Supercontinuum dynamically visualizes a dividing single cell

During cell division, various organelles behave dynamically. Visualization of these dynamic behaviors of organelles is a promising one step forward for understanding life at the molecular level. One- or two-photon excited fluorescence microscopy has so far been used for visualizing these cell dynamics. The fluorescent probe introduced into a living cell can visualize the spatial distribution of a target molecule in real time, enabling the tracing of cell dynamics at the molecular level. Introducing a fluorescent probe into a cell, however, may alter the physical and chemical conditions of the cell. Here we show a new method for direct (no need for staining cells) visualization of living cell processes with coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS) spectroscopy. A new light source, supercontinuum generated from a photonic crystal fiber, has facilitated ultrabroadband (>3500 cm(-1)) multiplex CARS spectroscopy and imaging with high molecular specificity. Using this multiplex CARS technique, we have been successful in tracing the whole cell division process, the splitting of a mother cell into two daughter cells, appearance and disappearance of septum, and dynamic distribution changes of organelles consisting of lipid membrane. The supercontinuum has also facilitated simultaneous measurement of the CARS and two-photon excited fluorescence (TPEF) spectra, enabling what we call multiple nonlinear spectral imaging. Three-dimensional image reconstruction of a living cell with high speed is now possible to elucidate more detailed molecular-level dynamics inside a dividing living cell.     

Preparation and applications of novel fluoroalkyl end-capped acrylic acid oligomers/silica nanocomposites-encapsulated fullerenes

Fluoroalkyl end-capped acrylic acid oligomers/fullerenes nanocomposites reacted smoothly with tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) and silica nanoparticles under alkaline conditions to give fluoroalkyl end-capped oligomers/silica composites-encapsulated fullerenes. Interestingly, these isolated fluorinated composites were found to afford nanometer size-controlled colloidal particles with a good dispersibility in a variety of organic solvents including water. More interestingly, these fluorinated silica nanocomposites-encapsulated fullerenes were applied to a new type of surface modification agent, and these nanocomposites were able to disperse well above the poly(methyl methacrylate) films to exhibit not only surface active property imparted by fluorine but also a unique characteristic related to fullerenes in the nanocomposites on the surface, effectively.     

Intermolecular dynamics, interactions, and solvation in ionic liquids

Ionic liquids can simultaneously assume multiple solvent roles, because they are strongly polar and polarizable solvents and binary solutions and frequently contain very hydrophobic components. When the cation and anion functional groups are tuned appropriately, ionic liquids can be used as designer solvents for a broad range of applications. In this Account, we discuss our spectroscopic studies on the intermolecular interactions, dynamics, solvation, transport, and friction in ionic liquids, as compared with information obtained from macroscopic experiments including viscometry and calorimetry.     

Using digital but physical surrogates to mediate awareness, communication and privacy in media spaces

Digital but physical surrogates are tangible representations of remote people (typically members of small intimate teams), positioned within an office and under digital control. Surrogates selectively collect and present awareness information about the people they represent. They also react to people's explicit and implicit physical actions: a person's explicit acts include grasping and moving them, while their implicit acts include how they move towards or away from the surrogate. By responding appropriately to these physical actions of people, surrogates can control the communication capabilities of a media space in a natural way. Surrogates also balance awareness and privacy by limiting and abstracting how activities are portrayed, and by offering different levels of salience to its users. The combination of all these attributes means that surrogates can make it easy for intimate collaborators to move smoothly from awareness of each other to casual interaction while mitigating privacy and distraction concerns.Exploring different surrogate designs and how they work together can be straightforward if a good infrastructure is in place. We use anawareness server based on a distributed model-view-controller architecture, which automatically captures, stores and distributes events. We also package surrogates as physical widgets orphidgets with a well-defined interface; this makes it easy for a programmer to plug a surrogate into the awareness server as a controller (to generate awareness events), or view (to display events that others have produced), or both. Because surrogate design, implementation and use is still a new discipline, we also present several issues and next steps.     

Filtration coefficients and physical properties of fluids for osmotic action

In the present study, the filtration coefficient of an acetyl cellulose tubular‐type osmotic membrane is measured with two methods using reverse osmosis and osmosis processes. In addition, the effects of temperature and concentration on the physical properties of fluids needed for studies on osmosis are examined using sodium chloride, potassium chloride, sucrose, and polyethylene glycol 600 aqueous solutions as test fluids. As a result, a new method for measuring the filtration coefficient for osmosis is proposed. Moreover, the present study reveals that little difference exists between the filtration coefficients for these processes. In addition, relations for estimating mass diffusivities, osmotic coefficients, viscosities, and densities of fluids are presented. © 1999 Scripta Technica, Heat Trans Asian Res, 29(1): 72–90, 2000     

Experimental verification of the effect of a voltage‐detection‐based shunt active filter for harmonic damping throughout a power distribution line

