Inconsistent suppression of nocturnal pineal melatonin synthesis and serum melatonin levels in rats exposed to pulsed DC magnetic fields

The purpose of these experiments was to determine whether the exposure of rats at night to pulsed DC magnetic fields (MF) would influence the nocturnal production and secretion of melatonin, as indicated by pineal N-acetyltransferase (NAT) activity (the rate limiting enzyme in melatonin production) and pineal and serum melatonin levels. By using a computer-driven exposure system, 15 experiments were conducted. MF exposure onset was always during the night, with the duration of exposure varying from 15 to 120 min. A variety of field strengths, ranging from 50 to 500 microT (0.5 to 5.0 G) were used with the bulk of the studies being conducted using a 100 microT (1.0 G) field. During the interval of DC MF exposure, the field was turned on and off at 1-s intervals with a rise/fall time constant of 5 ms. Because the studies were performed during the night, all procedures were carried out under weak red light (intensity of <5 microW/cm2). At the conclusion of each study, a blood sample and the pineal gland were collected for analysis of serum melatonin titers and pineal NAT and melatonin levels. The outcome of individual studies varied. Of the 23 cases in which pineal NAT activity, pineal melatonin, and serum melatonin levels were measured, the following results were obtained; in 5 cases (21.7%) pineal NAT activity was depressed, in 2 cases (8.7%) studies pineal melatonin levels were lowered, and in 10 cases (43.5%) serum melatonin concentrations were reduced. Never was there a measured rise in any of the end points that were considered in this study. The magnitudes of the reductions were not correlated with field strength (i.e., no dose-response relationships were apparent), and likewise the reductions could not be correlated with the season of the year (experiments conducted at 12-month intervals under identical exposure conditions yielded different results). Duration of exposure also seemed not to be a factor in the degree of melatonin suppression. The inconsistency of the results does not permit the conclusion that pineal melatonin production or release are routinely influenced by pulsed DC MF exposure. In the current series of studies, a suppression of serum melatonin sometimes occurred in the absence of any apparent change in the synthesis of this indoleamine within the pineal gland (no alteration in either pineal NAT activity or pineal melatonin levels). Because melatonin is a direct free radical scavenger, the drop in serum melatonin could theoretically be explained by an increased uptake of melatonin by tissues that were experiencing augmented levels of free radicals as a consequence of MF exposure. This hypothetical possibly requires additional experimental documentation.     

One-stage sternal stenting with homograft bone after cardiac operation in pediatric patients

Low cardiac output after open heart operations in neonates and infants carries a high mortality. Delayed sternal closure may be life-saving but may prolong hospital stay and increase costs. To circumvent these issues, we shaped homograft bone and interposed it between the sternal edges to allow primary wound closure in 2 pediatric patients. Midterm results are satisfactory.     

汽相平衡扩散时LiNbO_3晶体的改性

本文从ＬｉＮｂＯ３晶体的宽固溶特性出发，采用汽相平衡扩散（ＶＴＥ）方法，摸索出具体改善ＬｉＮｂＯ３组成的实验条件，研制出用于扩散的扩散源坩埚，对一系列同成分ＬｉＮｂＯ３晶体进行了改性研究，结果表明，经本方法处理的ＬｉＮｂＯ３晶体的均匀性、一致性得到大大的提高，并获得了均匀富锂的ＬｉＮｂＯ３晶体，能够很好地满足集成光学需要．     

水下成像的现状和发展动向

本文以下水成像在军事，海洋开发工程应用为基础，论述了水下观测和成像中采用微光电视摄像机和激光器件及其系统的技术现状和发展动向。     

A fast two-step block type decision algorithm for intra prediction in H.264/AVC high profile

Intra coding in H.264/AVC can significantly improve the compression efficiency but at the cost of high computational complexity. To reduce the complexity, this paper presents an efficient block type decision algorithm for intra prediction. In H.264/AVC high profile, three kinds of block types are supported. This algorithm determines the optimal block type by two steps. The first step is based on the fact that the block type of intra prediction is highly dependent on the smoothness of macroblock. An edge-based feature is introduced to characterize the smoothness, by comparing it with two thresholds impossible block type is firstly filtered out. Then the second step is based on the correlation of block type chosen for different chroma modes. Experimental results show that the proposed fast algorithm can achieve 72.8% time saving on average for encoding the all intra-frame sequence with average 0.75% bit rate increase and 0.05dB PSNR degradation when comparing with the reference software.     

