bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Emotion Recognition with Eigen Features of Frequency Band Activities Embedded in Induced Brain Oscillations Mediated by Affective Pictures
Authors: Aydin Serap , Demirtaş Serdar , Ateş Kahraman , Tunga M. Alper
Published: February 2016

In this study, singular spectrum analysis (SSA) has been used for the first time in order to extract emotional features from well-defined electroencephalography (EEG) frequency band activities (BAs) so-called delta (0.5–4[Formula: see text]Hz), theta (4–8[Formula: see text]Hz), alpha (8–16[Formula: see text]Hz), beta (16–32[Formula: see text]Hz), gamma (32–64[Formula: see text]Hz). These five BAs were estimated by applying sixth-level multi-resolution wavelet decomposition (MRWD) with Daubechies wavelets (db-8) to single channel nonaveraged emotional EEG oscillations of 6 s for each scalp location over 16 recording sites (Fp1, Fp2, F3, F4, F7, F8, C3, C4, P3, P4, T3, T4, T5, T6, O1, O2). Every trial was mediated by different emotional stimuli which were selected from international affective picture system (IAPS) to induce emotional states such as pleasant (P), neutral (N), and unpleasant (UP). Largest principal components (PCs) of BAs were considered as emotional features and data mining approaches were used for the first time in order to classify both three different (P, N, UP) and two contrasting (P and UP) emotional states for 30 healthy controls. Emotional features extracted from gamma BAs (GBAs) for 16 recording sites provided the high classification accuracies of 87.1% and 100% for classification of three emotional states and two contrasting emotional states, respectively. In conclusion, we found the followings: (1) Eigenspectra of high frequency BAs in EEG are highly sensitive to emotional hemispheric activations, (2) emotional states are mostly mediated by GBA, (3) pleasant pictures induce the higher cortical activation in contrast to unpleasant pictures, (4) contrasting emotions induce opposite cortical activations, (5) cognitive activities are necessary for an emotion to occur.
Microsleeps are Associated with Stage-2 Sleep Spindles from Hippocampal-Temporal Network
Authors: Jonmohamadi Yaqub , Poudel Govinda R. , Innes Carrie C. R. H. , Jones Richard D.
Published: February 2016

Behavioral microsleeps are associated with complete disruption of responsiveness for [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]s to 15[Formula: see text]s. They can result in injury or death, especially in transport and military sectors. In this study, EEGs were obtained from five nonsleep-deprived healthy male subjects performing a 1[Formula: see text]h 2D tracking task. Microsleeps were detected in all subjects. Microsleep-related activities in the EEG were detected, characterized, separated from eye closure-related activity, and, via source-space-independent component analysis and power analysis, the associated sources were localized in the brain. Microsleeps were often, but not always, found to be associated with strong alpha-band spindles originating bilaterally from the anterior temporal gyri and hippocampi. Similarly, theta-related activity was identified as originating bilaterally from the frontal-orbital cortex. The alpha spindles were similar to sleep spindles in terms of frequency, duration, and amplitude-profile, indicating that microsleeps are equivalent to brief instances of Stage-2 sleep.
Unsupervised Estimation of Mouse Sleep Scores and Dynamics Using a Graphical Model of Electrophysiological Measurements
Authors: Yaghouby Farid , O’Hara Bruce F. , Sunderam Sridhar
Published: February 2016

The proportion, number of bouts, and mean bout duration of different vigilance states (Wake, NREM, REM) are useful indices of dynamics in experimental sleep research. These metrics are estimated by first scoring state, sometimes using an algorithm, based on electrophysiological measurements such as the electroencephalogram (EEG) and electromyogram (EMG), and computing their values from the score sequence. Isolated errors in the scores can lead to large discrepancies in the estimated sleep metrics. But most algorithms score sleep by classifying the state from EEG/EMG features independently in each time epoch without considering the dynamics across epochs, which could provide contextual information. The objective here is to improve estimation of sleep metrics by fitting a probabilistic dynamical model to mouse EEG/EMG data and then predicting the metrics from the model parameters. Hidden Markov models (HMMs) with multivariate Gaussian observations and Markov state transitions were fitted to unlabeled 24-h EEG/EMG feature time series from 20 mice to model transitions between the latent vigilance states; a similar model with unbiased transition probabilities served as a reference. Sleep metrics predicted from the HMM parameters did not deviate significantly from manual estimates except for rapid eye movement sleep (REM) ([Formula: see text]; Wilcoxon signed-rank test). Changes in value from Light to Dark conditions correlated well with manually estimated differences (Spearman’s rho 0.43–0.84) except for REM. HMMs also scored vigilance state with over 90% accuracy. HMMs of EEG/EMG features can therefore characterize sleep dynamics from EEG/EMG measurements, a prerequisite for characterizing the effects of perturbation in sleep monitoring and control applications.
Non-uniform dependence on initial data for the generalized Degasperis–Procesi equation on the line
Authors: Fu Yanggeng , Yu Zanping , Shen Jianhe
Published: February 2016

