Modelling mechanical percolation in graphene-reinforced elastomer nanocomposites

Graphene is considered an ideal filler for the production of multifunctional nanocomposites; as a result, considerable efforts have been focused on the evaluation and modeling of its reinforcement characteristics. In this work, we modelled successfully the mechanical percolation phenomenon, observed on a thermoplastic elastomer (TPE) reinforced by graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs), by designing a new set of equations for filler contents below and above the percolation threshold volume fraction (Vp). The proposed micromechanical model is based on a combination of the well-established shear-lag theory and the rule-of-mixtures and was introduced to analyse the different stages and mechanisms of mechanical reinforcement. It was found that when the GNPs content is below Vp, reinforcement originates from the inherent ability of individual GNPs flakes to transfer stress efficiently. Furthermore, at higher filler contents and above Vp, the nanocomposite materials displayed accelerated stiffening due to the reduction of the distance between adjacent flakes. The model derived herein, was consistent with the experimental data and the reasons why the superlative properties of graphene cannot be fully utilized in this type of composites, were discussed in depth.Comment: 29 pages, 12 figure

EFFECTS OF TRYING TO GAIN DISTANCE ON GOLF DRIVING TECHNIQUE

Previous biomechanical research of the golf swing has shown segment separation of the shoulders and hips aids ball velocity. The purpose of the current study was to examine how the swing may differ when “trying” to gain extra distance in a game specific situation and whether an increase in launch velocity was achievable. A single subject design was employed with kinematic data (200 Hz) and ball characteristics collected using Trackman Pro launch monitor (ISG A/S, Denmark). Segment separation of the shoulder and hips (X-Factor and X-Factor stretch) and maximum endpoint velocity of the left hip, shoulder and elbow showed a significant difference between conditions, although mean launch velocity did not. This finding shows although the subject was able to produce greater endpoint velocity, performance improvement did not occur

Development and validation of a robust automated analysis of plasma phospholipid fatty acids for metabolic phenotyping of large epidemiological studies.

A fully automated, high-throughput method was developed to profile the fatty acids of phospholipids from human plasma samples for application to a large epidemiological sample set (n > 25,000). We report here on the data obtained for the quality-control materials used with the first 860 batches, and the validation process used. The method consists of two robotic systems combined with gas chromatography, performing lipid extraction, phospholipid isolation, hydrolysis and derivatization to fatty-acid methyl esters, and on-line analysis. This is the first report showing that fatty-acid profiling is an achievable strategy for metabolic phenotyping in very large epidemiological and genetic studies.RIGHTS : This article is licensed under the BioMed Central licence at http://www.biomedcentral.com/about/license which is similar to the 'Creative Commons Attribution Licence'. In brief you may : copy, distribute, and display the work; make derivative works; or make commercial use of the work - under the following conditions: the original author must be given credit; for any reuse or distribution, it must be made clear to others what the license terms of this work are

High yield production of a soluble human interleukin-3 variant from E. coli with wild-type bioactivity and improved radiolabeling properties

Human interleukin-3 (hIL-3) is a polypeptide growth factor that regulates the proliferation, differentiation, survival and function of hematopoietic progenitors and many mature blood cell lineages. Although recombinant hIL-3 is a widely used laboratory reagent in hematology, standard methods for its preparation, including those employed by commercial suppliers, remain arduous owing to a reliance on refolding insoluble protein expressed in E. coli. In addition, wild-type hIL-3 is a poor substrate for radio-iodination, which has been a long-standing hindrance to its use in receptor binding assays. To overcome these problems, we developed a method for expression of hIL-3 in E. coli as a soluble protein, with typical yields of >3mg of purified hIL-3 per litre of shaking microbial culture. Additionally, we introduced a non-native tyrosine residue into our hIL-3 analog, which allowed radio-iodination to high specific activities for receptor binding studies whilst not compromising bioactivity. The method presented herein provides a cost-effective and convenient route to milligram quantities of a hIL-3 analog with wild-type bioactivity that, unlike wild-type hIL‑3, can be efficiently radio-iodinated for receptor binding studies

Cognitive Information Processing

Contains reports on six research projects.National Institutes of Health (Grant 1 PO1 GM-14940-01)National Institutes of Health (Grant 1 PO1 GM-15006-01)Joint Services Electronics Programs (U. S. Army, U. S. Navy, and U. S. Air Force) under Contract DA 28-043-AMC-02536(E)Project MAC, an M. I. T. research programAdvanced Research Projects Agency, Department of Defense, under Office of Naval Research Contract Nonr-4102-(01

Model-Based Occupant Tracking Using Slab-Vibration Measurements

Sensor-based occupant tracking has the potential to enhance knowledge of the utilization of buildings. Occupancy-tracking strategies using footstep-induced floor vibrations may be beneficial for thermal-load prediction, security enhancement, and care-giving without undermining privacy. Current floor-vibration-based occupant-tracking methodologies are based on data-driven techniques that do not include a physics-based model of the structural behavior of the floor slab. These techniques suffer from ambiguous interpretations when signals are affected by complex configurations of structural and non-structural elements such as beams and walls. Using a physics-based model for data-interpretation enables deployment of sparse number of sensors in contexts of non-uniform structural configurations. In this paper, an application of physics-based data interpretation using error-domain model falsification (EDMF) is presented to track an occupant within an office environment through footstep-induced floor vibrations. EDMF is a population-based approach that incorporates various sources of uncertainty, including bias, arising from measurements and modeling. EDMF involves the rejection of simulated model responses that contradict footstep-induced floor vibration measurements. Thus, EDMF provides a set of candidate locations from an initial population of possible occupant locations. A sequential analysis that accommodates information from previous footsteps is then used to enhance candidate locations and identify trajectories among candidates. In this way, incorporating structural behavior in interpreting vibration measurements induced by occupant footsteps has the potential to identify accurately the trajectory of an occupant in buildings with complex configurations, thereby providing tracking information without undermining privacy

