Dynamic Takagi-Sugeno fuzzy models are not always easy to interpret, in particular when they are identified from experimental data. Ideally, it is desirable that a dynamic Takagi-Sugeno fuzzy model should give accurate global nonlinear prediction and at the same time that its local models are close approximations to the local linearizations of the nonlinear dynamic system. The latter is importa...

In this paper, a displacement-constrained volume-minimizing topology optimization model is present for two-dimensional continuum problems. The new model is a generalization of the displacement-constrained volume-minimizing model developed by Yi and Sui [1] in which the displacement is constrained in the loading point. In the original model the displacement constraint was formulated as an equali...

BACKGROUND Digitalis-like sodium pump ligands (SPLs) effect natriuresis via inhibition of renal tubular Na(+),K(+)-ATPase but may induce vasoconstriction. The present study investigated the potential roles of 2 putative endogenous SPLs, an ouabain-like compound (OLC) and an alpha(1) Na(+),K(+)-ATPase inhibitor, marinobufagenin (MBG), in regulating natriuresis and blood pressure (BP) responses t...

BACKGROUND Two mammalian digitalis-like factors, an ouabain-like compound (OLC) and marinobufagenin (MBG), exhibit specificity to alpha-3 and alpha-1 Na(+),K(+)-ATPase isoforms, respectively. We compared regulation of MBG and OLC by acute NaCl loading in Dahl salt-sensitive (DS) and salt-resistant (DR) rats. METHODS AND RESULTS An intraperitoneal NaCl load (0.8 g/kg) was given to adult male r...

This paper delineates an instrumental multi-case study conducted in Taiwan with university faculty. The study explores higher education teachers’ standpoints concerning adoption of online learning community (OLC) as a strategy for continuing professional development (CPD) taking advantage of the technique frequently applied to program planning or decision making analyses on internal effects of ...

Andrews's recent proof of the Mills-Robbins-Rumsey conjectured formula for the number of totally symmetric self-complementary plane partitions is used to derive a new multi-variate constant term identity, reminiscent of, but not implied by, Macdonald's BC,-Dyson identity. The method of proof consists in translating to the language of constant terms an expression of Doran for the desired number ...

We consider distributed estimation of a Gaussian source in a heterogenous bandwidth constrained sensor network, where the source is corrupted by independent multiplicative and additive observation noises, with incomplete statistical knowledge of the multiplicative noise. For multi-bit quantizers, we derive the closed-form mean-square-error (MSE) expression for the linear minimum MSE (LMMSE) est...