Large-time asymptotics for the Gt/Mt/st+GIt many-server fluid queue with abandonment

We previously introduced and analyzed the G _t /M _t /s _t +GI _t many-server fluid queue with time-varying parameters, intended as an approximation for the corresponding stochastic queueing model when there are many servers and the system experiences periods of overload. In this paper, we establish an asymptotic loss of memory (ALOM) property for that fluid model, i.e., we show that there is asymptotic independence from the initial conditions as time t evolves, under regularity conditions. We show that the difference in the performance functions dissipates over time exponentially fast, again under the regularity conditions. We apply ALOM to show that the stationary G/M/s+GI fluid queue converges to steady state and the periodic G _t /M _t /s _t +GI _t fluid queue converges to a periodic steady state as time evolves, for all finite initial conditions.     

Improving quantitative gas chromatography-electron ionization mass spectrometry results using a modified ion source: demonstration for a pharmaceutical application

Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry is a well established analytical technique. However, mass spectrometers with electron ionization sources may suffer from signal drifts, hereby negatively influencing quantitative performance. To demonstrate this phenomenon for a real application, a static headspace-gas chromatography method in combination with electron ionization-quadrupole mass spectrometry was optimized for the determination of residual dichloromethane in coronary stent coatings. Validating the method, the quantitative performance of an original stainless steel ion source was compared to that of a modified ion source. Ion source modification included the application of a gold coating on the repeller and exit plate. Several validation aspects such as limit of detection, limit of quantification, linearity and precision were evaluated using both ion sources. It was found that, as expected, the stainless steel ion source suffered from signal drift. As a consequence, non-linearity and high RSD values for repeated analyses were obtained. An additional experiment was performed to check whether an internal standard compound would lead to better results. It was found that the signal drift patterns of the analyte and internal standard were different, consequently leading to high RSD values for the response factor. With the modified ion source however, a more stable signal was observed resulting in acceptable linearity and precision. Moreover, it was also found that sensitivity improved compared to the stainless steel ion source. Finally, the optimized method with the modified ion source was applied to determine residual dichloromethane in the coating of coronary stents. The solvent was detected but found to be below the limit of quantification.     

Accuracy of existing atomic potentials for the CdTe semiconductor compound

CdTe and CdTe-based Cd(1-x)Zn(x)Te (CZT) alloys are important semiconductor compounds that are used in a variety of technologies including solar cells, radiation detectors, and medical imaging devices. Performance of such systems, however, is limited due to the propensity of nano- and micro-scale defects that form during crystal growth and manufacturing processes. Molecular dynamics simulations offer an effective approach to study the formation and interaction of atomic scale defects in these crystals, and provide insight on how to minimize their concentrations. The success of such a modeling effort relies on the accuracy and transferability of the underlying interatomic potential used in simulations. Such a potential must not only predict a correct trend of structures and energies of a variety of elemental and compound lattices, defects, and surfaces but also capture correct melting behavior and should be capable of simulating crystalline growth during vapor deposition as these processes sample a variety of local configurations. In this paper, we perform a detailed evaluation of the performance of two literature potentials for CdTe, one having the Stillinger-Weber form and the other possessing the Tersoff form. We examine simulations of structures and the corresponding energies of a variety of elemental and compound lattices, defects, and surfaces compared to those obtained from ab initio calculations and experiments. We also perform melting temperature calculations and vapor deposition simulations. Our calculations show that the Stillinger-Weber parameterization produces the correct lowest energy structure. This potential, however, is not sufficiently transferrable for defect studies. Origins of the problems of these potentials are discussed and insights leading to the development of a more transferrable potential suitable for molecular dynamics simulations of defects in CdTe crystals are provided.     

Protein kinase A type I activates a CRE-element more efficiently than protein kinase A type II regardless of C subunit isoform

Background  

Protein kinase A type I (PKAI) and PKAII are expressed in most of the eukaryotic cells examined. PKA is a major receptor for cAMP and specificity is achieved partly through tissue-dependent expression and subcellular localization of subunits with different biochemical properties. In addition posttranslational modifications help fine tune PKA activity, distribution and interaction in the cell. In spite of this the functional significance of two forms of PKA in one cell has not been fully determined. Here we have tested the ability of PKAI and PKAII formed by expression of the regulatory (R) subunits RIα or RIIα in conjunction with Cα1 or Cβ2 to activate a co-transfected luciferace reporter gene, controlled by the cyclic AMP responsive element-binding protein (CREB) in vivo.     

