Use of behavioural stochastic resonance by paddle fish for feeding

Stochastic resonance is the phenomenon whereby the addition of an optimal level of noise to a weak information-carrying input to certain nonlinear systems can enhance the information content at their outputs. Computer analysis of spike trains has been needed to reveal stochastic resonance in the responses of sensory receptors except for one study on human psychophysics. But is an animal aware of, and can it make use of, the enhanced sensory information from stochastic resonance? Here, we show that stochastic resonance enhances the normal feeding behaviour of paddlefish (Polyodon spathula), which use passive electroreceptors to detect electrical signals from planktonic prey. We demonstrate significant broadening of the spatial range for the detection of plankton when a noisy electric field of optimal amplitude is applied in the water. We also show that swarms of Daphnia plankton are a natural source of electrical noise. Our demonstration of stochastic resonance at the level of a vital animal behaviour, feeding, which has probably evolved for functional success, provides evidence that stochastic resonance in sensory nervous systems is an evolutionary adaptation.     

Control,exploitation and tolerance of intracellular noise

Noise has many roles in biological function, including generation of errors in DNA replication leading to mutation and evolution, noise-driven divergence of cell fates, noise-induced amplification of signals, and maintenance of the quantitative individuality of cells. Yet there is order to the behaviour and development of cells. They operate within strict parameters and in many cases this behaviour seems robust, implying that noise is largely filtered by the system. How can we explain the use, rejection and sensitivity to noise that is found in biological systems? An exploration of the sources and consequences of noise calls for the use of stochastic models.     

大动态范围的环境噪声自动测量仪的研制

研制了一台动态范围为90dB以上的环境噪声自动监测及统计分析仪器。可以适用于声级起伏变化很大的环境噪声和交通噪声的全量程监测,并可以把测量结果和统计分析结果自动显示和打印出来,解决了随机性较强的环境噪声的自动监测问题。仪器內部有两只对数放大器,由于器件特性的限制,每只对数放大器的动态范围约60dB左右,但通过微处理器对双通道对数放大器的交替采样,并经过数据处理,实现了二对数放大器的测量动态范围的自动连接,这样扩大了量程(大于90dB)实现了仪器的全量程测试。     

WDM系统中改进的Q值在线检测方法

提出了一种改进的Q值在检测方法，指出可以使用不同的门限电平分别对空号和传号进行判决，并引入噪声系数征高速光纤通信系统信号噪声的幅度变化范围，相应地修正了空号和传号均方差的计算表达式，基于改进的方法设计了实验方案，采用数字信号处理芯片（DSP）技术开发了Q值测试板并进行了模拟测试，在一定噪声范围内，测试结果与理论认值吻合得较好，相比干现有的Q值在线检测方法，改进的方法更精确地表示了传输信号的信噪比，具有更好的实用性。     

跟踪门对多目标跟踪系统性能的影响

讨论了密集目标环境下跟踪门门限对多目标跟踪系统性能的影响。在略去杂波的情况下,以方差压缩比作为跟踪系统性能的衡量指标,对跟踪门性能进行了理论分析。给出了矩形跟踪门配合K alm an滤波算法和PDA关联算法的仿真数据。提出了一种跟踪门门限的选取方法,将离线仿真得到的门限直接应用于跟踪系统,门限计算复杂减小,适用于对速度要求较高的跟踪系统。     

The coevolution of choosiness and cooperation

Explaining the rise and maintenance of cooperation is central to our understanding of biological systems and human societies. When an individual's cooperativeness is used by other individuals as a choice criterion, there can be competition to be more generous than others, a situation called competitive altruism. The evolution of cooperation between non-relatives can then be driven by a positive feedback between increasing levels of cooperativeness and choosiness. Here we use evolutionary simulations to show that, in a situation where individuals have the opportunity to engage in repeated pairwise interactions, the equilibrium degree of cooperativeness depends critically on the amount of behavioural variation that is being maintained in the population by processes such as mutation. Because our model does not invoke complex mechanisms such as negotiation behaviour, it can be applied to a wide range of species. The results suggest an important role of lifespan in the evolution of cooperation.     

