Formation of a geometric pattern with a mobile wireless sensor network

Mobile wireless sensor networks (MWSNs) will enable information systems to gather detailed information about the environment on an unprecedented scale. These self‐organizing, distributed networks of sensors, processors, and actuators that are capable of movement have a broad range of potential applications, including military reconnaissance, surveillance, planetary exploration, and geophysical mapping. In many of the foreseen applications, the MWSN will need to form a geometric pattern without assistance from the user. In military reconnaissance, for example, the nodes will be dropped onto the battlefield from a plane and land at random positions. The nodes will be expected to arrange themselves into a predetermined formation in order to perform a specific task. Thus, we present algorithms for forming a line, circle, and regular polygon from a given set of random positions. The algorithms are distributed and use no communication between the nodes to minimize energy consumption. Unlike past studies of geometric problems where algorithms are either tested in simulations where each node has global knowledge of all the other nodes or implemented on a small number of robots, the robustness of our algorithms has been studied with simulations that model the sensor system in detail. The simulations demonstrate that the algorithms are robust against random errors in the sensors and actuators. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Preferential exclusion of sucrose from recombinant interleukin-1 receptor antagonist: role in restricted conformational mobility and compaction of native state

Understanding the mechanism for sucrose-induced protein stabilization is important in many diverse fields, ranging from biochemistry and environmental physiology to pharmaceutical science. Timasheff and Lee [Lee, J. C. & Timasheff, S. N. (1981) J. Biol. Chem. 256, 7193-7201] have established that thermodynamic stabilization of proteins by sucrose is due to preferential exclusion of the sugar from the protein's surface, which increases protein chemical potential. The current study measures the preferential exclusion of 1 M sucrose from a protein drug, recombinant interleukin 1 receptor antagonist (rhIL-1ra). It is proposed that the degree of preferential exclusion and increase in chemical potential are directly proportional to the protein surface area and that, hence, the system will favor the protein state with the smallest surface area. This mechanism explains the observed sucrose-induced restriction of rhIL-1ra conformational fluctuations, which were studied by hydrogen-deuterium exchange and cysteine reactivity measurements. Furthermore, infrared spectroscopy of rhlL-1ra suggested that a more ordered native conformation is induced by sucrose. Electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy demonstrated that in the presence of sucrose, spin-labeled cysteine 116 becomes more buried in the protein's interior and that the hydrodynamic diameter of the protein is reduced. The preferential exclusion of sucrose from the protein and the resulting shift in the equilibrium between protein states toward the most compact conformation account for sucrose-induced effects on rhIL-1ra.     

Power-dependent dispersion in far-off-resonant raman scattering

We investigate the saturation effects of power broadening, Stark shifting, and population transfer on Stokes conversion in stimulated Raman scattering. We do not make the usual rotating wave approximation because the detuning from the next electronic state is assumed to be in the optical regime. Retaining the counter-rotating terms allows an exact determination of the pump and Stokes indexes of refraction. Steady-state solutions for the Stokes intensity and phase are obtained and the effects of making the rotating wave approximation (RWA) are discussed. Finally, we examine the behavior of these solutions for Stokes conversion in hydrogen gas when geometric propagation is appropriate.     

Integrating trust into the CyberCraft Initiative via the Trust Vectors model [Application Notes]

This research supports the hypothesis that the Trust Vector model can be modified to fit the CyberCraft Initiative, and that there are limits to the utility of historical data. This research proposed some modifications and expansions to the Trust Model Vector, and identified areas for future research.     

Generativity and social motives in young adults.

Different forms of generativity in the writings of E. H. Erikson (1950/1963) and J. Kotre (1984) were related to agentic and communal motives in a sample of young adults (M?=?28 yrs old). For women, the power motive related to parenting, whereas the achievement motive was associated with forms of generative expression outside of the household. The opposite pattern of achievement and power motive relationships was found for men, although in a weaker form. The affiliation–intimacy motive, on the other hand, related both to women's parenting and societal concerns. Differences in expectations and opportunities for young men and women may account for these gender differences. The results for women support D. P. McAdams's (1988) suggestions that agency and communion are important for understanding generativity. In addition, the results provide evidence that people begin to grapple with generative issues as young adults. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Two-dimensional singular vector elements for finite-elementanalysis

The finite-element method (FEM) exhibits a reduced convergence rate when used for the analysis of geometries containing sharp edges where the electromagnetic field is singular. The convergence of the method can be-improved by introducing singular elements that model analytically predicted singular behavior. A number of authors have developed singular elements that are compatible with the scalar FEM. In this paper, we propose a new singular element that is compatible with edge-based vector finite elements and can cope with any order of singularity while preserving the sparsity of the FEM equations. Edge-based singular elements more correctly model singular fields and thus require fewer unknowns, while avoiding the introduction of spurious modes in the numerical solution. Numerical results verify that the convergence of the FEM is significantly improved     

Experimental evaluation of velocity and power estimation forultrasound blood flow imaging, by means of a two-dimensionalautocorrelation approach

This paper evaluates experimentally the performance of a novel axial velocity estimator, the 2D autocorrelator, and its Doppler power estimation counterpart, the 2D zero-lag autocorrelator, in the context of ultrasound color flow mapping. The evaluation also encompasses the well-established 1D autocorrelation technique for velocity estimation and its corresponding power estimator (1D zero-lag autocorrelator), to allow performance comparisons under identical conditions. Clutter-suppressed in vitro data sets from a steady-flow system are used to document the effect of the range gate and ensemble length, noise level and angle of insonation on the precision of the velocity estimates. The same data sets are used to examine issues related to the estimation of the Doppler signal's power. The first-order statistics of power estimates from regions corresponding to flow and noise are determined experimentally and the ability of power-based thresholding to separate flow signals from noise is characterized by means of ROC analysis. In summary, the results of the in vitro evaluation show that the proposed 2D-autocorrelation form of processing is consistently better than the corresponding 1D-autocorrelation techniques, in terms of both velocity and power estimation. Therefore, given their relatively modest implementation requirements, the 2D-autocorrelation algorithms for velocity and power estimation appear to represent a superior, yet realistic, alternative to conventional Doppler processing for color flow mapping     

Repair of Cracked Aluminum Overhead Sign Structures with Glass Fiber Reinforced Polymer Composites

Transportation departments have been using aluminum overhead sign structures since the 1950s. It is well documented that cracks develop in the welds between diagonal and chord members due to fatigue stresses from wind-induced vibration of the slender members. The cracks propagate to complete failure of the members, which can cause collapse of the truss and inflict injuries. The original design of overhead sign structures did not consider fatigue as a limit state. In addition, field welding of aluminum structures for any possible repairs is prohibited. A repair method for the cracked aluminum welded connections between diagonals and chord members using glass fiber reinforced polymer composites (GFRPs) is proposed. The static load carrying capacity of the welded connection, and the cracked connection repaired with GFRP composites are established. The paper describes the surface preparation of the aluminum tubular members, and the architecture and application sequence of the GFRP composite to retrofit the connection. Experimental results are presented from static tests of welded aluminum connections, welded aluminum connections retrofitted with GFRP composites, and new aluminum connections that depend only on GFRP composite elements for their strength. The results from monotonic static tests carried out on cracked welded specimens from actual sign structures show that the retrofitted connection with GFRP reinforcement achieved 1.17 to 1.25 times the capacity of the welded aluminum connection without any visible cracks. This result, and the minimal traffic disruption anticipated in the actual field application, makes this retrofit method a good candidate for implementation.