753 research outputs found
Tephritis azari Mohamadzade Namin & Korneyev
No full textTephritis azari Mohamadzade Namin & Korneyev (Figs. 1 –2, 10– 17) Tephritis azari Mohamadzade & Korneyev 2012: 80. Meterial examined. Type material. Holotype (female): Iran: West Azerbaijan province, 10 km W Ziveh, 2700 m, 37 °08'N, 44 ° 52 'E, 24.vii. 2012 (Mohamadzade & Najarpoor leg.) (JAZM); Paratypes: Azerbaijan: Talysh, vic. Lerik, Dzhoni vil. [=Çoni, 38 ° 36.8 'N 48 ° 30.5 'E, h= 1390 m], 5.vi.1981, 1♀ (V. Ermolenko leg.) (SIZK); Iran: same collection data as in holotype, 3 ♀, 2 ♂; East Azerbaijan Province, Sahand ski resort, 30 km of Tabriz, 37 ° 45.850 ' N 46 ° 30.754 ' E, 2900 m, 30.viii.2011, 1♀, 1 ♂ (Mohamadzade & Najarpoor leg.); Ardabil Province, Sabalan Mountain, 2900 m; 12.vii. 2012, swept from Senecio sp., 1 ♀, 1 ♂ (Mohamadzade & Najarpoor leg.) (JAZM, SIZK and SMNC); Non-type: Sabalan Mountain, 2900 m; 4.vii.2014, 1♂ (Korneyev & Mohamadzade) (SIZK). Distribution. Azerbaijan and Iran (Mohamadzade Namin & Korneyev 2012). Diagnosis. Tephritis azari is similar to T. maccus Hering and T. gharalii sp. nov. in the wing pattern (hyaline basally, with brown radiate pattern on apical two-thirds, and usually with one large hyaline spot in cell r 1), flagellomere 1 pointed, oviscape short, aculeus relatively blunt, with short acute apex and similar spermathecae shape. It differs from both species by the size of the brown ray in cell dm basal to the level of r-m, which is absent or short, usually reaching only the mid-width of cell dm, at most reaching Cu 1 (long, reaching middle of cell cu 1 in T. maccus and T. gharalii).Published as part of Namin, Saeed Mohamadzade, Korneyev, Severyn V., Parchami-Araghi, Mehrdad & Gilasian, Ebrahim, 2015, Revision of the Tephritis maccus species group (Diptera: Tephritidae) with description of a new species from Iran, pp. 589-599 in Zootaxa 3956 (4) on page 591, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.3956.4.10, http://zenodo.org/record/23869
Integrating AI and DTs: challenges and opportunities in railway maintenance application and beyond
No full textIn the last years, there has been a growing interest in the emerging concept of digital twin (DT) as it represents a promising paradigm to continuously monitor cyber–physical systems, as well as to test and validate predictability, safety, and reliability aspects. At the same time, artificial intelligence (AI) is exponentially affirming as an extremely powerful tool when it comes to modeling the behavior of physical assets allowing, de facto, the possibility of making predictions on their potential evolution. However, despite the fact that DTs and AI (and their combination) can act as game-changing technologies in different domains (including the railways), several challenges have to be faced to ensure their effectiveness, especially when dealing with safety-critical systems. This paper provides a narrative review of the scientific literature on DTs for railway maintenance applications, with a special focus on their relationship with AI. The aim is to discuss the opportunities the integration of these two technologies could open in railway maintenance applications (and beyond), while highlighting the main challenges that should be overcome for its effective implementation
Semicrystalline polymer deposits on surfaces formed by drop drying
No full textThe deposits formed after the evaporation of aqueous poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) solution
droplets on hydrophilic glass substrates were investigated, focusing on the influence of initial
solute concentration and polymer molecular weight on the macrostructures and
micro/nanostructures of deposits. Using stereo microscopy and atomic force microscopy (AFM),
along with a mathematical model based on thin-film hydrodynamic theory, the research
experimentally and mathematically investigated how varying initial conditions affect the final
deposition patterns in macro- and micro/nano-scales. Stereo microscopy showed that increasing
the initial solute concentration transformed the deposit’s macrostructure from a ring to a conical
pillar over a puddle-like base, while higher polymer molecular weight reduced stick-slip actions,
altering the macrostructure from multiple semi-concentric rings to a single ring. The AFM study
revealed that the initial solute concentration and the polymer molecular weight significantly
affected the micro/nanostructures in different deposit areas. Deposits contained predominantly
semicrystalline, and occasionally amorphous, micro/nanostructures. The semicrystallites were in
the form of out-of-plane lamellae, requiring high crystallisation driving forces, or in-plane terraces
