Improvement of Energy and Materials Efficiencies by Introducing Multiple-Wire Welding

The paper deals with a study and comparison between welding with several wires in different shielding atmospheres and single-wire welding. The first part treats the equipment for multiple-wire electrode welding and a comparison between single-wire welding and twin-wire welding. The second part deals with the melting rate as a basis for determining the productivity of welding processes, and the third one with the energy efficiency as a criterion of cost-effectiveness of welding. Some results obtained regarding strength of submerged arc welded joints are shown

Information Flow through a Chaotic Channel: Prediction and Postdiction at Finite Resolution

We reconsider the persistence of information under the dynamics of the logistic map in order to discuss communication through a nonlinear channel where the sender can set the initial state of the system with finite resolution, and the recipient measures it with the same accuracy. We separate out the contributions of global phase space shrinkage and local phase space contraction and expansion to the uncertainty in predicting and postdicting the state of the system. Thus, we determine how the amplification parameter, the time lag, and the resolution influence the possibility for communication. A novel representation for real numbers is introduced that allows for a visualization of the flow of information between scales.Comment: 14 pages, 13 figure

Cancer prevalence in Central Europe: the EUROPREVAL Study

Background: Information on cancer prevalence is either absent or largely unavailable for central European countries. Materials and methods: Austria, Germany, The Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia and Switzerland cover a population of 13 million inhabitants. Cancer registries in these countries supplied incidence and survival data for 465 000 cases of cancer. The prevalence of stomach, colon, rectum, lung, breast, cervix uteri, corpus uteri and prostate cancer, as well as skin melanoma, Hodgkin's disease, leukaemia and all malignant neoplasms combined was estimated for the end of 1992. Results: A large heterogeneity was observed within central European countries. For all cancers combined, estimates ranged from 730 per 100 000 in Poland (men) to 3350 per 100 000 in Germany (women). Overall cancer prevalence was the highest in Germany and Switzerland, and the lowest in Poland and Slovenia. In Slovakia, prevalence was higher than average for men and lower than average for women. This was observed for almost all ages. As shown by incidence data, breast cancer was the most frequent malignancy among women in all countries. Among men, prostate cancer was the leading malignancy in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, and lung cancer was the major cancer in Slovenia, Slovakia and Poland. The Netherlands had a high prevalence of both prostate and lung cancer. Time-related magnitude of prevalence within each country and the variability of such proportions across the countries has been estimated and cancer prevalence is given by time since diagnosis (1 year, 1-5 years, 5-10 years, >10 years) for each site. The weight of 1-year prevalence (248 per 100 000 among men and 253 per 100 000 among women) was 10 years before), reflecting long-term survival, and number of people considered as cured from cancer were 490 per 100 000 for men and 1028 per 100 000 for women, with a range between 26% (The Netherlands, men) and 50% (Slovakia, women). Conclusion: It is clear from observing countries in Central Europe, that high cancer prevalence is associated with well-developed economies. This burden of cancer could be interpreted as a paradoxical effect of better treatments and thereby survival. It could also be taken as a sign for not being satisfied with the advances in treating patients diagnosed with cancer, and for supporting more primary preventio

Measuring Information Transfer

An information theoretic measure is derived that quantifies the statistical coherence between systems evolving in time. The standard time delayed mutual information fails to distinguish information that is actually exchanged from shared information due to common history and input signals. In our new approach, these influences are excluded by appropriate conditioning of transition probabilities. The resulting transfer entropy is able to distinguish driving and responding elements and to detect asymmetry in the coupling of subsystems.Comment: 4 pages, 4 Figures, Revte

Induction of apoptosis in human cancer cells by targeting mitochondria with gold nanoparticles

A major challenge in designing cancer therapies is the induction of cancer cell apoptosis, although activation of intrinsic apoptotic pathways by targeting gold nanoparticles to mitochondria is promising. We report an in vitro procedure targeting mitochondria with conjugated gold nanoparticles and investigating effects on apoptosis induction in the human breast cancer cell line Jimt-1. Gold nanoparticles were conjugated to a variant of turbo green fluorescent protein (mitoTGFP) harbouring an amino-terminal mitochondrial localization signal. Au nanoparticle conjugates were further complexed with cationic maltotriose-modified poly(propylene imine) third generation dendrimers. Fluorescence and transmission electron microscopy revealed that Au nanoparticle conjugates were directed to mitochondria upon transfection, causing partial rupture of the outer mitochondrial membrane, triggering cell death. The ability to target Au nanoparticles into mitochondria of breast cancer cells and induce apoptosis reveals an alternative application of Au nanoparticles in photothermal therapy of cancer

Alpha-foetoprotein and carcinoembryonic antigen in germ cell neoplasms.

