Software System for Neuron Classification Based on Simple Parameters

A software system was produced to digitize neuronal images and to extract a set of simple parameters from the digitized images. The system was designed to classify a large number of neurons based on simple and automatically extracted features. The system was used to characterize catfish retinal ganglion cells. Several examples of parameter extraction and classification are presented.     

Fabrication of 0.95Sn−0.05Au solder micro-bumps for flip-chip bonding

This letter describes the successful fabrication of a 0.95Sn−0.05Au solder microbump on a compound semiconductor wafer by reflowing of multi-layer metal film. Since the inherent interdiffusion in Au−Sn phases results in the alloying of multi-layer films, the composition of micro-bump is well controlled by the thickness of constituent metal films. The micro-bumps melt at about 220 C, which is close to the lowest eutectic temperature in a Au−Sn system. Solder bonding using 0.95Sn−0.05Au micro-bump is a very useful technique for the flipchip bonding of compound semiconductor devices.     

Administration-time-dependent effects of diltiazem on the 24-hour blood pressure profile of essential hypertension patients

Cells of the central nervous system (CNS) normally do not express detectable levels of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) Class I antigens. However, MHC Class I expression can be induced after virus infection. We tested the hypothesis that virus-induced Class I expression is mediated by lymphocytes or cytokines using lymphocyte- and cytokine-deficient mice. We used Theiler's murine encephalomyelitis virus (TMEV), which induces CNS demyelination that maps genetically to the D region of MHC Class I and is associated with high levels of Class I products. TMEV infection of severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) and recombination activation gene-1-deficient mice, which lack B and T lymphocytes, resulted in equivalent H-2D and H-2K expression in brain and spinal cord, according to analysis of the area and intensity of immunoperoxidase staining. Class I antigens were demonstrated as early as 6 hours after infection, and they were more widely distributed than viral RNA, indicating that expression was induced indirectly via a soluble factor. To determine whether cytokines induced the expression, we infected mice lacking receptors for interferon-alpha/beta (IFN-alpha/beta R (-/-)), interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma R(-/-)), and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFRp55(-/-)). TMEV-infected IFN-gamma R(-/-) and TN-FRp55(-/-) mice expressed Class I antigens in the CNS, whereas IFN-alpha/beta R(-/-) mice did not, establishing that IFN-alpha/beta mediated the expression. In contrast to the equivalent expression in SCID mice, we observed greater area and higher intensity of H-2D versus H-2K antigens in infected SCID mice reconstituted with normal spleen cells. Collectively, the data indicate that after TMEV infection, early generalized MHC Class I expression is mediated by IFN-alpha/beta independently of lymphocytes, but the differential regulation of H-2D over H-2K may be controlled by B and/or T lymphocytes.     

A study of manipulator with passive revolute joint

In this article, equations of motion of a manipulator, whose mechanism has a passive revolute joint, are derived in consideration of the characteristics of driving source. Considering the fi nal condition of displacement and velocity of the passive joint, trajectories of velocity for energy saving are calculated by iterative dynamic programming. And the dynamic characteristics of manipulator control based on the trajectory for energy saving are analyzed theoretically and investigated experimentally. This work was presented in part at the 13th International Symposium on Artificial Life and Robotics, Oita, Japan, January 31–February 2, 2008     

Upward vertical two-phase flow local flow regime identification using neural network techniques

Traditionally, the flow regimes in two-phase flow are considered in a global sense. However, a local flow regime is required to understand and model the interfacial structures present in the flow. In this work, a new approach has been used to identify both global and local flow regimes in a two-phase upward flow in a 50.8 mm internal diameter pipe under adiabatic conditions. In the present method, the bubble chord length distributions, which are measured simultaneously with three double-sensor conductivity probes, have been used to feed a self-organized neural network. The global flow regime identification results show a reasonable agreement with the visual observation for all the flow conditions. Nonetheless, only the local flow regimes measured at the center of the pipe agree with the global ones. The local flow regime combinations found are analyzed using the flow map information, cross-correlations between the probe signals, and previous correlations. In this way, it is possible to identify eight different global flow regime configurations.     

Optical properties of colloidal crystalline arrays composed of hollow polystyrene spheres

We have evaluated the optical properties of close‐packed and non close‐packed colloidal crystalline arrays made of hollow polystyrene spheres. Close‐packed colloidal crystalline arrays were fabricated by simple evaporation of dispersions, whereas nonclose‐packed colloidal crystalline arrays were fabricated by exploiting electrostatic interactions between the spheres in aqueous dispersion. Optical properties of the arrays were estimated from angle‐resolved reflection spectra. The Bragg diffraction peak of the colloidal crystalline array made of hollow spheres was of shorter wavelength than in the case of solid spheres, not only for the close‐packed array but also for the nonclose‐packed array. These shifts were caused by a decrease in the effective refractive index n_eff with decreasing particle refractive index. We have found that this relationship could be explained by the simple equation n_eff = n_particle?+ n_solvent (1 ? ?), where ? is the volume fraction of the particles, for both close‐packed and non close‐packed arrays. The current work suggests new possibilities for the creation of advanced colloidal crystals. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 103: 2364–2368, 2007