Single Rotation Research Articles

Impact of vertical girder deformations on the high-speed train operation performance

The deformation of bridge structures will cause deterioration of geometry on the rail surface during the service period, which will threaten the normal operation of train. A train–track–bridge coupling dynamics model was established. In order to simulate real operational conditions, initial geometric irregularity was taken into account, which was combined with rail irregularity caused by different vertical deformation of girder and was superimposed as external excitation. The probabilistic and statistical characteristics of operational performance indexes were analysed. The sensitivity of operational performance indexes to different deformation modes was studied. The vertical deformation thresholds of girder based on probability guarantee rate were obtained. The results show that unloading rate of wheel and wheel/track vertical force are more sensitive to single vertical rotation deformation mode. Vertical acceleration of the train and sperling index are more sensitive to bilateral vertical rotation deformation mode. Unloading rate of wheel is more sensitive to single vertical translation deformation mode. In the process of enhancing daily operation, single vertical rotation and multiple vertical translation should receive significant attention.

Cone-Beam CT of the Extremities in Clinical Practice.

Cone-beam CT (CBCT) is a promising tool with increasing applications in musculoskeletal imaging due to its ability to provide thin-section CT images of the appendicular skeleton and introduce weight bearing, which accounts for loading forces that typically interact with and affect this anatomy. CBCT devices include an x-ray source directly opposite a digital silicon detector panel that performs a single rotation around an object of interest, obtaining thin-section images. Currently, the majority of research has been focused on the utility of CBCT with foot and ankle pathologic abnormalities, due to the complex architectural arrangement of the tarsal bones and weight-bearing nature of the lower extremities. Associated software can provide a variety of options for image reconstruction, including metal artifact reduction, three-dimensional biometric measurements, and digitally reconstructed radiographs. Advancements in this technology have allowed imaging of the knee, hip, hand, and elbow. As more data are published, it is becoming evident that CBCT provides many additional benefits, including fast imaging time, low radiation dose, lower cost, and small equipment footprint. These benefits allow placement of CBCT units outside of the traditional radiology department, including the orthopedic clinic setting. These technologic developments have motivated clinicians to define the scope of CBCT for diagnostics, surgical planning, and longitudinal imaging. As efforts are made to create standardized protocol and measurements, the current understanding and surgical approach for various orthopedic pathologic conditions will continue to shift, with the hope of improving outcomes. ©RSNA, 2024 Test Your Knowledge questions for this article are available in the supplemental material.

The Effect of Rotation on Gas Storage in Nanoporous Materials

Nanoporous materials offer a promising solution for gas storage applications in various scientific and engineering domains. However, several crucial challenges need to be addressed, including adsorptive capacity, rapid loading, and controlled gas delivery. A potential approach to tackle these issues is through rotation-based methods. In this study, we investigate the impact of rotation on CO2 adsorption using activated carbon, both at the early and late stages of the adsorption process. Towards this direction, three sets of experiments were conducted: (i) adsorption isotherm with rotation at each gas loading, (ii) adsorption kinetics with multiple rotations performed in sequence 15 min after CO2 introduction, and (iii) adsorption kinetics with a single rotation after 40 h of adsorption and repetition after another 20 h. For the first two cases, the comparison was performed by respective measurements without rotation, while for the last case, results were compared to a theoretical pseudo-first-order kinetic curve. Our findings demonstrate that rotation enhances the adsorptive capacity by an impressive 54%, accelerates kinetics by a factor of 3.25, and enables controllable gas delivery by adjusting the angular velocity. These results highlight rotation as a promising technique to optimize gas storage in nanoporous materials, facilitating advancements in numerous scientific and engineering applications.

Integrated Point-of-Care Immune Cell Analyzer with Rapid Blood Sample Reaction and Wide Field-of-View Detection.

The development of affordable, reliable, and rapid diagnostic devices is crucial for monitoring immunological responses using a drop of blood. However, conventional automated diagnostic devices typically involve expensive and impractical robotic fluid-handling approaches. Herein, we developed an integrated cell analyzer comprising a cylindrical sample cartridge connected to a direct current motor and a compact fluorescence imaging module. Sample mixing and loading are performed automatically by a programmable sequence of single motor rotation controlled by an Android application. Two distinct stained immune cell samples can be identified by using two types of fluorescence imaging modes. The effectiveness of mixing performance in antigen-antibody (Ag-Ab) reactions was assessed through a compound objective lens that collects weak fluorescence emitted by the cell membrane. Active mixing with bidirectional rotation of the cartridge in a confined space shortened the Ag-Ab reaction time by a factor of 3.3 and achieved cell counting with higher accuracy while reducing reagent consumption by 4 times compared to the conventional incubation method. High-intensity fluorescence images of cells labeled with a nucleic acid stain were acquired through a single-lens-based fluorescence imaging module with a large field of view (FOV) in an unconventional detection chamber with a curved substrate. Compared with a flat chamber, the curved detection chamber reduces the effects of field curvature and provides aberration-free wide-FOV images, even with a simple lens. Our integrated cell analyzer thus offers a practical and cost-effective solution for monitoring patient immune responses in point-of-care settings.

Highly optimized quantum circuits synthesized via data-flow engines

The formulation of quantum programs in terms of the fewest number of gate operations is crucial to retrieve meaningful results from the noisy quantum processors accessible these days. In this work, we demonstrate a use-case for Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) based data-flow engines (DFEs) to scale up variational quantum compilers to synthesize circuits up to 9-qubit programs. This gate decomposer utilizes a newly developed DFE quantum computer simulator that is designed to simulate arbitrary quantum circuit consisting of single qubit rotations and controlled two-qubit gates on FPGA chips. In our benchmark with the QISKIT package, the depth of the circuits produced by the SQUANDER package (with the DFE accelerator support) were less by 97% on average, while the fidelity of the circuits was still close to unity up to an error of ∼10−4.

Changes in the equine facial repertoire during different orthopedic pain intensities

A number of facial expressions are associated with pain in horses, however, the entire display of facial activities during orthopedic pain have yet to be described. The aim of the present study was to exhaustively map changes in facial activities in eight resting horses during a progression from sound to mild and moderate degree of orthopedic pain, induced by lipopolysaccharides (LPS) administered in the tarsocrural joint. Lameness progression and regression was measured by objective gait analysis during movement, and facial activities were described by EquiFACS in video sequences (n = 348, total length 892.5 min) of the horses obtained when resting in their box stalls. Predictive modeling identified 16 action units and action descriptors, related to ears, eyes, and lower face. Lower lip depressor (AU16), lips part (AU25), half blink (AU47), single ear forward (SEAD101) and single ear rotator (SEAD104) were selected as co-occurring significantly more in horses with pain than in horses without pain. The major change in co-occurring facial activities occurred in the transition from no pain to mild pain. In conclusion, resting horses with induced orthopedic pain showed a dynamic upper and lower facial repertoire and the relationship between level of pain intensity and facial activity appears complex.

Evaluation of the Latest Motion Correction Techniques in Periodically Rotated Overlapping ParallEL Lines with Enhanced Reconstruction (PROPELLER) Imaging across Different Vendors

To evaluate the robustness of the latest periodically rotated overlapping parallel lines with enhanced reconstruction (PROPELLER) technology from each vendor against head movements and to investigate their characteristics for effective clinical use. Using a phantom simulating the T2-weighted image of the human brain, images were acquired with devices from CANON MEDICAL SYSTEMS (Tochigi, Japan; hereinafter "Canon"), GE HealthCare (Chicago, IL, USA; hereinafter "GE"), Philips (Amsterdam, Netherlands), and Siemens Healthineers (Forchheim, Germany; hereinafter "SIEMENS"). The head motion patterns were divided into rotation angle dependency (single rotation and multiple rotations) and rotation frequency dependency and evaluated using structural similarity (SSIM). For rotation angle dependency, Canon was robust against small rotation angles and fine movements. Despite the rotation angle, GE was robust against movements, with deep learning reconstruction (DLR) improving correction functionality. Philips could be used with compressed sensitivity encoding (CS), and robustness varied with blade width. SIEMENS was robust against large movements. For rotation frequency dependency, results were similar across the 4 vendors. The rotation angle and rotation frequency dependencies of the PROPELLER technology from the 4 vendors were quantitatively evaluated. Understanding the characteristics of PROPELLER allows for the possibility of providing diagnostic-quality images even for patients who move during head MRI exams by appropriately using PROPELLER.

Design and optimization of an octuple-electrode array for micro-particle chain rotation via electrorotation integrated with machine vision technology.

Microparticle rotation is an important process in biomedical engineering, such as biosensors, cell injection or cell morphology. Single particle rotation has been widely investigated, while rotation of particle chains has gained rare attention. In this paper, we utilize a noncontact manipulation method to rotate microparticle chains via electrorotation by designing an octuple-electrode array (OEA). Finite element simulations were conducted for analyzing the desired electrode field and optimizing the structure of microelectrode pairs. The direction of the electric field in the workspace is investigated with different voltage signal inputs through specially designed circuits. In the experiment, microparticles are driven to form several chains in the proposed electrode fields. With the rotation of the electric field, particle chains could be rotated synchronously. Automated rotation and detection of polystyrene microspheres and yeast cell chains are achieved using machine vision technology. Results show that the proposed method could be utilized to rotate ordered microparticles with an appropriate input signal.

High-sensitivity Beamformed Observations of the Crab Pulsar's Radio Emission

We analyzed four epochs of beamformed European VLBI Network data of the Crab Pulsar at 1658.49 MHz. With the high sensitivity resulting from resolving out the Crab Nebula, we are able to detect even the faint high-frequency components in the folded profile. We also detect a total of 65,951 giant pulses, which we use to investigate the rates, fluence, phase, and arrival time distributions. We find that for the main pulse component, our giant pulses represent about 80% of the total flux. This suggests we have a nearly complete giant pulse energy distribution, although it is not obvious how the observed distribution could be extended to cover the remaining 20% of the flux without invoking large numbers of faint bursts for every rotation. Looking at the difference in arrival time between subsequent bursts in single rotations, we confirm that the likelihood of finding giant pulses close to each other is increased beyond that expected for randomly occurring bursts—some giant pulses consist of causally related microbursts, with typical separations of ∼30 μs—but also find evidence that at separations ≳100 μs the likelihood of finding another giant pulse is suppressed. In addition, our high sensitivity enabled us to detect weak echo features in the brightest pulses (at ∼0.4% of the peak giant pulse flux), which are delayed by up to ∼300 μs.

Comparison of CTDIw and Homogeneity Index on CTDI Phantoms

The study was conducted to compare the Computed Tomography Dose Index Weighted (CTDIw) value values and homogeneity index on head and body phantoms with tube voltage variations. Two CTDI phantoms are Gammex (Sun Nuclear, Florida, United States) and IBA (IBA Dosimetry, Schwarzenbruck, Germany). The pencil ionization chamber was used for the measurement of CTDI. The measurements were carried out with a Toshiba Alexion 16 MSCT in a single rotation of axial mode with detector position in the phantom’s center, top, bottom, right, and left. Tube voltage values are 80 kVp, 100 kVp, and 120 kVp. Then, the homogeneity test of the phantom was carried out. The homogeneity value was obtained by measuring the average CT number in the image by determining the region of interest (ROI) at positions namely a, b, c, d, and e, In addition the ratio of the two phantoms was also carried out. The ratio was obtained from the difference of the CTDI100 value at the edge to the CTDI100 value at the center of the head and body phantom from Gammex and IBA. The results showed that the CTDIwof the Gammex head phantom are 26.83 mGy (80 kV), 53.32 mGy (100 kV) and 83.32 mGy (120 kV). While the CTDIw of the Gammex body phantom are 11.73 mGy (80 kV), 21.58 mGy (100 kV) and 36.45 mGy (120 kV). In comparison, CTDIw of the IBA head phantom are 27.01 mGy (80 kV), 55.33 mGy (100 kV) and 81.69 mGy (120 kV). While the CTDIw of the IBA body phantom are 11.85 mGy (80 kV), 23.32 mGy (100 kV) and 35.00 mGy (120 kV). The differences in CTDIw of the two phantoms were within (head phantom is 0.18 % – 2.01 %) and (body phantom is 0.13 % – 1.75 %). The difference below 5% with the p-value of the head phantom is 0.87 and body phantom is 0.89 (more than 0.05) indicates that the two phantoms are not significantly different because the two phantoms are made of the same material. The average ratio for the Gammex head phantom is 1.12 – 1.28, while the IBA head phantom is 1.07 – 1.28. Then the average ratio for the Gammex body phantom is 2.03 – 2.56, while for the IBA body phantom is 1.91 – 2.59 which indicates that the head phantom produces a more uniform dose distribution compared to a body phantom. The average homogeneity value of the IBA phantom is 90.52 % and the average homogeneity value of the Gammex phantom is 87.15 % (a difference of around 3.37%). This value shows that Gammex and IBA phantom have fairly good homogeneity

