MHD Boundary Layer Flow and Heat Transfer to Sisko Nanofluid Past a Nonlinearly Stretching Sheet with Radiation

The steady flow of a Sisko fluid model in the presence of nanoparticles is studied. The governing partial differential equations are converted to a set of coupled non-linear ordinary differential equations by using suitable similarity transformations. Numerical solutions for the coupled non-linear ordinary differential equations are carried out by a variational finite element method. A suitable comparison has been made with previously published results in the literature as a limiting case of the considered problem. The comparison confirmed an excellent agreement. The results for the local Nusselt number are tabulated and discussed. Behavior of essential physical parameters are presented graphically and discussed for velocity, temperature and nanoparticle volume fraction

Fast targeted gene transfection and optogenetic modification of single neurons using femtosecond laser irradiation

This work is supported by the UK Engineering Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).A prevailing problem in neuroscience is the fast and targeted delivery of DNA into selected neurons. The development of an appropriate methodology would enable the transfection of multiple genes into the same cell or different genes into different neighboring cells as well as rapid cell selective functionalization of neurons. Here, we show that optimized femtosecond optical transfection fulfills these requirements. We also demonstrate successful optical transfection of channelrhodopsin-2 in single selected neurons. We extend the functionality of this technique for wider uptake by neuroscientists by using fast three-dimensional laser beam steering enabling an image-guided “point-and-transfect” user-friendly transfection of selected cells. A sub-second transfection timescale per cell makes this method more rapid by at least two orders of magnitude when compared to alternative single-cell transfection techniques. This novel technology provides the ability to carry out large-scale cell selective genetic studies on neuronal ensembles and perform rapid genetic programming of neural circuits.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

A nod in the wrong direction : Does nonverbal feedback affect eyewitness confidence in interviews?

Eyewitnesses can be influenced by an interviewer's behaviour and report information with inflated confidence as a result. Previous research has shown that positive feedback administered verbally can affect the confidence attributed to testimony, but the effect of non-verbal influence in interviews has been given little attention. This study investigated whether positive or negative non-verbal feedback could affect the confidence witnesses attribute to their responses. Participants witnessed staged CCTV footage of a crime scene and answered 20 questions in a structured interview, during which they were given either positive feedback (a head nod), negative feedback (a head shake) or no feedback. Those presented with positive non-verbal feedback reported inflated confidence compared with those presented with negative non-verbal feedback regardless of accuracy, and this effect was most apparent when participants reported awareness of the feedback. These results provide further insight into the effects of interviewer behaviour in investigative interviewsPeer reviewedFinal Accepted Versio

Applications of Machine Learning in Content Generation for Educational Video Games

Over the past few years, students have become increasingly unmotivated to read their assigned textbooks as an accompaniment to classroom lectures and activities. Reading the textbook is known to improve comprehension and overall student performance in classrooms. If reading the textbook was reformatted into a more engaging experience, perhaps it would improve student motivation and knowledge retention. Teaching students the importance of learning while also motivating them to do well in class will help them gain the knowledge and grades needed to land competitive jobs after they graduate college. Game-Based Learning (GBL) is an emerging field of study that attempts to use video games to create interactive educational experiences. Game-Based Learning has been shown to have educational merit, being well-known for providing intrinsic motivation for students to learn (most often, as a supplement to traditional coursework). With GBL in mind, is it possible to generate interactive game content from textbooks using machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) that can replace or supplement the source material in terms of educational content in a traditional classroom setting? Our team proposes to lay the groundwork for future research in Game-Based Learning and Machine Learning at the LIVE Lab undergraduate research lab (Texas A&M University, College of Architecture, Dept. of Visualization) by attempting to reformat school textbooks into interactive chatbot AIs with the assistance of knowledge compilation & fact-retrieval systems designed for generating educational video game content

SOME RESULTS ON THE BEST MATCH PROBLEM

The best-match problem is concerned with the complexity of finding the best match between a randomly chosen query word and the members of a randomly chosen set of data words. Of principal interest is whether it is possible to significantly reduce the search time required, as compared to exhaustive comparison, by use of memory redundancy (file structure). Minskv and Papert conjecture that the speed-up values of large memory redundancies is very small, and for large data sets with long word lengths there are no practical alternatives to large searches that inspect large parts of memory . For this report we present two algorithms that do yield significant speed-up, although at the cost of large memory redundancies. (Whether these algorithms constitute counterexamples to the Minskv-Papert conjecture depends on one\u27s interpretation of their term “large memory redundancies .) The algorithms are subjected to statistical analysis and time-memory trade-off curves are given

