7,079 research outputs found

    The Petrogenesis of the Early Permian Variscan granites of the Cornubian Batholith - lower plate post-collisional peraluminous magmatism in the Rhenohercynian Zone of SW England

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    This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from the publisher via the DOI in this record.The Early Permian Cornubian Batholith was generated during an extensional regime following Variscan convergence within the Rhenohercynian Zone of SW England. Its component granites can be classified, using mineralogical, textural and geochemical criteria, into five main types, all of which are peraluminous (A/CNK >1.1): G1 (two-mica), G2 (muscovite), G3 (biotite), G4 (tourmaline) and G5 (topaz). G1 granites formed through up to 20% muscovite and minor biotite dehydration melting of a metagreywacke source at moderate temperatures and pressures (731-806°C, >5 kbar). Younger G3 granites formed through higher temperature, lower pressure (768-847°C, <4 kbar) biotite-dominated melting of a similar source. Partial melting was strongly influenced by the progressive lower-mid crustal emplacement of mafic igneous rocks during post-Variscan extension and a minor (<5- 10%) mantle-derived component in the granites is possible. Two distinct fractionation series, G1-G2 and G3-G4, are defined using whole rock geochemical and mineral chemical data. Variations in the major elements, Ba, Sr and Rb indicate that G1 and G3 granites underwent 15-30% fractionation of an assemblage dominated by plagioclase, alkali feldspar and biotite to form, more evolved G2 and G4 granites respectively. Decreasing whole rock abundances of Zr, Th and REE support fractionation of zircon, monazite, apatite and allanite. Subsolidus alteration in G2 and G4 granites is indicated by non-primary muscovite and tourmaline and modification of major and trace element trends for G3-G4 granites, particularly for P2O5 and Rb. Topaz (G5) granites show low Zr, REE and extreme enrichment in Rb (up to 1530 ppm) and Nb (79 ppm) that cannot be related in a straightforward manner to continued differentiation of the G1-G2 or G3-G4 series. Instead, they are considered to represent partial melting, mediated by granulite facies fluids, of a biotite-rich restite following extraction of G1 and/or G3 magmas; they do not exhibit the typical geochemical characteristics of intraplate A-type granites.This study was supported by the European Regional Development Fund and European Social Fund as part of the convergence funding for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly (Combined Universities in Cornwall project number11200NCO5), supporting a PhD for BS, and the European Union (Horizon 2020 project 641650 FAME). The Natural History Museum, London, UK are thanked for the loan of samples. We thank Richard Scrivener and Nicholas LeBoutillier for help with sampling. Steve Pendray, Sharon Uren and Joe Pickles assisted with the sample preparation and analysis. Axel Müller and Karel Breiter are thanked for discussions about topaz granites. We gratefully acknowledge Romain Tartèse and an anonymous reviewer for their constructive comments which helped to improve the manuscript

    On the effect of the inter-lamellar behaviour in a finite element model of the annulus fibrosus

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    Age-related differences in adaptation during childhood: The influences of muscular power production and segmental energy flow caused by muscles

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    Acquisition of skillfulness is not only characterized by a task-appropriate application of muscular forces but also by the ability to adapt performance to changing task demands. Previous research suggests that there is a different developmental schedule for adaptation at the kinematic compared to the neuro-muscular level. The purpose of this study was to determine how age-related differences in neuro-muscular organization affect the mechanical construction of pedaling at different levels of the task. By quantifying the flow of segmental energy caused by muscles, we determined the muscular synergies that construct the movement outcome across movement speeds. Younger children (5-7 years; n = 11), older children (8-10 years; n = 8), and adults (22-31 years; n = 8) rode a stationary ergometer at five discrete cadences (60, 75, 90, 105, and 120 rpm) at 10% of their individually predicted peak power output. Using a forward dynamics simulation, we determined the muscular contributions to crank power, as well as muscular power delivered to the crank directly and indirectly (through energy absorption and transfer) during the downstroke and the upstroke of the crank cycle. We found significant age Ă— cadence interactions for (1) peak muscular power at the hip joint [Wilks' Lambda = 0.441, F(8,42) = 2.65, p = 0.019] indicating that at high movement speeds children produced less peak power at the hip than adults, (2) muscular power delivered to the crank during the downstroke and the upstroke of the crank cycle [Wilks' Lambda = 0.399, F(8,42) = 3.07, p = 0.009] indicating that children delivered a greater proportion of the power to the crank during the upstroke when compared to adults, (3) hip power contribution to limb power [Wilks' Lambda = 0.454, F(8,42) = 2.54, p = 0.023] indicating a cadence-dependence of age-related differences in the muscular synergy between hip extensors and plantarflexors. The results demonstrate that in spite of a successful performance, children construct the task of pedaling differently when compared to adults, especially when they are pushed to their performance limits. The weaker synergy between hip extensors and plantarflexors suggests that a lack of inter-muscular coordination, rather than muscular power production per se, is a factor that limits children's performance ranges

