Term Analysis – Improving the Quality of Learning and Application Documents in Engineering Design

Conceptual homogeneity is one determinant of the quality of text documents. A concept remains the same if the words used (termini) change [1, 2]. In other words, termini can vary while the concept retains the same meaning. Human beings are able to handle concepts and termini because of their semantic network, which is able to connect termini to the actual context and thus identify the adequate meaning of the termini. Problems could arise when humans have to learn new content and correspondingly new concepts. Since the content is basically imparted by text via particular termini, it is a challenge to establish the right concept from the text with the termini. A term might be known, but have a different meaning [3, 4]. Therefore, it is very important to build up the correct understanding of concepts within a text. This is only possible when concepts are explained by the right termini, within an adequate context, and above all, homogeneously. So, when setting up or using text documents for teaching or application, it is essential to provide concept homogeneity.Understandably, the quality of documents is, ceteris paribus, reciprocally proportional to variations of termini. Therefore, an analysis of variations of termini could form a basis for specific improvement of conceptual homogeneity.Consequently, an exposition of variations of termini as control and improvement parameters is carried out in this investigation. This paper describes the functionality and the profit of a tool called TermAnalysis.It also outlines the margins, typeface and other vital specifications necessary for authors preparing camera-ready papers for submission to the 5th International Conference on Advanced Engineering Design. The aim of this paper is to ensure that all readers are clear as to the uniformity required by the organizing committee and to ensure that readers’ papers will be accepted as camera-ready for the conference.TermAnalysis is a software tool developed within the pinngate project [5] by the authors of the paper at the department of product development and machine elements at Darmstadt (pmd) University of Technology. This tool is able to analyze arbitrarily and electronically represented text documents concerning the variation of termini. The similarity of termini is identified by using the Levensthein distance [6]. Identified variations are clustered and presented to the user of the tool. The number of variations provides the basis for identifying potentials of improvement with regard to conceptual homogeneity.The use of TermAnalysis leads to the discovery of variations of termini and so generates awareness of this problem. Homogenization improves the document quality and reduces the uncontrolled growth of the concepts. This has a positive effect for the reader/learner and his/her comprehension of content [7]. By analyzing documents by various authors, a surprisingly high number of variations per document have been revealed. The investigations have indentified three main scenarios which are fully described in this paper.

Bioverfügbare Fraktionen von Arsenat, Kupfer und Nickel: Ergebnisse chemischer Extraktionsmethoden

In der Bundes-Bodenschutzverordnung sind für ausgewählte Metalle Vorsorgewerte festgeschrieben, bei deren Überschreiten „die Besorgnis einer schädlichen Bodenveränderung besteht“. Für deren Ableitung wurden die jeweiligen Gesamtgehalte im Boden (Königswasser-Aufschluss) verwendet. Allerdings ist für den Wirkungspfad Boden – Organismen der Zusammenhang zwischen Gesamtgehalten und einem potenziellen Effekt auf Mikroorganismen, Pflanzen und Invertebraten gering. Eine realistische Bewertung der Metallgehalte sollte deshalb die Bioverfügbarkeit von Metallen im Boden berücksichtigen. Um die geignetste Metallfraktion zur Bewertung der Bioverfügbarkeit von Metallen zu identifizieren, werden wir in unserem Projekt Ergebnisse verschiedener chemischer Extraktionsverfahren mit den Daten von mehreren ökotoxikologischen Tests auf den chronischen Effekt auf verschiedene Organismen miteinander korrelieren. In diesem Beitrag werden die Ergebnisse der chemischen Extraktionen präsentiert. Für die Untersuchungen wurden elf Böden ausgesucht, die einen großen Bereich der Eigenschaften von mitteleuropäischen Böden abdecken (z. B. 0.9‑23.3 % organischer Kohlenstoff; 5-36 % Ton). Teilproben wurden mit acht Konzentration der kationischen Metalle Kupfer und Nickel sowie dem Oxyanion Arsenat versetzt. Nach einer Woche Inkubationszeit wurden die Extraktionen durchgeführt. Diese umfassen neben dem Königswasser-Aufschluss, Extraktionen mit unterschiedlichen Salzlösungen (Ca(NO3)2 angepasst an die Ionenstärke des Bodens, 0.01 M CaCl2, and 1 M NH4NO3), mit Komplexbildner (DTPA/CaCl2) und mit schwach konzentrierter Säure (043 M HNO3). Die Extraktionsstärke der verschiedenen Methoden folgt bei den meisten Böden und Metallen der Reihenfolge HNO3 > DTPA > NH4NO3 > CaCl2. Die extrahierte Menge an Metall variert zwischen den Böden und hängt von deren Eigenschaften ab. Diese Einflussfaktoren werden weiter untersucht. Die Daten sollen dann zusammen mit den ökotoxikologischen Untersuchungen genutzt werden, um die Bioverfügbarkeit der einzelnen Metallfraktionen zu bewerten und zukünftig bei der Ableitung von Vorsorgewerten berücksichtigen zu können

