An Algorithmic Approach to Discrete Time Non-homogeneous Backward Semi-Markov Reward Processes with an Application to Disability Insurance

In this paper semi-Markov reward models are presented. Higher moments of the reward process is presented for the first time applied to in time non-homogeneous semi-Markov insurance problems. Also an example is presented based on real disability data. Different algorithmic approaches to solve the problem is described. This work is partly supported by the Knowledge Foundation and Sparbankens Stiftelse Nya. The authors would like to thank the anonymous referee.     

On the use of the resting potential and level set methods for identifying ischemic heart disease: An inverse problem

The electrical activity in the heart is modeled by a complex, nonlinear, fully coupled system of differential equations. Several scientists have studied how this model, referred to as the bidomain model, can be modified to incorporate the effect of heart infarctions on simulated ECG (electrocardiogram) recordings.We are concerned with the associated inverse problem; how can we use ECG recordings and mathematical models to identify the position, size and shape of heart infarctions? Due to the extreme CPU efforts needed to solve the bidomain equations, this model, in its full complexity, is not well-suited for this kind of problems. In this paper we show how biological knowledge about the resting potential in the heart and level set techniques can be combined to derive a suitable stationary model, expressed in terms of an elliptic PDE, for such applications. This approach leads to a nonlinear ill-posed minimization problem, which we propose to regularize and solve with a simple iterative scheme.Finally, our theoretical findings are illuminated through a series of computer simulations for an experimental setup involving a realistic heart in torso geometry. More specifically, experiments with synthetic ECG recordings, produced by solving the bidomain model, indicate that our method manages to identify the physical characteristics of the ischemic region(s) in the heart. Furthermore, the ill-posed nature of this inverse problem is explored, i.e. several quantitative issues of our scheme are explored.     

Development of a new damper to reduce resonant vibrations in lightweight steel joist floors

Floor vibrations annoying to humans often occur in lightweight constructions. A number of methods to solve the problem of resonant vibrations are reported in the literature. Tuned mass damper, semi-active tuned vibration absorber and active control system are all examples of existing methods. A new method has been tested in laboratory environment on a prefabricated floor containing a resilient ceiling with a size up to 6.8×4.8 m². The method takes advantage of small pieces of visco-elastic material connected between the ceiling joists and the primary beams. A finite element model is used to calculate the correct amount of visco-elastic material. The new damper is especially effective in damping mode shapes where the ceiling oscillates out of phase relative to the floor but shows improvements for other mode shapes as well.     

Model cellulose films exposed to H. insolens glucoside hydrolase family 45 endo-cellulase--the effect of the carbohydrate-binding module

The effects of enzyme structure and activity on the degradation of model cellulose substrates were investigated by ellipsometry for the cellulase Humicola insolens GH45. The inactive variant D10N was found to adsorb at the cellulose surface but also to be incorporated into the cellulose films to an extent that depended on pH. For the native protein, the initial adsorption monitored for the inactive variant D10N was followed by enzyme-mediated degradation of the cellulose films. Again, a dependence on pH was found, such that higher pH resulted in slower enzymatic degradation. Removing the carbohydrate-binding module eliminated this pH dependence but also resulted in a decreased adsorption to the cellulose surface, and in a decreased net catalytic effect.     

Efficient microwave assisted synthesis of optically active bicyclic 2-pyridinones via Δ2-thiazolines

A new efficient synthesis of optically active bicyclic 2-pyridiones has been developed using microwave irradiation. The synthesis is a two-step procedure via delta2-thiazolines, which only requires a 3 + 2 min reaction time compared to 2 days when using conventional heating. The optimized conditions proved to be suitable for the synthesis of a small library in excellent yields and with limited racemizations.     