多层板的隔声特性研究

应用转移矩阵的方法，就平面声波垂直入射的情况，对具有周期结构的无限大多层板的隔声特性进行了理论分析，并对结构不同的多层板的隔声特性进行了数值模拟．理论分析和数值模拟表明：与通常隔声用的单层或双层板相比，在保持面密度不变的条件下，采用多层板结构能够在某些频段使隔声性能有明显改善，尤其体现在中高频段，但低频隔声效果稍有减弱．另外，适当调节多层板的厚度和板间的距离，可以实现对不同频段的隔声效果有所侧重．采用分区域等厚度的多层板，即采用厚、薄板相结合的复合结构，可以兼顾低频隔声性能，同时提高多层板的中高频隔声效果．在隔声结构的总体面密度和板的空间分布保持不变的情况下，换用同类的不同隔声材料对隔声特性没有明显改变，但可以适当改变隔声结构的强度．在隔声结构的设计过程中，针对不同的噪声频谱，可以采用中介绍的方法来构造相应的多层板结构，达到特定的隔声要求．研究结果对轻薄隔声结构的设计具有一定指导意义．     

Snapping shrimp make flashing bubbles

Snapping shrimp produce a loud crackling noise that is intense enough to disturb underwater communication. This sound originates from the violent collapse of a large cavitation bubble generated under the tensile forces of a high-velocity water jet formed when the shrimp's snapper-claw snaps shut (Fig. 1). Here we show that a short, intense flash of light is emitted as the bubble collapses, indicating that extreme pressures and temperatures of at least 5,000 K (ref. 4) must exist inside the bubble at the point of collapse. We have dubbed this phenomenon 'shrimpoluminescence' - the first observation, to our knowledge, of this mode of light production in any animal - because of its apparent similarity to sonoluminescence, the light emission from a bubble periodically driven by ultrasound.     

Stochastic gene expression out-of-steady-state in the cyanobacterial circadian clock

Recent advances in measuring gene expression at the single-cell level have highlighted the stochastic nature of messenger RNA and protein synthesis. Stochastic gene expression creates a source of variability in the abundance of cellular components, even among isogenic cells exposed to an identical environment. Recent integrated experimental and modelling studies have shed light on the molecular sources of this variability. However, many of these studies focus on systems that have reached a steady state and therefore do not address a large class of dynamic phenomena including oscillatory gene expression. Here we develop a general protocol for analysing and predicting stochastic gene expression in systems that never reach steady states. We use this framework to analyse experimentally stochastic expression of genes driven by the Synechococcus elongatus circadian clock. We find that, although the average expression at two points in the circadian cycle separated by 12 hours is identical, the variability at these two time points can be different. We show that this is a general feature of out-of-steady-state systems. We demonstrate how intrinsic noise sources, owing to random births and deaths of mRNAs and proteins, or extrinsic noise sources, which introduce fluctuations in rate constants, affect the cell-to-cell variability. To distinguish experimentally between these sources, we measured how the correlation between expression fluctuations of two identical genes is modulated during the circadian cycle. This quantitative framework is generally applicable to any out-of-steady-state system and will be necessary for understanding the fidelity of dynamic cellular systems.     

WDA相关法时间延迟估计

相控阵超声检测中,相关法时间延迟估计是实现自适应聚焦的关键技术之一。为了消除噪声、模板窗口大小和缺陷特征等因素对相关法时间延迟估计的影响,结合检测超声回波信号的特点,提出了基于小波变换的相关法时间延迟估计方法。理论仿真和实验均证明该方法能有效抑制上述因素的影响,提高时间延迟估计精度。仿真计算表明:在可信度为0.95的情况下,信噪比提高了3.2dB,最小窗口大小从无穷大变成了3倍于探头中心频率对应周期,模板有效范围扩展了60%。     

