Producing bismuth trioxide and its application in fire assaying

Bismuth trioxide (Bi₂O₃) is the prevalent commercial oxide of bismuth. A precursor to the preparation of other compounds of bismuth, including the chemical reagents, bismuth trioxide has specialized uses in optical glass, flame-retardant paper, and, increasingly, in glaze formulations where it substitutes for lead oxides. In the last decade, bismuth trioxide has also become a key ingredient in flux formulations used by mineral analysts in fire assaying. The production of bismuth trioxide generally begins with the minor metal bismuth. This paper describes bismuth trioxide production and the properties and basis for its use in environmentally sound fire assaying.     

Simulation and modeling-new macro model for Zeners

A macro model of the 6.2-V 1N5920B Zener diode which very accurately represents the measured characteristics both in the DC and AC domain is presented. For users who do not have access to optimization software, the model can still be easily customised for other Zener diodes by replacing the emission coefficients (N), saturation currents (Is) and series resistance (Rs) under forward and reverse bias. One would also need to modify the temperature coefficient and measure the capacitance (CIO) at V_d=0 V bias, to have a functional model of the Zener diode. However, there is no easy technique to extract the TT parameter without going through an extraction process. Therefore, without modification to the T1 parameter, one has to be careful when using the customized model for switching applications     

Ocular Stem Cell Research from Basic Science to Clinical Application: A Report from Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center Ocular Stem Cell Symposium

Stem cells hold promise for treating a wide variety of diseases, including degenerative disorders of the eye. The eye is an ideal organ for stem cell therapy because of its relative immunological privilege, surgical accessibility, and its being a self-contained system. The eye also has many potential target diseases amenable to stem cell-based treatment, such as corneal limbal stem cell deficiency, glaucoma, age-related macular degeneration (AMD), and retinitis pigmentosa (RP). Among them, AMD and glaucoma are the two most common diseases, affecting over 200 million people worldwide. Recent results on the clinical trial of retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells from human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) in treating dry AMD and Stargardt’s disease in the US, Japan, England, and China have generated great excitement and hope. This marks the beginning of the ocular stem cell therapy era. The recent Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center Ocular Stem Cell Symposium discussed the potential applications of various stem cell types in stem cell-based therapies, drug discoveries and tissue engineering for treating ocular diseases.     

ThermalOpt: A methodology for automated BIM-based multidisciplinary thermal simulation for use in optimization environments

This paper describes ThermalOpt—a methodology for automated BIM-based multidisciplinary thermal simulation intended for use in multidisciplinary design optimization (MDO) environments. ThermalOpt mitigates several technical barriers to BIM-based multidisciplinary thermal simulation found in practice today while integrating and automating commercially available technologies into a workflow from a parametric BIM model (Digital Project) to an energy simulation engine (EnergyPlus) and a daylighting simulation engine (Radiance) using a middleware based on the open data model Industry Foundation Classes (IFC). Details are discussed including methods for: automatically converting architectural models into multiple consistent thermal analytical models; integration/coordination of analysis inputs and outputs between multiple thermal analyses; reducing simulation times; and generating consistent annual metrics for energy and daylighting performance. We explain how ThermalOpt can improve design process speed, accuracy, and consistency, and can enable designers to explore orders of magnitude larger design spaces using MDO environments to better understand the complex tradeoffs required to achieve zero energy buildings.     

Fast evaluation of CTEQ parton distributions in Monte Carlos

A few changes to the routines that calculate CTEQ parton distribution functions allow modern compilers to optimize the evaluations, while having no quantitative effect on the results. Overall computation time is reduced by a factor of 4-5 in matrix-element calculations, and by 1.3-2.5 in showering Monte Carlo event generators. Similar improvements in performance may be expected in any calculations relying heavily on interpolation or multiple calls to functions.     

1000-Mbits/s Intersatellite Laser Communication System Technology

The technology advances made in the development of an engineering feasibility model of a Nd:YAG laser communication system for space test are discussed and details of evaulations presented. The model includes the baseplate, optomechanical structure, 19-cm (7.5-in) diameter telescope and prototype space qualifiable components. The main technological achievements are in the areas of laser and its operation, the modulator and the digital format, and the integration of the various optical components into one optomechanical structure. These as well as other technology advances will be discussed and the system performance capabilities indicated.     

