Refine
Year of publication
- 2012 (332) (remove)
Institute
- Fachbereich Medizintechnik und Technomathematik (72)
- Fachbereich Wirtschaftswissenschaften (42)
- Fachbereich Chemie und Biotechnologie (40)
- Fachbereich Elektrotechnik und Informationstechnik (40)
- INB - Institut für Nano- und Biotechnologien (32)
- IfB - Institut für Bioengineering (31)
- Fachbereich Bauingenieurwesen (30)
- Fachbereich Maschinenbau und Mechatronik (29)
- Fachbereich Energietechnik (20)
- Solar-Institut Jülich (15)
Document Type
- Article (130)
- Conference Proceeding (89)
- Part of a Book (36)
- Book (26)
- Conference: Meeting Abstract (17)
- Patent (12)
- Part of a Periodical (9)
- Doctoral Thesis (6)
- Report (4)
- Habilitation (1)
Keywords
- Elektromobilität (7)
- Elektrofahrzeug (5)
- Energieversorgungsnetz (5)
- Kraftfahrzeugelektronik (5)
- Aachen / Fachhochschule Aachen (3)
- Aachen University of Applied Sciences (2)
- Elektromobilität; Elektrofahrzeug; Energieversorungsnetz; Kraftfahrzeugtechnik (2)
- (Bio)degradation (1)
- 3. EU Legislativpaket (1)
- 802.15.4 (1)
As the potential of a next generation network (NGN) is recognised, telecommunication companies consider switching to it. Although the implementation of an NGN seems to be merely a modification of the network infrastructure, it may trigger or require changes in the whole company, because it builds upon the separation between service and transport, a flexible bundling of services to products and the streamlining of the IT infrastructure. We propose a holistic framework, structured into the layers ‘strategy’, ‘processes’ and ‘information systems’ and incorporate into each layer all concepts necessary for the implementation of an NGN, as well as the alignment of these concepts. As a first proof-of-concept for our framework we have performed a case study on the introduction of NGN in a large telecommunication company; we show that our framework captures all topics that are affected by an NGN implementation.
Die Veränderungen des Telekommunikationsmarktes haben in der Praxis zu einer Vielzahl von Transformationsprojekten geführt. Was gehört aber zu einem “Transformationsprojekt”, welche Prozesse und Systeme werden verändert? Zur Beantwortung dieser Frage haben wir 184 Berichte zu Projekten analysiert, die als "Transformationsprojekte" bezeichnet waren. Für die Analyse haben wir einen Kodierungsrahmen konzipiert und anhand dessen die Berichte mit einem hierarchischen Clustering-Verfahren in Themen gruppiert. Die Ergebnisse liefern Hinweise über die in der Praxis gesetzten Schwerpunkte und Prioritäten. Sie können
somit als Unterstützung für Unternehmen dienen, die ein Transformationsprojekt planen. Sie weisen zudem darauf hin, in welchen Bereichen eines Unternehmens Unterstützung durch wissenschaftlich erprobte Werkzeuge und Modelle nötig ist.
Wieder einmal hat eine Entscheidung des Europäischen Gerichtshofs (EuGH) das bisherige nationale Verständnis zu einer Frage des Rechts des Betriebsübergangs erheblich ins Wanken gebracht. Bisher entsprach es allgemeiner Auffassung, dass die Arbeitsverhältnisse von Zeit- bzw. Leiharbeitnehmern bei einem Betriebs(teil)übergang des die Leiharbeitnehmer entleihenden Betriebs nicht auf den Betriebserwerber übergehen. Der EuGH hat in der Rechtssache Albron Catering mit Urteil vom 21.10.2010 jedoch entschieden, dass auch Leiharbeitnehmer von einem Betriebs(teil)übergang erfasst sein können. Folglich kann der Erwerber eines Betriebs oder Betriebsteils gem. § 613a BGB zukünftig verpflichtet sein, auch die an den Betriebsveräußerer verliehenen Leiharbeitnehmer zu übernehmen. Die Entscheidung des EuGH hat somit zur Konsequenz, dass der Übergang von Leiharbeitsverhältnissen auf den Erwerber eines Betriebs jedenfalls nicht mehr pauschal ausgeschlossen werden kann. Dies gilt es bei künftigen Betriebs(teil)übertragungen zu berücksichtigen, um unliebsame Überraschungen zu vermeiden.
Determinants of earnings forecast error, earnings forecast revision and earnings forecast accuracy
(2012)
Earnings forecasts are ubiquitous in today’s financial markets. They are essential indicators of future firm performance and a starting point for firm valuation. Extremely inaccurate and overoptimistic forecasts during the most recent financial crisis have raised serious doubts regarding the reliability of such forecasts. This thesis therefore investigates new determinants of forecast errors and accuracy. In addition, new determinants of forecast revisions are examined. More specifically, the thesis answers the following questions: 1) How do analyst incentives lead to forecast errors? 2) How do changes in analyst incentives lead to forecast revisions?, and 3) What factors drive differences in forecast accuracy?
s the magnetic field strength and therefore the operational frequency in MRI are increased, the radiofrequency wavelength approaches the size of the human head/body, resulting in wave effects which cause signal decreases and dropouts. Especially, whole-body imaging at 7 T and higher is therefore challenging. Recently, an acquisition scheme called time-interleaved acquisition of modes has been proposed to tackle the inhomogeneity problems in high-field MRI. The basic premise is to excite two (or more) different Burn:x-wiley:07403194:media:MRM23081:tex2gif-stack-1 modes using static radiofrequency shimming in an interleaved acquisition, where the complementary radiofrequency patterns of the two modes can be exploited to improve overall signal homogeneity. In this work, the impact of time-interleaved acquisition of mode on image contrast as well as on time-averaged specific absorption rate is addressed in detail. Time-interleaved acquisition of mode is superior in Burn:x-wiley:07403194:media:MRM23081:tex2gif-stack-2 homogeneity compared with conventional radiofrequency shimming while being highly specific absorption rate efficient. Time-interleaved acquisition of modes can enable almost homogeneous high-field imaging throughout the entire field of view in PD, T2, and T2*-weighted imaging and, if a specified homogeneity criterion is met, in T1-weighted imaging as well.
31P MR spectroscopic imaging of the human prostate provides information about phosphorylated metabolites that could be used for prostate cancer characterization. The sensitivity of a magnetic field strength of 7 T might enable 3D 31P MR spectroscopic imaging with relevant spatial resolution in a clinically acceptable measurement time. To this end, a 31P endorectal coil was developed and combined with an eight-channel 1H body-array coil to relate metabolic information to anatomical location. An extensive safety validation was performed to evaluate the specific absorption rate, the radiofrequency field distribution, and the temperature distribution of both coils. This validation consisted of detailed Finite Integration Technique simulations, confirmed by MR thermometry and Burn:x-wiley:07403194:media:MRM24175:tex2gif-stack-1 measurements in a phantom and in vivo temperature measurements. The safety studies demonstrated that the presence of the 31P endorectal coil had no influence on the specific absorption rate levels and temperature distribution of the external eight-channel 1H array coil. To stay within a 10 g averaged local specific absorption rate of 10 W/kg, a maximum time-averaged input power of 33 W for the 1H array coil was allowed. For transmitting with the 31P endorectal coil, our safety limit of less than 1°C temperature increase in vivo during a 15-min MR spectroscopic imaging experiment was reached at a time-averaged input power of 1.9 W. With this power setting, a second in vivo measurement was performed on a healthy volunteer. Using adiabatic excitation, 3D 31P MR spectroscopic imaging produced spectra from the entire prostate in 18 min with a spatial resolution of 4 cm3. The spectral resolution enabled the separate detection of phosphocholine, phosphoethanolamine, inorganic phosphate, and other metabolites that could play an important role in the characterization of prostate cancer.
