Parallel computing and the generation of basic plasma data

Comprehensive simulations of the processing plasmas used in semiconductor fabrication will depend on the availability of basic data for many microscopic processes that occur in the plasma and at the surface. Cross sections for electron collisions, a principal mechanism for producing reactive species in these plasmas, are among the most important such data; however, electron-collision cross sections are difficult to measure, and the available data are, at best, sketchy for the polyatomic feed gases of interest. While computational approaches to obtaining such data are thus potentially of significant value, studies of electron collisions with polyatomic gases at relevant energies are numerically intensive. In this article, we report on the progress we have made in exploiting large-scale distributed-memory parallel computers, consisting of hundreds of interconnected microprocessors, to generate electron-collision cross sections for gases of interest in plasma simulations

Discovery of Potent Tyrosyl-DNA Phosphodiesterase 1 Inhibitors Using in silico Virtual Screening & Network Analysis for Evolution of Allosteric Communication in 3-ketosteroid Receptors

Tyrosyl-DNA phosphodiesterase I (TDP1) plays an important role in repair of topoisomerase I-DNA complexes in vivo, and its inhibitors have the potential to enhance the efficacy of the Top1-targeting drugs in anticancer therapy. Nevertheless a large number of TDP1 inhibitors have been reported, none of them has inhibition activity in vivo. We present a virtual screening protocol to explore potent TDP1-selective inhibitors. 3-ketosteroid receptors belong to nuclear receptor family, and their DNA binding domains interact with glucocorticoid response elements (GREs) to regulate gene transcription. With evolution, all of them can bind to activating response element ((+)GRE), but only some exhibit the ability to bind to negative glucocorticoid response element (nGRE). It was found that evolutionary mutations are important to change their binding functions. We have presented dynamic network models to elucidate allosteric communication for selected evolutionary homologues, discussing the correlation between binding characteristics and epistatic mutations from network theory

The relationship between attitude and motivation towards learning English and English achievement of the form four students in the Sarikei division

The purpose of this study is to determine the relationship between attitude and motivation towards learning English and the achievement in English. 330 form four students are chosen as sample from the Sarikei Division secondary schools. All the form four students are chosen randomly from the population approximately 2119 students. Data was collected through a 46 -item questionnaires (2 sections : Attitude and Motivation). Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyse the data. For earlier stage, a pilot study was carried out with the 30 students to test on the questionnaires chosen from Attitude and Motivation Test Battery (Gardner, 2004). An analysis using the Coefficient reliability test (Cronbach's alpha) was conducted to ensure the reliability of the constructs on the attitudes (25 questions) and motivation (21 questions). The reliability of all question items in the questionnaire was at a high level, depicting .90. The independent sample t-test was used to see the differences of the attitude, motivation and students' achievement based on the gender. Pearson correlation method was used to analyse the relationships between the variable of attitude, motivation and students' achievement in English. The findings revealed the non-significant results of the attitude and motivation with the gender. This indicated that there was no clear difference between the male and female students in the aspects of their attitude and motivation that would influence the learning of English. Interestingly, there was a significant result on gender in the comparison with the achievement of the students whereby the female students performed better result in English than the male students. The Pearson correlation reflected the significant relationships for the variables of attitude, motivation and the achievement. The obvious relationship was shown between the attitude and motivation that conveyed the positive strong associatio

Numerical Renormalization Group Studies of the Partially Broken SU(3) Kondo Model

The two-channel Kondo (2CK) effect with its exotic ground state properties has remained difficult to realize in physical systems. At low energies, a quantum impurity with orbital degree of freedom, like a proton bound in an interstitial lattice space, comprises a 3-level system with a unique ground state and (at least) doubly degenerate rotational excitations with excitation energy $Delta_0$. When immersed in a metal, electronic angular momentum scattering induces transitions between any two of these levels (couplings $J$), while the electron spin is conserved. We show by extensive numerical renormalization group (NRG) calculations that without fine-tuning of parameters this system exhibits a 2CK fixed point, due to Kondo correlations in the excited-state doublet whose degeneracy is stabilized by the host lattice parity, while the channel symmetry (electron spin) is guaranteed by time reversal symmetry. We find a pronounced plateau in the entropy at $S(T_K < T < Delta_0) = k_B ln 2$ between the high-$T$ value, $S(T gg Delta_0) = k_B ln 3$, and the 2CK ground state value, $S(0) = k_B lnsqrt{2}$. This indicates a downward renormalization of the doublet below the non-interacting ground state, thus realizing the 2CK fixed point, in agreement with earlier conjectures. We mapped out the phase diagram of the model in the $J-Delta_0$ plane. The Kondo temperature $T_K$ shows non-monotonic $J$-dependence, characteristic for 2CK systems.newline indent Beside the two-channel Kondo effect of the model, we also study the single-channel version, which is realized by applying a strong magnetic field to the conduction band electrons so that their degeneracy is lifted and consequently having only one kind of electrons scattering off the impurity. This single-channel case is easier to analyze since the Hilbert space is not as large as that of the 2CK. We equally find a downward renormalization of the excited state energy by the Kondo correlations in the SU(2) doublet. In a wide range of parameter values this stabilizes the single-channel Kondo fixed point and a phase diagram is also mapped out for the model. In the single-channel version a plateau is found in the entropy at $S(T_K < T < Delta_0) = k_B ln 2$ between high-$T$ value, $S(T gg Delta_0) = k_B ln 3$, and the single-channel Kondo ground state value, $S(0) = k_B ln 1$