In this paper, we show that the solution map of the generalized Degasperis–Procesi (gDP) equation is not uniformly continuous in Sobolev spaces [Formula: see text] for [Formula: see text]. Our proof is based on the estimates for the actual solutions and the approximate solutions, which consist of a low frequency and a high frequency part. It also exploits the fact that the gDP equation conserves a quantity which is equivalent to the [Formula: see text] norm.
Nontrivial algebraic cycles in the Jacobian varieties of some quotients of Fermat curves
Authors: Tadokoro Yuuki
Published: February 2016

We obtain the trace map images of the values of certain harmonic volumes for some cyclic quotients of [Formula: see text]th Fermat curves. These provide the algorithm showing that the algebraic cycles, called [Formula: see text]th Ceresa cycles, are not algebraically equivalent to zero in their Jacobian varieties. We apply the method to curves for prime [Formula: see text] with [Formula: see text] modulo [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] [Formula: see text].
Growth of balls of holomorphic sections on projective toric varieties
Authors: Hajli Mounir
Published: February 2016

Let [Formula: see text] be an equivariant line bundle which is big and nef on a complex projective nonsingular toric variety [Formula: see text]. Given a continuous toric metric [Formula: see text] on [Formula: see text], we define the energy at equilibrium of [Formula: see text] where [Formula: see text] is the weight of the metrized toric divisor [Formula: see text]. We show that this energy describes the asymptotic behavior as [Formula: see text] of the volume of the [Formula: see text]-norm unit ball induced by [Formula: see text] on the space of global holomorphic sections [Formula: see text].
Stability analysis for penetrative convection in a fluid layer with throughflow
Authors: Harfash Akil J.
Published: February 2016

The problem of penetrative convection in fluid layer with vertical throughflow effect is studied by using methods of linear instability theory and unconditional and conditional nonlinear energy theories. Then, the accuracy of the linear instability thresholds are tested using a three-dimensional simulation. For small values of throughflow, the results support the assertion that the linear theory is a good prediction to the onset of convective motion, and thus, regions of stability. However, for large values of throughflow, we found that the actual threshold move from the linear instability threshold with increasing the positive and negative effect of throughflow.
A Haar wavelet collocation method for coupled nonlinear Schrödinger–KdV equations
Authors: Oruç Ömer , Esen Alaattin , Bulut Fatih
Published: February 2016

In this paper, to obtain accurate numerical solutions of coupled nonlinear Schrödinger–Korteweg-de Vries (KdV) equations a Haar wavelet collocation method is proposed. An explicit time stepping scheme is used for discretization of time derivatives and nonlinear terms that appeared in the equations are linearized by a linearization technique and space derivatives are discretized by Haar wavelets. In order to test the accuracy and reliability of the proposed method [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text] error norms and conserved quantities are used. Also obtained results are compared with previous ones obtained by finite element method, Crank–Nicolson method and radial basis function meshless methods. Error analysis of Haar wavelets is also given.
Identifying influential nodes in complex networks based on expansion factor
Authors: Liu Dong , Jing Yun , Chang Baofang
Published: February 2016

Identifying the top influential spreaders in a network has practical significance. In this paper, we propose a novel centrality to identify influential spreaders based on expansion factor. Nodes with high expansion factor centrality (EFC) have strong spreading capability. During the course of the work, an improved strategy is proposed to reduce the time complexity of EFC. We discuss the correlations between EFC and the other five classical indicators. Simulation results on the Susceptible-Infected-Removed (SIR) model manifest that EFC can identify influential nodes and find some critical influential nodes neglected by other indicators.
Automatic classification of lung tumour heterogeneity according to a visual-based score system in dynamic contrast enhanced CT sequences
Authors: Bevilacqua Alessandro , Baiocco Serena
Published: February 2016

Computed tomography (CT) technologies have been considered for a long time as one of the most effective medical imaging tools for morphological analysis of body parts. Contrast Enhanced CT (CE-CT) also allows emphasising details of tissue structures whose heterogeneity, inspected through visual analysis, conveys crucial information regarding diagnosis and prognosis in several clinical pathologies. Recently, Dynamic CE-CT (DCE-CT) has emerged as a promising technique to perform also functional hemodynamic studies, with wide applications in the oncologic field. DCE-CT is based on repeated scans over time performed after intravenous administration of contrast agent, in order to study the temporal evolution of the tracer in 3D tumour tissue. DCE-CT pushes towards an intensive use of computers to provide automatically quantitative information to be used directly in clinical practice. This requires that visual analysis, representing the gold-standard for CT image interpretation, gains objectivity.

This work presents the first automatic approach to quantify and classify the lung tumour heterogeneities based on DCE-CT image sequences, so as it is performed through visual analysis by experts. The approach developed relies on the spatio-temporal indices we devised, which also allow exploiting temporal data that enrich the knowledge of the tissue heterogeneity by providing information regarding the lesion status.
Prediction of phase transition, mechanical and electronic properties of inverse Heusler compound Y2RuPb, via FP-LMTO method
Authors: Labair M. , Rached H. , Rached D. , Benalia S. , Abidri B. , Khenata R. , Ahmed R. , Omran S. Bin , Bouhemadou A. , Syrotyuk S. V.
Published: February 2016

