85 research outputs found
Exploring the Benefits of Remanufacture during Product Prototyping:A Cost and Time Based Analysis
DIMENSIONS OF KNOWLEDGE IN PROTOTYPING:A REVIEW AND CHARACTERISATION OF PROTOTYPING METHODS AND THEIR CONTRIBUTIONS TO DESIGN KNOWLEDGE
Distinguishing artefacts:evaluating the saturation point of convolutional neural networks
Prior work has shown Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) trained on
surrogate Computer Aided Design (CAD) models are able to detect and classify
real-world artefacts from photographs. The applications of which support
twinning of digital and physical assets in design, including rapid extraction
of part geometry from model repositories, information search \& retrieval and
identifying components in the field for maintenance, repair, and recording. The
performance of CNNs in classification tasks have been shown dependent on
training data set size and number of classes. Where prior works have used
relatively small surrogate model data sets ( models), the question
remains as to the ability of a CNN to differentiate between models in
increasingly large model repositories. This paper presents a method for
generating synthetic image data sets from online CAD model repositories, and
further investigates the capacity of an off-the-shelf CNN architecture trained
on synthetic data to classify models as class size increases. 1,000 CAD models
were curated and processed to generate large scale surrogate data sets,
featuring model coverage at steps of 10, 30, 60,
and 120 degrees. The findings demonstrate the capability of computer
vision algorithms to classify artefacts in model repositories of up to 200,
beyond this point the CNN's performance is observed to deteriorate
significantly, limiting its present ability for automated twinning of physical
to digital artefacts. Although, a match is more often found in the top-5
results showing potential for information search and retrieval on large
repositories of surrogate models.Comment: 6 Pages, 5 Figures, 2 Tables, Conference, Design Engineering, CNN,
Digital Twi
Gender and Videogames: The political valency of Lara Croft
The Face: Is Lara a feminist icon or a sexist fantasy? Toby Gard: Neither and a bit of both. Lara was designed to be a tough, self-reliant, intelligent woman. She confounds all the sexist cliches apart from the fact that she’s got an unbelievable figure. Strong, independent women are the perfect fantasy girls—the untouchable is always the most desirable (Interview with Lara’s creator Toby Gard in The Face magazine, June 1997)
Identification of Small-Molecule Inhibitors of Neutral Ceramidase (nCDase) via Target-Based High-Throughput Screening
There is interest in developing inhibitors of human neutral ceramidase (nCDase) because this enzyme plays a critical role in colon cancer. There are currently no potent or clinically effective inhibitors for nCDase reported to date, so we adapted a fluorescence-based enzyme activity method to a high-throughput screening format. We opted to use an assay whereby nCDase hydrolyzes the substrate RBM 14-16, and the addition of NaIO4 acts as an oxidant that releases umbelliferone, resulting in a fluorescent signal. As designed, test compounds that act as ceramidase inhibitors will prevent the hydrolysis of RBM 14-16, thereby decreasing fluorescence. This assay uses a 1536-well plate format with excitation in the blue spectrum of light energy, which could be a liability, so we incorporated a counterscreen that allows for rapid selection against fluorescence artifacts to minimize false-positive hits. The high-throughput screen of >650,000 small molecules found several lead series of hits. Multiple rounds of chemical optimization ensued with improved potency in terms of IC50 and selectivity over counterscreen assays. This study describes the first large-scale high-throughput optical screening assay for nCDase inhibitors that has resulted in leads that are now being pursued in crystal docking studies and in vitro drug metabolism and pharmacokinetics (DMPK).National Cancer Institute
https://doi.org/10.13039/100000054Stony Brook Cancer CenterPeer Reviewe
Parent Stars of Extrasolar Planets VII: New Abundance Analyses of 30 Systems
The results of new spectroscopic analyses of 30 stars with giant planet
and/or brown dwarf companions are presented. Values for Teff and [Fe/H] are
used in conjunction with Hipparcos data and Padova isochrones to derive masses,
ages, and theoretical surface gravities. These new data are combined with
spectroscopic and photometric metallicity estimates of other stars harboring
planets and published samples of F, G, and K dwarfs to compare several subsets
of planet bearing stars with similarly well-constrained control groups. The
distribution of [Fe/H] values continues the trend uncovered in previous studies
in that stars hosting planetary companions have a higher mean value than
otherwise similar nearby stars. We also investigate the relationship between
stellar mass and the presence of giant planets and find statistically marginal
but suggestive evidence of a decrease in the incidence of radial velocity
companions orbiting relatively less massive stars. If confirmed with larger
samples, this would represent a critical constraint to both planetary formation
models as well as to estimates of the distribution of planetary systems in our
galaxy.Comment: 27 pages, 13 figures. Accepted for publication in The Astronomical
Journa
Chronicles of hypoxia: Time-series buoy observations reveal annually recurring seasonal basin-wide hypoxia in Muskegon Lake – A Great Lakes estuary
We chronicled the seasonally recurring hypolimnetic hypoxia in Muskegon Lake – a Great Lakes estuary over 3 years, and examined its causes and consequences. Muskegon Lake is a mesotrophic drowned river mouth that drains Michigan\u27s 2nd largest watershed into Lake Michigan. A buoy observatory tracked ecosystem changes in the Muskegon Lake Area of Concern (AOC), gathering vital time-series data on the lake\u27s water quality from early summer through late fall from 2011 to 2013 (www.gvsu.edu/buoy). Observatory-based measurements of dissolved oxygen (DO) tracked the gradual development, intensification and breakdown of hypoxia (mild hypoxia b4 mg DO/L, and severe hypoxia b2 mg DO/L) below the ~6 m thermocline in the lake, occurring in synchrony with changes in temperature and phytoplankton biomass in the water column during July–October. Time-series data suggest that proximal causes of the observed seasonal hypolimnetic DO dynamics are stratified summer water-column, reduced wind-driven mixing, longer summer residence time, episodic intrusions of cold DO-rich nearshore Lake Michigan water, nutrient run off from watershed, and phytoplankton blooms. Additional basin-wide water-column profiling (2011–2012) and ship-based seasonal surveys (2003–2013) confirmed that bottom water hypoxia is an annually recurring lake-wide condition. Volumetric hypolimnetic oxygen demand was high (0.07–0.15 mg DO/Liter/day) and comparable to other temperate eutrophic lakes. Over 3 years of intense monitoring, ~9–24% of Muskegon Lake\u27s volume experienced hypoxia for ~29–85 days/year – with the potential for hypolimnetic habitat degradation and sediment phosphorus release leading to further eutrophication. Thus, time-series observatories can provide penetrating insights into the inner workings of ecosystems and their external drivers
New genetic loci link adipose and insulin biology to body fat distribution.
Body fat distribution is a heritable trait and a well-established predictor of adverse metabolic outcomes, independent of overall adiposity. To increase our understanding of the genetic basis of body fat distribution and its molecular links to cardiometabolic traits, here we conduct genome-wide association meta-analyses of traits related to waist and hip circumferences in up to 224,459 individuals. We identify 49 loci (33 new) associated with waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for body mass index (BMI), and an additional 19 loci newly associated with related waist and hip circumference measures (P < 5 × 10(-8)). In total, 20 of the 49 waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for BMI loci show significant sexual dimorphism, 19 of which display a stronger effect in women. The identified loci were enriched for genes expressed in adipose tissue and for putative regulatory elements in adipocytes. Pathway analyses implicated adipogenesis, angiogenesis, transcriptional regulation and insulin resistance as processes affecting fat distribution, providing insight into potential pathophysiological mechanisms
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