Red Wire Research Articles

Village Lunatics

Village Lunatics

Enhancing effect of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) interfacial thin layer on silicon nanowires (SiNWs)/PEDOT: PSS hybrid solar cell

Throughout a red wire associated with organic–inorganic hybrid solar cells, the recombination mechanism at the interface is a major problem for better low-cost photovoltaic efficiency. The photovoltaic parameters of hybrid silicon nanowires (SiNWs)/poly (3, 4-ethylenedioxy-thiophene): poly (styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT: PSS) can be advanced to new stages by modifying the interface properties between SiNWs arrays and PEDOT: PSS. In this context, we have interposed a layer of silver nanoparticles AgNPs between SiNWs and PEDOT: PSS. The repercussions of the shape and size of AgNPs on the reflectance and efficiency of hybrid devices have been estimated experimentally. The power conversion efficiency (PCE) was reached a record of about 8.96%, following the insertion of two layers of AgNPs deposited by spin coating. The optimization of the thickness of AgNPs made it possible to obtain the best yield, multiplied by 2 ~ 3 of magnitude compared to a solar cell without intermediate layer. Results found stipulate that with the existence of AgNPs, the series resistance Rs decreases and increased therefore the short-circuit current density.

From oxo to carbonyl and arene complexes; A journey through technetium chemistry

A personal note in celebration of Professor Herrmann's 70th birthday, the author describes how the successful preparation of H3C99TcO3 and the still unsolved task of preparing [Cp*99TcO3] powered ultimately a plethora of organometallic 99Tc chemistry. Driven by the need for technetium carbonyl complexes, the red wire leads from [99TcCl3(CO)3]2- over the related [99mTc(OH2)3(CO)3]+ and [(L3)99TcO3]+ finally to [99Tc(arene)2]+ complexes. It is shown how, from the fundamental search for [Cp*99TcO3], useful molecules for application in molecular imaging emerged.

Heavenly Whispers

The two nurses were leaning over meas I lay flat in the hospital bedlooking up at them arguing against each otherabout which way the two differently-colored wires,one green and one red,should be insertedinto the electrical ports onthe small black box with the battery in it.The wires ran straight to my heart.(This is done after open-heart surgery—two pacing leadsare left touching your heart and they trace out into the airso, if your heart stops beatingafter closurethis little box with the nine-voltcan be used for the jump startinstead of the big external paddles,which are crude.)“The red wire goes into the port on the right side—correct?”“Yes, but forward? Which way? How do you know?”I was almost seeing the full colors of the nursesand the room elements again when I started talking,“Ladies, let’s wait for the doctor now—I’m fine.”They didn’t shock me, since I was clearly awake,but I stopped short of telling them about the white.Everything had faded to white, as if peroxide had cut looseand my brain had sponged it all as it completely bleached.I couldn’t hear the alarms at the nurse’s stationor in my room when I was out, but I am surethey were loudly alertingabout the flat line.I could barely hearthe guy dressed in white holding the white clipboard,talking too softly, whispering, andsaying, “Walk toward the light” ordid he say, “Walk toward the right”—you don’t want tomake a mistake like that at such an important juncture.The white was welcome at first,blissful in its simplicity and resolutionbut seriously, I had to force myself to think,to ask the question,“Do I really want this to be over?”

Cavity-Enhanced Microphotoluminescence in a Core–Shell n–p CdS/CdO Micrometer Wire and Its Efficient Surface Photovoltage Responses in the Whole Visible Range

A one-step growth of yellow and red CdS:O wires has been realized by a SnO2-catalyzed chemical vapor deposition (CVD) technique. The yellow and red CdS:O wires were obtained upon the temperature rising rates in the tube furnace. Yellow nanowire with less oxygen doping shows luminescent behavior from the acceptor trapped excitons near the band edge of the CdS nanowire. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) characterizations proved their formation of the CdS/CdO core–shell red wire due to O segregations in the CdS lattice when the oxygen doping concentration was higher than 4%, even up to 20%. Their microluminescence profiles are mainly caused by the CdO shell in the red wire, which gives temporally localized exciton emissions near the CdO band edge (600 nm) by femtosecond-pulse excitation and red-shift enhanced whispering-gallery mode (WGM) cavity mode emissions by a 488 nm continuous wave (CW) laser excitation. The luminescence of the CdS/CdO wire reflects the electronic state modification for CdO nanowires with no luminescence due to the p–n junction formation. The photovoltaic (PV) spectra of yellow and red wire aggregates show CdS and CdS/CdO profiles, respectively. The CdS/CdO wires have an extended PV responses from 510 to 800 nm as compared with CdS, the photocarrier type in the 300–510 nm range likes n-CdS, while that in the 510–800 nm range is p-type from the CdO shell. Both luminescence and PV responses could be enhanced by the WGM mode and core–shell n–p junction within a wire with dual PV zones. Such wires can find potential applications in the solar cells and nanophotonic devices.

