Evaluations and Enhancements in 802.11n WLANs – Error-Sensitive Adaptive Frame Aggregation

IEEE 802.11n is a developing next-generation standard for wireless local area network (LAN). Seamless multimedia traffic connection will become possible with the 802.11n improvement in the Physical and MAC layer. The new 802.11n frame aggregation technique is particularly important for enhancing MAC layer efficiency under high speed wireless LAN. Although the frame aggregation can increase the efficiency in the MAC layer, it does not provide good performance in high BER channels when using large frame aggregation size. An Optimal Frame Aggregation (OFA) technique for AMSDU frame under different BERs in 802.11n WLANs was proposed. However, the suggested algorithm does not take into account the loss rate and the delay performance requirements for Voice or Video multimedia traffic in various BER channels. The optimal frame size can provide good throughput in the network, but the delay might exceed the Quality of Service (QoS) requirement of Voice traffic or the Frame-Error-Rate (FER) might exceed the maximum loss rate tolerable by the streaming Video traffic. We propose an Error- Sensitive Adaptive Frame Aggregation (ESAFA) scheme which can dynamically set the size of AMSDU frame based on the maximum Frame-Error-Rate (FER) tolerable by a particular multimedia traffic. The simulations show that our adaptive algorithm outperforms the optimal frame algorithm by improving both the delay and the loss rate in the 802.11n WLANs. The measured FER of the Error-Sensitive Adaptive Frame Aggregation scheme can be kept at about the same as the loss rate requirement for Video traffic even under high Bit-Error-Rate (BER) channel. The delay compared to OFA is also decreased by around 50% under different channel conditions. Moreover, the results show that the Error-Sensitive Adaptive Frame Aggregation scheme works particularly well in error-prone wireless networks

Perceived marital quality and stability of intermarried couples: a study of Asian-white, Black-white, and Mexican-white couples

Journal ArticleThe purpose of this study is to compare intermarried and intramarried couples with respect to their marital happiness and perceived marital stability White, black, Mexican, or Asian spouses in black-white, Mexican-white or Asian-white unions were compared to intramarried couples based on data from the 1988 National Survey of Families and Households. The final sample included 4,522 married couples. The results suggest that differences in marital happiness and perceived stability between intermarried and intramarried couples vary by race/ethnicity and gender. Our findings indicate that only interracially married white females reported significantly lower marital happiness and stability than their intramarried counterparts. Conversely, spouses in Mexican male-white female and white male-Asian female unions reported significantly higher marital quality and/or stability than their white counterparts

Application of continuous processing in cell and gene therapy: Current state and future opportunities

For CAR-T and autologous ex vivo gene therapies, cells are first collected from patients via apheresis, modified ex vivo with lentiviral vector (LVV) or other gene addition/gene editing methods, expanded in culture, and frozen as a living drug product. With the rapid growth of the cell and gene therapy field, the demand for LVV has increased exponentially. Current LVV production methods using transient transfection are robust but will ultimately be constrained volumetrically and temporally. To overcome these constraints, an alternative production process using stable clonal cell lines may be required to meet future demand. Stable producer cell lines will enable multi-day, continuous and scalable lentiviral vector production. The drug product manufacturing processes for autologous therapies present an ideal opportunity for continuous manufacturing, going beyond decentralized manufacturing to point-of-care or even bedside manufacturing. This presentation will provide an overview of our efforts to advance continuous bioprocessing for LVV and the challenges and opportunities of beside manufacturing for autologous gene therapy products

Hawai‘i Avocado Industry Analysis, Part 1: Supply Focus

This report describes production trends and the current situation in terms of the industry structure, identifies unique features of the Hawai‘i avocado industry in terms of the varieties available and grown, evaluates how growers have been responding to the increasing demand, and presents opportunities and suggestions for expansion for Hawai‘i avocado growers

Engineered Viral Vectors and Developed Tissue Clearing Methods for Single-cell Phenotyping in Whole Organs