Functionalized tetrapodal diazatriptycenes for electrostatic dipole engineering in n-type organic thin film transistors

V.R., F.S.B., S.H., M.M., M.-M.B., S.H., J.F., W.K., W.J., A.K., A.P., U.H.F.B., and K.M. acknowledge the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) for financial support within the INTERPHASE project (nos. 13N13656, 13N13657, 13N13658, 13N13659). V.R. thanks the German Research Foundation for financial support within the SFB1249 project and the Heidelberg Graduate School of Fundamental research.The authors also appreciate financial support by the German Research Foundation (grant ZH 63/39-1) and by the DAAD-ACEH Scholarship of Excellence (A.A.).A diazatriptycene‐based tetrapodal scaffold with thiol anchors enforces a nearly upright orientation of functional groups, introduced to its quinoxaline subunit, with respect to the substrate upon formation of self‐assembled monolayers (SAMs). Substitution with electron‐withdrawing fluorine and cyano as well as electron‐rich dimethylamino substituents allows tuning of the molecular dipole and, consequently, of the work function of gold over a range of 1.0 eV (from 3.9 to 4.9 eV). The properties of the SAMs are comprehensively investigated by infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy, near edge X‐ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy, and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy. As prototypical examples for the high potential of the presented SAMs in devices, organic thin‐film transistors are fabricated.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Der frühe Beginn der Zwangsstörung

Einleitung: Die vorliegende Untersuchung geht der Fragestellung nach, ob sich eine Zwangsstörung, die bereits im Kindes- bzw. Jugendalter beginnt, von einer Zwangsstörung, die erst im Erwachsenenalter beginnt, hinsichtlich Schweregrad und Symptomatik unterscheidet. Patienten und Methoden: Eine Stichprobe von 370 Patienten mit Zwangsstörung (ICD-10 F42), die sich zwischen 1998 und 2002 stationär in der Psychosomatischen Klinik Windach befanden, wurde in eine Early-Onset-Gruppe (Störungsbeginn ≤15 Jahre) und in eine Late-Onset-Gruppe (Störungsbeginn ≥16 Jahre) aufgeteilt. Die Gruppen wurden über ICD-10-Diagnosen und Y-BOCSWerte verglichen. Ergebnisse: Beim Schweregrad zeigte sich, dass 20,5% der Early-Onset-Gruppe, aber lediglich 8,7% der Late-Onset-Gruppe unter einer «massiven Zwangsstörung» leiden. Bei der Symptomatik zeigte sich, dass die Early-Onset-Gruppe häufiger die Diagnose «Zwangsgedanken und -handlungen gemischt» (76,9%)erhält als die Late-Onset-Gruppe (61,8%). Außerdem nennt die Early-Onset-Gruppe sowohl für die Gegenwart als auch für die Vergangenheit mehr Symptome als die Late-Onset-Gruppe (Gegenwart 8,2 vs. 7,0; Vergangenheit 5,5 vs. 3,9 Symptomgruppen). Weiter ergaben sich inhaltliche Unterschiede der Zwangsgedanken und Zwangshandlungen. Schlussfolgerungen: Early-Onset-Patienten scheinen häufiger von einer massiven Form der Zwangsstörung und einer größeren Symptomvielfalt betroffen zu sein als Late-Onset-Patienten. Ob es sich bei der Zwangsstörung mit Beginn im Kindes- und Jugendalter um einen abgrenzbaren Subtypus handelt, konnte jedoch in dieser Untersuchung nicht eindeutig geklärt werden und bedarf weiterer Forschungen.Introduction: This study investigates if obsessive compulsive disorder with early onset differs in severity and symptomatology from that with late onset. Patients and Methods: A sample of 370 patients with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD; ICD 10 F42) who received in-patient treatment at the psychosomatic clinic of Windach between 1998 and 2002 were divided into an early-onset group (onset ≤15 years) and a late-onset group (onset ≥16 years). Groups were compared regarding ICD-10 diagnosis and Y-BOCS scores. Results: Considering severity of the disorder 20.5% of the early-onset group but merely 8.7% of the late-onset group suffered from an extreme form of OCD. With respect to symptomatology, the early-onset group was diagnosed with ‘obsessions and compulsions, mixed’ (76.9%) more often than the lateonset group (61.8%). Also, the early-onset group reported a wider variety of symptoms both for the present and for the past than the late-onset group (present 8,2 vs 7.0; past 5.5 vs 3.9 types of symptoms). There were also differences in the content of rumination and types of compulsive rituals. Conclusions: Patients with early-onset OCD seem to be more frequently affected by an extreme form of OCD and to experience a higher variety of symptoms than patients with late-onset OCD. If early-onset OCD can be considered a distinct subtype could not be answered unequivocally by the results of this study. This question needs additional research

