A note on octonionic support vector regression

This note presents an analysis of the octonionic form of the division algebraic support vector regressor (SVR) first introduced by Shilton A detailed derivation of the dual form is given, and three conditions under which it is analogous to the quaternionic case are exhibited. It is shown that, in the general case of an octonionic-valued feature map, the usual "kernel trick" breaks down. The cause of this (and its interpretation) is discussed in some detail, along with potential ways of extending kernel methods to take advantage of the distinct features present in the general case. Finally, the octonionic SVR is applied to an example gait analysis problem, and its performance is compared to that of the least squares SVR, the Clifford SVR, and the multidimensional SVR.     

Piezoelectric and acoustic properties of potassium titanyl phosphate (KTP) and its isomorphs

The bulk elastic and piezoelectric properties of potassium titanyl phosphate (KTP) and some of its family members such as RbTiOPO(4 ) (RTP) and RbTiOAsO(4) (RTA) have been determined. The piezoelectric, elastic, and dielectric matrix (P-E-D) of KTP has been completely characterized. Values for the temperature dependence of the expansion coefficients and elastic constants have been obtained, and the effects of variations in dielectric constant on coupling coefficient determined. The major diagonal elements of the piezoelectric and elastic matrices of RTP and RTA were measured as were the thermal expansion coefficient of all the KTP isomorphs, KTP in the temperature range 25-80 degrees C, is shown to have a combination of large coupling coefficients (up to k(t)=38% for hydrothermally grown KTP) and medium temperature dependence coefficients of elastic constant (as low as 40 p.p.m./ degrees C for tau(c33) for hydrothermally grown KTP) that makes it attractive for many piezoelectric applications.     

Spectroscopic studies of copper, silver and gold-metallothioneins

Metallothionein is a ubiquitous protein with a wide range of proposed physiological roles, including the transport, storage and detoxification of essential and nonessential trace metals. The amino acid sequence of isoform 2a of rabbit liver metallothionein, the isoform used in our spectroscopic studies, includes 20 cysteinyl groups out of 62 amino acids. Metallothioneins in general represent an impressive chelating agent for a wide range of metals. Structural studies carried out by a number of research groups (using (1)H and (113)Cd NMR, X-ray crystallography, more recently EXAFS, as well as optical spectroscopy) have established that there are three structural motifs for metal binding to mammalian metallothioneins. These three structures are defined by metal to protein stoichiometric ratios, which we believe specifically determine the coordination geometry adopted by the metal in the metal binding site at that metal to protein molar ratio. Tetrahedral geometry is associated with the thiolate coordination of the metals in the M(7)-MT species, for M = Zn(II), Cd(II), and possibly also Hg(II), trigonal coordination is proposed in the M(11-12)-MT species, for M = Ag(I), Cu(I), and possibly also Hg(II), and digonal coordination is proposed for the metal in the M(17-18)-MT species for M = Hg(II), and Ag(I). The M(7)-MT species has been completely characterized for M = Cd(II) and Zn(II). (113)Cd NMR spectroscopic and x-ray crystallographic data show that mammalian Cd(7)-MT and Zn(7)-MT have a two domain structure, with metal-thiolate clusters of the form M(4)(S(cys))(11) (the alpha domain) and M(3)(S(cys))(9) (the beta domain). A similar two domain structure involving Cu(6)(S(cys))(11) (alpha) and Cu(6)(S(cys))(9) (beta) copper-thiolate clusters has been proposed for the Cu(12)-MT species. Copper-, silver- and gold-containing metallothioneins luminesce in the 500-600 nm region from excited triplet, metal-based states that are populated by absorption into the 260-300 nm region of the metal-thiolate charge transfer states. The luminescence spectrum provides a very sensitive probe of the metal-thiolate cluster structures that form when Ag(I), Au(I), and Cu(I) are added to metallothionein. CD spectroscopy has been used in our laboratory to probe the formation of species that exhibit well-defined three-dimensional structures. Saturation of the optical signals during titrations of MT with Cu(I) or Ag(I) clearly show formation of unique metal-thiolate structures at specific metal:protein ratios. However, we have proposed that these M=7, 12 and 18 structures form within a continuum of stoichiometries. Compounds prepared at these specific molar ratios have been examined by X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy (XAS) and bond lengths have been determined for the metal-thiolate clusters through the EXAFS technique. The stoichiometric ratio data from the optical experiments and the bond lengths from the XAS experiments are used to propose structures for the metal-thiolate binding site with reference to known inorganic metal-thiolate compounds.     

Optics clustered to output unique solutions: a multi-laser facility for combined single molecule and ensemble microscopy

Optics clustered to output unique solutions (OCTOPUS) is a microscopy platform that combines single molecule and ensemble imaging methodologies. A novel aspect of OCTOPUS is its laser excitation system, which consists of a central core of interlocked continuous wave and pulsed laser sources, launched into optical fibres and linked via laser combiners. Fibres are plugged into wall-mounted patch panels that reach microscopy end-stations in adjacent rooms. This allows multiple tailor-made combinations of laser colours and time characteristics to be shared by different end-stations minimising the need for laser duplications. This setup brings significant benefits in terms of cost effectiveness, ease of operation, and user safety. The modular nature of OCTOPUS also facilitates the addition of new techniques as required, allowing the use of existing lasers in new microscopes while retaining the ability to run the established parts of the facility. To date, techniques interlinked are multi-photon/multicolour confocal fluorescence lifetime imaging for several modalities of fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) and time-resolved anisotropy, total internal reflection fluorescence, single molecule imaging of single pair FRET, single molecule fluorescence polarisation, particle tracking, and optical tweezers. Here, we use a well-studied system, the epidermal growth factor receptor network, to illustrate how OCTOPUS can aid in the investigation of complex biological phenomena.     

