Some Studies of Nodular Graphite Cast Iron

The experiments were carried out on the formation of nodular graphite in cast iron by adding some different kinds of mother alloys to molten cast iron and on the increase of graphite particles caused by annealing treatment. The yield of modified element in cast iron is increased as the content of alloying element in mother alloy or the amount of mother alloy added to molten cast iron decreases. By using many components alloy the structure in which the ground mass consisted fully of ferrite, is obtained. The hardness of modified cast iron decreases rapidly by annealing or with the increase of the diameter of specimen

Suzaku Observation of HCG 62: Temperature, Abundance, and Extended Hard X-ray Emission Profiles

We present results of 120 ks observation of a compact group of galaxies HCG~62 ($z=0.0145$) with Suzaku XIS and HXD-PIN\@. The XIS spectra for four annular regions were fitted with two temperature {\it vapec} model with variable abundance, combined with the foreground Galactic component. The Galactic component was constrained to have a common surface brightness among the four annuli, and two temperature {\it apec} model was preferred to single temperature model. We confirmed the multi-temperature nature of the intra-group medium reported with Chandra and XMM-Newton, with a doughnut-like high temperature ring at radii 3.3--6.5$'$ in a hardness image. We found Mg, Si, S, and Fe abundances to be fairly robust. We examined the possible ``high-abundance arc'' at $\sim 2'$ southwest from the center, however Suzaku data did not confirm it. We suspect that it is a misidentification of an excess hot component in this region as the Fe line. Careful background study showed no positive detection of the extended hard X-rays previously reported with ASCA, in 5--12 keV with XIS and 12--40 keV with HXD-PIN, although our upper limit did not exclude the ASCA result. There is an indication that the X-ray intensity in $r<3.3'$ region is $70\pm 19$% higher than the nominal CXB level (5--12 keV), and Chandra and Suzaku data suggest that most of this excess could be due to concentration of hard X-ray sources with an average photon index of $\Gamma=1.38\pm 0.06$. Cumulative mass of O, Fe and Mg in the group gas and the metal mass-to-light ratio were derived and compared with those in other groups. Possible role of AGN or galaxy mergers in this group is also discussed.Comment: 29 pages with 9 figures, accepted for publication in PASJ Vol 60, second Suzaku special issu

Factors determining maximum torque and achievement of the recommended torque for manual implant drivers: A pilot study

When fixing an oral implant superstructure with a screw, operators must be aware of the torque being applied by their fingers to prevent the transmission of excessive or insufficient torque to the implant. In this study, we identified the factors that determine individual maximum attainable torque and those that determine the achievement of the prescribed torque. We evaluated 16 dentists on their use of two types of manual implant drivers（UniGrip by Nobel Biocare and Carrier Hex by Zimmer Biomet）and measured the maximum torque（MT）generated by their fingers. The target torque was set at 15N. Measurements were taken while the participants were turning the implant screw with or without gloves in both clockwise and counterclockwise directions. The grip and finger strength of each participant were measured, and the data showed that torque values were higher among the male participants during clockwise rotation and when they were wearing gloves（p＜0.05）. Positive correlations were found between the MT and grip strength and between the MT and finger strength. These results suggest that dentists should monitor their ability to consistently achieve the recommended torque for implant drivers

Comparison of three representative subjective evaluations of chewing function

In 2018, oral hypofunction was registered officially as a disease in Japan. It is important to detect oral hypofunction symptoms early in patients, before frank oral dysfunction symptoms occur. Subjective evaluations of chewing function, which help to identify foods that cannot be chewed, might be useful in diagnosing oral hypofunction. Previous evaluations used to identify patients with oral hypofunction used varying standards, making it impossible to compare and integrate them without first developing a unified screening method. This study aimed to compare and integrate known evaluation methods that are useful for diagnosing oral hypofunction. A total of 76 elderly participants （aged ＞65 years） were enrolled after providing consent to participate in this study. The established subjective evaluation methods of chewing function investigated for this study included the Yamamoto denture performance judgment table, the Sato table for evaluation of chewing function in complete denture wearers, and the Hirai evaluation method for the masticatory function in complete denture wearers. As the Yamamoto method lacks scoring, the total number of circles was used as the score. A time study was performed on the time taken for the description, entry, and analysis of these tables. There was a strong correlation between the Sato and Hirai methods （r＝0.71） and between the Sato and Yamamoto （r＝0.68） and Hirai and Yamamoto （r＝0.60） methods. During the time study, the description time was the shortest with the Yamamoto method, and the entry and analysis times were the shortest with the Sato method. The total time was significantly shorter with the Sato method than with the Yamamoto method. Three evaluation methods showed correlation, but the examination times varied. In future studies, we plan to clarify the selection criteria, including the relevance of objective evaluation and usability

C-arm Cone-beam CT-guided Needle Biopsies through the Erector Spinal Muscle for Posterior Thoracic Pulmonary Lesions

This study investigated retrospectively the diagnostic yield and complication rate of transthoracic needle biopsies for posterior thoracic pulmonary lesions using C-arm cone-beam computed tomography （CBCT）. The risk factors for pulmonary hemorrhage were evaluated. Our study included 113 patients with 113 posterior pulmonary lesions （mean longest diameter: 30.6mm, and mean depth: 4.7mm） through the erector spinal muscles using a 19/20-gauge coaxial system. The diagnostic performances of procedures for malignant lesions and the incidence of complications after biopsies were also assessed. The patient-related and procedure-related variables were investigated. Risk factors for pulmonary hemorrhage were analyzed with a multivariate logistic regression analysis. Findings revealed 99 malignant, 13 benign, and one intermediate lesion. Sensitivity, specificity, and diagnostic accuracy rates were 100％ （99/99）, 92.3％ （12/13）, and 99.1％ （111/112）, respectively. Air embolization, hemothorax, hemoptysis, pneumothorax, and pulmonary hemorrhage, occurred in 0, 2, 12, 48, and 70 procedures. The averaged spinous process-pleura depth and the traversed lung parenchyma depth achieved by the introducer needles were 54.2mm and 27.4mm, respectively. The needle position at the pleural puncture site within the intercostal space was in middle （31％） and inferior （69％） areas. The incidence of pulmonary hemorrhage was significantly higher in smaller lesions （p＝0.001）. Manual evacuation was performed in five procedures for patients with pneumothorax. The chest tube placement （trocar＞8 Fr） was performed in two procedures in patients with hemothorax and pneumothorax. In conclusion, the biopsy method with a posterior intercostal approach for posterior thoracic pulmonary lesions yielded high diagnostic accuracy and few major complications

An interspecific linkage map of SSR and intronic polymorphism markers in tomato

Despite the collection and availability of abundant tomato genome sequences, PCR-based markers adapted to large scale analysis have not been developed in tomato species. Therefore, using public genome sequence data in tomato, we developed three types of DNA markers: expressed sequence tag (EST)-derived simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers (TES markers), genome-derived SSR markers (TGS markers) and EST-derived intronic polymorphism markers (TEI markers). A total of 2,047 TES, 3,510 TGS and 674 TEI markers were established and used in the polymorphic analysis of a cultivated tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) ‘LA925’ and its wild relative Solanum pennellii ‘LA716’, parents of the Tomato-EXPEN 2000 mapping population. The polymorphic ratios between parents revealed by the TES, TGS and TEI markers were 37.3, 22.6 and 80.0%, respectively. Those showing polymorphisms were used to genotype the Tomato-EXPEN 2000 mapping population, and a high-density genetic linkage map composed of 1,433 new and 683 existing marker loci was constructed on 12 chromosomes, covering 1,503.1 cM. In the present map, 48% of the mapped TGS loci were located within heterochromatic regions, while 18 and 21% of TES and TEI loci, respectively, were located in heterochromatin. The large number of SSR and SNP markers developed in this study provide easily handling genomic tools for molecular breeding in tomato. Information on the DNA markers developed in this study is available at http://www.kazusa.or.jp/tomato/

Impurity emission characteristics of long pulse discharges in Large Helical Device

Line spectra from intrinsic impurity ions have been monitored during the three kinds of long-pulse discharges (ICH, ECH, NBI). Constant emission from the iron impurity shows no preferential accumulation of iron ion during the long-pulse operations. Stable Doppler ion temperature has been also measured from Fe XX, C V and C III spectra

EMPRESS. IX. Extremely Metal-Poor Galaxies are Very Gas-Rich Dispersion-Dominated Systems: Will JWST Witness Gaseous Turbulent High-z Primordial Galaxies?

We present kinematics of 6 local extremely metal-poor galaxies (EMPGs) with low metallicities ($0.016-0.098\ Z_{\odot}$) and low stellar masses ($10^{4.7}-10^{7.6} M_{\odot}$). Taking deep medium-high resolution ($R\sim7500$) integral-field spectra with 8.2-m Subaru, we resolve the small inner velocity gradients and dispersions of the EMPGs with H$\alpha$ emission. Carefully masking out sub-structures originated by inflow and/or outflow, we fit 3-dimensional disk models to the observed H$\alpha$ flux, velocity, and velocity-dispersion maps. All the EMPGs show rotational velocities ($v_{\rm rot}$) of 5--23 km s$^{-1}$ smaller than the velocity dispersions ($\sigma_{0}$) of 17--31 km s$^{-1}$, indicating dispersion-dominated ($v_{\rm rot}/\sigma_{0}=0.29-0.80<1$) systems affected by inflow and/or outflow. Except for two EMPGs with large uncertainties, we find that the EMPGs have very large gas-mass fractions of $f_{\rm gas}\simeq 0.9-1.0$. Comparing our results with other H$\alpha$ kinematics studies, we find that $v_{\rm rot}/\sigma_{0}$ decreases and $f_{\rm gas}$ increases with decreasing metallicity, decreasing stellar mass, and increasing specific star-formation rate. We also find that simulated high-$z$ ($z\sim 7$) forming galaxies have gas fractions and dynamics similar to the observed EMPGs. Our EMPG observations and the simulations suggest that primordial galaxies are gas-rich dispersion-dominated systems, which would be identified by the forthcoming James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) observations at $z\sim 7$.Comment: Submitted to ApJ; After revisio

Recent Results from LHD Experiment with Emphasis on Relation to Theory from Experimentalist’s View

he Large Helical Device (LHD) has been extending an operational regime of net-current free plasmas towardsthe fusion relevant condition with taking advantage of a net current-free heliotron concept and employing a superconducting coil system. Heating capability has exceeded 10 MW and the central ion and electron temperatureshave reached 7 and 10 keV, respectively. The maximum value of β and pulse length have been extended to 3.2% and 150 s, respectively. Many encouraging physical findings have been obtained. Topics from recent experiments, which should be emphasized from the aspect of theoretical approaches, are reviewed. Those are (1) Prominent features in the inward shifted configuration, i.e., mitigation of an ideal interchange mode in the configuration with magnetic hill, and confinement improvement due to suppression of both anomalous and neoclassical transport, (2) Demonstration ofbifurcation of radial electric field and associated formation of an internal transport barrier, and (3) Dynamics of magnetic islands and clarification of the role of separatrix