Nonlinear transport of Bose-Einstein condensates through mesoscopic waveguides

We study the coherent flow of interacting Bose-condensed atoms in mesoscopic waveguide geometries. Analytical and numerical methods, based on the mean-field description of the condensate, are developed to study both stationary as well as time-dependent propagation processes. We apply these methods to the propagation of a condensate through an atomic quantum dot in a waveguide, discuss the nonlinear transmission spectrum and show that resonant transport is generally suppressed due to an interaction-induced bistability phenomenon. Finally, we establish a link between the nonlinear features of the transmission spectrum and the self-consistent quasi-bound states of the quantum dot.Comment: 23 pages, 16 figure

Isoprostane in systemic sclerosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Objectives: To further the knowledge of oxidative stress in systemic sclerosis (SSc), we performed a systematic review and meta-analysis on studies measuring isoprostane, a vasoactive agent deriving from arachidonic acid and implicated in the vasculopathy of SSc. Methods: Systematic search following the PRISMA guidelines in PubMed and EMBASE between January-1990/December-2017 using the terms: oxidative stress, isoprostane, systemic sclerosis and scleroderma. Results: After the screening process, 8 studies including 240 SSc patients and 192 controls were included in the systematic review and meta-analysis, 6 investigating urinary and 2 serum isoprostane: random effect meta-analysis revealed isoprostane overgeneration in SSc (p <.001) with wide heterogeneity (I 2 = 75%). Subgroup analysis on urinary isoprostane favoured excess excretion in SSc (p =.009) with slightly lower heterogeneity (I 2 = 67%); further subgroup analysis according to unit of measurement revealed no increased isoprostane excretion when expressed as pg/mg creatinine but increased when expressed as pmol/mmol creatinine (p =.05) with medium heterogeneity (I 2 = 32%). Subgroup analysis on serum isoprostane favoured overproduction in SSc (p <.0001) with no heterogeneity. Conclusion: There is some evidence for isoprostane overgeneration in SSc that confirms the occurrence of oxidative stress in this setting: further prospective studies with specified outcomes are needed to evaluate the prognostic value of this functional biomarker

Antiphospholipid antibodies and renal transplant: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Objective: To evaluate the effect of antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL) on renal allograft outcome after kidney transplantation. Methods: A systematic search of EMBASE and PubMed databases from inception to July 2018 was run according to PRISMA guidelines; Peto's odds ratio (OR) for rare events was used for the meta-analysis. Results: Our inclusion/exclusion criteria were met by 22 cohort studies having different outcomes: allograft thrombosis (n = 9) and thromboprophylaxis (n = 3), allograft loss from any cause (n = 9), allograft malfunction (n = 3), duration (n = 2), glomerular filtration rate at 1 year (n = 3) and allograft rejection (n = 5). The pooled prevalence of allograft thrombosis and of thrombotic microangiopathy was greater in aPL+ve than negative recipients (10.4% vs 1.7%, p < 0.0001 and 10.2% vs 0%, p = 0.005, respectively). The pooled prevalence of allograft thrombosis was 75% in patients not taking anticoagulation whereas none of the anticoagulated recipients developed thrombosis (p < 0.0001). The pooled prevalence of allograft loss was greater in aPL+ve recipients (28% vs 18% respectively, p < 0.0001); the pooled prevalence of aPL was greater in allograft loss recipients compared to those who did not lose it (51% vs 33%, p < 0.0001). The pooled prevalence of allograft malfunction and rejection was similar in aPL−ve and aPL+ve recipients (32.2% vs 40.3% and 14.9% vs 14.4%, respectively) but graft duration was shorter in aPL+ve than aPL−ve recipients (p = 0.001) and glomerular filtration rate at 1 year was lower in aPL + ve than aPL−ve recipients (p < 0.0001). Conclusion: APL relate strongly to allograft thrombosis, loss and duration but not to allograft malfunction and rejection. Oral antivitamin K anticoagulants effectively prevent allograft thrombosis in aPL recipients. The debate on the role of aPL in renal transplant is limited by the expression of data as percentage of recipients positive for aPL rather than aPL titres in many studies

Reaction-diffusion systems with constant diffusivities: conditional symmetries and form-preserving transformations

