Improved photoenergy properties of low-emissivity coatings deposited by sputtering with an ion gun treatment

This work studies the effect of ion treatment on low-emissivity (low-e) coatings deposited by magnetron sputtering. Specifically, we have investigated the application of an ion treatment in the dielectric layer before deposition of a layer of silver. This reduces layer roughness which means the silver layer can be deposited with enhanced characteristics. We have also evaluated the etching rate on the SnOx layer due to the ion treatment on already deposit coatings of equal thicknesses. Subsequently, we studied the effects on the coating's photoenergy properties. For equivalent coatings, we found that those treated with ions were more transparent in the visible region, more reflective, and had a lower emissivity, which are essential requirements for low-e coatings applied in architectural glass

Intermediation for technology diffusion and user innovation in a developing rural economy:a social learning perspective

Technology intermediaries are seen as potent vehicles for addressing perennial problems in transferring technology from university to industry in developed and developing countries. This paper examines what constitutes effective user-end intermediation in a low-technology, developing economy context, which is an under-researched topic. The social learning in technological innovation framework is extended using situated learning theory in a longitudinal instrumental case study of an exemplar technology intermediation programme. The paper documents the role that academic-related research and advisory centres can play as intermediaries in brokering, facilitating and configuring technology, against the backdrop of a group of small-scale pisciculture businesses in a rural area of Colombia. In doing so, it demonstrates how technology intermediation activities can be optimized in the domestication and innofusion of technology amongst end-users. The design components featured in this instrumental case of intermediation can inform policy making and practice relating to technology transfer from university to rural industry. Future research on this subject should consider the intermediation components put forward, as well as the impact of such interventions, in different countries and industrial sectors. Such research would allow for theoretical replication and help improve technology domestication and innofusion in different contexts, especially in less-developed countries

Filogenia molecular, historia demogr?fica y estructura gen?tica de nuevas cepas de Trypanosoma terrestris aisladas de Tapirus terrestris en los biomas brasile?os de pantanal y mata atl?ntica

124 p. Recurso Electr?nicoA pesar de que los tripanosomas son un extenso grupo de par?sitos, poco se sabe sobre los mecanismos evolutivos que est?n promoviendo divergencia en sus poblaciones naturales, y con esto, la escala espacial y temporal en la que est?n ocurriendo estos cambios. Para entender esta din?mica, aqu? uso marcadores nucleares parasitarios y datos de radiotelemetr?a del hospedero vertebrado para explorar la gen?tica de poblaciones, aspectos demogr?ficos y relaciones filogen?ticas de nuevas cepas de Trypanosoma terrestris; una especie recientemente descrita y aislada de tapires de Brasil. Los estudios filogen?ticos mostraron por primera vez que el clado T. terrestris est? asociado a la historia evolutiva de sus hospedadores Perissodactyla. De igual modo T. terrestris es el clado hermano del clado T. grayi, corroborando el ?ecological host fitting? como principal mecanismo evolutivo en los tripanosomas. Las reconstrucciones demogr?ficas mostraron una fuerte reducci?n en los tama?os poblacionales del par?sito durante el ?ltimo per?odo glacial en el Pleistoceno, demostrando la influencia de los hospederos y las fluctuaciones clim?ticas sobre la din?mica poblacional de los aislados de T. terrestris. A raz?n de esto, no hubo evidencia de estructura gen?tica en los aislados parasitarios procedentes de los biomas estudiados, excepto por un haplotipo fuertemente diferenciado en una escala espacial microgeogr?fica en el Pantanal de Nhecol?ndia. As? pues, aqu? se proporciona evidencia de que el vector est? promoviendo la diferenciaci?n del par?sito mediante ?ecological host-fitting? y esto puede ocurrir a distintas escalas espaciales. Sin embargo, los mecanismos ecol?gicos y gen?ticos encargados de promover especializaci?n y divergencia en poblaciones de par?sitos a?n son materia de investigaci?n y de debate. Estudios gen?micos comparados en amplia escala, que combinen enfoques metodol?gicos como aquellos destinados a estudiar la gen?tica del paisaje en uni?n con la filogeograf?a hist?rica, ser?n de gran utilidad para entender la extensa radiaci?n de los tripanosomas, incluidos los tripanosomas pat?genos del hombre. Palabras clave: Trypanosoma terrestris, ecological host fitting, divergencia microgeogr?fica, cuello de botella, relaciones filogen?ticas.Notwithstanding the trypanosomes are a widespread group of parasites, little is known on evolutionary mechanisms promoting divergence over their natural populations and thereby, the spatial and temporal scales at which these changes are happening. To understand this dynamics, I use parasite nuclear markers and host telemetric data to explore parasite population genetics, phylogenetic relationships, divergence time estimation and coalescent demographic history of Trypanosoma terrestris, a recently described clade isolated from tapirs in Pantanal and Atlantic Forest biomes of South America. Phylogenetic relationships and divergence times showed: i) T. terrestris clade is a basal clade of trypanosomes diverged from an ancient Perissodactyla host during early Eocene and ii) T. terrestris isolated from Perissodactyla hosts and T. grayi clade isolated from crocodiles in Africa and caimans from South America are sister clades. Therefore these results support the ?ecological host fitting? as driving mechanism in parasite phylogenetic diversification and illustrate the complex evolutionary dynamics of trypanosomes. EBSPs showed a sharp reduction (population bottleneck) in parasite populations during late Pleistocene. Along with that, Bayesian clustering analysis, AMOVA results and barrier tests did not show evidence of population genetic structure except by one haplotype from Nhecol?ndia landscape in Pantanal, strongly differentiated from its dispersal neighborhood and those isolates from Atlantic Forest (~14Km and FST= 0.808). In conjunction with host dispersal, provided by telemetric and genetic data, here I confirm that invertebrate host is promoting parasite divergence through colonization of new hosts at fine spatial scales (microgeographic). Thus, these microevolutionary trends are in agreement with ?ecological host fitting? as driving mechanism in trypanosome evolution. To understand general mechanisms shaping genetic variation and adaptation within and among parasite populations is necessary incorporate comparative genome wide scale studies and useful methodological approaches, like those combining historical phylogeography and landscape genetics, both at fine and wide spatial scales. Keywords: Trypanosoma terrestris, ecological host fitting, microgeographic divergence, population bottle-neck, phylogenetic relationships