Bio-inspired Sky Polarized Orientation based on the atmospheric polarization symmetry mode and Inertial Sensors

This paper presents a sky polarized orientation method based on the symmetry of the atmospheric polarization mode and the inertial sensors. Firstly, a method of extracting solar meridians based on canny operator and Hough Transform is proposed by using the symmetry of atmospheric polarization pattern. Then using the horizontal Angle information of the inertial sensor and the ephemeris information of the sun, a method for solving the yaw Angle of the polarized light is designed. Finally, a single axis rotation experiment and a vehicle-mounted dynamic experiment are carried out to verify and compare the proposed method. Compared with the least square method, the positioning accuracy of the single-axis turntable experiment is improved by 22.61%~73.86%, and that of the vehicle-mounted dynamic experiment is improved by 47.71%, which shows that the method can provide a new orientation means for unmanned vehicles and unmanned aerial vehicles.

In-situ study on the coordinated deformation mechanism of austenitic stainless steel with mixed crystal degree

A novel in-situ tensile experiment is designed to investigate the coordinated deformation mechanism between coarse grains (CGs) and fine grains (FGs) in the mixed crystal structure of X2CrNiMo18.12 austenitic stainless steel (X18.12). In-situ electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) techniques are employed. The experiment involves quantitatively calculating the initial order and number of slip systems, rotation rate, and rotation path of FGs in two groups of mixed crystal structures with different degrees of mixing. The results reveal that the slip trace is predominantly generated in the CGs which have harder crystal orientation at a small deformation of 1.4 %. It is observed that the activation of slip traces in FGs becomes increasingly challenging as the degree of mixed crystal increases. The crystallographic orientation of the grains exhibited a certain degree of rotation to facilitate slip activation. Analysis of grain rotation demonstrates that most grains rotated along the [111] direction during the in-situ tensile test. Additionally, grains with a grain size below 100 μm typically follow a single rotation path but exhibit a high rotation rate. Comparing the mixed grain structures with mixed crystal degrees of 7 and 3, it is observed that the former exhibited a higher grain rotation rate, further indicating the increased difficulty in achieving coordinated deformation in structures with a higher degree of mixed crystal. These findings provide valuable insights into the synergistic deformation behavior of CGs and FGs in mixed crystal structures.

Comparison Between Multisite Injection and Single Rotator Interval Injection of Corticosteroid in Primary Frozen Shoulder (Adhesive Capsulitis): A Randomized Controlled Trial

BACKGROUND: Steroid injection is a commonly used conservative treatment for primary frozen shoulder (PFS), but the optimal injection site remains undetermined. OBJECTIVES: We conducted a prospective randomized controlled trial of multisite combined injection (MCI) vs single rotator interval injection (SRI). STUDY DESIGN: A randomized double-blinded controlled trial. SETTING: Center for Joint Surgery, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University. METHODS: Sixty-four patients with PFS were randomly assigned to 2 groups. The experimental group received MCI in the rotator interval, intraarticular, and subacromial bursa; the control group received an SRI. Both groups were injected with one mL of 40 mg triamcinolone acetonide and 4 mL of 2% lidocaine. The injection process was completed under ultrasound guidance. Follow-up points were 4, 8, and 12 weeks postinjection. The outcome measures included the Visual Analog Scale (VAS) score, the American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons (ASES) score, the Constant-Murley Shoulder (CMS) score, passive range of motion of the shoulder, and patient satisfaction rating. RESULTS: Thirty patients in the MCI group and 29 patients in the SRI group were included in the data analysis. All the outcomes in the 2 groups were significantly better postinjection than preinjection. The MCI group had a lower VAS score than the SRI group at 4 weeks (3.1 ± 1.2 vs 4.3 ± 1.6) and 8 weeks (2.2 ± 1.2 vs. 3.4 ± 1.2) (P < 0.05). Compared with the SRI group, the MCI group had a significant improvement in flexion and abduction (P < 0.01). Additionally, the ASES and CMS scores in the MCI group were better than those in the SRI group at 4, 8 and 12 weeks (P < 0.01). LIMITATIONS: Limitations include the sample size of this study is small and a that it was conducted at a single-center. CONCLUSIONS: Both MCI and SRI effectively alleviated pain and restored range of motion in patients with PFS. However, the MCI group had obviously lower early pain scores, better flexion and abduction, and better function scores than the SRI group; no additional adverse events were observed. KEY WORDS: Primary frozen shoulder, adhesive capsulitis, steroid injection, rotator interval, intraarticular, subacromial bursa

Theoretical studies on the photo protective mechanism of curcuminoids

In this work, the deactivation pathways of curcuminoids after photoexcitation was studied by employing density functional theory to explore their UVA radiation screening capacity. A comprehensive computational characterization of the excited-state processes of curcumin, demethoxycurcumin, and bis-demethoxycurcumin was done. The molecules exist in diketo and enol forms which are in equilibrium and interconvertible through keto-enol tautomerism. The enolic forms of each of the studied molecules have eight geometric cis–trans isomers as a result of torsion rotation about three different carbon–carbon double bonds across the aliphatic chain. For each geometric isomer, sixteen possible rotamers are found to exist due to rotation about five different carbon–carbon single bond rotations, also across the skeleton of the aliphatic chain. Upon photoexcitation, the studied molecules follow three main pathways of radiationless decay: (a) rotamerism and interconversion between rotamers of comparable energies which are in equilibrium, (b) interconversion between the cis–trans geometrical isomers where an efficient vibrational relaxation path is formed at ∼90° during torsion rotation about carbon–carbon double bond, and (c) excited state intramolecular proton transfer in a single O–H stretching vibration through a cyclic intramolecular hydrogen bonded ring formed at the centre of the molecule giving back the original structure. The absorption and emission spectra of the molecules were also simulated where the theoretically obtained absorption and emission maxima are close to the reported experimental values.

Evaluation of Image Quality for High Heart Rates for Coronary Computed Tomographic Angiography with Advancement in CT Technology: The CONVERGE Registry.

This study aims to evaluate image quality in patients with heart rates above or equal to 70 beats per minute (bpm), performed on a 16 cm scanner (256-slice General Electric Revolution) in comparison to a CT scanner with only 4 cm of coverage (64 slice Volume CT). Recent advancements in image acquisition, such as whole-heart coverage in a single rotation and post-processing methods in coronary computed tomographic angiography (CCTA), include motion-correction algorithms, such as SnapShot Freeze (SSF), which improve temporal resolution and allow for the assessment of coronary artery disease (CAD) with lower motion scores and better image qualities. Studies from the comprehensive evaluation of high temporal- and spatial-resolution cardiac CT using a wide coverage system (CONVERGE) registry (a multicenter registry at four centers) have shown the 16 cm CT scanner having a better image quality in comparison to the 4 cm scanner. However, these studies failed to include patients with undesirable or high heart rates due to well-documented poor image acquisition on prior generations of CCTA scanners. A prospective, observational, multicenter cohort study comparing image quality, quantitively and qualitatively, on scans performed on a 16 cm CCTA in comparison to a cohort of images captured on a 4 cm CCTA at four centers. Participants were recruited based on broad inclusion criteria, and each patient in the 16 cm CCTA arm of the study received a CCTA scan using a 256-slice, whole-heart, single-beat scanner. These patients were then matched by age, gender, and heart rate to patients who underwent CCTA scans on a 4 cm CT scanner. Image quality was graded based on the signal-to-noise ratio, contrast-to-noise ratio, and on a Likert scale of 0-4: 0, very poor-4, excellent. 104 patients were evaluated for this study. The mean heart rate was 75 ± 7 in the 4 cm scanner and 75 ± 7 in the 16 cm one (p = 0.426). The signal-to-noise and contrast-to-noise ratios were higher in the 16 cm scanner (p = 0.0001). In addition, more scans were evaluated as having an excellent quality on the 16 cm scanner than on the 4 cm scanner (p < 0.0001) based on a 4-point Likert scale. The 16 cm scanner has a superior image quality for fast heart rates compared to the 4 cm scanner. This study shows that there is a significantly higher frequency of excellent and good studies showing better contrast-to-noise and signal-to-noise ratios with the 16 cm scanner compared to the 4 cm scanner.

