Dependence of attenuation in a vegetation canopy on frequency andplant water content

Theory is presented to provide insight into the observation that attenuation through vegetation is proportional to vegetation water content. In this analysis, the canopy is modeled as a sparse layer of randomly oriented particles (leaves, stalks, etc.) over a flat, homogeneous ground plane (soil) and an expression is obtained for the “optical depth”. The formulas developed by Ulaby and El Rayes are used to relate this expression to the water content of the canopy. In the low frequency extreme (Rayleigh scatterers), the attenuation varies almost linearly with water content and inversely with wavelength. In contrast, in the high frequency limit, the attenuation is independent of both water content and frequency, in between, geometry dependent “resonances” occur even at the low frequency end of the microwave spectrum (e.g. L-band) making the dependence of attenuation on frequency and water content specific to canopy architecture     

Nickel/microcapsules composite electrocoatings; the synthesis of water-containing microcapsules and preparation of the coatings

Composite coatings, the product of electrolytic codeposition of solid particles in a metallic matrix have been developed and utilized in industry as wear resistant coatings. The work described in this paper concerns the development of water-containing metallic coatings prepared by the electrolytic codeposition of water-containing microcapsules from nickel Watts plating baths under pulse reversed current conditions. The water-containing polystyrene microcapsules employed in the codeposition experiments were produced by the complex emulsion/solvent evaporation technique. The influence of the use of two types of stabilizers on the size and the surface chemistry of the microcapsules is discussed. The microcapsules prepared in both cases are rigid spheres with compact walls and a smooth surface. The different stabilizers showed a significant influence on the dispersability of the capsules in the plating solution and their codeposition behaviour. The codeposition experiments carried out with the use of a rotating disc electrode revealed the influence of the plating parameters on the incorporation procedure and on the quality of the composite electrodeposits.     

Melt-extracted oxide ceramic fibres — the fundamentals

A melt-extraction technique, using a sharpened molybdenum wheel, has been used to produce fine oxide ceramic fibres. Wetting of the molybdenum wheel by molten ceramic is a key parameter in the melt-extraction process. Two types of fibre are generally obtained, depending on the extraction speed. At very low wheel speed, fine and uniform fibres of high quality are produced. However, when the wheel speed exceeds a critical velocity, Rayleigh waves are formed on the free surface of the fibres. Moreover, the average fibre thickness first increases with the wheel velocity, then passes through a maximum, decreasing at high velocity. This thickness variation is discussed in terms of both surface tension and viscosity of the liquid ceramics.     

Automatic laser vibration gauge

This paper describes a non-contact laser device for measuring the parameters of vibrations; its technical characteristics and domain of application are discussed. The accuracy achieved in measurements is 0.01 μm for linear displacement, and 0.0001 μm for the amplitude of spectral components of vibrations in the audio-frequency range. Translated from Izmeritel'naya Tekhnika, No. 2, pp. 13–15, February, 1996.     

Pharmacodynamic Comparison of a Nasal Formulation of Verapamil and Intravenous and Oral Dosage Forms

The nasal route has been shown to be effective for the administration of numerous drugs in order to improve drug bioavailability. A nasal gel of verapamil hydrochloride was formulated and evaluated pharmacodynamically in humans, using electrocardiographic results, with comparison to oral and IV routes. Seven volunteers were involved in the study and the pharmacodynamic parameters were evaluated statistically. Experimental nasal gel showed similar pharmacodynamic results with the intravenous route, which is a hint to the reduction in verapamilinduced first-pass metabolism. However, oral route of administration showed a tendency of less efficacy. No reasonable effect of verapamil could be obtained with the placebo group.     

Studies on the in vitro Release of Ibuprofen from Polyethylene Glycol-Polyvinyl Acetate Mixtures Liquid Filled into Hard Gelatin Capsules

The release of ibuprofen from mixtures of polyethylene glycol (PEG) with polyvinyl acetate (PVAc) has been studied in vitro and complemented by x-ray diffraction measurements, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and melting point determinations via hot-stage microscopy (HSM). Results indicate that ibuprofen release can be affected markedly by alteration of the PVAc concentration. The molecular weight of the PEG and the pH of the dissolution medium are also shown to affect the release profile. Visual observation during the drug release process revealed a complex behavior which included emission of liquidlike droplets, formation of a crust around the releasing mass, and/or production of flakes of solid material. This behavior appeared to have a disadvantageous effect on the reproducibility of drug release. Construction of a phase diagram from results of thermal analysis using DSC and HSM indicated the formation of an eutectic mixture with a composition of 35% ibuprofen and 65% PEG 1500 and a melting point of 36°C. The complex behavior of the drug-releasing mass is discussed in terms of this phase diagram. Only the release data for systems containing 4% w/w or more of PVAc could be linearized by plotting against the square root of time whereas data for all of the systems studied could be linearized by first-order plots.     

Testing images independently of translations and linear deformations

This article considers the theory of construction of criteria that are independent of the motions of images, as as well rotations and linear deformations. A method is presented for construction of new types of criteria that have the following distinctive features: they make it easy to construct functionals for measurement of the characteristics of motion of standard images; the theory can easily be extended to the case of grey-scale and colored images; the criteria that are obtained are amenable to parallel computation; the proposed theory makes it easy to construct new criteria. Translated from Izmeritel’naya Tekhnika, No. 8, pp. 13–16, August, 1996.     

Adhesion of streptococci to saliva-coated and uncoated composite-based resins

This study was designed to evaluate the bacterial adhesion to five types of experimental composite-based resins and a commercial composite resin used as a control. Physicochemical surface characteristics of composite resins with and without an artificial saliva coating were measured. The relationship between the numbers of adhering cells (Streptococcus sanguis, S. mutans and S. sobrinus) and surface characteristics was analysed. The values of contact angles and the number of adhering cells were small with saliva coating. S. sanguis ATCC 10557 showed a positive correlation (r=0.835, p<0.05) with the contact angles of uncoated resins, whereas no relationship was observed for saliva-coated resins. With S. mutans Ingbritt the cell numbers adhering to resins correlated strongly (p<0.01) with the values of zeta potential of resins for either saliva coated or uncoated. Electrical repulsion forces had a strong contribution to adherence of cells such as S. mutans and S. sobrinus which show a high absolute zeta potential.     

Computational medicine: bioelectric field problems

Applications of large-scale computer modeling and simulation to a class of bioelectric field problems in a variety of biomedical research areas, from single cells to full human structures, are described. The authors focus on a specific subset of bioelectric field problems that have applications in electrocardiography and electroencephalography. The physics and physiology of bioelectric volume conductors are introduced. A specific computational example and the authors' view on the future direction of computational medicine are presented