Pentopyranosyl Oligonucleotide Systems. 9th Communication

Pyranosyl‐RNA (‘p‐RNA’ ) is an oligonucleotide system isomeric to natural RNA and composed of the very same building blocks as RNA. Its generational, chemical, and informational properties are deemed to be those of an alternative nucleic acid system that could have been a candidate in Nature's evolutionary choice of the molecular basis of genetic function. We consider the study of the chemistry of p‐RNA as etiologically relevant in the sense that knowledge of its structural, chemical, and informational properties on the chemical level offers both a perspective and reference points for the recognition of specific structural assets of the RNA structure that made it the (supposedly) superior system among possible alternatives and, therefore, the system that became part of biology as we know it today. The paper describes the chemical synthesis of β‐d‐ (and L )‐ribopyranosyl‐(4′→2′)‐oligonucleotide sequences, presents a resume of their structural and chemical properties, and cautiously discusses what we may and may not have learned from the pyranosyl isomer of RNA with respect to the conundrum of RNA's origin.     

Resonance ionization spectroscopy for trace analysis and fundamental research

Resonance ionization spectroscopy (RIS) and its combination with mass spectrometry (RIMS) have grown to become powerful techniques, which offer high sensitivity as well as elemental and isotopic selectivity. The principles of RIS and RIMS are introduced; they primarily concern the analysis of the optical spectra for the choice of efficient excitation schemes and the suitable design of the experimental apparatus. Recent applications span from studies of short-lived isotopes at on-line mass separators to a wide variety of trace analysis applications for radioactive isotopes, which can range from measurements of solar neutrino flux to environmental assessment.On leave from Pacific Northwest Laboratory, Richland, USA     

Higher-order radiative perturbation theory

As a computationally effective tool, the first-order term of the radiative perturbation theory has been computed successfully, and has been applied in a number of areas. In this article, we develop the computational expressions for the higher-order terms of the perturbation expansion in a plane parallel atmosphere. These expressions are then implemented, and numerical results for some typical cases are presented. These results indicate that the computation is successful and that the higher-order terms are essential in cases where the first-order term alone cannot predict the perturbation with sufficient accuracy.     

Robust Adaptive Identification of Fuzzy Systems with Uncertain Data

This study presents a method of adaptive identification of parameters describing Sugeno fuzzy inference system in presence of bounded disturbances while maintaining the readability and interpretability of the fuzzy model during and after identification. This method do not require any a priori knowledge of a bound on the disturbance and noise and of a bound on the unknown parameters values. The method can be used for the robust and adaptive identification of slowly time varying nonlinear systems using fuzzy inference systems. The suggested method was used to build a fuzzy expert system that approximates the functional relationship between physical fitness and some of the measurable physiological parameters by their real measurements and opinion (human-experiences) of a medical expert.