DIDS: rapidly prototyping configuration design systems

The domain independent design system (DIDS) provides a set of tools for rapidly constructing new configuration design systems from a library of reusable software elements called mechanisms. A DIDS user begins by creating a model of the problem domain and the task to be automated. This includes describing a library of parts from which new artifacts could be configured, optimization and preference criteria, and functionality constraints. DIDS analyzes this input and automatically builds an operational prototype system by selecting and combining mechanisms. DIDS' ability to automate this process is derived from its model of configuration design, which enables reusable mechanisms to be identified and automatically selected based on a problem's characteristics. The use of DIDS is illustrated by showing how DIDS solved an elevator-configuration problem.     

抗菌天然橡胶纳米复合材料的研制

研究了自制ZnO/Ag纳米复合抗菌剂的亲油改性,利用改性后的ZnO/Ag纳米复合抗菌剂制备天然橡胶(NR)纳米复合材料,探讨了抗菌NR纳米复合材料的抗菌、抗藻性能.结果表明:ZnO/Ag纳米复合抗菌剂经磷酸三丁酯(TBP)改性后,沉降率从接近1减小到0.2以下,亲油性和稳定性大大提高,将TBP改性后的抗菌剂加入到油性介质正己烷中,抗菌剂分散均匀,粒径在100nm以内;在NR纳米复合材料的制备中,随着ZnO/Ag纳米复合抗菌剂添加量的增加,正硫化时间减小;经检测,抗菌NR纳米复合材料对大肠埃希氏菌的抗菌率达98%以上,且抗菌率随抗菌剂添加量的增加而增大,抗藻性能达到最优零级标准.     

OLED初具市场规模

We have all heard the hype about OLED displays and that they are going to offer great picture quality as well as energy efficiency in a very thin profile package. The issue at hand is whether they will be priced competitively in the market and overcome some of their shortcomings in the short term.     

Tumor Infiltration with CD20+CD73+ B Cells Correlates with Better Outcome in Colorectal Cancer

Immunotherapy has become increasingly important in the treatment of colorectal cancer (CRC). Currently, CD73, also known as ecto-5′-nucleotidase (NT5E), has gained considerable interest as a potential therapeutic target. CD73 is one of the key enzymes catalyzing the conversion of extracellular ATP into adenosine, which in turn exerts potent immune suppressive effects. However, the role of CD73 expression on various cell types within the CRC tumor microenvironment remains unresolved. The expression of CD73 on various cell types has been described recently, but the role of CD73 on B-cells in CRC remains unclear. Therefore, we analyzed CD73 on B-cells, especially on tumor-infiltrating B-cells, in paired tumor and adjacent normal tissue samples from 62 eligible CRC patients. The highest expression of CD73 on tumor-infiltrating B-cells was identified on class-switched memory B-cells, followed by naive B-cells, whereas no CD73 expression was observed on plasmablasts. Clinicopathological correlation analysis revealed that higher CD73⁺ B-cells infiltration in the CRC tumors was associated with better overall survival. Moreover, metastasized patients showed a significantly decreased number of tumor-infiltrating CD73⁺ B-cells. Finally, neoadjuvant therapy correlated with reduced CD73⁺ B-cell numbers and CD73 expression on B-cells in the CRC tumors. As promising new immune therapies are being developed, the role of CD73⁺ B-cells and their subsets in the development of colorectal cancer should be further explored to find new therapeutic options.     

Three-dimensional visualization and quantification of microporosity in aluminum castings by X-ray micro-computed tomography

Porosity is a major issue in solidification processing of metallic materials.In this work,wedge die casting experiments were designed to investigate the effect of cooling rate on microporosity in an aluminum alloy A356.Microstructure information including dendrites and porosity were measured and observed by optical microscopy and X-ray micro-computed tomography(XMCT).The effects of cooling rate on secondary dendrite arm spacing(SDAS)and porosity were discussed.The relationship between SDAS and cooling rate was established and validated using a mathematical model.Three-dimensional(3-D)porosity information,including porosity percentage,pore volume,and pore number,was determined by XMCT.With the cooling rate decreasing from a lower to a higher position of the wedge die,the observed pore number decreases,the porosity percentage increases,and the equivalent pore radius increases.Sphericity of the pores was discussed as an empirical criterion to distinguish the types of porosity.For different cooling rates,the larger the equivalent pore radius is,the lower the sphericity of the pores.This research suggests that XMCT is a useful tool to provide critical 3-D porosity information for integrated computational materials engineering(ICME)design and process optimization of solidification products.     