This contribution discusses the utilization of RF power in an MRI system with RF mode shimming which enables the superposition of circularly polarized modes of a transmit RF coil array driven by a Butler matrix. Since the required power for the individual modes can vary widely, mode-shimming can result in a significant underutilization of the total available RF power. A variable power combiner (VPC) is proposed to improve the power utilization: it can be realized as a reconfiguration of the MRI transmit system by the inclusion of one additional matrix network which receives the power from all transmit amplifiers at its input ports and provides any desired (combined) power distribution at its output ports by controlling the phase and amplitude of the amplifiers’ input signals. The power distribution at the output ports of the VPC is then fed into the “mode” ports of the coil array Butler matrix in order to superimpose the spatial modes at the highest achievable power utilization. The VPC configuration is compared to the standard configuration of the transmit chain of our MRI system with 8 transmit channels and 16 coils. In realistic scenarios, improved power utilization was achieved from 17% to 60% and from 14% to 55% for an elliptical phantom and a region of interest in the abdomen, respectively, and an increase of the power utilization of 1 dB for a region of interest in the upper leg. In general, it is found that the VPC allows significant improvement in power utilization when the shimming solution demands only a few modes to be energized, while the technique can yield loss in power utilization in cases with many modes required at high power level.
Prioritization is an essential task within requirements engineering to cope with complexity and to establish focus properly. The 3rd Workshop on Requirements Prioritization for customer oriented Software Development (RePriCo’12) focused on requirements prioritization and adjacent themes in the context of customer oriented development of bespoke and standard software. Five submissions have been accepted for the proceedings and for presentation. The report summarizes and points out key findings.
Thema
06 Alles ist jetzt | Zeit ist für uns allgegenwärtig, sie bestimmt unser Leben. Eine kurze Reise in die Geschichte der Zeit.
10 Raumfahrt-Visionen von einst und heute | 25. Raumfahrtkolloquium des Fachbereichs Luft- und Raumfahrttechnik
12 Aufbruch in eine neue Welt | Essay von Prof. Dr. h.c. Jesco Freiherr von Puttkamer zum 100. Geburtstag von Wernher von Braun
16 Gesucht: Ein Impfstoff gegen Krebs | Prof. Dr. Peter Öhlschläger forscht an Impfstoffen, die die Ausbreitung von Krebs bekämpfen sollen
18 Gesichter der Zukunft | An der FH kommen menschenähnliche Roboter zum Einsatz, die sogar Fußball spielen können
20 Sicher in der Luft | FH Aachen entwickelt mit der Sinn Spezialuhren GmbH technischen Standard für Fliegeruhren
24 Der „Eismaulwurf“ gräbt sich durch die Schweiz | IceMole soll bei der Untersuchung von unterirdischen Gletscherseen helfen Studium
26 Benzin im Blut | Über die Arbeit im Aixtreme-Racing-Team hat Michael Roeske den Weg zu BMW Motorsport gefunden
28 Hervorragende Perspektiven | Duale Studiengänge in Kooperation mit der Handwerkskammer
30 Frei wie ein Vogel | 24 Studierende lernen die Grundlagen des Segelfliegens kennen
32 Vom Autowäscher zum Ingenieur | Karriere mit fünf Sternen
33 Miteinander arbeiten, praktisch überzeugen | Das Projekt pro8 fordert Teamfähigkeit, Zeitmanagement, Präsentationstechniken und Fachwissen
34 Willkommene Förderung | Studiengang Scientific Programming erhält Stiftungsprofessur
35 Von Zeltdächern und Strohhalmen | Wettbewerb zur Erweiterung des CHIO-Geländes
36 Mehr Bürgerbeteiligung in der Städteregion | FH-Studentinnen entwickeln gemeinsam mit Prof. Dr. Claudia Mayer das Konzept
37 Ferngesteuertes Labor | Studierende können jetzt von zu Hause aus an Antriebs- und Steuerungskomponenten arbeiten
38 Der Koloss von Jülich | Teilnehmer der 27. Summer School Renewable Energy besuchen den Solarturm in Jülich
40 Meldungen/Studium International
42 Fliegende Ingenieure | Studium Luft- und Raumfahrttechnik wird mit einer Ausbildung zum Verkehrspiloten verknüpft
44 Arbeitstagung Internationalisierung | Grenzüberschreitende Zusammenarbeit wird an der FH weiter ausgebaut
45 Meldungen/ International Benzin im Blut | Schon als Kind war Michael Roeske motorsportverrückt. Über die Arbeit im Aixtreme-RacingTeam hat er den Weg zu BMW Motorsport gefunden
FORSCHUNG UND TRANSFER
46 Der Hamster, der 1958 starb und Spürnase wurde | Der FH-Doktorand Ulrich Bohrn arbeitet mit lebenden Zellen
48 Leuchtende Weltneuheit | FH-Wissenschaftler entwickeln quecksilberfreie Energiesparlampe
50 Zellen erinnern sich | FH-Professor entdeckt neuen Effekt bei der Untersuchung roter Blutkörperchen
52 Provokation allein reicht nicht mehr | Prof. Dr. Sabine Fabo erforscht die Arbeit moderner Künstler
54 FH und LKA gemeinsam gegen Computerkriminalität | Neue Strategien zur Prävention und zur Strafverfolgung
55 Meldungen/Forschung und Transfer Personen
56 Der Tiger und sein Meister | Interview mit dem Aachener Künstler Eric Peters
60 Interessen vereinigen | Honorarkonsulin Prof. Dr. Christiane Vaeßen setzt sich für grenzüberschreitende Kooperation ein
61 Die zwei Seelen | FH-Absolventin Monika Koch hat sich in der Region etabliert
62 Die FH Aachen trauert um Prof. Dr. Rolf-Dietmar Grap
63 Ein Mann der ersten Stunde | Die FH Aachen trauert um Kanzler a. D. Peter Michael Reusch
64 Neue Dekane treten ihr Amt an | Sechs der zehn FH-Fachbereiche stehen unter neuer Leitung
65 Mitglieder des Senats und der Fachbereichsräte
68 Lehrpreis 2012, Lehrprämien 2011/12
69 Dienstjubiläen, Bücher /Neuauflagen
70 Neuberufene Professoren
71 Meldungen/Personen
SERVICE
72 Platz für 1000 Studierende | Neues Hörsaalgebäude in der Eupener Straße feierlich eröffnet
74 Der Blick geht nach vorn | FH peilt die Reauditierung als „familiengerechte Hochschule“ an
75 So schön kann Helfen sein | „Menschen für Menschen“- Botschafterin Sara Nuru zu Gast an der FH
76 Wie wärs mit MINT? | Die Wanderausstellung „Technik ist weiblich“ begeistert Mädchen für Naturwissenschaften
77 Preis für Technologietransfer | TeTRRA-Projekt zeichnet FH-Absolventen aus
78 Meldungen/Service, Messen und Veranstaltungen
86 Ortswechsel /Zeitreise per Rad
87 Impressum
Two of the main environmental problems of today’s society are the continuously increasing production of organic wastes as well as the increase of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and the related green house effect. A way to solve these problems is the production of biogas. Biogas is a combustible gas consisting of methane, carbon dioxide and small amounts of other gases and trace elements. Production of biogas through anaerobic digestion of animal manure and slurries as well as of a wide range of digestible organic wastes and agricultural residues, converts these substrates into electricity and heat and offers a natural fertiliser for agriculture. The microbiological process of decomposition of organic matter, in the absence of oxygen takes place in reactors, called digesters. Biogas can be used as a fuel in a gas turbine or burner and can be used in a hybrid solar tower system offering a solution for waste treatment of agricultural and animal residues. A solar tower system consists of a heliostat field, which concentrates direct solar irradiation on an open volumetric central receiver. The receiver heats up ambient air to temperatures of around 700°C. The hot air’s heat energy is transferred to a steam Rankine cycle in a heat recovery steam generator (HRSG). The steam drives a steam turbine, which in turn drives a generator for producing electricity. In order to increase the operational hours of a solar tower power plant, a heat storage system and/ or hybridization may be considered. The advantage of solar-fossil hybrid power plants, compared to solar-only systems, lies in low additional investment costs due to an adaptable solar share and reduced technical and economical risks. On sunny days the hybrid system operates in a solar-only mode with the central receiver and on cloudy days and at night with the gas turbine only. As an alternative to methane gas, environmentally neutral biogas can be used for operating the gas turbine. Hence, the hybrid system is operated to 100% from renewable energy sources