Topological insulators (TI) are immensely investigated due to their promising characteristics for spintronics and quantum computing applications. In this regard, although bismuth, telluride, selenide and antimony containing compounds are typically considered as topological insulators, materials with Hg2CuTi-type structure have also shown their potential for TIs as well. Here, we present first principles study of the Y2RuPb compound, pertaining to its structural, mechanical, electrical and the optical properties. Calculations are executed at the level of the parameterized Perdew–Burke–Ernzerhof (PBE) generalized gradient approximation (GGA), employing the full-potential (FP) linearized muffin-tin orbital (LMTO) approach, as designed within the density functional theory (DFT). The study is carried out on the Hg2CuTi-type and Cu2MnAl-type structures of the Y2RuPb compound. From our structural calculations, it is found that Y2RuPb is more stable in its Hg2CuTi-type structure; however, the analysis of the mechanical properties reveals its stability in both phases against any kind of elastic deformation. Similarly, Dirac cone shaped surface energy levels found in the predicted electronic band structure of the Y2RuPb compound, and good agreement of the obtained results with Zhang et al., demonstrates that it is a topological insulating material. Additionally, the real and imaginary parts of the dielectric function [Formula: see text] ([Formula: see text]) and refractive index n ([Formula: see text]), for an energy range up to 14[Formula: see text]eV, are analyzed as well.
Corrections to finite-size scaling in the φ4 model on square lattices
Authors: Kaupužs J. , Melnik R. V. N. , Rimšāns J.
Published: February 2016

Corrections to scaling in the two-dimensional (2D) scalar [Formula: see text] model are studied based on nonperturbative analytical arguments and Monte Carlo (MC) simulation data for different lattice sizes L ([Formula: see text]) and different values of the [Formula: see text] coupling constant [Formula: see text], i.e. [Formula: see text], 1, 10. According to our analysis, amplitudes of the nontrivial correction terms with the correction–to–scaling exponents [Formula: see text] become small when approaching the Ising limit ([Formula: see text]), but such corrections generally exist in the 2D [Formula: see text] model. Analytical arguments show the existence of corrections with the exponent [Formula: see text]. The numerical analysis suggests that there exist also corrections with the exponent [Formula: see text] and, perhaps, also with the exponent about [Formula: see text], which are detectable at [Formula: see text]. The numerical tests provide an evidence that the structure of corrections to scaling in the 2D [Formula: see text] model differs from the usually expected one in the 2D Ising model.
The power conjugacy problem in Higman–Thompson groups
Authors: Barker Nathan , Duncan Andrew J. , Robertson David M.
Published: February 2016

An introduction to the universal algebra approach to Higman–Thompson groups (including Thompson’s group [Formula: see text]) is given, following a series of lectures by Graham Higman in 1973. In these talks, Higman outlined an algorithm for the conjugacy problem; which although essentially correct fails in certain cases, as we show here. A revised and complete version of the algorithm is written out explicitly. From this, we construct an algorithm for the power conjugacy problem in these groups. Python implementations of these algorithms can be found in [26].
Growth of étale groupoids and simple algebras
Authors: Nekrashevych Volodymyr
Published: February 2016

We study growth and complexity of étale groupoids in relation to growth of their convolution algebras. As an application, we construct simple finitely generated algebras of arbitrary Gelfand–Kirillov dimension [Formula: see text] and simple finitely generated algebras of quadratic growth over arbitrary fields.
Kinetic and related macroscopic models for chemotaxis on networks
Authors: Borsche R. , Kall J. , Klar A. , Pham T. N. H.
Published: February 2016

In this paper we consider kinetic and associated macroscopic models for chemotaxis on a network. Coupling conditions at the nodes of the network for the kinetic problem are presented and used to derive coupling conditions for the macroscopic approximations. The results of the different models are compared and relations to a Keller–Segel model on networks are discussed. For a numerical approximation of the governing equations asymptotic preserving relaxation schemes are extended to directed graphs. Kinetic and macroscopic equations are investigated numerically and their solutions are compared for tripod and more general networks.
QMC approach based on the Bogoliubov independent quark model of the nucleon
Authors: Bohr Henrik , Moszkowski Steven A. , Panda Prafulla K. , Providência Constança , da Providência João
Published: February 2016

The quark–meson coupling (QMC) model due to Guichon is formulated on the basis of the independent quark model of the nucleon proposed by Bogoliubov and is applied to the phenomenological descriptions of symmetric and asymmetric nuclear matter. For symmetric matter, the model predicts, at saturation density, the incompressibility [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]MeV, the quark effective mass [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]MeV and the effective nucleon mass [Formula: see text], where [Formula: see text] is the nucleon mass in vacuum. Neutron star masses above two solar masses are obtained.
Quantum diffraction grating: A possible new description of nuclear elastic scattering
Authors: Wojciechowski H.
Published: February 2016

The problem of discontinuous functions and their representations in the form of Legendre polynomial series in quantum nuclear scattering theory is presented briefly. The problem is quite old yet not adequately explained in numerous Quantum Theory textbooks and sometimes not correctly understood by physicists. Introduction of the generalized functions into the quantum scattering theory clarifies the problem and allows to propose new interpretations of nuclear elastic scattering phenomenon. The derived new forms of the full elastic scattering amplitudes and possibility of splitting them suggest existence of dynamical quantum diffraction grating around the nuclei. Particularly important fact is that this grating existing in the space around the nucleus makes considerable contribution to the experimental elastic differential cross-section. All these might be quite important in analyses of nuclear elastic scattering data and so require to be stated in a more detailed and clear way.
The neutron microscopic optical potential based on skyrme interaction
Authors: Xu Yong-Li , Guo Hai-Rui , Han Yin-Lu , Shen Qing-Biao
Published: February 2016

