Flow detectors having mechanical oscillators, and use thereof in flow characterization systems

An improved system (100), resonator flow detector (102) and method for characterizing a fluid sample that includes o injecting a fluid sample into a mobile phase of a flow characterization system (106), and detecting a property of the fluid sample > or of a component thereof with a flow detector (102) comprising a mechanical resonator (120), preferably one that is operated at a frequency less than about 1 MHz, such as tuning fork resonator

High-Performance Integrated Window and Façade Solutions for California

The researchers developed a new generation of high-performance façade systems and supporting design and management tools to support industry in meeting California’s greenhouse gas reduction targets, reduce energy consumption, and enable an adaptable response to minimize real-time demands on the electricity grid. The project resulted in five outcomes: (1) The research team developed an R-5, 1-inch thick, triplepane, insulating glass unit with a novel low-conductance aluminum frame. This technology can help significantly reduce residential cooling and heating loads, particularly during the evening. (2) The team developed a prototype of a windowintegrated local ventilation and energy recovery device that provides clean, dry fresh air through the façade with minimal energy requirements. (3) A daylight-redirecting louver system was prototyped to redirect sunlight 15–40 feet from the window. Simulations estimated that lighting energy use could be reduced by 35–54 percent without glare. (4) A control system incorporating physics-based equations and a mathematical solver was prototyped and field tested to demonstrate feasibility. Simulations estimated that total electricity costs could be reduced by 9-28 percent on sunny summer days through adaptive control of operable shading and daylighting components and the thermostat compared to state-of-the-art automatic façade controls in commercial building perimeter zones. (5) Supporting models and tools needed by industry for technology R&D and market transformation activities were validated. Attaining California’s clean energy goals require making a fundamental shift from today’s ad-hoc assemblages of static components to turnkey, intelligent, responsive, integrated building façade systems. These systems offered significant reductions in energy use, peak demand, and operating cost in California

Malaysian parlimentary election.

Results of the 2008 general election caught many analysts and the people at large by surprise. It was totally unexpected that the National Front (NF) would be denied its two-third majority that the ruling coalition has been securing since the first general election held in 1964 after the formation of Malaysia in 1963. Since then, the NF was able to regain its supremacy by winning a two-third majority in the federal parliament until 2008. That therefore makes the 2008 general election the country’s 11th general election held. However, in between these general elections, the ruling NF coalition merely lost one or two states, as it did in the Malay heartland of Kelantan (1990, 1995, 1999, 2004) and Terengganu (1999) as well as the former crown colony of Sabah (1984, 1985, 1990 and 1994). Therefore, when the coalition failed to secure a two-third majority in the 2008 general election and at the same time lost four additional states to a loose electoral pact of the Malay-led PKR (Parti Keadilan Rakyat [Peoples’ Justice Party]), the Islamic based PAS (Pan Islamic Party) and the Chinese dominated DAP (Democratic Action Party), shock waves were felt by all parties across the nation

Intellectual Property Management in Health and Agricultural Innovation: A Handbook of Best Practices, Vol. 1

Prepared by and for policy-makers, leaders of public sector research establishments, technology transfer professionals, licensing executives, and scientists, this online resource offers up-to-date information and strategies for utilizing the power of both intellectual property and the public domain. Emphasis is placed on advancing innovation in health and agriculture, though many of the principles outlined here are broadly applicable across technology fields. Eschewing ideological debates and general proclamations, the authors always keep their eye on the practical side of IP management. The site is based on a comprehensive Handbook and Executive Guide that provide substantive discussions and analysis of the opportunities awaiting anyone in the field who wants to put intellectual property to work. This multi-volume work contains 153 chapters on a full range of IP topics and over 50 case studies, composed by over 200 authors from North, South, East, and West. If you are a policymaker, a senior administrator, a technology transfer manager, or a scientist, we invite you to use the companion site guide available at http://www.iphandbook.org/index.html The site guide distills the key points of each IP topic covered by the Handbook into simple language and places it in the context of evolving best practices specific to your professional role within the overall picture of IP management

Automation and Predictive Analytics in Patent Prosecution: USPTO Implications and Policy

Artificial-intelligence technological advancements bring automation and predictive analytics into patent prosecution. The information asymmetry between inventors and patent examiners is expanded by artificial intelligence, which transforms the inventor-examiner interaction to machine-human interactions. In response to automated patent drafting, automated office-action responses, cloems (computer-generated word permutations) for defensive patenting, and machine-learning guidance (based on constantly updated patent-prosecution big data), the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) should reevaluate patent-examination policy from economic, fairness, time, and transparency perspectives. By conceptualizing the inventor-examiner relationship as a patenting market, economic principles suggest stronger efficiencies if both inventors and the USPTO have better information in an artificial-intelligence-driven market. Based on the economics of information and institutional-design perspectives, the USPTO should develop a counteracting artificial-intelligence unit in response to artificial-intelligence proliferation

