bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Geographic Production of Knowledge
Authors: Bier Jess
Published: January 2018

Mapping Israel, Mapping Palestine provides an extended critique of the notion that technoscientific facts should function as impartial arbiters in international conflicts. Chapter 6, “The Geographic Production of Knowledge”, draws on this overarching motif to explore its significance for broader research on knowledge and expertise. In particular, it highlights the need for researchers to materially alter the process of research in order to enable more heterogeneous landscapes for knowledge production. Returning to the themes of internationalism, landscape, and symmetry from chapter 1, this chapter also critically draws on the work of iconic poets and social justice activists like Mahmoud Darwish, Audre Lorde, and Nawal El Saadawi. It explores the following questions: How can researchers reflexively reshape landscapes in order to allow for more socially just forms of knowledge? What are the challenges to solidarity and cooperation due to geographical imbalances of power? The resulting analysis returns to the overall notion of geographic production, while also indicating a further layer of reflexivity for critical theory: the practice of material reflexivity, or awareness of one’s own situated position in landscapes with respect to power asymmetries—asymmetries that include international and economic hierarchies within academia itself.
Concepts of Government
Authors: Temin Peter
Published: January 2018

This chapter describes three concepts of government. Democracy is the government of, for and by the people. It provides services to all its members and insures them against a variety of risks, ranging from bankruptcy to the accident of being born poor and with a dark skin. Autarchy is government by a person or family that takes care of itself with little or no concern for the rest of the population. Oligarchy stands in between these extremes and varies by the size of the oligarchy. The United States in the 19th century was the uneasy combination of a demographic North and an oligarchic South. The country approached democracy in the 20th century, but this trajectory reversed after 1970, leading to an oligarchic dual economy.
Personal and National Debts
Authors: Temin Peter
Published: January 2018

The United States has a dual financial system; the FTE sector has financial assets, and the low-wage sector has personal debts. Financial policies after the 2008 financial crisis did not include effective mortgage relief for low-wage house owners. Housing, the largest asset of the bottom of the FTE sector, turned into a liability for poor black, brown and white mortgage holders. Education debts for low-wage workers trying to move to the FTE sector have grown to rival outstanding housing debts. These debts arise as states neglect public universities who raise tuition to replace state funds. For-profit universities inhibit reform of education financing as private prisons inhibit reform of mass incarceration.
Comparisons
Authors: Temin Peter
Published: January 2018

I argue in this book that the United States economy has developed into a dual economy in the spirit of W. Arthur Lewis. The prosperous part of the economy, known as the FTE sector, is the sector that readers of this book most likely live in and often envision as the whole American economy. The depressed economy, known as the low-wage sector, is the largest part of the American economy nonetheless. The decline of the middle class has left us with these two parts of an economy, governed by policies made by the FTE sector for the benefit of the FTE sector....
Conclusions
Authors: Temin Peter
Published: January 2018

This book has described how the vanishing middle class has left behind a dual economy as depicted by the Lewis model. The FTE sector makes political choices largely for itself, neglecting the needs of the low-wage sector in order to keep their taxes low. As Lewis observed, the “capitalists” of the FTE sector want to keep wages low in the low-wage sector to provide abundant cheap labor for their businesses....
They Came from the Basement: Tactics of Secrecy in New Brunswick’s Underground Punk Community
Authors: Lingel Jessa
Published: January 2018

The punk music scene in New Brunswick is literally underground, taking place in a network of residential basements. Because these shows are quasi-legal, the community has developed a set of practices for keeping their shows secret. In this chapter, I focus on the flexible practices that have developed in order to maintain a vibrant music scene.
Time: It’s On Your Side
Authors: Ghose Anindya
Published: January 2018

This chapter examines one of nine critical forces behind purchase decisions that make mobile advertising so powerful: time. It addresses questions such as: How can advertisers use time to their advantage to reach their target audience? Now that smartphones give advertisers the opportunity to reach an individual consumer in real time, what is the secret to getting the timing and the ad right? What is the best way to deliver a timely advertisement that will trigger a positive response? The chapter discusses advertising effectiveness based on time of day, advertising effectiveness based on day of the week, effectiveness of coupon redemption windows, the relationship between redemption windows and geography, and mobile advertising and its effect on different stages of the purchase funnel.
Epilogue
Authors: Ghose Anindya
Published: January 2018

This epilogue presents a few closing thoughts about the impact of mobile technology on society at large. It argues that the future of mobile advertising depends on a bargain that consumers and firms need to strike with each other. Both sides will have to make some investments and offer some trust for this give-and-take relationship to prosper. Consumers will need to find better ways to strike a personal balance between their lives and mobile technology. They will need to make the choice about how much they let technology intrude and inform their lives. They will hold the key to how open or private they want to be with their data. But this does not relieve businesses of their responsibilities. They need to pay attention and take their roles very seriously in this ecosystem. They should surprise and impress consumers while helping them with their needs the way a butler or a concierge would. More importantly, they need to take data security and privacy issues seriously.
China’s “Cancer Villages”: The Social, Political, and Economic Contexts of Pollution
Authors: Lora-Wainwright Anna
Published: January 2018

