A benzothiadiazole end capped donor–acceptor based small molecule for organic electronics

A benzothiadiazole end-capped small molecule 3,6-bis(5-(benzo[c][1,2,5] thiadiazol-4-yl)thiophen-2-yl)-2,5-bis(2-butyloctyl)pyrrolo[3,4-c]pyrrole-1, 4(2H,5H)-dione (BO-DPP-BTZ) using a fused aromatic moiety DPP (at the centre) is designed and synthesized. BO-DPP-BTZ is a donor-acceptor-donor (D-A-D) structure which possesses a band gap of 1.6 eV and exhibits a strong solid state ordering inferred from ∼120 nm red shift of the absorption maxima from solution to thin film. Field-effect transistors utilizing a spin coated thin film of BO-DPP-BTZ as an active layer exhibited a hole mobility of 0.06 cm 2 V-1 s-1. Solution-processed bulk heterojunction organic photovoltaics employing a blend of BO-DPP-BTZ and [70]PCBM demonstrated a power conversion efficiency of 0.9%.

Solid-state assemblies and optical properties of conjugated oligomers combining fluorene and thiophene units

Two conjugated oligomers, representing elementary segments of fluorene-thiophene copolymers, are compared in terms of the microscopic morphology and the optical properties of thin deposits. The atomic force microscopy morphological data and the solid-state absorption and emission spectra are interpreted in terms of the assembly of the conjugated molecules. The compound with a terthiophene central unit and fluorene end-groups shows well-defined monolayer-by-monolayer assembly into micrometer-long stripe-like structures, with a crystalline herringbone-type organization within the monolayers. Polarized confocal microscopy indicates a strong orientation of the crystalline domains within the stripes. In contrast, the compound with a terfluorene central unit and thiophene end groups forms no textured aggregates and the optical spectra in the solid-state are very similar to those recorded in solution, suggesting that the molecules interact only weakly in the solid. The difference in behaviour between the two compounds most probably originates from their different capability to form densely-packed assemblies of interacting π-systems.

Catholic teachers’ postgraduate qualifications and students’ end of schooling outcomes: A large scale Queensland based comparative study

A key feature of the current era of Australian schooling is the dominance of publically available student, school and teacher performance data. Our paper examines the intersection of data on teachers’ postgraduate qualifications and students’ end of schooling outcomes in 26 Catholic Systemic Secondary Schools and 18 Catholic Independent Secondary Schools throughout the State of Queensland. We introduce and justify taking up a new socially-just measurement model of students’ end of schooling outcomes, called the ‘Tracking and Academic Management Index’, otherwise known as ‘TAMI’. Additional analysis is focused on the outcomes of top-end students vis-à-vis all students who are encouraged to remain in institutionalised education of one form or another for the two final years of senior secondary schooling. These findings of the correlations between Catholic teachers’ postgraduate qualifications and students’ end of schooling outcomes are also compared with teachers’ postgraduate qualifications and students’ end of schooling outcomes across 174 Queensland Government Secondary Schools and 58 Queensland Independent Secondary Schools from the same data collection period. The findings raise important questions about the transference of teachers’ postgraduate qualifications for progressing students’ end of schooling outcomes as well as the performance of Queensland Catholic Systemic Secondary Schools and Queensland Catholic Independent Secondary Schools during a particular era of education.

Synthesis and luminescent properties of star-burst D-Pi-A compounds based on 1,3,5-triazine core and carbazole end-capped phenylene ethynylene arms

Two new star-burst compounds based on 1,3,5-triazine core and carbazole end-capped phenylene ethynylene arms (1a and 1b) were synthesized and characterized. Their photophysical properties were investigated systematically via spectroscopic and theoretical methods. Both compounds exhibit strong 1π–π⁎ transitions in the UV region and intense 1π–π⁎/intramolecular charge transfer (1ICT) absorption bands in the UV–vis region. Introducing the carbazole end-capped phenylene ethynylene arm on the 1,3,5-triazine core causes a slight bathochromic shift and enhanced molar extinction coefficient of the 1π–π⁎/1ICT transition band. Both compounds are emissive in solution at room temperature and 77 K, which exhibit pronounced positive solvatochromic effect. The emitting state could be ascribed to 1ICT state in more polar solvent, and 1π–π⁎ state in low-polarity solvent. The high emission quantum yields (Φem=0.90~1.0) of 1a and 1b (in hexane and toluene) make them potential candidates as efficient light-emitting materials. The spectroscopic studies and theoretical calculations indicate that the photophysical properties of these compounds can be tuned by the carbazole end-capped phenylene ethynylene arm, which would also be useful for rational design of photofunctional materials.

