Null device for hand controller Patent

Manual control mechanism for adjusting control rod to null positio

Design, development and delivery of one /1/ breadboard and three /3/ production units of a 75 VA integrated static inverter Monthly progress report no. 11, Mar. 1966

Breadboard model development of integrated static inverte

Design, development and delivery of one /1/ breadboard and three /3/ production units of a 75 VA integrated static inverter Monthly report no. 15

Flip-flop arrays, power transistors, epitaxial stress, and other technological developments in integrated static inverter progra

First Results from SPARO: Evidence for Large-Scale Toroidal Magnetic Fields in the Galactic Center

We have observed the linear polarization of 450 micron continuum emission from the Galactic center, using a new polarimetric detector system that is operated on a 2 m telescope at the South Pole. The resulting polarization map extends ~ 170 pc along the Galactic plane and ~ 30 pc in Galactic latitude, and thus covers a significant fraction of the central molecular zone. Our map shows that this region is permeated by large-scale toroidal magnetic fields. We consider our results together with radio observations that show evidence for poloidal fields in the Galactic center, and with Faraday rotation observations. We compare all of these observations with the predictions of a magnetodynamic model for the Galactic center that was proposed in order to explain the Galactic Center Radio Lobe as a magnetically driven gas outflow. We conclude that the observations are basically consistent with the model.Comment: 11 pages, 2 figures, 1 table, submitted to ApJ Let

The Heider balance - a continuous approach

The Heider balance (HB) is investigated in a fully connected graph of $N$ nodes. The links are described by a real symmetric array r(i,j), i,j=1,...,N. In a social group, nodes represent group members and links represent relations between them, positive (friendly) or negative (hostile). At the balanced state, r(i,j)r(j,k)r(k,i)>0 for all the triads (i,j,k). As follows from the structure theorem of Cartwright and Harary, at this state the group is divided into two subgroups, with friendly internal relations and hostile relations between the subgroups. Here the system dynamics is proposed to be determined by a set of differential equations. The form of equations guarantees that once HB is reached, it persists. Also, for N=3 the dynamics reproduces properly the tendency of the system to the balanced state. The equations are solved numerically. Initially, r(i,j) are random numbers distributed around zero with a symmetric uniform distribution of unit width. Calculations up to N=500 show that HB is always reached. Time to get the balanced state varies with the system size N as N^{-1/2}. The spectrum of relations, initially narrow, gets very wide near HB. This means that the relations are strongly polarized. In our calculations, the relations are limited to a given range around zero. With this limitation, our results can be helpful in an interpretation of somestatistical data.Comment: 9 pages, 4 figures. Int. J. Mod. Phys. C (2005), in prin

Ester biosynthesis in kiwifruit: from genes to enzymes to pathways

The distinctive flavours of different kiwifruit (Actinidia) genotypes are determined by a unique combination of volatile compounds. We are using a genomics approach to identify genes responsible for the production of esters in kiwifruit. From an extensive database of kiwifruit ESTs we have mined acyl transferase genes, including putative alcohol acyl transferases predicted to be involved in the final step of ester biosynthesis. In this paper we report the first functional characterisation of two acyl transferases in kiwifruit, AeAT9 and AdAT17, using either transient expression in planta or by recombinant protein expression in yeast. Evidence is provided that both enzymes are alcohol acyl transferases and could potentially have roles in the biosynthesis of esters in kiwifruit. Our results suggest these two alcohol acyl transferases enzymes contribute to the production of branched, straight chain and sulphur esters

Fermat Principle in Finsler Spacetimes

It is shown that, on a manifold with a Finsler metric of Lorentzian signature, the lightlike geodesics satisfy the following variational principle. Among all lightlike curves from a point (emission event) to a timelike curve (worldline of receiver), the lightlike geodesics make the arrival time stationary. Here ``arrival time'' refers to a parametrization of the timelike curve. This variational principle can be applied (i) to the vacuum light rays in an alternative spacetime theory, based on Finsler geometry, and (ii) to light rays in an anisotropic non-dispersive medium with a general-relativistic spacetime as background.Comment: 18 pages, submitted to Gen. Rel. Gra