Genetic determinants of autoimmune disease and coronary vasculitis in the MRL-lpr/lpr mouse model of systemic lupus erythematosus

MRL-lpr/lpr (MRL/lpr) mice are a model of human autoimmune disease. They exhibit a number of characteristics of systemic lupus erythematosus, including anti-DNA Abs, anti-cardiolipin Abs, immune complex-mediated vasculitis, lymphadenopathy, and severe glomerulonephritis. Although the autoimmune disorder is mediated primarily by mutation of the Fas gene (lpr), which interferes with lymphocyte apoptosis, MRL/lpr mice also have other predisposing genetic factors. In an effort to identify these additional factors, we have applied quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping using an intercross between MRL/lpr mice and the nonautoimmune inbred strain BALB/cJ. A complete linkage map spanning the entire genome was constructed for 189 intercross progeny, and genetic loci contributing to features of the autoimmunity were identified using statistical analytic procedures. As expected, the primary genetic determinant of autoimmune disease in this cross was the Fas gene on mouse chromosome 19, exhibiting a lod score of 60. In addition, two novel loci, one on chromosome 2 (lod score, 4.3) and one on chromosome 11 (lod score, 3.1), were found to contribute to levels of anti-DNA Abs. Interestingly, the chromosome 19 and chromosome 11 QTLs, but not the chromosome 2 QTL, also exhibited associations with anti-cardiolipin Abs (lod scores, 38.4 and 2.6). We further examined the effects of these QTLs on the development of coronary vasculitis in the F2 mice. Our results indicate that the QTLs on chromosomes 11 and 19 also control the development of vasculitis, demonstrating common genetic determinants of autoantibody levels and vasculitis.     

Decoupling functionalization from sensor array assembly using detachable cantilevers

Cantilevers are useful as sensor devices with high sensitivity and have shown great promise for dense, multianalyte arrays. One of the difficulties has been the fabrication of multianalyte arrays that are capable of the simultaneous detection of a wide range of chemical and biological species. Functionalization procedures for one class of analytes are often incompatible with other classes and cross contamination is a significant concern when ink-jet deposition processes are used. In this study, we used surface micromachined cantilevers designed and fabricated using Sandia National Laboratories SUMMiT V MEMS process. The cantilevers are fabricated with a base that can be detached from the parent substrate after functionalization and mounted into a daughter array. We have utilized an IBM-fabricated 8-cantilever array chip as our daughter substrate due to its compatibility with a Scentris 8-cantilever readout system. Our initial work demonstrates that this is a feasible procedure for decoupling functionalization from array assembly.     

Internet marketing: a content analysis of the research

The amount of research related to Internet marketing has grown rapidly since the dawn of the Internet Age. A review of the literature base will help identify the topics that have been explored as well as identify topics for further research. This research project collects, synthesizes, and analyses both the research strategies (i.e., methodologies) and content (e.g., topics, focus, categories) of the current literature, and then discusses an agenda for future research efforts. We analyzed 411 articles published over the past eighteen years (1994-present) in thirty top Information Systems (IS) journals and 22 articles in the top 5 Marketing journals. The results indicate an increasing level of activity during the 18-year period, a biased distribution of Internet marketing articles focused on exploratory methodologies, and several research strategies that were either underrepresented or absent from the pool of Internet marketing research. We also identified several subject areas that need further exploration. The compilation of the methodologies used and Internet marketing topics being studied can serve to motivate researchers to strengthen current research and explore new areas of this research.     

A Wirelessly Controlled Smart Bandage with 3D‐Printed Miniaturized Needle Arrays

Chronic wounds are one of the most devastating complications of diabetes and are the leading cause of nontraumatic limb amputation. Despite the progress in identifying factors and promising in vitro results for the treatment of chronic wounds, their clinical translation is limited. Given the range of disruptive processes necessary for wound healing, different pharmacological agents are needed at different stages of tissue regeneration. This requires the development of wearable devices that can deliver agents to critical layers of the wound bed in a minimally invasive fashion. Here, for the first time, a programmable platform is engineered that is capable of actively delivering a variety of drugs with independent temporal profiles through miniaturized needles into deeper layers of the wound bed. The delivery of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) through the miniaturized needle arrays demonstrates that, in addition to the selection of suitable therapeutics, the delivery method and their spatial distribution within the wound bed is equally important. Administration of VEGF to chronic dermal wounds of diabetic mice using the programmable platform shows a significant increase in wound closure, re‐epithelialization, angiogenesis, and hair growth when compared to standard topical delivery of therapeutics.