Monitoring the DNA binding kinetics of a binuclear ruthenium complex by energy transfer: evidence for slow shuffling

The semirigid binuclear ruthenium complex Delta,Delta-[mu-(11,11'-bidppz)(phen)(4)Ru(2)](4+) has been shown to rearrange slowly from an initial groove-bound nonluminescent state to a final intercalated emissive state by threading one of its bulky Ru(phen)(2) moieties through the DNA base stack. When this complex binds to poly[d(A-T)(2)], a further increase in emission from the complex is observed after completion of the intercalation, assigned to reorganization of the intercalated complex. We here report a study of the threading process in poly[d(A-T)(2)], in which the minor groove binding dye DAPI is used as an energy transfer probe molecule to assess the distribution of ruthenium complex during and also after the actual threading phase. The emission from DAPI is found to change with the same rate as the emission from the ruthenium complex, and furthermore, DAPI does not disturb the binding kinetics of the latter, justifying it as a good probe of both the threading and the reorganization processes. We conclude from the change in the emission from both DAPI and the ruthenium complex with time that DAPI-ruthenium interactions are most pronounced during the process of threading of the complex, suggesting that the complexes are initially threaded slightly anticooperatively and thereafter redistribute along the DNA to reach their thermodynamically most favorable distribution. The final distribution is characterized by a small but significant binding cooperativity, probably as a result of hydrophobic interactions between the complex ions despite their tetravalent positive charges. The mechanism of "shuffling" the complex along the DNA chain is discussed, i.e., whether the ruthenium complex remains threaded (requiring sequential base-pair openings) or if unthreading followed by lateral diffusion within the ionic atmosphere of the DNA and rethreading occurs.     

Primary photoprocess in vision: minimal motion to reach the photo- and bathorhodopsin intermediates

According to time-resolved spectroscopic measurements, the initial step of the photoreaction of rhodopsin occurs with a time constant of approximately 200 fs. The whole or a part of the retinal molecule cannot move any significant distance in such a short time. In this paper, we propose instead a minimal motion that accomplishes the important task of guiding the molecule to a configuration where it can decay to the ground-state surface, with a minimal loss of strain energy. This motion is proposed to involve a -90 degrees twisting of the C11=C12 double bond and a simultaneous twisting around two other double bonds in retinal to minimize the geometrical changes along the reaction path. The ONIOM method (complete active space self-consistent field for retinal and AMBER for the peptides) is used in a chromophore-cavity model to elucidate and confirm important features of the mechanism. The potential energy surface (PES) obtained according to the proposed mechanism show all of the characteristics of a fast photoreaction, meaning a downhill reaction path from the Franck-Condon point to an avoided crossing between S(1) and S(0). In this motion, only a few carbon and hydrogen atoms move more than 0.3 A, and the retinal structure is conserved in the protein cavity. We propose that the photorhodopsin intermediate is a retinal molecule formed on the excited-state PES. Bathorhodopsin, however, is a ground-state intermediate, still located inside the protein cavity.     

Uniaxial magnetocrystalline anisotropy of metal/semiconductor interfaces: Fe/ZnSe(001)

A theoretical study of the magnetic moments and the in-plane magnetic anisotropy of an interface between a cubic ferromagnet and a cubic semiconductor, Fe/ZnSe(001), is presented. Theory confirms the observed, much debated, uniaxial anisotropy of the iron film. This result is important since the calculations are for perfect interfaces with squarelike environments, proving that the fourfolded symmetry of the interface Fe atoms is broken beyond the nearest neighboring semiconducting layer, effects that are usually assumed small. It is demonstrated how the uniaxial anisotropy is produced by the directional covalent bonds at the interface, even without atomic relaxations.     

Formation and structure of polyelectrolyte and nanoparticle multilayers: effect of particle characteristics

The formation and structure of multilayer films containing a cationic polyelectrolyte and anionic silica nanoparticles were studied by means of ellipsometry and atomic force microscopy. Three types of silica particles of different sizes were examined. The density and thickness of the films as well as the adsorption kinetics appear to be strongly dependent on the choice of particle; smaller particles favor the formation of smooth and dense films with a higher content of the inorganic component.