Optoelectronic buses for high-performance computing

Modern computer buses are typically organized by the three functions of data transfer, addressing, and arbitration/control. In this paper we present a fiber-based bus design which provides optical solutions for each of these functions. The design includes an all-optical addressing system, based on coincident pulse addressing, which eliminates the latency contribution and bandwidth limitation associated with electronic address decoding. The control system uses time-of-flight relationships between a priority chain and a feedback waveguide to implement fully distributed asynchronous and self-timed bus arbitration     

An Efficient Medical Image Deep Fusion Model Based on Convolutional Neural Networks

Medical image fusion is considered the best method for obtaining one image with rich details for efficient medical diagnosis and therapy. Deep learning provides a high performance for several medical image analysis applications. This paper proposes a deep learning model for the medical image fusion process. This model depends on Convolutional Neural Network (CNN). The basic idea of the proposed model is to extract features from both CT and MR images. Then, an additional process is executed on the extracted features. After that, the fused feature map is reconstructed to obtain the resulting fused image. Finally, the quality of the resulting fused image is enhanced by various enhancement techniques such as Histogram Matching (HM), Histogram Equalization (HE), fuzzy technique, fuzzy type Π, and Contrast Limited Histogram Equalization (CLAHE). The performance of the proposed fusion-based CNN model is measured by various metrics of the fusion and enhancement quality. Different realistic datasets of different modalities and diseases are tested and implemented. Also, real datasets are tested in the simulation analysis.     

Interface Characteristics and Laboratory Constructability Tests of Novel Fiber-Reinforced Polymer/Concrete Piles

Conventional pile materials such as steel, concrete, and timber are prone to deterioration for many reasons. Fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) concrete composites represent an alternative construction material for deep foundations that can eliminate many of the performance disadvantages of traditional piling materials. However, FRP composites present several difficulties related to constructability, and the lack of design tools for their implementation as a foundation element. This paper describes the results of an experimental study on frictional FRP/dense sand interface characteristics and the constructability of FRP–concrete composite piles. An innovative toe driving technique is developed to install the empty FRP shells in the soil and self-consolidating concrete is subsequently cast in them. The experimental program involves interface shear tests on small FRP samples and uplift load tests on large-scale model piles. Two different FRP pile materials with different roughness and a reference steel pile are examined. Static uplift load tests are conducted on different piles installed in soil samples subjected to different confining pressures in the pressure chamber. The results showed that the interface friction for FRP materials compared favorably with conventional steel material. It was shown that toe driving is suitable for installation of FRP piles in dense soils.     

Real-time quality authentication of honey using atmospheric pressure chemical ionisation mass spectrometry (APCI-MS)

The aim of this study was to use gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and APCI-MS techniques to detect adulteration in honey. The key volatile compounds in the headspace of the adulterated honey were marked by GC-MS and their representative fragment ions were utilised in scanning honey samples using the real-time APCI-MS system. The PLS models validated using independent data sets resulted in coefficient of the determination () of 0.97 and 0.96 and root mean square error in prediction (RMSEP) of 2.62 and 2.45 for the GC-MS and APCI-MS data sets respectively. The most efficient volatiles from GC-MS analysis and their corresponding fragment ions m/z from APCI-MS data analysis were then identified and used to develop new PLS models to predict the level of adulteration. The best PLS model gave of 0.95 and RMEP of 2.60% in the independent validation set indicating that the model was very accurate in predicting the level of adulteration.     

Synthesis and biodistribution of 99m Tc-PyDA as a potential marker for tumor hypoxia imaging

The ^99m Tc-pyrimidine-4,5-diamine (^99m Tc-PyDA) complex was prepared. The yield under the optimum conditions (5 mg of PyDA, pH 8, 25 μg of SnCl₂·2H₂O) was 96 ± 3%. The complex is stable in vitro for 24 h. The complex was tested on mice as potential marker for tumor hypoxia imaging. The complex showed high tumor hypoxia uptake with the target/nontarget (T/NT) ratio as high as ～3.     

