Analysis of the water-soluble compounds as a tool for discriminating traditional and industrial high moisture mozzarella made with citric acid

High moisture mozzarella from cow milk is a pasta filata cheese that can be manufactured by different protocols. Fermentation by autochthonous starter is used for the traditional product, whereas direct acidification with citric acid is widely used at industrial level. Both types are stored immersed in a liquid for preserving freshness, but this packaging method is known to favour the changes of the quality characteristics. The present study aimed to assess the evolution of the soluble compounds and to evaluate their use as chemical indices for discriminating the two types of mozzarella. The contents of lactose, organic acids, water-soluble nitrogen and free amino acids differently changed over time. The whole patterns of these soluble compounds allowed discrimination of the two products during the whole storage period. The simple analyses of lactic acid and lactose could be a rapid tool to protect traditional mozzarella from industrial imitations obtained with citric acid.     

电商平台产品共同购买网络的影响因素研究

共同购买网络的推荐系统应用越加广泛，仅基于网络内生结构变量研究其共同购买链接的经济意义已有局限，故加入网络口碑这一外生变量，进行更全面的分析。采用了社会网络方法中指数随机图模型进行建模，主要围绕产品销售量、产品入度、差评率和评论数4个方面因素，探究其对共同购买网络中共同购买链接形成的影响。结果显示，销售量、产品入度和评论数对共同购买链接形成的影响呈正比关系，而差评率则会显著地降低产品共同购买的几率。该指数随机图构建出的共同购买网络为在线电商平台管理网络口碑和推荐系统优化设计提供有益参考。     

High ultraviolet transparent conducting electrodes formed using tantalum oxide/Ag multilayer

We investigated the optical and electrical properties of Ta₂O₅/Ag/Ta₂O₅ films as functions of the thicknesses of the Ta₂O₅ and Ag layers. It was found that with an increase in the thicknesses of the Ta₂O₅ and Ag layers from 10 to 40 nm and from 12 to 24 nm, respectively, the sheet resistance, carrier concentration, electron mobility, and resistivity of the Ta₂O₅/Ag/Ta₂O₅ film varied from 2.02 to 8.95 Ω/sq, 5.74 × 10²¹ to 2.92 × 10²² cm^–3, from 13.21 to 24.07 cm²/V·s, and from 8.89 × 10^-6 to 8.24 × 10^-5 Ω cm, respectively. The average transmittance (T_av) of the multilayer samples ranged from 57.18% to 93.99%, and it depended on the Ta₂O₅ and Ag layer thicknesses. The highest T_av of 93.99% was observed for the film with 35 nm thick Ta₂O₅ and 18 nm thick Ag layers, and the peak Haacke's figure of merit (157.04 × 10^–3 Ω^–1) was obtained for 20 nm thick Ta₂O₅ and 21 nm thick Ag layers. Ta₂O₅ (100 nm) and Ta₂O₅/Ag/Ta₂O₅ (20 nm/21 nm/20 nm) samples had optical bandgaps of 4.70 and 4.45 eV, respectively. Film Wizard simulations were conducted to understand the dependence of the transmittance of the multilayer on the thicknesses of the Ta₂O₅ and Ag layers, and phasor analyses were performed to determine how the transmittance of the Ta₂O₅/Ag/Ta₂O₅ (20 nm/21 nm/20 nm) film depended on the Ta₂O₅ layer's thickness.     

基于电信号特征分析的电机故障诊断技术

介绍了电机故障诊断技术平台的组成,分析了电机常见故障下电信号的特征。利用宜昌和景洪工厂两台电机进行了实际对比测试,宜昌工厂电机定子电流特征频率在49.2Hz时表现出峰值-36.08dB,在50.8Hz时表现峰值则为-37.23dB,表明电机存在转子断条故障;景洪工厂电机在转子特征频率为113.51Hz时,出现峰值-58.47dB,表明电机存在静态偏心故障。经电机现场抽芯检查,验证了电机故障快速诊断平台给出的电机健康状态评估结果,证实了基于电信号特征分析的电机故障诊断技术的准确性。     

Two Methods,One Goal: Structural Differences between Cocrystallization and Crystal Soaking to Discover Ligand Binding Poses

In lead optimization, protein crystallography is an indispensable tool to analyze drug binding. Binding modes and non-covalent interaction inventories are essential to design follow-up synthesis candidates. Two protocols are commonly applied to produce protein–ligand complexes: cocrystallization and soaking. Because of its time and cost effectiveness, soaking is the more popular method. Taking eight ligand hinge binders of protein kinase A, we demonstrate that cocrystallization is superior. Particularly for flexible proteins, such as kinases, and larger ligands cocrystallization captures more reliable the correct binding pose and induced protein adaptations. The geometrical discrepancies between soaking and cocrystallization appear smaller for fragment-sized ligands. For larger flexible ligands that trigger conformational changes of the protein, soaking can be misleading and underestimates the number of possible polar interactions due to inadequate, highly impaired positions of protein amino-acid side and main chain atoms. Thus, if applicable cocrystallization should be the gold standard to study protein–ligand complexes.     

