понедельник, 19 марта 2012 г.

Games

Games

IJERPH, Vol. 9, Pages 970-984: Ammonium Removal from Aqueous Solutions by Clinoptilolite: Determination of Isotherm and Thermodynamic Parameters and Comparison of Kinetics by the Double Exponential Model and Conventional Kinetic Models

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 12:00 AM PDT

The adsorption isotherm, the adsorption kinetics, and the thermodynamic parameters of ammonium removal from aqueous solution by using clinoptilolite in aqueous solution was investigated in this study. Experimental data obtained from batch equilibrium tests have been analyzed by four two-parameter (Freundlich, Langmuir, Tempkin and Dubinin-Radushkevich (D-R)) and four three-parameter (Redlich-Peterson (R-P), Sips, Toth and Khan) isotherm models. D-R and R-P isotherms were the models that best fitted to experimental data over the other two- and three-parameter models applied. The adsorption energy (E) from the D-R isotherm was found to be approximately 7 kJ/mol for the ammonium-clinoptilolite system, thereby indicating that ammonium is adsorbed on clinoptilolite by physisorption. Kinetic parameters were determined by analyzing the nth-order kinetic model, the modified second-order model and the double exponential model, and each model resulted in a coefficient of determination (R2) of above 0.989 with an average relative error lower than 5%. A Double Exponential Model (DEM) showed that the adsorption process develops in two stages as rapid and slow phase. Changes in standard free energy (∆G°), enthalpy (∆H°) and entropy (∆S°) of ammonium-clinoptilolite system were estimated by using the thermodynamic equilibrium coefficients.

Water, Vol. 4, Pages 272-282: Framework of National Non-Structural Measures for Flash Flood Disaster Prevention in China

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 12:00 AM PDT

In recent years, disasters caused by flash floods with many casualties have occurred frequently in China. In order to effectively prevent flash flood disasters, the State Council approved the National Flash Flood Control Planning (NFFCP) in 2006. In this planning, non-structural measures are recommended as the first step to be adopted in the prevention of flash floods, debris flow and landslide disasters caused by heavy rainfall. In order to effectively build up a comprehensive non-structural measure system for flash flood disaster prevention, the Ministry of Water Resources has asked the local authorities to conduct studies in 103 pilot counties aiming to explore practical schemes. Based on the experience from these pilot counties, the construction of non-structural measures on flash flood disaster prevention for 1836 counties was officially initiated in 2010. The contents of non-structural measures for flash flood disaster prevention at county level include eight aspects. This paper will systematically illustrate the main contents of this national project for the construction of non-structural measures for flash flood disaster prevention in China. This work could provide a reference for other countries and regions in terms of flash flood prevention.

Algorithms, Vol. 5, Pages 148-157: Any Monotone Function Is Realized by Interlocked Polygons

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 12:00 AM PDT

Suppose there is a collection of n simple polygons in the plane, none of which overlap each other. The polygons are interlocked if no subset can be separated arbitrarily far from the rest. It is natural to ask the characterization of the subsets that makes the set of interlocked polygons free (not interlocked). This abstracts the essence of a kind of sliding block puzzle. We show that any monotone Boolean function ƒ on n variables can be described by m = O(n) interlocked polygons. We also show that the decision problem that asks if given polygons are interlocked is PSPACE-complete.

Bridge column, March 19: How many ducks can fill one deal?

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 02:58 AM PDT

Tom Shales, a Pulitzer Prize-winning TV critic, described actor and comedian Robin Williams as "a fellow with the inventiveness of Albert Einstein but with the attention span of Daffy Duck." That would not work well for a bridge player, who often needs to have an attention span lasting the auction and 12 tricks.

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jBidWatcher 2.5 - Monitor eBay auctions.. (Free)

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 02:59 AM PDT

jBidWatcher is a Java-based application allowing you to monitor auctions you're not part of, submit bids, snipe (bid at the last moment), and otherwise track your auction-site experience. It includes adult-auction management, MANY currencies (yen, pound, dollar [US, Canada, Australian, and New Taiwanese], Swiss Francs, and euro, presently), drag-and-drop of auction URLs, a unique and powerful 'multisniping' feature, a relatively nice UI, and is known to work cleanly under Linux, Windows, Solaris, and Mac OS X from the same binary.

