Comments on upper bounds on limit-cycles in digital filters of second order

It is shown, how the existing estimates by Long, Trick and Chang of upper bounds on limit-cycles in second order digital filters caused by quantization effects can be improved. Two new estimates of upper bounds are presented, that improve existing estimates by up to 50% dependent on the pole locations of the filter. The theoretical results are illustrated by numerous examples.     

Probabilistic production cost model for a power system with storage

The conventional production cost model uses the power system load for an average day with no consideration of the uncertainty that is entailed in this load. A probabilistic production cost model is presented that considers the stochastic nature of the load which is used for a power system with energy storage operating on a daily or weekly cycle. The optimum energy storage device, in the sense of minimizing the expected cost of meeting demand, is found. The model minimizes the statistical data and permits a separation of the fuel cost from it, so that a change in fuel cost would not require a great deal of recomputation. Finally, the deterministic approach using an average load is compared with the stochastic one, and it is shown that the deterministic approach leads to significant error in the optimum storage capacity.     

Neuroethik – Geschichte,Definition und Gegenstandsbereich eines neuen Wissenschaftsgebiets

Definition of the problem

Fifteen years after establishing neuroethics as an international academic field, neuroethics has emerged as a vibrant, dynamic area of scientific research.

Arguments

Within a short period of a few years, specific conferences, journals, research funding programs, professional societies, and institutes were founded. Nonetheless, considerable disagreement about its definition and subject matter still remain. We argue for a differentiated conceptualization according to which the deliberate reflection of ethical problems arising from the neurosciences and their predominantly neurotechnological application belongs as much to neuroethics as does the ethical reflection of the neuroscience of morality. This does not comprise neuroscientific or neuropsychological research on morality itself, but includes the contemplation of the significance of such research for ethics and the law. Here, we provide an overview about the most important topics in neuroethics and elucidate the relevance of neuroethics for a vast diversity of societal domains reaching well beyond medicine and health care.

Conclusion

The great potential of neuroethics as a novel branch of academic research lies in finding new answers to pressing questions of high societal relevance by linking neurophilosophy and bioethics topics as well as its broad interdisciplinary network.

     

Performance evaluation of gas chromatography-atmospheric pressure chemical ionization-time-of-flight mass spectrometry for metabolic fingerprinting and profiling

Gas chromatography-atmospheric-pressure chemical ionization-time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC-APCI-TOFMS) was compared to GC × GC-electron ionization (EI)-TOFMS, GC-EI-TOFMS, GC-chemical ionization (CI)-quadrupole mass spectrometry (qMS), and GC-EI-qMS in terms of reproducibility, dynamic range, limit of detection, and quantification using a mix of 43 metabolites and 12 stable isotope-labeled standards. Lower limits of quantification for GC-APCI-TOFMS ranged between 0.06 and 7.81 μM, and relative standard deviations for calibration replicates were between 0.4% and 8.7%. For all compounds and techniques, except in four cases, R(2) values were above 0.99. Regarding limits of quantification, GC-APCI-TOFMS was inferior to only GC × GC-EI-TOFMS, but outperformed all other techniques tested. GC-APCI-TOFMS was further applied to the metabolic fingerprinting of two Escherichia coli strains. Of 45 features that differed significantly (false discovery rate < 0.05) between the strains, 25 metabolites were identified through highly accurate and reproducible (Δm ± SD below 5 mDa over m/z 190-722) mass measurements. Starting from the quasimolecular ion, six additional metabolites were identified that had not been found in a previous study using GC × GC-EI-TOFMS and an EI mass spectral library for identification purposes. Silylation adducts formed in the APCI source assisted the identification of unknown compounds, as their formation is structure-dependent and is not observed for compounds lacking a carboxylic group.     

Excess dietary iodine differentially affects thyroid gene expression in diabetes, thyroiditis-prone versus -resistant BioBreeding (BB) rats

Scope : To identify genes involved in the susceptibility to iodine‐induced autoimmune thyroiditis. Methods and results : Diabetes, thyroiditis‐prone (BBdp) and ‐resistant (BBc) rats were fed either a control or a high‐iodine diet for 9 wk. Excess iodine intake increased the incidence of insulitis and thyroiditis in BBdp rats. BBdp rats fed the high‐iodine diet that did not develop thyroiditis had higher mRNA levels of Fabp4, Cidec, perilipin, Pparγ and Slc36a2 than BBdp rats fed the control diet and BBc rats fed either the control or the high‐iodine diet. BBdp rats fed the high‐iodine diet that did develop thyroiditis had higher mRNA levels of Cidec, Icam1, Ifitm1, and Slpi than BBdp rats fed the control diet and BBc rats fed either the control or the high‐iodine diet. BBdp rats that did develop thyroiditis had lower mRNA levels of Fabp4, perilipin and Slc36a2 but higher mRNA levels of Icam1, Ifitm1 and Slpi than BBdp that did not develop thyroiditis. Excess dietary iodine also increased the protein levels of Fabp4, Cidec and perilipin in BBdp rats. Conclusion : Differential expression of thyroid genes in BBdp versus BBc rats caused by excess dietary iodine may be implicated in autoimmune thyroiditis and insulitis pathogenesis.     

