Homodyne detection of de Broglie waves

According to de Broglie, a quantum object is composed of a wave which guides a corpuscle, both existing objectively in the space and time. The Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics is completely different. The wavefunction is considered as a mathematical tool to calculate probabilities which collapses whenever a measurement is performed. In this letter we propose an experiment which can distinguish between the two approaches.     

Formation of basic compounds during the indole cyclization of ketone phenylhydrazones

On the basis of previous occasional findings, the Fischer indole cyclization of ten ketone phenylhydrazones containing moieties of increasing bulkiness was investigated in order to isolate eventual side products. In the cases of the three 2-, 3- and 4-acetylpyridine phenylhydrazones the corresponding 2-pyridylindoles were the sole compounds so far isolated. In all the remaining cases, beside the indoles a mixture of basic compounds was obtained. In all cases aniline and a 2-substituted (2-methyl or 2-phenyl)benzimidazole were formed, the last resulting through an apparent ortho-semidinic rearrangements of phenylhydrazones. Starting from methyl isopropyl ketone phenylhydrazone a compound of formula C₁₁H₁₅NO was also isolated, to which the structure of 3-(4-aminophenyl)-3-methylbutanone was assigned on the basis of ir, nmr spectra and of the chemical reactivity. The formation of this compound seems related to a para-benzidine-like rearrangement of phenyl hydrazone.     

Pulse polarography of nitrosated GPC fractions of humic acids

A pulse polarographic method for the analysis of humic acids fractionated by gel permeation chromatography is described. It is concluded that the pulse polarography of the nitroso-derivatives, already reported as an analytical method for the determination of humic acids, really gives responses due to the presence of iron in the samples. Atomic-absorption measurements confirm this conclusion quite unambiguously.     

Effect of SiO2 on the dynamics of proton conducting [Nafion/(SiO2)X] composite membranes: a solid-state 19F NMR study

Composite membranes, consisting of Nafion and inorganic oxide additives, are frequently discussed alternative materials to overcome the known low conductivity of pure Nafion at temperatures above 100 °C and at low relative humidity. It has been reported that under dry conditions, these membranes show enhanced water uptake and diffusion as compared to filler-free Nafion. This work focuses on the polymer mobility in Nafion/SiO(2) composites and on the impact of the silica particles on the polymer dynamics. [Nafion/(SiO(2))(X)] composite membranes (with X ranging from 0 to 15 wt%) in the dry and wet states were investigated by variable temperature solid-state (19)F NMR spectroscopy. (19)F T(1) and T(1ρ) relaxation times, and NMR lineshapes (linewidths and spinning sideband intensities) were analyzed to get information about the polymer mobility. It is found that Nafion composite membranes, in general, possess a higher mobility as compared to recast Nafion which is in agreement with previous results from conductivity studies. These findings are attributed to the ability of the SiO(2) particles to keep more water inside the composite membranes which also leads to a higher mobility of the polymer component. The results are further supported by the experimental (19)F{(1)H} CP/MAS NMR spectra. It is also shown that the structure of the composite membranes is more stable after dehydration, and possible condensation reactions are diminished in these membranes. In addition, the decrease in ionic exchange capacity after dehydration is less pronounced for the composite membranes as compared to filler-free Nafion.     

A characterization of Buekenhout-Metz unitals in PG(2, q 2), q even

The known examples of embedded unitals (i.e. Hermitian arcs) in PG(2, q ²) are B-unitals, i.e. they can be obtained from ovoids of PG(3, q) by a method due to Buekenhout. B-unitals arising from elliptic quadrics are called BM-unitals. Recently, BM-unitals have been classified and their collineation groups have been investigated. A new characterization is given in this paper. We also compute the linear collineation group fixing the B-unital arising from the Segre-Tits ovoid of PG(3, 2 ^r ), r3 odd. It turns out that this group is an Abelian group of order q ².Research supported by MURST.     

