Conformational heterogeneity of tripeptides containing Boc-Leu-Aib as corner residues in the solid state

A critical analysis of single crystal X-ray diffraction studies on a series of terminally protected tripeptides containing a centrally positioned Aib (alpha-aminoisobutyric acid) residue has been reported. For the tripeptide series containing Boc-Ala-Aib as corner residues, all the reported peptides formed distorted type II beta-turn structures. Moreover, a series of Phe substituted analogues ( tripeptides with Boc-Phe-Aib) have also shown different beta-turn conformations. However, the Leu-modified analogues (tripeptides with Boc-Leu-Aib) disrupt the concept of beta-turn formation and adopt various conformations in the solid state. X-ray crystallography sheds some light on the conformational heterogeneity at atomic resolution. (c) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

LASER-TESTING RIG : Measurement System for evaluation of Shape of concentrating reflector for solar collector Absolicon X10

This Thesis project is a part of the all-round automation of production of concentrating solar PV/T systems Absolicon X10. ABSOLICON Solar Concentrator AB has been invented and started production of the prospective solar concentrated system Absolicon X10. The aims of this Thesis project are designing, assembling, calibrating and putting in operation the automatic measurement system intended to evaluate the shape of concentrating parabolic reflectors.On the basis of the requirements of the company administration and needs of real production process the operation conditions for the Laser testing rig were formulated. The basic concept to use laser radiation was defined.At the first step, the complex design of the whole system was made and division on the parts was defined. After the preliminary conducted simulations the function and operation conditions of the all parts were formulated.At the next steps, the detailed design of all the parts was conducted. Most components were ordered from respective companies. Some of the mechanical components were made in the workshop of the company. All parts of the Laser-testing rig were assembled and tested. Software part, which controls the Laser-testing rig work, was created on the LabVIEW basis. To tune and test software part the special simulator was designed and assembled.When all parts were assembled in the complete system, the Laser-testing rig was tested, calibrated and tuned.In the workshop of Absolicon AB, the trial measurements were conducted and Laser-testing rig was installed in the production line at the plant in Soleftea.

Experimental performance of a string module in a CPC reflector cavity

The purpose of the work is to develop a cost effective semistationary CPC concentrator for a string PV-module. A novel method of using annual irradiation distribution diagram projected in a north-south vertical plane is developed. This method allows us easily to determine the optimum acceptance angle of the concentrator and the required number of annual tilts. Concentration ranges of 2-5x are investigated with corresponding acceptance angles between 5 and 15°. The concentrator should be tilted 2-6 times per year. Experiments has been performed on a string module of 10 cells connected in a series and equipped with a compound parabolic concentrator with C = 3.3X. Measurement show that the output will increase with a factor of 2-2.5 for the concentrator module, compared to a reference module without concentrator. If very cheap aluminium reflectors are used the costs for the PV-module can be decreased nearly by a factor of two.

Is there new Physics around the corner?

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Instantaneous Phase Threshold for Reflector Detection in Ultrasonic Images

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Non-Dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm Based on Reinforcement Learning to Optimization of Broad-Band Reflector Antennas Satellite

This paper aims to provide an improved NSGA-II (Non-Dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm-version II) which incorporates a parameter-free self-tuning approach by reinforcement learning technique, called Non-Dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm Based on Reinforcement Learning (NSGA-RL). The proposed method is particularly compared with the classical NSGA-II when applied to a satellite coverage problem. Furthermore, not only the optimization results are compared with results obtained by other multiobjective optimization methods, but also guarantee the advantage of no time-spending and complex parameter tuning.

Seismic sequences analysis for estimation of earthquake source parameters: corner frequency, stress drop, and seismic moment observations

The present study has been carried out with the following objectives: i) To investigate the attributes of source parameters of local and regional earthquakes; ii) To estimate, as accurately as possible, M0, fc, Δσ and their standard errors to infer their relationship with source size; iii) To quantify high-frequency earthquake ground motion and to study the source scaling. This work is based on observational data of micro, small and moderate -earthquakes for three selected seismic sequences, namely Parkfield (CA, USA), Maule (Chile) and Ferrara (Italy). For the Parkfield seismic sequence (CA), a data set of 757 (42 clusters) repeating micro-earthquakes (0 ≤ MW ≤ 2), collected using borehole High Resolution Seismic Network (HRSN), have been analyzed and interpreted. We used the coda methodology to compute spectral ratios to obtain accurate values of fc , Δσ, and M0 for three target clusters (San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Hawaii) of our data. We also performed a general regression on peak ground velocities to obtain reliable seismic spectra of all earthquakes. For the Maule seismic sequence, a data set of 172 aftershocks of the 2010 MW 8.8 earthquake (3.7 ≤ MW ≤ 6.2), recorded by more than 100 temporary broadband stations, have been analyzed and interpreted to quantify high-frequency earthquake ground motion in this subduction zone. We completely calibrated the excitation and attenuation of the ground motion in Central Chile. For the Ferrara sequence, we calculated moment tensor solutions for 20 events from MW 5.63 (the largest main event occurred on May 20 2012), down to MW 3.2 by a 1-D velocity model for the crust beneath the Pianura Padana, using all the geophysical and geological information available for the area. The PADANIA model allowed a numerical study on the characteristics of the ground motion in the thick sediments of the flood plain.

Clinical outcome of rearthrodesis in cases of non-union following four-corner fusion

Four-corner fusion is a proven treatment option for degenerative arthritis of the wrist (SLAC/SNAC); however, in some cases, non-union occurs. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the clinical outcome of rearthrodesis in cases of non-union following four-corner fusion. Furthermore, the goal was to identify the cause of non-union and the location of pseudarthrosis within the fusion.