1,250 research outputs found
Synthesis and Characterization of Benzophenone Based Phenyl Ether Derivatives
Master of Science- ChemistryBenzophenone and diphenyl ether derivatives are important compounds because of their biological activities and materialistic applications. Such compounds have also been isolated from a number of natural products. Individually, both these categories of compounds have found numerous applications in medicinal and material world. Therefore, the work presented here describes synthesis of benzophenone derivatives of diphenyl ethers. Three compounds D, E and F were synthesized using same benzophenone precursor, (2-hydroxy-4-methoxyphenyl)(phenyl) methanone, and 2- bromo-5-nitrobenzaldehyde to get 2-(2-benzoyl-5-methoxyphenoxy)-5-nitrobenzaldehyde (D). Using different concentrations of the same reducing agent (NaBH4) two different products were obtained. In one case only aldehyde was reduced (Compound E) while in other case both aldehyde and ketone present in the molecule (Compound F) were reduced. Characterization was done using 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy
Predicting the infuence of Urban vacant lots on neighborhood property values
Vacant lots are municipally-owned land parcels which were acquired post-abandonment or due to tax foreclosures. With time, failure to sell or find alternate uses for vacant lots results in them causing adverse effects on the health and safety of residents, and cost the city both directly and indirectly. Although existing research has tried to define these impacts, cities need quantifiable evidence from within the city to make planning decisions based on these studies. Moreover, trying to understand the impact of vacant lots in an uncontrolled setting makes it difficult to perform A key problem with existing methodologies is that they tend to look at the city as a whole, while ignoring the diverse socioeconomic factors at play. Altogether, city planners are left with little or no actionable information to prioritize conversion of vacant lots. In contrast, for our research we try to model the city as blocks, census tracts and neighborhoods while using relevant features to capture key demographic, economic and geographic characteristics. In addition, we build a deep learning model to quantify the impact of vacant lots on changing property values so as to recommend conversions that yields the maximum benefit through property value tax increase. Our results indicate that our model is able to capture the relationship between vacant lots and property values better than conventionally used algorithms and data models. Further, our model specifically caters to small and mid size cities, which are often neglected in the mainstream urban computing research.Interactive Intelligenc
Exclusive and inclusive semileptonic decays of B mesons to D mesons
complete author list: Fulton R.; Jensen T.; Johnson D.; Kagan H.; Kass R.; Morrow F.; Whitmore J.; Wilson P.; Bortoletto D.; Chen W.; Dominick J.; McIlwain R.; Miller D.; Ng C.; Schaffner S.; Shibata E.; Shipsey I.; Yao W.; Battle M.; Sparks K.; Thorndike E.; Wang C.; Alam M.; Kim I.; Li W.; Romero V.; Sun C.; Wang P.; Zoeller M.; Goldberg M.; Haupt T.; Horwitz N.; Jain V.; Mestayer M.; Moneti G.; Rozen Y.; Rubin P.; Sharma V.; Skwarnicki T.; Thulasidas M.; Zhu G.; Csorna S.; Letson T.; Alexander J.; Artuso M.; Bebek C.; Berkelman K.; Browder T.; Cassel D.; Cheu E.; Coffman D.; Crawford G.; Dewire J.; Drell P.; Ehrlich R.; Galik R.; Garcia-Sciveres M.; Geiser B.; Gittelman B.; Gray S.; Halling A.; Hartill D.; Heltsley B.; Honscheid K.; Kandaswamy J.; Katayama N.; Kreinick D.; Lewis J.; Ludwig G.; Masui J.; Mevissen J.; Mistry N.; Nandi S.; Nordberg E.; O'Grady C.; Peterson D.; Pisharody M.; Riley D.; Sapper M.; Selen M.; Silverman A.; Stone S.; Worden H.; Worris M.; Sadoff A.; Avery P.; Besson D.; Garren L.; Yelton J.; Kinoshita K.; Pipkin F.; Procario M.; Wilson R.; Wolinski J.; Xiao D.; Zhu Y.; Ammar R.; Baringer P.; Coppage D.; Davis R.; Haas P.; Kwak N.; Lam H.; Ro S.; Kubota Y.; Nelson J.; Perticone D.; Poling R.; Fulton R.; Poling R.; Perticone D.; Nelson J.; Fulton R.</p
Subnational Determinants of Foreign Direct Investments in the Russian Federation
Our purpose is to examine the determinants of subnational distribution of Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) in the key fifteen regions of Russia over the period of 2005-2011 using panel data. Within the most important economic regions of the country we found market seeking is still the main purpose of foreign inward investments. As a result, the size of the Russian consumer market presents a significant influence on the foreign economic activities alongside trade openness and government economic incentives. Our results from regression analysis indicate that gross regional product per capita, trade openness and the existence of special economic zones have significant positive impact on the regional distribution of FDI in the Russian Federation
Inclusive decays B->DX and B->D*X
