Three-Level Mixed-Effects Location Scale Model With Modeling Random Scale Variance

In this dissertation, we propose a three-level mixed-effects random location scale model with modeling random scale variance (RL-RSS model). This model allows covariates to influence both error variance and random scale variance through a log-linear representation. The error variance varies across subjects through a subject-level normally distributed random scale effect, above and beyond the contribution of covariates on error variance. The subject-level random scale effect and random location effect are allowed to correlate with each other. Parameter estimation was based on the combination of maximum marginal likelihood (MML) method and Empirical Bayes (EB) method. An iterative Newton-Raphson solution was used to maximize the log likelihood, and multi-dimensional Gauss-Hermite quadrature is used to numerically approximate integral values. An SAS program via PROC NLMIXED using adaptive quadrature was developed to fit the proposed model. The data from Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) Adolescent Smoking Study are used to illustrate the application of the proposed model. In this study, a three-level clustering data structure, level-1 smoking events/occasions nested within level-2 waves nested within level-3 subjects, was used in the data analysis. The proposed RL-RSS model was fit to the data. Simulation process was carried out to validate the accuracy and reliability of the proposed three-level RL-RSS model. The simulation results show that RL-RSS resolves the intercept over-estimation of random scale variance occurring in the simple mixed-effect random location scale model

Non-linear control approaches for active railway suspensions

This thesis studies various linear and non-linear control approaches for active railway suspensions. The aim of the study is to improve the system performance of active secondary suspensions in response to different track features. The primary motivation for active suspension on railway vehicles is to improve suspension performance and thereby run faster or provide a better ride quality. The problem of discriminating between the random track and deterministic track input is a fundamental problem for the design of active secondary suspensions on railway vehicle. The basic requirement of an active suspension system is to improve the ride quality without increasing the suspension deflection unacceptably when the vehicle negotiates on both straight track and deterministic track features. This thesis presents and compares different control strategies of active suspension systems for railway vehicles. Firstly, a number of linear approaches for filtering the absolute velocity signal are theoretically examined in order to optimise the trade-off between the random and deterministic input requirements. What can be achieved with linear filters is initially determined. This is quantified by the degradation in the straight track ride quality needed to restrict the maximum deflection to an acceptable level as a vehicle traverses the transition to a typical railway gradient, and a range of filter types, frequencies and absolute damping rates are assessed in order to explore the boundary of what can be achieved through linear means. Secondly, some nonlinear Kalman-Filter methods are investigated to further improve the suspension performance. Finally, a comparison between linear and non-linear strategies is studied

Fabrication of Tunable, Stable, and Predictable Superhydrophobic Coatings on Foam Ceramic Materials

Superhydrophobic foam ceramic materials can be used as distillation column internals, and surface wettability has a remarkable influence on column trays. There are no existing methods for industrial fabrication of superhydrophobic surfaces on foam ceramic materials. This paper presents a facile method for fabricating stable superhydrophobic or hydrophobic coatings on the outside and inside of foam SiC materials with submicrometer silica particles, for dip-coating, and alkylchlorosilane, for surface reaction. Scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, dynamic light scattering methods, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy were employed to study the physical and chemical details. The contact angle of coatings can be tuned to 155°, 140°, 125°, and 95° by adapting coating times and particle size. Superhydrophobic surfaces presented excellent stability under various conditions. In addition, a theoretical prediction strategy by surface microscopic morphology and surface chemical composition based on the Cassie–Baxter model was also presented. Briefly, this paper presents the possibility for large-scale preparation of superhydrophobic coatings on foam ceramic materials

Image_1_Case Report: Tumor-to-tumor metastasis with prostate cancer metastatic to lung cancer: the first reported case.jpeg

Tumor-to-tumor metastasis (TTM) occurs rarely in tumor progression, but this event has significant clinical implications. Although the impact of TTM on patient prognosis and survival has been increasingly recognized, understanding of TTM biology and treatment is limited. Prostate cancer is among the most common malignancies threatening male health. Prostate cancer can potentially metastasize to primary lung Cancer; however, this is an exceedingly rare event. We here report for the first time a case of TTM from a prostate cancer to a coexisting primary lung cancer.</p