Japan Banking Inc.: Problems, Solutions, And Implementation: An Economic And Cultural Perspective

The focus of this paper is to obtain a realistic estimate of real Japanese Bank Losses. The insights gained will include: Factors contributing to bad loans, method of disposal of bad loans, future prescriptions regarding the Early Warning System/Diversion Process will be put forth and conclusions for future economic methods to monitor guide turnaround

Strategies For Mass Customization

Mass customization allows firms to produce only things their customers want (or produce after they have orders in hand). This approach, make-to-order, brings many benefits to firms in terms of cost and profit because of lower inventory levels, maximum sales, elimination of material waste, flexible production and, most of all, customer satisfaction. However, mass customization may not be the panacea for all organizations. While some companies are very successful with mass customization, others are not.  This paper illustrates that mass customization strategies depend on an understanding of the conditions in each industry

Strategies For Mass Customization

Mass customization allows firms to produce only things their customers want (or produce after they have orders in hand). This approach, make-to-order, brings many benefits to firms in terms of cost and profit because of lower inventory levels, maximum sales, elimination of material waste, flexible production and, most of all, customer satisfaction. However, mass customization may not be the panacea for all organizations. While some companies are very successful with mass customization, others are not. &nbsp;This paper illustrates that mass customization strategies depend on an understanding of the conditions in each industry

Collisions of low-energy electrons with CO_2

We report cross sections for collisions of low-energy electrons with carbon dioxide obtained by the Schwinger multichannel variational method.Elastic cross sections are obtained in the static-exchange-plus-polarization approximation. We pay particular attention to the position of the ^2Π_u resonance and to the strong enhancement in the integral cross section near zero energy, both prominent features whose accurate treatment requires an accounting for polarization effects. To include such effects in the resonant symmetry, we use an objective and physically motivated criterion to construct a set of configurations that accurately accounts for polarization while avoiding overcorrelation. In addition, we study the origin of the nonisotropic behavior of the elastic differential cross section at very low energies and conclude that it is caused by significant contributions from vibrationally excited CO_2. Cross sections from threshold to 50 eV for excitation of the ^3Σ^+_u, ^1Δ_u, ^3Δ_u, ^3Σ^−_u, and ^1Σ^−_u states that arise from the (^1π_g → ^2π_u) transition are presented for the first time

The Impact of CEOs’ Incentives for Risk-Taking or Risk-Aversion on Corporate Performance: Using CEO Vega and CEO Delta as Incentive Measures

This article has a two-fold purpose. First, we investigate whether the CEOs’ risk-taking incentives are associated with better concurrent firm performance. Second, we examine the impact of gender on the aforementioned relationship. We find solid empirical evidence that CEOs’ risk-aversion incentive, as represented by a higher CEO delta, can be linked to better concurrent firm performance such as return on assets (ROA) and Market-to-Book Value (MTB) ratio. By contrast, we find that the risk-taking incentive, as represented by CEO vega, has no significant impact on ROA, but has a significant impact on MTB ratio only among the group of CEOs with larger share ownerships. Furthermore, we research on the same incentives using only female CEOs in our sample. Our panel-data findings indicate that female CEOs on average possessed a lower CEO delta (low risk aversion) and a lower CEO vega (risk-taking incentive) in their compensation packages when compared with their male counterparts. Taken together, these two risk incentives; are linked to a lower concurrent ROA and MTB value. Our findings also indicate that the aforementioned positive relationship between CEOs’ risk-aversion incentive (as measured by CEO delta) and firm performance (as measured by ROA) are less pronounced when a CEO is female. This implies that a female CEO is less likely to increase the firm’s ROA relative to a male CEO, given the same sensitivity of personal wealth to stock price change (i.e., the same CEO delta)