Automatic detection of electric power troubles (AI application)

The design goals for the Automatic Detection of Electric Power Troubles (ADEPT) were to enhance Fault Diagnosis Techniques in a very efficient way. ADEPT system was designed in two modes of operation: (1) Real time fault isolation, and (2) a local simulator which simulates the models theoretically

Exploring biased agonism at the chemokine receptor CCR4: Implications for targeting in allergic disease

The chemokine receptor CCR4 and its ligands CCL17 and CCL22 are strongly implicated in the pathogenesis of allergic diseases, notably asthma. This stems from their involvement in recruiting pro-inflammatory T helper 2 (Th2) cells to inflammatory sites. Targeting CCR4 in allergy, however, is complicated by expression of the receptor on homeostatic T regulatory (T reg) cells. Strategies for selectively targeting CCR4 on Th2 cells are therefore desirable to avoid the development of autoimmune disease. An emerging solution relates to accumulating evidence that CCL17 and CCL22 are functionally selective ligands of their receptor. This thesis therefore examined the hypothesis that CCL17 and CCL22 are biased agonists of CCR4 and induce differential signalling pathways that may be exploited therapeutically. CCR4 expression at the cell surface was found to be strictly regulated in experiments investigating CCR4 turnover, with the receptor undergoing both ligand-induced and constitutive internalization. Importantly, CCR4 was constitutively degraded and replenished at the cell surface by de novo protein synthesis. Truncation of the CCR4 C-terminus by 40 amino acids revealed that this region of CCR4 is important for ligand-induced internalization and chemotaxis. Comparing the chemotactic responsiveness of in vitro-polarized human Th2 cells revealed a lack of redundancy for CCL17 and CCL22. Surprisingly, directional migration of Th2 cells was observed along gradients of CCL22 but not along CCL17 gradients. Conversely, exposure of Th2 cells to CCL17 induced greater adhesion than did exposure to CCL22. Bias at CCR4 was further investigated by comparing the transcriptomes induced in Th2 cells following culture with CCL17 and CCL22. Despite variation between biological replicates, differentially expressed genes were identified that may have implications for T cell activation. Collectively, the data support a model in which CCL22 acts predominantly as a chemoattractant of CCR4+ cells whilst CCL17 plays alternative roles in cell adhesion and retention at inflammatory sites. Fine-tuning CCR4 activity using biased ligands could represent an exciting opportunity for targeting this receptor in allergic diseases.Open Acces

Little Cricket on the Hearth: The Quiet Feminism of _Little Women_

Since the advent of the cult of domesticity, the stakes for female characters in domestic literature have been notoriously high. There was no room for flaws, rebellious decisions, and certainly no room for mistakes—whether of the woman’s own accord, or simply as collateral damage of a male character’s immorality. In this shallowly Calvinist domain, women were never more than one broken guardrail away from social ruin or death. In writing Little Women, Louisa May Alcott breaks these molds through unflinching kindness to her female characters from childhood to adulthood, even unto death. Alcott achieves this quietly feminist feat by allowing women to learn and grow through emotions and mistakes that in a different novel may have been dehumanizing; providing them the agency to choose whether to work inside or outside of the home, with equal dignity given to either choice; and providing female characters the agency to choose their life partners and the ability to enjoy egalitarian marriages. Alcott also provides a female authority figure in religion who is both wise and lovingly maternal; and the humanity for her female characters to live and die as regular people, rather than angels or whores. Little Women has been studied extensively for how it approaches Protestant domestic values, egalitarianism in marriage, the reality of female anger and anxiety, and its complicated sisterly relationships in the midst of other noted domestic works of the same time period. The novel has been both praised and critiqued for how it handles all of these subjects. This thesis seeks to broaden focus and celebrate Little Women as a revolutionary and positive landmark in the history of the genre and depiction of female characters

THE CONCEPT OF KINEMATIC VARIABILITY AND THE LINK TO MOTOR SKILL OUTCOME

INTRODUCTION: There is continuing discourse in the biomechanics community relating to kinematic variability regarding whether successful athletes/performers exhibit large or small amounts of kinematic variability. A discrete motor skill, where the outcome of one performance does not affect the outcome of the second performance, may be associated with a large amount of kinematic variability; inter-trial efficiency is not important. For example, in javelin, if the performer does something outside his/her natural kinematic variability, then this may lead to a better than normal outcome

“We are Maine”—Is There an Authentic Maine Public Policy?

The authors explore whether there is something about how policy is developed, approved, and implemented—or something about the content of policy—that is based upon Maine as place? Is there a genuine Maine public policy that reflects the unique demography, geography, and culture of this place? Or is the work of policy here essentially the same as anywhere else in our democracy

Automatic Detection of Electric Power Troubles (ADEPT)

Automatic Detection of Electric Power Troubles (A DEPT) is an expert system that integrates knowledge from three different suppliers to offer an advanced fault-detection system. It is designed for two modes of operation: real time fault isolation and simulated modeling. Real time fault isolation of components is accomplished on a power system breadboard through the Fault Isolation Expert System (FIES II) interface with a rule system developed in-house. Faults are quickly detected and displayed and the rules and chain of reasoning optionally provided on a laser printer. This system consists of a simulated space station power module using direct-current power supplies for solar arrays on three power buses. For tests of the system's ablilty to locate faults inserted via switches, loads are configured by an INTEL microcomputer and the Symbolics artificial intelligence development system. As these loads are resistive in nature, Ohm's Law is used as the basis for rules by which faults are located. The three-bus system can correct faults automatically where there is a surplus of power available on any of the three buses. Techniques developed and used can be applied readily to other control systems requiring rapid intelligent decisions. Simulated modeling, used for theoretical studies, is implemented using a modified version of Kennedy Space Center's KATE (Knowledge-Based Automatic Test Equipment), FIES II windowing, and an ADEPT knowledge base

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Automatic Detection of Electric Power Troubles (ADEPT)

ADEPT is an expert system that integrates knowledge from three different suppliers to offer an advanced fault-detection system, and is designed for two modes of operation: real-time fault isolation and simulated modeling. Real time fault isolation of components is accomplished on a power system breadboard through the Fault Isolation Expert System (FIES II) interface with a rule system developed in-house. Faults are quickly detected and displayed and the rules and chain of reasoning optionally provided on a Laser printer. This system consists of a simulated Space Station power module using direct-current power supplies for Solar arrays on three power busses. For tests of the system's ability to locate faults inserted via switches, loads are configured by an INTEL microcomputer and the Symbolics artificial intelligence development system. As these loads are resistive in nature, Ohm's Law is used as the basis for rules by which faults are located. The three-bus system can correct faults automatically where there is a surplus of power available on any of the three busses. Techniques developed and used can be applied readily to other control systems requiring rapid intelligent decisions. Simulated modelling, used for theoretical studies, is implemented using a modified version of Kennedy Space Center's KATE (Knowledge-Based Automatic Test Equipment), FIES II windowing, and an ADEPT knowledge base. A load scheduler and a fault recovery system are currently under development to support both modes of operation