ROC-curve approach for determining the detection limit of a field chemical sensor

The detection limit of a field chemical sensor under realistic operating conditions is determined by receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curves. The chemical sensor is an ion mobility spectrometry (IMS) device used to detect a chemical marker in diesel fuel. The detection limit is the lowest concentration of the marker in diesel fuel that obtains the desired true-positive probability (TPP) and false-positive probability (FPP). A TPP of 0.90 and a FPP of 0.10 were selected as acceptable levels for the field sensor in this study. The detection limit under realistic operating conditions is found to be between 2 to 4 ppm (w/w). The upper value is the detection limit under challenging conditions. The ROC-based detection limit is very reliable because it is determined from multiple and repetitive sensor analyses under realistic circumstances. ROC curves also clearly illustrate and gauge the effects data preprocessing and sampling environments have on the sensor's detection limit.     

Integration of gas chromatography mass spectrometry methods for differentiating ricin preparation methods

The investigation of crimes involving chemical or biological agents is infrequent, but presents unique analytical challenges. The protein toxin ricin is encountered more frequently than other agents and is found in the seeds of Ricinus communis, commonly known as the castor plant. Typically, the toxin is extracted from castor seeds utilizing a variety of different recipes that result in varying purity of the toxin. Moreover, these various purification steps can also leave or differentially remove a variety of exogenous and endogenous residual components with the toxin that may indicate the type and number of purification steps involved. We have applied three gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) based analytical methods to measure the variation in seed carbohydrates and castor oil ricinoleic acid, as well as the presence of solvents used for purification. These methods were applied to the same samples prepared using four previously identified toxin preparation methods, starting from four varieties of castor seeds. The individual data sets for seed carbohydrate profiles, ricinoleic acid, or acetone amount each provided information capable of differentiating different types of toxin preparations across seed types. However, the integration of the data sets using multivariate factor analysis provided a clear distinction of all samples based on the preparation method, independent of the seed source. In particular, the abundance of mannose, arabinose, fucose, ricinoleic acid, and acetone were shown to be important differentiating factors. These complementary tools provide a more confident determination of the method of toxin preparation than would be possible using a single analytical method.     

Quantum Deformations of Imaginary Verma Modules

We construct quantum deformations of imaginary Verma modulesover and show that, for generic q, imaginary Verma modules over can be deformed to those over the quantum group in such a way that the dimensions of the weightspaces are invariant under the deformation. We also prove thePBW theorem for with respect to the triangular decomposition induced from the root partitioncorresponding to the imaginary Verma modules. 1991 MathematicsSubject Classification: 17B67, 17B65, 17B10.     

Ferrihydroxid-Sole. I. Monodisperse basische Eisen(III)sulfat-Teilchen

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

On the stability of CoMFA models

Abrupt, smooth, and box methods for the calculation of electrostatic and steric field values in the comparative molecular field analysis (CoMFA) 3D QSAR technique are assessed on three diverse data sets of medicinal chemistry interest. While the standard CoMFA settings are robust to small changes in the position of the lattice, superior results may sometimes be obtained by use of only one field. However, if only the electrostatic field is used, then sometimes large differences between models are apparent. This appears to be due to a lack of column dropping, and these difficulties can be remedied by use of the box method.     

The physics exhibition, 1971

There has been a considerable upsurge of interest in musical acoustics over the last 10 to 15 years and this article is an attempt to summarize the present position in this multidisciplinary field. It first looks at the essential physics involved, reduced to its simplest terms, goes on to consider the relationships between real musical instruments and the resonance tubes and sonometers of the old text-books on ‘sound’ and outlines the history of the subject up to the Second World War. The main section then discusses areas of current study and the relevant measurement techniques in relation to three of the main groups of musical instruments. The article concludes with a discussion of some aspects of the difficult, but all-important, subject of psycho-physics and a brief attempt to predict the future prospects for research in musical acoustics