CO-OFDM 系统中基于线性预处理的新相位噪声抑制算法

针对相干光正交频分复用（coherent optical orthogonal frequency division multiplexing,CO-OFDM）系统中相位噪声引起的载波间干扰（inter-carrier interference,ICI）问题,提出了一种基于线性预处理的新判决反馈相位噪声抑制算法。该新算法改进了线性预处理部分,利用循环前缀与OFDM符号固有的相关性,在时域进行简单的线性组合运算,充分利用了OFDM符号中冗余信息。仿真分析表明,在激光器线宽为200 kHz且误码率（bit error rate, BER）为10－4时,与判决反馈相位噪声抑制算法和一次迭代的判决反馈相位噪声抑制算法相比,该新算法BER曲线的信噪比（signal to noise ratio,SNR）分别改善了3 dB和1 dB,有效地降低由ICI引起的错误平层。     

Relative Intensity Noise in the Single Quantum Well Diode

Based on the mathematical model of quantum well laser diode(QW-LDs) developed, the paper presents a relative intensity noise(RIN) model, which employs Gaussian form random noise with its average being to zero. It can be straightforwardly used to describe the effect of the noise on the performance of QW-LDs. The RIN becomes notable in the frequency range of interests and therefore affects the device modulation property. The results are in good agreement of the published data. The RIN model proposed and the results can be used for purpose of device technique improvement and performance simulation of optical communication systems and networks.     

Relative Intensity Noise in the Single Quantum Well Diode

Based on the mathematical model of quantum well laser diode(QW-LDs) developed, the paper presents a relative intensity noise(RIN) model, which employs Gaussian form random noise with its average being to zero. It can be straightforwardly used to describe the effect of the noise on the performance of QW-LDs. The RIN becomes notable in the frequency range of interests and therefore affects the device modulation property. The results are in good agreement of the published data. The RIN model proposed and the results can be used for purpose of device technique improvement and performance simulation of optical communication systems and networks.     

基于现场数据热工对象建模的可辨识性

为克服现有机理建模和试验建模方法的不足,从基本建模理论出发,研究了利用现场数据对热工对象进行建模的问题。基于现场数据建模需要对热工过程输入信号的可激励性、控制系统闭环可辨识性、多变量系统输入信号的无关性等进行判断。结果表明:在较大的机组负荷波动过程中采集的运行数据能够满足输入信号的可激励性;热工过程的大滞后现象对保证热工控制系统的闭环可辨识性有利;含有噪声的实测信号能够保证多变量系统的可辨识性。在满足以上条件的情况下,可以基于现场数据对热工对象进行建模研究。     

A bottom-up approach to gene regulation

The ability to construct synthetic gene networks enables experimental investigations of deliberately simplified systems that can be compared to qualitative and quantitative models. If simple, well-characterized modules can be coupled together into more complex networks with behaviour that can be predicted from that of the individual components, we may begin to build an understanding of cellular regulatory processes from the 'bottom up'. Here we have engineered a promoter to allow simultaneous repression and activation of gene expression in Escherichia coli. We studied its behaviour in synthetic gene networks under increasingly complex conditions: unregulated, repressed, activated, and simultaneously repressed and activated. We develop a stochastic model that quantitatively captures the means and distributions of the expression from the engineered promoter of this modular system, and show that the model can be extended and used to accurately predict the in vivo behaviour of the network when it is expanded to include positive feedback. The model also reveals the counterintuitive prediction that noise in protein expression levels can increase upon arrest of cell growth and division, which we confirm experimentally. This work shows that the properties of regulatory subsystems can be used to predict the behaviour of larger, more complex regulatory networks, and that this bottom-up approach can provide insights into gene regulation.     

