934 research outputs found
Long Term Experience of the Passivhaus Standard in North East England: Does Airtightness Decay?
Carbon dioxide capture from a cement manufacturing process
A process of manufacturing cement clinker is provided in which a clean supply of CO.sub.2 gas may be captured. The process also involves using an open loop conversion of CaO/MgO from a calciner to capture CO.sub.2 from combustion flue gases thereby forming CaCO.sub.3/CaMg(CO.sub.3).sub.2. The CaCO.sub.3/CaMg(CO.sub.3).sub.2 is then returned to the calciner where CO.sub.2 gas is evolved. The evolved CO.sub.2 gas, along with other evolved CO.sub.2 gases from the calciner are removed from the calciner. The reactants (CaO/MgO) are feed to a high temperature calciner for control of the clinker production composition
Ttk69-dependent repression of lozenge prevents the ectopic development of R7 cells in the Drosophila larval eye disc
Background: During the development of the Drosophila eye, specific cell types differentiate from an initially equipotent group of uncommitted precursor cells. The lozenge (lz) gene, which is a member of the Runt family of transcriptional regulators, plays a pivotal role in mediating this process through regulating the expression of several fate-specifying transcription factors. However, the regulation of lz, and the control of lz expression levels in different cell types is not fully understood. Results: Here, we show a genetic interaction between Tramtrack69 (Ttk69) a key transcriptional repressor and an inhibitor of neuronal fate specification, and lz, the master patterning gene of cells posterior to the morphogenetic furrow in the Drosophila eye disc. Loss of Ttk69 expression causes the development of ectopic R7 cells in the third instar eye disc, with these cells being dependent upon Lz for their development. Using the binary UAS Gal4 system, we show that overexpression of Ttk69 causes the loss of lz-dependent differentiating cells, and a down-regulation of Lz expression in the developing eye. The loss of lz-dependent cells can be rescued by overexpressing lz via a GMR-lz transgene. We provide additional data showing that factors functioning upstream of Ttk69 in eye development regulate lz in a Ttk69-dependent manner. Conclusions: Our results lead us to conclude that Ttk69 can either directly or indirectly repress lz gene expression to prevent the premature development of R7 precursor cells in the developing eye of Drosophila. We therefore define a mechanism for the tight regulatory control of the master pre-patterning gene, lz, in early Drosophila eye development and provide insight into how differential levels of lz expression can be achieved to effect specific cell fate outcomes
Giant crystal-electric-field effect and complex magnetic behavior in single-crystalline CeRh3Si2
Single-crystalline CeRh3Si2 was investigated by means of x-ray diffraction,
magnetic susceptibility, magnetization, electrical resistivity, and specific
heat measurements carried out in wide temperature and magnetic field ranges.
Moreover, the electronic structure of the compound was studied at room
temperature by cerium core-level x-ray photoemission spectroscopy (XPS). The
physical properties were analyzed in terms of crystalline electric field and
compared with results of ab-initio band structure calculations performed within
the density functional theory approach. The compound was found to crystallize
in the orthorhombic unit cell of the ErRh3Si2 type (space group Imma -- No.74,
Pearson symbol: oI24) with the lattice parameters: a = 7.1330(14) A, b =
9.7340(19) A, and c = 5.6040(11) A. Analysis of the magnetic and XPS data
revealed the presence of well localized magnetic moments of trivalent cerium
ions. All physical properties were found to be highly anisotropic over the
whole temperature range studied, and influenced by exceptionally strong
crystalline electric field with the overall splitting of the 4f1 ground
multiplet exceeding 5700 K. Antiferromagnetic order of the cerium magnetic
moments at TN = 4.70(1)K and their subsequent spin rearrangement at Tt =
4.48(1) K manifest themselves as distinct anomalies in the temperature
characteristics of all investigated physical properties and exhibit complex
evolution in an external magnetic field. A tentative magnetic B-T phase
diagram, constructed for B parallel to the b-axis being the easy magnetization
direction, shows very complex magnetic behavior of CeRh3Si2, similar to that
recently reported for an isostructural compound CeIr3Si2. The electronic band
structure calculations corroborated the antiferromagnetic ordering of the
cerium magnetic moments and well reproduced the experimental XPS valence band
spectrum.Comment: 32 pages, 12 figures, to appear in Physical Review
Comparison of Paired- and Multiple-Stimulus Preference Assessments using a Runway Task by Dogs
Preference assessments identify foods that might be valued by an animal but do not capture differences in the magnitude of value. In combination with demand, the more effort required to acquire the commodity, the more valued and likely it is to function as an effective reinforcer for use in dog training. In the current experiment, two preference assessments' applicability was measured using a combination of choice assessment and an effortful runway task. Eight dogs experienced a paired-stimulus preference assessment and multiple stimulus without replacement preference assessments combined with a 3-m runway task. The preference assessments identified different most-preferred foods but the same least-preferred foods. The reinforcer assessment results showed that the dogs moved faster to obtain their most preferred food as identified by the multiple-stimulus-without-replacement-assessment compared to the most preferred foods identified in the paired stimulus assessment. The paired- or multiple-stimulus-without-replacement preference assessments identified highly valued foods; however, the applicability of that commodity as a reinforcer was not independent of the assessment method. To ensure accurate reinforcer identification and consistency, a preference assessment should be conducted under similar conditions to that experienced when the reinforcer is used in training. Overall, the multiple stimulus without replacement preference assessment would be more useful to trainers, owners or scientists wanting to identify high-value foods for their animals to function as effective reinforcers for the elicitation of behaviors in a training context
