Single-laser 32.5 Tbit/s Nyquist WDM transmission

We demonstrate 32.5 Tbit/s 16QAM Nyquist WDM transmission over a total length of 227 km of SMF-28 without optical dispersion compensation. A number of 325 optical carriers are derived from a single laser and encoded with dual-polarization 16QAM data using sinc-shaped Nyquist pulses. As we use no guard bands, the carriers have a spacing of 12.5 GHz equal to the Nyquist bandwidth of the data. We achieve a high net spectral efficiency of 6.4 bit/s/Hz using a software-defined transmitter which generates the electrical modulator drive signals in real-time.Comment: (c) 2012 Optical Society of America. One print or electronic copy may be made for personal use only. Systematic reproduction and distribution, duplication of any material in this paper for a fee or for commercial purposes, or modifications of the content of this paper are prohibite

Reduced Equalization Needs of 100 GHz Bandwidth Plasmonic Modulators

As bit rates of optical interconnects increase, a large amount of complicated signal conditioning is needed to compensate for the insufficient bandwidth of current modulators. In this paper, we evaluate the reduced equalization requirements of high-bandwidth plasmonic modulators in short-reach transmission experiments. It is shown that transmission of 100 Gbit/s nonreturn-to-zero (NRZ) and 112 Gbit/s pulse-amplitude modulation4 over 1 km and 2 km distance is possible without any receiver equalization. At higher bit-rates, such as 120 Gbit/s NRZ, data transmission is demonstrated over 500 m with reduced receiver equalization requirements. Transmission up to 200 Gbit/s over 1 km is also shown with more complex receiver equalization. The reduced complexity of the receiver digital signal processing is attributed to a flat frequency response of at least 108 GHz of the plasmonic modulators. All single wavelength transmissions have been performed at 1540 nm in standard single mode fiber

40 GBd 16QAM signaling at 160 Gb/s in a silicon-organic hybrid modulator

We demonstrate for the first time generation of 16-state quadrature amplitude modulation (16QAM) signals at a symbol rate of 40 GBd using silicon-based modulators. Our devices exploit silicon-organic hybrid (SOH) integration, which combines silicon-on-insulator slot waveguides with electro-optic cladding materials to realize highly efficient phase shifters. The devices enable 16QAM signaling and quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK) at symbol rates of 40 GBd and 45 GBd, respectively, leading to line rates of up to 160 Gbit/s on a single wavelength and in a single polarization. This is the highest value demonstrated by a silicon-based device up to now. The energy consumption for 16QAM signaling amounts to less than 120 fJ/bit – one order of magnitude below that of conventional silicon photonic 16QAM modulators

Localization and Functional Characterization of the Rat Oatp4c1 Transporter in an In Vitro Cell System and Rat Tissues

The organic anion transporting polypeptide 4c1 (Oatp4c1) was previously identified as a novel uptake transporter predominantly expressed at the basolateral membrane in the rat kidney proximal tubules. Its functional role was suggested to be a vectorial transport partner of an apically-expressed efflux transporter for the efficient translocation of physiological substrates into urine, some of which were suggested to be uremic toxins. However, our in vitro studies with MDCKII cells showed that upon transfection rat Oatp4c1 polarizes to the apical membrane. In this report, we validated the trafficking and function of Oatp4c1 in polarized cell systems as well as its subcellular localization in rat kidney. Using several complementary biochemical, molecular and proteomic methods as well as antibodies amenable to immunohistochemistry, immunofluorescence, and immunobloting we investigated the expression pattern of Oatp4c1 in polarized cell systems and in the rat kidney. Collectively, these data demonstrate that rat Oatp4c1 traffics to the apical cell surface of polarized epithelium and localizes primarily in the proximal straight tubules, the S3 fraction of the nephron. Drug uptake studies in Oatp4c1-overexpressing cells demonstrated that Oatp4c1-mediated estrone-3-sulfate (E3S) uptake was pH-dependent and ATP-independent. These data definitively demonstrate the subcellular localization and histological location of Oatp4c1 and provide additional functional evidence that reconciles expression-function reports found in the literature

Telling our own story : The aesthetic expression of collective identity in Native American documentary