Complete Author List: Gibbons L, Johnson SD, Kwon Y, Roberts S, Thorndike EH, Jessop CP, Lingel K, Marsiske H, Perl ML, Schaffner SF, Ugolini D, Wang R, Zhou X, Coan TE, Fadeyev V, Korolkov I, Maravin Y, Narsky I, Shelkov V, Staeck J, Stroynowski R, Volobouev I, Ye J, Artuso M, Efimov A, Frasconi F, Gao M, Goldberg M, He D, Kopp S, Horwitz N, Moneti GC, Mountain R, Mukhin Y, Schuh S, Skwarnicki T, Stone S, Thulasidas M, Viehhauser G, Xing X, Bartelt J, Csorna SE, Jain V, Marka S, Freyberger A, Godang R, Kinoshita K, Lai IC, Pomianowski P, Schrenk S, Bonvicini G, Cinabro D, Greene R, Perera LP, Barish B, Chadha M, Chan S, Eigen G, Miller JS, OGrady C, Schmidtler M, Urheim J, Weinstein AJ, Wurthwein F, Asner DM, Bliss DW, Brower WS, Masek G, Paar HP, Sharma V, Gronberg J, Kutschke R, Lange DJ, Menary S, Morrison RJ, Nelson HN, Nelson TK, Qiao C, Richman JD, Roberts D, Ryd A, Witherell MS, Balest R, Behrens BH, Cho K, Ford WT, Park H, Rankin P, Roy J, Smith JG, Alexander JP, Bebek C, Berger BE, Berkelman K, Bloom K, Cassel DG, Cho HA, Coffman DM, Crowcroft DS, Dickson M, Drell PS, Ecklund KM, Ehrlich R, Elia R, Foland AD, Gaidarev P, Gittelman B, Gray SW, Hartill DL, Heltsley BK, Kandaswamy J, Katayama N, Kim PC, Kreinick DL, Lee T, Liu Y, Ludwig GS, Masui J, Mevissen J, Mistry NB, Ng CR, Nordberg E, Ogg M, Patterson JR, Peterson D, Riley D, Soffer A, Ward C, Athanas M, Avery P, Jones CD, Lohner M, Prescott C, Yang S, Yelton J, Zheng J, Brandenburg G, Briere RA, Gao YS, Kim DYJ, Wilson R, Yamamoto H, Browder TE, Li F, Li Y, Rodriguez JL, Bergfeld T, Eisenstein BI, Ernst J, Gladding GE, Gollin GD, Hans RM, Johnson E, Karliner I, Marsh MA, Palmer M, Selen M, Thaler JJ, Edwards KW, Bellerive A, Janicek R, MacFarlane DB, McLean KW, Patel PM, Sadoff AJ, Ammar R, Baringer P, Bean A, Besson D, Coppage D, Darling C, Davis R, Hancock N, Kotov S, Kravchenko I, Kwak N, Anderson S, Kubota Y, Lattery M, ONeill JJ, Patton S, Poling R, Riehle T, Savinov V, Smith A, Alam MS, Athar SB, Ling Z, Mahmood AH, Severini H, Timm S, Wappler F, Anastassov A, Blinov S, Duboscq JE, Fisher KD, Fujino D, Fulton R, Gan KK, Hart T, Honscheid K, Kagan H, Kass R, Lee J, Spencer MB, Sung M, Undrus A, Wanke R, Wolf A, Zoeller MM, Nemati B, Richichi SJ, Ross WR, Skubic P, Wood M, Bishai M, Fast J, Gerndt E, Hinson JW, Menon N, Miller DH, Shibata EI, Shipsey IPJ, Yurko M</p
Sexual selection in flies:A comparison of Drosophila simulans and D. melanogaster
The traditional view of sexual selection via female mate choice is that female preference for certain males either has no net fitness cost or is beneficial to overall female fitness. A more contemporary view is that preferred males can at times reduce female fitness. This view has arisen from the realisation that conflict between the sexes is an inevitable feature of sexual reproduction, as each sex necessarily has a different agenda for maximizing fitness. Despite the hailing of sexual conflict as a paradigm shift and its prevalence in the recent sexual selection literature, compelling evidence that attractive males reduce female fitness remains taxonomically restricted. Here we review the findings of a series of investigations into the fitness consequences of female preference in the fly Drosophila simulans and compare them with its sibling species, D. melanogaster. We show that there are stark differences in the fitness consequences of mating with preferred males in the two species and discuss this contrast with reference to the current debates in the sexual selection literature.</p
Sexual selection in Drosophila simulans
Over the last 100 years sexual selection has advanced into a vast field of theoretical and empirical research. While Darwin’s idea of female preference being an integral mechanism of sexual selection is no longer debated, our understanding of female preference is still very limited. For example, we know little about the genetic variation in female preference, and the costs of preference over and above the costs of mating with particular male phenotypes. Additionally, while costs of mate choice are well documented, the benefits of mate choice and their implications are still debated. For example, controversy exists over the inevitability of good gene benefits and their capability to promote adaptive sexual selection. Furthermore, the adaptiveness of sexual selection itself is debated. Our understanding of the traits involved in mate choice is also far from complete. Here I investigated aspects of sexual selection in Drosophila simulans, employing a range of behavioural approaches along with artificial selection and environmental manipulations. The findings presented here indicate that female preference can evolve when directly selected on, and that preference itself is not particularly costly. There was also no conclusive evidence for the good genes benefits of mate choice in D. simulans. These benefits are considered crucial in promoting the adaptiveness of sexual selection, and although we found sexual selection to be adaptive under some test conditions it was not adaptive in other conditions. Our investigations into traits involved in mate choice established sex-specific genetic variation in cuticular hydrocarbons and the genetic architecture of this trait was found to sex-specific evolution of cuticular hydrocarbons under natural and sexual selection. Additionally, we found that a secondary sexual character, the sex combs was positively allometric – just like most signalling and weapon traits, and there was no association between trait fluctuating asymmetry and trait size. These findings collectively indicate that sexual selection in D. simulans is consistent with classical models of this process