Thermodynamic stability, configurational motions and internal forces of haemoglobin (Hb) of three endotherms (platypus, Ornithorhynchus anatinus; domestic chicken, Gallus gallus domesticus and human, Homo sapiens) and an ectotherm (salt water crocodile, Crocodylus porosus) were investigated using circular dichroism, incoherent elastic neutron scattering and coarse-grained Brownian dynamics simulations. The experimental results from Hb solutions revealed a direct correlation between protein resilience, melting temperature and average body temperature of the different species on the 0.1 ns time scale. Molecular forces appeared to be adapted to permit conformational fluctuations with a root mean square displacement close to 1.2 Å at the corresponding average body temperature of the endotherms. Strong forces within crocodile Hb maintain the amplitudes of motion within a narrow limit over the entire temperature range in which the animal lives. In fully hydrated powder samples of human and chicken, Hb mean square displacements and effective force constants on the 1 ns time scale showed no differences over the whole temperature range from 10 to 300 K, in contrast to the solution case. A complementary result of the study, therefore, is that one hydration layer is not sufficient to activate all conformational fluctuations of Hb in the pico- to nanosecond time scale which might be relevant for biological function. Coarse-grained Brownian dynamics simulations permitted to explore residue-specific effects. They indicated that temperature sensing of human and chicken Hb occurs mainly at residues lining internal cavities in the β-subunits.
The ”IceMole“ is a novel maneuverable subsurface ice probe for clean in-situ analysis and sampling of subsurface ice and subglacial water/brine. It is developed and build at FH Aachen University of Applied Sciences’ Astronautical Laboratory. A first prototype was successfully tested on the Swiss Morteratsch glacier in 2010. Clean sampling is achieved with a hollow ice screw (as it is used in mountaineering) at the tip of the probe. Maneuverability is achieved with a differentially heated melting head. Funded by the German Space Agency (DLR), a consortium led by FH Aachen currently develops a much more advanced IceMole probe, which includes a sophisticated system for obstacle avoidance, target detection, and navigation in the ice. We intend to use this probe for taking clean samples of subglacial brine at the Blood Falls (McMurdo Dry Valleys, East Antarctica) for chemical and microbiological analysis. In our conference contribution, we 1) describe the IceMole design, 2) report the results of the field tests of the first prototype on the Morteratsch glacier, 3) discuss the probe’s potential for the clean in-situ analysis and sampling of subsurface ice and subglacial liquids, and 4) outline the way ahead in the development of this technology.
Bei der Ausarbeitung des nationalen Anwendungsdokumentes zur DIN EN 1998-1 waren die in der ENV-Fassung enthaltenen vereinfachten Regeln im Lichte aktueller Forschungsergebnisse zu überprüfen und zu überarbeiten. Die gleiche Aufgabe stellte sich auch für die Neufassung der DIN 4149. In beiden Fällen sind neben konstruktiven Regeln für die Art und Anordnung der zur Gebäudeaussteifung heranzuziehenden Wände im Grundriss Tabellen enthalten, die unter bestimmten Bedingungen den Entfall eines rechnerischen Nachweises der Tragwände im Erdbebenfall ermöglichen. Dies ist für Schwachbebengebiete, wie sie in Deutschland und anderen Ländern Mitteleuropas anzutreffen sind, sinnvoll, um unnötigen Rechenaufwand sowie Probleme mit der Führbarkeit von Nachweisen so weit wie möglich auszuschalten. Im vorliegenden Beitrag werden die Hintergründe der vereinfachten Regeln diskutiert und die Ergebnisse der Anwendung mit verschiedenen Rechenverfahren verglichen und bewertet.
Moderne Mauerwerksbauten müssen nach heutigen Anforderungen architektonisch, statisch, energetisch sowie schall- und brandschutztechnisch optimal ausgelegt sein. Aufgrund der Komplexität und engen Verzahnung der einzelnen Anforderungen ist eine integrale Gebäudeplanung zur Erzielung einer qualitativ hochwertigen Bauwerkslösung unbedingt notwendig. Diese erfordert von den Fachplanern vertieftes Spezialwissen in den verschiedenen Bereichen, um insbesondere die Schnittstellen und Bauwerksdetails korrekt zu planen und auszuführen. Der Beitrag stellt die integrale Gebäudeplanung am Beispiel eines Geschossbaus in Ziegelbauweise mit Lösungen für wesentliche Detailpunkte vor
Baustatik in Beispielen
(2012)
Heterogeneous Composites on the Basis of Microbial Cells and Nanostructured Carbonized Sorbents
(2012)
The fact that microorganisms prefer to grow on liquid/solid phase surfaces rather than in the surrounding aqueous phase was noticed long time ago [1]. Virtually any surface – animal, mineral, or vegetable – is a subject for microbial colonization and subsequent biofilm formation. It would be adequate to name just a few notorious examples on microbial colonization of contact lenses, ship hulls, petroleum pipelines, rocks in streams and all kinds of biomedical implants. The propensity of microorganisms to become surface-bound is so profound and ubiquitous that it vindicates the advantages for attached forms over their free-ranging counterparts [2]. Indeed, from ecological and evolutionary standpoints, for many microorganisms the surface-bound state means dwelling in nutritionally favorable, non-hostile environments [3]. Therefore, in most of natural and artificial ecosystems surface-associated microorganisms vastly outnumber organisms in suspension and often organize into complex communities with features that differ dramatically from those of free cells [4].
We present a new approach to the problem of optimal control of solar sails for low-thrust trajectory optimization. The objective was to find the required control torque magnitudes in order to steer a solar sail in interplanetary space. A new steering strategy, controlling the solar sail with generic torques applied about the spacecraft body axes, is integrated into the existing low-thrust trajectory optimization software InTrance. This software combines artificial neural networks and evolutionary algorithms to find steering strategies close to the global optimum without an initial guess. Furthermore, we implement a three rotational degree-of-freedom rigid-body attitude dynamics model to represent the solar sail in space. Two interplanetary transfers to Mars and Neptune are chosen to represent typical future solar sail mission scenarios. The results found with the new steering strategy are compared to the existing reference trajectories without attitude dynamics. The resulting control torques required to accomplish the missions are investigated, as they pose the primary requirements to a real on-board attitude control system.
