15. Unified thalamic model generates multiple distinct oscillations with state-dependent entrainment by stimulation.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Guoshi Li

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available The thalamus plays a critical role in the genesis of thalamocortical oscillations, yet the underlying mechanisms remain elusive. To understand whether the isolated thalamus can generate multiple distinct oscillations, we developed a biophysical thalamic model to test the hypothesis that generation of and transition between distinct thalamic oscillations can be explained as a function of neuromodulation by acetylcholine (ACh and norepinephrine (NE and afferent synaptic excitation. Indeed, the model exhibited four distinct thalamic rhythms (delta, sleep spindle, alpha and gamma oscillations that span the physiological states corresponding to different arousal levels from deep sleep to focused attention. Our simulation results indicate that generation of these distinct thalamic oscillations is a result of both intrinsic oscillatory cellular properties and specific network connectivity patterns. We then systematically varied the ACh/NE and input levels to generate a complete map of the different oscillatory states and their transitions. Lastly, we applied periodic stimulation to the thalamic network and found that entrainment of thalamic oscillations is highly state-dependent. Our results support the hypothesis that ACh/NE modulation and afferent excitation define thalamic oscillatory states and their response to brain stimulation. Our model proposes a broader and more central role of the thalamus in the genesis of multiple distinct thalamo-cortical rhythms than previously assumed.

  16. Implications of rate and state dependent friclion for creep on shallow faults

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. E. Belardinelli

    1994-06-01

    Full Text Available The aseismic sliding on shallow strike-slip faults, under the assumption of a non linear constitutive equation (velocity strengthening, is here treated as a two-dimensional quasi-static crack problem whose equations are solved numerically (boundary elements method. Results are compared with the corresponding one-dimensional («depth averaged» model by a suitable choice of the effective stiffness of the fault. In the one-dimensional case also the inertial term was taken into account in the evolutive equation. The current results are in agreement with an earlier one-dimensional model for afterslip as long as the state variable evolution is neglected a priori and friction depends only on velocity. In general, if the state variable is allowed to evolve, the previous approximation is valid for velocity strengthening slipping section of faults extending down to several kilometers in depth. For smaller sections of fault the evolution of the state variable affects the coseismic and early postseismic phase and accordingly it cannot be neglected. Moreover, in the presence of rheological heterogeneities, for fault sections shallower than 1 km depth, the comparison between the two-dimensional and one-dimensional models suggests the need to employ the two-dimensional model, possibly taking into account inertial effects.

  17. Multiobjective Output Feedback Control of a Class of Stochastic Hybrid Systems with State-Dependent Noise

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S. Aberkane

    2007-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper deals with dynamic output feedback control of continuous-time active fault tolerant control systems with Markovian parameters (AFTCSMP and state-dependent noise. The main contribution is to formulate conditions for multiperformance design, related to this class of stochastic hybrid systems, that take into account the problematic resulting from the fact that the controller only depends on the fault detection and isolation (FDI process. The specifications and objectives under consideration include stochastic stability, ℋ2 and ℋ∞ (or more generally, stochastic integral quadratic constraints performances. Results are formulated as matrix inequalities. The theoretical results are illustrated using a classical example from literature.

  18. State of the Science White Paper: Effects of Plastics Pollution on Aquatic Life and Aquatic-Dependent Wildlife

    Science.gov (United States)

    This document is a state-of-the-science review – one that summarizes available scientific information on the effects of chemicals associated with plastic pollution and their potential impacts on aquatic life and aquatic-dependent wildlife.

  19. In vivo NAD assay reveals the intracellular NAD contents and redox state in healthy human brain and their age dependences

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhu, Xiao-Hong; Lu, Ming; Lee, Byeong-Yeul; Ugurbil, Kamil; Chen, Wei

