Jamming Transition of Point-to-Point Traffic Through Cooperative Mechanisms

We study the jamming transition of two-dimensional point-to-point traffic through cooperative mechanisms using computer simulation. We propose two decentralized cooperative mechanisms which are incorporated into the point-to-point traffic models: stepping aside (CM-SA) and choosing alternative routes (CM-CAR). Incorporating CM-SA is to prevent a type of ping-pong jumps from happening when two objects standing face-to-face want to move in opposite directions. Incorporating CM-CAR is to handle the conflict when more than one object competes for the same point in parallel update. We investigate and compare four models mainly from fundamental diagrams, jam patterns and the distribution of cooperation probability. It is found that although it decreases the average velocity a little, the CM-SA increases the critical density and the average flow. Despite increasing the average velocity, the CM-CAR decreases the average flow by creating substantially vacant areas inside jam clusters. We investigate the jam patterns of four models carefully and explain this result qualitatively. In addition, we discuss the advantage and applicability of decentralized cooperation modeling.Comment: 17 pages, 14 figure

Brown Adipose Tissue Can Be Activated or Inhibited within an Hour before 18F-FDG Injection: A Preliminary Study with MicroPET

Brown adipose tissue (BAT) is emerging as a potential target for treating human obesity. It has been indicated that BAT is rich in innervations of sympathetic nerve control. Using 18F-FDG microPET imaging, this study aims at evaluating how factors related to sympathetic activation/inhibition changed BAT metabolism of mice. BAT 18F-FDG uptake were semiquantitatively evaluated in different groups of mice under temperature (cold or warm stimulus) or pharmacological interventions (norepinephrine, epinephrine, isoprenaline, or propranolol) and were compared with the corresponding controls. It was found that BAT activation can be stimulated by cold exposure (P = 1.96 × 10−4), norepinephrine (P = .002), or both (P = 2.19 × 10−6) within an hour before 18F-FDG injection and can also be alleviated by warming up (P = .001) or propranolol lavage (P = .027). This preliminary study indicated that BAT function could be evaluated by 18F-FDG PET imaging through short-term interventions, which paved the way for further investigation of the relationship between human obesity and BAT dysfunction

Bayesian Inference of Spatial Organizations of Chromosomes

Knowledge of spatial chromosomal organizations is critical for the study of transcriptional regulation and other nuclear processes in the cell. Recently, chromosome conformation capture (3C) based technologies, such as Hi-C and TCC, have been developed to provide a genome-wide, three-dimensional (3D) view of chromatin organization. Appropriate methods for analyzing these data and fully characterizing the 3D chromosomal structure and its structural variations are still under development. Here we describe a novel Bayesian probabilistic approach, denoted as “Bayesian 3D constructor for Hi-C data” (BACH), to infer the consensus 3D chromosomal structure. In addition, we describe a variant algorithm BACH-MIX to study the structural variations of chromatin in a cell population. Applying BACH and BACH-MIX to a high resolution Hi-C dataset generated from mouse embryonic stem cells, we found that most local genomic regions exhibit homogeneous 3D chromosomal structures. We further constructed a model for the spatial arrangement of chromatin, which reveals structural properties associated with euchromatic and heterochromatic regions in the genome. We observed strong associations between structural properties and several genomic and epigenetic features of the chromosome. Using BACH-MIX, we further found that the structural variations of chromatin are correlated with these genomic and epigenetic features. Our results demonstrate that BACH and BACH-MIX have the potential to provide new insights into the chromosomal architecture of mammalian cells.Statistic

Effect of Silicon Addition on High-Temperature Solid Particle Erosion-Wear Behaviour of Mullite-SiC Composite Refractories Prepared by Nitriding Reactive

Solid particle erosion-wear experiments on as-prepared mullite-SiC composite refractories by nitriding reactive sintering were performed at elevated temperatures, using sharp black SiC abrasive particles at an impact speed of 50 m/s and the impact angle of 90° in the air atmosphere. The effects of silicon powder addition and erosion temperature on the erosion-wear resistance of mullite-SiC composite refractories were studied. The test results reveal that Si powders caused nitriding reaction to form β-sialon whiskers in the matrix of mullite-SiC composite refractories. The erosion-wear resistance of mullite-SiC composite refractories was improved with the increase of silicon powder addition and erosion temperature, and the minimum volume erosion rate was under the condition of 12% silicon added and a temperature of 1400°C. The major erosion-wear mechanisms of mullite-SiC composite refractories were brittle erosion at the erosion temperature from room temperature to 1000°C and then plastic deformation from 1200°C to 1400°C

Low-Protein Diet Supplemented with Keto Acids Is Associated with Suppression of Small-Solute Peritoneal Transport Rate in Peritoneal Dialysis Patients

Objective. We investigate whether low-protein diet would show benefits in suppressing peritoneal transport rate in peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients. Methods. This is a supplemented analysis of our previously published trial, which randomized 60 PD patients to receive low- (LP: dietary protein intake of 0.6–0.8 g/kg/d), keto-acid-supplemented low- (sLP: 0.6–0.8 g/kg/d with 0.12 g/kg/d of keto acids), or high- (HP: 1.0–1.2 g/kg/d) protein diet and lasted for one year. In this study, the variations of peritoneal transport rate were assessed. Results. While baseline D/Pcr (dialysate-to-plasma concentration ratio for creatinine at 4 hour) and D/D0glu (dialysate glucose at 4 hour to baseline dialysate glucose concentration ratio) were similar, D/Pcr in group sLP was lower, and D/D0glu was higher than those in the other two groups (P < 0.05) at 12th month. D/D0glu increased (P < 0.05), and D/Pcr tended to decrease, (P = 0.071) in group sLP. Conclusions. Low-protein diet with keto acids may benefit PD patients by maintaining peritoneum at a lower transport rate

Si 3

Si3N4-SiCp composites reinforced by in situ catalytic formed nanofibers were prepared at a relatively low sintering temperature. The effects of catalyst Co on the phase compositions, microstructures, and physicochemical-mechanical properties of samples sintered at 1350°C–1450°C were investigated. The results showed that the catalyst Co enhanced the nitridation of Si. With the increase of Co addition (from 0 wt% to 2.0 wt.%), the apparent porosity of as-prepared refractories was initially decreased and subsequently increased, while the bulk density and the bending strength exhibited an opposite trend. The Si3N4-SiCp composites sintered at 1400°C had the highest strength of 60.2 MPa when the Co content was 0.5 wt.%. The catalyst Co facilitated the sintering of Si3N4-SiCp composites as well as the formation of Si3N4 nanofibers which exhibited network connection and could improve their strength