Estudio de la idoneidad de un nuevo hormigón estructural fabricado con áridos ligeros reforzados con fibra de carbono sinterizados a partir de residuos

The suitability of three new lightweight aggregates containing carbon fiber residues (CAs) as components in structural lightweight concrete has been studied. Prismatic concrete specimens were prepared using these CAs as a coarse fraction. Additional specimens of normal-weight aggregate, commercial lightweight aggregate and mortar were prepared for comparison. The CA-concrete samples (CACs) have yielded compressive strength values between 35 and 55 MPa as well as low density and thermal conductivity results. Furthermore, the CACs have displayed the highest ratios of mechanical strength over density and the thermal conductivity, which means that there is a better balance between their mechanical and physical properties than in the other samples studied. These results indicate that the new CAs could have great potential for use in structural lightweight concrete, also complying with the principles of the Circular Economy.Este estudio pretende comprobar la idoneidad de unos novedosos áridos ligeros sinterizados con residuos de fibra de carbono (CAs) en la fabricación de hormigón ligero estructural. Se prepararon probetas prismáticas de hormigón, utilizando estos CAs como fracción gruesa, comparándose a su vez con probetas fabricadas con un árido convencional, un árido ligero comercial y mortero. Las muestras de hormigón con los áridos CA (en adelante CAC) han dado lugar a valores de resistencia a compresión entre 35 y 55 MPa, así como a resultados bajos de densidad y conductividad térmica, mostrando además las ratios más altas al relacionar estos tres parámetros. Esto indicaría por tanto un mejor equilibrio entre las propiedades mecánicas y físicas que los obtenidos en las otras muestras estudiadas. Estos resultados apuntan a que los nuevos CAs podrían tener un gran potencial para su uso en hormigón ligero estructural, cumpliendo además los principios de la Economía Circular

Geometric Algebra Model of Distributed Representations

Formalism based on GA is an alternative to distributed representation models developed so far --- Smolensky's tensor product, Holographic Reduced Representations (HRR) and Binary Spatter Code (BSC). Convolutions are replaced by geometric products, interpretable in terms of geometry which seems to be the most natural language for visualization of higher concepts. This paper recalls the main ideas behind the GA model and investigates recognition test results using both inner product and a clipped version of matrix representation. The influence of accidental blade equality on recognition is also studied. Finally, the efficiency of the GA model is compared to that of previously developed models.Comment: 30 pages, 19 figure

Antioxidant activity and characterization of whey protein-based beverages: Effect of shelf life and gastrointestinal transit on bioactivity

Whey proteins can exhibit antioxidant activity. The objectives of this study were to formulate model whey based beverages with well-established antioxidants (plant polyphenols, vitamins and astaxanthin) to investigate (1) the antioxidant shelf life over a 24-week period and (2) the antioxidant activity after upper gastrointestinal transit. Pilot scale processing (pasteurization, ultra-high temperature or spray drying) was used to prepare beverages which were representative of current product formats. In vitro gastrointestinal digestion of test samples was performed using the standardised INFOGEST method and antioxidant activity of samples was determined using ABTS, FRAP and ORAC. Results from the antioxidant shelf life study provided evidence that powder products functionality was preserved. Whey beverages (pasteurised or spray dried) increased or maintained antioxidant activity during gastrointestinal transit. Combination of whey with additional antioxidant ingredients increased the bioactivity of formulated products; however, this greater bioactivity was altered after gastrointestinal transit, depending on processing type and antioxidant methodology. Industrial relevance: Whey protein-based antioxidant beverages could benefit the elderly consumer to meet their increased protein requirements and boost their antioxidant status. Consumer's acceptance for whey protein-based beverages often improves with clear formulations. This work generated whey protein-based UHT beverages with greater stability and clarity than pasteurised formulations. A novel combination of plant and marine antioxidants increased antioxidant activity of whey protein-based formulations. Furthermore, to suit export markets this work generated spray dried whey protein formulations that did not alter antioxidant potentialThis work was funded by the Irish Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, FIRM 13F354-WheyGSH and 15F604-TOMI). A. R. Corrochano was in receipt of a Teagasc Walsh Fellowship. E. Arranz also received funding from Enterprise Ireland (MF2018-0151) and the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 71365

Approach to the Spanish continental Neogene synthesis and paleoclimatic interpretation

Integrated studies on Neogene geology have been scarce in Spain, but attemps to stratigraphic and sedimentological analysis of continental Tertiary basins have increased considerably lately. The large extent of Neogene basins in Spain, the good quality of the outcrops and the abundance of fossil provide an excellent basis for this kind of studies

Caracterización de las reflexiones de estudiantes del máster en formación del profesorado de matemáticas de educación secundaria obligatoria y bachillerato sobre el recuerdo de su experiencia escolar en matemáticas de secundaria

Este estudio es un primer paso para analizar la identidad profesional de estudiantes para profesor de matemáticas de secundaria. A pesar de tratarse de una muestra limitada y en un contexto concreto, los resultados reflejan la situación en la que se encuentran los futuros profesores de matemáticas de secundaria cuando están realizando un máster profesionalizante, lo que puede ser importante para el diseño y desarrollo de dicho máster a la vez que abre perspectivas de futuro en diferentes sentidos

Deficiency of the zinc finger protein ZFP106 causes motor and sensory neurodegeneration