    2015-01-01

    NAD is an essential metabolite that exists in NAD+ or NADH form in all living cells. Despite its critical roles in regulating mitochondrial energy production through the NAD+/NADH redox state and modulating cellular signaling processes through the activity of the NAD+-dependent enzymes, the method for quantifying intracellular NAD contents and redox state is limited to a few in vitro or ex vivo assays, which are not suitable for studying a living brain or organ. Here, we present a magnetic resonance (MR) -based in vivo NAD assay that uses the high-field MR scanner and is capable of noninvasively assessing NAD+ and NADH contents and the NAD+/NADH redox state in intact human brain. The results of this study provide the first insight, to our knowledge, into the cellular NAD concentrations and redox state in the brains of healthy volunteers. Furthermore, an age-dependent increase of intracellular NADH and age-dependent reductions in NAD+, total NAD contents, and NAD+/NADH redox potential of the healthy human brain were revealed in this study. The overall findings not only provide direct evidence of declined mitochondrial functions and altered NAD homeostasis that accompany the normal aging process but also, elucidate the merits and potentials of this new NAD assay for noninvasively studying the intracellular NAD metabolism and redox state in normal and diseased human brain or other organs in situ. PMID:25730862

  20. Relativistic description of quark-antiquark bound states. II. Spin-dependent treatment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gara, A.; Durand, B.; Durand, L.

    1990-01-01

    We present the results of a study of light- and heavy-quark--antiquark bound states in the context of the reduced Bethe-Salpeter equation, including the full spin dependence. We obtain good fits to the observed spin splittings in the b bar b and c bar c systems using a short-distance single-gluon-exchange interaction, and a long-distance scalar confining interaction. However, we cannot obtain satisfactory fits to the centers of gravity of the b bar b and c bar c spin multiplets at the same time, and the splittings calculated for q bar Q mesons containing the lighter quarks are very poor. The difficulty appears to be intrinsic to the reduced Salpeter equation for reasons which we discuss

  1. The optimal solution of a non-convex state-dependent LQR problem and its applications.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xudan Xu

    Full Text Available This paper studies a Non-convex State-dependent Linear Quadratic Regulator (NSLQR problem, in which the control penalty weighting matrix [Formula: see text] in the performance index is state-dependent. A necessary and sufficient condition for the optimal solution is established with a rigorous proof by Euler-Lagrange Equation. It is found that the optimal solution of the NSLQR problem can be obtained by solving a Pseudo-Differential-Riccati-Equation (PDRE simultaneously with the closed-loop system equation. A Comparison Theorem for the PDRE is given to facilitate solution methods for the PDRE. A linear time-variant system is employed as an example in simulation to verify the proposed optimal solution. As a non-trivial application, a goal pursuit process in psychology is modeled as a NSLQR problem and two typical goal pursuit behaviors found in human and animals are reproduced using different control weighting [Formula: see text]. It is found that these two behaviors save control energy and cause less stress over Conventional Control Behavior typified by the LQR control with a constant control weighting [Formula: see text], in situations where only the goal discrepancy at the terminal time is of concern, such as in Marathon races and target hitting missions.

  2. Angular dependence of the exchange bias for the bistable state

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bai, Yuhao [College of Physics and Electronic Information, Shanxi Normal University, Linfen 041004 (China); Research College of materials science, Shanxi Normal University, Linfen 041004 (China); Xu, Xiaohong, E-mail: xuxh@dns.sxnu.edu.cn [Research College of materials science, Shanxi Normal University, Linfen 041004 (China); Key Laboratory of Magnetic Molecules and Magnetic Information Materials, Ministry of Education, Shanxi Normal University, Linfen 041004 (China)

    2017-06-15

    The angular dependence of the exchange bias (ADEB) has been investigated in detail when the exchange-coupled ferromagnetic (FM)/antiferromagnetic (AFM) bilayer is in the bistable state. Complete and incomplete jump phenomena were found at the intrinsic easy and hard axes, when they pass through two special positions making the angular deviation of 58.2826° and 121.7174° from the easy axis of the uniaxial anisotropy, respectively. The combination of these different types of the jump phenomena at the intrinsic easy and hard axes yields five distinct types of the ADEB. The physical condition for each type of ADEB is established. Additionally, the extreme value problem of the exchange bias field and coercivity are also discussed, which is an important technological issue in the design of the magnetoresistive and spintronic devices. These results enable us to make a comprehensive understanding of the experimental ADEB curves.

  3. IV-DSA of vertigo patients

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Watanabe, Hiromi; Ito, Masatoshi; Takita, Kimio; Matsuzawa, Taiju.