There is common agreement within the scientific community that in order to understand our local galactic environment it will be necessary to send a spacecraft into the region beyond the solar wind termination shock. Considering distances of 200 AU for a new mission, one needs a spacecraft traveling at a speed of close to 10 AU/yr in order to keep the mission duration in the range of less than 25 yrs, a transfer time postulated by European Space Agency (ESA). Two propulsion options for the mission have been proposed and discussed so far: the solar sail propulsion and the ballistic/radioisotope-electric propulsion (REP). As a further alternative, we here investigate a combination of solar-electric propulsion (SEP) and REP. The SEP stage consists of six 22-cms diameter RIT-22 ion thrusters working with a high specific impulse of 7377 s corresponding to a positive grid voltage of 5 kV. Solar power of 53 kW at begin of mission (BOM) is provided by a lightweight solar array.
Disruption experiments targeted at the Bacillus licheniformis degSU operon and GFP-reporter analysis provided evidence for promoter activity immediately upstream of degU. pMutin mediated concomitant introduction of the degU32 allele – known to cause hypersecretion in Bacillus subtilis – resulted in a marked increase in protease activity. Application of 5-fluorouracil based counterselection through establishment of a phosphoribosyltransferase deficient Δupp strain eventually facilitated the marker-free introduction of degU32 leading to further protease enhancement achieving levels as for hypersecreting wild strains in which degU was overexpressed. Surprisingly, deletion of rapG – known to interfere with DegU DNA-binding in B. subtilis – did not enhance protease production neither in the wild type nor in the degU32 strain. The combination of degU32 and Δupp counterselection in the type strain is not only equally effective as in hypersecreting wild strains with respect to protease production but furthermore facilitates genetic strain improvement aiming at biological containment and effectiveness of biotechnological processes.
Determination of the frictional coefficient of the implant-antler interface : experimental approach
(2012)
The similar bone structure of reindeer antler to human bone permits studying the osseointegration of dental implants in the jawbone. As the friction is one of the major factors that have a significant influence on the initial stability of immediately loaded dental implants, it is essential to define the frictional coefficient of the implant-antler interface. In this study, the kinetic frictional forces at the implant-antler interface were measured experimentally using an optomechanical setup and a stepping motor controller under different axial loads and sliding velocities. The corresponding mean values of the static and kinetic frictional coefficients were within the range of 0.5–0.7 and 0.3–0.5, respectively. An increase in the frictional forces with increasing applied axial loads was registered. The measurements showed an evidence of a decrease in the magnitude of the frictional coefficient with increasing sliding velocity. The results of this study provide a considerable assessment to clarify the suitable frictional coefficient to be used in the finite element contact analysis of antler specimens.
Stahlbau
(2012)
Label-free electrical detection of consecutive deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) hybridization/denaturation by means of an array of individually addressable field-effect-based nanoplate silicon-on-insulator (SOI) capacitors modified with gold nanoparticles (Au-NP) is investigated. The proposed device detects charge changes on Au-NP/DNA hybrids induced by the hybridization or denaturation event. DNA hybridization was performed in a high ionic-strength solution to provide a high hybridization efficiency. On the other hand, to reduce the screening of the DNA charge by counter ions and to achieve a high sensitivity, the sensor signal induced by the hybridization and denaturation events was measured in a low ionic-strength solution. High sensor signals of about 120, 90, and 80 mV were registered after the DNA hybridization, denaturation, and re-hybridization events, respectively. Fluorescence microscopy has been applied as reference method to verify the DNA immobilization, hybridization, and denaturation processes. An electrostatic charge-plane model for potential changes at the gate surface of a nanoplate field-effect sensor induced by the DNA hybridization has been developed taking into account both the Debye length and the distance of the DNA charge from the gate surface.
Real-time and reliable monitoring of the biogas process is crucial for a stable and efficient operation of biogas production in order to avoid digester breakdowns. The concentration of dissolved hydrogen (H₂) represents one of the key parameters for biogas process control. In this work, a one-chip integrated combined amperometric/field-effect sensor for monitoring the dissolved H₂ concentration has been developed for biogas applications. The combination of two different transducer principles might allow a more accurate and reliable measurement of dissolved H₂ as an early warning indicator of digester failures. The feasibility of the approach has been demonstrated by simultaneous amperometric/field-effect measurements of dissolved H₂ concentrations in electrolyte solutions. Both, the amperometric and the field-effect transducer show a linear response behaviour in the H₂ concentration range from 0.1 to 3% (v/v) with a slope of 198.4 ± 13.7 nA/% (v/v) and 14.9 ± 0.5 mV/% (v/v), respectively.
Field-effect capacitive electrolyte-insulator-semiconductor (EIS) sensors functionalised with citrate-capped gold nanoparticles (AuNP) have been used for the electrostatic detection of macromolecules by their intrinsic molecular charge. The EIS sensor detects the charge changes in the AuNP/macromolecule hybrids induced by the adsorption or binding events. A feasibility of the proposed detection scheme has been exemplary demonstrated by realising EIS sensors for the detection of poly-D-lysine molecules.
Effectiveness of the edge-based smoothed finite element method applied to soft biological tissues
(2012)
The construction of a statistical test is investigated which is based only on “reliability” and “precision” as quality criteria. The reliability of a statistical test is quantifiedin a straightforward way by the probability that the decision of the test is correct. However, the quantification of the precision of a statistical test is not at all evident. Thereforethe paper presents and discusses several approaches. Moreover the distinction of “nullhypothesis” and “alternative hypothesis” is not necessary any longer.
"Biologie trifft Mikroelektronik", das Motto des Instituts für Nano- und Biotechnologien (INB) an der FH Aachen, unterstreicht die zunehmende Bedeutung interdisziplinär geprägter Forschungsaktivitäten. Der thematische Zusammenschluss grundständiger Disziplinen, wie die Physik, Elektrotechnik, Chemie, Biologie sowie die Materialwissenschaften, lässt neue Forschungsgebiete entstehen, ein herausragendes Beispiel hierfür ist die Nanotechnologie: Hier werden neue Werkstoffe und Materialien entwickelt, einzelne Nanopartikel oder Moleküle und deren Wechselwirkung untersucht oder Schichtstrukturen im Nanometerbereich aufgebaut, die neue und vorher nicht bekannte Eigenschaften hervorbringen.
Vor diesem Hintergrund bündelt das im Jahre 2006 gegründete INB die an der FH Aachen vorhandenen Kompetenzen von derzeit insgesamt sieben Laboratorien auf den Gebieten der Halbleitertechnik und Nanoelektronik, Nanostrukturen und DNA-Sensorik, der Chemo- und Biosensorik, der Enzymtechnologie, der Mikrobiologie und Pflanzenbiotechnologie, der Zellkulturtechnik, sowie der Roten Biotechnologie synergetisch. In der Nano- und Biotechnologie steckt außergewöhnliches Potenzial! Nicht zuletzt deshalb stellen sich die Forscher der Herausforderung, in diesem Bereich gemeinsam zu forschen und Schnittstellen zu nutzen, um so bei der Gestaltung neuartiger Ideen und Produkte mitzuwirken, die zukünftig unser alltägliches Leben verändern werden.
