Separation and determination of the amylose and amylopectin fractions of starch

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An Introduction to Light Interaction with Human Skin

Despite the notable progress in physically-based rendering, there is still a long way to go before one can automatically generate predictable images of organic materials such as human skin. In this tutorial, the main physical and biological aspects involved in the processes of propagation and absorption of light by skin tissues are examined. These processes affect not only skin appearance, but also its health. For this reason, they have also been the object of study in biomedical research. The models of light interaction with human skin developed by the biomedical community are mainly aimed at the simulation of skin spectral properties which are used to determine the concentration and distribution of various substances. In computer graphics, the focus has been on the simulation of light scattering properties that affect skin appearance. Computer models used to simulate these spectral and scattering properties are described in this tutorial, and their strengths and limitations discussed. Keywords: natural phenomena, biologically and physically-based rendering

Physically-based image editing on mobile devices

The increasing processing power of mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets, along with the touch and gesture-based user interaction they provide, make them very interesting platforms for exploring brand-new image editing tools with natural interfaces. We present two different applications that rely heavily on fluid dynamics solvers for simulating image formation. The first one allows the user to add liquid to a virtual lens. Then refraction of light through the modified optical system is calculated, obtaining interesting creative distortions from the source image. The second tool simulates the wet plate collodion process, the first mainstream photographic technique, very popular on the 19th century. In this application, the user starts mixing the chemicals for the collodion film, which is created by spreading the liquid over a plate. This plate is then exposed and developed for obtaining an accurate depiction of the final image. All the calculations are based on real measured data, ensuring a close match with the real process. These example applications make full use of the available resources, providing instant feedback for an organic and engaging user experience

Analysis of aircraft pitch axis stability augmentation system using sum of squares optimization

In this paper, we use SOS (sum of squares) programming approaches to analyze the stability and robustness properties of the controlled pitch axis (6 state system) of a nonlinear model of an aircraft. The controller is a LTI dynamic inversion based control law designed for the short period dynamics of the aircraft. The closed loop system is tested for its robustness to uncertainty in the location of center of gravity along the body x-axis. Results in the form of stability regions about a trim point are computed and verified using simulations

Limits on monopole fluxes from KFG experiment

The nucleon decay experiment at KGF at a depth of 2.3 Km is eminently suited for the search of Grand Unified theory (GUT) monopoles, whose velocities at the present epoch are predicted to be around 0.001C. At this depth the cosmic ray background is at a level 2/day in the detector of size 4m x 6m x 3.7m and one can look for monopoles traversing the detector in all directions, using three methods, i.e., (1) dE/dx (ionization); (2) time of flight and (3) catalysis of nucleon decay. The detector is composed of 34 layers of proportional counters arranged in horizontal planes one above the other in an orthogonal maxtrix. Each of the 1594 counters are instrumented to measure ionization in the gas (90% Argon + 10% Methane) as well as the time of arrival of particles

Damping in Torsional Vibrations of Embedded Footings

The existing theoretical models to explain the dynamic behavior of embedded footings, overestimate the real response by neglecting damping forces which are inevitable as a result of slip at the interface of the embedded footing and soil. Many researchers in the field of Soil Dynamics have suggested that the inclusion of friction damping and internal damping in the mathematical model is necessary to improve the reliability of theoretical predictions. In this paper, results of the experimental investigations on full scale model embedded footings subjected to torsional mode of vibration have been presented. The results have been analyzed making use of three theoretical models, as developed by, Novak and Sachs (1973); Sankaran et al (1978) and Sankaran et al (1980). The importance of d-ping in predicting the dynamic response is brought out by a comparison of field vibratory test data with the corresponding values predicted by each of the above mentioned theoretical models