Robust variables control charts based on sample means

In-control probability properties of variables control charts for mean population surveillanc

Simplified solutions for two-person percentile games

Specialized zero-sum game solution using expected values for evaluation of marked set assurance probability in two-person percentile game

Generally applicable N-person percentile game theory for case of independently chosen strategies

Method for determining outcomes and optimum strategy for all players in discrete N-person game theory with independently chosen strategie

Median two person game theory and examples of its flexibility in applications

Probability distribution in two person game theor

Residual stress redistribution during elastic shake down in welded plates

Residual stresses are a consequence of welding in various structures such as ships and offshore structures. Residual stresses can be relaxed or redistributed according to the load levels during operation. The elastic shakedown phenomenon can be considered as one of the reasons for this change. This paper studies the relaxation/redistribution of weld residual stress during different levels of shakedown in a butt-welded plate chosen according to ship design and welding procedures. Welding was performed on DH36, a ship structural steel. Neutron diffraction was used to measure residual stresses in these plates in the as-welded state and after different levels of shakedown. A mixed hardening model in line with the Chaboche model is determined for both weld and base material. A numerical model is developed to estimate the shakedown limit on butt-welded plate. Further, the redistribution of residual stress in a numerical weld model according to the different levels of shakedown limit is studied. Based on the shakedown limit of the butt-welded plate, a shakedown region is determined, where the structure will undergo elastic shakedown in the presence of an existing residual stress field if the maximum stress on the load section after a few initial cycles is in the shakedown region

A multi-object spectral imaging instrument

We have developed a snapshot spectral imaging system which fits onto the side camera port of a commercial inverted microscope. The system provides spectra, in real time, from multiple points randomly selected on the microscope image. Light from the selected points in the sample is directed from the side port imaging arm using a digital micromirror device to a spectrometer arm based on a dispersing prism and CCD camera. A multi-line laser source is used to calibrate the pixel positions on the CCD for wavelength. A CMOS camera on the front port of the microscope allows the full image of the sample to be displayed and can also be used for particle tracking, providing spectra of multiple particles moving in the sample. We demonstrate the system by recording the spectra of multiple fluorescent beads in aqueous solution and from multiple points along a microscope sample channel containing a mixture of red and blue dye

Effects of tumour necrosis factor-α on BrdU incorporation in cultured human enterocytes

Bromodeoxyuridine incorporation is a useful method for studying the pattern of DNA synthesis in proliferating cells. The distribution pattern of incorporated BrdU in villus enterocytes of duodenal explants was analysed after exposure to TNFα in organ culture. TNFα caused a consistent, low level uptake of BrdU in the portion of the nucleus close to the nuclear membrane, this pattern was absent from the control cultures. As these epithelial cells are terminally arrested in G0, the BrdU incorporation was thought not to be due to S phase DNA synthesis, but rather a response to the cytotoxic influence of TNFα. Microtitre plate proliferation assays of cell density and DNA synthesis were devised to study the effects of TNFα on confluent monolayers of the human foetal jejunal cell line I407 and the mouse fibrosarcoma cell line L929. Both cell lines showed a similar response to TNFα. Exposure to TNFα alone did not reduce cell numbers but did cause a significant increase in DNA synthesis (p < 0.05). When cycloheximtde was added in tandem with TNFα there was a significant reduction in cell number (p < 0.001) and level of DNA synthesis (p < 0.01) indicative of cell death. The DNA of cells exposed to TNFα and cycloheximide was fragmented when viewed on an electrophoresis gel. The results show that BrdU incorporation might be a good indicator of damage to the DNA of cells after cytotoxic insult. TNFα may be responsible for villus enterocyte damage in enteropathies such as coeliac disease and GVHR of the small bowel

The alpha subunit of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae oligosaccharyltransferase complex is essential for vegetative growth of yeast and is homologous to mammalian ribophorin I

Oligosaccharyltransferase mediates the transfer of a preassembled high mannose oligosaccharide from a lipid-linked oligosaccharide donor to consensus glycosylation acceptor sites in newly synthesized proteins in the lumen of the rough endoplasmic reticulum. The Saccharomyces cerevisiae oligosaccharyltransferase is an oligomeric complex composed of six nonidentical subunits (alpha-zeta), two of which are glycoproteins (alpha and beta). The beta and delta subunits of the oligosaccharyltransferase are encoded by the WBP1 and SWP1 genes. Here we describe the functional characterization of the OST1 gene that encodes the alpha subunit of the oligosaccharyltransferase. Protein sequence analysis revealed a significant sequence identity between the Saccharomyces cerevisiae Ost1 protein and ribophorin I, a previously identified subunit of the mammalian oligosaccharyltransferase. A disruption of the OST1 locus was not tolerated in haploid yeast showing that expression of the Ost1 protein is essential for vegetative growth of yeast. An analysis of a series of conditional ost1 mutants demonstrated that defects in the Ost1 protein cause pleiotropic underglycosylation of soluble and membrane-bound glycoproteins at both the permissive and restrictive growth temperatures. Microsomal membranes isolated from ost1 mutant yeast showed marked reductions in the in vitro transfer of high mannose oligosaccharide from exogenous lipid-linked oligosaccharide to a glycosylation site acceptor tripeptide. Microsomal membranes isolated from the ost1 mutants contained elevated amounts of the Kar2 stress-response protein