Unstirred-layer model for the long time-constant transient voltage response to current in epithelial tissue

In previous work on the in vitro frog gastric mucosa it was found that step currents produced a transmucosal voltage response of about 100 seconds duration. The voltage response can be formally represented by five resistors in series, with four of the resistors shunted by dielectric capacitors. It was shown that the two resistance-capacitor subcircuits with the longest time constants demand capacitors of the order of Farads cm⁻² and that this portion of the transient can be explained on the basis of mechanisms involving the polarization of e.m.f.'s. In the present paper a conceptual unstirred-layer model is presented in which the transient voltage response to step currents is comparable to the observed response in the gastric mucosa. In both the model and in the gastric mucosa the voltage response for small currents is linear and bilateral and deviates from linear bilateral behavior at higher current densities. The implication of the unstirred-layer model is discussed in relation to other models previously proposed as explanations for the long-time constant transient.     

Biotelemetry: a mechanistic approach to ecology

Remote measurement of the physiology, behaviour and energetic status of free-living animals is made possible by a variety of techniques that we refer to collectively as 'biotelemetry'. This set of tools ranges from transmitters that send their signals to receivers up to a few kilometers away to those that send data to orbiting satellites and, more frequently, to devices that log data. They enable researchers to document, for long uninterrupted periods, how undisturbed organisms interact with each other and their environment in real time. In spite of advances enabling the monitoring of many physiological and behavioural variables across a range of taxa of various sizes, these devices have yet to be embraced widely by the ecological community. Our review suggests that this technology has immense potential for research in basic and applied animal ecology. Efforts to incorporate biotelemetry into broader ecological research programs should yield novel information that has been challenging to collect historically from free-ranging animals in their natural environments. Examples of research that would benefit from biotelemetry include the assessment of animal responses to different anthropogenic perturbations and the development of life-time energy budgets.     

Pushing the Energy Output and Cyclability of Sodium Hybrid Capacitors at High Power to New Limits

Hybrid capacitors, especially sodium hybrid capacitors (NHCs), have continued to gain importance and are extensively studied based on their excellent potential to serve as advanced devices for fulfilling high energy and high power requirements at a low cost. To achieve remarkable performance in hybrid capacitors, the two electrodes employed must be superior with enhanced charge storage capability and fast kinetics. In this study, a new sodium hybrid capacitor system with a sodium super ionic conductor NaTi₂(PO₄)₃ grown on graphene nanosheets as an intercalation electrode and 2D graphene nanosheets as an adsorption electrode is reported for the first time. This new system delivers a high energy density of ≈80 W h kg^?1 and a high specific power of 8 kW kg^?1. An ultralow performance fading of ≈0.13% per 1000 cycles (90%–75 000 cycles) outperforms previously reported sodium ion capacitors. The enhanced charge transfer kinetics and reduced interfacial resistance at high current rates deliver a high specific energy without compromising the high specific power along with high durability, and thereby bridge batteries and capacitors. This new research on kinetically enhanced NHCs can be a trendsetter for the development of advanced energy storage devices requiring high energy—high power.     

Electrochemical Capacitors: Performance Metrics and Evaluation by Testing and Analysis

Electrochemical capacitors (i.e., supercapacitors) as energy storage technologies have attracted a lot of attention because of the increasing demand for efficient high-power delivery. Over the past decades, various advanced electrode materials and cell design have been developed to improve the performance of electrochemical capacitors. Hybrid capacitors and pseudocapacitors achieve much higher energy density due to their fast surface redox reactions. However, although all of them can be classified as electrochemical capacitors, different charge storage mechanisms alter their electrochemical characteristics. All the speculation and potential uncertainties, in the absence of standard performance metrics and test method, make it rather challenging to reliably evaluate the performance of various electrochemical systems, which hinder the development of advanced energy storage technologies and make the comparison between different energy storage systems (batteries, electrochemical capacitors, and hybrid devices) not so meaningful. In this regard, the uncertainties related to the performance metrics and evaluation of electrochemical capacitors are summarized and the ways in which the uncertainties can be minimized for both electric double layer capacitors (EDLCs) and hybrid supercapacitors is analyzed. It is hoped this effort will provide an accurate assessment method for determining the device properties to a high level of confidence and promote the standardization process of performance evaluation for the electrochemical energy storage systems.     

Multichannel biotelemetry.

A summary of considerations for design and application of multichannel biotelemetry systems is given. The advantages but also the problems of wired, wireless, combined and storage telemetry are discussed in connection with its application. Modulation and multiplexing techniques are described extensively; however, this review focuses not only on the transmission of biological data but also on the important aspects of connection of the transmission equipment to the biological subject and display of the biological information. The topic of multichannel biotelemetry is rounded off by a few additional subjects such as telecontrol, information source and classification.     

