Abstract: In situ observation of absorption spectral change of
heptil viologen cation radical (HV+.) was performed by slab optical
waveguide (SOWG) spectroscopy utilizing indium-tin-oxide (ITO)
electrodes. Synchronizing with electrochemical techniques, we
observed the adsorption process of HV+.on the ITO electrode. In this
study, we carried out the ITO-SOWG observations using KBr aqueous
solution containing different concentration of HV to investigate the
concentration dependent spectral change. A few specific absorption
bands, which indicated HV+.existed as both monomer and dimer on
ITO electrode surface with a monolayer or a few layers deposition,
were observed in UV-visible region. The change in the peak position
of the absorption spectra from adsorption species of HV+. were
correlated with the concentration of HV as well as the electrode
potential.
Abstract: Surface currents play a major role in the distribution
of contaminants, the connectivity of marine populations, and can
influence the vertical and horizontal distribution of nutrients within
the water column. This paper aims to determine the effects of sea
breeze-wind patterns on the climatology of the surface currents on the
continental shelf surrounding Rottnest Island, WA Australia. The
alternating wind patterns allow for full cyclic rotations of wind
direction, permitting the interpretation of the effect of the wind on the
surface currents. It was found that the surface currents only clearly
follow the northbound Capes Current in times when the Fremantle
Doctor sets in. Surface currents react within an hour to a change of
direction of the wind, allowing southerly currents to dominate during
strong northerly sea breezes, often followed by mixed currents
dominated by eddies in the inter-lying times.
Abstract: To improve the characterization of blood flows, we propose a method which makes it possible to use the spectral analysis
of the Doppler signals. Our calculation induces a reasonable approximation, the error made on estimated speed reflects the fact
that speed depends on the flow conditions as well as on measurement parameters like the bore and the volume flow rate. The estimate of the Doppler signal frequency enables us to determine the maximum Doppler frequencie Fd max as well as the maximum flow speed. The
results show that the difference between the estimated frequencies
( Fde ) and the Doppler frequencies ( Fd ) is small, this variation tends to zero for important θ angles and it is proportional to the diameter D. The description of the speed of friction and the
coefficient of friction justify the error rate obtained.
Abstract: In this study, a frame work for verification of famous seismic codes is utilized. To verify the seismic codes performance, damage quantity of RC frames is compared with the target performance. Due to the randomness property of seismic design and earthquake loads excitation, in this paper, fragility curves are developed. These diagrams are utilized to evaluate performance level of structures which are designed by the seismic codes. These diagrams further illustrate the effect of load combination and reduction factors of codes on probability of damage exceedance. Two types of structures; very high important structures with high ductility and medium important structures with intermediate ductility are designed by different seismic codes. The Results reveal that usually lower damage ratio generate lower probability of exceedance. In addition, the findings indicate that there are buildings with higher quantity of bars which they have higher probability of damage exceedance. Life-cycle cost analysis utilized for comparison and final decision making process.
Abstract: Since the last two decades, container transportation
system has been faced under increasing development. This fact
shows the importance of container transportation system as a key role
of container terminals to link between sea and land. Therefore, there
is a continuous need for the optimal use of equipment and facilities in
the ports. Regarding the complex structure of container ports, this
paper presents a simulation model that compares tow storage
strategies for storing containers in the yard. For this purpose, we
considered loading and unloading norm as an important criterion to
evaluate the performance of Shahid Rajaee container port. By
analysing the results of the model, it will be shown that using
marshalling yard policy instead of current storage system has a
significant effect on the performance level of the port and can
increase the loading and unloading norm up to 14%.
