Vibratory communication signal produced by male western conifer seed bugs (Hemiptera: Coreidae)

2008 ◽  
Vol 140 (2) ◽  
pp. 174-183
Author(s):  
Stephen Takács ◽  
Karl Hardin ◽  
Gerhard Gries ◽  
Ward Strong ◽  
Robb Bennett

AbstractWe tested the hypothesis that the western conifer seed bug, Leptoglossus occidentalis Heidemann, uses a substrate-borne vibratory signal for short-range communication. To record such a signal we used computers equipped with data-acquisition hardware and software, microphones sensitive to sonic and (or) ultrasonic frequencies, membrane-type and piezoelectric speakers capable of emitting sonic and ultrasonic sound, and piezoelectric devices capable of emitting low-level, low-frequency vibrations. By tapping their abdomen on substrate, males produced a wide-band vibratory signal 20 dB (sound pressure level; 0 dB = 20 µPa) above ambient sound, with dominant frequencies of 115 ± 10 and 175 ± 15 Hz and a distinct temporal pattern. There was no evidence for (i) ultrasonic signal components; (ii) signals produced by females or nymphs, or (iii) repeated trains of signal pulses. In two-choice arena experiments, males and females preferred the played-back recording of the male-produced substrate-borne signal over silent controls, whereas nymphs showed no preference for either stimulus. In two-choice dowel experiments with hickory wood or lodgepole pine crossbeams, females (unlike males or nymphs) preferred played-back recordings of the same signal over controls. In two-choice field experiments, this signal emitted in the air by piezoelectric devices or transferred through a wire to lodgepole pine branches attracted more L. occidentalis than did silent controls. Our data support the hypothesis that L. occidentalis uses a substrate-borne vibratory signal for short-range communication. The use of such a signal is consistent with reports on communication by other true bug species.

2012 ◽  
Vol 107 (4) ◽  
pp. 1241-1246 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary Marsat ◽  
Leonard Maler

To interact with the environment efficiently, the nervous system must generate expectations about redundant sensory signals and detect unexpected ones. Neural circuits can, for example, compare a prediction of the sensory signal that was generated by the nervous system with the incoming sensory input, to generate a response selective to novel stimuli. In the first-order electrosensory neurons of a gymnotiform electric fish, a negative image of low-frequency redundant communication signals is subtracted from the neural response via feedback, allowing unpredictable signals to be extracted. Here we show that the cancelling feedback not only suppresses the predictable signal but also actively enhances the response to the unpredictable communication signal. A transient mismatch between the predictive feedback and incoming sensory input causes both to be positive: the soma is suddenly depolarized by the unpredictable input, whereas the neuron's apical dendrites remain depolarized by the lagging cancelling feedback. The apical dendrites allow the backpropagation of somatic spikes. We show that backpropagation is enhanced when the dendrites are depolarized, causing the unpredictable excitatory input to evoke spike bursts. As a consequence, the feedback driven by a predictable low-frequency signal not only suppresses the response to a redundant stimulus but also induces a bursting response triggered by unpredictable communication signals.


Geophysics ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 67 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-88 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lee D. Slater ◽  
David Lesmes

The induced polarization (IP) response of rocks and soils is a function of lithology and fluid conductivity. IP measurements are sensitive to the low‐frequency capacitive properties of rocks and soils, which are controlled by diffusion polarization mechanisms operating at the grain‐fluid interface. IP interpretation typically is in terms of the conventional field IP parameters: chargeability, percentage frequency effect, and phase angle. These parameters are dependent upon both surface polarization mechanisms and bulk (volumetric) conduction mechanisms. Consequently, they afford a poor quantification of surface polarization processes of interest to the field geophysicist. A parameter that quantifies the magnitude of surface polarization is the normalized chargeability, defined as the chargeability divided by the resistivity magnitude. This parameter is proportional to the quadrature conductivity measured in the complex resistivity method. For nonmetallic minerals, the quadrature conductivity and normalized chargeability are closely related to lithology (through the specific surface area) and surface chemistry. Laboratory and field experiments were performed to determine the dependence of the standard IP parameters and the normalized chargeability on two important environmental parameters: salinity and clay content. The laboratory experiments illustrate that the chargeability is strongly correlated with the sample resistivity, which depends on salinity, porosity, saturation, and clay content. The normalized chargeability is shown to be independent of the sample resistivity and it is proportional to the quadrature conductivity, which is directly related to the surface polarization processes. Laboratory‐derived relationships between conductivity and salinity, and normalized chargeability and clay content, are extended to the interpretation of 1‐D and 2‐D field‐IP surveys. In the 2‐D survey, the apparent conductivity and normalized chargeability data are used to segment the images into relatively clay‐free and clay‐rich zones. A similar approach can eventually be used to predict relative variations in the subsurface clay content, salinity and, perhaps, contaminant concentrations.