Im Folgenden werden die verschiedenen Forschungsbereiche kurz zusammenfassend vorgestellt und vorhandene Interaktionen anhand von exemplarisch ausgewählten, aktuellen Forschungsprojekten skizziert.
In vitro studies of the degradation kinetic of biopolymers are essential for the design and optimization of implantable biomedical devices. In the presented work, a field-effect capacitive sensor has been applied for the real-time and in situ monitoring of degradation processes of biopolymers for the first time. The polymer-covered field-effect sensor is, in principle, capable to detect any changes in bulk, surface and interface properties of the polymer induced by degradation processes. The feasibility of this approach has been experimentally proven by using the commercially available biomedical polymer poly(D,L-lactic acid) (PDLLA) as a model system. PDLLA films of different thicknesses were deposited on the Ta₂O₅-gate surface of the field-effect structure from a polymer solution by means of spin-coating method. The polymer-modified field-effect sensors have been characterized by means of capacitance–voltage and impedance-spectroscopy method. The degradation of the PDLLA was accelerated by changing the degradation medium from neutral (pH 7.2) to alkaline (pH 9) condition, resulting in drastic changes in the capacitance and impedance spectra of the polymer-modified field-effect sensor.
Two types of microvalves based on temperature-responsive poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAm) and pH-responsive poly(sodium acrylate) (PSA) hydrogel films have been developed and tested. The PNIPAAm and PSA hydrogel films were prepared by means of in situ photopolymerization directly inside the fluidic channel of a microfluidic chip fabricated by combining Si and SU-8 technologies. The swelling/shrinking properties and height changes of the PNIPAAm and PSA films inside the fluidic channel were studied at temperatures of deionized water from 14 to 36 °C and different pH values (pH 3–12) of Titrisol buffer, respectively. Additionally, in separate experiments, the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) of the PNIPAAm hydrogel was investigated by means of a differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) method. Mass-flow measurements have shown the feasibility of the prepared hydrogel films to work as an on-chip integrated temperature- or pH-responsive microvalve capable to switch the flow channel on/off.
In this paper we present CAESAR, an intelligent domestic service robot. In domestic settings for service robots complex tasks have to be accomplished. Those tasks benefit from deliberation, from robust action execution and from flexible methods for human–robot interaction that account for qualitative notions used in natural language as well as human fallibility. Our robot CAESAR deploys AI techniques on several levels of its system architecture. On the low-level side, system modules for localization or navigation make, for instance, use of path-planning methods, heuristic search, and Bayesian filters. For face recognition and human–machine interaction, random trees and well-known methods from natural language processing are deployed. For deliberation, we use the robot programming and plan language READYLOG, which was developed for the high-level control of agents and robots; it allows combining programming the behaviour using planning to find a course of action. READYLOG is a variant of the robot programming language Golog. We extended READYLOG to be able to cope with qualitative notions of space frequently used by humans, such as “near” and “far”. This facilitates human–robot interaction by bridging the gap between human natural language and the numerical values needed by the robot. Further, we use READYLOG to increase the flexible interpretation of human commands with decision-theoretic planning. We give an overview of the different methods deployed in CAESAR and show the applicability of a system equipped with these AI techniques in domestic service robotics
Concentrating solar power
(2012)
With a steady increase of regulatory requirements for business processes, automation support of compliance management is a field garnering increasing attention in Information Systems research. Several approaches have been developed to support compliance checking of process models. One major challenge for such approaches is their ability to handle different modeling techniques and compliance rules in order to enable widespread adoption and application. Applying a structured literature search strategy, we reflect and discuss compliance-checking approaches in order to provide an insight into their generalizability and evaluation. The results imply that current approaches mainly focus on special modeling techniques and/or a restricted set of types of compliance rules. Most approaches abstain from real-world evaluation which raises the question of their practical applicability. Referring to the search results, we propose a roadmap for further research in model-based business process compliance checking.
Stahlbau
(2012)
The molecular events during nongenotoxic carcinogenesis and their temporal order are poorly understood but thought to include long-lasting perturbations of gene expression. Here, we have investigated the temporal sequence of molecular and pathological perturbations at early stages of phenobarbital (PB) mediated liver tumor promotion in vivo. Molecular profiling (mRNA, microRNA [miRNA], DNA methylation, and proteins) of mouse liver during 13 weeks of PB treatment revealed progressive increases in hepatic expression of long noncoding RNAs and miRNAs originating from the Dlk1-Dio3 imprinted gene cluster, a locus that has recently been associated with stem cell pluripotency in mice and various neoplasms in humans. PB induction of the Dlk1-Dio3 cluster noncoding RNA (ncRNA) Meg3 was localized to glutamine synthetase-positive hypertrophic perivenous hepatocytes, sug- gesting a role for β-catenin signaling in the dysregulation of Dlk1-Dio3 ncRNAs. The carcinogenic relevance of Dlk1-Dio3 locus ncRNA induction was further supported by in vivo genetic dependence on constitutive androstane receptor and β-catenin pathways. Our data identify Dlk1-Dio3 ncRNAs as novel candidate early biomarkers for mouse liver tumor promotion and provide new opportunities for assessing the carcinogenic potential of novel compounds.
This thesis introduces the Integrated Emitter Turn-Off (IETO) Thyristor as a new high-power device. Known state-of-the-art research activities like the Dual GCT, the ETO thyristor and the ICT were presented and critically reviewed. A comparison with commercialized solutions identifies the pros and cons of each type of device family. Based on this analysis, the IETO structure is proposed, covering most benefits of each device class. In particular the combination of a MOS-assisted turn-off with a thyristor-based device allows a voltage-controlled MOS switching and the low on-state voltage of the thyristors. The following synthesis of an IETO device stands on a three-dimensional field of optimization spanned by electric, mechanical and thermal aspects. From an electric point of view, the lowest possible parasitic inductance and resistance within the commutation path are optimization criteria. The mechanical construction has to withstand the required contact pressure of multiple kilo Newtons. Finally, thermal borders limit the maximum average current of the device. FEM simulations covering these three aspects are performed for several design proposals. An IETO prototype is constructed and measurements on various test benches attest thermal, mechanical and electric performance. A local decoupling of the external driver stage and the presspack housing is presented by a cable connection. This separation enables a thermal and mechanical independence, which is advantageous in terms of vibrations and thermal cycles including increased reliability. The electric pulse performance of the prototype device is a factor of 3.1 above today''s solutions. In single-pulse measurements, a current up to 1600 A was successfully turned off at 115°C with an active silicon area of 823 mm². One reason for this increased turn-off capability is the extremely low-inductive construction. Additional functionality of the IETO thyristor like over-current self-protection and defined short-circuit failure state are successfully verified.
Security Awareness ist derzeit ein viel diskutiertes Thema. Es reicht nicht, einfach nur ein paar technische Systeme (z.B. Firewalls) zu installieren, um ein angemessenes Schutzniveau zu erzielen. Neben einer guten Organisation von IT Security ist es auch notwendig, den Mitarbeiter einzubinden. Der vielzitierte "Faktor Mensch" ist derjenige, der die Technik korrekt anwenden muss und der durch falsches Verhalten technische und organisatorische Schutzmaßnahmen aushebeln kann. Deshalb reicht es nicht aus, wenn sich der Mitarbeiter der Gefahren bewusst ("aware") ist, er muss auch dementsprechend "sicher" handeln.