Chapter 2 examines the emergence of China’s “cancer villages”—village-sized clusters of high cancer incidence—and their significance. It overviews how media accounts discursively shaped their social, political and epistemological nature. It develops a typology of cancer villagers based on a close analysis of a selected number of cases examined in recent qualitative research (Chen et al 2013). These relatively high-profile, politically active cases provide a useful background against which to compare the less visibly active case studies examined in later chapters. They illustrate a broader range of activist practices, but they also show that such strategies are often ineffective. Ultimately, these examples suggest that “cancer villages” are not an epidemiologically uncontested label but rather a cultural, social, economic and political phenomenon. Further, they prove that scientific evidence is not the most important element in gaining redress. Rather, it is socio-economic contexts, the persistence of the local population’s complaints and their ability to threaten social stability which largely determines the ways in which polluting firms and the local government may respond. This point is further supported by the book’s three case studies, in which scientific evidence plays a relatively minor role in villagers’ reckonings about environmental health effects and in their demands for redress.
Emergent Properties and Connectionism
Authors: Varela Francisco J. , Thompson Evan , Rosch Eleanor
Published: January 2018

This chapter analyzes connectionism. In this alternative orientation in cognitive science, the brain has once more become the main source of metaphors and ideas. Theories and models no longer begin with abstract symbolic descriptions but with a whole army of neural-like, simple, unintelligent components, which, when appropriately connected, have interesting global properties. These global properties embody and express the cognitive capacities being sought. The entire approach depends, then, on introducing the appropriate connections, which is usually done through a rule for the gradual change of connections starting from a fairly arbitrary initial state. One of the important factors contributing to the explosive interest in this approach today was the introduction of some effective methods of following the changes that can occur in these networks. Indeed, great attention has been given to the introduction of statistical measures that provide the system with a global energy function that permits one to follow how the system arrives into convergent states.
Laying Down a Path in Walking
Authors: Varela Francisco J. , Thompson Evan , Rosch Eleanor
Published: January 2018

This concluding chapter examines some of the ethical dimensions of groundlessness in relation to the concern with nihilism that is typical of much post-Nietzschean thought. In the humanities—in art, literature, and philosophy—the growing awareness of groundlessness has taken form not through a confrontation with objectivism but rather with nihilism, skepticism, and extreme relativism. Indeed, this concern with nihilism is typical of late-twentieth-century life. Its visible manifestations are the increasing fragmentation of life, the revival of and continuing adherence to a variety of religious and political dogmatisms, and a pervasive yet intangible feeling of anxiety, which writers depict so vividly. It is for this reason—and because nihilism and objectivism are actually deeply connected—that the chapter turns to consider in more detail the nihilistic extreme.
Traumatic Responsibility
Authors: Johnston Josephine
Published: January 2018

A rich theme running through Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is responsibility. The novel explores the responsibility that Victor Frankenstein has for the destruction caused by his scientific curiosity, as well as the responsibility that he owes to his creation. Victor Frankenstein’s creature has emotions, desires and dreams that cannot be satisfied by humans. So the creature comes to Victor, first pleading—and then demanding—that he create a female companion with whom he can experience peace and love. While Victor grapples intellectually and practically with the implications of being responsible both for and to the creature, he also experiences responsibility as a devastating physical and emotional state. In this way, Mary Shelley raises a third kind of responsibility—to the self.
I’ve Created a Monster! (And So Can You)
Authors: Doctorow Cory
Published: January 2018

Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein resonated in 19th century England, and still speaks to us today, because it captures people’s anxieties about the effects of runaway technological change. But technological change is not a force of nature. The way technology changes – and the way it changes us – is the result of choices that we make as makers and users of tools, individually and collectively. Today digital technologies are making mass surveillance a part of everyday life, demonstrating how technologies can be marshalled by people in power to control others. The theory of the “adjacent possible,” which helps explain why certain imaginative technological visions emerge into reality at specific moments, in specific contexts, helps us understand how to understand technological change, prepare for its transformative effects, and decide to build and use technologies in ways that enrich human life, rather than exploit it.
Changing Conceptions of Human Nature
Authors: Maienschein Jane , Maccord Kate
Published: January 2018

To understand Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein in modern terms, it is useful to go back several millennia to Aristotle’s ideas of what it takes to become fully and normally human.  Victor Frankenstein’s creation acts like and is perceived to be a monster.  As Aristotle noted millennia ago, a monster is a being that has not developed normally.  Victor’s creature definitely did not develop normally, resulting in an incomplete being – something with the structure and material of a living, human type but without having gone through the process of emerging gradually and acquiring all the components to become a whole individual.  Perhaps Victor’s own incomplete and imperfect education left him also “monstrous” in some ways and let him create a being and then run away from it before it was complete.  Seeing Victor and his creature this way, we also gain insight into current practical and policy assessments about why a developing embryo or fetus is not a fully normal human.
The Bitter Aftertaste of Technical Sweetness
Authors: Douglas Heather E.
Published: January 2018

