Linear Balanceable and Subcubic Balanceable Graphs*

In Math Program 55(1992), 129–168, Conforti and Rao conjectured that every balanced bipartite graph contains an edge that is not the unique chord of a cycle. We prove this conjecture for balanced bipartite graphs that do not contain a cycle of length 4 (also known as linear balanced bipartite graphs), and for balanced bipartite graphs whose maximum degree is at most 3. We in fact obtain results for more general classes, namely linear balanceable and subcubic balanceable graphs. Additionally, we prove that cubic balanced graphs contain a pair of twins, a result that was conjectured by Morris, Spiga, and Webb in ( Discrete Math 310(2010), 3228–3235).     

A High‐Quality Professional Development for Teachers of Grades 3–6 for Implementing Engineering into Classrooms

With the increasing emphasis on integrating engineering into K‐12 classrooms to help meet the needs of our complex and multidisciplinary society, there is an urgent need to investigate teachers' engineering‐focused professional development experiences as they relate to teacher learning, implementation, and student achievement. This study addresses this need by examining the effects of a professional development program focused on engineering integration, and how teachers chose to implement engineering in their classrooms as a result of the professional development. 198 teachers in grades 3–6 from 43 schools in 17 districts participated in a yearlong professional development program designed to help integrate the new state science standards, with a focus on engineering, into their teaching. Posters including lesson plans and student artifacts were used to assess teachers' engineering practices and the implementation in their classrooms. Results indicated that the majority of the teachers who participated in the professional development were able to effectively implement engineering design lessons in their classrooms suggesting that the teachers' success in implementing engineering lessons in their classroom was closely related to the structure of the professional development program.     

Enantioselective synthesis of the carbacephem antibiotic loracarbef via Mitsunobu and Dieckmann cyclization from an unnatural amino acid

The nucleus of the carbacephem antibiotic loracarbef was synthesized in a highly efficient and enantioselective fashion from 2S,3S-2-amino-3-hydroxy-6-heptenoic acid (AHHA), which was derived from enzyme-catalyzed condensation of glycine and 4-pentenaldehyde. The bicyclic framework of this compound was established through sequential Mitsunobu reaction and aldol condensations.     

In Situ Detection of Particle Aggregation on Electrode Surfaces

Partially blocked electrodes (PBEs) are important; many applications use non‐conductive nanoparticles (NPs) to introduce new electrode functionalities. As aggregation is a problem in NP immobilization, developing an in situ method to detect aggregation is vital to characterise such modified electrodes. We present chronoamperometry as a method for detection of NP surface aggregation and semi‐quantitative sizing of the formed aggregates, based on the diffusion limited current measured at PBEs as compared with the values calculated numerically for different blocking feature sizes. In contrast to voltammetry, no approximations on electrode kinetics are needed, making chronoamperometry a more general and reliable method. Sizing is shown for two modification methods. Upon drop casting, significant aggregation is observed, while it is minimized in electrophoretic NP deposition. The aggregate sizes determined are in semi‐quantitative agreement with ex situ microscopic analysis of the PBEs.     

Thickness difference induced pore structure variations in cellulosic separators for lithium-ion batteries

The pore structure of the separator is crucial to the performance of a lithium-battery as it affects the cell resistance. Herein, a straightforward approach to vary the pore structure of Cladophora cellulose (CC) separators is presented. It is demonstrated that the pore size and porosity of the CC separator can be increased merely by decreasing the thickness of the CC separator by using less CC in the manufacturing of the separator. As the pore size and porosity of the CC separator are increased, the mass transport through the separator is increased which decreases the electrolyte resistance in the pores of the separator. This enhances the battery performance, particularly at higher cycling rates, as is demonstrated for LiFePO₄/Li half-cells. A specific capacity of around 100 mAh g^?1 was hence obtained at a cycling rate of 2 C with a 10 µm thick CC separator while specific capacities of 40 and close to 0 mAh g^?1 were obtained for separators with thicknesses of 20 and 40 µm, respectively. As the results also showed that a higher ionic conductivity was obtained for the 10 µm thick CC separator than for the 20 and 40 µm thick CC separators, it is clear that the different pore structure of the separators was an important factor affecting the battery performance in addition to the separator thickness. The present straightforward, yet efficient, strategy for altering the pore structure hence holds significant promise for the manufacturing of separators with improved performance, as well as for fundamental studies of the influence of the properties of the separator on the performance of lithium-ion cells.     

