Bicriteria linear fractional programming

As a step toward the investigation of the multicriteria linear fractional program, this paper provides a thorough analysis of the bicriteria case. It is shown that the set of efficient points is a finite union of linearly constrained sets and the efficient frontier is the image of a finite number of connected line segments of efficient points. A simple algorithm using only one-dimensional parametric linear programming techniques is developed to evaluate the efficient frontier.This research was partially supported by NRC Research Grant No. A4743. The authors wish to thank two anonymous referees for their helpful comments on an earlier draft of this paper.     

The alkaloids of the mersinine group: a new subclass of the monoterpenoid indole alkaloids from Kopsia

A total of 16 alkaloids, exemplified by mersinine A and its congeners, and constituting a new subclass of the monoterpenoid indoles, were isolated exclusively and for the first time from Kopsia singapurensis. The structures of these alkaloids were established by spectroscopic methods and in some instances confirmed by X-ray diffraction analysis. A possible biogenetic route from an aspidofractinine precursor is proposed. Compounds 1, 2, 3, 9, and 10 were found to reverse multidrug-resistance in drug-resistant KB cells.     

Fast and sensitive trace analysis of malachite green using a surface-enhanced Raman microfluidic sensor

A rapid and highly sensitive trace analysis technique for determining malachite green (MG) in a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) microfluidic sensor was investigated using surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). A zigzag-shaped PDMS microfluidic channel was fabricated for efficient mixing between MG analytes and aggregated silver colloids. Under the optimal condition of flow velocity, MG molecules were effectively adsorbed onto silver nanoparticles while flowing along the upper and lower zigzag-shaped PDMS channel. A quantitative analysis of MG was performed based on the measured peak height at 1615 cm⁻¹ in its SERS spectrum. The limit of detection, using the SERS microfluidic sensor, was found to be below the 1–2 ppb level and this low detection limit is comparable to the result of the LC-Mass detection method. In the present study, we introduce a new conceptual detection technology, using a SERS microfluidic sensor, for the highly sensitive trace analysis of MG in water.     

Automated oral cancer identification using histopathological images: a hybrid feature extraction paradigm

Oral cancer (OC) is the sixth most common cancer in the world. In India it is the most common malignant neoplasm. Histopathological images have widely been used in the differential diagnosis of normal, oral precancerous (oral sub-mucous fibrosis (OSF)) and cancer lesions. However, this technique is limited by subjective interpretations and less accurate diagnosis. The objective of this work is to improve the classification accuracy based on textural features in the development of a computer assisted screening of OSF. The approach introduced here is to grade the histopathological tissue sections into normal, OSF without Dysplasia (OSFWD) and OSF with Dysplasia (OSFD), which would help the oral onco-pathologists to screen the subjects rapidly. The biopsy sections are stained with H&E. The optical density of the pixels in the light microscopic images is recorded and represented as matrix quantized as integers from 0 to 255 for each fundamental color (Red, Green, Blue), resulting in a M×N×3 matrix of integers. Depending on either normal or OSF condition, the image has various granular structures which are self similar patterns at different scales termed "texture". We have extracted these textural changes using Higher Order Spectra (HOS), Local Binary Pattern (LBP), and Laws Texture Energy (LTE) from the histopathological images (normal, OSFWD and OSFD). These feature vectors were fed to five different classifiers: Decision Tree (DT), Sugeno Fuzzy, Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM), K-Nearest Neighbor (K-NN), Radial Basis Probabilistic Neural Network (RBPNN) to select the best classifier. Our results show that combination of texture and HOS features coupled with Fuzzy classifier resulted in 95.7% accuracy, sensitivity and specificity of 94.5% and 98.8% respectively. Finally, we have proposed a novel integrated index called Oral Malignancy Index (OMI) using the HOS, LBP, LTE features, to diagnose benign or malignant tissues using just one number. We hope that this OMI can help the clinicians in making a faster and more objective detection of benign/malignant oral lesions.     

Mechanical behavior of bulk amorphous alloys reinforced by ductile particles at cryogenic temperatures

The mechanical behavior of Zr-based bulk amorphous alloy composites (BAACs) was investigated at 77 K. The 5 vol. % Ta-BAAC maintained large plastic strains of approximately 13% with a 16% strength increase, when compared with that at 298 K. The interaction between shear bands and particles shows that shear extension in particles has limited penetration, and shear bands build up around particles. In addition to on the failure surface of the amorphous matrix, molten characteristics were also found on the surface of sheared particles. Pair distribution function studies were performed to understand the mechanical behavior.     

Potassium iodide-mediated radical arylsulfonylation/1,2-carbon migration sequences for the synthesis of β-sulfonated cyclic ketones

Potassium iodide-mediated radical sulfonylation/1,2-carbon migration sequences of alkenylcyclobutanols has been developed. The reaction was effectively accelerated using potassium iodide as a catalyst under mild reaction conditions without other metal oxidant. This approach is environmentally benign by use of shelf-stable arylsulfonyl hydrazides as arylsulfonyl radical precursor and water as solvent. This approach offers a facile way to prepare β-sulfonated cyclic ketone derivatives.     

Janus Graft Block Copolymers: Design of a Polymer Architecture for Independently Tuned Nanostructures and Polymer Properties

The graft‐through synthesis of Janus graft block copolymers (GBCPs) from branched macromonomers composed of various combinations of homopolymers is presented. Self‐assembly of GBCPs resulted in ordered nanostructures with ultra‐small domain sizes down to 2.8 nm (half‐pitch). The grafted architecture introduces an additional parameter, the backbone length, which enables control over the thermomechanical properties and processability of the GBCPs independently of their self‐assembled nanostructures. The simple synthetic route to GBCPs and the possibility of using a variety of polymer combinations contribute to the universality of this technique.     

Waiting time analysis for a tandem queue with correlated service

The effect on overall waiting time including service is investigated when there is positive correlation between the first and second stage service times in a two stage tandem system. The importance of understage waiting (or “buffer”) space is underlined. The analysis is an application of the authors' work reported in [1].