Currently it is only implemented for eBay, but it is abstracted suitably to work with any online auction site with a minimum of changes.

It is under active development, and issues are quickly responded to. Bug reports and feature requests are always welcome, as are praise and complaints.

Version 2.5:

eBay related changes

  • Better handle inter-country bidding failures, and some odd eBay interstitial pages
  • Removed Dutch Auction support, since eBay doesn't support that listing type anymore
  • A ton of eBay-driven changes for new page formats, different bidding forms, and more.
  • Better image/thumbnail retrieval, and price detection
  • Improve BIN detection on fixed-price items you've already bought one of, multi-purchase buys, and underbid recognition.
  • Fixed some snipe failures that were due to misinterpreting eBay's broken HTML.
  • Better ended-listing recognition
UI changes
  • Add a '+' tab for creating new tabs, to make it easier and more obvious
  • Tweaked some minor UI inconsistencies
  • Items move to their correct category after the fact, which looks a little odd, but means that items should end up in their appropriate categories without human intervention.
  • Empty tabs have a little graphic in the middle; this will eventually get swapped out for some basic instructions, to make first-launch ramp-up time quicker.
  • A bunch of (hopefully) improvements to the 'first-run' experience, including a simplified configuration screen.
  • The 'new update' dialog got a makeover.
  • Increased the default sizes on some dialogs, as monitor sizes have grown over the years
  • Improve the thumbnail shown in 'Show Info'.
  • Focus should work better in all dialogs.
Internal fixes
  • Fixed some My JBidwatcher setup/configuration issues
  • Improved response to waking from sleep
  • Internal improvements, reducing exceptions and deadlocks.
  • Improve performance
  • Some data-logging improvements
  • Preserve some snipe information after a snipe has completed.
  • Signing Mac binaries so JBidwatcher doesn't get locked out by Mountain Lion
New features
  • First pass at a multicast DNS service for wireless synch
  • A purely opt-in metrics/analytics system so I can learn how folks use JBidwatcher in the wild.
  • Brought back the scripting framework; JBidwatcher can now be scripted in JRuby
* The scripting framework is rudimentary right now, but I'm adding hooks as I touch code, and soon more of JBidwatcher will be implemented using JRuby.



Mac OS X 10.4 or later

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XMenu 1.9.4 - Menubar item lists/launches apps, and more.. (Free)

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 02:53 AM PDT



XMenu adds one or more global menus to the right side of the menu bar. They give you access to your preferred applications, folders, documents, files, and snippets. Launch any application or insert text snippets or URLs into your email messages or Pages documents with a single menu choice.
  • No need for configuration
  • Six predefined folders: Applications, Developer Applications, Home, Documents, User-Defined, and Snippets
  • Keeps all your snippets and text modules handy
  • Operates as a menu extra, requires no hacks or extensions
  • Ideal replacement for Dock folders in Mac OS X 10.5


Version 1.9.4:

This is a maintenance release.



Mac OS X 10.5 or later

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PhotoStickies 5.6.5 - Image, slideshow, wallpaper viewer and recorder.. (Free)

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 02:51 AM PDT



PhotoStickies puts all your favorite pictures on your desktop, as stickies, floating or even borderless. Sticky pictures may reside on your computer, or on the Internet. It displays live Web cams on your desktop, updates them automatically, and even records them like a VCR.

What you can do with PhotoStickies:

  • Watch your favorite Webcams right on your desktop, keep an eye on the traffic or a weather cam.
  • Place your children, on your desktop, your house, your boat, or your nuclear satellite.
  • Use live Web cams as your living desktop picture, such as the Eiffel Tower or New York City, 5th Avenue.


Version 5.6.4:

This is a maintenance release.

