Stability synthesis of power hardware-in-the-loop (PHIL) simulation

A virtual power system can be interfaced with a physical system to form a power hardware-in-the-loop (PHIL) simulation. In this scheme, the virtual system can be simulated in a fast parallel processor to provide near real-time outputs, which then can be interfaced to a physical hardware that is called the hardware under test (HuT). Stable operation of the entire system, while maintaining acceptable accuracy, is the main challenge of a PHIL simulation. In this paper, after an extended stability analysis for voltage and current type interfaces, some guidelines are provided to have a stable PHIL simulation. The presented analysis have been evaluated by performing several experimental tests using a Real Time Digital Simulator (RTDS™) and a voltage source converter (VSC). The practical test results are consistent with the proposed analysis.

Trailing Touch

Trailing Touch (2014) is a twenty minute classically-based dance work set to music by composers Carter Burwell and Hildur Gudnadottir. It is an abstract work that explores images based on imperfect patterns and seeks to transmit the sensations felt when clusters form and disperse through the space or crisscross to create swirling wave-like reactions in the dancers’ tulle skirts. These simple references are inspired by the lyrical use of arms found in ballet, particular to the ballet aesthetic. Trailing Touch was created in collaboration with QUT’s third-year BFA (Dance Performance) students and performed as part of Dance14 at QUT’s Gardens Points Theatre from the 4th to 8th November 2014 and was performed in Singapore as part of Contact Contemporary Dance Festival on 30th November, 2014. Additionally, the creative process of Trailing Touch (2014) forms the initial project of Phase III of my PhD research, Writing the Dance Score in the Twenty-first Century: An approach for the Independent Choreographer. This PhD research will examine the potential of dance scores as a suite of choreographic strategies to map key aspects of the choreographic process. While a certain degree of ambiguity drives the creative process, the suite of choreographic strategies attempt to capture what is transmitted through the lived experience of dance. “[T]hese documents harbor a force of expression, a visual energy related to the body and the movement” (Louppe 1994, 7) that triggers movement responses, unforeseen intensities and enables personal interpretation. Consequently, Phase III will test and evaluate the relevance of Phase II research within the pressures of mainstream dance rehearsal and performance contexts. In Project One Trailing Touch this was demonstrated in the dance scores produced by the choreographer and interpreted by the dancers within the performance. By drawing from both the theoretical and practical, it is anticipated that this research will suggest a form of languaging movement that is not reliant on images or numbers, but generated in response to the intuitive and complex process underpinning choreographic practice. Rather than constructing a codified dance notation system, it will focus on strategies that reveal movement, its spatial patterns, qualities and intensities of expression and the procedures underlying key choreographic concepts. The outcome of this research project aims to support the independent choreographer in two major areas, by facilitating and enriching the choreographic process for both the performers and choreographer, and by strengthening artistic development and performance outcomes.

Brain activity during the encoding, retention, and retrieval of stimulus representations

Studies of delayed nonmatching-to-sample (DNMS) performance following lesions of the monkey cortex have revealed a critical circuit of brain regions involved in forming memories and retaining and retrieving stimulus representations. Using event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we measured brain activity in 10 healthy human participants during performance of a trial-unique visual DNMS task using novel barcode stimuli. The event-related design enabled the identification of activity during the different phases of the task (encoding, retention, and retrieval). Several brain regions identified by monkey studies as being important for successful DNMS performance showed selective activity during the different phases, including the mediodorsal thalamic nucleus (encoding), ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (retention), and perirhinal cortex (retrieval). Regions showing sustained activity within trials included the ventromedial and dorsal prefrontal cortices and occipital cortex. The present study shows the utility of investigating performance on tasks derived from animal models to assist in the identification of brain regions involved in human recognition memory.

