bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Presidential Address
Authors: Duff Mountstuart E. Grant
Published: December 2013

In the old days when the Germanic Diet still sat at Frankfort, a statesman, who then represented the power which was destined to sweep into nothingness that famous institution, told me that he always had a Tacitus by his bedside. ‘Then,’ I replied, ‘you hardly agree with your distinguished countryman who called Tacitus a disappointed courtier.’ ‘If,’ he rejoined, ‘there were many courtiers like Tacitus, I should take care to frequent courts.’
Transactions of the Royal Historical Society: Presidential Address
Authors: Oman C. W. C.
Published: December 2013

You have honoured with your presidency this year not a leisured man, who is capable of making a serene survey of all historical work done during the last twelve months, but a very busy Government servant, whose duties keep him tight to desks (three separate desks!) in Whitehall from 10.30 a.m. to 8 p.m. on most days of the week, and who must confess to you with all frankness that he has read little historical literature during the past year, save the single volume of Magna Charta Essays, Which is this Society's most important contribution in the fields of research for 1918. Your President, therefore, feels some diffidence on coming before you to-day with an annual address, when he remembers that the last of the series was delivered in February 1917 by a master of research and expression, a great teacher, and a trainer of other teachers, who possesses such a command of a long period of English History as does no other man living, and whom every member of the Society respects and reveres as the unquestioned lord of his own domain. His enthusiasm for the systematic gathering of knowledge, and his power of orderly marshalling of the essential facts, makes his successor feel a proper humility as he takes over the chair that has been so efficiently filled during the last three years.
Presidential Address
Authors: Cunningham Archdeacon W.
Published: December 2013

During the past year the Society has sustained one loss that overshadows all others. It is not for me to attempt to appreciate the value of the substantial contributions to the published sources of English history to which Mr. James Gairdner devoted himself so assiduously; I can only attempt to express the feeling which many of us here must share on the loss of our friend. I well remember the intense interest with which I read his ‘Life of Richard III.’ when it was first published in 1878, and the pleasure which I felt many years after in coming into contact with a man whom I admired so much. His constant kindliness and readiness to interest himself in and encourage the work of young men are not things to be readily forgotten. The chronicling of the blanks left in the roll of our officials and members is the saddest part of a President's duty. In my first address I expressed our sense of loss sustained through the death of Dr. Charles Gross; at this distance of time we can see more clearly than was possible four years ago how fruitful his work was. This year great progress has been made in the attempt to carry on the Bibliography of British History which he began, and during the last few weeks I have been impressed anew with the freshness and thoroughness of his studies, as I have been trying to look into and amplify the argument of his essay on Scottish Municipal History.
Presidential Address
Authors: Firth C. H.
Published: December 2013

Last May, I had the honour of reading a paper before the Society on the subject of the development of the study of seventeenth-century history hi the past: to-day, I wish to say something about the development of the study in the future. I am not going to prophesy: not even to try my skill in what politicians term ‘intelligent anticipation of the future.’ My aim is a much humbler one: I mean to make a brief survey of the field of seventeenth-century history, and point out some of the things which in my opinion need doing, in order to complete our knowledge of the subject.
Synthesis and analysis of distributed ensemble control strategies for allocation to multiple tasks
Authors: Mather T. William , Hsieh M. Ani
Published: December 2013

We present the synthesis and analysis of distributed ensemble control policies to enable a team of robots to control their distribution across a collection of tasks. We assume that individual robot controllers are modeled as a sequential composition of individual task controllers. A macroscopic description of the team dynamics is then used to synthesize ensemble feedback control strategies that maintain the desired distribution of robots across the tasks. We present a distributed implementation of the ensemble feedback strategy that can be implemented with minimal communication requirements. Different from existing strategies, the approach results in individual robot control policies that maintain the desired mean and the variance of the robot populations at each task. We present the stability properties of the ensemble feedback strategy, verify the feasibility of the distributed ensemble controller through high-fidelity simulations, and examine the robustness of the strategy to sensing and/or actuation failures. Specifically, we consider the case when robots are subject to estimation and navigation errors resulting from lossy inter-agent wireless communication links and localization errors.
Curve shortening-inspired self-reconfiguration of heterogenous hexagonal-shaped modules toward a straight chain
Authors: Miao Yizhou , Yan Gangfeng , Lin Zhiyun
Published: December 2013

This study deals with a self-reconfiguration problem of hexagonal-shaped modules from an arbitrary initial configuration to a straight chain. Modules are modeled as the same-sized rigid bodies. Two categories of modules with different functionalities are used. One category comprises two powerful modules, which are expected to play the role of terminal modules in a goal configuration. The other category comprises several ordinary modules, which are expected to fill in the middle portion in a goal configuration. A distributed control strategy, inspired by the idea of curve shortening, is developed for each module to act cooperatively to attain a goal configuration. It is verified that under the proposed strategy, modules eventually converge to a straight chain.
The reception of the Latin Life of St Giles in Anglo-Saxon England
Authors: Franklin Carmela Vircillo
Published: December 2013

This article maps the textual transmission of the Vita S. Aegidii to identify the routes of its reception in Anglo-Saxon England. It shows how the Mass of Giles in Leofric's Missal offers new evidence of Leofric's links to the Liège area. The collation between the Old English Life of St Giles and the critical edition of the Latin source indicates first that the Life was translated from a Latin copy related to Vatican, Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana, Reginensis 497, containing a palimpsest of the Old English Orosius; second, it highlights the continuing exchanges between the Trier region and England in the eleventh century; and third, it applies inter-lingual transmission in order to understand translation practice. A new edition and translation of the Latin vita are included.
A Positive Account of Property Rights
Authors: Friedman David
Published: December 2013

In thinking and talking about rights, including property rights, it seems natural to put the argument in either moral or legal terms. From the former viewpoint, rights are part of a description of what actions are right or wrong. The fact that I have a right to do something is an argument, although not necessarily a sufficient argument, that someone who prevents me from doing it is acting wrongly.
Proving Ownership
Authors: Lawson Gary
Published: December 2013

Philosophers and lawyers are apt to view property law from different perspectives. At the risk of gross overgeneralization, philosophers who discuss property rights tend to focus on the abstract principles that underlie ownership claims, while lawyers are more likely to focus on the practical problems of adjudicating concrete disputes within the constraints of a functioning legal system. Lawyers, for example, are likely to be more sensitive than philosophers to the real-world problems of proof that often accompany legal claims of ownership. For a lawyer, the key question is not whether any given theory of property rights is true in some metaphysical sense, but whether, given the theory of property rights employed by a particular legal system, a litigant within that system can prove an ownership claim to the satisfaction of an officially constituted tribunal.
Property, Rights, and Freedom
Authors: Gaus Gerald F.
Published: December 2013

William Perm summarized theMagna Cartathus: “First, It assertsEnglishmento be free; that's Liberty. Secondly, they that have free-holds, that's Property.” Since at least the seventeenth century, liberals have not only understood liberty and property to be fundamental, but to be somehow intimately related or interwoven. Here, however, consensus ends; liberals present an array of competing accounts of the relation between liberty and property. Many, for instance, defend an essentially instrumental view, typically seeing private property as justified because it is necessary to maintain or protect other, more basic, liberty rights. Important to our constitutional tradition has been the idea that “[t]he right to property is the guardian of every other right, and to deprive a people of this, is in fact to deprive them of their liberty.” Along similar lines, it has been argued that only an economic system based on private property disperses power and resources, ensuring that private people in civil society have the resources to oppose the state and give effect to basic liberties. Alternatively, it is sometimes claimed that only those with property develop the independent characters that are necessary to preserve a regime of liberty. But not only have liberals insisted that, property is a means of preserving liberty, they have often conceived of it as an embodiment of liberty, or as a type of liberty, or indeed as identical to liberty. This latter view is popular among contemporary libertarians or classical liberals. Jan Narveson, for instance, bluntly asserts that “Liberty is Property,” while John Gray insists that “[t]he connection between property and the basic liberties is constitutive and not just instrumental.”
TELEMEDICAL VERSUS CONVENTIONAL HEART PATIENT MONITORING: A SURVEY STUDY WITH GERMAN PHYSICIANS
Authors: Klack Lars , Ziefle Martina , Wilkowska Wiktoria , Kluge Johanna
Published: December 2013

Objectives: In this study, we explored crucial factors that explain a person's attitude toward and his or her assessment of telemedical systems. Special focus lies on the link between the perspective of physicians (telemedicine users) and technicians (telemedicine designers) to find potential barriers hindering the broad application of telemedical systems in hospitals and doctors’ offices.

Methods: A survey among medical professionals (n = 34), technical professionals (n = 39), and a control group (n = 44) was conducted. The collected data were assessed in terms of domain knowledge, attitudes toward telemedicine, and potential implementation barriers.

Results: Participants favored the conventional method over telemedical monitoring in regards to privacy, security, and time efficiency. In contrast, telemedicine was preferred with reference to efficiency of data analysis, long-term care, and emergency adequacy. Significant differences between the professional groups were found regarding perceived cost effectiveness, patients’ compliance, privacy protection, and false alarm sensitivity. Medical professionals exhibited the most reluctance toward using telemedical treatments.

Conclusions: The perceived drawbacks are attributed to a general uncertainty about the reliability of telemedical systems, in combination with concerns about personal data privacy, security, and loss of control. The reported fear of not being able to correctly use and handle the systems assumes a low usability of devices. To acquaint medical professionals with the benefits and limitations of telemedical systems, telemonitoring and tele-treatment should be included in the education of medical personnel at an early stage.
COST-UTILITY OF SELF-MANAGED COMPUTER THERAPY FOR PEOPLE WITH APHASIA
Authors: Latimer Nicholas R. , Dixon Simon , Palmer Rebecca
Published: December 2013

Objectives: The aim of this study was to examine the potential cost-effectiveness of self-managed computer therapy for people with long-standing aphasia post stroke and to estimate the value of further research.

Methods: The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of computer therapy in addition to usual stimulation compared with usual stimulation alone was considered in people with long-standing aphasia using data from the CACTUS trial. A model-based approach was taken. Where possible the input parameters required for the model were obtained from the CACTUS trial data, a United Kingdom-based pilot randomized controlled trial that recruited thirty-four people with aphasia and randomized them to computer treatment or usual care. Cost-effectiveness was described using an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) together with cost-effectiveness acceptability curves. A value of information analysis was undertaken to inform future research priorities.

Results: The intervention had an ICER of £3,058 compared with usual care. The likelihood of the intervention being cost-effective was 75.8 percent at a cost-effectiveness threshold of £20,000 per QALY gained. The expected value of perfect information was £37 million.

Conclusions: Our results suggest that computer therapy for people with long-standing aphasia is likely to represent a cost-effective use of resources. However, our analysis is exploratory given the small size of the trial it is based upon and therefore our results are uncertain. Further research would be of high value, particularly with respect to the quality of life gain achieved by people who respond well to therapy.
IMPACT OF EDUCATIONAL INTERVENTIONS ON ADVERSE DRUG EVENTS REPORTING
Authors: Pagotto Caroline , Varallo Fabiana , Mastroianni Patrícia
Published: December 2013

Introduction:Spontaneous adverse drug events (ADE) reporting is the main source of data for assessing the risk/benefit of drugs available in the pharmaceutical market. However, its major limitation is underreporting, which hinders and delays the signal detection by Pharmacovigilance (PhV).

Objectives:To identify the techniques of educational intervention (EI) for promotion of PhV by health professionals and to assess their impact.

Methods:A systematic review was performed in the PUBMED, PAHO, LILACS and EMBASE databases, from November/2011 to January/2012, updated in March/2013. The strategy search included the use of health descriptors and a manual search in the references cited by selected papers.

Results:101 articles were identified, of which 16 met the inclusion criteria. Most of these studies (10) were conducted in European hospitals and physicians were the health professionals subjected to most EI (12), these studies lasted from one month to two years. EI with multifaceted techniques raised the absolute number, the rate of reporting related to adverse drug reactions (ADR), technical defects of health technologies, and also promoted an improvement in the quality of reports, since there was increased reporting of ADR classified as serious, unexpected, related to new drugs and with high degree of causality.

Conclusion:Multifaceted educational interventions for multidisciplinary health teams working at all healthcare levels, with sufficient duration to reach all professionals who act in the institution, including issues related to medication errors and therapeutic ineffectiveness, must be validated, with the aim of standardizing the Good Practice of PhV and improve drug safety indicators.
MAPPING OF HEALTH TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT IN SELECTED COUNTRIES
Authors: Oortwijn Wija , Broos Pieter , Vondeling Hindrik , Banta David , Todorova Lora
Published: December 2013

Objectives: The aim of this study was to develop and apply an instrument to map the level of health technology assessment (HTA) development at country level in selected countries. We examined middle-income countries (Argentina, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, and Russia) and countries well-known for their comprehensive HTA programs (Australia, Canada, and United Kingdom).

Methods: A review of relevant key documents regarding the HTA process was performed to develop the instrument which was then reviewed by selected HTAi members and revised. We identified and collected relevant information to map the level of HTA in the selected countries. This was supplemented by information from a structured survey among HTA experts in the selected countries (response rate: 65/385).

Results: Mapping of HTA in a country can be done by focusing on the level of institutionalization and the HTA process (identification, priority setting, assessment, appraisal, reporting, dissemination, and implementation in policy and practice). Although HTA is most advanced in industrialized countries, there is a growing community in middle-income countries that uses HTA. For example, Brazil is rapidly developing effective HTA programs. India and Russia are at the very beginning of introducing HTA. The other middle-income countries show intermediate levels of HTA development compared with the reference countries.

Conclusions: This study presents a set of indicators for documenting the current level and trends in HTA at country level. The findings can be used as a baseline measurement for future monitoring and evaluation. This will allow a variety of stakeholders to assess the development of HTA in their country, help inform strategies, and justify expenditure for HTA.
HEALTH TECHNOLOGY REASSESSMENT: THE ART OF THE POSSIBLE
Authors: MacKean Gail , Noseworthy Tom , Elshaug Adam G. , Leggett Laura , Littlejohns Peter , Berezanski Joan , Clement Fiona
Published: December 2013

Background:Health technology reassessment (HTR) is “a structured, evidence-based assessment of the clinical, social, ethical, and economic effects of a technology currently used in the healthcare system, to inform optimal use of that technology in comparison to its alternatives.” The purpose of this study is to describe the key themes in the context of current HTR activities and propose a way forward for this newly emerging field.

Methods:Data were gathered from a workshop held as part of the 2012 Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technology in Health (CADTH) symposium. The workshop consisted of two panel presentations followed by discussion; data gathered, including presentations and rich audience discussion transcripts, were analyzed for key themes emerging in the field of HTR using constant comparative analysis.

Results:The language chosen to describe HTR will set the tone for engagement. The identification of champions at multiple levels and political will are essential. Key lessons from international experience are: disinvestment is difficult, focus on clinical areas not specific technologies, identify clear goals of the HTR agenda. Six key themes were identified to move the HTR agenda forward: emphasize integration over segregation, focus on development of HTR methods and processes, processes are context-specific but lessons must be shared, build capacity in synergistic interdisciplinary fields, develop meaningful stakeholder engagement, strengthen postimplementation monitoring and evaluation.

Conclusions:To move this field forward, we must continue to build on international experiences with a focus on developing novel methodological approaches to generating, incorporating, and implementing evidence into policy and practice.
HTA AND VALUE - AN INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE
Authors: Fibig Andreas
Published: December 2013

The assessment of value within healthcare is undergoing a major transformation. Gone are the days when a new mechanism of action alone would be regarded as a high value innovation. Today, there is much more of an emphasis on what are the outcomes (i.e., mortality and morbidity benefits), how does this compare with the current standard of care and what is the impact to the usage of healthcare resources. This emphasis is quite understandable given the financial crisis we are experiencing with an ever growing and aging population that is placing considerable strain on the healthcare system.
DYNAMICS OF DEVICE INNOVATION: IMPLICATIONS FOR ASSESSING VALUE
Authors: Gelijns Annetine C. , Russo Mark J. , Hong Kimberly N. , Brown Lawrence D. , Ascheim Deborah D. , Moskowitz Alan J.
Published: December 2013

Background: In recent years, there has been growing interest in evaluating the health and economic impact of medical devices. Payers increasingly rely on cost-effectiveness analyses in making their coverage decisions, and are adopting value-based purchasing initiatives. These analytic approaches, however, have been shaped heavily by their use in the pharmaceutical realm, and are ill-adapted to the medical device context.

Methods: This study focuses on the development and evaluation of left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) to highlight the unique challenges involved in the design and conduct of device trials compared with pharmaceuticals.

Results: Devices are moving targets characterized by a much higher degree of post-introduction innovation and “learning by using” than pharmaceuticals. The cost effectiveness ratio of left ventricular assist devices for destination therapy, for example, decreased from around $600,000 per life year saved based on results from the pivotal trial to around $100,000 within a relatively short time period.

Conclusions: These dynamics pose fundamental challenges to the evaluation enterprise as well as the policy-making world, which this paper addresses.
WHICH CRITERIA ARE CONSIDERED IN HEALTHCARE DECISIONS? INSIGHTS FROM AN INTERNATIONAL SURVEY OF POLICY AND CLINICAL DECISION MAKERS
Authors: Tanios Nataly , Wagner Monika , Tony Michèle , Baltussen Rob , van Til Janine , Rindress Donna , Kind Paul , Goetghebeur Mireille M. ,   the International Task Force on Decision Criteria
Published: December 2013

Objectives: The aim of this study was to gather qualitative and quantitative data on criteria considered by healthcare decision makers.

Methods: Using snowball sampling and an online questionnaire with forty-three criteria organized into ten clusters, decision makers were invited by an international task force to report which criteria they consider when making decisions on healthcare interventions in their context. Respondents reported whether each criterion is “currently considered,” “should be considered,” and its relative weight (scale 0–5). Differences in proportions of respondents were explored with inferential statistics across levels of decision (micro, meso, macro), decision maker perspectives, and world regions.

Results: A total of 140 decision makers (1/3 clinical, 2/3 policy) from 23 countries in five continents completed the survey. The most relevant criteria (top ranked for “Currently considered,” “Should be considered,” and weights) were Clinical efficacy/effectiveness, Safety, Quality of evidence, Disease severity, and Impact on healthcare costs. Organizational and skill requirements were frequently considered but had relatively low weights. For almost all criteria, a higher proportion of decision makers reported that they “Should be considered” than that they are “Currently considered” (p < .05). For more than 74 percent of criteria, there were no statistical differences in proportions across levels of decision, perspectives and world regions. Statistically significant differences across several comparisons were found for: Population priorities, Stakeholder pressure/interests, Capacity to stimulate research, Impact on partnership and collaboration, and Environmental impact.

Conclusions: Results suggest convergence among decision makers on the relevance of a core set of criteria and on the need to consider a wider range of criteria. Areas of divergence appear to be principally related to contextual factors.
Large scale spatio-temporal patterns of road development in the Amazon rainforest
Authors: AHMED SADIA E. , EWERS ROBERT M. , SMITH MATTHEW J.
Published: December 2013

There is burgeoning interest in predicting road development because of the wide ranging important socioeconomic and environmental issues that roads present, including the close links between road development, deforestation and biodiversity loss. This is especially the case in developing nations, which are high in natural resources, where road development is rapid and often not centrally managed. Characterization of large scale spatio-temporal patterns in road network development has been greatly overlooked to date. This paper examines the spatio-temporal dynamics of road density across the Brazilian Amazon and assesses the relative contributions of local versus neighbourhood effects for temporal changes in road density at regional scales. To achieve this, a combination of statistical analyses and model-data fusion techniques inspired by studies of spatio-temporal dynamics of populations in ecology and epidemiology were used. The emergent development may be approximated by local growth that is logistic through time and directional dispersal. The current rates and dominant direction of development may be inferred, by assuming that roads develop at a rate of 55 km per year. Large areas of the Amazon will be subject to extensive anthropogenic change should the observed patterns of road development continue.
Risk factors for pneumonic and ulceroglandular tularaemia in Finland: a population-based case-control study
Authors: ROSSOW H. , OLLGREN J. , KLEMETS P. , PIETARINEN I. , SAIKKU J. , PEKKANEN E. , NIKKARI S. , SYRJÄLÄ H. , KUUSI M. , NUORTI J. P.
Published: December 2013

Few population-based data are available on factors associated with pneumonic and ulceroglandular type B tularaemia. We conducted a case-control study during a large epidemic in 2000. Laboratory-confirmed case patients were identified through active surveillance and matched control subjects (age, sex, residency) from the national population information system. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire. A conditional logistic regression model addressing missing data with Bayesian full-likelihood modelling included 227 case patients and 415 control subjects; reported mosquito bites [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 9·2, 95% confidence interval (CI) 4·4–22, population-attributable risk (PAR) 82%] and farming activities (aOR 4·3, 95% CI 2·5–7·2, PAR 32%) were independently associated with ulceroglandular tularaemia, whereas exposure to hay dust (aOR 6·6, 95% CI 1·9–25·4, PAR 48%) was associated with pneumonic tularaemia. Although the bulk of tularaemia type B disease burden is attributable to mosquito bites, risk factors for ulceroglandular and pneumonic forms of tularaemia are different, enabling targeting of prevention efforts accordingly.
Superconducting fluctuations in organic molecular metals enhanced by Mott criticality
Authors: Nam Moon-Sun , Mézière Cécile , Batail Patrick , Zorina Leokadiya , Simonov Sergey , Ardavan Arzhang
Published: December 2013

Unconventional superconductivity typically occurs in materials in which a small change of a parameter such as bandwidth or doping leads to antiferromagnetic or Mott insulating phases. As such competing phases are approached, the properties of the superconductor often become increasingly exotic. For example, in organic superconductors and underdoped high-Tc cuprate superconductors a fluctuating superconducting state persists to temperatures significantly above Tc. By studying alloys of quasi-two-dimensional organic molecular metals in the κ-(BEDT-TTF)2X family, we reveal how the Nernst effect, a sensitive probe of superconducting phase fluctuations, evolves in the regime of extreme Mott criticality. We find strong evidence that, as the phase diagram is traversed through superconductivity towards the Mott state, the temperature scale for superconducting fluctuations increases dramatically, eventually approaching the temperature at which quasiparticles become identifiable at all.
Rapid and sensitive determination of ambroxol hydrochloride injection by Raman spectroscopy combined with chemometric models
Authors: Le Jian , Li Junchan , Wen Hongliang , Chen Bin , Hong Zhanying , Chen Guiliang
Published: December 2013

A procedure for the quantitative determination of ambroxol hydrochloride in its commercial injection based on the conjunction of Raman spectroscopy and chemometrics is described.
Sensitive electrochemical determination of promethazine hydrochloride based on the poly(p-aminobenzene sulfonic acid)/flowerlike ZnO crystals composite film
Authors: Chen Yanling , Liu Honghui , Liu Yunchun , Yang Zhousheng
Published: December 2013

Remarkable enhancement effects on the oxidation peak currents of PHZ on the poly(p-ABSA)/ZnO modified electrode with the negative shift of the oxidation peak potentials.
Discovery of new G-quadruplex binding chemotypes
Authors: Ohnmacht Stephan A. , Varavipour Ehsan , Nanjunda Rupesh , Pazitna Ingrida , Di Vita Gloria , Gunaratnam Mekala , Kumar Arvind , Ismail Mohamed A. , Boykin David W. , Wilson W. David , Neidle Stephen
Published: December 2013

We report a novel furan-based low molecular weight chemotype with high G-quadruplex affinity and potent anti-proliferative activity.
Controllable growth of ZnO–ZnSe heterostructures for visible-light photocatalysis
Authors: Chen W. , Zhang N. , Zhang M. Y. , Zhang X. T. , Gao H. , Wen J.
Published: December 2013

ZnO–ZnSe heterostructures for visible-light photocatalysis are fabricated via a two-step CVD process.
Butterfly-like enantiomerically homochiral {CoII6CoIII4} clusters exhibiting both slow magnetic relaxation and ferroelectric property
Authors: Li Qipeng , Qian Jinjie , Tian Chongbin , Lin Ping , He Zhangzhen , Wang Ning , Shen Jinni , Zhang Huabin , Chu Tao , Yuan Daqiang , Yang Yi , Xue Liping , Du Shaowu
Published: December 2013

A pair of butterfly-like enantiomerically homochiral [CoII6CoIII4] clusters with both slow magnetic relaxation behaviour and ferroelectric property was synthesized.
Stimuli responsive nanocarrier for an effective delivery of multi-frontline tuberculosis drugs
Authors: Mane Shivshankar R. , Chatterjee Koushik , Dinda Himadri , Sarma Jayasri Das , Shunmugam Raja
Published: December 2013

We prepare stimuli responsive polymeric nanocarrier, RCP-2 to demonstrate the high drug content as well as controlled release in a systematic manner.
Label-free and culture-free microbe detection by three dimensional hot-junctions of flexible Raman-enhancing nanohybrid platelets
Authors: Liu Ting-Yu , Ho Jun-Ying , Wei Jiun-Chiou , Cheng Wei-Chih , Chen I.-Hui , Shiue Jessie , Wang Huai-Hsien , Wang Juen-Kai , Wang Yuh-Lin , Lin Jiang-Jen
Published: December 2013

A novel flexible SERS substrate with 3D hot-junction capability by employing the nanohybrids of silver nanoparticles and silicate platelets.
A novel aptameric nanobiosensor based on the self-assembled DNA–MoS2nanosheet architecture for biomolecule detection
Authors: Ge Jia , Ou En-Cai , Yu Ru-Qin , Chu Xia
Published: December 2013

A novel fluorescence-activated nanobiosensor for detecting biomolecular targets such as proteins and small molecules based on the self-assembled architecture of an aptamer–MoS2nanosheet.
Development of a novel radio-frequency negative hydrogen ion source in conically converging configuration
Authors: Jung B. K. , Dang J. J. , An Y. H. , Chung K. J. , Hwang Y. S.
Published: December 2013

Volume-produced negative ion source still requires enhancement of current density with lower input RF (radio-frequency) power in lower operating pressure for various applications. To confirm recent observation of efficient negative ion production with a short cylindrical chamber with smaller effective plasma size, the RF-driven transformer-coupled plasma H− ion source at Seoul National University is modified by adopting a newly designed quartz RF window to reduce the chamber length. Experiments with the reduced chamber length show a few times enhancement of H− ion beam current compared to that extracted from the previous chamber design, which is consistent with the measured H− ion population. Nevertheless, decrease in H− ion beam current observed in low pressure regime below ∼5 mTorr owing to insufficient filtering of high energy electrons in the extraction region needs to be resolved to address the usefulness of electron temperature control by the change of geometrical configuration of the discharge chamber. A new discharge chamber with conically converging configuration has been developed, in which the chamber diameter decreases as approaching to the extraction region away from the planar RF antenna such that stronger filter magnetic field can be utilized to prohibit high energy electrons from transporting to the extraction region. First experimental results for the H− ion beam extraction with this configuration show that higher magnetic filter field makes peak negative beam currents happen in lower operating pressure. However, overall decrease in H− ion beam current due to the change of chamber geometry still requires further study of geometrical effect on particle transport and optimization of magnetic field in this novel configuration.
Absolutely continuous spectrum of the Schrödinger operator with a potential representable as a sum of three functions with special properties
Authors: Safronov Oleg
Published: December 2013

We consider a family of Schrödinger operators depending on a real parameter and prove that the absolutely continuous spectrum covers the positive half-line for almost every value of the parameter. The potentials in this model are representable as a sum of three terms. This sum is neither fast decaying, nor it rapidly changes its sign or has derivatives with respect to the angular variables.
Simulation of femtosecond “double-slit” experiments for a chromophore in a dissipative environment
Authors: Gelin M. F. , Tanimura Y. , Domcke W.
Published: December 2013

We performed simulations of the prototypical femtosecond “double-slit” experiment with strong pulsed laser fields for a chromophore in solution. The chromophore is modeled as a system with two electronic levels and a single Franck-Condon active underdamped vibrational mode. All other (intra- and inter-molecular) vibrational modes are accounted for as a thermal bath. The system-bath coupling is treated in a computationally accurate manner using the hierarchy equations of motion approach. The double-slit signal is evaluated numerically exactly without invoking perturbation theory in the matter-field interaction. We show that the strong-pulse double-slit signal consists of a superposition of N-wave-mixing (N = 2, 4, 6…) responses and can be split into population and coherence contributions. The former reveals the dynamics of vibrational wave packets in the ground state and the excited electronic state of the chromophore, while the latter contains information on the dephasing of electronic coherences of the chromophore density matrix. We studied the influence of heat baths with different coupling strengths and memories on the double-slit signal. Our results show that the double-slit experiment performed with strong (nonperturbative) pulses yields substantially more information on the photoinduced dynamics of the chromophore than the weak-pulse experiment, in particular, if the bath-induced dephasings are fast.
Thermal decomposition products of butyraldehyde
Authors: Hatten Courtney D. , Kaskey Kevin R. , Warner Brian J. , Wright Emily M. , McCunn Laura R.
Published: December 2013

The thermal decomposition of gas-phase butyraldehyde, CH3CH2CH2CHO, was studied in the 1300–1600 K range with a hyperthermal nozzle. Products were identified via matrix-isolation Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and photoionization mass spectrometry in separate experiments. There are at least six major initial reactions contributing to the decomposition of butyraldehyde: a radical decomposition channel leading to propyl radical + CO + H; molecular elimination to form H2 + ethylketene; a keto-enol tautomerism followed by elimination of H2O producing 1-butyne; an intramolecular hydrogen shift and elimination producing vinyl alcohol and ethylene, a β–C–C bond scission yielding ethyl and vinoxy radicals; and a γ–C–C bond scission yielding methyl and CH2CH2CHO radicals. The first three reactions are analogous to those observed in the thermal decomposition of acetaldehyde, but the latter three reactions are made possible by the longer alkyl chain structure of butyraldehyde. The products identified following thermal decomposition of butyraldehyde are CO, HCO, CH3CH2CH2, CH3CH2CH=C=O, H2O, CH3CH2C≡CH, CH2CH2, CH2=CHOH, CH2CHO, CH3, HC≡CH, CH2CCH, CH3C≡CH, CH3CH=CH2, H2C=C=O, CH3CH2CH3, CH2=CHCHO, C4H2, C4H4, and C4H8. The first ten products listed are direct products of the six reactions listed above. The remaining products can be attributed to further decomposition reactions or bimolecular reactions in the nozzle.
Flow induced vibration of two rigidly coupled circular cylinders in tandem and side-by-side arrangements at a low Reynolds number of 150
Authors: Zhao Ming
Published: December 2013

Flow induced vibration of two rigidly coupled identical circular cylinders in tandem and side-by-side arrangements at a low Reynolds number of 150 is studied numerically. The two cylinders vibrate in the cross-flow direction and have the same displacement. The Navier-Stokes equations are solved by the finite element method and the equation of motion of the cylinders is solved by the fourth-order Runge-Kutta algorithm. Simulations are conducted for a constant mass ratio of 2 and the gap ratios (defined as the ratio of the centre-to-centre distance between the two cylinders L to the cylinder diameter D) of 1.5, 2, 4, and 6. The reduced velocities range from 0.5 to 15 with an increment of 0.5 for the tandem arrangement and from 0.5 to 30 with an increment of 0.5 for the side-by-side arrangement. It is found that the gap between the two cylinders has significant effect on the response. For a tandem arrangement, the lock-in regime of the reduced velocity is narrower than that of a single cylinder for L/D = 1.5 and 2 and wider than later for L/D = 4 and 6. If the two cylinders are allowed to vibrate in the cross-flow direction, the vortex shedding from the upstream cylinder occurs at L/D as small as 2. The most interesting phenomenon found in the side-by-side arrangement is the combination of vortex-induced vibration (VIV) and galloping at L/D = 1.5 and 2. For L/D = 1.5 and 2, the response is dominated by VIV as Vr<15 and by galloping as Vr>15. At reduced velocities close to 15, the response is a combination of VIV and galloping.
Correlated evolution of colossal thermoelectric effect and Kondo insulating behavior
Authors: Fuccillo M. K. , Gibson Q. D. , Ali Mazhar N. , Schoop L. M. , Cava R. J.
Published: December 2013

We report the magnetic and transport properties of the Ru1−xFexSb2 solid solution, showing how the colossal thermoelectric performance of FeSb2 evolves due to changes in the amount of 3d vs. 4d electron character. The physical property trends shed light on the physical picture underlying one of the best low-T thermoelectric power factors known to date. Some of the compositions warrant further study as possible n- and p-type thermoelements for Peltier cooling well below 300 K. Our findings enable us to suggest possible new Kondo insulating systems that might behave similarly to FeSb2 as advanced thermoelectrics.
A reliable control system for measurement on film thickness in copper chemical mechanical planarization system
Authors: Li Hongkai , Qu Zilian , Zhao Qian , Tian Fangxin , Zhao Dewen , Meng Yonggang , Lu Xinchun
Published: December 2013

In recent years, a variety of film thickness measurement techniques for copper chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) are subsequently proposed. In this paper, the eddy-current technique is used. In the control system of the CMP tool developed in the State Key Laboratory of Tribology, there are in situ module and off-line module for measurement subsystem. The in situ module can get the thickness of copper film on wafer surface in real time, and accurately judge when the CMP process should stop. This is called end-point detection. The off-line module is used for multi-points measurement after CMP process, in order to know the thickness of remained copper film. The whole control system is structured with two levels, and the physical connection between the upper and the lower is achieved by the industrial Ethernet. The process flow includes calibration and measurement, and there are different algorithms for two modules. In the process of software development, C++ is chosen as the programming language, in combination with Qt OpenSource to design two modules’ GUI and OPC technology to implement the communication between the two levels. In addition, the drawing function is developed relying on Matlab, enriching the software functions of the off-line module. The result shows that the control system is running stably after repeated tests and practical operations for a long time.
Emittance of compact microwave ion source for low energy application
Authors: Gotoh Yasuhito , Taguchi Shuhei , Tsuji Hiroshi , Ishikawa Junzo , Sakai Shigeki
Published: December 2013

The emittance of the compact microwave ion source for low energy application was investigated. The source structure was slightly modified from the previously reported version. The extraction apertures of 3 mm and 4 mm were used to evaluate the emittance. It was found that the normalized emittance of the present ion source ranged from 6 × 10−8 m rad (3 mm extraction aperture) to 2 × 10−7 m rad (4 mm extraction aperture), which are similar to that of the original ion source.
Revisiting the analytical solution for temperature in Poiseuille flow of an ideal gas
Authors: Zhang Ju
Published: December 2013

The discrepancy between the numerical solution to the Navier-Stokes equations for a pressure-driven Poiseuille flow in an ideal gas and the classical analytical solution for temperature is examined. A minimum temperature at the center is observed in the numerical solution to the Navier-Stokes equations but the analytical solution predicts a maximum temperature at the center. It is found that the \documentclass[12pt]{minimal}\begin{document}$\frac{\mathrm{D}p}{\mathrm{D}t}$\end{document}DpDt term should not be neglected in the reduced energy equation in the analytical method when the fluid under consideration is an ideal gas. When the \documentclass[12pt]{minimal}\begin{document}$\frac{\mathrm{D}p}{\mathrm{D}t}$\end{document}DpDt term is retained, a minimum instead of a maximum temperature arises at the center in the new analytical solution as well. On the other hand, when the fluid is a liquid, the reduced energy equation and the solution assume the classical form, and thus the solution in fact has a maximum at the center.
Maximizing electrical activation of ion-implanted Si in In0.53Ga0.47As
Authors: Lind A. G. , Rudawski N. G. , Vito N. J. , Hatem C. , Ridgway M. C. , Hengstebeck R. , Yates B. R. , Jones K. S.
Published: December 2013

A relationship between the electrical activation of Si in ion-implanted In0.53Ga0.47As and material microstructure after ion implantation is demonstrated. By altering specimen temperature during ion implantation to control material microstructure, it is advanced that increasing sub-amorphizing damage (point defects) from Si+ implantation results in enhanced electrical activation of Si in In0.53Ga0.47As by providing a greater number of possible sites for substitutional incorporation of Si into the crystal lattice upon subsequent annealing.
Numerical analysis of detection-mechanism models of superconducting nanowire single-photon detector
Authors: Engel Andreas , Schilling Andreas
Published: December 2013

The microscopic mechanism of photon detection in superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors is still under debate. We present a simple but powerful theoretical model that allows us to identify essential differences between competing detection mechanisms. The model is based on quasi-particle multiplication and diffusion after the absorption of a photon. We then use the calculated spatial and temporal evolution of this quasi-particle cloud to determine detection criteria of three distinct detection mechanisms, based on the formation of a normal conducting spot, the reduction of the effective depairing critical current below the bias current, and a vortex-crossing scenario, respectively. All our calculations as well as a comparison to experimental data strongly support the vortex-crossing detection mechanism by which vortices and antivortices enter the superconducting strip from the edges and subsequently traverse it thereby triggering the detectable normal conducting domain. These results may therefore help to reveal the microscopic mechanism responsible for the detection of photons in superconducting nanowires.
Design optimization of bowtie nanoantenna for high-efficiency thermophotovoltaics
Authors: Sarabandi Kamal , Choi Sangjo
Published: December 2013

A novel matching technique and the field enhancement at the terminals of a bowtie nanoantenna are utilized to develop compact, highly efficient, and flexible thermophotovoltaic (TPV) cells. The bowtie antenna is designed for maximum power transfer to a near infrared band (1 μm to 2.2 μm) of a TPV cell using Indium Gallium Arsenide Antimonide (InGaAsSb). A nano-meter size block of InGaAsSb with a low bandgap energy of 0.52 eV is mounted at the terminals of the antenna. Such a load presents a frequency dependent impedance with a high resistance and capacitance at the desired frequency (180 THz). For maximum power transfer, a high impedance bowtie antenna operating at the anti-resonance mode in conjunction with an inductive stub is realized. The plasmonic behavior of the metal that tends to reduce the antenna size is partially compensated by the extra length needed to achieve the anti-resonance condition. At the desired band, the proposed nanoantenna loaded with InGaAsSb block shows an electric field intensity at the antenna terminals, which is approximately 23.5 times higher than the incident electric field intensity. This feature allows for development of efficient TPV cell and sensitive IR detectors. The infinite array of the bowtie antennas backed by a metallic reflector located at a quarter-wave behind the array is shown to absorb ∼95% of the incident power, which is more than 50% higher than the bulk InGaAsSb TPV cell. A novel configuration of the bowtie nanoantenna array is also presented that allows for collection of DC currents through an almost arbitrary parallel or series configuration of TPV cells without adversely affecting the IR performance of the individual antennas. In this scheme, elements can be arranged to be polarization dependent or independent.
Exciton-phonon bound complex in single-walled carbon nanotubes revealed by high-field magneto-optical spectroscopy
Authors: Zhou Weihang , Sasaki Tatsuya , Nakamura Daisuke , Saito Hiroaki , Liu Huaping , Kataura Hiromichi , Takeyama Shojiro
Published: December 2013

High-field magneto-optical spectroscopy was performed on highly enriched (6,5) single-walled carbon nanotubes. Spectra of phonon sidebands in both 1st and 2nd sub-bands were unchanged by an external magnetic field up to 52 T. The dark K-momentum singlet (D-K-S) exciton, which plays an important role for the external quantum efficiency of the system for both sub-bands in the near-infrared and the visible light region, respectively, was clarified to be the origin of the phonon sidebands.