  • NEW: Application icon.
  • Improved: Compatibility with Mac OS X 10.7 Lion.
  • Improved: Updated links to new DEVONtechnologies website.



Mac OS X 10.5 or later

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Crystals, Vol. 2, Pages 137-143: Synthesis and Crystal Structure of 1-Chloro-2-methyl-4-nitrobenzene

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 12:00 AM PDT

The title compound (3) was prepared from 4-chloroaniline in good yield on successive oxidation and methylation and its crystal and molecular structure is reported. The compound crystallizes in the monoclinic space group P 21/n with unit cell dimensions a = 13.5698(8), b = 3.7195 (3), c = 13.5967 (8) Å, ß = 91.703(3) °, V = 685.96 (10) Å3. The molecule is essentially planar with a dihedral angle of 6.2(3) ° between the nitro group and the phenyl ring. The crystal structure is stabilised by π...π contacts between adjacent benzene rings together with C–H...O hydrogen bonds and close Cl...O contacts.

IJMS, Vol. 13, Pages 3650-3660: Prediction of Bioluminescent Proteins Using Auto Covariance Transformation of Evolutional Profiles

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 12:00 AM PDT

Bioluminescent proteins are important for various cellular processes, such as gene expression analysis, drug discovery, bioluminescent imaging, toxicity determination, and DNA sequencing studies. Hence, the correct identification of bioluminescent proteins is of great importance both for helping genome annotation and providing a supplementary role to experimental research to obtain insight into bioluminescent proteins' functions. However, few computational methods are available for identifying bioluminescent proteins. Therefore, in this paper we develop a new method to predict bioluminescent proteins using a model based on position specific scoring matrix and auto covariance. Tested by 10-fold cross-validation and independent test, the accuracy of the proposed model reaches 85.17% for the training dataset and 90.71% for the testing dataset respectively. These results indicate that our predictor is a useful tool to predict bioluminescent proteins. This is the first study in which evolutionary information and local sequence environment information have been successfully integrated for predicting bioluminescent proteins. A web server (BLPre) that implements the proposed predictor is freely available.

IJMS, Vol. 13, Pages 3636-3649: Optimization of Serine Protease Purification from Mango (Mangifera indica cv. Chokanan) Peel in Polyethylene Glycol/Dextran Aqueous Two Phase System

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 12:00 AM PDT

Mango peel is a good source of protease but remains an industrial waste. This study focuses on the optimization of polyethylene glycol (PEG)/dextran-based aqueous two-phase system (ATPS) to purify serine protease from mango peel. The activity of serine protease in different phase systems was studied and then the possible relationship between the purification variables, namely polyethylene glycol molecular weight (PEG, 4000–12,000 g·mol−1), tie line length (−3.42–35.27%), NaCl (−2.5–11.5%) and pH (4.5–10.5) on the enzymatic properties of purified enzyme was investigated. The most significant effect of PEG was on the efficiency of serine protease purification. Also, there was a significant increase in the partition coefficient with the addition of 4.5% of NaCl to the system. This could be due to the high hydrophobicity of serine protease compared to protein contaminates. The optimum conditions to achieve high partition coefficient (84.2) purification factor (14.37) and yield (97.3%) of serine protease were obtained in the presence of 8000 g·mol−1 of PEG, 17.2% of tie line length and 4.5% of NaCl at pH 7.5. The enzymatic properties of purified serine protease using PEG/dextran ATPS showed that the enzyme could be purified at a high purification factor and yield with easy scale-up and fast processing.

IJMS, Vol. 13, Pages 3618-3635: The Intriguing Life of Autophagosomes

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 12:00 AM PDT

Autophagosomes are double-membrane vesicles characteristic of macroautophagy, a degradative pathway for cytoplasmic material and organelles terminating in the lysosomal or vacuole compartment for mammals and yeast, respectively. This highly dynamic, multi-step process requires significant membrane reorganization events at different stages of the macroautophagic process. Such events include exchange and flow of lipids and proteins between membranes and vesicles (e.g., during initiation and growth of the phagophore), vesicular positioning and trafficking within the cell (e.g., autophagosome location and movement) and fusion of autophagosomes with the boundary membranes of the degradative compartment. Here, we review current knowledge on the contribution of different organelles to the formation of autophagosomes, their trafficking and fate within the cell. We will consider some of the unresolved questions related to the molecular mechanisms that regulate the "life and death" of the autophagosome.