When completing his creation, Victor Frankenstein is in the thrall of technical sweetness, which is the allure of the pieces of an intellectual puzzle fitting neatly together. Scientists working at Los Alamos experienced a similar excitement and blindness to the full implications of their work, and they reacted similarly to Victor, bearing a burden of responsibility for their work into the post-WWII context. Frankenstein thus serves as a useful parable for scientists and engineers, showing the difficulty of looking past immediate technical success to the broader implications of their work.
Neuroscience Overview
Authors: Churchland Patricia S. , Sejnowski Terrence J.
Published: January 2018

This chapter provides an overview of the “neuroscience” component of the “computational neuroscience” synergy. It begins with a discussion of three ideas about levels in nervous systems: levels of analysis, levels of organization, and levels of processing. Levels of organization are essentially anatomical, and refer to a hierarchy of components and to structures that comprise these components. Levels of processing are physiological, and refer to the location of a process relative to the transducers and muscles. Levels of analysis are conceptual, and refer to different kinds of questions asked about how the brain performs a task. The chapter proceeds by considering seven categories of structural organization in nervous systems: systems, topographic maps, layers and columns, local networks, neurons, synapses, and molecules. It concludes by presenting a short list of brain facts.
Computational Overview
Authors: Churchland Patricia S. , Sejnowski Terrence J.
Published: January 2018

This chapter provides an overview of computational principles that may be useful when addressing the question of computation in nervous systems as well as questions of biological systems. It begins by introducing several key mathematical concepts, including “function,” and the distinction between computable and noncomputable functions, and between linear and nonlinear functions. It then considers a number of computational principles, such as the look-up table and linear associators, before discussing a new type of principle that can accomplish the satisfaction of constraints by a process of “relaxation.” In particular, it describes Hopfield networks and Boltzmann machines. It also examines learning in neural nets, competitive learning, curve fitting, feedforward nets, and recurrent nets. Finally, it assesses the importance of optimization procedures to neuroscience, along with the use of realistic and abstract network models in neuroscience.
Sensorimotor Integration
Authors: Churchland Patricia S. , Sejnowski Terrence J.
Published: January 2018

This chapter examines the mechanisms underlying sensorimotor integration by discussing three cases where anatomical and physiological studies of circuits are co-evolving with computer models of the circuit: the first focuses on the dorsal bending reflex in the leech, the second deals with the vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR) in mammals, and the third is concerned with rhythmic behaviors generated by the spinal cord. The chapter explains each case in detail, beginning with the computational model for the local bending reflex in the leech and proceeding with a discussion of a model network incorporating known pathways, connections, and physiology of the VOR. It also considers how time is represented in nervous systems and describes the segmental swimming oscillator before concluding with an overview of modeling of neurons.
Concluding and Beyond
Authors: Churchland Patricia S. , Sejnowski Terrence J.
Published: January 2018

This concluding chapter explores future avenues for research and what remains to be done if the computer-modeling projects aimed at understanding the mysteries of the brain are to progress. In particular, it considers the problem of constructing synthetic brains and the reasons why the long-range project of understanding how the brain works should engender such constructive ambitions. It also discusses three ways of addressing the constructive problem: Carver Mead's strategy of building artificial neural structures, such as retinas and cochleas, using silicon-based CMOS VLSI technology; Dana Ballard's method of integrating perception with motor control; and Rodney Brook's method which involves making mobots capable of getting around in the world using limited reflex repertoires. The chapter concludes with an assessment of theoretical and ethical questions about what to do with the knowledge gained from computational neuroscience.
FoxP2 isoforms delineate spatiotemporal transcriptional networks for vocal learning in the zebra finch
Authors: Burkett Zachary Daniel , Day Nancy F , Kimball Todd Haswell , Aamodt Caitlin M , Heston Jonathan B , Hilliard Austin T , Xiao Xinshu , White Stephanie A
Published: January 2018

Human speech is one of the few examples of vocal learning among mammals yet ~half of avian species exhibit this ability. Its neurogenetic basis is largely unknown beyond a shared requirement for FoxP2 in both humans and zebra finches. We manipulated FoxP2 isoforms in Area X, a song-specific region of the avian striatopallidum analogous to human anterior striatum, during a critical period for song development. We delineate, for the first time, unique contributions of each isoform to vocal learning. Weighted gene coexpression network analysis of RNA-seq data revealed gene modules correlated to singing, learning, or vocal variability. Coexpression related to singing was found in juvenile and adult Area X whereas coexpression correlated to learning was unique to juveniles. The confluence of learning and singing coexpression in juvenile Area X may underscore molecular processes that drive vocal learning in young zebra finches and, by analogy, humans.
ketu mutant mice uncover an essential meiotic function for the ancient RNA helicase YTHDC2
Authors: Jain Devanshi , Puno M Rhyan , Meydan Cem , Lailler Nathalie , Mason Christopher E , Lima Christopher D , Anderson Kathryn V , Keeney Scott
Published: January 2018