Der Temperaturanstieg der vergangenen Jahrzehnte war in Gebirgsregionen besonders ausgeprägt. Sollte sich dieser Temperaturtrend im 21. Jahrhundert fortsetzen, dann dürf-ten sich auch die Häufigkeit und Intensität von Niederschlä-gen und Trockenperioden verändern, was die Waldwirtschaft vor grosse Herausforderungen stellen wird. Trockenheit ist ein entscheidender Faktor für die Waldökosysteme der inner-alpinen Täler, wo seit Jahren trockenheitsbedingtes Baum-sterben festgestellt wird. Der vorliegende Beitrag hat zum Ziel, die Sensitivität der verschiedenen Waldökosysteme ge-genüber Klimawandel und alternative, teilweise extreme Bewirtschaftungsvarianten in der Region Visp zu testen. Me-thodische Ansätze wie Monitoring, Feldexperimente und dy-namische Modellierung wurden kombiniert, und es wurden verschiedene Ökosystemleistungen berücksichtigt, so Holz-produktion, Schutz vor Naturgefahren, Kohlenstoffspeiche-rung und Aspekte der Biodiversität. Die Resultate deuten da-rauf hin, dass auf den Trockenstandorten der Tieflagen die einheimischen Baumarten an ihre physiologischen Grenzen stossen und längerfristig über alternative Baumarten nach-gedacht werden sollte. In den mittleren Lagen dürften Tro-ckenheit und Schadinsekten wie die Borkenkäfer die zukünf-tige Waldentwicklung steuern. In den Hochlagen hingegen werden sich die Wälder ausdehnen und besser wachsen als heute. Alle untersuchten Ökosystemleistungen werden ge-bietsweise starken Veränderungen unterworfen sein. Die dis-kutierten Bewirtschaftungsvarianten scheinen dazu geeignet, die Wasserverfügbarkeit der Bestände, hauptsächlich in tief-eren Lagen, zu erhöhen und dadurch die Widerstandskraft der Bäume gegenüber Trockenperioden vorübergehend zu stärken. Es ist aber davon ausgehen, dass nur verhältnismäs-sig starke Eingriffe wesentliche Effekte erzielen können. Die Verknüpfung von Umweltmonitoring, Feldexperimenten und Modellierung unter Miteinbezug von Ökosystemleistungen ist vielversprechend, da sie eine differenzierte Abschätzung des zukünftigen Landschaftswandels und seiner Effekte auf die Waldleistungen ermöglicht.
Die Hochgradientenmagnetseparation (HGMS) ist eine Methode zur Aufreinigung von biopharmazeutischen Produkten. Mit dieser Methode lässt sich in nur einem Schritt eine Fest/Fest/Flüssig-Trennung erzielen, was zu einer erheblichen Zeit- und Kostenersparnis im Downstreaming führt. Dennoch steht ihr industrieller Einsatz noch aus, was u. a. am Mangel an Analysenmethoden liegt, um die HGMS quantifizierbar zu machen. Gerade in der Pharmaproduktion werden Prozesse gebraucht, die gemäß den einschlägigen Vorschriften (cGMP) validiert und deren verfahrenstechnische Anlagenteile qualifiziert werden können. Die Schwierigkeit ist die Messung der magnetischen Mikrosorbentien in der Suspension, in der auch Zellen oder Zelltrümmer vorliegen. Im Rahmen eines Forschungsprojektes im „Zentralen Innovationsprogramm Mittelstand“ des BMWi wurden verschiedene Analysenmethoden untersucht. Die Durchflusszytometrie ermöglicht eine Charakterisierung von Partikeln und eine simultane quantitative Messung. Durch die multiparametrige Messung kann zwischen Zellen, Zelltrümmern und Magnetpartikeln unterschieden werden. Die At-line-Einbindung des Durchflusszytometers ist durch den Einsatz einer externen Pumpe möglich. Über eine automatisierte Messwertanalyse kann der HGMS-Prozess mittels der Durchflusszytometrie gesteuert werden.
With its need for high SNR and short acquisition times, Cardiac MRI (CMR) is an intriguing target application for ultrahigh field MRI. Due to the sheer size of the upper torso, however, the known RF issues of 7T MRI are also most prominent in CMR. Recent years brought substantial progress but the full potential of the ultrahigh field for CMR is yet to be exploited. Parallel transmission (pTx) is a promising approach in this context and several groups have already reported B1 shimming for 7T CMR. In such a static pTx application amplitudes and phases of all Tx channels are adjusted individually but otherwise imaging techniques established in current clinical practice 1.5 T and 3 T are applied. More advanced forms of pTx as spatially selective excitation (SSE) using Transmit SENSE promise additional benefits like faster imaging with reduced fields of view or improved SAR control. SSE requires the full dynamic capabilities of pTx, however, and for the majority of today's implemented pTx hardware the internal synchronization of the Tx array does not easily permit external triggering as needed for CMR. Here we report a software solution to this problem and demonstrate the feasibility of CINE CMR at 7 T using a Tx array.
Einführung
(2012)
South Africa in recent years is the establishment of a number of research hubs involved in AI activities ranging from mobile robotics and computational intelligence, to knowledge representation and reasoning, and human language technologies. In this survey we take the reader through a quick tour of the research being conducted at these hubs, and touch on an initiative to maintain and extend the current level of interest in AI research in the country.
This paper presents the latest prototype of the integrated emitter turn-off thyristor concept, which potentially ranks among thyristor high-power devices like the gate turn-off thyristor and the integrated gate-commutated thyristor (IGCT). Due to modifications of the external driver stage and mechanical press-pack design optimization, this prototype allows for full device characterization. The turn-off capability was increased to 1600 A with an active silicon area of 823mm2 . This leads to a transient peak power of 672.1kW/cm² . Within this paper, measurements and concept assessment are presented and a comparison to state-of-the-art IGCT devices is provided.
In der Molkeverarbeitung dominieren Membranfiltrationsverfahren die Prozessführung. Hierbei werden üblicherweise Aufkonzentrierungen der Proteine und deren Trennung von dem Milchzucker Lactose durchgeführt. Der Prozess der adsorptiven Aufreinigung soll als kostengünstige Alternative zu den bisher gebräuchlichen Verfahren dienen. Weiterhin eröffnet sich durch das Verfahren die Möglichkeit, einzelne Proteinfraktionen während der Verarbeitung anzureichern. Als Proteinquellen wurden für die Untersuchungen Modellproteine, Lösungen aus Molkenproteinisolat, Dünnmolke und Molkekonzentrat verwendet. Die Eignung zur Proteinbindung wurden an Tonmaterialien, Silicaten und y-Aluminiumoxiden in Pulverform, in Form von Granulaten sowie Extrudaten als auch sphärischen Partikeln überprüft. Adsorbentien aus Bentonit/Silica und c-Aluminiumoxid können sowohl a-Lactalbumin (aLA) als auch b-Lactoglobulin (bLG) binden, wohingegen Materialien aus Siliciumoxid lediglich ein starkes Adsorptionsverhalten gegenüber bLG zeigen. Mischmaterialien aus Siliciumoxid und a-Aluminiumoxid zeigen dasselbe Verhalten wie Materialien aus Siliciumoxid, weisen jedoch eine geringere Kapazität auf. Die Materialen wurden hinsichtlich ihres Einsatzes in chromatographischen Verfahren und Batch-Prozessen untersucht und ein Prozessentwurf für einen zweistufigen Batch-Prozess im Rührkessel erarbeitet.