Closed reduction and percutaneous pinning for treatment of unstable lateral condyle fractures of the humerus in children.

In the past, obviously displaced lateral condyle fractures of the humerus in children were treated satisfactorily with open reduction and internal fixation (ORIF). However, in recent years, more studies have mentioned closed reduction and percutaneous pinning (CRPP) of these fractures. In this retrospective investigation, the radiographic and clinical results of patients with these fractures that were initially managed with CRPP were newly classified. We classified these fractures into three groups according to the degree and pattern of fracture displacement as identified on four radiographic images. In Type I, the fracture is unstable and displacement is ≥2 mm; In Type II degree I, the fracture is unstable and displacement is >2 mm, with single rotation of fragment; In Type II degree II, the fracture is unstable and displacement is >2 mm, with single rotation of fragment, with rotation of fragment and antero-proximal displacement; In Type III, the fracture is unstable and displacement is >2 mm, with posterior dislocation of elbow joint. We also designed an algorithm for closed reduction of these fractures according to this new classification. We retrospectively analyzed the radiographic and clinical results of 37 unstable fractures (in 22 boys and 15 girls) that were treated with closed reduction. Twenty-one of 25 (84.0%) type I fractures, which could have been reduced to within 2 mm of residual displacement, were treated with closed reduction and pinning with 2 or 3 Kirschner wires (K wires). Three of 5 (60.0%) type II degree I, 3 of 4 (75.0%) type II degree II, and 3 of 3 (100%) type III fractures were treated with CRPP. In 4 of 25 (16.0%) type I, 2 of 5 (40.0%) type II degree I and 1 of 4 (25.0%) type II degree II fractures, closed reduction failed, so ORIF was implemented. There were no complications, such as nonunion, osteonecrosis of the capitellum, superficial or deep infection, malunion, cubitus varus or valgus, or early physeal arrest. Although the management of type III fractures may not be more difficult than type II fractures with a rotated fracture fragment, as elbow dislocations are usually easy reducible. This retrospective study showed that type III fractures should not be ignored as a lateral condyle fracture that can be cured with CRPP and that lateral humeral condyle fractures with obvious displacement and rotation can be initially treated with CRPP to achieve satisfactory recovery of the elbow. Kirschner wire (K wire) fixation is recommended to avoid reoperation or anesthesia for hardware removal.

Hybrid Systems Approach to Autonomous Rendezvous and Docking of an Underactuated Satellite

This work examines the autonomous rendezvous, proximity operations, and docking (ARPOD) problem wherein a “deputy” spacecraft must maneuver and dock with a “chief” spacecraft. This problem is challenging in that the deputy is modeled to be underactuated; thrust is only allowable along a single axial direction (its local axis) and rotation is only allowed about its local axis. Furthermore, the deputy’s coupled translational and attitudinal dynamics (modeled via the Clohessy–Wiltshire equations with inputs) do not allow local controllability about the equilibrium point when linearized. To solve this underactuated ARPOD problem, we design a periodic bimodal switching control law that drives the deputy to a docking configuration with the chief. We model the system to have hybrid (i.e., continuous and discrete) dynamics and recast the docking objective as a set stabilization problem. The main result of this work is a rigorous proof that leverages properties of geometric control, Floquet theory, and homogeneity to show that the switching control law renders the objective set to be locally asymptotically stable. Numerical simulations are provided to illustrate the main result.

Vertically integrated project based method applied to small satellite technology development

Small satellite missions and technology development presents a unique platform for preparing undergraduate engineering students for future careers. University based small satellite projects provide students access to hands-on opportunities to apply theory learned in classes through computational analysis, hardware experimentation, and product design. They also allow students to gain project management skills and see systems engineering and design life cycle from a perspective few semesters long courses and lectures can provide. Since 2017, undergraduates have been involved in the Purdue University team investigating the Film Evaporation MEMS Tunable Array (FEMTA), a novel microthruster that evaporates ultra-pure deionized water to generate thrust and is intended for use as active attitude control on small satellites. This technology development project is well suited for including undergraduates, as the system operation can be easily understood by a student with only an introductory understanding of fluid mechanics. Undergraduates initially investigated single axis rotation control of a model CubeSat and now focus a suborbital payload to test the propellant management system. Undergraduates earn degree credit for aiding the faculty and graduate students in this long-term, multidisciplinary, and vertically-integrated – including students from freshmen to seniors -research project team. Vertically integrating allows students to participate for their entire undergraduate studies, while providing projects with stability and a knowledge base shared amongst many students. While this method can be applied to projects that are not aerospace related, small satellite projects allow students to add a breadth and depth of subject matter to their professional development. This project has included mechanical engineers, aerospace engineers, electrical and computer engineers, and computer science majors. This environment grants students the ability to learn new perspectives and problem-solving techniques from their peers. By requiring students to earn degree credit for project work, students become more invested and develop better professional habits such as proper documentation and communication. Student testimonials have cited this project as an asset while talking with company recruiters and for graduate school applications. The same methods developed on the FEMTA project are also being applied to the Purdue student team that is developing the camera system for the NASA Solar Cruiser mission, with similar success.

A coumarin hydrazone appended rotatable phenolic scaffold as fluorescent chemosensor for Ag+ ions and its bio imaging applications

A coumarin hydrazone-phenol conjugate, COH4 was designed, synthesized and utilized for the cation sensing studies by fluorimetry studies. The synthesized chemosensor was completely characterized by the usual spectroscopic and analytical studies. The COH4 receptor was examined for the detection of metal ions, in which it had a noticeable blue shifted fluorescence enhancement for Ag+ ions. Upon binding towards Ag+ ions, the photoinduced electron transfer (PET) process is inhibited via intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) process assisted by the arrest of the carbon–carbon single bond rotation. The binding stoichiometry of COH4 + Ag+ complexation ratio is noted to be 1:2, which was further confirmed by jobs plot method. The limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) were found to be 0.41 µM and 0.13 µM respectively. Moreover, COH4 was successfully utilized for the practical applications of Ag+ ion detection in bacterial cell lines.

Designing diversified crop rotations to advance sustainability: A method and an application

Diversified crop rotations are considered key to solving sustainability issues with modern farming but trade-offs often occur among different sustainability objectives. It remains a challenge to design rotations that reach compromises across multiple sustainability domains. Here we propose a methodological framework for systematic design of compromise rotations in terms of a set of sustainability indicators, which for the first time combines a rotation generator model (ROTAT), Pareto-based decision-aid tools, and a multi-criteria characterization process. We exemplify this framework by exploring promising diversified rotations in terms of 11 sustainability indicators for Quzhou, a typical cereal-growing county in the North China Plain. ROTAT generated 3011 agronomically feasible rotations but none of them outperformed the currently dominant wheat-maize system in all indicators. Then 125 rotations (4 %) were selected as compromise rotations using the Pareto-based decision-aid methods. Finally, these compromise rotations were divided into eight clusters representing contrasting sustainability patterns, including two profitability-oriented, two nutrition-oriented, and two environment-oriented clusters, as well as two clusters that achieved balance across sustainability domains. We conclude that no single alternative rotation can solve all conflicting sustainability issues, but compromise alternatives could serve diverse stakeholder demands and provide well-planned options for future agricultural landscapes. The crop rotation design method showcased here could also be used in other specialized agricultural regions to inform stakeholders and policy-makers about possibilities and trade-offs when improving sustainability of crop production.