    Learning environment associated with use of mixed mode delivery model among secondary business studies students in Singapore

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    At many teacher education institutes around the world, preservice teachers are empowered to use pedagogical tools and strategies that engage their students. We used a modified version of the Constructivist Learning Environment Survey (CLES) to evaluate the effectiveness of a pedagogical model known as the Mixed Mode Delivery (MMD) model in terms of the CLES’s five scales of personal relevance, uncertainty, critical voice, shared control and negotiation. Comparisons were made between 2,216 secondary school students taught by the preservice teachers in an MMD group and 991 students in a control group in terms of the relative magnitudes of the gap between the actual and preferred learning environment in students’ school classrooms. The findings supported the positive impact of using MMD in terms of students’ perceptions of their classroom environments for all CLES scales

    A network-based dynamical ranking system for competitive sports

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    From the viewpoint of networks, a ranking system for players or teams in sports is equivalent to a centrality measure for sports networks, whereby a directed link represents the result of a single game. Previously proposed network-based ranking systems are derived from static networks, i.e., aggregation of the results of games over time. However, the score of a player (or team) fluctuates over time. Defeating a renowned player in the peak performance is intuitively more rewarding than defeating the same player in other periods. To account for this factor, we propose a dynamic variant of such a network-based ranking system and apply it to professional men's tennis data. We derive a set of linear online update equations for the score of each player. The proposed ranking system predicts the outcome of the future games with a higher accuracy than the static counterparts.Comment: 6 figure

    The transition from granite to banded aplite-pegmatite sheet complexes: An example from Megiliggar rocks, Tregonning topaz granite, Cornwall

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    This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Elsevier via the DOI in this record.The genetic relationship between a granite pluton and adjacent complex of rare-metal pegmatite-aplite-banded sheets (Megiliggar Sheet Complex - MSC) has been studied at the border of the Tregonning topaz granite at Megiliggar Rocks, Cornwall, SW England. Similarities in whole-rock chemical and mineralogical compositions, together with a gradual change in textures away from the granite margin, provide strong evidence for a genetic link between the Tregonning Granite and MSC. The sheets are likely to represent apophyses of residual melt which escaped from the largely crystallised roof of the granite pluton. The escaping melt was peraluminous, had a composition near the F, B, Li slightly enriched granite minimum, and, in comparison with other Cornish granites, was enriched in F, Li, Rb, Cs, Sn, W, Nb, Ta, and U, and depleted in Fe, Mg, Ca, Sr, Th, Zr, and REE. With increasing distance from the Tregonning Granite, the silicate melt crystallised as homogeneous leucogranite sheets and banded complex sheets (i.e. combinations of bands with granitic, aplitic and pegmatitic textures), then layered aplite-pegmatites; this sequence becoming progressively more depleted in the fluxing and volatile elements F, Li, Rb, and Cs, but showing no change in Zr/Hf ratios. The fixed Zr/Hf ratio is interpreted as indicating a direct genetic link (parental melt) between all rock types, however the melt progressively lost fluxing and volatile elements with distance from the granite pluton, probably due to wall-rock reaction or fluid exsolution and migration via fractures. Differentiation of the primary melt into Na-Li-F-rich and separate K-B-rich domains was the dominant chemical process responsible for the textural and mineral diversity of the MSC. On a large (cliff-section) scale, the proximal Na-Li-F-rich leucogranite passes through complex sheets into K-B-rich aplite-pegmatites, whilst at a smaller (< 1 m) scale, the K-B-rich bands are interspersed (largely overlain) by Na-Li-F-rich segregations. The grain size differences between the aplite and pegmatite could be related to pressure fluctuations and/or undercooling.Laser-ablation ICP-MS analyses of micas and tourmaline in Masaryk University Brno were supported by the Czech Science Foundation project No. GA14-13600S. All other analytical work for this contribution was supported by the RVO 67985831 in the Institute of Geology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Praha. We are grateful to P. Davidson and an anonymous referee for their reviews

