Taxis play important roles in modern urban transportation systems, especially in mega cities. While providing necessary amenities, taxis also significantly contribute to traffic congestion, urban energy consumption, and air pollution. Understanding the travel patterns of taxis is thus important for addressing many urban sustainability challenges. Previous research has primarily focused on exami...

The plasmodium of the slime mould Physarum polycephalum has recently received significant attention for its value as a highly malleable amorphous computing substrate. In laboratory-based experiments, microand nanoscale artificial circuit components were introduced into the P. polycephalum plasmdodium to investigate the electrical properties and computational abilities of hybridised slime mould....

Strains carrying mutations in the maltose system of Escherichia coli were assayed for maltose taxis, maltose uptake at 1 and 10 muM maltose, and maltose-binding activity released by osmotic shock. An earlier conclusion that the metabolism of maltose is not necessary for chemoreception is extended to include the functioning of maltodextrin phosphorylase, the product of malP, and the genetic cont...

Navigation of cells to the optimal environmental condition is critical for their survival and growth. Escherichia coli cells, for example, can detect various chemicals and move up or down those chemical gradients (i.e., chemotaxis). Using the same signaling machinery, they can also sense other external factors such as pH and temperature and navigate from both sides toward some intermediate leve...

Agricultural machines generate a complex noise field with significant low-frequency components. The demands for good sound comfort of the driver inside cabins of these machines are continuously growing. Since passive control techniques are not able to efficiently reduce the low-frequency noise in the cabin, active noise control techniques are being explored. A zone of quiet around the ears of t...

Virtual Colonoscopy (VC) is an established noninvasive alternative to optical colonoscopy for colorectal cancer screening. Currently, radiologists examine VC data sets on a workstation computer using a single screen and simple navigation tools. The limited field of view increases examination time and introduces tedious interaction modalities. We propose conducting VC examinations inside an imme...

Traditional vehicle air conditioning systems condition the entire cabin to a comfortable range of temperature and humidity regardless of the number of passengers in the vehicle. The A/C system is designed to have enough capacity to provide comfort for transient periods when cooling down a soaked car. Similarly for heating, the entire cabin is typically warmed up to achieve comfort. Localized he...