MicroPort: A general simulation platform for seaport container terminals

Seaport container terminals are essential nodes in sea cargo transportation networks. As such, the operational efficiency of container terminals in handling containers passing through them plays a critical role in a globalized world economy. Many models and algorithms have been developed to address various decision problems in container terminals to help improve operational efficiency. These decision support tools are usually used separately for specific purposes. However, the problems they are trying to tackle are often interrelated. Therefore, in this regard, an evaluation tool which can capture as many operational conditions as possible for different decision problems is necessary. This paper introduces a general simulation platform, named MicroPort, which aims to provide an integrated and flexible modeling system for evaluating the operational capability and efficiency of different designs of seaport container terminals. The software structure of MicroPort comprises three programming layers: (1) the Functions layer; (2) the Applications layer; and (3) the Extensions layer. Different layers are bound by Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). Basic functions built in the Functions layer support the Applications layer in which major operation processes can be modeled by an agent-based method. External modules and decision support tools in the Extensions layer then use APIs to adjust the system to produce suitable simulation models for specific purposes.     

Intelligent control of doubly‐fed induction generator systems using PIDNNs

An intelligent control for a stand‐alone doubly‐fed induction generator (DFIG) system using a proportional‐integral‐derivative neural network (PIDNN) is proposed in this study. This system can be applied as a stand‐alone power supply system or as the emergency power system when the electricity grid fails for all sub‐synchronous, synchronous, and super‐synchronous conditions. The rotor side converter is controlled using field‐oriented control to produce 3‐phase stator voltages with constant magnitude and frequency at different rotor speeds. Moreover, the grid side converter, which is also controlled using field‐oriented control, is primarily implemented to maintain the magnitude of the DC‐link voltage. Furthermore, the intelligent PIDNN controller is proposed for both the rotor and grid side converters to improve the transient and steady‐state responses of the DFIG system for different operating conditions. Both the network structure and online learning algorithm are introduced in detail. Finally, the feasibility of the proposed control scheme is verified through experimentation. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley and Sons Asia Pte Ltd and Chinese Automatic Control Society     

Ionic transport studies of the glassy silver vanadomolybdate system

Ionic conductivity of the Ag₂O-MoO₃-V₂0₅ system has been studied over a wide range of frequency, temperature and composition. A narrower glass forming region has been found in comparison to the corresponding Ag₂O-MoO₃-P₂O₅ and Ag₂O-B₂O₃-P₂O₅ systems. The highest conductivity at room temperature, _rt, = 3.21 × 10^–6–1 cm^–1 (d.c.) with an activation energy,E _act, of 0.466 eV, was observed for the glass former's ratio of unity. Further, it reached a maximum value of 2.2 × 10^–2¨-1 cm^–1 withE _act = 0.153 eV when the oxide-base glass was dissolved with Agl. D.c. conductivity, hopping rate and relaxation time in the present system have been found to be characterized by the same activation energy.     

稀土钕对激光快速成形TC4合金组织及性能的影响

针对氢化脱氢钛合金粉末氧含量较高的问题，研究了添加稀土钕对激光快速成形TC4合金组织及性能的影响。结果发现，添加稀土Nd后，激光快速成形TC4合金的宏观晶粒尺寸变化不大；但随稀土添加量的增加，初始β列状晶逐渐转化为全β等轴晶，晶粒内部的魏氏α组织逐渐转变为网篮α，粗化α条不断增多，呈现团束聚集趋势，晶界α集束体积分数也不断增大；随稀土添加量的增加，激光快速成形TC4合金的室温塑性先大幅度提高，然后急剧降低；稀土添加量为0．1％～0．2％（质量分数，下同）时，氧含量为0．26％的氢化脱氢TC4合金粉末激光快速成形件沉积态的抗拉强度达975MPa，延伸率9．5％，满足锻件标准要求。