The neutron microscopic optical potential (MOP) based on Skyrme interaction has been achieved by the Green function method in the nuclear matter, and given by the local density approximation (LDA) for finite nuclei. The total cross-sections, nonelastic cross-sections, elastic scattering angular distributions and analyzing powers are predicted for some light nuclei and actinide nuclei below 100[Formula: see text]MeV by the obtained neutron MOP with the Skyrme interaction SkC. These data are also predicted for targets in the mass range of [Formula: see text] which are too deformed and have rich nuclear structure properties. All of the theoretical results give reasonable agreements with the corresponding experimental data.
Effects of NN potentials on p Nuclides in the A ∼100–120 region
Authors: Lahiri C. , Biswal S. K. , Patra S. K.
Published: February 2016

Microscopic optical potentials for low-energy proton reactions have been obtained by folding density dependent M3Y (DDM3Y) interaction derived from nuclear matter calculation with densities from mean field approach to study astrophysically important proton rich nuclei in mass 100–120 region. We compare [Formula: see text] factors for low-energy [Formula: see text] reactions with available experimental data and further calculate astrophysical reaction rates for [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] reactions. Again, we choose some nonlinear R3Y (NR3Y) interactions from relativistic mean field (RMF) calculation and folded them with corresponding RMF densities to reproduce experimental [Formula: see text]-factor values in this mass region. Finally, the effect of nonlinearity on our result is discussed.
METALLURGICAL AND CORROSION CHARACTERIZATION OF POST WELD HEAT TREATED DUPLEX STAINLESS STEEL (UNS S31803) JOINTS BY FRICTION WELDING PROCESS
Authors: ASIF M. MOHAMMED , SHRIKRISHNA KULKARNI ANUP , SATHIYA P.
Published: February 2016

The present study focuses on the metallurgical and corrosion characterization of post weld heat treated duplex stainless steel joints. After friction welding, it was confirmed that there is an increase in ferrite content at weld interface due to dynamic recrystallization. This caused the weldments prone to pitting corrosion attack. Hence the post weld heat treatments were performed at three temperatures 1080[Formula: see text]C, 1150[Formula: see text]C and 1200[Formula: see text]C with 15[Formula: see text]min of aging time. This was followed by water and oil quenching. The volume fraction of ferrite to austenite ratio was balanced and highest pit nucleation resistance were achieved after PWHT at 1080[Formula: see text]C followed by water quench and at 1150[Formula: see text]C followed by oil quench. This had happened exactly at parameter set containing heating pressure (HP):40 heating time (HT):4 upsetting pressure (UP):80 upsetting time (UP):2 (experiment no. 5). Dual phase presence and absence of precipitates were conformed through TEM which follow Kurdjumov–Sachs relationship. PREN of ferrite was decreasing with increase in temperature and that of austenite increased. The equilibrium temperature for water quenching was around 1100[Formula: see text]C and that for oil quenching was around 1140[Formula: see text]C. The pit depths were found to be in the range of 100[Formula: see text]nm and width of 1.5–2[Formula: see text][Formula: see text]m.
DESCRIPTION OF CHEMICALLY AND THERMALLY TREATED MULTI-WALLED CARBON NANOTUBES USING SEQUENTIAL DECOMPOSITION OF ADSORPTION ISOTHERMS
Authors: ALBESA ALBERTO G. , RAFTI MATÍAS , VICENTE JOSÉ LUIS
Published: February 2016

The effect of wet acid oxidation by means of sulfuric/nitric acid mixtures, and high-temperature treatment of commercial arc-discharge synthesized multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) was studied. In order to analyze the adsorption capacities of differently treated MWCNTs, we employed a multistep method that considers separately different pressure ranges (zones) on the experimentally obtained isotherms. The method is based on simple gas isotherm measurements (N2, CO2, CH4, etc.). Low pressure ranges can be described using Dubinin’s model, while high pressure regimes can be fitted using different models such as BET multilayer and Freundlich equations. This analysis allows to elucidate how different substrate treatments (chemical and thermal) can affect the adsorbate–adsorbent interactions; moreover, theoretical description of adsorbate–adsorbate interactions can be improved if a combination of adsorption mechanisms are used instead of a unique model. The results hereby presented also show that, while MWCNTs are a promising material for storage applications, gas separation applications should carefully consider the effect of wide nanotube size distribution present on samples after activation procedures.
EFFECT OF PRE-ANNEALING TEMPERATURE ON THE GROWTH OF ALIGNED α-Fe2O3 NANOWIRES VIA A TWO-STEP THERMAL OXIDATION
Authors: RASHID NORHANA MOHAMED , KISHI NAOKI , SOGA TETSUO
Published: February 2016

