Adaptive Game Design Study of a fully adaptive framework

Adventure! The Paladin Order foi um projecto ambicioso que começou por ser desenvolvido como um video jogo completo. Tinha como objéctivo implementar uma ferramenta diferente que permitisse tornar o jogo completamente adaptativo às decisões do jogador tanto nas interacções e no diálogo com outras personagens, assim como no combate contra os variados inímigos do jogo. Devido à inexperiência do autor uma grande parte do tempo foi passado a estudar e a pesquisar várias possíveis soluções que permitissem criar um ambiente que fosse adaptativo de uma forma simples e interessante, não só para os programadores mas também para qualquer pessoa que fosse responsável por editar o diálogo e a história do jogo. Os resultados foram bastante interessantes, revelando um sistema que depende simultaneamente dos ficheiros de onde é retirado o diálogo, e de um sistema de personalidades que permite definir qual será o comportamento de qualquer objecto do jogo ou, pelo menos, como as outras personagens irão reagir. O produto final é uma ferramenta de bases sólidas que permite uma implementação relativamente simples de um sistema abrangente e adaptativo, com poucas falhas e apenas algumas questões de simplicidade de código.

Activation of N2O reduction by the fully reduced micro4-sulfide bridged tetranuclear Cu Z cluster in nitrous oxide reductase

J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2003, 125 (51), pp 15708–15709 DOI: 10.1021/ja038344n

Coupling organic substrate removal to methane production in a fully biological microbial electrolysis cell

Microbial electrolysis cells (MECs) are an innovative and emerging technique based on the use of solid-state electrodes to stimulate microbial metabolism for wastewater treatment and simultaneous production of value-added compounds (such as methane). This research studied the performance of a two-chamber MEC in terms of organic matter oxidation (at the anode) and methane production (at the cathode). MEC‟s anode had been previously inoculated with an activated sludge, whereas the cathode chamber inoculum was an anaerobic sludge (containing methanogenic microorganisms). During the experimentation, the bioanode was continuously fed with synthetic solutions in anaerobic basal medium, at an organic load rate (OLR) of around 1 g L-1 d-1, referred to the chemical oxygen demand (COD). At the beginning (Run I), the feeding solution contained acetate and subsequently (Run II) it was replaced with a more complex solution containing soluble organic compounds other than acetate. For both conditions, the anode potential was controlled at -0.1 V vs. standard hydrogen electrode, by means of a potentiostat. During Run I, over 80% of the influent acetate was anaerobically oxidized at the anode, and the resulting electric current was recovered as methane at the cathode (with a cathode capture efficiency, CCE, accounting around 115 %). The average energy efficiency of the system (i.e., the energy captured into methane relative to the electrical energy input) under these conditions was over 170%. However, reactor‟s performance decreased over time during this run. Throughout Run II, a substrate oxidation over 60% (on COD basis) was observed. The electric current produced (57% of coulombic efficiency) was also recovered as methane, with a CCE of 90%. For this run the MEC‟s average energy efficiency accounted for almost 170 %. During all the experimentation, a very low biomass growth was observed at the anode whereas ammonium was transferred through the cationic membrane and concentrated at the cathode. Tracer experiments and scanning electron microscopy analyses were also carried out to gain a deeper insight into the reactor performance and also to investigate the possible reasons for partial loss of performance. In conclusion, this research suggests the great potential of MEC to successfully treat low-strength wastewaters, with high energy efficiency and very low sludge production.

Search for charged Higgs bosons decaying via H± → τ±ν in fully hadronic final states using pp collision data at √s = 8 TeV with the ATLAS detector

The results of a search for charged Higgs bosons decaying to a τ lepton and a neutrino, H±→τ±ν, are presented. The analysis is based on 19.5 fb−1 of proton--proton collision data at s√=8 TeV collected by the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider. Charged Higgs bosons are searched for in events consistent with top-quark pair production or in associated production with a top quark. The final state is characterised by the presence of a hadronic τ decay, missing transverse momentum, b-tagged jets, a hadronically decaying W boson, and the absence of any isolated electrons or muons with high transverse momenta. The data are consistent with the expected background from Standard Model processes. A statistical analysis leads to 95% confidence-level upper limits on the product of branching ratios B(t→bH±)×B(H±→τ±ν), between 0.23% and 1.3% for charged Higgs boson masses in the range 80--160 GeV. It also leads to 95% confidence-level upper limits on the production cross section times branching ratio, σ(pp→tH±+X)×B(H±→τ±ν), between 0.76 pb and 4.5 fb, for charged Higgs boson masses ranging from 180 GeV to 1000 GeV. In the context of different scenarios of the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model, these results exclude nearly all values of tanβ above one for charged Higgs boson masses between 80 GeV and 160 GeV, and exclude a region of parameter space with high tanβ for H± masses between 200 GeV and 250 GeV.

