Structuring nondiffracting hollow beams within micrometer spatial domains

Author(s):  
Michel Zamboni-Rached
Keyword(s):  
2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 1328
Author(s):  
Rui Zhou ◽  
Yi Qin Gao

The recent development of sequencing technology and imaging methods has provided an unprecedented understanding of the inter-phase chromatin folding in mammalian nuclei. It was found that chromatin folds into topological-associated domains (TADs) of hundreds of kilo base pairs (kbps), and is further divided into spatially segregated compartments (A and B). The compartment B tends to be located near to the periphery or the nuclear center and interacts with other domains of compartments B, while compartment A tends to be located between compartment B and interacts inside the domains. These spatial domains are found to highly correlate with the mosaic CpG island (CGI) density. High CGI density corresponds to compartments A and small TADs, and vice versa. The variation of contact probability as a function of sequential distance roughly follows a power-law decay. Different chromosomes tend to segregate to occupy different chromosome territories. A model that can integrate these properties at multiple length scales and match many aspects is highly desired. Here, we report a DNA-sequence based coarse-grained block copolymer model that considers different interactions between blocks of different CGI density, interactions of TAD formation, as well as interactions between chromatin and the nuclear envelope. This model captures the various single-chromosome properties and partially reproduces the formation of chromosome territories.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Doerte Kuhrt ◽  
Natalie R. St. John ◽  
Jacob L. S. Bellmund ◽  
Raphael Kaplan ◽  
Christian F. Doeller

AbstractAdvances in virtual reality (VR) technology have greatly benefited spatial navigation research. By presenting space in a controlled manner, changing aspects of the environment one at a time or manipulating the gain from different sensory inputs, the mechanisms underlying spatial behaviour can be investigated. In parallel, a growing body of evidence suggests that the processes involved in spatial navigation extend to non-spatial domains. Here, we leverage VR technology advances to test whether participants can navigate abstract knowledge. We designed a two-dimensional quantity space—presented using a head-mounted display—to test if participants can navigate abstract knowledge using a first-person perspective navigation paradigm. To investigate the effect of physical movement, we divided participants into two groups: one walking and rotating on a motion platform, the other group using a gamepad to move through the abstract space. We found that both groups learned to navigate using a first-person perspective and formed accurate representations of the abstract space. Interestingly, navigation in the quantity space resembled behavioural patterns observed in navigation studies using environments with natural visuospatial cues. Notably, both groups demonstrated similar patterns of learning. Taken together, these results imply that both self-movement and remote exploration can be used to learn the relational mapping between abstract stimuli.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Betka Sophie ◽  
Łukowska Marta ◽  
Silva Marta ◽  
King Joshua ◽  
Garfinkel Sarah ◽  
...  

AbstractMany interoceptive tasks (i.e. measuring the sensitivity to bodily signals) are based upon heartbeats perception. However, the temporal perception of heartbeats—when heartbeats are felt—varies among individuals. Moreover, the spatial perception of heartbeats—where on the body heartbeats are felt—has not been characterized in relation to temporal. This study used a multi-interval heartbeat discrimination task in which participants judged the timing of their own heartbeats in relation to external tones. The perception of heartbeats in both time and spatial domains, and relationship between these domains was investigated. Heartbeat perception occurred on average ~ 250 ms after the ECG R-wave, most frequently sampled from the left part of the chest. Participants’ confidence in discriminating the timing of heartbeats from external tones was maximal at 0 ms (tone played at R-wave). Higher confidence was related to reduced dispersion of sampling locations, but Bayesian statistics indicated the absence of relationship between temporal and spatial heartbeats perception. Finally, the spatial precision of heartbeat perception was related to state-anxiety scores, yet largely independent of cardiovascular parameters. This investigation of heartbeat perception provides fresh insights concerning interoceptive signals that contribute to emotion, cognition and behaviour.


Author(s):  
Steven M. Weisberg ◽  
Anjan Chatterjee

Abstract Background Reference frames ground spatial communication by mapping ambiguous language (for example, navigation: “to the left”) to properties of the speaker (using a Relative reference frame: “to my left”) or the world (Absolute reference frame: “to the north”). People’s preferences for reference frame vary depending on factors like their culture, the specific task in which they are engaged, and differences among individuals. Although most people are proficient with both reference frames, it is unknown whether preference for reference frames is stable within people or varies based on the specific spatial domain. These alternatives are difficult to adjudicate because navigation is one of few spatial domains that can be naturally solved using multiple reference frames. That is, while spatial navigation directions can be specified using Absolute or Relative reference frames (“go north” vs “go left”), other spatial domains predominantly use Relative reference frames. Here, we used two domains to test the stability of reference frame preference: one based on navigating a four-way intersection; and the other based on the sport of ultimate frisbee. We recruited 58 ultimate frisbee players to complete an online experiment. We measured reaction time and accuracy while participants solved spatial problems in each domain using verbal prompts containing either Relative or Absolute reference frames. Details of the task in both domains were kept as similar as possible while remaining ecologically plausible so that reference frame preference could emerge. Results We pre-registered a prediction that participants would be faster using their preferred reference frame type and that this advantage would correlate across domains; we did not find such a correlation. Instead, the data reveal that people use distinct reference frames in each domain. Conclusion This experiment reveals that spatial reference frame types are not stable and may be differentially suited to specific domains. This finding has broad implications for communicating spatial information by offering an important consideration for how spatial reference frames are used in communication: task constraints may affect reference frame choice as much as individual factors or culture.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 642 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luís Bernardo ◽  
Sérgio Lopes ◽  
Mafalda Teixeira