    1988-01-01

    With IV-DSA(Intra-Venous Digital Subtraction Angiography), we examined the relations between vertigo or dizziness and asymmetries of cervical vertebral arteries. In this time, as the asymmetries we chose next three; hemi-stenosis, hemi-occulusion and hemi-strong tortuosity. In the appearance of the asymmetries, there was no differance between those who complain vertigo or dizziness and others. (author)

  4. Excited states of ReO4-: A comprehensive time-dependent relativistic density functional theory study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xu, Wenhua; Ma, Jianyi; Peng, Daoling; Zou, Wenli; Liu, Wenjian; Staemmler, Volker

    2009-02-01

    The perrhenate anion, ReO4-, is taken as a showcase of heavy transition metal complexes, to examine the performance of time-dependent relativistic density functional linear response theory for electronic excitations, which is based on a newly proposed exact two-component Hamiltonian resulting from the symmetrized elimination of the small component. In total 30 scalar and 63 spinor excited states are investigated and the results are grossly in good agreement with those by the singles and doubles coupled-cluster linear response theory. It is found that only a few scalar states of 3T1 and 3T2 symmetries are split significantly by the spin-orbit coupling, whereas only those excited states involving the Rydberg-type virtual orbital are affected by the solvent effects. The nature of the optical absorption spectra is also highlighted.

  5. Excited states of ReO4-: A comprehensive time-dependent relativistic density functional theory study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xu Wenhua; Ma Jianyi; Peng Daoling; Zou Wenli; Liu Wenjian; Staemmler, Volker

    2009-01-01

    The perrhenate anion, ReO 4 - , is taken as a showcase of heavy transition metal complexes, to examine the performance of time-dependent relativistic density functional linear response theory for electronic excitations, which is based on a newly proposed exact two-component Hamiltonian resulting from the symmetrized elimination of the small component. In total 30 scalar and 63 spinor excited states are investigated and the results are grossly in good agreement with those by the singles and doubles coupled-cluster linear response theory. It is found that only a few scalar states of 3 T 1 and 3 T 2 symmetries are split significantly by the spin-orbit coupling, whereas only those excited states involving the Rydberg-type virtual orbital are affected by the solvent effects. The nature of the optical absorption spectra is also highlighted

  6. A model for studying time dependent quantum mechanical processes and its application for quasi-stationary states

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Revai, Janos.

    1988-10-01

    A model was attempted to construct which, on one hand, is flexible enough to imitate certain physical properties of real systems and, on the other hand, allows exact solution of its time dependent dynamics. This double goal is proposed to achieve by using separable interactions. A particle moving in an external field consisting of a stationary attractive and a time dependent repulsive part is proposed for the model in question. Due to the use of separable interactions, the time evolution dynamics can be solved exactly, and the model can be applied for studying time evolution of quasi-stationary states. (R.P.) 7 figs

  7. Timing analysis of safety properties using fault trees with time dependencies and timed state-charts

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Magott, Jan; Skrobanek, Pawel

    2012-01-01

    Behavior in time domain is often crucial for safety critical systems. Standard fault trees cannot express time-dependent behavior. In the paper, timing analysis of safety properties using fault trees with time dependencies (FTTDs) and timed state-charts is presented. A new version of timed state-charts (TSCs) is also proposed. These state-charts can model the dynamics of technical systems, e.g. controllers, controlled objects, and people. In TSCs, activity and communication times are represented by time intervals. In the proposed approach the structure of FTTD is fixed by a human. Time properties of events and gates of FTTD are expressed by time intervals, and are calculated using TSCs. The minimal and maximal values of these time intervals of FTTD can be calculated by finding paths with minimal and maximal time lengths in TSCs, which is an NP-hard problem. In order to reduce the practical complexity of computing the FTTD time parameters, some reductions of TSCs are defined in the paper, such as sequential, alternative, loop (iteration), and parallel. Some of the reductions are intuitive, in case of others—theorems are required. Computational complexity of each reduction is not greater than linear in the size of reduced TSC. Therefore, the obtained results enable decreasing of the costs of FTTD time parameters calculation when system dynamics is expressed by TSCs. Case study of a railroad crossing with a controller that controls semaphores, gate, light-audio signal close to the gate will be analyzed.