and spirals, needing lower driving forces. The out-of-plane lamellae varied in size across regions,
being smaller in areas with higher crystallisation driving forces. The mathematical model predicted
the macrostructures of deposits by evaluating the final heights of droplets. The model also
estimated the micro/nanostructures of deposits by analysing the rates of supersaturation
development, which directly impact the crystallisation driving forces across different areas of the
droplets. Overall, the study provided a detailed understanding of how the initial concentration and
molecular weight of polymer influenced the droplet evaporation dynamics and the resulting
deposition patterns, offering valuable insights for applications requiring controlled drying and
deposition processes
Towards AI-assisted digital twins for smart railways: preliminary guideline and reference architecture
No full textIn the last years, there has been a growing interest in the emerging concept of digital twins (DTs) among software engineers and researchers. DTs not only represent a promising paradigm to improve product quality and optimize production processes, but they also may help enhance the predictability and resilience of cyber-physical systems operating in critical contexts. In this work, we investigate the adoption of DTs in the railway sector, focusing in particular on the role of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies as key enablers for building added-value services and applications related to smart decision-making. In this paper, in particular, we address predictive maintenance which represents one of the most promising services benefiting from the combination of DT and AI. To cope with the lack of mature DT development methodologies and standardized frameworks, we detail a workflow for DT design and development specifically tailored to a predictive maintenance scenario and propose a high-level architecture for AI-enabled DTs supporting such workflow
Electronic transport properties in lithium cobalt oxide battery electrode material studied in ion-gated transistor configuration
No full textLi-ion battery (LIB) electrode materials feature mixed electronic-ionic transport. Their electronic conductivity is expected to depend on the degree of de-lithiation/lithiation, but it is challenging to evaluate such dependence as disentangled from ionic conductivity. Herein, we use the Ion-Gated Transistor (IGT) configuration to study the dependence of the electronic conductivity of lithium cobalt oxide (LiCoO2 or LCO)-based composite cathode material. LCO-based composite is employed as transistor channel interfaced with the ionic liquids: 1-Ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide ([EMIM][TFSI]) and 1-Butyl-1-methylpyrrolidinium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide ([PYR14][TFSI]), both without and with lithium bis(trifluoromethane)sulfonimide salt (LiTFSI). The gate-source bias controls the degree of lithiation/de-lithiation in the LCO composite-based IGT. We observed an increase in the drain-source transistor current upon the application of a gate-source bias, i.e., upon Li+ de-intercalation from the LCO composite cathode material. Our results pave the way for the in operando evaluation of the state-of-charge (SOC) of LIB electrode materials, crucial for their efficient and sustainable use
Tokunagaia azari Published 2007, n. sp.
No full text<i>Tokunagaia azari</i> n. sp. <p>(Figs. 38 ­40)</p> <p> <b>Etymology:</b> We name this species for our colleague Dr. Dany Azar (University of Lebanon).</p> <p> <b>FIGURE 39.</b> <i>Tokunagaia azari</i> n. sp., holotype PA 11435, photograph of male genitalia.</p> <p> <b>FIGURE 40.</b> <i>Tokunagaia azari</i> n. sp., holotype PA 11435, drawing of male genitalia (scale bar = 0.1 mm).</p> <p> <b>Diagnosis:</b> Eye with short wedge­shaped dorsomedial extension; antennal ratio 0.46; wing membrane without macrotrichia; anal point absent; gonostylus simple, with low crista dorsalis, tergite IX with less than 20 setae.</p> <p> <b>Description:</b> Head 0.25 mm long, deformed; ocelli absent; antenna 0.41 mm long, much longer than head, distinctly hairy, with 13 flagellomeres covered with long setae (shortest 0.01 mm long, longest 0.19 mm long), pedicel broad and short, rounded, 13 th flagellomere 0.15 mm long; antennal ratio 0.46; eye bare, with small dorsomedial extension, with 2 rows of ommatidia at minimum width; mouthparts lacking functional mandibles; 5 palpomeres with setae; 1 postocular; frontal and inner and outer vertical setae not visible, probably absent.