Molecules, Vol. 17, Pages 3510-3523: Enrichment and Purification of Deoxyschizandrin and γ-Schizandrin from the Extract of Schisandra chinensis Fruit by Macroporous Resins

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 12:00 AM PDT

In present study, the performance and separation characteristics of 21 macroporous resins for the enrichment and purification of deoxyschizandrin and γ-schizandrin, the two major lignans from Schisandra chinensis extracts, were evaluated. According to our results, HPD5000, which adsorbs by the molecular tiers model, was the best macroporous resin, offering higher adsorption and desorption capacities and higher adsorption speed for deoxyschizandrin and γ-schizandrin than other resins. Columns packed with HPD5000 resin were used to perform dynamic adsorption and desorption tests to optimize the technical parameters of the separation process. The results showed that the best adsorption time is 4 h, the rate of adsorption is 0.85 mL/min (4 BV/h) and the rate of desorption is 0.43 mL/min (2 BV/h). After elution with 90% ethanol, the purity of deoxy-schizandrin increased 12.62-fold from 0.37% to 4.67%, the purity of γ-schizandrin increased 15.8-fold from 0.65% to 10.27%, and the recovery rate was more than 80%.

Molecules, Vol. 17, Pages 3501-3509: Synthesis and Structural Determination of Novel 5-Arylidene-3-N(2-alkyloxyaryl)-2-thioxothiazolidin-4-ones

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 12:00 AM PDT

As part of our project devoted to the synthesis of heterocycles including thiazole rings, some new 5-arylidene-2-thioxo-3-N-arylthiazolidin-4-ones were synthesized by Knoevenagel condensation. An interesting feature of these compounds is that their chirality is induced by that of their 3-N-(2-alkyloxyaryl)-2-thioxothiazolidin-4-one precursors, which in turn is due to the presence of a C2 axis of chirality. These new compounds were characterized by spectroscopic methods (IR, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR). The structure of compound (Z)-(2g) was further determined by X-ray diffraction.

Minerals, Vol. 2, Pages 55-64: Influence of the Depth on the Shape and Thickness of Nacre Tablets of Pinctada margaritifera Pearl Oyster, and on Oxygen Isotopic Composition

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 12:00 AM PDT

Nacre, or mother of pearl, is composed of aragonite tablets and is produced by some mollusks. Because of the highly organized internal structure, chemical complexity, mechanical properties and optical effects of nacre, its formation is among the best-studied examples of calcium carbonate biomineralization. The pearl oyster Pinctada margaritifera is harvested in French Polynesia for pearl farming. The quality of the pearl depends on the quality of the nacre on its surface and its iridescent colors are affected by the thickness of the layers. Here we report on an experimental study conducted to influence the shape and the thickness of nacre tablets by keeping pearl oysters at four different depths (7, 20, 30 and 39 m) for one week. Scanning electron microscopy was used to measure the thickness of the nacre tablets and to analyze their final shape. The shape of the tablets changed from hexagonal to rhomboid at a depth of 39 m. The change in shape led to a change in size. The thickness of the tablets was reduced by between 16 and 30% on average. We also measured the oxygen isotopic composition using Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry. In this study, we demonstrated that depth can modify the size, shape and thickness of nacre tablets, but not the d18O. This environmental modification is important for the biomineralization of the shell of the pearl oyster Pinctada margaritifera.

