Within-class multimodal classification

Multimedia Tools and Applications - In many real-world classification problems there exist multiple subclasses (or clusters) within a class; in other words, the underlying data distribution is...     

Environmental factors and kinetics of microbial degradation of poly(3‐hydroxybutyrate‐co‐3‐hydroxyvalerate) in an aqueous medium

Environmental factors such as oxygen, temperature, and microbial species may have significant effects on decomposition of biodegradable polymers. A representative biodegradable, thermoplastic polymer, poly(3‐hydroxybutyrate‐co‐hydroxyvalerate) (PHBV), was decomposed in an aqueous medium under controlled laboratory conditions by soil microbes for the intrinsic degradation kinetics and the effects of the environmental factors on polymer biodegradation. The amount of proteins, including the PHBV depolymerases, that attached to the polymer surfaces was quite constant during the period of significant mass loss of the polymer specimens. The microbial polymer degradation followed a zero‐order rate model, so the residual mass fraction of PHBV films declined linearly with time. The mixed aerobic microbial organisms from fertile soil showed a higher activity of polymer degradation than an aerobic PHBV‐producing bacterium and the mixed anaerobes in the same soil. The mixed anaerobic microorganisms from barren soil decomposed the polymer at a slower rate than the anaerobes from fertile soil, and this was attributed to fewer microbial cells in the barren soil instead of the difference in the microbial species. The temperature effect on PHBV degradation can be described with an Arrhenius equation, and the activation energy is around 16 kcal/mol. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 87: 205–213, 2003     

Collision Detection and Multitone Tree Search for Multiple-Access Protocols on Radio Channels

The carrier sense multiple access with collision detection (CSMA-CD) protocol cannot be applied directly to radio channels because of the difficulty in sensing remote carrier in the presence of local transmission. Only recently, a new protocol called the CSMA with timesplit collision detection (CSMA-TCD) was introduced to overcome this problem on radio channels. This paper presents an extension of the CSMA-TCD protocol, called CSMA-TCD with multitone tree search (CSMA-TCD-MTTS). In CSMA-TCD, a preamble is transmitted before data transmission. For CSMA-TCD-MTTS, the preamble is modulated with one out ofNtones. In case of a collision, a resolution algorithm splits the terminals involved into anN-degree tree according to the tone chosen. This paper presents the throughput and approximate delay analysis of the CSMA-TCD-MTTS protocol.     

下T6-361井多井防碰绕障技术

下T6—361井是一口双靶定向井，由于受地面和地质条件的限制，必须穿越9口井，其中最近的4口井防碰距仅为13—32m，钻井施工难度大，是一口较典型的多井防碰绕障定向井。在优化井身剖面设计、优选钻具组合、采用导向钻井技术的基础上，采取了一系列安全钻进措施，顺利钻至设计井深。对该井的地质工程设计、井眼轨迹控制及防碰绕障技术等进行了介绍，对同类型井的施工有一定的借鉴。     

Motor fluency deficits in the sequencing of actions in schizophrenia.

Many everyday activities depend on the capacity to organize and smoothly execute motor sequences. The authors tested the hypothesis that a sequencing deficit is associated with schizophrenia. They used a new method to distinguish between lower and higher order mechanisms for the impairment. The 1st task involved triggered sequences in which sensory information from 1 movement was the cue for initiation of the following movement. Results showed that the motor sequences were performed as fluently in patients as in controls. The 2nd and 3rd tasks involved sequences in which the entire movement sequence could be preplanned. Patients executed the sequences less fluently than controls but only under the condition where action sequences were required. Furthermore, the patients' fluency deficit increased with sequence complexity. The high discrimination power of Task 3 gave the authors a means to control for a potential psychometric confound involving differential discriminating power and to argue in favor of a specific higher order motor fluency deficit in patients with schizophrenia. It is suggested that basic lower order mechanisms that integrate sensory information with outgoing motor commands are preserved in schizophrenia, whereas higher order integrative mechanisms that are required for the smooth coordination of motor sequences are impaired. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Apparent first-order kinetics in the transformation of 1,1,1-trichloroethane in groundwater following a transient release

A transient release of 1,1,1-trichloroethane (TCA) to an otherwise uncontaminated aquifer at a manufacturing facility presented a useful opportunity to validate the results of previous laboratory and field studies on TCA transformation in groundwater. Abiotic TCA transformation to 1,1-dichloroethylene (DCE) and acetic acid at the site exhibited first-order kinetics with half-life of 2.9 years 15 degrees C. Degradation effects were seen to overwhelm chemical retardation effects on the DCE/TCA concentration ratio in groundwater. The kinetic data was sufficient to date the release to within one week of when it actually occurred. A kinetic approach may be applicable to dating the releases on other contaminated sites where a single transient release is indicated. The transformation of dissolved TCA in groundwater with a half-life of several years can be expected at many contaminated sites.     

微波法制取二氧化锡粉体材料

以SnCl_2·2H_2O为主要原料,用微波加热法制备SnO_2粉体。用粒度仪对制备的粉体进行了表征。结果表明:微波加热可使原料反应生成粉体颗粒,其反应物浓度、pH值、微波加热功率及反应时间都对粒径产生影响。在反应功率为400W;pH值为2～3;反应时间为20min;反应浓度为0.35×10~(-2)mol/L时,可以制备出SnO_2粉体。     

Curvilinear fatigue crack reliability analysis by stochastic boundary element method

In this paper, the stochastic boundary element method, which combines the mixed boundary integral equations method explored in Reference 1 with the first-order reliability method, is developed to study probabilistic fatigue crack growth. Due to the high degree of complexity and non-linearity of the response, direct differentiation coupied with the response-surface method is employed to determine the response gradient. Three random processes, the mode I and mode II. stress intensity factors and the crack direction angle, are included in the expression of the response gradient. The sensitivity of these random processes is determined using a first-order response model. An iteration scheme based on the HL-RF method² is applied to locate the most probable failure point on the limit-state surface. The accuracy and efficiency of the stochastic boundary element method are evaluated by comparing the cumulative distribution function of the fatigue life obtained with Monte Carlo simulation. The reliability index and the corresponding probability of failure are calculated for a fatigue crack growth problem with randomness in the crack geometry, defect geometry, fatigue parameters and external loads. The response sensitivity of each primary random variable at the design point is determined to show its role in the fatigue failure. The variation of each primary random variable at the design point with the change of probability of failure is also presented in numerical examples.     

A new algorithm for improving the accuracy of periodic signalanalysis

Digital periodic signal analysis often requires synchronized sampling with the signal being analyzed. In certain practical situations, however, this condition is difficult to satisfy. As a result, a number of undesirable effect such as the spectral leakage associated with the discrete Fourier transform (DFT), and the truncation errors in digital wattmeters arise and degrade system performance. This paper presents a new approach which attempts to remedy the underlying problem. The basic idea of the proposed method is to modify the actual sampled sequence such that it becomes an ideal sample sequence which is synchronized with the signal subjected to sampling. A simple algorithm for modifying the sampled sequence on-line is derived based on interpolation. The proposed approach requires quite modest additional computational burden which makes it suitable for real-time signal professing. To illustrate the practical applicability of the proposed algorithm, the paper considers two distinct but common cases. First, it shows how the proposed method can be used in the case of DFT analysis of harmonic signals, and secondly, it considers the digital wattmeter application area in electrical power-system measurement. Results show that the proposed algorithm is capable of reducing both the leakage effect in DFT analysis and truncation errors in digital wattmeters