Design of one-dimensional ferromagnet based on polyacetylene chain

As a model for organic ferromagnetism in a one-dimensional system, substituted polyacetylenes are re-considered on the basis of the molecular orbital (MO) and the crystal orbital (CO) methods. The semiempirical MO calculations with configuration interaction for the dimer model show that the exchange interaction on poly[(4-oxyphenyl)acetylene] (1) is negative in spite of Ovchinnikov's prediction, due to the direct interaction between the adjacent pendant spins. On the other hand, it is shown that a polyacetylene chain with phenoxy radicals as pendants on every other active site can become a one-dimensional feromagnet. Moreover, the CO calculations by means of the unrestricted Hartree-Fock method give a theoretical background for the realization of a ground state with macroscopic spin alignment on the improved model chain.     

The effects of R-75,317 on antiglomerular basement membrane glomerulonephritis in rats

Platelet-activating factor (PAF) is a potent inflammatory mediator which is released by various inflammatory cells and produced by certain tissues, including the kidney. PAF has been shown to increase glomerular permeability to protein and to decrease glomerular filtration rate (GFR) by contracting mesangium. On the basis of these observations, it has been suspected that PAF may play a role as mediator of glomerular damage in glomerular nephritis. To examine this possibility, we studied the effects of a specific PAF antagonist, R-75,317, on the development of an experimental model of anti-glomerular basement membrane (anti-GBM) glomerulonephritis. Glomerulonephritis was initiated by injecting rabbit anti-rat GBM serum into rats. Proteinuria gradually developed after serum injection, plateaued at week 2, and remained at the high level of week 2 throughout the experimental period (6 wk). Chronic treatment with R-75,317 (10 mg/kg/day i.p.) tended to delay the onset of proteinuria and significantly accelerated the recovery phase. Creatinine clearance (Ccr) fell to 40% at week 3. R-75,317 treatment completely prevented this decline of Ccr. Histological changes in this model (glomerular hypertrophy, proliferation of mesangial matrix and interstitial fibrosis) were also ameliorated by the R-75,317 treatment. The results suggest that PAF may play a role in the development of glomerulonephritis and that PAF antagonists could be used in the treatment of human renal disease. Based on a paper presented at the Third International Conference on Platelet-Activating Factor and Structurally Related Alkyl Ether Lipids, May 1989.     

Late phase II trial of oral etoposide administered for 21 consecutive days in patients with cervical cancer. ETP 21 Study Group--Cervical Cancer Group

We conducted a multi-site late phase II trial of oral etoposide administered for 21 consecutive days in patients with cervical cancer in cooperation with 32 institutes. Fifty mg/body of oral etoposide was administered daily for 21 consecutive days. Treatment cycles were to be repeated at 4- to 5-week intervals. Eighty patients were enrolled and 70 patients were evaluated. The overall response rate (95% CI), including one complete response patient and 18 partial response patients, was 27.1% (19/70). The most commonly observed toxicity was myelosuppression such as leukopenia, neutropenia, hemoglobin decrease and thrombocytopenia. Other adverse effects were gastrointestinal toxicities such as anorexia, nausea, stomatitis and vomiting, as well as fatigue and alopecia. These adverse effects were well tolerated and controlled with medications. From these results we concluded oral etoposide administered for 21 consecutive days was an effective drug against cervical cancer.     

Experimental analyses for electronic structure of barium zirconate-strontium zirconate proton-conducting solid solution

In proton-conducting oxides, analyses for their electronic structure contribute to the understanding of interactions between defects in them. In this study, electronic band alignment of (1−x)BaZr_0.8Y_0.2O_3−δ(BZY)–xSrZr_0.95Y_0.05O_3−δ(SZY) proton-conducting solid-solution system (BSZY) which has high defect concentration and the deep valence band is experimentally investigated. By using thin-film specimens for optical absorption measurements, absorption edges derived from electron transition from the valence band to the conduction band which was insensitive to the proton incorporation were clearly observed in spite of the high defect concentration. The obtained optical band gap energy increased from 5.61 to 5.89 eV with increasing x, which was consistent with a composition dependence of Zr(Y)O₆ octahedral tilting. Ultraviolet photon-yield spectroscopy (UV-PYS) measurements under vacuum condition revealed that BZY and SZY had ionization energy of 6.98 and 7.31 eV, respectively, and thus the absolute energy levels of the valence band maximum and the conduction band minimum of BSZY were experimentally clarified. We propose that the combination of the optical absorption measurements using thin-film specimens and the UV-PYS measurements under vacuum condition is effective in evaluating fundamental electronic structures of proton-conducting oxides.     

