Abstract: The invention relates to a method for controlling the stress distribution in a material, comprising the steps of: a, preparing a crosslinked polymer containing reversible exchange bonds; b, applying an external force to the crosslinked polymer to cause a certain strain; c, specific region of the crosslinked polymer is selectively heated while maintaining the strain. This method controls and utilizes the internal stresses which are commonly considered as unfavorable. The invention also provides a method for reading information in a polarized light field, wherein the crosslinked polymer treated by the method is transparent under natural light. The information therein can be read only under polarized light, and possesses concealment.

Abstract: The present disclosure concerns a digital fabricating method for constructing 3D structures, comprising the following steps: (a) precursor consist of monomers and photo-initiator is introduced into reaction cell; (b) exposing the precursor to the DLP projector for several times to gain an inhomogeneous sheet; (c) swelling the sheet in solvent to gain 3D structure. The disclosure provides a simple and easy way to produce precise 3D structure.

Abstract: In some variations, the invention provides a curable adhesive formulation comprising a curable liquid precursor capable of frontal polymerization, wherein the liquid precursor comprises a monomer and a polymerization catalyst, and frontal-polymerization-triggering susceptors in contact with, or contained within, the liquid precursor. The susceptors may include conducting and/or magnetic solid particles capable of induction heating in the presence of a remotely applied electromagnetic field. Other variations provide a polymer-curing system comprising a curable liquid precursor, frontal-polymerization-triggering susceptors, and an apparatus configured to remotely produce an alternating electromagnetic field in line-of-sight with the susceptors (but not necessarily in line-of-sight with the liquid precursor), thereby generating induction heating to initiate the frontal polymerization. The susceptors may be about 0.1 wt % to about 50 wt % of the curable formulation.

Abstract: In some variations, the invention provides a curable adhesive formulation comprising a curable liquid precursor capable of frontal polymerization, wherein the liquid precursor comprises a monomer and a polymerization catalyst, and frontal-polymerization-triggering susceptors in contact with, or contained within, the liquid precursor. The susceptors may include conducting and/or magnetic solid particles capable of induction heating in the presence of a remotely applied electromagnetic field. Other variations provide a polymer-curing system comprising a curable liquid precursor, frontal-polymerization-triggering susceptors, and an apparatus configured to remotely produce an alternating electromagnetic field in line-of-sight with the susceptors (but not necessarily in line-of-sight with the liquid precursor), thereby generating induction heating to initiate the frontal polymerization. The susceptors may be about 0.1 wt % to about 50 wt % of the curable formulation.

Abstract: Example MOSFET circuits include a first metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) having a gate, a source and a drain, and a second MOSFET coupled in series with the first MOSFET. The second MOSFET has a gate, a source and a drain. The MOSFET circuit also includes a controller configured to supply a same control signal to the gate of the first MOSFET and the gate of the second MOSFET to turn on or turn off the first MOSFET and the second MOSFET when a drain-source voltage of the first MOSFET and a drain-source voltage of the second MOSFET are substantially zero. Other MOSFET circuits and methods of operating MOSFET circuits are also disclosed.

Abstract: Balancing resource usage for client applications workload and data merge optimization of the backend for both a local merge within one server and a merge across multiple servers is determined based on previous resource usage pattern in a distributed storage system.

Abstract: A method for managing pending acknowledgement (ACK) packets in a communication device is provided. The method can include the communication device monitoring a status of a transmit queue for packets to be sent over a network; detecting a queue condition indicative of congestion causing a delay in sending one or more ACK packets pending in the transmit queue; and discarding a set of one or more ACK packets from the transmit queue in response to the queue condition. The discarded set of one or more ACK packets can include one or more oldest ACK packets of the ACK packets pending in the transmit queue. A most recent ACK packet pending in the transmit queue can remain pending in the transmit queue after the set of one or more ACK packets has been discarded.

Abstract: According to some aspects of the present disclosure, open loop bi-directional converters and corresponding control methods are disclosed. Example open loop bi-directional converters include a transformer, one or more primary switches coupled to a primary side of the transformer, one or more secondary switches coupled to a secondary side of the transformer, an input capacitor coupled to an input terminal, an output capacitor coupled to an output terminal, and a primary side controller operable to control the one or more primary switches in an open loop mode at a fixed frequency and a fixed duty cycle. The open loop bi-directional converter is coupled to provide current from the secondary side of the transformer to the primary side of the transformer automatically when the voltage of the input capacitor is reduced below the voltage of the output capacitor.

Abstract: The present disclosure concerns a digital corneal crosslinking technology for adjusting the corneal curvature, comprising the following steps: administering in drops a composition comprising a photoinitiator compound to the corneal stromal of the subject, locally irradiating the corneal by utilizing digital micromirror device controlled by computer. The corneal curvature can be adjusted totally or locally. The invention also discloses an apparatus for the digital corneal crosslinking. The method and apparatus is minimum invasive and can be used to accurately and efficiently adjust the corneal curvature.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a first computing server receives a message from a client computing device. The message identifies an image to be displayed on the client computing device. The message is generated by a second computing server and received by the client computing device in response to a request sent by the client computing device to the second computing server for the identified image. The first computing server determines one or more adjustment parameters based on the display capabilities of the client computing device. The first computing server creates an adjusted version of the identified image based on the adjustment parameters, and sends the adjusted version of the identified image to the client computing device for display.