Phosphorene as Cathode Material for High‐Voltage,Anti‐Self‐Discharge Zinc Ion Hybrid Capacitors

Output voltage and self‐discharge rate are two important performance indices for supercapacitors, which have long been overlooked, though these play a very significant role in their practical application. Here, a zinc anode is used to construct a zinc ion hybrid capacitor. Expanded operating voltage of the hybrid capacitor is obtained with novel electrolytes. In addition, significantly improved anti‐self‐discharge ability is achieved. The phosphorene‐based zinc ion capacitor exploiting a “water in salt” electrolyte with a working potential can reach 2.2 V, delivering 214.3 F g^?1 after 5000 cycles. The operating voltage is further extended to 2.5 V through the use of an organic solvent as the electrolyte; the solvent is prepared by adding 0.2 m ZnCl₂ into the tetraethylammonium tetrafluoroborate in propylene carbonate (Et₄NBF₄/PC) solvent, and it exhibits 105.9 F g^?1 even after 9500 cycles. More importantly, the phosphorene‐based capacitors possess excellent anti‐self‐discharge performance. The capacitors retain 76.16% of capacitance after resting for 300 h. The practical application of the zinc ion capacitor is demonstrated through a flexible paper‐based printed microcapacitor. It is believed that the developed zinc ion capacitor can effectively resolve the severe self‐discharge problem of supercapacitors. Moreover, high‐voltage zinc ion capacitors provide more opportunities for the application of supercapacitors.     

Electronic detectors for electron microscopy

Electron microscopy (EM) is an important tool for high-resolution structure determination in applications ranging from condensed matter to biology. Electronic detectors are now used in most applications in EM as they offer convenience and immediate feedback that is not possible with film or image plates. The earliest forms of electronic detector used routinely in transmission electron microscopy (TEM) were charge coupled devices (CCDs) and for many applications these remain perfectly adequate. There are however applications, such as the study of radiation-sensitive biological samples, where film is still used and improved detectors would be of great value. The emphasis in this review is therefore on detectors for use in such applications. Two of the most promising candidates for improved detection are: monolithic active pixel sensors (MAPS) and hybrid pixel detectors (of which Medipix2 was chosen for this study). From the studies described in this review, a back-thinned MAPS detector appears well suited to replace film in for the study of radiation-sensitive samples at 300 keV, while Medipix2 is suited to use at lower energies and especially in situations with very low count rates. The performance of a detector depends on the energy of electrons to be recorded, which in turn is dependent on the application it is being used for; results are described for a wide range of electron energies ranging from 40 to 300 keV. The basic properties of detectors are discussed in terms of their modulation transfer function (MTF) and detective quantum efficiency (DQE) as a function of spatial frequency.     

Aqueous Solution‐Processable Small Molecular Metal‐Chelate Complex Electrolyte for Flexible All‐Solid State Energy Storage Devices

A small molecular metal‐chelate complex, tris(8‐hydroxyquinoline‐5‐sulfonic acid) aluminum (AlQSA₃), that has three sulfonic acid groups per molecule leading to an excellent solubility in water is reported as a liquid‐free perfect solid‐state electrolyte for flexible film‐type all‐solid‐state energy storage devices. The AlQSA₃ material is synthesized by one‐step reaction of aluminum triisopropoxide and 8‐hydroxyquinoline‐5‐sulfonic acid. The aqueous solutions of AlQSA₃ are applied to fabricate flexible film‐type all‐solid state electric double layer capacitors with indium‐tin oxide thin film electrodes. The ion conductivity of the AlQSA₃ film reaches 0.116 mS cm^?1, while a pronounced hysteresis are obtained in the cyclic voltammetry measurement. The AlQSA₃ film capacitors exhibit an output voltage of 1.5 V at 20 μA cm^?2, which is considerably stable by the repeated operation. In particular, the peak output voltage is well kept even after 180° bending for 500 times in the case of the flexible AlQSA₃ film capacitors.     

Fast Charging Materials for High Power Applications

An overview of fast charging materials for high power applications is given. The behavior at high current density of several anodic and cathodic materials that have been utilized in lithium‐, sodium‐, and potassium‐ion batteries is considered. Furthermore, the behavior of capacitive and pseudocapacitive materials suitable for electrochemical capacitors and, also, of those that have been utilized for the realization of hybrid‐ion capacitors, which are nowadays an interesting reality in the field of high power devices, is discussed. The advantages and limitations of all these materials are critically analyzed with the aim of understanding their impact on real devices. On the basis of this analysis, the most important aspects are identified, which should be addressed in the future for the realization of advanced high power devices.     