Body composition and components of energy expenditure in children with end-stage liver disease

Background: Better understanding of body composition and energy metabolism in pediatric liver disease may provide a scientific basis for improved medical therapy aimed at achieving optimal nutrition, slowing progression to end-stage liver disease (ESLD), and improving the outcome of liver transplantation. Methods: Twenty-one children less than 2 years of age with ESLD awaiting liver transplantation and 15 healthy, aged-matched controls had body compartment analysis using a four compartment model (body cell mass, fat mass, extracellular water, and extracellular solids). Subjects also had measurements of resting energy expenditure (REE) and respiratory quotient (RQ) by indirect calorimetry. Nine patients and 15 control subjects also had measurements of total energy expenditure (TEE) using doubly labelled water. Results: Mean weights and heights were similar in the two groups. Compared with control subjects, children with ESLD had higher relative mean body cell mass (33 ± 2% vs 29 ± 1% of body weight, P < 0.05), but had similar fat mass, extracellular water, and extracellular solid compartments (18% vs 20%, 41% vs 38%, and 7% vs 13% of body weight respectively). Compared with control subjects, children with ESLD had 27% higher mean REE/body weight (0.285 ± 0.013 vs 0.218. ± 0.013 mJ/kg/24h, P < 0.001), 16% higher REE/unit cell mass (P < 0.05); and lower mean RQ (P < 0.05). Mean TEE of patients was 4.70 ± 0.49 mJ/24h vs 3.19 ± 0.76 in controls, (P < 0.01). Conclusions: In children, ESLD is a hypermetabolic state adversely affecting the relationship between metabolic and non-metabolic body compartments. There is increased metabolic activity within the body cell mass with excess lipid oxidation during fasting and at rest. These findings have implications for the design of appropriate nutritional therapy.

Corporate governance and law reform in Japan: From the lost decade to the end of history?

Japan is in the midst of massive law reform. Mired in ongoing recession since the early 1990s, Japan has been implementing a new regulatory blueprint to kickstart a sluggish economy through structural change. A key element to this reform process is a rethink of corporate governance and its stakeholder relations. With a patchwork of legislative initiatives in areas as diverse as corporate law, finance, labour relations, consumer protection, public administration and civil justice, this new model is beginning to take shape. But to what extent does this model represent a break from the past? Some commentators are breathlessly predicting the "Americanisation" of Japanese law. They see the triumph of Western-style capitalism - the "End of History", to borrow the words of Francis Fukuyama - with its emphasis on market-based, arms-length transactions. Others are more cautious, advancing the view that there new reforms are merely "creative twists" on what is a uniquely (although slowly evolving) strand of Japanese capitalism. This paper takes issue with both interpretations. It argues that the new reforms merely follow Japan's long tradition of 'adopting and adapting' foreign models to suit domestic purposes. They are neither the wholesale importation of "Anglo-Saxon" regulatory principles nor a thin veneer over a 'uniquely unique' form of Confucian cultural capitalism. Rather, they represent a specific and largely political solution (conservative reformism) to a current economic problem (recession). The larger themes of this paper are 'change' and 'continuity'. 'Change' suggests evolution to something identifiable; 'continuity' suggests adhering to an existing state of affairs. Although notionally opposites, 'change' and 'continuity' have something in common - they both suggest some form of predictability and coherence in regulatory reform. Our paper, by contrast, submits that Japanese corporate governance reform or, indeed, law reform more generally in Japan, is context-specific, multi-layered (with different dimensions not necessarily pulling all in the same direction for example, in relations with key outside suppliers), and therefore more random or 'chaotic'.

A Dual Seven-Level Inverter Supply for an Open-End Winding Induction Motor Drive

This paper develops a seven-level inverter structure for open-end winding induction motor drives. The inverter supply is realized by cascading four two-level and two three-level neutral-point-clamped inverters. The inverter control is designed in such a way that the common-mode voltage (CMV) is eliminated. DC-link capacitor voltage balancing is also achieved by using only the switching-state redundancies. The proposed power circuit structure is modular and therefore suitable for fault-tolerant applications. By appropriately isolating some of the inverters, the drive can be operated during fault conditions in a five-level or a three-level inverter mode, with preserved CMV elimination and DC-link capacitor voltage balancing, within a reduced modulation range.

A DC-link Capacitor Voltage Balancing with CMV Elimination using only the Switching State Redundancies for a Reduced Switch Count Multi-Level Inverter fed IM Drive

Common mode voltage (CMV) variations in PWM inverter-fed drives generate unwanted shaft and bearing current resulting in early motor failure. Multilevel inverters reduce this problem to some extent, with higher number of levels. But the complexity of the power circuit increases with an increase in the number of inverter voltage levels. In this paper a five-level inverter structure is proposed for open-end winding induction motor (IM) drives, by cascading only two conventional two-level and three-level inverters, with the elimination of the common mode voltage over the entire modulation range. The DC link power supply requirement is also optimized by means of DC link capacitor voltage balancing, with PWM control., using only inverter switching state redundancies. The proposed power circuit gives a simple power bits structure.

Making More from Sheep Phase II : MMfS State Coordination – Queensland

Making More from Sheep (MMfS) is a majority market extension program funded by Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) and Australian Wool Innovation (AWI). Phase II of MMfS commenced in Queensland with a business planning process in October 2010 and delivery from November 2010 until November 2013. Mr Tony Hamilton of the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) was initially the State Coordinator with responsibility for planning, project implementation, monitoring and evaluation. He was replaced by Ms Nicole Sallur from DAFF towards the end of the project. Delivery involving partner organisations provided best practice management information and tools to sheep producers with target Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) exceeded across all three tiers of engagement category. 31 events were delivered to 551 participants. Satisfaction and value scores averaged across all events measured 8.7 and 8.2 respectively. Operational recommendations have been included in the report.