Measurement of the top-quark mass in the fully hadronic decay channel from ATLAS data at s√=7 TeV

The mass of the top quark is measured in a data set corresponding to 4.6 fb−1 of proton--proton collisions with centre-of-mass energy s√=7 TeV collected by the ATLAS detector at the LHC. Events consistent with hadronic decays of top--antitop quark pairs with at least six jets in the final state are selected. The substantial background from multijet production is modelled with data-driven methods that utilise the number of identified b-quark jets and the transverse momentum of the sixth leading jet, which have minimal correlation. The top-quark mass is obtained from template fits to the ratio of three-jet to dijet mass. The three-jet mass is calculated from the three jets of a top-quark decay. Using these three jets the dijet mass is obtained from the two jets of the W boson decay. The top-quark mass obtained from this fit is thus less sensitive to the uncertainty in the energy measurement of the jets. A binned likelihood fit yields a top-quark mass of mt = 175.1 ± 1.4 (stat.) ± 1.2 (syst.) GeV.

The physiology of plants; a treatise upon the metabolism and sources of energy in plants, by Dr. W. Pfeffer ... 2d fully rev. ed., translated and edited by Alfred J. Ewart.

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The physiology of plants; a treatise upon the metabolism and sources of energy in plants, by Dr. W. Pfeffer ... 2d fully rev. ed., translated and edited by Alfred J. Ewart.

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The physiology of plants; a treatise upon the metabolism and sources of energy in plants, by Dr. W. Pfeffer ... 2d fully rev. ed., translated and edited by Alfred J. Ewart.

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Stabilized finite element methods applied to transient convection-diffusion-reaction and population balance equations

Magdeburg, Univ., Fak. für Mathematik, Diss., 2011

Study of the influence of grain size and precipitates on the electromagnetic losses in different grades of non-oriented fully processed electrical steel

The study was performed in the installations of OCAS, a Steel Research Centre of ArcelorMittal. Taking M32 steel (3.25%Si+0.9%Al) as the basis chemical composition and three different thicknesses (0.35, 0.5 and 0.65mm), different annealing conditions (temperature and time) have been applied in the laboratory simulator at St. Chély, France. The aim was to link annealing parameters, grain size and energy loss. It was determined the optimum annealing parameters to reach the lowest power losses for three different grades of non-oriented fully processed electrical steel. In addition, M250-50 samples having different magnetic behaviour (high and low losses) but the same grain size and texture, have been analyzed in terms of TEM observations of their precipitates, in the University of Marseille. The results reveal that a high amount of medium and big precipitates (&10 nm) worsen the magnetic properties of the material. The small precipitates (&10nm) do not have a strong influence on the magnetic properties. The presence of precipitates can have a great influence on the power losses and further work is clearly necessary.

PGE2-Induced IDO1 Inhibits the Capacity of Fully Mature DCs to Elicit an In Vitro Antileukemic Immune Response.

In the last years, dendritic cells (DC) have been evaluated for antitumor vaccination. Although DC-based vaccines have raised great expectations, their clinical translation has been largely disappointing. For these results, several explanations have been proposed. In particular, the concomitant expression by DCs of tolerogenic pathways, such as the immunosuppressive agent indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase-1 (IDO1), has been demonstrated. The aim of this study is to evaluate both the stimulatory and the tolerogenic feature of monocyte-derived DCs (Mo-DCs) after maturation with PGE2. In particular, the role of IDO1 expression in PGE2-matured Mo-DCs has been addressed. Here we show that PGE2, which is required for full maturation of DCs, is one mediator of DC tolerance by enhancing IDO1. PGE2-mediated expression of IDO1 results in the production of kynurenine, in the generation of Tregs, and in the inhibition of either the allogeneic or the autologous antigen-specific stimulatory capacity of DCs. When pulsed with leukemic lysates and matured with PGE2, DCs are impaired in the induction of IFN-γ secreting CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cells due to IDO1 upregulation. Moreover, the inhibition of IDO1 enhances the antileukemic response. Overall, these results point toward the use of IDO1 inhibitors to enhance the vaccination capacity of DCs, matured with PGE2.

