Active templates: Manipulating pointers with pictures

Active templates are a semi-automatic visual mechanism for generating algorithms for manipulating pointer-based data structures. The programmer creates a picture showing the affected part of a data structure before and after a general-case manipulation. Code for the operation is compiled directly from the picture, which also provides the development environment with enough information to generate, automatically, a series of templates for other similar pictures, each describing a different configuration which the data structure may possess. The programmer completes the algorithm by creating matching after-pictures for each of these cases. At every stage, most of the picture-generation is automatic. Much of the tedious detail of conventional pointer-based data-structure manipulation, such as maintenance of current pointers, is unnecessary in a system based on active templates

An investigation of the nature and reactivity of the carbonaceous species deposited on mordenite by reaction with methanol

An investigation of the nature of the carbonaceous species deposited upon mordenite by reaction with methanol has been undertaken. The nature of the species has been shown to be a strong function of both temperature and time on stream. Upon reaction at 300 degrees C a range of alkyl and aromatic species, consistent with the development of an active hydrocarbon pool, are evident and time on stream studies have shown that these are developed within 5 min. Upon reaction at 500 degrees C, a narrower range of hydrogen deficient aromatic species is evident. Thermal volatilisation analysis (TVA), not previously applied to the study of coked zeolites, is shown to be complementary to the more commonly applied C analysis, C-13 MAS NMR and TGA techniques

Managing complexity in a distributed digital library

As the capabilities of distributed digital libraries increase, managing organizational and software complexity becomes a key issue. How can collections and indexes be updated without impacting queries currently in progress? How can the system handle several user-interface clients for the same collections? Computer science professors and lectors from the University of Waikato have developed a software structure that successfully manages this complexity in the New Zealand Digital Library. This digital library has been a success in managing organizational and software complexity. The researchers' primary goal has been to minimize the effort required to keep the system operational and yet continue to expand its offerings

Synthesis and characterization of proton conducting oxyanion doped Ba2Sc2O5

In this paper we report the successful synthesis of the cubic oxyanion containing perovskites, Ba2Sc2-xPxO5+x (x=0.4, 0.5), with the samples analysed through a combination of X-ray diffraction, NMR, TGA, Raman spectroscopy and conductivity measurements. Conductivity measurements indicate a p-type contribution to the conductivity in oxidizing conditions at elevated temperatures, with evidence for proton conduction in wet atmospheres. For the latter bulk conductivities of 5.9 x 10-3 and 1.3 x 10-3 Scm-1 at 500○C were obtained for x=0.4 and 0.5 respectively, comparable to other perovskite proton conductors, while the stability towards CO2 containing atmospheres was improved compared to BaCeO3 based systems.\ud Related Si doped systems have also been prepared, although in this case small Ba2SiO4 impurities are observed. We also provide evidence to suggest that “undoped” Ba2Sc2O5 contains carbonate groups, which accounts for its thermal instability

A Study of the Ceramicisation of Allylhydridopolycarbosilane by Thermal Volatilisation Analysis and Solid-State Nuclear Magnetic Resonance

AHPCS is a pre-ceramic polymer utilised as a precursor to SiC. An initial polymerisation to a cross-linked network is followed by a complex sequence of processes ultimately leading to amorphous SiC. Using thermal volatilisation analysis (TVA) accompanied with solid-state NMR (SSNMR), FTIR, MS, DSC and TGA the complete thermal profile was identified. Between 160 – 300 °C, AHPCS cross-links through the allyl group and undergoes some carbon-silicon rearrangement, with a volatilisation of low mass oligomeric material and significant volumes of hydrogen released from dehydrocoupling of SiH moieties. By 300 °C the allyl group is completely cross-linked but the polymer starts to undergo pyrolytic degradation of the network, with the release of chain fragments and low molar mass species such as methane, ethane, methanol, propane, propene and silane species. Hydrogen once again becomes the major volatile product above 400 °C due to higher proportion of dehydrocoupling forming Si–C and Si–Si bonds. Small chain fragments are seen in the form of larger alkyl silanes. These fragments come from the chain scission of the polymer at weaker parts of the network. The process of side group scission leads to further radical recombination reactions of silicon and carbon atoms to build the SiC network. By 500 °C higher proportion of dehydrocoupling occurs with recombination of Si–Si and Si–C species. The Si–H bonds in -SiH3 groups have completely cleaved along with C-H bonds in the CH3 and CH2 groups leaving SiC, -SiH and HCSi3 present in the material. This bond cleavage leads the silicon and carbon radical species to undergo radical recombination in the network with the volatile release being dominated by H2. By 650 °C the cleavage and recombination of remaining -SiH2-, -SiH- and HCSi3 groups ultimately form amorphous SiC. The volatiles released are mostly hydrogen with very few condensable products seen. Finally, SiC is then crystallised at higher temperatures forming β-SiC at 1100 °C and then subsequently α-SiC above 1500 °C