  8. Cellular Mechanisms Underlying Behavioral State-Dependent Bidirectional Modulation of Motor Cortex Output

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Julia Schiemann

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available Neuronal activity in primary motor cortex (M1 correlates with behavioral state, but the cellular mechanisms underpinning behavioral state-dependent modulation of M1 output remain largely unresolved. Here, we performed in vivo patch-clamp recordings from layer 5B (L5B pyramidal neurons in awake mice during quiet wakefulness and self-paced, voluntary movement. We show that L5B output neurons display bidirectional (i.e., enhanced or suppressed firing rate changes during movement, mediated via two opposing subthreshold mechanisms: (1 a global decrease in membrane potential variability that reduced L5B firing rates (L5Bsuppressed neurons, and (2 a coincident noradrenaline-mediated increase in excitatory drive to a subpopulation of L5B neurons (L5Benhanced neurons that elevated firing rates. Blocking noradrenergic receptors in forelimb M1 abolished the bidirectional modulation of M1 output during movement and selectively impaired contralateral forelimb motor coordination. Together, our results provide a mechanism for how noradrenergic neuromodulation and network-driven input changes bidirectionally modulate M1 output during motor behavior.

  9. Influence of oxidation state on the pH dependence of hydrous iridium oxide films

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Steegstra, Patrick; Ahlberg, Elisabet

    2012-01-01

    Many electrochemical reactions taking place in aqueous solution consume or produce protons. The pH in the diffusion layer can therefore be significantly altered during the reaction and there is a need for in situ pH measurements tracing this near surface pH. In the present paper the rotating ring disc technique was used to measure near surface pH changes during oxygen reduction, utilising hydrous iridium oxide as the pH sensing probe. Before such experiments a good understanding of the pH sensing properties of these films is required and the impact of the oxidation state of the film on the pH sensing properties was investigated as well as the influence of solution redox species. The pH sensitivity (depicted by dE/dpH) was found to depend on the average oxidation state of the film in a manner resembling the cyclic voltammetry response. In all cases the pH response is “supernernstian” with more than one proton per electron. The origin of this behaviour is discussed in the context of acid-base properties of the film and the existence of both hydrous and anhydrous oxide phases. The pH response depends also on the redox properties of the solution but can be optimised for various purposes by conditioning the film at different potentials. This was clearly illustrated by adding hydrogen peroxide, an intermediate in the oxygen reduction reaction, to the solution. It was shown that hydrous iridium oxide can be used as a reliable in situ pH sensor provided that care is taken to optimise the oxidation state of the film.

  10. Drivers of Change in a 7300-Year Holocene Diatom Record from the Hemi-Boreal Region of Ontario, Canada.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kristen K Beck

    Full Text Available A Holocene lake sediment record spanning the past 7300 years from Wishart Lake in the Turkey Lakes Watershed in the Hemi-Boreal of central Ontario, Canada, was used to evaluate the potential drivers of long-term change in diatom assemblages at this site. An analysis of diatom assemblages found that benthic and epiphytic taxa dominated the mid-Holocene (7300-4000 cal yr BP, indicating shallow, oligotrophic, circum-neutral conditions, with macrophytes present. A significant shift in diatom assemblages towards more planktonic species (mainly Cyclotella sensu lato, but also several species of Aulacoseira, and Tabellaria flocculosa occurred ~4000 cal yr BP. This change likely reflects an increase in lake level, coincident with the onset of a more strongly positive moisture balance following the drier climates of the middle Holocene, established by numerous regional paleoclimate records. Pollen-inferred regional changes in vegetation around 4000 yrs BP, including an increase in Betula and other mesic taxa, may have also promoted changes in diatom assemblages through watershed processes mediated by the chemistry of runoff. A more recent significant change in limnological conditions is marked by further increases in Cyclotella sensu lato beginning in the late 19th century, synchronous with the Ambrosia pollen rise and increases in sediment bulk density, signaling regional and local land clearance at the time of Euro-Canadian settlement (1880 AD. In contrast to the mid-Holocene increase in planktonic diatoms, the modern increase in Cyclotella sensu lato likely indicates a response to land use and vegetation change, and erosion from the watershed, rather than a further increase in water level. The results from Wishart Lake illustrate the close connection between paleoclimate change, regional vegetation, watershed processes, and diatom assemblages and also provides insight into the controls on abundance of Cyclotella sensu lato, a diatom taxonomic group