Co-Expression and Co-Purification of Archaeal and Eukaryal Box C/D RNPs

<div><p>Box C/D ribonucleoprotein particles (RNPs) are 2′-O-methylation enzymes required for maturation of ribosomal and small nuclear RNA. Previous biochemical and structural studies of the box C/D RNPs were limited by the unavailability of purified intact RNPs. We developed a bacterial co-expression strategy based on the combined use of a multi-gene expression system and a tRNA-scaffold construct that allowed the expression and purification of homogeneous archaeal and human box C/D RNPs. While the co-expressed and co-purified archaeal box C/D RNP was found to be fully active in a 2′-O-methylation assay, the intact human U14 box C/D RNP showed no detectable catalytic activity, consistent with the earlier findings that assembly of eukaryotic box C/D RNPs is nonspontaneous and requires additional protein factors. Our systems provide a means for further biochemical and structural characterization of box C/D RNPs and their assembly factors.</p></div

Image_2_Case Report: Tumor-to-tumor metastasis with prostate cancer metastatic to lung cancer: the first reported case.tif

Tumor-to-tumor metastasis (TTM) occurs rarely in tumor progression, but this event has significant clinical implications. Although the impact of TTM on patient prognosis and survival has been increasingly recognized, understanding of TTM biology and treatment is limited. Prostate cancer is among the most common malignancies threatening male health. Prostate cancer can potentially metastasize to primary lung Cancer; however, this is an exceedingly rare event. We here report for the first time a case of TTM from a prostate cancer to a coexisting primary lung cancer.</p

Electronic Structure of the Perylene–Zinc Oxide Interface: Computational Study of Photoinduced Electron Transfer and Impact of Surface Defects

The electronic properties of dye-sensitized semiconductor surfaces consisting of perylene chromophores chemisorbed on zinc oxide via different spacer-anchor groups have been studied at the density-functional-theory level. The energy distributions of the donor states and the rates of photoinduced electron transfer from dye to surface are predicted. We evaluate in particular the impact of saturated versus unsaturated aliphatic spacer groups inserted between the perylene chromophore and the semiconductor as well as the influence of surface defects on the electron-injection rates

Additional file 1 of Prediction of risk and clinical outcome of cuproptosis in lung squamous carcinoma

Additional file 1: Table S1. The list of cuproptosis-related genes. Table S2. The correlation between cuproptosis-related genes and OS in LUSC patients. Table S3. The list of 1233 DEGs. Table S4. Risk Score of train group. Table S5. Risk Score of test group. Table S6. Genes identified by Cox regression. Table S7. The relationship between the CRG score and the number of immune cells

Facile Synthesis of Amorphous NiO/Reduced Graphene Oxide as a Cocatalyst for Enhanced Dye-Sensitized Photocatalytic H₂ Evolution

It is still a challenge to develop efficient catalysts for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) via a low-cost and simple method. Herein, we report an amorphous NiO/reduced graphene oxide (A-NG) composite as a cocatalyst for enhanced photocatalytic H2 evolution via dye sensitization. The A-NG composite is facilely fabricated by calcinating the NiCl2/GO precursor at a low temperature of 250 °C. The detailed characterizations show that amorphous NiO presents as tiny nanoparticles highly dispersed on graphene sheets, and nickel carbide is formed at the NiO/graphene interface, which demonstrates the strong interaction between Ni and the defective carbon of graphene. Compared with crystalline NiO/rGO (C-NG), the A-NG cocatalyst shows much enhanced dye-sensitized photocatalytic HER activity because the amorphous NiO nanoparticles can effectively adsorb the dye. As a result, highly dispersed amorphous NiO accelerates the photoinduced electron transfer from the excited dye to the cocatalyst, namely, the amorphous nickel carbide formed between NiO and rGO. This work provides a low-cost and simple method to develop efficient cocatalysts for photocatalytic H2 evolution

Results from Experiment 2: mean percentage of immediate reward as a function of the control condition (no imaging) and the experimental condition (imaging negative events).

<p>Error bars indicate standard errors of the mean.</p