Guaranteed Bounds for General Nondiscrete Multistage Risk-Averse Stochastic Optimization Programs

In general, multistage stochastic optimization problems are formulated on the basis of continuous distributions describing the uncertainty. Such “infinite” problems are practically impossible to solve as they are formulated, and finite tree approximations of the underlying stochastic processes are used as proxies. In this paper, we demonstrate how one can find guaranteed bounds, i.e., finite tree models, for which the optimal values give upper and lower bounds for the optimal value of the original infinite problem. Typically, there is a gap between the two bounds. However, this gap can be made arbitrarily small by making the approximating trees bushier. We consider approximations in the first-order stochastic sense, in the convex-order sense, and based on subgradient approximations. Their use is shown in a multistage risk-averse production problem

Velocity, energy and helicity of vortex knots and unknots

In this paper we determine the velocity, the energy and estimate writhe and twist helicity contributions of vortex filaments in the shape of torus knots and unknots (toroidal and poloidal coils) in a perfect fluid. Calculations are performed by numerical integration of the Biot-Savart law. Vortex complexity is parametrized by the winding number $w$, given by the ratio of the number of meridian wraps to that of the longitudinal wraps. We find that for $w<1$ vortex knots and toroidal coils move faster and carry more energy than a reference vortex ring of same size and circulation, whereas for $w>1$ knots and poloidal coils have approximately same speed and energy of the reference vortex ring. Helicity is dominated by the writhe contribution. Finally, we confirm the stabilizing effect of the Biot-Savart law for all knots and unknots tested, that are found to be structurally stable over a distance of several diameters. Our results also apply to quantized vortices in superfluid $^4$He.Comment: 17 pages, 8 figures, 2 table

Novel Scintillating Materials Based on Phenyl-Polysiloxane for Neutron Detection and Monitoring

Neutron detectors are extensively used at many nuclear research facilities across Europe. Their application range covers many topics in basic and applied nuclear research: in nuclear structure and reaction dynamics (reaction reconstruction and decay studies); in nuclear astrophysics (neutron emission probabilities); in nuclear technology (nuclear data measurements and in-core/off-core monitors); in nuclear medicine (radiation monitors, dosimeters); in materials science (neutron imaging techniques); in homeland security applications (fissile materials investigation and cargo inspection). Liquid scintillators, widely used at present, have however some drawbacks given by toxicity, flammability, volatility and sensitivity to oxygen that limit their duration and quality. Even plastic scintillators are not satisfactory because they have low radiation hardness and low thermal stability. Moreover organic solvents may affect their optical properties due to crazing. In order to overcome these problems, phenyl-polysiloxane based scintillators have been recently developed at Legnaro National Laboratory. This new solution showed very good chemical and thermal stability and high radiation hardness. The results on the different samples performance will be presented, paying special attention to a characterization comparison between synthesized phenyl containing polysiloxane resins where a Pt catalyst has been used and a scintillating material obtained by condensation reaction, where tin based compounds are used as catalysts. Different structural arrangements as a result of different substituents on the main chain have been investigated by High Resolution X-Ray Diffraction, while the effect of improved optical transmittance on the scintillation yield has been elucidated by a combination of excitation/fluorescence measurements and scintillation yield under exposure to alpha and {\gamma}-rays.Comment: InterM 2013 - International Multidisciplinary Microscopy Congres

Characterization of a potassium-stimulated ATPase in membrane fraction isolated from roots of grapevine seedlings

A microsomal fraction possessing Mg2+-dependent and K+-stimulated ATPase activity was extracted by differential centrifugation from roots of grape seedlings (Vitis vinifera L. cv. Verduzzo).Roots yield from grape seeds was stimulated by means of GA3 and further improved by treatments able to control microbial contamination.The biochemical characteristics of ATPase activity were studied and compared with those previously reported for roots produced by grape woody cuttings.The presence of choline-Cl, ethanolamine and glycerol-1-P in addition to BSA, EDTA, PVPP and DTT in the homogenizing medium was obligatory in order to record the K+-stimulated component of activity.The enzyme was activated by Mg2+, further stimulated by monovalent ions and showed strong preference for ATP as the substrate and optimum pH at 6.5 in the presence of both Mg2+ and K+. The effect of different monovalent ions followed a sequence similar to that found in cereal roots preparations, but very different with respect to that recorded for preparations from roots of grape woody cuttings.K+-ATPase activity was inhibited by vanadate and DES whereas molybdate and azide had no or scarce effect . ATPase activity showed a simple Michaelis-Menten saturation with increasing ATP: Mg concentration, and a complex pattern of possible negative cooperativity for K+ stimulation.Microsomes fractionated using sucrose density gradient showed enrichment in plasmalemma vesicles at 1.10-1,15 g ml-1 density.This parameter differentiates this fraction from similar preparations containing plasmalemma ATPase obtained from roots of various annual plants

1H, 19F, and 15N NMR study of the interaction between bis(pentafluorophenyl)borinic acid and nitrogen bases

