4,584 research outputs found
Nonlinear elastic polymers in random flow
Polymer stretching in random smooth flows is investigated within the
framework of the FENE dumbbell model. The advecting flow is Gaussian and
short-correlated in time. The stationary probability density function of
polymer extension is derived exactly. The characteristic time needed for the
system to attain the stationary regime is computed as a function of the
Weissenberg number and the maximum length of polymers. The transient relaxation
to the stationary regime is predicted to be exceptionally slow in the proximity
of the coil-stretch transition.Comment: 10 pages, to be published in J. Fluid Mec
Starburst and AGN activity in ultraluminous infrared galaxies
(Abridged) We examine the power source of 41 local Ultraluminous Infrared
Galaxies using archival infrared and optical photometry. We fit the observed
Spectral Energy Distributions (SEDs) with starburst and AGN components; each
component being drawn from a family of templates. We find all of the sample
require a starburst, whereas only half require an AGN. In 90% of the sample the
starburst provides over half the IR emission, with a mean fractional luminosity
of 82%. When combined with other galaxy samples we find that starburst and AGN
luminosities correlate over 6 decades in IR luminosity suggesting that a common
factor governs both luminosities, plausibly the gas masses in the nuclear
regions. We find that the mid-IR 7.7 micron line-continuum ratio is no
indication of the starburst luminosity, or the fractional AGN luminosity, and
therefore that this ratio is not a reliable diagnostic of the power source in
ULIRGs. We propose that the scatter in the radio-IR correlation in ULIRGs is
due to a skewed starburst IMF and/or relic relativistic electrons from a
previous starburst, rather than contamination from an obscured AGN. We show
that most ULIRGs undergo multiple starbursts during their lifetime, and by
inference that mergers between more than two galaxies may be common amongst
ULIRGs. Our results support the evolutionary model for ULIRGs proposed by
Farrah et al 2001, where they can follow many different evolutionary paths of
starburst and AGN activity in transforming merging spiral galaxies into
elliptical galaxies, but that most do not go through an optical QSO phase. The
lower level of AGN activity in our local sample than in z~1 HLIRGs implies that
the two samples are distinct populations. We postulate that different galaxy
formation processes at high-z are responsible for this difference.Comment: 24 pages, 8 figures. Accepted for publication in MNRA
Microlens Parallaxes with SIRTF
The Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF) will drift away from the Earth
at about 0.1 AU/yr. Microlensing events will therefore have different
characteristics as seen from the satellite and the Earth. From the difference,
it is possible in principle to measure v-tilde, the transverse velocity of the
lens projected onto the observer plane. Since v-tilde has very different values
for different populations (disk, halo, Large Magellanic Cloud), such
measurements could help identify the location, and hence the nature, of the
lenses. I show that the method previously developed by Gould for measuring such
satellite parallaxes fails completely in the case of SIRTF: it is overwhelmed
by degeneracies which arise from fact that the Earth and satellite observations
are in different band passes. I develop a new method which allows for
observations in different band passes and yet removes all degeneracies. The
method combines a purely ground-based measurement of the "parallax asymmetry"
with a measurement of the delay between the time the event peaks at the Earth
and satellite. In effect, the parallax asymmetry determines the component of
v-tilde in the Earth-Sun direction, while the delay time measures the component
of v-tilde in the direction of the Earth's orbit.Comment: 21 pages plus 3 figure
Constructing networks of defects with scalar fields
We propose a new way to build networks of defects. The idea takes advantage
of the deformation procedure recently employed to describe defect structures,
which we use to construct networks, spread from small rudimentary networks that
appear in simple models of scalar fields.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, version with new title, motivations and
references, to appear in PL
Evolution of the far-infrared luminosity functions in the Spitzer Wide-area Infrared Extragalactic Legacy Survey
We present new observational determination of the evolution of the rest-frame
70 and 160 micron and total infrared (TIR) galaxy luminosity functions (LFs)
using 70 micron data from the Spitzer Wide-area Infrared Extragalactic Legacy
Survey (SWIRE). The LFs were constructed for sources with spectroscopic
