A finite‐capacity queue with exhaustive vacation/close‐down/setup times and Markovian arrival processes

We consider a finitecapacity singleserver vacation model with closedown/setup times and Markovian arrival processes (MAP). The queueing model has potential applications in classical IP over ATM or IP switching systems, where the closedown time corresponds to an inactive timer and the setup time to the time delay to set up a switched virtual connection (SVC) by the signaling protocol. The vacation time may be considered as the time period required to release an SVC or as the time during which the server goes to set up other SVCs. By using the supplementary variable technique, we obtain the queue length distribution at an arbitrary instant, the loss probability, the setup rate, as well as the Laplace–Stieltjes transforms of both the virtual and actual waiting time distributions.     

On the synthetic approach to the protopine alkaloids

The synthetic approach to the protopine alkaloids is described. Efficient construction of the alkaloid models 16a and 16b was accomplished by the general synthetic method consisting of photo-oxygenative ring enlargement of tetrahydrobenzindenoazepines 13a and 13b by singlet oxygen and further elaboration of the resultant 10-membered amido-ketone products 14a and 14b.     

Twist-grain-boundary structure in the B4 phase of a bent-core molecular system identified by second harmonic generation circular dichroism measurement

Second harmonic generation circular dichroism (SHG CD) measurements are performed on the B4 phase of a bent-core molecular system. Numerical analysis of SHG CD incorporating magnetic-dipole as well as electric-dipole interaction shows that the B4 phase is in a twist-grain-boundary structure with the helical axis along the bent direction of the molecules. The result is extremely important in the sense that achiral molecules are spontaneously optically resolved, i.e., deracemization, the chiral domains of which give rise to huge chiral nonlinear optical effect.     

Continuous chemoselective methylation of functionalized amines and diols with supercritical methanol over solid acid and acid-base bifunctional catalysts

The selective N-methylation of bifunctionalized amines with supercritical methanol (scCH(3)OH) promoted by the conventional solid acids (H-mordenite, beta-zeolite, amorphous silica-alumina) and acid-base bifunctional catalysts (Cs-P-Si mixed oxide and gamma-alumina) was investigated in a continuous-flow, fixed-bed reactor. The use of scCH(3)OH in the reaction of 2-aminoethanol with methanol (amine/CH(3)OH = 1/10.8) over the solid catalysts led to a significant improvement in the chemoselectivity of the N-methylation. Among the catalysts examined, the Cs-P-Si mixed oxide provided the most efficient catalyst performance in terms of selectivity and reactivity at 300 degrees C and 8.2 MPa; the N-methylation selectivity in the products reaching up to 94% at 86% conversion. The present selective methylation was successfully applied to the synthesis of N-methylated amino alcohols and diamines as well as O-methylated ethylene glycol. Noticeably, ethoxyethylamine was less reactive, suggesting that the hydroxy group of the amino alcohols is a crucial structural factor in determining high reactivity and selectivity, possibly because of the tethering effect of another terminus, a hydroxo group, to the catalyst surface. The magic-angle-spinning NMR spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction analysis of the Cs-P-Si mixed oxide catalyst revealed that the acidic and basic sites originate from P(2)O(5)/SiO(2) and Cs/SiO(2), respectively, and the weak acid-base paired sites are attributed to three kinds of cesium phosphates on SiO(2). The weak acid-base sites on the catalyst surface might be responsible for the selective dehydrative methylation.     

Observation of electrostatically released DNA from gold electrodes with controlled threshold voltages

DNA oligo-nucleotides, localized at Au metal electrodes in aqueous solution, are found to be released when applying a negative bias voltage to the electrode. The release was confirmed by monitoring the intensity of the fluorescence of cyanine dyes (Cy3) linked to the 5' end of the DNA. The threshold voltage of the release changes depending on the kind of linker added to the DNA 3'-terminal. The amount of released DNA depends on the duration of the voltage pulse. Using this technique, we can retain DNA at Au electrodes or Au needles, and release the desired amount of DNA at a precise location in a target. The results suggest that DNA injection into living cells is possible with this method.