Discrimination of complex synthetic echoes by an echolocating bottlenose dolphin

Bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) detect and discriminate underwater objects by interrogating the environment with their native echolocation capabilities. Study of dolphins' ability to detect complex (multihighlight) signals in noise suggest echolocation object detection using an approximate 265-micros energy integration time window sensitive to the echo region of highest energy or containing the highlight with highest energy. Backscatter from many real objects contains multiple highlights, distributed over multiple integration windows and with varying amplitude relationships. This study used synthetic echoes with complex highlight structures to test whether high-amplitude initial highlights would interfere with discrimination of low-amplitude trailing highlights. A dolphin was trained to discriminate two-highlight synthetic echoes using differences in the center frequencies of the second highlights. The energy ratio (delta dB) and the timing relationship (delta T) between the first and second highlights were manipulated. An iso-sensitivity function was derived using a factorial design testing delta dB at -10, -15, -20, and -25 dB and delta T at 10, 20, 40, and 80 micros. The results suggest that the animal processed multiple echo highlights as separable analyzable features in the discrimination task, perhaps perceived through differences in spectral rippling across the duration of the echoes.     

The von Kries chromatic adaptation transform and its generalization

Most viable modern chromatic adaptation transforms(CATs),such as CAT16 and CAT02,can trace their roots both conceptually and mathematically to a simple model formulated from the hypotheses of Johannes von Kries in 1902,known as the von Kries transform/model.However,while the von Kries transform satisfies the properties of symmetry and transitivity,most modern CATs do not satisfy these two important properties.In this Letter,we propose a generalized von Kries transform,which satisfies the symmetry and transitivity properties in addition to improving the fit to most available experimental visual datasets on corresponding colors.     

In situ polymerization and morphology of polypyrrole obtained in water‐soluble polymer templates

Several water‐soluble polymers were used as templates for the in situ polymerization of pyrrole to determine their effect on the generation of nanosized polypyrrole (PPy) particles. The polymers used include: polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), polyethylene oxide (PEO), poly(vinyl butyral), polystyrene sulfonic acid, poly(ethylene‐alt‐maleic anhydride) (PEMA), poly(octadecene‐alt‐maleic anhydride), poly(N‐vinyl pyrrolidone), poly(vinyl butyral‐co‐vinyl alcohol‐co‐vinyl acetate), poly(N‐isopropyl acrylamide), poly(ethylene oxide‐block‐propylene oxide), hydroxypropyl methyl cellulose, and guar gum. The oxidative polymerization of pyrrole was carried out with FeCl₃ as an oxidant. The morphology of PPy particles obtained after drying the resulting aqueous dispersions was examined by optical microscopy, and selected samples were further analyzed via atomic force microscopy. Among the template polymers, PVA was the most efficient in generating stable dispersions of PPy nanospheres in water, followed by PEO and PEMA. The average size of PPy nanospheres was in the range of 160 nm and found to depend on the molecular weight and concentration of PVA. Model reactions and kinetics of the polymerization reaction of pyrrole in PVA were carried out by hydrogen ¹H NMR spectroscopy using ammonium persulfate as an oxidant. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2012     

Structural revision and total synthesis of caraphenol B and C

Chemical syntheses of two stereochemically unique resveratrol dimers, caraphenols B and C, have shown that their structures are misassigned. Thoughts on their potential chemical etiology led to an alternate structural proposal that has been confirmed through synthesis, one indicating that the substituents on their respective indane systems exist in a relative trans,trans orientation rather than the originally postulated all-cis arrangement.     

Ueber rationale Curven vierter Ordnung

Ohne ZusammenfassungMit zwei lithographirten Tafeln.     

Über algebraische Raumkurven

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

Erdalkalien

Ohne Zusammenfassung