Percolative diffusion of dissolved3He atoms in He II through porous media

The diffusion of³He quasiparticles in a dilute³He-⁴He solution confined in the porous medium is discussed on the basis of the percolation theory. It is pointed out that when³He quasiparticles diffuse through the porous medium,³He quasiparticles feel the random potentials originating from the random distribution of channel radii connecting pores. Noticing that the³He concentration can be varied over a wide range in³He-⁴He solutions, we find that the chemical potential of³He quasiparticles is related to the bond percolation densityp of the porous medium. It is emphasized that the mobility edge for³He quasiparticles is different between up and down spins under high magnetic fields. A novel mechanism utilizing this characteristics is proposed to produce the degenerate Fermi system with a very high polarization ratio. A discussion is given of the spatial localization of dissolved³He atoms due to the quantum interference. It is suggested that the localization effect is realized by the NMR experiments at very low temperatures.     

A generation alternation model for user–system cooperative evolutionary computation

User?Csystem cooperative evolution (CEUS) is an evolutionary computation (EC) method to optimize quantitative and qualitative criteria. In previous work of CEUS, the whole population update is performed at every generation, and the user observes very few individuals. This paper proposes a generation alternation model designed for CEUS. The proposed model allows a user to find widely varied individuals in addition to the best individuals by replacing just one individual in a population for each generation, and consequently, contributes user??s idea generation by enhancing divergent thinking.     

Structure of mouse Mx1 protein. Molecular assembly and GTP-dependent conformational change

Mouse Mx1 protein is an interferon-inducible nuclear protein and confers resistance to influenza virus infection. The Mx1 protein purified from interferon-induced A2G mouse liver exhibited GTPase activity as did the Mx1 protein purified from the Mx1 cDNA-expressing Escherichia coli (Nakayama, M., Nagata, K., Kato, A., and Ishihama, A. (1991) J. Biol. Chem. 266, 21404-21408; Nakayama, M., Nagata, K., and Ishihama, A. (1992) Virus Res. 22, 227-234). The Mx1 protein purified from both mouse liver and Mx1-cDNA expressing E. coli was found to exist as assembled polymeric states judged from gel filtration pattern. By making a set of deletion derivatives of the Mx1 cDNA, the main motif for self-assembly of the Mx1 protein was mapped between amino acid residues 51-99. This motif is highly conserved not only in the Mx family of proteins but also in Mx-related proteins. The polymeric form of Mx1 from E. coli was observed as "horseshoe"-like structure by negative staining microscopy. When the Mx1 protein was incubated with GTP, this horseshoe structure was transformed to larger and tightly stacked helical forms. Electron microscopic analysis of immunostained liver of the interferon-induced mice indicated that the Mx1 protein exists in nuclei, forming giant complexes of about half the size of nucleoli.     

Validation of Pb nuclear data by Monte Carlo analyses of sample reactivity experiments at Kyoto University Critical Assembly

Sample reactivity experiments on the uncertainty analyses of Pb nuclear data are carried out by substituting Al plates for Pb ones at the Kyoto University Critical Assembly, as part of basic research on Pb–Bi for the coolant. Numerical simulations of sample reactivity experiments are performed with the Monte Carlo calculation code MCNP6.1 together with four nuclear data libraries JENDL-3.3, JENDL-4.0, ENDF/B-VII.0 and JEFF-3.1, to examine the accuracy of cross-section uncertainties of Pb isotopes by comparing measured and calculated sample reactivities. A library update from JENDL-3.3 to JENDL-4.0 is demonstrated by the fact that the difference between Pb isotopes of the two JENDL libraries is dominant in the comparative study, through the experimental analyses of sample reactivity by the MCNP approach. In addition, JENDL-4.0 reveals a slight difference from ENDF/B-VII.0 in all Pb isotopes and ²⁷Al, and from JEFF-3.1 in ²³⁸U and ²⁷Al. Based on these results, further experiments are needed to investigate the uncertainties of Bi isotopes with the use of the Pb–Bi and Bi plates.     

