Enzymatic Logic Gates with Noise-Reducing Sigmoid Response

Biochemical computing is an emerging field of unconventional computing that attempts to process information with biomolecules and biological objects using digital logic. In this work we survey filtering in general, in biochemical computing, and summarize the experimental realization of an and logic gate with sigmoid response in one of the inputs. The logic gate is realized with electrode-immobilized glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase enzyme that catalyzes a reaction corresponding to the Boolean and functions. A kinetic model is also developed and used to evaluate the extent to which the performance of the experimentally realized logic gate is close to optimal.

The role of spatial and temporal descriptors for neotropical tadpole communities in southern Brazil

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

A radar reflectivity-runoff model for use in flood warning

This model connects directly the radar reflectivity data and hydrological variable runoff. The catchment is discretized in pixels (4 Km × 4 Km) with the same resolution of the CAPPI. Careful discretization is made so that every grid catchment pixel corresponds precisely to CAPPI grid cell. The basin is assumed a linear system and also time invariant. The forecast technique takes advantage of spatial and temporal resolutions obtained by the radar. The method uses only the measurements of the factor reflectivity distribution observed over the catchment area without using the reflectivity - rainfall rate transformation by the conventional Z-R relationships. The reflectivity values in each catchment pixel are translated to a gauging station by using a transfer function. This transfer function represents the travel time of the superficial water flowing through pixels in the drainage direction ending at the gauging station. The parameters used to compute the transfer function are concentration time and the physiographic catchment characteristics. -from Authors

Simulation of active control using fuzzy logic applied to a pulse combustor

This work analyzes an active fuzzy logic control system in a Rijke type pulse combustor. During the system development, a study of the existing types of control for pulse combustion was carried out and a simulation model was implemented to be used with the package Matlab and Simulink. Blocks which were not available in the simulator library were developed. A fuzzy controller was developed and its membership functions and inference rules were established. The obtained simulation showed that fuzzy logic is viable in the control of combustion instabilities. The obtained results indicated that the control system responded to pulses in an efficient and desirable way. It was verified that the system needed approximately 0.2 s to increase the tube internal pressure from 30 to 90 mbar, with an assumed total delay of 2 ms. The effects of delay variation were studied. Convergence was always obtained and general performance was not affected by the delay. The controller sends a pressure signal in phase with the Rijke tube internal pressure signal, through the speakers, when an increase the oscillations pressure amplitude is desired. On the other hand, when a decrease of the tube internal pressure amplitude is desired, the controller sends a signal 180° out of phase.

Fuzzy logic to predict thermal damages of ground parts

One of the critical problems in implementing an intelligent grinding process is the automatic detection of workpiece surface burn. This work uses fuzzy logic as a tool to classify and predict burn levels in the grinding process. Based on acoustic emission signals, cutting power, and the mean-value deviance (MVD), linguistic rules were established for the various burn situations (slight, intermediate, severe) by applying fuzzy logic using the Matlab Toolbox. Three practical fuzzy system models were developed. The first model with two inputs resulted only in a simple analysis process. The second and third models have an additional MVD statistic input, associating information and precision. These two models differ from each other in terms of the rule base developed. The three developed models presented valid responses, proving effective, accurate, reliable and easy to use for the determination of ground workpiece burn. In this analysis, fuzzy logic translates the operator's human experience associated with powerful computational methods.

Spatial and temporal variability in soil CO2-C emissions and relation to soil temperature at King George Island, maritime Antarctica

Few studies have examined the effects of temperature on spatial and temporal trends in soil CO2-C emissions in Antarctica. In this work, we present in situ measurements of CO2-C emissions and assess their relation with soil temperature, using dynamic chambers. We found an exponential relation between CO2 emissions and soil temperature, with the value of Q10 being close to 2.1. Mean emission rates were as low as 0.026 and 0.072 g of CO2-C m-2 h-1 for bare soil and soil covered with moss, respectively, and as high as 0.162 g of CO2-C m-2 h-1 for soil covered with grass, Deschampsia antarctica Desv. (Poaceae). A spatial variability analysis conducted using a 60-point grid, for an area with mosses (Sannionia uncianata) and D. antarctica, yielded a spherical semivariogram model for CO2-C emissions with a range of 1 m. The results suggest that soil temperature is a controlling factor on temporal variations in soil CO2-C emissions, although spatial variations appear to be more strongly related to the distribution of vegetation types. © 2010 Elsevier B.V. and NIPR.

Implementation of an AC model for transmission expansion planning considering reliability constraints

In this paper, a hybrid heuristic methodology that employs fuzzy logic for solving the AC transmission network expansion planning (AC-TEP) problem is presented. An enhanced constructive heuristic algorithm aimed at obtaining a significant quality solution for such complicated problems considering contingency is proposed. In order to indicate the severity of the contingency, 2 performance indices, namely the line flow performance index and voltage performance index, are calculated. An interior point method is applied as a nonlinear programming solver to handle such nonconvex optimization problems, while the objective function includes the costs of the new transmission lines as well as the real power losses. The performance of the proposed method is examined by applying it to the well-known Garver system for different cases. The simulation studies and result analysis demonstrate that the proposed method provides a promising way to find an optimal plan. Obtaining the best quality solution shows the capability and the viability of the proposed algorithm in AC-TEP. © Tübi̇tak..