An MPEG-7 scheme for semantic content modelling and filtering of digital video

Abstract Part 5 of the MPEG-7 standard specifies Multimedia Description Schemes (MDS); that is, the format multimedia content models should conform to in order to ensure interoperability across multiple platforms and applications. However, the standard does not specify how the content or the associated model may be filtered. This paper proposes an MPEG-7 scheme which can be deployed for digital video content modelling and filtering. The proposed scheme, COSMOS-7, produces rich and multi-faceted semantic content models and supports a content-based filtering approach that only analyses content relating directly to the preferred content requirements of the user. We present details of the scheme, front-end systems used for content modelling and filtering and experiences with a number of users

Impact of type 2 diabetes and the metabolic syndrome on myocardial structure and microvasculature of men with coronary artery disease

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Type 2 diabetes and the metabolic syndrome are associated with impaired diastolic function and increased heart failure risk. Animal models and autopsy studies of diabetic patients implicate myocardial fibrosis, cardiomyocyte hypertrophy, altered myocardial microvascular structure and advanced glycation end-products (AGEs) in the pathogenesis of diabetic cardiomyopathy. We investigated whether type 2 diabetes and the metabolic syndrome are associated with altered myocardial structure, microvasculature, and expression of AGEs and receptor for AGEs (RAGE) in men with coronary artery disease.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We performed histological analysis of left ventricular biopsies from 13 control, 10 diabetic and 23 metabolic syndrome men undergoing coronary artery bypass graft surgery who did not have heart failure or atrial fibrillation, had not received loop diuretic therapy, and did not have evidence of previous myocardial infarction.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>All three patient groups had similar extent of coronary artery disease and clinical characteristics, apart from differences in metabolic parameters. Diabetic and metabolic syndrome patients had higher pulmonary capillary wedge pressure than controls, and diabetic patients had reduced mitral diastolic peak velocity of the septal mitral annulus (E'), consistent with impaired diastolic function. Neither diabetic nor metabolic syndrome patients had increased myocardial interstitial fibrosis (picrosirius red), or increased immunostaining for collagen I and III, the AGE Nε-(carboxymethyl)lysine, or RAGE. Cardiomyocyte width, capillary length density, diffusion radius, and arteriolar dimensions did not differ between the three patient groups, whereas diabetic and metabolic syndrome patients had reduced perivascular fibrosis.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Impaired diastolic function of type 2 diabetic and metabolic syndrome patients was not dependent on increased myocardial fibrosis, cardiomyocyte hypertrophy, alteration of the myocardial microvascular structure, or increased myocardial expression of Nε-(carboxymethyl)lysine or RAGE. These findings suggest that the increased myocardial fibrosis and AGE expression, cardiomyocyte hypertrophy, and altered microvasculature structure described in diabetic heart disease were a consequence, rather than an initiating cause, of cardiac dysfunction.</p

Microscopic origins of the surface exciton photoluminescence peak in ZnO nanostructures

We report photoluminescence (PL) studies of the surface exciton peak in ZnO nanostructures at ∼3.367 eV aimed at elucidation of the nature and origin of the emission and its relationship to the nanostructure morphology. PL spectra in conjunction with localized voltage application in high vacuum and different gas atmospheres show a consistent variation (and recovery), allowing an association of the PL to a bound excitonic transition at the ZnO surface, which is modified by an adsorbate. PL studies of samples treated by plasma and of samples exposed to UV light under high vacuum conditions, both well-known processes for desorption of surface adsorbed oxygen, show no consistent effects on the surface exciton peak indicating the lack of involvement of oxygen species. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy data strongly suggest involvement of adsorbed OH species. X-ray diffraction, scanning, and transmission electronmicroscopy data are presented also, and the relationship of the surface exciton peak to the nanostructure morphology is discussed