</p> <p> Thorax 0.34 mm long, 0.19 mm wide, 1.21 mm high; postnotum bare, with longitudinal median groove; surface of scutellum bare; without scutal tubercle; acrostichals absent, dorsocentrals uniserial; scutum without median longitudinal groove; 2 prealar setae, no supraalar setae; epimeron II and preepisternum bare. Wing macropterous, 0.88 mm long, 0.2 mm wide, hyaline, membrane bare, but with coarse punctation; anal vein An 2 absent; radius with 3 branches R 1, R and R 4+5, R 2+3 not divided into R 2 and R 3; only M 1+2 and M 3+4 present; cross­vein MCu absent; squama with 2 setae. Halter 0.1 mm long. Fore femur 0.18 mm long, tibia 0.33 mm long, tarsus 0.43 mm long; mid femur 0.2 mm long, tibia 0.26 mm long, tarsus 0.28 mm long; hind femur 0.16 mm long, tibia 0.29 mm long, tarsus 0.38 mm long; ta4 of all legs cylindrical, not cordiform; fore tibia with 1 long spur, mid and hind tibiae with 2 long spurs, hind tibial comb well developed; small pulvilli present. Abdomen 0.82 mm long; tergite IX with about 5­10 setae; gonostylus 0.04 mm long, 0.008 mm wide, simple, elongate, with low crista dorsalis, hinged to gonocoxite and folded inward; gonocoxite 0.05 mm long, 0.03 mm wide, with long setae apically and on outer surface; anal point absent.</p> <p> 2+3</p> <p> <b>Discussion:</b> In the key to Holarctic orthocladiine genera of Cranston <i>et al</i>. (1989), this Orthocladiinae falls in the genus <i>Tokunagaia</i> because of the following characters: wing well developed; without thick clavus; scutum without median longitudinal groove; eye bare; wing membrane without macrotrichia; epimeron II and preepisternum bare; no lateral spines on spurs of mid and hind tibiae; anal point without strong lamellate setae laterally and apicodorsally; squama with at least 1 seta; small pulvilli, never as long as half claw length; hind tibial comb well developed; tergite IX without strongly elevated ridge; anal point absent; gonostylus simple; and eye with short wedge­shaped dorsomedial extension. The species is near the group of extant species including <i>T. scutellata</i>, <i>T. rowensis</i>, and <i>T. rectangularis</i> because it has no anal point, a gonostylus with a low crista dorsalis, antennal ratio 0.46, and tergite IX with fewer than 20 setae (Halvorsen & Saether 1987).</p> <p> <b>Material:</b> Holotype PA 11435, (male).</p>Published as part of <i>Published, First, 2007, Chironomid midges from early Eocene amber of France (Diptera: Chironomidae), pp. 1-66 in Zootaxa 1404</i> on pages 43-4
Zinc- and Copper-Doped Mesoporous Borate Bioactive Glasses: Promising Additives for Potential Use in Skin Wound Healing Applications
No full textIn this study, zinc (Zn)- and copper (Cu)-doped 13-93B3 borate mesoporous bioactive glasses (MBGs) were successfully synthesized using nitrate precursors in the presence of Pluronic P123. We benefited from computational approaches for predicting and confirming the experimental findings. The changes in the dynamic surface tension (SFT) of simulated body fluid (SBF) were investigated using the Du Noüy ring method to shed light on the mineralization process of hydroxyapatite (HAp) on the glass surface. The obtained MBGs were in a glassy state before incubation in SBF. The formation of an apatite-like layer on the SBF-incubated borate glasses was investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The incorporation of Zn and Cu into the basic composition of 13-93B3 glass led to changes in the glass transition temperature (Tg) (773 to 556 °C), particle size (373 to 64 nm), zeta potential (−12 to −26 mV), and specific surface area (SBET) (54 to 123 m2/g). Based on the K-means algorithm and chi-square automatic interaction detection (CHAID) tree, we found that the SFT of SBF is an important factor for the prediction and confirmation of the HAp mineralization process on the glasses. Furthermore, we proposed a simple calculation, based on SFT variation, to quantify the bioactivity of MBGs. The doped and dopant-free borate MBGs could enhance the proliferation of mouse fibroblast L929 cells at a concentration of 0.5 mg/mL. These glasses also induced very low hemolysis (<5%), confirming good compatibility with red blood cells. The results of the antibacterial test revealed that all the samples could significantly decrease the viability of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. In summary, we showed that Cu-/Zn-doped borate MBGs can be fabricated using a cost-effective method and also show promise for wound healing/skin tissue engineering applications, as especially supported by the cell test with fibroblasts, good compatibility with blood, and antibacterial properties
Tephritis azari Mohamadzade Namin and S. Korneyev, sp. nov.