Secure and Privacy Driven Energy Data Analytics

PhD thesis in Information technologyRenewable resources are the main energy sources in a smart grid project. In order to ensure the smooth functioning of the smart grid, Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) need to be utilised efficiently. The objective of the SmartNEM project is to effectively utilise the technologies such as Machine Learning, Blockchain and Data Hubs for the aforementioned purpose and at the same time ensure a secured and privacy preserved solution. The data involved in smart grids require high security and it can be sensitive due to the household data which contains personal information. The individuals can be reluctant to share these data due to mistrust and to avoid unnecessary manipulation of the data they provide. In order to overcome this it is necessary to build a trust based framework in which one could ensure data security and data privacy for the data owners to open up their data for data analysis. To achieves this we have proposed an architecture called TOTEM, Token for Controlled Computation, which integrates Blockchain and Big Data technologies. The conventional method of data analysis demands data be moved across the network to the location where the execution happens, however in the TOTEM architecture computational code will be moved to the data owner’s environment where the data is located. The TOTEM is a three layer architecture (Blockchain consortium layer, Storage layer and Computational layer) with two main actors, data provider and data consumer. Data provider provides metadata of the data they own and provide resources for the execution of data. Data consumers will get an opportunity to execute their own code on the data provider´s data. For a controlled computation and to avoid malicious functions an entity called totem is introduced in the architecture. The authorised users should meet the requirements of Totem value for executing their code on the requested data. For live monitoring of the totem value throughout the run time is achieved with the components such as totem manager and updaters in the computational layer. The code must follow a specific format and will undergo preliminary checks with the TOTEM defined SDK and smart contracts deployed by the data providers in the blockchain network. The Extended TOTEM architecture is also proposed to address the additional features when it is needed to combine the results from multiple data providers without sharing the data. This research work focused on the design of the TOTEM architecture and implementation as a proof of concept for the newly introduced components in the architecture. We have also introduced artificial intelligence in the framework to improve core features’ functionality. In the present research, the TOTEM architecture is proposed for the SmartNEM project to utilize the energy data for decision making and figure out the trends or patterns, while maintaining data privacy, data ownership, accountability and traceability. Moreover, the architecture can be extended to other domains such as health, education, etc, where data security and privacy is the key concern in sharing the data

DOSCATs: Double Standards in Quantitative Proteomics

Since its inception, the field of proteomics has shifted from being a qualitative discipline, generating long lists of proteins within a sample, to a quantitative one, where how much of a protein is reported. With the advent of systems biology, the routine analysis of biomarker levels, and the requirement for robust, reliable data comparable between different laboratories, the importance of absolute quantification, where proteins are quantified in absolute titre, is becoming increasingly important. There are two commonly used techniques for absolute protein quantification, based on either mass spectrometry (MS) or immunochemical techniques such as western blotting (WB). MS is generally considered the gold standard technique for quantification, but WB can offer greater sensitivity and is much more accessible to researchers. Neither are intrinsically quantitative techniques and so rely on standards; either isotope labelled peptides or recombinant proteins bearing an epitope are used for MS or WB respectively. To improve the robustness and reproducibility of quantitative data it would be advantageous to apply both techniques for orthogonal quantification, but due to the very different calibration standards, workflows rarely overlap. DOSCATs (Double Standard conCATamers) are novel calibration standards that can unite MS and WB workflows, allowing for the quantification of direct comparison of quantitative data between the two platforms. DOSCATs, based on QconCAT technology, combine a series of epitope sequences concatenated with peptides in a single artificial protein. Stable isotope labelled peptide for MS analysis are released upon digestion with an enzyme such as trypsin, and intact DOSCATs act to bear multiple epitopes for WB. Also included were restricted proteolysis sites that allow for a mobility shift within WB, lending greater flexibility to the standard. The aim of this thesis was to develop and optimise the use of DOSCAT technology so that they could be used to quantify target proteins in both quantitative platforms. A DOSCAT protein was designed and constructed to quantify five proteins of the NF-κB pathway. The DOSCAT was expressed and purified and the 9/13 peptides and 3/5 epitopes included in the sequence were observed by MS and WB respectively, demonstrating the proof of concept. However, restricted proteases performed poorly and three antibodies were discontinued by the manufacturer, so a second iteration of the NF-κB DOSCAT was designed. This was used to calibrate quantification by selected reaction monitoring MS (SRM-MS) and automated capillary WB. For three target proteins, protein fold change and absolute copy per cell values measured by MS and WB were in excellent agreement. Building on this success, another DOSCAT was built for six proteins implicated to be indicative of paediatric Streptococcus pneumoniae meningitis infection. All six proteins were quantified by SRM-MS although QWB failed to quantify two targets as either DOSCAT or endogenous protein was not detected. SRM-MS data agreed very well with previous datasets generated for the same samples by label-free MS and QWB using full length standards, however, absolute values for DOSCAT calibrated QWB were inconsistent. This could be due to antibodies recognising DOSCAT and endogenous protein with different affinities. This work demonstrates that DOSCATs can be used as multiplexed, dual purpose standards to unite MS and WB workflows. The DOSCAT approach has the potential to generate reliable quantitative information particularly relevant for systems biology studies and contribute to the desired increase in reproducibility of biological research

Characterising and modeling the co-evolution of transportation networks and territories

The identification of structuring effects of transportation infrastructure on territorial dynamics remains an open research problem. This issue is one of the aspects of approaches on complexity of territorial dynamics, within which territories and networks would be co-evolving. The aim of this thesis is to challenge this view on interactions between networks and territories, both at the conceptual and empirical level, by integrating them in simulation models of territorial systems.Comment: Doctoral dissertation (2017), Universit\'e Paris 7 Denis Diderot. Translated from French. Several papers compose this PhD thesis; overlap with: arXiv:{1605.08888, 1608.00840, 1608.05266, 1612.08504, 1706.07467, 1706.09244, 1708.06743, 1709.08684, 1712.00805, 1803.11457, 1804.09416, 1804.09430, 1805.05195, 1808.07282, 1809.00861, 1811.04270, 1812.01473, 1812.06008, 1908.02034, 2012.13367, 2102.13501, 2106.11996