Capturing correct changes both locally and globally is crucial to predicting the behavior of physical systems. However, due to the nature of qualitative simulation techniques, they cannot avoid losing some information which is useful for finding precise global behavior. This paper describes how global constraints are represented and m a nipulated in current simulation systems, using a model of an internal combustion engine. The basic idea of our approach is to automatically generate additional information for maintaining global constraints during simulation so that simulation techniques can filter global behaviors with the sufficient information. This is done by automatically introducing variables and controlling their values to guide correct transitions between the behaviors. W e express this idea within the framework of Qualitative Process (QP) theory. This technique has been implemented and integrated into an existing qualitative simulation program QPE.

Understanding the interaction between dynamics and geometry is crucial to capturing commonsense physics. This paper presents a qualitative analysis of the direction of fluid flow. This analysis is dependent on qualitative descriptions of the surface geometry of rigid bodies in contact with the fluid and a pressure change in fluid. The key problem in designing an intelligent system to reason about fluid motion is how to partition the fluid at an appropriate level of representation. The basic idea of our approach is to incrementally generate the qualitatively different parts of fluid. We do this by dynamically analyzing the intereiction of geometry and pressure disturbance. Using this technique, we can derive all possible fluid flows.

Monocytes are peripheral leukocytes that function in innate immunity. Excessive triglyceride (TG) accumulation causes monocyte death and thus can compromise innate immunity. However, the mechanisms by which TG mediates monocyte death remain unclear to date. Thus, this study aimed to elucidate the mechanisms by which TG induces monocyte death. Results showed that TG induced monocyte death by activating caspase-3/7 and promoting poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) cleavage. In addition, TG induced DNA damage and activated the ataxia telangiectasia mutated (ATM)/checkpoint kinase 2 and ATM-and Rad3-related (ATR)/checkpoint kinase 1 pathways, leading to the cell death. Furthermore, TG-induced DNA damage and monocyte death were mediated by caspase-2 and -8, and caspase-8 acted as an upstream molecule of caspase-2. Taken together, these results suggest that TG-induced monocyte death is mediated via the caspase-8/caspase-2/DNA damage/executioner caspase/PARP pathways. [BMB Reports 2023; 56(3): 166-171].

Three-dimensional carbon-based structures have proven useful for tailoring material properties in structural mechanical and energy storage applications. One approach to obtain them has been by carbonization of selected metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) with catalytic metals, but this is not applicable to most common MOF structures. Here, we present a strategy to transform common MOFs, by guest inclusions and high-temperature MOF-guest interactions, into complex carbon-based, diatom-like, hierarchical structures (named for the morphological similarities with the naturally existing diatomaceous species). As an example, we introduce metal salt guests into HKUST-1-type MOFs to generate a family of carbon-based nano-diatoms with two to four levels of structural hierarchy. We report control of the morphology by simple changes in the chemistry of the MOF and guest, with implications for the formation mechanisms. We demonstrate that one of these structures has unique advantages as a fast-charging lithium-ion battery anode. The tunability of composition should enable further studies of reaction mechanisms and result in the growth of a myriad of unprecedented carbon-based structures from the enormous variety of currently available MOF-guest candidates.