Electron detachment dissociation of fluorescently labeled sialylated oligosaccharides

We explored the application of electron detachment dissociation (EDD) and infrared multiphoton dissociation (IRMPD) tandem mass spectrometry to fluorescently labeled sialylated oligosaccharides. Standard sialylated oligosaccharides and a sialylated N-linked glycan released from human transferrin were investigated. EDD yielded extensive glycosidic cleavages and cross-ring cleavages in all cases studied, consistently providing complementary structural information compared with infrared multiphoton dissociation. Neutral losses and satellite ions such as C-2H ions were also observed following EDD. In addition, we examined the influence of different fluorescent labels. The acidic label 2-aminobenzoic acid (2-AA) enhanced signal abundance in negative-ion mode. However, few cross-ring fragments were observed for 2-AA-labeled oligosaccharides. The neutral label 2-aminobenzamide (2-AB) resulted in more cross-ring cleavages compared with 2-AA-labeled species, but not as extensive fragmentation as for native oligosaccharides, likely resulting from altered negative charge locations from introduction of the fluorescent tag.     

Molecular Cluster Distribution in Sea Water Near the Wall: Antifouling Aspect

It was investigated how the “wall effect” influences the cluster distribution in water and 3.5 wt.% NaCl solution being in a glass cylinder. The cluster distribution in a mass assemble up to 2.2 million Dalton was determined in dependence on the distance to the wall at normal atmospheric pressure. The average cluster mass, the rate of collapsed and skeletal clusters and the number of cluster kinds depended on the distance to the wall and on stirring methods. In different liquid’s layers and at different distances to the wall, there were registered newly appearing clusters as well as disappearing ones especially, solvated clusters of ion pairs (SCIPs). Under non-stirring conditions, the base water cluster (H₂O)₁₂ and (NaCl·40H₂O)₂ are the most sensitive to the wall distance. Other SCIPs like dimers, tetramers and hexamers remain stable at stirring in the vessel center (12 rad/s) and don’t react to wall approaching however at cylinder rotation (8.9 rad/s) these SCIPs are sensitive to the wall. The wall nature, the distance to the wall and the constant magnetic field were concluded to influence the cluster distribution differently. Cluster properties were assumed to be applied by sea water living organisms for their navigation.     

Sensitizing the Sensitizer: The Synthesis and Photophysical Study of Bodipy-Pt(II)(diimine)(dithiolate) Conjugates

The dyads 3, 4, and 6, combining the Bodipy chromophore with a Pt(bpy)(bdt) (bpy = 2,2'-bipyridine, bdt = 1,2-benzenedithiolate, 3 and 6) or a Pt(bpy)(mnt) (mnt = maleonitriledithiolate, 4) moiety, have been synthesized and studied by UV-vis steady-state absorption, transient absorption, and emission spectroscopies and cyclic voltammetry. Comparison of the absorption spectra and cyclic voltammograms of dyads 3, 4, and 6 and those of their model compounds 1a, 2, 5, and 7 shows that the spectroscopic and electrochemical properties of the dyads are essentially the sum of their constituent chromophores, indicating negligible interaction of the constituent chromophores in the ground state. However, emission studies on 3 and 6 show a complete absence of both Bodipy-based fluorescence and the characteristic luminescence of the Pt(bpy)(bdt) unit. Dyad 4 shows a weak Pt(mnt)-based emission. Transient absorption studies show that excitation of the dyads into the Bodipy-based (1)ππ* excited state is followed by singlet energy transfer (SEnT) to the Pt(dithiolate)-based (1)MMLL'CT (mixed metal-ligand to ligand charge transfer) excited state ([Formula: see text] = 0.6 ps, [Formula: see text] = 0.5 ps, and [Formula: see text] = 1.6 ps), which undergoes rapid intersystem crossing to the (3)MMLL'CT state due to the heavy Pt(II) ion. The (3)MMLL'CT state is then depopulated by triplet energy transfer (TEnT) to the low-lying Bodipy-based (3)ππ* excited state ([Formula: see text] = 8.2 ps, [Formula: see text] = 5 ps, and [Formula: see text] = 160 ps). The transition assignments are supported by TD-DFT calculations. Both energy-transfer processes are shown to proceed via a Dexter electron exchange mechanism. The much longer time constants for dyad 6 relative to 3 are attributed to the significantly poorer coupling and resonance of charge-separated species that are intermediates in the electron exchange process.