Mechanisms regulating mammalian meiotic progression are poorly understood. Here we identify mouse YTHDC2 as a critical component. A screen yielded a sterile mutant, ‘ketu’, caused by a Ythdc2 missense mutation. Mutant germ cells enter meiosis but proceed prematurely to aberrant metaphase and apoptosis, and display defects in transitioning from spermatogonial to meiotic gene expression programs. ketu phenocopies mutants lacking MEIOC, a YTHDC2 partner. Consistent with roles in post-transcriptional regulation, YTHDC2 is cytoplasmic, has 3′→5′ RNA helicase activity in vitro, and has similarity within its YTH domain to an N6-methyladenosine recognition pocket. Orthologs are present throughout metazoans, but are diverged in nematodes and, more dramatically, Drosophilidae, where Bgcn is descended from a Ythdc2 gene duplication. We also uncover similarity between MEIOC and Bam, a Bgcn partner unique to schizophoran flies. We propose that regulation of gene expression by YTHDC2-MEIOC is an evolutionarily ancient strategy for controlling the germline transition into meiosis.
New Archeomagnetic Directional Records From Iron Age Southern Africa (ca. 425–1550 CE) and Implications for the South Atlantic Anomaly
Authors: Hare Vincent J. , Tarduno John A. , Huffman Thomas , Watkeys Michael , Thebe Phenyo C. , Manyanga Munyaradzi , Bono Richard K. , Cottrell Rory D.
Published: January 2018

The paucity of Southern Hemisphere archeomagnetic data limits the resolution of paleosecular variation models. At the same time, important changes in the modern and historical field, including the recent dipole decay, appear to originate in this region. Here a new directional record from southern Africa is presented from analysis of Iron Age (ca. 425–1550 CE) archeological materials, which extends the regional secular variation curve back to the first millennium. Previous studies have identified a period of rapid directional change between 1225 and ∼1550 CE. The new data allow us to identify an earlier period of relatively rapid change between the sixth and seventh centuries CE. Implications for models of recurrent flux expulsion at the core‐mantle boundary are discussed. In addition, we identify a possible relationship of changes recorded in these African data with archeomagnetic jerks.
Upscaling the Coupled Water and Heat Transport in the Shallow Subsurface
Authors: Sviercoski R. F. , Efendiev Y. , Mohanty B. P.
Published: January 2018

Predicting simultaneous movement of liquid water, water vapor, and heat in the shallow subsurface has many practical interests. The demand for multidimensional multiscale models for this region is important given: (a) the critical role that these processes play in the global water and energy balances, (b) that more data from air‐borne and space‐borne sensors are becoming available for parameterizations of modeling efforts. On the other hand, numerical models that consider spatial variations of the soil properties, termed here as multiscale, are prohibitively expensive. Thus, there is a need for upscaled models that take into consideration these features, and be computationally affordable. In this paper, a multidimensional multiscale model coupling the water flow and heat transfer and its respective upscaled version are proposed. The formulation is novel as it describes the multidimensional and multiscale tensorial versions of the hydraulic conductivity and the vapor diffusivity, taking into account the tortuosity and porosity properties of the medium. It also includes the coupling with the energy balance equation as a boundary describing atmospheric influences at the shallow subsurface. To demonstrate the accuracy of both models, comparisons were made between simulation and field experiments for soil moisture and temperature at 2, 7, and 12 cm deep, during 11 days. The root‐mean‐square errors showed that the upscaled version of the system captured the multiscale features with similar accuracy. Given the good matching between simulated and field data for near‐surface soil temperature, the results suggest that it can be regarded as a 1‐D variable.
Cu Nanospring Films for Advanced Nanothermal Interfaces
Authors: Antartis Dimitrios A. , Mott Ryan N. , Das Debashish , Shaddock David , Chasiotis Ioannis
Published: January 2018

An advanced thermal interface material comprised of dense and orderly arrays of 10‐µm high Cu nanosprings with tunable normal and shear compliance, lateral stability due to spring intertwining, and thermal resistance below 1 mm2KW−1 is presented. The Cu nanospring films possess the compliance of soft polymers but up to 100 times higher thermal conductivity than materials with similar elastic modulus. This unique combination of mechanical and thermal properties makes it possible for the first time to populate the large empty space in the materials selection chart of thermal conductivity versus elastic modulus.
Highly Durable and Active Pt‐Based Nanoscale Design for Fuel‐Cell Oxygen‐Reduction Electrocatalysts
Authors: Chung Dong Young , Yoo Ji Mun , Sung Yung‐Eun
Published: January 2018