This article describes an experimental program developed to study the influence of longitudinal prestress on the behaviour of high-strength concrete hollow beams under pure torsion. The pre-cracking, the post-cracking and the ultimate behaviour are analysed. Three tests were carried out on large hollow high-strength concrete beams with similar concrete strength. The variable studied was the level of longitudinal uniform prestress. Some important conclusions on different aspects of the beams’ behaviour are presented. These conclusions, considered important for the design of box bridges, include the influence of the level of prestress in the cracking and ultimate behaviour.


Nature ◽  
1989 ◽  
Vol 340 (6232) ◽  
pp. 363-367 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wolfgang Driever ◽  
Gudrun Thoma ◽  
Christiane Nüsslein-Volhard

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 1144
Author(s):  
Mahendra Bhandari ◽  
Shannon Baker ◽  
Jackie C. Rudd ◽  
Amir M. H. Ibrahim ◽  
Anjin Chang ◽  
...  

Drought significantly limits wheat productivity across the temporal and spatial domains. Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) has become an indispensable tool to collect refined spatial and high temporal resolution imagery data. A 2-year field study was conducted in 2018 and 2019 to determine the temporal effects of drought on canopy growth of winter wheat. Weekly UAS data were collected using red, green, and blue (RGB) and multispectral (MS) sensors over a yield trial consisting of 22 winter wheat cultivars in both irrigated and dryland environments. Raw-images were processed to compute canopy features such as canopy cover (CC) and canopy height (CH), and vegetation indices (VIs) such as Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Excess Green Index (ExG), and Normalized Difference Red-edge Index (NDRE). The drought was more severe in 2018 than in 2019 and the effects of growth differences across years and irrigation levels were visible in the UAS measurements. CC, CH, and VIs, measured during grain filling, were positively correlated with grain yield (r = 0.4–0.7, p < 0.05) in the dryland in both years. Yield was positively correlated with VIs in 2018 (r = 0.45–0.55, p < 0.05) in the irrigated environment, but the correlations were non-significant in 2019 (r = 0.1 to −0.4), except for CH. The study shows that high-throughput UAS data can be used to monitor the drought effects on wheat growth and productivity across the temporal and spatial domains.


2011 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 330-339 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luis F. A. Bernardo ◽  
Sergio M. R. Lopes

Some bridges have to withstand high levels of torsion forces. As a consequence, box type beams are often the obvious solution. It could be possible that the balance of transversal to longitudinal torsion reinforcement is not fully reached. If the transversal reinforcement is somehow underestimated, the box beam needs to be transversally strengthened. From the various solutions, external transversal reinforcement is certainly one possibility. The investigation presented here aimed to study such solution. The authors tested four hollow beams under pure torsion. The level of the non balanced ratio between internal longitudinal and transversal torsion reinforcement was one of the parameters that were considered in this investigation. Other parameter was the existence or the no existence of external transversal strengthening reinforcement. The experimental results of the tests have shown the effectiveness of the use of the external transversal strengthening steel reinforcement to compensate the lack of balance of internal transversal to longitudinal torsion reinforcement with respect to various behaviour aspects, such as: increasing of torque strength, increasing of ductility, increasing of cracking torsion moment, and better distribution of cracking. Santrauka Kai kurie tiltai turi atlaikyti dideles sukimo jėgas. Tam tikslui dažnai naudojamos dėžinio skerspjūvio sijos. Gali būti, kad tarp sukimui atlaikyti naudojamos skersinės ir išilginės armatūros ne visada pasiekiamas tinkamas balansas. Jei skersinė sija armuota nepakankamai, dėžinio skerspjūvio sijas gali tekti papildomai stiprinti. Vienas iš įvairių galimų stiprinimo variantų – armavimas išorine skersine armatūra. Šiame straipsnyje pateikiama tokio stiprinimo analizė. Autoriai išbandė keturias grynojo sukimo veikiamas dėžinio skerspjūvio sijas. Vienas iš tyrimo parametrų – skersinės ir išilginės sukimo armatūrų santykio nesubalansuotumo lygis. Kitas parametras – išorinės skersinės stiprinimo armatūros buvimas arba nebuvimas. Eksperimentinių tyrimų rezultatai parodė stiprinti naudojamos išorinės plieninės skersinės armatūros veiksmingumą, kompensuojant vidinės skersinės ir išilginės suktinės armatūrų tarpusavio nesubalansuotumą. Efektyvumas buvo įrodytas tokias aspektais: padidėjusi sukamoji galia ir elastingumas, padidėjęs plyšių atsiradimo sukimo momentas bei geresnis plyšių pasiskirstymas.


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