Bis(pentafluorophenyl)borinic acid ((ArF)2BOH, ArF = C6F5, 1) is a molecule that, due to its multiple reactivity, can behave in different and not always straightforward ways in the presence of nucleophiles. It has been already shown its behaviour in dicloromethane solution in the presence of water, THF and methanol. Briefly, it exists as monomer and trimer (1m and 1t, see Chart 1), and the presence of nucleophiles strongly influence the thermodynamic and the kinetic of the monomer-trimer interconversion. Moreover, according to the nature of the nucleophile, 1 shows a camaleonic nature by forming several, sometimes unexpected, species.2,3 We have studied now the reaction of 1 in the presence of nitrogen bases, that can act as Lewis and Br\uf8nsted bases. Two nitrogen bases were studied, namely 1,8-bis(dimethylamino)naphthalene (DMAN), which can act as Br\uf8nsted base only, and pyridine, which is a good Lewis base but weak Br\uf8nsted base. First of all, the Br\uf8nsted base DMAN has been proved to be more efficient than oxygenated Lewis bases in catalyzing the trimerization process. Indeed it is enough a catalytic amount of base to cause the complete trimerization of 1. The so obtained trimeric deprotonated anion 2 (Chart 2) is unstable with respect to dearylation reactions, leading eventually (in the presence of more than 0.33 equiv of DMAN and at higher temperatures) to the tetrarylic species 3 (Chart 2). On the other hand, the behaviour of pyridine is quite different, since 0.33 equiv of base are requested to complete the trimerization of 1, and also in this case the obtained trimer is anionic. Moreover, the presence of 1 equivalent of pyridine does not cause the dearylation process but gives rise to the monomeric neutral 1:1 adduct 4 (Chart 2). Both the identification and the characterization of the involved species were performed by multiparametric and multinuclear low temperature NMR spectroscopy

SERPINB3 delays glomerulonephritis and attenuates the lupus-like disease in lupus murine models by inducing a more tolerogenic immune phenotype

Objective: To explore the effects of SERPINB3 administration in murine lupus models with a focus on lupus-like nephritis. Methods: 40 NZB/W F1 mice were subdivided into 4 groups and intraperitoneally injected with recombinant SERPINB3 (7.5 \u3bcg/0.1 mL or 15 \u3bcg/0.1 mL) or PBS (0.1 mL) before (group 1 and 2) or after (group 3 and 4) the development of proteinuria ( 65100 mg/dl). Two additional mice groups were provided by including 20 MRL/lpr mice which were prophylactically injected with SERPINB3 (10 mice, group 5) or PBS (10 mice, group 6). Time of occurrence and levels of anti-dsDNA and anti-C1q antibodies, proteinuria and serum creatinine, overall- and proteinuria-free survival were assessed in mice followed up to natural death. Histological analysis was performed in kidneys of both lupus models. The Th17:Treg cell ratio was assessed by flow-cytometry in splenocytes of treated and untreated MRL/lpr mice. Statistical analysis was performed using non parametric tests and Kaplan-Meier curves, when indicated. Results: Autoantibody levels and proteinuria were significantly decreased and time of occurrence significantly delayed in SERPINB3-treated mice vs. controls. In agreement with these findings, proteinuria-free and overall survival were significantly improved in SERPINB3-treated groups vs. controls. Histological analysis demonstrated a lower prevalence of severe tubular lesions in kidneys of group 5 vs. group 6. SERPINB3-treated mice showed an overall trend toward a reduced prevalence of severe lesions in both strains. Th17:Treg ratio was significantly decreased in splenocytes of MRL/lpr mice treated with SERPINB3, compared to untreated control mice. Conclusions: SERPINB3 significantly improves disease course and delays the onset of severe glomerulonephritis in lupus-prone mice, possibly inducing a more tolerogenic immune phenotype

Reduced cost-based variable fixing in two-stage stochastic programming

The explicit consideration of uncertainty is essential in addressing most planning and operation issues encountered in the management of complex systems. Unfortunately, the resulting stochastic programming formulations, integer ones in particular, are generally hard to solve when applied to realistically-sized instances. A common approach is to consider the simpler deterministic version of the formulation, even if it is well known that the solution quality could be arbitrarily bad. In this paper, we aim to identify meaningful information, which can be extracted from the solution of the deterministic problem, in order to reduce the size of the stochastic one. Focusing on two-stage formulations, we show how and under which conditions the reduced costs associated to the variables in the deterministic formulation can be used as an indicator for excluding/retaining decision variables in the stochastic model. We introduce a new measure, the Loss of Reduced Costs-based Variable Fixing (LRCVF), computed as the difference between the optimal values of the stochastic problem and its reduced version obtained by fixing a certain number of variables. We relate the LRCVF with existing measures and show how to select the set of variables to fix. We then illustrate the interest of the proposed LRCVF and related heuristic procedure, in terms of computational time reduction and accuracy in finding the optimal solution, by applying them to a wide range of problems from the literature