Fuel cells are one of the promising energy‐conversion devices due to their high efficiency and zero emission. Although recent advances in electrocatalysts have been achieved using various material designs such as alloys, core@shell structures, and shape control, many issues still remain to be resolved. Especially, material design issues for high durability and high activity are recently accentuated owing to severe instability of nanoparticles under fuel‐cell operating conditions. To address these issues, fundamental understanding of functional links between activity and durability is timely urgent. Here, the activity and durability of nanoscale materials are summarized, focusing on the nanoparticle size effect. In addition to phenomenological observation, two major degradation origins, including atomic dissolution and particle size increase, are discussed related to the activity decrease. Based on the fundamental understanding of nanoparticle degradation, recent promising strategies for durable Pt‐based nanoscale electrocatalysts are introduced and the role of each design for durability enhancement is discussed. Finally, short comments related to the future direction of nanoparticle issues are provided in terms of nanoparticle synthesis and analysis.
A prospective analysis for prevalence of complications in Thai nontransfusion‐dependent Hb E/β‐thalassemia and α‐thalassemia (Hb H disease)
Authors: Ekwattanakit Supachai , Siritanaratkul Noppadol , Viprakasit Vip
Published: January 2018

Recently, complications in patients with nontransfusion‐dependent thalassemia (NTDT), in particular those with β‐thalassemia intermedia (β‐TI), were found to be significantly different from those in patients with transfusion dependent thalassemia (TDT), mainly β‐thalassemia major (β–TM). However, this information is rather limited in other forms of NTDT. In this prospective study, adult Thai NTDT patients were interviewed and clinically evaluated for thalassemia related complications. Fifty‐seven NTDT patients (age 18‐74 years), 59.6% Hb E/β‐thalassemia and 40.4% Hb H disease, were recruited; 26.4% were splenectomized. The most common complications were gallstones (68.4%), osteoporosis (26.3%), and pulmonary hypertension (15.8%). Splenectomy was associated with higher rate of gallstones and serious infection (P = .001 and .052, respectively), consistent with a multivariate analysis (RR = 9.5, P = .044, and RR = 15.1, P = .043, respectively). In addition, a higher hemoglobin level was inversely associated with gallstones in both univariate and multivariate analyses (P = .01 and .022, respectively). Serum ferritin was associated with abnormal liver function (P = .002). In contrast to the previous study, the prevalence of thrombosis was less common in our population (1.7%), probably due to differences in transfusion therapy, ethnicity, and underlying genotypes. For the first time, this prospective study provided the current prevalence of NTDT related complications in a Southeast Asian population with a different underlying genetic basis compared with previous studies. Although individual prevalence of each complication might differ from other studies, several important clinical factors such as splenectomy, degree of anemia, and iron overload seem to be determining risks of developing these complications consistently across different ethnicities.
Copper‐Catalyzed Highly Stereoselective Trifluoromethylation and Difluoroalkylation of Secondary Propargyl Sulfonates
Authors: Gao Xing , Xiao Yu‐Lan , Wan Xiaolong , Zhang Xingang
Published: January 2018

It is challenging to stereoselectively introduce a trifluoromethyl group (CF3) into organic molecules. To date, only limited strategies involving direct asymmetric trifluoromethylation have been reported. Herein, we describe a new strategy for direct asymmetric trifluoromethylation through the copper‐catalyzed stereospecific trifluoromethylation of optically active secondary propargyl sulfonates. The reaction enables propargylic trifluoromethylation with high regioselectivity and stereoselectivity. The reaction could also be extended to stereospecific propargylic difluoroalkylation. Transformations of the resulting enantiomerically enriched fluoroalkylated alkynes led to a variety of chiral fluoroalkylated compounds, thus providing a useful protocol for applications in the synthesis of fluorinated complexes.
Formation of Acetylene in the Reaction of Methane with Iron Carbide Cluster Anions FeC3− under High‐Temperature Conditions
Authors: Li Hai‐Fang , Jiang Li‐Xue , Zhao Yan‐Xia , Liu Qing‐Yu , Zhang Ting , He Sheng‐Gui
Published: January 2018

The underlying mechanism for non‐oxidative methane aromatization remains controversial owing to the lack of experimental evidence for the formation of the first C−C bond. For the first time, the elementary reaction of methane with atomic clusters (FeC3−) under high‐temperature conditions to produce C−C coupling products has been characterized by mass spectrometry. With the elevation of temperature from 300 K to 610 K, the production of acetylene, the important intermediate proposed in a monofunctional mechanism of methane aromatization, was significantly enhanced, which can be well‐rationalized by quantum chemistry calculations. This study narrows the gap between gas‐phase and condensed‐phase studies on methane conversion and suggests that the monofunctional mechanism probably operates in non‐oxidative methane aromatization.
Die enantioselektive Totalsynthese von Bischinolizidin‐Alkaloiden: Ein modularer “Inside‐Out”‐Zugang
Authors: Scharnagel Dagmar , Goller Jessica , Deibl Nicklas , Milius Wolfgang , Breuning Matthias
Published: January 2018

Charakteristisch für Bischinolizidin‐Alkaloide ist ein chirales Bispidin‐Kerngerüst (3,7‐Diazabicylo[3.3.1]nonan), an das Kombinationen aus einem α,N‐anellierten 2‐Pyridon, endo‐ oder exo‐α,N‐anellierten Piperidin(on)en und einem exo‐Allylsubstituenten angebracht sind. Wir entwickelten eine modulare “Inside‐Out”‐Strategie, die einen Zugang zu den meisten Vertretern dieser Naturstoffklasse erlaubt. Ihr Anwendungspotential wurde anhand der asymmetrischen Synthese von 21 Bischinolizidin‐Naturstoffen demonstriert, darunter mehr als zehn enantioselektive Erstsynthesen. Schlüsselschritte sind die erste erfolgreiche Herstellung beider Enantiomere von C2‐symmetrischem 2,6‐Dioxobispidin durch Desymmetrisierung einer 2,4,6,8‐Tetraoxo‐Vorstufe, der Aufbau des α,N‐anellierten 2‐Pyridons über eine Enamin‐Bromacrylsäure‐Strategie und die Einführung von endo‐ oder, wahlweise, exo‐anellierten Piperidin(on)en.
Stable superhydrophobic surface based on low‐density polyethylene/ethylene‐propylene‐diene terpolymer thermoplastic vulcanizate
Authors: Liu Qingqing , Zou Hongmei , Shao Yalong , Wang Zhaobo
Published: January 2018

Stable superhydrophobic surface based on low‐density polyethylene (LDPE)/ethylene–propylene–diene terpolymer (EPDM) thermoplastic vulcanizate (TPV) was successfully fabricated by using etched aluminum foil as template. The etched aluminum template consisted of micropores and step‐like textures, was obtained by the metallographic sandpaper sanding and the subsequent acid etching. The surface morphology and hydrophobic properties of the series molded TPV surfaces were researched by varying the weight ratio of the LDPE/EPDM TPV. The superhydrophobic LDPE/EPDM TPV surfaces exhibited the microstructures consisting of step‐like textures obtained via molding with etched aluminum template and a large number of fiber‐like structures resulted from the plastic deformation of LDPE matrix. The obtained TPV (LDPE/EPDM weight ratio = 70/30) surface exhibited the remarkable superhydrophobicity, with a contact angle of 152.0° ± 0.7° and a sliding angle of 3.1° ± 0.8°. The molded TPV surface had excellent environmental stability when the pH of water solution was in the range of 1 to 14; moreover, the surface also showed the excellent resistance to various organic solvents. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2018, 135, 46241.
Potential of Advanced Nano‐structured Membranes for Landfill Leachate Treatment: A Review
Authors: Dabaghian Zoheir , Peyravi Majid , Jahanshahi Mohsen , Rad Ali Shokuhi
Published: January 2018

Rapid expansion of the world population has brought about serious water shortage problems in many countries around the world, especially developing countries. Treatment of leachate produced by landfilling municipal waste has recently been the focus of attention by both researchers and governments. This work therefore has been dedicated to comprehensively review all membrane separation techniques applied in leachate treatment and to introduce innovative modification of membranes in commercial applications. As reported in the literature, ultrafiltration membranes are the most common membranes that are made by commercial polyethersulfone, polysulfone, and poly (vinylidene fluoride) in full and pilot scale of MBR process. However, membrane fouling is an important drawback in the membrane processes. Towards this end, most emphasis has been given to the membrane modification by commercial membrane‐forming polymers as a cost‐effective technique of tailoring membranes for large‐scale industrial applications and to increase hydrophilicity and fouling‐resistant properties.
Is side branch lesion length an independent predictor of acute side branch occlusion in provisional strategy? Analysis of 524 consecutive bifurcation lesions
Authors: Zhao Zhiyong , Zhang Dong , Xu Bo , Wang Hao , Gao Guofeng , Yin Dong , Zhu Chenggang , Feng Lei , Zhao Yanyan , Dou Kefei
Published: January 2018

Objectives

To detect the impact of side branch (SB) lesion length on acute SB occlusion after main vessel (MV) stenting.

Methods

Five hundred sixteen consecutive patients with 524 bifurcation lesions undergoing one‐stent techniques were studied. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to identify independent predictors of acute SB occlusion. The lesions were also further divided into two groups according to the median SB lesion length. The incidences of SB occlusion and lesion characteristics in the two subgroups were compared.

Results

The SB lesion length was not significantly different between lesions with and without SB occlusion. In the SB occlusion group, the distance between the position of the minimal lumen diameter and SB ostium was significantly shorter than that in the non‐SB occlusion group (1.76 ± 1.04 mm vs. 2.72 ± 2.65 mm; P = 0.0003). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that high BA before stenting, plaque accumulation located on the same side as the SB, the Thrombolysis In Myocardial Infarction (TIMI) flow grade of the SB before stenting, and the DS of the SB before MV stenting were independently predictive of SB occlusion.

