Comparison of two efficient methods for calculating partition functions

In the long-time pursuit of the solution to calculate the partition function (or free energy) of condensed matter, Monte-Carlo-based nested sampling should be the state-of-the-art method, and very recently, we established a direct integral approach that works at least four orders faster. In present work, the above two methods were applied to solid argon at temperatures up to $300$K, and the derived internal energy and pressure were compared with the molecular dynamics simulation as well as experimental measurements, showing that the calculation precision of our approach is about 10 times higher than that of the nested sampling method.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figure

Comparison of two efficient methods for calculating partition functions

In the long-time pursuit of the solution to calculate the partition function (or free energy) of condensed matter, Monte-Carlo-based nested sampling should be the state-of-the-art method, and very recently, we established a direct integral approach that works at least four orders faster. In present work, the above two methods were applied to solid argon at temperatures up to $300$K, and the derived internal energy and pressure were compared with the molecular dynamics simulation as well as experimental measurements, showing that the calculation precision of our approach is about 10 times higher than that of the nested sampling method.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figure

The effect of gas plasma irradiation on the dehulling and resulting chemical and physical properties of soybeans

A study was made to ascertain the chemical and physical changes and the amount of dehulling induced by varying the electrical current in the gas plasma irradiation of two varieties of soybeans. Moisture content, the amount of cracked beans and the amount of dehulling were determined on samples treated with 0, 40, 80, and 120 milliampers (ma.) and on the control. Crude lipids, total and water soluble proteins, trypsin inhibitor activity of soybeans and the iodine and peroxide numbers of soybean oil were determined on samples treated with 40 and 120 ma. and on the control. The results of the experiment showed that gas plasma irradiation increased the number of cracked beans and improved the dehulling effect of soybeans. The treatment resulted in a loss of moisture and weight in the soybeans. Gas plasma irradiation increased the water sorption of the soybean. However, deformation and fragility were found in the soaked beans. At the lower treatment level (40 ma.), no change was found in the extractability of lipids and total and soluble protein contents in the soybeans. No difference was found in iodine and peroxide numbers of the oil from the soybeans at the two treatment levels (40 and 120 ma.). Slight decrease in extractability of lipids and total protein content were found in beans treated with 120 ma. Higher treatment intensity (120 ma.) resulted in a destruction of protein; there was both a lower soluble protein content and less trypsin inhibitor in the soybean extracts. The changes induced by the gas plasma irradiation in the Soylima beans were more manifest than that in the Lee soybeans, and the degree of changes increased as the treatment energy level was raised

Providing Goal-Based Autonomy for Commanding a Spacecraft

A computer program for use aboard a scientific-exploration spacecraft autonomously selects among goals specified in high-level requests and generates corresponding sequences of low-level commands, understandable by spacecraft systems. (As used here, 'goals' signifies specific scientific observations.) From a dynamic, onboard set of goals that could oversubscribe spacecraft resources, the program selects a non-oversubscribing subset that maximizes a quality metric. In an early version of the program, the requested goals are assumed to have fixed starting times and durations. Goals can conflict by exceeding a limit on either the number of separate goals or the number of overlapping goals making demands on the same resource. The quality metric used in this version is chosen to ensure that a goal will never be replaced by another having lower priority. At any time, goals can be added or removed, or their priorities can be changed, and the 'best' goal will be selected. Once a goal has been selected, the program implements a robust, flexible approach to generation of low-level commands: Rather than generate rigid sequences with fixed starting times, the program specifies flexible sequences that can be altered to accommodate run time variations

Accounting harmonization in China - A comparison of A-share and H-share reported earnings

This study provides a comprehensive assessment of the harmonization of Chinese GAAP (2006) with IAS, and focuses on the earning gap differences based on industry categorization. We summary the main findings in our researches: (1)The research result of 2006 was consistent with the prior study that Chinese GAAP based net income was lower than IFRS based net income. (2)Our research finding for 2007 that the earning gaps were eliminated notably as the advent of new Chinese GAAP was supported by our descriptive statistics (3)Under the industry classification, our findings are both supported by the figure description and descriptive statistics with the conclusions that different industry has different level of convergence with IAS. (4)Under the research of accounting items in each industry for data analysis, we found out that the earning gaps between Chinese GAAP and IAS are caused form the environmental factors such as government regulation and industry characteristics in China. We would conclude that the new Chinese GAAP has been converged with IAS in a certain high degree, even though there might be some convergence spaces between these two standards, the accounting differences would not be fully erased due to the national regulations and industry features

Selenium in the Prevention and Treatment of Hepatocellular Carcinoma: From Biomedical Investigation to Clinical Application

Selenium is a micronutrient that had been suggested to reduce the risk of cancer. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), a prevalent disease and one of the most lethal cancers in the world, awaits new alternative treatment strategies to improve patients’ survival. As an essential trace element, selenium has been studied for its anticancer properties in both oxidative stress and inflammatory-related mechanisms that may contribute to HCC growth and metastasis. In recent decades, increasing studies have investigated the potential role of selenium in liver cancer involving several major cancer-associated signaling pathways, metabolic pathways, and antioxidant defense systems both in vitro and in preclinical models. It was also observed that there was an increase in the trend of development of novel selenium nanoparticles and selenium-containing inhibitors aiming to improve the therapeutic efficacy and relative potency of selenium. However, controversies remain with whether a relationship exists between serum selenium level and HCC risk. This chapter aims to summarize the multi-target and multi-pathway in vitro and in vivo pharmacological effects of selenium in HCC, to provide a more comprehensive view and to highlight the recently discovered molecular mechanisms We hope this chapter could outline the correlation of selenium level and the risk of HCC in patients and discuss the clinical application of selenium in HCC prevention and treatment

Melatonin Therapy Prevents Programmed Hypertension and Nitric Oxide Deficiency in Offspring Exposed to Maternal Caloric Restriction

Nitric oxide (NO) deficiency is involved in the development of hypertension, a condition that can originate early in life. We examined whether NO deficiency contributed to programmed hypertension in offspring from mothers with calorie-restricted diets and whether melatonin therapy prevented this process. We examined 3-month-old male rat offspring from four maternal groups: untreated controls, 50% calorie-restricted (CR) rats, controls treated with melatonin (0.01% in drinking water), and CR rats treated with melatonin (CR + M). The effect of melatonin on nephrogenesis was analyzed using next-generation sequencing. The CR group developed hypertension associated with elevated plasma asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA, a nitric oxide synthase inhibitor), decreased L-arginine, decreased L-arginine-to-ADMA ratio (AAR), and decreased renal NO production. Maternal melatonin treatment prevented these effects. Melatonin prevented CR-induced renin and prorenin receptor expression. Renal angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 protein levels in the M and CR + M groups were also significantly increased by melatonin therapy. Maternal melatonin therapy had long-term epigenetic effects on global gene expression in the kidneys of offspring. Conclusively, we attributed these protective effects of melatonin on CR-induced programmed hypertension to the reduction of plasma ADMA, restoration of plasma AAR, increase of renal NO level, alteration of renin-angiotensin system, and epigenetic changes in numerous genes