Visualization of vortex core polarity in NiFe nanodots by tilted Fresnel images

We illustrate an approach which allows determining the out-of-plane component of the vortex core (polarity) in NiFe nanodots using Fresnel imaging in Lorentz electron microscopy. Using tilted Fresnel images, contribution of the polarity is introduced into the Fresnel image. However, this contribution is relatively small and a difference image from two symmetrically tilted Fresnel images must be used to eliminate the strong contribution from the in-plane curling magnetization and non-magnetic contrast. The sense of the polarity appears as a bipolar white-black contrast in the difference image on the tilt axis. A vortex core with a diameter of 16.5±2.5 nm is experimentally measured. Image tilting, displacement and geometrical distortion may disturb the difference image, and hence subtraction of the difference image must be aligned by cross-correlation. The method is also justified by a study of the observed contrast characteristic due to misalignment. The method is confirmed to be superior to similar approach with direct interpretation of information and more information subtracted.     

Effects of sludge retention time and biosurfactant on the treatment of polyaromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) in a petrochemical industry wastewater

A laboratory-scale aerobic activated sludge reactor (AASR) system was employed to investigate the effects of sludge retention time (SRT) on the removal of three polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) with low benzene rings [(acenaphthene (ACT), fluorene (FLN) and phenanthrene (PHE)] and six PAHs with high benzene rings [(benzo[b]fluoranthene (BbF), benzo[k]fluoranthene (BkF), benzo[a]pyrene (BaP), indeno[1,2,3-cd]pyrene, dibenz[a,h]anthracene (DahA), benzo[g,h,i]perylene (BghiP)] in the presence of rhamnolipid (RD), emulsan (EM) and surfactine (SR) biosurfactants. This study showed that biosurfactants enhance the PAH biodegradation by increasing the biomass growth. RD exhibits a better performance than the other biosurfactants in the removal of the chemical oxygen demand (COD) and PAHs. At a RD concentration of 15 mg/L aerobic treatment for 25 days, SRT was enough to remove over 95% of total PAHs, and COD(dis). Under the same conditions 75% of COD originating from the inert organics (COD(inert)) and 96% of COD originating from the inert soluble microbial products (COD(imp)) were removed. At 25 days SRT and 15 mg/L RD concentration, about 88% of PAHs were biodegraded by the AASR system, 4% were accumulated in the system, 3% were released in the effluent, and 5% remained in the waste sludge.     

Ketamine effects on the urogenital system--changes in the urinary bladder and sperm motility

Different doses of ketamine (10 mg/kg, 20 mg/kg, 30 mg/kg, 40 mg/kg, 50 mg/kg, and 60 mg/kg) were injected i.p. (I.P.), respectively, to male ICR mice to determine the optimal dosage for chronic administration. At and above 40 mg/kg I.P. injection, mice had almost no hindlimb movement during swimming test. Subsequently, 30 mg/kg was used as the dose for the study in the toxicity of long-term ketamine administration on urinary bladder and sperm motility. The treatment group were subdivided into two (n = 10 each group); one received daily ketamine treatment i.p. for 3 months and another group for 6 months. Corresponding number of mice in control groups (n = 5 each group) received saline injection instead of ketamine. Terminal dUTP nick and labeling (TUNEL) study and Sirius red staining were carried out on the sectioned slides of the urinary bladders to study the degree of apoptosis in both epithelium and muscular layers of the urinary bladder and the relative thickness of the muscular layers in this organ was also computed. Apoptosis in the bladder epithelium was observed initially in the 3-month ketamine treated mice and the number of apoptotic cells was significantly different (P < 0.05) between the 3-month and 6-month ketamine treated mice and the control. The relative thickness of muscular layers in the bladder wall also decreased significantly (P < 0.05) when the 6-month treated mice and the control were compared. Sirius red staining revealed increase of collagen in the urinary bladder of the treated mice, most evidently 6 months after ketamine treatment. In addition, the sperm motility was studied and there was a statistically significant difference between the control and ketamine treated groups in the percentages of sperms which were motile (P < 0.05). This suggested that the chronic administration of ketamine affected the genital system as well.     

Liquid detection with InGaAsP semiconductor lasers having multiple short external cavities

A liquid detection system consisting of a diode laser with multiple short external cavities (MSXC's) is reported. The MSXC diode laser operates single mode on one of 18 distinct modes that span a range of 72 nm. We selected the modes by setting the length of one of the external cavities using a piezoelectric positioner. One can measure the transmission through cells by modulating the injection current at audio frequencies and using phase-sensitive detection to reject the ambient light and reduce 1/f noise. A method to determine regions of single-mode operation by the rms of the output of the laser is described. The transmission data were processed by multivariate calibration techniques, i.e., partial least squares and principal component regression. Water concentration in acetone was used to demonstrate the performance of the system. A correlation coefficient of R(2) = 0.997 and 0.29% root-mean-square error of prediction are found for water concentration over the range of 2-19%.