Curling is an adversarial two-player game with a continuous state and action space, and stochastic transitions. This paper focuses on one aspect of the full game, namely, finding the optimal “hammer shot”, which is the last action taken before a score is tallied. We survey existing methods for finding an optimal action in a continuous, lowdimensional space with stochastic outcomes, and adapt a ...

Alfalfa roots infected with four nodulation defective (Nod-) mutants of Rhizobium meliloti which were generated by transposon Tn5 mutagenesis were examined by light and electron microscopy. In one class of Nod- mutants, which we can nonreactive, the bacteria did not induce root hair curling or penetrate host cells. In a second class of Nod- mutants, which we call reactive, the bacteria induced ...

Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV) threatens tomato production worldwide by causing leaf yellowing, leaf curling, plant stunting and flower abscission. The current understanding of the host plant defense response to this virus is very limited. Using whole transcriptome sequencing, we analyzed the differential gene expression in response to TYLCV infection in the TYLCV-resistant tomato breedi...

Materials that transform light into mechanical motion are interesting from both fundamental and technological perspectives. Photomechanical materials usually consist of photoreactive molecules assembled in an ordered matrix, for example a liquid crystal polymer. The use of molecular crystals as photomechanical materials is challenging, since strain between reacted and unreacted crystal phases o...

Purpose. The aim of this study was to show that individual adjustment of the curling behaviour of a preformed cochlear implant (CI) electrode array to the patient-specific shape of the cochlea can improve the insertion process in terms of reduced risk of insertion trauma. Methods. Geometry and curling behaviour of preformed, commercially available electrode arrays were modelled. Additionally, t...