Energy efficiency of fibre reinforced soil formation at small element scale: Laboratory and numerical investigation

This paper explores the aspects related to the energy consumption for the compaction of unreinforced and fibre reinforced samples fabricated in the laboratory. It is well known that, for a fixed soil density, the addition of fibres invariably results in an increased resistance to compaction. However, similar peak strength properties of a dense unreinforced sample can be obtained using looser granular soil matrices mixed with small quantities of fibres. Based on both experimental and discrete element modelling (DEM) procedures, this paper demonstrates that less compaction energy is required for building loose fibre reinforced sand samples than for denser unreinforced sand samples while both samples show similar peak strength properties. Beyond corroborating the macro-scale experimental observations, the result of the DEM analyses provides an insight into the local micro-scale mechanisms governing the fibre-grain interaction. These assessments focus on the evolution of the void ratio distribution, re-arrangement of soil particles, mobilisation of stresses in the fibres, and the evolution of the fibre orientation distribution during the stages of compaction.     

SaBRe: load-time selective binary rewriting

Binary rewriting consists in disassembling a program to modify its instructions. However, existing solutions suffer from shortcomings in terms of soundness and performance. We present SaBRe, a load-time system for selective binary rewriting. SaBRe rewrites specific constructs—particularly system calls and functions—when the program is loaded into memory, and intercepts them using plugins through a simple API. We also discuss the theoretical underpinnings of disassembling and rewriting. We developed two backends—for x86_64 and RISC-V—which were used to implement three plugins: a fast system call tracer, a multi-version executor, and a fault injector. Our evaluation shows that SaBRe imposes little overhead, typically below 3%.

     

Water Sorption and Diffusion in (Reduced) Graphene Oxide‐Alginate Biopolymer Nanocomposites

The water sorption and diffusion in (reduced) graphene oxide‐alginate composites of various compositions is analyzed. Water sorption of sodium alginate can be significantly reduced by the inclusion of graphene oxide sheets due to the formation of an extensive hydrogen bonding network between oxygenated groups. Crosslinking alginate with divalent metal ions and the presence of reduced graphene oxide can further improve the swelling resistance due to the strong interactions between metal ions, alginate, and filler sheets. Depending on conditions and composition, the overall water barrier properties of alginate composites improve upon (reduced) graphene oxide filling, making them attractive for moisture barrier coating applications. Water sorption kinetics in all alginate composites indicate a non‐Fickian diffusion process that can be accurately described by the Variable Surface Concentration model. In addition, the water barrier properties of sodium alginate‐graphene oxide composites can be adequately predicted using a simple model that takes the orientational order of filler sheets and their effective aspect ratio into account.

     

Pathogen-induced Release of Plant Allomone Manipulates Vector Insect Behavior

Infochemicals mediate communication within and between different trophic levels. In this study, we identified a new type of plant allomone induced by a plant pathogen and perceived by its vector insect Cacopsylla picta. This phloem-feeding psyllid is the main vector of Candidatus Phytoplasma mali, a cell wall-lacking bacterium that causes the so-called apple proliferation disease. In a previous study, we showed that newly emerged females of C. picta were attracted by the odor of phytoplasma-infected apple plants (Malus domestica), which release ß-caryophyllene in contrast to uninfected plants. Here, the attractiveness of this sesquiterpene for C. picta was confirmed in both olfactometer bioassays and field studies. Synthetic ß-caryophyllene was highly attractive to newly emerged adults of C. picta both when offered simultaneously with healthy apple odor and without. The psyllid’s response was independent of its odor experience and infection status. These results confirm our previously established hypothesis that this phytoplasma manipulates the behavior of its vector insect by changing the odor blend of its host plant. Deployed in apple orchards, sticky traps baited with ß-caryophyllene dispensers caught both males and females of C. picta. Consequently, this new type of infochemical, i.e., a phytopathogen-induced plant allomone, represents a promising compound to develop innovative techniques for monitoring or maybe even mass trapping of C. picta.     

Porphyrins as Colorimetric and Photometric Biosensors in Modern Bioanalytical Systems

Advances in porphyrin chemistry have provided novel materials and exciting technologies for bioanalysis such as colorimetric sensor array (CSA), photo-electrochemical (PEC) biosensing, and nanocomposites as peroxidase mimetics for glucose detection. This review highlights selected recent advances in the construction of supramolecular assemblies based on the porphyrin macrocycle that provide recognition of various biologically important entities through the unique porphyrin properties associated with colorimetry, spectrophotometry, and photo-electrochemistry.     

Mapping numerical magnitudes along the right lines: Differentiating between scale and bias.

Previous investigations on the subjective scale of numerical representations assumed that the scale type can be inferred directly from stimulus–response mapping. This is not a valid assumption, as mapping from the subjective scale into behavior may be nonlinear and/or distorted by response bias. Here we present a method for differentiating between logarithmic and linear hypotheses robust to the effect of distorting processes. The method exploits the idea that a scale is defined by transformational rules and that combinatorial operations with stimulus magnitudes should be closed under admissible transformations on the subjective scale. The method was implemented with novel variants of the number line task. In the line-marking task, participants marked the position of an Arabic numeral within an interval defined by various starting numbers and lengths. In the line construction task, participants constructed an interval given its part. Two alternative approaches to the data analysis, numerical and analytical, were used to evaluate the linear and log components. Our results are consistent with the linear hypothesis about the subjective scale with responses affected by a bias to overestimate small magnitudes and underestimate large magnitudes. We also observed that in the line-marking task, participants tended to overestimate as the interval start increased, and in the line construction task, they tended to overconstruct as the interval length increased. This finding suggests that magnitudes were encoded differently in the 2 tasks: in terms of their absolute magnitudes in the line-marking task and in terms of numerical differences in the line construction task. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Efficient cerium-based sol-gel derived phosphors in different garnet matrices for light-emitting diodes

Efficiency of sol-gel derived Y_3−xAl₅O₁₂:Ce_x³⁺ (YAG:Ce) and Y_3−xMg₂AlSi₂O₁₂:Ce_x³⁺ (YMASG:Ce) phosphors, which are prospective for application in white light emitting diodes (LED), is studied. Sets of samples containing different cerium amount x from 0.015 to 0.06 and sintered at different temperatures (1400-1550 °C) were investigated. Importance of absorption peculiarities in agglomerates of phosphor nanocrystals is demonstrated by studying the excitation wavelength dependence of quantum efficiency and by applying PL measurements in confocal mode. Emission saturation is demonstrated to occur at higher excitation intensities than those typical for operating white LEDs.     

Phytopathogen Lures Its Insect Vector by Altering Host Plant Odor

Many phytopathogens that cause worldwide losses of agricultural yield are vectored by herbivorous insects. Limited information is available about the interactions among phytopathogens, host plants, and insect vectors. In this paper, we report that the cell wall-lacking bacterium Candidatus Phytoplasma mali can alter both the odor of its host plant (apple) and behavior of its vector, the univoltine psyllid Cacopsylla picta. Apple trees infected by this phytoplasma emitted higher amounts of beta-caryophyllene when compared to uninfected ones. Psyllids that had no previous contact with Ca. P. mali, as well as infected pyllids, are more attracted by volatiles emitted from phytoplasma-infected apple plants than from uninfected ones. Psyllids that had developed on infected plants without getting infected showed the opposite behavior. These results suggest that the pathogen modifies host plant odor that lures its vector to infected plants. This may result in higher numbers of transmitting vector insects within the population.     

Protected by Fumigants: Beetle Perfumes in Antimicrobial Defense

Beetles share with other eukaryotes an innate immune system that mediates endogenous defense against pathogens. In addition, larvae of some taxa produce fluid exocrine secretions that contain antimicrobial compounds. In this paper, we provide evidence that larvae of the brassy willow leaf beetle Phratora vitellinae constitutively release volatile glandular secretions that combat pathogens in their microenvironment. We identified salicylaldehyde as the major component of their enveloping perfume cloud, which is emitted by furrow-shaped openings of larval glandular reservoirs and which inhibits in vitro the growth of the bacterial entomopathogen Bacillus thuringiensis. The suggested role of salicylaldehyde as a fumigant in exogenous antimicrobial defense was confirmed in vivo by its removal from glandular reservoirs. This resulted in an enhanced susceptibility of the larvae to infection with the fungal entomopathogens Beauveria bassiana and Metarhizium anisopliae. Consequently, we established the hypothesis that antimicrobial defense in beetles can be expanded beyond innate immunity to include external disinfection of their microenvironment, and we report for the first time the contribution of fumigants to antimicrobial defense in animals.