An exercise on transition systems

Labelled transition systems admit different but equivalent characterizations either as relational structures or coalgebras for the powerset functor, each of them with their own merits. Notions of simulation and bisimulation, for example, are expressed in the pointfree relational calculus in a very concise and precise way. On the other hand, the coalgebraic perspective regards processes as inhabitants of a final universe and allows for an intuitive definition of the semantics of process’ combinators. This paper is an exercise on such a dual characterisation. In particular, it discusses how a notion of weak bisimilarity can be lifted from the relational to the coalgebraic level, to become an effective reasoning tool on coinductively defined process algebras.(undefined

Coordination Between Autophagy and the Heat Shock Response: Evidence From Exercise in Animals and Humans

Proteins play a critical role in nearly every biological activity. In consequence, organismal health and homeostasis often hinges on the ability of intracellular regulatory systems to sustain the quality and function of these diverse, structurally complex macromolecules. Correct protein function depends on correct form, and during periods of destabilizing cellular stress, protein quality is managed in part by the heat shock response, which acts to support, isolate, and reform new or damaged proteins, and in part by the autophagic recycling of abnormal proteins, cytotoxic protein aggregates, and terminally damaged organelles. We conducted a pooled analysis of available research in humans and rodents regarding heat shock and autophagic activity through the unique proteostatic challenges presented by acute exercise and the post-exercise progression from catabolism to anabolism. This analysis reinforces a model of regulatory coordination between these protein management pathways, offering interspecies support for an Hsp70-moderated transition away from the presiding catabolic influence of autophagy in the immediate post-exercise window, toward an anabolic phase of restoration and remodeling. This relationship has been demonstrated with direct human cellular research, and may help shed light on the molecular underpinning of epidemiological associations between health and physical activity. Differential responses were also observed in these two primary proteostatic systems according to exercise intensity and tissue of origin, which may have important implications for research design, and perhaps eventually for exercise prescription

Exercise detraining: Applicability to microgravity

Physical training exposes the various systems of the body to potent physiologic stimuli. These stimuli induce specific adaptations that enhance an individual's tolerance for the type of exercise encountered in training. The level of adaptation and the magnitude of improvement in exercise tolerance is proportional to the potency of the physical training stimuli. Likewise, our bodies are stimulated by gravity, which promotes adaptations of both the cardiovascular and skeletal muscles. Exposure to microgravity removes normal stimuli to these systems, and the body adapts to these reduced demands. In many respects the cessation of physical training in athletes and the transition from normal gravity to microgravity represent similar paradigms. Inherent to these situations is the concept of the reversibility of the adaptations induced by training or by exposure to normal gravity. The reversibility concept holds that when physical training is stopped (i.e., detraining) or reduced, or a person goes from normal gravity to microgravity, the bodily systems readjust in accordance with the diminished physiologic stimuli. The focus of this chapter is on the time course of loss of the adaptations to endurance training as well as on the possibility that certain adaptations persist, to some extent, when training is stopped. Because endurance exercise training generally improves cardiovascular function and promotes metabolic adaptations within the exercising skeletal musculature, the reversibility of these specific adaptations is considered. These observations have some applicability to the transition from normal to microgravity

Effect of carbon nanoparticle addition on epoxy cure

The thesis reports studies of cure kinetics and the glass transition temperature advancements of three commercial epoxy resin systems: MY 750 / HY 5922 (Vantico), MTM 44 -1 (ACG) and 8552 (Hexcel Composites). This investigation was conducted with the utilisation of Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) and Temperature Modulated DSC (TMDSC). Appropriate phenomenological cure kinetics models were built to predict the degree of cure as a function of temperature/time profile. The validity of superposition of dynamic and isothermal experimental data was established. Rheological measurements were performed in order to determine the gelation region under given cure conditions. The cure modelling methodology was validated against an international Round-Robin exercise led by the University of British Columbia (Canada). The effects of carbon nanoparticle incorporation on the cure kinetics and the glass transition temperature advancement of two of the epoxy systems were also studied. Cure kinetics models were developed for the nanocomposites containing commercial multiwalled carbon nanotubes and a direct comparison was made with the models of the neat resin systems. The glass transition temperature advancement is shown to be affected in the early stages of the cure. The state of the dispersion of the nanoparticles was studied in order to correlate it with the observed effects upon the cure and on the morphology of the cured samples. The presence of carbon nanotube clusters is shown to have an influence on the phase separation in the MTM 44-1 resin system. As a potential industrial application of this study, optical fibre refractometers were utilised as an on-line cure monitoring technique. A good correlation was established between the measured refractive index changes during the cure and the degree of cure predicted by the above mentioned models, for the neat resin systems and their nanocomposites