Sexual selection in Drosophila simulans
Over the last 100 years sexual selection has advanced into a vast field of theoretical and empirical research. While Darwin’s idea of female preference being an integral mechanism of sexual selection is no longer debated, our understanding of female preference is still very limited. For example, we know little about the genetic variation in female preference, and the costs of preference over and above the costs of mating with particular male phenotypes. Additionally, while costs of mate choice are well documented, the benefits of mate choice and their implications are still debated. For example, controversy exists over the inevitability of good gene benefits and their capability to promote adaptive sexual selection. Furthermore, the adaptiveness of sexual selection itself is debated. Our understanding of the traits involved in mate choice is also far from complete. Here I investigated aspects of sexual selection in Drosophila simulans, employing a range of behavioural approaches along with artificial selection and environmental manipulations. The findings presented here indicate that female preference can evolve when directly selected on, and that preference itself is not particularly costly. There was also no conclusive evidence for the good genes benefits of mate choice in D. simulans. These benefits are considered crucial in promoting the adaptiveness of sexual selection, and although we found sexual selection to be adaptive under some test conditions it was not adaptive in other conditions. Our investigations into traits involved in mate choice established sex-specific genetic variation in cuticular hydrocarbons and the genetic architecture of this trait was found to sex-specific evolution of cuticular hydrocarbons under natural and sexual selection. Additionally, we found that a secondary sexual character, the sex combs was positively allometric – just like most signalling and weapon traits, and there was no association between trait fluctuating asymmetry and trait size. These findings collectively indicate that sexual selection in D. simulans is consistent with classical models of this process
Assessment of Disease Activity Score with Respect to Vitamin D in Rheumatoid Arthritis: An Observational Study
Background: Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is a crippling disorder with a prevalence rate ranging from 0.3% to 1% globally having an annual incidence rate of 3 per 10,000 adults. Vitamin D has unavoidable effects on numerous physiological functions as well as pathological conditions and several studies have analyzed the association of vitamin D deficiency in rheumatoid arthritis and have reached varied conclusions. Identifying the role of Vitamin D in curbing the articulation of RA is a topic of enormous importance having practical applications too. Material & Methods: This was an observational study conducted on 42 patients in the age group of 18-45 years having RA, diagnosed by the American College of Rheumatology criteria (ACR/EULAR criteria), for assessing disease activity score concerning vitamin D in them. Results: In the distribution of Disease Activity Level, the proportion of moderate activity level was found higher i.e. 66.7%. The mean vitamin D level was 10.93 ± 2.70, the minimum was 7 and the maximum was 18. The mean DAS-28 Score was 4.46 ± 0.82 with a minimum value of 2.63 and a maximum of 6.08. Conclusions: A notable association has been found between the comparison of the level of vitamin D and the DAS-28 score. The deficiency of vitamin D can be speculated to be a substantial reason for rheumatoid arthritis
A stress recovery procedure for 3-D linear finite elements
In this thesis, a stress recovery procedure for 3-D linear finite elements is presented. The formulation is based on a modified version of the Hu-Washizu variational principle, in which the recovered stresses are calculated by minimizing the error with respect to the directly-computed stresses, and ensuring that the recovered stresses satisfy equilibrium in an average sense over the patch of elements. Through a set of examples, it is demonstrated that, in linear elasticity the recovered stresses converge at a higher rate than the directly-calculated stresses and that in some cases the rate of convergence is the same as that of the displacement field. This procedure builds on work of Payen and Bathe. The current technique can be readily implemented into existing finite element codes. The method is implemented and verified in hybrida, a python and C++ based finite element package being developed in the Structural Optimization and Mechanics (SOM) group of the PME department in the 3me faculty of TU DelftMechanical, Maritime and Materials EngineeringPrecision and Microsystems Engineerin
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