Wikipedia, collective authorship, and the politics of knowledge

This chapter considers the legal ramifications of Wikipedia, and other online media, such as the Encyclopedia of Life. Nathaniel Tkacz (2007) has observed: 'Wikipedia is an ideal entry-point from which to approach the shifting character of knowledge in contemporary society.' He observes: 'Scholarship on Wikipedia from computer science, history, philosophy, pedagogy and media studies has moved beyond speculation regarding its considerable potential, to the task of interpreting - and potentially intervening in - the significance of Wikipedia's impact' (Tkacz 2007). After an introduction, Part II considers the evolution and development of Wikipedia, and the legal troubles that have attended it. It also considers the establishment of rival online encyclopedia - such as Citizendium set up by Larry Sanger, the co-founder of Wikipedia; and Knol, the mysterious new project of Google. Part III explores the use of mass, collaborative authorship in the field of science. In particular, it looks at the development of the Encyclopedia of Life, which seeks to document the world's biodiversity. This chapter expresses concern that Wiki-based software had to develop in a largely hostile and inimical legal environment. It contends that copyright law and related fields of intellectual property need to be reformed in order better to accommodate users of copyright material (Rimmer 2007). This chapter makes a number of recommendations. First, there is a need to acknowledge and recognize forms of mass, collaborative production and consumption - not just individual authorship. Second, the view of a copyright 'work' and other subject matter as a complete and closed piece of cultural production also should be reconceptualised. Third, the defense of fair use should be expanded to accommodate a wide range of amateur, peer-to-peer production activities - not only in the United States, but in other jurisdictions as well. Fourth, the safe harbor protections accorded to Internet intermediaries, such as Wikipedia, should be strengthened. Fifth, there should be a defense in respect of the use of 'orphan works' - especially in cases of large-scale digitization. Sixth, the innovations of open source licensing should be expressly incorporated and entrenched within the formal framework of copyright laws. Finally, courts should craft judicial remedies to take into account concerns about political censorship and freedom of speech.

An account and analysis of the implementation of various ebook business models at QUT, Australia

QUT (Queensland University of Technology) is a leading university based in the city of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia and is a selectively research intensive university with 2,500 higher degree research students and an overall student population of 45,000 students. The transition from print to online resources is largely completed and the library now provides access to 450,000 print books, 1,000 print journals, 600,000 ebooks, 120,000 ejournals and 100,000 online videos. The ebook collection is now used three times as much as the print book collection. This paper focuses on QUT Library’s ebook strategy and the challenges of building and managing a rapidly growing collection of ebooks using a range of publishers, platforms, and business and financial models. The paper provides an account of QUT Library’s experiences in using Patron Driven Acquisition (PDA) using eBook Library (EBL); the strategic procurement of publisher and subject collections by lease and outright purchase models, the more recent transition to Evidence Based Selection (EBS) options provided by some publishers, and its piloting of etextbook models. The paper provides an in-depth analysis of each of these business models at QUT, focusing on access verses collection development, usage, cost per use, and value for money.

Meta-analysis of 375,000 individuals identifies 38 susceptibility loci for migraine

Migraine is a debilitating neurological disorder affecting around 1 in 7 people worldwide, but its molecular mechanisms remain poorly understood. Some debate exists over whether migraine is a disease of vascular dysfunction, or a result of neuronal dysfunction with secondary vascular changes. Genome-wide association (GWA) studies have thus far identified 13 independent loci associated with migraine. To identify new susceptibility loci, we performed the largest genetic study of migraine to date, comprising 59,674 cases and 316,078 controls from 22 GWA studies. We identified 45 independent single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) significantly associated with migraine risk (P < 5 x 10-8) that map to 38 distinct genomic loci, including 28 loci not previously reported and the first locus identified on chromosome X. Furthermore, a subset analysis for migraine without aura (MO) identified seven of the same loci as from the full sample, whereas no loci reached genome-wide significance in the migraine with aura (MA) subset. In subsequent computational analyzes, the identified loci showed enrichment for genes expressed in vascular and smooth muscle tissues, consistent with a predominant theory of migraine that highlights vascular etiologies.

