Dynamics of a fifth-order iterative method

In this paper, we study the dynamical behaviour of a two-point iterative method with order of convergence five to solve nonlinear equations in the complex plane. In fact, we complement the dynamical study started in previous works with a more systematic analysis for polynomials with at most two different roots and different multiplicities. In addition, we characterize some polynomials of degree greater or equal to 4, such that the related methods are not generally convergent. We also analyse the degrees of the rational functions associated with two-point methods when they are applied to polynomials of degree n, showing their dependence on n ² and how this fact considerably complicates the dynamical study.     

Iterative solvers of Ax = b derived from ode's numerical integration methods

Although iterative methods for solving linear systems has been the subject of study for a long time, the acceleration of such methods is still object of interest, research focusing in improvements of already known methods as well as on new, faster ones. In this sense we can cite among several other authors, for example, the works of Martins [8], Hadjidimos [9] and Evans [7]. The purpose of this paper is twofold. First we show that the numerical integration methods for Ordinary Differential Equations, obtained by Taylor expansions, result in a B-extrapolation method [3] for iteratively solving linear algebraic systems. Second, we compare the best rates of convergence of the algorithms developed here, with the best rate of convergence of the Jacobi Over-Relaxation method, (JOR), proving that depending on the choice of the step of integration and the behavior of the spectrum of the matrix A of the original system Ax = b the third order methods derived from the Taylor expansions can be better than the JOR. The procedure used here with the splitting A – I – J can also be easely applied to other splittings, resulting in a comparison of the convergence of the present method with the SOR or iterations methods or any other linear iterative methods of degree one.     

Body weight management effect of burdock (Arctium lappa L.) root is associated with the activation of AMP-activated protein kinase in human HepG2 cells

Burdock (Arcticum lappa L.) root is used in folk medicine and also as a vegetable in Asian countries. In the present study, burdock root treatment significantly reduced body weight in rats. To evaluate the bioactive compounds, we successively extracted the burdock root with ethanol (AL-1), and fractionated it with n-hexane (AL-2), ethyl acetate (AL-3), n-butanol (AL-4), and water (AL-5). Among these fractions, AL-2 contained components with the most effective hypolipidemic potential in human hepatoma HepG2 cells. AL-2 decreased the expression of fatty acid synthase (FASN) and inhibited the activity of acetyl-coenzyme A carboxylase (ACC) by stimulating AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) through the LKB1 pathway. Three active compounds were identified from the AL-2, namely α-linolenic acid, methyl α-linolenate, and methyl oleate. These results suggest that burdock root is expected to be useful for body weight management.     

Reframing Pinterest: Information Literacy for Interior Design Students

This article discusses providing information literacy to interior design students, specifically how over a few years, and several assignment iterations, we moved from a more traditional one-shot library instruction session to a creative Association of College and Research Libraries Framework-inspired assignment using Pinterest as the medium for the students' professionally relevant research project. The outcome of our instruction relied on flexible assignment planning, collaboration as faculty and librarians changed roles, and a focus on information literacy skills needed by professional designers.     

某工程静钻根植桩工法应用

本文介绍了新型预制桩施工方法--静钻根植桩工法。该施工工艺结合了钻孔桩和预制桩的优点，适用于粘性土、粉土、砂土等各种土层和各种抗震设防烈度地区，可承受较高的竖向抗压、抗拔和水平荷载。     

Towards Automated Binding Affinity Prediction Using an Iterative Linear Interaction Energy Approach

Binding affinity prediction of potential drugs to target and off-target proteins is an essential asset in drug development. These predictions require the calculation of binding free energies. In such calculations, it is a major challenge to properly account for both the dynamic nature of the protein and the possible variety of ligand-binding orientations, while keeping computational costs tractable. Recently, an iterative Linear Interaction Energy (LIE) approach was introduced, in which results from multiple simulations of a protein-ligand complex are combined into a single binding free energy using a Boltzmann weighting-based scheme. This method was shown to reach experimental accuracy for flexible proteins while retaining the computational efficiency of the general LIE approach. Here, we show that the iterative LIE approach can be used to predict binding affinities in an automated way. A workflow was designed using preselected protein conformations, automated ligand docking and clustering, and a (semi-)automated molecular dynamics simulation setup. We show that using this workflow, binding affinities of aryloxypropanolamines to the malleable Cytochrome P450 2D6 enzyme can be predicted without a priori knowledge of dominant protein-ligand conformations. In addition, we provide an outlook for an approach to assess the quality of the LIE predictions, based on simulation outcomes only.     