Serum alpha-foetoprotein (AFP) and serum carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) levels were measured, serially whenever possible, in 70 patients attending the Institute of Radiotherapy, Rotterdam, on account of testicular (65) or ovarian (4) germ cell tumours or, in one case, an endodermal sinus (yolk sac) tumour in the mediastinum. In 15 patients the disease was active; in the others it was in remission. Patients with active disease had raised serum AFP levels which correlated well with disease activity; no patient without evidence of active disease had raised serum AFP levels. None of the patients with active disease was found to have raised serum CEA levels. There was no correlation between serum AFP and CEA levels in patients with germ cell neoplasms, but good correlation between serum AFP levels and disease activity. Serum CEA levels did not correlate with disease activity, and serial determinations would therefore not be useful in monitoring progress in this group of diseases

Proper ferroelastic phase transitions in thin epitaxial films with symmetry-conserving and symmetry-breaking misfit strains

We study how the ferroelastic domain structure sets in in an epitaxial film of a material with second order proper ferroelastic transition. The domain structures considered are similar to either $a_{1}/a_{2}/a_{1}/a_{2}$ or $c/a/c/a$ structures in perovskite ferroelectrics. If the "extrinsic" misfit strain, not associated with the transition, does not break the symmetry of the high-temperature phase, the phase transition in the film occurs at somewhat lower temperature compared to the bulk. The loss of stability then occurs with respect to a sinusoidal strain wave, which evolves into the domain structure with practically the same geometry and approximately the same period. In the presence of the symmetry-breaking component of the misfit strain ("extrinsic" misfit) the character of the phase transition is qualitatively different. In this case it is a {\em topological} transition between single-domain and multi-domain states, which starts from a low density of the domain walls.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figures, REVTeX 3.

Land Suitability Evaluation of Abandoned Tin-mining Areas for Agricultural Development in Bangka Island, Indonesia

Kepulauan Bangka Belitung, Indonesia is one of the tin mineral-producer in the world. Agricultural crops could be a wise option for the reclamation since abandoned tin-mining lands have a high potency to be used as agricultural lands. This study was aimed to evaluate of the land/soil characteristics of abandoned tin-mining areas and to establish land suitability of the land area for agriculture used to formulate appropriate land development measures and amelioration strategies for utilization of mined areas for crop production. The land evaluation was conducted by comparing the land characteristics in every type of abandoned tin-mining areas with its crop requirements. The current suitability showed that in general food crops, vegetable crops, fruit crops, and industrial crops were consider as not suitable (N). Spice and medicinal crops [pepper (Piper nigrum L.) and citronella (Andropogoh nardus L. Rendle)] were consider as not suitable (N), while the Jatropha (Jatropha curcas L.) and Kemiri Sunan (Aleurites moluccana L. Willd) crops were considered as marginally suitable (S3) in abandoned tin-mining areas. The forest crops and forage crops were considered as marginally suitable (S3). The water availability, soil texture, and low soil fertility were considered as the limiting factors of all crops to get optimum production. For agricultural development, the soil physical and chemical properties of abandoned tin-mining land must be improved through integrated farming

Geometry-dependent electrostatics near contact lines

Long-ranged electrostatic interactions in electrolytes modify their contact angles on charged substrates in a scale and geometry dependent manner. For angles measured at scales smaller than the typical Debye screening length, the wetting geometry near the contact line must be explicitly considered. Using variational and asymptotic methods, we derive new transcendental equations for the contact angle that depend on the electrostatic potential only at the three phase contact line. Analytic expressions are found in certain limits and compared with predictions for contact angles measured with lower resolution. An estimate for electrostatic contributions to {\it line} tension is also given.Comment: 3 .eps figures, 5p