Abstract: Candida spp. are common and aggressive pathogens. Because of the growing resistance of Candida spp. to current antifungals, novel targets, found in Candida spp. but not in humans or other flora, have to be identified. The alternative oxidase (AOX) is one such possibility. This enzyme is insensitive to cyanide, but is sensitive to compounds such as salicylhydroxamic acid (SHAM), disulfiram and n-alkyl gallates. The growth each of six Candida spp. was inhibited significantly by ~13 mM SHAM or 2 mM cyanide, albeit to differing extents. In C. dubliniensis, C. krusei and C. tropicalis the rate of O2 uptake was inhibited by 18-36% by 25 mM SHAM, but this had little or no effect on C. glabrata, C. guilliermondii or C. parapsilosis. Although SHAM substantially inhibited the growth of Candida spp., it is unlikely that the inhibition of AOX was the cause. Salicylhydroxamic acid is used therapeutically in the treatment of urinary tract infections and urolithiasis, but it also has some potential in the treatment of Candida spp. infection.
Abstract: Searching similar documents and document
management subjects have important place in text mining. One of the
most important parts of similar document research studies is the
process of classifying or clustering the documents. In this study, a
similar document search approach that includes discussion of out the
case of belonging to multiple categories (multiple categories
problem) has been carried. The proposed method that based on Fuzzy
Similarity Classification (FSC) has been compared with Rocchio
algorithm and naive Bayes method which are widely used in text
mining. Empirical results show that the proposed method is quite
successful and can be applied effectively. For the second stage,
multiple categories vector method based on information of categories
regarding to frequency of being seen together has been used.
Empirical results show that achievement is increased almost two
times, when proposed method is compared with classical approach.
Abstract: Traditional optical networks are gradually evolving towards intelligent optical networks due to the need for faster bandwidth provisioning, protection and restoration of the network that can be accomplished with devices like optical switch, add drop multiplexer and cross connects. Since dense wavelength multiplexing forms the physical layer for intelligent optical networking, the roll of high speed all optical switch is important. This paper analyzes such an ultra-high speed polymer electro-optic switch. The performances of the 2x2 optical waveguide switch with rectangular, triangular and trapezoidal grating profiles on various device parameters are analyzed. The simulation result shows that trapezoidal grating is the optimized structure which has the coupling length of 81μm and switching voltage of 11V for the operating wavelength of 1550nm. The switching time for this proposed switch is 0.47 picosecond. This makes the proposed switch to be an important element in the intelligent optical network.
Abstract: Monitored 3-Dimensional (3D) video experience can be utilized as “feedback information” to fine tune the service parameters for providing a better service to the demanding 3D service customers. The 3D video experience which includes both video quality and depth perception is influenced by several contextual and content related factors (e.g., ambient illumination condition, content characteristics, etc) due to the complex nature of the 3D video. Therefore, effective factors on this experience should be utilized while assessing it. In this paper, structural information of the depth map sequences of the 3D video is considered as content related factor effective on the depth perception assessment. Cartoon-like filter is utilized to abstract the significant depth levels in the depth map sequences to determine the structural information. Moreover, subjective experiments are conducted using 3D videos associated with cartoon-like depth map sequences to investigate the effectiveness of ambient illumination condition, which is a contextual factor, on depth perception. Using the knowledge gained through this study, 3D video experience metrics can be developed to deliver better service to the 3D video service users.
Abstract: Linear stability analysis of wake-shear layers in twophase
shallow flows is performed in the present paper. Twodimensional
shallow water equations are used in the analysis. It is
assumed that the fluid contains uniformly distributed solid particles.
No dynamic interaction between the carrier fluid and particles is
expected in the initial moment. The stability calculations are
performed for different values of the particle loading parameter and
two other parameters which characterize the velocity ratio and the
velocity deficit. The results show that the particle loading parameter
has a stabilizing effect on the flow while the increase in the velocity
ratio or in the velocity deficit destabilizes the flow.
Abstract: Retinoic acid is like a steroid hormone that plays a
role in embryo formation, proliferation of spermatogonia cells,
ephitelial cells differentiation and organogenesis. Retinoic acid can
influences seminiferous tubule formation during embryonic testis
development and also play a role in the regulation of ovarian function
and female reproductive tract by suppressing the hormones FSH
receptor expression. The excessive use of retinoic acid caused
abnormalities in the fetus. The result showed that there is the
influence of retinoic acid on the developmet of mice fetal testes, for
examples disruption of the formation of seminiferous tubules and
tubules seemed to be hollow, spermatogonia cells are relatively few
in number and caused Leydig cells count relatively more. While in
the female fetus does not caused the formation of primordial follicles
and disrupted the development of germinal ephitelial cells of fetal
ovaries of female mice (mus musculus) Swiss Webster.