Acknowledgements We are indebted to Jim Humphries, JennyCorrigan, LizDarley, Elizabeth Joynson, Natalie Walters, Sara Wells and the whole necropsy, histology, genotyping and MLC ward 6 teams at MRC Harwell for excellent technical assistance. We thank the staff of the WTSI Illumina Bespoke Team for the RNA-seq data, the Sanger Mouse Genetics Project for the initial mouse characterization and Dr David Adams for critical reading of the manuscript. We also thank KOMP for the mouse embryonic stem cells carrying the knockout first promoter-less allele (tm1a(KOMP)Wtsi) within Zfp016. Conflict of Interest statement. None declared. Funding This work was funded by the UK Medical Research Council (MRC) to A.A.-A. and a Motor Neurone Disease Association (MNDA) project grant to A.A.-A. and EMCF. D.L.H.B. is a Wellcome Trust Senior Clinical Scientist Fellow and P.F. is a MRC/MNDA Lady Edith Wolfson Clinician Scientist Fellow. Funding to pay the Open Access publication charges for this article was provided by the MRC grant number: MC_UP_A390_1106.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Line geometry and camera autocalibration

We provide a completely new rigorous matrix formulation of the absolute quadratic complex (AQC), given by the set of lines intersecting the absolute conic. The new results include closed-form expressions for the camera intrinsic parameters in terms of the AQC, an algorithm to obtain the dual absolute quadric from the AQC using straightforward matrix operations, and an equally direct computation of a Euclidean-upgrading homography from the AQC. We also completely characterize the 6×6 matrices acting on lines which are induced by a spatial homography. Several algorithmic possibilities arising from the AQC are systematically explored and analyzed in terms of efficiency and computational cost. Experiments include 3D reconstruction from real images

Mutation in the FUS nuclear localisation signal domain causes neurodevelopmental and systemic metabolic alterations

Variants in the ubiquitously expressed DNA/RNA-binding protein FUS cause aggressive juvenile forms of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Most FUS mutation studies have focused on motor neuron degeneration; little is known about wider systemic or developmental effects. We studied pleiotropic phenotypes in a physiological knock-in mouse model carrying the pathogenic FUSDelta14 mutation in homozygosity. RNA sequencing of multiple organs aimed to identify pathways altered by the mutant protein in the systemic transcriptome, including metabolic tissues, given the link between ALS-frontotemporal dementia and altered metabolism. Few genes were commonly altered across all tissues, and most genes and pathways affected were generally tissue specific. Phenotypic assessment of mice revealed systemic metabolic alterations related to the pathway changes identified. Magnetic resonance imaging brain scans and histological characterisation revealed that homozygous FUSDelta14 brains were smaller than heterozygous and wild-type brains and displayed significant morphological alterations, including a thinner cortex, reduced neuronal number and increased gliosis, which correlated with early cognitive impairment and fatal seizures. These findings show that the disease aetiology of FUS variants can include both neurodevelopmental and systemic alterations

The white collar complex is essential for sexual reproduction but dispensable for conidiation and invasive growth in Fusarium verticillioides

Fvwc1 and Fvwc2, orthologues of the wc-1 and wc-2 genes encoding for proteins of the white collar complex (WCC) in Neurospora crassa were cloned from Fusarium verticillioides and lack-of-function wc mutants were obtained by targeted gene disruption. Photo-conidiation was found to be absent in F. verticillioides, on the contrary, the wild type strain produced less conidia under continuous illumination than in the dark. Inactivation of any of the wc genes led to total female sterility, without affecting male fertility or asexual conidiation. No loss in colonization capability/invasive growth of the wc mutants was observed, when assessed on tomato fruits. Both Fvwc1 and Fvwc2 showed constitutive expression in the wild type cultures incubated in the dark and exposure to light caused only negligible increases in their transcription. Both Fvwc1 and Fvwc2 were down-regulated in a ΔFvmat1-2-1 gene disruption mutant, lacking a functional mating type (mat1-2-1) gene, suggesting that the MAT1-2-1 product has a positive regulatory effect on the white collar genes

Control of Cyclin C Levels during Development of Dictyostelium

Background: Cdk8 and its partner cyclin C form part of the mediator complex which links the basal transcription machinery to regulatory proteins. The pair are required for correct regulation of a subset of genes and have been implicated in control of development in a number of organisms including the social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum. When feeding, Dictyostelium amoebae are unicellular but upon starvation they aggregate to form a multicellular structure which develops into a fruiting body containing spores. Cells in which the gene encoding Cdk8 has been deleted fail to enter aggregates due to a failure of early gene expression.Principal Findings: We have monitored the expression levels of cyclin C protein during development and find levels decrease after the multicellular mound is formed. This decrease is triggered by extracellular cAMP that, in turn, is working in part through an increase in intracellular cAMP. The loss of cyclin C is coincident with a reduction in the association of Cdk8 with a high molecular weight complex in the nucleus. Overexpression of cyclin C and Cdk8 lead to an increased rate of early development, consistent with the levels being rate limiting.Conclusions: Overall these results show that both cyclin C and Cdk8 are regulated during development in response to extracellular signals and the levels of these proteins are important in controlling the timing of developmental processes. These findings have important implications for the role of these proteins in controlling development, suggesting that they are targets for developmental signals to regulate gene expression.</p