DigiCipher-all digital, channel compatible, HDTV broadcast system

DigiCipher, an all-digital HDTV (high-definition television) system, with transmission over a single 6 MHz VHF or UHF channel, is described. It provides full HDTV performance with virtually no visible transmission impairments due to noise, multipath, and interference. It offers high picture quality, while the complexity of the decoder is low. Furthermore, low transmitting power can be used, making it ideal for simulcast HDTV transmission using unused or prohibited channels. DigiCipher can also be used for cable and satellite transmission of HDTV. There is no satellite receive dish size penalty (compared to FM-NTSC) in the satellite delivery of DigiCipher HDTV. To achieve the full HDTV performance in a single 6 MHz bandwidth, a highly efficient unique compression algorithm based on DCT (discrete cosine transform) transform coding is used. Through the extensive use of computer simulation, the compression algorithm has been refined and optimized. Computer simulation results show excellent video quality for a variety of HDTV material. For error-free transmission of the digital data, power error correction coding combined with adaptive equalization is used. At a carrier-to-noise ratio of above 19 dB, essentially error-free reception can be achieved     

Building adaptive E-catalog communities based on user interaction patterns

On the basis of observed customer interaction patterns, the WebCatalog/sup Pers/ system creates integrated product catalogs that continuously adapt and can be restructured in a dynamic environment.     

Ultimate strength of dented steel plates under edge shear loads

The aims of this paper are to investigate the ultimate shear strength reduction characteristics of steel plates due to local impacts, and also to develop the ultimate shear strength design formulae of dented steel plates. The ANSYS nonlinear finite element code is used to investigate the effects of shape, size (depth, diameter), and location of the denting on the ultimate strength behavior of simply supported steel plates under edge shear loads. A closed-form expression for predicting the ultimate shear strength of dented steel plates is derived by the regression analysis based on the computed results. The results and insights developed from the present study will be very useful for damage tolerant design of steel plated structures with local denting.     

Numerical Simulation of Swirling Flow in Complex Hydroturbine Draft Tube Using Unsteady Statistical Turbulence Models

A numerical method is developed for carrying out unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (URANS) simulations and detached-eddy simulations (DESs) in complex 3D geometries. The method is applied to simulate incompressible swirling flow in a typical hydroturbine draft tube, which consists of a strongly curved 90° elbow and two piers. The governing equations are solved with a second-order-accurate, finite-volume, dual-time-stepping artificial compressibility approach for a Reynolds number of 1.1 million on a mesh with 1.8 million nodes. The geometrical complexities of the draft tube are handled using domain decomposition with overset (chimera) grids. Numerical simulations show that unsteady statistical turbulence models can capture very complex 3D flow phenomena dominated by geometry-induced, large-scale instabilities and unsteady coherent structures such as the onset of vortex breakdown and the formation of the unsteady rope vortex downstream of the turbine runner. Both URANS and DES appear to yield the general shape and magnitude of mean velocity profiles in reasonable agreement with measurements. Significant discrepancies among the DES and URANS predictions of the turbulence statistics are also observed in the straight downstream diffuser.     

Ultimate strength reliability analysis of corroded steel-box girder bridges

Structural reliability theory is a useful tool for estimating the risks associated with deteriorating structures. The aim of this study is to develop and demonstrate a procedure for the assessment of box girder bridge ultimate strength reliability with the degradation of plate members due to general corrosion taken into account. A probabilistic model for ultimate steel-box girder strength is established on the basis of an analytic formula that considers corrosion-related, time-dependent strength degradation. The study involves the selection of representative structures, formulation of limit state functions, development of resistance models for corroded steel-box girders, development of load models, development of a reliability analysis method, reliability analysis of the selected bridges and development of the time-dependant reliability profiles, including deterioration due to corrosion. The results of this study can be used for the better prediction of the service life of deteriorating steel-box girder bridges and the development of optimal reliability-based maintenance strategies.     

