On the Logical Foundations of Compound Predicate Formulae for Legal Knowledge Representation

In order to represent legal knowledge adequately, it is vital to create a formal device that can freely construct an individual concept directly from a predicate expression. For this purpose, a Compound Predicate Formula (CPF) is formulated for use in legal expert systems. In this paper, we willattempt to explain the nature of CPFs by rigorous logical foundation, i.e., establishing their syntax and semantics precisely through the use of appropriate examples. We note the advantages of our system over other such systems and discuss the significance of CPFs with regard to the formalization of legal reasonings using examples from the United Nations Convention for the International Sale of Goods.     

Organic–Inorganic Nanohybrids as Novel Thermoelectric Materials: Hybrids of Polyaniline and Bismuth(III) Telluride Nanoparticles

Thermoelectric materials have received much attention recently from the viewpoint of global environmental issues and effective utilization of energy resources. Especially those effective at relatively low temperature, such as below 100°C, which are usually abandoned without use, have become noteworthy recently. From this point of view, organic thermoelectric materials are most attractive, because they could be prepared at low cost and applied in various locations due to their flexibility. We have investigated the thermoelectric properties of organic conducting polymers such as polyaniline, polypyrrole, and polyphenylenevinylene, and succeeded in increasing the thermoelectric performance by selecting dopants, stretching conducting films, etc. Recently we have focused on new systems of organic–inorganic hybrid thermoelectric materials. Herein we present the preparation of a novel system of hybrids of polyaniline and bismuth(III) telluride nanoparticles, starting from bismuth(III) chloride and tetrachlorotellurium by using polyvinylpyrrolidone as a protecting reagent, as well as their thermoelectric properties. The hybrids prepared by this particular method showed much higher thermoelectric performance than the starting organic conducting polymer.     

标准与专科池:使用专科许可领导市场

解释了为什么以利润为目的的公司参与标准化活动和特别关注标准与专利的关系,并从经济学角度,使用反公共的悲剧和跨越式发展的概念分析了这个问题.反公共的悲剧解释了为什么公司交叉授权他们的专利许可以及为什么标准化组织的专利政策包含交叉授权.跨越式发展解释了为什么拥有为实施标准的必要专利的公司将他们的专利许可授予没有相关专利的公司.通过向外授予专利许可,公司在短期内可以获得经济利益,在长期可以获得影响市场发展的战略机会,并为民营公司提供一些建议.     

Photoluminescence measurements on undoped CdZnTe grown by the high-pressure bridgman method

The low temperature photoluminescence of Cd_0.91Zn_0.09Te grown by the high-pressure Bridgman (HPB) method exhibits a neutral donor bound exciton emission (D⁰X) at 1.65603 eV with its excited state (D⁰X^*) at 1.65798 eV and neutral acceptor bound exciton emissions (A⁰X) at 1.64566 eV and 1.65201 eV. Assuming a direct generation and subsequent relaxation of excitons at the D⁰X^* state, we demonstrate that the temporal evolution of the above emission bands is well reproduced by a set of rate equations. The resultant radiative-lifetime of 1.4 ns for the D⁰X and 1.5 and 2.0 ns for the A⁰Xs are compared with various CdZnTe's (CZTs) grown by the other methods to demonstrate the particular nature of the HPB CZT.     

Structural tuning of wide‐gap chalcopyrite CuGaSe2 thin films and highly efficient solar cells: differences from narrow‐gap Cu(In,Ga)Se2

Simultaneous realization of high values of open circuit voltage (V_oc), fill factor (FF), and energy conversion efficiency (η) in wide‐gap CuGaSe₂ (CGS) solar cells has long been one of the most challenging issues in the realm of chalcopyrite photovoltaics. In this communication, structural tuning of CGS thin films by means of controlling the amount of Se flux used during CGS film growth and improvements in solar cell performance (V_oc > 0.9 V, FF > 0.7, and η > 10%) are demonstrated. Systematic variations in CGS film properties with the Se flux and correlation with device properties are shown. The unique CGS thin‐film growth kinetics, which are different from narrow‐gap Cu(In,Ga)Se₂, are also presented and discussed. This development of double digit efficiency for CGS solar cells opens a new frontier for the broad application of a new class of chalcopyrite‐based devices. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Second-Order Approximation for DOA Estimation of Near-Field Sources

The direction-of-arrival estimation of near-field sources can be formulated as a multidimensional nonlinear optimization problem, where a performance index is minimized with respect to azimuth, range, and source power. For the single source case, under the assumption that the range is relatively larger than the interelement distance, we use the second-order approximation to derive a simpler performance index parameterized by azimuth only. The minimization of the new index is easier than that of the original one parameterized by azimuth, range, and source power. Moreover, the proposed method considers the degradation of signal powers, giving more accurate estimation results. Also for the multiple source case, an efficient computation method is developed by using the second-order approximation.     

