There is, I think, something ethereal about i —the square root of minus one. I remember first hearing about it at school. It seemed an odd beast at that time—an intruder hovering on the edge of reality.

Usually familiarity dulls this sense of the bizarre, but in the case of i it was the reverse: over the years the sense of its surreal nature intensified. It seemed that it was impossible to write mathematics that described the real world in …

I and i

Three parallel algorithms for classical molecular dynamics are presented. The first assigns each processor a fixed subset of atoms; the second assigns each a fixed subset of inter-atomic forces to compute; the third assigns each a fixed spatial region. The algorithms are suitable for molecular dynamics models which can be difficult to parallelize efficiently—those with short-range forces where the neighbors of each atom change rapidly. They can be implemented on any distributed-memory parallel machine which allows for message-passing of data between independently executing processors. The algorithms are tested on a standard Lennard-Jones benchmark problem for system sizes ranging from 500 to 100,000,000 atoms on several parallel supercomputers--the nCUBE 2, Intel iPSC/860 and Paragon, and Cray T3D. Comparing the results to the fastest reported vectorized Cray Y-MP and C90 algorithm shows that the current generation of parallel machines is competitive with conventional vector supercomputers even for small problems. For large problems, the spatial algorithm achieves parallel efficiencies of 90% and a 1840-node Intel Paragon performs up to 165 faster than a single Cray C9O processor. Trade-offs between the three algorithms and guidelines for adapting them to more complex molecular dynamics simulations are also discussed.

Fast parallel algorithms for short-range molecular dynamics

抗原变异可使得多种致病微生物易于逃避宿主免疫应答。表达在感染红细胞表面的恶性疟原虫红细胞表面蛋白1（PfPMP1）与感染红细胞、内皮细胞、树突状细胞以及胎盘的单个或多个受体作用，在黏附及免疫逃避中起关键的作用。每个单倍体基因组var基因家族编码约60种成员，通过启动转录不同的var基因变异体为抗原变异提供了分子基础。

疟原虫var基因转换速率变化导致抗原变异[英]／Paul H, Robert P, Christodoulou Z, et al//Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A

[신간의 별자리x] 우리/미술, 그리고 ‘슬픔의 박물관’

Liposomes — microscopic phospholipid bubbles with a bilayered membrane structure — have received a lot of attention during the past 30 years as pharmaceutical carriers of great potential. More recently, many new developments have been seen in the area of liposomal drugs — from clinically approved products to new experimental applications, with gene delivery and cancer therapy still being the principal areas of interest. For further successful development of this field, promising trends must be identified and exploited, albeit with a clear understanding of the limitations of these approaches.

Recent advances with liposomes as pharmaceutical carriers.

Tethered polymer chains refers to macromolecular chains that are attached into microstructures by their ends. Highly branched polymers, polymer micelles and end-grafted chains on surfaces are a few examples. This review brings out the common features of these seemingly widely disparate microstructures. Tethering can be reversible or irreversible and is frequently sufficiently dense that the chains are crowded. Densely tethered chains stretch to alleviate the interactions caused by crowding. They thus exhibit deformed configurations at equilibrium. These effects of tethering on the structure of the polymer chains are reflected in distinctive behavior and properties of microstructures containing tethered chains.

Tethered chains in polymer microstructures

The role of surface science in bioengineered materials

When two pieces of the same amorphous polymer are brought into contact at a temperature above the glass transition, the junction surface gradually heals until, at very long contact times, it is indistinguishable from bulk polymer. We have developed an analysis of this welding process based on the reptation picture of polymer dynamics due to de Gennes. The theory predicts the number of bridges (pieces of polymer chain) per unit area spanning the original junction surface as a function of time. At fixed time the number of bridges (σ) also depends on the molecular weight (M) of the chains. If the initial contact is between surfaces which have been equilibrated against a gas phase, we find that σ∼t1/2M−3/2. Alternatively, if the contacting surfaces contain many chain ends, such as may be found at brittle fracture surfaces in glassy polymers, we find that σ∼t1/4M−1/4 at short times. The theory may be compared to available measurements on strength development in healing interfaces leading to the conclusion that...

The healing process at polymer–polymer interfaces

Molecular dynamics studies are reported for a 6‐12 Lennard–Jones liquid in pore channels ranging from about 2–12 molecules wide. The pore walls are modeled as flat surfaces interacting with the fluid molecules via a continuous potential varying only with perpendicular distance from the wall. Liquid density profiles, solvation forces, interfacial tensions, and self‐diffusion coefficients along the pore axis were computed. The density profiles indicate multilayer adsorption in the pore, whereas the locally defined diffusion coefficients do not vary significantly across the pore. The pore‐averaged diffusivity as well as the solvation force oscillate with varying pore width at constant chemical potential. For pore widths greater than ten molecular diameters, the average diffusion coefficient is almost equal to its bulk value, and the solvation force equals the bulk pressure. In the smaller pores the mean square displacement normal to the pore walls never achieves linearity in time, and thus does not reach a d...

Matthew Tirrell

Papers

Tethered chains in polymer microstructures

The role of surface science in bioengineered materials

The healing process at polymer–polymer interfaces

Molecular dynamics of narrow, liquid‐filled pores

Synthetic lipidation of peptides and amino acids: monolayer structure and properties.