Ocean Tracking and Marine Species Protection in Australia and Canada: Science,Technology, and Knowledge Brokering

This article examines the promise and challenge of marine biotelemetry technologies, comparing the case of the Canadian Ocean Tracking Network (OTN) and the Australian Animal Tagging and Monitoring System (AATAMS). These technologies provide increased understanding of the marine environment and promise major advances in knowledge of species at risk. However, that utilization of marine biotelemetry raises challenges, including ensuring that knowledge obtained is translated into forms useful to and usable by decision makers. Knowledge brokering is a key to ensure that the advances seen in marine biotelemetry technologies lead to improved gover-nance of species at risk.     

Chromone Containing Hybrid Analogs: Synthesis and Applications in Medicinal Chemistry

The use of privileged scaffolds has proven beneficial for generating novel bioactive scaffolds in drug discovery program. Chromone is one such privileged scaffold that has been exploited for designing pharmacologically active analogs. The molecular hybridization technique combines the pharmacophoric features of two or more bioactive compounds to avail a better pharmacological activity in the resultant hybrid analogs. The current review summarizes the rationale and techniques involved in developing hybrid analogs of chromone, which show potential in fields of obesity, diabetes, cancer, Alzheimer's disease and microbial infections. Here the molecular hybrids of chromone with various pharmacologically active analogs or fragments (donepezil, tacrine, pyrimidines, azoles, furanchalcones, hydrazones, quinolines, etc.) are discussed with their structure-activity relationship against above-mentioned diseases. Detailed methodologies for the synthesis of corresponding hybrid analogs have also been described, with suitable synthetic schemes. The current review will shed light on various strategies utilized for the design of hybrid analogs in the field of drug discovery. The importance of hybrid analogs in various disease conditions is also illustrated.     

High Energy Density Aqueous Li‐Ion Flow Capacitor

High energy density Li‐ion hybrid flow capacitors are demonstrated by employing LiMn₂O₄ and activated carbon slurry electrodes. Compared to the existing aqueous flow electrochemical capacitors, the hybrid one exhibits much higher energy densities due to the introduction of high capacity Li‐insertion materials (e.g., LiMn₂O₄ in the present work) as the flowable electrode with asymmetrical cell configuration. A record energy density, i.e., 23.4 W h kg^?1 at a power of 50.0 W kg^?1 has been achieved for aqueous flow capacitors tested at static condition reported to date. A full operational Li‐ion flow capacitor tested in an intermittent‐flow mode has also been demonstrated. The Li‐ion hybrid flow capacitor shows great promise for high‐rate grid applications.     

Graphic modeling of epithelial transport system: causality of dissipation

The epithelial transport system is a thermodynamic system which is composed of membranes and fluid compartments. The membranes are assumed to be dissipative subsystems in which power dissipates, and fluid compartments are capacitive subsystems in which power is stored. Each subsystem can be subdivided into elementary thermodynamic processes, and can be represented by generalized capacitors, power transducers and resistors in a bond graph. In the modeling of the dissipative subsystem, the causality of the dissipative process was taken into consideration and the representation of power coupling was developed. The dissipative subsystem can be represented by a combination of coupling modules and conductors. Phenomenological equations with parameters from the model were derived. This study shows that the behavior of transport systems can be simulated using these equations.     

Pollination control technologies for hybrid breeding

Efforts in hybrid breeding have made this technology one of the main factors contributing to the substantial global rise in agricultural output over the last few decades. For hybrid breeding, an efficient pollination control system is necessary to avoid the unwanted self-pollination or sib-pollination of the female parental line. This review will provide a historical overview of pollination control systems and their use in hybrid crop breeding. We outline the prerequisites for commercial hybrid breeding and summarize the most important non-biological and biological technologies. Our main focus is on hybrid systems that are based on genetically engineered plants. We describe their suitability for pollination control, propagation of the male-sterile crossing partner, fertility restoration and mixed planting. Additionally, we report on the latest findings in the development of inducible sterility systems and various technologies that enable pollination control via metabolic engineering. We discuss the pros and cons of the different pollination control strategies.     

Movement-Based Estimation and Visualization of Space Use in 3D for Wildlife Ecology and Conservation

Advances in digital biotelemetry technologies are enabling the collection of bigger and more accurate data on the movements of free-ranging wildlife in space and time. Although many biotelemetry devices record 3D location data with x, y, and z coordinates from tracked animals, the third z coordinate is typically not integrated into studies of animal spatial use. Disregarding the vertical component may seriously limit understanding of animal habitat use and niche separation. We present novel movement-based kernel density estimators and computer visualization tools for generating and exploring 3D home ranges based on location data. We use case studies of three wildlife species – giant panda, dugong, and California condor – to demonstrate the ecological insights and conservation management benefits provided by 3D home range estimation and visualization for terrestrial, aquatic, and avian wildlife research.     

A Flexible Quasi‐Solid‐State Asymmetric Electrochemical Capacitor Based on Hierarchical Porous V2O5 Nanosheets on Carbon Nanofibers

The development of 3D nanoarchitectures on flexible current collectors has emerged as an effective strategy for preparing advanced portable and wearable power sources. Herein, a flexible and efficient electrode is demonstrated based on electrospun carbon fibers (ECF) substrate with elaborately designed hierarchical porous V₂O₅ nanosheets (V₂O₅–ECF). The unique configuration of V₂O₅–ECF composite film fully enables utilization of the synergistic effects from both high electrochemical performance of V₂O₅ and excellent conductivity of ECF, endowing the films to be an excellent electrode for flexible and lightweight electrochemical capacitors (ECs). Benefiting from their intriguing structural features, V₂O₅–ECF and ECF films, directly used as electrodes for flexible asymmetric quasi‐solid‐state electrochemical capacitors, achieve superior flexibility and reliability, enhanced energy/power density, and outstanding cycling stability. Moreover, the ability to power light‐emitting diodes (LED) also indicates the feasibility for practical use. Therefore, it is believed that this novel design may find promising application in flexible devices in future.     

Conserving the African rhinoceros

The Southern African rhinoceros population has been dwindling through the years. A lot of effort has been put toward coming up with the most effective way of protecting the black and white rhinoceros population in the world yet still the animals remain endangered despite the enormous global efforts to protect the species. Such conservation efforts include; establishment of sanctuaries, wildlife farming, dehorning, trade and market controls, listing of species as endangered, use of biotechnology and biotelemetry. However useful, each of these methods has its own strengths and weaknesses relative to the success of rhinoceros conservation. It however has been noted in this review that dehorning is the most effective method as it involves removal of the horn hence extinguishing the need for poaching. Despite the high success rate it has also been noted that this requires a great deal of skill and finance hence limiting the application of this technique in developing nations. Sanctuaries provide an ideal breeding environment that is better than the wild and enhanced breeding accounted for a significant increase in rhinoceros population where it has been applied. It was however been conclude that a holistic conservation approach is required to conserve the African rhinoceros.     

A circuit analog model for studying quantitative water relations of plant tissues

Using arrays of resistors and capacitors, a lumped circuit analog of plant tissue is developed. The circuit elements of the analog are identified in terms of physiological variables (hydraulic conductivities, water capacities, and cell dimensions) which can be measured in the laboratory. With the aid of a circuit simulation subroutine, the model was solved to predict water potential distributions as a function of position and time in plant tissues of three, six, and nine cells. Results presented for the six-cell case indicate that local equilibrium may or may not occur depending on the actual values of tissue hydraulic conductivities, water capacities, and the rate of change of water potential at the tissue boundaries. However, present measurements and estimates of tissue parameters suggest that local equilibrium is more the rule than the exception. Membrane resistance is an especially important parameter because it serves to isolate the vacuoles from the cell walls in addition to increasing the natural vacuole response time to changes in water potential.     

Lithium Ion Capacitors in Organic Electrolyte System: Scientific Problems,Material Development,and Key Technologies

Lithium ion capacitors (LICs), which are hybrid electrochemical energy storage devices combining the intercalation/deintercalation mechanism of a lithium‐ion battery (LIB) electrode with the adsorption/desorption mechanism of an electric double‐layer capacitor (EDLC) electrode, have been extensively investigated during the past few years by virtue of their high energy density, rapid power output, and excellent cycleability. In this review, the LICs are defined as the devices with an electrochemical intercalation electrode and a capacitive electrode in organic electrolytes. Both electrodes can serve as anode or cathode. Throughout the history of LICs, tremendous efforts have been devoted to design suitable electrode materials or develop novel type LIC systems. However, one of the key challenges encountered by LICs is how to balance the sluggish kinetics of intercalation electrodes with high specific capacity against the high power characteristics of capacitive electrode with low specific capacitance. Herein, the developments and the latest advances of LIC in material design strategies and key techniques according to the basic scientific problems are summarized. Perspectives for further development of LICs toward practical applications are also proposed.     

A review of the adaptive significance and ecosystem consequences of zooplankton diel vertical migrations

Diel vertical migration (DVM) by zooplankton is a universal feature in all the World's oceans, as well as being common in freshwater environments. The normal pattern involves movement from shallow depths at night to greater depths during the day. For many herbivorous and omnivorous mesozooplankton that feed predominantly near the surface on phytoplankton and microzooplankton, minimising the risk of predation from fish seems to be the ultimate factor behind DVM. These migrants appear to use deep water as a dark daytime refuge where their probability of being detected and eaten is lower than if they remained near the surface. Associated with these vertical movements of mesozooplankton, predators at higher trophic levels, including invertebrates, fish, marine mammals, birds and reptiles, may modify their behaviour to optimise the exploitation of their vertically migrating prey. Recent advances in biotelemetry promise to allow the interaction between migrating zooplankton and diving air-breathing vertebrates to be explored in far more detail than hitherto.