99 research outputs found
Contracts for Abstract Processes in Service Composition
Contracts are a well-established approach for describing and analyzing
behavioral aspects of web service compositions. The theory of contracts comes
equipped with a notion of compatibility between clients and servers that
ensures that every possible interaction between compatible clients and servers
will complete successfully. It is generally agreed that real applications often
require the ability of exposing just partial descriptions of their behaviors,
which are usually known as abstract processes. We propose a formal
characterization of abstraction as an extension of the usual symbolic
bisimulation and we recover the notion of abstraction in the context of
contracts.Comment: In Proceedings FIT 2010, arXiv:1101.426
Integrated Optical-Wireless Interface and Detection
This chapter elaborates on the beneficial aspects and hardware implementations of incorporating ultradense WDM-PONs (UDWDM-PONs) with hybrid optical-wireless fronthaul links and fiber to the home applications. Simulation results on the synthesis of a low-cost and low-energy consumption optoelectronic unit within the future 5G base stations (BS) are presented. In addition, an advanced neural network is investigated capable of compensating for the linear and nonlinear effects induced by semiconductor optical amplifiers (SOA)
ISOGAL-DENIS detection of red giants with weak mass loss in the Galactic Bulge
The ISOGAL project is a survey of the stellar populations, structure, and
recent star formation history of the inner disk and bulge of the Galaxy. ISOGAL
combines 15 and 7micron ISOCAM observations with DENIS IJKs data to determine
the nature of a source and the interstellar extinction. In this paper we report
an ISOGAL study of a small field in the inner Galactic Bulge (l=0deg, b=1.0deg,
area=0.035 sq. deg) as a prototype of the larger area ISOGAL survey of the
inner Galaxy. The five wavelengths of ISOGAL+DENIS, together with the
relatively low and constant extinction in front of this specific field, allow
reliable determination of the nature of the sources. The primary scientific
result of this paper is evidence that the most numerous class of ISOGAL
15micron sources are Red Giants in the Galactic bulge and central disk, with
luminosities just above or close to the RGB tip and weak mass-loss rates. They
form loose sequences in the magnitude-colour diagrams [15]/Ks-[15] and
[15]/[7]-[15]. Their large excesses at 15micron with respect to 2micron and
7micron is due to circumstellar dust produced by mass-loss at low rates. These
ISOGAL results are the first systematic evidence and study of dust emission at
this early stage (''Intermediate'' AGB), before the onset of the large
mass-loss phase. It is thus well established that efficient dust formation is
already associated with such low mass-loss rates during this early phase.Comment: 15 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy and
Astrophysics Journa
Evidence of a relation between hippocampal volume, white matter hyperintensities, and cognition in subjective cognitive decline and mild cognitive impairment
Objective: The concepts of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and subjective cognitive decline (SCD) have been proposed to
identify individuals in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), or other neurodegenerative diseases. One approach to validate these concepts is to investigate the relationship between pathological brain markers and cognition in those individuals.
Method: We included 126 participants from the Consortium for the Early Identification of Alzheimer’s disease-Quebec
(CIMA-Q) cohort (67 SCD, 29 MCI, and 30 cognitively healthy controls [CH]). All participants underwent a complete
cognitive assessment and structural magnetic resonance imaging. Group comparisons were done using cognitive data, and
then correlated with hippocampal volumes and white matter hyperintensities (WMHs).
Results: Significant differences were found between participants with MCI and CH on episodic and executive tasks, but
no differences were found when comparing SCD and CH. Scores on episodic memory tests correlated with hippocampal
volumes in both MCI and SCD, whereas performance on executive tests correlated with WMH in all of our groups.