Mutations in the Delta7-sterol reductase gene in patients with the Smith-Lemli-Opitz syndrome

The Smith-Lemli-Opitz syndrome (SLOS) is an inborn disorder of sterol metabolism with characteristic congenital malformations and dysmorphias. All patients suffer from mental retardation. Here we identify the SLOS gene as a Delta7-sterol reductase (DHCR7, EC 1.3.1. 21) required for the de novo biosynthesis of cholesterol. The human and murine genes were characterized and assigned to syntenic regions on chromosomes 11q13 and 7F5 by fluorescense in situ hybridization. Among the mutations found in patients with the SLOS, are missense (P51S, T93M, L99P, L157P, A247V, V326L, R352W, C380S, R404C, and G410S), nonsense (W151X), and splice site (IVS8-1G>C) mutations as well as an out of frame deletion (720-735 del). The missense mutations L99P, V326L, R352W, R404C, and G410S reduced heterologous protein expression by >90%. Our results strongly suggest that defects in the DHCR7 gene cause the SLOS.     

Comparisons of the NACP self-oligomerizations induced by Abeta25-35 in the presence of dicyclohexylcarbodiimide and N-(ethoxycarbonyl)-2-ethoxy-1,2-dihydroquinoline

BACKGROUND: Der p 1, a major mite allergen, elicits IgE antibody responses in 80% of patients suffering from dust mite allergy. Given the potent IgE eliciting properties of Der p 1, there is considerable interest in studying the molecular architecture of the variable (Fv) region of IgE antibodies specific for this allergen. OBJECTIVES: IgE is present in human serum at extremely low concentrations, and as such it is practically impossible to purify sufficient quantities for structural studies. We have therefore sought to sequence and model a representative murine monoclonal (MoAb) anti-Der p 1 antibody, as a surrogate human IgE. METHODS: The cDNA coding for the Fv region of an anti-Der p 1 MoAb (2C7), that mimics the binding of human IgE to Der p 1, was amplified by PCR, cloned and sequenced. The predicted amino acid sequences were then compared with a directory of human germline V-gene segments. Modelling of the Fv region of MoAb 2C7 was carried out using the extensive database of existing immunoglobulin structures in the Brookhaven PDB. RESULTS: The MoAb 2C7 heavy chain showed greater than 70% homology with three members of the VH3 family, DP-35, DP-53 and DP-54. Similarly, the light chain showed greater than 70% homology with 11 VK sequences, including the VKII sequences DPK18, DPK19 and DPK28. A molecular model of the Fv region of MoAb 2C7 was generated and can be accessed from the EMBL databank. CONCLUSIONS: Antibodies similar to MoAb 2C7 could be generated as part of the human repertoire. The availability of 3-dimensional model of MoAb 2C7, as a surrogate human IgE antibody, combined with further data on its epitope specificity, will facilitate studies into IgE antibody responses to Der p 1.     

Spectrum-efficient call control in a dual-mode TDMA cellular system

This study deals with a call control strategy in a dual-mode time-division multiple access (TDMA) cellular system, which provides services both to analog and digital calls. Since analog calls consume the frequency resource several times as much as digital calls, we consider a call control strategy of the threshold type that the number of active analog calls is restricted within a prespecified level. Given the arrival rates and the grade of service (GOS) for both types of calls in the cells, two nonlinear integer optimization problems are considered for a multicell system as well as for a single cell system. One problem is to find the threshold parameters for optimizing the relevant objective measures. The other is to obtain the minimum numbers of required channels in the cells satisfying the GOS of both types of calls. The solution methods for the two kinds of optimization problems are devised based on the properties of the objective function and the blocking probabilities of both call types. The efficiency of the proposed algorithms is verified by extensive computational experiments with realistic input data     

Solution-Domain-Decomposition Method for Heat Transfer Problem Using Parallel Distributed Computing

Solution-domain-decomposition (SDD) method is formulated for solving heat transfer problem and generalized for solving multi-domain problem. A generalized algorithm is suggested for parallel and distributing computation. Chebyshev expansion on the dependent variables is used for pseudospectral approximation of the governing equation in this study. Linear superposition principle is adapted to incorporate the interactions between the subdomains. By effective subdivision of computational domain, significant computational efficiency and computational memory savings are accomplished without losing spectral accuracy of the solution. Owing to independent characteristics of the subdomains. the scheme is well suited for multi-processor machines. Convergence study reveals that spectra! accuracy is still conserved for the multi-domain calculation. The calculation domain is divided up to 8 subdomains and calculation is distributed up to independent CPUs. Significant speed-up ratio is obtained by distributing the subtasks through the network.