redshifts only in the XMM-LSS and Lockman Hole fields from the SWIRE
photometric redshift catalogue. The 70 micron and TIR LFs were constructed in
the redshift range 0<z<1.2 and the 160 micron LF was constructed in the
redshift range 0<z<0.5 using a parametric Bayesian and the vmax methods. We
assume in our models, that the faint-end power-law index of the LF does not
evolve with redshifts. We find the the double power-law model is a better
representation of the IR LF than the more commonly used power-law and Gaussian
model. We model the evolution of the FIR LFs as a function of redshift where
where the characteristic luminosity, evolve as
\propto(1+z)^{\alpha_\textsc{l}}. The rest-frame 70 micron LF shows a strong
luminosity evolution out to z=1.2 with alpha_l=3.41^{+0.18}_{-0.25}. The
rest-frame 160 micron LF also showed rapid luminosity evolution with
alpha_l=5.53^{+0.28}_{-0.23} out to z=0.5. The rate of evolution in luminosity
is consistent with values estimated from previous studies using data from IRAS,
ISO and Spitzer. The TIR LF evolves in luminosity with
alpha_l=3.82^{+0.28}_{-0.16} which is in agreement with previous results from
Spitzer 24 micron which find strong luminosity evolution. By integrating the LF
we calculated the co-moving IR luminosity density out to z=1.2, which confirm
the rapid evolution in number density of LIRGs and ULIRGs which contribute
~68^{+10}_{-07} % to the co-moving star formation rate density at z=1.2. Our
results based on 70 micron data confirms that the bulk of the star formation at
z=1 takes place in dust obscured objects.Comment: 17 pages, 14 figure
SDSSJ143244.91+301435.3 at VLBI: a compact radio galaxy in a narrow-line Seyfert 1
We present VLBI observations, carried out with the European Very Long
Baseline Interferometry Network (EVN), of SDSSJ143244.91+301435.3, a radio-loud
narrow-line Seyfert 1 (RLNLS1) characterized by a steep radio spectrum. The
source, compact at Very Large Array (VLA) resolution, is resolved on the
milliarcsec scale, showing a central region plus two extended structures. The
relatively high brightness temperature of all components (5x10^6-1.3x10^8 K)
supports the hypothesis that the radio emission is non-thermal and likely
produced by a relativistic jet and/or small radio lobes. The observed radio
morphology, the lack of a significant core and the presence of a low frequency
(230 MHz) spectral turnover are reminiscent of the Compact Steep Spectrum
sources (CSS). However, the linear size of the source (~0.5kpc) measured from
the EVN map is lower than the value predicted using the turnover/size relation
valid for CSS sources (~6kpc). This discrepancy can be explained by an
additional component not detected in our observations, accounting for about a
quarter of the total source flux density, combined to projection effects. The
low core-dominance of the source (CD<0.29) confirms that
SDSSJ143244.91+301435.3 is not a blazar, i.e. the relativistic jet is not
pointing towards the observer. This supports the idea that
SDSSJ143244.91+301435.3 may belong to the "parent population" of flat-spectrum
RLNLS1 and favours the hypothesis of a direct link between RLNLS1 and compact,
possibly young, radio galaxies.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA
Aplicación del método Delphi para la inclusión de las externalidades en análisis de seguridad y de salud laboral
Organizations should regularly conduct an assessment of their occupational hazards in order to design and implement preventive measures that are necessary and sufficient to deal with the level of risk, the costs of prevention and the safety at levels considered acceptable by the organization. Furthermore, the selection of measures to be implemented in an organization should take into account both internal and external costs. Externalities are of great importance in terms of the costs of accidents at work; nevertheless, they are not often properly addressed by the organizations. In this paper we describe an application of the Delphi method to understand how externalities can be included in Occupational Safety and Health.Las organizaciones deben realizar periódicamente una evaluación de sus riesgos laborales con el fin de diseñar y poner en práctica medidas preventivas que sean necesarias y suficientes para mantener e l nivel de riesgo, los costos de la prevención y la seguridad en los niveles considerados aceptables por la organización. Por otra parte, la selección de las medidas a aplicar en una organización debe tener en cuenta tanto los costes internos como externos. Las externalidades son de gran importancia en términos de los costos de los accidentes de trabajo; sin embargo, a menudo no se tratan adecuadamente por las organizaciones. En este artículo se describe una aplicación del método Delphi para entender cómo los factores externos pueden ser incluidos en la Seguridad y Salud Laboral.The authors would like to acknowledge all the experts who have participated in the Delphi panel. The authors also acknowledge the anonymous reviewers who helped to improve the overall quality of the current manuscript. This study was financially supported by FCT-Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia of Portugal, under the project ID/CEC/00319/2013