  11. Bistable Epigenetic States Explain Age-Dependent Decline in Mesenchymal Stem Cell Heterogeneity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hamidouche, Zahia; Rother, Karen; Przybilla, Jens; Krinner, Axel; Clay, Denis; Hopp, Lydia; Fabian, Claire; Stolzing, Alexandra; Binder, Hans; Charbord, Pierre; Galle, Joerg

    2017-03-01

    The molecular mechanisms by which heterogeneity, a major characteristic of stem cells, is achieved are yet unclear. We here study the expression of the membrane stem cell antigen-1 (Sca-1) in mouse bone marrow mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) clones. We show that subpopulations with varying Sca-1 expression profiles regenerate the Sca-1 profile of the mother population within a few days. However, after extensive replication in vitro, the expression profiles shift to lower values and the regeneration time increases. Study of the promoter of Ly6a unravels that the expression level of Sca-1 is related to the promoter occupancy by the activating histone mark H3K4me3. We demonstrate that these findings can be consistently explained by a computational model that considers positive feedback between promoter H3K4me3 modification and gene transcription. This feedback implicates bistable epigenetic states which the cells occupy with an age-dependent frequency due to persistent histone (de-)modification. Our results provide evidence that MSC heterogeneity, and presumably that of other stem cells, is associated with bistable epigenetic states and suggest that MSCs are subject to permanent state fluctuations. Stem Cells 2017;35:694-704. © The Authors Stem Cells published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of AlphaMed Press.

  12. Glymphatic clearance controls state-dependent changes in brain lactate concentration.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lundgaard, Iben; Lu, Minh Lon; Yang, Ezra; Peng, Weiguo; Mestre, Humberto; Hitomi, Emi; Deane, Rashid; Nedergaard, Maiken

    2017-06-01

    Brain lactate concentration is higher during wakefulness than in sleep. However, it is unknown why arousal is linked to an increase in brain lactate and why lactate declines within minutes of sleep. Here, we show that the glymphatic system is responsible for state-dependent changes in brain lactate concentration. Suppression of glymphatic function via acetazolamide treatment, cisterna magna puncture, aquaporin 4 deletion, or changes in body position reduced the decline in brain lactate normally observed when awake mice transition into sleep or anesthesia. Concurrently, the same manipulations diminished accumulation of lactate in cervical, but not in inguinal lymph nodes when mice were anesthetized. Thus, our study suggests that brain lactate is an excellent biomarker of the sleep-wake cycle and increases further during sleep deprivation, because brain lactate is inversely correlated with glymphatic-lymphatic clearance. This analysis provides fundamental new insight into brain energy metabolism by demonstrating that glucose that is not fully oxidized can be exported as lactate via glymphatic-lymphatic fluid transport.

  13. A supplementary circuit rule-set for the neuronal wiring

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kunjumon I Vadakkan

    2013-05-01

    Full Text Available Limitations of known anatomical circuit rules necessitate the identification of supplementary rules. This is essential for explaining how associative sensory stimuli induce nervous system changes that generate internal sensations of memory, concurrent with triggering specific motor activities in response to specific cue stimuli. A candidate mechanism is rapidly reversible, yet stabilizable membrane hemi-fusion formed between the closely apposed postsynaptic membranes of different neurons at locations of convergence of sensory inputs during associative learning. The lateral entry of activity from the cue stimulus-activated postsynapse re-activates the opposite postsynapse through the hemi-fused area and induces the basic units of internal sensation (namely, semblions as a systems property. Working, short-term and long-term memories can be viewed as functions of the number of re-activatible hemi-fusions present at the time of memory retrieval. Blocking membrane hemi-fusion either by the insertion of the herpes simplex virus glycoproteins or by the deposition of insoluble intermediates of amyloid and tau proteins in the inter-postsynaptic extracellular matrix space leads to cognitive impairments, supporting this mechanism. The introduction of membrane fusion blockers into the postsynaptic cell cytoplasm that attenuates long-term potentiation, a correlate of behavioral motor activities in response to memory retrieval, provides further support. The lateral spread of activity through the inter-postsynaptic membrane is capable of contributing to oscillating neuronal activity at certain neuronal orders. At the resting state these oscillations provide sub-threshold activation to many neurons at higher orders, including motor neurons maintaining them at a low initiation threshold for motor activity.