Digital business reporting standards: mapping the battle in France

Government agencies use information technology extensively to collect business data for regulatory purposes. Data communication standards form part of the infrastructure with which businesses must conform to survive. We examine the development of, and emerging competition between, two open business reporting data standards adopted by government bodies in France; Electronic Data Interchange for Administration, Commerce and Transport (EDIFACT) (incumbent) and eXtensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL) (challenger). The research explores whether an incumbent may be displaced in a setting in which the contest is unresolved. Latour's translation map is applied to trace the enrollments and detours in the battle. We find that regulators play an important role as allies in the development of the standards. The antecedent networks in which the standards are located embed strong beliefs that become barriers to collaboration and fuel the battle. One of the key differentiating attitudes is whether speed is more important than legitimacy. The failure of collaboration encourages competition. The newness of XBRL's technology just as regulators need to respond to an economic crisis and its adoption by French regulators not using EDIFACT create an opportunity for the challenger to make significant network gains over the longer term. ANT also highlights the importance of the preservation of key components of EDIFACT in ebXML.     

Memory capacity, selective control, and value-directed remembering in children with and without attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Objective: The ability to select what is important to remember, to attend to this information, and to recall high-value items leads to the efficient use of memory. The present study examined how children with and without attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) performed on an incentive-based selectivity task in which to-be-remembered items were worth different point values. Method: Participants were 6–9 year old children with ADHD (n = 57) and without ADHD (n = 59). Using a selectivity task, participants studied words paired with point values and were asked to maximize their score, which was the overall value of the items they recalled. This task allows for measures of memory capacity and the ability to selectively remember high-value items. Results: Although there were no significant between-groups differences in the number of words recalled (memory capacity), children with ADHD were less selective than children in the control group in terms of the value of the items they recalled (control of memory). All children recalled more high-value items than low-value items and showed some learning with task experience, but children with ADHD Combined type did not efficiently maximize memory performance (as measured by a selectivity index) relative to children with ADHD Inattentive type and healthy controls, who did not differ significantly from one another. Conclusions: Children with ADHD Combined type exhibit impairments in the strategic and efficient encoding and recall of high-value items. The findings have implications for theories of memory dysfunction in childhood ADHD and the key role of metacognition, cognitive control, and value-directed remembering when considering the strategic use of memory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Role of Lattice Matching Techniques in the Characterization of Polymorphic Forms

An inspection of the recent literature reveals that polymorphism is a frequently encountered phenomenon. The recognition of polymorphic forms plays a vital role in the materials sciences because such structures are characterized by different crystal packing and accordingly have different physical properties. In the pharmaceutical industry, recognition of polymorphic forms can be critical for, in certain cases, a polymorphic form of a drug may be an ineffective therapeutic agent due to its unfavorable physical properties. A check of the recent literature has revealed that in some cases new polymorphic forms are not recognized. In other instances, a supposedly new polymeric form is actually the result of an incorrect structure determination. Fortunately, lattice-matching techniques, which have proved invaluable in the identification and characterization of crystal structures, represent a powerful tool for analyzing polymorphic forms. These lattice-matching methods are based on either of two strategies: (a) the reduced cell strategy–the matching of reduced cells of the respective lattices or (b) the matrix strategy–the determination of a matrix or matrices relating the two lattices coupled with an analysis of the matrix elements. Herein, these techniques are applied to three typical cases–(a) the identification of a new polymorphic form, (b) the demonstration that a substance may not be a new polymorphic form due to missed symmetry, and (c) the evaluation of pseudo polymorphism because of a missed lattice. To identify new polymorphic forms and to prevent errors, it is recommended that these lattice matching techniques become an integral part of the editorial review process of crystallography journals.     

A comparative numerical study of hybrid-stabilized argon–water electric arc

The paper presents numerical simulations of the discharge and the near-outlet regions of the hybrid-stabilized argon–water electric arc. Two different numerical methods for solving the set of conservative equations for the continuity, momentum and energy have been applied. The major difference between the results using the two methods occurs in the temperature distribution in arc fringes within the discharge chamber. This fact influences the potential drop, overpressure, reabsorption of radiation and arc efficiency. It is shown that the radial profiles of temperature at the exit nozzle are less influenced by different temperature distribution within the discharge chamber. Comparison with chosen experimental temperature profiles shows very good agreement.