A central question in biology is how different cell types interact with each other and their native environment to form complex functional systems and networks. Although our ability to investigate this question has considerably expanded from the development of genetically encoded tools, some limitations still persist. For instance, we are limited in our ability to visualize the native three dimensional environments of whole organs. Additionally, it is challenging to efficiently deliver transgenes into difficult-to-target areas through direct-injections, such as the cardiac ganglia, or broadly distributed networks, such as the myenteric nervous system, which limits our ability to extensively study these areas. Therefore, tools and methods that overcome these limitations are needed. Towards this end, my thesis work has been focused on developing tools for single-cell resolution phenotyping in whole organs. I have been developing tissue clearing technologies to render whole organs transparent for optical interrogation and characterizing viral capsids and engineering viral vectors for noninvasive widespread gene delivery to the central and peripheral nervous system. Tissue clearing techniques for three dimensional optical interrogation were invented over a century ago. However, these earlier methods used harsh organic chemicals and failed to retain the tissue’s native fluorescence or epitopes. These earlier methods eventually became incompatible to the hundreds of newly generated transgenic mouse lines that allowed for cell type-specific expression of fluorescent transgenes or to fluorescent labeling techniques, such as immunohistochemistry (IHC). The first part of my dissertation is aimed at addressing these limitations by further developing and standardizing a tissue clearing method that utilizes the vasculature to perfuse clearing reagents. This technique, called perfusion assisted agent release in situ (PARS) enables (i) whole organ clearing of soft tissue, (ii) preservation of native fluorescence, and (iii) preservation of epitopes compatible with IHC. Although PARS allows us to optically investigate whole soft tissue organs, it is unsuitable for clearing bone tissue. The clearing of bone is important as it may provide optical access to delicate environments, such as the lymphatic vessels lining the dural sinuses beneath the skull that would otherwise be damaged through traditional methods. However, clearing bone tissue is challenging since it is composed of both soft (bone marrow) and hard (mineral) tissue. To overcome this challenge, I developed a clearing method that rendered intact bone tissue transparent by using EDTA to decalcify bones and by constructing a convective flow chamber to efficiently clear bones. This method, called Bone CLARITY, is able to preserve native fluorescence and epitopes. In order to demonstrate the utility of Bone CLARITY, I collaborated with colleagues to quantitatively access a rare and non-uniformly distributed population of osteoprogenitor cells in their native three dimensional environment. Bone CLARITY in conjunction with light-sheet microscope enabled the early detection of an increase to this osteoprogenitor population after administration of a novel anabolic drug, which may have been undetected with traditional techniques. Towards my second goal, I have been working on characterizing adeno-associated viruses (AAVs) for non-invasive widespread gene delivery across the central or peripheral nervous system. Through systemic delivery, these novel AAVs are able to efficiently deliver transgenes to (i) difficult-to-target areas, such as the dorsal root ganglia; (ii) cellular populations that are widely distributed across the mouse body, such as neurons in the myenteric nervous system, and (iii) through highly selective barriers, such as the blood-brain barrier. These viruses enable rapid expression of transgenes for perturbing and monitoring cellular circuits, or for potentially treating neurological diseases. In addition, I worked on engineering or validating several different gene regulatory elements to achieve cell type restricted expression in transgenic and non-transgenic animals with AAVs. These viral vectors may prove useful in rapidly testing newly developed genetic tools. Finally, I developed and characterized two different two-component viral vector systems to control the density of labeling when systemically delivering genes with our novel engineered viruses. I utilized this two-component system to perform single-cell morphology studies in the CNS and PNS. Collectively, these capsids and vectors expand the AAV toolbox and enable efficient and versatile gene delivery into the CNS and PNS of transgenic and non-transgenic animals.</p

Software de laboratorio para el diseño, implementación y operación de controladores PIDs

En el laboratorio de Ingeniería de Sistemas y Automática de la sede Mergelina de la EII se dispone de varias plantas piloto con distintos objetivos de control, todas ellas instrumentadas y conectadas a ordenadores personales para su supervisión y control. Para el desarrollo de este proyecto se ha dispuesto de una planta de control de nivel de agua de un depósito y la plataforma de desarrollo de software LabView de National Instruments. El objetivo del proyecto se basa en el desarrollo de un software que permita el diseño, implementación y operación de PIDs contemplando todas las etapas de diseño y estableciendo la comunicación con la planta a través del estándar OPC. Con todo ello el alumno podrá realizar prácticas para el desarrollo de sus conocimientos en automática referente a estudios en lazo abierto, lazo cerrado y cálculos de los parámetros de un PID de manera experimental.Departamento de Ingeniería de Sistemas y AutomáticaGrado en Ingeniería en Electrónica Industrial y Automátic

Intangible value in preserving the Sports Arenas

The UEFA European Championship (Euro) is among the world's most important sporting events staged nowadays. Apart from tremendous excitement among football fans, such a major event has a number of other implications, above all of economic nature. This is due to the necessity of preparing suitable infrastructural base, increase tourist traffic, potentially greater demand for labour etc. Despite growing interest in the staging of such events, the literature does not provide a straight answer as to the economic grounds for the submission of bids. This study, as one of the few concerned with the Polish circumstances, is intended to determine what significance should be attributed to stage the Euro 2012 in one of Polish host city. The aim of this study is to estimate the willingness-to-pay (WTP) among the community of the Pomeranian region, in connection with intangible benefits and costs stemming from hosting the Euro 2012 in Gdansk. A survey conducted among 407 respondents was the source of information. The results of the study show that the average value of WTPbenefit for the whole sample was 45,72 PLN2012 and WTPcost was 3,86 PLN2012. The aggregate values for the whole region was in terms of benefits and costs 396,6 million PLN2012 and 33,49 million PLN2012 respectively. The results thus confirm the existence of both intangible benefits and costs associated with the event. However, it should be noted that the importance of the net benefits is insignificant and does not compensate for the massive expenditure from public sources

Intangible value in preserving the Sports Arenas

The UEFA European Championship (Euro) is among the world's most important sporting events staged nowadays. Apart from tremendous excitement among football fans, such a major event has a number of other implications, above all of economic nature. This is due to the necessity of preparing suitable infrastructural base, increase tourist traffic, potentially greater demand for labour etc. Despite growing interest in the staging of such events, the literature does not provide a straight answer as to the economic grounds for the submission of bids. This study, as one of the few concerned with the Polish circumstances, is intended to determine what significance should be attributed to stage the Euro 2012 in one of Polish host city. The aim of this study is to estimate the willingness-to-pay (WTP) among the community of the Pomeranian region, in connection with intangible benefits and costs stemming from hosting the Euro 2012 in Gdansk. A survey conducted among 407 respondents was the source of information. The results of the study show that the average value of WTPbenefit for the whole sample was 45,72 PLN2012 and WTPcost was 3,86 PLN2012. The aggregate values for the whole region was in terms of benefits and costs 396,6 million PLN2012 and 33,49 million PLN2012 respectively. The results thus confirm the existence of both intangible benefits and costs associated with the event. However, it should be noted that the importance of the net benefits is insignificant and does not compensate for the massive expenditure from public sources