Interaction parameters of polystyrene-polyisoprene-toluene systems at 45°c from gel permeation chromatography

Equilibrium phase diagrams of narrow molecular weight distribution samples of polystyrene and polyisoprene in the presence of toluene at 45°C and 1 atm pressure were established by means of gel permeation chromatography. The polymer-polymer interaction parameter was evaluated on the basis of the Flory-Huggins approach. The influence of polymer molecular weight and polymer-solvent interaction parameters on (i) the shape and location of the binodal curve, (ii) the location of the critical point, and (iii) the polymer-polymer interaction parameter was investigated.     

On the average genus of a graph

Not all rational numbers are possibilities for the average genus of an individual graph. The smallest such numbers are determined, and varied examples are constructed to demonstrate that a single value of average genus can be shared by arbitrarily many different graphs. It is proved that the number 1 is a limit point of the set of possible values for average genus and that the complete graph K₄ is the only 3-connected graph whose average genus is less than 1.     

The Existence and Stability of Asymmetric Spike Patterns for the Schnakenberg Model

Asymmetric spike patterns are constructed for the two-component Schnakenburg reaction–diffusion system in the singularly perturbed limit of a small diffusivity of one of the components. For a pattern with k spikes, the construction yields   k ₁  spikes that have a common small amplitude and   k ₂= k − k ₁  spikes that have a common large amplitude. A k -spike asymmetric equilibrium solution is obtained from an arbitrary ordering of the small and large spikes on the domain. Explicit conditions for the existence and linear stability of these asymmetric spike patterns are determined using a combination of asymptotic techniques and spectral properties associated with a certain nonlocal eigenvalue problem. These asymmetric solutions are found to bifurcate from symmetric spike patterns at certain critical values of the parameters. Two interesting conclusions are that asymmetric patterns can exist for a reaction–diffusion system with spatially homogeneous coefficients under Neumann boundary conditions and that these solutions can be linearly stable on an O (1) time scale.     

Molecular weight characterization of soluble high performance polyimides. 1. Polymer-solvent-stationary phase interactions in size exclusion chromatography

Soluble, fully cyclized m-amino phenyl acetylene terminated polyimides based on several anhydride/diamine monomers were prepared in N-methylpyrrolidine (NMP) and cyclized by solution imidization to controlled molecular weight. The polyimides and a polyamic acid precursor were successfully analyzed by size exclusion chromatography (SEC) utilizing online parallel coupled refractive index and differential viscometer detectors. The calculated M _nvalues were varied from 3,000 to 20,000 daltons. N-methylpyrrolidone (NMP), tetrahydrofuran (THF), and chloroform served as mobile phases for the cross-linked polystyrene gel packings. Normal retention behavior of the polyimides was observed in chloroform, THF, and NMP containing LiBr, or in NMP stirred over P₂O₅ before use. Values of Mark-Houwink-Sakurada exponents for narrow distribution linear polystyrene indicate that pure NMP and NMP with 0.06 M LiBr are good solvents for polystyrene standards at 60°C. In contrast, SEC behavior of polyimides in pure NMP leads to splitting of the peaks with the major portion observed to pass through the columns at the exclusion limit. In contrast to strong polymeric chain expansion of the polyamic acid in dilute solution, presumably due to a polyelectrolyte effect, no increase of intrinsic viscosity of polyimide samples in pure NMP was observed. This exclusion effect of polyimides analyzed in NMP is discussed in terms of possible ion-exclusion from pores of the stationary phase. Differences in polystyrene calibration in NMP with or without additives and the temperature dependence of calibration curves in these mobile phases is discussed as well. ©1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Hierarchical visual data mining for large-scale data

Summary  An increasingly important problem in exploratory data analysis and visualization is that of scale; more and more data sets are much too large to analyze using traditional techniques, either in terms of the number of variables or the number of records. One approach to addressing this problem is the development and use of multiresolution strategies, where we represent the data at different levels of abstraction or detail through aggregation and summarization. In this paper we present an overview of our recent and current activities in the development of a multiresolution exploratory visualization environment for large-scale multivariate data. We have developed visualization, interaction, and data management techniques for effectively dealing with data sets that contain millions of records and/or hundreds of dimensions, and propose methods for applying similar approaches to extend the system to handle nominal as well as ordinal data.