Did life begin on the beach?

Water is one of the prerequisites of life. Further requirements are the existence of a system of interacting organic molecules capable of capturing and converting the supply of external energy and elaborating the replicating function that is needed for propagation. None of this would be possible without the existence of some means of concentrating, selecting, and then containing these mutually interacting substances in proximity to one another, i.e., a primitive cell. Starting from this hypothesis we propose a model for the development of life on Earth. Our model embodies the following new features: (1) rapid cycles of catalysis and transport of material, (2) desegregation (separation by tidal action and degradation by catalysis) as well as segregation (by chromatography on tidal beaches), (3) cross-catalysis instead of auto-catalysis, as well as (4) compartmentalization, although the latter idea is of course not new. But our "lipid first" model, in contrast to earlier "peptide first" or "RNA first" models, provides for the compartments needed to act as a cradle for the subsequent development of information- rich molecules like peptides and RNA. If anything, the earliest information-rich molecules were probably membrane-spanning peptides/proteins.     

Lick Observatory Optical SETI: targeted search and new directions

Lick Observatory's Optical SETI (search for extraterrestrial intelligence) program has been in regular operation for 4.5 years. We have observed 4,605 stars of spectral types F-M within 200 light-years of Earth. Occasionally, we have appended objects of special interest, such as stars with known planetary systems. We have observed 14 candidate signals ("triple coincidences"), all but one of which are explained by transient local difficulties. Additional observations of the remaining candidate have failed to confirm arriving pulse events. We now plan to proceed in a more economical manner by operating in an unattended drift scan mode. Between operational and equipment modifications, efficiency will more than double.     

Electrification of Polymer Films in Laboratory and under Space Conditions

A simplified theory of the electrification of polymer films, which permits estimation of the internal electric fields of films irradiated by monoenergetic electrons simulating real streams of plasma electrons during magnetic substorms at a geosynchronous orbit, is suggested. To determine the depth behavior of the forward current and the dosage rate in the irradiated polymer, numerical calculations are made by the Monte Carlo technique. The appearance of electrostatic discharges in thin (5 m) mylar films is shown to be very probable in the orbit's shadow sector under magnetic substorm conditions.     

The first cell membranes

Organic compounds are synthesized in the interstellar medium and can be delivered to planetary surfaces such as the early Earth, where they mix with endogenous species. Some of these compounds are amphiphilic, having polar and nonpolar groups on the same molecule. Amphiphilic compounds spontaneously self-assemble into more complex structures such as bimolecular layers, which in turn form closed membranous vesicles. The first forms of cellular life required self-assembled membranes that were likely to have been produced from amphiphilic compounds on the prebiotic Earth. Laboratory simulations show that such vesicles readily encapsulate functional macromolecules, including nucleic acids and polymerases. The goal of future investigations will be to fabricate artificial cells as models of the origin of life.     

耦合电感对多路输出电源输出纹波的影响

输出电液脉动是多路输出电源的一个重要性能指标，而耦合电感又是影响多路输出电源输出电流动的关键部件，因此需要研究耦合电感对输出电路脉动的影响，本文以两路输出电源为例，深入分析了耦合电感对输出电流脉动的影响，首先相入简单有效的数学模型，在此基础上给出了耦合电感匝比关系的一般选取原则。然后进一步分析了耦合电感各参数对输出电流脉动的影响，并提出新的调整输出纹波的方法，实验结果验证了所提方法的有效性。     

1kVA高频软开关三相变流器研制

对新研制的1kVA 270V直流变换成三相四线恒压（115V／200V）恒频（400Hz)交流电的变流器所采用的主电路拓扑构成，工作原理，控制方法进行了介绍，分析，给出了实验数据和波形，并对实验结果进行了分析。该变流器采用了模块化结构，由3个333VA单相DC／AC变换器组合而成，最高开关频率达100kHz，采有了电流电压双闭环DPM滞环控制，结果表明该系统具有高频率，高功率密度，输出波形质量优，三相不对称负载能力强等特点。     

企业MIS数据集成

企业管理信息系统（MIS）大多数是按单项业务开发的,不同系统的开发方式以及对于开发规范的遵从程度都有所不同,这使得各系统之间存在很强的孤立性,使企业内部许多信息难以交换,各部门开发出的管理信息系统最终成为一个个“信息孤岛”。本文针对目前企业信息集成所存在的这一问题,结合目前企业信息化工作的热点－企业信息集成,根据本人在对某集团企业开发MIS的基础上,介绍了企业MIS数据集成的目标,基础工作,探讨了解决企业MIS数据集成的方案和策略,并介绍应用实例。     

高精度微分求积曲梁单元的建立与应用

首先由能量原理导出曲梁弯曲问题的控制微分方程，在此基础上应用微分求积法原理分别给出了曲梁内点和端点的微分求积方程，由此形成曲梁单元的刚度方程，从而建立了微分求积曲梁单元，并给出了曲梁结构刚度方程的边界条件。通过算例分析，得到了微分求积单元法结构离散时应使单元数量少的原则和求解精度与单元长度比基本无关的性质。与有限元方法的结果比较表明，本文导出的曲梁单元是一种具有很高求解精度的单元。》     

卫星姿轨控系统故障推演系统设计架构

研究了目前的卫星姿态轨道控制系统,针对其故障预测、诊断及对策提出了一套故障推演系统设计方案.该方案由故障动态注入系统、动态模拟系统、数据归档显示处理系统组成,完成了对在轨卫星的电性接口一致性仿真,通过计算仿真遥测数据与真实遥测数据的相关量获得异常指标,得出可能出现的故障模式;通过软故障、硬故障和真实部件故障注入方式复现...     

Spatial Metaphors of Web Use

When the web became popular, people had to develop ways to talk and think about it. In the mid-1990s, we analyzed spatial language in “web talk.” We found that people described pages as places, and search as motion, both passive and active motion. Here we investigate web talk nearly two decades later. Our analysis reveals that some spatial language has stayed the same, and some has changed. Of special interest is how far fewer motion verbs are used nowadays. We argue that people naturally produce spatial metaphors when talking about new technological domains, and that over time, the most useful elements persist.