Community analysis of aggregated bacteria in southern Lake Baikal

The main aim of this study is to unveiling the community structure of aggregated bacteria in lake Baikal and determining the relations with free-living bacteria. For achieving this aim, FISH method was applied to free-living and aggregated bacteria in Lake Baikal at April, 2001. Bacterial counts of free-living bacteria by DAPI staining ranged from 0.2×10⁶ to 3.2×10⁶ cells·ml⁻¹, which decreased with depths, whereas aggregated bacterial numbers dramatically increased with depths, ranged from 0.4×10⁴ to 3.3×10⁴ cells·ml⁻¹. Also, the ratios of EUB probe binding cells to DAPI counts ranged from 52.3 to 74.1% in free-living bacteria, from 39.6 to 66.7% in aggregated bacteria, respectively. Community composition of aggregated bacteria was very different from free-livng bacteria. Especially, that is remarked at 25m depth which is observed the highest value phytoplankton. The vertical profile of aggregated bacteria community was very particular. β-Proteobacteria was increasing with depth till 100m. In 250m depth, γ-Proteobacteria was 44% of DAPI bound cells, while other groups were less than 1%. In conclusion, the bacterial community structures of free-living and aggregated bacteria were very different, and they sustain the independent ecosystem separately.Article信州大学山地水環境教育研究センター研究報告 2: 91-95(2004)departmental bulletin pape

Conceptual framework for container-handling process analytics

Port logistics systems exhibit increasingly dynamic processes, as, in the course of container-handling activities, many changes of data occur and uncertain conditions arise. Frequent changes and uncertain conditions incur high cost and inefficiency in a port terminal process. In order to find the causes of these problems, in order, that is, to minimize costs and increase efficiency, the event logs of a port logistics process are explored. The first step herein is discovering a process model in relation to which the real-world processes can be understood. Analysis of the process model, subsequently, will reveal the causes of high cost and inefficiency. In the present study, we built a conceptual framework for application of process mining techniques to the domain of port logistics. Existing process mining techniques cannot be directly applied to our problem, for several reasons. First, there exist various resource types, such as truck, equipment and vessel. Second, careful pre-processing is required, since existing event logs do not provide for the concept of case id. Third, a domain-specific performance index needs to be considered. The new conceptual framework introduced in these pages was built purposely to provide guidelines for operators and other stakeholders who need to analyze the causes of inefficiency in port logistics processes. Later in this paper, we present a case study demonstrating the utility of our framework.open

High-performance nanopattern triboelectric generator by block copolymer lithography

Large-area nanopatterningisintroducedona flexible goldsubstratebyblockcopolymer(BCP) lithography.Wefabricateultrahighpowerenergyharvestingnanogeneratorsbasedoncontact- electrification principleexploitingtheeffectivecontactareaenhancementbyblockcopolymer lithography.OwingtothefacileandeffectivesurfaceareaenhancementbyBCPnanopatterning, significantenhancementoftriboelectricchargeinductionisattained.OutputcurrentsfromTENG increased atleast16timesafterBCPnanopatterning. Thisnanogeneratorcangenerateremarkably high outputvoltageandcurrent,whichcandirectly lightup504seriallyconnectedLEDs.The resultant nanogeneratorattainsthemaximuminstantaneouscurrentof1.6mAandoutputpowerof 93.2 W/m2. Electricalenergygeneratedbysinglecycleofimpactforceis0.54mJ,andtheaverage electricalenergyis114.89mW.Thosevaluesindicate oneofthehighestdeviceperformanceever reported fortheTENGsbasedoncontact-separationmodethusfar. & 2015ElsevierLtd.Allrightsreserved.154561sciescopu

Point-of-care lithium monitoring in whole blood using a disposable, prefilled and ready-to-use capillary electrophoresis microchip

This paper describes a microfluidic capillary electrophoresis device with integrated conductivity detection. The device satisfies all major requirements for pointof- care testing, i.e., simple handling, low sample volume, fast measurements, clear readout, and inexpensive disposable cartridge usage. The system is currently being utilized and commercialized for monitoring lithium in whole blood, however, can potentially be applied to various other ions present in blood, urine or other bodily fluids. The chip contains a single inlet only and will be shipped prefilled with background electrolyte, sealed and blistered; ready for use at the patient’s place. A single droplet of blood is required to be placed inside the cartridge to perform the analysis typically within a couple of minutes

Body mass index and mortality in Korean intensive care units: A prospective multicenter cohort study

10.1371/journal.pone.0090039PLoS ONE94e9003