Thermal Fluid-Structure Interaction Analysis for the Upper Structure of LMFRs

This paper describes a thermal fluid-structure interaction analysis code FLUSH that calculates both thermal-hydraulics and thermal structure response at the same time. This code has been developed to evaluate the thermal responses of the upper structures of LMFRs, using two different analysis codes of α-FLOW and FINAS. The heat flux on the boundary surface of the fluid region and the temperature on the boundary of the structure region are exchanged in every iterative cycle as the new boundary conditions, and finally the unified thermal fields are calculated. The different mesh method and the detail thermal radiation model were also developed to apply for the large scale models.

The 2-D model of the basic experiment for the cover gas thermal-hydraulics was calculated to verify this iterative method. The calculated average temperature on the boundary agreed well with the experimental results. The 3-D large scale models of the out-of-pile experiment for MONJU shield plug were also calculated to verify this method. The calculated temperature both in the annulus and the shield plug agreed well with the experiments. These studies showed that this iterative method of FLUSH was very effective for the predictions in the strong coupled thermal fields.     

Synthesis of digital optimal reduced-order compensators for asynchronously sampled systems

The synthesis of finite-horizon digital optimal reduced-order compensators is presented, for asynchronous and aperiodically sampled continuous-time systems. The dimensions of the compensator state are a priori fixed and may be time varying. Asynchronous and aperiodic sampling refers to a deterministic sampling scheme where an arbitrary, but a priori known, number of control variables is updated, and/or an arbitrary, but a priori known, number of outputs is sampled, at arbitrary, but a priori known, time instants. This sampling scheme generalizes most deterministic sampling schemes considered in the control literature. Through the use of an integral criterion the intersample behaviour is explicitly considered in the design. As a result, frequent, synchronous and periodic sampling is no longer necessary, which can be highly relevant in practice. Also the synthesis enables comparison of the optimal performance of reduced-order compensators as a function of their dimensions and the sampling scheme. The synthesis is illustrated with a numerical example.     

Modeling tree root diameter and biomass by ground-penetrating radar

Roots play a key role in ecosystem functioning as they transfer water and nutrients from soil to plants.Traditional methods for measuring roots are labor-intensive and destructive in nature,which limits quantitative and repeatable assessments in longterm research.Ground-penetrating radar(GPR) provides a non-destructive method to measure plant roots.Based on the superiority of GPR with 2 GHz frequency,we developed a new,practical method to estimate root biomass.First,average root matter density was measured ...     

A Genetic‐Based Iterative Quantile Regression Algorithm for Analyzing Fatigue Curves

Accurate prediction of fatigue failure times of materials such as fracture and plastic deformation at various stress ranges has a strong bearing on practical fatigue design of materials. In this study, we propose a novel genetic‐based iterative quantile regression (GA‐IQR) algorithm for analyzing fatigue curves that represent a nonlinear relationship between a given stress amplitude and fatigue life. We reduce the problem to a linear framework and develop the iterative algorithm for determining the model coefficients including unknown fatigue limits. The procedure keeps updating the estimates in a direction to reduce its resulting error. Also, our approach benefits from the population‐based stochastic search of the genetic algorithms so that the algorithm becomes less sensitive to its initialization. Compared with conventional approaches, the proposed GA‐IQR requires fewer assumptions to develop fatigue model, capable of exploring the data structure in a relatively flexible manner. All procedures and calculations are quite straightforward, such that the proposed quantile regression model has a high potential value in a wide range of applications for exploring nonlinear relationships with lifetime data. Computational results for real data sets found in the literature present good evidences to support the argument. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.