Abstract: Microarrays have become the effective, broadly used tools in biological and medical research to address a wide range of problems, including classification of disease subtypes and tumors. Many statistical methods are available for analyzing and systematizing these complex data into meaningful information, and one of the main goals in analyzing gene expression data is the detection of samples or genes with similar expression patterns. In this paper, we express and compare the performance of several clustering methods based on data preprocessing including strategies of normalization or noise clearness. We also evaluate each of these clustering methods with validation measures for both simulated data and real gene expression data. Consequently, clustering methods which are common used in microarray data analysis are affected by normalization and degree of noise and clearness for datasets.
Abstract: In this paper, a two-dimensional (2D) numerical
model for the tidal currents simulation in Persian Gulf is presented.
The model is based on the depth averaged equations of shallow water
which consider hydrostatic pressure distribution. The continuity
equation and two momentum equations including the effects of bed
friction, the Coriolis effects and wind stress have been solved. To
integrate the 2D equations, the Alternative Direction Implicit (ADI)
technique has been used. The base of equations discritization was
finite volume method applied on rectangular mesh. To evaluate the
model validation, a dam break case study including analytical
solution is selected and the comparison is done. After that, the
capability of the model in simulation of tidal current in a real field is
represented by modeling the current behavior in Persian Gulf. The
tidal fluctuations in Hormuz Strait have caused the tidal currents in
the area of study. Therefore, the water surface oscillations data at
Hengam Island on Hormoz Strait are used as the model input data.
The check point of the model is measured water surface elevations at
Assaluye port. The comparison between the results and the
acceptable agreement of them showed the model ability for modeling
marine hydrodynamic.
Abstract: In this paper, we propose an effective relay
communication for layered video transmission as an alternative to
make the most of limited resources in a wireless communication
network where loss often occurs. Relaying brings stable multimedia
services to end clients, compared to multiple description coding
(MDC). Also, retransmission of only parity data about one or more
video layer using channel coder to the end client of the relay device is
paramount to the robustness of the loss situation. Using these
methods in resource-constrained environments, such as real-time user
created content (UCC) with layered video transmission, can provide
high-quality services even in a poor communication environment.
Minimal services are also possible. The mathematical analysis shows
that the proposed method reduced the probability of GOP loss rate
compared to MDC and raptor code without relay. The GOP loss rate
is about zero, while MDC and raptor code without relay have a GOP
loss rate of 36% and 70% in case of 10% frame loss rate.
Abstract: In this paper, the existence of 2n positive periodic solutions for n species non-autonomous Lotka-Volterra cooperative systems with harvesting terms is established by using Mawhin-s continuation theorem of coincidence degree theory and matrix inequality. An example is given to illustrate the effectiveness of our results.
Abstract: A simple approach is demonstrated for growing large
scale, nearly vertically aligned ZnO nanowire arrays by thermal
oxidation method. To reveal effect of temperature on growth and
physical properties of the ZnO nanowires, gold coated zinc substrates
were annealed at 300 °C and 400 °C for 4 hours duration in air. Xray
diffraction patterns of annealed samples indicated a set of well
defined diffraction peaks, indexed to the wurtzite hexagonal phase of
ZnO. The scanning electron microscopy studies show formation of
ZnO nanowires having length of several microns and average of
diameter less than 500 nm. It is found that the areal density of wires
is relatively higher, when the annealing is carried out at higher
temperature i.e. at 400°C. From the field emission studies, the values
of the turn-on and threshold field, required to draw emission current
density of 10 μA/cm2 and 100 μA/cm2 are observed to be 1.2 V/μm
and 1.7 V/μm for the samples annealed at 300 °C and 2.9 V/μm and
3.7 V/μm for that annealed at 400 °C, respectively. The field
emission current stability, investigated over duration of more than 2
hours at the preset value of 1 μA, is found to be fairly good in both
cases. The simplicity of the synthesis route coupled with the
promising field emission properties offer unprecedented advantage
for the use of ZnO field emitters for high current density
applications.
