Injection locking techniques for a 1-GHz digital receiver using acoustic-wave devices

The use of surface-transverse-wave (STW) resonator-based oscillators as amplifiers and as carrier recovery elements is discussed. It is demonstrated that these oscillators can amplify phase-shift-keyed signals with very little added noise, while providing a constant output power. Their performance in carrier recovery amplifications is analyzed. Experimental results showing the amplification with more than 80 dB of dynamic range of a 2 Mb/s BPSK signal and the carrier recovery of an 8 Mb/s signal with a 1-GHz STW oscillator are shown.     

Aspects of modeling the frequency response of a two-port waveguide-coupled SAW resonator-filter

Coupling-of-modes-in-time and coupling-of-modes-in-space analyses are applied to the modeling of a two-port two-pole waveguide-coupled SAW resonator filter. Modeling is applied to a lumped equivalent circuit and a distributed circuit. While the accuracy of the coupling estimation dictates the exact mode-splitting and bandwidth, the ensuing computations can give a good representation of the amplitude and phase response, including the effect of degenerate transverse modes.     

Citations do not solve problems.

D. T. Cambell and D. W. Fiske (1959) made the now-obvious statement that measures of the same variable made by different methods should agree (converge) and certainly should agree better than measures of different variables made by those several methods. Almost everyone accepted that statement, yet the multitrait–multimethod matrices published today show little or no improvement over the published examples cited in 1959. The article raised the conceptual problem of how a variable and its measurement should be linked and the methodological problem of clarifying the nature of methods and their effects. Given these unresolved problems, it is perhaps not surprising that the question of the appropriate statistical analysis of these matrices has also no consensual answer. Perhaps methods and traits or contents are so thoroughly intertwined that their interaction cannot be adequately analyzed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Higher-Order and Modal Logic as a Framework for Explanation-Based Generalization

Certain tasks, such as formal program development and theorem proving, fundamentally rely upon the manipulation of higher-order objects such as functions and predicates. Computing tools intended to assist in performing these tasks are at present inadequate in both the amount of knowledge they contain (i.e., the level of support they provide) and in their ability to learn (i.e., their capacity to enhance that support over time). The application of a relevant machine learning technique—explanation-based generalization (EBG)—has thus far been limited to first-order problem representations. We extend EBG to generalize higher-order values, thereby enabling its application to higher-order problem encodings.Logic programming provides a uniform framework in which all aspects of explanation-based generalization and learning may be defined and carried out. First-order Horn logics (e.g., Prolog) are not, however, well suited to higher-order applications. Instead, we employ Prolog, a higher-order logic programming language, as our basic framework for realizing higher-order EBG. In order to capture the distinction between domain theory and training instance upon which EBG relies, we extend Prolog with the necessity operator of modal logic. We develop a meta-interpreter realizing EBG for the extended language, Prolog, and provide examples of higher-order EBG.     

A Universal Method of Scientific Inquiry

A paradigm of scientific discovery is defined within a first-order logical framework. Within this paradigm, the concept of successful scientific inquiry is formalized and investigated. Among other results, it is shown that a simple method of scientific inquiry is universal in the sense that it leads to success on every problem for which success is in principle possible.     

Surface mass transport of alumina

The kinetics of thermal grooving at the intersection of rhombohedral twin boundaries with the \((10\bar 10)\) plane in aluminium oxide were measured from 1773 to 2273 K. Analysis of the data using the model of Mullins showed that surface diffusion was the dominant mechanism for mass transport. The results were compared with other similar published work on alumina, and the following equation for surface diffusion was determined: $$D_s (cm^2 sec^{ - 1} ) = 4.05 x 10^5 exp - (452kJ mol^{ - 1} /RT).$$      

Molecular Mechanisms Underlying the Beneficial Effects of Exercise on Brain Function and Neurological Disorders

As life expectancy has increased, particularly in developed countries, due to medical advances and increased prosperity, age-related neurological diseases and mental health disorders have become more prevalent health issues, reducing the well-being and quality of life of sufferers and their families. In recent decades, due to reduced work-related levels of physical activity, and key research insights, prescribing adequate exercise has become an innovative strategy to prevent or delay the onset of these pathologies and has been demonstrated to have therapeutic benefits when used as a sole or combination treatment. Recent evidence suggests that the beneficial effects of exercise on the brain are related to several underlying mechanisms related to muscle–brain, liver–brain and gut–brain crosstalk. Therefore, this review aims to summarize the most relevant current knowledge of the impact of exercise on mood disorders and neurodegenerative diseases, and to highlight the established and potential underlying mechanisms involved in exercise–brain communication and their benefits for physiology and brain function.     

Quantitative analysis of complex carbo-nitride precipitates in steels

Two new types of extraction replicas for precipitate analysis in steels have been developed. These replicas, based on alumina, allow accurate quantification of the carbon to nitrogen ratios in carbo-nitride precipitates using parallel electron energy loss spectroscopy in the TEM. Experiments on microalloyed steels show the importance of the nitrogen content in promoting precipitation even at low temperatures.     

High-Carbon Steels from Pueblo’s Basic Oxygen Plant

A large percentage of the steel produced at CF&I’s basic oxygen facility is high-carbon grade. The operating practice at the Pueblo, Colo., plant is described including such variables as lance positions, blowing rates, and flux additions. Operating problems such as dust collection and lining life are also discussed in detail.