Reversible Fragmentation and Self‐Assembling of Nematic Liquid Crystal Droplets on Functionalized Pyroelectric Substrates

Investigation on the behavior of nematic liquid crystals on functionalized polar dielectric crystal substrates is accomplished. Very interesting effects can be observed in maneuvering liquid crystal droplets on the substrate surface, driven by electric fields generated by pyroelectric effect. Reversible drops fragmentation and self‐assembling in different configurations can be achieved. The dynamics of the observed phenomena is studied and the repeatability of the process is full assessed.     

FC2Q: exploiting fuzzy control in server consolidation for cloud applications with SLA constraints

Modern cloud data centers rely on server consolidation (the allocation of several virtual machines on the same physical host) to minimize their costs. Choosing the right consolidation level (how many and which virtual machines are assigned to a physical server) is a challenging problem, because contemporary multitier cloud applications must meet service level agreements in face of highly dynamic, nonstationary, and bursty workloads. In this paper, we deal with the problem of achieving the best consolidation level that can be attained without violating application service level agreements. We tackle this problem by devising fuzzy controller for consolidation and QoS (FC2Q), a resource management framework exploiting feedback fuzzy logic control, that is able to dynamically adapt the physical CPU capacity allocated to the tiers of an application in order to precisely match the needs induced by the intensity of its current workload. We implement FC2Q on a real testbed and use this implementation to demonstrate its ability of meeting the aforementioned goals by means of a thorough experimental evaluation, carried out with real‐world cloud applications and workloads. Furthermore, we compare the performance achieved by FC2Q against those attained by existing state‐of‐the‐art alternative solutions, and we show that FC2Q works better than them in all the considered experimental scenarios. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Multiple routes to solution of single-digit multiplication problems.

Researchers have assumed that adults solve simple arithmetic problems by retrieving answers from a network of stored facts. In 2 studies, undergraduates described their solutions of single-digit multiplication problems. They reported direct retrieval on approximately 80% of trials but also reported rules (e.g., anything times 0 is 0), repeated addition (e.g., 2?×?4?=?4?+?4), number series (e.g., 3?×?5?=?5, 10, 15), and derived facts (e.g., 6?×?7?=?[6?×?6]?+?6). Participants were slower to retrieve problems that were most likely to be solved by nonretrieval procedures and faster to retrieve problems that were usually solved by retrieval. These results indicate that direct-retrieval models are incomplete accounts of adults' performance and support a continuing influence of learning and experience on the mental representation of simple multiplication problems. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Software development tool for target systems and EPROM programmers within a Unix environment

A computer running under a Unix operating system is an excellent host on which to develop software for target systems which have the same type of microprocessor as the host computer. Unfortunately, facilities for preparing executable modules able to be sent to an EPROM programmer or to be loaded onto a RAM portion of target memory space are lacking in standard Unix. These facilities can be improved in any version of Unix without the need for expensive software using the set of commands presented in this paper.     

Energy intensity of maritime trades: Evidences from the EX-TREMIS database

This paper describes the energy consumption performance of sea-going ships engaged in the EU27 seaborne trades based on data and parameters resulting from the EX-TREMIS (EXploring non road TRansport EMISsions in Europe) database. EX-TREMIS is a comprehensive database of fleet and transport activity data, specific energy consumption, emission factors and total emissions from rail, maritime and air transport in the European Union. The EX-TREMIS maritime model derives from a mixture of top–down and bottom–up approaches for estimating pollutant emissions from shipping activities. The model did not use direct observations of actual trips, but empirically derived the number of equivalent-ships. Cargo type shipments were linked to seven ship type categories for which a further segmentation by ship size (three length classes), type and age of the main engine and type of fuel was applied.     

Adolescents and sexually transmitted diseases. Epidemiologic, preventive and social aspects]

Investigation in neurophysiology usually involves measurements of large population-average signals or small sample recordings. There is an underlying assumption that the observations express activity of large groups of similarly acting neurons that is the result of a bottom-up scenario in which individual cells, via their synaptic interactions, lead to the large scale phenomena. The connection between the levels must be provided by theory, which must also provide the relevant variables for observation. It is suggested that between the experiment and the full theory there is a creative, mixed role for simulation: both experimental and theoretical. A simulation presents complex dynamics and hence is an empirical board for testing theoretical tools, yet its controlled behaviour can make predictions about the biological system.     

Standardization of Light Scattering Measurement in Conjunction With Immunochemical Analysis

Light scattering methods for the physical analysis of synthetic and biological polymers necessitates the use of scattering standards and absolute light scattering measurements. Standardization has not been employed when light scattering has been used to monitor immunochemical reactions using a kinetic or thermodynamic mode.The concentration of a specific protein present in a complex matrix such as urine, serum or cerebrospinal fluid, is measured by reacting the protein of interest with its specific antibody and then measuring the excess light scattering of the solution produced by the formation of antigen antibody complexes. The lack of established light scattering standards in the area of immunochemical measurements makes instrumental quality control difficult and has hindered direct comparison of data among investigators. Both solid and liquid light scattering standards would be necessary to encompass the wide range of instrumentation currently in use. Several solid standards which have been used in the past include reflecting diffusers such as vitrolite, magnesium carbonate crystals with a ground surface, magnesium oxide coatings on magnesium carbonate crystal, casein paint on vitrolite, and solid opal glass transmitting diffusers such as flashed opal glass and solid opal glass. These standards, while applicable to manual light scattering photometers, are not suitable for recently developed automated instrumentation. Liquid standards in the form of Ludox^®, solutions of polystyrene, suspensions of small diameter latex spheres and even pure organic solvents could be used more easily with the continuous flow and discrete automated analyzers. The introduction of instrumental standards at this level of analysis would result in improved overall quality control and facilitate data and method comparison between laboratories.