Proteomic analysis of the U1 snRNP of Schizosaccharomyces pombe reveals three essential organism-specific proteins

Characterization of spliceosomal complexes in the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe revealed particles sedimenting in the range of 30–60S, exclusively containing U1 snRNA. Here, we report the tandem affinity purification (TAP) of U1-specific protein complexes. The components of the complexes were identified using (LC-MS/MS) mass spectrometry. The fission yeast U1 snRNP contains 16 proteins, including the 7 Sm snRNP core proteins. In both fission and budding yeast, the U1 snRNP contains 9 and 10 U1 specific proteins, respectively, whereas the U1 particle found in mammalian cells contains only 3. Among the U1-specific proteins in S. pombe, three are homolog to the mammalian and six to the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae U1-specific proteins, whereas three, called U1H, U1J and U1L, are proteins specific to S. pombe. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the homolog of U1-70K and the three proteins specific to S. pombe are essential for growth. We will discuss the differences between the U1 snRNPs with respect to the organism-specific proteins found in the two yeasts and the resulting effect it has on pre-mRNA splicing

The interferon-stimulated gene product oligoadenylate synthetase-like protein enhances replication of Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) and interacts with the KSHV ORF20 protein

Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) is one of the few oncogenic human viruses known to date. Its large genome encodes more than 85 proteins and includes both unique viral proteins as well as proteins conserved amongst herpesviruses. KSHV ORF20 is a member of the herpesviral core UL24 family, but the function of ORF20 and its role in the viral life cycle is not well understood. ORF20 encodes three largely uncharacterized isoforms, which we found were localized predominantly in the nuclei and nucleoli. Quantitative affinity purification coupled to mass spectrometry (q-AP-MS) identified numerous specific interacting partners of ORF20, including ribosomal proteins and the interferon-stimulated gene product (ISG) oligoadenylate synthetase-like protein (OASL). Both endogenous and transiently transfected OASL co-immunoprecipitated with ORF20, and this interaction was conserved among all ORF20 isoforms and multiple ORF20 homologs of the UL24 family in other herpesviruses. Characterization of OASL interacting partners by q-AP-MS identified a very similar interactome to that of ORF20. Both ORF20 and OASL copurified with 40S and 60S ribosomal subunits, and when they were co-expressed, they associated with polysomes. Although ORF20 did not have a global effect on translation, ORF20 enhanced RIG-I induced expression of endogenous OASL in an IRF3-dependent but IFNAR-independent manner. OASL has been characterized as an ISG with antiviral activity against some viruses, but its role for gammaherpesviruses was unknown. We show that OASL and ORF20 mRNA expression were induced early after reactivation of latently infected HuARLT-rKSHV.219 cells. Intriguingly, we found that OASL enhanced infection of KSHV. During infection with a KSHV ORF20stop mutant, however, OASL-dependent enhancement of infectivity was lost. Our data have characterized the interaction of ORF20 with OASL and suggest ORF20 usurps the function of OASL to benefit KSHV infection

Depth-specific fluctuations of gene expression and protein abundance modulate the photophysiology in the seagrass Posidonia oceanica

Here we present the results of a multiple organizational level analysis conceived to identify acclimative/adaptive strategies exhibited by the seagrass Posidonia oceanica to the daily fluctuations in the light environment, at contrasting depths. We assessed changes in photophysiological parameters, leaf respiration, pigments, and protein and mRNA expression levels. The results show that the diel oscillations of P. oceanica photophysiological and respiratory responses were related to transcripts and proteins expression of the genes involved in those processes and that there was a response asynchrony between shallow and deep plants probably caused by the strong differences in the light environment. The photochemical pathway of energy use was more effective in shallow plants due to higher light availability, but these plants needed more investment in photoprotection and photorepair, requiring higher translation and protein synthesis than deep plants. The genetic differentiation between deep and shallow stands suggests the existence of locally adapted genotypes to contrasting light environments. The depth-specific diel rhythms of photosynthetic and respiratory processes, from molecular to physiological levels, must be considered in the management and conservation of these key coastal ecosystems.Portuguese funds from FCT - Foundation for Science and Technology [UID/Multi/04326/2013]; SZN PhD fellowship via the Open University; ESF COST Action Seagrass Productivity: From Genes to Ecosystem Management [ES0906]info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio