Search

Multi-wall vertically aligned carbon nanotubes (VACNTs) are nearly ideal absorbers due to their exceptionally low reflectance over a broad wavelength range. Integrating VACNTs as bolometer absorbers, however, can be difficult due to their high growth temperature and fragile nature. Despite these challenges, we have microfabricated many different types of VACNT bolometers, ranging from cryogenic optical power primary standards to room temperature satellite-based solar irradiance monitors and broadband infrared microbolometers. Advantages our VACNT bolometers provide over the bolometers they replace vary by application, but can be reduced size and time constant, increased absorption, and/or microfabrication instead of hand assembly. Depending on the application and operating conditions, our VACNT bolometers are designed with a variety of thermistors and weak thermal links. The thermistors used include commercial surface mount chips, superconducting transition-edge sensors, and vanadium oxide (VOx). Weak thermal links include silicon nitride (SiNx) membranes, Si bridges, and laser-cut polyimide. We summarize a wide variety of microfabricated bolometers with VACNT absorbers that measure optical power levels spanning over seven orders of magnitude.

The Air-Core-Liquid-Ring atomizer is a pioneering internal-mixing pneumatic atomization technique designed for energy-efficient spray drying of highly viscous liquid feeds with substantial solid contents. However, it can suffer internal flow instabilities, which may lead to spray droplets with a wide variation in diameter. Experimental investigation of how flow conditions mechanistically determine the resulting droplet sizes is hindered by high velocities near the nozzle outlet. Therefore, this study addressed the issue by implementing a numerical model, employing a coupled Eulerian-Lagrangian approach with adaptive mesh refinement, to simulate the breakup of the liquid into ligaments and droplets. Additionally, Large Eddy Simulation was incorporated to replicate turbulent flow conditions observed in experiments. The numerical model demonstrated significant improvement in predicting liquid film thickness, compared to previous work. Additionally, the simulated droplet size distributions mirrored experimental trends, shifting to smaller sizes as pressure increased. Unfortunately, while reduced, there is a persistent underestimation of the lamella thickness and the droplet sizes at 0.2 MPa. In spite of this, the fact that the error propagates between the two phenomena underscores the effective coupling between Eulerian and Lagrangian approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work comprehensively discusses the utilization of a metal-multiwalled carbon nanotube (CNT) nanocomposite of gold (Au)/CNT for uncooled bolometric application synthesized by a simple rapid green synthesis technique. Enhanced light–matter interaction with the visible (532 nm) and near-infrared (1064 nm) radiations in the nanocomposite is utilized for achieving improved bolometric response at room temperature (RT, ∼300 K). A comparatively higher temperature coefficient of resistance of ∼−0.11%/K (improvement of ∼57%) was achieved in the Au/CNT nanocomposite bolometer (BM). Additionally, the composite BM demonstrated a dual (532 and 1064 nm) spectral selectively and enhanced sensitivity with respective large RT voltage responsivities of ∼11.70 ± 3.45 V/W and ∼503.54 ± 12.77 mV/W, as opposed to null response from the CNT BM. The current study, thus, demonstrates an important step toward designing high-performing CNT BMs for uncooled operation, with added functionality of wavelength-selectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the current era, remote sensing is a powerful platform for detecting and predicting landslides. Moreover, the advancement in computing technologies has proven significant in artificial intelligence (AI) research. Researchers have made significant attempts in the existing literature by introducing landslide detection procedures from remote sensing images (RSIs) through deep learning (DpLr) algorithms. This research work aims to survey those methods. Our database consists of 204 published research articles. In addition, 50% (approximately) of the papers are directly related to landslide information extraction from satellite and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) images exploiting DpLr models. The suggested methods have been categorized into seven parts based on the applied model. Further, the evaluation methods have been discussed. The quantitative results are based on the following parameters: (1) contributing nations, (2) key study locations, (3) data set distribution, and (4) model utilization. Lastly, challenges in the studies of DpLr algorithms and the opportunities in landslide detection problems are discussed to motivate future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metamaterial absorbers have been widely studied and continuously concerned owing to their excellent resonance features of ultra‐thin thickness, light‐weight, and high absorbance. Their applications, however, are typically restricted by the intrinsic dispersion of materials and strong resonant features of patterned arrays (mainly referring to narrow absorption bandwidth). It is, therefore essential to reassert the principles of building broadband metamaterial absorbers (BMAs). Herein, the research progress of BMAs from principles, design strategies, tunable properties to functional applications are comprehensively and deeply summarized. Physical principles behind broadband absorption are briefly discussed, typical design strategies in realizing broadband absorption are further emphasized, such as top‐down lithography, bottom‐up self‐assembly, and emerging 3D printing technology. Diversified active components choices, including optical response, temperature response, electrical response, magnetic response, mechanical response, and multi‐parameter responses, are reviewed in achieving dynamically tuned broadband absorption. Following this, the achievements of various interdisciplinary applications for BMAs in energy‐harvesting, photodetectors, radar‐IR dual stealth, bolometers, noise absorbing, imaging, and fabric wearable are summarized. Finally, the challenges and perspectives for future development of BMAs are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bulk nanobubbles (BNBs) have widespread applications in various fields of science due to numerous peculiar characteristics. Despite significant applications, only limited investigations are available on the application of BNBs in food processing. In the present study, a continuous acoustic cavitation technique was used to generate bulk nanobubbles (BNBs). The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of BNB incorporation on the processability and spray drying of milk protein concentrate (MPC) dispersions. MPC powders were reconstituted to the desired total solids and incorporated with BNBs using acoustic cavitation as per the experimental design. The control MPC (C-MPC) and BNB-incorporated MPC (BNB-MPC) dispersions were analyzed for rheological, functional, and microstructural properties. The viscosity significantly decreased (p < 0.05) at all the amplitudes studied. The microscopic observations of BNB-MPC dispersions showed less aggregated microstructures and greater structural differences compared with C-MPC dispersions, therefore lowering the viscosity. The viscosity of BNB incorporated (90% amplitude) MPC dispersions at 19% total solids at a shear rate of 100 s−1 significantly decreased to 15.43 mPa·s (C-MPC: 201 mPa·s), a net decrease in viscosity by ~90% with the BNB treatment. The control and BNB incorporated MPC dispersions were spray-dried, and the resultant powders were characterized in terms of powder microstructure and rehydration characteristics. Focused beam reflectance measurement of the BNB-MPC powders indicated higher counts of fine particles (<10 μm) during dissolution, signifying that BNB-MPC powders exhibited better rehydration properties than the C-MPC powders. The enhanced powder rehydration with the BNB incorporation was attributed to the powder microstructure. Overall, reducing the viscosity of feed by BNB incorporation can enhance the performance of the evaporator. This study, therefore, recommends the possibility of using BNB treatment for more efficient drying while improving the functional properties of the resultant MPC powders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Air-Core-Liquid-Ring (ACLR) atomizer is an innovative internal-mixing pneumatic atomization technique, suitable for energy-efficient spray drying of highly viscous liquid feeds, with high solid contents. However, pneumatic atomizers such as the ACLR can suffer from unstable internal flow conditions, which may lead to a wide variation in the droplet diameter obtained. Therefore, the internal flow conditions of an ACLR-atomizer needs to be properly studied and comprehended. With that in mind, a computational fluid dynamic (CFD) model was implemented and tested with experimental data collected for different air pressures and liquid feed viscosities. The model used can predict average lamella thickness with a relative error of less than 10%, when compared to experimental results, although some degree of artificial dampening of the flow instabilities occurs at high viscosities and low pressures. These instabilities have to be investigated in more detail from both the numerical side, by further refining the CFD model to capture the moment-to-moment behavior of the flow, as well as on the experimental side, by studying the instability development at higher recording speeds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Uncooled microbolometer arrays incorporating vertically aligned carbon nanotube absorbers are increasingly being adopted in satellite instrumentation for monitoring the Earth's radiation budget. A key requirement for such microbolometers is a thermistor having high-temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR), low 1/f noise while surviving high-temperature carbon nanotube growth at 800 °C. In the present work, Pt thin-film thermistors are fabricated on SiNx/SiO2/Si substrates using DC magnetron sputtering. To achieve enhanced adhesion of the Pt thin film, an interlayer of AlOx is deposited on the substrate via reactive high-power impulse magnetron sputtering. To maximize the positive TCR, the Pt/AlOx is subjected to different annealing conditions by varying temperature, time, and gaseous environment. With an increase in the annealing temperature and duration, Pt/AlOx thin film exhibits an improvement in TCR. Microstructural and morphological investigations suggest that improvement in TCR is related to the recrystallization of Pt and the resulting increase in grain size. A relatively high TCR of 0.308%/°C (TCR of bulk Pt = 0.359%/°C) was obtained at an operational range of 20–50 °C when Pt was annealed at 800 °C for 1 h and 3 h in air and Ar, respectively. Deposition of Pt without an AlOx interlayer resulted in thin film blistering and delamination when annealed at 800 °C for 1 h in air. A Pt/AlOx thermistor with a TCR of 0.308%/°C, annealed at 800 °C for 3 h in Ar has the potential for use in microbolometers that must undergo high-temperature growth of vertically aligned carbon nanotube absorbers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past two decades quantum engineering has made significant advances in our ability to create genuine quantum many-body systems using ultracold atoms. In particular, some prototypical exactly solvable Yang–Baxter systems have been successfully realized allowing us to confront elegant and sophisticated exact solutions of these systems with their experimental counterparts. The new experimental developments show a variety of fundamental one-dimensional (1D) phenomena, ranging from the generalized hydrodynamics to dynamical fermionization, Tomonaga–Luttinger liquids, collective excitations, fractional exclusion statistics, quantum holonomy, spin-charge separation, competing orders with high spin symmetry and quantum impurity problems. This article briefly reviews these developments and provides rigorous understanding of those observed phenomena based on the exact solutions while highlighting the uniqueness of 1D quantum physics. The precision of atomic physics realizations of integrable many-body problems continues to inspire significant developments in mathematics and physics while at the same time offering the prospect to contribute to future quantum technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This review considers the impact of combining discrete membrane filtration configurations in a multistage or sequential configuration to improve processing performance, energy efficiency and component selectivity in dairy processes. The review focuses on the impact of multistage membrane filtration on (i) concentration processes, through the examination of fouling accumulation and its impact on flux and energy efficiency, and (ii) fractionation processes, whereby the yield/purity of dairy components is assessed. Observations from single‐stage and batch microfiltration, ultrafiltration, nanofiltration and reverse osmosis processes reported in the literature are compared to the continuous multistage filtration processes common in commercial dairy installations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Serious gaming is increasingly used to explore important real‐world problems and a growing number of serious games are addressing flood‐related issues. However, there has been limited synthesis of these attempts and their contributions to the ongoing shift toward a more holistic and governance‐based flood resilience perspective in flood risk management (FRM). This international review collates and analyses these attempts in order to develop a knowledge base of serious gaming in the field of FRM. It contains 37 games that were developed with different rationales that include engaging players in the topic of FRM, supporting practice by exploring future options through collaboration, improving communication of FRM, as educational tools, and to collect research data. The gameplay countries and player characteristics, game characteristics, relevance to FRM, game rationales, and collection of data are explored in this paper. Identified serious games provided an unconventional and entertaining approach to engage stakeholders on flood‐related issues. The review analyzed the serious games in light of the shift toward flood resilience and identified limitations in the documentation of serious games and their potential in understanding the longer‐term impacts of gameplay on players. Furthermore, the vast majority of reviewed games were played in a single country and missed out on understanding the cultural production and perspectives of FRM that could support cross‐cultural learning and inspiration for future FRM strategies. Overall, the review identified an important role for serious games in the shift toward governance and the adoption of more holistic flood resilience perspectives. This article is categorized under:Human Water > Water GovernanceHuman Water > MethodsScience of Water > Water Extremes [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Calls for transformative change and participatory modes of knowledge production demand researchers to assume new roles. This paper synthesizes the literature on knowledge co‐production and researcher roles to explore challenges for researchers involved in transdisciplinary environmental management projects. Our research methods combine a scoping review and reflections on personal experiences with three transdisciplinary projects. To conceptualize researcher roles in transdisciplinary knowledge co‐production, we distinguish between three spaces: knowledge, formal policy, and stakeholder. Knowledge co‐production requires collaboration between actors from different spaces and integration of diverse knowledge sources and types. Depending on whether researchers adopt knowledge‐oriented, change‐oriented or intermediating roles, they will experience different challenges. When researchers combine knowledge development with change‐oriented and/or intermediating roles, they encounter new challenges, such as, maintaining independence or objectivity. To assist researchers in transdisciplinary projects, we conclude with a checklist of four elements to reflect upon: orientation, norms and values, expectations and resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lipid oxidation is an important cause of quality deterioration in marine-based foods (MBFs) because of their high contents of poly- and mono- unsaturated fatty acids. Synthetic antioxidants (SAs) have been used for retarding lipid oxidation. However, SAs have been associated with health risks. Therefore, natural antioxidants from animal origin, particularly marine animal processing by-products have become a promising alternative. Crustaceans can serve as an excellent source of valuable bioactive compounds. Information on antioxidants from crustaceans, such as bioactive peptides, chitin derivatives, and carotenoids is revisited. The applications of these antioxidants in impeding lipid oxidation in MBFs are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper introduced a novel method of landslide activity mapping using vegetation anomalies indicators (VAIs) obtained from high resolution remotely sensed data. The study area was located in a tectonically active area of Kundasang, Sabah, Malaysia. High resolution remotely sensed data were used to assist manual landslide inventory process and production on VAIs. The inventory process identified 33, 139, and 31 of active, dormant, and relict landslides, respectively. Landslide inventory map were randomly divided into two groups for training (70%) and validation (30%) datasets. Overall, 7 group of VAIs were derived including (i) tree height irregularities; (ii) tree canopy gap; (iii) density of different layer of vegetation; (iv) vegetation type distribution; (v) vegetation indices (VIs); (vi) root strength index (RSI); and (vii) distribution of water-loving trees. The VAIs were used as the feature layer input of the classification process with landslide activity as the target results. The landslide activity of the study area was classified using support vector machine (SVM) approach. SVM parameter optimization was applied by using Grid Search (GS) and Genetic Algorithm (GA) techniques. The results showed that the overall accuracy of the validation dataset is between 61.4–86%, and kappa is between 0.335–0.769 for deep-seated translational landslide. SVM RBF-GS with 0.5m spatial resolution produced highest overall accuracy and kappa values. Also, the overall accuracy of the validation dataset for shallow translational is between 49.8–71.3%, and kappa is between 0.243–0.563 where SVM RBF-GS with 0.5m resolution recorded the best result. In conclusion, this study provides a novel framework in utilizing high resolution remote sensing to support labour intensive process of landslide inventory. The nature-based vegetation anomalies indicators have been proved to be reliable for landslide activity identification in Malaysia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report on the confinement of a Bose–Einstein condensate in an annular trap with widely tunable parameters. The trap relies on a combination of magnetic, optical and radio-frequency fields. The loading procedure is discussed. We present annular traps with radii adjusted between 20 and 150 μm. We demonstrate the preparation of persistent flows both with a rotating laser stirrer and with a global quadrupole deformation of the ring. Our setup is well adapted for the study of superfluid dynamics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Infant milk formula (IMF) products intend to simulate the composition of human milk and meet the nutritional requirements of infants until they become familiar with complementary foods. In addition to meeting nutritional requirements, IMF powders should be stable and rehydrate well up to their use-by date. These requirements can be met by developing balanced formulations and optimizing the parameters used during processing, handling, and storage. Ingredients such as lactoferrin, milk fat globule membrane, probiotics, and prebiotics are often incorporated in some IMF powders. Stability of IMF powders is essential, and it is often compromised by handling and storage at suboptimal temperature and/or relative humidity. Uncontrollable moisture uptake by IMF powders triggers many undesirable phenomena including lowering of glass transition temperature, crystallization of lactose, formation of free fat, undesirable modification of surface composition and morphology, and reduced solubility. Sound understanding of product-process interactions is needed for judicious selection of ingredients and optimization of formulation, processing (e.g., homogenization, evaporation, drying) and storage parameters to produce nutritionally superior IMF powders and ensuring their longer shelf life. In this work, we have systematically reviewed the published works on physicochemical properties of IMF powders and how they are affected by the characteristics of ingredients and parameters used during processing and storage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The design and performance of a room temperature electrical substitution radiometer for use as an absolute standard for measuring continuous-wave laser power over a wide range of wavelengths, beam diameters, and powers are described. The standard achieves an accuracy of 0.46% (k = 2) for powers from 10 mW to 100 mW and 0.83% (k = 2) for powers from 1 mW to 10 mW and can accommodate laser beam diameters (1/e2) up to 11 mm and wavelengths from 300 nm to 2 μm. At low power levels, the uncertainty is dominated by sensitivity to fluctuations in the thermal environment. The core of the instrument is a planar, silicon microfabricated bolometer with vertically aligned carbon nanotube absorbers, commercial surface mount thermistors, and an integrated heater. Where possible, commercial electronics and components were used. The performance was validated by comparing it to a National Institute of Standards and Technology primary standard through a transfer standard silicon trap detector and by comparing it to the legacy "C-series" standards in operation at the U.S. Air Force Metrology and Calibration Division (AFMETCAL). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multi-wall vertically aligned carbon nanotubes (VACNTs) are nearly ideal absorbers due to their exceptionally low reflectance over a broad wavelength range. Integrating VACNTs as bolometer absorbers, however, can be difficult due to their high growth temperature and fragile nature. Despite these challenges, we have microfabricated many different types of VACNT bolometers, ranging from cryogenic optical power primary standards to room temperature satellite-based solar irradiance monitors and broadband infrared microbolometers. Advantages our VACNT bolometers provide over the bolometers they replace vary by application, but can be reduced size and time constant, increased absorption, and/or microfabrication instead of hand assembly. Depending on the application and operating conditions, our VACNT bolometers are designed with a variety of thermistors and weak thermal links. The thermistors used include commercial surface mount chips, superconducting transition-edge sensors, and vanadium oxide (VOx). Weak thermal links include silicon nitride (SiNx) membranes, Si bridges, and laser-cut polyimide. We summarize a wide variety of microfabricated bolometers with VACNT absorbers that measure optical power levels spanning over seven orders of magnitude. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The structural, electronic and chemical bonding properties of biopolymer chitosan in tetramer structures are investigated by using density functional theory. These polymer structures exhibit structural activity relationship because the activity of these polymer isomers varies with the structural modification and molecular weight. In this approach the Generalized Gradient Approximation (GGA) is used for the exchange-correlation potential. In density of states analysis the calculated forbidden energy gap is reduced by 2.23eV for cis-chitosan structure, deduces its semi-conducting behaviour with decreased crystallinity and improved bioactivity. Hirshfeld population and charge density techniques are used to analyse electrostatic interactions and the charge distribution within these molecules. Crystal orbital overlap population shows ionic interactions and provide chemical bonding information. Modification of chitosan improves the properties and provide the better functionally improved bio-polymer. This study is aimed to be used in various chemical industries, pharmaceutical and biomedical fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chitin recovery by lactic acid fermentation was considered. It was previously shown that the use of glucose led to 61% of demineralization and 42% of deproteinization; while and unlike glucose, the inoculation of L. helveticus in date waste (200 g L-1 reducing sugars) led to a simultaneous demineralization and deproteinization of shrimp shells, 83 and 61 %, respectively. The purity of end-products were characterized by infrared (FTIR), X-ray diffraction and X-ray fluorescence. Analysis of the chemical composition of fermentation end-product by X-ray fluorescence showed that residual minerals are in trace except CaO and P2O5. The infrared spectra and the X-ray diffractograms of both samples compared to those of pure chitin showed a strong similarity. FTIR of fermented shells showed the appearance of characteristic peaks of a-chitin and the disappearance of calcite peaks. In addition and especially for the shells fermented using L. helveticus cultivated on date waste, a similarity with those of pure chitin should be noted. These results confirmed the efficiency of biological chitin recovery, and that a synthetic carbon source (glucose) can be replaced by a natural one, date waste, allowing a valorization of this latter. The relevance of subsequent works to improve yields of demineralization and deproteinization was therefore confirmed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The robust computational design of functional proteins has the potential to deeply impact translational research and broaden our understanding of the determinants of protein function and stability. The low success rates of computational design protocols and the extensive in vitro optimization often required, highlight the challenge of designing proteins that perform essential biochemical functions, such as binding or catalysis. One of the most simplistic approaches for the design of function is to adopt functional motifs in naturally occurring proteins and transplant them to computationally designed proteins. The structural complexity of the functional motif largely determines how readily one can find host protein structures that are “designable”, meaning that are likely to present the functional motif in the desired conformation. One promising route to enhance the “designability” of protein structures is to allow backbone flexibility. Here, we present a computational approach that couples conformational folding with sequence design to embed functional motifs into heterologous proteins—Rosetta Functional Folding and Design (FunFolDes). We performed extensive computational benchmarks, where we observed that the enforcement of functional requirements resulted in designs distant from the global energetic minimum of the protein. An observation consistent with several experimental studies that have revealed function-stability tradeoffs. To test the design capabilities of FunFolDes we transplanted two viral epitopes into distant structural templates including one de novo “functionless” fold, which represent two typical challenges where the designability problem arises. The designed proteins were experimentally characterized showing high binding affinities to monoclonal antibodies, making them valuable candidates for vaccine design endeavors. Overall, we present an accessible strategy to repurpose old protein folds for new functions. This may lead to important improvements on the computational design of proteins, with structurally complex functional sites, that can perform elaborate biochemical functions related to binding and catalysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydrophilic matrices composed of chitosan (CS) and xanthan gum (ΧG) complexes are of pharmaceutical interest in relation to drug delivery due to their ability to control the release of active ingredients. Molecular dynamics simulations (MDs) have been performed in order to obtain information pertaining to the effect of the state of protonation and degree of N-acetylation (DA) on the molecular conformation of chitosan and its ability to interact with xanthan gum in aqueous solutions. The conformational flexibility of CS was found to be highly dependent on its state of protonation. Upon complexation with ΧG, a substantial restriction in free rotation around the glycosidic bond was noticed in protonated CS dimers regardless of their DA, whereas deprotonated molecules preserved their free mobility. Calculated values for the free energy of binding between CS and ΧG revealed the dominant contribution of electrostatic forces on the formation of complexes and that the most stable complexes were formed when CS was at least half-protonated and the DA was ≤50%. The results obtained provide an insight into the main factors governing the interaction between CS and ΧG, such that they can be manipulated accordingly to produce complexes with the desired controlled-release effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Demineralization (DM) and deproteinization (DP) of shrimp shell Parapenaeus longirostris using Lactobacillus helveticus, depends on the composition of culture medium, and temperature of incubation. In a synthetic medium containing glucose, completely different conditions are required for chitin recovery: 300 g/L of glucose and 35°C for maximal DM (60%) and 80 g/L of glucose and 30°C for a maximum of DP (70%). The use of date's juice shows that it is possible to extract chitin, in a single step, unlike the simple medium. The richness of the dates juice in mineral elements and the high concentration of reducing sugars (200 g/L) allowed for a maximum activity of proteolytic enzymes favored by a pH maintained constant at around pH 6 for 29h of fermentation, and a significant acidification expressed by a minimum pH of 4.7 which are reflected by rates of 83% and 63% of deproteinization and demineralization, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) is a promising technique for plot-wise acquisition of geometric attributes of forests. However, there still exists a need for TLS applications in mountain forests where tree stems' growing directions are not vertical. This paper presents a novel method to model tree stems precisely in an alpine landslide-affected forest using TLS. Tree stems are automatically detected by a two-layer projection method. Stems are modeled by fitting a series of cylinders based on a 2D-3D random sample consensus (RANSAC)-based approach. Diameter at breast height (DBH) was manually measured in the field, and stem curves were measured from the point cloud as reference data. The results showed that all trees in the test area can be detected. The root mean square error (RMSE) of estimated DBH was 1.80 cm (5.5%). Stem curves were automatically generated and compared with reference data, as well as stem volumes. The results imply that the proposed method is able to map and model the stem curve precisely in complex forest conditions. The resulting stem parameters can be employed in single tree biomass estimation, tree growth quantification and other forest-related studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Here we review the field of atom chips in the context of Bose–Einstein Condensates (BEC) as well as cold matter in general. Twenty years after the first realization of the BEC and 15 years after the realization of the atom chip, the latter has been found to enable extraordinary feats: from producing BECs at a rate of several per second, through the realization of matter-wave interferometry, and all the way to novel probing of surfaces and new forces. In addition, technological applications are also being intensively pursued. This review will describe these developments and more, including new ideas which have not yet been realized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The subject of this study is selection of mathematical description (interpolation method) of landslides surface for the purpose of periodic control of terrain movements. Monitoring of landslides, considered in this work, concerns points of periodic GPS or tacheometric measurements carried out in a relatively regular grid. For economic reasons, the grid usually consists of limited group of about several dozen of points that do not allow for an exact description of the terrain surface, nevertheless a general movement of a landslide can be detected (observed). Replacement of discrete set of points to a continuous surface model allows for a better assessment of the phenomenon especially within the scope of its main directions of activity. The choice of best performing interpolation method in order to construct a reliable numerical terrain model was performed through tests carried out on complex model surfaces. These model surfaces encompassed various configurations of terrain relief. In this study four interpolation methods i.e. splines, kriging triangulation with linear interpolation and IDW are compared. Tests on model surfaces distinguished the method of splines as the best performing one as well as the method of kriging which is suitable in some instances. The selected method of splines was then applied to periodically monitored landslide in Milówka in the south of Poland. Interpolation by means of splines allowed for observing progressive movements of the landslide surface with accuracy up to several millimeters. This confirms the usefulness and reliability of this method in landslides monitoring. Specialized field: Surveying & Geo-Spatial Engineering: Deformation Surveying. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

DNA double-strand break repair by homologous recombination begins with nucleolytic resection of the 5' DNA strand at the break ends. Long-range resection is catalyzed by EXO1 and BLM-DNA2, which likely have to navigate through ribonucleotides and damaged bases. Here, we show that a short stretch of ribonucleotides at the 5' terminus stimulates resection by EXO1. Ribonucleotides within a 5' flap are resistant to cleavage by DNA2, and extended RNA:DNA hybrids inhibit both strand separation by BLM and resection by EXO1. Moreover, 8-oxo-guanine impedes EXO1 but enhances resection by BLM-DNA2, and an apurinic/apyrimidinic site stimulates resection by BLM-DNA2 and DNA strand unwinding by BLM. Accordingly, depletion of OGG1 or APE1 leads to greater dependence of DNA resection on DNA2. Importantly, RNase H2A deficiency impairs resection overall, which we attribute to the accumulation of long RNA:DNA hybrids at DNA ends. Our results help explain why eukaryotic cells possess multiple resection nucleases.

ABSTRACT Molecular dynamics and de novo techniques, associated to quality parameter sets, have excelled at determining the structure of small proteins with high accuracy. To achieve a detailed description of protein conformations, these methods must critically assess the thermodynamic features of the molecular ensembles. Here, a comparison of the conformational ensemble generated by molecular dynamics and de novo techniques were carried out for six Top7-based proteins carrying gp41 HIV-1 epitopes. The native Top7, a highly stable computationally designed protein, was used as benchmark. Structural stability, flexibility, and secondary structure content were assessed. The consistency of the latter was compared to experimental circular dichroism spectra for all proteins. While both methods are capable to identify the stable from unstable chimeric proteins, the sampled conformational space and flexibility differ significantly in both methods. Molecular dynamics simulations seem to better describe secondary structure content and identify regions responsible for conformational instability. The de novo method, as implemented in Rosetta-a prime tool for protein design, overestimates secondary structure content. On the other hand, its empirical energy function is capable to predict the threshold for protein stability. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Biopolymers 103: 351-361, 2015. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Ochronosis / Alkaptonuria is a tyrosine metabolism disorder where accumulation of homogentisic acid, in eye, skin, cartilage and several other connective tissues leads to a black pigmentation of the affected tissues. It is autosomal-recessive inherited in men with a frequency of 1-9/1,000,000. While it is clear that pigment deposits lead to joint destruction, renal stone formation and cardiac valvulopathy respectively, the significance of ocular findings is still unclear. We therefore aim to evaluate the frequency and clinical significance of ocular findings in ochronosis and discuss possible therapeutic options. Methods Systematic review of literature via Medline and Web of Science. Only case reports in English, German, French, Spanish or Italian documenting detailed ophthalmologic examination were included. Results Our search revealed 36 case reports including 40 patients. Average age at the onset of ocular signs was 40.6 years. The most frequent sign was symmetric brown sclera pigmentation present in 82.5 percent of the patients. "Oil-drops", brown pigment spots in the limbus are generally considered pathognomonic but were a little less frequent (75 percent). Vermiform pigment deposits at the level of the conjunctiva or increased conjunctival vessel diameter is also frequent. We found an increased incidence of central vein occlusion and elevated intraocular pressure going along with chamber angle hyperpigmentation. Another condition observed twice is rapid progressive astigmatism attributable to corneoscleral pigment accumulation. Conclusion Our observations suggest that ocular findings are of double relevance. First, characteristic ocular findings can anticipate the time of diagnosis and second, ocular findings may complicate to various conditions putting sight at risk. Opthalmologists and general physicians should be aware of both. Therapeutic options include protein restriction, administration of high dose vitamin C or nitisonone. Evidence for all of them is limited. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Freshwater-fish populations of the Indo-pacific region are characterised by a large proportion of amphidromous species. We analysed the spawning-habitat selection of Sicyopterus lagocephalus (Gobiidae: Sicydiinae) within two rivers of the Reunion Island. Reproduction traces are rare events, so a presence-only sampling procedure was performed to collect egg clutches and a random description of available habitat was conducted to generate pseudo-absence data. Logistic models showed a strong selection for microhabitat variables and mesohabitat units. S. lagocephalus selected areas where availability of potential nests was high (small cobble to small boulder) and where interstitial substratum allowed intragravel flow. Our results suggest that the availability of favourable substratum may be a limiting factor, which could result in occupancy of suboptimal areas. Water depth and velocity had less of an effect on the selection of a spawning area. Higher selection for shallow (<60 cm) and lotic (>30 cm s-1) geomorphic units, with an optimum for riffle and cascade, suggested that mesohabitat could be a satisfactory approach to quickly assess the availability of spawning areas within a watercourse for expertise studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ectomycorrhizal (ECM) plants and fungi can be diverse and abundant in certain tropical ecosystems. For example, the primarily paleotropical ECM plant family Dipterocarpaceae is one of the most speciose and ecologically important tree families in Southeast Asia. Pakaraimaea dipterocarpacea is one of two species of dipterocarp known from the Neotropics, and is also the only known member of the monotypic Dipterocarpaceae subfamily Pakaraimoideae. This Guiana Shield endemic is only known from the sandstone highlands of Guyana and Venezuela. Despite its unique phylogenetic position and unusual geographical distribution, the ECM fungal associations of P. dipterocarpacea are understudied throughout the tree's range. In December 2010 we sampled ECM fungi on roots of P. dipterocarpacea and the co-occurring ECM tree Dicymbe jenmanii (Fabaceae subfamily Caesalpinioideae) in the Upper Mazaruni River Basin of Guyana. Based on ITS rDNA sequencing we documented 52 ECM species from 11 independent fungal lineages. Due to the phylogenetic distance between the two host tree species, we hypothesized that P. dipterocarpacea would harbor unique ECM fungi not found on the roots of D. jenmanii. Although statistical tests suggested that several ECM fungal species did exhibit host preferences for either P. dipterocarpacea or D. jenmanii, most of the ECM fungi were multi-host generalists. We also detected several ECM fungi that have never been found in long-term studies of nearby rainforests dominated by other Dicymbe species. One particular mushroom-forming fungus appears to be unique and may represent a new ECM lineage of Agaricales that is endemic to the Neotropics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Top7 is a de novo designed protein whose amino acid sequence has no evolutional trace. Such a property makes Top7 a suitable scaffold for studying the pure nature of protein and protein engineering applications. To use Top7 as an engineering scaffold, we initially attempted structure determination and found that crystals of our construct, which lacked the terminal hexahistidine tag, showed weak diffraction in X-ray structure determination. Thus, we decided to introduce surface residue mutations to facilitate crystal structure determination. The resulting surface mutants, Top7sm1 and Top7sm2, crystallized easily and diffracted to the resolution around 1.7 Å. Despite the improved data, we could not finalize the structures due to high R values. Although we could not identify the origin of the high R values of the surface mutants, we found that all the structures shared common packing architecture with consecutive intermolecular β-sheet formation aligned in one direction. Thus, we mutated the intermolecular interface to disrupt the intermolecular β-sheet formation, expecting to form a new crystal packing. The resulting mutant, Top7sm2-I68R, formed new crystal packing interactions as intended and diffracted to the resolution of 1.4 Å. The surface mutations contributed to crystal packing and high resolution. We finalized the structure model with the R/Rfree values of 0.20/0.24. Top7sm2-I68R can be a useful model protein due to its convenient structure determination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cleaning is a commonplace but poorly understood operation in the dairy industries. This paper describes recent work to identify and quantify the critical factors that control cleaning. Experiments have used micromanipulation probes to remove deposits from surfaces; these probes can measure the force required to remove deposits, and allow simple models of cleaning to be produced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Clustered DNA damage sites induced by ionizing radiation have been suggested to have serious consequences to organisms, such as cancer, due to their reduced probability to be repaired by the enzymatic repair machinery of the cell. Although experimental results have revealed that clustered DNA damage sites effectively retard the efficient function of repair enzymes, it remains unclear as to what particular factors influence this retardation. In this study, approaches based on molecular dynamics (MD) simulation have been applied to examine conformational changes and energetic properties of DNA molecules containing clustered damage sites consisting of two lesioned sites, namely 7,8-dihydro-8-oxoguanine (8-oxoG) and apurinic/apyrimidinic (AP) site, located within a few base pairs of each other. After 1 ns of MD simulation, one of the six DNA molecules containing a clustered damage site develops specific characteristic features: sharp bending at the lesioned site and weakening or complete loss of electrostatic interaction energy between 8-oxoG and bases located on the complementary strand. From these results it is suggested that these changes would make it difficult for the repair enzyme to bind to the lesions within the clustered damage site and thereby result in a reduction of its repair capacity. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem 26: 788–798, 2005 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

NIZO food research is one of the few remaining independent centres of dairy expertise in the world. Founded in 1948, NIZO has built a track record of exploring new scientific frontiers and the application of new science and technology in industry. NIZO nowadays provides its R&D services to the dairy industry as well as to other food companies. Changes in the dairy industry are also reflected in the development of NIZO. Research has changed its focus, which was predominantly raw material driven, to a new approach where two activities dominate: (a) exploration of new areas of science (e.g. genomics or computational physics) to develop new technology driven opportunities for the dairy industry; and (b) confidential research to deliver technology to industry for new consumer benefits or improvements in the supply chain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Canadian Journal of Botany is the property of Canadian Science Publishing and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Atomtronics is a relatively new subfield of atomic physics that aims to realize the device behavior of electronic components in ultracold atom-optical systems. The fact that these systems are coherent makes them particularly interesting since, in addition to current, one can impart quantum states onto the current carriers themselves or perhaps perform quantum computational operations on them. After reviewing the fundamental ideas of this subfield, we report on the theoretical and experimental progress made towards developing externally-driven and closed loop devices. The functionality and potential applications for these atom analogs to electronic and spintronic systems is also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last decades, market forces have pushed many food companies into a process of continuous cost cutting and rationalization. The only way to escape this ‘spiral of death’ is to innovate. This presents new challenges to food technologists: they have to connect the right functional benefits to the emotional benefits to support brand strengths. To achieve the desired speed to market, companies should build skills to utilize the latest technology and learn to work in an open innovation environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While batteries offer electronic source and sink for electronic devices, atomic analogues of source and sink and their theoretical descriptions have been a challenge in cold-atom systems. Here we consider dynamically emerged local potentials as controllable source and sink for bosonic atoms. Although a sink potential can collect bosons in equilibrium and indicate its usefulness in the adiabatic limit, sudden switching of the potential exhibits low effectiveness in pushing bosons into it. This is due to conservation of energy and particle in isolated systems such as cold atoms. By varying the potential depth and interaction strength, the systems can further exhibit averse response, where a deeper emerged potential attracts less bosonic atoms into it. To explore possibilities for improving the effectiveness, we investigate what types of system-environment coupling can help bring bosons into a dynamically emerged sink, and a Lindblad operator corresponding to local cooling is found to serve the purpose. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This roadmap bundles fast developing topics in experimental optical quantum sciences, addressing current challenges as well as potential advances in future research. We have focused on three main areas: quantum assisted high precision measurements, quantum information/simulation, and quantum gases. Quantum assisted high precision measurements are discussed in the first three sections, which review optical clocks, atom interferometry, and optical magnetometry. These fields are already successfully utilized in various applied areas. We will discuss approaches to extend this impact even further. In the quantum information/simulation section, we start with the traditionally successful employed systems based on neutral atoms and ions. In addition the marvelous demonstrations of systems suitable for quantum information is not progressing, unsolved challenges remain and will be discussed. We will also review, as an alternative approach, the utilization of hybrid quantum systems based on superconducting quantum devices and ultracold atoms. Novel developments in atomtronics promise unique access in exploring solid-state systems with ultracold gases and are investigated in depth. The sections discussing the continuously fast-developing quantum gases include a review on dipolar heteronuclear diatomic gases, Rydberg gases, and ultracold plasma. Overall, we have accomplished a roadmap of selected areas undergoing rapid progress in quantum optics, highlighting current advances and future challenges. These exciting developments and vast advances will shape the field of quantum optics in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]