Nonlinear limits to the information capacity of optical fibre communications.

The exponential growth in the rate at which information can be communicated through an optical fibre is a key element in the 'information revolution'. However, as for all exponential growth laws, physical limits must be considered. The nonlinear nature of the propagation of light in optical fibre has made these limits difficult to elucidate. Here we use a key simplification to investigate the theoretical limits to the information capacity of an optical fibre arising from these nonlinearities. The success of our approach lies in relating the nonlinear channel to a linear channel with multiplicative noise, for which we are able to obtain analytical results. In fundamental distinction to linear channels with additive noise, the capacity of a nonlinear channel does not grow indefinitely with increasing signal power, but has a maximal value. The ideas presented here may have broader implications for other nonlinear information channels, such as those involved in sensory transduction in neurobiology. These have been often examined using additive noise linear channel models but, as we show here, nonlinearities can change the picture qualitatively.     

Gridlock signalling pathway fashions the first embryonic artery.

Arteries and veins are morphologically, functionally and molecularly very different, but how this distinction is established during vasculogenesis is unknown. Here we show, by lineage tracking in zebrafish embryos, that angioblast precursors for the trunk artery and vein are spatially mixed in the lateral posterior mesoderm. Progeny of each angioblast, however, are restricted to one of the vessels. This arterial-venous decision is guided by gridlock (grl), an artery-restricted gene that is expressed in the lateral posterior mesoderm. Graded reduction of grl expression, by mutation or morpholino antisense, progressively ablates regions of the artery, and expands contiguous regions of the vein, preceded by an increase in expression of the venous marker EphB4 receptor (ephb4) and diminution of expression of the arterial marker ephrin-B2 (efnb2). grl is downstream of notch, and interference with notch signalling, by blocking Su(H), similarly reduces the artery and increases the vein. Thus, a notch-grl pathway controls assembly of the first embryonic artery, apparently by adjudicating an arterial versus venous cell fate decision.     

Deep levels,transport and THz emission properties of SiGe/Si quantum-well structures

In coal mines in such countries as China and Russia,most of the coal mine methane(CMM) generated during mining is emitted to the atmosphere without any effective usage,because the methane concentration of CMM is relatively low and not allowed to be used as fuel for safety reasons.Methane is one of the greenhouse gases.Therefore,if it becomes possible to concentrate CMM to an acceptable level for use as fuel,this will greatly contribute to reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.With the aim of gaining approva...     

L'introuvable révolution scientifique. Francesco Redi et la génération spontanée

The Italian naturalist F. Redi established in 1668 that insects are not produced by the way of equivocal generation, contrary to what was affirmed since the Antiquity. For that reason, many historians of sciences acknowledge his experiments, like those of Galileo, Boyle or Huygens, contributed to the scientific revolution that emerges in the seventeenth century in Western Europe. Based on the commentaries sparked off by the works of Redi, in his time and today, our contribution shows on the contrary that nothing at all in his approach reveals such an intention. Questioning without arrogance the knowledge and the authority of the Ancients, careful interrogation of the literariness of the Scriptures, adoption of an experimental reasoning still dependent on the scholastic argumentation, those are the main characteristics of his work. But those also could be the ones of Harvey, Borelli or Swammerdam's works. To defend the idea of a scientific revolution in the life sciences similar in its conditions and tempo to the one described in the history of the physical sciences would be a mistake, not to say an anachronism.     

Atomic structure holography using thermal neutrons.

The idea of atomic-resolution holography has its roots in the X-ray work of Bragg and in Gabor's electron interference microscope. Gabor's lensless microscope was not realized in his time, but over the past twelve years there has been a steady increase in the number of reports on atomic-resolution holography. All of this work involves the use of electrons or hard X-rays to produce the hologram. Neutrons are often unique among scattering probes in their interaction with materials: for example, the relative visibility of hydrogen and its isotopes is a great advantage in the study of polymers and biologically relevant materials. Recent work proposed that atomic-resolution holography could be achieved with thermal neutrons. Here we use monochromatic thermal neutrons, adopting the inside-source concept of Sz?ke, to image planes of oxygen atoms located above and below a single hydrogen atom in the oxide mineral simpsonite.     

Leadership and Power in Fostering a Collaborative Community in a Non-Profit Professional Organization

This article provides an account of first-person action research used for organization development in an all-volunteer professional organization. During a 12-month period, members sought to build a collaborative community out of a formerly defunct group. As part of this project, the group’s leader conducted a self-study by examining his role in exercising power while leading the group in building a collaborative community. Although the goals to collaborate and explore power relations originate in different philosophical perspectives, they were combined with moderate success in this project. An ongoing theoretical analysis of the challenges in using this approach illustrates the complications of combining collaborative approaches with the exploration of power.     

Identification of a bacterial inhibitor against g-type lysozyme

Lysozymes are antibacterial effectors of the innate immune system in animals that hydrolyze peptidoglycan. Bacteria have evolved protective mechanisms that contribute to lysozyme tolerance such as the production of lysozyme inhibitors, but only inhibitors of chicken (c-) and invertebrate (i-) type lysozyme have been identified. We here report the discovery of a novel Escherichia coli inhibitor specific for goose (g-) type lysozymes, which we designate PliG (periplasmic lysozyme inhibitor of g-type lysozyme). Although it does not inhibit c- or i-type lysozymes, PliG shares a structural sequence motif with the previously described PliI and MliC/PliC lysozyme inhibitor families, suggesting a common ancestry and mode of action. Deletion of pliG increased the sensitivity of E. coli to g-type lysozyme. The existence of inhibitors against all major types of animal lysozyme and their contribution to lysozyme tolerance suggest that lysozyme inhibitors may play a role in bacterial interactions with animal hosts.