Cognitive Information Processing

Contains reports on seven research projects.National Institutes of Health (Grant 5 POI GM14940-03)National Institutes of Health (Grant 5 P01 GM15006-02)Joint Services Electronics Programs (U. S. Army, U.S. Navy, and U. S. Air Force) under Contract DA 28-043-AMC-02536(E

Operator renewal theory and mixing rates for dynamical systems with infinite measure

We develop a theory of operator renewal sequences in the context of infinite ergodic theory. For large classes of dynamical systems preserving an infinite measure, we determine the asymptotic behaviour of iterates $L^n$ of the transfer operator. This was previously an intractable problem. Examples of systems covered by our results include (i) parabolic rational maps of the complex plane and (ii) (not necessarily Markovian) nonuniformly expanding interval maps with indifferent fixed points. In addition, we give a particularly simple proof of pointwise dual ergodicity (asymptotic behaviour of $\sum_{j=1}^nL^j$) for the class of systems under consideration. In certain situations, including Pomeau-Manneville intermittency maps, we obtain higher order expansions for $L^n$ and rates of mixing. Also, we obtain error estimates in the associated Dynkin-Lamperti arcsine laws.Comment: Preprint, August 2010. Revised August 2011. After publication, a minor error was pointed out by Kautzsch et al, arXiv:1404.5857. The updated version includes minor corrections in Sections 10 and 11, and corresponding modifications of certain statements in Section 1. All main results are unaffected. In particular, Sections 2-9 are unchanged from the published versio

Little evidence for association between the TGFBR1*6A variant and colorectal cancer: a family-based association study on non-syndromic family members from Australia and Spain.

Genome-wide linkage studies have identified the 9q22 chromosomal region as linked with colorectal cancer (CRC) predisposition. A candidate gene in this region is transforming growth factor beta receptor 1 (TGFBR1). Investigation of TGFBR1 has focused on the common genetic variant rs11466445, a short exonic deletion of nine base pairs which results in truncation of a stretch of nine alanine residues to six alanine residues in the gene product. While the six alanine (*6A) allele has been reported to be associated with increased risk of CRC in some population based study groups this association remains the subject of robust debate. To date, reports have been limited to population-based case-control association studies, or case-control studies of CRC families selecting one affected individual per family. No study has yet taken advantage of all the genetic information provided by multiplex CRC families. Methods: We have tested for an association between rs11466445 and risk of CRC using several family-based statistical tests in a new study group comprising members of non-syndromic high risk CRC families sourced from three familial cancer centres, two in Australia and one in Spain. Results: We report a finding of a nominally significant result using the pedigree-based association test approach (PBAT; p = 0.028), while other family-based tests were non-significant, but with a p-value < 0.10 in each instance. These other tests included the Generalised Disequilibrium Test (GDT; p = 0.085), parent of origin GDT Generalised Disequilibrium Test (GDT-PO; p = 0.081) and empirical Family-Based Association Test (FBAT; p = 0.096, additive model). Related-person case-control testing using the 'More Powerful' Quasi-Likelihood Score Test did not provide any evidence for association (M-QL5; p = 0.41). Conclusions: After conservatively taking into account considerations for multiple hypothesis testing, we find little evidence for an association between the TGFBR1*6A allele and CRC risk in these families. The weak support for an increase in risk in CRC predisposed families is in agreement with recent meta-analyses of case-control studies, which estimate only a modest increase in sporadic CRC risk among 6*A allele carriers

Model-Based Occupant Tracking Using Slab-Vibration Measurements

Sensor-based occupant tracking has the potential to enhance knowledge of the utilization of buildings. Occupancy-tracking strategies using footstep-induced floor vibrations may be beneficial for thermal-load prediction, security enhancement, and care-giving without undermining privacy. Current floor-vibration-based occupant-tracking methodologies are based on data-driven techniques that do not include a physics-based model of the structural behavior of the floor slab. These techniques suffer from ambiguous interpretations when signals are affected by complex configurations of structural and non-structural elements such as beams and walls. Using a physics-based model for data-interpretation enables deployment of sparse number of sensors in contexts of non-uniform structural configurations. In this paper, an application of physics-based data interpretation using error-domain model falsification (EDMF) is presented to track an occupant within an office environment through footstep-induced floor vibrations. EDMF is a population-based approach that incorporates various sources of uncertainty, including bias, arising from measurements and modeling. EDMF involves the rejection of simulated model responses that contradict footstep-induced floor vibration measurements. Thus, EDMF provides a set of candidate locations from an initial population of possible occupant locations. A sequential analysis that accommodates information from previous footsteps is then used to enhance candidate locations and identify trajectories among candidates. In this way, incorporating structural behavior in interpreting vibration measurements induced by occupant footsteps has the potential to identify accurately the trajectory of an occupant in buildings with complex configurations, thereby providing tracking information without undermining privacy