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<p> Gene-targeted studies in mice have shown that the murine scavenger receptor class B type I (mSR-BI) is atheroprotective and plays a key role in the clearance of high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol by the liver. We focused on the analysis of human SR-BI (hSR-BI) and the role of its C-terminal cytoplasmic tail on its localization, lipid uptake activity, and regulation in hepatocytes both in vitro and in vivo. Full length hSRBI and hSR-BI lacking its C-terminal cytoplasmic tail (hSR-BI-DM) localized to vesiclelike structures in the cytoplasm, to juxtanuclear regions and to the cell surface in HepG2 cells. Similar cytoplasmic punctate distribution was observed in transfected human and mouse aortic endothelial cells. </p> <p> In HepG2 cells both hSR-BI and hSR-BI-DM mediated HDL-lipid uptake; however, the truncation mutant displayed only half ofthe activity, suggesting that removal ofthe C-terminal cytoplasmic tail reduced but did not eliminate SR-BI's activity. In HepG2 cells treated with the PKC inhibitor, calphostin C, hSR-BI or hSR-BI-DM mediated HDL-lipid uptake was decreased by 40 and 50%, respectively, indicating that this activity is regulated by PKC. </p> <p> In order to determine the effects of hSR-BI and hSR-BI-DM in vivo, we set out to generate transgenic mice with hepatic overexpression ofeach protein using a bipartite expression system requiring driver and responder transgenes. Mice expressing the responder transgenes, PTREhSR-BI and PTREhSR-BI-DM, as well as a reporter transgene (PTRdacZ), driven by the same bi-directional promoter, were generated and mated to mice with a liver-specific driver trans gene, PMuptTA. The mice were analyzed and showed the presence of a reporter protein, ~-galactosidase, in their livers, but not in other tissues tested. Total and HDL cholesterol levels were not altered in PMuPtTA I PrREhSRBI or PMuptTA I PrREhSR-BI-DM transgenic mice. Further characterization ofthe double transgenic mice revealed that hSR-BI m.RNA transcripts were detected in the livers of PMuPtTA I PrREhSR-BI mice, but not in those ofPMuPtTA I PrREhSR-BI-DM mice. However, neither PMuptTA I PrREhSR-BI nor PMuptTA I PrREhSR-BI-DM mice showed increased expression of SR-BI in their livers. </p> / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

Railroad is one of the primary modes for transporting hazardous materials (hazmat). Given the dangerous nature of the hazmat, risk mitigation in the railroad transportation is the need of the hour. Hence, we explore the idea of equitable distribution of risk in the railroad network. We propose the subsidy policy to be considered by government to induce favourable routings of the hazmat shipments. The government's objective is to achieve risk equity in the network, whereas, the carrier's cost effective approach leads to increased risk in low-cost service-legs. To model this, we formulate the problem as a bi-level mixed integer program. We derive the single level mixed integer linear program (MILP) and test it on the rail infrastructure in midwest United States using state-of-the-art solver CPLEX 12.8.0. The instances with upto 25 shipments on the network are solved efficiently on a local machine. We use high performance computing resource available at Graham cluster of Compute Canada facility to solve the large instances with 50 shipments on the network. We show the effectiveness of the subsidy policy as a risk mitigation tool for the railroad hazmat transportation, and review the efficiency of the solution methodology to solve the MILP for the network. Moreover, the results demonstrate the economic feasibility for the government to allocate the budget for the subsidy. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

Yes / In this paper, the gyrotropic bi-anisotropy of the chiral medium in substrate constitutive parameters (ξc and ηc) of a rectangular microstrip patch antenna is introduced in order to observe its effects on the complex resonant frequency, half-power bandwidth and input impedance. Numerical calculations and analysis based on the dominant mode are carried out to show that the latter is directly related to the former. This paper is based on the Moment Method as full-wave spectral domain approach using sinusoidal basis functions. Two new results, namely the appearance of the difference (ξc-ηc) and sum (ξc+ηc) of the two magneto-electric elements are obtained in the electric transverse components and Green tensor expressions, respectively. These new results can be considered as a generalisation form of the previously published work.