Sensoriamento remoto e geoestatística na caracterização espaço-temporal de plantas aquáticas

Pós-graduação em Ciências Cartográficas - FCT

Um modelo espaço-temporal aplicado à agricultura de precisão

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

A expansão urbano-industrial do município de Americana - SP: geotecnologias aplicadas à análise temporal e simulação de cenários

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Ferrugem do eucalipto: índice de infecção, análise temporal e estimativas de danos relacionadas à intensidade da doença no campo

Pós-graduação em Agronomia (Proteção de Plantas) - FCA

Dinâmica espaço-temporal e quantificação dos danos e perdas da murcha de Ceratocystis em eucalipto na produção de carvão vegetal

Pós-graduação em Ciência Florestal - FCA

Modelagem espaço-temporal da colonização de macrófitas submersas no reservatório de Taquaruçu

Pós-graduação em Ciências Cartográficas - FCT

Estimativa espaço-temporal da superfície potenciométrica do sistema aqüífero guarani na cidade de Ribeirão Preto (SP), Brasil

Pós-graduação em Geociências e Meio Ambiente - IGCE

Influências da idade e do ambiente sobre o curso temporal da infecção pelo vírus da Dengue acentuada por anticorpo heterólogo em modelo murino: ensaios comportamentais e histopatológicos

Por conta de que o ambiente enriquecido (AE) aumenta a atividade de células T e contribuí para imunopatogênese durante as infecções heterólogas do vírus da dengue (VDEN), nós hipotetizamos que animais que crescem em AE em comparação com animais que crescem em ambiente padrão (AP), ao serem infectados pelo vírus da dengue, desenvolveriam formas mais graves da doença. Além disso, como os animais velhos apresentam menor declínio funcional em células T de imunidade adaptativa, testamos a hipótese de que camundongos AE velhos ao serem infectados pelo vírus da dengue apresentariam maior taxa de mortalidade do que animais AP pareados por idade, e isso estaria associado à maior hiperplasia dos linfócitos T. Para testar essas hipóteses implantamos regime de inoculações múltiplas em animais adultos de 9 e 18 meses de idade. Dois regimes de inoculação foram testados: inoculações múltiplas de homogeneizado cerebral infectado por um único sorotipo (IUS) ou inoculações alternadas daquele homogeneizado e de anticorpo heterólogo (ICAH). Em ambos os casos foram feitas inoculações múltiplas intraperitoneais encontrando-se diferenças significativas no curso temporal da doença nos animais submetidos a um ou outro regime de inoculação. Comparado ao grupo ICAH para o qual detectou-se diferenças significativas entre os grupos AE e AP (Kaplan-Meyer log-rank test, p = 0,0025), não foram detectadas diferenças significativas entre os grupos experimentais AP e AE submetidos ao regime IUS (Kaplan-Meyer log-rank test, p = 0,089). As curvas de sobrevivência dos grupos AE e AP sob o regime ICAH foram estendidas após a injeção de glicocorticoides reduzindo-se os sintomas e o número de mortes e esse efeito foi maior no grupo AE do que no AP (Kaplan-Meyer log-rank test, p = 0,0162). No regime ICAH, o grupo AE mostrou sinais clínicos mais intensos do que o AP e isso incluiu dispneia, tremor, postura encurvada, imobilidade, paralisia pré-terminal, choque e eventual morte. Comparado ao grupo AP, o grupo AE independentemente da idade apresentou maior mortalidade e sinais clínicos mais intensos. Esses sinais clínicos mais intensos nos animais do ambiente enriquecido submetidos ao regime ICAH foram associados à maior hiperplasia de linfócitos T no baço e maior infiltração dessas células no fígado, pulmões e rins. Embora a hiperplasia linfocítica e a infiltração tenham se mostrado mais intensas nos animais velhos do que nos jovens, a imunomarcação para os antígenos virais nos mesmos órgãos foi maior nos jovens do que nos velhos. A presença do vírus nos diferentes órgãos alvo foi confirmada por PCR em tempo real. Tomados em conjunto os resultados sugerem que o ambiente enriquecido exacerba a resposta inflamatória subsequente à infecção por dengue acentuada por anticorpo heterólogo, e isso está associado à sintomas clínicos mais intensos, maior taxa de mortalidade e ao aumento da expansão de células T. Os ensaios comportamentais e histopatológicos do presente trabalho permitiram testar e validar novo modelo murino imunocompetente para estudos em dengue permitindo testar numerosas hipóteses oriundas de estudos epidemiológicos e in vitro.