9,015 research outputs found
Letter, 1934 Mar. 11, New York, N.Y., to Nilla Shields, Lafayette, Ga.
No full textLetter, George Palmer Putnam to Nilla Shields, regarding Nilla and David’s sudden marriage, Sunday (postmarked envelope, March 11, 1934
The Precambrian marine carbonate isotope database: version 1.1.
No full textWe present a compilation of strontium, carbon, and oxygen isotope compositions of roughly 10,000 marine carbonate rocks of Archean - Ordovician age (3800 Ma – 450 Ma). The Precambrian Marine Carbonate Isotope Database (PMCID) has been compiled from 152 published and 3 unpublished articles and books of the past 40 years. Also included are 30 categories of relevant “metadata” that allow detailed comparisons and quality assessments of the isotope data to be made. The PMCID will be updated periodically as new data and better age constraints come to light. Here we outline the structure of the first published version of the database and its inherent merits and limitations
Computational identification and analysis of protein short linear motifs
No full textShort linear motifs (SLiMs) in proteins can act as targets for proteolytic cleavage, sites of post-translational modification, determinants of sub-cellular localization, and mediators of protein-protein interactions. Computational discovery of SLiMs involves assembling a group of proteins postulated to share a potential motif, masking out residues less likely to contain such a motif, down-weighting shared motifs arising through common evolutionary descent, and calculation of statistical probabilities allowing for the multiple testing of all possible motifs. Much of the challenge for motif discovery lies in the assembly and masking of datasets of proteins likely to share motifs, since the motifs are typically short (between 3 and 10 amino acids in length), so that potential signals can be easily swamped by the noise of stochastically recurring motifs. Focusing on disordered regions of proteins, where SLiMs are predominantly found, and masking out non-conserved residues can reduce the level of noise but more work is required to improve the quality of high-throughput experimental datasets (e.g. of physical protein interactions) as input for computational discovery
GA-Fuzzy PID control simulation waveform diagram.
No full textAs is well known, the metal annealing process has the characteristics of heat concentration and rapid heating. Traditional vacuum annealing furnaces use PID control method, which has problems such as high temperature fluctuation, large overshoot, and long response time during the heating and heating process. Based on this situation, some domestic scholars have adopted fuzzy PID control algorithm in the temperature control of vacuum annealing furnaces. Due to the fact that fuzzy rules are formulated through a large amount of on-site temperature data and experience summary, there is a certain degree of subjectivity, which cannot ensure that each rule is optimal. In response to this drawback, the author combined the technical parameters of vacuum annealing furnace equipment, The fuzzy PID temperature control of the vacuum annealing furnace is optimized using genetic algorithm. Through simulation and comparative analysis, it is concluded that the design of the fuzzy PID vacuum annealing furnace temperature control system based on GA optimization is superior to fuzzy PID and traditional PID control in terms of temperature accuracy, rise time, and overshoot control. Finally, it was verified through offline experiments that the fuzzy PID temperature control system based on GA optimization meets the annealing temperature requirements of metal workpieces and can be applied to the temperature control system of vacuum annealing furnaces.</div
A normalised seawater strontium isotope curve: possible implications for Neoproterozoic-Cambrian weathering rates and the further oxygenation of the Earth
No full textThe strontium isotope composition of seawater is strongly influenced on geological time scales by changes in the rates of continental weathering relative to ocean crust alteration. However, the potential of the seawater 87Sr/86Sr curve to trace globally integrated chemical weathering rates has not been fully realised because ocean 87Sr/86Sr is also influenced by the isotopic evolution of Sr sources to the ocean. A preliminary attempt is made here to normalise the seawater 87Sr/86Sr curve to plausible trends in the 87Sr/86Sr ratios of the three major Sr sources: carbonate dissolution, silicate weathering and submarine hydrothermal exchange. The normalised curve highlights the Neoproterozoic-Phanerozoic transition as a period of exceptionally high continental influence, indicating that this interval was characterised by a transient increase in global weathering rates and/or by the weathering of unusually radiogenic crustal rocks. Close correlation between the normalised 87Sr/86Sr curve, a published seawater δ34S curve and atmospheric pCO2 models is used here to argue that elevated chemical weathering rates were a major contributing factor to the steep rise in seawater 87Sr/86Sr from 650 Ma to 500 Ma. Elevated weathering rates during the Neoproterozoic-Cambrian interval led to increased nutrient availability, organic burial and to the further oxygenation of Earth's surface environment. Use of normalised seawater 87Sr/86Sr curves will, it is hoped, help to improve future geochemical models of Earth System dynamics
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Solid-state photonic interfaces using semiconductor quantum dots
Get PDFNew technologies based on the properties of quantum mechanics promise
to revolutionise the way information is processed by outperforming what is
possible using classical devices. Examples include massively parallel processing
using quantum computers, verifiably secure communication using quantum
cryptography, and measurement with sensitivity beyond classical limitation
with quantum metrology. Realising the full potential of these technologies
necessitates the ability to communicate quantum information over large
distances, a key requirement for future quantum networks. However, developing
practical implementations of long-distance quantum communication
is challenging as it necessitates three major ingredients: light-matter interfaces,
elementary quantum operations, and quantum memories. This thesis
describes work that has been undertaken to address these requirements using
semiconductor nanotechnology.
We have first demonstrated that single InAs quantum dots embedded inside
conventional diode structures constitute high-fidelity controllable interfaces
between optical qubits and solid-state qubits. Indeed, the polarisation
state of a photon was transferred into the spin state of an electron-hole pair
and eventually restored through radiative recombination of the electron and
the hole with a fidelity up to 95%. Moreover, spins were manipulated using
subnanosecond modulation of a vertical electric field applied to the quantum
dots. By controlling this electrical modulation, we demonstrated elementary
phase-shift and spin-flip gate operations with near-unity fidelities.