Applied Sciences, Vol. 2, Pages 233-244: Optimization of Fluorine Plasma Treatment for Interface Improvement on HfO2/In0.53Ga0.47As MOSFETs

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 12:00 AM PDT

This paper reports significant improvements in the electrical performance of In0.53Ga0.47As metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFET) by a post-gate CF4/O2 plasma treatment. The optimum condition of CF4/O2 plasma treatment has been systematically studied and found to be 30 W for 3–5 min. Approximately 5× reduction in interface trap density from 2.8 × 1012 to 4.9 × 1011 cm−2eV−1 has been demonstrated with fluorine (F) incorporation. Subthreshold swing has been improved from 127 to 109 mV/dec. Effective channel mobility has been enhanced from 826 to 1,144 cm2/Vs.

IncrediBlox

Posted: 18 Mar 2012 09:52 PM PDT

[Platform: Mobile (iOS, Android)] IncrediBlox is a falling blocks-style puzzle game that uses careful color matching to craft a smart little mobile release. The black IncrediBlox are turning everything to shadow, but you can stop them with a little creative maneuvering of the red, blue, and green blocks that fall from the sky. Your goal is to match up groups of four squares, creating combos whenever possible to score massive points and keep the screen clear. It's all very simple at first, but then, the actual incrediblox start to appear and real strategy sets in!

Airborne Kangaroo

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 12:34 AM PDT

Poor Kangaroo wants to conquer the sky, will you help him? Buy upgrades and try flying as high as you can.

MozyHome 2.6.0 - Online backup service; free 2GB account (beta).. (Free)

Posted: 18 Mar 2012 11:38 PM PDT



MozyHome is an online backup service. It keeps a backup copy of your files in one of our data centers. If you lose your original files, you can get a copy of them from Mozy.

Mozy is not a file sharing or archiving service. Other people will not be able to download your files. If you delete an original file on your computer, Mozy assumes that you no longer need a backup copy and will remove it from our servers after 30 days.

Mozy is smart about uploading files. It only uploads new files and the parts of an existing file that have changed.



Version 2.6.0:
  • Substantial improvements in memory utilization, and more.


Mac OS X 10.5 or later

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Casino M8trix -- formerly Garden City Casino -- plans April opening at new site

Posted: 18 Mar 2012 10:44 PM PDT

The new Casino M8trix on Airport Parkway stands out at dusk in in San Jose, Calif., on Friday, March 16, 2012.

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AU Shippin' Out March 19-23: Ninja Gaiden 3

Posted: 18 Mar 2012 10:16 PM PDT

Zombies and ninjas invade Aussie shores this week.

 

It's time for Team Ninja to show the world what it can do post-Itagaki, with the release of Ninja Gaiden 3 on Thursday.

Series protagonist Ryu hacks and slashes his way through the streets of London as he goes after a terrorist organisation responsible for killing the prime minister. While Team Ninja removed limb dismemberment from this game, those thirsty for blood can still relish the new "steel to bone" executions. The new moves allow players to slice completely through enemies, spilling buckets of blood.

Gamers who are inclined to use guns over blades may find Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City more their thing. Set during the events of the Raccoon City disaster (the outbreak that kicked off the franchise), players re-enter the destroyed city as part of an umbrella mercenary team that's sent in to figure out what went wrong. Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City can be played solo offline or co-operatively online, with up to three other zombie hunters.

If you're a PC owner who has felt a bit left out lately, then don't worry, because this week also has a treat for you. Total War: Shogun 2 - Fall of the Samurai is a standalone expansion that builds on last year's popular RTS Total War: Shogun 2. The game focuses on events just before the Meiji Restoration, and sees armchair generals take their traditional warriors up against Western firepower.

To see what else is out this week, check the list below:

Mach 22, 2012
Ninja Gaiden 3 (PS3, 360)
Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City (PS3, 360)
Armored Core V (PS3, 360)
Kinect Rush: A Disney-Pixar Adventure (360)

Mach 23, 2012
Total War: Shogun 2 - Fall of the Samurai (PC)

Read and Post Comments | Get the full article at GameSpot

"AU Shippin' Out March 19-23: Ninja Gaiden 3" was posted by James Kozanecki on Sun, 18 Mar 2012 22:16:51 -0700
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