Bluetooth low energy for autonomous human-robot interaction

© 2017 Copyright held by the owner/author(s).This demonstration shows how inexpensive, off-the-shelf, and unobtrusive Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) devices can be utilized for enabling robots to recognize touch gestures, to perceive proximity information, and to distinguish between interacting individuals autonomously. The received signal strength (RSS) between the BLE device attached to the robot and BLE devices attached to the interacting individuals is used to achieve this. Almost no software configuration is needed and the setup can be applied to most everyday environments and robot platforms

Numerical thermo-elasto-plastic analysis of residual stresses on different scales during cooling of hot forming parts

In current research, more and more attention is paid to the understanding of residual stress states as well as the application of targeted residual stresses to extend e.g. life time or stiffness of a part. In course of that, the numerical simulation and analysis of the forming process of components, which goes along with the evolution of residual stresses, play an important role. In this contribution, we focus on the residual stresses arising from the austenite-to-martensite transformation at microscopic and mesoscopic level of a Cr-alloyed steel. A combination of a Multi-Phase-Field model and a two-scale Finite Element simulation is utilized for numerical analysis. A first microscopic simulation considers the lattice change, such that the results can be homogenized and applied on the mesoscale. Based on this result, a polycrystal consisting of a certain number of austenitic grains is built and the phase transformation from austenite to martensite is described with respect to the mesoscale. Afterwards, in a two-scale Finite Element simulation the plastic effects are considered and resulting residual stress states are computed

Regulation of cancer-specific miRNAs by MDA-7/IL-24

Melanoma differentiation associated gene 7/Interleukin-24 (MDA-7/IL-24) is a secreted cytokine which acts as a tumor suppressor. It is capable of selectively killing cancer cells, regardless of anatomic origin, while sparing normal cells. miRNAs are master regulators of gene expression that can play two roles in cancer: tumor-suppression and oncogenesis. We identified a number of miRNAs that are regulated by MDA-7/IL-24 using a PCR plate array containing probes for miRNAs known to play a role in prostate cancer. We independently validated the array with qRT-PCR to identify three miRNAs which are downregulated by MDA-7/IL-24 treatment in DU145, PC3, and PC3ML prostate cancer lines. These miRNAs were miR-125a, miR-145, and miR-23b. Their gene targets were identified using TargetScan and confirmed to be regulated in our prostate cancer model. NLRC5, KLF4, and KLF15, respectively, were upregulated after treatment with MDA-7/IL-24. We focused on NLRC5 as a novel target of MDA-7/IL-24, which plays a role in immune evasion by cancer cells. NLRC5 is upregulated following inhibition of miR-125a. It is not downregulated by overexpression of miR-125a which suggests that more than one miRNA may be acting to regulate its expression. Finally, we determined that miR-125a is downregulated by MDA-7 through DICER, an important processing enzyme for miRNA biogenesis

Water resources and human behaviour: an integrated landscape management perspective.

A two sides balance can be drawn from the last 20 years of active intents to change local, regional and global policies concerning water and global environment issues. On one hand, as a consequence of the “sustainable development” model, there is an increasing awareness of the issues in stake, and environment became a core part of any public policy. International conferences and the investment in scientific research in these areas are an expression of this. Yet, concerns are growing in face of the increasing stress imposed on freshwater resources, climate change and the difficulties to achieve international consensus on specific strategies. This was the focus of discussion in the international conference on climate change organised in Nagoya in December 2010, by ICSS, ICSU and ICPHS. A revision of the conceptual approach to sustainable development, moving beyond a strictly socio-economic understanding of human behaviour and incorporating, as basic strategies, the dimensions of culture, didactics of dilemma and governance, is currently being applied in some scenarios, hopefully with a better result. The paper discusses water resources in the context of climate change from this integrated perspective.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio