On radiative damping in plasma-based accelerators

Radiative damping in plasma-based electron accelerators is analyzed. The electron dynamics under combined influence of the constant accelerating force and the classical radiation reaction force is studied. It is shown that electron acceleration cannot be limited by radiation reaction. If initially the accelerating force was stronger than the radiation reaction force then the electron acceleration is unlimited. Otherwise the electron is decelerated by radiative damping up to a certain instant of time and then accelerated without limits. Regardless of the initial conditions the infinite-time asymptotic behavior of an electron is governed by self-similar solution providing unlimited acceleration. The relative energy spread induced by the radiative damping decreases with time in the infinite-time limit

Saturable discrete vector solitons in one-dimensional photonic lattices

Localized vectorial modes, with equal frequencies and mutually orthogonal polarizations, are investigated both analytically and experimentally in a one-dimensional photonic lattice with saturable nonlinearity. It is shown that these modes may span over many lattice elements and that energy transfer among the two components is both phase and intensity dependent. The transverse electrically polarized mode exhibits a single-hump structure and spreads in cascades in saturation, while the transverse magnetically polarized mode exhibits splitting into a two-hump structure. Experimentally such discrete vector solitons are observed in lithium niobate lattices for both coherent and mutually incoherent excitations.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures (reduced for arXiv

System for Contributing and Discovering Derived Mission and Science Data

A system was developed to provide a new mechanism for members of the mission community to create and contribute new science data to the rest of the community. Mission tools have allowed members of the mission community to share first order data (data that is created by the mission s process in command and control of the spacecraft or the data that is captured by the craft itself, like images, science results, etc.). However, second and higher order data (data that is created after the fact by scientists and other members of the mission) was previously not widely disseminated, nor did it make its way into the mission planning process

An Extensible, User- Modifiable Framework for Planning Activities

This software provides a development framework that allows planning activities for the Mars Science Laboratory rover to be altered at any time, based on changes of the Activity Dictionary. The Activity Dictionary contains the definition of all activities that can be carried out by a particular asset (robotic or human). These definitions (and combinations of these definitions) are used by mission planners to give a daily plan of what a mission should do. During the development and course of the mission, the Activity Dictionary and actions that are going to be carried out will often be changed. Previously, such changes would require a change to the software and redeployment. Now, the Activity Dictionary authors are able to customize activity definitions, parameters, and resource usage without requiring redeployment. This software provides developers and end users the ability to modify the behavior of automatically generated activities using a script. This allows changes to the software behavior without incurring the burden of redeployment. This software is currently being used for the Mars Science Laboratory, and is in the process of being integrated into the LADEE (Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer) mission, as well as the International Space Station

Quantum vortices in systems obeying a generalized exclusion principle

The paper deals with a planar particle system obeying a generalized exclusion principle (EP) and governed, in the mean field approximation, by a nonlinear Schroedinger equation. We show that the EP involves a mathematically simple and physically transparent mechanism, which allows the genesis of quantum vortices in the system. We obtain in a closed form the shape of the vortices and investigate its main physical properties. PACS numbers: 03.65.-w, 03.65.Ge, 05.45.YvComment: 7 pages, 4 figure

Vortex solitons - Mass, Energy and Angular momentum bunching in relativistic electron-positron plasmas

It is shown that the interaction of large amplitude electromagnetic waves with a hot electron-positron (e-p) plasma (a principal constituent of the universe in the MeV epoch) leads to a bunching of mass, energy, and angular momentum in stable, long-lived structures. Electromagnetism in the MeV epoch, then, could provide a possible route for seeding the observed large-scale structure of the universe.Comment: 17 pages with 2 figure

Discovery, Optimization, and Characterization of ML417: A Novel and Highly Selective D3 Dopamine Receptor Agonist

To identify novel D3 dopamine receptor (D3R) agonists, we conducted a high-throughput screen using a β-arrestin recruitment assay. Counterscreening of the hit compounds provided an assessment of their selectivity, efficacy, and potency. The most promising scaffold was optimized through medicinal chemistry resulting in enhanced potency and selectivity. The optimized compound, ML417 (20), potently promotes D3R-mediated β-arrestin translocation, G protein activation, and ERK1/2 phosphorylation (pERK) while lacking activity at other dopamine receptors. Screening of ML417 against multiple G protein-coupled receptors revealed exceptional global selectivity. Molecular modeling suggests that ML417 interacts with the D3R in a unique manner, possibly explaining its remarkable selectivity. ML417 was also found to protect against neurodegeneration of dopaminergic neurons derived from iPSCs. Together with promising pharmacokinetics and toxicology profiles, these results suggest that ML417 is a novel and uniquely selective D3R agonist that may serve as both a research tool and a therapeutic lead for the treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders

Observational constraints on spatial anisotropy of G from orbital motions

A phenomenological anisotropic variation \Delta G/G of the Newtonian gravitational coupling parameter G, if real, would affect the orbital dynamics of a two-body gravitationally bound system in a specific way. We analytically work out the long-term effects that such a putative modification of the usual Newtonian inverse-square law would induce on the trajectory of a test particle orbiting a central mass. Without making any a-priori simplifying assumptions concerning the orbital configuration of the test particle, it turns out that its osculating semi-major axis a, eccentricity e, pericenter \varpi and mean anomaly M undergo long-term temporal variations, while the inclination I and the node \Omega are left unaffected. Moreover, the radial and the transverse components of the position and the velocity vectors r and v of the test particle experience non-vanishing changes per orbit, contrary to the out-of-plane ones. Then, we compute our theoretical predictions for some of the major bodies of the solar system by orienting the gradient of G(r) towards the Galactic Center and keeping it fixed over the characteristic timescales involved. By comparing our calculation to the latest observational determinations for the same bodies, we infer \Delta G/G <= 10^-17 over about 1 au. Finally, we consider also the Supermassive Black Hole hosted by the Galactic Center in Sgr A^* and the main sequence star S2 orbiting it in about 16 yr, obtaining just \Delta G/G <= 10^-2 over 1 kau.Comment: LaTex2e, 18 pages, no figures, 4 tables. Accepted by Classical and Quantum Gravity (CQG). Typo fixed. Reference update

EPIdemiology of Surgery-Associated Acute Kidney Injury (EPIS-AKI) : Study protocol for a multicentre, observational trial

More than 300 million surgical procedures are performed each year. Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common complication after major surgery and is associated with adverse short-term and long-term outcomes. However, there is a large variation in the incidence of reported AKI rates. The establishment of an accurate epidemiology of surgery-associated AKI is important for healthcare policy, quality initiatives, clinical trials, as well as for improving guidelines. The objective of the Epidemiology of Surgery-associated Acute Kidney Injury (EPIS-AKI) trial is to prospectively evaluate the epidemiology of AKI after major surgery using the latest Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) consensus definition of AKI. EPIS-AKI is an international prospective, observational, multicentre cohort study including 10 000 patients undergoing major surgery who are subsequently admitted to the ICU or a similar high dependency unit. The primary endpoint is the incidence of AKI within 72 hours after surgery according to the KDIGO criteria. Secondary endpoints include use of renal replacement therapy (RRT), mortality during ICU and hospital stay, length of ICU and hospital stay and major adverse kidney events (combined endpoint consisting of persistent renal dysfunction, RRT and mortality) at day 90. Further, we will evaluate preoperative and intraoperative risk factors affecting the incidence of postoperative AKI. In an add-on analysis, we will assess urinary biomarkers for early detection of AKI. EPIS-AKI has been approved by the leading Ethics Committee of the Medical Council North Rhine-Westphalia, of the Westphalian Wilhelms-University Münster and the corresponding Ethics Committee at each participating site. Results will be disseminated widely and published in peer-reviewed journals, presented at conferences and used to design further AKI-related trials. Trial registration number NCT04165369