Abstract: A vaporizing assembly for an aerosol generating system includes a sheet heating element and a delivery device configured to deliver a liquid aerosol-forming substrate from a liquid storing portion to the sheet heating element. The sheet heating element is spaced apart from the delivery device and is configured to heat the delivered liquid aerosol forming substrate.

Abstract: Techniques are described for determining and tracking fractional ownership interests in an asset, using a distributed ledger. Shares in an asset, such as a house, may be offered for sale through a marketplace. Sales of the shares, and information regarding the asset, may be tracked using a distributed ledger system, such as one or more blockchains that provide immutable and secure data storage distributed across a plurality of nodes. Embodiments provide individuals with liquidity options and/or pricing options for selling shares in their home, allowing individuals to securitize interest in their own equity in the home and pre-sell shares in some of that equity without selling the entire property and without taking out a loan.

Abstract: A smart card includes a plurality of display devices on an outside surface of a housing. Circuitry within the housing includes a processor, and communication circuitry configured to communicate with at least one computing device located within a geographic region around the smart card. The processor is configured to continuously receive a plurality of communication signals from the computing device, to continuously assess a geographic distance from the smart card to the fixed position of the computing device within the geographic region using the plurality of communication signals, to continuously activate or deactivate the plurality of display devices based on the geographic distance from the smart card to the fixed position of the computing device in the geographic region for providing a user with a directional indication, distance indication, or both, to the computing device in the geographic region.

Abstract: Unmanned vehicles can be terrestrial, aerial, nautical, or multi-mode. Unmanned vehicles may be used to survey a property in response to or in anticipation of a threat. For example, an unmanned vehicle may analyze information about the property and based on the information deter theft of items on the property.

Abstract: The connector is configured to couple a first section and a second section of an e-vaping device, and the connector includes a flange with a first end and a second end, a shaft extending from the first end of the flange, an outer shelf being formed by a portion of the first end of the flange, a cylindrical base extending from the second end of the flange, and an inner shelf within the connector, the cylindrical base and the inner shelf at least partially defining a longitudinal opening, the flange defining at least one first notch, the at least one first notch at least partially along the second end of the flange.

Abstract: A management system for controlling a wind turbine according to prescribed rules and a safety system, separate from the management system, for monitoring the wind turbine on the basis of operational characteristic values, wherein the safety system transfers the wind turbine to a safe plant state independently of the management system if safety-critical operational characteristic values violate safety parameters stored in the safety system, in order to change at least one safety parameter stored in the safety system a parameter block comprising the at least one safety parameter and at least two safety features is supplied to the safety system and accepted by the safety system only after a positive check on the safety features, wherein the check on at least one of the safety features requires comparison against check information available directly on the wind turbine.

Abstract: Fiber additives that may be useful as lost circulation materials for mitigating fluid loss and/or as bridging agents or diverting agents in subterranean treatment fluids such as drilling fluids. In some embodiments, the fiber additives include a fiber and calcium carbonate disposed on at least a portion of the outer surface of the fiber. In some embodiments, the methods include providing a treatment fluid that includes the base fluid and the fiber additives, and introducing the treatment fluid into at least a portion of a subterranean formation.

Abstract: A method including entraining carbon dioxide (CO2) in a cement slurry composition and subjecting the cement slurry composition to conditions under which the CO2 achieves and maintains a supercritical state; and allowing the cement slurry composition to harden to form a hardened cement having CO2 sequestered therein.

Abstract: The present disclosure includes methods and compositions for improving leaf quality in low-alkaloid tobacco plants, e.g., by combining inducible promoters and non-coding RNAs for suppression of an ornithine decarboxylase (ODC) gene. Also provided are low alkaloid tobacco plants with normal, suppressed, or otherwise altered polyamine levels. Further provided are tobacco plants with altered total alkaloid, nicotine levels, commercially acceptable leaf grade, their development via breeding or transgenic approaches, and production of tobacco products from these tobacco plants.

Abstract: An injector includes a body, an injection needle movably mounted to the body and a pathway within the body sized for receiving either of a first cartridge or a differently dimensioned second cartridge therein. The pathway includes a coupler mounted at a distal end that is engageable with the first cartridge or the second cartridge for to fluidly connect with the injection needle. At least two adapter collars are mounted within the pathway. A first adapter collar is configured to receive either one of the two cartridges therethrough upon insertion into the pathway, and configured to engage a portion of the first cartridge to stabilize the first cartridge within the pathway. A second adapter collar is also configured to receive either one of the two cartridges therethrough upon insertion into the pathway, but configured to engage a portion of the second cartridge to stabilize the second cartridge within the pathway.

Abstract: In certain embodiments, presentation of candidate inputs may be facilitated based on a user interface location of a related candidate input. In some embodiments, a text input may be obtained via a user interface (e.g., via a virtual keyboard). A first candidate input related to the text input may be presented at a first location of the user interface. A first user selection with respect to the first candidate input may be obtained, and a candidate input set related to the first candidate input may be presented on the user interface based on the first user selection. As an example, the candidate input set may be presented such that a second candidate input is presented closer to the first location than a third candidate input based on the second candidate input being associated with a higher likelihood of being selected by a user than the third candidate input.