Yes / The natural gas as an alternative fuel has economical and environmental benefits. Bi-fuel engines powered by gasoline and compressed natural gas (CNG) are an intermediate and alternative step to dedicated CNG engines. The conversion to bi-fuel CNG engine could be a short-term solution to air pollution problem in many developing countries. In this paper a mathematical model of a bi-fuel four-stroke spark ignition (SI) engine is presented for comparative studies and analysis. It is based on the two-zone combustion model, and it has the ability to simulate turbulent combustion. The model is capable of predicting the cylinder temperature and pressure, heat transfer, brake work , brake thermal and volumetric efficiency, brake torque, brake specific fuel consumption (BSFC), brake mean effective pressure (BMEP), concentration of CO2, brake specific CO (BSCO) and brake specific NOx (BSNOx). The effect of engine speed, equivalence ratio and performance parameters using gasoline and CNG fuels are analysed. The model has been validated by experimental data using the results obtained from a bi-fuel engine. The results show the capability of the model in terms of engine performance optimization and minimization of the emissions. The engine used in this study is a typical example of a modified bi-fuel engine conversion, which could benefit the researchers in the field.

Most research on bimanual rhythmic coordination has occurred with the participants in a seated posture. Many activities of daily living, however, require the interaction of standing postural and manual tasks. A population of individuals that are ideal for studying the integration of a manual task into the ongoing control of posture are expert marching percussionists; they have learned to produce rhythmic movements accurately under a variety of temporal and postural constraints. The purpose of the current study was to investigate the integration of bimanual rhythmic movements and posture in expert marching percussionists. Participants (N=11) were recruited from the University of Massachusetts Drumline, and were asked to perform three rhythmic tasks [1:1, 2:3, and 2:3-F (2:3 rhythm played faster at a self-selected tempo)] in one of three postures: sitting, standing on one foot, and standing on two feet. Discrete relative phase, postural time-to-contact, and coherence analysis, were used to analyze the performance of the manual task, postural control, and the integration between postural and manual performance. Across all three rhythms, discrete relative phase mean and variability (SD) results showed no effects of posture on rhythmic performance. The complexity of the manual task (1:1 vs 2:3) had no effect on postural time-to-contact. However, increasing the tempo of the manual task (2:3 vs. 2:3=F) did result in a decreased postural time-to-contact in the two-footed posture). Coherence analysis revealed that the coupling between the postural and manual task significantly decreased as a function of posture (going from a two footed to a one footed posture) and rhythmic complexity (1:1 vs. 2:3). Taken together, these results demonstrate that expert marching percussionists systematically decouple postural and manual fluctuations in order to preserve the performance of the rhythmic movement task.

This research explores the temporal patterns of psychophysiological responses to musical excerpts by analyzing the expansive Emotion in Motion dataset, the most comprehensive of its kind. Utilizing the Dynamic Time Warping and T-test analysis techniques, we examined data from participants across seven countries who listened to three distinct musical pieces. During these listening sessions, Electrodermal Activity (EDA) and Pulse Oximetry (POX) readings were collected, complemented by qualitative feedback from the participants. Our analysis focused on detecting recurring patterns and extracting meaningful insights from the data. In addition to this, we compare several Deep Neural Networks to find the one that is best suited for prediction of emotional attributes with EDA and POX signals as input. To further facilitate a comprehensive visualization and analysis of the EDA, POX, and audio signals, we developed a dedicated platform, which features a coordinated multiple view interface, as an integral part of this work. / Master of Science / We explored how people's bodies react over time when they listen to music. We used a large collection of data called the ``Emotion in Motion'' dataset, which has information from people in seven countries who listened to three different music pieces. To understand this data, we used special tools that help detect patterns and changes in how the body responds. During the music sessions, the participant's skin's electrical activity and the amount of oxygen in the blood were recorded, which can give clues about emotional reactions. People also shared their feelings about the music. To make it easier to see and understand all this information together, we created a new web platform that simulates the experiment in real-time. This work aims to help us better understand the deep connection between music and human emotions.