Pre-annealing as part of a two-step thermal oxidation process has a significant effect on the growth of hematite ([Formula: see text]-Fe2O3) nanowires on Fe foil. High-density aligned nanowires were obtained on iron foils pre-annealed at 300[Formula: see text]C under a dry air flow for 30[Formula: see text]min. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns indicate that the nanowires are transformed from the small [Formula: see text]-Fe2O3 grains and uniquely grow in the (110) direction. The formation of a high-density of small grains by pre-annealing improved the alignment and density of the [Formula: see text]-Fe2O3 nanowires.
Characterizations of Three Linear Values for TU Games by Associated Consistency: Simple Proofs Using the Jordan Normal Form
Authors: Béal Sylvain , Rémila Eric , Solal Philippe
Published: February 2016

This paper studies values for cooperative games with transferable utility. Numerous such values can be characterized by axioms of [Formula: see text]-associated consistency, which require that a value is invariant under some parametrized linear transformation [Formula: see text] on the vector space of cooperative games with transferable utility. Xu et al. [(2008) Linear Algebr. Appl. 428, 1571–1586; (2009) Linear Algebr. Appl. 430, 2896–2897] Xu et al. [(2013) Linear Algebr. Appl. 439, 2205–2215], Hamiache [(2010) Int. Game Theor. Rev. 12, 175–187] and more recently Xu et al. [(2015) Linear Algebr. Appl. 471, 224–240] follow this approach by using a matrix analysis. The main drawback of these articles is the heaviness of the proofs to show that the matrix expression of the linear transformations is diagonalizable. By contrast, we provide quick proofs by relying on the Jordan normal form of the previous matrix.
Exponential decay for the damped wave equation in unbounded domains
Authors: Burq Nicolas , Joly Romain
Published: February 2016

We study the decay of the semigroup generated by the damped wave equation in an unbounded domain. We first prove under the natural geometric control condition the exponential decay of the semigroup. Then we prove under a weaker condition the logarithmic decay of the solutions (assuming that the initial data are smoother). As corollaries, we obtain several extensions of previous results of stabilization and control.
Existence and non-existence results for minimizers of the Ginzburg–Landau energy with prescribed degrees
Authors: Dos Santos Mickaël , Rodiac Rémy
Published: February 2016

Let [Formula: see text] be a smooth annular type domain. We consider the simplified Ginzburg–Landau energy [Formula: see text], where [Formula: see text], and look for minimizers of [Formula: see text] with prescribed degrees [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text] on the boundaries of the domain. For large [Formula: see text] and for balanced degrees (i.e. [Formula: see text]), we obtain existence of minimizers for domains with large capacity (corresponding to thin annulus). We also prove non-existence of minimizers of [Formula: see text], for large [Formula: see text], if [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text] and if [Formula: see text] is a circular annulus with large capacity. Our approach relies on similar results obtained for the Dirichlet energy [Formula: see text], on a previous existence result obtained by Berlyand and Golovaty and on a technique developed by Misiats.
A uniqueness principle for up ≤ (−Δ)α 2u in the Euclidean space
Authors: Wang Y. , Xiao J.
Published: February 2016

This paper establishes such a uniqueness principle that under [Formula: see text] the fractional order differential inequality [Formula: see text] has the property that if [Formula: see text] then a non-negative weak solution to [Formula: see text] is unique, and if [Formula: see text] then the uniqueness of a non-negative weak solution to [Formula: see text] occurs when and only when [Formula: see text], thereby innovatively generalizing Gidas–Spruck’s result for [Formula: see text] in [Formula: see text] discovered in [B. Gidas and J. Spruck, Global and local behavior of positive solutions of nonlinear elliptic equations, Comm. Pure Appl. Math. 34 (1981) 525–598].
Characterization of the variable exponent Sobolev norm without derivatives
Authors: Hästö Peter , Ribeiro Ana Margarida
Published: February 2016

The norm in classical Sobolev spaces can be expressed as a difference quotient. This expression can be used to generalize the space to the fractional smoothness case. Since the difference quotient is based on shifting the function, it cannot be generalized to the variable exponent case. In its place, we introduce a smoothed difference quotient and show that it can be used to characterize the variable exponent Sobolev space.
Efficient particle filtering for stochastic Korteweg–de Vries equations
Authors: Bao Feng , Cao Yanzhao , Han Xiaoying , Li Jinglai
Published: February 2016

We propose an efficient algorithm to perform nonlinear data assimilation for Korteweg–de Vries solitons. In particular we develop a reduced particle filtering method to reduce the dimension of the problem. The method decomposes a solitonic pulse into a clean soliton and small radiative noise, and instead of inferring the complete pulse profile, we only infer the two soliton parameters with particle filter. Numerical examples are provided to demonstrate that the proposed method can provide rather accurate results, while being much more computationally affordable than a standard particle filter.
Derivations of some classes of matrix rings
Authors: Kuzucuoğlu Feride , Sayın Umut
Published: February 2016

Let [Formula: see text] be the ring of all (lower) niltriangular [Formula: see text] matrices over any associative ring [Formula: see text] with identity and [Formula: see text] be the ring of all [Formula: see text] matrices over an ideal [Formula: see text] of [Formula: see text]. We describe all derivations of the matrix ring [Formula: see text].
Significant Enhancement in the Conductivity of Al-Doped Zinc Oxide thin Films for TCO Application
Authors: Mohite R. M. , Ansari J. N. , Roy A. S. , Kothawale R. R.
Published: February 2016