The assessment of the right ventricle (RV) is a challenge in today's cardiology, but of growing clinical impact regarding patient prognosis in different cardiac diseases. The detection and differentiation of small wall motion abnormalities may help to enhance the differentiation of cardiomyopathies including Arrhythmogenic Rightventricular Cardiomyopathy. Cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) at 1.5T is the accepted gold standard for RV quantification. The higher spatial resolution achievable at ultrahigh field strength (UHF) offers the potential to gain new insights into the structure and function of the RV. To approach this goal accurate RV chamber quantification at 7T has to be proven. Consequently this study examines the feasibility of assessment of RV dimensions and function at 7T using improved spatial resolution enabled by the intrinsic sensitivity gain of UHF CMR. For this purpose, a dedicated 16 channel TX/RX RF coil array is used together with 2D CINE fast gradient echo (FGRE) imaging. For comparison RV chamber quantification is conducted at 1.5T using a SSFP based state of the art clinical protocol.
Generation and Characterization of a Novel Multidrug Resistance Protein 2 Humanized Mouse Line
(2012)
The multidrug resistance protein (MRP) 2 is predominantly expressed in liver, intestine, and kidney, where it plays an important role in the excretion of a range of drugs and their metabolites or endogenous compounds into bile, feces, and urine. Mrp knockout [Mrp2(−/−)] mice have been used recently to study the role of MRP2 in drug disposition. Here, we describe the first generation and initial characterization of a mouse line humanized for MRP2 (huMRP2), which is nulled for the mouse Mrp2 gene and expresses the human transporter in the organs and cell types where MRP2 is normally expressed. Analysis of the mRNA expression for selected cytochrome P450 and transporter genes revealed no major changes in huMRP2 mice compared with wild-type controls. We show that human MRP2 is able to compensate functionally for the loss of the mouse transporter as demonstrated by comparable bilirubin levels in the humanized mice and wild-type controls, in contrast to the hyperbilirubinemia phenotype that is observed in MRP2(−/−) mice. The huMRP2 mouse provides a model to study the role of the human transporter in drug disposition and in assessing the in vivo consequences of inhibiting this transporter by compounds interacting with human MRP2.
Cardiac MR (CMR) at ultrahigh (≥7.0 T) fields is regarded as one of the most challenging MRI applications. At 7.0 T image quality is not always exclusively defined by signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR). Detrimental effects bear the potential to spoil the signal-to-noise (SNR) and contrast-to-noise (CNR) benefits of cardiac MR (CMR) at 7.0 T. B₁⁺-inhomogeneities and signal voids represent the main challenges. Various pioneering coil concepts have been proposed to tackle these issues, enabling cardiac MRI at 7.0 T. This includes a trend towards an ever larger number of transmit and receive channels. This approach affords multi-dimensional B₁⁺ modulations to improve B₁⁺ shimming performance and to enhance RF efficiency. Also, parallel imaging benefits from a high number of receive channels enabling two-dimensional acceleration. Realizing the limitations of existing coil designs tailored for UHF CMR and recognizing the opportunities of a many element TX/RX channel architecture this work proposes a modular, two dimensional 32-channel transmit and receive array using loop elements and examines its efficacy for enhanced B¹+ homogeneity and improved parallel imaging performance.
Purpose:
To investigate the feasibility of using magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) effects for synchronization of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with the cardiac cycle.
Materials and Methods:
The MHD effect was scrutinized using a pulsatile flow phantom at B0 = 7.0 T. MHD effects were examined in vivo in healthy volunteers (n = 10) for B0 ranging from 0.05–7.0 T. Noncontrast-enhanced MR angiography (MRA) of the carotids was performed using a gated steady-state free-precession (SSFP) imaging technique in conjunction with electrocardiogram (ECG) and MHD synchronization.
Results:
The MHD potential correlates with flow velocities derived from phase contrast MRI. MHD voltages depend on the orientation between B0 and the flow of a conductive fluid. An increase in the interelectrode spacing along the flow increases the MHD potential. In vivo measurement of the MHD effect provides peak voltages of 1.5 mV for surface areas close to the common carotid artery at B0 = 7.0 T. Synchronization of MRI with the cardiac cycle using MHD triggering is feasible. MHD triggered MRA of the carotids at 3.0 T showed an overall image quality and richness of anatomic detail, which is comparable to ECG-triggered MRAs.
Conclusion:
This feasibility study demonstrates the use of MHD effects for synchronization of MR acquisitions with the cardiac cycle. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2012;36:364–372. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Climate change is challenging forestry management and practices. Among other things, tree species with the ability to cope with more extreme climate conditions have to be identified. However, while environmental factors may severely limit tree growth or even cause tree death, assessing a tree species' potential for surviving future aggravated environmental conditions is rather demanding. The aim of this study was to find a tree-ring-based method suitable for identifying very drought-tolerant species, particularly potential substitute species for Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) in Valais. In this inner-Alpine valley, Scots pine used to be the dominating species for dry forests, but today it suffers from high drought-induced mortality. We investigate the growth response of two native tree species, Scots pine and European larch (Larix decidua Mill.), and two non-native species, black pine (Pinus nigra Arnold) and Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii Mirb. var. menziesii), to drought. This involved analysing how the radial increment of these species responded to increasing water shortage (abandonment of irrigation) and to increasingly frequent drought years. Black pine and Douglas fir are able to cope with drought better than Scots pine and larch, as they show relatively high radial growth even after irrigation has been stopped and a plastic growth response to drought years. European larch does not seem to be able to cope with these dry conditions as it lacks the ability to recover from drought years. The analysis of trees' short-term response to extreme climate events seems to be the most promising and suitable method for detecting how tolerant a tree species is towards drought. However, combining all the methods used in this study provides a complete picture of how water shortage could limit species.
An increasing number of studies have reported on forest declines and vegetation shifts triggered by drought. In the Swiss Rhone valley (Valais), one of the driest inner-Alpine regions, the species composition in low elevation forests is changing: The sub-boreal Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) dominating the dry forests is showing high mortality rates. Concurrently the sub-Mediterranean pubescent oak (Quercus pubescens Willd.) has locally increased in abundance. However, it remains unclear whether this local change in species composition is part of a larger-scale vegetation shift. To study variability in mortality and regeneration in these dry forests we analysed data from the Swiss national forest inventory (NFI) on a regular grid between 1983 and 2003, and combined it with annual mortality data from a monitoring site. Pine mortality was found to be highest at low elevation (below 1000 m a.s.l.). Annual variation in pine mortality was correlated with a drought index computed for the summer months prior to observed tree death. A generalized linear mixed-effects model indicated for the NFI data increased pine mortality on dryer sites with high stand competition, particularly for small-diameter trees. Pine regeneration was low in comparison to its occurrence in the overstorey, whereas oak regeneration was comparably abundant. Although both species regenerated well at dry sites, pine regeneration was favoured at cooler sites at higher altitude and oak regeneration was more frequent at warmer sites, indicating a higher adaptation potential of oaks under future warming. Our results thus suggest that an extended shift in species composition is actually occurring in the pine forests in the Valais. The main driving factors are found to be climatic variability, particularly drought, and variability in stand structure and topography. Thus, pine forests at low elevations are developing into oak forests with unknown consequences for these ecosystems and their goods and services.
