Future imaging atmospheric telescopes: performance of possible array configurations for gamma photons in the GeV-TeV range

The future of ground based gamma ray astronomy lies in large arrays of Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes (IACT) with better capabilities: lower energy threshold, higher sensitivity, better resolution and background rejection. Currently, designs for the next generation of IACT arrays are being explored by various groups. We have studied possible configurations with a large number of telescopes of various sizes. Here, we present the precision of source, shower core and energy reconstruction for gamma rays in the GeV-TeV range for different altitudes of observation. These results were obtained through tools that we have developed in order to simulate any type of IACT configuration and evaluate its performance.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, Proceedings of the 30th ICRC, Merida, Mexico (2007

Simulation and Optimization of Solar Desalination Plant Using Aspen Plus Simulation Software

AbstractOf the total global water, 94% is salt water from the oceans and the remaining 6% is fresh. The shortage of fresh water is a problem that has continued to challenge third world countries, and over time has become increasingly evident in developed nations around the globe. With a combination of contributing issues such as overpopulation and changes in weather and climatic conditions, the demand for alternate approaches to fresh potable water supply has increased dramatically. The paper develops a computational model to simulate the performance of a small scale solar desalination plant. The model is validated with experimental results found in the literature. The validated model is used to optimize the functional parameters of a desalination plant and in turn, enhance the recovery rate and product quality of the system. The model is suitable for brackish and seawater desalting applications specific to the climatic conditions of coastal Queensland, Australia. Aspen Plus is the process simulation software that was used for the modelling. The outcomes of the study is a validated process simulation model of a small scale solar desalination plant, optimization of this model for better utilization of current technologies and methods of improving performance, efficiency and recovery and reducing operational limitations

Single Pion production from Nuclei

We have studied charged current one pion production induced by $\nu_\mu(\bar\nu_\mu)$ from some nuclei. The calculations have been done for the incoherent pion production processes from these nuclear targets in the $\Delta$ dominance model and take into account the effect of Pauli blocking, Fermi motion and renormalization of $\Delta$ properties in the nuclear medium. The effect of final state interactions of pions has also been taken into account. The numerical results have been compared with the recent results from the MiniBooNE experiment for the charged current 1$\pi$ production, and also with some of the older experiments in Freon and Freon-Propane from CERN.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures, 5th International Workshop on Neutrino-Nucleus Interactions in the few GeV region(NuInt07), Batavia, Illinois, 30May-3June, 200

Structured Sparse Approximation via Generalized Regularizers: With Application to V2V Channel Estimation

In this paper, we consider the estimation of a signal that has both group- and element-wise sparsity (joint sparsity); motivated by channel estimation in vehicle-to-vehicle channels. A general approach for the design of separable regularizing functions is proposed to adaptively induce sparsity in the estimation. A joint sparse signal estimation problem is formulated via these regularizers and its optimal solution is computed based on proximity operations. Our optimization results are quite general and they can be applied in the context of hierarchical sparsity models as well. The proposed recovery algorithm is a nested iterative method based on the alternating direction method of multipliers (ADMM). Due to regularizer separability, key operations can be performed in parallel. V2V channels are estimated by exploiting the joint sparsity (group/element-wise) exhibited in the delay-Doppler domain. Simulation results reveal that the proposed method can achieve as much as a 10 dB gain over previously examined methods

Nested Sparse Approximation: Structured Estimation of V2V Channels Using Geometry-Based Stochastic Channel Model

Future intelligent transportation systems promise increased safety and energy efficiency. Realization of such systems will require vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication technology. High fidelity V2V communication is, in turn, dependent on accurate V2V channel estimation. V2V channels have characteristics differing from classical cellular communication channels. Herein, geometry-based stochastic modeling is employed to develop a characterization of V2V channel channels. The resultant model exhibits significant structure; specifically, the V2V channel is characterized by three distinct regions within the delay-Doppler plane. Each region has a unique combination of specular reflections and diffuse components resulting in a particular element-wise and group-wise sparsity. This joint sparsity structure is exploited to develop a novel channel estimation algorithm. A general machinery is provided to solve the jointly element/group sparse channel (signal) estimation problem using proximity operators of a broad class of regularizers. The alternating direction method of multipliers using the proximity operator is adapted to optimize the mixed objective function. Key properties of the proposed objective functions are proven which ensure that the optimal solution is found by the new algorithm. The effects of pulse shape leakage are explicitly characterized and compensated, resulting in measurably improved performance. Numerical simulation and real V2V channel measurement data are used to evaluate the performance of the proposed method. Results show that the new method can achieve significant gains over previously proposed methods.Comment: 36 pages, 7 figures, journa

Geometry-Based Stochastic Modeling and Estimation of Vehicle to Vehicle Channels

In this paper, a geometry-based stochastic channel model (GSCM) for vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) wireless communica- tion is developed. The channel model reveals that the channel representation in delay-Doppler domain can be divided into four regions. In each region, the V2V channel can be modeled using a hybrid sparse/diffuse (HSD) model. Prior art on hybrid channel estimation for linear time-invariant channels is extended to the time-varying case. Furthermore, the effects of pulse shape leakage are explicitly determined and compensated. Simulation results shows that exploiting the V2V channel properties in the delay-Doppler domain, yields significantly improved channel estimates over unstructured approaches (more than 10 dB gain in SNR)

Preclinical Analysis of JAA-F11, a Specific Anti-Thomsen-Friedenreich Antibody via Immunohistochemistry and In Vivo Imaging.

The tumor specificity of JAA-F11, a novel monoclonal antibody specific for the Thomsen-Friedenreich cancer antigen (TF-Ag-alpha linked), has been comprehensively studied by in vitro immunohistochemical (IHC) staining of human tumor and normal tissue microarrays and in vivo biodistribution and imaging by micro-positron emission tomography imaging in breast and lung tumor models in mice. The IHC analysis detailed herein is the comprehensive biological analysis of the tumor specificity of JAA-F11 antibody performed as JAA-F11 is progressing towards preclinical safety testing and clinical trials. Wide tumor reactivity of JAA-F11, relative to the matched mouse IgG3 (control), was observed in 85% of 1269 cases of breast, lung, prostate, colon, bladder, and ovarian cancer. Staining on tissues from breast cancer cases was similar regardless of hormonal or Her2 status, and this is particularly important in finding a target on the currently untargetable triple-negative breast cancer subtype. Humanization of JAA-F11 was recently carried out as explained in a companion paper "Humanization of JAA-F11, a Highly Specific Anti-Thomsen-Friedenreich Pancarcinoma Antibody and In Vitro Efficacy Analysis" (Neoplasia 19: 716-733, 2017), and it was confirmed that humanization did not affect chemical specificity. IHC studies with humanized JAA-F11 showed similar binding to human breast tumor tissues. In vivo imaging and biodistribution studies in a mouse syngeneic breast cancer model and in a mouse-human xenograft lung cancer model with humanized 124I- JAA-F11 construct confirmed in vitro tumor reactivity and specificity. In conclusion, the tumor reactivity of JAA-F11 supports the continued development of JAA-F11 as a targeted cancer therapeutic for multiple cancers, including those with unmet need