Genome-wide linkage analysis of multiple measures of neuroticism of 2 large cohorts from Australia and the Netherlands

CONTEXT People meeting diagnostic criteria for anxiety or depressive disorders tend to score high on the personality scale of neuroticism. Studying this personality dimension can give insights into the etiology of these important psychiatric disorders. OBJECTIVES To undertake a comprehensive genome-wide linkage study of neuroticism using large study samples that have been measured multiple times and to compare the results between countries for replication and across time within countries for consistency. DESIGN Genome-wide linkage scan. SETTING Twin individuals and their family members from Australia and the Netherlands. PARTICIPANTS Nineteen thousand six hundred thirty-five sibling pairs completed self-report questionnaires for neuroticism up to 5 times over a period of up to 22 years. Five thousand sixty-nine sibling pairs were genotyped with microsatellite markers. METHODS Nonparametric linkage analyses were conducted in MERLIN-REGRESS for the mean neuroticism scores averaged across time. Additional analyses were conducted for the time-specific measures of neuroticism from each country to investigate consistency of linkage results. RESULTS Three chromosomal regions exceeded empirically derived thresholds for suggestive linkage using mean neuroticism scores: 10p 5 Kosambi cM (cM) (Dutch study sample), 14q 103 cM (Dutch study sample), and 18q 117 cM (combined Australian and Dutch study sample), but only 14q retained significance after correction for multiple testing. These regions all showed evidence for linkage in individual time-specific measures of neuroticism and 1 (18q) showed some evidence for replication between countries. Linkage intervals for these regions all overlap with regions identified in other studies of neuroticism or related traits and/or in studies of anxiety in mice. CONCLUSIONS Our results demonstrate the value of the availability of multiple measures over time and add to the optimism reported in recent reviews for replication of linkage regions for neuroticism. These regions are likely to harbor causal variants for neuroticism and its related psychiatric disorders and can inform prioritization of results from genome-wide association studies.

Genomewide linkage study in 1,176 affected sister pair families identifies a significant susceptibility locus for endometriosis on chromosome 10q26

Endometriosis is a common gynecological disease that affects up to 10% of women in their reproductive years. It causes pelvic pain, severe dysmenorrhea, and subfertility. The disease is defined as the presence of tissue resembling endometrium in sites outside the uterus. Its cause remains uncertain despite >50 years of hypothesis-driven research, and thus the therapeutic options are limited. Disease predisposition is inherited as a complex genetic trait, which provides an alternative route to understanding the disease. We seek to identify susceptibility loci, using a positional-cloning approach that starts with linkage analysis to identify genomic regions likely to harbor these genes. We conducted a linkage study of 1,176 families (931 from an Australian group and 245 from a U.K. group), each with at least two members--mainly affected sister pairs--with surgically diagnosed disease. We have identified a region of significant linkage on chromosome 10q26 (maximum LOD score [MLS] of 3.09; genomewide P = .047) and another region of suggestive linkage on chromosome 20p13 (MLS = 2.09). Minor peaks (with MLS > 1.0) were found on chromosomes 2, 6, 7, 8, 12, 14, 15, and 17. This is the first report of linkage to a major locus for endometriosis. The findings will facilitate discovery of novel positional genetic variants that influence the risk of developing this debilitating disease. Greater understanding of the aberrant cellular and molecular mechanisms involved in the etiology and pathophysiology of endometriosis should lead to better diagnostic methods and targeted treatments.

Liberty relighting, 20 years later

Recognized around the world as a powerful beacon for freedom, hope, and opportunity, the Statue of Liberty's light is not just metaphorical: her dramatic illumination is a perfect example of American ingenuity and engineering. Since the statue's installation in New York Harbor in 1886, lighting engineers and designers had struggled to illuminate the 150-foot copper-clad monument in a manner becoming an American icon. It took the thoughtful and creative approach of Howard Brandston-a legend in his own right-to solve this lighting challenge. In 1984, the designer was asked to give the statue a much-needed lighting makeover in preparation for its centennial. In order to avoid the shortcomings of previous attempts, he studied the monument from every angle and in all lighting conditions, discovering that it looked best in the light of dawn. Brandston determined that he would need 'one lamp to mimic the morning sun and one lamp to mimic the morning sky.' Learning that no existing lamps could simulate these conditions, Brandston partnered with General Electric to develop two new metal halide products. With only a short time for R&D, a team of engineers at GE's Nela Park laboratories assembled a 'top secret' testing room dedicated to the Statue of Liberty project. After nearly two years of work to perfect the new lamps, the 'dawn's early light' effect was finally achieved just days before the centennial celebrations were to take place in 1986. 'It was truly a labor of love,' he recalls.