CVON: a laudable strategy waiting for societal impact.

In the year 2010, The Netherlands Cardiovascular Research Committee (CVON, www.cvon.eu) was installed based on an initiative of The Netherlands Heart Foundation (currently heart foundation). At that time, funding of research by the Heart Foundation changed from a bottom-up approach to a top-down approach. The Heart Foundation was assisted by the following organisations: The Netherlands Federation of University Medical Centers (NFU), the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) and The Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO/ZonMw). In the spring of 2011, a call for nationwide proposals went out for the first time. Consequently, large, nationwide consortia were formed with the task to formulate integrated research proposals. All proposals were carefully reviewed by a dedicated International Scientific Advisory Council (ISAC) which decided in January 2102 to fund three programmes for a total of 3.0–5.0 million € each. The following three large programmes were granted: a programme on regenerative medicine (HUSTCARE), one searching for new biomarkers and therapeutic targets for atherosclerosis (GENIUS), and finally a programme on the development of drugs for heart failure (ARENA). Likewise, in 2012, the same policy was followed and a total of four programmes were supported in 2013: (1) 1VALVE: One Valve for Life; (2) HBC: The Heart-Brain Connection: The Missing Link in the Pathophysiology of Vascular Cognitive Impairment; (3) PHAEDRA: Pulmonary Hypertension and Associated Right Heart Failure: Breaking the Vicious Circle; and (4) PREDICT: Predict Sudden Cardiac Death—Uncover Novel Genes and Mechanisms and Test Hypotheses in the Clinic. The main benefit of the CVON approach is bringing researchers in the same field together (from experimental to clinical) potentially leading to a better focus and improved reorientation in order to perform joint research at a higher level. The benefits of this synergetic strategy were also recognised outside The Netherlands [1]. However, in 2014 it was felt that a potential drawback of the large programmes was that only a limited number of programmes could be supported, mainly directed by older established investigators, while CVON should also serve and stimulate young researchers [2]. To that purpose, the Heart Foundation found an adequate solution by funding smaller programmes for 1.0–1.5 million € each. As a result, in January 2015 the following six programmes were supported by ISAC, consisting of three large programmes: (1) ENERGISE (metabolic activation to prevent cardiovascular disease), (2) RACE V (prevention of complications in atrial fibrillation), (3) RE-CONNECT (diastolic heart failure in diminished kidney function), and three smaller programmes: (1) CONCOR-GENES (prediction of complications in congenital heart disease), (2) REMAIN (more effective treatment after myocardial infarction) and (3) DOSIS (new causative mechanisms in hereditary cardiovascular diseases). In total, the Heart Foundation invested 19.5 million € in these six programmes. For an extensive description of the supported programmes see www.hartstichting.nl. Altogether, the granted CVON programmes nicely fit within the recently determined research agenda of the Heart Foundation consisting of five themes: (1) early recognition of cardiovascular disease, (2) cardiovascular disease in women, (3) improved treatment of heart failure and atrial fibrillation [3], (4) acute treatment of cerebrovascular accidents and (5) new ways of continuing a healthy lifestyle [4]. The Heart Foundation should be credited for taking the initiative of starting CVON and, more importantly, for having continued this approach for several years. Many millions of Euros have been invested in scientific research with the aim to unite different research groups across the country both at the clinical and basic level. However, the final goal of the CVON programmes should stretch much further than just the formation of consortia. CVON should encourage young researchers, stimulate efforts in performing joint research and pay attention that the results are published in high-quality journals. But foremost, the scientific results have to be translated into benefits for the community. Ultimately, it is the community that raised the money, making all these scientific efforts possible. Consequently, societal impact is ‘the heart of the matter’. Of course, this is an issue which can only be assessed in the long run. Nevertheless it should be the ‘red wire’ in performing scientific research today. The time of ‘l’art pour l‘art’ in science has gone as was also emphasised recently by a group of Dutch scientists called Science in Transition [5]. Fortunately, the Heart Foundation-directed CVON programmes yield sufficient confidence that they will serve the community both in prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease.