Nanostructured Al-doped Zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films were deposited on glass substrate by chemical bath deposition (CBD) using aqueous zinc nitrate solution and subjected for different characterizations. Effect of Al[Formula: see text] substitution on the properties of ZnO annealed at 400[Formula: see text]C was studied by XRD and UV-Vis for structural studies, SEM and TEM for surface morphology and DC four probe resistivity measurements for electrical properties. Al[Formula: see text] substitution does not influence the morphology and well-known peaks related to wurtzite structure of ZnO. Electron microscopy (SEM and TEM) confirms rod shaped Al-doped ZnO nanocrystals with average width of 50[Formula: see text]nm. The optical band gap determined by UV–Visible spectroscopy was found to be in the range 3.37[Formula: see text]eV to 3.44[Formula: see text]eV. An EPR spectrum of AZO reveals peak at [Formula: see text] is due to shallow donors Zn interstitial. The DC electrical resistivity measurements of Al-doped ZnO show a minimum resistivity of [Formula: see text]-cm. Therefore, these samples have potential use in n-type window layer in optoelectronic devices, organic solar cells, photonic crystals, photo-detectors, light emitting diodes (LEDs), gas sensors and chemical sensors.
Characterization of Nanostructured n-ZnO/p-Si Heterojunction Prepared by a Simple Sol–Gel Method
Authors: He Bo , Xu Jing , Ning HuanPo , Xiong Hao , Xing HuaiZhong , Qin YuMing
Published: February 2016

The nanostructured ZnO film was prepared on a texturized Si wafer by a simple sol–gel method to fabricate n-ZnO/p-Si heterojunction photoelectric device. The novel sol–gel method is cheap and convenient. The structural, optical and electrical properties of the nanostructured ZnO film were studied by XRD, SEM, XPS, PL, UV–Vis spectrophotometer and Hall effect measurement. The current–voltage (I–V) curve of nanostructured ZnO/p-Si heterojunction device shows good rectifying behavior. Good photoelectric behavior is obtained.
Synthesis and Enhanced Photocatalytic Activity of Black Porous Zr-doped TiO2 Monoliths
Authors: Du Jimin , Wang Huiming , Chen Huijuan , Yang Menghe , Lu Xiaoling , Guo Hui , Zhang Zhanmin , Shang Tianwei , Xu Shujue , Li Wenqi , Wang Pianpian , Shakir Imran
Published: February 2016

Black Porous Zr-doped TiO2 monoliths were successfully synthesized by a combined route including sol–gel method with polystyrene spheres as template followed by calcination at high temperature in the presence of oxygen. As-synthesized samples were then treated in hydrogen atmosphere at 500[Formula: see text]C for 6[Formula: see text]h to obtain black Porous Zr-doped TiO2 monoliths. This as-synthesized black porous Zr-doped TiO2 composite showed relatively narrow bandgap compared to the pure anatase phase of TiO2, which may have its origin from the contributions from the Zr impurity and oxygen vacancies. The photocatalytic activity of the black porous Zr-doped TiO2 monolith was examined by carrying out the dye degradation on Rhodamine B under visible irradiation. Our experimental results indicate that black porous 0.9% Zr-doped TiO2 sample exhibits high photocatalytic activity with the photodecomposition of 95.25% under visible irradiation for 120[Formula: see text]min.
Chaos to order — Effect of random predation in a Holling type IV tri-trophic food chain system with closure terms
Authors: Ghosh Partha , Das Pritha , Mukherjee Debasis
Published: February 2016

Complex dynamics of modified Hastings–Powell (HP) model (phytoplankton-zoo-plankton-fish) with Holling type IV functional response and density-dependent mortality (closure terms) for top predator species is investigated in this paper. Closure terms describe the mortality of top predator in plankton food chain models. Modified HP model with Holling type IV functional response gives rise to similar type of chaotic dynamics (inverted “teacup attractor”) as observed in original HP model with Holling type II functional response. It is observed that introduction of nonlinear closure terms eliminate chaos and system dynamics becomes stable. Observation of this paper support the “Steele–Henderson conjecture” that, nonlinear closure terms eliminate or reduces limit cycles and chaos in plankton food chain models. Chaotic or stable dynamics are numerically verified by Lyapunov exponents (LE) method and Sil’nikov eigenvalue analysis and also illustrated graphically by plotting bifurcation diagrams. It is assumed that mortality of fish population, caused by higher-order predators (which are not explicitly included in the model) is not constant, rather it exhibits random variation throughout the year. To incorporate the effect of random mortality of fish population, white noise term is introduced into the original deterministic model. It is observed that the corresponding stochastic model is stable in mean square when the intensity of noise is small.
ℤ2(ℤ2 + uℤ2)-Additive cyclic codes and their duals
Authors: Srinivasulu B , Bhaintwal Maheshanand
Published: February 2016

In this paper, we study some structural properties of [Formula: see text]-additive cyclic codes in [Formula: see text] as [Formula: see text]-submodules of [Formula: see text], where [Formula: see text]. The generators for these codes are obtained and a minimal spanning set is determined for even and odd [Formula: see text] separately with arbitrary [Formula: see text]. We also determine the generators of duals of the [Formula: see text]-additive cyclic codes for odd [Formula: see text]. A necessary condition for a 1-generator [Formula: see text]-cyclic code to be a [Formula: see text]-free module is obtained.
Modeling the effects of environmental pollution intensified by urbanization on human population
Authors: Tandon Abhinav , Jyotsna Kumari
Published: February 2016