Stabilized Petrov-Galerkin methods for the convection-diffusion-reaction and the Helmholtz equations

We present two new stabilized high-resolution numerical methods for the convection–diffusion–reaction (CDR) and the Helmholtz equations respectively. The work embarks upon a priori analysis of some consistency recovery procedures for some stabilization methods belonging to the Petrov–Galerkin framework. It was found that the use of some standard practices (e.g. M-Matrices theory) for the design of essentially non-oscillatory numerical methods is not feasible when consistency recovery methods are employed. Hence, with respect to convective stabilization, such recovery methods are not preferred. Next, we present the design of a high-resolution Petrov–Galerkin (HRPG) method for the 1D CDR problem. The problem is studied from a fresh point of view, including practical implications on the formulation of the maximum principle, M-Matrices theory, monotonicity and total variation diminishing (TVD) finite volume schemes. The current method is next in line to earlier methods that may be viewed as an upwinding plus a discontinuity-capturing operator. Finally, some remarks are made on the extension of the HRPG method to multidimensions. Next, we present a new numerical scheme for the Helmholtz equation resulting in quasi-exact solutions. The focus is on the approximation of the solution to the Helmholtz equation in the interior of the domain using compact stencils. Piecewise linear/bilinear polynomial interpolation are considered on a structured mesh/grid. The only a priori requirement is to provide a mesh/grid resolution of at least eight elements per wavelength. No stabilization parameters are involved in the definition of the scheme. The scheme consists of taking the average of the equation stencils obtained by the standard Galerkin finite element method and the classical finite difference method. Dispersion analysis in 1D and 2D illustrate the quasi-exact properties of this scheme. Finally, some remarks are made on the extension of the scheme to unstructured meshes by designing a method within the Petrov–Galerkin framework.

A fully echo-guided trans-apical aortic valve implantation.

The trans-apical aortic valve implantation (TA-AVI) is an established technique for high-risk patients requiring aortic valve replacement. Traditionally, preoperative (computed tomography (CT) scan, coronary angiogram) and intra-operative imaging (fluoroscopy) for stent-valve positioning and implantation require contrast medium injections. To preserve the renal function in elderly patients suffering from chronic renal insufficiency, a fully echo-guided trans-catheter valve implantation seems to be a reasonable alternative. We report the first successful TA-AVI procedure performed solely under trans-oesophageal echocardiogram control, in the absence of contrast medium injections.

Rapid detection of enterovirus in cerebrospinal fluid by a fully-automated PCR assay is associated with improved management of aseptic meningitis in adult patients.

BACKGROUND: Enterovirus (EV) is the most frequent cause of aseptic meningitis (AM). Lack of microbiological documentation results in unnecessary antimicrobial therapy and hospitalization. OBJECTIVES: To assess the impact of rapid EV detection in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) by a fully-automated PCR (GeneXpert EV assay, GXEA) on the management of AM. STUDY DESIGN: Observational study in adult patients with AM. Three groups were analyzed according to EV documentation in CSF: group A=no PCR or negative PCR (n=17), group B=positive real-time PCR (n=20), and group C=positive GXEA (n=22). Clinical, laboratory and health-care costs data were compared. RESULTS: Clinical characteristics were similar in the 3 groups. Median turn-around time of EV PCR decreased from 60h (IQR (interquartile range) 44-87) in group B to 5h (IQR 4-11) in group C (p<0.0001). Median duration of antibiotics was 1 (IQR 0-6), 1 (0-1.9), and 0.5 days (single dose) in groups A, B, and C, respectively (p<0.001). Median length of hospitalization was 4 days (2.5-7.5), 2 (1-3.7), and 0.5 (0.3-0.7), respectively (p<0.001). Median hospitalization costs were $5458 (2676-6274) in group A, $2796 (2062-5726) in group B, and $921 (765-1230) in group C (p<0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Rapid EV detection in CSF by a fully-automated PCR improves management of AM by significantly reducing antibiotic use, hospitalization length and costs.

Ocular distribution, spectrum of activity, and in vivo viral neutralization of a fully humanized anti-herpes simplex virus IgG Fab fragment following topical application.

Herpes simplex ocular infection is a major cause of corneal blindness. Local antiviral treatments exist but are associated with corneal toxicity, and resistance has become an issue. We evaluated the biodistribution and efficacy of a humanized anti-herpes simplex virus (anti-HSV) IgG FAb fragment (AC-8; 53 kDa) following repeated topical administration. AC-8 was found in the corneal epithelium, anterior stroma, subepithelial stromal cells, and retinal glial cells, with preferential entry through the ocular limbus. AC-8 was active against 13 different strains of HSV-1, with 50% and 90% mean effective concentrations (MEC(50) and MEC(90), respectively) ranging from 0.03 to 0.13 μg/ml, indicating broad-spectrum activity. The in vivo efficacy of AC-8 was evaluated in a mouse model of herpes-induced ocular disease. Treatment with low-dose AC-8 (1 mg/ml) slightly reduced the ocular disease scores. A greater reduction of the disease scores was observed in the 10-mg/ml AC-8-treated group, but not as much as with trifluridine (TFT). AC-8 treatment reduced viral titers but less than trifluridine. AC-8 did not display any toxicity to the cornea or other structures in the eye. In summary, topical instillation of an anti-HSV FAb can be used on both intact and ulcerated corneas. It is well tolerated and does not alter reepithelialization. Further studies to improve the antiviral effect are needed for AC-8 to be considered for therapeutic use.