A Novel Allenic Epoxycyclohexane and Related Compounds from Eutypa lata (Pers: F.) Tul

The novel allenic epoxycyclohexanes 1 , and related compounds 2 and 3 have been isolated from the culture medium of Eutypa lata. Their structures were established by combination of spectroscopic and chemical techniques. Biogenetic origin and biological activity of these compounds are also discussed.     

Measurement of the resistivity of porous materials with an alternating air-flow method

Air-flow resistivity is a main parameter governing the acoustic behavior of porous materials for sound absorption. The international standard ISO 9053 specifies two different methods to measure the air-flow resistivity, namely a steady-state air-flow method and an alternating air-flow method. The latter is realized by the measurement of the sound pressure at 2 Hz in a small rigid volume closed partially by the test sample. This cavity is excited with a known volume-velocity sound source implemented often with a motor-driven piston oscillating with prescribed area and displacement magnitude. Measurements at 2 Hz require special instrumentation and care. The authors suggest an alternating air-flow method based on the ratio of sound pressures measured at frequencies higher than 2 Hz inside two cavities coupled through a conventional loudspeaker. The basic method showed that the imaginary part of the sound pressure ratio is useful for the evaluation of the air-flow resistance. Criteria are discussed about the choice of a frequency range suitable to perform simplified calculations with respect to the basic method. These criteria depend on the sample thickness, its nonacoustic parameters, and the measurement apparatus as well. The proposed measurement method was tested successfully with various types of acoustic materials.     

Multi-Dimensional Pattern Matching with Dimensional Wildcards: Data Structures and Optimal On-Line Search Algorithms

We introduce a new multidimensional pattern matching problem that is a natural generalization of string matching, a well studied problem[1]. The motivation for its algorithmic study is mainly theoretical. LetA[1:n₁,…,1:n_d] be a text matrix withN = n₁…n_dentries andB[1:m₁,…,1:m_r] be a pattern matrix withM = m₁…m_rentries, whered ≥ r ≥ 1 (the matrix entries are taken from an ordered alphabet Σ). We study the problem of checking whether somer-dimensional submatrix ofAis equal toB(i.e., adecisionquery).Acan be preprocessed andBis given on-line. We define a new data structure for preprocessingAand propose CRCW-PRAM algorithms that build it inO(log N) time withN²/n_maxprocessors, wheren_max = max(n₁,…,n_d), such that the decision query forBtakesO(M) work andO(log M) time. By using known techniques, we would get the same preprocessing bounds but anO((^d_r)M) work bound for the decision query. The latter bound is undesirable since it can depend exponentially ond; our bound, in contrast, is independent ofdand optimal. We can also answer, in optimal work, two further types of queries: (a) anenumerationquery retrieving all ther-dimensional submatrices ofAthat are equal toBand (b) anoccurrencequery retrieving only the distinct positions inAthat correspond to all of these submatrices. As a byproduct, we also derive the first efficient sequential algorithms for the new problem.     

On the problem of the elastic plate on one-sided foundation

Summary Solution existence, uniqueness and regularity are analyzed for the elastic plate on unilateral elastic foundation problem. Some results are also given for the one-sided rigid foundation case.

---

Sommario Si studiano l'esistenza, l'unicità e la regolarità delle soluzioni del problema della piastra elastica su fondazione elastica unilaterale. Sono anche dati alcuni risultati per il caso di fondazione rigida unilaterale.

     

Fibrillar Networks of Glycyrrhizic Acid for Hybrid Nanomaterials with Catalytic Features

Self‐assembly of the naturally occurring sweetening agent, glycyrrhizic acid (GA) in water is studied by small‐angle X‐ray scattering and microscopic techniques. Statistical analysis on atomic force microscopy images reveals the formation of ultralong GA fibrils with uniform thickness of 2.5 nm and right‐handed twist with a pitch of 9 nm, independently of GA concentration. Transparent nematic GA hydrogels are exploited to create functional hybrid materials. Two‐fold and three‐fold hybrids are developed by introducing graphene oxide (GO) and in situ‐synthesized gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) in the hydrogel matrix for catalysis applications. In the presence of GO, the catalytic efficiency of Au NPs in the reduction of p‐nitrophenol to p‐aminophenol is enhanced by 2.5 times. Gold microplate single crystals are further synthesized in the GA hydrogel, expanding the scope of these hybrids and demonstrating their versatility in materials design.     

Phase Behavior of a Designed Cyclopropyl Analogue of Monoolein: Implications for Low‐Temperature Membrane Protein Crystallization

Lipidic cubic phases (LCPs) are used in areas ranging from membrane biology to biodevices. Because some membrane proteins are notoriously unstable at room temperature, and available LCPs undergo transformation to lamellar phases at low temperatures, development of stable low‐temperature LCPs for biophysical studies of membrane proteins is called for. Monodihydrosterculin (MDS) is a designer lipid based on monoolein (MO) with a configurationally restricted cyclopropyl ring replacing the olefin. Small‐angle X‐ray scattering (SAXS) analyses revealed a phase diagram for MDS lacking the high‐temperature, highly curved reverse hexagonal phase typical for MO, and extending the cubic phase boundary to lower temperature, thereby establishing the relationship between lipid molecular structure and mesophase behavior. The use of MDS as a new material for LCP‐based membrane protein crystallization at low temperature was demonstrated by crystallizing bacteriorhodopsin at 20 °C as well as 4 °C.     

An exact algorithm to extend lifetime through roles allocation in sensor networks with connectivity constraints

We face the problem of scheduling optimally the activities in a wireless sensor network in order to ensure that, in each instant of time, the activated sensors can monitor all points of interest (targets) and route the collected information to a processing facility. Each sensor is allocated to a role, depending on whether it is actually used to monitor the targets, to forward information or kept idle, leading to different battery consumption ratios. We propose a column generation algorithm that embeds a highly efficient genetic metaheuristic for the subproblem. Moreover, to optimally solve the subproblem, we introduce a new formulation with fewer integer variables than a previous one proposed in the literature. Finally, we propose a stopping criterion to interrupt the optimal resolution of the subproblem as soon as a favorable solution is found. The results of our computational tests show that our algorithm consistently outperforms previous approaches in the literature, and also improves the best results known to date on some benchmark instances.