Q-conditional symmetries (nonclassical symmetries) for a general class of two-component reaction-diffusion systems with constant diffusivities are studied. Using the recently introduced notion of Q-conditional symmetries of the first type (R. Cherniha J. Phys. A: Math. Theor., 2010. vol. 43., 405207), an exhaustive list of reaction-diffusion systems admitting such symmetry is derived. The form-preserving transformations for this class of systems are constructed and it is shown that this list contains only non-equivalent systems. The obtained symmetries permit to reduce the reaction-diffusion systems under study to two-dimensional systems of ordinary differential equations and to find exact solutions. As a non-trivial example, multiparameter families of exact solutions are explicitly constructed for two nonlinear reaction-diffusion systems. A possible interpretation to a biologically motivated model is presented

1H, 15N, and 13C chemical shift assignments of neuronal calcium sensor-1 homolog from fission yeast

The neuronal calcium sensor (NCS) proteins regulate signal transduction processes and are highly conserved from yeast to humans. We report complete NMR chemical shift assignments of the NCS homolog from fission yeast (Schizosaccharomyces pombe), referred to in this study as Ncs1p. (BMRB no. 16446)

Optimization of an Alkylpolyglucoside-Based Dishwashing Detergent Formulation.

The aim of this work was to formulate and optimize the washing performance of an alkylpolyglucoside-based dishwashing detergent. The liquid detergent was formulated with five ingredients of commercial origin: anionic (linear sodium alkylbenzenesulfonate and sodium laurylethersulfate), nonionic (C12–C14 alkylpolyglucoside) and zwitterionic (a fatty acid amide derivative with a betaine structure) surfactants, and NaCl for viscosity control. In addition to the plate test, other properties were investigated including ‘‘cloud point’’, viscosity, and emulsion stability. Statistical analysis software was used to generate a central composite experimental design. Then, a second order design and analysis of experiments approach, known as the Response Surface Methodology, was set up to investigate the effects of the five components of the formulation on the studied properties in the region covering plausible component ranges. The method proved to be efficient for locating the domains of concentrations where the desired properties were met

First Penning-trap mass measurement in the millisecond half-life range: the exotic halo nucleus 11Li

In this letter, we report a new mass for $^{11}$Li using the trapping experiment TITAN at TRIUMF's ISAC facility. This is by far the shortest-lived nuclide, $t_{1/2} = 8.8 \rm{ms}$, for which a mass measurement has ever been performed with a Penning trap. Combined with our mass measurements of $^{8,9}$Li we derive a new two-neutron separation energy of 369.15(65) keV: a factor of seven more precise than the best previous value. This new value is a critical ingredient for the determination of the halo charge radius from isotope-shift measurements. We also report results from state-of-the-art atomic-physics calculations using the new mass and extract a new charge radius for $^{11}$Li. This result is a remarkable confluence of nuclear and atomic physics.Comment: Formatted for submission to PR

Charge state breeding with an ECRIS for ISAC at TRIUMF

For the acceleration of radioactive ions the usable mass range is limited by the A/q acceptance of the first accelerator stage. Since an efficient primary ion source normally produces singly charged ions, charge state breeding is necessary if higher masses are to be accelerated. At TRIUMF an ECR source has been chosen as a breeder due to its potential high efficiency in producing intermediate A/q values. To minimize the necessity for further stripping an A/q around 6 is desirable. A 14 GHz "PHOENIX" booster from Pantechnik has been set up on a test bench. The singly charged ions are produced from different ion sources, wihich can be mounted in a standard ISAC target-ion-source set-up. For the first tests an ECR source to produce noble gas beams has been chosen. The aim of the measurements at the test bench is to find the optimum operation conditions of the charge state booster and the injection and extraction ion optics. Working with radioactive ions always means that the system should aim for high efficiency, as the production of such species is limited. Therefore, special emphasis has to be put on the highest yield for the production of the desired charge state. A second point is the analysis of the extracted beam quality in order to optimize mass separation and transport efficiency. The paper shows the status of the set-up and reports on first results of the charge breeding of Ar, Ne and Xe. With Xe a total efficiency of 22.5% has been achieved

Academic achievement : the role of praise in motivating students

The motivation of students is an important issue in higher education, particularly in the context of the increasing diversity of student populations. A social-cognitive perspective assumes motivation to be dynamic, context-sensitive and changeable, thereby rendering it to be a much more differentiated construct than previously understood. This complexity may be perplexing to tutors who are keen to develop applications to improve academic achievement. One application that is within the control of the tutor, at least to some extent, is the use of praise. Using psychological literature the article argues that in motivating students, the tutor is not well served by relying on simplistic and common sense understandings of the construct of praise and that effective applications of praise are mediated by students' goal orientations, which of themselves may be either additive or interactive composites of different objectives and different contexts