Spatially optimized gene transfection by laser-induced breakdown of optically trapped nanoparticles

We demonstrate laser-induced breakdown of an optically trapped nanoparticle with a nanosecond laser pulse. Controllable cavitation within a microscope sample was achieved, generating shear stress to monolayers of live cells. This efficiently permeabilize their plasma membranes. We show that this technique is an excellent tool for plasmid-DNA transfection of cells with both reduced energy requirements and reduced cell lysis compared to previously reported approaches. Simultaneous multisite targeted nanosurgery of cells is also demonstrated using a spatial light modulator for parallelizing the technique.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Optical sorting and detection of sub-micron objects in a motional standing wave

An extended interference pattern close to surface may result in both a transmissive or evanescent surface fields for large area manipulation of trapped particles. The affinity of differing particle sizes to a moving standing wave light pattern allows us to hold and deliver them in a bi-directional manner and importantly demonstrate experimentally particle sorting in the sub-micron region. This is performed without the need of fluid flow (static sorting). Theoretical calculations experimentally confirm that certain sizes of colloidal particles thermally hop more easily between neighboring traps. A new generic method is also presented for particle position detection in an extended periodic light pattern and applied to characterization of optical traps and particle behaviorComment: 5 pages, 6 figures, Optical Trapping pape

A call for preventing suicide by hanging from ceiling fans: An interdisciplinary research agenda

Hanging is a common method of suicide in several countries. Even as global suicide rates decrease, there is no evidence of suicides by hanging declining. There is limited research by type of hanging, and only a few papers present suicide by hanging from ceiling fans. Our paper proposes a research agenda that will: specify the size of the problem of hanging by ceiling fan (Stage 1: Surveillance), use standard engineering product development processes to modify ceiling fans for reducing their lethal capacity (Stage 2: Design Testing and Redevelopment), and examine the resulting beta-and release-build fans for safety and potential to reduce suicide in community samples (Stage 3: Evaluation)

The application of optical coherence tomography to image subsurface tissue structure of Antarctic krill Euphausia superba

Many small open ocean animals, such as Antarctic krill, are an important part of marine ecosystems. To discover what will happen to animals such as krill in a changing ocean, experiments are run in aquaria where conditions can be controlled to simulate water characteristics predicted to occur in the future. The response of individual animals to changing water conditions can be hard to observe, and with current observation techniques it is very difficult to follow the progress of an individual animal through its life. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is an optical imaging technique that allows images at high resolution to be obtained from depths up to a few millimeters inside biological specimens. It is compatible with in vivo imaging and can be used repeatedly on the same specimens. In this work, we show how OCT may be applied to post mortem krill samples and how important physiological data such as shell thickness and estimates of organ volume can be obtained. Using OCT we find an average value for the thickness of krill exoskeleton to be (30±4) µm along a 1 cm length of the animal body. We also show that the technique may be used to provide detailed imagery of the internal structure of a pleopod joint and provide an estimate for the heart volume of (0.73±0.03) mm3

Tuning the Magnetic Ordering Temperature of Hexagonal Ferrites by Structural Distortion Control

To tune the magnetic properties of hexagonal ferrites, a family of magnetoelectric multiferroic materials, by atomic-scale structural engineering, we studied the effect of structural distortion on the magnetic ordering temperature (TN). Using the symmetry analysis, we show that unlike most antiferromagnetic rare-earth transition-metal perovskites, a larger structural distortion leads to a higher TN in hexagonal ferrites and manganites, because the K3 structural distortion induces the three-dimensional magnetic ordering, which is forbidden in the undistorted structure by symmetry. We also revealed a near-linear relation between TN and the tolerance factor and a power-law relation between TN and the K3 distortion amplitude. Following the analysis, a record-high TN (185 K) among hexagonal ferrites was predicted in hexagonal ScFeO3 and experimentally verified in epitaxially stabilized films. These results add to the paradigm of spin-lattice coupling in antiferromagnetic oxides and suggests further tunability of hexagonal ferrites if more lattice distortion can be achieved