Conclusions

SB lesion length cannot be regarded as an independent predictor of acute SB occlusion after MV stenting.
Supra‐annular valve strategy for an early degenerated transcatheter balloon‐expandable heart valve
Authors: Kamioka Norihiko , Caughron Hope , Corrigan Frank , Block Peter , Babaliaros Vasilis
Published: January 2018

Currently, there are no recommendations regarding the selection of valve type for a transcatheter heart valve (THV)‐in‐THV procedure. A supra‐annular valve design may be superior in that it results in a larger effective orifice area and may have a lower chance of valve thrombosis after THV‐in‐THV. In this report, we describe the use of a supra‐annular valve strategy for an early degenerated THV.
Poplar‐Catkin‐Derived N, P Co‐doped Carbon Microtubes as Efficient Oxygen Electrocatalysts for Zn‐Air Batteries
Authors: Li Huaiyu , Wan Wenjun , Liu Xijun , Liu Haoxuan , Shen Sibo , Iv Fang , Luo Jun
Published: January 2018

In this study, poplar‐catkin‐derived N, P co‐doped carbon microtube catalysts with highly active sites and a large accessible surface area exhibit desirable oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) activity in an alkaline solution and excellent applications in Zn‐air batteries (ZABs). In particular, the catalytic activity of the N, P co‐doped carbon microtubes toward the ORR is as good as that of benchmark Pt/C, albeit better in terms of tolerance and stability. Furthermore, a ZAB fabricated using the as‐developed catalyst exhibits a specific capacity of 649 mAh gZn−1 and a peak power density of 125 mW cm−2; these values are comparable to those of Pt/C catalysts (644 mAh gZn−1 and 130 mW cm−2, respectively), indicative of the promising applications for sustainable energy storage. In addition, an alkaline water‐splitting cell powered by this assembled ZAB can generate H2 gas in a stable manner under ambient conditions. The successful conversion of considerable catkin sources to high‐value carbon materials will provide insights into the future development of other high‐performance electrocatalysts from abundant “green” bio‐waste.
Switch‐ON Near IR Fluorescent Dye Upon Protonation: Helically Twisted Bis(Boron Difluoride) Complex of π‐Extended Corrorin
Authors: Hisamune Yutaka , Kim Taeyeon , Nishimura Keiichi , Ishida Masatoshi , Toganoh Motoki , Mori Shigeki , Kim Dongho , Furuta Hiroyuki
Published: January 2018

A novel helically twisted π‐extended corrorin derivative having two boron dipyrrin (BODIPY) moieties at the periphery, a BODIPY DYEmer (6‐BF2) cross‐bridged with π‐conjugated dipyrrinylidene unit, was synthesized and characterized. The neutral 6‐BF2 is nonfluorescent due to the internal photoinduced charge transfer (CT) character in the excited state as inferred from the femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy. However, upon protonation, the CT process is suppressed and the species H6‐BF2+ becomes near infrared (IR) emissive. With the aid of rigid helical conformations in 6‐BF2, the helical isomers (P‐ and M‐forms) were resolved and their chiroptical property was investigated. The distinct circular dichroism (CD) spectral changes of the enantiomers were observed in the presence of acids, which demonstrates that 6‐BF2 can be utilized for potential acid‐responsive chiroptical materials.
An improved economic‐based nonlinear model predictive control strategy for the crude oil distillation process
Authors: Jin Qibin , Feng Zhenxiang , Liu Qie , Du Xinghan , Zhang Yuming , Cai Wu
Published: January 2018

Improving performance and increasing process profitability represent a priority for the long‐term operation of the crude oil distillation process. To increase process profitability and maintain control performance, in this paper, an improved economic‐based nonlinear model predictive control (NMPC) strategy is used to optimize the crude oil distillation (CDU) process. Considering the strong coupling and nonlinear dynamics of the CDU process, we make some modifications for the existing NMPC strategy. To reduce the complexity of the nonlinear prediction model, a support vector regression (SVR) based model is employed to describe the dynamical behaviour of the CDU process. Considering the coupling of the CDU process, we propose the concept of the coupling weighting factor to modify the objective function of the NMPC optimization problem. The simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed improved NMPC algorithm for the CDU process.
New dimensions of asymmetric division in vertebrates
Authors: Vertii Anastassiia , Kaufman Paul D. , Hehnly Heidi , Doxsey Stephen
Published: January 2018

Traditionally, we imagine that cell division gives rise to two identical daughter cells. Nevertheless, all cell divisions, to some degree, display asymmetry. Asymmetric cell division is defined as the generation of two daughter cells with different physical content and/or developmental potential. Several organelles and cellular components including the centrosome, non‐coding RNA, chromatin, and recycling endosomes are involved in the process of asymmetric cell division. Disruption of this important process is known to induce profound defects in development, the immune response, regeneration of tissues, aging, and cancer. Here, we discuss recent advances that expand our understanding of the mechanisms and consequences of asymmetric cell division in vertebrate organisms.
Boundary Layers in Periodic Homogenization of Neumann Problems
Authors: Shen Zhongwei , Zhuge Jinping
Published: January 2018

This paper is concerned with a family of second‐order elliptic systems in divergence form with rapidly oscillating periodic coefficients. We initiate the study of homogenization and boundary layers for Neumann problems with first‐order oscillating boundary data. We identify the homogenized system and establish the sharp rate of convergence in L2 in dimension three or higher. Regularity estimates are also obtained for the homogenized boundary data in both Dirichlet and Neumann problems. The results are used to establish a higher‐order convergence rate for Neumann problems with nonoscillating data. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Electronic Rearrangement in Molecular Plasmons: An Electron Density and Electrostatic Potential‐Based Study
Authors: Paul Mishu , Balanarayan P.
Published: January 2018

