Exploring Sexual Differentiation in the Tammar Wallaby Using Transcriptomics

Sex determination and sexual differentiation are some of the most well studied topics in human development. Sex determination is the point where the undifferentiated gonad becomes committed to the ovarian or testicular pathway. This event can be triggered genetically or environmentally. Sexual differentiation occurs after sexual determination and involves the maturation of the gonad, which in turn, coordinates the corresponding physical and behavioral phenotypes. Disorders of sexual development (DSD) are among the most common congenital abnormalities seen in humans and are increasing at an alarming rate. Congenital DSDs can be caused by genetic, hormonal, and/or environmental stimuli. Increased exposure to environmental endocrine disrupters (EEDs) especially those that affect estrogen signaling have been shown to cause DSDs. In addition to the mouse, the tammar wallaby, Macropus eugenii, has become a novel model for studying gonadal differentiation in mammals. Unlike mice, sexual determination and differentiation occurs postpartum in the tammar. Furthermore, pouch young are easily accessible for surgical and hormonal manipulation. More is known about testicular differentiation than ovarian differentiation. Thus, there is a substantial need to create transcriptomes as a resource in discovering conserved and novel mechanisms in gonadal development. This thesis explores the creation and analyses of these transcriptomes using normal male and female developing gonads and estrogen induced ovarian development in male marsupial gonads. It will also show that the tammar wallaby is a viable model for studying gonadal differentiation and the effects of estrogen in sexual development in mammals

Simulation of a single-server model for a paging drum channel system

Simulation of single-server model for paging drum channel syste

A spectral line survey of NGC 7027 at millimeter wavelengths

We report on a recent spectral line survey of the planetary nebula (PN) NGC 7027 using the Arizona Radio Observatory (ARO) 12 m telescope and the Heinrich Hertz Submillimeter Telescope (SMT) at millimeter wavelengths. The spectra covering the frequency ranges 71-111, 157-161, and 218-267 GHz were obtained with a typical sensitivity of rms < 8 mK. A total of 67 spectral lines are detected, 21 of which are identified with 8 molecular species, 32 with recombination lines from hydrogen and helium, and 14 remain unidentified. As the widths of emission lines from CO, other neutral molecules, molecular ions, and recombination of H + and He - are found to be different from each other, the line strengths and profiles are used to investigate the physical conditions and chemical processes of the neutral envelope of NGC 7027. The column densities and fractional abundances relative to the H 2 of the observed molecular species are calculated and compared with predictions from chemical models. We found evidence for over- abundance Of N 2H + and underabundance of CS and HNC in NGC 7027, suggesting that X-ray emission and shock waves may play an important role in the chemistry of the hot molecular envelope of the young PN. © 2008. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.published_or_final_versio

An increase in TcT_c under hydrostatic pressure in the superconducting doped topological insulator Nb0.25_{0.25}Bi2_2Se3_3

We report an unexpected positive hydrostatic pressure derivative of the superconducting transition temperature in the doped topological insulator \NBS via $dc$ SQUID magnetometry in pressures up to 0.6 GPa. This result is contrary to reports on the homologues \CBS and \SBS where smooth suppression of $T_c$ is observed. Our results are consistent with recent Ginzburg-Landau theory predictions of a pressure-induced enhancement of $T_c$ in the nematic multicomponent $E_u$ state proposed to explain observations of rotational symmetry breaking in doped Bi$_2$Se$_3$ superconductors.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figure

The Radon Monitoring System in Daya Bay Reactor Neutrino Experiment

We developed a highly sensitive, reliable and portable automatic system (H$^{3}$) to monitor the radon concentration of the underground experimental halls of the Daya Bay Reactor Neutrino Experiment. H$^{3}$ is able to measure radon concentration with a statistical error less than 10\% in a 1-hour measurement of dehumidified air (R.H. 5\% at 25$^{\circ}$C) with radon concentration as low as 50 Bq/m$^{3}$. This is achieved by using a large radon progeny collection chamber, semiconductor $\alpha$-particle detector with high energy resolution, improved electronics and software. The integrated radon monitoring system is highly customizable to operate in different run modes at scheduled times and can be controlled remotely to sample radon in ambient air or in water from the water pools where the antineutrino detectors are being housed. The radon monitoring system has been running in the three experimental halls of the Daya Bay Reactor Neutrino Experiment since November 2013

Competitive Cloud Resource Procurements via Cloud Brokerage

In current IaaS cloud markets, tenant consumers non-cooperatively compete for cloud resources via demand quantities, and the service quality is offered in a best effort manner. To better exploit tenant demand correlation, cloud brokerage services provide cloud resource multiplexing so as to earn profits by receiving volume discounts from cloud providers. A fundamental but daunting problem facing a tenant consumer is competitive resource procurements via cloud brokerage. In this paper, we investigate this problem via non-cooperative game modeling. In the static game, to maximize the experienced surplus, tenants judiciously select optimal demand responses given pricing strategies of cloud brokers and complete information of the other tenants' demands. We also derive Nash equilibrium of the non-cooperative game for competitive resource procurements. Performance evaluation on Nash equilibrium reveals insightful observations for both theoretical analysis and practical cloud resource procurements scheme design.published_or_final_versio