This study investigates the role of Native American aesthetic practices, as documented and expressed through film and video, in expressing collective identity. The central theoretical problem concerns the relationship between aesthetic systems, new communication media, and processes of collective identification: specifically, the manner by which traditional and contemporary forms of aesthetic expression are incorporated and documented in indigenous documentary. The primary visual medium examined was videotape documentaries made by Native Americans over the last fifteen years. White Americans\u27 images of Indians were analyzed in the context of Native American responses to mainstream media imagery. This analysis drew from two research traditions. A genre analysis of recurring formal properties and thematic elements in native art and media provided a comparative and historical framework for analyzing the documentaries. An ethnographic component of the research focused on the motives, goals, and concerns of Native American producers, directors, and artists. The principle ethnographic setting was the media center of the Salish-Kootenia College on the Flathead Indian Reservation in Montana. Formal properties of the videos, especially documentaries by George Burdeau and Victor Masayesva, Jr., were analyzed to determine the possibility of a documentary style unique to Native Americans. Though no single set of formal characteristics defines native media, the documentaries express an Indian sensibility that includes a concern for craftmanship seen in other forms of native expression, a desire to integrate human and natural activity, a personal rather than abstract approach to issues, a heightened awareness of the impact of the past upon the present, and a readiness to adopt new technologies. This research has shown that local and traditional expressive forms need not be undermined by the adoption of new media technologies. Native documentarians tell the stories that constitute the collective memory of their people and document those participatory practices that express commitment to the community. Native media is at the forefront of the struggle for Native American cultural self-determination

Making the political landscape visible: mapping and analyzing voting patterns in an ideological space

This paper investigates the applicability of knowledge domain mapping for analyzing political science data. Utilizing metaphorical-space models grounded on political science theory, and applying sound cartographic visualization techniques, we demonstrate the construction and analysis of knowledge domain maps for exploring voting behaviour in Switzerland. We digitally transformed the results of Swiss popular referenda of the last twenty years to generate a 3-dimensional semantic space representing the current political landscape of Switzerland. The whole country is depicted in this semantic political space at various spatial scales. Locations in this spatialization represent aggregated voting outcomes from cities, regions, and provinces. Special attention was given to the interpretation of the resulting spatial configuration. This includes the assignment of meaning to the axes of the 3D space, depicted in two dimensions. Armed with political science theory locations in the voting behaviour space can be analyzed and the resulting political pattern can be interpreted meaningfully. The spatialized views were disseminated to the public after recent Swiss elections. The initial feedback from domain specialists and decision-makers alike has been very encouraging. Measured by high number of substantive reactions and wide-spread feedback on these spatializations of voting behaviour one could deduce that these abstract views were readily accepted and understood by public administrators, political party leaders, and the politically interested public. Based on these experiences we conclude the paper with a first attempt at identifying design recommendation for spatializing multidimensional political datasets

Making the political landscape visible: mapping and analyzing voting patterns in an ideological space

This paper investigates the applicability of knowledge domain mapping for analyzing political science data. Utilizing metaphorical-space models grounded on political science theory, and applying sound cartographic visualization techniques, we demonstrate the construction and analysis of knowledge domain maps for exploring voting behaviour in Switzerland. We digitally transformed the results of Swiss popular referenda of the last twenty years to generate a 3-dimensional semantic space representing the current political landscape of Switzerland. The whole country is depicted in this semantic political space at various spatial scales. Locations in this spatialization represent aggregated voting outcomes from cities, regions, and provinces. Special attention was given to the interpretation of the resulting spatial configuration. This includes the assignment of meaning to the axes of the 3D space, depicted in two dimensions. Armed with political science theory locations in the voting behaviour space can be analyzed and the resulting political pattern can be interpreted meaningfully. The spatialized views were disseminated to the public after recent Swiss elections. The initial feedback from domain specialists and decision-makers alike has been very encouraging. Measured by high number of substantive reactions and wide-spread feedback on these spatializations of voting behaviour one could deduce that these abstract views were readily accepted and understood by public administrators, political party leaders, and the politically interested public. Based on these experiences we conclude the paper with a first attempt at identifying design recommendation for spatializing multidimensional political datasets.

COMMODITY FUTURES PRICE CHANGES: NORMALITY AND IMPLICATIONS FOR OPTION PRICING

The distribution of day-to-day price changes for wheat, soybean, and live cattle futures contracts was examined for the period from January 1973 through December 1982. The results demonstrate a move toward independence and normality, suggesting option pricing formulae which assume normality may provide accurate representations of option values