Subcube Fault-Tolerance in Hypercubes

We consider the problem of determining the minimum number of faulty processors, K(n, m), and of faulty links, λ(n, m), in an n-dimensional hypercube computer so that every m-dimensional subcube is faulty. Best known lower bounds for K(n, m) and λ(n, m) are proved, several new recursive inequalities and new upper bounds are established, their asymptotic behavior for fixed m and for fixed n − m is analyzed, and their exact values are determined for small n and m. Most of the methods employed show how to construct sets of faults attaining the bounds. An extensive survey of related work is also included, showing connections to resource allocation, k-independent sets, and exhaustive testing.     

Automated system for laser ultrasonic sensing of weld penetration

An on-line sensor is required for real-time control of penetration depth in robotic welding. Currently, no on-line techniques exist for direct penetration depth measurement. The development of a penetration control system will significantly reduce the costs associated with repairing or scrapping defective welds. Laser array generated ultrasound is a noncontact, nondestructive method that can potentially be used to measure weld penetration. This paper will discuss the design and implementation of an automated system that was used to measure the depth of simulated solidified welds. The system consists of a laser array generation source and an electromagnetic acoustic transducer (EMAT) receiver. Measured penetration results for the simulated weld are compared with the exact results. Experimental results will also be shown for array gain measurements in order to demonstrate the power of the array. This automated system is being modified in readiness for use in actual robotic welding.     

Supercritical fluid extraction of polymer additives for use in biocompatibility testing

Biocompatibility is the ability of a material to perform with an appropriate host response in a specific application. This response is poorly understood and so there exist inconsistencies in test results both between different laboratories and within the same laboratory. Standard reference materials and test protocols are essential. Analytical-scale supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) has been investigated as a potential standard test protocol for obtaining additives from polymer matrices. These extracts have been analysed for in-vitro cytotoxicity using standard cell culture techniques whose clinical relevance has already been established.     

Selective astrocytic transgene expression in vitro and in vivo from the GFAP promoter in a HSV RL1 null mutant vector--potential glioblastoma targeting

Due to the lack of any effective therapy, novel approaches are currently being explored for the treatment of primary brain tumours. It has previously been demonstrated that variants of HSV-1 which are deleted in the RL1 gene and fail to produce the virulence factor ICP34.5 are potential candidates for tumour therapy. The RL1 variant 1716 replicates selectively within tumour cells and has the potential to deliver a therapeutic or tumour killing gene directly to the site of tumour growth. As many intracerebral tumours are glial and predominantly astrocytic in origin, we have evaluated the ability of 1716 to deliver a reporter gene specifically to astrocytes in vivo and in vitro using a 2.2 kb fragment which controls expression of the glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), an astrocyte specific protein. Two 1716 variants, 1774 and 1775, were constructed which contain the GFAP-promoter element linked to the E. coli beta-galactosidase gene, inserted into the HSV-1 UL43 and US5 loci, respectively. In primary cultures, human primary tumour cell lines and established tumour cell lines in vitro, 1774 and 1775 gave high levels of expression of beta-galactosidase specifically in astrocytes. In vivo following intracerebral inoculation, both viruses demonstrated high levels of beta-galactosidase expression predominantly in astrocytes. These results indicate that the GFAP promoter element could be used for efficient and selective transgene delivery to human gliomas.     

Infants' expectations about object label reference.

Examined whether infants at the early stages of lexical development were sensitive to the word-category linkage. In Exp 1, 39 16- to 19-mo-old infants were requested to match a target with either a basic-level or a thematic match, with or without a novel label. Stimuli were presented using the preferential looking paradigm. Infants in the Novel Label condition looked significantly longer at the basic-level match than infants in the No Label condition. In Exp 2, Ss were presented with a target, followed by a basic-level match and a superordinate-level match with or without a novel label. Again, infants in the Novel Label condition looked significantly longer at the basic-level match than infants in the No Label condition. Taken together, these findings indicate that infants initially assume that novel words label basic-level categories and thereby do honor the word-category linkage. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Evaluating the probability that the outputs of a computer code with random inputs will meet a set of evaluation criteria

Several methods (Bayesian, testing, confidence) are presented for evaluating the probability ‘p’ that the outputs of a computer code, given random inputs, will meet a set of evaluation criteria. They all lead to the same expression for the confidence β that p exceeds some desired value q, based on the results of running the code independently N times. This expression is independent of the number of evaluation criteria.The ‘coverage’ approach to sampling, which yields a confidence β_co that the extreme values of the outputs from N independent runs of the code bound a region into which a single run of the code will fall with at least a probability γ, is shown to solve a different problem and to be unsuitable as a method for evaluating ‘p’, except in the special case when there is only one evaluation criterion.The method has broad application. It is developed in this paper in the context of evaluating the likelihood that a nuclear plant will meet the applicable safety criteria.     

Crushing strength as a diagnostic test for catalysts

The usefulness of catalyst pellet crushing strength as a diagnostic test for catalysts is discussed with reference to examples using industrial catalysts. In particular, the applicability of the technique for (i) re-use of partially used catalyst charges, (ii) comparison of prospective catalysts and (iii) investigation of the effect on catalysts of probable plant failures is described.     

Double- and triple-step incremental linear interpolation

Incremental linear interpolation determines the set of n+1 equidistant points on an interval [a,b] where all variables involved (n, a, b, and the set of equidistant points) are integers and n>0. Our method of linear interpolation generalizes the findings of a variable-step line-drawing algorithm. The resulting interpolation algorithm has as many loops as the line-drawing algorithm, but fewer restrictions on its input variables. Furthermore, its benefits over the fixed-step interpolation algorithms are similar to those of the variable-step line-drawing algorithm. That is, the double- and triple-step interpolation algorithm can reduce the number of loop iterations of the double-step interpolation algorithm (by 12.5% on average) while keeping the code complexity, initialization costs, and worst-case performance the same. The improvement in speed over the single-step B5 algorithm is even greater