New Insight on Phenolic Composition and Evaluation of the Vitamin C and Nutritional Value of Smoothies Sold on the Spanish Market

Fruits and vegetables are a source of a wide range of nutrients, including bioactive compounds. These compounds have great biological activity and have been linked to the prevention of chronic non-communicable diseases. Currently, the food industry is developing new products to introduce these compounds, whereby smoothies are becoming more popular among consumers. The aim of this study was to evaluate the nutritional quality and the polyphenol and vitamin C content of smoothies available on the Spanish market. An evaluation of the nutritional information and ingredients was carried out. The phenolic compounds were determined by HPLC-ESI-TOF-MS; the vitamin C content was quantified using HPLC-UV/VIS; and the antioxidant activity was analyzed by DPPH and FRAP. Among all of the ingredients of the smoothies, coconut and banana have shown a negative impact on the polyphenol content of the smoothies. In contrast, ingredients such as orange, mango, and passion fruit had a positive correlation with the vitamin C content. Moreover, apple and red fruits showed the highest positive correlations with most of the phenolic acids, flavonoids, total phenolic compounds, and antioxidant activities. In addition, a clustering analysis was performed, and four groups were clearly defined according to the bioactive composition determined here. This research is a precious step for the formulation of new smoothies and to increase their polyphenol quality.     

Centrality in networks of urban streets

Centrality has revealed crucial for understanding the structural properties of complex relational networks. Centrality is also relevant for various spatial factors affecting human life and behaviors in cities. Here, we present a comprehensive study of centrality distributions over geographic networks of urban streets. Five different measures of centrality, namely degree, closeness, betweenness, straightness and information, are compared over 18 1-square-mile samples of different world cities. Samples are represented by primal geographic graphs, i.e., valued graphs defined by metric rather than topologic distance where intersections are turned into nodes and streets into edges. The spatial behavior of centrality indices over the networks is investigated graphically by means of color-coded maps. The results indicate that a spatial analysis, that we term multiple centrality assessment, grounded not on a single but on a set of different centrality indices, allows an extended comprehension of the city structure, nicely capturing the skeleton of most central routes and subareas that so much impacts on spatial cognition and on collective dynamical behaviors. Statistically, closeness, straightness and betweenness turn out to follow similar functional distribution in all cases, despite the extreme diversity of the considered cities. Conversely, information is found to be exponential in planned cities and to follow a power-law scaling in self-organized cities. Hierarchical clustering analysis, based either on the Gini coefficients of the centrality distributions, or on the correlation between different centrality measures, is able to characterize classes of cities.     

A general procedure for the synthesis of alkyl- and arylethynyl-1,2,3-triazole-fused dihydroisoquinolines

A general procedure for the synthesis of the title compounds has been devised starting from the available 2-halophenylethyl azides, by means of click reactions with trimethylsilylacetylene or 1-trimethylsilyl-1,3-butadiyne followed by a transition metal-catalyzed functionalization of C-H bond. A further extension of this procedure led us to devise the synthesis of more complex 4,4'-bitriazole-fused dihydroisoquinolines.     

Spectroscopic studies and X-ray crystal structures of charge-transfer complexes of 1,4,7-trithiacyclononane with diiodine

1,4,7-Trithiacyclononane ([9]aneS₃) reacts with molecular diiodine in CH₂Cl₂ to form a 1:1 adduct. The formation constant and the thermodynamic parameters of this adduct have been determined by UV-visible spectra of several solutions at the temperatures of 15, 20, 25, 30, and 35°C. The ¹³C NMR spectra show that adducts with higher ligand/diiodine molar ratios are formed. Two neutral charge-transfer molecular compounds having formula 2[9]aneS₃ · 4I₂ ( I ) and [9]aneS₃ · 3I₂ · ( II ) have been obtained as crystals. The crystals of I are triclinic (a = 8.498(2) Å, b = 13.984(4) Å, c = 14.898(6) Å, α = 65.57(2)°, γ = 89.19(2)°, γ = 81.26(2)°, Z = 2, space group P1; R = 0.025) and contain units formed by two [9]aneS₃ molecules connected by a diiodine molecule; one [9]aneS₃ binds two other diiodine molecules, while the second binds only one other diiodine molecule. The crystals of II are monoclinic (a = 13.810(2) Å, b = 9.829(4) Å, c = 16.198(6) Å, β = 113.41(2)°, Z = 4, space group P2₁/c; R = 0.019) and contain molecules of [9]aneS₃ binding three diiodine molecules. FT-Raman spectra in the characteristic v(I–I) region, carried out on the solid adducts, are discussed in comparison with the structural parameters.