California Institute of Technology

About: California Institute of Technology is a education organization based out in Pasadena, California, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Galaxy & Population. The organization has 57649 authors who have published 146691 publications receiving 8620287 citations. The organization is also known as: Caltech & Cal Tech.

Structural topic models for open ended survey responses

Abstract: Collection and especially analysis of open-ended survey responses are relatively rare in the discipline and when conducted are almost exclusively done through human coding. We present an alternative, semiautomated approach, the structural topic model (STM) (Roberts, Stewart, and Airoldi 2013; Roberts et al. 2013), that draws on recent developments in machine learning based analysis of textual data. A crucial contribution of the method is that it incorporates information about the document, such as the author's gender, political affiliation, and treatment assignment (if an experimental study). This article focuses on how the STM is helpful for survey researchers and experimentalists. The STM makes analyzing open-ended responses easier, more revealing, and capable of being used to estimate treatment effects. We illustrate these innovations with analysis of text from surveys and experiments.

Robust perfect adaptation in bacterial chemotaxis through integral feedback control.

Abstract: ‡Integral feedback control is a basic engineering strategy for ensuring that the output of a system robustly tracks its desired value independent of noise or variations in system parameters. In biological systems, it is common for the response to an extracellular stimulus to return to its prestimulus value even in the continued presence of the signal—a process termed adaptation or desensitization. Barkai, Alon, Surette, and Leibler have provided both theoretical and experimental evidence that the precision of adaptation in bacterial chemotaxis is robust to dramatic changes in the levels and kinetic rate constants of the constituent proteins in this signaling network [Alon, U., Surette, M. G., Barkai, N. & Leibler, S. (1998) Nature (London) 397, 168 ‐171]. Here we propose that the robustness of perfect adaptation is the result of this system possessing the property of integral feedback control. Using techniques from control and dynamical systems theory, we demonstrate that integral control is structurally inherent in the Barkai‐ Leibler model and identify and characterize the key assumptions of the model. Most importantly, we argue that integral control in some form is necessary for a robust implementation of perfect adaptation. More generally, integral control may underlie the robustness of many homeostatic mechanisms.

Technical and economic feasibility of centralized facilities for solar hydrogen production via photocatalysis and photoelectrochemistry

Abstract: Photoelectrochemical water splitting is a promising route for the renewable production of hydrogen fuel. This work presents the results of a technical and economic feasibility analysis conducted for four hypothetical, centralized, large-scale hydrogen production plants based on this technology. The four reactor types considered were a single bed particle suspension system, a dual bed particle suspension system, a fixed panel array, and a tracking concentrator array. The current performance of semiconductor absorbers and electrocatalysts were considered to compute reasonable solar-to-hydrogen conversion efficiencies for each of the four systems. The U.S. Department of Energy H2A model was employed to calculate the levelized cost of hydrogen output at the plant gate at 300 psi for a 10 tonne per day production scale. All capital expenditures and operating costs for the reactors and auxiliaries (compressors, control systems, etc.) were considered. The final cost varied from $1.60–$10.40 per kg H2 with the particle bed systems having lower costs than the panel-based systems. However, safety concerns due to the cogeneration of O2 and H2 in a single bed system and long molecular transport lengths in the dual bed system lead to greater uncertainty in their operation. A sensitivity analysis revealed that improvement in the solar-to-hydrogen efficiency of the panel-based systems could substantially drive down their costs. A key finding is that the production costs are consistent with the Department of Energy's targeted threshold cost of $2.00–$4.00 per kg H2 for dispensed hydrogen, demonstrating that photoelectrochemical water splitting could be a viable route for hydrogen production in the future if material performance targets can be met.

Electrohydraulic Discharge and Nonthermal Plasma for Water Treatment

Abstract: The application of strong electric fields in water and organic liquids has been studied for several years, because of its importance in electrical transmission processes and its practical applications in biology, chemistry, and electrochemistry. More recently, liquid-phase electrical discharge reactors have been investigated, and are being developed, for many environmental applications, including drinking water and wastewater treatment, as well as, potentially, for environmentally benign chemical processes. This paper reviews the current status of research on the application of high-voltage electrical discharges for promoting chemical reactions in the aqueous phase, with particular emphasis on applications to water cleaning.

A Generalization of Algebraic Surface Drawing

Abstract: The mathematical description of three dimensional surfaces usually falls in one of two classifications: parametric and algebraic. The form is defined as all points which satisfy some equation: F(x,y,z)=0. This form is ideally suited for image space shaded picture drawing, the pixel coordinates are substituted for x and y and the equation is solved for z. Algorithms for drawing such objects have been developed primarily for first and second order polynomial functions. This paper presents a new algorithm applicable to other functional forms, in particular to the summation of several gaussian density distributions. The algorithm was created to model electron density maps of molecular structures but can be used for other artistically interesting shapes.