Optimization problems of location-assignment correspond to a wide range of real situations, such as factory network design. However most of the previous works seek in most cases at minimizing a cost function. Traffic incidents routinely impact the performance and the safety of the supply. These incidents can not be totally avoided and must be regarded. A way to consider these incidents is to design a network on which multiple assignments are performed. Precisely, the problem we focus on deals with power supplying that has become a more and more complex and crucial question. Many international companies have customers who are located all around the world; usually one customer per country. At the other side of the scale, power extraction or production is done in several sites that are spread on several continents and seas. A strong willing of becoming less energetically-dependent has lead many governments to increase the diversity of supply locations. For each kind of energy, many countries expect to deal ideally with 2 or 3 location sites. As a decrease in power supply can have serious consequences for the economic performance of a whole country, companies prefer to balance equally the production rate among all sites as the reliability of all the sites is considered to be very similar. Sharing equally the demand between the 2 or 3 sites assigned to a given area is the most common way. Despite the cost of the network has an importance, it is also crucial to balance the loading between the sites to guarantee that no site would take more importance than the others for a given area. In case an accident happens in a site or in case technical problems do not permit to satisfy the demand assigned to the site, the overall power supply of this site is still likely to be ensured by the one or two available remaining site(s). It is common to assign a cost per open power plant and another cost that depends on the distance between the factory or power extraction point and the customer. On the whole, such companies who are concerned in the quality service of power supply have to find a good trade-off between this factor and their overall functioning cost. This situation exists also for companies who supplies power at the national scale. The expected number of areas as well that of potential sites, can reach 100. However the targeted size of problem to be solved is 50. This thesis focuses on devising an efficient methodology to provide all the solutions of this bi-objective problem. This proposal is an investigation of close problems to delimit the most relevant approaches to this untypical problem. All this work permits us to present one exact method and an evolutionary algorithm that might provide a good answer to this problem. / Master of Science