  14. Delayed self-regulation and time-dependent chemical drive leads to novel states in epigenetic landscapes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mitra, Mithun K.; Taylor, Paul R.; Hutchison, Chris J.; McLeish, T. C. B.; Chakrabarti, Buddhapriya

    2014-01-01

    The epigenetic pathway of a cell as it differentiates from a stem cell state to a mature lineage-committed one has been historically understood in terms of Waddington's landscape, consisting of hills and valleys. The smooth top and valley-strewn bottom of the hill represent their undifferentiated and differentiated states, respectively. Although mathematical ideas rooted in nonlinear dynamics and bifurcation theory have been used to quantify this picture, the importance of time delays arising from multistep chemical reactions or cellular shape transformations have been ignored so far. We argue that this feature is crucial in understanding cell differentiation and explore the role of time delay in a model of a single-gene regulatory circuit. We show that the interplay of time-dependent drive and delay introduces a new regime where the system shows sustained oscillations between the two admissible steady states. We interpret these results in the light of recent perplexing experiments on inducing the pluripotent state in mouse somatic cells. We also comment on how such an oscillatory state can provide a framework for understanding more general feedback circuits in cell development. PMID:25165605

  15. Elections, Information, and State-Dependent Candidate Quality

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jensen, Thomas

    voters are uncertain about the state. Candidates are fully informed and completely office-motivated. With a reasonable restriction on voters' beliefs, an equilibrium where candidates' positions reveal the true state does not exist. Non-revealing equilibria always exist. Some main findings...

  16. Revealing kinetics and state-dependent binding properties of IKur-targeting drugs that maximize atrial fibrillation selectivity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ellinwood, Nicholas; Dobrev, Dobromir; Morotti, Stefano; Grandi, Eleonora

    2017-09-01

    The KV1.5 potassium channel, which underlies the ultra-rapid delayed-rectifier current (IKur) and is predominantly expressed in atria vs. ventricles, has emerged as a promising target to treat atrial fibrillation (AF). However, while numerous KV1.5-selective compounds have been screened, characterized, and tested in various animal models of AF, evidence of antiarrhythmic efficacy in humans is still lacking. Moreover, current guidelines for pre-clinical assessment of candidate drugs heavily rely on steady-state concentration-response curves or IC50 values, which can overlook adverse cardiotoxic effects. We sought to investigate the effects of kinetics and state-dependent binding of IKur-targeting drugs on atrial electrophysiology in silico and reveal the ideal properties of IKur blockers that maximize anti-AF efficacy and minimize pro-arrhythmic risk. To this aim, we developed a new Markov model of IKur that describes KV1.5 gating based on experimental voltage-clamp data in atrial myocytes from patient right-atrial samples in normal sinus rhythm. We extended the IKur formulation to account for state-specificity and kinetics of KV1.5-drug interactions and incorporated it into our human atrial cell model. We simulated 1- and 3-Hz pacing protocols in drug-free conditions and with a [drug] equal to the IC50 value. The effects of binding and unbinding kinetics were determined by examining permutations of the forward (kon) and reverse (koff) binding rates to the closed, open, and inactivated states of the KV1.5 channel. We identified a subset of ideal drugs exhibiting anti-AF electrophysiological parameter changes at fast pacing rates (effective refractory period prolongation), while having little effect on normal sinus rhythm (limited action potential prolongation). Our results highlight that accurately accounting for channel interactions with drugs, including kinetics and state-dependent binding, is critical for developing safer and more effective pharmacological anti

  17. A Room to Grow: The Residential Density-dependence of Childbearing in Europe and the United States

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nathanael Lauster

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available I argue that cultural processes linked to the demographic transition produce new density-dependent fertility dynamics. In particular, childbearing becomes dependent upon residential roominess. This relationship is culturally specific, and I argue that the cultural nature of this relationship means that professional and managerial classes are likely to be particularly influenced by residential roominess, while immigrants are less likely to be influenced. I test hypotheses linking residential roominess to the presence of an “own infant” in the household using census data from the Austria, Greece, Portugal, Spain, and the United States. Roominess predicts fertility in all countries, but to differing degrees.

  18. The Effect of Dorsal Hippocampal α2-Adrenegic Receptors on WIN55,212-2 State-Dependent Memory of Passive Avoidance

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zarrindast M.R.

