Test for Detecting Wheat Pasture Flavor in Cow's Milk

Food Scienc

Anionic multiblock core cross-linked star copolymers via RAFT polymerization

Poly(2-acrylamido-2-methylpropane sulfonic acid) is a polyelectrolyte currently used in numerous industrial applications. Herein, we report the use of reversible addition fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization to prepare a range of well-defined homopolymers and block copolymers of 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropane sulfonic acid (AMPS®) and either N-hydroxyethyl acrylamide (HEAm) or 4-acryloylmorpholine (NAM) as a comonomer. We also describe the one-pot synthesis of multiblock core cross-linked star copolymers of AMPS® and HEAm with low dispersities (<1.3). The influence of several parameters such as the cross-linker type, cross-linker to chain transfer agent (CTA) ratio, arm length and composition on the polymerization efficiency are investigated

MRBench: A Benchmark for MapReduce Framework

MapReduce is Google’s programming model for easy development of scalable parallel applications which pro-cess huge quantity of data on many clusters. Due to its conveniency and efficiency, MapReduce is used in various applications (e.g., web search services and on-line analytical processing.) However, there are only few good benchmarks to evaluate MapReduce implementa-tions by realistic testsets. In this paper, we present MRBench that is a bench-mark for evaluating MapReduce systems. MRBench fo-cuses on processing business oriented queries and con-current data modifications. To this end, we build MR-Bench to deal with large volumes of relational data and execute highly complex queries. By MRBench, users can evaluate the performance of MapReduce systems while varying environmental parameters such as data size and the number of (Map/Reduce) tasks. Our ex-tensive experimental results show that MRBench is a useful tool to benchmark the capability of answering critical business questions.

Functional multisite copolymer by one-pot sequential RAFT copolymerization of styrene and maleic anhydride

A Multisite copolymer with functionalizable units inserted at precise locations was synthesised by one-pot Reversible Addition–Fragmentation Chain-Transfer (RAFT) polymerization and sequential Single Monomer Unit Insertion (SMUI) and Chain Extension (ChainExt) using Styrene (Sty) and Maleic Anhydride (MAnh) as comonomers. The multisite copolymer was based on a polystyrene (PSty) backbone (ca. 5700 g mol−1) with MAnh units inserted locally at four positions in the backbone. First, a well-defined macroCTA (1400 g mol−1 – Đ = 1.07) was synthesised by optimized RAFT polymerization (high conversion, high livingness and low dispersity) of styrene (DP = 10) using industrial grade butyl-2-methyl-2-[(dodecylsulfanylthiocarbonyl)sulfanyl] propionate as chain transfer agent (CTA-Ester – 80% pure). Subsequently, the polystyrene macroCTA was used for one-pot SMUI using a small excess of MAnh monomer (DPtarget = 1.5). The copolymer was chain extended by styrene leading to a polystyrene backbone with MAnh units (1.5 in average) located in the middle of the chain. By repeating SMUI and ChainExt, several units of MAnh were inserted locally along the polystyrene backbone (every 10 units on average) to give a functionalizable multisite copolymer (Đ = 1.35). Long alkyl chains (stearyl) were added by esterification of maleic anhydride moieties to obtain branched architecture

Regulation of Glutamine Carrier Proteins by RNF5 Determines Breast Cancer Response to ER Stress-Inducing Chemotherapies

SummaryMany tumor cells are fueled by altered metabolism and increased glutamine (Gln) dependence. We identify regulation of the L-glutamine carrier proteins SLC1A5 and SLC38A2 (SLC1A5/38A2) by the ubiquitin ligase RNF5. Paclitaxel-induced ER stress to breast cancer (BCa) cells promotes RNF5 association, ubiquitination, and degradation of SLC1A5/38A2. This decreases Gln uptake, levels of TCA cycle components, mTOR signaling, and proliferation while increasing autophagy and cell death. Rnf5-deficient MMTV-PyMT mammary tumors were less differentiated and showed elevated SLC1A5 expression. Whereas RNF5 depletion in MDA-MB-231 cells promoted tumorigenesis and abolished paclitaxel responsiveness, SLC1A5/38A2 knockdown elicited opposing effects. Inverse RNF5hi/SLC1A5/38A2lo expression was associated with positive prognosis in BCa. Thus, RNF5 control of Gln uptake underlies BCa response to chemotherapies

Analysis and Suppression of SSN Noise Coupling Between Power/Ground Plane Cavities Through Cutouts in Multilayer Packages and PCBs

We introduce a model of simultaneous switching noise (SSN) coupling between the power/ground plane cavities through cutouts in high-speed and high-density multilayer packages and printed circuit boards (PCBs). Usually, the cutouts are used in multilayer plane structures to isolate the SSN of noisy digital circuits from sensitive analog circuits or to provide multiple voltage levels. The noise-coupling model is expressed in terms of the transfer impedance. The proposed modeling and analysis results are compared with measured data up to 10 GHz to demonstrate the validity of the model. It is demonstrated that the cutout is the major gate for SSN coupling between the plane cavities, and that substantial SSN coupling occurs between the plane cavities through the cutout at the resonant frequencies of the plane cavities. We also analyze and discuss the coupling mechanism and characteristics of the noise coupling, from which we evaluate a method of suppression of the SSN coupling. Proper positioning of the cutout and the devices at each plane cavity achieves significant noise suppression at certain resonant frequencies. The suggested suppression method of the SSN coupling was successfully proved by frequency domain measurement and time domain analysis

Financial and Pension Literacy and Retirement Preparedness in Sri Lanka: Evidence from Employee Provident Fund Contributors: Financial and Pension Literacy and Retirement Preparedness in Sri Lanka: Evidence from Employee Provident Fund Contributors

Sri Lanka has a rapidly aging population in South Asia, but little attention is given to financial preparedness for retirement. This study expects to provide an overview of the current retirement system in Sri Lanka and investigate financial and pension literacy's role in retirement preparedness. This study administered an online survey to study retirement preparedness subjectively (n = 142) and objectively (n = 115) among the EPF contributors. This non-experimental study uses an online survey to assess financial and pension literacy's roles in retirement preparedness. This study used ordered logistic (Ologit) regressions and ordinary least squares (OLS) regressions to test the two hypotheses. Results indicate a positive and statistically significant association between financial (only objective measure) and pension literacy and retirement preparedness. However, another study shows no synergy effect between financial and pension literacy. Conclusively, drawing policymakers' attention to diversifying EPF investments, including financial and pension literacy concepts in workplace workshops and studying pension literacy and retirement preparedness in different samples

Tapered slot shape on slotted reference plane of multi-layer PCB for reduction of crosstalk and radiated emission

We propose new slot shapes to reduce crosstalk, reflection, and radiated emission from the slotted reference plane in multi-layer PCBs or packages. The reduction is successfully demonstrated by the simulations and the measurements