Abstract: Medical applications are among the most impactful
areas of microrobotics. The ultimate goal of medical microrobots is
to reach currently inaccessible areas of the human body and carry out
a host of complex operations such as minimally invasive surgery
(MIS), highly localized drug delivery, and screening for diseases at
their very early stages. Miniature, safe and efficient propulsion
systems hold the key to maturing this technology but they pose
significant challenges. A new type of propulsion developed recently,
uses multi-flagella architecture inspired by the motility mechanism of
prokaryotic microorganisms. There is a lack of efficient methods for
designing this type of propulsion system. The goal of this paper is to
overcome the lack and this way, a numerical strategy is proposed to
design multi-flagella propulsion systems. The strategy is based on the
implementation of the regularized stokeslet and rotlet theory, RFT
theory and new approach of “local corrected velocity". The effects of
shape parameters and angular velocities of each flagellum on overall
flow field and on the robot net forces and moments are considered.
Then a multi-layer perceptron artificial neural network is designed
and employed to adjust the angular velocities of the motors for
propulsion control. The proposed method applied successfully on a
sample configuration and useful demonstrative results is obtained.
Abstract: Cylindrical concrete reservoirs are appropriate choice
for storing liquids as water, oil and etc. By using of the pre-cast
concrete reservoirs instead of the in-situ constructed reservoirs, the
speed and precision of the construction would considerably increase.
In this construction method, wall and roof panels would make in
factory with high quality materials and precise controlling. Then,
pre-cast wall and roof panels would carry out to the construction site
for assembling. This method has a few faults such as: the existing
weeks in connection of wall panels together and wall panels to
foundation. Therefore, these have to be resisted under applied loads
such as seismic load. One of the innovative methods which was
successfully applied for seismic retrofitting of numerous pre-cast
cylindrical water reservoirs in New Zealand, using of the high tensile
cables around the reservoirs and post-tensioning them. In this paper,
analytical modeling of wall and roof panels and post-tensioned
cables are carried out with finite element method and the effect of
height to diameter ratio, post-tensioning force value, liquid level in
reservoir, installing position of tendons on seismic response of
reservoirs are investigated.
Abstract: The performances of small and medium enterprises
have stagnated in the last two decades. This has mainly been due to
the emergence of HIV / Aids. The disease has had a detrimental
effect on the general economy of the country leading to morbidity
and mortality of the Kenyan workforce in their primary age. The
present study sought to establish the economic impact of HIV / Aids
on the micro-enterprise development in Obunga slum – Kisumu, in
terms of production loss, increasing labor related cost and to establish
possible strategies to address the impact of HIV / Aids on microenterprises.
The study was necessitated by the observation that most
micro-enterprises in the slum are facing severe economic and social
crisis due to the impact of HIV / Aids, they get depleted and close
down within a short time due to death of skilled and experience
workforce. The study was carried out between June 2008 and June
2009 in Obunga slum. Data was subjected to computer aided
statistical analysis that included descriptive statistic, chi-squared and
ANOVA techniques. Chi-squared analysis on the micro-enterprise
owners opinion on the impact of HIV / Aids on depletion of microenterprise
compared to other diseases indicated high levels of the
negative effects of the disease at significance levels of P
Abstract: In this research, the flow pattern influence on
performance of a micro PEMFC was investigated
experimentally. The investigation focused on the impacts of
bend angels and rib/channel dimensions of serpentine flow
channel pattern on the performance and investigated how they
improve the performance. The fuel cell employed for these
experiments was a micro single PEMFC with a membrane of
1.44 cm2 Nafion NRE-212. The results show that 60° and 120°
bend angles can provide the better performances at 20 and 40
sccm inlet flow rates comparing to that the conventional design.
Additionally, wider channel with narrower rib spacing gives
better performance. These results may be applied to develop
universal heuristics for the design of flow pattern of micro
PEMFC.