Electron microscopic observation of 137Cs-irradiated rat testis: production of basal laminae for germ cells, despite their absence

Whole body gamma-ray irradiation of rats with caesium-137 (137Cs) at embryonic day 20 induced marked reduction of the weight of the testis. Body weight and other tissues, however, seemed to remain normal. By light microscopy, complete loss of germ cells was observed in the testis. Other components, such as Sertoli cells and interstitial cells, seemed to be normal. The testes from day 8 postpartum rats contained very few spermatogonia compared with newborn rats, indicating loss of germ cells between days 0 and 8. In the adult, 137Cs-irradiated testes showed two conspicuous features other than the loss of germ cells: empty vacuolar spaces between Sertoli cells and multilayered seminiferous tubule basal laminae (lamina densa). The junctional structures (ectoplasmic specializations) between Sertoli cells, however, seemed normal. The thickness of each layer of multilayered basal laminae was the same as that of normal rats and electron-lucent layers similar to lamina lucida were interposed between them. Of the empty vacuolar spaces between Sertoli cells, basal laminae bridge the gap. The basal laminae contained laminin, type IV collagen and heparan sulphate proteoglycan evenly distributed among layers, suggesting a normal composition. Rough estimation of the amount of basal laminae deposited in 137Cs-irradiated rats indicates that it is within a range similar to that in normal testis. These features imply that Sertoli cells are, in part, determined perinatally to produce basal laminae for germ-line cells.     

WDM upgrading of an installed submarine optical amplifier system

This paper describes the WDM upgrading of a submarine optical amplifier system installed for single-channel transmission in commercial use. The key technologies used include 10-Gb/s high-speed forward error correction, preemphasis to overcome the optical passband-width constraint, optimized signal pulse format that leads to partial return-to-zero (PRZ) signaling, and dispersion compensation to suppress the degradation caused by fiber nonlinearity and dispersion. It also reports field experimental results on upgraded system performance. The results confirm that simply upgrading the terminal equipment allows the transmission capacity of a submersed line consisting of submarine repeaters and cables to be flexibly increased from 10 Gb/s to 40 Gb/s per fiber pair     

Surface Engineered Carboxymethylchitosan/Poly(amidoamine) Dendrimer Nanoparticles for Intracellular Targeting

Novel highly branched biodegradable macromolecular systems have been developed by grafting carboxymethylchitosan (CMCht) onto low generation poly(amidoamine) (PAMAM) dendrimers. Such structures organize into sphere‐like nanoparticles that are proposed to be used as carriers to deliver bioactive molecules aimed at controlling the behavior of stem cells, namely their proliferation and differentiation. The nanoparticles did not exhibit significant cytotoxicity in the range of concentrations below 1 mg mL^?1, and fluorescent probe labeled nanoparticles were found to be internalized with highly efficiency by both human osteoblast‐like cells and rat bone marrow stromal cells, under fluorescence‐activated cell sorting and fluorescence microscopy analyses. Dexamethasone (Dex) has been incorporated into CMCht/PAMAM dendrimer nanoparticles and release rates were determined by high performance liquid chromatography. Moreover, the biochemical data demonstrates that the Dex‐loaded CMCht/PAMAM dendrimer nanoparticles promote the osteogenic differentiation of rat bone marrow stromal cells, in vitro. The nanoparticles exhibit interesting physicochemical and biological properties and have great potential to be used in fundamental cell biology studies as well as in a variety of biomedical applications, including tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.     

HDR satellite codec with concatenated multilevel codes

The performance of a high data rate (HDR) codec based on a multidimensional modulation code derived from multilevel codes is evaluated for a satellite channel. The codec reliably supports HDR transmission for broadband ISDN over a 72 MHz satellite transponder and is designed to be used with an 8 PSK modem. Results show that significant coding gain with higher spectral efficiency can be achieved compared to uncoded QPSK