Philip Slomovitz South End collection 1969-1974

Contains 1969 and 1971-73 issues of The South End, Wayne State University student paper, as well as correspondence, public statements, petitions and a tape-recording relating to controversies generated by the printing of alleged anti-Zionist/anti-Semitic articles in the newspaper. The correspondence consists for the most part of an exchange of letters between university officials, Jewish community leaders and Leonard N. Simons, a Detroit advertising executive, during the 1969 controversy, and correspondence with Philip Slomovitz, editor of the Detroit Jewish news, in 1972-73. The tape recording is of a February 2, 1969 interview with John Watson, editor of the South end.

Small State Cultures of Consensus : State Traditions and Consensus-Seeking in the Neo-Corporatist and Neutrality Policies in Post-1945 Austria and Finland

Austria and Finland are persistently referred to as the “success stories” of post-1945 European history. Notwithstanding their different points of departure, in the course of the Cold War both countries portrayed themselves as small and neutral border-states in the world dictated by superpower politics. By the 1970s, both countries frequently ranked at the top end in various international classifications regarding economic development and well-being in society. This trend continues today. The study takes under scrutiny the concept of consensus which figures centrally in the two national narratives of post-1945 success. Given that the two domestic contexts as such only share few direct links with one another and are more obviously different than similar in terms of their geographical location, historical experiences and politico-cultural traditions, the analogies and variations in the anatomies of the post-1945 “cultures of consensus” provide an interesting topic for a historical comparative and cross-national examination. The main research question concerns the identification and analysis of the conceptual and procedural convergence points of the concepts of the state and consensus. The thesis is divided into six main chapters. After the introduction, the second chapter presents the theoretical framework in more detail by focusing on the key concepts of the study – the state and consensus. Chapter two also introduces the comparative historical and cross-national research angles. Chapter three grounds the key concepts of the state and consensus in the historical contexts of Austria and Finland by discussing the state, the nation and democracy in a longer term comparative perspective. The fourth and fifth chapter present case studies on the two policy fields, the “pillars”, upon which the post-1945 Austrian and Finnish cultures of consensus are argued to have rested. Chapter four deals with neo-corporatist features in the economic policy making and chapter five discusses the building up of domestic consensus regarding the key concepts of neutrality policies in the 1950s and 1960s. The study concludes that it was not consensus as such but the strikingly intense preoccupation with the theme of domestic consensus that cross-cut, in a curiously analogous manner, the policy-making processes studied. The main challenge for the post-1945 architects of Austrian and Finnish cultures of consensus was to find strategies and concepts for consensus-building which would be compatible with the principles of democracy. Discussed at the level of procedures, the most important finding of the study concerns the triangular mechanism of coordination, consultation and cooperation that set into motion and facilitated a new type of search for consensus in both post-war societies. In this triangle, the agency of the state was central, though in varying ways. The new conceptions concerning a small state’s position in the Cold War world also prompted cross-nationally perceivable willingness to reconsider inherited concepts and procedures of the state and the nation. At the same time, the ways of understanding the role of the state and its relation to society remained profoundly different in Austria and Finland and this basic difference was in many ways reflected in the concepts and procedures deployed in the search for consensus and management of domestic conflicts. For more detailed information, please consult the author.

Direct probe of end-segment distribution in tethered polymer chains

End-tethered chains made of an adsorbed diblock copolymer of polystyrene (PS)-polyisoprene (PI) bearing an end-segment including a Ge atom are built by the Langmuir-Schaeffer technique. They are studied both in the dry state and in a good solvent for the PI chain using grazing incidence X-ray standing waves. The analysis of the signal provides a direct measurement of the end-segment distribution which is found to be singular and mostly localized to a plane in the dry case. In the good solvent case, end-segments are found to span the entire assembly and compare very well with results obtained by Kreer et al.

Thermal stresses in a finite hollow cylinder due to an axisymmetric temperature field at the end surface

A three-dimensional exact solution for determining the thermal stresses in a finite hollow cylinder subject to a steady state axisymmetric temperature field over one of its end surfaces has been given. Numerical results for a hollow cylinder, having lenght to outer diameter ratio equal to one and inner to outer diameter ratio equal to 0.75, subjected to a symmetric temperature variation over the end surfaces of the cylinder have been given.

Thermal stresses in a finite solid cylinder due to an axisymmetric temperature field at the end surface.

A three-dimensional rigorous solution for determining thermal stresses in a finite solid cylinder due to a steady state axisymmetric temperature field over one of its end surfaces is given. Numerical results for a solid cylinder having a length to diameter ratio equal to one and subjected to a symmetric temperature variation over half the radius of the cylinder at the end surfaces are included. These results have been compared with the results of the approximate solution given by W. Nowacki.