Monitoring, modeling, and regulation for indoor and outdoor exercises

University of Technology, Sydney. Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology.This thesis focuses on the modeling and regulation of exercise intensity by using non-invasive portable sensors. Firstly, an innovative switching Resistance-Capacitor (RC) model has been proposed to depict the dynamics of human cardio-respiratory (CR) responses to the onset and offset of exercise. This switching model utilizes electronic terms with switching mechanism to explicitly depict dynamical characteristics at the onset/offset of exercise and the transition in between. It can not only guarantee the continuity of model output between onset and offset of exercise but also quantify lactate metabolism at onset and offset by using the term ‘oxygen debt’. Secondly, to effectively regulate human CR responses to exercise, a single-input single-output (SISO) closed-loop control framework is proposed. Within this framework, a control oriented modeling approach using support vector regression (SVR) is presented. Based on that, a novel model predictive control (MPC) algorithm is developed for the regulation of exercise intensity. Simulation study shows the proposed machine learning based model predictive control approach can achieve desired performance requirements for both the onset and offset of exercise and the transitions in between. The third research topic is related to the monitoring of outdoor exercise. A reliable Android application based monitoring system is developed. This system includes a portable HxMBT HR sensor (Zephyr®), an easy-to-use interface, and a supervisory module. This technique is applicable to cardiovascular disease detection and diagnosis, home based rehabilitation monitoring, and exercise strength regulation under free living conditions. Finally, in order to provide a more reliable automated treadmill system for running exercise, the multi-loop integral controllability (MIC) analysis is introduced, which extends the concept of decentralized integral controllability (DIC) from square systems to multiple-input single-output (MISO) processes. A condition to ensure MIC for 2ISO is proposed and its sufficiency has been proved by using singular perturbation theory. Then, a sufficient MIC condition for MISO processes is provided

Influence of external driving on decays in the geometry of the LiCN isomerization

The framework of transition state theory relies on the determination of a geometric structure identifying reactivity. It replaces the laborious exercise of following many trajectories for a long time to provide chemical reaction rates and pathways. In this paper, recent advances in constructing this geometry even in time-dependent systems are applied to the LiCN $\rightleftharpoons$ LiNC isomerization reaction, driven by an external field. We obtain decay rates of the reactant population close to the transition state by exploiting local properties of the dynamics of trajectories in and close to it. We find that the external driving has a large influence on these decay rates when compared to the non-driven isomerization reaction. This, in turn, provides renewed evidence for the possibility of controlling chemical reactions, like this one, through external time-dependent fields.Comment: Main article has 11 pages, 6 figures. Supplemental material has 4 pages, 1 figur

Legal education in transition: a study from Georgia

The purpose of this paper is to provide an insight into the development of legal education in Georgia in its transition to becoming a democratic country. It is important to clarify at the outset that the emphasis here is on developing a viable structure and system for legal education as opposed to a theoretical basis for the development of a new legal order. Such a fundamental doctrinal exercise would form the academic and intellectual basis of an entirely different paper. In establishing a viable system of legal education, a significant challenge is to reconcile the education of professionals with the underlying difficulty arising where governments have sought to determine professional education from ideological positions. The Georgian government is producing reform proposals which have to be considered in terms of the most expedient processes for implementation. It is therefore necessary to develop reforms which construct a new framework to facilitate and promote the incorporation of aspects of legal education which hitherto have been unknown. Fundamental principles have to be determined such as recognition of the rule of law, as well as the knowledge and training best suited to developing a coherent and properly established legal profession. The whole reform process can be hindered without the presence of well-qualified professionals. It is therefore crucial to ensure the integrity of establishing this body of professionals who are well-placed to take reforms forward. There is of course the obvious paradox in terms of the country needing the best professionals whilst at the same time putting reforms in place to achieve that. There are great possibilities and Georgia is in the position of considering systems and structures which best suit its needs in establishing reform of the educational infrastructure in which professionals can develop. The paper identifies some key issues and themes which provide an insight into the possibilities. It focuses on three main areas: the changing nature of the constitution and the need for reform, the United Kingdom framework as a possible model for consideration in establishing a process of implementation, and aspirations for the future. It is self evident that Georgia is experiencing a period of significant development and change in terms of shaping a system for legal education which is significantly more advanced even now than when this work began. It continues to be in the process of being formed and there are many influences on its shape. The authors, having worked together, acknowledge there are limitations in terms of producing a fully comprehensive joint paper based on a period of such complex transition and change