Playful training with augmented reality games: case studies towards reality-oriented system design

In this paper, we propose a reality-oriented augmentation approach to support training activities. The approach aims at adding new value and playful features to traditional training environments with keeping their original look-and-feel. For example, a game monitoring service enables to automatically record game events so that players can review a gaming process and strategy for soul-searching, or replay most impressive scenes to share the experience with others after the game finishes. Even several services are running on background, digital devices and services are seamlessly integrated to the game environment in unobtrusive way so that players can concentrate on training as usual. The concept can be applied to both traditional games (e.g., poker and the game of Go) and non-gaming activities (e.g., calligraphy and drumming). We developed four case studies on the concept: Augmented Reality Go, EmoPoker, Augmented Calligraphy and AR Drum Kit. We discuss design issues in the reality-oriented augmentation process based on user study results.     

Negative emotion recognition using multimodal physiological signals for advanced driver assistance systems

Artificial Life and Robotics - Recent advanced driver assistance systems’ (ADASs) control cars to avoid accidents, but few of them consider driver’s comfort. To realize comfortable...     

Development of smart composite structures with small-diameter fiber Bragg grating sensors for damage detection: Quantitative evaluation of delamination length in CFRP laminates using Lamb wave sensing

The authors and Hitachi Cable, Ltd. have recently developed small-diameter optical fiber and its fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensor for embedment inside a lamina of composite laminates without strength reduction. The outside diameters of the cladding and polyimide coating are 40 and 52 μm, respectively. First, a brief summary is presented for applications of small-diameter FBG sensors to damage monitoring in composite structures. Then, we propose a new damage detection system for quantitative evaluation of delamination length in CFRP laminates using Lamb wave sensing. In this system, a piezo-ceramic actuator generates Lamb waves in a CFRP laminate. After the waves propagate in the laminate, transmitted waves are received by an FBG sensor attached on or embedded in the laminate using a newly developed high-speed optical wavelength interrogation system. This system was applied to detect interlaminar delamination in CFRP cross-ply laminates. When the Lamb waves passed through the delamination, the amplitude decreased and a new wave mode appeared. These phenomena could be well simulated using a finite element analysis. From the changes in the amplitude ratio and the arrival time of the new mode depending on the delamination length, it was found that this system could evaluate the delamination length quantitatively. Furthermore, small-diameter FBG sensors were embedded in a double-lap type coupon specimen, and the debonding progress could be evaluated using the wavelet transform.     

Thermal behaviour and particle size evaluation of primary clusters in a water-based magnetic fluid

This paper reports the experimental research on thermal behaviour and particle size evaluation of primary clusters of ferromagnetic nano-particles in a water-based magnetic fluid. The magnetic fluids are suspensions of ultra fine particles coated with a molecular layer of dispersant in a liquid carrier such as water or kerosene. The particles are coated with single- or double-layer of surfactant to achieve stable dispersion. Numerous experimental studies have indicated the existence of the primary cluster of ferromagnetic nano-particles in a water-based magnetic fluid. The purpose of this research is to evaluate the particle size of the primary clusters by applying the Einstein's equation for Brownian motion assuming that the primary cluster has a spherical-shape. The thermal behaviour of ferromagnetic nano-particles in magnetic fluids is investigated through the micro visualization using the optical darkfield microscope system and particle tracking velocimetry data processing system. Real-time visualization of the Brownian motion of primary clusters in a water-based magnetic fluid was carried out. The experimental results clarified that the primary cluster size depends upon the concentration of the ferromagnetic nano-particle in the magnetic fluid.     

Detection method of emerging leading papers using time transition

To survive worldwide competitions of research and development in the current rapid increase of information, decision-makers and researchers need to be supported to find promising research fields and papers. But finding those fields from an available data in too much heavy flood of information becomes difficult. We aim to develop a methodology supporting to find emerging leading papers with a bibliometric approach. The analyses in this work are about four academic domains using our time transition analysis. In the time transition analysis, after citation networks are constructed, centralities of each paper are calculated and their changes are tracked. Then, the centralities are plotted, and the features of the leading papers are extracted. Based on the features, we proposed ways to detect the leading papers by focusing on in-degree centrality and its transition. This work will contribute to finding the leading paper, and it is useful for decision-makers and researchers to decide the worthy research topic to invest their resources.