Positive feedbacks promote power-law clustering of Kalahari vegetation

The concept of local-scale interactions driving large-scale pattern formation has been supported by numerical simulations, which have demonstrated that simple rules of interaction are capable of reproducing patterns observed in nature. These models of self-organization suggest that characteristic patterns should exist across a broad range of environmental conditions provided that local interactions do indeed dominate the development of community structure. Readily available observations that could be used to support these theoretical expectations, however, have lacked sufficient spatial extent or the necessary diversity of environmental conditions to confirm the model predictions. We use high-resolution satellite imagery to document the prevalence of self-organized vegetation patterns across a regional rainfall gradient in southern Africa, where percent tree cover ranges from 65% to 4%. Through the application of a cellular automata model, we find that the observed power-law distributions of tree canopy cluster sizes can arise from the interacting effects of global-scale resource constraints (that is, water availability) and local-scale facilitation. Positive local feedbacks result in power-law distributions without entailing threshold behaviour commonly associated with criticality. Our observations provide a framework for integrating a diverse suite of previous studies that have addressed either mean wet season rainfall or landscape-scale soil moisture variability as controls on the structural dynamics of arid and semi-arid ecosystems.     

小波变换技术在电机故障诊断上的应用

电机失效的主要原因是电机轴承故障,以电流信号为基础的谱分析方法,反映故障的谐波分量幅值较小,容易被基频和电流噪声淹没.采用小波变换技术对电机轴承类故障进行诊断,将传感器采集到的振动信号用db10、db1、db5正交小波基进行4层小波分解,并对第1层细节信号d1作Hilbert包络和谱分析.实验结果表明:小波分解方法能够检测出轴承故障的特征频率,db1正交小波基得到的故障频率最为明显,与传统方法相比,小波技术在电机故障诊断中具有很大优越性.     

一种降低对数域滤波器噪声和功耗的方法

针对现代电子设备微型化的需要,对数域滤波器更适合于低电压工作,动态偏置技术可以降低电路系统的噪声和功耗.文中提出了一种动态偏置应用于对数域滤波器中的方法,可以在不改变滤波器传输函数的情况下降低对数滤波器噪声的功耗.以一个三阶差分对数域滤波器的设计为例说明了动态偏置技术的应用.Pspice模拟结果表明,与恒定偏置滤波器相比,当输入信号为最大允许输入信号的1/10时,动态偏置滤波器的输出噪声和功耗分别下降了约17dB和12dB,但滤波器的动态范围基本保持与最大输入信号时相同.     

生化反应系统的建模与分析

很多细胞行为受细胞内基因表达和蛋白质相互作用等生物化学反应的调控.这些细胞内的生化反应表现出明显的随机性,它成为描述细胞行为的可计算建模中不可忽略的因素.该文是关于计算系统生物学中随机模拟的基本理论和新进展的自洽综述.本综述从生化反应系统的基本假设出发,介绍关于生化反应内部噪声、外部随机扰动和包含时间滞后的反应过程的各种数学描述,包括化学主方程、化学福克尔-普朗克方程、化学速率方程、化学郎之万方程等; 还介绍了相关的数值模拟方法,包括随机模拟算法和τ跳跃算法.     

Spatial cooperativity in soft glassy flows

Amorphous glassy materials of diverse nature-concentrated emulsions, granular materials, pastes, molecular glasses-display complex flow properties, intermediate between solid and liquid, which are at the root of their use in many applications. A general feature of such systems, well documented yet not really understood, is the strongly nonlinear nature of the flow rule relating stresses and strain rates. Here we use a microfluidic velocimetry technique to characterize the flow of thin layers of concentrated emulsions, confined in gaps of different thicknesses by surfaces of different roughnesses. We find evidence for finite-size effects in the flow behaviour and the absence of an intrinsic local flow rule. In contrast to the classical nonlinearities of the rheological behaviour of amorphous materials, we show that a rather simple non-local flow rule can account for all the velocity profiles. This non-locality of the dynamics is quantified by a length, characteristic of cooperativity within the flow at these scales, that is unobservable in the liquid state (lower emulsion concentrations) and that increases with concentration in the jammed state. Beyond its practical importance for applications involving thin layers (for example, coatings), these non-locality and cooperativity effects have parallels in the behaviour of other glassy, jammed and granular systems, suggesting a possible fundamental universality.