This paper is focused on a voltage‐detection‐based shunt active filter for installation on a power distribution system. A main objective of the active filter is to achieve damping of harmonic propagation coming from series/parallel resonance between capacitors for power factor correction and line inductors in the distribution system. The active filter installed at the end terminal of a distribution feeder is controlled in such a way as to present infinite impedance to the external circuit for the fundamental frequency, and to exhibit low resistance for harmonic frequencies. As a result, the active filter acts as a damping resistor for the harmonic propagation, like a 50‐Ω terminator installed at the end of a signal transmission line. It is verified by experiment that the active filter intended for harmonic termination has the capability of harmonic damping throughout the distribution feeder. © 2000 Scripta Technica, Electr Eng Jpn, 133(2): 1–10, 2000     

Control and performance of a zero‐current‐switched,three‐phase PWM inverter equipped with resonant circuits on the ac side

This paper presents a zero‐current‐switched voltage‐fed inverter equipped with resonant circuits on the ac side. The current flowing through a switching device, that is, IGBT, is the sum of the load current and the resonant current. When the amplitude of the resonant current is larger than that of the load current, the current in the switching device becomes zero at an instant in each resonant cycle. This allows the switching device to be turned on or off at the zero current. The zero‐current switching makes a significant contribution to reduction of switching losses and electromagnetic noises. In this paper, the principle of zero‐current‐switching operation, along with a novel control scheme, is described from a theoretical and practical point of view. Experimental results obtained from a laboratory system of 5 kVA verify the practicability. Moreover, the switching and conduction losses of the proposed soft‐switched inverter are compared with those of a conventional hard‐switched inverter. © 2000 Scripta Technica, Electr Eng Jpn, 131(4): 85–95, 2000     

Homolog of a-factor receptor gene in Saccharomyces exiguus

Homologs of Saccharomyces cerevisiae STE3, a -factor receptor gene were detected from S. exiguus NFRI 3539 by low stringency Southern hybridization. This strain might have at least two types of homolog. One of these homologs, designated as e-STE3 was cloned. Its nucleotide sequence revealed 60% identity to STE3. The putative protein coding region consisted of 453 amino acid residues. The amino acid sequence identity between STE3 and e-STE3 was 62%, and that of the N-terminal 303 amino acid residues considered to be the pheromone binding domain was 79%. The e-STE3 sequence submitted to the DDBJ/EMBL/GenBank data libraries is available under Accession Number AB003086. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effect of Ga2O3 on Sintering and Phase Stability of Sc2O3‐Doped Tetragonal Zirconia Prepared via Aqueous Solution Route

The effects of the presence of Ga₂O₃ on low‐temperature sintering and the phase stability of 4, 5, and 6 mol% Sc₂O₃‐doped tetragonal zirconia ceramics (4ScSZ, 5ScSZ, and 6ScSZ, respectively) were investigated. A series of zirconia sintered bodies with compositions (ZrO₂)_0.99?x(Sc₂O₃)_x(Ga₂O₃)_0.01, x = 0.04, 0.05, and 0.06 was fabricated by sintering at 1000°C to 1500°C for 1 h using fine powders that were prepared via the combination of homogeneous precipitation method and hydrolysis technique using monoclinic zirconia sols synthesized through the forced hydrolysis of an aqueous solution of zirconium oxychloride at 100°C for 168 h. The presence of 1 mol% Ga₂O₃ was effective in reducing sintering temperature necessary to fabricate dense bodies and enabled to obtain dense sintered bodies via sintering at 1100°C for 1 h. The phase stability, that is, low‐temperature degradation behavior of the resultant zirconia ceramics was determined under hydrothermal condition. The zirconia ceramics codoped with 1 mol% Ga₂O₃ and 6 mol% Sc₂O₃ (1Ga6ScZ) fabricated via sintering at 1300°C for 1 h showed high phase stability without the appearance of monoclinic zirconia phase, that is the tetragonal‐to‐monoclinic phase transformation was not observed in the 1Ga6ScZ after treatment under hydrothermal condition at 150°C for 30 h.     

Control schemes and transient characteristics of a high‐speed phase shifter for power flow control in power transmission systems

In recent years, attention has been paid to the concept of FACTS (Flexible AC Transmission Systems), along with significant progress in power electronic technology. A high‐speed phase shifter, which is one of the most promising devices in the FACTS concept, has the potential of power flow control and/or voltage stability in power transmission systems. In this paper, theory and experiment reveal that conventional high‐speed phase shifters may cause power swings in a transient state as a result of coupling between instantaneous active and reactive power control loops. Thus, two new control schemes for a high‐speed phase shifter are proposed to achieve both power flow control and power swing damping. The second proposed control scheme is based on the control scheme of an already proposed series active filter. Simulated and experimental results agree well with analytical results, not only in steady states but also in transient states. © 1999 Scripta Technica, Electr Eng Jpn, 128(2): 74–82, 1999