Fluorescence and visual sensing of nitroaromatic explosives using electron rich discrete fluorophores

Several pi-electron rich fluorescent aromatic compounds containing trimethylsilylethynyl functionality have been synthesized by employing Sonogashira coupling reaction and they were characterized fully by NMR (H-1, C-13)/IR spectroscopy. Incorporation of bulky trimethylsilylethynyl groups on the peripheral of the fluorophores prevents self-quenching of the initial intensity through pi-pi interaction and thereby maintains the spectroscopic stability in solution. These compounds showed fluorescence behavior in chloroform solution and were used as selective fluorescence sensors for the detection of electron deficient nitroaromatics. All these fluorophores showed the largest quenching response with high selectivity for nitroaromatics among the various electron deficient aromatic compounds tested. Quantitative analysis of the fluorescence titration profile of 9,10-bis(trimethylsilylethynyl) anthracene with picric acid provided evidence that this particular fluorophore detects picric acid even at ppb level. A sharp visual detection of 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene was observed upon subjecting 1,3,6,8-tetrakis (trimethylsilylethynyl) pyrene fluorophore to increasing quantities of 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene in chloroform. Furthermore, thin film of the fluorophores was made by spin coating of a solution of 1.0 x 10(-3) M in chloroform or dichloromethane on a quartz plate and was used for the detection of vapors of nitroaromatics at room temperature. The vapor-phase sensing experiments suggested that the sensing process is reproducible and quite selective for nitroaromatic compounds. Selective fluorescence quenching response including a sharp visual color change for nitroaromatics makes these fluorophores as promising fluorescence sensory materials for nitroaromatic compounds (NAC) with a detection limit of even ppb level as judged with picric acid.

Pickup and delivery problem using metaheuristics techniques

Dial-a-ride problem (DARP) is an optimization problem which deals with the minimization of the cost of the provided service where the customers are provided a door-to-door service based on their requests. This optimization model presented in earlier studies, is considered in this study. Due to the non-linear nature of the objective function the traditional optimization methods are plagued with the problem of converging to a local minima. To overcome this pitfall we use metaheuristics namely Simulated Annealing (SA), Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO), Genetic Algorithm (GA) and Artificial Immune System (AIS). From the results obtained, we conclude that Artificial Immune System method effectively tackles this optimization problem by providing us with optimal solutions. Crown Copyright (C) 2011 Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A phenanthrene based highly selective fluorogenic and visual sensor for Cu2+ ion with nanomolar detection limit and its application in live cell imaging

A new phenanthrene based chemosensor has been synthesized and investigated to act as highly selective fluorescence and visual sensor for Cu2+ ion with very low detection limit of 1.58 nM: this has also been used to image Cu2+ in human cervical HeLa cancer cells. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Ecology of acoustic signalling and the problem of masking interference in insects

The efficiency of long-distance acoustic signalling of insects in their natural habitat is constrained in several ways. Acoustic signals are not only subjected to changes imposed by the physical structure of the habitat such as attenuation and degradation but also to masking interference from co-occurring signals of other acoustically communicating species. Masking interference is likely to be a ubiquitous problem in multi-species assemblages, but successful communication in natural environments under noisy conditions suggests powerful strategies to deal with the detection and recognition of relevant signals. In this review we present recent work on the role of the habitat as a driving force in shaping insect signal structures. In the context of acoustic masking interference, we discuss the ecological niche concept and examine the role of acoustic resource partitioning in the temporal, spatial and spectral domains as sender strategies to counter masking. We then examine the efficacy of different receiver strategies: physiological mechanisms such as frequency tuning, spatial release from masking and gain control as useful strategies to counteract acoustic masking. We also review recent work on the effects of anthropogenic noise on insect acoustic communication and the importance of insect sounds as indicators of biodiversity and ecosystem health.

Telemetric recordings of single neuron activity and visual scenes in monkeys walking in an open field

This paper describes a portable recording system and methods for obtaining chronic recordings of single units and tracking rhesus monkey behavior in an open field. The integrated system consists of four major components: (1) microelectrode assembly; (2) h

Comparison of stationary acoustic monitoring and visual observation of finless porpoises

The detection performance regarding stationary acoustic monitoring of Yangtze finless porpoises Neophocaena phocaenoides asiaeorientalis was compared to visual observations. Three stereo acoustic data loggers (A-tag) were placed at different locations near the confluence of Poyang Lake and the Yangtze River, China. The presence and number of porpoises were determined acoustically and visually during each 1-min time bin. On average, porpoises were acoustically detected 81.7 +/- 9.7% of the entire effective observation time, while the presence of animals was confirmed visually 12.7 +/- 11.0% of the entire time. Acoustic monitoring indicated areas of high and low porpoise densities that were consistent with visual observations. The direction of porpoise movement was monitored using stereo beams, which agreed with visual observations at all monitoring locations. Acoustic and visual methods could determine group sizes up to five and ten individuals, respectively. While the acoustic monitoring method had the advantage of high detection probability, it tended to underestimate group size due to the limited resolution of sound source bearing angles. The stationary acoustic monitoring method proved to be a practical and useful alternative to visual observations, especially in areas of low porpoise density for long-term monitoring.

The Role of Fixation and Visual Attention in Object Recognition

This research project is a study of the role of fixation and visual attention in object recognition. In this project, we build an active vision system which can recognize a target object in a cluttered scene efficiently and reliably. Our system integrates visual cues like color and stereo to perform figure/ground separation, yielding candidate regions on which to focus attention. Within each image region, we use stereo to extract features that lie within a narrow disparity range about the fixation position. These selected features are then used as input to an alignment-style recognition system. We show that visual attention and fixation significantly reduce the complexity and the false identifications in model-based recognition using Alignment methods. We also demonstrate that stereo can be used effectively as a figure/ground separator without the need for accurate camera calibration.