A precise sensor fault detection technique using statistical techniques for wireless body area networks

One of the major challenges in wireless body area networks (WBANs) is sensor fault detection. This paper reports a method for the precise identification of faulty sensors, which should help users identify true medical conditions and reduce the rate of false alarms, thereby improving the quality of services offered by WBANs. The proposed sensor fault detection (SFD) algorithm is based on Pearson correlation coefficients and simple statistical methods. The proposed method identifies strongly correlated parameters using Pearson correlation coefficients, and the proposed SFD algorithm detects faulty sensors. We validated the proposed SFD algorithm using two datasets from the Multiparameter Intelligent Monitoring in Intensive Care database and compared the results to those of existing methods. The time complexity of the proposed algorithm was also compared to that of existing methods. The proposed algorithm achieved high detection rates and low false alarm rates with accuracies of 97.23% and 93.99% for Dataset 1 and Dataset 2, respectively.     

Sensitization of MCF7 Cells with High Notch1 Activity by Cisplatin and Histone Deacetylase Inhibitors Applied Together

Histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDIs) are promising anti-cancer agents that inhibit proliferation of many types of cancer cells including breast carcinoma (BC) cells. In the present study, we investigated the influence of the Notch1 activity level on the pharmacological interaction between cisplatin (CDDP) and two HDIs, valproic acid (VPA) and suberoylanilide hydroxamic acid (SAHA, vorinostat), in luminal-like BC cells. The type of drug–drug interaction between CDDP and HDIs was determined by isobolographic analysis. MCF7 cells were genetically modified to express differential levels of Notch1 activity. The cytotoxic effect of SAHA or VPA was higher on cells with decreased Notch1 activity and lower for cells with increased Notch1 activity than native BC cells. The isobolographic analysis demonstrated that combinations of CDDP with SAHA or VPA at a fixed ratio of 1:1 exerted additive or additive with tendency toward synergism interactions. Therefore, treatment of CDDP with HDIs could be used to optimize a combined therapy based on CDDP against Notch1-altered luminal BC. In conclusion, the combined therapy of HDIs and CDDP may be a promising therapeutic tool in the treatment of luminal-type BC with altered Notch1 activity.     

Design and validation of robotic bionic eye with multiple flexible ropes parallel mechanism inspired by oculomotor law

Producing a stable and agile bionic eye for visual image acquisition in robotics is a challenging task. In this paper, we design a bionic eye with mirror-symmetric distribution and cross-connection of flexible ropes. This mechanism is based on oculomotor law and the physiological structure of the extraocular muscles (EOMs). Specifically, the basic structural parameters are determined by Listing’s law, and the unique connection of the flexible ropes can realize the functions of the recti and oblique muscles. Furthermore, to mimic the trochlea structure, a pulley mechanism is constructed to permit the free movement of the flexible ropes. Through simulation and physical experiments, it is demonstrated that the bionic eye mechanism can move with agility under the structural parameters. The experimental results indicate that the proposed bionic eye mechanism has a superior motion accuracy of 2.798 mm, which is 6.7% of the maximum motion distance, and the repeatable accuracy of the mechanism can up to 0.210 mm.     

Flow state monitoring of gas-water two-phase flow using multi-Gaussian mixture model based on canonical variate analysis

As a highly complex and time-varying process, gas-water two-phase flow is commonly encountered in industries. It has a variety of typical flow states and transition flow states. Accurate identification and monitoring of flow states is not only beneficial to further study of two-phase flow but also helpful for stable operation and economic efficiency of process industry. Combining canonical variate analysis (CVA) and Gaussian mixture model (GMM), a strategy called multi-CVA-GMM is proposed for flow state monitoring in gas-water two-phase flow. CVA is used to extract flow state features from the perspective of correlation between historical data and future data, which solves the cross correlation and temporal correlation of multi-sensor measurement data. GMM calculates the possibility that the current flow state belongs to each typical flow pattern and judges the current flow state by probability indicators. It is conducive to follow-up use of Bayesian inference probability and Mahalanobis distance-based (BID) indicator for flow state monitoring, which avoids repeated traversal of multiple CVA-GMM models and improves the efficiency of the monitoring process. The probability indicators can also be used to analyze transition flow states. The method combining the probabilistic idea of GMM with the deterministic idea of multimodal modeling can accurately identify the current flow state and effectively monitor the evolution of flow state. The multi-CVA-GMM method is validated by using the measured data of the horizontal flow loop of gas-water two-phase flow experimental facility, and its effectiveness is proved.     

From enfant terrible to problem-solver? Tracing the competing discourse to explain blockchain-related technological diffusion

Since the inception of blockchain-related technologies over a decade ago, investors’ uptake of the technologies has grown rapidly. But even with the advancement in standing from conceptual beginnings to real-world experimentation, mainstream adoption of the technologies in either organizational or individual contexts has yet to eventuate. To resolve this paradox, we examine progression of the technologies’ diffusion instead, and in the process, seek to uncover the underlying dynamics of sentiments at play. Diffusion involves multiple actions by different parties, with social discourses via diverse media playing an essential role. In demonstrating the interplay of support to resistance via media framing and the diffusion of innovation theory, findings from our paper contribute to the technology adoption literature. Understanding resistant behavior toward a new technology area could help resolve potential issues that may arise. This would hopefully lead to better technological implementation outcomes in future.