    2010-09-01

    Full Text Available Background and Objectives: Cannabinoids are a class of psychoactive compounds that produce a wide array of effects in a large number of species. In the present study, the effects of bilateral intra-CA1 injections of an α2-adrenergic receptor agents, on WIN55,212-2 state-dependent learning were examined in adult male Wistar rats. Methods: The animals were bilaterally implanted with chronic cannulae in the CA1 regions of the dorsal hippocampus, trained in a step-down type inhibitory avoidance task, and tested 24h after training to measure step-down latency.Results: Post-training intra-CA1 injection of WIN55,212-2 (0.25 and 0.5µg/rat induced impairment of memory retention. Amnesia produced by post-training WIN55,212-2 (0.5µg/rat was reversed by pre-test administration of the same dose of WIN55,212-2 that is due to a state-dependent effect. Pre-test intra-CA1 injection of clonidine (0.5 and 0.75µg/rat, intra-CA1 improved post-training WIN55,212-2 (0.5µg/rat, intra-CA1-induced retrieval impairment, while pre-test intra-CA1 injection of yohimbine (1µg/rat, intra-CA1 2min before the administration of WIN55,212-2 (0.5µg/rat, intra-CA1 inhibited WIN55,212-2 state-dependent memory. Conclusion: These results suggest that α2-adrenergic receptors of the dorsal hippocampal CA1 regions may play an important role in Win55,212-2-induced amnesia and WIN55,212-2 state-dependent memory.

  19. The Pressure-Volume-Temperature Equation of State of Iron-Rich (Mg,Fe)O

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wicks, J. K.; Jackson, J. M.; Zhuravlev, K. K.; Prakapenka, V.

    2012-12-01

    Seismic observations near the base of the core-mantle boundary (CMB) have detected 5-20 km thick patches in which the seismic wave velocities are reduced by up to 30%. These ultra-low velocity zones (ULVZs) have been interpreted as aggregates of partially molten material (e.g. Williams and Garnero 1996, Hernlund and Jellinek, 2010) or as solid, iron-enriched residues (e.g. Knittle and Jeanloz, 1991; Mao et al., 2006; Wicks et al., 2010), typically based on proposed sources of velocity reduction. The stabilities of these structure types have been explored through dynamic models that have assembled a relationship between ULVZ stability and density (Hernlund and Tackley, 2007; Bower et al., 2010). Now, to constrain the chemistry of ULVZs, more information is needed on the relationship between density and sound velocity of candidate phases. Recently, we have shown that the characteristically low sound speeds of ULVZs can be produced by small amounts of iron-rich (Mg,Fe)O, which is likely to be found in iron-rich assemblages based on current partitioning studies (eg. Sakai et al., 2010; Tange et al., 2009). We determined the Debye velocity (VD) of (Mg.1657Fe.84)O using nuclear resonant inelastic x-ray scattering (NRIXS), and calculated the seismically relevant compressional (VP) and shear (VS) wave velocities up to 120 GPa using an equation of state of a similar composition (Wicks et al., 2010). These densities and sound velocities, in turn, are consistent with reasonable morphologies of modeled solid ULVZs (Bower et al., 2011). To increase the accuracy of density and sound velocity predictions, measurements must be made at elevated temperatures to correctly predict the properties of iron-rich (Mg,Fe)O at mantle conditions. In this study, we present the pressure-volume-temperature equation of state of (Mg.0657Fe.94)O measured up to pressures of 120 GPa and temperatures of 2000 K. Volume was measured with x-ray diffraction at beamline 13-ID-D of the Advanced Photon

  20. Boundary layer phenomena for differential-delay equations with state-dependent time lags: III

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mallet-Paret, John; Nussbaum, Roger D.

    We consider a class of singularly perturbed delay-differential equations of the form ɛ ẋ(t)=f(x(t),x(t-r)), where r= r( x( t)) is a state-dependent delay. We study the asymptotic shape, as ɛ→0, of slowly oscillating periodic solutions. In particular, we show that the limiting shape of such solutions can be explicitly described by the solution of a pair of so-called max-plus equations. We are able thereby to characterize both the regular parts of the solution graph and the internal transition layers arising from the singular perturbation structure.

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