Wir stellen einen USB-Baustein vor, der eine kostengünstige und universelle Möglichkeit schafft , im Unterricht den Themenkreis Messen-Steuern-Regeln zu behandeln. Die Funktionalität orientiert sich am CVK-Interface der Firma Fischertechnik. Im Gegensatz zu kommerziellen Lösungen erlaubt unser Aufbau auch den preiswerten Einsatz in Gruppen- oder Einzelarbeit. Abschließend berichten wir über ein Beispiel aus dem Unterrichtseinsatz.
Vorwort
(2012)
Auch mit der jüngsten Finanzkrise hat die Konsumkultur nichts von ihrer Bedeutung als massenkulturelles Phänomen eingebüßt. Im Gegenteil: Das aktuelle Krisenbewusstsein sucht Halt im Konsum, der seinen Verfechtern noch immer als Modell demokratischer Teilhabe an gesellschaftlicher Produktion gilt. Zugleich ist die Konsumkritik der 1960er Jahre in Richtung eines intelligenten und nachhaltigen Konsums weitergeführt worden, und selbstbewusste Konsumenten treten nun als emanzipierte »Prosumer« und Mitakteure des Marktes auf. Das Buch entwickelt aus Sicht von Design, Kunst, Soziologie, Marketing und Medien neue Perspektiven auf das Phänomen Konsum.
Visual Virology
(2012)
Upper and lower bound theorems of limit analyses have been presented in part I of the paper. Part II starts with the finite element discretization of these theorems and demonstrates how both can be combined in a primal–dual optimization problem. This recently proposed numerical method is used to guide the development of a new class of closed-form limit loads for circumferential defects, which show that only large defects contribute to plastic collapse with a rapid loss of strength with increasing crack sizes. The formulae are compared with primal–dual FEM limit analyses and with burst tests. Even closer predictions are obtained with iterative limit load solutions for the von Mises yield function and for the Tresca yield function. Pressure loading of the faces of interior cracks in thick pipes reduces the collapse load of circumferential defects more than for axial flaws. Axial defects have been treated in part I of the paper.
Spontaneous language has rarely been subjected to neuroimaging studies. This study therefore introduces a newly developed method for the analysis of linguistic phenomena observed in continuous language production during fMRI.
Most neuroimaging studies investigating language have so far focussed on single word or — to a smaller extent — sentence processing, mostly due to methodological considerations. Natural language production, however, is far more than the mere combination of words to larger units. Therefore, the present study aimed at relating brain activation to linguistic phenomena like word-finding difficulties or syntactic completeness in a continuous language fMRI paradigm. A picture description task with special constraints was used to provoke hesitation phenomena and speech errors. The transcribed speech sample was segmented into events of one second and each event was assigned to one category of a complex schema especially developed for this purpose. The main results were: conceptual planning engages bilateral activation of the precuneus. Successful lexical retrieval is accompanied – particularly in comparison to unsolved word-finding difficulties – by the left middle and superior temporal gyrus. Syntactic completeness is reflected in activation of the left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) (area 44). In sum, the method has proven to be useful for investigating the neural correlates of lexical and syntactic phenomena in an overt picture description task. This opens up new prospects for the analysis of spontaneous language production during fMRI.
Gräser sind in der Lage, einen großen Teil der für eine biobasierte Wirtschaft benötigten Biomasse zur Verfügung zustellen. Um eine ganzjährige Nutzung des Grases zu gewährleisten, muss eine stabile Lagerung des Grases erreicht werden, was z. B. durch Silieren möglich ist. Die konservierende Wirkung der Silierung beruht auf der Bildung organischer Säuren. Um diese zu gewinnen, wird die Silage gepresst, die organischen Säuren über Flüssig/Flüssig-Extraktion aus dem Presssaft abgetrenntund mittels chromatographischer Methoden weiter aufgereinigt. Im präsentierten Konzept werden die im Presskuchen enthaltenen Lignocellulosen hydrolysiert und die erhaltenen Monosaccharide zu Ethanol fermentiert. Die Phenolsäuren, die in Gräsern die Rolle des Lignins übernehmen, können simultan mit der Hydrolyse der Polysaccharide enzymatisch abgetrennt und als Nebenprodukt gewonnen werden. Die nach der Abtrennung des Ethanols verbleibenden Fermentationsreststoffe werden für die Herstellung von Biogas verwendet.
Optimierung der selektiven Aufarbeitung von Proteinen mit Aptamer-funktionalisierten Magnetpartikeln
(2012)
Die Herstellung pharmakologisch relevanter Proteine durch Mikroorganismen führt eine mehrstufige Aufarbeitung mit sich. Durch die Verwendung von Aptameren, kurzen einzelsträngigen DNA- oder RNA-Oligonukleotiden immobilisiert auf funktionalisierten, wiederverwendbaren Magnetpartikeln, können mehrere dieser Abtrennungsoperationen kombiniert und damit die Prozesskosten minimiert werden. Aufgrund der definierten dreidimensionalen Struktur können Aptamere kleine organische Moleküle hochspezifisch binden. Im vorgestellten Projekt wird die Aufarbeitung von His6-GFP als Modellprotein mithilfe der mit Aptamer funktionalisierten Magnetpartikel durchgeführt. In bisherigen Versuchen wurde die Bindung von Aptameren auf den magnetischen Partikeln sowie die Bindung des Modellproteins GFP auf den Partikeln optimiert. Des Weiteren wurden mehrere Strategien zur Elution des GFPs von den Partikeln verfolgt, um den Proteinertrag zu maximieren und die Partikel rezyklieren zu können. Die Untersuchung unspezifischer Bindungen von Zelltrümmern und Proteinen an die Magnetpartikel wurde mithilfe eines konfokalen Laser-Scanning-Mikroskops durchgeführt.
Glucose ist ein primäres Zwischenprodukt der Verarbeitung nachwachsender Rohstoffe, wie z. B. Cellulose. Die wertsteigernde Weiterverarbeitung des Monosaccharids erfolgt häufig in Form vonFermentationsprozessen, jedoch kann der Rohstoff auch für zahlreiche chemische Verarbeitungsstufen genutzt werden. Ein großtechnisch relevanter Prozess ist die Herstellung von Gluconsäure (GS), die u. a. als Nahrungsmittelzusatz (E 574) eingesetzt wird. Die Darstellung der Säure erfolgt durch Oxidation von Glucose mit magnetisierbarem Gold-Nano-Katalysator. Die Rückgewinnung des Katalysators aus der Reaktionslösung wurde unter Einwirkung eines Magnetfeldgradienten verwirklicht. Die Synthese der magnetischen Goldkatalysatoren (sowohl Trägerpartikel als auch Gold-Nanopartikel) wurde durch nass-chemische Fällungsreaktionen durchgeführt. Die Charakteristiken der neuen Materialen konnte durch Messungen des PCD-Potenzials, Laserbeugung und REM/EDX untersucht werden. So wurden u. a. Partikeldurchmesser von 25 lm und ein Goldgehaltvon 1,03 % ermittelt. Weiterhin wurden für die Goldkatalysatoren optimale Reaktionsbedingungen für die Glucoseoxidation im geregelten Rührkesselreaktor etabliert. Hierdurch konnten eine Produktselektivität von 100 % und eine Wiederverwendbarkeit der Partikel über mindestens zehn Zyklen erreicht werden.