Abstract: Dissolvable pump down devices, dissolvable pump down assemblies, and methods to propel a bottomhole assembly through a lateral section are presented. A dissolvable pump down device includes an engageable portion, and one or more expandable pieces that are initially in a first position before the dissolvable pump down device is deployed in a wellbore, and configured to expand from the first position to a second position in response to a force generated by fluid flow of fluid through the wellbore. A diameter of the expandable pieces while the expandable pieces are in the first position is less than the diameter of the one or more expandable pieces while the one or more expandable pieces are in the second position. The engageable portion and the one or more expandable pieces are configured to dissolve after the dissolvable pump down device is positioned at the desired wellbore location.

Abstract: Methods and systems for parallelizing processes through the use of predicted data are described herein. A requesting system may send processing requests to a processing system. The processing system may need to have a third-party validation system validate the processing requests before proceeding. The processing system may detect errors and generate modified data that is predicted to resolve the errors in obtained processing requests. The modified data may be sent to the validation system in place of the original data that contained errors. While waiting for validation results from the validation system, the modified data may also be sent to the requesting system to confirm that it is correct. By sending the modified data to both the validation system and the requesting system for approval, increased efficiency and parallelization may be achieved.

Abstract: A computer-implemented technique for characterizing lexical concreteness in narrative includes receiving data encapsulating narrative text having a plurality of words. Thereafter, the function words can be removed from the narrative text to result in only content words. A concreteness score can then be assigned to each content word by polling a database to identify matching words and to use concreteness scores associated with such matching words as specified by the database. Data can then be provided which characterizes the assigned concreteness scores. Related apparatus, systems, techniques and articles are also described.

Abstract: The present disclosure relates to methods and systems for measuring private information protection across a number of external services. A centralized private information protection service is coupled to external services, accesses data of these external services, aggregates the data and determines a private information protection scoring based upon the aggregated data.

Abstract: A doser mechanism includes a cylindrical shell, an auger conveyor, and a check valve. The cylindrical shell includes a hollow cylinder and an end plate. The hollow cylinder at least partially defines an internal enclosure extending between first and second ends of the hollow cylinder, a first opening at the first end, and a second opening through a thickness of the hollow cylinder. The end plate covers the second end. The auger conveyor includes an auger at least partially extending through the internal enclosure through the first end. The check valve has a valve member configured to selectively cover the second opening. The check valve may cause the valve member move between a rest position and an open position to cover or expose the second opening in response to a magnitude of a force applied to the valve member from the internal enclosure through the second opening.

Abstract: In an example embodiment, a pack for tobacco articles comprises an inner sleeve, and an outer box comprising front and back covers that allow access to the inner sleeve when the outer box is opened. The inner sleeve can include a front connecting panel pivotally connecting a front wall of the inner sleeve to an inner surface of the front cover and a back connecting panel pivotally connecting a back wall of the inner sleeve to an inner surface of the back cover. A slot in the outer box is configured to allow opening of the outer box by applying pressure against a bottom wall of the inner sleeve.

Abstract: A method and system for a one-time authentication interaction to conduct electronic financial transactions using a wearable smart ring device is described. In one embodiment, a method includes detecting, by a mobile device, that a wearable smart ring device is being worn by a user. The method also includes receiving, by the mobile device, authentication information associated with the user, and comparing the received authentication information with stored authentication information associated with the user. Upon determining that the received authentication information matches the stored authentication information, the wearable smart ring device is authorized to conduct electronic financial transactions. Additionally, the wearable smart ring device remains authorized to conduct electronic financial transactions as long as it is worn by the user. Once removed from the user's finger, the wearable smart ring device is de-authorized.

Abstract: An articulated rail-transport car for transporting long sections of ribbon rail is described. The car includes a plurality of segments arranged end-to-end and coupled and supported at their adjacent ends by shared trucks. Dedicated trucks are provided near each terminal end of the car and couplers configured to couple to an adjacent rail car are provided at the respective terminal ends. Rail stands are disposed along the length of the car with a spacing that is independent of the locations of the shared and dedicated trucks and that provides a greater number of rail stands than trucks. The segments may be configured to enable interchangeability and to allow any number of the segments to be included in the car. A plurality of the cars can be coupled to enable transport of ribbon rails of any length.

Abstract: A method for utilizing a registration authority computer to facilitate a certificate signing request is provided. A registration authority computer may receive a certificate signing request associated with a token requestor. The registration authority computer may authenticate the identity of the token requestor and forward the certificate signing request to a certificate authority computer. A token requestor ID and a signed certificate may be provided by the certificate authority computer and forwarded to the token requestor. The token requestor ID may be utilized by the token requestor to generate digital signatures for subsequent token-based transactions.