Automated generation of minimal cut sets from AltaRica 3.0 models

In this article, we present an algorithm to generate minimal cut sets from AltaRica 3.0 models. AltaRica 3.0 improves the previous versions of the language by introducing a fixpoint mechanism to stabilise values of variables after each transition firing. This fixpoint mechanism allows the design of acausal models and the analysis of systems with instant loops. It makes however the generation of fault trees more complex. We show here that by using advanced partitioning techniques, we can nevertheless design an efficient generation algorithm. We illustrate the different steps of this algorithm by means of a red wire example.

A tale of continuity

It is a week since little Christmas, 1912 and a January storm gathers on Ireland's Atlantic coast. In the candle-lit corner of a small West of Ireland cottage a woman: > “…. falls and heaves, holding a tide of tears, A red wire of pain feeds through every vein, Until night unweaves and the child reaches dawn, Outside each other now, she sees him first, Flesh of her flesh, her dreamt son safe on earth”1 However, this mother's joy was shortlived. The experience of having eight previous children told her this child was fighting for its life. The priest and the local doctor were duly summoned and after a number of hours of medical and spiritual …

Extensive basal cell carcinoma of the forehead and anterior scalp: use of helical tomotherapy as a radiotherapy treatment modality

Extensive basal cell carcinoma of the forehead and anterior scalp: use of helical tomotherapy as a radiotherapy treatment modality

Does decoration theft lead to an honest relationship between male quality and signal size in great bowerbirds?

Male–male competition can contribute to honest sexual signalling. Because male bowerbirds steal each other's decorations, decoration theft could lead to an honest relationship between male quality and signal size. To test this hypothesis, I conducted an experiment in which I standardized decoration numbers at bowers of the great bowerbird, Ptilonorhynchus nuchalis , such that all males had equal numbers. I then monitored males for 11 weeks as they stole decorations from other males, defended their decorations against theft, and collected decorations from the environment. For two commonly stolen decoration types (red wire and green plastic), there was a correlation between the numbers at bowers before and after standardization. Males that had more red wires and green plastic pieces before standardization were less likely to have these decorations stolen from their bowers after standardization, although they were not more successful at stealing decorations. These males also collected more red wires and green plastic pieces from the environment, and collecting rate was unrelated to the numbers available near the bower. Males that were more successful at guarding their decorations had longer nuchal crests and had been bower owners for longer periods, although nearest-neighbour distance explained more of the variation in guarding ability than either male characteristic. These results suggest decoration numbers are an honest signal of the male's ability to guard his bower against theft and to locate decorations in the environment, although some variation in stealing behaviours may be related to the spatial arrangement of males rather than to male quality.

La corda rossa: la democrazia ateniese e il Deliberative Polling di James S. Fishkin

The red rope. Athenian Democracy and James S. Fishkin’s Deliberative Polling ABSTRACT: Behind the deliberative instances that are influencing the western democracies, it is possible to find suggestions coming from the Athenian model, which has inspired several proposals. Among the most important and complex ones is the Deliberative Polling®, created by the political and social scientist James S. Fishkin, who paid great attention to Mogens H. Hansen’s studies about Athenian democracy. The Deliberative Polling® (that doesn’t aspire to become a ‘political system’, but to remain a cognitive and communicative tool) considers the historical precedent without coping with the ancient philosophical models (the Platonic and the Aristotelian one, both hostile to the power of the ‘masses’). The important results of Fishkin raise a fundamental question: how that complex, ancient reality could be communicated or even proposed again? The red wire is an ideal continuity, broken by the several limits of the practice; problems of participation, space and time reveal their presence both in the Athenian polis where a red rope stretched around the Assembly caught and contained the voters and in the models inspired by it.

Organization of rhodopsin molecules in native membranes of rod cells–an old theoretical model compared to new experimental data

It has been shown that rhodopsin forms an oligomer in the shape of long double rows of monomers. Because of the importance of rhodopsin as a template for all G protein-coupled receptors, its dimeric, tetrameric and higher-oligomeric structures also provide a useful pattern for similar structures in GPCRs. New experimental data published recently are discussed in the context of a proposed model of the rhodopsin oligomer 1N3M deposited in the protein data bank. The new rhodopsin structure at 2.2 A resolution with all residues resolved as well as an electron cryomicroscopy structure from 2D crystals of rhodopsin are in agreement with the 1N3M model. Accommodation of movement of transmembrane helix VI, regarded as a major event during the activation of rhodopsin, in a steady structure of the oligomer is also discussed. [Figure: see text]. Superimposition of the 1U19 (red wire), 1GZM (purple wire) and 1N3M (blue wire) rhodopsin structures. Size of the wires is proportional to thermal factors of backbone C(alpha) atoms, view parallel to the membrane.