An electron-hole pair confi ned in a single quantum dot has a short radiative
lifetime limiting therefore its use as an excitonic quantum memory.
The solution we proposed was to use a quantum dot molecule to control the
spatial separation of the electron and the hole and therefore prevent their
recombination. Comprehensive studies of electric field eff ects upon the photoluminescence
of quantum dot molecules lead to a clear understanding and
a good control over their physical properties. Single photons were stored in
individual quantum dot molecules up to 1μs and read out on a subnanosecond time scale. Moreover, the circular polarisation of individual photons was
transferred into the spin state of electron-hole pairs with a fidelity above
90%, which does not degrade for storage times up to the 12.5 ns repetition
period of the experiment.
Our work on single quantum dots could be extended in the near future to
allow for two-qubits quantum operations by con fining a second electron-hole
pair to be electrically manipulated. Storage of a superposition of spin states
in a quantum dot molecule should also be possible if the spin states are made
degenerate, which is feasible using the electric fi eld dependence of the energy
splitting between the spin states discussed in this thesis. We believe that
combining both approaches will lead to the development of a controllable
multi-qubit quantum memory for polarised light, a building block for long distance
quantum communication based on semiconductor nanotechnology
Earth system transition during the Tonian–Cambrian interval of biological innovation: nutrients, climate, oxygen and the marine organic carbon capacitor
Get PDFThe Tonian–Cambrian interval (c. 0.9–0.5 Ga) witnessed major tectonic, climatic and chemical changes to the Earth system and culminated in the Ediacaran–Cambrian radiation of animals. Negative carbon isotope (δ13C) excursions of extraordinary magnitude form the backdrop to all these events and are consistent with the presence of a vast marine organic carbon reservoir that changed its size due to periodic imbalances between organic production (as an oxidant source) and terrestrial oxidant sinks. Prior to both Cryogenian glaciations, this pool of long-lived organic carbon may have become substantially depleted, leading to a weakening of the regulation of climate and oxygen. The late Ediacaran Shuram anomaly probably represents a third depletion event, which was followed by oxygenation and the Ediacaran–Cambrian radiation. The evolutionary diversification of animals shortened the ocean residence time of organic carbon and introduced new carbon cycle feedbacks that together helped to mould the modern Earth system
Tandem repeat copy-number variation in protein-coding regions of human genes
No full textBACKGROUND: Tandem repeat variation in protein-coding regions will alter protein length and may introduce frameshifts. Tandem repeat variants are associated with variation in pathogenicity in bacteria and with human disease. We characterized tandem repeat polymorphism in human proteins, using the UniGene database, and tested whether these were associated with host defense roles. RESULTS: Protein-coding tandem repeat copy-number polymorphisms were detected in 249 tandem repeats found in 218 UniGene clusters; observed length differences ranged from 2 to 144 nucleotides, with unit copy lengths ranging from 2 to 57. This corresponded to 1.59% (218/13,749) of proteins investigated carrying detectable polymorphisms in the copy-number of protein-coding tandem repeats. We found no evidence that tandem repeat copy-number polymorphism was significantly elevated in defense-response proteins (p = 0.882). An association with the Gene Ontology term 'protein-binding' remained significant after covariate adjustment and correction for multiple testing. Combining this analysis with previous experimental evaluations of tandem repeat polymorphism, we estimate the approximate mean frequency of tandem repeat polymorphisms in human proteins to be 6%. Because 13.9% of the polymorphisms were not a multiple of three nucleotides, up to 1% of proteins may contain frameshifting tandem repeat polymorphisms. CONCLUSION: Around 1 in 20 human proteins are likely to contain tandem repeat copy-number polymorphisms within coding regions. Such polymorphisms are not more frequent among defense-response proteins; their prevalence among protein-binding proteins may reflect lower selective constraints on their structural modification. The impact of frameshifting and longer copy-number variants on protein function and disease merits further investigation
Progress towards an improved Precambrian seawater 87Sr/86Sr curve
Get PDFThe secular trend of seawater strontium isotope ratio (87Sr/86Sr) reflects changes in the relative contributions of continental versus mantle reservoirs to ocean composition, and informs global tectonic events, weathering rates and biogeochemical cycling through Earth history. However, the Precambrian seawater 87Sr/86Sr curve is known in far less detail than its Phanerozoic counterpart. For this study, we compiled 2249 strontium isotope ratios of Precambrian marine sedimentary rocks published since 2002, alongside previously compiled older data. Here we evaluate the uncertainty of all published data for constraining coeval seawater 87Sr/86Sr using four criteria (depositional environment, diagenetic alteration, age constraint and dissolution method). The resultant seawater 87Sr/86Sr curve uses mainly ‘high certainty’ data and shows an overall increasing trend from ~0.7005 at c. 3.5 Ga to ≥0.7089 towards the end of the Ediacaran Period. The improved curve shows an earlier deviation of seawater 87Sr/86Sr from the contemporaneous mantle by c. 3.5 Ga, which might reflect the first significant emergence of evolved continental crust related to nascent tectonics. Additionally, the updated curve records two major rises at 2.5-2.2 Ga and 1.9-1.7 Ga in addition to a well-established event at 0.8-0.5 Ga. Despite the relative scarcity of high-certainty data, these two increases are consistent with enhanced continental weathering following the onset of oxidative weathering and assembly of the supercontinent Nuna, respectively. Although confirmation of these two events awaits more high-certainty data, Precambrian seawater 87Sr/86Sr experienced stronger oscillations and better correspondence with supercontinent cycles than previously shown
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