Low-PAPR DFRC MIMO-OFDM Waveform Design for Integrated Sensing and Communications

In this paper, we explore a multiple-input multiple- output (MIMO) system with orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) transmissions and study the low peak- to-average power ratio (PAPR) MIMO-OFDM waveform design for integrated sensing and communications (ISAC). This is done by leveraging a weighted objective function on both communication and radar performance metrics under power and PAPR constraints. The formulated optimization problem can be equivalently transformed into several sub-problems which can be parallelly solved by the semi-definite relaxation (SDR) method and the optimal rank-1 solution can be obtained in general. The feasibility, effectiveness, and flexibility of the proposed low-PAPR MIMO-OFDM waveform design method are demonstrated by a range of simulations on communication sum rate, symbol error rate as well as radar beampattern and detection probability

Aesthetic sense and social cognition: : a story from the Early Stone Age

Human aesthetic practices show a sensitivity to the ways that the appearance of an artefact manifests skills and other qualities of the maker. We investigate a possible origin for this kind of sensibility, locating it in the need for co-ordination of skill-transmission in the Acheulean stone tool culture. We argue that our narrative supports the idea that Acheulean agents were aesthetic agents. In line with this we offer what may seem an absurd comparison: between the Acheulean and the Quattrocento. In making it we display some hidden complexity in human aesthetic responses to an artefact. We conclude with a brief review of rival explanations—biological and/or cultural—of how this skills-based sensibility became a regular feature of human aesthetic practices

An improved method for characterization of the mutation associated to porcine stress syndrome by PCR amplification followed by restriction analysis

A mutation in the gene coding for the ryanodine receptor 1 (RYR1), also known as halothane (hal) gene or swine stress gene, is associated to the porcine stress syndrome (PSS). Detection of the mutation is normally accomplished by PCR amplification of an 81bp fragment of the hal gene, followed by digestion with the HhaI restriction endonuclease. Wild-type allele (N) is cut in two fragments, whereas the mutant allele (n) is not digested by the restriction enzyme. Electrophoresis of the digested DNA on agarose gel and ethidium bromide staining allows the reading of the result. The correct interpretation is difficult due to the small size of the DNA fragments. In this study we designed a new set of primers for amplification of a 144bp fragment that facilitates the reading of the result. In addition, we optimized the PCR reaction to allow amplification from a single hair bulb, added directly into the PCR mix without previous treatment. This improved method was used to genotype 165 sows and boars used in a breeding program. Forty-nine percent of the animals had the NN genotype, whereas 50% were Nn and only 1% was nn