Plasmonic modes in single‐molecule systems have been previously identified by scaling two‐electron interactions in calculating excitation energies. Analysis of transition dipole moments for states of polyacenes based on configuration interaction is another method for characterising molecular plasmons. The principal features in the electronic absorption spectra of polyacenes are a low‐intensity, lower‐in‐energy peak and a high‐intensity, higher‐in‐energy peak. From calculations using time‐dependent density functional theory with the B3LYP/cc‐pVTZ basis set, both these peaks are found to result from the same set of electronic transitions, that is, HOMO−n to LUMO and HOMO to LUMO+n, where n varies as the number of fused rings increases. In this work, the excited states of polyacenes, naphthalene through pentacene, are analysed using electron densities and molecular electrostatic potential (MESP) topography. Compared to other excited states the bright and dark plasmonic states involve the least electron rearrangement. Quantitatively, the MESP topography indicates that the variance in MESP values and the displacement in MESP minima positions, calculated with respect to the ground state, are lowest for plasmonic states. The excited‐state electronic density profiles and electrostatic potential topographies suggest the least electron rearrangement for the plasmonic states. Conversely, high electron rearrangement characterises a single‐particle excitation. The molecular plasmon can be called an excited state most similar to the ground state in terms of one‐electron properties. This is found to be true for silver (Ag6) and sodium (Na8) linear chains as well.
Treating cancer with cold physical plasma: On the way to evidence‐based medicine
Authors: Metelmann Hans‐Robert , Seebauer Christian , Rutkowski Rico , Schuster Matthias , Bekeschus Sander , Metelmann Philine
Published: January 2018

The application of cold physical plasma in head and neck cancer patients is moving upwards in the pyramid of evidence‐based medicine (EBM). The effectiveness of plasma in cancer cell lines, cultivated human tumour cells, human tumour specimen freshly explanted from patients, animal model tumours, and animals with transplanted human tumour stem cells is well documented. There is consent among experts, referred to as EBM‐level IV, about the response to plasma in experimental settings and proof of concept by clinical pilot studies, EBM‐level III, for plasma treatment of head and neck cancer. If there is a manageable amount of tumour stem cells, like in precancerous lesions of oral mucosa or in small tumours like early basal cell carcinoma of the skin, plasma could become a clinical treatment option soon. Currently, it is already a concept in palliative care of patients with locally advanced head and neck cancer and contaminated ulcerations because of proven effectiveness against microbial pathogens. Patients greatly appreciate that plasma reduces strong fetid odour and pain while not being accompanied by serious side effects.
Longitudinal electron waves in plasma formed at multi‐photon ionization of atoms by a short laser pulse
Authors: Vagin K.Yu. , Mamontova T.V. , Uryupin S.A.
Published: January 2018

The dispersion law and the collisionless damping decrement of high‐frequency waves in a plasma formed as a result of multi‐photon ionization of atoms by a laser pulse are found. Estimates indicating that such waves may exist in a weakly ionized xenon plasma are given.
Development of Electromagnetic Transient Simulation Models for Power Quality Analysis of Distribution Systems
Authors: NAGASHIMA TOMOHIRO , FUKUSHIMA KENTARO , NODA TAKU
Published: January 2018

Due to the rapid spread of renewable energy power sources in recent years, voltage rise problems in distribution systems caused by reverse power flow from these renewable energy power sources especially from photovoltaic (PV) power generation systems are of great concern. To cope with this kind of problems, conventional voltage regulation devices such as load‐ratio transformers in the substation and step voltage regulators (SVRs) on the distribution line are basically used. If their voltage regulation capability is not sufficient, the power conditioning systems of PV power generation systems may be modified so as to supply reactive power and a static synchronous compensator (STATCOM) may be applied to the distribution system. Therefore, the coordination of these conventional and new voltage regulation devices is necessary for the design of smarter distribution systems, and electromagnetic transient (EMT) simulations of distribution systems with these devices have to be carried out to assess power quality. To this end, the authors have developed EMT simulation models of distribution substations, SVRs and distribution STATCOMs, and they are routinely used for power quality assessment studies. This paper presents these simulation models and a simulation example.
Terahertz Active Metamaterials Based on Stacked Closed‐Ring Resonator Arrays
Authors: MATSUI TATSUNOSUKE , ASANO SHUN , MORI HIROKI
Published: January 2018

Metamaterials, which can show novel optical functionalities beyond conventional optics, have been actively studied in recent years. As one of approaches to add tunability on resonant characteristics of metamaterials, slightly shifting relative position of stacked metamaterials or metasurfaces has been reported. In this study, based on numerical simulation we have designed stacked closed‐ring resonator (CRR) arrays that show relatively large spectral shift with a small lateral shift of the stacked layers in terahertz (THz) range. We also show that changing dielectric constant of the dielectric media between CRR arrays is also effective to obtain large spectral shift of the resonant responses. Our findings may be utilized to develop novel type of THz active devices and also sensing devices.