A modified discrete random pore model allowing for different initial surface reactivity

We investigate here a modification of the discrete random pore model [Bhatia SK, Vartak BJ, Carbon 1996;34:1383], by including an additional rate constant which takes into account the different reactivity of the initial pore surface having attached functional groups and hydrogens, relative to the subsequently exposed surface. It is observed that the relative initial reactivity has a significant effect on the conversion and structural evolution, underscoring the importance of initial surface chemistry. The model is tested against experimental data on chemically controlled char oxidation and steam gasification at various temperatures. It is seen that the variations of the reaction rate and surface area with conversion are better represented by the present approach than earlier random pore models. The results clearly indicate the improvement of model predictions in the low conversion region, where the effect of the initially attached functional groups and hydrogens is more significant, particularly for char oxidation. It is also seen that, for the data examined, the initial surface chemistry is less important for steam gasification as compared to the oxidation reaction. Further development of the approach must also incorporate the dynamics of surface complexation, which is not considered here.

Trades and Graphs

The trade spectrum of a simple graph G is defined to be the set of all t for which it is possible to assemble together t copies of G into a simple graph H, and then disassemble H into t entirely different copies of G. Trade spectra of graphs have applications to intersection problems, and defining sets, of G-designs. In this investigation, we give several constructions, both for specific families of graphs, and for graphs in general.

Packing complete multipartite graphs with 4-cycles

In this paper we completely solve the problem of finding a maximum packing of any complete multipartite graph with edge-disjoint 4-cycles, and the minimum leaves are explicitly given.

Decomposition of complete tripartite graphs into gregarious 4-cycles

A 4-cycle in a tripartite graph with vertex partition {V-1, V-2, V-3} is said to be gregarious if it has at least one vertex in each V-i, 1 less than or equal to i less than or equal to 3. In this paper, necessary and sufficient conditions are given for the existence of an edge-disjoint decomposition of any complete tripartite graph into gregarious 4-cycles.

Random numbers from astronomical imaging

This article describes a method to turn astronomical imaging into a random number generator by using the positions of incident cosmic rays and hot pixels to generate bit streams. We subject the resultant bit streams to a battery of standard benchmark statistical tests for randomness and show that these bit streams are statistically the same as a perfect random bit stream. Strategies for improving and building upon this method are outlined.

Common multiples of complete graphs

A graph H is said to divide a graph G if there exists a set S of subgraphs of G, all isomorphic to H, such that the edge set of G is partitioned by the edge sets of the subgraphs in S. Thus, a graph G is a common multiple of two graphs if each of the two graphs divides G.

Isolation of genotype- and chromosome-specific DNA markers in a biotype of Colletotrichum gloeosporioides using random amplified polymorphic DNA analysis

Genetic markers that distinguish fungal genotypes are important tools for genetic analysis of heterokaryosis and parasexual recombination in fungi. Random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers that distinguish two races of biotype B of Colletotrichum gloeosporioides infecting the legume Stylosanthes guianensis were sought. Eighty-five arbitrary oligonucleotide primers were used to generate 895 RAPD bands but only two bands were found to be specifically amplified from DNA of the race 3 isolate. These two RAPD bands were used as DNA probes and hybridised only to DNA of the race 3 isolate. Both RAPD bands hybridised to a dispensable 1.2 Mb chromosome of the race 3 isolate. No other genotype-specific chromosomes or DNA sequences were identified in either the race 2 or race 3 isolates. The RAPD markers hybridised to a 2 Mb chromosome in all races of the genetically distinct biotype A pathogen which infects other species of Stylosanthes as well as S. guianensis. The experiments indicate that RAPD analysis is a potentially useful tool for obtaining genotype-and chromosome-specific DNA probes in closely related isolates of one biotype of this fungal pathogen.