Sodium citrate: A universal reducing agent for reduction / decoration of graphene oxide with au nanoparticles

A facile method is proposed for the synthesis of reduced graphene oxide nanosheets (RGONS) and Au nanoparticle-reduced graphene oxide nanosheet (Au-RGONS) hybrid materials, using graphene oxide (GO) as precursor and sodium citrate as reductant and stabilizer. The resulting RGONS and Au-RGONS hybrid materials were characterized by UV-vis spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and X-ray diffraction. It was found that the RGONS and Au-RGONS hybrid materials formed stable colloidal dispersions through hydrogen bonds between the residual oxygen-containing functionalities on the surface of RGONS and the hydroxyl/carboxyl groups of sodium citrate. The electrochemical responses of RGONS and Au-RGONS hybrid material-modified glassy carbon electrodes (GCE) to three kinds of biomolecules were investigated, and all of them showed a remarkable increase in electrochemical performance relative to a bare GCE.      

Hooked on a feeling: Rumination about positive and negative emotion in inter-episode bipolar disorder.

Rumination has been consistently implicated in the onset and maintenance of depression. Less work has examined rumination in the context of bipolar disorder, especially rumination about positive emotion. The present study examined rumination about negative and positive emotion in interepisode bipolar disorder (BD; n = 39) and healthy controls (CTL; n = 34). Trait rumination about positive and negative emotion, as well as experiential and physiological responses to a rumination induction, was measured. Illness course was also assessed for the BD group. Results indicated that the BD group reported greater trait rumination about positive and negative emotion compared with the CTL group, though no group differences emerged during the rumination induction. For the BD group, trait rumination about positive and negative emotion, as well as increased cardiovascular arousal (i.e., heart rate), was associated with greater lifetime depression frequency; trait rumination about positive emotion was associated with greater lifetime mania frequency. These findings suggest that interepisode BD is associated with greater rumination about positive and negative emotion, which in turn is associated with illness course. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Structures of an integrated document workstation

The user interface for a document workstation is developed. The station is used for the editing and preview of layout, text, graphics, images, tables, logos and patterns. It is part of a document processing system, including main processor, central document store and typesetting facilities. The main part of the article is concerned with the conversion of these requirements to the workstation's architecture.     

Struktur und Eigenschaften gepfropfter Kartoffelsärke. II. Molekularer Aufbau der Propf-co-polymer-Phase

Structure and Properties of Grafted Potatoe Starch. II. Molecular Structure of the Graft-Co-polymer Phase The copolymer molecules of potatoe starch, which had been grafted with poly-(acrylic) acid and poly(methacrylic) acid resp. by the Scott-xanthation-process, consist of a backbone of amylopectin and of side chains of the synthetic polymer. There are always twice as many basic units of the side chain polymer in a molecule as there are anhydroglucose units. In solution the molecules are sphere-like in shape and they show a relatively high coil density. For an explanation it is proposed, that the amylopectin backbone serves as a matrix for the propagation of the grafting polymerisation reaction. The side chains are lined up along the backbone and they remain attached to it, fixed by weak bonds.     

Feasibility study on electrically conductive joining of MoSi2 electrodes for spark plugs

Despite the often outstanding functional as well as (high temperature-) mechanical properties of ceramics, their usage is often limited due to their inherent brittleness. This also compromises the joining with metals, which is often indispensable for engineering applications. In this context, electrically conductive ceramics like MoSi₂ are promising materials for the application as electrodes where high temperatures in harsh environments are present (e.g., in spark plugs for large gas engines). Due to the difficult joining of the respective materials, long-term experiments are thereby often still pending. In this work, adhesive bonding, brazing, tungsten inert gas-, and resistance welding were performed to evaluate their applicability for generating electrically conductive as well as mechanically reliable joints between MoSi₂ and Inconel 600, aiming to utilize MoSi₂ electrodes in spark plugs. Fractographic analyses are performed to understand cracks associated with the high (thermo-) mechanical stresses. Additionally, a finite element model was set up for a deeper understanding of the observed fracture behavior. While adhesive bonding is acceptable for short-term experiments at low temperatures, brazing and resistance welding may qualify for fast and reliable manufacturing of spark plugs with ceramic electrodes.