A mathematical model is presented here to investigate the effects of environmental pollution, intensified by urbanization, on the density of human population. Here, urbanization is assumed to grow with constant rate and also, induced through growing population and the corresponding population pressure. The model analysis, qualitatively and numerically, show that though the growth of population or population pressure is responsible for the growing urbanization, but for very large increase of urbanization, the population may not survive in the long run due to environmental pollution driven by urbanization.
Money Market Funds and the Prospect of a US Treasury Default
Authors: Gallagher Emily , Collins Sean
Published: February 2016

US debt ceiling crises in 2011 and 2013 were marked by significant outflows from money market funds (MMFs). This study evaluates the behavior and motivations of investors redeeming from MMFs during these crises. We find that the majority of redemptions reflect a generalized flight-to-liquidity and are, therefore, primarily a function of the liquidity needs of a fund’s investor base. Funds holding Treasury securities at greatest risk of default or with market values below their $1 share price experience flows that are insignificantly different from other funds, all else equal. We also find evidence that a significant portion of the outflows stem, not from liquidity concerns, but from an opportunistic yield play on the repo market created by the crises. Finally, we offer anecdotal evidence that the government’s guarantee of bank deposits had the perverse effect of encouraging outflows from MMFs during the 2011 crisis.
Distributed Nonlinear Control of Multi-Agent Systems with Switching Topologies
Authors: Liu Tengfei , Jiang Zhong-Ping
Published: February 2016

This paper studies the distributed nonlinear control of multi-agent systems with switching topologies for output agreement. A novel cyclic-small-gain approach is proposed. The crucial idea is to introduce a new dynamic mechanism to process the exchanged information between the agents, and to transform the distributed control problem into a stabilization problem for a dynamic network composed of input-to-output stable (IOS) subsystems. The desired distributed controller is designed based on IOS and cyclic-small-gain techniques. More interestingly, it is shown that the proposed method can be extended to distributed control design in the presence of disturbances.
Economic Impacts of Water Scarcity Under Diverse Water Salinities
Authors: Baum Zvi , Palatnik Ruslana Rachel , Kan Iddo , Rapaport-Rom Mickey
Published: February 2016

Exploitation of alternative water sources is expected to grow in the decades to come in water-stressed countries with fast population growth, especially in regions where a further decline of natural freshwater availability is expected due to climate change. Increasing utilization of non-freshwater usually leads to salinity build-up in fields and water sources as well as accumulation of various pollutants — both having a considerable impact on the suitability of non-freshwater for irrigation due to constraints associated with crop salinity tolerance and food safety regulations. We developed a linked Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) — farm-level model of a water economy with representation for multiple water types characterized by different qualities. We employ the model to assess the impact of water shortage on the Israeli economy, where steadily growing water scarcity leads to an increasing utilization of alternative water sources. We simulate water shortage scenarios based on the Long Term National Master Plan for The Water Economy developed by the Israeli Water Authority (IWA). The linked CGE — farm-level model provides a mechanism for estimating the Constant Elasticity of Substitution (CES) rates between different irrigation water types used in agriculture. This mechanism accounts for the effects of salinity on yields and takes into consideration food safety regulations for irrigating crops with treated wastewater. We demonstrate that, in contrast to previous studies, CES rates between different water types are not identical. The CES rates obtained in our study have relatively low values, which can be attributed to the constraints associated with crop salinity tolerance and food safety regulations. Our results reveal that water shortage can lead to a significant decline of Israel’s GDP, where a considerable part of the decline is attributed to the decrease in agricultural outputs. The magnitude of the impact depends on the underlying assumptions regarding future desalination capacity. To further study the effect of desalination, we run simulations under various desalination levels and examine its impact on the GDP. We also examine the extent to which the impact of water shortage is sensitive to CES rates between different irrigation water types.
Congenital Anomalies of the Extremities Occurring in Siblings
Authors: Takagi Takehiko , Seki Atsuhito , Mochida Joji , Takayama Shinichiro
Published: February 2016

Background: When examining children with congenital anomalies of the extremities, it is not uncommon for parents to ask about the possibility of similar anomalies occurring in their next child. However, the inheritance of the disease in many congenital anomalies of the extremities has never been elucidated.

Methods: In the present study we reviewed cases of their occurrence in siblings that we encountered in our department, and we investigated their characteristics.

Results: The results did not reveal any disease specificity, but a tendency for bilateral cases and male cases (cases in brothers) to be more common was observed.