Decomposing complete tripartite graphs into cycles of lengths 3 and 4

Necessary and sufficient conditions are given for the edge-disjoint decomposition of a complete tripartite graph K-r,K-s,K-t into exactly alpha 3-cycles and beta 4-cycles. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Decompositions of complete multipartite graphs into cycles of even length

Necessary and sufficient conditions for the existence of an edge-disjoint decomposition of any complete multipartite graph into even length cycles are investigated. Necessary conditions are listed and sufficiency is shown for the cases when the cycle length is 4, 6 or 8. Further results concerning sufficiency, provided certain small decompositions exist, are also given for arbitrary even cycle lengths.

A family of perfect factorisations of complete bipartite graphs

A 1-factorisation of a graph is perfect if the union of any two of its 1-factors is a Hamiltonian cycle. Let n = p(2) for an odd prime p. We construct a family of (p-1)/2 non-isomorphic perfect 1-factorisations of K-n,K-n. Equivalently, we construct pan-Hamiltonian Latin squares of order n. A Latin square is pan-Hamiltoilian if the permutation defined by any row relative to any other row is a single Cycle. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science (USA).

Content and context of monocular regions determine perceived depth in random dot, unpaired background and phantom stereograms

Perceived depth was measured for three-types of stereograms with the colour/texture of half-occluded (monocular) regions either similar to or dissimilar to that of binocular regions or background. In a two-panel random dot stereogram the monocular region was filled with texture either similar or different to the far panel or left blank. In unpaired background stereograms the monocular region either matched the background or was different in colour or texture and in phantom stereograms the monocular region matched the partially occluded object or was a different colour or texture. In all three cases depth was considerably impaired when the monocular texture did not match either the background or the more distant surface. The content and context of monocular regions as well as their position are important in determining their role as occlusion cues and thus in three-dimensional layout. We compare coincidence and accidental view accounts of these effects. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

C4-saturated bipartite graphs

Let H be a graph. A graph G is said to be H-free if it contains no subgraph isomorphic to H. A graph G is said to be an H-saturated subgraph of a graph K if G is an H-free subgraph of K with the property that for any edge e is an element of E(K)\E(G), G boolean OR {e} is not H-free. We present some general results on K-s,K-t-saturated subgraphs of the complete bipartite graph K-m,K-n and study the problem of finding, for all possible values of q, a C-4-saturated subgraph of K., having precisely q edges. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Modelling the Distribution of Ischaemic Stroke-Specific Survival Time Using an EM-based Mixture Approach with Random Effects Adjustment

A two-component survival mixture model is proposed to analyse a set of ischaemic stroke-specific mortality data. The survival experience of stroke patients after index stroke may be described by a subpopulation of patients in the acute condition and another subpopulation of patients in the chronic phase. To adjust for the inherent correlation of observations due to random hospital effects, a mixture model of two survival functions with random effects is formulated. Assuming a Weibull hazard in both components, an EM algorithm is developed for the estimation of fixed effect parameters and variance components. A simulation study is conducted to assess the performance of the two-component survival mixture model estimators. Simulation results confirm the applicability of the proposed model in a small sample setting. Copyright (C) 2004 John Wiley Sons, Ltd.

A two-dimensional fuzzy random model of soil pore structure

A new conceptual model for soil pore-solid structure is formalized. Soil pore-solid structure is proposed to comprise spatially abutting elements each with a value which is its membership to the fuzzy set ''pore,'' termed porosity. These values have a range between zero (all solid) and unity (all pore). Images are used to represent structures in which the elements are pixels and the value of each is a porosity. Two-dimensional random fields are generated by allocating each pixel a porosity by independently sampling a statistical distribution. These random fields are reorganized into other pore-solid structural types by selecting parent points which have a specified local region of influence. Pixels of larger or smaller porosity are aggregated about the parent points and within the region of interest by controlled swapping of pixels in the image. This creates local regions of homogeneity within the random field. This is similar to the process known as simulated annealing. The resulting structures are characterized using one-and two-dimensional variograms and functions describing their connectivity. A variety of examples of structures created by the model is presented and compared. Extension to three dimensions presents no theoretical difficulties and is currently under development.