Impact of PHITS spallation models on the neutronics design of an accelerator-driven system

The impact of different spallation models and parametrisation of nucleon–nucleus interactions in the particle transport code PHITS on the nuclear characteristics of an accelerator-driven system (ADS) is investigated. Cut-off neutrons below 20 MeV calculated using the default option of the current spallation model (i.e. Liège intranuclear cascade (INC) model version 4.6, INCL4.6) are found to be 14% less than those calculated by the old spallation model (i.e. Bertini INC model). This decrease increases the proton beam current that drives the 800-MW thermal power and impacts various ADS parameters, including material damage, nuclear heating of the proton beam window and the inventory of spallation products. To validate these options based on the ADS neutronics design, we conduct benchmark calculations of the total and non-elastic cross sections, thick target neutron yields and activation reaction rate distributions. The results suggest that Pearlstein–Niita systematics, which is a default option of the nucleon–nucleus interaction parametrisation, would be the best option and that Bertini INC is better suited for cut-off neutrons than INCL4.6. However, because of the difficulty in making a definite conclusion on the spallation models, we conclude that relatively large uncertainty in the cut-off neutrons, which is the difference between the two spallation models (i.e. 14%), should be considered.     

Metal-atom Interactions and Clustering in Organic Semiconductor Systems

The interatomic interactions and clustering of metal atoms have been studied by first-principles calculations in graphene, pentacene, and polyacetylene as representative organic systems. It is shown that long-range repulsive Coulomb interaction appears between metal atoms with small electronegativity such as Al due to their ionization on host organic molecules, inducing their scattered distribution in organic systems. On the other hand, metal atoms with large electronegativity such as Au are weakly bonded to organic molecules, easily diffuse in molecular solids, and prefer to combine with each other owing to their short-range strong metallic-bonding interaction, promoting metal cluster generation in organic systems.     

Intranasal Administration of Rotenone Reduces GABAergic Inhibition in the Mouse Insular Cortex Leading to Impairment of LTD and Conditioned Taste Aversion Memory

The pesticide rotenone inhibits mitochondrial complex I and is thought to cause neurological disorders such as Parkinson’s disease and cognitive disorders. However, little is known about the effects of rotenone on conditioned taste aversion memory. In the present study, we investigated whether intranasal administration of rotenone affects conditioned taste aversion memory in mice. We also examined how the intranasal administration of rotenone modulates synaptic transmission and plasticity in layer V pyramidal neurons of the mouse insular cortex that is critical for conditioned taste aversion memory. We found that the intranasal administration of rotenone impaired conditioned taste aversion memory to bitter taste. Regarding its cellular mechanisms, long-term depression (LTD) but not long-term potentiation (LTP) was impaired in rotenone-treated mice. Furthermore, spontaneous inhibitory synaptic currents and tonic GABA currents were decreased in layer V pyramidal neurons of rotenone-treated mice compared to the control mice. The impaired LTD observed in pyramidal neurons of rotenone-treated mice was restored by a GABA_A receptor agonist muscimol. These results suggest that intranasal administration of rotenone decreases GABAergic synaptic transmission in layer V pyramidal neurons of the mouse insular cortex, the result of which leads to impairment of LTD and conditioned taste aversion memory.     

Combined effects of BARLEYmax and cocoa polyphenols on colonic microbiota and bacterial metabolites in vitro

Food Science and Biotechnology - BARLEYmax, a barley variety, and cocoa polyphenols (CPPs) have been reported to affect bacterial metabolites in the colon. This study aimed to evaluate the combined...     

Real-time spacecraft actuator fault diagnosis with state-segmented particle filtering

Fault diagnosis permits computational redundancy, which renders a system sustainable and eventually leads to hardware cost reduction. To achieve the posterior distribution computation needed for fault diagnosis along with motion estimation, we suggest a particle filtering (PF)-based state-segmentation approach. Here, both a continuous state vector and fault states are segmented accordingly to allow flexible reasoning for fault diagnosis and motion estimation. For each segmented space, an attempt is made to construct a corresponding posterior distribution independently, resulting in a reduction of the number of particles. Our experimental simulation demonstrates fault diagnosis among billions of fault states. Our state-segmentation approach reduced 98% of particles compared with the ordinal PF approach.     

Measurement of in-plane deformation by surface inclusion (proposed measuring method and some experimental results)

A new measuring technique is proposed for measuring the in-plane deformation of soft metal surfaces when indented by a hard indenter, using the displacement of inclusions on the soft metal surface as sensors. In in-plane deformation, the soft metal surface flows along the hard indenter surface. In this paper, the principle of this new measuring technique is explained and some example measurements obtained from the experiments with aluminum and copper beryllium alloy plates, are presented.