Conclusions: In recent years there have been reports of the discovery of causative genes in some congenital anomalies, but because cases of occurrence in siblings with no familial occurrence in the past are seen, there may be a variety of causative genes in many congenital anomalies. In the present study there were many male cases (cases in brothers) and many bilateral cases, and there appears to have been a strong possibility of familial occurrence in such cases, but there were also quite a few exceptions. It is necessary to bear the possibility of heredity in mind in every case and provide the parents with an explanation.
Interaction of Small Zinc Complexes with Globular Proteins and Free Tryptophan
Authors: Butkus Joann M. , O’Riley Shelby , Chohan Balwant S. , Basu Swarna
Published: February 2016

A series of eight water soluble anionic, cationic, and neutral zinc(II) complexes were synthesized and characterized. The interaction of these complexes with bovine serum albumin (BSA), human serum albumin (HSA), lysozyme, and free tryptophan (Trp) was investigated using steady-state fluorescence spectroscopy. Static and dynamic fluorescence quenching analysis based on Stern-Volmer kinetics was conducted, and the decrease in fluorescence intensity of the Trp residue(s) can be ascribed predominantly to static quenching that occurs when the Zn complex binds to the protein and forms a nonfluorescent complex. The role played by the nature of the ligand, the metal, and complex charge in quenching Trp fluorescence was investigated. The binding association constants (Ka) ranged from 104to 1010 M−1and indicate that complexes with planar aromatic features have the strongest affinity for globular proteins and free Trp. Complexes with nonaromatic features failed to interact with these proteins at or in the vicinity of the Trp residues. These interactions were studied over a range of temperatures, and binding was found to weaken with the increase in temperature and was exothermic with a negative change in entropy. The thermodynamic parameters suggest that binding of Zn complexes to the proteins is a highly spontaneous and favorable process.
Role of Nox2 and p22phox in Persistent Postoperative Hypertension in Aldosterone-Producing Adenoma Patients after Adrenalectomy
Authors: Geng Xiaojing , Yan Li , Dong Jun , Liang Ying , Deng Yajuan , Li Ting , Luo Tongfeng , Lin Hailun , Zhang Shaoling
Published: February 2016

Adrenal aldosterone-producing adenoma (APA), producing the salt-retaining hormone aldosterone, commonly causes secondary hypertension, which often persists after unilateral adrenalectomy. Although persistent hypertension was correlated with residual hormone aldosterone, thein vivomechanism remains unclear. NADPH oxidase is the critical cause of aldosterone synthesisin vitro. Nox2 and p22phox comprise the NADPH oxidase catalytic core, serving to initiate a reactive oxygen species (ROS) cascade that may participate in the pathology. mRNAs of seven NADPH oxidase isoforms in APA were evaluated by RT-PCR and Q-PCR and their proteins by immunohistochemistry and Western blotting. NADPH oxidase activity was also detected. Nox2 and p22phox were especially abundant in APA. Particularly higher Nox2 and p22phox gene and protein levels were seen in APA than controls. Significant correlations betweenNox2mRNA andaldosterone synthase (CYP11B2)mRNA (R=0.66,P<0.01) and Nox2 protein and baseline plasma aldosterone concentration (PAC) (R=0.503,P<0.01) were detected in APA; however, none were found betweenp22phoxmRNA,CYP11B2mRNA,p22phoxprotein, and baseline PAC. Importantly, we found that Nox2 localized specifically in hyperplastic zona glomerulosa cells. In conclusion, our results highlight that Nox2 and p22phox may be directly involved in pathological aldosterone production and zona glomerulosa cell proliferation after APA resection.
Hb A1c Separation by High Performance Liquid Chromatography in Hemoglobinopathies
Authors: Chandrashekar Vani
Published: February 2016

Hb A1c measurement is subject to interference by hemoglobin traits and this is dependent on the method used for determination. In this paper we studied the difference between Hb A1c measured by HPLC in hemoglobin traits and normal chromatograms. We also studied the correlation of Hb A1c with age. Hemoglobin analysis was carried out by high performance liquid chromatography. Spearman’s rank correlation was used to study correlation between A1c levels and age. Mann-WhitneyUtest was used to study the difference in Hb A1c between patients with normal hemoglobin and hemoglobin traits. A total of 431 patients were studied. There was positive correlation with age in patients with normal chromatograms only. No correlation was seen in Hb E trait or beta thalassemia trait. No significant difference in Hb A1c of patients with normal chromatograms and patients with hemoglobin traits was seen. There is no interference by abnormal hemoglobin in the detection of A1c by high performance liquid chromatography. This method cannot be used for detection of A1c in compound heterozygous and homozygous disorders.
Flexural Strength Evaluation of Reinforced Concrete Members with Ultra High Performance Concrete
Authors: Bae Baek-Il , Choi Hyun-Ki , Choi Chang-Sik
Published: February 2016

Flexural strength evaluation models for steel fiber reinforced ultra high strength concrete were suggested and evaluated with test results. Suggested flexural strength models were composed of compression stress blocks and tension stress blocks. Rectangular stress block, triangular stress block, and real distribution shape of stress were used on compression side. Under tension, rectangular stress block distributed to whole area of tension side and partial area of tension side was used. The last model for tension side is realistic stress distribution. All these models were verified with test result which was carried out in this study. Test was conducted by four-point loading with 2,000 kN actuator for slender beam specimen. Additional verifications were carried out with previous researches on flexural strength of steel fiber reinforced concrete or ultra high strength concrete. Total of 21 test specimens were evaluated. As a result of comparison for flexural strength of section, neutral axis depth at ultimate state, models with triangular compression stress block, and strain-softening type tension stress block can be used as exact solution for ultra high performance concrete. For the conservative and convenient design of section, modified rectangular stress block model can be used with strain softening type tension stress block.