Enhanced performance of nano-sized SiC reinforced Al metal matrix nanocomposites synthesized through microwave sintering and hot extrusion techniques

In the present study, nano-sized SiC (0, 0.3, 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5 vol%) reinforced aluminum (Al) metal matrix composites were fabricated by microwave sintering and hot extrusion techniques. The structural (XRD, SEM), mechanical (nanoindentation, compression, tensile) and thermal properties (co-efficient of thermal expansion- CTE) of the developed Al-SiC nanocomposites were studied. The SEM/EDS mapping images show a homogeneous distribution of SiC nanoparticles into the Al matrix. A significant increase in the strength (compressive and tensile) of the Al-SiC nanocomposites with the addition of SiC content is observed. However, it is noticed that the ductility of Al-SiC nanocomposites decreases with increasing volume fraction of SiC. The thermal analysis indicates that CTE of Al-SiC nanocomposites decreases with the progressive addition of hard SiC nanoparticles. Overall, hot extruded Al 1.5 vol% SiC nanocomposites exhibited the best mechanical and thermal performance as compared to the other developed Al-SiC nanocomposites.     

Stimuli-responsive polymeric materials for human health applications

Stimuli-responsive polymers have the extraor- dinary ability to change their physical and/or chemical state after they ＂detect＂ a change in their environment; their response depends dramatically on their chemical compo- sition. This property has been used for a plethora of applications; this review highlights their utility for human health. Specifically, this review will highlight efforts in the areas of sensing and biosensing, antimicrobial/antifouling coatings, tissue engineering and regenerative medicine, and drug delivery. Specific examples are given in each of these areas, with some focus on our work engineering poly（N- isopropylacrylamide）-based microgels and other respon- sive systems.     

Polycaprolactone Grafting of Cellulose Nanocrystals in Ionic Liquid[BMIM]CI

A polycaprolactone-grafted cellulose nanocrystal(PCL-g-CN) was prepared in ionic liquid and characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectrum(FT-IR),X-ray diffraction(XRD),and transmission electron microscopy(TEM).A peak assigned to the carbonyl group appears at 1 730 cm~(-1) in the FT-IR of PCL-g-CN,which confirms that the grafting reaction is successfully completed.The morphologies of PCL-g-CNs still maintain rod-like structure according to the TEM images.XRD results show that the crystal type of the PCL-g-CNs changed from cellulose Ⅰ to cellulose Ⅱ.The reasons for crystal transition of CNs turn out to be combined effects of anion and cation in ionic liquid with CNs.     

Fabrication of an r-Al2Ti intermetallic matrix composite reinforced with α-Al2O3 ceramic by discontinuous mechanical milling for thermite reaction

In this study, a powder mixture with an Al/TiO2 molar ratio of 10/3 was used to form an r-Al2Ti intermetallic matrix composite (IMC) reinforced withα-Al2O3 ceramic by a novel milling technique, called ...     

Programmable and autonomous computing machine made of biomolecules.

Devices that convert information from one form into another according to a definite procedure are known as automata. One such hypothetical device is the universal Turing machine, which stimulated work leading to the development of modern computers. The Turing machine and its special cases, including finite automata, operate by scanning a data tape, whose striking analogy to information-encoding biopolymers inspired several designs for molecular DNA computers. Laboratory-scale computing using DNA and human-assisted protocols has been demonstrated, but the realization of computing devices operating autonomously on the molecular scale remains rare. Here we describe a programmable finite automaton comprising DNA and DNA-manipulating enzymes that solves computational problems autonomously. The automaton's hardware consists of a restriction nuclease and ligase, the software and input are encoded by double-stranded DNA, and programming amounts to choosing appropriate software molecules. Upon mixing solutions containing these components, the automaton processes the input molecule via a cascade of restriction, hybridization and ligation cycles, producing a detectable output molecule that encodes the automaton's final state, and thus the computational result. In our implementation 1012 automata sharing the same software run independently and in parallel on inputs (which could, in principle, be distinct) in 120 microl solution at room temperature at a combined rate of 109 transitions per second with a transition fidelity greater than 99.8%, consuming less than 10-10 W.     

How 'spin ice' freezes.

The large degeneracy of states resulting from the geometrical frustration of competing interactions is an essential ingredient of important problems in fields as diverse as magnetism, protein folding and neural networks. As first explained by Pauling, geometrical frustration of proton positions is also responsible for the unusual low-temperature thermodynamics of ice and its measured 'ground state' entropy. Recent work has shown that the geometrical frustration of ice is mimicked by Dy2Ti2O7, a site-ordered magnetic material in which the spins reside on a lattice of corner-sharing tetrahedra where they form an unusual magnetic ground state known as 'spin ice'. Here we identify a cooperative spin-freezing transition leading to the spin-ice ground state in Dy2Ti2O7. This transition is associated with a very narrow range of relaxation times, and represents a new form of spin-freezing. The dynamics are analogous to those associated with the freezing of protons in ice, and they provide a means through which to study glass-like behaviour and the consequences of frustration in the limit of low disorder.     

Water capture by a desert beetle.

Some beetles in the Namib Desert collect drinking water from fog-laden wind on their backs. We show here that these large droplets form by virtue of the insect's bumpy surface, which consists of alternating hydrophobic, wax-coated and hydrophilic, non-waxy regions. The design of this fog-collecting structure can be reproduced cheaply on a commercial scale and may find application in water-trapping tent and building coverings, for example, or in water condensers and engines.     

New cooperative frequency domain differential modulation and demodulation

An innovative method of cooperative frequency domain differential modulation and demodulation is presented.This method applies the prior knowledge of channel propagation to selecting the variable differential length and carrying out frequency domain modulation.This strategy optimizes the design of system parameters to effectively improve the anti-interference ability of the differential system in time-varied multipath channel circumstance without making the execution more complicating.The simulations and comparisons demonstrate the proposed method is effective,and the results show that it is especially suitable for the fading channel with strong propagation and fast time-variation.     

Community Development and Renaissance Social Humanism: Some Lessons for Systems Science

Starting from the crisis in our communities—research has indicated it to be widely spread—the author explores the scientific tradition preceding the rise of modernism in order to draw out a more humane way of thinking that may help our contemporary societies. He discerns between two types of Renaissance humanism, one characterised by its cleverness, the other by its compassion and desire to restore dignity to the lives of people struggling to escape the clutches of medievalism. The father of the latter is Erasmus of Rotterdam and we follow the development of his conception of a social humanism as it branches out, through the work of his successors, into every scientific discipline, both natural and human. These disciplines are united by an embracing systemic idea of philosophy that unites the mind with the heart and which Erasmus called “Philosophia Christi”. We examine the two main pillars upon which this philosophy is built, love for our neighbour and education as the only legitimate instrument to change society, and the extraordinary impact it had on science and on communities living in the seventeenth century. We contrast this with the idea of power, the chosen instrument of modernity to transform society, and trace some of its tragic outcomes. We conclude by discussing the incorporation of an Erasmian type of social humanism into systems education and the future development of such programmes.