On business process monitoring using cross-flow coordination

This paper presents an approach for monitoring the execution progress of business processes. The monitoring focuses on the exceptions that could arise during this execution and, hence, could make the processes fail if not handled properly and timely. The approach relies on three flows known as control, communication, and navigation. The control flow connects tasks together with respect to a certain business logic. The communication flow captures the messages exchanged between persons/machines when they perform tasks of processes. Finally, the navigation flow captures the interactions between specialized networks that offer solutions to exceptions. These networks are built upon relations between tasks, between persons, and between machines. The coordination of control, communication, and navigation flows focuses on both the actions that are taken and the messages that are exchanged when handling exceptions. A system demonstrating flow development and coordination is, also, presented in the paper.     

Impedance spectroscopy properties of polypyrrole doped with boric acid

The electrical conductivity and dielectric properties of polypyrrole doped with boric acid have been investigated. The direct current conductivity (dc) of the polymer increases with increasing temperature. The alternating current (ac) conductivity of the polymer obeys the power law, i.e., σ_ac(ω) = Aω^s. The alternating conductivity of polypyrrole doped with boric acid is controlled by the correlated barrier hopping model. The activation energy for alternating current mechanism decreases with increasing frequency which confirms the hopping conduction to the dominant mechanism as compared with the dc activation energy. The density of localized states N(E_F) for polypyrrole doped with boric acid was in the range of 2.5–9.2 × 10²² cm^?3 for various temperatures. The dielectric relaxation mechanism was explained on the basis of complex dielectric modulus. The imaginary modulus plot at different temperatures shows a dielectric mechanism with non-Debye relaxation. Boric acid can be a good candidate for controlling the electrical conductivity of the conducting polymer.     

Evaulation of irritation potential of surfactant mixtures

Irritation potential of sodium laureth sulfate (SLES) alone, and in combination with lauryl glucoside (LG), polysorbate 20 (PS) and cocoamidopropyl betaine (CAPB) was tested in 13 human subjects. Four main and six sub-formulations were prepared and evaluated. Formulations were applied to the forearm as a 24 h close patch study. Irritation was scored by two different methods using an in vivo clinical protocol based on visual scoring and on the stratum corneum capacitance measurement. Irritation was found to be dose dependent. At 2 mg/patch level ten subjects did not show any skin reaction. At 20 mg/patch level eleven subjects showed a broad range of skin irritation. The highest irritation was observed with the formula that contained SLES, LG, and cocamide DEA together. Among the sub-formulations, cocamide DEA showed the highest irritation grade. A statistically significant correlation was observed between visual, clinical and corneometer scores. It was concluded that the irritation potential of surfactants was related to the total surfactant concentration, application mode, and the thermodynamic activity of molecules in the solution as well as the chemical structure of the surfactant molecules.     

The finite-element deformation modeling of superplastic Al-8090

The deformation behaviors of an Al-Li-Cu alloy (Aluminum 8090) during uniaxial and biaxial stress states were modeled using the nonlinear finite element analysis package ABAQUS 5.8. Two different material models were used for the purpose of comparison and to propose a valid and accurate superplastic material deformation behavior. Using a power law strain hardening model, the material was modeled with either constant or variable properties of strain-rate sensitivity and strain-hardening exponent. Results from the numerical models were compared to experimental results by Chen and Huang, who investigated the uniaxial and biaxial states of stress. Experimental data were primarily used to acquire the needed uniaxial material parameters for the model. The strain-rate sensitivity and strain-hardening exponent were dependent on the strain and strain rates. Comparing the two material models for both stress states indicated that the material model with variable properties better represented the true behavior of the material when compared to the experimental results. For more information, contact Noha M. Hassan, the American University in Cairo, 113 Kasr El Aini St., P.O. Box 2511, Cairo 11511, Egypt; +202-797-5336; fax +202-797-7565; e-mail nhassan@vt.edu.