Fourier transform infrared cell for surface studies at controlled temperatures and in controlled atmospheres with time resolution and spatial resolution

A new micro-Fourier transform infrared cell has been constructed and evaluated using (i) the transformation of aurichalcite crystals at 298-475 K, (ii) the adsorption/desorption of pyridine on a Cu2O/ZnO junction, and (iii) the adsorption of CO on Pt/alumina pellets; it enables spatial and time resolution of processes in such diverse samples held at known thermal and baric conditions. The potential of this cell in catalytic and analytical science is considered

On the design of an energy-efficient low-latency integrated protocol for distributed mobile sensor networks

Self organizing, wireless sensors networks are an emergent and challenging technology that is attracting large attention in the sensing and monitoring community. Impressive progress has been done in recent years even if we need to assume that an optimal protocol for every kind of sensor network applications can not exist. As a result it is necessary to optimize the protocol for certain scenarios. In many applications for instance latency is a crucial factor in addition to energy consumption. MERLIN performs its best in such WSNs where there is the need to reduce the latency while ensuring that energy consumption is kept to a minimum. By means of that, the low latency characteristic of MERLIN can be used as a trade off to extend node lifetimes. The performance in terms of energy consumption and latency is optimized by acting on the slot length. MERLIN is designed specifically to integrate routing, MAC and localization protocols together. Furthermore it can support data queries which is a typical application for WSNs. The MERLIN protocol eliminates the necessity to have any explicit handshake mechanism among nodes. Furthermore, the reliability is improved using multiple path message propagation in combination with an overhearing mechanism. The protocol divides the network into subsets where nodes are grouped in time zones. As a result MERLIN also shows a good scalability by utilizing an appropriate scheduling mechanism in combination with a contention period

Cross-phyletic patterns of particle selection by deposit feeders

In controlled laboratory experiments using a wide array of exotic sediments of known characteristics (glass and plastic beads) we studied the mechanical, evolutionarily-fixed component of particle selection for ingestion in 5 surface and 6 subsurface deposit feeders, from 3 phyla (Annelida, Mollusca and Arthropoda). Three species were nonselective within all or part of the 3-324 μm particle size range tested, while the remaining 8 species exhibited unimodal patterns of size selection, peaking near 6 μm. In addition, the surface deposit feeders displayed a strong preference for particles of low specific gravity. Particle selection in tube construction by the polychaetes followed similar but weaker trends. Initial particle gathering into the mantle cavities of the bivalves by inertial suction or adhesion to mucus-covered appendages appeared nonselective

Leadership Adaptability Within Higher Education

Dynamism in the higher education industry (HEI) has created unprecedented complexity and uncertainty for leaders at colleges and universities across the globe. The challenges to competitive advantage and sustainability created by dynamic conditions have been exacerbated and accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic and health crisis. HEI leaders are struggling to adapt antiquated and traditionally held methods and practices to navigate the rapid changes and survive the resulting chaos. The ability of leaders to adapt to dynamism in contemporary industry conditions is influenced by the external and internal environments; in term, these leaders’ capacity for change impacts the adaptability of the institutions they serve. This study examines how senior- and mid-level leaders at small private liberal arts colleges and universities are engaging in adaptive behaviors to help their organizations better compete despite challenges

Art, Architecture, and the Asai Sisters

In early modern Japan, women, like men, used art and architectural patronage to perform and shape their identities and legitimate their authority. Through a series of case studies, I examine the works of art and architecture created by or for three sisters of the Asai 浅井 family: Yodo-dono 淀殿 (1569-1615), Jōkō-in 常高院 (1570-1633), and Sūgen-in 崇源院 (1573-1626). The Asai sisters held an elite status in their lifetimes, in part due to their relationship with the “Three Unifiers” of early 17th century Japan—Oda Nobunaga (1534-1582), Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1537-1589), and Tokugawa Ieyasu (1543-1616). As such, they were uniquely positioned to participate in the cultural battle for control of Japan. In each of my three case studies, I look at a specific site or object associated with one of the sisters. The objects that I examine—a mausoleum, a portrait, and a memorial temple—were all associated with death and memorial rituals. Mortuary culture may have been seen as an appropriate subject for women’s patronage because it was inherently a family responsibility, and it served to define and propagate the lineage. Since portraits and memorial buildings were expensive, ostentatious luxury objects, they were one of the most public ways that women could participate in patronage. This dissertation addresses two research questions: how the social identities of the Asai sisters, specifically their lineage connections and roles in the complex web of political marriages of the time, were defined and asserted by architectural and artistic patronage; and how these three case studies expand our understanding of the problematic term “patronage” and its relationship to women

Adhesive-based selection by a tentacle-feeding polychaete for particle size, shape and bacterial coating in silt and sand

We tested particle selection by a surface deposit-feeding, tentaculate spionid polychaete, Pseudopolydora kempi japonica Imajima and Hartman. In experiments with peroxide-cleaned, sizegraded but otherwise natural silts and sands, individual worms showed peak preference for particles 80-99 μm in diameter, compared with previous (Self and Jumars, 1988) documentation of peak preference for particles of 7 μm in experiments conducted with plastic and glass beads. These results imply that microtektites will not in general be good tracers of mixing of mineral grains of comparable size. Animals exhibited statistically significant but not marked differences in size selectivity for subrounded versus subangular grain shapes; the size preference peak was broader in subangular grains, for which orientation of the grain can alter probabilities of both contact and retention. When one size class of grains was coated with the bacterium Halomonas halodurans (ATCC 29686), animals in general showed enhanced selection (relative to controls with no food value on any size class) of that size and smaller grains, even though these smaller grains lacked food value. Greatest selection, however, generally occurred for the coated size class. Results from inclusion of glass beads in some of the experiments and from separate experiments with tentacle analogs imply that this selective capability may be largely passive and mechanical. Natural grains, due to surface texture, have more surface area for adhesive contact than do smooth glass beads so that larger grains than beads are retained. Bacteria-coated grains, in turn, appear to be picked up preferentially due to adhesion with the bacterial coating; petroleum jelly-coated microscope slides also succeed in selective retention of the size class that is bacterially coated. Substantial selection by adhesive-utilizing deposit feeders apparently can be achieved without investment in complex, time- and energy-consuming sensory systems and behaviors. Experiments with natural grains showed notably more scatter than prior experiments with glass beads, but this difference is consistent with the mechanism. For nonspherical particles, both contact and retention depend on orientation as well as size