Discussion: As expected, the SCD group was shown to be cognitively healthy on tasks where MCI participants showed
impairment. However, SCD’s hippocampal volume related to episodic memory performances, and WMH to executive functions. Thus, SCD represents a valid research concept and should be used, alongside MCI, to better understand the preclinical/prodromal phase of AD
ISOGAL: A deep survey of the obscured inner Milky Way with ISO at 7 and 15 micron and with DENIS in the near-infrared
The ISOGAL project is an infrared survey of specific regions sampling the
Galactic Plane selected to provide information on Galactic structure,stellar
populations,stellar mass-loss and the recent star formation history of the
inner disk and Bulge of the Galaxy. ISOGAL combines 7 and 15 micron ISOCAM
observations - with a resolution of 6'' at worst - with DENIS IJKs data to
determine the nature of the sources and theinterstellar extinction. We have
observed about 16 square degrees with a sensitivity approaching 10-20mJy,
detecting ~10^5 sources,mostly AGB stars,red giants and young stars. The main
features of the ISOGAL survey and the observations are summarized in this
paper,together with a brief discussion of data processing and quality. The
primary ISOGAL products are described briefly (a full description is given in
Schuller et al. 2003, astro-ph/0304309): viz. the images and theISOGAL-DENIS
five-wavelength point source catalogue. The main scientific results already
derived or in progress are summarized. These include astrometrically calibrated
7 and 15um images,determining structures of resolved sources; identification
and properties of interstellar dark clouds; quantification of the infrared
extinction law and source dereddening; analysis of red giant and (especially)
AGB stellar populations in the central Bulge,determining luminosity,presence of
circumstellar dust and mass--loss rate,and source classification,supplemented
in some cases by ISO/CVF spectroscopy; detection of young stellar objects of
diverse types,especially in the inner Bulge with information about the present
and recent star formation rate; identification of foreground sources with
mid-IR excess. These results are the subject of about 25 refereed papers
published or in preparation.Comment: A&A in press. 19 pages,10 Ps figures; problems with figures fixe
Targeted re-sequencing confirms the importance of chemosensory genes in aphid host race differentiation.
Host-associated races of phytophagous insects provide a model for understanding how adaptation to a new environment can lead to reproductive isolation and speciation, ultimately enabling us to connect barriers to gene flow to adaptive causes of divergence. The pea aphid (Acyrthosiphon pisum) comprises host-races specialising on legume species, and provides a unique system for examining the early stages of diversification along a gradient of genetic and associated adaptive divergence. As host-choice produces assortative mating, understanding the underlying mechanisms of choice will contribute directly to understanding of speciation. As host-choice in the pea aphid is likely mediated by smell and taste, we use capture sequencing and SNP genotyping to test for the role of chemosensory genes in the divergence between eight host-plant species across the continuum of differentiation and sampled at multiple locations across western Europe. We show high differentiation of chemosensory loci relative to control loci in a broad set of pea aphid races and localities, using a model-free approach based on Principal Component analysis. Olfactory and gustatory receptors form the majority of highly differentiated genes, and include loci that were already identified as outliers in a previous study focusing on the three most closely related host races. Consistent indications that chemosensory genes may be good candidates for local adaptation and barriers to gene flow in the pea aphid open the way to further investigations aiming to understand their impact on gene flow, and to determine their precise functions in response to host plant metabolites. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved
Facultative Symbiont Infections Affect Aphid Reproduction
Some bacterial symbionts alter their hosts reproduction through various mechanisms that enhance their transmission in the host population. In addition to its obligatory symbiont Buchnera aphidicola, the pea aphid Acyrthosiphon pisum harbors several facultative symbionts influencing several aspects of host ecology. Aphids reproduce by cyclical parthenogenesis whereby clonal and sexual reproduction alternate within the annual life cycle. Many species, including the pea aphid, also show variation in their reproductive mode at the population level, with some lineages reproducing by cyclical parthenogenesis and others by permanent parthenogenesis. While the role of facultative symbionts has been well studied during the parthenogenetic phase of their aphid hosts, very little is known on their possible influence during the sexual phase. Here we investigated whether facultative symbionts modulate the capacity to produce sexual forms in various genetic backgrounds of the pea aphid with controlled symbiont composition and also in different aphid genotypes from natural populations with previously characterized infection status and reproductive mode. We found that most facultative symbionts exhibited detrimental effects on their hosts fitness under sex-inducing conditions in comparison with the reference lines. We also showed that the loss of sexual phase in permanently parthenogenetic lineages of A. pisum was not explained by facultative symbionts. Finally, we demonstrated that Spiroplasma infection annihilated the production of males in the host progeny by inducing a male-killing phenotype, an unexpected result for organisms such as aphids that reproduce primarily through clonal reproduction
The effect of resistant wheat (Triticum monococcum) on development and reproduction of Sitobion avenae
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