Reverse-correlating mental representations of sex-typed bodies: the effect of number of trials on image quality

Sex categorization is a critical process in social perception. While psychologists have long theorized that perceivers have distinct mental representations of men and women that help them to achieve efficient sex categorizations, researchers have only recently begun using reverse-correlation to visualize the content of these mental representations. The present research addresses two issues concerning this relatively new methodological tool. First, previous studies of reverse-correlation have focused almost exclusively on perceivers' mental representations of faces. Our study demonstrates that this technique can also be used to visualize mental representations of sex-typed bodies. Second, most studies of reverse-correlation have employed a relatively large number of trials (1000+) to capture perceivers' mental representations of a given category. Our study demonstrated that, at least for sex-typed representations of bodies, high quality reverse-correlation images can be obtained with as few as 100 trials. Overall, our findings enhance knowledge of reverse-correlation methodology in general and sex categorization in particular, providing new information for researchers interested in using this technique to understand the complex processes underlying social perception

Polarization-Sensitive Photodetectors Based on Directionally Oriented Organic Bulk-Heterojunctions

Polarized spectroscopic photodetection enables numerous applications in diverse areas such as sensing, industrial quality control, and visible light communications. Although organic photodetectors (OPDs) can offer a cost-effective alternative to silicon-based technology—particularly when flexibility and large-area arrays are desired—polarized OPDs are only beginning to receive due research interest. Instead of resorting to external polarization optics, this report presents polarized OPDs based on directionally oriented blends of poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and benchmark polymer or nonfullerene acceptors fabricated using a versatile solution-based method. Furthermore, a novel postprocessing scheme based on backfilling and plasma etching is advanced to ameliorate high dark-currents that are otherwise inherent to fibrillar active layers. The resulting polarized P3HT:N2200 OPDs exhibit a broad enhancement across all principal figures of merit compared to reference isotropic devices, including peak responsivities of 70 mA W$^{-1}$ and up to a threefold increase in 3 dB bandwidth to 0.75 MHz under parallel-polarized illumination. Polarization ratios of up to 3.5 are obtained across a spectral range that is determined by the specific donor–acceptor combinations. Finally, as a proof-of-concept demonstration, polarized OPDs are used for photoelasticity analysis of rubber films under tensile deformation, highlighting their potential for existing and emerging applications in advanced optical sensing

Influence of phosphate dosing on biofilms development on lead in chlorinated drinking water bioreactors