Fused Filament Fabrication over fabrics: experiments and applications
The focus of this paper is to explore the use of Fused Filament Fabrication technology, a material extrusion additive manufacturing technology, by depositing melted Polilactic Acid (PLA) over a substrate – fabric - instead of on an empty building tray. The textile’s composition, nozzle and building plate temperature, printed PLA thickness and printed geometry have been considered as variables that could influence the structural and adhesion properties on this study
so, therefor, were took into consideration and tested throughout the printing process through specimens printed with different combined parameters. The aim of this exploration process was developing an experimental procedure to study the limitations and capabilities of this printing technology over textiles, and which different variables’ combination would contribute to a better overall result in the development of a self-supporting textile based structural model, that could be apply in different contexts without the need of any extra external support. Results showed that PLA adherence to the fabric is correlated with nozzle/building plate temperature and printing thickness: higher temperature and thickness provide higher adherence. The weave of the textile didn´t reflect on better results but the polyester felt fabric exhibit maximum adherence with printed PLA in all sets of temperatures. In addition, geometries with reinforcement lines along the fabric stress direction provided better structural results. These results enable new application possibilities for the FFF technology combined in fabrics such as in interior, fashion and shoe ware design.publishe
Fiscal sustainability analysis: the case of PALOP economies
The Global Financial Crisis has typically led to a significant widening of fiscal positions (i.e.,
higher budget deficits and public debt). We address the sustainability of public finances in
Portuguese-speaking African countries (PALOP), through adequate econometric testing. Our
findings for the period 1975-2015 suggest that most of the PALOP have compromised the
sustainability of their corresponding fiscal positions, leading these economies to be set on
unsustainable public finance trajectories.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Hemoglobin genotype has minimal influence on the physiological response of juvenile atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) to environmental challenges
Hemoglobin (Hb) polymorphism in cod is associated with temperature‐related differences in biogeographical distribution, and several authors have suggested that functional characteristics of the various hemoglobin isoforms (HbIs) directly influence phenotypic traits such as growth rate. However, no study has directly examined whether Hb genotype translates into physiological differences at the whole animal level. Thus, we generated a family of juvenile Atlantic cod consisting of all three main Hb genotypes (HbI‐1/1, HbI‐2/2, and HbI‐1/2) by crossing a single pair of heterozygous parents, and we compared their metabolic and cortisol responses to an acute thermal challenge (10°C to their critical thermal maximum [CTM] or 22°C, respectively) and tolerance of graded hypoxia. There were no differences in routine metabolism (at 10°C), maximum metabolic rate, metabolic scope, CTM (overall mean 22.9° ± 0.2°C), or resting and poststress plasma cortisol levels among Hb genotypes. Further, although the HbI‐1/1 fish grew more (by 15%–30% during the first 9 mo) when reared at 10° ± 1°C and had a slightly enhanced hypoxia tolerance at 10°C (e.g., the critical O2 levels for HbI‐1/1, HbI‐2/2, and HbI‐1/2 cod were 35.56% ± 1.24%, and 40.20% ± 1.99% air saturation, respectively), these results are contradictory to expectations based on HbI functional properties. Thus, our findings (1) do not support previous assumptions that growth rate differences among cod Hb genotypes result from a more efficient use of the oxygen supply—that is, reduced standard metabolic rates and/or increased metabolic capacity—and (2) suggest that in juvenile cod, there is no selective advantage to having a particular Hb genotype with regards to the capacity to withstand ecologically relevant environmental challenges.<br /
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