No full text<i>Tephritis azari</i> Mohamadzade Namin and S. Korneyev sp. nov. <p>(Figs. 1–12)</p> <p> <b>Type material</b>. Holotype (female): <b>Iran</b>: West Azerbaijan province, 10 km W Ziveh, 2700m, 37°08'N, 44°52'E, 24.vii.2012 (Mohamadzade & Najarpoor leg.) (JAZM).</p> <p> Paratypes: 1Ƥ: <b>Azerbaijan</b>: Talysh, vic. Lerik, Dzhoni vil. [=Çoni, 38°36.8'N 48°30.5'E, h= 1390 m], 5.06.1981 (V. Ermolenko leg.) (SIZK); 3Ƥ, 23, <b>Iran</b>: same collection data as in holotype; 1Ƥ, 13, East Azerbaijan Province, Sahand ski resort, 30 km of Tabriz, 37°45.850' N 46°30.754' E, 2900 m, 30.viii.2011 (Mohamadzade & Najarpoor leg.); 1Ƥ, 13, Ardabil Province, Sabalan Mountain, 2900m; 12.vii.2012, swept from <i>Senecio</i> sp. (Mohamadzade & Najarpoor leg.) (JAZM, some paratypes are deposited also in SIZK and SMN’s personal collection).</p> <p> <b>Description.</b></p> <p> <b>Head</b> (fig. 3): Yellow, whitish microtrichose, except ocellar triangle, distal 2/3 of arista and V-shaped mark on upper part of occiput blackish. Flagellomere 1 yellow. Frontal stripe and face less distinctly microtrichose; frons above lunule with 5–10 setulae. Setulae whitish-yellow, brownish on anterior part of gena. Postocular setae and setulae (both longer and shorter) whitish-yellow. Length: height: width ratio = 1: 1.24: 1.57. Frons subquadrate, twice as wide as eye, which is about 1.35 times as high as long. Gena 0.47 times as high as length of flagellomere 1. Flagellomere 1, 1.6 times as long as wide, pointed at apicodorsal angle.</p> <p> <b>Thorax</b>: Black (only postpronotal lobe narrowly yellow), densely white microtrichose (fig. 9). Setae yellowish brown; posterior notopleural and anepimeral seta dark yellow. Setulae white; scutellum with 15–17 white marginal setulae on each side. Calypteres white. Halter yellow.</p> <p> <b>Legs</b>: Yellow, fore femur with 2 rows of white posterodorsal and one row of yellowish brown posteroventral setae; mid and hind legs with brown setae and setulae.</p> <p> <b>Wing</b> (Figs. 1–2, 11): Base hyaline, including all of cells c, bm and bcu; apical portion with brown radiate mark, with few hyaline spots and indentations; pterostigma entirely brown, cell r 1 in females and 2 males with only one hyaline spot (In females this spot is smaller and reaching to vein R2+3 but in males is larger and penetrates to at most mid-width of cell r2+3) but in the remaining 2 males with 1 additional small hyaline spot on anterior margin (in one male the small hyaline spot is near the larger spot; in another it is closer to the apex of R2+3); cell r2+3 hyaline between radial fork and level of apex of vein Sc, distally brown, with 2 apical hyaline spots, the posterior fused with subapical spot in cell r4+5; br hyaline between basal part of cell and level of apex of Sc, in apical third completely dark, without hyaline spots; cell r4+5 with round hyaline spot touching vein M at or near level of dm-cu, and apical spot rather long, bordered by 2 narrow apical rays extending to apices of veins R4+5 and M; cell dm hyaline on proximal half, on apical half with anterodistal corner dark brown and with 2–3 brown rays (including 1 on dm-cu) and 1 pear-shaped or in some paratypes 2 smaller round subapical hyaline spots; the short brown ray in cell dm basal to level of r-m absent (two males) or usually reaching only mid-width of cell dm, rarely (one female) reaching to vein Cua1. Cell m with 3 large hyaline spots, the most distal extending into cell r4+5; cell cua1 mostly hyaline, with dark apex with small hyaline spot narrow brown bars in apical half. Vein R4+5 with 4–5 setulae ventrally.</p> <p> <b>Abdomen</b>: Black, tergites entirely microtrichose, with white setulae and yellow marginal setae. Oviscape shining black, with whitish setae on basal part; shorter than tergites 5 and 6 combined, its dorsum 1.36 times as long as tergite 6 (Fig. 11). Aculeus brown, 3 times as long as wide, rapidly tapered subapically to short, pointed apex (Figs. 4–5). Spermathecae teardrop shaped (Fig. 8) round with narrowed neck. Epandrium oval, like other <i>Tephritis</i> species (Fig. 6); glans (Fig. 7) moderately short, mostly membranous.</p> <p> <b>Measurements.</b> Female. Body length 3.7–4.4 mm, wing length 3.75–4 mm, oviscape length 0.75–0.87; Male. Body length 3.7–4 mm, wing length 3.5–4 mm.</p> <p> <b>Diagnosis.