Method and apparatus for mapping the distribution of chemical elements in an extended medium

Contaminants in an extended medium such as the wall of a building are mapped by locating neutron excitation source on one side of the wall and a gamma ray spectrometer, including a gamma ray detector on the opposite side of the wall facing the excitation source. The source and detector are moved in unison in discrete steps over opposing wall surfaces so as to determine the chemical composition of the elements in a hemispheric region of the wall adjacent the detector with the radius of the region being substantially that of the mean free path distance of gamma rays emitted from elements interacting with neutrons on the detector side of the wall. The source and detector are reversed for relatively thick walls for mapping the distribution of elements on the other side of the wall thickness. The output of the detector is fed to a multichannel pulse height analyzer where the intensity of the various gamma ray spectral lines are indicated relative to a dominant constituent element such as silicon. Resolution of anomalies such as the presence of voids and/or determining the bulk density of the medium is achieved by substituting a gamma ray source technique is also applied to metal alloys, such as iron alloys, in either the solid or molten state

Birds and people in Europe

At a regional scale, species richness and human population size are frequently positively correlated across space. Such patterns may arise because both species richness and human density increase with energy availability. If the species-energy relationship is generated through the 'more individuals' hypothesis, then the prediction is that areas with high human densities will also support greater numbers of individuals from other taxa. We use the unique data available for the breeding birds in Europe to test this prediction. Overall regional densities of bird species are higher in areas with more people; species of conservation concern exhibit the same pattern. Avian density also increases faster with human density than does avian biomass, indicating that areas with a higher human density have a higher proportion of small-bodied individuals. The analyses also underline the low numbers of breeding birds in Europe relative to humans, with a median of just three individual birds per person, and 4 g of bird for every kilogram of human

The Harter Act and its Limitations

Prior to 1893 vessel owners attempted to limit their liability by inserting restriction clauses in bins of lading. These stipulations were recognized and upheld by the English courts, but not to so great an extent by the American courts. This attempted limitation of liability by shipowners led up to the passage of the so-called Harter Act, February 13, 1893

SLS Materials Development Method for Rapid Manufacturing

As soon as SFF technology development began to make Rapid Prototyping possible the interest in Rapid Manufacturing (RM) began to grow. The advantages in terms of functional integration, elimination of tooling and fixtures and mass customization make a compelling case for RM, leading some in the field to call it the next industrial revolution. Yet without the materials properties necessary to provide the function and variety currently available from mass production methods, the application of RM will remain limited. Developing new materials for the SLS process, one immediate step toward a larger portfolio of RM materials, is very challenging. The formation of high quality SLS parts relies on appropriate powder characteristics, thermal cycles and sintering behavior. Based on a brief examination of the key factors in SLS processing and a research project to develop a new binder material for Silicon Carbide composites, a systematic materials development method is proposed in this paper. The method provides guidance for introducing new SLS materials, support for educating new SLS users and researchers and direction for several future research projects.Mechanical Engineerin

Rapid Manufacturing of Silicon Carbide Composites

From the earliest days of SFF technology development, a viable technique for the direct manufacture of fully-functional parts has been a major technology goal. While direct metal methods have been demonstrated for a variety of metals including aluminum, steel and titanium, they have not reached wide commercial application due to processing speed, final material properties and surface finish. In this paper the development of an SLS-based rapid manufacturing (RM) platform is reviewed. The core of this platform is a thermosetting binder system for preform parts in contrast to the thermoplastic materials currently available for SLS. The preforms may include metal and/or ceramic powders. A variety of fully functional parts can be prepared from different combinations of materials and post processing steps including binder pyrolysis, free-standing alloy infiltration, room temperature polymer infiltration and machining. The main issues of these steps are reviewed followed by a discussion about the support of RM. This paper is an intermediate report additional materials, applications, process models and product design strategies will be incorporated into the project in the next year.Mechanical Engineerin

Neuropilins 1 and 2 mediate neointimal hyperplasia and re-endothelialization following arterial injury

AIMS: Neuropilins 1 and 2 (NRP1 and NRP2) play crucial roles in endothelial cell migration contributing to angiogenesis and vascular development. Both NRPs are also expressed by cultured vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) and are implicated in VSMC migration stimulated by PDGF-BB, but it is unknown whether NRPs are relevant for VSMC function in vivo. We investigated the role of NRPs in the rat carotid balloon injury model, in which endothelial denudation and arterial stretch induce neointimal hyperplasia involving VSMC migration and proliferation. METHODS AND RESULTS: NRP1 and NRP2 mRNAs and proteins increased significantly following arterial injury, and immunofluorescent staining revealed neointimal NRP expression. Down-regulation of NRP1 and NRP2 using shRNA significantly reduced neointimal hyperplasia following injury. Furthermore, inhibition of NRP1 by adenovirally overexpressing a loss-of-function NRP1 mutant lacking the cytoplasmic domain (ΔC) reduced neointimal hyperplasia, whereas wild-type (WT) NRP1 had no effect. NRP-targeted shRNAs impaired, while overexpression of NRP1 WT and NRP1 ΔC enhanced, arterial re-endothelialization 14 days after injury. Knockdown of either NRP1 or NRP2 inhibited PDGF-BB-induced rat VSMC migration, whereas knockdown of NRP2, but not NRP1, reduced proliferation of cultured rat VSMC and neointimal VSMC in vivo. NRP knockdown also reduced the phosphorylation of PDGFα and PDGFβ receptors in rat VSMC, which mediate VSMC migration and proliferation. CONCLUSION: NRP1 and NRP2 play important roles in the regulation of neointimal hyperplasia in vivo by modulating VSMC migration (via NRP1 and NRP2) and proliferation (via NRP2), independently of the role of NRPs in re-endothelialization

Interactions between unidirectional quantized vortex rings

We have used the vortex filament method to numerically investigate the interactions between pairs of quantized vortex rings that are initially traveling in the same direction but with their axes offset by a variable impact parameter. The interaction of two circular rings of comparable radii produce outcomes that can be categorized into four regimes, dependent only on the impact parameter; the two rings can either miss each other on the inside or outside, or they can reconnect leading to final states consisting of either one or two deformed rings. The fraction of of energy went into ring deformations and the transverse component of velocity of the rings are analyzed for each regime. We find that rings of very similar radius only reconnect for a very narrow range of the impact parameter, much smaller than would be expected from geometrical cross-section alone. In contrast, when the radii of the rings are very different, the range of impact parameters producing a reconnection is close to the geometrical value. A second type of interaction considered is the collision of circular rings with a highly deformed ring. This type of interaction appears to be a productive mechanism for creating small vortex rings. The simulations are discussed in the context of experiments on colliding vortex rings and quantum turbulence in superfluid helium in the zero temperature limit

Work probability distribution in single molecule experiments

We derive and solve a differential equation satisfied by the probability distribution of the work done on a single biomolecule in a mechanical unzipping experiment. The unzipping is described as a thermally activated escape process in an energy landscape. The Jarzynski equality is recovered as an identity, independent of the pulling protocol. This approach allows one to evaluate easily, by numerical integration, the work distribution, once a few parameters of the energy landscape are known.Comment: To appear on EP