Can Effects of Dark Matter be Explained by the Turbulent Flow of Spacetime?

For the past forty years the search for dark matter has been one of the primary foci of astrophysics, although there has yet to be any direct evidence for its existence (Porter et al. 2011). Indirect evidence for the existence of dark matter is largely rooted in the rotational speeds of stars within their host galaxies, where, instead of having a ~ r^1/2 radial dependence, stars appear to have orbital speeds independent of their distance from the galactic center, which led to proposed existence of dark matter (Porter et al. 2011; Peebles 1993). We propose an alternate explanation for the observed stellar motions within galaxies, combining the standard treatment of a fluid-like spacetime with the possibility of a "bulk flow" of mass through the Universe. The differential "flow" of spacetime could generate vorticies capable of providing the "perceived" rotational speeds in excess of those predicted by Newtonian mechanics. Although a more detailed analysis of our theory is forthcoming, we find a crude "order of magnitude" calculation can explain this phenomena. We also find that this can be used to explain the graviational lensing observed around globular clusters like "Bullet Cluster".Comment: 5 pages, Accepted for publication in Journal of Modern Physics: Gravitation and Cosmology (Sept. 2012

Black holes and wormholes subject to conformal mappings

Solutions of the field equations of theories of gravity which admit distinct conformal frame representations can look very different in these frames. We show that Brans class IV solutions describe wormholes in the Jordan frame (in a certain parameter range) but correspond to horizonless geometries in the Einstein frame. The reasons for such a change of behaviour under conformal mappings are elucidated in general, using Brans IV solutions as an example.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figure

Social perception and executive function following stroke

Components of social perception include the ability to recognise and interpret both verbal and non-verbal emotional cues, such as vocal tone and facial expression. Functional brain imaging studies have shown that the frontal cortex of the brain is more active during tasks involving social and emotional perception (Baron-Cohen et ah, 1994). Individuals with frontal lobe lesions have been shown to have acquired difficulties in emotional and social functioning similar to those in which social functioning deficits are frequently observed, such as people with autism (Baron-Cohen, 1985). Difficulties in emotional perception has also been found in individuals who have sustained a brain injury (Cicone et ah, 1980). Additionally, acquired social perception deficits have been observed in stroke patients (Happe et ah, 1999). Executive functioning is also seen as being mediated by the frontal cortex (Dela Salla et ah, 1998). The aim of this present study was to investigate executive function and social perception in post-stroke individuals.The hypotheses were that stroke patients would show a reduced ability in social perception compared to matched controls and that executive functioning would be positively associated with social perception. Twenty-two individuals who had experienced a stroke were assessed on tasks of executive function and compared to a control group on tasks of emotional perception and social awareness.The results were analysed within and between groups and are discussed with reference to theories linking executive function and social perception with the frontal cortex. The findings of this present study indicated no significant differences in the recognition of emotion between individuals who have sustained lesions to the brain following stroke and age-matched controls. Also, no significant differences were found on tasks of social perception relative to controls. However, there is some evidence to suggest that the control group may have performed at an unexpectedly low level. Significant and positive associations were observed between executive function and both emotion recognition tasks and tasks of social perception. Methodological issues and conclusions are discussed