Abstract: One variation includes a method including using a reversible dry adhesive system to reversibly couple a first substrate to a second substrate. One variation includes a method including using a reversible dry adhesive system to reversibly couple a first substrate to a second substrate during building or reconfiguring a product.

Abstract: The present disclosure concerns a digital fabricating method for constructing 3D structures, comprising the following steps: (a) precursor consist of monomers and photo-initiator is introduced into reaction cell; (b) exposing the precursor to the DLP projector for several times to gain an inhomogeneous sheet; (c) swelling the sheet in solvent to gain 3D structure. The disclosure provides a simple and easy way to produce precise 3D structure.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a computing device receives a request from a mobile device of a user for an image. The computing device determines whether the user is associated with a preferred orientation for viewing an image. The preferred orientation is determined based on the user's usage patterns with respect to a particular application of the mobile device, or to the user's interactions with a social-networking system. If the user is associated with a preferred orientation, the image is adjusted to have the preferred orientation and to match display capabilities of the mobile device sending the request. The adjusted image is sent to the mobile device for display.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a method includes receiving, at the mobile client system, a text string inputted into a query field by a first user, accessing, from a local data store, a set of grammar templates, each grammar template comprising query tokens referencing an object stored in the local data store, generating one or more natural-language suggested queries by matching portions of the text string to query tokens of the grammar templates, each suggested query comprising references to one or more of the objects stored in the local data store and the natural-language string of the matching grammar template, calculating a cost for each grammar template based at least in part on one or more portions of text string not corresponding to one of the query tokens, and displaying one or more suggested queries to the first user, each having a calculated cost below a threshold cost value.

Abstract: The present invention discloses a method for preparing stable 3D polymer objects with surface micro-nanostructures. The method includes the following steps: Step (1): Synthesizing a thermoset 2D polymer object with surface microstructures. The polymer network contains reversible exchangeable bonds. Step (2): deforming synthesized polymer to an arbitrary desired shape above the reshaping temperature with an external force applied. The permanent reshaping temperature falls in the range of 50-130° C. and external stress is held for 5 min-24 hours Step (3): after cooling, a permanent 3D polymer object with surface microstructure is obtained. Step (2-3) can be repeated for many cycles and the 2D polymer object can be arbitrarily and cumulatively deformed to get a complex 3D structures. The polymer networks contain reversible exchangeable bonds and bond exchange catalysts in the present invention.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a method includes receiving an unstructured text query from a first user of an online social network; and accessing, from a data store of the mobile client system, a set of nodes of a social graph of the online social network. The social graph includes a number of nodes and edges connecting the nodes. The nodes include a first node corresponding to the first user and a number of second nodes that each correspond to a concept or a second user associated with the online social network. The method also includes accessing, from the data store of the mobile client system, a set of grammar templates. Each grammar template includes one or more non-terminal tokens and one or more query tokens. The query tokens include references to zero or more second nodes and one or more edges and each grammar template is based on a natural-language string.

Abstract: The present invention discloses a freezing-illumination method for preparing porous gels, comprising the steps of: (a) synthesizing the gels containing dynamic exchangeable bonds; (b) illuminating the gels under frozen state by certain wavelength light source; (c) elevating the temperature and melt the ice crystals within the gels to get the porous structure. The dynamic exchangeable bonds existing in the gels include double/multi-sulfur bond, hydrazine bond, boronic ester bond. Catalyst is also included in the gel composition to activate the bond exchange reactions under illumination. This new method for preparing porous gels is easy to operate and suitable for most kinds of gels. Meanwhile, it can spatially control the pore structure within the gels by local illumination.

Abstract: The disclosure provides a system of thermoset shape memory poly(urea-urethane) with permanent reshaping property and its application. The breakthrough of the present invention is that the reshaping temperature can be tuned in a wide range by incorporation of urea bonds into the polymer network. The permanent shape for shape memory poly(urea-urethane) can be repeatedly and cumulatively reshaped at certain temperature, largely facilitating the fabrication of complex structures.

Abstract: The present invention discloses the fabrication and application of a shape memory polymer possessing transesterification-induced permanent reshaping. The ester-containing crosslinked polymer is obtained by crosslinking ester bearing polymer precursors or by reaction of monomers which yield ester bonds. The transition temperature falls between 20-150° C. The reshaping temperature is tuned by catalyst amount and should be 20° C. above the transition temperature. The breakthrough of the present invention lies in integrating shape memory effect and plastic deformation into the same polymer and triggering the respective function at different occasions. The permanent shape of as synthesized polymer could be modified arbitrarily and cumulatively. Therefore, the hierarchical structure which could not otherwise be obtained due to the limit of mold fabrication process should expand the practical application of SMPs.

Abstract: Methods for making battery electrode system are disclosed herein. In an example of the method, a mixture of a polymer binder, an active material and a conductive filler is deposited on a current collector. The deposited mixture is exposed to an external field having a field direction that is normal to a surface of the current collector. The exposure aligns, outward from and normal to the surface of the current collector, the active material and the conductive filler to form a plurality of discrete structures that extend outward from and normal to the surface of the current collector and are respectively aligned with a field line of the external field. Each of the plurality of discrete structures includes some of the active material and some of the conductive filler.