Population genomic analysis of base composition evolution in Drosophila melanogaster.

The relative importance of mutation, selection, and biased gene conversion to patterns of base composition variation in Drosophila melanogaster, and to a lesser extent, D. simulans, has been investigated for many years. However, genomic data from sufficiently large samples to thoroughly characterize patterns of base composition polymorphism within species have been lacking. Here, we report a genome-wide analysis of coding and noncoding polymorphism in a large sample of inbred D. melanogaster strains from Raleigh, North Carolina. Consistent with previous results, we observed that AT mutations fix more frequently than GC mutations in D. melanogaster. Contrary to predictions of previous models of codon usage in D. melanogaster, we found that synonymous sites segregating for derived AT polymorphisms were less skewed toward low frequencies compared with sites segregating a derived GC polymorphism. However, no such pattern was observed for comparable base composition polymorphisms in noncoding DNA. These results suggest that AT-ending codons could currently be favored by natural selection in the D. melanogaster lineage

Antenna reconfiguration using metasurfaces

The paper describes the designs of a frequency-reconfigurable, polarization reconfigurable and pattern reconfigurable antennas using metasurfaces (MS). The frequency-reconfigurable and polarization reconfigurable antennas are composed of a simple circular patch antenna or slot antenna as the source antenna and a circular MS with the same diameter, with both source antenna and MS implemented using planar technology. The pattern reconfigurable antenna is composed of a circular patch antenna as the source antenna and a semicircular MS with the same diameter. In all these reconfigurable antennas, the MS is placed directly atop of the source antenna, making the antenna very compact and low profile with a thickness of only 0.05λ0. By rotating the MS around the center with respect to the source antenna, the frequency, polarization or pattern of the reconfigurable antenna can be reconfigured.published_or_final_versionThe 2014 Progress In Electromagnetics Research Symposium (PIERS 2014), Guangzhou, China, 25-28 August 2014. In PIERS Proceedings, 2014, p. 2400-240

Union bounds for BER evaluation and code optimization of space-time codes in 2-by-2 MIMO systems

In this paper, an exact closed-form formula for the Pair-wise Error Probability (PEP) is derived for two transmit and two receive antennas MIMO systems using the probability density function (PDF) of the modified Euclidean distance. An exact Union Bound formed by this formula, together with the Asymptotic Union Bound, are studied for optimization and biterror rate (BER) evaluation of Space-Time (S-T) codes. Numerical calculations and Monte Carlo computer simulation have been used to study these two Union Bounds on a 2-by-2 MIMO system using a rotation-based diagonal S-T code (D code) in a block fading channel. Results show that the exact Union Bound is a very tight Bound for BER evaluation while the Asymptotic Union Bound is very accurate for code optimization. © 2006 IEEE.published_or_final_versionIEEE 63rd Vehicular Technology Conference (VTC 2006-Spring), Melbourne, Australia, 7-10 May 2006. In Proceedings of the 63rd IEEE VTC Spring 2006, v. 3, p. 1506-151

The composite picture of the charge carriers in La2-xSrxCuO4 (0.063 < x < 0.11) superconductors

Through far-infrared studies of La2-xSrxCuO4 single crystals for x = 0.063, 0.07, 0.09, and 0.11, we found that only ~ 0.2 % of the total holes participated in the nearly dissipationless normal state charge transport and superconductivity. We have also observed characteristic collective modes at w ~ 18 cm-1 and 22 cm-1 due to the bound carriers in an electronic lattice (EL) state and the free carriers are massively screened by the EL. Our findings lead us to propose a composite picture of the charge system where the free carriers are coupled to and riding on the EL. This unique composite system of charge carriers may provide further insights into the understanding of the cuprate physics.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figure

Synthesis, vacuum ultraviolet and near ultraviolet-excited luminescent properties of GdCaAl3O7: RE3+ (RE=Eu, Tb)

Vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) excitation and photoluminescent (PL) properties of Eu3+ and Tb3+ ion-doped aluminate phosphors, GdCaAl 3O7:Eu3+ and GdCaAl3O 7:Tb3+ have been investigated. X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns indicate that the phosphor GdCaAl3O7 forms without impurity phase at 900 °C. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) images show that the particle size of the phosphor is less than 3 μm. Upon excitation with VUV irradiation, the phosphors show a strong emission at around 619 nm corresponding to the forced electric dipole 5D0→7F2 transition of Eu 3+, and at around 545 nm corresponding to the 5D 4→7F5 transition of Tb3+. The results reveal that both GdCaAl3O7:RE3+ (RE=Eu, Tb) are potential candidates as red and green phosphors, respectively, for use in plasma display panel (PDP). © 2005 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.postprin

The role of mutation rate variation and genetic diversity in the architecture of human disease

Background We have investigated the role that the mutation rate and the structure of genetic variation at a locus play in determining whether a gene is involved in disease. We predict that the mutation rate and its genetic diversity should be higher in genes associated with disease, unless all genes that could cause disease have already been identified. Results Consistent with our predictions we find that genes associated with Mendelian and complex disease are substantially longer than non-disease genes. However, we find that both Mendelian and complex disease genes are found in regions of the genome with relatively low mutation rates, as inferred from intron divergence between humans and chimpanzees, and they are predicted to have similar rates of non-synonymous mutation as other genes. Finally, we find that disease genes are in regions of significantly elevated genetic diversity, even when variation in the rate of mutation is controlled for. The effect is small nevertheless. Conclusions Our results suggest that gene length contributes to whether a gene is associated with disease. However, the mutation rate and the genetic architecture of the locus appear to play only a minor role in determining whether a gene is associated with disease

{\phi}^4 Solitary Waves in a Parabolic Potential: Existence, Stability, and Collisional Dynamics

We explore a {\phi}^4 model with an added external parabolic potential term. This term dramatically alters the spectral properties of the system. We identify single and multiple kink solutions and examine their stability features; importantly, all of the stationary structures turn out to be unstable. We complement these with a dynamical study of the evolution of a single kink in the trap, as well as of the scattering of kink and anti-kink solutions of the model. We see that some of the key characteristics of kink-antikink collisions, such as the critical velocity and the multi-bounce windows, are sensitively dependent on the trap strength parameter, as well as the initial displacement of the kink and antikink

Some Recent Developments on Kink Collisions and Related Topics

We review recent works on modeling of dynamics of kinks in 1+1 dimensional $\phi^4$ theory and other related models, like sine-Gordon model or $\phi^6$ theory. We discuss how the spectral structure of small perturbations can affect the dynamics of non-perturbative states, such as kinks or oscillons. We describe different mechanisms, which may lead to the occurrence of the resonant structure in the kink-antikink collisions. We explain the origin of the radiation pressure mechanism, in particular, the appearance of the negative radiation pressure in the $\phi^4$ and $\phi^6$ models. We also show that the process of production of the kink-antikink pairs, induced by radiation is chaotic.Comment: 26 pages, 9 figures; invited chapter to "A dynamical perspective on the {\phi}4 model: Past, present and future", Eds. P.G. Kevrekidis and J. Cuevas-Maraver; Springer book class with svmult.cls include

Multiple Bosonic Mode Coupling in Electron Self-Energy of (La_2-xSr_x)CuO_4

High resolution angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy data along the (0,0)-($\pi$,$\pi$) nodal direction with significantly improved statistics reveal fine structure in the electron self-energy of the underdoped (La$_{2-x}$Sr$_x$)CuO$_4$ samples in the normal state. Fine structure at energies of (40$\sim$46) meV and (58$\sim$63)meV, and possible fine structure at energies of (23$\sim$29)meV and (75$\sim$85)meV, have been identified. These observations indicate that, in LSCO, more than one bosonic modes are involved in the coupling with electrons.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, Fig. 2 update