A Strategic Soil Nitrogen Test For Flooded Rice

From 1998 until 2002 a project to develop a soil nitrogen (N) test for flooded rice was conducted in the Rice CRC. The reason for wanting such a test for the Australian rice industry is that N fertiliser is used more efficiently when applied before sowing so it is economically and environmentally preferable for as much as possible of the optimum amount of N fertiliser to be applied at that time. However excessive N applied before sowing leads to a high risk of yield loss due to cold damage. The aim was to develop a system to forecast the optimum N supply for pre-flood application and minimize the amount being topdressed which has been a safe, but inefficient system. The method of developing the test was first to compare the near infrared reflectance (NIR) spectra with crop productivity and N mineralisation measured by wet chemistry. These measurements were made with soil from 22 previous experiments measuring yield response to N applied at sowing. There were close relationships of the NIR spectra with crop productivity and N mineralisation but because of the small data set the relationships had little predictive value. However the close relationships found between NIRS, N mineralisation measured in the laboratory and crop performance encouraged us to proceed with further studies. A more detailed study related soil mineralisation across farms to crop performance. Seventeen methods of mineralisation were tested and the most reliable was found to be anaerobic incubation at 40°C for 21 days. This method predicted the optimum N requirement with a standard error of about 75 kgN/ha, which is clearly unsatisfactory for an industry where the average amount of N fertiliser applied is 145 kgN/ha. A possible reason for the low correlation between mineralisation and crop performance was that other factors were limiting N response. There was some evidence that sowing date and deficiencies of other nutrients were partly responsible for the variability of the N response. However it is unlikely that including information about these factors would lift the soil-N test to acceptable accuracy for commercial use. The most likely reason for the low correlation was that the soil depth used for mineralisation measurements was poorly defined because of the widespread levelling of rice fields which led to different depths of topsoil. Two options are proposed for more reliable application of N fertiliser at the time of sowing. Both require further research. One is to use the existing soil test only to identify soils with large amounts of potentially mineralisable N. Such a test could be the basis of a recommendation to apply little or no N fertiliser before sowing. Rice growers would still have the option of topdressing N fertiliser at the panicle initiation stage. The advantage of using a test in this way is that it is most unlikely to result in ‘false positives’, i.e. - recommendations for excessive N fertiliser leading to yield reductions. The other option is to set up a system of zone management for N fertiliser based on the likely N mineralisation in different parts of a rice field. The results in this project suggest that yield responses are more accurately predicted by sodicity than by the soil N test. It is likely that sodicity is a good indication of the depth of topsoil cut in the process of levelling. If this result is shown to be general, maps of ‘cut and fill’ areas may help in deciding the optimum amount of N fertiliser. Evidence from the Ricecheck database shows that about 10% of rice paddocks receive too much N fertiliser at sowing and suffer a large yield reduction. This leads to an annual loss of about $18 m. While this project has not led to a solution to this problem, the two suggestions arising from the project offer methods to reduce the problem

Alien Registration- Russell, Angus F. (Presque Isle, Aroostook County)

https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/33452/thumbnail.jp

Polar ring galaxies as tests of gravity

Polar ring galaxies are ideal objects with which to study the three-dimensional shapes of galactic gravitational potentials since two rotation curves can be measured in two perpendicular planes. Observational studies have uncovered systematically larger rotation velocities in the extended polar rings than in the associated host galaxies. In the dark matter context, this can only be explained through dark halos that are systematically flattened along the polar rings. Here, we point out that these objects can also be used as very effective tests of gravity theories, such as those based on Milgromian dynamics (MOND). We run a set of polar ring models using both Milgromian and Newtonian dynamics to predict the expected shapes of the rotation curves in both planes, varying the total mass of the system, the mass of the ring with respect to the host, as well as the size of the hole at the center of the ring. We find that Milgromian dynamics not only naturally leads to rotation velocities being typically higher in the extended polar rings than in the hosts, as would be the case in Newtonian dynamics without dark matter, but that it also gets the shape and amplitude of velocities correct. Milgromian dynamics thus adequately explains this particular property of polar ring galaxies.Comment: 9 pages, 8 Figures, 1 Table, Accepted for publication by MNRA

Spatial mapping of splicing factor complexes involved in exon and intron definition

We have analyzed the interaction between serine/arginine-rich (SR) proteins and splicing components that recognize either the 5′ or 3′ splice site. Previously, these interactions have been extensively characterized biochemically and are critical for both intron and exon definition. We use fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) microscopy to identify interactions of individual SR proteins with the U1 small nuclear ribonucleoprotein (snRNP)–associated 70-kD protein (U1 70K) and with the small subunit of the U2 snRNP auxiliary factor (U2AF35) in live-cell nuclei. We find that these interactions occur in the presence of RNA polymerase II inhibitors, demonstrating that they are not exclusively cotranscriptional. Using FRET imaging by means of fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM), we map these interactions to specific sites in the nucleus. The FLIM data also reveal a previously unknown interaction between HCC1, a factor related to U2AF65, with both subunits of U2AF. Spatial mapping using FLIM-FRET reveals differences in splicing factors interactions within complexes located in separate subnuclear domains

Electroweak Theory Without Higgs Bosons

A perturbative SU(2)_L X U(1)_Y electroweak theory containing W, Z, photon, ghost, lepton and quark fields, but no Higgs or other fields, gives masses to W, Z and the non-neutrino fermions by means of an unconventional choice for the unperturbed Lagrangian and a novel method of renormalisation. The renormalisation extends to all orders. The masses emerge on renormalisation to one loop. To one loop the neutrinos are massless, the A -> Z transition drops out of the theory, the d quark is unstable and S-matrix elements are independent of the gauge parameter xi.Comment: 27 pages, LaTex, no figures; revised for publication; accepted by Int. J. Mod. Phys. A; includes biographical note on A. F. Nicholso