Managing temporal relations in the MAESTRO scheduling system

A set of viewgraphs on managing temporal relations in the MAESTRO scheduling system are given. The viewgraphs present information on such topics as why scheduling is hard, managing temporal relations, constraints on the placement of a single activity, constraints between activities, soft constraints (such as preferences), and contingency handling

The Health Empowerment Program: A Primary Care – Area Agency on Aging Partnership

Educational Objectives 1. Appreciate the benefits of a primary care-area agency on aging collaboration. 2. Identify strategies for enhancing this cross-organizational partnership

Managing temporal relations

Various temporal constraints on the execution of activities are described, and their representation in the scheduling system MAESTRO is discussed. Initial examples are presented using a sample activity described. Those examples are expanded to include a second activity, and the types of temporal constraints that can obtain between two activities are explored. Soft constraints, or preferences, in activity placement are discussed. Multiple performances of activities are considered, with respect to both hard and soft constraints. The primary methods used in MAESTRO to handle temporal constraints are described as are certain aspects of contingency handling with respect to temporal constraints. A discussion of the overall approach, with indications of future directions for this research, concludes the study

The role of artificial intelligence techniques in scheduling systems

Artificial Intelligence (AI) techniques provide good solutions for many of the problems which are characteristic of scheduling applications. However, scheduling is a large, complex heterogeneous problem. Different applications will require different solutions. Any individual application will require the use of a variety of techniques, including both AI and conventional software methods. The operational context of the scheduling system will also play a large role in design considerations. The key is to identify those places where a specific AI technique is in fact the preferable solution, and to integrate that technique into the overall architecture

Source of the optical red-slope in iron-rich meteorites

The relationship between ordinary chondrites and S-type asteroids is an unresolved issue in meteorite science. S-type asteroids exhibit a positively red-sloped spectrum that is interpreted to indicate the presence of elemental iron on the surfaces. The characteristic red-sloped spectrum of iron-rich meteorites is produced by only the specular component of the reflectance. Complex metallic surfaces can be modeled as linear mixtures of specular and nonspecular components. It is the geometry of the metal on a surface and its interaction with surrounding material, rather than the absolute amount of metal, that determine the redness of resulting spectra. In order to distinguish between ordinary chondrite and differentiated parent bodies it is important to understand how regolith processes affect the nature and form of metal on asteroid surfaces

Scheduling spacecraft operations

A prototype scheduling system named MAESTRO currently under development is being used to explore possible approaches to the spacecraft operations scheduling problem. Results indicate that the appropriate combination of heuristic and other techniques can provide an acceptable solution to the scheduling problem over a wide range of operational scenarios and management approaches. These can include centralized or distributed instrument or systems control, batch or incremental scheduling, scheduling loose resource envelopes or exact profiles, and scheduling with varying degrees of user intervention. Techniques used within MAESTRO to provide this flexibility and power include constraint propagation mechanisms, multiple asynchronous processes, prioritized transaction-based command management, resource opportunity calculation, user-alterable selection and placement mechanisms, and maintenance of multiple schedules and resource profiles. These techniques and scheduling complexities requiring them are discussed

Regulation of nitric oxide signaling by formation of a distal receptor-ligand complex.

The binding of nitric oxide (NO) to the heme cofactor of heme-nitric oxide/oxygen binding (H-NOX) proteins can lead to the dissociation of the heme-ligating histidine residue and yield a five-coordinate nitrosyl complex, an important step for NO-dependent signaling. In the five-coordinate nitrosyl complex, NO can reside on either the distal or proximal side of the heme, which could have a profound influence over the lifetime of the in vivo signal. To investigate this central molecular question, we characterized the Shewanella oneidensis H-NOX (So H-NOX)-NO complex biophysically under limiting and excess NO conditions. The results show that So H-NOX preferably forms a distal NO species with both limiting and excess NO. Therefore, signal strength and complex lifetime in vivo will be dictated by the dissociation rate of NO from the distal complex and the rebinding of the histidine ligand to the heme

Effect of water interactions on Polyvinylamine at different pH for Membrane gas separation

Polyvinylamine (PVAm) is a linear polyelectrolyte type of polymer which is water-soluble with highest contents of primary amine. It has been attractive in different fields such as: biomedical applications [1], encapsulation [2], oil recovery [3], and primarily it has extensively been used as a fixed-site–carrier polyvinylamine membrane for carbon dioxide separation and capture. A thin selective layer on polysulfone support for CO2 Separation membranes[4, 5] has been successfully used in composite flat sheet and hollow fiber membranes. The amine group plays the role as the carrier of the gas, increasing the transport performance of the membrane by chemical and physical forces. PVAm composite membrane in dry condition will separate according to solution-diffusion mechanism only. It was however documented by Kim et al. in 2004 [4] that by allowing the membrane to be exposed gas with high relative humidity, the separation performance increased exponentially[4-6]. Through these efforts, it is needed to develop a greater understanding of the relationships between the structure and the interfacial properties of PVAm – water surface. The degree of hydrophilicity manipulation of a given surface necessarily requires understanding the micro-scale principles that, in turn, control the macro-scale surface wetting behavior. See Fig. 1. Please click Additional Files below to see the full abstract

Digital Library of Georgia (March 2023)

News from the Digital Library of Georgia for the first quarter (January-March) of 202