Native interface of the SAM domain polymer of TEL
BACKGROUND: TEL is a transcriptional repressor containing a SAM domain that forms a helical polymer. In a number of hematologic malignancies, chromosomal translocations lead to aberrant fusions of TEL-SAM to a variety of other proteins, including many tyrosine kinases. TEL-SAM polymerization results in constitutive activation of the tyrosine kinase domains to which it becomes fused, leading to cell transformation. Thus, inhibitors of TEL-SAM self-association could abrogate transformation in these cells. In previous work, we determined the structure of a mutant TEL-SAM polymer bearing a Val to Glu substitution in center of the subunit interface. It remained unclear how much the mutation affected the architecture of the polymer, however. RESULTS: Here we determine the structure of the native polymer interface. To accomplish this goal, we introduced mutations that block polymer extension, producing a heterodimer with a wild-type interface. We find that the structure of the wild-type polymer interface is quite similar to the mutant structure determined previously. With the structure of the native interface, it is possible to evaluate the potential for developing therapeutic inhibitors of the interaction. We find that the interacting surfaces of the protein are relatively flat, containing no obvious pockets for the design of small molecule inhibitors. CONCLUSION: Our results confirm the architecture of the TEL-SAM polymer proposed previously based on a mutant structure. The fact that the interface contains no obvious potential binding pockets suggests that it may be difficult to find small molecule inhibitors to treat malignancies in this way
Circulation and exchange in choked marginal seas
Author Posting. © American Meteorological Society, 2008. This article is posted here by permission of American Meteorological Society for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Journal of Physical Oceanography 38 (2008): 2639-2661, doi:10.1175/2008JPO3946.1.A theory for the exchange between a rotating, buoyancy-forced marginal sea and an ocean is developed and tested numerically. Cooling over the marginal sea leads to sinking and sets up a two-layer exchange flow, with a warm surface layer entering from the ocean and a cool layer exiting at depth. The connecting strait is sufficiently narrow and shallow to cause the exchange flow to be hydraulically controlled. The incoming surface layer forms a baroclinically unstable boundary current that circles the marginal sea in a cyclonic sense and feeds heat to the interior by way of eddies. Consistent with the overall heat and volume balances for the marginal sea, there is a continuous family of hydraulically controlled states with critical flow at the most constricted section of the strait. Included in this family is a limiting “maximal-exchange” solution with two sections of hydraulic control in the strait and with fixed layer depths at the most constricted section. The state of exchange for a given forcing is predicted using a theory that assumes energy conservation over a certain path connecting the strait to the marginal sea or, in some cases, the ocean. Depending on the configuration of the exchange, long-wave information may be blocked from entering the strait from the marginal sea, from the open ocean, or both. The scenario that holds determines what is predicted and what needs to be input. Numerical tests of the prediction for the temperature difference and the state of exchange are carried out for straits with a pure contraction in width and for a constant width strait with a topographic sill. The comparison is reasonable in most cases, though the numerical model is not able to reproduce cases of multiple states predicted by the theory for certain forcing values. The analytical model is an alternative to the Price and Yang and Siddall et al. models of a marginal sea outflow.This work was supported by the
National Science Foundation under Grants OCE-0525729
and OCE-0423975
Development of role-related minimum cardiorespiratory fitness standards for firefighters and commanders
A minimum cardiorespiratory fitness standard was derived for firefighters following a metabolic demands analysis. Design and minimal acceptable performance of generic firefighting task simulations (i.e. hose running, casualty evacuation, stair climb, equipment carry, wild-land fire) were endorsed by a panel of operationally experienced experts. Sixty-two UK firefighters completed these tasks wearing a standard protective firefighting ensemble while being monitored for peak steady-state metabolic demand and cardiovascular strain. Four tasks, endorsed as valid operational simulations by ≥90% of participants (excluding wild-land fire; 84%), were deemed to be a sufficiently valid and reliable basis for a fitness standard. These tasks elicited an average peak steady-state metabolic cost of 38.1 ± 7.8 ml kg-1 min-1. It is estimated that healthy adults can sustain the total duration of these tasks (~16 min) at ≤90% maximum oxygen uptake and a cardiorespiratory fitness standard of ≥42.3 ml kg-1 min-1 would be required to sustain work. Practitioner Summary: A cardiorespiratory fitness standard for firefighters of ≥42.3 ml kg-1 min-1 was derived from monitoring minimum acceptable performance of essential tasks. This study supports the implementation of a routine assessment of this fitness standard for all UK operational firefighters, to ensure safe physical preparedness for occupational performance.</p
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Forum. Stratigraphic Fit to Phylogenies: A Proposed Solution
Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/73634/1/j.1096-0031.1998.tb00333.x.pd
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