Fraunhofer USA

New morphotropic phase boundary (MPB) piezoelectrics, with ferroelectric phase transition ( T c ) exceeding that of PbZrO 3 –PbTiO 3 (PZT), were investigated. Based on a perovskite tolerance factor- T c relationship, new high T c MPB systems were projected in the Bi(Me)O 3 –PbTiO 3 system, where Me is a relatively large B +3 -site cation. For the (1- x )BiScO 3 –( x )PbTiO 3 solid solution, a MPB was found at x -0.64 separating the rhombohedral and tetragonal phases, with correspondingly enhanced dielectric and piezoelectric properties. A transition temperature T c of ∼ 450°C was determined with evidence of T c 's on the order of ≥ 600°C in the BiInO 3 and BiYbO 3 analogues, though issues of perovskite stability remain for the smaller tolerance end-member systems.

Software organizations’ main assets are not plants, buildings, or
\nexpensive machines. A software organization’s main asset is its intellectual
\ncapital, as it is in sectors such as consulting, law, investment
\nbanking, and advertising. The major problem with intellectual
\ncapital is that it has legs and walks home every day. At the same rate
\nexperience walks out the door, inexperience walks in the door. Whether or
\nnot many software organizations admit it, they face the challenge of sustaining the level of competence needed to
\nwin contracts and fulfill undertakings.

The dielectric and piezoelectric properties of the new perovskite solid solution system (1 - x)BiScO3-xPbTiO(3) were investigated. This system is representative of a new group of high temperature piezoelectrics that includes Bi(Me)O-3-PbTiO3, where Me+3 is a relatively large cation, Sc, Y, Yb, In. etc., and combinations thereof. In the (1 - x)BiScO3-xPbTiO(3) series, perovskite stability was achieved for x > 50 mol% PbTiO3 being ferroelectric rhombohedral and transforming to ferroelectric tetragonal in the region x = 64 mol% PbTiO3, designated as the morphotropic phase boundary (MPB). Analogous to (1 - x)PbZrO3-xPbTiO(3) (PZT), the dielectric and piezoelectric properties were enhanced for compositions near the MPB. Piezoelectric coefficient d(33) values reached 450 pC/N, comparable to soft PZT's with a transition temperature of 450degreesC. more than 100degreesC higher than commercial PZT. The combination of high Tc and excellent piezoelectric activity make (1 - x)BiScO3-xPbTiO(3) materials candidates for high temperature, and temperature stable actuators and transducers.

Our starting point for developing the Studierstube system was the belief that augmented reality, the less obtrusive cousin of virtual reality, has a better chance of becoming a viable user interface for applications requiring manipulation of complex three-dimensional information as a daily routine. In essence, we are searching for a 3-D user interface metaphor as powerful as the desktop metaphor for 2-D. At the heart of the Studierstube system, collaborative augmented reality is used to embed computer-generated images into the real work environment. In the first part of this paper, we review the user interface of the initial Studierstube system, in particular the implementation of collaborative augmented reality, and the Personal Interaction Panel, a two-handed interface for interaction with the system. In the second part, an extended Studierstube system based on a heterogeneous distributed architecture is presented. This system allows the user to combine multiple approaches— augmented reality, projection displays, and ubiquitous computing—to the interface as needed. The environment is controlled by the Personal Interaction Panel, a twohanded, pen-and-pad interface that has versatile uses for interacting with the virtual environment. Studierstube also borrows elements from the desktop, such as multitasking and multi-windowing. The resulting software architecture is a user interface management system for complex augmented reality applications. The presentation is complemented by selected application examples.

The need to see compelling evidence before adopting new methods looms greater in large organizations because of their complexity and the need to integrate new technologies and processes with existing ones. To further evaluate agile methods and their underlying software development practices, several Software Experience Center (SEC) member companies initiated a series of activities to discover if agile practices match their organizations' needs. Although each organization evaluated agile methods according to its specific needs, here we attempt to generalize their findings by analyzing some of their common experiences in the particular context of large organizations with well-established structures and processes. We base this analysis on experience collected and shared among four SEC members namely ABB, DaimlerChrysler, Motorola, and Nokia.

The task of finding an optimal selection of requirements for the next release of a software system is difficult as requirements may depend on each other in complex ways. The paper presents the results from an in-depth study of the interdependencies within 5 distinct sets of requirements, each including 20 high-priority requirements of 5 distinct products from 5 different companies. The results show that: (1) roughly 20% of the requirements are responsible for 75% of the interdependencies; (2) only a few requirements are singular; (3) customer-specific bespoke development tend to include more functionality- related dependencies whereas market-driven product development have an emphasis on value-related dependencies. Several strategies for reducing the effort needed for identifying and managing interdependencies are outlined. A technique for visualization of interdependencies with the aim of supporting release planning is also discussed. The complexity of requirements interdependency analysis is studied in relation to metrics of requirements coupling. Finally, a number of issues for further research are identified.