</b> The new species differs from most Palaearctic species of <i>Tephritis</i> by having only one marginal hyaline spot in cell r1 or if 2, the second spot very small. <i>T. azari</i> sp. nov. is closely related to <i>T. maccus</i> Hering 1937 (Fig. 13) in having similar body, wing size and wing pattern (hyaline basally, with brown radiate pattern on apical two-thirds, and usually with one hyaline spot in cell r1, as well as flagellomere 1 pointed, oviscape short, aculeus relatively blunt, with short acute apex and similar spermathecae shape. It differs from <i>T. maccus</i> by the short brown ray in cell dm basal to the level of r-m, absent or usually reaching only mid-width of cell dm, at most reaching Cu1 (long, reaching middle of cell cua 1 in <i>T. maccus</i>). In addition in both sexes of <i>T. azari</i> there is a large hyaline spot present in cell r4+5 at the level of dm-cu (in <i>T. maccus</i> only males have such a spot).</p> <p> <i>Tephritis azari</i> is also similar to <i>T. urelliosomima</i> (Figs. 14–15), in which the aculeus shape is similar (blunt, but pointed at very apex). It differs in wing pattern with a hyaline spot in cell r1 and the apical fork narrowly connected to the main pattern (in <i>T. urelliosomima</i> the large hyaline spot in r1 is lacking and the base of the apical fork is broadly connected to the main part of the pattern).</p> <p> <b>Etymology.</b> Azari, also known as Old Azeri (also spelled Adari, Adhari), is an ancient language of the Iranian group spoken in the Iranian Azerbaijan; the species name is considered a Latinized noun in apposition.</p>Published as part of <i>Namin, Saeed Mohamadzade & Korneyev, Severyn V., 2012, Tephritis azari, a New Fruit Fly (Diptera: Tephritidae) from Iran and Azerbaijan, with a Key to the Tephritis maccus Species Group, pp. 79-85 in Zootaxa 3590</i> on pages 80-82, DOI: <a href="http://zenodo.org/record/215220">10.5281/zenodo.215220</a>
Spaces of contestation: the everyday experiences of ten African migrants in Cape Town
No full textIncludes bibliographical references.Xenophobia in South Africa is so overt that it has take a covert form. The 'xenocide' events that took place in 2008 were called xenophobic acts. It is the recurrent denialism of xenophobia on an everyday basis that this project has explored through the narrative accounts of ten African migrants in Cape Town. The lived everyday experiences of ten African migrants have brought forward the central argument of this thesis. From the data, it is evident that as a reponse to everyday pressures of prejudices and xenophobia in social and physical spaces, African migrants have developed mutable, unsettled and vagrant identities in order to cope with everyday low level violence. This argument emerged as four key stressors have been identified as the components of a more substantial explanation of xenophobia in South Africa. The four key components are: the enforcement of identity (national and group), the demarcation of spaces of belonging, the experiences of economic insecurity, and lastly a 'culture of violence' in South Africa. This thesis argues that these four stressors are the result of an on-going active process of xenophobic attitudes
Effects of different levels of sunflower residue silage replacement with alfalfa hay on Azari male buffalo calves fattening performance
No full textAn experiment was conducted to study the effects of replacing alfalfa hay with different levels of sunflower residual silage (SRS) on fattening performance of Azari male buffalo calves. Thirty calves with 138.33 Kg of BW fed experimental diets in a completely randomized design with 5 groups and 6 replicates. The five groups (1, 2, 3, 4 and 5) included 0 (control), 25, 50, 75 and 100 percent replacement of alfalfa hay with SRS, respectively in basal diet. The results showed that dry matter intake (DMI) was significantly different between the groups (p<0.05). The highest and the lowest DMI were shown at the groups 1 and 5, respectively, however there was no significant difference between the groups 2, 3, and 4 with control. Daily weight gain (DWG) was significantly different between the groups (p<0.05). Group 5 had significantly lower DWG than groups 1, 2 and 3, furthermore there were no significant difference between groups 1, 2, 3 and 4. Feed conversion ratio (FCR) was significantly different among the groups (p<0.05). There was no significant difference among the groups 1, 2, 3 and 4. But these groups had significantly better FCR than the group 5. The best FCR was obtained for group3. It may conclude that alfalfa hay can be substituted with SRS at 50 % level with no negative effects on Azari male buffalo calves fattening performance
- …