Polymorphism in TGFB1 is associated with worse non-relapse mortality and overall survival after stem cell transplantation with unrelated donors.

Transforming growth factor beta-1, encoded by the TGFB1 gene, is a cytokine that plays a central role in many physiological and pathogenic processes. We have sequenced TGFB1 regulatory region and assigned allelic genotypes in a large cohort of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation patients and donors. In this study, we analyzed 522 unrelated donor-patient pairs and examined the combined effect of all the common polymorphisms in this genomic region. In univariate analysis, we found that patients carrying a specific allele, 'p001', showed significantly reduced overall survival (5-year overall survival 30.7% for p001/ p001 patients vs. 41.6% others; P=0.032) and increased non-relapse mortality (1-year nonrelapse mortality: 39.0% vs. 25.4%; P=0.039) after transplantation. In multivariate analysis, the presence of a p001/ p001 genotype in patients was confirmed as an independent factor for reduced overall survival [hazard ratio=1.53 (1.04-2.24); P=0.031], and increased non-relapse mortality [hazard ratio=1.73 (1.06-2.83); P=0.030]. In functional experiments we found a trend towards a higher percentage of surface transforming growth factor beta-1-positive regulatory T cells after activation when the cells had a p001 allele (P=0.07). Higher or lower production of transforming growth factor beta-1 in the inflammatory context of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation may influence the development of complications in these patients. Findings indicate that TGFB1 genotype could potentially be of use as a prognostic factor in hematopoietic stem cell transplantation risk assessment algorithms

Impact of the European Clinical Trials Directive on prospective academic clinical trials associated with BMT

The European Clinical Trials Directive (EU 2001; 2001/20/EC) was introduced to improve the efficiency of commercial and academic clinical trials. Concerns have been raised by interested organizations and institutions regarding the potential for negative impact of the Directive on non-commercial European clinical research. Interested researchers within the European Group for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (EBMT) were surveyed to determine whether researcher experiences confirmed this view. Following a pilot study, an internet-based questionnaire was distributed to individuals in key research positions in the European haemopoietic SCT community. Seventy-one usable questionnaires were returned from participants in different EU member states. The results indicate that the perceived impact of the European Clinical Trials Directive has been negative, at least in the research areas of interest to the EBMT

Ten years after the first inspection of a candidate European centre, an EBMT registry analysis suggests that clinical is improved when hematopoietic SCT is performed in a Jacie accredited program

In 2010, JACIE, the Joint Accreditation Committee of ISCT (International Society for Cell Therapy) Europe and EBMT (European group for Blood and Marrow Transplantation) celebrated the tenth anniversary of the first inspection of a European hematopoietic SCT program. JACIE standards establish the criteria for a comprehensive quality management program that covers all three major domains of activity that are necessary for the delivery of HSCT: clinical, collection and processing, as well as their interactions with ancillary and supportive activities. Although more than 200 European programs have applied for JACIE accreditation, and more than 100 have been granted accreditation, a recent retrospective analysis of the large-size EBMT registry of autologous and allogenic hematopoietic HSCT demonstrates that one of the factors affecting the overall survival of recipients of allogenic transplantation is the status of the transplant program regarding JACIE accreditation. This provides one of the first demonstrations that introduction of a quality management system contributes to the overall survival of patients treated with a highly specific medical procedure, and represents a milestone in the implementation of JACIE