The convergence of wearable sensors and personalized medicine enhance the ability to sense and control the drug composition and dosage, as well as location and timing of administration. To date, numerous stimuli-triggered smart drug-delivery systems have been developed to detect changes in light, pH, temperature, biomolecules, electric field, magnetic field, ultrasound and mechanical forces. This review examines the major advances within the last 5 years for the three most common light-responsive drug delivery-on-demand strategies: photochemical, photoisomerization and photothermal. Examples are highlighted to illustrate progress of each strategy in drug delivery applications, and key limitations are identified to motivate future research to advance this important field.

Abstract Lithium metal batteries (LMBs) are considered the most promising energy storage devices for applications such as electrical vehicles owing to its tremendous theoretical capacity (3860 mAh g −1 ). However, the serious safety issues and poor cycling performance caused by the dendritic crystal growth during deposition are concerned for any rechargeable batteries with a lithium metal anode. To make widespread adoption a possibility, considerable efforts have been devoted to suppressing lithium (Li) dendrite growth. In this review, the recent strategies to developing dendrite free Li anode, including constructing an artificial solid electrolyte interface, current collector modification, separator film improvement, and electrolyte additive, are summarized. The merits and shortcomings for different strategies are reviewed and a general summary and perspective on the next generation rechargeable batteries are presented. image

Because defects constitute an unavoidable aspect of software development, discovering and removing them early is crucial. Overlooked defects (like faults in the software system requirements, design, or code) propagate to subsequent development phases where detecting and correcting them becomes more difficult. At best, developers will eventually catch the defects, but at the expense of schedule delays and additional product-development costs. At worst, the defects will remain, and customers will receive a faulty product. The authors explain their perspective based reading (PBR) technique that provides a set of procedures to help developers solve software requirements inspection problems. PBR reviewers stand in for specific stakeholders in the document to verify the quality of requirements specifications. The authors show how PBR leads to improved defect detection rates for both individual reviewers and review teams working with unfamiliar application domains.

The Center for Empirically Based Software Engineering helps improve software development by providing guidelines for selecting development techniques, recommending areas for further research, and supporting software engineering education. A central activity toward achieving this goal has been the running of "e- Workshops" that capture expert knowledge with a minimum of overhead effort to formulate heuristics on a particular topic. The resulting heuristics are a useful summary of the current state of knowledge in an area based on expert opinion. This paper discusses the results to date of a series of e-Workshops on software defect reduction. The original discussion items are presented along with an encapsulated summary of the expert discussion. The reformulated heuristics can be useful both to researchers (for pointing out gaps in the current state of the knowledge requiring further investigation) and to practitioners (for benchmarking or setting expectations about development practices).

Inspections can be used to identify defects in software artifacts. In this way, inspection methods help to improve software quality, especially when used early in software development. Inspections of software design may be especially crucial since design defects (problems of correctness and completeness with respect to the requirements, internal consistency, or other quality attributes) can directly affect the quality of, and effort required for, the implementation.

BACKGROUND: Innate immune cells such as macrophages are abundantly present within malignant ascites, where they share the microenvironment with ovarian cancer stem cells (CSC). METHODS: macrophages (derived from U937 or peripheral blood monocytes) make up ~ 20% of the population, while the rest are ovarian cancer cells and ovarian cancer stem cells (derived from the high grade serous ovarian cancer cell line, OVCAR3). RESULTS: cells within the CSC compartment of hetero-spheroids. Upon examination of specific WNT ligand expression within the monocyte-derived macrophage system, we observed a significant elevation in gene expression for WNT5B. In CSCs co-cultured with macrophages within hetero-spheroids, increases in several WNT ligands were observed, and this increase was significantly inhibited when WNT5B was knocked down in macrophages. CONCLUSIONS: Our data implies that macrophage- initiated WNT signaling could play a significant role in the maintenance of stemness, and the resulting phenotypes of chemoresistance and invasiveness. Our results indicate paracrine WNT activation during CSC/M2 macrophages interaction constitutes a positive feedback loop that likely contributes to the more aggressive phenotype, which makes the WNT pathway a potential target to reduce the CSC and M2 macrophage compartments in the tumor microenvironment.

We investigate the global convergence of estimation of distribution algorithms (EDAs). In EDAs, the distribution is estimated from a set of selected elements, i.e., the parent set, and then the estimated distribution model is used to generate new elements. In this paper, we prove that: 1) if the distribution of the new elements matches that of the parent set exactly, the algorithms will converge to the global optimum under three widely used selection schemes and 2) a factorized distribution algorithm converges globally under proportional selection.

We discuss virtual environments in the context of how to distribute network communications, views, data, and processes while emphasizing those aspects critical to scaling environments. Systems that demand strong data consistency, causality, and reliable communications while supporting real-time interaction are not likely to scale very well. Furthermore, geographically dispersed systems require high-speed, multicast communication.

High-energy x-ray-diffraction experiments performed on rhombohedral $\mathrm{Pb}({\mathrm{Zn}}_{1/3}{\mathrm{Nb}}_{2/3}{)}_{1\ensuremath{-}x}{\mathrm{Ti}}_{x}{\mathrm{O}}_{3}$ $(\mathrm{PZN}\ensuremath{-}x%\mathrm{PT})$ crystals with $x=4.5%$ and 8% show that an electric field applied along the [001] direction induces the tetragonal phase, as proposed by Park and Shrout. Our experiments reveal that in PZN-4.5%PT such a phase change occurs via a third phase with monoclinic symmetry ${M}_{A},$ which is observed at intermediate field values. This is in agreement with first-principles calculations by Fu and Cohen predicting the rotation of the polarization between the rhombohedral and tetragonal phases in this material. A different polarization path between the rhombohedral and tetragonal phases, through a second monoclinic phase ${M}_{C},$ has been previously reported in PZN-8%PT. The microscopic characterization of these crystals allows us to explain the ultrahigh macroscopic strain observed in $\mathrm{PZN}\ensuremath{-}x%\mathrm{PT}$ under an electric field. Furthermore, some unusual scattering profiles displayed by exceptionally good crystals provide experimental evidence of the high anharmonicities and near degeneracy of the different phases in these extremely deformable materials.

Removal of fine particles (smaller than 2.5 μm) from industrial flue gases is, at present, one of the most important problems in air pollution abatement. These particles, which are hazardous because of their ability to penetrate deeply into the lungs, are difficult to remove by conventional separation technology. Sonic energy offers a means to solve this problem. The application of a high-intensity acoustic field to an aerosol induces agglomeration processes which changes the size distribution in favor of larger particles, which are then easier to precipitate with a conventional separator. In this work, we present a semiindustrial pilot plant in which this process is applied for reduction of particle emissions in coal combustion fumes. This installation basically consists of an acoustic agglomeration chamber with a rectangular cross-section, driven by four high-power and highly directional acoustic transducers of 10 and/or 20 kHz, and an electrostatic precipitator (ESP). In the experiments, a fluidized bed coal combustor was used as fume generator, and a sophisticated air sampling station was set up to carry out measurements with fume flow rates up to about 2000 m3/h, gas temperatures of about 150 °C, and mass concentrations in the range 1−5 g/m3. The fine particle reduction produced by the acoustic filter was about 40% of the number concentration.

We introduce a new projection-based AR display system-the Virtual Showcase. The Virtual Showcase has the same form factor as a real showcase, making it compatible with traditional museum displays. Real scientific and cultural artifacts are placed inside the Virtual Showcase allowing their 3D graphical augmentation. Inside the Virtual Showcase, virtual representations and real artifacts share the same space providing new ways of merging and exploring real and virtual content. Solely virtual exhibits may also be displayed. The virtual part of the showcase can react in various ways to a visitor, which provides the possibility for intuitive interaction with the displayed content.

are rather dependent on growth conditions. We also observe a decreasing diamond thermal resistance with increasing growth temperature.

Computational scientists developing software for HPC systems face unique software engineering issues. Attempts to transfer SE technologies to this domain must take these issues into account.

Recently the awareness of the importance of replicating studies has been growing in the empirical software engineering community. The results of any one study cannot simply be extrapolated to all environments because there are many uncontrollable sources of variation between different environments. In our work, we have reasoned that the availability of laboratory packages for experiments can encourage better replications and complementary studies. However, even with effectively specified laboratory packages, transfer of experimental know-how can still be difficult. A cooperation between Brazilian and American researchers addressing effective running of replications was formed in 1999. One of the specific issues being addressed is the problem of transferring tacit knowledge. We discuss what we learned about the tacit knowledge transfer problem and the evolution of laboratory packages in the description of a replication performed in Brazil using a PBR (Perspective Based Reading) laboratory package; also how further issues are addressed.