Phosphate dosing is used by water utilities to prevent plumbosolvency in water supply networks. However, there is a lack of knowledge regarding biofilm formation on lead and plastic materials when phosphate concentrations are modified in drinking water systems. In this study, biofilms were grown over lead coupons and PVC tubes in bioreactors supplied with local drinking water treated to provide different phosphate doses (below 1, 1 and 2 mg/L) over a period of 28 days. A range of commercial iron pellets (GEH104 and WARP) were tested aiming to maintain phosphate levels below the average 1 mg/L found in drinking water. Changes in biofilm community structure in response to three different phosphate treatments were characterised by Illumina sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene for bacteria and the ITS2 gene for fungi. Scanning electron microscopy was used to visualise physical differences in biofilm development in two types of materials, lead and PVC. The experimental results from the kinetics of phosphate absorption showed that the GEH104 pellets were the best option to, in the long term, reduce phosphate levels while preventing undesirable turbidity increases in drinking water. Phosphate-enrichment promoted a reduction of bacterial diversity but increased that of fungi in biofilms. Overall, higher phosphate levels selected for microorganisms with enhanced capabilities related to phosphorus metabolism and heavy metal resistance. This research brings new insights regarding the influence of different phosphate concentrations on mixed-species biofilms formation and drinking water quality, which are relevant to inform best management practices in drinking water treatment

Polarization-Sensitive Photodetectors Based on Directionally Oriented Organic Bulk-Heterojunctions

Polarized spectroscopic photodetection enables numerous applications in diverse areas such as sensing, industrial quality control, and visible light communications. Although organic photodetectors (OPDs) can offer a cost-effective alternative to silicon-based technology—particularly when flexibility and large-area arrays are desired—polarized OPDs are only beginning to receive due research interest. Instead of resorting to external polarization optics, this report presents polarized OPDs based on directionally oriented blends of poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and benchmark polymer or nonfullerene acceptors fabricated using a versatile solution-based method. Furthermore, a novel postprocessing scheme based on backfilling and plasma etching is advanced to ameliorate high dark-currents that are otherwise inherent to fibrillar active layers. The resulting polarized P3HT:N2200 OPDs exhibit a broad enhancement across all principal figures of merit compared to reference isotropic devices, including peak responsivities of 70 mA W$^{-1}$ and up to a threefold increase in 3 dB bandwidth to 0.75 MHz under parallel-polarized illumination. Polarization ratios of up to 3.5 are obtained across a spectral range that is determined by the specific donor–acceptor combinations. Finally, as a proof-of-concept demonstration, polarized OPDs are used for photoelasticity analysis of rubber films under tensile deformation, highlighting their potential for existing and emerging applications in advanced optical sensing

Epstein Barr virus in relation to apoptosis markers and patients' outcome in pediatric B-cell Non-Hodgkin lymphoma

In this study, we investigated Epstein Barr virus (EBV) presence, associated to proliferation and apoptosis proteins in pediatric B-cell Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (B-NHL). EBERs, Ki67, active caspase 3, Bax and Bcl2 were analyzed on B-NHL tissue from 40 patients. Forty percent showed EBV expression, significantly higher among patients ≤10. years (P= 0.027), and associated with immunosuppression (P= 0.020), but not associated apotosis markers. However, EBV was associated with a worse event-free survival (P= 0.016), particularly under immunosuppression. Even though EBV did not seem to alter apoptotic pathways, it exhibited survival disadvantage and could be an important cofactor in B-cell lymphomagenesis in younger children.Fil: Chabay, Paola Andrea. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Niños "Ricardo Gutiérrez"; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Lara, María Julia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Niños "Ricardo Gutiérrez"; ArgentinaFil: Lorenzetti, Mario Alejandro. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Niños "Ricardo Gutiérrez"; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Cambra, P.. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Niños "Ricardo Gutiérrez"; ArgentinaFil: Acosta Haab, G.. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Niños "Ricardo Gutiérrez"; ArgentinaFil: Aversa, L.. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Niños "Ricardo Gutiérrez"; ArgentinaFil: de Matteo, Elena Noemí. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Niños "Ricardo Gutiérrez"; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Preciado, María Victoria. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Niños "Ricardo Gutiérrez"; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

Time-Expanded F-OTDR based on binary sequences

In this paper, the capabilities of time-expanded phase-sensitive optical time-domain reflectometry (TE F-OTDR) using binary sequences are demonstrated. We present a highly flexible and integrable TE F-OTDR approach that allows a customized distributed optical fiber sensor (range, spatial resolution, and acoustic sampling) by simply changing the length of the binary sequence and the reference clock frequencies of the binary sequence generators. The here presented architecture eliminates the need for the cumbersome arbitrary signal generators used to date to create the dual-comb spectra for interrogating the fiber. In this approach, the use of large binary sequences allows us to obtain dual combs in a simple and cost-effective way. Spatial resolution of ~1 cm is achieved, attaining ~15, 000 independent measurements points along the interrogated fiber, with a capability of sensing ~30, 000 measurements points