Physical,mechanical, and in vitro biological analysis of bioactive fibers-based dental composite

This study aimed to synthesize experimental composites reinforced with various concentrations (0, 40, 50, and 60 wt%) of nano-hydroxyapatite grafted glass fibers. The release of monomers, residual monomers, and in-vitro bioactivity of composite groups were evaluated after 1, 7, and 28 days. Compressive strength/ modulus, cell viability (by direct and indirect method), and bacterial adhesion were evaluated. The results showed that bis-GMA was released from all samples. TEGDMA released from 50 and 60 wt% samples on day 1 and UDMA showed negligible release. Compressive strength values of 40 wt% sample were higher than other experimental groups. New apatite layer was formed, whereby both direct and indirect methods demonstrated cell viability. The numbers of active colonies grown were least for 60 wt% sample while their number increased over time. The nano-hydroxyapatite/glass fibers have potential to be used as filler in dental composites and experimental composites were found to be biocompatible and comparable with commercial material.     

Quantum dots: synthesis, bioapplications, and toxicity

ABSTRACT: This review introduces quantum dots (QDs) and explores their properties, synthesis, applications, delivery systems in biology, and their toxicity. QDs are one of the first nanotechnologies to be integrated with the biological sciences and are widely anticipated to eventually find application in a number of commercial consumer and clinical products. They exhibit unique luminescence characteristics and electronic properties such as wide and continuous absorption spectra, narrow emission spectra, and high light stability. The application of QDs, as a new technology for biosystems, has been typically studied on mammalian cells. Due to the small structures of QDs, some physical properties such as optical and electron transport characteristics are quite different from those of the bulk materials.     

High-order Hopfield and Tank optimization networks

We employ high-order weights to extend the class of optimization problems that can be solved with neural networks. Hopfield and Tank networks are used; the associated energy function is a polynomial with order equal to the highest order weights in the network. As an example, we consider the problem of partitioning a graph into triangles. Simulation results indicate that multiple runs on a problem can be considered independent trials; high performance can thereby be achiebed feasibly.     

The flow of conducting fluids through circular pipes having finite conductivity and finite thickness under uniform transverse magnetic fields

The steady flow of viscous, incompressible, electrically conducting fluids through circular pipes in the presence of an applied uniform transverse magnetic field is considered. In this analysis, the finite conductivity and wall thickness of the pipe have been taken into account. An exact solution and its numerical calculation have been presented. Some interesting results have been obtained.     

Torque and efficiency maximization for a wave energy harvesting turbine: an approach to modify multiple design variables

Multiple design variables modifications are carried out for a bidirectional flow turbine used in an oscillating water column wave energy converter to enhance its performance by maximizing the peak torque‐coefficient (TC) and the corresponding efficiency (EFF), which are the objective functions of this problem. The Latin hypercube sampling technique selects samples from a designed space created by the design parameters defined for the blade sweep and aerofoil profile thickness modifications. The objective function values are obtained by solving Reynolds‐averaged Navier–Stokes equations and are approximated by surrogate models. The models help in generating populations of the genetic algorithm, which finally produces a set of optimal designs in a Pareto optimal front. Only two extreme designs among the five clustered points are further evaluated by solving Reynolds‐averaged Navier–Stokes equations to cross‐check the validity of the optimization steps. It is found that the TC is increased by 33% and the EFF is decreased by 5% at one extreme cluster point, while the other extreme point gives that both the TC and the EFF are higher by 1.8% and 2.9%, respectively, as compared with the reference geometry. The optimal geometry has a wider operating range, which is an important parameter to get continuous power from a wave energy converter. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Authentication systems: A literature review and classification

One of the most important parts of any system is authentication. Appreciated as the first and the last line of defense in the great majority of cases, authentication systems can usually prevent the kleptomaniac from unauthorized accessing to users’ data. However, the traditional text-based password is still used in many websites and applications which are vulnerable to different kinds of attacks. Accordingly, there exist some other alternative ways to boost this traditional method. In this study, we classified and identified different types of authentication systems in a variety of platforms. Their usage, similarity, usability, performance and drawbacks were discussed. The goal of this study is to provide useful, classified information with the aim of understanding of how different authentication systems work and of what their usability and drawbacks are to the readers.     

4- and 6-GS/s 4-bit frequency-translating hybrid ADCs in 90-nm CMOS

Two frequency-translating hybrid analog-to-digital converters (FTH-ADCs) are implemented using building blocks that are designed and fabricated in a 90-nm CMOS technology. These blocks include a mixer, a filter, and an ADC that are cascaded to build each analog processing path of the FTH-ADC. The mixer-filter path is designed with sufficient linearity and signal-to-noise-and-distortion ratio (SNDR) to accommodate for the desired resolution of the path ADC. A 4-bit flash ADC structure is used in each path. This path has a signal bandwidth of 0.5 GHz and frequency-translates the input signal into baseband and digitizes it with the sample rate of 2 GHz. Multiple such mixer-filter-ADC paths are then combined together with proper mixing frequencies in order to implement two- and three-channel ADC systems. The two- and three-channel systems have overall input bandwidths of 2 and 3 GHz and effective conversion rates of 4 and 6 GS/s, respectively, while maintaining their single-path resolution across their entire input bandwidths. The implemented architecture provides an extendible solution to improve the speed of ADCs by incorporating them in an FTH-ADC architecture.