Sensors ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (14) ◽  
pp. 3125
Author(s):  
Zou ◽  
Chen ◽  
Liu

Considering the lack of precision in transforming measured micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) accelerometer output signals into elevation signals, this paper proposes a bridge dynamic displacement reconstruction method based on the combination of ensemble empirical mode decomposition (EEMD) and time domain integration, according to the vibration signal traits of a bridge. Through simulating bridge analog signals and verifying a vibration test bench, four bridge dynamic displacement monitoring methods were analyzed and compared. The proposed method can effectively eliminate the influence of low-frequency integral drift and high-frequency ambient noise on the integration process. Furthermore, this algorithm has better adaptability and robustness. The effectiveness of the method was verified by field experiments on highway elevated bridges.


2013 ◽  
Vol 56 (8) ◽  
pp. 1835-1841 ◽  
Author(s):  
MengDi Han ◽  
XiaoSheng Zhang ◽  
Wen Liu ◽  
XuMing Sun ◽  
XuHua Peng ◽  
...  

1994 ◽  
Vol 360 ◽  
Author(s):  
D.A. Barrow ◽  
T.E. Petroff ◽  
M. Sayer

AbstractLead zirconate titanate (PZT) films of up to 60 μm in thickness have been fabricated on a wide variety of substrates using a new sol gel process. The dielectric properties (∈ = 900), ferroelectric (Ec = 16 kV/cm and Pr = 35 μC/cm 2) and piezoelectric properties are comparable to bulk values. The characteristic Curie point of these films is at 420 °C. Piezoelectric actuators have been developed by depositing thick PZT films on both planar and coaxial substrates. Stainless steel cantilevers and optical fibres coated with a PZT film exhibit flexure mode resonant vibrations observable with the naked eye. A low frequency in-line fibre optic modulator has been developed using a PZT coated optical fibre. The high frequency resonance of a 60 μm film on a aluminum substrate has been observed.


2022 ◽  
Vol 188 ◽  
pp. 108586
Author(s):  
Tuo Xing ◽  
Xiaoling Gai ◽  
Junjuan Zhao ◽  
Xianhui Li ◽  
Zenong Cai ◽  
...  

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (19) ◽  
pp. 1950208
Author(s):  
Xinpei Song ◽  
Tianning Chen ◽  
Jian Zhu ◽  
Yanbin He

Low-frequency and broadband are the critical challenges in real-life applications. Here, we try to tackle the challenges by proposing a reconfigurable acoustic metasurface (AM) composed of the membrane-type metamaterial (MAM) structure of deep sub-wavelength scale. By employing the external air pumping system into each individual unit cell of the AM, the tension of the membrane can be readily tailored by the system with little interference from other unit cells. Two strategies of the constant pressure method (CPM) and constant volume method (CVM) are reported to design the MAM. And the CVM is adopted as the ultimate design strategy by comparing both methods from aspects of the dimension, operating frequency, and structure complexity. In order to validate the low-frequency and broadband performances of the AM, the Airy-like beams and the acoustic converging based on two identical Airy-like beams are introduced and proof-of-concept simulations are performed with the finite element method. The simulated results agree well with the theoretical predictions. Our design provides the little-interference active design method for the low-frequency and broadband AM to manipulate the wave front, and may have practical engineering applications in areas of the aerospace, high-speed train, marine vessel, and power transmission and transformation project.


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