A Time-Delay-Bounded Data Scheduling Algorithm for Delay Reduction in Distributed Networked Control Systems

As a key feature of networked control systems (NCSs), the time delays induced by communication medium sharing and data exchange over the system components could largely degrade the NCS performances or may even cause system instability, and thus, it is of critical importance to reduce time delays within NCSs. This paper studies the time-delay reduction problem in distributed NCSs and presents a dual-way data scheduling mechanism for time-delay reductions in delay-bounded NCSs with time-varying delays. We assess the time delays and their influences on the NCSs first with various delay factors being considered and then describe a one-way scheduling mechanism for network-delay reductions in NCSs. Based upon such a method, a dual-way scheduling algorithm is finally proposed for distributed NCSs with different types of transmitted data packets. Experiments are conducted on a remote teaching platform to verify the effectiveness of the proposed dual-way scheduling mechanism. Results demonstrate that, with the stability time-delay bound considered within the scheduling process, the proposed mechanism is effective for NCS time-delay reductions while addressing the stability, control accuracy, and settling time issues efficiently. Such a proposed mechanism could also be implemented together with some other existing control algorithms for time-delay reductions in NCSs. Our work could provide both useful theoretical guidance and application references for stable tracking control of delay-bounded NCSs

Anomalous Pseudocapacitive Behavior of a Nanostructured, Mixed-Valent Manganese Oxide Film for Electrical Energy Storage

While pseudocapacitors represent a promising option for electrical energy storage, the performance of the existing ones must be dramatically enhanced to meet today's ever-increasing demands for many emerging applications. Here we report a nanostructured, rnixed-valent manganese oxide film that exhibits anomalously high specific capacitance (similar to 2530 F/g of manganese oxide, measured at 0.61 A/g in a two-electrode configuration with loading of active materials similar to 0.16 mg/cm(2)) while maintaining excellent power density and cycling life. The dramatic performance enhancement is attributed to its unique mixed-valence state with porous nanoarchitecture, which may facilitate rapid mass transport and enhance surface double-layer capacitance, while promoting facile redox reactions associated with charge storage by both Mn and O sites, as suggested by in situ X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and density functional theory calculations. The new charge storage mechanisms (in addition to redox reactions of cations) may offer critical insights to rational design of a new-generation energy storage devices.close624

Correction to Anomalous Pseudocapacitive Behavior of a Nanostructured, Mixed-Valent Manganese Oxide Film for Electrical Energy Storage

Correction to Anomalous Pseudocapacitive Behavior of a Nanostructured, Mixed-Valent Manganese Oxide Film for Electrical Energy Storag

Comparative genomics of parasitic silkworm microsporidia reveal an association between genome expansion and host adaptation

Background: Microsporidian Nosema bombycis has received much attention because the pébrine disease of domesticated silkworms results in great economic losses in the silkworm industry. So far, no effective treatment could be found for pébrine. Compared to other known Nosema parasites, N. bombycis can unusually parasitize a broad range of hosts. To gain some insights into the underlying genetic mechanism of pathological ability and host range expansion in this parasite, a comparative genomic approach is conducted. The genome of two Nosema parasites, N. bombycis and N. antheraeae (an obligatory parasite to undomesticated silkworms Antheraea pernyi), were sequenced and compared with their distantly related species, N. ceranae (an obligatory parasite to honey bees). Results Our comparative genomics analysis show that the N. bombycis genome has greatly expanded due to the following three molecular mechanisms: 1) the proliferation of host-derived transposable elements, 2) the acquisition of many horizontally transferred genes from bacteria, and 3) the production of abundnant gene duplications. To our knowledge, duplicated genes derived not only from small-scale events (e.g., tandem duplications) but also from large-scale events (e.g., segmental duplications) have never been seen so abundant in any reported microsporidia genomes. Our relative dating analysis further indicated that these duplication events have arisen recently over very short evolutionary time. Furthermore, several duplicated genes involving in the cytotoxic metabolic pathway were found to undergo positive selection, suggestive of the role of duplicated genes on the adaptive evolution of pathogenic ability. Conclusions Genome expansion is rarely considered as the evolutionary outcome acting on those highly reduced and compact parasitic microsporidian genomes. This study, for the first time, demonstrates that the parasitic genomes can expand, instead of shrink, through several common molecular mechanisms such as gene duplication, horizontal gene transfer, and transposable element expansion. We also showed that the duplicated genes can serve as raw materials for evolutionary innovations possibly contributing to the increase of pathologenic ability. Based on our research, we propose that duplicated genes of N. bombycis should be treated as primary targets for treatment designs against pébrine.Botany, Department ofScience, Faculty ofNon UBCReviewedFacult