In the last few years, the food packaging industry has experienced a lot of growth. There are many factors that have contributed to this growth and some of them include modern concepts and advancement in technology. Managers of food industry must consider how to maintain profitability in an increasingly competitive market, while providing customers with high quality products and efficient service. Further automation of packing lines can help food companies meet these requirements; for example, multihead weighers used in the multihead weighing processes. Multihead weighing technology has revolutionised the packaging lines and it is used to reduce product and process variability. A multihead weigher consists of various weighing heads or hoppers that ensures that products are weighed very quickly and accurately. This enables the desired amount of product to be determined and packed according to the precise weight (nominal value or target). It can be installed as part of an integrated weighing and packing line or interfaced with existing packing equipment. Moreover, it is ideal for precise and fast weighing of products ranging in size, from granulates to large and bulky products. In this doctoral thesis, it sets out to analyse and compare a set of strategies designed to optimize the packaging process in multihead weighers and minimize the variability in weight of the packed product. We used monoobjective and multiobjective optimization techniques, the variability reduction index, the Taguchi loss function and a statistical analysis, to identify and establish the more accurate strategy in terms of variability in weight of the package. The improvement approach that we propose is practical and it is based on the study of the filling setting of hoppers for find the optimum operational conditions of the multihead weigher. For each strategy, exact algorithms which follow an explicit enumerative strategy or exhaustive search were developed to evaluate the several values of the number of combined hoppers. In the proposed multiobjective approach, the algorithms use an innovative a priori strategy to generate Pareto-optimal solutions and select a subset of hoppers in each packing operation, in such a way that the relative importance of the objectives is dynamically managed and adjusted. Once the packing process has been improved, this is monitored and controlled through the design of a modified control chart. / En los últimos años, la industria del envasado de alimentos ha experimentado un gran crecimiento. Existen muchos factores que han contribuido a este crecimiento y algunos de ellos incluyen conceptos modernos y avances en la tecnología. Los gerentes de la industria alimentaria deben velar por mantener la rentabilidad en un mercado cada vez más competitivo, al tiempo de proporcionar a los clientes productos de alta calidad y un buen servicio. Una mayor automatización de las líneas de envasado puede ayudar a estas empresas a cumplir con los requisitos de calidad y servicio; por ejemplo, las pesadoras multicabezal utilizadas en los procesos de pesaje multicabezal. La tecnología de pesaje multicabezal ha revolucionado las líneas de envasado y se utiliza para reducir la variabilidad de productos y procesos. Una pesadora multicabezal consta de varios cabezales de pesaje o tolvas que garantizan que los productos sean pesados con mucha rapidez y precisión. Esto permite envasar la cantidad deseada de un producto de acuerdo con su peso objetivo (valor nominal). Puede instalarse como parte de una línea integrada de pesaje y envasado o conectarse con equipos de envasado existentes. Además, es ideal para el pesaje preciso y rápido de productos que varían en tamaño, desde granulados a productos grandes y voluminosos. En la presente Tesis Doctoral, se desarrolla un conjunto de estrategias diseñadas para optimizar el proceso de envasado en pesadoras multicabezales y minimizar la variabilidad en el peso del producto envasado. Para esto, se utilizan técnicas de optimización monoobjetivo y multiobjetivo, el índice de reducción de variabilidad, la función de pérdida de Taguchi y un análisis estadístico para identificar y establecer la estrategia que ofrezca el mejor rendimiento en términos de variabilidad en el peso del paquete. El enfoque de mejora que proponemos es práctico y se basa en el estudio del ajuste de llenado de las tolvas para encontrar las condiciones operativas óptimas de la pesadora multicabezal. Para cada estrategia, se desarrollaron algoritmos exactos los cuales siguen una estrategia enumerativa explícita o búsqueda exhaustiva para evaluar distintos valores del número de tolvas combinadas. En el enfoque multiobjetivo propuesto, los algoritmos utilizan una novedosa estrategia a priori para generar soluciones Pareto-óptimas y seleccionar un subconjunto de tolvas en cada operación de envasado, de tal manera que la importancia relativa de los objetivos considerados es dinámicamente gestionada y ajustada. Una vez que el proceso de envasado ha sido mejorado, este se monitorea y controla a través del diseño de un gráfico de control modificado. / En els últims anys, la indústria de l'envasament d'aliments ha experimentat un gran creixement. Existeixen molts factors que han contribuït a aquest creixement i alguns d'ells inclouen conceptes moderns i avanços en la tecnologia. Els gerents de la indústria alimentària han de vetlar per mantenir la rendibilitat en un mercat cada vegada més competitiu, tot proporcionant-hi alhora als clients productes d'alta qualitat i un bon servici. Una major automatització de les línies d'envasament pot ajudar aquestes empreses a complir amb els requisits de qualitat i servici; per exemple, les pesadores multicapçal utilitzades en els processos de pesatge multicapçal. La tecnologia de pesatge multicapçal ha revolucionat les línies d'envasament i s'utilitza per a reduir la variabilitat de productes i processos. Una pesadora multicapçal consta de diversos capçals de pesatge o tremuges que garanteixen que els productes siguen pesats amb molta rapidesa i precisió. Açò permet envasar la quantitat desitjada de producte d'acord amb el seu pes objectiu (valor nominal). Pot instal¿lar-se com a part d'una línia integrada de pesatge i envasament o bé connectar-se amb equips d'envasament existents. A més, és ideal per al pesatge precís i ràpid de productes que varien en grandària, des de granulats fins a productes grans i voluminosos. En la present Tesi Doctoral es presenta un conjunt d'estratègies dissenyades per a optimitzar el procés d'envasament en pesadores multicapçal i minimitzar la variabilitat en el pes del producte envasat. Per a això, s'hi utilitzen tècniques d'optimització monoobjectiu i multiobjectiu, l'índex de reducció de variabilitat, la funció de pèrdua de Taguchi i una anàlisi estadística per identificar i establir l'estratègia que oferesca el millor rendiment en termes de variabilitat en el pes del paquet. L'enfocament de millora que hi proposem és pràctic i es basa en l'estudi de l'ajust d'emplenament de les tremuges per a trobar les condicions operatives òptimes de la pesadora multicapçal. Per a cada estratègia, es van desenvolupar algoritmes exactes, els quals segueixen una estratègia enumerativa explícita o cerca exhaustiva per avaluar diferents valors en el nombre de tremuges combinades. En l'enfocament multiobjectiu proposat, els algoritmes utilitzen una novedosa estratègia a priori per a generar solucions Pareto-òptimes i seleccionar un subconjunt de tremuges en cada operació d'envasament, de tal forma que la importància relativa dels objectius considerats és dinàmicament gestionada i ajustada. Una vegada que el procés d'envasament ha sigut millorat, és així mateix monitoritzat i controlat a través del disseny d'un gràfic de control modificat. / Pulido Rojano, ADJ. (2017). NUEVAS ESTRATEGIAS DE OPTIMIZACIÓN EN PROCESOS DE PESAJE MULTICABEZAL [Tesis doctoral]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/81859