    Field-study science classrooms as positive and enjoyable learning environments

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    We investigated differences between field-study classrooms and traditional science classrooms in terms of the learning environment and students’ attitudes to science, as well as the differential effectiveness of field-study classrooms for students differing in sex and English proficiency. A modified version of selected scales from the What Is Happening In this Class? questionnaire was used to assess the learning environment, whereas students’ attitudes were assessed with a shortened version of a scale from the Test of Science Related Attitudes. A sample of 765 grade 5 students from 17 schools responded to the learning environment and attitude scales in terms of both their traditional science classrooms and classrooms at a field-study centre in Florida. Large effect sizes supported the effectiveness of the field-studies classroom in terms of both the learning environment and student attitudes. Relative to the home school science class, the field-study class was considerably more effective for students with limited English proficiency than for native English speakers

    Towards an Efficient Finite Element Method for the Integral Fractional Laplacian on Polygonal Domains

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    We explore the connection between fractional order partial differential equations in two or more spatial dimensions with boundary integral operators to develop techniques that enable one to efficiently tackle the integral fractional Laplacian. In particular, we develop techniques for the treatment of the dense stiffness matrix including the computation of the entries, the efficient assembly and storage of a sparse approximation and the efficient solution of the resulting equations. The main idea consists of generalising proven techniques for the treatment of boundary integral equations to general fractional orders. Importantly, the approximation does not make any strong assumptions on the shape of the underlying domain and does not rely on any special structure of the matrix that could be exploited by fast transforms. We demonstrate the flexibility and performance of this approach in a couple of two-dimensional numerical examples

    A cohesive interface approach to model the inter-lamellar behaviour of the intervertebral disc annulus fibrosus

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    INTRODUCTION - The method of representing the inter-lamellar behaviour in Finite Element (FE) models of the disc has been shown to affect the gross disc mechanics [1]. This study aim was to develop an approach to produce inter-lamellar models of the Annulus Fibrosus, i.e. constitutive models of interaction between lamellae. METHODS (Figure 1) - Mature ovine intervertebral discs were used in the present study as a model for the discs of the human lumbar spine. The annulus fibrosus was dissected and radial slices were subjected to mechanical tests. Images were taken under conventional and differential interference contrast (DIC) microscopy. The images before and during loading were used to produce 2D computational models of the annulus structural behaviour. The DIC images were analysed (ImageJ, U.S. N.I.H., USA) to extract the edges between lamellae and converted into quadrilateral FE meshes (ScanIP 5.1, Simpleware Ltd, UK, and Abaqus 6.12, Dassault Systèmes). Each lamella was modelled with Holzapfel’s anisotropic hyperelastic constitutive behaviour, with one fibre orientation per lamella. For this, model parameters were identified to fit to experimental data on the behaviour of tissue components (the proteoglycan matrix and the collagen fibres) [1]. Several modelling hypotheses were tested for the inter-lamellar behaviour: fully bonded conditions, simple frictionless behaviour, friction behaviour with a Coulomb contact, and delamination behaviour, with or without friction, through the use of a cohesive interface model. Displacement boundary conditions were applied reproducing the measured external displacement on the conventional microscopy images. Adequacy of the inter-lamellar behaviour model was assessed by comparing computational and experimental deformed geometries, specifically the change in lamellar interfaces

    Quantum Key Distribution using Multilevel Encoding: Security Analysis

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    We present security proofs for a protocol for Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) based on encoding in finite high-dimensional Hilbert spaces. This protocol is an extension of Bennett's and Brassard's basic protocol from two bases, two state encoding to a multi bases, multi state encoding. We analyze the mutual information between the legitimate parties and the eavesdropper, and the error rate, as function of the dimension of the Hilbert space, while considering optimal incoherent and coherent eavesdropping attacks. We obtain the upper limit for the legitimate party error rate to ensure unconditional security when the eavesdropper uses incoherent and coherent eavesdropping strategies. We have also consider realistic noise caused by detector's noise.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figures, REVTe
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