296 research outputs found
Geant4 Predictions of Energy Spectra in Typical Space Radiation Environment
Accurate knowledge of energy spectra inside spacecraft is important for protecting astronauts as well as sensitive electronics from the harmful effects of space radiation. Such knowledge allows one to confidently map the radiation environment inside the vehicle. The purpose of this talk is to present preliminary calculations for energy spectra inside a spherical shell shielding and behind a slab in typical space radiation environment using the 3D Monte-Carlo transport code Geant4. We have simulated proton and iron isotropic sources and beams impinging on Aluminum and Gallium arsenide (GaAs) targets at energies of 0.2, 0.6, 1, and 10 GeV/u. If time permits, other radiation sources and beams (_, C, O) and targets (C, Si, Ge, water) will be presented. The results are compared to ground-based measurements where available
Geant4 Predictions of Energy Spectra in Typical Space Radiation Environment
No abstract availabl
Sputtering of Lunar Regolith by Solar Wind Protons and Heavy Ions, and General Aspects of Potential Sputtering
New simulation results for the sputtering of lunar soil surface by solar-wind protons and heavy ions will be presented. Previous simulation results showed that the sputtering process has significant effects and plays an important role in changing the surface chemical composition, setting the erosion rate and the sputtering process timescale. In this new work and in light of recent data, we briefly present some theoretical models which have been developed to describe the sputtering process and compare their results with recent calculation to investigate and differentiate the roles and the contributions of potential (or electrodynamic) sputtering from the standard (or kinetic) sputtering
Toward Forecasting Volcanic Eruptions using Seismic Noise
During inter-eruption periods, magma pressurization yields subtle changes of
the elastic properties of volcanic edifices. We use the reproducibility
properties of the ambient seismic noise recorded on the Piton de la Fournaise
volcano to measure relative seismic velocity variations of less than 0.1 % with
a temporal resolution of one day. Our results show that five studied volcanic
eruptions were preceded by clearly detectable seismic velocity decreases within
the zone of magma injection. These precursors reflect the edifice dilatation
induced by magma pressurization and can be useful indicators to improve the
forecasting of volcanic eruptions.Comment: Supplementary information:
http://www-lgit.obs.ujf-grenoble.fr/~fbrengui/brenguier_SI.pdf Supplementary
video:
http://www-lgit.obs.ujf-grenoble.fr/~fbrengui/brenguierMovieVolcano.av
Semi-autonomous vehicles as a cognitive assistive device for older adults
Losing the capacity to drive due to age-related cognitive decline can have a detrimental impact on the daily life functioning of older adults living alone and in remote areas. Semi-autonomous vehicles (SAVs) could have the potential to preserve driving independence of this population with high health needs. This paper explores if SAVs could be used as a cognitive assistive device for older aging drivers with cognitive challenges. We illustrate the impact of age-related changes of cognitive functions on driving capacity. Furthermore, following an overview on the current state of SAVs, we propose a model for connecting cognitive health needs of older drivers to SAVs. The model demonstrates the connections between cognitive changes experienced by aging drivers, their impact on actual driving, car sensors' features, and vehicle automation. Finally, we present challenges that should be considered when using the constantly changing smart vehicle technology, adapting it to aging drivers and vice versa. This paper sheds light on age-related cognitive characteristics that should be considered when developing future SAVs manufacturing policies which may potentially help decrease the impact of cognitive change on older adult drivers
Moduli and (un)attractor black hole thermodynamics
We investigate four-dimensional spherically symmetric black hole solutions in
gravity theories with massless, neutral scalars non-minimally coupled to gauge
fields. In the non-extremal case, we explicitly show that, under the variation
of the moduli, the scalar charges appear in the first law of black hole
thermodynamics. In the extremal limit, the near horizon geometry is
and the entropy does not depend on the values of moduli at
infinity. We discuss the attractor behaviour by using Sen's entropy function
formalism as well as the effective potential approach and their relation with
the results previously obtained through special geometry method. We also argue
that the attractor mechanism is at the basis of the matching between the
microscopic and macroscopic entropies for the extremal non-BPS Kaluza-Klein
black hole.Comment: 36 pages, no figures, V2: minor changes, misprints corrected,
expanded references; V3: sections 4.3 and 4.5 added; V4: minor changes,
matches the published versio
From de Sitter to de Sitter
We obtain D=6, N=(1,1) de Sitter supergravity from a hyperbolic reduction of
the massive type IIA* theory. We construct a smooth cosmological solution in
which the co-moving time runs from an infinite past, which is dS_4\times S^2,
to an infinite future, which is a dS_6-type spacetime with the boundary
R^3\times S^2. This provides an effective four-dimensional cosmological model
with two compact extra dimensions forming an S^2. Interestingly enough,
although the solution is time-dependent, it arises from a first-order system
via a superpotential construction. We lift the solutions back to D=10, and in
particular obtain two smooth embeddings of dS_4 in massive type IIA*, with the
internal space being either H^4\times S^2 or an H^4 bundle over S^2. We also
obtain the analogous D=5 and D=4 solutions. We show that there exist
cosmological solutions that describe an expanding universe with the expansion
rate significantly larger in the past than in the future.Comment: Latex three times, 22 pages, references adde
The return of the four- and five-dimensional preons
We prove the existence of 3/4-BPS preons in four- and five-dimensional gauged
supergravities by explicitly constructing them as smooth quotients of the AdS_4
and AdS_5 maximally supersymmetric backgrounds, respectively. This result
illustrates how the spacetime topology resurrects a fraction of supersymmetry
previously ruled out by the local analysis of the Killing spinor equations.Comment: 10 pages (a minor imprecision has been corrected
BPS dyons and Hesse flow
We revisit BPS solutions to classical N=2 low energy effective gauge
theories. It is shown that the BPS equations can be solved in full generality
by the introduction of a Hesse potential, a symplectic analog of the
holomorphic prepotential. We explain how for non-spherically symmetric,
non-mutually local solutions, the notion of attractor flow generalizes to
gradient flow with respect to the Hesse potential. Furthermore we show that in
general there is a non-trivial magnetic complement to this flow equation that
is sourced by the momentum current in the solution.Comment: 25 pages, references adde
Correlation between Group B Streptococcal Genotypes, Their Antimicrobial Resistance Profiles, and Virulence Genes among Pregnant Women in Lebanon
The antimicrobial
susceptibility profiles of 76
Streptococcus agalactiae (Group
B Streptococci [GBS]) isolates from vaginal
specimens of pregnant women near term were
correlated to their genotypes generated by
Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA analysis and
their virulence factors encoding genes
cylE, lmb, scpB, rib, and bca
by PCR. Based on the distribution of the
susceptibility patterns, six profiles were
generated. RAPD analysis detected 7 clusters of
genotypes. The cylE gene was
present in 99% of the isolates, the
lmb in 96%,
scpB in 94.7%,
rib in 33%, and
bca in 56.5% of isolates.
The isolates demonstrated a significant
correlation between antimicrobial resistance and
genotype clusters denoting the distribution of
particular clones with different antimicrobial
resistance profiles, entailing the practice of
caution in therapeutic options. All virulence
factors encoding genes were detected in all
seven genotypic clusters with
rib and bca
not coexisting in the same
genome
- …